Ex librit C. K. OGDEN THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES A LETTER To a PRIEST of the CHURCH of ROME, On the SUBJECT of IMAGE-WORSHIP; In ANSWER to a LETTER Sent by Him to THO. HUNTER* A PRIEST of the CHURCH of ENGLAND. Nunc ardet Lis ilia Crucularia. Vix credas in Re fatua quantum Homines, qui fapere aliquid videbantur, infa- niunt. Rideo tamen, cum cogito quibus illi & quam gravibus ac folidis rationibus Defenfuri fint fuam Cru- culam. JEWEL'J Letter to PET. MARTYR, LIVERPOOL: Printed by J. SADLER, M,DCC,LIU. ; AD FERTISE ME NT. T is proper to acquaint the Reader, that out of Regard to the Gentleman who wrote the Letter, to which the following is an Anfwer, and at his Defire, the Letter is not publifhed ; as he has in this Difpute freely exfrefid his Sentiments^ without Regard to the ^Public. This, I think, is a juft Apolo- gy for any Inaccuracy, or Negligence in Language : But as Truth, and not Elegance, is to be fought after in a Contrgverfy of this Kind, Arguments impertinent or inefficient cannot plead the fame excufe ; they ought to be examined and expofed, that both the Leaders and the Led may fee what a wretched Caufe That is, which ftands in need of fuch Support. TUP THE Author of the following Letter has, further, to defire ; That what he has been forced to fay of Want of Charity, in the Church ofJRome t he may not be underffcood to extend to every Member of that Church. He is under particular Obligation to put in this Caution, as he has the Pleafure to be acquainted with fome private Gentlemen and fome Priefts of that Communion, of whofe Humanity and Candour he has a juft Efteem } and whofe Practice, to their Ho- nour, is fuperior to their Principles. A LETTER to, &c. SIR, T is now feme Time iince I had the Favour of your Letter : Other Engagements have occa- iion'd my Delay in Acknowledg- ing it in the Manner it deferv'd. Nor was I aware that you would have fhewn your Performance in public Company, proclaim'd your Triumph, and got the Mob to join in your Applaufe as a Champion unanfwer- able, till you had waited awhile, and been bet- ter inform'd that I intended you no Anfwer. BUT it was ever my Delign, and without Compullion, to give you a Reply ; (to this Publication you have indeed forced me) tho' I might have faved myfelf the Trouble, as you have given up the Point in Difpute Your Charge upon us, (and remember you began it). was want of eommon Honefly, for faying you \voriliipped a A Letter on Image-Worjhif* worfliipped Images, made Gods, &c. I prov'd the Practice upon you ; you now no longer deny it, but are got to defending it A LOVE of Truth, of you, and of others, however different from me in religious Sentiments, into whofe Hands this Letter may at fometimft fall, obliges me Hill to follow you, and to let you fee how you have impofed upon yourfelf, or been impofed on, by others, in the Arguments you produce to juftify your Idolatry. FOR the fake of perfpicuity and eafe, I will divide your Letter into Parts, and endeavour to anfwer the moft material Paragraphs by fo many Sections. YOUR Proof is from Scripture, Reafon, and human Authority. I readily join with you in making thefe the Standard by which we are to judge of the Truth in the prefent Debate. You begin, where you ihould do, with Scrip- ture. i. > YOUR firft Argument from thence, is that of Exod. 25, v. 1 8, &c. ' Thou flialt make two c Cherubims of Gold, of beaten Work malt f thou make them, in the two Ends of the Mercy c Seat, &c. This you produce to prove the Making of Images^ and that too by the Command of Almighty GOD. You mult here mean the Making them for a religious Ufe and Worihip, or you fay nothing to the Purpofe $ for this is what we have charged and proved upon you, and what you do not in this Place deny, but defend. . j. Now A Letter on Image-WorJbif. 3 1. Now is it not furprizing, that any Man in his Senfes, and with his Eyes open, fhould overlook that of Exodus 20, v. 4, &c. c Thou f fhalt NOT MAKE to thyfelf any graven ' Image Thou fhalt not bow down thyfelf ' to them, nor ferve them,'- and yet fhould find in the fame Book, a Command of Almighty GOD to make and keep Images for a religious Ufe and Worihip ? Is this the Way to defend Religion ; to make the Scriptures inconliflent, and fet GOD at Variance with himfelf ? Should a Jew hear you talk at this Rate, he would cry out B L A S P H E M Y *~ would glory in his Infidelity, and infult over your Ignorance or Impolition : For my own Part, I am forry to fee any Men, who call themfelves CHRISTIANS, reduced to thefe wretched Shifts, and obliged to abufe GOD'S Word in order to defend their own Inventions. 2. THE two Cherubims were made by the efpecial Command of GOD. Have you any fuch fpecial Command, or any Command at all for making the Images of CHRIST, the Virgin MARY and the Saints? You may remember, * This was actually the Cafe at the great Council of the Je the Aflemhly fell into high Clamour againft them and their Religion, crying out, A 7 o CHRIST, no Woman God, no InterccJJton of Saints, no vior/bif' fing of Image t, no praying to the Virgin MART, &c- They rent their Cloaths, and caft Duft upon their Heads, and cried aloud, Blafphemj'. Elafphe my ,' BRSTT'* Narrative, mwxtd to Bijbop CLATTOM en that 4 A Letter on Image-WorJbif. that the fame Authority, which forbids the mak- ing of Images, forbids the Committing of Mur- der : Yet ABRAHAM had a fpeeial Command to facrifice his Son: And you may as well, and as confidently with the Commandment, preach tip the Lawfulnefs of Murder from the Example of ABRAHAM, f as of Idolatry from that of the Cherubims. 3. If does not appear, that the Jews were commanded to worfhip, or did ever worlhipthem. In truth they never faw them, being not permitted, except the High Prieft, and that but once a Year, to enter into the Holy of Holies. Your Images are publicly expofed to the View of the People : Your Churches are full of them : You confefs in this Letter, that you kifs them, bow, creep and burn incenfe before them. 4. SUPPOSING that the People did bow to- wards the Ark, the Holy of Holies and the Cherubims : \\~as not GOD fignally there prefent? Did not the Glory of the Lord dwell between (or as the Learned render it, inhabit) the Che- rubims? Does any fuch Glory, us one of your Writers affirms, fhine forth from your Images ? 5. THE Ark, the Cherubims, &c. were Parts of the Ceremonial Law of the Jews, and a F/- f I AM forry to fay it, that fomething of thrs Kind has been done, under a pretended Zeal for Religion- Upon the Maffacree of Vafft, we are told by a French Writer and a Bigot of his Church, that the Catho- lic Preachers declared there was no Cruelty in it ; and juftify'd this bloody- Execution by the fpccial Examples of Moszs, JEHU, &c- Memoirs of MICH, de CASTLEKAU, 'Land- 1724, p. 136, 7. \- AMKGHUS ia Dr- MIDDLE-TON'S prefat. Difcourfe to his Letttr .from Rome,/). 31. gun 'A Letter en Image-WorJblf. 5 gurcfor the Time then prefent Were among the weak and beggarly Elements, which were done away by the Spiritual Worlhip of the Gofpel, and annuIPd on Account of their Unprofitable- nefs, by the more perfect Revelation of JESUS CHRIST : But you, Sir, are for Hill retaining the Ufages of the ceremonial, while you affectedly forget the Precepts of the moral, and the fpiritual Nature of the Chrijiian Law. 6. SOME of your own mofl eminent Writers feem to have given up this PaiTage of facred Writ, as impertinent or inefficient to the Pur- pofe for which you have produced it. DUPIN tells us, that the Bifhops in the fecond Council of Nice, c inlifted upon this Proof, and pretended 6 that the Cherubims had humane Faces, and c that the Ufe of Images is thus eltablimed in c the Old Teftament/ But what were the Sen- timents of this learned Hiftorian upon this Text? ' I leave you to judge,' fays he, c whe- 6 ther That be a fufficient Proof. ||' And, I believe, you will find your angelic Doctor THO- MAS AQJJINAS afierting, that the Cherubims were not placed in the Tabernacle to have divine Worfhip paid them . ii. You produce the Serpent of Brafs, or fiery Serpent from Numbers 21, y. 8, 9, to juftify your making and keeping of Images. i. I DO not find one Word in the Hiftory of the Brazen Serpent, importing that it was J Eeclefiaftical Hiftory of the 6th Cent, f- \}~- Aqjuix. Piima fecundae, Qu- 102. Art- 4, p, 6- B worfliipcd 6 A Letter on Image-Worjbif. worshiped, or commanded fo to be. You fay, c It was commanded by GOD himfelf, and pro- c bably highly eiteemed, at leaft by thofe it c cured.' Now to vindicate yourfelves it behoves you to mew, that your Images are Commanded by GOD himfelf, and cure thofe who look on them; and then you may have fome better PJea for your Efleem of them. 2. THE Hiftory of the brazen Serpent is fo far from juftifying your Caufe, that it makes dire&ly againft it ; for we find that King HE- ZEKIAH brake in Pieces This among other Ima- ges y and, as it ihould feem, for no other Reafon, but becaufe it was worfhiped, c For unto thofe e Days the Children of Ifrael did burn Ineenfe * to it, and he called it Nehnfhtait*' THUS then (lands the Logic of your Argu- ment from this Scripture : The Je-zus might not worlhip a Picture, Image or Reprefentation of a Serpent i therefore the Remanifls may worlhip Pictures, Images and Reprefentations. King HEZEKIAH commanded Images to be dcftrofd:, therefore Pope Pius might command them to be ivorfoiped. Dr. FULK feems to have fet this Part of the facred Story in a true Light. f The brazen Serpent,' fays he, c firft and lalt was an Image, c holy, when it was commanded by GOD to be * made a Sacrament of our Redemption by 4 CHRIS TJ lawful, when it was referved only ' for Memory of that excellent Miracle 3 unlaw- * a Kings 1 8, v. 4. fill,. A Letter on Image -Worjbip. j * fill, curfed and abominable, when it was wor- * fhiped, and therefore juftiy broken in Pieces * by the godly King EZEKI AS f. s . To the fame Purpofe TERTULLIAN had long before obferv'd, that the brazen Serpent was made 4 not'as an Image of Idolatry, but as a Fi- gure of their Remedy j not in derogation of the Law, but as a Figure of the Crofsj.' And hus JUSTIN MARTYR : c It was a Figure of the bleifed JESUS, who was to fave us from the Biting of the Old Serpent ; for otherwife how can we reconcile it with the Command of the fame GOD to make no Kind of Image |j > in. BUT it feems in i Cbron. 28, v. 18, you find an Altar of Incenfe^ and Cherubims fpreading out their Wings ^ &c. i. PRAY, Sir, do not you find in the fame Chapter, and commanded by the fame Authority, the Pattern of the Porch, and of the Hoitjes', and of the 1'rcafurics and of the upper Chambers and of the Inner Parlours,, and oj the Place of the Mercy Scat and for all the Ve/Jeh of Ser- vice in the Houfe of the Lord and Gold for the Tables of Shew Bread and alfo pure Gold for the Flejb-bookS) &c ? Does not your Argument here prove a great deal too much, and imply the Ne- ceflity, or at leaft the Lawfulnefs of the Temple Service, under the Chriftian Difputation ? Ptut ) Defence of the Engli/h Tr^cflations of the Bibjs, f, 37 , ^ Lib. dc Idolatiia, c- 5. ; Se? Prefervat- aainft Popery, Ti;. &.f. 165, Bz z, Bui 8 A Letter on Image-WorJhif. 2. BUT alt this, faith DAVID, the Lord me to underftand in Writing by bis Hand upen me. v. 19 ; and it is further faid, that he had the Pattern of all by the Spirit, v. 12. Now, Sir, to make this Scripture anfwer to your Purpofe, you muft mew that Pope Pius had by the Spirit the Pattern of the Houfe of the Lord and that c the Lord made him to underftand in Wri- 6 ting by his Hand upon him, all the Works of c this Pattern.' Pleafe, Sir, to fpecify the hif- torical Record, where I may find this Revelation made to his Holinefs, or the Fathers of the Nicee Council, of a Pattern of GOD'S Houfe, to be fi- niited by their SuccefTors. IV. c BUT JOSHUA,' you fay, c and all the * Elders of Ifrael fell to the Earth upon their * Faces before the Ark< out of Refpect to it. * Jos. 7. v. 6. 1. SIR, you mould know that the Ark is com- monly called the Ark of the Lord and the Ark of GOD : was made by his fpecial Command, Exod. 25 ; and the Cloud, which at firft filled the whole Tabernacle, afterwards refided on this Ark of the Teftimony, with a great Luftre, fliining from between the Cherubims : A manifeft Indication of GOD'S majeftic Prefence ! Can you, Sir, fay all, or any Thing like this of your Images ? 2. JOSHUA'S Addrefs in this Pofture of Humi- liation was not to the Ark, or any Imagery that belonged to it i but directly to GOD, v. 7. And JOSHU \faid ; Alas O Lord GOD ! Would to GOD \ r A Letter on Image-Worfbif. $ GOD ! O Lord, whatjball I fay. Your Practice is but the dire& Contrary : You addrefs the Crofs, the Virgin Mary, &c. before whofe I- mages you proftrate and adore. " v. YOUR next Argument from Scripture is the Example of the fame JOSHUA, who put off his Shoe out of Refpeft to the Holy Land, fay you, as the Angel bad him. Now there are a few material Differences be- tween your Condu& and JOSHUA'S. 1. HERE was a fpecial Divine Appearance ; the Captain or Prince of the Hoft of the Lord, before whom JOSHUA fell on his Face to the Earth, and did Worlhip. Have your Images any fuch Signatures of Divinity about them ? He had before him a living Exhibition of heavenly Splendor : Your Images are dead Matter, the Labour of human Art. 2. THE Earth was no Image or Reprefenta- tion of any Thing holy, but was made facred by the divine Prefence : You worfhip Images or Reprefentations not made facred by any Di- vine Prefence. 3. JOSHUA put off his Shoe by an exprefs divine Command : You worfhip Images, con- trary to a direct Prohibition from GOD. VI. c BUT was not,' fay you, * JACOB a * grievous Idolater ( i. e. upon Proteftant Prin- * ciples) by adoring the Top of JOSEPH'S Rod?' And here you refer me to the Latin Vulgate. REALLY io A Letter on Image-Worfoif. REALLY, Sir, you amaze me : I did not ex- pet this Arrow from your Magazine of Artillery provided for the Defence of holy Church. I had it indeed in my Eye, when I writ to you laft ; and as this Text, I mean the Tranilation you refer to, was publifh'd by the Autho- rity of the Popes Si XT us the Fifth and CLE- MENT the Eighth, it feemed a fufficient War- rant to charge you with countenancing the Worfhip of Images. But when I look'd into an eflablifhed Book of yours, fbe Grounds of the Catholic Doff ririe, .9, where are to be feen moft of your other Arguments in Defence of Image-Wormip, and I found this omitted, I jmagin'd you had been afliamed of it, and fo would not prefs you with a Proof, which you feemed to have renounced. The Author oi 'The Grounds, &c. probably thought, that the Au- thority of your Popes might be called in question by urging this Tranflation, as the genuine Senfe of the Original, and fo wifely declined it : He might conceive that it would reflect upon Infal- libility to draw it into the Debate, as authorizing Falihood ; and that Holinefs itfelf might not efcape without Reproach, when catch'd in pub- liiLing a Lie. But you, Sir, are refolved to go through with your Work, regardlefs of Confequences, and undiftinguimingly apply e- very rotten Buttrefs that has but the Appear- ance of a Prop, to fupport your Church, tho* it makes the Foundation, and manifeftly threatens the whole Fabrick. I mull therefore follow you whither you have drawn me. i. YOUK. A Letter on lmage-Wor(bif. 1 1 1. YOUR Tranflation is falfe, and confe- quently the Authority that eftablifhes it is falli- ble, and the Argument drawn from it inconclufive. You have left out the Prepolition iV, which fignifies in this Place upon or toward. Now to bow n$on or towards a Staff, can in no fair Con* ftruftion imply, that the Perfon fo bowing wor- fhips the Staff : Or will you fay that when A- B RAH AM bowed himfelf toward the Ground* , the Patriarch worjbip'd the Ground? You may re. member that the primitive Chriflians worfniped GOD towards the Eaft ; and that the Heathens thence took Occalion to accufe them of Worfhip. ing the riling Sun : Will you. Sir, join the Cry, and from this Circumllance of bowing towards the Eaft, lay, that primitive Chriftianity was guilty of Pagan Idolatry ? 2. THO' your defign'd Omiffion in this Place cannot be juftified, yet our Addition may. Our Translators, like honeft Men, have the Word hanirig in Italics^ to tell'the Reader, that it is not in- the Original. At the fame Time we muft defend the Supplemental Word} as moil agreeable to the Senfe of the facred Text, 'till you give us a better. 3. YOUR Tranflation is not only not agreeable to the Original, but does Injury to the Patriarch's Character. He adored the Top of his Rod. Pray, Sir, is this Circumftance of JACOB'S Worfhip- ing his Rod or Staff any Argument of his Faith in GOD, or worthy the being thus parti- cularly taken notice of by the Holy Ghofl? But it appears to me a very natural Pi&ure, and * JTTI rlvj y\w. GsjJ. 1 8. 2. con- i a . 'A Letter on Image-Worjbif. convincing Proof of the Strength of ISRAEL'S Faith, that he, very old and very weak, be- ing now a dying Man, Ihould rowze himfelf fo far as to be able, with the Help of a Staff; or leaning upon it, to bow himfelf in token of Adoration at his Blefling the Sons of JO- SEPH. The Bowing or Worihiping might very naturally be an outward Expreflion of his inward Thankfulnefs and pious Gratitude to GOD, upon the Recollection of his paft Mercies, or the Profpecl: of the future Bleflings promifed to his Race : Or it might be the Pofture of a Ihort Prayer for their fpeedy accomplifhment : But that JACOB worjhiped the fop of his Staff f (as if t SIR, Inever before met with what you fo juftly remark of the abfurd Tranflation of Heb- II, v. ai. x) TrftOfftXVVtKTlV IJT\ 70 axpOV T? DOcQ^S ai)TJ5 . into the Latin et adoravit faftigium virgf ejns, as the Vulgate hath it. This I am well affured, St- JEROM was too ftanch againft all Idolatry to have been the Author of: Yet I think they call the Vulgate Latin St- JEROM'S Verfion. The Greet Text itfelf I can hardly approve (tho' the infpired Author of the Epiftle to the Hebrews has, by ufing it, given it fomehow the Sanction of Divine Au- thority) as it is the Septuagint's falfe Verfion of Genejls 47, v. 3i t where the Hebrew is : mSDH l^T"'?V ^N^iET ^flTT!^ and ISRAEL bowed down uptn the Head nf the Bed : whicb the Greet Interpreters neglecting the Points rendred as if it had been iltSQrj ( 7* "paSJa ) adding the Relative aura which is not in the Hebrew And from this falfe Greek the Infallible Church (as what cannot Infalli- bility do!) has cook 'd up a Divine Authority for Worihiping Images} as if the dying Patriarch had worfhip'd fome little Egyptian Tcraph, fbrm'd on the Head of JOSEPH'S Staff. The Targum of Onkelos hath it in the Chaldaic exaftly to the Hebrew NL)~V $*"T^ ^"^ T^Dl where the Chaldaic Word ND~\y is quite different from N~l!2 VF the Word for a Staff ufed in the Chaldee of Exodus 4, v. ^. and fo could not be fubftituted for the other, and this condemns the Greet *paj3&. Nay the Vulgate Latin hath ctmerfnt *d LeSidi caput ; which (fuppofina; St- JEROM the Author of that Verfion) is a pretty ftrong Argument of his having had the Pointed Hebrew, as he was very careful not to leave the Greek but when forced by the Propriety of the Htbrtw.' N. B- the learned Reader Is indebted for this canons Remark to Mr. P. WHIT FIELD ; /; at my Rryw/? aFnyji it to bt pnblijbed* it A Letter on Image-WorJkif. 13 it had been fome little Egyptian Teraph) after all the iignal Blemngs he had received from Heaven, is amoft fad Proof of Patriarchal Faith and Re- ligion i and I cannot but wonder, that any Gentleman of Piety and Learning, or even com- mon Senfe, can practice Image- Worfliip, and preach in defence of it, upon fuch wretched Pretences, in Defiance of an exprefs Command, and the fevereft Denunciations of GOD by the Mouth of MOSES and the fucceeding Prophets, again and again repeated. PRAY, Sir, when your Hand was in, why did you not give us RACHAEL'S Healing her Father L ABAN'S Gods? (What a venerable An- tiquity too was here?) Or the fix hundred Men of the Children of DAN going off with MICAH'S Ephod and Teraphim and the graven Image? Thefe had been as much to your Purpofe as JACOB'S Rod, which we know not was either Image or Object of Worfhip. 4. I WOULD further obferve to you, that Pope ADRIAN in his Letter in Defence of Image- Wormip, read and ratified by the Council of Nice, quotes this very Text as it is read in our Tranflation : c JACOB Worfhiped en the Top c of his Staff; * and tho' he differs from us ia expounding it of JOSEPH'S Staff, yet he adds, that it was not the Staff hz wor/kiped. % Here, Sir, let me ask you, which of thefe Popes was moft infallible ? ADRIAN who quoted the Text honeltly, tho' he expounded it badly, and ap- 4 Aft. = f. 107, 6, C l' i 4 A Letter on Image-Worjhlf. p]y'd it to a bad Purpofe ? or SIXTUS and CLEMENT, who have authorized Falfhood, and patroniz'd Forgery to the fame Purpofe ? VII. BUT if this will not fuit me, you have it feems what will; viz. SOLOMON'.? and all the Congregation of \fatV s facrificing Sheep and Oxen without number More the Ark : And you refer me to 2 Chron. 5. 6. 1. HERE you are got again to the Temple- Service and ceremonial Law 3 both long iince abolifli'd. Or, 2. IF this Text is a juftification of your Caufe and of your Practice, it proves too much , requires your Hecatombs flain before your Ima- ges, as they were before the Altar. But I con- ceive that Sacrifice was not a relative Honour, or inferior Refpect ; which is all that you pre- tend in this Letter to plead for, to be paid to your Images. 3. THE Sacrifice was made not to but before the Ark. Here is not any religious Worfhip paid to it, except you will fay and inlift, that this Sacrifice was to the Ark and not to GOD. But if you will look at the Remainder of this and the next Chapter, you will find, that the whole folemn Service was here directed imme- diately to GOD. Why did you not rather quote 2 SAM. 6. v. 15, 16, where DAVID and all the Houfe of Iprael are defcribed, as bringing up the Ark of the Lord with Ihouting and with the Sound of the Trumpet? In truth, neither in this A Letter on Image-Ivor Jhif. 15 this Place was the Wovden Machine^ as you call it, any Object of Worfhip. DAVID was feen leaping and dancing, but it was before the Lord. I WOULD but further obferve to you, as you have appealed to Scripture in juftification of Image- Worfhip, i. Tliat there is not one Sin in the Law and the Prophets more ftrictly., more frequently forbidden than Idolatry - 3 as if this was a Sin to which humane Nature would be moft liable, and the Devil moft apt to tempt Mankind. 2. That the Commandment on this Subject is exprefled in Terms the moft comprehenfive, fo as to exclude all Manner of Pretext, or excufe for the Viola- tion j GOD'S omnifcient Spirit forefeeing the Artifice that would be made ufeof, and theDif- tinftions framed to palliate this Sin and re- commend it to the World. 3. That the Worft of the Gentile Nations that GOD call out and deftroyed, and the Worft of Tyrants in the Old Teftament, were branded for this Crime. 4. That under the new Difpenfation, the Temple of GOD is fuppofed to have no Agreement with Idols ; and that the \Vormip of them is rank'd with the Worfhip of Devils, with Murder and the Worft of Crimes, Revel. 9. v. 20 ; and you might as ef- fehially prove the Lawiulnefs of thefe as of that from holy Scripture. 5. That the Judgments in- flicted upon the Jews for their Idolatry, were intended as an Example and a LefTon to all Ages and Nations, to deter them from the fame Crimes. Ezek. 16, v. 41. 23, aliis ejuf lr feftjf Grcgalibub fuperius confutavimus. B&R.oiJ. ad aan- R~5- 2.1 1 8 A Letter on Image-Worfbip. 2. I MIGHT acquaint you, that this Prelate was not in his' Time efteemed of any great Au- thority on this Subject, by either Church or State 5 that he was for his Writings admo- nimed by the Arch-Bimop ; that the Com- mittee for Religion, upon examining two of his Books, reported to the Houfe the falfe, erroneous, fapiftical Opinions found therein , and that one of his Books in particular was voted contrary to the Articles of the Church of England., and tending to the Difturbance of Church and State : 1 might acquaint you that he was publicly attack'd by the Writers of his Time, as a Main- tainer of Arminianifm and Popery f . But I con- fefs to you freely, that I believe he had hard Meafure j that he deferved better Treatment than he received, and that he fuffered in common with other honeft Men, by the Faction and Curfe of the Times. He might be imprudent, but I hope he was ingenuous : He had fome Singularities in Opinion that look favourably on Popery, yet I am perfuaded he was no Papift. Let us then take things at the beft j let his Character be allow'd,and his Authority be admitted as weighty as you pleafe, and fee what you will get by it. 3. IN the Epiltle Dedicatory to one of his Books | (a Book which none of your Party has been, or ever will be, able to anfwer) he * con- c eludes it a Point of plain Folly, if no more, for t WHiTiocKand RAPIK 5 and fee YATES'S Ibis ad defarem. Lend- 1616. \ Immediate Ad drefs unto GOD alone j Lend- 1614; or, a Treatife on the Invocation of Saints* c an y 'A Letter on Image-WorJkty. ip * any Man to implore the Help of others, to ufe * Advocates and Afliftants unto GOD in any exi- * gence, Time of Need, or Necefiity, who is c fo dire&ed, counfelled, and invited by GOD c himfelf to immediate Accefs, without Media- c tion, in Call upon me : Of Folly and ridiculous e Abfurdity, as it is by them conceived, taught c and laid down $ even by the moft learned, judi- e cious and advifed amongft them : Though I c know, in Point of Practice and Performance, c the limple, vulgar People, not acquainted with, c nor capable of fcholaftical Nicities or Difference c in Terms, of Invocation and Advocation, Help c original and derived, go to it down-right with c direct Addrefs indeed, unto flat Impietie againft c GOD, and Idolatrie in their ordinary Devotion e unto the Creature.' IN the Body of the Book he fays, c The c Church of Rome having loft her firft Love c hath proftituted her Devotions : As a com- * mon Strumpet, giveth Entertainment to any c Commoner promifcuoufly ; fo hath fhe alfo di- c vided her Call in her Devotions to every one c that paiFeth by 3 each Saint hath a Part : She c hath many Addrefles unto many Mediators, for c Accefle and Audience , for Difpatch and Kid- e dance at GOD'S Hands, to be heard and delive- * red in Time of Trouble ; few or none immedi- < ate To or By himfelf*. 3 ONE Quotation more, from another of his Books, I will give you, and delire you to apply * Invocation of S^nts. p. 57- ao A Letter on Image-WorJhif. it, and take it as an anfwer to fome other Parts o your Letter. * But whatfoever you fay, or ' howfoever you qualify the Thing with gentle c Words, we fay, in your Practice you far exceed $ ' and give them [Images] that Honour which * is Latria, a Part of divine Reipe6t and Wor- c fhip. J And afterwards, c The People go to * it with down-right Adoration, and your new * Schools defend, that the fame Refpect is due * to the Reprefenter, as mull be given to the * Reprefentee : So that the Crucifix is to be c reverenced with the felf-fame Honour that * JESUS CHRIST is : A Blafpemy not heard of c till THOMAS AQJJINAS fetit on Footf.' x. You next refer me to c The Proteftant Preach c Catechifm, to Mr. THORN DIKE, and the Prac- * tice of the Lutherans.' 1. WITH the firft and the laft I have nothing to do : My former Letter, if you recollect, was to vindicate Mr. H. as a Miniiter of the Proteftant Church of England, 2. AND as to Mr. THORNDIKE he was but one Man, whofe Opinion, fuppofe it favours you, is not to over-rule the conftant Judgment of our Chujch, and the uniform Sentiments of our moft eminent Bilhops and Divines, lince the Time of the Reformation. Or, will you allow that the Faith and Practice of what you call the Catholic Church, are difcredited by the private Opinions t Aufwer to the Gagg- p- 3 19* of A Letter on Image-Worfoty. 21 of one particular Author or two of your Com- munion ? Not one, but many, and thcfe of e- minent Learning and Parts, of your Perfuafion, have oppofed and condemned Image- Worfhipj and this, too, long after it was eftablifhed by the Council of Nice- Will you allow that this fets aiide the Acts of your Councils, the Decrees of your Popes, the conftant Do&rine and allow'd Practice of your Church, and the Sentiments of your other Divines ? I HAVE not Mr. THORNDIKE'S Book, which you refer to, by me j fo cannot tell how he may have qualified the Quotation you give me from it. But it appears from his Sentiments delivered a little before his Death, when it may be prefumed he fpoke from his Soul, that he was no Friend to your Church in General, nor to your Practice in Particular, the Subject of our prefent Debate. c THERE is,' fays he, c neither Scripture nor 6 Tradition for praying to Saints departed, nor c any Evidence that they hear our Prayers. 6 THEREFORE it evidences a carnal Hope, c that GOD will abate of the Covenant of our c Baptifm, which is the Condition of our Sal- c vation, for their fakes. e To pray to them for thofe Things, which 6 only GOD can give (as all Papifls do) is by the c proper Senfe of their Words, down-right Ido- c latry. c IF they fay their Meaning is by a Figure, c only todelire them to procure their Requefls * to GOD 3 how dare any Chriftian truft his I> ' Soul aa A Letter on Image-Worfbif. c Soul with that Church, which teaches that e which muft be Idolatry in all that underitand * not the F igure ? c THERE is neither Scripture nor Tradition for * Worlhiping the Crofs, the Images and Reliques c of Saints. * THEREFORE it evidences the fame carnal c Hope, that GOD will abate of his Gofpel for * fuch Bribes : Which is the Will-Worfhip of e MafTes, Pilgrimages and Indulgencies to that * Purpofe*.' So that, upon the Whole, the Difientions of our moft eminent Divines, upon this Subjeft, are not fo remarkable as you would make them : Not one of them it feems, not your favourite MON- TAGUE nor THORN DIKE acquitting you of Idolatry. XI. BUT notwithstanding this, we muft beefteemed, c divided in Hearts and Tongues, like the Builders * of Eabel^ quite deftitute of Unity ^ a diftin&ive * Mark of the true Church. 3 VERY modeftly indeed, and logically conclud- ed from the Premifes. All our Qioft eminent Di- vines, not one excepted, agree in Charging the Church of Rome with Idolatry : Erfo, .they all difagree. i. BUT this Objection of Want of Unity very ill becomes you, or at lead fome of your Frater- \ HICK'S Collection of Controverfial Trafts. Vol. i- Appendix. nity ; A Letter on Image-Worfhif. 23 ttity i who, 'tis generally reported, have been moil afliduous in railing and promoting our Divi- fions, and under borrowed Names and Characters have driven our different Parties in Religion to extremes. You may be bely'd in this Charge upon you 3 but when it is notorious that fome ot your Church have been moft Inftrumental in rai- ling Fa&ion and fomenting Rebellion in the State, it requires a large Degree of Faith to believe you have wiftied well to the Peace, or not promo- ted the Divilions of the Church. 2.. IF the Romanics are more- at unity among themfelves than the Proteftants, let us confider the Reafons of it, and we may poflibly find, that they reflect no Glory on your Caufe, or on your Church. Your Eccleliaitical Polity is fo framed as to fuit all Humours. None have Reafon to dhTent, where all may in their feveral Ways be obliged. The Refer ved may have their Cloiitersj the Licentious their Stews ; the elevated and raifed may have Rules of high Perfection ; the Abandoned and grofs. Indulgences and Pardons. You have Proceffions and Ceremonies to fet the Mob agaze ; you have Miracles for the Simple and credulous ; Vilions for the Phantaftical, and Reliques and Images ior the SuperiUtious *. THE Number of your Convents in Particular has been juftly thought to contribute not a little to lefTen the Number of your Se&s. c They 6 are,' fays a fine Writer, who took his Obfer- vations upon the Spot, c fomany Receptacles for * See SirEow SAKBY'J Europse SperJ- p- ITi -* 34 -4 Letter on Image-WorJbtf. * all thofe firey Zealots, who would fet the * Church in a Flame, were they not got together inthefe Houfes of Devotion. All Men of dark Tempers, according to their Degree of Melan- eholly and Enthufiafm, may find Convents fitted to their Humours, and meet with Companions as gloomy as themfelves. So that what the Proteftant would call a Fanatic, is in the Ro- man Church a Religious of fuch or fuch an c Orderf.' To this I may add, that the holy Houfe of Inquilition (which you know to be a fpecial En- gine of Eccleliaftical Tyranny, fet up in feme of the Popifh Countries) is a moft excellent Ex^ pedient to fettle all Scruples, and by precluding all Freedom of Speech, Debate and Enquiry, moft admirably and effectually prefervesthe Peace of the Church : For what Heretic can relift the rational Conviction of a Prifon and Tortures ? AND where a milder Genius preiides in the Councils of other Kingdoms of the Rotnijb Per- fuallon, yet the Reftraints upon the Prefs, and the Examinations which every Book is fubje<5t to be- fore, and the Cenfures it is liable to after Pub- lication, muft go a great Way towards ftifling every Thought, and pruning every ExprefTion that might feem to reflect on the Church Eftab- lilhment, or diflent from the current Ortho- doxy. 3. BUT notwithftanding all thefe Means of Policy and Power, to preferve Unity of Do&rine t Mr. and A Letter on Image-Worfoif. 35 and Uniformity in Practice, the Church of Rome is not at Unity in itfelf, and therefore does but with an ill Grace obje6t Diflentions to others. You know, Sir, that your great Corner-Stone the IN FALLIBILITY is not agreed upon; while fome place it in the Pope, fome in a general Council* fome in both, and fome in neither ; fome in the Pope and a provincial Council , fome in the Pope and a Conclave of Cardinals ; and fome in none of thefe, but in the Church Univerfal, or the Company of all faithful People. ^BESIDES this Difference of Sentiment about your Head, have you never heard of any Divi fions among your Members upon other Subjects ; as between the Jefuits and Seculars, Dominicans and Francifcans, Janfenifts and Molinilts? : BE pleafed, Sir, to call to mind your Diflenti- ons upon the prefent Subjeft. The Council of Eliberis in Spain., and that of Conftantinople called by CONSTANTINE CAPRONYMus, condemn'd the Worfhip of Images : The Council of Nice afterwards eftablifVd it : The Council of Franck-* fort after this condemns it, as does the Council of Mtntz : The Council of Trent again re-eftabliili'd it. The Words of DUPIN, concerning the'Con- du& of the Church upon this Subject are fome- what remarkable. * In the Weft, 5 fays he, c fome Bimops at firft would not furTer any I- * mages 5 but the greater Part agreed, that they 6 might be of fome ufe, and only hindered them * from being Honoured. But the Worftiiping of f linages being eftablifli'd in the Eaft, was alfo receiv'd ad A Letter on Image-WorJhif. * received at Rome s whilft in France, Germany c and England all outward Worfhiping of them * was unknown/ To heal the Refle&ion which the Proteftant Reader might be apt to make upon this Occaiion, obferve how the Sorbon Doctor cooks up the Matter : c This Difference, 3 fays he, c did not * occafion any Divifion among the Churches:* i. e. They were divided without any Difference, and at perfect Unity, tho s in direft Opposition. IT is further well known, that GREGORY the Great, SERENUS Bilhop of Marfeilles, AGOBAR- DUS Bifhop of Lyons, and others of later Times, whofe diftinguim'd Parts and Learning have done Honour to your Church, have exprefs'd their Diflike and Deteftation of all Image- Woritip j while Pope ADRIAN, Pope Pius the Fifth, NA- CLANTUS Bilhop of Cluginm, BELLARMINE and THOMAS AQUINAS have ftrenuouily aflerted and maintained it. AGAIN, among thofe who, with the Council of Trent, agree that due Honour and Veneration is to be given to Images, there arifes a new Dif- pute, what is this due Honour and Veneration j while fome fay it is Latria, others Dull a, , fome Latvia relative, others Latria abfolute : Some tell us, that the Image itfelf muft not in any Manner be worlbiped, but only the Exemplar before the Image ; others fay, that the fame Honour is due to the Image as to the Exemplar; and others, that the Images themfelves ought to be wormip- A Letter on Image-Worjhif. 27 ed -, but with a lefler Honour than the Exemplar, or Prototype. THUS, Sir, you have upon this Subjet alone, Writer againft Writer, Bifliop againft Bifliop, Church againft Church, Council againft Council, and Pope againft Pope. THERE was indeed no occafion to recur toHif- tory of Times paft to obferve your Divifions. Look, Sir, into the prefent State of France^ and fay, Are the Rotftamfs one Heart and one Tongue ? BUT I need not dwell longer on thisSubjet, which is exhaufted by BifhopSxiLLiNGFLEET in the fifth Chapter of his Difcourfe concerning the Idolatry prattifed in the Church of Rome. In this Chapter the excellent Writer hath {hewn, e that there have never been greater Difturbances in the Chriftian World, than what you call the Means of Unity, viz. the Pope's Authority hath procured $ no where greater or more lafting Schifms ; no where fiercer Difputes a- bout Matters of Order and Doctrine, than among you' So that, by your own Principles, if Unity is a diftin&ive Mark of the true Church, you neither are, nor have been, that Church. 4. AFTER all, fhould we allow, that you did agree in all Points wherein you differ from us, or in the additional Articles of Pope Pius's Creed, ihould we envy your Unity, and admire the Har- mony of your holy Church ? Or fhould we not more juftly deteft it, as anunchriftian Confederacy againft the Gofpel and Truth of GOD ? XII. j8 A Letter on ImAge-Wor/hip. XII. I NOW receive your Compliments c for trace- ing the Ufe of Images fo far back as the Nicene Council , as you think it does no great Honour to our Caufe; being a plain Demonftration, that the Ufe of Images fubiilted fo many hundred Years before the Reformation, andconfequently before our Church had any vifible Exiftence in the Univerfe : I did not, it feems, confider the Confequence.' IT is beft, Sir, always to fpeak Truth, and to leave Confequences to Ihift for themfelves : You may foon enough fee where the Confequence will fall. 1. ERROR in Opinion, or Falfhood in Do&rine, e>r Folly and Impiety in Practice, are not more juftifiable or defenfible for being old. If they were, ancient Paganifm fliould ftill take Place, and Chriftianity has no Title to our Preference and Acceptance. Or had you liv'd in the more early Ages of the Church, would you have join'd the Cry with JULIAN and other Enemies of the Crofs of CHRIST, and rejected our moft holy Religion as fatfe, becaufe novel? 2. BUT in Truth (fuppofe we Antiquity the Teft and Record of Truth) Antiquity is not on your Side. When you preach of the ancient Church, and your poor, ignorant People (whom I heartily pity) place a Merit, and boaft them- felves, in being of the old Religion^ you may mutually deceive and be deceiv'd without Con- tradition. But, for your own fake, Sir, you had A Letter on Image-Worjhif. ap had belt, when you enter into Controverfy with thofe of our Church, who know any thing of the pure Ages of Primitive Chriftianity, never mention Antiquity. You cannot but know (and I wonder much how Gentlemen of Learning can reconcile this Knowledge A with their Practice) that the Fathers and early Writers of the Church are all againft you in the molt material Articles, wherein you differ from the Church of England. The Biihop of Rome's Supremacy and Infallibility, Tranfubftantiation, Communion in one Kind > feven Sacraments, the Doctrine of Merit, and Works of Supererogation, the Worfhip and Invo- cation of Saints and Angels, Scriptures and Pray- ers in an unknown Tongue, are clean contrary to the Practice -and Doctrine of the primitive Church, and the moft ancient Chriltian Writers ; and were not etlabliih'd till fome Hundred Years after CHRIST. THE Practice of Image-Worlhip (our prefent Subject) was eftabliihed by the lecond Council of Nice : i. e. between feven and eight hundred Years after CHRIST j for I think the Emprefs- Regent IRENE is iuppofed to have called this Council in the Year 786. Now mould it appear that Image-Worihip was not pra&ifed or eilab- lifh'd, was exclaiin'd agaiml, and univerfally condemn'd, by the more early Writers of the Church, and that the Fathers of the fecond, third and fourth Centuries both preach'd and writ ugainft all Ufe of Images in the Service of GOD, and declared it deftruaive of all true Religion., E . what 30 A Letter on Image-WorJbif. what becomes of your boafted Antiquity to juftify this Practice ? If you claim a Right to your Wooden Machines from the Pofleflion of nine > with what Face can you object to our Difclaiming that Right from the Authority vifjteen mftxtem hundred Years? If Antiquity alone proves you are in the Right, a greater Antiquity muft be al- low'd it's Weight, tho' it proves you are in the Wrong. 4. THAT you may not fay we here beg the Queflion, and aflert without Proof, I will give you the Authority of fuch of the Fathers as I have by me ; and for your further Satisfaction could wifh you would perufe the fecond Part of the Homily againfl the Peril of Idolatry. i. ST. CHRYSOSTOM flourilh'd about the Year 400. In his Commentary upon thofe Words of ISAIAH, 3*heir Land alfo is full of Idols ^ he telJs us, that the Prophet forbids, c to make any I- c mage :' Where, by the Way, I would obferve, that the Tranflator, a Carthulian Monk, has render 'd the Greek ifyixovurpa. Trot^o-at depingerent Jmaginem. CARYSOSTOM afterwards calls every Idol (Trap iXxov') an Abomination to be hated and utterly detefted. IT is fomething remarkable, that the Father, in Commenting on the former Verfe, c Their * Land alfo is full of Silver and Gold, neither is * there any End of their Treafures : Their Land * alfo is full of Horfes, neither is there any End * of their Chariots, 3 tells us, that the Prophet did not blame the Ufe of Horfes, of Wealth and ' Power, but the Abuje of them : But here, tho' ISAIAH A Letter on Image-WorJhtf. 31 ISAIAH makes ufe of the fame Form of \Vords, and continues his Exclamation againft the Wick- ednefs of the Land, yet CHRYSOSTOM makes no Diftin&ion between the Ufe and Abufe of Idols : But every Idol^ fays he, is an Abomination *. IN another Place, f mentioning the Beginning and Root of Idolatry, he afcribes it to the ex- traordinary Opinion conceiv'd by the People of thofe Heroes of Antiquity, who fought fuc- cefsfully, erected Trophies, built Cities, &V : But,' adds CHKYSOS TOM, ' that this [Idolatry] might not be paid to the Saints, GOD differed them to be perpetually tofled, to be beaten, to fall into Difeafes ; that their great Weaknefs of Body, and Multitude of Temptations, might perfuade or convince thofe Prefent, that they were but Men who wrought fuch Miracles.' 2. LACTANTIUS flourifh'd about a hun- dred Years before CHRYSOSTOM. In his fecond Book of the Origin of Error J, fpeaking of Ima- ges, he thus expoflulates : c What Madnefs is it c to form or make thofe Things, which they * afterwards fear, or to fear thofe Things which 4 they have formed. c But, 3 fay they, c w r e " fear not thofe Things, but the Perfons to quin R.eligio rul'.a fit, uWcun^ue Simulachrum eft. C- 18- p-iii. Ed. Cjnta'tt* ' Health A Letter on Image-WorJbif* 33 c Health of the Infirm,, Life of the Dead, and * Help of the Helplefs : But if any one fliall * fay, that ' thefe Things are not Gods, but ^ only Symbols in Imitation of the true Gods -,' * - Neverthelefs, 5 continues the Father, c they c alfo are uninilru&ed, ignorant and flavifli * Wretches, who imagine that the Imitations of * the divine Nature, or of the Divinity, are from 6 the Hands of Mechanics ; fo that the Meanefl of our People are far removed from this Igno- * ranee *.' And in another Place, in Anfwer to fome other Calumnies of his Pagan Adverfary, he fays, c We teach, to thofe who are firft in- c troduced among us, or (as others have render'd c the Words) in the firil Place, and among the c firit Things, we teach the Candidates of our c Religion, a Contempt of Idols, and of all Sta- * tttes or Images." You'll obferve the Expreflion Sir, as you fometimes make a Koife and raifc a Duft about the Word ufaxw as applicable on- ly to the Heathan Gods and their Images : But here you fee that the early Chriltians were taught a Contempt not only run iduAuv but alfb TraVrwv TUV KyxXfj.ot.Tuv ^. I WOULD farther obferve to you, that CELSUS objected to the Chriftians, c that they made no c Images : And that in this they refembled 4 the Scythians and other irreligious and lawlefs * Nations, who dedicated no Image to their Gods, 5 and counted them Fools who did fo4:. 5 * ORIG. con. GELS, p jf?, 4. Ed Cantab. \ P. no. ^ Vid. L- 6- p. icj- ^ 7- 373. L. 8- p. 389> 4"4- 4. MlNUTIUS 34 d Letter on Image-WorJhif. 4. MINUTIUS FELIX liv'd about the fame Time with ORIGEN. In his Otfavius he fays, " That the Ancients were iimple, credulous and imprudent about the very Gods they worfhip- ed j for by paying a profound Veneration to their Kings, and wanting to fee them again after Death, in Effigie^ and very delirous to de- tain their Memories in Marble, at length they turn'd thefe monumental Comforts into Obje&s of Devotion *.' Is not this, Sir, the true Hif- tory of the Rife of Popifh, as well as Pagan, Idolatry, viz. a Veneration for dead Men ? IN feveral other PafTages of this Tra&, the Father fatyrically expofes the Folly of making and worshiping Wooden Gods, Deities of Brafs, of Gold or Silver. But it would be tedious to collect all that might be found in him upon this Subject. I lhall content myfelf with one Place more. The Heathens, it feems, objected to the Chriflians the Adoration of Croifes. What does MINUTIUS reply to this ? Does he diftinguifli between Dulla and Latria? Or, admitting that they worfhipped the Crofs with Latria, does he defend himfelf by faying, that it was not with Latria abfolute^ but Latria relative ? Not one Word of all this : But c Crofies we neither wor- * fliip nor wilh for f : You certainly,' continues he, ' who worfhip wooden Gods, are the moft * likely to adore wooden Crofies, as being Parts c of the fame Subftance with your Deities {.' * REEVE'* Apologies. Vol. a. p- 109. t Cruces-nec colimus, nee optamus. REEVES ib. p. 143. YOU'LL A Letter on Image-WorJbip. 35 YOU'LL here. Sir, obferve, by the by, that if, according to what you fay in another Part of your Letter, Cubits has, in this Place, a large Signification, and is ufed here, as you fay it is by the Proteftant Divines, to comprehend an inferior Honour ; then the primitive Chriftians, it feems, did not pay even this inferior Honour to the Crofe itfelf 5 fo much unknown inMiNuxius's Time was your folemn Adoratio Cruets. 5. TERTULLIAN flourifli'd in the latter End of the fecond Century. In his Apologetic he fays, c As tor Images, I lhall only obferve, that they are material, and often of the fame Mat- ter with your common Utenlils ; and 'tis ten to one but the holy Image has fome Sifter- Vef- fel about the Houfe.' And foon after, c If we adore not Statues and Images as cold as Death, and in this fo very like the Bodies they reprefent, do not we deferve Panegyric rather than Punilhment, for leaving an acknowledg'd Error *?' CAN you think, Sir, if the Worlhip of Images had been now in Fafhion in the Church, that TERTULLIAN would have thus apologized for the Chriftians ? Or would he have charged the Heathens with Idolatry, for pra6Ufing what was admitted among themfelves ? Could the Father with any Decency or Confiftency have defended Chriilianity for renouncing this Error, had it not been renounced? Could he have claim'd * TERTVH- Op- Tom- : p. 618, 6:o Ed. farif' 1366* Applaufc $5 'A Letter on Applaufe for doing himfelf what he thus fevere* ly cenfures in others * ? His whole Book of Idolatry is well worth your Perufal : A few Extra&s I fhall give yt>u from it, which feem more dire&ly to condemn your Pra&ice, and to confute the Arguments you have made ufe of in the firlt Part of your Letter. c Every Form or little Reprefentation * requires to be term'd an Idol : Hence all At- c tendance and Service about an Idol, is Idolatry. 4 GOD forbids an Idol to be made as well as * wor/hiped. To root out all Foundation and c Materials of Idolatry the Divine Law hath 4 proclaimed, Te jhall not make an Idol. It is c humanf Error to wormip any Thing, except c the Creator of all Thingsf / He afterwards proceeds at large to anfwer the Arguments made ufe of by the Artiits or Statuaries in defence of their Practice. One of thefe is what you have alledg'd, viz. MOSES'S making the brazen Ser- pent. To which, among other Things he replies, * If we interpret thefe Things as Enemies ot the * Law, do not we, as the Marcionites, afcribe c inconftancy to the Almighty ; whom they thus c deftroy as a changeable Being, while he forbids * in one Place, what he commands in another J? * Via- Lib. de Idol... P. 448, 433- t Omni s Forma, vcl Formula Idolam fe dici export- Indc Idololatria, emnis circa omne Idolum Famulatus et Servitus : Idolum tam feri quam toll Dcus proKibet : ad eradicandam fcilicet Materiam Idololatriae Lex divina proclamavit, Ne feeeritis Idolum ; Omni*igitur colit hamanus Er. ror przter ipfum Omnium Condftorem. P. 446, 44??. \ Si hsec ut Adverfarij Legis interprete:nur, nunquid & nos quoil & Mar- cionitae inconftantiam afctibimus Omnipotenti, qarm illi hoc Modo deftra- ant ut rnutatilcm ; dum alibi Tttst, alibi mandat- p- 447- 4 And 'A Letter on Image-War Jbtf. 37 And afterwards he fays, * If there is Honour gi- * ven to an Idol, without doubt that Honour is ' Idolatry *.' You'll confider then, Sir, how far your Sentiments of Honour and Refpeff to Images (did you go no further, as you manifeflly do) would have been approved of by this Father. 6. ST. CLEMENT of Alexandria was very little before TERTULLIAN, if not Cotempory with him. If you had alledged to this Father the Cherubims as Proofs of facred Images being law- ful, and Objects of Religious Woriliip, he would have told you the Inconliftency of fuch a Suppo- fition or Argument, with other Parts of MOSES'S Condu6t : e For never,' fays CLEMENT, c would * he who perfuaded not (/. e. who forbad) a gra- c ven Image, have himfelf framed an Image of holy Things t- 3 IN his Advice to the Greeks, you have feveral Pages to fhew the Folly and great Impiety of Image-YTorfhip. A Sentence or two may con- tent you. c In Truth, an Image is dead Matter, framed by the Hand of the Artilt. But we have no fenfible (or material) Image : But an Image to be apprehended by the Mind, not by Senfe, is GOD, the only truly Coot-' Before ic had faid, c That the meaneft Creatures are better than Statues or Images ; for thofe have Senfe, but thefe have none, being altogether idle, una&ive and infenlible.' He afterwards * Si Idoli Honor eft, fine dubio Idoli honor Idololatria eft. p. 457- t CLBMEST. Oper. P. 241. Ed. Commelin. 1591- \ Adhort- ad Gent- p. 15. F e asks, 3 8 A Letter on Image-Worfbif. asks, e Why do you give the Honour of GOD to thofe that are not Gods ? Why, leaving Heaven, have ye honoured the Earth ? for what elfe is Gold, or Silver, or Adamant, or Iron, or Brafs, or Ivory, or precious Stones? Are not all thefe Things the Offspring of one Mo- ther, the Earth ? But why have you, vain and Ihallow Men, reproaching the fuper-celeftial c Region, drawn your Devotion to the Ground, ' making to yourfelves earthen Gods ? YOU'L pleafe, Sir, once more to obferve, that in the Beginning of this laft Quotation, he makes ufe of the Word rtr^wotrt from whence I collect that the Distinction you have invented between Honour and Worjbip, while you affect to deny This, but to pay That to your facred Images, was quite unknown in CLEMENT'S Days. I WILL but trouble you with one Obfervation more from this Book of CLEMENT'S. It is where, fpeaking of the divine Honours paid to the I- mages of the Heathens, he mentions the Incenfe and Victims offer'd them, and the Smoke with which they are honoured and fumigated and grown black : This, Sir, naturally reminds one of the holy Image at Loretto, whofe Face, we are told by Travellers, is as black as a Negroe's and this owing to the fame Honours of Lamps and Incenfe, which were given to the Pagan Idols 7. JUSTIN MARTYR flourmYd about the Year 160. In his Apology he fays, c We can- * not vouchfafe to worihip with numerous Victims < and A Letter OH Image-WorJbif. 39 * and Garlands of Flowers the Work of Men's ' Hands ; what you muft help into the Temple, ' and being fo placed, think fit to dub them Gods ||.' UPON this PaiTage the worthy Tranflator, Mr. REEVES, obferves, c that the primitive Chriltians * ftarted at every Thing that had but the leaft c Symbolizing with the Heathen Idolatry : They c look'd upon the very Making of Idols, without * any Deiign to worlhip them, as an unlawful 4 Trade, and inconfiftent with Chriftianity. 3 BUT to return toJusxiN^ ' What need I ' mention, 3 fays he, ' how the Artifts manage the fubject Matter of their Gods ; how they hack it and hew it, and caft it and hammer it, and not feldom fromVeflels of Diilionour, by chang. ing their Figure only, and giving them ano- ther Turn by the Help of Art, out comes a worihipful Set of Things you call GODS. This we look upon, not only as the higheil Flight of humane Folly, but the molt injurious Af- s front to the true GOD J. 5 I HAVE nothing more of JUSTIN'S Works by me but the Apology here quoted, nor any other of the Fathers but thofe here referred to , from whence I learn to draw a few Obfervations. i. THAT many of thofe Things which they charge upon the Pagans as Idolatrous, have been and ftill are pratifed by the Papilts. 2. That thefe Fathers blame not Idols only as Reprefen- S'S Apolog. Vcl- i, P. :-,6, 27. F 2 tationg 40" A Letter on Image-WorJhif . tations of Demons, or devoted to falfe Gods ;' but as in themfelves improper Objects of Worfhip, as being framed of corruptible and fenfelefs Mat- ter, without Life and Motion, the Work of Men's Hands, detracting from GOD'S Ho- nour, contradicting his exprefs Command, and dertru&ive of his true and fpiritual Worfhip. 3, There is not, I think, one Truth more clearly deducible from the Writings of the Fathers of the fecond and third Century, than the Prohibi- tion of Image- Worfhip ; and you might as well appeal to primitive Antiquity to prove and jufti- fy the Worfhip of the Devil as the Worfhip of Idols. 1 To confirm my own Sentiments, I mufl here give you the Remark of a very fenlible Writer, and who fpeaks like one familiar with his Subject. < The Fathers,' fays he, c infifted on it to the ' laft, that all fuch Images as were made the * Objects of worfhip were Idols ; fo that if in 4 any one Thing we have a very full Account * of the Senfe of the whole Church for the firft * four Centuries, it is in this Matter. They do c not fpeak of it now and then only by the Way, * as in a Digreflion, in which the Heat of Ar- c gument, or of Rhetoric may be apt to carry Men too far ; they fet themfelves to treat of of this Argument very nicely ; and they were engaged in it with Philofophers, who were as good at Subtilties and Diftin&ions as other Men : This was one of the main Parts of the Controverfyi fp if on &ny Heatf whatfo- * ever A Letter on Image-War fbtf. 4 1 e ever they writ exactly, it is upon thofe Sub- < jefts. BUT! need not urge you with the Authority of our Proteftant Writers , your own DUPIN confefles, c That in the three firft Centuries, and in the Beginning of the fourth, they [Images} * were very fcarce among Chriftians.' He fliould have fpoke out plainly, and told his Reader, that they were utterly unknown - 9 for he after- wards adds, c Towards the End of the fourth c Century they began, efpecially in the Eaft, to c make Figures and Images, and they grew very * common in the Fifth *.' MANY other learned Perfons of your Church have fairly acknowledged the fame j and it is really amazing to fee, the whole Current of Pri- mitive Chriitianity being againft you, what pi- tiful Excufes and Apologies have been made for this Practice. The Fathers of the Nicene Coun- cil, in the Arguments they produce for it from Antiquity, go upon meer legendary Fables, and the Dreams of fuperilitious Monks, rather than any clear Teilimony or Authority from the ge- nuine Fathers. IT pities one ftill more to fee fo learned and in- genuous a Perfon as DUPIN forced, in fupport of a Syftem, to ufe fuch wretched Sophiftry, as he does upon this Occaiion. c There is no doubt,* fays he, e but when Paganifm was the prevailing * Religion, it would have been dangerous for * Chri&ians to have Images or Statues, becaufe cclefiaft. Hifb 8th Cent. P- 146. c they 4* r A Letter on Image-Worfbif. * they might give Occafion of Idolatry to them, * who were newly recovered from it , and they * might have given Pagans reafon to obje& to ' Chriftians, that they had and worfhiped Idols * as they did: Therefore it was fitting there * fliould be no Images in thofe firft Ages, efpe- ' cially in Churches, and that there Ihould be c no worfhip paid them. Afterwards, People c being better taught, more learned and farther f off from Idolatry, there was not fo much * danger to propofe them to them ; and the ' Church being more fplendid in her Ceremonies, c they ferved as Ornaments to Temples, &c. ' Therefore, there being no more danger of Ido^ c latry, why fhould not Chriftians have Idols f?' IN Anfwerto this, it muft be acknowledge, that CHRIST was manifejled in the flejb to dejlroy ( the Works of the Devil ; one of whofe greateft Works was the Support of Idolatry : That it was the great Reproach of the Gentiles, be- fore their Converfion to CHRIST, that they were carried way to dumb Idols: That while PAUL preached at Athens, his Spirit wasftirred, or ra- ther exafperated, in him, when hefaw the City full of Idols: That he and BARNABAS preached to the Men of Lyjlra 9 that they Jbould turn from thefe Vanities to the living GOD, who mads Heaven and Earth, and the Sea, and all 'things that are therein. What Agreement, fays the Apoftle, hath the Temple of GOD with Idols ? And, again to the Corinthians he fays, Flee from Idolatry; And \ Ecclefiaft. Hlft. 8th Cent- P- *47' to A Letter on Intage-H^orJhip. 43 to the fame Purpofe St. JOHN, Keep yourfehes from Idols. It muft be further Acknowledged, that the fucceeding Apologifts for Chriftianity for three hundred Years after CHRISTJ during a great Part of which Time the miraculous Spirit of GOD refided in the Church, were equally vehe- ment againft all ufe of Images in the divine Service. Now what fays our learned Sorbonift to all this ? Why, truly, that the Chriftians of the fifth, fixth, feventh and eighth Centuries, after the miraculous Spirit of GOD had departed from the Church, were letter taught^ and more learned? t. e. Than they had been by CHRIST and his A- poftles, and their immediate Succeflbrs. The Founder of our holy Religion had enjoined the Worfhip of GOD in Spirit and in Truth $ but now Ceremony and Splendor were become more fa- fbionable : And Idolatry being abolifhed by CHRIST, why might not Chriftians have Idols? THE learned Writer feems, all this while to be labouring againft the Truth, and confcious that he had got a bad Caufe to maintain , for ob- ferve how candid and ingenuous after all is his Confefnon : c It [the Worlhip of Images] can* not be faid to be abfolutely neceflary ; and thofe^ who for fome private Reafon, do not think themfelves bound, for inftance, to proftrate themfelves before Images, to bow to them, to kifs them, to embrace them, to exprefs their * Reverence for that they reprefent ; thofe, I * fay, are not to be condemned as Heretics, who * will not do fo for fome particular Reafons, either < becaufe 44 ^ Letter on Image-WorJbif. * becaufe the Practice of their Church, 3 (ht fhould have faid, becaufe the Practice of the univerfal Church for at leaft three hundred Years after CHRIST) c is otherwife, or becaufe they " fear thofe outward Duties Ihould be mifta- ken for Adorations , or, laftly, becaufe they do not believe the Worihip of Images to be fufSciently warranted ; feeing to prove it, they 0". e. the Nicene Fathers) ha ye alledged a great Number of falfe Pieces^ or of impertinent PaJJages that prove nothing *.' I WOULD but obferve to you further upon this Head of Antiquity, that the primitive Chriftians would fooner die a thoufand Deaths, than wor- fhip or burn Incenfe to an Image or Idol ; and that the vileft Heretics, the GnoJUcks and Car- pocratiatts 9 were peculiarly noted for doing both. Now is it not fomething ftrange, that Proteftants Ihould be term'd Heretics, for doing that which ennobled Martyrs j and that the Catholic Chrif- tian mould be He, who pra&ifes that which dif- tinguiih'd Heretics ? XIIL So much for your boafted Antiquity of Image- Worihip ; or, as you call it, fbe Ufe of Images j c Which fubiifted,' fay you, * fo many hundred c Years before the Reformation, and confequent- c ly before our Church had any vifible exiltence * in the Univerfe.' * Ecclefiaft. Hift. 8th 'Cent. P. 147^ i. So A Letter on Im&ge-Worfbip. 45 1. So, my Friend, did Pagan Idolatry before the Chriftian Church had any viiible exiftence in the Univerfe 3 fo did Egyptian Superftition before the "jewijb Church had any liich vilible exiftence. The meer Antiquity of any Practice, as I told you before, does not prove it's Reafonableneft and Truth : Or, fay it did, let me ask you, Where was your vifible Church, as diitinguifh'd from ours, and enjoining the Belief of Tranfub- ftantiation, of the Pope's Supremacy and Infalli- bility, with the Practice of Image-Worlhip, of Prayers in an unknown Tongue, the Invoca- tion of Saints and Angels, and Communion in one Kind : Where was this vifible Church of yours for fome hundred Years after CHRIST ? 2. RELIGION came clear from the Fountain, rwas by degrees in Part corrupted, and we, as well as you, drank for fome time of the tainted Stream. A Courfe of Years has, by GOD'S Blef- ling, purify 'd the grofs and troubled Mafs, which, as it run, refined : We are again greatly enriched with the River of GOD ; and though we ftand lower down in the Stream, yet we envy not your Mud and Mire, while we enjoy the Upper Springs and the nether Springs. J Tis idle and impertinent to obje& Novelty to our Religion, till you can prove that the moral Law and the Gofpel, Prophets and Apoftles and the primitive Creeds, which the Church of Eng- land profefles as the Rule of her Faith and Prac- tice, are new Things. 3. CHRIST gave to his Difciples a new Com- mandment i will you therefore rejeft it ? He calls G the 46 A Letter on Image-WorJbip. the Cup in the Sacrament the new Teftament in his Blood j Do you therefore deny it to the Laity ? The Athenians called PAUL a Setter forth offtrange Gods : i. e. A Preacher of a new Religion : And both GELS us of old, and TINDAL very lately, deny the Truth and Divinity of Chriftianity, be- caufe of its Novelty. You had belt, Sir, there- fore not urge this Argument any more, left you ftrengthen the Hands of Infidelity, and weaken the Authority of the Common Faith, while you would only deftroy the Protsftant Reformation. XIV. I PROCEED to the other Parts of your Letter. * Pictures,' you fay, or the Council of Nice fays, c teach and reprefent the fame Things in * Colours, which the Gofpel Books teach and c reprefent by Letters.* i. SIR, the Subject we are upon is not f Hi ure s and their Hiftorical Ufe which we allow, but Images and their folemn Adoration, which we utterly deny and rejeft. But fuch have been your Arts of old : When prefs'd with Image- Worlhip, which you are fworn to maintain, you fly off, and acquaint us with the Advantage of Hiftory Painting. Thus good Mr. HARDING, Jong ago, knowing that the Prophets and Apoftles were againft him, quotes the Authority of VIR- GIL, and his pious Heroe J^NEAS contemplating a Picture at Carthage^ in the Palace of good Queen DIDO. I am ftill more forry for Du PIN, when I fee Him forced to take Refuge in the fame Arti- fice : A Letter on Image-WorJbif. 47 * fice: Wholly, 3 fays he, e to condemn Painters * and the Art of Painting, as the Bifhops of the c Council of Oonftantinopk have done, is a Piece * of intolerable Imprudence and Folly*: 5 - When both you and Mr. DUPIN knew very well that the Church of England and its Members do not condemn either Painters or the Ait of Paint- ing. 2. NEITHER the Council of Nice, nor any Council upon Earth can fet alide the Authority of GOD. Sir, both you and they have forgot or overlook your Bible, * And the Lord fpake unto you out of the Midft of the Fire; ye heard the Voice of the Words, but faw no Similitude, only ye heard a Voice. - Take therefore good Heed unto yourfelves (for ye faw no Manner of Similitude, ofMiup.*, on the Day that the Lord fpake unto you in Hereby out of the midfl of Fire) left ye corrupt * yourfelves and make you a graven Image f. ? But, in open Defiance of GOD Almighty defcend- ing upon the Mount in Fire, in open Contradicti- on to the Voice of Heaven, fays this Council, r( (T7r7a? ItxtW? (rtGopou xj za^otfxvvw. 3. HAD you, Sir, or they, been defending the Caufe of Pagan Idolatry, you might have talk'd at the Rate you do j and with more Truth have affirmed, that APELLES did but reprefent the fame Things in Colours, viz. the Generation and Intrigues of the Gods, as HESIOD and OVID did Ecclefiaft. Hift. 6th Cent. P. 147. | Deutfon. 4. v 12* - 15, j$. by 48 A Letter on Image-WorJhif. by Letters $ and we could not, allowing the Orthodoxy of the Poets, have blamed the Pious Ingenuity of the Painter : But tell me, Sir, what Art can Paint, what Hand of the Sculptor engrave, the GOD of Glory ; the Form Ineffa- lk> as JUSTIN MARTYR calls him \ ? What mechanical Ingenuity of MAN can defcribe the fpiritual Truths of GOD? What Colours will you employ to exprefs the ever-bleffed Trinity : To reprefent a Spirit, endlefs in his Duration, and infinite in his Nature ? The Attempt would be Sacrilegious as the Execution impollible , and yet Monuments of this impious Prefumption have been, and, I believe, yet are publicly allowed in your Churches ; and your own Writers fpeak of them without Reprehenlion, nay with Ap- plaufe ||. WHEN urg'd by this Objection, your Reply has been, that the Images of CHRIST may be made, ' for that he took upon him Flefh and be- 6 came Man/ But by this Excufe you but in- volve yourfelves in new Guilt, and run from one Error into another : In adoring this Image of CHRIST, you adore his humane Nature, "which is all, as you acknowledge, that can be reprefent- ed by an Image. 4 I EITHER know nothing of Religion, of the Religion of CHRIST, or this warm Con- ^ REEVE'S Apologies- Vol. i- p- 17- J All about the Cathedral of Florence there are excellent Statues, bit the belt are an ADAM and EVE, one of out Saviour ai\d of GOD the Fa- ther; the \Vorkof BACCIO BAWDIHE&I.I, a Florentine, placed in the Chair, jind on the High Alar- CHU^CHIL'S Voyages. VoJ. 4- p- 563. tentipn A Letter on lmage*Wor(hif. 49 tendon of your's for fenfible material Images of him, has not the leaft Relation to his Service. 'The Right eoufnefs of GOD, which is by Faith in JESUS CHRIST, is no bodily Service. CHRIST, is to be formed (not without but) within us*. Hence CLEMENT calls the Soul of a juft Man, in whom is the eternal Word, an Image moft di- vine ^ and like to GOD f. We are to be renewed in 1he Spirit of our Minds , ~and to put on the new Man^ which after [the Image of ] GOD is created inRighteoufnefsandtrue Holinefs $. What pro/it- tth the graven Image , that the Maker thereof hath graven it ? fays the Prophet j|, under the legal Difpenfation : And ihall we Chriltians, who are built up afpiritual Houfe, an holy Priejihood to offer ttpfpiritual Sacrifices acceptable to GOD by JESUS CHRIST Shall we go back 70, nay beyond and againft the Elements of the Law, and fay, that a graven Image profiteth ? xv. * BUT we Proteftants bow at the Name of c JESUS:' And you fay, c that the Name JESUS c is not only a Creature, but alfo a Sign or Image f of Him, to the Ear, as a Crucifix is to the 6 Eye.' i. WE acknowledge, that we do bow at the pf JESUS; ' teftifying ' (as the Canon, * Gal. 4. 19. t CLEMEHT. Oper. p. soo- \ Ephtf. g, 23, 24. i- 18. which 50 A Letter on Image -Worjhip* which enjoins this Obeifance, exprefies it) c by * tuefe outward Ceremonies and Geftures, our ' ; ijward Humility, Chriftian Refolution, and * due Acknowledgment, that the Lord JESUS c CHRIST, the true, eternal Son of GOD, is the fe only Saviour of the World ; in whom alone all c the Mercies, Graces and Promifes of GOD to c Mankind, for this Liie, and the Life to come, c are fully and wholly comprizM V Pray, Sir, is this outward Reverence, exprefiive of our inward Piety and due Acknowledgment of the Mercies of GOD in CHRIST JESUS, the eternal Son of GOD, and only Saviour of the World, Crea- ture Worihip? 2. YES, fay you: The Name of CHRIST is a Creature and the Image is but a Creature : The Name of CHRIST is a Sign, and the Image is but a Sign : r.V/the Name and Imageot CHRIST are the fame Thing : By which AiTertions be- ware, dear Sir, that you do not blunder and blaf- pheme - 3 for according to this Kind of Sophiftry, you will confound all Rules of Grammar and Logic, as well as Common Senfe ; burlefque the Scriptures, and fet GOD at Variance with him- felf. I WILL not tire your Patience, by turning you back into your Elements : I addrefs you as a Divine, and only delire you'll view your Rea- foning in it's Confequences. According to what you|have advanc'd, this muft follow : The Name is a Sign of GOD, and an Image is the Sign of Can- 18. GOD : A Letter on Imagc-WorJbif. 51 GOD : Therefore, the Name and Image of GOD are the fame Thing. Thus, according to you, when CHRIST commands us to pray to his and our eternal Father which is in Heaven, c Hal- c lowed be thy Name $' it is the fame Thing as if he had faid, c Hallowed be thy Image. When GOD commanded, c Thou malt not take my * Name in vain. 3 he meant neither more nor lefs than if he had faid, c Thou malt not profane my * Image? And in feveral Parts of the Plalms, where the holy Penman exhorts, to exalt GOD'S Name^ to call upon bis Name^ to Jing forth the Honour of his Name : and declares, that his Name is great in Ifrael, and that bleffed Jkall be his glorious Name for ever and ever : All this means the fame Thing, as if the Pfalmift had exhorted and been fpeaking of GOD'S material Image to be called upon, to be celebrated with Songs, to be exalted, and to be bleiled for ever and ever. But I forbear: To repeat your Arguments, ia to expofe them : I would only advife you, when you have Occalion at any Time hereafter for this Argument, that you would back it with the Authority of THEODOSIUS ; who in the Nicene Council proves, that Chriftians muft have holy and venerable Images from Rom. 15. v. 4. What- Joever Things were written C 7r f of X* ( P T ') aforetime^ were written for our Learning. c Wherefore, in- c fers this fagacious Father, the venerable Images * being written upon Wood and Stone and Metal, ' muft be for our Inftru6tion f .' Who can with- ftand the Force of fuch Logic and fuch Divinity ? t Aa. 4. p 213: XVL $1 'A Letter on Image-Wor/hif. XVI. c BUT we Proteftants kifs the Gofpel, with- 6 out giving fupream Honour to the fame.' 1. IN an Oath, GOD alone (and not Saint of Angel, the Prototypes of fome of your Images) is immediately invoked, as a Witnefs of the Truth, and an Avenger of Falfhood, and not the Book, the Paper and the Leather, but the Con- tents of that Book are appealed to, which was revealed from Heaven. But you, Sir, cannot deny that you directly addrefs and adore the ma- terial Crofs : Nor will you fay with the Epheftans, that your Images, like theirs of the great God- clefs DIANA, came down from Heaven. 2. HAVE you ever heard, Sir, that the Pro- teftants pray to the Bible, or addrefs it with bended Knees and low Proftrations ? This you do to your Images : You adore the Crofs with Latria 9 (and are commanded fo to do) which is Worlhip properly Divine ; as you muft know, if you know any Thing of your own Writers. Now L atria being the fupream, the higheft Worfliip, I pray you, Sir, what Room is there for St. THOMAS'S Diftin&ion, which you men- tion of Latria. relative, and Latria abfolute : that is, of a higher and lower fupreme and higheft Worfhip ? 3. KISSING the Gofpel is no proper Part, nor indeed any Part at all of the Public Service of the Church of England : It is meerly a civil Ceremony, and owes its validity to humanf Infti- tution. Of the fame Import, Arch-BifhopTiL- LOTSON A Letter on Itnage-WorJhif. 53 LOTS ON reckons//^ lifting up the Hand to Hea- ven j the putting the Hand under the Thigh^ &c. which were Forms of Swearing ufed in ancient Times, without anyHint ot divine Inftitution , but voluntarily takenupandinftituted by Men. And thus (fays thatmoft reverend Author) amongft us the Ceremony of Swearing is, by laying the Hand upon and kiffing the Book , which is both very fo- lemn and lignificant *. Bifhop SANDERSON alfo mentions this Ceremony, as being aprifcofecuk ad tios ttfque derivata f . And I make no doubt, this was a civil Ufage and Inftitution long before the Reformation, under HENRY VIII j and confe- quently OUR ECCLESIASTICAL INSTITUTION has nothing to do with it. It is no more than a Sign or Seal of an Oath an A&, which our Church in her Articles doth no more than allow, as tfhat which the Chriftian Religion doth net prohibit , and it is only fuppofed to be taken occasionally, when the civil Power, or Magiftrate rcquireth it. In Truth, it is no more than a fliort and expreffive Declaration, by the Party who fwears, that as he is a Chriftian, and a Believer of the Truths deli- ver'd in that Book, what he afTerts is true But the Worlhip of Images is a folemn Part of your eftabliihed Service-* Itrictly enjoin'd and uni- verfally practifed. XVII. You next alledge, c our Idolatry in receiving e the Communion kneeling? * i Vol. Fol- p- 244. t Prjeleft. 5- de Juram- oblig- ch it- H i. You j4 A Letter on Iwage-Worjhtf. 1. You had never obje&ed this, had you but taken the Pains to perufe the Declaration affix'4 to our Communion Office ; where it is faid, c That * this Order of Kneeling is well meant, for the Signification of our humble and grateful Ac- knowledgement of the Benefits of CHRIST, therein given to all worthy Receivers, and for the Avoiding of fuch Profanation and Diforder in the holy Communion as might otherwife en- lue and that thereby no Adoration is intended, or ought to be done^ either unto the Sacramental Bread and Wine there bodily received, or unto any corporal Prefence of CHRIST'S natural Flejh and Blood: 2. You might as well have call'd us Idolaters^ for praying or giving of Thanks kneeling in the Body of the Church, as at the Communion Table $ there being no more corporal Prefence, or mate~ rial Image of GOD or CHRIST, in the one Placa than in the other. 3. You are here guilty of a finall Miilake in faying, c that, according to our Principles, c CHRIST is not really prefent in the Sacramen-. * tal Bread and Wine.* It is the corpora^ not the real Prefence, we deny in the Sacrament : And may we not fafely and truly admit the one, while we rejecV the other ? Or will you fay, that where GOD or CHRIST is not corporally prefent, he is not really prefent? XVIII. You fay, c You could never be Dunce enough c to think a Child guilty of Idolatry, for kneel- * ing A Letter on Image-WorJbq. 55 c ing down to crave his Father's Blefling j or a Subject, for bowing to his King, the Chair of c State, his Friend, or the like ; and yet this muft c be my Opinion of thefe exterior A6tions. s Far from it indeed, good Sir. 1. THE Honour given to a Prince is civil, hot religious, and only expreflive oi our Loyalty, and of that Subjection, which the Apoftle tells us, is due for Conscience fake. But does Confcience, or any Apoftolical Precept require, that we fliould bow down to Images ? Or does not the Com- mandment of GOD expreily fay, c Thou malt 6 not bow down to them?' The primitive Chrifti- ans, you know, would fooner die than offer Incenfe,' which they looked on as divine Honour, to the Image of their Prince ; yet they refufed no Inftance or Expreffion of civil Obedience to his Perfon. DANIEL chofe rather to be caft into the Den of Lions, than intermit his Devotions to Heaven, and direct or confine his religious Ad- drefTes to an earthly Monarch. Yet DANIEL, I am perfuaded, would not be wanting in any civi! Modes of Addrcfs or Reverence, practifed in the Per/tan Court, to the Perfon of his Prince*. 2. IF you would fay any thing to the Purpofe, on this Head, you muft fhew, that a Subject or a Child may worfhip the Image of their Parent or * Igitur qund attincat ad Honorea Rcgum vel Imperatorum, fatis prx ecptum habemus, in omni Obfequio cffe nos oportete, feenr.dum Apoftoli yraecepturc, fubditos M^giftratibus & Principikus & Poteftatibus ; fed intrft Smites Difcif linae, quouf^uc ab Idololatria feperamur- TES.TUI.I.. Vci- *. p. 456* Prince. H2 56 A Letter on Image-Worfbif. Prince, contrary to their exprefs Prohibition, and without any Breach of their Allegience or Viola- tion of Duty. XIX. c You confefs, that your People do fometimes c kneel, bow, creep, burn Incenfe before your * Images ; but you deny my Confequence, trut c they therefore pay divine Worfhip to the Ima- * ges. The Thuriter^ you fay, will frequently ' incenfe the Quire, &c. s SIR, I mentioned to you, from the Pontif. Reman f the Priell's incenling not the Quire, but the Image of the Virgin MARY}:. Your Re- ply is therefore nothing to the Purpofe. You cannot deny either the Authority or the Fae',&. TranHat. of the N. Tcft. Note on Jf5. tr. 4. ' glorious 8a A Letter on Imagc-WorJbip. glorious Perfonages (the Patriarchs) and their Works were commendable only through the Faith they had in CHRIST j without which Faith, none of all their Lives and Works fliould have profited them any whit j the Gentiles doing many noble A&s (as Heretics may alfo do) which are of no ejlimation before GOD, btcaufe Ihey lack Faith ** WAS not Sir THOMAS MORE a true Son of your Church? Yet he allows, c That no good Work of Man is rewardable in Heaven of his own Nature, but through the meer Goodnefs of GOD, that lifts to fet fo high a Price onfo poor a Thing ; and that this Price GOD fetteth through CHRIST'S PafTion, and for that alfo they be his own Works with us ; for good Works to God- ward worketh no Man, with- out GOD work in him f.' Now, Sir, if you agree with thefe Authorities, you fwallow the fhocking Abfurdity, which but now gave you fo much Offence ; (but which, by the by, you have fworn to maintain) if you difagree with them, I ask once more, where is your Unity ? A s you allow the Apocryphal Books to be Canonical, what have you to objeft to SOLOMON 's Prayer to the Lord of Mercy, for divine Wifdom to diret his Steps aright? c O fend her out of c thy holy Heavens, and from the Throne of thy * Glory, that being prefent Ihemay labour with Ibid. v. =to. * Book of A Letter on Image-WorJbif* 83 c me, that I may know what ispleafinguntothee: * So Iball my Works be acceptable : . * Thy Counfel who hath known, except thoii * give Wifdom, and fend thy holy Spirit from * above ? For fo the Ways of them which lived 4 on the Earth were reformed, and Men were c taught the Things that are pleafmg unto thee, * and were faved through Wifdom *.' ST. PAUL, fpeaking of Man unregenerate, faith, Tliere is none Righteous, no not one .'They are altogether become unprofitable, there is none that doth good, no not one : All have fenned and come Jhort of the Glory of GOD j being juftified freely by his Grace through the Redemption that is in CHRIST JESUS f. BUT a greater than PAUL tells us, Without me ye can do nothing. If any abide not in me, be is caft forth as a Branch, and is withered, and Men gather them and caft them into the Fire, and they are burnt J. And again, / am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No Man cometk to the Father but by me . If you will not believe thefe Authorities, will you believe your own Mafs-Book? Vent fanfte Spirit us yjfnetuo Numitte nihil eft inHcmine^ nihil eft innoxium |j. SUCH is the grofs Abfurdity, againft which you fo peremptorily exclaim which you fb magifterially condemn : An Abfurdity advan- t Rom. 3. $ JOHW 15. v. 5, p IS9> 4rt> t Bifnop BVRHST. Letter on Iwage-WorJhty. BUT if you are difpofed to take Things more rigoroufly, and to make the Articles fpeak in the harlheft Strain, ftill your moral Jew, and your Infidel, who have wanted the proper Means of Chrirtian Conviction, are left by us to the un- covenanted Mercies of GOD, and the Chriftian Scheme taught, as only abfolutely neceiTary to Chriftian Salvation. This you might have known, had you been but moderately acquainted with the Writings of Proteftant Divines. I particularly refer you to Mr. Arch-Deacon LAW'S Coa/tdgra- tions on the State of the World, with Regard to the Zlieory of Religion *, where you will find, how- great is our Charity on this Subject. I mention this learned Gentleman in Particular, as his Di- courfes were preach'd before the Univerfity of Cambridge^ and have, in a fliort Time, had two Impreflions. THUS we allow the Heathens Salvation, while you good Catholics, fuch is your Charity, deny it to thofe, who embrace GOD'S revealed Will, and aflent to every Article of the Gofpel of CHRIST. We cannot indeed admit of Additions, clean contrary to that pure Faith once delivered to the Saints ; and for this our heretical Obftina- cy, we muft be excommunicated here anddamn'd hereafter : - Confign'd over to Fire and Faggot, to general MaiTacrees and Executions in this World, and to the eternal Flames of Hell in the next. Youfurely, Sir, have forgot the Anathe- ma of the Treat Council ; by which the greateft .p. Part 5>o A Letter on Image-WorJbif. Part of the Chriitian World has fo long flood, and to this Day Hands, accurfed. Such is your Charity, your boafted Charity, fo far exceeding the Meafures of Proteftant Moderation and lefs flaming Zeal. YOURSELF have allow'd, in thus freely cen- furing our Article, and thinking it beft to have it expung'd, ' That Works done before Grace, be- * lore the Infpi ration of GOD'S Spirit, and without e Faith, are pleafant to God ; and tho' not ' done as GOD hath willed and commanded them * to be done, yet you doubt not but that they ' have not the Nature of Sin :' But for us Proteftants, who declare that we have no Salva- tion but through CHRIST : For us, who acknow- ledge the Will of GOD for the Rule of our Obedience, and profefs that we have-de-Sancli- fication but by the Spirit, no. Redemption but by the Blood of CHRIST : For us, it feems, there is no Hope, no Pollibility to be faved ; and let JEWEL live an Angel's Life, yet JEWEL is an Heretic *. THUS, Sir, without ranging at large in the wide Field of Popifii Superftition and Bigotry, I think I have fhewn both Abfurdity and ^Vant of Charity in your Religion, greater than what you unhappily imagin'd you faw in this Article : And now if you are a Gentleman of your Word, I expect you will give up the Whole. * The Dean of his College ufcd to fay, I fliouH love thee JEWEI.> if tho* wert not a Zninglian : In thy Faith I fcold thee a He etic, but furely in thy Life then art an Angel j thou art very good and honeft, bat a Lutheran-' Life of Biihop JEWEL prefix 'd to his Works- p. 3. xxxm, A Letter on lmage-Worft>ip. pi XXXIII. You next proceed toobjeft to our Homilies j particularly to that PafTage, where it is faid, f That both Laity and Clergy, learned and un- c learned, all Ages, Sefts and Degrees of Men, c Women and Children of whole Chriftendom, e have been at once drowned in abominable Ido- 6 latry, and that for the Space of eight Hundred e Years and more.' And you conclude your Quo- tation with a e Well fworn young Parfon !' 1. INSOLENCE and ill Manners become no Caufe : They difgrace Truth itfelf ; and are com- conly call'd in to recommend Falfhood, which has moft Need of fuch Support. The Homily is not fwore to, nor any Article or Homily of the Church of England. Do you not here betray yourfelf, Sir? Was it not your own Method of Swearing to the Trent Council, which made you imagine that the fame fpiritual Tyranny was ex- ercifed in the Church of England ? 2. Bu T you will fay, that I defended the Charge of Idolatry againft the Church of Rome, made by a Minifter of the Church of England, from his having fubfcribed to the Article containing an Approbation of this Homily. I did fo , and quo- ted at large that Part of the Homily, on which I laid the Strefs, and particularly rnark'd that Part of the Quotation, by a Rafure under the Words which I thought full to my Purpofe $ viz. ' That popifh Images be worjhiped in cur c Time in like Form and Manner, as were the < Idols of the Gentiles : that our Image- * Maintainers i A Letter on Image-WorJbty. Maintainers have had and have the fame Opi- nions and Judgments of Saints, whofe Images they have made and worshiped, as the Gentile Idolaters had of their Gods : have ufed and life the fame outward Rites. 3 So that by making good what is here alTerted^ viz. your prefent Idolatry, I proceed far enough to juftify the Charge brought againft you. 3. BUT fhould you demand a further Proof of the whole Quotation produced, and that you borne had have ufed Images, &c. you fpare me the Trouble, feeing yourfelf have taken an ima- ginary Advantage of a Conceflion I made you, and gloried in it, viz. c That Images have been c in Ufe fince the Nicene Council, andconfequent- c ly fubfifted, fay you, many hundred Tears be- e fore the Reformation ? i. e. before either Ho* milies or Articles were compiled. Thus you clear up in one Part of your Letter, what you objefl: in another, and are unhappily your own Executioner. 4. BUT the Term eight hundred Tear sand more , is, I prefume, what ihocks you, as too long and extenlive. I AM defirous to give you all the Satisfaction I can, in Refpe6l to this obnoxious PafTage ; and I do this the more willingly, as I find it has been made the moft of, in a filly Paper * wrote by fome of your Communion, which (notwithftanding the Apprehenfions you exprefs, in your laft Letter, of * A Homtn Catholic's Reafons why he cannot conform to the Protcftant Religion. Penal A Letter en Image-Werfbip. 3 Pensil Laws in Cafe you mould anfwer me in print) has been printed and induitrioufly difperfed throughout the Kingdom. BE it obferv'd then by you, that the Articles of Religion, which approve the lecond Book of Homilies, were not agreed upon by the Clergy in Convocation, till the Year 1562. The Em- prefs IRENE called the Council of Nice in the Year 786 : So that between thefe Periods there palled no lefs than 776 Years. If we go back to about the Year 739, we find J. DAMASCENUS the Syrian writing in Defence of Images, and Pope GREGORY the Third, and the Reman Cler- gy,in a Synod held at Rome Anno 732, by a folemn Sentence, depriving LEO the Emperor of his Kingdoms, and of the Communion of the Faith- ful, for not admitting Images , which Example of GREGORY and the Italian Bifbops, the other Bilhops of Rome have, I believe, fmce that time in general follow'd, and, as our Homily exprefles it, gone through with all moft ftcutly. So that reckoning from 732 to 1562, we have the Church of Rcme maintaining Images for eight hundred Tears and more. BUT fuppofe you reckon only from the Coun- cil of Nice, you will find but very few Years wanting of the Number affigned in "the Homily - and the Author feems to have had both Periods' in his Eye ; for in another Part of the Homily, he mentions the World drown'd in Idolatry by the Space of about eight Hundred Years *, and by * P. 57- N the p4 ^ Letter On the Space of a fort of hundred Tears f .' By which PaiTages he mews a pretty exaft Knowledge of the firft Rife and future Progrefs of Image-Wor- fhip. 5. BUT ftill the Reman Church, you may fay, does not include whole Chriftendom ; (tho* at other Times you are ready enough to tell us fo) the Phrafe is too general and comprehenlive : You have particularly mark'd as often live and obnoxi- ous the Words, all Ages, and, Toting Children. Now, Sir, I am not for defending what appears to me not defeniible : I freely conrefs to you, that it does not feem to me exactly true, that whole Chriftsndcm was drown'd in abominable Ido- latry, during the Term of eight hundred Years, or even fince the Council of Nice 5 for tho 5 the French, the German and the Englljb Churches had Pictures in their Places of public Worfhip, for Decoration and Initrution of the People, yet they condemned the Worlhip of them for a long Time after that Council ; as appears from the fecond Canon of the Council of Franckforty the Caroline Books, the Council of Paris Anno 824, and AGOBARDUS Biiriop of Lyons, de Imaginilyus^ in the Time of LUDOVICUS Pius about the Year 829 and afterwards. So that the Expreffion whole Chrifandom can only be defign'd to defcribe the general Pre valency of this Corruption : If it means more, it is a Miftake; and the Church of England never pretended to Infallibility. But the Author of the Homilies, if a Writer may be t P. 63. - allow'd A Letter on Image-WorJhtf . 95 to explain his own Meaning, feeins to have thought the Terms too general ; and has, I think, in the next Paragraph fubjoin'd a Limitation $ allowing it * to be poflible in fome one City or c little Country to have Images fet up in Temples ( and Churches, and yet Idolatry, by earneii and 6 continual Preaching of GOD'S true Word and f the lincere Gofpel of our Saviour CHRIST, may c be kept away for a Ihort Time.' 6. THE Term all Ages is very juftifiable, if you will allow us to explain our own Homilies, confiftently with the Rules of Charity and Gram- mar. According to thefe we. fay, that/ow*, not ^//Perfons of all Ages, /. e. of both old and young, have been carried away by the prevailing Cor- ruption. 7. NOT fo, fay you : He Jbould ly right have excepted Children not attained to the ufe of Reafon. SURELY, Sir, you cannot imagine, without expofing your own Ignorance of Scripture, that the Author of the Homilies intended to include Infants, not attained to the Ufe of Reafon. This Senfe, I apprehend, could enter into no Man's Head, but that of one who is obliged to argue againft common Senfe in Support of Tranfub- llantiation. Why do you not object, for you have equal Reafon, to that of MOSES : e Gather c the People together, Men and Women and e Children^ and thy Stranger that is within thy Gates, that they may learn and fear the Lord f your GODJ and obferve to do all the Words of * this p6 A Letter on Image-Worjhty. ( this Law * : Or to that of JOSHUA, where jt is faid, c That there was not a Word of all that * MOSES commanded., which JOSHUA read not * before all the Congregation of Ifrael 9 with the * Women, and the little ones and the Strangers * that were converfant among them f. J Should not the facred Writers, according to you, have excepted thofe not attained to the Ufe of Rea- fon? You will further recollect, that the little Chil- dren (gWafiJB /*ixf*) of Bethel^ a Place where JEROBOAM ' erected one of the Golden Calves to draw the Children of Ifrael to Idolatry., and where he built an Houfe of high Places, and iraifed an Altar to facrifice unto the Calves that Jie had made, thefe little Children^ I fay, edu- cated no doubt in the Idolatry of their Parents (for the Image of the Golden Calf had now con- tinued among them upwards of feventy Years) were forty-two of them, by a fpecial Judgment of Heaven, devoured or tore for mocking of ELISKA the Prpphet of the true GOD . Now, according to your Way of Reafoning and Ob- jecting, He,/, e. GOD, by right fiould have executed thofe at lea/I not attained to the Ufe of Reafon. 8. BUT let what has been hitherto faid in De- fence of the Homily pafs for nothing : Suppofe, if you pleafe, the whole PafTage you here quote and object to, to be a Miilake, nay a Falfhood n.d indefenfible, no Clergyman's Character,, who "* Dcutr- 31. IS. t JOSH. 8. as- _ % a Kings ch. 5 35, a^, fubfcriheg A Letter on Image-Wor/Joif. yj fubfcribes and declares his AtTent to the Articles, is thereby at all affe&ed. The thirty-fifth Arti- cle fays, that the feccnd Book of Homilies * doth contain a godly and wholefome Deftrine 9 c and neceflary tor thefe Times. 5 Now pray, Sir, does the Term Doflrine imply a Matter of Fat, or rather an Object of Faith, or LeiTon of Prac- tice ? Are hiftorical 'Truth and whole] ume Doffrinc fynonimous and convertible Terms ? When a Deift affe&s to fay, that he allows of the Moral of CHRIST, does he thereby aflert his Belief of the miraculous Wovks of the Son of GOD, and of the whole Gofpel Hijlory ? Should you affirm, that there are many wholfcme Leffons of civil Prudence in PLUTARCH'S Lives, could I with any Manner of Decency or common Honelty thence deduce, that you atlerted, nay fwore to, the Truth of every hi /for leal Faff related in PLUTARCH ? HENCE, Sir, you fee how the Writer of the Paper above-mentioned has impofed upon you, in furnifhing you with this Obje&ion ; and how- weak and fenfelefs his Calumny is, when he adds, ( that this [Paflage] is the main Foundation of * the Proteilant Church *.' The main Doctrine which this Homily undertakes to defend, is tfhat the Wor/trip of Images is Idolatry j which in itfelf is plain and true, as that GOD and his Word are true - 3 altho' the particular Paf- fage you objeft to, which does not relate di- retly to the Doctrine, fhould prove to be erro- iieous j and I might have contented myfelf with f R?m. Cathol. Reafoas- a. juftifying 8 A Letter on Image -Worjhif. juftifying Mr. H. as a6ting confident with hi* Character, as a Minifter of the Proteltant Church of England^ in faying (had he faicl it) ' that c you worihiped Images, 3 by referring you to the twenty-fecond Article of Religion, which he fubfcribed, and wherein the Romijh Dottrine of Worfhiping and Adoration of Images is fo juit- ly and truly cenfured. xxxiv. YOUR next Exception to the Homily has fome Relation to the Do&rine, and conf quently to our Approbation of it by fubfcribing the Arti- cles i and could you make good your Objection, I mould think we do wrong in approving the . Homily, which fays, c That Popifh Images and f the Idols of the Gentiles are all one concerning c themfelves, and that you wormip your Images 6 as the Gentiles did their Idols ? To this you reply, ' That you think the c Gentiles efteemed their Idols as Gods, and wor- c fhiped them as fuch, but you do not efteem your 4 Images as Gods, nor wormip them at all in our e Senfe of the Word Worjhlp.* i. THE Gentiles did not efteem their Idols as Gods : The Wifeft of them at leaft had very different Sentiments (whatever the Mob might have among them, as among you) and never look'd on their Images as any other than Symbols or R eprefentations of that Being, to whom they gave Divine Wormip. The Words of EUSEBIU?, whofe Authority, as he was a Chriftian Bimop 'A Letter on Image-ffiorfoty. $y and of eminent Learning, are worth your No- tice : c It is manifeft, fays he, even to them- * felves, /". e. the Heathen, that their lifelefs c Images are not Gods *.' The famous Roman Annalilt makes AGRIPPINA thus Philofophize ; non In Effigies mutas Divinum Spiritum tranf- fitfum f 3 and thus CICERO confefies, JOVEM La- pideni) non efe Deum. The Heathens, when hard prefled by the primitive Chriftians on the Subjeft of Image- Worlhip, ftill denied that they believ'd thefe Images to be real Gods : They adored not, they faid, the Wood, the Brafs, Gold or Silver, as if thefe Metals were of themfelves Gods y but they worshiped the Gods, who by Virtue of the Confecration or Dedication, inhabited thefe Images %. It is remarkable in the Coun- cil of Nice, that when one of the Fathers ac- cufed the Heathens of Idolatry, as honouring their Images as Gods, they utterly denied this, and folemnly affirmed, that they only worfhiped thofe incorporeal Beings, which the Images re- prefented ; and therefore they came off as well as thefe Fathers, who fay, c They do not make the c Image of CHRIST, to worfnip the Image it- c fe!f, but that the Mind, feeing it, may fly to * Things above jj. J I think there is fcarce one Argument you make ufe of, in Defence of your Images, which the Heathen did not apply to the Support of their Idols : They faid, as you fay, * See STILLING FLEET'S LJolat- of the Ch- of Home p. 65. t TACIT. Ann- 4. 52. $ Sec MIILAS-'S Hift. of the Propagation of ChriftLmity- Vol. i. p- 436. | Prefervat- agaiuft Popery. Vol. 2. Tit. 6- P. 297. that loo d Letter OH Image-WorJbip* that they were Inftru&ion for the Ignorant, Signs of divine Honour, and Helps to the Remem- brance i and which ferv'd to reprefent Things inviiible, by what was viiible ;- That they were as Letters, which did inftruft them in the Worfliip of Gorr:- That they did not wormip them, but by them the Godhead the Repre- fented, and not the Reprefentee, and from the Type afcended to the Prototype *. ARE notyour Images and the Idols of the Gen- tiles all one concerning themfelves : Alike the Work of Men's Hands, Wood and Stone, which neither fee nor hear, nor eat nor fmell^? There is no Difference, but in the Name : What was an ancient Demigod, you have dubb'd a modern Saint *. THUS, Sir, you fee that you cannot acquit yourfelves, but by the fame Arguments which will clear the Heathens 3 and if you are not cri- minal in your Practice, fo neither were they. 2. IN vain then you tell us, 'That you do not worjhip Images at all, in our Senfe of the Word WORSHIP. Enough has been already faid, in the former Part of this Letter, to prove the Practice upon you, and to mew that all Wor- ihip of Images is unlawful and unfcriptural. You very well know, that the higheft Authority of your Church enjoins the Worihip of them, and peremptorily bellows a Curfe upon thofe * Vid. Preffrvat- Tit- 6. P. 255, s<56. t Deutro:i. ch. 4. v- a8. t See Dr. MIDDI-BTOJI'S Lettwfrom Rt>me> p. 159, 165, &c> who A Letter on Image-WorJhif. 101 who deny, or fo much as doubt about this Ado- ration. 3 Tis in vain you make a Nbife, about the Word IVorJkip. While it remains a Part of the fecond Commandment, it muft condemn you. You had better do as BONNER Biftiop of London did 5 in his Inductions to his Diocefe in. 1555, f r the Words Worjhty them, order to be read, iVbr adore them with GOD's Honour *. But what a fad Degree of Apoftacy from GOD'S Truth is this; when you cannot juftify your Practice without altering the divine Commandments :~-When your Conduct muft be made the Meafure of the Law of GOD, and not the Law of GOD the Meafure of your Conduct ? AFTER all, Fats are plain Things, fpeak for themfelves, and will ever be too ftrong for Chi- cane and Sophiftry j and I muft give up my Senfes and my Underftanding, if I can fee you moft exactly conforming to Pagan Rites, and at the fame Time abfolve you from Pagan Idolatry'. FOR inftance, when I fee your Churches e- quipp'd like the Heathen Temples, Incenie breathing, Lamps burning, your Altars and I- mages with votive Offerings hanging round them: When I hear your Addreffes to the Saints (the Prototypes of many of your Images) as to fub- ordinate Deities and Mediators between GOD and Man, your Prayers and Praifes to them for * Hiftory of the Reform, abridg'd- Vol. ? p. 218. Health., O A Letter on Image-Worfoip. Health, Safety, Succefs, 6^f. When I read the forg'd Miracles afcribed to your Images, as they were to the Pagan Idols : When I hear of your carrying, and dancing round thefe Images of your Saints in your Proceffions, to Singing and Mufic : When I behold them array s d in coftly Apparel, and deck'd with precious Stones : When I find them not only in your Churches, but in Groves, in high Places, in High- ways, and in the Corners of your Streets : When I behold you bowing to them, proftrate before them and devoutly Worfliiping them : Can I, notwithftand- ing all this, renounce my Eyes, and Ears, and Reafon , and fay, that tho' thefe are the very fame Things that were pra&ifed by the Heathens, yet they are not heathenifh , and that the Roman- ifts may be reputed Saints in doing That for which the Pagans were condemn'd as Sinners ? BUT I need not enlarge in Proof of this Part of the Homily, ' That you do worfhip your t THE oil Daemons of Paganifm, it is well known, h*l each their diftinft Provinces or Prefectures : And thus we arc told, that the prefent Inhabitants of South Guinea Lave each of them, Men and Women, their peculiar Idols ; one for a happy Delivery, when with Child, another for the Head-arh, another for the Fever or Ague ; others for venereal Dif- eafes, for the Worms $ to preferve them from being drown'd, and frotH Robber; for preventing Storms in their Voyages at Sea, and fo ad infinirum for or againft all the Cafitalties that attend humane Nature. CHURCHILL'S Voyages^ Vol- 5. p. 515. Thus among the Komanifts abroad, it is well known that they have different Saints to recur to in their different Exigencies : Their Number is aftonifliing j fume they have made 'Proteftors of their Corn, Cattle, Hawking, Hunting, and even of their unlawful Pleafures : St- IGNATIUS of Loyola is the PrntcSor of thofe that are with Child, and of Women given to their Plcafure : Some prefidc over particular Countries, Cities, Societies, and even the different Trades ef Men ; others over the fcveral Difeafes of the Body or the Mind j others ove* the Winds, &c- ' Images, A Letter on Image-WorJbif. 1 03 e Images, as the Heathens did their Idols. 5 The Homily itfelf has efte&ually and undeniably prov'd it i and it appears a little Strange, that you mould objed to the Afiertion, without taking the leaft Notice of, or framing any Exception againft the Proof. For your further Satisfaction in this Point, I would recommend to your Peru- falMonf. DE CROY G. ARTH'S Book, entitled, tfhe three Conformities^ or, 'The Harmony of tfe Romifh Church with Gentilifm; and Dr. MIDDLED TON'S Letter from Rome, with, the Prefatory Dif* cottrfe annex'd to it : A Book, which if you had read without Prejudice, I am perfuaded you would have fayed both yourfelf and me this Trouble. XXXV. 'Bur if you are Idolaters, how came our fi Anceftors, you ask, to have Recourfe to an 4 idolatrous Church for Confeeration ? ? You might, Sir, as well ask, w hy in dividing Stocks and difTolving Partnermip with a bad Af- fociate, I chofe, in ballancing Accounts, to ac- cept from him good Money and reje the bad he offer'd me, and in which he was ufed to deal ? Or, how I could think of him otherwife than as an honeft Man, becaufe the Cam I receiv'd from him was good ? You might as well ask, Why Chrift and Chriftians received from the Jewijb Church the Scriptures of the Old Teftament, and did not at the fame Time embrace the Traditions of their Rabbis and the Orearns of their Tal- jriuditts ? Og To 104 d Letter on Image-WorJhty. To make the Cafe more plain : A Parent leaves by Teftament an Eftate, and by it a fufficient Provllion for his Children , but appoints Guardi- ans in Truft for the Adminiltring fome Part of this Provifion ; gives them a fpecial Commiflion to this Purpofe, and invefts them with a legal Title to the Eftate. They for fome Time dif- charge their Truft faithfully, by a ft rift adhe- rence to the Teftator's Will ; but by degrees they degenerate : They deprive the Children of a Part, and a very material Part of the Proviiion lett them : They clog the Will with new Conditions, and oblige their Wards to Principles and Practi- ces, fome quite foreign, and fome clean contrary to the Intention and even the exprefs Words of the Teftator. The Children advance in Age, and at laft get a fight of the Will, which had for fome Time been fecreted from them, and fee with for- -row the Shamelefs Violation of it, which they had been led into. A favourable Opportunity is offered by Providence to throw off all unjuft Con- ditions and illegal Terms, to which they had been hitherto obliged to fubmit by the Power and Policy of their former Guardians ; who, they find, had inverted others with as good a Title to the Eftate, as they themfel ves had. The Chil- dren henceforth at under the Guidance and Guardianfhip of thefe legal Substitutes, who make the Teftators Will the profefs'd Rule of their Condu&. Now, Sir, it would be with a very ill Grace, the former Guardians fhould reproach the Chil- dren 'A Letter on Image-WorJIoif, 105 dren with having deferted their Guidance and Directions $ and it would furely be difhonourable to expe& that their firft Title to the Eftate, Ihould give them a Power to impofe the moil un- reafonable and unjuft Conditions upon the Children: And to ask them, whv they allowed of their (/". e. the Guardians) original Right, and did not at the fame Time embrace all their fubfequent Impoli- tions, would be the fame Thing, as to ask, why they did not facrifice their Confcience and their Interefl to the arbitrary Will of faithlefs Men ; Why they chofe to follow Truth and Law, without the Mixture of Falihood and Injuflice ? Why they were willing to avail themielves of a Power to do Right, and did not rather deiire to continue in the Wrong ? The Power in the o- riginal Guardians and Conltituents, and in their legal Subftitutes and SuccefTors, is allow 'd to be the fame j the only Difference then remaining is, That the Abufe of it by the Former, and the proper Ufe made of it by the Latter, muft reflect Shame upon the one and Glory upon the other. IF you are deiirous of further Satisfaction in this Point, I refer you to Dr. HICKS'S Controver- fial Letters *, and to Billiop STILL INGFLEET'J Anfaer to the feveral Treaties occajioned by his Difcourfe concerning the Idolatry of the Church of Rome f. * Vol. 2. p. ?4, :o(S. t Gen. Piref. to Patt i- XXXVI. ic6 A Letter on Image-WorJhif. XXXVI. You next fay, ' That the Curate, in charg- c ing you with worshiping Images, had a whole ' Catalogue of Proteftant Divines, and thofe c afTembled in Council, againft him , and con- * fequently clearing you from the Charge of Idolatry. 5 I TOLD you, I was a Stranger to that Council, tho* myfelit a Proteftant Divme; and expected from you, that you would have dire6Uy named it : But I find you are a prudent Man : It is cer- tainly a wifer Part to ftifle Evidence, which upon crofs examining may betray or injure our Caufe, than to produce it. You h,ave here 3 I confefs, put me to no final! Trouble, in finding out this famous Council. I recollected, with fome Care, t he moft memorable Periods of our Hiftory fince the Reformation, and confulted fuch Writers as I thought could not have omitted fo remarkable a Tranfalion : But my Labour was all in vain. Confcious of my own Inabilities, I confulted fqme learned Friends upon the Occalion, but with no better Succefs : And where was the Wonder ; for how ihould they find what never had a Being ? As I was defending the Sentiments and Conduct of a Pro- teftant Minifter of the Church of England^ \ imagined naturally enough, that this Council, with which you confronted me, had been in a great Meafure compofed of our own Divines $ or at leaft, that they had been admitted to a Seat in, this Proteftant Council, and had joined in the De- claration, * A Letter on Image~Worfbif. 1 07 claration you mention. But how great was my Surprize, to find that you had been all this while amuling me with the Deciiion of the Faculty at Helm/tad*, an univerliity of Lutherans ? Your Record for this Anecdote is a common News- Paper, the Poft Boy of July I, 1708, nowtack'd to a molt grofs Heap of Folly and Fallhood, which, I find, you are at this Time communica- ting to your Neighbours, for their Edification in Chriftian Truth and Knowledge. With this Lutheran Deciiion I have nothing to do, as a Minifter 01 the Church of England; and the Weaknefs and Fallacy of it has, I doubt not, been fufficiently expoied : But I cannot help ob- ferving, I. That the Occalion of it (the Princefs of Woljen'bnuie^ Marriage with CHARLES III, King of Spain) gives great Room to fufpeft, that the Intrigues of a Court had more influ- ence upon the Deciders than the Infpiration of Heaven : 2. That you are not hereby clear'd from the Imputation of Idolatry ; for it is fome- thing remarkable, that in reciting the Objections, which the Faculty fuppofe might be made to their Deciiion, they carefully pafs over Image- Worfhip, and other Enormities of the Roman Church : What they mainly afTert is, c That the c Foundation of Religion fublifts in the Raman e Catholic Church $' and feem to take it for granted, that no Antichriftian Superftructure had been added to that Foundation. Nay they declare further, that the Princefs c was to make no c formal Abjuration That controverted Points c were not to be impofed upon her, and thpt 6 her io8 A Letter on Image-WorJhif. ' her Bufinels only was to continue in the Simplicity * of the Faith' 3. The Deciiion of this particular Cafe, is fo far from being the Refult of a proper Proteftant Council, or agreeable to Proteftant Principles, that your Record tells you, /"/ had given juft offence to mo ft of the Proteftants abroad. XXXVII. BUT your Modefty and Logic, on this Occa- iion, are really admirable. This Council or Catologue of Proteftant Divines, which you are Ib very my of Naming, is, it leems, of Moment and Authority fufKcient to clear you from the Charge of Idolatry, while the Arch-Bifhop and Bifbops of the upper Houfe, and the whole Clergy of the nether Houfe of Convocation, who confirm'd, by their Subfcription, the thirty-nine Articles, are of no Manner of Conlideration or Weight, e As being under Reftrictions, and who * had proved themfelves an odd fort of People 5 * and had befides a Woman Pope to head them ; * which, you fay, will certainly make an odd e Figure in the Eyes of Pofterity.' SURELY, Sir, if you had known any Thing of the Hiftory of Councils and Popes, you would have forbore to touch upon this Subject , as it opens a Scene fo black, fo infamous, and fo re- proachful to your Caufe, and to your Church. 4 YOUR boafted general Councils, 3 fays a lear- ned Writer, e however unreftrained from with- * out, fell under the Bondage of their own Cor- c ruptions, overawed by Threatnings, perverted 'by A Letter on Image-Worfbif. by promifes, purchafed by Penfions from Rome, and confequently poflefied Nothing but a Phan- tom of Liberty, to delude the World with a Belief, that their Decrees in Compliance with the Suggeflions from the Conclave, were the Refult of free Confultations amongft the Fa- thers, guided and affifted by the Operations of the Holy Spirit.^ So that to charge un- due Confinement on Proteftant Councils, and afiert the Freedom and Regularity of Popifli Councils is to write with a Pen fuperior to the Force and Power of Evidence *.' BUT, to confine myfelf to the prefent Subje&, let me ask you, Sir, Who was it that, maugre the Opposition of feveral, caufed it to le decided (they are your own Du PIN'S Words) c that I- 4 mages might be had and honoured ?' Was it not Pope IRENE, the moft abominable of Wo- men, not to be paralleled for Ambition and Cruelty who murder'd her own Son and ufurped his Empire ? Be afhamed of talking of Reftraints upon the Convocation, while it remains upon Record, that at this Council, where Idolatry was firft efta- blifli'd by Law, the Emprefs's Guards kept the Iconoclafts from entering the Council, and her- felf undertook to put the Conltitutions of it in Force. How different was this from your Cafe, with Refpe& to this very Reign which you accufe ? Were you excluded from any Admiflion, De- * IV RETXOLDS'S Hiftor. Effay on the Government of the Church of EvghnJ' p 117, 153- P bate, i io A Letter on Image-lforjbif. bate, or Argument in Defence of your Caufe ? Nay were you not invited to a free Conference in 1559, a little before the Articles were confirmed, but had the Modefty to decline it f ? As to the Reftri&ions, you mention, which the Convocation lay under, * So remote,' fays the learned Writer juft now quoted, e was undue ' Reftraint from the Maxims of this Reign, that the Synod was favoured with frequent Licences from the Queen to treat, debate, and conclude j and as they made no Scruple to addrefs the Queen upon proper Occalions, fo her Majefty waspleafed to receive their Addrefies gracioufly, upon Points that were not agreeable to the Tafte of the Court .' WITH Refpeft to the Queen's Popedome, it fliOuld be remember*d, that fhe interfered no fur- ther in the Determinations about Religion, than had been the Cuftom, and deemed the Right of Chriftian Princes, in the early 'Ages of the Church ; .fuch as CONSTANTINE, THODOSIUS, and VALENTINIAN f|. c The fame Power,' an eminent Prelate tells us, c the Chriftian Emperors of old allumed unto themfelves, to convocate Synods, to prelide in Synods, to confirm Sy- nods, to eftablilri Eccleiiaftical Laws, to receive Appeals, to nominate Bifhops, to eject Bifhops, to fupprefs Herefies, to compofe Eccleiiaftical Differences, in Councils, out of Councils, by I See Dr- REYNOLDS. $ Dr. RIYITOIDS, p. 171, and fee TRAJF'S CnurrK of EngfanJ de ir Anfwer to i."^.'j/;^'s Converf- and Reform- compar'd- p. 352. j; Scr Dr. REYNOLD*, p. s c themfelves 3 A Letter on Image- Worjb if. 1 1 1 * themfelves, by their Delegates : All which is * as clear in the Hiftory of the Church, as if it * were written with a Beam of the Sun */ You might. Sir, have been further inform'd by Hiftory, that Queen ELIZABETH difliked the Style of Head of the Church ; as being due, Ihe laid, only to CHRIST - 3 and that flie took order in her firft Parliament, to have it leit out of her A itle. I THINK then, upon the whole, it had been as Prudent if you had faid nothing about this Petticoat Pope, as it naturally recalls to our Memory her immediate PredecefTor MARY the Merciful : She it was that fummoned the Con- vocations by her Writ, with the Title of Supreme Bead of the Church ; and with Reluctance laid it alide, for political Reafons (as there is Room to conjecture.) after fome Years Pofieffion. The Convocation, during her Reign, did nothing worth mentioning. The Reiteration of Popery was effected by Court Intrigue and Parliamentary Decifion. And what a Parliament was this, which enacted the Form of the Public Worlhip, reitored the Mafs, and re-eftablim'd Croffes and Images ? We are told by Hiftory, c that befides the ordinary Ways made ufe of by Kings, to have Parlia- ments at their Devotion, all forts of Artifices, Frauds and even Violences were put in Prac- tice to carry their Elections for this Parliament in favour of the Court. As Care was before taken to change the Magiftrates in the Cities M HZ Li's ArG to Mocf. de j a MII.ITJSJIE. j>- 39. ad A Letter on Image-WorJbip. c and Counties, and not one almoft left in either, ' who was not a Roman Catholic, or had promifed c to become one, every Defign was countenanced 6 which was in order to have the Returns on that * Side. On the Contrary, thofe who were fuf- c pected of leaning to the Proteftant Caufe, were c difcouraged by Menaces, by Aftions, by Im- c prilbnments on the moft frivolous Pretences. In c feveral Places Things were"" carried with fuch c Violence, that Proteflants were not allow'd to c affift in AfTemblies where Ele'Hona were to be c made. In ihort, in Places where it was not * pollible to go to work fo avowedly, by Rea- c Ion of the Superiority of the Reformed, the c Sheriffs devoted to the Court made falfe Re- c turns *.' HERE, Sir, you fee no Reftrittions - 9 the Men concerned prove themfelves an honeft Sort of Peo- ple ; and the pious Princefs, her Amis adorned with Racks and Gibbets, her Creft emblazon'd with Blood and. Flame, will certainly make a glorious figure in the Eyes of Pofterity. THERE is now remaining but one Part of your Letter, which I have left unanfwer'd -, and That muft remain- fo for me : I mean thofe Flowers of Rhetoric, thofe genteel Apellations, which you have beftowed upon the whole Body of the eltablifh'd Clergy j either as Proofs of your Politenefs, or Specimens of your Modeily, or Tokens of your Gratitude for that Lenity and Hift- of En S . Vol. 8>y J39- Ei- P**- Forbearance r A Letter on InHige-WorJbif. 1 1 3 Forbearance with which you are indulg'd by that Government, whofe Minifters you revile. Thefe, I fay, I muft leave unanfwer'd i for my Religi- on teaches me not to return Railing tor Railing, but contrary wife Bleffing. I therefore leave you in full and peaceable PoiTellion of your bard Names, to be applied, for Want of Argument, to your future Occafions : And I pray GOD to give you the Spirit of Wifdom, of Love, and of a found Mind. I am, Sir, &c. r. H. FINIS. BRITAIN^ REMEMBRANCER. BEING Some Thoughts on the proper Improvement of the prefent Juncture. The Character of this Age and Nation. A brief View, from Hiftory, of the Effeds of the Vices which now prevail in Bri- tain y upon the greateft Em- pires and States of former Times. Remarkable Deliverances this Nation has had in the moft imminent Dangers j with fuitable Reflexions. Some Hints, (hewing what is in the Power of the feveral Ranks of People, and of every Individual in Bri- tain, to do toward fecuring the State from all its Ene- mies. THE THIRD EDITION. LONDON: Printed for G. FREER, at the Bible in Bell-yard, near Temple- Bar. MDCCXLVII. [ Price Six-pence. ] The PUBLISHER to the READER, [E great Demand for the former Impreffions ^ofthisPamphlet fufficiently fliews bow acceptable it is to the Public. I beg leave therefore only to add, as a farther Proof of its Ufefulnefs, the Reverend Mr. BARKER'.* Opinion of it, in his Sermon oc- cajioned by the Victory obtained ever the Rebels at CULLODEN, in the Note, p. 22. where he fays, " See a Pamphlet calkd BRITAIN** REMEM- 1 BR < NCER, which takes Notice of this and fo tc many ''Things more relating to this Rebellion, and " . -- r per for the i ight Improvement of the prefent " State of our Slffairs, that 1 cannot but ivijh it cc in every family -, and that it might be very at- Gi\ but 1 take this Opportunity, publickly c< a^d heartily to thank him for his excellent Per- " for mane e" [ 3 ] BRITAIN^ REMEMBRANCER, DEAR COUNTRYMEN, HIS ADDRESS comes to your Hands at a Time when it is to be hoped you are a little come to your (elves, and may be fpoke to, if you will bear being fpoke to at all. When public Calamities have been (hiking Terror into a Ptople, and the Dread of a general Ruin hafrening upon them has forced them on thinking, then feems to be a proper Seafon for fuggefting to them Thoughts of a Kind too ferious and important to be liftned to in Times of Peace and Tranquil- lity, or in the giady Hours of Mirth and Wantcnr.efs. To lay before you what I think the proper and neceflary Confi- derations upon fuch a Juncture zs this, and endeavour as well as I can to direct you to that Improvement of it which may be worthy of a wife and great, as well as a pious and Chrifti- an Nation, is the only Intention of this Application to you* And if there has been any Juncture within the Period ofthefelaft 30 Years, that might give any Hopes of gaining your Attention to whokfome Advice, cutthinks this is ic 5 and therefore I am A 2 not [ 4 ] not without Hopes, that what I (hall fay on this Occafion will have fome Effect upon you, and tend lefs or more to your Advantage. But, however it my fucceed with regard to you, I am fure it will turn out no way to my own Difadvan- tage another Day, which is Encouragement enough to me to proceed in it. If in any Part of this little Tracl, the natural Warmth of my Imagination, my Zeal for the Caufe I engage in, or an Excefs of Concern for my Country, fhould give Occa- fion to my ufing any Expreflions that may appear to one Sort of Readers tco much exaggerated or heightned ; I hope the unqueftionable Sincerity of my Intention will plead my Excufe. Flr/l, I think I may fafely lay it down for a Truth capable of Demonftration, That if there is a God in Heaven, who by his Providence over-rules the Revolutions and difpofes the Fates of Nations ; according to his Pleafure raifmg one to Grandeur, and hnmbling another to the Duft ; then it is plain from two of the neceflary Attributes of his Nature, Wifdom and Gcodnek, that whatever DiftrcfTes he brings upon the Kingdoms of the Earth, he brings them for no other End than the Punifhment of Guilt, and the moral Improvement of Mankind. It is plainly impoffible, that any Evil can arife in the World againft the Will of a Being of infinite Wifdom and Power ; for by means of his Wifdom he muft of neceflity know what- ever arifes in the World, and by his Power muft be able to pre- vent it, if he pleafed ; therefore there is no fatisfaclory Account to be given how Wars, Famine, Peftilence, and other Afflic- tions corrie upon Mankind, but by concluding, that they are permitted or fent by the Almighty for the Punifhment of his difobedient Creatures, or for Warnings to call them to Re- pentance and Reformation. There is indeed another Purpofe for which one particular kind of Calamity has been permitted, I mean Perfecution ; and that is, for the Trial of the Faith and Conftancy of pious Men. But when War, Famine, or Peftilence are fent upon a People, who have forgot God, and given themfelves up to Foily and Wickednefs, then it is plain they are intend- ed as fcafonable and rouzing Alarms, to call the Thoughtlefs to Repentance, and as Scourges to punifh the daringly Im- pious. Since the Conclufion of the Prophetic and Apoftolic Ages, the almighty Governour of the World has ufed no other Method for working out his important Ends of reforming or i punifhmg t 5 ] punifliing wicked Nations, than by threatning or a&ually in- fli&ing upon them fuch Judgments as will feverely diftrefs them } the natural Effect: of which is to put them upon flying to fomething divine, for that Relief which they find uoth.ng human will yield. When the Almighty, of his great Mercy and Forbearance to a fmful People, inftead of bringing upon them the Punifh- ment due to their Wickednefs, does but threaten the Blow, without inflicting it ; when he brings a Nation to the very Gates of Deftruclion, and by Means wholly out of human Power, delivers them in a iignal and remarkable Manner ; then does it highly concern that Nation wifely to regard the Hand that has thus confpicuoufly exerted itfelf for their De- liverance, and to confider what important LefTon is intended to be taught by fuch a remarkable Interposition ; left, if they flight thefe Warnings too often, the Patience and Forbear- ance of the beft of Beings be at lait provoked againft them, fo that he determine again to bring them into Danger and Fear as formerly, but not as formerly to deliver them. You have, my dear Country men, in one Seafon beenthreat- ned with two heavy National Calamities, viz. a Dearth of Corn, and a bloody inteftine War. As to the firft, every one remembers that the Fall of Rains laft Summer was fo fevere, and of fo long Continuance, that the whole Harveft of the Year was generally given over for loft ; and it is cer- tain, that a very few Weeks more Rain had entirely cut it off. But that Mercy, which we have never deferved, inter- pofed in the Time of our Diftrefs. The Almighty ihewed us how entirely we were in his Power ; what we might ex- pect, if we did not take timely Warning ; and at the fame Time how loth he is to treat Mankind as they dtferve. We let this Threatning go as it came, without {hewing any Regard to it. And yet he forgave us and fpared us. He fcattered his Clouds by the Breath of his Winds ; he commanded his Sun to (nine and his Heavens again to faille upon us ; the Earth yielded her Fruits, the Poor rejoiced in the Profptct of Plenty, and he crowned the Year with his Goodnefs. You have likewife very larely feen the Sword let loofe amongft you, and have been put in Fear of its coming home to each of your own Bofums. You have Teen the daring Emiflary of a Popifh Pretender prefume to invade your peaceful IfUnd, unufcd to Scents of Whence and Blood, and with r 6 } with a Crew of lawlefs Rebels threaten Ruin and Deftrtic- tion to your civil and religious Liberties, and Slavery, Perfe- cution and Death with Tortures,' to every one of you, whd fhould refufe to make Shipwreck of a good Confciencc. You faw this Rebel-Rout over-run and conquer a very confiderable Part of your Country, a great and populous City, and a Body of your regular Forces. All this you faw with Terror and Amazement. Confufion filled every Heart, and Palenefs covered every Face. You looked when this bloody Crew with hafty Marches fhould arrive at your Metropolis, and lay the Glory of the greateft City in the World in Duft. You dreaded every Day the Arrival of a French Army on your Coafts, well knowing that it was under the Umbrage of that reliefs and ambitious Nation, the Rival of your Greatnefs, and the old Difturber of your Peace, that the curfed Scheme was framed. You faw yourfelves wholly de- ftitute of Forces to defend you ag^inft the Enemy already in your Country, and much more againft the united Force of the rebellious Crew, and an Army from France to fecond them. Then did French Tyranny, Popery, and Perfecution prefent themfelves to your Eyes. Then did you view your Country as already filled with Biood, with Fire and Defola- tion, a general Maffacre begun, and the Britijh Empire deftined for a Province to France. And had they not been infatuated by Heaven to confumefo Jong a Time in the North, infteadof hurrying on toward London, immediately after the Defeat of the Army, what Numbers from every County in England would have flocked in to them, flufhed as they were with their firft Suc- cefs, who can pretend to fay ? And had we not all the Rea- fon in the World to fear, that their Friends in London would have immediately fired the City? And what could then have been the Event of the infernal Machination, but your Country's being plunged in a Sea of Blood, if not wholly overflowed and loft in it ? Thefe were the Terrors of that gloomy Day, and thefe your Fears were but too well ground- ed. It was in that melancholy Crifis, when all look'd black and threatening around you, and when no Help feemed to be near, that He, whofe timely Interpofition has fo often faved this unthankful Nation in her laft Extremity, caft an Eye of Pity on your Diftrefs, and refolved to deliver you once more from your Enemies, to prove you, whether you would leave off your Follies, caft your Sins behind your Backs, and turn [ 7 1 turn to him with your whole Hearts, or if you would forget your almighty and merciful Deliverer, and return to the Purfuit of your Follies and Vices as before. He commanded his Wind? to waft over your Forces from abroad. He com- rnanded an Eaft-Wind to blow for a whole Month together, at a Seafon of the Year in which they are very rarely known. Your Army landed, after one of the quickeft Paflages ever heard of, juft in Time to fupport and revive your Spirits after your fudden Confternation, and to reftore to you that Cou- rage which was abfolutely neceflfary to enable you to take any farther Meafures for your own Safety. Let any Perfon of Judgment in the Nation fay what muft have been the Confequence, if a wefterly Wind had fet in for a very few Weeks, about the Time when our Forces were fo much wanted from abroad, which would have been only agree- able to the ufual Courfe of the Seafon ; or what would have been the Confequence, had a Body of 10 or 12,000 Men from France arrived among us, at the Time when an Army ot Cut-throats were already broke loofe in our Country ; or what would have been the Confequence, had the rebellious Crew, immediately after the Defeat of our Armv, haftned into the midft of England^ and hurrying on to London itfelf, taken us under every Difad vantage ; which was the Part they ought, according to Prudence, to have afted, and were expend to aft, according to their own declared Intention. The \hought- lefs, who do not take the Trouble of obferving the Ways of Heaven, and the Impious, who have forgot the God who made and aoverns the World, may overlook thefe remarkable Concurrences of Circumftances, or confider them as no o than common Accidents falling out according to the natur Courfe of Things : But the Wife and Conhderate, I am per- fuaded, will own, that it is not our own Arm that hath fa us j and that this Deliverance, fo far as we are yet delivered, * A ?ow d ; my dear Countrymen, muft I ask you whether you think fuch fignal Interpofitions in your tavour require any particular Regard on your Part, or whether you can per- fua y de P yourfelve S that they have no Meaning at all and are no way intended to put you upon thinking or a tenng ,our Condua? Methinks the very Suppofition, that a wife and a Chriftian Nation fhould be capable of overlooking fuel, re m arkable Providences, and of negka.ng to m* Improvement of them, ought to appear an A.rcn^t- I < J Character. But, alas ! the Days of Thought, Attention, and religious Regard to the awful Steps of Providence, are gone, and giddy Pleafure and atheiftical Ignorance have taken their Place. If there are however any left among us, who have not refolved to harden their Hearts againft all Thought and Reflection, to them I willingly write, and do not grudge the Trouble of laying before them the following brief View of the characteristic Vices of the Age, which we are fo loud- ly called upon by thefe awful Threatnings of Heaven to re- form without Delay. And if any, from a fincere Defire of their own Amendment and that of others, of appeafing the Wrath of Heaven, and preventing a much more fatal Vifita- 'tion, would know what are the peculiar Vices which diftin- guiih this unhappy Age from all the paft, and againft which the late Vengeance of Heaven was particularly threatened ; I wifli the Anfwer were not fo ready as it is, and that it were not fo obvious to every Eye, that LUXURY and IRRELIGION, which are infeparable Companions, are the characteristic Vices of the Age, and that our degenerate Times and cor- rupt Nation have the Unhappinefs of being fmgular in this Refpect ; that, whereas in all the othef Kingdoms of the "World, and all the Ages of it, it has ever been only the Rich and Great who have either had Tafte enough to pretend to confume their Lives and Incomes in Luxury and Pleafure, or Infolence enough to prefume to treat allThings ferious and facred with Contempt : On the contrary, with us no Rank or Station is too low for either of thefe polite Vices; for at this Day hardly any Man thinks himfelf fo mean as not to be above Re- ligion, Frugality 'and Sobriety.' But when I fay thefe tW9 are the diftinguifhing Vices of the Age, I am far enough from me3ning that they are the only ones. No j tho' they alone are more than fufficient to fink a Nation, yet we want not for a numerous Train of others that always follow at their Heels. For when Luxury and Irreligion enter a Nation, with theni enter Venality, Perjury, Faction, Oppofition to legal Autho- rity, Idlenefs, Gluttony, Drunkennefs, Leudnefs, exceffive Gaming, Robberies, clandeftine Marriages, Breach of Ma- trimonial Vows, Self-murders, and innumerable others. Here is a Legion of Furies fufficient to rend any State or Empire that ever was in the World to pieces ; and accordingly we hna, from univerfal Hiftory, that no Degree of Wealth, of Trade, if Naval or Military Force, have ever been fuffici- ent to fupport any Nation whtre Luxury and Vice have pre- [ 9 ] prevailed, but on the contrary the greateft Empires in all Ages have funk before them. I hope it will not be to your Difadvantage to obferve, from the few following Inftances the Truth of this Affertion, which may fhew you what you are to expedt, and what will be the Iflue of your Conduct, if you do not alter it in Time. The firft great Empire in the World, viz. the AJJyrlan^ the Capital of which was Nineveh, owed its Deftru&ion en- tirely to the Luxury of its' Prince Sardanapalus, of whom Diodortts, Jujlin, &c. give the following Account, That he furpafled ail his Predecefibrs in Effeminacy, Luxury, and Cowardice. That he never went out of his Palace, but fpent all his Time among a Company of Women, drefled, and painted like them, and employed like them at the Diftaff. That he placed all his Glory in the Pofleflion of immenfe Treafures, in Feafting, Rioting, and indulging himfelf in all the moft infamous and criminal Pleafures. Which Luxury fome of his own Generals growing impatient of, and defpif- ing to be governed by him, took Arms againft him, entirely overturned the Empire, and broke it into three Kingdoms*. Such was .the Effect of Luxury and Vice in one r"erfon. What may they not then produce, when they become fo uni- verfal as to debauch a whole Nation ? The Babylonian Empire, fo called from the City Babylon its Capital, arofe after the Fall of that properly called the AJJyrian. It grew to great Splendor and Riches, and thofe Riches produced great Luxury, which proved the Ruin of the State. For the City and Empire were taken by Darius the Median, in the Night bv Surprize, while the K.\ngBe'/bazzar^ his Wives and his Concubines, with a Thoufand of the Nobles of the Land, were engaged in a Debauch*. So little did this luxurious Monarch and his Court profit by the Example of the Ruin which Luxury and Vice had before brought upon the AJJyrian Empire. The Perfian Empire, which arofe on the Ruins of the Ba* bylonian, acquiring immenfe Riches by that Conqueft, fell alfo into great Luxury, and in Time exceeded the Babylonian in that very Vice, which they faw bring on its Deftru6Hon. For in Xerxes's Time, when he invaded Greece with an Army of above two Millions and a half, the Number of the Ser- B vants * See Dan. V. [ '0 ] rants and Attendants exceeded that of the Soldiers : But that of the Concubines, Eunuchs, and other Implements of Luxu- ry which accompanied his Army, according to Herodotus? was beyond Reckoning. And the Event was anfwerable. for almoft this whole Multitude was deftroyed. The Luxu- ry of this Army was fo great, that in Mardonius's Camp, (who was left by Xerxes to finifli the War, which he him- felf thought proper to defert with great Precipitation) there were found fuch prodigious Sums in Gold and Silver, befides Cups, Veflels, Beds, Tables, Necklaces, and Bracelets of Gold and Silver, not to be valued, that "J^f-in gives it as his Judgment, That thefe very Spoils proved fatal to all Greece, by becoming the Inftruments of introducing Luxury among her Inhabitants. And when afterwards the Empire was attacked by Alexander, its whole Power fell before him at the Head of a Handful (for fuch they were, compared to the Army of Darius') of Troops not enervated by Luxury, in which Darius indulged himfelf to fuch a Degree, as could not fail to ruin his Expedition ; the very Army being incum- bered with fuch a numerous Train of Princefles, Concubines, Eunuchs, and Domeftics of both Sexes, that their Proceffion in Chariots, with all manner of Magnificence, made his Expedition appear more like a Triumph or a Pageant, than the March of an Army to Battle. It is obferved by Seneca, that the Perfians carried their Luxury and Extravagance in the Army, with refpeft to their Tents, Chariots, and good Cheer, to a greater Excefs, if poffible, than they did in their Cities. The fineft Meats, the rareft Birds, and the moft exquifite Dainties, muft be found for the Piince, in what Part foever of the World he was .encamped. They had their Veflels of Gold and Silver without Number j " In- " ftruments of Luxury, fays j^. Curtius, not of Viftory, and * 6 more proper to allure and enrich an Enemy, than to repel " or defeat them." One would have thought that Alexander, who himfelf over- power'd the vaft Army of Perfia by the mere Advantage of his Troops being hardned to War, whereas thofe of Darius were effeminated by Luxury to fuch a Degree, that thirty Thoufand Macedonians proved victorious over fix Hundred Thoufand Perfians-y one would have thought, I fay, that Alexander himfelf would have been in no Danger, with fuch an Example before his Eyes, of fplitting upon the fame Rock that had proved fo fatal to Darius. But we are told by J- Jlin> " That he degenerated into the Luxury and Vices of *' the Per/jam, whom by means of that very Luxury he had " overcome. That he fuffered his Army to debauch them- felves in the fame manner. That afterwards he gave himfelf up to the moft unkingly Cruelty acjainft his own Friends, one of whom he murdered for expreffing himfelf a little freely concerning his Faults. That he then proceeded to demand * divine Honours to be paid to him, which fome of his Mi- * nifters bravely refufing, he bafely caufed them to be mur- * dered." At length, degenerating into immoderate Intem- perance and Drunkennefs, he died fuddenly in the midft of a Debauch. Whether he was poifoned by fome of his Nobles, whom he had provoked by his Cruelties, as fome Writers af- firm, or whether his Death was the Effecl of Drunkennefs, as others aflert, comes to the fame Purpofe, to wit, that he fell a Sacrifice to his own Luxury and Vices. With him fell the Empire he had raifed, being immediately divided into feveral Kingdoms, which his Favourites fliared amongft them- IThus have we feen the three firft univerfal Monarchies* vi% the Ajjyrian or Babylonian^ the Perfian, and the Grecian^ fuffer feveral terrible Shocks, and at laft link under Luxury and Vice. Let us now fee what Effects they had upon the fourth, viz. the Roman. It is remarkable, that after Lucullus debauched the Romans with the Luxury of dfia, they did not preferve their Liber- ties for half a Century ; the perpetual Diclatorfhip being within that Time ufurped by Julius Cafar, which provoked Brutus, and thofe who ftood with him for Freedom, to cut him off. The Commonwealth was immediately upon this involved in a bloody Civil War, in which fome of the greateft Men of Rome fell. From thefe Times, the ancient iimple Roman Virtue gradually funk more and more, till the Em- pire at laft was tore to pieces by the Irruption of the Northern Nations. We are told by Sallujl, That the principal Tools which Catiline (after the Expedition of Luculius) made ufe of for carrying his Confpiracy into Execution, were fuch of the Men of Birth in Rome as had by their Luxury and Extravagance confumed their Eftates, (and who confequently were willing to engage in any Defign from which they had a Chance of re- pairing them by Plunder) and thofe of the Army, whom Sylla in his Wars in dfia had debauched with Luxury and B 2 Pleafure, Pleafure, in order to engage them the more ftrongly to his P^rtv. From this Confpiracy, the greateft Empire in the World was in the moft imminent Danger of a total Subveriion, and muft have fallen before it, but for the unequalled Saga- city and Vigilance of Cicero, who was then Conful, and who, for his fuccefsful Care of the State, received the honourable Title of, The Father of his Country. To add no other particular Inftances, which would be end- lefs; how the Reman Empire funk from one Degree to ano- ther of Luxury, Venality, and Effeminacy, till at length it was divided into ten Kingdoms, by the Goths and Vandals, is very well known to all that are in the leaft acquainted with the Roman HiOory, and that its Ruin was owing to its Vices, and to its Vices only, which enervated its ancient Strength, and gave it a Prey to its Enemies. Your Patience would fail me before I could give an Ac- count of one half of the fatal Effects of Luxury and Vice upon the other States, Empires, and Cities of the World. Yet I cannot avoid mentioning the Defhuition of the luxu- rious City of Tarentum, the Manners of that People having very much refembled our own at this Day. We are told by Sirabo, Plutarch^ &c. that there were more Feftivals, fo- lemn Games, and publick Feafls in this City than Days in the Year. That, upon an outrageous Intuit offered by them to the Roman, being drawn into a War with them, their Pride and Wantonnefs were fo great, that they neither knew how to con.iuft it, nor to avoid it by a prudent Peace. That having called in King Pyrrhus to mana-je it for them, the whole People foon began to exclaim againft him, (much in the fame licentious Manner as the good People of England are wont to ihew their Wit and their Ignorance, by railing againft their Governors) becaufe he found it ntceflary, in or- der to qualify them for War, to eftabli(h an exacl: military Difcipline among them. Some even q fitted the City, think- ing it a Condition of infupportable Slavery not to be per- mitted to live the fame idle and voluptuous Life, while they were engagAl in War with a powerful Enemy, as they ufed to indulge thcmfelves in, in Times of Peace and Profperity, The War ended accordingly in the total Overthrow of that powerful City, once To famous for its Wealth, Trade, and Magnificence. The Character of the Sybarites, and the Ruin of their City and State, are likewife fo peculiarly proper to my Purpofe, that 1*5] that I cannot help abridging their Story. This City became fo very powerful, as to be able to raife an Army of three hun- dred thoufand Men. Their Wealth foon introduced Luxury, and fuch a Diff.lut.ion of Manners as is almoft incredible, if it were not attelttd b\ Strabo, an; other authentic Writers. The Citizens empio\ed themfelves in nothing but Banquets, Games, Shows, Parties of Pleafure and Caroufals. Public Rewards werebeftowed on thofe who gave the moft magnifi- cent Entertainmcnts ; and even fo fuch ingenious Cooks as were bed skilled m the important Art of making Improve- ments in the da-fung of nice Difhes, and inventing new Re- finements to tickle the Palace. They carried their Delicacy to the monlir us Length ot finding out c.f the City all manner of n.jly Artificers, as Blackimiths, Carpenters,^, and de- ftrov .ng ail tne COCKS, that their downy Slumbers might not be Qihurucd by any Noife. This unbounded Luxury naturally produced DifTentions, which proved their Ruin j one of the contending Parties having Imereft enough to engage the Crotonians to come againlt the City with an Arnu, which tho' only equal to a third Part of that which the Sybarites brought into the Field, yet not being enervated by Luxury, as that of the Sybarites was, proved victorious over them, and totally overthrew their City and State, Why {hall I weary you with a long Account of the ancient Sta f e and Deftruclion of the great City of Corinth ? A City once fo eminent for ies fine Harbours, its extenfive Trade, and its Wealth, as to draw upon it the Envy of Rome herfelf. This Wealth puffed them up fo with Infolence, that they cait ihe mutt provoking Indignities they could think of upon the Roman Eaibdilatlors In Revenge for which the Romans fent L,. Murnmiits againft thern> who burnt their City and jazed it to the Ground. Why (hoald I enlarge on the Fall of the great City of Conftantimple^ which at its Deftru&ion was got to a prodi- gious Height of Splendor and Riches, which the Inhabitants reiufed to part with for their own Security. The Turks were fo enriched *'ith its Plunder, that it became a Proverb, if any Man acquired great Wealth on a fudden, ** that he had been at the Sack of Canjlantinople*" * Eafbard^ Rom. Hilt. vol. 5, p. 456. [ H] Or why fhould I mention the Conqueft of Syria by the Mahometan Saracens, the Inhabitants of which were grown fo wicked, from the great Riches and Eafe they enjoyed, that they themfelves imputed their Miferies to the juft Judgments of God for their prodigious Luxury*. Tbefe zrc fome of the Ravages, which the infernal Mon- fter LUXURY and its attendant Vices have been making upon the Nations of the Earth for a.'moft thefe three thoufand Years backwards. The mightieft Empires, the richeft Kingdoms, and the beft fortified Cities have fallen before them. And what can Britain then expect, but to (hare their Fate, if (he do not take Warning by their Fall ? And now, for the LUXURY of our own Times, fhould any one defire to have it prov'd to him, that we are in the prefent Age arrived to an Excefs in that Vice beyond all the patt, from which the greateft Danger may be feared to the State, both on Account of the natural Confequences of that Vice itfeU, and the others, which are its ccnftant Attendants, and likewife of its judicial Confequences, or the Vengeance it is likely to bring upon us from the Hand of Heaven j I fay, fhould any one defire to have a Demonftration of the exceflive Luxury or our Times, it might feem fufficient only to defire him to take a fupeJ'h'cial Survey of the Manner of Life of al- moft every Rank in the Nation, but efpecially the very loweft, and he will hardly fee any thing elfe but Luxury, Pleafure, and Extravagance flaring him in the Face, wherever he tarns his Eyes in Town and Country. As to the Conduct of the higheft Ranks in the Nation in this Rcfpect, to fay the Truth, it is lefs to be blamed than that of their Inferiors. It were to be wiftied indeed, that they would live moftly upon their own Eftates, and within their Incomes, and that they would make the beft of their Eftates by keeping their Accounts and tranfacting their Bufinefs them- felves, without the Intervention of a Pack of rafcally Stewards and Rent-gatherers, whofe Practice it is too commonly to plunder the Landlord with one Hand, and the Tenant with the other. Again, if any one defires to enquire into the Character of the trading Part of the Nation as to Luxury, let him take a View of the Manner of Life in all the confidcrable Cities in Britain, but efpecially in this once great and flourifhing Me- L _ . - * Qeklefs Hift. of the Saracens, p. 27, and 222. tropolis. t '5 ] tropolis. Whoever does fo, will fee little elfe than Scenes of Wantonnefs, PJeafure, and Extravagance. In thefe Streets, which in the laft Age were filled with decent Citizens drefled in a Garb, plain, uniform, and fit for Bufinefs, he will now fee a motley Race of Engli/h Traders burlefqued into French Dancing-Mafters ; their Cloaths bepatched with Lace, their Hands unfitted for Bufinefs by being muffled up in Cambrick to the Fingers Ends, and their Feet crippled by Wooden- heeled Shoes of fome Inches high. That thefe French Fop- peries (hould thus fill the Heads and difguife the Perfons of our Citizens, feems no hopeful Omen for the Trade of England. If he goes into the Houfes of the Citizens (and not of the' richeft neither) the Luxury, the Expence, the Number of Servants, and the Entertainment of. a Palace will meet his Eyes. If he vifits a Tradefman of the meaneft Rank, he will fee nothing lefs than gilt China-ware, Silver-Piatc, and Choice of foreign Wines adorn his Board*. Where are now the fober and regular Manners of our Fa- thers, when it was the conftant Cuftom for the Citizens to rife betimes according to the Order of Nature, and employ the Morning in examining their Accounts, adjufting their Warehoufes and Shops, and preparing themfelves for the bufy Hours of the Day ? When the Exchange was (hut at Twelve, and Dinner over every where by One ; when they fpent their Evenings at home in initru&ing their Children, Apprentices, and Servants, in the Principles of Virtue and Religion, and concluded every Day with the laudable Exercife of Family- devotion ? In place of thefe decent and regular Methods of living, our Citizens now find it hard to rife by Ten, to get drefs'd for the Change by Two, to get Dinner and the Bottle after it over by Four ; and in an Hour after, the joking Club, the wanton Play-houfe in Winter, and the luxurious Mufick- Garden in Summer, call them from the peaceful Enjoyment of their Families at home, from the Inftruclion of their * The modern Extravagance in Drcfs has alfo given rife to the enormous Expence of Coaches, which are now found abfolutely ne- ceffary for faving our fine Cloaths, but might be wholly fpared, would People content themfelves with Apparel fit for Ufe. V\ on- derful ! that only in Queen Elizabeth^ Time there was not a Coach in England, and that in a Courfe of about 150 Years the Number of them Oiould be beyond Reckoning, Children Children and Domefticks, and from the Worfhip of Him in whofe Power alone it is to fend a Bleffing upon their fecular Em- ployments. Nor do they think the Midnight-hour too late to conclude their Pleafures, or to feek that Reft which Nature, wearied with a Round or Follies, requires. Thus does Luxury invert the beautiful Ordination of Heaven, which appointed the Day for Labour, and the Night for Reft. And is it then any Wonder that the riflng Generation have no more Senfe or Underftanding of Chriftianity than if they had never heard of it, and that the London Apprentices are, generally fpeaking, a Sett of mere Town-R.akes ? Is it any Wonder, that the Affairs of Families are neglected, when the Mafters of them are gone abroad in Purfuit of Plea- fure one Way, and their Wives another? Or is it to be ex- pected, that an extravagant Apprentice or Journeyman, who has not had one Principle of Honefty or Religion intufed into his Mind by Education, will not lay hold on fuch Opportu- nities for plundering his Mafter for the Gratification of his own Lufts and Appetites? If People will not take care of their own Houfes themfelves, how can they expect others {hould do it for them ? Indeed I cannot conceive how they can reliih any Mirth or Pleafure abroad, while their Houfes at home are liable to be ftript or fired by the Carelefsnefs or Difhonefty of Servants. And if the Scenes of Pleafure and Gaiety, which they pafs through abroad, are at all reliflied by them, the Effect they muft have on their Minds muft be, only to make their Bufinefs a Drudgery, and their own Homes dull and tirefome. The modern Luxury and Extravagance of the Citizens ap- pears from nothing more convincingly than its vifible Effe&s, I mean the frequent Bankruptcies of late, which have brought Things at length to that Pafs, that now it is hardly thought prejudicial to the Credit of a Trader that he make a Stop of Pa)ments, ifheefcapes being fairly declared a Bankrupt. And indeed how can Bankruptcy mifs to be the Confequence, when our young Tradersnow-a-days ufually begin where formerly the old ones ended, I mean, with furniming a Town-houfe and a Country-houfe, fetting up Coaches, or keeping Horfes, mak- ing as great a Shew as poffible of Wealth and Trade, and taking as much Credit as they can have by any Means, wirhout making any Allowances for the innumerable Chances of [ '7 ] of Trade, and Dangers of being di^ppointed of Returns to enable them to make due Payments. How many Inftances have we of the terrible Confequences of Extravagance among Traders ; fome of whom have been forced by their NecelTities upon the fatal and wretched Shift of endeavouring to patch up their Credit by Gaming ; which only finks them fo much the deeper. Others we have feen betake themfelves to the Highway, and in endeavouring to recover their ruined Fortunes, make Shipwreck of Life, For- tune and Soul at once. But what above all gives the moft difmal Profpeft of the State of the Nation is the monftrous, and hitherto unequalled Luxury which prevails among the very loweft Ranks of the People. It is very well known, that now even the poor Me- chanick, by whole Labour the Trade of our Country ought to be fupported, has learned to fpend every Sunday, and atleafl the two following Days of the Week in Drunkennefs and Idlenefs, and to lay out generally the whole Earnings of the foregoing Week in procuring to himfelf a Tafte of thofe heighten'd Pleafures, which even in the luxurious Age of King Charles II. were thought only fit for People of Fortune to run mad after ; I mean, getting drunk, haunting of Bawdy- houfes, feeing Plays, hearing Mufick, &c. So that in our Days every Journeyman has as high a Relifti of Plea fu re, and as fine a Tafte, r as they affedt to call it, of Plays and Mufick, as moft of the Gentry of the above-mentioned infamous Age. And is it then any Wonder that we cannot carry our Manu- factures to foreign Markets on equal Terms with the Rivals of our Trade ; with the additional Charge of foreign Wines, Muficians and Players to be added to their Price ? To give a full View of the Luxury of the Age, my dear Countrymen, would carry me a great Way beyond the intend- ed Length of this Pamphlet and of your Patience. To have juft Notions of the State of this epidemic Vice let any Man open hisEyes, and everyObjeft will prefcnt it to hisView. For in every Street of this great Metropolis he will fee one Tavern or Houfe of Entertainment within Call of another* j whereas it is known, that-only in the Days of the Fathers of * I am credibly informed, that by an Account taken of the publick Houfes of different Kinds in only one Parifh in Lofion, they were found to be no lels than fifteen hundred. What rnuft then be the whole Number within ;he Bills of Mortality ? C People People now alive, ftrong Liquors were fold no where but at the Shops of Apothecaries.' In the Drefs of the Inhabitants he will fee Journeymen and Chambermaids got beyond the Pitch of the Quality of laft Age. In every Village round the City he will fee every Sixth Houfe pofTefied by a Retailer of ^ ftrong Liquors, and prepared for the Reception of the rambling Inhabitants, of which he will fee fuch Numbers ca- roufmg in each of them every Sunday, when the Weather is fair, as would make a Stranger conclude there was a general Carnival in the Nation, and that all the Inhabitants were broke loofe. In every delightful Spot around the City he will fee a Retreat fet apart for Mufick, Wine, and Wantonnefs, and there he will fee fuch Magnificence, Tafte, and Expence as is beyond the Power of moft Princes in Europe to fupport ; and all for the Entertainment of the Inhabitants of a City which was once the Seat of Frugality, Trade, Induftry, Sobriety, Religion, and every Virtue that could make a Nation great and happy. If he looks into the publick News-Papers, he will fee them filled with Advertifements of Races, Cock- Matches, Plays, Mufick-Gardens, Balls, Aflemblies, Operas, Concerts, Mafquerades, Breakfafting-houfes, Ridottos and Fire-works. And to fhew how our Pleafures have ingrofled us, and into what a Lethargy they have funk us, in the very Papers, which lately gave Accounts from time to time of the Progrefs of the Rebels, whofe Arrival at our Metropolis we dreaded every Day, and from which a general MafTacre was realbnably to be expected j in the very fame Paper, I fay, one Paragraph contained the Hiftory of their Motions, and the very next invited us to a Play or a Horfe-Race. And, if he fteps into the Theatre, it will be hard for him to fay whe- ther Luxury or VVickednefs prevails there nioft ; but (to poftpone the Wickeduefs of the Theatre till afterwards) furely the Magnificence of the Decorations, the Drefles of the Players, the Finery of the Audience, and the Indolence of their Appearance, as they fit diflblved in Pleafure and Gaiety, would incline a Being who did not know the State of Human Nature, and who had been tranfported thither from another World, to conclude, that Mankind were an Order of Creatures placed here on Earth merely to enjoy themfelves for a Courfe of Years, without being obliged to any Manner of Duty, or that their whole Duty were to invent the moil exquifue Gratifications for their Senfes, and indulge them- [ '9 ] themfelves in the moft exquiftte Pleafures that could be found out. We may think of this M?tter as we p'eafe, but it will be found hereafter, that no Son or Daughter of Adam has anv Indulgence from Heaven to a live Life of abfolute Indolence and Pleafure, without filling up a certain Station and doing the Duties of a certain Sphere. Were we even an Order of Beings abfolutely innocent and blamelef?, it is not to be con-' ceived, that the almighty Governor of the World would fee us with Satisfaction confume our Time in a manner altoge- ther ufclefs to ourfdves or our Fellow Creatures, tho' the En- joyments we amufed ourfelves with were otherwife harmlefs : But for an offend 'ng, guilty Order of Creatures, who are continually provoking the Difpleafure of our Maker, and in continual Danger of bringing down his Vengeance upon our Heads, to pafs away the Time of Trial for an everlafting State in Pleafure, and in criminal Pieafure too, while we ought to be endeavouring by Penitence for our Faults to avert the Puniftiment due to us, and by a conftant Watch over our Conduct to qualify ourfelves for being fit Objects of heavenly Mercy ; I fay, for fuch an Order of Creatures as we are, to Jive the Life we do, what is it but for a Sett of Criminals to revel in Prifon with Wine and Mufick, and to infult their Judge to his Face ? From this curfed Fountain, among many other poifonous Streams, flows that fatal one of the unhappy Diviflonsof our Country. While fo many among the Great by their Extra- vagance run out their Fortunes, it is no wonder that fo many want to fifh in troubled Waters, and can find in their Hearts to divide a Nation for the fake of gaining their own private Purpofes. And when Men of inferior Ranks find their Affairs going into Diforder, they readily become proper Dupes to the Heads of Factions, and are then fit to join in the Clamour againft their Governors. Were People at Eafe in their own private Fortunes, they could not fo foon be put in a Paffion at the Proceedings of the Government. What gives me the moft Difgu ft in this Matter is, that thofe fimple People, who are fo good-natured as to let out their P<-ffions for nothing to the Heads of Parties, are commonly the moft: ignorant both of the Hiflory of other Countries and the pre- fent State and true Intereft of their own, are commonly the fartheft from the Springs of Government, and confequently knojy leaft what Difficulties a Government have to ftruggle C 2 with, with, and in what peculiar Circumftances they are involved- Thus they who are leaft qualified for finding Fault are, gene- rally fpeaking, loudeft in their Complaints. That ever Men fhould pretend to fettle the Affairs of Nations, while their own exorbitant Defires and Appetites are in an Uproar within them, or to find Fault with thofe who have the Government of Kingdoms in their Hands, while themfelves cannot govern their own Paflions ! Nor is it to be imputed to any other Caufe than unbounded Luxury, that the People of Great Britain, formerly a Nation of Heroes, are now fo enervated and effeminate, that if they happen to be deftitute of an Army trained to War and Hard- fhip, they are before an Enemy as a Flock of Sheep before "Wolves ; as appears from what we have feen but the other Day, viz. a Banditti of hardy Ruffians penetrating into the Heart of our Country without Interruption or Oppofttion from the People, and likely to reach our Me:ropolis itfelf, had they not been prevented by the Army. Thus have I laid before you, my dear Countrymen, a very brief View of a very copious Subject, viz. the modern LUXURY of our unhappy Country. The other epidemic Difeafe I mentioned from whence the moft fatal Effects are to be feared, and which is infeparable from the former, is IRRELIGION. And here I am got, if poflible, into a larger Field than before, and into a Subject, which yields a more gloomy Profptdt than the former. If the unbounded Luxury of the Age has the falfe Plt-a of great Wealth and Trade to fupport it (tho* it is certain no De- gree of Wealth or Trade are fufficient for it ;) if it fhould pretend, tho' falfly, that its natural Confequences are more to be feared than its judicial : If Luxury, I fay, ihould pretend to thcfe wretched and fophiftical Defences, Jrreligion cannot ; for it, is more inexcufable in this Age, (an Age of the greateft Light and Knowledge that has been for above thefe twelve hundred Years backwards) than in all the paft; and it is likewife a more certain Means of bringing Dcftruftion upon a Nation, than even Luxury itfelf. For, if there be a God in Heaven, it is not to be imagined he will long fuffer a Nation to fi. eilow- Creatures, who were likely to fuffer in it, or the leaft Depen- dence on Heaven for the Succefs of it j or whether the Spirit, which reigned at that Time in England was not a Spirit of Infolence and Defiance both of God and Man ? It is plain from the Roman Hiftory, that that humane People (though Strangers to our Religion, which teaches us that the whole Succefs of War depends upon the over-ruling Providence of God) always engaged in it with a deeper Senfe of Dependence upon their Gods, who yet were Idols and no Gods, than we fhew on Him, who does in the Armies of Heaven and among the Inhabitants of the Earth whatever pleafes him, and -whofe Hand none canjlay *. Further, it is owing wholly to the Luxury and Senfuality of the Age, that a Religion, which has upon it all the Cha- ra&ers, a Revelation from God can be imagined to have, is rejected and defpifed in this unhappy Nation. What avails it, that the important Truths of Chriftianity have of late been fo deeply enquired into, that they have been oppofed by the moft fubtle Writers of the Deittical Party, and defended by the greateft Matters of Human Reafon, and that the Refult of all this Enquiry is, that thefe facred Truths have by that means been better eftablifhed to the Sa- tisfaction of every fair Examiner than if they had never been controverted; what avails, I fay, all this ft rid and fevere the fame Purpofe, Ode 4. > et more (hocking, if poffible, which ure re- quired at Ele./i'or.s r .^r Members of Parliament. What makes this Particular the more deplorable, is, that thefe Oaths anfwer no Purpofe, but to lay a Load of Guilt upon the Nation : For it is not to be fuppofetl that any i j crfon who has not Virtue enough to refift the Temptation of a Bribe, or of defrauding the Revenue, or of betrayii man- ner of Advantage for preventing Bribery, Infidelity i.-. Offices^ or Frauds to the Prejudice of the Revenue; if all theft Things are fo, and if it be not yet Time to confider of a fpeedy Rt-Jrds lor this Grievance, I know not when it will. If there were any Lovi- ( f Reiiaion of Piety left among us, it would appear from the F Jnefs of the Places of pub- lic Worfnip, and from our conftant keeping up among us the Practice of worfhipping God in private Families. But we fhew by our Indifference to every thinz That has the leaft Rel'fh 'of Religion in it, that we Live forgot the God that made us. Indeed we are now grown fo very polite, that we are above asking a BiciTrng cf Him who only can beftow it upon the common Comforts of Life, or thanking Him, whofc Creatures we have been con fuming, for his Bounty in feed- ing and fupporting us. Should I pretend to give a View of the W ickednefs of the Theatre, I fhould not know where to begin, or to what Length the Subject would carry me. For whether I infifted on tne Leudnefs or Impiety of moft of the Plays themfeltfesj on the inlamoui Characters cf the Aclors and A6trefTes, oo the fcandalous Farces they commonly tag the graved Plays with, cr above al!, r,n the inhumanly impudent Dances and Songs, with which they lard them between the A5ts ; I fay, whichsoever of thefe Particulars I infifted on, eacli of them would furnifh Matter ftr a great many Pages ; and mach more, if I fliould er.ter upon a full View of them all. In* deed the Theatre ,s at prd'tnt on fuch a Footing in Eng- laad^ that it is impoffible to emer it, and not come out the worfe for having been in it ; for now-a-days, a good Play is no other than- a Trap to draw in the modeft and innocent, to a Love of Theatrical Entertainments ; and the Minds of the Spectators are not the later from bsing polluted and de<* J> 2 bauched, tho' the Play itfelf be in the main decent and mo- deft ; fmce the ingenious Contrivance of the Manage/s entire- lv prevents the good Effe& of any worthy Sentiment exprefled ft the Play, by introducing a painted Strumpet at the End of every Act, to cut Capers on the Stage in fuch an impu- dent and unwomanly Manner, as muft make the moft (hock- ing Impreffions on every Mind ; and left the Audience (hould chance in fpite of all this to carry away fomewhat that might make their Hearts the better, a ludicrous and fhamelefs Farce concludes the whole, and with one Stroke erafes all the little Traces of virtuous Sentiments that were formed by the Play itfelf. I only beg leave to afk you, my dear Countrymen, for what Purpofe you fupport a facred Order of Men to teach you the pure and holy* Laws of the Chriftian Religion, and at the fame time encourage by your Countenance and your Riches a Sett of the very Dregs of Human Nature, who make it their Bufinefs to debauch your Minds by their leud Compofitions and wantonGefticulations, to fill them with impure Snd vile Ideas, and to difappoint the moft diligent Endeavours of a Chriftian Miniftry ? Surely it can never be confident with common Senfe to fupport in the fame Country one Order of Men for the Propagation of Virtue and Religion, and another for the Deftrudtion of them ; to maintain one Sett of People for promoting a Reformation of Manners, and another for promoting an univerfal Corruption. It is the Saying of a great Man of the laft Age, That upon fome Accounts it were better that wicked Men would fairly renounce Chriftianity, than continue to profefs it, and at the fame time difgrace it by their fcandalous Lives. And indeed it could be no fuch Matter of Grief to good Men to fee a Nation of Barbarians over-run with Vice and Debauchery, as to fee this Kingdom, once illuftrious for its Purity in Dodtrine and practice, celebrated for its Martyrs, and which pretends to be the grand Bulwark of the Proteftant Religion ; to fee this Kingdom, I fay, thus funk to a Pitch of Wickednefs and Leudnefi in its publick Entertainments, which at Athens, where they wormipped the unknown God, would have thrown the celebrated Diyerfions of the Stage into utter Dif- grace. And are thefe the favourite Pleafures that fo wholly ingrofs and bewitch a Chriftian Nation, that we cannot live without them, even while an Enemy is laying wafte our Country, and i expected '9 expefled every Hour at our very Gates ? For my Part, I cannot fay 1 am fure, whether, if it had been our miferable Fate to have had our Metropolis burnt to the Ground, and the Inhabitants put to the Sword by the Rebels, they would not have found us upon their Arrival engaged in hearing Mu- fick and feeing Plays, and whether Numbers had not been fent by them direftly from the Play-houfe inlo another World *. And * That I may not appear fingular in my Sentiments upon Thea- trical Entertainments, 1 will add the Judgments of a few (out of innumerable that might be inferted) of the wifeit Men of ancient and modern Times, which will ftrengthen what I have faid. We are told by Plutarch, that the great and wife Legiflator So- lon, " upon feeing fume of Thefpifs Pieces acted, ftrucfc his Staff " againlt the Ground, to fhew his Diflike ; as apprehending, that " thefe idle Stories, from Theatrical Reprefentations, would foon " become Matters of Importance, and have too great a Share in " Life." The Author of the Dialogue on the Orators makes this juft Re- mark on the Character of the Roman People ; " There are certain " Vices peculiar to this City, [Rome] which feem almoft conceived " with them in their Mother's Wombs ; fuch as the Tafte of Thea- " trical Shews, Gladiators, and Horie-races. Are not thefe almoft " the only Subjects of Converfation among the young People, and " indeed in all Companies ? Is it probable, that a Mind intent " upon, and in a Manner befieged by thefe trifling Amufcments, " mould be very capable of applying to ferious Studies ?" ' Ant. Hift. Vol. II. p. 251 " Of what Advantage (fays Plutarch) have Tragedies been to " Athens ? We find, that the Prudence of Tbemi/toi/es inclofed " the City with ftrong Walls ; that the Fortitude of Miltiadts tf preferved its Liberties ; and that the Conduct of Cimon gained " it the Empire of all Greece. If the Pcetry of jEfcbylut, Sophocles " or Euripides, have obtained equal Advantages for the City of '* Athens by delivering it from impending Calamities, I confent " that Dramatic Pieces be ranked with Trophies of Victory ; the *' Poetic Scenes with the Fields of Battle ; and the Compoiitioas " of the Poets with the Exploits of the General." He concludes, that it was the greateft Imprudence for the Athenians to prefer Pleafure to Duty, the Paffion for the Theatrb to the Love of their Country, trivial Reprefehtitions to the Application to publick Bufi- nefs, and to confume in ufelefs Expence and tragic Entertainments the Funds intended for the Support of Fleets an i Armies. Accord- ingly f 3 1 And now, my dear Countrymen, what remains, or what more is in the Power of any private Perfon, than, after having thus laid before you a brief View of the National Guilt that has brought the late Troubles into our Land, to conclude this little ingly King Philip of Macedon, inftrufted by the Greeks themfelves, knew to take the Opportunity of their Effeminacy, and to wreathe a Yoke around the Necks of all Greece and Afia. See Jufiw, Book VII. chap. 6. The Wifdorn of the Roman Legiflature, forefeeing the fatal Effe&s of Theatic Entertainments upon the Genius of the People, ordained by a Handing Law, that no Theatre fhould laft above one Month, viz. during the Time of the publick Shews, though erefted at ever fo great an Expence, fo that even that of A/. Sc.tu- rus, which muft have coft above a Million of our Money, under- went the fame Fate. Pompey however had Power enough to break through this wife Regulation, and was the firft that ever erefted a perpetual Theatre, with Seats, which had never before been per- mitted, left the People mould havedefired to indulge themfelves top much in thofe Diverfions. It is very well known, that from this Period the Roman Virtue declined apace, and never recovered itfelf. Hear what the great Bifhop Surnet (than whom no Man better knew Human Nature) fays of the Stage. " The Stage is the great Corrupter of the Town, and the bad " People of the Town have been the chief Corrupters of the " Stage, who run moft after thofe Plays that moil defile the " Stage. The Poets pretend their Defign is to difcourage Vice > " but they really do recommend it in the moft effectual Manner. " It is a Shame to our Nation and Religion, to fee the Stage fo 44 reformed in France, and fo polluted ftill in England. Till ** another Scene appears, certainly our Plays are the greateft De- bauchers of the Nation." Conclufion of Burners HiJI. I mall add to Bilhop Burners, the Thoughts of one of the kind- eft, moft judicious and beil of Men that this World ever produced, who never faid a hard Thing, but when the Good of Mankind re- quired it, I mean Archbifhop Tillotfon, who in his Difcourfe againft corrupt Communication, fpeaking of Plays, fays, " They are in* " tolerable, and not fit to be permitted in a civilized, much le{s in a CMftian Nation. They do moft notoriously minifter both to '* Infidelity and Vice. By their Profaneneis they are apt to inftill " bad Principles into the Minds of Men, and to leflen that Awe '* and Reverence which all Men ought to have for God and Reli- " gion. And by their Leudnefs they teach Vice, and are apt to " infea the Minds of Men, and difpofe them to Uud and diflblute " Practices." Uttk Tracl by earneftly calling upon each particular Rank in the Nation to exert themfelves in their pubiick and private Stations for bringing about that general Reformation, which is neceflary for averting a final and extirpating Judgment. 1 only beg leave, firff, to recount fomeremarkableDeliverancey this Kingdom has had from the immediate Hand of God $ to (hew you what you owe him on the Score of mere Gratitude alone, if there were no other Engagement upon you. To take no Notice of the many wonderful Prefervations of the Life of Queen Elizabeth^ of immortal Memory, from almoft innumerable Plots of the Papifts againft her Life, (which were in effect the Prefervation of this Nation from Popery and Slavery) fince the Year 1588, a Period of little more than one hundred and fifty Years, it is eafy to (hew that this Nation has been ten or twelve different Times in imminent Danger of the total Deftru&ion of its Liberties civil and religious, and as often been delivered by immediate and indifputable Interpolations of Divine Providence. In the Year 1588 K. Philip of Spain fent againft us a Fleet of fuch Force, that he did not fcruple impioufly to call it, The invincible Armada j nor indeed had the World till that Time ever feen fuch a powerful Naval Armament. The Seas were overfpread with their Sails, and the Ocean groaned with the r Weight, Scarce had they difplayed their Pride, to the inviting Gales, when He, who holds the Winds in his Treafures, let them loofe upon the Face of the great Deep... He commanded them to lift up the ftormy Waves of the Sea. They mounted up to the Heavens, they went down to the Deeps ; their Souls melted within them becaufe of their Trouble. The Almighty triumphed over them glorioufly. Their Fleets and their Warriors he caft into the Sea. They funk to the Bottom as a Stone. His Right-hand became glorious in Power ; his Right-hand dafhed in Pieces the E- nemy. The pious Queen, who then fwayed the Englijb Sceptre, fcrupled noc to .fcribe the Glory of this Victory to the im- mediate Interpofition of Heaven, ordering a Medal to be ftruck with this Infcription, ** He blew with his Wind, and " they were fcattered *." In the Year 1596 another Attempt was made by the' fame Power to make a Defcent upon England with a very formidable Naval Arfnament. " But a violent Storm arifing Dtps, ET D!SSIPANTUR ? in the midft of the Voyage, feveral of the Ships were loft, " and the reft fo difperfed, that the Fleet was rendered un- *' ferviceable for this Year. Thus Elizabeth had the Pleafure * of hearing, that it was difabled from hurting her, before " (he knew of its failing.*" The Winds in their Courfes fought for England. He that is mighty hath done glorious Things for us ; he hath fcattered the Proud in the Imagina- tion of their Hearts. He hath taken our Enemies in the very Snare themfelves had laid for us. In the Year 1605, when that infernal Power, who has long been drunk with the Blood of Saints and Martyrs, found her curfed Machinations againft us difappointed ; ever thirfting, ever infatiable of Blood and Slaughter, (he refolved to flrike a Stroke, that might at once cut off the Hopes of all who op- pofed her Intereft in this Land, by hurrying our King and fome hundreds of the principal Men and chief Rulers of the Nation, out of the World by one Explofion of a Mine of Gun-powder f- Deeply was the Plot laid, and dark and fecret was the helUfli Contrivance : But that Eye, from which the Darknefs hides no more than the Light, before which Hell is naked and Deftru&ion uncovered, faw all their horrid Combinations, confounded their Devices, and brought them in Ruin and Vengeance upon their own Heads J. From the Year 1685 to j688 we faw> our Ro >'al Seat filled by a Popifh Prince ||, and his Court and many principal Places of Power and Truft by Perfons devoted to the fame Intereft. We faw the Laws of England^ the Barriers of our Freedom, broken ; a (landing Army eftablilhed to force a devilim Religion- and an arbitrary Government down our Throats ; our Church put under the Infpection of Popifh Bifhops, and her true Proteftant * The Words of Rapin, vol. II. p. 146. f Thence called the Gun-powder Plot, being a Popift Scheme for blowing up the Parliament-houfe. It was discovered by the Mifcarriage of a Letter to a parti- cular Nobleman, whom they were willing to fave from the general Deftruftion. " For (fays Rapiu) God abhorring (b deteftable a " Plotj infpired one of them with a Defire to fave William Lord " Monteagle, &c." By a Letter fent to him the Whole was found out and defeated. Rafia, vol. JJ. p. 170. jl King James II. C 33 ] Proteftant Fathers and Overfeers difcarded and imprifoned *. We law a bloody Inquifition fetting up in our Country, tho' undei a fofter Name -f, and begun to feel the Iron Teeth of that mercilefs Reloon J Thefe were brenes oi" Gloomine-k and Darknefc. Thefa were Days of Horror and Defpair. How dicifr, thou then, fair Liberty, and thou, ftar-crown'd Religion jj, lift thy ftreaming Ev o iisaven, and* how didft thou, O my Coun- try, faint w:ui thy deadly Wounds, how didft thou lie all pale and ghatr.lv. walloping in thy Blood. Come glorious Deii* c-rer, come immortal William ; for thee is referved the Honour of faying a mtferable Nation from fpiritual and tem- poral Slavery. He came ; he faw ; he delivered. The in- Conftant Winds feemed proud to ferve him, and the fwelling Floods fmoothed their Rage to waft him over. They varied and calmed it in the Minute when he needed them, and his Fleet was carried profperoufly through the Seas, while that of the Enemy was fhut up in Port. The Winds breathed a gentle and favourable Gale, till his Fleet was fecured, and then broke in a violent Storm upon that which came againft him. They w^re Scattered and forced into Ports, and their Hopes and the Fears of the Proteftants at the fame time ex- tinguiflied . In the Year 1690 when in the bloody Field of Boyie our heroic Deliverer ** was bravely fhexving las Love of this Country and his Contempt of Death, in its moft dreadful Form ; while thoufands fell at his right Hand and his left, the fure Meffenger of Death ff pa/Ted fo near him as to vio- late his facred Perfon ; but at the fame time pafTed guiltlefs of his important Life. A fure Proof, that the Eye of Provi- dence watched over him, and that the Hand of God was E around * Seven Bifhops put in the Tower for prefentwg a Petition to the King in favour of Religion and Liberty. f Conuniffioh for Ecclefiaitical Affairs. % Several hundreds arbitrarily executed by Judge Jcfcr:j> ar.i General Kirk. | Rtv. xii. !. See Bifhop Borne fs Account, who w liiinfclf in the Flest, Burnt?'* Hirt. vol. I. p. 787. ** King William. \\ A Cannt^n-Ball which graze-i bis Shoulder. %x~ngfs, HI*. vol. II. p. 50, ['34 1 around him, to ward off every fatal Blow. For had he fallen at that critical Time, the glorious Labours of thofe worthy Patriots and of that excellent Prince who wrought our De- liverance, had been loft ; the Hopes of the Proteftants dafh- ed ; the Revolution again unhinged, and Popery again let loofe upon us. In the Year 1692 a formidable Armament was brought to the oppofiteCoaft*, and embarked to invade us, when we were in no Condition to refift itf. Their Fleet was even got into our Seas before ours was ready to receive them : but its Courfe was foon flopped, and that for fome time, by Winds contrary to them, but fo favourable to us, that our whole Force was brought together before they could advance. Upon this followed the moft glorious Naval Victory England ever gained, with the Deftruftion of the beft Part of the Enemy's Fleet on their Coaft and in their very Sight. In this whole Affair there was fuch a Conjunction of extraordi- nary Interpositions of Providence, that he, who had the greateft Share in the Action |j, thought it no Diminution of r.is Honour to reckon up a whole Train of them, and to ac- knowledge, that the Succefs of that happy Day was owing to the immediate Hand of God. This fatal Defeat of our Enemies feemed fufficient to free us from all Apprehenfions for fome Time : but they again refolved in the Year 1696 to make another Attempt, and that upon a furer Footing, with the additional Improvement of an AfTaffination , to make way for it. This black Con- trivance, worthy only of France or Rome, was difcovered but two Days before it was to have been executed by fome who were pra&ifed on to engage them in it. And as the De- fign was thus difappointed at home j fo by a kind Providence our Fleet, which was defigned to be fent to a very great Diftahce, * Cberbourgb and La Hsgue. -f- " If the Winds had favoured the French, they themfelvea '" would have brought us the firft News of their Defign." The Words of Bifhop Burnetm his Hift. vol. II. p. 93. || Admiral RuJJel. ^ Of K. William. There was alfo a Defign on foot of the fame fort in the Year 1692 : but I pafs over it ; the immediate Interpo- lition of Providence for defeating it being lefs clear and more liable to be difputed than in the prefent Cafe. See Bunefs Hilt, vol. II, p. 95. And p. 148, of another Affaffination-plot, [ 35 ]' Diftance, was kept in our Ports by crofs Winds, contrary to what is ordinary at that Sealon of the Year. And when the fame Perfon who formerly had the Command, when the fame Enemy was defeated, took it upon him again, and went with our Fleet toward their Coaft, till they faw the Defign impracticable, and difperfed themfelves . Another remarkable Crifis was in the Year 1714 *. It I&, very well known to Numbers now alive, that the refllefs and indefatigable Enemy of the Proteftant Religion and our prefent happy Eftablifhment had for a confiderable time been under- mining them, and fecretly working their Ruin ; that their Schemes were in the above-mentioned Year in great Forward- nefs j too many Well-wifhers to that Intereft, from which we have every thing to fear, having wormed themfelves into the Court of Queen Anne, and into Places of great Power and Influence j that feveral violent Steps were actually taken, the fure Prefages of what we had to expect ; that all things were going forward in the faireft Manner they could defire for re- ducing us again under the Power of the fame Family we had been before obliged to exclude from the Britifn Succeffion, a Family educated in Principles of Cruelty and Blood, and be- fides exafperated by their late Difgrace. Heaven at this dan- gerous Juncture again looked down upon us. Death was fent in the critical Moment to cut fhort the Royal Life, before the fatal Schemes were ripe for bringing in a Popifti Pretender to fill the Throne f. The Confequence of which remarkable Providence was, that the Affairs of England immediately went into another Channel. The Schemes of the difaffected Party were unhinged, and the illuftrious Father of the auguft Prince, who now happily fways the Sceptre over us, came in time to prevent them, and once more bafHle their Pretenfions ; and this without fo much as a fingle Blow ftruck or one Drop of Blood flied to make way for his Acceffion. The famous Year 1715 J is yet frefh in the Memory of many among us. We have not yet forgot how the infuhing $ Ibid. p. i64,ferV. - * See Rat's Hitfory of the Rebellion. f The Jacobite Party openly declared, that had the Queen lived fix Weeks longer, and Things continued as they then were, their Schemes had been ready for Execution. tAte E 2 Enemy [ 36 ] Enemy plumed themfelves with as fanguine Hopes of gaining their Point, as tho' they had never been once cSiiappomted. We have not forgot that they raifcd in our Country an Army of Rebels, which almoft {hook the Pillars of the Britijh Throne. It is alfo very well known, that they placed their chief Dependance on that ambitious Power *, which hi;s all along been the Patron of their baffled Caufe : And what the Confequence muft have been, if Providence had fufFered France to land a powerful Body of Forces to fecond them, while the whole regular Force in the Nation did not amount to ten thoufand Men, is very obvious. But he, who at his Pleafure cuts (hort the diftant Profpecls of ambitious Men, who has in his Hand the Breath of the mightieft Monarchs, by one timely Stroke put an End to the Life of a King f who had been for threefcore Years the Plague and Scourge of Eu~ rope, reduced his Kingdom to the precarious State of a Mino- rity, and difabled it from lending that Affiftance to our Ene~ jnies, which they expecled. The Upfhot was, that an eafy Conqueft gave them into our Hands ; a few the Government punifhed ; but a much greater Number their unequalled Le- nity fpared ; which Lenity they have very ill requited by their late ungrateful and brutal Attempt to overturn the very Go- vernment to which fome of them owe their Lives. . It is alfo frefh in our Memories, how the fame implacable Power, that has fo long been the Fire-brand of Chriftenciom, only in February 1743 got together againft us an Ermarka- tion confuting of fixteen thoufand Men, with Ar^s for the Friends of the Jacobite Intereft in our own Country, to the Number of many thoufand Stands befides. That they were fufFered but juft to peep out of their Harbours, and were pre- fently by a Storm wrecked, funk, and dafhed on the Shore; that the Bodies of many Hundreds were taken up on the French Coaft, and that the Fleet was totally difabled from hurting us, before we fet fail to attack it J. As if that kind Providence, which fo tenderly watches over us, had been un- willing to let us take the Trouble of conquering our Ene- mies, or run the Hazard of fuffering any Lofs from them, t lewis. XIV. of Front f. 1 See the Gazettes of February and March 1743; and [ 37 ] and chofe rather to bid us " ftand ftill and fee the Salvation " of God." The laft remarkable Interpofition of Providence in our Favours, that I fhall mention, is what has given Birth to this Addrefs. An Interpofition neither lefs kind nor lefs confpi- cuous than any of the above-mentioned, and which I hope neither we nor our Children (hall ever fuffer to flip out of our Memories, nor its good Effects on our Lives and Con- duct to ceafe ; but that the Year 1745 fhall be remembered, among the other memorable Years, with due Gratitude, to lateft Pofterity, for a Deliverance from a Dearth of Corn and a bloody Civil War, or rather a general Maflacre, of each of which we have been this Year within the Diftance of only one Fortnight, or perhaps lefs, and from both which the Hand of God alone hath thus far faved us ; unlefs any one will pretend, that the Winds and Rains of Heaven are at our Difpofal. Can we look back upon the hideous Precipice we have fo narrowly efcaped, without Hearts full of Gratitude and fted- faft Refolutions of future Obedience to our Almighty De- liverer ? And are not thefe a Sett of Deliverances, which for their uncommon Nature and Circumftances may be ap- plied as Arguments for a Providence fufficient to filence Infi- delity itfelf? And now what fo reafonable an Account can be given why this peculiar and conftant Care has been exercifed over us, but that Providence has thought fit to fet this Nation up as Fence againft that worldly Ecclefiaftic Power, whofe Buiinefs has ever been to fubvert all true Religion and Moral Virtue, and which has for thefe twelve hundred Years been fcattcring Delufion, Impiety, Corruption, Fire, Sword, and Defohtion over the Kingdoms of the Earth. I know it is not in tl e Eye of Heaven of fuch Confequence, what par- ticular Sect c: iubdivifion of Religion a Nation or Perfon is of, where due }'. everenc-.. is had to thofeLaws he hath eftabliihed by his facred * Liie:iger, who came to be the Light of the World. But the Difference between the Popifli and Prote- ftant Religions is the fame that is between Darknefs and Light ; between incredible Abfurdities and certain Truths ; between diabolical Cruelty and heavenly Benevolence ; be- tween Satan and Jefus Chrift. It is therefore no Wonder, though the Almighty has determined to prevent by the moft fingular InterpofiUons the general Eftabliihment of this Infer- [ 38 ] rul Religion j which would prove the general Eftablifhment of Irreligion and Vice, and the rooting out of Chriftianity and Morality. And (hall we, for the fake of a little guilty Pleafure, and fleeting Amufement, drop, or give up this pure and fublime Religion, which God himfelf has by io many vi- fible Interpofitions taken care to preferve among us ? 1 men- tion giving up the Proteftant Religion for Pleafure, becaufe no- thing in the World is fo likely to open a Door to Popery as unbounded Luxury and Voluptuqufnefs ; it being a Religion calculated for the Indulgence and Gratification of the Lufts and Appetites of Men. Let us not flatter ourfelves, that our Work is over, now we hope the late Danger is pretty well over. It was fent for a Trial i and if it do network its Effect upon us, it will only make way for a more terrible Judgment. We have been, as I faid before, threatned in this one Year with a Dearth of Corn and a Civil War, fupported by an Invafion from abroad. The Third National Judgment, when Famine and the Sword prove ineffectual for the Refcrmation of a People, is com- monly the Pcftilence : And for God's fake let us think in Time before that terrible Scourge be fent amongft us, how we mall get free of it, as we hope thro' divine Help we (hall foon be of the others. National Guilt can only be puniihed in this prefent Life, the Punifhments in the next being for perfonal Guilt. We are not therefore to dream, that the Governor of the World will pafs from his ufual Method of dealing with Nations, out of -any Partiality for us. On the contrary, we may affure ourfelves he will not be always in- fultcd ; but will fend fuch Judgments as (hall produce either a Reformation or a final Extirpation. The prefent Juncture feems to be the Crifis that is to de- termine the Fate of this once illuftrious Ifland, and you the Perfons in whofe Power it is, by your good or bad Conduct, either to gain your Country that Favour and Protection of Heaven, which alone can fupport you againft ajl your Ene- mies, or to draw down upon it that almighty Vengeance, which qan (hake the Pillars of the beft eftablifhed Empire in the World, and lay its Honour and its Pride in Ruins. And for the fake of all that is dear to you, if you have any Regard for your Children, any Love for your Country, any Reverence for your Religion, or any Gratitude to your Almighty Deliverer, Jet the Time paft be fufficient to have loft in Indolence and jPleafure, and at laft, before it be too late, refolve to confider what [ 39 ] what is to be done for faving a finking Nation. It will be in- grateful, impious and brutifh to a Degree I hope you are not capable of, to defpife fo many funal Warnings, and to make no other Ufe of your fo late remarkable Deliverance, but to return with fo much the more Guft to your Follies, which have been a little, and but a little interrupted by your Danger. There is the more Neceflity to guard you againft the Danger of giving yourfelves up to impious Mirth and Wan- tonnefs upon the Return of your Tranquillity, becaufe it is fo well known, what a Flood of Wickednefs over-ran the Na- tion after the Reftoration of King Charles II. and the Deli- verance it brought from Troubles of the fame Kind as we have lately been alarmed with. Nor ought it to be forgot- ten, what a Succeffion of Judgments the Divine Providence at that Time brought upon this guilty Land, to (hew that Heaven was difpleafed with fo monftrous an Abufe of fuch a remarkable Deliverance. We engaged in a War with our next Neighbours* and belt Allies, which proved as unfuccefsful as it 'was unjuft. A very confiderable Part of our Naval Strength was deftroyed by the Fire of the Enemy in our very Portsf. A devouring Peftilence was let loofe among us, which heap'd our Streets with Dead J. A fearful Conflagration was fuffered to over-power our Capital, and to humble the proudeft City upon Earth to the Duft. || And need I then advife you to take Care how you again provoke fuch Wrath, and draw down fuch Vengeance upon your Heads ? A People may trifle with Governors of their own fetting up, and baffle both their Laws and the Sanctions annexed to them, which feems to be the Englijh Notion of Liberty ; but wo to that People who prefume to trifle with the Almighty Governor of the World. Upon you, my Lords and Gentlemen, who hold the firft Ranks in the Nation, whether Sharers in the Legiflative Power, or not ; upon you it lies to begin the general Reforma- tion, by your fuperior Example and Influence, which, you know, cannot fail to lead the Nation. Let but the Quality and Gentry enter into an Aflbciation, to live moftly in the * The Dutch. f The Enghjh Fleet burnt by the Dutch at Chatham. See Btfr- nefs Hid. Vol. I. p. 242. J The Plague in London, which cut off an hundred thoufand Peo- ple. Ibid. p. 218. j| The Fire of London, Ibid, p. zag. Country [ 4 1 Country upon their Eftates, and within their Incomes; to countenance the publick Worfhip of God, and to fupport a due Decorum in their own Families ; and obferve how long Extravagance and Impiety will continue in Britain. In what- ever Light this Matter may appear to People of Birth and Quality, it is certain they are blameable, not only for their own perfonal Faults, but alfo in a great meafure, for thofe of their Inferiors, fmce their bad Example leads a whole People aftray. Of you, Right Reverend Fathers of the Church, it is ex- pected, that you will neglect no Means in your Power for in- fluencing the inferior Clergy, who have the immediate Charge of Souls committed to them, to make Confcience of inftrucling their People in their Duty, and of warning them againft the Danger of Popery, of which you know they have of late grown exceffively negligent ; and that you will ufe all proper Means for coming at the true Characters of the fe- veral Clergy of your refpeftive Dioceies, and (hew particular Marks of your Favour to fuch as live exemplary Lives, and are diligent in the Execution of their Duty, and do your ut- moft to difcountenance thofe whofe Lives are not at leaft fober and decent, and who do not fhew that they have the fpi ritual Advantage and Reformation of the Manners of their People at Heart. I the more chear fully, and with the better Hopes, addrefe you upon this Occafton, Right Reverend Fathers, becaufe I have, with great Satisfaction, feen fome of you exert your- felves glorioufly in the Caufe of Religion and your Country, fmce the Beginning of thefe prefent Troubles. I fhould think no better Opportunity than the prefent, could offer for your laying afide whatever may have the leaft Appearance of Luxury or Superfluity in your Expence, and can any way be fpared for charitable Ufes, I hope, I need not recommend to a Body of Chriftian Prelates, the Chriftian Virtue of Charity, from Confiderations taken from Scripture : But I will appeal to yourfelves, whether, by a hundred Pounds a Year beftowed in Charities, you are not likely to gain more of the Love and Efteem of Mankind, than by a thoufand laid out in the Pomp and Grandeur of Life. I mention this, becaufe the ufual Pretence for the Bifhops keeping what they call a Rank, and making a Figure, is to give them Weight and Authority among the People ; which End I am fure, would be much more effectually gained, by laying out all above the Conve- niencies- r 41 ] niencies of Life in judicious and well chofen Charities. Let me add, that this Virtue is peculiarly graceful in your facrccl Order, and that you may contribute as much this Way to a- verting the Vengeance of Heaven -from your Country, as any Way ; according to the Judgment of that Honour of the Chriftian Pricfthood, Archbifliop Tillotfon, who was him- felf a glorious Pattern of this Virtue. " I have often thought *' (fays he) that the extraordinary Charity of this Nation " next to the infinite Mercy and Goodnefs of Almighty " God, had had a very particular Influence upon our Prefer- " ration and Deliverance from thofe terrible Calamities that *' were juft ready to rufh in upon us." And upon you, Reverend Paftors of the Church, it is not to be exprefled, how much depends with Regard to the State of Virtue and Religion in the Nation. It is certain, no Rank in it has more Influence in forming the Manners of. the People, unlefs perhaps the Great may be excepted. And it is likewife certain, that no Order of Men in the Nation, has the Morals of the People committed to their Charge fo pro- perly as you have. Of your Hands therefore, if our De- flru&ion be decreed, you may ex peel a great Part of the Blood of your expiring Country will be required*. If there is any Foundation for hoping that the Divine Pro- vidence will not give us up to our Enemies, nor extirpate us by any immediate Judgment from his own Hand, it is, that, as I faid before, we are the only feeble Bulwark of the Pro- teftant Religion ; and it is to be hoped, it is not the Scheme of Providence, that the Proteftant Religion be differed wholly to fink. But, if by our vicious Lives we difgrace our Re- ligion, or if by our mad Purfuit of Pleafure we drop ail Senfe of Religion, or if through the Carelefsnefs of our Watchmen we degenerate into Popery, why (hould we hope the Prote- ftant Religion will ftand as a Fence betwixt us and the Veu- geance of Heaven ? . Nor is lefs to be expected of you at this important Junc- ture, Right Worftiipful Gentlemen of the Magistracy in Town and Country, in whofe Hands the executive Power is lodged. It lies wholly in your Breafts, whether that Body of Laws, which regards the Morals of the People, fhall be a Terror and Reftraint upon Evil-doers, or a gigantic but harmlefs Bugbear. It has long been the Complaint of the * See Ezek. iii. 20. [4*] rnoft judicious, that no Country is better furnifhed with Laws, and yet no Country is more lawlefs than England. It is in your Power, Gentlemen, to wipe off this Reproach when- ever you pleafe ; for the public Bufmefs may always be done, where Magiftrates know how to command, and will feethem- fblves obey'd. It is wholly in the Power of your numerous and wealthy B^dy, worthy Citizens of London, to reguJate the Conduct of all the trading Part of the Nation, If you will fet be- fore them a Pattern of Induftry, Sobriety, anJ Oeconomy, you will fee how powerful your Example is. and how clofefy it is copied by the other trading Cities in the Kingdom. You have lately made a glorious Stand for the Support of publick Credit, Why fhould you not make as noble a one for the Support of publick' Virtue? You have unanimejfly entered into Aflbciations for the Defence of your Li-es, and your Liberties Civil and Religious, againft a Popijh Pretender And his Adherents. Why fhould you not enter into AfTociations for the Reftoration of the frugal, the induftrious, the virtuous and religious Manners of your Fathers, again ft a Flood of peifm, of French Foppery, and of bewitching Pleafure, which over-runs the Land ? O London^ London^ how haft thou degenerated ! Where are now thofe happy Days, when thy Greatnefs and Superio- rity to the other Cities of England, confuted more in thy fu- perior Virtue and Piety, than in thy enormous Wealth, Trade, and Magnificence. Thou art the chief of the Cities of the Earth ; thy Merchants are -Princes ; thy Commerce is extended from Sea to Sea, and from the rifing to the Setting of the Sun. Thy Riches have exalted thee to Heaven ; beware left thy Pride humble thee to the Duft. For, when thy Sins have once brought upon thee the Hour of thy De- $rution, it will not be in the Power of thy Riches, thy Commerce, or thy mighty Fleets to protect thee, much iefs will the infamous Tools and Panders to thy Luxury and Plea- fure, ferve to come between thee and the Vengeance which hangs' over thee. It is in your Power, learned Gentlemen, to whom the Jnftru&ion of Youth is committed; by infufing into their Jviinds a Set of rational Principles of Religion, to do a great deal toward providing a rifing Generation to ferve God, to fupport the Caufe of Virtue, and to hand down the Prote- fta'itt Religion to Pofterity, after you are gone to receive the Reward ,[ 43 ] Reward of your pious Labours. And I doubt, whether any 1 Thirig could give this Country more re'afbnable Hopes of the Protection of Heaven, than the Profpect of a fucceeding Generation likely to walk in the Ways of Virtue and Reli- gion, for the Sake of whofe Piety (though only fi&i in Futu- rity) God might think fit to fpare the Nation. You, Gentlemen, have the Opportunity of forming the Mind, at almoft the only Time when it is capable of bein g imprefled ; I mean in Youth : For it is to be lamented, that in this Age of Wealth, Profpericy, and Luxury, the Minds of many People who are come to Years, are too ftubborn to be bettered by any kind of Advice, whether given frorri the Pulpit, the Preis, or in private. I know it is faidon this Subject, though unreafonably, that thofe who have had th molt pious Educations, are often feen to go mameful'q aftray from the good Ways they have been brought up in; and on that Account it is pretended, that a religious Education is of the lefs Confequence. The Afiertion is crue, and a melan- choly Truth it is. Butithe Reasoning upon it is falfe. For it is not to be conceived, tha-t a Pcrfon who has not had his Mind tinctured in his Youth with religious Principles, Ihould in any future Part of his Life give himfelfupto a religious Prac-* tice. And therefore a religious Education is abfolutely necef- fary, if we would give our Youth airy Chance of ever be- coming pious or virtuous Men. Further, the Advantage of a religious Education, upon a rational Foundation, appears even in the Courfe which Aden of look Lives take. Of which thofe, who have not had that Advantage, when they once get into the Ways of open Vice and Impiety, having no Principle within' them, to ftop them in their Career, are ever feen to ramble from one Folly to another* till Providence puts an End to the Courfe of their Lives and Impieties at once. But thofe, who have had their Minds tinctured with Principles of Virtue and Religion, though they fometimes miferably wander from, the peaceful Ways of Sobriety, overpovver'd by Heat of Youth and ftrong Temptation j whenever that youthful Heat abates, and the Temptation lofes its Force, or fome fevere Affliction, the Refuit of their Follies, intervenes, are often found to return ro the Temper of Mind tneir Education gave them, and tread thofe Paths again which they were formerly accuftomed to. If therefore you will make a Confcience of giving tWr Youth entruited to your Care a rational View of the Chriiliari C 44 1 Religion, as it is the New Teftament, and of that admirable Syftem of Morality communicated to Mankind by it ; efpecially, if you will inculcate upon their Minds the Beauties and the in- difpenfable Obligation of thofe fublime and heavenly Precepts contained in that beft Difcourfe that ever was made to the Sons of Men, or ever will, till He who made it appears again, I mean our Saviour's Difcourfe on the Mount, Mattb. v. vi. rit. the Law, by which we are all to. be judged at the laft Day ; if you will do thefe Things carefully and confcienti- oufly, regarding them as the moft important Parts of your Duty to the Youth whofe Education is entrufted to you, you will then contribute your proper Part toward bringing about the national Reformation fo much wanted at this Day. Noi< ^ught I to let flip this Opportunity of addrefling myfelf to you, my fair Countrywomen, nor of laying before you a View of your proper Duty and the Part you ought to adt on this Occafion. The Beauties and Graces of your Perfons and vcur Minds make you the proper Obje&s of the moft tender Love and Afteclion of our Sex ; and the Ordination of Heaven itfelf has put you under our immediate Protection. Your Characters as to Virtue and Vice greatly depend on your Fathers and Husbands ; your tender Minds being naturally fo pliant as to be fufceptible of whatever Impreflions are made ion them by our Sex. It is therefore the more melancholy a Confuleration, that by our Negleft of you, from too much falfe Indulgence and Fondnefs, your Minds have been fuffered to grow wild, and your Paflions and Defires to fhoot out into iuch Extravagancies as are altogether unfuitable and ungrace- ful in the Female Character. It is xvith Reluctance and Grief I accufe you ; and the more becaufe my Accufation is but too juft. For it is certain, that no fmall Part of the National Guilt is to be charged to your Account. It is by no means to be denied, that in this gay and voluptuous Age many of you have given yourfelves up a great deal too much to the heightened Pleafures of Thea- trical and Mufical Entertainments, to the Neglect not only t.f all that is fpiritual and facred, but alfo of thofe domeftic Cares, which are your proper Province. The unavoidable Effect of a conftant Purfuit of the moft innocent of thefe publick Diverfions muft be, entirely to pervert your Minds irom what is the only natural Sphere of Womankind, and what you were originally intended for by the Ordination of Heaven } for I will not ftick to tell the prbadeft Beauty, that fllUKS [ 45.1 ihines in the Front-box or in [Ranelagh's gay Alcove, be- decked in all the gaudy Plumage that Female Vanity can con- trive to put together, that (he was originally formed for the plain and homely, but neceflary and endearing Characters of a Wife and a Mother ; and that all the various Ornaments of Pride, which fill her fantaflic Brain, and disfigure the na- tive Beauties of her Perfon, and all the giddy Hours Ihe pafTes in a Round of guilty Follies, falfely called Plcafures and Di- verfions, tend only to make her more and more unfit for what Nature 'defign'd her for. Believe me, my dear Country- women, whenever you aim at any Thing elfe than to be du- tiful Daughters, loving Wives, tender Mothers, piudent Mif- trefles of Families, faithful Friends, and pious Chriftians, you aim at fomewhut that is quite out of Nature, and befide the Intention of Heaven in making you rational Creatures. Will Vauxhall improve you in Oeconomy and Frugality, or Rane- lagh in the domeitic Arts that make Families happy ? Will the bombaftic Rant of the Playhoufefurnim you with Maxims of Prudence, or its obfcene Ribaldry ftore your Minds with the Graces of Modefty and Virtue? How long muft you die away to foft Strains of Mufic, or ftudy to enter deeply into the various Theatric Excellencies of Stage-Heroes and Heroins, before you will be the fitter Companions for Men of Senfe? How long muft you praclife curling your Hair, fluttering your Fans, and overloading your Perfons with falfe Ornaments, before your Converfation will be ever new and ever entertaining to a Husband of Knowledge and Worth ? I beg leave only to ask you, Whether there is more of Hap- pinefs or Uneafinefs in the Life you generally live, even in your own Experience ? Can you fay you ever come away from the tumultuous Scenes of Pleafure, which ingrofs the Bulk of your Time, without having your Minds difturbed and thrown into a Ferment of irregular and exorbitant Dc- iires, which, if you lived a Life of Sobriety, Peace, and Retirement, would never have ftirred in your Brcafts ? Can you pretend that the Sight of gorgeous DreiTes, of gaudy Paintings, and all the various Magnificence, which exquifite Arc fupported by unbounded Extravagance can put together} that the hearing of the rncft melting Strains of Mufic, and ot the moft rapturous and paflionate Flights of Poetry ; can you pretend, 1 fay, that thefe have any other Effect upon you than to fi.ll your Fancies with a thoufand romantic Wiihes and [ 46 ] and Defires altogether inconfiftent with your Station and abov e your Rank in Life, and to make your own Homes dull and tirefome to you ? Is the Pieafure of being bowed to by a brainlefs Fop in a Side-box equal to the Satisfaction of Mind, which arifes from the judicious Regard of a tender Parent or a loving Husband ! What is the Happinefs of being rumpled in a Crowd, compared to that of the peaceful Enjoyment of the Society of affectionate Relations and Friends, and the En- dearments of a Race of promifing Children ? If it be certain, that your Fortune chiefly depends upon your being well fettled in Marriage ; if it be certain, that a Lady's having a fine Tafte in Pleafures, and delighting to pafs her Life in the moft expenfive Diverfions, ferves rather (according to the Judgment of the Male Sex) to qualify her for a Miftrefs than a Wife ; and if it be likewife certain, that at this very Time what chiefly deters the Youth from entering into the Marriage-State is the exceflive Love of Idlenefs, Drefs, and publick Diverfions they obferve in the Ladies, to which verv few Incomes are equal ; if thefe Things be certain and indifputable, methinks your Intereft alone, and the Defire of being agreeable to the other Sex, if there were no other Motive, ought to influence you greatly, and put you upon correcting your Conduct. I affure you, however our Sex may flatter you in your prefent Tafte for Pieafure, there are few of them fuch Fools, as not to know, that a fine Lady, who delights in gadding abroad in Purfuit of Pieafure, and when (he ftays at home in having her Houfe crowded with idle Vifitors, and who is too polite to lend a Hand to promote her Husband's Bufinefs, or to mind her own domeftic Cares, is not in the leaft fit for being a Wife, but, inftead of being a Help meet for a Man, is rather like to be a Clog and Incumbrance upon his Affairs. But, though I have faid, that the unavoidable Effect of your haunting the luxurious Entertainments of Plays and Mufic- Gardens, is, to pervert your Tafte, and to turn the Bent of your Inclinations afide from your proper Sphere ; I have not yet mentioned by far the moft fatal Effect of a Life fpent in this Manner. I appeal to the common Senfe of Mankind, Whether it is conceivable, that a Lady can frequent the lufcious Theatre, be a Witnefs to all the Scenes of Impurity, and give ear to all the fhamelefs Leudnefs of that Haunt of Vice and Obfcenity, without having her Mind debauched and polluted; which is the fureft Prelude to the j debauching C 47 3 . . debauching of her Perfon. Nor indeed would I advife any Friend of mine to make his AddrefTes to one of thofe gay Ladies, who fpend much.of their Time at Plays, as I fhould not think his Honour the fafer for being in the Power of a Woman, who had drawn her Principles of Modeft.y and Vir- tue from Drury-Lar.e or Cogent-Garden. But to add no more on this Head ; a Word being enough to the Wife ; From what I have faid of the Faults of your Coriduft, my dear Countrywomen, you may plainly fee what is in your Power to do toward the general Reformation I have been re- commending fo earneftly, to wit, to correct thofe Faults. It is in your Power to lighten your Country of all that Part of the National Guilt, which your bad Conduct has brought upon it. It is even in your Power to do a great deal toward reforming the other Sex. Virtue, according to the well-known Saying- of the Poet, is doubly amiable in a beautiful Perfon, and you can hardly fail_of gaining her fome Votaries among your Lovers and Hufbands. Upon the whole, if you will refolve to retrench your Extravagancies, to employ your Time at home in the Works of domeitic Oeconomy, Chanty, Vir- tue, and Piety, and in filling up the Place you hold with re- gard to your Friends, your Relations, and your God j you will contribute what is properly in your Power toward the Reformation, and confequently, the faving of your unhappy Country. Laftly, my dear Countrymen and Countrywomen in gene- ral, it is in the Power of every one of you (from the higheil to the loweft Rank in the Nation) to do fomewhat toward the general Reformation; it is in the Power of every Man and every Woman in England to reform one, to add one to fhe Number of the truly Virtuous and Religious, for the fake of whom incenfed Omnipotence r 'may be moved to fpare a guilty Nation, and lay the avenging Thunder-bolt afide. If by what I have written- 1 hall in any meafure difoblige pr difguft, and by that means fail of attaining my Defign, it will give me infinite Concern : For I appeal to Him who knows the Secrets of all Hearts, that my Intention is to re- form, and not to irritate. Thefe are not Times for faying foft Things ; and, if it were not that finding Fault is the moft difagreeable Work I ever engage in, it is eafy to fee only from the Lift of epide- mical Vices of the Age mentioned .Page 8, moft of which I have [ 48 ] I have cnly named, that I could have fpun out a Volume upon that ungrateful SubjecT: : But it is my confiant Rule, ne- ver to write or fay a harfh Thing againft my Fellow Creatures, but when I have fome Profpecl of gaining a fuperior Advan- tage by it. I conclude with my hearty Prayers, That God would be pleafed to touch your Hearts, and put you upon amending your Conduct by whatever Means he may fee proper, whether I am to have the Happinefs of being any way inftrumental to it or not ; and that he would gracioufly accept this poor Offering to his Honour, the Intereft of the true Religion, and the Good of my Country. FINIS. Pre-exiftent Lapfe O J? HUMAN SOULS Demon ftrated from REASON ; SHEWN TO 3 E THE Opinion of the mofl eminent Writers of Antiquity, SACRED ANP PROFANE: Proved to be the Ground-work likewife of the GOSPEL D J S P E N SAT I O N> And the Medium through which many material Topics, relative thereto, are fet in a clear, rational, and oonfiflent Light : By C A P E L B E R R O W, A. M. Reclor of Finningley, Nottinghamlhire. arf^v>;fxf. S. Bafil. de Spirit. Sanft. - Make not impoffible That which bat feems unlike. SHAKES. LONDON: Printed for J. WHISTON and B. WHITE, in Fleet-ftreet; and G. KEARSLY, in Ludgate-flreet. M.DCC.LXII. ADVERTISEMENT. AS the author was at a great diftance from the prefs wheir the following fheets were printed ofF, it is to fee Hoped that the reader will be candid enoagli to overlook, or ra- ther, to correft for himfelf the Errata (of which there are not a few, in the Greek quotations more efpecially) and Other excep- tionable expreffions to be met with, which the author, had there been opportunity for it, would have prevented. Perfpicuity, however, requires, that the paflages below mould be corrected as follow, viz. Page 30. for, As the inherent depravity of the foul, &r. evidently proceeds from, read, evidently proceeds not from. Page 78, from line the ninth, to line the third in p. 79, in which iaterval the author's meaning is fadly obfcured, read as follows : ' the fame frail perifhible mortal body which Adam contracted by his tranfgreffion, defcending of courfe to his polterity ; nothing but a miraculous interpofition of divine power, an immediate renc I infer from the above retrofpect into man's ftate from his birth, that he muft have experienced a vital ex- igence />n'0r to this *. 4. If it be urged, that this fuppofed firjl will not be the laft ftage of man's exiitence, and that therefore it is eafy to conceive how the defects, mconveniencies, diforders, and calamities, under which he now labours, will be removed in z ftate to come ; and that if he is made miferable, as fcrip- ture informs us he is, through the default of one y he will be there fufficiently rewarded for that mi- iery, by the all-fufficient merits of another \ what is this but inverting the idea of divine Providence, and fuppofing God to end only with man in a manner with which we would rather expect he would begin, and as one who delighicth not more in- m.rcy, than in his creatures mifery ? 5. Can the God of infinite rectitude and goodnefs view, with an eye of indignation, crea- tures juit flatting into a rational exigence, by the power of hi almighty fat !- --And for no crime ? No crime ? Ay, for no crime. For can creatures, previously to the power of acting at all, commit * If all is not deceit and illufion, it mull be evident to a demon ftrati on, that nothing unhappy in its order can come out of the hands of infinite goodnefs; and yet it is fa& that all fentient and intelligent beings here are univci (ally more or lefs inferable, and that there never was any human creature in his right fenfes, which, in a whole duration of human life, felt nor, and thought not himfelf unhappy and miferable for fome time, if not for the moil part of his rational life, and wifhed not himfeif earneftly better, uifsrr, and more happy, Vid. Dr. Cheyne's Difcourfes, p. 30", }U crimes? ( is ) crimes ? And to fuffer for the offence of another is to fufter wrongfully. Such therefore cannot be the will of God towards man. If man then comes, which undoubtedly he does, as a fuffering creature here, muft he not have rendered himlelf obnoxious to iuch fuffcrings by fome -prior trefpaffes ? This will be more fullv considered hereafter. CHAP. IV. The depravity of the kuman mind confidered, and Jbewn to be the effeft of a pre-exiftent lapfe. i. T T O W great the depravity of human Jtj. nature is, fcripture, and the experience of palt ages, as well as the preient, abundantly evince. 2. With refpccl to the former, take for the prefent the two or three following paflages only ; namely, Who might offend, and, hath net offended? Or done evil, aud hath not done it ? O Jerufakm, fays the prophet Jeremiah^ ivajh thine heart from wickednefs, that thou may eft be fayed, hew longjhall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee? Again, fays he, The heart is deceitful, above all things, and dcfperately wicked, who can know it ? The Lord knowstb the thoughts cf mtn y that they are but vain, fays the pfalmift. Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, adultery \ fornication, thsft, &c. fays our Saviour. And again, We are born in fin, as fays the apoftle, and are by nature the children of wrath. 3. If from fcripture we turn to experience, what abundant evidence have we of the depravity of man's nature, from thofe firong propsnlions to evil evil difcovefable, more or lefs, in all of us, as foorf after our firft entrance into life as we are at all capable of acting in it. Man, froward man, longs to go aftray, from his very cradle ; and were his infant efforts not reftrained by the occafional rea- fonings, rewards, or corrections of the watchful parent, what crimes would he not devife ? What enormities would he not perpetrate ? To what fol- lies would he not become enflaved ? Infotnuch that nature^ who mould feem firft entitled to the guar- dianmip of her own offspring, is the very laft thought of, with whom to cntruft the import-ant charge. A truth which every fiftcm of morality fug- gefts, and education implies. The end and defign of each is not only to ftrengthen, invigorate, and enrich a weak, languid, and barren underjianding^hut to correct and reform a vicious and corrupt izill. 4. The firft dawnings of fenfe and reflection in the infant's mind difcover fome uprifing paflion or affection, fome young difeafe, which, as the poet lays, Grows with his growth, and ftrengthens with his ftrength ; |s alike conftitutional to. the foul, as maladies of various kinds are to the body *. And as, from its natural or acquired temperature, the latter be- comes more or lefs fufceptible of infection from a peftilent air, or other noxious influences from without, fo fares it evidently with the former. A kind of conftitution there is m the fouls of men, * Nam virus nemo fine nafcitur, optimus ille eft Qui minimis urgetur Her. Sat. 3. lib. i; as C >7 ) ss well as in their bodies, which, though riot equally bad in fome as in others, is more or lei's difeafed in all. And in proportion to the diffe- rence obfervable in this constitutional frame v of fouls in different men, are they more or lefs af- fected by one and the fame kind of objects, are excited to different forts of gratifications, and vary from each other as much in their paffions as in their perfons, or choice of food*. 4. So that whilft certain objects work upon the fancy of fome, with a force and energy too powerful for human means alone to repel, they operate feebly, or not at all, perhaps, on others, When attracted therefore *by fuch as are congru- ous to 3. peculiar turn of affection, a man commits crimes enormoufly deteftable, the reflecting part of the world will not fail heartily to pity the offen- der, at the fame time that they think it neceflary to punifh the offence, and will confider it rather as a matter of good fortune, than any kind of merit in thcmfelves or others, that they iland exempt from tranfgreffions for which they have no degree of relifh ^ which take not their rife from either bad precepts, or bad examples, but grow fponta- neoufly, as it were, from nature. The former, viz. bad precepts and bad examples do indeed too frequently influence men to the practice of com- mon crimes j evil counfel, adminiftered with (kill, -Quemvis media erue turba Aut ob avaritiam, aut mifera ambitione laborat: Hie nuptarum infanit amoribus ; hie puerorum ; Hunc capit argenti fplendor ; ftupet Albius zre; Jiic mutat merces furgente a fole, ad eum quo Vefpertina tepet regio ; quin per mala praeceps Fertur, uti pulvis colledlus turbine, ne quid Suajma dererdat metuens, aut ampliet ut rem. Hgr. Sat. 4. lib. i: C may . enfnare a weak affbciate into theft, or forni- cation, or adultery. When be feetb a thief he may confent unto -him, and be partaker with the adulterer ? and as Shakefpear lays, " Who fo firm that cannot be feduced* ?" But thofe affections of the mind to which I here allude, and from which is provcable man's depra- vity of nature, are not capable of being inftilled any more than they are of being difpelled by ad- vice, authority, or example-, and thefe, together -with thole -preternatural propenfions above glanced at, are envy, malice, cruelty, revenge, covetouf- nefs, and other more venial frailties. Where any of thefe take place, there nature herfclf gives the iettlement -{-. 5. And * Julius Crcfar. Warburton, p. 16. where the power of advice, however pernicious, is ftrongly painted. Well, Brutus, (fays his fellow -confpirator Caffius) [Brutus gone] Thou art noble ; ycf I fee Thy honourable metal may be wrought upon From what it is difpofed; therefore 'tis meet, That noble minds keep ever with their likes; For who fo firm as cannot be feduced? f The very ingenious Dr. Baker, in his treatife De Affeft:- bus Animi, has a paffage fo effectually illuftrative of my mean- ing, that I could not help giving it an Engliih drefs. This paffion, ays he, (fpeaking of envy) is the mod trou- blefome inmate of the human heart; it is an inteftine plague, Jiffufing its poifoncus influence through the whole mals of blood and juices, Sucks up the marrow from the folid bone, Nor leaves within the limbs one drop of blood. And, ftrange as it niay appear, yet is it, notwithftanding, true, froai known facts, that fymptoms of envy appear in the 5- And what character is there in public life, tor among thofe in a lower fphere of a6lion, either timiable or great., that is not fullied by an unlucky intermixture of one or other of nature's foibles, if not flagrant vices. To felect a couple of characters in common life only, in order to avoid invidious and unwilling reflections oil the eminent of the >aft or prefent times. 6. Agrivphilus and Plilhntbropus are men whofe lives form an entire contrail. In the one you have what is completely odious and deteftable, in the general eflimation of the world; in the other the truly amiable and engaging. And yet it is remarkable, that in that particular courfe of behaviour, wherein Philanthropies differs m oft from, the temper and conduct of Agrivphilus^ he is moft reprehenfible. the infant ftate of man from his very cradle. fnfomuch that it is not unufual to fee a babe pining and languishing in a mod wretched manner with this paffion, as with a confumptive malady. Nor is it capable of being freed from the over- powering diforder by any medical art or aflirtance whatever, but by either a total removal, or a pretended flight of the in- fant rival. Hsec eft hofpes (nempe invidia) humani pe&oris moleftifli- iria ; hzec inteitina peftis, qua: fanguine, humoribufque noilris inalum iuurn immifcet virus ; qus Intaclis vorat oflibus medullas, Et totum bibit artubus cruorem. Edam in tenella hominis state, ipfifque ab incunabulis (mi- rum eft quod difturus fum, at experientia fatis pervulgatum) produnt fe haud obfcura quxdam zelotypiae figna; ita ut in- fantulum videat liceat ex hoc affedu tabe miferrime extenuari, ac languefcere ; non nifi rivali infantulo aut amoto oculis, aut magis de induftria neglefto, arte ulla, aut auxilio medicorum a gravi morbo liberandum. Vid. D. Baker de Affeft. Anim. C 2 A is moroie, covetous, cruel, and re- vengeful , Pkilanthropus quite the reverfe -, he i$ affable, generous, tender-hearted, compaflionate. But how does it grieve one to fee thefe, and many other fhining. virtues obfcured at once by one fingle foible of nature, indifcretion ? A frailty, which accompanied him from his earheft life. slgriophilus is covetous, Pbilantbropus is extrava- gant. Agriofybilus hides himfelf from the World, as loving no part of it but that from which he can make a thirty, forty, or an hundred per cent, ad- vantage. Philantbrc-pus, on the contrary, holding fuch a>mean, low-fpirited mind in the utmoft con- tempt, runs into a culpable negligence in his af- fairs, and a too excefli ve fondneis for friendfliips, popularity, and vain applaufe. But is it not won- derful, that two fuch contracted difpofitions mould exift in men whofe fituation and circumflances in life give them opportunities of acling entirely the fame part in it ? slgriophilus has as much money to fquander away as Pbilantbrcpus ever pofiefied - y but he would nos, if he could help it, part with a milling , and Pbilantbrojyus could have: availed himfelf of as many powerful pleas, for oeconomy and frugality as Agriopbilns, and would, had he ever been directed by -prudence. But how mail we account for a diffbnaacy of principles and pro- penfions in thefe two ^ a diflbnancy as great as if it exifted in beings of a different fpecies? Is it re- iblvable all into the force of example, advice, or follicitation ? Certainly no. For the one is as univerfally defpiied for his infenfibility and bru- tality, and he knows it, as the other is condemned for his gaiety and indifcretion. To what, in fhorr, but a diffimilarity of tafte alone can we afcribe the extraordinary difference ? Taite, which makes as. well the moral man, as the myjldan, paint ' des inclinations, et des temperans. Ce genie n'eft autr *' ehofe, qtie leur cforit." Dacier in loco. C 3 or ( 22 ) or weakening the force of many pafiions, which too ufually fpring up in the juvenile mind, with double force, by means of the latter , and yet that there are fome which by the ufe of meer natural powers are irremoveable, no one will deny, who confiders in the lead what human nature in general is y and always has been*. 8. Nor * It is inconceivable, fays a French writer, that the curious oblervers of nature, men who bend their utmoft application upon ftudying and knowing themfelves, fhould not have ob- ferved, that man is not governed and conducted by reafon that reafo iv with all its power and induftry, cannot deftroy any one paffion that is rooted in the heart of man, neither by the help of age nor by the influence of example, nor by the fear of evil. Vid. I'Efprit's preface to his Deceit of human virtues. And fays Seneca : " Nulla fapientia naturalia corporis, aut " animi, vitia ponuntur, quicquid ingenitum eft lenitur arte, " non vincitur." Senec. Epift. " It is mere eafy, fays an old poet, to give life and educa- " cation to a man, than to impart to him a rightly-difpofed " mind ; to which not one has attended, as yet, who has aimed, " to make a wife man of a fool, or a good man out of a bad " one. If the deity had given to the yEfculapian tribe the art " of correcting and removing the peccant and malignant hu- " mours of the mind, many and great would have been their " fees. But if the vc^a of a man his leading principle was * l any thing capable of being framed or implanted, that never ' would have proved in the end a bad man, who had liftened < 4 to the wholfome prefcripts of a good father. But be your " precepts what they may, it will never be in your power to " make of a bad man a good one." It c "A^xAr,7J-*aciZK rot-To toum Stoj, xoTsrra, xj ar^^a t-vn-r ay is, ayaSev Trar^c? lyn e-i*' u eitdf u t )/. 7^.1.429. 'Thi ., ( 23 ) %. Nor would the argument for 'the foul's de- pravity be at all weakened, fhould it be infilled C 4 on, This pafTage, which I have taken upon me to tranflate, the reader is defired to attend to with proper caution, and not to forget that it comes from the pen of an heathen moralill, un- acquainted, of courfe, with thofe all-fufficient reiburces for the fuppreffion of thcfe bad paffions, to which ChrilUans are di- rected, and from which they may, if -they are no: wanting to themfelves, reap the defired advantage. And it is introduced here in proof, or illuftraticn of this one obvious truth only, that man comes into the world naturally bad. I would not however be underiiood to mean, from what has here been advanced, that no one either does, or ever did come into this world altogether uninfedled with vicious principles and propenfions ; the reverfe having been evidently the cafe, as may be abundantly proved as well from hiftory, facred and profane, as alfo from even the prefent times ; but only that, generally fpeaking, man has at the belt, and under the advantages of education, interwoven with his virtues fo many natural frail- tics, imperfections, no* to fay immoralities, that reafon will nof allow us to imagine, that a foul could come fo imperfeclly and immorally conitrufted immediately from the hands of its maker, and that therefore we mull look further back for the origin of man, than to his formation in the womb. As to the exalted examples of piety and virtue, recorded either in facred hiftory or profane, or of what even the prefent times may be .thought to boaft, thefe, when compared with the bulk of man- kind in general, not to mention the more than ordinary pow- ers, with which moft, if not all of the former, came furnifhed., that they might become exemplary patterns of purity and ho- linefs to a wicked and degenerate world (a), thefe, I fay, are inftances fo feemingly fmgular and extraordinary, as do not in the leaft difprove, what is all that I would be meant to affert, that the untutored and undifciplined mind of man is, in gene- ral, not only averfe to that which is good, tut prone, in reality, to practices abfoiately bad, fuch as are a difgrace to the ho- nour and dignity of intelligent and rational beings. (a) The patriarchs, fays Eufebius, were adorned with a life that is according to nature, (to original nature) by right reafon- ings they were adorned with the virtue of religion ; by natural Deafenings and unwritten laws, fleering the right courfe of vir- JMC, they paged beyond flelhly pleafures into au every-way on, or could it be even proved that her vices or frailties are propagated among men, by either the influence of bad example, or by an incogitant neglect, or grofs perverfion of right reafon , fmcc, in the firft place, bad examples prefuppofe a vitiofity of mind in thofe who at firft fet the ex- amples ; and from the refinance and oppofition, which in various inftances they are found to meet with in fome, it may reafonably beprefumed, that they never prevail at all, but where there is a cor- refpondent aptitude of mind for receiving the de- ftructive imprefTion * ; and then fecondly, the en- quiry here is not by what means we may cure, check the progrefs, or avoid the infection of tho'e diforders and difeafes of the foul, which fink it fa far below the rank and dignity of intellectual and rational beings , but how to trace them to their fountain-head. It cannot be fuppofed, that the Deity himfclf infufed them ; -nor can we, with any degree of propriety, afcribe them, as will, in the next chapter, be fhewn, to any obliquity of nature derived from Adam^ derived, I mean, from the nature of that body which we do in reality inherit wife and religious life. Befides which, he fays, that they had extraordinary appearances of God, and converfe with him were ;*oi loSxjn^oipi-Taj, *' the friends of God and prophets." Eufeb. Prep. Evan. lib. vii. cap. 5, 7. They are therefore, as fays Brocklefby, not to be looked upon merely as holy men, but as fome extraordinary minillers of religion. Brock. 73 1 . * When we fay men are mifled by external circumftances of temptation, it cannot but be underftood that there is fome- vvhat within themfelves, to render thofe circumfhnces tempta- tions, or to render them fufceptible of impreflions from them ; fo when we fay, they are mifled by pafficns, it is always fup- pofed, that there are occaficns, circumltances, and objefts ex- citing thofe paffions, and affording means for gratifying them.. Vid. Butler's Aial. p. 107. from him. And yet luch has been, and is il\\\ too much the prevailing opinion among men,, owing to their not forming to themfelves clear conceptions of that duplex compofition of which 'fcripture and experience prove us to conlift, viz. the carnal man and fpiritual. Some in- deed have been wife enough to afcribe to man a triple foul, the vegetative, animal, and ra- tional * ; imagining, that among To many different fpecies of fouls, it was a chance but that there might be one, upon which they could, with pro- priety, fix the rife and propagation of bad paffions. In anfwer to this, it may, with great confidence, I think, be affirmed, that the belief of a double or triple foul in man is abfurd to thelaft degree-, that only one and the fame foul a6tuat.es and animates that duplex, that fpiritual and animal nature, of which we now confift , and that, from its acting under two feparate and diftinct relations, there arifes the exertion of two forts of propenfions or dcfires, in their nature effentially different : thefe Malebrancke chufes to diftinguifh by the terms paf- fions and natural inclinations , I would rather call them our j)aflions and our natural affcftions. The former are the refult and confequence of the foul's relation to, and union with the body ; the latter the eflential workings of its own free and indepcndenr felf. The one are, the cravings, as it were, of the foul, to which the nature and confthution of the body make her fubjeft, which are necefiary for her fupport and nourifhment, and which we have * Allufive to which abfurdity, fays Ben Johnfon in Jus Ppetafter : " What, ftiall I turn {hark upon my friends, or my friends' friends? I fcorn it with my three fouls." yid. Warburton, in Shakefpear's Twelfth Night, p. 144. ftt in common with brutes*, viz. hunger, thirft, .concupifcence, felf-affeftion, 6JV. and thefe we may term her paffiom^ in contradiilinclion to thofe intellectual and independent motions, which are .efiential to, or however arife from her fpiritual frame, and which may therefore be mod properly ftiled the foul's affections. The firft are what the apoftle means b-y that Law in bis members warring figainft the law of bis mind, and bringing him into cap- tivity to the law of fin, that carnal mind, which is enmity againft God, whence proceed what he ttiles the luftsoftbefle/h, viz. adultery, fornication, &c. the latter are what the fame apoftle terms the fruits of tbe fpirit, viz. love, joy, peace, gentlenefs, meek- * .Agreeably to which the generality of philofophers fays the learned Mr. Brocklefby, diftinguifh two parts in the foul of man, the inferior and fuperior. The one is common to the brutes, and falleth within the comprehenfion of fenfitive na- ture, which they call Tra^rwoy (the feat of .the bodily appetites, affections, and paffions) the other is TO Xoyixcv, the rational na- ture ; and between thefe two, as contrary operative principles, there is ufually a conflict and combat. Ai-lr, yp ?- f*^;o^.w> Averts IK f xtxfopinri, for two natures, conflicting one witli the other, are conjoined, the fenfitive (the appetites to fenfitive good) refitting, and withflanding the rational nature, difcern- ing and dictating the good of honefty. In this conflidl the fenfitive nature ufually prevails by its deceit and impetuous violence, not only againil mens refolutions to the contrary in their fober mood, bat againil the prefcnt light and dictates of their minds, lx jSiaj r>Ti(r6t'ju.ti ; y on ffOff&J&WffMl) ayaai, xj sXxao'k, by the force of their defires, which carry and drag them. The mind is tyrannically lorded over by brutal afFe&ions, which are ufually in motion and commotion, the irrational paflions pofieffing it, and diftracling it, and in fome fort com- pelling it to do the things that are defirable to them. For every paffion has a compulfory force in it ; it dethrones or expels reafcnings. See Brocklefby's Gofpel-Theifm, p. 708. With regard to this author, if the reader fliall at any time obferve in him a kind of uncouth, inelegant phrafeology, he will find it neverthelefs exprefiive of very- clear, clgfe, comprer hen/ive reafoning, ncfs nefs, &5V. When we are enquiring therefore into the rife and progrefs of the various vices and frail- ties of mankind, we (hould carefully diftinguiili between fuch propenfions as are in reality their fault, and thofe which are only their misfortune. The foul's paffions, thofe to which fhe is made fubject by her alliance with the body, are necefiary for the fupport and continuance of that union and connection, and are confequently only fmful when gratified beyond the bounds and reftrictions which reafon, religion, and the laws of fociety prefcribe. Thefe we derive necefiarily from the nature and conftitution of that body we inherit from Adam. And thefe are, properly fpeaking, not the foul's faults, but her misfortunes , as being of a carnal, fenfual nature only; nor are thefe the affec- tions of the mind to which I allude, and from which is proveable the depravity of nature ; which confifts, and only confifts of irregularities, inconfiftencies, and actual blemimes in her intellectual frame ; fuch as are envy, malice, revenge, cruelty, &c. And when the apoftlc ranks even thefe in his ca- talogue of the works oftbeflefh^ we are not to con- fider him as pronouncing them the genuine, necef- fary effects and productions of the flelh, but as principles which are moft uiually diicernible in, and lefs reftrained -by thofe, whofe de fires, termi- nate more on the gratification of fenfual appetites and paffions, than in correcting and reforming the degeneracy of their fpiritual and more natural affections. 9. We fee then how frail, imperfect, and de- praved a being the foul is in its natural ftate. And, in order to afcertain the real caufe of this de- pravitv, reafon and philofophy oblige us to con- clude, either that it ariies from the accidental ftate and condition of that body we inherit from Adam, uij its C 2S ) *>r A was implanted by its Creator, or is the effect of a pre-exiftent lapfe. That the firft cannot be the cafe, even this fingle confideration evinces, viz, that we are not niverfally affected by that body in a fimilar manr ner. Men differ from each other as much in their affections as in their faces. And if to this it be replied, that that may be owing to fome different texture and modification of one and the fame fpe- cies of matter, I would afk, how it comes to pai$ that ftich a great contrariety of tempers mould be fo frequently met with in perfons of the very fame kind of complexion, and feemingly fimilar texture of body*? The external form and figure indeed is that by which your phyfiognomifts aim to read the inter- nal man -f 8 yet experience mews, that that is not an index which invariably and infallibly points true. x i o. Nor is there the leaft reafon in nature to expect that it mould. It is not pofiible that purely paffive matter mould impart principles not its own, or, in other words, the active properties and effen- tials offpirit. So that it is of courfe not poffible, that the foul can receive either her good or lad in- tellettual qualities from this or that frame or tem- perature of the body. We may as well fuppofe the very conftruction of the foul to be material, as make it dependent on matter for its properties. * The reader is to take notice, that I am now fpeaking of the real affeftions of the mind, not the fenfual paffions, thac arife from the foul's conneftion with the body. Theoc. And the wife fon cf Sirach fays, " A man may be known by his looks," Ecclyf. .xix. 29. n. The _ $ ii. The fours native powers indeed are fb= far dependent on the nature and quality of that heterogeneous vehicle wherein it is Contained, and from which it is furnifhed with all its proper in- flruments of fenfe and reflection, as to be enabled to operate to only that confined degree of excel- lence and perfection, to which the properties of that vehicle are fuited. Hence it is that we are enabled to account, in a great degree, for that feeming fubordination of intellectual abilities, ob- fervable now in the ieveral fpecies of animated and intelligent natures. Hence it is that brute crea- tures are become inferior to us in the ufe of their reafoning faculties, as we are perhaps to angels-. Brutes can reafon and reflect only in part, and how inconfiderable and contracted is the utmoft range of human reafoning, when compared with the intellectual powers of the angelic hoft! Had the fouls of brutes been lodged in the fame kind of vehicle with our own, it is probable that they would have attained to as high a degree of ra- tionality in this their fublunary fphere of action, as we have done , and that we jfhould ourfelves have fallen to as low a ftate of fenfibility and reflection as they are reduced to, had we been thrown into a body entirely organized, as is theirs*. 12. As * Mod of the ancient philofophers taught, that the Ibuls of beafts were rational ; from whence it follows, that they be- Keved thole fouls to differ in degrees of rationality only from thofe of men. Anaxagoras placed that difference in this parti- cular, viz. " That men are capable of explaining their rea- " fonings, whereas beafts are not able to explain theirs.** Vid. Plutarch, de Placit. Philof. lib. *. cap. 20. p. 908. Pythagoras and Plato had the fame thoughts on this point. They faid, that the fouls of beafts, though truly rational, aft not according to reafon, becawfe they w^nt the ufe of fpeech, lad ( 3 j t2. As the inherent depravity of the foul therefore evidently proceedyrom the conftitutional qualities and their organs are not wcll-proportioned,-^-That the mere difpofition of the organs hindered reafon from appearing in hearts, as it appears in men. See Bayle's life of Pereira* Agreeably to which, fays Virgil, Igneus eft ollis vigor, et cceleftis origo Seminibus : quantum non noxia corpora tardant, Terrenique hebetant artus, moribundaque membra. And that the fouls of men and beafts are, in their nature, in- trinfically the fame, we feem authorifed to conclude, front \vhat the facred preacher fays upon the point. c ' I faid in mine heart, concerning the eftate of the fons of men, that God might manifeft, or (as agreeably to the origi- nal it mould be Tendered) God will make manifeft, that they are beafts. For that which befalleth the fons of men be- falleth beafts, even one thing befalleth them : as one dieth, fo dieth the other, yea they have all one breath, fo that a man hath no pre-eminence over a beaft. All go unto one place, all are of duft, and all turn to dull again." Ecclef. iii. 19, 20. Diogenes faid, that beafls are made up of a body and a foul, and that if their foul does not actually feel and reafon, it is becaufe the thicknefs of its organs, and the great quantity of humours, reduce it to the condition of mad men. See Plut, de Plac. Philofoph. Nor can we fee an equality of providence towards the brute creation, without fuppofmg them pofTefTed of fouls capable of being recompensed in an hereafter, and defigned fo to be, for the toils and miferies they undergo here. Appofite to this reflection is the following extraft from the ingenious author of -Reflections on the CEconomy of Nature in Animal Life. It is certain, fays he, that the felf-motive and felf-aftive principle, or fpiritual fubftance, that actuates or animates or- ganifed matter, muft have, eflentially and actually, inherent in it all thofe natural qualities, faculties, and endowments, in the hiohefl perfection, that it ever exerts or attains to in any time of its duration. ,To augment or encreafe in eflential qualities is an abfurdity, and to augment or encre.ile naturally is only the property of body and matter; but fpititual fubilance being indivisible and immoital, if it could admit of more or lefs, in ( 3' ) qualities of that body it is made to inhabit here, fo neither is it, Secondly, to be confidered as implanted by him that formed it. 13. It is impoffible that the Deity can be the parent of imperfection. By which I do not mean to afiert, that God cannot produce any thing fhort of, or inferior to perfection itfelf. For then finite beings could not be the offspring of an infinite one, nor an effect be unequal to the caufe from whence it proceeded. But this I do venture to affert, that nothing imperfect in its kind can come out as luch immediately from the hands of God. And yet however true and unqueftionable fuch a po- fition is, the reverfe would evidently be the cafe, if man in his ftate of nature^ is as he came/r/? from the hands of God , ss& then every intellectual de- natural or eflential qualities, it might ceafe to be ; I mean as to its natural qualities of living, perceiving, and willing, /. e. of cogitation or thinking ; for as to its moral qualities of juftice, goodnefs, and truth, they may encreafe or decreafe to any de- gree, fince they entirely depend on the free will ; and there- fore the natural faculties of living, perceiving, and willing ; and thus feveral degrees and modifications of adlivity, fagacity, and defire, are eflentially and uniformly permanent in it in their order and degree, whatever kind of body it animates ; and when it does not exert theie innate and efTential qualities, it is becaufe it is limited and retrained by the nature of grofs matter, and the laws of the body which it animates, which is a foreign impediment, infuperable to its degree of felf-aclivity and felf-mobility. For an angel is as truly an angel, as to its ipiritual nature and faculties, informing the body of a ferpent, or any other organized body, as informing the body of a man.- And an angel, animating an human body, would be only a more perfect man, and, by its natural and eflential qualities could then only more perfectly exert human functions and operations. An unorganized body could produce no vital functions ; it could only put it into particular motions. Vid. Cheyne, Nat. Method of curing diieafes of the body and mind, r>. \, 2, 3. formity fbrmity and irregularity is a blemifti in the crea* ture, chargeable wholly and folely upon God its Creator. Then the envious, the malicious, the cruel and revengeful, are not more excentric from the laws of virtue and purity, or, in other words, not worfe than they fnould or could be , and the thing formed may fay unto hirn that formed it, Why haft thou made me thus ? $ 1 4. Moft writers on the fubject of the human palfions affert indeed, what may be judged perhaps a iufficient anfwer to the above remark, that moft, if not all of thofe paflions, which men ufually deem bad, are, in various inftances, confequentially good, and of courfe not to be looked upon as blemilhes and imperfections in our nature. That ambition, for example, is productive of deeds that ferve, in many refpects, to aggrandize the prince and his people ; introduces into a public fphere of action, men beft qualified to advance the honour, reputa- tion, and intercfts of their king and country, and tranlmits to pollerity many illuftrious examples of magnanimity and undaunted bravery. That the paflion of pride fwells the mind to a refinance of mean, felfifh, abject confederations, or any difho- nourable or unjuft attacks. That even envy has apparently its advantages, inafmuch as it fpurs a man on to a rivalfhip of another in his virtues and noble exploits. That covetoufnefs ferves to create an abundance, which the heir, actuated by a dif- ferent kind of fpirit from the firft poflfefTor, is en- abled to diffufe in various acts of generofity, and a well placed beneficence. This is the fight in which, as far as I can recollect, writers on this fubject, place, for the moft part, thefe and other paflions of the human breaft, in order to mew, that they are not, what I elteem them to be, real blemilh.es. But if reafon may be allowed to be a proper ( 33 ) proper judge in this cafe, I would afk, whether this is not abfolutely confounding the efTential difference between good and evil, judging of the nature of our paflions from their accidental effetts and conferences^ and blending the effence of things with their ends andttfes? For fuppofmg, though not granting, the accidental effcfts ifluing from thofe above-mentioned paflions, to be a proper criterion whereby to afcertain their expediency and real value, we mail even then, I think, find fufficient reafon to pronounce them, in general, lad. They are as frequently mifcbievous in their effects, as beneficial, and perhaps more fo. It was ambition^ you'll fay, that made Alexander mine with fuch eclat in the annals of fame, and I'll grant it; but did it not give to the world at the lame time, and in the fame perfon, a madman, and a murderer of millions ? It was to the monarch's pride that Babylon owed her magnificent temples, and her other fumptuous buildings; that were the glory and wonder of the age in which he lived ; but did not that fame intoxicating paiTion fink at laft the renowned lord thereof into the fimilitude of a creature inferior to the lowed of the human fpecies ? With refpcft to envy* -Say firft what caufe Mov'd our grand parents in that happy Hate, Favour'd of Heaven fb highly, to fall off From their Creator, and tr.^nfgrefs his will For one reftraint lords of the world befides ? Who firft feduc'd them to that foul revolt ? , Th' infernal Serpent, he it was, whofe guile, Stirr'd up with envy and revenge, deceiv'd The motjier of mankind.- 1 D As ( 34) As for covetoufnefs, if that be, either in principle or in practice, a virtue* then with regard to all vices whatever, the greatejt of them is Charity. 15. In fhort, it will not be denied, but that, in the general courfe of God's providence, good will frequently arile out of evil. But then it ought to be confidered, that the good accidentally ifiu- ing therefrom does not alter its fpecific nature and quality. And as there are paflions which, without any kind of difpute, are intrinfically good, the re- verfe of thofe paffions muft of courfe be intrinfi- cally bad, be they in their confequences accidentally this or that ; elfe adieu to all diftinctions between good and evil* between virtue and vice, between the righteous and the wicked ! As therefore among the various affections incident to the human kind, there are fome which muft undoubtedly be denominated bad, thofe are a blemifh in the crea- ture chargeable wholly and folely on the Creator, if the former had not an exiftence frier to its appear- ance here. 1 6. It is urged indeed' by a very lively and fprightly writer, " That in the fcale of beings " there muft be fomewhere fuch a creature as '* man, with all his infirmities about him, that a " removal of thefe would be altering his very na- " ture, and that as foon as he became perfect, he " c muft ceafe to be man.-[" The removal of man's infirmities would be at tering undoubtedly the very nature of man , but is the inference from thence juft, that man comes into the world with all his imperfections about him, " lecaufe there muft be fomewhere in the f Sec Nat. and Origin, of Evil, p. 98. fcale ( 35 ) " fcale of beings a creature ib unfortunately and * immorally formed ? " 17. To fuppofe God necefiitated to call in to his aid evil, for the better carrying on his moral government of the world, is methinks an idea of Providence not (hort of mental blafphemy. If the ingenious author had faid, that moral evil will, in the final iffue of things^ be productive of a far fu- perior degree of moral good, it would have been judged by the generality of his readers, I imagine, a fufficient apology for the introduction 'of moral evil into the world. In mort, man, and man only, brought evil into the world, by his having before (in a prior (late) brought evil upon himlelf. A truth which will, I doubt not, appear in the fequel very evident to every free and impartial reader. Having (hewn, then, that the depravity of the human mind is not occafioned either by the grofs ftate and condition of that body in which the foul is now lodged, or implanted by him that formed it, it would be an affront to common fenfe, and to the reader's judgment, to doubt his granting me the conclufion, that it can be none elfe than the effect of a pre-exiftent lapfe ; efpecially if to what has already been obferved, he adds an im- partial attention to the enfuing chapters. D 2 CHAP, CHAP. V. A pre-exijlent lapfe of human fouls the belief of the moft learned and ingenious among the ancient philofopbers, the Greek and Latin fathers, and of fame very eminent writers of a more modern date. i. TT T ITH refpecl to the former of thefe, VV I mu ft b c tne r ^ader to be fatisfied at prefent with the following quotation from the great Dr. More, which we have alfo in Glanvil/e's Lux Orient alts. " Let us caft our eyes, fays Dr. More, into " what corner of the world we will, that has been *' famous for wifdom and literature, and the ** wiieft of all nations you will find the afiertors : "'of the foul's pre-exiftence. " In.^Egypt, that ancient nurfery of all hidden " fciences, that this opinion was in vogue among '*' the wifeft men there, thofe fragments of Trifme- " gifts do fufficiently witnefs : of which opinion " not only the Gymncfophifts, and other wife men " of Mgypt were, butallb t\\c Brachmans of India, " the Magi of Babylon and Perfia : to which may ' be added the abftrufe philofophy of the Jews, " which they call the Cabbala of the foul's pre- " exiftence, makes a confiderable part, as alfo the " learned of the Jews do confefs. And, fays he, if " we can believe the Cabbala of the Jews, we muft " affign it to Mofes; to whom you may add Zoro- " after, Pythagoras, E-picharmus, Empedodes, Cebes^ " Euripides, Plato, Euclid, Philo, Virgil, Marcus Ci- " cero, Plotinus, Jamblicus, Proclus, Boethhis, Pfel-. ^ lus } and feveral others. And if, fays he, we " were ( 37 ) " were to add fathers to pkilofopbers, we might ng courfe of experience, made fenfible of the wickednefs and corruption of human nature, but could by no means account for fuch their calamitous fituation, without fuppofing their fouls to have exifted in a prior ftate ; rightly concluding that they could not come impure from the hands of God. And this their fenle of a prior guilt was foltrongly im- prefTed upon their minds, that they could not bun reflect on it with the utmoft dread and confufion ; efpecially when they perceived what horrid immo- ralities, as well as pious inhumanities, ifTued from it. Difpirited therefore from any attempts to re- cover the favour of their offended God, fucceeding ages totally loft fight of both him and his laws ; were fo far from enjoying, or even wifhing his prefence^ that they did not choofe to retain him in their knowledge, but lived without God in the world. And though they were not able wholly to erafe the impreffions of a Deity from their minds, yet fo grofs were their conceptions of him, that they even changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like unto corruptible man. Nay the J Upon the nature and tenor, I mean, of the gofpel difpenfation. D 4 worfhip ( 40 ) worship due to the Creator they even proftitiued to an impious adoration of the meaneft of his creatures, even to birds, and four-fccted beafts, and creeping things. And if the wiler and more understanding part of the heathen world were not Jo wholly loft in ignorance and error, yet they were notwithstanding in a confeffedly wretched and difconfolate ftate; they were fenfible of their loll irmocency, and intereft with their God ; and, what confiderably awakened their fears and a'pprehenfions, could not, by the light of reafon alone, dilcern a probability, or even a pofiibility of attaining a future reconciliation. No hopes ap- peared for the recovery of loll man, upon the me- rit of his own performances ; nor could they think it probable that any other creature would undertake, or, if he did, would be able to accom- plifh it for him. What created being could give a fatisfaction for their prior violation of the laws of the great God of heaven, and the contempt of his authority ? " Wherewith then ihould the *' confcious criminal come before the Lord, and C bow himfelf before the High God! Should he " come before him with burnt ffferings, with " calves of a year old ! Would the Lord be plcaied " with tboufands ff rams, or with ten tboufands of c rivers of oil! Should he give his fir jt -born for " his tranfgreffion, the fruit of bis body for the fin " of his foul!" Alas! all this could be noways effectual for their repofe. For what, as a very fenfible writer upon this fubject obferved, " What * c proportion could there be between the motncn- " tary fufferings of a beaft, and the eternal fuffer- " ings due to fin ? Or how could the offering up " of one fmner atone for the prior trefpaflcs of " another?" 4. Either ( 41 ) 4- Either by the light of reafon therefore, or fome faint glimmerings of a prior revelation, they were made thoroughly fenfible of the want of fome more than common means for reftoring them to their loft righteoufnefs, and their Maker's forfeited regard. Nor did they think themfclves more in want of a facrifice for their prior guilt, than of an advocate with the Father, whom they had fo egre- gioufly injured. A mediator too they wanted, one whom they might addrefs, and by whom they might have accefs to their offended God. Con- fcious of their perfonal guilt and defilement, by means of original pre-exiftent guilt, they feared to approach him of themfelves. Infomuch that fome of them were induced to renounce all imme- diate and perfonal application to him , choofing rather to make intercemon to demons, and other kind of middle beings, whom they might addrefs with -petitions, and bribe with facnfices to mediate between them and their God *. Such was the me- lancholy, the uncomfortable condition of the hea- then world for many ages together, from the fall of Adam, fo difpirited were they, and confounded at the confcioufnefs they v/ere under of an original, unaroned guilt upon their fouls, till God was pleafed at lad, in the fulnefs of time, to open a fountain for fin and unckanncfs, and to make known to defponding mortals the exceeding riches of his grace in that wonderful fcheme of 'redemption, whereby he might continuey'^/?, and be a juftifier of its Jitifui creatures. Agreeably to which, fays the apoftle to the Epbe/ians, " Te mho were afar off" i. c. were aliens and ftrangers from the light of God's countenance, by means of your pre-exiftent * See Stackhoufe's Body of Divinity, wherein this fubjedt is treated of in the fame light, though more at large. guilt (42 ) guilt, Ye are made nigh* or reftored to his favour and prefence, by the blood of Cbrift. CHAP. VI. A lapfe ofhuman fciiis^ as above confidered^ a branch of Chriftian theology. IN proof of this point I muft defire the reader's acceptance of the following long quotation frorri the very learned Mr. Brockkfly. I. " The ancient writers, fays he, attribute a celeftial and divine condition to Adam in his inno- cency ; they fuppofe therefore that mankind are lapfed from a celeftial and divine condition into a terreftrial animal , which cannot be fuppofed, un- Jefs a celeftial and divine condition did belong to human fouls in a prior ftate. 2. " Chriftians, fays he, fuppofe, that the fouls of men are heaven-born, faying the fame tning with the pagan theologers, who thought fcorn to derive the origin of their fouls from the dirt. Their maxim was, Noftrat animas deduct e ccelo^ re- dire in cesium \ animorum mdla in terns origo inveniri poteft^ as fays Cicero. Again, many of the Hebrew doctors will have the foul, in Hebrew called Nijh- mah, derived from Sbamaim, the Hebrew term for heaven -, becaufe the foul derives its origin from heaven. P. Fagius in Gen. ii. 7. And Chriftian divines fay, Corpus e terra, et fpiritum pojftdemus e ccdo ; We have our body from the earth, our foul or fpirit from heaven. S. Cypr. de Or at. Dem. Origo ejus, fays LaEfantiiis, de ccelo eft ; Its origin is from heaven. " For this reafon Chriftian theologers call man ctjtfie awmal, a celeftial animal. Plato calls him a celeftiai (43 ) cclcftial plant, Gt'$ao0wT. The foul is then, fays Mr. Farrmdcn in his fermon on Epkef. v. i, mod herfelf, and cometh nigheft to her former efrate, when, forgetting the weight and hindrance of the body, (he enjoys herfelf, takes wings, as it were, and foars up in the contemplation of God and his goodnefs ; Cum id fe effe incipit^ qitcdfe effe credit^ as St. Cyprian fpeaks ; when fhe begins to be that which fhe muft needs believe herfelf to be, of a celeftial and heavenly beginning." Thus the Chriftian theologers, in concert with the pagan, derive the origin of human fouls from heaven, and fuppofe them to defcend from thence, vel miflii vel lapji : but not till after fome pre-ex- iftent duration, and cohabitation with the bleffed inhabitants , or elfe thofe writers muft have been at very unneceflary pains to prove, what none but Atheiils would undertake to difprove, that the fouls of men were the work of God's hand. But to return to our learned Brockkjby. 3. " The provifion for the foul's happinefs, fays he, was no part of the provifion that was made for man (but typically and fymbolically only) in the creation of this world. It belonged to an an- tecedent creation ; for all the furniture of this fub- lunary world, what is it to the foul ? Confider the foul of itfelf, fays Mr. Farrindon, and what relation or reference has it to any earthly things ? Care for meats and drinks and apparel, for pofterity, to heap up riches, to be ambitious of honours, all thefe publicans, which demand and exact fo much of our time and labour, befel the foul on the putting on this cloathing of the body. See his Serm. III. on Matt. vi. 33. 4. How, fays St. Ait/tin^ is the love of our country revived in us, which we had forgot by a long . ( 44) long peregrination ? And again, fays he, Heaven is our country , which, perhaps, by a long pere- grination, we have forgot. The Chriftian people, lays another Chriftian writer, are invited to the delights of Paradife, and to all the regenerate a return is opened to their loil country. Leo.'M. de Paffion. Dotn. Ser. 13. And, fays St. hry- foftom y By Chrift crucified two great things are done ; for he hath opened Paradik, and intro- duced the thief-, he reftored i.im to his anricnt country ; he reduced him to his paternal city. 5. Chriftian writers fuppofe, that the fouls of men, being Heaven-born > are now in a Mate of tjanimment from Heaven. The fecond pe:ition of our Lord's Prayer [thy kingdom come] conllrains us to confefs, fays Luther [apud Hoornbeck] with our own mouths, the fad calamity of our banifh- ment. And a divine of our own, Dr. Eedes+ con- cerning the original and prefent ftate of man, fays as follows : His being in the world is but a kind of being in the wildernefs, wherein he is eftranged from the city of the Living God. Agreeably to which is the Apoftle's addrefs to the Ephefians I befeech you, therefore, brethren, as ftrangers and pilgrims, that yc abflain from flelhly lufts, &c. Again, fays another divine, having loofed the bonds of death, he, viz. Chrift, opened the way to our heavenly country, from which all man- kind had been banifhed for many thoufand years. See Laurent. Surii Homil. p. 379. in die Pafdue. 6. It is the belief of Chriftian writers, that mankind are fallen by fin from a fupernal happy itate. We are caft from an high, fays the above quoted divine, into the fink cf this world. And we are, fays St. Ba/il, by fin fallen to the earth, la ( 45 ) Jn Short, Chriftian divines in general, fpeak tl^ fenfe of Seneca upon the point. Tune animus nofter habebit, quod gratuletur fibi, cum emiffus e tenebris in quibus volutatur, non tenui vifu clara perfpexerit, fed totum diem admiferit, et redditus Caelo fuo fuerit. Cum re- ceperit locum, qucm occupavit forte nafcendi. Surfum vocant ilium initia fua. Senec. Ep. 79. & 120. 7. It is the firm perfwafion of the antienc fathers, that the fouls of men were originally pof- fefied of the divine image, which now they have loft, and that their regeneration is a reftoration, and reduction thereto. Greg. Nazianzen fays, that th6 foul is of God, and divine, and partakes of the fu- pernal nobility, which is alfo her ancient nobility. She is of God, fays St. Chryfoftcm not only in the general way, as all beings are of God, theirCreator , nor only as being of more than human original [God being peculiarly the father of fouls, or fpirits] but if me was originally pofTefTed of the Divine image, me was of God, as ifluing from paternal fanftity. The fouls of all men were di- vinely virtuous in their original creation ; nor have they fo totally loft the divine image, but that there are, as fays St. Auguftine, the feeble remains, the weak relicks of the image of God, the rudera, or broken pieces of our firft building. St. Aug. de Sp. & Lit. 6. 28. And how agreeable is all this to the nature and genius of the Chriftian difpenfu- tion ! The end and defign of the Chriftian regene- ration being to renew in us the loft image of God, wherein we were originally created. Agreeably to which is a note of Grctius upon the Parable of the Prodigal Son. All men, fays he, are, originally, the fons of God, as this parable declares, but they lofe that privilege C 46 ) Jirivilege by alienating themfelves from God Sence, when he is converted, and regenerated, he is faid to be, Deo fuo reftitutus, reftored to his God, fays St. Cyprian* Therefore he did fome time before belong to God, as one of his divine family. So the loft Jheep^ and the loft groat, that afterwards were found, were fometime in pofTeflion of their owner. And the mighty benefits which Chriftianity brings to the fouls of men, are reco- vering, and refVoring what war, not the introduc- tion of what never was. And Chrift fends, fays St. Cyril, his fpirit into the fouls of believers, transforming them < ? TO %%,' into the antient and original form. And Maximus, the martyr, fays, that the defign of Chrift's incarnation was to make us partakers of a divine nature, *' we as in the beginning. The defign of Chriftianity, therefore, to rege- nerate fouls into the holy life, and to raife them to the heavenly ftate of purity, implies,, that they are fallen from both, as the Fathers explicitly affirm, when they fuppofe the renovation of fouls into the Divine image is their reftauration. See Brocktejlfs Gofpel-T'heifm y p. 504, &c. CHAP. VII. tfhe fcripture account of the Fallen Angels illuftra* ted, and confirmed-, and the human rzcejhewn ti be complicated, and irfuofaed in their guilt. $ i. /T^HAT human fouls are of coeval origin JL with angtlic, and both the production of one inftantaneous exertion of infinite power, it ieems ncceffary to conclude -, becaufe in die firft place no reafon can be afiigned, why the Deity Should - ( 47 N ) Ihould give the preference implied in a priority. of creation to this, or that order of intelligent' na- tures, rather than to another ; And fecondly, be- caufe zfaccffrvc traduftion of fouls, or a daily crea- tion of them, one or other of which 'muft elfe be luppoied, is the one an actual impofiibility in na- ture, and the other a fuppofition, fuggefting an idea of the Creator, than which there cannot be one more grofs and unworthy -f. 2. And that the Mofaic was not the original creation of all things^ but that, prior to it, there exifted an univcrfe of rational beings, I look' up- on as a truth of which none but men of the moft contracted fentiments can entertain the leaft doubt J-. $ 3. And f A fucceffive tradu&ion of fouls is, as Dr. Heory More obferves, " A plain contradiction to the notion of a foul, which is a fpirit, and therefore of an indivisible, that is, of an indifcerpible eflence. And a daily creation of them im- plies both an indignity to the majefty of God (in making him the chiefeft afiiftant and aclor in the higheft, freeft, and moft particular way in which the Divinity can be conceived to aft, in thofe abominable crimes of whoredom, adultery* and inceft, by fupplying thofe foul coitions with new-created fouls for the purpofe) and alfoan injury to the fouls themfelves; that they being ever thus created by the immediate hand of God, and therefore pure, innocent, and immaculate, mould be imprifbned in unclean, difeafed, and difordered bodies, where very many of them feem to be fo fatally over- maftered, and in fuch an utter incapacity of elofing with what is good and virtuous, that they muft needs be adjudged to that extreme calamity, which attends all thofe that forget God." See Dr. More's Immortality of the Soul, p. 113. See alfo Glanville's Lux Orientalis where the above argu- ments are expatiated upon in a moft comprehenfive and maf- terly manner. f It is the opinion of the generality of writers, who look no further than to the letter of the Mofaic hiftory, that the whole frame of nature comes within the compafs of the fix days crea- tion i ( 4* ) 3' And as every part of creation muft, when liftiing firft from the hands of the Creator, be psr-> fell tion ; that not only the fun, moon, and planets, but the im- menfe fyilem of the fixed ftars, are there defcribed as coeval with the formation of our earth: confequently they muft hold, that till about fix thoufand years ago, the Deity exifted alone, reigning over an abfolute void, without either worlds or inha- bitants. But as the contrary opinion may be fairly deduced from many paflages in Scripture, fo it is much more agreeable to our jufteft apprehenfions of the Divine nature to fappofe, that the fountain of power and goodnefs had created worlds, and communicated being to many orders of creatures long be- fore our earth or its inhabitants had an exiftence. See Jamefon, Pref. to his Expofit. of the Pentat. Again; By the heaven, fays Mr. Jackfon on Gen: i. i. " In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth," we are to underftand the feveral fyftems of the fun, moon, planets, which were created before the formation of the earth, of which only Mofes gives a particular account, and to which his hiftory primarily belongs. It is faid, " God made two " great lights," viz. the fun and the moon ; and it is certain that the earth was, by God's almighty power, fo fituated, with refpeft to the pofition of the fun and moon, that they might have their proper influence over it, and fo with propriety be laid to have been new made to rule over its day and night. They now became properly a fun and moon to the earth, whe- ther they were then created, when they firft Ihone upon it, or before. The Hebrew word n'# Afa, or Afe rendered to make, fignifies alfo to conftitute, or appoint, or prepare ; and fo it may mean, that God appointed two great lights, the one to rule over the day, the other to rule over the night. And it is evident, that the word may be taken in the preterpluperfed tenfe, as it is in the 3ift verfe, where it is rightly rendered, " And God faw every thing that he had made." -There- fore, though it is udoubtediy true, that God made, or created the fun, moon, and ftars, yet there is no need to underftand that they are any part of the Mofaic creation, which compre- hended only the heavens and fhe earth, or the earth with its firmament or atmofphere, which is called heaven. See Jack- fon's Chronol. Antiq. p. 4, >. Agreeably to which, another very learned and ingenious writer had before obferved, that the original creation was ante- Mo&ical ; ( 49 ) jecl in its kind (the fountain being pure, the dreams (lowing therefrom muft be pure riibj it neceffarily follows, that the univerfe of ra- lional creatures came into being poffefied of as large a mare of intellectual purity, and moral rec- titude, as finite natures can Le fuppofed capable ot attaining, or an all-perfeft power capable of cre- ating. But from the very ftate, and circumftances of their exiftence, and that/ritt&Jfc of ixiill, which conftituted them moral agents, it is eafy, and even necefTary to conceive, that though pure, and per- fett in their kind, they were neverthelefs peccable, and liable to tranfgrejfion -f-. It is an affertion of Calvin, Mofaical ; that the Mofaical Cofmopceia was not God's original creation, nor the creation of the waft univerfe of raticna/s, but a fecondary creation, a creation of our terreftrial Jyfiem only ; and that our planetary globe, though in refpeft of the matter of it, it was a part of God's original creation, yet as formed and inhabited, did not belong to the original ccnftitution of the univerie. See Brocklesby's Chrifiian Trinitarian, p. 493,' &c. The truth of which hypothecs he fupports by a variety of cogent arguments, fome of which may occafionally come in, perhaps, hereafter. f " Unlefs a man, fays Dr. Cheyne, give up all reafon, phi- " lofophy, and proportion, as well as analogy, and run into downright fcepticifm, biir.d fate, witchcraft and enchantment, he muft iuppofe, that an infinitely wife and beneficent being could not have created free and intelligent creatures, but for fome wife end and purpofe. And to obtain this end he muft have made them at firft found (fo he is pleafed toexprefs him- felf ) in body and mind. How error, difeafes, mifery, and death commenced, may readily be accounted for from the abufe of freedom and liberty, fpurious felf-love, and an inordi- nate love of the creature." See Cheyne, Difcourfeiv. p. 1 19. An argument equally ccnclufive as to angels and men. There is fomething extremely rational and fatisfaclory, as to this point, in what follows from Dr. Jenkin. " It muft beconfidered, fays he, that no created being can, " ih its own nature, be uncapable of fin or default : becaufe- " it cannot be infinitely perfect ; for it is infeparable from all E '< creatures ( 5 ) Calvin, that the holy angels themfelves are not uncriminal, and uncondemnabie ; they are, " non " faiisjitfti-" noi fufficiently, or compleatly, juft " creatures to have but finite perfections ; and whatever has " bounds fet to its perfections is in fome refpeCt imperfeCt \ " that is, it wants thofe perfections which a being of infinite ' perfections alone can have. So that imperfection is implied " in the very efience of created beings ; and what is imperfeCl ' may make default." Jenkin's Reafon. of Chr. Rel, vol. ii. p. 238. And again, p. 246. he fays, " In the beginning God cre- * ated every thing perfeCt in its kind, and endued the angels " and men with ail intellectual and moral perfections fuitable " to their refpe&ive natures ; but fo as to leave them capable *. of finning. For it pleafed the infinite wifdom of God to " place them in a ftate of trial, and to put it to their own *' choice whether they would Hand in that condition of inno- '.' cence and happinefs in which they were created, or fall into " fin and mifery. We have little or no account in the Scrip- tures of the caufe or temptation which occafioned the fall of angels, becaufe it doth not concern us," fays he, (but it does concern us much more than he imagined) " to be ac- " quainttd with it; and therefore it little becomes us to be " inquifitive about it." (fcarce any thing concerns us more., or merits a more diligent and earneit enquiry.) But to proceed with our author " Indeed it is very difficult to conceive, how ' beings of fuch great knowledge and purity, as the fallen an- ** gels once were of, fhould fall into fin : but it is to be con- " fidered that nothing is more unaccountable, than the mo- ** lives and caufes of action in free agents : when any being is " at liberty to do as it will, no other /eafon of his aCtings be- '* fides his own will need be enquired after. But how per- *' feCt and excellent foever any creature is, unlefs it be fb con- firmed and eftablifhed in a ftate of purity and holinefs, as to ** be fecured from all poffibility of finning, it may be fuppofed * to admire itfelf, and dote upon its own perfections and ex- * cellencies, and by degrees to negleCt and not acknowledge God the author of them, but to fin and rebel again ft him. * And it is moft agreeable both to Scripture and reafon, that pride was the caufe of the fall of angels." Jenk. vol. ii. p. 246, 247. ^ Whether this be, or be not, juft reafoning upon a matter of faCt, as to the motives or caufes from which it happened, it is quite unneceflary for me to enquire at prefent. and and righteous. " The ftars arc. not pure in God's l fight," fays Job, c. xxv. v. 5. And abfolute impeccability is, perhaps, the fole prerogative of God. 4. Accordingly Scripture informs us, that an order of celeftial powers incurred in proccfs of time their Maker's diipleafure, by not keeping their firft eftate, and leaving their bamtations. " And the angels, which kept not their firft " eft ate" fays St. Jude, " but left their own habi- ** fatten, he hath referved in everlafting chains ic under darknefs unto the judgment of the great u day." Jude 6th. 5. For the more clear understanding of which important paflage in holy writ, I obferve, as fol- lows, firft, That each clafs, or divifion of the ang^iic hoft, had, from the beginning, and have Hill a determinate region in Heaven aMlgned them, as their proper fphere of glory, and pecu- liar place of refidcnce. ---Agreeably to which, fays our Saviour, " In my father's houfe are m?.ny " manfions." John xiv. 2. That the intel- lectual world, that part of it, I mean, with which we feem to have any connection, or of which we feem to have any intelligence, appears to have been ranked, and difpoled by the Creator, from the beginning, into feveral diilinct clafies, gradu- ally fubordinate to each other in dignity and power ; in proportion, probably, to the different degrees of intellectual capacity, which the mem- bers of each clafs had bt-en endowed with at firfti Without fome fort of orderly gradation like this, the mind cannot frame to itfelf any idea of an ex- ifting ibciety, nor without fuch a fuppofal a poili- bility of felicity even in Heaven 7. I obferve t If it be urged that a fubordination of rank and quality bi heaven, would argue an unequal diftribution of power and E 2 authority. (50 I obferve, fecondly, that in the paflage alluded to, the original word ' A f%^ which our translators have rendered firft eftate, is that very word which in the plural number is fo often ufed in the New Teftament to denoie fome particular order of angels, and which, in all thofe places, we tranflatc Thirdly, I obferve, that thefetwo expreffions of the " angels not keeping their firft eltate," and " their leaving their own habitations," are not de- figned to convey different, and feparate fenfes, but are only explanatory the one of the other, as ap- pears from the flructure of the fcnrence, The paffage, therefore, fhould be rendered thus : " The angels, which kept not their own prin- pality, [TO sw *Afl] Du t left their own habita- " tion [ t& 'oucTOfw] ne hath refcrvcd in ever- lafting authorfty, and a partiality in the fupreme Lord thereof, inter- ruptive of universal harmony and equal happinefs, and incon- liftent with our idea of celeftial fruition, I anfwer, that in minds not vitiated by pride and ambition, obedience to thofe to whom reverence and efteem is due, is a fatisfadlion of mind equal, at leaft, to that which arifes from a fuperiority of power, &c. in thofe to whom is allotted the preheminency. That there was, however, is, and always will be, fuch a fub- ordination of rank and dignity in the celeftial abodes, is evi- dent from thofe diftintions, which we meet with in Scripture, of angels and archangels, of cherubim and feraphim, of prin- cipalities, powe, thrones, and dominions. I ThefT. iv. 16. Jud. ix. Ezek. x. Pfal. xviii. 10. Ifa. vi. 2. Rom. viii. 38. Ephef. i. 21. iii. 10. vi. 12. Col. i. 16. ii. 10, ij. Agreeably to which fays St. Jerom That there may be due order amongft rational-, there muft be rat vpisrst, T pi;*, to. ieryana, the prims, the middle, and the laft. And again, fays another writer, " It is in nature as in th " moft perfect harmony, in an harmony of founds, that which *' is of a' middle nature maketh the confonancy of the ex- tremes ; and in all apt compofures fomething of a middre natur^ is requifite." M. Tyr f DifT. 27. See Brock, p. 9. ( 53 ) " lading chains." &c.---That therefore laftly the crime by which the angels fell in general was : That x they kept not themfelves within the bounds of their own proper fphere of dignity, and glo- ry, but prefumpruoufly deferted that fubordinatc rank and fituation, which God had allotted them in the realms above. 6 Hence it was, that that harmony, and tran- quillity in heaven, which reigned unmolefted be- fore, underwent for a time, a reverfed fate. He whom fcripture ftiles the prince of devils, one mod probably of the fngbeft order of fpirits, moving in a fphere perhaps but a tew degrees removed (to fpeak in the language of men) from the throne of God, and difdainingeven thefrft degree of inferiori- ty . He, I fay, fet up his flandard againft the Moft High, inlifted under his banner a multitude of mutinous, and afpiring ingrates, aiming by their affiftance to rule independent of the will, and au- thority of the omnipotent, and even to give law to the very Being that gave him life. _ " afpiring " To fet himfelf in glory above his peers, " He trufled to have equall'd the Moft High, " If he oppofed, and with ambitious aim " Againfl the throne, and monarchy of God " Rais'd impious war in heav'n, and battle proud, c With vain attempt." For now the traiterous chieftain, and his infa- tuated adherents, drew upon themfelves the ven- geance of heaven, were banilhed their celellial habitations, and referved in eyerlafting chains, E 3 under ( 54) under daiknefs unto the judgment of the great day. * 7 To the fame purpofe the vifion of St. John : " There was war in heaven ; Mchae!, and his " angels fought againft the dragon, and the dra- '* gon fought and his angds, and prevailed not, " neither was there place found any more in hea- " ven. And th~ great dragon was caft out, that old " ferpent, called the lievil. an&fatan which deceiv- * c er,h the whole world : he was caft out into the " earth, and his angels were caft OIK with him." Apocal. xii. 7, 8, 9. And I make no doubt but the prophet Tfaiah had a remote alluf:on to this Arch-Rebel's afpiring pride, and its fatal confequcnces, in that prophetic triumph over the king of Babylon, exhibited in the following lofty patlage. " How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, " fon of the morning ! How art thou caft down ' to the ground which didft weaken the nations !'* " For thou haft faid in thine heart, I will afcend " into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the * By the words " everlafting chains under darkners." we are to underftand a ftate of confinement in or about this earth, which, when oppofed to the inexprefiible glory and brightnefs of the divine prefence, may aptly enough be expreffed by " chains under darknefs." See Dr. Hunt's dirTertation OR the fall. And the conjecture is not a little countenanced by certain paflages in fcripture, where the chief of the devils is called the prince of the power of the air, and the devils in general, "Wicked fpirits in high places" Ephes. ii. 2. and vi. 12. And both Homer, and He/tod, ufe a/.;- for JXCTOJ caiigo, darknefs. -'H t o 5 '/j0$ IxcxXiTo, xai T<*%e IWw. Homer's Iliad, v. 355. ' aid*. Hefiod, "E' t y. Ml 'H/xEf, I. 124. " ftars ( 55 ) * ftars of God : I will fit alib upon the mount of " the congregation in the fides of the north," " I will afcend above the heights of the clouds, I " will belike the moil High." If. xiv. 12. 13. 14. To thefe fcriptural notices of that event may be added in confirmation of the truth of it many obvious allufions, and even exprefs andpofitive de- clarations from ancient theologers. * 8. But to proceed To fuch daring lengths of inlblent impiety did this Arch- Rebel proceed, that, notwithftanding the galling defeat he fuf- tained in heaven, he perfitted ftill in his avowed emulation, placed hirnfelf at the head of the prin- * Minutius Felix's defcription of demons is, " that their ' motion is a heavy Jinking from heaven, and that they vvith- " draw from the true God to matter." " A Coslo deorfum " gravant, et a Deo vero ad materiam avccant." 27. And Athenagoras fays, that when the angels were created, the things of the creation were committed to their care, and the prince of the apoftate angels was originally the ruler, and prefident of the matter and forms that are in it. *o -rife for?, VM rut l avrrt titeSecfxan Apol. 27. 28. Gr. NyfTen, and J. Da- mafcen fuppofe, that when the world was created, the feveral parts of it were committed to feveral orders of angels, that he who was the devil, was prefect of the terrene order, having the prefidency over the earth, and the adminiftration of terrene things. And the name by which the Rabbins called the devil viz, "na fignifying the apoftate, is plainly allufive to his apoftacy from God ; as is alfo another of his ufual appel- lations, viz. Satanas, or fatan, the original import of which word is ATrorarrjr, the apoftate. The cabaliicical book Zohar treating of lapfed angels fays God threw them down headlong, bound, and enchain- ed. Thefe were Aza and Axael, which R. Eleazar fays were two angels, which accufed their Lord, and God caft them oqt of the holy place headlong. And the pagans difcourfe of a fort of evil genii, paffively and penally fuch, which are called by Plutarch 'O EATOJ, xt UMHMTfTfK txEiVot T 'E^sn^oxXsSf <$a'^/,oEir.-- " Thofe " God-agitated, and heaven-fallen demons of Empedocles " See Brokleiby, page 29, 30, 31. E 4 cipal cipal of the Rebel-Rout, and erected at once, in defpite of his Maker's power, or by his permiiTion rather, for wife, and good purpofes, a feparate, antitheifiical fovcreignty. An aerial region was his deftined refidence, fituated, as it is generally fuppofed, within the a.tmofphere, or circumam- bient air of this our terreftrial globe. * 9 The apoftle fpeaks of it as ^f^-^ an aerial abode, and (tiles Satan both the prince of the de- vJls> and the prince of the power, [T^MW*?] }. e . the dominion of the air. A moft faj:al vicinity this to the inhabitants of this world ! For thefe refractory and rebellious fpirits, though enchained under darknefs, are yet peimitted, we find, under Certain limitations of their active powers, to range about the earth beneath. Job i. 7. Apoc. xvi. 13. where they have made it their conftant bufmefs to feduce mankind into apoflacy, to draw them off from their natural allegiance to God, and fubject them to the kingdom of darknefs. Col. i. 13. f A prelude to which multiplied miferies was Adam's deliberate furrender of his virtue and in- tegrity to Satan, when acting, as we find it rc- * As other beings have their proper regions, fo there is, fays a Greek writer, a land or country of Satan, where the powers of darknefs, and fpirits of wickednefs live and walk, and have their refting place. "Ovruc if* yri, xa.1 ira.Tfi<; craravKt? 5 ^iayso-, xa* f^TrepiTreirSs-i, H(ti 'iirtyava.vc.vTcii 0,1 ^tm/*.Eij TB c-nora, xa> rot. S. Macarius Hom. 14. f < Rejoice ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them/' fays ? the apocalyptic apoftle." But woe to the inhabitants of ff the earth, and of the fea, for the devil is come down unto ' you, having great wrath, becaufe he knoweth that he 'f hath but a ftiort time." Apoc. xii. 12. lated (57) lated by Mofes, under the difguife of a fubtlc ferperu. * For p.fter having affected the fecond lapfe of the original pair, he made in procefs of time an eafy conqueil of their corrupted pofterity, fucceflively overwhelmed them in an almoll uriverfai deluge of ignorance, and error, atheifm, polytheiiin, and idolatry, and every kind of fpiritual and carnal impurity. And in order to diiT.ife upon'earth the fame mifchievous practices, by which he, and his afibciates, forfeited Heaven, how active has he ail along been in ilirring up men of the like afpiring fpirits to reiift their lawful governors, to foment riots, and feditions, and to involve whole dates, and kingdoms, in the miferies of rebellion, anarchy, and civil tumults : (" traytors have never " betttr company," as fays Shakefpear. -j- ) And in this manner did he lord it over the bulk of man- kind for many ages together without controul, blinding their minds, as the apoftle fpeaks, and working in the children of difobedience, exacting of them the mod unnatural and (hocking inflances of devotion., the offering up their Ions and their daughters to devils, invading at length, and taking poffefiion of their unhallowed bodies, and not only this, but actuating and tormenting them at his cruel pleafure. 10 This is in brief the fum and fubftance, * That the/erptnf muft be figuratively underftood of the dentil afting by ike fer pent, is plain, not only from the impoifibility of crafty beafts over-reaching mankind in their higheft pitch of knowledge, bat from the atteftaijon of other parts of fcrip- ture, where the devil is called the old ferper.t. Rev. xii 9. and xx. 2. and .vhere he is by our Saviour laid to have been a murderer from the beginning,^ alluding to his mifchiev- ous devices at the fall. See Jamefon in Loco. 4- Hen. vi. p. :. the 58 ) the rife, progrefs, and confequence of that memo- rable event, the fall of thofe Rebel Angels, which fcripture gives us in part, and which is fhadowed out to us not obfcurely by both Heathen, and Jewifli theology. And a moil awful interefting event it is ! An event fo comprehenfive as to its objefts, as well as diffufive of its mifchievous ef- fects, as to have involved in fin and mifery, the the whole race of human beings. All nature fhared in that original guilt, all nature groans now under the ruinous we/ight of it. * " The " whole creation groaneth and travelleth in pain ** of it until now." For lo ! All, who have trod this mother earth of ours (fome few righteous ones only perhaps excepted) had afibciated with the apoftate powers, affimulated with them in their various vices, joined them in their revolt from God, ranked with them under the banner of the vile ufurper, aided his foul rebellion, -f and be- came * By nature I wou'd not be underftood to include here the vni'verfe in general, but that fublunary part of intelligent nature to which we belong. f The author exprefles himfelf here, in terms accommodated to the account given of that event, by the Apocalyptic apoftle, who ftiles it a nvar in bca-ven. " There was war in hea- " ven ; Michael, and his angels, fought againft the Dragon, " and the Dragon fought and his angels." Apoc. xii. 7. The reader muft therefore confider the one in the iame figura- tive point of view, in which reafon directs him to place the other. The vifion here alluded to was of both a retrofpeflwe caft, and prophetic, (hewing that a train of de- vices, fimilar to thofe by which Satan (the dragon) aimed too fuccefsfully to draw his fellow creatures from their duty to their creator, and to inveigle them into acls of impiety, "and moral obliquity in heaven, (all which were afts of rebel- lion againft God) would be continued for a time by the di- vine permiffion,- tho' with the like overthrow at laft, againft the church, or the kingdom of bta-vtn to be eftablifhed upon earth; ( 59 ) came captives from that period to his tyrannous authority, f Elfe wherefore, in the rirft place, is it, that earth ; which appears very evidently to have been the cafe, vid. Hammtnd, and other commentators in Loco. The cnly idea therefore, which we can form of the fall of angels from tlie very fhort account given us of it in fcrip- ture is that of an apoftacy (in one tribe, or principality perhap : ) from piety, and moral reclitude ; which, configuring a kind of rebellion againft the Majefty of God, fomewhat fimilar to the revolt of a temporal colony, or province from the allegiance due to the lawful Sovereign, and that by the inftigciior,, and under the command of a leader chofen from amorg them/elves, brought all at laft under the fame fentence of expiafion, or bani foment from the divine prefence. But as the difiinguifhihg eye of the Deity, when furveying the ex- tenfive overthrow, cculd not but feparate, as intended objefU for his future indulgence, the lejjer fort of offenders from the greater, inftead of affigning us a dwelling among thofe, whom Ee hath referred in e ) that fcripture reprefents men in their natural, unrege- incrate ftate, not only as alienated from God and goodneis, Tinners even from their birth, but as con- nefted with the prince of thole powers that fell by. ties of the mod intimate kind, as creatures totally de- voted to his fervice, equally apt for diabolical practices, and of the fame rank and quality in the icale of intellectual beings with him ? " When the ungodly curfeth Satan," fays the wife fon of Siracb, " he curfeth his own foul." Eccluf. xxi. 27. Again, " Ye are of your father the devil," fays our Saviour to the infidel Jews, " and the deeds," (r* E r>) " the works of your father ye will " do;" intimating, that they, who had not only blafphemoufly belied him, by telling him that he was a Samaritan, and had a devil* but had alfo gone about to kill bim, gave evident tokens of their affinity and affection to him who was *' a ** murderer from the beginning, and abode not in " the trtttb, becaufe there is no truth in him.'* John. viii. 41. 45. Again. " He that committeth fin," fays St. John, " is of the devil, for the devil fmneth " from the beginning.*' ift. John Hi, 8. * the fallen angels, that they were all equally criminal and noto* rious in tranfgreflion, any more than were thofe, that were deftroyed by the Noacbic flood, or fuch as fliared in the total overthrow cf Sodom and Gomcrrab. * He that committeth fin, That is, he that is in zjlate of Jin, (in which we are all by nature,) " is of the devil," in like manner as he that is " torn of God," regenerate, and born anew, " fmneth not," i. e. is not in zjtate of fin, is not under that prior guilt, and pollution of foul, with which he was born in- to this world. And I would willingly hope, thzt this is all, which the metbodifts mean, when they afcribe a kind of impec- cability, to thcxe who are regenerated to a true faith in Chriit. For in that cafe they are perfeOly right. But of this, more Again. ( 6 1) ^ Again. " Ye are from beneath" fays our Sa* Viour to the unbelieving Jews, "I am from a- bove." John viii 23, Ye are ~ mrw, from the powers below i I am *> from the powers above t That is, ye are united by the fame kind of alli- ances, friendmips, connections, and attachments to the powers below, that I am to the powers above : An explanation of that paffage, that will appear, I believe, when critically, and fairly at- tended to, perfectly juft. And in fact, without fuppofmg fome fuch prior connection with the rulers of the darkncfs of this world, with thofe^z- ritual wickednefles among the aerial inhabitants, -j- th* vicinity of our abode, to the place where dv/ell thofe apoftate powers , Satan's early -and artful practices upon our firft parents, continued with too much fuccefs (till upon their unhappy progeny ; the fovereignty he has been permitted to eftablifo here, and the various, fubtle, and infmuating, or elfe cruel and oppreiTive arts, by which it has fo long been upheld, are circumftances in the courfe of the divine providence not eafily, if at all re- concileable with our ideas of GW, of infini:e juftice^ goodnefs, and mercy. But an allowed pre- exiitent concurrence with the fallen powers, as. above fuppofecl, clears away at once every the lealt appearance of injuftice, or inconfiftency in the ways of God to man. Nor is it poflible for any hypothecs to ftrike the reflecting and unprejudiced mind more forceably, and even irrefiitabiy. Come now then my dear reader and let us reaibn a little together with impartiality and candor. 1 1 Had there fubfifted between man and the f- That is the true import cf T WMV//WTHC* T?J rox*:;:'*; sr Ta~5 apof- ipoftate powers, no kind of prior intercourfe* alliances, and connections, how comes it that we fd frequently difcern in the one a fpontaneous growth of intellectual principles, and affections fo corref- pondent altogether with thofe by which are ufually characterized, and diftinguifhed the other ? Row- is it that the undifciplined, unregenerate heart of man fends forth fo plenteous an harveft of corrupt paffions, and defires fo difgraceful to human na- ture, fo congenial to helliih minds, and fo im- pulfive at the fame time to diabolical viiianies, and horrid cruelties ? mould we ranfack bell for impieties to offend heaven, for treachery, deceit* and fraud, A to entrap, over-reach, and ruin man* nay, and even for barbarities to murder with equal unrefervednefs and unrelentings his perion, and his reputation, is it pofiible we could find tbere willing agents for either purpofe more apt, andaccomplifh- ed than are to be found in almoft every corner here ? Alas no ! Men over partial to their own hearts, and their own actions (of which fort much the major part of the world confifts) will think the above picture of naked nature, a piece unrefemb- ling real life altogether, a portrait unjuil, unge- nerous, and fhamefully unworthy an human pen- cil. Whatj! mall a man dare to draw a true image of God in the femblance, and fimilitude of a meer devil ? t Is there no honour, honefly, or integrity* in the heart of man r Is he totally abforb'd in impiety, iniquity, unjuft, ungenerous, and un- worthy purfuits ? Has he no fympathetic feel- ings of humanity ? No tendernels and compani- on for] his fellow creatures ? is he not a fel- low-fitfferer in their wants, their misfortunes* their diftreffes ? Does he not oftentimes put forth an eager hand to give bread to the hun- gry, to clothe the naked with a garment, and to to releafe from the loathfome prifon the inad- vertent and unfortunate? If there are vices among men of the moft hejnous and dcepeft die, is there not an equal baliance at leaft of the faireft, and moft refpiendent virtues ? Has fuch an one been proved an actual pilferer of your private property, a difpoiler of your reputation, falfe to your friendfiiip, treacherous, and unfaithful to your confidence ? Who is there that holds not each of thefe characters in the utmoft deteftation ? Are there robbers, and deceivers of a more out- rageous, abominable, diabolical caft, plunderers of their country^ preyers upon the very vitals of their native land, builders of a. private magnificence upon the ruins of that moft venerable, and only valuable edifice : public intereft ? Be it, that there are, or rather have been men of fuch enormous villany, yet does there not ftep forth now and then one armed with the breaft-plate of patriotic virtue, of a fteady unwearied reibkuion to vanquifh the deftrurftive Hydra? Does impiety, infidelity, or" atheifm, rear its impudent head againft Heaven ; a felf-affuming, felf-fufficient, half-reafoning, no- thing ? " Who but muft laugh, if fuch a man there be ? " Who wou'd not weep, if B were he ? Does again hypocrify wear the mafque of devo- tion, coveteoufneis that of frugality, and trea- chery put on the face of friendfhip ? Allowing, that there are of thefe defpkable characters, not 3, few, yet why muft the men of true piety, genera- lity, and difinterefted worth, be overlooked ? And do not in reality the latter, }f thrown in the fcale of obfervation, and actual experience, equi- poife, as I obferved before, if not overbalance the utmoft weight you can make up from the former ( 64 ) farmer ? Wherefore then this crying invective* againft human nature ? Wherefore fo unamiable, fo unbecoming, iounrefemblinga pi&ure of man? as a portrait I mean of the whole fpeaes. 12 This is a retort upon the fuppoied injury done above to the character of my fellow crea- tures, which has been obviated in a great degree* J imagine, before ; yet fomething mon perhaps may feem neceffary to be urged in proof of that fuppofed fimilarity of principles and practices in the generality of the human race, with thofe, which conftitute the moral portrait of the apoftate pow- ers. Are any of us then worthy to be ranked in the number of the pious, juft, generous, friendly, tender-hearted, and compaffionate ? Are any of us lovers of our neighbours and country, in pre- ference to'any mean, dirty, worthlefs confiderations with refpect to ourfelves ? Are we in mort any of us poffefied of a conscience void of offence towards God, and tov/ards men ? To what fpurce, let me afk, can we with any propriety, or the leaft ma- clow of truth, afcribe each individual's refpective fhare of this happinefs ? If it arifes not wholly ^ and folely from nature, my Hypothefis ftands on fure ground. And that that is not the cafe,fcrip- ture^ and experience, prove inconteftably. Is it then from education, that we are to deduce the happy exemption from flagrant vice ? Do we owe it to any falutary -precepts* enforced by engaging examples, or to thofe more efficacious means for attaining it, the invigorating, regenerating efforts of the divine fpirit ? What does all this, I would afk, prove ? Why nothing more or lefs in mort, than that many of us, by the benefit of thofe aids above fuppofed, efcape being the abandoned wretches we fliould have been without them. But to to mate a true eftimate of this boafted imap-e of God, Afc. tot mUfl srrafe all it? artificial, fc: ty v.-^ graces, and embellishments, itrip it of th< for- *rowed ornaments, ana decent d:\ipery cr t/v^W..;??, &c. and view it devoid even of that ngbiccufnefs, ivhicb is of fa:fb. The milchief is, we look vnly at the fair fide of the object, becauie there- the view, though imperfeft, and ibcompleat, is the more engaging, not confidering, that if we examined the other Jtde, or explored human nature, where (he appears in her native drefs, we fhould fee a picture of wretchednefs and horror ; we fbrget vrhat a fmall portion of nature is feen by the eye 'of common obfervation. An infinitesimal part on- ly (as the fchoolmen word it) appears of what is tailed the world ; aiid this it is, that makes us judge fo erroneoufly, when fpeaking of nature's hative amplitude. Indulge but one moment's re- flection on the horrid barbarities of the favage, i. e. the undifciplined, uneducated, unrcgencratcd, un- chntlianizcd Indians, and " to what mall we liken tl that generation," but to a race of demi-devils, to a " generation of vipers," whom for their more extraordinary impieties in * prior Jtate, providence does not pleafe to enable as yet, to " flee from k ' the wrath to come." 13. In fhort, the nature and tenor of the gofpel difpenfation fuppofe, of courie, the Indian world to be under the power and dominion of fin, ' and Satan, (and I wifh I could exclude from this ana- themci^ fbme other nations pretendedly Chriftiah} or fcripture means nothing in declaring, that the unregenerate are Aliens from God^ and go-dncfs, children of wrath, children of tht: devil. Can we 'wonder then at thofc mockingfra^///>j, and unfeel- ing practices, to which they are fo notorioully fa- miliarized, and accullomed ? Who is the God, that F directs, (66) directs and rules their hearts ? Alas ! It is not the Go* of 'Heaven. For him they had deferted, and to his fa- vour are not yet reftored. They are aliens from .God under the power cf the evil one, and while they remain unconverted, muft continue in that ftate of bondage * ; or Chriftiamty, the (fup- pofed) fole reftorer of fallen man to God, and de- liverer from the power of Satan, means nothing. Redemption, regeneration, fatisfaftion, are idle words^ meer bagatelles. Do they then, as well as millions of others more refined, more civilized, more moralized, but alas ! not chriftianized, do they all, I fay, labour under the tyranny of the devil, and his works will they do ? Why they are his own : " he comes to his own, and his own " receive him, alas ! too naturally, and affectino- " ately". This is in effect the language of Chrif- tianity, or Chriftianity is, and fpeaks I know not what, f 14. Without fuppofmg a prior connection with the apoftate powers, how is it poffible to ac- , count for that early defleftion in our primogenial parents from moral reftitude, by which they for- * What may be the fate of thofe who die in *hat ftate, I fhall confider in part II. Let it not however be haftily con- cluded in the mean time, that all who are objedls of the di- vine wrath here, muft neceflarily remain fuch hereafter. f If in this declaration 1 {hall be proved to be in the wrong", by fair arguments, I will v/ith the utmoft fincerity, and conr- pun&ion, beg pardon of God, and man, for publifliing to the world a produ&ioa fo iniquitous, and fhall not fcruple at the fame time to afcribe it wholly to the fuggeftion of him who deceiveth the " whole world." In the mean while I muft own, that the more I contemplate the do&rine of pre<- cxifterice in this light, the more I am confirmed in my belief of it ; and the more fo, as it ferves fo effectually to render ' Cbrijlianity fo worthy of all acceptation ; which | hope to make appear very fufficiently hereafter. feited, teitedj'in violationof the flrongeft ties of duty, grati- tude, and natural affection, their Maker's regard, involved themfelves, and their pofterity, in fcenes of the deepeft diftrefs, and added frefh triumph td the too fuccefsful difturber of Heaven's repofe ? What but hearts already alienated from the love of God, could have yielded fo very readily to the beguiling enticements of fo open a traducer of God's authority, goodnefs, and juftice ? What but minds grofsly depraved in a prior, could have given birth to fo foul a procedure in their fubfe- qucnt paradifaical ftate ? That the long train of villanies, and impieties, which fucceeded their horrid tranfgrelTion, fliould arife from the fame fource, is eafily enough conceived. Nor can we \voncier in the leaft at Cain's committing murder, when we are told that " tire devil was a murderer " from the beginning," and that " Cain was of " that evil one." And how uninterrupted the fuccefiion of moral evil was till ic terminated in an almoft entire extinction of the human fpecies by a judicial flood, we read with horror indeed, but with little, or no fttrprize : and in the fame manner are we affected, when contemplating that torrent of vice and impiety which deluged the whole fucceeding race of mortals, who were af- terwards all concluded under fin, and ferved only to compofe a world lying in wickednefs. And nothing is more evident from fcripture, and the hiftory of ages pad, thah that the Heathen world confided, in general, of a moll helplefs, hopelefs, abandon'd race of animals -, wretches, from whom the God of all power and might had withdrawn the arm of protection. He in whom were originally em- boweled all their hopes, their comforts, and their warnu-ft afpirations, had diflodged them from his F 2 hearts, ( 68 ) heart, difcarded them from his favour and affec* tion, banimed them his divine prefence, and sf- figned them over to the fole guidance of his rival, the prince of darknefs. But of this I have fpoken pretty fully already, and (hall now proceed to fhew how confiftent the above reafoning is with the nature and tenor of the gofpel difpenfation. CHAP. VIII. A pre-exiftent guilt in man, anfmgfrom a prior a fociation with the apoftate powers, the very ground work of the gofpel difpenfation. J i A R E we not evidently reprefented in fcrip- \^ ture as born in fin, by nature the child- ren of wrath, and under the power and domi- nion of fin, and Satan ? Do we not come intor the world with a load of guilt upon our fouls, with fome foul ftains in our intellectual frame, by which the original dignity of our na- ture is debafed ? And is not the exalted defign of the gofpel ceconomy to expiate, and atone for that original guilt, to purify our corrupted na- ture, to refcue us from the powers of darknefs, and to reinftate us into ihe glorious liberty of the fons of God ? But this guilt, what in the name of reafon can it be ? And thefe intellectual and moral impurities, what and whence can be their nature, and origin ? That guilt, can it pofiibljr be any thing elfe than of a perfonal kind? And thofe mental impurities, where can we fuppofe them ( 69 ) them to have been contracted *, but with thofe very corrupt and impure fpirits, who are now fo fcfliduous in renewing, and increafing them within us ? But further ftill, is the guilt, with which we ftand indicted at our birth, and --tour baptiim, of fo malignant, horrid, and deftructive a nature, as that nothing lefs, than the Mood of the only begotten fon of God could be effectual for its expiation and attonement, and is it at the fame time in reality no actual crime of our own ? Is it in the nature of things conceivable, that fo extraordinary, a fa-, tisfaction mould be demanded by the Ajl-juft, All-good, and All-merciful God, for a crime charged upon innocence itfelf ? And yet, mocking as- it is to reflecting minds, what lefs horrid, im- pious, and even blafphemous idea, is implied in the fuppofal, that the original guilt, from which we are releafed by the merits of Chrift, is derived wholly and folely from Adam's trefpafs in Para- dife -, and not from a prior afibciauon with the apoftate powers ? That the latter, however, is the truth, will be further urged, and the many mo- mentous advantages anting to the caufe of Chrif- tianity, from this hypothefis, will be made appear, in the following chapters, wherein will be applied doctrine of a pre-exiftent lapfe. * For contrafied they muft have been, or infufed by our Maker ; if the latter, then the author of nature, is the au- thor of evil. F 3 CHAP. ( 7 ) CHAP. IX. if be hypothecs of a pre-exiftent lapfe of human fouh applied, and fevera! important 'points of DoRrine. viewed in a clear and confident light through that medium. i. TT 7 H AT a rational and mod awful idea W arifes to the mind from a contempla- tion of the Chriftian difpenfation, when viewed through the medium of a pre-exiftent lapfe of human fouls, inftead of a fuppofed imputed guilt from Adam ! How amiable and exalted, how worthy of all acceptation is the mediatorial ceco- nomy, when grounded on the former hypothefis ! What more worthy a God of infinite wifdom, good- nefs, and mercy, than, by means fuitable to his digni - ty and glory, to call back to his love, his favour, his protection, creatures beguiled into difloyalty, and difobedienceby an artful, ambitious, enterprizing ri- val of his power and authority ! And how engaging, and endearing muft be that love, which fo benevo- lently interpofed to effectuate the compafiionate defign ! " How worthy is the Lamb that was " (lain, to receive power, and riches, and wifdom, " and ftrength, and honour, and glory, and bleff- " ing" for io noble, fo exalted a purpofe as this--- for thus*' coming into the world to lave fmners !" to " preach good tidings unto the meek, to bind " up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to. " the captives, and the opening of the prifoa to ^ them that are bound." Ifa. Ixi. i. to be made. an " offering for fin," for original fin, that pre- ewfient fin, by which we forfeited the favour of God* ( 7- ) God,- to be " brought as a lamb to the (laugh-" " ter" " to give his life a ranfomfor all" to be " a propitiation for our fins, and to make recon- " ciliation with God for them," by fcaring In the multiplied miferies and calamities of human nature, without having been a partaker of that pre-exiftent guilt from which they enfued. " He was cut off, but not for himlelf, Dan. ix. 26. " he was wounded forourtranfgreffions,andbruifed " for our iniquities," Ifa. liii. 5. was made a fin, and acurfe for us, 2' Cor. v. 21. Galat. iii. 13. died for the ungodly, " luffered for the unjuft," i Pet. iii. 18." tafted death for every man," Heb. ii. 9." that through death he might de- " ftroy him that had the power of death, that is, " the devil, * and deliver them, who through fear tc of death were all their life-time fubjecl to bon- " dage," Heb. ii. that he might " finilh tranfgreffion " and make an end of fin," -f- that he might " make " reconciliation for iniquity, and bring in everlaft- '* ing righteoufnefs." Dan. ix. 24. Hence it is that he became a " full, perfect, and fufficient, facri- " fice, oblation, and fatisfaftion, for the fins of " the whole world." Hence it is, that the " chaf- " tifement of our peace was upon him, and with " his ftripes we were healed," Ifa. liii. 5. that we are reconciled to the Father in his crofs, " and " in the body of his fieih through death," Col. j. 21. 22. " are fancYified by the offering of his * The prince of the fallen angels, the God of this world ; him to whom we are, by nature, children, {ervants, fub- f To make an end of fin, that is to make an end of the guilt, and fufiijbment of fin, of original, pre-exiflent fin, moft undoubtedly ; for " fin ftill reigns in our mortal bodies," and " there is none yet, that doth good, no not one." F 4 t l " body once for all," Heb. x. 10. are redeemed by his blood, as of a Lamb without bkmifti, and " without fpot," l Pet. i. 18. 19. Hence ladly is, that Chrift " is the mediator of < 6 the New Teftam?nt" and " that by means of ^ death for the redemption of the tranfgreffions," (the original tranfgreffions under, and unattone4 for, or unexpiated'by the firft teftament) " they *' which ace culled might receive the promife of V- Accrual inheritance," Hb. ix. 15." the pro- ** mife being made to all, that are afar off, even *' as many as the Lord our God mall call." Acts, ii. 39- * ' 2 - *> As many as the Lord our God Jhall call. This laft paflage, Viewed through the medium of pre-exiftence, fuggefts to me, ea a fudden, a perfuafipn, that there is fomething more in the doftrine of ele&ion and reprobation, than is generally appre- hended. For thongh the great work of redemption will, we may reafona.bly hope, become univerfed at lall, yet is it evi- dent from fcripture, that God means to have it gradually, ac- corr!^ljlhed, by a partial ele&ion, and temporary rejection of thofe, who lie under the guilt of a pre-exiitent apoftacy. For as all the feed of Abraham were not the children of the romife. As it is written, J.acab have. I loved, but Efau bu Jits turath % and to make his power to be known, endured witfr tnucb loKg-fujferingi the *vej)els of ivrath fitted to dcftruflion ; that he might make known the riches of his glory on the *vefi fels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory ? In other words, what if God, out of a ivorld lying in is calculated extremely -well for a ftate of discipline, and moral improve-r ment ; and amidft all its difficulties, dangers, and real diftrefles, is rendered tolerable, if not altoge.-; ther eligible, by the comfort of revelations, from time to time made, and affurances therein given, that from hence, if he fo deferves, man fhall be admitted to a repofieffion of that blefled manfion above, from which he had been fo de- fervedl banifhed. * * We certainly are in a condition, fays Dr. Butler, which does not feem by any means the moft advantageous we could 5magjne,^or defire, (either in our natural or moral capacity,) for iecuring either our prefent, or future interelt. However, this condition, low, and careful, and uncertain as it is, does not afford any juft caufe of complaint. For as men may ma- nage their temporal affairs with prudence, and fo pafs theij days ( 75) 2, The doctrine of a pre-exiftent lapfe of hu-' man fouls, as above confidered, enables us to form clear, and rational conceptions of the introduc- tion of natural and moral evil into the world ^ of the death of man by the tranfgreffion of the firft, and his refurrection by the death of the fecond Adam ; and of feveral other important topics of ^heology. Firlt, of the introduction of natural and moral evil into the world: Upon an exalted fcheme of compafiion for nndone creatures, to introduce into a ftate of trial, and probation, a felect number of the lapfed race, {hatched, as it were, from the jaws of the great dragon, and to enable them to recc-r ver, if they pleafed, their forfeited happinefs, was Adam fent into the world in the man- ner and form defcribed by the facred hiftorian. And, though created after God's image, i. e. with fuch intellectual powers' and faculties, as are in nature, though not in degree relembling thofe, J)y which the infinite and eternal mind is days here on earth with tolerable eafe and fatisfalion, by a moderate degree of care, fo, likewife with regard to religion, there is no more required, than what they are able to do, and what they muil be greatly wanting to themfelves, if they neg- led. Butler's anal. p. 112. " It is the greateft abfurdity and contradiction, to fuppofe, ' that an infinitely wife, and beneficent being, would make " either fenticnt, or intelligent beings, fufter, merely for fuf- " fering fake. He muft have have had juft, good, and kind " reafons for ^\\^i\^> Jlrange work. And fince, it is certain, that 4 both fentient and intelligent beings do, and muft unavoidably * fuffer, and are in a ftate ofpunilhment.mifery, andbanifhment * here, it necefTarily follows, that they are in a ftate of expia- 4 tion, purification, and progreflive perfection in their refpedlivc ' orders ; and will at lait be fet free, made happy, and perfedt- * ed, and confirm'd in that ftate for ever. Omnipotence furely * can, and infinite gcodnefs, 1 hope, w;7/do all this.'' Cheync. governed C 76 ) governM *, yet we find him here accompa- nied with that inftability, and depravity of nature, which he had acquired by his departure from ori- ginal rectitude above. And here, if infinite mercy had not imerpofed, the laft ftate of man had been worfe than the/r#. f My- * When Mofes fays, " God created man in his ~ - by the .all-fufficient merits of him v/ho died for our fins, and role again for our j unification, through faith in his blood, and the added efficacy of a well- fpent life, rife to the life immortal, enter into the joy of our Lord, and be rcftored at length to the favour of God, which we had forfeited by our prior perfonal trefpafles, and fins, and on account of which we were madey/fora-j in the penalty in- flicted on Adam, viz. death. 10. Agreeably to which, fays the apoftle, " As by the offence, of one, judgement came up- to refer to. crimes not pricr, but fubfequent to the fenteuce pafled upon. Adam's tranlgreffion, the apoftle's aflertion is manifeftly this, viz. Death parted upon all men on account of Adam's fin, be- caufc all have finned face. T*?i^.a^TtrToj v ol yon^ a,vra ta Ttp*o? x ywrftf, fay the Jews to our Saviour : in our Engli(h tranila- tion thus ; who did fin, this Man, or his parents, that he was born blind ? The fsnfe of which queflion manifeftly is ; who had finned, this man, or, &c. Now ?'/x^ro in the preceding paflage, being of the fame tenfe with ^aprf in this wa T *{ i^eromay, with critical propriety, be rendered all had finned. * The origin of evil, fays Brocklefby, has a remarkable congruity in the Mofaic hiftory; and it is, in the general nature of it, unexceptionable. For it derives the evil of punilhment from the evil of fin ; and the evil of fin from the beginner of fin, the devil. Through envy of the devil (quern fub ferpentis figura Mofe? intelligi voluit, fays Grot:**} came death into the world. And Pherecydes Syrus derives his l$vxni: t princeps mali, as Origen thinks, from the Mofaic account of the ferpent. And Plato is fuppofed to derive from thence his Story of Jitpiter's Gar- dens; and of Pcrus circumvented by Penia. V 7 id. C. Cels. 1. 6. p. 304. Item. 1.4. p. i 14. Eufcb. praspar. Evang. 1. 12. c. u. If it be ftill faid, that the origin of evil is not yet fufHciently afcertained by my hypothefis, the fuppofed lapfe above-men- tioned not being accounted for, I muft refer the reader to fome notes and remarks on the nature of free agency, in chapter 7. ( *9 ) du<5t, not of Adam's trefpafs, as its primary orfcle caufe, bun of a perfonal pre-exiftent guilt in all who are derived from him. And how confident throughout appears, to the intellectual eye, from this view of things, that grand landfcape of nature, man's terredrial abode ! 13. The advantages which a fuppofed pre- exidcnt lapfc of human fouls fuggefts, are as fol- lows : In the firft place, it affords a flriking memorial of the calamitous effefts of fin, and impiety in ge- neral, and of the heinoufnefs of thofe prior offences from whence are derived to us the evils confequent on Adam's fin in particular. 14. They are, in the fecond place, proper me- dicines to heal our fpiritual ficknefs, to corredt the peccant humours in our intellectual and moral frame, to check the impetuofity of our inflamed and unruly appetites, and reduce us to a cool and confident knowledge of ourfelves, and our unhap- py condition. 15. When, in the third place, it is remember- ed, that we come into this world, as objefts of the divine wrath, for fome pre-exident a any fubfequent deeds, a right to be exempt from the pummment due to. their paft criminalities ? 23. Juftirication, confidered in this view, as a releafe, I mean, from the guilt of a prior, perfonal impiety, and difobedience againft God, inftead of a derived Adamic guilt and defilement, how great- ly does it exalt the dignity and merits afcribed in. fcriptureto a true faith in Chrift, at the fame time that it enables us the more clearly to adjudge to faith and good ivarks the regards due to their ref- pective efficacy in accompliming man's redemp- tion. The two apoftles differed in that point only in appearance -, aud whilft the one, with great truth, afferted, that the works of the law ceafed to have any fh-re in the juftification of the eleft cbriftianize'd Jew, fo circumflanced, and fo confi- dered , the other with equal propriety declared, that faith alone could not render worthy of the vo- cation wherewith he wcs called^ the concerted Gentile. Men mud become Cbrijtians to be juftified, or cleared from the imputation of their original fins and trefpafies, and to be confident Chriftians, they muft become good men. How apparently then is faith in Chrift done neceflary for the firft, ahd how evidently, eflential are good works for the latter ? And how confident altogether with each other are the two apoftles f . ! And when the Methcdifts fay, that t How confident altogether with each other are the two apoftles To clear up this point, be pleafed to attend to the following note. Intrcduftory to the final ftate of blifs, referved for \hzftncere profeflbrs of Chriflianity, will be an entrance into Chrift's kingdom; the two prime fundamental requiiites for which privi- lege ztZijufiifcattcn and fantfif cation or true holinefs. By the former that all our moral works, independent of Cbriftian renovation, are unavailable to juftification, or to clear us from original fin, how apparently do they fpeak a fcripture doctrine ? And all they err in is tiieir afcribing, upon the authority of eftablifhed orthodoxy, as it is called, that original guilt (by which at our birth we became objects of the di- vine wrath and indignation) to the tranfgreffion of another perfon -to fallen Adam ; which can with no former we are to understand an nbfolution from the penalty of original guilt and defilement, obtained wholely and iblely by a firm faith in, or reliance on the all-fufficieut merits of Chrift, who died forour fins, and rofe again for our justification. By the latter, that acquifition of moral purity and holinefs, which the gofpel enjoins, and without which, the apoftle informs us, no man fhall fee the Lord. This being admitted, the perplexed difpute, whether faith with or without works can be available to our j unification, drops at once, as the queftion mould rather be, whether they are Separately effectual to our falvation, or not ? And in this there can be no rational difpute. That we are juftified^ \. e. cleanfed from the guilt of original fin by a firm faith in Chrift, independent of any merit in ourfelves, or of good works, we have reiterated declarations from holy writ ; but then, in order to render that juftif cation effectual to our final Salvation, introductory to which will be an entrance into Chriit's king, dom *, we mult add to our faith, works mud walk worthy of the vocation wherewith we are called muft cleanfe ourfelves from all filthinefs of the flefh and thefpirit, perfecting holinefs in the fear of God knowing this, that without a true gofpel repentance, added to the applied merits of our Saviour, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abufers of them felves with mankind, norrailers, nor extortioners, fhall enter into the kingdom of God. Men, in fhort, are wont to place j unification and man's final falvation in one and the fame point of view, as if they were in reality one and the fame thing, or that the one naturally, and of neceffity lead to the other; which is not the cafe. For the apoflle, St. Paul, * The nature of t'.at kingdom wii! be confidered in the fe- cond part. H 4 plainly no degree of propriety, nor with any warrantable conceptions of the divine attributes, if, without even blafphemy, be afcribed to aught elfe, but to our own perfonal trefpafies in a prior ftate. And all this error of theirs is grounded wholly and fole- ly on a wrong conftruction of the two following pafTages in St. Paul's epiftles. " As by one " man's difobedience many were made finners, fo " by the obedience of one mall many be made * righteous.". " As in Adam all die, even fo in " Chrift (hall all be made alive." Thcfe paflages we have briefly touched upon already, furBciently, however, to convince the impartial, that they give no warrant to iuppofe, that original fin, that fin, J mean, of which we ftand charged, nay, and even convicted at our birth, confifts in an imputed iniqui- ty from Adam. God forbid that they mould be proved, to proclaim to the v/orld fo prepofterous, and horrid a doctrine ! 24. That the miferics of our natural unrege- nerate ftate, not the lofs of God's favour only, but an actual exertion of his wrath and indignation upon us, our alienation from God and goodnefs, plainly fuppofes, that thofe who have been once enlightened awa| $ ayri.T-Osrra; f have embraced the Chriftian faith ob- taining thereby a juftification from origigal fin, and had tailed of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghoft He fuppoles,-! lay, that fuch may fall back into per- dition. Should there be any weight in the above obfervations, I doubt not but the impartial reader will at once fee, and gene- rouily confefs, how r. More, has not any/wvr, or but very little, of moving matter ; but her peculiar privilege is of de- termining matter in motion. For if it were an immediate fa- culty of the foul, to csmtriBute motion' to matter, J do not uii- tierftand how that faculty, never failing or diminishing, no inore than the foul itfelf can fail or diminifh, we fliould ever be weary of motion, Dr. More, Irnmor. b. z. c. 8. p. 7. \ Since it is evident, that matter is a dead fubftance in all refpeds, it follows, that an immaterial fubftance, or the foul, is the only thing in us that hath aftive power. And fmceit ,h>th aclive power, that power muft inhere in it, as in its fub- jtct ; or the power muft belong to the foul as a property of its nature. It cannot belong to the foul, as a mere accident ; for power cannot be produced by accident, or a bejng cannot be . endowed with powers by accident ; for then we ftlall never be cbie to flop any where} all power might be thus produced by accident > ( lit ) that there muft have exifted in the foul a leriesof thought, reafon, reflection, &c. previous to its en- trance into this world; unlefs we can fuppofe its generation in the womb to be in reality its firil for- mation ; an idea in which is involved the groffeft abfurdity, nay, even blafphemy ; making the Creator, in fact, a coadjutor in the works of for- nication, adultery, inceftf. 3. Canft accident, and we muft give up the principles of rtafoning. And fince a<2ive power muft belong to the foul, as a property of its nature, that property cannot be feparated from it$ without def- troying its nature altogether. For certainly po^er is the greatefi perfection of any being, as the want of power is the greateft impei fe&ion. And a being cannot be deprived of the greateft perfection [of its nature, without having its nature altogether deitroyed. Thus active power could no more be feparated from the foul, without an aft of Omnipotence todeftroy its na- ture, than folidity (or inaftif this vice daily ; andy how frequently is that truly-valuable and end e:\rir.g quality in, man, friend.fhip, fwaljowui up nUt ? A fuddeu. ( "7 ) wrapped in fwadling-doths, or by \vhom rocked from time to time in thy cradle ? Who mixed for A fudden dilatation of the heart enfues, th?t oft times betrays a man into a difclofure of fecrets of the greateft confequence, per- haps, andrepofedin him with the utmcfl confidence. Nor can he, in that fituation, be even faithful to himfelf. In the fud- den guftsof paflion, too naturally ifluing from a diftempered brain, J? (fled enmities, and lurking malevolences, all the inward emotions of envy, hatred, malice, and a multitude of deep- laid devices, fo induftrioufly concealed before, break from him. And this ferves to mew how much we are miftaken, in imagining, when a man's temper feems altered by the effects of the circu- lating glafs, that there is a creation, as it were, of fome ne-iu paffion, fbme new-formed diftemper of the mind 1? No. The latent workings of a mifchievous, malevolent, rancorous heart, aflume a confidence, to which reafsm, when not abfofbed by the fumes of liquor, was a fufficient check before; and the man un- wittingly Jbews himfelf now, in his native, naked, worthle&- nefs. Agreeably to which, fays Plutarch, TO TJ? x*$* TW nr&oinot; lir} rn$ 7>.*0vj? r ^iSt/ovrc?. i. e. The Eiznfoats, whan he is drunk, what he dare, only think when he is fober. And again, (ays the Epigram on Ebriety, An 0r;pto v;{9 HtsXvKptTt >v> ^"i irur 'E fonruix iy"t> Xfi; Tc T^TTOV, Ovtt Jyatf >D xX6 It was not the wine that made the bad man, but it was the bad man that /hewed himfelf in the wine. Not that I would mean to appear fo fevere and dry a Cynic, with refpecl to this point, as if I had a mind to difcountcnance wholly the cheer- ful glafs. Taken in moderation, it is not only fslutary oft times to the body,but productive, at the fame time, of a kind of in- vigorating, enlivening, dilation and activity in the foul. The piifchief of it lies in an excefs ; as fays the Greek moralift, Oiycy TC 7n!i> TraXiy xaxcc. Hv otri ctyfov Oioy: kSfuti Lin. 210, 21 r. The author begs the reader's pardon for this long digreffion, hopes he will frame to himfelf, in the author's favour, the for it he can. thec thee the milky pap, and (applied thee with thy daily fuftenance ? Or were not in reality theie th';ngs fo ? Alas ! They might, or they might not, for any proofs thou canft bring of either, from thine own prefent confcioufnefs. When the minifter at the font fprinkled thee with the water of baptifm, and thou wert engrafted into the body of ChrhTs church, when three or four around him gave furety for thy leading a godly and a Cbriftianlife^ and all joined in devout prayers to the almighty for the fame, rernembereft thou, I pray, aught of this ? 4. When thy maturer ftrength enabled thee to fpring from the cradle, and from thy nurfe's arms a and thou waddled: with eager pace from chair to chair, rernembereft thou who was the fedulous at- tendant on thy feeble frame, and who kept, from time to time, thy feet from falling ? And when thy tongue denied thee an utterance of what thou didit not more wifh to fpeak, than thofe about thee to hear, what was the pleafmg object of thy fancy then ? When afterwards thy tongue was loofed, and thou delightedft thy fond parents with incefTant prattle, dpeft thou remember the hundredth part of the pretty things thou faidft being a witty child with what mirth thou regaledft the admi- ring gueft, and with what an heart-felt joy thy doating- mother catched the whifpered applaufe of thy growing genius? 5. Where, again, is thy confcioufnefs of a long train of events, and a variety of detached circum- ftances in thy more ripened life, when memory got firm hold on thee ? Thy gibes too, thy gambols, thy fongs, and thy fialhes of merriment (befides thy ten thoufand freaks, which died in thinking) how few of them are there, which have not ( "9 ) parted off from thy remembance like the dew of morn, or like " the bafelefs fabric of a vifion, '* leaving not a wreck behind." 6. If then it appears that the foul does exift in fome periods of life, without retain \ng\nfome fub- iequent ftages of her exiftence, a confcioufnefs of fuch exiftence, why may it not in others ? In de- liria, ebriety, fleep, &c. it apparently does. With refpedt to the two firft, the fact is fo notorious, that it would be an abfurdity even to fuppofe it a mat- ter of doubt with any one. And if in proof of the latter I again branch out into a long digreflivc note, I muft again befpeak the reader's candor *. That * It is altogether as intelligible, to fay, that a body is ex- tended withoyt parts, fays Mr. Locke, as that any thing thinks, without being confcious of it. Hum. Und. v. i. p. 77. That there muft be a confcioufnefs of what paflesin a man's mind during the very time of thinking, it may, perhaps, be grafted; but that fuch a train of thinking muft neceffarily be followed by an after-recollection of the fubjeft-matter of tha thought, we have proofs to the contrary from men's dream:. For there are frequent inftances of perfon's talking, and fhew- ing other figns of thinking, in their fleep ; of which, when awakened, they have remembered nothing. And, it is notorious, that many a dream is awakened in a man's mind, by the acci- dental occurrence of fome fimilar or relative circumftances, without which, the man would not have known that he had dreamed that night at all. Mr. Locke, in fhort, either de- fignedlyquibbles, or miftakenly blunders here moft egregioufly, in not making the due diftinclion between prefent confcioufnefs (i. e. a confcioufnefg of what pafies in the mind during the time of thinking) and an after-recdiefiion of a man's thoughts. And it gives me great concern, to fee fo great ?. man dealing out fophjftry, infteed of folid argument, fo plentifully, in i'up- portof a favourite hypothecs ; which he does moft remarkably in his 1 2th, and fome following feclions of the chapter above- quoted. In facl, I cannot help imagining, that the foul is, for the moft part, equally employed in thought, fleeping as well as waking, with this difference only, that it is, and muf? be, in the former ftate, exercifcd in fpeculating internal ob j.efts only. I mean, images fenjiti and that we are made to aft, as it were, a redoubled and repeated life. Hence it is, that things improbable, and even impoffible, ap- pear, in a manner, reql that yon cobler in his ftall mall be a king in his bed, and the enamoured Damon in pofleflion of his Phillis, at an hundred miles diftance from her. The dreaming imagination, in fhort, makes reafon to entertatn the fond idea, of which the awakened mind only difcovers the il- lufion. What the line and rule are to the mafon, or other mechanic, the organic powers of the body are to the mind. The former give the workmen an experimental knowledge of what, without them, they would only have an idealorconjefiural, and that moft frequently, and of confequence, an erroneous one. In like manner, the experience ariiing to the mind, from time to time, by the instrumentality of the ivaking organs of fenfe, is that rule of right, by which we are enabled to cliftin- guiih raz/ existences from imaginary ones. It is not to be won- dered, therefore, if, when the foui lies drowned, as it were, in the deep of fleep, that the various detached ideas of kings, coblers, friends, foes, fports, paStimes, frolic, follies, pains, pleafures, horSes, towns, harbours, mountains, rivers, &c. &c. Boating upon thefurfaceof the imagination, feparately attract, at times, the foul's attention. The images of things being prefent to the mind, the man himfelf feems, for the time, pre- j'ent too. The perception! of the imprcflions made, when awake, on the fenforium, are as real as if the objtQ* really exifted; the foul takes them for rtal, it acls and behaves as if they were real, So that a man may be a monarch in his fleep, to all intents an4 purpofes *, excepting only that the experience of fenfe, when he * r? yi** , vjri^eiJiy pwftti Mofch. ( 121 ) out deriving to itfelf any reflex confcioufnefs of fucfi prior exiftences, viz. from its fisft formation to its defcent into the womb, and its exit therefrom, in its infantftate always, and oftentimes in deliria,ebri- ety, fleep, experience proves inconteftably and though the non- confcioufnefs of tranfaftions pall, in a fuppofed prior ftate, cannot affect the credibi- lity of the foul's having patted through fuch a ftate, without rendering equally difputable its vital ex- iftence in the womb, in deliria, ebriety, fleep, or the like - t yet to fet the inefficiency of the ob- jection to the doctrine of pre-exiftence, grounded on the want of confcioufnefs, in a far ftronger light ftill, the reader is requefted to take into confidera- tion a circumftance hitherto fcarce enough, if at all attended to, which is this, viz. fuppofing a prior exiftence ever fo unqueftionable, and even demon- ftrable, yet it is not in the nature of things poflible, that there fhould be a recollection of things tranf- acted in that ftate. 8. Unlefs the foul had brought with it upon this ftage of action, the fame kind of vehicle wherein it was encloied in the former, how is it pof- fible it fhould have any ^e-concepfion of thofe ideas with which that fort of body was furnifhed, with proper inflruments for the formation and reception? The foul in its former ftate was converfant, we may fuppofe, only with objects immaterial ; the prefent furr.ifhes it with fuch as are material only, i. e. the latter are the only objects of which the foul's pre- is awake, convinces him that he is not not really, though he was ideally fo before. Ke then fees and hears that he is no monarch; the avenues to which fenfible demonibations were ihut, or locked up, before, in fleep f, f A very ingenious writer refolves the phenomenon of dreams into the "agency ci feparatefpirits ; but in this, though in other refpfccts a jr. oil engaging writer and folid reafoner, he is moft egregiouily niiilak.cn. Vid. Enquiry into the Nat. or" ihc Human Soul. fen: ( 122 ) fent vehicle can derive to the mind any pofitive, diftinct images and reprefentations. Is it wonderful, then, that the former mould be defaced and difpofTcfied by the latter ? Or rather, 5. According to his mercy he faved us, &c. Ver. 6. Which he hath m d on us, &c. Ver. 7. That being juftified by his grace we mould be made, heirs, &c. Gal. i. 4. He gave himfelf for us, that he might fedeem us from this prefent evil world, i. e. from the lulls of the fiefh. I Pet. i. 18. We are redeemed from a vain con- verfation. i John iii. 8. For this purpofe the Son of God vas manifefted, that he might deftroy the works of the devil. \.fljort (excepting the two places above -excep ted, which relate ( 128 ) the power of Satan unto God. And that the of the Gentile world is to be confidered as the na- t- tural : . ' ' - relate only to the reverfing the fentence of common mortality) J know not of any place in fcripture where redemption is not afligned on God's part, to his own free grace; a"nd on man's part to the depravity and corruption of the world, wherewith they have depraved themfelves. And I verily believe it is not in the power of any man to bring; any text to the contrary.'* Vid. Dr. Taylor on Original Sin, Part 3. p. 290. The defign of our Saviour's coming into the wcrld, there- fore, according to Dr. Taylor's opinion, was not to redeem mankind from the guilt and pnnifhment of any corruption of tfflrar^.inherent or derived, but to atone for their aftual personal trefpafles, or (as he exprefies it) their own 'wicked departing Jrom GW btith Jew and Gentile had corrupted tbemfel-vet j and flood equally in need of gofpel grace and redemption, all having finned and come fhort of the glory of God. But how fmned ? By any derived, imputed guilt from Adam ? No, fays Dr. Taylor ; and with great truth, I believe. But they finned, lays he, by their wicked departing from God ; by their own actual, perjonal wickednefs ; and on this, and no other caufe or reafbn whatfoever, is grounded the grace of redemption. But this wicked departing from God, this pcrfonal wickednefs, &c. whence proceeded that? What could urge creatures, living under fo ftrong a fenfe of the nature and attributes of the di- vine Being, and of their manifold obligations to him, ro re- quite his inexhaufted goodnefs with fuch repeated ats of ilnpiety, ingratitude, and vile enormities? What, but a htart elapfed from original righteoufnefs, eflranged from God and goodnefs, and devoted wholly to the fervice of the prince of darknefs ? A releafe, therefore, from the original guilty de- Icrved pnnifhment, and growing poi-jsr of this malady (and not as Dr. Taylor fuppofes, from the feveral fpecies of vice which could not but flow therefrom) is the whole and fole objeft of the redemption by Jefus Chrift. This is plainly in- timated, by the apoftle, to the Romans, c. v. and x. For uhen we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by th death of his Son. When we were enemies i.e. when we were in a flate of enmity with God, children of wrath, as we all were by nature, on account of that ftate of fin and iniquity n which we were born, and thofe corruptions of nature which attended us from the womb, we were reconciled to God, were reftrved ( 129 ) tural ftate of all men, feems evident from the following paflage, of St. Paul to the Ephclians. And refcued from the power and puniftment ofthofe corruptions, &e. and that apoftacy from God, by the death ofChrift; and that the Tinners, here alluded to by the apoftle, as reconciled to God, and of courfe, cieanfcd from their fins, are not to be confidered as finners, made fuch by perfonal trefpafles here, but by that original debafement of nature, in which they were conceived *. For, in the firft fenfe, even the regenerate and converted, were reprefented as finners ftill. If we fayj we have no fin, fays St. John, we deceive ourfelves, and the truth is not in us. i John i. 8. But fins, confidered in the other fenfe, the fins which were the immediate objedls of redemption, they are forgiven us; are, as the apoftle fpeaks, nailed to the crofs. The body of fen is dejlroyed. fen Jhall not now have dominion over us. For ive are not under the Ittio* but under grate. But, fays Dr. Taylor, " the redeemer himfelf frequently fpeaks of various parts of his own great work ; fuch as, en- livening the world, converting finners, raifing the dead, &c. but of redeeming it from the finfulnefs and corruption of na- ture derived from Adam, he faith not one word, in all the fcur ofpels.'* I mufr., however, beg leave here to obferve, that our Sa- viour's filence, with refpeft to this, or any other fuppofed fcripture- doctrine, is not to be confidered absolutely as a kind of impeachment of its credibility and importance; it being- evident, that the myftery of godlir.efs was not wholly revealed, but in part ; and on farfof* concealed by our Saviour, from ever, his own djfciples. i have many things (fays our Saviour, to his difciples, juit before his departure from them) I have * This, I prefume, will be judged a fufficient reply to \vhatfollows, from Dr. Taylor, p. no, ill, &c. " Far was it from the apuftle's thoughts, to fuggeft any thing tending to depreciate our nature. His true intent was, to convince the Ephelians, they were children of wrath, through the trefpafles and fins in which they had ixalkfd. For he is not fpeaking ot thfir nature, or the confdtution of their fouls and bcdic;-, as they came into the world ; but, evidently, of the vicious courfe of life they had led among the Gentiles." But the point in queftion is, what, and whence, were their $riticip!es, \v.bich lead to that vicious courfe of life, &c. : K mar.y And you batb he quickened, who ivere dead in tref- paffes and fins. Wherein, in time pa/}, ye walked according to the courfe of this world, according to the prince cf the power of the air, the fpirit that now ivorketb in the children of difobedience. Among whom alfo we all had our cornier -fation in times paft in the lufts of our flejh, fulfilling the defer es of the flefo and of the mind, and were by nature the children of 'wrath \ even as others. Intimating, that the apoftle and his Chriftian converts were, before their conver- fion, upon the fame footing entirely with the Gentile world, walked as they did, according to the courfe of this world, and of him who is the head of that aerial kingdom, and of the fpirit which now works in the children of difobedience , (Vid. Eftium in Loc.) that they were led aftray, not by the impetuofity of their carnal difpofitions only, but by the depravity & of their mental affefltons, their minds alfo ; and were there- fore, on that account, and by nature, the children of wrath, like as others. And, that the church of England confiders now the natural unregenerated flate of man entirely in the fame light, appears evidently, not only from her articles and homilies, Many things to fay unto you, but ye cannot I ear them now: But the time cometh (fays he afterward) that 1 (hall no more fpeak tinto you in proverbs, bat I fhall fhew you plainly of the Fa- ther, viz. by the Spirit of truth, which he promifed to fend unto them, and which was gradually to unfold to the world the great myftery of the redemption by Chrift ; a great part of which remains to this day, if not totally concealed, at the bed but obfcurely revealed. Whofoever, fays Dr. Butler, will ferioufly confider that part of the Chriftain icheme, which is revealed in Scripture, will find fo much nnrevealed, as will convince him, that to all the purpofesof objecting and judging, we know as little as of the conftitution of nature. Butler's Annal. p. 275. but 13 but From the introduction to the form of infant baptifm, and in her church catechifm. For, what is the prieft's declaration in the introduction to the form of baptiim ? Is it riot, dearly beloved, forafmuch as all men are conceived and born in Jin^ and that our Saviour Chrift faith, none can enter into the kingdom of heaven except he be rege- nerate, and born a-hew, of water and the Holy Ghoft ? And does he not befeech the congrega- tion to call upon God, to grant to that child, to be baptized, that thing which by nature he cannot have ? And is riot his firft prayer to God, for his infinite msrcies, that he wolild ttfrctfulfy look upon that child; that he would ivafo him and fancJify him with the Holy Ghoft, that he might be delivered from his wrath (even before he could fpeak, or difcern good or evil) and received into the ark of Chrift's church ? And upon what and to ( '39) to which we can be reftored by Chriftianity only? Are they more than fo many playthings in the hands of children, far fhort of manly enjoyments, and of a rational and ample fruition ? And if to thefe we add, the incidental misfortunes, dif- quietudes, and deep calamities of life, can we be faid to enjoy a life of happinefs ? Is ic not at-beft a life of difiatisfac~bion ? I am apt to think, fays Mr. Woollafton, with refpect to private felicity, that, even among thofe whofe ilate is beheld with envy, there are many who, if at the end of their courfe they were put to their option, whether, without any refpect to a future ftate, they would repeat all the plea- fures they have had in life, upon condition, to go over again alfo all the difappointments, the fame vexations and unkind treatment from the- world, the fame fecret pangs and tedious hours, the fame labours of the body and mind, the fame pains and fickneffes, would be far from ac- cepting them at that price. But here the cafe, as I have put it, only refpects them who may be reckoned among the more fortunate pafjengers \ and for one that makes his voyage fo well, thou- fands arc toft in tempefts and loft. How many never attain any comfortable fet- tlement in the world ? How many fail, after they have attained it, by various misfortunes ? What melancholy, what diftraclions are caufed in fa- milies, by inhuman or vicious hufbands -, falfe or peevifh wives, refractory or unhappy children j and if they are otherwife, if they are good, what forrow for the lofs of them ? How many are forced by necefTity upon drudging and very mocking emplovments, for a poor livelihood ? How many fubfift upon begging, borrowing, and ( HO ) and other (hifts, nor can do otherwife ? How many meet with fad accidents, or fall into de- plorable difeafes ? Are not all companies, and the very ftreets filled with complaints and grie- vances, and doleful ftories ? I verily believe, that a great part of mankind may afcribe their deaths to want and dejedtion. Wooll. ReL Nat. p. 207. 19. OBJ EC. III. It may be urged, if the foul did actually exift in a prior ftate, it is very ex- traordinary, that that pre-exiftence mould not have been intimated to us in the mofaic hiftory of the creation, whereas that evidently fuppofes they^H/of man, as well as his body, to nave been then firfi formed by the Creator. That the Mofaic creation was not the original creation, I have endeavoured to prove already, and that the defign of the Mofaic hiftory accounts for its filence with refped to a pre-exiftent iapfe of human fouls, the reader will fee from what follows. It is certain, fays St. Bqfil, that Mofes did not defign to write of the creation of all things, but only of things vifible and corporeal. He is wholly filent with refpeft to the crea- tion of human fouls, whence the divines of the Chriftian church are, as fays Brocklefby (p. 502.) extremely at a lofs, de origine anim#, not know- ing which of the three opinions to prefer, that of the pre-exiftence of fouls, or that of their creation, and infufion by the immediate hand of God, in fuccefiive generations j or that which derives them from propagation. Which total filence, touching the origin of fouls, is a plain indication, that the creation of them was no part of the Mofaic creation. And And, it is evident, that the Mbfaic hiftory of the creation is, in the whole of it, nothing elfe but an hiftory of the production of a world of terreftrial animals, and of God's making pro- vifion for them as fuch ; and reaches to nothing higher, than the making fuch a terreftrial animal as man, not afcending to the creation of his in- tellectual foul. It afcends not to the creation of any living creature higher than terreitrial animals, fays not a word of the creation of an- gels ; and, as a Jewifh -writer obferves, in the hiftory of the creation, only vifibles, quri 3 aad redemption, and the other effcntial articles ( 143 ) articles of theChriftian faith in any rational^ flrik- ing and conftft-cnt light, he .can only wifh, than the execution of the defign may be equal to the im- portance of it. He Hatters himfelf, however, that the latter will entitle him to all the candour from the reader, that, with reipect to the former, he would delire , which will make him proceed with more chearfulnefs to the confideration and illuf- tration of thofe other material points of enquiry which may probably be hereafter confidered. f INI S. AD D E N D A. Ad. i . TYTHOEVER will fcrioufly con- \\ fider, that -part of the Chriftian fcheme, which is revealed in fcrip- ture, will find fo much unrevealed, as will con- vince him, that to all the purpofes of objecting and judging, we know as little of it as of the conftitution of nature. Butler's Anal. p. 275. This is not at all to be wondered at, when we take into our confideration a circumftance,to which there ieems not to have been given, as yet, the due attention, viz. that, added to the want of thofe informations, which were purpofely fup- prefled by our Saviour, as above-intimated, we find even the apoftle St. Paul, who was feparated unto the gofpel of Ckriji, acting no lefs upon the rcferve throughout the whole courle of his minif- try ; either partially relating, or purpofely invelop- ing, in myitic types and allufions, many things relative to the gofpel difpenfation. An obferva- tion, the truth of which is confirmed by his own exprefs declaration. For though he difclofed, from time to time, the arcana of the gofpel ceco- nomy to a felecr. deierving few to them who were 'per f eel ^ as he fays, yet in general he fpake the wifdom of God in a myftery. We /peak wifdom, fays he, among them who are -perfect \ yet, not the ivifdom of tins world) nor of the -princes of this world, that come to nought. L But But wt fpeak (to the bulk of his hearers he means) the wifdom of Gcd in a myftery. He had before obferved, to the Corinthians, thai difdaining altogether the glittering pomp of. eloquence, or a vain oftentatious {hew of human wifdom, he had, with the utmoft plain- nefs and fimplicity of fpeech, declared to them the teftimony of God \ follicitous only to inculcate for the prefent, and as a foundation for their further progrefs in the knowledge of Chriftianity, the belief of Jffits Cbrijl, and him crucified, he referved iomeof the more remote, recondite truths, con- tained in that belief (though not all of them, for a reafon which will hereafter occur) for the infor- mation of tbe perfefi for the fmccre, humble, lightly difpofed convert*. Whence it follows, that the apoftle's full and thorough infigbt into the nature, tenor, and feveral circumftances of the gofpel difpenfation, is not cafily, if at all, to be collected from what is tranf- mitted to us in his epiftle's ; in which, as St Peter iays, there are fome things bard to be underftood. Account, fays he, that tbe long fuffering of our Lord is fafoation ; even as our brother Paul alfo, according to tbe lyifdom given unto him, bath written unto you. ' * Credendum omnibus proponitur Chriftum mortuum, efle ut uos e Poteftate diaboli eripcret. PerftQis autem dicitur quo Jure totum humanura genus in Diaboli Poteftatem fuerit icdaftum : ac rurfus quo Jure & ./Equitate per Chrifti Mortem fuerit iride ereptum. And again, as a comment on We fpeak ikt ivijiicm of Gcd in a myftery, it is added. Sapientiam Dei quse abfcondita eft, id eft Concilia divinae fapientise, qux Deus efle voluit abfcondita & ante Filii fui Paffionem pauciffimis revelata, loquimur & docemus non propalam df pajjlm apud omtuj (quia aon omnes ea capiunt) fed in Myfterio & apud faucicrcs. Vid. wn in Loco. 4* ( H7 ) As alfoy in all his epiftles fpeaking in them of ikefe things , in 'which are fome things hard to be underftood, 2 Pet. iii. 15, 16. That the epiftle, to which the words 'VH"" fy" written unto yott t particularly refers, is that of St. Paul to the Hebrews * ; and not, as is ufuafiy judged, to the 2d chapter of his epiftle to the Romans : the learned Eftius has, I think, proved beyond difpute. Nor is it lefs evident that St. Peter alludes not to this or that particular paffage, in that epiftle to the Hebrews, but to the whole thread of reafoning (the major part of it how- ever) therein contained ; and further, that the obicurity which he afcribes to that epiftle in par- ticular he fuppofes to be applicable likewife to all his epiftles in general. As ci'fo in all his epiftles fpeaking in them of thofe things , &c/in which "^ (not ^as fome copies erroneoufly have it) in which epiftles are fome things hard to be under food. From which paffage the fame judicious com- mentator draws the following inference. It is a- bundantly evident, fays he, that St. Peter affirm*, that there are in St. Paul's epiftles, things hard to be underftood , and at the fame time that it is a com- mon thing for the other fcriptures, as well as St. Paul's epiftles, to be mifinterpreted and perverted by the unlearned -f-. The reader is nor, however, to infer from hence, that in the A*WT* afcribed to St. Paul's * And principally to the eleventh chapter of that epiftle, according to Dr Hammond. f Apertifllmum eft hoc Petri Teftimonium in iis quas fcrip- fit Paulus efle quaedam intelle&u difEcilia ; finml indicans et cseteris Scripturis id efle commune quod et eas ficut Pauli Scripta depravent Homines indoai. Vid Eftium in Loco. L 2 epiftles c 'epiftles the things hard to fre undtrjlcorl y the ne- cefTary indifpenfable credenda of a Chriftian, truths, the belief of which is efifential to falvation, are included, the contrary being abundantly evi- dent. A lively operative faith in Chrift, as the Redeemer pf mankind, which is the very bafis, nay, and even the fum and fubftance of Chrifli- anity, is not only the plain, obvious object of the upoftle's miniftry, but a conftant topic of exhor- tation throughout his whole epiftles. A faith, which (actuated and enlivened, J lay, by a corref- pondent purity of life) has given, J doubt not, all who have livedand died therein, anunqueftionedpaf- port to the regions of blilsj incapable as they were of fathoming the depth of the riches of the wifdom and goodnefs of God t difplayed in the great work of man's redemption, cf framing to themfelves any idea of an atonement due to a pre-exiftent ftate of guilt, or of conceiving that a blefiing, greater or more extehfive, was accomplimed by Chrift's mediation, intercefllon, &c. * than a deliverance from the evils confequent on Adam's trelpafs. Thefeare points to which the apoftle, I own, does but either diftantly allude or myfterioufly in- culcate-, concluding, as we may fuppofe, that, in after time.3, the SPIRIT OF TRUTH would, by due degrees, lead mankind into a djfcovery of thofe and many other important truths, refpecting the mediatorial ceconomy, which neither the world was then capable of receiving, or he himfelf at * That the death of Chrift was made a conciitinn of our redemp- tion, or that *'/ wds any thin more than ^.contingent confequence of his miniltry (or as fach fore/eea, prcpbejie^ and prefigured of r.'IJ, and alluded to in the Mcfaic rites and facrificss, &c.) it is neither eafy of belief, nor capable, I think, of fcripture proof But as to this others are to judge for themfelves. liberty liberty openly to difclofe. That they are, however, the lefs credible from the wan: of an exprefs, po- fitive declaration from the apoftle, we Ihould not haftily conclude, when we confider (and I hope the confideration will have its due weight) that the apoftle wa% by virtue of that extraordinary vifion vouchfafcd to him 2 Cor. xii. undoubted- ly pofiefled of a fuller and more intimate know- ledge of the myfteries of the gofpel difpenfatiori, than he was permitted to make known. And that the difcoveries then made, were of fuch a nature, as greatly exalred the dignity of the Chriftian ceconomy, is evident, from that excefs of vanity, to which the communication of them had well- nigh drove the apoftle, and on account of which the meflenger of Satan was fent to buffet him. That thofe difcoveries did not relate to a pre- exiftent guilt, and a redemption, therefrom, by the death of (Thrift, there is no more proof (if to much) from fcripture, than that they did. But whether our ideas of the Mediatorial difpenfation are not tranfcendantly exalted, by viewing it through the medium of a fuppofed perfonal pre- exiftent guilt and apoftacy, inftead of a derived Adamic trefpafs and defilement, I leave to the hearts and confciencesof men to determine. Ad. 2. Dr. Taylor, in order to prove that our Sa- viour lived and died only to redeem mankind from the o-uilt and punilhment due to their perfonal cref- pafTes, here obferves upon the underwritten texts of fcripture *, quoted in the Affembly of Divines Catechilrn, * Rom. iii. 10 ~o. As it is written there is none righte- ous, no not one. Ver. u. There is none that underftandeth, there is none that feeketh after God. L 3 PfaU Catechifm, as proofs of the " corruption of *' man's nature, whereby he is utterly indifpofed^ " difabled, and made oppofite unto all that is " fpiritually good, and wholly inclined to all " evil, and that continually," as follows. Obf. 3; The feftion, fays he, confifts of feve- ral quotations oiit of the old teftament, called here the law, ver. 19. But, ift, In none of them, taken feparately, doth the Spirit of God fpeak of any depravity of nature derived from Adam, (granted) but manifeftly of the habits of wicked- nefs, which men had contracted by their own evil doings ; as will, I think, undeniably appear, if you carefully perufe the texts fet over-againft the proofs in the margin. And in Pfal. x. 4. the wickednefs of the wicked is exprefsly faid, fays he, to conlift in this, that he will not feek after God. And that God is not in all bis thoughts. He might feek after God; but he will not. He hath thoughts ; a power to think of God, but he doth not ufe it, p. 103. What immediately follows Pfal. xiv. 1,2,3. Ver. 12. They are all gone out of the way, they are altogether become unprofitable, there is none that doethgood, no not one. Pfal. v. 9'. Ver. 13. Their throat is an open fepulchre, with their tongues they have ufed deceit, the poyfon of afps ii under their lips : Pfal. iii. 3. Ver. 14. Whofe mouth is full of curfing and bitternefs. Ver. 15. Their feet are fwift to fhed blood. Pfal. x. 7. Ver. 16. Definition and mifery are in their ways. Prov. i. 16. Ver. 17. And the way of peace have they not known. Ifa. Hit. 7, 8. Ver. 18. There is no fear of God before their eyes. Pfal. xxxvi. i. Ver. 19. Now we know that whatfoever things the law faith, it (kith to them who are under the law, that every mouth may be .flopped, and all the world may be- come guilty before God. is is (b much to the doctor's difcredit, as a reafoner, that I with it could be wiped out of his book. And is it not amazing, that one of Dr. Taylor's fagacity and penetration, (hould bring, all along, arguments in fupport of his hypothecs, which are fo apparently fubverfive of it. The fpirit of God, fays he, does not, in either of the above-quoted texts, fpeak of aty depravity of nature (for that is in general his meaning.) How fo ? Why, he, the Spirit of God, alludes only to the wickednefs which men had contracted by their own evil doings and the Pialmift ex- prefsly fays, that the wickednefs of the wicked confided in this ^hat he will not feek after God, that God is not in all bis thoughts'He might feek after God ; but he will not, &c. Now, if an habitual, voluntary propenfity to evil doings, a fettled, determined abjuration of God implied-in their wilfully not feeking him, be not evidences of the depravity, &c. of human na- ture, I know not what can, in the nature of things, be rationally deemed fuch. Taking this therefore for granted, what ftronger proofs need be re- quired of the depravity, &c. of human nature, than what Dr. Taylor has above advanced ? But to (hew that the texts of fcripture, there alluded to, are defigned declarations of the depravity and corruption of man's NATURE, be pleafed to at- tend to the following obfervations. Dr. Taylor fays (Obferv. 2. p. 102.) " The apoftle is not, in the above feftion, fpeaking of all mankind, but a very fmall part of mankind, viz. the Jews, who alone were then under the law> ver. 19. and he is proving from thole places, in their own approved writings (which places fpeak of as well as to the natural Jews} that there were very great corruptions among them, as well as C 152 ) vourable manner, in which they were then heard, hath encouraged him to revife, enlarge, and digeft them into their prefent form. The reader hath now before him a compleat hiftory of the Baptift, extracted from the Evan- gelifts, and methodized according to the order of time, in which the events appear to have happened, with fuch obfervations and reflections as the feve- ral parts of it feemed to fuggeft, for the confirmation of faith, and the advance- ment of holinefs. AN vi PR E FA C E. AN attentive perufal of the ruble- quent pages may, it is hoped, be of lervice to the younger ftudents in theology, with a view to whom, and to thofe more particularly of the So- ciety, whofe welfare and profperity the author is bound by every tie to confult and promote, as they were at firft compofed, fo they are now pub- lifhed ; that, beholding the glories which difplay themfelves in the exalted character here offered to their infpec- tion, they may be fired with a noble ambition to bear their teftimony to the beft of mafters, and, from a well fpent retirement, come forth bright examples of temperance and purity, zeal and knowlege, integrity and conftancy, to preach Repentance, and proclaim Sal- vation. C O N- A ^Y - . .ml CONTENTS. .\& x;\ svwi ^t&vtt\. ... -3&3^i!A '&. SECTION I. NSIDE RATIONS en the nativity V_>< of St. John, and He circumftances that *t tended it. Pa?e i A dgC i. . SE CTION II. Conjiderations on the hymn of Zacharias. 18. v ^ SE CTION III. Conjiderations on St. John's education in the defarts. 3 8. SECTION IV. Conjiderations on the prophecies relative to St. John in the Qld Tejiament. 57. SEC- CONTENTS. SECTION V. Confiderations on the appearance, doftrine, and baptifm of St. John. Page 74. ..2 V SECTION VI. Confiderations on the tejiimony born by St. John, at different times, to the Mejfiah- 1 VII. Confiderations on the imprifonment of St. John, the mejfagefent by him to Chrift, and the anfwer returned to it. 1 1 8 SECTION VIII. Confiderations m the circumftances of St. John'j Death. 134. .8? . - - CONSIDERATIONS ON THE LIFE AND DEATH O F ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST. SECTION I. Confederations on the nativity of St. John, and the circumftances that attended it. THE lights of the intelledhzal , SECT. r. like thofe of the natural fyftem, are not all of equal magnitude and luftre. In the church, as in the firmament, " one ftar difFereth from A " ano- Confederations on the Life and Death SECT. I. another ftar in glory." Each contri- buteth it's mare towards diffipating the darknefs with which we are furrounded; but fome, by their fuperior fplendor, immediately attract and dazzle the eye of the beholder. Confpicuous, above others, is the character of St. John the Baptift, that bright precurfor of the fun, and harbinger of the morning, who arofe to give notice of Mefliah's approach, and to prepare the world for his recep- tion : burning, and mining, he ran his courfe, proclaiming to the inhabitants of the earth, " Repent, for the kingdom " of heaven is at hand;" in other words, " The night is far fpent, the day is at " hand j cafl off therefore the works " of darknefs, and put on the armour " of light a . Awake, thou that ileep- " eft , and arife frem the dead , and , " Chrift fhall give thee light b ." - PRAISE is ever valuable in propor- tion to the judgment and integrity of ; him who beftoweth it j and the pane- gyric is truly honourable, when the pa- negyrift is one who will not flatter, and 3 Rom. xiii. 12. b Ephcf. v. 14. who of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 3 who cannot be deceived. How then (hall SECT. I. we raife our thoughts to conceive ade- quately of a perfon, whofe encomium was fpoken by the Son of God, and concerning whom that Son of God de- clared, " Among them that are born of <( women there hath not arifen a greater * than John the Baptift V After this declaration made by the mailer, the difciples cannot well be hyperbolical in their praifes of St. John, as the great pattern of repentance -, the relation of Chrift ; the friend of the bridegroom ; the herald of the king immortal ; the glory of faints, and the joy of the world. IT is obfervable, that the Baptift's nativity is the only one (that of Chrift excepted) which the church has thought proper to celebrate. The days appointed for the commemoration of other faints are generally thofe on which they re- fpedtively ceafed from their labours, and entered into their everlafting reft ; the day of a good man's death being indeed the day of his birth, and this world no more than the womb in which he is formed and matured for his admiflion Matt. x\. ii. A 2 into 4 Confiderations on the Life and Death SECT. I. into a better, where there is neither crying nor pain. But the nativity of St. "John being defigned, by the remarkable incidents that accompanied it, to turn the eyes of men towards one who was far greater ; one, the latchet of whofe fhoes he confefled himfelf not worthy to un- loofe y the church keeps a day facred to it, and directs us to begin our medita- tions by confidering, as all Judea did when it happened, " what manner of child a " that mould be, which was fo wonderfully born. H E whofe works are all wrought in, number, weight, and meafure, bring- eth every event to pafs in it's proper feafon. The time approached which had been decreed in the counfels of the Moil High, foretold by the Prophets, and ardently delired by holy men of old, when the Son of God mould be manifefted, to redeem his people from death, and to lead them in the path of life. As this redemption was not to be effected by flemly might and power, the Spiritual king of Ifrael chofe to make his appearance, when the houfe of Da- * Luke i. 66. 'Did of Sf. JOHN the BAPTIST. 5 vid was like a root buried in the earth -, SECT. I. and therefore his forerunner was born " in the days of Herod the king a j" days, when his countrymen were under a foreign jurisdiction, and the profpedt on all lides was gloomy. True indeed it is, that the facred lamp went not out in the temple, where the good old Si- meon and the devout Anna ferved God inftantly with failings and prayers, and waited, as many others did, with ear- neft expectation, for the confolation of Ifrael. They were not difcouraged by the grofs darknefs which then covered the earth, but rather concluded from thence, that the dawn of day could not be far off; as the mercies of heaven generally come when man moft wants, and, humanly fpeaking, has leaft ground to hope for them -, to the end that he may with thankfulnefs receive the be- nefit, and with humility give God the glory. And this may be an ufeful leffon to thofe who mall live in the latter days of the Gentile church, which are to precede the fecond advent of Chrift, when they will behold the religion of Lukei. 5. Chriftians 6 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT. I. Chriftians degenerated into an empty form, and their zeal and love frozen at the fountain ; when daily multiplying herefies, like the frogs in -Egypt, mall infeft and contaminate all things j when infidelity mail rage and fwell, and ini- quity of every kind mall abound. Sights like thefe may confound and ftagger thofe who fliall then be ignorant of the fcriptures, and weak in faith. But an acquaintance with the divine difpenfa- tions will turn them into fo many argu- ments for the truth of revelation, and the approach of the day of God. " When thefe things begin to come to " pafs ; then look up, and lift up your " heads, for your redemption draweth " nigh a :" then be found, with Simeon and Anna, in the temple, waiting for the confolation of IfraeL WH E N we read of men who have done good in their generations, and (hone as lights in the world, curiofity naturally leads us to enquire after their connections and relations, and efpecially after the happy perfons chofen to be the instruments of conveying fuch bleffings 3 Luke xxi. 28. to of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. to the church. The fcripture account SECT of Zacharias and Elizabeth is concife, but comprehenfive. He was " a prieft ' ' of the courfe of Abia" me was " of " the daughters of Aaron?' and " they " were both righteous before God, * walking in all the commandments " and ordinances of the Lord, blame- " left a . The courfe of Abia was the eighth in order of the twenty four cour- fes of priefts appointed to relieve each other in the fervice of the temple, where, during their miniftration, they refided in the chambers allotted them for that purpofe - y that fo, being fequef- tered from the cares and pollutions of the world, they might " wait on the " Lord without diftraction," perform- ing the outward ceremonies of the law, and exerciling their faith in the con- templation of thofe heavenly things fhadowed out by them. This holy office Zacharias t in the worft of times, adorn- ed and beautified with a correfpondent holinefs of life. The fpirit of the fanc- tuary refted upon him, and manifefted itfelf in the fruit of righteoufnefs ; a Luke i. 5, 6. righteouf- Confiderations on the Life and Death SECT. I. righteoufnefs, which exceeded that of Scribes and Pharifees, approving it- felf in the fight of God, to whom are known the fecrets of the heart, as well as in that of men, who are witnefles only of the external deportment. Thro* the ftrength of this fpirit, he walked in the path of an uniform obedience, an invariable obferver of thofe ordinan- ces which were at that time the facra- mental means and pledges of pardon and acceptance, through faith in him, of whole advent he was a devout expectant. From fuch a father, and a mother wor- thy of him, who graced the line of Aaron by a like inviolable fanftity of manners, was the Baptift to defcend ; that the Jews might have no poffible objection againft him; that he might be a proper forerunner of one who was to make all the world in love with the beauty of holinefs ; that it might ap- pear wherein true nobility of birth con- iifteth, viz. in a defcent from perfons confecrated to the fervice of God, and of an exemplary piety ; and laflly, to allure us, that on the heads of thofe, who to a holy profeffion add a holy life, will, of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 9 will, fooner or later, defcend the choi- SECT. I. ceft bleflings which heaven hath to be- flow on the fons of men. BUT let not fuch be impatient, be- caufe thofe bleffings arc for a while de- ferred. He, who fends them, beft knows the proper time of fending them, and often fees it necefTary, for many reafons, to exercife the faith and patience of his fervants, who may always reft fatisfied, that in due feafon he will bring every thing to pafs, which will con- duce to their true welfare. The fcrip- ture, having witnefied of Zacharias and Elizabeth, that " they were both right- *.' eous before God, walking in all the " commandments and ordinances of the " Lord blamelefs," proceedeth, in the very next words, to inform us, that " they had no child, becaufe that Eli- " zabeth was barren, and they were both "will ftricken in years V They who ftand higheft in the favour of God, may, therefore, during the greatefl part of their lives, want the external and vifible marks of it, and lie under the burden Luke i. 7- B of io Confideratlons on the Life and Death SECT. I. of " reproach among men %" as was ^ the cafe of childlefs women in Judea. But thefe two pious perfons, when their condition, in this refpect, feemed def- perate, were upon the eve of felicity. For of parents at their time of life 'John was to be born -, that fo the miraculous manner of his birth might excite the attention of mankind, and difpofe them to liften to his voice, when it mould be heard in the wildernefs ; and alfo, that it might prepare them for that great event which was taking place, as the prophet Ifaiah had foretold ; " A vir- " gin fhall conceive, and bear a fon." In circumftances parallel with thofe of St. John, were born, of old, Ifaac, and Jojepby and Samfon, and Samuel, all of them illuftrious forerunners of Mefliah, in one or other of his three characters, prophetical, facerdotal, or regal. And did not God intend, by fo often caufing " the barren woman to keep houfe, and " and to become a joyful mother of " children," to make that power known, by -which the incarnation of the Re- deemer and thefruitfulnefs of his church * Luke i, 25. were of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. u were to be effe&ed in the latter days, SECT. i. when, according to St. Paul, the pro- phetical injunction of Ifaiah was obeyed, " Sing, O barren, thou that didft not " bear ; break forth into fmging, and " cry aloud, thou that didft not travel " with child 3 !" H E who is employed in difcharging with fidelity the duties of his calling, takes the fureft way to obtain the con- tinuation and increafe of his heavenly Mafter's favours. A fon was promifed to Zacbarias, " While he executed the " prieft's office before God," as the ri- tual of the church enjoined, " In the " order of his courfe, and according to " the cuftom b ." The reflexion of a pious writer upon this circumftance is no lefs juft than beautiful. " One prieit " alone," fays he, " intent on his duty, " who diffufes the fweet favour of " Chrift, and is conftant in prayer, " draws down on the people more bleff- " ings than a great number of negligent " priefts. A man ought," continues he, " to difcharge all the ecclefiaftical func- * Ifai. liv. i. Gal. iv. 27. fc Luke i. 8, 9. B 2 " tions 1 2 Confiderations on the Life and Death SECT. I. " tions with the fpirit of the facred mi- niftry, as before God, and under his immediate infpe&ion 5 to perform " them in order, in his proper ftation, " without ambitioufly feeking an high- " er ; to do nothing merely of his own " will, but to obferve the well efta- " blifhed cuftoms, as being the neceflary " fecurities of peace. This is the truth " which thefe madows prefigured, and " thefe the difpofitions worthy a mini- " fter of the true temple, which is the church." THE annuntiation of the Baptifl's conception happened at the time of in- cenfe, when his father, having put on the robe of honour, and being clothed, like the great Mediator whom he per- fonated, with the garments of glory and beauty, entered into the temple, while the whole congregation of the people, affembled without, fent up their united prayers to be accepted at the throne of grace, through the interceffion which was then making for them by the levi- tical prieft, adling in the name of him who was to " arife after the order of *' Melchifedek, and not to be called " after of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 13 " after the order of Aaron V While SECT. I. the joint prayers of prieft and people were thus offered up with the blood of fprinkling, and the fweet-fmelling fa- vour of the holy incenfe, an angel fud- denly appeared to Zacbarias, as he was executing his office in the temple ; that being the place to which thofe blefled fpirits, when they vifit thefe lower re- gions, ever delight to refort, as bearing the neareft refemblance to the happy manfions from which they defcend. BUT whether it be, that the glory of celeftial fpirits overpowers the facul- ties of human nature, or that man, con- fcious of having finned againft heaven, naturally trembles at the fight of a mef- fenger from thence, we find, the ap- pearance of an angel had the fame ef- fedt upon Zacbarias> the blefled virgin, and the mepherds : they were all " fore *< afraid." Their minds muft be firft compofed, and put into a capacity of receiving the heavenly tidings brought them by the good angels, who, like good men, manifeft themfelves by the gracious and encouraging manner of tfeb. vii. ii. their 14 Confederations on the Life and Dtath SECT. I. their addrefs, and having removed all iicw ing farewell to the world ; " Lord, now '< letteft thou thy fervant depart in peace, " according to thy word ; for mine eyes " have feen thy falvation." Thus did all " break forth into joy, and fing to- " gether, becaufe the Lord had com- " forted his people, and redeemed Jeru- " falem ;" becaufe the fun of righteouf- nefs, by his vilitation of the earth, was putting a period to a dreary winter, and introducing, in it's ftead, a new and more glorious fpring. And as fpring is the morning of the year, Cow/efs ad- drefs to the material light, which is C 2 but 20 Confiderations on the Life and Dtath SECT. II. but a faint copy, may be applied to the great original himfelf ; When thou lift' ft np thy radiant bead Out of the mornings purple bed, 77/y choir of birds about thee flay, And all the joyful toorld falutes the rifing day. TH E hymn which we are at prefent to confider, is that of Zacharias. The occafion on which it was indited, was the birth of St. John : the fubjedt is the covenant of grace in Chrift Jefus : the language is that of the Old Tefta- ment, old terms being transferred to new things : the fpeaker is a prieft and a prophet, Full of the Holy Ghoft." DURING a tedious interval of filence, Zacharias had beheld the accomplifli- ment of the divine promjfe to himfelf ; and he knew likewife, that the Saviour of mankind would foon be born of his relation, the virgin Mary. We may judge, therefore, what pain and grief he felt, while retrained from uttering that " good matter," of which his heart was fo full, that when at length God faw fit to remove the mound, it burft forth of St. JOHN the BAPTIST, 21 forth at once in an impetuous a"nd irre- SECT.IL fiftible torrent of thankfgiving ; i. " BLESSED be the Lord God of " Ifrael, for he hath vifited and " redeemed his people V I T was no new thing for " the God " of Ifrael " to " vifit and redeem his " people." He had often done it, when they were in affliction and captivity. But fo to vifit and redeem, was not all that he intended to do for his chbfen. Through things temporal he was defirous that they ihould look at things eternal, and carry on their views from a bodily to a fpiritual redemption, in which all his counfels terminated ; a redemption to be effected by his vifiting mankind, dwell- ing among them in a tabernacle of flem, and in that tabernacle offering up the true propitiatory facrifice -, a redemption, that mould extend to Gentiles as well as Jews, and of both make one people, a new Ifrael, of which he mould be the Lord God, for evermore. How gracious this vifitatton ! How aftonifhing this re- * Luke i. 68, 6V. demption ! 22 Confideratlons on the Life and Death CT.U.demption! " Bleffed be the Lord God " of Ifrael, for he hath vifited and re- " deemed his people, 2. " And. hath raifed up an horn of " falvation for us, in the houfe for other- SECT. II. wife, God could not be faid, by raifing up Chrift, to have " performed that " mercy," and " remembered that co- " venant." Accordingly, we are elfe- where told, " the Gofpel was preached " to Abraham a ;" and the covenant made with him is ftyled " the covenant " of God in Chrift b ." The Gofpel, then, was prior to the law, and was the patrimony of all the children of Abra- hdfo. " The law, which Was four hun- " dred and thirty years after," whatever might be it's intention, could not dif- poffefs them of this their inheritance ; it could not " difannul the covenant, " and make the promife of none errecV But if, on the contrary, it was defigned to keep up, and further the knowlege of them; if it was a {landing prophecy ; if it was " a fchoolmailer," by it's ele- ments training up and conducting it's fcholars "to Chrift;" then certainly no- thing Was wanting on the part of God. The Jews minded earthly things ; but to infer from thence, that they were never ibid. 17. D 2 taughv 28 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT. II. taught the knowlege of things heavenly, l - x " v * >w ' would be a method of arguing too hazar- dous to be ventured upon j fince, from the behaviour of many, who profefs the ChrifUan religion, it might as fairly be concluded, that their Mafter promifed nothing but " loaves and fifties." Ifrael- ites might fet their hearts too much on " fields and vineyards," forgetting or neglecting better things, as men are apt to do, who are blefled with profperity in this prefent world. But when they did fo, they did wrong : prophets were fent to reprove the error, and judgments to convince them, that Canaan was not the end of the " covenant," nor a plen- tiful harveft " the mercy promifed." 6. " .TH E oath which he fware to " our forefather Abraham TH E amazing condefcenfion of God in vouchfafing, for man's fatisfa&ion and aflurance, to confirm his promife by an oath, is finely touched upon in the epiftle to the Hebrews. '< When " God made promife to Abraham, be- *' caufe he could fwear by no greater, he " fware *' of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 29 fware by himfelf, faying, furely bleff- SECT.IL ing I will blefs thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee ---- For men " verily fwear by a greater, and an oath " for confirmation is to them an end of tf all ftrife. Wherein God, willing to " mew to the heirs of promife the im- " mutability of his counfel, confirmed " it by an oath -, that by two immuta- " ble things, in which it was impof- " fible for God to lie, we might have " a ftrong confolation, who have fled *' for refuge, to lay hold upon the hope fet before us V O the goodnefs of God, who hath given his creatures the affurance of an oath 1 O the infidelity of his creatures, who diflruft that affu- That he would grant unto " us, that we being delivered " out of the hands of our ene- " mies, might ferve him with- " out fear, Heb. vi. 13. O beatos nos, quorum caufa Deus jurat ! O miferri- Ji nec juranti Domino credimus ! Tertull. 8. In 3 o Confiderdtwm on the Life and Death SECT. II. 8, " I N holinefs and righteoufnefs " before him, all the days of " our life." TH E promife, made with an oath to Abraham^ was made, after the inten- tional facrifice of Ifaac, in the follow- ing terms ; " By myfelf have I fworn that in bleffing I will blefs thee, " and in multiplying I will multiply " thy feed as the ftars of heaven, and " as the fand which is upon the fea " fliore j and thy feed mail poffefs the " gate of his enemies ; and in thy feed t( mall all the nations of the earth be " bleffed V The objects of the bleff- ing here promifed are the faithful child- ren of Abraham, whether Jews or Gen- tiles ; the " feed," in whom they are bleffed, is Chrift ; the manner in which he obtains the bleffing, is by " poffeff- " ing the gate of his enemies," that is, by fubduing them, and feizing their ftrong holds j the bleffing itfelf confift- eth in a redemption from bondage un- der thofe enemies, and an admiffion into a Gen. xxii. 16. the of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 31 the fervice of God. Such is the fub- SECT.II. ftance and intention of the promife made with an oath to Abraham, as ex- plained by Zacbarias, and fulfilled un- der the gofpel. In the mean time, be- tween the promife and it's accomplim- ment it pleafed God to interpofe a dif- penfation, which exhibited a vilible reprefentation of this great and impor- tant tranfaftion, in the cafe of the children of Ifrael, or the pofterity of Abraham according to the flefh, who, after having been long detained in cruel bondage by Pharaoh and the Egyptians, were " delivered out of the hands of " their enemies ;" and delivered for this purpofe, that they might ferve God with a prefigurative fervice, calculated to laft " till the feed mould come, to " whom the promife was made." For thus Jehovah faith to Mofes, " When " thou haft brought forth the people " out of Egypt, they mail ferve God " upon this mountain 2 ." So that when, at the transfiguration of our Lord upon mount Tiabor, Mofes difcourfed with him on the fubjedt of '< his deceafe," * Exod. iii, 12. or, ^ 2 Conftderations on the Life and Death SECT. n. or, as it is in the original, his EXODUS, which he mould accomplifh at Jeru- " falem," may we not imagine to our- felves the deliverer of 7/;Waddrefling the world's Redeemer in fome fuch words as thefe By my hand the Lord God of Ifrael did once vouchfafe to bring forth his people from the afflicting bondage of Egypt ; but thou fhalt turn the mul- titude of the Gentiles from the power of Satan to God. I faw the Lord make a path through the waters, for his re- deemed to pafs over ; but thou malt find a more wonderful way through the waves of death ; and though the floods mail compafs thee about, yet mail thy life be brought up from corruption. I beheld the chariots of Pharaoh and the mighty hoft of Egypt plunging in the deep, when the morning appeared ; but thou malt triumph over principalities and powers, and fee them overwhelmed in the lake of fire. I led my people through the wildernefs, and gave them a law which had " the fhadow of good " things to come ;" but thou fhalt con- duel: thine through the world, and teach them to." wormip in fpirit and " in of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 33 " in truth." I went before Ifrael to SECT. II. the borders of the promifed land -, but ^~v~^ thou art the true mepherd of fouls, and they who follow thee {hall " pafs from " death unto life." Zacharias concludes his divine fong with an apoftrophe to the infant Bap- tift, as one who was defigned by provi- dence to be the precurfor of fuch a Saviour, and the publimer of fuch fal- vation. . 9. " And thou child fhalt be called " the prophet of the Higheft, " for thou fhalt go before the " face of the Lord, to prepare " his ways ; i o. " To give knowlege of falvation " unto his people for the remif- " fion of their fins " "THE law prophefad until John," who fucceeded it in it's office of point- ing out the MefTiah, and fpake the lan- guage of it's inftitutions, when he faid, " Behold the Lamb of God, which " taketh away the fin of the world." E " Re- 34 Confide rations on the Life and Death SECT. II. v " v/ particularities againft thofe of other fee- taries, than careful to advance and pro- pagate the general principles of true re- ligion. This hath been but too much the cafe for fome time paft in Chriften- dom, which, like Jtrufalem before it's deftrudtion, is crumbled into innumer- able parties, biting and devouring one another ; infomuch that it is now diffi- cult for one writer to lay down a peti- tion in theology, which another {hall not immediately fet himfelf to contra--- vert with all his might, as heretical and antichriftian. The difpute foon becomes a trial of (kill, and the paffions and pre- judices of the combatants fpread a cloud over the queftion, in which truth and charity often vanim together. Thus dark and tempeftuous are thefe lower regions. But, by ftudy and meditation in folitude, the Chriftian, in heart and mind, afcendeth to a purer element, from whence he beholdeth the ftorms produced by contending factions far be- neath him, and expatiateth at pleafure in thofe fields of light and ferenity, which 48 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT. ill. which open themfelves on all fides to view. He confoleth himfelf by contemplating the church, as fhe for- merly fubfifted in original purity and unity, and as fhe will hereafter exift in her triumphant flate above, when her members of every age and nation fhall all lift up their voices together, and make their found to be heard as one, in giving Glory to God, and to the Lamb. Difencumbered of paffions and preju- dices, he followeth after the truth which leadeth to godlinefs, and the wifdom whofe end is falvation. FOR the attainment of that wifdom a third thing requifite is divine illumi- nation. Wifdom is one of thofe " good " and perfect gifts," which " come " down from the Father of lights," and muft be fued for, with humility and fervour, in petitions like thefe "Give " me wifdom that fitteth by thy throne, "and reject me not from among thy " children For though a man be " never fo perfect among the children " of men, yet if thy wifdom be not " with him, he fhall be nothing re- " garded O fend her out of thy holy " heavens. of Sf. JOHN the BAPTIST. 49 " heavens, and from the throne of thy " glory, that being prefent me may la- " hour with me, that I may know what " is pleafmg unto thee. For me know- " eth and underftandeth all things, and " me (hall lead me foberly in my do- " ings, and preferve me by her power ft For what man is he that can " know the counfel of God -, or who " can think what the will of the Lord " is, except thou give wifdom, and fend " thy Holy Spirit from above a ?" Such gracious promifes are made, and are ready to be fulfilled to the retired Chrif- tian. Let but the pollutions and dif- tradtions of the world be removed, and the wifdom which " is firft pure, and " then peaceable," will enter in. To receive the law, Mofes was called away from the congregation to the top of the mount. Ezekiel beheld the vifions of God, while a folitary captive upon the banks of Chebar. Daniel was informed concerning the reftoration of Jerufakm, and the advent of Meffiah, on the even- ing of a day dedicated to retirement, for the purpofes of fafting and prayer. Wifd. ix. 4. G St. John 50 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.III. St. John was an exile in the deiblate ^v~^ Pafmos, when the glorious fcenes de- fcribed in the book of Revelation were made to pafs before him, and he was enabled to extend his view, through all the different revolutions of empires, and periods of the church, to the end of time. And although we no more look for vifions and revelations from heaven, yet from thence we expert, according to the mod fure promife of our Mafter, the gift of the Spirit, to blefs and pro- fper us in our ftudies, to open to us the fcriptures, and our underftandings, that we may underftand them. The fame Spirit that gave the word, giveth like- wife the interpretation thereof. And the latter, as well as the former, is heft re- ceivedin folitude, which appears to be thus admirably calculated for the attain- ment of ivifdom, as it requireth ftudy and attention, a difpamonate and un- prejudiced mind, and that illumination which is from on high. SIN, in the language of fcripture, is ftyledy^, to intimate to us, that true 'wlfdom and bolinefs are infeparable companions. That, therefore, which con- of. St. JOHN //fo ^BAPTIST. 51 conduceth to the acquifition of one,SECT.ni. can never bear an unfavourable towards the other ; and folitude will be found the beft nurfe of fanSlity, more particularly as it confifteth in the exer- cife of mortification. TH i s is a work which no man can fet about, until he knoweth what thofe failings are, to which he is fubje<5l. And fuch is the power of felf-love, that the perfon concerned is generally the laft who comes to a knowlege of this moft important point. If neither the fidelity of his friends nor the malice of his ene- mies let him into the fecret, there is only a third way in which it is poffible for him to become matter of it, which is felf-examination, conftantly, fincerely, and thoroughly pra&ifed. And this re- quireth ftated feafons of retirement ; for want of which, we fee thofe, who are engaged in a circle of bufinefs, or pleafures, living entire ftrangers to them- felves and their own infirmities, though intimately acquainted with the follies and foibles of all around them. " In " the night," the pfalmift tells us, he " communed with his own heart, and G 2 " his 52 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.III. " his fpirit made diligent fearch V f~Y~^ Then filence and folitude afforded him an opportunity of fcrutinizing the tem- pers of his foul, of difcovering the ma- ladies to which he was inclined, and of applying the proper remedies to each. THAT medicines may be admini- ftered with fuccefs, it is neceffary to cut off the provifions, which nourim and increafe the diforder. The world, in the cafe before us, is full of fuch pro- vifions ; and therefore the patient muft withdraw, for a while, from the in- fluence of it's temptations. " Where " no wood is, the fire goeth out b ." Remove the object, and the pafiion will by degrees die away. In folitude, the pleafures and glories of the world no longer ftrike upon the fenfes, and foli- cit the affections. The foul, therefore, in this fituation, like one efcaped out of a battle to a place of fecurity, hath leifure to reflect upon her condition, and to provide for her future fafety. By looking into herfelf, me perceiveth how much me ftandeth in need of mercy a Pf.lxxvii.6. * Prov. xxyi. 20. and of Sf. JOHN the BAPTIST. 53 and grace; and then me is naturally SECT.IH, led to look up to heaven, as the on place from whence they are to be ob- tained. The former of thefe profpedts filleth her with compunction, and caufeth her to mourn for her fins with that godly forrow which worketh a repent- ance never to be repented of; the latter encourageth her to pour forth herfelf in continual prayer to the God of her fal- vation, until he have mercy upon her. St. Peter, when reminded of his offence by the crowing of the cock, and the affectionate look of an abjured Matter, went out from the high prieft's hall where he was, and in folitude, with ftrong crying and tears, made fupplica- tion for pardon and peace. In retire- ment it is, that we find ourfelves beft able to practife all the holy arts of ab- ftinence and felf-denial, fo needful for the perfecting repentance by mortifying the whole body of fin. WH E N men cannot be induced vo- luntarily to take this courfe, they are often forced into it by Providence vifit- ing them with fome heavy calamity, which by a ilroke, like the amputation of 54 Confederations on the Life and Death of a limb, fevere but falutary, fepara- ting them at once from the world, {hall oblige them to converfe firft with them- ielves, and then with God. Thus was Babylon 's haughty monarch driven, in an extraordinary manner, from fociety, to learn humility in the fields and woods, until he acknowledged the power and the righteoufnefs of the King of heaven. And thus the idolatrous and fuperla- tively wicked Manoffeh became a fmcere and hearty penitent in the folitude of a Chaldean prifon. Nor can we but ad- mire, upon this occafion, the wifdom and goodnefs of God in fending fick- nefs, as a preparative for death. Sick- nefs takes a man, as it were, out of this fc-ene of things, to fit him for an- other. It draws the curtain between him and the world, (hutting out all it's cares, and all it's pleafures. It puts away his idle and noify acquaintance far from him ; and having thus fecured his attention to the one thing needful, gives him ideas of the nature of fin, and the importance of death, the vanities of time, and the glories of eternity, to which he was before an utter {banger. Now of Sf. JOHN the BAPTIST. 55 Now appear to him, in their proper SECT. HI. colours and natural deformity, the bolical nature of pride and envy, the brutality of intemperance, the folly and torment of lafcivioufnefs, the wretched- nefs of avarice, and the ftuphjity of floth. Now he hath no longer any un- lawful defires, and grieves that he ever had fuch. Now he is what he always ought to have been, and what retire- ment, at proper feafons, mould and would have made him. IN morality, as in hufbandry, the preparation of the foil is a great ftep towards the production of a plentiful harvefl. If carnal defires are dead in us, all things belonging to the Spirit will live and grow in us. If the affec- tions are dilengaged from things on earth, the difficulty of the work is over ; they will readily and eagerly lay hold on things above, when propofed to them. If the fnare of congupifcence be broken, and the foul be delivered out of it, (he will prefently fly away, on the wings of faith and charity, towards heaven. They who have duly practifed mortifi- cation in the fchool of retirement, will, at 56 Corifiderations on the Life and Death SECT.III. at their appearance in the world, afford it the brighteft examples of every thing that is " honeft, jure, pure, lovely, and " of good report." WE may, therefore, conclude, that he who defires to undertake the office of guiding others in the ways of wif- dom and holinefs, will beft qualify him- felf for that purpofe by firft pafling fome time in a flate of fequeftration from the world > where anxious cares and delu- five pleafures may not break in upon him, to diflipate his attention ; where no fceptical or fectarian fpirit may blind his underftanding, and nothing may obftrucT: the illumination from above ; where every vicious inclination may be mortified through grace, by a prudent application of the proper means ; and every frem bud of virtue, flickered from noxious blafts, may be gradually reared up into flrength, beauty, and fragrance; where, in a word, " he may grow and " wax ftrong in fpirit, until the day of " his fhewing unto Ifrael." SEC- of St. Jo H N the, BAPTIST. SECTION IV. Confederations on the Prophecies relative to St. John in the Old l^ejtament. : . . BEFORE we proceed to view theSEcr.iv. Baptift in the exercife of his mi- niftry, it will be proper to look back to the predictions in the Scriptures of the Old Teftament, concerning his of- fice and character. We fhall begin with that remarkable one, " Behold, I ft will fend you Elijah the prophet, be- " fore the coming of the great and " dreadful day of the Lord. And he " fhall turn the heart of the fathers to "the children, and the heart of the " children to their fathers, left I come, " and finite the earth with a curfe V A s there was amongft the Jews a general expectation of Mefliah's appear- ance, at the time when he did appear, fo an opinion likewife prevailed, that the world mould be firft prepared for his reception, in fome extraordinary a - Mai. iv. 5, 6. H manner. ^8 Confederations on the 'Life and Death SECT.IV. manner. But wrong ideas of his ap- arance and kingdom introduced mif- takes with regard to the perfon who fhould precede and proclaim him. Ac- cording to the notions then current, oc- cafioned by applying to his firft advent the prophecies which belonged to his fecond, MefTiah was to come in power and majefty, to confer on the fons of Jacob' dominion over the Gentiles, and make Jeriifalem the metropolis of the world. And by mifunderitanding this prediction of Malachi, they had ima- gined, that Elijah the Tijhblte mould return from heaven, as his precurfor. For this reafon it was, that when the fanhedrim fent a mefTage to St. John, defiring to know, whether he were "Ellas ? he anfwered, " I am not :" not the Ellas by them intended and expect- ed. But that St. John was the perfon foretold by Malachl under the name of Elias, we have the declarations of our Lord himfelf to his own difciples, " Elias is indeed come 8 ;" and to the Jews, " If ye will receive it, this is " Elias which was for to come. He * Mark ix. 13. " that of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 59 " that hath ears to hear, let him hear*." SECT.IV. By thefe expreffions it was evidently v> ~ v ~ s Chrift's intention to put his hearers up- on the fearch after fomething more than the words, in the bare letter of them, might feem to contain. He directed them to go deeper into things, to ftudy with attention the miffion of the Bap- tift, his office and character; to com- pare together perfons, times, and events; and fo to difcover, in what fenfe John was Elias, and why Malachi had given him that appellation. But if they did this, and were once brought, in the perfon of yobn, to acknowledge Elias who was to precede the Meffiah, they muft necefTarily, in the perfon of *Jejus, acknowledge the Meffiah whom Elias was to precede. And therefore, as they were obftinately refolved not to own the Matter, Chrift knew they would not recognize the fervant, or receive this faying concerning him. Thus 1 when the chief priefls and elders interrogated our Lord in the temple, " By what au- " thority doft thou thefe things, or " who gave thee this authority ? I will a Matt. xi. 14. H 2 alfo," 60 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.IV." alfo," faid he, " afk you one queftion, ""The baptifm of John, was it from " heaven, or of men ?" They perceived the dilemma, and having considered confequences, made the only Jafe an- fwer, " We cannot tell a ;" an anfwer which did honour to their prudence and their caution, but certainly at the ex- pence either of their wifdom, or their honefty. As fitting in the chair of Mofes, they ought to have known whence the baptifm of John was ; and if they did know, they ought not to have been fhy of declaring it. TH AT St. John was the Elias pre- dicted by Malachi, we have alfo the tef- timony of the angel b , at the annuntia- tion of his birth, who cites the very words of the prophet j " He mall go " before him in the fpirit and power of " Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers " to the children' &c. And if this be the cafe, it follows by neceffary infe- rence, that by " the great and dreadful " day of the Lord," before the coming of which Elijah is promifed, Malachi a Matt. xxi. 23. b Luke i. 7. intends, ; of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 6l intends, primarily and immediately, the SECT. IV. day, not of the world's, but of Jeru- Ja/em's deftrudion. For want of advert- ing to this, an opinion hath prevailed among Chriftian interpreters, that the whole prophecy relateth principally to the day of judgment, and to the appear- ance of an Elias, who mail then pre- cede Chrift. Whether there will be fuch an Elias at that time, and fo the fecond advent will fymbolize with the firil in the circumftance of being pre- vioufly proclaimed by a harbinger, like St. John, fent for that purpofe, is a fpe- culation with which we mall not at pre- fent concern ourfelves, refting fatisfied with the application of the prophecy, upon infallible grounds, to the perfon of the Baptift, the undoubted forerun- ner of our Lord, when he came to vifit us in great humility. GOD punimeth not finners, till he hath firft invited them to repentance. He giveth fair warning before he ftrik- eth -, and a day of grace, in which mercy may be fought, and pardon found, al- ways goeth before a day of vengeance and extermination. Elias was fent " be- " fore 62 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.IV. " fore the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord;" John call- ed his countrymen to turn from their fins, and believe in their Meffiah, e'er yet the defolations of Jerujalem exhibit- ed to the wondering nations a fpecimen of that almighty power and inflexible juftice, which mall one day lay the world itfelf in ruins. TH E third chapter of Malacht con- taineth a moft evident and clear pre- didtion of Meffiah's advent, with that of his precurfor St. John. " Behold, I " will fend my meflenger, and he mall " prepare the way before me ; and the " Lord whom ye feek fliall fuddenly " come to his temple, even the meflen- " ger of the covenant whom ye delight " in : behold he mall come, faith the " Lord of hofts." The prophet goes on to foretell the effects of Chrift's ad- vent in the feleclion of a peculiar peo- ple, and the purification of a new priefl- hood, to offer new and acceptable of- ferings. " But who may abide the day " of his coming, and who fhall ftand, " when he appeareth ? For he is like a " Kfiaer's fire, and like fuller's foap. And of St. Jo H N the BAPTI ST. 63 " And he fhall fit as a refiner and puri- SECT.TV. " fier of filver -, and he {hall purify the ^^^ " fons of Levi, and purge them as gold " and filver, that they may offer unto " the Lord an offering in righteoufnefs. " Then fhall the offering of Judah and " Jerufalem be pleafant unto the Lord, " as in the days of old, and as in for- " mer years j" pleafant as in the days when their fathers offered in faith, and the defire of Memah's appearance was the ruling pamon of their fouls. The reft of the chapter is employed in re- proving the rebellion, facrilege, and in- fidelity of the Jews ; and the fourth chapter opens with a defcription of the day fatal to Jerufalem " Behold the " day cometh that fhall burn as an oven, " and all the proud, yea and all that do " wickedly mall be ftubble, and the day " that cometh mall burn them up, faith " the Lord of hofts, that it fhall leave " them neither root nor branch." For the confolation of the faithful, God by his prophet again foretelleth Meffiah's advent, with the increafe, victory, and triumph of the church " But unto " you that fear my name, mail the SUN OF 64 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.IV. "OF RIGHTEOUSNESS arife, healing in his wings ; and ye mall go' " forth, and grow up as the Drillings " of bullocks : and ye fhall tread down " the wicked, for they mall be ames ** under the foles of your feet, in the " day that I fhall do this, faith the Lord' " of hofts." In the mean time, " Re- " member ye the law- of Mofes my fer- ** vant,- which I commanded unto him " in Horeb for all Ifrael, with the ifca^ " tutes and judgments." And then , when^the law hath done it's office, and 1 prophefied for the 1 appointed time,. " Behold I will fend you Elijah the " prophet i" not the perfonal Elijah, but, as the angel expoundeth it, one to preach and live after the model of his example, in his "fpirit and power." Thus, -in the, prophecy of Rzekiel, where God foretellcth'the union of Ifrael and Jttdah in the days of Meffiah, he faith, " They (hall be my people, and I will " be their God, and David my fei-vant " (hall be their prince for ever V Not that Chrift was to be David rifen from the dead, or, when he came, was to a 'Ezek. xxxvii. 23. bear of St. JOHN the BAPTIST, 6$ bear his name, but was to be, in cer- SECT.IV. tain refpeds, like David, conquering the enemies, and fitting upon the throne of IfraeL So the forerunner of Meffiah was not to be Elijah defcended from heaven, nor was he, at his manifefta- tion, to be called by that name, but was to be like him in his office and charac- ter. Such a meffenger, laith God, " I " will fend, before the coming of the " great and dreadful day of the Lord," that is, the day that mould " burn like " an oven," the day of Jerufalems de- fhu&ion, mentioned in the firft verfe. " And he mall turn the heart of the. " fathers to the children, and the heart " of the children to the fathers, left I " come and fmite the earth," or the " land, with a curfe." In the citation of this pafiage by the angel, one part of it is paraphrased - " To turn the " hearts of the fathers to the children, " and the difobedient to the wifdom of the "jujl*S' The meaning of the whole feems to be, either, that men of every age and every difpofition moukl be uni- ted in truth and charity ; or, as fome * Luke i. 17, I learned 66 Confiderations on the Life and Death SECT.IV. learned expofitors underftand the paf- fage, that St. John fhould bring many of the Jews to have the fame heart and mind which their fathers and progeni- tors had, who feared God, and believed his promifes; that fo their fathers might, as it were, rejoice in them, and own them again for their children ; in other words, that he fhould convert them to the faith of that Chrift whom their fathers hoped in, and looked for -, as it was faid by the angel, " Many of the children " of Ifrael mall he turn to the Lord " their God a ;" left, all continuing ob- flinate in their unbelief, till the day when a rejected Saviour mould vifit an apoftate people, the curfe fhould be univerfal. BESIDES thefe notices afforded us by Malachi, there is a prophecy on the fame fubjecl: in the XL^ chapter of Ifaiah, to which St. John referred the priefts and levites, when they preffed him, faying, " Who art thou, that we " may give an anfwer to them that fent "us? What fayeft thou of thyfelf ? " He faid, I am the voice of one crying a Luke i. 16; " in of St. JOHN "//fo BAPTIST. 67 " in the wildernefs, make ftraight the SECT. IV. " way of the Lord, as faid the prophet " Efaias V But let us take a view pf the whole context, as far as it concerns our prefent purpofe. Is A i. XL. i. " Comfort ye, comfort " ye my people, faith your God." TH E future manifeftation of Chrift's kingdom is reprefented to the prophet in fpirit, with the concomitant ligns and circumftances of it. He hears the voice of God directing his fervants to comfort his people, by proclaiming certain glad tidings which had been communicated to them. Thefe glad tidings were the tidings of the Gofpel. The perfons to whom they firfl came were Zacharias, the blefled Virgin, Simeon, and Anna, who compofed facred fongs upon the occaiion, and fpake of Mefliah's advent " to all fuch as looked for redemption " in Jerufalem b ." The fame tidings were afterwards publifhed by the Bap- tift, then by Chrift himfelf and his a John i. 23. k Luke ii. 38. I 2 apoftles, 68 Confideratlons on the Life and Death eT.iV. apoftles, and have been ever fince preached by their fucceffors, whofe commiffion ftill runs - " Comfort ye, " comfort ye my people." 2. fi SPEAK ye comfortably to Jeru- " falem, and cry unto her, that " her warfare is accomplifhed, " that her iniquity is pardoned : for (he hath received of the " Lord's hand double for all her < fins." JOIC7 " GOOD news mould be related with a fui table afped and accent. The man- ner mould correfpond with the matter. *' Speak ye comfortably," or, as it is in the Hebrew phrafeology, " to the heart '* of Jerufalem " let your words be as cordials, to revive and chear her in the midft of her forrows and fufferings. The topics of confolation, to be infilled on, are three. Firil, onely defart chears -, Prepare the way ! a God, a God ap- pears. The voice which thus founded in the prophet's ears, fo long before it was really heard upon the earth, was that of of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 71 of the Baptift, who, at the proper fea-S E cT.lv, fon, was fent, to difpofe the hearts affections of men for the reception of their Saviour, when he mould make his appearance. 4. " EVERY valley mall be exalted, " and every mountain and hill " made low : and the crooked " mall be made ftraight, and " the rough places plain." THESE are the words of the prophet himfelf, unfolding the counfels of God concerning the manner in which Mef- fiah's kingdom mould be eftablifhed in the world, and the alterations which muft necefTarily take place, in order to that end. " Every valley mall be ex- " alted ;" to the poor in fpirit, the lowly and contrite fouls, the Gofpel mall be preached, and they mail be exalted in faith and hope " and every moun- " tain and hill made low ;" on the con- trary, pride of every kind, and in every fhape, whether exalting itfelf in judai- cal pharifaifm, or in gentile philofophy, againft the knowlege of God, mall be made 7 2 Confiderations on the Life and Death SECT.IV, made low, and fubdued to the obedience f Chrift : " and the crooked ihall be -" made ilraight;" truth and rectitude ihall fucceed to error and depravity *' and the rough places plain ;" every thing that ofFendeth fhall be removed, and all difficulties and inequalities fmoothed, till unanimity and uniformity prevail. Thus ihall the way be prepa- red for the King of Righteoufnefs to vifit his people, to dwell in them, and to walk among them. 5. " AN D the glory of the Lord fliall " be revealed, and all fleih ihall " fee it together; for the mouth " of the Lord hath fpoken it." IMMEDIATELY after the proclama- tion and preparation made by the Bap- tift, the Divinity was revealed in human nature, God was manifefled in the fleih, feen and converfed with by all ranks and degrees of men, high and low, rich and poor, Jews and Gentiles, Pha- rifees and Saducees, publicans and fin- ners. The accompliihment of this part of I/aiah's prophecy is exa&ly related by St. of St. JOHN 'the BAPTIST. St. John the Evangelift, in the follow-SEcr.lv. ing terms -, " The word was made fle " and dwelt among us, and we beheld " his GLORY, the glory as of the only " begotten of the Father, full of grace " and truth V THUS we have feen under what cha- racter the Baptift is held forth to us in the predictions of the prophets con- cerning him, as one who mould go be- fore Mefliah in the fpirit and power of E/ias, to proclaim and prepare the way for the advent of God incarnate. How perfectly, during the courfe of his mi- niftry, he filled up this character, will appear in the fubfequent fedlions. * John i. 14. K SEC- 74 Coxfideratiotos on the Life and Death SECTION V. Confideratiom on the appearance, doctrine, and baptifm of St. John. SKCT.V. r-Tp HE days of St. Johns retirement Vx-v*^ 11 11 JL were now ended, and he was to exchange the pteafures of contemplation For the far different fcenes of an active life j to behold, with grief and indig- nation, the fins and follies of mankind, the light of which muft needs be more grating and afflicting to his righteous foul, than a garment of camel's hair could be to his body -, to encounter the oppofition of a world that would be fure to take arms againft him, from the moment in which he flood forth a preacher of repentance and reforma- tion. But no good could be done to others in folitude, no converts could be made in the defarts j and he muft there- fore 'quit even the moft refined and ex- alted of intellectual enjoyments, as every minifter of Chrift iliould be ready to do, when of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 75 when charity dictates an attendance on SECT.V the neceffities of his fellow creatures. YET let it be obferved, that St. John was thirty years of age, when " the " word of God came to him in the wil- " dernefs a ," and commiffioned him to enter upon his miniftry j and the holy Jefus likewife was of the fame age, when inaugurated to his office, by the vifible defcent of the Spirit upon him at his baptifm ; to intimate, perhaps, that neither the exigences of mankind, nor a confcioufnefs of abilities for the work, can be pleaded as a fufficient warrant for a man to run before he is fent, and take the facred office up- on himfelf, without a regular and law- ful call. The institutions of God are not without a reafon, and he will not be ferved by the breach of his com- mandments. TH E place to which the Baptift firft repaired is ftyled the wildernels of " Judea b ," a country not like the vaft and uninhabited defarts in which he was educated, but one thinly peopled, a a Luke iii. 2. b Mate, iii.' i. Luke iii. 3. K 2 com- 7 6 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.V. comparative wildernefs, chofen by him account of it's bordering on the river. Hither the inhabitants of the neigh- bouring cities and villages preiently flocked in great numbers, attracted by the uncommon fanctity of the new preacher, who thus came forth, on a fudden, from the defarts, like one from another world, without any connections in this, that no attachment might take him off from the duties of his high calling, or any way impede him in the exercife of it ; fince a man's worft foes have often been thofe of his own houf- hold, and the ties of fleth and blood have been known to prevail, where ty- rants have threatened and inflicted tor- tures, without effect. And as there is nothing fo directly oppofite to the pro- feflion of a prophet, nothing which fo foon or fo effectually fullies his reputa- tion, as a tendency to indulgence and fenfuality ; in him, who was " more " than a prophet %" we muft expect to find a perfect crucifixion of the fled), with it's affections and lults. " What " went ye out into the wildernefs to a Matt. xi. 9. fee ? of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 77 " fee ? A man clothed in foft raiment 3 ?" SECT.V. No, the very reverfe ; a man, like predecefTor Elijah, coarfly attired ; " his " raiment" of camel's hair, with a lea- " them girdle about his loins ;" and content with the plainefl food that na- ture could provide for him; " his meat, " locufts, and wild honey b ;" a man, whofe perfon, habit, and manner of life, were themfelves a fermon, and the beft illuitration of the doctrine he was about to teach; a proper perfon to prepare the way for Chrirt, and introduce the law to the gofpel ; to mew men what effect the one ought to have upon them, in order to difpofe them for the blemngs of the other; that mercy might fave from the wrath which juiKce had de- nounced, and Jefus comfort thole whom Mojes had caufed to mourn. TH E actions of a prophet, who ap- pears, like the Baptift, with an extra- ordinary miffion, though they are not to be imitated by us according to the letter, may yet convey a moral of ge- neral ufe. There is no obligation upon a Matt. xi. 8. " Jbid. iii. 4. US 78 Conjiderations on the Life and Death SECT.V. us to be clothed with camel's hair, and to eat locufts and 'wild honey, nor are we commanded to abftain wholly from wine, as St. John did, according to the pre- diction of the angel concerning him, delivered at the annuntiation of his birth, " He mail drink neither wine nor " ftrong drink, and mail be filled with *' the Holy Ghoft even from his mo- " ther's womb V But who doth not here perceive, evidently marked out, the oppofition between fenfuality and the fpirit of holinefs, and the imporli- bility of their dwelling together under the fame roof? " Into a malicious foul " wifdom mall not enter, nor dwell " in a body that is fubjecl: to fin. For " the holy fpirit of difcipline will flee " deceit, and remove from thoughts " that are without underftanding, and " will not abide when unrighteoufnefs " cometh in b ." As, therefore, " no " man can fay that Jefus is the Lord, " but by the Holy Ghoft V who fpeaks in the fcriptures, who enlightens our a Luke i. 15. b Wifd. i. 4. c i Cor. xii. 3. under- of St. JOHN -the BAPTIST. underftandings to interpret them, and SECT.V. who gives authority as well as ability to preach that great truth revealed in them, every minifter of Chrift, who fucceeds the Baptiil in the blerled work of calling men to falvation, fhould mor- tify the lufts of the flefh, that the graces of the Spirit may live and grow in him. B Y a thorough mortification of the flefh, St. John had gained a compleat victory over the world, which had no- thing in it that he wanted. And herein confined that greatnefs of his character foretold by the angel -, " He mail be "great in the fight of the LordV Earthly pageantry engages not the at- tention of the fpirits above, unlefs it be to pity fuch as fet their hearts upon it. They difcerned fomething more truly great in the perfon of the Baptifr, when he came forth from the defarts, than in that of a triumphant monarch, at the head of his victorious army. " Behold," faith our Lord, " they that ** wear foft clothing are in kings' 8 Luke i. 15. houfes a ;" 86 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.V. " houfes a ;" look for them among the ^'V^ attendants upon the princes of this world, and not among my fervants. They who thirft after temporal honours and advantages, muft go where fuch things are to be had. And let them go any where, rather than come into the church, with thefe difpofitions. For he who would perfuade others to defpife the world, while the love of it appears to direct and govern all his own actions, can expect no better fuccefs than it may be fuppofed St. Peter would have met with, had he invited thofe, who flood with him round the fire in the high prieft's hall, into* the fervice of that mailer, whom they had juft before heard him deny. " When thou art " converted, ftrengthen thy brethren b :" attempt not to do it till then, left thou not only falleft into condemnation thy- felf, but layeft a Humbling block in the way of the weak, and caufeft the name of God and his gofpel to be thus blaf- phemed through thy double-minded- nefs, while thy life is at variance with a Matt. xi. 8. k Luke xxii. 32. thy of .St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 81 thy doctrine. He who undertakes to SECT.V. reprove the world, muft be one whom the world cannot reprove. All eyes will be upon him ; his actions, his words, his very geftures and looks will be ob- ferved and canvafled by his marp lighted enemies. It will therefore behove one, fo expofed on all fides, to abftain from the leaft appearance of evil, to ftand at the utmoft diftance from temptation, and to prevent even the pombility of a fufpicion. The ax muft be laid to the root, and the pamons mortified, till the man become, in the emphatical lan- guage of fcripture, " dead to fin a ," as a corpfe is to the delights and concerns of life. "The dead know not any thing, " neither have they any more a portion " in any thing that is done under the " fun b ." STRANGE, therefore, as St. Johns appearance and manner of life might at firft feem, they were prefently explain- ed, when he began to preach a doctrine harfh and diftafteful to flefh and blood, as the garment he wore, and the food a Rom. vi. 2. b Ecclef. ix. 5, 6. L on g2 Confederations on the Life and T)eatb SECT.V. on which he fubfifted. " Repent ye ;" is, Be converted, or changed, in heart and mind, in principle and prac- tice, from error to truth, from fin to righteoufnefs, from the flem to the Spi- rit, from the world to God -, "for the " kingdom of heaven is at hand 3 ;" a new and heavenly kingdom is about to be fet up amongft you, with new and heavenly laws, under a new and heavenly king, the promifed Mefliah, and none but men of new and heavenly tempers and difpofitions can poffibly become the fubjects of it. I am the perfon com- mirTioned to prepare you for your happy change, by calling you to repentance, and to my baptifm which is " the bap- " tifm of repentance, for the remiffion " of fins b ," through faith in him " who " cometh after me," to confer pardon and forgivenefs. I am the meffenger foretold by Malachi and IJhiab, fent in this manner to prepare the way of him who is your King, your Lord, and your God, now ready to be revealed, as the Saviour of men. " Repent ye, for the * Matt. iii. 2 . h Luke iii. 3. " king- cf St. JOHN 'the BAPTIST. 83 " kingdom of heaven is at hand." Thus SECT.V. did St. Jolm lay the foundations of the ^^^^ evangelical edifice in mortification and felf-denial ; nor did his bleiTed Mailer afterward propofe the glories of a crown to any but thofe who mould be ready to take up their crofs in the way to them. TH E appearance of fanctity, put on by every impoftor, is a proof of the in- fluence, which it hath, when genuine and unaffected, over the minds of men. The preacher will always be attended, who conforms to his own doctrine, and exemplifies it in his life, be that doc- trine ever fo rigid. No fooner was it known, that yobn, the fon of Zacha- rias, was come forth from the defarts, and had begun to preach, but " there " went out unto him Jerufalem, and all " Judea, and all the region round about Jordan, and were baptized of him in " Jordan, confefling their fins V The difcourfes of the Baptift were fharp and piercing as lancets. He applied them home to the human heart, fwollen with pride, and full of iniquity. And indeed, 8 Matt. iii. 5, 6. L 2 much 84 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.V. much anxiety and wretchednefs might be relieved, much defpair and fuicide might be prevented among us of this land, if the members of our church would but follow her direction, and as often as their minds were opprefled, and they could not quiet their own con- fciences, go " to fome difcreet and " learned minifter of God's word, and " open their grief, that they might re- " ceive the benefit of abfolution, to- " gether with ghoflly counfel and ad- " vice." '" TH E wifdom and goodnefs of God are feen in his manner of proportioning his aids to the exigences of his people, and raifing up reformers, when religion moft needs their help, to revive the true fpirit of it among men. If we view the ftate of things in Judea at two dif- ferent periods, we mall foon perceive how feafonably Elijah was fent at one time, and John the Baptift, that fecond Elijah, at another. Each was an aera of diftinguimed corruption, but corrup- tion of a different fpecies. During the former, idolatry was the famionable er- ror, which had found it's way into the court, of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 85 court, and overfpread the face of the SECT.V. church. The charafteriftics of the lat- ter were, on the one hand, a pharifai- cal hypocrify, a boafl of moral recti- tude, which exifted only in theory, and a vain confidence in a law which nobody obfervedj on the other, a Sadducean infidelity, oppofed to the national faith and hope, denying a refurredtion, and future ftate of retribution. Elijah re- claimed the people from the worfhip of Baal to that of the true God -, John called his hearers from unbelief, hypo- crify, and vice, to faith and holinefs. AN ambafTador of heaven, fent to preach truth to thofe who are captivated by error, and righteoufnefs to thofe who are enamoured of fin, will never pro- ceed far in the difcharge of his truft, unlefs he be endued with a fervent zeal for the caufe and the honour of him that fent him. Every holy perfon is not bleffed with a fpirit, any more than he is invefted with a commiffion, to ap- pear in a public capacity, to reprove rulers and kings, to look an angry world in the face, and overcome all the oppo- fition it can raife againft him. Zeal, with- 86 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.V. without holinefs to fupport it, like a meteor, will blaze and expire. Zeal, without knowlege to limit and direcl: it, will wafte and deftroy, like the ele- ment from the effect of which it takes it's name, when that has burft it's bounds, and rules where it ought to be in fubjection. But when knowlege and holinefs are firft obtained, it is zeal which muft quicken and diffufe them, as the fun doth light and heat, for the benefit of the univerfe. " Then ftood " up Elias the prophet as fire," faith the fon of Sirach, " and his word burnt like a lamp 3 ." And our Lord, fpeak- ing of the Baptift, gives this account of him, ." He was a burning and a " mining light b ." His zeal was tem- pered with knowlege, for it gave light ; and his knowlege was actuated by zeal, for it was burning as well as Jhining. His fermons came warm from the heart of the fpeaker, and therefore found their way to that of the hearer, which was inflamed by them with the love, as a Ecclef. xlviii. i. k John v. 35. his of Sf. JOHN the BAPTIST. 87 his underftanding was enlightened with SECT.V. the knowlege of heavenly things. LET as view and compare together the zeal of E,lijah y exerted before idola- trous Ifrael arTembled at mount Carmel t and that diiplayed by St. John, when he faw the Pharifees and Sadducees come to his baptifm. FOR the fins of the people, and the iniquities of the prince, in the days of Elijah*, heaven was clofed over their heads, the bleffings -of rain and dew were withheld till the divine author of them mould be again acknowleged, and famine {talked through the land, preach- ing repentance as (lie went. Ifrael felt the wound, but owned not the hand that inflicted it. The Almighty had conftituted the prophet his vicegerent, and enjoined the elements to fecond him in the work of reformation. Ahab and his fubjeds, inftead of confulting Eli- jah about the removal of their calami- ties, regarded him as the occafion ;~of them, and the fole " troubler of Ifrael." At the command of God, he prefents himlelf before the king, and tells him * See i Kings xvii, & xviii. plainly 88 Confiderations on the Life and Death SECT.V. plainly, " Thou art the man." IJrael is convened at mount Carmel, and reproved. " Why halt ye between two opinions ? " If Jehovah be God, follow him. But " if Baal, then follow him." The falfe prophets appear on the fide of Baal and his kindred idols, to the number of nine hundred and fifty : on the lide of the true God, Elijah ftands fingle. The trial is made, and the grand queftion determined by a vifible token of the di- vine prefence. The nation returns to it's duty, idolatry is punifhed in it's vo- taries, the heaven gives rain, and the earth brings forth her increafe. O N the banks of Jordan we behold, in the perfon of St. John*, another Elijah, reproving the people of Ifrael, again departed from the Lord their God, while fome, as the Pharifees, were hypocrites, and others, as the Saddu- cees , were unbelievers. Equally a ftranger to fear and partiality, and en- dued with a prophetical power of dif- cerning that ferpentine fubtlety and ma- lignity which lurked under a fpecious outfide, he rebukes them iharply, if by a See Matt. iii. 7,&c. any of Sf. JOHN the BAPTIST. 89 any means he might convince them of SECT. v. fin, and lead them to true repentance. " O generation of vipers, who hath " warned you to flee from the wrath to " come ? " You, who feem to have taken pofTeffion of the inheritance, as if Meffiah would never appear to claim it ; you, who truft in yourfelves that you are righteous, and defpife others; come you to me, to be baptized with publicans and iinners ? What can be the reafon of all this ? What can be your motive ? The bufinefs in hand is not one to be trifled with. Hypocrify has no place here j nor will the exter- nal fhew, without the internal work, in this cafe, avail to any thing, but condemnation. " Bring forth therefore defcent from the loins of Abraham will profit none, but thofe who are like A- braham. His true children are reckoned by faith, not confanguinity. Imagine not that the favour of heaven is heredi- tary and indefeafible in the line of Abra- ham according to the flefh, or that the divine promifes muft fail, if not made good to you -, " for I fay unto you, that " God is able of thefe ftones to raife up " children unto Abraham ;" by the power of his grace he can make con- verts of nations at prefent utterly bar- ren, unfruitful, obdurate, who mall in- herit the blerTing which you reject. Nor kt the confideration, that Meffiah has fo long delayed his coming, induce you to be carelefs and negligent : "for now " is the ax laid to the root of the tree:" believe me, he is at hand -, your trial will foon be over, and your fate deter- mined , the decifive and irremediable ftroke will be ftruck, if not prevented by a timely repentance, a fpeedy and real change of heart and manners ; " every tree which bringeth not forth " good fruit fhall be cut down and caft " into of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 91 into the fire." Hitherto God hath SECT.V born with your errors and iniquities, V - X "V"^- but he will do fo no longer. The law hath been given, and the prophets have been fent ; but they are not regarded ; and therefore he is coming, after whom no other mefTenger is to be expected from above. He will be the Saviour of all, who, from a fenfe of their fins, mall be ready to embrace him as fuch. I am not that perfon, but the leaft and loweft of his fervants, fent before to give notice of his approach, and pre- pare you to receive him. " I indeed " baptize you with water unto repent- " ance ;" but it is he who muft grant remiffion of fins repented of; "he that " cometh after rne is mightier than I, " whofe fhoes I am not worthy to bear;" he brings with him almighty power from on high, to pardon fins, and con- fer grace; " he fhall baptize you with " the Holy Ghoft and with fire," to fandtify your natures, to purify, en- lighten, and inflame your hearts with the defire and love of celeflial objects. At his appearance, he will try and make manifeft the tempers and difpofitions of M 2 men. 92 Confiderations on the Life and Death SECT.V. men. Deceit and hypocrify fhall not ftand before him. " His fan is in his ' hand, and he will throughly purge " his floor," fifting and winnowing that which is good from that which feems to be foj " and he will gather his wheat " into his garner," tranflate to heaven all that is pure, fubftantial, and fruit- ful ; " but he will burn up the chaff," whatfoever is fallacious, light, empty, and barren, " with unquenchable fire," in hell. SUCH a difcourfe from fuch a perfon occafioned great fearchings in the hearts of the people. They found all the vain opinions and prefumptions, on which they had been accuitomed to rely, fud- denly taken from them, and nothing left, but to put themfelves forthwith under the direction of fo holy and hea- venly a preacher. With fear and trem- bling they applied to him, as the af- frighted gaoler afterwards did to Paul and Silas, faying, " What mall we do " then*?" And when a penitent will afk advice of his fpiritual guide, with a determined refolution to follow it, he * Luke iii. 10, &c. is of Sf. JOHN the BAPTIST. 93 is not far from the kingdom of God. SECT.V. He is fenfible of his difeafe; and that, in the maladies of the mind, is half the cure. St. John, in his anfwer, enjoins not legal, but evangelical facrifices, ex- horting his converts to mew the fmce- rity of their converiion by loving their neighbours, and relieving their neceffi- ties, as God had loved and relieved them. " He that hath two coats, let " him impart to him that hath none ; " and he that hath meat let him do " likewife." Thefe works of feeding and clothing the poor, including all other acts of mercy under them, are mentioned, as being the moft neceiTary and indifpenfable ; and he, fays a pious writer upon this paffage, who is not moved with his a brother's mifery, de- ferves to find God unmoved with his own. AMONG others that came to be bap- tized, were fome publicans, or tax-ga- therers ; a fet of men, whofe employ- ment rendered them odious, as it often tempted them to court the favour of thofe who employed them, or to gra- tify their own avarice, by fleecing the people. 94 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.V. people. Thefe alfo were importunate vx " v ~with St. John, faying, " And what (hall " we do ? And he faid unto them, " Exacl: no more than that which is " appointed you." The reflections of the writer above-cited, upon this cafe of the publicans, and the following one of the Jb/diers, are fo extremely fen- lible, judicious, and pertinent, that the reader will have an obligation to me, for prefenting him with them, nearly as I find them. " A wife preacher, like St. John, mould diftinguifh the abufes of any ftate or condition of life from the condition itfelf -, he mould be fo far from difturbing either the peace of pri- vate conferences, or the public repofe, by condemning neceiTary employments, that he ought carefully to promote both, by contenting himfelf with only re- trenching the diforders and injuftice of thofe who exercife them. To be exalt in not permitting any abufes in employments of this nature, is to ferve the ftate : and thofe loofe cafuifts, who allow and authorize them, are perni- cious to governments, by rendering thefe employments odious to the people, by of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 95 by favouring their murmurings, by en- SECT.V. couraging afts of injuftice, and thereby giving occafion to rebellion and revolt, " And the foldiers demanded of him, " faying, And what mall we do ? And " he faid unto them, Do violence to no " man, neither accufe any falfely, and " be content with your wages." St. John here, in the laft place, regulates the duties of military perfons, and mews, that no condition is excluded from fal- vation. The bufinefs of war is not in itfelf at all oppofite thereto -, iince there have been not only chrirtianyA//Vr,r, but even great faints and generous martyrs of that profeffion. If all war was con- trary to the gofpel, St. John would not have allowed thofe who prefented them- felves before him to continue in that irate. However it is certainly full of obftacles to falvation, which very few furmount. A irate, which is generally embraced either out of pailion, or li- bertinifm, or through a blind deflina- tion of birth, the exercifes whereof are fo violent and tumultuous, agrees but little with the exercifes of chriftianity, or the fpirit of the gofpel, which is all peace, Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.V. peace, charity, and meeknefs. It is notwithstanding juft and neceffary, that there {hould be men to defend the ftate ; but it is ftill more juft and neceflary, that this mould not be done at the ex- pence of falvation. The grace of God can do every thing : this is what ought to comfort thole who intend to ferve him in ferving their king and country." ONE cannot but obferve the general agreement and harmony which feem to have prevailed, at this time among men other wife of tempers and difpofitions very different from, and oppofite to each other. Jews and Gentiles, Pharifees and Publicans, Sadducees and Soldiers, all confefs their lins, and participate of the fame baptifm, all ftruck with ap- prehenfions of fome impending evil, all flying from the wrath to come, forget- ting their mutual hoftilities and anti- pathies, and, like the creatures in the days of Noah t taking refuge together in the ark. As if the prophecy of Ifaiah had now begun to receive it's accom- plifhment, the publicans, who, before the preaching of John, were ravenous as evening wolves," became as in- nocent of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 97 nocent as the " lamb." The foldiers, SECT.V. who had been formerly fierce and cruel ^"V" N -' as the " lion," became tame and tracl> able as the " ox," and fubmitted their necks to the yoke of the gofpel. Such of the Pharifees likewife, who, before their baptifm, had been venomous as the " afp," or " cockatrice," did, by the worthy receiving of this baptifm, and the grace which God gave them, be- come mild and gentle as the (< fucking "infant," or "weaned child 3 ." TH E concord thus produced in jfa- dea by the fermons of St. John, and the tranquillity which the whole earth then enjoyed, fitting quiet as it were in expectation of her Lord, betokened the manifeftation of the Prince of peace. " Then cometh Jefus from Galilee to " Jordan to John, to be baptized of " him V After thirty years paft in re- tirement at Nazareth, the blefled Jefus was now to break forth, like the fun from a cloud, or a ftream from the bowels of the earth, to enlighten man- * See the Works of Dr Thomas Jackibn, ii. 522. i- i 3 &c. N kind 9 8 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.V. kind by his doctrine, and refrefh them with the influences of his grace. The mighty concourfe of all ranks and de- grees of people attending St. John at the river Jordan, rendered that the fit- teft place where he might firfl fhew himfelf to the world. He who knew no fin, but was to take away the fins of all other men, prefented himfelf in the crowd of finners, as one of them, and folicited " the baptifm of repentance," not that water might fanctify him, but that he might " fandlify water to the *' myftical warning away of fin." CONFOUNDED at the thought of the Mafler being baptized by the fervant, St. John at firft ' forbad him, faying, I " have need to be baptized of thee, and " comeft thou to me ? And Jefus an- " fwering faid unto him, Suffer it to be " fo now, for thus it becometh us to " fulfil all righteoufnefs. Then he fuf- " fered him." Jefus Chrift, as con- defcending to fland charged with our fins, and, to that end, being " made " under the law a ," was to fulfil the " righteoufnefs" of the law, as it con- * Gal. iv. 4. fitted of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 99 fitted in an obedience to ceremonial SECT.V. rites, as well as moral precepts. In the ^v*^ character and capacity of our fubftitute, he underwent circumcifion, although he had no fin of his own to be cut off; and received baptifm, although he had no pollution of his own to be warned away. What Chriflian can flight the or- dinances of the church, when he fees the Redeemer, for his fake, fubmitting to obferve them all ? N o fooner was Jefus baptized, but he " came up ftraightway" out of the river, like another Jofoua, leading his people, through the waters of Jordan, to the land of promife. And as he was " praying," doubtlefs for fuccefs in the great work he had undertaken, " Lo, " the heavens were opened, and the " Spirit of God," encompafTed, we may prefume, with a blaze of glory, " def- " cended in a bodily fhape like a dove," fpeaking better things than that of Noah. In this form, emblematical of innocence and purity, it " lighted," fettled, and abode upon him, the Father thus confecrating him to his office, by " anointing him with the Holy Ghofl N 2 "and joo Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.V. " and with power 8 ," as the legal mini- were anointed with oil. And that no doubt might remain, the appearance was farther explained by " a voice from " heaven, faying, " This is my beloved " Son, in whom I am well pleafed." Such are the bleflings which, in effect, do always attend the divine facraments, when duly adminiftered, with prayer. For then the heavens are opened, and the Spirit is given, to conform us to the image of a meek and holy Saviour, and, through him, to make us acceptable in the fight of God. * Afts x. 38. SEC- of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. ioi SECTION VI. Confiderations on the tejllmony born by St. John, at different times, to the MeJJiahJhip of Jefus. WHEN a fervant of God, through SECT.VI. the power of divine grace, hath made fome proficiency in holinefs, and feeth the world and the flem under his feet, it is not uncommon for his third grand enemy, the devil, to fet upon him, and prevail over him, by purring him up with a conceit of his own ex- cellency, and fo rendering his very at- tainments an occafion of his falling. The hurt which a man receives, in fuch a cafe, is proportionable to the height from which he falls ; as hell was firft prepared for the tempter himfelf, be- caufe he fell from heaven. I T is not, therefore, the leaft con- fpicuous part of St. John's character, that a fanctity fo extraordinary was not in him accompanied with any degree of pride, IO2 Conjiderations on the Life and Death SEcr.VLpride, a worm which often cankers faireft fruits that grow in the gar- den of God. He heard his own praife echoed from every quarter, and " all " men," ftruck with admiration at what was about to happen, " mufed in their " hearts concerning him, whether he " was the Chrift V Nay, the Sanhe- drim, that they might be refolved in fo important a point, fent a formal depu- tation of " priefts and Levites from Je- " rufalem, to enquire of him, Who art " thou b ." As the Baptift was, at that time, in high repute among his coun- trymen, and as fecular defigns are fome- times covered with fpiritual pretences, it is not impoflible, but that they might hope to flatter him into an acknowledg- ment of his being " fome great one," and to frame of him a Meffiah adapted to their purpofes. But "John was neither ambitious of an honour which did not belong to him, nor amamed of a Maf- ter, who was about to appear in the form of a fervant. He took no glory to himfelf, but remitted it all where he a Luke Hi. 15. fc John i. 19, &c. knew of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 103 knew it to be due. " He confefled, and SECT.VI. " denied not, but confeffed, I am n " the Chrift. And they aiked him, " What then ? Art thou Elias," that is, Elijah the f ijhbite y whom they expedted to defcend from heaven ? " And he " faith, I am not. Art thou o and it feems to have teen fo ordered by Providence, that no interview had parTed between them, after they had arrived to years of maturity. When Jefus, therefore, came to be baptized, St. John had no knovv- lege of his perfon. But, probably, on making the enquiries, ufual at ! baptifm, into his profeffion, name, and place of abode, and finding likewife, that he had no fins to confefs a , as all others 'had, he faw reafon fufficient to conchide, that this was the Ghrift , which might oc- cafion his apology, " I have need to be " baptized of thee," &c. And then, when Jefus came up out of the water, the Spirit defcended, and put the mat- ter beyond all doubt. I faw, and bare a See Annotations on St. John's GoJ'pel, by the Rev. Mr. Merrick, Part II. p. 50. and the Works of Dr. Jackfon, by him referred to, Vol. II. p. 518. " record, of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 109 " record, that this is the Son of God." SECT.VI. So little account did thefe two wonder- ful -perfonages make of their relation according to the flem. From their in- fancy they had not converfed together ; and when they met, it was in public, 4hat "John might bear his teftimony .; foon after which, he was caft into pri- fon, and faw Jefus no more. An higher, more important, and durable connec- tion, than any formed by confanguini- ty, engaged his attention, as it fhould do that of all ChriiVs difciples, accord- ing to thofe deep and divine ftrains of St. Paul; "The love of Chrift con- " Itraineth us, becaufe we thus judge, " that if one died for all, then were all " dead ; and that he died for all, that " they which live mould not henceforth " live unto themfelves, but unto him " which died for them, and rofe again. " Wherefore henceforth know we no " man after the flem, yea, though we " have known Chrift after the flem, yet " now henceforth know we him no " more. Therefore if any man be in '< Chrift, he is a new creature : old *' things 1 1 o Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.VI." things are paft away; behold, all things are become new V THE Baptift, having now lived to fee the Lord's Chrift, and {hew him to the world, was ready, like old Simeon, to depart in peace, and to make over his difciples to a better Mafter, who would never leave them, nor forfake them. " Again, the next day after, *' John flood, and two of his difciples $ " and looking upon Jefus as he walked, .' he faith, Behold the Lamb of God." Happy the Chriftian minifter, who, like St. John, lives only to point out the Saviour to his people. And happy the people, who, like the two difciples, thereupon follow Jefus, enquire where he dwelleth, enter in, and abide with him. To one of St. Johns difpofition it could not but be matter of concern to find envy and jealoufy ftirring in the breafts of his difciples, on account of the increaling fame of Jefus, as being likely to eclipfe that of their mafter. For on occafion of a difpute which had happened about purification by baptifm 2 Cor. v. 14. (difputes of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. in (difputes being feldom managed fo not to produce ill-will) "they came * c unto John, and faid unto him, Rabbi, " he that was with thee beyond Jordan, " to whom thou beareft witnefs, be- " hold, the fame baptizeth, and all " men come unto himV intimating, that John was in danger of lofing both his credit and his difciples, by means of one, whpm they took for a difciple, like themfelves, as he had been bapti- zed by the fame matter. So ready are men, at every turn, to form parties in religion, and to fet up" their refpective teachers in oppofition to each other ; the confequences of which are, that the hearers wafte that time in wrang- ling about a duty, which mould be fpent in pradlifing it ; and the teachers, if they have not good hearts and fteady heads, preach themfelves, inftead of preaching Jefus Chrift. "All men come " to him ! " Great hath been the power of this argument to kindle the flames of emulation and diffention in the church ; and the difciples of John did not doubt but that the confideration would excite a John iii. 26, &c. in 1 1 2 Confiderations on the Life and Death SECT.VI. in him thofc paffions, which they felt working within themfelves. BUT he was not framed of materials liable to take fire from fuch a fpark. On the contrary, a perufal of the dif- courfe which this addrefs procured from him, is enough at any time to extin- guifh it, where it may have fallen. He made ufe of the incident, to bear his laft and moft noble teftimony to the power and majefty of his Lord. So far was he from being offended, or chagri- ned, becaufe all men reforted to Jefus, that he triumphed in it, as his glory and his joy, as the very end for which he was fent into the world, to preach and to baptize. As if he had faid WHY are ye jealous, and why do envious thoughts arife in your hearts ? Look not to me, or to any thing that is in me, but to God, who made me what I am, placed me in the ftation, and called me to the office defigned for me; " a man can receive," or take to him- felf, " nothing, except it be given him " from above." And ye know the cha- racter in which I have ever acted ; "Ye " yourfelves bear me witnefs, that I " faid, of Sf. JOHN the BAPTIST. " faid, I am not the Chrift, but that I SBCT.VI. " am fent before him," as his merTenger *~^s~^ and minifter, not to afTemble difciples in mine own name, but to prepare men for him, and direct men to him. If therefore ye fet fo much by my autho- rity, why do ye not credit my teftimo- ny ? To Mefiiah, not to me, the church is to be gathered and united ; and " he " that hath the bride is the bridegroom : " but the friend of the bridegroom," who hath been honoured with a mare in bringing about fo happy an event, and who, when it is brought about, " ftandeth and heareth him" converfing with his fpoufe, cannot therefore be grieved and vexed ; he cannot envy the felicity of the bridegroom, or defire to take the bride from him ; but moft af- furedly congratulates with him, and " rejoiceth greatly becaufe of the bride- " groom's voice," finding that he hath fo well fucceeded in the work in which he was employed. This is my very cafe, when you come and tell me, that all men refort to the perfon, of whom I have fo often teftified, that he is the Chrift ; " this my joy therefore is ful- P ' "filled." 114 Confideratwm on the Life an SECT.VI." filled." I have no greater pleafure than to hear, that difciples go from me to him. As the morning ftar, I only fhone to proclaim the approach of the fun. Now he is rifen, I go down ; " he muft increafe, but I muft decreafe ;" he will mine more and more unto the perfect day, while I (hall fet, and dif- appear. And reafon good why it mould be fo . That which is preparatory muft give place to that which is perfective ; a baptifm of water muft yield to a bap- tifm of fire j an human inftruftor muft cede to one that is divine. " He that *' is of the earth is earthly, and fpeak- " etri of the earth ;" in fpite of his beft endeavours, he will favour of his origi- nal, and there will be an alloy of duft and ames in all he faith j whereas " he " that cometh from heaven," I mean the blefled perfon of whom ye are fo jealous, " is above all" the children of Adam. When this fun fhineth in his ftrength, every ftar is obfcured, and the world will perceive the difference be- tween the difcourfes of the Mafter and thofe of the fervant, as readily as it dif- tinguifheth the glories of the day from the of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 115 the pale luftre and faint glimmering of SECT.VI. thofe orbs, which ferve in ibme mea- fure to difpel the darknefs of the night. According to the grace given unto me, I have declared the kingdom of heaven to be at hand; but when Meffiah fpeaks of that kingdom, he fpeaks from his own knowlege $ " what he hath feen " and heard, that he teftifieth ;" and yet, though I have faid fo much of him, and fo many go to hear him, " no man " receiveth his teftimony," as he ought to do. Think not this a llight matter, for no one can diibelieve him, without giving God the lie ; " he that hath re* " ceived his teflimony, hath fet to his " feal, that God is true," by allowing the credentials of his Son, and acknow- ledging in him the accomplimment of what was foretold by the law, by the prophets, and by myfelf. " For he," the Meffiah, " whom God hath fent, " fpeaketh the words of God," and that in a different fenfe from all others, who, from time to time, have been endued with fuch a portion of the di- vine influence as was meet for them } but " God giveth not the Spirit by P z " mea- 1 1 6 Confederations on the Life and Death SECT.VI. meafure unto him," having decreed, at in him mould all fulnefs dwell. " For the Father loveth the Son," not as he loveth any of his faithful fervants, but fo as that " he hath put all things " into his hand," difpenling glory, ho- nour, and immortality to mankind, through him alone. Be no longer en- vious and jealous, then, of his great- nefs, which is your falvation. If you would honour me, and at the fame time ferve your own eternal intereft, receive, in few words, the fum and fubftance of this my laft teftimony " He " that believeth on the Son, hath ever- " lafKng life : and he that believeth " not the Son, mall not fee life ; but " the wrath of God abideth on him." B Y this part of St. Johns character and conduct, in how plealing a manner are the minifters of Chrift inftrufted, that they are to bear teftimony to him, not to themfelves ; to feek his glory, not their own ; that they mould take pleafure in the fuccefs of their breth- ren's labours, by which the caufe of their common Mafter is promoted , that the of St. JOHN the BAPTIST, 117 the rifing lights of the church mould SECT.VL do honour to thofe who have gone be- ^"^ fore them, and the fettjng ones rejoice to be outmone by thofe who are coming after them; that envy and jealoufy, in fhort, ought to have no place among the difciples of the Lamb of God, on whom defcended and abode the celeftiaj. Dove. SEC- j 1 3 Conflagrations on the Life and Death SECTION VII. Confederations on the imprifonment of St. John, the mejjage fent by him to Chrijl, and the anfwer returned to it. Sea. vii. A DM I R ABLE is the advice of the X~V fon of Sirach to every one who is about to ftand forth in the caufe of true religion. " My fon, if thou come " to ferve the Lord, prepare thy foul 1 " for temptation. Set thy heart aright, " and conftantly endure, and make not " hafle in time of trouble. Whatfo- " ever is brought upon thee take cheer- " fully, and be patient when thou art " changed to a low eftate. For gold is " tried in the fire, and acceptable men " in the furnace of adverfity a ." The reformer will proceed but a little way in his work, whofe zeal is not backed with fortitude. The apprehenlion of danger, or even the frown of power, a Ecclef. ii. i. Will of Sf. JOHN the BAPTIST, 119 alter his fentiments; he will fee Seft.vn. things in a different point of vkw, and turn with every bfoft of fafhion or in- tereft, till he himfelf believes every thing, and his hearers, offended and confounded, believe nothing. NOT fo the Baptift. " What went ye * out into the wildernefs to fee ? A reed " fhaken with the wind V No : a co- lumn firm and 1 immoveable, againft which winds might blow, and waves beat, in vain ; one who had fixed his principles, and confidered well, before he entered upon aclion j one who be- gan not to build, till he had firft- count- ed the cofts j but who, when once he did begin, would be fure to finim. A PERSON unacquainted with the world, and the tempers of it's child- ren, might, perhaps, be furprized upon hearing, that a prophet, like St. John, who fpent his time in calling his fellow creatures to happinefs and falvation, and who coveted no man's gold, or filver, or apparel, was caft into prifon. But, as the wife man obferveth, " The thing " which hath been is that which fhall * Matt, .xi, 7. " be, 120 Conjtderations on the Life and Death . " be, and there is nothing new under " the fun V Ahab, at the inftigation of Jezebel, again thirfts after the blood of Elijah. ] HEROD, the tetrarch of Galilee, had put away his own wife, the daughter of Aretas, and had married Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, whom, contrary to the laws of hofpitality as well as religion, he had feduced, while a gueft in her hufband's houfe b . The fanctity and integrity of the Baptift had , begotten, even in Herod, a great vene- ration and reverence for his character. ." Herod feared John, knowing that he " was a juft man, and an holy, and ob- *' ferved him, and when he heard him, ' he did many things, and heard him " gladly c . s> But the matter of Herodias was a tender point, on which the te- trarch was not difpofed to hear the law, becaufe he was not difpofed to do it. He was determined to perfevere in what was wrong, and his monitor to perfift in telling him of it, without referve. a Ecclef. i. 9. * See Jofepbus Antiq. Lib.xviii. Cap. 6. c Mark vi. 20. " John of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 121 " John faid unto him, It is not lawful Seft.vil. " for thee to have thy brother's wife." John, who had overcome the world, could not, either by promifes or threat- nings, be induced to recede from his duty, through hope of temporal good, or fear of temporal evil. He was there- fore fbon convinced, by being carried to prifon, that Herod had no farther occafion for his fervice. And who doth not rather wim to have been imprifoned with him, than to have glittered in all the glories of the throne of Herod ? Happy Johnj fequeftered once more from a troublefome world, to converfe with God, and to meditate on that bleffed place, and that blelTed company, to which he was now haftening ! IN this fituation we find the thoughts of the Baptift employed not upon his own fufferings, but upon the interefts of his great Mafter, the fame of whofe miracles had reached the prifon, and founded in his ears. " When John had " heard in prifon the works of Jefus, " he fent two of his difciples a " Thus the afflictions and tribulations * Matt. xi. 2, &c, Q which j 22 Confiderations on the Life, and Death Seft.Vii. which a Chriftian muft endure for a *^v~* J little feafon, in the world, mould ferve only to quicken his defires after his Re- deemer, of whofe works, wrought in mercy for the children of men, he will often hear ; and the contemplation of them mould afford him continual de- light in the time of his captivity, until the day of his enlargement fhall come. With Paul and Silas let him declare the glad tidings of falvation, and fing the praifes of God in the prifon-houfe. Let him enquire diligently, and take every opportunity of hearing more particulars concerning his Saviour, as alfo of pla- cing others in the way of information. So will he copy the example of him, who, " when he heard in prifon the " works of Jefus, fent two of his dif- " ciples," that they might be more fully inftructed, as to his perfon and miffion. FOR that this muft have been St. Johns intention in fending them, is plain from the queftion which they were enjoined to aik -, " Art thou he that " mould come, or do we look for an- " other ?" The Baptifl could not pro- pofe of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 123 pofe this queftion for his own informa- Seft.vii. tion, but evidently for that of his ciples, whofe prejudices in favour of himfelf, their firft mafter, he found it fo difficult to conquer. What he had hitherto faid having proved infufficient for that purpofe, he now, in compamon to their infirmity, condefcendeth to have their fcruples propounded in his own name , affording us thereby a very ufeful hint, that in order to in- ftruct others, we mould abafe ourfelves, and know how to become weak with thofe who are fo. For it often hap- pens, that men need information upon fome important point, who either thro' pride or bafhfulnefs will not afk it, or through paffion and prejudice will not receive it at our hands. In this cafe, the good, which we cannot do directly, we muft contrive, if we can, to do in- directly, by propofing thofe queftions ourfelves, which we know that others in company want to hear anfwered, but cannot bring themfelves to aik. This method of edifying the weak, without expoling their infirmities, will produce in them that love and confidence to- 2 wards 1 24 Confiderdtims on the Life and T^fath Seft.vn. wards us, which, for their own fakes, we wifh them to have, Whereas a con- trary conduct, by provoking and alie- nating their affections from us, may put it out of our power ever to be of fervice to them again. TH E fame charitable plan is carried on by our Lord, who, in his anfwer, inftructs the difciples, by feeming to inftrucl: their mafter; " Go (faith he) " and tell "John what ye have feen and " heard." And this may iuggeft a rea- fon, why ChrifKans in general fliould converfe more upon religious fubjetfts, than they are wont to do, both aiking queftions, like St. "John, and returning anfwers, like Chrift, for the benefit and improvement of the by-ftanders, who may need information, through the per- fon to whom one immediately addreffeth onefelf, mould not. And many a man hath been the better, all his life after, for a feafonable word fpoken in com- mon converfation, which is often more regarded and attended to, than a formal dilcourfe from the pulpit. TH E n, SC&.VH. which man is capable of receiving, are r miracles, evidently and inconteftably fuch ; miracles, of the reality of which the outward fenfes, the eyes and the ears, are competent judges ; miracles wrought publickly in the face of the world, in the prefeoce of enemies as well as friends ; and that, not once, or twice, but repeatedly; and thefe mi- racles exprefHy predicted, hundreds of years beforehand. Such were the proofs offered by Chrift to the difciples of John. For " in that fame hour," whDe they were prefent, and before their eyes, " he cured many of their infirmities and " plagues, and of evil fpirits, and unto " many that were blind he gave fight. " Then faid he unto them, Go your " way, and tell John what things ye * have feen and heard ; how that the " blind fee, the lame walk, the lepers " are cleanfed, the deaf hear, the dead " are railed, to the poor the goipel is " preached. And bkfled is he whoib- " ever fhall not be offended in me." As k" he had laid ; I bear not witness of snyielf ; my miracles bear witnefs of me. Only 126 Confederations on the Life and Death Seft.vil. Only tell "John what you have heard and "en, and he will teach you how to draw the proper inference. Ifaiah, as he well knoweth, did foretell, that when Meffiah came, he would perform fuch and fuch mighty works. You yourfelves are eye and ear witneffes of the works done by me. Lay the pre- mifes fairly together, and you cannot be to feek for the conclufion. JOHN had engaged his reputation as a prophet, that Jefus of Nazareth, whom he baptized in Jordan, would anfwer the character of MefTiah, and do the works predicted of him ; as ap- pears from John x. 39. where we read, that Jefus, having efcaped from the Jews, "went again beyond Jordan, " unto the place where John at firft " baptized ; and there he abode. And " many reforted unto him, and faid, " John did no miracle : but all things ' that John fpake of this man were " true. And many believed on him ' there." Malice itfetf cannot find rea- fon to fufpeft a collufion, when pro- phecies and miracles thus unite their tefti- of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 127 teftimony, and proclaim Jefus to be the Seft.VlI. Meffiah. ^^ AT his word, " the eyes of the blind " were opened, and the ears of the deaf " unftopped ; the lame man leaped as " an hart, and the tongue of the dumb "did fmgV the leprofy, that foul, contagious, and obftinate difeafe, for which fo many ceremonies of purifica- tion were appointed by the law, was healed at once ; and the dead in their graves, hearing the voice of the fon of man, came forth. Every malady and infirmity, to which the children of Adam were fubject, vanifhed at his pre- fence, and confefled the almighty deli- verer of his people. This, therefore, is " He that mould come," nor let us think of " looking for another," to open the eyes of the underftanding, and let in the light of heavenly knowlege upon ignorant and benighted minds ; to remove all obftruclions, formed by intereft, prejudice, or paffion, and give us the hearing ear ; to reflore and invi- gorate the will and affections, that we may make large advances in the courfe * Jfai. xxxv. 5, 6. of 128 Confederations on the Life and Death Sea. vii. of duty, and run with delight the way *^f^ of God's commandments ; to loofe the tongues which guilt hath tied, and tune them to hymns of praife and thankf- giving; to cleanfe us, by his blood, from all fin, that leprofy which exclu- deth from the congregation of IJrael, the camp of the faints, and the beloved city ; to raife our fouls from death to life, and our bodies from duft to glory. . " We have found him of whom Mofes " in the law, and the prophets did " write Rabbi, thou art the Son of " G*>d, thou art the King of Ifrael a !" THE R E is one particular in this an- fwer of Chrift, which remaineth yet unnoticed ; " The poor have the gofpel ** preached unto them." Our Lord here referjeth to the celebrated paffage in Jfaiahy which, in the fynagogue of Nazareth, he had expounded, and de- clared to be fulfilled in himfelf. " The " Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, *' becaufe he hath anointed me to preach " good tidings," or the Gofpel, " to " the meek," or poor ; " he hath fent " me to proclaim liberty to the captives, b John i. 45, 49. of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 129 to comfort all that mourn, to give Sea.v " them beauty for afhes, the oil of joy (( for mourning a ," 6cc. The meaning of all the figurative exprefiions here ufed by the prophet, is this -, that Mef- fiah mould, at his appearance, confer upon fuch as were difpofed to receive them, the two great evangelical blef- fmgs, viz. remiflion of fins, and a par- ticipation of the Spirit of joy and glad- nefs, with which God had " anointed " him above his fellows." The inau- guration of Jefus to all the offices of the Meffiah, by this divine undtion, John had beheld, when, after his baptifm, he faw the Holy Ghoil defcending upon him, and thereby knew him to be that " Rod," or "Branch of JeiTe," on whom Ifaiah had elfe where foretold, that " the " Spirit of the Lord mould reft b ." Nothing therefore could be more appo- fite, than this part of Chart's anfwer, " The poor have the Gofpel preached " unto them ;" the full import of which, confidered as referring to the LXi ft chap- ter of Ifaiah, and addreffed to St. John, * Ifai. Ixi. i. b Ibid. xi. 1,2, R is 1 36 Considerations on the Life and Death Seft.vn. is as followeth - Go mew John again, that the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of wifdom and undemanding, the Spirit of might and counfel, which Ifaiah "foretold Should reft upon the Rod and Branch of JefTe, and which 'John faw defcending and abiding upon me, in the likenefs of a dove, at my baptifm, is not departed from me. The unction of the Spirit was not given me for mine 'own uit ; nor is it fpent, or confumed, although it hath powerfully diffufed it- felf to all about me. By it the poor are made rich, being inftated in the king- dom of grace and of the gofpel, and anointed heirs unto the kingdom of glory. By it every contrite heart is treated ; fuch as were (hut up are fet at liberty j fuch as were bound are loofed; and by it the yoke of the oppreflbr is broken*. Wte rmrft not omit to mention the end for which, according to the pro- phet, all thefe changes were wrought in the converts to the Gofpel ; " That "they might be called Trees of Right- " eoufnefs, the planting of the Lord, a See the Works of Dr Jackfon, Vol.ii. p. 542. " that of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 131 " that he might be glorified." The Seft.vil. Rod," the " Branch of Jefle," the " Righteous Branch of David," were the known titles of the Meffiah, or Son of David -, and it was his glory, while he lived upon earth, to make others, like himfelf, " Trees," or " Plants of " Righteoufnefs." This expreffion, as it ftandeth here joined with others plainly defcriptive of evangelical bene- fits and comforts, unfoldeth to us the true nature of thofe wonders which Ifaiah foretold mould be wrought in the wildernefs, and which he hath repre- fented under fo rich a variety of poeti- cal imagery ; fuch as, ftreams of water breaking forth in the defkrts, caufing them to bloflbm as the rofe ; myrtles coming up, inilead of briars -, cedars, firs, and olive trees, inftead of thorns, &c. The purport of thefe figurative predictions appears, by the paflage be- fore us, to be this ; that the dry and barren places of Judea, where John baptized, and preached repentance, mould, in the days of the Meffiah, be- come a fruitful nurfery of a new kind of plants, prepared for the celeltial pa- R 2 radife. i^2 Confiderations on the Life and Death Sea. VII. radife. Thefe were men of humble, ^^^ peaceable, contrite hearts ; fuch as po- verty and difeafe had rendered thofe who came to be healed by Chrift, and the confideration of our fins and infir- mities mould render us all. To fuch is the gofpel of the kingdom preached, and they with joy receive it. " Blefled " are the poor in fpirit ; for theirs is " the kingdom of heaven. Blefled are " the meek ; for they mail inherit the " earth. Blefled are they that mourn -, " for they mail be comforted." T o thefe beatitudes let us add one more, with which our Lord concludeth his anfwer to the queftion afked by Johns difciples. " Blefled is he whofo- " ever is not offended in me." In other words And now, blefled, thrice blefled are all they, who mall fo confi- der the wonderful works done by me, as not to be offended at my poor and lowly appearance, during the time of my humiliation and fuffering here on earth ; or at the feeming harfhnefs of my falutary doctrines to flefh and blood. For I well know, that many, though they have beheld me giving fight to the blind, of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 133 blind, and vigour to the impotent, Sea.vn. cleanfing lepers, making the deaf to hear, and railing the dead to life again; yet, becaufe the truths, which I deliver, are contrary to their interefts, their pleafures, their pride, their prejudices, which they are determined not to quit, even for the kingdom of heaven j many, I fay, will reject what they cannot but acknowledge to be the counfel of God, and put away the word of falvation from them. Let a man only fupprefs his in- ordinate delires of things temporal, and he will be diipofed to hear what I mall tell him of things eternal. Let him ceafe to love the world, and he will ceafe to have any objection to the Gof- pel. Let but his heart be open to con- viction, and when the evidence hath been once fairly laid before him, he will never again afk the queftion, " Art " thou he that mould come, or do we " look for another ? " SEC- Confederations on the Life and J^eatb SECTION VIIL Confederations on the circumjlances of Sf. John'j Death. which difplayed to all fucceeding S gene- 1 38 Confiderations on the Life and "Death Sea.vrri. generations the malice and cruelty of ^v~^ Herodias, with the weaknefs and wicked- nefs of Herod ; teaching us, at the fame time, that the greateft of prophets and the beft of men are not more'fecure from violence, than from natural death, but rather more expofed to it than the reft of mankind, if with fidelity and fortitude they execute . the truft com- mitted to them. HE ROD i AS, by her lawful hufband Philip, had a daughter named Salome, who condefcended to grace the feftivity by dancing before the .company, in a manner which " pleafed Herod, and " them that fat with him." A pious prelate of our church, in his contem- plations on this occurrence, obferves, that " dancing, in itfelf, as it is a fet, " regular, harmonious, graceful motion " of the body, cannot be unlawful, any " more than walking, or running." We may add, that it hath in all ages and nations been one way, and that a na- tural one, of exprefling an uncommon degree of joy and gladnefs ; on which account it was adopted into the number of religious ceremonies formerly en- joined of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 139 joined to be obferved by the people ofSea.vi.ll. God. But for a young lady to appear, ^"V"^ as a dancer, before Herod and his " lords, " high captains, and chief eftates of " Galilee," probably, when they were well warmed with wine, became only the daughter of an Herodias, educated by her own mother. HEROD, quite overcome and thrown off his guard by Salome's performance, makes her a foolifh promife ; and, as if that was not enough, confirms it with a ram oath ; " Whatfoever thou malt " afk of me, I will give it thee, to " the half of my kingdom," A very handfome recompence,one would think, for a dance ! But it will appear pre*- fently, that the king had not offered enough. Half his kingdom would not do. Something was required more va^- luable than the whole of it, had it ex- tended from Judea, quite round the globe. Nothing would fatisfy, but his honour, his confcience, his foul ; the price which lin never fails to aflt ! The glorious golden opportunity of revenge was not to be loft. Herodias is confulted S 2 by 1 40 Confederations on the Life and Beatb Sea. vm. by her daughter, and lo, the foft, ten- der, delicate Salome reenters, all athirfl for blood " Give me in a charger ' the head of John the Baptift;" of a prophet j of a perfon whom thou knoweft to be innocent, holy, up- right. Make me this facrifice, and I am content. With fuch eagernefs and fagacity does " the adulterefs hunt for f the precious life !" BAD as Herod was, the petition of Salome at firft (hocked him. " The king ** was forry." He thought of jfo/m's character, the atrocioufnefs of the mur- der, and the opinion which the world would entertain of the murderer. But the tide, which had ebbed, foon flowed again, and obliterated, in a moment, what had been written on the fand, during it's recefs. The love of Herodias, the addrefs of Salome, the feftivity of the feafon, and the prefence of the *' lords " and high captains," who had been witnefTes of the promife, and might pofiibly approve the propofal ; all thefe circumftances on the fide of the temp- tation prevailed. And perhaps, Herod, upon recollection, might think that the fuppofed of St. JOHN the BAPTIST. 141 fuppofed obligation of his oath would Set.vill. afford him a better excufe than he mould ever be matter of again, for complying with the importunity of Herodias, and taking off a monitor troublefome to them both. " For his oath's fake, and for " their fakes which fat with him, he " would not reject her." Thus, if any extraordinary wickednefs is to be tranf- acted, religion muft be made a cover for it. As if wrong became right, when acted in the name of God ; and it were more acceptable in his fight, to maflacre a prophet, than to repent of a ram oath made to a foolifh girl, at a drunken en* tertainment. THE Baptift's fate being thus de^ ter mined, " immediately the king fent " an executioner, and commanded his ' head to be brought : and he went f< and beheaded him in the prifon." This deed of darknefs muft have been done in the feafon proper for it, the middle of the night, and St. John was probably awakened, to receive his fen- tence, out of that fleep, which truth and innocence can fecure to their pof- feffor, in any fituation. The generality of 1 42 Confederations on the Life and "Death Sea. vm. of mankind have reafon enough to de- recate a fudden death, left it mould furprize them in one of their many un- guarded hours. But to St. John no hour could be fuch. He had finiihed the work which God had given him to do. He had kept the faith, and preferved a con- fcience void of offence. He had done his duty, and waited daily and hourly, we may be fure, for his departure. He was now, therefore, called off from his ftation with honour, to quit the well fought field for the palace of the Great King ; to refrefh himfelf, after the duft, and toil, and heat of the day, by bath- ing in the fountain of life and immor- tality; 'to exchange his blood-ftained armour for a robe of glory, and to have his temporary labours rewarded with eternal reft ; to fit down with Abraham, and IfaaCy and yacob, in the kingdom of God; and, as the Friend of the Bride- groom, to enter into the joy of his Lord. From the darknefs and confine- ment of a prifon he paffed to the liberty and light of heaven ; and while malice was gratified with a fight of his head, and his body was carried by a few friends of Sf. JOHN the BAPTIST. 143 in filence to the grave, his immortal Seavm. fpirit repaired to a court, where no Herod defires to have his brother's wife; where no Herodias thirfts after the blood of a prophet - y where he who hath la- boured, with iincerity and diligence, in the work of reformation, is fure to be well received 5 where holinefs, zeal, and conftancy " are crowned and re- " ceive palms from the Son of God, " whom they confeffed in the world V So finks the day-ftar in the ocean bed. And yet anon uprears bis drooping head, And tricks his beams , and with new fyangled ore Flames in the forehead of the morning Jky He hears the unexpreffive nuptial fong In the bleft kingdoms meek of joy and love. 'There entertain him all the faints above, In folemn troops, and fweet focieties, That fmg, and fmging in their glory move, And wipe the tears for ever from his eyes. MILTON. a 2 Efdr. ii. 45 47. 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