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FOUR

DISSERTATIONS'

I. On providence. 11. On prayer.

III. On the Reasons for expe6ling that virtuous^ Men ihali meet after Death in a iState of % 'Happinels. ■

IV. On the Importance of- Christianity, the Nature of Historical Evidence, and Miracles.

By RICHARD'^RICE, F.R.S

LONDON:

Printed for A. Millar and T. Cadell, oppofite to Catherine- Street, in the Strand.

/ M DCC LXVII. /

Publified by the fame Author^ Printed for A. Millar and T. Cadell in the Strand^

A Review of the principal Queftions- and Difficul- ties in Morals ; particularly, thofe relating to the Original of our Ideas of Virtue, its Nature, Foun- dation, Reference to the Deity, Obligation, Subjedl- matter and San6lions. In One Volume 06tavo, Price 65.

[ iii j

ADVERTISEMENT.

THE Author hasibeftowed fo much pains on Ithe Firjl of the following Dijftrtations^ that he hopes it will \^ found worthy of careful attenticb. His view in the Second and T/)rd Dif- feriations is in a great ^eafure PraElical\ and he begs tHs may be remembered, and that futable allowances may be made when they are read. He wi{hes\ear- neftly to be able to contribut to- wards advancing the interei of virtue and rational religion in^he world ; and he will think t^t his life has been fpent to a vali A 2

m

^•>'i»«' "'i^>«"v

[ i^ ]

ble purpofe, fhould he ever fuc- ceed in this in the fmalleft de- gree-

The Fourth DilTertation is de- fio-ried chiefly in anfwer to an ob- ledion againft Chriftianity, on which conflderable ftrefs has been laid. I' is, perhaps, too foreign to the main end of this work* There cannot, however, be any- great impropriety in giving it a place-iere.

CO N-

[ ?:Vr ']

CONTENT S.

ypfi

DISSEllTATION L

On Pro YiJD e;^ CE.

Sc6t. I. /^.F the Argumejtts for Providence from the Ferfeclions of the Deity.

P- 3

Seft. IT. Of the Arguments for Providence from the gejieral Laws and Conjlitution of the World. ?• 23

Sed. III. Of the Marnier in which Providence is admi?iijlered, p. 60

Sed. IV. Of the Ob] eBions againjl Providence.

p. 89

Sea. V. Of the Ufes of tkeDo5lrine of Pro- vidence^ p. 162

D I S S E R.

vi C O ^ T E ll T S.

DISSERTATION II

On Prayer. 3

Secfl. L T'he Nature y Reafonablenefs and Effi* cacy of Prayer explained^ and the Obje5iiont to it anfwered. p. 1 97

Sedt. II. Of the Importance of Prayer as an

inftnmental t)uty, the Happinefs of a de* vout Temper and the particular Obligation to Public Worjhip. P- 230

Sedl. III. Of the Manner in 'which Prayer ought to be, performed. p. 276

DISSERTATION III.

On the Reafons for expecting that virtuous Men fiall meet after Death in a State of Happinefs. P- 3^1

DISSERTATION IV.

Oil the Nature of Hlftorical Evidence and

Miracles. Sea. I. IntroduBory Obfervations relating to

the Importance of Chrijiianity, its Eviden- ces^

CONTENTS. vii

cesy and the ObjeBions which have been made to it. P-S^^

Seft. II. ^he Nature and Grounds of the

Regard due to Experience^ and to the Evi^

. ^dence of Tefimonyy fated and compared,

p. 384

Se<a. III. Of the Credibility of Miracles, and the Force of Tejlimony when employed to prove them. P* 4^3

Conclufon. P« 4^6

^01 . ii S

DISSER«

•-■1 a

2ia

DISSERTATION I.

O N

PROVIDENCE.

B

DISSERTATION I.

O N

PROVIDENCE.

SECTION. L

Of the arguments for Providence fro?n the perfections of the Deity,

IT cannot but be a matter of anxious enquiry with every confiderate per- fon, how far he has reafon to think well of that w^orld in which he exifts, and of its laws and adminillration. If about this no fatisfa^flion can he ob- tained, there will he an end of ajl the chief comforts and hopes of reafonable beings. The courfe of events mull: be viewed with fufpicion, and the world conten>plated with difguft and pain. B 2 T-e

4 0>^ Providence.

The dodlrine of Providence, therefore, is plainly of the hioheft importance ; ^nd the v^riter of the following Differ-: tation can v^ant no apology for attempt- ing to aiTift in explaining and defending it, though he fhould fall iliort of his aim, and be able to do no more than ^ew a good intention, and perhaps en- gage a few to join with hini in care- fully reviewing a fubjedt that cannot top often employ our thoughts.

What I ihall begin with will be an ac- count of fome of the principal argu- ments that prove an unerring Provi- dence.

If it can be proved that the Deity ^dminiil-er$ all the affairs of the world, and extends his care to every created being in fuch a manner that nothing hard or oppreffive, nothing inconfiftent with rectitude and v/ifdom in the go- vernment of events ever comes to pafs y or, in other words, if it can be proved -^ f^ that

O.^ Providence. ^

^* that all the occurrences in nature are ^^ under perfedly wife and good direc- *^ tion /* then the docftrine of Provi- dence, -in the higheft and ftritteil: f^nfc of it, will be eflablifhed.

There are two ways of proving this* One, from the conlideration of the Di- vine perfedtions. The other, from what falls under our notice of the frame and conftitution of the world. Let us firft confider the evidence arifing from the former of thefe heads.

We have the beft reafons for afcrib- ing to the Deity all poffible excellence ; or for conceiving of the firft caufe as a being abfolutely perfed:. In the idea of abfolute perfedlion is implied infinite power, wifdom, and goodnefs ; and in thefe, fuch a providence over all things as has been mentioned. The Deity can- not be an indifferent fpedator of the fe- fies of events in that world to which he has given being. His goodnefs will as B 3 certainly

6 On Providence.

certably. engage him to dircd them a- greeably to the ends of goodnefs, as his wifdomand power enable him to do it in the mofl effedual manner. Thus we muft conclude according to all our ideas of thefe attributes. Could we call that being good who would refufe to do any good which he is able to do without the leajft labour or difficulty ? — God is prefent every where. He fees all that happens -, and it is in his power, with perfeft eafe, to order all for the beft. Can he then poiTefs goodnefs, and at the fame time not do this ? — I am, fjppofe, in afflic- tion.- The author of mj' exiftence, who is almighty and righteous, knows my condition, and fees, what I feel. Would he, if he. fa w that my afflidlion is im- proper, or that- 1 labour under any real grievance, fuffer it for one moment ? 'Tis utterly impoflible. — A God without a Providence is undoubtedly a contradic- tion. Nothing is plainer than that a be- ing of perfect reafon will, in every in- ilaoce, take fuch care of the unlverfe as

perfecft

On Providence. j

pcrfed: reafon requires. That fuprem6 intelligence and love which are prefent to all things, and from w^hence all things fprung, muft govern all occurrences, and exclude from the conftitution of na- ture all real ill and diforder.

Thefe eonfiderations, it fhould be ob^ ferved, prove what has been called a particular in oppofition to a general Pro-* vidence. We cannot conceive of any reafons that can influence the Deity to exereife any providence over the world, which are not likewife reafons for ex- tending it to all that happens in the worldi As far as it is confined to gene- rals, or overlooks any individual, or any event, it is incomplete, and therefore unfuitable to the idea of a perfeft Be- ing.

A great deal of very foolifh ridicule

has been thrown on this fubjedl, and {c-'

veral objedtions have been made, which

prove no more than the ignorance of

B 4. thofe

8 On Providence.

thofe who make them. It will be pro- per here diftindly to take notice of fome of thefe.

• One common prejudice againft this dodrine arifes from the apprehenfion that it is below the dignity of the Deity to watch over, in the man- ner it implies^ the meaneft beings, and all the minuteft affairs. In anfwer to this it may be obferved, that -a great number of minute affairs, if they are each of them ofyi/;?^ confequence 5 make «p a fum which is oi great confequence |. and that there is no way of taking care ot this fum^,. without taking care of each particular. Whatever events indeed are ^wholly frivolous^ it would be •s.bfurd to fuppofe the Deity to concern himfclf about. Such events want no dlred;ion. They are capable of no di- :re«5lion. But, on the contrar}'', all e- ¥'2nt3, not wholly frivolous, are proper Qbje(5t3 of attention; and what would 'fee really degrading to the univerfal pa- rent is^ not his watching over, but neg- lecting

On 'Providence. 9

lefting them. This objection, therefore, under the appearance of honouring God, plainly difhonours him. Nothing is ab- folutely trifling wherein the happinefs of any individual, even the moft iniignifi- cant, is at all concerned : nor is it be- neath a wife and good Being to interpofe in any thing of this kind. To fuppofe the Deity above this, is to fuppofe him above adting up to the full extent of goodnefs and reditude.

The fame eternal benevolence that firft engaged him to produce beings, cannot but engage him likewife to exercife a par- ticular providence over them; and the very loweft beings, as well as the high- eft, feem to have a kind of right to his fuperintendency^ from the very ad: of bringing them into exhlence. Every ap- preheniion tliat this is too great a con- defcenfion in him, is founded on the pooreft ideas ; for furely, whatever it was not too great a condefcenfion in him to create, it cannot be too great a 3 conde-

lO 0/^ P R O V I D E N C E.

condelcenfion in him to take care of ^i It is proper to add, that with refped to

God

'Trct^ayoLyzii', co^i kolto, vtAvrct TfOTTov dd^vvcnop (jlH vrpoyont^sLi vToBin ra. i/t' olvth 'PreLpety^^iVTet- Sim. Comment. Cap. 38.

Some of the obfervations which have been made above may be found alfo in Plato's well-known lOth Dialogue of Laws. In this dialogue Plato teaches excellently that (fince what is felf- moving is, by its nature, before that which moves only in confe- quence of being moved) mind muft he prior to mat-^ tey\ and the caufeof all its modifications and changes; and that, therefore, there is an univerfal min<l poileft of all perfeclion, which produced and which a£luate^

all things hl yz jfov n^y^fjuvtov ovS'^cjtof a/a^^

Xiy<itv » '^c/.<jvv 'JL^^rrw ^yj^vTav A-vyjw iT<i^iay'-tv 'Trd.vrct, —After this he {hews that the Deity exercifes a parti^ cular providence over the world, taking care of fniaU no lefs than great things. Q^ i^iu-tKni auiKpm njt Pui, ovy^ m^op » Ticv fj.eyiQit J'i^(f):ov.-Teov^ In proving this he obferves, *' that a fuperior nature of fuch *' excellence as' the Divine, which hears, fees, and " knows all things, cannot in any inftance be fuD- " ject to negligence or lloth ; that the meaneit and *' the greatelt parts of the world are all equally his *' work or pofleliion ; that great things cannot be *' ri"-htly taken care of without taking care of ** fmall i and ihat, in all cafes, the more able and

" perica

3

0;^ Providence. ii

God all the diftinCtions of high and low in the creation vanilh. All beings are infinitelyy that is, eqtiallyy inferior to him.

Another prejudice by which, probab- ly, the minds of many are affetfled on this fubjed:, arifes from the notion, that it muft be fome trouble to the Deity to fuperintend and diredl all the immenfe variety of events in the univerfe. It is not eafy in this inftance to avoid con- ceiving of God as like ourfelves, and to remove all human imperfecftions from our ideas of him. We fhould fludy

*' perfecSl any artift Is (as a phyfician, an architect, *•• or the ruler of a ftate) the more his fkill and care " appear in little as well as great things. Let us not then (fays he) conceive of God as worfe than *' even mortal artifts." Ot/J'e ya.^ ctvzv (Tfxnt^eov ra? piyet^ai octatv oi hSoKayoi M^ov^ su K^fSrat //«

791' yi BiOV £t^lCi}<TCOfy.iV 'TTOli BfHTUy S'niJ.lOV^yCOV tpctVKQTi'

pot : 01 Trt '7rfoff)]KovTdL avToii '.pyA OffU '7ri{ AV A^ilVOVi

itett (jiiyctxct ct-jipyet^ovTcti. The chapter laSimplU cius juft quoted contains many obfervations fimilar to thefc, and well defcrves to be confulted.

this

14 O;? P R O V I D E N C E*

this as much as we can, and take caf<§ always to remember that the whole of poffibility is alike eafy to mjinite power and knowledge ; and that it is a contra- diftion to imagine that they can be ever encumbered or perplexed.

But the objection of moft confequence is that taken from the fuppofed incon- fiftency of a particular providence with the liberty of reafonable agents, and the general laws of the world. This objec- tion may be feen excellently anfwered irt 7he 'Religion of Nature delineated, Sedl. V. Svhere it is fhewn, how by fecret influx ences on the minds of men ; by the in- troduSion of different charadlers on the ftage of the world at proper times, and in proper places ; by the miniftry of in-^ vifible beings, and a fuitable adjuftment of phyfical and moral caufes and events to one another, it may be poffible, con- fiftently with the laws of nature and the liberty of mankind, to direft all oc- currences in fuch a manner, that nothing

on

Qu P R O V I D E N C a* J 3

on the whole unfit to.be allowed, or un- ftiitable to any cafe, fliall come to pafs. — In fliort : Concerning every event wq may realbn thus. Either it is of impor-i tance, or. it is not. As far as it is. not of im- portance, fo far it is no object of concern to any being. As far, on the contrary, as it is of importance, either in itfclf, or its circumftances, or oa account of its in-, fluence on other events^ fo far, as: aK ready obferved, it is worthy of notice and regard, and it would imply imper- fe(ftion in the adminiftration of nature that the courfe of events fhould be fo re- gulated as to admit it, . fuppofing it oa any account not proper ta be admitted^ — The opinion that fuch a particularr'^v^ region of events is not poffible, without breaking in upon free, ageacy and thet laws of the univerfe, fliews, I tunik,' narrow views. It would, indeed,: b^ impoffible,, if a man, for example, hap^^^ pens to be under a wall when it is fall-- ing, to prevent his being killed, without Ijifpending. the_ law. of gravitation.:. B.ut * . how

14 0;^ P R O V I D E N C E.

how eafy would it have been,. had his death at this particular time, and in this particular manner, been an event proper to be excluded, or which was not con- fiftent with exadt order and righteoufnefs in the regulation of events; how eafy, I fay, in this cafe, would it have been to hinder him from coming too near the dangerous place, or to occafion his com^ ifig fooner or later, by infenfibly influ- encing the train of ideas in his mind, and in numberlefs other methods, which afFefl: not his liberty. And fmce this was eafy to be done, and yet was not done, we may alluredly conclude that it was not right to be done, and that the event did not happen without the coun- fel and approbation of providence. In general 3 every perfon whenever any e- \zx\\.y favourable or unfavourable, hap- pens to him, has the greateft reafon to own the Divine hand in it j becaufe, it appears, as far as we can judge, that had the Deity fo pleafed, it might have been prevented by a fecret diredion of natu-?

ral

0/2 P R O V I D E N C E. 15

ral caufes, and of the thoughts of men, without offering any violence to them. How plainly may we perceive, that if we ourfelves had a greater acquaintance with the powers of nature, and nearer accefs to the minds of men, we could eafily over-rule and dired: many events not at prefent in our power, agreeably to our own purpofes, without the leaft in- fringement of the general laws of the world, or of the liberty of mankind ? But how much eafier muft it be for that being to do this abfolutely and per- fectly, to whom all the powers of nature are fubjed:, who fees through all depen- dencies and connexions, and has conftant accefs to the heart of every man, and can turn it whitherfoever he pleafes * ?

Where

* We are, I believe, more ignorant than is ge- perally imagined of the manner in which ideas arife within us, and of the caufes on which the fuccef- fion of them in our minds depends. By this fuc- peflion, the courfe of events in the world feems to be in a great meafure determined ; and he who had the complete management of it might give rife to

almofl

|6 O;^ P R O V I D E N C E.

Where then can be the difficulty of be- lieving an invifible hand, an univerfal and ever-attentive providence, which guides all things agreeably to perfe<5t redlitude and wifdom ; at the fame time that the general laws of the world are left unvio- lated, and the liberty of moral agents is preferved ?

With refpefl:, particularly, to general laws, and the inconveniencies commonly fuppofed to be infeparable from them, we may conceive that none would be at firft cftabliilied which would produce any in- conveniencies not rights all things con^ fidered, to be allowed ; or, that fuch would be eftablifhed whofe inconve^ niencies might even become occali- ons of good, as the afflidions of hu-^ man life have a tendency to bring men

almofl: any events he defirec^, at the fame time that men went on to think, and judge, and a(5t from' thcmfelves as they do now. But who can fay how far it may be actually influenced by the fu^geftions of invifible beings, and particularly by the fccret a- gency of the fupreme Spirit ?

tQ

G;2 P R O V I D E N C E. 17

to fobriety and thoiightfulnefs, and to teach them feme of the moft important virtues. Or, fuppofing the inconveni- encies arifing from any neceffary gene- ral laws to be in themfelves abfolute evils, we may conceive that there may be direction in various ways, with refped: to the inftances in which they ihall hap- pen ; or that remedies may be provided for them in the original conftitution by particular fecondary laws, as the incon- veniencies attending the abfence of the fun are remedied by the lights with which we can furniih ourfelves in the night, or as the ill eifedls which would often arife from gravity and other natural caufes, are prevented by the powers and inflincfts with which animals are en- dowed. It is, without doubt, abfolute- ly neceffary that natural caufes fliould operate uniformly and fteadily. Were they liable to frequent interruptions, the regularity of nature would be deftroyed; there would be no room for the exercife of prudence and forefight, and an uni-

C veri'

ax

1 8 On Providence.

verfal inadtivity would take place among reafonable beings. If then it fhould be true, that fome evils are impoffible to be feparated by any methods from the uni- form operation of any law of nature ne- cefTary to the general good, fuch evils only render this law fo much lefs good, while yet it may be the beft poffible, and the impoffibility of preventing them without greater harm, becomes itfelf a fuiiicient vindication of Providence in. permitting them,' and renders them entirely confiftent with, nay injiances of^ a perfect order in the ©economy of the univerfe.

In a word. It is felf-evldent that if there is one event in nature, of which all ii\^ care is not taken that is I'ight to be taken, the adminiftration of the world is fo far defecflive, and the character of its author imperfedt. It will be a con- tradiction to fay, in anfwer to this, that there are caufes and reafons, which ren- der it \\o\. pofjible to take fuch care of

eijcry

O-i Provide m c e. 19

every tv^nt; for the care r/V/5/ to be taken can be no other than all the care fqfjibk to be taken. It follows, therefore, that no one who believes a perfcd: Deity- can deny a Providence, or doubt whe- ther it is particular.

Leafi: I fliould not find a properer place^ I Ill-all beg leave to add here, as fomc preiumption in favour of fuch a perfect order \\\ nature as a particular Providence implies, that there is in order and right an eifential tendency to get the afcendant over their contraries. They imply in their natures fuperior forcey Jlabilityy and permane7icy 'y Vv^hereas, confufion and wrong as fuch are neceflarily weaky iinjiabky and felf-dejiru5iive. This a- lone, I think, rnight be fufficient to engage an attentive mind to believe, previouflv to any coniideration of the actual flate of the world, that the for- mer, rather than the latter, mufc be likely to be prevalent in it. But, per- haps, v/e may with reafon proceed fur- C 2 ther

20 0;Z P R O V I D E N C E.

ther in this way of thinking. The very notion that there is any circumftance in the courfe and adminiftration of the world as it jhould not be, appears to me to be felf-evidently incredible. It im- plies an impoffibility like that of deftroy- ing fpace and duration; for it implies the non-exiflence of what cannot even in thought be deftroyed y of infinite y om- nipotent y and enjerlafilng reafan and good- nefs. While we conceive thefe to re- main, (and otherwife we cannot conceive without a contradiction) we muft be- lieve that every thing repugnant to them, or not allowed by them, is excluded from nature *. — But let this be as it will. It

feems

* It would take up too much ttmc as well as lead to a fpeculation too abftrufe for the prefent difcourfe to explain my full meaning here, or to {hew that we have an intuitive perception of the exiftence of infinite^ everlajling^ omnipotent intelligence and rc5Jitudsy which, like eternity and immcnfity, we cannot de- ft^oy, but remain after we have fuppofed them away, and the ideas of which are included in all our rea- foninfrs, and all our notions of truth and morality.

I

On Providence. 21

feenis to me, on the whole, fcarcely more certain that events happen at all, than that they do not happen without the Providence of the Deity. As the mak- er and preferver of the world he muft take cognizance of whatever happens, and have an abfolute dominion over it. Some determination, therefore, of his will there muft be with refped: to every event. His knowing that an event hap- pens, and at the fame time not inter- poling to prevent it, is a confent that it Ihould happen ; and as this confent muft be founded on fome reafons, it is the very fame with exerciiing a providence over the event. This obfervation will have more weight if we add, that he forefaw the event before it happened, and yet was not pleafed fo to difpofe things as to exclude it; or, that when he eftabliflied the prefent fyftem of

I therefore only hint this argument, and leave the reader to judge of it as he pleafes. See Review of the Principal ^leftions and Difficulties in Morals^ Chap. V.

C 3 nature.

22 On Providence.

nature, he knew that it would arife in confequence of his eflabhfnment, which

yet he did not think fit to alter.

We ought to poflefs not mucii lefs than his omnifcience to be able to comprehend the realons which have guided, in every inftance, the determinations of his pro- vidence. It fliould be enough to us to know that, whatever thefe reafons arc, they muil be worthy of infinite intelli- gence, or at leafl, of a piece with that perfedlion of wifdom and art which we fee in the whole of the inanimate crea- tion. But thefe obfervations I fhall have occafion to refume in fome of the folio v/- 1X12, feftions,

D

> T-N

E C T.

Ov^ P R O V 1 D E N C E. 23

SECT. IL

Of the arguments for Providence from the general laws and conflitiition cf the %vorld^.

TT has been fliewn in the preceding JL fecffcion, that the perfedl charader of the Deity cannot be maintained without allowing an all- dire fting and unerring Providence, It would have been taking much too large a compafs to enter^ on this occaiion, into an account of the evidence for the Divine perfecflions. 'Tis fuffi- cient if it appears that the docftrine of Providence refls on the fame foundation with them, and follows from them. There is, however, one objection here, of which it v/ill be proper to take fome notice. It may be faid *' that our only ^* evidence for the Divine perfedlions is C 4 '' taken

24 On Providence.

*' taken from what we oblerve of their

" effedls in the frann.e of nature, and that

*' therefore to infer from thefe perfec-

'^ tions any greater order and wifdom in

** the adminiftration of nature than we

*' can adually obferve, is to fappofe

** greater perfedtion in the Deity than

*' can be proved, and the fame with firft

*' determining the properties of the caufe

<* by the efted, and then determining the

*' properties of the effedl by the caufe."

In anfvver to this I vvould obferve, ill, that it is not true that our whole evidence for the Divine perfedlions is taken from the frame of nature. The difcoveries of reafon, however they may be preceded by obfervation and experience, and take their rife from them., tranicend them in- finitely ; and in many inftances force us to receive truths v/hich they are incapa- ble of fuggeiling ''^\ But,

* I am under a neccflity of referring again to the Reviezv of the pnn,.ipal ^lejiions and Dif- ficulties in Morals^ Chap, ifl and loth, where I have endeavoured to prove all that is here aflerted. , The

0/2 P R O V I D E N C B. 25

But, 2dly, fuppofing that our whole knowledge of the Deity muft be derived from w^hat we fee of his works, it will not follow that we ought to afcribe to him only juft that precife degree of the per- fedions we believe him to poflefs, which is equal to what we can comprehend of their effefts in the contrivance and or-

The works of creation damnjlrate that the Creator is poflefled of power and intelligence. That he pofTefies them in the highejl pojfible degree^ follows from his na- ture as an uncaujed being. Whatever qualities fuch a being has, he muft have necejfarihj^ and, therefore, in their fource and in infinity. This Is capable of the firidleil: proof, and muft, 1 fancy, appear to every one who has juft views of this fubjecl. l^he perfeSi intelligence of the Deity being in this way difcovered, it will follow that he is poftelTed of pcrfeSi benevoknce and reSiitude ', for thefe are included in perfe6l intel- ligence ; as, I think, is fliewn in the treatife juft re- ferred to. And thus, on the principles maintained in that treatife, the complete idea oi Deity ^ confift- ing of infinite poiuer^ intelligence^ and goodnefs eflen- tially united, will be eftablifhed : and this being e- ftablifhed, the doctrine of an unerring providence guiding all events, or of a perfect order in naturje, will be likewife eftablifoed, as Is fliewn in the prc- (:eding fedion,

der

26 On Providence.

der of the world. This would impl)% that we ought never to infer from any {lata more than they immediately contain, and therefore would put an end to all reafoning. — The caufe muft always have in himfelf, in a greater degree, tliofe per- fcftions which he communicates.

It would be eafy to fhew that from the works of creation we have reafon to infer a much higher degree of power, wifdom, and goodnefs in the Creator than they directly exhibit ^ and there^ fore, it will be right in this cafe, firft to argue upwards from the efFe(ft, as a foundation for proving the perfeffions of the caufe, and then back again from the caufe thus difcovered to the effecfl. Thus, in natural philofophy, by reafon- ing from particular fafts we gain the knowlege of the general laws which ob- tain in nature, and afterwards apply thefe laws to the explanation of other facets which could not otlierwife have been accounted for. For inflance 5 from th^

faili

0/2 P R O V I D E N C E. 27

fiift that gravity is the power which keeps the moon in her orbit, is inferred the general law of gravitation, by the help of which the whole order of the folar fyftem is laid open to us, and all the motions of the bodies that compofe it explained. How abfurd would it be to objed: in this inftance, that no conclu- fion can be drawn from any fadls which will prove any greater degree of regula- rity in nature than thefe fads thcmfelves exhibit, or which can be rightly ufed to explain any other fads, about whicl^ we can make no experiments ?

It is proper to add, 3dly, that we adually fee that nature is the efFed of fuch wifdom as furpaffes our higheft con- ceptions. We know this in numberlef^s inftancesi and the fame wifdom that takes place in thefc inftances, we are unavoidably led to apply to other in- ftances w^here it is not (cen, and to the whole adminiilration of events. It will, } hope, appear hereafter that this is an

obfer-

28 0/2 Providence.

obfervatlon of particular weight on the iubjedl of Providence. In the mean time, it is neceffary that I fliould enter upon fome topics of a different nature.

The defign of this fedlion is to give an account of fuch arguments for Provi- dence as may be gathered from confider- ing the general lav^s and conftitution of tlie world.

In order to be as explicit as I can on this head, I fhall beg leave to obferve, fidiy that it appears undeniably that there is a plan of nature fettled, which deter- mines m general the couije of events. A particular order of caufes and effedls is maintained regularly and fteadily. Laws have been eftablifhed which operate inva- riably. Many diiferent claiTes of crea- tures have been brought into exiftence, and placed in circumftances adapted to their different natures, and all provided for fuitably to their wants and exigencies. The world, therefore, has not been left

to

0;Z P R O V I D E N C E. 29

to fluftuate fortuitoufly. There is a care taken of it, and a diredlion given to its affairs. — But this does not come up to what I have here chiefly in view. — It is evident not only that there is a plan or conflitution of nature by which beings are provided for, and a general direction given to events ; but that there is an influence of the Deity conftantly exerted to maintain this conflitution. — In other words; it may be proved *' that the ** Deity is always prefent and always ** adiive in all places ; and that his e- ** nergy is the ^r/? mover in every mo- ** tion, and the true fource of all the ** powers and laws v/hich take place in

" the material world." To this con-

clufion all true philofophy leads us ; and it is a point fo clofely connected with the main purpofe of this Differtation, that I fliall make it the fubje(5t of par- ticular examination.

Much labour has been employed by fome perfons to account for all the pha^-

nomena

30 On V\ O V I D E N C E*'

nomena of nature by the powers of me-^ chanifni, or the neceflary laws of mat- ter and motion* But it feems indifpu- tabie tiiat this cannot be done. The pnjnary caufts of things muft, certainly^ be fome powers or principles not me- chanical. For let it be granted that any particular effeft is owing to the im.pulfe of ether matter on that in which the effect is obferved^ it may be aiked, what gives motion to this other mat- ter. If it is anfwered, the impulfe of fome third matter ; it may be again afk- ed> whence this third matter derives its motion. ilnd thus, w^hatever number of intermediate fteps there may be, we muft at laft come to fome matter that cid not receive its motion from the im- pulfe of other matter ; or to fome im-

mechanical caufe. This reafoning

can no way be evaded, but by either maintaining an endlefs progreffion of motions communicated from matter to matter, without ^ny Jirji J72over -, or by frying, that the firft impelling matter

moved

On Providence. 31

moved itfelf.— — The former is an abfur- dity too great to be embraced by any one 5 and there is reafon to hope, that the eilential inadlivity of matter is at prefent fo well underftood, that there can be but few who will care to affert the latter. — All our reafonings about bodies and the whole of natural philofophy are founded on the three laws of motion, laid down by Sir Ifaac Newton at the begin- ning of the Principia. Thefe laws ex- prefs the plaineft truths ; but they would have neither evidence nor meaning, were not inadlivity contained in our idea of matter.

I know it will be faid, that matter, though naturally inert, may be made to be otherwife by Divine power. But this is the fame with faying, that matter may be made not to be matter. If in- activity belongs to it at all, it muft be- long to it as matter, or folid extenfion, and therefore muft be infeparable from

it,

32 On Providence.

it *. The natures of things are necef- farily what they are, independently of all power. Matter is figured:, moveable^ difcerptibki inaBroe, and capable of com- municating motion by impulfe to other liiatter, juft as the four fides of a fquare and its diagonal are incommenfurable *y that is, not by W//, but by ejjence. Thefe are' not accidental, but primary qualities of matter. Befides ; matter void of in- aftivity, fuppofmg it poflible, could pro- duce no effefls.' 'Tis only in confe- quence of this property that it is capa- ble of giving motion to other matter, or of anfwering any purpofe. Were, there- fore, the firfl impelling matter before- mentioned diverted of its inertia^ or en- dowed with a principle of felf-motion, it would be utterly unfitted for the end afligned it. What is now afierted will perhaps be evident, and the impofiibility of matter without inertia appear more plainly upon confidering particularly

* See the Enquiry into the Nature of the Human Souly Se£l. I. N^ 15, 24, 265 27.

what

On Providence. 33

what would happen on the collifion of fuch matter with other matter of the fame, or of a different kind.

We know nothing of matter, and can determine nothing about it, if it is not true that it muft yield to every impulfe upon it in proportion to the force im- prefled, and that the motion comniiuiicated by every impulfe is always equal to that loft by the impelling body and cannot be either greater or lefs ; or, in other words, that it is endowed with r^Jijlance, and abfolutely and entirely paffive'^. But no-

* What I mean here when exprefled more accu- rately is, that a change of J} ate is always produced in the body impelling, equal to that produced in the body impelled. In coinfojltiort of motion, or when one body ftriktrs another body in motion obliquely, there is always motion loll \ bccaufe fome of the force of the impelling body muft be fpent in merely altering the dlre(£i:ion of the other ; though evert here, as well as in the rejolutim of motion where, for the fame reafon, motion is always gained, the general rule holds, that the fum of the motions the fame wav, and the diffcri:nce of the motions cc-ntrarywTi.yay art: always the fame before and affrr coIlifion.

D thing

j4 On Providence.

'thing like this can be true on the fuppo- fition of active or unrefifting matter. — For let a mafs of fuch matter be con- ceived to ftrike another mafs of inad:ive matter at reft. I alk w^hat would hap- pen ? Not the moving of that at reft. For the impelling body having no refiftance, or no tendency to continue in any ftate of motion or reft, it can have nothing like force, and therefore can. produce no efFeffc. • — Shall it then pafs through or penetrate the body at reft, and go on to move as

if nothing ftood in its way ? This

alfo is impoffible^ or we have no idea at all of matter as 2tfolid fubftance, or as fomething diftinft from mere extenfion. — 'Tis certain then that its motion muft be ftopped, but without communicating the leaft motion to the body at reft, or having the leaft efFecft upon it. That is, an effed: vi\\\ be produced without a caufe : For the body at reft not having received any alteration of its ftate, it could not have re-aSed or been the means of altering the ftate of the other.

There 3

0// Pr O V I D E N C E. 35

There is no way of avoiding thefe con- tradiftions but by laying, what is too ri- diculous to deferve any anfwer ; that the moving body had the fagacity to exert its activity to flop itfelf the very inftant it came into contad: with the other.

But again ; let us on the other hand, fuppofe a body of inactive matter, (that is, of fuch matter as we commonly rea- fon about, and is the only fubjedl of the laws of mechanifm) to move towards another body of felf-moving and unre- lifting matter, and to impel it in the very dired:ion in which it tends to move itfelf. Now 'tis certain that having an innate tendency or endeavour to move in this direftlon, it cannot rejift motion in this direftion, and that therefore the firll body without being rc-a(^ted upon, or having its own ftate in any manner altered by the impulfe, would carry it along with the fame velocity with which itfelf moves. Nay, the firft body, though ever fo fmall, would, in

D 2 the

36 0/z Providence.

the circumftances fuppofed, communi- cate any motion though ever fo great to any mafs or maffes of matter, without lofing any motion itfelf, that is, without meeting with any obJlruBioTty ov afting at all on the matter moved. And thus any effeft may be produced by the moll inadequate caufe, or rather by no caufe at all.

Once more; let a collifion be con- ceived to happen between two equal bodies both compofed of matter without incrtiuy moving in contrary directions » As one of them cannot be conceived to penetrate the other, the refult mud be, that both fhall be flopped, but by no- thing ; for both wanting that property on account of which we fay of matter, that when once in motion it will perfevere in motion, unlefs fomething ftops it, or having no power of reliflance, neither of them can be any obftrudion to the mo- tion of the other *. But

* The refinance of matter is an exprefTion that muft be ufed in fpeaking on this fubjedl for want of a

better ;

O// Pr O V I D E N C E. 37

But the impofiibility of all adive qua- lities or tendencies in matter may be

proved

better ; but there is fome danger of mifunderftandln^'' it. The meaning of it is not that matter makes any oppofition to a change of its ftate, or exerts a force to maintain itfelf in the ftate it is in, as fome have very improperly exprefled themfelves. This would imply that very activity which I have en- deavoured to fhew to be inconfiftent with its na- ture 5 and were it true, a part of the force of every impulfe would be fpent merely in overcoming this oppofition without producing any other eiFe6t ; and therefore the fum of the motions the fame way would be always greater before than after collifion, which is impofTible. The largeft body will be moved by , any t\iz Jlighteft impulfe of the fmalleji ; but then it can be moved only in proportion to the force of the impulfe ; and this is what is chiefly meant by the re- fijlance of matter. " For inftance. A body at red will refijl another which is moving towards it j that is, it will be an ohftruclion to the motion of this other. The latter will be retarded by the former, and will

iofe juft as much motion as it communicates. In

other words. The r^t^wr^? of matter is that in its nature which makes it require an adequate- foreign caufe of every change of ft ate, or from whence it is wholly pajfwe^ and incapable of receiving any mo- tion from impulfe that is not in a certain fixed pro- 1^ 3 ponioa

38 O/z Providence,

proved in a way ftill more dired: and de-

cifive. Let it be fuppofed that a body

now at reft has an innate tendency to move. This tendency muft produce its efFeft, either by a gradual acceleration in the manner gravity afts j or by inftan^ taneoufly producing that particular degree of motion which fatisiies it, and then ceafing.— -- In the former cafe; the ten- dency to acceleration being the fame with

portion to the relative momentum of the impelling bo- dy, and ftrictly equal to the change of flate it fuffers io confequence of the impulfe. In this proportion matter is always moved w//Z>^/:// difficulty \ but beyond this there is not only 2i difficulty but an mpojfibility of inoving it ; and whatever motion it can be fuppofed to receive from any impulfe that is greater than that which the impelling body lofes, it muft derive from yiothing at all.

I have fpolcen above of i\\c force of matter and of its a£ling^ at the fame time that I have aficrted it not to be active. An attentive and candid reader cannot think this an iriconfiftency. The adtivity denied to matter is a power of changing its own ftate, not that of acting upon other matter by impulfe. This fort of a£tivity or power follows from and is neceiTa- rily implied in its perfect paflivenefs or inertia.

a ten-

O/? Pr O V I D E N C E. 39

a tendency to a conftant change of ve- locity, and this being a permanent qua- lity in the body, no particular motion de- rived from it can have the leaft duration^ but muft be given and deftroyed at one and the fame moment, and therefore nothing could be done. — In other words; fuch a tendency is a tendency to an infi- nity of different velocities at once, and

therefore is impoffible. Neither can

motion be acquired in the latter way ; for motion fo acquired no force could deftroy, becaufe at the very inftant it is dejlroyed it muft be acquired in confe- quence of the fuppofed tendency. No impulfe, therefore, can without a con- tradi(flion be fuppofed to have any eitedt upon the motion of fuch a body r, and though ever fo fmall, it would carry before it all the bodies of the world if in its way, without being itfelf retarded. And were two fuch bodies, moving in contrary diredions, to meet, fince nei- ther could be ftopped, they muft either penetrate one another, or be annihilated. D 4 It

40 O^ P R O V I D E N C E.

It is eafy to fee that the fame way of arguing may be ufed to prove, that th^re can be no innate tendency in matter,

when in motion, to a ftate of reft.

Matter naturally preferves the rnotion once imprefled upon it, juft as it does its figure; and were not ^ this true, it would not be pcfTible that any force (}"iould give it motion, for the effecft of fuch force not being capable of remain- ing any time, it would be loft as foon^ as gained; that is, no effc(ft would be produced,

Thefe are obfervations which I am perfuaded, no perfon can duly attend tp without feeling the weight of them. Nothing, furely, can be ir^ore repugnant to our ideas of niatter than fejf-motion ; nor is there any conclufion wdiich there is much rpore reafon to rely upon than that it is not a fubjed: capable of any Jpontcneous powers.^ and therefore muft owe every change that can happen in i,t to fomc J creign influence.

This

0;/ Pr O V I D E N C E. 41

This conclufion will be further con- firmed if we confider what naturally offers itfelf in the next place, and what mufl: not be omitted on this ar- gument, that felf-moving matter muft have thought and defign. Whenever matter moves it muft move in fome particular direction, and with fome precife degree of velocity; and there be- ing an infinity of thefe equally poffible, it cannot move itfelf without feleding one of thefe out of the reft, or deterr- ming itfelf to one of them exclufively of all the others, and therefore not without

defign. But this is not all. It may

be plainly proved that matter cannot be the ultimate caufe of the phenomena of na- ture, or the agent, which, by any pow- ers inherent in itfelf, produces the ge- neral laws of nature, wjthout pcfleffing the higheft degree of knowledge and

wifdom. Let us, as a proper inftance

to reafon upon here, take the particular law of gravitation. The true account, I fay, ot this law cannot be any innat?

propenfitics

4^ O/Z P R O V I D E N C E.

propenfities of matter to motion, or Its u- niformly moving itfelf according to ftated rules. For in order to obferve thefe rules, every particle of it muft be able to conform itfelf to all the different fitu- ations it can be in, and therefore muft know the precife diftaiicesy magnitudesy and number of all the furrounding parts of matter; thefe being the circumftances which univerfally determine the force and direction of gravity. Thus; if a particle of matter on the furface of the earth tends towards the earth by its own energy, and without any foreign influ- ence upon it, with that precife degree of velocity, and in that precife diredlion which the law of gravitation requires, it muft, in order to this, know the pre- cife/^wr^' and bulk of the earth, and its fitiiation upon it, fince the fmalleft va- riation in any one of thefe particulars will alter the velocity and direction of its motion. When placed within the furface it muft diminifti its own force at different diftances froin the center, in ihcfmple

direct

On Providence. 43

dire^ ratio of thefe diftances. When placed without the furface, it muft di- minifh its own force in the inverfe, duplicate ratio of its diftances from the center. When carried to the center of gravity between the moon and the earth, it muft determine itfelf to reft. When carried beyond this, it muft determine its motion towards the moon, and not

the earth. Is it poftible that matter

fhould vary its own motions in a manner thus wonderful; infomuch that all the diiferent parts of it appear to aft in perfed: concert with one another for producing the order of nature, and bringing about the beft ends ? The following argument will, I believe, fliew that there is not lefs than the evidence of demonftration againft the

poffibility of this. Nothing can know

or aB where it is not. The prefence and adivity of every particle of matter are confined to that particular part of fpace it fills up. Were it ever fo intel- ligent or adiive it could k?iow nothing, it

could

44 On Pro V I DEV CE,

could do nothing beyond this. How then can it be fo acquainted with the flate of bodies at the greateft diftance from it, and no way connected with it, as to be able to ad: in concert with them, and to move itfelf in exadl conformity to their fitua(;ion and numbers ? *

What has been faid of gravitation might with equal evidence be proved

* " It is inconceivable that inanimate brute mat^ '-^ ter fhould, without the mediation of fomething *' elfe, which is not material, operate upon and af- *^ fe(Sl other matter without mutual conta£l, as it *' muft be, if gravitation be eflential and inherent in ** it. And this is is one reafoq why I defired you " would not afcribe innate gravity to me. That " gravity fhould be innate, inhereyit, and cfTential *' to matter, fo that one body may acl upon another " at a diftance through a vacuum, without the me- '' diation of any thing elfe, by and through which *' their aftion and force may be conveyed from one " to another, is to me fo great an abfurdity that I *' believe no man who has in philofophical matters a *5 competent faculty of thinking, can ever fall into *^ it." See the Third of the Four Letters from Sir Ijaac NriVton to Dr, Bcntley^ printed for Mr, Dodflcy,

cou-

0/2 Pr O V I D E N C E. 45

concerning any more general caufe, of which poffibly gravitation may be only ah efFedl; fuch as Sir liaac Newton's JEther^ or whatever other mediums or powers may exift, and be the real primal- ry caufes of the phasnomena of the world. The elafticity, for example, of fuch an ather as Sir Ifaac Newton has defcribed, fuppofmg it to exift, muft be derived, not from any powers of felf-motion in the matter of this cether, but from the conftant agency upon it of an intelligent and omniprefent fpirit *.

To

* '' In our enquiries iRto nature" (fays an excel- lent phllofopher) " we are always meeting with " powers that furpafs mere mechanifm, or the ef- *' fe<Sls of matter and motion. The laws of na- " tare are conftant and regular, and for ought we *' know all of them may be refolved into one ge- '' neral and extenfive power ; but this power itfelf <« derives its properties and efficacy not from me- " chanifm, but in a great meafure from the im- '' mediate influences of the flrft mover," M?\ Macklauriris Account of Sir Ifaac Newtoris Dlfcoveries^

Book IV. ch. 9. §. 12. '' Later philofophers

<* frame hypothefes for explaining all things mecha- 3 nically j

46 0;/ PR O V I D E N C E,

To afiert that matter can conform its own motions in the manner requifite to produce and maintain thofe general laws of nature on which the world depends, is indeed but little better than diredt atheifm, or refolving ultimately the whole order and contrivance of the world into matter and motion.— Some good men, however, have been ftrangely de- ceived on this fubjeft, by confufed no^ tions of the Divine power to plant laws in matter, or to endue it with certain afliive principles * and tendencies, in virtue of which it (hall of itfelf, and in-

" nically; whereas, the main bufinefs of natural " philofophy is to argue from phaenomena without *' framing hypothefes, and to deduce caufes from " efFe6ls till we come to the very firft caufe, which *' certainly is not fnechanicalJ'* Newton's Optich, ^wy

28. " Caufs fimpliciflimae nulla dari poteft

*' mechanica fexplicatio : fi daretur enim, caufa '* nondum eflet fimplicIiTuTia." Mr, Cotes's Preface to Newton s Principia,

* " The great author of all things (Mr. Derham *' fays) has infpirited the materials of which the ''^ world confifts with the a^ive quality called gravity,*'

JjirO'Theology^ Book VI. ch. 3.

dependently

Qn- 5^: R o V IB B H c E., 47

dependently of any immediate external

influence upon it, execute the plan at firfl:

laid by infinite wifdom, and continue the

form and order of the univerfe. But

they could never have entertained any

fuch opinion, had they attended in a

proper manner to that inertia of matter

before explained, by which it is as in-

capable of changing its ov^n ftate with

refped: to reft and motion as its own

figure J or had they confidered that if

matter, by its own proper agency, produces

the laws, and keeps up the regularity of

nature, it is a fubjecfl naturally capable

of thofe pov/ers whereby it does this,

and might as well have at firft difpofed

itfelf into the form and order of the

univerfe *.

It

* 'Tis worth obferving that the reafoning here ufed holds with equal force againft a notion that has been embraced and defended by fome great men,, but which is totally unworthy of them ; I mean the notion of a plajllc nature^ or certain vital znUfpi' ritual, but unintelligent and 7iecejfary agent which the Deity is fuppofed to have created to carry on under himfelf his fcheme, and to produce the various ef-

fe«^

48 0« Providence.

It has been alfo often objedted '' that

" it is impairing the beauty of the

** world,

fe£ls and phaenomena of nature. If an unintel-

iigent agent can a6l with fuch uniformity, and yet fo varioufly, as to produce the order of the world, and govern its motions ; if, for inftance, it can frame the bodies of plants and animals, or fo dire6l its own adlion as to impel the particles of matter to- wards one another^ in fuch different directions, and with fuch different forces in different fituations^ as to be the conflant caufe of thofe laws and powers which obtain in the corporeal univerfe, and on which depend its form and being ; if, I fay, this is pof- iible, there is an end of all our reafonings about caufes and effects, and of all arguments for defign and intelligence in the author of nature, taken from

its regularity and beauty. It avails nothing to

fay, that this agent a6ts in fubordination to the Deity, and only in virtue of powers given it by him. For it is not fuppofed to be merely an inftru- nient in the hands of the Deity which never ads ex- cept in ^onfcquence of being firfl a£led upon ; but what it does it is fuppofed to do properly by a power inherent in itfelf, without wanting any //«- ?ned'iatc dire6tion from the Deity ; and the very rea- fons that have been afligned for fuppofmg fuch an a- • gent, are, that it is abfurd to think that the Deity (hould be continually employed fo much in vain, as is r^cceffary to be fuppofed, if the general laws of

th»

0;z P R o V I D E N c E. 49

^^ world, and reprefenting it as a pro- *' ducfhion more imperfe(5l than any *^ work of human art, to maintain that

'' it

the world are derived from his agency ; and that it is difhonouring him to conceive of him as acling himfelf continually on matter, and immediately- concerned in framing the bodies of the meaneft

plants and infedls. To as little purpofe is it

to fay, that omnipotence can give fuch a power tv> an unintelligent agent : for what has not wifdom cannot adl wifely, and no power can make that to be, which catinct be. If the Deity can make a caufe that a£ls without knowledge or dcfign to produce regular efFe6i:s ; then it is in the nature of things poilible for fuch a caufe to ^xoAucq fuch efte6ls ; then defign in the caufe is not necefjary to the greateft conceivable order and regularity in the effect, nor can we certainly infer the one from the other : then, in fhort, any thing may produce any thing, and no conclufion with refpecl to the caufe can be drawn,

in any cafe, from what we fee in the efi'ecl. ■

The efFc6ls of habits have been very Improperly al- ledged^ as affording inftances of regular action without knowledge or defign. For, what is done by habits, is, I think, always done in confequence of fome volition or dlre6lIon of the mind; and our not being confcious of it is in reality no more than not remembering it, the whole effect of a habit oi\ the executive powers confiding in their more eafy

£ and

50 Ov^ P R O V I D E N C E.

** it cannot fubfift of itfelf, or that it

*' requires the hand of its maker to be

** always at it to continue its motions

** and order."

The full anfwer to this objedion is, that to every machine or perpetual move- ment for anfwering any particular pur- pofe, there always belongs fome Jirjl

and ready compliance with the dictates of the mind. But not to infift on this ; let it be granted that re- gular actions are frequently performed in confequence of habits without thought or defign; this, if true, muft be owing to certain powers and laws of the animal oeconomy which muft be accounted for in the fame manner v/ith other powers and laws which obtain in nature, and cannot be made an argument for fuch a blind plaftic force as has been contend- ed for, without begging the queftion. See the

truly great and learned Dr. Cudiuorth's IntelleSfual Syfiem^ Book I. Chap. 3. where the opinion on which I have made thefe remarks is particularly explained and defended. See alfo an account of a controverfy which it occafioned between Mr. Bayle and Le Clcrc, in the account of the life and writings of Dr. Cudworth, prefixed to the fecond edition of the

Intellectual Syjlem by Dr. Birch. Dr. Henry More

and Dr. Grew have likewife maintained this opi- nion.

^ move?'.

Oji Providence, 51

mover, fome weight or fpring, or other power which is continually afting upon it, and from which all its motions are derived : Nor, without fuch a power, is it poffible to conceive of any fuch machine. The machine of the univerfe then, like all befides analogous to it of which we have any idea, muft have a frjl mover. Now, it has, I think, been demonftrated, that this firil mover cannot be matter itfelf. It follows, therefore, that this objedion is fo far from being of any force, that it leads us to the very conclufion which it is brought to overthrow. The excellence of a ma- chine by no means depends on its going properly of itfelf, for this is impofllble; but on the fkiH with which its various parts are adjufled to one another, and all its different effeds are derived from the conjtant aution of fome power.- -■■* What would, indeed, make a machine appear imperfedt and deformed is, a^^ ligning a feparate power to every diflin^ft E 2 part.

^ On F R o y I D E N c t.

part, Without allowing any place for mechanifm. And, in like manner, what would really make the frame of nature appear imperfetl and deformed is, re- folving phaenomena too foon to the Di- vine agency, or fuppofing it the imme- diate caufe of every particular effed:. But every one mull fee that what I have been pleading for is not this, but Only, that however far mechanifm may be car- ried and the chain of caufes extend in the material univerfe, to the Divine Pov/er exerted continually in all places, every law and every effedt and motion in

it muft be at laji refolved.-- This is a

concluficn which the modern improve- ments in natural philofophy have abun- dantly confirmed, and which fome of the firft and befh philofophers have re- ceived ; nor can that philofophy be other- wife than little and contemptible which Jiides the Deity from our views, which excludes him from the world, or does not terminate in the acknowledmient

and

O?! Providence. 53

and adoration of him as the maker, pre- ierver, and ruler of all things '^.

The point on which I have been in- filling is of fo much importance that no apology can be neceffary for dwelling fo

long upon it. What has been faid

has a tendency to give an attentive mind the deepeft fenfe of the dependence of the creation on the Deity j for it iliev»^s

* " The philofopher who overlooks the traces of *^ an all-governing Deity in nature, contenting him- " felf with the appearances of the material univerfe <' only, and the mechanical laws of motion, neglects " what is moft excellent; and prefers what is im- '' perfect to w^hat is fupremely perftx% finitude to *^ infinity, what is narrow and weak to what is " unlimited and almighty, and what is perifning to " what endures for ever." Mr. MacklaunrCs Account of Sir Jfaac Newton s Difcoveries^ Book IV. Ch. q,

Sed. I. " Sir Ifaac Ncv/ton thought it moft

*' unaccountable to exclude the Deity 07ily out of tiic *' univerfe. It appeared to hira much more juft '' and reafonable-to fuppofe that the whole chain of *' caufcs, or the feveral feries of ihem, fliould cen* " ter in him as their fource ^ and the whole fyftem " appear depending on him the only independent <• caufe." Ibid, Sea. 5.

E 3 i^^.

54 On Providence,

VIS that he is properly the life of it, the irjinitc Spirit by which it is informed and fuftained ; that all material caufes are no more than inftruments in his hand, and that from him their efficacy is derived ; and that, fo far is he from being an idle fpedator of what happens, thatv/ere he, for one inftant, to fufpend his agency, univerfal confufion would take place, and all nature fall to pieces.

I need not fay how irrefiftible the evi- dence is which arifes from hence for

the dodrine of Providence. What it

may be of moil importance to recom- mend to notice in this place is the fol- lowing obfervation. ^It has been prov- ed that the Deity pervades and actuates the whole material world, and that his unremitting energy is the caufe to which every effed: in it muft be traced. Now, the fpiritiial world is, without doubt, of greater confequence. Is his energy then wanting here ? Is there not one atom of tnatter on which he does not ad; and

is

On Providence. 55

is there then o?2e living being about which he has no concern ? Does not a Jlone fall without him 5 and does then a man fuffer without him ? Are fuch influences as may be necelTary to bring about a juft regulation of events in the moral world, lefs likely than thofe influences w4iich we know to be exerted continually to main- tain the order of the inanimate world? ■The truth is, the inanimate world is of ?2o confequence abftradted from its fubferviency to the animate and rea- fonable world. The former, therefore, muil: be preferved and governed entirely with a view to the latter *.

This leads me to a further argument on this fubjed which has, I think, con- fiderable weight, ^nd feems greatly to flrengthen the conclufion I would eftab-

* I have not mentioned here the conftant exertion of Divine power in maintaining the fuccefHon of vegetables, and in producing men, and other be- ings, becaufe particular notice of it will be taken hereafter,

E 4 lifh.

56 0;^ P R O V I D ^ N C E.

lifli. This 'argument has been

hinted already, but it is neceffary that it fhould be here brought more particularly to view. It offers itfelf to us upon con- lidering the wifdom manifefted in the flrudlure of every objeft in the inani- mate creation. How beautiful is the form of every vegetable, and how cu- rioufly arranged its parts ? What exqui- fite mechanifm, what nice workmanfl:iip and amazing art appear in every leaf

and fpire of grafs r Let us now afk

ourfelves; has God, on obje6ls in them- felves fo worthlefs, poured forth fuch a profufion of wifdom and Ikill, and is he fparing of thefe in the concerns of reafonable beings ? or does he lefs regard order and fitnefs in the determination of their flates ? — It is not poffible to imagine

this. Whatever appearance the aftairs

of men may at prefent make to us, we may be certain that they are directed by the fame wifdom with that which we obferve in the reft of nature 5 that is, ty a wiiuom which we know to bo in- finitely

O;^ P R O V I D E N C E. 57

finitely fuperior to ours j by a wifdom which, in the loweft objeds, is exaft and incomprehenfible, and which, there- fore, muft be as much more fo, in higher objefts, as they are of greater

value. ' — To this purpofe in a great

meafure is the reafoning we find in Matt, vi. 28, &c. Why take ye thought for rai^ 7nent ? Conjider the Mies of the field how they grow. They toil not^ neither do they fpin ; and yet, I fay unto you, that even So-- lomon, in all his glory ^ was not arrayed like one of thefe\ Wherefore, if God fo clothe the grafs of the field, which to-day is, and to-morrow is cafi ijito the oven-, ffjall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith ? Behold the fowls of the air, for they fow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into hams ; yet your heavenly father feedeth them. Are not ye much better than they ?

There is not indeed any thing which has a much greater tendency to give re- lief to a mind earneftly v/ifhing to be

fatisfied

58 0/2 Providence.

fatisfied of a wife iuperintendency of all that befalls it, than to contemplate the curious organization of any flower or herb of the field, and the attention beftowed on even its outward figure; and then to confider whether it is probable, that the Being who fo won- derfully wrought fuch a fubftance, can neglecft any intellige?it creature, or be inattentive to any circumftance of his exiftence; whether he who has with perfeft exaftnefs adjufted the parts of dead matter to one another in the moft trifling planfy muft not be proportion- ably exad: in 'what is of infinitely great- er moment, the adjuftment of plea- fure and pain to a human foul.* Or, let fuch a perfon fix his thoughts on the flrudiure of his body, .and con- fider, whether it is credible that he who has fo fearfully made this, and difplayed fuch unfpeakable wifdom in adjufting and regulating every particle of matter that compofes it ; has not difplayed proportionable wifdom in the

ftrucSure

0« P R O V I D E N C E, 59

ftrufture of his mind, or is not pro- portionably careful in adapting events to its cafe, and in regulating what- ever it feels.—— To fay no more.

If unerring v^ifdom fhews itfelf in the direction and government of corporeal nature, and all its parts are ordered in number, weight, and meafure, fo that the more we know of it, the more we are forced to admire it, if its mean- eft works are finiflied with complete accuracy, and the whole fyftem ap- pears harmonious and grand in the higheft poffible degree ; what harmony, what wifdom and goodnefs may we well reckon upon in the government of the intellectual world ? What care and accuracy in difpofmg the lots of the individuals of it ? How grand muft be its plan, and how perfecft its or- der ?

SECT.

60 On F ROY ID EN c^.

SECT. III.

Qfthe manner in which Provideiice is adminijlered.

WHAT has been hitherto faid contains a brief view of the principal arguments for the dodrine of a righteous and all-wife Providence. My defign in this feclion is to offer a few obfervations relating to the mode of adminiftring it.

I have frequently in the preceding fcftions fpoken on the fuppofition, that a perfcdl dire6lion of events is brought about by the Divine influence, immedi- ately and conftantly exerted every where for that purpofe. It muft however be remembered that this is a point about which all are not agreed. Many wife

and

On Providence. 6i

and good men are ftrongly prejudiced a- gainft the fuppofition, that there have been any interpofitions of Divine Pow- er fince the creation in directing affairs, as implying an impotence, unfl^ilful- ncfs, and operofenefs unworthy of in- finite wifdom. They, therefore, chufe to conceive of the laws and order of the material world, as having been at firil adjufted in exad: correfpondence to what fhould happen in the moral world, and the whole fcheme including all events as originally defigned and laid in the beft manner, and now continually going on to open and unfold itfelf agreeably to the Divine idea, without any cccafiou

for any interpofitions. As far as fuch

maintain the fame perfedt diredion of affairs in confequence of an origmal e- ftablifhment, as is commonly fuppofed to be brought about by conJia?2t influences, they maintain all that we have reafon to be anxious about on the prefent fubjedl. And this, indeed, I fhould imagine, it muft be impofiible for any one who has

jull

5

62 O;/ P R O V I D E N C E.

juft notions of the Divine perfecfllons to avoid maintaining, let him think on this fubjed: in other refpedls as he pleafes. For thus we may argue. — When the Deity at firft fixed the prefent plan of nature, and gave Beings their different powers and affedions, he either had a perfecft forefight of the whole train of events that would arife in confequence of his eflablifhment, or he had not. — If he had this fore-knowledge, the e- vents fore-known were either all of them fuch as he faw it would be properefl to leave as fore-known, or they were noto If the afiirmative is aflerted ; it is all I plead for. Every event in this cafe will be juft fuch as perfeA reftitudeis pleafed

either to ??iake it, or to- fuffer it to be.

But, on the contrary, if amongft the fore-known events there were any which it was on any account right or proper to exclude ; on this fuppofition, a good theift, who rejefts all occafional interpoji- tions muft of necefhty fay, that the ori- ginal plan would have been fo altered

a^

O/^ Providence, 63

as to exclude thefe events, and to pro- duce a complete coincidence of all that ihould happen with the counfels and defigns of infinite wifdom and goodnefs. This cannot be avoided while the exi- ftence of infinite wifdom and goodnefs in nature is believed -, and thus the doc- trine of Providence in its higheft fenfe will ftill be afferted.

But if an exad fore-knowledge of all aftions and events, and fuch a perfed: original eftablifhment in confequence of it, as I have mentioned, are thought by any to be impoffible 5 and if, for this reafon, no more is fuppofed than that powers were given to beings, and ge- neral laws fettled, and then events fuf- fered to arife as they would without any particular care or fuperintendency exercifed over them; in this cafe, the dodtrine of Providence will be entirely rejedled : And if fuch fentiments are true, the univerfe is a chaos ; the character of the parent of it is imperfecfl; all truftin

him.

64 0/2 P R O V I D E N C E.

him and fupplications to him are ab- furd, and no part of practical religion has

any good foundation. But after what

has been before faid, I hope I may be allowed to take it for granted, that thefe fentiments are not true, and that there Is indeed a perfed: direction of all events.

• The point I am now confidering is,

in what manner this is accomplifhed ; and it has probably been already feen in fome meafure why I chufe to conceive of it as produced by conftant infiuences> rather than fuch an original eftablifh-

ment as I have mentioned. It will

appear to fome, that an original eftab-^ lifhment, anfwering this purpofe, implies univerfal fatalifm, and that in events happening amongft reafonable agents, there muft be infinite variations and un- certainties not poffible to be regulated by it. But be this as it will ; it muft, I think, be difficult for an attentive per- fon to perfuade himfelf, that the other method of adminiftring Providence is not the moft capable of bringing about

a

O/Z Pr O V I D £ N C E. 6^

a perfedl regulation of events. And if this fhould be true ; or, if any purpofes of vvifdom and goodnefs may be anfwered by conftant influences, which could not at all, or not fo well, have been anfwer- ed in any other way, we may be fatisfied that there really are fitch influences : And to afTert the contrary from a prejudice againft them as not regular, or not be- coming the Deity, feems in the higheft degree unreafonable. Can it be irregular to produce the higheft regularity, or unbecoming the Deity to govern the univerfe and its affairs in fuch a manner as is moft agreeable to the ends for which he created it ? Will he facrifice the high- eft, order to theloweft^ or fufFcr events to arife at random in the v/orld, rather than at any time put forth his hand to dired them ? Muft he have been only lookin£( en ever fince the creation ; and is this what is moil becoming him ?

Some, probably, are led into miftakes on this fubjed, by thinking of the man-

F ncr

66 On Providence.

ner in which it is moft becoming the Deity to a(fl, too ftridtly in conformity to that in which men are obliged to adl. They have but little power, and there- fore are obliged to be as frugal of it as poffible. But there is nothing difficult to the Deity, and confequentJy there can be nothing to influence him to chufe one way of a<5ting rather than another, beiides, its being more agreeable to recti- tude, and more conducive to his end. And this likewife is, in reality, the moft beautiful way of adling. Beauty confifts chiefly in the proper and efFedual adap- tation of means to ends. For this rea- fon, thofe means are the m^oft beautiful, and thofe fyftems the beft, which beft anfwer their end. In mere natural or- der, abilraded from all ufe, there is no- thing valuable; and the very reafon why the Deity has chofen to eftablifh a courfe of nature is, the neceffity of it as a means to produce happinefs, and to give his .rcafonable creatures room for a proper

exertion

0)1 Providenc e. 67

exertion of their faculties^ and for the praffice of virtue*

Thefe obfervations feem to me of im* portance on the prefent fubjed: 5 but, without having recourfe to them, it muft furely be very evident, that influences, confiftent with the free agency of beings and uniformly exerted to exclude every event fit to be excluded, and to produce perfedl order in the adminiftration of the world, are fo far from unbecoming the almighty and omniprefent parent, that we can conceive of nothing more worthy of him, or that can make his charadter ap- pear more amiable. Nor is there any more reafon to be prejudiced againft them, than againft the influence which the con- ilitution of the world allows to every agent over events, in proportion to his power and knowledge. There is no per- fon who does not influence in various ways what paflTes withfn the circle of his friends and acquaintance, and it has never yet been thought that the liberty " F 2 of

68 On P R O V I D E N C E.

oi maokindj or their fcope for aftion is afFeded by it. Invifible and fuperior Beings may alfo be frequently employed in directing occurrences among mankind. Now, the influence of Divine Providence is a fadl of the fame kind with thefe, and feems not to be on any account more liable to objecflions. Shall we ac- knowledge the influence of every agent on events, and deny that of the Supreme ? Was it indeed fit that by one original adt he fliould exclude himfelf from all fur- ther concern with his works ; or can it be poflfible to imagine that the Being who is the fountain of all energy, and whofe nature is perfe(3: adlivity and power, fhould be tlie c;^// inadive Being in the univerfe ? Is it not, on the contrary, much more rational to believe, that his influence over events extends as much further than that of any other Being, and is as much more conftant, as the relation in which he (lands to Beinj^s is nearer, and his

power and wifdom greater ?

Ill

Oj7 Pr O V I D E N C E. 69

la (hort; the notion of an ^&//!^/6(y Be- ing, pejfe^l/y benevolent y obferving the afFdirs of his own offspring, and yet never exerting any influence to give them that diredion which he moft approves, muil:, 1 iliould think, appear too inconfiftent and ab- furd not to fliock every attentive and un- prejudiced perfon. — ^ With refpe^:,

however, to the analogy I have juft men- tioned between Divine Providence ^d the influence of created agents, 'tis ne- ceffary to obferve, that it ihould be con- fidered with fome caution. We (hall here be in great danger of deceiving our- felves, if we judge of what the Deity fhould do, by v^hat we ought to do. 'Tis our duty to exclude, as far as we can, all vice and fufferings from the world; and becaufe this is not done by the Deity, v/ho has all hearts in his hands, and an unlimited power over events, fome have queftiontd whether he at all direds events, or concerns Himfelf about us. But happy is it for the world that it i?

F I 110;

yo 0/z Providence.

not governed in the manner in which human wifdom v^ould govern it. From what is incumbent on us in our circum- ftances, we cannot by any means infer what, in this inftance, it is proper for the Deity to do as fupreme governor *. We are too -much unacquainted with his counfels and plan to be able to determine this. Undoubted fadt proves that the

# A teacher of religion who had the power by his inflrudlions and perfuafions to engage men efFecluaJly to virtue would be inexcufable as far a$ he neglected this. But it fepms that Jefus Chrift could have (o fpoken to men, and i'o influenced their hearts, as to render his rniniflry more fuccefsful than it was. He tells us, that thrre were places where, if he had done the fame works that he did in Judea, the inhabitants would have repented in fackcioth and afhes. Thefe places therefore muft have been denied the rricans which it was known w'ould have brought them to-happinefs. — There are degrees of advantages which, if .men refift or mifimprove, the Deity does not fee fit to grant them more, whatever he may know would be the confequence. gut by what rea- fons or rules particularly his providence ir. guided in this inftancc we cannot fay.

3 original

0/Z Pr O V I D E N C E. 7t

original conflitution was fo eftablifhed by him as to admit of vice and fufFer- ings in the prefent ftate, and that there- fore it cannot be a part of his fcheme of Providence entirely to exclude them. We fee that there are numberlefs perfons to whom he does not give all the ad- vantages for virtue and happinefs which they might enjoy, and which, in all probability, would be ^fFeftual. 'Tis fufficient to know that he gives more than enough to all, and does every thing that it is wifeft and beft for him to do, in order to bring about univerfal and in- finite happinefs. But this fubjedl will

be more particularly confidered hereafter, when I come to examine the objedions againft Providence, taken from the evil, natural and moral, in the world.

Many of thofe who think, that there are no conftant influences of the Deity in directing events, are ready to acknow- ledge, and every one who believes that Chriflianity was proved by miracles and F 4 came

^2 0/2 P R O y I P E N C E.

came from God, mufh acknowledge, that there are particular emergencies in which lie does interpofe in the affairs of the world. Now, this conceffion is fuffici- ent to eftablifli what I am plead- ing for. For let it but be allowed that the Deity has ever once interpofed fmce the original eftabliihment of things, and there will remain no tolerable reafon foi: imagining, that he does not interpofe con-^. tinually, as far as there is any occafion.

It will, I think, be frivolous to affert, that this account of Providence rnafces it a continued feries of 77iiracles, If all ex- ertions of Divine Power are to be con- fidered as ?.niraailousy this will indeed be trucj nor w^ill there be the lead reafon

why it fliould not be admitted. That

influence of lupcrior power w4iich is implied in a miracle may, for ought we know, be exerted on numberlefs occa- fion s 5 and what diftinguifhes it from common events may be only that, in the caft of a miracle, the influence of fuperior

power

On Providence, jn

power is rendered obvious and fenfible, by the extraordinary circumftances attending a particular fad. Thus; the removal of a difeafe in the common courfe of things no perfon can look upon as miraculous, whatever he may believe concerning the conftant agency of the Deity in the crea- tion. But if a (Jifeafe is removed inftan- taneouflyat the command of a man, or in any other manner which cannot be accounted for by the ordinary pov/ers of "^ nature ; in this cafe, the interpofition of fuperior power becomes vi/We, and a pro- per miracle happens.

But v/hat effedually removes every ob- jedion of this kind, and almofl decides the queflion 1 am confidering, is a point which has been already at large infifled upon ; namely, ^^ That the caufe from '' which the general laws ^ that o-overn

■' e

'' thi

* It is to be wifhcd, that all who think on the fub- jea of this fedion would confider, what they mean by the word Laivs. It is very ambiguous and indeter-

minate

74 O;/ P R O V I D E N C E.

" the material world are derived, is the ** immediate power of the Deity exerted " every where." It has, I hope, been fliewn in the laft fed:ion, that we have clear and flrbng evidence for this. — To what was there faid, I will beg leave to add, on the prefent occafion, that it is from this caufe alfo, in particular, muft be derived that conftant fucceffion of ve- getables and animals which is kept up in the world. There is not one fadt in na- ture which can be completely accounted for by the mere pov/ers of mechanifm. Moft certainly then this facl cannot be thus accounted for. 'Tis utterly incon-

minate in its fignification, and has been often ftrange- Jy mifapplied and abufed. The prefent queftioji farniihes us with a ftrong proof of this. The gene- ral laws of nature fignify nothing but particular phenomena which are obferved in nature, or particu- lar modes of the operation of fome caufe. When, therefore, the regulation of events, the continuance of the order of the world, or the formation of vegeta- bles and animals is afcribed to Laws eftabliflied at the creation, cither the word Laws has no fenfe at all, like the word Nature when ufed in the fame manner, or it muft fignify the regular and conftant agency of the Creator.

celvablcj

O// P R O V I D E N C E. 75

ceivable, that works of fuch ftupendous art as the bodies of vegetables and ani- mals, myriads of which are continually- formed about us, fhould be derived from laws planted at the creation in dead mat- ter, which have ever fince executed them- felves. Thofe who fay this, fay they know not what. They make unmeaning words fland for caufes, and attribute to matter infinitely more than it is capable of. Every new vegetable or animal, therefore, I confider as a new produc- tion of Divine Power, ailing conftantly and regularly according to an order or fcheme at firft fixed by his wifdom. But there is particular reafon to think thus with refpedl to the confcious and living principles of animals. 'Tis juft as pof- fible that thefe fhould arife into exiftence, in confequence of laws eftablifhed at the creation, without any immediate exertion of Divine Power, as it is that they fliould arife into exiftence of themfelves without any caufe at all *. On this account,

the * I am fenfible that there is room here for recurring

to

^6 0>^ P R O V I D E N C E.

the prejer^ation of all things appears to be indeed but very- little different from

. a con^

to the notion of an original fimultaneous produdioii of all things ; and that fome will not hefltate to af- iert, particularly, concerning the living principles in men and brutes, that they have exifted from the firft formation of this earth, and have ever fmce either lain dormant till united to bodies, or been tranfmigrating from one animal to another; I will not lofe time ih pointing out the abfurdity and extravagance of this notion. How poor are the prejudices which lead perfons to fcek fuch expedients for maintaining the inacStivityof the Deity ? What is it that renders it fo necefTary to confine the exertion of creative power to the firft formation' of a, fyftem^ rather than to con- iider it as going on to exert itfelf, according to a fixed

order, during the continuance of a fyftem ? Let this

however be allowed. Still, fince fuch an original I'lmalianeous creation as I have mentioned mufl be fuppoicd for every particular fyftem ; and fince, moft probably, ther^ are new fyftems continually brought into being in the boundlefs univerfe ; it will, even in this way, be neceliary to admit the conflant exertion of Divine Power ; nor is it pollible to avoid this con- clufion, without extending the notion now mentioned to the whole of nature, and afierting.that there never has been more than one 2.Qt of Divine Power, and that all the fLicceffions of Beings and worlds fince the commencement of created txiftence, with all

theii

3

Oil Providence. 77

a continual creat'm y for was creative power to ceafe operating, the confequence would be, that no more new beings would make their appearance in the world, and that this earth would foon become a wild and horrid defart.

The conclufion arifing from thefe ob- fervations is very obvious. Divine Pow- er, we fee, did not ceafe operating at the creation. It appears, on the contrary, that there is a conftant exertion of it through all nature. Can there be any reafon for denying that by it Providence is adminiftered ? Though employed con- tinually in the prefervation of the gene- ral laws of the material world, and the produftion of animate and inanimate Beings, mufl it be fuppofed to have nor

their different laws, Have taken place of themfelves, and will for ever continue to do fo, in virtue of that one act, without requiring any immediate diredion from the Creator, or any interpofition of his power. If there is any perfon who is inclined to adopt this opinion, I have nothing to fay to him.

thine:

78 0;Z PR O VI DE N C E,

thing t( agents ?

thing to do with the affairs of moral

t)

I cannot think of more than one diiEH-^ culty that can here offer itfelf to any perfon's thoughts. It is poifible, that fome who admit thofe general influences of Divine Power by which the world is preferved, may yet imagine that there is an incredibility in that kind of influ- ence which the interpofitions of Provi- dence imply, becaufe, being accommo- dated to particular cafes and occafions, it muft be a particular and occaiional in- iiuence introduced out of courfe, and not reducible to any ftated and uniform mode of operation. It cannot perhaps be ne- cefTary to take much notice of this ob- jection. Since general influences are

only a number of particular ones, the diflindion upon which it is founded can- not be of much weight. And, fup- pofing it of weight, it muft be in a great mealure invalidated by fome of the fadls I have mentioned; for among thefe are

inftances.

On Providencjb. 79

inftances, not only of general and ftated exertions of Divine Power in the world, but of fuch as muft be meant by par- ticular and occafional Ones. However,

were it at all neceffary, it might very well be granted, without any prejudice to the prefent argument, that the Deity always afts by general influence, and in a ftated courfe. It is eafy to conceive, that the agency by which a particular provi- dence is carried on, may be an agency by laws operating, in given circumstances, invariably and regularly ; for no one can fay, what laws and regulations may be eftablifhed in the univerfe, by which events may be fecretly directed. Dr. Butler * obferves, that fo particular an

interpofal

* " Thus, that miraculous powers fhould be ex- *' erted at fuch times, upon fuch occafions, in fuch " degrees and manners, and with regajd to fuch ^* perfons rathei^than others; that the affairs of the " world, being permitted to go on in their natural *' courfe fo far, fhould, juft at fuch a point, have *' a new direction given them by miraculous inter- *< pof.tions; that thefe interpofitions fhould be ex-

*« aaiy

8q Oji Providence.

interpofai of tlie Deity as that in the Chriftian revelation, might have been by general law^s. It is at leaft certain, that there, is one law to vs^hich the whole of divine influence in nature, of whatever kind it is, may be reduced. I mean the {w}pvQmQ\2iV7 oireBitude, When viewed in their reference to this, all the diverfities of operation by which the adminiftra- tion of the world may be condudled;, 2gree, and appear to be only different effed:s of one and the fame principld - acling varioufly, according to the different circumflaiices and characters of moral agents. -r-^- — If any perfoil fhould ftili want fatisfad:ion about the prefent pointy'

" aclly in fuch degrees and rcfpedls only ; all this *' rniiv have been bv f;encral laws : Unknown in- *' deed to us : But no more unknown 'than the laws '* from whence it is that fome die as foon as they *' are born, and; others live' to extreme old agef "• that one man is fo fuperior to another in under- " ftacding; with innumerable moPe things, which " we canot reduce to any laws or rules at all, tho' '*■ it is taken for granted they are as much reduceablc *' to general ones, as gravitation." Jnalogy^ Fa.nll. Chap. 4.

let

0;2 Pr o V I b £ N c E. Si

let him recoiled: an obfervation which has been made at the beginning of this fedlion. Let him confider that there IS no more reafon for being prejudiced againft the influence of mvi/iik agents^ and efpecially the fupreme> over events^ while a courfe of nature is going on, than there is for being prejudiced, on the fame account^ againft the influence which vi/^o/e agents have over the affairs of their Own fpecies, and thofe of the Beings belov\^ them. The latter we know to be, not only conflftent with the courfe of nature, but a part of it ; and the other may be equally fo. This is fo true that, agreeably to Dr. Butler's obfervation, even the interpofition of fuperior power im- plied in a miracle, however unufual or extraordinary, may be entirely natural : That is i ' the conftitution of the v/orld may be fuch as allows of it in certain cafes.—.! know it is common to think, that miracles imply a fnfpajfion or viola^ tion of the laws of nature. But no opi- nion can be more groundlefs. Were

u-e G to

82 0/2 P R O V 1 t) E N C £.

to fee the motion of water downwards ceafe at once at the word of a man, or a river parted in its courfe, as Jordan was, we {hould fee a miracle. But we could not fay that the law of gravita- tion was fufpended 5 for the water might have gravitated as ufuaU and the true caufe of the event be, the exertion of an adequate fuperior power to controul the effefts of gravitation, in which its fufpen- fion is no more implied, than in a man's preventing a heavy body from falling, by applying his hand to it. Nor could we in this inftance fay, that the event was not agreeable to the conftitution of the univerfe ; for in order to this we (hould be able to difcover what the conftitution of the univerfe is, taking in the vifible and inviiible world, and that it excludes all interpofitions oi fuperior power in human

affairs.- -Every one will eafily fee how

thefe obfervations are to be applied to the purpofe for which they are mention- ed. Difmiffmg them, therefore, I

ihall beg leave to introduce here one fur- ther

O;^ P R O V I D E N C £. 83

ther obfervation which feems worth no-^ tice.

It ought to be confidcred, that events happen in the world in fuch a manner, as plainly render it not unlikely, that there may be fome fuperior influence concerned in directing them. We are far from, having a perfed knowledge of all the caufes from whence events arife, and therefore cannot fay how far the Divine hand may be among thofe caufes* The uncertainty which attends all human fchemes is continually obferved and felt, and has given rife to the common no- tions of Fortune^ by which many of the antient philofophers feem to have meant the fame with Provide?2ce. The bcfl laid fchemes often fail of fuccefs flrange- ly, and fome of the moft important changes are often derived from incidents in themfelves entirely frivolous, fo that, indeed, it is not poflible for us to imagine what would follow from an alteration of any one circumftance in the general feries

Q z of

84 0?2 Providence.

of events. What room then Is there fof the influence of invifible agency ? What a command over events would a fuperlor Being have, by only a fecret diredlion of what appears to us moft accidental and trifling ?

Such are the moft material obfervations which have occurred to me, on the man- ner in which Providence is adminiftered. —The great enquiry on this fubjecft is, how far it is reafonable to admit the conftant exertion of Divine influence for this purpofe. In anfwer to this enquiry, I have endeavoured to reprefent the folly of thofe prejudices which difpofe men to exclude from the world the influence of the Deity, and to confider him as being what no other agent is; only a mere fpedlator of the laws and order of the world. But more than this has been done. It has, I think, been demon- ftrated that the laws and order of the world are nothing but his uniform agency; and that the notion of a felf-fubfifting

world.

0;z Pr O V I D E N C E. 85

world, or of a fcheme eilabliftied at the creation which has been ever lince exe- cuting itfelf without depending on the Creator, Implies an abfolute impoffibility. There is, therefore, a neceffity of acknowledging the conflant exertion of Divine influence in nature. This leads us almoft unavoidably to conceive of Pro- vidence as adminiftered by it. And, in anfwer to a difficulty which might pof- fibly remain with fome, it has been ob- ferved, that it is neither neceffary to con- fider the influence of Providence as an adventitious influence out of the courfe of nature, nor if it was, could any rea- fon be drawn from hence for rejeding it.

The queftion I have been difcufiing io, I think, the only queftion on the mode of the adminiftration of Providence, about which there can be much dilpute. It is neceflrary this fhould be obferved, bepaufe fpme probably wilj be inclined

G 3 to

86 0?i Providence.

to think, that there is another queftion of which notice fliould have been taken ; namely, the queftion how far Providence is carried on by the inftrumentality of fubordinate agents. But it will eafily appear, that the difcuffion of this queftion cannot lead us into any fentiments on the points I have been confidering, diffe-- rent from thofe already explained. 'Tis with me out of doubt, that there is an^ inftrumentality of fubordinate agents in carrying on the deligns of Providence, and it may not perhaps be poftible to conceive how far it reaches i but then, I confider thefe agents as ading in every inftance under the fuperintendency of the Deity, which reduces their inftru- mentality into a perfect coincidence with' that mode of adminiftring Providence,

for which I have pleaded. If any one

will deny this, and aflert that there is no other diredlicn of affairs than is pro- duced by created Beings, uninfluenced by the Deity, and afting without com-

miffion

On Providence. 87

miflion from him ; in this cafe, there will plainly be no other Providence than that of thefe Beings, and all things will be left to the effeds of an original eftablifli- ment, without any fubfequent care or government. Several remarks have been already made on this opinion, and there will be occafion to fay fomewhat more about it in the next fedion. I am in hopes, however, that but little need be faid to convince moft confiderate perfons, that the moral world is not thus left to itfelf, or that the feveral orders of reafonable Beings in it are not delivered up in fuch a manner to their influence on one another, as that there is no fiipre?7ie direBion from the Deity. Were there no fuch decifive arguments to be urged as fome that have been propofed, we might well reckon, with confidence, that the Being v/ho is moft nearly related and moft intimately prefent to the world, is alfo the Being who has the moft conftant and adlive concern with it. G 4 But

88 O;? P R O V I D E N C E.

Put not to repeat what has been be* fore faid, I fliali now proceed to fome further pomts, which it will be proper to confider on the fuh^c^ of Providence,

SECT.

On Providence. 8gf

S E C T. IV.

Of the 0b]e5iions againjl Providence,

A Good deal has been faid in anfwer to feveral of the objections which have been made againft the dodlrine of Providence. But there are fome impor- tant ones of which no notice has been tak- en, and my deiign in this feftion is to offer a few obfervations upon them.

It would preclude much that has been objefted on this fubje<ft to remember, that the diredlions of Providence are, as it is certainly beft they (hould be, concealed and invifible; and that, therefore, we cannot in particular cafes determine in what manner its influence has been ex- erted, or what its intentions are. My meaning here will be beft explained by

con^

<5<3 On P R O V I D E N Cl^.

confidering a few inflances. A fleet,

fuppofe, has beat an enemy's fleet in confequence of a fudden turn of the

wind in its favour. Here would be

an event which, we might afTuredly be- lieve, did not happen without the con- cern and direction of the Deity, and which might reafonably be afcribed to him as the firft caufe and fupreme difpofer of all things. But it would be prefump- tuous to fay, that it proved his approba- tion of the vigors and their caufe, or that the fudden turn of the wind was

produced by his immediate hand. A-

gain j an earthquake, let us fuppofe, has laid in ruins a city or a kingdom. That perfon would, in my opinion, be inexcufable, who fhould, in this cafe, terminate his views in the natural caufes which produced the earthquake. The eftablifliing thefe caufes at firft in the frame of nature, and condudling things fmce in fuch a manner as that it fliould happen juft ^when and where it did, ought in all reafon to be afcribed to the Divine

good

On Providence. 91

good pleafure. And were not this the cafe, or were it true that it never was any objedl of Divine forefight and coun- fe], but derived entirely from blind chance or fate, all religious views of it would be irrational and abfurd. The particular intentions, however, of Providence in fuch a calamity, or the reafons by which its difpofals with refpedl to it have been guided, we are not capable of difcover- ing ; and many perfons have been much too free in their judgments on fuch occa- fions, and, in confequence of this, have done much towards bringing this dodlrine into difcredit. We may perceive in- deed fome general ends which are an- fwered by all events of this kind, fuch as to alarm and awaken men, and bring them to a fenfe of virtue and piety : But we cannot go much further; or fay, for example, that the calamity was defigned as a judgment on the fufferers, and in- dicated them to be worfe than other men,

Once

92 O;/ P R O V I D E N C E.'

Once more. A good man, let us fup-r pofe, with ferioufnefs and fimplicity, makes it the conftant fubjeft of his pray- ers to the Deity that he would fhew him what is true and right, deliver his mind from the influence of unreafonable preju- diccSy and dired his thoughts and en- quiries. Such a perfon may, I think, be aflured in general, that his prayers are gracioufly regarded, and that he is, in fome way or other, the better for them. And he may alfo even believe that his fentiments, in confequence of them, are nearer to truth than they would other wife have been. But wherein, particularly, they are fo; or how far, in confequence of his prayers, he has, on any one point, been guarded from error, it is not pof- fible for him to know. As the Deity has thought fit to make us fhort-fighted and fallible, we muft be ignorant to what de- gree he may fuflfer us to miftake. Our chief fecurity and comfort on this head are, that, with honefl hearts, we cannot pijftake dangeroufly, or fall into any errors I that

O;^ P R O V I D E N C E. 9j

that ftiall be imputed to us as crimes, and leflen the Divine favour to us.

What has been now faid concernino" the influences of Divine Providence is very neceffary to be attended to, in or- der to prevent the danger of fuperftitioa

and enthufiafm. That there is a wife

Providence extending to all events, we have, it has been fhewn, fufficient evi- dence to prove : And that its influence is not difcernible by us, or diftinguiih- able, in its exertions, from the common operations of natural caufes, and tho. courfe of our own thoughts, is no more any reafon for denying its reality, than it is for denying the reahty of our fouls, or of the ubiquity of the Divine effence^ that they are not the immediate objeds

of fenfible obfervation. In fome in-

ftances, indeed, the interpofitions of the Deity have been open and fenfible, but fuch interpofitions are very extraordinary ; and to exped: them in any common cafes would be madnei^. The delufions of en- thufiafm

94 O;^ P R O V I D E N C E,

thufiafm take their rife from hence, and confifl chiefly in afcribing particular feel- ings, without reafon, to fupernatural fug- geftion ; or in imagining that the direc- tions of God's Providence, and his influ- ence on the foul, are capable of being particularly obferved.

'Tis proper that it fhould be further obferved here, with refped to the doftrine of Providence, that it ought never to be explained in fuch a manner as to defl:roy the value of the agency of created beings. This would be the cafe were fuch a dependence of events on the Deity maintained, as would imply that they are not at all dependent on the wills of in- ferior Beings. No one, I hope, who has attended to the account I have giv-* en of Providence, can think tJiat any fuch confequence arifes from it. I have fliewn, particularly, how confiflient this dodrine is with the liberty of mankind ; and what has been faid to this purpofe, together with the obfervations that have

been

0;2 P R 0 V I D E N C E. 9^

been made on the manner of adminifter- ing Providence, is fufficient to remove any objedions that can be taken from the neceffity of allowing Beings, when created, fcope for aftion, and leaving events, in fome meafure, to be deter- mined by their choice. This, undoubt- edly, is neceffary. Were there no fcope for adion given Beings, or had they no power over what comes to pafs, there could be no fuch thing as a mo- ral government in nature, there would be no room for real beneficence and the happinefs connecSted with it, and the whole rational univerfe would be a fyftemi of confcious machinery, void of value and dignity. But then, furely, this does not oblige us to maintain that the Deity cxercifes no Providence over the affairs of rational Beings. The power which they have over events, with all its re- ftridtions, was given by him; and all the particular exertions of it are under his diredlion. If any of them become depraved, and bring calamities upon

tliemfelves

96 0;2 Providence.

themfelves or others, we muft fay, that fo the Deity fufFers things to happen* Thofe circumftances in the plan of na- ture and ftates of Beings which gave oc-^ cafion to, or admitted of, fuch evils, we muft afcribe to his will ; and all that happens in confequence of them we ought to confider as fuperintended by him in the beft manner. Nothing would be more unreafonable than to ima- gine, that there is any inconfiftency be-^ tween a limited and derived dependence of events on created agents, and a ftipreme dependence of all events on that firft caufe of whom, and through whom, are all things^ — — My happinefs, let me fuppofe, de- pends entirely, in a particular inftance, on the determination of one of my fellow- creatures. It will in this cafe be ftridtly true, that it is the Deity puts me into his hands. If, contrary to reafon and the Divine law, he abufes his power^ it will be my duty to acquiefce chearfully, from a conviftion of the right which the Deity has to make my happinefs depend

on

Oh Providence. 9%

en whatever conditions he pleafes, and of the unerring reafon by which all his difpenfations are guided. Not to be an abfolute lufferer by exiftence, if innocent, is the chief unalienable right I have. Within this limit the Deity may, in any degree he fees beft, and that is confiftent with the rules of diftributive juftice, make my ftate precarious and dependent. I can never fuffer beyond what is fit ; and I may, from his goodnefs, expecfl all fuch remedies for the fufferings which may be brought upon me as are, on the ■ whole, proper to be provided. Red;i" tude, under the government of a beinp* of perfed: reditude, I may be fure, fliall take place invariably, univerfally and for ever 5 and this is all I ought to wifh

for.- In a word; the Divine fcheme

is, plainly, that events fliall, to a certain degree, be what created agents makef them. His will, in numberlefs cafesy appears to be, that one Being fhall or fhall not receive particular benefits, or fufl^er particular evils, as his fellow Beings fhall H pleafe

98 O;/ P R O V I D E N C E.

pleafe to determine. But then, this happens no farther than he knows to be beft, and in no inftances but fuch as he appoints. Every determination of every Being which w^ould produce any degree of wrong fufFering, or any event not confiftent with a perfedl order of ad- miniftration, he will undoubtedly either prevent, or over-rule in its confequences. He is prefent in all minds 5 and that whole concatenation of events and caufes, in confequence of which any a- gent finds himfclf at any time in any cir- cumftances, fliould be confidered as de- rived from him, and as having been, in every part of it, the objed: of his fu- perintending care. It would, as I before obferved, be denying the dodlrine of Providence entirely, and making the uni- verfe in a manner forlorn and fatherlefs, to fuppofe, that all that the Deity does is to endow Beings with powers and af- fedlions, and then to turn them out into a wide theatre, there to fcuffle as they can, and do what they pleafe, without

taking

On Providence. 99

taking any care of them, or prefiding over their affairs. We cannot be more fure of the moral perfections of the Deity than we are that this is faUe* Whatever evils there are in the world, they can be only fuch as he is pleafcd to admit into it. When he willed the exiftencc of the prefent univerfe, he willed it as including every event which he forefaw would arife in it. All abufe of liberty and reafon he does indeed difapprove and forbid, and will adequately puniili. It is of eflential mahgnity, and as far as it enters tends to lay wafte his works. But it can enter no further than he fees fit to fuffer it. He had the beft reafons, for eftablifliing at firil thofe ftates and con-^ nexions of Beings, from whence he knew it would fpring. He can reftrain and di- rect it as he pleafes, and even turn it into an occafion of good. If other fyftems in which it does not take place contain more happinefs, and are equally pofiible and proper, they might, when this was produced, have been previoufly exiftent in H 2 the

i oo On P R O V I D E 1^ C E •

the greateft variety any one can imagine^ and the addition of this might have been a further proper exertion of infinite good- nefs. It would be impofiible for the Deity ever to aft, if it is a juft reafon againft the production of any given fyftem, that there are others poffible in- eluding greater happinefs.

But thefe are obfervations which I fhall have occafion to infift on, and to explain particularly hereafter, and which lead me to what I chiefly intended in this fedion ; namely, to confider the objections againft Providence taken from the irregularities and evils, natural and moral, which we fee in the world. Thefe are the greateft of all the difficulties that occur to us in thinking of this fubjedl. My defign however is not to enter into a detail of all that may be offered to remove them, but only tofuggeft a few fentiments with this view, which feem to me of peculiar importance, and fome of which, per- haps.

On Providence. ioi

haps, have not been enough inlifled on by others.

The moll common anfwer to all the difficulties arifing from the feeming irre- gularities and diforders in the fyflem of nature, is taken from our. ignorance and narrow views, compared with the

extent of the fcheme of Providence.

This anfwer is folid and important, but it requires to be ftated with fome care, in order to appear in its juft and full force. It may be faid in oppofition to it, *^ that we can have no more reafon to '^ conclude, on account of unknown re- '^ lations and connexions, that thtfeem- '^ ing diforders are not real/y fuch, than ** we have, on the other hand, to con- '* elude, on the like account, that the " feeming order is not really fuch ; and ^* that, therefore, the fame regard is due " in all cafes to ii'regular appearances -as *' to regular ; that both fhould be allowr- '' ed their v/hole weight undiminiihed ** by any confiderations of our ignorance,

H ^ '' A\y\

102 On Providence.

^« and our fentiments be determined by the ** degree \n which we fee, or think we ^^ fee, the one to prevail over the other." — But a little attention will difcover this way of arguing, in the prefent cafe, to be very fallacious. The pofition on which it is founded^ " that unknown relations *^ may as well fliew feeming order to be *' diforder as the contrarv," is undoubt- edly falfe. Order and regularity, we are fure, wherever they are found, cannot but proceed from defign and wifdom ; and it is not poflible that any unknown relations fhould deftroy the appearance of them. — '—Thus ; if we faw a million of things, difpofed regularly at the angles of a polygon of a million of equal fides, v/e fliould neceflarily conclude that there Avas real order here, derived from knov/- ledge and wifdom ; nor could we help reckoning it impertinent to object, that, if we knew all the relations of thefe things to others, we might perceive the contrary. But, on the other hand ; fup- pofin? any number of obic^rs to be dif- pofed

On Providence. 103

pofed apparently according to no order, we could not from hence conclude that this was 7'ealJy the cafe ; becaufe it is not impoffible but that their relations and correfpondencies to furrounding objedts, did we perceive them, might fhew us that they were difpofed in the moft beau- tiful order. In like manner, it would

be very abfurd to fay, that had we larger views we might difcover, perhaps, that the eye was not made for feeing, or that the bodies of plants and animals are not the effeifts of art. But, it is by no means fo to lay of any appointments of nature, or parts of an animal body whichy^-t';;; ir- regular or ufelefs, that, had we larger views, we might perceive them to be

otherwife. It is, therefore, evident

that the relations of objeds, or tlieir con- nexions with other objeds, may entirely alter what appears irregular in them, at the fame time that they cannot affecl: v/hat appears regular 5 and that, confe- quently, contrary to what has been ob- jedled, there is the greateft regard due to

H 4 our

J04 On Providence.

our ignorance when we contemplate the former, but none when we contemplate the latter. The Ont miijl be the effed of wifdom, and the other may. Froni the appearance of deformity, or ill con- trivance in an object, when feen in one pofition, or confidered by itfelf, there may not arife the leaft prefumption, that it will have the fame appearance when f^tn in another pofition^ or when con- fidered as a part of an extenfive ancj complicated fyftem. How foplifh may the meafures taken by the rulers of a flate, or the inftitutions of a civil polity, though in reality the wifeft pofTible, feeni to a perfon not enough acquainted with the fituation of the ftat^, or with the whole plan of the civil polity ? How dull may a fmgle part of a mufical com- pofition appear when heard alone, which yet, when heard in concert with the ether parts, may make the moil delight- ful harmony ? How auk ward may a beautiful and necelfary member of a ma- j;l|ine appear, when detaclied from the

reft,

On Providence. 105

y^^y or when viev/ed by one who fees not its refcre72ce to the end of the ma- chine ? How confufed does the fyftem of jhe world appear to a fpe.dator on the earth, or according to the Ptolemaick fyfleni; but how regular and harmoni- ous is it according to the true fyftem, or as it would appear to a fpedator in the fun ? Can it be exci^fable not to, bear in mind fuch truths, when we contemplate Divine Providence ? Or is it at all judg- ing according to reafon, not to make the allowances they require ? Is there any one who, in examining any work of hu- man art, would not impute to his igno- rance whatever in it appeared not con- fiflent with the fkill which the general frame of it difcovered ? Why is not this equally reafonable with refpedt to the conftitution of nature, where we find in- numerable proofs of infinite wifdom, and in the meaneft produdions of which is exhibited an incomprehenfible exadnefs pf art and workmanfhip ?

It

io6 On Providence.

It may be worth adding here, that, being ourfelves parts of nature, and de- riving from the fame original with it our very notions of order, it feems very in- credible that we ihould be able to corred: nature, or to conceive an order greater and better than is to be found in it *.

There are two accounts to be giv- en of the appearance of irregularities in nature. It may be occafioned either by the reality of thefe irregularities; or by our ignorance, confined views, and difadvantageous fituation for obferving nature. It may be owing either to a real want of wifdom, or to the infinity and unfathojnablenefs of it. The firft of thefe accounts contradids numberlefs Fhcenoinena of nature; is inconfiftent with the perfediion of wifdom apparent in the general frame of 'fthe world, and oppofes our moft reafonable apprehenfions

* See Charaaefiftics, Vol. II. p. 284.

yi^.ncdv, liJjyctp av uttoi th, //«pij avTn ss"/. Aril!:, de Mundo, Cap. V.

con-

O;? Pr o V I D E N c E. 107

concerning the nature and attributes of the lirfl; caufe. The latter account, on the contrary, is in the higheft degree eafy, natural, and obvious. 'Tis fug- gefted to us by what we have experienced in iimilar inftances, and agreeable to wh^t, from the reafon of the thing, we might have forefeen muft have happened to fuch creatures as we are, in confidering

fuch a fcheme as that of nature. Can

we then doubt a moment to which of thefe accounts we iliall give the prefe- rence ? Is it reafonable to fufFer our con- viction of a fa<fl:, for which we have good evidence, to be influenced by appearances that may as well be confident as inccn- fiftent with it -, nay, by appearances that, on the fuppofition of its truth, we mufl beforehand have exped:ed ? Mufl it not be ahvays proper to fiifpecl: our judo-- ments in cafes where we have often been miftaken, and where it is certain we muft be particularly liable to miftake ?

Let us here fix our thoughts again '* on the ftrudure of the human body. We

* See page 58,

know

ro

8 On P R O V I D E N CE,

know it to be an efFect of confummate ikilL But there are fome of its parts the ufes and propriety of which we do not perceive. Can we fuppofe thefe parts to be really ufelefs, and the human body, in fuch inftances, to be ill made ? Or can it be poffible for any perfon, in this cafe, to infer any more than the ^* imperfeftion of his knowledge ?'' There is the very fame reafon againft drawing any other concluiion from what is dark to us in the difpenfations of Pro- vidence, and the government of events.

What, in truth, would be moft of

all unaccountable is, that to Beings whofe views are confined within the narrowefl limits of time and place, many parts of an infinite plan, contrived by infinite wif- dom, fliould not appear unaccountable. It ought to fatisfy us, that we fee and know enoMgh to convince us of the per- fection of the Divine ways and works. To exped that they fhould be fully un- derflood by us, or that no difiiculties (liould embarrafs us in our enquiries into 5 them.

On Providence. 109

them, would (hew the moft inexcufable folly. It has happened, in many inftances, that what for fome time had been looked upon as faulty in the conftitution of na- ture, has been found to be wife and good. This ought to teach us diffidence with regard to whatever we may ftill be unable to account for. All the fancies of men, that they could mend God's works, or correft the order of the world, have hi- therto proved nothing but their ignorance and prefumption. As new light has been ftruck out, objedtions have vaniflied, and the Divine works have flione v/ith greater brightnefs. The further advances have been made in the knowledge of na- ture, and the more open it has been laid to our view, the more glorious It has appeared, and the ftronger proofs have been difcovered of the perfections of its author : And hence, what we ought in all reafon to reckon upon is, that were we acquainted with the whole of nature, or had faculties for entering into the counfels of Providence, and dif- covering the connexions and dependencies

of

no On Providence.

of all its parts, every irregulajity would difappear, and all that now puzzles us be found completely right and good. -The chief difficulties occur juft where we might expeifl them ; in the ftate of human affairs, and the ma- nagement of the 77ioral world. The fcheme of the natural world lies more in one view before us, and has lefs depen- dence on paft and future events; but that of the other, 'tis reafonable to think, muft be as much more deep laid as it is of greater importance. It muft be of inconceivable extent as to duration as well as place y confift of many related periods ^ and proceed through a long fucceflion of ages. If then of the former we are in- competent judges, how much more fo muft we be of the latter ; and with what patience and hope ought we, under a fenfe of our blindnefs, to wait till time fhall unravel the fcheme and fliew us more clearly the perfe(ft order of the Di- vine government ?« In lliort ; that per-

fon is indeed hardly v/orthy of a place among God's works, who obferves them

fo

On Providence. m £o carelefsly as not to know, that there is a depth of wifdom and contrivance in them v^hich he cannot trace, and is not led from hence to imphcit and hearty ac- quiefcence, believing were he does not fee, and adoring where he finds himfelf inca- pable of comprehending.

The next obfervation I fhall make on the objeftions I have mentioned is, that in general, they are founded too much on the unreafonable and abfurd expefta- tion ** that the Deity fhould ad, in every ^'Jingle injiance, to the utmoft extent of ^* his power, and communicate the *^ greateft poffible happinefs/'— Happi- nefs, we know, is greatly prevalent in all we fee of the world. Every diftricft of it abounds with effeds of the good- nefs of its maker. Our complaint then mufl be, not why is not goodnefs dif- played in the conftitution of nature, but why is not ;^;ord' goodnefs difplayed. But let it be well confidered, that this is a complaint, the foundation of which it is not poffible to remove : For, had the

i happi-

112 On Providence.

happinefs communicated been ever fo' g7'eaty we might flill have afked, why is it not greater?

As long as the fum of the happinefs of any Being exceeds that of his miferies, God is kind to him; nor does it make the leaft difference to a Being, whether any particular quantity of happinefs with which he is blefled is pure and unmixed, or only the clear excefs of his enjoy- ments above his fufferings, or whether larger capacities of enjoyment are given him with proportionable dedudlions of fufferings, or narrower capacities without any fuch dedudlons.

As far, therefore, as the attribute of goodnefs is concerned, no objedions can be made againft any natural evils over- balanced by good, which may not equally be made againft communicating a fmaller rather than a larger quantity of good, or granting narrower rather than greater

capacities of happinefs. Thus -, if

the animals on this globe (fuppofing all

along

On Providence. 113

along happinefs to prevail in their exi- ftence) fliould be exempted from the greater calamities that befall them, they iliould, for the fame reafon, be exempted from the fmaller, and enjoy an uniform happinefs, without being, at any time, in the leaft annoyed or diflurbed. This happinefs alfo they may exped: to be the greateft their natures are capable of, and to continue for ever. They ought, therefore, to be immortal, fubjed: to no decay, liable to no accidents, and fecure of enjoying every pleafure in the higheft poflible degree. But we cannot flop here. For the fame reafon that they ought to be thus happy to the utmoft extent of their capacities, they ought to have had higher capacities. But how extravagant is all this ? At this rate, no finite or imperfedt Being muft ever be created.

'Tis a very different queftion, how far the wifdom of God appears in the mixed ftate appointed to Beings : And fo like-

I wife

114 O// P R O V I D E N C E.

wife is the queftion, how far his jujiice can be vindicated in the relative ftates of mankind, confidered as reafonable

agents of different moral characters.

The chief difficulties attending the latter enquiry are removed by fuppoling a fu- ture ftate ^ and with refped: to the for- mier, we know enough to be fatisiied, that all the particular evils incident to Beings are under good dired:ion, and that it is for the beft reafons that a mix- ed ftate is appointed them. It deferves particular notice, that many of the pains and evils to which all animals are liable,, appear plainly to be defigned as means to fecure their happinefs and to guard them againft harm, and are therefore, as much almoft as any of their natitral plea- fures and enjoyments, proofs both of the w-ifdom and goodnefs of the Deity.

I have called the expei^lation that God,.. in a?iy Jingle injiance^ ihould produce the greateil poffible happinefs unreafonable and abfurd. This is an extremely evi- dent

On ProvidencC- ir^ dent truth. But it fliould be obferved, that it by no means follows from hence that, taking in the whole extent and duration of the creation, a quantity of abfolute good has not been produced which exceeds all that is poffible to be con- ceived. Though only a limited quantity of happinefs can exift in any given num- ber of limited eifeds, and though, there- fore, all that we can reafonably exped: With regard to any fingle parts of nature is, to fee that good is prevalent, or that happinefs is defigned and commu- nicated, and to exped: more would run us into the greateft abfurdities, yet the entire plan of created exiftence, reaching, perhaps, from eternity to eternity, and extending through immenfity, may in- clude in it ifTfinitCy or ififinitely infinite happinefe.

But to difmifs this. It w^ill be worth while here, to apply the prefent argument more particularly to the flate and cir-

cumftances of man ^ Various have

1 2 been

ii6 On Providence,

been the complaints of the evils under which man groans, and the calamities to which he is liable. But if it mufl be granted, that he enjoys, on the whole, more pleafure than he fuffers pain; that his life and ftate are in a. high degree eligible, notwithftanding the evils blend- ed with them ; and that the whole or- der of his nature, as it came from the hands of the Creator, is fuch as proves him to have been defigned for nothing but virtue and happinefs : If, I fay, this muft be granted, as furely it muft, it fhould go a great way towards filencing all objections and complaints. For it will follow that the meaning of them mufl be in a great meafure this; ** Why was *' not man made 7nore happy and per- *' fed: ?" A queflion which, agreeably to what was before obferved, might have been afked, though he had been placed ever fo much higher in the fcale of Being. —Let then every objcdion of this kind be for ever exploded. Man, 'tis true, is a very frail, imperfcft, and fliort-lived

3 creature ;

0?i Providence. 117

creature ; but ftill his exiftence is better to him than non-exiftence. Such a race is, at leaft, /o772e addition to the univerfal happinefs -, and, therefore, it was an inftance of Divine goodnefs to produce it; and inftead of murmuring, it becomes us rather to praife and adore.

But it will, probably, be thought, that no obfervations of this kind aifed: the main difficulty that occurs to us in con- lidering Providence, which arifes, '^ not *^ from the natural cvih and imperfedlions '* of man, but from what religion teaches ** us concerning his circumftances as a ** moral agent, placed in a ftate where he *^ is ftrongly tempted to wickednefs, and *^ where it muft have been expedled that ** a general corruption would prevail, all ** forfeit innocence, and great numbers fall ** into the future punifhment of fin, and

" be loji for ever,''- -This is indeed

an important difficulty ; nor would I at all pretend to be able to give any ade- quate folution of it. Some obfervations, I 3 how-

1 1 8 On Providence, Jiowever, there are, fuggefted by the pre-? fent argument, which feem to leffen it^ weight, and which, therefore, it will not be amifs to propofe.

Man feems to be in the loweft order of reafonable Beings, and from what has been faid, it appears that there are no objedlions againft creating the loweft or- der, which would not equally hold a- gainft creating any other order. Now, ^t h reafonable to think, that intelligent agents, in the firft period of their ex ift- ence, or antecedently to all fecurity from experience and inflrudlion> mufl be more liable to deviate than in any fub- fequent period^ and it is certain, that thofe in a lower order muft be more frail ^nd defedible than thpfe in a high- er. What wonder then is it if of thofe in the loweji order, and who confequent- Jy muft be in the greateji danger of de- viation, many lliould adtually deviate, ;ibi]fe their liberty, and lofe the happi-

nefs they mi2;ht have fecured ? 'Tis

abfurd

On Providence. 119

abfurd to afk why was liberty granted them, fince it is eflential to intelligence, and to all rational and moral happinefs. Liberty then^ they mufl have, or not exill at all, and the confequence of liberty, when expofed to temptations and trials, muft fometimes be depravity and wicked- nefs. And why Ibould not a liberty fo circumftanced be communicated, as well as a liberty more favourably circum- ftanced * ? Can it be afferted that all Beings have a right not to be placed in any disadvantageous ftates ? Or, fhould this be allowed, will it be afferted fur- ther, that they ought not even to be ex- pofed to the poffibility of being ever brought into fuch ftates ? As the Deity might not have given exiftence at all, he

* It (hould be observed, that T fuppofe that all Beings might have bepn placed in fuch circumftances as that none of them, though poficft of perfecSt natu- ral liberty, fjiould ever be in danger of any deviations or calamities : And the defign of vi'hat is here faid, and of a good deal that follows, is to Ihcvv that we have no fufficient reafon to expert this ; and alfo that, allowing it poflible, it was not heR.

I 4 may

I20 On Providence.

may furely give it on any terms which are confiftent w^ith its being in any de- gree a benefit, or not worfe than non- exiilence.^He cannot, therefore, be under an obligation to give it free from dangers

and inconveniencies.-! -Antecedently to

the creation of man, as many of the moi^e perfeft orders of creatures might have exifted as can pcffibly be imagined, and the creation of man might make a further addition to the univerfal happi- nefs. Why then iliould he not be creat- ed ? — -Is it not moft reafonable to expedl that Divine goodnefs iTiould difplay itfelf in producing an endlefs variety of effedls, and in giving exiftence to every different order of creatures '^ capable of being happy ?

Thefc

* What is here fuggefled fhews, that the creation of a variety of orders of creatures is not only con-

llilent with goodnefs, but required by it. But

there is another obfervation wiiich ihews this in a different manner, and which, though particular ufe will be made of it again, it will not beamifs jufl to mention on this occafion. Had there been no ine*

qualities

On Providence. 121

Thefe obfervatlons are fufficient to prove, that the perfedions of the Deity

by

qualities among Beings, there could have been np room for beneficence ; no pofTibility of gratifying the defire of doing good ; no opportunities for exercif- ing virtue in one of its higheft inftances, and that principle in rational Beings, wrhich affords a hap- pinefs the moft worthy of a rational nature, mull have lain for ever dormant and ufelefs. Ses Mr, Ahernethys Sermons^ Vol. II. Serm. III.

I cannot forbear adding in this place, that it feems to me very improper to fay, as fome have done, that God chofe this fyftem, in which evil takes place, as the beft of all pofTible fyftems. 'Tis difficult to fay what can be meant by the befl of all poflible fyflems. If it fignifies that which includes t\iz great eft fum of happinefs, it is as inconceivable as the lofigej} of all durations, or the largeji of all numbers. Thofe per- fons muft have low ideas of God's works who can look upon this earth, with its connexions, or even the whole vifible univerfe of fun, planets, and fixed ftars, as at ^11 confiderable, when compared with the reft of the creation. At the time, therefore, this fyftem was produced, there might have been num- berlefs other fyftems, containing brighter difplays of infinite power and goodnefs, not only pojftble but actually ex'iftent. All that we can reafonably expe6l to fee in what falls under our notice of the works and ways of God is, that they are entirely right and

good,

^22 On Providence.

by no means required that fuch a race ^s ours fhould not exift. When con- iidered by itfelf we fee enough, notwith- flanding the difficulties .that we meet with, to convince us that it is the ef- feft of wifdom and goodnefs : and when confidered in its relation to the whole fyflem of Beings, we know not how important purpofes it may ferve.

It is particularly neceffary on this ar- gument to bear in mind, that fufficknt advantages are fuppofed to be granted to all, and that nothing is expelled from any Being which is not equitably proportioned to the light and opportuni- ties he enjoys. — —If fome have fewer advantages than others, all have more than they can claim ; and from all as much lefs will be required, as they have had lefs given them. If fome have a

good, and worthy of his perfe£lions. To defire yr.orc, or to expe6t that this fyftem fhould be the beft, the falreft, and happieft poffible, is the fame as to expe£l that there fliould be no Subordination or variety in the Divine vyrorks.

fmaller

On Providence. 123

imaller chance for happinefs than others, all have Jome chance, and every one might have had none at all, that is, might never have exifted* Happinefs is always a free gift from God, and he may make Beings liable to come (hort of it, in any degree he fees befto Any ca- pacity, any poJIibtlity of happinefs is va- luable for the fame reafon that happinefs Jtfelf is fo, and ought to be received with gratitude. Nay, fuch at prefent are our circumftances, that we have in- deed reafon for the utmoft gratitude. We have before us the profpedl of a ^lejj'ed immortality which we cannot lofe,

but through our cv/n fault.* Far then

be it from us to accufe our Maker.- -

It is in your power to fecure infinite happinefs. All the means nece/Tary for this are given you. Nothing but vo- luntary and inexcufable guilt can hurt you. Praife God, therefore. Improve carefully the advantages you are blefl with ; and be not fo unreafonable as to f omplain becaufe you are not faved the

care

124 • ^^ Providence, care and pains you muft ufe in working out your falvation ; for this is a complaint which nothing can fatisfy, befides grant- ing you every poffible advantage, placing you above all labour and hazard, and making you abfolutely indefectible.

The argument on which I here infift is, I think, fufficient to teach us a hum- ble and thankful acquiefcence in the condition allotted us. But it would fcarcely be right to omit obferving, that there is a great deal more to be faid in the prefent cafe, and particularly in vindi- cation of Providence, with refpedt to that ftate of labour and danger in which we are placed. I fliall, therefore, beg leave to digrefs fo far as to introduce a few ob- iervations on this fubjedl, not immedi- ately connedled with the main argument which I am purfuing.

The fad that our ftate is a ftate of labour and danger is too obvious to be queftioned. There is nothing in human

life

On Providence. 125

life ftable and certain. There is nothing given us fo freely that we are to ufe no pains to obtain or preferve it. Almofl: all the bleflings of our Being are to be earned by diligence, if we would poffefs them. Such is the Divine eftablifliment, that the lazy and indolent muft be defi- cient and unhappy. But what deferves moft of our notice is, that part of the precarioufnefs of our ftate which iscaufed by its dependence on our fellow-beings. There is not, I think, any fad in the conflitution of the world which is more remarkable than this ; or which, at firft fight, feems to contradift more our ideas of Divine goodnefs. How common is it for one man to have at his command the fates of whole provinces and king- doms ? Even our receiving exiilence, as well as our condition afterwards, is made to depend on the v/ills of our fellow- beings. In the beginning of life we are committed to the care of parents or guar- dians, who can, almofl: as they pleafe, de- termine our ftate in future life, or cut us

off

126 On Providence,

off entirely from it. What is fimilar to this is true of our ftate as moral agents defigned for exiftence hereafter. As an infant is put in the way to the happinefs of the prefent life, fo is a grown man put in the way to happinefs in another worlds and naturally capable of everlalling im- provement in knowledge and perfection. And as, in our former capacity, it is put into the power of men to caufe us to fail of the happinefs we might have enjoyed in life -, fo likewife, in our latter capacity, it is put into their power, by various means, to deprive us of future happinefs, and to caufe us to mifcarry for ever*

What has been already faid is of great ufe to filence the complaints which are apt to rife within us againft this part of the conftitution of nature, andean hardly be too much inculcated. We had na right to exiftence or happinefs at all-? and therefore the Deity may make them dependent and precarious in whatever'

manner '

O;^ Pr o V I D E N c E. 127

manner his counfels require. But we need not reft the defence of Providence on any argument of this kind. We arc capable, I think, of perceiving very im-* portant reafons for fuch a conftitution> and of difcovering that it difplays great wifdom and goodnefs.

It is abfolutely neceflary, as was oh- ferved page 95, that intelhgent Be- ings fhould have fcope given them for adlion. There is a plain congruity in making their happinefs to arife from the proper exercife of their powers^ and ta be the refult of their own endeavours. This is the only happinefs that can fuit the natures of adlive and free creatures. Had they no command over events; were bhfs forced upon them^, independently of their own choice and endeavours ; or were their ftates fo immutably fixed a& not to be liable to be afFeded by one an- ther, the confequence would be, that they would have nothing to do ; that their faculties would be given them in

vain ;

128 On Providence.

vain ; that virtue would be totally ex^ eluded from the creation, and an univer- fal ftagnation or quietifm take place in it.

But I fliall, on this occafion, defire particular attention to the following ob- fervations, which, I fancy, will ftrength- en fome of thofe already made, and ihew us plainly what unreafonable expedlations we are apt to entertain from the goodnefs of God.

Had the natural courfe of things in the prefent ftate been fuch, that when- ever any particular calamities or accidents happened to men, there fhould have been no remedies for them ^ we could have had no juft reafon for complaint, and God would have been good. Nor could any arguments have been taken from this at- tribute to prove that there ought to have been remedies provided, which would not equally have proved that they -ought to be eafy, univerfal and infallible, or

rather

Oh Providence. 129

rather that there fhould have been no occafion for them, and no fufFerlngs of pains of any kind* But the faft is, that there are remedies provided for the mif- fortunes and calamities of men, and that thus greater goodnefs is in this inftance difplayed in the conftitution of nature, than we could on any fure grounds have antecedently expefted. Men are not left^ as they might have been, to perifh irre- trievably by the calamities that happen to them, but it is put into their power in numberlefs cafes to help one another, and to prevent the fatal efFedls that v/ould follow particular calamities. A provifion is made in the fpontaneous a- gency and benevolence of our fellow^- creatures j for a great addition to the happinefs of iife^ and diminution of its {iifferings. And this itfelf becomes a ftill higher difplay of goodnefs beyond which we cannot eafily enlarge our ideas. For by eftablifliing a plan wherein Beings are thus left to be the voluntary caufes of one

K another's

1 30 On Providence.

another's happinefs, room is given them for the exercife of beneficence, for gra- tifying the noblell affedtion in their na- tures, and enjoying the moft GodUke bUfs of which they are capable. Had nature been framed agreeably to what relight have appeared, to our narrow views, beft and moft produdive of hap- pinefs, there would probably have been no fuch liablenefs to calamitous events, or dependence of Beings on. one another, as we obferve in it; and, confequently, the higheft kind of happinefs would have been wanting in it, and the very end we meant to fecure would have been de- feated.

What has been here faid of the con- ftitution of things in the prefent world, may, I fuppofe, be applicable in a great meafure to the whole plan of Providence and fyftem of being. The welfare of a fpeciesy like that of indlvidiuils among men, may be made dependent on a higher fpecies, and whole orders of reafonable

creatures

On Providence. 1.3 i

creatures may be fo cireumftanced, as to be liable to be brought into very cala- mitous ftates, from v/hich it may not be poffible for them to be faved, according to the general laws of the v^orld, except by the kind affiftance and labours of Be- ings fuperior to them. And from w^hat I have obferved, we fee reafon to believe that fuch a general oeconomy of nature, though the refult in feme inftances may prove abortion and ruin, v/as neceffary to produce the greateft virtue, and the

greateft good on the whole. -It is an

enquiry of fome importance here how far the dependence of Beings on one another may extend; or within what limits it can be ccnfiftent with reditude, that they fliould be liable to faffcr m con- fequence of one another*s agency. I have already hinted fome obfervations on this head in the preceding fedtion. We may be affiired, in general, that the connex- ions of Beings are under the heft regu- lations, and their powers v/ifely limited : And we may alfo know, in particular, that K 2 their

132 On Providence. their dependence on one another cannot extend fo far as that there Ihall ever happen a failure of adequate retribution^ or that any Beings fhall be hable to be deprived of any of their unalienable rights, or to fuffer any thing which it would be wrong or hard that, as the creatures of the Deity, they fhould fuffer. The pow- ers, therefore, of Beings over one another cannot extend further than to the gifts of bounty y or fuch bleffings as the Deity is not obliged to grant. Of this Idnd are exiftence, its perpetuity, and almoft all its privileges, capacities, and advantages : And therefore, it may be eafily conceiv- ed what degradations and loffes may be fometimes brought upon Beings under the Divine government, in confequence of their mutual agency, confiftently with the moft perfect juflice, and even (if fome of the preceding obfervations are right) as the effed of a conftitutioii formed in the beft manner to produce

happinefs. But the queftion, how far

the dependence of Beings on one another 3 may

On Providence. 133

may extend, wouid carry me beyond my prefent purpofe were I to attempt a pro- per difcuffion of it, nor is there any occafion for now entering into it fur- ther.

It is right, I have fald, that the happinefs of intelUgent Beings fhould be made to be the fruit of what they do and deferve. The noblefl: enjoy- ments, or all which pre-fuppofe moral merit, can have no other fource^ and virtue (fince its nature will not ad- mit of its being either created with Be- ings, or taught them) muft always be an acquijition, Thefe confiderations, when applied to the fubjed into which I am enquiring, have a conliderable ten- dency to render it lefs puzzling. It is fcarcely conceivable that an agent, in w^orking out his own happinefs and ac- quiring virtue by attention and care, iliould not be in circumflances of fome hazard ; and if this is true, the enquiry concerning the origin of evil muft be, TiOt, why any Beings have been placed in K 3 a

134 O;^ Providence.

a ftate of trial and hazard, but why they have been placed in a ftate of trial and hazard, attended with fuch and fuch circumftances of particular difadvantage and diftrefs.

Upon the whole. We may, I think, perceive that it was neceffary that there ihould be a real contingency of events in the creation, and fuch a fubordination of Beings to one another and precm^ioufnefs of their ftates, as could not but fubjedl them in many inflances, and efpecially in the infancy of their exiftence, to the danger of moral defedtion and a failure of happmefs. There could not other- w^ife, it has appeared, have been room for a proper exertion of the powers of Be-f ino-s, or for that ffioral excellence by which they mod: nearly rcfemble the fountain of all perfedion, The right eji and alfo the greatejl happinefs could not have been at- tained in any other way. This appears to mc with ftrong evidence, and the rea- fons that have been afiigned feem to

prove it. -But it is time to return tq

what

On Providence. 135

what I intended here chiefly to infift upon.

I was confidering the obje(5lion againft Providence arifing from the difadvantage- ous ftate we are in for virtue, and par- ticularly, from what mufl have been the forefeen confequence of it ; that future Jinallok of a great part of mankind which religion teaches us to expect. I have faid a great part of mankind. How great a part can be known only to that Being who fees through all futurity, and who fearches all hearts. — When I con- fider the general careleffnefs which feems to prevail with refped: to religious vir- tue ; the inexcufable defects of many v/ho are ranked among the better fort of men ; the fcope of the cliriflian doc- trine, and feveral intimations of fcrip- ture ; I am indeed forced to entertain melancholy reflections. Every benevolent mind will, however, endeavour to think on this fubjeft as favourably as poflible. There is enough in the face, as it K 4 mufl

^36 On Providen^ce.

muft appear to the largeft charity, to render it in the higheft degree alarming, and to awaken in us the deepeft concern for ourfelves and our fellow-men. Mil- lions of reafonable Beings, naturally imr mortal and capable of infinite improve- ment, bereaved of all their hopes, cut off fronn every bleffing of exiftence, caft away for ever from God and blifs, and funk in irreco.verable dejiruciian I — What

pan be imagined mofe Ihocking ?— r

But though fuch a fad: cannot but greatly affed an attentive rnind, it furniflies with no juft reafons for cenfuring Providence. God, notwithftanding, appears to he good, infinitely good. No cpnclufion to the contrary could be drawn^ were there ever fo great a difproportion between the number of thofe who fliall be faved, and thofe who will be lofl. One may even venture to affert, that it would have been w^orth while to have create4 this world fof the fake of only orie perfon t9^ be faved out of it, and fitted in it for

^v^rlajiijig happinefs. But thanks be to

Divim

On Providence. 1-^7

o,

Divine love, the virtuous and happy part pf our fpecies, when they fhall hereafter he Jfeparated from the reft of mankind, vs^ill appear to he a great multitude^ which no one can number ^ gathered out of all na^ tions, and kindred, and people, and tongues^. Nay, we cannot tell how much greater a proportion they will, on the whole, bear to the reft of mankind, than the ftate of things hitherto in this world has given us reafon to hope. For it is not impoffible but that, before the end of the prefent ftate, a general reformation may take place, and knowledge, peace, and virtue prevail much more than they have ever yet done f , This many have

thought

^ Rev. vii. 9.

t It is the opinion of fome that the world has from the firft been gradually improving, and that it will go on to improve 'till fuperftitlon and wicked- nefs fhall be in a great meafure exterminated. The advances and difcoveries made within the three lafl centuries are, indeed, wonderful, and may well lead us to expe6l an approaching general amendment in human affairs. The light which has been lately

ftruck

138 On Providence.

thought a reafonable objedt of ex- pectation, and it feems to be very plainly foretold in the fcriptures.

flruck out will probably increafe ; and the more it in- creafes, the further will free enquiry and generous fentiments fpread ; the harder will it be for eftablifh- ed corruptions to maintain their ground ; and the more the way v/ill be prepared for the downfall of all flavifh hierarchies and governments, and for the in- trodu£l:ion of thofe times, when truth and liberty fhall triumph over all oppofition, when nation fhall no more lift iip a fword againft nation, every falfe re- ligion be deftroyed, and the" kingdoms of this world

hecome the k'tngdojns of the Lord and of his Chr'iji. 1

cannot think it neceffary that the world fhould con- tinue for ever divided, as it is. now, into a multitude of independent ftates whofe jarring interefts are al- ways producing war and devaluation. A fcheme of government may be imagined that fhall, by annihi- lating property and reducing mankind to their natu- ral equality, remove moft of the caufes of contention and wickednefs. An account of fuch a fcheme has been given by an ingenious writer in a book intitled,

Profpe^s of Nature^ Mankind^ and Providence.

It is there obferved, that if a government of this kind fhould be once efcablifhed on any fpot, the advan- tages of it would be fo vifible, and it would flrengthen and extend itfelf fo fafl, that in time it would be very likely to become qniverfal.

But

On Providenc e,. i 39

But be this as it will ; while all may^ a great number, we cannot doubt, will efcape the fatal effeds of vice, and be brought through the dangers of this world to endlefs blifs, It may be en- quired here, why the circumftances of the world have not been fo ordered, as that this number fhould be greater; and fomc of the principal obje(ftions againft Providence are reducible to this enquiry : But it is one of that fort of enquiries which has been before fhewn to be unreafonable. It is an enquiry which might have been made, though this number had been greater, or though it had been fo great as to include every individual of mankind. For, on this laft fuppofition, the fame general prin- ciple would have led an objecflor to afk ; « Why are not more of mankind brought ^* on the ftage, fince more may ?" [ *' Why is the earth fo thinly flocked ^^ with them, fmce it might have been ^* always full ?" Or, though alv/ays ^' full, Why was it not made larger, or

^^ created

140 On Providence. «' created fooner ?"— — In fliort; had this earth been fo httle.as to be capa- ble of holding only a number of men, equal to thofe who will be formed in it, as it is now, for future happi- nefs, and had all thefe been fo advan- tageoufly circumftanced as that not one of them fliould mifcarry : Had this, I fay, been the cafe, it could fcarcely have been thought that there was room for complaint, or the leaft reafon for que- ilioning the goodnefs of the Deity. But to the views of benevolence there can be no difference between fuch an earth and the prefent, the quantity of happinefs refulting from both being, by fuppofition, the fame. This is true of two fuch ftates, abflrafting from all connexions. What they may be when viewed in the relations they may have to other ilates, or when confidered as parts of a fyftem, it is not pofFible for us to difcover. There may in this cafe be a preference due to the latter 5 or it may be the unavoidable refult of a general plan of government

produftive

On Providence. 141

produdive, on the whole, of the greatefl abfolute good ^. See page 128 — 132.

There

* I am fenfible that many perfons will think; that I ought here to have taken notice of the good which may arife out of the evil of the world, and the im- portant ends which the abortive part of mankind may be made to ferve under the Divine government. It has been faid particularly to this purpofe, that the fu- ture puniftiment of wicked men will be the means of difplaying to the creation, in a manner not otherwife pofTible, the dreadful nature of vice and the perfe6l holinefs of the Deity ; that it is owing to them that the prefent ftate is a proper fchool of virtue to that part of mankind who will efcape Xht fecond deaths and that, for this reafon, they anfwer an end like that of dung in a garden which, though itfelf loathfome, helps the growth of fome choice plants, which in proper time are to be removed to a more confpicuous fpot, where they will fhew themfelves in their fi-

nifhed form and beauty. Such is the docStrine

which fome of the beft writers have taught ; and they have added, that this do<3:rine ought not to have any influence on our notions of the evil of vice, becaufe, whatever good may eventually arife from it in con- fequence of the difpofals of infinite wifdom, its ef- fential malignity is the fame ; it is always fatal to the individuals who pradlife it*; and it ftill continues true, not only that its tendency is to ruin the creation, but that this would be its a^ual effeci were it under no

reftraint.

142 On Providence.

There is one obfervation more of a particular nature on the prefent fubjedt, which is fo important that it would be inexcufable to omit it. What I have in view is the conformity obferved by Dr. Butler, betv/een that lofs of human creatures which I have been confidering,

reftraint. — I leave every one to determine for hlmfelf how far thefe obfervationsare juft. For my own part, I am afraid of talking much in this way; and, per- haps, it will in fome meafure appear from what is above faid, that there is no great occafion for it in order to vindicate Providence in the permiflion of evil. It is right to think of vice as always an enemy to the world, and of the havock it makes among mankind as a real and great calamity. The founder of our religion certainly thought thus, otherwife he would not have ftooped fo low and fufFered fo much, to prevent the efFecis of vice and to fave mankind. This appears likewife from the laws and threatenings of the Deity, and from all that we fee of the order of ^ his government. The wicked may with no lefs truth be confidered as the weeds and briars that choak the plants, than as the manure that helps their growtlu If the temptations and di'nculties of hu- man life are the means fometimes of improving vir- tue, by affording It exercife, they are alfo generally the very caufcs which overwhelm anJ ruin it.

and

On Prtovidence. 143

and the courfe of nature in other in- ftances. — Vid. Analogy^ Part I. Chap. 5. Alinoil all kinds of vegetables and trees have a vaft profufion of feeds prepared for them, far the greateft part of which is loft y and, in fome inftances, not one of them in many myriads grow up to any thing. The like is very obfervable in th^ animal world ; and were one to enter minutely into this part of natural hiftory, it would be furpriiing to obferve what a fuperfluity of eggs is provided for fome infects, what an inconceivable mul- titude of creatures are loft in embryo, or born only to be deftroyed ; and what great numbers of even thofe that pro- ceed fome way towards a ftate of ma- turity perifti before they arrive at it.

Should it be faid here that, as this world is conftituted, a great wafte of this fort could not but happen, which rendered it neceffary that a confiderable overplus fliould be provided ^ and that the greatnefs of the numbers loft cannot

be

144 0/2 Providence.

be regarded by a Being in whofe eye no- thing is great, to whom the produftion of any one number of any objedls is as cafy as the produdion of any other 5 and who, therefore^ can with no more rea- fon be cenfured for any fueh lofs, than for the non-exiflence of the Beings he has not created : Should this, I fay> be^*K)bje(fled, it would be obvious to an- fwer, that what is in fome degree equi- valent to it, may, with equal reafon,- be applied to the particular cafe under' confideration.

In thinking of the analogy of nature in this inftance, we fhould by no means forget the untimely deaths that happen among our own fpecies. Many perifli in the womb ; and the greater part of thofe that fee the light, and are put in the way to the enjoyments and happinefs of grown men in the prefent life, fall fhort of them, and are nipped in their bloom ^ Such fads as thefe have a tendency ta make the deepeft impreffion on every

con-

On Providence. 145

confiderate perfon. They fhew us that what we are taught to believe with re-* ipedl to the future lot of mankind is en- tirely agreeable to all that we fee of the world *. Nor have we any reafon for

fufpefting

* I fuppofe it will be eafily feen on what opi- nion of the future punifhment I have all al#>ng argued ; and if, on this opinion, the ways of God can be vindicated, there is no other which any reafonable perfon is likely to embrace, on which they may not be vindicated. The difficulties to be re- moved are evidently much lefs on the fuppofition of the tiliimate rejloratlon of all mankind ; but this opi- nion is by no means reconcileable to the language of fcripture ; and there is reafon to believe, that the confequences of vice will be found far more ter- rible.

In order to give a diftin(£ler view of that part of natural hiftory which I have mentioned above, I

will recite the following facts. Monfieur

Dodarty in a piece communicated to the Royal Aca- demy of Sciences, computes that an elm'"fvery year, at a medium, produces 330,000 feeds, and, therefore, fuppofmg it to live a hundred years, 33 millions dur- ring its whole age. — Fern is vaftly more fruitful in

feeds. Hart's tongue, as Dr. Grczv calculates,

produces in a year a million of feeds. " There is

146 On Providence.

fufpeding that this part of its conftitu- tion is faulty, as, I hope, the preced- ing

«' an infinite diverfity between the places that pro- *' duce and nourifh different plants. There are fome *' that 2tre not produced but upon other particular *' plants, of which the trunk, or the bark, or the " roots have alone the juice that is agreeable to " them. What Monfieur Tournefort has heard from *' Mcliieurs Mcry and Lemery is yet more furprifing. ** There are akindofmulhroomswhich grow upon the " bands and plaifters applied to the wounds and fores «' of the Tick men in the hofpital called L'Hotel-Dieu. *' After this nobody will wonder that horfe dung " prepared, as Monfieur Tournefort mentions, fhould *' be a kind of foil or bed, capable of bringing forth " the ordinary mufhrooms. It follows from hence, " that the feeds of mufhrooms muft be fcattercd in *' a pretty large quantity, in an infinite number of " places where they never appear, and indeed over *' all the earth; and by confequence, likewife, the in- " vifible feeds of a great number of other plants. '• It muft be owned that the imagination is fliocked " at firft, wnth the confideration of fuch a prodi- " gious multitude of different feeds fown everywhere " indifferently; and in an infinity of places, in vain " too. And yet, when one comes to weigh the mat- " tcr, one muft allow it. From whence come other- '' wife the marfhy plants that are found in lands ** turned to fens, and which never appeared there

" before i

On Providence. 147

ing obiervations will prove* It is obvious that the main objedions to it lead us

equally

*' before ? From whence come thofe new plants that *' other accidents fccm to have produced fometlmes *' in certain places j for inftance, the black poppies " that grow in the burnt grounds of Languedoc, in *' Provence, and in the ifles of the Archipelago, *' and which are feen no more the following ^rears ? *' From whence that great quantity oi Eryfinum lati- ** folium majus glahrum which appeared after the fire of '* London upon more than 200 acres of ground where

*' that happened ? Thefe kinds of fads, and many

*' others which one might alledge, equally incontefti- *' ble, prove, at the fame time, both the great multi- *' tude of feeds fcattered every where, and the want of

*' certain circumftances to make them appear.

*' If to this fpeculation on the invifible feeds of plants, *' we join that of the invifible eggs of infecSts, which *' is exactly parallel, the earth will be found full of *' an inconceivable number of vegetables and animals *' already perfe(Sl:ly formed and defigned in miniature, *' and which only (lay for certain favourable accidents " to appear in full length." See the lives cf the Frerjch^ Italian, and German Philofophersy late members of the Royal Academy of Sciences at Paris, together zvith ab- Jiracts offome of the cboiceji pieces communicated by ther-i

to that illujirious fodety. By Mr. Chajuherlayne. A

fpider lays, as naturalifts tell us, five or fix hundred

eggs. As the notion of fpontaneous generation

L 2 is

148 On Providence.

equally to objeft, in all cafes, to the cre- ation of a fmaller rather than a greater

number

is now unlverfally exploded, how fhall we account for the infecls that never fail to be bred in particular places, or for the animalcules that are found in certain infufions, after expofing them uncovered to the air, except by fuppofing that the eggs of thefe animals are continually wafted about every where In the air ? What an infinity then of thefe eggs muft be

loft for want of falling into favourable fituations ?

Some have maintained that the bodies of all living creatures are produced from the animalcules in femine mafcuUno^ which when they happen to find a proper titdus^ are there changed, and for fome time nou- rifhed and enlarged, till at lafl the creature in its complete form is ripened for birth ; juft as all trees and plants proceed from a feed, which is nothing but the tree or plant itfelf in miniature, and which, upon being thrown into a proper foil, is there, not formed, but unfolded, nourifhed and increafed, till it becomes a full grown plant or tree. \i this opi- nion is true, it affords a moft remarkable inftance to the prefent purpofe, there being no reafon to think, confidering the inconceivable number of the animal- cules mentioned, that one out of many millions of them ever find the proper nidus^ or acStually give rife to the animals intended to be produced from them.

Erractly parallel to this, is the account given by

natur;ilifts of the conftru^tion and ufe of the flower

which

On Providence. 149

number of Beings. There is nothing like injujiice, or even iinkindnefs, implied

in

which precedes the fruit, in plants, and trees, and of the manner in which the farina^ or fine duft of flowers fecundifies the germen or feed placed at the bottom of the flower. Mr. Samuel Moreland in Philofophical Tranfaclions, N°. 287, (after giving an account of a well known part of natural philo- fophy, namely, that there is in every feed a feminal plant lodged between the two lobes which confti- tute the bulk of the feed, and are defigned for the firft nourifliment of the plant) mentions it as his opinion, that the feeds which come up in their proper involucra^ are at firft like unimpregnated ova of ani- mals 5 that the farina is a congeries of feminal plants, one of which mufl be conveyed into every ovum before it can become prolific ; that the ptjlil is a tube defigned to convey thefe feminal plants into their nefl:s in the ova ; and that there is fo vaft a pro- vifion made bccaufe of the odds there are, whether one out of a great number fhall ever find its way

through fo narrow a conveyance. This theory has

been received by Mr. Geoffrey and many others. It fecms now pretty well confirmed, and has bid the foundation of the Linnaan fyflem of botany. How remarkably does it fhew us the analogy that runs through nature ? How furprifing to confider what ar> expence of farina there is to produce one feed, and L 3 what

I :;o On Providence.

in it to any Being. It is confiftent with an infinite overbalance of good; and, for

thefe

what an expence of feeds to produce one plant ? — Is it impoffible that what is fimilar to this fhould take place in the formation of reafonable Beings in this world for happinefs hereafter ? — " That the prefent world *' (fays Dr. Butler in the paflage above referred to) <' does not actually become a flate of moral difcipline f ' to many, even the generality, cannot be urged as *' a proof that it was not intended for moral difcip- <' line, by any who at all obferve the analogy of <^ nature. For, of the numerous feeds of vegetables ^' and bodies of animals which are adapted and put ^' in the way to improve to fuch a point or ftate of ^' natural maturity and peife£l:ion, we do not fee <« perhaps one in a million adually to improve to it, *' Far the greateft part of them decay before they are '' improved to it ; and appear to be abfolutely de-

^' ftroyed. 1 cannot forbear adding, that the ap-

'' pearance of fuch an amazing wafle in nature, " with refpedl to thefe feeds and bodies, by foreign <* caufes, is to us as unaccountable as what is much ** more terrible, the prefent and future ruin of fo '« many moral agents, by themfelves, /'. e. by vice." There is a further circumflance in the conftitution of nature applicable to the prefent purpofe, which feems to be worthy of notice, and which I will men- tion as briefly as pofiible. — One of the moft remark- able

On Provi.dence. 151

thefe reafons, the mere circumftance of its unaccountableneis as occafioning a

ivajle

able and diftinguifiiing properties of human nature is, its capacity of improvement. What the lower crea- tures were at firft, they are now, and probably ever will be. But this is by no means the cafe with men. Previoully to all advantages from experience and in- ftruaion, they are nearly the favages defcribed by Mr. Roujfeau, {See his Treatife on the Origin of the Inequality among Mankind) or creatures running naked and wild in the woods, without refleaion, without fociety, and without language. Compare them in this ftate with what they are capable of becoming by a due application of their powers, by the invention of 'arts and fciences, and the eftablifhment of the beft fchemes of civil policy; and a difFerence will appear not inferior to that between men and the loweft fpecies of brutes, or between the wifeft perfon on

earth and a child juft born.- This natural im-

proveablenefs of the human race has never taken its

^ complete effea. The greateft part, of men have,

from the beginning of the world, been in a ftate

of darknefs and barbarifm. Many ages paft before

the difcovery of any of thofe arts, from whence are

derived the chief conveniences of life : And though

now, in confequence of the acquifitions of fome

thoufands of years, human life in a few nationsap-

pears in a ftate of confiderable order and dignity, yet

ftill it is farther than canbewellimagincd, from having

L 4 attained

i^fz On V R t) V I D E N C E.

ivajie of being (which is the moft that is puzzling in it) cannot be of any great confequence. The feeming wajle may, for ought we know, anfwer important ends, and appear at laft to be the greateft frugality. How hard is it that we fliould be willing to truft the wifdom of nature no further than it keeps within fight ? How inconceivable is it that, in this or any other inftance, a creature of yefter- day and a reptile of the duft fhould be able to fee further, or to contrive

attained any where to a ftate fo improved and happy as we fee it to be capable of. ^^This lofs of the ef- fect of human improveablenefs will appear equally remarkable, if we confider the individuals of mankind.

— Thoufands of Boyles, CJarks and Newtons

have probably been loft to the world, and lived and died in ignorance and meannefs, merely for want of being placed in favourable fituations, and enjoying

proper advantages. Such has been the cafe with

mankind, confideredas defigned only for exiftence in this world. But they are capable of exifting in a Jiighcr ftate. They are capable of an endl-js future progrefs in knowledge and happinefs. — Can any one fay, that the effe(£l: alfo of their improveablenefs in this refpcft may not fail in numbcrlcfs inftances ?

better;^

On Provi-dence. ^^3

better, than that original intelligence irora

whence all things fprung ? 1 feel

particular fatisfadlion whenever I make fuch reflexions, and therefore I hope I fliall be excufed if I am too often recur- ring to them.

^I have now propofed the thoughts which have appeared to me of moil: confequence, towards reconciling oor minds to our ftate, confidered as a mixed and imperfed: ftate ; a ftate of labour, temptation, and danger ; and a ftate in which many are likely to fail of future happinefs, and to be loft for ever. Some of the obfervations which have been made on the head laft mentioned, have gone on the fuppofition, that the virtuous part of mankind are not only to be equitably diftinguiihed from others in proportion to the difterence of their charaders, but to be rewarded hereafter with an emilefs life in a ftate of ever increafing happi- jiefs. As we have reafon to think this to be the faft, it makes no great diffe- c rence

154 ^^^ Providence, rence with refpecft to the argument on which I have infilled, how^ it comes to be fad: ; whether, for inftance, it is to be confidered as derived from the origi- nal canjiitution of the Deity, or as the effedl of an extraordinary difpenfation of mercy. In juftice, however, to what the Chriftian Revelation has taught us, I cannot difmifs this fubjed: without ob- ferving, that the latter is in reality the truth. The Scriptures are exprefs and clear in reprefenting Chrift as the author of eternal lijcy pr our rejlorer to immor- tality. The account there given feems to be, that we were indeed at firft in- tended for immortality, but that in con- fequence of certain events at the com- inencement of the prefent ftate, we loft it, and were brought into fuch circum- ftances of diftrefs as gave occafion to the interpofition of the Meffiah, by whofe benevolent agency our race has been fo far delivered, that all the truly penitent Ihall efcape the fecond death, and be made

happy for ever. As one who believes

I Chri-

071 ProvideInce. 155

Chriftianity, I am obliged to think this a true account ; and there are feveral reafons which determine me to think it an account entirely credible. Death has in it all the appearance of being an evil for which fuch creatures as we are might not be originally intended. The beft of us have expofed themfelves to the confe- quences of guilt in many inftances. I cannot conceive, why it fliould be thought unlikely, t\i2itfiich Beings fhould be in a ftate which (though perfectly right con- fidered in its reference to the Divine ad-- miniftration) may yet be a degraded or fallen ftate, and fuch as might have need- ed fuch a Saviour as Jefus Chrift. .

I fhould be carried far beyond the pur- pofe of this Differtation were I to fay much more here. I will therefore ad- vance no further than to offer a few hints, in order to fhew what force fome of the arguments already propofed have to vin- dicate Divine Providence, even on the fuppofition that our real ftate is that now mentioned.

It

156 071 Providence.

It has been proved, I think, that there is no reafon to look upon our prefent ftate as, in any refpefl:, inconfiftent with the perfedions of the Deity "*. Moft cer- tainly then, it is a ftate into which he might have made us liable to be brought in confequence of any connexions proper to be eftablifhed in the univerfe. We fee among the individuals of mankind that, in confequence of their dependence on one another, they are often deprived of benefits which feemed to be intended for them by the conftitution of the Deity, and brought into ftates which, tho' they give no reafon for complaining of Pro- vidence, are yet juftly deemed calamitous.

* If any one fliould fufpe£t an inconfiftency in fay- ing that our flatc i$ calamitous, and yet a ftate that difplays God's goodnefs, and in which we might have been originally placed, let him put the cafe of a per- fon fallen from honour, eafe, and wealth, to the cares, and toil, and indigence of low life ; would it TiOt be true, that the condition of fuch a perfon was calamitous ? But might he not, as many actually are, have been horn in it, and yet have abundant rea- fon to be thankful for exiftencc ?

How

On Providence. 157

How credible is it that there may alfo be events or connexions in nature by which, confidently with perfedt wifdom and goodnefs, the like may happen fometimes to a /pedes ? The enjoyment of whatever is a favour in exiftence, may be made precarious in any degree the creator pleafes, or fuf- pended on any conditions that he fees to be moft conducive to the ends of his go- vernment. The bleffings which the Chriftian fcheme fuppofes mankind had loft, they never had any right to. The Divine perfedlions certainly do not re- quire, that fuch virtue as ours fliould be rewarded with the Chri/ian fahation. Had our Maker intended us only for a temporary exijience, we flipuld have had >no reafon for any other fentiments than grateful ones, provided we enjoyed any degree of happinefs, and received uni- verfally an adequate retribution. But he has been infinitely more kind to us. That very conftitution of his govern- ment

158 On Providenck.

ment which made us liable to be brought into that calamitous ftate which Chri*' ftianity fuppofes, made provifion alfo for the pofTibility of our deliverance and re- ftoration to the views of a happy eter- nity ; and thus difplays the higheft wif- dom and goodnefs we can imagine, a- greeably to the obfervations in page 130

— 133-

But it is high time to ftop. I feel myfelf in danger of going far beyond my depth. The ways and adminiftration of the Deity muft be unfathomable to us. Were they otherwife, they could not be infinitely wife and good. The origin of evil has been the grand fubjed; ot en- quiry among thoughtful men in all ages, and various have been the fenti- ments about it. What has been now faid on this point is offered with a deep fenfe of imperfediion and blindnefs. Though it fcems to remove fome diffi- culties, it does not, I am fenfible, re- move all. What has been laft infifted

on

0;Z F R O V I D E N C E . 1 59

on fliould be particularly attended to. If, according to the fcriptures and ancient tradition, our ftate is indeed a fallen ftate, the dired: folution of the queftion concerning the origin of evil would be a recital of the manner in which we were brought into it, or a diftind ac- count of thofe caufes and events under the Divine government from which it is derived. But fuch an account, fuppof- ing it given us, we may not perhaps be capable of underftanding *. We muft

* The account of the Fall in Gene/is is far from being fuch an account as I here mean. It is, per- haps, in fome meafure veiled^ or at leaft partial^ and defigned only to inform us that, whereas we were at firft placed higher in the fcale of being, we were reduced lower and funk into our prefent mortal flats in confequence of fome connexions we had with fu- perior orders of creatures, or of the agency of an evil Being reprefented by the Serpent -, a deliverer be- ing at the fame time promifed, who fhould dejitoy tlse works of the devil, — See the laft eiTliy in a book intitled, CritOy where a good deal tliat deftrves attention, is faid by the ingenious and learned author, on the power of fuperior Beings and the connexions we may have had with them 5 and alfoj on another fubjecl touched in page 141.

there-

i6o On Providence.

therefore be much in the dark -, and while we are fo, while we fee nothing but juft the prefent moment, and know fo little of the hiftory of the univerfe, and its connexions and laws, it cannot but be unreafonable to pretend to be able to form an adequate judgment of our ftate, or completely to account for every circumftance in it. Every one who looks about him muft lament the degeneracy of mankind ; and every one who believes the doctrines of rehgion muft tremble for the danger he is in, and the multitudes who are likely to be loft. Inftead of allowing ourfelves to be very anxious about difcovering the particular caufes that brought us into thefe circumftances, our chief enquiry fhould be, whether, amidft all our darknefs, we do not fee enough to alTure us that God is perfedly righteous in all his ways ; and about this I can entertain no doubts, for the reafons I

have endeavoured to explain. But,

above all things, it is our bufinefs to

take

On PROVIt)ENCE. l6t

take care of ourfelves, to keep clear of the corruption that is in the v)orld through liift^, to ftrive to fave our own fouls amidft the dreadfiil wreck, and at the fame time to do all we can to fave fome with ourfelves. This is the great ufe which we fliould make of what We have reafon to believe concerning cur itate ; and I wifh I knew how to im- prefs on the mind of the perfon who reads this a due fenfe of its importance. Without doubt every other objedl of concern, compared with it, is entirely- trivial and infignificant.

* ^ Pet. i. 4.

^M SECT.

1 62 On Providence.

S E C T. V.

Of the Vfes of the DoBrine of Providence*

IN the preceding fedllons I have con- fidered moft of the queftlons relat- ing to the dodlrine of Providence, which feemed to me of great importance. I have endeavoured to give a juft view of the nature and proofs of it, but have not aimed at difcuffing every queftion that has been ftarted about it, or in- fiftlng on every argument that might have been urged. In ftating, particu- larly, the evidence for Providence, I have avoided entering into fome reafon- ings which have a great effetS on my own mind, becaufe likely to be con- fidered as too abflradted and metaphyfi- cal, and becaufe alfo a full explanation of them could not be properly given

in

On PROVIDENtEi 163

jn this diiTcrtation *. What has been faid, however, will, I hope, be fuf-

ficient

* 0{ this fort are the following obfervations, which I will juft mention here, becaufe it is poflible that, without any particular explanation, they may appear

to a few as important as they do to myfelf. Since

all limitation muftbe an effect of fome limiting caufe, it can have no place In an unorlginated nature. Un- briginated pov/er, wifdom, and goodnefs, therefore, muft be mfinite. Wherever infinite power is, there muft be infinite knowledge^ it being contradidory to fuppofe that the power of any intelligent Being can extend further than his ideas. And, fmce the obliga- tions of moral rectitude are founded in eternal truth and reafon, where there is infinite knotvkdge^ there muft be infinite ^5(7i«£/}. There is, therefore, a ne- cefTary connexion betv/een infinite power, wifdom, and goodnefs. They are eflentially one, and cannot refide in different natures. The fovereignty of the univerfe, therefore, muft be perfectly wife and righteous j and all the order and beauty in the crea- tion are to be traced up to one eternal and immutable principle, of order and beauty, and of all that is ve- nerable and excellent. It deferves particular no- tice, that the necefTary connexion which our own ideas teach us, in the manner juft mentioned j be- tween infinite power, wifdom and goodnefs, and which certainly is the moft agreeable and important of all truths, is exhibited to us in all that we fee of M a the

I &4 C>;/ Providence. licient to convince fuch as vv^ill impaf'*' tially attend to it, and nothing now re- mains but that I reprefent the proper improvement of this fubje6t, and con- fider the influence which it ought to have on our tempers and lives.

Here, ifl:. It fliould be recollefted that the argument on which I, have prin- cipally infifled in the laft feclion, fur- nifhcs us with a flrong reafon for con- tentment. As this reafon for content-^ ment cannot be too much inculcated, I fhall not fcruple to recall fome of the obfervations before made, in order to give a more diflindl and full account of it.

The fadl I (hall go upon is, that hap- pinefs is prevalent in human life. This, I know, has been denied by fome, but

the world ; there being no inftance in which the foiver that matle the univerfe has dilplaycd dcfign, which docs not appear to be wife and kind defign. Compare the note in page 24.

cer-"

On Providence. 165

certainly without any reafon. There is, in reality, no comparifon between the blejjings and the calamiucs of life, or be- tween the number of hours in which we enjoy fome kind of pleafure, and thofe in which we fuffer pain. What in fome meafure deceives us in this matter is, our confidering every ftate in which we are not exempted from all tineajinefs ^ as a ftate of abfolute mifery ; whereas we may be happy, that is, the whole pleafure of exifting may not be deftroyed, un- der confiderable degrees of uneafinefs. — ^ We are, on the contrary, apt to coniider no ftate as happy which is not attended with fome fenfatioris of pofitive joy; and this is true as this word h^ been generally ufed, but is far from being fo if w^e ap- ply it, as I now do, to any ftate or cir- cumftances in which to he is better than

not to be. Life, though deftitute of

any particular gratifications, is naturally

agreeable. Seldom does it happen at

the end of a djiy that we have no reafon

M 3 to

I

j66 On Providence.

to thank God for it, or that we can fay Avith truth, upon reviewing it, that it has been a miferable day to us. A ftate of fome degree of enjoyment, or of exemption from all fuch diftrelTes as take away, while they laft, all comfort, being our ufual ftate, it is what we look for and reckon upon ; and therefore, what- ever happens to put us out of this ftate, or to render exiftence a real burden, is the more obferved and makes the deeper impreffion. And from hence it comes to pafs, that one fit of ficknefs or difafter engages the attention, and fur- nifties with matter for converfation for months or years, while all the health and pleafures ^ith which common life abounds, are overlooked and difte- garded.

Suppofing it then evident that the portion of good allotted to men exceeds the portion of evil, let us next enquire what reafon they can have for difcon- tent. Happy, in foii^e degree, they feci I them-

On Providence. 167

themfelves. If then they are dilTatisfied, it muft be becaufe they are not more happy. But this is perverfenefs and pre- fumption : For if this be a juft reafon for diffatisfadlion, it is, in the nature of things, impoffible they fhould ever

be fatisfied. A perfon, fuppofe, in a

low ftation and narrow circumftances, finds upon comparing his enjoyments and fufFerings, the former to be greateft, and his exiftence, all things confidered, to be preferable to non-exiftence. Why then is he not contented ? — '^ Becaufe he *' is not ftationed higher in the world/* — -Suppofe this granted him.— —Will not the fame ground of difcontent ftill remain ? And would it not remain tho* he was even raifed to the ftation of an

angel * ? It is plain, therefore, that

nothing

* No perfon of any reflexion can Imagine that this argument implies, that we ought not to ufe proper means to improve our circumftances, or increafe our happinefs. The moft vigorous ufe of fuch means is confiftent with the higheft degree of fubmlirion to the Divine will, nay, is required by it. Whatever hap- M 4 pincfs

J 68 On P R O V I D E N C E.

nothing can be more abfurd than difeon^ tent. It goes upon a principle which would level the whole univerfe, and fow uneaiinefs among all the inferior orders of Beings. The true language of it is ; *^ I will be at the top of th? creation, ^' I will accept of no happinefs fhort *' of the greatefl that can be communi- ^* cated." -What can equal the ar- rogance of fuch a difpcfitlon of mind ? How entirely does it unfit for exiftence under God's government, where there muil: be fubordinations and diftindlions of all forts and degrees ? How bafe is it to complain of that Being who has given us all wx enjoy, merely becaufe he ha$ not given us 7nore, when, without wrong, he might have given us nothhig? It becomes not :thofe who are obliged for every degree *of good to pure favour,

plncfs lies within the reach of the powers given us and we can innocently obtain, ought to be con- fidcred as a part of the happinefs intended us by Pro- vidence ; and it would be, not acquiefcing in its dif- pofals but thwarting them, to deprive ourfelves of jt by iti^ciiyity and negligence,

t9

On Providence. 169 to prefcribe how much they fliall have ; or for tliofe who might never have ex- ifted, to determine how perfect and hap- py they fhall be.- We need not doubt

but that it is for the beft reafons, that our flate is fuch as we find it. Our duty is to accept humbly that portion of bhfs which falls to our /hare, to ac- quiefce chearfully in our different fta- tions, and to efteem ^s^^xy little which may be granted us a kindnefs that calls for gratitude. Thus fliall we make the moft of what we enjoy, aft fuitably to the relation of creatures, recomm.end ourfelves to our all-wife Governor, and take the certain method to fecure fui> ther favour.

It will not be improper to obfcrve here, that though I have argued on the fuppofition that happinefs is prevalent in human life, yet v/e fliould, in reality, have no good reafon for complaint, tho' the contrary were true, provided it v/as the effed: of our own ill condud. From

this

ijo On Providence.

this fource, undoubtedly, proceed our worft evils. Human life, as it is the gift of God, or as we might make it by behaving fliitably to his intentions and ftudying to maintain tranquility, is an unfpeakably greater bleffing than we commonly find it.' This obfervation places the abfurdity of difcontent in a light that cannot but imprefs every in- genuous mind. Is it not fhameful to murmur, on account of evils which we voluntarily bring upon ourfelves, con- trary to plain admonitions and warnings ? Does it not infinitely more become guilty Beings, who are fo much the creators of their own fufferings, to accufe and re- proach themjelves, than to exclaim againft Providence ?

I cannot quit thefe reflexions without adding, that the fame argument with that now ufed to fliew the folly of difcontent in general, may be employed to (hew the folly, in particular, of the inclination which many perfons difcover

to

On Providence, 171

to complain, becaufe greater light and evidence on feveral fpeculative points have not been granted them. Every man has light enough to a6t upon, and to diredl him in his mofl important con- cerns. This is all we can have any right to expedl ; and to indulge difcontent be- caufe v^e have not fo much as wq wifla for, or as is neceflary to fatisfy curiofity, w^ould be tacitly to aflert that we have a

right to be omnifcient. It is indeed

our duty to ftrive to obtain all the light poffible ; but at the fame time we ihould remember, that it is no fmall part of virtue to acquiefce in that degree of light allotted us by Providence, or which we are able to acquire in the faithful ufe of pur faculties.— But to difmifs this fubjeft.

I would further obferve with refpeft to the proper improvement of the dodrine of Providence, that it ought to be always attended to and recognized by us. The care of the Deity, we have feen, extends

to

/

172 Oh Providence.

to all events. Nothing happens with-, out either his appointment or permiffion. It muft be our duty to remember this, and to maintain a deep fenfe of it in our hearts. Nothing can be more reafonable than that we fliould look up continually to the Sovereign Arbiter of nature,, ex- peft fuccefs in our undertakings from him, and acknowledge \am in all our ways. There is within us an unhappy pronenefs to fink into an infenfibility with refpecfl to him , and it is remark- able that the chief caufe of this is the peculiar degree of our dependence upon him, and his being fo much one with our fouls that we overlook him. There is nothing fo near us, and therefore, there is nothing that we are fo apt to dif- regard. He is in every breath we draw and in every thought we think, and for this very reafon he engages not our at- tention y and, becaufe every thing, he be- comes nothing to us. Thus, in par- ticular, his power is as much difplayed m thofc events which are moft com- mon.

On Providence. 173

mon, as in thofe which are moft extra- ordinary. But in the former we feldom take notice of it, whereas in the latter it alarms and terrifies us. \Ver6 the bo- dies on the furface of the earth to afcend into the air, or were the planets to fly out of their orbits, our thoughts would be immediately drawn to God's hand ; but it afteds us not in cafes where there is much more reafon to acknowledge it, in the tendency of bodies downwards, and the regular motions of the heavenly bodies. What comes to pafs out of the ufual courfe we are never backward to afcribe to him ; but what is done con- ftantly and regularly, we are ready to confider as coming to pafs of itfelf, and requiring no caufe. We fliould endea- vour to guard our minds againft this weaknefs, and fludy to acquire a habit of carrying up our views to God on all occalions. We may be fure of being right in doing this. The courfe of nature is nothing but his power, exerting itfelf every where according to fixt rules, m

order

174 O/^ Providence, order to anfwer the beft ends. The frame of the world muft be in every refped what he has been pleafed to or- dain. By him it fubiifts, and in him we livCf and move, and have our beings *. See Seft. II. page 41 — 54.

One cannot think, without concern and furprife, of the inexcufable degree in which fome perfons are guihy of that dif- regard to Providence, on which I am now remarking. They terminate their views in the objeds of fenfe, and forget all fu- perlor and invifible power. They con- fider the Deity as either withdrawn from the world to enjoy repofe in the extra- mundane fpaces; or, if neceflarily prefent to it, as an idle and vaing-lorious Being, who is above concerning himfelf with any thing in it. They look no higher for the fource of any evils they fufFer^ or bleffings they enjoy, than change ^ or fortune^ ox fate ^ and they are generally very well fatisfied if they can point out the immediate caufe of an effed without

* Acts xvii. 28,

€n-

0;7 Providence. 17^

enquiring any further. This has been too true of even fome who have been diftinguiflied by the name of Philofophers. \ But it is impoffible that they fhould have anyjufk title to that charadler. It has appeared, I beheve, that fuch a w^ay of thinking is no lefs repugnant to true phi- , lofophy, than it is miferably gloomy and difcouraging*. 'Tis worth remember-

* " A little philofophy inclineth mens mind to «* atheifm ; but depth in philofophy bringeth mens *< minds about to religion,'* Lord Bacon* s EJfay on " Atheifm »

" In the entrance of philofophy, when the fecond *' caufes moft obvious to the fenfes offer themfelves *' to the mind, we are apt to cleave to them, and *« dwell too much upon them, fo as to forget what ** is fuperior in nature. But when we pafs further^ •' and behold the dependency, continuation, and " confederacy of caufes, and the works of Provi- «' dence, then, according to the allegory of the " poets, we ^afily believe that the higheft link of na^ *« ture's chain muft needs be tied to the foot of " Jupiter's chair j or perceive that philofophy, like *' Jacobus vifion, difcovcrs to us a ladder whofe top " reaches up to the footftool of the throne of God/* Mr. Maclaurins Account of Sir Ifaac Newton's Philofo^ phical Difcoveriesy Book I. Chap. 3.

1^6 On Providence.

ing, particularly, that the difpofition i6 be fatisfied with difcovermg the im" mediate caufes of efFedls in natural philo- fophy, without carrying our views higher, argues exadly the fame folly with that of a perfon, v/ho fliould imagine that he had fufficiently accounted for the motion of a particular wheel in a machine, by flbewing that it was turned by the wheel next to it, without extending . his views to the fkill of the artift, and to the fpring, on whofe cpnftant aftion all the motions of the machine depended ^ or rather it argues the fame folly with that of the Indian mentioned by Mr. hockey who fatisfieij himfelf with thinking that the world was fupported by an elephant,

and the elephant by a tortoife. It

fliOuld, however, be obferved here that there is an extreme on the other fide, which ought carefully to be avoided. I mean, the extreme into which thofe perfons run who have rccourfe immc^ diately to Divine power, in order to ac- count for every event, and who are apt

to

On Providence. 177

to look with horror on all attempts to aflign the natural caufes of events. The former extreme is atheifm. This is fu^ ferjiition 'y and both argue great fliort- fightednefs and ignorance. But the laft is perhaps the moft excufable. We can- not fay how far the dependence of lower caufes on more general ones reaches, or how complicated the me- chanifm of nature may be; but we know that the Maker's agency is the primary caufe which eftabliflied all others, and to which all others owe their force ; and this proves, that there is a juft fenfe in which we may afcribe to him every effect in the material world, and con- fider all that happens as the refult of his will.

Thirdly. From the account that has been given of Providence we may learn the reafonablenefs of prayer. Were it true that the Deity does not attend to our affairs, or that the feries of events goes on in one immutable dired:ion in- N dependently

ijS On Providence.

dependently of him, no help could be expected from him ; nor could we be at all the better for any application of our minds to him, and therefore prayer would be an abfurdity. But it has been fhcwn that the contrary is true. If I have argued right, the feries of events is juft what he fees fit to appoint or al- low. He is intimately prefent with us every moment, obferving all our thoughts, and difpofing all the circumftances of our exiflence. The whole world is in his hand, and by an imperceptible diredlion of the operations of natural caufes and of the thoughts of mankind, he can over-rule whatever comes to pafs^ and grant proper anfwers to prayer. — —The objedion then againfl prayer, taken from the fuppofed unalterablenefs of the courfe of things, and the impoffibility of de- riving any benefit from it, confiftcntly with the fettled order- of the world, is groundlefs. — If there is an all -dire ding Providence, nothing can be more fit than to endeavour to engage it in our favour. I If

On P R o V I b E isi c E. 179

If we owe our whole happinefs to God, and the entire fate of our Beings is de- termined by his will, it muft be inex- cufable not to acknowledge and worfhip him. If he governs all created exiftence, and nothing can come to pafs contrary to his counfels, it is reafonable to feek his protection, to fly to him in danger^ to beg his aid in accomplifliing our good defigns, to implore his bleffing on our enjoyments, and to recommend to his care thofe who are dear to us. Nor can any perfon, who has his mind duly impreffed with a fenfe of the abfolute dependence of all things on the Deity, omit thefe ad:s without offering great

violence to himfelf. The belief of an

omniprefent Deity prompts the human heart, with a force almofl irrefiftible, to direft its defires to him. This tendency difcovers itfelf in all mankind j and as far as it operates, it implies a neceffity of confid^ring prayer as likely to be of avail to procure blefiings iot us. It may be well prefumed that this fentiment of N 2 nature

1 8o On Providence.

nature muft be right; and that the Deity does indeed, either by himfelf or fome intermediate agency, follow prayer with fuch bleffings as it may be a juft reafon for communicating. Experience and obfervation prove nothing to the contrary. For, fuppoling the conftltution of the world to be fuch as e/labliflies an availablenefs in prayer, it muft be im- poiiible to diftinguifli the bleffings which have this fource from others. It is enough that we have reafon to conclude that God is a friend to the pious and v^orthy, and that we fee in general their flate to be happier than that of the

irreligious and vicious. The opinion

that the Deity has limited himfelf to a fettkd courfe of afting, or to general laws from which he never deviates, has very little to do with this point. For let it be allowed to be true ; Is it likewife true of ail thofe fubordinate Beings, who may be the minifters of his Providence? May it not be itfelf a law of his govern- ment, or one part of his fettled courfe

of

On Providence. iSi

of afting, to make a proper difference between thofe who Acknowledge his fu- preme dominion by prayhig to him, and

thofe who do not? But v/hat is it

informs us that the Deity never adls but by general laws ? The reafon I have men- tioned more than once * for the eftablifli- ment of general laws is far from being any juft foundation for this opinion. Particular influences accommodated to particular occafions, though fuppofed not reducible to any general laws, may yet be agreeable to them, and entirely con- fiflent with their inviolablenefs ; as 13 fliewn in the firfl and third feftions.

It is neceffary to add, that were there in truth, on account of the unalterable- nefs of the courfe of nature and the impropriety of adventitious influences, no benefit to be derived from fupplica- tions to the Deity, an inconfiflency would be eftablifhed in the conftitution of the world; for by the frame of our minds

* See page 17.

N 3 it

J 82 On Providence.

it would diBate prayer to us, at the fame time that by fixing its unav.ailablenefs it had rendered it vain and impertinent. But this fubjed: will come to be more amply difcuffed in the next DifTertation.

In the next place. God's Providence is the proper objeft of abfolute confix dence. We ought to truft in it with firmnefs, and to throw upon it all our cares. The belief of it fhould render us ferene in all feafons, and fupport and en- courage us in the worft extremities. It is impoffible that any event in which our intereft is concerned fliould be neg- leded. We are under the protection of infinite power ; and the charge of fove- reign goodnefs. No perplexing fears, therefore, or defponding folicitude fliould

^t any time enter into our breafts.

One truth, however, Jet us carefully at- tend to. Let us ren:>ember that our truft in God's Providence ought to be regu- lated by a regard to the fpotlefs purity of his characfter, and accompanied air

wayq

On Providence. 183

ways With the pradtice of virtue, and our own utmoft prudence and diligence. Without this our expectations from Pro- vidence are vain, and our truft in it will be prefumption- What it is chiefly em-- ployed in is the adjuftment of events to the different charardlers of moral agents. God is a righteous Being, and he can fa- vour none but the righteous. If we are not of this number we have nothing to expeft from him. His government, which fliould be the joy of the whole creation, ought to be a terror to us ; and it will be a necefTary inftance of its perfe(ft redlitude to confign us over to punifliment. It would be difhonourable to him to exercife goodnefs towards thofe who abufe his goodnefs, and are nufances in his works. It is not fit that rational agents fliould be made happy v/ithout their own a^flive concurrence, and virtu- ous induftry. But thefe fuppofed, there is nothing that fliould difturb us, nor i^ it poffible that we fliould expedl too much from the bounty of our Maker. N 4 After

184 On Providence.

After difcharging our duty and making the beft ufe we can of the powers given us, we have nothing to do but to trull our concerns with the Deity, to commit to him our whole exiflence, and wait quietly for the iflue of prefent events, which will prove glorious beyond con- ception to every true friend of righteouf- nefs.

In connexion with this it muft be obferved that the dodlrine of Provi- dence is a fource of the higheft joy.

Were events under no good di-

recftion ; did blind neccfTity or fickle chance govern the world, our condition would indeed be deplorable. We could look at nothing with any complacency. All nature would lofe its beauty, and appear dark and defolate. But this is by no means our flate. The order of nature is wife and good beyond all that we can allc or think. Almighty power, it has been fhewn, united to perfcifl wif- dom and benevolence, is at the head of 1 the

On Providence. 185

the univerfe aftuating all its parts, and prefiding over all its events. What feems itioft formidable, therefore, may fit eafy on our minds, and infinitely more may be expefted to take place in nature than the moil benevolent heart can imagine.— How delightful are thefe truths ? With what exultation and triumph fiiould they fill us ?-^ Do you fufFer under any ca- lamity ?-— Remember that the eye of the Deity is upon you, and that you can fufFer nothing but in confequence of the difpofals and counfels of his ever-attentive and unerring Providence. Accept then your fufferings with a zeal becoming his faithful fubjed:. Submit to them with loyal and hearty affection, and never indulge a repining thought. Wherein can your dignity confiil: except in having one will with God ? Can you be difpleaf- ed with what is right ? Would you have the world governed wrong ?— No degree of improper pain, no fufferings inconfiftent with a perfeft order of adininiflration can ever find admiflion into the world.

Our

i86 On Providence.

Our affairs, > and thofe of our friends and of all our fellow-creatures, are, in every particular, under the management of everlafting and omnipotent reafon and

love. Is not this what every heart

muft wifh for ? Is there any thing that we can poffibly defire beyond it ? What fatisfaciion fhould we feel in exiftence, ,to find ourfelves in a fcene fo glorious, in

circumftances fo happy ? Did the uni-

verfal order require us to facrifice to it every advantage of exigence, or were the fubordinations eflablifhcd in the crea- tion for producing the greateft good fuch as obliged us to give up all our happi- nefs ; though, in thele circumftances, fuch a fealty of heart to the government of the univerfe as would caufe us to re-- joice^ is not perhaps attainable ; 3^et, if du- ly prevalent, it would certainly produce perfedl acqiiiefcence. But this is a fuppo- lition that we have no reafon for making. No fuch trial is put upon us. Our cir- cumftances are infinitely happier. The univerfal order has already brought us

much

On Providence. 187

much happinefs ; and we are affured that, if we avoid vice and difcharge our duty, our happinefs fhall not ceafe at death, but be renewed in brighter regions, and there go on increafing and improving tp all eternity. — Oh! ravifhing hope. — Glory for ever be to that inconceivable grace which thu5 bleffes us *.

Once more. I cannot help obferv- ing that the account which the fcrip- tures give of the dodlrine of Providence leads us to believe their heavenly ori- ginal. It is not poflible to confider^ without admiration, the elevated defcrip- tions which they give of God as prefiding pver the world, producing all the revo- lutions in it, and working all things after

* The wages of fin h death. But the gft of God is eternal Ufe^ through J ejus Chrijl our Lord. Rom. vl. 23. Bleffed he the God and Father of our Lord Jffus Chri/i, who, according to his abundant jnercy, has begotten us again to a lively hope^ by the refurreSiion of Jefus Chrijl from the dead^ to an inheritance incorruptible^ undcfiled^ and that fadeth not away^ rejerved In heaven for Vf^ I Pet. i. 3, 4.

the

j8S On Providence.

the counfel of his own will *. The whole hiftory they contain is one uniform dis- play of the Divine fuperintendency of our affairs, — It is an obfervation no lefs juft than common that there is this remark- able difference between the facred hiftory and all others ; that whereas other hiflo- ries feldom go higher than the paffions of men and the powers of nature for the fources of the events they relate, this always carries our thoughts up to the jirjl caufe, and direds our views to God as the guide and governour of whatever happens. Thus ; of the fwordy or a fa-- miney or a pejl Hence y it fays that Godfent it \ y of every calamity in a cityy that he does it ; of the wind and the lightnifig^ that they, go forth at his word; of the raiuy that he gives it y of the falling of a fparrow to the groundy that it happens 7iot without him ; of what feems moft cafual, that he direfts it, and of the

* Eph, i. II.

•t If. xlv. 7. Amos Hi. 6. Pfal. cxlviii. — -

Ffov. xvi. 33. Matih. x. 29, 30.— Rom. xi. 36.

hairs

On Providence. c 1[B9

hairs of our heady that they are all niim- ^^;r^/.— Such reprefentations of Divine Providence, fo agreeable to our beft no*- tions, and exceeding all that can be found in other writings, afford an internal evi- dence of confiderable importance in fa- vour of the fcriptures.

But further. As the dodlrinc of Pro- vidence, fuppofed previoufly eftablifhed, furnifhes us with an argument for the fcriptures, fo thefe in their turn furnifh us with an argument for Providence.-— We fee here that we have connexions w^ith an inviiible world of fpirits, that there have been interpofitions of fuperior power in our affairs, and that heaven does intereft itfelf about us particularly and wonderfully. — But what I have now chiefly in view is, the argument for Pro- vidence arifing from the completion of the fcripture prophefies. There are in the Old and New Teftament, many pre- diftions of events very diflant from the times when they were delivered, which

are

190 On Providence.

are reprefented as fure to be verified by Divine Providence. The accomplifli- ment of fuch predictions, when it hap- pens, proves that the predicted events were indeed fubjedt to the fuperinten- dency of Providence, and obhges us to conclude the fame concerning all events. When we find, for inftance, that the prefent ftate of the Jews and the cor- ruption of chriftianity by popery were foretold, and the principal circumftances attending them defcribed, fome thoufands of years ago, we cannot doubt but thefe events have been all along objects of the attention of the Deity, and happen only in confequence of his unfearchable coun-

fels.. It is worthy of fpecial notice,

that the reprefentation made in thefe prophecies of tht/potlefs * holinefs of the Deity as his moft diftinguifliing attribute, and the chief Ipring of his adions in ^uiding events, proves further that the adminiftration of the world is holy and rig-htcous. In fliort. The Bible gives

* Rev iv. 8. — XV. 4.

US

O// P R O V I D E N C E. 191

US a hiftory of all the great fads in which this earth is concerned from its creation to its diiTolution. A confiderable part of this hiftory muft be prophetical, and what we have feen verified of this part de- monftrates that the writings containing it come from the author and ruler of na- ture. It likewife proves that the world is under a moral government, and that Divine Providence watches over it thro' every period of its duration. And, per- haps, the prophecies which ftill remain to be accompliflied may fome time or o- ther afford a demonflration of thefe truths that will put to flight all infidelity^ and convince and furprife the whole world.

It ought not to be forgotten on this occalion that there is one event, im- portant above all others, which the fa- cred writings foretel, and to which, they acquaint us, every prefent difpenfation of Providence refers. I mean the last JUDGMENT; when, we are told, every one Jl:ii!l receive according to bis ivoris,

anj

%gz On Providence.

gnd the Divine moral, government with refpe<^ to the human race fliall be con- fummated ; when the earth ivith all her njuorksjldall he bumf up\ the Son of man appear in poiver and great glory y and all that are in their graves jhall hear his voice ^ andfiall come forth y they that have done good to the refurreBion of Ife^ and they that have done evil to the refurredfion of dajn- nation. What we have i^^w verified of the fcripture prophecies ajjiires us that iiich a time is coming ; and happy are thole who are always thinking of it, and preparing for it.

To conclude the whole.' ---Let us labour earneftly to bring our minds into that temper which the dodrine of Pro- vidence requires. Let us follow impli- citly wherever it leads us, and make an abfolute furrender of our wills to God's will, fupprefling all foUicitude about every thing but ading faithfully the part he has affigned us, maintaining inviolably our allegiance to his government, and

never

On PROVlt>ENCE. 193

never wiftiing to enjoy any advantage \vhich he is pleafed to deny, or to be exempted from any troubles which he can permit to come upon us.- — Thus fhall we be eafed of all unneceffary cares, enjoy that peace of God which pajjeth all imderjlandingy and attain to the higheft dignity and blifs of which rational Beings

are capable. Oh ! joyful refledion !

God reigns and all is well. Eternal wifdorh and benevolence are prefent every where, and govern all things. Welcome then every event. Welcome difappoint- ment, ficknefs or death. Let tempefts roar. Let thunder tear the heavens, or earthquakes overturn cities and king- doms. In all we may hear the voice of the prefiding Divinity ail\iring us that we need not fear. Within the embraces of his arms we muft be always fafe. 'Rejoice in the Lord all the earth. Say a?no?ig the heathen that the Lord reigneth. Let the heavens rejoice^ and let the earth be glad. iM the fea roar, and the floods clap their O hands.

194 O// Providence.

hands '*. Fraife him all ye his angeh.

Praife him fun and moon, Praife hi?n ye Jlars of light, Pratfe him ye dragons and all deeps. Fire and haiU fnow and vapour^ mountains ajid fields^ beafls and all cattle^ creeping things and flying fowls, kings of the earth and all people y Praife the name of the Lord, for his name alone is excellent.

-. Let the whole creation join in raifing

one fong of praife to him. Praife tha

Lord, O my foul,

* Pfa!. xcv:»cxlviii» ciii.

A jl

D I S S E R-

DISSERTATION IL

O N

PRAYER

02

^' Mt. V

VJ

DISSERTATION IL

O N

PRAYER

S E C T I O N L

^he Nature^ Reafonabtenefs, and Efficacy of Prayer explained^ and the Objections to it anfwered. '

H

AVING in the foregoing differ- tation endeavoured to explain and defend the doftrine of Providence, I fhall now proceed to treat of the duty of Prayer. There is no religious diity a- gainft which more objections have beeri made. It will, therefore, be necefiary to be^in this diflertation with ftatino^ particularly its nature and reafonable- nefs. After vdiich, I /hall give an O 3 account

198 On Prayer.

account of the manner in which it ought to be performed, in order to render it acceptable and fuccefsful. Thefe are the two heads under which I fhall throw what I intend to fay on the fub- jeft now before me.

By Prayer, I mean a ferious and folemn addrefs of our minds to the Deity, as the fountain of being and happinefs, and the parent and governor of the world. It has been divided into feveral diftind: parts according to the feveral afts of our minds when engaged in it. The chief of thefe parts are the four following. Acknowledgment of our dependence, and of the Divine perfeftions and fovereignty. Thankfulnefs for the mercies we have received. A penitential confeffion of what we have done amifs ; and offering up our defires of favour and happinefs for oiirfelves and others.

Nothing is plainer than that the firft of thefe is reafonable. Abfolute

per-

On P R A Y E il> 1:99.

jperfedion of nature and charadler, and complete excellence, muft be the pro^ pereft objedls of acknowledgment and efteem. Worflilp and adoration muft. be due to the Being who made us, and who poffefles infinite power, wifdom,. and goodnefs. He who is fupreme over all beings ought to receive the homage of all.

The obligation to the next p^rt of prayer, or thankfgiving for the mercies we enjoy, is as evident as the obligation to gratitude in general. There is no clearer principle of reafon, than that thankfulnefs i& due for benefits received; and if that perfon. adls wropg, who is not grateful to human benefacflors, or who does not ftudy in a proper manner to teftify his gratitude, it is not pofiible that he can be innocent who is void of grati- tude to the Deity ; or who neglefts to offer up thankful acknowledgments to the Be- ing to whom he owes all he />, all he ^as, and all h^ hopes f()r\

0 A The

200

On P R A Y E

The propriety alfo of the third part of prayer, or of a penitential confeilion

of our guilt, is very obvious. As far,

therefore, as thefe conftitute Prayer there feems no room for queftioning its reafon- ablenefs : And it iliould be remembered that in reality they are very important parts of Prayer.

It w^ill, however, be obje6ted pro- bably by fome, that all that feems ne- celTary in thefe inftances is a fenfe of the Divine goodnefs, and of our dependent and guilty ftate^ and that where this fenfe and the proper reverent, grateful, and penitent difpofitions are found, there can be no occafion for what is meant by Prayer.

I anfwer ; that it is plainly proper not only that we fhould pollefs thefe difpofi- tionsy but that they fliould be drawa forth into cxerctfey and expreJJ'ed' hy par^ ticular a£ts before the Deity. Good dif- pofitions, when not attended with the

adts

0)1 P R A Y E R, 201

ads which are the proper expreffions of them, muft be defed:ive. Gratitude and repentance lead us in all cafes to grateful and penitential acknowledg- ments. When in their due ftrength, they always produce thefe ; and it is plainly fit they fhould. — It is incumbent upon us to teftify our regards to the Deity in the beft manner we can ; but it would be abfurd in any perfon to pre- tend he does this, who refts in con- templation, and avoids all diredl praife and worfhip*

The laft part of Prayer I mentioned was, offering up our defires ' of favour and happinefs for ourfelves and others. This is what is mofl: properly ftiled Prayer y and it is what has been mofl: objeded to, and what therefore fhali be now particularly examined. The dif- ficulties which have been raifed about it, would, I believe, have been little regarded had more attention been given to the native and uncorrupted did:ates of

the

202 On P R A V E R.

the human mind on this fubjeft. What is evident if it be not fo, that what we want from God it is fit we fhould humbly implore from him ? What com- mon and unperverted underftanding can doubt, whether there is a propriety in alking for the bleffings and benefits which we muft owe to his bounty ? Is it pof- fible that, if we negleft this, it fhould be equally fit that we fhould be made happy by him ? Who can help feeing that devout fupplicants are more proper objects of favour than thofe who never pray, though it fliould be fuppofed pof- fible that, in other refpeds, their qua- lifications may be alike ? In fhort i

the ad: of addrefling our defires to God for the benefits which are necefTary to our happinefs, implies in it that itXii.Q of our dependence upon him, and that acknow^ ledgment of his dominion which render it felf-evidently proper. The fitnefs of it is i.nmediately perceived by the lowefl as well as the highefl underflanding ; and the force of nature and reafon wiU

extort

On P R A Y E R. 203

extort It from every mind that poffeffes a juil fenfe of piety.

But let us attend to the objections that have been urged.

In the firft place; it has been faid, «« that there can be no reafon for Prayer, " becaufe God, being omnifdenf^ needs ** not to be informed of our wants ; *« and being unchangeable y none of our ** fupplications can be the means of " making any alteration in him, or of " obtaining from him any benefits."

;iiip .♦.,»ii#

Before I confider this and the other objedlions commonly infifted on againft Prayer, I mufl beg leave to recommend to particular notice, that I affert that there is an immediate propriety or fitnefs in fupplicating the Deity for the blef- fings w^e want. For the truth of this I appeal to every man's confcience. No words can make it plainer than it

tnuft appear by its own light. Now

the

204 On Prayer.

the defign of all juft objedions againft Prayer ought to be, to fhew that there is indeed no fuch immediate propriety in the adt of fupplication ; nor can any objeftions which have not this tendency, or which fuppofe that there is no fuch propriety, be of the leaft confequencCi

Keeping this then in remembrance, let us confider the objedlion juft men- tioned. The firft part of it, or the

affertion, that God, being omnifcient, needs not to be informed of our wants, is entirely impertinent. For no one ever faid that the defign of Prayer was to in- form the Deity of what he did not know. The plain defign of it is, to obtain for ourfelves the bleflings we pray for. This is what every one niuft mean whenever he prays. 'Tis implied in the very idea of the adlion, that we think it has a tendency to procure for us what we fup- plicate. This tendency is founded on the propriety which I have faid there is in afk- ing for the benefits we want. Hence afk- 4 ing

0/2 P R A Y E R. 205

ing becomes a means of having, and is uni-

verfally fo confidered. In other words;

afking, in a proper manner, for bleffings from Gpd has a tendency to procure them for us, becaufe it is doing what is fit to be done \ and what, therefore, God cannot but exped and require us to do as a condition of our having them.

Let us now confider what regard is due to what is faid in oppofition to this

in the latter part of the objedion.

*« God, 'tis faid, is unchangeable ; and, ^* therefore, no prayers can be the means f' of making any alteration in him, or <* of caufing him to bellow any bleffings, ** which he would not have beftowed

f* without them." 1 anfwer^ 'tis

true, indeed, that our prayers can make no alteration in the Deity ; that is, in his nature y charaBery or difpojitions , But they may make an alteration in the ex-* ternaL effedis of his agency, or in his manner of treating us. Nay, they mujl make fuch an alteration if they at all

alter

2o6 Ofl P R A Y E K.

elter our qualifications ^ or if offering them up is the performance of a duty, or doing what is proper to be done. — The diftinftion between the perfedions of God confidered as piinciples or difpo- fitions in his nature, and the exercife of them in a courfe of outward adlions, tho* an obvious and ufeful diftindtion, many feem entirely to forget. An affertion may be very juft when undcrftood of the lat- ter of thefe, which would be very wrong

when underftood of the former.

Thus, in the prefent cafe, though it would be improper to fay, that God may be rendered more propitious or favour- able in dijpofition to his creatures by any thing they can do ; yet, furely, he may be rendered more propitious or favour- able in aS to them. That is ; their ailtions may be the means of many effedls of his favour to them. They may avert the confequences of his difpleafurc, and procure bleflings for them which they would other wife never have had.

'Tis

On Prayer. 207

, 'Tis worth adding, that as we may thus by our aftions obtain bleffings for our/elves from the Deity, confiftently with his immutabihty ; fo, Hkewife, may we for others. Or, what fome Beings do for their fellow-beings, their benevo- lence, labours, and virtue may influence, though not properly the Divine perfec- tions, yet the exercife of them. They may fupply reafons to infinite wifdom for favouring others, and obtain eflfefts of Divine goodnefs for them which they might elfe have wanted. — — But to re- turn. If it be really proper that wc ihould humbly apply to God for the mercies we need from him, it muft be alfo proper that a regard fhould be paid tofuch applications, and that there fliould be a different treatment of thofe who make them and thofe who do not ; and it muft be exceeding frivolous to objed, that this would imply changeablenefs in the Deity. God's unchangeablenefs, when confidered in relation to the exer- tion of his attributes in the government

of

2oS On Prayer.

of the world, conlifts, certainly, not in always ading in the fame manner how- ever cafes and circumflances alter; but in always doing what is right, ^nd va- rying his condudl according to the various aftions, charadiers, and difpofitions of Beings. If then prayer makes an altera- tion in the cafe of the fupplicant, as be- ing the difcharge of an indifpenlible du- ty ; what w^culd, in truth, infer change- ablenefs in him, would be, not his re- garding and anfwering it, but his not doing this. ,

Hence, 'tis eafy to fee that the notice which God may be pleafed to take of our prayers by granting us blefiings in anfwer to them, is not to be coniidered as an yielding to importunity y but ^s one injlance of his ading agreeably to reafon, or his fuiting his dealings with us to our conduft. Nor does it imply that he is backward to do us good, and, therefore, wants to be follicited to it. This is no more implied in the cafe of Prayer, than

in

On Pray e R; 209

in that of repentance, or any other in- flance of good condiidt, wb.en confidered as obtaining for us bleffings and favour. God is always ready to do us all poiiible good ; but there are certain conditions on the performance of which the effedls of his goodnefs to us are fufpended. There is fomething to be done by us before we can be proper objeds of his favour ^ or before it can be fit for him and confiilent with the meafures of his government to grant us particular bene- fits. We have a part to aft, and duties to difcharge, which, if negledred, can- not but deprive us of his protection, and leave us dellitute and unhappy.

But I have, perhaps, beftov/ed too

much time on this objedtion. Let us

then proceed to another on which great ftrefs has been laid. ** Before we pray *' we are either worthy to receive v/hat " we pray for, or we are not. If we '* are worthy, 'tis needlefs to pray becaufe ** we fhall have v/hat is proper to be P *' given

210 On P RAVER.

*' given us, whether we pray for it or *^ not. If we are imworthyy no prayers *' can be of any avail."

The weaknefs of this objedtion will be obvious to any one who will apply it to a parallel cafe, and fuppofe it urged againil: repentance, or any other duty, when confidered as a means of procuring bleffings for us. *' Before w^e repent (it " might be faid) it is either fit we ** fl:iould receive bleffings from the Deity, ** or it is not. If it is fit, we fliall re- *' ceive them, whether we repent or not; *^ for God v^ants nothing to engage him *' tO do what is fit. If it is not fit, *^ our repentance can be of no avail."-— -pEvery one will acknowledge the in- tolerable abfurdi ty of fuch a way of ar- guing againil repentance, and fee that the full anfwer to it is, that before re- pentance it may be unfit that we ihould be favoured by the Deity, but that it ]

may become fit upo?i repentance. In

like manner, the full anfwer to th-e pre*.

fent

On P R A -i' E R . 2 11

feiit objection againft Prayer is, that be- /ore Prayer we may be unworthy, and that Prayer may be the very thing that makes us worthy. Before v/e pray it may be unfit to beftow particular bleflings up- on us, and it may be therefore fit to be- ftow them becaufe we pray for them. That this is true is undeniable, if there is an immediate reditude in afeing for bleffings from the Deity; for hence, as was before obferved, it becomes itfelf one cojtdition of having, one circumftance in our characters that contributes to ren- der us proper objeds of favour, or one part of condu(fl which cannot be negleft- ed without negleding what is reldbn- able, without negletling virtue and duty, and fo far difqualifying ourfelves for re- ceiving bleffings Suppofe two per^

fons, in other refpeds of like qualifica- tions, one of v/hom makes cOnfcience of frequently and feriouily addreffing his wilhes to the Deity for mercy and hap- pinefs. The other entirely omits this, and never puts up any fuppiications to him* Is it likely that both thefe perfons P 2 ^ will

212 0;2 P R A Y £ R.

will be treated alike ? Does not the one do right y and the other do wrong ? Does not the one a<ft as becomes a dependent Being, and the other as if he was inde- pendent ? May not the prayers of the one, as being in themfelves reafonabk ad:s and proper acknowledgments of de- pendence and indigence, be eflicacious towards procuring for him fome effefts

of particular favour ? On the whole ;

hov/ evident is it that this objection, like the former, does not prove but fuppofe that Prayer is not reafonable ?

It has been further objected, that me- ditation alone may anfwer all the purpofes of Prayer, by fixing in our minds all thofe good fentiments which are exprefTed by it ; and that therefore it cannot be a neceffary duty.

As a reply to this it might be faid,

that meditation alone cannot fo well and

fo effedually anfwer this end. But the

moll: proper reply is, that it goes on

I the

On Prayer. 213

the falfe fuppofition that Prayer is reafon- able only on account of the good effects produced by it in our minds. There is belides, I have faid, an immeduite pro- priety in it. It is in it/elf a duty, hke gratitude or veracity, independently of its confequences. It is not only an exprej- Jion or declaration of good fe)itiinents, but the immediate exerci/e of them in di- red: and explicit ad:s.

But ftill it may be pleaded, *^ that the *^ difpofitions orfentiments from which " Prayer fhould proceed are, in ftrid:- ** nefs, all that can be neceilary ; and ** that 'tis very unlikely that, while *^ deeply fenfible of our need of mercy *' from God and our dependence upon *^ him, and pofleirmg the mofl fervent *' defires of his favour and the moft <* humble and pious difpofitions, we ** fhould fuffer merely on account of ** our omitting all formal fupplications, ** which, when confidered as direded ^* to a Being who perfectly knows our P 3 '' defires.

214 • 0;J P R A Y E R,

*' defircs, and who wants nothing to

*« enp-ase him to fulfil them as far as

'' is proper, look more like ceremoni-

" ous impertinences than ads of real

** duty."

What is fug£;eR-ed in the latter part of this objedlion has been confidered before. One can really fcarce think it T'Ciiiblc for an unprejudiced underftand- ii'.g ferioufly to determine, that addreffing our defires of good to an omniprefent Peity, or fupplicating him for benefits, is an impcrtincnccy and not a reafonablq

and proper aB. With refpeci: to the.

former part of the objecftion, 'tis enough to fay, that defires and fentiments are far from bchig clone fufficient in any cafe» 'Tis the acts in which they fliew them- felves that give them their worth and acceptablcnefs. No pious defires and fentinients can be what they ought to be, \yhich do not carry us to the adts that are exprefTive of them, and ifTue ia devotion, Befidesthe defires and fen--. ^ timents^

On Prayer. 215

tlments, the ad:s themfelves, as was before obferved, are proper. Indeed, it is not conceivable that thefe can be fe* parated. He who has the feehngs that become a creature and a fmner will not flop at inadtive defires and reflexions. A convidion of indigence and dependence which has no effed: in turning the foul towards heaven, and engaging it to diredt its defires to him who alone can fulfil them, is as real a contradiftion as a gra- titude or benevolence which produces no

ads of gratitude and benevolence. .

He that is poffefled with proper affec- tions to the Deity will feel the reafcn- ablenefs of Prayer : He will be neceffa- rily difpofed to it, and incapable of re- frainins: from it without dolns: violence to hinifelf. A perfon who, with due attention and a right temper, confiders God as his maker and preferver, the parent of the univerfe, the difpofer of all blefTmgs, and the fource of all hap- pinefs, cannot fail to dired his heart to P 4 him

2l6 0/7 P R A Y E R.

him in humble aPxd fervent fupplications. The love of God in the foul and prayer arc fo infeparably conneded that they are almoft the fame. No one who has a juft perception of the dependence of all things upon God, and is pierced with a fenfe of the amiablenefs and ex- cellence of his nature, can help falling down before him in prayer and adoration. No one who knows what he has done to offend him, who fees himfelf loft without his protedion, and is duly con- fcious of his innumerable wants, can avoid flying to him for fuccour and mer- cy. One proof of this arifes from the fadl, that there are few who, in times of danger or any particular emergencies and difliculties, do not neceffarily look up to God for help. 'Tis the voice of nature at thefe times that God is to be prayed to ; and indeed, in general, at all times, it appears to be the irrefiftible fcnfe of mankind that Prayer is reafonable. There is as much a tendency in our

natures

0/2 P R A Y E R. 217

natures to devotion as to food or focietv. Our native bent lies evidently this way, which never fails to difcover itfelf in the moft irreligious people, when calamities or death threaten them.

To the perform then who alledges, that ferious arid frequent meditation joined with pious affeftions and defires, is all that can be our duty, and that every thing beyond is mere ceremony and folly; it will be proper to reply by aJkino-- ** Do you indeed pradife fuch medita- ** tion ? Do you poflefs thefe pious af- '^ fecftions and defires, and ftudy to ** cherifh them by all proper means ? ^* Do you often fet yourfelf to think of " the Deity, to contemplate his perfec- ^^ tions, to recoiled: his mercies, and ** to endeavour to affedt your mind with *' a fenfe of your abfolute dependence ** upon him ? Can you truly fay that " you live and aft under the power of ^* religious principles and fentiments ?" —

I

21 8 0/2 P R A Y E R.

I may venture to pronounce that you cannot anfwer in the affirmative. 'Tis, therefore, impertinent to make fuch an objedion; nor are you properly qualified to underltand the full force of the an- fwer to it ^.

Should

"^ " Gratitude, love, and edeem are aife^lions *' which decline concealment v/hen they are lively. *' We are naturally prone to exprefs them, even *' though they give no new happinefs to their obje£t." See the chapter on the ivorJI/ip due to the Deity in Dr\ HuUhinfoiis Syjh-m of Moral Philofcphy^ Vol. I. Page

217.

— *' The human mind feels a powerful impulfe *' urging it forward to beg God to beftow what it *' wiflies for with vehemence: And this very argu- ^' ment which is urged againft the lifting up holy <' defires to God (viz. that he is infmite in goodnefs, <' and willing to gratify them) is a principal motive *' ipr offering them up \ and makes it impoflible for *' a well-difpofed mind to abftain from it." Dr^ Lcechmmis Sermon on Prayer.

The impulfe mentioned here and above, urging us to addrefs our defires of happinefs to God, being plainly natural, is to be confidered as a direction to pray from the author of nature. The impoffibility q{ avoiding it, where there are juft affciSlions to the Deity, is founded not only on this natural impulfe,

but

0;^ P R A Y E R. 219

Should it be again ajfked, whether a Being would be lefs favoured by the Deity on account of his omitting Prayer, fuppofing this omiffion to proceed from nothing but a perfuafion of its impro- priety : It would be proper to give the fame anfwer, as might be given to the fame queftion, fuppofed to be aiked con- cerning the omiffion of any other moral duty from the fame convidtion.

Once more. It may be faid, that '* the courfe of things is unalterable; " and that, therefore, no anfwers to ^' Prayer can be expe'ded, without fup^ *' pofmg God to work miracles for us, " or to break in upon the general laws '' and fettled order of the world." ^

but alfoon a fitnefs which In this cafe is palpable to every perfon, To repeat defires in our minds, being at the fame time fenfible that the fupremc difpofer of our lot ftands by us and obferves them, without ever (lireding them to him, or looking to him for the accomplifhment of them; this implies a neglea of the giver of all good, fo repugnant to the fenti- ments of the human heart and fo criminal^ as to be abfolutely incompatible whh right difpofitions.

This

220 On Prayer.

This objeftion has been diftindly an- fwered in the Differtation on Prdvidence, to which therefore I muft refer *. I fhall only obferve here, that under a perfect government there cannot be any fuch general laws, as are inconfiftent with every perfon's being treated agree- ably to what he is and does; and that, confequently, fince the difcharge or neg- lect of the duty of Prayer is one impor- tant circumftance that goes towards de- termining the charad:ers and deferts of Beings, there can be no fuch laws in na- ture as render it necefiary, that reafon- {ible Beings fliould be treated in the fame manner whether they pray or not. This, indeed, is itfelf the principal law and the immutable order of the Divine ad- miniflration, ^* that all Beings fliall, on ** the whole, receive according: to their " works :" And it is of but little weight in oppofition to this, that we cannot fee diftindly in what manner the laws of

* Page 177, &c.

the

On P R A Y E R. 221

the world operate towards bringing it about as the great end of God's govern- ment, and the laft iflue of all prefent events.

Hitherto, I have confined myfelf to the confideration of Prayer for otirjehcs. It may be thought that fomething fur- ther ought to be faid in defence of pray- ing for others. ** For what influence,

*' it. may be faid, can our prayers have " on the ftate of others ? What benefit ** can they receive from our intercef- ** fions ? Is it to be conceived that God, *^ like weak men, may be perfuaded «' by the importunity of one perfon to *' beftow on another any bleffings which '* he would not elfe have beftov/ed, ^^ and for the reception of w^hich no " importunity can render him more ^' qualified ?"

The proper anfwer to this will appear if we confider, that it is by no means

neceffary

222 O;^ P R A Y E R*

nec^flaiy to fuppofe that the treatment M'hich Beings Ihall receive depends, in all cafes, folely on what they are in themfelves. This, without doubt, is what the univerfal Governor ch'ejly re- gards ; but it is not a//. And tho' there are fome benefits of fuch a nature, that no means can obtain them for Beings w4io have not certain quahfications, there are other benefits which one Being may obtain for another, or for which he may be indebted entirely to the kind offices of his fellow- creatures* An advantage may become proper to be granted to an-^ other, in coniequence of fome circum-* fiances he mav be in, or fome relations in which he may lland to others, which, abftraded from fuch cireumftances and relations, would not have been proper ** Nothing is more intelligible than this, or happens more frequently in the com- mon courfe of affairs and events. The whole fcheme of nature feems indeed to be contrived on purpofe in fuch a manner,

* See before, page 207,

On Prayer. 223

as that Beings might have it in their pow- er, in numberlefs ways, to blefs one another. No attentive perfon can con- fider without furprize how precarious the ftate of men in particular is left, and how dependent their moft important intereils are made on their condud: to one another* One end of this conftitution appears plainly to be, to give us room and fcope for the exercife of beneficence. And, 'in general, it is obvious that had the ftate and happinefs of Beings been made otherwife than precarious and dependent in the manner we find them, all poffi- bility of this virtue, and confequently the fublimeft part of rational and mora! happinefs, would have been excluded from the creation '^^

But not to infift on this. 'Tis (ui^^ ficient for my purpofe, that the general fad is certain ; that Beings may, in va- rious ways, be the procuring caufes of

* See the Diflertaticn on Providence, page laS,

good

224 On Prayer*

good to one another. So true is this,. that almoft all our happinefs is conveyed to us, not immediately from God's hands, but by the inftrumentality of our fel- low-beings, or through them as the channels of his beneficence, in fuch a {txii^y that had it not been for their benevolence and voluntary agency, we Ihould have for ever wanted the blef- lings we enjoy.

Let us now apply thefe obfervations

to the cafe of Prayer for others.

Why may not this be one thing that may alter a cafe, and be a reafon with the Divine Being for fhewing favour ? Why, by praying for one an- other, may Ave not, as in many other- ways, be ufeful to one another ? Why may not the univerfal Father, in con- fideration of the humble and benevolent interceffions of fome of his children for others, be pleafed often, in the courfe of his Providence, to direct events for the advantage of the perfons interceded

for

On Prayer. 225

fDr in a manner that would not other- wife have been done ? -No truly bene- volent and pious man can help lifting up his heart to the Deity in behalf of his fellow-creatures. No one whofe breaft is properly warmed with kind wKhes to his brethren about him, and who feels within himfelf earnefl deiires to do them all pofiible good, can avoid offering up his kind wiflies and defires to the common Bene- fador and Ruler, who knows v/hat is beft for every Being, and who can make thofe we love infinitely happy. In reality; fupplications to the Deity for our friends and kindred, and all in whofe welfare >/e are concerned, are no lefs natural than fupplications for otirfelves. And are they not alfo rea- foriablc ? What is there in them that is not worthy the mofl exalted benevolence ? May it not be fit that a wife and good Being lliould pay a regard to them ? And may not the regarding and anfwer-

226 0/? P R A Y E R.

ing them, and, in general, granting blef- fings to ibme, on account of the virtue of others, be a proper method of en- couraging and honouring virtue, and of rewarding the benevolence of Be- ines to one another ? Perhaps, in- deed, it may not be eafy to conceive how much regard is paid, in the difpofals of Providence, to the benevolent defires and virtue of fome Beings in the treatment of. others. Perhaps, there may not be a better way of encouraging righteoufnefs in the creation, than by making it as much as poffible the caufc of happinefs not only to the agent himfelf, but to all con-t necled vv^ith him. There is no virtuous Being who would not, in many circum- ftances, chufe to be rewarded with a grant of bleflings to his fellow-beings rather than to himfelf.

Thefe obfervations feem to me fuffi- cient to defend Prayer for others, and to fliew that it may have an eftedl on their condition. Were it true indeed

that

On ? R A Y E k. 227

that it could have no fuch effed:, as hav- ing of itfelf no influence on the charac- ters or perfonal quahfications of thofe prayed for, it v^ould be more. difficult to

defend it. The immediate viev/ of

every one in praying for another, as well as for himfelf, is to obtain v/hat he prays for ; and did any one apprehend that the ad: of fupplicating the Deity for others has no tendency to be of any advantage to them, I cannot fee what could ever lead him to it. No one, I fuppofe, will affert that what we mean by addreffing our defires to the Deity for otkej's is feme benefit to oiirfehes. It muft, therefore, be wrong to reft the whole defence of Prayer on its tendency to promote our moral and religious improvement. This, without doubt, is in the higheft degree true of it ; but it is its cffeB^ not its immediate and direct end.

Several queflions, not eafj/ to be an-

fwered, may be afl.ed' about the extent

of the efficacy of Prayer. But this is

Q_2 jiot

228 On Prayer.

not a point into which it is necefiary for me to enter. All I plead for is, that it is not abfiird to fuppofe it om thing which the Deity is pleafed to regard in the communication of good to his crea- tures. How far it becomes a(ftually a ground cf favour, or what anfwers to it arc granted in particular inflances, we are not capable of determining. There is here, undoubtedly, room for much folly and fuperftition. Care fhould be taken that neither cur prayers for our- felves or others be too particular, and that we indulge no ether expediation in confequence of them than that, if the fruits of genuine benevolence and piety, th.ey ihall be accepted and heard as far as is confiftent w^ith the order of the world and the purpofes of infinite wifdom*

It would be very unreafonable to urge ■on this occafion an objection already con- sidered ; that God is infinitely good, and wants nothinr^ to en^a^-e him to i:^rant

any

On P R A Y E R. 229

any bleffings to thofe who are not impro- per objects of them. Nothing is plainer than that this may, with ^qual force, be urged againfl any other duty of natural religion. The v/hole queflion is, whe- ther Prayer may not itfelf be a circum- ftance creating propriety and altering a cafe. For my part, I fee no fufScient reafon for denying the poffibility of in- terceiTions or interpofitions which may make an infinite difference in the cafes of particular Beings, and gain the highefl bleffings for them.— But it is time to fi- nifh this part of the defence of Prayer.

CLs SEC T.

230 On Prayer

S E C T. 11.

Of the hnportance of Prayer as an in-- flnimental Duty, the Happinefs of a devout Temper^ and the particular Obligation to public Worflnp,

THERE remain fome further ar- guments, for Prayer of great weight which muft not be overlooked. I have hitherto defended it without any regard to its effedls on our tempers and lives ; but it is neceifary that thefe fliould be particularly reprefented, in order more fully to recommend and juftify it. — No- thing, certainly, can tend more to pro- mote a right condudl and temper and to eflablifh within us all good difpofitions, •than this duty properly difcharged. He that makes confcience of frequent 'and ferious Prayer muft live under an habitual fenfe of the prefence, authority, and pro- I videncQ

On Prayer. 231

videncc of God, and of his dependence upon him and obligations to him. He muft be continually reminding himfelf of the moft important truths, and ex- citing himfelf to the utmofl care of his life. He muft be always exerciling re- pentance for his tranfgreffions and bene- volence to his fellow-creatures. It is fcarcely poffible for fuch a man to be otherwife than truly virtuous. The in- dulgence of known guilt, and a regu- lar courfe of unafFe<fled devotion are fo incompatible, that it is not conceivable that they can be united in one and the

fame man. 1 acknowledge that there

are many pretendedly devout people who are as f^lfe, fpiteful, peevifh and co- vetous, and in every refped: as una- miable as any perfons in the world : And the fcandal given by fuch has, I believe, contributed more than any thing towards bringing devotion into difcredit. But what is the Devotion of fuch ? -A mere lip fervice ; not the work of the foul. The femblance of devotion ; 0^4 not

232 On Prayer.

not the reality. An abufe of the AU mighty 3 not genuine woiiliip and piety.

Where the true fpirit of devotion

prevails, it cannot fail to render a man more amiable, and to promote the pu- rification of his mind. It will itifie in the birth all wrong tendencies; fubdue the temper to kindnefs and charity ; conquer every rebellious inclination, and form the heart and life to univerfai

goodnefs.- Can a man fet himfelf often

to realize to himfelf the infpediou of the Deity and to adore his perfections, while he feels himfelf an enemy to his laws and government ? Can he with a contrite heart confefs his fms, and not refolve tb forfake them ? Caq he fo mock his tremendous Creator as to feek favour from him while he goes on to affront him ; or to beg that love and forgive- nefs to himfelf which he is not willing to pra(flife to others ? Can he pray for thofe who difpitefully ufe * hi7n and perfecute him, and at the fame time indulge rancour

* Matt. V. 44.

in

On P R A V E R. 23

in his heart ? In fliort ; can he employ himfelf in turning his attention fre« quently to eternal righteoufnefs and good- nefs, without participating of fome<legTees of thefe excellencies ; or preferve a con- ftant intercourfe between his mind and the firft and beft of all Beings, without growing like to him, and being confirm- ed in pious gratitude and refignation ? — ''Tis one of the jufteft obfervations, that what we don't think of is the fame to us as if it did not exiit. There is little or no difference between what is not confidered and what is not believed. It is the rcjlexion on what is believed that ren- ders it ufeful to us, and gives it its whole pov/er to influence us. The pradlice, therefore, of ftated Prayer muft be of unfpeakable ufe, as it is perpetually fixing our reflexions on thofc truths which are the fprings and fup- ports of goodnefs. There Is nothing does this fo well. There is nothing engages the attention fo clofely to the moft im- portant truths, and confequently nothing

that

234 O;^ Prayer.

that has fo much power to excite good afFedions, and to keep alive and confirm good refolutions. I will venture to add, that for this reafon it muft be the beft means of preparing our minds for Di- vine influences, and of drawing into them thofe irradiations of Divine grace which upright and pure minds have reafon to exped:. When in the midil of the hurry of life and full of its cares, our minds are not properly fufceptible of good im- preffions. But when we retire from the world, and employ ourfelves in the duties of devotion, all fenfible objedls lofe their power; the tumults of paf- fion fubiide ; the voice of the Deity within us is capable of being heard, and our breafts are thrown open to heavenly communications.

We may then lay it down as certain, that Prayer is in the greateft degree fub- fervient to virtue, and productive of the higheft advantages. 'Tis in this that

the

0« P R A Y E R. 235

the converfion of the foul to religious goodnefs generally firft flieWcS itfelf. 'Tis the beft friend of every virtue, a faithful monitor in all feafons, a pow- erful quickener in every laudable under- taking, and one of the chief fprings of that wifdom which is from above, and that peace which the world cannot give.

But it mufl: be here attended to, that though Prayer is inftrumental to virtue in the manner now reprefented, it is by no means merely an injlriimental duty. This muft be acknowledged if what has been before faid is juft. It appears to me unqueftionable that it is a prime and original duty of natural religion, which derives its obligation, not folely from its effeds, but is of intrinfick ob- ligation and reftitude. 1 muft add,

that it is the higheft poffible recommen- dation of Prayer, that it is not only //- y?^ virtue, but the beji means oi virtue; not only itfelf a duty, but of the greateft

ufe

236 On Prayer.

ufe to maintain and increafe a regard to

all other duties.

What has been laft infifted on natu- rally leads to an obfervation proper to be juft mentioned, and which will fet the reafonablenefs of Prayer in a light fome- what different from that in which we have hitherto viewed it.— Suppofe that it had no immediate propriety in it, yet if it is fo important a means of virtue, and fo ufeful towards impreffing on the mind pious fentiments ; if without it we fhould neceflarily grow more remifs and earelefs, lefs mindful of the Deity and lefs affe(3:ed with his perfedions j this alone affords to the Deity the highefb reafon for commanding it, and making the regular difcharge of it a ftanding law of his government, and a ftanding condition of his favour. — ^ — And as in the reprefentation before given of Pray- er, it implied no reflexion on the good- nefs of God, to maintain that he expeds us to do what we ought to do ; that is,

addrefs

On Prayer, 237

addrefs him and ajk for bleffings before we have them : So here, there is plainly much lefs reafon for fuch an objeftion 5 our ideas of Divine goodnefs being not diminiflied but magnified by fuppofing, that he makes folemn adls which are conducive to our higheft perfection ne- ceffary to our being favoured by him.

Before I proceed further, I cannot help flopping to take notice on this occafion particularly of the inter cejjiojiary part of Prayer, as a moft obvious inflance of the tendency of Prayer to improve us.-— No one can avoid feeing how happy an effed: this muft have in fweetening our tempers, in reconciling us to ail about us, and cauiing every unfriendly paffion to die away vs^ithin us. V/e cannot offer up prayers to God for our fellow-men, without fetting them before our minds in fome of the moft engaging lights poffi- ble ; as partaking of the fame natures with ourfelves, liable to the fame wants and fufFerings, and in the fame he'plefs

circumflances ;

238 ^On Prayer.

circumflances ; as children of the fame father, fubjedls' of the fame all-wife government, and heirs of the fame hopes. He who prays for others, with under- ftanding and fmcerity, muft fee himfelf on the fame level with them -, he muft be ready to do them all the good in his power; he muft be pleafed with what- ever happinefs they enjoy ; he can do nothing to leiTen their credit or comfort; and fervent defires will naturally rife within him, while thus engaged, that his own breaft may be the feat of all thofe good difpofitions and virtues v/hich he prays that they may be bleft with, Refentment and envy can never be in- dulged by one who, whenever he finds himfelf tempted to them, has recourfe to this duty, and fets himfelf to recom- mend to the Divine favour the perfons who excite within him thefe paflions. No defire of retaliation or revenge, no- thing of unpeaceablenefs, ill-nature, or haughtinefs can eafily lliew itfelf in a heart kept under this guard and dif-

cipline.

On Prayer. 239 cipline. How is it poffible to ufe him ill for whom we are conftant advocates with God ? How excellent a parent or friend is he likely to make, who always remem- bers before God the concerns and inte- refts of his children and friends, in the fame manner that he remembers his own ? Is there a more rational way of ex- preffing benevolence than this -, or a more effedlual way of promoting and enlarg- ing it ? Nothing is more deiirable or

more delightful than to feel ourfelves continually under the power of kind affeiftions to all about us. Would v/e be thus happy ? Would we have our hearts in a conftant ftate of love and good- will ? Would we have every tender fentiment ftrong and adive in our breafts ? -Let us be conftant and diligent in this part of devotion, and pray continu- ally for others, as we do for ourfelves.

I might in this manner go throuo-h all the different parts of Prayer, and point put particularly the happy influ- ence

240 On Prayer.

ence which they are fitted to have oil our tempers and condud. But this would be, in a great meafure, a need- lefs work; it being hardly pofiible to doubt on this point*

From the whole of what has been faid we may now colledl the following reafons for Prayer, which deferve cur careful attention.

I ft. It is in itfelf necefiarily right* We cannot omit it without violating the plaineft reafon ; without contradicfting the higheft relations in which we ftand j and, in effedt, fetting ourfelves up as felf-fufficient and independent. Nothing can be criminal if it be not fo to for- get Him from whom alone comes every good gift ; to negledl Him who is the blifs of all nature. Shocking, certainly^ is the guilt of every irreligious perfon. He ftiould blufli to lay any claim to true wortii of charader.

sdlyi

On Prayer. 241

gdly. Prayer is ncceflary to promote a good temper in us, and to train us \xp in righteoufnefs. Without it all our Virtues will wither, our good defires and refoliltions will languilli, and reli- gious truth lofe its power over our minds. Prayer rightly performed im- plies the lively exercife of love.^ grati- tude, humility^ repentance, hope, re- lignation, and almoft all the worthy principles that can aftuate the heart* When this is negledled they lie dormant,

and muft tend to decay. As a heart

overflowing with love to God and mari will unavoidably give itfelf vent in Pray-^ cr^ fo Prayer has a tendency to carry this blefled temper to its higheft pitch ^ nor is it eafily to be conceived how friendly an influence thefe have on one another, or how clofely they are con-* nested.— — ^Nothing can be more fublimd than a fpirit of unafi:ed:ed and zealous devotion. A heart infpired with this mufl; be holy and pure, prepared for every good work, and filled with every jRjk Divine

242 On Prayer.

Divine grace. This facred fire, where- ever it enters, will confume the drofe of the mind and refine all its powers. Serious and attentive Prayer brings us to a nearer view of the Divine perfect tions, and draws light and glory from them into our hearts. By this we ele- vate ourfelves above fenfible objects, unite our fouls to the firft good, furren- der our wills to God's will, and main- tain in ourfelves a conftant and chearful acquiefcence in that order of events which

his wifdom has appointed. In fliort.

Prayer is the main duty of religious vir- tue; the neareft approach to God we are now capable of; the immediate ex- ercife of our nobleft afFedions on their higheft objed:, and the fupport and life of all true piety.

^dly, 'Tis incumbent upon us to pray as we hope for the favour of God. This is one qualification for his favour; 07ie important means of obtaining blefllngs from him* Thofe who omit it mufl

be

On P R A Y E 1^. 243

be under his dilpleafure ; but thofe who acknowledge him in all their ways, and live under a fenfe of his rightful do- minion expreffed by all fuitable a(flionSi muft be approved by him^ and the ob- jeds of his peculiar care. 'Tis impof- fible that he fhould not make a difference between them and the impious men who addrefs no acknowledgments to him.

To thefe arguments for Pray^ taken from what has been faid to fhew the rea- fonablenefs of it, I will add that the Chri- ftian revelation enjoins it. This, I know, will weigh but little with moft of thofe who objed: to this duty. But it muft havei great weight with every attentive chri-

ftian. Our holy religion exhorts us

to pray without ceajing ; to pray alirays with all manner of prayer, and fupplica- tion in the Jpirit ; to continue in prayer , and watch unto the fame with thankfgiving \ to lift up every where holy hands without wrath or firife^ and to make fupplicatiom R a and

244 0;2 P R A Y E R*

and hiterceJfiGns for all men, ftnce this is good and acceptable in the fight of God. This duty is particularly recommended to us by the example of Chrifl himfelf, the founder of our faith and hopes *. The accounts we have of the time he fpent in devotion, and of his regularly performing all the offices of it, prove that this muft be an important part of righteoufnefs, and that there is no vir- tue fo perfedl or dignity of charafter fo great as to fuperfede the reafons on which the obligation to it is founded. Such imperfedl and finful creatures as we are have certainly peculiar reafons for it, and therefore muft be in the higheft

degree inexcufablc if they negled: it.

But further , Chrift has encouraged us to this part of duty by promifing par- ticular favour to thofe who diligently pradtife it. That efficacy of Prayer to

* Matt. xiv. 23. iVhen he had fe?it the mtdt'itiuh {ii'jay^ he went up into a ?nountain apart to pray. Luke vi. 12. He went cut into ci?nQnntain to pray ^ and continued all 7iight in prayer to God,

obtain

On P R A V E R. 24^

obtain bleffings for us which I have endeavoured to prove and explain, is by^ him clearly aflerted. Thus Matt. vii. 7/ Ajk a7id ye flail have. Seek and ye flail' find. Knock and it floall be opened to you. For every one that aflethy receiveth. He that feekethy findeth. And to hiin that knockethy it floail be opened. Matt. vi. 6. But thou ivhen thou praycjl, enter into thy clofety rnd pray to thy Father in fe- cret ; and thy Father who feeth in fecret flail reward thee openly,-^-- — To the fame purpofe he has taught us in the pa- rable of the widow and unjuit judge. Luke xviii.

But let It be remembered, that though Chriftianity thus commands Prayer, it v^, by no means merely a chrillian duty. • Tis an effential part of all religion. All- nations of men acknov/ledge the obh- gation to it, and the pra«^tice of it has been as univerfil as the belief of a Deity.

R 3 Li

1246 On Prayer,

In the laft place. I would recom-« mend this duty from the confideration of the pleafures that attend the due dif- charge of it. Prayer, as has been be- fore obferved, is the exercife of our higheft affeftions on their higheft obje(ft, and the intercourfe of our minds with uncreated and fovereign goodnefs. It muft, therefore, be the foundation of the higheft pleafure.— -It is alfo in Prayer that the happinefs arifing from the prac- tice of virtue, and the hope and triumph it infpires are chiefly felt. At no other time are we fa open to the caufes of virtuous pleafure, or fo difpofed to the moft joyous and exalting reflexions. It is in the power of every one who will make the experiment to fatisfy himfelf about this. What delight does a virtu- ous man often feel when he puts himfelf folemnly into the prefence of his Maker, and confiders him as one with his foul and as obferving every motion within them; when he implores all fuitable bleilings from him with a liyely faith in his

L'eadinef§

On P R A Y E R. 247

readinefs to give him more than he can afk or think ; when he adores his in- conceivable excellencies, and magnifies and bleffes that love which gave being to the world; when he commits his whole exiftence to him with boundlels hope, and gives full fcope to every pious and grateful affecflion ? What rap- ture and ravifhment attend fuch exer- cifes, and how high do they lift our fouls * ? ^— Words are indeed want- ing here ; nor is it pofiible properly to defcribe the pleafure there is in all

* " In thefe the foul is enlightened, enlarged, *« raifed, ravilhed. In thefe it foars up to heaven, " and looks down upon earth. In thefe it pofTefTes '' liability and fecurity, peace and reft in the midft " of a frail unftable nature, and a reftlefs ^nd tu- " multuous world. In thefe all the pafTions of the *' foul are exercifed with a moft tender fenfible de-, " light, forrov/, fear, or reverence. Hate and in- " dignation do here exprefs themfelvcs to the height, " not only without any diforder or torture, but alfo " with ffreat contentment and fatisfa6lion of ourna-

o

'' ture. Love, hope, joy reign here without either " check or fatiety." Dr. Lucas s Enquiry after Hap- finefs. Vol. I. page 117.

R 4 th^

243 On Prayer.

the ads of devotion ; in addreffing our deiires, with a pure heart, to our al- mighty parent \ in praifing him for his innumerable benefits ; in befeeching him to caufe us to grow in every amiable dif- pofition; in interceding with him for thcfe we love; in feeling benevolence, gratitude, and hope kindling v/ithin us before his eye ; in fpreading our wants and perplexities before him, and feek- ing direftion and help from him; iri throwing our cares and burdens upon him, and referring ourfelves to his dif- pofal, fo as not to retain any ii)ifi: of any thing which he is pleafed to forbid or deny. Even the tears of penitential forrow and contrition, or of fympathy and benevolence, into which a devout perfon may fometimes be melted, have a fv/eetnefs in them not to be expreffed, and are more to be defired than the

greateft joys of the irreligious. Am

I, Reader, nov^' talking to you a language you do not underftand ? Have you never felt .any of the pleafures I am now

fpeaking

.5

On P R A Y E R. 249

ipeaking of? Do you not know what it is to look up to God in private and to pour out your foul before him ? — Un- happy then are you, and a ftr^nger yet to what you ought to be beft acquainted with.

In order to obtain a juft fenfe of the pleafures conceded with devotion, it (hould be remembered v/ith how much mors force our affe^ftions ought to ex- ert themfelves before the Deity than in any other circumftances, and what greater influence his prefence ought to have over us than the prefence of in- ferior Beings. It is certain that we have more to do with him than with all nature, that he may be infinitely more our happinefs than any of thofe objedls Vvhich he has adapted to our faculties, and that the neareft and moft important of all relations is that between a creature and the Creator, The approach, there- fore, of, an upright mind, poiTefl: of juft yiews and proper feelings, to the Deity,

to

25a On Prayer.

to its guardian and life and greateil: friend, cannot but be productive of the higheft

effeds. But it will not be amifs, on

tiiis occalion, particularly to compare the pleafures of devotion with thofe arifing from contemplating the works of the Deity. In ftudying the laws and order of the univerfe we converfe only with effeds, but in devotion our minds are turned immediately to ^ the caufe, and contemplate, not tht fiadows or Jig?is of wifdom, power, and goodnefs, but thefe qualities themfelves as they exift in the neceffary nature of the Deity. How mtuch higher objecfts of contemplation and admiration muft uncreated excellence and abfolute perfection be, than any traces of thefe or emanations from them ? 'Tis in God alone, in the fupreme in- telligence which fills all things and from whence all order and good fprung, that we can find complete fulnefs of all that is lovely and beatifying, and where every power within us can have rooin for its utmoil exertion.

It

On Prayer. 251

It cannot be doubted but that the plea- fures I am now fpeaking of will con- flitute a principal part of our happinefs in every future period of our exiilence. We can indeed enjoy them but very im- perfecflly here. Many low cares and de- fires are continually forcing themfelves into our minds, and diftradting their at- tention, and rendering it impoffible for us to difengage them enough from fenfi- ble objedls, and to acquaint ourfelves with God in the manner we defire. But hereafter we may hope to get nearer accefs to him, and obtain clearer views of his glory and majefty. All that now retards the flight of our fouls to him and checks their happinefs in him will be removed. Every cloud that now hides him from our fight will vanifh, and we fliall be able to feel his pre- fence with us in a manner we cannot now conceive. How high then will the pleafures of devotion rife ? With what ardor and tranfport fhall we be able to worfhip and to praife him, to caft our

foul§

2^2 On Prayer.

fouls before him, and to delight our- felves in him ?— But let it be remem- bered, that this is a happinefs which will never be enjoyed by any who forget God now. If we allow ourfelves in guilt and irreligion, or cultivate no acquain- tance with the Deity in this life, we cannot be fit for feeing him and dwel- ling with him in another life. A courfc of prefent devotion, as it will give us fome foretafles of the happinefs of hea- ven, is alfo neceffary to inure us to it and prepare us for it.

I cannot omit obferving further, under this head, that devotion is not only, in the immediate exercife of it, thus a fource of happinefs, but alfo conftitutes a ge- neral temper conducive in the higheft degree to happinefs. The fpirit of Pray- er is the fpirit of hope, humility, gra- titude and refignation ; and muft, there- fore, as far as we are pofTelTed of it, be produdtive of an inward fatisfaclion and tranquility which are preferable to

all

On Prayer. 25^

all fenfible delights. A mind thus turned has many fources of pleafure peculiar to itfelf. 'Tis elevated above the tumults of this world, and can preferve felf- enjoyment in all circumftances, and take up its reft in God in the midft of out- ward troubles and calamities.- 'A truly devout temper is indeed the very tem- per of blifs. It cherifhes and ftrengthens all the tender and agreeable affec- tions, and checks all the turbulent and painful ones. It difpofes us to receive pleafure from every objed: about us, gives new luftre to the face of nature, ren- ders every agreeable fcene and occurrence more agreeable, heightens the relifh of every common bleffing, and improves and refines all our enjoyments. How bleft is that man whofe defires are con- tinually direded to heaven ; who is al- ways exercifing gratitude to the Deity and truft in him ; whofe heart is kept clofe with him, and whofe thoughts are full of him ; who taftes his beneficence in whatever gives him pleafure ; who

terminates

254 ^^^ Prayer,

terminates all his views in him, and has learnt to carry his attention from every degree of beauty and good in created Beings, to the inexhauftible fountain of all beauty and good ? What peace and ferenity muft fill a mind affured that its affairs are under the bejl diredion ; con- fcious of its intereft in almighty love ; and vv^hofe regard is habitually fixt on that unfearchable wifdom which conducts all events ?

I will add, that devotion greatly im* proves the pleafure attending all enqui* ries into nature, and advances in the knowledge of it. The difference be-^ tween the pleafure received by a devout and an indevout mind in obferving the univerfe, is like that between the plea- fure received from the fame caufe by a man and a brute. 'Tis the confidera- tlon of the univerfe as God's work, and the obfervation of his power, wif- dom, and goodnefs difplayed in it that cloath it with its chief beauties, and

render

On Prayer, 255

render it in the higheft degree a delight- ful fpedtacle. There is no greater in- centive to devotion than an attentive confideration of the glorious order of na- ture ; nor is there any tendency v^ithin us more natural than that arifing from hence to religious adoration. And there is an inexpreffible pitifulnefs in the cha- rafter of a man who ftifles this tendency; who confines his views to fecond caufes, and forgets the Jirji ; who fees not the Deity in his works ; who devotes his time to philofophical refearches, but fa- tisfies himfelf with mere fpeculation, who can furvey the world, enjoy its pleafures and reflecft on its wonderful ftrufture, without lifting up his heart to the author of it, without being warm- ed into praife, or feeling any pious and devout emotions.— — Admiration is one of the moll pleafing afFedtions of our natures ; and this cannot but be excited in the moft infenfible mind, upon obferv- ing the works of the creation. But then only is our admiration what it ought

to

256 On Prayer.

to be, and the pieafure attending it com^ plete, when it is exalted into devotion-, ""Tis devotion that confecrates knowledge and renders it fubfervient to its proper end; that gives unbounded fcope to our moft raifed afFeftions, and employs ouf faculties on an objecffe every way ade- quate to them.

Thus w^e fee what reafons there are for Prayer, and what motives we have

to pradlife it* The natures of things

render it our indifpenfible duty. Our improvement in true virtue, and even its very being within us, depend upon it* The uncorrupted dictates of our own minds, and the general fenfe and voice of mankind proclaim the iitnefs of it, and call us to it. The favour of God to us; our intereft in the protection and bleffing of his all-difpofmg Provi- dence, and the fupply of our various wants are in a great meafure conneded with it. The Chrillian revelation en-* joins it ; and it is, moreover, a means

of

On Prayer. 257

of maintaining communion between hea- ven and our minds, a fource of pleafure of the higheft kind, and a neceffary preparation for eternal happinefs. — If then we value all that is moft important, or if the plaineft and ftrongeft confiderations of reafon, duty and intereft can influence us, w^e fhall not live in the omiffion of Prayer.

What I have hitherto faid is applicable chiefly to private Prayer. I fhall now beg leave to add a few obfervations par- ticularly ovi family and publick Prayer.

If the former is right, there can be no doubt but that the latter is fo like- wife. There are few or no objedions to the one, which may not be equally made $0 the other. We are to confider our- felves not only as private perfons, but as members of families and of fociety, and in thefe capacities ought to offer up praifes and fupplications to God.

S With

2j8 On P R A Y E R.

With relped to Jamily Prayer, I can- not help ailcing with ferioufnefs and coacern -, where the religion of that fa- mily can be that never meets for religious v/orfhip ? With what reafon can fuch a family expect the bleiling of heaven up- on it ? Is it not fit that thofe who live together in the fame houfe, and are con- neded to one another by the clofefl ties ; who in common depend entirely upon God, need continually his care, and are always receiving mercies from him ; is it not fit, I fay, that thefe fliould alfo join together in owning their common depen- dence and obligations, in feeking that pro- tection they need, and in paying ho- mage to their great preferver and guar- dian ? Can they imagine that they will on the whole do equally well, whether they make confcience of this or difre- gard it P Is it of no importance that thofe who have children or fervants under their pare fliQVild endeavour to teach them the fear of God, and do what they can to

inftil

On P R A Y E R, 259

inftil good principles into them, to keep them mindful of their duty, and preferve them from the greateft of all dangers; the danger of lofmg eternal happinefs, and being undone for ever by guilt and irreligion ? Is it incumbent on them to provide for their bodies y and ought they to take no care of their fouls, of their reafonable and immortal part ? But how little care of this kind can be taken, and under what great difadvantages mufl children and fervants lie, if thofe who have the diredion of them feldom or ne- ver call them together to worfhip God ? Surely that religion mufl be very carelefs which extends not to our fami- lies, and fufFers us to forget God in them. And we ought to remember that a caf^elefs religion is likely to prove an i?i- fufficient religion.— -In a word. If the chief interefts of a family are to be confulted, or the lirfl of all the relations in which we fland to be regarded, family Prayer is reafonable and proper; nor can any S 2 perfon

i6o On Prayer.

perfon deny this with any colour of rea- fon, who acknowledges the obligation to pray at all. If then it is reafonable and proper, how can the flated omiffion of it be reconciled to a character of found

virtue ? ^^ Conftant family worfhip

*^ (fays the excellent Archbiihop Tillotfon) ** is fo neceflary to keep alive a fenfe of ** God and religion in the minds of men, " that I fee not how any family that <* negledls it can in reafon be efteemed a <^ family of Chriftians, or indeed to ** have any religion at all/*

I know of no tolerable plea that can be found for the omiffion of this duty. There is no mafter of a family who (liould not be afhamed to fay that he cannot find time (fuppofe one quarter of an hour in every day) for one of the moft important and reafonable of all works. And there have been fo many good forms of prayer for the ufe of fa- milies: puhlifh^d, that no one can plead . . want

On P R A Y E K. 2tH

want of abilities who is at all able to read.

Let us next turn our thoughts to public worfliip.

It IS very evident that in confequence of the principle of fympathy in the hu- man heart, every aft or fervicc in which We engage in company with one another is likely to be performed with more de- light, and to be produftive of greater effefts. Our affeftions operate in fociety with particular force. We are naturally warmed by the prefence of one another, and infenfibly catch one another's feel- ings. This, 1 think, fuggefts a reafon of great weight for the public exercifes of religion ; for it proves that they have a particular tendency to imprefs the "tninds of men, and to do them good. —

But not to infift on this. Tis furely

a moft obvious principle of natural re- ligion, that God ought to be publicly ^^ S 3 worfhip-

262 On Prayer.

worfhipped. Nothing can be more be- coming creatures linked together in fo- ciety, and fo united to one another by nature, intereft and public afFeClions as men are, and who have fo many common wants and cares, than, at ftated times, to agree, with one heart and voice, in ad- drefiing their defires to their common pa-^ rent. Is it poffible that there fliould be any impartial perfon who can avoid fee- ing and feeling a congruity and becom- ingnefs in this ? Is there a more agree- able or noble fight, than that of a mul- titude of reafonable Beings engaged in of- fering up their joint homage and thankf- givings to the fupreme ruler and bene-

fador ? The heathens appear to have

been univerfally fenfible of the obligation to public worfhip, and they had public forms of devotion on which they con- fcientioufly attended. It is therefore furprifing that any who are not atheifts fhould be able, with any peace or fa^- tisfaction, to dlow themfelves in the neg-

lea

\

On Prayer. 26?

Jeft of it. Such do really in effed: with* draw themfelves from the government of God, rejed his authority over them, de- ny his Providence, and declare they have no dependence upon him, or obligations

to him. But, befides ; let it be con-

fidered what v/ould be the confequence if all were to follow the example of fuch, and what would then be tiie ftate of mankind. Are not the. public and ftated forms of religion the evident means of keeping up order in the world, and of preferving in the minds of men fome fenfe of morality and du- ty ? Were thefe aboliflied, how many of the moft powerful reftraints from vice would be taken away ? Plow foon fliould we fink into the favagenefs and barbarifm of Indians and Hottentots ? What mul- titudes would be loft in ignorance and guilt who now, under the influence of the public fervices of religion, are train- ed up in piety and goodnefs for future happinefs*? Was there then nothing to '' • engage

J '* And were it not for that izwi^ of virtue which S 4 « is

264 On P K A V E R".

engage perfons to an attendance on public worfhip, belldes the influence their ex- ample may have, this alone fliould be fufficient. And this ihews us alfo how poor an excufe it is which fome make when they fay, that they know alrea- dy all they are likely to hear from the pulpit ; and that they can improve their time at home as well as at a place of

*^ is principally preferved, fo far as it is preferved, ** by national forms and habits of religion, men *' would foon lofe it all, run wild, prey upon one *' another, and do what elfe the word of favages do." See JUr, JVoUaJtans Religion af Nature delineated^ Sea. V.

^"^ 'Tis plainly our duty to promote virtue and hap- *^ pinefs among others. Our worfhipping in fociety, ** our recounting thankfully God's benefits, our ex- *' plaining his nature and perfeftions, our exprefling '' our admiration, efteem, gratitude and love, pre- " fents to the minds of others, the proper motives ♦* of like afFeftions ; and by a contagion, obferv- *' able in all our paflions, naturally tends to raife *' them in others. Piety thus diffufed in a fociety ** is the ftfongeft reftraint from evil, and adds new ♦' force to every focial dlfpofition, to every engage- ** ment to good offices." Dr, Hutchefon's SyJIem of Moral Philofophy^ Vol, I. page 217.

public

On P R A V F. '^^ 26^

public worfiiip. For fuppofing this true of the perfons who talk thus, they ought to remember that it is not true of the bulk of mankind, who plainly need the aid of pubUc inftruftions and admonitions. By abfenting themfelves, therefore, they contribute towards de- feating the effecft of what is calculated to promote the general good. They ought, befides, to confider that the end of attending on the public fervices of re- ligion is n6t merely to receive inftruc- tion ; but to worfhip God, to join as members of fociety in honouring and glorifying our common Lord by ce- lebrating his praifes together, and pub- lickly acknowledging and fupplicating him. This is what cannot be done at home. And there is no excufe or apolo- gy poffible which can make the ftated and voluntary omiffion of it otherwife than criminal and fhameful. I cannot indeed refled, without fome indignation, on the conduft of thofe who allow themfelves

in

266 On Prayer,

in this guilt, who difcover fo little re- verence for the Deity and regard to de- ce?icy as to chufe to be fauntering, feaft- ing, or fleeping, while' their fellow- creatures are engaged in attending to truths of infinite importance, and in offering up their acknowledgments to the giver of all good. How aftonifhing is it that this fhould be fo common as it is ; that in a land of light and knowledge, in this Chriftlan and proteftant nation, the public worihip of God fhould be more flighted,' and the places defigned for it more deferted tuan perhaps ever was known among civilized pagans ? Nothing can have a much worfe afped: on the welfare of the na- tion, or threaten it with greater evils. When a people become generally irre- ligious and impious, they become ungo- vernable, untradable, ready for every evil work, and ripe for mifery and de- ftrudtion. Religion, to fay the leaft of it, is a moft ufeful engine of flate,

and

On Prayer. 267

and one of the beft fupports of public order. If we confider it only in this light, it is the proper objed; of public encouragement * -, and the perfon who does not iludy to countenance it in his condud:, is fo far a pernicious member of fociety.

Before I proceed to what further lies before me in this difcourfe, it comes in

* By the public encouragement that fhould be given to religion, I do not mean the magiftrate's interpofing his authority to require compliance with any particular form of it, or to raife any one relio-i- ous party above others. This vt^ould be going out of his province, and has hitherto been nothing but an encroachment on liberty, the fhoaring up of er- ror, the dejRjrudion of peace and harmony, and a violation of fome of the moft important rights of mankind. The way in which it is earneftly to be wifhed that all in public ftations would encou- rage religion is by their example-, by employing their influence to promote a confcientious regard to it in thofe forms of it which every one approves moft; by leading the way in an attendance on its public fer- viccs, and at the fame time protecting alike all who are fincere in the profefTion of it.

my

268 On Prayer.

my way to take particular notice of two extremes into which men are apt to fall; both common, and both fatal. — — The firft, and that which it is moft to my prefent purpofe to mention, is the extreme into which thofe perfons fall who pay no regard to piety or any of its duties, but profefs great zeal for juflice and gratitude and all focial du- ties. As far as fuch pradlife focial du- ties, and are truly faithful and bene- volent, they cannot be too much ho- nouied. But while they continue re- gardlefs of the Deity, and void of de- votion, there is furely an effential defe<5l in their characters. They want the living root 5 they want the bejft f jpport, and a capital part of real goodnefs. The Deity ought to be the objecft of the firft regard of a virtuous man. Love to him muft be his prevailing affedion ; and he cannot but be anxious about making the proper acknowledgments of him in every capacity and relation of life. The exercifes of devotion, I have fliewn, are

fome

On Prayer. 269

fome of the noblefl employments of our minds 5 mod worthy of our rational powers ', r. moll perfeftive of our tempers and charafters, and productive of the greateft delight. Can then a good man

negledt thefe ? A good man without

religion. A benevolent heart without

love to the firil benevolence. A grate- ful mind without gratitude to its great- eft benefadtor. A righteous life with- out prayer ; without any ad:s expretling fuitable difpofitions to the head and pa- rent of the creation. What palpable

contradicflions are thefe ?

The other extreme I meant, and the worft by far of the two, is that into which thofe fall who are zealous for de- votion, and exa(5l in all pofitive and re- ligious duties, but at the fame time neg- le<fl focial duties ; make religion a cloak for wickednefsi indulge cenforioufncfs and uncharitablenefs ; and will lye, trick, cheat, calumniate, undermine and pre- varicate. Thefe are indeed deteftable.

Thejr

270 On P R A V E rJ

They know nothing of true devotion. They are, on many accounts, fome oi

the vileft of mankind. -It (hould be

our earneft ftudy to difcharge our whole duty, and to acquire an univerfaily right temper and charadler. Nothing fhort of this can denominate us truly virtuous. No zeal for any one fpecies of virtue or pundluahty in fome parts of duty, while others are negleded, can avail to our acceptance.

I have fuch an opinion of the im- portance of this that I cannot help en- deavouring here to engage attention to it by dwelling a little longer upon it, with a particular view to the two forts

of charadiers I have mentioned. ^It is

univerfaily acknowledged that a virtuous man is one who ads in conformity to his duty. We can have no other idea of a virtuous as diftinguilhed from a vicious man. But let us confider what mull be meant when this is faid. Can the meaning be that a man

is

0?i Prayer. 271

is virtuous if he difcharges a part of h^s duty only, or if he conforms to it in more inftances than he tranfgrefles it ? If this Is true, then, fuppofing our whole duty to be contained under any number of heads, as for inftance, under tem- perance, gratitude, juftice, benevolence, and piety ; it will follow that a man who pradlifes three of thefe will be a virtuous man, though he neglefts the other two. If he is temperate, juft, and pious, he is a virtuous man, though he wants gratitude and benevolence. Or if he is grateful, juft and benevolent, he is a virtuous man though he wants piety and temperance. On the contrary; he only will be a vicious man who pof- fefTes only two of thefe and wants the reft. Is it poffible that any perfon can

maintain f ).ch an abfurdity ? When

St. Paul affures us, that neither forni-* cat or Si nor covcious men, nor drunkards ^ nor revilersj nor extortioners fhall inhe- rit the kingdom of God; did he mean that 2^ fornicator, or a covetous 'man, or .2 a

272 On Prayer.

a drunkard, or an extortioner ihall inherit the kingdom of God, provided he h^s but that one vice, and fulfils his duty in other inftances ? When eternal happinefs is promifed in the New Teftament to all that repent ; does it mean by repentance, not the forfaking of a// fins, but all except that one which we love moft ?— If fuch doftrine is right; with what fort of charafters will heaven be filled ?

Who is there that will not be faved ?

But let no one thus deceive himfelf. If there is any regard due to feme of the plaineft didlates of reafon and fcripture, it is paft doubt that no kind of partial goodnefs can be true goodnefs, and that he only is virtuous who endeavours faithfully to do his whole duty. The fame truth will appear very evidently if we confider true goodnefs as confid- ing, not in having (what no Being can want) a regard to redlitude, but in h^^ ing governed by it : For, certainly, it can- not govern where there is any one pafiion that over-powers it, or where there is 2 any

On Prayer. 273

a?2y blown guilt indulged, or any known obligation neglected in the flated courfe of life. Virtue, we fhould remember, is one undivided thing. It is the fame in all the different parts of it; and an habitual difregard to it, in any one in- ftance, is difregarding the whole, and be- trays moil: manifcfdy a heart falfe to its intereft, and void of a juft affedion for

it. But not to fay more "©n this

fubjea *.

I am fenfible that I have been in dan- ger of incurring the derifion of fome per- fons, by talking as I have done of family religion, of the pleafures of devotion, and

of happinefs in the Deity. But this

gives me no great concern. What I have been infilling upon is, in my opi- nion, of unfpeakable importance, Thofe who have entertained contrary opinions are welcome to rejecft it. I can only wifh

* It is conlidered at large in The Reviav of the principal ^ejiions in Morals, Chap, IX.

It

274 0;; Prayer. it was poffible for me to convince them of a miftake which, I think, moft un- happy and dangerous. Others, by

what has been laid of devotion, private and public, as indilpenfably obhgatory in itfelf, and the fupport and hfe of vir- tue, may be led to reflect very ferloufly on the ftate of his fellow-men. An ardent and at the fame time a rational and unaffeded devotion is one of the chief excellencies and glories we can pof- {cfs. Nothing can make us appear morq venerable, or beflow greater dignity on our charad:ers. But where fliall we find much of it ? What numbers either pour contempt on devotion by principle, or negledl it through a criminal indolence, or difgrace it miferably by the tricks of fuperftition and the madnefs of enthu- fiafm ? How unaccuftomed to the beft and moft neceffary exercifes ; how im- merfed in {tnk ; how full of low cares ; how inattentive to th;; Divine nature, and deftitute of heavenly affedions, are

a great part of mankind ? When,

indeedi.

0?i Pray e r. 275

indeed, I confider that piety and fimpll- city and purity and prevailing regard to every known obligation, which are necef- fary to conftitute genuine goodnefs -, and when I compare thefe with the carelef- nefs and defefts of numberlefs perfons about me, and even of feveral who on many accounts are refpea:able and wor- thy, I cannot help feeling a painful concern and grief.— Would to God we were all more diligent, and more follici- tous about acquiring true worth, and leaving nothing undone that reafon and piety require.

T 2 SECT.

2/6 On Prayer

SECT. III.

Of the Manner in which Pi^ayer ought to be performed.

I HAVE now finifhed the firft part of my defign in this Diflertation. What I had further in view was to reprefent the manner in which Prayer ought to be performed, in order to render it an acceptable and profitable fervice.

The firfb obfervation I {hall make on this fubjedl is, that Prayer ought to be performed with a mind pro- perly prepared for it, and with fixed and compofcd thoughts. 'Tis an impor- tant and folemn work, and no pains can be too great to perform it in a becoming manner. Before we engage in it, 'tis proper to take time for ferious recol- ' ' ^^ Icftion,

0)1 P R A Y E R. 277

leftion, for confidering what we are going to do, and endeavouring to bring our minds to a right temper, and to im- prefs them With fuitable deiires and fen- timents. 'Tis not likely to be attended with great advantages when this is neg- lected, or v/hen performed with minds full cf worldly cares, ruffled by paffion,

or diffipated by pleafure. But if it is

thus proper to prepare ourfelves for Pray- er, it muft be much more fo to avoid all levity and abfcnce of mind when ac- tually engaged in it. For otherwife we ill all not pray at all, but tnock the Deity with unmeaning founds. What can be more indecent, or exprefs greater difrefped: to the Moft High, than to draw nigh to him with our lipSy while our hearts are far from him ; to pretend to addrefs ourfelves to him, and at the fame time to fuffer our thoughts to wan- der to the ends of the earth ? Can we think he will hold them guiltlefs who

thus trife with him r If we worftip

him at all, it ought to be with a guard T 3 upon

2

8 O/Z P R A Y E R,

upon our attention, with an awe of him upon our minds, and an inward and fincere devotion. No bodily fervices or external pageantry and fliew can pleafe bim. He is an omniprefent and perfe(ft mind who looks to our minds, and regards nothing but the ads of our

minds. 'Tis true, the beft men are

liable to wanderings and diftradtions of mind in religious exercifes. But fome there are who are utterly inexcufable this way ; who indulge themfelves in in- attention, and fatisfy themfelves with the carelefs repetition of a fet of words and the mevtform of worfhip. There is too much reafon to believe, with refpeft to public Prayer in particular, that many attend it without any view at all to de- votion or improvement, only becaufe it is the cuftom, or for fome lefs innocent reafon i and that others, who perhaps are never abfent from it, feldom rea/Iy pray, but pafs away the whole folemnity of worfhip in a heedlefs and trifling rnanner, with their thoughts employed

on

On Prayer. 279

on bufiiiefs, or intent on pleafure and folly.. How can per ions, who have any fenfe of the obligation and importance of Prayer, know themfelves to be thus guil- ty, without fevercly reproaching them-, felves ? Were it not for the influence which the examples of fuch might have, they Vv^ould be aimed as innocent if they were openly irren^ious, and never ap- peared at any place of Divine worihip.

2dly, We ought to pray with fer- vency of affection and defire. Thi3 muft be of particular importance. It cannot be imagined, that any prayers will be accepted, which are not emanations from a heart charged with good defires. The jufteft and heft definition that can be given of devotion is, ** that it is the af- *' fedions correiponding to the Divine ** nature and charader, expreffing them- ** felves by their proper adls." As far, therefore, as thefe affedlions are either wanting or languid, devotion lofes (I may fay) its foul, and degenerates into

T 4 a

28o On Prayer.

a worthlefs formality. The proper

difpofitions for Prayer are gratitude and love to God 'y efteem and veneration for him; joy and confidence in his good- nefs ', a fenfe of our dependence upon him as the abfolute difpofer of our lot ; forrow for the diforders of our hearts; humility and felf-abafement ; hatred of all fin ; love to virtue as our chief good ; and unfeigned benevolence to our fellow- creatures. For the fame reafon that we fliould poflefs thefe difpofitions at all when we pray, they fhould be warm and adtive within us. It is not poffible that we fhould then be too much concerned about reviving in ourfelves the beft fen- timents, and raifing to the utmoft every pious aff^edion. Our affedtions cannot be too intenfe when the Deity is the objedt of them. It is not poflible for any Being to honour and love him enough.- — We ought never to think of him without reverence. With what re- verence then fhould we pray to him ? — Our hearts indeed here require our

ftrifteft

On P R A Y E R. 281

ftridlefl care; and after all our labour we fhall find them much too cold. Every virtuous man laments the weaknefs of his good afFe6lions, and the infenfibi- lity into v^hich he is apt to fink with refped: to the mofl: interefl:ing concerns. We are furrounded with alluring fcenes and objeds, which fiirongly folicit our attention and engage our paflions, and which, if we are not watchful, will purfue us to the clofet and the church, and there caufe our minds to fi:art afide, and damp and check them in their af- cent to the Deity. In thefe circum- ftances it is encouraging to refle(5l, that God remembers we are dujly and will ac- cept us, notwithftanding any infirmities which we endeavour faithfully to corredt and remove.

That fervor in Prayer which I am now recommending, is fo far from being inconfiftent with the mofl free and per- fect exercife of our rational powers, that it is its neceflary effeft. The jufter views

we

282 Oji Prayer,

we have of our ftate, and the more plainly and truly we perceive the de- pendence of all things upon God, our own ignorance and defed:s, the impor- tance of virtue and the evil of vice; the more our hearts muft be imprefled ; the higher our affeftlons muft rife 3 and the more earneitly v/e fliall pant after

wifdom, diredion and virtue. There

is, however, a fervor in reHgious ex- ercifes which is entirely mechanical, and the effecl of nothing but pride and pre- fumption. Againft the influence of this we iliould take care to guard. All in- ward perfuafions and tranfports of which we can give no good account ; all fal- lies of blind zeal and aiFedtion we fhould fupprefs in ourfelves as delufive and dangerous. Reafon ought always to be the governing faculty, and the affedions muft not lead but follow. It will there- fore, be extremely wrong in any perfon, to judge of his religious character, by the heat and the extafies he may feel in devotion, without examining into the

fources

On Prayer. 283

fources of them. Tho* it be in ge- neral true, that where the pure love of God and a fpirit of genuine piety pre- vail, there will be an unfpeakable ardor and delight in the exercifes of devotion; and though one reafon why many reli- gious men do not feel more of this ardor and delight, is the imperfedion of their characters ; yet it fhould be re- membered, that the only fafe and in- fallible way of judging of ourfelves is by our adions *. Every tree muft be known by its fruits. The nature and degree of inward principles muft be determined

* It fhould be attended to, that the fervency in Prayer which I have in view, is an engagement and ardor of mind, confifting in the exercife of ftrong

and lively fentiments of virtue and piety. There

are many good men of cold natural tempers, who may feldom be much moved with any thing in the com- mon courfe of worldly affairs, and who therefore, in religion^ may feel little of that pallionate zeal ar)d heat which others, of warm tempers but poiTibly far lefs refpe£lable chara6lers, may feel continuaily. The rule, therefore, given above IhouM not be forgotten.

by

284 ^^ Prayer.

by their effedls. He is the bed man who is moft remarkable for good works. He loves God moft who is moft like to him y who maintains in all he thinks and does the moft ftridl regard to truth and right, and is the moft ufeful and kind to his fellow-creatures. The true raptures in religion are thofe which flow from a confcience void of offence to- wards God and man, from a mind thoroughly reconciled to eternal righte- oufnefs, and a lile fhining with every Divine grace and virtue. The true fpi- rit of devotion prevails moft, where there is the moft exemplarinefs of converfation and behaviour , the moft regular dif- charge of all moral and religious duties ; the moft abfolute refignation in all events to the Divine will ; and the greateft de- grees of meeknefs, patience, candour, charity, and felf-government.

3dly, We ought to be conftant in Prayer ; or in the language of fcripture to pray always with all manner of prayer

and

On Prayer. 285

and fupplication in the fp'irit. So many and fo great are the adv.Mitages of Pray- er, and of fuch uie is it toward^ guard- ing us againft temptations and promot*% ing our conformity to the Divine laws, that it ought to make one of the flated employments of our lives. So apt are we to lofe our fenfe of the mofl: im- portant truths, to link into a forgetful- nefs of our chief intereft, and to grow indolent and carelefs amidft the avoca- tions of bufinefs and pleafure, that we ought to be often having recourfe to it, reviving by it good impreffions on our minds, and putting ourfelves into the proper pofture for receiving grace and. help from heaven. When this duty is negledted our beft defence is loft, our progrefs in virtue fiackens, and we mull be in great danger of be- ing carried away with the evil of the

v^orld.-. 'As you value then all that is

of confequence to a moral agent, you

ought to be frequent in Prayer. If you

have any ambition to grow in goodnefs,

a vou

286 On P R A Y E R.

you will without doubt be diligent in uling this beft means of it. If you have a juft fenfe of thofe mercies with which every moment of your exiftence is filled, you will be continually fending up your thankfgrvings for them. If you know what fatisfadtion there is in true devotion, or have had any experience of its pow- er to make you more happy and God- like, it will not be in your power to avoid employing yourfelf often in it.

There are no particular rules to be given on this head. Every one is here at liberty within certain limits, and mufl: regulate himfelf as he finds moft fuit- able to his temper and circumftances. I fhall only fay, that at leaft we ought to apply to the purpofes of devotion fome portion of time in every day. I fhould think that no religious perfon can well content himfelf with lefs than this. — Sup- pofe, for inftartce, that we made it our pradice to devote the greateft part of an hour every morning or evening to the 2 duties

On Prayer, 287

duties of ferious recollediion, felf-exami- nation, and private Prayer ; befides more time on Sundays, and at other extraor- dinary feafons. Would there be any

thing unreafonable in this ? Would we not find ourfelves abundantly recompenf- ed for it, by the vigour and alacrity with which it would infpire us in the ways of righteoufnefs, the heavenly turn it would give to our minds, and the con- ftant watchful nefs and attention to our charad:ers which it would produce ? Would we ever have reafon to refleft, that we had thus taken too much pains to cultivate worthy affecftions, and to prepare for a better ftate ? Would we repent of fuch a courfe when we came to die ? Would not this and more than this be aftually our practice, v/ere we fenfible enough of the infinite impor- tance of religious virtue, or as much in earned about it as the children of this world arc about pleafure, gain and honour ?

The

^88 On P R A Y E R.

, The great advantages arifing from fuch a method of devotion as that now pro- pofed,. have been attefted to, from their ov^n experience "*, by fome of the wifeft

* 'Tis related of Dr. Boerhaave (in his life by Dr. Brown) that he ufed to devote the firfthour in every day to meditation and prayer ; which, he ufed to fay, prepared and ftrengthened him for the following em- ployments of the day. — We are told of the excellent Mr. Jbc-niethyy that it appears from his diary, that be- Udes the daily exercifes of the clofet, he frequently Ihut himfelf up the whole day for the fecret fervices of de- votion. The reafons he -gives for fpending fo much

time in this way are in his own v/ords thefe. .

*' I apply my felf to thefe exercifes, ift, Becaufe they *' are a noble employment of the mind, moft worthy ** of its rational powers, tending to their higheft

" perfed^ion, and affording moft folid joy. 2dly,

* In folemn tranladtions with God I may hope for " fuch a co.nfirmatioii in virtuous „fentiments and '' Jifpofitions,. and fuch advantages over worldly *■' luffs as rriay be of* great ufe to me in future life j

*' and this hope is juflined by experience.

<•' 3dly, I would lay ftricler obligations on myfelf *' tg greater watchful oets .and caption againft the '• fiTJn^S'cf eiror ;inJ pcji;^lexity .. and guilt, imp

'' wnich 1 have bcen^ formerly^ nriijj^jj," See the

A count of Mr," Mernethys Life pvejixed to the third l(olu%*e of hh 'Sermons] j-rage i8.

•'/^'- /r -w:* '"'■-■ and

On P R A Y E tl» Cl2>()

and beft men ; and there are many now in the world, who would not exchange it, for the moft profperous courfe of ir- religion that can be imagined.- — It Is neceffary to obferve here, that at the fame time that we devote fome part of every day to religious duties, there fhould al- ways run thro* the reft of the day pre-^ vailing piety and goodnefs, and a fpirit of love and humility. In othef Words i when not aftually engaged in Pray- er, we fliould keep ourfelves as much as poffible in a difpolition for it, and fpeak and a<5l on every occafion in fuch a manner, as to fhew to all about us that we are often engaged in the beft exercifes. Happy beyond expreffion are thofe who thus walk with God i who ftudy always to live in the fame Ipirit that they pray.

I muft add, that there art many mci- dental occafions in life, in which Prayef is peculiarly proper. Such are all occa-* fions in which we have any weighty affairs under coniideration> or are about U engaging

290 On Prayer,

engaging in any important undertakings. Nature and reafon then ftrongly prompt us to feek the bleffing of heaven upon our undertakings, and to implore direc- tion and wifdom from that Being who governs all events. Plato, in a palTage which has been often quoted ^", fays, that among the Greeks, no one of any dif- cretion would ever undertake any thing without firft invoking the Deity. — Times' of trouble and affli-flion are likewife pe- culiarly proper for Prayer. There is no relief at fuch times like to that ariling from pouring out cur forrows before our Maker, meditating upon them as what he fees and yet permits, and profeffing before him our hearty acceptance of them as his will. — When we have in any in- flance been drawn into guilt, it become^ VIS particularly to confcfs it in his pre- fence; and to form, under his eye, fo- lemn refolutions to endeavour ia future

time to be more careful. Again ;

\vhen we have received any extraordina- ry mercies or deliverances, it becomes

* /« Timao Jul iHiilo^

On P R A Y E R. ^91

US particularly to acknowledge them. — - When we are tempted to any crime, we ought alfo to fly to Prayer as our very beft fecurity. There are few temp- tations which- would not lofe their force, if, when they come in our way, we would take tiriio to fet ourfelves ferioufly to this duty. A prayer then offered up with attention would place us under the guardiandiip of heaven, and bring our minds in fuch a manner under the im- preffions of the motives to virtue, that it would be fcarcely pofiible for us to deviate from it '^.

4thly, In order to render our prayers fuccefsful, 'tis abfolutely neceffary that they jfhould be accompanied with a holy life, and the diligent ufe of our >own endeavours to acquire what we pray for. The efficacy of Prayer arifes from

* See Mr. Amorys Sermon on the Advantage of Pray ^

er \ and alio his Diabgiu; on Devotion. 1 would fur-

tl>er beg leave here to rccommcn.l to every head of a family Mr. Pkkard's three difcourfcs on the Religious GjVir7immt of a Fcwiih.

.{. • U 2 its

292 07t Prayer.

its being the means and fruit of virtue, as well as from its being an immediate aft of virtue, or a due acknowledgment of >our dependence, and the performance of what is in itfelf fit to be performed, Xf therefore we feparate fropi it vir- tuous refolution and right praftice we deflroy its value, and make it much worfe than what fome think it muft alv^ays be, ** a^ infignificant form or :**;!tr ceremony." A wicked mans prayers are an abomination to the Lord, If we regard iniquity in our hearts, it is certain he will not hear us. As a righteous life without Prayer implies a contradiction. Prayer being one eflential part of right pradice '^" : So Prayer without a righte- ous life is , impiety and profanenefs. What an infult, for inftance, on the Deity would it be to alk of him the pardon of thofe offences which we de-

* Imo vero auda<Ster affirmare pofTum eum qui fine finceris ad dcum precationibus. virtutem fedatur, nunquam illarn poflTe affequi, fed evanidam duntaxat aliquain illius umbram et inane imitarfientum. Dr, Moris Enchirid, Ethicurri,

fign

Oji Prayer. 293

fign to repeat ; to thank him for thofe benefits which we employ in rebelHon againft him; or to implore his blefling on any of our unlawful undertakings ? What a mockery of him would it be to feek wifdom and happinefs from him, and at the fame time to negledl the appointed means for obtaining them ; to pray not to be led into temptation, and at the fame time to put ourfelves into the way of it; or to bring with us Into His prefence any fecret vice or favourite paflion to which we are determined his

authority fliall not extend ? If then

we would have our prayers fuccefsful we muft refolve to abandon all iniquity : They muft be affifted by good works, and render us through our whole condu<i ^ more amiable and worthy,

^i I have before more than once touched upon what I am now obferving ; but it is of fo much importance that it cannot be too often repeated, or too much in- culcated. J muft therefore be excufed U 3 fbr

294 ^^^ Prayer.

for infilling here ftill further upon it. —There are, certainly, no perfons whodeferve more of our deteftation, than thofe who reft in the external fervices of religion, without endeavouring to ac- pompany them with fuitable adtions ia common life. 'Tis melapcholy to find in all 'religious focietjes fo many of thefe hypocrites ; men who (liew no concern about going further than the form of godlinefsy and yet look upon themfelvep as the only favourites of heaven. They are conftant in Prayer : But it does not mend their tempers or fubdue their paf- iions. They will not break the fabbath or omit a facrament : But they . wuU pradice cunning and deceit, and fpeak evil of th^ir neighbours. At church they are all ferioufnefs and fandity. In their families they are tyrants, and in their fliops, cheats. Like the Pharifees of old they tithe ?nint, anife and cummin 3 but they neglecf the ^weightier matters of the law, judgment^ mercy and fidelity ■^. Theif

* Matt, xxiii. 23.

laith

On Prayer. 295

faith is uncharitablenefs, and their zeal

pride and rancour. Oh ! wretched

men ! How can you avoid knowing that you are fubftituting the means for the end, and that the moft profligate linners will enter into the kingdom

of heaven befare you ?^ Offences

of this kind will come. But woe be to thofe by whom they come. At the univerfal reckoning they will ■ plead : ^* Lord, Lord, have we not propbefied in ** thy name, and eat and drank at thy ta^ '' ble? Have we not offered up many " a prayer, kept many a fail, and been " zealous for thy caufe ?" But we are affured that the anfwer they fhall re- ceive will be : T never knew you. Depart from me ye that work iniquity •^-.

It has before been fl:icwn at large, that Prayer has the greatefl tendency to make us in every rcfpedt better. In propor- tion to the degree of this t^xi&^WQy, muft be the peculiar guilt of thofe in whom it does not take effedl. Su^^h are wicked

* Alatt. vii. 22. — Luke xili. 25, 26, 27.

• U 4 in

296 On Pray e r-,

in oppofition to ilronger motives and obligations than others ; and therefore fliew greater depravity of character. They do unfpeakable harms and that fpurious piety in which they truft is in- deed vvorfe than atheifm, Are you a

reHgious man ? Tremble at the thoughts of fuch guilt. Remember, that your prin^ cipal v/ork is to be done after you have been prefent at religious exercifes. Shcvy^ to all about you that religion is lovely and happy, the infpirer of hope and joy, and the parent of all excellent

qualities and noble acftions. You make

confcience, I will fuppofe, of Jlatedly retiring for ferious recolledion and prayer. Nothing can be more reafon-f able 5 nothing more important. But how do you a6l in the intermediate times ? Do you leave your retirements with fweeter difpofitions and firmer pur- pofes to be and do all that is gene- rous and worthy? Are you afterwards more humble and meek, more candid jind fmcere, more watchful over your

life.

^ ... ^.. On Prayer. 297

life, and fuller of love and kindnefs to mankind ?-^ — This, without doubt, ought to be the effed of your devotions \ and if they have not this efFedl; or if, on the contrary, they only render you more proud and difagreeable and lefs ufeful as a member of fociety, from a notion that they v^''ill be accepted as compen- fations for deficiencies in moral duties- as far as this is true, your prayers are a curfe to you, and your religion is nd4 thing but an execrable and deftruftiVe fuperftition.— I muft not omit to ob-i ferve, ^

5thly, That v^e ought to pray and give thanks in the name of Chrift. Thai are v^e direfted in the New Teftament! John xvi. 23. Verily I fay unto yoii\ whatfoever ye JImH ajk the Father in iiiy name^ he Jhall give it you. Ephelt V. 20. Giving thanks always for ah things to God in the name of our Lord Jefiis Chriji. Col. iii. 17. Whatfoever ye do t?i 'word or in deedy do all in the name of the Lord Jfus. The meaning of this is;

that

agS On P R A Y E R,

that we ought, in our reHgious fervices and all our actions, to maintain a regard tO' the relations in which Chrift ftands to us, and to confider ourfelves as his followers. — —Nothing can be more rea- fonable than this. The relations in which we ftand to Chrift are of the greateft iraportance. A regard to them, and a compliance with the duties refult- ing from them are a neceffary part of goodnefs, and an indifpenfible condition of favour to all, as far as they have been made known. If Chrift is indeed what the fcriptures fay, the way, the truth and the life ; the propitiation for our fins ; our Deliverer from death, and the Sa- viour and Judge of the world, it is fit that he fliould be recognized in thefe cha- rafters, and that our prayers fhould be pfFered up under a fenfe of them. It cannot be excufable to treat with neg- left that name to which we owe our profpeft of a bleffcd immortality, and pit which every knee is commanded to bow of things in heaven and things in earth

3 aiid

Qn Prayer. 299

and things tinder the eart/j^ to the glory of God the Father '*. The inconceivable benefits which we receive by Chrift's miniftry, and the high ftation to whicl^ he is exalted for the good of mankind, afford us the nobleft foundation for joy and hope, and the warmeft admiration of Divine goodnefs. It would be wrong to forget thefe at any time ; but it muft be particularly fo to forget them when engaged in the duties of devotion.

It may not be improper here to make a few obfervations on the /natter and compojition of Prayer, as the due regu- lation of thefe has a confiderable ten-r dency to render it a more profitable fer-

vice. With refped: to the matter of

Prayer ; what requires moft to be re- membered is, that we ought never, ex- cept with great caution, to pray for any particular worldly advantages. The rea- fon is obvious. We cannot fay what advantages of this kind are fit for us,

* Phil. ii. 10, n,

or

30O 072 Prayer.

or moft conducive to our true intereft. Thofe comforts, fuccefles and gratifica- tions v/hich we may be ready mofl eagerly to defire, may be entirely im- proper to be granted us ; or, if granted us, might perhaps prove pernicious to us. And, on the contrary, thofe fuf- ferings which we may be moft apt to fhrink from and to deprecate, may in reality be ufeful to us, and prove, on

the whole, the greateft benefits, —

Virtue alone is what we certainly know to be good for us. This either implies in it, or will draw after it, all that is important to a reafonable Being. It is the true riches, the noblefl treafure, the higheft honour, and God's beft and choiceft gift. If we have this, it fig- nifies nothing what we ^^anf. If we want this, it fignifies nothing what we have. To the acquifition of this, there- fore, and our improvement in it, ought

all cur prayers to be direfted. 1 hope

it will not be.faid that this being placed in our own power, we have no reafpa

for

0« P R A Y E R. 301

for any applications to God for it, but ought to feek it entirely from ourfelves. Such a fentiment cannot eafily be enter- tained by any who have a due fcnCe of their own frailties, or due appre- henfions of the Deity, as the author of all good and the ruler of all events, of 'whoniy and through whoifz^ and to whom are all things. Is any man truly vir- tuous ? And has he no reafon to praife God on this account ? May he venture to declare that he owes it not in any way to God ? Was it not in confequence of the Divine will and diredlion, that he was brought into thofe circumftances, and had thofe views of things laid be- fore his mind, which have produced this happy effeft ? Is there no reafon to think 'that there have been many good men m the world who, had their circum- ftances been in the leafl different from what they were, had one incident in their lives never happened, or had any fmaller (hare of advantages been granted them, would have continued in the num- ber

302 On P R A Y E R.

ber of the carelefs and irreligious, and

been loft for ever ^ ?

With

* " 'Tis God who has made the mind of man ca- " pable of" perceiving motives, and of being wrought *' upon by them. 'Tis God who, in the courfe of " his Providence, has prcfcnted fuch a train of *' motives to any one's mind, as has engaged him '^ to pradice all the virtues of a holy life. To *' God, therefore, the praife of it is to be given.'' Dt\ Leechmari's excellent Sefmo?2 on Prayer, page Ii2.

Nothing can be more ilrong than what m.any heathen writers have faid on this fubjecl. Msyar c ay^V^ Osicy ro ipycVy UTTfp (icta-iXzia^j virzp s\su- ^ioij,^. T» Gsb? (juiJ-vriO-o ', ^y.zivc'j iTriKoKa jSo^Oov

TrXsovTSf. Ucic^ yao /jr=i(^iov ^HfJi'^v n o iy. (fav- raaioiv i^updv y.ai €xxps?:xoov ra Xoyy. Arriani Epia. Lib. II. Chap. i8. " Great is the confli6li *' divine the enterprize ; for a kingdom, for liberty, " for tranquility. Remember God. Call upon him " for aid, as mariners do on Caftor and Pollux in a *' dorm : For what greater florm is there than that " aiifmg from violent pallions clalhing with reafon?" — — Ek rrs c/^iayotaj sx^aXs /^'jTrnv, (p'c^ov, sTriOu- /utiav, &c. Taura. c'** yx £S"iv cXXco; v/.€cl\u-j u (j.n Trpos" /Jtcvov Tov 0£ov aTTcCXsTTcvra, sy.sfvw /jtcvco Trpc&xsTrcvOoTa, Trpor SKSiva 7:pccra.yixaL(ji xa^cocrf- w/jisyov. " Grief, fear, defirc, 5cc. cannot be othcr-

«' wife

Oh P R A Y E R. 303

With refpecl to the compofition of Prayer we may obferve, that it ought

to

*' wife conquered than by looking to God a^one^' *' and relying upon him." lb. Lib. II. Chap. i6.— — » Again ', Lib. IV. Chap. 4. Haft thou overcome thy luft or thy anger? Ilotja) /xsi^oay aiTia Gucraj n yxarsia, i\ V7ra^')^ta, Taura sx, an uvtb ymra% Viai OLiro rm ©sojv. " How much greater reafon for *' a facrifice is this than a confulfhip or procuratorfhip I *' For this proceeds from thyfelf and from God.". — ^ Excellent alfo to the prefent purpofe are the words of Hierocles in his Commentary on Pythagoras^ Golden Verfes, verfe 48. Outs ya.^ [J.0V0V 7rpoGu/jt£i<3'ar c^s; ra jiaXa, w? e(p iavroi^ ovra. :iarop^:))a-aty y,ai ^cdpis- ra ©s^ c-uvipynct^ -, are -vJ/fXyjr ty^c s'J;:^^?? Sec, " We ought neither to purfue virtue, as if it ^* was in our own power to acquire it, without the ^' help of God ', nor to content ourfelves with «* mere prayer, without ufmg our own endeavours '« to acquire vihat we pray for. This will be ^' either to make our virtue impious, or our prayers ^^vunfuccefi^ful. But impiety deftroys the eflence of *' virtue J and ina6lion, the efficacy of prayer." — - Plato (in Meno) after he had endeavoured to prove that men have not virtue (perhaps he means chiefly political or public virtue) either from nature or in^ ftru6lion, concludes that it mud be a Divine com- munication i and obferves, that for this reafon virtuous

men

304 On P R A V E k.

to be plain> ferious and iimple. No-* thing can be more contemptible than

an

men have been juftly called dmne. Ex /xsv rcivui; TOUTS? T» XoytciMiy 0) /jcsvcov, Gskx fjiotpa. Yifjiiv f ai- virai Trapayiyvoixivri » cipsrji cr? 'irctpuyiyvirau — -

. To the fame purpofe fpeaks Seneca. Bonus vir

fine Deo iumo eji. An poteft aliquis fupra fortunam, nifi ab illo adjuftus, exfurgere ? Ille dat confilia magnifica et ereda. In unoquoquc virorum bono- rum (quis Deus incertum eft) habitat Deus. Epift, 41. '' No perfon is virtuous without God. How *' can any one rife above fortune^ unlels a/lifted by *' him. 'Tis he gives great and noble defigns."——* ha dico^ Luciliy facer intra nos fpiritus bahliat^ bonorum makrumque nojiror'um ohfervator et cujlos. Hie prout a nobii iraSlatm efly ita nos ipfe tra6fat. Ibid. *' There *' dwells within us a holy fpirit who obferves and ** watches our good and bad deeds, and who treats

*^ us as he is himfelf treated by us." Multos

et noftra civiias et Gracia tulit fmgulares viros ; quorum Keminem, nifi juvante DcOy talem fu'tffe credendum ejf, *' Both our city and Greece, fays Cicero, have pro- '< duced many extraordinary men ; none of whom, " we ought to believe, could be what they

" were without God's help." Nemo vir mag-

nus fine aliquo Divino cfflatu unquam fuit. De Nat*

Deorum, L. II. 66. The fubjcdl of Maximus

Tyrius's 2d Diilertation is this qucilion s " whether

" a good

O^ P R A Y E R. 305

an affefted difplay of eloquence in this duty, quaint phrafes, fludied antithefes,

vain

** a good man is fuch in virtue of a Divine communi- ** cation or not." He maintains the affirmative, and obferves that God ought to be much more acknow- ledged the giver of Virtue than of arts and fciences, or any temporal bleflings ; this being the beft and greateft good, and therefore what he muft be moft ready to communicate. Men, he fays, on account of the infirmities of their natures, need the influence of an aflifting and co-operating Deity to lead them to virtue. Asovrat cuvayoivi^a Gm y.ai au}Xi\if\oDo^ Tr)f poxrif x^f ;;^si pa/coy far. The life of Socrates, he fays DifT. 3c. was full of prayer. Hv 0 Bjo? ^oxpars? ^£5-0? €u;;^y}?. But the things he prayed for were not riches and power, but a virtuous mind, a quiet life, unblemifhed manners, and a death full of hope, which are glorious gifts, and fuch as the gods beftow. Aprnv ^^x^^ ^^^ ^o"y* ^»av Bi» -aai Xoi\v afJuiXTrlov %ai iUiXyriv ^avarov

ra ^a\j[j.a<^a J^aipa^ ra Gso:? cl^ora « As for

" the gods, who has told thee that they cannot help ♦* us in thofe things which they have put in our •« own power ? Whether it be fo or not thou {halt " foon perceive^ if thou wilt but try and pray."

Marc, JntonL L. IX. S. 40. " It is the duty of

" all who are endowed with reafon to afk all good « things of the gods -, particularly the knowledge

X 4« of

3o6 On Prayer.

vain tautologies, a redundancy of lan- guage, or impertinent excurfions into

matters

*' of themfelves, for there is nothing greater that " man can receive or God beftow.'* TicivrcL fxsv ^ii rayaha. rois vouv f^ovra? arrsfOai Trctpa ro)!/* 6€0Dy • iJLaKi<^a Jli th? Trsp: aurcuv S7rrs-y)/xy]j &C, Pluta. de Ifide et Ofiride initio.

Some of thefe paflages, at the fame time that they fhew us what the beft antient philofophers thought of our dependence on the Deity for the acquifition of virtue, prove lilcewife that they thought very highly of the reafonablenefs and importance of prayer. But I fhall beg leave to take occafion here to produce a few more pafTages in order to prove this.

*' To worftiip the gods and to pray to them, ^' fays PlatOy is above all things fit, decent, beautiful *' and conducive to a happy life." PIc2t. de Leg. L. IV.

In the 12th book of laws (Sub fine) he obfsrves,

*' that it Is above all things proper, that none but fuch " as underftand and venerate and practice religion *' (hould be chofen magiftrates, or be held in efteem

*' on account of their virtue." In another of

his Dialogues he obferves to the fame purpofe, that it {hould not be thought, that there is any part of hu- man virtue of greater weight, than religion or piety

towards the Deity. Ep'in, Sub fine. C'laro (in Offic,

Lib. I. Cap. ult.) places in the firft rank of duties thoic wc owe to God ; And he obferves. that to de-

ilroy

O;^ P R A Y E R. 307

matters of controverfy and fpeculation, as if our defign was to fhew the Deity- how

llroy piety and religion is to introduce confufion into human life, and to fubvert all fecial duties. De Nat,

L. I. n. 2. "Marcus Antoninus afierts that the foul

of man was made for godlinefs no lefs than for juftice, and that the former is the proper ground and fpring of the latter. De rebus Suis, Lib. XI. S. i8, The chief article of the unwritten law men- tioned by Socrates (in Xenoph. Mem. L. IV. C. IV. S. 19,) is, that the gods ought to be v/orfhipped» This, he fays, is acknowledged every where ; and received by all men as the firft command. Flapet Tracrtv civGpooTroir 'ir^o^rov vo/at^grar, ra^ ©gyr CtCsrv. — '——Piety, fays Hierocles^ is the chief and the pa- rent of all the virtues, and the contempt of piety the caufe of all vice. In Carm. Pythag. Verf. i. 17. — If you fearch the world, fays Plutarch^ you may find cities without walls, without letters, without kings, without money ; but no one ever faw a city without a Deity, without a temple, or without prayers.

Plut. adverfus Coloiem. He concludes his trea-

tife on fuperftition with obferving, '' that thofe v,'ho, *' forfaking that piety which lies in the middle, run *^ into irreligi on to avoid fuperfition^ adl like a perfcn *' who to avoid a wild beaft, or a fire, {hould run

*' among pits and precipices." But there would

be no end of quoting pafTages of this kind.

X 2 Nothing

308 On Prayer.

how finely we can talk, or how much

we know. 1 have now in view piib^

lie Prayer only. In private Prayer 'tis not to be fuppofed that any one can fall into thefe abfurdities and indecencies. Here a truly devout heart will often find itfelf above the ufe of words. And in

Nothing Is more certain than that religion has been held in the higheft veneration among all civiliz- ed nations, and particularly among the wife Greeks and Romans. " Our city, (fays Valerius Maximns^ ** of Rome. Lib. I. Cap. i.) has always held every <* thing to be of inferior value to religion." — It is im- poflTible to think of this without being furprifed at that difregard to religion which prevails at prefent in this kin'^dom. Has it indeed been difcovered that the vvif- dom of all ages has been deceived in this inflance, and that piety is no part of a good charajSler ? One v/ould think that this muft be the cafe ; for it is not ealy, on any other fuppofuion, to account for that tranquility and fatisfa^lion with which, not merely the vulgar and illiterate, but many fenfible and in other refpei51:s vir- tuous men, fecm to live in ihe ncgle6l of religious du- ties. 'Tis plain, however, th:it the epithet hcathemjh has been very in^properly applied to uich perfons, for it appears that FIfeathens thought and prad^ifed very differently. -^Cl ^fft Ir^ Pno/lO';>.

general

On Prayer. 309

general It will, perhaps, be right in pri- vate Prayer to fuffer ourfelves to be guided by our feelings and afifeftions, and the prefent ftate of our circum- ftances, without tying ourfelves down to any particular forms.

I might go on to give an account of the means of acquiring a true fpirit of devotion, and of improving in it ; and alfo to point out the hindrances ol it. — The principal helps to devotion are, the uninterrupted praftice of it with fin- cerity; clofe and frequent meditation on our own wants, and on the Divine nature and attributes 5 the diligent dif- charge of every othej^ duty of life ; an ardent love of virtue and zeal to grow in it ; and a heart lifted above fenfible objefts, and warmed with benevolent wifiies and worthy fentiments, — ^The chief enemies to devotion are, vanity and diffipation of mind ; the love of pleafure j the deceitfulnefs of riches ; gloomy notions of the Deity ; inatten- X 3 tioa

3IO On Prayer,

tion to religious truths ; carelel'snels in cultivating good affections ; and the indulgence of known guilt. A heart filled with the cares of life, and ftrongly attached to v/orldly plea- fures, profits and honours, cannot a^ fcend to heaven, or rife to clear views and a calm contemplation of Spiritual and Divine objeds. The fire of luft, of am.bitio;?, or refentment will foon put out that of devotion. A foul con-r fcious of demerit and deformity, burden- ed with a fenfe of guilt, and unable to refolve upon a prefent and thorough amendment muft be averfe to the Deity,

and to all religious duties. 'Tis our

duty to labour more and more to remove thefe hindrances of our religious im- provement, to make ufe of every me- thod In our power to cherifh a devout temper, and to throw off all low cares, all irregular defires and perplexing paf-. fions, that our fouls may turn themfelves with greater eafe and alacrity to the au- thor of their exigence and th^ir only 2 l^ap-*

On Prayer. 311

happinefs. But after all that vvc can

do, innumerable imperfedtions muft cleave to our beft exercifes in the prefent ftate. How reviving is the profped of a better ftate, where we fhall lofe all our prefent infirmities, and nothing damp the exta- fies of our fpirits; where 'wefiallfee God face to face y ferve him without wearinefs, and be happy in him for ever ?

To fum up and conclude the

whole. Wretched is the man who

lives as without God in the world. Let all who would be happy remem- ber what danger they muft be in, not only from crimes they co^nmit, but from any known duties which they ncgleB, Let them confider that according to the reprefentation in Matth, xxvth, many will hereafter be condemned, not for being aBively vicwus, but for being unprofitable *y not for isjafthig their talents, but for not improving them \ not fur any harm they have done, but for good they have not done. Of all the omiffions X A, which

312 0;z Prayer.

which we can be guilty of, one of the rnoll: unwarrantable and fatal is the omiffion of devotion. To want piety is to want the fureft foundation of all excel- lent qualities, and to break that which our Lord calls, th.t Jirji and great com- mandment of the law *. No worfe blind-? nefs or calamity can happen to a

rational creature.- What fliould we

think of a oerfon who fhould never ad- 4refs himfelf, in a way of acknow- ledgment and refpefl-, to another perfon upon whom he was dependent, and to whom he owed all his happinefs ? Would not fuch a one fliew a temr- per void of all gratitude and ingenuity ? — — What an injury is it to our minds to refufe opening them to heavenly light and grace; to (hut out of them the nobleft fentiments ^ and to remain re-

* Matt. xxii. 37. Thou JJ)aU love ih Lord th^ God With all thy hearty and ivlth all thy foul. This is ibe Jirji and great commandment. And the fee on d is like unto it ; thou Jh(dt love thy neighbour as ihyfelf. On ihefe two commaudmenis hang all the laiv and the prophets,

gardlefs

0/1 P R A Y E R* 31^

gardlefs of the infinite Deity, though always foliciting our attention and work- ing within and without u$; though fur- rounded with his glory, dependent every moment on his power, and maintained

by his goodnefs ? Can he- be qualified

for the worihip of fuperior Beings in the' manfions of the blefl^ed, who never v/or- fhips here below? Can he poffefs true goodnefs who forgets the fountain of all good, and omits a fundamental part and important means of goodnefs ?- — ^Even the beft men, with all the aid which they derive from religious duties, find it diffi- cult to keep their minds in tolerable or- der, and to maintain themfelves in tran- quility and purity ? What then muft be the condition of thofe who pay no reo-ard to thefe duties? In what confufion muft their minds lie ? Into what a defart muft their charaders run ? How unprepared

muft they be for ficknefs and death ?

We are often feeing that thofe who have negledled Prayer in life, fly to it with eagernefs in death. They then fend, for

minifters 2

314 0/7 P R A Y E R.

minifters to pray with them, and expect, perhaps, that encouragement and com- fort fhould be given them. But what comfort can be given them ? He that now paffes his days without Prayer, in vain will he fly to it when he comes to die. The happinefs of another world is promifed to a holy life^ not to a fc-

nitent death. Let us then, while in

health, apply ourfelves to the moft necef- fary duties, and endeavour always to be: fo devout and diligent as we fhall foon

wifh we had been. In a little time

this world vnll be no more to us ; the curtain will drop between us and all mor- tal fcenes ; the folemn events which we are often hearing of, and w^hich we are apt to fee at a great diftance, w^ill over- take and amaze us j religion and eternity will appear to us in their juft impor- tance, and nothing will prove of any advantage to us except the good we now do, and the habits of virtue and piety which we pofTefs. Let us take care to bear this in mind amidft all our engage- ments

072 Prayer. 315

ments and purfuits. Let us ftrive to acquire that fpirit of true piety which will affimilate us to the Deity, and ellablifh our fouls in peace and refigna- tion and a fuperiority to defiling paffions^ Let us do all in our power, by our ex- ample and influence, to revive the credit of religion, and to remove the prejudices which prevail againft it. Thefe prejudices, as far as they proceed from the dreadful effefts of the corruptions of religion, are indeed in the highefl degree unreafon- able : for no one can be ignorant, that what is mofl ufeful arid valuable becomes in all cafes the moft pernicious when corrupted. But the inexcufablenefs of thefe preju- dices affords no reafon for being more remifs in endeavouring to remove them,. Did religion appear, in the tempers and lives of all who profefs it, to be that joyful and divine thing which it really is, every objedion to it would vanifh, and it would foon force univerfal reve- rence and admiration. But I feel my-

felf in danger of being too tedious.

In

3l6 O// PtI A Y E R.

In the latter part of this differtation I have endeavoured to fhew in vv^hat man- ner we ought to pray. I have infifted particularly on our obligation to pray with minds duly prepared ; with ferven- cy, frequency and perfeverance ; with univerfal virtue in our lives ; in the faithful ufe of the means for acquiring what we pray for, and as the followers of Jefus Chrift, who through him look for a refurre<5tion from death to the en- joyment of endlefs life and happinefs, • — Kow delightful and improving mufl fuch devotion be ? How mighty its pow^ er to refine and exalt our fouls ? How unutterable the fweetnefs of a life thus fpent ? How noble an acl of mind is a prayer thus offered up with fimplicity and humility, with collected thoughts, pure hearts, affured hope, warm affec- tions, and in the lively exercife of all worthy fentiments ? Does any man lack wjfdomy or any thing good for him ? Let him in this manner ajk it of Gody ivho ^ivcth to all men liberally ^ and it

jJmll

0?l P R A Y E R. 317

Jhall be ghen him *. Nothing can hap- pen amifs to fuch a perfon. He has an almighty friend to confide in, who hears liim at all times, is engaged in his defence, and will diftinguifh him eternally and infinitely from the irreli- gious and profane.

* James i 5.

D I S S E R.

DISSERTATION IIL

O N

The Reafons for expeding that virtuous Men fhall meet after Death in a State of Happinefs.

r

DISSERTATION IIL

O N

T^he Reafons for exptEiing that wtuoiLs Men Jloall meet after Death in a State of Happinefs,

NO perfon who ever makes any fen-* ous reflexions, can avoid v^ifhing carneftly to be fatisfied. Whether there i$ ^ future flate ? And if there is. What expeftations he ought to entertain w^itli refpeft to it, and by what means his

happinefs in It miift be fecured ? »-

There are many arguments which lead us to conclude, in anfwer to the firfl of thefe queftions, that we are indeed defigri- ed for another ftate. And there are alfo many which at the fame time prove, that the practice of virtue muft be our beft fecurity in all events, and the moil Y likely

322 The Jiin^ion of vtrtiioiis Men likely method to fecure happinefs through every poflible future period of our dura- tion. True goodnefs is the image of the Deity in our fouls; and it is not conceiveable that it fhould not recommend us to his particular regard, or that thofe who praftife it fliould not be always fafeft and happieft. On the fuppolition of a fviture world, nothing offers itfelf more unavoidably to our thoughts than the no- tion, that it will be a ftate in which pre- fent inequalities will be fet right, and a fuitable diftindion made between good

and bad men. It muft however be

owned, that this fubjedl, as it appears to the eye of unafifted reafon, is involv- ed in much darknefs. That in the fu- ture ftate all men (hall receive an ade- quate retribution^ we may in general knoWy but, had we nothing to guide us befides natural light, we could not go much further on any fure grounds, or give a fatisfadtory reply to feveral very interefting enquiries.

The

in the Heavenly State.' 323 The connderation, particularly, of oar- felves as giiihy creatures, would raife doubts in our minds; and thefe doubts would not be leffened but increafed by •reflefling, that under the divine govern- ment^ happinefs is connedied with virtue, and punifhment with vice. The fa(ft, that virtue will be rewarded, does not by any means determine what fuch virtue as ours may expe(fl:. The virtuous among mankind are to be confidered as penitent Jinners, and what peculiar treatment the cafes of fuch may require, or how far re- pentance might avail to break th^ con- nexion eftabhfhed by the divine laws between fm and'mifefy^ would not, I

think, be clear to us. Here then the

aid of the chriftian revelation comes in moft feafonably, and gives us the moft agreeable information. It furniflies u^ tvith a certain proof from fadt of a fu- ture ilate, and ihews to our fenfes the path of life m the refurredlion and afcen- fion of Jefus Chrift. It afiires us, that repentance will be available to our com- V 2 plete

324 ^^^ Jundiion of ^virtuous Men plete falvation, and that all virtuous men fliall be rewarded with a bleffed and glo- rious Immortality. At the fame time, it teaches us to confider this as the efFedt, not of the ordinary laws of the divine government, but of a particular interpofition in our favour, and a love to man in Jefiis Chrift which pajjh knov)- ledge.

But it is not my prefent purpofe to in- fift on thefe things. The reality of a future ftate, as it is difcoverable by rea- fon and as it has been confirmed and explained by the chriftian revelation, muft be now taken for granted. The defign of this difcourfe is only to offer a few thoughts on one particular queftion relating to it, which, though not of the highcjl, is yet ol fome confequence. I mean the queftion, *' How far we have <« reafon to expeft, that we Hiall bereaf- " ter be reftored to an acquaintance with ** one another, or again fee and know ** one another."

There

in the Heavenly State. 325 There are probably but few who have felt what it is to be deprived by death of perfons they loved, whofe thoughts have not been a good deal employed on this point. What, on fuch occafions, we muft delire chiejiy to know is, that our friends are happy ; but it is unavoidable to inquire further concerning them with fome anxiety, whether we are likely e- ver to fee them again. It would be dif- mal to think of a departed friend or rela- tive, that " He is gone from us for ever, *^ that he exifts no more to us." But virtuous men have no reafon for ^ny fuch apprehenfions : And one of the unfpeak- able comforts attending the belief of a future ftate, arifes from the hope it gives of having our friendfhips perpetuated, and being re-united in happier regions to thofe whom we have loved and ho- noured here. 1 am well fatisfied that

this is a very rational hope ; and in or- der to fliew that it is fo, I fliall beg leave to offer the following obfervations,

Y3 Let

326 The JunBhn of 'virtuous Men

Let it be confidered firft, what efFecfb our future recoUedtion of thofe who are nov/ dear to us, is likely to have uppi^ us.T — ^We have great reafon to believe, that all the fcenes of this life will, in the future life, be prefented to our me-? mories, and that we fhall then recover the greateft part, if not the whole of *our prefent confcioufnefs. The fcrip- tures teach us this in a very ftriking

manner. '^ It is not therefore to be

doubted, but that we fhall hereafter have a diftinft remembrance of our vir- tuous friends and kindred; and this re- membrance, one w^ould think, muft be attended with fome revival of particular regard, and have a |;endency to draw us to one another, as far as it will be poffiblc

Or proper.' -It will, I know, be ob-

jefted to this, that our attachments tq relations and friends are derived from inftinfts which have been planted in us to carry on the purpofes of the prefent {late, and which muft ceafe intirely here- after. This 'is, undoubtedly, in fome

degree

in the Heavenly State. '^ij deo-ree true. Every inftindive determi- nation, which refpefts only the exigen- cies of the prefent life, will ceafe with it. But does it follow from hence, that we are likely hereafter to be left as indif- ferent to thofe who are now our re- lations and friends, as if we had never known them? This would be a very wrong conclufion. The natures of things render it fcarcely conceive able, that the recolledlion of thofe valuable perfons with whom v/e now have connections, (of valuable parents, for example, who had the care of us in our firft years, and have brought us up to virtue and hap- pinefs,) fhould not, in every future pe- riod of our duration, endear their me- mory to us, and give us a particular pre- ference of them, and inclination to feek their fociety. Many of the diftindions, which we make in our regards between fome and others, are derived from reafon and neceffity ; and this feems to be the cafe in the prefent inftance.-- — fWe are, perhaps, apt fometimes to carry our no- Y 4 tions

52S l^he yunSion of virtuous Men tions too far of the difference between what we now are, and what wc raall be. in thene;xt ftage of our being. Ii, would be abfurd to fuppofe, that we ihall here^ /^ after want all particular defires and pro- penfities. Benevolence, curiofity, . felf-r love, the defire of honour, and mcfr of our more noble and generous aff^iilions, . will not decreafe but grow as the per- fection of our intelleftual nature giT^wSvi. And. even ourprefent facial inJiinBs may . ledve effedts on our tempers which n^ay produce an everlafting union of fouls, and lay the foundation of fentiments and de^- iires which flaall never be loft,

Buttheie obfervations, lamfenfible, are not direffly to the prefent purpofir Whet affords the plaineft evidence on this fubr, je(fl, is the following confideratioh.'-—- ^ There is great reafon to believe ' tliat ' virtuous men, as beings of the fame fpe- cies who have begun exiftence in the fame circumftances, and been trained up to virtue in the fame ftate of trial and

difcipline^j

in the Heavenly State. 32^^

difcipline, will be hereafter placed in the fame common manfions of felicity. It is groundlefs and unnatural to imagine, " that after paffing through this Yii^y they ' will be removed to different worlds, or" fcattered into different regions of the uni- verfe. The language of the fcriptures feems plainly and exprefly to determine the contrary. They acquaint us, that man- kind are to be raifed from the dead toge- ther y and to be judged together -, and that the righteous, after the general refurrec- tion and judgment, are to be taken to- gether to the fame heavenly ftate, there • to live and reign with Chrift, and to fhare in his dignity and happinefs. When, in the epiftle to the Hebrews, (chap, xii.- -. ?2, 23, 24.) we ate faid,; in confequencerit of the clear difcoveries made by the gof- -vf^ pel of a future ftate, to be, as it were^T already come to the city of the living God, fa an innumerable company of Angels, to the^i'y general ajfembly and church ofthefirjl-bom^ L and to the fpirit^ of pijl men made pcrfe5l :

1%

330 The JunBion of virtuous Men it is plainly implied, that we are to join the general aflembly of juft men and of angels in the realms of light, and to be fixed in the fame manfions with them.

The ftate of future reward is frequent- ly, in the New Teftament, defcribed un- der the notion of a city, that is, a com- munity or fociety. It is likewife very often called a kingdom , the kingdom of God, and the everlajling kingdom of our Lord and Saviour fefus Chrifl. The great end of Chrift's coming into the world w^as to lay the foundation of this kingdom, by faving men from the effedts of guilt, delivering them from death, and uniting the virtuous part of them under one perfedt and everlajfting govern- ment in the heavens. 'Tis faid of the true difciples of Chrift, that * becaufe he lives y they Jhall live alfoy that they fliall hereafter appear with him in glory ^ that he is now entered for them into hearven as their for erun7icr ; that he is there prepar-

ing

John.

in the Heavenly State. 331

ing a place for them^ and that he will foon come again to take them to hlmfelfy that where he is, there they may be alfoy beholding his glory. This account is ut- terly inconfiftent with the fuppofition, that thofe who fhall partake of the fu- ture reward of virtue are to be difperfed into different parts of the univerfe, and fcarcely leaves us any room to doubt on the prefent queftion. For, is it poffible, that we fhould be happy hereafter in the fame feats of joy, under the fame per- fe<a government, and as members of the fame heavenly fociety, and yet remain ftrangers to one another ? Shall we be together with Chrift, and yet not with one another? Or fhall we lofe one ano- ther in that multitude which cannot be num- bered ^% of thofe who have been refcued by him from deftrud:ion, and who wull follow him to his everlafting kingdom? Being in the fame happy ftate with our prefent virtuous friends and relatives. Will they not be acceffible to us ? And ff acceffible, Shall we not fly to them,

and * Rev. vli. Q.

332 T^he JunBion of virtuous Men

and mingle hearts and fouls again ? — I am very fenfible, that a great deal of what the fcriptures fay of the future ftate is accommodated to our prefent imperfedl ideas, and muft not be underftood too literally. But if, in the prefent in- ftance, it means any thing, it muft mean as much as implies what I am pleading for.

In order to give fome further evidence on this point, it will not be amifs to de- fire, that the following palTages of fcrip- ture may be attended to. — The TheiTalo- nians, a little before St. Paul wrote his firft epiftle to them, had, it feems, loft fome of their friends by death. In thefe circumftances, he exhorts them not to forrow like others who had no hopey be- caufe they might conclude certainly, from the death and refurredion of Jefus, that thofe who had Jlept in him, God ivould hereafter bring with him. He tells them hy the word of the Lord, or, as from immediate revelation, that a period was

coming

in the Heavenly State. 333

coming when Chrift would defcend from heaven with ajhouty with the voice of the arch' angel y and with the trwnp of God; and when the friends they had loft fhould be raifed from the dead, and, toge- ther with themfelves, fiould be caught up to meet the Lord in the airy and to live for ever with hi?n. 1 Theff. iv. 13, 14,

&c. But what I have in view is more

diftindlly aflerted in the 2d chapter of this epiftle, verfe 19th. For what is our hopey our joy, our crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the prefence of our Lord fe-"

fas at his coming? *Tis moft

plainly implied in thefe words, that the apoftle expefted to fee and know again his Theffalonian converts at Chrift's fe- cond coming. The fame remark may be made on his words in 2 Cor. iv, 14. knowingy that he which raifed up the Lord Jefusy Jhall raife us up alfo by Jefusy and prefent us with you. And alfo in 2 Cor. i. 14. As you have acknowledged us in party that we are your rejoicingy even fo ye alfo are curs in the day of the Lord Jfus,

Having

334 The yun^iion of liirtiious Men

Having made thefe obfervations to flxew, that we may with reaibn enter* tain the exped:ation of joining one ano^ ther hereafter 5 I fhall now beg leave to give myfelf free fcope in imagining and reprefenting the happinefs with v/hich it

will be attended. It is fcarcely pof-

fible for any perfon not to look upon this, as one moft agreeable circumilance in the future ftate of felicity. It has a tendency to render the contemplation of another w^orld much more delightful. The hope of it rifes up unavoidably in our minds, and has generally, if not al-» ways *", accompanied the belief of a fu-* ture exiflence. Nor does there appear the leajft reafon why we fliould helitate here a moment, or refufe falling in rea- dily with the natural and common appre-

* 0 pnedarum diem^ turn ad illud dlvinum animo- rurn concilium catumque proficifcar ; cumque ex hac iurha £t colhrJto7ie d'ljcedam ! Proficifcar euhn mn ad cos folurh vlros de qu'ihus ante dixi, fid ct'iam ad catonem ineum^ quo nemo v'lr rncUor nsitus f/i^ mmo pietate praftantUr^ &Cw Cicer. de Sene(Slute,

henfions

in the Heavenly State. 33^

henlions of mankind. Without dwelling therefore any longer on the evidence for this point, let us recolledl fome of the particular circumftances which will con- tribute towards rendering the future junc- tion of virtuous men joyful.

One of thefe circumftances will be the remembrance of their prefent connexi- ons with one another. For me7z to meet men ki the heavenly fociety; for beings to join one another hereafter, who have begun their exiftence on the fame planet, felt the fame fears, and undergone the fame difcipline, muft be the caufe of plea- fure. What then will it be {or friends to meet friendsy and kindred to meet kin- dred? What will it be, after obtaining a complete conqueft over death, to be reftored to thofe who are now dear to us as our own fouls, and to whofe example and inftruftions we are, perhaps, indebt- ed for the higheft bleffings ? With what delight will the pious parent meet his children, the hufband the wife, and the 5 mafter

336 T^he JunSimz of vir tutus Men

mafter his family? How will many good men, now of oppofite fentiments, re-* joice to fee one another in blifs, and to find thofe errors correfted and thofe filly prejudices removed, which here keep them at a diftance from one ano^ ther? How will the faithful clergyman rejoice with thofe of his flock who have profited by his labours, and whom he has been the means of reclaiming from vice, or improving in goodnefs ? What congra-* tulations and mutual welcomings, may we fuppofe, will then take place be- tween all virtuous friends ? How agree- able will it be to review together the converfations which they have with one another in this-flate of darknefs, and to recolledt and compare the fcenes they now pafs through, the doubts that now perplex them, the different parts they now ad:, and the; different temptations and trials with which they fl:ruggle? Are fuch views and reflexions all vifionary? Surely they are not. If there is indeed to be that future junftion of the worthy among ^ 5 mankind.

' '^^\r'fBeHeave?2ly State, 337-.

mankind, which I have pleaded for, they are fufficiently warranted, and mull offer themfelves to every confiderate mind.

Another circumftance which will con-'' tribute to the joy we fliall have in meet- ing one another hereafter, will be our reflexion on the common danger we fhali have efcaped. We are told in the plain- eft terms by the mouth of divine wifdom, that all who do wickedly iliail be doomed to that everlafling fire *■

which

"^^Matth. XXV. 41. ThenJJ)allhe fay to them on the left 'handy depart from me ye cur fed into everlafling fire ^ prepared for the devil and his angels. It has been obfer- ved as remarkable, in the paflage from whence thefc words are taken, that, whereas the kingdo?n into. wHTch the righteous are to be advanced, is faid to have been prepared for them from before the founda- tion of the world ; the everlafling fire^ on the con- trary, into which the wicked are to be configned, is faid to have been prepared, not for them, but for the

devil and his angels, -This fecms to intimate to us,

that the devil and his an^iels were the firft tranf^ref- fors, who have been the means of involvins; mankind in guilt and diRrefs,

Z i

33^ 0?i the Junction ofvktuous Men

which was prepared for the devil and hh angeh ; and that braad is the way, and wide

I cannot forbear adding, with refpedl to the repre- fentation which the fcriptures often make of the fu- ture ftate of punifliment, zs zn unquenchable and ever - lajVing fire into which the wicked are to be caft; that

probably the rcafons of it may be, 1/?, The

propriety of an inextinguifliable fire, which confumes whatever is thrown into it, to reprefent, in a manner flriking to the imagination, the future everlafting rcje6^ion and extermination of all that work iniquity.

idly^ Learned men have obferved, that there is

in this reprcfentation an allufion to the continual fires in the valley of Hinnom near Jerufalem, where^ in idolatrous times, innumerable children had been burnt alive to Moloch 5 and where, in the times of our Saviour, there was a fire always burning to confume the fihh of the city and the carcafcs of animals. Thiij valley was confidered by the jews, for this reafon, ai» a place (o unclean and horrible, that it was natural to make ufc of it as an emblem of the ftate of future punilhment. It is well known, that the original words rendered by the tranflators of the New Tefta- ment, Hell-fire, are the fire of Gehenna^ or the fire of the valley of Hinnom, It was, therefore, from this Valley-, that the regions of punilhment came to be called by the ancient Jews Gehenna^ the fign or emblem being n^.c-nic to ftand for that which it was fuppofed to re- fcmblc.

the

in the Heavenly State. ^^g

the gate that ieadetb to' dejlruclion, and that many there be who go in thereat. Every pcrfon, therefore, who fliall hereafter at^ tain to happinefs, will be one efcaped from great danger. And can it be ima- gined, that the remembrance of this will have no tendency to enhance the fatisfac- tion attendirtg the future jundion of good men ? Will it not be agreeable to fee that, amidft the difmal wreck, our friends have been prefer ved ; and that they arc fafe landed, after being toiled on the fea of this world, and running numberlefs rifks of being caft away ? Will it not give us the higheft pleafure to meet a- mong the blefled, thofe perfons for whom, perhaps, we have often lighed and trem- bled; or to find, that inftead of being numbred among the loft and miferable, our earneft wilhes for them have been anfwered, that they have acquitted them- felves well in life, and chofen that good fart which will never be taken from them?

Z a ThirJly,

340 On the JiinBion ofmrttious Men

Thirdlyy It may be proper, on this oc- cafion, to think of the place where we fhall hereafter join our virtuous friends. We fliall meet them in the realms of light;

m that city * which hath foundations y whofe builder and maker is God-, in the e^oerlajling kingdom of our Lord and Saviour fefus Chrijl. We fhall fee them again in thofe new heavens and that new J earth wherein dwelleth right eoifnefs^ into which nothing that deflethy or that loveth or mak- eth a licy fhall be admitted -f- ; where all tears will be wiped away from our eyes, and pain and death and forrow J}:all be known no more || ; where nature will ihew us its moft glorious face, and order, peace and love reign in full perfeftion for ever.

But one of the particulars that moft re- quires our notice here is, that our friends will then have loft their prefent weak- neflefs. They will not then be fuch frail

-*

Heb. xi. 10. t 2 Pet. iii. 13. t Rev. xxi. 27. II Rev. xxi. 4.

and

in the Heavenly State. 341

and helplefs beings as we now fee them. They will not be liable to be iiifnared by temptations, or ruffled by unreafonable paflions. They will not be hafly in their judgments, capricious in their tempers, or narrow in their opinions. Every wrong byafs will be taken from their wills, and the imperfeftions, which now render them lefs amiable, will be removed. Our hearts fh all never more ache for their troubles, or feel anguifh on their account. They will be paft all ftorms, cured of all follies, and eafed of all pains. They . will appear in finifhed dignity and honour, after the education and difcip- line of this world, and be endowed with every excellence which we can wiili them to have. — What pleafure will it give to meet them in thefe circumflances ? How dehghtful will be our intercourfe with them when they, together with ourfelves, fliall be thus changed and improved ?

Once more. In the future world,

there v/Ill be no fuch painful fepa-

Z 3 rations

342 On the ju7tBio7i of virtuous Men

rations from our friends as we now flifv

fer. It can fcarcdy be faid that wc

have in this life, more than juft time e-' nough to begin friendships, and to feel the pangs of forrow that attend the diffo- Jution of them. But, in the heavenly irate, we fhall feel no forrows of this kind. Our friends will be immortal. Our happinefs in them will be liable to no a- batements from the fad apprehenfion of being foon parted from thenn, and feeing them fmk under decay and ficknefs. We iliall never be witneffes to any fuch fliock- ing fcenes as their expiring agonies. The cruel hand of death will not be able there to reach them, and to tear them from our embraces *, They will flourifh in eternal

health

* " Who would naf, (T^ys §ocrates in his apo- " Jogy) part with a gr-eat deal to purchafe a meeting ^' with Orpheus^ Hefiod^ Homer ^ &c.? If it be true ^' that this is to be the confequence of death, I would

'* even be glad to die often. What pleafure will

^^ it give to live with Palatncclcs and others, who fuf? f*^ fjarcd urijuflly, ^Jid lo fpirpare my fate with

*' $hcirs?

. 171 the Heavenly State. 343

health and vigour, and be with us for ever witJp the Lord.-r — Such are the cir-? c^umftances that, we may imagine, will contribute to the joy attending the future jundlion of virtuous men in the heavenly ftafe. I cannot help adding tlie follow- ing reflexions .-

Firjl, What I have been faying has a tendency to increafe our fatisfac^Hon in o'ur friends. The profpedl, in general, of a future Hate, muft have a moft friendly in- fluence on our prefent enjoyments. What, indeed, is human life without fuch a profped? What darknefs refts upon it, when we confider it as no more than a paffing fliadow, which appearcth for a little while (ind then vanifieth away ; or, as a iliort period of tumultuous buf~

'" theirs ? What an inconceivable happinefs will it *' be to converfe, in another world, v/ith ^ifiphus^ *' Ulyjftsy &c. efpecially, as thofe who inhabit that 'f wyrkl fhali die no more ?- Kai rr^^n '^o-j Xonro^^

tSlV' Sccr. ApoL fipud Plata-

z 4 ^1=

344 ^^' ^^^ JunBion of virtuous Men

tie and uncertain happinefs diminillied J^y many vexations, with an infinite blank before and behind it? Such a view of life deprives its plcafures of their relifh. It is enough to chill all our thoughts, and to break every fpring of noble acSion

within us. -But if, in reality, this life is

only an introduBion to a better life, or the feeble infancy of an exiftence that fliall never t'^A, it appears with un- ipeakable dignity ; it has an infinitely ini-^ portant end and meaning ; all its enjoy- ments receive an additional relifh, and the face of nature will fliine with greater

beauty and luftre. In particular, the

confideration of the circumflance relat- ing to our future exiftence on which I have been infifting, will communicate new joy to all our prefent friendflnps. <■ — The refletffcion on our friends as heirs with us of the fame blefled immortality, as perfons whom we fhall meet in the regions of heavenly blifs and live with for ever, muft chear our minds in all our

inter^.

in the Heavenly State. 345

intercourfe with them, and caiife us to look upon them with the higheft affedi-v on and dehght. But, to conlider them as only beings of a day, who are to pcrifh in death we know not how foon ; How uncomfortable is this? What a damp muft it throw over our friendfhips ? How dijfficult mull it be for perfons, who have any tender feelings, to think, without diftrefs, of agreeable connexions which they fee will end in a fpeedy and final reparation -, or, of valuable friends, all whofe valuable qualities are, in a little while, to be wholly extinguifhed, and whom they are juft going to lofe for e- ver ? The more agreeable the connexions are, the more diftrefs muft fuch appre- henfions create; and the more valuable our friends, the greater reafon will there

be for pain. But, fuppofe what has

been afferted in this difcourfe; fuppofe, that our prefent connexions are to be re- newed hereafter, that we are again to fee thofe valuable perfons who are gone before us from hence, or, that the

friendr

34^ On the JunBmi of virtuous Men

iriendfliips which now take place betweeiT^ worthy in^en, are only the beginnings q£ an union of mind«, that will be continue ed and perfeifted in the heavens : Sup- pofe this, I fay, and all will be triumph. We fliall have abundant encouragement to cultivate friendfliip. The view of death will have a tendency to increafe, rather than damp the pleafares attending it. The addition of a good friend or re- lative will be the addition of one, who will fhare with us in the joys of immor- tality, who will enter with us into the city of the living God, and be our ever- lafting companion in glory.

'Tis natural to remark further on this occafion, how important it is that we cul^ tivate only virtuous friendships. Cicero has obfcrved, with the higheft reafon, that all fricndihip ought to be founded in virtue. There is certainly nothing- elfe that can rpake it fafe, lailing and happy. It is its cement, life^ joy and ^Towa. Th^re is no other permanent

founda-

in the Heavenly State. 347

foundation of love, or bond of union be- tween reafonable beings.—- But there is nothing much better fitted to fliew the importance of virtue in friendfhip, than the fubjed: now under our confideration. How fhocking muft it be to beheve, that our deareft intimate is one whom we cannot expe<fl to fee hereafter in bHfs, one who wants the love of the Deity, and who is haftening faft to everlafting puniih- ment? How can any perfon think of having in his bofom an enemy to the order of the world, and a child of perdi- tion and ruin ? With what pain muft an attentive perfon look upon fuch a friend, and what concern muft he feel for him ? On this account, were irreligious friends to allow themfelves time enouorh for re- flexion, they \^>ould neceffarily be the caufes of the f?;reateft trouble to one ano- ther. Did they duly attend to their own circumftances, the danger they are in, ihe precarioufnefs of life, and the near* nefs of the time when they fhall be fepa- fated never again to meet, except in

that

348 On the JunBion of virtuous Men

that world where joy is never known, and hope never comes ; did they, I fay, properly attend to thefe things, they would furely be incapable of bearing one another; their love would be turned into anguifli, and their friendfhip into horror. Let us then avoid, as much as we well can, becoming intimately connedled with any, except the virtuous and wor- thy. Let us refolve to cultivate friend- fliip only with thofe whom we may hope to be happy withy^r ever.

In the next place. It is a very obvious ob- fervation on the prefent fubjeft, ihat it af- fords the beft confolation in a time of grief

for the death of friends. It is, I think,

very credible that death is an event, for which, fuch creatures as we are, might not at firft be defigned. It looks like a break in our exiftence, attended with fuch circumftances, as may well incline us to believe, that it is a calamity in which we have been involved, rather llian a method of tranjition from one ftate

of S

in the Heavenly State, 349

of exiftence to another, originally ap- pointed by our creator and common un- der his government. This, the fcrip- tures declare plainly to be the real fad: : But then, it fhould be remembered, that the fame fcriptures inform us further, that we have a great deliverer, who came into the world, that we might have * life -, and who, by death has dejiroyed death and him who had the power of deaths and obtain^ edfor us everlajiing redemption.

The dark and dreary grave, therefore, has now nothing in it that fliould make it appear terrible. To virtuous men, it is no more than a bed of reft till the morning of a joyful refurredtion. We have, as chrif- tians, fomething better to fupport us under the anguifh produced by the death of friends, than the cold alternative of the an- tient philofophers, that either they are happy, or returned to the fi ate they were in before they were born. We may exult in the expe«ftation of finding them again,

** John X. 10. Heb, ii. 14. ix. 12.

and

350 On thejuri^ion of virtuous Men

and renewing our friencKhip with them in a better country. The word that death can do, is to caufe a lliort interruption in our intercourfe with tliem ; or to remove them from our fight for a moment : We fliall foon follow them, be raifed up with thetn to a new life, and take pofleffion with them of an inheritance iticorruptible^ ujtde^ filed, and that fadeth not away *. Such are the hopes which the bleffed gofpel gives; and well may they elevate our minds above thefe fcenes of mortality, dry up our tears in every feafon of forrow, and infpire us al- ways with joy iinfpeakablc and full of -f- glory ^ The whole eiFe<fl which the inroads made by death among our friends, fhould have upon us, is to render us more diligent in religious virtue, and to quicken us to greater zeal in endeavouring to fecure a meeting with them and with all worthy men hereafter. It fhould belong only to thofe, whole regards are confined to this world and who have no hope, to be in- confolable on fuch occafions,

* I Peter i. 3, 4. t I Peter i. 8.

Once

in the Hea'uenly State. 351;

Once more: I would obferve, that the expectation which virtuous friends have of being completely happy together hereafter^ furnifhes them with a very important direc-^ tion for regulating their prefent behaviour to one another. They fhould maintain in their whole deportment, that purity and dignity which become fo higli an expecta- tion. They fhould endeavour, by their ex- amples and admonitions, to excite in one another an earneft ardor to excel in every worthy quality, and watch continually over one another, leaft, through the indulgence of any failures, they fliould lofe future blifs, and come to be eternally feparated from one another. Their views ought to be direded always to the heavenly ftate, and their whole concern fliould be fo to live and converfe together, as to fecure a joyful meeting there.

The pleafures of fociety and friendfliip

are fome of the greateft we are capable of.

It is not credible, that there is any created

intelligence that enjoys a happinefs which

5 is

352 On the JunBion of virtuous Men

is independent of all focial correfpondencies and connexions. A ftate wholly folitary niuft want many of the principal fources of blifs. It appears dark and defolate, and cannot admit oi the exertion of fome of the nobkft powers of reafonable beings. Friend- fliip therefore, in all probability, is ever- lafting and univerfal in the rational creation, and will make a part of our happinefs in e- very future period of our exiftence. The coo- fideration of this has a tendency to raife our ideas of its value, and fhould engage us to be anxious about fo ading in this relation now, and fo Improving its bleffings, as that we may go from hence properly qualified for the more noble and exalted friend- fliips of another world. — How noble and exalted thefe will be, it cannot enter into our hearts to conceive. It is impoffible to look forwards to them with lively faith and attention, without feeling an alacrity and elevation of mind, not to be produced by any other caufe. Let us before we difmif^ this fubjed, fix our thoughts here a moment,

and

4u 4.,.. ;venJy State. ^rj

and recoiled fome of the obfervations which have been made*

It gives us, in the prefent life, a pleafure of the higheft kind, to converfe w^kh wife and worthy men amidft all our prefent imper- fedlions, and notwithftanding the certain profpeft of being in a little while parted by death. What then will it be to join the ge- neral ailembly of the great and good in the heavens j to be reftored there to thofe who are now the defire of our eye and the joy of our hearts 5 to converfe with them when freed from every weaknefs and adorned with every amiable quality, and to make a part of the glorious company of Chrift's faithful foUow^ers at his fecond coming ? What will it be, not only to have our pre-^ fent friendfhips thus perpetuated, but to commence new ones with fuperior beings ; to live and reign with the Saviour of finful mortals, and to be for ever improving, with all the virtuous part of the creation, under the eye and care of the Almighty ?

A a ' Wc

354 0^^ ^^^ JunBioji of virtuous Men

We are now frail, feeble, ignorant and helplefs. We think, we fpeak, and aft like children ; but, in a little time, we ihall be advanced to a more perfedl ftate, and re- ceive our complete confummation in foul and body in everlafting glory. Soon the darknefs of this world will vanifli, every weight will be removed from our afpiring minds, our higheft faculties gain full fcope for exertion, and unclouded endlefs day dawn upon us. We Ifhall be brought to the heavenly fenifalem^ to an innumerable company of angels^ to the fpirifs of juji meit made perfeBy to Jefus the mediator of the new covenant -i and to God the judge of all. ———We have latent powers which it may be the bufinefs of eternity to evolve. We are capable of an infinite variety of a- jgreeable perceptions and fenfations, which are now as incomprelienfible to us, as the enjoyments of a grown man are to an infant in the womb. Our prefent exiftence is but the .firft ftep of an afcent in dignity and blifs, which will never come to an end.— - How amazing and extatick this profped t I What

ifi the Heavenly State. ^55

\Vhat fliall we fome time or other be ?- ^

But let us take care to remember the truth, which, in this difcourfe, I have all along 'kept in fight. Lejt us not forget, that none but perfons of righteous Jives and charac- ters hav6 reafon to rejoice in thefe views. —The workers of iniquity vAll not rife h\.\\.ft7iL They will be driven from the fociety of virtuous beings. They will lofe infinite happinefs, and be caft away for e- ver. They are nuifances in the creation, and unfit to be prefcrved ^ or, according to our Lord's reprefentation, the tares amojig the 'wheat ^ and when the time of harveji /Joall come, he will fay to his reapers, gather to- gether, firfl the tares, and bind them in bun- dies, and burn them-, but gather the wheat into my barn *.-.— Would you then make fure of the happinefs I have -been repre- fenting ? Would you, when every earth- ly connexion is broken, obtain admiffi- on into a better world, and an union with thofe you love in the habitations of the juft? Would you be able, hereafter,

* Matth. xiil. 30*

Aa 2 to

t)

356 On the Jiin6iio?i of "virtuom Men

to join your voice to the voices of mil- lions, v^ho, after the long filence of the grave, will break forth into St. Paul's fong of triumph, 0 grave where is thy fvi6fory? O death where is thy Jiing? Blef^ fed be God who giveth lis the victory through Jeftis Chrifi ? Would you rife to a place on ChrijVs throne ^ -, or, fee the time when yoa fhall look down upon arch-angels ?— — . Then avoid vice. Practife true religion. Strive to get above defiling paffions, and to grow in every excellent difpofition ? .On this, all depends. This is the only preparation for blifs, and the only way to favour under the divine go- vernment. All anxiety, except about this, every human being will foon know to be folly unfpeakablc. Remem- ber, that if there is fuch a ftate of fu- ture exiftence as has been defcribed, there is nothing worth a lingle thought, com- pared with making provifion for it ; and that, confcious of your own dignity, it |)ecomes you to look continually above e-

* Rev. iii. 2.1,

very

i?i the Heavenly State. 357

very thing mortal, and to fpurn with'dif- dain at thofe pleafures, profits and ho- nours, on which the children of this world fet their hearts. — Blejj'edare they who keep the commandments of God, that they may have a right to the tree of life, and may enter

in through the gates into the city *. He

that over Cometh fiall inherit all things. But the fearful and unbelieving, and the abomi- nable, and murtherers, and whoremongers, and forcer ers, and idolatrous, and all liars, flmll have their part in the lake that burneth with fire and brimjione -, which is the fecond death.

* Rev. xxil. 14. xxi. 7, 8.

D I S S E R-

DISSERTATION IV.

O N

The Importance of Chriftianity, The Nature of Hiftorical Evidence,

AND

MIRACLES,

A a 4

DISSERTATION IV.

O N

The Importance of Chriftianity, the Nature of Hiftorical Evi- dence, and Miracles.

SECTION T,

Introdudiory Obfervations, relatmg to the Importance ofChrlftianityy its I^videncesy and the QhjeBions which have been made to it.

IT is not poflible, that any informa- tion fhould be fo important, as that which we have in the facred writings. The difcoveries lately made in the fyftem of the material world are juftly thought of with admiration. They bellow, in- ■' deed

362 On Hijiorical Evidence ^

deed, new luftre and dignity on human nature. But they are of no confequence and deferve no regard, compared with the difcoveries contained in the Bible, fuppofmg it in titled to our faith. We are here made acquainted with feveral fads in the fcheme of the moral world, and the hifcory of providence, which are not only wondcrfidy but inter ejlingm the high-^ eft degree.

There is nothing In all nature, about which we have fo much reafon to wifh for information, as deathy the relentlefs de- ftroyer which reduces to the duft every human being, and which, in all ages, has held the world in bondage, and given birth to numberlefs woes and forrows. Concerning this, the fcriptures reveal to us many particulars of the utmoft impor- tance, which we could not otherwife have known. They acquaint us, that it was not an original part of the divine fcheme, but a calamity in which our race has been involved, in confequence of cer- tain

and Miracles. 365

tain connexions which took place under the divine government. They inform us of the caufes which introduced it, and of a ftupendous difpenfation of providence which it has occafioned. They difcover to us that great MeJJiah^ by whom God made this world, and who came down from heaven to deliver it from diftrefs ; who is now the Lord of men and angels, ^nd who, hereafter, will appear in glo- ry to abolifh death, to judge mankind in righteoufnefs, to execute juftice on the wicked, and to eftablifh an everhfiing kingdom, in which all the virtuous and worthy ihall meet, and be completely and unchangeably happy.

I make thefe obfervations in order to ihew how much it concerns us to ftudy the facred records, and to inquire into the evidences of their divine original. It is not eafy to conceive of a higher obligar* tion, that fuch creatures as we are can be under. There is fcarcely a principle in oqr natures which does not induce us

364 ^^^ Hijlorical Evidence,

to tliis powerfully. In particular; as the fcriptures inform us of the chief revolu^ tions through which this world has paft, and will pafs, the principle of curiofity leads us to it. As they profefs to teach us God's will, and to give an account of a revelation from heaven, all the princi- ples oi piety lead us to it. But, more e- ipecially, we are led to it by the whole force of the principle of felf-love : For, if the Bible is true, it, fettles the terms of falvation, and contains the words of eternal Ufe-y and, confequently, the folly of care - Icfly rejedling it will be infinitely worfe, than the folly would be of carelefly throwing afide a deed, which, if validly proved our title to a large eftate.

I think, with great pleafure, that the fubjeft to which I refer has lately en- gaged much attention, and undergone a icridl fcrutiny. It is to be wiflied, that the attention to it may continue, and that all the learned and inquifitive would unite their efforts towards giving it the

moil

and Miracles, 365

moft thorough difcuflion, allowing every objeiftion its full weight and a fair hear- ing, and never concealing any thing that may have a tendency to throw light on a controveriy of fuch moment. — — The oppofition hitherto made to chriftianity, has, I think, done it the greateft fervice. It has been the means of caufing it to be better under- ftood, of fhewing, in a clearer light, on what foundation of evidence it /lands, Wd of removing from it many incum- brances and adulterations, which, for many ages, had miferably difguifed and debafed it. We may reafonably hope for Inore and more of thefe good efFed:s, the more unbelievers go on to exert their ftrength *. Let no one then put him- felf to the leaft pain on account of any of their writings. Much lefs, let any one think of calling in the aid of civil

* This is well reprefented in the feconJ-x»f Dr. Ge- rard's DiiTertations on Subjali relating to the Genuii and Evidinui of Chnjlianitj.

X po\^'er

•366 On Hijlorical 'Evidence^

power to anfwer them *, Detefted •be the men who have ever done thi^. X»et rather unbelievers be encouraged to produce their ftrongeft objeiftions. If chriftianity is of God, we may be fure that it will bear any trial, and in the end prevail. — The civil magiftrate ought not to interpofe in the defence of truth, till it has appeared that he is a competent

* We have lately feen a cruel inftance of this In the profecution, pillorying and confinement to Bridewell^ of a poor [iuny infidel, worn out with age, who was utterly incapable of doing any caufe the

leaft good or harm. It is a bad excufe to fay, that

k was not infidelity y but indecency and fiurrility that were punifhed in this inftance. For, this is to punifh for the circumftances in a publication, which render it fo much the lefs likely to 'produce any efFedl. Befides^ who fhall have the power of determining whether a book againfl: an eftabliftied opinion is writ decently^ irv order to give a right of punifhing ? There are no hands in which fuch a power can be lodged, without the utmofl danger to what, as reafonable beings, we ought moft to value. A zealot in a popijh country, cannot well wifh for any greater power. God grant it may never be again allowed to any zealots in our own.

judge

and Miracles. 367

judge of truth. This, certainly, he is not. On the contrary -, univerfal experi- ence has, hitherto, proved him one of its worfl enemies. Nothing can be more difgraceful to the chriftian religion than to fuppofe, that it needs Juc/j alliftance. Were this true, it would, by no means, be worth defending.

Among the objeftions which have been mad^ to chriftianity, there are fome that contain real difficulties ; and w^hich a candid defender of chriftianity, inftead of pretending intirely to remove, fliould al* low to v/eigh as far as they can go againft the evidence. The proof of chriftianity does not coniift of a clear fum of argu- ments, without any thing to be oppoled to them. Butitisthe overbalance of e vi - dence that remains after every reafonable dedudion is made on account of difficult ties. This^'is' the cafe with refpeft to almofl: every point that can employ our thoughts; and thofc who believe, that there is any q[ueilion which they can

clear

368 On Htjlorical Evidence,

clear of every difficulty, may be fure, that they are either very unfair or very fuperficial in their inquiries. — But, at the, fame time that I acknowledge this, I mud fay, with refpedl to chriftianity, that molt of the objeftions to it have re- ceived a full anfwer, and are indeed the effedls of either want of candour, or of wrong notions derived from ignorance and carelefs examination.— I will beg leave juft to mention a few inftances of this.

It has been faid, that if chriftianity came from God, it would have been taught the world with fuch clearnefs and precifion, as not to leave room for doubts and difputes.'— I cannot think that any candid perfon, who has read the defences of chriftianity, would mention this. Has the author of nature giv^n us reafon in this manner, or even the information we derive from our fenfes ? Is it poffible, while we continue fuch creatures as we are, tliat any inftru(5tion Ihould be fo

clear

and Miracleii 2 69

clear as to preclude difputes? Suppofing the deity to grant us fupernatural light, are we judges what degree of it he ought to give, or in what particular manner it ought to be communicated ?

Again : The animofities, perfecutions and bloodfhed which the chriftian religion has occafioned, have been urg- ed as objections to it, — '■- — This, like- wife, certainly ftiould not be mentioned, till it can be fhewn, that there is one be- nefit or bleffing enjoyed by mankind, which has not been the occafion of evils. How eafy would it be to reckon up many dreadful calamities, which owe their exiftence to knowledge, to liberty, to natural religion, and to civil govern- ment? How obvious is it, that what is in its nature moft ufeful and excellent, will, for this very reafon, become moll hurtful and pernicious when mifapplied or abufed? Chriftianity forbids every evil work. Its fpirit is the fpirit of for- bearance, meeknefs and benevolence. B b Were

370 On Hiflorical "Evidence ^

Were it to prevail in its genuine purity, and to be univerfally pradlifed, peace and joy would reign every where. Un- charitablenefs, prieft-craft, contention and perfecution, are evils which have taken place among its profeflbrs, in di- redt oppoiition to its fcope and defign. Is it not then hard that it fhould be made refponfible for thefe ? Has it not a right to be judged of by its genius and tendencies, rather than by any mifchief which blindnefs and bigotry and the love of domination have done in the chrif-

tian church ? For my own part, when

I contemplate the horrid fcenes which ccclefiaftical hiftory prefents to our view, inflead of feeling difgufl with chrifliani^ ty, I am ftruck with the divine forejQght difcovered by its founder, when he faid, / am not come to fend peace on earthy but a Jword'y and led to a firmer faith, arifing from a reflexion on the warning given in the fcriptures, that an apoftacy would come, and a favage power appear which, fhould defile God's fanduary, tread un- der

md Miracles. 371

der foot truth and liberty, and make it- felf drunk with the blood of faints and martyrs*

Further : The offence which has been given to unbelievers, by the pofitive in- ftitutions of chriftianity, affords another inflance of plain unreafonablenefs and dif- ingenuity. There is not a more ftriking recommendation of chriftianity than its Jimplicityy or, its freeing religion, fo much as it does, from the incumbrance of rites and ceremonies. Other religions are loaded with thefe, and have a ten- dency to hurt the intereft of morality, by turning the attention of men from it, and leading them to feek the favour cf God more by an exa(5lnefs ixi out- ward forms, than by a virtuous temper arid pradice. Chriilianity condemns, in the ftrongeil: language, this dangerous fbperftition, afiuring us, that thofe who fall into it fhall receive the greater dam'" nation ; tliat God dejires mercy and 7iot fa- cripce-y and, that true religion confifts, not in anv ritual fervices, but in ri^htc- B b 2 oufnefi

372 On liijiorical Evidence y

oufnefs and ftacey and joy in the Holy Ghoji. To cenfure it, therefore, notwithftand- ing this, merely becaufe it enjoins two fuch eafy and fimple rites as baptifm and the Lord/s fupper^ is doing it manifeft injuftice, and fhewing a difpofition wil- fully to overlook one of its moft peculiar and diftinguifhing excellencies.

But, there is no objection about which more h-as been faid, than that taken from the want of univerfality in the

chriftian revelation. This alfo, in my

opinion, is an objedtion which there is great reafon to expedl, that unbelievers fhould drop. Such effedual anfwers have been given to it, that, indeed, it is fome trial of patience to fenfible chriilians, to hear it ftill fo much infifted on, and fo often re- peated. Thofe who are influenced by it go upon a notion, that they could not entertain, were they not too partial and carelefs in their inquiries. They fuppofe, that if the chriftian revelation is true, there muft have been a neccjjlty of it, in

order

and Miracles, 373

order to fupply mankind with fufficient means for fecuring God's favour, and at- taining to future happinefs. But fucha notion is intirely groundlefs. Afting up faithfully to the light we enjoy, is the only condition of our happinefs. Glory honour and peace JJjall be upon every one that worketh goody be he Jew or Ge7itile *. God is no refpeBer of perfons, (St. Peter tells us^ but in every nation ^ he that fear ^ €th hira, and worketh right eoufnefsy is ac- cepted of him, There are two points

©f view in which chriftianity may be confidered. It may be confidered either as an inJiruBion communicated to mankind ; or, as an extraordinary difpenfation of providence the end of which is the redemption of mankind. If we confider it in the former of thefe lights, it was a favour or bleffing which, however, deli- rable, could not be claimed, and m.ight not have been given to any part of man- kind. Were there reafon for concluding, that it cannot be of divine original, m.ere- * Rom, ii. 10. Ads x. 34, 35.

B 1:. 3 ly

-xiAp On Hiftorical Evidence ^

ly becaufe the benefits of it are not exten- ded equally to all, we fhould be obliged to conclude the fame of almoft every ad- vantage we enjoy, and the whole courfe of nature. — If, on the other hand, we confider chriftianity in the latter of thefe lights, its end might have been anfwered, by Chrift's paffing through human life in the manner he did, though no hiftory of him had been writ, or knowledge of him pre-?

ferved in the world. -In other words.

There were two purpofes of Chrift's coming. He came to teach and to reform the world; but, this being an tnd that might have been accomplifhed by mucli lower means, we ought to remember, that he came principally tofave the world. That is; I]e defcended from heaven riiid appeared in our natures, partly, indeed, to be the founder of a vifible church enjoy- ing particular light and advantages, and which, after going through feveral revo- lutions, fliould, at laft, triumph over e- very faifc religion and take in all nationsiji but, primarily, to be the deliverer of a

diftreft

and Miracles^ 37^

diftreft race, to acquire the power of for- giving fin and of raifing us from the dead, to reinftate vij-tuous men, where- cver or whenever they have Hved, in the profped: of a glorious immortaHty; and thus to perform a fervice under the di- vine government of infinite importance, and to which, probably, no agent of in- ferior dignity was^ equal. Chriftiani-

ty, therefore, is fo far from implying an obligation on the Deity to make the knowledge of it univerfal, that, on the contrary, in the benefit of what is moft eflential to it, all virtuous men, whether they have ever heard of it or not, will be alike fharers.

Another very confiderable caufe of of- fence to the oppofers of chriftianity is, the. account given in the gofpel hiftory of the

Demoniacs. It ftiould, I think, go a

great way here towards fatisfying a fair inquirer, that the writers of the gofpel hiftory fpeak of the cafes of the Demo- niacs in no other way than was ufual at B b 4 the

37-6 On J$jlorical Evidefice^

the time they wrote, and in which we find them fpoken of by other contempo- rary bi^orians. They talk the language of their age and country, and in confor-? jnity to prevailing opinions. Nor is it of any confequ&nce to the credit of their hiftory, whether thele opinions were right or wrong, or even what they them- felves thought. To expect, that they fhould be better informed than others a- bout the caufes of diftempers ^ or, that fuch inflruftion fhould be communicated to them as would have led them, in the- prefent cafe, to form a new language and to fpeak with perfed: accuracy, feems as unrcafonablc as it would be to enter? tain the fame expeftation with refpe(fl: to the motion of the fun, or the fecon- dary qualities of bodies. The one has as little to do with the main end of their of- fice as the other. Such inflru«£lioA, had it been given them, wotild have thrown needlefs difficulties in the way of the propagation of chriilianity ; and, it muft have klTcncd its evidence to fubfequent

ages.

and Miracles. 2,77

ages, by making the apoftles appear, not in the charafter of plain and unlettered men, but of able philofophers, and thus raiiing a fufpicion, that it prevailed in the world more by the wifdom of men, than by the power of God and the de- monjlration of the Spirit. Our Saviour, no doubt, might have taught the truth on this fubjeft, and red:ified the common ^pprehenfions as far as they were errone^ ous. But, it is impoffible to fhew, that there was fufficient reafon for exped:ing this, or that it came properly within the purpofe of his miffion. It would, per- haps, have only given him the appear- ance of being a friend to the do&rine of the Sadducees, and embarraffed the minds of his followers, without doing any great good.

The prejudices I have now in view, are derived chiefly, from the frricl notions which have prevailed of the univerfal and infallible infpiration of the writers of the New Teftament. And there is

not.

378 On Hijlorical Evidence^

not, perhaps, any thing which the friends of chriftianity have more reafon to com- plain of, than that unbelievers (hould fuf- fer themfelves, carelefly and ignorantly, to be influenced by thefe notions. — The gofpel is not a fpeculative fcience, or an abftrufe and complicated theory. Whatever jargon may have been fathered upon it in fyflems and creeds, it is in itfelf plain and fimple. It is a fet of fads exhibiting and demonftrating this one truth; eternal life, the gift OF God, through Jesus Christ our LORD. The New Teftament contains a narrative of thefe fadls. The bufinefs of the apoftles was to atteft and publifh' them to the world ; and no enquiries, re- lating to their qualifications and authori- ty, are of great importance in any other view, than as w////^^^'^ to thefe fadls. I- think, indeed, that they have an autho- rity as teachers y as well as witneffes: But- what they infift themfetves mod upon, is their office as witnefles, and the regard they claim is founded principally on their hav- ing

5

and Miracles. 379

ing heard, and feen*, and handled the word of life. It does not appear, that in all mat- ters of reafoning and fpeculation, the firft chriftians entertained the fame fentiments of their authority, that many do now. Be this, however, as it will y the on- ly queftion, certainly, that affedls the truth of chriftianity is, " Whether they *« were honeft men, who did not mean <* to deceive, and who were competently *' informed with refped to the fads

«* they atteft." 1 wiili the attention

of unbelievers could be held to this, fet- tino- afide whatever is commonly believ- ed, or, that there may be reafon to be- lieve, on the fubjed: of wjpiration. If this appears, (as, I think, it does abun- dantly) chriftianity is proved ; nor need any perfon be anxious about more in it

than ne.ceflarily follows from hence.

But, it is time to come to the main de- fign of this differtation.

-^fif.John i. T, 2.

One

280 On Hiftorical EiVidencey

One of the abjedtions that * deferves moft to be attended to, is that taken, from the nature of the principal fadls re- corded in the fcriptures. Thefe are mi^ raculouSy and, as fuch, (it has been faid) *^ have a particular incredibility in them, *^ which does not belong to common e- ** vents. When we look into the Bible, ** we find ourfelves tranfported, as it '* were, into a rvQ\N world, where the ** courfe of nature is altered, and every *^ thing is different from what we have *^ been ufed to obferve. Could we, in ** any other cafe, receive a book filled with *' vifions and prodigies, and containing *' fo much of the marvellous'^ Ought not ** fuch a book to ftartle our minds ? Or *' can there be any evidence fufEcient to

'' eftabhfli Its authority ? Some have

gone fo far in this v/ay of obje6ling, as to affert in general, that all relations of fadls which contradidl experience, or imply a deviation from the ufual courfe of nature, are their own confutation, and fhould be at once rejected as incapable of

proof,

5

and Miracles. 381

proof, and impoffible to be true.— —One cannot be better employed than rn inquir- ing how far fuch fentiments are right, and what regard is really due to tejiimony, when its reports do not agree with expe- rience. I fhall endeavour to ftate thia matter as accurately a^ poffible, by en- tering into a critical examination of the grounds of belief m this cafe, and of the nature and force of hiftorical evidence.

In anfwer to the queftlons juft propofed it might be faid, that, fuppoiing the ftate and connexions of this world to be fuch as the Bible reprefents, the hiftory it contains could not but be a hiftory of extraordinary events; that it has many internal marks of truth and authority which no other book has ; and that, par- ticularly, we are witneffes to the ac- complifliment of predictions delivered in it thoufands of years ago, and therefore, do ourfelves fee fad:s as wonderful as any of thofe it relates, and are fure, that the writers of it were fupernaturally inftruc-

ted.

382 On Wftorical Evidence^

ted, and might alfo, very probably, work

rniracles.-^ What has been laft intima-^

ted is of the greateft importance. Chrifti- ans infift, and they think they have pro- ved, that there are very remarkable ap- pearances of the completion of feveral fcripture prophecies. The patrons of in- fidelity ought to fhew, if they can, that there are not indeed any fuch appearances which deferve regard. Nothing can be more incumbent upon them than this : For, as far as there feems reafon to be- lieve, that, in any inftance, a fcripture prophecy is fulfilled, an unprejudiced perfon muft be imprefTed. It affords, not only a demonftration of the credibili-^ ty of miracles, but, in fome degree, an adlual exhibition of them.

But, it is not my prefent defign to dwell on any arguments of this kind. In what follows, I ihall confine myfelf to the examination of the principles on which the objection I have mentioned is founded. When thefe are proved to be

fallacious.

end Miracles. 383

fallacious, the way will be open to an eaficr admiffion of the dire^ evidences of chriftianity, and they will operate with

greater force, It is well known, that

this objedion has lately been urged in all its ftrength by Mr. Hume^ a writer whofe genius and abilities are fo diitin- guifhed, as to be above any of my com- mendations. Several excellent anfwers have been publiflied * ^ and it is not without fome pain, after what has been fo well and fo efFed:ully faid by others, that I determine to take up this fubjedt. I imagine, however, that it admits of further difcuffion, and that there remain flill fome obfervations to be made, which have not been enough attended to.- Before I proceed, it will be proper to give a more diftind; and full account of the objed:ion to be confidered.

* By Dr. Adaim in his EJfay on Miracles^ In anfwer to Mr, Hume's EJfay ; and by the author of the Criterion^

or, Miracles examined, he. Some time after this

diflertation had been compofed. Dr. Campbell^ princi- pal of the Marijhal college at Aberdeen^ publi(hed ano- ther anfwer, which is written with great judgment and candour.

SECT.

384 On Hijlorical Evidence ^

S E C T. II.

T!he Nature and Grounds of the Regard due to Experience and to the Evidence of T^efwnony^ Jiated and compared.

*' TIT X p E R I E N c E., we have been

-ft / told, is the ground of the

*' credit we give to human tejlimony. ** We have found, in pall Inftances, ** that men have informed us right, *' and therefore, are difpofed to believe *^ thern in future inftances. But this ex- *' perience is by no means conftant ; for ** we often find that men prevaricate and

** deceive.- On the other hand : What

" affures us of thofe laws of nature, in the *' violation of which the notion of a mi- ** raclc confifts, is, in like manner, ex- " perience. But, this is an experience ** that has never been interrupted. We " have never been deceived in our expec-

** tations.

and Miracles. 385

*^ tations, that the dead will not come " to Hfe, or that the command of a man " will not immediately cure a difeafe. " There arifes, therefore, from hence, *^ a proof againft accounts of miracles " which is the ftrongeft of the kind pof- *' fible, and to believe fuch accounts on " the authority of human teflimony, is " to prefer a weaker proof to a ftronger, *^ to leave a guide that never has deceived " us, in order to follow one that has often " deceived us ; or to receive, upon the ** credit of an experience that is weak and " variable^ what is contray to invariable " experience."

In other words: ^' A miracle is an e- " vent, from the nature of it, inconfif- " tent with all the experience we ever " had, and in the higheft degree incredi-* *' ble and extraordinary. In the falfe- ** hood of teflimony, on the contrary, ** there is no fuch inconfiftency, nor any ** fuch incredibility, fcarcely any thing ^ being more common. No regard, C c ** therefore.

3S6 On Hifiorkal Evidence^

«^ therefore, can be due to the latter^ <« when it is appHed as a proof of the for-

« rner.^ According to this reafoning,

•< we are always to compare the impro- ** babiHty of a fadt, with the improbabi- ** lity of the falfehood of the teftimony ** which aflerts it, and to determine our " affent to that fide on which the leaft ** improbability Hes. Or, in the cafe of ** miracles, \ve are to confider which is ** mofl likely, that fach events fhould ** happen, or that men fhould either de- ** ceive or be deceived. And, as there *' is nothing mofe unlikely than the for- *' mer, or much more common than the *^ latter, particularly where religion is ** concerned > it will be right to form a <* general refolution^ never to lend any atten' ** tion to accounts of miracles y with 'whate- ** "jer fpecious pretexts they may be covered'^*

* See the EJpiy, on Miracles^ in Mr, Hume's phil§^ fo[hical ejjays concerning human underjlanding^ pag, 205. 2d. edition, in the Note.

c •* It:

md AJi racks, 387

** It is, fays Mr Hume^j a ?naxim worthy ** of our attentmj, that no tefi'monj is Jliffi- ** cient to ejlablijh a jniracle, unlefs the tejli" y mony he of fuch a kind, that its falfehood " would be more miraculous than the fadt <* which it e7idcavours to eftablifi. And e^ *' ven in that cafe, there is a mutual dejlruc-^ *^ tion of arguments^ and the fuperior only ** gives us an afjiirance fuitable to that degree " rffo^^^^ 'ii/'A/VA remains after deducing the ** inferior. When any one tells me that he ^^ faw a dead man rejiored to life, I immedi^ ** ately confider with my f elf, whether it be ** more probable that the perfon jhould either " deceive or be deceived, or that the faB he ** relates fjould really have happened, I weigh *' the one miracle dgainjl the other, and ac-^ *^ cording to the fuperior ity which I dif cover ^ ** / pronounce my decifion, and always reject " the greater miracle, Ifthejalfehood of his ** tefimony would be fnore miraculous than " the event which he relates^ tben^ and ftot " //// then, can he pretend to command jny C c 2 " belief

388 On WJlorical Evidence^

** belief or opinion *." For fuch rea*

fons as thefe, Mr. Hume afferts, " T^haf " the evidence of tejtimony^ when applied to " a miracle, carries falfehood upon the very *^ face of it, and is more properly a fubje5l " of derifion than of argument -f* > and that ** whoever believes the truth of the chrifti- *' an rehgion, is confcious of a continued mi-- *• rack in his own perfon, which fubverts all ** the principles of his underjlanding, and *• gives him a determination to believe what ** is tnojl contrary to cujlom and experience \y

This is the objeflion in its complete force. It has, we fee, a plaulible appearance, and is urged with uncommon confidence. But, it is founded on indifputable fallacies,

* lb. p. 182 p. 206. / defire any one to lay

his hand on his hearty dnd after ferious confideration declare, whether he thinks, that the falfehood of fuch a hook, (ilie Pentateuch) fuf ported by fuch teftimony^ would he more extraordinary and miraculous than all the miracles it relates \ which is, however^ neceffary to make it he received, according to the meafures of prohahility <?- liVe ejlabliftjed.

t Page 195. X Page 207.

and

<ind Miracles. 389

^nd is indeed nothing but a poor though fpe- cious fophifm. I cannot hefitate in making this aflertion ; and, I think, it muft ap- pear to be true, to any one who will beftovv attention on the following obfervations.

The principles on which this objedlioa is built are chiefly, " That the credit we " give to teftimony, is derived folety from f* experience ;" " That a miracle is a fadl ^^ contrary to experience;'* *' That the ** previous incredibility of a fa(3: is a proof " againft it, diminifhing in proportion to the " degree of it, the proof from teftimony for "it;*' and "That no teftimony {hould " ever gain credit to an event, unlefs it is ** more extraordinary that it fhould be falfe, *' than that thcj event fhould have happen-

<c ed."-- Every one of thefe aiTertions

will, upon examination, be found to be ei-r ther plainly falfe, or to need fuch explana- tion to render them true, as will render them of no ufe to the purpofe which they ^re intended to ferve,

C c 3 Iiv

J90 On Hijiorical E*vidence^

'-^tn order to prove this, let us confider the nature and the foundation of that affurance which experience gives us of the laws of jiature. This affurance is nothing but the convi'dion we have, that future events will be agreeable to what we have hitherto found to be the courfe of nature, or the ex- peBation arifing in us, upcn having obferved that an event has happened in former expe- riments, that it will happen again \n future experiments. This expcdlation has been reprcfented as one of the greateft myfteries, and the refult of an ingenious and elaborate difquilition about it is, that it cannot be founded on any reafon, and confifts only in an affociation of ideas derived from habit, or a difpofition in our imaginations to paf^ from the idea of one objec-l; to the idea of another which we have found to be its ufual attendant ^. But furely, never before were tuch pains taken to produce darknefs and

perplexity on a point fo plain. If I wa^

to draw a flip of papei* out of a wheel,

* See M: HumfV philofophical elTays, cftiy 4th

V/here

and Miracles. 39!

where I knew there were more white than black papers, I (hould intuitively fee, that there was a probability of drawing a white paper, and therefore (liould expeB this; and he who fhould make a myftery of fuch an cxpeftation, or apprehend any difficulty in accounting for it, wouW deferve more to be laughed at than argued with.— ^In like manner ; if, out of a wheel, the particu- lar contents of which I am ignorant of, I fhould draw a white paper a hundred times together, I fliould lee that it was probable, that it had in it more white papers than black, and therefore, (hould expedl to draw a white paper the next trial. There is no more difficulty in this cafe than in the for- mer; and, it is equally abfurd in both cafes to afcribe the expeSlation^ not to k?i720w!edge^

but to injTtnci. The cafe of our aflurance

of the laws of nature, as far as we are ig- norant of the caufes that operate in nature, is exadly the fame with this. An experi^ ment which has often fucceeded, we ex- pe6l to fucceed again, becaufe we per- mV0 intuitively, that fuch a conftancy of C c 4 event

39? On Wfiorical Evidence ^

event muil proceed from fomething in the conilitution of natural caufes, difpofing them to produce it; nor will it be poffible to deny this, till it can be proved, that it is not a firft principle of reafon, that of every thing that comes to pafs there mufl: be fome account or caufe ; or, that a conftant rc-cur-* rency of the fame event is not a facl which requires any caufe. — In a word ; We trufl; experience, and expedl that the future ihould refemble the paft in the courfe of nature, foi: the very fame reafon that, fuppofing our-- felves otherwife in the dark, we fhould conclude, that a dye which has turned an ace ofteneft in fajl trials is rnqftly marked with aces, and confequently fhould expect, that; it will go on to turn the fame number ofr

teneft in fyture trials. The ground of

the expedation produced by experience being this, it is obvious, that it will always be weaker or ftronger, in proportion to the greater or lefs conftancy and uniformity of (Dur experience. Thus, from the happen- ing of an event in every trial a million of times, we fliould conclude more confident-

and Miracles, 393

ly, that it will happen again the next trial, than if it had happened lefs frequently, or if in fome of thefe inflances it had failed. The plain reafon is, that in the former cafe it would appear, that the caufes produce- ing the event are probably of a more fixed nature, and lefs liable to be counteracted by

oppofite caufes. It muft, however, be

remembered, that the greateft uniformity and frequency of experience will not af- ford a proper proof, that an event will hap- pen in a future trial, or even render it fo much as probable, that it will always hap- pen in all future trials. — — In order to explain this, let us fuppofe a folid which, for ought we know, may be conftituted in any one of an infinity of different ways, and that we can judge of it only from ex- periments made in throwing it. The oft- ner we fuppofe ourfelves to have it^w it turn the fame face, the more we fhould rec- kon upon its turning the fame face when thrown next. But though we knew, that it had turned the fame face in every trial a million of times, there would be

no

394 ^^^ Hijhrical Evide?ice,

no certaintyy that it would turn this face again in any particular future trial, nor even the leaft probability ^ that it would never turn any other face. What would appear would be only, that it was likely^ that it had about a million and a half more of thefe fides than of all others * ;

or,

* If any one wants a further explication of what is here faid, let him confidcr, that as there is only a high prohabilityy not a certainty^ that the fuppofed fo- lid, after turning the fame fide a million of times without once failing, would turn again this fide in the next trial, the prpbability muft be lefs, that it would turn this fide in two future trials, and ftili lefs, that it would do it m three future trials; and thus, the probabi- lity will dccreafe continually as the number of the fup- pofed trials is increafed, till, at laft, it will become an equal chance, and from thence pafs into an improbabi- lity .^ — This may be a little differently reprefented

thus. Let a folid be fuppofed that has 1,600,000 fides of the fame fort, to one of any other fort. There is a probability, that in a million of trials, fuch a fo- lid would turn conftantly the fame fide. Such a fup- pofition, therefore, would completely account for this event, fuppofing it to happen ; and nothing further couldy with reafon^ he concluded from it. But, there is ^n injjfii/y of other fuppofitions that will alfo account ^" * for

and Miracles. 39^

iOr, that Its nature was fuch as difpofed it to turn this fide oftener, in this pro- portion, than any other; not that It had no other fides, or that it would never turn any others. In reality, there would be the greateft probability agalnft this.-— Thefe obfervations are applicable, in the exaftcft manner, to what paffes in the courfe of nature, as far as experience is pur guide. Upon obferving, that any natural event has happened often or inva- riably, we have only reafon to expeft that it v/ill happen again, with an afiurance proportioned to the frequency bf our ob- servations. But, we have no abfolute proof that it will happen again in any particular future trial y nor the leaft rea-r fon to believe that it will always hap-

for it, of which the particular fuppcfitlon that it has no fides of any other fort, and that, therefore, it will never turn any other, is only ojie. Againft the truth, therefore, of this particular fuppofition, there piuft be, in the clrcumilances of ignorance above fup- nofed, the greateft probability.

>en.

-^06 On Hljlorical Evidence y

pen *. For ought we know, there may be occafions on which it will fail, and

fecret

* In an eflay publifhed in vol. 53d of the Philofo- fhical Trarjfa^iom, what is faid here and in the laft note, is proved by mathematical demonftration, and a method fhewn of determining the exacSl probability of all conclufions founded on indu6tion.— — This is plainly a curious and important problem, and it has fo near a relation to the fubjeiSl: of this diflertation, that it will be proper juft to mention the refuUs of the folution of it in a few particular cafes.

Suppofe, i/?, all we know of an event to be, that it has happened ten times without failing, and that it is inquired, what reafon we Ihall have for thinking ourfelves right, if wc judge, that the probability of its happening in a Angle trial, lies fomewhere between jixteen to one and two to one. — The anfwer is, that the chance for being right, would be .5013, or very nearly an equal chance. Take next, the particu- lar cafe mentioned above, and fuppofe, that a folid or dpj of whofe number of fides and conftitution we know nothing, except from experiments made in throwing it, has turned conftantly the fame face in

a million of trials. In thefe circumftances, it

would be improbable^ that it had lefs than 1,400,000 more of thefe fides or faces than of all others j and it would be alfo improbable, that it had above 1,600,000 more. The chance for the Lttcr is .4647, and for 5 «hc

and Miracles. 397

fccret caufes in the frame of things which Jometimes may counteradt thofe by which it is produced. *

But

the former .4895. There would, therefore, be no reafon for thinking, that it would never turn any o- ther fide. On the contrary, it would be likely that

this would happen in 1,600,000 trials. In like

manner, with refpecSt to any event in nature, fuppofe the flowing of the tide, if it has flowed at the end of a certain interval a million of times, there would be the probability exprefl^ed by .5105, that the odds for its flowing again at the ufual period was greater than 1,400,000 to I, and the probability exprefled by .5352, that the odds was Icfs than 1,600,000 to one.

Such are the conclufions which uniform experience warrants.^— —What follows is ?ifpecimen of the ex- pectations, which it is reafonable to entertain in the

cafe of interrupted or variable experience. If we

know no more of an event than that it has happened ten times in eleven trials, and failed once, and we fhould conclude from hence, that the probability of its happening in a fingle trial lies between the odds of nine to one and eleven to one, there would be twelve to one againji being right. — if it has happened a hun- dred times, and failed ten times, there would alfo be an odds of near three to one again/} being right in fuch

a conclufion. If it has happened a thoufand times

and

398 On Hijiorkal Evidence y

But to fay no more at prefent of tliis^ Let us, in the next place, confider what is the ground of the regard we pay to human tejlimony, We may, I thinks

and failed a hundred, there would be an odds/iT being right of a little more than two to one. And, fuppofing the fame ratio preferved of the number of happenings to the number of failures, and the fame guefs made^ this odds will go on increafmg for ever, as the num-^

ber of trials is increafed. He who would fee this-

explained and proved at large may confult the effay in the Philofophical Tranfadtions, to which I have referred ; and alfo the fupplement to it in the 54th vo- lume. The fpecimen now given is enough tcji

fhew how very innaccurately we are apt to fpeak and judge on this fubje£t, previoufly to calculation. See Mr Hume's EfTay on miracles, p. 175, 176, ^c, and Dr. Campbell's Eflay, Se£l. 2d. p. 35. — It alfo de- monftrates, that the order of events in nature is de- rived from permanent caufes eflablifhed by an intelli- gent being in the conftitution of nature, 'and not from any of the powers of chance. And it further proves, that fo far is it from being true, that the un- derftanding is not the faculty which teaches us to rely on experience, that it is capable of determining, in all cafes, what conclufions ought to be drawn from it, and \\\\7!itpr£cife degree of eoflfidcnce fhould be placed ill it.

fee

and Miracles. 399

fee plainly, that it is not experience on- ly j meaning, all along, that kind of experience to which we owe our expedta- tion of natural events, the caufes of "which are unknown to us. Were this the cafe, the regard we ought to pay to teftimony, would be in proportion to the number of inftances, in which we have found, that it has given us right informa- tion, compared with thofe in which it has deceived us 5 and it might be calcu- lated in the fame manner with the re- gard due to any conclufions derived from induftion. But this is by no means the truth. One adlion, or one converfation with a man, may convince us of his in- tegrity and induce us to believe his tefti- mony, though we had never, in a finglc inftance, experienced his veracity. His manner of telling his ftory, its being corroborated by other teftimony, and va- rious particulars in the nature and cir- cumftances of it, may fatisfy us that it muft be true. We feel in ourfelves, that

a

400 On Hijlorical E-vidence^

a regard to truth is one principle in hu- man nature ; and we know, that there muft be fuch a principle in every reafona- ble being, and that there is a necelTary re- pugnancy between the perception of moral diftindions and deliberate falfehood. To this, chiefly, is owing the credit we give to human teftimony. And from hence, in particular, muft be derived our belief of veracity in the Diety. It might be fhewn here in many ways, that there is a great difference between the convic- tion produced by teftimony, and the coh- viftion produced by experience. But I will content myfelf with taking notice, how much higher the one is capable of being raifed than the other. When it appears, that a man is not deceived, and does not defign to deceive, we are fo far fure of the truth of the fafts re- lated. But when any events, in the courfe of nature, have often happened, we are fure properly, of nothing but the paft faft. Nor, I think, is there in ge-^

neral;,

and Miracles. 401

neral, antecedently to their happening, any comparifon between the alTurance we have that they will happen, and that which we have of many fads the know- ledge of which we derive from teftimo- ny. For example i we are not fo cer- tain that the tide will go on to ebb and flow, and the fun to rife and fet in the manner they have hitherto done, a year longer,, as we are that there has been fiich a man as Alexander y or fuch an em- pire as the Roman *•

- * It might have been added here, as another ob- fervatlon of confiderable importance, that the great- eft part of what is commonly called experience is merely the report of teftimony. " Our own expe- ** rience reaches around, and goes back but a little " way ; but the experience of others, on which we «' chiefly depend, is derived to us wholly from tefti- «< mony." Dr. Adams's EJfay on MiracleSy page 5th.

In proportion, therefore, as we weaken the

evidence of teftimony, we weaken alfo that of expe- rience; and in comparing them we ought in reafon to oppofe to the former, only what remains of the lat- ter after that part of it which is derived from the for- mer, that is, after much the greateft part of it is de-

du(^ed» _

D d From

40^ On Uijlorlcal Evidence^

From thefe obfervations It follows, that to ufe tejlimony to prove a mi- racle implies no abfurdity. *Tis not ufing 2i feebler experience to overthrow a- notherof thefame kind, which is Jlronger: But, ufing an argument to eftablifli an event, vi^hich yields a direcft and pofitive proof and is capable of producing the ftrongeft convid:ion, to overthrow ano- ther founded on different principles, and which, at bed, can prove no more than that, previoufly to the event, there would have appeared to us a prefump- tion againfl: its happening.

What I now mean will be greatly confirmed by obferving, that a miracle cannot, vl^ith ftridl propriety, be ftyled an event contrary to experience. This is one of .the aflertions which I have men- tioned among the fallacies, on which Mr. Huf27es argument is founded. A mira- cle is more properly an event different from experience than contrary to it. Were I to fee a temped calmed inftan-

taneoufly

and Miracles. 403

tmcoufly by th^^- ward of a marp, - dL my paft experience would remain the fame 5 and were I to affirm that I faw what wasi contrary to ity I-ioulid- bnly hie.art, that I faw what I never before had a-riy experi-*.. ence of. In like manner ; was I to be af- ^ired by eye witneffes that, 'bii a parti- cular occalion, fome event, different frorrl the lifual coUrfe of things^, 'had happened, teftimony, in this cafe^^'would afford di* reft and peremptory evidence for^ the fa(a; But what infotmatiOn wbUld 'experience give ?*— i— It would only tell me what happened on other occalions, and in o^ ther inilances. Its evidence, therefore, would be entirely hegative^i It Would afford no proper proof that the- event did not happen ; for it can be no part of any 'one's experience, that the courfe of na- ture will continue always the fame. •

There cannot then be any tolerable pro- priety in aiferting (as Mr Hume -f does)

* See Dr, Adams's EJfay^Yzp 9th and 23d. t EJp^ <m Aliraclesy Page 179.

D d 2 that.

404 On Ilijlorical Evidence^

that, in every cafe of a miracle fupported by teftimony, there is a contefl of twQ oppofite experiences, the ftrongeft of which ought always to determine our judgments.

But thi« leads me to take notice of the fundamental error in this argument : An error which, I fancy, every perfon xnuft be fenfible of when it is mentioned, and for the fake of pointing out which chiefly this differtation is written. The error I mean is contained in the af- fertion, that " if, previoully to an e- ** vent, there was a greater probability /* againji its happening, than there l^for •* the truth of the teftimony endeavour- " ing to eftablifh it, the former deftroys /* the latter, and renders the event un- " likely to have happened in proportion " to its fuperiority." That this is a fundamental point in Mr Humes objec- tion muft be apparent to thofe who have confidered it. By the conteft be- tween two oppofite experiences in mira- culous

and Miracles . 405

culous fafts fupported by teftimony. the greateft of which always deftroys the other as far as its force goes; he cannot confi- ftently mean any thing but this. One of the oppofite experiences muft be that which acquaints us with the courfe of nature, and by which, as before ex- plained, it is rendered probable, in pro- , portion to the number of inftances in which an event has happened, that it will happen in future trials. The other muft be that from whence the credit we give to teftimony is derived, which, ac- cording to Mr Hume, being our obferva- tion of the ufual conformity of fadis to the reports of witneffes, makes it proba- ble that any event reported by witneffes has happened, in proportion to what we , have experienced of this conformity. Now, as in the cafe of miraculous fads thefe probabilities oppofe one another, and the greateft, according to Mr Hume, muft be- the firft, becaufe the experience . which produces it is conftant and inva- - riable > it follows, that there muft be al-

D d 3 ways

4o6 0/; HiJloricaJ Evidence^

ways a great overbalance of evidence a- gainft their reality. He feems to lay it down as a general maxim, that if it is^more improbable that any facjl fhoqld have reaU ly happened, than that m^n fhould either deceive or be deceived, it fhould be re-^

jefted by us. But, it muft be need^

lefs to take any pains to ihew, that the turning point in Mr Hume's argument is that which I have mentioned; or, in other words, the principle, that no tefti-^ rnony fliould engage our belief, except the improbability in the falfehood of it is greater than that in the event which it attefls *,

* Let it be well remembered, that the improbabi- lity of event here mentioned, can mean nothing but the improbability which we fhould have feen there was of" its happening independently of any evidence for it, or, previoufly to the evidence of tef^imony inforrn- ing us that it has happened. To fuppofe that any pther improbability is meant, would be to make this objection to the laft degree abfurd ; the whole difpufte being about the improbability that remains after the evidence of teftimony given fpr the event,

fa

.,<^Y a^td Miracles. 407

In order to make it appear that this is an error, what I defire may be confider- ed is, the degree of improbability which there is againft almofl all the moft com- mon fafts, independently of the evidence of teflimony for them. In many cafes of particular hiftories which are immedi- ately believed upon the flighteft teftimony, there would have appeared to us, previ- Qufly to this teftimony, an improbability of almoft infinity to one againft their rea- lity, as any one muft perceive, who will think how fare he is of the falfehood of all fads that have no evidence to fupport them, or which he has only imagined to himfelf. It is then very common for the flighteft teftimony to overcome an al- moft infinite improbability.

To make this more evident : Let us fuppofe, that teftimony informed us right- ly ten times to one in which it deceived us ; and that there was nothing to diredt our judgments concerning the regard due to witnefles, befides the degree of confor-^ D d 4 mity

40 3 On Hiftorical Evidence,

mity which we have experienced in paft events tx> their reports. In this cafe, there would be the probability often to one for the reality of every fadt fupported by tef- timony. Suppofe then that it informs me of the fuccefs of a perfon in an affair, againft the fuccefs of which there was the probability of a hundred to one, or of any other event previoufly improbable in this proportion. I afk, What, on this fuppofition, would be, on the whole, the probability that the event really hap- pened? Would the right way of com- puting be, to compare the probability of the truth of the teftimony with the pro- bability that the event would not hap- pen, and to rejed: the event with a con- fidence proportioned to the fuperiority of the latter above the former ? This Mr. Hume diredts ; but certainly contrary to all reafon.< The truth is, that the tef- timony would give the probability of ten to one to the event, unabated by the fup- pofed probability againft it. And one rcafon of this is, that the very experience

which

and Miracles. 40^

which teaches us to give credit to tefti- mony, is an experience by which we have found, that it has informed us right-^ ly concerning fadls, in which there would have appeared to us, previoufly, a great improbability.

But to be yet more explicit ; Let us fuppofe the event reported by teftimony to be, that a particular fide of a die was thrown twice in two trials, and that the teftimony is of fuch a nature that it has as often informed us wrong as right. In this cafe, there would plainly be an e- qual chance for the reality of the event, though, previoufly, there was the pro- bability of thirty-five to one againft it : And every one would fee, that it would be abfurd to fay, that there being fo con- iiderable a probability againft the event, and no probability at all for the truth of the teftimony ; or, that having had much more frequent experience that two trials Jiave not turned up the fame face of a die, than of the conformity of fads to

the ?

41 o, On Hijlorical Evidence^

the fuppofed teftimony, therefore, no

regard is due to the teftimony.. An e-

vidence that is often conneded with truth, though not ojtner than with falfehood, is real evidence, and deferves regard. To rejed fuch evidence would be to fall of- ten into error, whatever improbabilities may attend the events to which it is ap- plied ; and to affert the contrary, would be to affert a manifefl contradicSion.

But let us take a higher cafe of thi$ kind. The improbability of drawing a . lottery in any particular affigned manner, independently of the evidence of teftimo- ny, or of our own fenfes, acquainting us that it has been drawn in that manner, is fuch as exceeds all conception *, And

yet

"*■ Thi3 Improbability is as the number of difFerent ways which there are of drawing the lottery ; or, as the number of permutations which a number of things, equal to that of the tickets in the lottery, ad- mits of. In a lottery, therefore, of 50,000 tickets, this improbability is exprciTed by the proportion of i.X2x3X4X5x6&c. continued to 50jOOO. to one. Or, it

is

and Miracles. 411

yet the teftimony of a news-paper, or of any common man, is fufficient to put us out of doubt about it. Suppofe here a perfon was to rejedl the evidence offered him on the pretence, that the improbabi- lity of the falfehood of it is almoft: infi- nitely lefs than that of the event *; or,

fuppofe,

is the fame with that of drawing fuch a lottery exa(5lly in the order of the numbers, firft i, then 2, and fo on to the laft. Moft perfons will fcarcely be able to per- fuade themfelves, that this is not an abfolute impof- fibilityj and yet in truth, it is equally poffible, and was beforehand equally probable with that very way in which, after drawing the lottery, we believe it has been drawn : And what is fimilar to this is true of almoft every thing that can be offered to our affent, independently of any evidence for it ; and particularly, of numberlefs fa6ls which are the obje<£ls of teftimony, and which are continually believed, without the leaft iiefitation, upon its authority.

* Dr. Campbell feems not to have attended to the fallacy in this method of reafoning. If he had, he would perhaps have expreffed himfelf differently in fome parts of the tirft and fixth fedlions of the firft part of his very judicious differtation before mentioned. — In the cafe he fuppofes, of the Jpfs of a paffage boat

which A

412 0?i Hijiorical Evidence,

fuppofe, that univerfally a perfon wa$ to rejedt all accounts which he reads or hears of fa6ts which are more uncom- mon, than it is that he ihould read or hear what is falfe : What would be thought of fuch a perfon ? How foon would he be made to fee and acknow- ledge his own folly ?

iB^hich had croffed a river two ihoufand times fafely ; it is plain, that an evidence of much lefs weight than the probability, that an experiment which had fuc- ceeded two thoufand times will fucceed the next time, would be fufficient to convince us of the reality of the event. Any report that has been oftner fouiid to be true than falfe Would engage belief, though the con- vi(Slion we fhould have had, fuppofing no fuch report, that the event did not happen, would have been much ftronger than any that the report itfelf is capable of producing. I have above afligned the reafon of this ; and indeed the fophifm I have endeavoured to point out feems to me fo glaring, that did not fo fagacious » writer as Mr. Hume and fome others appear to have been deceived by it, I fhould have thought it very unnecefTary to fay much about it.

SECT.

mid Miracles^ 413

' SECT, in.

Of the Credibility of Miracles, and the Force of Tejlimony when employed to prove tbem^

TH E application of what has been faid, in the laft fedlion, to the parti- cular cafe of miracles, is fb obvious, that it need not be much infifted on. It has plainly appeared how little the credit of teftimony is,< in general, affedted by the previous improbability of events, and howjuftly it has been obferved to be wrong to make this improbability a proof agcunjl a fad;, deflroying, in propor- tion to its force, the proof from teftimo- ny yi?r it.

I mull add what deferves particular notice, that it alfo (hews us, that Mr. IJume% argument would prove nothing,

even

414 0;2 Hijlorical Ei)idencei

even though the principle before oppofed were granted, namely, that we derive our regard to teftimony from experience, in the fame manner with our aiTurance of the laws or courfe of nature.

'Tis here natural to afk, " Is there *' not then a regard due to the im- ** pjobability of events, in confidering the ** evidence of teftimony for them ? " " Is ** there not good reafon for believing '* fafts more or lefs eafily, as they appear ** to us more or lefs conformable to ex- " perience ? '' I anfwer ; that, though this muft undoubtedly be in general ac- knowledged, it is by no means true in the fenfe and degree in which it has been fometimes infifted on. There areinftan^ ces in which, when the improbability of an event goos beyond a certain pitch, we necelTarily hefitate in receiving the evi- dence of teftimony, at the fame time that, in other inftances, we fliould give eafy credit to the fame teftimony, with- out

and Miracles. ""^ 41 r

out being afFedled 'by equal or greater

^ improbabilities. It is not, perhaps, fuf- ficiently underftood by what reafons and principles our affent is governed in thefe cafes. I fhould be carried much too far, were I to attempt a difcuflion of this fub- jed; nor is it in the leaft neceiSary to my prefeht purpofe. It is enough that it has been proved, that the influence of the im- probabilities of events on hiftorical evi- dence is not fuch as Mr. Hume afTerts, or fuch as aiFords any folid argument againft miracles. — We have feen, that teftimony is continually overcoming much greater im-

' probabilities than thofe of its own falfe- hood, and that it is even its nature to do

^d ^hc objedion, therefore, founded on the fuppofed abfurdity of trufting a feebkr experience in oppofition to a

'ftronger> or, of believing teftimony when it reports fadls which are more extraor- dinary than falfehood and deception, is fa- lacious. If, in common cafes, teftimo- ny overcomes fuch improbabilities as have •'^•^ been

41 6 On Hlporkal Evidence ^

been reprefented, there can be nothing unreafonable in fuppofing, that it may overcome thofe attending the moft un- common cafes*

But the particular improbability attend- ing miracles has been a good deal mag- nified, and my principal bufinefs in what remains will be to prove this, in order to ihevv w^ith what propriety and efFed: tef- timony may be employed to gain credit to a miracle.— —With this view I (hall propofe the following obfervations.

There are many events, not miraculous^ which yet have a previous incredibility in them fimilar to that of miracles, and by no means inferior to it. The events I mean, are all fuch phenomena in na- ture as arc quite new and ftrange to us. No one can doubt whether thefe are ca- pable of full proof by teftimony, 1

could,, for inflance, engage by my own fingle teftimony to convince any reafon- Able perfon, that I have known one of

the

the human fpecies, neither deformed noj:.- an ideot, and only thirty inches high, who arrived at his moft mature ftate at feyen years of age, and weighed then eighteen pounds ; but from that time gradually de- clined, and died at feventeen weigh- ing only twelve pounds, and with almoft

every mark of old age upon him.

Now, according to Mr. Hume's argu- ment, no teftimony can prove fuch a fad j for it might be faid, that nothing being piore common than the falfehood of tefti- mony, nor more uncojmnon than fuch ^ fad, it mud; be contrary to all reafon to believe it on the evidence of teftimony.

It deferves particular notice here, that in judging from experience concerning the probability of events, we ftould always take rare to fatisfy ourfelves, that there is no- thing wanting to render the cafes, from whv^h we 'c.ieue,perfedly alike. Our know- ledge that ra^ :vent has alwa' : generally happened in certain cip ' .:es, gives

no reafon for believing. ,x...:. jhe fame e- vent will happen, wben thcfe cireumftan- E e ces

41 8 On Hijlorical Evidence,

ces are alte;-ed : And, in truth, we are fo ignorant of the conftitution of the world and of the fprings'of events, that it is feldom poflible for us to know what different pkcenomena may take place, on any the leaft change in the fituation of nature, or the circumftances of objefts. It was inattention to this that occafioned the niiftake of that king of Siam, men- tioned by Mr. Lock, who rejected, as utterly incredible, the account which was given him of the effeds of cold upon water in Europe. His unbelief was plains ly the effedl of ignorance. And this in- deed is almoft as often the cafe with un- belief, as with its contrary. Give to a common man an account of the moft re- markable experiments in natural philofo- phy : Tell him that you C2Ln freeze him to death by blowing warm air upon him before a gooAJire-y or that you often divert yourfelf with bottling up lightning and difcharg- ing it through the bodies of your acquain- tance ; and he will perhaps look upon you as crazy, or, at leaft, he will think himfelf

fure

and Miracles. 419

fure that you mean to deceive him. Could we fuppofe him pofleft of Mv, Hume's genius and eloquence, he might fay, ** That what " you acquaint him with is contrary to *' uniform experience, that he cannot be- ** lieve you without quitting a guide that *^ has never deceived him, to foilow one ** which is continually deceiving him ; '* and that, therefore, fuch fads, when ** reported by teftimony, are more pro- ** perly fubjeds of derijlon than argirmentJ* But, how obvious would be the weaknefs of his reafoning ? — A perfon in fuch circumftances, who thought juftly, would confider how complicated and ex- tenfive the frame of nature is, and how little a way his obfervations have reached. This would fhew him that he can be no competent judge of the powers of nature, and lead him to expefl to find in it things ftrange and wonderful, and confequently to enquire what regard is due to the tef- timony which informs him of fuch fads, rather than haftily to rejed them.^— One E e 2 cannot

420 On liijhrical Evidence ^

cannot help being greatly difgufted with the inclination which fhews itfelf in many perfons, to treat with contempt what- ever they hear, be it ever fo well attefted, if it happens that they are not able to ac- count for it, or that it does not coincide with their experience^ juft as if they knew all that can take place in nature, or, as if their experience was the ftandard of truth tind the mcafure of poffibilityi This is really no lefs filly, than it is vain and prefumptuous. It is barring their minds againft improvement, and giving them^ ■felves up to the influence of a principle Avhich has a tendency to render them unfit for fociety. If we would be truly wife, we ought, at the fame time that we are upon our guard againft deception, to avoid carefully an arrogant fcepticifm, preferving opennefs with refpeft to ^?iy evidence that can be offered to us on every fubjedl, from a fenfe of our own ignorance

and narrow views. But to come

more diredly to the fubjedl under con- lideration.

There

end Miracles, 421

There is, I have faid, no greater in- credibiUty in a miracle, than in fuch -facts as thofe I have mentioned. It has been aire idy (hewn, p 393, &c. that the moft uniform experience aftbrds no reafon for concluding, that the courfc of nature will never be interrupted,* or that any na- tural event which has hitherto happened, will always happen. It has appeared, on the contrary, that there muft be always reafon againjl this conclufion. There may, I have faid, be fecret caufes which will fometimes countera(fl thofe by which the courfe of nature is carried on. We are under no more neceffity of thinking that it muft be the fame in all ages than in 2\\ climates. During the continuance of a world, there may be periods and emer- gencies in which its affairs may take a new turn, and very extraordinary events

happen. In particular, there are,

for ought we know, fuperior beings who

may fometimes interpofe in our affairs,

and over-rule the ufual operations of na-

E e 3 tural

422 On Hijlorical Evidence y

tural caufes ^. We are fo far from hav- ing any reafon to deny this, that if any end worthy of fuch an interpolition ap- pears, nothing is more credible. ^

There was, undoubtedly, a time when thi^ earth was reduced into its prefent habitable ftate * and form. This muft have been a time of miracles, or of the exertion of fupernatural power. Why muft this power have then fo entirely withdrawn itfelf, as never to appear af- terwards ? The vanifhing of old ftars, and the appearance of new ones, is pro- bably owing to the deftrudiion of old worlds, and the creation of new worlds. It is reafonable to believe that events of this kind are continually happening in the immenfe univerfe ; and it is certain, that they muft be brought about under

* Sure it is, that Mr Hume at lead, cannot dif- pute the credibility of this, who has faid of the mon- ftrous fyftem of pagan mythology, that it feems more than probable that, fomewhere or other in the univerfe, it is r'-^ally carried into execution. Natural Ht/^ory of Riliglojty SQ^i. nth.

the

and Miracles, 423

the direaion of Ibme fuperlor power. There is, therefore, the conflant exertion of fuch power in the univerfe. Why mull it be thought that, in the lapfe of fix thoufmd years, there have been no occa* fions on which it has been exerted on our globe ?

What I am now faying is true on the fuppofition that a miracle, according to the common opinion, implies a violation ov fufpenfion of the laws of nature. But, in reality, this is by no means neceiiari- ly included in the idea of a miracle. A fenfible and extraordinary effedl produced hyfuperior power ^ no more implies that a law of nature is violated^ than any com- mon effect produced by human power. This has been explained in the difTertation on Providence, p. 81,82. and it has a con- fiderable tendency to render the admiffion of a miracle more eafy.

Thefe obfervations demonflrate, that

there is nothing of the improbability in

E e 4 miracles

424 On Ilijhrkal Evidence y

miracles which fomc have imagined. I may even venture to fay, that they have in them a much lefs degree of improbabihty, than there w^as, antecedently to obferva- lions and experiments, in fuch phcenomena as comets y or fuch powers as thofe of mag-^ netifm and ele6lricity. My reafon for this affertion is, that it is far more Hkely that the courfe of nature fhould fome time or other fail, than that any particular povyers or efFedls {hould exifl in nature, which we could before-hand guefs,

A due attention to thefe arguments will neceflarily difpofe a candid enquirer to give a patient hearing to any teftimo- ny which affures him, that there adlually have been miracles. It appears that to decline this, under the pretence that no- thing different from the common courfe of things can be proved by teftimony, is the moft inexcufable folly and prcfumption.

The miracles of the New Teflament,

in particular, have many circumftances attending them which recommend them

Arongly

and Miracles. 425

ftrongly to our good opinion, and which lay us under indiipenfable obligations to give the evidence for them a fair and pa- tient examination. Such is the ftate

of mankind, that there is nothing more credible, than that our affairs have not always beeii fuffered to go on entirely of themfelves. A revelation to inftrud: and reform a fmful and degenerate world is fo far from implying any abfurdity, that it is an effed of divine goodnefs which might very reafonably be hoped for. There appears to have been great need of it ; and it feems to be certain, that there muft have been a revelation at the begin- ning of the world. If we rejedl the mi- racles mentioneed in the New Tcftament, it will not be poflible to give any tolera- ble accoiint of the eftabliiliment of fuch a religion as the chriftian among man- kind, by a few perfons of no education or learning, in oppofition to all the pre- judices and powers of the world. The excellence of the end for which they were

^vrought; the myriads of mankind which

they

I

426 On Hiflor'ual E'Vidence^

they brought over to piety and goodnefs, and the amazing turn they gave to the ftate of religion by deftroying, in a few years, a fyftem of idolatry which had been the work of a2:es, and eftablifliino: on its ruins the knowledge and wor(hip of the one true God; thefe, and various other undeniable fadls which might be enumerated, give them a I'igh credibility. We fee here an occafion worthy of the ufe of fuch means, and a probability that, if ever fmce the creation there has been any interpofition of fuperior power, this was the time.

CONCLUSION.

Enough has been now faid in anfwer to the objeftion which has been the chief fubjecft of this diflertation *. The neceffary con-

clufion

* Some of the principal obfervations which I have made, may be found in the chapter of Bifbop Butler's Analogy on i\\Gfuppofed prcfumption againji a Revelation confjdered ai miraculous. Had I remembered this, it IS probable I (hould not have thought of drawing up

this

and Miracles. 4^7

clufion from it is, that the main bufinefs of thofe who oppofe chriilianity fliould

be

this differtation. The greateft prirt of the pafTage I refer to I (hall here give, in order to fave the reader the trouble of turning to it, and alfo to enable him to judge how far what I have writ, fhould it anfwer no other end, may be of ufe to illuftrate and ftrengthen what this excellent author has faid.

« Firft of all, there is a very ftrong prefumption a- <« gainft common fpeculative truths, and againft the « moft ordinary fa^s before the proof of them, '< which yet is overcome by almoft any proof. There « is a prefumption of millions to one againft the fiory <« of CxHir, or any other man. For, fuppofe a num- « ber of common fa^s fo and fo circumftanced, of << which one had no kind of proof, fhould happen to " come into one's thoughts, every one would, without «« any poflible doubt, conclude them to be falfe. And *« the like may be faid of a fingle common facl. And « from hence it appears, that the queftion of impor- ts tance, as to the matter before us, is concerning the « degree of the peculiar prefumption fuppofed againft « miracles ; not whether there be any prefumption « at all againft them. For, if there be the prefumption *' of millions to one againft the moft common fads; " what can a fmall prefumption, additional to this, a- <« mount to, though it be peculiar? It cannot be efti- cif^ mated, and is as nothing. The only material

*' queftion

"^28 On Hijlorical 'Evidence ^

be, to invalidate the dirc5i evidence for it. Every attempt of this kind would de*-

ferye

** queftion is, whether there be any fuch prcfumption ** againft miracles, as to render them in any fort incre^ " dible. Secondly^ If we leave out the confideration of " religion, we are in fuch total darknefs upon what ^' caufes, occafions, reafons or circumflances the " prefcnt courfe of nature depends 5 that there does not '' appear any improbability for or againft fuppofing, *' that five or fix thoufand years may have given fcope " for caufes, occafions, reafons or circumftances, *' from whence miraculous interpofitions may have «' arifen. And from this, joined with the foregoing " obfervation, it will follow, that there muft be a "prcfumption, beyond all comparifon greater,, a- *' gainft t\\Q particular common facls juft: now inftan- ,*' ced in, than againft miracles in general^ before any ^" evidence of either. But, thirdlyy take in the confi- ** deration of religion, or the moral fyftem of the ** vvorld, and then we fee diftinc^: particular reafons " for miracles; to afford mankind inftru^lion, addi- .f< tioJial to that of nature, and tp atteft the truth of

" it. Lajlly^ Miracles muft not be compared to

'' common natural events, but to the extraordinary *' phenomena of nature. And then the comparifon '< will be between the prefumption againft miracles, •' and the prefumption againft fuch uncommon ap- '• pearances, fuppofe, as comets, and, againft there

" being

and Miracles, 429

ferve the mofl: ferious regard; and, it is vain to think of overthrowing chriftianity ill any other way. As far as there is reafon to believe, that the apoflles wxre neither de- ceived nor intended to deceive, we are under a neceflity of receiving the fads they witnefled though miraculous. Let then unbelievers prove, if it be poffible, that there is no fufficient reafon to believe this. Let them fliew, that Chrift and his apoftles were either enthiiftajis or hnpojiors, and ac- count for their conduit and writings on one of thofe fuppofitlons, taking along with them the confideration, how nvild and frantick

" being any fuch powers in nature as magnetifm and ^« ekaricity, {o contrary to he properties of other

« bodies, not endued with thefe powers. Upon

«' all this, I conclude, that there is certainly no fuch '« prefumption againft miracles as to render them in <« any wife incredible. That, on the contrary, our ^« being able to difcern reafons for them gives a pofi- « tive credibility to the hiftory of them, in cafes where « thofe reafons hold : And that it is by no means cer- " tain, that there is any peculiar prefumption at all, *« from analogy, againft miracles, as diftinguifhed " from other extraordinary phsenomena.'* Analogy of ^Rd\gm^ 6cc. p. 243, 5:c,

they

4j.-3b On WJlorkal 'Evidencey

they muft have been if the former, and how profane and abandoned if the latter. But let them not pretend that they are able to prove a priori^ that no accounts of mira- cles ca7i be true ; or fatisfy themfelves with faying lazily, that deceit and falfehood are very common, and miracles very extraordina- ry 5 and that, therefore, the whole quefti- on is decided, and there can be no occafion for any further examination. A perfon who fliould reafon in this manner, in other inftances, would be quite ridiculous. Tefti* mony is an evidence which admits of an in- finite variety of degrees, and which, fome- times, is fcarcely fliort of demonflration. Though it often deceives, yet there are fome kinds of it that have never decei ed, and that cannot deceive. It is one of the principal fources of all our information and know- ledge. To argue, therefore, againft chriC« tianity from the general topick of the com- monnefs of falfe teftimony, is trifling and unjuft, unlcfs it can be (hewn, that it has been common ioxfiich teftimony as that of

the

and Miracles. 431

the apoftles to be falfe *. Hiftorical evi- dence being of all degrees, what is true of

other

* It may be worth while to obferve here, that the ob- jection I have been confidering is apph'cable to fa6ls for which we have the evidence of fenfe^ as well as thoCe which depend on the evidence of teft-imony. Were we to be eye witnefTes to any thing quite new to us» and out of the ufual courfe of nature, it might be faid, that what we perceive being contradictory to uniform experience, but deceptions of our fenfes common ; therefore, it muft be wrong to beheve the reality of it ; becaufe, this would be trufting a feebler experience in oppofition to a ftronger, or, receiving a faCl upon an evidence, the falfehood of which would be lefs uncommon than the faClitfelf. He, therefore, that will guide himfelf by the principles which are the foundation of this objection, and balance oppofite ex- periences in the manner it requires, muft have been an unbeliever, though he hady^^w the miracles related

in the New Teftament. Though our fenfes have

often deceived us, we cannot help relying, in general, without diffidence on their information. There are innumerable circumftances and inftances in which ihey have never deceived us : And, tharefore, when in a- ny particular inftance they convey to us any informa- tion, it is trifling to objeC^, that they have informed us wrong in fome other inftances, except thofe other inftances were of a fimilar nature. And even fuppo-

2

432 On Hlflorkal Evidence y

o^/6(^r hifloncal evidence is nothing to thih If the facfls are extraordinary, there may be peculiar circumftances attending them tak- ing off all improbability from them on this account ; and it may be even lefs wonderful that they fliould be true, than that the tefti- mony reporting them fhould be falfe. It has been fliewn indeed, that, in order to our reception of the chriftian miracles, it is by no means neceffary to prove this. A great deal, however, has been faid to prove it with much ftrength of reafon, by the de- fenders of Chriftianity *. Why ihould not

fome

fing this fimilarity, the objection will be of little weight, unlefs the number of fuch ihftances in which they have deceived us, is nearly equal to or greater than thofe in which they have not deceived iis.< — It appears from what is faid above, that thcfeob- fervations are applicable, with like propriety and force, to the information we receive from teftimonv.

* See Dr. Adams's EfTay on Miracles, When

Mr. Hunic, in a pafiage before quoted, p. 387. lays it down as a maxima '' That no teflimony is fufficient to *' cftablidi a miracle, unlefs the falfehood of it is more " miraculous than the fadt it endeavours to eftablifti ;" tis meaning, I fliould think, muft be that as, accor- ding

end Miracles. 433

fome notice be taken of the arguments they offer? Why Ihould not thofe who rejea

chriftlanity

<Jing to him, no teftimony is fufficient to prove an or- dinary fa£t, unlcfs its falfhood is improbable In a high- er degree than the fa6t is improbable, in the cafe of a miraculous fa6l the falfnood of the teftimony muft be miraculous in a higher degree than tiie fad is mira^uloui : that is, it muft be certain^ that there is no other ac- count to be given of the falfhood of the teftimony, befides a miraculous deception of the fenfes and fub- verfion of the faculties of the perfons who give it. We fhould not, therefore, be able to convince Mr. Hu7ne of the truth of chriftianity, though we could prove to a demonjiration^ that the apoftles did not intend to de- ceive, and were not themfelves deceived except mi- racles were employed to deceive them. It muft be further proved to him, that a miraculous deception of their fenfes and fubverfion of their faculties would be greater miracles than the fa^s they atteft. At this rate, agreeably to what was obferved in the laft note, it is plain, that had we ourfelvesy^^ the miracles of Chrift and his apoftles, we miift nave been entirely doubtful about them, unlefs we were perfuadea that a deception of our fenfes required a greater e?(ert.on of fupernatural power, than the reaUty of what we faw.— Surely, no one can think that fuch an argument de- ferves ferious regard. The obvious conclufion from it is, that we have no reafon for believing the exiftence of

F f any

434 ^^ Hijhrical Evidence^

chriflianity tell us, in particular, how they account for the rapid progress it made in the

world ;

any external obje6ls, or the reality of any thing we hear, fee or feel in any other fenfe, than as an idea or mode of perception in our minds. This, however, cannot ftartle Mr. Hume ; for, it is the very conclufion he has led us to draw, and to which his fyftem of philofophy neccfTiirily carries us. '-'

I hope I fhall be excufed if I give room here to art obfervation which is a little foreign to the prefent

purpofe. It has been objected, that fuppofing the

reality of the miraculous facls of chriflianity, there is no connexion between them and the truth of its doc- trines. This, in my opinion, is to trifle inex- cufably ; nor can it be worth any chriftian's while to fay a word in anfwer to it, till one per- fon is found who can honeftly declare, that he believes the miracles of Chrift, but denies his divine miiiion ; that, in particular, he is convinced that he raifed fe- veral perfons from the dead, and at laft rofe himfelf from the dead and afcended to heaven, and afterwards poured forth on the apoillcs and iirft chriftians thofe gifts of thefpirit mentioned in the New Teftament^ but, at the fame time, doubts v/hether he faid true Vvhen he declared, that he was the rcfurreSfion and the life ; that all poiver was given htm in heaven and earth ; and that the hour would come ^ when- all that are in their ^ravei Jkould hear his voice and come forthy they that have

done

ani Miracles. ^2S

World ; for the manner in which St. Paul mentions the miraculous gifts in his epiftles > and for the fortitude with which the apof- tles, in giving their teftimony, facrificed every worldly intereft and at laft laid down their lives ? Why, inftead of making any attempts of this kind, do they, in general, infifl: on topicks which atfedt not the dire^ evidence, or found their objedions on the adulterations of chriftiahity by human in- ventions and civil eftablifhments, without taking pains to difcover what it is as it lies in the New Teftament ?

If the chriftian religion is true we have clear information on points the mofl intereding^ A vicious man has every thing to fear, and a virtuous man every thing to hope. The queftion, therefore, whether it is of divine original, is, as I obferved at the beginning of this differtation, of unfpeakable impor- tance. 'Tis inexcufable to treat it with in-

done good to the refurreSlion of Ufe^ and ihey that hare dene f*i)il to the rejurrtclion of damnation, John xi. 25. • * V* 28, 29.

F f 2 difference ;

436 On Hijlorical Evidence^

difference; or, with conceited half-thinkr ers, to fuffer ourfelves to be led into infir delity by a few fpecious difficulties, without critically examining the original code itfelii and confidering carefully the joint force of all the evidences internal^ external and./>r^r fumptive taken together. If, after fuch an examination, any perfon {hould judge, that the whole amount of the evidence is inade- quate to the proof of the fads on which chriflianity is founded, he ought next to con- fider how far it goes towards proving them. That it goes fome way towards this is abfo* lutely certain. The furtheft that any enquir- er can go in his rejection of chriflianity is, to think that the objedions out-weigh the evidence ; but he cannot poffibly think that there is no evidence. I fhould imagine in- deed, that he cannot poffibly avoid feeing, that there is very confiderable and ftriking evidence, though he may judge it infiiffici- ent. It is not conceivable, that any one can read the New Teftament, and obferve with what a force and purity, before unknown, it teaches morality and natural religion; the , ♦;!,.. fiiblimc

and Mir^cleim ^yj

fublime and Angular charadterit has dpawft,

without the leaft appearance of art Or effort,

in the hiftory it gives of the life, difcourfes

and miracles of Jefus Chrift j and the fpirit

of piety, goodnefs, love and heavenly mind'-

cdnefs which breathes through all its parts :

It is not, I fay, conceivable, that any pefJ-

fon, after fuch a perufal of the New Tefta-

ment, can be able eaiily to perfuade him-

felf, that the writers of it were fuch mra-

cles of madnefs or profligacy as they muft

have been, if the fads to which they bor^

teftimony were falfe, and the religion they

taught an impofition on mankind. But

not to dwell on this. For the reafon which has been affigned it is certain, that no infi- dels, who are inquifitive and candid, can go beyond a ftate of doubt. They muft ac- knowledge that, at leafl, there is evidence enough to give a chance for the truth of chriflianity; and they ought toconfider feri- oufly to what this chance amounts, and what obligations, in refped of pradtice, their own flate of doubt lays tliem under. Would they do this, they could never make chrif-

tianity 2

'4jS On HiJIdrical Evidence^

Tlianity a- fabjeft of ridicule or contempt. -Though not convinced of its truth, they would live linderthe apprehenfion that it may pof- fibly pi'ov'e true. ■ Thofe who do not ad thus xannotreafonably complain of the threatnings denounced in the fcriptures againft iilfidelity. -Thefe'' threatnings 'certainly (hould not be applied^ nor were they ever intended to be -applied to any honeft enquirers, be their doubts vvhat^ they^wilL There is nothing fundamental^ but a fincere defire to know and do the will of God, Speculative errors can be no further criminal than they {hew, that this does not prevail in the charader, or proceed from criminal difpofitions, and are made fanduaries for vice. That this is one of the fources- of modern as well as antient infidelity, appears too plainly. The purity and piety required/by chriftianity, though the moft irrefiftible recommendation of it to a good mind, muft create flrong prejudices againft it among the licentious and diflb- lute, and all whofe hearts arc not governed by the love of God and virtue.. *JIe that belkveth not h condemned already^ becaufe

ht 5

r^^'

aJid Miracles. 429

he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the con- demnation, the reafon of the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men love darknefs rather than light, becaufe their deeds are evil. For every one who doth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light leaft his deeds fioould be reproved "^ .

* John iii. iS, 19.

THE END.

ADVERTISEMENT.

AFTER thefe DifTertations were printed ofF I happened to look into an Eilay, entitled, ^- marh on the Laws of Motion a?id the Inertia of Matter^ by Dr. Stewart, ProfeJJor of Natural Phihjophy at Edin- burgh, publifhcd in the nrft volume of the Edinburgh

Phyfical Ellays. The conformity which 1 have

found between the obfcrvations contained in that ex- cellent paper, and lome of thofe made in the iecond fcdion of the Diflcrtation on Providence, has agreeably furprized me ; but at the fame time it has given mc fome pain becaufe difcovered fo late. I cannot help, therefore, taking notice of it in this manner, left I fhould appear to be guilty in any inflance of writing after others without makin^^ proper acknowlcd;;- ments.

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