| " "'"igCvethefe Books
Iffirri Mefaigt&hg! of q. College in :tftt\ Caftnty?

°Y^JLH°¥MYEIESinrY° • iLniaisAmr -

Not Founded on
ARGUMENT; AND THE
TRUE PRINCIPLE O F
GOSPEL-EVIDENCE ASSIGNED:
In a LETTER to a young Gentleman at Oxford.

Psal. cxvi. io. I "believe/l, and therefore fpake.
Ut vinum .Sgrotis, quia prodeft raro,nocet fepifli me, melius
eft non adhibere'omnino quam fpe dubU falutis inapcrtam
perniciem incufretc : Sic haud fcio an melius fuerit Hutnano
Generi motum iftum celerem cogitationis  quem ratio*
nem vocamus, quoniam fefiifera. fit multis, admodumpau-
cis falutaris, non dari omnino, quam tam munifice & tam
large dari. Cicero de Natur. Dear.

The Third Edition.

LONDON:
Printed for M. Cooper, at the Gloh. in Pater*
nofier Row. M.DCC.XLIII,
£ Price i ;. 6 d. J

CHRISTIANITY Not Founded on
ARGUMENT, BV. '
SIR,
I Little imagined I fhould ever have found
Caufe of Regret from any Converfation
with you. On every Subject that occurred
to our Confideration you acquitted yourfelf
always, as I thought, fo judicioufly, and fo
greatly to my Satisfaction, as made me promife
myfelf the moft comfortable Enjoyment of your
growing Genius. But thefe flattering Prefages
have been much check'd of late, and received 'a
very melancholy Alloy from the Subject of our
laft Meeting : The Subject of the World where
it is the moft material to think . right, where "it is
indeed of the moft tremendous Confequence to
be miftaken. What are all your ingenious Difco-
veries of fpeculative Truths, which at beft ferve
but to entertain and amufe the Imagination, if,
in the main Point, in the one Effential Truth you
are ftill to feek ? There only it is that Ignorance
and Error are fatal, and Knowledge truly of Im
portance. And had you befides erred in any
Branch of human Science, your penetrating Rea-
fon would, in all Probability, have recovered
and fet you right again ; but here, be affured, it
A 2 will

I 4 J
will have no fuch Effect, as proudly as you infilt
upon its admired All-fufEciency. For you told
me," ( your Words made too fad an Impreffion
'Sttkefs for nib eafily to forget them ) That " your own
uttl?" " Reafon was the onh Guide y°u cou,d de~
mpons. it ^^ ^^^ tQ cQme a£ ^e gnowjecjge 0f every
" Thing your Maker defign'd you fhould know ;
*' that they, who pretended to vote this Principle
" unfecure, reflected highly on the Wifdom and
" Equity of its Author », that, for your own Part,
" you had not that impious Notion of the Su-
" preme Being, to diftruft the Confequence of
" your fincere Endeavours to pleafe him, or to
" imagine, that you might innocently tamper
*' with your Reafbn to the Prejudice of your
*' eternal Happinefs j that if our own Hearts did
tc not condemn us, we muft needs have a juji Con-
" fidence towards God-, —  that a Man could
cc evidently never be jealous enough of Opinions
" contracted by Education, and made facred by
"' Habit % that he could never be too induftrious
*' in improving his Sufpicions of Things his own
*' Reafon had no Share in introducing •, accord-
¦" ingly, that to fhake Hands fairly with all we
" had been taught, was the firft Step to be ta-
" ken, if ever we meant to be fixed on any Ra-
*' tional Perfuafion, fince every one's Tutor could
*f not be in the right •, and there was no Mark of
*' Diftinction poffibly to be found without takino-
" Matters into our own Hands, beginning Thino-s
t? entirely again, and boldly fetting up for our-
^ felves."  ARomantick Sally, of Youth, and
Flourifti of Philofophy! or in the facred Phrafe
Profane and Vain Balling !
It is but too eafy, my Friend, to fee your
Meaning, when you triumph thus in an entire
Releafe from the Prejudices of Education} this
has been the common plaufible. Style of the more
modeft

( 5 )
modeft Profeffprs of Infidelity through all Ages,
and is a Language generally well understood. If
this therefore be the Card you defign to fleer by,
you muft not depend too certainly upon the Af-
fiftance of Faith to conduit you, or making Hea
ven your affured Port.
If once you allow yourfelf in Doubting, I will
take upon me to anfwer for the Confequence, that
you never will well believe ; if once you come
fairly to your propofed Situation for proving all
things, be affured, that you will never hold f aft
any Thing. To offer to fit down to examine,
feems to me to be abfolutely giving up the Caufe
of Religion, and defiring me to difpute, to be
begging the Queftion. For, is it not moft abfurd PjfPffes>
to require a Belief, if previous Examination be^e "™"
requifite ? If Scepticifm be this neceffary Qua- enfur'mg
lification for the obtaining of a true Faith, how Convifti-
can we ever be fecure that it fhall not improve'"'
into direct Unbelief ? If Doubting be at all ad
mitted, Conviction can never, fure, with any
Propriety, be infifted on. Conviction is a dubious
'and uncertain Confequence, wherever there is
Ground for Debate, and therefore not to be pro-
mifed for, any more than any other Contingency.
If I am once left free to examine, I can by no
means be tied up in the Iffue. It is in its own
Nature a neceffary and independent Event, under
no Influence of mine, where I have no Power to
iriterpofe to direct its Courfe or Operations, or any
farther Intereft or Concern, thah merely as a
Looker-on. Forgive the Freedom of. my Zeal, when I tell
you plainly, that you know not what manner of Spi
rit you are of. There is no Medium betwixt be
lieving and not believing. If, as I apprehend you,
you do indeed intend to wave all Religion 'till your
Reafon is fatisfied about it, know, that from the
very

( 6 )
All suf- very Moment of that Refolution, fo long you ac-
fenct \of tually apoftatize from Chriftianity, and renounce
poftafy fn your Baptifmkl-Vow. A ftrange Method this ! to
one bap- turn' one's Back upon Religion in order to meet
tked. it( to difcard it as a means to commence Acquain
tance. Alas ! Sir, to have your Mind thus in E-
quilibrio is rank Infidelity. Our Saviour has ex-
prefly affured us, that he looks upon a Seeker as
Antichrift profeft, and that he that is not with him,
is againji him.
By this Time your philofophical Zeal is alarm
ed, and you are earneft to interrupt me with a
thoufand plaufible Queries to ftop my Career.
You have another pompous Lecture, no doubt,
ready prepared upon the Occafion to enforce
your firft Sentiment, to infift ftrenuoufly ftill upon
the Juftice of your Examining-Scheme, and the
Neceffity of coming indifferent to a fair Trial.
Be patient, however, for one Moment, and it is
poffible I may give you all the Satisfaction you
can defire in that Article, without any of your
Interpofition ; 'tis poffible I may anticipate the
Subftance of the very Argument you propofe,
and become myfelf your unexpected Advocate
on the Point. For never believe but I am con
vinced, as well as you, that Opinions founded on
Prejudice and Ignorance, are not that Truth
which the Gofpel requires at our Hands ; that
the Tales of our Nurfes (to ufe your own Stile)
are by no means that kind of Knowledge wherein
Jlandetb eternal Life. It is yet farther evident to
me, that where Reafon is to determine the Caufe,
ihe muft be left to herfelf to determine fairly *,
that it is the greateft Injuftice and Mockery to
invite her to give Sentence, where there have been
Practices before-hand, and are Practices ftill
continued, _ to obftruct or limit her Influence.
Thus far it feems then I readily agree with you in,

. . < 7 )
in all your Preliminaries in behalf of Reafon and
her Rights, but you will defer building too much
upon the Conceffion, 'till you hear the Ground I
profefs for this Agreement •, which is, my look-1
ing upon the Subject before us to be abfolutely
out of her Jurifdictiort. I am fully perfuaded,
that the judging at all of religious Matters is not
the proper Province of Reafon, or indeed an Af
fair where fhe has any Concern. This is the
great Point in which at prefent we differ, and
wherein I would, if poffible, obtain your Con
currence. Your boafted rational Faith is what \~Reafon
would fain fhew you to be a falfe, unwarranted cf B*w.*«
Notion of your own, and without the ieaft Ground cwA "j?
to fupport it, either in Nature or Revelation. I iaith.
mean, that your Affent to Revealed Truths fhould
be founded upon the Conviction of your Un-
derftanding. That Work once happily effected,
and the Way, if it may be, well cleared in yout
Mind by the Detection of its miftaken Prin
ciples, I fhould make it my next earneft Bufi-
nefs, as due, to endeavour the fupplying of the
Deficiency, and providing you fome better Ac
count of the Matter, feme fitter and more ef
fectual Principle of faving Knowledge in its Stead,
For the attaining of which Purpofe, I can think
of no readier Method, than by attempting to fhew
you, Firsl, That Reafon, or the intellectual Faculty,
could not poffibly, both from its own Nature and
that of Religion, be the Principle intended by God
to lead us into a true Faith.
Secondly, That neither is it fb in Fact from the
plain Account given us of it in Holy Scripture.
And, Thirdly^ By tracing plainly from the
fame indifputable Authority what it pofitively is,
a,nd by afcertaining the proper and prefcribed Means

( 8 )
Means to come at the Knowledge of Divine
Truths. In the firft Place, then, Can it be by the Ex-
etcife of their Reafon that Men can be required
Seeaufe to think all alike? The youngeft Pupil of Philo-
required to fophy would ftart at the.Propofitiort, and t there*
thmk all fore j ^^1^ not on any other Occafion offer to
propofe fuch a Queftion to you. You underftand
too well what the Principle of Reafon is to expect
any fuch Confequence from it •, nay, not to be cer
tain of its producing a direct contrary Effect. A
Thinker of a much lower Degree of Proficiency
would difdain, very juftly, to beftow a fecond
Thought upon fb prepofterous a Scheme, as that
of Unity in Opinion propofed to be effected by
Reafbning. He fees readily at firft View, that the
different Light Things appear in to different Men,
muft neceffarily create a different Senfe of Things;
that an Infinity of Sebls (as they are called,) is but
the natural and unavoidable Confequence of every
Man's thinking for himfelf ; that from the very
Notion of fpeculative Enquiry, and the immenfe Va
riety of human Underilandings, private Judgments
muft of courfe run into the greateft Latitude.
In the next Place, with what Regard, with
what Patience rather, can one of this Clafs be fup-
pofed to attend to Queftions propounded to him,
Threatned under the Reftraints of Threats and Authority, to be
»»/» c»»/e- talked to of Danger in his Decifions, and have
lances the Rod held out with the Leffon, to have Pro-
fri/cn e - pofitions tendered to his Reafon with Penalties an
nexed ? His Reafon, ever neceffitated to deter
mine juft as fhe does of herfelf, and by her Na
ture incapable either of paying Compliments, or
. giving Offence. He is confeious all the while that
he has no fuch free Vote to difpofe of, and there
fore difdains, with all Juftice, an Attempt equally weak

( 9'\
weak and unjuft, of frightning him into a Com
pliance out of his Power.
Thefe would be all fo many grofs and palpable
Abfurdities upon the Face of iuch a Commiffion,
I. fay, if Application were intended to be made
by it to the Underftanding. For that it is not I
fhall endeavour yet farther to evince by looking a
little into Life and Practice upon the Occafion,
by tracing this Faith to its known Original, and
pointing directly to the great Root whence all
our religious Impreffions notorioufly fpring. By.
asking you farther — :  Can a Man be baptized ordered to
into a rational Religion? Where is Reafon con- bebapn-
cerned when Babes accept the Terms of Salvation M mtQtu
by Deputy, and are entitled to all the Privileges
of the moft extenfive Faith by another's; Act ?
By the Baptifmal Ceremony, they commence
true Believers at once, and are made Heirs of
Heaven, you know, by the Faith of their Bondf-
men, whilft as yet they have not the leaft Share
or Symptom of Underftanding themfelves, and;
may in all Poffibility never live to attain one;
and which, if they had at the Time, I know not
yet how they could well give a rational Affent by,
Proxy. Yet fuch is the Pleafure and Ordinance
of God himfelf in this Point. And would he,
is it probable, have ever laid a Foundation of
Belief for us, and at the fame. Time have made it
pur Duty to fubvejt it? For the very firft Leffon
of Philofophy, the firft Step towards the Ufe of
our Reafon, is to explode fas you contend, and
very defervedly) under- the Name of Prejudice,
all the Efiect of our Education, which it is now,
on the contrary, the Command of our holy Re
ligion, that we- fhould induftrioufly cultivate and
improve-, cultivate, in a Method conformable
exactly to that of its implanting, by" Application
to Heaven, and -not to the Schools; by the Ufe
B of

©FsPraye?, not of Reafom A frefh Inftance from
the manner of its Culture, that Reafon was to have
originally no Share in making the Graft, We are
To pray to pray fr Encreafe of our Faith.- — — — Had we
f°r u' been expected to have contributed to its Eftablifh-
ment by any Endeavours or Pains of our own, we
might have had Caufe to fufpect yet farther, that
jthe Ground-work too was to be fomething where
in we were to be ourfelves Acceffaries. But if
Tracer be the effectual Means propofed for the at
taining the Perfection of our Faith, there is a ftrong
Prefumption too that our Labours of every other
Kind were to be fpared throughout the whole Pro-
grefi ; and that it was to be introduced after a like
manner by Methods purely Divine, and without
any of our Affiftance. That we are to addrels-
ourfelves to Heaven to inculcate the full Com
plement of our Belief, will help us to a juffi and
uniform Account of its whole Nature, whilft it
points readily back to its Source of Baptifm ; our
being to look upwards for the Completion of the
Bleffing, muft ferve fufficiently to alcertain its O-
r-iginal, and convince us, that its- firft Seeds-
can be of no human Extraction. For is it pof
fible that we can conceive how Reafon can ever
found fuch a Faith as Grace can fecond or add:
to? Encreafe of Evidence is the- only Acceffion'
to be made to rational Perfuafion. What a con-'
fiftent Prayer ! " Give us, O Lord, from Heaven,
" by thy particular Affiftance, a larger Degree'
" of that Faith, which we have already attain-
*' ed in 'part from the natural and ordinary Means'
<« of Conviction, and the Confideration' of the-
," Evidence."
It is impoffible, furefy, wheti we confider td
whom we muft afcribe them, that any fuch ab-»
furd Schemes- can any longer be fuppofed, thai?
we can ever imagine, that the; great Author- and
Finifher

Finifher nf our Faifh fhould have contrived us an
irrational one, to be afterwards fuperfeded, or even
confirmed by a rational one.
In what Light muft a Rationalift again regard
all Application by Prayer for the confirming and
continuing us Jledfaji in the Faith, and the dif-
avowing, in the Fulnefs of our Conviction, all fu
ture Ufe of Reafon for our Security ? What is all
this Practice in your Senfe, but plainly the wilful
ly foliating our favourite Prejudices ? What is all
this meritorious Perfeverance which we fo ear-
neftly affect, but a blind and foolifh Obftinacy to
a prefent Notion, if we have no better an Autho
rity than that of our own Reafon to fix us ? And,
in Fact, fo ftrjctly is this irrevocable Conftancy
in our Profpffion, this utter Peafnefs to all farther
Solicitation for Pifciplefhip, required of all Chrif-
tians, that we are warned, though even an Angel
from Hitmen were to preach any new Doctrine,
to us, to give not the leaft Heed or Credit to his
Pretenfions. And yet what is there in the utmoft
_ of Reafon's Affiances to falfify or confront fuch
a Preacher ? What is there that the Nature of any
external Evidence can poffibly afford us, that
has not more than a Balance in fuch an Authori
ty ? Had God indeed defign'd that Reafon fhould
be at all imployed upon thefe Occafions, he would
never, we may depend on it, have thus enjoin'd.
Things which he knew muft abfolutely deftroy
the Effect of.it. If the Affent he required were
to be a rational one, it would be highly wicked
and unjuft to prepoffefs Mens tender Minds in
.any Manner before they came to the full Ufe of
their rational Faculties. But now that we are ^'^
actually commanded with early Diligence to re-j„ our
tain our Children as fo many .fare Votaries to thcchild-
Caufe we profefs ourfelves, it is plain that a ratio-*"'*'
' ual Afient is by no Means calculated for, or ex-
, pected

¦( « ;
¦•¦jpected at l our Hands. For, fare, ybu will never
fay a Man has ftill the Ufe of his Reafon improv
ing upon him to affift him afterwards in the ra
tifying or reverfing of his Parents Inflections as
he mall judge fit, when thofe very Inflmctions
have all long taken Care (or elfe they have been
doing nothing) to reprefent all future Difcoveries
and Alterations as fomething beyond Meafure
heinous and deteftable. And what a perverfe
Apoftate would he in Fad be looked upon, who,
upon- Notice from his Sureties of the Conditions
they had engaged him in, fhould ever think of
appealing, or making any farther Search for the
¦Certainty of that Knowledge in which he had been
infirutled, and pofitively refufe to ftand to what
they had done in his Name, till they had laid the
Grounds and Reafons of their Proceedings before
him to his Satisfaction ? And yet there is not cer
tainly, as you fay, one fingle Argument from
Reafon why a Man fhould not return of Courfe
to Neutrality the firft Moment he begins to think
for himfelf. Neutrality ! a Term ever of the
jufteft Horror and Deteftation in the Ears of the
true Believer, in whofe Account all Sufpence and
Queftioning upon the Subject amount to a pe
remptory and impious Denial. And yet nothing
is more evident in itfelf, or more readily by all
allowed than what you affert, that no Party is
qualified to be a Judge, and that to examine fair
ly, we muft come unprejudiced and indifferent
to the Examination. Examination, in the very
Term, implies a Sufpence of Conviction ; and
therefore if Religion admits at all of Examina
tion, it muft neceffarily admit likewife of (at leaft
Examin- a temporary) Difbelief. The rational Chriftian,
DoubtiSS.whocver he be' muft of Courfe have originally fet
'out a Sceptic, and hefitated for a Time, even
whether that Gofpel were true or falfe. Tell me

'( »3 )
rne then, I befeech you, that Contend fo, earneft-
ly for a rational Belief, fince the firft Motions
of Doubt are, it feems, but neceffary Preparatives
in your Scheme, and therefore not in themfelves
criminal, by what Authority ( if the Evidence
happens never to take the Effect ) can a Man he
obliged ever to be refolved ? If a Man may, nay
muft, difbelieve a while for Information's Sake,
why may he not e'en difbelieve for ever on for
want of due Information ? If Doubting be indeed Settling tf
one Moment allowable, who fhall afcertainz><"'"M
, -r t- r r ¦ l t- • j precarious.
the precife lime for fumming up the Evidence,
and pronouncing Sentence ? Who fhall take up
on him to fettle the laft lawful Point of Hefita-
tion, making the proper Indulgence to the tardy
Apprehenfion, and exactig a more ready Decifion
from the more capable ? For all this reafonable
• Allotment of Time in Proportion to their feve-"'"* {'kel7
ral Abilities, Men muft innocently take who"o*^J^
are to work out their Salvation by the Ufe of their rime.
Reafon : They muft be permitted to acquaint
¦ themfelves fully and perfectly with the Merits
of the Caufe, before they can be expected to
form maturely, and give in their important. De
terminations upon it ; and the more fair and
fevere the Scrutiny, the more Time it muft ne-
ceffarily coft them : The very Integrity of the Ex
aminer will be the natural Impediment to his Di-
fpatch.
. Now if this be the Cafe, that a Man muft go
thus bng without his religious Determinations, it
will, I think, be fomething very -difficult to prove
them neceffary at all.; fince 'tis probable, they Rational
may now. come too late to anfwer the End for which raith mat.
they were defigned. For let us afk our felves, j'ime'T-'
What is the-propofed Ufe and Purpofe ' of this „oush to
Faith required ; Is it not to influence our Anions, regulate
and direfi our Conducl through Life ? And when^*""* have *

have we more Occafion for fuch a Monitor thaa
at the Crifis when our Paffions are moft prevalent,
in thofe early Years when Reafon is leaft able to
form her Judgments in our Affiftance ? The Ufe '
.of Faith is to enable us to overcome the World.
gut what fhall become of this promifed Victory,
ff the Conteft muft be fo long depending -, and
tf we muft be fo long taken up with fitting on our
Armour ? Mean time the Powers of Darkaefs,
and our own corrupt Difpofitions, will be fatally
gaining Ground upon us every Day, long before
this boafted Ally. can have raifed her Forces to
come in to our Protection, or be qualified in any
Degree to deal with them. Our Paffions will be
beforehand with our Reafon, in fpite of all her
Pretenfions. The Habits of Vice will be taking
deep Root the while, let her Preparations be ne
ver fb expeditious, or her Motions never fo watch
ful to oppofe them ; they muft needs have got
the Start in their Advances, before fhe can, by
her Nature, have made any confiderable Progrefs
in thofe falutary Difcoveries, which are to rege
late or fubdue them. Now for want of this time
ly Notice, and the Secret of diftinguifhing, we
may more than probably have embark'd in wrong
Meafares at fetting out, and be loft in the Power
of Habit beyond Recovery,: before we know
where we are. Unprovided of all reftraining
Confiderations, and at a Lofs for a better Guide,
we fhall, of courfe, give up ourfelves wholly to
our natural Biafs, and the Law of Inclinations,
and when we have lived the beft Part of our
Lives thus at Adventure, and ftrayed fo far
without the Leffons of this fage Counfellor, they
will go near, when they arrive, to find us ac
tually engaged already, and beyond the Power
of Precept, to retrieve. For want of the early
Intelligence, we may be innocently involved in
the

tfoe moft horrible Degrees of Guilt before we can*
be better .informed; fo that if we have not the
Benefit of thefe Inftructions at firft, it will be to
very little Purpofe to have them at all. As long
as wc are debating the Genuinenefs of our Rule, we
have no Tie upon us to refpect its Authority, no
Inducement to pay it any Degree of Obedience
or Conformity in our Practice, till it has gained' as*
fafficient Eftablifhrnertt and Root' in our Opinion:,
Our Actions, if our acquired Faith be to prefcribs
to them, ean be under no Direction*, or Reftraint
till the Proceedings of Reafon have fettled the
Standard for Confcience, and fatisfied her whathef
Obligations are in thofe Points. Now what a ran*-
dom Conduct this muft produce with regard1 to any
fkanding Principle*,, or regular Scheme of Morality,
is very evident. Whilft I am my felf in Search
after juft Notions of right and wrong, and attempt
ing to lgarn by fpeculative Difcoveries what they
are, 'tis not much to be expected that any one elfe
fhall find them in my Conduft. And the Mis
fortune is, -that in our prefent Situation there is no
(landing ftill to look about us, even fb much as to
find out the Way. We muft be running on our
felves in Life, let our Syftems proceed never fb
heavily. But were it poffible ftill that our doubting Di£
ciple fhould not be in the mean Time at this fup
pofed Lofs for his Duty on any Occafion, let his
natural Obligations, as he may pretendy be never
fo obvious- and felf-evident, and his Practice ne
ver fo ftrictly conformable ; -what if without th\s Pia-tnMi;
previous Acquifition and devout Temper I con- rality of
tend for, the Beft of Lives; is no Gifcafflftance*»^«'
to recommend or qualify us for any Regard from tame
the Throne of Grace ? Good Works dme before without
Faith, and without the: dpecM Influence of this*** /»/*¦.
fandifying Principle,, are-. fo fat* from being ae-JJJ^
cepted

( t6 )
cepted themfelves as the Terms of a complete:
Obedience, that they do not fo much as put Men
into a nearer State for Favour, or a Capacity of
being the fooner enlightned ; they do not, as
our Church expretfes it, make Men meet to re
ceive Grace. The exacteft Obfervcr of moral
Laws is a vile and wretched Sinner in God's Ac
count, as long as he proceeds by human Lights
and Motives, and upon the Strength of mere E-
thicks only. Nay, even his moft virtuous Acti
ons themfelves are highly criminal and difpleafing
to God, as long as he continues in fuch a Difpo-
fition of Mind, as they are undoubtedly of a Na
ture corrupted and unregenerate. For what foe ver
is not of, Faith is Sin. Without fome particular
Acknowledgments firft made, there is not in all
our Endeavours the leaft room to hope for Accep
tance at his Hands. He that cometh to God, mufi
believe tbat he is ; that he has gracioufly -revealed
his holy Will to Mankind, and granted them
Pardon of Sins by the Mediation of his Son, and
muft act only in Confequence of fuch Perfuafion.
The unquiet Eftays of Reafoning, curious Difqui-
fitions upon his Being and Attributes, and the
Truth and Authenticknefs of Revelation, are
Practices utterly inconfiftent with the Pretentions
of "all fuch as call themfelves Chriflians, or ex
pect any Benefit from the Gofpel-Covenant, to
which they are always prefumed Parties. We
muft be provided of our Creed before we are war
ranted to pray fo much as for Faith itfelf. We
muft not lift up our Hands to Heaven with doubt
ing. If beyond thefe Ufes affigned, the Difcovery
of our Rule of Action, or the purifying and
ftamping a Value upon the Fruits of common
Morality, there be ftill farther fomething ah-
ftradtedly of a neceffary Qualification in a true
Faith

Faith, fomething of a meritorious Nature in the
Thing it felf, confidered merely as a proper Teft
of our Obedience. — We muft yet, it Reafon be
the allotted Guide, be obliged to wait at leaft till
that Reafon can bring us her Report. Mean We may\
time in this infidel Interim fhould Death furprize "ot l,ve
us, what fhall now become of our Hopes without ^"^~-
this neceffary Preparative for our Introduction ? thro" with
,You will examine, you fay.—- Thou Fool! thisf"^"*
Night fhall thy Soul be required of /te\--When£w2«">.
Death has once overtaken, us unfurnifhed of our
Paffport, what a kind of Apology to truft to will
it be to fay, (in fuch exprefs Contradiction to the
Provifion fo peremptorily enjoined us) " that we
were intending to look into Things ; that we were
looking out to procure a Wedding Garment, at a
Time when we ought to be ready dreffed to. attend
the Bridegroom, and actually to make our Appear
ance in the Habit ? " And is it now any unwarran
table Conclufion, from all thefe Confiderations, to
infer, that Religion therefore can never be a Thing A true
to be taught, that it muft needs be fomething that Ta^a^'m-
does not require Time to attain, like other common^j^
Leffons and Sciences, which are indifferent mallseafins
their Confequences ? Since the very fame Reafons('/',a''i,^r-
that make it neceffary at all, make it equally fo every
Moment of our Lives.
To leave Mankind a difputable Subject to ex-
ercife their Judgements upon, and at the fame
time to require us all, at the Peril of our Souls, to
be in the right,— -Demonftration itfelf is not
Ground fufikient to exact fuch an Affent, unlefs
it be felf-evident too, and if there be the leaft of
Induction or Inference in the Cafe. For the Ge- ^J
nerality of Apprehenfions extend not beyond a for reafon*
fimple Propofition i and are thrown out at oncewgatall.
at the very Mention of introducing a Medium.
The Souls of the Multitude are lodged in their
C Hands,

( 18 )
Hands, and that for the wifeft Purpofes, Tney
are formed entirely with a View to active Life.
Wherein the true Interefts of Society are much
more effectually confulted, than in their being cal
culated for making the moft ingenious Difcuffi-
ons in the unfruitful Province of Argument and
Speculation. And what an injurious Reprefenta-
tion, what an arbitrary Image is this then ©four
wife and good Creator ! requiring a juft Judgment
of Things, and not giving Abilities to judge at
all; making Salvation a Matter of blind Chance
and Guefs-work, and fetting our precious Souls
upon the Hazard of a random Conjecture ;
and all this too, where the determining either
right or wrong muft in itfelf be equally meri
torious. For the Nature of the Evidence of Reli
gion, in your rational Way, being founded en
tirely on the Credit and Authenticnefs of Hiftory,
a very critical Point to pronounce upon, it is
impoffible, without a good natural Turn for Rea-
foning, and even fome very considerable Acqui-
fi tions of Learning fuperadded, to give any rati
onal Decifion at all in the Cafe. Whereas, how
few are there, I fay, that Nature has endowed
with thefe proper Talents ; and how much fewer
whom their Education has adapted for any fuch
Task ? A Confideration that has often excited
my Wonder, to fee Mr. Addifon, in behalf, of
Religion, infifting fo ftrenuoufly upon the Force
of its external Proofs, and the Authenticnefs of
Facts, evincing, as he certainly does, beyond all
TbeReafo- Contradiction, the Veracity of the Sacred Writ-
ThlTfofe- in§s and Miffion> as an undoubted and unexcep-
¦«/»..%<_» tlonab,e Claim to univerfal Difciplefhip. Where-'
inspecula-as, in my humble Senfe, the Truth of the Hiftory
tliJu *Wis by no means the Matter in Queftion, but
tb'e"Lr- my Obligation to affent to it. It is one thing whe-
tofi. ther a Propofition be indeed true in itfelf, and
another

( 19 )
another "whether a Man be bound to apprehend'
and believe it. A Diftinction, I cannot but think,
not fufficiently attended to on this Subject. For
that abfolute and certain Truth of the Gofpel,
which fhines out indeed fo confpicuoufly upon a
proper Difcuffion and Acquaintance, does yet not
at all hinder but that it may very poffibly appear
otherwife to the rude and fhort-fighted Under
standings of many, that cannot enter fufficiently
into the Argument to become apprized of its
Merits. < It is ftill a fpeculative Truth, whofe
^ Explanation and whole Force depends upon a juft
Apprehenfion of moral Proofs, and is to be learnt
only by Reafoning ; and therefore muft from its
Nature be liable to be often mifconceived, and have
its Opponents fo far neceffitated, and therefore
innocent, in their Oppofition, without forrte far
ther Caufe and Principle of Offence to juftify
their being damned for miftaking. Demonftra-
tive, doubtlefs, it is ; but what is that to me,
who have not the Talents requifite fpr entering in
to Demonftrations ? It is by no means fufficient
that your Argument be indeed conclusive in itfelf,
unlefs you can adapt it effectually to my Under
ftanding too, and make it conclufiue to me. It
muft be upon fuch a Connexion only, that all my
Duty in the Cafe can poffibly be grounded.
For in what Relation can any Thing ftand to me,
of which I have no Perception ? Your Mufick
may poffibly be juft in its Kind to the moft criti
cal Exactnefs, but as long^as I am naturally deaf
or untuned to the Voice of the Charmer, charm he
never fo wifely and expertly, it is impoffible for
you to expect that I fhould ever pronounce from
my own Knowledge that he does fo, or exprefs
any Marks of my Approbation or Applaufe upon
the Occafion. It muft be one that hath Ears to
hear, and be properly affected by it; one, who

( 20> )
by having cultivated a Tafte for Harmony and
Concords, is become able to receive it, that muft
give it its due Teftimony. For me, under my
unlucky Impediment, it can be no Affront to the
Juftnefs of the Compofition, or any juft Ground.
of Offence to the Performer, that I have really
nothing to fay to it. That the Hiftorical Facts
of the Gofpel are moft highly credible and con
vincing to fuch as have the Capacity to look into
them, we both readily agree ; but to fuch as have
not, I affert, that they are properly neither1 true
nor falfe ; they are not chargeable with any Ver
dict about them, one Way or tbe other. The
Reafoners on the other Side fay, k< This is true, and
" therefore all Men muft believe it." I fay, " It
*' is true, but all Men cannot believe it, or frame
" any reafonable Notion about it." The Diffe
rence betwixt us is evidently not the Truth of Chri
ftianity ; that main Point we both unanimoufiy al
low : The Connexion and Juftice of the Inference,
that becaufe it is true, therefore all Men are bound
to believe it, is the Circumftance 1 fo juftly except
againft. For the fame Reafon, all the ingenious Appli
cations of myfterious Prophecies, and their Refe
rences, are in my Opinion never to be mention
ed as Arguments and Means of Conviction, in
behalf of a Truth deftined to be univerfally received.
The learned and profound Calculation of Daniel's
Weeks, if religious Faith were a Matter of
mere Speculation, would go far to tempt me per
haps into a favourable Opinion of the Criticifirj
and Juftnefs of the Conjecture. The excellent
Analogy of Reafon and Revelation, lately commu-.
nicated, might induce me yet more powerfully to
acknowledge at leaft a very great and fpecious
Appearance of Truth -in its traced Connexions
and Inferences, if the Subject were indifferent in
its

its Ctinfequences, and I were left to myfelf to pro
nounce freely what occurred naturally to my
Mind from the Confideration of it. But when
I confider all thefe enlightening Lucubrations as
Proofs actually infifted on, and whofe Force I am
bound to admit, as calculated for the general and
ready Ufe of all thofe to whom the Precept of
Believing is addreft ; or, in fhort, as that which
any Part of the Evidence of Chriftianity is to
ftand upon, or depend for its Support; however
I may honour the fagacious Authors of thefe new
Lights for their particular Difcoveries, I cannot
but draw to myfelf very different Confequences
from thofe they feem to expect from their Pro-
pofal of them. Inftead of availing to convince
my Reafon of the Truth of any particular religi
ous Syftem, they have a- juft contrary Effect, and
fuggeft ftrongly to me, that fuch a Pofition can
never be That neceffary Truth, which ftands in need
of any fuch far-fetched Apologies, and laboured
Accounts, to reconcile" and explain it. I confi
der all thefe as, in Truth they are, Inventions of
late Date, and therefore at beft fuperfluous to
wards the main Defign, fince Religion muft
needs, to my thinking, have been equally evi
dent, and well eftablifhed, long before ever thefe
new Defences were fo happily thought of. When
ever I reflect with myfelf upon the general Im
portance and 'End of Religion, I cannot found
its Evidence by any Means on any Complication
of Circumftances to be traced out by Induftry or
Addrefs, for the Illuftration of its Authority. I
cannot but form to myfelf fome more Jimple Cha-
racleriftick of full Sufficiency always accompany
ing it. I cannot but conclude in my Mind, that
the whole Force of its Evidence muft have been
co-temporary" with the original Inftitution itfelf,
wd have been entirely complete for the Purpofe ever

<• 22 ) ir
ever fince its firft Publication 5 that neceiiary
Truths were not revealed by halves, and left to
be perfected afterwards at Leifure by the Ef
forts of human Wit ; that the Evidence of the
Gofpel muft have this one Property of its Great
Author, to be the fame Tefterday, to Day, and for
ever ; and confequently muft have been equally
plain and affecting to fuch as never lived to be in
the Way of thefe fupplemental Revelations, and who
never heard a Syllable in their Lives of Weeks or
Analogies. There might ftill be fome faint Shew of Foun
dation or Pretence perhaps for our endeavouring
to multiply this Kind of improved Hints and fpe
culative Refinements upon the Subject, if the Can
didates for Heaven were all Philosophers and Scho
lars. But we are to remember always that the
Terms of Salvation are equally calculated for the
Benefit of fuch as cannot fo much as read ; as they
were chiefly publifhed to the World by Men ac
tually under that Incapacity themfelves. In Fact,
it is notorious that the moft, and I might add, the
beft, of every religious Profeffion do never con
cern themfelves the leaft in any argumentative
Tasks, or would indeed be ever the wifer for it,
if they did. And thofe few who pretend, or
perhaps flatter themfelves that they are indeed
rationally convinced in the Point, may yet recollect,
if they will fairly own the Truth, that they were
equally convinced before the Trial, or, at leaft, had
ftrong Prefages beforehand, on which Side the
Truth lay, and intended, in fome Meafure, to be
convinced at fetting out.
For granting yet farther every Man living to
be naturally as capable as you pleafe of judging in
thefe Points, that in Confequence of fuch Capa
city, his Reafon, duly exerted,- muft needs lead
him to embrace Chriftianity, in Preference to all
the

( n )
the other religious Profeffions in the World, and
to diiiinguifh ftill farther our eflablifhed Church
in particular, as the Mode the , moft conformable
to that divine Plan ; I ask ftill, where is the Man
living in the Situation requifite for the Execution
of fuch an Attempt, and qualified, even upon this
Suppofition, to make the Trial? Prejudice, ever jfjaL
earlier than the firft Effays of Reafon, is as abfo-Men dif-
lute a Difqualification for fuch a Task, as the qualified
greateft natural Incapacity. A thoufand ftiongfor f??
Impreffions already funk deep into his Mind, a J , their
thoufand natural Attachments to Cuftoms, Per- natural
fons and Things, have long e'er this Time put it ¦?«./««
abfolutely out of his Power to be able to make ms'
equitable Decifions in Cafes where the Interefts of
any of theie Favourites are concerned. An inno
cent Partiality contracted for particular Objects,
and Notions familiarized to us by long Acquain
tance, an honeft and natural Fondnefs for our old
Friends,- will never permit us now to exert our
Judgments difintereftedly, where They may pof
fibly be affected by the Event, or difpofe us to
afford this Exactnefs of fair Play to new Comers;
As long as Men are fabject to the Influence of
Paffions, as well as Reafon, fuch a calm and
Stoical Conduct is not to be expected ; or that the
Caufe of the Stranger fhould have all this rigid
Juftice and ftrict Regard that looks fo becoming
in Theory, paid to its Pretentions and Merit, when
once the Judge's Affections have been fo deeply
pre-engaged, and have unwarily taken their Part
in the, Debate.
Now it is to be remembered all along, and car
ried carefully with us through all thefe Confide-
rations, that the great Command to believe, is pe
remptory and abfolute ; no Conditions in the Cafe
that we fhall believe if we have Time, if we have Abi-

Abilities ; or if preceeding Prejudices have not firft
taken too faft Hold to prevent us.
To pafs over all thefe prefamptive Obftacles in
the Way, let us however fappofe, that our ra
tional Enquirer has happily laboured through all
Rational Impediments to his Wifh ; that he is crowned
tohmat- with a11 imaginable Succefs in his Undertaking;
tain'di and confirmed at laft beyond all Remains of Doubt
would not and Scruple in his religious Perfaafions ; Let us
1l^Jrd confider him for the prefent as having attain'd to
n ''the higheft Degree of Satisfaction in the Point
that Reafon can poffibly help him to ; will a
Faith, thus built upon Syllogifms, ever furnifh.
out any of thofe miraculous Effects, which are de-
fcribed to attend a juft and finifhed Belief? Can
this be the Faith whofe prOmifed Influence was
to fuperfede the Powers of fecond Caufes, and
triumph over the whole Courfe of Nature in its
Operations ? Can this be the Faith, whofe Effi--
cacy was to remove Mountains, -and make Men
walk upon the Water ? Or will it even ferve to
produce any of thofe more known and ordinary
Characterifticks that are given us to diftingufh
Would the true Believer ? For Inflance, will fuch a
prove too Faith ever produce that lively and active Spirit
of 'Zeal in the Caufe, which is every where ib
ftrongly recommended to all Profefibrs of the
Gofpel? The calm Votary of Reafon's Dictates
will not fo readily be brought to exprefs all that
fanguine Concern for his Opinions, which is re
quired of a Difciple of Chrift. He will be apt to
be very much wanting in that laudable Warmth
with which religious Truths are to be afferted and
promoted. He will never be folicitous enough
about the Succefs of his Inferences, or refent with
a becoming Ardour the Contradiction of his Doc
trines and Hypothefes. The glimmering Ray, that

that conducts, his Underftanding, will never
have Strength enough to light up fuch a po
tent Fire as that of Zeal ; a Zeal according to
Knowledge will fcarce ever deferve the Name.
He that has once experienced all the Difficulties
and Uncertainties, that attend a Courfe of Rea-
foning, will never dare to abet any of his Dis
coveries with Warmth. He will have feen enough
to make him very tender in taking upon him
to dictate, or communicate abfolute Leffons of
Inftruction, and nothing to authorize his inflft-
ing vehemently, or contending earneftly, in Be
half of a Faith wherein he was his own Matter ;
fince the beft Warrant of human Reafon can ne
ver give fuch Affurance of the Truth, but that
we . may poffibly be mifiaken ; and if we may, it is
Madnefs of Partiality to attack another's Prin
ciples with- Vehemence, as if we were the only
Perfons not liable to Error. , He confiders him
felf not only as not infallible, but frequently not
confiftent with himfelf ; that he has found, even
in himfelf, very different Sentiments, at diffe
rent Seafons, upon the fame Subject. Or if pof
fibly he has not actually remarked already any
Thing of the Kind, can he ever be fare from
any Degree of Conviction whieh he feels at pre-
fent that the Vibration of his Judgment is en
tirely over, and fixed inviolably to that one Point ?
Can he at any Time be able to promife himfelf
riveted for Life in Opinion, and be certain that
his Underftanding fhall never revoke her paft
Sentence ? And if he cannot indeed be thus fe-
cure of his own Conftancy and lafting Attach
ment, it will but ill become him to require too
zealoufly of others their ftedfaft Adherence to
Principles, which he knows not but he may pof
fibly live one Day to change and contradict him
felf. It is, he is fenfibie, but a very unpromi-
D fing

( zo J

fing Dependance for Difciples where the Guidej
himfelf is liable to alter his Mind, which mult
ever be the neceffary Situation of every Teacher,
who derives his Authority from no higher a Prin
ciple or ftronger Light than that of his own Rea
fon. If he deal Ingenuoufiy in his Refearches, and
profecute Truth with that Honefty and Vigour
which he ought, he muft be unavoidably liable
to Recantation every Moment of his Life without
Remedy. For the Decrees of a human Under
ftanding can, in their' Nature, have no Pretention
to be irreversible. The cleareft Ei/fti«* That can
help us to, muft ever leave Room for * «»1^« '¥<*&'
to luperfede it.
And this is another very fingular and effential
Defect of a rational Faith, that it muft always be
To" fo very- precarious. For what Reafon firft efta-
xlu,egt' blifh'd, itis evident the fame Reafon muft ever
have the Power to repeal. Hence a ration^.
Faith will ever be fubjetl lo Change, and the moft
fixed Refolves and mature Determinations that
Reafon can make, muft be always ready to be
turned about with every Wind of Botlrine, as the
Evidence fhall fhift to another Point. The Phi-
lofopher, after his ftrongelt Conclufions, fpeaks
however very diffidently of their Continuance.
Such, he fays, are his prefent Sentiments upon
the Subject ; but that they will be always fo, is
what he can by no means anfwer for or enfure ;
fince it is not impoffible' but fome new Evidence-
may ftill fucceed of Weight to turn the Scale,
and fet Things again in a quite different Light;
from that in which they have hitherto appeared
to him. And Reafon can never, with any Show
* The Author is fuppofed hereto allude to a Book of that
Title written^ as I think, by the famous Dr. Whitby, in his
later Years, and wherein he recanted fome more Orjiodox5
Opinion, which he had before laudably abetted. of

( 27 ) .
of Juftice, be fo abfardly partial and tenacious,
as for the Sake of any Conclufions already made,
to turn a deaf Ear to all future Suggeftions, which
may- offer in the Caufe, and which muft have
ftill an equal Right to Audience with their fa
vourite Predeceflbrs, if the Sentence of our paft
Judgment cannot claim to be abfolutely definitive
and infalliable : Whereas it is the religious Man's
Refolution, as it is his Duty, to perfift in the
Faith he has once efpoufed to his Life's End.
Convinced of the Truth of his adopted Gofpel, he
difclaims henceforth all farther Trial, and triumphs
forthwith in fuch a fuppofed Certainty, that he
pioufly implores the Protection of Heaven to pre-
ferve him firm in his prefent Situation, againft the
dangerous Power of any Innovation whatfoever,
and all new Principles that might poffibly alter
and corrupt him.  It ic impoffible for me to
fuggeft, or indeed for Nature to furnifh out a
ftronger Picture of that cool and moderate Tem
per of a Rationalift which I have been defcribing,
than that which our daily Experience prefents us
with in the Cafe of Converts from one Religion
to another. 1 he Cafe of the World, where Rea
fon is ever fuppofed to be the moft eminently and
vifibly concerned, and profeffed to be indeed the
fole Principle in the Proceeding. Reduce a Man
once by Argument from his original Prejudi
ces, however grofs and abfurd, and that to the
moft juft and well-grounded Perfuafion in Na
ture, and fee the Confequence. Will the At
tachment of fuch a Profelyte to his new Light
bear any Degree of Proportion eyer after to that
he once expreffed for thofe occult and myfterious
Articles, which1 he had derived without a Syl
lable of Controverfy from the Leffons of his Pa
rents ? The fetting him once to arguing for
himfelf, has fpoiled him for ever for any fecond
Attachment

c 28 y
Attachment of the Kind. The reverential Part of
our Adherence, which takes its Rife from a fap^
pofed facred Authority, being once removed, it is
impoffible we fhould ever after be brought back.
again to pay the fame profound and religious De- .
ference to our own uncertain Realbnings, and Dif-
coveries of our own making. The juft Horror
of venturing at all upon fuch a Queftion, where
the Truth of Religion is concerned, and where
a Poffibility of its Falfhood is actually fuppofed,
is the beft and only Security of our proper Vene
ration for the Subject. When once thefe impor
tant Out-works are demolifhed, when once we
are come fo far as to make no Scruple of examin
ing freely for odrfelves, the main Hold upon our
religious Engagements is then broke through,
and farewel forever all the true Spirit of Dif
ciplefhip. The very prefuming that we have a
Right to call thefe Matters to a Re-hearing, and
Abilities to decide in them for ourfelves, is an ef
fectual Step taken towards the throwing off for
the future all that obfequious Awe, and Depen-
dance, which is the Life of this Caufc. When:
once we have made a Practice of traverfing with
fo much Freedom the Avenues and Approaches;,;
of the Sanctuary, when once we have prefump-
tuoufly inured ourfelves to the ftamping thus bold
ly and familiarly over holy Ground, we fhall with
Difficulty be recovered to a tender Senfe of the
Reverence and Devotion due to the Place, to the
pious Pofture of humble Supplicants, and Pro-
ftration. Accordingly we may ever obferve in
our Profelyte, that once turned adrift into Specu
lation, however he may anchor accidentally for
a Time,_ his contracted Propenfity to Motion and
Fluctuating will ftill ftkk faft to him in all Sta.
tions. That however fixed and fatisfied he may
imagine or profefs himfelf, his Conftancy -and
Allegiance

Allegiance are no longer fecure., than till a new Ma-^
fter fhall offer to his better Liking. That amidft
all his Illumination profeffed, he is yet no defpe-
rate Subject for a frefh Application. He continues
ftill 'fapine in his Devotion, and difcovers no violent
Partiality and Paffion for the Caufe. His Affecti
ons are but half inlifted, and by his Pofture, he is
yet liftening out for farther Intelligence. In fhort,
he wears his Perfuafion all the while like one, who
is always ready and difpofed to be converted a-
gain, whenever he fhall meet with any Thing that
may appear more worthy his Attention or Engage
ment. So far we may fee is Reafon in its Effects from
contributing to the making of one Flock and one
Fold, that it will but ill ferve fo much as to enfure
one Jlraggling Sheep, that it has by Chance helped
in thither.
Once more, as the rational Believer can never take
upon him to pronounce himfelf inviolably fecure in
his Adherence to the Caufe he has efpoufed, fo nei
ther can he promife himfelf that Complacency and Sa- would not
tisfaSion of Mind, refalting from the Confcioufnefsw/B^er
of fach a Faith, which is the bleffed Fruit of that ££•£*
true and genuine Faith I contend for. For let youryorf -m tht
common Experience determine whether that Ver-Refieclion.
fon does not enjoy his Belief with much greater
Tranquillity and Confidence of Spirit, who never
asked himfelf one fingle Queftion about it, than he,
who by the moft elaborate Difcuffions, and bufieft
Search, has attained to the utmoft Degree of mo
ral Affurance in the Matter. The philofophical Be
liever, who built his Faith originally on rhe Force
of Arguments, may poffibly find thofe Argu
ments not fo readily occur to his Memory in thofe
gloomy Hours, when he has the moft Occafion
for their Support, and confequently will be liable, at

(. 3° J
at every Turn to his Mifgivings and Diftrufts a-
bout the Sufficiency of thofe Reafonings he cannot
for the prefent fo well recollect ; whilft he, that
has once arrived at the full and lafting Affarance
of a juft and heavenly Faith, can never be to feek
at any Time for the Grounds and Motives of his
firft Conviftion and Dependance : Having never,
for his Part, dealt at all in the Evidence of Rea
fon, he can never poffibly have the Strefs of his
Conclufions diminifhed or obfcured by a Review,
or be at any Lofs to recover all their original Force
at Pleafare ; but muft always have the fame Bafis
of his Hopes alike eftablifhed, and therefore muft
to the End be fecure of enjoying all that Peace
of Mind which the World and carnal Intelligence
cannot give, without any the leaft Interruption from
the Caprice of Thought or Complexion.
Kot. of In the laft Place, no Conviction drawn from
*0rce fuf-! Reafoning can ever have Force enough to make us
command ^rtmus againfl our Inclinations ; the higheft Degree
our Paf- of moral Affarance will never be a fufficient Bi-
finns. lance for prefent Temptations. The mortifying
all our moft beloved Affections, and reftraining
all the ftrongeft Propenfities of our Nature, ( in
which our Obedience to religious Rules confifts )
is too fabftantial a Sacrifice to be made to the
moft fpecious Suggeftions of our own fallacious
Reafonings. We may well conclude, that he who
framed the human Mechanifm,, and confequently
underftands fo thoroughly the neceffary Influences"
of all its various Springs, will always take Care
to proportion the Evidence of the Reward propo-
fed to the Difficulty of the Duty required. A Com
mand, that expects us to give' up all the Demands
of our deareft Paffions to its Authority, muft be
introduced to us, at leaft, by no doubtful Ac
count or Teftimony at all liable to be controvert ed.

i. 31 ;
ed. Venerable Tradition and Hiftorical Re
cords, though never fo plaufible and well attefted,
under all the moft favourable Circumftances that
the( fevereft Malice of an exceptious Critic can
demand, or the moft provident Invention of a
fubtle Impoftor frame, can yet never, with all its
boafted Pretentions, be a fufficient Bafis for a
Belief, which is to produce a new Courfe of Life,
and an abfolute Maftery of our Paffions, in Op-
pofition to all the importunate Solicitations of
Senfe, and the violent Appetites of depraved
Nature. It is ftill all but human Tefiimony this,
in its Nature ever liable to Error, as depending
only on fallible Authors. And however forcibly
fuch an Evidence may operate for the prefent
upon our Judgment whilft actually under Conful-
tation, however it may induce us at our fpecula
tive Hours to pronounce peremptorily in Be
half of its full Sufficiency, and of the abfolute
Certainty of the Points it conveys ; we fhall fee all
its true Amount and Weight in a jufter light
at thofe Seafons when we expect to make Ufe of
it, and feel its Influence, and fhall be apt to re
member involuntarily when we come to Action,
and fome darling Paffion crofted by it, puts the
Queftion in good earneft home to us, that it is
nothing more than the precarious Conjeffure of
a fallible Judge, upon the traditional Tefiimony of
a fallible Witnefs : A flender Foundation for a
Principle, which is to have fuch vital and he
roic Efficacy through the Conduct of our whole
Lives ! Can a Scheme, thus vouched and afcer-
tained, be ever expected to gain that prevailing
Afcendancy over our* Minds, as to change thus
wonderfully all our obvious and palpable Inte-
refts, and take off all our Regard from Objects
prefent and familiar to our Defires, to .bring us
to depend confidently on diftant Expectations and
Promifes

f 32 )
Promifes for our Compenfation ? I will very rea
dily ,grant you all the moral Certainty in thefe
Proofs that you can defire ; and farther, that this
is indeed the higheft Degree of rational Evidence
that the Nature of the Subject can poffibly ad
mit. What I contend for is, that it muft be
fomething ftill greater, and more abfolutely conclu-
five and fatisfactory, to anfwer the Purpofe of en
forcing a holy Life, and to weigh in the Scale againft
demonftrative Good ; that we fhall hardly be in
duced to quit what we actually/^/, for any lefs
Confideration than fomething which we actually
know; that nothing lefs than a thorough Convidfr
on can effectually fecure a thorough Reforma
tion. To deter Men from taking up with an
Enjoyment already in their Power, they muft have
the cleareft Profpect of fomething better to fuc-
ceed in its Room. Things prefent have all the
Advantages on their Side in bidding to our Senfes,
and the moft valuable Reverfions are but of
fmall Regard in Competition with what is be
fore us. Nor can we be juftly blamed for this
Conduct. Our Reafon bids us make fure of
fomething, and not part with the Good we have
to truft too far to Futurity for Amends, if there be
the leaft Poffibility of our being difappointed'in
our Security. And therefore it is by no meana
fufficient to fay that there is a great Appearance
of Probability, and that Truth feems to lye on
this Side of the Queftion. The defending Sword
muft play full in Sight, or the delicious Apple
will infallibly be fnatched at for Want of a DiU
fuafive of equal Force to.reftrain us. — And if
this rational Faith will not, as I have hitherto*
fhewed, ferve us even defenfively, and on com-
'Mmh lefs' mon Emergencies, fo much as to make a <*ood
«~*««lmngChriftian, much lefs will it ftill to prodmi
Martyr, "faithful Martyr upon Occafion, if ever fo feverel
iom._ ' ' an

(. 55 J
an Exercife of it be demanded at our Hands.
Here is yet a more conlpicuous Iniiance of that
abfolute Certainty which there ought to be in our
Faith for fuch a Purpofe, fince the ftrongeft Ope
rations of our Reafon can never point out Truth
to us in a Light glaring and forcible enough to
furnifh fach an Experiment. The glorious and
undaunted Confeffors that have encouhtred this
laft terrible Confequence, and actually triumphed
over this fiery Trial of their Per-faafion, proceeded
upon a much higher and farer Principle to bear
them out in all their heroic Sufferings, otherwife
I muft be free to think that Abner' s Elegy would
have faked the braveft of them, " Died he as a
" Fool dieth ? " Such Degrees of Fortitude are no
Effects for ordinary Conviction to produce, the
ftrongeft moral AfTurance is not that cordial Re
flection and Dependance' that can infpire all this
amazing Conftancy and Refolution into Men ex
piring under the laft Extremity of Torture, nor
the moft flattering Likelihoods a Match for the
prefent and certain Pangs of agonizing upon the
Rack. The Philofopher thus preffed would be
apt, with a very natural Cafaiftry, to diftinguifh
betwixt Opinions and Principles, and to remit
much of his Tenacioufnefs under fach Circum-
ftances. Rational Conviction will readily be dif-
trufted when Matters come to fach a Crifis,
though perhaps never before fafpected in a State
of indolent Toleration, and. the fmooth Calms of
Life. Men at fach a-Seafon will naturally be
alarmed to enquire more nearly what Grounds
they ftand upon in the Point, when once they
find that they muft indeed put all to tlie Hazard
to retain it, and be compelled to feal their Pro-
feffions, if- they will abide by them, with their
Blood. Such a ProfpecT. will rouze them in good
Earneft to a different kind of Examination from
E, what

( 34 ) „ ,
what has hitherto entered into their Thoughts, to
know for certain what they have to trult to, or de
termine in the Cafe ; fo near a Concern will im
mediately engage their beft Attention, and the
Service of all their Faculties in the Caufe ; it will
put them upon computing with the moft impar
tial Exactnels the Advantage and Lofs attend
ing each important Alternative, and making the
ftricteft prudential Eftimate upon the Matter.
They will then ba folicitous to know, by all
poffible Means of Scrutiny, the full Worth and
Merits of a Caufe that is likely to prove fo ex-
penfive to them. Their Prejudices and Puncti
lios they will be difpofed to lay but fmall Strefs
on under fach Difadvantages, and will, it is pro
bable, not be over-forward to give, even to the
Appearance of Reafon herfelf, any Thing more
than what it will well and ftrictly bear. In fine,
will it be any Thing very uncharitable to fup-
pofe, that a modeft Diffidence of our own De
terminations may prove the Refalt of our matu
rer Thoughts in this Dilemma ; that the chief of
our Difcoveries will be in the End the great Duty
of Self-prefervation in Uncertainties ; and that
both Nature and Reafon fhould unite their Voices
to determine us anew to lower our Flag of Defi
ance, and not venture to die for our BedutJions?
The Rationalift may indeed, in his Retirement,,
be wonderfully affected with the abftracted Con
templation of his Difcoveries, and his formed Re-
folutions of conftantly perfifting in them ; but
when once he is called upon to exert its promifed
Influence, and put it to aTeft like this, he will foon
be convinced, that he muft call in much greater.
Aid than that of plaufible 'Hypothefes, to con
firm him ftedfaft amidft the Rage and Cruelty of
malicious Murtherers, and enable him to be
faithful to the laft to a perfected Religion, and
that

that nothing, but a fixed and well-grounded Con
fidence of being happy forever in another World,
can effectually prevail on him to renounce all his
Hopes and Interefts in this. Where we are to aft
up to fach an exalted Height as to ftriveunto Blood,
we muft have fome very fubftantial and vifible In
ducement before us to keep up our Spirits in the
Conflict ; the exceeding Weight of Glory will have
but little Weight with us, till it be firft fully reveal
ed,, we muft have this Heaven actually opened to our
View, and behold the Son of Man /landing plainly be
fore our Eyes, Cnot through the dim and obfcure
Perfpeclives of Hiftory and Tradition) to fupport!
and reward us.
Thus far the many obvious Difficulties that arife
merely from the very Face of the Matter itfelf,
When we confider religious Faith as a Thing to ba
determined by our Reafon, and what naturally and
readily occurs to us in reflecting from fuch a Sup-
pofition. My next Proof propofed was, That RefleSion
and common Senfe -were feconded and confirmed in
this Point by the Divine Word itfelf, and that it
was plain from Scripture, that no fuch Appeal
to the Underftanding was actually ever made or
intended. It is inded but Juftice due to the Glorious and
Heaven-concerted Scheme of our Salvation, to
fhew, that no fuch abfurd and prepofterous Pro
ject was ever offered to be fet on Foot in the Caufe;
that the Fountain of all Wifdom did indeed .never
form or amufe us with any fucli ftrange Pro-
pofal, as, ---.—- — " Judge whether you have
*' Time or not ; judge whether your are Judges
" or not ; judge all for yourfelves, and yet judge
" all alike.
Now this Part of my Affertion would, I think,
demand of me only a fmall Degree of my Induftry for

r 36 )
for its Juftification. I fhould, I apprehend, have
little more than merely to collect and range for the
Purpofe, all thole Expreffions, both literal and fi
gurative, that treat ofthe Nature of Faith, or nave
any Relation to the Subject. Such as, ----- Left they
ftiould underftand with their Hearts ; ------- 1 heir
foolifh Heart was darkned ;  Purified their
Hearts by Faith. Expreffions, applicable with no
Propriety to the Intellectual Faculty, but evidently
defcriptive of the Will only. _
1 But, as Quotations in Behalf of doctrinal Points
are many Times liable to have their Application
difputed, and it is perhaps often difficult enough
to afcertain critically their juft Senle and Mean
ing • againft all the fpecious Exceptions of preju
diced Wit, I fhall chufe rather, for the prefent,
to enlarge upon a Particular, which appears to
me entirely uncontrovertible ; and that is, the
plain narrative Part of that Hiftory, as far as it
relates to the Bufinefs of planting the Gdfpel, and
the Manner by which it was attempted ;, of
which we have, happily for my my Purpofe, fo ex
act and diftinct an Account there given us. On
this Circumftance, therefore, I fhall chiefly reft
my Appeal, and doubt not to make good my
promifed Proof, by introducing only to you a
Ihort Review of the Courfe of Proceedings taken '
by the bleffed Apoftles and their Matter, as we
, find it recounted by themfelves, in that Under- '
taking.
rChnft did. Did our Saviour himfelf, then, lay the Argu-
notpropofi ments and Proofs of his Miffion frankly before
his Doc- kjs x)ifciples, and then give them Time to con-
£SL-fider calmly of their Force, and Liberty to de-
tion. termine thereon, as their Reafon fhould direct
them ? Or did they, when thoroughly perfaad-
ed, ever take any fach Courfe themfelves a;
mongft their intended Profelytes ?  No fuel*
. Matter,

( 37 )
Matter. For his Part, he taught them, as ette
having Authority. He confidered himfelf as the
Perfon he was, as one who derived from Heaven
the Inftructions he was communicating, and
therefore taught them very jufty, as a Matter
who had a Right to dictate, and prefcribe to his
Pupils without Reply. And, alas! if he had
taken the other Method, they knew nothing of
Reafoning ; it was a Matter quite out of their
Element ; they bad had their Education on the ,
Water ; and though they underftood their Trade,
-fo far as to be well vers'd in the Ufe of their
own Nets, would go near, it is likely, to be loon
entangled themfelves, when they had to do with
the figurative ones of Sophiltry or Syllogifm.
That he did hat ill approve the being called on
upon any Occafion to explain, will readily appear,
when we obferve, how cautious and referved
thofe who were beft acquainted with his Manner
were in that Particular ; how fearful at every
Turn of giving Offence, and incurring Reproof
by any farther Enquiry, even at Times when
they did not really apprehend his Meaning.
With what ftrong Circumftances of Approbation
and Applaufe is a ready Acquiefcence always re
corded for our Imitation ? What Matter of greater
Merit do we meet with than this of an extempore
Subfcription ? Whereas Reafon is naturally a.
flow, diftruftful, exceptious. Scholar, ever back
ward to give any great Confidence as long as fhe
can find the leaft Room to frart new Difficulties,
" We will hear thee again of this Matter, is the
true adjourning Spirit and Stile of the Acade
mic : Whereas the Language of the Gofpel is
at once, " Believe you that I am able to do this?
The Conviction, you fee, was . to precede the
Evidence, as the Terms of the Favour to be
confequently conferred. The Pharifees, it is laid,

tempting him, afked a Sign; that is, lome le-
ftimonial of the Truth of his declared Miffion:
And what did this Requeft produce ? Why, he
fighed deeply at their Perverfenefs, who were fo
hard to be convinced, and ftiled them a foolifh
and adulterous Generation for their Prefarnption.
Now, this defiring a rational Evidence for their
Difciplefhip, the feeking after a Sign, as the Scrip
ture terms it, had, if he had indeed appealed to
their Underftandings, been fo far from any Thing
criminal or blame-worthy, that it had been in
all Reafon their indifpenfable Duty ; whereas it
was, it feems, in Faith an unwarrantable, pre-
fumptuous, and wanton Curiofity. In like man
ner, there was nothing to be faid to , the inqui-
fitive and fitting Humour of the Greeks, fince
nothing would pais with them but the ftricteft
Reafonings, to which they were fo ltrongly ad
dicted, that it was juftly expected, they would not
have fcrupled to have demanded peremptorily his
Credentials, even of their Saviour, and put their
darihg Interrogatories to the Holy Spirit himfelf.
Nor his The Succeffors in the Miniftry we find con-
Apoftles. tinuing the fame Method of Practice exactly ira
their Turn, and trading punctually in their
Matter's Steps in the Execution of their Office,"
infifting conftantly on the ready Acknowledge
ment of their Doftrinss, without any Concef-
fions of Time for Doubt or Deliberation. Of
the Terms of the Covenant, one Declaration
was often thought fafficient ; not to accept them
then was to reject them, and the leaft ftanding-
off gave up the Unbeliever to Reprobation.
Had not Nor could it poffibly be otherwife, if we confider
Y'fure the Situation of the Preacher in the Infancy of
iC/Revelacion' and what an extenfive Province he
- ' had to run through with his Intelligence. He
muft of courfe be always in hafte to get on, and
could

could have no Time to fpare, if he were fo dif-
pofed. His Commiffion required him to keep
ftirring. The Ha^veft was plenteous upon his
Hands, and That alone muft oblige his Hearers
to come in at fhort Warning, to fhatch the cri
tical Opportunity, or fairly expect to ftand to the
Lofs. Itinerants could not afford to attend im
pertinent Queries, and lofe their precious Moments
in Controverfies. To believe, or not, was at e-
very one's own Choice ; thofe that were obftinate,
let them look to it. The Dull was to be forth
with fhaken off againft them, and the Doom pro
nounced. Their Office was only to circulate their
Creeds ; they were not fent to difpute, but to
preach ; not to wrangle, but inftruct. It was
Qualification enough, in fuch a Cafe, for a Mit
fionary to be furnifhed with his Manifefto ; Argu
ments could evidently be of no Service to Perfons
who could make no longer Stay in a Place. And
therefore we fee it was abfoluteiy requifite, as
was remarked, from their Circumftances, that
their Difciples fhould be thus expeditious in their
Motions, and comply without the leaft Hefitation.
And accordingly, we find that whole Congre
gations were often gained over at a Hearing, and
Thoufands at a Time actually convinced by a
fingle Lecture. So mightily grew the Word of God
and prevailed. Such a one was the Eunuch we
¦ read of, the Profylite of a fhort Stage, inftru-
cted one Hour, and baptized the next. Suf
ficient Proofs that there was no ftanding to make
Exceptions in the Cafe ; if they had a Right to
do th'at, they muft have had a farther Right too
to multiply their Replies at Difcretion, and, in
fine, to have held to their own Opinions, and not
be convinced at laft.
Nor were indeed thefe Inftructors in themfelves Ntr g^
qualified to go through with any foch regular Way lificatiansj
of

( 40 1 ¦ •«.
of Attack, if the Nature of their Commiffiori
had admitted it. They wanted as much the Skill
and Addrels to manage a Controverfy, as the.'
Leifure to attend it. They were no Proficient^
in any Science, but, on the contrary, the moft
artlefs and illiterate Perfons living. A fhrewd'
Intimation, as it is fo often juflly reprefented to
us, that fach were purpofely chofen out to be the-
Inftruments to convey this Knowledge to us, that'
there might not be the leaft feeming Room for
any miftaken Notion of phe Kind ; that we
might not poffibly be tempted to attribute to
Reafon's Force, or impute to any perfonal Art
or Acquifitibn of their own, an Effect which was
to be the fole and immediate Act of the Divinity,
and wherein the Power of God was in a particu-
' lar Manner tP be glorified. For the fame Rea
fon the finale Perfon amongft them, who was
pofieffed ofthe fuppofed Advantages of human
Learning, refolves, we fee, immediately from',
the firft Moment of his commencing Apoftle,
to leave it all behind him, and abfolutely to dif-
claim all farther Acquaintance with it. Fie was
determined to know nothing elfe amongft his Dif-
ciples but Chrift crucified, nor to make any Ufe,
of the Wifdom of Words, left the Crofs of Chrift
fhould be made of none Effefl. Even the Follow- >;
ers of the Impoftor Mahomet are fo fenfible of
the Advantage of fach a Prefamption in their
Favour, and enter fo deeply into this Way of
Reafoning, that we hear them boafting at every.
Turn when they defire to do the greateft Ho
nour to their Prophet, and as a molt undoubted^
Mark of his Divinity, that he could neither write;
nor read. And as the original and firft Nego.
tiators both received and practifed themfelves ac
cording to this conftant Rule, in the very fame
Style again run all their paftoral Charges and In-
ftructionsl

f 41 ;
ftructions continued to their deputed Succeffors,
when they are iffaing out new Commiffioris of A-
poftlefhip, and giving Directions for the Treatment
of a Novice, who might happen to be not yet
quite, fo thoroughly in the Perfuafion.  " Him
that is weak in the Faith receive." Yes ; — but how ?
why, to inftruct him better ;--not by any means to
confute or argue with him,— not to doubtful Difputa-
tfons. On the contrary, how wild a Suppofition this rhe wry
of their ' propofing to proceed by Reafoning in^Wttm
fuch an Undertaking, how repugnant to every dently
Notion of common Senfe all Expectation or Fof-frepojle- -
.Ability of the Kind, will readily appear, by con- ro?s from
fidering but for one Moment what muft have ture ofthe
been the neceffary Confequences of fuch a Miffi- Thing.
on, where the Underftandings of the whole Au
dience were to be fingly appealed to for Appro
bation. Why, the Confequence, doubtlefs, of
fach a Proceeding would have been, that very
many would have found themfelves entirely at a
lofs to form any Judgment at all of the Matter ;
many would have fubfcribed abfolutely to its De
mands, and gone away fully fatisfied of its Vera
city ; and others again, as ftrongly decrying its
Authority, and deriding all Notion of its Pre
tentions. Ever in all fach Cafes the Report muft
naturally be the fame which we find of the great
Apoftle's Succefs amongft' his philofophical Au
dience, Sonie believed the Things which were fpoken,
and fome believed not. How is it poffible in the
Nature of the Thing it fhould be otherwife?
The beft of Arguments are liable to have greater
or lefs Effects, and operate in very different De
grees, according to the different Hands they
happen to' ,fall into. Much more, , if we confi
der on what critical and abftracted Kind of To-
picks fach a Courfe oi" Proofs as was to be intrcr
F ductory

( 42 )
ductory oF a new and perfective Revelation muft
chiefly have been fappofed to turn. Eternal Re
lations, moral Differences of Things, and a pre-
cife Delineation of the Religion of Nature and
its Obligations, feem readily to occur, all as fo
many indifpenfable preliminary Articles to be
treated of in the Way, and inculcated as the
Foundation of fach an intended Superftructure.
And are thefe, however certain in themfelves,'
fach obvious Truths as can never poffibly appear
otherwife, and -from which it is not to be fuppo
fed arty one can ever poffibly deviate, or one Mo
ment with-hold his Affent ? Rather may they not
be reafonably expected to be found often produ
cing an Effect fomething fhort of fuch total and
abfolute Conviction, fufficient indeed to make the
Caufe appear very plaufible and promifing, yet not
to the entire Exclufion of all Colour of remaining
Scruple upon the Subject? But alas! the draw
ing different or partial Conclufionsj the affecting^,
of Re-hearings, and defiring to take Time to
confider, are Conceffions no Way cbmpatible with
the Demands of an Apoftle, who brings with him
Doctrines of inftant and univerfal Ufe, and there
fore expects very juftly to make his Converts
with a Word's fpeaking. The begging Leave to
fufpend our Deeifion, and be excufed the pro
nouncing Sentence, is a Language favouring of
very little Acquaintance with thefe Matters, and
fuch as Would by no Means be endured upon the
Occafion. The thinking to evade the Confer
quence, by commencing an indifferent Stander-by,
is a Scheme that will very ill anfwer the Ends of
a Preacher of the Gofpel; a Propofition of no or
dinary Import, and which muft be taken to be
either abfolutely received, or obftinately rejected,
wherever it is once propofed, admits of no af-
fenting by halves, or being with Agrippa, ahnofi ]
per-

C 43 >
perfumed to be a Chrifiian. A divided Verdict;
or the bare Acknowledgment of its Probability,
will never ferve for ar fatisfactory Account, where
Souls are depending ; or anfwer the Purpofes of
a Gofpel inftituted to the Intent, that all fhould
believe on his holy Name-. To fecure fuch a Con
fequence as this, all thefe Kinds of Proofs that
fall under the Cognizance of Reafon, muft ever
be' fhort and infuffici,ent, which the Magnifiers of
its rational and moral Evidence feem not to be
aware of, nor to remember all the while that all
this boafted Demonftration, in which they fo
much confide and Triumph, does, with all its un
deniable Force, unfortunately ftill require one
equal Degree of Capacity to apprehend, and give
them a proper Hold and Influence, and can
therefore never poffibly be accounted thofe cor
gent and effective Means, which an all-wife De
signer could pEoppfe to rely on, for the drawing
all Men to himfelf. That it is certainly in Strict-
-nefs difcoverable by Telefcopes, and the- nice and
accurate Qbfervations of the curious, is by np
means a faitable Character and Property of that.
Light which was prepared ( undoubtedly to fhyie
out ) before the Face of all People. It was not
farely for fach an Inftructor to propofc Problems
to our Confideration, either indifferent in their
Nature, or uncertain in their Confequence ; to be
concerning himfelf in the ftating Cafes whofe De
termination might be difpenfed with, and' in
which he muft very often expect " to be lofing his
Labour. But thofe, who are for fubmitting it to
every one's Examination, fay no more of Chrifti
anity, than that it is indeed a good ufeful Sprt of
Scheme for thofe that it happens to fujt, and that
fuch .as can relifh it, and find themfelves able to
receive it, do for their Parts do well to receive itv
And was it in Truth, can we fappofe, for . the
Sake

Sake of any fach Conclufion and to enforce fuch
a Perfuafion about his Errand that the on y Son
of God, and Partner of the Divinity, could de
mean this exalted Nature, to ftruggle through a
long Courfe of human Paffions and Temptations,
and be content to expire at laft under fach accu
mulated Circumftances of Anguifh and Horror
upon the accurfed Tree, and all, as it feems, by
this Account, to recommend his Doctrines only
to the Opinion of a few Men of Parts, who were
happily formed with Faculties to conceive his
Proofs ? However ufeful they might in the Event
prove to their warmeft Votaries on fuch Terms for
their Influence, as a well concerted Syftem ; fuch
a Difpenfation, and fo loofe a Tie, muft evident-
ly forfeit, at firft View, all manner of Pretentions
to any divine Foundation, or univerfal Jurisdicti
on ; and be abfolutely deftructive of all Notion of
a one Thing neceffary in the Cafe. If a Man is to
be held only by his own Reafonings in the Point,.
what is this but directly licenfing a Diffent from'
the Gofpel, wherever its Evidence may happen,
not to obtain ; and ftaroping an equal Mark of
neceffary Truth upon a thoufand oppofite Opini
ons ? Now if the Cafe of invincible Ignorance/;
which thefe Moderators pronounce fo tenderly"
upon, be indeed a Plea to be ever tolerated, and
uncovenanted Mercy lies ftill open to fuch as,'
from fome natural Inftinct and Impediment, are
conftrained to refufe the Tender of a Saviour's
Name and Mediation, what are become, in the
mean Time, of all the Privileges of the Pale ?
Where are the mighty Advantages arifing from
the inlifting in the. chofen Flock, if this Heaven
be once prefumed thus equally capable of admit
ting Outliers upon the fame footing, and allowed
a common Receptacle for the Partizans on both
Sides of the Queftion ? But how prepofterous to
Inft-

Imagination to conceive, that at the taking the
laft folemn and general Account of the Friends
and Retainers of Chrift, that when proper Re
wards come to be difpenfed as due amongft his
Followers, and the Mark of the Lamb called for
to be produced as the Characteriftic and Claim of
the Elect, that the great Judge of Hearts fhould
then actually declare in Favour likewife of the
juft Exceptions of fincere Unbelievers, and (at
the fame Time that he is giving the fevereft Sen
tence againft the wilfully obftinate and difobedi-
ent) admit this ftrange Diftinction, and that with
regard to this diffenting Oafs ; they were not in
deed included in the general Precept, nor the
Terms of the Gofpel calculated at all for their Ufe
or Apprehenfion ; that they, on the contrary,
laboured under the infaperable Incapacity of a
particular Infidel-Make, and Antichriftian Com
plexion ; and therefore could not, with any Co
lour of Reafon, be expected to join in giving an
Affent, which was, by no Default of theirs, en
tirely out of their Power. That he muft .there
fore ftill do- them the Juftice to acknowledge their
equal Merit in their Oppofition, and invite them.
of courfe to take their Places amongft the Saints,
and fit down with Abraham, Jfaac, and Jacob9
and all the prime Martyrs and Confeffors for the
Caufe, in the Kingdom of Heaven. *' Well done
" good, though unfaithful, Servant ; thou haft
*' difbelieved me from Prejudices which I myfelf
" gave thee ; ,enter thou, however, into the Joy
" of thy Lord." How much more agreeable ra
ther to, Equity and Expectation, is the promifed
Courfe of Proceeding with fuch a principled Pro-
tefter, and the denying him, in his Turn, before
the holy Angels, who has dared, upon whatever
fancied Grounds, to deny his Judge before Men,
If this were not indeed the Cafe, there had been very

V 4° )
very little Need of the Expence of a Miracle for
the reducing of St. Paul to the State of Chriftia
nity and Apoftlefhip, who might, according to
this Account, have fucceeded juit as well in the
Quality oi Saul the Perfacutor ; fince that firft Zeal
of his was certainly, fo confider'd, in itfelf equally
meritorious ; when, as he teftifies of himfelf, he
verily thought that he ought to do many. Things con
trary to the Name of Jefus of Nazareth.
But here again, I have, I am very fenfible,
been holding you for fome Time paft in the high-
eft Impatience of Zeal to interpofe and remind
me, that if thefe Founders of Chriftianity did
'Mirad s not 'nc*eed make their Appeals to Men's reafon:
not meantm§ Faculty, it was becaufe they were endowed
as Argu- with a readier and more decifive Means of Con-
ments; virion in its Stead ; one more faitable both to
the Capacities of their Audience, and their own
necefiary Courfe of Difpatch, which I have been
defcribing ; and this, by an immediate Appeal to
their Senfes, by performing Works before their
Faces, in Atteftation of thofe Doctrines, which it
was confeffedly not within the Reach of any human
P^>wer to produce.
-To all which one might, I think, not unplau-
fibly, faggeft in Return, what has been fo often
urged upon the Occafion, that Miracles have,
¦Becaufe Time out Pf Mind, been undoubtedly performed,
ufedbyim-as well in Favour of falfe Doctrines, and there
foftors. fore can never be fingiy^ anci 0f themfelves a-
lone, any certain Marks of a true, This the
Scripture itfelf confeffes, when it warns us of ly
ing Wonders, and falfe Chrifts ; to take the moft
exact Care and Caution what we give Credit to of
the kind ; and recommends to us the farther and
more fecure Trial of them, by what it calls them
Fruits. It allows, plainly, by fending us thus to.
trace Analogies, . and confult more known Relar tions

. (' 47 ).
tions for the~Exrieriment, that We have no proper
Ground to afcertain any Truth from thefe Ap
pearances, diftinctly confidered, without having
this Recourfe to a furer Standard," and calling in
the foreign Aid of moral Confiderations to con
firm their Authority. It is indeed the moft I
think their ftrongeft Advocates will at prefent in-
fift upon in Behalf of their Weight and Intereft in
the Queftion, that they concur only in contribut
ing their Part jointly, with other concomitant
Circumftances, towards the railing all together a
full and competent Degree of Evidence for our
Reliance. One might alledge yet farther, that
all this wonderful and miraculous Evidence, as
you regard it, was indeed, in Strictnefs, but the
natural Effect of their Doctrine, inftead of any^a ,
fupernatural Proof of its Veracity ; which may be Effects of
beft learnt by confidering the Nature of thefe ex-Gofpei Be-
traordinary Actions, and the Occafions on which nev<>lenn.
they were generally produced. For Inftance, the
mighty Act of cafting out Devils does not furely ne-
ceffarily imply any fuch Purpofe in it, as the,
mere fhewing of divine Power ; the diflodging
that potent and infidious AdVerfary of Mankind;
from his ufurped Seats in a human Breaft, feems
to carry in it manifeft Reafon enough of its own
befides, without any fuch impofed Construction
of it. For may it not rather be confidered natu*
rally enough, as an Act only in the Way of their
Function, and abfolutely never to be omitted by
fuch as profefs to plant the Gofpel? The healing
ef the Sick feems in like manner to want no fuch
laboured Account to explain it, but to fpeak it
felf fufficiently in its own beneficial Tendency*
It was a fuitable Inftance of that univerfal Bene
volence they were recommending, and which it
would be vdry hard to confider apart from its
Merits and Influence, as. practifed on an indiffe* rent

V 4° )
irentapd fruitlefs Occafion,, merely as expreffive
of the Power they acted by. It muft feem
ftrange too, if our Lord had any fuch Meaning
as to convince by' thefe Works, that he ihould
be always fo remarkably upon the Referve in that
Refpect, whenever he happened amongft unbe
lieving Company ; that he fhould be fo particular
ly fparing of thefe fuppofed Arguments, amongft
the very Perfons who feemed moft to want
them. More plainly ftill, that he had no fuch
Intention to prove his own Truth and Character
by thefe lnftances of his Power ; he often in-
duftrioufly avoided that accidental Confequence,
Efpeaal. and ,-qqIj particular Care to prevent their ever
taken not coming to publick Notice, by difmiffing moft of
to have the Company and Attendants, before he began
them to proceed to the Operation. So far from retain-
madepu -jng t]ie grateful Patients as Witneffes to commu
nicate what they had experienced, that their
Mouths were by fpecial Command fhut faft from
the Liberty of proclaiming the Benefits they had
received, and the ftricteft Silence enjoined them
with regard to the Author. See thou tell no Man
was generally the Charge. Which fhews what
Credit or Reputation he affected in all his good
Offices, of which he was fo folicitous to ftifle eve
ry the leaft Report. So far from laying hold on
any miraculous Occafion that offer'd for Matter
of Proof, that when the expell'd Spirits were of
ficious of their own Accord, and in Oppofition to
their own Intereft, to proclaim their Knowledge
of his "divine Character to the World, the Difco-
very was by no Means permitted at their Hands,
but their Tongues immediately reftrained, and
an Act of Omnipotence exerted to oblige them to
Silence. Among innumerable lnftances ofthe Kind, that
appear to me to favour this Confequence, let me
far-

coura-

f 49 )
farther juft mention to you, that of Herod, whom?"** /***•
we find recorded, not much to his Advantage, ™Zthe'
that he wanted to fee fome Miracle done by him ;Jd.
which if they had been at all calculated for the
Purpofe of converting, would have been farely
countenanced and cultivated as a good promifing
Symptom and Mark of a toward'ly Difpofuion for
future Difciplefhip. The coming defirous to can-
vafs the Evidence, though from- no other Prin
ciple perhaps, originally, than that of gratifying
a light Curiofity, were, one would imagine, a Turn
of Mind to be favourably entertained, and care
fully cherifhed in a Novice, by any who was fe
licitous to gain Profelytes by fuch Means, and
confcious of having any thing of the Kind to pro
duce to him. But, on the contrary, we find our
Matter ever difclaiming, with the fevereft Re-
fentment, all Followers of that Complexion ; and
no Temper check'd and difcourag'd with fo con-
ftant an Averfion,, as this of, as it is opprobri-
" oufiy termed, feeking a Sign. There cannot be,
I think, eu ftronger and more exprels Reproof to
all fuch Notions and Conftructions of his good
Offices, than That he makes Ufe of, in Jealoufy,
of Heart, upon being applied to for an Inftance
Of this extraordinary Affiftance in favour of the
Nobleman's Child- — Unlefs you fee Signs and Won
ders, fays he, you will not believe. Indeed, fo far
from any View of the Kind, or with any Ten-'
dehcy towards the reclaiming Men's Minds to a
proper Senfe and Reverence for the Actor, do all
thefe extraordinary Effays feem directed ; fo far
from having any the leaft Connexion with the
Thought of procuring Difciples from the Influ
ence of the Spectacle, that a certain Degree, and
that no ordinary one, of previous Confidence and
Perfuafion appears to have been conftantly sti
pulated for beforehand, "to entitle them to have
- G their

( io )
their Applications at all lrften'd to, or regarded ;
and to be the fole Mealure and Rule of difpenfing
thefe occafional Favours. Wherever we find them
conferr'd, it was ftill firft perceiving that the Pati
ent had Faith to be healed. Wherever there was
the leaft Room to diftruft fuch ,a preparatory Pro-
vifion, he feems to capitulate, and guard with
efpecial Care, that a Miracle, fhould not be everi
accidentally a Means of Converfion, by difmiffing
the Petitioner with a conditional Remedy, which
was to take Effect only in Proportion to his pre
fent Qualifications of the Kind, and of which his
Succefs was to be the fare Teft. According to
your Faith, be it unto you, were the Terms. As
elfwhere he attributes profeffedly the whole Ef
ficacy of a Miracle that had taken place, to that
fingle Preliminary ; Thy Faith ( that of which I
found thee already poffeft ) hath made thee whole.
Thus much I have ventured to intimate of my
own Sentiment upon this ftrong Hold, as it is by
fome efteem'd, of miraculous Evidence ; and fuch
it is, as I cannot but imagine, muft needs appear
fufficiently conclufive and fatisfactory for the Pur-
pofes for whichit is produced. But what if now,
in Deference to fome contrary Opinions, I am ftill
difpofed to give up all this Part of the Argument?
What if I am yet content, after all, to grant you
readily to the Extent of your Demand, that thefe
Miracles were indeed difplayed merely for that End
you fappofe, and carry with them all that invin
cible Demonftrau'on you contend for ? How will
this yet ferve the Purpofe? To whom were they
fach Demonftration ? To thofe only who faw
them. Certainly to none elfe.' They were Con
viction enough at that Inftant of Time, and up
on that Spot, When and Where they were exhi
bited. But wherever either of thefe Circumftan-
ces fail, all that refiftlefs Force of the Evidence muft

( 5* )
rnuft fail with it. What they faw, will ferve well
to convict that one Generation to which thefe Won
ders were immediately addreft. Sufficient to the
Day is the Evidence thereof ; but no more. Thefe
mighty Works could be no Demonftration to any Ant-miu
that were not actually and perfonally prefent whenw«/? im.
they were* done ; and, for the fame evident pair much
Reafon, can be pone to us Now. All that we can°fth"r
poffibly know of the Matter at this Diftance, will "g *'
amount, in the ftricteft Calculation, to no more
than moral Appearances of Truth, and probable
Atteftations ofthe Fact.
And are we to imagine now, that God would
ever leave a Matter of fuch Confequence upon fuch
a Foundation ? That he, who vouchfafed at
firft to create, and then to redeem, at fo great
an Expence, the Souls of all Mankind, would
have fat down, after all, lightly contented to have
fcatter'd thus partially and accidentally his neceffa
ry Light amongft a very few, and leave all the
reft 'of us to the Courtefy only of a few Repor
ters ; to fuch a Tefiimony as, if it were never
fo falfe? it were abfolutely impoffible we could,
in our Situation and Circumftances, ever difcover
to be fo ? To fuch an Evidence as, though ne
ver fo plaufible and "well eftablifhed, can ever,
as I have obferved, carry fufficient Weight with
it to be a governing Principle through Life, to in
fluence our Conduct againft our Nature, and be an
effectual Check and Reftraint upon all our wilful
and. unruly Appetites, A Truth which all Men
are fo deeply concerned to know, and afi upon the
Strength of" it, muft needs, one would think,
be fomething more equally and generally diftri-
buted, fomething more certain in its Nature,
and more diffufive in its Influence, And anfwer-
able according to luch a Characteriftic, is that
Ligh$ which "he hath truly prepared before* the
Pace:

( 52 )
Face of all People, his Mercy ,-hath he openly
fhewed in the Sight of the Heathen, and all the'
Ends of the World have feen the Salvation of our
God. If the Church of Rome may be allowed of any
Weight upon the Queftion, (and there are none
that lpeak generally in higher Terms of this Kind
of Evidence) it appears piainly enough from their
own Practices what is their Senfe of this Matter.
That Miracles, that ever ceafe, are by no, means
a competent Support for the Caufe, or to be pro
duced as fubftantial and conclufive Teftimonfes
for the Truth of their Religion. They fhew, I
fay, very fufficiently how abfolutely effential in
their Efteem the Circumftance Pf Continuance is
for any fuch Application, when they have Re-
courfe to the Counterfeit of its Appearance for a
Supply ; when they pretend their conftant and un
interrupted Sueceffion to this Day, and actually
attempt to keep falfe and fictitious ones on foot for
the Purpofe.
If Miracles were neceffary in the Infancy of
the Gofpel, they are fo ftill, and will be to the
End of the World : Whenever they ceafe, the
Authority of the Evidence which depended on
them ceafes with them. That Divine, Demonftra-
tion to By-ftanders, the Voice of God himfelf,
This is my beloved Son, has been, by one interveen-
ing Age, dwindled long fince to human Tradition ;
God no longer bears Witnefs to his Son, but Men
only bear Witnefs to God. The Date will quite
change the Property of the Evidence, and real
ly make all this Difference. We hear no more
that awful Sound, but by Repetition and Echo,
and all that commanding Force of the great origin-
rial Atteftation and Acknowledgment is funk
with us, into the uncertain Affertions of fallible
Men relating it after one another. And there fore

<. 53 )
Fore the neglected Preacher can at this Time olAn$ re-
Day ( if he applies to their Reafon ) remonftrate duce their
againft an unbelieving Audience with no feverer a Authority
Charge, than that of the Prophet's, " Lord, who'^f**^
" hath believed our Report ?" For a Miracle that n;ftory.
was occular Proof to its Co-temporaies, to us is
no more than uncertain Hearfay. A vaft Difparity
and Diminution of the Authprity ; but fach as
muft neceffanly be the Confequence of all Evidence
when once it comes to be reported. Ic were indeed
impoffible in Nature to have given them fuch a
Kind* of Evidence as they could transfer, with
any Degree of equal Weight, even to their moft
immediate Succeffors, and much lefs to us now fo
far removed. That Seeing indeed is Believing, has
ever been allowed Reafoning ; but • that I am to
believe a Thing becaufe another fays he faw it,
and it is not in my Power to prove a Nega
tive, and contradict him, is furely a very unpre
cedented and new fort of Logic. The Tefiimo
ny of Sight' is, by its Nature, an Evidence not
to be communicated ; all the Affarance in the
World of another's feeing, can never have an
equal Effect upon my Senfes, or make me fee a
Thing where I was not actually prefent. The Light
of Conviction therefore, which is thus received, can
extend no farther than to the Eye-witnefs himfelf,
loft anct extinguifhed the. firft Moment it is offer
ed to be imparted. Here then it commences hu
man Authority, and, as fach becomes the proper
Subject of our free Enquiry and Debate. It recurs
in that Shape to the Province of Reafoning, and
can now claim no longer to be treated with any
other Deference than it fhall appear from its own
proper Merits, to, be entitled to. Now, whatever
Degree of Credit it may, by this Means, in Time
acquire in my Mind from flrict Trial and Proba
tion, this can furely never be of itfelf that Kind of
flagrant

f 54 )
gagrant and inconteftibleEvidenceWhich God expels
fhould work fuch an inftant Effect on our Mind?,
and be accepted by us at firft Mention with fo
much Readinefs and Acquiefcence. The hefitating
upon the Genuinenefs of a particuluar Tradition,
can never be that Offence which God has profeft
himfelf to take fo heinoufly at our Hands, as an
Affront to his Perfonal Veracity, { with which it
has no Connection ) and giving him the Lie. He
that believeth not God hath made him a Liar, be
caufe he believed not the Record that God gave of
his Son.
Majl ie And yet that there muft be fomewhere ftill,
fome gene- we may be certain, ( from the Confideration of
ral Prm- his reafonable Nature who enjoined the Duty )
C(avmz fme £eneraI uniting Principle in Being, which,
Truth, if well attended to, will be a proper Foundation
in all for this general Affent. That it cannot be
human Reafon, we have feen clearly on many
Accounts, both from the natural Effects of Rea
fon itfelf, and the known Methods by which
Faith was firft introduced. Perhaps then we
have amongft us fome vifible Fountain of Truth,
fome univerial Dictator affigned us upon the Spot,
to whom we may all have Recourfe in our
Doubts to be refolved alike, and determined a-
like. Alas ! the Evidence of fach a Qualifica
tion is but ftill frefh Matter for Difpute ; the
Authority of this affumed Character, and Claim
of Infallible, muft, be grounded ftill on fome po-
fitive ' Warrant ; and the Truth of fuch a Pre
tention is again itfelf a new Queftion, which can
apply only to Reafon for Decifion, and muft of
confequence be ftill liable to all the Objections to
our former Scheme, and to the fame Variety of
Perfaafions about it. If the Spirit of Truth does
not Vouchfafe to appear in Perfon, we muft ever
have a Right to •challege his Commiffioners. Hithertq

Hitherto then, it feems, we are abfolutely at a
Lofs for this general Standard and Principle, fo
much wanted, of Univerfal Conviction. Have
we np Profpect left of making the Difcovery ?
And how then fhall we reconcile the eminent
Reafon and Equity of our Law-giver, with the
, giving us thus a Command which (if there be
yet no farther Expedient remaining beyond the
Ufe of Reafon ) we muft many of us neceflarily
difobey. For fo it is-- The God of Juftice has
affured us, both from our natural Idea of him,
and his own pofitive Word, that he will require
no more of any of his Creatures, than what he
has given them Ability to perform.  The God
of Truth has peremptorily required of us all the
Belief of his , Gofpel under a Penalty denounced,
of no lefs than Damnation.-;  The neceffary
Confequence is, that it muft be our own Fault if
we do not believe it ; that it is in our Power to
obey him if we will.
And how fhall we then fay ?
One fhould indeed imagine, that all the nu
merous and glaring Abfurdities that follow fo
manifeftly from the firft View of the foremen-
tioned reafoning Scheme, fhould ' have fent Men
naturally to look out elfewhere for fome more
fatisfactory Account, and better Ground to fix
upon in this important Point. But much more
ftrange is it to my Apprehenfion, that any Man
who has ever looked into the facred Writings to
be refolved, the authentic Oracles from which
alone all our Intelligence of that Kind can be
drawn, could poffibly overlook it, and miftake
the Rule there fo plainly delineated to our Hands.
There we find laid down, in the firft Place, in the
ftrongeft Terms, the negative Preliminary I have
been advancing, and Reafon ever intirely exclud
ed the Queftion. We are there exprefly affured, that

( 5* )
that no Man ever attained to the Belief of reveal
ed Truths by the Strength or Affiftance of his
natural Faculties, as we have at once from the
fame Authority the farther pofitive Inftruction
communicated, and the true Principle affigned us^
Which was
The third Article I propofed mentioning, and
which we have in one plain Word thus fully fet
What it is. forth to us;. No Man can fay that Jefus is the
Lord, but by the Holy Ghoft. Here is pointed out
to us at once that great Dictator and infallible
Guide we have been ieeking for, and indeed the
only Character we can poffibly think of any way
equal to fuch a, Province, ft could be nothing
lefs than Omnifeience and Qmniprefence itfeff,
nothing but this inexhauftible Fountain of all
Truth that could be fafficient to fach a Demand'.'
And he it is, the promifed1 Oracle, who is io at
tend the Charge of Believers to the End of the
World, to keep alive his divine Light conffiant-
ly in their Hearts ; not to teach them Rudiments
of Logic, but to- irradiate their Souls at once
with a thorough Conviction, and perform more
by one fecret Wh.ifper, than a thoufand clamo
rous' Harangues from the Schools. From the
Satisfaction confequent to the Mind from his Per
formance of this great Office it is, that he is fo
eminently ftiled The Comforter, as his Operations
are in another Place, very ftrongly and fignifi-
cantly termed the Power of God unto Salvation.
—-He that believeth on the Son of God hath the
Witnefs in himfelf. In this Senfe it is, that we ate
properly ftiled the "Temples of the Holy Ghoft., the
confecrated. Scenes of his conftant Refidence, there
ever perfonally prefent, and difpenfing his cei>
tain Intelligences to the Soul, which, the Apoflle
calls the Witneffing of the Spirit with our Spirit.
It were endlefs to recount all the innumerable Paffages

( 5? )
Paffages throughout the whole Scripture that
concur in afcertaining this fame fuper natural
and all fufficient Source and Origin of our Faith,
in Oppofition to all the feeble Aids, and uncer
tain Advices, that Reafon might poffibly contri
bute to the Purpofe. For we may obferve, in
mentioning the Principle of Faith, that we are
always informed together both what it is, and
what it is not : By Grace ye are faved, through
Faith, and that not of yourfelves, it is the Gift of
God. No Man ean come unto me, fays Chrift,
except it be given him of my Father. The Mo
tive which induces Men to receive the myfteri
ous Truths of the Gofpel, is the peculiar Grant
and Munificence of Heaven, over and above
the common Privileges of our Nature. It feems
by the particular Negatives every where fp in-
duftrioufly difperfed through all the Expreffions
that treat of this Subject, that it was apprehend
ed, that there might poffiby happen, amongft the
unwary, fome Miftake upon the Occafion ; and
that therefore, as it was an Article of fo great
Concern to have a juft Notion of, the greateft
imaginable Care was taken, by the moft precife
and emphatical Terms that could be devifed, pur-
pofely to guard againft any fuch fatal Confe
quence. But the ftrongeft Confirmation of all
thefe pofitive and repeated Revelations in the
Point, the .plaineft Declaration and Direction what
Kind of Evidence Chriftians were always to truth
to and rely on for the Information and Affu-
rance of their Minds, we may find fummed up
in brief in their Matter's laft Inftructions at part
ing. The Spirit of Truth, which proceedeth from
the Father, he fhall teftify of me. As we have both
the fame Perfon and Commiffion elfewhere again
fpecified ; -The. Spirit, whom I fhall fend, fhall
lead you into all Truth. But, not to ftand forever
H trasfcribing

( 5^ )
tranfcribifig Particulars, I refer you once more to
the great Original, which will, I think, readily
fave us both all farther Trouble in Quotations
and Comments,- and abundantly evince, in Op-;
pofition to all the evafive Conftructions which may
be impofed on particular Paffages, that he was
in general to infpire Convtclion, as well as Holi-
nefs, and to illuminate, as well as fanctify, our
Hearts, Now this Suppofition, once fuggefted, let us
for a farther Trial and Confirmation, take a fhort
View of Religion in the Light I have been repre-
fenting it, of Infpiratioft and infufed Evidence,
Anfwers and we fhall readily find, that this Principle alone
exactly fu]]y anfwers all the Ends propofed ; that it con-
pu'pofes curs *n everY Particular with what we muft na-
ofreligi- turally expedt from fuch ah Affiftant, and has in-
ous Faith, deed all thofe requifite Qualities which Reafon fo
manifeftly Wanted for the Office. It is, in the
firft Place,- Univerfal; That Grace which bringeth'
is of mi- Salvation hath appeared unto all Men: This is the'
verfal in- Light which lighteth every Man that cometh inlo
pence. ^ r^y/j . the uni£jng Principle, that fpeaks the
fame Thing to all. Thus inftrutJed all alike,
Men may be brought to think all alike, which
could never, as I have fhewed, have poffibly
been effected by any other Means. This, again,
of proper is °f /iut^ority and Force Efficient to countermand
wight, effectually againft the moft violent Affaults of Temp-.
tation, as it is itfelf of equal Certainty witfi
any Gratifications they can poffibly propofe.
Since here is Feeling oppofed to Feeling, Know
ledge to fet againft Appetite, and a ftrong and
palpable internal Senfe to balance all the Motions
of the external. — Above all, it is of immediate
of inflant Influence, and operates without Delay. Such
BStSi' was the happy Metamorphofis of an officious
Perfecutor, into as zealous an' Apoftle. A Con-
verfion

r «¦« , C 59 )
verfion effected not by the Force of dilatory In
ferences and Cpnclufions, but by an irrefiftible ¦
Light from Heaven, that flafhed Conviction in a
Moment, Thus called, we make no Carrying to
turn to the Lord, and put not off from Day to Day,
our Faith is completed in an Inftant, and the
moft perfect and finifhed Creed produced at once,
without the hazardous Attendance to' be paid to
any tedious Progrefs in Deductions of our own,
or rhe capricious Adjournments of a factious and
cavilling Council. By this Means all the necef
fary Articles are brought home fafely at once to
our own Breafts, and the enlightned Difciple
breaks forth abruptly into this full and ample
Confeffion, Rafrbi, thou art the Chrift, thou art
the Son of God. This is that ftill, fmall Voice
that befpeaks the immediate Pretence of the Di
vinity, and makes its Dictates, as it were, felf-
evident to the Mind where if is lodged. In this
the Sum and Subftance of all Argumentation is
briefly comprized, the very Spirit and Extract of
all convicting Power, of a Nature, perhaps, but
little differing from • that of Intuition itfelf. And
can there be for Minds, thus inftructed, any
Occafion to concern themfelves afterwards in un
ravelling any of the vain Subtleties and Conceits
of Cafaiftry in the Point, or to apply to Libra
ries for a more competent Information and Dis
covery ? What is there after this remaining in
human Wit, or thefe fafpicious Repofitories of hu
man Tefiimony that can now deferve our leaft No
tice, or be thought of Confequence to engage a
Moment's Attention upon this Subject"? Here we
have already God witneffing for God, and fpeaks °/ aW°~
ing for himfelf, and what Need have we of farther "Jm^'
Witneffes, who have heard, sis we may fay^ from
his own Mouth I No ; we ftand no longer now in
Need of any of the Credit of ancient Miracles, m

or the Genuinenefs of diftant Records, a very
(lender and infufficient Ground, as I have fhewn,
to anfwer all the great Purpofes, and infure all
the rigid Demands of Religion. We can vouch,
in its Stead, a prefent and a ftanding Miracle ol
our own, an Evidence that fapports all the fame
original Authenticnefs which it carried with it in
Ages fo far remote, this living Witnefs and uncor-
rupt Commentator in our own Breads, furviving
all Changes and Succeffions, and equally co-tem
porary with every one of us. It is our Security
that he has writ his Law in our Hearts. The in
delible Characters ftamped upon thofe living Ta
blets are fach as are out of the Power of the Un-
Faithfulnefs or Ignorance of Tranfcribers to falfify
or pervert. Such as no Mifreprefen tations can
ever poffibly interveen to corrupt, no fucceeding
Suggeftions of a different Stile to difpute the
Preference, or fhake its Authority in our Minds
by any new Appearance. And, for the utter
Exclufion of all future Encroachments of the
Kind, our faithful Monitor and Guardian has
prpmifed to continue this Office, and abide with
us himfelf (as long as our Faith is expected to
kftj to the End of the World, that we might
not be left liable one Moment to a Poffibility of
Error and Impofition, which muft unavoidably
be the Cafe, if we were ever left to take any the
leaft Part of our Inftructions from one another.
Now, what a very different Profpect this, and
Ground of Security from the empty Notion of
mere manufcript Authorities and Paper- Revela
tions -, Compofed thus of perifbable Materials,
the Original itfelf, though penn'd like that on
Mount Sinai by the very Finger of God himfelf,
and engraven even on Adamant inftead of
Marble, muft in Time come to want Repairs;
as for the prefent, it would neceflarily require to
be

( 6l \ .
be multiplied by Tranfcripts for immediate Com
munication. The very firft Step therefore from
this genuine Palladium into a Copy and Repre-
ferttation at fecond Hand, will, (like the Tradi
tion of a Miracle) detract in a great Degree
from its divine Authority, as this muft neceffa-
rily be the Work of Man, and liable of Courfe,
from a thoufand Caufes, to fall fhort and deviate
from its great Exemplar. The Oppofers of the
Gofpel fay, indeed, that this is the Cafe ; and
infift ftrongly, that the facred Text has been ac
tually much adulterated. With Regard to the
Truth of their Affertion, and how that Fact
ftands, I will not take upon me at prefent to
determine : But this, at leaft, I will venture^ *"
to-affert in my Turn, that fo far from refting thecouldne^
Terms of our Salvation upon a Writing that muftWr/»r-
run the common Hazards of all other Memorials nifh.
of the Kind, that even though a conftant Mi
racle were to interpofe upon the Occafion to ex
empt this important Charge in particular from
all rhele Changes and Chances incident to all other
Compofitions ; though the fame Almighty Power
that firft indited were to continue hovering per
petually with a Guardian Hand over the facred
Depofitum, and the conftant Infpection of an im
mediate Providence concern'd to revife and keep
it up in all its original Purity, with all thefe
efpecial Privileges fappos'd, it were ftill abfo
lutely defective and infafficient for any fuch re
vealing Purpofe as they would expect. The
plaineft Terms, in the plaineft Characters that
could poffibly be devifed ( and who will fay that
, , this is our prefent Cafe with • Regard to the
Scriptures? J were at the beft but putting a
dead- Letter into our Hands, without the addi
tional Grace of this active Interpreter to attend
it. . That the Proofs of every neceffary Article are

( 62 ;
srs certainly there to be traced is not Circum
ftance fafficient, if any Thing be lef c in the mean
Time to the Skill of the Workman. The Trial
efthe Wilneffes, for Inftance, is, without Doubt,
a very noble and convincing Demonftration, as it
is managed, of that important Point of our Lord's.
Refarreftion c I fay as it ftands now collected
and reduced by that able Hand, to complete
Mood and Figure for our ready Obfervation, But.
the extracting and ranging it thus advantageoaflyir\
is by no Means the Province of all thofe whom
that Leflbn may concern, and who would have
been but very ill provided with a proper Repre-
fentation of that Matter, if they had known no
other Means of conducting that Argument-
through all its Connexions in its fulleft Force ; if
they had been confcious of no nearer and more op
portune Recpurfe the while for their Satisfaction,,
long before ever this voluntary Apoftle was pleated to
engage in their Affiftance, and arofe a Mafler in
Ifrael. If either our own, or our borrpw?d Conftructj*
ons upon holy writ, were our only Means for
working out the Knowledge of our Salvation, we
might,' I think, venture even to exceed the Apo-
ftle's Strain, in expreffing the D^plorablenefs of
our Situation, and affert, with the greateft Ju-
ftice, that we were of all Creatures the. moft mifera-
hle. If a juft Appr.ehenfipn of the Authority and
Senfe of the Scriptures be neceffary for us to attain
fey Reafoning, fo is in the firft Place, it muft be
granted, a good Degree of natural Underftanding
for the Purpofe; fo is, again, a competent Pro
portion of Skill in Language and Science on the
Occafion ; and of courfe, the Circumftance of a
favourable Fortune to furnifh the Opportunity of
making fach Acquifition ; fo is, farther, the En-
faranpe of a fafficient Allotment of Years to la
bour

( 63 )
hour through the Employment. "To ftate pro-'
perly its Merits, and clear its Meaning -, to -fet
tle'/ firft the Canon, and then the Contents, is
plainly enough a Task, that no lefs Qualifications
can at all admit our Undertaking. If a Bible
therefore be once neceffary for this ftrict and fo-
lemn Perufal, 'tis eafy to fee, that fo are other
convenient Means of Information in great Abun
dance to give it both Light and Sanction ; that,
fo is Prideaux's Connexions, for Inftance, amongft
a thoufand other Volumes, to illuftrate and fup
port it.
I have been very fhort and reafonable in the
Computation of my Demands, that I might come
thefooner to remark upon the Confequence, and
ask in a Word, to what Purpofe all thefe extra- .
ordinary Ingredients of Senfe and Learning, and
Leifare, thus almoft miraculoufly affembled to
gether in our ' fuppofed Examiners ? Why, to
enable at laft, one perhaps in ten thoufand, to
form fomething of a plaufible Conjeelure upon
the Subject, and very poffibly { what the moft in
genious Students, who have gone that Way to
work, have often had the hard Lot to fall into )
a darimable one.
But, to return to my Argument, purfqant to (m,
this my Explanation of the Nature of Faith, and
the Means of attaining it, we may be now able to
give fome Account how the Want of it comes to ^ ,
be Jiich a Crime, and fo fevere a Penalty to be de-ln^delity
nounced againft Unbelief, which upon no other criminal.
Suppofition we could poffibly do. The univerfal
Tender of this Conviction, however potent in its
Influence, muft yet depend greatly upon the pro
per Difpofition of our Minds to give it Reception .
for its Efficacy, and fo far will - give Place, and
afford ample Matter for Trial and Probation, and
become indeed a, Teft of our Obedience. Whereas the

( 64 )
the arbitrary Determinations of Reafon are well
known to be Events entirely out of our Power,
and confequently to leave no fuch Room for ei
ther our Merit or Offence. Hence, I fay, can
arife the only poffible Connexion in Nature be
twixt Confcience and Believing, in every other
Light the moft ridiculous Jargon in the World.
Human Invention cannot find an equal Image to
exprefs the Abfurdity of an obedient or criminal
Underftanding. The feeing of Sounds, or hear
ing of Colours, are Jlluftrations far fhort of- the
Nonfenfe of Confcience in Opinion upon any other
Principle. The commanding Men to believe
rationally, commanding them to have their Rea
fon fatisfied, and this with threatned Imputation
of Guilt and Infliction of Punifhment, is fach a
Scheme at firft View, as no Pretence of Authori-,
ty, human or divine, can command any Regard
or Attention to, or indeed ariy Notice, but that
of the Contempt due to Paradoxes, the moft
eminently impudent and ridiculous. On the
other Hand, a rebellious Oppofition of all the
gracious lnftances of the divine Spirit to enlighten
our Hearts, the willful Repugnance to all his ear-
neft Solicitations to accept of his faving Truths,
may they not as defervedly expect all that fo great
an Injury calls for, or the Refentment of fo great
a Perfpnage can inflict ? Here Difbelieving and
Guilt have Meaning again when put together, fince
the Compliance required is no longer that of the
'Underftanding, but of the Will, in its Nature free,
and therefore accountable ; and though we are
not by any Means chargeable for the Effects of our
Apprchenfion, yet there is no Reafon but that
we may be with all Juftice called to the ftricteft
Account for our Obftinacy, Impiety and Perverfe-
nefs. Hence

C 65 )
Hence again it is, that Schifms and Herefies
are fuch juft Objects of our Wonder and Refent-
ment ; which confidered merely as different Opi
nions, and as the fpeculative Refalts of different
Underftandings, have certainly nothing in them
either fo ftrange or deteftable, but are on the
Contrary, Confequences extreniely natural, and
no more than what was to be expected on fuch an
Occafion : We befeech you, Brethren, fays the A-
poftle, that you all fpeak the fame Thing; — L-— —
that ye be all perfeclly of the fame Mind, and the
fame Judgment. A ftrange Requeft this, 'till we
come to confider the Character and Doctrine of
the Speaker, and the Means by which he defired
it fhould be affected ; which is explained to us
in another Place, with the Repetition of the like
Demand, The God of all Confolation grant you to be
like minded.
From this Account alone of the Matter can
we reconcile ourfelves confidently to the fadden
Converfion of fo many upon little or no feeming
Evidence, and difcover both why it was expect
ed, and why accepted at their Hands. Follow
me, fays our Lord to Matthew, aid immediately
he left all^ and followed^ him. It would furely
feem ftrange, humanly confidered, to fee him
deferting thus precipitately a beneficial Employ
ment for he knew not whom ; which muft be the
Cafe, if we fappofe the Summons directed to his
Reafon ; if he was not affected at the fame Cri-
fis by fome correfponding Call within to influ
ence his Motions, and warrant his Prudence:
For it is either likely, if what he had feen before
had had that good Effect upon him, as to difpofe
him to Difciplefhip, that he would have had the
Merit of engaging voluntarily in the Service,
without waiting for a particular Addrels, cr elfe
that he would never have proved fo obfequious
I to

r 66 y
to it on a Sudden at the firft Offer, as to com
ply at once, at the Lofs of his Livelihood for a
Word's fpeaking. In another Place it is record
ed, and as a Difciplefhip not ill received, that
many, who it feems had never heard of him be
fore, believed on him readily for the Saying of the
Woman. A notable Foundation truly for Confi
dence and Conviction, and perhaps Martyrdom,
without fome internal Affiftant of fuperior Credit
to fecond and make good the light Intelligence.
O Fools, and flow to believe]  And all this ean
you imagine, only becaufe thefe two poor deluded
Travellers, involv'd only at national, and hu
manly fpeaking, a very natural Mif-apprehenfion
with Regard to the Nature of their promis'd De
liverance, as having never had any Notion fuggeft-
ed to them of any Thing more dreadful to appre
hend than Slavery and Subjection to their Enemies,
or been train'd to the Ambition of a Situatipn be
yond that of their own Canaan : Becaufe Men,
I fay, under thefe Circumftances, had not, by the
Dint of a peculiar Segacity of their own, and
a fingularly happy Turn of Thought, been able
to trace out precifely in their myfterious Records
a fpirkual and faffering Meffiah and a Propitiation,
for Sins, in direct Oppofition to the general Senfe
of their Country on that Point, and all the au
thentic Determinations and Comments of their
ableft Doctors and Sanhedrims, who had been fo
long preparing them in the Expectation of a tri
umphant Standard Bearer and a temporal one.
it to be believed, that God would reproach any
of his Creatures with a defective Intellect, when
he was pleated to give them no better ? Rather,1
is it not very evident, that this Animadverfion is
by no Means applicable to their Underftandings,
or any Charge of their being dull Scholars, but
a fevere Reprehenfion juftly due to a rebellious
i Refill

/ 67 )
Refulal and pifclaijm of profer'd Grace ? A Mina
prepared and fafceptible of _tjiefe . Impreffions, it
was their Part to cultivate for the Admittance of
this heavenly Gueft : So" reafonable and neceffary
a Recommendation this, that wherever this Dif-
pofition was known to be wanting, he would not
pe at any Pains in foliciting fuch, but gave them
up inftantly to the Hardnefs of their Hearts with
out Remedy, depriving them judicially even of
the moft common Advantages, and not permit
ting them thofe accidental Opportunities of feeing
any of his Miracles, which might poffibly have
alarmed their ftubborn Minds into a better State,
and prompted a Defire of farther Inftruction : He
did not many mighty Works there, becaufe of their
Unbelief; which would have been the very Rea
fon of his multiplying them, or fome better
Means, for their Reduction, if he had thought
them Subjects the leaft deferving. of his farther
Care or Affiftance, In fuch a Cafe, we might not
unreafonably expect to fee fomething more of the
Long-Juffering Character difplayed in their Be-
.half ; fome more patient Degree pf Attendance
had, in _all Probability, been indulged to a tardy
Genius and innocent Scruples, if they had been
,the only Impediment; it might feem fomewhat
hard and fevere to . reprobate, by fo fhort a Pro*
xefs, for . Hefitation, thofe whom perhaps one ad
ditional Circumftance of Power fhining upon
.them, had brought to a proper Temper and Obe
dience. . We may well prefame, that he who
¦left the Bofom of his Father purely to give us
this important Information, would never have fo
.capricioufly neglected an Errand that coft him
thus dear ya undertake ; or have defifted from all
.Occafions to promote the gracious Scheme of our
(Salvation to the utmoft, upon any other Account
.?han *har of our own experienced Uoworthinefs,
v Fq?

( 6*8 )
For the fame Reafon only it was, and for a pro
per Punifhment upon the incredulous and ftiff-
necked Jews, that he was fo particularly cauti
ous of expofing his Perfon after his Refurrection
to publick View ; when his taking one Turn in
the Market-Place might have fpared both the
painful Labours and Lives of fo many holy
Vouchers, who perifhed merely by the Thing's
being done in a Corner. No ; but if they belieye
not the inward Atteftations of the Holy Spirit,
neither fhall they be perfuaded by one's rifing from
the Dead. And therefore, if ever our Gofpel be hid
it is hid defervedly to thefe only that are loft, and
have already wilfully forfeited all Claim to farther
Grace, or any repeated lnftances of Perfuafion,
According to the fame Account we find, where-
ever the outward Enforcements of the Gofpel did
not fucceed, this conftant Explanation of its
Want of Effect ; The Word preached did ml
profit them, not being mixed with Faith in them thai
heard it.
It appears then that, by this revealed and
Scripture Account of the Matter, all the difficult
and furprizing Phaenomena that occur in the
Courfe of opt- Reflection, and Review of this
Subject, are confiftently cleared and explained to
our Satisfaction, that Men may be certainly this
Way highly culpable before God and Men, for a
Deficiency in Belief ; that they may be as equita
bly obliged to an immediate Acknowledgment of
the Truth ; and that he who requires all this at
their Hands, may be yet ftrictly juftifiable in
withdrawing his j.ight from fuch as chufe tofit
in Darknefs, and abfolutely refufing the Continuance
of all Means of Conviction to fuch, as by their
Ingratitude and Neglect, had rendred them-:
felves unworthy of all farther Solicitation, and
would, by their Infidelity of Spirit, render its
Qperfc

( 69 )
Operations, if tried, of no Effect, — On the other Tht c»».
Hand, leaving this Solution fora while out of the^*",flW
Queftion, let us now turn the Tables, and take afim'can
fhort View of our religious Perfuafion in its Re- bear no
verfe, and merely as it ftands upon its own Bot-wfcr
torn; let us contemplate fora Moment the CE-
conomy of our Faith in. no other Light than what
our Underftanding will afford us for the Profpect,
and fee what a venerable Figure it will make un
der fuch a Reprefentation, and confidered only
in the Eye of ftrict and unaffifted Reafon. To
take it as it naturaly occurs, in its very firft
Step ; for Inftance, of Baptifm. Can any Thing
be more natural, upon hearing of a rational Faith, ^\"f$
than to interrogate, with the greateft Simplicity,
after our Church- Catechifm ? — Why then are In
fants baptized, when by reafon of their tender Age
they cannot poffibly pretend to know any Thing
pf the Matter ? To reprefent this whole Proceed
ing juftly, according to theLaws of Reafon, would
be to give a very injurious Image of that heaven
ly Myftery. For they article, might the invi
dious Objector fay, without knowing it, to be
lieve they know not what ; and this Act, which
is properly no Act at all, is received as fomething
to all Intents and Purpofes complete in itfelf, and
comprifing the whole Sum and Extent of a juft
Perfuafion. Their living longer afterwards, to be
capable of being informed what it is they have
promifed to believe, may poffibly endanger, but
cannot add to the Terms of their con trailed Hap-
pinefs. The Merits cf the moft finifhed Con
viction are already theirs by Imputation ; their
Claim to Heaven ftands already allowed, and Mil-.
lions are accordingly, we know, actually faved
upon the Strength of the mere Ceremony, with
out ever having had the Capacity of exerting orte
fingle Thought upon that, or any other Subject, SA

( 7° ) , .
So far are they all the while from knowing any
thing Why, that they do not fo much as know
What they believe, or, indeed, that they do be
lieve any Thing at all.— I could well enlarge, if
Occafion were, upon this Head, and reduce the
whole Syftem, by each particular' Article, to that
uncouth Image, which through the falfe Medium
of Reafon, it muft ever ftnke upon our Senfes.
But if you will confult the great Lord * Bacon
¦upon the Subject, you will find the Application of
this Teft of Reafon to Religion fully made al
ready to your Hands, and carried with one conti
nued Series and Air of Repugnancies through al-
jnoft all the Myfteries of the Gofpel. And yet no
one will, I believe, offer to doubt his perfona^
Perfuafion of the Truth of them, on Account of
the feeming Contrarieties he has there fet to View,
whilft he was fcanning them by the inadequat
Scale of mere human Reafon. He knew well
that all thefe -Abfurdities, as they appear to us,
were fo far from being Matter of any juft Jealou-
fy, pr Exception to its Veracity, that they are the, :
ftrongeft Prefumptions poffible in its Favour '
and the neceffary Confequences of our attempt
ing of ourfelves to pronounce at all upon divine
Subjects, that its not proving correfpondent to, or
reconcileable with, our Notions, is a Circuit
fiance rather violently declarative of its being
in Truth the genuine and undoubted Reprefenta-
tion of hjs Will, who thinketh not as Mart
-thinketh. 1 here cannot indeed be on Earth two Things
.more widely differing, tlian this fame Religion
humanly confidered, and falling under the proper
Cognizance of this fupernatural and infpired
Senfe, when it is attempted to be weighed in the
pnequal Scales of human Reafon, and when it
* See his Religions Paradoxes,

- . ( 71 )
has its juft Poize by being proved in the Balance"
of the Sanbluary. With Men this is impoffibki
but. with God all 'things are poffible, is a Diftincti-
on no where more ftrongly exemplified than in
this Subject : By his Almighty Influence, the Faith
of Grace fhall give us Demonftration of Things in
a thoufand lnftances, to Which the Faith of Rea
fon could never have, in any Degree, reconciled
us. They clafh in their very firft Principles, their T^e Culti-
very firft Leffons at the moft direcr. Contradiai'-^/j^
ons to each other : The Foundation of Philofo- Reafoning
phy is all Doubt and Siifpicion, as the Founda- produce
tion of Religion is all Acquiefcence and Belief. ""^^
But how extremely diftinct arid oppofite they are "
in their Natures and Interefts, we may judge yet
more certainly from their conftant experienced
Effects, by obferving that there never was, in
Fact, any Right Underftanding or Correfpondence
betwixt their feveral Profeffors ; that from the
very earlift Accounts, they have ran naturally
into feparate Parties, have manifefted, on all Oc
cafions, a hoftile Difpofition, and mutual Anti
pathy, and flood ever, in the moft diftant Re
move, from all Poffibility of amicable Terrris and
Reconcilement. The Philofopher infolenty fcpf-
fing the Believer, and he, in his Turn, as zea-
loufly profcribing the Philofopher. The Wifdom
of Man has ever been reputed Foolifhnefs with God
and his Servants, and but too often the Cen-
furc has been /however vainly) retorted. A frefh
Inftance of the Truth of that general Doctrine
which I am endeavouring through the whole to
inculcate ! For if this Chriftian Syftem had pro
ceeded on rational Principles, it could never cer
tainly have laboured under all that Contempt in
the Eyes of the letter'd World which it did, and
which the Minifters of its Propagation were be
forehand exprefly affured it would do. It had all

( 72 )
all the Advantage of coming on the Stage, at a
Time of Day when Reafon 'was in the higheftj
Requeft and Reputation, and was fare to have
the faireft Play imaginable : Never were her
Friends, the profeft Searchers for Truth, more
countenanced and encouraged : The World had
never Ears more open ; nor was ever better dif-
pofed to attend the canvaffing Things by Argu
ment, if that had been the Ground they had gone
upon. It was then, by their own Confeffion, the
general Turn and common Employment amongft?
Mankind, to be induftrioufly looking' out for In~
telligence : The Improvement of their Knowledge'
was that to which they had devoted all their
Thoughts ; it was the undeviating Bufinefs of
their whole Lives earneftly to cultivate Informa
tion by all poffible Methods ; and they had fuc-
ceeded accordingly in their Proficiency, and thefe.
Children of this World were in their Generation, ad
leaft, as wife as the Children of Light. This was
the Situation in which they profels to have found
the Audience they were to addrels, and a moft
advantageous and favourable one it was as could
be wifhed, if they had dealt in Arguments, and
had human Means of Conviction to produce.
But it feems they were not fo to learn Chrift, and
that Religion and Science were, as I contend,
two very remote and different Subjects. How
frequent is it, accordingly, to obferve the Effects
of the Spirit operating with the greateft Energy?
and Succefs, in Objects where, to our Percepti
on, a very ordinary Degree of intellectual Irrf-
provement is fcarce difcoverable j how much true
Zeal, and Acutenefs of fpiritual Difcernment,
fhining forth in Breafts unadvantaged with the mi-;
nuteft Portion of human Talents, or Acquire
ment ? On the other Hand, is any Thing again
more common, than to meet with the brighteft Votaries

C 73 )
Votaries of the rational Clafs, deftitute of every
Glimpfe of faving Knowledge, or the leaft No
tion of fach a Thing as divine Faith ? The World
by Wifdom knows not God. Nay, fo neceffarily op
pofite . are thefe two Species of Men, that their
very Qualifications on both Sides are fo many
mutual and infuperable Impediments in their
Way, to hinder even all Poffibility of any Ap
proach or Accomodation. The religious Man,
for Inftance,' the enlightened Difciple of the Crofs,
who feels within all that glorious Difplay of the
Power defcribed, and all that demonftrative Af
farance of the Truth of a Belief, by which his
Salvation ftands enfured, is confcious that he is
poffeffed already of the one Thing neceffary, and
therefore contemns very juftly all meaner Pur-
faitSi which might poffibly in any Meafure divert
his Mind from intending with all its Powers the
only Science deferving of his Application or Re
gard. On the other Hand, the Character of the
Philofopher difqnalifies him again as much, for
the having his Mind open to Influences, of which
he has not the leaft Conception or Efteem ; the
habitual Turn of his Thoughts, his contracted
Fondnefs for regular Argument, and inviolable
Attachment to certain eftablifhed Tefts, -will, of
Courfe, prevent his being ever affected by any
Thing that offers in any other Shape. His very
Progrefs in carnal Wifdom has, we fhall find, been
but fo much going backward in the School of
Chrift, on Account of which Effect, the Apoftle
fo juftly terms it, earthly, fenfual, devilifh. Thus v
prepoffeft, he will hear of nothing that does not-
juft happen to fall in exactly with what he vainly
affects to call the Laws of Nature, which he has
already irreverfibly determined in his own Mind,
and which engrofs all his Devotion. Moral Re
lations are with him the general Touchftone for
K the

( 74 )
the Trial of all Truths that come in his Way ;
and Revelation itfelf ftands or falls in his Opinion,
only fo far as it agrees with that pre-conceiv'd
Standard. So that you fee, a fubtle Spirit and a pe
netrating Genius, as you fo fententioufly affected to
exprefs yourfelf, may poffibly blind a Man iri fome
Particulars, • without all that Degree of Paradoxr
which you would fix on fach a Suppofition.
So much did the impotent Policy of that de
luded Apoftate Julian miftake its Aim, when,,
in the Malice of his Heart, he prohibited the
Children of Chriftians from the Advantages, as
he conceiv'd it, of a School-Education, and be
ing trained in Leffons of Philofophy, which, in
ftead of contributing, as he weakly apprehended,
to the forwarding of that Intereft, and rendering
their Qualifications more formidable, might, in
all Probabity, have produced often the fame fa
tal Effects amongft them, as it had done already
on himfelf, and have difpofed them to give ab-
fardly the Preference to Paganifm and Idolatry.
A prudent Manager in his Place, that had well
underftood the Nature of his accurfed Project^
would, in Profecution of the fame Scheme, have
taken juft contrary Meafures, and fpitefully fet
bpen the Schools every where for their Admiflr-.
on ; he would have earneftly encouraged their re
taining to the Profeffion of Philofophy, and inr
vited them by all poffible Arts and Privileges, to
the Cultivation of a Science, that has generally
been found to prove fo deftructive of their Prin.
ciples. This had been proceeding judicioufly
however, and with Art as diabolical as the Defignj
by thofe very Politicks, from which the Apoftle
very juftly apprehended fome Danger indeed, and
againft which his cautionary Precept is fo folemn-
ly and directly levell'd. Beware, left any Mm
fpoil you through Philofophy and vain Deceit, after .

the Tradition of Men, after the Rudiments of the
World, -and not after Chrift. It had bid -furely the
fajreft for the Accomplifhment of his Purpofe,
that they fhould have" contracted early a Propen-
fity to Diftruft and Contradiction, that affuming
and prying Turn of Philofophers, which is fo
widely " different from the Temper required to
qualify a Candidate for the Difciplefhip of Chrift.
He has declared, that no Man can receive the Gof
pel, except he receive it as a little Child, in the Impo
tence and Impuberty of a dutiful Underftand
ing; in the tractable Simplicity of unpractifed
Reafon ; not with the Claims of a felf-fufficient
Difputant; the haughty and arrogant Spirit of a
replying Academic ; but with all the obfequious
Submiffion and humble Acquiefcence of a Babe,
who has no other Difpofition, but to learn his
Leffon. But for the ftrongeft Explanation of the Truth
of what I am fuggefting, that Reafon cannot
poffibly have any Thing to do upon thefe Occa
fions, let me recommend you only for one Mo
ment into fome Affembly of the Faithful at their
Devotions, Repair, I fay, but to the -next
Scene of religious Worfhip, and contemplateCl);w^w
there in your Mind what paffes in your View, andjiandard
the Nature ofthe Proceedings ; a numerous Con-C™^ no
gregation, the Votaries of an extenfive Diftrict,^?^^
Slid their ftrict Concurrence to the niceft Puncti- RMy0S.
lio in all the doctrinal Points there uttered, and'mg.
bring me ingenuoufiy your true Judgment upon
the Matter. Is it poffible that you will affert,
that this harmonious Flock are thus altoge
ther really giving a rational Affent to all thefe
curious Articles, and profound Theorems, when
your Experience, in the mean Time, affures you,
that the Generality of thefe unanimous Confef
fors have never, in their whole Lives, bellowed one

( 76 )
onefingle Thought, in a fpeculative Way, upon,
the Truth or Falfhood of that long Train of Pro-
pofitions they fo liberally avow ? You muft needs
readily grant the contrary, and fall of Courfe
into my eafy Account of this ftrange Proceeding,
owning that it can be only the Effect of the fame
Spirit, that from the Lips of them all contrives
to fpeak the fame Thing ; that, by this Means,
though] Men cannot be all of one Opinion,
they may of one Faith, which they hold, not in
Unity of Underftanding, but, as our Liturgy
well expreffes it, in the Bond of Peace, and Unity
cf Spirit. A Diftinction that can alone juftify the
Confiftency of the Practice, which muft be other-
wife unavoidably liable to Reproach for its Abfur-,
dity, and render its Abettors very defervedly ob
noxious to the Apoftle's Cenfure of rearing Altars
to an unknown God. A Diftinction .too which the
fame Apoftie himfelf elfewhere allpws, when he
affirms of the Cafe of repeating Prayers in an un-
iknown Tongue, that one may pray with the Spirit, ;;
though not with the Underftanding. And what Won
der ? When we confider, that this fame Spirit is
the fole Avenue of all thefe Intelligences, and that
it is not Flefh and Blood that hath revealed this unto
them, but that they are all taught of God ; that it is
lie only that hath heard and learned ofthe Father that,
cometh to Chrift. -So then plainly it is no more of
him that thinketh, or of him that reafoneth, bu,t of
God who fheweth Mercy.
I am indeed, after all, well aware, that you
are" not without your Precedents in this Perfua-
faon ; that there have been very flrenupus Advo
cates for your Side of the Queftion, and thofe tog
Perfonsofno ordinary Eminence and Reputation,
both for their. Abilities and religious Attachments.
I have, I muft confefs, been myfelf but too ofter>
a Witnefs to this Kind of Language from the
P^pit,

. ( 77 ) ,
Pulpit. I have been often affured, From a ftrange
Misapplication of a ftraggling Text, fome faint
Outline which feemed, they fancied, to counte
nance fuch a Notion, that " I was to prove all
Things, ( a hopeful Task ! ) before I believed any
Thing. That I was not only left free to enquire,
if I pleated, into the Truth of all Fundamentals
in Religion, but that it was actually a Duty in
cumbent upon me to do fo, and a fatal and un
pardonable Neglect to omit it. That I could
never anfwer it, either to God or myfelf, to be
any one's Difciple, without the Warrant of that
Reafon he had given me to judge by, and pur-
pofely to diftinguifh betwixt Truth and Falfhood.
That it was, in fhort, a Qualification indifpen-
fably required at my Hands, to be always able
and ready to give an intelligible and fatisfactory
Account of the Ground of my Faith to any that
" fhould ask me the Queftion, and a Reafm of the
*' Hope that was in me.
Now how well grounded this pompous Char- Error of
ter is, we fhall be beft able to determine, by^*^M
. _ . . , f. ¦ that re-
repainng once more to the great Original from commend
whence they pretend to extract it, and date thh the reafo.
wild and latitudinarian Commiffion. There we*/** p rac'
are told exprefly, that Faith is the Evidence of1"'
Things not feen. A fhort and plain Definition
enough, as one would apprehend. But thefe
Men, by their Account, make it only the Evi
dence df Things feen : They take upon them to
reverfe the authentick Precept, and bid us walk by
Sight inftead of Faith ; whilft they are teaching
us thus, that our Faith ought to be the Refult of
our own Reafonings, and telling their Saviour in
Effect, with Thomas, that feeing is believing. And
how fuch a Declaration may expect to be received,
may be judged from the Manner of his Accept
ance; ** Thomas, becaufe thou haft feen, thou.

( 7» ) .
*¦' haft beliewdJ' A very cold Reception of his dif
ficult Humour and late Acknowledgment, intj;;
mating ftrongly, that his Pretenfions to his Mar-
fter's Favour diminifhed in Proportion to the De
gree of Evidence he had thought fit to require of
him, that there was no mighty Merit in being
convinced by Demonftration, and when he could
no longer poffibly avoid it. And which was all
ftill more feverely expreffed in the Beautitude, fo
fignifiqtntly fabjoined and addreffed obliquely elfe
where ; Bleffed are they that have not feen, and yet
have believed. Thefe indeed were the Votaries, and
this the Kind of Attachment which he may be
always obferved to have particularly encouraged
and affected in his Followers. A forward Pro-
penfity to affent without Lingring or CaviJ, a
modeft and humble Difpofition to receive the
Tender of his Doctrines rather as Matter of
Inftruction, than as the State of a Cafe fabmifcj
ted to any Arbitration of our own, is the
Temper Chriftianity has ever required at our
Hands, and graced, when difeovered, with the
conftant Marks of its higheft Approbation. If
any Share of the Work appears to be ever at all
put into our own Hands, if any Method of Trial
may feem at any Time recommended to prepare
the Way for fach an Acknowledgment, it will
prefendy be reconciled, when we confider what
are the Rules given us on thefe Occafions ; that
they are not fach as can ever render the Confe
quence of our Scrutiny precarious, or admit of
any Poffibility of a Miftake on qur Part. The
Scripture- Teft and Standard for finding out the
Spirits of Truth is no more than this ;— -Here
by ye fhall know them. Every one that confejfetb
that Chrift is come of the Fjefh, is of God. Now
this is evidently what Philofophers call argu
ing in a Circle, and begging the Queftion : But HI

. < 79 3
in Faith you fee it is a neceffary Preliminary ; He
that cometh to Chrift, muft believe, that he is.
With what Severity does our Lord reprove theConfrar„
Sin of Infidelity in his Difciples, for imaginings the
they were going to be drowned when their Ve{MwMe Te~
was actually finking under them, arid it had been^X
from all Appearance a Sin againft common Senfe
to have thought any otherwife ? In like .manner
was Zacharius ftruck dumb on the Spot, for only
hefitating upon what carried, according to the com
mon Courfe of Nature, the higheft Face of Im-
poffibility. In what Particular is it that we find the Patri
arch Abraham ever ftiled with fo juft an Eminence
The Father of the Faithful, and fo much propo-
fed to us at every Turn as the moft laudable
Pattern for our Imitation ? Why becaufe againft
Hope, i. e. contrary to all human Probability,
he believed in Hope, and confidered' not ( what
one would imagine fhould have offered itfelf the
firft to his Confideration) all the natural Impe
diments that feemed to render the promifed Event
impracticable. But the Pafiage that moft fully,
and beyond all Poffibility of Mifconception, de-
fcribes to us the true Nature of Faith in profeft
Oppofition to that miftaken Notion of a rational
one, which fome had it feems erroneoufly, enter
tained, is in the xth Chap, of the Epiftle to the
Romans, where the whole Queftion is difcuffed
at large, and thus precifely determined : " The
" Right eoufnefi which is by Faith Jpeaketh on this
" wife ; Say not in thy Heart, who fhall afcend up
" into Heaven ? (that is to bring Chrift down
" from above) or who Jhall defend into the Deep?
" (that is to bring up Chrift again from the Dead.)"
You need not be at all this Pains to ranfack Hea
ven and Earth for Intelligence and Satisfaction in
the Point. But what faith it ? The Word is nigh thee

( So )
thee even in thy Mouth, and in thy Heart ; that is,
the Word of Faith which we preach. For with
the Heart Man believeth unto Righteoufneft, &c.
And this Defcription, calculated profefiedly for
the Inftruction, and fetting right of fome well-
meaning Devotees, of whom he had teftified juft
before, that they had a Zeal of Godi, but not ac
cording to Knowledge ; he wanted only to be bet-;
ter informed. If my Argument could admit, af
ter this, of any additional Confirmation, I might
mention, from the fame Authority, that Simpli
city which the Apoftle afcertains elfewhere, as
the proper Characteriftick, and known Stamp of
the Elect. For you fee your Calling, Brethren, i. e.
the Nature of your Religion, how" that not many
wife Men after the Flefh, &c. And to fecond this
Observation by conftant Experience, there are
not wanting, through all Ages and Records, a-
bundant Witneffes, from Origen down to our own
Tilotfon, what a Medley of a Character the Qua
lifications of Faith and a reafoning Turn exhibit,
whenever they happen to meet Both in the fame
Perfon. And how indeed fhould we expect any
other Confequence from them, when we may ob-
ferve, that Defences of religious Tenets, proceed
in a quite different Style from that of any other
Logic one meets with ; that fuch a Kind of Rea
foning is avowed upon this Subject, as goes di
rectly oppofite to every other Species of Argu
ment that carries the Name. Not to confine it
barely to a Credo quia impoffibile eft, and the reft
of that Strain, which would have been confidered
as no ordinary Degrees of Paradox and Enthufi-
afm, if advanced ferioufly upon any other Occa
fion. Nay, fo well and fo generally is this Di
ftinction and Diffonance underftood, that nothing
can be more common than to hear it, upon this
very Principle, urged every Day, againft the
Study

( ;8r )
Study ofthe Mathematicks in particular, that it
was frequently found to have a Tendency to the
creating an Infidel Turn in the Mind, ,by difpofing
it to a Difregard for any other kind of Evidence,
than fuch as it was ufed to meet in ¦ that favourite
Science. Whereas moft religious Truths are fb
far .from admitting of any luch Teft, or giving
into thofe ftrict Rules of Proof, that all officious
Attempts of this Kind, to illuftrate them at all by
Argument, have been generally found to have
little other Effect, than to obfcure and render
the'm fafpected, ' Even upon the plaineft Queftion
in Nature, the Exiftence of a Diety itfelf, the Sub
ject of the World, where all Men, as it is owned,
muft needs naturally believe, if left fairly to
themfelves, and uninftructed, may one not venture
boldly to affirm-; 'and that without the left in
vidious Infinuation to the Difadvantage of that
extraordinary Perfon, that all the laboured Pro
ductions of Dr. Clarke himfelf (ingenious as they
are), in that Behalf, have rather contributed to
makp, for the other Side of the Queftion, and raif-
ed a thoufand new Difficulties in the Reader's
Mind, which would never elfe- have occurred to
him, where it has fent away one fingle Perfon'
thoroughly fatisfied in the Point, or, indeed left
him only in the fame Degree of Perfuafion it found
him ? And will any one declare ingenioufly, that
he finds himfelf as free from all little Doubts and
Scruples, and, in effect, the fame good and faft
Believer, after the deliberate Perufal of thefe Ar
guments, as he was when he firft took them
in Hapd ? To fay Truth, the very hearing thefe ReV -^
Subjects, canvaffed freely, though never fo m\xch ^m not
to their Advantage in Point of Argument, is, in admit of
itfelf, a very dangerous Practice, and a great^n-^
Weakening to all religious Attachments, which W-J£ %ea;
are eftablifhed on fo pauch a better- Ground. Tbe/i»/»g,
L Corro-

e 84 ) , ,
Corroborations of Reafon, granting that they rfla|
be had, are fo far from advantaging the Intere|j
of this Caufe, that they naturally tend to leffenits
Authority in Men's Minds, by debating it too
much with a Mixture of our common Concept
tions, and feeming to faggeft that we owe fome
thing of our divine Knowledge to the Affiftanee
of human Means and Endeavours of our own;
However it be, the looking prefumptuoufly into tbe
Ark of God, whatever Light and Difcoveries it
may happen to ftrike upon the Senfes, has cer*
tainly ever proved a fatal Curiofity ; nor is there
any Inftance where the proverbial Effect of Far
miliarity, and intimate Acquaintance, has been
more notorioufly to be remarked., It has been
made a Maxim in Reproach, by fome forward?
Spirits, who were themfelves entirely ignorant of
the true Principle, than an abfolute Unacquaint-
ance with thefe Matters, was the moft effectual
Security for our inviolable Adherence to them^
and that Ignorance was, in plain Terms, the Mo>
ther of all Devotion. And fo far, in Fact, is cer±
tain, if we look but the leaft into the Annals of
our own Country, that there never has been feen
lefs of Zeal and Steadinefs in the Caufe of Re
ligion, than at thofe particular Junctures,, when
the Circumftance of the Times neceffarily led Men
to the clofeft Enquiry into its Merits. How incon*
fiderable has the Lift of Martyrs been always found,
at the Tell, in Comparifon with all thofe who have
made it their Principle to vary, without Scruple,
every Way with the Eftablifhment % who have run
readily into every Denomination of Religion by
Turns ; and feem'd to hold Chrift's Church, to be
always the Church in Being ?
And accordingly it. is obvious to common Ex^
perience, that fuch Men as deal in Difputes, and
cultivate the Dialogue-Style in their Difcuffions, are

I °3 )
are never half fo fixed, and to be depended upon For
their Principles, as thofe who indulge conftantly
one fame dictatorial Strain, and- flick inviolably
to one Side of the Queftion.
¦ As notorious it is to Obfervation (and it con
cerns you efpecially to take good Notice of the
Confequence) that all the Efforts of this bufy Rea
fon to refine off any fancied Drofs or Superflui
ty, which is imagined, to have mixed in Reli
gion, have generally proved deftructive in the
End to the rafh Adventurers ; that they have
found it to their Coft too tender a Subject* for
fuch rough handling, and a very difficult Point of
Chymiftry, to make the intended Separation, and
that under the fpecious Notion and Pretence of
eradicating Prejudices, they have, in the Event,
eradicated finally all Senfe of Devotion out of
their Minds. The Confequence generally attend^
ing the Attempt to weed out Errors, has been
that, in ftraining hard at the Tares of Superftition,
they have been too apt to rend up unawares all the
clofe-connected Roots and Seeds, of Religion.
He that will allow me the Liberty of lifting
and controverting it at my Pleafare, miftakes the
very main End and Defign of Religion, which inflituted
' was calculated on Purpofe to reftrain and , compote to prevent,
the turbulent Spirit of Diffention, and to prevent Cm*r°-
wrangling. Religion, a pacific Inftitution, abhors
all Difputes ; not onl'y as they call her Truth in
Queftion, but chiefly as they are apt to gender
Strifes and Parties, of which the, by a fhort and
eafy Method, a general Rule of Faith, would
fain make a general Comprehenfion. And if we
fabmitted, hut as' we ought, to this divine In
formation affigned us, and had the Obedience and
Difcretion to leave it folely to the proper Intelli
gencer, it would, no doubt, have the propofed
Effect, ax\d .we, thpuld certainly fee (a bleffed and
heavenl.!

(• 84 > .
heavenly Profpect ! all Men entirely of the fame
Mind. But the Mifchief is, Men will be officU
eufly interfering, and imagining prefamptuoufly
to lend their Hands to help out the Schemes of
Omnifeience. And what better than our prefent
Ignorance and Divifion, can be expected from
fach a Project ? Inftead of ufing with, the Grati
tude due the infallible Clue put into their Hands,
they muft be fondly making Experiments, whe
ther they cannot contrive to find the Way them
felves without it. Now what a defirable Eftate
fach a heavenly Principle might produce amongft
us, if permitted duly to engrofs our Attention,
we may, in part, be able to conjecture, from the
Effect which in our daily Notice refults from an
inferior Reftraint of the Kind ; wherever Rea
foning is watchfully and effectually fupprefs'd,
even by the civil Authority, we fee none ot thofe
unhappy Divifions and hateful Animofities, which
arife only from a fatal and ill-judged Indulgence
to that reftlefs Spirit of Contradiction and Confu-
fion. I am fare there is no one Leffon that the
holy Writings have taken more Care to inculcate,
in the ftrongeft Terms, than this of denying our
Reafon to give our Faith Scope. Are we not
ftrictly enjoined to captivate our Reafon to the Obe
dience of Faith ? To captivate, — to lay it under
the moft abfolute Reftraint and Prohibition, not
to permit it the leaft Opportunity or Freedom to
exert itfelf, or interpofe on any Occafion what
ever. Is not carnal Wifdom, viz. the Refult of
human Reafon, every where induftrioufly decry'd
in the Affair of believing ? Is not Philofophy at
every Turn degraded and branded with the Name
of Folly, to make Room for the more glorious
Principle of Faith ? And is it poffible now that
we can defire any Thing more pofitive and ex-
prefs, for the Purpofe to convince us, that thi*.
cure

t *5i ¦¦;
pure and divine Inftitution (Myfteries that Angels
can be curious to look into) was never meant to be
rnade a Subject for , the Challenges of Logicians,
and for Schoolmen to play Prizes upon ?
And nothing pe.haps has ever more fatally be
trayed the Caufe of Religion, than the not fuffi
ciently attending to this one plain and important
Truth, by which her Champions have been fome-
times inadvertently led to miftakeboth their Wea
pons and their Ground, to forego their Advan
tage of an Eminence, and the Hill Country, and pre
pare a Defence for her, upon the Level, of which
fheis no way capable. A Conduct which has not
only given the Advantage on many Occafions to
her profeft Enemies, but has deprived her, by its
ftrange Mifreprefentations, of many who might, if
properly introduced to her Acquaintance, have
proved among the heartieft of her Friends'. For
jt is, I am too fenfible, very much owing, to thofe
falfe Rudiments, and the being unhappily taught
and encouraged to allow themfelves in doubting at
firft, that fo many contract that profane Humour
of Scepticifm, and are led rafhly to indulge a Ha
bit whichthey can never afterwards get clear of ;
which I am afraid is too much at prefent your
own Cafe.
From the prepofterous Attempts of the fame
zealous Advocates, officious to reconcile thefe
jarring Elements, and ftraining at every Turn to
find out by human Wit, in fpite ofthe Nature of
the Thing, plaufible Objects for Reafon's Notice
and Approbation, have fprung all the various De
nominations of Heretical Chimeras and Abfurdi-.
ties, that have ever infefted the Peace ofChrift's
Church with the Alarms of Faction and Contro-
verfy. In Purfuanee of this Opinion, I cannot avoid
regarding, as a very principal Caufe of the pre fent

( 86" )
fjfent prevailing Difpofition and Turn to Infidelity^
thofe annual Inftitutions of our great Philofopher,
BoylV Mr. Boyle, in Favour of a rational Religion, by
f^Tl wn^cn '^e ^as attempted to fquare the Subject of
mthis Faith to the Capacity of our Underftandings, and
Mtfiake. account for our religious Profeffions in the con>
mon Way of Argument, and by the narrow Rules
and Meafures of School-Difputation. I mention
this with the greater Regret, as I am very fenfi\
ble it is a Confequence of which he had himfelf no
Apprehenfion, and which was the fartheft from
any Intention of his in the Eftablifhment. His
Defign was, np doubt, in itfelf, fomething ftrict-r
Jy laudable and pious ; but give me Leave yet,.
to repeat it, that the Scheme has in the Event
proved more radically injurious to the Caufe of
Piety, and more fatally inftrurpental in the un-,
Extreme- hinging of all religious Principles, than anv that
lUiTt'o the Art or Malice of Religion's worft Enemies.
chriftia- could ever have deyifed. A ftrong Inftance of
taity. that irreconcileable Repugnance in their Natures.
betwixt Reafon and Belief, of which we were be7
fore fpeaking ! when the greateft Mailers in Know-!
ledge and Addrefs, retained thus on Purpofe, to
fpeed this happy Coalition, cap give, after all, no
better Account of the Succefs of their Nego,
tiation, than that the Caufe gqes ftill the back-
warder for all their Labours, and that it is
much eafier to excite a Spirit of Enquiry, than to
fatisfy it !
Npr is it, perhaps, any Thing very difficult far
us to trace the Ground of this Miftake, even with
great Show pf Apology, and whence this ftrange
Opinion of his in this Particular unfortunate
ly fprung. The ravifhed Votary had already
experienced a vaft Reach and Energy in human
Reafon to all other Purpofes : He had ex
ited her, in hi§ own Perfon, to fo high a De
gree,

e . . [ .( 87 )
gree of Dignity arid Reputation, and found her ca- -
pacious Force on fo many Occafions, that it is no
great Wonder, if his grateful Deference to his great
Benefactrefs grew at laft into Adoration itfelf, and
Jed him even to idolize the fancied Deity* Hence
he might come fondly to imagine that her Power
was univerfal, and that there was no Object that
could be too great for her extenfive Cognizance. A
Compliment, how much too high for the Subject,'
and how abfurd in its Confequences, will belt ap
pear, by the attending one Moment to the exact
State of the Cafe thefe Preachers lay before us on
the Occafion, and the Terms in which it muft ge
nerally be fuppofed to run in one of thefe Exhorta
tions. " Brother Chriftians, come hither and learn ^AhfurA
" me to be Ghriftians; you that have been re- Suppofiti-
" ligioufly devoted from your Infancy by your0^ "La i
" baptifmal Vow, and habitually trained all l^ExwmL
" Lives, by your Education, in the Chriftian Faith H tion of
" come now and let your Reafon determine you in- chriftia'
" to iti You that have been all your Lives hither-*'^'
4{ to convinced of the heinous Crime of Doubting*
" and the Neceffity of believing always one holy
" Gofpel, in Oppofition to all Impoftures, come
" now and look with Indifference into the Grounds
*' on which this and all other Belief ftands ; enter
" ingenuoufly into a fair Comparifon of their feveral
" Merits, and ufe your own Senfe freely and impar^
" tially upon the Matter. We fcorn to take Ad-
*' vantage of the Prejudices of your Childhood, or
" to offer to intrude any Thing implicitly upon
*' your Underftandings, without confulting firft
*' your own Reafon in the Point. In God's
" Name, judge freely all of you for yourfelves i
" but then, be fare to judge all of you juft
** as we do, or expect to ftand to the Confe-
.*'' quence, &c." This

( 88 ;
This is, in fo many Words, the true Subftancei
of fach a Challenge. What a Medley of Inconft-
ftency and Contradiction ! For if, as is prefamed,
I am indeed already happily engaged and fixed a;
baptized and habitual Believer, to what Purpofe.
fhould I be tempted, from my prefent fecure Situa-i
tion, to fet out again afrefh in a new Shape upon/
this hazardous and uncertain Purfuit; where, if-,f>
fail, the Confequence is fatal, and, if I fucceed,1
my Labours are fare to be at beft but faperfluous ?
For what can Reafon's Confirmation do for me here,
but fix me where I am ? And what can her Affift
ance give me in the Cafe more than I have already ?
And with what Freedom Reafon will be exerted on
fach an Occafion, it is no difficult Matter to deter
mine. When I know, from the very firft Step,
that theife is a Hell on one Side of the Queftion^ it
is but natural Prudence for me to take readily to the
fafeft Side, as indeed it were the Height of Folly
and Madnefs to keep a Debate on fuch Terms long'
on Foot.
But what a Reprefentation is this of our greit
Lawgiver ? And what a Mockery and Infult upon
Mankind ? Who muft be infatuated with Platonic/
Notions and abftracted Paffion for Truth, ever to
think of venturing upon impartial and fair Decifion§J;
after fach Difcoveries, and under fuch Circumftati-
ces. And for the mighty Privilege, fo generoufly
indulged us, Freedom is the greateft Jell imagi;
nable, when tender'd with the leaft Air of Autho
rity and Reftriction. The leaft Referve of Condi
tion or Provifo is enough to make void all Charted
of philosophical Liberty: And what then fhall
we fay of a Grant, where the whole Tenor runs di:
rectly oppofite to the Grace profeffed, and whofe
very Terms themfelves, as laid down to us,
abfolutely contradict the Subftance of the Concef-
fion. At

C 89 )
At the fame Time, the Preacher is ever tri
umphing in the peculiar Openefs and honeft Af
fability of his Caufe, congratulating us perpe
tually on the particular Advantages of our happy
Situation above that of all other Difciples ; whillt,
in a juft Abhorrence of the -Slavery of Popifh Po
liticks, and detefting the blind Obedience by
them required, he nobly declares, that he will by
no Means put out the Eyes of Men, though cer
tainly the only Method in Nature to make lAenfee
all alike.
The Projectors they allude to were fenfible
enough of this Truth, and therefore boldly (but
much more confiftently) center all their Difficul
ties in the one notable and fundamental 'one of In-
fallibity ; which, it feems, they agree fo far
with me in their Account, as to confels, that no
thing but the conftant Attendance of the Spirit
can enfare. In this only we differ, in the pecu
liar Sphere and Dominion of judging which they
would affume and circumfcribe to one Set of Mo-
nopolifts, in their attempting thus to confine the
diftufive Grant, and render the Catholic Church
too particular : Never confidering that this en
lightening Grace hath appeared equally unto all ;
and therefore you certainly take too much upon you,
ye Sons of Rome, feeing that all the Lord's People
are holy.
But would any one imagine now, that after all
thefe frank Permiffions and boafted Indigencies,
after all thefe high Elogiums in the Defence of
Liberty and Recommendation of private Judg
ment, that thefe Exalters of Reafon and all its
Privileges, could ftill actually intend, or hope mMey don't
their Hearts, to keep a drift Hand over us them--£™'
felves, in all thefe licenced Effays of our Under- fhould
ftandings, that they could ftill think of retaining amine
our profound Attention and Deference to their/rwf3,«
M own

we ex-

( 9° )
own Dictates, and expect that all our Attempts
for Information fhouM be all the while under
their Tuition and Direction ? Could one believ#
that, with all this handfom Addrels, thefe en
gaging Advocates for Freedom could indeed
flatter themfelves with the Profpect of any
farther Influence over us, that they could pro--
pofe in themfelves to have the infpecting and
regulating of this our free Condubl through every
Step, and would hold us in the greateft Abomi
nation and Refentment, for taking them fairly at
their Word, and: prot'efting ever after againft
their Interpofition and Authority ? They, who
by their very Profeffion of being themfelves but
the Pupils of Reafon, have effectually giveri up
all Ground for any fuch, Pretentions, and can,
after this, perfift with no tolerable Grace in making
the Demand. Actual Infallibility, as I juft now
remarked, is the only Title whereon to ground
any plaufible Claim to our Difciplefhip, and fuch
a Qualification Reafon will not pretend to fur-'
nifh. The Church of Rome confines, very judi-'
cioufly, all the doctrinal Province of her Reli
gion to fach only as have, the irififts, the Ad
vantage of an immediate Correfpondence with
the Holy Spirit ; and then retails out their Difco-"
veries -again to the Simple on that unerring Foun-
Yet »„/¦<*- dation. Like true Empiricks, they flatter" to
ting up for with Certainty for our Dependance, and there's
whtLt fornetning plaufible at leaft we muft acknoV-
infMibi- !edSe> uPon the Face of fach a Profeffion, to
lity. invite us to undergo the Experiment : But how
to undertake it with any lets Degree of Self-'
fafficiency, is the Queftion. The moft fach a
Solicitor can well fay when he offers his' Service,
is, that he will guefs for us ; which, one would*
think, fhould not go very far in recomriiending
the Ufe of his Affiftance, or indeed in warrant-' ing

X V* 0
ing his Prefamptuoufnels in making the Offer. A
cold Inducement for any abfolute Confidence and
Reliance to profefs only a good Knack at Guef-
fing ! Indeed, all the moft fpecious Authority of
the molt learned and .venerable Councils, without
this Circumftance of actual Infallibility amongft
them, is but flender Foundation ftill for fuch ,a De
mand, and amounts, in Effect, to \no more than
the Proverbial Advantage, that Two Heads are bet
ter than one.
If I am to depend .upon another for my Faith,
and all its- Confequences, it can be but a reafonable
Demand on my Side to have an infalliable Dicta
tor. This is an indifpenfable .'Circumftance, that
my Situation, at firft View, gives me a Right to
require at his Hands. If I accept of a Man like
myfelf, to give a peremptory and magifteriaj De-
cifion of Things in my Name, fuch an important
one as (according to his own Account of neeeffa^
ry Truths, &cc.) I rifque my Soul to ftand to, it
is manifeft enough my Deputy ought to affume at
leaft the being himfelf a privileged Perfon, and out
of the Reach of all Poffibility of being deceived ;
nothing lefs can qualify him for undertaking the
Office, or give me a proper Security under my Sub-
miffion ; as long as the Guides we employ are liable
to be mi (taken themfelves, we can never have any
fafficient Foundation or Infarance for our Depen
dance on a fafe Conduct.
And farther, with what Face then can thefe
very Men, who have thus patronized and fedu-
ced us firft with fo much Diligence to the Pra
ctice, whether by enticing us with the Promife of
certain-Conviction, or provoking us with their cla
morous and perpetual Defiances, prefume to la-
vifh their Wrath afterwards, as they do, againft
the very Term of Free*thinking, encouraging us
with

( 92- )
with fo much officious Zeal tp the Ufe of the
Means, and then condemning, with the fame Ver
hemence, the neceffary Effect of our Compliance.
Here, again, how "much more confident would it
appear in thefe tyrannical Patrons of Liberty fairly
to put on the honeft Inquifitor at once, who, to do
them Juftice, are not apt to fet about Regulations?
of this Kind by Halves ; where the Profeffion of!
their Religion is concerned, thefe Pallors have but
one known Principle, which they conftantly avow
and abide by, by which Conduct, one can never
be at a Lofs for the Confequence of our Oppo
fition, and muft always be able to know, at
leaft before-hand, what one has to truft to in
diffenting. They Ihut up, like faithful Monitors;
all the Avenues of Error at.the very firft Step,
and can never be charged ("whatever other Com*
plaints we may have againft them) with having
ever referred thefe penal Articles in any Part to
any Decifion of outs, or with telling us in one
Breath, you fhall, and you fhall not. They do not
throw Volumes of myfterious and profound Que
ries undecyphered into the Market-place for Opi
nion, and then expect that the good Company
fhall prefently agree about the Contents, and find'
themfelves difpofed to take it all juft in the fame
Senfe that they would have them.
The Men of Rome, the moft notorious of Ido
laters, fhall rife up in the Judgment (of all confide
ring Perfons) 'againft this Generation, and fhall con
demn it : For they invented but the one Abfurdity
of Infallibility, and behold a greater Abfurdity than
Infallibility is here.
To give all Men Liberty to judge for them
felves, and to expect at the fame Time that they
fhall be all of the Preacher's Mind, is fach a
Scheme for Unanimity, as one would fearca
imagine

( 9B ) ,
imagine any one could be weak enough to devife
in Speculation, and much lefs that any could ever
be found hardy enough to, avow and propofe it to
Practice. What ? direct me firft to confult the
beft Advocates on both' Sides of the Queftion, and
yet afterwards pretend to prefcribe which of them
I fhall be determined by ? No furely ; he that of
fers any Subject to my impartial Confideration, does
not well to be angry at whatever. Decifion happens
to be the Refalt. His very leading me originally Examktr.
into this State of Enquiry, has fixed me at once'"£ ca",f
independent of all future Jurifdiction to biafs or * 0£*
reftrain me, and obliged me now to ftand to thedience.
neceffary Confequence of my Endeavours at all E-
vents. He that has once fet me to find out the Way what may
for myfelf, muft naturally expect me to take my t>t exami-
own Courfe in the Profecution of it ; and can blame" -?7fe
nobody but himfelf, if it be my Fortune to lofe it.
So that if the Motives" of the Credibility of Chri
ftianity may "be once innocently propofed to Exa
mination, they may poffibly be innocently reject
ed too. Horrid Confequence this ! and yet but
juft. For the very making it a Queftion, the very
advifing me to look into it to form a Judgment,
both fappofes and allows my Doubts for the Time.
Now, if Infidelity be indeed juftifiable any one
Moment of our Lives, who fhall tell me what Mo
ment it ceafes to be fo ? Who fhall take upon him
to determine the critical Point, when longer Want
of Conviction becomes criminal, or fettle the com
petent Time we ought to be fatisfied in ? " O,
" fays the Rationaliit in, Return, as long as weare
" thus actually employed in the Search, we may
*' make ourfelves perfectly eafy in that Point ;
" God will, on his Part, never certainly expect
•' more of us than he enables us to perform. A
f ' fincere Defire to know and do his Will muft
" fop-

'( 94 0
ct fapply, till .his good Time, the Deficiency of
" the actual Knowledge.
So that, if we can difbelieve ( as they term it )
with a fafe Confcience, we fhall do as well, with
out it, as with it. Excellent Account of the Ne-
ceffity of a Doctrine, which God himfelf both did
and faffered fo much to introduce to us, and with
out whofe aclual Acknowledgment he has fo often
¦affured us our 'Offences againft him can have no
Remiffion. If the Allowance of our own Confdr
ence be a fafficient Security, it rriuft be equally
fo under every Profeffion ; and then farewel . to
the Notion of one only true and faving; Faith,
and all the confequent Care to difcover it. See
here the conftant and unavoidable Fate of every
Syftem that Lets out upon an Abfurdity ! We are
firft peremptorily affured that we ought all to
think Right, by our Reafon ; and then, as a Salt
vo to qualify, or rather explain away fo abfurd a
Polition, we are told with much Moderation, in
the Conclufion that we ought only to think as weU
as we can. A .fair Acknowledgment indeed, be
fore hand of the Poffibility that Reafoners may
happen not to concur in their Refolutions, and a
very equitable Determination in their Behalf upon
that Suppofition , ; but, as the Evidence of our
Faith now ftands, moft prophane and unwarran
table : Becaufe the fincere Difbclief of one fingle
Perfon were evidently incompatible with the very
Nature and Currency of this our eftablifhed LaWj
an Affent to which is fo peremptorily required, un
der the heavieft Penalty, of all Perfons whatfoever;
without any Kind of Refervation or Diftinction of
Circumftances ; which would never have been the
Cafe, if any one could have been incapacitated,
without any Default of his own for the giving fuch
an Affent. Strange

3 ( 95 )
Strange Paradox ! that no one fhould believe to
pleafe God, without having firft asked himfelf the"
Queftion, " Whether his Son be not an Impoftor?"-
Rather, who knows if Grace may ever on any
Terms be vouchfafed, after the having liften'd-to-
fuch a Suggeftion, or once harboured fo blafphe-
mous a Thought ?
But, to return to our reafoning Preachers,- Ijdvi.
muft indeed do the Generality of them the Juftice catesfor
to acknowledge, that whatever Miftakes theyjfjjjj™*
may run into at their firft Step, they recover u'd, and_
themfelves again very handfomly in their moxefexplained
advanced Stages, and the maturer Courfe of their l*aPropw,
Proceedings; and, notwithstanding all their un-; Mye"
authorized Profeffions of Liberty they fo ra-fhly fet
out With, they generally take proper Care to re
medy the Error, very effectually before they have
done ; that we find them in the Iffue much -more
confiftent than they feemed to promffe, and the
Latitude of the Text frequently • reconciled- and
brought to bear, by the abundant Orthodoxy of
the Comment. What they mean by inviting us
to difpute upon religious Subjects,' fhall appear at
laft to imply no more than this, that we are to
difpute for, but not againft them. Now, in this
Practice, it is certain enough there can be no Room
to object any thing, either of Danger or Impiety.'
The Arguments propofed are to be conftantly all
on one Side, and they are ready to contend earneftly;
provided none fhall contradict them in ear-
neft. That this is indeed the utmoft they mean
to allow, is evident, when thefe very fame De
fenders of the Faith are every Day venting their
loud Complaints againft the Liberty of the
Prefs. In which prudent Concern and Precau
tion, they feem however to have departed much
from the Terms of their firft Principle, and to
teftify plainly their Concurrence with -me,- -that
Reafon

C 96 )
Reafon may chance to lead a Man wrong as well ai
right. And is not this Proteft, the conftant Bur
den of all their Reafonings, the Appeal they are
all fo ready to make at every Turn ro the fecular
Arm, all their loud Cries and popular Char
ges of affronting Eftablifhment, Innovation
'%*??"" and flying in the Face of the Laws, &c. What
tional, ' are all thefe; I fay, but fo many plain and preg-
they nant Intimations how unwilling they are to leave
would not fae wh0]e Determination of thefe Affairs to the
Qpp0uf4ge fingle , Force of argumentative Contentions ? They
ntnts. confider juftly that all Oppofition of Divine
Truths, upon any Pretence whatever,- is maligs
rant Herefy ; and, believe me, they knew what!
they did, they underftood the Nature of their
Religion well, and confulted her Interefts wifely,
who have conftantly committed to the Flames
the Peftilential Writings of Infidels, and their
Perfons too, whenever it has been in their Power,-
as a Sacrifice due to the common Safety of Souls,
and to prevent any dangerous Tendency from the
Communication of fuch Alarms. This, I fay, has
ever been the well judged Practice amongft the
greater and more prudential Part of the Cham
pions for Chriftianity, however , fome daring Spi-,
rits of them have ventured unadvifedly to de*
part from the falutary Caution, and taken upon
them, to the great Difhonour often of the Advo
cate, and Prejudice of the Caufe, to expofe
themfelves thus unneceffarily to all the rude At
tacks of ingenious Malice, to enter the Lifts un-
priviledgpd againft private Reafoners, and join
Iffue with them in their own Way. That fuch
Condefcenfions to Methods and Laws, fo foreign
to the Subject, muft ever prove fatal to Religion,
is evident enough, if what I have been all this
while advancing of its Nature and Evidence lias
indeed the leaft Foundation or Support. And
amidft

. n ,- , ¦( 97 )
amidft all the Rationale's extravagant and chi
merical Notions of I know not what ftrict Juftice
in the. Cafe, and an equal Indulgence due to the
Advocates on both Sides, it is not, furely, to.be
ferioUfly expected, even by his romantic felf, that
the well-grounded Zeal of an enlightened Preacher
ofthe Gofpel fhould really permit him to counte
nance thus equitably in his own Defiance^ all the
vain Pretentions of thefe induftrious Miniftersof
Darknefs in their Tum, and not rather laudably
oppofe to the utmoft all Eftablifhment of blafphe-
mous Lectures againft the Truth of Religion, and
the ereding of common Pulpits and Privileges for
Antichrift, avowedly to communicate his Poifon.
All which, if Religion were indeed a rational Infti-
tution, were, it muft be confeffed, no more than
reafonable Conceffions, and the only Method for
cultivating a proper Knowledge of her Pretentions
and Veracity.
In Oppofition to the yet remaining Deference
you, may poffibjy ftill think due to the united Te
fiimony and Sanction of fo many confiderable
Advocates, who are acknowledged to have pa
tronized your Opinion in the Point, give me
Leave, in my Turn, to produce too Abettors of
no ordinary Character and Authority, as you
muft allow, h in my Behalf. The Civil Magiftrate, Magi-
wherever the Gofpel has obtained, has ever nk.enfrate,sd
upon him to inculcate, by all the Means in his ^4* „pon
Power, the fame particular ' Belief, without leav-thew to
ing the leaft Part of that Task for the 'Parties?refer'ie-
concemed to execute for themfelves. A 'plain'**
and /fafficient -Indication of their Senfe of thefe
Matters, and that they were thoroughly fatif-
fied in themfelves, that Reafon was never de
igned to have any Share in the Office. And
that fach Perfuafion of theirs, and their cpnle-
ijuent Practices, were not without their ample
N Ground

( 98 J ¦
Ground, appears yet farther, from its being like-
wile the concurrent Senfe of our holy Church in
Council afferribled. We are taught, in our Li
turgy, to pray, that God would give our Magi-
ftrates Grace to maintain Truth ; which, furely, im
plies too a previous Grace already giveri to deterj
mine it. This Confcioufnefs Of their own infpi-
red Certainty, is the o'nly juftifiable Warrant that
cou'ld be in Nature for fuch a Proceeding. If
there were the leaft Poffibilily of there being mif-
takeh themfelves, they could never anfwer it in any
Light to God Pr Man, thus to difcourage pr re
ftrain their Fellows from Enquiries, fo effential to
their forming a Belief on any juft Foundation. If
God had made it the Duty of all Men ( and the
Magiftrate hirnfelf among the reft) to difcover
his Truths by the Ufe of their Reafon, nothing
could juftify the gfofs Impiety and Tyranny of
ail Interpofition to debar them of the freeft Ex-
ercife of their own Faculties in an Intereft that
fo highly concerned them, and aTruft, for whofe
faithful Difchar'ge they might well expect to be
Called to the ftricteft Account. The Under
ftanding, I fay, of a Magiftrate has, naturally
confidered, no Show of Pre-eminence to plead
, above my own, whereon to ground any fuch
Claim to my Difciplefhip ; if He drew his own
Tenets from no better a Foundation than that of
his own Reafon, he can have no Manner of Pre-
tenfion to expect any implicit Deference from me,
or, to hinder fne in my Turn of the fame Liberty.
.It is far otherwife, if we will fappofe, whenever
we fee him exerting fach an Authority, that our
Prayers have taken Effect in his Behalf, and that
he is ever prevented in his Choice, by the unerring
Instructions of the holy Spirit. From no other
Principle, doubtlefs, would thefe our nurfing Faj
then tsdte upon them to intereft themfelves fd
far

-

( 99 )
Far in the Sentiments of their Wards, as to tempt
£hem into the right Way by profeffed Bribes,
and encourage the Faithful,, by throwing the Con-
yeniencies of Life into the Scale. The making it
thus Mens temporal Intereft to be perfuaded of one
particular Way, would be an unfurmountable Ob-
ilacle in the Way of all fair Examination, and for
ever fatal to the Ufe of Reafon, if the were to
be concerned. There could not, taking Things
in that Light, be a more odious and flagrant
Inftance of abfurd Partiality, Cruelty and Op-
preffion, than the impofing of any prefcribed O-
pinions as the Terms of Society ; nor could Hu
manity juftify, in any Degree, all thofe whole-
fonj Severities with which they now fecond the
certain Awards pf Heaven, but that they muft ap
pear to be moft mpnftroufly wicked and unjuft, if
Reafon were our appointed Guide, fince it might
then frequently happen that Men might incur the
fevereft Punifhmehts by the moft innocent Con
duct, and for Actions abfolutely out pf their own
Power. To obferve yet farther, in a lower, though not
lefs important, Sphere amongft all the authorized
Inftrucfors of our Youth in' their Seminaries at
the very Fountain-head, whence all our religious
Notions are firft difpenfed and derived to us at
our ferting out in the World. Let, us recollect
one Moment with ourlelves, what were thofe
firft Steps there taken with our unpractifed
Minds, what the Methods regularly employed
in our academic Inftitutions to gain us over to
Chrift's Flock, and the Conduct of pur earlieft
Initiation into thefe holy Things. Was the Cafe
then of Religion and its Fundamentals ever in
earneft, fairly' and fully ftated to us, the beft
Champions on both Sides honeftly and ingenu-
pufly recommended to pur Perufal and Confide-.
.' ' ration^

( . TOO, )
'XtorVni- ration, a competent Time allowed us to bring in
wrfities our Determinations as the Evidence fhould ap.
expecius pear to us; and laftly, Protection and Good-will
j^y^] at leaft affured tous, in cafe we fhould, after all,
'happen to diffent ? no fuch Matter. On the
contrary, was not our Country's Faith always
fuppofed to be our own of Courfe ? Was not the
fimpleft Candidate for the firft Rudiments of Sci
ence conftantly called upon to fabfcribe inftantly
to the whole Compliment of eftablifhed Faith
without Hefitation, as the neceffary and indif-
penfable Preliminary to his Introduction there,
and prefamed to come fully qualified and ready
prepared for that Purpofe ? Or fhould any one,
at this Crifis, take upon him to exprels any Thing
like the leaft Symptom of Diffatisfaction in .thefe
Points, would it not, do you think, be very
readily and pertinently demanded of him, " What
" brought him thither?" and, once admitted,
How impious was all After-reafoning on thefe
Matters ever reprefented to us? What Care to
reftrain us, by fappreffing diligently all obnoxi
ous Replies, from all Opportunities of cohfulting
above one Side ofthe Queftion ? What a juft Ah«
horrence at all Times inculcated of' having any
Opinions properly our own, and unauthorized by
the Lift put into our Hands ? Laftly, What
bufy, active Induftry and Pains to ftigmatize, on
all Occafions, any that fnould prefame to Hep afide
in the leaft from the prefcribed Track, and avow
their Doubts, to prevent their Influence and In
fection? The Truth of this Particular you will,
I fear, have foon Caufe to know but too certain
ly from your own Experience, if yoq continue
ftill to perfift jnconfiderately in your propofed
Purfuit, and retaining your prefent Perfuafion of
thefe Matters ; which will lead you naturally to
think, in the firft Place, of calling in fome other
' Affifc

( lOI )
Affiftance than your own upon the Subject, and
of Courfe to propofe your Scruples freely, and
without Referve, to your Fellow Pupils for their
Judgment and, Opinion. The Confequence of
which Application will be as naturally the alarm
ing them with Horror and Indignation at your
innocent Queftions.^ The profeffing yourfelf at
all at a Lofs for Truth in your Circumftances,
will be adjudged immediately as an Act of the
blackeft ApoJiacy ; and, as fuch, they will take
hold,' on all Occafions, to reprefent you in the
molt odious Colours they can frame, as one mali-
cioufly devoted to Infidelity, actually inlifted in the
Devil's Service, and zealous for the Caufe, They
will diligently fhun your Converfation, and deteft
and vilify your Perfon, by all which Treatment
you will then, at your own fevere Coft, come to
underftand too late, that Queftioning in Religion is
denying ; and that all fafpending one's Judgment,
('though even in order to be better informed) is,
in this Cafe, a profeffed and criminal Oppofition.
Whereas, were Religion indeed a rational Infti-
tution, a Man might furely well difpute it with
out a Crime : The Difputant could by nd fair
Conclufion be reputed an Adverfary, and profe-
cuted with fuch fanguine and inveterate Marks of
Hoitility. A free and amicable Correfpondence
.might well be admitted, and the wildeft Oppo
nent received upon an equal Foot with his moft
orthodox and approved Antagonift. All other
.Methods of Proceeding befpeak plainly the Que
ftion already determined beyond all Poffibility of
: Controverfy. And fo indeed it is, by that uner
ring Principle which I have been pointing out.
Thus inftructed, we can confider it no longer as
Matter of Speculation and Argument, or. bear
with Patience under any fpecious. Pretences to
,Jiave that Saviour, which we feel, denied in Effect, by

( 102 )
by being called in Queftion. This prompts and
authorizes all our juft Zeal and Averfion on thefe.
Occafions, and flamps that a laudable Crufade'
and holy War againft Infidels, which would eifc be
no other than a wild and foolifh Sally of blind Bi
gotry, the furious and mad Spirit of faperftitious
Phrenzy and Perfecution.
KorPa- As highly partial and unjuft would be, even
rents in-_ \n Parents themfelves, upon your Suppofitiori,-
%£fdthf,t the officious Piety of what they call Education^
in it?* which would then be nothing elfe but the undue
Cultivation of the moft notorious and palpable'
Prejudices. The anticipating thus unfairly the
Strength of the fuppofed Evidence before it is
produced to fpeak for itfelf, the retaining them
thus powerfully of a Party before the Means" of
Trial are put into their Hands, and all this with
fach Artifices of Flattery and Terror, as muft
fecure them effectually- from all Poffibility of
ever recovering Truth, in Cafe they fhould
chance tp be miftaken, were a Practice, ib abfurd
in itfelf, and fo fatal in its Confequences, if Men
were to judge by their Reafon, as inftead of
claiming our Gratitude for the Office, could ad
mit of no Excufe or Glofs for the Injury. No
thing but their being infallibly affured themfelves
that they cannot be miftaken, and fo miflead
their Charge (and therefore no Conviciion found
ed on any human Authority) could be Warrant
fafficient for them to intrude thus peremptorily
their own contracted Opinions upon their Chit.
-dren, at a Time of Day when they can have no
poffible Share themfelves in the Determinations
they are adopting, and by which they muft be pre
vented from ever forming any future Regulations
of their own upon a better Foundation.
Hitherto what I have obferved to- you for the
Confirmation and Support of its Authority, bai
rw\

( i°3 )
hin only upon the general practice of my fuppo
fed Allies. I have traced their Opinions, as yet,
only by their Confequences ; and many, perhaps,
will be apt to think there can be fcarge a ftrong-
et Proof. I have one, however, ftill in Referve
for your Gohfideratieri, who is, I think, in Words
ds exprefs as can .well be defired, and fpeaks out
very fufficiently upon the Occafion ; one who
fpeaks the whole of my Sentiments fo ftrongly
and clearly for me, that I fhould be wanting to
the Caufe I am feeking to explain and recom-
fnend, if I were to give you them in any other
Terms than his own. The Oracle I mean is,
Bifhop Beveridge ; a Name, whofe very Men
tion muft ever carry its own Weight with ity
without any fuperfiuous Encorniums in its Be
half. A Name tbat always has, and always will
be heard with the greateft Reverence and Ragard,
as long as true Piety and Chriftianity have any re
maining Fodtfteps in the World.
The natural Man receiveth not the Things of 'the ±10,,,*^
Spirit of God, for they are Foolifhnefs unto him ; m-veridge'*
ther can he know tbem, becaufe they are fpiritually dif- "Thoughts
cerned. His Comment upon the foregoing Text*-??^"
runs thus ; " Neither can he know therh. There
" is an abfolute impoffibil'ity iri it, that any one,
" remaining in his natural Principles, without the
" Affiftance of God^ fhould apprehend, or con-
" ceiVe, the Excellency of fpiritual Objects. So
** that a Man may as foon read the Letter of the
" Scripture without Eyes, as underftand the My-
<( fteries ofthe Gofpel without Grace. "
If this fhould not feem direct enough to the
Point, what follows immediately after is, if pof
fible, a ftill ftronger Defcriptiori, and fuller Ac-
Count of the Matter.
" I believe it is a thoufand times eafier for a
^ Worm, a Fly, or any other defpicable Infect
" what-

( 104- )
(t whatsoever, to underfland the Affairs of Men,
" than for the beft of Men, in a natural State, to'
" apprehend the Things of God. No, there is none|
" can know God, nor, by Conlequence, any
*' thing that is really good, but only lo far as they
¦li are Partakers of the divine Nature. We muft,
" in fome Meafare,. be like to God, before we;
" can have any true Conceptions of him.- — — We
" muft have a fpiritual Sight, before we can behold
" fpiritual Things. Which every natural Man
*' being deftitute of, he can fee no Comelincfs %
" Chrift, why he fhould be defired, nor any Ami-
" ablenefs in Religion, why it fhould be embra-
" eed.  And hence it is, that I believe the firft
" Work which God puts forth upon the Soul, in
" order to its Converfion, is to raife up a fpiritual
" Light within it, to clear up its Apprehenfions about
" fpirtual Matters"
In another Place, fpeaking of the wonderful
Effects of the Apoftle's Preaching, he remarks thus \
" Queftionlefs, it was nothing elfe but the Spirit
" of the moft high God, that went along with
*' them and accompanied the Word they preach-
" ed ; otherwife, it never could have made fuch
" deep Impreffion upon the Hearts of them that
" heard it."
And laftly, to fum up the Force of all his
Doctrine, as it were in one Word, he gives us iri
his own Perfon the livelieft Inftance of that fu
pernatural and perfuafiive Impulfe he has been de-;
fcribing, whofe Operation he is reprefenting tq
our fujleft View, whilft it breaks forth from him,
like the dying Martyr, in a triumphant Rapture*
expreffive of a Flood of Light juft obtained, ana
an actual Difplay of the Beatifick Vifion. " And"
" now, fays he, methinks I begin to perceive
" this divine Spirit is come upon me too, and
** feems, by its powerful Influence, to be working up

t 105 j
" up my Heart into a thorough Perfuafion that
" it is Chrift, and Chrift alone, I am to caft:
" my Soul upon. — Away then with ypur pagan-
" i-fh Idolatries, your, {^c.-T-It is the Chriftian
" Religion alone that I am fefolved to live and
" die in. "
What , is all this, but the being evidently, in
i the Apoftle's own Senfe, enlightned, iafting of the
\heavenly Gift, and being made Partaker of the Holy,
{Ghoft?\ I may, poffibly, in the Hafte of my Zeal, have
jjaid myfelf open to you unguardedly enough,
.through the Courfe and Profecution of my Argu-
;ment, and very confiderably to my Difadvantage-
jin Point of ftrict Criticifm 5 but I will never ima-
igine, that after all the Concern I have been all
this while expreffing for your particular Intereft,
I muft be now to befpeak your Candour, to court
;your Courtefy, and apply for a formal Indemnity
for my Inadvertencies. Befides that it is enough
for my Defign, if the main Drift and Scope of the
Argument may be allowed to be upon the whole
maintained only with fome tolerable Degree of
Propriety, fo as to carry juft the Face of fome
thing plaufible and confiftent, and that may ap
pear to deferve your farther Attention. A criti
cal .Punctuality is by no Means my prefent Care,
becaufe I do not conceive fuch Exactnefs any Way
material to the Purpofe in Hand. I cannot ap
prehend that any fagacious Difcovery, that I have
poffibly miftaken, or mifapplied any of thofe par.
ticular Texts that happen'd to occur to my Me-
tnory upon this Occafion (though I am far from
being confcious of having left the leaft Room for
any fuch Charge J will at all avail to invalidate,
and much left to Pverturn, ' what I have been en^
rkavouring to eftablifh the Foundation pf which
flpes, as J am perfuaded, by no Means depend
Q ' for

( 106 )
for its Support upon the bare Strength of any
fingle Quotation whatever, or indeed of^anypre-
cife Number, but on the joint Tendency and Te-
nor of the whole.
I might, I think, even carry my Proteft yet
much farther upon this Head, and infift that,
though I had not really been able to have produ.
eed any of all thefe pofitive Authorities at all
in my Favour, that though I had not been fo
fuccefsful in extracting fo very plaufible an Ac
count of the Senfe of the holy Scriptures upon
the Subject, and tracing their exact Concurrence
with all that Clearnefs and Strength, whichjl
flatter my felf I have done ; I might have well
relied' however, and with all Security, upon my
previous Argument alone, that it was impoffiblein
the Nature of Things, without offering to go any far
ther. For that once well eftablifhed, it feemj;
almoft fuperfluous for one to go about to ftrength-.
en Impoffibilities fo agreed, or enforce them front
pofitive Matters of Fact, be their Authority ne-.
ver fo facred and unconteftable ; and when once
it has been already clearly proved, that fuch?
Thing cannot be, to continue proving on after*
wards that the fame Thing actually is not. If I
have acquitted my felf, therefore beyond aJI.Es-
ception, in making good my firft Ground, 1 might
have ventured fafely enough to abide by it,
without having the leaft Occafion to look.; out
for additional Confirmations from any foreign
Voucher whatever. What I principally propofed
from the Experiment was, the carrying on my
fuppofed Detetlicn of a falfe Principle, to a fatif
factory Conclufion in the Difcovery of a true. one;
to take the Occafion for the completing of
my Defign, by pointing out what was really , and
pofitively the authorized Principle of Faith, in
Oppofition to your miftaken one; (the Intelli gent

gence of which could proceed from Revelation
Pnly in the Point) and to fhow at the fame Time
that my AffertiPn Would ftand the Teft before
Judges of all Denominations, and confidered ie-
parately, either in the View of Reafon, or Scrip
ture -, as I am thoroughly perfaaded, that every
Step you proceed in the Contemplation either of
the one or the other, will help to fecond my Ob-
fervations, and improve in your Opinion thofe
few rude Hints which I have been able from a
genera] View to faggeft to you. Yoflr own ma
ture Reflection I readily truft aud acquiefee in, I
know the Honefty of your Nature will break out
in Spite of the ftrongeft Prejudices you may have
cPnceived ; and that you will difdain to be ftrain;
ing and racking your Invention in fo plain a Cafe,
for Matter of mere Cavil and Evafion, in Sup
port of any favourite Notions whatever, againft
your better' Judgment. If I thought you were
fo difpofed, I would recommend you freely to
Dr. Stillingfileei's Origines Sacra for your Affiftance ;
where, I affure you, you may be very plentifully
fapplied with all the abundant Gloffes for the Pur
pofe.; that the greateft Extent of human Learning
and Abilities can be fuppofed capable of furnifhing.
>*" Leaft of all can I apprehend, that you will re
quire, with Nicodemus, a critical and diftinct Ac-
Count of thefe Operations of the Spirit ; and put
me to the, reminding you of the Anfwer given
him upon the Occafion, intimating, that he might
very well • reconcile himfelf to the Belief of the
Foci, though his Curiofity fhould not be fully
gratified with fo particular an Explanation of the,
Manner ; that it was frequently the Cafe in the moft
natural Subjects, as appeared in that familiar In
ftance of the Wind, whole Effects are beyond all
Contradiction palpable and obvious to ¦ the Per
ception

C 108 )
ception of our Senfes, without our being able the
while to trace, in any adequate Degree, either tbe
Caufe or Courfe of its Operations.
Another profeffed Uluftration of this Subject,' and
which runs exactly in the fame Spirit and Style with
the former, we have thus delivered to us. So is the
Kingdom of God, as if a Man fhould put Seed in the
Earth, and fhould Jleep, and rife Night and Day, ad
the Seed fhould fpr ing, he knoweth not how. However
he may feel the Benefit of the Increafe in the HarvefH
of his Toils, the Progrefs and Method of its Advan
ces fhall ftill be fare to efcape his niceft Oblervation.
And for any Thing that may at the firft Men
tion poffibly found harfh or difficult to our Con-
ceptions, in the Suppofition of fuch an Expedient,
we need but to recollect that very lively Specimen
and Tafte of it, which we have already experi
enced from the very firft Manifeftation of the fame
Divine Spirit, in the Miracle of the cloven Tongues,
A moft expreffive and emphatical Type of that
analogous Miracle, which was then intended
to be purfaed through all fucceeding Generati
ons. Where every Member of every Nation heart,
at the fame Inftant the fame. Divine Leffon adap
ted exailly to his own particular Capacity, addrejl
to himfelf in Perfon, in his own proper Langu>
age, in the very Dialetl moft intelligible to him, and tht.
Terms moft fuitable and familiar to his Apprehenfion.
Once more, if we had indeed no aclual Inftance
of the Kind to familiarize the Confideration to us,
is there even in the Matter itfelf, upon Reflect^
on, any Thing more extraordinary or .wonderful
te Thought, that this fame Spirit fhould thus
miraculonfly fpeak to us for our Inftruction, than
that he fhould fpeak for us in the fame Manner^
in the Midft of popular Affemblies, for our Jufti-
fication? what mighty Difference is there, 1
fay,

( 109 )
fay, upon the Comparifon, but that he, who has
engaged thus ftrongly to undertake and fupport
upon Emergencies the Defence of his perfecuted
Servants, without fo much as a fiingle Thought
or Suggedion of their own, by Way of Forecqft,
who is to pronounce a regular Series of Argu
ments in their Caufe, and difcourfe extempore
through their Organs for their Vindication in a
Court of Juftice, may not as eafily be conceived
capable of dictating Sentiments in fecret to oUr
Underftandings, as of prompting our Lips with
Expreffions, of putting Belief into our Hearts, as
Words into our Mouths, and giving us what to
think, as what to fay!
But whether any Thing I can offer thus of my
own Suggeftions, may appear of Force to recon
cile it in any Meafure to your prefent Notions, I
have fhewn you already, from indifputable Au
thority, that fo in Fail it is-; and fome other
Scheme than your rational one in the Cafe, you
muft, I think, by this Time fee yourfelf obliged
to have Recourfe to; upon .the Suppofition, I
mean, that you muft, upon Reflection, admit the
Conclufivenefs of all thofe obvious Exceptions
which I have been railing againft the. Poffibility of
it, and which it will, I hope, upon a fhort Re
view, appear to be no fuch immodeft Prefump-
tion to fuppofe. If I have, for Inftance, fhewn Recapitu-
you that it is evident at firft Sight, from the Na- lation of
ture of the Thing, and every Confideration of its ^f/^'
known Properties and Effects, that Reafon can
never poffibly be thai Principle which is to make
all Men of one Mind. — That fuch Accomplifh-
ments as. require Time and Parts to attain, can
never be univerfally .neceffary, and what a reafon
able Mailer can expect at our Hands. — That a
proper Provifion of Faith, both as a Qualificati on,

( no ;
on, and for its Influeuce, is equally neceffary at every
Period of our Lives, and confequently, can nevet
admit of our going through a Courfe of Proofs, though
never fo obvious, to give it Credit and Authority
with us, but muft needs be in itfelf a plain and au
thentic Map, always at Hand, to confult every Step
we proceed. — That as our very Virtue depends entirely
upon fuch Belief , our Belief can never poffibly depend
upon our rational Conviclion, the Privilege only of a
few Students and Speculatifts. — That even with
regard to thefe moft competent Judges, it is im-
poffible to conceive any the leaft Connexion betwixt
the Notion of Duty, and affenting rationally to
any Propofition, however ftrongly fapported. —
That Arguments are properly but Motives and
Inducements fubmitted to our Underftandings for
their Influence, and that, of Courfe, it can be
little lefs than a Contradiction in Terms, to talk
of our being obliged to let them be conclujive,—-
That wherever there is a Complication of Cir-
cumftances to be determined upon, Confequences
to be regularly drawn, and a fammoning of Evi
dence in the Cafe ; wherever there are all thefe
Preliminaries to be firft gone through, the Iffue
can never, with , any Certainty, be foretold, an&
much lefs enjoin'd and prefcribed. — That there is
a vaft and very effential Difference to be taken
betwixt the being of a fafficient Force to fupport a
ftrong Appearance of moral Probability in the
Nature of Things, and the Judgment of Men
fpeculatively difpofed, and the being fufficiently
calculated to extort an Affent from every one that
hears it : Betwixt the Materials that may pro
bably, on due Confideration' had, lead a~ Locke or
Newton into the Perfuafion, and thofe that muft
have that uncontrollable Effect upon aU that
come within the Reach of their magnetic Impulfe, as

( ni )
as to compel a whole People at once into the Ac
knowledgment.-— And that therefore, however
plaufibly Chriftianity may be enforced as a Fail,
it can yet never be true, as a Gofpel, in Virtue
of any Arguments deduced from Reafoning.- —
That the giving all Men Leave to determine of
the Gofpel as the Matter fhall appear to their
Reafon, is, if it happen to appear otherwife than
true, a Liberty entirely deftruclive of the very
Notion of a true Faith, authorifing Infidelity in
Form, and fetting it upon the fame Footing, in
Point of Confcience, with the Profeffion of Chri
ftianity itfelf.
I can never, I fay, after all this expect any
fach Solutions from you in Return in Behalf of
your, reafoning Hypothefis, as I am fare you muft,
jn your own Heart, have the jufteft Contempt for
fach as Mens thinking by Deputy the beft they can,
when they are not qualified to think for them
felves ; or, what has fometimes been urged, the
ingenious Contrivance of abating a Degree of Evi
dence, to leave the more Room for the Merit of
Voluntiers, with the Duty of cultivating a pious
Propenfity to the Affirmative, the foliciting
the Affent of our own Minds, and endeavour
ing to help our Unbelief. To deftroy at once all
the Views for which all fuch extraordinary Com
ments could ever be coined, I have infifted long
ago, as a main Preclufion of all Notions of the
examining Kind, that— It it is evident Religion
knows no fuch Situation as that of a Moment's
Neutrality ; — that we have no Allowance to
ftand neuter in Religion, even fo much as whilft
the Queftion of its- Truth is in Debate ; which,
;n the Senfe of all good Ghriftians, ought never
to be made a Queftion.
And might not one now already from this
j(hort negative View of the Cafe, almoft venture to

(. »2 ;
to take upon one to pronounce boldly, upon the
Authority of one's own Reafon, that fach a
Scheme, as that of Unanimity upon this Subject,
can be by no other poffible Method effected,
than that I have been contending for, of a con
ftant and particular Revelation imparted feparately
and fuper natur ally to every Individual? And how
much .more abfolutely fatisfactory then muft it
be to a Chriftian Seeker, if upon our, fearching
into his own Scripture Account of the Matter,
there appears to be indeed this very Method
Which we might fo naturally expect, there ex
actly defcribed, and fet forth to us for the Pap
pofe ?
If all that I have hitherto been urging may
have had the wifh'd Effect to remove only the
contracted Incumbrance of this one fatal and
fundamental Prejudice,— -That it is by Reafon
ing tbat you are to come to the Knowledge of all
neceffary Truths ; my only remaining Part is to
offer up my moft ardent Prayers in your Behalf
at the Throne of Grace, not for Leifure for you
to confult, or Sagacity to apprehend all the a-
cute Leffons of a Hammond or Grotius upon the
Subject, but that God would be pleated himfelf
to illuminate and irradiate your Mind with- a per
fect and thorough Conviction of the Truth of
his holy Gofpel; that the fame holy Spirit that
firft dictated that divine Law, would powerfully
fet to his Seal, and atteft its Authority in your,
Heart, that he would be gracioufly vouchfafed
to renew once more his difregarded Notices,
and eftablifh in you an uncontrovertible Know
ledge of its ftrict Veracity, fuch a one as thati
With the enlighten'd Apoftle, you may at once
believe, and be fure that Jefus was the Chrift.
Such a full and home felt Perfuafion, as will ren
der faperfluous all your farther Care and purpofed- Laboufc.

•r »3 )
Labour in the Search, by fixing you in the happy
Jnftant a true, a zealous, and unalterable Difciple
of Chriftianity.
Indeed, the fitting down to examine into the
Truth of Religion at this Time of Day, cann6t
but appear to my Senfe a very ftrange Kind of Lan
guage from one in your Situation. From a Native
of California or the Cape, there might perhapk
be nothing fo extraordinary or unbecoming to hear
of fach a Propofal. But you difclaim, it leems, in
your Philofophical Sufficiency, all the partial Ad
vantages of Birth and Education (though many
would efteem themfelves not a little favour'd in
the Diftinction : ) But the Notion of Local Merit,
as you exprefs yourfelf, the being born to par~
ticular Privileges, and beholden to Accident, as
you call it, for true Opinions, are Circumftances
your rational Spirit can by no Means digeft,
which is as much as to fay, " that you are refolv-
" ed to reap no Benefit from the Covenant of
" Grace, except you are to have the prefcribing
" the Means yourfelf, and that you will be'con-
" tent to accept of Salvation only upon your own
" Terms, and in your own Way." For tell me,
you that are fo induftrioufly looking out for the
Proofs of Chriftianity, are you not then the while
a Chriftian ? Are you not at this Inflant a baptiz
ed and covenanted Chriftian ? And is not this be
ing indeed a Chriftian to all Intents and Purpofes
already, and the Way that God himfelf has pre-
fcribed us? To what Purpofe then all this mighty
Buftle and Parade for holding of this folemri
Trial upon the Occafion, and all for the Sake of
lejpeating only at the beft a Decifion you have
Jong fince given in the Caufe ? Curiojitate non
Opus eft poft Chriftum, nee inquifitione poft evan->
gelmmi • quum ¦ credimus- nihil- dejideramus Ultra ere*
* V P

( "-4 )
dere,, fays Tertullian. Or, to make Ufe of a flilj
greater Authority,  Make not thyfelf otherwife,,
why fhouldft thou deftroy thyfelf? Why, indeed,
ffiould "you affect, in Vanity of Heart, to be more
a,, Chriftian than any of your honeft Neighbours,
or be folicitous for a different Method in your Re-
jigon from that of other People ? For Heaven's
Sake, are there then, in your Opinion, two
Kinds of Chriftianity, one for the vulgar, and il
literate, and another adapted to Dilqiples of a
more refined Genius, and exalted Speculations!
Does- not plainly, as I obferved above, the In
fant's Belief anfwer as effectually all the Dempidf
of the Gofpel, as that of the firft Proficient and
higheft Graduate in Divinity ? And is it not acT
cepted (if not preferred) as at leaft an equal, Gain}
to all its Rewards with that of the beft of them j
And what would ypur proud Reafon more? Be
content then, in God's Name, to be e'en as good
q. Chriftian pnly as . your Sifter, whom you cannot
doubt to be equally entitled to all the Means of
Grace and Hopes pf Glory with the proudeft Phi-:
lofopber, who is even wi/r than the Aged, becaufe,
a meek and humble LJifciple of that true Wifdtm,
which cometh from above. No, if we do but, once:
heartily and truly believe, it is a very invidious,
as well as fupertluous Diftinftion to concern our
felves about, whether we know by the Teft of ou?
Underftandings upon what Grounds we believe^ or
not. Be fatisfied hepceforth that there is aKiitltif
Evidence of Power beyond what Reafon can ever
pretend to furnifh, fach as bring? with it that cor.
dial Peace and Affarance of Mind to which all G»
viclion by human Means is an utter Stranger, fudj
as you fee c^n enable your pious Mother with.
out any of the reputed Advantages of acadernilj
Inftitutipn to pronounce with fo much peremptc*

, ( n5 )
ry Juftice on all religious Caufes, and reprove,'
with fo good a Grace,* all the welr-gloffed Pierefies
of a letter'd Glarke,
To come ftill clofer, if poffible, to the Point,
and fpeak home, once for all, to this unaccount
able Project ; it is a Practice of common Pru
dence, generally obferved in our worldly Affairs,
to afk ourfelves beforehand, upon any Under
taking of Moment,— -—What Probability of Suc-
cels ? And what new Advantages in Profpect to
arife to us, when we have fucceeded ? Now, ac
cording to this Rule, it fhould, one would ima
gine, be Confideration fafficient to deter your en
gaging in your prefent Enterprize, that in the firft
Place this Reafon will, in all Probability, never
have the Effect propofed of confirfning our Faith ;
and, in the next Place, will be faperfluous if it
has ; and that you are at prefent as well without
it. For taking it, I fay, at the beft, and fup-
pofing that you fhould now fucceed to you Wifh
in this Attempt, what is the mighty Advantage
after all, that you can farther propofe, from a
Conviction of this Kind in all its imagin'd Pro
priety ? Nay, what if even this very Caution of
mine againft the Attempt fhould chance at laft to
find you ( as I can eafily enough conceive it may )
already actually convinced by Reafon in Form of
the Truth of all thefe Matters as they ftand re
lated to us ? Will fuch an Event enfured be ariy
Matter of Triumph in general againft my Argu
ment, which has all along fuppofed fuch a Confe
quence to fuch an Enquirer no impoffible Thing ?
Or what Conclufion can you take upon you to
draw from the Succefs you have perfonally found
;in the Experiment ? Can you affure yourfelf, from
'any Authority That has help'd you to, that you
^Ihall even for your own Part certainly continue what.

(116}
What you are. for an Hour together ? and, cohfe*
quently. can it give you any Foundation or Right
to be recommending farther a like Trial elfe
where ? Or, if you could indeed anfwer never fo
affuredly for your own Conftancy, may not a-
gain,- as I have fo. often reminded you, the fame
perfpicuous Proofs, , that have determined you to
pronounce fo confidently for their Conclufivenefs,
poffibly, take a very different Turn in different
Hands, affect your next Neighbour in. a quite con.
trary Light, and leave him as confirmed an Infi^
del ? The Effect you have happily experienced in
your own Perfon, does not, however, make you
by any Means the Standard, or give you any
Right to expect that other People ffiould concur
in making juft the fame Judgements of Things
which you have done ; the Reafon of your Dif-,
ciple will,' in all Probability prove a very diffe
rent Scale from that you have been working with,
and though you, by the particular Advantages of
your Turn and Education, may bq indeed able to
do that Juftice to the Merits of the Caufe, as to
trace in them all this cogent Force to the Amount
of a Demonftration; of what Significance and
Weight can you' expect all this to prove towards
the affecting of Minds altogether unverfed in the
Practice of drawing Inferences and Deductions^
, and which muft therefore neceffanly continue all
the while in the Dark, even amidft all thofe gla
ring Lights which your difcerning Sight can dif
cover round them ? It is not therefore by. any
Means my being convinced myfelf, no, nor even
the moft abfolute Perfpicuity I may difcover in the
Argument, that can authorife my promifing
the like Succefs to another in his fpeculative EfJ
fays ; and therefore Men fhould be very cautious
of being inftrumental in the tempting any into
fcef'

< H7 ) .
fceptieal Controverfies, unlefs they could be cer
tain enough- before-hand of their Judges, as well
as their Caufe, to enable them to promife pe
remptorily for a fatisfactory Iffue,., there being, as*
I have before remarked, no. Provifion made, ei
ther by God or Man, for fincere Infidelity as a
poffible Confequence; of a fair Enquiry into the
Merits, of Religion. He that believeth not', fhall be
damned. No Exceptions or Allowances whatfoe-
ver for any profeffmg to have ufed all poffible
Means of Information, and remaining ftill diffa-
tified, - - __ , .
But- once more, what if after all ( Which may
likewffe poffibly happen to be the Cafe ) the pow
erful Evidence on the Side of Religion fhould in-^
deed fail in its Influence, and not appear fatisfac
tory enough to you to enforce the Profeffion of
it ? What if, on the other Hand, the fpecious
Gloffes of Infidelity fhould poffibly happen to ob
tain at laft even in your own Opinion upon this
Scrutiny ; if the plaufible Pretexts of ingenious
Sophiftry fhould prove fo far of Force in the
Queftion, as unhappily to mifguide your Reafon
by their artful Reprefentation of. the Caufe of Er
ror ? Why " the Sincerity of ypur Intention, you
" fay, will acquit" you, becaufe you ' have done
" ,your belt: Your juft Judge, you fay, can
" never expect of you to. do more than is in your
" Power, or to be convinced fooner. Which is
" as much as to fay, that you will either do what
•' God commands you, or take Care to come
" prepared to juftify your Refufal to his Satisfac-
" tion i" never obferving the while that all your
Reafonings of this Stamp are grounded upon the
monftrous Suppofition that God would enjoin a
Thing that you fhould be able to give folid and
fubftantial Reafons for not complying with. Stran- geft

( u8 •)
geft Delufion fure ! to go directly oppofite to your
Maker's exprefs Command, and yet flatter your
felf with the Hopes of being provided with a faf
ficient Excufe for your Difobedience. Behold to
obey is better than Sacrifice, and to comply than to
be making Apologies.
I fhall now releafe you from all farther Atten
dance, with the moft cordial Admonition qf one
who has indeed a Father's Concern and Intereft in
all your Succefs. Its Meaning at leaft I think you
muft allow, whatever Exceptions you may poffibly
find to its Authority. My Son, truft thou to the
Lord with all thy Heart, and lean not unto thins own
Underftanding.

FINIS.

A N
A D DR E S S
DEIS T^S,
Being a P r o o f of
REVEAL'D RELIGION
FROM
Miracles and Prophecies.
In Anfwer to a Book, entitled,
The Refurretlion of Jesus confider' d
by a Moral Philofopher.
Te believe in God, believe alfo in me. John xiv. r.
—   ¦¦ ¦ ¦ i ¦ j
5; John jackson,
Reblor of Roffington in the County of York,
and Mafter of Wigfton'j Hofpitalin Leicefter.
LONDON,
Printed for J. and P. Knapton at the Crown
in Ludgate-Street.
MDCCXLIV.
f Price Two Shillings. ]

,A N
ADDRESS T O
D EI STS, Sec.
Gt N T L E M EN,
.' i
IH AV E long and often wonder*d that the
Chriftian Religion, which is pure uncorrupt-
ed Deifm, and. the moft perfect natural Re
ligion, fhould be rejected or contemn'd, or
Ihould'riot be readily embrae'd by alFwho are
Worfhippers of God and Lovers of Truth, and
acknowledge the Obligation of natural Virtue
and Morality.
The Reafons Why; this Religion was a ftum-
bling Block to the Jews, and accpunted Foolifhnefs
by the Greeks or Gentiles, can have no Weight
with you, or be with any Colour urg'dragainft
it by you, who are neither Jews nor Idolaters ;
becaufe thefe Reafons had no other Foundation
than the private or national Prejudices which
each had entertain'd in Favour of their own Re
ligion.
B The

( * )
The Jews who liv'd in the Time of Chrift and
his Apoftles, and were Enemies and Perfecutors
both of him and his Followers, were the only
Perfons to have difdoVer*d the Fraud and Im-
pofture of the Refurrection of Jefus, on which
the Chriftian -Religion is principally Iftundeck if
there rtSaJly h&d been any in it: As a|fo o$me
many Miracles which the Apoftles of Caryl
wrought in his Name, and in the moft publie
Manner, as a TeftinWny 6f the Truth of it, if
any Cheat or Delufion had been put upon them:
But they never -went "about to^corrfnte the Evi
dence of the Miracles eiiber ©f Chrift or his
Apoftles : On the contrary, the Evidence of
Chrift's Miracles was fo clear and fo publickly
attefted, that the Priefts and Council of. the
Jews were forc'd to confefs'tfre Truth of 'them.
Then gather'4 the chief Priefts and -the Pharifees -a
Council, and faid, What do. we'? for this Man daif)
many Miracles, John xi. 47. Though yet thilr
national Prejudices againft his perfon and Do
ctrine were fogreat, that, inftead of acknowledg
ing him to -be 'the, Mejjias, whom they expected
to appear as,a temporal -prince, they todk counfel
together to put 'him to Death, ver. 5 3 . _ They had
the fame Confcipufnefs, and Conviction of the
Truth of the, Miracles which the Apoftles
Wrought , in Teftimony of '.Chrift's Refurrection
frorn the Dead, Alls iii. ver.. 6  16. ch. iv.
10, 14, 15, 16, 6V. And for this Reafon they
never went about to, difprove either the 'Evi
dence of their Miracles or their Teftimony of
Chrift's Refurrection ; but only '/brbad the A-
poftles preaching in the "Name of Jefus. Tho*"
ftill their national Prejudices in the Expectation of

( 3 )
of a temporal Meffias whp was to have univer
fal Dominion, founded pn a Mifunderftanding
of their own Prophets, hinder'd the general Re
ception pf the Apoftles Doctrine, that Jefus,
whofe Refurrection they preach'd, was the true
Meffias. This was the great Obftacle and Humbling
Block to, the Jews, againft their believing Jefus
to be the Chrift. But as it can be none to Deifts
who haye none of their Prejudices •, fo. on the
other hand it may let them fee that the greateft
Enemies of the Chriftian Faith, who had alfo
the beft Opportunities of knowing and examin
ing the Evidence of it, and the Truth of the
Facts pn which it was founded;, were not able to
fay any thing againft it ; nay were forc'd by the
publick Atteftation pf their own People to con-
fefs the Truth of thofe Miracles which the A-
poftfes wrought in Confirmation of it. Nor did
they ever after charge the Apoftles with Fraud
or Falfhood in the Accounts which they have left
in their Writings. This is Matter of great Im
portance in behalf of the Chriftian Religion,
which the Deifts, I hope, as Men of Senfe and
Lovers of Truth, will well confider, and fqffer
it to have its proper Weight and Influence upon
them. As to the Gentiles, thpy had lefs to urge
againft the Truth pf Chriftianity. Their Ido
latry had no Foundation in Nature or Reafon :
it was all a grofs and diabolical Superftition, at
tended with abominable Impieties and Immora
lities ; but having been long receiv'd anid efta-
bjifhed by humane Laws, it was thought incon-
fiftent witji the political Intereft pf Kingdom? to
B 2 . encourage

( 4 )
encourage a Religion which was immediately de-
ftructive of the whole Syftem of Paganifm.
The Philofophers had nothing to fay againft
the Doctrine of the Apoftles, but only that it
was a new and ftrange Dcclrine. They pretend
ed that their preaching Jefus and the RefurreiJidn
from the dead, was fetting up a new and unheard
of Superftition, a fetting forth of ftrange Gcds}
Acls xvii. 18.-
Thefe were the Reafonings of minute Philofo
phers. The Epicureans indeed who oppos'd the
Apoftle's Doctrine, were, by Principle, A-
theifts -, but the Stoics, who join'd with them in
the Oppofition, could have no reafonable Ob
jection againft a Refurrection and general Re
novation ofthe World, becaufe it was a part of
their own Doctrine. They therefore only thought
the Refurrection of one who was lately dead,
was a ftrange Doctrine, becaufe they never knew
any fuch Thing to have happen'd ; and they
thought it not worth while to attend to the Evi
dence of it. And the Philofophers in general
were Encouragers of the vulgar Superftition
(although they themfelves knew better) from
political Views and Interefts •, to procure the
Favour of Princes, and to keep up a Character a-
mongft the People : They lov'd the Praife of
Men more than the Truth of God ; and fo com-
ply'd with the receiv'd Superftition which they
contemn'd in their Hearts.
Thefe Things, and the Pride of being Tea
chers of a fublimer Divinity, as they pretended,
than that of the Gofpel, and which was found
ed only in vain metaphyfical Speculations, which
neither themfelves nor the People underftood, hinder'd

( 5 )
hinder'd the Converfion of the Philofophers, and
thofe who were accounted the wife Men of the
World ; not many of whom, as St. Paul fays,
receiv'd the plain unadorn'd Truth of the Gof
pel. Some of them alfo wrote againft it, and
and not being able to gainfay the Miracles of
Chrift and his Apoftles, recorded in the Scrip
tures, they afcrib'd the doing of them to the
Power of Magic : And pretended alfo, that the
like Miracles had been wrought in Confirmation
of Idolatry, or the Worfhip of their Demons
and Heroes ; but could never prove it in any In
ftance they had to produce.
The Want of Philofophy, and all human
Learning in the Apoftles of Chrift , fecur'd
them from any reafonable Sufpicion of ufing
magical Arts. So that whatever extraordinary
Effects were or could be wrought by natural
Magic, or the Power of natural Caufes, they
were utterly incapable of them : And whatever
were or could be done by the invifible Power of
demoniacal Agents, could not be fuppofed to be
wrought to promote a Religion which deftroy'd
the Worfhip of Demons and falfe Gods.
The Philofopher Celfus, all whofe Writings
are>almoft tranfcrib'd in Origen, never objects to
the Gofpels as not being genuine, but all along
admits them to be fo : Nor does he deny that
Jefus and his Apoftles wrought the Miracles re-
Corded in them, which mention their curing thofe
who were blind, lame, and Demoniacs, &c. but
he fufpects that thefe Miracles were the Effects
of magical Arts •, and fuppofes that the Refur
rection of Chrift was feign'd, and his Appear
ance a mere Spectre. He alfo alledges that the
fame

(6 )
lame Kind, of Miracles were wrought by th?
Demons whom the Heathens worfhipp'd ;. a,od
and that their Oracles foretold future Events;,
as well and as clearly as the J.ewifh Prophets,
All the reft of hia Arguments, are nothing but
mere Calumny, founded, either on mifreprefent-
ing the Words and Senfe of the Scriptures, and
often in a very trifling manner ; or elfe on Ob-
je<ftions ra.ia'd from the impious and abfurd Te
nets of fome Heretics who call'd themfelves
Chrift'vws., but were never own'd for fuch by the
Cbrifiian Church.
The Works of the learned Porphyry againft
Ckrifliamty are. loft ;, fo we cannot tell what
were his Objections. Only we know from Je
rome that he was fo affected with the Compter
tion of Daniel's Prophecies, that he had nothing
to alledge, but that the Author could not be
Daniel, but fome otlier under his Name, who
wrote in the Reign of Antiochus Epiphanes;
for which he did not pretend tp offer any Evi
dence. The Objections of the learned. Emperor Julian
are alfo preferv'd in Cyril, Archbifhop of Alex
andria, who wrote an Anfwer to them. And
we find, that he acknowledg'd the Authors, of
the New Teftament to be the Apoftles and Evan,-
gelifts to whom they are afcribed. He did not
deny the Miracles, but attributed tbem, as Cel-
fus had done, to magical Arts. ; and pretended
the Prophecies to be ambiguous, and that they
might be apply'd to other Terfons as well as to
Jefiii. And both his and Celfus's, Objections to
fooae erf" th« Doctrines of Scripture, are chiefly
TO»de to the Law of Mofet, and to particular Opinions

( 7 )
Opinions afcrib'd both to Jews and Chrifiians,
whicli are not taught either in the Law or the
Gofpel: And all the reft is mere Fiction, Mifi-
reprefentation, and Calumny, as you will find
if you examine what either the Emperor or Cel-
fus- wrote againft feveal'-d Religion.
Thefe were all the Arguments which the
learned Greeks or Gentiles had to oner againft
Chriftianity, as Eufebius tells us, who bad read alt
their Works. They were no more able than
the Jews were, to tfifprove the Facts on which
the Revelation -of the Gofpel was founded.
The Hiftory of them is fix'd on unquestionable
Evidence ; and you, Gentlefnen, come much too
late, to call that in Queftion which is fupport&Gl
by the concurrent Teftimony ofthe moft credir
bje Writers in all Ages, from the Beginning oT
it to this Day1; wtiich was never deny'd by the
greateft, moft aple, and molt zealous Oppb-
fers of it ; and hasrbeen own'd '.by many of them.;
and Which carries along wifh it not only all the
external Evidence that any Hiftory ever -had or
can havej but has alfo (as will appear) an in
ternal Evidence peculiar to Revelation., and
which is really infallible.
Wh^t is it then that a"Deift can now ~pka!&
againft the Doctrine of the Gofpel ? Is it, -rliat
ithey think Chriftianity to be too ftrictinits Mo
rals* \ That be far from you, who are, 1 hope,
what you profefs yourfelves to be, Lovers of
Virtue and of rpure and undefiled Religion.
Nothing then remains &s ra Ground -or Plea
for your not drily denying the Truth of Cbri-
fiianity,'hxft alfo (I fpeak of fome only, an&
hope there are few fuch araorfgft you) "for con-
4 temning,

( 8)
temning, intuiting, and reviliDg the Chriftian
Faith and Doctrines; nothing, I fay, remains
as a Plea for this Conduct, but the Pretence of
many unreafonable and fuperftitious Doclririesj
abfurd and contradictory Opinions, and wicked
and irreligious Impieties and Practices being fa-
ther'd upon it •, and infilled on and imposed as
Chriftian Truths by thofe who call themfelves
Chriftians, tho' they are unworthy of that holy
Name; this is intimated in the 9th and 10th
Pages of your Moral Philofopher.
But furely, Gentlemen, it is below the Cha
racter of a Philofopher, or a Man of Senfe, to
make ufe of an Argument which holds equally
againft natural' as againft reveal' d Religion.
Monftrous Abfurdities, and the moft irreligiou$
Doctrines and Forms ot Worfhip, have been
long introduc'd into, and do ftill prevail in the
Chriftian Church. But then you muft know,
that as great Abfurdities and irreligious Super-
ftitions have been introduc'd into Deifm, and
prevaii'd mahy Ages, and ftill prevail againft
the Light of natural Religion ; only I wifh I
could not fay that many who are called Chrifti
ans have been, ahd are as great or greater Pcrfe-
cutors of Chriftians than ever Pagans were.
: But as the Corruptions of natural Religion, or
D-ifm, ate ' no Objection againft the Truth of
it, which is demonftrable by Reafon, or are
any Argument for a Deift to he a Sceptic or A-
theift : So, for the fame Reafon, the Corruptions
of Chriftianity or reveal'd Religion, are and
ought to be no real Objection againft the Truth
of it, which is fupported by the moft credible
human Teftimony, as well as by divine Authori ty i

:( 9 }
ity ; or are any Argument why a Deift who is
not far from the Kingdom of Heaven, fhould noi:
go a little farther, and; by becoming a Chriftian^
enter into it.
The Scriptures only are the Rule of all re-
veal'd Truth i arid whbfoever, Man or Body
bf Men, depart from this Rule; or fet up any
human Doctrines as a Rule of Faith and Wor
fhip to Chriftians ; or by any pretended Autho
rity impofe them as fuch ori the Confciences of
others •, all fuch have erred from the true Faith
of Cbrifiidns; and are even worfe than Infi-
idels. Therefore I would hope, that neither the Bi
gotry of fome milled, and mifleading others by
falfe and abfurd Notions concerning the Chri
ftian Faith and Worfhip, as if they were Do
ctrines of Chrift or his Apoftles; nor the more
wicked perfecuting Principles of others, and
and their Attempts to impofe the worft Super-
ftitions, and greateft Impieties, for neceffary Ar
ticles of reveal'd Religion ; that is, that neither
the Errors of Papifts or Proteftants will have
any Effect on thofe who are! Lovers of Truth
and true Religion 5 or hinder their Reception
of the pure and uncorrupt Principles and Do
ctrines of the Gofpel, which difclaims all human
Authority, and all Traditions arid Comma. <d-
ments of Men in Matters of Faith and Worfhip.
Hear what Chrift, the only Teacher of Chri
ftians, faid to his Difciples; Be not ye call'd Rab
bi, for one is your Mafter, even Chrift, and all ye
are Brethren. And call no Man your Father (or
infallible Guide of. your Faith, which is to be
a Pope or Papa) upon Earth, for one is your Fa-
Q- ther

( io )
ther who is in Heaven. Matt, xxiii. 8, 9. And
the great Apoftle St. Paul difclaims all Domi
nion over the Faith of Chriftians ; Not, fays he,
that we have Dominion over your Faith. 2 Cor. 1.
24. The Gofpel teaches the moft rational No
tions of the Unity of God and his Worfhip alone
free from all Superftition, which is the peculiar
Excellency of revealed Religion, and what no
other Syftem * of Religion that we know of
ever taught befides. It teaches alfo every moral
and focial Virtue in the greateft Perfection y
and inculcates all thofe Principles and relative
Duties which are the Ornaments of human Na-
* The ancient Religion of China was indeed free frofti grofs
Idolatry, or the Worfhip of Images and dead Men ; but it
was not altogether free from Superftition in the Worlhip of
Demons or celeftial Beings, who were fuppos'd, by God's-
Appointment, to be Prefidents and Rulers in the feveral Parts
of the Creation, in the Stars and Planets, and in the King
doms of the Earth. Thefe fpiritual Beings were commanded
to be worfhipp'd with Prayers and with Sacrifices of an infe
rior Kind, which were offer'd to them by the Mandarins mi
chief Officers of State : But the moft folemn Sacrifices, in
which none but the Emperor officiated as High-Prieft, were
offer'd to the fupreme Spirit of Heaven or God alone. Con
fucius reform'd this Religion when it was begun to be corrupt
ed ; and was indeed a more excellent Man than Pythagoras,
or even Socrates ; and by far the beft moral Philofopher that
ever appear'd in the Gentile World ; but he comply'd with
the Superftition of his Country, and worfhipp'd the inferior
celeftiai Spirits with Sacrifices and Prayers according to the
eftablifhed Order of the Book Xi-Kim, which contained the
Rites and Ceremonies of the Religion of China. BatMofes
and Daniel, tho' they deliver'd in their Writings the Notion
ofthe Adminiftratioh of Angels over Kingdoms, as Minifters
of divine Providence, they did not pay any religious Wor
fhip ;o them. The.Moral Philofopher may take this in An
fwer to what he alledges, pag. 78. 3 ture,

(II )
ture, and promote univerfal Holinefs and Righ-
teoufnefs of Life, and the higheft and moft di
vine Benevolence to all our Fellow Creatures ;
and agreeably to the Angelic Hymn with which
the Birth of Chrift was proclaimed, bring Glory
to the moft high God, Peace on Earth, and Good-
wiU to Men; Luke ii, 14. And as the Chri
ftian Religion teaches artd commands, by a Di
vine Authority, every Virtue which natural Rea
fon approves and obligeth us to practife •, and
alfo forbids and condemns every Vice and vicious
Defire, or Appetite, that is contrary to the
Dictates of a rational Nature, and to the Will
of God known by the Light of Reafon and Con
fcience ; fo it excites us to the Performance of
every Duty by the moft rational Motives alfo,
and fuch as the wifeft and beft Philofophers al
ways propos'd ; that is, to act in Imitation of
the Divine Example, and with a View to ap
prove ourfelves to the moft perfect Being, and
to promote that final Happinefs of our Natures
which confifts in the Communication of *his
Love and Favour to us, and in our eternal Pro-
grefs in the Knowledge of his Perfections, and
Improvements in thofe Virtues by which we are
formed more and more into the Likenefs of the
Divine Nature.
Thefe are the Principles and Doctrines of the
Chriftian Religion ; and I beg all Deifts feriouf-
ly to confider and reflect whether fuch a Reli
gion is or ought to be the Subject of Contempt
or Ridicule, or to be treated with Scorn and 111
Manners. On the contrary, is it not worthy of
all Acceptation ? Worthy of the Heart and Af
fections of every rational human Creature to be
C 2 entirely

( 111
entirely devoted to the Service of it, and to the
Obedience of all its Laws ? Nay, is it not wor
thy that we fhould facrifice every Intereft and
even Life itfelf to the Truth of it ?, And there
fore, is not every Oppofition to it a fighting a-
gainft God ?
I proceed to a particular Examination of what
your Moral Philofopher hath advanced againft
the Refurre(5tion of Jefu,s Chrift.
All he has to fay is comprized in two Points :
Firft, That the Scripture-Evidence of the Re
furrection is not fufficient Evidence, and that
it ought to be fet afide as being inconfiftent and
contradictory. Secondly, That it being an Evi
dence brought to confirm, the greateft Miracle,
that ever was, it is felf-convictive and deftroys
its own Pofiibility of being true; becaufe, he
thinks, every Miracle is an Impoflibility in the
Nature of Things, is deftructive of the Rules,
of all Truth and Certainty, and inconfiftent with
the Attributes of God.
But tho' your Author treats firft of the Scrip
ture Evidence of Chrift's Refurrection, yet it
will be proper for me to confider firft what he
fays of the Abfurdity and Impoflibility. of Mi
racles in general, which I take to Be the princi
pal Ground of his Infidelity. And indeed if
Miracles are in themfelves Impoffibilities, then '
he has prov'd, a priori, or from the Nature of the
thing, the Falfhood of the Refurrection of Jefus;
and no Evidence, a\ pofter'iori, or from Fact can
prove it to be true, and it would be in vain to
talk about it.
. I fhall therefore propofe what your Philofo
pher fays of Miracles in the middle and latter Part

(n)
Part of, his Book, and reply to it; and then I
will fhew the Confiftency of the Scripture- Evi
dence of the Fact of Chrift's Refurrection, with a
Confutation of what he urges againft it.
P. 52. your Philofopher fays; " He that
" can alter Nature can deftroy all Rules of Truth
«' and Certainty." He adds : " Well ! but has
*' the Gentleman [meaning the Author of The
" Trial of the Wilneffes"] by all that he has faid,
*« prov'd the Reality of Chrift's Body after his
" Refurrection? No, that's impoffible, unlefs
<« he could fhew that there was nothing mira-
" culous in the greateft Miracle that ever was ;
" and every real Miracle is an Abfurdity to
*< common Senfe and Underftanding, and con-
<-f trary to the Attributes of God."
In p. 75. he has thefe Words: " Senfe and
«' Reafon inform us, that it is impoffible for a
'.' dead Body to live again : To believe it poffi-
" ble contradicts this Maxim, that Nature is
" fteady and uniform in its Operations. For one
" Miracle or Action done contrary to her
" Laws, contradicts all her fteady uniform
<e Springs and Movements, and all that Man-
" kind call Truth and Reafon."
\np. 77. he fays : " Natural Powers are fit
" to anfwer all theEnds of Virtue and Religion ;
" therefore fupernatural Powers are needlefs."
Again, p. 78. " A Power (fays this Author)
" to work Miracles, is a Power fuperior to the
" univerfal Laws by which the Syftems of
" Things are govern'd. This is the Power of
" Imagination only, and contrary to the Attri-
" butes of God, efpecially to his Unchangeable-
¦f nefs.  As the Will of God cannot change,
" neither

( H)
" neither can the Execution of his Power which
" is directed by his Will." Again, in p. 79.
" If (fays he) God has in Creation difplay'd
" his Attributes, then all Things, at leaft col-
«' lectively taken, and rightly underftood, wit-
«' nets the Perfection of his Nature. And iffo,
«c God need not, or cannot exhibit any fuperior
«' Power and Proof ,of his Perfection than what
*' is commonly known and conftantly manifeft.
" — If Miracles were ever neceffary they muft
e' be always neceffary."
P. 82. he fays: *' The Wonders which are
" faid to be wrought in one Age can never con-
" vince a fober Thinker in the next, unlets
*' there be fuch Iafting Monuments of them,
*' and they are fo clearly and fully evidenc'd,
" that they appear to be true againft all Con-
" traduction."
This is the Subftance of what your Philofo
pher lays about Miracles, to fhew the Imppfii-
bility and natural Unfitnefs of them. To which
I anfwer; that this Author, I fuppofe, is not
aware, that what he hath faid againft Miracles
is not pleading the Caufe of Deifm but of Atheifm.
He is the firft I know of, either amongft An
cients or Moderns, who profefled to believe a
God and Providence, that ever faid it was incon-
fiftent with the divine Attributes, and the Rules
of Truth and Certainty, that God fhould work
Miracles. Thinking and religious Men in all
Ages have acknowledg'd the Interpofition of di
vine Power, in producing extraordinary Effects
which we call Miracles, to be a Part of univer
fal Providence : And to alter the Courfe of Na
ture is very confiftent with all the Rules both df
natural

( IJ )
natural and moral Truth and Certainly. To fap
pofe that God cannot alter the fettled Laws of
Nature which he himfelf form'd, is a direct and
evident Contradiction; for if he cannot alter
them, it muft be becaufe they are effentially ne
ceffary and independent of him ; and then he
did not form them, or is the Author of Nature,
which is Atheifm. But if he is the Author of Na
ture, he can alter and vary the Rules of it when
and as he pleafes. This a demonftrative Proof
of the Poffibility of Miracles a priori: And the
Hiftory of Mankind proves the Reality of them
a pofter'iori. If it was inconfiftent with the At
tributes of God to alter Nature, this World
could not have been at all, or muft have
been eternal. But the Conftitution of it fhews,
as well as the Hiftory of the Age and Progrefe
of our Earth, that a great Change has been
made in the Matter or Subftance of it, from its
original State •, and that it has been but of a few
Years Continuance in its prefent State, in Com-
parifon of Eternity : Or if our Author will ven
ture to aflert the Eternity of it, yet ftill it muft
have undergone many, I might fay,' infinite
Alterations by the Interpofition of divine Power
to preferve it. This is demonftrable from the
known Laws by. Which both our Earth and the
whole Syftem is govern'd.
Therefore as a Variety of divine Operations
in the Works of Creation and Providence, de-
monftrates the Wifdom and Power of a fupreme
Agent, who is the original Author of them ; fo
the Perfection of his Works, confifts not in ma
king them unchangeable, but in rendering them
capable of being chang'd by his Power and Will
from

( x6)
from one Degree of Perfection to another, and
to fuit the different Ends and States for which
he defign'd them in different Ages andDura-
tions. Nor is this at all inconfiftent with the
Unchangeablenefs of God; for thefe Altera*,
tions in his Creation for various Ends are the
Effects of God's original and immutable Coun-
fel and Will. Surely this Author never con-
fider'd, or well con'fider'd, that the providential
Government of God is that of a moral Gover
nor over free Agents: To deny this is direct
and evident Atheifm, which I would not fufpect
him of.
Therefore, as it is a moral Government1 over
free Agents, in whofe Power confequently it
muft be put to difturb the natural Syftem, and
bring many Evils into it, by Superftition, Ty
ranny, Oppreffion, Perfecution, Fraud, fcfr.
it cannot but be fit for God as a moral Gover
nor to interpofe his Power to remedy moral
Confufion brought into his World by whatever
Agents, and to remove, as he fhall fee proper^
the natural Evils caus'd thereby ; delivering or
fupporting the injur'd, virtuous, and perfec
ted Innocence by other than natural means or the
ordinary Courfe of Things ; and correcting or
punifhing the impious and unjuft by immediate
or extraordinary Effects of his Power. If the
whole Hiftory of Mankind did not declare this
Truth, and that it was the Sentiment and Be
lief of Men in all Ages, it might be prov'd far
ther from the Wifdom and Goodnefs of God:
And this Author's Reafoning, by neceffary Con
fequence, infers' either an abfolute Fatality and
neceffarily fix'd Courfe of things, without a
Deity

( 17 )
Deity operating and prefiding in the World ; or
that there are no fuch Agents as Man in it ; but
that the whole of our Being is mere pajfive Mat
ter and Motion ; either of which Notions ends in
Atheifm. Your Moral Philofopher perhaps little thinks
that what he calls the Courfe of Nature is really
the immediate inceffant Operation or Agency of
God himfelf in the whole Creation ; and that
what is called Miracle is as much a Part of God's
providential Government, and as much a Part
of the Courfe of Nature as any other. All the
Difference is, that the ordinary Powers of Na
ture are vifible and manifeft in their Effects tq
all, at all Times and in all Places ; but extraor
dinary or miraculous Powers are exerted only to
manifeft at fome particular Times God's Will to
Men by Effects fuperior to human Agency or
common natural Caufes ; in order to punifh or
correct thofe Errors and Impieties of Men which
have difordered and perverted the Courfe of
Nature and the moral Laws of Truth and Re
ligion. God interpofes by his miraculous Power in
the whole Creation as he fees fit, and a Refur
rection of dead; human Bodies is no more con
trary to the Nature of Things than the Refur
rection of dead Corn : And as there is no Unfit
nefs in God's Appointment of a general Refur
rection any more than in his appointing a future
State different from the prefent, both which will
be the Work of his Power; fo if he raifes a
dead human Body before the ordinary appointed
Time, for an Evidence of his Providence to
thofe who may deny it, or think, like the Epicu-
D reanst

( 18 }
ream, that he is not concerned in the Affairs
of the World, or for a Teftimony to true Reli
gion againft an eftablifhed and prevailing Super
ftition and Idolatry : Is not fuch a Miracle fit
for the wife and good God to work for the Good
of Men his Creatures ? Let any Deis! fhew, if
he can, how this is contrary to the Laws of
Nature or Reafon of Things, or inconfiftent
with the divine Attributes.
It is not clear what this Author means by
faying, in Page 77. " that natural Powers are
" fit to anfwer all the Ends pf Virtue and Re-
" ligion, therefore fupernatural Powers are
" needlefs,"
.The End of Virtue and Religion is to Hlu-
ftrate the Perfections of God in the Happineff
of all his rational Creatures. The natural Pow
ers with which we are endued are, no Doubt,
fiirfifient to anfwer this End, becaufe God made
¦Man upright. But as Men in all Ages have
abufed and corrupted their natural Powers and
made them fubfervient to Vice and Irreligion,
inftead of promoting Virtue • and Religion,"
thefe fiave. brought fuch a Difeafe and Diforder.
into the moral State of Man, that his natural
Powers are too weak and ineffectual to reftore
him to his original Uprightne'fs, or to anfwer
the Ends of Virtue and Religion,: And the Aid
pf a fupernatural Power and the Doctrine and.
Precepts of a divine Teacher were neceffary to,
be applied to heal thofe fpiritual Maladies and
Infirmities,, to reform the Corruptions of Na
ture, and to reftore the Knowledge and right
Worfhip of God and the Practice of true Reli
gion,

( 19 )
gion, on which the Happinefs of Mankind- de
pends. Therefore God was pleated, when natural
Powers failed, to afford fupernatural Means to
abolifh Vice and Error, and to eftablifh Truth
and Righteoufnefs in the Earth. This was the
Defign and End of all Revelations ; and whe
ther fupernatural Powers difplayed in fuch a
Revelation were needlefs ok unwPrthy of God, it
becomes all Deifts feripufly, to confider. It is
certain that the wife Deift Socrates, in Plato's Al
cibiades, thought that Philofophy alone was not
fufficient to teach with Certainty how we ought
to worfhip God, and behave ourfelves. towards
Man ; and that it was reafonable to expect fome
better and more divine Teacher in Matters of
Religion. And the learned Porphyry* confeffes
that he was not able to find in any Sect of Phii
lofophy an univerfal Method of Redemption or
Deliverance of the Soul from Sin and Mifery.
But again ; Miracles no more alter Nature or
deftroy the Laws ot it, than the Power and Wilt
of human Agents do. The Cure of a .blind or
a lame ox a deaf ox a dumb Man, or one any
other way difeafed, by a Word, ox Touch only,
is no more contrary to the Courfe of Nature or
inconfiftent with it, than the Cure of thefe Dif-
eafes by human Means is. Nature is only lefto-
red in one cafe by extraordinary divine, Power,
* Yfxax,P,t)rphyrius> in'primo, juxta finem, de regreflu. anirax
Iibro, nondum receptam unam quandam fe&arn qus uniyerfa-
lemviarfl animas contihedt liberandae ; vefa'phHdfophta veriffi-
ma aliqua  aut alia qualibet via, nondumque in fiiam
riotitiam eandem viam hiftoriali cognitione perlatam. Apud
Auguft. Gfyk Dei, lib,_ i o. c 32.
D 2 as

( 20 )
as in the other by human Art. The rectifying
or altering the natural Courfe of Things by an
immediate divine or fupernatural Power, is only
a different Exercife of the fame divine Power,
by which the Courfe of Nature is fuftained and
preferved, and cannot therefore bring any Con-
fufion into or deftroy the Laws of Nature ; be
caufe thefe Laws are not a neceffary Chain of
Caufes and Effects, or have a neceffary Depen
dance on each other, but are only fuch as God
in his governing Providence hath appointed ;
and as they are all dependent on his Will, his
Interpofition cannot be contrary to them, or
makes any Alteration in the general Syftem
(though he might alter the Laws of the whole
Univerfe, if he faw it good to do fo) but only
in particular Parts, in which he interpofeth by
his Power, the general Courfe of Things ftill
going on in a regular and uniform Manner.
This is the Cafe of Miracles ; and all this Au
thor's reafoning againft the Poflibility of them
is not only weak and unphilofophical, but in
confequence fuppofes a Fatality and neceflary
Connexion of Caufes and Effects independent of
God's Power and Will to be the Laws of Na
ture, which is manifeft Atheifm : How comes
he elfe to fay, "That he that can alter Nature, can
deftroy all Rules of Truth and Certainty; for
Truth does not depend upon the Will of God ?
And again ; That Senfe and Reafon inform us,
that it is impoffible for a dead Body to live again,
(p-7$.) Reafpn on the contrary will eafily, if
attended to, inform us, that the railing, of a
dead Body is as poffible, as the giving Life to
one in the natural Way is; and there is > no
more

( 21 )
more a fuperior Power exerted in one Cafe than
in the other ; it is the fame divine Power which
gave Life and preferves it, that reftores the dead
Body to Life again : Senfe. alfo is equally a Judge
of the Evidence of both. '
Our Senfes, are every whit as good a Judge
that a Body which was dead is reftored to Lite,
as they can be that a Body which v/as alive is
dead, or that any Body or material Being exifts
at all. This is perfedtly agreeable to all Philo
fophy, to Reafon and common Senfe : And it
is amazing to me that any Man of Thought
fhould argue otherwife. Pray confider it ; is
not every one as good a Judge and as fure of not
being deceived in his Senfes, if he faw a lame
Man walk or heard a dumb Man fpeak, by an
other's fpeaking a Word, as if he few him walk
or beard him fpeak by any other or human
Means ? -Miracles then no way interfere with
the Evidence of Senfe, and are as much and as
properly Objects of our Senfes, as any natural
Effects are. If I fee a blind Man, whom I know
to be perfectly blind or to have been always fo,
reftored to Sight by a Word or a Touch, which I
know are not natural Means of giving or reftp-
ring Sight, I am as good a Judge of the Cure
(though it be miraculous) as lamof the Dif-
eafe ; and there is not in Nature any Reafon to
difbelieve the one more than the other, and fo
in all other miraculous Effects.
And there is Nothing can expofe a Man's Un
derftanding more, than to argue either that Mi
racles deftroy the Laws of Nature and the Foun
dation of all Truth and Certainty, and are alfo
incofififtent with the divine Attributes; or to fay
that

( 2* )
that Miracles, which are the proper Object of
the Senfes, may not be as well attetted, and with
as much Certainty as any other Facts whatfo-
«ver. If humane Art can alter the Courfe of Na7
ture without deftroying the Laws of Truth or
Nature, furely we muft admit that the Power
of God can do fo in a Way fuperior to human
Agency, And to fay, as your Philofopher
does, that it is unfit and abfurd, and contrary
ro the divine Attributes for God to interpofe
in the Courfe of Nature by an Exertion of
Power different from that by which the ordinary
Courfe of it is carried on ; the vifible Effects of
which Interpofition, whether his own, or of
any other Agent by his Permiffion or Com
mand, are what we call Miracles ; this is as
much as to fay that it is unfit that God fhould
govern his own World any other Way than
according to this Author's weak Reafoning:
And that all our natural Notions of his extra
ordinary Providence, and the manifold Evi
dences of it in all Ages of the World have no
Foundation. Whatever this Author may think, a great
Part of Natural Religion as well as of Revealejf
depends on the Belief not only of the Poffibility,
but of the Reality of extraordinary Interpol
fitions of God's providential Power in the Af
fairs of Mankind, though we do not always
call thefe Interpofitions Miracles, but only
when the Effects of them are manifeft to our
Senfes. This Belief is the Foundation both of
public and private Prayerr whether for public
or private Benefits, which is an Addrefs to God.

( 13 )
as Governor of all Things, that he will difpofe
either the MinUs of Men, or the natural Courfe
of Things, fo as he fhall fee beft for us, whe
ther in removing or preventing Evils which are
coming upon us, or which we already fiifler i
or in giving a Bleffipg to our Works and En
deavours for promoting true Religion, or main
taining Juftice and Right in the World ; or
alfo for procuring the private Good of our
felves and Families. He who does not believe
that God can or does interpOfe in the Affairs of
Men, in the public Concerns of Stares and King
doms, and in more private and particular Cafes
alfo, muft confequently think all Prayer insig
nificant and ufelefs, and all religious Worfhip
to be in vain-: Which is to be not a Deift, but
an Atheift.
Miracles then are capable of the fame Evi
dence, and have equal Right to be believed
upon human credible Teftimony, with any
other hiftorical Facts. And it is very unreason
able in Deifts, when preffed with the Evidence
of Miracles in Proof of revealed Religion, and
when they have no other Way to evade the
Force of tbem, to alledge, as this Author does,
that they muft be always neceffary to convince eve
ry Man of God's Will which they were at firft:
wrought to make known. If Miracles (fays he,
p. 62.) are once neceffary to prove a FaM, they
are always, neceffary ; becaufe the fame Proof, ®r
an adequate one, is always neceffary to prove the
fame Operation. The Diftance of Time and Place
inakes them not lefs, but rather more neceffary.
And this fort of Reafoning is alfo purfued by
this Author in Page 80. And in true Reafon ing

( *4)
ing it is Cofin German to this: That to believe
any hiftorical Fact clone before our Time, efpe-
cially if an uncommon one, as the Appearance
of a Comet, it is neceflary the fame Faft or
Appearance, or an adequate one, that is the
fame, or another Comet, fhould come again,
and be perfonally feen by every Man. For he
fays, If Miracles were once given, there is the
fame Reafon they fhould ever be given. This is
fpecial Reafoning, which at once puts an End to
the Credibility of all Hiftory. For, to repeat it
again* a Miracle is a Fact which may with as
much Certainty be tranfmitted by Hiftory as
any other Facts can. But fome, who will not
advance fuch grofs Paradox and Abfurdity,
yet argue that the Diftance of Time fince the
Miracles are related to have been done has di-
minifhed the Evidence of them, and that it
grows lefs and lefs in every Age. This is more
plaufible than the former Pretence ; but there is
a greater Miftake in this Reafoning alfo than
you Deifts are aware of.
If the Evidence for Miracles had been oral
and unwritten Tradition only, there would be
Weight in what you alledge. But as the ori
ginal .Evidence pf thofe who were Witneffesto
the doing of them is recorded in Writing, and
the Genuinenefs of thefe Records never was or
could be difputed by thofe, who lived at the
Times when they were written, and who were
alfo Enemies to the Religion contained in them*
and hath been acknowledged and admitted by
thofe learned . Adverfaries of Chriftianity who
wrote againft them : So thefe Records alfo have
been attefted to by other Writings in every Age, from

( SJ )
From their firft Publication to the prefent Time;
And therefore the Hiftory of the Facts con
tained in them being thus undoubted and indis
putable, the Evidence of the Miracles is now
the fame it ever was fincfe the Age ofthe Apo
ftles : And they are the fame Proof now of the
Revelation of God*s Will that they ever were.
Will any Deift deny that the Writings afcribed
to Horace, Virgil, or Ccefar, are not now as "
much to be believed to be their Works, as they
were an hundred or a thoufand Years ago? or
that Magna Charta, which was wrote feveral
Centuries ago, is not now as good an Evidence
of the Things contained in it, as it ever was ?
But the Hiftory of the Old and New Tefta-
nient has far fuperior Evidence to thefe Wri
tings, or to any other Hiftory whatfoever j
Evidence even equal to that which was given
at the firft Publication of them ; that is, the
Evidence of the Prophecies contained in them,
which have been compleated feveral Ages after
they were delivered ; arid the Completion of
many of them has be6n evident in every Age to
this Day. Miracles and Prophecies are the two
main Pillars on which Revelation Is built.
Thefe fhew the immediate fuperhattiral Power?
and Wifdom of God to be concerned in it.
They are Evidences of the Truth of it which,
are infallible, and cannot fail to have Effect,
if Men will allow the Evidence both of Senfe
and Underftanding to be fufficient: And all
other Proofs or Evidence are in Comparifon
nothing. You Deifts may ftill alledge, as others have
done, and Pagan Philofophers did, that Mira-
E cles,

( 26 )
cles, fo far as we are able to judge of Things,
which are beyond the Extent of natural Caufes
and human Power, have been wrought in Sup
port of Idolatry. Your Moral Philofopher has
omitted to urge this -Plea againft Chriftianity,
though it is ftronger than any thing he hath faid
againft it. ,But the Anfwer tp it is, that fup-
pofing many extraordinary Effects have been
produced amongft Heathens and Idolaters which,
faere not the Effects of natural Caufes ; a Deift
cannot argue from hence againft Revelation;
ftecaufe if Miracles "have been, or may be
wrought in Support of a falfe Religion or Super
ftition ; if either by mere natural Magic, or by
a demoniacal Power the Courfe of Nature can
Be altered, furely you muft allow that Miracles
may be wrought by a truly divine Power in
Support, and as an Evidence of true Religionj
and that the Doctrine attefted by them is from
God. So that we may allow that marvellous
and fupernatural Effects have been wrought by
Magicians" and idolatrous Priefts in former
Ages, and alfo in later Ages by Popifh pre
tended Saints, and the idolatrous -Priefts of the
Church of Rome : Yet thefe .Miracles (fo call'd)
cannot be an Evidence or Proof of the Truth
of an idolatrous Religion ; or prove Super
ftition, Impiety, Contradictions and Abfurdi
ties to be either agreeable to Reafon, or to the
Will of God. And the Reafon is very plains
Becaufe Miracles being intended to remove
Prejudices, and to excite Attention to what is
taught by the Doers of them'; if the Doctrines
delivered as the Will of God to be made known
by the Miracles, are contrary, to Reafon an$
3 natural

i*r\
natural Religion, which is the prior "and origi
nal Will of God, they deftroy all poffible Evi
dence which they could receive' from any Mira
cles: For the Evidence of Miracles is not equal
to that of Reafon and natural Truth. So the
pretended Miracles which have been, or ever
fhall be wrought in Favour of Idolatry, Popery,
or any: falfe Religion, are to be efteemed either
the Effects of natural Magic, or the Works of
evil invifible Agents, or Demons, defigned to
promote Irreligion and Impiety. But no Ob
jection can lie againft Miracles wrought as an
Evidence and Proof of a divine Revelation,
which is defigned to abolifh and deftroy Ido
latry, and the Worfhip of falfe Gods, with all
their impious and wicked Superfti-tions ; a-nd to
promote and. eftablifh the Worfhip of the one
true God, and all Virtue, and Holinefs of
Life. ' •¦ - --i • :-:'^:-:-n"
The Teft therefore of Miracles is, whether
they are done to promote Virtue and true Re
ligion, or to promote Vice, and 'the Worfhip
of falfe Gods. And notwithftanding, whatever
Wonders or Miracles (which are attefted in the
moft credible Pagan ; Hiftories, and even in the
Writings both of the Old and New Teftament)
have been wrought amongft ancient or modern
Idolaters, we never find that any dsemoniacal
or magical Power could by a mere Word of
Touch reftore to Sight ox Soundnefi one who had
been boxn blind, or was a Cripple from his Birth,
or more efpecially could reftore to Life one who
had been four Days dead: Or if any Miracle is
ftill greater, could enable a Perfon without any
Learning to talk and underftand all Languages,
E 2 and

( 28 )
and alfo to foretel future Events, riot fuch as
were foon to be accomplifhed, but fuch as were
fulfilled feveral Ages after the Prediction.
As Miracles have been ridiculed and contem
ned by your Moral Philofopher, fo Prophecies,
which are the greateft of Miracles, have -been
no better treated by a late unhappy Moral Phi-.
lofopher, whofe Apoftafy I cannot but lament.
- However as he is gone to his Place, I fhall
fay no more of him and his Works, but only,
that had he well and fincerely examined what he
wrote againft with fo much bitter Zeal, he
would (for he wanted not Abilities) have feen
his Errors and been forry for them.
I fhall therefore, Gentlemen, beg leave be
fore I proceed farther with your prefent Moral
Philofopher, to lay before you, as briefly as I
can, the Evidence of fome Scripture-Prophecies,
the Completion of which I have examined with.
much Care and Labour, and fhall leave them
to your Confideration.
The firft which I fhall mention requires no
Study to fee the wonderful Completion of it.
It is in Ifaiah, ch. xliv. 28. God there by his
Prophet, faith of Cyrus, the Founder of the
Perfian Monarchy : He is. my Shepherd and fhall
perform all my Pleafure, even faying to Jerufalem,
Thou fh.alt be built ; and to the Temple, Thy
Foundation fhall be laid. Here is a plain Pre
diction that Cyrus fhould by divine Providence
be made a Shepherd to deliver the Jews out of
their Captivity ; and that under his Govern
ment the Foundation of the Temple fhould be laid.
Now the Time when Ifaiah lived and wrote is
as well knPWu as that of any Greek or Romah
Hiftorian ;

( *9 )
Hiftorian ; and the Kings of Judah in whofe
Reigns he prophefied are fet down by himfelf
in the firft Chapter and firft Verfe.
¦ Jofephus * fays that Ifaiah delivered the fore
going Prophecy 140 Years before the Temple
was deftroyed. He is miftaken a few Years ;
for it was delivered about the Time of Heze-
kiah's Recovery from a dangerous Illnefs, with
which Event it feems connected; and this was
710 Years before the vulgar Chriftian Mxa or
^Birth of Chrift, and 124 Years before the De-
ftruction of the Temple. It was alfo an 150
Years or more before Cyrus began to reign in
Perfia, and 175 Years before his Conqueft of
Babylon "f ; foon after which Conqueft, in the
firft Year of his Reign, he fent out a Decree,
whereby he gave Leave and Encouragement to
the Jews to return to Jerufalem, and to build
their Temple, as it is related 2 Ch ron. xxxvi.
22, 23. Ez. i. 2, 3. vi. 3, &c. 1 Efd. ii.
3> 4» 5- .
Could Ifaiah without the Gift of Prophecy
forefee that Jerufalem, which was then in a flou-
rifhing State and ruled by a Jewifh King, fhould
with the Temple be demolifhed and deftroyed,
as it was 124 Years after ? Could he alfo be able
to exprefs the very Name of the King, who
fhould reftore the captive Jews to their Country
and give them Leave and Affiftance to build
their Temple, and who was not born till above
a Century afterwards, and neithef born to a
; * Antiq. Jud. lib.xi. c. I.
•j- I differ three Years from the common Chronology,
which is plainly wrong j and fuppofe Cyrus to have conquer
ed Babylon 535 Years before the Chriftian ^Era.
Throne,

(3°)
Throne* nor of .the fame Nation with thai
People who carried them into Captivity, and
who could not have fulfilled this Prophecy with
out having firft conquered the great Babylonian
Empire, the Conqueft of which is alfo foretold
by the fame Prophet at the fame Time in Chap,
xiv, xlvi and xlvii.
j , , What an aftonifhing Scene of Events are here
foretold, all which came to pafs after many
Years with the greateft ExactnefsJ And a Man,
I think, muft be ftrongly inclined to Scepticifm,
who can fo much as doubt of the Truth of this
famous Prophecy.
There are many other Prophecies in the Wri
tings of Ifaiah which belong both to the Jewifh
and the Chriftian Church, which for Brevity's
fake I fhall omit ; as alfo thofe of Jeremiah and
Ezechiel; and I fhall offer to you next a Pro
phecy or two from .Daniel.
"¦ In the. firft. Year of * Darius, the Mede. who
took the Kingdom of Babylon upon the De.a\\
of Belfhazzarf Which was according to Ptolemy's
Canon §55 Years before the vulgar Account of
the Birth of Chrift, Daniel had. revealed to him
the Prophecy of, the feventy Weeks or 490 Years
commencing at a certain Time fixed in the Pro
phecy, and ending at the preaching of the
Gofpel by Jefus Chrift. I fuppofe no Deift
will deny that the Weeks are Weeks of Years,
a Day ftanding for a Year, as is explained by ¦~i
'* This Darius the Mede was no other than AJlyages,
whom Cyrus conquered and fucceeded in the Median Empire,^
and whofe Viceroy TXfBabylon was Nabonadius the laft Baby
lonian King. This is eafy to be proved, but this is not a.
proper Place. Ezechiel,

(•'3i)
Ezechiel, a cotemporary Writer, in Ch. iv. 4,
ij, 6. and Mofes alfo mentions fuch Weeks of
Years which he tails Sabbaths of Tears. And
thou fhait number feven Sabbaths of Tears unto
ihee,- feven Times fevefi Tears, and the Space of
the feven Sabbaths of Tears fhall be Unto thee forty
and nine Tears. Levit. xxv. 8. And the moft
learned Jewifh Commentators have always fo
interpreted the feventy Wbeks of Daniel.
This preaching of the Gofpel to which the
feventy Weeks reach is called in Ch. ix. 24.
fivnifhing Tranfgreffions and making an End of
Sins; which the next Words explain to be, by
making Reconciliation for Iniquity, and bringing
in eveflafting Righteoufnefs : The Prophet adds,
and to feal the Vifion and Prophecy [by the Com
pletion of them] or as Others read; to feal Vifion
and the Prophet, meaning, to confirm the/ Pro
phet in his Office ; which in the following
Words is, to anoint the moft holy, i.e. the holy
One or tnoft holy Prophet ; and who this anointed
holy Prophet Was to be, is fhdwh in the riext
Verfe, where he is' called Meffiah the Prince,
i. e. the aftointed FYmce. And this Meffiah or
Chrift is tf 26. foretold to be cut off, or put to
Death, after tha End of the' feventy Weeks or
four hundred and ninety - Years. The entire
reading of Daniel is : Seventy Weeks are deter
mined upon thy People and "upon thy holy City, to
finijh Tranfgreffion and to make an End of Sins,
and to fh&ke Reconciliation fir Iniquity arid to bring
in everlafting Righteoufnefs, . and to feal- up Vifion
and Prophecy, and to anoint the moft holy. Know
therefore, and underftand^ that from the going
forth of the Commandment to reftore and to build1
- - Jerufalem

( J* )
Jerufalem unto Meffiah the; Prince, fhall be feven
Weeks, and threefcore and two Weeks : The Street
fhall be built again, and the Wall even in troublous
Times, and after threefcore and two Weeks
fhall Meffiah be cut off: c. ix. 24, 25, 26. I
obferved above that the moft holy or- holy one,
who in^ 24. is the Perfon who was to make Re
conciliation for Iniquity and to bring in everlafting
Righteoufnefs, is in tf 25. called Meffiah' the
Prince. This is plain ; and therefore as feventy
Weeks were determined to the anointing the moft
holy, the fame Number of Weeks muft neceffa-
rily be determined unto Meffiah the Prince.
Whence it appears that there is an Error in the
prefent Hebrew Reading of the twenty-fifth
Verfe ; where it is feven Weeks and threefcore
and two Weeks, inftead of the old Reading of
the vulgate Greek of the Septuagint, which had
feven Weeks and an half, and threefcore and two
Weeks and an half, which make up the entire
preceding. Number of feventy Weeks, to which
they refer, and which are here divided into two
Parts. This Reading of the old vulgate Greek
which has been long fince loft, is preferved in
* TertuUian's Latin Copy which was taken from
it. And as Tertullian reads feven Weeks and an
half, and fixty-two Weeks and an half, both in
the Text of Daniel and in his Comment upon
it, we may depend on its being the Reading of
* Lib- adv. Judaos, c. viii. 1 1 . This alfo appears to have
been the Rea.ding of Africanus ; who, fays, that the Number
of feventy Weeks, or 490 Years^ was to commence from
the Decree to build Jerufalem, in the twentieth Year of
Artaxerxes King of Ptrjla. apud Eufeb. Dem Etiang. lib- 8^
p. 389. , the

( 13 )
fiie Septuagint Greek Copy which was taken from
the Hebrew ; and it is preferable to the more
modern Hebrew Reading and Theodotio's Greek
which follows it, and is alfo confirmed by the
Context. It follows f 26. that a Prince that fhould
come [or a future Prince'] fhould deftroy the City
and the Sancluary ( or Temple ). It is added
tf 27. that Meffiah, or Chrift, fhould Confirm
the Covenant with many for (or in) one Week ;
and in how much of that Week this fhould
be, is expreffed in the next Words, and in the
middle, [or half pari] of a Week, he fhall caufe
the Sacrifice and Oblation to ceafe., And the
Time from whence thefe feventy Weeks or
490 Years commenced, is faid to be tf 25.
from the going forth of the Commandment [or
royal Decree] to reftore and to build (the Walls)
of Jerufalem,
Here are feveral important Facts predicted
in a very precife and particular manner, which
yet were not all to be completed till above
fix hundred Year's after the Prediction.
The Jews were now, when Daniel had thefe
Prophecies delivered to him, in Captivity, and
had been fo fifty-two Years ; and fevenfeen
Years after, Cyrus having conquered Babylon
publifhed a Decree for their Reftoration to
their own Country, hereby fulfilling the Pro
phecy of Jeremy, who had foretold to the Jews
that they fhould be Captives and fubject to the
Babylonians feventy Years and no more ; after
which that Kingdom was to be deftroyed, and
they were to be delivered, as it accordingly
came to pafs. The Decree of Cyrus went no
F farther

f 34)
farther than, to give them leave to build the
Teinple, ,2 Chron. xxxvi. 23. Ez. i. 1  4.
This Decree was renewed by Darius, Son of
Hyftafpes, and by Virtue of it the Temple was
finilhed, Ezr. vi. In the next Reign, Ezra
(ch. vii.) went with a Commiffion from Arta
fhafta, called Artaxerxes, King of Perfia, to
fettle and order the Worfhip of the Temple,
and carried large Offerings of Silver and Gold
for the Service of it, and many Families accom
panied him. This was in the feventh Year of
Artafhafta, but no Commiffion was yet granted
fo build theWalls of Jerufalem. But afterwards,
ih the twentieth Year of the fame King Arta
fhafta,' Nehemiah obtained a Decree for building
the'Walls of Jerufalem, ch. ii. Now this King,
who' is called * Artafhafta both in the Hebrew
and Greek, is rendered by the vulgate Latin or
jferome, Artaxerxes, and was fo underftood by
¦f Africanus : And by this wrong rendering of
the Word, or, miftaking the King denoted by
it, the modern learned Writers have been de
ceived, and fo not able to interpret the Prophecy
rightly. Fox Artafhafta or Arthahfhaftha was
undoubtedly the King who "fucceeded Darius,
Son of Hyftafpes'-, and he was not the Artaxerxes
commonly fo called, but was Xerxes the Father
* The Greek is 'AfiacaM, and the Hebrew is either Ai-
Ya'cfhfta, or, more agreeable to the Greek, Arthafaftha'-. But
¦ thefe literal Variations are no way material ; and the true
Spelling of the Hebrew may be Arthahfhaftha.
f Africanus might be led into the Miftake from the firft
Book of Efdras, wherein the King, called Artafhafta in
Ezra, is called Artaxerxes, as Cambyfes is alfo fo called,
c. ii. *. 16. The Greek Interpreter thought Artaxerxes the
right rendering of Artafhafta. of

('35 )
of r Artaxerxes, and Son of Darius. Artaxerxes
Longimanus is never called Artafhafta, but al
ways Ahfuerus or Achfuerus in the Hebrew, and
Artaxerxes in the Greek all through the Book
of Efther. But Cambyfes is called' Artafhafta in
£zr. iv. 7. and Artaxerxes in the firft Book
of Efdras, who always renders Artafhafta by yfr-
taxerxes. The fixth Verfe of the fourth Chapter
of Ezra, where Ahfuerus is mentioned, is an In
terpolation, as appears by the Omiffion of k
in the Book of Efdras, and alfo in *Jofephus.
That Xerxes was the King who granted the
Commiffion to Nehemiah to build the Walls of
Jerufalem, we are affured from -f- Jofephus ;
though he is miftaken in faying it was in the
twenty-fifth Year of his Reign ; for it was un
doubtedly in his twentieth. A great deal might
be faid to prove that Xerxes was the King who
fent Nehemiah with the Commiffion to build
Jerufalem; but as I confult Brevity here, I fhall
only obferve that Artaxerxes could not be the
King who granted the Decree to Ezra in Favour
of the Jews in the feventh Year of his Reign,
nor confequently the King who granted the fe
cond Decree to Nehemiah in the twentieth Year
of his Reign 1 for no one doubts but it was the
fame King who granted both. Artaxerxes mar
ried Efther in the feventh Year of his Reign,
c. ii. 16. And at that Time the Jews were
fo appreherifive of his Coolnefs, if not Averfion
to them, that Efther, though moft highly be-
* Antiq. Jud. lib. xi. c. 2. edit. Havtrcamp.
f Antiq. Jtid. lib. xi. c. 5.
F 2 loved

( 36)
loved and honoured by the King, durft not
difcover that the was a Jewefs, as -Mordecai had
giyen her Charge, f. 20. This makes it very
improbable, that whilft the Jews were thus
afraid of his Difpleafure, he fhould be fo much
their Friend as to have granted feveral Months
before this in the Beginning of that very Year
of his Reign a Decree to Ezra to take as many
as had a Mind to go with him to Jerufalem,
and to fetrje and order the Polity of the Jews
both there and in Judrna, Syria, and Phoenicia,
according to the Law of Mofes, with a Power
ofLifeandDeajth, Ezr. vii. 25, 26. 1 Efdr. viii,
jq. Nay, and that he who had granted this
fuppofed Decree to Ezra fhould foon after grant
another tp Hainan to deftroy the whole Jewifh
Natiorj. This alone is fufficient to- convince
any one thgt Artaxerxes, who married Efther,
could not be the King who granted the Com-
miffions to Ezra and Nehemiah : Nor can the
feventy Weeks of Daniel be deduced from the
twentieth Year of his Reign. Xerxes therefore.
Was the King, from the twentieth Year of whofe
Reign the preceding Prophecy commenced.
Now, according tp the Parian Marbles, which
are rnoft ancient and valuable Monuments of
..Chronology, and probably are 264 Years older
than the vulgar Chriftian Mxa, Xerxes began to
reign 482 Years before the Birth of Chrift. The
twentieth Year pf his Reign therefore was 463
Years before the Birth of Chris! ; to which, if
we add twenty feven Years of the vulgar ./Era,
When Chrift was baptized at about thirty Years
jof Age, An. Dom. 28. current [being born
tm

(37)
two, or rather * three Years before the common
Mxa of his Birth] the whole is exactly 490
Years (as Daniel foretold) from the going forth
of the Commandment to reslore and build the Walls
of Jerufalem, to the Baptifm of Chrift, the an
ointed holy one of God, who' was then, as Ifaiah
had foretold, ch. lxi. f~. 1. and as St. Luke
relates th^t Jefus applied the Prophecy to him
felf, anointed to preach the Gofpel to the Poor (in
Spirit) and fent, to heal the broken hearted, to
preach Deliverance to the Captives (by the Re-
miffion of their Sins) — to preach the acceptable
Tear of the Lord, ch. iv. ver. 18, 19, 21. as
no Perfon before the coming of Jefus ever claim
ed to be the Meffiah or Chrift, and to fulfill all
that had been foretold by Mofes and the Pro
phets concerning him : So we find that every
* All the ancient Chriftian Writers agree that Chrift was
born about three Years before the common Account of his
Birth. Clemens Alexandrinus reckons forty two Years and
three Months from the Death of Chrift to the Deftru&ion of
.Jerufalem ; and he reckons Chrift to have preached but one
Year, and to have died in the fixteenth Year of Tiberius, in
the thirty firft Year of his Age. Now the Deftru&ion of
Jerufalem being An. Dom. 70. Chrift, by his Reckoning,
mull: have been born at leaft two, if not three Years before the
vulgar Mm. Strom. 1. p. 340. Edit. Parif. Origen follows
his Mafter Clemens, cont. Celf. lib. 4. p* 174. Africanus
and Tertullian follow the like Computation : And the Death
" of 'Herod confirms it ; for Herod, by the Account of his Reign
in Jofephus, died 751 Years after the building of Rome,
which was two Years before the vulgar JE.X3. : An4 Chrift
Was born one Year at leaft before the Death of Herod. Ter-
fullian fays, Chrift was born in the forty firft Year of "the
Reign of Auguftus, cont. Jud. lib. c. 8. And this was An.
urb. «W. 751. And by every Computation the Birth of
Chrift muft haye been two Years at leaft before the common
&& of jt. thing

( 3« )
thing predicted of the Meffiah was fulfilled in
the Perfon, Character, and Doctrine of Jefus,
He came, as was foretold, {Gen. xlix. f. io.)
before the Scepter departed from Judah, and the
Lawgiver from between his Feet, i. e. whilft the
Jewifh Polity fubfifted in rhe Tribe of Judah:
And to him, as it follows, were a gathering- of the
People or Gentiles, by their Converfion to his
Gofpel. He was alfo of the Tribe of Judah,
and of the Houfe or Seed of David ; and horn at
Bethlehem, as was foretold by Micah, chap. v.
¦jh 2. He came whilft the fecond Temple
was Handing, according to the Prophecy of
Haggai, ch. ii. 7. and did all the Miracles men
tioned by Ifaiah, ch. xxxv. 5, 6. to be wrought
in rhe Days of the Meffiah, viz. that the Eyes
ef the Blind fhould be opened, and the Ears of the
Deaf unftopped ; that the lame Man fhould leap
ai an Hart, and the Tongue of the Dumb fing.
He was fold for thirty Pieces of Silver, Zech. xi.
12* He was fcourged, buffeted, and fpit upon,
Ifai. 1. 6. His Hands and his Feet were pierced,
Pfal, xxii. 16. and Lots were caft for his Gar
ments, Pfal. xxii. 18. All thefe, and many
other Predictions of what was to be done by,
and happen to the Meffiah, were literally ful
filled in Jefus. But the great End of his Mif
fion was to do what Daniel in the foregoing
Prophecy had foretold, to make an End of Sm,
and of all Sin-Offerings, by preaching Repen
tance and Remiffion of Sins to all Nations : To
¦make Reconciliation for Iniquity^ by making him
felf a Sacrifice and Propitiation for our Sins,
and giving Affurance to all of the Pardon of
them from God, upon their Converfion from
Unrighte-

( 39 )
Cn righteoufnefs Unto Holinefs ; and by Faith
and Obedience to his Gofpel, which is the Law
of everlasling Righteoufnefs, which God by him
gave to Mankind, to bring them to Salvation,
and the Happinefs of a future State. He alfo
fealed or compleated Vifion and Prophecy ; or he
was the Prophet who was fea led by God, John vi.
27. or confirmed in the Office of the Meffiah.
And it is remarkable" that Aben Ezra, a moft
learn'ed Jewifi) Rabbi, and bitter Enemy of
Chriftianity^, owned that the feventy Weeks of
Years mentioned try Daniel, reach to the fealing
¦the: Meffiah, the Holy of Holy. It alfo appears
from two Heathen Writers *, Tacitus and Sue
tonius, that it was the general Expectation of the
Jews, that their Meffiah would come about the
Time that Jefus was barn ; which muft pro
bably have been founded on this Prophecy of
Daniel,, which they faW was accomplifhing.
The-Time of the coming of Chrift, and his
preaching the Gofpel, anfwers moft exactly to
the Prophecy of Daniel^ accbrding to the Chro
nology of the Pfyrian Marbles, concerning the
Kings of Perfia, which are juftly efteemed of
very great Authority. The aftronomical Ca
non of Ptolemy does indeed vary four Years from
the Marbles, and carries the Reign of Xerxes
fo many Years higher than they do. But other
Writers vary from the Canon ; and it is cer
tain, and may eafily be proved, that there is in
that Canon, though a moft valuable Record,
an Error of three or four Years too few in fome
one Reign preceding that of Cyrus, and between
* Tacit. Hift. lib. v. c. 13. Sueton. Vefpaf. c. 4. feci. 8.
him

him and Nabocolaffar, or Nebuchadnezzar; an<K
thefe Years, when added, make the Canon
agree to the Marbles.
But even admitting (to prevent all poffible
Objection) that Xerxes began to reign 486 Years
before the Birth of Chrift, according to the
common Reckoning, by which I compute in
thefe Papers •, and fo, that the twentieth Year
of his Reign was 466 Years, and fomething
more, before the Birth of Chrift ; then the fe
venty Weeks, or 490 Years ended in the twen
ty feventh or twenty eighth Year of Chrift, ac
cording to the true Date of his Birth, and two
or three Years before his Baptifm : And by this
Reckoning his Jaeginning to preach the Gofpel
will fall in the feventy firft Week, when he
was according to the Prophecy cut off or put to
Death. This Suppofition makes fo little Diffe
rence as cannot reafonably be thought to affect
the Truth of the Prophecy. For, as Daniel
fays, that feventy Weeks were to be cut out or de
termined, and ended to the Meffiah, and his be
ing fealed as the Prophet who|foras to make Re
conciliation for Sin ; this might well be fulfilled
after the ending of the feventy Weeks and half
of the next Week, in which he was to die, be
ing completed alfo.
But I incline to the Chronology of the Pa
rian Marbles, which are undoubtedly moft:
exact in this Point. It is faid (tf 25.) tbe
Walls fhall be built in troublous Times, which was
exactly fulfilled, as you may read Neh. iii. 1 —
32. iv. 1 — 23. vi. 1 — 16. and in Jofephus*.
* Jud. Antiq. lib, xi. c. 5.
4' The

' ( 4» )
The next important Part of the Prophecy is^
that the Meffiah was in one Week, or in the Term
df feven Years, to make a Covenant with many j
and in the Middle, or haff Part of it, was to be
cut off. This was the new Covenant of the
Gofpel, whereby Remiffion of Sins was fealed
in the Name of Chrift the Mediator of it ; and
was alfo foretold by Jeremiah, ch; xxxi. 334
34. This Covenant was confirmed with the
Jews amongft Whom Chrift preached : And
after it had been confirmed by his Preaching
and Miracles, which he Wrought in Teftimony
of the Truth of it, during half a Week, or about
three ¦ Years and half, as Daniel foretold it
fhould be, he was then Cut off by an unjuft Sen
tence, and fulfilled what another Prophet had
predicted, that he fhould be made an .Offering fit
Sin, Ifai. liii. 10. And by this Offering he
made the Jewifh Sacrifices dnd Oblations to ceafe j
Chrift henceforth being the only Propitiation for
Sin by Virtue of our Faith in God, and Obe^
dience to that Law of Truth which he hath
delivered to us. The Sacrifice of Chrift's Death
put an End to the propitiatory Sacrifices of the
Law, which were only Types and Pre-repre*
fentations of it : And the Jews having rejected
their Meffidh, and put him to Death, their Sa
crifices after this became unholy, and no longer
acceptable unto God.
Is it not furprizing that Daniel fhould fay
that the Meffiah fhould confirm a Covenant with
many in a Week, or within the Term of fevert
Years ; and in the Middle of this Weekj or within
the Space of three Years and half (which an
fwers exactly to the Time of Chrift's Preaching;
G and

and his Death) put an End to the JewiJh &?
crifices, or abolifh and make void the Inftitu-
tion and, Efficacy of them, by the Sacrifice of his
own Death ? Laftly, how the City and Temple
were utterly destroyed, and made defolat-e by a
future Prince, who was to reign after the Death
of Chrift, and who is known to have been Vefi
pafian the Roman Emperor, who deftroyed them
An. Dom. 70. is fo well known, that no more
need be faid here on the Completion of this
great Event ; only it is proper to obferve that
the Abomination of Deflation, which was to ftand
in the Temple and make it defolate, $ 27.
and to which our Saviour himfelf refers, Mat.
xxiv. 15. appeared in an aftonifhing Manner,
when the Romans, after entering with an Army
into Jerufalem., and being Matters of that Part
of the City where the Temple flood, fet up
their abominable or idolatrous; Standards in the
very Temple itfelf, as a Mark of its Defolation,
and whilft it was all in Flames offered * Sacri
fices to their Gods.
The only Objection, that I know of, whjfili
can be made to the foregoing Time of the De
cree for building the Walls of Jerufalem, being
fixed to the. twentieth Year of Xerxes is, that
Nehemiah is faid, chap. v. tf 14. to have been
appointed Governor in the Land of Judah, from
the twentieth Tear even to the thirty fecond Tear
of Artaxerxes the King, that is, twelve Tears-:
And fo this King could not be Xerxes who
reigned no more than twenty one Years.
* Jofeph. de Bel. Jud. lib. vi. c. 6.
To

(43 )
To this I anfwer, that * Jofephus takes no
Notice of the Contents of this fifth Chapter of
Nehemiah, and connects the fourth and fixth
Chapters, as if the fifth belong'd not to them :
And the Reader will eafily difcern that the Con
tents of the fixth Chapter naturally follow the
fourth, and that the fifth Chapter is a plain In
terruption in the Hiftory, and belongs not to
the Place where it ftands.
Secondly, When Nehemiah went to Jerufalem
with the King's Commiffion, he was his Cup-
hearer, and only went with an Order, not to be
Governor, but to the Governors of Syria f and
Phoenicia, to grant him fafe Conduct into Judaa,
and to affift him with Materials for building the
Walls and Gates of the City, and an Houfe to
dwell in, ch. i. tf ii. ch. ii. 7, 8, 9. And
he was to return to his Office at a fet Time, ch. ii.
tf 6. This Time could not be twelve Tears ;
and was- more probably but. one Year, or per
haps lefs. For it is faid, ch. vi. tf 15. that
the Wall was finifhed in fifty two Days : And this
might very well be done with fo many Hands
as employ'd themfelves with fo much Zeal and
Vigour about it, ch. iv. tf 6. Jofephus makes
the Building take up ff two Tears and four
Months, which is contrary to all the Copies of
Nehemiah, and is no Doubt a Miftake in that
learned Hiftorian. As foon as the Walls were
finifhed, Nehemiah gave his Brother Hanani
and Hananiab Charge over Jerufalem, ch. vii.
* Antiq. Jud. lib. xi. c. 5. feft. 8.
t Jof. Antiq. Jud. lib. xi. c. 5. fe£t. 6.
ff Antiq. Jud. lib. xi. c. 5. fe&. 8.
G,2 tf

( 44 )
tf 2. and then, no Doubt, returned to his
Office, according to the Time he had fet the
King. And therefore what is faid of his being
appointed Governor from the twentieth to the
thiity fecond Year of the Reign of Artaxerxes,
ch. v, 14. cannot belong to this firft Commif
fion ; but muft have been inferted into the Hi
ftory by another Fland, which feems moft pro
bable from the Omiffion of it in the Copy of
Jofephus ; as alfo from the grofs Error of fup-
pofing Artafhafta or Xerxes to reign thirty two
Years ; or elfe we muft fuppofe that it refers to
another Commiffion given him in the twentieth
Year of the King Ahfuerus or Artaxerxes the Son
of Xerxes, who might, out of Regard to Efther
his Qjeen, prefer Nehemiah to the Dignity of
Governor of Judcca. But the Hiftory being
"here evidently mifplaced, and the Reign of the
King miftaken, I incline to think the whole
Account of Nehemiah' s being Governor in the
Land of Juda, to be a later Addition to the
Hiftory of that great Man.
Thirdly, Befides the Incongruity of the fifth
Chapter, to what goes before and after it, Ezra
is faid to have been at Jerufalem at this firft
Commiffion pf Nehemiah, ch. viii. throughout ;
though it is probable that he had been dead
feveral Years before the thirty fecond of Artax
erxes, or even the twentieth of that King's
Reign ; nay, and before the Commiffion grant
ed to Nehemiah in the twentieth of Xerxes, as
Jofephus * fuppofeth him to be. For he was
Brother to Jehqzadak, and born when the Tem?
* Antiq. Jud. lib. xi. c. 5. feft. 5.

(43 )
pie was burnt. He was fon of Seraiah, as Je-
faozadak alfo was -, and Seraiah was flain by Ne
buchadnezzar at Riblah in Syria, when he burnt
the Temple. See and compare Ez. vii. i.
i Efdras viii. i. with i Chron. vi. 14, 15.
2 Kings xxv. 18. 21. This burning of the
Temple was 586 Years before the Birth of Chrift:
And the feventh of Xerxes being 476 Years be
fore the fame JEra, the Interval is 109 Years ;
and fo old, or a Year older Ezra muft be when
he received his Commiffion mentioned in the
feventh Chapter of his Book, fuppofing him
only a Year old at the Death of his Father
Seraiah. But if he lived to the feventh of Ar
taxerxes fon of Xerxes, and had his Commiffion
from him, he muft then have been at leaft 131
Years old, which is improbable : And therefore
it is more improbable ftill that he fhould be at
Jerufalem in the twentieth of Artaxerxes, when
he muft have been 144 Years of Age. All this
fhews that the Commiffion of Ezra was granted
in the Reign of Xerxes, as that of Nehemiah
was in the twentieth Year of the Reign of the
fame King. And what is faid of Ezra in the
eighth Chapter of Nehemiah belongs to the Time
of Ezra's own Commiffion, and not to that of
Nehemiah: And fo Jofephus underftands it. It
was the laft Chapter ofthe Book of Ezra, and
fallowed the tenth in that Book, and is rightly
inferted in it in the ninth Chapter of the firft
Book of Efdras, which Jofephus thought to be
the original Book of Ezra or Efdras, where it
begins at the thirty feventh Verfe, and goes on
to the End. The Name Nehemiah mentioned
\n the ninth Verfe of the eighth Chapter of his
Book,

(46)
Book is an Interpolation, and is neither men
tioned in Efdras nor in Jofephus ; and feems to
be fome Jewifh Commentator's Interpretation of
the Tirjhatha, or Governor or Head of the
Priefts who is mentioned before ch. vii. tf 6$
and 70. whom the Commentator by Miftake
took to be Nehemiah.
I have faid thus much in Explication of the
foregoing Prophecy of Daniel, for the Satisfac
tion of thofe learned Men who may be led into
Miftakes by other Explications which are at
tended with great and infuperable Difficulties,
owing to the not having confidered the Reafons
which I have given for the true Explication of
it. I have fhewn how exactly all the Parts of
the Prophecy were fulfilled by Jefus Chrift, and
in the Deftruction of the Jewifh Temple and
City by the Romans. That Chrift preached the
Gofpel exactly at the Time foretold, and during
the precife Time alfo pointed out in the Pro
phecy, and who remarkably and alone of all
the Perfons who ever appeared on Earth, faf-
tained the Character given of the Meffiah ; fo
that, I hope, you Deifts will give this famous
Prophecy a due Confideration ; and not treat
this or any other Prophecy with Lightnefs or
Ridicule, as hath been done by fome of you,
in a Manner altogether unworthy of Scholars
and moral PMlofophers. I beg your Attention
to one Prophecy more of Daniel. It is con
tained in the Eleventh Chapter of his Book,
and was delivered to him in the third Year of
Cyrus, King of Perfia, as is expreffed ch. x.
tf 1. which was 533 Years before the Birth
of Chrift. It feems by the Beginning of the
eleventh

'( 47) .
Eleventh Chapter, as if the Prophecy was de
livered in, the firft Year of Darius the Mede\
but the firft Verfe of the eleventh Chapter is
only a Parenthefis, and the reft of that Chapter
is a Continuance of the tenth, and the Prophecy
begins tf 2. which is connected With tf 21.
of the tenth Chapter. This' will beplain to an
attentive Reader ; though yet it makes no Diffe
rence as to the Prophecy itfelf, whether it was
delivered in the third. Year of Cyrus, or in the
firft Year of Darius the Mede.
Daniel is told by the Angel (ver. 2.) out cf
the Scripture of Truth, That there fhould yet
filand up (i. e. after Cyrus) three Kings in Perfia,
and the fourth fhould be far richer than they all ;
and by his Strength through his Riches fhfittld ftir
tip all (i. e. all the Nations of Afia and the
Eaft) againft the Realm of Greece.
Thefe Kings were firft Cambyfes Son of Cyrus;
•the fecond was Smerdes the JMtagian ; the third
was Darius Son of Hyftafpes"; the fourth was
Xerxes Son of Darius. The prodigious Expe
dition of Xerxes againft Greece, to which he
ftirr'd up all the Kingdoms of Afia and the
Eaft, is too well known, both from the Greek
and Roman Hiftory, and particularly from He
rodotus, to be doubted of, or to need to be
more than mentioned. The Prophecy proceeds
(tf 3.) A mighty King fhall ftand up (or rife)
that fhall rule with great Dominion, and do ac
cording to his Will.
This mighty King who ruled with great Do
minion after the Kings of Perfia, is well known
to have been Alexander the Great, who fubdued
the Perfian Empire ; and whofe Dominion, or
Empire,

UM
Empire, is fo defcribed in the following Words
(tf 4.; as to take away all Doubt concerning
it ; for it is added, And when he fhall (land up
[in the Height of his Dominion] his Kingdordy
fhall be broken, and fhall he divided towards the'
four Winds of Heaven ; and not to his Pofterity,
nor according to his Dominion which he ruled ; for
his Kingdom fhall be plucked up, even fir Mhers
befides thofe.
That Alexander died at Babylon in the Height
of his Conquefts, is well known to all who
¦have looked into Hiftory ; and how his great
Dominion after his Death did not defcend to his
Pofterity, but was plucked up and divided by
his great Officers towards all the four Winds,
by which Divifion it was greatly weakned, as
Daniel intimates, is alfo well known. This
great Dominion, or Grecian Empire, divided
amongft the Succeffors of Alexander, after mu
tual Quarrels, and Wars with one another
fettled about 305 Years before the Birth of
Chrift, in four great Kingdoms. The firft un
der Ptolemy Son of Lagus, who reign'd over1
' ASgypt, Libya, Arabia belonging to Mgypt, and
^Ethiopia : This Kingdom lay on the South of
Judcea, which in the Prophecy is the Centre or
Point which the four Winds or Quarters of
Heaven refpedted. The fecond was that of
Antigonus over Syria, and the letter Afia on the
Eaft and North. The third was that of Lyfi-
machus over Thrace on the North. The fourth
was that of Caffander over Macedonia, Greece,
and Epire on the Weft. Thefe were Alexander's
four Succeffors in the Grecian Empire, whofe
Kingdoms were divided towards the four Winds 6f

U? )
of Heaven ; and thefe were the four notable
Horns of the He-Goat, fo called by Daniel,
whifh came up after the great Horn i^as broken*
towards the four Winds of Heaven, ch. viii. tf 8.
See ver. 21, 22. Seleucus, though a Succeffpr
in the Dpniinjons of Alexander, }iad no fart of
the Grecian Provinces, but ruled over the Baby
lonian and Perfiati Kingdom, properly fiich*
which was beyond Euphrates.
Seleucus having conquered /fntigonus who was
flain in Battle, fei?ed his Kingdom, .^nd thereby
became poffeffbd of one of the four Grecian^
Kingdoms of Daniel ; this was 300 Years before1
the vulgar Chriftian Mxa i and fevenfeen Years
.after, which was 283 Years before the Birth of
Chrift, Seleucus having got Demetrius Son of
Anttgqnus into his Power, he then joined §yrid
and the letter Afia to his own Kingdom, and
rjiade one Kingdom of them both, 35 Eufebius
tells us ip his Chronicon.
A few Years after the Death of AntigonuSi
t,yfimachus having feiz'd Macedonia and united
it to his Kingdom of Thrace, was about fi«
Years after Ifis Ppffeffipn of it beat and flain in
Battle by Seleucus, about 281 Years before thje
Birth of Chrift. Ptolemy before in the War with
Antigonus had fubdued Phcenic'ia, Ccele-Syrifl and
the Sea-Coafts of Afia, and added them to the
Kingdom of Egypt : So that he and Seleuci{S
now governed all the Grecian Empire which WAS
reduced from four to two great Kingdoms,
Which are called by Daniel the Kings or King
doms of the North and South in the following
Parts of his Prophecy. In which the Hiftory
of thefe two Kingdoms to the Reign of Antio*
H thus

( jo)
chus Epiphanes was, though prophetically,* yet
fo folly and plainly related, that the learned
Porphyry, one of the greateft Enemies both of
the Jewifh and Chriftian Religion, was forc'd to
own it, as Jerome in his Preface to the Book of
Daniel tells us ; and therefore pretended that
thefe Prophecies were not wrote by Daniel, but
by fome other Author (he knew not whom)
who lived in the Reign of Antiochus Epiphanes.,
This fhewed the defperate Diftrefs of Infide
lity, which lays hold on any Pretence how ab
furd foever to oppofe the Evidence and Truth
of : Revelation. Porphyry knew very well that
Daniel lived feveral Centuries before the Events
came to pafs which are foretold in his Prophe
cies ; he was alfo fo well verfed in the Greek
Hiftory, that he could not but fee that the Facts
foretold were moft eminently completed ; but
yet he was fo great a Bigot to Paganifm, that
without any Ground or Foundation in the World
he pretended thefe Prophecies to be a later Hif
tory wrote after the Events. This was indeed
giving up the Point, and in effect confeffing the
Truth of the Prophecies, fince there was the
fame Reafon to believe that Daniel was the Au
thor of them, as that Plato and Ariftotle were
the Authors of the Works afcribed to them.
I fhall trouble you, Gentlemen, with no more
Prophecies out of the Old Teftament, though
I could eafily add a Volume of them •, but I will
fhew you the Completion of a few others out of
the Writings of the New Teftament, and then
proceed to the particular Evidence of Chrift's
Refurrection. The

( J' )
The firft is that moft remarkable Prophecy
of our Saviour's concerning the Deftruction of
the Temple and City of Jerufalem, which he
delivered to his Difciples a little before his
Death. It is related in the twenty-fourth Chapter
of St. Matthew's Gofpel, that, as Jefus was de
parting from the Temple, his Difciples came to
him for to fhew him the Buildings of the Temple ;
and Jefus faid unto them, See ye not all thefe
Things ? Verily I fay unto you, There fhall not
he left here one Stone upon another thai fhall not
be thrown down. ver. i, 2. Mark xiii. 1, 2.
Luk. xxi. 6. And before, as he was going into
the City, He wept over it, faying, The Days fhall
come upon thee, that thine Enemies fhall eaft a
Trench about thee and compafs thee round, and
keep thee in on every fide, and fhall lay thee even
with the Ground and thy Children within thee ;
and they fhall not leave in thee one Stone upon
another. Luke xix. 41  44. And when his
Difciples defired him to tell them,, when thefe
Things fhould be, and what Sign there fhould be
when thefe Things fhould come to pafs ; He bid
them take heed that they were not deceived ;
fir many, he adds, fhall come in my Name, fay
ing, I am Chrift ; and the Time draweth near :
Go ye not therefore after them. But when ye fhall
hear of Wars and Commotions, be not terrify' 'd ;
for thefe Things muft firft come to pafs, but the
End is not by and by. Then he faid unto them.
Nation fhall rife againft Nation, and Kingdom a-
gainft Kingdom ; and great Earthquakes fhall be
in diverfe Places, and Famines and Peftilence and
fearful Sights and great Signs fhall there be from
H 2 Heaven.

( J* )
Heaven. And when ye fhall fee Jerufalem cm*
- faffed with Armies, then know that the Def&latiufy
thereof is tiigB. Then fhall be great Tribufotiori,
fiich as was not fince the Beginning of the World
to this Time, no nor ever fhall be^- for wberefi-
ever the Car cafe is, there will the Eagles be ga
thered together, St. Matthew adds, from the
Mouth of Chrift ; 'this Gofpel of the Kingdom
fhall be preached in all the World [i. e. not only
all over Judea, but all over the Roman Erlipire
called al-A*$f>vi, the World] fir a Witnefs unto all
Nations, and then fhall the End come. i When yi
therefore ftoall fee the Abomination of Defolation
fpokeh of by Daniel tbe Prophet ftand in the hoi)
Place (whofo readeth let him underftand) then let
thein which be in Judea flee unto the Mount 'aim \
&c. Luke xxi. 6— n, 20. Matt. xxiv. 3—8,
14, 15, 21. Mark xiii. 1 — 8, 10, 14, 19.
This is the Prediction of that terrible Deftru-
ction and Defolation which Divine Vengeance
determined to bring upon the Jewifh Nation,
iheir City and Temple, for putting to Death
the Meffiah. And how exactly every Part of
it was fulfilled in the Space of thirty feven Years
after the Delivery of it, or A. D. 70. not -only
the Roman Hiftorians, but more particularly
the learned Jewifh Hiftoriah Jofephus, who was
prefent at the Siege and taking of Jerufale^
and faw all the Defolation both of the City and
Temple, are an unqueftionable Evidence.
After the Jews had put Chrift to Death, they,
as Chrift had foretold to his Difciples, perfecu-
ted them not only at Jerufalem, ahd hi Other
Parts of Judea, but every where in the Romn
jLrhpire where they had any Influence, and cau« fed

(33 )
fed feveral of them to be killed. Notwith-
ftanding this, the Gofpel was preached in all
the World, in all Parts of th« Roman Empire,
both in Europe, Afia and Africa^ as our Lord
had declared it fhould be before the final De-
ftruction of the Jewifh Nation*
The Beginning of the Sorrows of the Jews
commenced the latter End of the twelfth Year
of Nero's Reign, A. D. 65. when * Ceftius Gal
lus, Governor of Syria, was fent to environ
Jerufalem with an Army : This was the firft
Notice of their approaching Defolatioru- How-»
er he raifed the Siege without any' apparent
b Reafon, and gave Opportunity to the Jews
to make their Efcape and fave their Lives, by
fleeing out of the City into the Country, as
many of the principal c Perfons did accordingly.
_. A great many others fled out of it when
ffefpafian who had invaded Judea in the Spring
of the Year following, A. D. 66. and had en-
compaffed Jerufalem with an Army, withdrew
it upon the Death of Nerod: All this agrees
with Luke xxi. 20, 21.
A little before and upon the Death of Ner*
there were great Tumults and Commotions in
the Roman Empire, not only in Italy itfelf
amongft the feveral Contenders for the Empire,
but more particularly in * Gaul and Germany ;
and jofephus reprefents them exactly as they are
» Jofepb. de B. Jul lib- ii. c. 19.
* Ibid. feft. 7.
* Ibid. c. 20. Jofephus fays, they left the Gty, as thofe
wh& can fwim leave a Shift that is finking.
¦« Jofepb. de B. Jud. lib. 4. c. 9.
* Dion. Xiphilin. p. zc4. Suet. Ner. c.40. alfo c.42.
*fyit.M\,Tud. foretold,

(34)
foretold, Matt. xxiv. 6, 7. This made the
Jews more infolent and feditious and -haftried
their Ruin : For Vefpafian being made Emperor^
A.D. 6a. his Son Titus was afent out of Egypt,
with an Army to profecute the War in Judekf,
who having got together a numerous Army in
the Spring of the Year, A. D. 70. laid clofe
Siege to Jerufalem a little before the Paffover ;
againft which Time an innumerable Company
of Jews were come hither from all Parts to the
Feaft, and were fhut irt and perifhed miferably
by Famine, Peftilence, and the Sword of the
Romans. After Titus had made himfelf Mafter of two
of the Walls of the City, and the Jews had
demolifhpd the Ramparts which he had raifed
to batter the inner Wall from ; he refolved up
on a Method to keep them confin'd in the City
on every fide, and, if they would not furrender,
to deftroy them with Famine. ' He therefore
ordered the whole City to be entrench'd, and a
Wall to be built all round it ; and the Soldiers,
as foon as they received Orders, did with ama
zing and almoft incredible Pains and Labour,
and, as b Jofephus obferves, as if animated by a
divine Impulfe, in the Space of three Days en-
compafs the City with a Wall of thirty-nine
Furlongs ; and built thirteen Caftles in it,
which contained the Space of ten Furlongs in
Compafs, and placed Guards in them : And
hereby all Hopes were cut off that any fhould
* Jof. Prol. B. Jud. and B. Jud. lib. iv. c, 11. feft. j.
lib. v. c. 1. fe&. 1, 6.
b Bel. Jud, lib. v. c. 12. efcape

( 33 )
efcape out of the City. Jofephus* relates in
Confirmation of our Saviour's Words, that now
there came upon the Jews Tribulation, fuch as was
not fince the Beginning of the World : For fuch
a Famine and Peftilence raged in the City, that
from the fourteenth Day of April [b Xantbicus]
when the Seige began, to the firft Day of July
[Panemus'] there were carried out of one Gate
only the dead Bodies of no lefs than one hun
dred and fifteen thoufand, eight hundred and
eighty poor Perfons, who were buried at the
public Expence, befides thofe who were interr'd
by their Friends and Relations. A little after
fome of the chief Men of the Jews, who de-
ferted to Vhe Romans, related that fix hundred
thoufand Corpfes of poor Perfons had been car
ried out of the Gates, and thrown into the
Valley ; c befides great Numbers of others that
were not taken an Account of. In fhort, the
Famine was fo great, that a Bufhel of Bread
Corn was fold for a Talent ; and, at laft, they
were forced to eat old d Beafts Dung that had
been thrown out.
The Romans having made a Breach in the
Wall, and entered the City on the Side of the
"Caftle Antonia, Titus their General refolved to
a Bel. Jud. Prolog, and lib. v. c. io. feft. r» tjdrtov ate
tt-i-UKif d-rvxifiafTu CTfos ia 'ln^aiun irlaa-iai p>i .Sonet xara
rvtuoio-a. Prolog.
b The Syro-Macfdanian Month beginning the twenty-fifth
of March, the fourteenth was really the feventh of April ;
and fo the firft of Panemus, which began the twenty-fifth of
June, was the twenty-fifth of June, and not the firft o£
July. c Jof. B. Jud.. lib. v. fea. 7.
< Jof. ibid. furround-

("J<>
llirround the Temple (into which the Jews had
fled) with his whole Army ; but the fatal Day
of its Defolation' was already come ; and on the
* tenth Day of the Month 'Lous, which was the
third Day of Auguft, the Temple was fudde-nly
fet on fire ; and whilft it was all in a Flame, the
Soldiers fet up their b idolatrous Standards en
the holy Ground over-againft the Eaft Gate,
and there offered Sacrifices after their Pagan
Manner, and proclaimed Titus Emperor.
On the eighth Day of the Month c Gorpiaus,
or the firft Day of September, being the Day qf
the Jewifh Sabbath, as d Xiphilinus tells us,
Titus took the upper City % and was then abfo
lute Mafter of Jerufalem : And after the Romans
had fatiated themfelves with the Slaughter and
Plunder of the Jews, he commanded both the
City and Temple to be entirely demolifhed and
levelled with the Ground, all but three Towers
and Part of a Wall. This was the Completion
of our Saviour's Prophecy concerning the Tern*
.pie of Jerufalem, that not one Stone fhould be left
upon another ; and alfo of the City particularly,
that it fhould he laid even with the Ground.
To fhew more fully the unparalleled Mifery
.and Sufferings of this accurfed Nation, Jofephus
tells us, that in the whole War there were nine*
ty f feven thoufand made Captives, many pf
whom were diftributed in the Roman Provinces,
* Jof. ibid. lib. 6- c. 4. fedl. 5, 6, 7. Lous began the 25th
i«f July-
k Jof. ibid. c. 6. fea. 1.
c Gorpuus began the 25th of Auguft.
d Dion. -vit. Vefpaf. p. 205. edit. Steph.
e Jof. B.Jud. lib. vi. c. 10. lib. vii. c. 1.
f J"/- B. Jud. lib. vi. c. 9. and

( 37 )
and- kept to be deftroyed at their Shews and
jpublic Games, by wild Beafts, and killing one-
hnother ; and the younger Sort Were condemned
to the Mines in Egypi, or were fold for Slaves.
This exactly agrees to what St. Luke fays of
them : They fhall fall by the Edge of the Sword \
and fhall he led captive into all Nations, chap.- xxi.
24* And the Number of thofe who were killed
and died during the Siege, Was no lefs than
eleven hundred thoufand.
In the Interval preceding the Deftruction of
the City and Temple of Jerufalem, there were,
as our Saviour foretold, not only Wars and Ru
mours of Wars, as already obferved ; but Fa
mines, and Peftilences, and Earthquakes, and fear
ful Sights, and great Signs from Heaven : and
many falfe Prophets arofe and deceived many, Mat*
xxiv; 7. ii.
There was a Famine at Pyome in the fecond
Year of Claudius Cafar, A. D> 42. mentioned
by '¦Dio. And in the fourth of Claudius, A.D*
44. there was a great Famine in Judaa, foretold
by Agabus, the Year before it'happen'd, Ail. xi.
28. which continued above, a Year, and is rela
ted by b Jofephus, and Eufebius. Petavius mif-
took the firft Famine for the Second. Befides
Famine and Peftilence, there were alfo Earth
quakes in divers Parts ofthe Roman c Empire in
the Reigns of Claudius and Nero.
Three Years before the Deftruction pf Jeru-
1 Epitom. liphilin. p. 138. Suet. <uit. Claud, c. 18,
b -Ant. Jud. lib. %xi c. 2.5. Euf eh. Chron. and Bcclef.
Hift. lib. ii. c. 12.
c Grot. Annot. ad Matt. c. xxiv. $ 7.
1 fatem,

( 38 I
falem, A. D. 6y. Jofephus a relates that then*
was a moft violent Storm of Wind and Rain,.
with continued Lightning and dreadful Thun
der, and Bellowings of an Earthquake. He alfoi
mentions many portentous Prodigies about the
fame Time, or a Year or two before % as that
a b Star appeared in the Form of a Sword hanging
over the City ; and a Comet alfo blazed for a whole
Tear : that alfo before Sun-fet there were feen m
the Clouds Chariots and Armies in Battle Array>
encompaffing all the Country, as they who faw
them did atteft. And that the great Eafterri
Gate of the Temple which Was of Brafi, and which
twenty Men were fcarce able to Jhttt ; and which
was alfo fafiened into a Floor of Stone with Bolts and
Bars, was feen at the fixth Hour of the Night by'
the Guards of the Temple to open of its own At-
cord. Some of thefe Prodigies are related by c Ta
citus. Jofephus * alfo relates that many falfe
Prophets arofe and deceived the People, by per-
fuading them that they were fent to deliver
them from the Tyranny of the Romans ; fuch
as Theudas, and feveral other Impoftors which
he mentions.
From the foregoing Relation it appears. that
every Word of bur Saviour's Prophecy, of what
fhould precede and accompany the Deftruction'
ofthe City and Temple of Jerufalem, was ful
filled -by a Series of the moft extraordinary
"Bet. Jud. lib. iv.c. 4.. feci. 5.
b Ibid, lib.vi. c. 5. fea. 3.
c Hift. lib. v. c. 13.
* Antiq. lib. xx. c. 5. Bel. lib, ii. c. 13. Events1

( J9 )
Events that ever happened in the Downfal of
any Kingdom or People.
Thefe Events are related by the great and
moft faithful Jewifh Hiftorian, who lived at the
Time when they happeh'd, and was a Witnefs
to many of them ; and alfo by the moft credi
ble Roman Hiftorians. So that thefe Prophe
cies, fo remarkably accomplifh'd, are alone
fufficient to convince any who: will give Credit
to the Evidence of the beft attefted Hiftoryi,
that Jefus Chrift, who dcliver'd them, was a
.true Prophet.
The next Prophecies which I fhall lay before
you, are three or four of the moft remarkable
which relate more particularly to the State of
the Chriftian Church, and to the Deftruction of
both the Latin and Greek Roman Empire.
Though CErift was fent from God to abolifh
by the preaching of his Gofpel Superftition and
Idolatry, and aU Impiety attending them ; and
to promote the Praftice of true Religion and
moral Virtue ; yet as thro' the Corruption of
human Nature, prone to Irreligion and Vice,
both Deifm ox natural Religion, and alfo the
prior' Revelation of Mofes had been grofsly cor
rupted by Superftition and Immorality both a-
mongft Jews and Gentiles ; fo the pure and
truly divine Religion of the Gofpel, after it
had prevailed by the Force of its Truth, and
the Evidence of the Miracles wrought by the
firft Profeffors of it, over Judaifm and Pagan-
ifm, became in a few Years as greatly, if not
more greatly corrupted than the State of the,
Jewifh and Gentile Religion had ever been.
I % This

( 60 )
This can only be refolved into the" unfearch-
able Providence of God, who hath ordained
that the beft State Men can be put into in this
Life fhould be liable to Trials and Tempta
tions : And the Confideration of the Inefficacy
of fo holy a Religion as is taught in the Reve
lation of the Gofpel would be apt to tempt the
Profeflbrs of it to think that it was preached in
vain, if we had not been before acquainted by
the fame Revelation of all that Apoftafy and
Superftition, Wickednefs and Impiety that hath
and will abound amongft Chriftians, till the
Time appointed by God fhall come, that all
the Enemies of the Gofpel fhall perifh ; and all
Nations fhall be converted and reform'd, and
Truth and Pighteoufnefs be eftablifh'd in the
Earth. .
St. Paul prophefied [2 Theff ii. 3, &JV.] that
there would be in the Chriftian Church a great
Apoftafy or falling away ; and that an Anii-
cbriftian Power would be revealed, which he
calls the Man of Sin, and Son of Perdition. His
Character is, That he oppofeth and exalteth himfelf
above all that is call'd God, or is * worfhip 'd. So
tbat he filteth in the Temple of God fhewing himfelf
(for a God or) that he is God. And now ye know
what with-hcldeth. that he might be reveal'd in
his Time  he wh) letteth will let, unlill he be
taken out of the Way : and then fhall that wicked
(one) be reveal'd  even he whofe coming is after
the working of Satan with all Power and Signti,
* Gr. a-iGcco-px, i. e. ftyl'd facred, as Kings and Emperors
were ; the Raman Emperor particularly was call'd <rs£»r««,
Auguftui. • and.

( 6i )
and lying . Wonders, and with all . Deceiveablenefs
ofthrighteoufnefs in them thatperifh ; becaufe they
receiv'd riot the Love of Truth, that they might be
fav'd. Another Character of this Man of Sin is gi
ven by St. Paul in his firft Epiftle to Timothy,
ch. iv.. 1.-3. where he fays, he fhould teach the
Doclrines of Devils, or Doctrines concerning Saint
or Damon-worfhip. Alfo forbidding to marry,
and (commmanding) to abftainfrom Meats.
Now be pleas'd to obferve how the Prophet
Daniel defcribes this Man of Sin. He calls him
the King [becaufe he was to ufurp a regal Power]
>who fhall do according to his Will, and he fhall
exalt himfelf and magnify himfelf above every God,
and fhall fpeak marvellous Things againft the God
of Gods, and fhall profper till the Indignation fhall
le acComplifh' d. Neither will he regard —the
Defire of Women [or Wives, as the Hebrew Word
properly fignifies] nor regard any God, for he
will magnify himfelf above all, ch. xi. 36, 37.
In ch. vii. 24. he is faid to be a King, but diffe
rent from all the others there before fpoken of,
becaufe he was to be a fpiritual King, though
ufing a temporal Power : And tf 25. it is faid
of him, He fhall fpeak great Words againft the moft
high, and fhall wear out the Saints of the moft high,
and think to change Times and Laws, and they fhall
be given into his Hand until a Time and Times,
and the dividing of Time.
The remaining Features of this Man of Sin I
fhall give you from St, John, Rev, xiii.
After the Latin Roman Empire was diffolved
and divided into ten Kingdoms, call'd the Horns
of a Beaft here, as in Daniel vii. 24. and fo ex-
plain'd

( 6i")
•plain'd there: And in Rev. xvii. 12. St. John
fays, the ten Horns are ten Kings [Kings being
put for Kingdoms in the Hebrew Idiom] St. John
adds, ch. xiii. n. that he faw another Beaft come
up out of the Earth, and he had two Horns like a
Lamb, and f pake as a Dragon ; and tf 12. that
he exercis'd all the (diabolical) Power of the firft
Beaft before him. This was the Power of the
great Dragon or old Serpent, calPd the Devil and.
Satan, who deceiveth the whole World, ch. xii. 9.
which Power he gave to the Beaft, chap. xiii. 2.
By this diabolical and tyrannical Power he caur
feth the Earth, and them that dwell therein, to
¦worfhip the Dragon, tf 4. and the firft Beaft, tf 11.
that is, to obey the idolatrous Laws and Decrees
made by him ; which is a direct worfhipping
the Devil, who is the Author of Idolatry : And
to eftablifh this Worfhip of the Beaft and Dra
gon, i. e. to eftablifh Idolatry by a temporal
Power, he dc eth great Wonders- ——and deceiveth
them that dwell on lhe Earth by the Means of thofe
Miracles which he had Power to do in the Sight
of ihe Beaft, tf 13, 14. Hence he is alfo call'd
the- falfe Prophet, chap. xix. 20. ch. xx. 10.
Again, ch. xiii. 14. he caufeth an Image (or
Reprefentative) to be made of the Beaft (or Ro
man Empire) and that, all fhould be kill'd who
would not worfhip him, tf 15. Another Cha
racter of this idolatrous Apoftate is, the is call'd
the great Whore that fitteth upon many Waters,
[which St. John explains to be People, and Mul
titudes, and Nations, and Tongues, ch. xvii. 15.]
This Whore committeth Fornication with 4he
Kings of the Earth, and the Inhabitants • of 4be
Earth are made drunk . with the. Wine of her For
nication.

( <$"3 I
tiicdlion, ch. xvii. 2. This is a very lively Efe«
fcription of a prevailing idolatrous Power (Ido
latry being frequently ftyl'd Fornication in Scrip
ture) he adds, tf 4. The Woman was array' d in
Purple andScarletColour, and deck'd with Gold and
precious Stones and Pearls, having a Golden Cup
in her Hand full of Abominations and Filibinefs of
her Fornication. She rides upon the ten-horn'd
blafphemous Beaft, tf. 3, 7- And the .Mark
on her Forehead, by which fhe is known, is My-
ftery, Babylon the Great, Mother of Harlots, and
Abominations of the Earth, tf 5. and 6. She is
drunken with the Blood of the Saints, and with the
Bloodof the Martyrs of Jefus : And, to finifh her
Character, She fitteth upon feven Mountains, tf a.
and is that great City which reigneth over the Kings
of the Earth, tf 18.
By this Time I imagine that you, who are
judges of Portraiture, are ready to fay to me,
as the Poet faid to the Painter who had drawn
the Features of his Miftrefs to the Life j E-
nough, hold, I fee the very Whore herfelf*.
You will tell me St. John muft mean the ido
latrous apoftate Papal ' Church, the Seat of
whofe tyrannical periecuting Power is Rome,
the known Miftrefs of the World ; from whence
her abominable Impieties and Superftitions have
overfpread the Weflern Part of the Roman Em
pire, in which this fpiritual Whore rides upon
the Backs of Kings and Nations, who are de
luded by her Fornication and Witchcrafts »
and who has for aimoft a thoufand Years laft.
paft exercis'd not only diabolical Delufions, and
* 'An-j^si, fihiitu yasg dvV.y. Anacreon, Od. 2 8. fin. props-

(*4)
propagated the moft impious and atheiftical
Doctrines; but has engag'd more particularly
the Imperial Sword, and that of other Princes
to fhed the Blood ofthe Saints, and of thofe true
Profeffors of the Gofpel of Jefus who refus*d to
drink of the Cup of hei Abominations, or to
obey thofe Laws by which her Idolatry and
fpiritual Tyranny over Confcience are eftablifh'd.
All this is true and unqueftionable, and the
Antkhriftian Spirit and Power of Popery is in
the foregoing Writings of Daniel, St. Paul and
St. John, defcrib'd in fuch lively but aftonifhing
Characters as are beyond the Force of any hu
man Eloquence to have exprefsd, and which
anfwer, or can be apply'd to no other Super
ftition and Tyranny that ever appearsd in the-
World. But I beg Leave to obferve a few Things*
Could it ever have enter'd into the Heart of
Man to conceive without the Gift of Prophecy,
that the Chriftian Church, the Temple of the;
innocent and holy Lamb of God fhould become*;
the Seat of the Man of Sin ; who there, like
the old Dragon and Apoftate Angel, fhould
defy and blafpheme the moft high, and exalt
himfelf above all that is called God, or Sacred
ATajefty, that is, above all the Kings and Princes
of the lEarth, who are in the Style of Scripture.
call'd Gods ; claiming an abfolute Supremacy
over the whole , Church of Chrift, and fhewing
himfelf to be God, by granting Pardons and Jn*
dul^ences, affuming Infallibility, and a Power;
(which is the peculiar Prerogative of God alone);
over the Confciences of all Men ; and demand-"
ing the fame Worfhip and Obedience to his
Decrees

{ *J )
Decree's, as if they Were the Laws Of the moft
high God ? Nay, and as if this was not enough
to affutne and Accept with a moft arrogant
Blafphemy the very Title and Name of, God,
and Lord God. Thus Marcellus, in the Name
of the Eater an Coiincil, calls Pope Julius the
Second*, anbthir. God upon Earth i . And Pope
John the twenty. fecond is call'd f our Lord God:
And Pope Nidholds afrurn'cl [to himfelf the Titl$
Of God, pretending it W& given to the Popes by
Ctnftantine fh'e G'redt ', and ihfifted from this
Title,'/that he was not accountable to any hu-
feiiah'TTlDunal,;b,eea'Ufett Godcoulclnbt bejudg'd
lyfMen;.l This Atheiftical Blafphemy ftands in
their ihthbf&d B6dy Of Canon Law.
In Confequence of this fpiritual Supremacy
the Church of koine has oppos'd and changed the
Laiws of God bbtn natural and reveal'd, by
rriaking . Celibacy, arid Abjtinence from Meats.,
a neceffary Part of Religion ; and to fhew far-
tfieV their not regarding either God or his Laws,
t'nfe/ have affurti'd the Pagan Power of canon
izing dead Men, and commanding them to be
worfhipped ; they have" made Mauzzim^ Da;*
Hi&nS .arid Heroes, as the Heathens did, and as
Daniel foretold, chap. '^i. 38. to be .worfhipped
as Protector's of Towns and Cities, This Su-
* Alte? DeQS in terris. Condi, edit. Bin. Cot. Agrtp. 1 61 8\
f Ddrtfiius ©eus nofter. Glojf. Extravag. Bb. vi. e. 4 ;
Decret. Bonifac.VIII.- Conftiiut. Ciem.et Extrdvag.
\\ Satis'ei(identer Oftenditur a feculari poteftate nee ligari
jprorfus nee folvi poffe Pontificenij quem conftat a pio principe
Conftantino Deuih appellatum : nee poffe Deuih ab homini-
BnS jadicari mihifeftum eft. Dicret. Part. ia. DiftinQ. 96*
c. 7. edit. Lugdun. 1 66 1 . K. perflation

( 66 )
perftition they have endeavour'd to faBctafy. by
the Name of the Doctrine of Holy Church, and
have fupported it by many lying Wonders and
Miracles, as the Apoftles Paul and John prp-
phecy'd they would do. They have us'd all
Manner of Deceits to gain Converts, invited
Men to drink their Foifon out of a Golden Cup;
have offer'd their Scarlet and Purple to allure
them : And when nothing elfe would do, they
have, by the Terrors of their Anathema's and
Excommunications,; inftigated and prevail'd. on
bigotted arid deluded Princes to perfecute with
Fire and Sword all thofe who bore Teftimony
to the Truth of God's Word, and the pure
Gofpel of jefus Chrift ; and refused to fall down
and worfhip the Beaft. and his Image, and to receive
his Mark in their Foreheads, as 'St. ^a&B'expreffes
it, ch. xx. 4. Well therefore might the Apo
ftle, when he faw the Woman drunken with the
Blood of the Saints, and with the Blood of the.Mar-
tyrs of Jefus, wonder with great Admiration,
chap. xvii. 6. He might well wonder to fee
fuch a bloody perfecutirig Power prevail in the
Chriftian Church ; which hath arrogated with
liorrid Blafphemy that facred Name to itfelf
alone; nay, and ufeth-the very Name and Au
thority of CbrisJ, who came, to fave Men's Lives,
to deftroy his faithful Followers, ° who keep the
Commandments of God, and the Faith . of Jefits,
ch. xiv. 12. All this has come to pafs; and
yet the Eyes of her deluded Worfhippers are
not open'd, fo as to repent of the Works of their
Hands, that they fhould not. worfhip Demons and
Idols of Gold, and Silver, and Brafs, and .Stone,
and of Wood  neither repent of their Murders, not

{67)
nor of their Sorceries, nor of their Fornication,
nor of their Thefts, ch. ix. tf 20, 21.
Secondly, Can it be conceived that without
the Spirit of Prophecy, St. Paul and St. John
fhould forefee that the Roman Erhpire, which
was then in the Height of its Dominion, fhould
bp diffalved and broken into ten Kingdoms before
this Man of Sin, this idolatrous and blafphemous
Beaft fhould be revealed ? Yet the Accomptifh-
ment of this great Event is evident from the
J^jftpry ofthe Latin ox Wtfkexn Roman Empife,
in which this Man ' of Sin, this myfterious, idola
trous^ and bloody Whore, ibis Beaft and falfe Pro
phet was to appear. I fhall not trouble you with
the Hiftory of the Rife of thefe ten Horns or
Kingdoms, into which the Weftern Roman Ern-
pire was broken and divided in the fifth Century,
which you may fee at large in the * Hiftorians
themfelves ; but I fhall fet them before you in
View, as follows ;
I. The Kingdom of the Britains under Aure
lius Ambrqfiits, fecond Son of Conftantine,
who firft revolted from the Romans. Au
relius began to reign, A. D. 481. accord
ing to the Saxon Chronicle.
2. The Kingdom of the Franks in Gallia
Belgica under Pbaramund, A. D. 420.
3. The Kingdom of the Vifigolhs, or Weftern
Goths, in Gallia Aquitania, and Part of
Spain, under Athaulphus, A, D. 412,
* Thefe are the Chronicons of Jerome, Profper Aquita-
tint, FiSfor Turunenfis, Joannes Ahhas, Idachts, Marcellinus
Comes, Zeftmus, Qroftus, Jornandes, Sigonius de Reg. Italiai
tpi dt Qtcident. Impeuo. Paulus Mmilius, and others.
K % 4, The

(68 )
'4. The Kingdom of the Sueves in GatUcla*
under 'Hermenric, ox Hermeric, A. D. 409,
or 412.
5. The Kingdom of the Vandals and Maps in
Africa, under Geiferic, A.D. 427.
6. The Kingdom of the Alans in Lufitania
(Portugal) under At aces, A.D. 412,
7. The Kingdom of the Burgundians in Gak
lia Sequanenfi, A.D. 409. The firft King
uncertain.
8. The Kingdom of the Longobard?, or Lonh,
bards, under Audoin^ after the Hft#.s in,
Pannonia (Hungary) A. D. 526. afterwar,dsi
under Alboin, at Pavia in ij[#£y, A. Q.
569-
a. The Exarchate of Ravenna, made the Sea6
of the Weftern Empire, by Honorius, A.D.
425. and afterwards of the Gothic Kings in
Italy ; So that this Province, and Rtqufr
with its Duchy, became two diftin&
Kingdoms.
io- Rome and the Kingdom of Italy, con-
quer'd by Odoacer, who dethroned and
banifhed Momyllus Auguft ulus. the laft La
tin Emperor, A. D. 476, and afterwards
conquer'd by the Oftrogoths, or Eaftern
Goths, under Theoderic, A. D. 493, apd
ended, A.D. 552 *¦ The
*
* That the Reader a\ay fully underftand how Rome and
its Duchy and Territories in Italy, with the Kingdom of
the Oftrogoths, whofe Sijpt was Ravenna, became two diftiflcl
Jtingdoms of the fourth Beaft of Daniel; it is to be obigrved,
that, during the Reign of the Gothic Kings in Italy, thofe*
Kings ftill acknowledged the Right of the Greek Eniperore, * an<f"

(69)
Tfe? only Doubt about any of thefe King
doms being one of the ten proper Kingdoms,
into which the Latin Roman Empire was brokca,
and divided, is, I think, concerning that of $he
Alans in Lufitania, or Portugal ; becaufe this
Kingdom ended before the Commencement of
the Kingdom of the Longob'ards in the Roman
Empire, or before they fettled in Pannonia :
for it ended, either when their King Beorgote
was Gain by Ricimer the Roman General, A. L\
464. or in the Reign of Euaric, King of i;he
Jfifigoihs, who conquer'd a great Part of ¦Gaul
and. Spain, before A. D. 484.
Therefore fome have reckoned the Kingdom
of the Anglo-Saxons in Britain, which began un
der HeJigift anjl Horfa, A. D. 449. to be one of
%h$. ten Kingdoms. But, I think, this -can
hardly be reckoned one of them, as not arifing
from an InVafion or Conqueft rnade upon th$
Rpmans who left this Ifland, A. D. 43,5. but
being erected amongft the Britains, after they
had revolted from the Romans ; however, if
any choofe to reckon the Saxon Kingdom in
ftead of that .of the Alatft, I fliall not difpute
and held their Kingdom of them ; though the, Greek Empe
rors exercifed no Power in the Gothic Kingdom. So that
the old Roman Empire in Italy ftill fubfifted in the Greek
Emperors ; who alfo held the Provinces of Apulia and Cala
bria under their Jurifdidlion to the Year 969. when they ber
came fubjeft to the Weftern Emperor, Sigon. de reg. Italia,
lib, vii. p. 317. Paulus Diaconus tells us, that Theoderic
reigned at Rome with the Confent of the Greek Emperor
Zeno, Hift. lib. xv. p. 447. and in Acknowledgment of the
.Right of the Greek Emperors, the Kings of the Oftrogoths
Jtamp'd the Effigies of the Emperoi on ope, Side of thein
Cejns, and theif own on the reverfe. it:

(*> )
it : Others have reckoned a Kingdom of the
Huns ; t>ut this Kingdom was ruined before that
of the Alans by the Oftrogoths, who drove them
out of Pannonia, A. D. 455. and they were'
fucceeded there by the Longobards, A.D. 526.
The ten Kingdoms were not completed till
the Rife of the Kingdom of the Lombards ;
becaufe this Kingdom was certainly one of the
three which fell before, or were feized by
the little Horn, or Pope, and obtained by the
Arms of the Franks, Dan. vii. 8, 20, 24.
After this Divifion of the Roman Empire
into ten Kingdoms, the little Horn of Daniel
and feiond Beaft of St. John was to appear ; and
it was to be diverfe from the reft of the Horns,
or Kings (Dan. vii. 24.) becaufe it was a Spiri
tual, Ecclefiaftical, or Epifcopal Kingdom, and
therefore it is faid to have Eyes, f 8. and it
was alfo to be invefted with a temporal Power,
to enable it to make War with the Saints, and to
prevail againft them, for a Time and Times and
ihe dividing of Time, or half a Time, ch. vii.
j^ 21, 25. that Ss, for three prophetic Years
and an half, or 1260 Years, as St. John ex
plains it, Rev.xi. 3, 12. tf 6. compared with
tf 14.. and by forty-two Months (of Years)
Rev. xiii. 5.
Now this little Horn, or fecond Beaft, rofe,
A. D. 606. fourfcore Years after the Divifion
of the Roman Empire into ten Kingdoms, the
laft being that of the Longobards in Pannonia,'
A. D. 526. This Horn which had Eyes (or was
Epifcopus a Seer) and whofe Look was more ftout
(or haughty) than his Fellows, Dan. vii. 20. was
Pope Boniface the Third, Who obtained the Title of

(71 )
«if Unfoflrfal Bijhop, by countenancing the Trea-i
fon, Rebellion, and Murder that Pboeas had
been guilty of, who, A.D. 602. had flain his
Mafter the Emperor Mauritius, and ttfurp'd the
Greek Empire.
By thus obtaining the Supremacy by an impe
rial Decree over both the Eaftern and the We
ftern Church, he was able to fpeak great Words,
and to tyrannize in the Church.' But his Power
was only in Spirituals 5 he was not yet a politi
cal Horn or Beaft, nor able to war with the
Saints with a temporal Sword : But he got from
the Greek Emperor, the City of * Rome with
its Territories, A.D.yzy. this was one of the
Horns which he feized. Afterwards, A. D. 755.
he got by the Arms of Pipin, King of France*
the Exapcbate of Ravenna, with all its Territo
ries from Aiftidphus, King of the Lombards, for
a perpetual" Patrimony Jo .Sf. Peter. So now he
had plucked up two of the ten > Horn is.' -The
Kingdom of Lombar.dy with its Territories was
th$ third Horn which fell before, the papal :Pow-
! , ¦' . ' ' ' '•'"' '¦' >i . ¦ •'•
* Pope Gregory the Second caufed the Tribute w<hich was,
paid annually to the Greek Emperors from Rome and Italy %
to be 'withdrawn from Leo Ifaurus on Account of his reject
ing Image Worftjip".'J He excommunicated the., Emperor; as
an Heretic, and abfolved the People of Italy ftom the"- Alle
giance which they had fworn «to him,., and, feized /or, St.
Peter, Rome and.its Territories : This wwA. D. 727. Thq
Account which Sigonius gives is very remarkable : Gregoriui
Pontifex Leonem Imperatorem piorum communione remo'-
-vit. — — ac mox Italia populos Sacrame'nti; quo fe' illi
obligaverant, religipne exolyit :, Et ne \ci, a.ut- frihutum da-
rent, aut alia ratione.obedirent, indixit.,— *— • I(a Roma'Ra-(
manufque ducatus a Gracis ad Romanum Pontificem 'propter
nefandam eorum Heerefin impietaiimqut perwsit. 'De Reg.1
Jtal. lib. iii. p. 117, t.i8, 119. .:;•*' er,

( 7* )"¦
er, afid was given by Charles, the Great the Sdft
of '.Pipin, to Pope Hadrian, A. D. 774. after he1
had taken it from King Defidsrius by his Inftii
gatiori. Now the Popes reigned over three
Kingdoms, whofe royal Seats were Rome, Ra±
vennd, and Pavia.
Leo the Third, the next Popes had like w
iiave loft all the Power which the preceding
Popes had gain'd : For the principal Meri of
Rome xharg'd him with many heinous Crimes^
and had very near affafiinated him in the Church
©f St. Stephen. Upon this Charles himfelf futn-
moraed a Synod at Rome for his ^Trial, and was
prefent at the Meeting to hgar Leo's Caufe-j
and affer his Accufers had produced their Charge
againft him, Leo could riot confute it, but de*'
dared his own Innocency upon Oath, Which
was accepted.
This was A. D. 800. After this Leo though*
he1 Could not do Charles too nouch Honour M
the Favour he had fhewn him, and for refbsr*
ing tb the Ghiarch its Sovereignty. He there*
fore refofv'd to renounce the Eaft ern Emperor,
and to confer the Imperial Dignity upon Cfthr1est
and to make fiinf (as Sigonius expreffes it). De
fender of the Church. Accordingly, on the
Cbriftmas-'Day following, he folemniy crown'd
him Eknferor of the Romans [which Dignity
Charles, fiatfa Mind tb before] and having prayed
to God arid to the Saints, and the Imperial Dig?
©ity being confirmed to him by the People, the
Pope anointed Cbarlei as Emperor of the Ro
mans, and his Son Pipin as King of Italy. Upon
this * tiganks obferves, That the Dignity of Em*
* Hift.de reg. Ital. lib. iv. p. 179. perof

(7J )
peror of the Weftern Roman Empire which had
ceas'd in Momylius Auguftulus, the laft Enii
peror, almoft three hundred Tears before [it was
really more than 300 Years, for Momyllus Au±
giiftulus was banifh'd from the Exarchate of. Ra±
venka by Odoacer the Goth, A. D. 476;] was
reftor'd by the Pope, that the; Roman Church
might have a Defender againft Infidels, Hereticks;
and Schifmaticks. "•' - '< "
I fhall here take the Liberty' to tranfcribe a
PafTage relating to the Point. before us, from 'a
Moral Philofopher, I meah the great Sir Ifaae
Newton, who was the greateft' Philofopher that
ever liv'd on Earth, and was alfo:a true Belie
ver of the Chriftian Religion, arid was cbn-
firrh'd in his Belief of the Truth of it from 'ihe
Prophecies of Scripture. He obTerves that " in
a Difiertatiori upon fome Coins of Charles the
Great, Ludovicus Pius, Lotharius, and their
Succeffors, ftamp'd at Rome, there is a Draught
of a Piece of Mofaic Work which ,Pope Leo
the third caus'd to be made in his Palace near
the Church' of John Lateran, in Memory of
his fending the Standard or Banner of the
City of Rome 'curioufly wrought, to Charles
the Great ; and which ftill remain'd there at
the publishing of the faid Book. In-the Mo
faic Work there appear'd Peter with three
Keys in his Lap reaching the Pallium to the
Pope with his Right Hand, and the Banner of
the City to Charles the Great with his Left.—*
The three Keys in the Lap of Peter fignify
the Keys of the three Parts of his Patrimony,'
that of Rome- with its Duchy - — r- thofe of
Ravenna with the Exarchate, and the Ter-
L ¦¦¦$- *« ritories,.

(74)
**¦• ritories takep from the Lombards, both which
*'4ie had newly conquei'd. Thefe were thc
«4>thr.ee Dominions, whofe Keys were in the Lap
»f of &.. Peter, and whofe Crowns are now
»«.-wojrn fcy.che Pope; and by the Conqueft. of
«.« which he became the Jit tie Hprn ofthe fourth
5' .Beaft. J&yJPelef's giving the Pallium to the
" Pope with his Right Hand, and (thje B,a,nper
* of the City t©, the King with.his Left, atndvby
t* naming the Peipe before tbe King in the- jnr
'A fcription, inay (foe itjnder|topd that the Pppe
«« was thea^Eeckqn'd fijperior in Dignity to tlie
•« Kings of Ahe: Earth." .
"Aftertrhe Death of Charles thse Great,, his
" Son and Succefior Ludovicus Pius, attheRe-
?*. queft ofthe Pope, eonfirm'd the Donations of
*' his Grandfather and Father to the See of Rome.
** And in the * Confirmation he names firft
" Rome with its Duchy extending into Tuft-any
" and Campania ; then the Exarchate of Ra,
" venna mth. Pentapolis ; and in the third Place
•" the Territories taken from the Lombards.
" Thefe are his three Conquefts, and he was to
?'hold them of the Emperor for the Ufe of
*' the Church, entirely, without the Emperetfs
" meddling therewith, or with the Jurifdiction
" or Power of the Pope therein, unlets call'd
M thereto in certain Cafes. This Ratification
*' the Emperor Ludovicus* made under an Oath}
"and as the King of the Oftrogoths, for ac*
" knowfedgjng that he held bis Kingdom of Ita-,
*•¦« ly of the Greek Emperor, ftampedthe Effigies
t* of tbe Emperor on one Side- of his Coins, and
- * This Confirmation is recited at large in.,- the fourth fiook
of Sigmiut de regno Italia undjr the Year 817. "his

( 75 )
«' his own on the.Reverfe ; fo the Pope mades-the
" like Acknowledgment to the Weftern En>
" peror. Foi", the Pope began now.tq coin
** Money -, and the Coins pf Rome, are heqce-
". forward found .with the Heads of the Em-
;" perors, Charles, Ludovic-us P'iusr' Lothqrius.,
"and their Succeffors on the, one Side, and the
" Pope's Infcription on the'Reveffe, for, many
» Years*."
Thefe remarkable Events are a,, moft, evident
Accpmplifhment, and certain Explicitio.h, of
the Prophecies of the thirteenth. Chapter o'f the
Revelations ; and of feveral Parts, of the feventh
Chapter" of Daniel. Here you may fee plainly
the ten-horn'd Beaft rifen out of the Sea \iheEu-
ropean Parts of the Roman Empire call'd Sea.,
as being full of Seas and River s~\ by the Divifion
of that Empire into ten Kingdoms. You have
alfo feen one of the Heads as it were wounded to
Death, and his deadly Woitnd hedl'd, $ 3. ' , This
was the principal Cafarean Head of the broken
Roman Empire in the Perfon of Momyllus, Au
guftulus the laft Jfieftern Emperor, who was
depos'd and bariilh*d' by Odoacer King of the, H4-
ruli, A. D. 476. And this Wound was never
after healed by the Revival of a Weftern Empe
ror, till Charges the Great was made Emperor ;
(And he is the Image of the Beaft (or Reprefeq-
tative of the old Roman Empire) which was
jybunded by the SVord of the barbarous Na
tions, who invaded", Vcon^uer'd and divided the
Empire or ^ody of the $eafl: Into ten .King
doms. . ' ;¦ '"f j' _..'., u, . |
. * Qbfirvatim uptm jht Pr^hteifi of .Dapi(& ph. vfi.
j>. 86, 87. 88, 89.
L t The

( 7<n
The' fecond Beaft or papal Power, as you
have likewife feen, commanded this Image to be
made, f 14. And the Head being thus heal'd,
you fee how the fecond Beaft exercifd all the
Power of the firft Beaft, tf 12. by having the
three Kingdoms of Italy confirm'd to him ; and
alfo having the Imperial Sword itfelf at his De
votion. Therefore it is plain that from A. D. 800.
the War wilh the Saints commenc'd by the little
Horn in Conjunction with the firft Beaft who had
given him a triple Crown, and alfo fworn to
defend the papal Power with all the Forces of
the Empire. And as this Poweft of warring
with and prevailing againft the Saints, or all
who fhould keep tbe Commandments of God, and
the Faith of Jefus, ch. xiv. tf 12. and oppofe the
"papal Tyranny and Imperial Decrees made to
Tupport it, was to laft, according to Daniel, three
Tears and an half; or, as St. John explains it,
forty two Months, or 1 2 60 prophetic Days, that
is, fo many Years i it hence follows, that this
perfecuring, idolatrous and tyrannical Power
will not end or be entirely abolifli'd . till A. D.
2060. when a great many other Prophecies will
begin to be fulfill'd.
The Ground ofthe Miffakes of thofe learned
Men wfio have computed the Reighs of the
Beafts either from the Deppfition and Banifh-
ment of Momylluf Auguftulus, A. D. 476; and To
made them end,A. D. 1736. or elfe from the
¦Rife ofthe Papacy in Boniface, A.D. 606. antl
fo make them end A.D. 1866. The Groflnd,
I fay, of thefe .Miftakes is want of confidering
the Prophecy of Daniel concerning the tint
Hom,

( 77 )
Horn, which is the fecond Beaft of St..Jchn ;
and alfo What St.' John fays concerning the firft
Beaft. It is evident' from Daniel, that: the little
Horn was to be poffefs'd of three Horns or
Kingdoms before he made War with the Saints,
and overcame them.. Hear his Words: The ten
Horns out of this (fourth) Kingdom are ten Kings
' thai fhall arife : and another fl.iall rife after them,
and he fhall be diverfe from the firft, and he fhall
fubdue three "Kings. And he fhall fpeak great
Words againft the moft High, and fhall wear out
the Saints of ihe moft High, and think to change
Times and Laws : And they fhall be-giv'en into his
Hand, untif^a lime and Times, and the dividing
of Time, ch.' vii. 24', 2 5. Can any thing be more
clearly exprefs'd than that the Horn which was
to rife after the ten Kings, was tb wear out the
Saints, and have them given into his Hand for the
.Term of 1260 Years, denoted by a Time, Times
and half, after he . had fubdued three Kings ?
St. John alfo plainly fuppofes that the fecond
Beaft was to exercife the Power of the firft Beaft,
or to have a temporal power in the Roman Em
pire,, and to heal his Wound by caufing an Image
to be made to him, before he was able to caufe all
to be kill'd who would not worfhip the Beaft, whofe
deadly. Wound was heal'd, Rev. xiii. 12, 14, 15.
It is alfo evident that the deadly Wound of the
Beaft w 'as to be h.eal'd, before he had Power
given him to make War with the Saints, and to
•overcome them- forty and i-tvo Months, i. e. again,
1,260 Years. The Words of St. John are:
And I faw one of bis Heads as it were ¦Wounded to
Death 1 and bis deadly Wound was healed : And
' - all

( 78 )
all the World {or Earth) twonder'd after the Beaft .
And they worfhipped the Dragon [the Devil] who
gave Power unto the Beaft, and they worfhipped
the Beaft  — and there was given unto him a
Mouth fpeaking great Things, and. Blafphemies;
and Power was given, unto him to continue [it
fhould be render'd, to make War] forty two
Months. And he open'd his Mouth in Blafphemy
againft God, to blafpheme his Name, and his Ta-
herflacle, and them that dwell in Heaven. And it
was given unto him to make War with the Saints,
and to' overcome them,, eh. xiii. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.
Hence it appears that the Beginning of the
Reign of ' Antichrift (properly fo call'd) is fix'd
With great Certainty to A. D. 800.^
Jrlaving prov'd the Accomplifhment of the
Prophecies relating to the Apoftafy of the Church
of Rome, and to the judgments which God's
Providence has fuffer'd to fall on the Chriftians
of the Western Part of the Roman, Empire thro'
thd prevailing Power of its Superftition and
Tyranny : I fhall trouble you with two other
Prophecies relating to the Judgments which
were to fall on the Chriftian Church ofthe pa
ttern ox Greek fcftipire, and to the Diffolutioh
of that Empire, for their Wickednefs ' arid Ido
latry, Thefe Prophecies are very emphatically call
ed WOES, chap. viii. 13, ''
They are both introduc'd with Sound' qf
Trumpets, which you will readily grant are' Noj-
tice's of Wars,. ' { . . -
The fifft : Prophecy begins Chapter tfie-riinin.
And ib$ fifth Angel founded^ and Tfaw a SiaKfajl fiom

( 7? )
from, Heaven unto the * .Earth, and to biiifwas
giyen the Key of the bottomlefs Pit. Afid he opened
thphpttomfefs Pit, and there arcife a Smoke out of
tf>e. Pit, as ihe Smoke of a great Furnape ; and
the Sun and the Air Were darkened^ by fleafon of
ihe Smoke ofthe Pit. And there came out of the
Smoke Locufts upon thefEarth ; and untd fhemfwas
given Power as the Scorpions of the Earth [or
Ea.nd- Scorpions'] have Power : and it was com
manded- them that they jhpuld not hurt the Grafs
of the 'Earth', neither any green Thing, neither atty
f Fruit] Tree, but, only thofe Men, which have not
i.he Seal of Gad in their Foreheads (i. e. who are
pot Worfhippers of the true God, but have the
Mark of the Beaft and worfhip him.) And to
tfiem.it was given that they fhould not Mil, them, but
that ihey fhould 'be tormented FIVE MONTHS.
And their Torment was as the Torment of 4 Scor
pion when keftriketh a Man'.— .And the Shapes of
the Locufts were like unto Horfes prepafd unto
Battle; and on their Heads tbey bad as it Were
Cr-,owns like Gold, and their Faces were as the
Faces of Men. . And they. haft Hair as the Hair
of. Women: and, their Teeth, were as the Teeth of
* The tartb in thefe Prc-phecies generally fignifies the
corrupt idolatrous Chriftians in oppofition to/thdfe who are faid
to dwell in Heaven, pr who worfhip the Gad /of Heaven, and
who are Members of the true Chw-cji piQhitfft, and Heji$
of the .Kingdom fif Heaven. Therefore the prapon is fajd, JCg
be eaft out into the Ejtfrth, di. ?cii. 9. Thf Inhabitants ofthfi
Earth and of the Sea are oppos'd to thofe vubo dvjell in Hea
ven, ir 12. Axdthefirft Btdft rsfetut of the Sea, iandtih4
fecund Jleaji raft put of the ,Eartk, ch. xiii. 1, 1 if And tbej
that dtwelfupon the Earth vuorfhip the Beaft, txhoft jfamei
are not •written in the Book of Life, ef the Lamb flain from tbe
Foun4ation of tbe World}, jt 8. Lyons.

( &o )
Lyons. And., they had, Breaft-plates _ as it were
Breaft-plates of Iron, and the Sound- of their Wings ¦
was as -theftoundof Chariots of many Horfes run.
ning to .Battle. And they bad' Tails l}ke unto Scor
pions and Stings ; and in their ' Tails they .have
Power Jo hurt Men FIVE' (other) MONTHS,
This is the true Reading of Verfe the. tenth."
And they had a King over them, which is the An
gel of the battomlefs Pit, \wbofe Name in the He
brew Tongue is Abaddon, 'butjnfbe Greek Tongue
his Name is ApoWyqn (i.e.' the Deftroyer.) One
WOE is paft, tfi— — ii.
The foregoing Prophecy contains a beautiful'
and very ernphatical Account of the' Rife of the
Mohammedan ^mpofture,and of the Plagues to
be inflicted", by '.the Saracens on the Chriftians
both of the Eaftern and Weftern Empire for their
Wickednefs'and Impieties in having corrupted
the holy Religion of the Gofpel with Idolatry,'
and leading .immoral and ungodly Lives. As
the Devil, '.by the Permiffion of Divine Provi
dence, had fet up a Papal Idolatrous Tyranny
in the Church" ajp Rome, which had infected with
-its Superftition and Herefy "the whole Latin
Empire, 'and' fpread its Abominations, and In>
pieties in the Church of the Greek Empire alfo,
©ver which .it; had afnim'd an Antichrift'ian
Power : "So the fame apoft ate. So'vit, reprefented
by a Star -fallen from Heaven upon Earth, is per-1
mitted to open the' bottomlefs Pit, which is the]
Sink of Impofture arid falfe Religion. The
Smoke rifingout of the Pit. is an Emblem ofthe
pernicious Doctrines and deceitful Arts of this
Impofture'; and the Locufts axe the Followers of
them. The

( tt )
^he Locufts i fern forth are the Armies of the*
Saracens,- who came from AfaUa, a Country
noted for jSrfddocing Swarms; of Locuftsi
The Locufts which infefted -Mgypt were
brought thither by; an Eaft Wind ffom Arabia^
Exod. x. 13* and' by a Weft Wind were driven
back into the Red Sea, tf'ify-'- And Arabia lay
Eaftward of Mgypt. The Arabians are call'd?
the Men of the Eaft, as living Eaftward alfo of
Judsaa; and their Armies are cOmpar'd to a;
Multitude of Locufts, Jud. vi, 3. chap. Vii. ifc.'
And Locufts were always fo pernicious and de-
ftrutflive of the Fruits of the Earth, wherever
they came, though they were not able to kift
Men, that Pliny *' fays they Were thought to be
Plagues fent by D'wine Vengeance.
They are faid to have a King over them, Whdf
was call'd Apollyon, Or the DeftrOyer. Thii is
Che King of tbe South in Darnell "Who Was to
pufh at the Roman King or Empire, but not to
overthrow him ; that Work being rfeferv'd for
the King of the North, Dant xL 40. And thist
fliews that the Saracens were to have a King who
was to be invefted with temporal Power, aS
Well as tq be the Head of their Religion. The
firft King was Mohammed, commonly call'd
Mahomet, who was the Founder of this falfe
Religion1, who taught his Difciples that fince
Miracles had failed, they fliould propagate the
Faith with the Swordi
The Saracens axe more particularly pointed
out in the Prophecy by Locilfts having Crowns
¦on their Heads, which fignify their Mitres or
* Deorum irae peftis e» jriteiligitar. Hift. Natlib. xi. c. 4<j».
M Turbant

( 82 )
Turbans iri; the Form of Eaftern. Crowns •, and
wearing long, Hair like Women, as they were
known to. do ; and therefore are call'd * a long
haired Nation. . .; ¦ ¦-.-¦,
. I fhall not trouble you with any farther Illu-
ftratfon of the Properties of Locufts, which an
fwer exactly to the prophetic Defcription of
tihem. But as there can be no Doubt that the
Arabians or Saracens are meant in tbe Prophecy,
\, fhall proceed to fhew how what, is faid of them
was exaclly fulfilled in their fudden and wide
extended Invafions.and Conquefts made both in
the Eaftern and, Weftern Parts of the Roman
Empire,: moft aptly and; elegantly cpmpar'd to
the Flights of vaft Swarms of devouring Lo
cufts, and their overfpreading the Face of a
whole Country.
The Power given to thefe Locufts is, that
they fhould, not kill, but only torment the Men
who had not th'e.Seal of God in their Foreheadsj
that is, thofe who had forfaken the true Wor-
foip of God, and had corrupted the holy Faith
of Jefus with the idolatrous Worfhip of Images.
and Relics, of Saints and Angels. :
However they were not to f kill them ; that
• * Jerome defcribes them, " Crinitis vittatifque capitibus.
Vit. Malchi. Appen. ad Tom. iv. p 92. ' And Pl'mf
fays of them, " Arabes "mitrati degunt, aut [readei] intonfo
*' c'rine." Hifl.Nat.'[\b:v\..c. 28;
f An Empire is properly faid to be kill'd, when the capfc
fal Seat of it is taken ; and the Emperor himfelf entirely fub-
dued, and his Government is diffolv'd and ceafeth. But tho"
many Parts of an Empire rtiay.be conquer'd, the Empire fs
ftill alive and fublifts, whilft the Laws and Government of it
remain, and are exercis'd over a principal Part of it i and
the Seat or Metropolis is not fubdued. is

( »3 )
is, they were not to deftroy "either the, Eaftern
or Weftern Empire ; but only to invade and
conquer many of the Provinces of both, and
keep them under a miferable Slavery worfe than
Death itfelf. Therefore it is faid, tf 6. In thofe
Days fhall Men feek Death, and fhall not find it ;
and fhall defire to die, and Death fhall flee from
them. •"¦ ••.-.
The Time of the Chriftians being tormented
by the Mahometan Saracens, is faid to be for
five Months, and again ; for five Months, that
is, for ten prophetic Months, or 300 Years : A
Day is reckoned for a Year, and a Month is
thirty Years, as. all agree, who are the leaft ver-
fed in the Style of the Prophecies. Thefe ten
Months are divided into five Months and five
Months, to preferve the Decorum of the Sym
bol, and to reprefent the Lives of Locufts,
which live only * five Months ; for they are
bred in the beginning of Spring, and they die
in the End of Summer ; fo the five Months of
their Lives are Aprf* May, June, July, and
Auguft. Now the Time of thefe Saracens, and
their Power of tormenting, Chriftians by the juft
Judgment of God is to be reckon'd, as that of
the Papal Tyranny is, from their firft invading
them with a temporal Power, or making War
againft them, and , bringing them under their
Dominion : And the Time of their Dominion
and Power of tormenting was to ceafe, when
the temporal Power of the Caliph, who was the
Centre of their Union, was taken away andde-
* See ftriftot. Hift- Animal, lib. v. c. z8. Plin. Hift. Nat.
lib. xi. c. 29. M 2 ftroy*d;

'( *4 )
ftrOy'cT; ih like Manner as the Power of th»
Whofe afld Beaft at Rome fhall ceafe when the
'pontiff fhall be ftripp'd of his temporal Power \
Which St. John expreffes by making the Whore
naked, and eating her Flefih, ctnd burning her with
Fire, Rev. xvii. %6.
It is very obfervable that the two Anticbrifk
or Popes, one in the Weftern or Latin, and tbfc
other in the Eaftern or Greek Empire rofe near
ly at the fame Time. A- Di 606. Boniface the
third obtained of Phocas, who had rebell'd a,
gaihft his Mafter the Emperor Mauricius, and
flain him, and ufurp'd the Greek Empire, the
Title of univerfal Bijhop, and fupreme Head
both of the Eaftern and Weftern Church, And
by an Imperial Decree he took upon him that
Uafphemous Name, which His Predeceffor Gre
gory the Great, when John the Patriarch of
Conftantinople would have aflum'd it, did in ah
Epiftle openly condemn as the Invention of tbe
firft Apoftate, and the Mark of Antichrist. TWO
Years after this, A. D. 6g8. Mohammed, or
'Mahomet, proclaim'd himfelf to be the Prophet
of God, and began to preach his falfe Religion **.
In the firft Year Of the Hegira, or of his
'flight fxom Mecca to Medina, whence his Fol
lowers computed their Years, and which com-
feencrdon Friday the i6:h Day of July, A.D.
$22.- Mshamitied deliver'd the military Stan-
* F/maein.tHifi. Saracen, edit, a ¥hom. Eipen. Lug. Bat.
-l&t, p- .3-;. $>umk#i' and other?,,, ipvd. I&it?Qger,_ H$.
Orient, p." 31 8. Ahul-? harafii Hift. Dynaft. edit. Pocock.
Oxfln. 1,663,. Aliilfed vit. Mobammedis edit, a Gagpier
V'xon. -i ^23. fcap. vii. ' AhulPharaj. Specimen. Hift. \Arah.
edit. Pococli. dard

dard to his Urtole tiahnza, in order to dejetait
and propagale his Religion by Arms. And to
the fecond Year, A. D. S23. he made War upi-
©n the People Of Meed*. In the fixfti Year of
the Hegira, A. D. 627. Mohammed was inaugu
rated under a Tree as the Prophet of God ; and
hence began the Saracenic Empire. ; The Time
of his Government was fpeht in making Wars
and Conquefts upon the Jews and idolatrous
Arabians ; and in the Space of ten Years or lefs,
he had brought the greateft Part of Arabia Fe
line under his Dominion, and had converted the
People from Idolatry and Paganifm to his Re
ligion. The Christians were not yet invaded, or be
gan to be tormented. After the Death of Mo-
-bammed, * Abubecer, his Father in Law, who
was the firft Calif, in the twelfth Year of the
Hegira, A. D, 633. fent forth an Army under
Abuobeida to invade Syria, which was a principal
Province of the Greek Empire. The Calif
conducted the Army himfelf out of Arabia tb
the Borders of Syria : And when he left them
•to the Conduct, of their General, he gave thern,
this remarkable Charge : If, fays he f, ye be
Conquerors, kill no Children, nor old Men or Wo
men ; fpoil not Groves of Palm Trees ; nor burn
tbe Corn ; nor cut down Plantations of Fruit Trees' \
flay no Cattle, but fuch as you fhall Kill for Food.
How furprizingly does this agree to the
Command in the Prophecy to the Locuftst fent
* Elmacin, p. 20. Abul-Pharaj. p. 1 09.
f Ociley of the Conqueft of Syria, p. 35. Eutych. Pa{
triarcb. Alex. Annal. Tom. ii. p. 259. forth

f S6 )
forth to torment Men ? who, though it is their
natural Property to devour the Fruits of the
Ground; are commanded, That they fhould not
hurt the Grafs of . the Earth, neither any green
Thing ; neither any Tree ; but only thofe- Men whp
have not the Seal of Godin weir Foreheads.. This
fot'W^ that their Wars were to be of a religious
Nature, to propagate the Doctrine of their Cc-
,ran. A,nd therefore they did not lay wafte the
Countries which they conquer'd, but treated
thofe whp embrac'd their Religion as Brethren,
and let them enjoy their Property free 'from
.Tribute ; and thofe who, refused their Affent to
Mohammedifm, or to become Muffulmen, they
fubjected.to Tribute only.
When Heraclius the Greek Emperor heard the
News of the Saracens invading Syria, he fum-
rnon'd fiis Council, and told thern % 7hat this
Judgment was come upon them, becaufe they had
not obey'd the Precepts of the Gofpel.
Abubecer died foon after this, A. D. 634. and
was fucceeded .by Omar, who was the firft whp
was cal I'd b Emperor of the Faithful. H is A rmy
Under Chalid conquer'd feveral Parts of Syria,,
and took Damafcus the Capital of Ccele-Syria in
July c A.D. 635. and the next Year Phoenicia
and Ccele-Syria was all fubdued. For, after
the taking of Damafcus, the Roman Emperor
jaisM a prodigious Army, which cohfifted qf
two hundred and forty thoufand Men, who
? Ocil ibid.
h Elmadn, lib. i. p. 3.0. Ahu! Pharaj. p. UO.
'-.Elmaciu. lib. i. p. 2;. Abul-Pharaj. p. 1 1 z. Eufycb.
Ai.nal. p. -79, z%o. torn. ii. march'd

{87 )i
march'd againft the Saracens in order to reco
ver Syria, and fought them at ' the River Ter-
mouck. The Saracens, though no more than
thirty fix thoufand in Number, gain'd a com-
pleat Victory ; ahji" with the Lofs of four thou
fand Men only flew an hundred and fifty thou
fand Chriftians of the Roman Army, and took
forty thoufand- Prifoners. Upon this Victory
all Phoenicia and Ccele-Syria fell into the Hands
of the Saracens \
This fatal' Battle of Termouck was fought in
November*' in the fifteenth Year of the Hegira,
A. D. 636. And hence the Apocalyptical WOE,
and the Date of the Torment of the Chriftians
for 300 Years began, When the Mohammedan
Calif reign'd over the Chriftians at Damafcus',
where he now fix'd the Seat of his Empire.
In the Space of two Years after this the Sara*
cens conquer'd Jerufalem, and all c Paleftine,
and all the upper Syria alfo, havirig beat an
other great Army / of . the Roman Emperor*
which was fent to raife the Siege of Antioch.
They likewife conquer'd^ the Metropolis of J
Perfia, A. D. 63 j. and reduc'd a great Part of
that Kingdom under their Dominion. In the
eighteenth Year of the Hegira, A. D. 639.*
the Army of the fame Calif Omar beat/ the
Forces of the Emperor Heraclius in Egypt ;
a Ockl. p. 241. Cedren. Cotnpend. Hi&.p. $$o. Elmacin.
ftp. Paul. Diac. lib. xviii. p. 59;. '.;•,
b Elmacin. Ockl. ftp.
t Elmacin. lib. i. p. -26. Cedren. p. 351. Paul. Diac.
lib. xviii. p. 596. Eutycb. Annal. tom. ii. p. 284. Abul-
Pharaj.. p. U2.
d Elmacin. fup. SaJeh Lives of famous-Men of the Eaft. and

(M)
sUid took Mefra or Kairo %¦ and in the End of
the next Year reduc'd Alexandria after a Siege
of fourteen Months ; and the fame Year con*
quer'd the Libyan Provinces, of Mgypt *.:
The Year following A* D. 641- the Saracens..
con<per'difl;l thq Provinces of Mefopofamat^ Ar
menia, "and Affyria 5 and- fubdued the remaining
Provinces of Perfia. -, and laid a general Tax
i^pon all the conquer'd. Provinces \
Thus you fee how foon the Saracens over-
fpreafd the Roman Provinces irt Afia and Aigyft*
like Locufts with the Wingpf of their Armies
But flying out of the Bounds-, fet them by Pro
vidence, and endeavouring to kill when their
Orders were only to torment the Greek Empire,
they had like to have met with a fatal Difafter:
For, in the 53d Year of the Hegira, A. D. 672.
the Calif Muavias having fubdued Africa fent
his Son je-zid with an Army of an hundred
thoufand Men to befiege Copfiantinople, the Ca
pital of the Greek Empire, intending to maks
it the Seat of the Saracenic Kingdom. But thia
Metropolis of the Greek Empire was deftin'd by
Providence for the fecond WOE. following,
which was to kill the third Part of Men by a to
tal Deftruction of the Greek Empire, the third
Kingdom of Daniel's Prophecies.
The Saracens therefore, though they befieg'4
Conftantinople for feven Years together, and had
many Battles with the Greeks before k, were
always repuls'd and beaten ; loft a great Part of.
¦'• Elmacin-. p. 27, 28. 35. AbufPharaj. ftp. Etttych. An
nal. tom. ii. p.. 316. 319
b Elmacin. fup. Abul Pbaraj. ftip. Cedren. p. 353. Paul-.
Diacen. lib. xiii. p. 598. Sigm. de Reg. Ital. lib. ii. p. 74.
their

( 89 )
their Army by Famine and Peftilence ; their
Fleet was fhatte,r'd to pieces with Storms ; and
they were forc'd to return with-great Lofs and;
Difgrace to Damafcus ,\
They had no better Fortune when they be7
fieg'd ita fecond Time, when b Soliman was Calif
in the ninety eighth Year of the Hegira, A. D*
716. , For they were only, as Dajfej had fore*
told, to pufh at and wound the Greek Empire^
but not to overthrow it, ch. xi. 40, .
, In the 145th Year of the Hegira, A. D. 762.,
the Calif Almanfor c built the City Bagdad^ and
it became the Seat of the Caliphs. This latter
Seat of the Saracenic Empire, andthp Conquefts
they made after in the. Weftern RomanrF^npixe^
feem« to be meant by the Tails of the, Lucufts;*
with which they were to have Power to.tor-f
ment. Men five other Months. .j.) ,-¦
The Saracens having conquer'd Spaim and^
Part of Gaul from tbe Goths and Sueves6-, they"
turn'd their Arms to Italy, and the adjacent.
Provinces, and tormented their Brother Beaft
the Roman Antichrift. For in the 2.13 th, Year,
of the. liegfira, A. D. 828. they feiz'd upon Si*,
aly,. Calsbria, and other Parts of Italy, and
plundered many Towns which they took e.
¦ a Elmacin. p. 5;, 56. • Cedren. p. 359, 360. Zonan
Annal. lib. xiv. p 89,, 90.
b Abul-Pharaj. p. 130. Cedren. p. 371. Paul. Diac.
lib. xxi. p. 667, 668. Zonar. Annal. lib. XV. p. 101. Ro
derick Xim.Tolet. p. 15.
c Elmacin. p. 122. Ab'ulPharaj. p.* 141. Eutyck- An
nul, tom. ii. p. 399. He was the fecond Calif of the Fa
mily of Abbas, which fucceeded that of Ommias.
' d This'was A. D. 71 1. or 717. according -to Sigm. '.'
„" Cedren. p. 421. and An'. 841. they infofted' Apuliifind
Campania. Sigon. de Reg. Ital, lib. v. p. 21 1.
*>^ N And

($>=> )
And fome Years after A. D. 846. an Army of
them came in a Fleet out of Africa, and march'd
up to the very City of Rome, and plunder'd
the Churches of Peter and Paul, which were in
the Suburbs, of all their Riches and precious
Ornaments a. And from this Time to A. D.
869. they had pofiefs'd themfelves of all Lorn-
lardy, which was the Pope's Territory,, and
made Inroads to the very Gates of Rome.
But Rome could not befubdued by them, be
caufe it was given to the Roman Califs, and was
the Seat appointed by Providence for the We
ftern Beaft to exercife his Cruelties upon the
Chriftians of the Latin Empire, as the Saracenic
Pope was to torment the Chriftians chiefly of the
Greek Empire. The Saracens did not therefore
keep long their Conquefts in Italy, and were
driven out of almoft every Part of it, A. D.
The Saracenic. Empire, under the Califs, be
gan to decline An. Heg. 298. A. D. 910. till
which Time the Califs had the fupreme Power
over the whole Empire, both in temporal and
fpiritual Affairs. But after this the feveral
Prefects began to fet themfelves up for Kings
in the feveral Provinces committed to their Go
vernment. In the 300th Year of the Hegira,
A. D. 912. the Przefeft of Spain, Abdurrhaman
Nafir Lidinilla, was the firft who fhook off
his Allegiance to the Calif, and was proclaim'd
c Emperor of the Faithful : Others, who rul'd
¦ Cedren. p. 474, 475. Sigon. de Reg. Ital. lib. v. p. 215.
fc Sigon. de Reg. Ital. lib. 6. p. 279, 2 So.
c Elmacin. p. 236. over

(9' )
ever other Provinces, follow'd his Example ;
and in the Space of twenty-four Years the Calif
was divefted of all his temporal Power.
For, in the 324th Year of the Hegira, A. D.
935. the Calif Arradis Billa * being befet with
War on every Side, was forc'd to refign all the
temporal Power which was left him in Babylonia,
Chaldaa to the Governor of Cbaldaa. And
the Arabian Hrftorian b Elmacinus obferves, that
in the Beginning of the 325th Year of the He
gira, which commenced on the 19th Day of
November, A. D. 936. the World, as he ex
preffes it, was got into the Hands of the feveral
Princes who had made themfelves Kings of the
Countries they had been fet over by the Califs,
and reign'd in their own Right. The Calif
was ftripp'd of all his temporal Power, and
had nothing left him but Bagdad, where he
liv'd only as a mere fpiritual Pope or Prelate.
Now, with the Abolition of the Power of the
Calif, ended the 300 Years of the Locufts tor
menting Men : And the Prophecy was fulfill'd
not only to a Tear, but to a Month. It com-
menc'd in November, An. Heg. 15. A. D. 636.
when the fatal Battle of Termouck was fought,
and was fully completed in November, An. Heg.
325. A. D. 936. And henceforth the Saracens
by the Divifion of their Empire, and by mutual
Wars arnongft themfelves, loft all Power of
tormenting the Greek Empire any longer c.
a Elmacin. p. 254, 255. Abul-Pbaraj. Dynaft. ix. p. 199,
b Elmacin. lib. iii. p. 255.,
e Cedren. Comp. Hift. p. 633. Zonar. Annal. lib. xvii.
P- 255-
N %- For,

( 9* )
For, immediately after this, the Roman Em
perors gain'd Ground upon the Saracens, as both
Arabian and Chriftian Hiftorians agree. They
prefently feiz'd many a Provinces in Mefopotar
mia, Media, Armenia, and Syria, out of their
Hands, all in the Space' of fix Years, An. Heg.
$31. A. D. 942. And by degrees recover'd
both b Ccele-Cyria and the upper Syria from
them, and many other Provinces qf the Greek
Empire : They beat their Armies, burned their
Cities, and made many Prifoners ; and the Sa
racenic ,Empire continually declin'd till it wa§
finally deftroy'd by the Turks.
I .beg leave to "make one Obfervation more
upon the preceding Prophecy. It is, that as
the papal Antichriftian Power rofe not in the
Weftern Empire rill, after it was diffolv'd and
divided ipto ten Kingdoms -, fo on the contrary
the Mohammedan Antichriftian Power of the
Califs ceas'd when the Saracenic Empire was
divided into ten Kingdoms alfo. The ten Sa?
raeenic Kingdoms, as reckon'd by Elmacinus%
(lib. iii. p. 255,) are as follows:
I. Bafra, Wafit and Ahwaz, i. e. the ftony
and defert Arabia, Chaldaa and Sufiana,
under Abu-4bdalla Baridwus, arid' his Bro
thers.
2. Perfia and Media under Aniaduddaulas,
the Son of Bojas the: Dailamite, and Waf-
vidkin Brother of -Mardawigus. ¦-"*
» Cedren. and-Zonar. .jfyp. Elmacin. ^HiS. SaraWi. -lib. iii.
p. 267. Abul.Pbaraj. p. 207".
b Elmacin. .lib. iii. -,p. 28o, 284, 28£. Abul-Pbar/ij.
P. 207: ' Cedren. "p. 539, 540. Elmacin. p. 290,291.
Cedren. p. 548. Zonar. Annal, lib. xvi. p. 204. 209.
3. AfW?

(93 )
3. Maufila, Diarrebia, and Diarbecra, that
is, Syria, Affyria, Mefopotamia and Arme
nia, under Saifuddaulas, one of the Sons
of Hamadan.
4. Egypt and Cosle- Syria, under Mohammed
Achsjid, Son of 'i^ag-.
5. The Provinces . of Africa, under Cajim Son
of Mahad.
6. Spain, under the Sons, of Ommias.
7. Chorafan, that is, the old Batlria and vfm,
under _Afo/n or iViz/jr, Son of Ahmed the
Samanite.
8. Jamarna, Bahraina, .and. Hagjara, that is,
Arabia Felix, as far as the Perfi an Sea, un
der Ta/&<?r the Caramite.
9. Tabriftan, and Giorgia, that is, Hyrcania
and Iberia, under the Dailamites.
10. Bagdad, with its Territories, under the
Calif Arradis and Mohammed, the Son of
/caf/V.
I proceed to the Prophecy of the fecond WOE,
which I fhall fhew, in as few Words as may be,
to have been fulfil I'd by the Conquefts of the
Turks, and their Deftruction of the G?w& Em
pire. As the ^Saracenic Power is call'd by Daniel
[chap. xi. 40.] the King of the South, becaufe
Arabia; where it rofe, lies fouthward of Judaa :
So .the Turkifh Power is by him call'd the King
pf the North, becaufe the Country, from whence
the Turks came, lies North. of Judea. Of him
Daniel prophecy'd, Thaf he fhould come againft
Mm [i. e. againft tkerRoman Empire immediate
ly -before fpoken of] lite a Whirlwind, with
Chariots

( 94 )
Chariots and with Horfemen, and with many
Ships ; and he fhall enter into the Countries, and
fhall overflow and pafs over.
This is plainly a more terrible and deftruc-
tive WOE, and is more fully and folemnly ex-
plain'd by St. John, who fays, The fixth Angel
founded, and I heard a Voice from the four HornS
of tbe golden Altar, which is before God, faying to
the fixth Angel, which had the Trumpet, Loofe the
four Angels which are bound in the great River
Euphrates-, and the four Angels were loosed who
were prepared for an Hour and a Day, a Month
and a Tear, to flay the third Part of Men. And
the Number ofthe Army of the Horfemen were two
hundred thoufand thoufand [ i. e. a very great
Number] and I heard the Number of them. 
By thefe three {Fire, Smoke, and Brimftone) was
the third Part of Men KILL'D, Rev. ix. 13, 14,
15, \6. 18.
There are two obfervable Differences between
the two WOES.
You may obferve that the Power of the firft
WOE is not limited, but general ; and therefore
it was extended over the Weftern Parts of the
Roman Empire, over Africa, Spain, Gaul, and
Italy, as well as over the Eaftern Parts or the
Greek Empire. But the fecond WOE is conT
fin'd to the third Part of Men, that is, to the
third or Greek Empire, which is the third King
dom of Daniel's Vifions ; and which alfo chiefly
exifted in Afia, the third noted Part in the old
Divifion of the World.
A fecond Difference is* that in the firft WOE
the Locufts axe exprefly commanded not to Ml,
but only to torment Men ; But in. the fecond
WOE

(5>J )
WOE the THIRD PART of Men are to be
kill'd. Therefore as the firft WOE was fulfill'd
by the Saracens, who conquer'd many Provinces
of the Roman Empire, and made them tribu
tary to them, without being able to deftroy the
Empire itfelf by conquering either Rome the
firft Seat, or Conftantinople the fecond Seat of
that Empire, and which is more immediately
concern'd in the Prophecy before us : So the
fecond WOE muft have been fulfill'd by a
Power which fucceeded that of the Saracens,
and was to put an End to the Greek Empire,
by the entire Conqueft of it, and making Con
ftantinople, the Capital of it, the Seat of another
Empire. This undoubtedly muft be meant by
the flaying the third Part of Men. And as you
will agree that the Empire which fucceeded
that of the Saracens was the Empire of the
Turks, you will, I hope, alfo agree that this
Prophecy before us is exactly fulfill'd by the
Turkifh Empire, if I can fhew that the Greek
Empire was deftroy'd by the Turks in the Man
ner, and at the Time fet forth in the Pro
phecy. I fhall therefore fhew you plainly from the
moft credible Hiftory that the Turkifh Power,
which firft invaded the Saracenic Empire, was
bound and limited to the Parts about the River
Euphrates; that after a fhort Time four Angels
or Meffengers of divine Vengeance, who were
bound by this Power till the Death of the firft
Founder of it were loofed ; and by their Con-
quefts over the Chriftians and Saracens fet up
four Sultanies reprefentedbeautifully by the four
Horns ox Corners of the golden Altar, and pre
pared

:( s* )
pafd tlie Way for the Deftruction of the Greek
Empire, or third Part of Men, exactly within
the Term of a Day, a Month -and a Tear, Oi
three hundred ninety one Tears.
I fhew'd, in the- Explication of the preceding
Prophecy, that the Saracenic Empire declin'd
apace after the Divifion of it into ten indepen
dent Kingdoms: And by the Year 985. tihi
Greek Emperors had recover'd not only what
they had loft in Leffer Afia, but alfo both' M
Syria's, and moft Part of Mefopetamia, Armenia
and Media.
The Turks were feated near the River * A-
raxes, and the Fountain of Euphrates, when
they began to invade the Saracenic Empire un
der Togrul Beg, a Prince of the Salghufian, or
Seljukian Turks, who conquer'd Part of the
Province of " Chorafan from Mafud, who fled
into India, An. Heg. 430. A. D. 1038. And
two Years after, A. D. 1040. he overthrew the
great Army c of Mafud, and fubdued the whole
Province. The next Year he conquer'd i Geor^
gia, and the greater Media. In An-. Heg. 442.
A. D. 1050. Togrul Beg " reduc'd lfphahan in
Perfia ; and four Years after, An. Heg. 446.
A.D. 1054. he made himfelf Mafter of f Jffy-
ria. The next Year, A. D. 1055. Togrul Beg
Was fent for by the Calif of Bagdad to oppofe
¦ Laonicus Cbalchocondylas De reb. lure. lib. i. Heftin's
Cofmography,, B. iii. p. 132, 171.
Elmacin. Hift. Saracen, lib. iii. p. -i%%.
c Elmacin. ibid. * iii
d Abul-Pbaraj. Dynaft. ix. p. 226.
• Abul-Pbaraf. ibid/
f AbulPharaj, ibid. Bafafi-

( 9> )
Bdfaferdus, who rul'd in Babylonia and Chalcles^
and- had thought to have feiz'd' Bagdad. Togrul
Beg came with an Army to Bagdad whilft Bafa-
fefceus was in Chaldiza ; and having depos'd
Melecrahimus, who. was. the Emperor of it, he
made it his own a royal Seat. Arid this was
the Beginning of the Turkifh Kingdom at Bag
dad neat Euphrates.
An. Heg. 449. A. D. 1057. b tne ^alif of
Bagdad,' who had married the Sifter of Togrul
Beg the Year before, inverted him with the t
Imperial Robes, and crown'd him 5 and fo he
was confirm'd in the Kingdom and Empire of
Bagdad and its Territories. In the Year of the
Hegira 45,1. A. D. 1059. Togrul Beg having
beaten and kill'd d Bafaferaus,' he rul'd at Bag
dad over Chorafan, Babylonia, and Chaldiza.
The Empire of Togrul Beg being quietly fet
tled, in the Year of the Hegira 455. A. D. 1063.
he married the Calif's Daughter, arid e died,
fix Months after at Raija in Perfia on Fridaf
the twenty third Day of September, having
reign'd twenty five Years, and being feventy
Years of Age.
Upon the Death of Togrul Beg, his four Suc
ceffors the four Angels, Who till then were bound
upon the: River Euphrates, were let loofe to flay
the third Part of Men, or to prepare the Way
for the Deftruction of the Greek Empire.
a Elmacin. lib. iii. p. 336, 337.
b The Turfa, upon the Calif's Marriage with the Sifter
oi togrul Beg, turn'd Mohammedans, A. D. 1056.
c Elmacin. lib. iii. p. 337.
d Elmacin. fup. p. 339, 340. Abul-Pbardj. p. 226. whd
places the Death oi Bafaferaus, An. Heg. 450. A.D. 1058.
" Elmacin. lib. iii. p. 342. Abul-Pbaraj. p. 227.
O Thefe

(9« )
Thefe were firft Mohammed Olub Arftan Ada-
duddaulas, who had been made a Governor of
Chorafan by his Uncle Togrul Beg, A. D. 1057.
and at his Death fucceeded him as Sultan of
Bagdad. The Second was his Kinfman Kutla-
mifhus, or b Cutlumufes.. The Third was Tag*
juddaulas, younger Son of Olub Arfian Adadud-
daulas. The fourth was Sjarfuddaulas, Governor
of Moful. Thefe were all of the Family of
Togrul Beg.
Zonaras c relates, that upon the Death of
Togrul Beg, Cutlumus (or Cutlumufes) who was
Coufin to Togrul Beg, difputed the Kingdom of
Bagdad with the Sultan Olub Arftan Adaduddau-
las : And when the Matter was come to be
decided by Arms, the Calif of Bagdad went to
them in the Field, where they were ready to
engage, and perfuaded them to agree, that the
Sultan fhould poffefs his Kingdom quietly, and
fhould affift his Kinfman with all his Forces to
conquer Provinces from the Romans. Upon
this fatal Agreement began the flaying the third
Part of Men.
In the Year of the Hegira 462. A. D. 1069.
Olub Arfian befieg'd Aleppo ; but upon Sub-
miffion of Azzuddaulas the Prince of it, he re-
ftor'd him to his Dominion, after he had made
him acknowledge the Calif of Bagdad. The
fame Year Diogenes, the Roman Emperor, march
ed with an Army into Ccele-Syria, and befieg'd
a Abul-Pbaraj. p. 237.
b So John Leonclawe fays his Name was call'd. Pand. Hift.
Ture. p. 201.
c Annal. lib. xviii. p. 286, 287.
d Mam-

(99 )
Mambagh, Mabog or Hierapolis ; and at the
firft Onfet beat the Muffulmen ; but afterwards
his Army wanting Provifions, a great Part of
it perifh'd with Famine, and the reft return'd
to Conftantinople.
The next Year, A. D. 1070. h Diogenes the
Emperor march'd at the Head of an Army of
an hundred thoufand Men into Armenia. Olub
Arfian met him with fifteen thoufand Horfe at
Malazcerda, not being able to get together the
reft of his Troops ; and defir'd a Truce of the
Emperor ; but he refus'd on any lefs Condition
than that the City Raija fhould be deliver'd up
to him. Upon this a Battle enfued, and the
Romans were entirely defeated, and a great
Number of them flain ; and the Emperor him
felf was taken Prifoner, and agreed to pay for
his Ranfom fifteen hundred thoufand Crowns,
and to pay an annual Tribute of three hundred
arid fixty thoufand, and to fet at Liberty all the
Muffulmen who were Prifoners in the Roman
Empire. This fatal Battle was the Beginning of the
Deftruction of the Greek Empire. For, imme
diately after it, Olub Arftan fubdued the c Eaft
ern Provinces of the Roman Empire ; and the
fame Year gain'd a fecond great Victory over
the Romans, and took Ifaac Comnenus their Ge
neral Prifoner, who was forc'd to pay a great
Price for his Ranfom.
3 Elmacin. lib. iii. p. 343.
b Abul-Pharaj. p. 227, 228. Elmacin. lib. iii. p. 343,
344- c Zonar. Annal. lib. xviii. fup.
O 2 The

(.100 )
The next Year, A. D. 1071. Cutlumujes
invaded and ftibdued a Iconium with its Territo
ries in Lyeaonia, and Part of Cappadocia and
Bithynia, and of Pontus, Armenia, and Media,
and erected the Seat of his Suit-any at Iconium,
In the Year of the Hegira 472. A. D. 1079. •
Tdgjuddaulas, Brother of Melicfhah Son of O/afc
Arfian, who reigned at Bagdad after the Death
of his Father, took b Damafcus and made it the
Seat of his Sultany or Tetrarchy of the Turkifh
Empire. And the fame Year Sjarfuddaulas fub-
dued Aleppo c and made it the Seat of his Sultany
or Tetrarchy over the reft of Cccle Syria.
Thefe "four Sit! tanies, which were all erected
in the Greek Empire by the four preceding Sal-
ghufian Princes o'f the Family of Togrul Beg in
the' Space of fixteen Years, are very elegantly
and emphatically called the four Horns of the
golden Altar, whence the divine Voice was heard
by St. John, that God had determined to flay
the third Part of Men, or the Greek Empire of
the Romans.
The Princes of thefe four Sultanies who
reigned at Bagdad, Iconium, Damafcus, and A-
leppo, are the four Angels, who, you fee, were
loofed from Euphrates ; and thence began their
Conquefts", and prepared the Way for the final
Deftruction of the Greek Empire. It appears
evident from the Hiftories of Elmacinus and
Abul Pbarajus, that the four before-mentioned
Cities were the Seats of the four Turkifh Sulta-
a Abulpharaj. p, 245 Knolle's Hftor, of the Turks, p. II.
b Elmacin lib. iii. p. 350.
f Elmacin. ibid. p. 351' nies,

( ioi )
nies. And a Sir Ifaac Newton is miftaken, in
making Megarkin or Martyropolis one of the
Seats, and Moful another, leaving out Bagdad
and Damafcus, which were undoubtedly two of
them ; and Megarkin belong'd to the Sultany of
Iconium, as Moful did to that of either Aleppo or
Bagdad,' and neither of them were ever the Me
tropolis of a Sultany.
Thefe Princes, and their Succeffors, made fuch
a fpeedy. Progrefs towards the Deftruction of the '
Greek Empire, that in human Appearance they
muft foon have utterly deftroyed it, if their
Arms and Succeffes had not been check'd arid-
retarded by divine Providence till the deftin'd
Time was come.
The Holy War, fo called, which began A. D.
1096. and lafted near two hundred Years to
A.D. 1 29 1. weakned greatly the Turkifh Em
pire, and it was almoft extinguifhed by the
Arms of the Mongul Tartars under the renown
ed .Jihgizchan and his Succeffors, who from
A.D. 1202, or 1203. to A.D. 1265. made
themfelves Mafters of all the four Sultanies and
difpofed of them at : pleafure. A fter this the
Tartar Princes quarrelled amongft -themfelves,
and their Power declined apace, and the Turkifh
Empire, which was almoft extinct, reviv'd
a Obfermations on tbe Apocalypfe, p. 306.
b Abul-pharaj. places his Expedition, An. Heg. 599. A. D.
1 202. Du Halde, in his Cbinefe Hiftory, places it, A.D. 1 203 .
Demetrius Cantemir, from the Turkifh Hiftorians, places it,
A,D. 121;, or i2_6. Pr&f Hift. Xur. p. 7. But this is a
Miftake ; as appears from John leoncla've's Turkifh Hiftory,
p. 200. who feys, it was generally agreed that he became
famous A. D. iz02, or 1203. again

b

( i°* )
again in a few Years Time under another Fa
mily called the Oguzian, by means of Othman
who fucceeded the Salghuzian Sultan Aladdine,
and by whofe Confent in his Life-Time he
took the Title of Sultan * An. Heg. 699. A. D,
i299- Hence commenced the Turkiflo Othmanic or
Ottoman Empire -, which perhaps is meant by '
the Tail ofthe Horfes [Rev. ix. 19.] by which
the Turkifh Power, confifting, as is well known,
of numerous Horfe, is reprefented.
However this be, it is certain that theTurkifh
Power in the Greek Empire advanced very fwift-
ly under the Othman Family; and Urchan, the
Son of Othman, conquered Myfia, Lyeaonia,
Phrygia, Caria, Lydia, and the great Cities
Nicomedia, .and Nice, and others adjoining to
the Euxine Sea ; and by his Order his Son Soli-
man Bafha was the firft who paffed over the
Streights of the Hellefpont into Greece.
This was in the Year ofthe Hegira b 758. A.D.
1356. And the next Year he took Callipolis, at
the Mouth of the Propontis. Urchan' s Son Mo-
rad took Adrianople in the Year of the c Hegira
y6i. A. D. 1359, or 1360. and all Tbeffalyi
except Theffalonica. And the Succefs ol the
3 Pocock. Supplement to Abul-pharaj. p. 42. But Efon-
cla-ve fays, that the true Beginning of* Otbman's Reign com
menced AD. 1300. Pandect. Hift. Ture. p. Z59.
b Leonclav. Annal. Ture. p. 8, 9, 10.
c Leone lav. Annal. Ture. p. I I . Pocock. Supplem. p. 44,
45. Laonic. Chalcocond. lib. i. Rer. Ture. Demet. Cant. Hif
tory of Ott. Family, p. 34, 35.
•f Due. Hift. By%ant, p. 4. who places it An. Heg. 763.
A. D. 1362. Turkifh

( '°3 .).
Turkifh Arms in Europe made fuch a fpeedy
Prdgrefs, that in the third Year of the Reign,
of Bajazet, who came to the Crown in the Year
of the Hegira 791. * A. D. 1388. the Turks had
conquered Hierapolis and all the Province of A-
natolja or leffer Afia, and alfo Romania and Va-
lachia in Europe, and likewife Tbejfaly with Thef
falonica, Macedonia, Phocis, Bceotia, Attica,
Myfia, and Bulgaria* ; fo that little was left of
the Greek Empire befides Conftantinople, the Me
tropolis of it.
Bajazet befieged this City for c ten Years to
gether, and had certainly taken it, as Laonicus
Chalcocondylas d relates, and thereby had put an
End to the Greek Empire, if the famous Tartar
Temur Lench, or Tamerlane as he is commonly
called, had not, at the Requeft of the Princes
of Afia, marched againft him with a powerful
Arrriy. Upon the News of his coming, Bajazef
raifed the Siege of Conftantinople, and marched
to give Tamerlane Battle. They met and en-
gag'd with the two greateft Armies ever known
fince that of Xerxes, in the Plains of Ancyra, in
Galatia, ¦ where two hundred thoufand Turks were
flain ih the Field, and Bajazet himfelf was ta
ken Prifoner, whom Tamerlane, in Contempt, put

1 Leonclave Annal. Ture. p. 1 5. and PandecJ. Hift. Tare.
p. 259. refers the Year of the Heg. 791. and the Reign of
Bajazet to A. D. 1390.
b Due. Hift. Byzant. p. 6, 7. Laonic. Ehalcocond. Rer.
Ture. lib. ii.
c Laonic. Chdlcocond. Rer. Ture. lib ii. p. 3 1 2.
A Rer. Ture. lib.ii. p. 312. Edit. Lat. ad fin. Nicepbpr.
Cregdr. Hift, Rom. 'into

( 104 )
into an * Iron Cage, and carried him about like
a Beaft. This Battle was fought on the feventh Day
of Auguft, A. D. 1 40 1. as b Ducas relates iri his
Byzantine Hiftory •, at which Time a great and
bright Comet appeared, which was feen fromi
the Month of May to the Autumnal iEquinox.
Prince Cantemir c in his Hiftory of the Othman-
Family, agrees with Ducas that this Battle was
fought in the Year of the Hegira 804. A. D.
1401. But d Leonclave thinks, that from the
moft accurate Accounts it appears to have been
fought either A. D. 1399. or 1400. Arid Fra-
fer e, in his late Hiftory of Nadir Shah, fays,
the Battle was fought on the eighteenth Day of
July, A.D. 1 40 2.
Bajazet, for Grief and Defpair, killed himfelf
the next Year, which was the f 805th Year of
the Hegira, A. D. 1402.
After this Victory over Bajazet, Tamerlane
prefently fubdued all the Provinces of Afia, and
reftored the Princes to their Territories which
Bajazet had taken from them ; and then return
ed into his own Country, where he died foon
after. 3 Leonclav. Annal. Ture. p. 25. Pocock. Supplem. ad
Abul-pharaj. p. 4 ; .
b P. 39  42.
« B. i. p. 54,
d Pandecl. Hift. Ture. p. 279.
' P. 3-
f Pocock. Supplem. p. 45. But the Turkifh Annals place
the Death of Bajazet in the Year of the Hegira 804. and
refer that Year to A: D. 1403. Leonclav. p. 26. and Pan-
deS. Hift. Ture. p. 257. After

C I0J )
After the Retreat and Death of Tamerlane^
the Othman1 Family gain'd frefh Strength ; and
Morad Chan, or Amurath the fecond, began-
to- reign in the Year of the Hegira 824. A. D.
142 1. And in the third Year of his Reign,.
A. D. 1423. made War upon the Greek Em
peror, and befieg'd Conftantinople, which he
bombarded, and endeavour'd to take by Scaling,
ladders, but Was bravely repuls'd by the Greeks,,
and forc'd to raife the Siege.
His Son Mohammed the fecond fucceeded him
in the Year of the Hegira 855. A. D. 1451.
And now the fatal Time was near for flaying the
third Part of Men, and utterly deftroying the
Greek Empire.
Mohammed the fecond, in the third Year of
his Reign, A. D. 1453. * befieg'd Conftantinople
with a numerous Army drawn out of Anatolia
and Romania. He batter'd the Walls of the
City with huge Stones, Balls or Bombs thrown
otit of Mortars or wide-mouth' d Cannons of a
prodigious Size ; one of which was fo great as
to be drawn with feventy Yoke of Oxen, and
two thoufand Men j and it carried a Ball ofthe
Weight of three Talents, or about three hun
dred Pounds ; and the Difcharge of it, as was
related, ffiak'd the Corintry five Miles round.
Whether the Words of the Prophecy men
tioning Firi, Smoke, and Brimftone, iffuing out
bf the Mouths of the Horfes^ have any Relation to
* Laonic. Chaleocond. lib. viii. p. 447, 448, 449. Leon-
claw. Annal. Ture. p. 44. who places the taking of Conjldn-
Imople iri the 85 8th Year of the Hegira, which anfwers to
A. D. 1454. P thefe

( i66)
thefe Mortars or Cannons, I leave the Reader to
judge. The Walls being batter'd down, the Turks
enter'd the City with great Fury, and flaughter'd
the Greeks like Sheep. Conftantine the Emperor
was flain in the Gate of the City fighting vali
antly •, and Chalcocondylas fays, that there never
happened in the whole World fo lamentable a
Deftruction as attended the taking of Conftan
tinople. Thus fell the Greek Empire.
"The Arabian and Chriftian Writers generally
agree that Conftantinople was taken in the Year
Ofthe Hegira 857. A. D. 1453. * -And Leon-
clavius fays it is certain that it was taken on the
twenty ninth Day of May in this Year; and
this Day was Tuefddyb, as- Al-Jannabius relates,
and Chalcocondylas, and Martinus Crufius in his
Hiftory of the Patriarchs : Though Ahmed Ebn
Tufeph thinks it was taken on Wednefday the
twenty eighth Day of June: But moft Writers
agree that it was taken on the twenty ninth Day
of May.
Now be pleas'd to obferve the exact Com
pletion of the Prophecy I have been confidering.
It began at the Death of Togrul Beg, A. D.
a So Al Jannabius and Ahmed Ebn Tufeph in Pocock's Sup-
phm p. 47. So alfo Martin. Crufius, Hift. Patriarch, in-
Bewereg. Inftitut. Chronolog. p. 82. Leoncla<v Pajdefi. Hift.
Ture. c 129. Matthias a Michou. Jib. De Sarmat. Aftan.
p. 469. Ricciolus and the Turkifh Hiftorians, as Prince
Cantimir fays, in the Preface to his Hiftory, p. 5. Knolles
in his general Hiftory of the Turks, p. 349.
b In Pocock 's Supplem. p. 47. Chaleocond. Rer'.' Ture.
lib. viii. p. 453. Due. Hift. Byzant. p. 162.
1063,

( 107 )
1063. and ended A. D. ,1453. And fxomA.'D.
1063. to A.D. 1453. inclufive, is three hundred
ninety one Tears, which Term in the Prophecy
is exprefs'd by a a Day, a Month, and a Tear.
If you afk me what became of the odd Hour, 1
have to anfwer, that it being no more than fif
teen Days, or any fmall Part of a Year, fuch a
Space of Time,' or much more, may eafily be
allow'd for an Error in Hiftory containing the
Term of 391 Years; and efpecially in reducing
Lunar to Solar Years. \
Before I proceed to make any Obfervations on
the foregoing Prophecy, it will be proper to
take
a It may be noted, that the Complutenfe Copy omits ted)
«/*££«, and a Day, in Rev ix. 15. But this is probably an
Error in that Copy, becaufe all other Copies have theWords.
b Lepnclave places the taking of Conftantinople on the twen
ty-ninth Day of May, A. D. 1^1,. and yet it appears from
the moft correel Turkifh Chronicles and accurate Hiftorians,
that it muft by their reckoning have happened A. D. 1454.
From thefe Accounts Leoncla<ve fays, [PandeB. Hift, Ture.
p. 259] that Bajazet began to reign A. D- 1390. and that *
he reigned fourteen Years ; and fo he died the latter End of
the Year 1403. where he places his Death [Annal. Ture.
p. 26.] His Son Sdliman reigned after him feven Years, and
died in the End of A. D. 1410. where he places his Death,
[Annal. Ture. p. 28 ] Mttfa, Soliman's Brother, fucceeded
him and reigned three Years and an half, and died, as the
Turkifh Annals fay, A. D. 1414. (p. 30.) Mohammed, another
Son of Bajazet, fucceeded Mufa, and reigned eight Year's,
and died A. D. 1422. [Annal. Ture. p. 34.] and was fuc
ceeded by .his Son Murat, or Murad, called Amurath the
Second, who reigned thirty-one Lunar, or thirty Solar Years,
and therefore died A. D. 1452. And as all agree that Con
ftantinople was taken in the third Year of the next King Mo
hammed the Second ; this muft fall A. D. 1454. which Year,
in the Turkifh Account, began the twenty-ninth Day of A-
fril, An. Heg. 858. and A. D. 1454. Sp by the Turkifh
A\nnals, Conftantinople was taken in the Beginning of the
P 2 Year

( 108 )
take Notice that our incomparable a'Mr. Mede
thought, as I do, that the fecond WOE was
fulfill'd .by the taking of Cbnftantinople ; the
Term of which he computes from the Inau
guration of Togrul Beg to the Empire Bagdad^
A. D. 1057. This Computation alfo anfwers
exactly to the Term of the 391 Years of the
Prophecy, if we reckon the prophetic Year to
confift of 365 Years, and fomething more. But
this Computation cannot be admitted, becaufe
it is evident that in the prophetic Style a Tear,
.or a Time, as Daniel calls it, is no more than
360 Years •, and St. John fo explains it ; for he
ttakes the three Times and half, or the three Tears.
and half of Daniel, to be 1260 Days, that is,
Tears, Rev. xii. t6. compar'd with f 14. So
Mr. Mede was, I think, miftaken in fixing the
Beginning of his Computation •, tho' with his
great and uncommon Sagacity he faw the true
¦ ending of it. After the foregoing fmall Mif-
take, Mr. Mede falls into a very great and
ftrange ope ¦, for he makes the loafing of the four
Angels, to commence a little hefore A.D. 1300.
when Othman began to reign over the Turks.
He had not well and fufficiently confider'd the
^Prophecy, and the Hiftorical Evidence of the
Year of the Hegira 8j;8. And if this .be the true Account,
then from A. D. 1065. inclufive to A. D. 1454. is 391 Years,
and a Part of a Year.'Teprel'ented by an Hour in the Prophecy^
Of, this let the learned Reader judge :' -But it il plain, that
Leoncfa've reckons from the Beginning of the Reign of Baja
zet A. D. 1390. to the third Year of the Reign of Moham
med the Second fixty-four Solar Years; and fo the taking of
\(!onftantinople was A. D. 1454. PandeB. Hift. Tur. p. ?5Q.
v» Comment. Apocalyp'., Part. I. p. 472, 473. Comple,

( i©9 )
•.Completion of it. But a Other learned Men
taking .the Hint from Mede, have, by .a ftill
¦greater foliftake, limagin'd the four Angels to be
:ibur Sultanies, and -others to have been four
JP rimes of the Oguzian Family of Turks ; and
:.that thefe were either S oilman :Schah and his three
Sons, or Solirnqn's Son Ortogrules and his three
Sons, one of which was Othman ; arid on the
Foundation of this Hypothefis they have com
puted the Years of the Prophecy, from A. D.
j3©o. or 1301. to A. D. 1697. which Avas.al-
moft a Year and half before the Treaty of Car-
lowitz was concluded between the Turkifh and
-German Emperors : And here they would have
-the fecond WOE to be fulfill'd.
But .nothing is more ungrounded than thi$
lExpofition of , the Prophecy; which neither
agrees in Time, or any thing elfe to the Pro-
iphecy, I. The four Angels could not be the four SuU
tanies of the Turkifh Empire ; this is mani-
feftly abfurd, becaufe they are faid to be
loos d from Euphrates ; nor were the Seats
ofthe four Sultanies upon Euphrates. Tfiey
.were undoubtedly four Princes who founds
ed the four Sultanies which are in the Pro
phecy, reprefented by the four Horns of
. the golden Altar.
. ,§. Soliman and his Spns could not be the four
Angels or Princes who were loos'dfrom Eu
phrates ; for Soliman was drowned in paf-
fing the River Euphrates, and upon that
f fytr. ffhiftonys Eflay qn the. Revelations, ,p. 477,— 193.
?W9

( iio.)
two of his three Sons return'd back into
Perfia or Parthia, whence they came.
. Ortogrules had no Son but Othman, who
.poffefs'd any Kingdom; and he was not
loos'd from Euphrates, but from Saguta
near Myfia, which was the firft Seat of his
Kingdom, and at a great Diftance from
the River Euphrates. So that Othman
could not be fo much as one of the four
Angels.
. The Computation of the 391 Years can
not commence from Othman, becaufe from
the Beginning of his Reign, A. D. 1299.
ox A.D. 1300. to the taking of Conftan
tinople, which was moft certainly the Com
pletion of the fecond WOE, there are no
more than 153 or 154 Years. Nor will
the Computation ftand if we reckon the
WOE to have continued to the Peace of
Carlowitz, which was concluded the fif
teenth Day of January A. D. 1609. And
ixomA.D. 1300. to A.D. 1699. are 399
Years ; whereas the Term of the Prophecy
is only 391 Years and a few Days.
. The Computation from Othman is founded
on a Mifunderftanding ofthe Words ofthe
Prophecy, as if the flaying the third Part
tf JVIen meant the fame, or no more than
tormenting them, which is the Character of
the firft WOE. But as tormenting is in the
Prophecy of the firft WOE oppos'd to
flaying or killing in the Prophecy of the
fecond WOE, it is evident their Meaning
is very different. And as under the firft
WOE the Greek Empire was. to be tor
mented,

("I)'
"minted, but not kill'd; fo under the feconi
WOE it was to be kill'd or utterly deftroy
ed ; and this Character demonftratively
foews that the fecond WOE was accom-
plifh'd by the taking of Conftantinople, and
the Deftruction of the Greek Empire of the
Romans by the Turks ; and to which the
Time of it exactly agrees ; and by no
other Event whatfoever.
The Explications of all the foregoing Pro
phecies, and the Accomplifhments of them are
plain, natural, and eafy, and drawn from Events
which by divine Providence are preferv'd in the
Hiftories of all Nations which are concern'd in
them, viz. in the Pagan, Jewifi), Turkifh, A-
fabian, and Chriftian Hiftories and Chronicles.
They are, you muft allow, Events of Moment
great enough to be the Subject of Prophecies :
And though perhaps you have not hitherto
thought thefe and other Prophecies worthy of
your Attention, I hope you will hereafter con
fider them, and that you may be convinc'd by
them of the Truth of Chriftianity.
The great End of thefe, and all other Pro
phecies was, that under all the Oppreffions and
all the Corruptions ofthe true Faith and Wor
fhip of God, they might be to the World's End
an infallible Evidence and Teftimony to the true
Religion which Chrift from God taught to Man-x
kind. And although they have not yet had
much Effect in the Converfion of either Jews or
Infidels, Mahometans or Papifts ; yet I am fully
fatisfy'd that the Evidence of the Completion of ¦
them will one Time or other be the providentiajo Means

( m )
Mearis of the Converfion and Reformation of all
the Enemies of the Gofpel. At prefent I can
not but wifh that the Papifts more efpecially
would attend .to the Character of the Idolatry
and perfecuting. Tyranny of their Church, a-
ferib'd by the Spirit of God to no better an Au
thor and Promoter than Satan himfelf, that
apoftate Angel, the great Enemy of God, and
of all his Creatures :, And that they would take
the Warning which St. John foretold their Fore
fathers would not take, who faw the Mifery
and Deftruction which God had brought upon
the Greek Empire on Account of their Idolatry
and Blafphemy, and Perfecutions of the Wit-
jiejp's or true Difciples of Chrift. The reft of the
Men (fays he, ch. ix. 20, 21.) which were not
killed by thefe Plagues, jet repented not of the Works
of their Hands, that they fhould not worfhip De
vils (i. e. fainted and demoniz'd Souls, of dead
Men and Women who are canoniz'd in the
Church of Rome in order to be worfhipped) and
Idols of Gold, and Silver, and Brafs, and Stone,
and of Wood, which neither can fee, nor hear, nor
walk ; neither repented they of their Murders^, nor
of their Sorceries, nor of their Fornication, nor of
their Thefts.
Here the obftinate Superftition of the Latin
Roman Empire is very ftrongly fet forth ; which
was not mov'd by the Calamities of the idola^
trous Greek Empire to repent of their idolatrous
Worfhip of Demons, and Idols of Gold and
Silver, Brafs, Wood, and Stone ; nor repent
ed of their Murders, Perfecutions and Rapines
*if thofe Witneffes to . the Truth of Jefus, who
oppos'd their Superftition, That

{ "3 )
That the Rcmanifts then did, and do^ ftill
continue to worfhip canon iz'd Saints and Images
of Gold, and Silver, and Stone, is acknowledg'd
by their own approv'd Writers, and the public
Offices of their Church. Particularly with re
gard to Idols of Wood ; in the Pontifical itfelf
the Church determines that.the higheft Worftup
call'd Latria is due to the Holy Crofs ; and there
fore Thomas Aquinas, one of the greateft Doc
tors of that Church fays, We fpeak to. the Crofs,
and pray to it, as if it was Chrift erucify'd upon
it. Hail, O Crofs, our only Hope ; in this Timerf
the Paffion, encreafe the Righteoufnefs of tbe ff^k,
and give Pardowlo the Guilty, (Part ,3. Qgaeft.Sf.
Art. 4. and in the Office of the bleffed Vicgift
Mary, p. 490.) and their Sorceries ox pretended
Miracles ; the many Murders and Thefts for
Rapines) committed in their bloody Inqulfitions,
are riianifeft to all the World.
I hope that what I have faid concerning the
Prophecies of the Old and New Teftament will
not be thought tedious or improper by thofe
who acknowledge a divine Providence in the
moral Government of the World, of which
Prophecies are the higheft and _ moft immediate
Evidence. Prophecies alfo may and ought to
be confider'd as the greateft Miracles, being
the immediate Ejects of divine Omriifcience,
and Objects of human Underftanding; as the
Miracles commonly fo call'd are the Works of
divine Power, and Objects of human Senfes.
Prophecies alfo; are an Aid to other Miracles,
and fupply the Place of them : And _what Evi
dence Miracles feem to lofe by the Diftance of
Time from the firft doing of them* is more
Q_ than

( 1 1.4 )
than xompenfated by Prophecies, whofe Evr-
dence continually enereafes, and grows ftronger
and ftronger by Events fulfill'd, and continually
fulfilling from the beginning to the End of the
World. _ And as the Chriftian- Religion is^rSoft
worthy pf the divine Care and Providence, the
.Prophecies -relating to it -begin at the Creation,
aYufcdntinue to' the End 'of- it, and till there
fhall be a new Heaven and a new Earth.
.iV ' l'»<\\ ' -.\ • • ¦; '>"¦'¦
^"Priow'CGme to confider the Objections of your
Mwal Philofopher, againft 'the Resurrection of
jefus: '¦ ^\-d\-~-\:- v -; ,'-vrs ,•-¦ •: -,. *
¦i' 'P.' 15, 16. he objects againft- St. Matthew^
faying, that the, chief Priefts a'nd.Pharifees cante
together 'unto Pilate, faying, Sir„rjff,e remember
that "< this Dec ewer faid, while he was ¦ yet alf&e\
df&er three Days I will rife,againy c.scxvii, jj •6$.
The Moral Philofopher thinks they could, not
remember any thing of this, though; it was pub
lickly talk'dof all over] Jerufalem, .and they had
both heard :and been told of it .from. m<M}y
hands, unlefs Chrift -had told it ^e. them himfelf-
Strictly indeed, we 'are faid tot remember what we
have a perfonal Knowledge of ;• • and for any
thing that appears to the; contrary, feveral of
the Priefts and' Scribes might have 'heard Chrift
himfelf fpeak of his Refurrection. But, if not ;
fince they were fatisfied from the Report of cre
dible Witneffes; that Chrift had declared over
and over that he would rife from the Dead, they
m ight well tell Pilate, that they . remembered^ fe
had faid fo, though not to thfemfelves, but to
thofe whofe Teftimony they credited. But it
appears from St. Matt, that the Sign of his
Refurrection under the Type of that of the
Prophet

( **? )
Prophet Jonas, was given by Chrift himfelf to
the Scribes and Pharifees, c. xii. ^38, Src. And
we may fuppofe that they underftood what he
meant, and they muft be blind indeed not to
underftand that he meant, that as Jonas was
buried three Days and three Nights in the
Whale's Belly, and then was delivered ; fo he
fhould lie iri the Grave three Days and three
Nights, and then be delivered from it by a
Refurrection : And they could not-'but remem
ber that Chrift had .faid this to them. So this
Objection has nothing in it, nor that which
follows upon it, p. -18. where he fays, that in
St. Matt. Jefus is faid to give them the Sign of
ihe Prophet Jonah ; and in St. Mark (to the
feme Queftion as he fuppofes) thdt he gave them
no Sign at all, Mark viii." 11, 12. But what is
related in Mark is, that they afked of him' a
¦Sign from, Heaven, which was denied them ; but
be gave them a Sign from Earth, viz, the Sign
of the Prophet Jonah : So here is no Inconfiften-
cy, only Matthew's' Relation is more fuM than
¦that of Mark.
His next Obferyation (p. 19.) on the Time
from -the Death to the Refurrection of Chrift,
which is faid to be three Days and three Nights,
is a mere child ifh Quibble and Ignorance of
common Language -, for, according to common
Computation arid common Senfe, orie Whole
Day and- Part of two others (which was the
Time) i§ three Days-, a Part of a Day being
always fpoken of as a Day.
P. 2©. His Objection that the Sign of the?
Prophet Jonah was not fulfilled by Chrift's Re-
iurrectiofl ; ''feecaufe they, to whom k was gives!*
«-* Q.2 did

did not fee him rife from the Dead or after he
was rifen, is a ftrange Objection indeed ! Might
not Chrift rife from the Dead, though they did
not fee him rifen ? And might he not give
fufficient Proofs of his Refurrection without
giving them ocular Demonftration of it ?
Though they did not fee it, they were told it
by thofe that did, as well as thofe who faw him
after he was rifen. Their own Guard of Ro
man Soldiers with great Aftonifhment faw him
rife and come out of his Sepulchre, and told
them what they had feen •, and the Difciples of
Chrift proved their Teftimony of his being
rifen by many Miracles which they wrought
publickly in his Name, and in Evidence of his
Refurrection. This Evidence will come to be more fully
Gonfidered prefently.
His next Objection, p. 23. that it is as fur-'
prizing as any thing in the Gofpels, that twelve
Men together fhould not underftand fuch plain Ex-
preffions, viz. as Chrift's Relation of his own
Death and Refurrection to his Difciples, Mat.
xx, 17, 18, 19. Markx. 32, 33. Luke xviii.
#1 — 35. fir (he adds) tbeir Underftanding or this
Paffage is to be queftioned. And as to St. John,
he fays, he has examined him, and finds that he
fays not a Word of it, but denies it all ; for which
Affertion, he cites the Words of this Apoftle,
c. xx, il 9. They knew not the Scripture, that he
muft rife again from the Dead. Perhaps I may
do this Author a Favour to queftion nothing
but his Underifendimg in making this Objecti
on. -Does he qhinife ihp Apoftles. did not ueder.-
ftand thai Ghtjft; tpld thm- tha* be w«c so be
put

(, ll7 )
put to Deaih and to rife again the third Day \
and that the Scriptures had foretold it ? But it
is no Wonder they did not know, or under
ftand that the Meffias (whom they had been
taught out of the Scriptures to expect to appear
as a Mighty, Temporal, and Invincible Prince)
fhould be put to Death, and rife again only to
take an earthly Kingdom : This prevailing No
tion of the Jews that Chrift was not to die, but
was to conquer his Enemies and reign fir ever,
agreeably to what is faid, John xii. 34. was the
Caufe that they did not underftand the Scrip
tures which foretold his Death and Refurrection ;
and that his Kingdom was not to be of this
World. And St. John is fo far from denying
that there was any Prophecy that Chrift was to
rife again ; that if this moral Philofopher had
not deceived himfelf, or intended to deceive
others, he might or would have feen that the
Words of the Apoftle, when fully and feirly
cited, imply the contrary. St. Peter, and ano
ther Difciple, viz. St. John, upon the Report
of Mary lAagdalene to them that the Body of
Jefus was taken out of the Sepulchre, did not
believe her, but ran to fee what was done ; and
when St. John went into the Sepulchre,, he found
the Body of Jefus was. gone ; and upon that
fays, that he faw and: belkved, % $. ad^hjg, Jfir
as yet they, knew nqt the Scripture, that he<m$
rife;, agam from, the Dead- Now does. this, ip^iy
lhat St, John denied there, were any &m¥kffl$i&
$0BC,er.ning the Deatjiand Refiwre&ion of Ubrii0
IpO. got his Words fairly imply- on, the :&w_w»ry
tbftj; the, Sqripturs had foretold skis.? hm thU-
/fe^^vidjuch, Wo?d& h^ l®»vq& qm&.&bgy. <M not

( ii* )
not underftand the Scripture-Prophecies con
cerning -; the Death and Refurrection of the
Meffias. But when they found that Chrift was
rifen, as he. had told them he would, their Pre
judices -were • removed by the Evidence of his
(Refurrection ; and then they eafily underftood
that the Scriptures had foretold it. The Moral
Philofopher adds (p. 24.) that no fuch Prophecies
are to be found. But who told him fo ? I do
not find he hath made the Prophecies any Part
of his Studies ; or, if he hath, it hath been to
little Purpofe : There are undoubtedly feveral
Prophecies relating to CbrisJ's Refarrection.
But his Cafe is fomething like that of the un-
inftructed and prejudic'd, Apoftles, (I hope not
like that of the hardned Infidel Jews) the Bigo
try of whofe Unbelief is the Caufe, that as yet
he knows not the Scriptures, that Chrift was to
rife from the Dead.
We come now to the Evidence of the Watch
men, which ftrangely perplexes your Moral
Fhilofopher. He fays (p. 24.) What Judgment are we now
to firm of the Watch ? ¦ Can any Man of com
mon Senfe 'think it probable that the Priefts and
Pharifees fhould he alarmed about the RefurreBion
of Jefus.j if they never heard any thing more of it
than 'what has been mentioned? That they had
heard a great deal about it, I have fhewn \
though they did not believe a Word of it, but
efteeming both Chrisl and his Difciples to be
Deceivers, they ufed the Precaution of fetting
a Watch to guard the Sepulchre, left the Difci
ples fhould fteal the Body in the Night, -and
then pretend he was rifen-: This was jhe«Rea-
4 &>»

( "9 )
fon of fettingthe Watch, though it turned to
their own Confufion.' Now muft i not : thefe
Chief Priefts and Pharifees be greatly alarmed?
when their own Watchmen came and told them
that they faw the dead Perfon, whofe Body they
were fet to guard from being ftolleri, eome out
of the Sepulchre in fuch an awful and aftonifh-
ing Manner, as made them tremble and almoft
die for Fear ? When alfo, at the fame Time, it
was noifed all over Jerufalem that he was rifen ;
and, to confirm the .Fact, the Chief tPriefts (on
Examination no doubt) found the Body was
gone out of the Sepulchre ; which .put .l&em upon
bribing the Soldiers to tell fuch an idle.incon^
fifteht Story, as that the ^Difciples had., cpme. in
tbe Night and ftde his Body whilftrthey jlept,
Matt, xxviii. ii, 12, 13. This' fhews. they were
not only alarmed, but confounded evento In
fatuation. They ^ had 1; fet, a Guard of Roman
Soldiers upon the Sepulchre fufficient -to prevent
the Body being ftollen, .and a Pretenfe of his
Refurrection being put .upon them : But when
the Soldiers came and to)d thenvthat the dead
Perfon was gone out of the Sepulohre without
any-humane Mearifi, and related the aftonifhing
Circumftances with which his Refiirrecjfcton was
attended,4 they muft needs be ialtfrmed ; and
though they could not difbelieve the Fact, yet
their dbftinate and incurable Hardnefs of Heart
made-.them refolve to ufe any Mearis, how ab*
furd foever, to prevent, .the Refurrection -gain*
ing Credit. The: Tefiimony therefore, of the
Watchmen to the Truth of Chrift's Refurrecti
on will puzzle Unbelievers (as itfftid the Chief
Priefts of the $<?$j$f, to. the, Wodd'-anEedct-p evade

( tio)
evade it. And what our Author fays, fhews
rhe great Diftrefs that he is' in about it, being
forc'd to deny the Truth of the whole Relation,
which yet Was never difputed or denied by the
ypiixs themfelves. All the Reafon of his de
nying tbe. Fact is, that it is only related by St.
Matthew, and he pretends his Account does mot
a^ree with that of the other Evangelifts (p. 27.)
But where tffaieiir Difagreement lies he is hot able
to ftiew : There is in Truth no Difagreement^
They do not all relate all the fame Circum
ftances j "whlah is more or lefs the Cafe of other
Hiftorifti*ss Whofe Fidelity was never fufpectedi
No one of the Evangelifts ever contradicts an
other 1 awd to call different Circumftances which
may and-mtift attend any Fact, where there are
feveral Circumftances in.it, to call thefe various
GirctftnftaHCeS Contradictions is very grofs and
abfurd, &hd tends only to deftroy the Credit of
all Hiftory whatfoever.
But this fame Watch -ftraftgely perplexes yodr
Author 4 hte>cannot fee any Reafon for the Priefts
fetting it (p. 30.) though he might eafily fap
pofe it was to prevent a Tumult (which might
have arifen amongft the People) being made by
a pretended Refurrection, ¦
Another Thing he does not underftand, and
therefore calls an Abfurdity (p. 31.) is that the
Chief Priefts tell Pilate that Jefus faid, after
three D&ys he vfould rife again, yet defire the Se-
pttkre to be made jure but till the third Day. They
fhould have > defired Leave, he thinks, -to watch it
till the fourth Day. Though they knew that
Chrift had faid, he would rife the third Day (as
the Time is alfo efcprefigd) yet 'tis probable they

iriey Intended the Watch fhould ftay till the
End of the third Day. It was their own Watch
who would have ftaid till they were order' d offv
if they had not been frightned by the extraor
dinary Event of the Refurrection of Jefus : So
this is mere Quibble.
He goes on (p. 33.) If the Jew Rulers placed
a Watch, their Report of it/bat happened muft
needs fatiify them ; and the Hiftory fuppofes it did,
becaufe they hir'd the Watchmen to conceal it ; but
yet he thinks they could not. be fo fqolifh as to
think to conceal it by the Report they put into
the Soldiers Mouths to fpread abroad. He won
ders alfo, that ihe Soldiers could take a Bribe to lie
in fuch ah impudent Manner, after they had made
fuch a Report of Chrift's Refurrection as is re
lated ; and though he does not know what Con
fidence Priefts have. (p. 35 ) yet he thinks the
Jewifh Priefts could not but have been convin
ced and converted by the Soldiers Teftimony,3
had they really rria.de fuch a Report as it is faid
they did. Nay he lays fo great a Strefs on the
Teftimony of the Soldiers ( p: 64, ) that he
thinks half a do±en Watchmen, Men. interefted iti
no Party, would have been a better Evidence than
a dozen Apoftles. To all this I anfwer : I doubt
not but, the Jews were in wardly'_ fatisfied of the
Fact of Chrift's Refurrection from ,the Report
of the Soldiers ; they had no Reafon to think
they Would frame a Lie, which if drfcoVer'd,
as it muft needs be, would have been fatal to
them. If the Body had been found in the Se
pulchre, the Lie would have been at, once detect
ed ; or if the Priefts found Reafon to think that
the Soldiers had combin'd with the Apoftles in
R carrying

( 122 )
carrying the Body out of the Sepulchre, having
fo much Intereft as they had with the Governor,
they would have had them put to the Rack to
make a Difcovery, and probably to Death for
leaving their Guard without Orders. The
Watchmen therefore, undoubtedly, faw the
Angel, Whofe Countenance was like Lightning,
defcend and roll away the Stone from the Mouth
of the Sepulchre -, and alfo faw Jefus come alive
out of it. And the Circumftances of the Earth
quake, of the glorious Appearance of the Angel,
and the Body of Jefus raifed and coming out of
the Sepulchre, were that which terrified them
and made fuch an Impreffion on them, that they
could not refift it, or forbear acquainting the
Priefts with what had happen'd, though it was
at the Peril of their Lives to report fo odious
and dangerous a Truth : But is it to be won-
.der'd, that finding their Report to be difagree-
able to their Matters, they fhould be willing
to gain their Favour again, by fpreading indeed
fuch a foolifh Report amongft the People, as
they were hir'd by them to do? In all this it
appears that the Soldiers had more Confcience
and a greater Regard to the miraculous Evi
dence of Chrift's Refurrection than the Jewifh
Priefts had.
But as to the Confciences of Priefts in gene
ral, he fhould have fpared his Reflection :
Though yet, what wicked, what foolifh Things
have not Priefts done and Laymen too, and
continue to do, to fupport a temporal Intereft
and Power, and an Hierarchy purely of this
World ? What Popifh Priefts do, and have
done, that he may fuppofe Jewifh Priefts were
capable

( i3i )

5- And they were* a-
fraid, and bowed dowri
tbeir Faces to the Earth,
they [or one of them
mention'd by Matthew
and Mark~\ faid unto
them : ' Why feek ye the
living among the dead ?
6. He is not here, but
is rifen : Remember how
he f pake unto you when
he was yet in Galilee.
q. And they return'd
from the Sepulchre.

What happen'd whilft the Women were go
ing to tell the Apoftles.
John xx. Luk. xxiv.
3. Peter went forth
and that other Difciple,
and came to the Sepul
chre. 4. So they ran both
together, and the other
Difciple did outrun Pe
ter, and came firft to
tbe Sepulchre.
5, Andftooping down
he faw the Linen Cloaths
lying; yet went he not
in. S % 6. Then

( '3* )
S. Then cometh Si
mon Peter followkg
bim.* and went into the
Sepulchre, andfoetb the
linen Cloalhs lie.
8. Then went in alfo
that other Difciple, who
came firft to the Sepul
chre, and he faw and
believ'd. io. Theft tbe Difci
ples went away again
unto their own Home.

12. Then arofe Peter,
and ran unto the Sepul
chre, and ftooping down
be beheld the Linen
Cloaths laid by them
felves , and departed
wondering in himfelf at
that which was to come
to pafs.

What happen'd after the two Apoftles were
gone Home.

John xx.
n. But Mary [Mag
dalene who follow'd Pe
ter and the other Dif
ciple] flood wilhut at
the Sepulchre sleeping :
andasfhe wept Jheftoop-
ed down and looked into
the Sepulchre. 12. And feeth two
Angels in While, fitting
the one at the Head, and
the Other at tbe Feet,
where the Body of Jefus
baa tain :

Mark xvi.
a. Now when Jefus
was rifen early the firft
Day of the Week, he ap
peared firft to Mary
Magdalene,o»/ of whom
be bad eaft feven Devils.

io. And fhe went,
and told them that bad-
been with him as they
mmrifd and wept.

13. And

( '33
13. And they faid un
to her, Woman, why
weepeft thou ? She faith
unto them, Becaufe they
have taken away my
Lord, and I know not
where they have laid
him. 14. And when fthe
had thus faid, Jhe turn
ed her herfelf back, and
faw Jefas ftanding, and
knew not that it was Je
fus. 15. Jefus faith unto
ber, Woman, why weep-
eft thou ? Whom feeke/t
thou? She fuppofing him
to be' the Gardiner, faith
unto him, Sir, if thou
have born him hence,
tell me where thou baft
laid him, and I will
take him away.
16. Jefus faid unto
her, Mary, She turn'd
herfelf and faid unto him,
Rabboni, which is ta
fay, Mafter.
17. Jefus faith unto
her, Touch me noi : for
lam not yet aft ended to
my Father ; but go to
my Brethren and fay un to

( 134)

to them, I afcend unto
my Father and your FaT
ther, and to my God and
your God.
18. Mary Magdalene
came and told the Dif
ciples, that fhe had feen
tbe Lord, and that he
had fpoken thefe Things
unto her.

What happen'd immediately after Mary Mag
dalene had feen Chrift ; and as the Women were
going to the Apoftles.
Mat. xxviii.
9. And as they went
to tell his Difciples [vthat
the Angel had faid unto
them] behold Jefus met
them, faying, All Hail.
And they came and held
him by the Eeet, and
worfhipped him.
10. Then faid Jefus
unto them, Benot afraid;
Go tell my Brethren that
they go into Galilee, and
there fhall they fee me.
11. Now when they
were going, behold fome
of the Watch came into
the Cityt and fihew'd unto

( >3J )

untoth)e chief Priefts all '
the Things that were
done.
John xx.
1 8. Mary Magda
lene came and told tbe
Difciples tbat fhe bad
feen the Lord, 'and that
he had fpoken thefe things
unto her. Mark xvi.
ii. And they, when
they had heard \_from
Mary Magdalene] that
he was alivej and had
been feen of her, believed
not.

Luk. xxiv.
9. And they returned
from the Sepulchre, and
told all thefe Things unto
the Eleven, and to all
ihe reft.

ix. And their Words
feem'd to them as idle
Tales, and they believ'd
them not.

In the Evening of the Refurrection-Day
Chrift appear'd to St. Peter, as St. Paul fays,
1 Cor. xv. 5. and as appears from Luk, xxiv. 34.

Luk. xxiv,
13. And behold two
»f them went that fame
Day to a Village; call'd
Emmaus, which was
from Jerufalem about
threefcore Furlongs.
15. And it came to
pafs that while they com-
mun'd together and rea
fon' d, Jefus himfelf drew
near and went with
them.

Mark xvi.
12. After that he ap
peared in another Form
to two of tbem as they
walk'd and ' went into
the Country.
13. And ihey .went
and told it to the Refi-
due ; neither believed
they them.

16. But

( '3* )

1 6. But their Eyes
were holden that they
fhould not know him.
30. And .it came to
pafs as he fate at Meat
with tbem, he took Bread
and bleffed it, and brake
and gave to tbem.

31. And tbeir Eyes
were optfd, and they
knew him, and he va-
nifh'd tut of their Sight.
33. And theyrjoft up
the fame Hour, and re
turned to Jerufalem, and
found tbe eleven gather-
td Ptgetbtr, and tbem
that were with tbem.
Luke xxiv.
34. Who faid [unto
the twoDjfciplesas they
xasieia] the Lord is ri-
fsn indeed,, and hath ap
peared unto Simon.
35. And they [the
two Difciples] told what
Things were done in the
Way, and bow be was
known cf them in break
ing tf Bread.
36. And as ihey thus
fpake, Jefus himfelf ftood in

14, Afterward bt
appeared to the Eleven,
as they. fate at Meat ;
and upbraided them with
their Unbelief and Hard-
¦nffs ef Heart, becaufe
they believ'd not them
who bad feen bim after
he was rifen.John xx.
19. Then the" fame
Day at Evening, being
the firft Day if tbt
Week, when tbe Doors
were Jhut, where the
Difciples were ajfemhlei
fir Fear of the Jews,
came Jefus and ftood in
the Mdft and faith unto
them, Peace be unto you.
20. And when he had
fo faid, be fhewed unto
them his Hands and his
Side. Then were the
Difciples glad when they
faw the Lord.
24. But Thomas, one
of the Twelve, called
Didymus, was not with
them when Jefus came.
25. Tbe other Difci
ples therefore faid unto
bim, We bave feen ihe
Lord;

( '3
Luke. xxiv.
in tbe midft of them, and
faith unto tbem, Peace
be unto you.
37. But they were
terrified and affrighted,
and fuppofed that they
had feen a Spirit.
38, 39. And be faid
unto them — 7— Behold
np Hands and my Feet,
that it is I myfelf; han
dle me and fee ; for a
Spirit halh not Flefh
and Bones as ye fee me
have. 41. And while ihey
yet believed not for Joy
and wondered, he faid
unto them, Have ye here
any Meat ?
43. And he took it,
and did eat before them.
44. And he faid unto
them, Thefe are the
Words which I fpake
unto you, while I was
yet with you, that all
Things muft be fulfilled
which were written in
the Law of Mpfes, and
in the Prophets, and in
the Pfalms, concerning
me.

1)-
John xx.
Lord y but he faid unto
them, Except I fhall fee
in his Hands the Print
of the Nails, and put
my Finger into tbe Print,
of the Nails, and tbrufl
my Hand into his Side, I
will not believe.
26. And after eight
Days again his Difcfyles
were within, and Tho
mas with them ; Then
came Jefus, . the Doors
being Jhut, an4 flood in
the midft and faid, Peace
le unto you.
27. Then faith be' M
Thomas, Reach hither
thy Finger and, behold
my Hemds ; and reach
hither thy Hand and
tbrufl it into piy Side ;
and 'be not faithlefs but
believing.
28. And Thomas an
fwer ed and faid unto him,
My Lord and my God.
29. Jefus faith unto
him, Thomas, Becaufe
thou haft feen. me, thou
haft believed : Bleffed are
'they that h^e not feen,
and yet have believed.

T-he

( '3« )

f. The Appearance of Chrifl to all his Apoftles,
and a great Number of Difciples in Galilee.

Matt, xxviii.
1 6. Then tbe Eleven
Difciples went away in
to Galilee, into a Moun
tain where Jefus had
appointed them.
-t 1 7. And when they
faw him they worfhipp'd
him^ but fome [had]
doubled. 18. And Jefus came
and fpake unto tbem,
faying, All Power is
given to Me in Heaven
and in Earth. John xxi.
1 . After thefe Things
Jefus fhew'd himfelf a-
gain to tbe Difciples, at
the Sea of Tiberias [a
little before his Appear
ance to theFive hundred
Difciples and more].
2. There were toge
ther Simon Peter, and
Thomas call'd Didy
mus, and Nathanael of
Cana in Galilee, and
the Sons of Zebedee, and
two other of his Dif-
xipks.

1 Cor. xv.
5. He was feen of
Cephas, then of the
Twelve. ¦ 6. After that he was
feen of above Five hun
dred Brethren at once ;
of whom the greater Part
remain unto this pre
fent ; but fome are fallen
afteep. 7. After that he was
feen of. James [his Bro
ther] then of all the A-
poftles.

The

( >S9)

The laft Appearance of Chrift at his Af-
cenfion.

Luke xxiv.
50. [At the End of
Forty Days after his
Refurrection] He led
tbem out [of Jerufalem]
as far as to Bethany ;
and He lift up his Hands
and bleffed theni.
51. And it came to
pafs while he bleffed them,
he was parted from
them, and carried up
into Heaven.
52. And they wor
fhipped him, and re
turn' d to Jerufalem with
great Joy,

Acts chap. i.
3. To whom [the Apo
ftles] He fhew 'd himfelf
alive after his Paffion,
by many infallible Proofs,
being feen of tbem Forty
Days, and fpeaking of
tbe Things pertaining, to
the Kingdom of God.:.:t&
a. And when he had
fpoken thefe Things, while
they beheld, he was ta
ken up [into Heaven
ver. 11.] and a Cloud.
received him out of their
Sight. 12. Then return' d
they, unto Jerufalem,
from the Mount call'd
Olivet.

, In the foregoing Narration an attentive Rea
der will fee that there is no Contradiction or.In-
confiftencies in the feveral, Accounts of Chrift's
Refurreftion ; nor any other Difference, but
-that one Evangelift omits fome Gircumftaacfes
which are related in others. Suppofe in an Hi-
-ftory concerning the late Battle at Dettingen*, one
Writer fhould fay that King George was at the
Head ofthe Hor^r, and another Writer fhould
;fay that he was at the Head of the Foot, might
T ± not

( 14° )
not both thefe Circumftances be true ; or will
this prove that no Battle was fought at Detlin-
gen ? Might not the King firft lead , on the
Horfe, and afterward place himfelf at the Head
of the Foot ?
And the Variations before mention'd, in the
Hiftory of the Refurrection, as well as in other
Parts of the Gofpels, are an Argument in Fa
vour ofthe Evangelifts, that they did not com
bine together to relate a forged Story.
I fhall make fome Obfervations on your Mo
ral Philofopher's Account ofthe Refurrection,
and. then take my Leave of you.
After your Author has puzzled himfelf, and
his ignorant Reader, with the Womens Account
of the Refurrection, he concludes (p. 41.) from
St. Luke's faying, that they found not the Body
)of Jefus in the Sepulchre (ch. xxiv. 3.) that St.
Luke meant, they never faw him at all. Ob-
ferve the-wife Reafon he gives : If they had feen
him (he fays) alive or dead, they muft have found
or feen his Body. Was ever any thing fo trifling,
as to infer, that becaufe they faw not the Body
of Jefus in the Sepulchre, as all the Evange
lifts agree ; therefore they faw him not after he
was rifen, as they all agree that they did.
P. 42, 43. he imagines the two Difciples
Names, , who went to Emmaus, and faw Jefus
there, were Cleopas and Simon Peter, and won
ders that Peter, who knew him perf eclly well be
fore his Death, fhould not know him as well after
wards. He runs on talking in a very filly Man
ner all the forty-third Page, and Part of the
next. But I will fet him right, as he will own in

( 141 )
in one Point at reaft : It is plaTn from the Nar
ration about the two Difciples in Luke, that
Simon Peter was not one of them ; for Jefut
had appear'd to Simon Peter before, as the Apo
ftles were told by him, juft as the two Difciples
came to them : Therefore the Apoftles accoft-
ed the two Difciples at their coming in to them
with the News, faying, (ch. xxiv. 34.) The
Lord is rifen indeed,, and batb appear'd -unto Si
mon. Perhaps the Moral Pliilofopher not
reading Greek, was deceived by the Ambiguity
of the Englijh Verfion, taking what was -faid to
the two Difciples to have been fpoken by them
to the Apoftles. I fhould not have taken No
tice of fo fmall a Slip as this, but only that I
find it has fpoil'd a fine. Harangue of the Author's
about the intimate Acquaintance which was
between Peter and Jefus his Mafter. And tho'
Jefus appear'd in a Difguife at firft to the two
Difciples, to try whether they believ'd his Re
furrection or not, yet when he found they were
not fully convinc'd, he fhew'd his Perfon plain
ly to them, and then they knew him. Now
would any .rational Man argue, that becaufe 1
may not know my Friend when dis£gur*d or is\
Difguife, I cannot be fure I know him when the
Difguife is taken off ? As to the Reafon of
Chrift's. appearing in a different Form, what
Right has this Author to have it related to him ?
But I have given -him what I think is a proba
ble -.Reafon.
'P. 47. he fays, 5/. Matthew, St. Marfc, .and
St. Luke agree, that' when tbe Difciples wire made
acquainted with tbe Refurreftion efjefos, -ihey met
bim

( 142 )
him for the firft and laft Time. But this, St. John,
tbe Author of the Acts, and St. Paul conlraditl ;
fir they tell us of other Appearances afterwards.
To this I anfwer, St. Luke fays nd fuch thing:
But on the contrary, St. Luke, who is the un
doubted Writer of the Alls of the Apoftles, fays,
He was feen of them Forty Days, Acts i. 3. If he
could have prov'd St. Luke and the Author of
the ASts to have been different Perfons, his
Obfervation would have been more to the- Pur
pofe. St. Mark's Account is evidently of the
firft Appearance of Jefus to the Apoftles at Je
rufalem, when Thomas was not there, as appears
from Luke xxiv. 33. John xx. 19 — 24. And
Matthew's Account is of Chrift's Appearance in
in Galilee, Mat. xxviii. 16.. And he fays no
thing of the Afcenfion. Now your Author
himfelf obferyes (p. 48.) that tbe neareft Part
of Galilee is above threejcore Miles from Jerufa
lem. This might have let him fee, that the
Appearance here could not be the fame with
that at Jerufalem, on the Evening of the Re
furrection- Day. Nor could either of them be
the Appearance at the Afcenfion ; for that was
neither at 'Jerufalem nor in Galilee, but at Be
thany, and'from Mount Olivet.^ The Truth is,
St. Mark mentions but one Appearance,, and
then (omitting the others) paffeth from it to
the laft Appearance, when Jefus afcended. And
St. Luke "connects 'the firft and laft Appearance
, together, in his Gofpel : Though in the Acls he
fays that many others interven'd, and that Jefus
was feen by, and corivers'd with his Apoftles,
Forty Days. <- .
That

{ '43 )
This might deceive your Moral Philofo
pher ; but 1 fear he rather defigned to deceit
others. Your Author pretends (p. 50.) // may be a
Doubt whether he was dead, when he was taken
down from the Crofs ; fir when Jofeph begg'dbis
Body, Pilate marvell'd if he were already dead, —
and he was taken down by Jofeph himfelf. But
what ftronger Evidence would this Author have
that Jefus was dead, when his Enemies had the
killing of him, and his Friends buried him?
Would the one deliver him before he was dead ?
or would the other bury him alive in a cold
Sepulchre ? And though his Legs were not bro
ken, the Wound in his Side might reach his
Heart, and be more fatal.
All he fays, therefore, on this Head, is unrear
fonable, and really fhameful.
P. 50. : St. John having faid, that Jefus came
and ftood in the midft of his Difciples, when
the Doors were (hut, ch. xx. 19. 26. your
Philofopher, to fhew his Skill in his Profeffion,
obferves that the Apoftle fitggefts, that one folid
or material Body pafs'd through another, without
injuring the, Form of either., But what if the Door
was open'd or unlock'd, though the .Apoftles
did not perceive it, or know how it was done ?
or what if this was done in a miraculous Man?
ner ? What Occafion does the Text afford of
talking fo abfurdly, as if one Body penetrated
another? This Author is very ready to frame
Con traditions, to iiiyoid, the Appearance of a
Miracle. Your

( i44')
Your Author goes On, p. 51, 52. and fays,
When 1 have to do with one who has the Power of
working Miracles, my Senfes may be miraculoufty
wrsught upon ; in fuch Cafe I may and ought to
queftisn as much the Truth of my Senfes as the Ob
ject, that I am neither deceiv'd in tbe one nor the
ether. Let us then fuppofe, according to the
Author's Reafoning, that the Miracle of curing
a lame Man, whom he had known many Years
to be lame, was wrought for his Conviction ;
would he not believe his own Eyes when he faw
the lame Man walking and leaping, upon another's
laying only, Rife up, and walk ? No ! he muft
not believe it, becaufe he who wrought th^S
Miracle might have miraculoufly wrought upoh
his Senfes; fo that the lame Man might not
really leap or walk, though he faw him do both.
He will believe then, that upon a Word fpeak
ing, his Eyes fhall be fo difpos'd as to fee a
Man whom he knows to have been born lame
Walking and dancing. Is not this Miracle
wrought upon his Eyes as much a Miracle as
the other ? It is all one whether the Miracle is
wrought in the Senfes or in the Object ; there
fore k is highly abfurd to fuppofe the Senfes
to be miraculoufly wrought upon on purpofe to
make an Appearance only of another Miracle
in the Object -of them. Your Philofopher there
fore, to: be fore, fneant here to fay fomething
againft Miracles, but he did not know what.
He next attacks St. Paul (p. 53.) fays, He
writes by Hearfdy only, therefore can be no proper
Evidence to teftify of Things done before he was
born. I fuppofe this Author would think him felf

( MI )
felf -ill us'd tis a nfor§l Philofopher, that no Cre
dit, was to b? given to whfrt he fhould report
upon jjrlearfay, though from the moft credible
Eye-Witneffes of the Things he reports. But,
however, this was not St, Paul's Cafe \ he wrote
nothing py Hearfa.y relating to ^he Doctrine of
Chrift; he receiv'cj it by Revelation, as hehirq-
felf declares. , / certify you Brethren, fays he,
that the Gofpel which was preached of me, is not
after Man. Vor 1 neither receiv'-d it of Man,
neither was I taught it, but by the Revelation of
Jefus Chrift, Gal.i. ii, 12. And if he had by
Hearfay, or heard Cephas a^d James fay that.
they had feen Chrift, and alfo relate the other
Appearances of himfo his Difciples, w{iich had
happen'd bpt a Yeat Pr two before he became a
Chriftian, (and therefore I prefume riot before He
was born, as this Author feys) why might he
not believe them ?
Your Moral philofopher concludes his Ex
amination of the Evidence of the Witneffes of
Chrift's Refurrection with, this finifhing Stroke
(p. 56.) Thus the Saints agree, and fitch Agree
ment is common among . Saints. Their Miracles,,
JAqrals, Doctrines, and Practices, are ali^f
harmonious. I hope this Author is capable of
fo much Reflection as to be for ry for, and
repent of foch raffi and injurious Expreffipns,,
The Evidei^e of the Refurrection and Afcen
fion of the; holy Jefus is all confiftent, as I have
fhewn. But this Author confounds one Thing
with another at Random to make an Appear
ance of a Difagreement,, and to puzzle vulgar
tJncferftandings- ; and this with forrie Reflec-

( M« )
tions, which he, may think Wit, but which are
neither becoming a Gentleman or a Man of
Senfe, and much lefs the Character of a moral
Philofopher, is the Sum of all he has written.
In Anfwer to fomething faid by the Author
of the Trial of the Witneffes (whom I leave to
defend himfelf) your Philofopher fays (p. 58,
59.) Is it not very abfurd that the meaneft Wit
neffes fhould be pick' d and cull'd out for the beft, in
the greateft Affairs  that thofe who are princi
pally inter efted in a Will — fhould be allowed to bt
the beft and only Witneffes of the faid Will? I
fhould be forry if this Gentleman and all of
you had not an Intereft in this Will, which is
here fo contemptibly fpoken of. It is no other
than the Will of God, containing the Promife
of eternal Life and Happinefs to all who believe
in him, worfhip him, and obey him. Would you
exclude yourfelves from an Intereft in fuch a
Will ? I hope not, I believe not. What then
does your Author mean by excluding thofe
whom he fuppofes to be principally interefted
in this greateft Affair, from being Witneffes of
the Truth of it ? Is it an Intereft that can tempt
.any one to lie, or prevaricate, or to ufe any
Deceit to obtain the Benefit of it ? Juft the con
trary ; unlefs you fuppofe (which you will not
fuppofe) that Falfe-witnefs and Impofture is the
Way to obtain the Love and Favour of God,
and the Happinefs of a future State. Secondly,
Thofe only are the meaneft Witneffes, who are
left faithful and true. But there lies no Ex
ception againft the moral Characters of the
Apoftles of Chrift : And their being plain and
unlearned Perfons is rather an Advantage to
their

("3)
capable of doing. If any Miracle. was wrought
in Confutation of the Superftition and Power1
of the Roman Church, would they ' ftick at '
forging any Lies to prevent its being believed ?
Nay, would they not go farther than the Jewifh
Priefts did, and put to Death both the- Report
ers and Doers of it ? The Teftimony therefore
of the Soldiers is in itfelf an irrefragable Evi
dence of the Truth of Chrift's Refurrection;
and as this Author has nothing folid or rational
to oppofe to it, by his own Confefiion it ought
to fatisfy him ; and would do fo, if his Confci
ence was difpos'd to yield to Conviction.
The Moral Philofopher next condefcends to
confider the Teftimony of the Apoftles, and
fome others, who faw and convers'd with Chrift
after he was rifen from the Dead ; but it is only
to fhew their Inconfiftencies. However he has
done well in laying before his Reader all the
Texts of Scripture on the Inconfiftency of
which his Proof depends that Jefus did not
rife from the Dead. But an attentive Reader
may fee that there is no Contradiction in the
Relation of the feveral Circumftances of the
Refurrellion in which all the Evangelifts agree.
All that the Moral Philofopher has done to
fhew an Appearance of Inconfiftency, is his
confounding Perfons, and Times, and Places,
and not underftanding the Meaning of the Texts
he cites. He reprefents Things done at one
Time and Place which were done at another
Time and Place ; miftakes one Man for another,
and one Woman for another ; and cannot diftin-
guifh a Relation of different Circumftances from
a Contradictory Relation. For all the Matter
R 2 truly

( H4 )
truly is, that one Writer relates Circumftances
which are omitted in another : And the greateft
Difficulty lies in the Relation of the Women
who firft faw Jefus after his Refurrection ; And
fuppofing there was fome fmall Inconfiftency in
their Relation, who are reprefented as bein^
affrighted, and under a confus'd Joy ; it fhew§*
at leaft the Horiefty pf the Evangelifts in re
lating Things as they heard them ; ahd does,
not anywife invalidate the Womens whole
Relation, any more than it would do in any
other like Cafe, where for fudden Surprize and
Joy in feeing unexpectedly a Friend who was
thought to be dead, a Perfon varies' a little in
felling the Manner of feeing him ; which is no
Proof that he did not fee the Perfon at all :
Much lefs will this invalidate the Apoftles own
Evidence in relating what they both faw and
heard, in which there is no Inconfiftency ; as
truly there is not in the Womens Account nei
ther. The Hiftory ftands as follows : Early oq
Sunday Morning there was a great Earthquake
at the Sepulchre of Chrift ; at the fame Time
an Angel defcended from Heaven, and came
and roll?d back the Stone from the Door, and
fet upon it, whilft Jefus rofe from the Dead,
and came out of the Sepulchre, The Appear
ance of the Angel, whofe Countenance was like
Lightning, terrified the Watchmen, who lay
as dead Men, Mat. xxviii. 2, 3, 4. Soon after
this had happen'd, Alary Magdalene, and Mary
the Mother of James and Salome, • and others,
came to the Sepulchre, bringing Spices and
Qintqients t0 erpbalm the Body of Jefus, ac
cording

("J )
/cording to the . Cuftom of the Jews, who em-
balm'd their dead Bodies feveral Times, the
better topreferve them, Ma?, xxviii. i. Mark
xvi. i. Luke xxiv. i, 10. Jotinxx.t. They
found the Stone roll'd away, the Body was gone,
and the Watchmen fled : Upon this Mary
Magdalen runs and tells Peter, and another Dif-
ciple {viz. St. John) that the Body of Chrift
was gone out of the Sepulchre : Thereupon
bqth of them ran to the Sepulchre, lie. as
St.John relates, ch. xx. 2 — 10. Mat. xxviii. 2.
fiLark xvi. 4. Luke xxiv. 2, 3. Whilft, Mary
Magdalene ran to tell Peter and John, the other
Women ftaid-, and went farther into the Sepul
chre, and faw a young Man {viz. the Angel
mention'd Mat. xxviii. 2.) who was gone into
the Sepulchre, and fate on the right Side, and
faid to the Women what is related Mat. xxviii,
5,6, 7. Mark xvi. 5, 6, 7, 8. Luk. xxiv. 3, 4,
-^  8. Luke, fays, there were two Men
or Angels. The Women probably, at firft,
faw but one of them, who told them that Chrift
was rifen ; or Matthew and Mark mention one
only who fpake to them. Here is no Incon
fiftency, as Origen well obferves againft Celfus,
who made this Objection, lib. v. ^.268. Mary
Magdalene having told Peter and John what had
happen'd at the Sepulchre, follow'd them thi
ther, and ftaid after they left it, weeping and look
ing into it, fuppofing that the Body of Chrift
was not rifen, but convey'd out of the Sepulchre.
In the mean time, whilft the other Women
were gone to tell the Difciples (which was be
fore Peter and John came to the Sepulchre) and
after Peter and John had left it, Mat. xxviii.- 8.
' Mar>

( »o
Mark xvi. 8. Za^xxiv. 9. As Mary Magda
lene ftaid weeping and looking into the Sepul
chre, fhe faw two Angels, and immediately after
fhe few Jefus himfelf, as is related John xx. 11,
12  17. Mark xvi. 9. This was the firft Ap
pearance of Chrift after his Refurrection. After
Mary Magdalene was gone to tell the Apoftles
that fhe had feen Jefus, and what he had faid
to her, Jefus appear'd to the other Women alfo,
arid fuffer'd them to lay hold of his Feet (tho'
he would not permit Mary Magdalene to . touch
him) Mat. xxviii. 8, 9, io. . Then they went
and told the Apoftles, as is related John xx. 18.
Luke xxiv. a, 10, 11. Mark xvi. 10. It is in
deed faid, Luk. xxiv. 12. Then arofe Peter, and
ran unto the Sepulchre, as if this happen'd after
the Relation of the other Women as well as of
of Mary Magdalene, whereas it muft, I think,
have been before ; and even before the Return
of the other Women from the Sepulchre, or
whilft they were going to tell the Difciples. It
fhould therefore, according to the original Text,
be render'd, But Peter had rofe, and ran to the
Sepulchre, &c. and fo this Verfe may be a Par-
enthefis, or perhaps it may be an Interpolation
inferted from the Margin into the Text ; for it
is omitted in the moft ancient Manufcript of
Beza at Cambridge. But either Way there is
nothing in the Account that is inconfiftent or
contradictory. Towards the Evening of the fame Day Jefus
appear'd to Peter, 1 Cor. xv. 5. Luke xxiv. 34.
This was a little before he appear'd to the two
Difciples going to Emmaus, Luke xxiv. 13, iic, or

(',"/ )
or it might be a little after, but before they re-
turn'd .'to Jerufalem.
The next Appearance was the fame Evening
to * Ten of the Apoftles met together at JerufaT
lem, Luke xxiv. 36. John xx. 19. Mark xvi. 14.
Thomas was not with them, Joh. xx. 24.
The Sunday following, or eight Days after,
he appear'd to all the eleven together at Jeru
falem, Thomas being with them, John xx. 26.
And he was convinc'd of the Truth of Chrifi'%
Refurrection, which he did not believe before,
^28. After this they all went into Galilee, and
faw Jefus there, Mat. xxviii. 16. And it was
now that he was feen of above five hundred
Brethren at once, as St. Paul tells us 1 Cbr.
xv. 6. Afterwards he was feen • by -James his
Brother, 1 Cor. xv. 7. Again, he appear'd to
feven of his Difciples at the Sea of Tiberias,
John xxi. 1, 2. He was alfo feen, andconvers'd
with his Apoftles at various Times, during the
Space of forty Days, Atls i. 3. Then he led
them out to Bethany, unto tlie, Mount call'd
Olivet, and in the Sight of them all he afcended,
and was taken from them into Heaven, Luke
xxiv. 50,-51. ,ASs i. 9, 10, 11, 12.
The Harmony of the Gofpels, relating to
Chrift's Refurrection, ftands as follows, viz.
* The Moral Philofopher quibbles upon its being faid the
Eleven were gather'dtogether, when it appears from St.Jehn
that there were but Ten, Thomas not being with them. To
which it is a fufficient Anfwer, That in fpeafcmg of a col
lective Number, it is ufual to call the greater Part by ihe
Name ofthe Whole : So he might have fpar'd that Obfer-
vatiou.
Mat.

( ri-8 )

Mat.xxviii.
i. In the End of the
Sabbath, as it began to
dawn towards the firft
Day of the Week, came
Mary Magdalene and
-the other Mary io fee
ihe Sepulchre.

2. And behold there
'was (ox had been) a
great Earthquake ; for
the' Angel of the Lord
defended from Heaven,
and came and roll'dback
tbe Stone from the Door
and fate upon it.
3. His Countenance
, was like Lightening, and
his Raiment white ; as
Snow: ¦ 4. And for fear of bim
the Keepers did flhake,
and became as dead Men<

Mark xvi.
1 . And when the SaU-
bdth was paft, Mary
Magdalene, and Mary
the Mother of James
and Salome, had bought
fweet Spices that they
might come and anoint
him. 2. And very early ih
ihe Morning . ihe firft
Day of the Week; they
came unto the Sepulchre
at the rifing of ihe Sun.
3. And they faid a-
ntongft themfelves, Who
fhall roll us away the
Stone from the Door of
the Sepulchre ?
4. And when they
look'd, ihey faw that the
Stone was roll'd awayi
for it was very great.

John

i **? )

< , John xx.
I. The firft Day of
the Week cometh Mary
Magdalene early, when
it was yet dark unto tbe
$epulci?re, mdfeetbthe
Stone taken away from-
the Sepulchre.

2. Then fhe runneth
and cometh to Simon
Peter, and to the other
Difciple whom Jefus
foy'di and faith mto
tbem, They have taken
away the Lord out tf
the Sepulchre, and we
know not where they
have laid him.
Mat. xxviii.

Luk. xxiv.
i. Now upon fhf
firft Day of the Wee)t9
very early in the Morn
ing, they came mto. the
Sepulchre [viz. Mary
Magdalene, and Joanna
and Mary th? M°f her
of James ^ndothzr Wa-
taea with them jr io.1
bringing the Spiees which
they had prepared.
2. And they found
the Stone roll'ft W»»f
from tbe Sepulchre.
%. And they enter'd
in, and found nop the
Body ofthe Lord Jefus.

Mark xvi.
5. And entering in*
to the Sepulchre, they
faw a young Man fitting
on the Right Side, cloath-
ed in a long white Gar
ment ; and they weri
affrighted.

5. And

( I
5. And tbe Angel faid
unto the Women (who
ftaid in the Sepulchre
when Mary Magdalene
was gone) Fear not ye ;
for I know that yefeek
Jefus who was crucified.
6. He is not here:
for he is rifen as he faid :
come, fee the Place where
the Lord lay.
7. And go quickly
and tell his Difciples,
that he is rifen from the
Dead ; and behold, he
goeth before you into Ga
lilee ; there fhall ye fee,
him. Lo, 1 have told
you. 8. And they departed
quickly from the Sepul
chre, with Fear and
great Joy, and did run
to bring his Difciples
Word.

3°) 6. And he faith unto
them, Be not affrighted :
Te feek , Jefus of Naza
reth, who was crucifi
ed : He is rifen, he is
not here : Behold the
Place where - they laid
him.

7. But go your Way,
tell bis Difciples and
Peter, that begoetb be
fore you into Galilee ;
there fhall ye fee him, as
he faid unto you.

8. And they went out
quickly, and fled from
the Sepulchre, fir they
trembled and were ama
zed : neither faid they
any thing to any, Man ;
for they were afraid.
Luke xxiv.
4. And it came to
pafs, as they were much
perplex' d thereabout, be
hold two Men flood by
them in Jhining Gar
ments.

5. And

( 147 )
their Teftimony, it being a plain Narration of
what they faw and heard, told with the greateft
Simplicity, and without Art or Difguife. The
Proofs of our Saviour's Refurrection were adapt
ed to the meaneft Capacities. But if this Au
thor thinks it of any Confequence in the Caufe,
that Men of Character and Authority fhould
have been among the firft who believed in Chrift,
there were many fuch, as St. John tells us,
ch. xii. ^42. where it is faid, that many of the
chief Rulers of the Jews believed on Jefus<, though
they had not Honefty and Courage enough to
confefs him openly, for fear of Ecclefiaftical Cen-
fures, and lofing their Reputation and Authori
ty in the Sanhedrim. Nay, and even Herod
himfelf declared his Belief of the Miracles of
Chrift upon the Evidence of thofe who had feen
them. Mat. xiv. i, 2.
P. 59. he fays, It is improbable and abfurd
thai Jefus fhould be faid publickly to predict his
own Refurreifion, and not fulfill it in publick——
that he fhould inform the People that he would rife
again the third Day, yet difappoint all their Ex
pectations in feeing him  by rifing before them,
or appearing to them afterwards — r- _ They faid,
let him come down from the Crofs and we will be
lieve in him ; and would they not have believed in
him, if he had come up from the Dead ? He goes
on to the fame Purpofe, p. 60, 61.
I anfwer, The Evidence of Chrift's Refurrec
tion was publick. It was in the Sight of the,
beft Evidence in the World, according to this
Author's own Declaration (p. 64.) that half a
dozen Watchmen is better Evidence than a dozen
Apoftles. Chrift rofe in the Sight of thofe very
U 2 Guards

( 14* )
Guards whom the Jews had fet to watch hit
Sepulchre, and who confefled the Truth of it
before their Chief Priefts ; though afterwards,
for Intereft and Fear of Punifhment, they told
another Story as the Priefts had directed them.
Yet fo partial is your Author, as to credit this
latter idle inconfiftent Story rither than the
firft Declaration which the Soldiers made of
ChHft's Refurrection, where they had no Inter
eft or Motive to tell a Lie, and which was very
natural and Credible. Jefus alfo did appear to
thofe, to whom he had prornis'd to rife from
the Dead on the third Day : For he appeared in
Galilee to above five hundred of his Difciples at
once. And as to the Jewifh Priefts themfelves,
after fuch Evidence as they had received from
their own Watch, and fuch an abfurd Lie con-
triv'd by them to evade it. and hinder its Recep
tion, is it at all probable (I may appeal to this
Author or to any Deift) that if he had rofe in
their Sight, or made his firft Appearance in
their Affembly, they would have believed his
Refurrection a whit the more ? They might
have pretended, as this Author fuggefts, that
he was not really dead, though they thought
he was when he was taken down from the
Crofs ; or they would have probably faid
(fomething like what Celfus * objected) that his
Appearance was only a Delufion of fome evil
Spirit who had carried off his Body, and per-
fonated him, in order to draw them into his
Impofture. It is not therefore worthy of God
to make his miraculous Power cheap and con-
* Orig. ant. Celf. lib. ii. p. 94. temptible

( i49 )
ternptible amongft profligate and hardned Un
believers -, by whom he knew it would not be
megarded. He gave many publick and infallible
Proofs of the Refurrection df Jefus, to thofe
who were difpos'd to receive the Truth which
it was Wrought by the Power of God to con
firm. The Evidehoe continued after his Afcen
fion to fhine forth mors and more, and to be
corroborated by the Miracles which the Apoftles
wrought in Teftimony Of this great Article of
Faith, during their whole Lives ; and others
many Years after the Death of the Apoftles.
Thefe Miracles were never gairtfayed or contra
dicted either by Jews or Gentiles, that we read
of, and were admitted by both. And by the
Power of them and of the rational Doctrine at
tefted to by them, Millions of Converts were
gain'd from Superftition and Idolatry to the
Belief and Worfhip of the one true God, and
of Jefus Chrift as the divine Publifher of Salva
tion to the World. And his Doctrine in a few
Years was fpread all over the Roman Empire,
in Europe, Afia, and Africa ; and the Hiftory
of the Gofpels could never be confuted by the
moft learned Jews or Philofophers. It With-
ftood alfo all the Oppofition of worldly Power,
conquer'd and made Captives unto Chrift of
the wife and learned as well as of the fimple
and unlearned, till it drew, ' as it were, the
Whole World after it by the ConVerfion of the
Roman Empire from Paganifm to true Religion
and Chriftianity.
This was the Effect of that Evidence oi Chrift's
Refurrection, which -this Author ridicules, and
by an uncommon Weaknefs as well as Affu
rance,

( if° )
ranee, pronounces to be impoffible and a mere
Fiction. And whereas he infills on the lmpoffi-
hility of Miracles for many Pages, in oppofition
to natural as well as to revealed Religion, as
I have largely prov'd in the preceding Papers ;
yet he muft allow one as great a Miracle as any
of thofe he thinks impoffible ; viz. that, the
Chriftian Religion, a mere Fable according to
him, did by the preaching of a few illiterate
Cheats who pretended to work Miracles, make
Millions of Converts to it in a few Years, with
out the wifeft Oppofer being ever able to difco
ver the Cheat ; and in Defiance of all worldly
Power us'd to extirpate it ; and did even fpread
all over the Roman Empire, and prevail with
Kings to forfake the Religion of their Fathers,
which had been long eftablifh'd by Laws, and
under which their Kingdoms had rofe, and in-
creas'd, and flourifh'd ; and to embrace a mere
Impofture inftead of it. And all thefe wonder
ful Effects were wrought in a moft difcerning
and learned Age, over-run with Superftition
and Infidelity ; neither of which difpofe Men
to hearken to new Doctrines that are not at
tended with more than ordinary Evidence. That
one Superftition (as this Author, and all you
Deifts fuppofe Chriftianity to be) fhould prevail
by mere Cheat and Impofture over all other
Superftitions, without Power, Learning, or.
any worldly Intereft to fupport it ; and fhould
convert to it, not only the Vulgar and Unlearn
ed, who are very hard to be brought off from.
the Prejudices of a long received, though falfe
Religion ; but alfo Philofophers and Politicians,
and by Degrees bring whole States and King doms

( IJI )
doms to embrace it, and to renounce aff other
Religion for the Sake of it ; this, I fay, is as
great a Miracle as any related in the Gofpel-
Hiftory, and much harder to be believ'd than
all the Scripture-Miracles put together. Yet
the Deifts muft acknowledge this Miracle to be a
moft certain Truth.
In ignorant Ages, a falfe Religion or Super
ftition may be propagated and prevail by the
cunning of learned Impoftures for worldly Ends
and Purpofes ; or it may be forc'd upon Men
by temporal Power; this we know to be the
Ground of Popery and Mohammedifm. But
it was never known, nor is it at all credible,
that fuch Impoftures or a falfe Religion were of
can be eftablifh'd by a few Men of no Note,
without Literature, Power, or Policy ; and in a
learned Age too, and in Oppofition alfo to all
the Power and Learning of the' whole World.
Therefore we may conclude with wife Gamaliel,
Acts v. ver. 38. that if this Counfel or this Work
had been of Men, it wou'd have come to nought ;
and as he infers, f 39. if it be of God, you cannot
overthrow it ; but may juftly fear, that by your
Oppofition to it you will be found even to fight
againft God.
One thing more I muft take Notice of is, his
faying,. P. 65. Why fhould the Apoftles of all Men
require the whole World lo credit the greateft Mi
racle that ever was on the leaft Foundation? And
why fisould the Credit of this depend on them alone ?
If an hundred and twenty or five hundred faw him
befides, cou'd they' not at t eft it as well ? "
I have fhewri that the Apoftles were well qua
lified to write the Gofpel Hiftory, confifting of
Facts

Facts of which they were Eye and Ear-Witneffes.
And many others befides them, who faw Chrift
after he was rifen from the dead did, no Doubt,
atteft the Truth of his Refurrection. But this
Author expects to have their Teftimony in
Writing, which is ridiculous, especially in him
who has in Effect declar'd that not five hundred
or five thoufand Witneffes to a Miracle cou'd
convince him, becaufe he thinks it an Impofli
bility in itfelf.
But muft, I befeech you, no Hiftory be cre
dited on the Evidence of one or more Hiftorians,
who were prefent and perfonally concerned in
the Facts related in it ; or upon any lefs Evi
dence than the concurrent Teftimony of every
Perfon prefent or concern'd? What will become
of Hiftory and humane Faith at this rate? or
what can °ne fay to fuch a Reafoner as your
moral Philofopher ? But the Hiftory of Chri
ftianity does not depend on the Teftimony of
one fingle Writer, who was a perfonal WiEH^fe
to the Facts related in it ; it depends on the
concurrent and agreeing Teftimony of feveral
who had a perfonal Knowledge of all they re
lated ; of one alfo who was from an Enemy and
Perfecutor, converted and made a Difciple of
Chrift by a miraculous Evidence of his Refurrec
tion and Afcenfion^ The Gofpel -Hiftory with
Regard only to the Writers of it, is better at
tefted than any Hiftory in the World befides
ever was. There are no Facts in the Eaftern Hi-
ftories, or in the Greek or Roman, near fo well
or ftrongly attefted as that of the Gofpel. So
that a Deift, if confiftent, has really the Morti
fication to be an Infidel, not in Chriftian Hi
ftory

( '53 )
ftory only, but in the whole Hiftory of Man
kind. He mint be an Enemy to all Faith as
well as to that ih Jefus ; to all hiftorical Truth
whatfoever, as well as to that of the Scriptures.
And tho* every Perfon will be ready to think,
that fetch Incredulity is riot capable of any ra
tional Conviction ; yet I will add, that there ti
in the Gofpel-Hiftory greater Evidence than any
mere human Hiftory not only has, but is or ever,
was Capable of having; an Evidence greater
than that of ten thoufand Witneffes, . tho' they
had all left their Atteftatioris in Writing ; an
Evidence greater than that df the whole Jewifh
Priefthood could have been, tho' they had all
feen •Chrift rife from the dead, and had declar'd
thebfelves convinc'd of the Reality of his Re
furrection and been converted by it. This Evi
dence I mean, is that of the Prophecies of the
Old Teftament fulfilled in the New ; and of the
Prophecies of the New Teftament, Which were
publinVd by Chrift and his Apoftles; many of
Which have been moft eminently fulfill'd, and
many of which alfo continue from their firft
Prediction to be fulfilling, and fulfill'd to this
Day : So that the Evidence of the Gofpel is
not only an hiftorical Evidence of the greateft
and moft unqueftionable Authority, but is like-
wife equal to that of the moft certain and- de
monftrative Truth. But it feems, according to
your Author's reafoning, feeing the Facts re
lated is no Proof of their being done ; nay, and
enduring all kind of Sufferings and even Death
itfelf, in Teftimony of the Facts feen is with
Him no kind of -Proof (p. 70.) of their being
done ; the Truth of thefe Facts alfo at the fame
X Tims

( iJ4 )
Time being never contefted or pretended to be-
confuted by the Oppofers of them, adds, it
feems, no Weight or Evidence to them. Far
ther, the greateft Miracles being wrought by the
Atteftors of thefe Facts in Confirmation of their
Teftimony of the Truth of them, will not yet,
With him, prove them true or credible. Again,
the Converfion of Millions to the Doctrines and
Profeffion of the Facts attefted by thefe Eye
and Ear-Witneffes, and confirmed by many
Miracles ; and this Converfion made in Oppofi
tion to all worldly Intereft, and in fpite of all
worldly Power to prevent it ; ftill according to
your Philofopher, all this is no Proof or Evi
dence of the Truth of thefe Facts and thefe
Doctrines. Therefore he may go on and fay,
either that God cannot deliver Prophecies (juft
as he feys Miracles are inconfiftent with the
divine Attributes) or that Events correfpondent
to a Fore-relation of them are not an Evidence
of the Truth of Prophecies, but are the Effects
and Confequences of mere Chance or any Thing
but of divine Fore-knowledge. This is the laft
Length of an hardned and defperate Infidel,
and is a Demonftration not of Deifm but of uni
verfal Scepticifm or Atbeifm. Such Reafoners
(which I hope none of you are) are Enemies to
all Truth and Reafon, and are a Difgrace to
the very Name and Nature of Man : There
fore till a Deift can make fome Objection againft
the Hiftory and Doctrines of the Gofpel ; can
offer fome Reafon or Evidence to prove either
the Facts or Doctrines of Chriftianity not to be
true, according to the Rule of common Reafon and

( ijr)
and Equity in all Enquires, they, ought both"
to be receiv'd as true. .
Thefe Facts and thefe Doctrines were of the
greateft Importance both to Jews and Gentiles,
as diffolving the political Law of Mofes, and
• putting an End to the Levitical Inftitution on the
one hand; and on the other hand, tending to.
abolifli all Superftition and Idolatry which had-
been every where eftablifh'd by human Laws;
ahd inftead of thefe, introducing a new State of
uncorrupted natural Religion, teaching the
Worfhip ofthe one true God alone without Sa
crifices or any burdenfome Rites and Ceremonies-;
commanding all Men to repent of and forfake
their Sins and Vices, and to live holily, godly,
and right eoufty in the prefent Staite, under the
Promife and' Affurance of Pardon, and Recon
ciliation with God without any" Punifhment or
Suffering for Sins paft ; and under the Belief and-
Expectation of Salvation and Happinefs in a
future iState. AU the Hardfhip ("pardon the
Expreffion) is, that we are required to .accept
this Revelation of God's Grace and Goodnefs,
as being procur'd and convey'd to us by a moft
holy Perfon fent from God in our Nature to
give us Affurarice of it% who wrought triany
Miracles

a This indeed was the principal Objection made to Chri
ftianity by the two great Apologifts for Idolatry, Celfus and
Julian. They thought their Daemons and Heroes were more
illuftrious and better deferved to be worfhipp'd than Jefus -,
tho' they cou'd not ihew that they had been Benefaitofs to
Mankind ; and it was evident from the Hiftory of them that
tfeeir Characters were vicious, impure and immoral ; and

( 1,6 )
Miracles and fulfill'd many Prophecies in Proof
of his divine Miffion ; and was put to death for
his Teftimony to' the Truth ; and was rais'd by
"the Power of God from the dead ; and exalted
to a State of Glory and Happinefs ; and madb;
under God our fpiritual Head and Governor,
till we alfo fhall, by the fame divine Power Which;
raifed him from the dead, be raifed from the
dead alfo, and partake of that happy State
which He is poffeffed off; and that we are xi-
quir'd in the mean Time to keep and exprefs a
continual thankful Remembrance of his Death,
who loved us even unto Death, and hath pro-
cur'd fuch Benefits for us ; and to- pur up all our
Prayers to God in his Name, as a Teftimony of
our acknowledging him ta be our Lord and Sa»
viour ; and the Teacher of that Religion and
Author of that Faith, by which weare brought
to the Knowledge of the true God, and the moft
acceptable Way of worfhipping Him- in Spirit
and in Truth If there is any Hardship, or Un-
reafonablenefs in fuch a Syftem of Religion as
this, let the Deifts fhew it. This is the Sum of

their Worfliippers had: not only no dwine Authority to af-
cribe any invifible Power to them, on the Pretence of whicn
only it was that the Worfliip of them was founded ; but on
the contrary, the Worfhip of them was exprefly forbidden by
diyine Revelation, which declared- rhem- to be evil Agents
and Adverfaries to true Religion and the, Worihip of the one
true God. But the Mifljon of J epis Chrijl was foretold by
the Prophets infpir'd by God,, and both- his Life, Doftrine,
and Mirades bore Witnefa that he was the Holy One of
God. the

d'jr)
the CbriftM*' Doftrine preach*d*, bosh to Jew'*
and Gentiles by the Apoftles of Chrift during
their Lives, and- written in their Gofpeli^
fox the Benefit of Mankind to the End of the
Worldl We , never raacl that the J'et&s, m .the Times
qf the. Apoftles- preaching amongft, thefn, ©f
afterwards, deny'd the- Truth of Chrift's Refojf-
Eection, or of the Miracles- which; his Apoftle!
brought in his- Name,, and in Teftimony of it j
when Feter and others! of the Aptjftles decbr*d
in the Prefence of the High Priefts. afod. Council
of the Jews, That? God had rais'd- up Jefus,
whom tbey had ftain^ and exalted him to be a
Prince and a Saviour:. And; that the Spirit of
God bore Witnefs to their Teftimony, who
had feen him after his Refurrection, by the Mi
racles which were wrought: by his Power in
Confirmation of the Truth of it.. This is the
Import of A&. v. 27— 32» The Jewifh Coun
cil, in Anfwer to their Evidence and Declarai-
tion, did riot deny the' Fact of theRefurreftion
of Jefus; or alledgei the idle Story which they
had put into the Mouths. of the Watch to fpread
amongft the filly People who were at their
Devotion, viz*, that the Aipoftle9 had ftote the
. Body out of the Sepulchre : This was too grofs
to be ferioufly made ufe of wjthou-8 expofing
themfelves. Nor did- the Jewifi Council at all
deny the. Truth ©f the miraculous Deliverance
of the Apoftles out of the Common Prifon where
they had put them* and fet a Watch over them,
$r 18 — 23. The Fact was too notorious to be
deny'd ; rherefoai Gamaliel, one of the Coun cil,

( *a)
di, aDoclor ofthe Law, and a Perfon of great
Reputation, advis'd them to difmifs the Apo
ftles, without inflicting any farther Panifliment
but beating them, ¦ & 40. for difobeying their
former Commands ; telling them withal, that
if the Apoftles Preaching was a mere human
Doctrine, and the Facts they related not true,
their Council and- Work would come to nought,
f 34, 38. To whofe Advice the reft agreed ;
which they could not be fuppos'd to do, had
they difcover'd any Cheat or Falfhood in the
Apoftles Witnefs of Chrift's Refurrection. The
Advice fhews they thought the Fact might be
true, and was true for any thing they knew to
the contrary ; and their Charge to the Apoftles
to preach no more in the Name of Jefus, (i. e.
^that he was rifen from the dead) fhews that the
Evidence of it had great Effect upon the Peo
ple, and had caus'd their Doctrine to be fpread
and receiv'd all over Jerufalem, f 28. And
thefe very Rulers, a little before this, were for
ced toconfefs a miraculous Cure done byPeter and
John upon a Man who had been lame from his
Mother's Womb ; which Miracle they did in
the moft public Manner at one ofthe Gates of
the Temple where the People were affembled',
who all faw and knew the Man that was cur'd,
chap. iii. 9, 10. The Jewifh Council had the
Man before them who was heal'd ; and know
ing the Fact to be true from his own Mouth*,
as well as from many others who had feen hinV,
they were forc'd to confefs that a notable Mi
racle had been wrought by the Apoftles. ' And
their Confeffion of the Fact is very remarkable,
-as it is related chap. iv. 13 — 23.
CON-

{ i59 )

CONCLUSION.
Thus, Gentlemen, I have given you the
Proof of Reveal'd Religion from Miracles and
Prophecies, and have confider'd your Moral
Philofopher 's Objections to the Evidence of the
Refurrection of Jefus; and have, I hope, an-
fwer'd them fo far to your Satisfaction, as that
you will give what I have written, your ferious
and impartial Confideration. I have no other
View but to defend Chriftianity, as being the
pure and undefiled Religion of Nature and Rea
fon, made more perfect by divine Revelation.
And as upon a long and diligent Enquiry (with
out Prejudice I hope) I am fully fatisfy'd of
the Truth and Divinity of it, I fhould rejoice
and be exceeding glad if I could be an Inftru-
ment by any Labours or Endeavours of mine*
of enlarging the Profeffion of.it by, your Con
viction and Reception of it.
We are happy in living under a Government
,and a Prince who protect and favour that reli
gious (give me leave to call it Chriftian} Liberty
which is the natural? Right of all Mankind:
And I hope that the Spirit of Perfecution, which
is the very Image of Antichrisl and Satan, will
never be fuffer'd to* appear in the Temple of
God amongft lis.
^ One Benefit of, Chriftian Liberty has been,
that through your Oppofition to the Chriftian
Faith and Doclrririe, they have both been more
fully examin'd, and; better underftodd and de
fended,

( 160 )
fended, than I believe they otherwife would
have been. And if Chriftianity has receiv'd Be
nefit by your Pali, I hope it would receive
greater Benefit by your rifing again, and being
convinc'd of the Truth of it.
Though I have always thought there is a
Bigotry in Infidelity as well as in Superftition,
and do not think that you are free from Preju
dice in oppofing, as others are not in main
taining receiv'd Doctrines and Opinions $ yet
if you will freely and fairly examine the Scrip-1
tures themfelves, and the entire Evidence of
the Facts and Doctrines contain'd in them, you
will have the Advantage of not being entangled
before-hand with any Set of human Traditions
and ungrounded Hypothefes receiv'd by feme
as fundamental Articles of Religion, to obftrufl
your Enquiries, or to lead you into Error. The
Scriptures would open to you new and amazing
Scenes of Providence in the Government of the
World : And what Pleafure muft be added ro
the reading of the Hiftory of Mankind, to fee
that the great and good Creator hath been
continually watchful over the Affairs of us,
his poor Creatures ? To fee that all the great
Motions, the Rife, and Fall, and Changes of
the feveral Kingdoms of the Earth, which we
xead of both with Pleafure and Aftonifhment,
have all been recorded Years and Ages be
fore they happened in the facred Writings
pf Mofes, and the Prophets, and of the Apo
ftles of Chrift.
Thefe are demonftrative Evidences of a con
tinual Providence, againft Scepticifm, and Atbeifms, and

( i6i)
and a faithful Witnefs from Heaven to the
Truth, both of the Mofaic and Chriftian Reli
gion. All I fhall farther add is, to beg of you that
whilft you continue your Oppofition to and Un
belief of the Chriftian Faith and Doctrine, you
will not treat them (as too many of you have
done) with Scurrility, with Contempt, or Ridi
cule. The Chriftian Religion is too ferious an
Affair to be fcOffed Or Ikug-hd^ at. We fhall
always be ready to attend to what you offer in
a rational or Scholar- f ike Way y arid wM sfieat
your Arguments and Perfons witli Decency'khd
Refpect : But fuch a Way of Writing 'as the late
Moral Philofopher was fo unhappy as to.^ufe,
and fuch as your prefent Moral Philofopher has
us'd, is highly indecent and offenfive, and may
provoke fome in their Anfwers to fhew a more
warm and bitter Zeal than becomes a good
Chriftian, though ever fo much reviled or in
jured. I am, Gentlemen, with hearty Wifhes, that
all Chriftian Happinefs may attend you both
here and hereafter,
Tour Humble Servant,

FINIS,

ERRATA.
Page 16. Line 23. r. by delivering. /. 24. r. injur'd
virtuous, p. 32. /. 30. for 11. r. xi. ^. 45. /. 9. r. no.
/. 5;. /. /«««//. r.' lib. v. c. 13. feci. 7. p. 63. /. 1 2. »-. jfr6,
p. 67. /. antepenult, r. Tununen/is. p. 89. /. 16. r. Locufts.
/. 95. /. 32. r, it, owi^ « Comma.

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