A DISCOURSE Concerning the EXISTENCE OF GOD. BY EDWARD PELLING, D. D. Rector of Petworth in Sussex, and Chaplain in Ordinary to His Majesty. LONDON: Printed for William Rogers, at the Sun against St. Dunstan's Church in Fleet street. MDCXCVI. THE CONTENTS. THE Introduction. Page 1 CHAP. 1. Concerning the Notion of God in general; viz. A Being that is Eminently and Absolutely Perfect. What such Perfection meaneth. A more particular Notion of God drawn out by Necessary Consequences. That he is a Being Independent, Eternal, Spiritual, Intelligent, Omnipotent, perfectly Good and Righteous. This Idea of God is Intelligible and Rational. 7 CHAP. II. The Existence of this most Perfect Being proved by Four great Arguments. First, The Necessity of a First, Independent Cause: The Origine of all Motion and Life. The World not Eternal, but made by a Deity. 37 CHAP. III. Secondly, The general Consent of Mankind, even the Ancient Heathens, and Modern Idolaters, touching One Supreme Numon. The Singularity of a few Atheists of old, not to be valued. This Consent proceeded not from mere Tradition, nor Fear, nor State-Polity, nor Common Compact; but from a Principle in Humane Nature, derived from the Great Author of it. No Argument of the truth of Idolatry. 54 CHAP. IV. Thirdly, Extraordinary Occurrences. As, first, Miracles. Three sorts of True Miracles. These, Arguments of a God. True Miracles have been realy done. The Credibility of those done by Moses, and Jesus Christ. Of Strange Works done by Idolaters. A distinction between Miracles in Appearance, and Miracles Divine. 107 CHAP. V Then, Predictions of future, contingent Events. Such Predictions there have been; some relating to the Ancient Empires; others to Jesus Christ; others to some memorable Events after Christ's Ascension. 161 CHAP. VI A Fourth Argument of the Existence of God, is taken from the Admirable State of the Universe. And, First, Of the Excellent Order into which the several parts of the world are digested. Their Commodious Situation. Their mutual Relation. And the Permanency of them in their Natures and Operations. All this could not come to pass by Chance; but is a Proof of the Existence of a God. The Senseless Conceits of Sceptics; with a Confutation of them. 191 CHAP. VII. A Second thing observable in the State of the Universe, is the Beauty of its Parts; their Multitudes, Splendour, Variety; together with the Comeliness of their Frame. The Pretences of Sceptics answered, concerning the Operations of Plastic Nature. 257 CHAP. VIII. The Third is, The Usefulness of the several Parts of this Visible Word. First as to their Ends and Tendencies: The Usefulness of the Heavenly Bodies in their Nature and Motions: Of the Air; of the Seas, and their Saltness; of Springs, and Mountains; and of all the Furniture of the Earth. The useful Structure of things in order to their Ends; particularly of Trees, and Animals; of Natrition and Sensation in Animals; and of the Fabrication of their Parts in order thereunto. The Evasion of Sceptics concerning the Uses of things, answered. 285 CHAP. IX. The Fourth is, The resemblance of Knowledge and Wisdom which appears even in Irrational Creatures. The constant Regularity of them in the manner of their Operations; and the seeming Sagacity of them, as to their Ends. This a clear Argument of a Deity; because of themselves they design no End; nor do they understand the Reason, or Tendency of Means; nor do they deliberate about the choice of Means. This too is a demonstration of the Existence of God. The Shifts of Atheists, as to this, considered also. 352 CHAP. X. The Fifth is, The Ample Provision which is made for the good of all Needy Creatures: For their Formation and Production, and for their Preservation afterwards from outward Assaults, and untimely Deaths: Proper Food provided in all Climates; and suitable to all Conditions and Tempers. Proper Remedies for all Endemial Diseases. 385 CHAP. XI. The Sixth is, The Admirable Frame of Human Nature. The Excellence of the Rational Soul in its Nature and Faculties, which is proved at large to be a manifestation of the Existence of a God. The Evasions of Sceptics considered. The Conclusion. 419 A DISCOURSE Concerning the Existence of GOD. THE Nature of Mankind, considered as Rational Being's, is made up of such Faculties, that they are not only capable of Religion (that is, sitted and qualified to believe that there is a Being vastly Superior to them, and to know and worship that High Being in some agreeable sort and measure); but they are moreover generally inclined to Religion, prone to it, and pleased with it, as a thing which is suitable and correspondent to their Faculties; so that in all Ages, and in all Nations, people have professed some kind of Religion or other: Nay even Barbarous People, rather than they would be wanting in Religious Performances, have abounded in great variety of Supersitions; and before they would be Atheists, have been downright Idolaters; adoring a plurality of Gods, rather than they would own no Deity at all; which shows that Religion is in some sense natural to the Soul of man; and that the Corruption which is in men's Practices, proceeds from a defect of Light in their Understandings, from those many Ignorances' and Errors wherewith they are possessed. Were it not for this, True Religion would be the great Profession of the whole World. There are especially Three Great Errors which have strangely misguided and corrupted the minds of some men, and consequently have taken off that power and influence, which otherwise Religion would have had over them, even from natural Conscience: And these relate, either to the Being of God, or to his Nature, or to his Government of the World, and Judiciary power over it. 1. First, Some reject all belief of God's Being, or at least question very much the truth of such a Belief; and so of course conceive Religion to be, not of Divine, but Humane Institution; a piece of State-Policy, devised and set up by cunning men, for the better keeping of Human Societies in order and peace. To such men Religion must needs seem an indifferent matter, not worth their time or pains to concern themselves much about, nor to care whether this or that mode of Religion be professed, because they look upon all Religion as an Artifice, an Invention that is alterable at pleasure, as the Reasons of State, and Civil Policy require. 2. Secondly, Some acknowledge the Being of God, together with the inward Necessity, Reasonableness, and Excellency of Religion in general; but yet are much mistaken as to the particular manner of their Religion, and in their way of worshipping God; because they are greatly mistaken in their notions of his Nature. For they apprehend him to be not such as he really is, but such a one as they would have him be; either a very tame and gentle Being, that is easily pleased with formal Professions of Respect; or a very Partial Being, that is kind only to one Sect of People; or an Arbitrary, Austere, and Rigid Being, that seeketh to hurt, and delighteth in the Miseries of Mankind. Accordingly, as their Apprehensions of God's Nature are, so they form and suit the Scheme of their Religion towards him; which must needs be still as uncouth and improper, as those Principles are false, upon which the whole model of their Religious Worship stands. 3. Thirdly, Some are willing enough to believe the Reality of God's Being, and the glorious Excellence of his Nature; but yet conceive, that he is so happy in himself, and in the enjoyment of his own Perfections, that he doth not meddle with the Tumultuous Affairs of the Sublunary World, nor takes any notice of the Actions of men; and consequently, that he will not take men to an account for their Actions another day. And as long as they go upon this Principle, what venerable thoughts soever they may have of the Divine Majesty, it cannot be expected that they should have any great regard for themselves; but that their Lives will be very dissolute and irreligious. Therefore, to retrench these Evils, and to settle True Religion upon its right bottom, these Three things are highly necessary to be done. 1. First, To convince men of the Reality of God's Existence; which is the Prime, the Fundamental Business of all Religion; For he that cometh to God, must believe that he is, saith the Apostle, Heb. 11. 6. And the thing is self-evident: For all Religion being supposed to be directed towards God, and to terminate in him, before men can be satisfied of the Necessity or Usefulness of Religion, they must be persuaded of the Reality of God's Existence. As that Great Man of a Pagan, Cicero, De Nat. Deor. lib. 1. observes: If there be no God, or if God takes no care of Humane Affairs, what Piety, Sanctity, or Religion can there be? for these things relate purely, and properly, and only to the Majesty of God, upon this Supposition, That God takes notice of them; and that God is a Rewarder of Mankind. But if God cannot do us good, or will not do it; if he be not at all concerned for us, nor observes what we do, nor gives us any thing that is of use to the Life of men; what encouragement can there be for us to offer Worship, Honour, and Prayers unto him? 2. Secondly, It is necessary also to give men a right account of those Attributes and Perfections which are the Splendour of God's Nature: Because, as his Nature is the Standard or Rule of all Religious Worship that is acceptable to him (for what is not agreeable to his Nature, can never be grateful to his Mind) so is the true knowledge of his Nature the greatest motive to those Acts of Worship which are wellpleasing to him; (for what can more induce you to adore him with Prayers and Praises, with Reverence, Cheerfulness, and Love, than to be well assured, that the Object of your Adoration is a Being infinitely Wise, Righteous, Powerful, and Good?) 3. Thirdly, It is necessary likewise to show the Acts and Ends of God's Providence, as well as to prove his Existence, and to explain his Attributes: That he is no Retired Being, no Careless Governor, no Unconcerned Spectator of Affairs here below; but that he doth dispose, order, and superintend all things now, that at last he may judge the World in Righteousness, and may show himself a Rewarder of them who diligently seek him. For, as this doth excite men to humility, patience, resignation, self-denial, and to all manner of obedience to God's Will, so it naturally serves to make them work out their salvation with fear and trembling. These Three things being of such apparent Use, and of such vast Concernment and Importance, I shall adventure, by God's assistance and blessing, to discourse of them in some little measure suitable to my own poor Abilities; and that in as clear, as succinct, and as practical a manner as I can; though I am sensible beforehand what Difficulties must occur upon so Divine a Subject, and what Time and Labour it must cost to go through so great an Undertaking. At present I shall enter upon the Consideration of God's Existence; most humbly beseeching that Father of Lights, of whose Essence and Perfections I presume to speak, so to illuminate my Understanding, and to direct my Heart, that I may not conceive any thing that shall in any wise detract from the Honour of a Being so transcendently Great, so Glorious, so Adorable. CHAP. I. IN treating of this Fundamental Point, the Existence of God, I shall cast the Sum of my following Meditations under these Principal Heads, as the Boundaries of this whole Discourse. I. First, It must be enquired, what the Notion of God implies and signifies; or what is meant by that Appellation. II. Secondly, It must be showed, that there really is a Supreme and Blessed Being, whom we call GOD. III. And then Thirdly, It must be considered, what Practical Inferences may be deduced from this Truth. I. First, As to the first Principal Head, concerning the Notion of God; it is either general, or more particular: Both which being rightly considered, it will evidently appear, what conception or notion we have in our minds, when we think of that Nature, or Being, which is called by the name of God. 1. In general, The notion of God signifies a Being which is eminently and absolutely Perfect. Though we cannot give a full definition of that Being, because it is impossible for our finite and scanty Faculties to entertain a conception that is exactly answerable and adequate to a Nature supposed to be Infinite; yet this is an intelligible description of God, and the best description we can make for a short one; That God is in the highest degree the most perfect of all Being's, which either have an existence, or are possible to exist. How different soever the Name of God be in the several Languages of the World; and how various soever those ways have been, whereby people in all Countries have expressed their thoughts of God; all men who have believed and spoken of a Supreme Numen, or Deity, did mean a Nature distinct from all other things, and the Best, the Noblest, the most Excellent and Admirable; that is, a most Perfect Being. That I may open this matter throughly, I must desire you to observe Two things. 1. First, That the Perfection of a thing is that wherein the worth and excellence of it doth chief consist. As, in Inanimate Bodies, the perfection of them is Substance, for in that they excel a Shadow. In Vegetables, the perfection of them is Life; for in that they excel Minerals and Stones. In Animals, the perfection of them is Sense; for in that they excel all Plants, and Trees. And in Men, the perfection of them is Reason; for in that they excel all Brutes. So that for a thing to be perfect, is to possess that dignity and valuableness which chiefly belongs to its Nature. 2. You must note, That Eminent and Absolute Perfection consisteth in possessing after a singular manner, and in the highest degree, all kind of Excellence, without the least mixture of Defect, or Imperfection. Such Defects and Imperfections there are in all Creatures. In all Bodies there is Substance; but such as is wrapped up in Matter, which is a great imperfection in comparison of Spirituality. In all Vegetables there is Life; but such as is subject to decay, which in them is imperfection. In all Animals there is Sense, or Perception; but such as is attended with Fear, Grief, Anger, and other disquieting Passions, which are so many Imperfections in their Nature. In Men, there is Reason; but such as is blemished with Ignorance and Errors; and the knowledge they have, is acquired by the great labours of the Mind, by Contemplation and Study, by close arguing from one thing to another, and by a long train of thoughts, which follow each other successively, and are gradually spun out of the Soul by the painful operations of the Rational Faculties; all which shows the Defects and Imperfections that are in Humane Nature also. And as for those Blessed Spirits above, which we call Angels, though there be in them a perfection of Understanding, without dulness, pain, or laborious activity; and though there be too rectitude in their Wills, regularity in their Affections, and all moral Perfections which make them happy, yet is their Knowledge limited; and for their whole Being, they depend upon the Will and Pleasure of a Superior Power, that at first created, and still preserves them; which argues imperfection in them likewise, although they be the noblest part of the Universe. Go through every Classis and sort of Individuals in the World, and you will find in all of them some Deficiencies which are annexed to their Principal and Best Part; so that though they be all perfect in their kind, and sit for the Ends for which they were form, yet they fall vastly short of Eminent and Absolute Perfection: For such Perfection is to have all kinds of Excellence, and all degrees of Excellence, clear and free from all manner of Defect, indigence, or Incapacity. Now the Notion of God includes this Absolute Perfection. For that word, GOD, speaks a Being that is most Excellent: So that supposing a Deity to be, and to be the Cause of all Inferior things (which the Notion of God implies too) you must necessarily conceive of him, as the Being, in whom all those Perfections are united, as in a Centre, which are divided in the World; and that they are all in Him in a most eminent and excellent Degree. For no Being can give those Perfections which some way or other it hath not, either formally or actually, or virtually and eminently in itself; because than it would communicate more than it hath; that is, more than what is in its power to impart; which to suppose, would be a contradiction. All Causes that work by a necessity of Nature, though they operate to the utmost power and extent of their Faculties, yet 'tis as impossible for them to yield what they have not, as it is for Water to bring forth a Rational Soul, or for Fire to produce an Angel out of a few Sticks. And though Voluntary Agents work as they please, and may give their Effects much less than themselves have; yet 'tis as impossible for the Freest and Powerful Agent to give more, as it is for an Artificer to form a World out of nothing. The thing itself cannot admit of such Omnipotence: And so we may be sure, that neither could God bestow Perfections which he himself was not possessed of; and therefore, those Excellencies which we find in Nature, and which are the Perfections of Nature, must be concluded to come from the Author of Nature; and consequently to be in him, as in their true Original; for otherwise there would be more Excellencies in the Effects, than there are in the Cause; which is as absurd to suppose, as it is to imagine, that there is more Water in a Rivulet, than in the Ocean. Again; As all Perfection must be conceived to be in that Supreme, most Excellent, and most Glorious Nature, which we call GOD; so it must be there too Absolutely, or without the least mixture of Defect. All defect must be in the Creature; and that, not so much by immediate Causality from God, as by the necessary Condition of its own Nature; because it is a thing made, and of Temporary production; and therefore of a Finite Nature, and of Limited Faculties; that is, it must be essentially imperfect; especially in comparison of its Creator; it being utterly impossible for a Narrow, Scanty, New-formed thing to be commensurate in all its Perfections to the Maker, who is supposed to be Independent, Infinite, and All-sufficient in himself. The Nature of the thing made, cannot allow this; and by consequence it is naturally and necessarily defective. Upon which account, though we must conclude, that God is a Perfect Being because all Perfections in other things are derived from Him; yet we may not conceive, that he hath any mixture of Desiciency, because the things he hath made are all of them defective in some respect or other: For those Defects are so natural, that the things themselves could not possibly have been made otherwise, or without them. Therefore, as we must affirm, That the Perfections which are in the World, are limited and partial, blended and alloyed with something that is a blemish to them; so we must conceive, that those Originals of them which are in God, are Boundless and Full, Eminent and Absolute: For to think otherwise, is to degrade the Author of all Perfections; and in truth, to make the Notion of a Deity inconsistent with itself. I have been the more desirous to clear this matter, That the general Notion of God doth and must signify a Being which is Eminently and Absolutely Perfect; because it is a very Rational Principle, which may be fairly understood, and must needs be assented to by all that will but hearken to Right Reason: And because it is a very useful Principle also, that will soon enable us to draw out of it, by direct consequence, a more 2. Particular Description of the Deity; which is the Second thing I am to come to; that I may show what kind of Being we are to apprehend God to be, before I go about to prove, that this supposed most Perfect Being doth really and actually Exist. For, from this great, and General Notion of God, this Particular Account will follow. 1. First, We must conceive of God, that he is an Independent Being; not beholding to any Antecedent, Distinct, and Foreign Cause, for the production of his Nature. For could we (without a contradiction) suppose a Cause Antecedent to that, which is thought to be the Chief and First Cause of all things? such a Supposition would argue Imperfection in the Deity: Because it would make him a Precarious Being, depending upon the Activity and Pleasure of Another, Superior to him in greatness of Power, and before him in Time, and in Existence of Nature. 2. God having all Perfection in himself, we must conceive of him to be of an Endless Life. For all decay of Life proceeds from a defect, infirmity, or limitation in the Essence of the Thing; so that without the help of a stronger Hand, it cannot for ever hold up, and last. And since Life is one of those Perfections which we poor sinful men enjoy, it necessarily follows, that, as it must be in our Maker, so it must be in him in a most eminent and absolute degree; that is, utterly void of all possibility of ever ending. 3. We must, from the Absolute Perfection of God, conceive him to be a Fountain of Life, without any Beginning likewise. For, whatever had a beginning, must be concluded in that respect defective; because it once wanted, not only those Perfections which Being's enjoy, but even Being itself. And besides, that which began, may end, as we see all the successive Productions of Nature do. Therefore since the Notion of God signifies Perfection of all Kind's, and in all degrees, Reason will tell you that God must have such Perfection of Essence, as to be of a boundless Life, or be everlaststing from everlasting. 4. The Notion of God's absolute Perfection necessitates us to conclude, that he is a most perfect Substance, or a Being that subsisteth of himself by the absolute fullness of his own Nature. Indeed we cannot form an adequate and positive Notion of the Divine Substance, as neither can we of the Substance of our own Souls, though they are the noblest Being's of this lower World. For our outward Senses, which are the great Instruments of Knowledge, are perpetually used to corporeal and gross Ideas; and God being a spirit, John 4. 24. cannot be the Object of any such sensation. But yet, we may rationally render him an Object of our Minds; such an Object as our Minds are capable of viewing, by abstracting Matter and Corporeity from our Apprehensions of him. This Reason enforces us to do, because materiality is a defect in the thing that is made up of it; for as it limits and confines the thing to one particular place at once (which is most unsuitable to the conception of a Being that is said to fill heaven and earth. Jer. 23. 24) so it makes the thing divisible, and consequently subject to Dissolution, which is utterly incompatible with the Perfection of God's Life. Therefore Reason compels us to do away these Imperfections from our Notions of God, and to conceive of him as a Spiritual Substance, which I shall show hereafter in its proper place, is far from being an irrational Notion, however some are pleased to reject and deride it. 5. Since the Notion of God implies the excellence of Perfection, we must conceive of him, that he is too a discerning and understanding Substance. For Perception being the excellence of all Animals, whereby they are much more perfect than senseless Matter, or inanimate Stocks and Stones; this excellence must needs, after the most perfect and sublime manner, be in that most exalted Nature, from which all Perfection is supposed to have been derived. The Psalmist appeals to the common Reason of Mankind, where he argueth, Psalm 94. 9, 10. He that planted the ear, shall not he bear? he that form the eye, shall not be see? And so, He that teacheth men knowledge, shall not he know? Though Perception is not wrought in God by Impressions that affect material Organs, nor is attended with plain and disturbance, as in Creatures, who are necessarily imperfect; yet the Reason of the thing shows, that he is a Sentient, Percipient Being, an intelligent Nature or Mind, that acteth in a way which is suitable to the condition of a most glorious Being. 6. And hence it follows, That we must conceive of God, that he is a most perfect Mind, or a Being that knows all things, and is conscious of all things that are possible to be known, and that not by such discourse or succession of Thoughts and Reasonings as imperfect Being's are said to use; but by intuitive Acts, and by a direct immediate view. Though knowledge be a great Perfection in Men and Angels, yet to know things gradually, and by piece-meals, and with a limited apprehension, is in the Creature a plain defect, and therefore it must be abstracted or removed from our Conceptions of God. 7. Again, there is in us all a vigorous principle of Activity, whereby we are able to do those things which our Desires and Wills incline us to perform in our Sphere, and as far as this principle of Activity carries us. This also is a Perfection; but yet such as is intermingled with defects, because the Execution of our Power is laborious, nay finite; innumerable things being utterly impossible for the most mighty Men upon the Earth to compass, though their Wits and Industry should be never so great, and though all their force were united. Upon this account Reason will tell you, that God being a Nature absolutely Perfect, all manner of Impotence is to be shut out of our Notions of him, because all Impotence is a defect, and therefore inconsistent with, and repugnant unto the Excellencies of the Deity; and consequently we must conceive him to be fully able to produce and do by the Act of his own free Will, whatever doth not imply a contradiction, or whatever is conceivable and possible in itself, and can stand well with the other Perfections of his Nature. 8. Further yet; The Notion of God signifying a Nature that is eminently and absolutely Perfect, we must conceive him to be a good Being likewise; nay, the best of all Being's. By Goodness here is meant, that excellent and most amiable Disposition of Mind, which still prompts one to be Communicative, Kind, Gracious, Compassionate, and Benificent. 'Tis the best Virtue, that which we may call the Perfection of all Pefections; that which commands Honour and Love from all; that which is the Beauty, the Excellency, the Glory of Humane Nature, and therefore it necessarily and eminently belongs to the best Being, that Divine and most Glorious Nature, which all People have ever adored for its transcendent Goodness. Love is of God, saith the Apostle, 1 John 4. 7. He is the overflowing Spring and Fountain of all that Benignity which runs through the World; therefore St. John spoke like a great Philosopher, as well as a Divine, in saying, ver. 8. God is love, that is, a Blessed Nature made up of Goodness, the Mirror and Perfection of it; for there must be in this case, much more in the Cause than there can be in the Effects, which are of a finite, narrow, and slender Capacity, as the faculties of all created Being's are; whence it appears, that the glorious Deity cannot be a selfish, envious, malevolent, spiteful, or cruel Being, because these and the like Dispositions of Mind are wretched Defects, or Vices rather, which belong to the Devils in Hell, and to Devils Incarnate; nor, though he be Omnipotent, and perfectly Powerful, can he act like an Arbitrary, Tyrannical Being, void of Compassion and Tenderness. All this is inconsistent with that great Benignity which is necessarily included in the Notion of God, whose boundless Perfections argue him to be a most desirable Good, a most adorable and charming Object of our Affections; most bountiful, benign, merciful, gracious, long-suffering, tenderhearted, ready to bestow upon all that are capable, the greatest felicities that 'tis possible for us to enjoy or desire. 9 Once more: From the general Notion of God, that he is a Being absolutely and eminently Perfect, we must conceive him to be a God of perfect Equity and Justice, always acting according to the eternal Rules of right Reason, and the quality of Things. There are some Principles of Righteousness so natural to the Soul of Man, that they begin to appear as soon as humane common Reason gins to work. And these are such Perfections in us, as set us above the rest of the Sublunary World, and indeed make us excel one another, so that the Righteous is more valuable than his Neighbour, what difference soever may be otherwise in their outward Circumstances and Fortunes. These Principles could not come but from the common Author of our Nature; and their Extraction shows him to be most exact himself in the Government and Disposal of his Creatures, in whom all Iniquity is a great desect, (to say no worse) because it proceeds either from want of due Knowledge, or from want of honest Intention; both which are Imperfections in our Nature, nay, Reproaches and Scandals to it. Therefore that most perfect Nature which presideth over all, must be conceived to be most righteous towards all that are under his Care and Power: So that as there is no ground for unreasonable Fears from his Omnipotence, in regard of his great Goodness and Benignity; so neither is there sufficient ground for Presumption from his Benignity, in regard of his great Justice; because, as he has given us equal Laws, so he will give upon us very equal Judgement, and render to every man according to his works, Rom. 2. 6. The Sum is, if People would rightly understand and consider what the Notion of God imports, they could not but look upon him as the most lovely and desirable Being in the whole World; and instead of denying his Existence, would be glad that there is a Being over them so transcendently Perfect, so proper and suitable for them in this their imperfect State, that supposing he did not exist, all Mankind (all good Men to be sure) would have reason to wish he did. Therefore, before I entered upon treating of God's Existence, I thought it needful for me by way of Preparation to show, what the word GOD meaneth, according to the common Sense of Mankind: in general, A Being or Nature that is eminently and absolutely Perfect; and in particular, a Being that is Unmade, Independent, Everliving; a Spiritual Being, subsisting of Himself; discerning, understanding, and knowing all things; able to do whatsoever is agreeable to his Will and Nature; an inexhaustible Fountain of Love and Goodness; that to communicate his Goodness, and to display his Nature, made the Universe; and ever since the Creation hath governed all things, inspecting the Works of his Hands; providing for the good of the whole World, ordering every thing after the wisest and best Manner, taking a more particular care of Mankind, consulting for our present and future Happiness, giving us Laws, disposing of our Fortunes, exercising Discipline over us in order to that great End; and throughout the whole Series of his Providence showing himself to be an Infinite Mind, that is perfectly Wise, Beneficent, Powerful, Merciful, Compassionate, Kind, Righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works, Psalms 145. 17. This is a particular and true, though an imperfect Description of the Deity. I have been the more critical in drawing it, because it is a very rational Description; that which is rationally deduced out of this common Principle, That by God is understood a most perfect Being, and that too which is fairly intelligible by a rational Soul. For every Man understands what Knowledge means, what Wisdom means, what Goodness means, what Power, Love, and Righteousness do mean. All these intellectual and moral Perfections are very intelligible. No sooner are they mentioned, but we form a Conception of them in our minds; we apprehend presently what they signify. When they are spoken of a Creature, we easily know what it is to be an understanding, wise, just, and good Man. And when we discover considerable degrees and measures of these Perfections in any Person, the apprehension of them doth so affect our minds, that we cannot but Admire, Reverence, Esteem, and Love such a Person for the sake of these Perfections; and how then can it be thought impossible for us to have in our minds a Conception of a Being that is eminently and absolutely Perfect in all intellectual and moral Virtues? Why cannot we know what such a Being means? Nay, rather, how is it possible for us not to adore, venerate, and love such a Being above all things? I urge this, because some that say in their hearts, There is no God, and are willing to believe there is none, or wish at least there were no Deity, do offer this in favour of their infidelity, That there is no Idea of God; meaning, that as we have not of that supposed transeendent Being, any material Representation striking and pressing upon our outward Senses, so neither have we any Conception in our Minds answerable to such a transcendent Being; and hence they sancy that the Notion of a Deity being incomprehensible, there is no such thing; or that those Perfections, which we call the Attributes of God, are no Realities, but honorary Titles bestowed upon an imaginary Being, out of a goundless Fear. Now in this they are as weak Logicians and Philosophers, as they are bad Divines; for they go upon two Principles here, both which are utterly false. 1. The first is, That we have no Evidence or Knowledge, no Conception or Thought of any thing which doth not fall under the cognisance of our bodily Senses. For there are many Truths in Philosophy, which can have no corporeal Representations to affect the Eye or the Ear, nor that inward sensitive Part the Fancy, that is common to Men and to Brute-creatures. Though the Clink and Sound of the Words makes an impression upon the Sense; yet the verity of the Propositions which those Words contain, is quite a different thing, that is, purely intelligible; and we know and assent to the Propositions with an act of the Understanding, by means of the Congruity they bear to Principles of Reason; and therefore none but rational Creatures can sinned out, and apprehend the truth of them. A Beast sees the Colour of Snow, as well as a Man; but no Beast can understand the truth of this Proposition, Snow is white; because that is a thing out of its reach, for want of that operation of Reason, which makes all Truth intelligible and evident to the Mind. There are also innumerable Essences in Nature, which cannot be the Objects of Sense, though the outward Forms and Ideas of them are. The inward Nature of them is discoverable only by the Sagacity and Activity of the Mind, observing their Effects and Operations; then arguing from one thing to another, and so judging of the Reality and Nature of the Cause by its Consequents. Hereby the Understanding penetrates into the inside of things, which Sense and Fancy can never do; and it finds out, not what a thing seems to be, but what it is, which is many times a quite different thing from the Fantastry and Appearance of it, nor can ever be the direct and immediate Object of Sense. To instance in one particular: We cannot but perceive in some measure, what an admirable Being the Soul of Man is, if we will attentively consider its Powers and Operations. And yet we cannot have any Perception of it by external Sensation, because we cannot hear or see it, or handle it with our Hands, or make any discoveries of it by any other Sense, no more than we can Smell or Taste a shadow. Therefore there can be no sensible Images of it to make impressions upon the Organs of Sensation; no external Essluvia's of it, no foreign Ideas, no Representations from without to affect the imagination. No, there must be the use of pure Cogitation and Reason, to find out what the Soul is, and to make that intelligible to us which acteth in us; and this will do it, when all our Senses can't. We perceive that there is something in us which thinketh, for every Man is conscious of his own Thoughts; therefore the Soul is a Being. We perceive that it works continually in us, therefore it is a real Thing; for it is a certain Principle of Reason, That what is not, cannot possibly work. We perceive that there is in the Soul, Life and Vigour, Power and Activity, Apprehension, Knowledge, and Memory, a saculty of comparing things with things, and of reasoning and judging upon such comparison; a Power too of determining what to do, of choosing and refusing, of desiring that which it loves, and of reaching out after that which it desires; therefore it is a real existing Being. Thus far we can easily go in our Notion of the Soul, without any help of Sensation from abroad. And hence we proceed to perceive, That this Soul of ours is an incorporeal Being. For its Operations are incongruous to stupid Matter, too quick and noble for Matter, though you suppose it to be in Motion. Clay cannot Cogitate, nor can any moving Wheel reason, nor can the most spirituous Parts of the Blood philosophise, nor can the finest Motes that dance in the Sun consult or deliberate; nor can that glorious and enlivening Creature, the Sun itself, entertain those Meditations which bubble and spring out of one's mind; nor can all the material parts of the World put together, form those Contrivances, Desires, and Affections, which are the Operations of every Humane Soul; and to suppose, as some Pretenders to Sense and Wit do, that all these Actions proceed from little restless Atoms, capering about in the Head, and falling accidentally into various Forms and Contextures, doth argue rather that the Brains of such Men are infested with Flies and Nits, than that they understand any thing of right Reason and Philosophy. I have said this to show, That there are many things which are not Objects of Sense, and yet are intelligible Objects of the Mind; and therefore that 'tis false reasoning to conclude, That there is no intelligible Notion or Idea of God, because the Divine Nature we call by that Name, is supposed to be an Immaterial Being, and as such is not to be represented to our Senses. A pretence, which though used to invalidate the belief of a Deity, might with parity of reason be made use of to disprove the Existence of all the Being's in the World, whose true Essences and Natures are not discovered by corporeal, sensible Ideas; especially the Soul of Man, which is no object of external Sensation; and yet by its Operations and Effects, appears to all understanding Men to be a real, cogitative, intellectual, and active Being, distinct from Matter, though it be immured in Matter; and then, why may we not conceive and understand that supereminent Nature, which is supposed to create every Humane Soul, to be a perfectly wise, righteous, and good Being, realy existing, though we do not see him with the Eye? Especially, since we may see him in some measure at second hand in his glorious Works. For he hath not left himself without witness, in that he doth good, and gives us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness, Acts 14. 17. So that the invisible things of him from the creation are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal Power and Godhead, Rom. 1. 20. 2. Another very false Principle those odd Men go upon, is this, That supposing God to be, as we believe a transcendent, infinite Being; and supposing our own intellectual Faculties to be, as we find them, of a finite, narrow Capacity; it is impossible for us to comprehend God in our minds; and therefore we must be uncertain, whether the Notions we have of him be true or false, right or wrong. This is in effect to say, That because we have not all knowledge, therefore we can have none; according to which rate of reasoning they may affirm also, that we see nothing of the Sun, because we cannot view every single Ray, so as to comprehend its full Lustre; and that, because we understand not all the Mysteries in Nature, therefore we are quite ignorant, or at least have reason to doubt, whether those Ideas and Notions we have, do not utterly deceive us: whereas in these cases the imperfection of our Knowledge proceeds not from any Dubitableness or Delusion in the Nature of the Objects, but from the Weakness and Incapacity of our own Faculties. Supposing the Existence of a Deity, that is, a Being transcendently Perfect; how is it imaginable, that we poor Creatures could possibly have full and adequate Conceptions of him, unless we could reconcile Contradictions, by making Narrowness to answer Transcendency, or a Finite Thing to be proportionable and commensurate to an Infinite Being? And yet it would not by any means follow hence, that we have no knowledge of God, or that God is an unintelligible Being, because we cannot comprehend all the Glory of his Nature to the full. We know in part, as we can, and according to our measure, because in this weak, mortal state, the dulness and incapacity of our Minds will not allow us to know perfectly; and to argue hence, that the Deity is an unconceivable, and so (at least) a dubitable Being, when our own Conceptions of him, our intellectual Powers are naturally and necessarily narrow, is as if we should conclude that we have no knowledge at all of any thing in the World; nay, that it is very questionable, whether there be any such thing as a World, because we cannot measure all the dimensions of the Universe with our Span. Besides, we may know as much as is necessary and sit for us to understand now. For as we are not yet able to see God as he is, so neither would such a full Vision be needful and proper for us, were it possible to be had here. A great deal ought to be reserved for a more perfect and exalted State, under the notion of a Reward: It is enough to see so much of this Life, as will raise our long after a better, and will help us to do those Duties of Religion, which are now required in order to a perfect state; and so much we do know, though our knowledge of God be comparatively very dim and short. We have such Notions as serve to sound and encourage the practice of Godliness, and good Morality, and that is all we are to mind in this World. We very well apprehend, That God is an Omniscient, Just, Powerful, Good, and Gracious Being; and these Notions are enough to encourage Men to all manner of Piety and Virtue. Therefore, since the knowledge of these things is the way to Eternal Life, and sufficient to answer the ends and purposes of Religion, it is most unreasonable to object against the Idea of God, and to quarrel with it, as a thing unconceivable, because the infinite Vastness of all his glorious Perfections is not to be comprehended by us fully, especially in this our present imperfect state. To conclude this Consideration: Whatever some pretend against the Idea of God, I am apt to think, that they who strive and study to reject it, have a great deal of it in their own Minds, stirring and terrifying them with fearful Suggestions. For did they not conceive, that God is privy to their Vices, that he is able to punish them, and in Justice may; it is hardly imaginable, why they should offer such violence to their own Reason, as to force it to argue against those Notions, that by degrees they may obliterate them, and argue them utterly away, and so disbelieve the Existence of an Omniscient, Powerful, and Just Being, that seems to them a most frightful Object. The Idea of God lies very quiet in a good Conscience: nay, to a Man of an honest Heart, and of a pious Life, it is the most comfortable Enjoyment, because it fills his mind with such thoughts as these; That there is a glorious Being, who ruleth over all, who observes all our Actions, who takes care of such as live Godly, Righteously, and Soberly in this World; who order the Affairs of this Life for their good; who will guide them here by his Counsel, and afterwards will receive them into Glory: All which, and the like Notions, are such a comfortable Idea of God, as no Good man would be without for all the World. Therefore, when Men are tempted to deny God's Existence, the Temptation must proceed either from a very wrong Opinion of God, as if he were a Cruel, Mischievous, Spiteful, False, and Ill-natured Being; or (which is more likely) from a very evil Conscience, which makes God appear to an ill Man a formidable Being, by reason of his Omniscience, Righteousness, and Power. 'Tis probable, that the truest Cause of Atheism, is Vice; there being on all hands such variety of powerful Arguments to prove a Deity, as one would think impossible for any, but Men of the most corrupt Minds, to resist the force of them. CHAP. II. 2. HAVING thus prepared my way towards the proof of a Deity, by showing, That by the Deity is meant, a Transcendent Being, that eminently enjoyeth all the Essential, Intellectual, and Moral Perfections, which can possibly belong to a Nature which is most excellent, and absolutely free from the least defect; And by showing too, how intelligible, rational, and certain this Notion of God's Nature is, I must come now in the next place to make it appear, That there really is such a Divine Nature, or that this most perfect Being doth actually exist. Now this naturally follows from the common standing Notion of a Deity, which implies all possible Perfection. For Existence is the ground of all Perfection, the very first thing in the order of our Conceptions; because that cannot be said to be perfect, which is not, or which wants a Being; much less can we suppose a Nature to be absolutely perfect, that is, to be perfectly Wise, Good, and Righteous, unless we suppose the Existence of such a Nature. But lest an Insidel should say, We make Suppositions of our own, by devising what Notions we please of a God, and then use those Suppositions for Arguments, to prove there is a God: Therefore in the prosecution of this Point, I shall show, That there is in the World a most perfect Nature, which we call God, actually existing, by considering these four things, which shall be the general Heads of this Subject: 1. First, The Necessity of the thing itself. 2. Secondly, The universal Consent of Mankind. 3. Thirdly, Those extraordinary Occurrences which must argue the Being of a Deity. 4. And, Fourthly, The admirable State of the World. 1. First then, If we go through the whole Series and Orders of Nature, from Effects to Causes, and from one Cause onward to another, we must of necessity come at last to one first Cause, to a Being that doth necessarily exist of itself, and consequently is a distinct, independent, and most perfect Being. Here we must take notice of an universal Trth, which will very much help to guide our Reason, viz. That whatever once had not any real Being, could not be the cause of itself; for upon that impossible Supposition, it would have existed, and yet not existed at the same time. It would not have existed, because it is supposed to have wanted a Cause for its Production; and it would have existed, because it is supposed to have exercised causality; which two things being contradictory to each other, it must be granted, that whatever once came out of a State of Nonexistence, was brought out of it by another distinct Agent which existed antecedently, and had actual Power over it. Hence it follows, That all the Effects which are now in Nature, and once were not, do own their Origination to Causes which were before them (for those things which had no being, could not in a state of nothingness Act, much less could they act upon themselves); and how many soever the Foreign Causes of them were, they all lead us up to a Permanent, first Cause, which depended on no other, nor stood in need of another for its being. Now we see, that there are innumerable things in the World, which once were not; and the immediate Causes of these were themselves the Effects of other Agents; and they again of others, and so on, till we gradually ascend to one Chief Cause, which was the Original of them all. To omit all other things at present, I instance in these two sorts of Effects we see daily; the Motion of Bodies; and the Production of Living Creatures, especially of Mankind. First, For the Motion of Bodies. The principal Parts of the World are never idle. In the Earth there are active Principles of Life and Vegetation, which prepare the vital Juice that is in all Plants and Trees. In Animals there is Concoction, Digestion, and a Motion, or Fluor of the Chyle, which serves for Nutrition. In the Sea there is a Flux and Reflux, and a Current in Rivers and Springs. In the Air there are Vicissitudes and Turn, as Exhalations and Vapours steam out of the Earth, and return to it again modified into various Forms. And the constant circular Courses of those glorious Bodies in the Firmament, show likewise, that in this visisible World there is no Rest. Now all these Motions of material Substances must depend upon Causes; for Matter alone is a liveless, unactive, stupid Thing, which can no more move itself, than Mountains and Rocks can walk; and whatever those Causes be, whether proximate or remote, they must depend for their Operations upon the Energy of one supreme Cause, that impower'd Nature, and set the whole Frame of it on work, and gave it, as we may say, the first Struck; for otherwise, Motion, which once was not in being, would have been the Cause of itself, which is utterly impossible. The like may be said of the Production of Living Creatures, and particularly of Mankind. Once we were not, therefore you and I, and all of us had a beginning, as we shall have an end; and though we should run up our Generations so far, as to date our Breed from an hundred thousand Years ago, yet must we of necessity derive it at last from some Ancestors, who were not begotten of others, as we have been, but were made after a different manner by an Omnipotent Cause, which could give them a beginning; for otherwise we must either run up on to Eternity, or suppose our first Parents to have made themselves, which is repugnant to the universal Truth I demonstrated before, and would imply, that those our first Parents had a Being, and no Being at the same instant. This Argument so strongly proves the necessary Existence of a first Cause, or a Deity, to form the whole Frame of Nature, and to set it in order, that some unreasonable Men find themselves constrained to tell us, that the World ever was, as it is now; the same from all Eternity, without any Rise, Novity, or Beginning; and so without any dependence on a first Cause, or need of it. They were as good say plainly, That they are resolved never to be convinced, but will rid themselves of all belief of a Deity at any rate, though they destroy the Principles of Common Reason, and run into the most fulsome Absurdities and Contradictions. For how can it consist with reason to take a boundless Progress from one Effect to another, still onward up to Retroinfinity, without stopping at any beginning? This conceit being admitted, these monstrous Absurdities must follow: 1. First, It implies the local Motion of Bodies to have produced itself, without the efficiency of a first Mover, which is impossible, because Motion is neither essential to Matter, (for then no body could ever rest) nor is it incident to Matter as such, but by its being touched by some moving Principle that is distinct from it. It is a Passion impressed upon Matter by an Agent, by virtue whereof it changeth place and distance; and therefore it presupposeth Action from something else; otherwise it must be its own Creature and Maker too, the Effect and Cause of itself at the same time, and out of nothing, which is a Contradicton. So that though you go through the vastest Series of moving Bodies, from the things below to the Heavens above, you must come at last to a first Mover of all things, or conclude against all Sense and Reason, that there are innumerable Effects without any Original Essiciency. Suppose when the World was made, it had presently had some great Jog given it; 'twere hard to conceive, that the Motion of its several Parts should not have spent itself in a little time, without a conserving Power pervading through all: But it confounds Humane Understanding to think, how there could be Motion all along from all past Eternity, and without any beginning, no superior Power moving or acting upon Bodies; because it is impossible for Matter to be self-active, though you should suppose it to have been Eternal. It could no more move than it could make itself; for upon that principle Men must return to that great Absurdity and Contradiction, touching a thing being its own Cause; that is, touching its being and not being at the same time. 2. Secondly, To suppose the whole World to have been Eternal, would render the Generation of Mankind altogether impossible. For every one's Formation and Birth is absolved in the space of so many Months; and so it must of necessity include, not only a Period, but a Beginning too; both which are inconsistent with the Notion of Eternity; for if Humane Race was always begotten, carry it as high as you please, you must come to a moment when Generation did begin. 3. If it be said, Thirdly, That Men were not from all Eternity generated, as they are now, but that some were created or made from everlasting, and thence others were produced in the ordinary common way; this contradicteth itself, for it necessarily infers a Creator or Maker; and by consequence it implies a first Man, and a first Cause, and a time when our first Ancestors began; whereas there is neither first nor last in Successions which are Eternal; so that were our Ancestors Eternal, it must be said plainly, we had no first Parents at all. 4. And then, Fourthly, What can be more absurd than to conceive, that every particular Man should have (as we see every Man hath) a Father and a Mother, and yet that all Mankind should have none? 5. Fifthly, Or if every Man's Parents were infinite; than it must be said, That there are as many Infinites as there are and have been particular Men in the World, which is such another great Absurdity as the former. 6. Sixthly, To conclude this Argumentation; To affirm the World to have been Eternal, is to destroy the Notion of Infinity, and to entangle one's self in the greatest Nonsense. For, (to give you the Words of a most Learned and Judicious Writer) If the World be Eternal, Bishop Stillingsleet ' s Orig. Sac. p. 376. there must have been past an infinite Succession of Ages; an infinite number of Successions are already past; and if past, then at an end; and so we find an Infinite which hath an end, which is a consequence becoming one who avoids the belief of a Deity, because Infinity is an unconceivable thing. Besides, if the number of Generations hath been infinite, these two consequences will unavoidably follow, which the Reason of any one but an Atheist would startle at; That one Infinite may be greater than another; and that the part is equal to the whole. For let him six where he please in the Course of Generations, I demand, whether in the great Grand-father's time the Succession of Generations was Finite or Infinite? If Finite, than it had a beginning, and so the World not Eternal. If Infinite, than I ask, Whether there were not a longer Succession of Generations in the time of his great grandchildren; and so there must be a number greater than that which was Infinite; for the former Succession was Infinite, and this hath more Generations in it than that had; but if it be said, That they were equal because both infinite; Then the Succession of Generations to the Grandfather, being but a part of that which extends to his grandchildren and Posterity, the part is equal to the whole. This surely is enough to show, That according to common Reason the World once was not, but that it must have had a beginning; and consequently, that there was a first Cause of it; nay, that the Existence of an higher Being was necessary to make it, because whatever once was not, could not be self-originated; all that now Moves or Lives in the World could not produce or make itself, but was brought into being by a most perfect Nature that was before it, and superior to it, that is, by a Deity, and by nothing less than a Deity, for these five Reasons. 1. First, It was impossible for all Being's to be made; for that would suppose that once there was nothing at all; and then 'tis confessed on all hands, that nothing could have been produced. Therefore as it was necessary for the first Cause to be independent on any other, (for else it could not have been the first) so it was necessary for that Cause to be unproduced, by reason of the absolute Perfection, and intrinsic plenitude of its own Essence, so that it needed no hand from without to give it any thing. 2. Secondly, The first Cause having its being by necessity of Nature, it was impossible for it to have any beginning. For, had it had a beginning like other things, it must have taken it from some other Principle, because whatever once wanted Origination, could not give it to itself; and consequently the Existence of the first Cause must have been contingent and precarious, which would have destroyed the great Prerogative of its independence. 3. Thirdly, Considering that the several parts of the World were to take their Original out of a State of Nonexistence, it was impossible for the first Cause to have a Power limited and restrained by any thing without it. For as nothing could hinder it from being, by reason of its own necessary Existence; so nothing could hinder it from acting, by reason of its absolute Independence; and consequently, the First Cause had necessarily a Power of creating things out of nothing; because if any preexistent Matter had been requisite for it to work on, it must have depended upon Matter, and been beholding to Matter for permitting it to act. 4. Fourthly, The Power of creating things being so necessarily great, it was impossible for the First Cause to be made up of Matter: For all Matter, as such, is an unactive, stupid, dead thing, utterly uncapable of producing either itself, or any other Being, much less could it act with that wonderful Faecundity, Counsel, Wisdom, and Benignity of Mind, which the whole frame of Nature argues to be in the First Cause; as shall be showed in its due place. 5. Fifthly, It was impossible also for the First Cause of all things to be locally extended, or to be circumscribed, limited, determined, and confined to Place, as Matter or Body is. For being to raise up a vast Universe, it was necessary for that most powerful Nature to be undividedly present to every part of the world which it acted upon; and for the Management and Conservation of the Universe, to contain it all within the Immensity of its own Essence: Which Essence was necessarily boundless and unlimited, because it was not possible to be produced by any other Being that could restrain, define, or bound its Immensity. For (as an excellent Writer Dr. Scot' s Christian Life, part 2. vol. 1. p. 193. well observes and argues) that which limits Being's, is only the Will or Power of their Causes, which either would not, or could not bestow any further Being or Perfection upon them; and therefore only such things as have a Cause, are limited, because they being produced out of nothing, are only so far and no farther brought into Being, as their Cause was willing or able to bring them. That therefore which exists of its self without any Cause of its Being, must also exist of itself without any Limits of its Being, by reason that it was neither limited by itself, nor by any other Cause; and that which hath nothing to limit it, must necessarily be immense and boundless. God therefore being this self-existent Being, must necessarily be of an unlimited Essence, an Essence which no possible Space can either circumscribe or define, but must necessarily be diffused all through, circumfused all about, and present with all things. The Existence then of such a perfect transcendent Being as hath been described, was absolutely necessary in order to the production and formation of the world. And hence we rationally affirm, That before ever the Earth and the Heavens were made, there was an Intellectual Nature that was to be the Cause of the whole World; and that this Nature or First Being was and is Self-originated, Eternal, Omnipotent, Incorporeal, and Infinite. In using which expressions we speak like men, as we are able, according to our Capacities, and as the narrowness of our Faculties, compared with the transcendency of the Object will allow us. Our meaning more at large is this: Considering that all the parts of the world were made by an Essicient Cause, and that nothing could bring itself out of Nonexistence into Being, by reason that nothing could be before itself, we must necessarily acknowledge, That there is a First Cause of all things, and that this First Cause was not made or produced by any other: Which First Cause being altogether Independent, existed by the absolute Necessity of its Nature, by its own Perfection, Permanency, and Fullness; and consequently, was Eternal, or of Infinite Duration; because being unproduced, it could not but be without any beginning. And this Self-Existence includes Self-Activity, suitable to the Perfections of an Eternal Nature; that is, a Power of producing and effecting whatever is possible in the Nature of the thing, and doth not imply a Contradiction. For all Impotence or Inability to operate, is utterly inconsistent with the Perfections of a First Cause, from which is derived all the Power that is in Second Causes. Whence it follows, That the First Cause could not be Matter (a thing which of itself cannot live or move) but a Spirit, void of all Corporeal Substance; an Eternal Mind, able perfectly to exert and display its Power, as it becometh an Intellectual, Wise, and Voluntary Agent. And lastly, This Incorporeity renders the First Cause uncapable of beind divisible, or determinable to Place, after the manner of Bodies, which consist of Magnitude and Dimensions: And therefore how incomprehensible soever the Notion of Infinity may seem to us, whose outward Senses are used only to things corporeal, Reason will oblige us to think, that every Being must be extended or unextended, limited or unlimited, circumscribed or diffused, according as its Essence and Nature is; and that the first Cause being incorporeal, and having once an Immense World to make, and ever since an Immense World to act upon and in, cannot be confined to place, but must be every where, and undividedly, in a manner agreeable to the Plenitude of its Nature. Now this Account of the necessary Existence and Condition of a first Cause, is so far a plain description of the Deity, or of God. And it is for the greatest reasons that we maintain, that in order to the Production and Framing of this huge Universe, the Existence of God was necessary, that is, the Existence of an Independent, Self-existent, Eternal, All-powerful, Immaterial, and Infinite Being. These are not bare Epithets of Honour, bestowed (as some strange Men conceive) upon an imaginary something, which the fancies and fears of People have without reason represented to their Minds; but real, solid, severe, and demonstrable Truths; so that admiting the common and most rational Principle touching the necessity of a First Cause, those glorious Perfections I have now mentioned, must necessarily belong to it; and because those Perfections are essential and peculiar to that Glorious Being we call God; therefore God, and God alone must be acknowledged the First Cause of all things; and by natural consequence, the Existence of God must necessarily be believed. CHAP. III. HAVING proved the Truth and Reality of God's being, from the necessary Existence of a first Independent Cause. I proceed now to the second General Head of this Discourse, touching the Consent of all Mankind; for if it can be made appear, That the belief of a Deity hath been universally received in the World, 'tis reasonable to conclude, that that belief resulted from a common Principle of Nature, which could not deceive the Minds of all Mankind. Here then these two things are to be showed: 1. First, That Men have universally agreed in this, That there is a God. 2. Secondly, That this universal Agreement is a very strong Argument of God's Existence. 1. First, That Men have universally agreed in this, That there is a God. That noble Orator and Philosopher, Cicero, doth in several places acknowledge, That all manner of People were naturally posfest with some Anticipations (or Preconceptions) De Nit-Deor. lib. 1. Tuse: Qu. lib. 1. de Leg. lib. 1. of a Deity, so that no Nation was ever so wild and undisciplined, but that they had a fear of God, and owned his Being, however they were mistaken as to the quality of his Nature. To the same purpose Seneca tells, That the belief Ep. 117. of a God is planted in every one's mind. And Maximus Tyrius is positive, Diss. 1. That how great soever the Contentions of Men were about other Points, they all agreed in this, that there is one Supreme God over all. Nay, Epicurus Cic. de Nat. dear. lib. 1. himself (of whom this Character is given, that in words he owned the Existence of God, but in fact denied it) was contented the belief of it should pass abroad, because it was a kind of innate Principle, not only among Philosophers, but among the Unlearned too, who all had some Pri-notion of a Deity. So true is this, That not only the real Existence, but even the Singularity and Unity of a Supreme God, hath been generally believed by Heathens themselves; especially by the wiser fort of them; which I think very material for me to take notice of here, for the further Illustration and Confirmation of the Matter in hand. Indeed the Heathens have been wont to worship a Plurality of Deities. But withal it is very observable, that they looked upon those many Deities, as a fort of middle Being's between Mon and the Supreme Deity; and accordingly in their Devotions they addressed themselves to them, as Agents and Officers under the Great God, as his Ministers of State, and as Mediators between them and the most high Sovereign Numen, because they thought it irreligious Confidence to apply themselves to him immediately, and directly; such a venerable and august Opinion they had of the God over all. Though in the Poetical, Fabulous Ages of the World, ignorant People were taught to worship a multitude of gods; as the Souls of dead Men, whom they believed to be Deified; the Sun, Moon, and Stars, which were supposed to be animated with Deities; besides, a great number of Daemons, or incorporeal Substances, or Spirits, which they thought were generated, and had the Administration and Government of the World committed to them; yet they owned One Sovereign Numen, One Incomprehensible, Self-existent Being, the Prince and Father of all. Nay, the more intelligent sort of Pagans anciently thought, that the Plurality of Deities which the Vulgar worshipped, were only so many several Names of one and the same Supreme God, according to the several Manifestations of his Power. In the Heavens (saith St. Austin) they called De Civit. 1. 4. c. 11. him Jupiter; in the Air, Juno; in the Sea, Neptune; in the Earth, Pluto; and very many more Appellations there were; which though the sottish Rabble believed to have been proper Names for distinct Deities, yet the Philosophers thought they did all belong to one Supreme Numen variously acting and displaying his Virtue. And with this agrees that of De Benef. l. 4. c. 7. Seneca; What else is Nature (saith he) but God; or Divine Wisdom and Power displaying itself in the whole world, and in all the parts of it? You may, when you please, give several Titles to the Author of all things: And you may call him Jupiter Optimus Maximus, and Tonans, and Stator, not from stopping the Roman Army in their flight, but because all things do stand (or consist) by him. You may well apply to him what Names you will, that signify his Heavenly Power and Efficacy: There may be as many Appellations, as there are Gifts, or Effects of God. Besides Jupiter, Tonans, and Stator, we call him Liber Pater, Hercules, and Mercurius. Liber Pater, because he hath produced all things: Hercules, because his Power is invincible; and Mercury, by reason of his Wisdom. Turn you which way you please, God meets you; for nothing is without him: He filleth all his Works (so that his various Names were according to the various Manifestations of him). Should you receive a kindness from Seneca, and say you owed it to Annaeus, or Lucius, you would not change the Person, but his Name; for what Name soever you call him by, you mean still the same man. And so you may call the Deity too, Nature, Fate, and Fortune; but all these are the Names of one and the same God, diversely using and showing his Power. Hence it appears, That in times of the greatest Ignorance, Heathens themselves did not only profess the belief of a Deity, but did own also the Existence of One Sovereign Being over all. Though they talked of Gods many, and of Goddesses many, and a multitude of Deities was believed and worshipped by the Common People; yet the Wise men among them looked upon this great appearance and show of distinct Deities, to have been different Names of One Supreme God; various Representations, Characters and Titles of One Eternal and Incomprehensible Nature pervading through the whole world, and variously acting, exhibiting, and manifesting its Divine Power in it every where. In the Primitive Ages of Christianity, the Controversy between the Christians and Pagans was not about the Being of One Supreme God (for all on each hand were agreed as to that) but about the Divinity of Jesus Christ, and about many Inferior Powers which the Heathens worshipped besides the great Creator himself, God blessed for evermore. 'Tis plain from Acts 17. 23, 24. that in St. Paul's time the Athenians not only owned the Existence, but adored the Majesty of the True God; For, saith the Apostle, whom ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you; and that was no other, but the God who made the world, and all things in it; called by the Athenians, the unknown God, because his Nature cannot be comprehended or seen by men. In the following times of Christiany, the great Doctors of the Church, who defended our Religion against Heathenism, do tell us over and over, That the Pagans acknowledged a Supreme God, as well as Christians. The Dispute between them was concerning Fictitious Deities supposed to be subordinate to the Supreme. For the Pagans Faith was, that many Gods were derived from One; that to those Inferior Spirits the care and government of the Universe was committed; and that Divine Honours ought to be given them, as the Officers of God, and as Mediators between God and Men. Nevertheless, among their many Deities, and over all their many Deities, they acknowledged One Supreme. They called him the First, the Greatest, the Unmade, the Supercoelestial God, the Chief, the King of all. They believed that all things were from him; that he was the Maker especially of Immortal Being's; that he is Incomprehensible, Good, the common Father of all, wanting nothing, and without all manner of Envy; that he is a Self-existent Principle, the Fountain of all Good, the Conserver of all things living, the Lord of the Universe, the Universal Reason and Mind, the Uniform Cause of all things, the Original of all Pulchritude and Perfection, of all Unity and Power; the Great and Magnificent Father of Nature, whose Virtues are diffused throughout the whole World. Julian, that great Zealot for Cyril. l. 2. Heathenism, confessed, that there is a natural knowledge of God in men's minds, from whence that common Inclination towards a Deity springs, and that Persuasion among all men, that He who is the King over all, hath his Throne in Heaven. Accordingly, Julian, and the rest of the Learned Heathens, honoured the God of Heaven with the greatest veneration that was possible for men of their Principles. Though they gave their other Deities divine honours, yet it was an inferior sort of worship; and that they paid too for the Supreme God's sake, and in honour to him, believing that the Great God was pleased with it, because it was given upon his account to other things, as the Ministers, Images, and Representatives of the Invisible Orig. cont. Celsus, p. 421, & 419. Deity. If (saith Celsus, that Bigoted Defender of Paganism) a man be required to praise the Sun, or Minerva, he may sing Hymns cheerfully; for by singing Hymns to these, he will the better worship the Great God; because that Divine Worship is the most perfect, which passes through all. However, saith he, God is by no means at any time to be forsaken, or left out; neither by day, nor by night; neither in private, nor in public; neither in any of our Thoughts, nor in any of our Actions, but in every thing our minds should be still directed towards God, and intent upon him. And again; all Torments are rather to be endured, and any Deaths are rather to be undergone, than we should either speak an irreligious thing of God, or admit into our minds an irreligious Thought of him. Before I pass from this Consideration, touching the Pagans' Belief of the Existence of God, in the Primitive Times of Christianity, as in the Ages before; I cannot but observe, by way of digression, that notwithstanding this their hearty Belief, and Religious Worship of One Supreme Deity, the True God, that made all things, these Pagans were Idolaters, and were still counted by the Christian Church guilty of Idolatry: Not because they worshipped Creatures, laying the Creator aside (for 'tis plain, that they owned and adored the same Great God that we Christians worship); but because they served the creature, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, as St. Paul speaks, Rom. 1. 25. that is, besides the Creator. They gave Divine Honours to him, and to other Being's too; they worshipped them as well as the Great God; they made them Partners and Sharers with the Great God in their Religious Services; and though this worshipping of other Being's was for the Great God's sake, though it was a lower kind of Worship, and though all the Services of the Heathens (especially the wiser sort of them) were directed to the Great God, did refer to the Great God, and did terminate in him; yet were they downright Idolaters. And as this shows the true Notion and Nature of Idolatry, that it is the Religious Worshipping of any thing besides God: So it shows how impossible it is for those Christians, who adore Saints and Angels, as well as the True God, and the True Messiah, to clear themselves of the Charge of Idolatry, notwithstanding all their nice distinctions of Dulia, Latria, Relative Worship, and the like. All this the Heathens might have said for their Excuse. They gave the Supreme God the highest Honours; and in Honour to him they worshipped inferior Deities, as the Romanists do Saints and Angels: in which respect their practice is a plain, but shameful Counterpart of old Heathenism; so that were there no such thing in the Church of Rome as Image-worship, I cannot see but this Creature-worship would be enough to make them guilty of Idolatry. Either this practice is Idolatrous, or that of the Heathens was not such, which yet they of the Church of Rome dare not affirm. But to return to the Matter in hand. If from those elder times of Heathenism we come down now to modern Ages, though we search into the darkest and remotest Corners of the World, we cannot find any one Nation or People so barbarous, so sunk into a State of Ignorance and Stupidity, as not to have believed the Existence of God, even in their Idolatrous Gentile Condition. The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament showeth his handy work, There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Their sound is gone out into all lands, and their words unto the ends of the world, Psalm 19 1, 3, 4. Where David represents those glorious Creatures as proclaiming, and all Nations as hearing them proclaim the Transcendent Wisdom, Power, Goodness, and Majesty of their Maker and Conserver. All People, how ignorant soever they have been of other Languages, have understood this. However they have differed from one another in their Polity, Laws, Customs, or Manner of Life, have unanimously consented in this, That there is a God. And though many have lived, as if they were without God in the World, yet none have been without him in their Consciences. Here falls in an Account which hath been given us, by a most Inquisitive and Learned Writer of our Church; and which, both for the Usefulness and Curiosity of it, well deserves to be taken notice of in this place. That Great Man Bishop Stillingfleet's Defence of his Discourse concerning Idolatry. undertaking to prove, That men may be guilty of Idolatry, though they believe and worship the True God, shows particularly, That the grossest Idolaters of later times, both in the East and West Parts of the World, have acknowledged one Sovereign Being over all those inferior Deities they worshipped; that they gave him the highest Honours; and that that they called him in their respective Languages by some peculiar Name, which signified the greatest Excellency. First, he shows of the Idolaters of the East-Indies, That they all believed there was but One God who made the World, and reigns in Heaven; and that they worshipped this One God, as well as Christians, and referred all the Honour to him, which they gave to other things; that some called the Supreme God Parabrama, which in their Language signifies, absolutely Perfect, being the Fountain of all things, existing from himself, and free from all Composition; that others called that Sovereign Being Achar, that is, Immutable; others, Tento, believing him to be the Governor of the World; others Sciaxeti, or Scianti, which signifies the Supreme Monarch; and Tienciu, which is as much as to say, The Lord of Heaven. Then the Learned Author gives this Account of the Idolatrous Tartars, That they believed and worshipped One God, owning him to be the Maker of all things visible and invisible, and to be the Author of all worldly Good and Punishment. Of the Inhavitants of Madagascar, he shows, That they believed One God, who made Heaven and Earth, and will one day punish the bad, and reward the good Actions of men. Of the People of Monomotapa, That they acknowledge One God, whom they call Mozimo, and are said to worship nothing else besides him. Of the Idolatrous Muscovites, That they worshipped only the Creator of the Universe, to whom they offered the first Fruits of all things, even their Meat and Drink. Of the Idolaters of Cranganor, That they worshipped the God of Heaven, calling him Tambram, and believing him to have made the World. Of the Northern Idolaters, especially the Goths, he shows, That the most ancient of their gods was called by them Alfader, that is, the Father of all; they believed that this God lives for ever; that he governs all things; that he made the Heavens, and Earth, and Air, and all Things in them; and which is the greatest of all, that he made Man, and gave him a Soul that should live for ever, although the Body be destroyed; and that those who are good shall be with him. Touching the Idolaters in Asrick, that Excellent Writer shows, That they worshipped God under the Name of Guighimo, that is, The Lord of Heaven; and that though the Negroes adored many gods, yet they acknowledged One Supreme, whom they called Ferisso, and believed him to be the Author of the Good and Evil they received. As for the account he gives out of Josephus Acosta, and Garcilasso de la Vega, touching the Idolaters in America before their Conversion to Christianity, I have reserved it to the last, because it seems so clear and full, that it is the fittest Observation to conclude this Point. The surn of it is, That those Idolatrous Indians acknowledged a Supreme Lord and Author of all things, whom they of Peru called Pachacamac, that is, the Soul of the World, the true Sovereign Creator of the Sovereign Creator of the World; and Usapu, which is Admirable; and such like; and though they had a great Veneration for the Sun and Moon, and other things, yet they held and adored Pachamac as the chiefest of all, and whenever they mentioned his Name, did it with all the Reverence and Devotion imaginable, in Honour to the unexpressible Majesty of God. And hence was that Observation of the Spanish Jesuit, Acosta, That those who at that time did Preach the Gospel to the Indians, found no great difficulty to persuade them that there is a High God and Lord over all, and that this was the Christians God, and the True God. This (saith he) is a truth conformable to Reason, That there is a Sovereign Lord and King of Heaven, and him the Gentiles, with all their Infidelities and Idolatries have not denied; so that the Preachers of the Gospel had no great difficulty to plant and persuade this Truth of the Supreme God, though the Nations to whom they preached were never so Barbarous and Brutish. The hard thing was to root out of their minds this Persuasion, That there is no other God, nor any other Deity than one; and that all other things of themselves have no Power, Being, nor working proper to themselves, but what the Great and only Lord doth give and impart to them. However People have been mistaken in their belief of a multiplicity of Deitics, this hath been a common Notion in all barbarous Countries, that there is One Supreme God infinitely Good. I think no more need be said, to show the universal Persuasion of Mankind concerning God's Existence. However, before I proceed to Argue and Reason from it, and to prove the Truth of God's Existence from this universal Persuasion, it will be necessary to take notice of two Pretences, which are commonly used to evade the force of this Argument. 1. The first is, That some whole Nations have been found, which have been without all Sense of God; as was reported particularly of some People in America, after the discovery of them by Christians. To this there are three things in answer. First, That the matter alleged is not evident or certain, because the Men who first related it, were Strangers to the Language and Customs of those People, and therefore could not be competent Judges of their Principles. Nay, they were abhorred as Enemies, and consequently were uncapable of understanding the Mysteries of those People's Religion; a thing, which Men are generally very shy of discovering, especially to those who use them hardly. Secondly, It is so far from being certain, that in probability 'tis not true: For though upon the first discovery of those Nations, some of them were suspected of Atheism, yet a different Account was given afterwards upon further inquiries; nay, the most Ignorant and Savage People among them did worship some things after a Religious sort; however they were mistaken in their Notions of God's Nature, and as to the manner of his Worship; a plain Sign that they thought that there was a Superior Being to be worshipped, and that it was better to Worship almost any thing for a Deity, than not to own any Deity at all. Thirdly, Were the Report true and unquestionable, all that can be gathered hence, is, that 'tis possible for some Men to be so besotted, and governed by outward Sense, as to lose in a manner that which is proper to Humane Nature, Reason and Religion, and to fall into a Belluine kind of Life. But this is no Argument against the common Principles of all the rest of Mankind, who have harkened to the Voice of Nature, and to their own Consciences; nor is it reasonable, that one particular Exception should prevail against a general Rule. If in the Universe there be now and then a little Irregularity, it cannot argue that Nature is not steady and uniform. And so, if among Mankind there chance to be here or there some brutish People, it cannot argue, that the generality of Men have no Reason, or that what is agreeable to common Reason, is false. That there is a God, is a Principle agreed upon by the generality of Mankind; and if some odd Folks of lost understanding have no such Notion, Of what weight is this, that it should bear down the common Sentiment of Mankind? After this rate it may be said, That there is no right Reason in the World, nor any Credit or Authority to be given to Reason, because there are in the World Beasts and Naturals. 2. But to take off this Answer, it is pretended, Secondly, That Philosophers and Men of Reason have been against the belief of God's Existence, as Theodorus, Bion, Leucippus, Democritus, Protagorus, Diagoras, Epicurus, and the like. Now as to this, these four things are to be said. First, That we scarcely find the Names of twelve Atheists expressly mentioned in History since the Creation; setting aside some in these later Ages, who would have been thought wiser than all the World besides. In all the Scripture we read not of one by Name; and though the Psalmist speaks indefinitely of a Fool in his time, That said in his heart, There is no God, Psalm 14. 1. yet by his Character you see what he was counted; and as great a Fool as he was he would not speak out, nor affirm it positively, but said it in his heart; so that it was rather his Wish than Opinion. Secondly, Of those we read of in Humane Writers, some were called Atheists merely because they despised the Rabble of Deities, and the unreasonable Superstitions, which the generality of Gentiles had in great admiration. Such was the humour of people in those times, that they stigmatised all who opposed their follies with that infamous Character: An humour which held on to the times of the Gospel, when the most Religious Disciples of Christ were charged with Atheism for the same reason; because they were Enemies too (though upon far better grounds) to the Faith and Worship of the Pagan Deities: So that upon a strict computation, I think, the notorious Atheists in those dark Ages were not in all above Seven. And of those it is observable, Thirdly, That not so much as one could be a tolerable Judge of matters relating to Religion. For some of them were infamous for Vice and Immoralities; and therefore in favour to their Lusts did think themselves concerned to destroy the belief of God's Existence. Others were men of so little Sense, that every Modern Insidel has just reason to be alhamed of them: For Protagoras was a Porter, and Diagoras a Slave; both of them were angry at Providence for not having disposed of them better in the World; and so were easily bribed and hired by Democritus to make up a small paltry Litter. And of all of them it is remarked, that they were bloated up with Pride, Arrogance, and Ambition, whereby they affected to be singular, and to signalise themselves as the most knowing Sages in the World, by rejecting Notions which were the common received Principles among all Mankind. And yet, Fourthly, What those few Upstarts did, they did by straining and forcing their own Consciences. There is a Power in Conscience which cannot be utterly fubdued, especially when not only the Honour, but the very Being of God is concerned, whose Deputy it is. Then Conscience will throb and possess the most Irreligious men with such Fears as argue the Existence of God, whatever Arguments they endeavour to raise against him. They lie (saith Seneca) who profess an unbelief of God: For though they maintain it before you in the Daytime, yet at Night they themselves call their Infidelity in question. Company, Business, or Diversion, may banish their Fears for a while; but those Fears return in the dark from under the Pillow, when Conscience comes to have private Audience. And to this purpose Colla in Cicero tells us of Epicurus himself (whose Doctrines De Nat. Dcor. lib 1. were designed to destroy the apprehensions of a Deity), That he never saw any man more afraid than that Philosopher was of those things which he said were not to be dreaded; that is, Death, and God: A clear Argument, That whatever he pretended and taught to the contrary, his Conscience told him there was a Righteous Judge of all the Earth. The sum is; The belief of God's Existence hath been the general belief of all Ages and Countries; and for that very reason Epicurus himself was willing Ibid. it should pass on still. 'Twas observed before of that Conceited Man, That though in fact, and in the natural consequence of his Principles he denied God, yet for fear of the severe Laws and People of Athens, in words he owned a Deity; and that for this consideration, because Nature itself had imprinted on all men's minds a notion of God; as his Disciple Villeius in Cicero said of him. For, said he, what Nation, or sort of men is there, which have not, without Learning, some anticipation of a Deity, which Epicurus called a Prolepsis, or Pre-notion? And since that Opinion is not grounded upon any Institution, Custom, or Law, and yet continues the firm, unshaken belief of all men, therefore people ought to profess the belief of a Deity. And now what is the singular Imagination of a few vain, wanton Wretches, to the settled Persuasion of all the World besides? Must all men be deceived in their notions of God, because Democritus and Epicurus would not seem to own them? There are sometimes Monstrosities in Nature; and so there are too often in Opinion; nor is any thing so absurd and monstrous, but it has been disputed for; at least, may be disputed for by men of parts; and doth it hence follow that the contrary Principles are not true? One Philosopher maintained, that there is no such thing as Motion; another would have persuaded people that Snow is black; and some stood in it, that the same thing may be, and may not be at the same time, and in the same respect; that is, that both parts of a Contradiction can be true; and shall such odd Whimsies prevail against the common Sense and Reason of Mankind? Some never saw the light in all their lives; and doth this argue that there is no real Sun? or, that That is no Sun which the whole World beholds? Why, a man of unprejudiced and impartial Reason may with his mind as easily see God in his Works, as I can see the day with my eyes. But should I so affect singularity as to shut my eyes, and then pretend that all the World is a dismal, dark, confused Chaos; could it be concluded hence, that there is not one Star in the Firmament? why, 'tis as senseless to conclude that there is no God, and that Mankind have been all along mistaken in their belief of God, because two or three Impious Philosophers have shut the eyes of their Understanding against him. This indeed is an argument against themselves; a proof of their own folly, stupidity, and wickedness: But 'tis no argument against all other men, who have no mind to be so stupid and irreligious as they were: 'Tis far from being a proof, that there is no Existing Deity, as the generality of men have been in all times and places unanimously and throughly persuaded. 2. Nay, that I may proceed to the Second thing I proposed under this Head, from Matter of Fact to Evidence of Reason; this Universal Consent is a strong Argument of God's Existence. For whence could this common belief proceed, but from a common, natural Principle, wherewith the Souls of all men were endued by the Common Creator, to bear witness of his Being, as a Signature made by his own Finger? I do not mean, that the Notions we have of God are connatural to the Sou; that is, inbred, innate, and engraven, as it were, in our minds, upon our Conception in the Womb, so that every man in his Senses doth of himself, by common instinct, understand that there is a God. Methinks we need not go so far. It is enough that there is in us an inclination towards God, a disposition and propension to Religion, and an aptness to receive the knowledge of God upon Instruction, Education, and the use of common Reason. This we may well call a Natural Principle; and so the Notions we have of God are Natural Notions, because they do naturally result from the free exercise of our Natural Faculties. Now this plainly infers the Existence of God; because none but God could put the Souls of all Mankind into this frame: None but the Author of Nature could be the Author of those Principles in our Nature, whereby every man is able to discover and find out God; as all men have done, and do, who use their Reason. All have consented in this, that there is a Deity: Of this One, Universal, Uniform Principle there must be One, Universal, Uniform Cause; nor can any other 'Cause be reasonably assigned, but that Sovereign Being, who is the Cause of all things, and who ordered our common Nature thus. Had not God made our Faculties so, that the belief of his Existence springs forth in every one's mind with his Reason, and grows up with his Reason, we might argue with Lucilius in Cicero, De Nat. Deor. lib. 2. That it would have been impossible for that Belief to have continued every where constant, or to have been confirmed by a long tract of time, and to have become inveterate together with men's Ages. For vain, fictitious Opinions wear out by Diuturnity. Time discovers and destroys the falsehood of Imagination, but confirms the solid dictates and determinations of Nature. Which shows, that this common, lasting Notion of the Existence of God, is natural, and owes its original to a Power above, whose workmanship we all are. To defond themselves against the strength of this Argument, those that say in their hearts there is no God, pretend that this so universal a belief of the Existence of a Deity, may be impured to one or other of these four Causes, if not to all of them: Tradition, Fear, State-policy, and common Compact; the vanity of which Pretence I am now to show, that I may not pass by any thing material which lies in my way, upon this necessary, useful, and seasonable Subject. ●. As to the pretence of Tradition, though we suppose it to have been one Cause of that Universal Consent I have spoken of, yet these two things must be said: First, That Tradition argues the Truth of the Belief; and therefore is alleged to no purpose. Secondly, That Tradition of itself alone, and without the dictates of Nature, could not have been a sufficient cause of this Universal Consent. First, Tradition argues the Truth of that Belief which hath prevailed amongst all Mankind. By Tradition is meant (if men will speak Sense and Reason) an Opinion handed down from some First Authors: Nor can any other Authors of this Tradition be assigned, but those from whose Loins all Mankind descended; for how was it possible for a common Principle to spring but from a common Root,. our First Parents? Now this leads us back to the Times which Moses speaks of, when the First Parents of Mankind were form. And the Faith of God's Existence being derived originally from them, cannot but be unquestionably true; because they could not but know their own beginning: They could not but know, that God had made them after a preternatural manner; that God had form them by his immediate Power; and that they came out of the hands of God: Nor is it conceivable, that they should have taught their Children the knowledge of God, had not they themselves been sure there was One: That they should wilfully and designedly impose a Fiction upon all their Posterity, and such a Fiction too as would keep their minds in continual bondage under the most frightful apprehensions; this is an Imagination which confounds the Understanding of any reasonable man, and is altogether unaccountable. Besides, Had not the Tradition been certain, how could it have held so every where in the World, and all along for several Thousand years to this day? Fables are apt to be soon lost, what Hand soever sends them abroad to pass about in the World. The falsehood of them is somewhere or other discovered in time; especially when Inquisitive and Wise men begin to search into them, and to examine what substance there is in them, and what credit they are of: And how was it possible for this Tradition, had it been fabulous, to have gone through the world without interruption, or stop, notwithstanding all the most Curious Inquiries in so many Philosophical and Learned Ages? This shows, that the Tradition is grounded upon Principles of Nature; that therefore it is common with our Nature; and must be as constant and common as Humane Nature continues. 2. To which I add, Secondly, That though Truth went along with the Tradition, yet of itself alone, and without the Dictates of Nature, it could not have been universally received in all Places and Ages. For every one is not ready to embrace Truth itself, though it be never so probable; and when it is received, in process of time it doth often drop; nor is it easy to conceive how this Truth could have gone so current, as it hath gone, in all parts, and from hand to hand, without any considerable opposition, unless it had had the help of strong Reason to support it, and to carry it on still. No doubt but Adam taught his Children, in that long tract of time, the Nine hundred and thirty years of his life, many Truths, both Philosophical and Divine, which yet are now quite lost; especially to those people who have not the use of those Books which are open before us. Nay, though we are able by the help of Discourse to gather divers things out of Moses' Writings, which the old Pagans had no knowledge at all of; yet are there several matters which we ourselves are to seek for, because they are not evident from clear, cogent Principles of Nature. But this great Truth concerning the Existence of God hath been propagated all along together with Mankind, and as people have every where multiplied successively from Generation to Generation. Nay, the higher we go to those Elder times after the Creation, the less of Infidelity we find. Though there were then very few Books in the World, yet God was believed on, and even by those who in their lives dishonoured him: For in those days Nature spoke with simplicity, and much plainer and better than in aftertimes, when men of wanton Wits, and of base Minds, used Arts, and so corrupted and debauched their Natural Reason. This shows, that the Belief of God's Existence is grounded upon something in Humane Nature, which hath still preserved it in the world, notwithstanding the miscarriage of many other Traditions which our old Ancestors transmitted to their Posterity, and left with them. This hath escaped undestroy'd, uncontradicted but by a very few Partial, Conceited, and Designing Men; of which no other cause can be rationally assigned, but that it is most consonant to the frame of our Nature, a Natural Principle, an Idea of God which he himself hath, as it were, imprinted and stamped upon every one's minds, so that it cannot be worn out by Time itself, which weareth out other Notions that are not fixed and riveted, as this is, into the common Reason of Mankind; and therefore it is not to be imputed to mere Tradition. 2. Nor, Secondly, Can it be imputed to Fear; which is the next Pretence. For those who would destroy the Belief of a God, would fain persuade the world, that it is only a thing of Fancy, a fictitious, frightful Idea, put into people's heads by Designing Men, or form in their Brains by the power of their own Imagination; and that their minds being once scared, were easily bend to conceive that there is a Terrible Being over them, which those bold, hardy Wretches imagine to be nothing but a Bugbear, without any real Existence; and accordingly they bottom Religion upon groundless Fears; believing Hell, and Damnation, and a Deity, to be Figments, things invented and talked of to terrify the World; and so the Atheistical Author of the Leviathan represents them, comparing them, as he has the confidence to express it, to an empty Hat upon a crooked Stick to fright Birds from the Corn. I should beg every good Christian's pardon for but mentioning such Impiety, did not the Looseness of the Age we live in constrain us to take notice of the strange Notions that are got abroad: The meaning whereof in short is, That if people were not frighted out of their Wits, they would hardly believe the Existence of a Deity; for they ground that Belief upon Fear, and make Popular Fear to be the cause of it. And hence it is, they think, that this Belief hath generally prevailed in the World; not from any Natural Principle in the Understanding, but from a slavish, foolish Passion of heart; and because men have been every where taught to be fearful and timorous, or have made themselves so. Now to every Considerate, Rational Man, it is plain, that Fear cannot be the cause of that Belief, but is the consequence and effect of it: That is, Men do not believe a God, because they are afraid; but are therefore afraid, because they believe there is one, a Just and Powerful Being over all: And therefore their Fears proceed from an Universal, Common, and Natural Principle in every one's mind, touching God's Existence; for otherwise it were impossible for men's Fears to be so great, so universal, so fixed in Humane Nature, as never to be eradicated. First, It can never stand with common Reason to conceive, how Fear should create Tormenting Apprehensions of a Being, whom all Mankind have ever adored for his great Goodness, and whom Heathen Philosophers themselves have discovered by the Light of Nature, to be for his Divine Perfections the most Lovely and Desirable Being in the whole world. What Reverence soever the sense of his Greatness may call for, disquieting. Terrors of a Being so infinitely Perfect, cannot spring but from an Evil Conscience: And then I appeal to all Men of Sense, whether that Conscience ought to be heard against God, whose Interest it is to have none. This is certain, That there can be no fear, where there is not supposed an Object to be afraid of. That Object must be acknowledged, not only to be, but to be Angry and Threatening; otherwise our Faculties would be both vain and delusory, constrained to fear where no grounds of fear are; which is to reproach Nature itself, that is so adored by some Insidels, and to impeach it for a Common Cheat. Secondly, Though we should think some particular Persons imposed upon by their Fears; yet how could all Men in the World fall under the same Imposture at once? How could they be seized with one Agony universally, but from an Epidemical Principle in Humane Nature? Or, how could they all jump together in one Principle without the Hand of a God who made them all, and intended by this means to hold them all fast to himself? Thirdly, If we should be so unreasonable as to suppose Mankind to have been frighted all at the same instant, no body knows by whom, or when, or how; and by that fright to have been possessed with the thoughts of a Deity, can we suppose too that they had no time in so many Ages, to recover themselves out of that panic Distemper? Fear is a cruciating and tormenting Passion, which every Man is desirous to rid himself of as soon as he can; and would all Mankind be plagued with it perpetually, and without grounds? If it be said, That some Philosophers have found out the unreasonableness of it, and for that reason have discarded the Notion of a Deity, which was the effect of it; how came it to pass, that those Philosophers themselves could not void their own minds of that Fear notwithstanding? It was observed before out of Cicero, That Epicurus, as great an Atheist as he was, could not rid himself of the fear of God and Death; and if the hearts of his Followers were throughly searched, it will be found, that none are more fearful than they; which is a plain sign, that there are Briars and Thorns in their Consciences that can never be plucked up by the Roots; that there is a Testimony of God within them, and that how slightly and contumeliously soever they may talk of a God in their fits, there is an abiding Conviction upon their minds, that there is a God that judgeth the Earth, and will one day render to every Man according to his works. There is an end of fear, when once it is discovered to be groundless; and if Democritus, and the rest of them, did verily believe, there was no God, what made them still afraid? This fear could not raise the Notion of a Deity in them, because they disputed against the Notion. No; it was the Notion of God, which their Consciences could not part with, whatever they said; it was this that kept them in fear. For Nature will not lie, however men's Tongues may; and the terrible Apprehensions which those very Men laboured under, are a plain argument, that the belief of God's Existence is inseparable from all men's Reason; a Principle never to be pulled or torn out of Humane Nature, because radicated in it by the Maker of Mankind. 3. It is suggested also, That the universal belief of a Deity was introduced by the contrivance of Politic Princes, who took advantage by the panic fears of People to confirm their apprehensions, and to fill their minds with Notions of a God, that thereby they might the better keep their Subjects in Peace and Obedience to their Commands, and in continual Awe of an Invisible, Omnipotent Being, that would punish both in this World, and in another, all Sedition, Contumacy, and Disorders, though never so secretly acted; and so they resolve all Religion into State Policy, as if it were nothing but an Imposture, and Artificial Engine of Civil Government, form by the Wit and Cunning of designing Legislators. One of the thirty Tyrants at Athens, Critias by Name, is thought to have been one of the first that suggested this, and fancied the belief of a Deity to be an Invention and Trick of State; and from him that fancy is come down to us, and hath possessed the Brains of some in this Age, who are much of the Principles and Temper of Critias. I call it a fancy, because it is an unreasonable imagination upon these four Accounts. 1. First, It is not conceivable, how any Pagan, though never so great a Statesman or Philosopher, could at first without any Preconception or Disposition towards a Deity, devise and create in his mind a bright Idea of so glorious a Being, and of those Divine Properties which essentially belong to a Nature that is acknowledged to be eminently and absolutely Perfect. If it be said, This Idea was first form by the strength of Humane Reason, the Point is gained, that the Notion of a Deity is grounded in the intellectual part of Humane Nature, a rational, natural Principle; and for that cause, the belief of a God has been universally professed all over the World. If it was not the work of Reason, but a kind of Phantasm that fell by mere chance into the man's Imagination, a casual and contingent Idea, that one would think might as well have dropped into the fancy of a Common Animal without the use of Reason: How is it conceivable, that such a glorious Idea, as the Idea of God is, could be first framed in any man's Imagination by chance? The Idea of a Being of all the most glittering Perfections? The Idea of a most Wife, Righteous, and Gracious Being? The Idea of an Omnipotent, Benign Cause of all things? In short, The Idea of a Being that is the most glorious, beautiful, and charming Object for the Rational Faculty to be fixed on, and to contemplate, and for one's heart to desire? How could such an Idea fall into any one's fancy by mere chance, and without the Operation of Reason? 2. Or Secondly, How can such an imaginary Figment of the Brain be reasonably thought to have possessed the minds of all the Politicans in the World at once, and that by chance too? How could they all entertain the same Notions of God at the same time, if they were fictitious things; or if there were not great Reasons for them in Nature? How could Men of so many different Languages, and in so many distant Places and Countries, conspire all at once to devise a Notion, for which there was no Reason, Ground, or Truth? 3. Or, Thirdly, If all Princes could have joined together to cozen the World, how is it conceivable that they would, or could have put a cheat upon themselves, and have deceived their own minds? For Princes and Statesmen lie under the apprehensions of God as well as other Men; and the most hardy, crafty Politician is some time or other afraid of him, as Caligula was when he heard it thunder. God hath been the Hope of good Princes, and the Terror of bad Ones; and what ground could they themselves have for their expectation of Rewards or Punishments, if the belief of a Deity had been an Invention of their own; and if their secret design hereby was to keep, not themselves, but their People in Awe? 4. But though all this were supposed possible, yet how can it be imagined that the most subtle Statesman could deceive the minds of all other Men in the World for such a long Tract and Succession of Ages, with a groundless and unreasonable Opinion? There are but two ways of propagating a Fiction, viz. Violence and Fraud, and neither of these can with any colour of sense be pretended in this Case. First, For Violence, no History can show, that ever it was used to make People believe the Being of a Deity. Whatever force has been used, was intended to establish some particular Form of Religion, and Manner of Worship, which Men in Power thought most agreeable; and in their severe proceed they intended not to create in People's minds the Faith of God's Existence, but did suppose that, and took it for granted, and took advantage by it to carry on their great End, which was, to bring People to a particular Mode of Religion, that they themselves were best pleased with. Besides, Violence, if it had been used in this Case, could not have done their work, because the Minds of Men are never to be forced, especially into an universal Belief, and without the help of Reason. Whatever External Professions and Compliances it may bring a few timorous Persons to, it cannot alone work upon the Understanding and Conscience, to receive an Opinion which is not in itself evident or probable; rather, Men are apt to hate an Opinion that is brought with the terrible Pomp of Sword and Fire; witness all the unsuccessful Attempts of Princes, who instead of propagating their Religion, have still done it hurt by Sanguinary Methods. The difficulties here would have been far greater, nay, insuperable, to force all the People in the World into the belief of a thing so contrary to the Inclinations and Ease of their own Minds; to make them believe that there is an Almighty Being over them, that observes all their evil Actions, and will most certainly punish them; and so to bring them under a necessity of possessing themselves Day and Night with tormenting Anxieties; this is so inconsistent with those desires which every one naturally hath of enjoying all possible Satisfaction and Comfort in his own breast, that it would have been impossible for all the World to have been forced into an universal Belief of it, had there not been an universal Principle in Nature to oblige them to it. Fear is a disquieting Passion, which every Man would clear his mind of as soon as he can. Some who have been bred up in the fear of God, have endeavoured to force themselves out of it, even against their Consciences and Reason; and how all Mankind could be forced into it without their Consciences and Reason, is altogether unconceivable. It is therefore pretended in the next place, That this was done by the subtle and fraudulent Arts of Politicians; and that People believed, because they were told by their Governors, that there was a Deity. But to tell, is one thing; and to persuade, another. People are not wont, much less are all People in the World disposed to have so very kind an Opinion of their Superiors, as to believe them upon their bare words; especially in a case which touches them so nearly; and wherein all the Pleasure of their Lives, and the Peace of their Minds are so deeply concerned. For Men have ever found, that Sense, Wisdom, and Honesty, do not always go along with Power. Great Men may be as weak and shallow in their Intellectuals as others, as soon mistaken in their Measures, as easily disappointed of their Ends; nay, more apt to be put upon, than to impose. And though some may be very skilful in their Conduct, yet may they be designing; and the more politic any Governors are thought, the more ready are People to be very jealous of their Intentions; and how it could happen all at once, that all Statesmen should be so politic as to contrive, and all Mankind should be so credulous as to consent to a Fiction of so great a Nature and Consequence, is a question which may well ask any Man of Reason, how this can agree with it? But besides, suppose such a lucky hit did once, (no Man knows when) fall out; how is it imaginable, That a politic Artisice could have passed every where all along from Age to Age, without being discovered by the greatest part of Mankind? There are very few probable Truths, but some time or other have met with Contradiction; and when an Imposture comes to be notorious, it is for ever basfled; and if the belief of a Deity had been such, how can we think, that a Design form to terrify and rack the World, should not have been found out and spoiled many Ages ago; especially when inquisitive Philosophers traveled up and down into so many parts to discover what was true, and what was false, and to communicate their thoughts where ever they went? Still they returned home confirmed in their belief of a God, as the Rational Sense of all Men; and though in aftertimes some few Opiniators pretended to be singular, yet were they hooted at, scorned, and hated; and the ancient, universal Belief went on still, which makes it evident, that it was of strength enough to support itself; and the more narrowly it was looked into, the greater Substance was found within it, and the greater Solidity at the bottom of it; being highly consonant to every Man's Reason, and founded in our Common Nature. 4. It is pretended, lastly, That though universal Belief of a God might have been introduced by common Compact, or mutual Agreemeent among Mankind, which is as senseless and an Imagination as any other; for how was it possible for such an Agreement to have been begun, managed, carried on, and ratified, with the express consent of all People in the World? Surely they that think so, must imagine, that the World lies within a very narrow compass; and that intelligence in those Days was very quick, and that the minds of all Men were wonderfully credulous. 'Tis a great rarity to find in any one little Country or Town, an entire agreement in matters of Opinion, though they carry with them sufficient reasons of credibility; and was it ever possible for so many Nations in the World, of such different Languages, so vastly distant from one another, of such several Inclinations, Customs, and Interests, so divided by Seas, and without any Mutual Commerce or Correspondence; is it likely, I say, That they could all deliberately agree in one and the same Notion of their own making by Pact, Covenant, and Stipulation? And that too, to abridge themselves of the Pleasures of Life, to bring themselves into Slavery under fears of their own creating, to crucify their Hearts with mortifying Expectations, to render themselves came and managable by their Governors, to propagate a Fiction, and thereby to make their Posterity for ever melancholy and miserable, if there were no God? But this pretence is so very Absurd and Fantastical, that to confute it any further would be time lost; and therefore the premises being rightly considered, must necessarily infer, that the Belief of a Deity is a Principle rooted in Humane Nature; Notwithstanding all the various Modes of Religion which are in the World, all Nations Consent in this Principle, perhaps it is the only Principle wherein all are agreed: Which shows, That it is the necessary and immediate Result of Common Reason. It springs out of our Natural Faculties, as soon as we use them. We bring the Seminals of Religion into the World with us; and the universal Belief of a Deity is a strong argument of God's Existence, because it could come from no other hand but his that gave us our Faculties, and framed our Nature so, that by the exercise of our Faculties we may presently discover the Hand that made us, and gave us our Being, and hath set a mark of himself upon the minds of all Men, whereby his Being may be discerned and known, though all the Glories of his Nature cannot be fully comprehended. If at last it be said, That this Argument touching universal Consent is not strong enough to prove the Truth of God's Existence, because than it would prove too the truth of Idolatry, forasmuch as all Nations were once Idolaters, and consented in the worship of a great many Deities: To this, two things may be easily returned, First, That there was no such universal Consent as to that; no, not among the Pagans themselves. For though they worshipped a plurality of Objects, and the vulgar People paid their Devotions to them, as to so many real and distinct Deities; yet (as I showed before) they owned One Supreme God, and looked upon the rest as Inferior Being's; Deities that had been generated or made by the great Cause of all things, and them they adored for his sake, and upon his account, as Deputies and Administrators under him, and as Mediators for Men to him; so that they referred their Worship to him by them, and did terminate all of it in him. And yet the wiser sort of Men among them, did not esteem that multitude of Deities, as so many real Persons, Substances, and Being's distinct from the Supreme, but rather as so many several Virtues and Powers of One Sovereign Numen, personated fictitiously, according to the See Dr. Cudworth's Intel. System. l. 1. c. 4. p. 502. various Works and Manifestations of that One God, that did Pervade all things, did Exist in all things, did Act in all things, and was conceived by them to be in a manner all things, and consequently was, as they thought, most honoured, and best served by the Religious Honours which were given him by and through his Works every where, as he manifested every where his Virtue, and displayed his Power. So that the great Error among the old Heathens, seems not to have been about the Existence of One God, (as to which they were well agreed) but about the way and manner of Worshipping him; as to that, they were divided in their Opinions; some believing the Supreme God to be worshipped jointly with other Deities; and the rest conceiving him to be worshipped alone under several Names, Titles, and Appellations. Now, though the Being of God was a thing so evident, obvious, and bright, that it flashed in all their faces, yet in their Notions of God's Worship (a thing which required greater use of Reason and Philosophy) they were puzzled and distracted; and therefore universal Consent cannot be pleaded to prove the truth of their Religion, and the real Existence of all their Deities; because they were not generally agreed as to that, as they were in this Common Principle, That there is One God over all things. 2. Secondly, How gross soever the Conceits of the Heathens were, the whole account of the matter shows, That they were inclined and willing to Worship the True God, if they could but have certainly known where or how to have found him. In places of the thickest Darkness, and in times of the greatest Ignorance, there was in all Men a Propensity to some Religion or other; so that rather than People would have no God at all, they would adore many, which still serves to confirm the Point in hand, That the belief of a Deity is radicated in Humane Nature, how hard soever some few odd Men have laboured and strained to tear it out. Seeing a belief so universal cannot be founded on mere Tradition, or Fear, or Policy, or any advised Agreement, and Institution amongst Mankind; if we will inquire soberly into the Reasons of it, no other rational Account can be given, but that the Faculties of our Nature are so framed by the Excellent Wisdom and Power of God, that upon the due exercise of our Understanding and Reason, an Idea of God ariseth in every one's mind; which is, therefore rightly called a Natural Idea, because it may be form by the use of our Natural Faculties, without the assistance of special Revelation; and because our Nature is so ordered by the Father of Spirits: Divines rightly say, That the Idea of God is imprinted on all men's minds by the Finger of God, and is a mark of himself, and of his own setting, to let us know that we are all his, and to draw from us all possible returns of Praises and Reverence, of Admiration and Love, of Imitation and Obedience, and Universal Submission to his Divine Will and Pleasure. CHAP. IU. HAVING fully considered this Argument of God's Existence, taken from the Universal Consent of Mankind, and the Common Principle which is in Humane Nature; I proceed now to that which was proposed as the Third Head; viz. The Consideration of some Extraordinary Occurrences in the World, which further argue the Being of a God. And here many things might be taken notice of, were I minded to let this Discourse swell into a great bulk; as, The Strange Discoveries which have been made of many the most Secret Villainies; the Wonderful Events, whereby the Designs of Wicked Men have been prevented and overruled; the Various Providences whereby Oppressed Innocence hath been vindicated and delivered, the Several Revelations of the Divine Will which have been given since the beginning of the Creation, the constant supporting of Government and Order in the World, the remarkable Translation of Empires for People's Provocations; the Astonishing Examples which have been made of many Bold, Incorrigible Wretches; and the like: All which do in their kind show, that there is a Divine Disposer and Governor of the Universe; an Observing and Righteous God, that judgeth all the Earth. But because these may chance to be looked upon rather as Popular Suggestions, than Convincing, Solid Arguments, I shall for brevity sake wave them, and insist only upon Two things, which the most Judicious Men are commonly wont to urge, and which indeed are past all contradiction, if matter of Fact can be made appear: And they are 1. First, Such Miraculous Works, as could never have been done but by an Almighty Power: And, 2. Secondly, Such Predictions and Prophecies, as could never have been delivered without the foreknowledge of an Omniscient Being. 1. First, For those Miraculous Works which could never have been done without an Almighty Power. By Miracles I mean such as are True Miracles; or such Effects, as no Second, Subordinate Cause can possibly work of itself; no Finite, Natural Agent can do by any Causality, or Virtue of its own. And of such Miracles there seem to be these Three sorts, which most of all relate to the matter in hand: 1. First, Such as have been done without any Concurrence or Instrumentality of Second Causes; nay, such as could never have been done by any Limited Power: As the giving sight to those who were born without Eyes; the making the Sun to go back, or to stand still; the Raising of the Dead to life again; and the multiplying a few Loaves and Fishes to satisfy Five thousand People. 2. Such Effects, as perhaps might have been done in time by the help of Natural means, but yet never were, nor could be wrought on a sudden by their use and application; as, the healing of the Leprosy in a moment; the instantaneous removing of the Palsy, and the like Difficult and Inveterate Distempers. 3. Such Effects as have been done by the use of Means; but yet such a sort of Means, as were indisposed for those Operations; nay, were utterly uncapable of themselves to produce those strange Effects: As, the Dividing of the Sea with a Rod; the Separating of Waters by smiting them with a Mantle; the Curing of a Leprosy by washing in a Common River; the Sweetening of a Bitter Fountain with a Piece of Wood; the giving Sight to the Blind by the application of Clay and Spittle; the Restoring of the Deaf and Dumb by putting a Finger into the Ear; the Healing of many Infirmities with a Touch, with the Hem of a Garment, with an Handkerchief, with a Word, with a Shadow of a Man passing by, and the like. All these Extraordinary Occurrences are above the Powers of all Art and Nature: The first sort, in respect of the Quality of them; the rest in respect of the Manner of their Production. No Creature can stop the Course of the Sun, any more than he can pull all the Stars out of the Firmament. No Creature can form an Eye, or any Integral part of it, any more than he can extinguish the Light of the Day: No Creature can recover the Dead, any more than he can mould an Humane Soul and Body out of the dust. Nor can any Creature do one Wonder (though it be only a Wonder in Nature, or to outward appearance) either without means, or by means indisposed, incompetent, and insufficient, any more than he can frame a World, or govern the Universe by his Beck. The Nature of these things, and the Power that is requisite to bring them to pass, sets them above all the reach of Natural, Finite, Limited Agents; and therefore when they are done, they are plain Demonstrations of a Superior Power, Arguments of an Hand, Proofs of an Almighty Agent; that is, of the Existence of a God. 1. For first; None but an All powerful Being can alter the Established Course and Order of things. Every part of the World is under some peculiar Law, which it regularly and constantly observes. Though here and there Nature may commit some slight Error in its Specific Operations; yet the great Laws of the Universe stand, and hold against all Natural Agents; and every Creature yieldeth Obedience to them. Therefore when the settled Course of the Creature is altered (as it always is when a True Miracle is wrought) it is an undeniable Argument of a Superior Hand, which gave every thing its Law, Never to be changed but by the same Power which fixed it; and against which no Law can possibly hold, when that Sovereign Being hath a mind to dispose of a Creature into a different Course. As for instance; 'Tis a Law which the Waters are under, That they shall perpetually consist of fluid parts, by means whereof they naturally run into, and maintain an inviolable state of mixture and co-adunation. 'Tis a Law the Heavens are under, That the Lamps thereof shall be Day and Night in motion. 'Tis a Law every Man is under, That the Dust shall return to the Earth as it was, and the Spirit shall return unto him that gave it. According to these Laws doth the Course and Order of all these things hold, never to be broken or changed by the natural force of any of their Fellow-Creatures. Now when it so happens, that either an Heavenly Body is arrested in its progress; or that the Sea is thrown up and consolidated into standing heaps; or that a man's Soul, which had escaped out of its Prison, is sent back again out of the other world, and remanded into its Cold, Earthly, and Ruinated Lodgings; it is impossible with Reason to ascribe this to any other Cause, but the Omnipotence of a Transcendent Being, who governs and disposeth all things in Heaven and Earth of his own good pleasure. And it shows, that the first sort of Miracles, viz. such as have been done without the operation of any Second Causes, nor could have been done by them, are clear Attestations of the Existence of a Deity, under whose Hand and Power all other Being's are. 2. And then, Secondly, Touching the other sorts of Miracles, such as have been wrought instantly, and without means sufficient of themselves, as the Curing of Diseases in a moment by a Word, or a Touch; they are the productions of things out of nothing; which cannot be attributed to any thing less than a Deity. For in these Cases there is an utter indisposition, both in the Means, and in the Object about which those Means are used; and consequently, such a Miracle is a kind of Creation, which nothing but Omnipotence can produce. There is little, if any, difference, as to the Power, between raising things out of no pre-existent Matter, and forming things out of Matter that in itself is quite uncapable of that formation; in each Case an Almighty Power is necessary; and where that Power is, it is the same thing to it, in effect, to bring Perfections out of utter Incapacities, as to bring Habits out of Privations, or Substance out of Nonentity. Which is an evident Proof, That granting those Miracles were really done, which we find recorded of the Prophets in the Old Testament, and especially of our Saviour, and his Apostles in the New, they must be acknowledged to have been wrought by a Divine Power, or by the hand of an Omnipotent Being; and consequently that such an Omnipotent Being doth Exist. Hence it is, that True Miracles are always destructive of Insidellty; so that wherever they have been showed, all Teachable Men have been convinced of the particular Providence of an Almighty God over that People. When Naaman the Syrian found himself healed of his Leprosy, by washing in Jordan at the instance of Elisha, it extorted that Confession from him, Behold, now I know, that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel, 2 Kings 5. 15. When that Nobleman, John 4. saw what a Miracle was wrought on his dying Son, the Text saith, That himself believed, and his whole house, V 53. When Sergius Paulus saw what a Miracle was done for the punishment of Elymas the Sorceror, he believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord, Acts 13. 12. In which three Instances means were used, such as they were. In the first, the application of Water; in the two latter, the speaking of a few words only; and yet each Miracle was as convincing, as if God had displayed his immediate hand; because the means being of themselves insufficient for the production of such astonishing Events, argued plainly, that an Omnipotent Virtue went along with them, which supplied their natural insufficiency, and shown, that the Excellence of the Power was of God. What I have said upon this Point doth suppose, that these, and the like Miraculous Works have been actually done; and if so, than the Inference will be necessary and unavoidable, That there is a God. But to evade the force of this Argument, the Infidels of our Age have these Two things to say. 1. First, That no True Miracles, or Supernatural Works, have been ever wrought. 2. And Secondly, That the Wonders we read of, are no more an Argument of the truth of God's Existence, than they are of the truth of Idolatry, because Idolaters themselves have pretended to Miracles. These two Subterfuges and Shifts must be now considered in their order. 1. First, They will allow of no higher Miracles than what have been found here in Nature, when some unusual things have happened, the natural cause whereof could not be well assigned. As for Supernatural Effects, they are Fables in the account of these men; because they cannot admit of such Effects without admitting of a Supernatural Power to produce them; that is, the Existence of a Deity; which of all things in the world they are most afraid to own. Now for the clearing of this weighty matter, I would first ask these great Pretenders to Reason, this General Question; Whether it be rational to deny matter of Fact, which hath as good Evidence as can possibly be given of any matter of Fact which we have not seen with our own eyes? If this be rational, then there is an end of Faith amongst Mankind, and we must believe nothing but what our own Senses bear witness to; and so no Credit is to be given to any History, or Relation in the world. If it be not rational, then have we as good grounds to believe the truth of Supernatural Effects, or Miracles, as can in reason be expected for the truth of any thing that is gone and passed. And this shall be my next business, to show, That the Account we have of such and such Miracles done, carries with it as strong Evidence, at least, as any matters of Fact we find in any History of former Ages; so that with as much reason men may reject the belief of any, nay of all Accounts, as the belief of this. I do not here in the least pretend to support the Credit of all those Appearances which have gone under the name of Miracles, especially in latter Ages. We read of multitudes, which have been either downwright Forgeries and Fictions, purposely invented to carry on Lucrative and Superstitious Designs; or else have been no better than Illusions of men's Senses, whereby the Credulity of weak people hath been imposed upon, and abused. Nay, many of them are of such a ridiculous Nature, that some have been ashamed of the Stories, though they have made Money by the Invention. To talk of such Miracles is a great disadvantage and prejudice to Christ's Religion, however it may serve men's private Interest. The Miracles I urge as clear Demonstrations of the Existence of a God, are those recorded in the Scriptures; in the Old Testament, by Moses, chief; and in the New, by the Evangelists. And, how slight soever Sceptics make of them, there is as great evidence of the truth of them, as there can be of any matter of fact, if we will be so just to those Writers, as to allow them the Common Reputation of having been fair Historians; though at present we set aside the consideration of their having been divinely Inspired. Now the greatest evidence that can possibly be given of any thing that was formerly done, depends upon these four Grounds. 1. That the Person said to have done it, did really exist; or that there was indeed such a Person. 2. That the Relators of the Action were sufficiently Credible. 3. That others who had Reason to know, and were able to know the truth of the matter, were sufficiently satisfied of the certainty of it. 4. That things of great and public Concernment were the consequents of it. Where there are all these grounds of evidence, no reasonable Men can question any matter of fact, though it was done at a great distance of time from them; and from all these it appears, that such true Miracles have been done, as argue the Existence of an Omnipotent Agent. 1. For first; That there was in the World, such a Man as Moses, and such a Person as Jesus Christ, is as evident, even from Humane Testimony, as that there were such Men as Alexander, Caesar, and Cato. Josephus shows out of those Ancient Writers, Manetho and Cont. Appion. l. 1. Chaeremon, what a great esteem the old Egyptians had of Moses; and what an Admirable Divine Person he was in the Account of that Nation. Clemens Alexandrinus tells us out of the Greek Writers, what an Honour the old Philosophers Stromat. l. 1. among them had for Moses' Memory; and that they looked upon him as the only wise Man in his time, and gave him the Character of a Prince, a Lawgiver, a General, a Just and Holy Person, beloved of God. The same Author tells us, That the Egyptian Mystae believed that Moses was taken up into Heaven; and that Eupolenius gave him the Character of the first wise Man; and that the Mystae relating the Story of his killing the Egyptian, said, That he did it by the word of his Mouth; and that Artapanus owned the Story of his Imprisonment, adding some fabulous Stuff concerning his Deliverance. Numenius, the Pythagorean, said, ●irom. 5. that Moses was a Divine, and a Prophet; and that his Writings are worthy of belief, Id. 28. and that he was a most powerful Man with God by his Prayers. Trogus Pompeius mentions Abraham, Euseb. de prepar. l. 9 c. 8. Moses, and Israel, as Kings of the Jews. He takes notice of the many Sons of Israel (though he mistakes the number). He speaks particularly, and by Name, of those two Sons of Israel, Juda, and Joseph; and then he goes on relating the story of Moses, and of his leading the Jews out of Egypt; though he sophisticates the Story with a great deal of falsehood, as also Cornelius Tacitus Justin. l. 36. Tac. l. 5. Hist. doth in his Account of Moses and his Conduct: Both which Ancient Historians follow the Narration which was given of this matter by the Egyptians themselves, who mortally hated the Jewish Nation, and told a great many Lies, touching the Reasons and Manner of their Departure from them; as Josephus shows in his first Book against Appion. Justin Martyr upbraiding the Greeks in his time for being Enemies to the Christian Religion, proved to them out of their own Authors, that Moses, who laid the Foundations Exhortat. ad Graec. of Christianity, was acknowledged much more Ancient than any of their Poets ' Historians, Philosophers, or Legislators ' And out of that noble Historian, Diodorus, he told them, That Moses was reckoned a God, by reason of his Divine and Excellent Wisdom, and for teaching People to use good Laws, and to live according to them; which Account Diodorus, who had spent thirty Years in Travels, said he had from the Priests in Egypt. To these Observations divers more might be added out of Grotius, and other Modern Writers, were it needful. But the Learned know, That as the Greeks first borrowed their Letters of the Jews; so the best Laws at Athens, and afterwards at Rome, took their Original from the Laws of Moses. And that Jesus Christ formerly lived in the Land of Judea, is acknowledged even by those who were no Friends to his Religion. Josephus the Jew, who seems to have been our Saviour's Cotemporary, saith, That in the Regency of Pontius Pilate, there lived one Jesus, a wise Man, (saith he) if yet it Antiq. l. 18. c. 4. be sit to call him a Man; because he did many Miracles, and appeared alive again the third Day after his Crucifixion. That Roman Historian, Tacitus, Cornel. Tac. l. 15. speaking of the Christians, tells us, That the Author of that Name, was one Christ, who in the Reign of Tiberius the Emperor was put to Death by Pontius Pilate. About fifty Years after our Saviour's Time, Pliny the Proconsul of Bythinia, sent the Emperor Trajan Plin. l. 10. Ep. 97. this Account of the Christians, That their Custom was to sing Hymus to Christ, as to a God. Suetonius In Vit. Claud. makes mention of him too, meaning not so much his Person as his Doctrine. The Acts of Pilate, to which the Primitive Christians were wont to appeal, show that there was such a Man once in being. Those Learned Heathens who wrote against his Faith, Celsus, Porphyry, and Julian, never questioned the Truth of the History touching his Life and Death. The most hardened Jews themselves, that hate and reproach his Memory, cannot deny, but that there was such a Man, and that their Ancestors killed him. Nay, they are sensible to this day, that for that very reason they are despised and abhorred by the Christian World. So that no account whatsoever of matter of fact can possibly be more attested, more clear and certain than this is, That Jesus Christ once lived in the World. 2. The next thing is, That the History of those Miracles, which are said to have been done by Moses and our Blessed Saviour, is also as sufficiently credible, as any Historical Account can be. Two Qualifications are necessary in an Historian to make his Relations sufficiently Credible, Knowledge and Integrity; and where both these Qualifications meet, that is, where a Man cannot be ignorant of the Truth of what he writes, nor can be justly suspected of an intention to deceive; in that case there can be no fair or tolerable reason for our disbelief. 1. Now as to Moses' Knowledge, 'tis impossible to conceive, That he knew not what he did himself, or that he was not conscious of his own Actions. And 'tis as impossible to think that the Evangelists knew not what Jesus Christ did. For Matthew and John were contivally about him, attending personally upon him, Eye-witnesses of all his Actions; especially the latter, who was admitted into his Privacies, so that no Miracle is said to have been done at any time out of the common View, but what John was a constant Eye-witness of. And if Luke and Mark were not such Attendants upon Christ himself, as the others were, yet the least that is said of them, is, that the one was conversant with Paul, who had as certain Information of all things as the rest of the Apostles had; and that the other was conversant with Peter, who was allowed the same Privilege which John enjoyed, and was continually one of those three special Favourites, who were privy to the Lord Jesus his more secret Actions. 2. This short account being given of all these Writers Knowledge, the next thing to be showed to make their Testimony sufficiently credible, is, their great Intergity, which will soon appear to any reasonable Man that will but consider, 1. First, The Impartiality. 2. And then the Simplicity that is observable in their Writings. 1. The Evangelists have given us an Impartial Account of the Obscurity of Christ's outward Condition; of the Meanness of his Disciples Quality and Fortunes, of their Natural Inabilities, of the Dulness of their Understandings, of the slowness of their Hearts to believe; of their Infirmities and Faults, and particularly, of the Treachery of one Apostle, and of the shameful Lapse of another. There are none of those things concealed, which Men of Art and Partiality would hardly have made known. Nay, it is observable of Mark, that though he was Peter's great Attondant in the Execution of his Ministry; yet in relating the Story of Peter's denying his Master, he tells it as plainly as Matthew doth, with this little difference, that he doth not take such affecting notice of his Repentance, as the other doth. For, whereas St. Matthew saith, That he wept bitterly; St. Mark saith, only He wept; as if he lessened his Sorrow after an humble, modest manner, in respect to Peter, whose Amanuensis he then was. An instance that shows, That if there was any Partiality in these Writers, it was in this, That they did not say enough of one another's Virtues. Such Impartiality is seen throughout the History written by Moses. For therein he sets down, not only the Poverty of his beginnings, but even the Faults and Miscarriages he had been guilty of, and how angry God was for them. He relates as well the Crimes, as the Infirmities of his Ancestors, all along from Noah, down to the Twelve Patriarches; and among them, he particularly notes the Persidiousness and Cruelty of his great Grandfather Levi, when he and Simeon tricked the Sechemites out of their Lives and Fortunes; for which Inhumanity their Father Jacob set a Curse upon them, which Moses has very faithfully recorded in Gen. 43. In short, Whereas Partial Historians are wont to seek themselves a Name, by favouring, and many times by slattering the Parties they belong to, Moses spared not his own Nation; But hath left the World a long and lasting Account of the Follies, the infidelity, the Murmur, the Ingratitude, the Apostasies, together with the perverse and incorrigible Temper of that People, the Jews; neither concealing, nor excusing, nor extenuating their Provocations; his great Design being to set forth the Glory of God's Truth and Goodness; who set his love upon them, and chose them, not because they were better, or more in number than any People, (for they were the fewest of all People, and a Rebellious People) but because the Lord loved them, and because he would keep the Oath which he had sworn unto their Fathers. 2. To demonstrate yet further the Integrity of Moses and the Evangelists, who speak of such Miracles done, let us consider, Secondly, their great Simplicity of Mind, without any mixture of Sinister or Self-designs. Men are not wont to tell Tales for nothing. 'Tis either Vanity, or some private Interest, which is the end and drift of Impostors. And what could Moses propose to himself by telling stories, which the Egyptians and Jews were so easily able to contradict, if those Miracles had not been done among them? Or, what advantage can Men think he aimed at, when at the same time he spoke so hardly of those People, from whom alone those advantages were to be expected, if any advantage at all had been sought for? Nay, when he let those advantages go, which he had already in his hands? Whereas Men in Power endeavour to keep their Authority up, and to transmit it to their Posterity, Moses was content to let all that Power die with him, wherewith he was vested when he governed the whole Jewish Nation. He appointed Joshua to succeed him in his Civil Authority. The great Dignity and Advantages of the Priesthood, he disposed of to his Brother Aaron and his Sons. As for his own Children, he left them in Subjection to the Priests, to officiate under them in the ordinary and mean Ministrations of the Tabernacle, not allotting them one foot of Land amongst all their Kindred: All which shows, that from the beginning to the end, Moses designed nothing but the Honour of God, and the Common good of his People: And that no Honour or Interest of his own could possibly sway, or tempt him to violate his Integrity. And what could the four Evangelists propose to themselves, that should move them to deceive the world, and make their Relations incredible, or suspected? Honours they could not aim at, unless men think it an Honour to be Dishonest: Nor could Interest tempt them to impose fictions on men's Belief, when they were sure beforehand to receive nothing in this world but Hardship, Persecutions, and Death, for their Reward. Very poor encouragements for men to invent and spread abroad idle Stories: Or, if it be said, that 'twas for the Credit and Propagation of their Religion; they must be thought the oddest men in Nature, that would coin Fictions for the sake of a Religion they believed to be false; and yet they could not have believed otherwise of it, if they had not known it to have been confirmed by Miracles; for they were the only things that could give Evidence of its Truth beyond all Contradiction. 3. This I have said to show, that however some Irreligious Men have the confidence to despise the Scripture-account of Divine Miracles; to common human Reason it appears sufficiently credible, from the certain Knowledge, and manifest Probity of the Writers; and consequently, that we have as fair Evidence of the Reality of Miracles (in that respect) as can be had of any other matter of Fact that has been done in former Ages. To which let us add, in the next place, this third ground of Credibility; viz. that others, who had reason to know, and were able to know the truth of the matter, were sufficiently satisfied of the certainty of it. Here again we must return to Moses; and First, it is observable, that the account he gives of Miracles done by him, has continually passed through a long succession of Ages, uncontradicted; which is an Argument, that the Inquisitive and Knowing men in most Nations were well satisfied of the Reality of the matter: For, as the Mosaic Writings contain the most Ancient Records that are extant in the world, so they seem to have been perused by the most Ancient Philosophers and Historians; because the things related in them were spoken of, and owned generally by the whole Heathen world; though sometimes not without a mixture of Poetical Fables; as, the Creation of the Universe; the Sanctity of the Sabbaths; the Story of the Deluge, and of the Ark; the Right of circumcision, and the like; as the Learned Grotius hath particularly showed in his First Book of the Truth of Christianity. It is very probable, that the general belief of these things sprang from the general persuasion which prevailed in the world, of those Signs and Wonders that Moses had showed, that made him so great a Person in the Esteem of Mankind. There were thousands ready to have disproved the Relation, if the Works had not been done; nor is it in the least likely, that of so many Neighbouring Nations round about the Jews, which mortally hated the Jews and their Religion, none would have discovered the Imposture, had they not been satisfied, that what Moses had written, was true. The Honour of having such great things done for them in the eyes of the world would have been thought too much for a despised, hated People to have gone away with. 2. But, Secondly, instead of Contradicting Moses' History, the most Ancient Writers among the Egyptians and Greeks, did own his Greatness: Insomuch, that the old Egyptians would have appropriated him to themselves, pretending that he was of Egyptian Parentage, and a Priest of Heliopolis, by name Ozarsiph, changing his name afterwards to Moses. Some indeed of the other Heathens, as Apuleius, and Numenius the Pythagorean, reckon him among the old Magicians, and in particular, among Jannes and Jambres, the famous Magicians of Pharaoh; but all looked upon him as a very wonderful Person, by reason of the Plagues he brought upon Egypt. 3. And then, Thirdly, as for the Jews, nothing can be more clear, than that their whole Nation have all along acknowledged the truth of the Miracles done by Moses. For their whole Constitution was founded upon the Credit of his Divine Authority; and that depended upon the Credit of his Miracles: And had any of them been unsatisfied in that point, those Rebels who risen up against Moses and Aaron, alleging that they took too much upon them, would have alleged that they pretended too much also; a great deal more than what was true: Nor could those People, who time after time Revolted from Moses' Law, have had such another Plea for their Apostasies, as this would have been, that the Authority of the Law giver was not confirmed by Miracles, as 'twas believed. I have said thus much of Moses, to confront some in our days, who have taken the confidence to deride the Writings which go under Moses' Name, and the Miracles said to have been wrought by him, that thereby they may with the greater boldness deny the Existence of God; though, if Men will take the evidence given of any matters of Fact done at a great distance of time from them, it is impossible to find better evidence of any matters, than there is of these; of the certainty whereof, those who had Reason to know, and were able to know, were fully satisfied. I go on now, in the next place, from the same Consideration to prove the Reality of those Miracles which the Evangelists ascribe to Jesus Christ. And who could think themselves more concerned to inquire into the truth of them, than those great Men, who made it their business to oppose his Religion? And yet, that many notable Miracles had been done by him, and by his Apostles after him, was manifest to all that dwelled at Jerusalem; and they could not deny it. All that they had to say for their Infidelity, was, that Christ did those wonderful Works by the help of the Devil; but matter of Fact they owned. Hence it was, that soon after the Lord went out of the World, divers pretended to a power of Miracles, such as Simon Magus, the Gnostics, and especially Appollonius Tyanaeus; that they might draw People off from the Profession of Christianity upon the same Motives which had induced them to embrace it. Those times abounded with Magicians and Sorceress; who, though they could not deny the Works which Jesus Christ had done, yet used all their Arts to lessen and disparage them, by pretending to do the like. Our Saviour had foretold his Disciples, That false Christ's, and false Prophets would arise, and would show great signs and wonders, insomuch that (if it were possible) they would deceive the very elect, Matth. 24. 24. Accordingly St. Paul speaking of that set of Seducers, in the Singular Number, as the Man of Sin, saith, That his coming was after the working of Satan, with all power, and signs, and lying wonders; that is, with wonders that served to confirm and give testimony to false Doctrines, 2 Thess. 2. 9 All these Appearances were so many Imitations of the Works of Jesus, intended by those men to deceive, who tried to counterfeit things which they durst not contradict, for fear of being contradicted themselves by all the World. Nor did those bitter Adversaries to Christianity in aftertimes, Celsus and Julian, presume to disown the Miracles of Christ; for they acknowledged, as other Heathens did, that he cured the Blind and the Lame; but to keep the force of this Argument from working upon men's minds, they reviled his Actions, as though they were done, not by any Divine Power, but by Arts of Magic, after his return out of Egypt, where they pretended he had learned his Skill. Briefly; Orig. cont. Cells. lib. 1. p. 30. In the Ages which were nearest to our Saviour's, all sorts of knowing Men acknowledged the Miraculous things that had been wrought by Him and his Followers: And had some Sceptics of our days lived then, even Jews and Pagans would in that point have accused their Infidelity from notoriety of fact which was unquestionable. 4. And yet there is one Consideration more, that gives further Evidence of the truth of those Miracles which Moses and Jesus Christ did; viz. That things of great and public concernment were the consequents of them; than which no stronger evidence can be given, or desired, of any matter of fact that ever was done in the world. There cannot possibly be a better proof that there were formerly Wise and Good Men in England, than the Government they established, and the Laws they have left us. Our whole Constitution is founded upon their Actions; and the Polity we are under, shows what Kings and Parliaments they were, and what they have done, though the Men are long ago dead. So doth the state of Judaisme and the frame of Christianity show what Moses, and what Christ did. All on each hand is built upon the Miracles which were done by the one and the other; and to say at last, there were no such things, is to accuse all their Disciples of the highest madness, for following their Institutions without Grounds or Reason; a censure that is too hard to be given of so great a part of Mankind, who think they have the greatest Reason in the world for their Profession. Moses his business was, to form the whole Nation of the Jews into a Commonwealth, distinct from all other Societies of Men; to give them peculiar Laws; to prescribe them a peculiar Form of Religion; to bring their Necks under an heavy yoke; under a sort of discipline, that was the most strict, the most cumbersome, and laborious: And how can we think that a froward People, just delivered out of one Bondage, would presently have submitted to another (nay, a Bondage which they thought was to last for ever), had they not seen such signs and wonders done before their eyes, as plainly argued that their Lawgiver came to them by immediate Commission from God? Or how can we conceive, that their Posterity, who groaned so often under the Curses which Moses had left them, would have endured the severities of such a Taskmaster, had they not well known that his Authority over them was attested from Heaven? Nay, How is it imaginable, that the Jews at this day should not yet departed from Moses, but stick to him to death, and will undergo any sufferings, rather than leave him, though their Religion (as distinct from Christianity) hath no inward natural Goodness to commend it, no human Power without to support it; and though they themselves be the most ignominious hated People in the world? The Reasons of all this must be drawn from those strong assurances the Jews have always had, That to erect their Polity, and to establish their Religion, Moses did such Works as wore out of the Power of all Art and Nature, and plain tokens that he acted in the Name of God, and by the Authority of God. And then as for the Christian Institution, it hath been long ago Received and Professed up and down in the world, though it met with, and indeed carried in its nature such vast and manifest discouragements, as could never have been conquered, had not Christ shown the Necessity and Divinity thereof by Miracles. A Religion, whose Author died a most reproachful Death: A Religion, that layeth hard Restraints upon men's natural Desires, and binds them to acts of Self-denial and Mortification: A Religion, that makes People prefer future Expectations before all present Enjoyments, and wait till the day of Judgement for their full Reward. A Religion, that is attended with Sorrows and Sufferings, and exposeth its Professors to Death it self, for the sake of a good Conscience: In short, a Religion, that brings with it all the seeming disadvantages and discouragements that can be offered to Flesh and Blood. And yet notwithstanding all inconveniences, this Religion, wherever it hath been Preached, hath continually prevailed over the hearts of all Teachable Men in the world; of which no other rational account can be given, but this, That the Author and Finisher of our Faith proved his Authority, and confirmed all his Laws and Doctrines by working Miracles by the finger of God. The works that he did in his Father's name, they bore witness of him, Joh. 10. 25. For all people knew that he was a Teacher come from God, because no man could have done those Miracles that he did, except God had been with him, Joh. 2. 3. So that Miracles were the foundation of every man's Faith and Obedience; the great Reasons which Congregated all people into that Body which we call the Church; and which still holds them firm together against all the Hardships and Storms that can be brought upon them. The Christian Church is a standing, visible Monument of our Saviour's Miracles, as the Jewish State was of the Miracles wrought by Moses; and both of them are Monuments of such vast and public consequence, as could never have been erected without them; much less could they have stood against all Winds and Weather. And after all, to imagine (as some do) that no such Divine Supernatural Effects were ever done, is to say, That the greatest part of the World have been all along so many stark Fools; a Character which we think more peculiarly belongs to those who say in their hearts, There is no God. Considering what a difficult and hazardous Office the first Preachers of Christianity had to discharge, How, think ye, was it possible for them to undertake it with such readiness, to perform it with such vigour, and to go through it with such constancy and cheerfulness, notwithstanding so much opposition, had they not been abundantly convinced of the truth of their Religion by Miracles, which they saw with their own eyes? And considering what vast importance the Christian Religion is declared to be of; and how directly opposite it is to the natural Inclinations of corrupt Mankind, and how it was discountenanced and hated by Jews and Heathens in the beginning; How can we think it possible for it to have been received so generally and unexpectedly in the World, had not inquisitive Men, who had the fairest advantages of knowing matters of Fact, been fully satisfied, That the mighty Miracles reported to have been done by Jesus, were true? Men cannot think these things possible, but either they must believe, that people in those days had lost all their Senses; or make us now believe, that they themselves have utterly lost their own. The design of all this is to show, That there is as convincing and strong Evidence, that True, Divine Miracles have been wrought, as can rationally be expected of any thing which hath been done in former times; because no matter of Fact whatsoever can possibly be capable of stronger proof. In cases of this nature, the utmost that can be expected, is Moral Certainty; when the Evidence is so fair, that no reasonable man can have just cause to doubt of the truth of the matter; and that Evidence must be from Testimony, because it is impossible for us to know any thing which is gone and passed, but by information from others; and when that Information is so full, that to unprejudiced Understandings the thing seems unquestionable, it is as much as any reasonable man can desire. Since therefore it appears by indubitable Testimony, that those persons, who are said to have done Miracles, were once actually living in the World; since it appears that the History of those Miracles is sufficiently credible, and is confirmed by the collateral Testimony of those, who were both capable of knowing, and deeply concerned to know the Truth of that Account: And, lastly, since such public Settlements and Constitutions followed upon the Credit of those Miracles, as plainly argued a firm and general Belief, or rather Knowledge of them, and could never have been brought about without them: Since, I say, all these grounds of Credibility do appear, to give evidence to the truth of Miracles formerly done; it seems unconceivable, how stronger or clearer evidence can be given of any matter of Fact, or of any History that is now in the World. 2. Let us consider next the second Evasion; That supposing some wonderful things to have been done in former Ages, yet this is no more an Argument of the truth of a God's Existence, than it is of the truth of Idolatry; because Idolaters themselves have pretended to Miracles, to vouch for their Religion. And considering how inconsistent, and impossible it would be for a Deity to act for, and against itself too, therefore Men of Atheistical minds conclude, That those wonderful Works which have gone under the name of Divine Miracles, have been really nothing but Art and Imposture. Now for the solving of this seeming difficulty, I shall consider two Things: 1. First, Matter of Fact. 2. Secondly, The Weakness of these men's reasoning from it. 1. First then, that I may carry a fair and impartial Hand, it is granted, that many strange and extraordinary things are said to have been done by Men of a false Religion. For Moses himself tells us what the Magicians did in Egypt be●ore his own face. Jesus Christ told his Disciples, that many false Teachers would come in a little time with Signs and Wonders to deceive (if it had been possible) the very Elect. To verify that Prediction, divers Ecclesiastical Writers tell us of the Wonders done by Simon Magus, and his Followers, soon after the Lord's Ascension into Heaven. Others tell us of the Blind and the Lame being cured by the Heathen Emperor Vespasian; and of a Whetstone being divided into two by a Razor, at the Command of Accius Navius; and of several Prodigious things done by Apollmius Tyanaeus, whom the Pagans matched with Jesus Christ for doing Miracles. And every body knows what Accounts of Miracles have been given by the Church of Rome, in de●ence of that part of their Religion, wherein they have most scandalously departed from True, Primitive Christianity. Considering therefore what an heap of Stories there is, whereof some are related by Sacred Writers, and some others by Men of Probity and Temper (though abundance of Fictions hath been vended among them) it must be allowed, that many Wonderful Works have been done by Idolaters. But then, Secondly, This can be no Plea for the truth of Idolatry; because how wonderful soever those Works have seemed, they were not in themselves Divine Miracles. We must distinguish between Miracles in Appearance, and Miracles in Reality. By Miracles in Appearance (which should rather be called Wonders and Signs) I understand, not mere Impostures, or Delusions of men's outwards Senses, but such Real Effects as may seem to be done by the extraordinary and immediate Power of God, when indeed they are not. That such things are possible to be done, is clear from Deut. 13. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. where God himself gave the Jews this Caution, If there arise among you a Prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign, or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereeof he spoke to thee, saving, Let us go after other gods (which thou hast not known) and let us serve them; thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the Lord your God proveth you, to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul. Ye shall walk after the Lord your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice; and you shall serve him, and cleave unto him; and that prophet or dreamer of dreams shall be put to death. We cannot conceive, that when God hath any where established his true Worship, he will lift up his own hand to draw People away from it to Idolatry; and therefore when Signs or Wonders are showed to that end, we may be sure they are not Divine Miracles, or Effects that are altogether Supernatural: And yet 'tis manifest, that such things may be done as are counterfeitings of God's hand, and seem to carry the signatures of his Power; for otherwise there would have been no reason for that charge given to the Jews, that they should not hearken to such a false Prophet, but put him to Death, though his Sign or Wonder came to pass. Hence 'tis easy to conclude, That there are Miracles in appearance, which are not true ones: For God cannot act contrary to himself, by working one Miracle to Establish his True Worship, and another to Destroy it; and therefore those Men are infinitely mistaken, who pretend, That if Miracles argue the Existence of a Deity, they argue the truth of Idolatry also; for it cannot be proved that any one Divine Miracle was ever yet done to confirm and give credit to Idolatry; and therefore I deny that any Idolaters can with Truth or Reason pretend it. Now here Two things may be demanded, which I shall consider a little, because they are pertinent to the point in hand, and may be very useful if rightly understood. 1. First, What Natural Power Miracles in Appearance may be imputed unto, supposing they have been actually done. 2. And, Secondly, How we may be able to know and distinguish such Appearances from works which were strictly and properly Miraculous. 1. First, What Natural Power Miracles in Appearance may be imputed unto, supposing they have been actually done? This is no very difficult Proposal, either to those Pagans who own the Existence of Demons; or to us Christians who read of Angels Good and Bad; all under the Government of a Supreme Glorious Being, the Father of Spirits. But to the Sceptics of our Age, it will seem odd to speak of these things, because they acknowledge not the Existence of any thing that is not Material and obvious to Sense; and therefore explode the Belief of all Spiritual Being's, both God and Angels. These Men I must at present leave to be contradicted in this Point by all Mankind, considering that it is a Subject too far out of my way, and of so copious a nature, as to admit of a large Discourse by itself for the clearing of it. I take it for granted, that there is another world besides this; and that that other world is Inhabited by Invisible Being's, which by God's Permission Interess themselves in the Affairs of this. Which being supposed, How can it seem to any Reasonable Men impossible for such Spirits, what by the subtlety and active Faculties of their Nature, and what by their great Knowledge of things in Nature and Art, and what by their own long Experience in the world, to do (when God is not pleased to interpose or check them) many things which may seem Miraculous to us, though they be wrought by their own Natural, Ordinary, and Limited Power? It is not hard for those Being's to show Signs and Wonders, by God's Permission, though without the help of his immediate Hand. They can by their Natural Agility and Power carry a Body from place to place, as the Devil did our Saviour's own Body, with God's leave. They can modulate the Air so as to form a Voice in an Image, as the Angel made Balaam's Ass to speak. They can by the Natural Vigour of their Faculties, as easily divide a stone, as a man can cut off the Branch of a Tree. By impressing a new Vigour upon the Animal Spirits, they can help the defect of Sight (when God pleaseth) in one that is casualy blind; though they cannot by any Natural Means help him to Eyes, who was born without them. By the use of many Natural Causes they may do Prodigies, as the Magicians did by their help in Egypt. In which instance, two things are observable: 1. That the Power of those Spirits was restrained. For though they did some things extraordinary, very like unto the Miracles which Moses had done with his Rod; yet when the Miracle of Lice came, the Magicians could not do it; and therefore they confess, That that was the finger of God, Exod. 8. 18, 19 2. That though they brought some Plagues upon Egypt, they could not remove any, for which reason the King sought unto Moses all along; a plain Sign, that they were evil Angels with whom the Magicians were then in Confederacy. Hence it appears, That▪ very wonderful Signs have been showed, which looked like true Miracles, and were in imitation of true Miracles, when they were not Works of an Almighty Hand, but the ordinary Effects of that natural, sinite Power that is in Daemons and Devils. To which also we may rationally impute those Operations, for which those Magicians presently after Christ, and others after them were so famous among the Heathens; and more especially those, by which Apollonius Tyanaeus got himself such a Name in the World, if the stories told of him be true, which yet is very questionable; nor doth Philostratus himself who relates them, report them all as things certain, though he wrote with a great deal of Partiality. The like is to be said of those pretended Miracles we have been told so much of for several Ages passed by Men of the Romish Communion. Supposing some of those things were true, I mean, really done (for he must have a most miraculous Faith, that can believe all, or but one half of them) it will by no means follow that they were Miracles in a proper sense, or Effects purely Supernatural, above the power of all Second Causes. For though no Natural Cause in this visible World could do them, yet may they be very well imputed to the ordinary Power of created Being's that are invisible; and so they are to be ranked among the workings of. Satan, whose coming is wont to be with Power, and Signs, and Lying Wonders, which God hath many times permitted, partly to prove and exercise the Faith of sincere Professors of Religion, and partly to punish those who receive not the love of the Truth, that they might be saved; for which cause God doth send them strong delusions, so that they believe a Lie, 2 Thess. 2 All this makes it evident, that such pretended Miacles cannot possibly argue the Truth of Idolatry, though actually done by Idolaters, because they are suffered to be done in way of Judgement upon perverse and obstinate people. However, this advantage is hereby gained, That those Miracles in appearance (such as they are) do argue the Existence of a God. For if there are any invisible Being's permitted to show Signs and Wonders, vigorous in their Actings, and limited in their Power, it will follow that there is a Sovereign Being presiding over them, that doth govern and command them, suffer or control, chain or let them lose, of his own pleasure, and as the Reasons of Providence require it. But it will be said, That this distinction between Miracles in Reality, and Miracles in Appearance, is vain, and to no purpose; for who can see the difference of the one from the other by the nature of the things themselves, because on each hand the works may be the same? And it is not enough to say, This was done by the Great Power of God, and that by the Natural Power of Infernal Spirits, when this doth not appear from the quality of the thing produced. As for instance; Moses is said to have turned his Rod into a Serpent, and then the Waters into Blood, and then to have brought up Frogs out of the River; and are not the Magicians said to have done so too? Where then is the difference in the works? And if there be no visible difference in them, how doth it appear that there was a difference in the Powers which produced them? And so why may not all be concluded an Imposture; and consequently, no substantial Evidence of the Existence of a God? This now brings me to the second Enquiry, How we may know and discern a true Miracle from a pretended one? 1. For the clearing whereof, it is, First, granted, That they are not distinguishable by the visible quality of the works themselves, unless it be in some particular Instances, as the raising of the dead, the giving Eyes to one that was born blind, the multiplication of a few Loaves, and the like. In those cases, the very Nature of the Works show the singer of God; for none but an Almighty Power could produce them; nor could any created sinite Power pretend ever to have done the like. But where one Wonder resembles another, and seems to answer another, there 2. Secondly, The difference is discoverable chiesly from the Necessity and Tendency of the Operations. Indeed their Circumstances and Manner of Production may go a great way to show the singer of God, or the working of Satan; but I conceive a true Miracle may be most easily and best distinguished from a false one, 1. By the Importance of the Reasons which make a Miracle necessary. 2. By the End and Scope to which it tendeth. 1. First, When there is a true Necessity for Miracles. As 1. When a man pretends to come from God with special Authority and Commission for some extraordinary Service; in that case a Miracle is necessary, to give evidence of his Commission, and that he may be believed. Such extraordinary Power must be backed with extraordinary Works to attest it; for otherwise people could not have sufficient Arguments to own it; and 'tis inconsistent with the Divine Nature to require men's Submission, and not justify, or set his Seal to that Authority which he binds them to submit unto, but to leave them in a state of Gild, for rejecting that which he gave them not sufficient reasons to receive. 2. Miracles are necessary, when extraordinary Alterations are to be made in the world: As, when a solemn, peculiar Form of Divine Worship is to be first set up; or when a peculiar Form, that was established by Miracles, is to be removed and taken down, to make room for a different Form. For these things are of such vast importance, that in cases of this nature Men cannot be deceived, without running the greatest hazards; and nothing under a Miracle can keep them from being imposed on. Now, when in these necessary cases Signs and Wonders are showed, we may conclude them to be Divine Miracles; but if there be no need at all of extraordinary Operations upon these accounts, such as are pretended aught to pass for works Diabolical; because God is not wont (as they say) to set his Seal to a Blank, nor is it consistent with his Majesty and Wisdom to use his Omnipotence in vain. 2. True Miracles may be distinguished from false ones by their scope and tendency. The Works of God are Glorious, not only for those signatures of Power they carry with them, but also for that admirable Goodness and Wisdom which is discernible in them all; because they always drive at the best and most important ends. And so we must reckon such Miracles Divine, as tend to confirm Truths which come by Divine Revelation. For as such Truths cannot be confirmed but by the God of Truth that Reveals them; so neither would they be attested by the Father of Lies, the Devil, did it lie in his Power to work a Miracle for the confirmation of them; because nothing is more cross than Truth is, to his interest in the world. 2. Such Miracles are to be accounted Divine, as tend to draw People off from the practice and love of Sin. For as such Miracles are glorious manifestations of the Holiness of the Divine Nature, so they serve to transform the Spirits of Men into the Divine Image; and consequently, can be wrought only by the Finger of God. 3. Such Miracles as tend to preserve the true Worship of One God by acts of singular Love and Reverence, and with an entire Resignation of Heart and Soul; because this is the great end of God's whole Oeconomy; and that which all Impostures hitherto have been intended to Defeat and Bass●le. 4. In short; Those are to be looked upon to be true Divine Miracles, which tend to the utter destruction of the Devil's Power and Works. These cannot possibly be thought Diabolical operations; for if Satan rise up against himself and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end, Mark 3. 26. All these things carry their own light with them, and by that light we may very easily discern and distinguish true Miracles from those Impostures which have gone under that name in all times, both Ancient and Modern. Next after Moses, Jesus Christ was the only Person publicly owned to have come from God upon an extraordinary Message to the world. And in regard he intended to repeal the Mosaical Ordinances, and instead thereof to enact more Spiritual Laws, it was necessary for him to work Miracles, to show his Authority for the founding of his Church, as Moses had showed his for building of the Tabernacle. And these were the noble ends of all Christ's Miracles, to seal the Truth of his Doctrines; that how Mysterious soever some of them might seem, they might be believed; for which reason he did no one Miracle before he began to Preach; to reclaim Mankind from all manner of Vice and Immorality, or whatever is contrary to God's Nature, or reproachfel to their own; to establish Piety and Honesty in the world; to teach men to lead Sober, Righteous, and Godly Lives in this world; to direct them how to Worship the only True God in Spirit and Truth; and to deliver not only the Bodies, but the Souls of all People from the Tyranny and Power of the Devil, whose business was to Captivate all Mankind, that they might walk on still in darkness and blindness of Heart; which being the reasons and ends of the Lord Jesus his Miracles, we may be sure, that those reasons having been once answered, and the ends sufficiently served, by himself, and his first Disciples, there was no further need of Miracles. And therefore whatever Signs and Wonders have been showed (supposing they were really effected) either by some Pagans immediately following the time of Christ, or by some Romanists in latter Ages, they are not to be reckoned Divine Operations, but so many Workings of Satan and his Instruments; which are so far from justifying, or giving credit to their Ways and Professions, that in fact they are a reproach to them; especially since they have been done in prejudice to that Grave and Holy Religion which the Lord Jesus confirmed; and were so manifestly intended for the promoting and encouragement of Superstition, Vice, and downright Idolatry. I have now ended this Point concerning Miracles, having discoursed the more largely upon it, that at the same time I might demonstrate the Existence of God, and likewise serve the interest of Christianity; the truth whereof undeniably appears from this single argument, That Jesus Christ confirmed all his Laws and Doctrines by True Miracles. For this being once granted, it must necessarily follow, not only that there is a God, but moreover, that Jesus Christ came from God, and that the Testimony which his Works gave of him, was Divine and Infallible; and consequently, That we are bound at our utmost peril to Believe and Obey him: Which Consideration being of such vast moment, I thought myself obliged to bestow the more time and pains in clearing matter of Fact. CHAP. V. THE next extraordinary Occurrence I mentioned, as a demonstration of God's Existence, is Prophecy; that is, the Foretelling of some Future Events, which depended on such secret and remote Causes, as none but an Omniscient Being could possibly discern afar off. That you may understand this matter distinctly and clearly: 1. I do not here by Events mean such things as have come to pass by the necessary and natural Operation of second Causes. For where a thing depends upon necessary Causalities, any man that can discover the order, and series, and application of the Causes, may easily foresee and predict the consequent; as a skilful Astronomer can foretell Eclipses of the Moon and Sun. For those glorious Creatures are under a constant Law, and their motions are Regular; so that a man who knows their Courses, and by the Uniformity of them, perceives when an Opake Body will fall between one of those Luminaries and our Eyes, can discover long beforehand when the Light will be intercepted, and fail in our Hemisphere. But by future Events are understood contingencies, or those issues, the Causes whereof are not yet in being; or at least are so occult, remote, and uncertain, that they are not discernible by any limited Understanding, in regard that they depend upon the casual concurrence of Second Causes, or upon the Arbitrarious Power of men's Wills; or upon the vaccountable hits of Fortune; or upon such strange results, as look like so many secret over ruling determinations of Destiny: As, What Great Men will arise Two or Three Ages hence, (if the world shall continue so long)? What Revolutions there will be then in States and Empires? What the Conditions of the Church will be? What Wars will happen? What will become of our Posterity and of the Fortunes we transmit to them? In short, How the world will go? These things, and the like, are altogether Accidental, and therefore must needs be Uncertain; nor can they come within the reach of finite Being's, any more than the close of the world, or the Day of Judgement can be known, or predicted by us. 2. Secondly, By Foretelling future Events; is meant true and infallible Prediction, in contradistinction to Conjecture, or probable Foreknowledge. There is in all Intellectual Being's a Presaging Power, and the Perception beforehand must be according to the condition and quality of the Cause, from which that Perception springs and is gathered. If the Cause be Necessary and Natural, the Foreknowledge is Certain; but if it be only Casual and Fortuitous, it can amount to no more but a probable Opinion. No Creature, how Intelligent soever it be, can of itself infallibly foresee what Chances and Accidents will fall out hereafter; by reason that the immediate Causes are supposed as yet not to be Existent, or at least to be a great way off in the dark. Therefore when a contingent Event is clearly Foreseen, and infallibly Predicted at a distance, so that after a long tract of time, the thing, how Casual soever it was, exactly answers the Prediction, we must conclude, That the Being which Foresaw and Foretold it, is of a more Perfect Understanding than any Creature can pretend to. If then it be made appear, That many contingent things have long before they happened, been certainly Foreknown, truly Predicted, and at last in Fact have come to pass accordingly, this must be a Demonstration of the Existence of a most Perfect Being, that is, a Deity. For all Human Presaging of accidental Events at a great distance from us, is at best but Guessing, which commonly ends in vast mistakes; so are our Understandings, and our capacities so very narrow! And as for those Intellectual Creatures which Inhabit the other world, and traverse up and down in this, though by reason of the innate Quickness and Sagacity of their Faculties, the long Experience they have had of Human Affairs, the great Insight they have thereby into all things here below; the Agility of their Nature which enables them to be privy every where to men's Counsels and Actions, and the continual Observations they cannot but make from the Disappointments or Successes of men's Designs; though, I say, by means of these singular advantages, they are qualified to give, beyond expression, far better Judgement of future Events, especially near at hand, than the Wisest and most Reaching Men on Earth; yet is their Knowledge limited notwithstanding: So that without the Assistance of Divine Revelation, their Foresight of Contingencies, especially of such as are remote and do depend upon a series of distant Causes, can be but only Conjectural. Hence it was, that those ancient Soothsayers and Augurs among the Heathens, who used the help of Demons in their manifold Superstitious ways of Prognosticating, were often mistaken, even in very probable cases, and when Events were hard by. And 'tis commonly observed of those old Oracles, who were so much consulted by the Idolatrous Pagans upon any emergencies which seemed difficult, that though those officious deluding Spirits were wont (till Christ's time) to give People Answers out of Holes and Caves, yet, to save Apollo's Credit, they were wont to wrap up those Responses, in equivocating and doubtful Terms, that were capable of various Constructions, as the thing consulted about succeeded or failed. Indeed Good Angels have not deceived Men; and therefore their foresight must be acknowledged to have been better grounded, and of a further and clearer reach. But yet by reason of those finite and (comparatively) scanty measures of Knowledge, which are connatural to all Created Being's, though Exalted and Glorious, to make all their Predictions certain and infallible, they have always, by the necessity of their Nature, stood in need of special Revelation and Commission from a Superior Being, whose Prescience touches all intermediate and proximate Causes, and all contingent, probable, possible Events, though never so far removed from created Understandings. Therefore if in this case matter of fact be true, that any Creatures, Men or Angels, have acted after such a Prophetical manner, as to have Foretold things Future, things which Natural Causes did not necessarily produce, things which could not have been foreseen, but through a continued train and succession of Accidents, and through many Circumstances in themselves dubitable and uncertain; nay, some things which depended, not so much upon Natural or Moral Causes here below, as upon an overruling Power, which some have called by the Name of Fate; whereby others understand the Absolute Decrees and Pleasure of Heaven: I say, if things of these kinds have been certainly and infallibly Predicted, it is a plain Argument of the Existence of an Omniscient Being, because none but an Omniscient Being, or a Deity could Foreknow them; none but an Almighty Being could Direct and Govern them. And therefore this is claimed as a peculiar Prerogative of the Deity, to declare the things that are coming, and shall come, Isa. 44. 7. an Argument which the Prophet there used to show, that the Idols which the Apostate Jews Worshipped, were not Real Deities. This then being so evident and undeniable, the whole matter will turn upon this main point, Whether there have been at any time such Predictions as these. For the clearing whereof we must refer ourselves to those Books which have been all along of so great Authority with Jews and Christians, since they were first compiled; especially to those Books, which we commonly call the Old Testament: Books of such Venerable Antiquity, that the very last of them was written Four hundred years before the Birth of Christ; that is, above Two thousand years ago; and the first of them contains the most Ancient History that is in the World; and is at least Three thousand two hundred years old. Though in several other Writings, which are but of vulgar note, we meet with divers Accounts of Prophecies; yet because there are the most Ancient, the most Authentic, and are believed to have been penned by Prophets themselves, I shall take notice only of such as we find in them; considering those Writers now, not as Men divinely inspired, but as fair Historians only; the Credit whereof, there is no sober, modest man, but will be ashamed to deny them. Now here I might fill a large Volume, were I minded to write a particular Account of the most Intelligible Predictions we find throughout the Scriptures, and of the Accomplishment of them. But 'twill be enough for me to take notice only of Three sorts. 1. Such as relate to the Great, Ancient Empires. 2. Such as relate to Jesus Christ. 3. Such as relate to some Memorable and Remarkable Events after his departure out of the world. 1. First, Such Predictions as relate to the Great, Ancient Empires. Of which, the Assyrian Monarchy was the First; and long before the Translation of it to the Medes and Persians, Cyrus, who was designed to translate it, was mentioned by name, as God's Shepherd and Anointed, by Isaiah; a Prophet of the Jews, who told them before hand what great things God would do for Cyrus, and that Cyrus would perform all God's pleasure, Isa. 44, 45. Yet this was many years before ever Cyrus was born; Two hundred and ten years, saith Josephus; who adds, That Cyrus having Jos. Antiq. lib. 1. c. 1. read that Ancient Prophecy concerning him, to express his Thankfulness to God, gave the Jews leave to return home out of their Captivity, and to rebuild God's Temple at jerusalem; towards which he promised his own assistance. The Jews had then been Captives at Babylon about Seventy years; which sore Judgement had been literally foretold them, together with the determinate Time of it, by the Prophet Jeremy, Jer. 25. 11. This whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. By the way let me observe, That Jeremy began his Prophesying in the Thirteenth year of that good Prince Josiah, King of Judah: And that Josiah by name had been foretold in the Reign of Jeroboam, as we find, 1 Kings 13. 2. And that Prophecy was by certain computation given about Three hundred and fifty years before the days of Josiah. But to go on: Towards the end of the Captivity at Babylon, Daniel interpreted Nebuchadnezzar's Dream concerning the Great Image, the Head whereof was of fine Gold, the Breast and Arms of Silver, the Belly and Thighs of Brass, the Legs of Iron, and the Feet part of Iron, and part of Clay. This Vision was a Representation of the Four Famous Empires, as we see by Daniel's own Exposition, Dan. 2. The First Empire was that then in being, the Babylonish; represented by an Head of Gold, because it was the most Considerable and Glorious of all the Four. As to the Three next, the Vision was Prophetical; intended to show the several Successions of them; and that the Latter would still be inferior to the Former in Splendour and Dignity. Whereas therefore the Babylonish Empire was of Gold; the Second was to be of Silver; and that was the Persian Empire; represented by Two Arms, because it consisted of Two great People, the Persians and Medes, that were to be united together into one State; and that under Cyrus, who would be related to both Nations; to the Medes by the Mother's side, and to the Persians by his Father's. By the Third Kingdom is meant the Macedonian, or Grecian Empire, that was to be erected by Alexander the Great, upon his Signal Victories over the Persians. This was represented by a Brazen Belly and Thighs, because (as St. Jerome thinks) Brass, of all Metals giving the greatest sound, was sit to set forth the Extraordinary Fame which would be spread over the world, not only of the Greeks Power and Fortune, but of their Eloquence also. The Roman Empire was to be the Fourth; and that was represented by Legs of Iron; because, as Iron breaketh in pieces, and subdueth all things; so was the Roman Power to break and subdue all the Principalities which Alexander left to his Commanders, and their Successors; and so would possess itself of all the Riches and Glory of the Three former Empires. Nevertheless, how strong soever the Roman Power was to be at the first founding of that Empire, in process of time it would be impaired, weakened, and debased, like Iron mingled with Mire and Day. Which St. Jerome observes was, when the strength of Rome was so wasted by their long Wars, Foraneous and Civil, that they were forced upon many Occasions to call in the Aid of Barbarous, Exotic People, which mixing themselves with the Old Roman Blood, gave it an alloy, so that they lost great degrees of their Ancient Strength and Honour. This Succession of the Empires thus predicted in the Second Chapter of Daniel's Prophecy, we sinned foretold again in some other places, under other Representations; but I instance in this only, because it is most obvious to every ordinary Understanding. And now, whoever will take the pleasure to examine some Humane Writers from Herodotus down to Justin, the Historian, may with infinite Satisfaction find, how exactly these Predictions were fulfilled: 1. By Cyrus' getting the Power out of the hands of the Babylonians; then by Alexander's getting it out of the hands of the Persians; and then by the Romans wresting it out of the hands of Alexander's Successors; and yet between the delivering, and the fulfilling of Daniel's Prophecy, there passed a Flux of about Five hundred years; which doth manifestly argue the Existence of God, who alone could at such a distance of time so infallibly and particularly foresee and predict Events, that were in themselves so contingent and uncertan. That it looks like an History, rather than a Prediction. To which purpose St. Jerome tells us of that great Blasphemer of Christ, and his Religion, Porphyry, that reading the Proem. in Dan. Book of Daniel, and finding how exactly consonant the Events were to the Prophecy, he could not but acknowledge the truth of the account; but to evade the force of those Arguments which the Christians drew thence, he betook himself to this senseless and absurd Pretence, that the Book was not a Prediction written by Daniel, but rather a Narrative of things that were done long after Daniel's time, and written by some body else in the days of Antiochus Epiphanes. 2. There is another sort of Predictions which relate peculiarly to Jesus Christ; whom Daniel called beforehand, Messiah the Prince, Dan. 9 25. Whereupon a very Mr. Mead, B. 3. p. 861. Learned Writer observes, That there is no other place of Scripture, whence the Church of Israel did or could ascribe the Name of Christ and Messiah unto him they looked for, but only this of Daniel. For there is no other Prophecy in all the Old Testament besides this, where that Name is directly given him, but only by way of Type; which makes it unquestionable, that the Jews understood this Prophecy of that Great and Eminent Person, whose coming into the World, together with all the remarkable Circumstances which attended his Life and Death, were long before so particularly foretold by several Prophets, that those Predictions are not capable of being fairly applied to any other Person; what arts soever some Jews, and other misguided Men have used to wrest them another way. That he was to be of the Seed of a Woman; or that he was to appear in the Nature, not of Angels, but Men. That of all Mankind he was to spring from the Loins of Abraham. That of Abraham's Posterity, he was to descend only from Isaac. That of all Isaac's Generation, he was to be of the Tribe of Judah. That of all that Tribe, he was to be of the House and Lineage of David. That a Virgin of David's Lineage was to conceive and bear him. That Bethlehem was to be the place of his Nativity. That he was to be a Prophet like unto Moses, yet much above him. That he was to do Miracles. That he was to Preach good Tidings to the meek, and to bind up the . That he was to be a Man of Sorrows, and acquainted with Grief. That he was to be despised and rejected of Men. That one of his own Familiars, who should eat of his Bread, would lift up his Heel against him. That he should be sold for thirty pieces of Silver. That he should be led to the Slaughter like a Lamb. That he should be numbered with the Transgressor's. That his Garments should be divided, and Lots cast upon his Vesture. That Vinegar should be given him to drink. That in the midst of his Sufferings he should be scoffed at, and reviled. That he should make Intercession for Trangressors. That for the Sins of People he should be smitten. That he should make his Grave with the Rich. That not one of his Bones should be broken: And that his Soul should not be left in Hell, nor his Body suffered to see Corruption. These things were foretold of Jesus Christ; and taking them altogether in a sum, it is impossible for an Insidel, with any colour of Reason to apply them to any other but Jesus Christ only. But one of the most remarkable things, is, That the time of Christ's appearing in the World was so plainly foretold by some of the Prophets, that the Learned Jews found by their Calculations, that about the time when Jesus Christ was born, the promised Messiah was to come. And hence it was, that at that Juncture they were all full of Expectations of him. Nor is it at all questionable, but the time so agreeing with the Predictions, they would joyfully and unanimously have received Jesus Christ as the Messiah, had not his coming been in that mean and obscure Condition, which was so great a surprise to those People who expected the Messiah would have been like a David, or Solomon, to have gone in and out before them with all possible Pomp, Splendour, and Magnificence. The Prophet Haggai mentioned the time of his Appearance more largely, Hag. 2. 7, 9 The Substance of which Prediction was, That the desire of all Nations (that is, the Messiah or Shiloh) should come while the Temple which was then a building, continued and was standing; and that the Glory of that latter House should be greater than the Glory of the former, which had been at so vast an Expense, erected and finished by King Solomon. Now this was fulfilled merely by Christ's constant presence at that Temple, some years before the Destruction of it by the Romans. For in respect of the Structure, and external Glory of it, it fell so very short of the first, that when the ancient Men who had seen the first House, saw the Foundations of the second, They wept with a loud voice, as Ezra tells us, Ezra 3. 12. And besides, the Jewish Rabbins confess, that five things were wanting to this Temple, which the former was honoured with as so many Signs of the peculiar Presence of God's Majesty at it. 1. The Urim and Thummim, or those Stones upon the Breastplate of the High Priest, whereby God was wont to reveal his mind. 2. The Ark of the Covenant; from which the King and the High Priest did sometimes receive answers from God by a clear and audible Voice. 3. The Fire that was wont to fall from Heaven, to devour the Sacrifice upon the Altar. 4. The Shekinah, or Divine Power, that was signified sometimes by the Pillar of a Cloud, and by the Holy Oil, wherewith the King and High Priest were wont to be anointed. And 5. the Spirit of Prophecy. These glorious things being wanting at the second Temple, whence could that great Glory predicted by Haggai proceed, but from the Presence of Jesus Christ? One that was the Brightness of his Father's Glory, and the Glory of his People Israel. One that was the true Urim and Thummim, that revealed his Father's Will plainly to the World. One that was the typified Ark of the Covenant, the Propitiatory by his own Blood. One that Baptised with the Holy Ghost, and with Fire; the true Fire from Heaven, where of the other was but a typical Representation. And one who received not the Spirit by measure, but was anointed with the Oil of gladness above his Fellows? But the Prophet Daniel pointed out the time of his coming after a more close and precise manner, Dan. 9 24, 25, 26, 27. Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people, and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy. Know therefore, and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem, unto the Messiah the prince, shall be seven weeks; and threescore and two weeks, (after that) the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself; and the people of the prince that shall come, shall destroy the city, and the sanctuary, and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week; and in the midst of the week he shall cause the oblation and sacrifice to cease; and for the overspreading of abominations, he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured out upon the desolate. As to the exposition of this Prophecy, all Writers are agreed, that according to the language and custom of the Jews, by a week is understood not seven days, but seven years; that is, seventy times seven years, or four hundred and ninety years in all. And the plain sense of the Prediction may be comprised within these Observations, as far as it concerns my present purpose. 1. First, That from the second building of the Temple and City of Jerusalem, to the last destruction of both, there was allotted the space of four hundred and ninety years, to be computed from the time of the publication of an Edict by some Persian King for this second Building. 2. That within the compass of those four hundred and ninety years, Sin should be expiated; true, substantial Righteousness, grounded upon eternal Reasons, should be preached; the old Prophecies should be fulfilled; Messiah the Prince should be cut off, and afterwards instated in his everlasting Kingdom. The rest of the Prediction relates to the destruction of Jerusalem, of which I shall take notice by and by. Thus much of it is concerning the Advent, Life, Death, and Unction of the Messiah. Now to lay aside the various, perplexing Accounts given by inquisitive men, touching the exact Impletion of every part of this Prophecy, these two things are very evident: 1. First, That the rebuilding, and final devastation of the Holy Temple and City, was according to the time allotted, the seventy weeks of years. For though the Jews were permitted by Cyrus to return into their Land out of their Captivity, and to begin the restoration of the Temple, yet the great Edict, the successful Commandment for the restoring and building Jerusalem, was given by that Persian King, called Darius Nothus, Ezra 6. And from the third year of his Reign, when the work of the Temple (by the incitement of Haggai and Zachary renewed the year before) was now confirmed by a new Edict from the King to be finished, unto the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus, are exactly four hundred and ninety years; that is, seventy weeks of years fully complete, as a Learned Mede. B. 3. pag. 858, 859. Writer hath computed the time to my hands. 2. Secondly, It is most evident, that before the expiration of these four hundred and ninety years, while the Temple and City of Jerusalem were yet standing, Jesus Christ was manifested in the flesh; that he fulfilled all Righteousness in his own Person, and taught all others to live godly, righteously, and soberly in this present world; that he offered up himself upon the Cross, a Sacrifice and Propitiation for the Sins of all men; that to him all the Prophets did bear witness, and in him their Prophecies did terminate; and that upon his Resurrection and Ascension, he was exalted unto the right hand of God, and all Power was given him in Heaven and in Earth, according to Daniel's Prediction. And now to return to our Argument, How was it possible for Daniel, or for any other man, to have foretold these Events so exactly, and so long before, without immediate Revelation from a Divine, Omniscient Being, who foresaw, nay, fore-appointed the whole series and course of these things from the beginning to the end? And consequently, How is it possible for any man of common reason or sense, to question the Existence of such a Being, for these things could not depend upon any natural Causes. No, the Advent, Sufferings, and Glorifying of the Messiah, were purely the result of a Divine Decree; and therefore could not have been predicted or foreseen, but by that Divine Being who had decreed all; and by whose determinate Counsel and Foreknowledge Jesus Christ was delivered to the Jews, as St. Peter told them, Acts 2. 23. 3. The like is to be said of those other Predictions, which relate to some remarkable and memorable Events after Christ's departure out of the world, and they were chief these three. 1. The Destruction of Jerusalem. 2. The Propagation of the Christian Faith. And 3dly, the dispersed and reproachful Condition of the Jews. 1. As Daniel foretold the Desolations that would come upon Jerusalem, so did the Messiah himself foretell, that there should not be left one stone of the temple upon another, which should not be thrown down, Matth. 24. 2. And a little further he said, When ye shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in (or about) the holy place, let them which be in Judea, fly to the mountains, ver. 15, 16. This, by the way, shows that the computation of Daniel's seventy weeks, is to be carried on to the time of Jerusalem's destruction; for there the four hundred and ninety years' end, and not before; as we see by our Saviour's referring to that Prediction, when he spoke of that Desolation. These Predictions were accomplished about forty years after the Messiah's Crucifixion, and in that Juncture the several parts of those Predictions were answered to the full. Then the Jews saw the abomination of Desolation which Daniel had spoken of, meaning the Roman, Heathen Armies, with the Heathen Figures, in their Military Banners, expanded about the Holy City. Then were the people of the Prince (that is, their Commander Titus) come to destroy the City and the Sanctuary. Then did Titus his Forces overrun the Land of Judoea like a Flood, and make it desolate. Then was the Temple laid waste, and the Oblations and Sacrifices which were wont to be in it, were made to cease. And then was the Consummation which Daniel foretold, or the End which was determined upon the Desolate; namely, the utter overthrow of their whole Government both in Church and State; and then too was the Desolation foretold by Jesus Christ, not one stone left upon another, neither in the City of Jerusalem; for, as Josephus acknowledgeth, it was razed to the Foundations, and laid even with the Ground: Nor yet in the Temple; for, as our Learned Paraphrast observes out of Scaliger, as a full Completion of our Saviour's Prophecy, the very Foundations of the Temple were torn up by Turnus Rufus with a Ploughshare, so that no part of it Underground was left undissolved; not one stone left upon another. How could a clearer Argument be expected than that was, of the Existence of an Allseeing, an All-powerful and Righteous God, who weighed the Sins of an hardened People, and by his determinate Counsel and Foreknowledge, made their Punishment then as plain as their Gild had been, when with wicked hands they crucified the Lord of Life, and wished that his Blood might be upon them, and upon their Children. 2. But, Secondly, Besides these Predictions which concerned them, and were fulfilled in their Sufferings, there were others which had references to the Propagation of Christ's Religion. Christ himself had foretold, That when he should be lifted up from the earth, he would draw all men unto him, Joh. 12. 32. And near Two thousand years before that time, the Patriarch Jacob presignified on his Deathbed, That when Shilo should come, to him the gathering of the people should be, Gen. 49. 10. which was not possible for Jacob, at such a vast distance of time to say, or foresee of himself; no more than 'twas possible for the Prophets in aftertimes, without Revelation from an All-knowing Being, to predict, as they did, That all kings should fall down before him; That all nations should do him service; That he should stand for the people; That to him the Gentiles should seek; That from the rising up of the sun to the going down of the same, his name should be great among the Gentiles; That the Heathen should be for his inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for his possession. All which Predictions proved in the Event most evidently true; notoriety of fact shows it; and yet the exact impletion of these Prophecies could never have been foreknown, as it was, but by a Supreme Numen, who knoweth all things; considering how unlikely it was, as things stood, for Christianity to find universal success and entertainment in the world; because it was so opposite to men's Lusts and Pleasures; the Jews were so hardened against it; the Pagan Religion, which Christianity was intended to destroy, was so spread over the Gentile Nations, and so fixed by Laws: Princes were so set against it; the Devil used such various methods to stop its progress; and the Preachers of it were of themselves so weak, and unable to carry it over the world; that without the Assistance of a Divine Power, it could not have prevailed over the hearts of people so universally, and in such a conquering manner, notwithstanding all Obstacles which were in the way. But herein appeared the wonderful Conduct of Divine Providence, That the Government of the Jews being quite dissolved upon the destruction of Jerusalem, the Sceptre then being utterly departed from Judah, and the Lawgiver from between his feet, Shiloh reigned with triumph and glory. As the Jews lost ground, so Christ, whom they had crucified, got it; and a great deal more: So that in a very little time, not only multitudes of the Jewish Nation were Converts to Christianity, but great Armies of People in the Gentile world, and in the most Barbarous Countries, were brought in obedience to Christ's Faith. And hereby the Ends of God's Providence were served by the Romans themselves; first by being his Instruments to captivate and subdue the wicked Jews; and then by being themselves subdued to Jesus Christ; so that wherever the Roman Eagles flew, there Christ was a Conqueror by his Holy Spirit. 3. To which let me add, Thirdly, this one Observation more, concerning those Predictions which relate to the Dispersed and Reproachful Condition of the Jews since the Overthrow of their City and Government. As the Old Prophets had told those People long before, what a sad, miserable Condition they would bring themselves to at last; so Christ had foretold them in express terms, That upon the treading down of Jerusalem, they should be led away captive into all nations, Luk. 21. 24. A Prediction which was literaly fulfilled as soon as they were conquered by Titus his Army. Many thousands of them were carried away, divided, and scattered up and down in the world; where their wretched Posterity inherit their Ancestors Curse to this day; leading still a forlorn sort of life; Vagabonds into all parts, and hated wherever they go. An Avenging Hand from above doth still pursue them; and every day the world sees the Predictions concerning them more and more fulfilled: Which is, as it were, an Ocular Evidence, as well of the Truth of Christianity, as of the Existence of a Just God. I use this Argument the rather, because it is a kind of sensible proof of a Deity; and not of so remote a Nature as the rest are. Though it be apparent to Reason, that there must be a First Cause of all things; though the common notions and impressions we have in our Nature show, who and what that First Cause is; though Miracles are undeniably convincing; and Predictions, when accurately fulfilled, demonstratively infer the Existence of a Being that foresees all Events, though at the greatest distance; yet because those Observations are most operative, which most nearly affect men, I urge this Observation, touching the Jews Punishment, as being a thing verified by our own Experience. Miracles we have not seen; but this Remarkable Judgement against the Jews we see daily; and therein we see the plain accomplishment of some Predictions which we know were written some considerable time before the Events happened; so that we may well wonder, how there can be an Atheist, as long as there is a Jew living in the world. To this purpose, a Learned and Judicious Prelate of our Church, who hath solidly written upon the great Subject now under my hand, expresseth his thoughts in these words, with which I shall conclude this present Point. There Bishop Wilkins ' s Nat. Rel. p. 89. is (saith he) one particular, which to me seemeth very considerable for the proof of a Deity, though but little notice of it be taken by others; and that is, The State of the Jewish Nation, who for these 1600 years have been driven out of their own Country, having now no particular place of abode belonging to them as a Nation; but are scattered and dispersed over all the habitable world, hated and despised wherever they are permitted to dwell; very frequently persecuted, impoverished, banished, murdered in vast multitudes: And notwithstanding all this, they are not yet so mixed and blended with other Nations, as to be lost among them; but are still kept up a distinct People; there being no Instance like this in any Story; as if they were intended for a standing Memorial and Example to the world, of the Divine Power and Vengeance. To me it seemeth, among Rational Arguments, one of the plainest, not only for the Proof of a Deity, and a Just Providence, in pursuing that Nation with such Exemplary Vengeance; but likewise for the Authority of Scripture, and the Truth of the Christian Religion. CHAP. VI HItherto I have showed the Existence of a Supreme Being, that is Eternal, Independent, Self-existing, the Author of our common Nature, Omnipotent, Omniscient; all which Characters are included in the general Notion of a Deity; or a Being that is Eminently and Absolutely Perfect. I proceed next to some other Considerations, which argue a Being that is infinite in Wisdom, Goodness, Benignity, as well as Power. In order thereunto, let us now begin to take a view of that which was proposed as the Fourth great Head of this Discourse; I mean, the Admirable Frame and State of the Universe. For whoever will seriously reflect upon those various appearances which are in this visible world, must be the most senseless and stupid thing in it, if after all the bright manifestations of a Deity that are every where discoverable, he can at last permit himself to say in his heart, There is no God. God hath not left himself without witness, saith St. Paul, Acts 14. 17. No, that which may be known of God is manifest to us; for God hath showed it unto us. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead, Rom. 1. 19 20. Here than we meet with Eight Observable, which are very fit in their turns to fall under our contemplation. 1. The excellent Order into which the several parts of the Universe are digested. 2. The great Beauty that appears throughout the world. 3. The wonderful Usefulness that is in all the branches of the Creation. 4. The curious and exquisite Structure of them for the Uses and Ends to which they serve. 5. The constant Regularity of them in their respective Operations. 6. The ample Provision that is made for the good of Creatures, especially Mankind. 7. The Resemblances of Knowledge and Wisdom in the Operations of things Irrational. 8. The Divine Frame of our own Rational Nature. O Lord, how glorious are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all; the earth and heavens are full of thy riches; the various testimonies of thy greatness, and inexhaustible benignity. 1. First, We may observe the excellent Order into which the several parts of the Universe are digested. This Order is seen: 1. In the commodious Situation and Position to which they are determined. 2. In the near Relation of them to each other, and Dependence on each other. 3. In the Permanency of them in that State and condition wherein they have been placed. 1. As there are several Ranks and Classes of Creatures, so is every Rank determined to its due and proper place. That part of the world we stand in immediate need of, is the Earth; and that is placed in the middle of the world, that it may receive influence from all the ambient parts of the Universe, to help its Fertility; and the distance of it from the Celestial Bodies is so commodious, that its Productions are not apt to be destroyed by excesses of Heat or Cold, which otherwise would unavoidably follow were the distance nearer or more remote. It is the proper place for man in this life. For 'tis the Theatre we are to Act on, and the Magazine that yields us the Stores we live by; and therefore 'tis near at hand, hard by all our Necessities, and richly furnished with Plants, Fruits, Meats, Entertainments of all sorts; so that 'tis but going out of doors, and industrious People may gather their Provision, and whatever they can modestly desire, either to supply their Wants, or to afford them Pleasures. And lest we should drop down suddenly, for want of Breath, with our Meats between our Teeth, the Air, which serves for Digestion and Respiration, is, I cannot so well say in our Neighbourhood, as in our Nostrils. An Atmosphere so appositely placed, and so adapted to the gross contexture of our outward Senses, that it is infinitely more proper for sensitive Creatures, than the Fine, Unmixed Aether that is at such a distance from us. Those fluid Bodies the Waters, are in their proper place too, treasured up in concave Receptacles and Channels, and there ready at hand to quench the Thirst of every Animal; and if Men will be wanton, to serve their Sensualities also, without endangering their safety by inordinate, sweeping Inundations. The Heavens are to give light and warmth to all Sublunary Creatures, and therefore the provident Hand which form them, hath set them very remote; that those great and glorious Luminaries may cast their Influences over all the World; and withal secure all things living from those Scorching and Deaths, to which their Vicinity would otherwise have unavoidably exposed them. In short, all things are situate where they should be; nor could the wisest Counsel have placed them better, supposing the wisest Being to have had the disposal and ordering of them. 2. The excellent Order of Creatures is seen in the near Relation of them to each other, and Dependence on each other. Where I shall speak only of that general and common Reference, which the several kinds of Creatures, thus situated and disposed, do bear to one another. As for the usefulness of particular Branches of the Creation, it will fall under our eye in its due place. At present I am to take notice of that Relation and Connection, that Respect and Cognation which is between the Species and Sorts of things which make up this great Frame and System of Nature. For in the great Volume of the Creation there is a noble Design carried on, this Creature having a respect to that, and that hanging upon the other, like Premises and Consequents in a well-composed Book; so that if one part be taken away, not only the Beauty, but the Purpose of the whole is lost. Were all Sensitive Creatures destroyed, what would the Light of the Sun be to a blind World? Were the Earth annihilated, what would the sweet Influences of the Pleyades signify? Or, were but the Fowls, the , the Fruits of the Earth removed, what would become of Man, that pretends to be the little Lord of all, and yet is fain to be a Dependant upon these poor Creatures, to afford him Provision daily, and to furnish out his Table? Some conceive, that the only great Design of Nature is, to support Man; which though I think is too great a Vanity to imagine, yet supposing it were so, how many Creatures are there to be served, before it can come to his turn? I will hear the heavens (saith the Divine Being) and the heavens shall hear the earth, and the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil, and they shall hear Jezreel, Hos. 2. 21, 22. Where we have a Summary Description of the great Order of Nature as things are cast into a State of Relation and Correspondence, set forth as if they cried to each other, and heard each other, to denote their mutual Subserviency and Dependence. Thus the Stars by their attractive Beams prepare and enrich the Clouds; the Clouds drop down fatness, that fatness moistens the Surface, and supplies the Bowels of the Earth; that Moisture increaseth and invigorates those active Particles within, which are the Principles of Vegetation; those Principles carry the spiritous, vital Juice to every Tree and Plant; that Juice passing through many Nervous Ducts and Conveyances produce Germination; those Germations cover Mountain and Valley with a fresh Verdure; and by these various means the Earth receives yearly a kind of new Life; every Species upon it is propagated, every living Individual is said and cherished, and Man and Beast are abundantly provided for anew, after all the vast Consumptions and Expenses of Nature the year before. There is a Series and Connexion of Causes, which act upon each other, the superior Cause still having a respect to the Powers of that which is the next in Subordination; and all show the wonderful Wisdom and Goodness of the Supreme Cause, in thus suiting and adapting the Operations of his Creatures, according to the necessities of the several Branches of his Creation. And as there is this Reference born by one Creature to another; so is there in every one of them an intrinsic Faculty and Disposition, which bears respect to the Operations and Productions of those external Causes. In all Animals there are eager Appetites, as Hunger and Thirst, which stimulate and excite them every day to Eat and Drink of Nature's Bounty. In all Vegetables there are spreading Roots, fibrous Receptacles, with open, greedy, capacious Orifices, to entertain, digest, and send up that animating Sap, which is ministered by the restless Principles of Vegetation. In the Bowels of the Earth are hid the multifarious Seeds of Life, prepared for a new assistance of Salts, Nitre, and the like Supplies, to quicken, actuate, and render them Prolisick. Those quickening Recruits wait for Distillations from above, to convey them down into their Apartments; and those Distillations are various, according to the Quality and Temper of the Seasons; and as the Sun and Stars act by their Influences in the Air, where the great Treasures are annually made ready by various Motions and Secretions, and then shed plenteously abroad in variety of Forms and Modifications; as, Hail, Snow, Rains, or Dews. Thus each Cause bears a Correspondence and Relation to the Faculties and Dispositions of that which is Subordinate; and those Faculties bear a Reciprocal Correspondence to the Power and Agency of the next Superior One. There is such an orderly Connection, such a close harmonious Confederacy between the several Parts of the World, as they are placed and situate; that as they all severally depend upon each other for their respective Operations, so all jointly conspire to the Preservation and Maintenance of the whole; which evidently shows, That it could not be blind Fate or Fortune that linked together the Parts of the Universe into such an admirable League, such an amicable State of Subserviency and Assistance; but a most Wise and Beneficent Agent, that from the beginning consulted and provided for the Good of all his Creatures, and accordingly sitted their Powers to that great end. For those Irrational Being's, the glittering Lamps of Heaven, the Air and Earth, Vegetables and Creatures, that are merely sensitive, cannot be supposed to understand the Ends and Scope, the Reasons and Purposes of their Operations. They are not the effects of any Deliberaration, or choice of their own, but the consequents of Necessity; and therefore must be brought about by the directing Hand and Will of a God of Incomprehensive Power, of Wisdom, that they might bear witness of his Being and Providence, and excite all Mankind to praise and glorigy the adorable Perfections of his Nature. 3. The excellent Order of Creatures is seen in the Permanency of them in that State and Condition in which they have been placed. This Permanency consisteth in two things: 1. First, In the entire continuance of their Natures. The constituent, principal Substances of the Universe are still the same they ever were since their first Formation, in Number, Measure, and Weight. Nothing of their Beauty is saded by Age, nothing of Matter worn away by Motion, no Parts lost quite by Accident, nor any one Species annihilated by outward Violence, or inward Insirmity and Decay. Though Individuals upon the Terraqueous Globe die daily, or are cut off, lest the Earth we inhabit and live upon, and have our Food by, should be over-stock'd, yet all sorts and kinds of Being's remain, from the glorious Furniture of the Firmament, to the meanest Species of Flies and Worms. All Vegetables propagate, as in the beginning, the diversity of Sexes, Male, and Female, in all Animals continues on; Men and Beasts increase and multiply, and perform all their Natural Offices, ever since the primordial Benediction. But lest these things should be looked upon as Productions of Course, springing merely from the Principles and Energy of Plastic Nature, what think we of the Permanent Concinnity and State of the Air, whose Salubrious Blasts, Transparency, proper Motions, and all other uses it was intended for, do still hold on, notwithstanding all Nuisances and Infections, all Vicislitudes and Alterations, and all those Disturbances, Conflicts, and Wars, from contrary jarring Qualities which have been in it, since its first Expansion? What can we think of the Celestial Host, that for these Six thousand Years have been every minute casting and dispersing their enlivening Beams over the whole World? What can we think of the Sun in particular, that during such a long Tract and Succession of Ages, has been every moment at so vast an Expense of Light and Heat, its Body still continuing unimpaired, and its Powers neither wasted nor disabled? How could all this Conservation be without the help of an Almighty provident Hand, that does by a sort of new Creation, sustain and supply daily the several Branches of the Universe; and did at first from them all so perfect in their Kind's, and in order to their particular Ends, and for the general Good of the whole; that there is no mending the Creation; no altering the Figure, Posture, Number, or Frame of the Integral Parts of it; no adding any new Species, or destroying any old ones, without disorder and detriment to the great Compages? Secondly, The permanent state of things is discernible, as by the continuance of their Natures, so by the constant tenor of their Operations and Motions; witness (for all) those bright, radiant Bodies over our heads, whose circular Travels are so exactly periodical, and their Influences so constant, that they plainly show there is a God above, who hath given them a Law which cannot be broken. By the various Aspects and Motions of the Moon, the melancholy Solitudes of the Night are abated; the growth of Vegetables is assisted; the increase of Anirnals is promoted; Dews fall to help and cherish the seminal Powers of the Earth; and (besides many other advantages) the stowing and ebbings of the Sea are regulated, and thereby the Waters are kept from putrefaction, and the innumerable multitude of Fishes are preserved. And how comes it to pass, but by the Decree of a Wise and Beneficent Being over all, that these Influences are so constant, and these Motions are so stated and certain, that the Monthly Aspects, and Annual Revolutions and Courses of the Moon are still the very same; and all this, through a thin fluid Vehicle in which it swims? The other Planets, how differently soever they move, yet amidst that Variety, their Rowlings about have all along to this day so punctually answered their determinate Periods, that they carry with them manifest Marks of an Unerring Hand that doth direct and govern them; and keeps the parts of them from those Dissipations, which otherwise the Rapidity of their Motion would expose them to, in their sine unresisting Aether. All other Stars (the Sun excepted) are said to be fixed; not that they do not move at all, but because their daily Motion is still directly forward in the same Circle, without any particular Retrograde creepings, and without those Aberrations and Deflexions, sometimes Northward, and sometimes Southward, which the seven wandering Stars observe. Now if, according to the old Opinion, these great Bodies be supposed to be fastened, like so many Nails, in Pellucid, but Solid Spheres, it is a stupendious thing to consider, how such vast, cumbersome Machine's should be able to turn about so exactly, and in such a constant, even course, Night and Day, without an Almighty Power that did first set them on Motion, and doth still superintend and steer them. But if they be supposed to roll in a free, open Aether, it is impossible to conceive how so many Pendulous Bodies, of such unmeasurable magnitude, so briskly moving in their respective Spaces without the least rub to stop or hinder them, should not clash, or cross, or interfere with one another, but still keep at the same distances, for aught we know, to an hair's breadth, and perform all their Courses with equability and constancy to an exact point; all this is beyond the reach of Human Reason to conceive, unless it be granted, that there is a Supreme, overruling Being, who did at first set them into a determinate order, and hath ever since preserved them in that order, maintaining, governing, regulating, and directing their motions by his own Infinite Power, and most Watchful Providence. But to speak more particularly of that Glorious Luminary, which every day rejoiceth as a Giant to run its course, to visit the whole world, and to invigorate and cherish all things here below with lively Emanations: What can we think of his Diurnal Motion, whereby that Immense Creature daily takes his Round, and absolves his Course within the space of 24 hours; and this, not only with far greater celerity, than that of the swiftest Arrow from the strongest Bow; and moreover with such exact order, and constancy, that for these Six thousand years his daily Revolution has been neither quicker, nor slower by one minute; twice only excepted, when at the Special Command of his Maker he was arrested in his Race, and was made one day to stand still, and another day to go backward Ten Degrees? Besides this Diurnal Race from East to West, which causes the vicissitude of Day and Night, what think we of the Sun's Annual Progress towards the Northern, and then off again towards the Southern Tropic, in an Obliqne Circle they call the Zodiac, under Twelve Signs, or Constellations, each whereof consisting of Thirty Degrees, he passeth through in Thirty Days, finishing his yearly Course in 360 Days, or thereabouts; rising, as he goes, every new day in a new Line parallel to the Equinoxial; and so increasing or lessening the Hours of the Day, and bringing on the several Seasons of the Year, which are ordained for wise and good Ends: And hence come the Vicissitudes of Summer and Winter, of Spring and Fall, of the Laborious Seedtime, and the Joyful Weeks of Harvest: All which, that great Divider of Days, and Months, and Years, hath all along performed, by such an uniform, steady, and constant tenor in its motions, that this present Day, nay this present Minute, exactly answers to that which was full a Thousand Years ago, when the Sun moved in the same Sign, in the same Degree, nay in the same Point, wherein it moveth now. All this while I have spoken according to Old Ptolemy's Hypothesis, That the Heavens move; because the Scripture speaks after that manner, as being most suitable to our ordinary Apprehensions. But, whether in fact the stars move, or the Earth only, or the Earth and Stars too, is the same thing to my present purpose; and I leave it to our Modern Inquisitive Philosophers to dispute that matter out, and to end it when they can. For, where ever those Motions be, our Observations will return to this point, and must rest here, That these Motions are exact, punctual, and precise; which yet were impossible, without the Decrees and Contrivance of a Supreme, Intelligent Being, or a God, that superintends, orders, and takes care of this great Frame, and Wonderful Machine of the Universe. Now to all this the Sceptics of our Age are ready to tell us from two or three old Blundering Pagan Philosophers, That this Excellent Order of things came to pass, not by the Counsel, Skill, and Power of a Deity, but by mere chance. For (that I may in a few words open to you the Mystery of infidelity) their grand Creed is this; That from all Eternity there was nothing but Matter and Motion in an Immense Space; wherein numberless multitudes of small Particles of Matter, called Atoms, were for a vast, long time, dancing and sporting, playing and toying, justling and tumbling, freaking and clashing together; and using all endeavours and tricks, how to clutch and combine into Aggregate Bodies, and into different Modifications, Shapes, and Forms: And that after many Rencounters and Trials, though without any Design, Forecast, or Understanding of their own, they happened to fall into all the things which make up the world: Some fell into a Sun, others made up the Moon, others form themselves into great numbers of Twinkling Stars; a frolicksome sort of Atoms danced together into that which we call the Free, Open Air; the more Dull and Lumpish kinds made up an Earth; and thence sprung up in time many other Contextures which made up Plants and Trees; and abundance ran into Animals, Beasts and Men: the very Souls of men being (as they say) nothing but delicate Modifications of the sinest, and most active Atoms that Matter could afford; where when they are by any untoward Accident or Insirmity, dashed and dissolved, than they bring Death; which in their Opinion is only the unclutching of Matter, void of a spiritual, intellectual, distinct Substance, that is said to return to a God to give an Account of its Actions at a Judgment-day; Notions which these great Wits of the world (as they take themselves to be) believe to be nothing but the Inventions of Priests and Politicians, to keep Mankind in slavery, and to fright people out of their Senses. Thus instead of believing in a God, they believe in Matter and Motion, in Space and Atoms, in Chance and Fortune: For, according to them, as things fall apieces by chance, so it was by mere chance that they fell at first together; not by the Hand and Directions of a Wise, Omnipotent Agent, that gave them their being; by Lucky Hits, by Casual Concurrences, but by the successful motions of Blind, Senseless Atoms, accidentally and fortuitously jumping together into great variety of Combinations and Figures; and so continuing, till Fortune that joined them, makes them fly asunder again; and till by some new Comical Motions they sorm themselves into new Shapes. Now, though the exposing of these Conceits be Consutation enough, yet I would gravely ask these Wise Sages, How it can consist with common Reason to imagine, that the Fortuitous Motion of Stupid, Unthinking Matter could compose all things into such excellent order; as the most Intelligent, Prudent Mind could not have made more apt and proper? How could Blind, and consequently Erroneous Chance, without any deliberation, pitch upon such Places to dispose every thing into, as our common Senses show to be most sit, and commodious? We see the Earth is Situate in the Centre of the Universe, to receive kindly and seasonable Influences, Heat and Cold, Drought and Moisture, from all the Ambient Parts of this visible World. The Firmament is expanded at such a convenient distance, as that it can communicate its sweet Influences, without exposing us, and the things round about us, to those Extremities of Heat, or Cold, whereby a greater Propinquity, or Longinquity would cause Living Creatures to languish and die. Those Lucid Globes which enamel the Firmament, are so appositely fixed up and down from Pole to Pole, that the remotest Regions participate of their Virtues and Powers. The Sun is determined to such a Fitting Course, and to such Convenient Limits, that by its Alternate Accesses and Recesses those Comforting Rays are dispersed over all the Earth, which at proper Seasons produce Grass for the Cattle, Bread to strengthen man's heart, and Oil to make him a cheerful Countenance, and generous Wines to refresh and exhilerate his Spirits. Under the Opposite Poles there are the great Treasures of Snow, which yield to the Hotter Climates plenty of Rain, and Refreshing Gales of Wind. Not to speak of the Commodious Position of the several Parts in Men, Beasts, and Plants, which could not be altered, I do not say, without apparent Deformity, but without insupportable Inconvenience and Prejudice to the whole Frame. This is enough to show, that the several Branches of the Universe are so agreeably disposed and placed, that without betraying our Reason, and the use of our Faculties, we cannot impute those Positions to the casual motion of blind, senseless, undeliberating Atoms; but must look upon them as the Results of Design and Choice, and as Arguments of an Intellectual, Provident Being over all, who worketh all things according to the counsel of his will; (or, according to the Best and Wisest Reasons) Ephes. 1. 11. Again, Let me ask our pretending Philosophers, How can it consist with common Reason to conceive, That those Congruities and Relations which these several parts of the world bore to each other; those Aptitudes and Concinnities which are between the Disposition of some things, and the Faculties of others; so that this thing is for the use of that, and that thing reciprocally fitted for this; how, I say, can these mutual Correspondences be rationally ascribed to nothing but mere Fortune and Chance? Is not the Eye fitted for the seeing of Light, and Light fitted for the use of the Eye? Are not all the Senses adapted to their proper Objects, and those Objects adapted to gratify the Senses? Is not the Air a proper vehicle for Volatile Creatures, and the Frame of those Creatures suited to the Contexture of the Air? Are not the Waters agreeable to Fish, and the Nature of Fish so adapted to the Waters, that they cannot subsist in a thinner Element? In short, Are not the parts of Nature's great Fabric so congruously fitted to each other, like so many Springs and Wheels in the most curious piece of Art, that there is no taking away a part, without disordering and disjointing the whole? And how can all this be thought to proceed from Chance, any more than the Frame of a Watch or a Clock? These things show, that they were intended for Ends, and where Ends are to be served, there must be Knowledge, Counsel, and Forecast, how to make choice of proper Means, and how to fit those Means together for due application: And when we see the Parts of the whole World so admirably fitted, suited, and adapted to each other in such exquisite Order, What extreme sottishness is it not, to attribute those Congruities to stupid, blundering Fortune, which are so many Sculptures of a Divine Hand, so many plain Evidences of the Wisest Mind, and the Highest Reason? Once more let me ask, How it can consist with Reason to believe, that this vast Compages could hold and continue in the same excellent Order for so many Thousand years together, if it fell into it at the first by mere Accident? Or how it could come to pass, that the Parts of it have not been as yet Disunited and Scattered by Motion, if nothing but Fortuitous Motion joined them? All Motion serveth, especially if it be violent and swift, either to Wear away Matter by degrees, or to Dissolve and Dissipate the Particles on a sudden, and to make all about it fly; as we see clearly by the rapid Revolutions of every Wheel about its Axis. Supposing then one or other of these Three things, which are the principal accounts; either that the Earth alone whirls about upon an Axis of its own; or, that the Heavens turn round upon the great Axis of the Universe, the Earth lying quiet, and the Sun moving both forward and retrograde perpetually; or, thirdly, That the motion is divided, the Earth doing the Diurnal part, and the Sun absolving that part which is Annual; which of these Opinions soever men are pleased to follow, they must grant on all hands, that the motions are performed with the greatest velocity and quickness. And how then can so many Combinations of Atoms be rationally supposed able to have still held it out against the utmost Rapidity; and that all along, during the Succession of so many Years and Ages; so that in all this time, neither the Parts of any one moving Body have been impaired, nor the motion of any one hath been disturbed out of its orderly Tenor? especially, since all is supposed by our Refined Wits to depend upon Chance; which is far more likely to dissolve, or disorder a Rapid Body, than ever it was to form it; for they themselves cannot tell the manner how this was done; but 'tis very easy for any man to conceive how that may be; and if there be nothing but Luck in the case, it must be a great wonder to any considering man, that by some odd Luck or other the whole World hath not been dissolved long ago. To draw this Consideration to a period. Suppose these Sceptics should see (what I have somewhere read of) a Great Machine of Brass, like that Sphere, which Tully saith his Friend Posidonius made, contrived according to Ptolemy's Hypothesis, wherein there is a visible Description of the Heavens and Earth; of the supposed Orbs and Spheres above; of the Cycles and Epicycles; with an ingenious, but imperperfect Representation of the Centrical and Eccentrical Motions of the Heavenly Bodies; and all this in a round Scheme of Materials, orderly disposed in their proper places; fitted together in apt Connexion's; and holding all together in a firm, lasting, and permanent Frame: Would they themselves fancy this Machine to have been form, not by the Design, Art, or Hand of any Skilful Workman; but only by Chance, and by the Fortuitous Motion of Atoms? But because such a Machine I speak of, is not every where to be seen, let them with an accurate Eye observe some Pieces of Art, which have been the Curious (though now Ordinary) Improvement of this Age; I mean, the Pendulum Clocks; wherein the Movements are so fine, so adapted to each other, so regular, nay so steady and constant in their course, that some (without any help) will go, and keep their Order a full Month; some a Year, and some more; and can it be rational to impute all this to Luck, and Fortune; and to the casual falling together of unguided Particles of Matter; when Chance never produceth any thing that is orderly and uniform, exact and steady, stable, fixed, and constant? Or, thirdly, Let them view a Common Globe, and distinctly observe the Poles, the Axis, the Horizon, the Meridian, the Aequator, the Ecliptic, the Zodiac, the Tropics, and all the Degrees whereby they may follow, and trace with their Finger the determinate course of the Sun, and then let them say, whether that poor, ordinary Frame can be thought the effect of Blind Fortune too. Nay, Lastly, Let them survey their own Houses, and examine the Solidity of the Foundations, the Cementing of the Walls, the Contignation of the Beams and Rafters, and all the parts of the Buildings, so duly and properly laid, so regularly erected, so strongly fastened, so depending upon each other for support, so fitted and compacted for use; and all making up such Firm, Durable, and Permanent Structures, as can bid desiance to Winds and Tempests; and after all, would it not be ridiculous Folly to conceive, that those Edifices were not intended for use by any Architect's Forecast, nor raised by any Architect's Contrivance, nor finished by any Architect's Skill and Workmanship, but that all happened to be erected by the Fortuitous Concurrence of Unguided Instruments, and by the accidental motion of Irrational Materials; the Stones leaping by chance out of the Qarries, the Timbers dancing away from their Roots, the Mortar taking a frolic to be in too; and Saws, and Axes, and Trowels, and Hammers, and Nails, and Pins, helping and moving too by Chance, they know not how, nor when? Now if these be such Senseless Imaginations, what gross Stupidity is it to think, that this Goodly, Magnificent Fabric the Universe, was made without the Counsel and Wisdom of a Divine Architect, and merely by the chancemotions and friskings of small Particles of Matter, that without the Power and Directions of an Infinite Mind, were no more able to make a Star, or a Man, than the Motes of the Sun were to Rebuild the Great City of London, when it lay in Ashes? I have instanced in these things of Art, to show the monstrous unreasonableness of those, who will not allow so much of Skill and Contrivance to have been used in setting the World into this Commodious, Apt, and Permanent Order, as is necessary for the perfecting of Humane Inventions: though indeed there was infinitely more of Wisdom necessary, besides the Power requisite to raise the Materials of the World out of nothing. For, as a Learned Writer speaks, may not the most Excellent Pieces of Humane Artifice, the Fairest Structures, the Finest Portraitures, the most Ingenious and Useful Inquiries, such as we are wont most to admire and commend, with infinitely more ease happen to exist, without any Industry or Contrivance spent upon them? If we cannot allow those rude Imitations of Nature to spring up of themselves, but as soon as we espy them, are ready to acknowledge them Products of Excellent Art, though we know not the Artist, nor saw him work; how much more reason is there that we should believe those Works of Nature, so incomparably more Accurate, to proceed also from Art, although invisible to us (that is, Divine) and performing its Workmanship by a Secret Hand? This Argument for the Existence of a Deity, was urged by that Wise Philosopher, Cicero; who observed, That in the Nulla in Coelo nec fortuna, nec temeritas, necerratio, nec vanitas inest; contraque omnis ordo, veritas, ratio, constantia. Cic▪ de Nat. Deor. lib. 2. Heavens there is nothing of Fortune, Temerity, or Error, nothing which is vain, or useless; but that on the contrary, there is all Order, Truth, Reason, and Constancy. And hence he shows, That since things perfected by Nature are much better than Works performed by Art, and yet Art itself doth nothing without Reason; therefore we must believe, that Nature is not void of Reason and Wisdom. If then Si ergo meliora sunt ea, quae naturâ, quàm illa quae arte perfecta sunt, nee ars efficit quidquam sine ratione; ne natura quidem rationis expers est habenda. Quî igitur convenit, Signum aut tabulam pictam cùm aspexe. ris, scire adhibitam esse artem; cumque procul cursum navigii videris, non dubitare quin id ratione, atque arte moveatur; aut cùm Solarium vel descriptum, aut ex aquâ contemplere, intelligere declarari horas arte, non casu; mundum autem qui & has ipsas arts, & earum artifices, & cuncta complectatur, consilii & rationis expertem putare? Quòd si in Scythiam, aut in Britanniam Shpaeram aliquis tulerit, hanc, quam nuper familiaris noster effecit, Posidonius, cujus singulae conversiones idem efficiunt in Sole, & in Luná; & in quinque stellis errantibus, quod efficitur in Coelo singulis diebus & noctibus, quis in illâ Barbarie dubitet, quin ea Sphaera sit perfecta ratione? H● autem dubitant de mundo, ex quo oriuntur & siunt omnia, casune ipse sit effectus, aut necessitate aliquâ, an ratione, ac ment Divinâ? Ibid. (says he) when you see a Sign, or a Picture drawn, you know that there Art was used; or, when at a distance you see a Ship taking its course, you doubt not but it is steered by Reason and Art: Or, when you look upon a Sundial, you conclude, that the Hours of the Day are showed by Art, and not by Chance; how can it consist with Reason to think, that the World which contains all those Arts, and all Artificers, and indeed all manner of things, can be without Counsel and Wisdom to order it? If (says he again) a Man should carry into Scythia, or Britain, that Sphere which our Friend Posidonius lately made, wherein are represented the Motions of the Sun, and Moon, and the five other wand'ring Stars, just as they move every Day and Night in the Heavens, Who of those Barbarous People would doubt whether that Sphere were made by perfect Art? And then how can it stand with Reason to doubt concerning the World, out of which all things do spring, and are made; whether That was form by Chance, or Nature, or by a Wise and Divine Mind? And hence, a little Quis enim hunc hominem dixerit, qui cùm tam certos Coeli motus, tam ratos astrorum ordines, tamque omnia inter se connexa & apta viderit, neget in his ullam inesse rationem, eaque casu sieri dicat, quae quanto consilio gerantur, nullo consilio assequi possumus? Ibid. after, that Excellent Author questions, Whether he ought to have the name of a Man given him, who when he sees the motions of the Heavens to be so certain, the ranks of the Stars to be settled, and all things to be so connected and fitted together, shall after all, deny that there is Reason for all these things; and say, that they were done by Chance, when our Understanding cannot reach, or comprehend the Great Counsel and Wisdom, whereby they are done or performed. CHAP. VII. THE next thing that shows the Existence of a God, is the great Beauty which appears in the Universe; whereby I mean, that entertaining and delightful View, which the admirable Frame of the World doth afford us. For which way soever we cast our Eyes, whether upward or downward, whether on this side or on that, What charming Objects are there every where for us to contemplate, with unspeakable Pleasure and Satisfaction? 1. For their Multitudes. 2. For their Splendour. 3. For. their Variety. 4. For the Comeliness and Delicacy of their Frame; which Four things make up the Beauty of the Creation. 1. And, First, If we look upward, What a Magnificient and August Expansion is there above to entertain our Eyes? A sit Curtain to be stretched out before the glorious Habitation of the Divine Majesty, and to be a Partition-Veil between that most Holy One, the Glorious God, and his poor Creatures. And who can tell the Number of the Stars, or call them by their Names? What Essays soever observing Astronomers have made, it is no more in the Power of Man, than it is to bind the sweet Influences of the Pleyades, or to lose the Bands of Orion, or to bring forth Mazzaroth in his Season, or to guide Arcturus with his Sons; as the Expressions are, Job 38. For which way soever we move, we still make new Discoveries; still we find a new entertaining Prospect of Lights without Number. That Multitude which is obvious to every Man's Eye, is uninvestigable by us; besides that immense Tract, usually called the Milky-way, which is made up of a Congeries of innumerable lesser Stars, that by reason of their vast distance from us are not singly discernible, but altogether do cast the appearance of a White spacious Cloud, or Zone, by the mixture and union of their languid Beams. But by the use of that artificial Instrument, the Telescope, great numbers of Stars have been lately discovered, which, probably, were Hever observed by Man before: And Mr. Ra●, of the Wisd. of God in the Create. (as a learned Author tells us) its likely, that had we more perfect Telescopes, many Thousands more might be discovered; and yet, after all, an incredible Multitude remain, by reason of their immense distance beyond all ken by the best Telescopes that could possibly be invented, or polished by the Wit and Hand of an Angel. For if the World be as Des Cartes would have it, indefintely extended; that is, so far as no humane Intellect can fancy any Bounds of it; than what we see, or can come to see, must be the least part of what is undiscoverable by us; the whole Universe extending a Thousand times farther beyond the utmost Stars we can possibly descry, than those be distant from the Earth we live upon. But we need not go so far in our Conjectures; for if that new Hypothesis, which seemeth most Rational, be granted, That the fixed Stars are not all placed in one and the same concave Spherical Superficies, equidistant from us as they seem to be; but that they are variously and dispersedly situate, some nearer, some further off, just like Trees in a great Wood or Forest; this alone, were there nothing else to be considered, is enough to show the exceeding Greatness and Fecundity of that Divine Power, which Adorned and Beautified those Regions above with such Multitudes of glorious Luminaries, as by the Scripture Comparison, Gen. 22. 17. seem equally as impossible to be counted up, as the Sands that are upon the Seashore. But besides the Numbers, we must reflect upon the Magnitude of those glorions Bodies, which plain Reason will force us to conclude in general to be very great and immense. For though they appear to us to be small in their proportions, the Sun and Moon excepted, yet that is because of their vast distance from the Eye. There are certain Rules in Mathematics, and those grounded upon very probable Observations, whereby the most learned and modest Astronomers, comparing the Diameters of some Stars with the Diameter of the Earth, have given us such accounts as to ordinary Capacities sound at the first hearing, not only amazing but utterly incredible. And though I cannot undertake to vouch for the exactness of the computations; yet on the other hand, I must confess my inabilities to show why they may not be thought right and true in a great measure. Who would think that the Sun is 139 times bigger than the Earth? And yet this, I think, is the very lest account; for some skilful Astronomers reckon above 160. Who that takes measures by his Eye sight would imagine, that the Three Planets above the Sun do bear such disproportions to the Terrestrial Globe, as to be the lowermost above once, the next Two above Eighty times bigger? And yet there are curious and inquisitive Philosophers that pretend to make these Calculations good by Mathematical Demonstration. As to the sixth Stars, their Dimensions are said to be proportionable, and the now received Opinion is, that how numberless soever they be, they are (the principal ones especially) so many lesser Suns, or Sunlike Bodies. But waving all pretences to exactness, it must be granted on all hands, that they are of vast Magnitudes, how small soever they seem to us, by reason of their great height and distance from us: Which thing being duly considered, What but an Omnipotent, and most Intelligent Being can be thought to have form such Worlds (as it were) of immense, glorious Creatures, wherewith the Firmament is adorned? Can it be reasonble to conceive, that such a vast orderly Host was raised by the Chance-Motion of senseless Atoms? Or, that Chance, which never yet built a Cottage, or drew a Picture, or paved an House, could first make, and then furnish the Heavens after that magnificent and wonderful Cic de Nat. Dcor. lib. 2. Manner? Cicero considering those glittering Bodies in the Sky, their Multitudes, Greatness, Motion, Order and Commodious Situations, so that instead of annoying the Earth, they are serviceable and beneficial to all things in it, could not but admire how it should enter into any Man's Heart to think, that such a goodly, beautiful Structure was framed by the fortuitous Concourse of blind and undesigning Particles of Matter, that could never build a City, or a Temple, or a Portico. After that rate (says he) they may as well believe, that by throwing multitudes of Letters upon the ground, Ennius his Annals may be made by chance, so as to become a fair, legible and intelligible Book; whereas no one Verse was ever so composed. (And is not such a little thing more easy to be form by chance, than the large Volume of the World?) And hence that excellent Author proceeds to a Discourse of Aristotle's to this purpose: Suppose some persons should have dwelled all their days under ground, in stately Domicils, adorned with Imagery and Pictures, and furnished with all necessaries to make their lives happy, and there should have heard some rumour of a Numen, and Power Divine: And suppose that after a while, by the sudden opening of some Caverns of the Earth, those Persons should step out into these Parts of the World, and behold the Earth, Sun, and Heavens, and observe the greatness of the Clouds, the violence of the Winds, the bigness, beauty, and influence of the Sun; and that the Day dependeth upon his Presence: And suppose when Night comes they should behold the Face of the Heavens so adorned, the various aspects of the Moon, the order and motion of the Stars, their rising and setting, and their stated and perpetual Courses; when they saw all these things, they could not but believe that there is a God, and that these are the Works of God. By these wise Meditations of intelligent Pagans we see, that there are in the World, and especially in the Heavens, such Evidences of a Deity as shine bright upon the Mind; so that plain honest Nature bears Witness to the Truth of that, Psal. 19 1. The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handy work. 2. If now, in the next place, we lower our Contemplations, by taking our Eyes off from the Magnificence by God's Throne, to behold a little what may be seen about his Footstool; with what Pleasure and Ravish may we find astonishing Objects for Number and Varieties? In both respects they are next to Infinite: Which shows that nothing but an Understanding infinitely perfect, a Will infinitely essications, and a Power infinitely extensive, could give them a Being, or preserve them in it; because more must be supposed to be in the Agent, especially in a voluntary and Divine Agent, than is in its Effects. First then, as to the Number of them. The most assuming Seepticks will not have the Confidence to deny, but that it is impossible for all Mankind to give a distinct Account of Individuals; for who can be answerable for the Catalogue of Men only? Indeed great pains have been taken by some critical Naturalists, and particularly by that learned Author of our own beforementioned, to discover the Tale of Species, or the several sorts and kinds of things with Life. And because Books are not ready at every one's Hand, let me give you the Sum in short, which seemeth to be this; The Species of Beasts, certainly known and discovered, about 150. The Species of Birds, about 500 The Species of Fishes above 3000. The Species of Infects, 20000. And the Species of Plants above that Number. But how well soever these worthy Observers and Secretaries of Nature have deserved of the World for their Curious and elaborate Inquiries, still they speak but like Men, whose Knowledge is, and unavoidably must be of a short reach in comparison; for what Men can be accountable for all the known Parts of the World? and especially for those Parts which are as yet undiscovered? However, the Estimate is the more laudable, because it is modest; there being, Secondly, great Variety, as well as Numbers, of things on Earth, that are included and comprehended under one and the same Species; which still shows the Beauty of the Creation the more: As, the Lilies (for Example) which though they are not allowed a Specisick difference, to make them every one a distinct sort or kind of Flower; yet a Numerical difference must be allowed them, by reason of their plain difference as to Growth, Colour, Shape, and Smell. I use this Instance the rather, because the Lord Jesus himself was pleased to send us to the Lilies of the field for our Instruction, Math. 5. But the Observation extends to many other Productions, wherein we find great diversity in one respect or other, though they be of the same Kind. And this variety of things, which still operates conformably to their own Powers and Faculties, carries with it a plain Stamp of an Hand acting with secundity of Power, directed and governed by abundant Wisdom. For though an Infinite Power may form things without Number or End, yet the Beauty of that Power is best seen by the diversity of its Strokes, which make up one comely and fair Composure, as variety of agreeable Features and Lineaments make up a beautiful Face. Such is the admirable Decorum that is in this spacious Universe, in that it is not stocked with numerous Generations of one Kind only (which yet a boundless and Power could have made) but is chequered (as was more agreeable to Wisdom) with a Multiplicity of Species, that the fecundity of the Power might be more wonderfully displayed, the Glory of the Divine Goodness might be more visibly extended round about the World, and that all Rational Creatures might be more easily and throughly taught to admire and adore that Munificent Being, which from time to time maintaineth so many abundant sorts of Creatures at the constant charge of his Providence. We see how one Creature is ministerial and serviceable to another; as Grass is for the ; Fruits for Beasts, Fowls, and Infects; and Animals themselves for the use of Men, (and every Man should be for the service of God.) Now by this admirable State of things, that provident care seems to have been taken from the beginning, which the Son of God took at the Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes, that nothing should be lost, John 6. 17. Nothing is quite lost upon the Earth; but what one Creature leaves, another taketh; what this kind refuseth, another sort gathers; so that at the end of the Year, Men and Animals constantly make even with the World, and spend the Liberality of Nature; all waiting on the Providence of a Superior Being, to give them their Meat again in due Season. Things endued with Life being thus various, and that variety being thus useful as well as entertaining, what can a Man's next Thought be, but that there is a Glorious God, who made his Creatures in Number, Measure, and Weight; not only to display the Exuberance and Transcendency of his Power, but also to exemplify the insinity of his Skill, Wisdom, and Munisicence? And yet I have taken no notice of the variety of things inanimate here below, or of their various Dispositions, Qualities, and Modifications, which yet are astonishing Arguments of a Divine Mind, that so appositely formed such a vast multiplicity of Being's, according to such innumerable and such beauteous Ideas. The diversity of Elements, with their various Mixtures and Temperaments in this lower World: The attracting, penetrating, refrigerating Motions of the Air, and the various Appearances in it of Rain, Hail, Snow, Thunder, Lightnings, Clouds, Winds, Rainbows, Comets, and other liquid Meteors; the variety of Waters, as Springs, Rivers, Lakes, Seas, Baths; their various Colours, Smells, and Tastes, together with their various Courses and Reciprocations; the uninvestigable variety within the Earth, Quarries, Minerals, Metals, Lodestones, Subterraneous Fire, Caverns, Treasures of Salts, Nitres, Bitumen, Sulphurs, precious Stones and Gems of great variety. In short, whatever is for the Advantage, or Comfort, or Pleasure, or Ornament of our Lives, we fetch out of the Earth in great abundance: All these multifarious Creatures speak the Forecast and Providence of a most wise and liberal Being, that of his Goodness, was pleased thus to fill the whole Universe with his Riches. This Pulchritude of the World arising from the variety of its Furniture, was to Cicero a convincing Argument of the Existence of a God; the Perennity of so many Fountains, the Delicacy of Streams, the Garniture of Banks by the sides of Rivers, the vastness of Caves, the asperity of Rocks, the height of many hanging Mountains, the immensity of Champion Countries, the hidden Veins of Silver and Gold, the infinite store of Marbles, the goodliness of Seas, the multitude and varieties of Islands, the Amenity of Shores, and the innumerable diversity of Things by, and on the Seashores: And to say after all, that this admirable and delightful Variety happened by the casual Motion of blind, irrational, and unguided Atoms, is far more absurd than to say, that Cicero's Orations were composed by the casual droppings of Ink, without the help of any Hands or Brains, though they contain such variety of Matter, such copiousness of Style, such elegancy of Phrase, such abundance of Sense, Argument, and Wit, that the whole Air of them shows them to have been contrived and penned by a Man of excellent Art, and the acutest Understanding. 3. If we cast our Eyes on further yet, we may see the beauty of the Creation, as by the variety, so by the Symmetry and comeliness of those things which every where fall under our Contemplation. With what admirable Contrivance are the innumerable Tribes of Fishes made, to live in a little World by themselves? to feed and propagate, to swim and play, to poise and steer their Bodies in their fluid Element? How exquisite is the formation of all the Sensitive Creatures upon the Earth, from the Lion and Leopard, from the Elephant and Camel, to the Ox and Ass? What affecting variety of Art is there in the formation of Man? O Lord (saith David) I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvellous are thy works in me, and that my soul knoweth right well. My substance was not hid from thee when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Thine eyes did see my substance being yet unperfect, and in thy Book were all my members written, which day by day were fashioned, when as yet there were none of them. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot altain unto it, Psalm 139. But though the Mystery of God's Workmanship within us be not discoverable by every Eye, yet the external Beauty of this House of Clay affecteth all Men, especially when Innocence and Goodness are the Inhabitants; a goodly Structure of Nerves, Veins, Arteries, Tendons, Muscles, Vitals, Bones, Ligaments, all covered over with a beauteous Skin, adorned with Features and Lineaments, with Shapes and Colours, to which the most sullen Stoics, nay the greatest and proudest Heroes, have humbly offered up themselves, not Votaries only, but sometimes Sacrifices also. What do I speak of the graceful Form of Humane Bodies? View the most contemptible Creatures upon Earth, and you will find the excellent Curiosity of their Contrivance for the Ends and uses they are designed unto, from the Velvet Mole even to those creeping Animals which strike us with Horror at the sight of them▪ the Snake, the Adder, the Evet, the Lizzard, and the very Toad, who have such a Symmetry of Parts, such speckled Contextures, such beauteous Colours, as show that they stole not into the World without the Will of that provident Being, who thought fit to adorn the Universe with great variety. But of those ordinary Creatures we familiarly behold, there are especially three sorts, which for the exquisiteness of their Frame, or for the delicacy of their Complexion, or for both, are no little Ornament to the Creation. First Infects, which though they are looked upon as the Refuse parts of the World, yet do bear the Signatures of a most accurate Hand, and bring to my Mind St. Paul's Observation of the Fabric and Garniture of our Bodies, 1 Cor. 12. The eye cannot say to the hand, I have no need of you; nor again the head to the foot, I have no need of you. Nay much more those members of the body which seem to be more feeble, are necessary. And those members of the body which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow the more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness. The meaning is, that where Natural Beauty is wanting, Artisicial Beauty by handsome Clothes doth make amends. In like manner those ignoble Creatures I now speak of, how low soever the Divine Hand hath placed them in Rank and Order, their want of Honour in respect of their Station, is supplied and made up by the Beauties bestowed upon them in respect of their Contexture: Witness the Gildings of the Wasp, the Hornet, the Bee, and many suchlike Infects; the Gaieties of the Butterfly; the Garniture of the Caterpillar; the Lustre of the Glow-Worm; the Glosses of the Beetle; the Elegancies of the Grasshopper; the five Embellishments of many Garden and Meadow-Insects, which I cannot name; the delicate forms of Flies of all sorts, especially the various Beauties of those which in Summer you may with great Admiration behold about Ponds and Rivers; their incomparable Shapes; their gaudy Trains; their Or's and Azures; their curious Lineaments and rich Embroideries; all these are so many legible Characters in the Volume of the Creation, to instruct us, that the Maker of the Universe is a Divine Being, infinite in Knowledge, Wisdom, and Fecundity. I shall close this with the Observation of a learned Writer, concerning the Bp. Wilkim▪ s Nat. P. cl. p. 80. difference between Natural and Artificial things, which appears by the help of the Microscope, since we have had the use and improvement of it. Whateever is Natural, doth by the Microscope appear adorned with all imaginable Elegance and Beauty. There are such inimitable Gildings and Embroideries in the smallest Seeds of Plants, but especially in the Parts of Animals, in the Head or Eye of a small Fly; such accurate Order and Symmetry in the frame of the most minute Creatures, as no Man will be able to conceive without seeing of them. 4. Another sort of Creatures which serve as well for the Ornament of the Creation, as for the Service and Delight of Men, is that winged Choir of Birds which entertain us with melodious Consorts, and should teach us to offer up daily Hymns of Praise to the Honour of that God, who seedeth Man and Beast, even to the young ravens which call upon him, Psalm 147. and begrudgeth not his Altars to be an house for the sparrow, and a nest for the swallow to lay her young, Psalm 84. And how artfully are those Creatures formed for their respective ends? How appositely are all their Organs sitted, that they may be able to discover all Meats that are proper for them; to gather their various sorts of Food, from the Worms in the Earth to the Flies and Infects in the Air; to flee and shelter themselves from Deaths and Dangers; to sail about in their thin Element; and to fill Mountains and Valleys, Woods and Fields, with their sweet Harmonies? Of all Animals the Fowls of the Air (if you take the whole Set of them) appear to the open Eye the most beautiful; excepting some birds of prey, such as the Raven, the Daw, which want that Splendour which others have; as if the tender Being, whose Mercies are over all his Works, designed to disgrace, even in irrational Creatures, all bloodiness and cruelty of Temper. With what delicate variety are the more innocent sorts adorned, especially such as live upon Seeds and Worms? Their particoloured Clothing, their beauteous Heads and Breasts, their Plumes of Silver and Gold; all socketted within such Nerves and Ligaments, and sized in such due Proportions for flight, and deelt with such splendid Curiosity, that a Man can hardly see a Feather which shows not the Art of a Divine Hand. But, as our Saviour himself said, Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin, and yet your heavenly Father clothes them. And how various and beautiful is that Raiment? I must not pretend to describe it, since no Art can reach the wonderful sineries of Nature. And what we call Nature is nothing but yet the forming Power or Faculty of seminal Principles, directed by the Will of a wise supreme Being, in order to the respective Ends and Uses of the things which are to be form. Now, to instance in our common Lily; do but observe the congruous Complication of its fibrous Roots, the procerity and decence of the Stalk, the Ornaments upon its Head, the conformity of the Flower to all others of the same kind, the Odour it yields, its tender Seeds provided against the next Year; and those surrounded with a graceful Defence, consisting of such curious Divisions, tinctured with such Blush, criticised with such Edges; and all these supported and maintained by a curious Contexture of Filaments, conveying the Powers of Life all over through a Network of the most exquisite Fibres, all wrapped up in a lovely Skin, and thereby defended from the annoyances and rudenesses of Wether. And what I have said of the Lily, is observable in every other Flower where with the Surface of the Earth is beautified; nay in every Blossom wherewith the Heads of Trees are adorned; the meanest whereof consisteth of such a delicate Shape, Form, and Structure, as plainly shows that they are not the casual Works of stupid bungling Atoms, but the fair Productions of an orderly Power, superintended and guided by an intelligent Being, that at first made all things by the fertile energy of his Will. Can any Man of sound Reason believe that all these Elegances did ever jump together by chance? Was an House, or a Room, ever beautified with Carving, Paintings, and Tapestry, by mere Chance; that is, without Hand, or Instrument, or Design? Did blind Chance ever draw one Landscape, with Trees, Flowers, birds and represented in it? Did it ever draw the Picture of an Ass? a thing so dull and stupid, that one would think it most easily done by the casual aggregation of senseless Atoms, if Chance ever did any thing of that kind at all. And is it rational to believe, that Chance made a whole beautiful World of Originals, when it could never yet give us one Copy? No; these beauteous Productions show the print of an Hand that form all things according to the highest Reason, and with the most stupendious Skill and Art; otherwise it were impossible to conceive how there could be such great diversity of comely Species; such Concinnities and Symmetries in them; such regularity of handsome Strokes; such congruous Features and Lineaments; such curiosity of various Forms, as we see adorn the Creation, and entertain our Eyes with Delight and Astonishment. If it be said, that all his proceeds from Seminal Principles, acting in every thing by the Virtue and Faculty of that Plastic Nature, of which a very excellent Author of our own hath spoken Dr. Cudworth Intel, Syst. so much, and written so well; in answer hereunto, 1. First, It seems very reasonable to grant, that as there is in Animals a Plastic Nature, or an internal moving, formative Principle, which doth dispose and fashion all the parts of the Foetus; so there is in the Earth too a Plastic Nature, or Life by which all Plants and Vegetables are differently formed, according to their different Seeds; and all this regularly, orderly, methodically, and artificially, according to the dispositions of every Vegetable, and in order to certain Ends and purposes which it serveth for. 2. But then, Secondly, it must be granted also, that this Plastic Nature cannot know or understand its Workings, or be conscious of what it doth; much less can it comprehend the reasons of its Operations; or intent and design the Ends, or consult and deliberate concerning the manner of bringing those Ends about: For these are Mental Acts, proper to Creatures Rational, endned with Rational Faculties and Powers. 3. And therefore, Thirdly, instead of destroying the Notion of a Deity, the Plastic Nature in Animals and Plants, doth infer the existence of an intelligent directing Agent, under which, and in subserviency to which, it acteth so methodically; like a Labourer that does the drudgery, to act under the Conduct of a wise Master-Workman. And this is the Notion of that excellent Author spoken of; that though Plastic Nature doth act artificially for the sake of Ends, yet itself doth neither intent those Ends, nor understand the reason of that it doth. Nature is not Master of that consummate Art and Wisdom according to which it acts, but only a Servant, and a drudging Executioner of the Dictates of it. It acteth not by Choice or Knowledge: Though it be a thing which worketh regularly and uniformly for Ends, and which may be also called the Divine Art and Fate of the Corporeal World; yet for all that, it is a low and imperfect Creature, foras much as it is not Master of that Reason and Wisdom according to which it acts; nor does it properly intent those Ends which it acts for, nor indeed is it expressly conscious of what it doth, it not knowing, but only doing according to Commands and Laws impressed upon it. Neither of which things ought to seem strange or incredible, since Nature may as well act regularly and artificially without any Knowledge and Consciousness of its own, as Forms of Letters compounded together, may print coherent Philosophic Sense, though they understand nothing at all; and it may also act for the sake of those Ends that are not intended by itself, but an higher Being, as well as the Saw or Hatchet in the Hand of the Architect doth. This shows that whatever the Powers of Nature be, they are all in Obedience and Subserviency to a supreme, wise Being, that was the Author of Nature, and hath all along since preserved its Faculties, and is still the principal, superintending Cause of all that Decence and Beauty, which giveth such a dazzling Lustre to the whole Creation, and is from Year to Year, from Age to Age maintained in a constant, uniform, and undistrubed State. To say that all the comely Parts of the World were such from Eternity, is very absurd. To suppose they made themselves such out of nothing, is nonsense: To conceive they were fortuitously form such by the accidental Jumbling, and Sport, and Coalition of undesigning Matter, is equally as unreasonable: And to fancy they constitute such by the like accidental cohesion of those blind Particles of Matter, is a conceit as wild and extravagant as the rest. Can Chance form a Flower, especially such variety of Flowers, the contexture whereof no Art can express? Can Chance propagate so many beautiful Species of them in such a steady, constant, regular Manner? Can Chance do this that never did any thing that was orderly, uniform, and uninterruptedly Graceful since the World stood? Can Chance make so many Minute Seeds so Mysteriously, with such Germens, Fibres, and Ramifications, that by the help of a Microscope you would believe you saw the Plant in an Epitome? Can Chance then teach the Seed to sprout so Methodically? First to cast out a complication of Roots downward, to establish its hopeful Offspring in the Ground, and to receive for it a constant supplement of Vitality; and then to shoot upwards into a proportionable Body, with variety of Vessels to entertain its Nutriment? Can Chance then direct the Plant to itself with proper Integuments? To extend itself into divers Branches and Divarications? To cover its Head with Leaves? To adorn those Leaves with Flowers, To which Solomon's Glory was not comparable? And to digest and disperse the vital Juice into great variety of odoriferous Shapes, Streaks and Colours, such as are inimitable by human Art? And when these curious Works are done, Doth Chance instruct the florid Creature to reflect upon its mean and poor Beginnings, and as a grateful return to form more Seeds of the same Species for another new Generation? Do all these orderly and artificial Operations look, as if they proceeded from the fortuitous Motions of irrational, rude and stupid Atoms? Are they not rather clear Arguments of the wonderful Skill and Wisdom of an intelligent Being, that sustains the Faculties, and guides the Operations of plastic Nature by a perpetual Law? That is, by an energetic, effective Principle given it by its Maker, whereby Nature works uniformly and steadily in subserviency to the Will and Intention of the great Creator, and Preserver of all things? This is the only intelligible and rational Account that can be given of the Beauty of the Creation. CHAP. VIII. THE next thing to be considered, as a plain Argument of the Existence of a God, is the usefulness of the particular Branches of the Universe, and the aptitude of them to answer their respective Uses; which I once intended to have made two distinct Heads; but upon second Thoughts conceive it better to cast them together into one. And if it is made appear that the World is so artfully framed, that the parts of it tend, and are adapted to such beneficial Purposes, as they would and should have been made for, supposing Divine Wisdom and Goodness to have had the framing of them; What can any reasonable Man conclude, but that they were intended and sitted for those excellent Purposes, by the contrivance of a directing, beneficent Being over all; and not jumbled together by the mere lucky compositions of unthinking, undeliberating Atoms? This than must be our present business to look into distinctions; and because the Subject is Copious and Important, as well as entertaining, it will be necessary for us to cast our Eyes again over this goodly Fabric, and observe the admirable usefulness, as we have hitherto discovered the Order and Beauty of its Structure. 1. To begin then with the heavenly Bodies; whose principal End (as I conceive) is, by their Lustre and Magnificence to set forth in some measure the infinite Greatness and Splendour of the Divine Majesty; being themselves so many faint Rays, or rather (as in this case, if I may without absurdity speak) so many Shadows of his Glory. As they relate to this inferior World, they are the great means of Vitality, without which it were impossible for any living Creatures to be maintained in their Being; nor would the whole Terraqueous Globe be any thing but dead Rock and Ice. For the prevention of which Havoc, they are in their Natures so many inexhaustible Fountains of Fire, that give Light to all sensible Creatures, warmth and vegetation to all Animal substances. This is to be said more especially of that great Luminary the Sun, which Heathens have been wont to worship, for the universal Good it doth by its enlivening Beams. For as it is in its Nature of a comforting, cherishing, and quickening Faculty; so are its Courses such as render its Powers every where effectually useful. Had it been fixed over any one determinate Part of the Earth in a State unmoveable, it would have been not only useless, but pernicious unto all things; for as the Parts of the World out of the reach of its Beams, would have been in an eternal State of Darkness and Death; so the very Regions under the Sun must have been parched up, and consequently desolate, and uninhabitable by means of those continual Fires, which would have turned all into a kind of Conflagration. Therefore 'tis as necessary for the good of the Creation that the Sun should move, as that it should give light and warmth; and that Motion being twofold; Diurnal finished in 24 Hours; and Annual performed in 12 Months; all things living receive such vast Utilities by both, as argue the Existence of a most wise and provident Being, whose Goodness is over all his Works. By the Diurnal Motion of the Sun there are constant, stated returns of Light and Darkness; and by those Vicissitudes, as all Animals have their Time divided between Labour and Rest (which is as necessary for them as Labour, and as their Food which is acquired by Labour, and repairs those Expenses of Nature which Labour brings) so are those Productions which serve for Food, prepared and ascertained by these daily Revolutions. In the Day time the Beams of the Sun serve to heat the Ground, to actuate the principles of vegetation, to promote the ascent of vital Juices, to concoct and ripen Fruits, and to impregnate the Atmosphere with Fumes and Vapours: And in the Night those Vapours descend upon the Ground again in Dews, Showers, or Rains, according to the Necessities of the Climate; by which means there is a due Temperament of Warmth and Moisture that makes all Vegetables Fruitful, and preserves Animals in a state of Health and Vigour; witness those Regions under the Line, where the Sun shines the hottest; though the Ancients believed they were all roasted into utter Barrenness; yet by Discoveries which have been made since, it appears that the heats and droughts of the Day are so allayed by the constant Breezes and Rains of the Night, that they are the most fertile parts of the World. By the Annual Course of the Sun, which carries it about from North to South, and so round again, it disperseth its vivisick Rays over all, restores yearly all the Powers of Nature, makes all People amends for its late distance from them, and takes its Circuit so, that one Sun serves all Climates, and answers the Necessities of all the World. 'Tis true, some places are much more remote from the Sun than others are, as those extreme parts of the Earth called, The Northern and Southern Poles. But than it is to be considered, that the Fruits and Animals of those Countries are such as do not require so great degrees of external Heat. And besides, there are other Stars which cast in those parts a more proper, kindly, and (if I may so speak) connatural Influence; especially the Moon, of which Luminary it is observable, that it is the Sun's Deputy, to supply its Room in its absence; and as the Moon moves further towards the North and South than the Sun ever does, so is it fullest of Light, and consequently of enliveing Influences, when the Sun is at the greatest distance from it towards the one part or the other; so that there is the most benefit by the Moon in those Regions, and at those Seasons of the Year, when and where the Sun is most wanting. All which shows, that there is a most wise and beneficent Being over all, who form the Substances of those glorious Luminaries, and directed all their Course as he foresaw would be best for the World; because it is impossible to conceive rationally how Creatures utterly void of Reason and Sense, (as the Sun and Moon are) could, without the directions of Divine Reason, and without the appointment of a Divine Will, pitch upon such regular and proper Motions, that if they had had the highest Reason of their own, they could not have determined upon better Courses for the service and good of the Universe. To descend now a little lower; every one perceives how useful that thin Medium is between Heaven and Earth, which we call the Air; how it transmits' the Light of Heaven to us; how it delights our Ears with many Natural and Artificial Undulations; how it helps us with Breath; how it supplies us with the seasonable Advantages of Heat and Cold, of Drought and Moisture; what a Vehicle it is for vast variety of useful Creatures; and how it openeth its Treasures to make the whole Earth communicate of its Plenty: And what but a Divine Mind, and an Omnipotent Hand, could have made this Medium of such a necessary and fit Contexture, as to answer all these Purposes? Can Fortune and Atoms contrive to breathe into the Nostrils of every Animal such a common breath of Life? Can they make it fluid, to assist the flight of every Fowl, and to suit with every Vibration of its Wings? Can they store it with Infects for every Bat and Swallow to live on? Can they give it an agreeable thickness to refract the Light, and by those Refractions to bring all Forms, Shapes, and Colours to the Eye in their proper Ideas? Can they provide Winds to keep it from Stagnation, and Frosts and Snows, Lightnings and Thunders, to carry off those Impurities which would prove very prejudicial to our Lives? Can they impregnate it with Nitrous Particles, to make the Blood in an Animals Lungs the more Spirituous? Can they direct it to warm and irrigate the whole Earth, like the Mist which Moses says went up from the earth in the beginning, and watered the whole face of the ground? Gen. 6. 2. Is it reasonable to imagine, that stupid Matter, and the undirected Motion of diminutive Particles, could contrive or do all these wise and good things, without the guidance of a super-intending Power, that gave every thing a Law? This were to make senseless Matter and Motion capable and conscious of such Philosophy as the wisest Philosophers have stood astonished at in all Ages. To go on: They that go down to the sea in ships, and occupy their business in great waters, these men (saith the Psalmist) see the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep, Psalm 107. 23, 24. How wantonly soever some conceited Men talk of Atoms falling by Chance into Pebbles and Sands, it seems prodigiously strange they should believe the whole Ocean also to have been made by an accidental Composition of them. An Element of such vast extent and depths, and so aptly contrived for great ends and uses, that one would think whoever has but heard of a God, would presently conclude it to have been formed by Divine Art and Counsel: For what could it be but Wisdom that made it a sluid, liquid Heap, to serve for Navigation and Traffic into all parts of the World, and for those innumerable Creeping things to move in, which the Psalmist speaks of, both small and great Beasts, Psalms 104. 25? What could it be but Wisdom that proportioned out such determinate quantities of Water, so great as to supply all the Necessities of Creatures; not greater to drown them? What could it be but Wisdom that gathered that lighter Element into Cavities, which by the Laws of its own Nature overflows every dense and heavy Substance? What could it be but Wisdom that barricadoed up the Sea every where with rising Shores, Rocks, and Hills, which seem to tell the proudest Waves in God's own Language, Hitherto shall ye come, and no further? What could it be but Wisdom that appointed those reciprocal Motions, the Ebb and Flow of the Sea, to preserve the Waters from those Corruptions and Stenches to which the great heat of the Sun would otherwise make them subject; as we see in standing Ditches, Pools, and Lakes? What could it be but Wisdom that seasoned the whole Ocean with Salt, to keep even those Profundities from putrifying which are not so violently tossed to and fro, as the Surface is by the influence of the Moon, especially at the Change and Full? What could it be but Wisdom that ordered the proportions of Saltness so, that it is every where distributed according to the Necessities of the Place and Climate, in more degrees towards the Sea's Bottom, where there is less of Motion, and in more scanty Measures towards the Poles, where there is less of Heat? What could it be but Wisdom that took care that notwithstanding these salive Mixtures which are so necessary and useful there, the Ocean should be both the Original and Receptacle of those fresh Waters, which are as necessary and useful at Land? What could it be but Wisdom that provided that some of the Salt Element should be freshened in the Air, thence to fall down upon the Ground in gentle cherishing Showers; and abundance more to be sweetened in the Veins of Hills, which serve to percolate and strain the Waters in their way through variety of Sands and Earth's, towards innumerable Fountains, and this with such accuracy, that no Art of Man can so effectually take away all that Brackishness by any Filtres or Distillations? And (now we are come upon firm Land) let us consider, what could it be but Wisdom that prepared those secret Veins in the Earth, through which the Waters of the Seas ascend to the Tops of Mountains; thence fall down in crystal Streams, to fertilise Valleys, and to afford salutary Drinks for Men and Beasts; and at last, after all their uses and ends answered, return to the Sea again, in a regular course of Circulation, like the Circulation of Blood in sensitive Creatures, which supports Life, and recruits all Vital and Animal Spirits? Certainly that Man must have a Mind and Forehead as hard as a Rock of Adamant, that can have the confidence to ascribe all this wise and wonderful Oeconomy which hath been all along, to nothing but Fortune and Chance, or to the accidental Motion of unthinking, irrational, and ungoverned Matter. And yet this one thing more is very Disput. de Deo, 2. Sect. 21. observable, that throughout the whole Earth, the mountainous parts of it are so situate and exalted, that they seem to have been made on purpose, and with an intention, the more commodiously to relieve all the Regions round about them; and the hotter and drier those Regions are naturally, the lostier are the Mountains, and the greater plenty of Springs and Streams they have to cast forth, though the Waters they yield creep up to the Tops of them, against the tendency of their own Nature. Thus (says my Author) is that ho● Quarter of the World America, divided by a continued Ledge of Mountains, which run out from South to North, and yield on each side towards the East and West, abundance of great Fountains and Rivers. In like manner is Africa divided by Atlas and the Mountains of the Moon, out of which on each side great Rivers spring: And whereas at certain times of the Years, the Winds in those parts throw great store of Moisiure from the Seas upon those Mountains, hence in all lieklyhood it is, that the Rivers overflow Africa at certain Seasons, as Nilus does the Land of Egypt. After the same rate is Asia divided from the Pamphylian Coasts to the extreme parts of India, by Taurus, Imaus, Caucasus, and other Mountains, which run out by divers Branches about into all parts, whence innumerable famous Rivers run for a long Tract of Miles, into Countries that need them. In Europe there are the Pyrenean by Spain, the Apennine in Italy, and the Alps by France, which extend their Arms through several Nations, and cast out vast Streams of Water, that run far and wide where they are most useful and necessary. And, to conclude the Observation, if any Man (says he) will examine Islands, and the lesser parts of the Earth, he will find, that the Land in every part is highest about the middle of the Country, so that the neighbouring Plains and Valleys are liberally supplied by beneficial Currents. And what more pregnant Instances can any considerate Man desire to convince him of the Existence of a most wise and provident God? Whereas Chance doth evermore come short of Art, as Art itself comes short of Nature; these things in Nature are so far beyond all, that it is impossible with any Colour of Reason, to think they proceed from a Cause that never understood or intended to do good; or to impute them to any thing but Divine Art, Counsel, and Contrivance. I have taken notice of these things the rather, because the Barrenness of Hills hath been objected against the Doctrine of a Providence, which (if the thing supposed were in Fact true) would be a very poor Argument, because the Utilities already mentioned, abundantly compensate for the supposed Sterility. But after all, the Supposition itself cannot hold: For the mountainous parts of the Earth are in divers accounts as necessary as the richest Soils; and perhaps would be found as advantageous, if Art and Industry were employed to make Experiments. I do not speak only in reference to Culture, but moreover in respect of those latent Treasures, Quarries, Minerals, Metals, Gems, and the like; which have occasioned that Notion among some Naturalists, That the more ungrateful any Country is on the Surface, the richer are its Bowels; which is still an Argument of the Existence of a most wise Being, that made Mankind not to stand still a staring about the World, but some way or other to take Pains in it. As for the other parts of the Earth, the Utilities of them are so various and manifest, that notwithstanding the most comfortable Notions we have of a better World, few People are very willing to leave this. We see how the Creatures about us serve to good ends, and how serviceable they are in their Tendencies and Effects. Herbs, Fruits, Animals, all are useful, as for the Beauty and Preservation of this inferior World, so for the Good of Man, the noblest part of it. Some things serve for our Food, and some for our Clothing; some for Nutriment, and some for Medicinal Operations; some for our Employments and Labours, and some for our Ease; some for our Necessities, and some for our more comfortable Subsistence; some to gratify our Senses, and some to exercise our Reason; some which minister to our Convenience, and some which even humour us in our Pleasures and Diversions. Now all this shows, that there is a most wise and benign Agent which presideth over all, and directeth every thing for Good; because Creatures which are void of Rational Faculties cannot be supposed to operate of their own choice, according to the Laws of Reason and Goodness, nor to intent, or design, or understand Ends; which yet they seem to prosecute so effectually, as if they had Reason and Goodness of their own to guide them. And therefore it is most reasonable to grant, that there is a superior intelligent Being, who form and intended them for their several Uses, and preserves their Power so that they may answer the Uses they were made for. 'Tis true, there may be many things in the World whose uses we are as yet very ignorant of: But it will not thence follow that they are superfluous, and to no good purpose at all: For this Ignorance proceeds either from want of Capacity in our Understandings, which cannot open all the Mysteries, nor comprehend all the Intrigues of Nature at once; or else from want of due Care and Diligence in making inquiries into them. And this is an Argument not of any Defect in the Contrivance itself, nor of want of Forecast and Skill in the Contriver, but of the greatness of that Art and Wisdom, which thus escapes our dull and narrow Faculties, till Time and Experience helps us. There are divers Plants, which in former Ages have been esteemed noxious, and of ill effect, and yet have been found to be very wholesome and kind to our Natures. And though there be divers Animals which are abhorred as Venomous, and which Vulgar People think might be well spared out of the World, yet we must not think but that they were designed and fitted for good Purposes; partly to take off those Qualities in the Air and Earth, which would be prejudicial to the Lives of Man and Beast; and then to digest those Qualities by the Chemistry of Nature, to alter them so, that in the end they prove not only safe but vital; witness the Viper, out of which the skilful Apothecary can prepare as well a pleasant as a salutary Cordial. Therefore, as when we go into an Artificers Shop, and observe variety of Instruments, the uses whereof we do not understand, it would be folly to imagine, that those Instruments were not contrived by a good Artist, nor were intended for good Ends, though we see them used, and have in truth nothing to say, but that we ourselves are unacquainted with the Art; so when we view this great Shop of Nature, and find there some Creatures, whose proper and particular uses we do not presently perceive, it would be great Weakness to conclude thence, that they were not form by a wise Hand, nor serve to wise Ends. For the only reason why their special Utilities do not appear, is because our own Faculties are so limited, and our Experience so short, that we do not understand all the Methods and Arts of Nature, nor every Purpose which that superintending Being aims at, in whose Hand Nature is, and in subserviency to whose Wisdom Nature operates. Rather we should believe that nothing is in vain; and that the Divine Purposes are fulfilled, though we do not discern the effect in every Instance: For the great Ends to which many parts Dr. Barrow, Vol. 2. Serm. 2. of the World serve, are so palpable and plain, that (as an excellent Writer speaks) Reason obligeth us to suppose the like of the rest, though perhaps we discern not the use of each part, or the tendency of each particular effect. Even as a Person whom we observe frequently to act with great Consideration and Prudence, when at other times we cannot penetrate the drift of his Proceed, we must yet imagine that he hath some latent Reason, some reach of Policy, that we are not ware of. Or, as in an Engine consisting of many parts curiously combined, whereof we do perceive the general use, and apprehend how divers parts thereof conduce thereto, Reason prompts us (although we neither see them all, nor can comprehend the immediate serviceableness of some) to think they are all some way or other subservient to the Artist's Design. Such an Agent is God, the Wisdom of whose Proceed being in so many Instances notorious, we ought to suppose it answerable in the rest: And such an Engine is the World; of which we may easily enough discover the general End, and how many of its Parts do conduce thereto; and cannot therefore in reason but suppose the rest of their kind alike congruous, and conducible to the same purpose. Our Incapacity to discover all, doth not argue any defect, but an excess of Wisdom in the Design thereof: Not too little Perfection in the Work, but too great an one rather in respect to our Capacity. Having thus considered the usefulness of those ends, which the things here about us are subservient for, let us in the next place observe the usefulness of their Structure in order to those ends; which will further demonstrate the wonderful Wisdom of God above all the Powers of senseless Matter and blind Fortune. And here to describe the Fabrication of all the things which are obvious to the Eye, would be a Task in vain for me to attempt, and impossible to go through; so manifold are the Works of God, and so hidden is the Exquisiteness and Elegance of their Contexture. It may therefore suffice to instance only in two sorts of Creatures; Trees and Animals; some Account whereof will serve as a short Specimen whereby we may judge a little of the admirable Wisdom of the Divine Mind, that hath so fitly and curiously contrived his Creatures for their respective ends. 1. Now the immediate Tendencies of Nature in every Tree are two fold, partly for the sustenance of the individual Plant, and partly for the increase of its Species or Kind. And accordingly the Powers and Faculties of Nature are of two sorts; some for Nourishment, and some for Semination. For the accomplishment of which ends, it cannot but affect us to consider how artificially the Vegetative Soul works, as if it were endued with Reason and Policy; which (because it is utterly void of) shows, that there is an Understanding Being over it, which doth direct and govern its Operations. There is, first, the Original Vehicle of Life, the Root, protended round about into the Bowels of the Earth, that through a Circle of innumerable Strings, as it were through Meseraick Vessels, it may suck up a spirituous Sap into an umbelical Receptacle, whence Nature doth methodically direct a Series of long porous Fibres all along the Trunk to each Arm and Twig, to each Joint and Bud. Now the Use and Office of these Formations is discernible by their Effects, though they be hidden and fine in their Contexture, and mysterious as to the manner of their Operations. For, as in the radical Parts, Nature draws and receives its proper Nourishment, so by these it conveys and distributes it into all places, digesting it still in the way, the grossest Matter into Wood, the finer Particles into Leaves, and the more spirituous into Blossoms: And (as if Nature studiously and designedly provided not only for Necessaries, but against Accidents also) for the more effectual distribution of its Bounty, the Tree is clothed with a firm outward Bark, to defend its Life from extremities of Wether, and with a soft Rind within, to facilitate the ascent of the tender Juice. These Provisions being made for the preservation and growth of the Tree, the Seeds, which serve for the increase of its Species, follow. And these, for their greater safety, are accurately enclosed, some in a Vinous Liquor, others in a tough Membrane, others in a spongy Husk, others in a hard Shell, others in a pulpy Substance, according to the quality of the Vegetable, whether it be better or worse, as the condition of the Seed is, whether hardy or tender, and as the Wether may prove, either severe or temperate; and as the Season is to be for the Maturity of the Fruit, whether Summer or Autumn, Nature seems in all its Operations to foresee to and forecast, and to consult, and to provide very carefully for the best; and yet it is a thing without any Understanding of its own; it moves with no more Deliberation or Thought than the Tide does. This is a plain Argument that there is an intelligent Agent over it, that first created it with its enlivening and forming Powers, and doth continually use it as an Instrument in his Hand, to act according to the directions of his incomprehensible Wisdom; because otherwise 'twere unconceivable how an irrational Principle could of itself design beneficial ends; how it could project an artificial Method to bring those Ends about; how it could make choice of suitable and proper means; how it could sit and connect all those means together so, that one thing serves in order to another, to assist and promote its Operations; and all of them to be so critically and accurately serviceable in order to the main end. These wonderful Contrivances speak Council and Art in the highest degree, and therefore impossible to belong to senseless and undeliberating Matter, which is utterly uncapable of knowing both how to aim at useful purposes, and how to frame or order any thing of itself, after an useful manner; but goes on necessarily in a dark Road, as it is conducted, managed, and directed by a most wise Being, that is over it, and commands it by a perpetual Law. 2. To Creatures endued with Life only, as Trees and other Plants are, the next in Dignity of Nature are Animals, or Creatures endued with Life and Sense too. Now in them, the only tendency of Nature which is proper for me to take notice of here, is their own preservation. In order whereunto these Three things are necessary. 1. A constant supply of Nourishment within. 2. A distinct perception of all outward Objects, that are either agreeable, or injurious to Nature. 3. A due perfection and fitness in the Structure of the whole Body. And if we would consider with uncaptivated Minds, the stupendious contrivances which are in the Fabric of every sensitive Creature, and especially in the frame of our own Bodies, in order to the preservation of Nature, we should not need any plainer Evidences of a Deity, than those we carry continually about us. It is commonly noted of Galen, that renowned Physician among the Old Pagans, That though he was no great Friend to the Religion of those times, yet he was throughly convinced that there is a God, and that God is a Being of absolute Goodness, of unsearchable Wisdom, and of insuperable Power. Which hearty acknowledgement he was led unto by observing the useful Frame and Disposition of the World; and particularly the great usefulness of the parts of Animals: On which Subject he wrote those excellent Books of his, which are so deservedly celebrated. Therefore since Contemplations of this kind tend to such Divine Purposes, I hope I shall not be thought to go out of my Profession, if I take the cursory view of the Structure of humane Bodies, in reference to those Three things, Nutrition, Perception and Organization, which so necessarily and appositely tend to the preservation of each Individual. Sceptics have been ever puzzled, how from their own odd Principles to give the least tolerable account of the formation of an Animal; so various are its Parts, and all so admirable for their Contexture, Position, Figure, Shape and peculiar Offices, that indeed it would be ridiculous to attempt a Solution of the whole Structure from the improvident strokes of rude, stupid, and undirected Matter. To instance, 1. First in those Parts which serve for Nutrition, every one hath a Mouth ready prepared to receive his Food; a Palate to distinguish what is most agreeable; Teeth to cut and chew that which is solid; Salival Vessels to assist the maceration of that which is dry; Muscles at the Roots of the Tongue, to precipate the Food when throughly broken and commixed; a soft Tube, or Gullet made up of divers Coats, and variety of Fibres to convey it down; and a capacious Stomach to ferment, concoct and digest it into sluent Chyle. To keep the Aliment from running out of its Elaboratory before due Concoction, the lower Orisice of the Stomach is provided with a Circle of Fibres, which they call a Sphincter to knit it up a little, till sufficient Fermentation transmits' the Chyle by a gentle ascent into the Bowels. To help Nature in its chemical Operations, the Heart is placed above the Stomach, the Pancreas below, the Liver on the Rightside, the Spleen on the Left; all to promote Digestion and Expulsion, by joint Ministrations of Heat from all Parts round about, and by a particular Ministration of an acid Humour (as some conceive) from the Spleen. Then for the Diffusion of the Walaeus de Motu Chyli, Epist. 1. elaborated Matter, the same Divine Art which contrived the Parts preparatory, hath provided further Conveyances; that is, a Series and Dust of Entrails; which, though they be of great lengths, lie round in the Belly, with turn and wind, in Complications and Circumvolutions, that by the long and gradual Progress of the Juice intended for Vitality, and by new Fermentations of it in its way, it may be the better separated from the feculent and grosser Substance. And here we meet with a new, wonderful Idea; the Mesentery, as it's called by Anatomists; meaning a most curious Network of innumerable, porous Strings, which fasten the Entrails together in a Circle, and with their gaping Orifices devour and drink up the spirituous Chyle throughout its Passage. Thence being conveyed through those fomenting Parts, and spongy Kernels, the Clandules, the Supplement of Life, is by the constant Motions of the Diaphragm forced and drawn upwards again, but in a new way, some into the Liver, some into other Vessels, but mostly into a common Receptacle, like a little Lake; whence it is carried on still further upwards W●●eus, Ibid. towards the Neck, there to be discharged into a great Vein, or Canal of Blood. This constant course of the Chyle, prepared in the Stomach, and conducted through so many Vessels, was not discovered so exactly, and particularly till some late Critics in Anatomy made the strictest search. And though it may seem to lie out of a Divines way, yet because the Speculation is so useful and important in the Consequence, as well as diverting in itself; I shall for once venture upon it a little further. That milky Substance, the Chyle, being now commixed, and swimming with the Blood, is instantly transmitted into the Right-Ventricle of the Heart, there (as some have thought) to be turned into perfect Blood of the form of its Vehicle. Thence it runs through a Channel into the Lungs, there to be enriched by impregnating Particles from the Air; whence it takes a circuit back again into the Left-Ventricle of the Heart; where being instantly Sublimated, and made highly Spirituous, it is ejected thence up into a great Artery, which by innumerable Branches conveys it speedily over the whole Body; there by the assistance and supply of more Spirits from the Nerves, to warm and comfort, to enliven and invigorate, to feed and nourish the several Parts; and so the remainder returns to be supplied with fresh Chyle to the Heart again, through Veins, which though they be numberless, yet is the Circulation so quick that the Blood goes through the Heart (as a very learned Physician hath Dr. Lower, de Cordc. computed it) no less than thirty times within the compass of and Hour. This I take to be the short account of Nutrition, especially in Man; wherein if there be any slight mistake, I submit to the Judgement of those of the noble Faculty and Profession, whose business it is to understand it much better. And now considering the admirable usefulness of all those Parts which serve to these vital Purposes, I would ask any reasonable Person, Whether mere Chance, or blind Matter, or any thing else without the Skill and Providence of a most wise Being, could contrive such artificial and wonderful Methods, Conveyances, Instruments, and Vessels of such various Sorts; and all so curiously Form, so orderly Disposed, and so tightly Connected and Fitted, to bring about such necessary and excellent Ends? If it be said, That all these things are done by Common, Animal Nature; 'tis easily answered, That Nature, of its self, is without all Understanding, utterly uncapable of Forecast, or Cogitation; and therefore shows that there is an intelligent Being over it, that erected and ordered the business of Nutrition, which common Nature never knew either how to perfect and finish, or how to begin; nor indeed doth humane Reason itself help to carry it on. As for instance; A Man deliberates indeed what he shall eat, and what he shall drink; for these are Objects which fall under Consultation, or, at least, Fancy. But when once his Nutriment is cast down into the Stomach, there is an end of all deliberation, as to the manner of Digestion, and of turning the digested Matter into Blood and Spirits. In the whole Oeconomy of this Affair, Reason, hath not the least Hand; nor did any Man ever yet consider how he should convert his Food into Chyle, or convey it from the Stomach to the Mesentery; or how he should there separate it, and so carry it to the Heart. The greatest Politician in the World never yet thought of managing this Intrigue. Nature indeed does the thing to his Hand: But because that Principle of Life, which we call Nature, is utterly void of all Policy and Thought, we must rationally conclude that there is a Being of excellent Knowledge and Wisdom (that is, a Deity) which hath contrived these Operations for Nature, and hath directed and fixed the Methods of them. If it be said again that Nature operates thus in a Mechanical way, by forcing and thrusting on the Chyle and Blood, like the Art and Method used in Water-works; it may be very reasonably demanded, Who invented this Art for Nature? Who at first put that unintelligent and blind thing upon it? And what Hand prepared that stupendious Course and Instruments it was to use, in order to the Animal's Nutrition? Nay, who contrived the Animal itself, and designed the Nourishment of it? Or, if these Questions be not enough, we may very well ask the great Pretenders to Reason one more; viz. How the Circulation of the Blood, which is so Demonstrable is so constantly performed, and so quickly finished in its periodical Course? For here the greatest Artists are divided Disp. de Deo. p. 462. in their Opinions, whether the reduction of the Blood to the Heart through the Veins be by the inosculation of the Veins and Arteries (an Opinion which seems to be out of Doors) or, by the porosities of the fleshy Parts; or by the systaltick Motion (as some call it) in the Veins themselves? As to this, Men of the best Skill are yet to seek how to give a clear and satisfactory Account of the manner of the Circulation of the Blood, though the Circulation itself be apparent; which to me is an Argument, that the whole Method of Nutrition in us was instituted, and is still carried on by a Divine Being, which hath made some things undiscoverable by humane Art; that by the Mysteries we find in Nature, we may be the more easily prevailed on to believe the sublimest Truths in Religion. 2. Having thus observed the First thing which tends to the preservation of that Nature which is common to Man and Beast, the work of Nutrition that is performed in the Bowels: Let us in the next place consider briefly the Second thing, or the Business of Sensation that is performed in the Head; both inwardly in the Fancy, and outwardly by the Instruments of Sensation, as the Eye, the Ear, and the like, which convey to the Fancy all sensible Objects from abroad. And here I must not be so vain as to pretend to give a distinct, accurate, and full account of all the operations of Nature, and of its hidden means, and manner of Working. No, it is enough for one of my Profession to take such a summary notice of those things which serve for Sensation, as may satisfy any reasonable Person, that the whole Work of Sensation argues wonderful Wisdom and Contrivance; and consequently the Existence of a God. The Fancy than is the highest and most perfect Faculty of the Animal Soul (as the Understanding is of the Rational.) An imagining, directing Power in every sensitive Creature, carrying in its Acts some faint resemblances of humane Reason, though it be quite destitute of it, and much inferior to it. It's Seat is in the Brain; and its Uses are so great and necessary, that without it no Animal can answer the Inclinations and Purposes of its Nature. By this Faculty the Creature receives within it the Ideas, and Representations of exterior Objects; perceives so much of their Qualities as exerts its Appetites, and in (some sort, after an obscure, imperfect manner, and in an unreflecting way) judgeth of things, whether they be Pleasant or Painful, Convenient or Disagreeable, Beneficial or Destructive; in short, whether they be for its Enjoyment, or for its Hurt. And according as those Impressions are, which are thus made upon the Fancy, so does the Creature act; either craving for the Object, or declining it; either embracing, or abhorring; either pursuing, or avoiding it; and either gratified with the Fruition, or grieving under the Pain which the Object affords. So that as the Heart is the Spring of all vital Motion; so is the Fancy the Spring of all animal Motions, both inward and external. Now, Can any reasonable Man believe, that this so useful a Faculty came accidentally into the Soul, merely by nonsensical Combination of undesigning Atoms? Does it not rather show, that the Animal was endued with it by a wise Agent, that constituted and aimed at its Preservation? Especially if it be considered, that as it is a distinguishing Faculty in every Individual, whereby it perceives the difference between what is Good for it, or Injurious to it; so in every Species of Animals it is various; and yet. notwithstanding, that variety works in every one of the same kind after an uniform Manner. For that Object which is delightful to one sort of Animals, another is averse to; and whether it be desired or refused by one Individual, it is alike desired or refused by all of the same Species; which is a plain Argument that it was not Chance, but Divine Reason which form that Internal Sense, the Fancy. In the next place, let us take some (though it be but a transient) view of the Instruments, which are assistant and ministerial to transmit Impressions from without, to that Organ of the Soul, where this distinguishing Power, the Fancy is placed. Those Instruments are of two sorts, Nerves and Spirits. The Nerves or Sinews resemble so many hollow, winding Pipes, through which all Ideas and Notions of things abroad are conveyed to the Sense within. The original Complication and Bed of the Nerves is in the interior Fabric of the Brain, dividing there that soft, artificial Structure of Nature into divers Cells or Apartments, whence the great Branches of those Instruments of Sensation are extended outwardly through the Head by Pairs. That in each Ear serves to open a Passage to the Fancy for all sorts of Sounds, according to the various Motions and Modifications of the Air. That Nerve in each Eye serves to let in the Ideas and Shapes of all visible Objects. Those which extend toward the lower parts of the Face, are to admit all kinds of Smells, and by variety of Ramifications, to govern the Taste, to move the Tongue in all its Vibrations, to assist the Lips, the Jaw, and all the Organs there, which help towards Nutrition. Others Divarications are into the Lungs and Windpipe, to preserve Respiration, to modulate the Voice, and to serve for the Ejection of whatsoever is offensive to that sensible Fabricature. Others strike down into the Stomach and Heart, to promote all Motions and Operations there. Others run lower, to be serviceable to the Bowels and Mesentery, that they may discharge their Functions. Others to the Liver, to the Reins, and to all the parts in their Neighbourhood. And others down the Neck to the exterior parts of the Body, so that by innumerable straight, circular, and obliqne Branches, all over the Body, to the very Soul of the Foot; they are insinuated into all the Muscular Formations, which serve to move every Limb, Member, Joint, and Particle. And yet all this wonderful Plexure of Nerves would be of no real use, without the help of active, lively Spirits to invigorate all. And for the Extraction of these out of the Blood, provident Nature hath prepared (tho' not by any Providence of its own) peculiar Elaboratories in the Brain. As those Spirits which serve directly for the Ends and Uses of Life (and are therefore called Vital) are produced in the Region below; so are those Spirits which serve for Sense and Motion, (and are therefore called Animal Spirits) chemically prepared in that Supreme Region, which is the Seat of Sensation, the great Organ and Original of all those Motions which are in the several parts of the Body. There those Ministers of Nature are continually employed in their various Ranks and Functions; nay in their several Cells too, that they may not disturb or interfere with one another in their respective Operations: And there, like Sentinels about a Garrison, they are upon the Watch, to give the Fancy notice from their several Divisions and Districts, of whatever may prove either grateful or offensive to Nature. Those in the Optic Tubes in the Eyes, convey all lucid Ideas to the Fancy: Those in the Hollow, and about the Drum of the Ear, all sorts of Sounds: Those in the Palate and Nostrils, every Taste and Odour; and those dispersed about in Nerves and Fibres over all the Body serve to convey the Sense of all Pain, or Pleasure; besides the manifold, stupendendious, and unaccountable Office▪ they do, both for the exterior parts, in order to all Muscular, and local Motion; and for all the inward Vessels, in order to vitality. And here I cannot well omit what an inquisitive Author hath observed, Disput. de Deo, P. 479. touching that mutual Relation, and necessary Commerce, which is between the Brain, and those inferior parts which are for the Ends and Operations of Life: For though every Part by itself be formed with most exquisite Art for the Offices and Functions it is to perform, yet no part can answer its Ends, without the subservient Ministry and Assistance of others. Thus, unless the Heart supply the Head with Blood, it is impossible for the Brain either to produce Animal Spirits, or to sustain itself. Again; If the Brain did not pay a Tribute of Spirits to the Heart, 'twere impossible for the Heart to prepare that Blood. Again; Neither can the one prepare Blood, nor the other Spirits, unless the Stomach provides Chyle, and the Lungs Nitre. Nor again, can either Lungs or Stomach perform their Offices, unless both parts receive from Heart and Brain, Blood and Spirits. Since, therefore, in the whole Labyrinth of this Contexture there is such admirable Excellence, and Curiosity of Contrivance, each part so tightly formed in itself, and all so intimately depending upon one another, Good Lord! what could have been more wisely, more advantageously, more artificially, more divinely designed and ordered? And to confirm this yet further, it will not be amiss to consider transiently the wonderful Art of Nature in contriving the first principal Instruments of Nutrition and Sensation both. All we see depends upon Nourishment; and that is sought for by those Cravings in the Stomach which we call Hunger and Thirst. Now here lieth a Mystery, how we come to be sensible of these great Wants below? The immediate Causes of Appetite are allowed to be in the Stomach itself; and suppose it to proceed from an Acid Humour there, which agitates and frets the Fibres upon Emptiness, yet the Enquiry is, How the Head comes to be sensible of these Cravings? Or, How and by what means it is that the Fancy in the Brain is affected with these Cravings in the Stomach, so that we feel and know the Necessities of Nature, which must be answered, or else the whole Fabric will fall to the Ground? Why, the true Account is this; That there are immediate Instruments between the Stomach and the Brain, which convey to the Fancy the Sense of those Necessities which are below; I mean little Nerves, or porous Strings, which, (by the help of Animal Spirits within them) move the Fancy above, as they themselves are moved by the Vellications or Twitchings of the Fibres beneath. On these poor Instruments the whole Being and Welfare of every Sensitive Creature doth originally depend; and so I would ask any Rational Creature, Whether the Formation of those Instruments in every Animal, could be the effect of blind Chance, or is not rather an Argument of the most wonderful Reason and Wisdom, (that is, a Deity) directing and governing the Works of Nature after such a stupendious manner, and to such providential Ends and Purposes, for the preservation of every Animal's Nature? 3. And this leads me to consider now the Third thing which tendeth thereunto, and exposeth to our View the great Wisdom and Contrivances of a God; namely the due perfection and Fitness which is in the Structure of a Sensitive Creature's Body, I mean still in order to its own Preservation, or to the Support of the Individual. And here it passeth my little Skill, and perhaps the greatest Skill of all the most inquisitive Men upon Earth, to give you a distinct particular View of every wise Work. Therefore it will be enough for me to give you a rough Draught, an imperfect Specimen and Idea. And, to speak first of the useful, perfect, and fit Fabrication of the Head, that great Fort of Nature, which is provided like a Citadel on high, for the defence and safety of all the other Works: There we find such Excellence in the Frame, such Art in the Contrivance, and such variety of Uses throughout the whole Building, as plainly shows the Hand and Wisdom of a Divine Architect; as an hairy Scalp, to keep all the interior Parts in due warmth; a Skull, to guard them from violence; a tough Membrane over it, to help the making of Reparation for acts of Battery; another Membrane they call the Pia Mater, within, to Coat the Nerves, to divide the Brain into Partitions, and to keep the volatile Spirits at home, to do their proper Offices for Sense, Life, and Motion: There we find too, innumerable Branches of Arteries, to carry Blood all over for the Sustenance of every Part, and for the extracting of Spirits; as many Branches of Veins also, to carry off the phlegmatic Matter left, that it may be invigorated anew; Glandules, like so many Sponges, to drink up superfluous Moistures, and to cast them into their respective Sinks; besides an intricate Series of Nerves, which I spoke of before, divaricated round about, and laid, like Pipes, in their proper Cavities, to help Sensation from abroad. Of these, if we take some notice of one only, it will enable us to conceive something the better of the artificial Contrivance of the rest, I mean the Nerve Optic, that serves to convey the Species of all visible Objects, into the Brain. It is inserted into the Bulb of the Eye a little side-ways, or in an obliqne Posture, as most convenient for clear Vision. Thence it spreads itself into Ramifications infinite, partly into those various Branches which assist the six Muscles of the Eye, that it may move six several ways, to receive Impressions from all Objects, and partly into a vast variety of Fibres, which make various Coats; all of them transparent, and without any Tincture (outwardly) of their own, to let in Light and Colours in their proper Ideas, that Vision may be the more distinct and clear, and that the Fancy may not be deceived. The exterior or horny Coat is made of a Convex Figure, to admit Rays from all parts round about. In the second or Uveous Coat, is the Pupil, commonly called the Sight of the Eye; a round and narrow part, provided for the gathering of the Rays into a Concourse; and about this Pupil is the Iris, made up of Ciliary Processes, like a Circle of the finest Hairs; by the Motion of which Fibres, the Sight of the Eye is sometimes contracted, and at other times dilated, according as the splendid Object is near or remote, or as the Splendour itself is greater or lesser. Besides these, is that they style the Retiform Coat (because it resembles the most curious Network) next to the Visionary Nerve, somewhat capacious, to give room for the necessary Proportions of the Idea; and of a dark Colour round about within, to prevent the Reflection of the Light: And within these various Coats are various Humours, which serve so artificially to refract all the incident Rays, and to transmit the Species of every visible Object to the Fancy in a regular Form, that in all Ages the Structure of this little Member, the Eye, hath been to the Admiration and Astonishment of the best Anatomists. Now by this we may guests at the wonderful Structure of those other Instruments, which serve for Sensation in the Head. And if we descend lower, What a World of Wonders do we meet with there? Were I to instance only in the Contexture of the Hand, 'twere enough to show the Existence of a God. How useful is this outward Member to defend the Senses, and to preserve the very Life of Man; it being employed about all Works, and exercising all Arts that serve for our Necessities and Convenience, and even for our Humour and Curiosity? Galen and others have particularly observed the artificial Fabrication of the Hand, and the wonderful fitness of all Things in it for their several Uses; the fit Proportion and Disposition of it to lay hold on any Objects whether great or small; the sit Division and Number of the Fingers; the sit Magnitude, Quantity, Variety and the Figure of the Bones; the fit Numbers and Filletings of the Joints; the fitness of the Muscles, Tendons and Nerves, for the moving and turning of the Hand every way as occasion requires; the fitness of the Flesh, Skin, and the very Nails, for their respective Offices; and upon the whole they conclude, that no Art could possibly have contrived this Member better, or more appositely for its Uses; and that great Inconveniencies must have followed, had any thing in it been otherwise than just as every thing is. If now with this Hand you dissect the Lungs of an Animal, you may see the stupendious Wisdom and Skill that is shown in the contrivance of that whole pendulous Fabric; for the drawing in, and digesting the nitrous Particles of the Air; for the dispersing of it into every Lobe and lesser Receptacle; for respiration by the alternate shrinking and stretching of the Fibres there; for conveying Blood out of the Heart, and back again into it; for governing and modulating the Voice; for keeping the Windpipe continually open by circular Cartilages, or Grisles; and for defending it by a muscular Membrane at the Roots of the Tongue, which upon occasion shuts down like a Clap-door to keep every thing but Air from descending into the Lungs. To your Finger's ends you feel the pulsations of the Heart, on which depends the Circulation of the Blood, that is the immediate Spring and Prop of Life. And did you distinstly perceive the manner of its quick course from the Heart round to the Heart again: Did you see the texture of the Arteries, which serve to carry it off; the intricate passages of it, even through the little Cavities of the Bones; the Force whereby it is propelled and driven on forward upon every new pulsation; the watery Particles which drop into it by the way to thin it, and thereby to assist its Motion: Those Vessels they call the Glandules and Lymphducts, out of which those watery Particles are derived; the conveyances by which it runs out of the Arteries into innumerable Veins, and little branches of Veins; the Valves in them which keep it from flowing back; the frame and wind of those Canals, which lead it on to the Heart; the opening of the Heart to receive it, when 'tis come to the Door of the Right-Ventricle; and those muscular Membranes, the Valves, which are so artificially provided to open forward into that Ventricle to let the Blood in, and then shut to like Trapdoors, to hinder the Blood from Recoiling the same way; Did you, I say, distinctly perceive all this mysterious Process and Structure, no more would be needful to make you sensible of the great Reasons which the holy Psalmist had for those Expressions, Psal. 139. 14. O Lord, I will praise thee, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvellous are thy works, and that my soul knoweth right well. Besides these Miracles of Divine Wisdom Bish. Wilkin's Nat. Rel. p. 81. within us, I might lead you on to a further view of the various Fortifications of Nature, which are more outward: A Structure of Six hundred several Muscles; in each whereof are at least Ten several Intentions, or due Qualifications to be observed; proper Figures, just Magnitude, right Disposition of its several Ends, upper and lower position of the Whole, the insertion of its proper Nerves, Veins, and Arteries, which are each of them to be duly placed; so that about the Muscles alone, no less than Six thousand several Ends or Aims are to be attended to. The Bones are reckoned to be Two hundred eighty four: The distinct Scopes or Intentions in each of these, are above Forty; in all about an Hundred thousand. And thus is it in some proportion with all the other Parts, the Skin, Ligaments, Vessels, Glandules, Humours; but more especially with the several Members of the Body, which do in regard of the great Variety and Multitude of those several Intentions required to them, very much exceed the homogeneous Parts. And the failing of any one in these, would cause an irregularity in the Body, and in many of them such as would be very notorious. But because I have just mentioned the pulsations of the Heart, I shall close up this Speculation, by observing a little the amazing Works of Nature there. As the Sun is Cor principium vitae & Sol microcosmi (ut proportionabiliter Sol cor Mundi appellari meretur) cujus virtute & pulsu Sanguis movetur, perficitur, vegetatur, & à corruption & grumefactione vindicatur▪ suumque Officium nutriendo, fovendo, vegetando toti corpori praestat Lar ille famaliaris, fundamentum vi●ae, auctor omnium. Harv. de Mortu Cordis, Exerc. 1. Cap. 8. to this lower World, so is the Heart to every sensitive Creature a Fountain of Life; by the Virtue and Motion whereof the Blood is moved, perfected, invigorated, preserved from Corruption, and performs its Office by nourishing, cherishing and invigogorating the whole Body. After the opening of the Heart, to let the Blood in on the Rightside, there follows a strong Constriction, or Shutting up of the Heart to throw it out on the Left: And that vibration or beating which we feel then, is usually called the Pulse; whereby the Blood is cast and forced into all Parts, for Nutrition every where, and to cause its return round about to the Heart again, when all Parts have been fed with some Portions of it. Now let any reasonable Man view distinctly the contexture and frame of an Animal's Heart; and then let him lay his Hand upon his own, and ask his Conscience seriously whether any thing but the highest Reason and Wisdom could contrive that little, but most necessary Member, for its respective Uses. For the clearing of this, let us consider a little the artificial Works of Nature, both at the first formation and motions and of the Heart, and in its subsequent Operations. 1. And First, As to the primordial Rudiments of this great Prop of Life. Suppose the Original Principle of Life to be enclosed within a round muscular Substance, (like a little Bladder) which in time becomes a full, perfect Heart. Suppose (what a most Learned Harv. de Motu Cordis, Exer. 1. cap. 4. & cap. 17. Anatomist tells us) this small muscular Substance (like a drop of Blood, or a Red Point) to palpitate, stir and beat, and by that Motion to form directly those Side Vessels above upon the Basis of the Heart, which they call the Auricles, or Ears, and which are the next Parts that move. Suppose all this as plain Matter of Fact, we must conclude hence, That this Motion thus exerted, communicated, and carried on, is performed by those contrivances of Nature, which are the necessary Instruments of Motion; and consequently that those Instruments are already in being. And what, think you, are those Contrivances? Why, they go under the name of Fibres; and are in every Heart that is fully form, like the finest Threads; and therefore may be well supposed to be at the first formation hardly so big as the finest Hairs. On these small, exquisite Instruments of Motion, the Lives of Men, and other Animals originally and constantly depend: And as they either stretch or shrink, so does the whole Heart open or shut; and so does that Vehicle of Life, the Blood, run. Without these Fibres, or Heartstrings, 'twere impossible for the Punctum Sanguineum, or that first Rudiment of an Animal, like to a drop of Blood, to vibrate, or move, or exert its Faculty; much less to fashion an Auricle, which is a Fibrous Part also, that opens and shuts, to let in, and force out the Blood, as the Heart itself does, which immediately receives the Blood from it. And now to argue hence a little, What do these artificial beginnings of Nature show, but the wonderful Wisdom, Skill and Power of a Divine Mind, and consequently the Existence of a God, that does order all the least Tendencies to Life after such an exact, exquisite, and stupendious manner? For though in all this, Nature be the immediate Agent; yet that is of itself a blind, unthinking, inartificial Thing. Though it be an active, vivisick, formative Principle (whatever the Substance of it be, whether material, or not) yet it is without all Consciousness, all Sagacity, all Forecast and Knowledge; and therefore cannot be supposed to contrive, or project, or to act by any Wisdom of its own. And yet so wise are those Contrivances, which are the Origen of every Animal's Life; so admirably Designed, so sitly, and appositely Form in order to their Ends; that the whole Fabrication shows it to come from the Counsel, Will and Direction of a most intelligent Being, in whose Hand Nature is, and under whom it Operates. It requires no little Art to dissect an Heart after a proper manner; to expose these Rudiments of Life to your view; to show you their Dependencies upon Tendons, their Figures, Positions, and Intertextures; and after all this Curiosity to delineate them upon Paper, and to give you with a Pen a little Resemblance and Idea of them; this is enough to exercise and show the Skill of the wisest Artist upon Earth: And then, How great must the Wisdom and Skill of that intelligent Agent be, who so admirably contrived the Original Formation and Structure of them? 2. As to subsequent Operations of Nature for the perfecting of the Heart, with all its Parts and mere Appendages, we are told that by the first Pulsations of the springing Heart, the Parts of an Animal being now laid out and form gradually, that prime Vessel of Life increaseth, and comes to discharge its Office to the full, being now well furnished with all Necessaries for it; so that as one Ear receives the Blood out of a great Vein, and then by its Constriction sends it out into the Right-Bosom of the Heart; so that Heart by its own Constriction forceth it thence into the Lungs; whence it is agitated round into the Left, and so transmitted into the other Bosom, thence to cast by a new constriction into an Artery they call the Aorta, which like a great Pipe, laid into a Fountain, conveys it into many others; by which means every Particle over the whole Body is fed, irrigated and refreshed. All which wonderful Works of Nature are perfomed immediately by the Fibres, those Instruments of Motion I spoke of before; which, the Heart being now grown corpulent, act with violence, and are strong and visible; some lying in direct Lines from the tip of the Heart to the Crown; others cross wise in the form of a Circle; others in Obliqne, or winding Lines: All meeting within the tip, as in a knot or centre, and fastened above to round Tendons, like Strings tied to an Hoop: So that the Heart being full of Blood, as the tip makes its efforts upwards; so all the Fibres conspire from every Part by a joint Compressure to throw the Blood out, and then dilate themselves again for the Reception of a new Supplement; and by this alternate Motion of these Fibres, every Minute is the Life of Man preserved. I cannot well omit one very material Observation more, concerning these artificial Contrivances which argue the Existence of a most wise Being, the Author and Director of Nature; and it is this, That in all the innumerable Canals of Blood, which transmit it to and from the Heart, there are (as indeed in the several Conveyances of the Chyle) muscular Membranes, or Valves, provided (I cannot compare them better than to Sluce-doors) which open always before the Current, to let it pass forward; but upon occasion shut, to hinder it from returning the same way. And this is especially observable in those Vessels which are in and about the Heart, where the Constrictions and Pulsations being so violent, would cause the vital Stream to slow back, did not the shutting of these Valves prevent it, before every Pulsation: Hence it is that the Blood is forced onwards, and is circulating every Moment; these Sluce-doors stopping all Reflux, and a Flood behind them still pressing on, till the Heart by its Constrictions evacuates itself, and drives the Current forward still, somewhat like an Engine in Water works, which (together with the other remarkable effects of Nature) shows, that every the least Part within us is most wisely sitted for its proper Use, and that the whole Structure is so congruously ordered, that nothing is vain, impertinent, or superfluous; nothing that can be spared without disturbance, damage, and danger to the Fabric; and consequently that there is nothing, but what is an Evidence of Counsel, Foresight and astonishing Skill in a superior Agent, framing and directing Nature after a most excellent manner; that is, a Deity. I have taken the Liberty to venture upon these Anatomical Speculations (though some may think them a little too much out of my way) partly to raise in People's Minds the greater Sense of God, by the stupendious Operations of his Hands, which they carry about with them, and which they find at home in their own Bodies; partly to excite them to all Acts of Praise and Thankfulness for such Miracles of God's Providence; and partly to move them to all Sobricty and Regularity of Life. Intemperance and Debaucheries are quite distant from the Ends of our Formation, and utterly inconsistent with the Reasons of it, nay destructive of them. And therefore People should be very careful not to abuse so excellent a piece of Workmanship, on which such Elegance of Art and Care has been bestowed; especially considering how weak the Stamina Vitoe, all the Threads are on which our Lives depend; how frail, as well as curious, the whole Web of Nature is; and how soon we may be forced away to the Divine Tribunal, should but a few Fibres break. But to evade the force of this whole Argument for the Existence of a God, lewd Sceptics are ready to tell us, from that old Epicurean and Atheist, Lucretius, That though many good Uses of things have been sound out, and the things are sitly applied to those uses, yet these uses were never designed, but fell out casually; and consequently are not proof of an understanding, intending Cause, or a Deity. And to this purpose a learned Writer gives an Dr Cudworth, Intel Syst. p. 690, 691. Account of these Men's Principles or Shifts, viz. That nothing in Man's Body was made out of design for any use; but that all the several parts thereof happening to be so made as they are, their uses were consequent thereupon. The former Teeth (say they) were made by material and mechanical Necessity thin and sharp, by means whereof they became sit for cutting; and the Jaw-teeths thick and broad, whereby they became useful for the grinding of Food: But neither of them were intended to be such for the sake of their uses, but happened by Chance only. And the like they affirm concerning all the other Parts of the Body, which seem to be made for Ends. To which that learned Person replies, That though a thing that happens accidentally to be so or so made, may afterwards, notwithstanding, prove often serviceable for some use or other, yet when any thing consisteth of many Parts that are all artificially proportionated together, and with much Curiosity accommodated one to another; any one of which Parts having been wanting, or otherwise in the least placed or disposed of, would have rendered the whole altogether inept for such a use; then may we well conclude it not to have been made by Chance, but by Counsel and Design, and intentionally for such uses: As for Example; the Eye, whose Structure and Fabric consisting of many Parts, (Humours and Membranes) is so artificially composed, that no reasonable Person who considers the whole Anatomy thereof, and the Curiosity of its Structure, can think otherwise of it, but that it was made out of Design, for the Use of Seeing; and did not happen accidentally to be so made, and then the use of Seeing follow. And for a Man to think, that not only Eyes happened to be so made, and the use of Seeing unintended followed, but also that in all the same Animals, Ears happened to be made so too, and the use of Hearing followed them; and a Mouth and Tongue happened to be made so likewise, and the use of Eating, and (in Men) of Speaking, was also accidentally consequent thereupon; and that Feet were in the same Animals made by Chance too, and the use of walking followed; and Hands made in them by Chance also, upon which so many necessary Uses depend: Besides innumerable other Parts of the Body, both Similar and Organical; none of which could have been wanting, without rendering the whole inept or useless; I say, to think all these things should happen by Chance to be thus made in every one and the same Animal, and not designed by Mind or Counsel, that they might jointly concur, and contribute to the good of the whole; this argues the greatest insensibility of Mind imaginable. But this absurd and ridiculous Conceit hath been long since so industriously confuted by that larned Pagan Philosopher and Physician, Galen, in his Book of the Use of Parts, that it would be altogether superfluous to insist any more upon it. I shall only add, for the Confirmation of all this, that in the several Species of Animals (both Men and Beasts) many Parts are totally wanting in some Individuals, where they would have been neither necessary nor useful, which are not wanting in others where they are so; which shows that those Parts were intended for uses, and for their proper uses only they were therefore form, not by Chance, but by the greatest Counsel and Wisdom; that is, by the wise Contrivance of a Divine Mind. Nay, in some whole Species there is a manifest difference, where there is good reason for that difference; a plain Argument, that it was Divine Reason which ordered all things so very exactly for the sake of Ends, and with an intention to have those Ends and purposes answered. As for instance; many Sensitive Creatures, (nay, a very strict Enquirer into Nature Harvey de motu Cord. c. 6. tells us, the greater number of Animals) have no Lungs at all, as various sorts of Fishes. The reason is, because Lungs would be of no use to them; for their manner of Respiration is performed by the opening and shutting of their Gills. Again; some sorts of Animals (as several kinds of Worms) have no Heart neither: The reason is, because a Heart also would be of no use to those Creatures; for, as they gather, so they dispose of their Nourishment by Contracting and Relaxing their little Bodies; and consequently there is in them no Circulation of the Blood, nor indeed any need of it; and so they have no need of a Heart to throw it about into their extreme Parts. Again; though many sensitive Creatures, (as Fish and others) which have no Lungs, have an Heart notwithstanding, yet the same learned Author observes, that in all such Creatures the Heart hath but one Ventricle or Bosom; whereas in Men, and in some other Animals, it hath two: The reason is, because where there are two, the Right Ventricle serves to transmit the Blood into the Lungs, (as they send it about again to the Left Ventricle) But where Lungs are wanting, there a Right Ventricle would lie idle and unserviceable to any good End or Purpose; and therefore Nature forms it not in those Animals, one Cavity being enough for the Reception and Distribution of the Blood. Again; as the Heart of Man is connected to the Lungs, so does it lie covered over in a soft Membrane, like a Case or Purse; 'tis called the Pericardium, wherein is a Watery Substance, (as 'tis generally thought) to moisten and temper the Heart, that it may not be parched or rendered unfit for its Office, by inordinate Heats. But 'tis observed, that the Heart of a Brute is without Disp. de Deo, p. 458 such a Case; and the reason perhaps is twofold, partly because the Nourishment of a common Animal is not so strong, nor the Blood so inflaming as to need Refrigeration there, partly because the Heart of such a Creature lying not in an exact Posture, as in Man, but lengthwise, (according to the Figure of the Body) and pressing somewhat upon the Diaphragm; were a Pericardium added, it might hinder the Diaphragm from moving freely, especially in its Constrictions. To all which I shall subjoin but two Observations more, and the one is this; that in Animals which chew the Cud, there is wanting an upper Range of Teeth. The reason is, because it would be useless; for those Animals fetching up again (by the reciprocal Motion of the Stomach) their unconcocted, unmacerated Food, do, by a continued and gentle Rumination, as well prepare their Nourishment for Digestion, as other Creatures do theirs by a double Row of Grinders. The other I borrow of a Pious and Critical Naturalist, who speaking of the Artificial Mr. Ray's Wisdom, etc. p. 46. and Wonderful Conformation of the Windpipe, observes, that lest the asperity or hardness of its Cartilages should hurt the Oesophagus or Gullet, which is tender, and of a skinny Substance, or hinder the swallowing down of Meat, therefore its annulary Gristles are not made every where round and entire Circles; but where the Gullet touches the Windpipe, there to fill up the Circles, is only a soft Membrane, which may easily give way to the dilatation of the Gullet. And to demonstrate that this was designedly done for this End and Use, so soon as the Windpipe enters the Lungs, its Cartilages are no longer deficient, but perfect Circles or Rings, because there is no necessity for them to be otherwise there (at a distance from the Meat) but more convenient they should be (in their Divarications) entire. The Scope and Meaning of these things is, in short, to show, that though that energetic and forming Power or Principle, which we call Nature, doth act without any Counsel, Design, Advice, or Deliberation of its own, yet in its Operations it worketh so Methodically and Artificially, in order to good Ends and Purposes, that in its ordinary Proceed, nothing can be found which is useless and superfluous; nothing which is not necessary, proper, or convenient; nothing but what there is some reason for; nothing but what great Wisdom would direct; and by consequence, that there is a most Wise, Directing Being over it, who does preserve, assist, and govern it in its orderly, but blind Operations: For what Man in his Senses can conceive, that an intelligent and directing Cause hath no Hand at all in Works wherein we see such excellent Ends so exactly answered, and such suitable Means so cleverly used, and every thing so wisely and admirably well done? How is it possible for any considering Man to imagine, That the Instruments of Breathing should be so curiously form by mere Accident? That the casual impulse of the Air should break upon the Nostrils, and bore the Passages and Meanders of Sensation? That Chance, and nothing but foolish Chance, should prepare a Mouth, and furnish a Mouth with all things necessary and apt? That nothing but unadvised Fortune, or unadvised Nature, (which alone is as uncertain of its Hits, as Fortune is) should so orderly and tightly provide a Stomach for the Reception of Food; Materials to concoct it; a Labyrinth of Conveyances, to carry it off; a politic Dust of many Vessels to refine it; a Machine of Curiosities, to distribute and disperse it into all Parts? But— here I stop: For I have spoken of these things already; and though the Chyle takes a Round, and the Blood a Circulation, yet this Discourse must admit of none; and therefore thus much shall suffice to be spoken concerning the great usefulness of all things, and especially of those things which tend to the preservation of Man and Beast. CHAP. IX. THE great Utilities of the things in Nature having been thus largely and particularlarly considered, together with their apt and excellent Frame, in order to their uses, one would now think, that no more should be necessary to show the Existence of a most Wise and Good God. However, it will not, I hope, be unprofitable for the Confirmation of your Faith in that absolutely perfect Being, if I proceed (though but in a summary way) to the utmost extent of this Subject; at least, as far as to those Bounds which were proposed at my first Entrance upon it. The more we look into the Works of God, the more apt we shall be to admire, adore, and love him; whence it was that the devout Psalmist made it his business to think of all his Works; to meditate and muse upon them; to declare and set them forth; to talk (familiarly) of them; and to invite all People to behold and consider them: And he looked upon it as a great Cause of the Wickedness of those ungodly and deceitful Men he spoke of, Psalm 28. That they regard not in their minds the works of the Lord, nor the operation of his hands. Let us therefore go on to the next thing which falls under our Meditations, and that is, touching those Resemblances of Knowledge and Wisdom which appear in the Operations even of irrational Creatures, that they may answer their uses, and bring their ends about. For if it be considered, that such Being's are utterly void of all Understanding which is properly called Rational, and yet act so Methodically and Artificially, as if they had Reason, Judgement, and Discretion of their own, it must follow, that they are guided and governed by a Superior Being, which is intellectual, and whose Reason is the Law they act by. Here than we are to observe these two following things, which show the Resemblances of Knowledge and Wisdom in Creatures Irrational. 1. Their constant Regularity as to the manner of their Operations. And, 2. Their seeming Sagacity as to the ends of them. 1. First, Their constant Regularity, as to the manner of their Operations. There are no Creatures (Devils and Men excepted) but what act uniformly and steadily by a certain Rule, according to their Natures, whether they be Inanimate or Vegetative, or Being's endued with Sense, we see they observe their Laws; as well those general Laws which are for the Order and Preservation of the whole Universe, as those special Laws which are peculiar and proper to their several Kind's. To this purpose I have already taken notice of the constant regular Motion of the Celestial Bodies, and therefore shall not need to have any farther Recourse to them; though it be an astonishing thing to consider, that such vast multitudes of immense Bodies, all void both of Intellectual and Sensitive Faculties, and several of them moving in a manner different from the rest, should for so long a Tract of Time, observe their Lines so uniformly and exactly, that for these Six Thousand Years there hath not been the least variation of their Courses. Of this no other rational Account can be given, but that there is a superintending Being above, under whose commanding Power they always have been, and to whose Will they yield entire and absolute Obedience. Since they know not their Law themselves, it must follow, that there is a God who knows it for them, and keeps them to it. Of those Inanimate, or Live-less things which are in the Earth, I shall instance only in the regular inclination, or tendency of the Loadstone; the greatest Wonder which the Earth affords. And (not to enumerate all those strange Faculties and Powers, which some curious Naturalists have discovered in it, especially in these last Ages) that which is most pertinent to my present purpose is, that is constantly affects the same Position towards the Poles of the Earth, which was Natural to it before it was taken out of the Bowels of its Mother Rock: So that where ever it be carried it will (if it hath its liberty to move) still direct its Points towards the North and South, as it lay Originally, and as the Earth itself lies. If you hang it in the Air by a String, or set it in some floating enclosure on the surface of Water, it will never be at rest, but stir and quaver on till its Points answer to the North and South; as if it were Conscious of a Right which Nature gave it, to one particular, determinate Situation. Nor is this all; for (as if it communicated its seeming Consciousness) every Needle of a Sea-Compass, or of a movable Sundial, that is touched by the Loadstone, will affect the same Direction, and restlessly incline to the same Points. A wonderful Secret in Nature, and unaccountable hitherto by mere Principles of Philosophy; and yet that which has been vastly Beneficial to the Trading and Travelling part of Mankind, since the Discovery of it in Fact. And what can all the Sceptics in the World do here with their senseless Atoms? When all is done, This strange Mystery in Nature must be ascribed to the Power and Pleasure of a Divine Agent that hath given every thing a Law; that is, hath impressed upon all Matter a fatal Necessity of moving according to that energetic Principle, wherewith he himself endued it. The constant regularity of all things upon the surface of the Earth, is obvious to every Man's eye. We see that Plants germinate, grow, and seminate exactly according to their several Kind's; and though the manner of their Operations, and the quality of their Productions be as different, as their Species; yet in each Species every particular individual worketh such as the rest of the same sort do; as if every distinct Species had set itself a distinct Rule; and as if every individual had consented to one and the same common Polity. In like manner every Species of Animals acteth still after the same rate; though their particular, and proper Rules be different; yet one and the same Rule belongs to every Animal of the same Species, which they constantly observe without any difference, difformity, or variation. For as each sustains itself after the same manner, and with the same sort of Food, which belongs properly to the whole, and is peculiar to the whole Species and Set; so each propagates its Kind the same way; preparing for Propagation by the same Methods; breeding their Young at the same Seasons; nourishing them with the same Matter; training them up, and providing for them by the same pretty Artisices which are used by all others of the same Rank and Order. Go, for instance, but to the Fowls of the Air, and you may observe how regularly and accurately each individual Bird operates, according to those Laws, which are common to that particular Species whereunto it belongs. From the Raven to the Sparrow every peculiar Species hath its peculiar Rules for its increase; and every one particular Bird yields the most exact Obedience to those Rules: Not the least difference is to be found in the Bigness, or Colour, or Form of any one Egg; nor any difference in the Building wherein it is laid: But the same Proportions are in it all, the same Situation, the same Materials, the same Shape, the same Structure within, the same Defensatives without, the same Curiosity of Art over and in it all; hardly a Stick, or an Hair difference; no discernible variation to be found, as to Plastering, or Garniture, or Moss, or whatever else the Integument be. As a great City, or Society of Men, is divided into several distinct Fraternities, and each Fraternity is Governed, as by general Laws for the Interest and Welfare of the whole Community, so by particular Orders for the Prosperity and Good of the distinct Company, in conformity whereunto every single Member acteth; so is this lower World divided into many distinct Ranges of Creatures; and each Range in Nature hath its Laws given it; some which relate to the general Good of the whole Universe; and others that relate to the particular Good of every distinct Classis: And these Laws are exactly obeyed by every individual Creature; so that were Man out of the way, there would be no Being in this visible World, but what would be Regular, Orderly, and Conformable to its Rules; though Man be the only Creature that understands his Rules. And can all this Regularity be with any pretence of Reason ascribed to an unintending Cause, or to blind Chance, that never did any one thing by Rule since the World stood; and therefore can never be thought to act Uniformly in every Creature constantly, and in all Instances? No; these Operations so exactly Congruous and Regular, are a plain Argument of the Existence of a directing Deity, and a real Explication of that Divine Benediction and Command, which Moses says was given at the Creation: That the earth should bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit-tree yielding fruit after its kind; that every winged fowl should multiply after its kind; and that every living creature should be brought forth after his kind; and creeping things, and beasts of the earth, all after their kind; and it was so. Those Productions were regular then, and so they are still, and will continue so to the end of the World; being no other but so many constant, and visible Executions of an Original Law. 2. Besides this great Regularity of things in the manner of their Operations, we must consider next the seeming Sagacity of them, as to the ends of their Operations; which is another Expression of the resemblances of Knowledge and Wisdom in Creatures that are Irrational. All Creatures work, as if they understood the Reason of their methodical Proceed; nay, as if they proposed Ends to themselves, and intended by such and such Means to bring all their Projects and Purposes to pass; chief to preserve their own Being, and then to continue their Kind, and to provide a Posterity to succeed them, when either natural Death, or Casualties shall take them off, that no part of the Creation may be lost. It is observable of all Vegetables in general, that from the opening of the Spring they begin and carry on their methodical Works, as if they knew beforehand all the business they are to do the next Summer; and as if they intended to answer the Ends now mentioned: First by taking care for their own Growth; and then for Semination. And it is observable in particular of divers Pulses, and other Plants, whose Natures are so weak and feeble, that they cannot stand upright of themselves, that, as if they were sensible of their Infirmity, they shoot forth into various Fibres, Strings, and twining Branches, which bear no Fruit, but are designed to take hold and clutch on some Poll, or Wall, or on some neighbouring Shrub, for the support of the Vegetable, and for its better Sustenance and Semination: In all which Nature works with so much seeming Caution, Prudence and Forecast, that if it had Reason of its own, it could not operate with greater Art. And then for sensitive Creatures, we see with Admiration what resemblances of Wisdom and Providence there are in their Actions. Go to the ant, thou sluggard, (saith Solomon) consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest, Prov. 6. 6, 7, 8. In the Common Edition of the Septuagint, it is there added, Go to the be, thou sluggard, and learn what an opificer that is, and how stupendious its works are. Those curious Observers who have narrowly looked into the Nature and Polity of that Animal, have given such accounts of it, that one would think it to be next to Man himself, the most admirable Creature in the World; though our chief Good be reserved for us in another World; and therefore are to be excused, if they speak of it in that manner, as if it were a Rational Agent With what Sagacity doth it perceive, when its Labours are to begin, and where its Employment is to lie chief? And how artificially doth it order all its oeconomical Affairs? Its first Care is for a Repository to lay up its Stores, and to breed its Young in. And with what Curiosity doth it search after the viscous Matter? How skilfully doth it gather and prepare the Wax? And then with what mathematical Exactness doth it dispose it in various Apartments of Combs and Cells, all so accurately contrived for Strength, Figure, Situation, and perfect Uniformity, that they are above the Imitation of all humane Art? The next care is for a treasure of Nourishment; and with what a quick Sense doth it discover a Mildew, though at a great distance from its Habitation? With what Niceness of Application doth it pass from Flower to Flower to extract its Aliment? And having at last by its chemical Methods furnished itself with quantities sufficient; With what a discriminating Faculty doth it order it at home, discharging its Legs of the phlegmatic or grosser Part, which it lays by in spare places for its present Food; and casting up the most spirituous drops out of its Stomach into Cells, and there covering them up with a viscous Membrane, for a necessary reserve against the searcities and severities of Winter? Besides these resemblances of Providence for the support of its Nature, and for the increase of its Kind: Some See Butler and Allen of Bees. have made such Observations of its seeming Wisdom in reference to the whole Community, as assord even us Men divers moral and useful Directions. For their mutual Interest all are industriously at their respective Employment; as if they had a transeript of that LAw, which the Psalmist speaks of Psal. 104. 23, when The sun ariseth, man goeth forth to his work, and to his labour until the evening. As there should be in all Societies, so is there in this, a perfect Unity among themselves. If Foreigners threaten an Invasion, they easily distinguish them, though of the same Colour, Shape, and Bigness with themselves, and the next moment they prepare for Battle. If any of their Members suffer, all sympathise, and are engaged with undaunted Resolution, with a joint Force, and with the utmost hazard of their Lives; which gave David occasion to say of his Enemies, They came about me like Bees. Within their own Body there is all Order, Harmony, and Peace (the wisest things for the good of all Communities) and to preserve those things the more effectually, their Government is Monarchical; under which they provide for the Common good of all, and serve their Sovereign with their Labours, with entire Obedience, with Fidelity, with Cheerfulness; nay, with devoted Affection: So that if their Queen dieth without a Successor ready, either they too die there upon the spot, or else quit all their Treasures, to force themselves through any Dangers and Wounds into another well constituted Community. From all which very strange, but (as far as ever yet I could perceive) very true Observations, a Question may arise, Whether among all those Forms of Government, which are, or have been among Mankind, there ever was any one sort of Polity more wisely Framed and better Served, than that is among these little neglected Animals? And from these I might proceed at a large rate, to observe those resemblances of Understanding and Prudence, which appear in other sensitive Creatures. With what seeming Forecast do they generally provide Conveniencies for the breeding of their Young? How artificial are their Works in order to it? What Patience do they seem to express in their Labours and Griefs? What Fondness do they show to their new Osf-spring? What Cares do some take for Nourishment suitable to their Natures; and with what Pleasure do others yield it? How Solicitous are they for their Safety? What pretty Methods do they use in training them up? And how do they teach them by degrees to shift for themselves in the World? If you observe every rank and species of Animals, you will find in all those poor Things a similitude of Sagacity; some Faint, and Imperfect, and Umbratile shows of Reason; and surprising imitations of Prudence and Policy in all their Operations. And yet all this is nothing, but what we call Natural Instinct; that is, there is a fatal Necessity impressed upon them; or an inward, operative Principle seminated and fixed in their Natures, which is a subordinate Instrument of the Deity, and which does, like a Bias, powerfully incline and move them to act after such a manner, when they themselves understand not the Reasons of their Actions. In Three respects the Operations of all sensitive Creatures are different from the Actions done by Being's Rational. First, They do not intentionally design the accomplishment of such a certain End, which is the scope of their Operations. Nor, Secondly, Do they understand the Reasons of those means, which are in order to that End. Nor, Thirdly, Do they consult or deliberate about the Choice of those means. And therefore it will unavoidably follow, that their Operations being always Uniform and Artificial, not withstanding their own natural Defects, and want of Reason, there is a Divine Being over them of perfect Knowledge and Wisdom, that intends, and understands, and chooseth for them, and directs them by a perpetual, secret, and irresistible Law. To consider this matter distinctly: 1. First, They do not intentionally design the accomplishment of such a certain End, which is the scope of their Operations. For the End, though it be the first thing purposed, is the last thing done. At the time of acting it is at such a distance, as assords only a Prospect of it: Nor can Man himself be said to design an End, unless he does both apprehend and foresee it, unless he be affected and wrought upon by Motives from it; nay, unless he thinks it possible, and goes about the thing with desires, and hopes to bring it to pass. Now these are Impressions, of which no irrational Creature is capable; because they include, not so much ocular Perception, as mutual Knowledge and Discourse, touching the Necessity, Goodness, Feasableness, and Fitness of the Matter proposed and foreseen; which require much Reasoning, and a due Logical Inferring of one thing out of another; and that can never be done by any Animal that is merely sensitive: To instance only in the industrious Bee; though of all such Animals it seems to be endued with the greatest Sagacity, yet we cannot conceive, that in Spring time it foresee; the return of Winter; that it keeps an Eye still upon hard Wether afar off; that it hath a prospect of Frost and Snow, of naked Woods and Fields; and that upon these Considerations and Motives it makes a diligent use of the present Season, going forth early, and coming home late, and eating (if I may so speak) the Bread of Carefulness. We cannot imagine that the poor Creature concludes this to be the proper and best way for it to subsist, and that it useth this Method in hopes of living on to another Year. Nor can we think that Gathering time being quite over, when it destroys the (than useless) Drones, it makes that Massacre out of a design of Frugality, retrenching thereby the Expenses of the , and curtailing the Family, lest those voracious Creatures should cause a Famine among them. These things in Fact it doth, and they manifestly tend to the preservation of its Life; and throughout all, the Bee seems to be very Wise and Provident (though its Providence be mixed with so much Cruelty and Ingratitude) and if it had Reason of its own, it could not take a more effectual and ready way for its Safety. But yet notwithstanding all this show of Policy and Forecast, it doth not so much as understand that its Life is concerned; nor does it think at all, why, or to what purpose it operates after that manner; much less doth it act upon a long train of Thoughts, but it doth thus of course, and by the fatal energy of a natural Principle within it, no more aiming at Ends, than an Arrow aims at the Mark towards which it slyes. And the like may be said of all other sensitive Creatures, how Sagacious soever they appear to be; they go still on in a road, which mere natural Instinct directs them to, and sometime Custom maketh familiar; but know not the End of all their Travels under the Sun any more than the Ox, or the Sheep knoweth when it is going to the Slaughter. 2. As they design not any End for the scope of their Operations, so neither do they apprehend the reason of those Means which are in order to an undiscerned End. The reason of any Means lieth in the Necessity, Fitness and Conduceableness thereof, for the obtaining of an End: For, therefore do all rational Creatures act thus and thus, because such sorts of Actions are necessary and proper, to compass the Designs they drive at. Now as to this, all wiser sensitive Creatures are utterly at a loss: Though they do things which are necessary, and convenient, and proper, yet they know nothing of their tendency and fitness; that is, they are wholly ignorant upon what account such and such Operations are requisite, or convenient. For this calls for Discretion and Judgement to carry a Design on; though the End be known and visible, yet 'tis a Work of Reason to consider what is to be done for it; how to find out good, sitting, and effectual Methods, and then how to apply and use those Methods after a right manner. This requires good, intellectual Parts to discover the necessity and fitness of one thing in order to another, and to act according as the Reason and Nature of the thing is; and therefore it is impossible for any Brute Creatures to act after a discreet, judicious rate. To instance again in that little Animal I spoke of before: Though it works most artificially for the sake of Ends, yet it works not with any Discretion or Judgement of its own. For as it hath no distinct apprehension, or foresight of the Ends themselves; so neither doth it understand the reason of those Means it useth. It knows not what necessity there is for the gathering of Wax first; nor upon what account Wax is the sittest and most convenient thing to make a Larder for the treasuring up a Provision of Honey. It knows not the reason for which every Comb must be made up of a Partition-Wall of Wax in the middle, and a large Structure of little Cells on each side. It knows not why it must work and frame every thing with such Geometrical accuracy; nor why the Cells must hang together by close Junctures; nor upon what account each of them must consist of just six Angles; nor for what reason the Angles on the one Side must not answer the opposite corners on the other Side exactly to a Point. It knows not that the meaning of all this delicate Art, is, for the greater Stability, Strength, and Security of the whole. All this done, it knows not upon what account two sorts of Honey must be gathered; a sinner and more limpid Part, as the best and most congruous to be preserved against Winter; and for its present Nourishment a grosser Substance, which will not keep sweet very long. It knows not why its Mouth and Tongue are the sittest Instruments to extract that; and its Legs more proper to tread out, and bear away this. And after the industrious Thing hath been trading abroad for its Prizes, though it returns home throughly Freighted, and dischargeth itself of its Lading, yet it is as Ignorant then why the Mouth of the Cell, where the richest Part lieth, must be presently Plastered over. It considers not, poor Creature! that its choice and far-fetched Pearls are of a fluid Substance, that otherwise would soon run out; and though it knows not the reason why, yet it lays them up as securely as the veriest Hunks and Miser does his Money, till Necessity knocks at the Cell-door, or some Thiefs and Robbers come to plunder it. Such Observations are to be made of all other Parts of the Animal World: Though their Methods be not equally Curious, but admit of great Variety and Difference; yet in their Kind's and Tendencies they are all proper for the Preservation of themselves, and for the Propagation and Welfare of their several Species. But neither do they intent, or design any Purposes by elicit Acts of Choice and Providence of their own; nor do they examine or comprehend the aptitude and congruity of their Methods in order to Purposes; and therefore they must be concluded to act by the Reasons of a Divine Mind, to which they are in Subordination. Indeed some sort of Perception may be allowed them, such as is agreeable to their irrational Natures; that is, a Perception in the Fancy; whereby they are, in some measure, sensible of what they do, while they are yet a doing it. But that they look before them, and at a distance, with an Eye upon some End, the goodness whereof invites them to use Means; or that they look about them to compare the fitness of those Means, for the compassing of that End; this we cannot allow them without the forfeiture of our own Reason, though their Actions carry an Umbrage of Reason with them. As the Bird perceives when she makes her Nest, she is sensible then of her own Actions; for the matter of her Actions, or the Works she does, makes an Impression on her outward Sense, and that conveys an Idea of it to the Fancy in her Brain. But all this while the Bird doth not choose to act upon a premised Principle, that she providentially designs this Nest for her Young; nor does she thence infer that therefore she must build it in such a place, with such Materials, after such a manner, in such a form, and to such a degree of warmth, as is most suitable to the temper of her Young; for this would be Reasoning and Arguing, or Deducing of one thing out of another, which is a Thing or Art too high for any Brute Creature. And yet all these things are done, in every respect so suitably, and with such artisice and exactness, that the most contriving Man in the World with all his Reason and Skill cannot possibly do them so well: Which shows that there is a Power and Reason superior even to humane Wisdom, that hath invigorated the Natures of Animals with an energetic Principle, which we call Instinct, whereby they form their Works with the greatest Contrivance, though they know not the meaning of them. 3. This is an Imperfection in their Nature, notwithstanding all their curious Formations. And yet, Thirdly, There is another respect wherein their Operations differ from the Actions of Rational Creatures; namely, that as they know not Ends, nor the reason of any Means, so they do not consult, or dliberate about the use of Means. All Artists among Men consider which is the sittest and best way to be taken; and in their Undertake they do still leave room for second Thoughts. And hence it is, that humane Arts admit of great Improvements; because second Thoughts produce new Experiments; and new Experiments produce fresh Variety; and so by comparing one effect with another, a Man sees where he altered the former Method for the better, and how necessary and useful that Alteration was. But in the Operations of Nature it is not thus; for Nature hath never but one way, and that way is not only ready at hand, but so very sit and proper too, that it is not capable of Amendments. Hence it is that sensitive Creatures are never to seek what to do, nor ever change their wont course; but proceed in a constant, uniform Tenor, using the very same means for the preservation of their own Being's, and for the propagation of their several Kind's, which were used by those that were before them Six thousand Years ago. They do not consider whether things may not be done better now, than they were in those days; nor do they so much as look back upon the last preceding Generation, but go on still in the same way by rote, without forecast, reflection, or advice; and yet we see their Works are so artificially done, that if they had bad the longest Experience, and the greatest Reason of their own, they could not after all their Studies and Practice have pitched upon more successful and exquisite Methods. Let us now from these Premises consider with due freedom of Thoughts, whether this be not a manifest Proof of the Existence of a Being, which is infinitely Operative and Omniscient: For from what other Cause could all this Art in Nature come? Whence else could it receive its admirable Skill? What but a Deity could direct and govern it? What other Being could teach that rude and undiscerning Thing to exercise its Faculties after such a methodical and unreprovable manner? Or what else could guide it in making such regular, uniform, and constant Strokes, as if it were all perfect Wisdom, when it hath not in itself the least Grain of clear and true Knowledge? It is all Dr. Scott. Christ. Life, Part 2. p. 214. mere natural Instinct; and (as an excellent Writer, now with God, speaks) natural Instinct is nothing but the Impression of the Art and Reason of the Author of Nature; which Impression knoweth not what it doth, nor upon what Reasons it proceeds, but only answers to the Reason of God, as the Signature doth to the Seal that impressed it, and like an Echo articulates and resounds his Voice, without understanding what it meaneth. And as the senseless Echo when it reverberates Words that carry Sense and Reason in them, supposeth the original Voice to proceed from some intelligent Mind; so these irrational Instincts of Nature, which express so much Art and Reason in their Operations, do necessarily imply that there is some wise Mind or Providence to which they own their Original. If our modern Sceptics tell us, That these natural Instincts come ex traduce, and by descent from one Animal to another; let us consider how they came there, in every Species of Animals, at the first (for an infinity of Causes is impossible) If they are so hardy as to tell us, That they came Originally by the casual Motion of unthinking Matter; let us consider again how it comes to pass that these natural Instincts hold on, and continue in every Species, and in every Individual throughout the World; since Chance, (blind, sporting, and wild Chance) is far more likely to spoil a fine Work than to make it: Or, if after all they affirm, That the continuance of Instincts from Generation to Generation is perfectly casual; that is, without the Pleasure or Power of an understanding Being over all; let us consider, lastly, that Chance and Wisdom are things as utterly distant from each other, as Extremes and Contraries are. Chance never did any thing Wisely, nor by Rule, nor after a uniform Rate, nor in a constant, uninterrupted Tenor. And yet all Animals operate Wisely, as if they perfectly understood the Reasons and Necessities of their own Actions. But that they have no Wisdom or Reason of their own, is evident because Id. ibid. p. 218. whatsoever they do, they necessarily do, and cannot possibly do otherwise; for they never vary in their Operations, never try any new Experiments, but always proceed in the same Road, and repeat the same things in the same Method; which is a plain sign that they cannot do otherwise, and consequently that they act not from their own Choice or Reason, but Necessity: And therefore since they are made and impelled to act as they do, and yet do act Rationally and Wisely, that which compels them must be a rational Mind, either acting upon them immediately, or by a fixed and permanent Impression of its Art and Reason upon their Nature and Motions. The truth is, those Images and Imitations of Wisdom which are in Creatures purely sensitive, together with the regularity and constancy of their Operations, are as plain an evidence as need be given of the Existence of a God; because it is unconceivable how the Animal Parts of the World should so orderly conform to the Rules of Reason, as if they were endued with intellectual Faculties, without any directions and influence from a Divine Mind presiding over all. It is no rarity to see some of those Creatures (especially such as have the quickest Sense) gratify the curiosity of People, by an entertaining show of such artificial Gestures and Actions, as if they understood the meaning of Commands, and knew how to obey: And can any one believe that they never had any Artist to discipline and teach them? Yet these Instances are comparatively very few; nor is this half so much as natural Instinct; and, at last, all their little Tricks vanish with their Breath: And is it imaginable, that every Animal under Heaven could constantly, and in all things act after such a regular and wise Manner, without a commanding Power over them? Or, that any other Power could be able to command them all, but that which was the Original of their Natures? Indeed the Learned Dr. Cudworth observes, Intel. Syst. p. 675. that some odd Philosophers have given it out, That senseless Atoms, playing and toiling up and down, without any Care or Thought, and from Eternity trying all manner of Conclusions and Experiments, were at length (they know not how) taught, and by the necessity of things themselves, as it were driven to a certain kind of Trade of Artificialness and Methodicalness; so that though their Motions were at first all Casual and Fortuitous, yet in length of time they became Orderly and Artificial, and governed by a certain Law; they contracting, as it were, upon themselves by long Practice and Experience, a kind of Habit of moving regularly; or else by the mere necessity of things, at length forced so to move, as they should have done, had Art and Wisdom directed them. But (as that great Man strongly Argues) it is no more possible, That the fortuitous Motion of dead and senseless Matter should ever form itself, be taught, or necessitated, to produce such an orderly and regular System, as the Frame of this whole World is, together with the Bodies of Animals, and constantly to continue the same; than that a Man perfectly Illiterate, and neither able to write nor read, taking, up a Pen into his Hand, and making all manner of Scrawls with Ink upon Paper, should at length be taught and necessitated by the thing itself, to write a whole Choir of Paper together with such Characters, as being deciphered by a certain Key, would all prove Coherent, Philosophic Sense. Or, than that a Man Writing down the mere Letters of the Alphabet transposedly, any how, as it happens, without the least Thought either of Words or Sense, after his Scribbling a long time together, what is altogether insignificant, should at length be taught and necessitated by the thing itself, without the least study or consideration of his own, to write a large excellent Volume. Or to use another Instance; This is no more possible than that ten or a dozen Persons, altogether unskilled in Music, having several Instruments given them, and striking the Strings or Keys thereof, any how, as it happened, should after some time of Discord and Jarring, at length be taught and necessitated to fall into most exquisite Harmony, and continue the same uninterruptedly for several Hours together. Wherefore if it be ridiculous for one that hath read over the Works of Plato, or Aristotle, or those Six Books of Lucretius Carus, De Naturâ rerum; to contend that possibly the Letters of those Books might be all put together by Chance, or scribbled at Random, without the least thought or study of the Writer, he also having no manner of philosophic Skill in him: Or for one that hears ten or a dozen Persons playing in Consort upon Instruments of Music, and making ravishing Harmony, to persuade himself that none of those Players had, for all that, the least of musical Art or Skill in them, but struck the Strings as it happened: If all this be ridiculous to imagine, it must needs be much more ridiculous and absurd, to suppose this artificial System of the whole World, to have resulted from the fortuitous Motion of senseless Atoms, without the direction of any Art or Wisdom; there being much more of Sense, Art, and Philosophy therein, than in any philosophic Volume or Poem ever written by Men; and more of Harmony and Proportion, than in any Composition of Music. And therefore the Conclusion must be this, That it is absolutely impossible things should have come to pass, or continued in their orderly and regular Operations, by mere Fortune and Chance; and without the direction of any Mind, or God. The Divine Mind and Wisdom hath so printed its Seal, or Signature upon the Matter of the whole corporeal World, as that Fortune and Chance could never possibly have Counterfeited the same. CHAP. X. AND yet I have more to say. For though what has been already observed, is a clear Demonstration of immense Power, divine Knowledge, and unsearchable Wisdom; yet there is something very remarkable behind still, which Proclaims to all the World that Glorious Attribute of God, his infinite Goodness, and Benignity also: And that we cannot but take notice of, if we consider that which was proposed in the next place; namely, the ample Provision that is made for the Welfare of all needy Creatures, and even for the temporal good of Mankind. I have already observed the near Relation and Connexion that is between all the Parts of the Universe; the necessary dependence that one has upon another, together with the great Helps and Ministrations whereby each part of the World is serviceable and useful to its Fellow-Creatures, and does good Offices for them. And therefore I shall not need to go over the Creation again, to show you the various Footsteps of Goodness which appear every where, and which are evident Marks of a most liberal and munificent Being, that hath provided for the Welfare of the whole. It may be sufficient for me to confine my Meditations to the Sensitive Parts of the Universe, and to take a transient View there, of the wise and excellent Provision which is made for the good of them; for this must undeniably prove, That things did not come together by Chance, (that is, without the contrivance of an intending Cause) but by the Counsel and Art of a most benign Creator, that hath taken care for the good of all things which stand in Need. The Good of an Animal consisteth in the Existence of its Nature, and in the Enjoyment of its own Being, with Pleasure and Safety: I mean as far as the Enjoyment suits with the Welfare of the rest: And 'tis well worth the while to observe what due Provision is made accordingly for it in both these respects; First, For its Production; and then, Secondly, for the Preservation of it afterwards. 1. First, For its Production: How solicitous doth blind Nature seem to be, in preparing all things necessary for a Sensitive Creature's Formation? in drawing and laying out all the Parts of▪ it after the best and most proper manner? in cherishing the rude Foetus till it is come to its due Perfection and Proportions? and in supplying it with Nourishment by mysterious Means, before its coming into a wide World? Every the least Bird in the Shell, is fed with a red Substance which Nature conveys into its Bowels through a Vein provided on purpose to Minister that Aliment for its growth, till the time of Exclusion. In Creatures which give Suck, there are Navel-Vessels prepared in the Womb, to transmit the Nourishing Juice from the Parent to its Young; which Vessels upon its Production, close up of themselves; and then the Nourishment leaving its former Course, is directed from the Womb to the Paps; where Natural Instinct teaches the tender thing to seek its Sustenance for the future. These secret Dispositions, Powers, and Faculties, and form with a Design for some peculiar uses, and for a certain time; and therefore are impossible to be ascribed to unskilful and erroneous Chance. No; they are all Arguments of great and tender Care; and consequently of wonderful Wisdom and Goodness in an intelligent Agent over all, who governs and guides Illiterate Nature, that works under him, for the subsistence and well-being of his meanest Creatures. 2. And then for the Preservation of them being once brought forth, so admirably kind and indulgent is Nature in its various Contrivances, that to an observing Mind, they are ravishing Attestations of a God of the most abundant and extensive Benignity. And here let us give some Scope and Liberty to our Meditations, and attentively consider the ample Provision that is made. 1. First, for the support of Sensitive Creatures in the state of their Minority, or in their first helpless, necessitous Condition: And then, 2. Secondly, for their safety and welfare when they are grown up, and come to live of themselves in the World. 1. First, For their support in the state of their Minority, when they stand most in need of Help. Our blessed Saviour compared his own great Care for the Preservation of the Jews, to the tender Affections of an Hen towards her Chickens; or rather of every Bird towards its young ones; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. as a Bird gathereth her Brood under her Wings, Mat. 23. 37.) Which shall give me warrant to take notice, in the first place, of the Provision those poor things are directed to make for the Welfare of their Issue. The Provident Creature having found out some Retirement fit for a Nursery, then pitched upon the most convenient part of it, out of the reach of Enemies; then built it with Art inimitable, according to the Temper and Constitution of her future Off spring; and after long Incubation, and great patience under hunger and thirst, having at last produced her new Family, her following Cares are to search for Food that is most agreeable to their Natures; to carry it constantly to her Brood, that, under God, now call upon her; to minister to them one by one, though she want herself; to shelter them from the Annoyances of the Wether; to defend them what she can from Hostilities; and at last to invite them abroad, and by her own Example to teach them to take Wing, to use their Liberty, and by degrees to become their own Feeders and Guardians. This natural Affection we may observe in all other Animals universally, though never so fierce and savage; what Fondness they express towards their young; what Securities they seek out for them; what Moans they make in their Absence; with what diligence and eagerness they search after them; with what Pleasure they hold out the Dug to them; and how suspicious they are of the least Danger that may approach. Which universal Instinct is an invincible Argument of the Existence of a Supreme, Beneficent Being, that hath fixed in the whole common Animal Nature this inseparable Disposition, to be an Instrument in his Hand, or like a Provid●●● under him, to take care 〈◊〉 the Welfare of every poor Crea●●●● 〈…〉 can take care or provide 〈…〉. And to demonstrate yet that these things are not the Effects of undesigning Chance, but the Operations of a provident and good God, it is further observable, that according to the standing Law, and ordinary Course of Nature, no Sensitive Creature comes into the World till the things necessary for its Support are ready. There is a Breast prepared and replenished with Milk, for every Child of Man: There is an Udder for the Lamb, and Paps for all other suchlike Animals: And Tully observed long ago, that the more prolisick any Animal is, and the more young ones it is to suckle, the more in number are those little Bottles of Mr. boil's high Veneration, etc. Life: Others have observed, that Birds breed in Seedtime, when the Worm is turned up, and the Corn cast into the Ground; That many living Creatures fall in the Spring, when the tender Grass, and other Nutritive Plants, are provided for their Food: That the Mr. Ray. Eggs of Silkworms are hatched when Mulberry-Trees begin to Bud, and put forth their Leaves, whereon those precious Infects are to feed: That the Wasp is not wont to appear till after the Summer Solstice, when those Fruits which are for their Food, begin to ripen: That the Caterpillar is bred on Leaves, which are their proper Aliment; That other Infects (as the Bee for one) that at Breeding-time can find no Aliment abroad, have it at home prepared and laid up beforehand by their industrious Parents. To which many Observations more might be added, to show that for every Mouth that is brought into the World, there is agreeable Meat ready, and in its Season; and that as there are varieties of Animals for varieties of Fruits, that nothing of the Creation may be lost; so both Animals and Fruits are produced at their proper times, that when the one wants, the other is at Hand to answer its Necessities. Now mothinks no Man should be so false to his own Faculties, as to think it reasonable to believe, that these apposite and suitable Preparations were made by Chance, which are such pregnant Arguments of great Wisdom and Benignity. And yet hereunto I must subjoin this one Remark more, That, as convenient and sit Nourishment is seasonably provided and made ready for all, so that the Appetites of all Creatures are corresponding, and adapted to that Provision which is proper for their Sustenance. Though during the whole time of their Formation they were fed secretly, without any Art, or Appetite of their own, and without any use of their Mouths; yet upon their Production they begin to crave, and seek for their Nutriment another way. We see daily in every Species of Animals that live by Milk, how soon they long for the Pap; how they reach after the Pap, and make towards the Pap, and open their Mouths for it, as if they understood that the former way of Nutrition is now out of Doors, and at an End. Now here our Sceptics, who derive all things from Chance, should consider, how young Animals come to observe this constant, uniform, and stated Method; as if they were sensible that the first Course of Nature now faileth; that their Aliment now runs to another place, and therefore they must have recourse thither, where their Food now lieth. There is something in them, (whatever it be) that doth regularly direct, and as it were teach them, to act after this proper manner: And to say it is mere Nature, is nothing to the purpose, or at least that which does not come home to the point: For this Nature is in Creatures which are irrational, nay, at their lowest state of Irrationality, and before they have any the least Experience to guide them; and in such a state, Nature alone, and of itself, must needs be as rude and ignorant, and as liable to Irregularities, as Chance itself is. Therefore if we will hearken to Reason, and speak according to Reason, we must conclude, That the first Appetites and Motions in these poor young Creatures, proceed from a certain invisible Principle, which at the first moment of their formation was fixed in them by a wise and beneficent Agent, under whom it Operates necessarily, and without any consciousness of its own, in conformity to his Will, for the Welfare and Support of his Creatures in their most needy Condition. 2. And here let us pass on to observe, Secondly, the Provision that is made for their Safety when they are grown up, and come to live of their selves. And here, to cast things into a clear Method, we should consider, what Provision is made 1. First, For their protection from outward Assaults; 2. For their defence against untimely Deaths. 1. For the Protection of Creatures from outward Assaults, Nature hath furnished many sorts of them with means proper for Resistance; some with Armature on their Heads, to push and Gore; some with Teeth, to rend an Enemy; some with Hoofs, to strike off Dangers; divers with variety of other Weapons, which are sit for their preservation: Nor are any Animals that are to secure their Lives by Resistance, left defenceless. Nay, it is observable of such, that as their Strength is suitable chief in those parts which serve for their preservation, so is their Boldness and Courage proportionable, especially when they are brought into straits, and into imminent Danger. Nature indeed hath been accused by some as a kind of Stepmother to Man, for bringing him into the World in a naked, defenceless Condition. But it should be considered, that as Man hath Hands and Arms to use for his Safety, so is he endued with intellectual Faculties, to form a thousand Weapons and Stratagems for his preservation. Besides, Man is naturally a social Creature, fitted to live under Polity and Laws, and to act according to the Eternal Rules of Goodness and Righteousness; which are far more agreeable to a Rational Nature, than brutish Violence is, and would be the most effectual Means for the Welfare of all Mankind, if they were but carefully observed. To accommodate the Words of the Prophet to this purpose, Isa. 11. Were righteousness the girdle of our loins, and faithfulness the girdle of our reins, the wolf might dwell with the lamb, and the leopard lie down with the kid; and the calf, and the young lion, and the fatling together; and a little child might lead them. The sucking child might play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child might put his hand on the cockatrice-den; Nor would there be any hurt or destruction in the World. In short, as Self-preservation is the first Principle in Nature, so is every Creature endued with Faculties and Defensatives for their Preservation as long as the Powers of Nature are to hold: which shows that a most wise and beneficent Being hath form every thing for its Good. 2. Many other Creatures are directed by Nature to preserve themselves by flight: Not only the Fowls of the Air, but divers sorts of fourfooted Animals on Earth, especially such as are of a more timorous temper. And accordingly as their Organs of sensation are artificially fitted to discover dangers at a distance, so are those muscular Parts which serve for swiftness much larger in proportion, than in other Creatures, to quicken and maintain their Motions: A plain Argument that those Instruments of Celerity were framed, not by rude, unintelligent Fortune, but by the contrivance of an intending Cause, whose Goodness is over all his Works. 3. Others are taught to abscond in holes and cavities of the Earth; and lest their cold Sanctuaries should prove as Fatal to them as external violence, Nature makes them Coats of Fur, and such suitable Integuments to keep them warm. 4. Lastly, Whereas there is utter Enmity between divers sensitive Creatures, those Animals which are most exposed to danger from others, are endued with a natural Instinct which inables them, both to be sensible of their Enemy at the first sight, and to provide, what they can, against the danger. The innocent Lamb runs presently from the Wolf, though it never saw a Wolf before. Many sorts of Birds are frighted at the first sight of Fowls of Prey, and endeavour with all possible speed to escape from them. The Elephant when he goes to sleep, hides the end of his long Trunk in the Ground, so that nothing but Air can get in, lest his natural Enemy, the Mouse, should enter in, and creep into his Bowels. The Crocodile that is in continual Danger from that Egyptian Animal, the jehnenmon, is guarded Jo. Johnston, admirand. qu tdrup. c. 1 4. by the watchful attendance of another Animal, the Trochilus, that awakens the sleeping Crocodile, when the Ichneumon is preparing to run into his Mouth. Many such remarkable Observations might be collected out of Natural Histories, which show what various Methods Nature useth for the preservation of living Creatures from Assaults and Hurt. And because Nature of itself is a thing (if we speak strictly) without all Providence, Care, or Thought, Reason will oblige us to conclude, that there is a God over Nature; or a most wise and benign Being, that directs it in operating for the good of all. 2. Which will yet further appear, if we consider, in the second Place, the Provision that is made for the Defence of Creatures against untimely Deaths. And here many things might fall under our Meditations, should we look over the Works of Nature particularly: As 1. First, touching that sufficiency of proper Food, which is provided every where for the support of their Being's, and for the pleasure of their Lives, as far as the enjoyment of their Lives, is consistent with the Welfare of the whole Universe. 2. Secondly, Touching the aptitude and fitness of those Parts wherewith every Species is provided, for the gathering, and digesting of their proper Sustenance: So that by the Structure of an Animal's Body, especially in and about the Mouth, it is no hard matter to conjecture what sort of Food is most suitable to its Nature, and how, and in what places it is commonly gathered; as for instance, by the form and length of a Bird's Beak, you may guests what it lives on, and where its proper Aliment doth for the most part lie. These are plain Arguments of a provident and good God, that in every respect hath taken effectual Care, that none of his Creatures should perish for want of Sustenance, or for want of Faculties and Powers to receive that Portion which his most liberal Hand giveth unto all. But these Observations would carry us back to some Subjects which we have passed through already; and therefore I must wave them here; and shall employ my Thoughts upon the Consideration of that Provision which is made for Man chief, for his present good and safety, and for the preservation of his Life, as long as it is fit for him to live in this present World. Is there not an appointed time to man upon the earth? Are not his days also like the days of an hireling? saith Job, Chap. 7. 1. Yes; His days are determined; the number of his months are with God, who hath appointed his bounds that he cannot pass, Job 14 5. By which appointed time is meant the natural Period of Humane Life, or, that limited Course, beyond which all the Power and Strength of Nature cannot hold now, since the Sentence of Death hath passed upon Mankind. Indeed, before the Fall, our Parents were in an immortal State, and had they never sinned, they should have continued immortal in this World (especially by eating of the Tree of Life) till God had thought it sit to translate them alive out of this World into a better. When once the Decree came out, Dust thou art, and to Dust thou shalt return; it was appointed unto all Men once to die; and ever since the Faculties of Humane Nature have been so stinted and weakened, that with all our Care and Endeavours, we cannot stay very long here. Now, by an untimely Death I mean that which comes before the Term which is appointed and prefixed to one's Nature; and as sinful Creatures as we are, such ample Provision is made in all parts of the World for the health and support of its Inhabitants during the Course of Nature, that if People were but wise and provident themselves in the use of that Provision, their End would not be so precipitated as it commonly is by Men's own Faults: Which necessarily argues the Existence of a most beneficent and gracious God, that careth for us all: For whereas these two things are necessary to defend a Man from an untimely Death; 1. Convenient Nourishment, to keep up the Faculties of Nature in a due Vigour; and 2. Proper Medicinal Applications, to recover Nature, when by some ugly Accident it gins to droop: In both these respects such ample Provision is made for our Preservation, as is impossible with reason to be ascribed to any Cause, but the Providence and Bounty of a good God. 1. First, There is provided convenient Nourishment for all; that is, such as is suitable to People of all Conditions. 2. Such as is suitable to the Quality of all Climates. And 3. Such as is suitable to all Tempers and Constitutions: All which could never have been without the Counsel and Skill of an intelligent Being, that ordereth and disposeth every thing in the World after the best way. 1. Convenient Food is provided for People of all Ranks, States, and Conditions. Because the ordinary sorts of People were to be provided for, as well as the great and noble; (and indeed much rather, considering that the greatest part of Mankind doth consist of People of an ordinary Condition) therefore Wisdom and Goodness hath made that the sittest and most agreeable, the most natural Food, which is ordinarily and commonly had; that which is the next at Hand; that which is most easy and ready to be gotten. Things which lie more out of the way, serve rather for men's Luxury, as Luxury serveth to breed Diseases: Those common Meats which answer the ordinary Necessities of Mankind, are most Salutary and Natural. Of the Truth hereof this is a clear Argument, because such Provisions, if moderately used at a time, Nature is not offended with, but rather craveth for, though daily taken: Whereas Daimies, which are more scarce, and harder to be provided, and which gratify the Fancy rather than supply our Wants, the Appetite is soon cloyed with, and becomes averse to. How sensual soever we are, neither the most Craving, nor the most wanton People would be tied, or endure to live long upon those By-Entertainments, and far-setched Rarities, which Woods and Forests, Rocks and Mountains afford. But no temperate Person is surfeited with Bread from the Field, which is the common Food of the World. 'Tis every Day repeated with Hunger, as well as swallowed with Delight. And so it is with other ordinary sorts of Nutriment; they find a kind Welcome to Nature, and leave behind 'em a grateful Appetice. Upon which account the mean Man shareth with the Mighty in the Comforts of this Life; and hath equal reason to rejoice in the good things before him, and to bless a provident Hand which scattereth these necessary Comforts without discrimination, as the Manna was scattered in the Wilderness; He that gathered much had nothing over; and he that gathered little had no lack, Exod. 16. 18. Every Man gathereth according to his eating, and that which is agreeable to his Appetite and Taste: Which would be Nonsense to ascribe to undiscerning Chance, because it is apparently the effect of Prescience, Wisdom, and unlimited Goodness; and therefore shows, that there is a Being of the most extensive Kindness and Benignity, who shutteth not up his Bowels of Compassion from any; but, as he maketh Poor, and maketh Rich, so he holdeth out his Hands like a common Providore, to support all indifferently, and giveth to every Man a convenient Portion. 2. Ample Provision is made, as for all People of all Conditions, so for the Necessities of all Climates and Nations in the World. Though in every particular Country there is not the same plenty, nor the same sorts of Provision, for a weighty reason which I shall presently take notice of; yet no Nation is so barren and destitute, as not to yield its Inhabitants (especially its Natives) a competency and sufficiency of things needful for them, especially where a Nation is well Peopled and well cultivated. Some abound with grosser kinds of Food; others with variety of Pulses; others with peculiar Plants and Roots, and generous Wines; others with choice of excellent Fruits; and others with singular sorts of Trees, which answer variety of uses, and serve not only for the Necessities, but also for the Conveniencies and Delights of People; as (what a learned Author observes) Mr Ray. ubi supra. the Cinnamon— Trees of Ceylon, which yield those People manifold Advantages: The Dropping-Trees in some parts of Africa, which serve instead of Rain, and fresh Springs: The Aloes- Muricatae in some places of America, which assord the Natives every thing their Necessities require: The Coco-Trees of the Indians, which supply them with Bread, Water, Wine, Milk, Oil, Honey, , together with various sorts of Utensils; in short, with every thing almost they stand in need of. Besides many other Trees, which another Author mentions; that celebrated Dr. H●●lins 〈◊〉. Tree in Peru, the Leaves whereof satisfy both Hunger and Thirst, and preserve Men in Health, and their Spiri●s in Vigour: The Hovo-Trees in Castella-Aurea, whose Blossoms, Bark, Leaves, and Roots, are for so many great Uses: The Magney-Trees in New-Spain, whose Tops, Rind, Boughs, and forty sorts of Leaves, serve for variety of excellent Purposes: The Mignolo-Trees in Guinea, the Bark whereof yields a Liquor more pleasant, strong, and nourishing than the choicest Wines: The Palm-Trees in Egypt, which are said to yield whatsoever is necessary to the Life of Man. To which few Observations a vast number of the like kind might be added, if a Man would make it his business to take, though but a summary Account of the great Provision that is made for the Subsistence of Mankind in all the known Parts of the World. Briefly; as it is in the Fabrication of a Man, if Nature be defective in one part, it commonly makes amends in another; so is it in the Model and Frame of every Country, the Wants of it, in some respects, are compensated by an Abundance, or at least by a Sufficiency in others: Nor is any Country so destitute, and at a loss, but that it is able to help itself very well, either by Industry employed about the Stores of Nature at home, or by some sorts or other of Riches which it is liberally supplied with, to maintain Commerce and Traffic abroad. 3. The reason why there is not an equal plenty of the same things in every Nation, I take to be this; Because the same things are not sit and proper for all People. And this, Thirdly, I cannot but look upon as a pregnant Argument of a Providence and a God, that in all parts of the World such Provision is made for the Sustenance of People, as is most suitable to their Tempers and Constitutions. In Cold or more Temperate Climates, where the Air is more Nitrous, and where, consequently, the Appetites of People are the stronger, and their Constitutions require the stronger Food, there grosser Nourishment is more agreeable; and accordingly we find, that in such Parts, and among such People, there is the greater plenty of the Flesh of Beasts, for their constant Support. Abundance of this kind of Diet would not be so suitable to Sanguine Tempers in Hot Climates, but rather would create inordinate Fermentations of Blood, Fevers, Calentures and Frenzies: And therefore such Nations are better stored with Roots, Pulses, and Plants, and with various Fruits of the Vine, to correct the more Phlegmatic part of them, and to carry off the Crudities and Flatulency thereof. Other places abound with Fruits that are fragrant, refreshing, and cooling, as being most proper to preserve the Inhabitants in a State of Health, and a due Temper. The great plenty of Rices in the East; and of Maize, which is the great Food of the Americans; and such other peculiar sorts of Nutriment in other Countries, are provided for the peculiar Constitutions of People every where, and adapted to them. And so are their Drinks, if taken in a due measure. For which reason, though the Vine be a Plant which generally grows in all Nations of the World, because of general Use, yet some Oriental Parts are quite destitute of it: But (says my Author) the want of it is Dr. Heylin, pag. 924. supplied with a pleasant Drink, made of the Juice of other Fruits, more natural to those People than the other, and so preservative of Life, that the People there are reported to be longer lived than in any other Parts. In China it is supplied by an Herb, out of Id. pag. 865. which they press a delicate Juice, which doth not only serve them instead of Wine, but preserveth their Health, and freeth them from many of those Inconveniencies which the immoderate use of Wine doth breed in others: Which short Remarks (not to make any more of this Nature now) show that there is a superintending, wise, and good Being over all Men, that doth dispose and order the things of Nature in all parts of the World after the best manner, and for the present Benefit and Advantage of every Man: For to adapt and sit things thus, according to the Necessities of all People, and to make them so exactly congrnous and answerable, cannot be the fortuitous Essect of improvident Chance, but the admirable Works of an intelligent, contriving, and most beneficent Deity. 2. Yet it will not be amiss to observe a little, what Provision there is made too of proper, Medicinal Remedies, to recover the insirm Nature of Man, when it gins to droop; to convince Men yet further of the Existence of a God, that begrudgeth not any Man that Good which consisteth in the Enjoyment of himself, till his appointed time cometh. What variety of Drugs Nature is furnished with to this purpose, is neither necessary nor proper for me to note here. The thing I would briesly observe is this; That such Medicinal Remedies are provided for all Men, and those so sitly suited to all incident Griefs, as are enough to satisfy any reasonable Man, that there is a Divine, Benign Nature in the World, that of his infinite Goodness taketh care of us all. And this will appear if we consider the Provision which is made, 1. Against such common Diseases as Mankind in general are subject unto: 2. Against such as are incident more peculiarly to some Nations. 1. First, There are very many Diseases which are incident to all People in general. For as all Mankind consist of the same common Nature, so is this common Nature subject in all places to decay and dissolution; nor are there any parts in one's Body but what are liable to the same Infirmities and Griefs, which affect the rest of Adam's Generations. Now that People may not unavoidably come to an untimely End, only for want of present, necessary help, there is all over the World a sufficiency of proper Means, if Men will but take the pains to discover the Faculties of those things which Nature affords, and be careful to apply and use them after a due manner. And as our necessary Food is, so are our necessary Medicaments ordinarily and commonly to be had: For no Man is forced to languish on, and die, under a Dropsy or Fever, a Consumption or Flux, or such like usual Distemper, merely for want of this one particular Root, or that Flower, or that Drug, which cannot be procured at Home, but must be fetched from beyond the Seas by a long Voyage and great Expense. The things we most need are within our reach, and hard by, almost in every Wood, Field, and Garden: And though some humorous and vain Persons are seldom pleased but with what is scarce and costly, yet Nature is gratified with what is common, as most suitable to its Necessities, most proper and effectual for its relief. The Ancient Egyptians had their Garden-Deities; not that they looked upon them as Gods, but as great preservatives of Life, blest with a Divine Power derived, as they thought, from the Objects of their Worship. And hence, perhaps, it might be that the Jews who had lived so long among them, lusted in the Wilderness for their Old Egyptian Fare, the Melons, the Cucumbers, the Leeks, the Onions, and the Garlic; because they had by their long Experience found those things so Beneficial in a Country, where the Air was wont to be corrupted by the Inundations of that vast River Nilus. Generally speaking, Domestic Remedies are the kindest Friends to every one's Nature, and the best Restoratives of it; and it seems a sensible Argument of Divine Wisdom and Unlimited Bounty; that is, of the Existence of a Provident and Good God, that such Provision is made so aptly and liberally for high and low, for Men of all Ranks, Conditions and Ages, and for People of the meanest Fortunes; that the precious Life given to us all may not be snatched from us (if we be but Provident ourselves) till Nature hath done her whole Work; till it be time for us to go hence; till that proper Season comes which Jobs Friend spoke of; the Season when a Man shall be ripe and sit to drop into another World; Thou shalt come to thy grave in a full age, like as a shock of corn cometh in, in its season, Job 5. 26. 2. Secondly, There are some Endemii (morbl) sunt, rum qui ex putridis aquarum, terrarum, vel cadaverum expirationibus orti sunt; turn etiam quibusdam regionibus familiares, ut Ph●hifis, Lusitanis, Struma Hispanis & Alpinis, Hydroca●e Nerbonensi Galliae, omnes quidem ex acrid gravirate nati. Jo. Fernel. de abdit. rerum causis, lib. 2. Diseases which Physicians call Endemial; meaning such as are more peculiar and familiar to some Nations. And if Travellers would accurately observe what proper Provision is made against such Distempers, throughout the several Parts of the known World, they might oblige us with such a fair acconnt of the Divine Goodness, as that the curiosity of Men could not desire a fairer for its kind. In divers Nations their proper Food is their proper Physic too. In many places the natural Baths, and other medicinal Waters of the Country, serve to carry off Diseases that are most incident. In some parts of A. srick every one is said to be his own Physician; because all of them are so much Mandelslo's Trau. 13. acquainted with the Specificks of their Country, as they think is necessary and enough for the Preservation and Recovery of their Health. In Persia they Tavernier, 1. 5. cap. 15. have no exact Methods of Physic: Their China Drinks, and the common Id. Part 2. 1. 1. Pulses and Roots of their own Growth, together with a regular Diet, are their greatest Preservatives of Life. In the East-Indies its said that there are no Physicians, but such as attend Kings and Princes. As for the ordinary sort, after the Rains are fallen, and that it is time to gather Herbs, the People go out into the Fields and gather such Simples which they know to be proper for such Diseases as reign among them. Others tell us of their choice Drugs, Mandelslo's Trau. in Ind. their Plant called Bettele, and the Fruit of their Tree Areca, are their most sovereign Preservatives. In some places where Fevers are wont to reign, those Trees are common, whence that celebrated Medicament is fetched, usually called, the Jesuits Bark. In those Heylen of Amer. Fernel. de lieu c. ●●. parts of America where a silthy Discase is Hereditary and Epidemical among Young and Old of both Sexes, those Regions abound with Gunjacan and Sarsa, which are said to be proper for it. In this, and some other Northern Climates, where the Scurvy prevails, and some other Maladies which depend upon it, a peculiar Herb aboundeth, which thence takes its Name; besides other proper Plants which grow in every Garden; and perhaps above all, the Elder which is to be found almost in every Hedge: Which brings to my Mind the Observation of a curious Author, Mr. Ray, p. 104. I have mentioned more than once, that there are such Species of Plants produced in every Country, as are most proper and convenient for the Meat and Medicine of Men and Animals that are bred and inhabit there. Insomuch that Solenander writes, That from the frequency of the Plants which spring up naturally in any Region, he could easily gather what Endemial Diseases the Inhabitants thereof were subject to. And what can this argue, but great and wonderful Goodness in a provident Being above, who taketh ample Care of the Lives of his Creatures? With what Face can any Man ascribe all this commodious and apt Disposition of things to Chance, which is such a palpable Evidence of Wisdom and Benignity? Should you look into a great Family, or an Hospital, and there observe what Provision is made for the whole ; sufficient and agreeable Sustenance prepared for every the meanest Retainer to it; skilful Artists daily attending with proper Remedies for Griefs and Sicknesses of all sorts; and every thing disposed so orderly, and after such a Congruous, Liberal, and Charitable manner, as speaks Compassion and Goodness towards all: Would you not think it reasonable to conclude that certainly there is a wise and beneficent Governor presiding, by whose Directions and under whose Care all Ministrations are performed in such a way as is suitable to every one's Necessities? Why, much rather may we think it reasonable to conclude that there is a God presiding over the whole World, under whose unlimited Providence Nature doth regularly and conveniently minister to the Wants of all People. The Families of the Earth are innumerable; their Habitations vastly distant; their Necessity's pressing, constant, various, and infinite; And what but infinite Wisdom, Power and Goodness could provide so amply, and appositely for them all? Nature, its true, does it immediately; but, as hath been shown, Nature of itself is an uncontriving, unthinking Thing that acteth in the Dark, and therefore it infers the Existence of an Agent above and over it, that understands for it; that hath put it into a stated Method, and still directs and employs it under him to minister thus to the Necessities of Men every where, who do, or should at least understand far better than Nature does, whence all that Bounty and Liberality comes, which replenisheth the World. CHAP. XI. HAving proceeded thus far upon this large Speculation, concerning the excellent State of the World, as a clear Proof that there is a most wise and good Being who framed it. I find but one thing remaining for us to look into; and that is the admirable Frame of our own rational Nature, which I have reserved for the last Consideration, because it is the brightest and most glorious manifestation of a Deity. For if it be made appear that our rational Part is so excellent, as that it could not be form by any thing less than an Agent that is essentially Divine, and transcendently Perfect, humane Reason must extort this Confession from all Men, That there is a Being incomprehensibly Excellent, which form so excellent a Creature as our humane Nature is. In Discoursing then upon this Subject, I shall endeavour to show these Two things. 1. First, Wherein the Excellence of humane Nature does consist. 2. Secondly, That this Excellence was derived, not from the casual Modification of stupid Matter, but from the Agency of an intelligent Cause that is eminently and absolutely Perfect. 1. First, Touching the Excellence of our humane Nature. By our humane Nature, is understood strictly the intellectual, thinking, and rational Thing within us which we call the Soul: And when I spoke of its Excellence, I mean its essential Perfection, before Vice comes to deprave and hurt it: And I spoke too of a comparative Perfection; not meaning that it is Excellent in such a sublime Degree, as a Deity is supposed to be; but Excellent in its Kind, and in comparison of the other Parts of this visible World. Now that every rational Soul is thus Excellent, will appear both from its Nature and Faculties. In its Nature it is, 1. First, Immaterial. For it is a distinct thing from Matter; and the Properties of it are quite different from the Properties of Matter. It is of the Nature of Matter, to be locally extended, as a Wall is, part by part, and one part by another in a palpable Series of Contiguity; to move as a Stone does, as it is moved forcibly by some other Agent, and to communicate its Motion to a corporeal Substance by strokes impressed upon it; to be wholly passive to external Violence; to be in an utter state of Rest, when Force is not offered; to be as Senseless as a Stone, and as void of Cogitation; and when it is stirred and agitated, to be destitute of all Apprehension which way, or in what manner, or to what end it moves: These and the like dull Properties essentially and necessarily belong to Matter. There is as much difference between them and the Attributes of the rational Soul, as between Death and Life. Because this is a busy Thing, prone and ready to inquire into the qualities of Objects; to discover their Natures; to apprehend Ideas; to commit Notions to Memory for a long time; to discern and distinstuish between Truth and Falsehood, and between Right and Wrong; to infer Conclusions from Premises; to spin Opinions out of a train of Thoughts; to judge what is to be Received, and what is to be Rejected; to exert an Appetite towards that which is Good, and to rest with Complacency and Delight in the Enjoyment of it. Nay, besides all this, to be also in its operations Self-active and Self-determining, is Essential to it. For the Soul of Man is not pulled, or forced, dragged, or drawn, or thrust on like a Machine. No; the Principle of its Actions is within its self; nor can any thing move it, but by its own consent and voluntary compliance. Indeed outward Objects make Impressions upon it; and such as do affect it and incline it to act according as things appear to be either desirable or hurtful. But this is not done by any violent, necessitating Impulse, like the Force impressed upon a common Engine; but in a Moral way, by persuasion and allurement, and by the intervening use of Reason, which judgeth of the Object whether it may be chosen or refused, and accordingly dictates and directs: So that when the Soul resolves upon Actions, and comes to exert its Power, it determines itself, being solicited thereunto by Temptations and Arguments from the inviting Appearance of an Object, but not driven to it by irresistible Violence. For in many Cases we do resist Offers, though they be very Tempting; because the Motives for our compliance are not so strong, as the Reasons which are against it: And when the Reasons on each hand seem equally fair, the Soul is unresolved, and in suspense, hanging in doubt, in aequilibrio, like Scales that are exactly even till some Grains be added, some more Arguments offered on the one side which outweigh all on the contrary, and so turn and cast the Scale, and bring the Soul to a Determination. Of these things every Man hath daily Experience in his own Breast: We all feel in ourselves this our native Liberty and determining Power. And hence it follows, That after all the Disputes about the Substance of the rational Soul what it is, we may certainly conclude what it is not. It cannot be any material, corporeal Substance, though you suppose it to be never so fine and thin; because its Operations are quite different from the Motions of the most subtle Body. They proceed not from any necessitating Cause; nor are they carried on after a necessitating Manner; nor are they brought to any necessary Result, as the Motions of Matter are (these are still impressed upon it by some necessitating thing which is without, and foreign to it.) But the Soul of Man hath a Principle of Freedom and voluntary Activity within itself, and in its Nature, whereby it is apt to begin, and order, and govern, and perfect its own Actions, as its own Reason directeth, and as itself judgeth to be most convenient and best. 2. And because it is immaterial, it must follow, that its own Nature it is immortal also; which is the Second Argument of its Excellence, if compared with all the other parts of this visible World. That this thing may be rightly understood, we must consider, that there is a two fold Life in Man. 1. The Life of the Compositum (as they call it) or the Life of the whole Man; that Life which results from the Vital Union between Soul and Body. This cannot be thought immortal, because we see it every Day destroyed by the separation of those two Substances, Soul and Body, from each other. 2. There is the Original Life of the Soul itself, considered singly and separately, as a distinct thing from the Body. This Life is, I conceive, a state of Vigour and Activity, and a state which is peculiar and proper to the Soul. Now this is immortal; that is, though the Body turns to Dust and Ashes, yet the Soul continues a living Being still; or subsisteth on in a state of Vigour; so that the Nature of it is not subject to Mortality. For by Mortality is meant a proneness or tendency in a Being to a Dissolution of it, upon the failing of that Principle of Activity within it, which we call Life. And three things are requisite to render a thing Mortal; as we see by every Day's Experience, in all Creatures which naturally consume away and die. 1. There must be a Mixture of contrary Qualities, as Heat and Cold, and the like. 2. There is a corruptibility of Humours upon the Prevalence and Predominancy of one Quality over the others. 3. And Thirdly, a Divisibility of the Parts upon and after the overpowering the Faculties and Temperament of Nature. So that 'tis Matter that is liable to Death; nor can Death be incident to any thing but Matter, nay to corruptible Matter; nor can any corporeal Substance be Immortal, till this Corruptible hath put on Incorruption. If then a Being be immaterial, or destitute of Bodily Parts, it must be in its own Nature immortal too. A Spirit hath not Flesh, and Bones (and Blood) as every Humane Body hath; and consequently it cannot be liable to those jarring Elements whereof our Bodies do consist; nor can it of itself be capable of Corruption or Dissolution of Parts, as our Mortal Bodies are, seeing it is supposed to have no Parts at all to be divided. Therefore since the Rational Soul is a Spirit, or such a Being as is incorporeal and immaterial (as I have now showed it is) it must follow, that it is not naturally subject to Mortality, as the Body is; because it is utterly void of all Natural Principles of Mortality, and is incorruptible in its Essence; and therefore it must by the ordinary Necessity of its own Nature, as well as by the Will and Pleasure of a Superior Being, survive the Body, to receive Rewards or Punishments in another World, according to the Quality of its Actions in this. 2. Having thus briefly considered the Nature of every Humane Soul, let us, Secondly, take some Account of its Excellence in respect of its Faculties and Powers, in order to prove the Existence of a God, as the only Cause that could give this Soul a Being. There are some Faculties in a Man which are common to Brute Creatures also: As 1. Sense, or the power of perceiving Ideas impressed from outward Objects upon the Organs of Sensation; the Eye, Ear, etc. 2. Fancy, or a power of apprehending the seeming Suitableness or Unsuitableness of an Object to its Nature. 3. Memory, or the power of retaining for some time the Ideas and Shapes of things sensible. 4. Appetite, or a power of moving according as an Object appears, either agreeable or hurtful; being allured by the one, or frighted and dampt by the other. But these several Powers are nothing in comparison of those noble faculties peculiarly belonging to the Rational Soul; as any Man may perceive that will but search into himself, and observe what he finds and feels there. For 1. First, We find that we have a Power to Think and Consider; I mean to examine those Objects which are presented to our outward Sense; to employ our Minds conversantly about them; to take notice of their Proportions, Forms, and Qualities; to compare one thing with another; to discover the Causes and Effects of them, so that we may penetrate into the inside of them, and dive into their Natures. Now this no Brute Creature doth, or can do. The ox, indeed, knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib; that is, they come to both, being invited and moved thereunto by the appearance of things, which are wont to gratify the Eye and Palate. But in this there is no such thing as Consideration, nothing that can properly be called Thought; because such Creatures are not capable of enquiring in themselves, Who, or what their Feeders are? or, What the Substance of their Fodder is? or, What produced it? or, How it was provided? or, To what End it serves? and, For what Reason it is proper and good to be used? Acts of this kind are too high for Animals which are merely Sensitive; Their Fancies go no further than the Crib: They are well satisfied with the bare enjoyment of that which is before them. The Considering part belongs to Man: To observe the natural difference between Things and Things; to examine their distinct Causes, Properties, Dispositions, and Uses; and so to look into their intrinsic Essences and Natures; this is the peculiar work and business of a Soul that is Rational. 2. We find in ourselves, that we have a power to understand also; that is, a Faculty and Ability to comprehend the Reason, and Condition, and Philosophy of Matters; nay, to know many things which are not directly obvious to our outward Senses. That Perception which is in Animals Irrational, is an Idea in the Fancy, derived from those Efsluvium's, Rays, and Images of external Objects, which are impressed upon the Hearing, Seeing, Smelling, Tasting, or Feeling-Faculty, and so conveyed through the Nerves into the Brain. These are sensible Phantasms; and the possessing of an Animal with them is properly called Sensation, because the Creature is affected with a sensible Object, merely by the use of its Senses. But Sensation is one thing, and Intellection or Understanding is another. This properly is, when a Man's Mind is so possessed and enlightened with Intelligible Notions, or with such Ideas as are not subject to corporeal Sense, and therefore such as cannot be stamped upon the Mind by Motion or Pressure from Bodies without us; but such Ideas as spring out of the Mind itself, by an active, exerting Power that is native to it. There are many kinds of such intelligible Notions, as do not fall under external Sense, and yet are very clear and evident to us: As several Certainties in Mathematics, which appear from Demonstration; divers Truths in Natural Philosophy, which we are convinced of by pure Reason; several Moral Verities, which we are assured of, from the immutable Natures of Vice and Virture; several Doctrines in Theology which our Minds yield us, from the Contemplation of the Divine Attributes and Perfections: Besides divers such common Notions as these, wherein all Mankind are agreed of themselves, That what hath not any Being, cannot act; That things which agree in one Third, agree among themselves; That the Cause is in order of Nature before the Effect; That Equals added unto Equals, do make Equals; That Nothing can produce itself out of Nothing; and the like: These are eternal Truths, which depend not upon Sense, but upon natural, certain Reason; for they would be Truths though there were not any Sensitive Creatures in the World. Now this is a noble Power in the Soul, which sets it infinitely above the Souls of Irrational Creatures, in that it can act within itself abstractedly from Matter; and without using the Bodily Senses, can speculate and understand those leading Truths, and necessary Notions, which are in order to the greatest Undertake, and enable the Mind of Man to search into all the Secrets of Nature; to open the Mysteries of the Creation; to invent Arts; to improve Sciences; to prescribe the most commendable Rules of Life; and, in short, to govern the World: All which I shall show is an Argument of the Existence of an absolutely perfect Mind, or a God, that form the Rational Soul with Divine Faculties and Powers to act under him. 3. Thirdly, We find in ourselves a Power to deduce one thing out of another by way of Inference; and by comparing Notions with Notions, and by sifting them narrowly, to gather and conclude in the End, that this is True, and that False; this is Right, and that Wrong; and so to go on, still drawing of Consequents out of Antecedents; which is usually called Ratiocination, or Mental Discourse. As for Example; Though we discern not our own Souls, nor can behold them with our Eyes, yet in regard that we think, and meditate, and reason in ourselves, we strongly conclude, that they are Being's actually existing, because it is most certain, that what is not, cannot operate. In like manner, though the Being of God be quite out of the Ken of our corporeal Senses, yet considering what bright manifestations there are in the World, of wonderful Goodness, Power, and Wisdom, we rightly infer, That it was framed by a Supreme Being, of the most adorable and excellent Perfections. And so it is in innumerable other Instances; though there are ten thousand things in Nature, whose Contextures are not subject to the Cognizance of our Senses, yet by arguing either à priori, from the manifest Cause to the Effect; or à posteriori, from the manifest Effect to the Cause, we proceed to satisfactory Inferences; because if this thing be granted, then, according to the common Principles of Reason, that thing will follow. This is to Reason, and Argue, and to Discourse in our Minds; and it is a Faculty whereof the Souls of Irrational Creatures are not capable; because sine and close reasoning is vastly above bare and naked Sensation: It requires strong Meditation, great rolling of Thoughts, and a firm linking of Notions to Notions in a Chain; so that Rational Premises may fairly and regularly draw on Rational Conclusions: All which Brute Creatures can no more do, than they can study Philosophy, or understand Books of Metaphysics and Logic. 4. Fourthly, We feel in ourselves a power of directing us in all our Moral Actions, and of reflecting upon our Actions after they are done; and this we call Conscience, meaning the Judgement of a Man as it relates to the practice of Virtue and Honesty. There are some Actions which are unchangeably good; and others which are immutably Evil: Their Natures are so utterly opposite, that it is as impossible to make Vice Virtue, or Virtue Vice, as it is to reconcile Light and Darkness. The Notions of such things every one does carry in himself; nor is any Soul of Man so void and destitute of them, but that the most unpolisht and barbarous People understand in some measure what is Right and Just. Accordingly we find something within us, which before an Action is done, tells us secretly what is necessary, sit, and proper for us to do: And when our unreasonable Inclinations and Passions carry us on to do that which is contrary to those good Dictates, we find something within us, that doth reprehend and blame, and fly upon us, and many times doth wound us so, that we, are very sore, and our Minds are full of great Anguish and Torment. To which purpose are those Words of St. Paul, Rom. 2. 14, 15. where speaking of the Gentiles, he faith, That though they had not the Law (written in two Tables, as the Jews had) yet they did by nature the things contained in the law, and having not the law, were a law unto themselves. Which showed the work of the law written in their hearts; their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts among themselves either accusing or else exausing one another. Now this Faculty of governing and regulating all our Moral Actions, and of passing Sentence upon them, is an excellence of the Rational Soul, which cannot be pretended to be in any Animals which are purely Sensitive, how sagacious soever they appear; because Actions natural are the highest they can go to. As for the Rules of Sobriety, Righteousness, and Godliness, they are wholly destitute of them, as destitute as a Stone is of Sense, or as a Plant is of Reason. And hence it is that their Souls are mortal. Whether they be altogether material, or so necestarily depending upon Matter that they cannot subsist without a Body, I will not now dispute. No question but they perish with their Bodies: For having no Law of Morality to act by, they cannot be accountable either for Obedience or Transgression, and so cannot be supposed to survive, because they are uncapable either of Reward or Punishment in another World; as being without all Power of Reflecting, and consequently of having any Joys or Remorse of Mind in this. To conclude this Consideration; Besides a Principle of Life, a Power of Sensation, and a Faculty of retaining Ideas which spring from things without us, we find in ourselves such high and exquisite Powers, that supposing a Being Angelical, and next to a Deity, was to have been formed on purpose that it should be invested with Humane Flesh, there to display the great Glories of its Nature, we cannot conceive how a Being could have been made more like to an Angel, than the Rational Soul is: A Being that is able to search into the Secrets of Nature, and into the invisible things of God; to entertain itself with lofty Contemplations; to discover recondite mysterious Truths; to open the Treasures of Philosophy; to fill the World with Histories of things past, and to foresee things to come, things which naturally must, or probably may happen; to know all that a Finite Creature is well capable of knowing; to set out the just Boundaries between Good and Evil; to inform the World how far they may honourably and safely go, and what they are at their Peril to avoid; to employ Mankind in the most curious Arts; to furnish them with the most delightful and useful Sciences; to give measures to all States and Princes; to prescribe to all Societies the truest Methods for their Preservation and Welfare; to show them what noble Ends they are to pursue, and what are the wisest and best means of bringing those Ends to pass; to fit Men for the greatest and most generous Undertake, and to make them Men of Renown; to inspire them with laudable Ambition, and upon animating Hopes to found glorious Achievements, and to erect the Fortunes of Kingdoms; to make us aspire towards the highest and most excellent Enjoyments: In short, to help us to do all the great things that can be done by mortal Creatures here; and in the midst of our Labours under the Sun, to show us a Glimpse of another World, and to sit us for a Blessed and Eternal State in it. 2. These are the noble Powers of the Rational Soul; and hence I argue, in the Second place, that this Excellence of it is a manifestation of the Existence of a God; because these high Endowments and Faculties could not be derived from the casual Modifications of Dead and Senseless Matter, but from the Agency of an intelligent Cause, that is eminently and absolutely Perfect. For it is a certain Principle of Reason, That there cannot be more in the Effect than there is in the Cause. If there could be more, it would follow that Something can come of itself out of Nothing, which is impossible. Defect of Power in an Agent, is a Nonentity, a want of Being, a Privation, an incapacity, an utter Nothing: Nor is it conceivable how any thing can be drawn into Existence out of it, but by a superior, Power over it: For should we suppose it to produce any thing of itself, we should suppose it to produce that which it hath not power to bring forth, and to give it a Being which it hath not at all itself; that is, to bring it out of an Incapacity, or out of Nothing: Which no Humane Reason can think how a thing can do by any Casuality of its own, because there is a defect of such Casuality. If then there be something more and higher in a Rational Soul than what is in Matter, it must be inconsistent with Reason to imagine, that Matter caused it; for than it would necessarily follow, that it caused it without a Power, or by its Incapacity, Inability, and Defect; that is, out of Nothing. When we observe this admirable frame of Nature, the Universe, can we think that its Order was effectively caused by Confusion? It's Harmony by Discord? It's Beauty by Disproportions? the Usefulness of its parts by Error? It's wise and regular Fabrication by Nonsense? This were to make one Contrary, the cause of another; and with parity of Reason it might be said, that Water produceth Fire; and Darkness made the Sun; and that Death is the efficient Cause of Life, Sense and Motion. In like manner, when we consider the Nature and Faculties of the Rational Soul, and compare the whole frame of it with the Substance and Properties of dull, lifeless, and incogitative Matter, can we think that Corporiety was the cause of a thing that is immaterial? that Divisibility was the cause of a Being immortal? that Reason was the work of Stupidity? that Atoms taught us to Philosophise? that Wisdom sprang from the motion of little Bodies, void of all Art, Skill, and Knowledge? and that the Powers we find within us to act with Freedom and Choice; to direct our Actions by the Logic of Truth, and by the Laws of Virtue; to desire and intent our Good in all things; to pursue it with Eagerness, Understanding, and Delight; and to rejoice in the Fruition of it; can we think, I say, that all these things came from the Chance-Operations of Matter, which hath nothing of Sense or Thought in it? It may as well be said, that the tumbling of Stones and Timber together will produce Sensation, Intellection, Reasoning, Memory, Prudence, Conscience, together with those Passions and Affections which we feel within us: In short, It may be as well said, that a Rational Soul can be educed and drawn out of an Heap of Rubbish. As an Effect cannot naturally proceed from a contrary Cause; so neither can an Effect transcend the Perfection and Virtue of its natural Cause. It may fall short of it; or it may come up to a degree of equality with it; but it can no more go beyond or above it, than Waters can naturally run higher than the Fountainhead stands. So that were there nothing in the World besides dead and senseless Matter, modified into various Forms at a venture, by undesigning and unintending Motion, it were impossible for a Rational Soul to spring out of it; for the Effect would be much nobler than the Cause, and consequently would emerge out of nothing. For I ask; Were the Perfections of a Rational Soul in Matter before the Soul was made, or were they not? If you suppose they were, than this ridiculous Conceit will follow, that Atoms have in them Knowledge, Wisdom, Morality, Liberty of Will, and such other Perfections which belong unto the Soul. If they were not antecedently there, than this ridiculous Conceit will follow, That Perfections were caused by Incapacity; or that Matter gave a perfect Being an Existence, which itself had not to give: Which would be a plain Contradiction; and would moreover ascribe a creative Power to Matter (though it be a thing altogether Passive) when the Men I now dispute against will not allow a Deity itself that Power, because they think it an impossibility. Dr. Cudworth Int. Syst. p. 862 Hence a Learned Author concludes positively, that neither can Matter, (which is a mee● Passive thing) efficiently produce a Soul, nor a Soul Matter; no finite imperfect Substance being able to produce another Substance out of nothing; much less can such a Substance as hath a lower degree of Entity and Perfection in it, create that which hath an higher. There is a Scale or Ladder of Perfections in the Universe, one above another; and the Production of things cannot possibly be in way of Ascent from lower to higher, but must of necessity be in way of Descent, from higher to lower. Now to produce any one higher Rank of Being from the lower, as Cogitation from Magnitude and Body, is plainly to invert this Order in the Scale of the Universe, from downwards to upwards; and by the same reason that one higher Rank or Degree in this Scale is thus unnaturally produced from a lower, may all the rest be produced also. The Consequence of all this is, That Matter being so utterly uncapable of making an immaterial, immortal, intelligent Soul; there must be a most perfect Mind that gave it its Faculties and its Nature. Either it must be supposed to have no Cause at all, (which would be most absurd to imagine) or it must have a competent Cause; or a higher and most perfect Being to derive its Existence from. A spiritual Substance cannot come but from a Spirit; nor can any thing be the cause of Mind but Mind; or of Understanding but Understanding; or of Reason but Reason; nor of Self-activity and Liberty, but that which is a self-active, voluntary and free Agent. Since the rational Soul is so excellent a Creature, there must be a most excellent Being that created it; a Being that contains all manner of Perfection; a Being of unlimited Power that could make it of Nothing, by the force and fecundity of his own Divine Will; and a Being of the most exalted and glorious Nature that could give Existence to such an admirable Being, as every humane Soul is; void of Matter and Corruption; uncapable Naturally of dying; in every respect like unto a Deity; Spiritual, Intelligent, Active, Wise, Powerful, Benign, Kind and Good. But those unreasonable Men who deny the Existence of God, finding themselves pressed with the invincible force of this Argument, would shift it off by pretending that what we suppose touching the spiritual Nature and Faculties of men's Souls, is not to be granted. They say that there is nothing real in the World but Matter and Motion: That our very Souls themselves are Matter, consisting of a smother and finer sort of Atoms, or indiscernible Motes; by the various Motions and Modifications whereof the Soul Thinks, Understands, Exerts the Will, and Acteth. They will have mind to be nothing but the local Motion of some more active Particles of Matter. They will have Knowledge to be nothing but a Passion caused by the intromitting of Images into the Brain, from sensible Objects without. They will have Memory to be nothing but the decaying remainder of Motion; like the sound about a Bell when it has done ringing. And every act and determination of the Will, they would have to be Clinamen Principiorum, or a declination of Atoms from a kind of perpendicular Line, in which they suppose them to have hung before: So that according to these Men, every Operation of the Soul lieth in Atoms, and is derived from Atoms; which Whimsies deserve Laughter rather than any grave or sober Confutation. For is it possible for Men of true, solid Reason to believe that Atoms can be a bubbling Fountain of Thoughts? That they can study, contemplate, perceive, argue, form Opinions, resolve Doubts, discover Truth, find out the different Natures of Good and Evil, direct our Actions, tell us what we must Do, and what we must Avoid, promise Rewards, or threaten us with Punishment? Nay inflict Punishment presently, and plague wicked People with the intolerable Smart that attends an evil Conscience? They may as well say that Atoms can write Books; that the whole material World is an Academy of all manner of Learning; and that the Motes which we see dancing in the Sunbeams, are so many Historians, Orators, Philosophers and Divines. The truth is, 'Tis not Reason that is the Groundwork of those wild Conceits, but a sad Necessity they bring upon themselves of running to the most monstrous Absurdities, to avoid all Thoughts of a God, whose Existence they have disowned. For it there be such a thing as a rational Soul distinct from Matter and Body, it must inevitably follow that there is also a Deity who gave it its Being, because nothing but a Deity could give it. Therefore they who have the Front to deny the Being of a Deity, are forced to deny the immateriality of the Soul of course. And yet that the Soul is immaterial, its excellent Powers, Faculties and Operations will convince any one, that will but lay his Hand upon his Heart, and give himself leave to think soberly. For if the Soul be Matter, How came Men to dispute about its Immateriality? How had the Mind any Notion of it? How did the Mind get it at first, since it is infinitely too high for Matter? Nay, since the Notion of Incorporiety is so contrary and repugnant to the Nature and Notion of Matter: If the Soul be Matter, How comes it to judge of material Representations, and to discover those Impostures and Cheats, which Matter many times puts upon the Imagination? As for instance, The Sun is found to be vastly bigger than the whole Earth, though it appears to the Eye and Fancy to be but a Foot wide. There are a thousand other Errors wherewith our Senses and Imaginations are apt to be deluded: And how could the Mind look through all those Errors into the Truth and Reality of things, if it were not a nobler Being than Matter that measures sensible Objects by intelligible Ideas of its own, which are the proper Criteria of Truth? If the Soul were Matter, How could it be capable of Reflecting within itself? Or how could it Recollect so many things done long ago, in the Days of one's Minority, and Recover so many fugitive Ideas, as we find it doth Command; and this by a native Power of its own, purely by the strength of thinking? Matter cannot act upon Matter, but by some impulse from without it; much less can it act upon itself, as the Soul does, by a peculiar Faculty it has of casting about, and of rolling Thoughts within the Minds; and therefore it must be a noble Being distinct from Matter that hath a Principle of Activity, and an Empire within itself. If it were Matter, How could it command the Body in every Instance, and make it obey at Pleasure? Nay, how could it command itself to think on this Subject, or that, as it listeth? To go on a Meditating, or give it over? To resolve upon that Action, or another, without control? How could it foresee, deliberate, or advise? How could it entertain any inward Pleasures and Joys; impressions which Matter can no more receive than Rocks can dance? How could it contemplate so excellent a Being as a Deity? Or discourse of Eternity and another World? Or possess wicked Wretches with such Fears as they can never quite rid their Mind of? Or fill good Men with comfortable Hopes of a Reward? The natures of Good and Evil, and the Ideas of Divine Justice and Benignity, are too Sublime to fall under Sense, nor can they be incident to Matter; and he must have the most ridiculous Conceptions in the World of his own Frame, who thinks that the Operations and Perfections of his Soul are no higher or better than what Clay, or Pebbles, or Chips would be capable of, were their Particles but otherwise modified. Hence we infer, That the rational Soul is of far higher Extraction than what Stone or Timber can pretend to: That it is infinitely of a more noble Nature than Atoms of Dust: And that its Operations and Perfections are vastly different from the Properties of Matter, how fine soever you suppose it to be. And therefore it will follow, either that these Operatiosn and Perfections sprang from Nothing; or that there is a Being of the most eminent and absolute Perfections, from whom they are derived; which indeed is the only true and satisfactory Account that can be given of the Nature and Faculties of a rational Soul. I have hitherto argued from Reason only; because they who deny the Existence of a Deity, are constrained by necessary Consequence to deny Divine Revelation too, and the Authority of the Holy Scriptures. However we may ex abundanti observe, what Moses tells us, Gen. 1. 27. God created man in his own image, in the image of God created be him: And what St. Paul tells us, 1 Cor. 11. 7. That a man is the image and glory of God. Which places of Scripture, though they are to be understood partly of that Dominion, Authority and Power, which God hath given Man as his Vicegerent and Representative over all things here below; yet do they, I conceive, speak also, and perhaps chief of that Similitude and Resemblance, which the Soul of every one of us, does, in its Frame, bear of the Divine Nature and Perfections; which will a little further show its Excellence, and consequently the Existence of a supereminent Being, whose Stamp and Impress it carries as far as the Capacities of a Creature can admit it. We find how volatile and nimble our Thoughts are, how soon they reach the very ends of the Earth; how quickly they compass Sea and Land; with what Facility they mount to Heaven; how speedily they take a view of the whole Frame of Nature, as it were at once; and with what Celerity the Mind does gather and comprehend within itself so many different Ideas. And what is this but an imperfect Representation of the Omnipresence of that God, Who is said to fill heaven and earth? Jer. 23. 24. Nay, Whom the heaven, and heaven of heavens cannot contain? 1 King. 8. 27. We find also, That notwithstanding this Divine Activity of the Mind, and its Ubiquitary Ranging abroad, we can command it home, and make it retire into a delightful Solitude, to view those entertaining Ideas within itself; and we do often fix it so, that outward Objects cannot draw it off from the inward Operations it is intent upon, nor deprive it of the great Pleasures of Contemplation, and of Enjoying its own private Thoughts. And what is this but a faint Similitude of the All-sufficiency and Plenitude of a God, who standeth not in need of any things without himself, but is infinitely Blessed in the Contemplation of the Glories of his own Nature, and in the eternal Fruition of his own unspeakable Perfections. We find too, That though we know but in part, yet we can not only observe things present and before us, but can moreover call back things past and gone, and foresee Events that are Future or Possible; and can represent them all to our Minds, as if they were all now under our Eye. And what is this, but an umbratile show of the Omniscience of a God, whose Understanding is infinite, Psal. 47. 5. And before whom Hell and Destruction, and all the Hearts of the Children of Men are? Prov. 15. We find again, That there is in the Mind of Man a wonderful Fecundity of Power, to do almost any thing which is Necessary, Good, Honourable and Excellent: To form Notions, as it were, out of Nothing, and out of those Notions, which comparatively seem next to Nothing, to draw by the gradual Methods of Study and Consideration, Systems of Philosophy, Platforms of Politics, Schemes and Models of Arts, Volumes of Divinity; and whatever is useful or tendeth to improve the Knowledge, and to answer the Wants of Mankind. And what is this, but a weak Resemblance of the Omnipotence of that God, who by the infinite Fecundity of his Divine Power created all Things out of Nothing; Who spoke and they were done, who commanded and they stood fast? Ps. 33. 9 We find moreover in the Mind of Man a constant Disposition to do every thing for the sake of some Good, either real, or at least apparent; and accordingly to deliberate about the Choice of necessary and proper Means. And what is this but a little Signature of God's Wisdom, Who worketh all things according to the counsel of his own will, Ephes 1. 11. And maketh every thing to work together for the good of them that love him, Rom. 8. 28. We find furthermore in the Mind of Man innate Principles of Righteousness and Benignity; which no tract of Time, no Humours or Arts of People can totally obliterate, though the base Inclinations, and selfish Practices of some have strangely defaced them; for even Publicans and Sinners will do good to them, at whose Hands they have received good. And what is this but some Similitude of a God, who is Righteous in all his Ways; and whose Mercy is over all his Works; though it cometh vastly short of that Pattern which the Son of God gave the World from his Father, Who causeth his sun to shine upon the evil as well as upon the good, and sends his rain upon the just and unjust also, Matth. 5. 45. Some more Instances and Respects there are, wherein the Soul of Man does in some (though very scanty) measure resemble a Being that is eminently and absolutely Perfect. But these being added to the other Considerations, touching the immateriality and immortality of its Nature, and the excellence of its Faculties and Powers, are enough to make it appear to all reasonable Men, that there is verily a God above, after whose Image and Likeness the rational Soul is created. And this I have used as the last Argument to prove the Existence of a Deity, because it cometh so home and close that no Man can renounce a God, but by renouncing his own humane Nature, and by making himself like unto the very Beasts that perish, and are without understanding. I have now, I thank God, gone through with what brevity I could all those things which I proposed at my first entrance upon this Subject, to confirm you in the rational belief of the true and ever blessed God, in an Age which so aboundeth with Infidelity. Considering how Men on that side are wont to say, that we can have no Idea of God, because a Deity is supposed to be incorporeal, not subject to Sense; and so that a Deity is an unconceivable Nothing; therefore I did think it necessary in the first place to show what the Notion of God meaneth; namely a Being of eminent and absolute Perfections. Out of which general Description there follows, by necessary Consequence, a more particular account of those Perfections which relate, either to the Nature of God, as Independency, Incorporeity, Eternity, etc. or as to God's Actions, as perfect Knowledge, Wisdom, Power, Goodness, and the like. Then having showed how Intelligible and Rational this Notion of God is, though it be not any sensible Idea, as those are which come from corporeal Objects without us, I proceeded, in the next place, to prove there actually is such a perfect Being. 1. From the order of Causes, which obligeth us to acknowledge that there must be one first Cause, Self-existent and Eternal; or a Being not made by any other, and the like. 2. From the general consent of Mankind, which cannot rationally be ascribed to any but that first Cause, who is the common Author of humane Nature. 3. From some extraordinary Occurrences, which plainly show that there is a supreme Being of the most perfect Knowledge and Power. 4. From the Frame and State of the World, which is so admirable for its Order, for its Beauty, for the usefulness of its Parts, for the resemblances of Wisdom in Creatures which are Irrational, and for the ample Provision that is made for the good of all Things, that it would be the most senseless imagination to attribute this goodly Frame of Nature to Matter and Motion, to blind Fortune and Chance, or to any other Cause, but that Almighty, Alwise, and most benign Being whose Perfections are infinite. And, 5. To evince this further yet, I have taken particular notice of the admirable Frame of the rational Soul, which in its Nature, Faculties and manner of Operating, bears an evident Resemblance and Representation of a Deity. This whole Speculation being thus ended, I should now, in the last place, draw it down to our Practice, and show what we are to render unto God for all these bright Manifestations of his Divine Glory; what just Acknowledgements they call for at our hands; what Acts of Faith and Admiration, of Humility and Holiness; of Adoration and Praise, of Love and Obedience, and Imitation, and the like Expressions of Religion, are due from us. But this Subject is so copious, as well as of such great importance, that it ought to be handled distinctly, and with Care, and therefore requires a Discourse by itself. At present I shall conclude with a devout Hymn out of the Writings of the Holy Psalmist, who considering the transcendent Greatness of God's Majesty, the Glory of his Nature, the Variety of his Works, and his stupendious Wisdom, Power, and Goodness throughout all, summoned the whole World to join with him in the Adoration of their great and only Creator. O praise the Lord of heaven: praise him in the height. ... Praise him all ye angels of his: praise him all his host. Praise him sun and moon: praise him all ye stars and light. Praise him all ye heavens: and ye water that are above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lord, for he spoke the word and they were made, he commanded and they were created. He hath made them fast for ever and ever: he hath given them a law which shall not be broken. Praise the Lord upon earth, ye dragons and all deeps. Fire and hail, snow and vapours, wind and storm, fulfilling his word. Mountains and all hills: fruitful trees and all cedars. Beasts and all : worms and feathered fowls. Kings of the earth and all people: princes and all judges of the world. Young men and maidens, old men and children; praise the name of the Lord: for his name only is excellent, and his praise above heaven and earth, Psalm, 148. O speak good of the Lord all ye works of his, in all places of his dominion. 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