V
i
L I B 11
A. K Y
'
Theological Seminar
PRINCETON, N. J.
Y , '
: sin// ■
i Boo/,-
sea
D i V i s h.
• Ho
The Pretended T)tfficuJties in Na^
tural or ReveaVd Religion
no Excufe for Infidelity.
SIXTEEN
S E R M O.N S
Preach'd in the Church of
St. Mary -^le- Bom, London ;
In the Years 1721 and 1712 :
A T T H E
Lecture Founded by the Honourable
Robert Boyle, Efci;
By Brampton Gurdon, A. M.
Chaplain to the Right Honourable
Thomas Earl of Macclesfield^
Lord High Chancellour ofGnEATBRixAN.
LONDON:
Printed for RobertKnaplocKj^;?;^^ Biihop's-
Head;, m St. Paul's Churchyard. 1725,
• V.' " '
nloDnrJ "\cs ^ii^^iS S^^^\
:>^
l^dlB^ biWTOVt^
TO THE
Right HoNOURA*BLtE
RICHARD,
Earl of Burlington ;
The Right Reverend Fathers in God,
Charles LordBiJhop o/Winchefter^
Edmund Lord Bi/hop of Lincoln,
Samuel Lord Bi/hop of Carlilc,
AND
White Lord Bijhop of 7ctQvhovouglu
TRUSTEES
Appointed by the moft Reverend Father
in GOD, Thomas late Lord Arch-
bifhop o^Cdnterbury^ the laft Surviving
Truftee named by the Honourable •
Robert Boyle, Efq\
Thefe SERMONS are mof^
humbly Dedicated. \
BTWE-'^WOO
vV; «a!»«rra^ 3t>v
♦^ ^
• v.iV- .Ui^J-i
THE
CONTENTS.
3 E R M O N I.
' H E hnfortance of the Dtffute between its
and the Infidel. Pag, I,
Soine Ad'vantages attending the Belief
of Religious Principles. p. g.
Ackno'ivledged hy Epicurus.- p. 7.
And hy all other Atheifts in their account of the
frf: Introdu6iion of Religion. p. 10.
Religion lays no Rejhaints upon us^ but
for our ad'vantage. p. If.,
Jhe Atheifts Arguments againfl it affe^ only
Superfiltion, p. 1-7,
It fets a Mar^s mind eafy with regard,
to a future State. p. 2r.
The Atheift has no reafon to make
Frofelytes, p. 27.
A 4
Sermo^'-
The Contents.
Sermon s ir,m^IV,V,
No Safety in a Fahb not grounded upon fomc
kind of Evidence. p. 5 f.
Nor a Ma7i always fafe in acting accord"
ing to his Opinions. p. 57.
Mens Opinions ^ofte^tirries the <rejult of
,tbclr Vajfions.^ P- 39*
An Averfon to Superjiltion one Moti've to
Infidelity. p. 45.
Another Moti've^ the defire of being un~
controuled. p. 45".
Such ^Motives no fecurity agai7tfi the appre-
^ '-henfion of Tunijliment. p. 49.
2l^ H^^it of a.. Car ef id. Examination another
\, .,C^»fi of Infidelity. ■ P- 5'4-
Tke , 'V'-jpculty. of conQ^iving fame Terfeciions in
Gou.tio Reafoiifer. d^lie'vlng them. p.6j.
-, 2>lothing b:^l^.a Contradicilon ctin jitfiifiz
. .fitch dishlief p. 64.
- iinwateriality iw piles no Contradlclion. p. 6^.
C^^ "fht^ ^hiioj«pkerl^ ficnial of the. Creative
VI "J ^^"^'^^'y ^0' fi^'^^'^^ ^^ ^'^^' Atiieift.
PP|. h cannot be proved to he impnijiblc. p. 78,
^ifmoil-ackno'wlec^cs many^ tilings, to he true
ahho' he does not underfiand them. p. 7'9.
The
The Contents.
The Being of Natural ani Moral Good and Evtl
conjifient with the Being of a good JPrinci-'
pie. p. 8r.
Tie Scheme which Spinofa Suhjlltutes In the
place of the Religious one. p. 87:
His Scheme encreafes infiead of lejjenlng
Difficulties. p. 90,
Forced to alter the recel'ved Notions of
Matter. p. 91.
To deny that there is any fuch Thing in
Nature as a mutable Being. p. 100.
To affert that Thought and Extenfion are
the fame Thing, jp. ror.
His NeceJJ'ary Being the SuhjeSl of Con^
traditions. p_ 107.
The other Atheiftick Scheme of a Plu-
rality of NeceJJary Beings impoj/lifle,
p. HI.
No 'Account to he gi'ven of Good and E-vil
by Spinofa^J Scheme. p. 118.
The Union of GoD vlth Man in the Perfon
of Christ will not help out his Scheme.
p. 125,
No other Atheiftick Scheme will account for
Good and Evil. p. 116^ &c.
V. S E R M O N S VI, VII, VIII, IX.
Spinofa could give no Jccoufjt how Matter
I'cafrU u he moved, p. ij2.
Not
The Contents.
- Nor Toland p-oiK that it could rmx/e
Itfelf. p. lyy.
7^ contrary evident from its Idea, p. I y 8_, &C.
And from fome appearances In Naturt^
p. 169.
The Oifj'e^iom againfi God's being the M.o%)er
of Matter, p. 186.
Particular Self-Movers confifient with aji
Unl'verfal Mover. p. 19,2.
The Exlfience of fuch particular Self-Movers
■ pofihle. p. 195-.
Tie ^Motive to Infidelity on this Head un~
. r jujilfiahle. p. 200.
"^2^(? accounting for Thought hy SpinofaV
Scheme. p. 21.5,
T^e ether Account -which makes It to h^ Figure
md Motion cannot be true. p. 2i8_,&c.
Delcartes might give occafion to this lafi O-
pinion. p. 224.
Farther dlfprovd from the Simple Nature
of Thought. ' p. 228,
The Charge of .Difficulties retmned. upon the
"Terfoxallty proved to be Imfofflble on any
;; Foot of Atheifm. p. 244^ &c.
Thi Union of Material 'with Immaterial can-
' not be provd tmpojfible. p. 2^0.
The~ main Indacement to Atheifm taken
' fi^viiy■' P- 2jr.
SERMON
TJ^ Coiitents,
Sermon X.
jmMr Proof of the AtfieiftV Unreafinabk-
vefs in complaining of Difficulties, p. 268.
He cm helieve undireked Jl^otions Jhall pro-^
dffce d Regular Work, p.. 270^'
_^ That a Compofition of Being Jliall be a
c :, i>^ecejfary Being. P-^JT-
That all the J)iv&rfity which appears in the
,llea'vens is necejjary. p. 277 &c.
' X^f/^« and Contrivance provd from the
Earth'' s Annual Motion. p. 284.
From the Vro^ijkn made for Animals ttp"
on our Earth. p, 287.
Our Ignorance of the Ufcs of fo?m Things no
Reafon for denying the Ufes of other Things
"ivhich -we do know, p^ 2^0.
Sermon XI.
ne Atheift'^ Denial of Moral Diff^ef^ces uhm
reafonable. ... ^,, p. ^^j^
. Bis Denial will not prove then, are none.
p. 506.
A wrong as well as a right Tafie in judg-
ing of thofe Differences. p. 509,
TheThilofophers acknowledg'd fuch Differences.
p. 310*
Even
The Contents.
Even f/Sf Epicureans. p. 5i2.
They were -taken for granted hy Legijla-
tors. p. 314-
Wicked Men bear their Tefilwony in behalf of
them. P- 319-
What Reafoft for believing they appear fuch to
God Of to us. p. 325.
Sermon XII. v
"T^tf Infiderj Plea for not en^tdring into the
Merits of any Revelation. p. 3^1.
Jhe Poffibflity ^f Miracles proved, p. 558.
Thay we a good Proof of a Divine Mi(Ji67j,
■V .'-'5 ■ -- > ■ p. 341.
"^ht 'living Lift to a Dead Body no Ejf'ect of
^ny lament Powers in Nature. p, 542.
^■|f h could- be an Pffe^ cf any fuch Powers ^
'•■- it -would not account for oisr Saviour'j
Miracles, .1 ' .-^ '■ •-> "^ p. 346.
Jt cannot be^ done by any Agcfits inferior to
■^■' Qni).: - - p. J49.
7^ Converfon of the Magicians Rod into
' .^Sei-pentSy .fiot real. a i;Vr p. gj-i.
• "iNaPrttof that ApoUonius raised a dead Per-
'■'^- fon io Lifu -.. . ::■ ; .-., .. p. 55'4.
O^r Lord's Difclples able to judge whether
n^\4fUvr^'ifSi7ig\dead he ^ came ta lafe again.
c ... Tbe\T
The Contents.
Their fometimes not knowing him^ m Vroof
/< of his not being the fame J^erfon*.
■ -^iVj^ ;vfcAy -i^vit ??uV. p)»x'3^r
Sermons XIII, XIV.
Another OhjeUlon againfi Revelation confder'^d.
p. 570.
Faith CiY yjuthority jJ]e^'n to he a proper Ground
of Terfuafion. p. 'i^'']6-
Ihat in Fa5i the Chrifiian Religion puts an End
to many Controverfies of A^oment. p. 279,
To many wicked VraBices. p. 585"^ 299.
The Differences among Chriftians_, 2Z);//
TUit invalidate this Vroof. p. 289.
The Way of Authority better fitted for the In-
firu5iion of the lower Sort of People, p. 292.
I'he Benefit of Preachifig as performed in cur
:^.ifhurches. p. 404.
The Philojophers did not teach Religion in their.
Schools, p. ^06,
The Heathen Paefs taught no Morality.
The Number of Churches 'vaflly greater and
better dlfpofed than the Schools for Philofophy.
p. 409.
Julian the Apofiate fenfble of thefe Advantages,
p. 4"-
IVhy no Revelation has yet been JJniverfal^
p. 412.
7hat
^The Contents.
Thnt God was not ohliged to maie any Re^
'^Velation. -^ ;^ p. 415-.
l%at He has promlfed the Chriftian Jhall be
Uni'verfal. p, 418.
l>Jot preached at firfi to all , hecaufg all ?iot
(qualified for receiving it, p. aio.
Whf not in America. p, 424.
• Why not to the Chincfc. p. 425*.
' W<? Word in the Chinefe Language -wili
expre/s the Word God. p. 426.
\/idvice to the Deilt to examine hefm'e he
makes a Jefi of our Religion. p. 428.
Sermons XV, XVI.
^0 Keafifi fir fufieWng the Jpojlles Teftimo-
ny concerning Gofpel Miracles, p. 45-7.
That no worldly Purpofes could be fer^ved by
giving fnch a Teftimony. p. 459J &c.
}sor no Trobahility 9f their being able at that
Time to impofe upon the IVorld, p. 45:0,
The Falfe Miracles of the Vlth and folio-wing
Centuries no Reafon for fufpecilng Gofpei
Miracles, p. 45'4.
T^^Xhriftian Religion preached at the Time
mentioned in our Gofpels. p. 461.
IVJjat Evidence for the Conveyance of the Chri«
ftian Religion from the Apofles to our
Times. p. 469,
Tljat
The Contents.
"fhat feme of them "writ Gofpels as ivell
^^-^ as ^reached, P* 470.
V^his confirmed hy ?i6^ Teftimony of He-
The Ebionites made ufe of St. J^atthew j
'^^fi^^- p. 47^
Tfhjy the Gofpel they ufed was thought to
■^''\'be an Apocryphal Gofpel, p. 475-.
T^e many D^ffevfncs^s from the Greek Cofy
accounted for^ p. 477,
?''''"Mark a7td\.\xkQ^t Cofpcls fuppe/d td ha^ue
recei'ved jhe A^proi^ation ^ <?«,; Afofile,
p. 481'.
No fuch Troof for the Epifiks of Barnabas
and Clemens. p. 48;.
Out Greek Copies could not he alter d fe
much as the Ebionites Hebrew Copy..
p. 484,
lie Gofpel of Barnabas a Spurious Piece, ^
p. 487.'
None hut our Four Gofpels had an undonhi^.
cd Authority. p. 491,
How it might happen^ that falfe Gofpels^
might pafs for a Time, p. 492.
Jhe True Reading of the Four Golpels to be
found in feme Copy at this Day. p. 49 S,
Hereticks could not c^qrrupt all the Copies of
the New Teftament, , p. 499,
7J;e Conclufion, -^"^ •^•' ^ ^^^^
ERRATA,
^&&uu^(^i^»i!^&^u^^*dS^w>^^^Suu
ERRATA.
pAGE 94. line 15 infcrt not. p. 183. 1. 15. dele
and, p. a6a. 1. 19- «/for ij*. p. 461. 1. 9. dele
ftfne.
^1f:^^^f^^W?l"i^¥'fWW¥*l'*#
S£RM«
( I )
SERMON I.
I Timothy IV. 8.
- — Godlinefs is profitable
unto all Things, having
the Vromife oj the Life
that now is^ and of that
which is to come.
H E Subjefl: which I pro-
pofe to difcoLirfe upon is
of the laft Importance and
Concern for all of us to be
fatisfy'd in ; for 'tis no lefs
than this,
I. Whether Men at firft either
grew out of the Earth fpontaneouil/
as Trees ; or that there has been
B Ahvajs
Sermon i.
always a SuccefTion of Men and Wo--
ftien upon Earth, propagated after
the fame manner, as they are at pre-
sent ; or whether a Wife and Intelli-
gent Being fent us into this World.
2. Whether we are to go, as the
Materialifi contends for, to the Place
quo non nati jncera ; or whether, as the
religious Man beheves , there is to
be another State of Beins; for us after
this Ihort Thread of Life is wound
oE
I F any Prejudices were allowable,
they would certainly be in this Con-
troverfy between Us and the Atheifls^
where all the Advantages to Mankind
are on the Side of Religion; and no-
thing but Darknefs and Defpair in the
.Atheiji\ Scheme of Things. The Pro-
iitablenefs of Godlinefs, or of living
under a Senfe of religious Principles^
and the Unprofitablenefs of Infidehty,
may be made very plain to us, tho'
we fliould fiippoie that we may be mi-
ftaken in believing them true. And
jR)r thefe Reafons :
I. Because
Sermon I.
1. Because nothing but fuch a Be-
lief can cany a Man thro' the Diffi-
culties and Miferies that human Life
is fubjed to.
2. Because the Belief of religious
Principles retrains a Man from no En-
joyments but fuch as would be hurtful
to him and make him uneafy.
^ Because living under a Senft
of Religious Principles will make a
Man's Mind eafy with regard to any
Apprehenfions of a Future State*
I. That nothing but the Belief of
•Religious Principles, 'viz. of G o d and
a Providence can carry a Man through
rile Difficulties and Miferies that Hu-
man Life is fubjea to. If a Man
makes the leaft Reflexion upon the
State and Condition of his Life, he
will prefently fee that he has not fuf=
ficient Power of himJelf to procure his
own Happinefs. That there are many
Things which are able to hurt him,
and he ndtliQi' knows how to fecure
iiimfelf againll them, or to acquit him=.
Cd^ of them, when they have attacked
him» There are many Evils he muil own
B 2 .him"
Sermon l
liimfelf obnoxious to, becaufe he fees
ochers opprefs'd by them. If there was
no G o D or Providence to have Re*
courfe to in this difagreeable Profped
of Things thofe whom we all of us al-
low to be Animals inferior to ourfelves
would have greatly the Advantage of
him, for as they have no Forefight of
Future Evils, fo they could have no
Forethought about them, nor torment
themfelves with any Fears of what
may be hereafter ; whilft our conti-
nual Anxiety and Solicitude about Fu-
ture Evils would make the Life of
Man appear to be a Scene of Things
perfeftly difmal and without any kind
of Hope, if nvithout a God in the World,
The Author of the CharaQ:erifticks
has fairly own'd that there cannot be
a Compleat Virtue without Piety or
the Belief of a God and Providence,
that thofe Virtues which fliould fup-
port us in Adverfity, fuch as Fortitude,
Patience and Contentment under our
Condition, would probably lofc their
Etfeds upon us, if" we had nothing to
trufl: to but Chance or a blind JSIe-
cefTity •
S £ R M O N I. 5
eeflity ; that they would be convert-
ed into a natural Kind of Spleen and
Abhorrence of every Thing in the
World, and imbitter our Tempers to
that Degree as to ruin the very Prin-
ciple of all Virtue , fo as inftead of
Fortitude and Patience , the Atheifis
Scheme in his Opinion would produce
Impatience and Rage, " Nothing,
^' Jays he^ ^ indeed can be more me-
-' lancholy than the Thought of living
^' in a diifraQied Univerfe from whence
•*' many Ills may be fufpeded , and
'' where there is nothing that can ra ife
" any PafTion befides that of Contempt,
" Hatred or Dillike. Such an Opinion
" as this may by Degrees imbitter the
** Temper and help to impair and ruin
" the very Principles of Virtue , "
Speaking of the Belief of a God and
Future State, he fays -!-, " by Virtue
" of this Belief Man may retain his
*^ Virtue and Integrity even under the
" hardeii Thoughts of Human Na-
B 5 " true '\
* Enquiry concerning Virtue, p. 70. f lb hi
yol. 2, p. 71,
Sermon I.
" ture ", but in the other Scheme,
" upon difaftrous Occafions and under
" the Circumllances of a hard and cala-
'' mitous Fortune 'tis fcarce poffible
" to prevent a natural Kind of Ab-
" horrence and Spleen ''^. And in ano-
ther Place, " That 'tis not poiTible
*' to retain the fame Firmnefs or Con-
" flancy of Mind , which Pvehgion
" would naturally give a Man f ".
Thus we fee, if this Author's Obfer-
vations (who has no fmall Credit with
Our Free-thinkers) have any Weight
in them, what mull: be the Behaviour
of a Man in Adverfity, and what mufi:
be commonly expected from one that
afts upon the Atheidick Scheme : In-
ftead of Coniiancy and Firmnefs of
Mind under Afflidions, we muft ex-
peel to find the A.he/Jl raging and cur-
ling his Stars, ading more like a Mad-
man than a wife and fober Perfbn ,
we miuii: exped that he fliould lofe
his Temper , grow foure and melan-
choiv, and confequently uneafie to him-
' Page 73. t Page 75.
Sermon I. 7
felf, and every one that has any Thing
to do with him. And is not this a
Charming Profpe8: of Things , and
enough to induce a Man to part
with his Rehgious Principles, that in^
ftead of behaving under Afflictions with
Decency and Dignity, if we will turn
Atheifis we may hope to lofe our
Tempers, grow impatient, contract a
Sort of Diflike and Abhorrence of e-
very Body and every Thing : But if
we delire to keep our Tempers in all
States of Life, and to do nothing that
we fliall have Reafon to be ailiamed
.of, we muft hve and a8: with a View
to the Principles of Religion ; it being
impoflible with any other Principles to
keep up a good Compofure of the Af-
fedions, or any Uniformity ia our
Minds as the above mentionM Author
obferves.
Epicurus himfelf could not for-
bear faying, that he thought it better
to believe the Fable of the Heathen
Gods than to fubmit to that blind Ne=
cefTity which our Modern Atheifts feem
to be fo fond of Qn. his Letter to M^?
B 4 iJ2C§^ .
8 Sermon I.
mcxus given us by Diogenes hxentas m
his Life) becaufe, he fays, there is
Hopes that the Gods may be prevail-
ed upon by Worfhip and Prayer, but
the other, viz, NecelTxty is deaf and
inexorable to all Applications ^. And
tho' he did not much mend the Matter
by his introducing the Clinamen or Ob-
lique Motion of his Atoms, in order to
fecLire the Liberty of our Minds, yet
the Force of Truth extorted this Con-
feflion fi-om him, that the Fatality
which Leucipp!^ and 'Democritm had in-
troduced, and which is ftill maintained
by our Athafis did reduce Mankind
to a moft hopelefs and miferable [Con-
dition ; that it would be even better
to embrace Superftition for fuch was
the Heathen Mythology, than to be
tied down to the Laws of an unre-
lenting NeceflTity.
The
Ortj", n <j^ ^v(7ix,uv (meaning the Stolcks) ei^uctgiA-
AvciyKiiy.
Sermon I.
The Athetfi when he is called up-
on to give an Account of the general
Confent of Mankind in the Behef of
a G o D and Providence is forced to
affign fuch Reafons for it as plainly
fhew him very fenfible of the Profita-
blenefs of Godhnefs or Religious Prin-
ciples, as firft ^, When he accounts for
the Introdudion of Religion, by Mens
Fears and Solicitude about Future E-
vents ; he muft own it to be his Opini-
on that it would be for the Benefit of
Mankind that fome Being fliould exift
who ' could order and difpofe of all E-
vents, to whom Men might addrefs
themfelves for Rehef, and in whom
they might take Refuge, as being able
to proted them againft every Acci-
dent. Whereas the Fear and Concern
about Future Events which themfelves
fuppofe to be natural to us, would en-
creafe upon us, grow worfe and worfe,
if we were once perfuaded that Fu-
ture 'Events were under no Diredion
but fubjecl to the Caprices of Fortune
or what would be as bad for us, the un-
alterable
* Primus in orbe Decs, fecic timor.
lo Serjmon I.
alterable Laws of a blind and un-
thinking NecelTity, becauie in fuch a
Cafe there is nothing to apply to, no-
thing to truft in : For as thefe Athei-
flical Deities bring about every Tiling
without knowing all the while what
they are doing, it can be to no Pur-
pofe to make any Application to them
or hope for any Relief from them. In
order to amend this ill State of Things
the At he i ft tells us Mankind found out
this Expedient of making themfelves
believe that there muit be fome other
Agent beiides this material World ,
which they were fure could not help
them ', and tho' they could not fee him
doing any Thing that yet he did all,
direded the Motions of the Heavens,
manag'd all Events here upon Earth,
and was able and ready ro relieve his
Creatures when they called upon him
for Help. What Proof v^-e have for
a G o D fhall be afterwards fnewn, by
which it will appear to (land upon
the bed: of Evidence, -and th-retbre
that Fear was not the onely Caufe of
introducing Religion among Alen. It
is
Sermon I. Il
IS enough for my prefent Purpofe that
we have the J^'heifi acknowledging the
Advantages of Rehgious Principles for
ilipporting Men againft the Fears of
Future Evils , and confequently the
Being of a God and Providence is
what of all Things ought to be de-
fired and wifli'd for by us all.
Another Account they arc woiit
to give of the General Confent of
Mankind in the Belief of a God is
that Legiflators and Politicians perfuad-
ed Men there was a G o d as fuch a
Perfuafion was thought to be the beft
Means of keeping Societies in order
and in Obedience to the Laws. This
too is a plain Acknowledgment from
them of the Profitablenefs of Religi-
ous Principles, fince the wifefl Men
fuch as the Founders of States were,
faw no Way of fecuring the Peace of
Societies but by making the Princi-
ples of Religion a Part of the Civil
Conrtitution ; and Mr. Hol?h tells us
how thofe Religious Principles prefer-
ved the Peace of Societies in as much
as the People v/hen they were under
any
12 Sermon I.
any Misfortunes or Calamities , and
were therefore moft inclined to Mu-
tiny , would not blame their Gover-
nors f but rather attribute their
Misfortunes to iheir Want of Refpett
to G o D , to their OmiiTion of fome
Religious Inftitution or fome Miftake
in performing it. I think a higher
Commendation of Religious Principles
cannot poflibly be given than the ma-
king them neceffary to the Peace of
Societies. And the Hobbtji above all
others muft acknowledge the Necef-
fity of imbodying for our mutual
Security , becaufe according to his
Scheme y every Man is an Enemy
to every other Man in a State of
Nature. Every Man has a Natural
Right to whatever he can get by
any Methods what foe ver ; there be-
ing according to him no fuch Thing
as
\ Per has fimilefq; Iqftitutiones ad finem fuum,
nempe Pacem Civitatis, hoc raltem obtinueiunt,
ut populus Calamitatcs fuas Errori allcui vel ne-
gleftui In] agendls facris - — attribueris minus con*
tja Reftores iuos incitaretur, Liviatban, p. Co.
Sermon I. 13
as Right and Wrong, Jutl and Unjuft,
before Men enter into Society , nor
confeqiiently any Thing but their own
Intereft to hinder them from being a
Plague and Vexation to each other.
Having now feen fome of the Advan-
tages of Rehgious Principles for our
Support in the uneafy Parts of Life, it
may be fit to fee what thofe Advan-
tages are which the Atheift propofes by
his Scheme as an Equivalent for what
by his own ConfefTion he muft deprive
• himfelf and others of by his Disbelief
of a God and Providence, and by
endeavouring to draw others into the
fame Degree of Infidelity. Plutarch
tells us his Defign is to free himfelf
from Fear, that he might ftand in
Awe of no Body, and be at full Li-
berty to do what he pieas'd f. This
leads to the Second Advantage of God-
linefs, i'iz-»
That the true and Genuine No*
tion of a G o D has nothing frightful
id
t T«A©- n ,u>) I'ouii^eif 9«K?j /LO> ^«^rt»^.-
14 Sermon I.
in it, that it reftrains a Man in no
Enjoyments but what would be hurt-
ful to him and make him uneafy, and
therefore that a Man can be no Lofer
by being a Behever, if it fhould prove
at laft that there is to be no after State.
Tliat Plui;aych\ Obfervation was a juft
one, or that the At he i ft s Unwillingnefs
to admit a God arifcs from a fright-
ful Notion that he entertains of him,
is evident from the Epcuream continu-
ally reprefenting Rehgion as a grievous
' and heavy Burden. Thus Ve'deius in
TuUy de NaturaDeorui-K^ lib. i. pag. 48.
fays , That thofe who had introduced
a Governor of the World, had made
Mankind perfedt Slaves ^. So Lucretius
in. the Beginning of his firfl Book ,
reprefents Mankind as finking under
the heavy Load of Religion, grovel-
ling upon the Ground, not able to look
up or lift up its Head for tear of the
terrible Afpecl of a God appearing
from
* Itaque impofuiftis in Cerviclbus noftrls fem-
pirernuai domiaum, quern Ulos 5v iiowtes timere-
mus.
Sermon I. 15
from above, and that this was the mi-
ferable Cafe of Man till Epicurus ap^
peared ^. And the fame Writer fpeaks
of Epicrma^s curing Men of tlie
Fear of a G o d as the mod fignai
Piece of Service that was ever done
for Mankind -K But there is nothing
can be more fahe than this Reprefen-
tion of G o D and Rehgion. 'Tis true
indeed our Holy Writings fpeak of Re-
ligion under the Phrate of the Fear of
God. But then this is not the Fear of
an Arbitrary Being who has no regard
to the Good and Welfare of others*
'Tis not the Fear of an Omnipotent
Tyrant, that acts by Humour and
PalTion , but the Fear of a wife and
good Being, that always governs
himfelf by the unalterable Rules of
good Senfe, fuch a Fear as fliould re-
train Men from playing the Fool and
hurting themfelves, from violating the
Laws of Reafon, and confounding the
Moral
* Primum Graius homo mortales tendcre contra
tfi: Oculos aufus.
t Nos exsequat Victoria Cxlo.
t6 Sermon L
Moral Diflerences of Things. And
fuch a Fear no confiderate Man ought
to be concern'd at, for a Fear of this
Kind is greatly for the Advantage of
Mankind, as it tends to the keeping
the World in Peace and good Order,
and hindring thenn from injuring one
another ; 'tis the Fear of a juft B e-
I N G who threatens Punifliment for
doing fuch Things as would turn to
Our real Detriment ; 'tis the Fear of
a kind Father, who knowing better
than ourfelves what is good for us and
what would be mifchievous to us, leads
us to our Happinefs and keeps us from
hurting ourfelves by the Fear of of-
fending him. This is the true and
genuine Fear of a God; what Ad-
vantage then would it be to any Per-
fon if he were deliver'd from fuch a
Fear. Every Man that thinks at all
would rejoice that there fliould be fuch
an Objed of his Fear as might keep
his PafFions and Appetites from doing
him Harm, he would fee that fuch
a Fear was fo far from being Sla-
very , that 'tis confident with the
trucft
Sermon i. 17
truell Liberty, and the beft Prefervative
of itj and that withutt^ it, it would
fcarce be pofTible to fecure the Free-
dom of our Thoughts and Aftions,
Whenever this Fear is attended with
Jealoufies and Sufpicions of the Deity,
as an imperious and arbitrary Being,
that, father dehghts Himfelf in the Mi-
feries than the Happinefs of his Crea-
tures, it then ceafes to be a rehgi*
ous , and cornmences a vicious Fear,
or what we are wont to call Supet-
ftition.
'T I s againfl this lafi Soit of Fear,
that the Arguments of Lucretius^ and
of all Sorts of Jtheifis are direfted.
For they, laying it down as a certain
Truth, That there is no fuch Thing
m Nature as Moral Differences, no
Right or Wrong, Jufi: or Unjuil:, fepa-
rate from Pleafure and Pain , Conveni-
ence and Inconvenience, k would then
indeed follow. That if there was a
God , He could have no Moral Qiia-
lities, nor be obhg'd to ad in Virtue
of them. If there was a Being diftinct
from the World, and enduM with a
C Power
i8 Sermon I.
Power of doing every Thing ; yet there
could not be a juft Being, if there be
no fuch Thing as Juftice (abftra£led
from the Laws of Civil Government.)
If there exifled an infinite Intelligence,
yet fuch Intelligent Being could make
no Difi:in61:ion between Right and
Wrong, if there really be no fuch Thing
as Right and Wrong in the Nature of
Things ; and then what fhould we be
the better for fuch a Being -^ Or fa-
ther, fhould we not probably fare bet-
ter, if we were without fuch a Go-
vernor as ads by mere Will and Plea-
fure? That thefe Notions are juftly
cliarg'd upon the ancient and modern
Atheifisy may appear by a Quotation
from each of them : Cotta, in Tully de
Natura Deorun?^ pag. 98. Davie s''s Edit,,
tells us, one Opinion of the Epicuream
was, That there was no fuch Thing
as Benevolence or an Obligation to do
A£1:s of Kindnefs ; but that whatever
appears of this Kind, arifes merely from
Weakncfs ^5 and therefore, ii there
was
^ Cum ill imbecllllcate gratliicatloncni §; bcneyo-
Untriam ponicls.
S E R M O N I. I p
was any fuch Thing as a God, there
could be no fuch Thing as Love or
Benevolence in him ; becaufe as He
would be all-powerful, He could want
no one's Afliftance, ftand in Need of
no Body, and therefore care for no Body.
And thus again, Mr. Hobbs m his Levia^
thm^ and his Book De Cive, p. 260, 262.
founds all the Right that God has of Go-
verning us, upon his Almighty Power ;
and all the Obligation that we have to
obey him, upon this. That we cannot
help it, his Power being irrefiftible ^*
Thus we fee the Atbeijls Drefling up
God in a frightful Shape, that they
might have the better Colour for De-
nying his Exiftence. But I have alrea-
dy fhewn, that this is a falfe Repre-
fentation of Him ; that when He is re-
prefented as He ought to be, and fuch
as He really is ; that He is the moft
amiable Being in the World j fuch a
C 2 Being
* Deo omnipotenti jus dominandi ab ipfa poten-
tii derivator': manifeftum eft Obligationem ad prje-
ftandam ipfi Obedlentiam incumbere hominlbus
propter imbecUlitatem.
20 S E H M O N^ I.
Being as every confiderate Man would
heartily wiili for, and would even part
with all the World, rather than give
up the Belief of Him ; as the Want of
fuch a Being would rob him of a moft
comfortable Profpeft in a Time of Dif-
ficulty and Diftrefs, and in a Time of
Profperity take off that Reftraint from
his Appetites and PafTions, which is ab-
foluteiy neceffary to keep them from
hurting him.
Hitherto I have fhewn the Profi-
tablenefs of Religious Principles, and
{cor/fzqtiently) the Difadvantages of thofe
of the Atheifls on the Suppofition, that
they could fully perfuadc themfelves. of
the Truth of their Scheme: But, if af-
ter all the Pains they take to difown a:
God, they cannot fet their Minds eafy
from the Fears of Him, then the Pro^
fitablenefs of living under a Senfe of
Religious Principles, and the Difadvan-
tages of Athiij?;-?., will receive a new
D^igree of Evidence : Which was the
third Advantage of Rehgious Principles
that I proposed to difcourfe upon, viz.
That the Belief of them will fet the
Religious
S E R M O N I. 21
Religious Man's Mind at Eafe with Re^
gard to any Apprehenfions of an after
State.
The Hiftories of all Times, and all
Countries inform us, That there con-
ftantly has been a Belief of fome future
State, in which Men v/ere to be ac-
countable for their Behaviour in. this. '
I am not now to confider, Whether this
Apprehenfion in Mankind be agreea-
ble to the Truth of Things, or any
good Proof of them : I am at this Time
pnly to confider, What EHeds fuch an
Apprehenfion may have upon Mens
Minds. And I think it muft be granted
me. That whilft Men have fuch Ap-
prehenfions, they cannot be indiflerent
or unconcerned what is to become of
them in this after State, no more than
a Man can be indifferent with Regard
to his Happinefs or Mifery in this
prefent one. And therefore, unlefs the
Jthtifl can give us a fure and certain
Method by which we may get entirely
rid of fuch Fears, he muft acknowledge
his Scheme to be neither calculated for
fhe GoocJ of himfelf nor any Body elfc.
22 Sermon I.
For I have already fhewn the Advan-
tages of a true and genuine Fear of
God, for the better Conduct of our
Lives ; and if the Atheijl is willing to
give up thofe Advantages, fo as he
might free himfelf from the Fears of
an after Reckoning, we might expe8:
%hd,t he was fure of gaining this Point ; •
Bnt the Hiftories of all Ages fliew us,
that the Convidions of Mens Confci-
ences are not to be filenced by fuch
weak and trifling Reafonings as the
Jthetfis Scheme is built upon : The Ap-
prehenfions of a future State have ta-
ken too deep Root in Mens Minds
to be overturn d by any Speculations
of Men; and I will venture to fay,
That the Athei[t himfelf, with all the
Confidence he pretends to have in the
Truth of his Scheme, cannot infure
himfelf for Life againit the Fears of a
future State, and for this plain Realbn,
That he cannot prove it to be impof-
fible, that fuch a Being as God (in
the Religious Notion of the Word)
fliould exill : For if he cannot have an
abfolute Certainty of that, neither cai^
Sermon I. 2g
lie have any of the other. The Cafe be-
ing this, there can be no Difficulty in
fhewing, That the Principles of Religi-
on are better calculated for the Eafe
of Mens Minds, with Regard to a fii-
ture 6tate, than thofe of the Atheift,
For the Man that lives under Religious
Principles, has a comfortable Profped : If
his Apprehenfions be juft, he knows that
he is made for ever, that his Happinefs
will be beyond the utmoft of his Con-
ceptions, and the Continuance of it to all
Eternity. And if his Thoughts of the
Matter fhould prove nothing but a Mi-
ftake ; yet his Belief has made him pafs
plf Life with more Satisfaftion than J-
theifm can afford a Man, and it can be at
laft no worfe with him than the other.
L B T us now take a View of
the Unbeliever, with Regard to the
Apprehenfions of a future State : As I
have already obferv'd, That he cannot
demonftrate the ImpofTibihty of a Lire
after the Conclufion of this prefent one,
the Suppofirion of its being bArely pof-
fibly to be true, mull give him now
and then an uneafy Thought, for Fear
C 4 that
24- S E R M O N I.
that PofTibility lliould arife ; and when-
ever fuch a troublefome Thought di-
fturhs him, I know of no other Way
he can take to make himfelf cafy, but
by perfuading himfelf, either ift, That
no Man is under any Obhgation of Re-
verencing or Honouring God, tho'
there fhould be One ; or elfe, if he
dares not truft to that, That he is un-
der no Obhgation, becaufe not behev-
ing there is a God, he cannot pay any
Reverence to Him. As to the lirft of
thefe Excufes, I beheve the Atheift will
jfind it hard enough to make himfelf
■ believe, that no Man is under an Obli-
•gation of honouring Him, if there real-
ly be One ; for if there be fuch a Be-
ing, the Relation that we fland in to
• Him, and the Obhgations we have re-
ceived from Him, will make it fit for
us to exprefs our Thankfulnefs and Ac-
knowledgments to Him.
I Am fenfible UnbeHevcrs do not
allow what we call moral Differences;
but then this is upon Suppofition that
their Material Scheme is the true one,
and that there is no God, or no Su-
preme
Sermon 1. 2$
preme Being endued with Moral Per-
feftions. But if there fhould be fuch a
Being, the Jtheiji may be, lor any
thing he knows, anfwerable to this Be-
ing for denying his Exiftence, and in
Confequence of that, for paying no Re-
;verence nor Acknowledgments to Him
for the Favours received from Him,
For if there are any moral Differences
in the Nature of Things, and they are
judg'd of by the Supreme Underftand-
ing fuch as by other underftanding Be-
ings, making only an Abatement for
the Difference between a finite and in-
finite Underftanding ; that is, Suppofe .
we know what Juftice is in God, we
muft believe that it is unjuft to deny
Reverence to the Supreme Being, as
well as it would be Injuftice to refufb
our Acknowledgments to any Friend
or Benefactor for any Kindnefl'es we
had received from him. And it can't
be thought but that the Supreme (as
well as other Beings) muft make a Dif-
ference between thofe that honour Him,
and thofe that deny his Being and Au-.
^hority oyer them. For if God has
tonftitutecj
2(5 S E R M O N I.
conftituted any moral Differences la
Things, He has thereby fufficiently de-
clared that it is his Intention to adi fui-
tably to thofe Differences. The Thing
is fo evident, that the Learned and Un-
learned have agreed in honouring the
the Deity, TuUj has long ago told it
as a certain and undoubted Truth,
That if there is a Supreme and Eter-
nal B e i n g , He is to be had in the
greateft Reverence and Admiration by
Mankind ^. And even Epicurus f him-
felf wrote a Book of Piety tov^^ards the
Gods. If he wrote this Book for no
. other Reafon than to fcreen himfelf froni
the Publick Odium, yet it fhews thus
much, That it was the general Belief
of People at that Time, that the Deity
tught to be honoured. And that thisf
Belief was well-grounded, will after-
wards appear, when I come to prove a
real Difference in the Nature of Things
between Virtue and Vice. Fide Serm.
XI.
I
* Tully de Natura Deorum.. Lib.
t De Divinatione. Lib. z.
S E R M O N I. 27
I Cannot forbear making one Re-
mark from what has been faid, which
is this : That fuppofing there are any
Perfons of fo perverfe an Underftand-
ing, as cannot perfuade themfelves of
a God and Providence, that they fhould
not give themfelves much Trouble in
drawing Men off from fuch a Belief j
becaufe, by their own Confeflion, Man-
kind was brought into this Belief for
their own Good, that they might re-
lieve themfelves from the Uneafineffes
which human Nature is fubje<3; to. If
they make any Pretenfions to Good-
nature, or have any Love for their Spe-
cies, they fhould be contented to believe
themfelves in the right, without uling
any Endeavors to draw other Perfons in-
to a Scheme which is fo difmal anrl with=
out all Comfort, as theirs is ; they can
lie under no Obligations of Confcience,
becaufe they make fhew of Denying
all moral DiiTerences ; and therefore if
they were not a Set of four and ill-na-
tured People, they would be contented
to be miferableby themfelves, and leave
the reft of Mankind in the quiet Pof-
feffioa
28 S E R M O N I.
feilion of fo agreeable a Deiijfion as
tliat of a God and future State, I
can fee but one Tiling they can urge
for themfelves, which is, That tho' a
right Notion of Rehgion would be real-
ly beneficial to Mankind, yet Superfli-
tion is more deftru8:ive of the publicly
.as well as private Quiet of every Man
^^han Jtheifm itfelf : And for the Truth
.of this, they refer you to Vlutarch m his
Treatife, ^a^d j'nenJ'My.oviaf, and to the vi-
fible EfleQs of it, wherever it has pre-
vailed. They add further, That the
Hiftories of every Age have convinced
them, that Mankind is a Creature that
Is more apt to be influenced by a fu-
perflitious, than by a religious Fear.
And therefore, the Odds in Iiuman Na-
ture being on the Side of Superftition
that 'tis not fafe truiting it with any
Religion. The Anfwer to this is very
eafy, That if the Fears of SuperlHtion,
. are the only Reafon of his rejedling re-
ligious Principles, then indead of letting
himfelf againft all Religion, let him en-
deavour to fet the World right in their
Notions of Religion, and we will hear-
tily
Sermon i.
tily joyn with him in fo laudable an
Undertaking. And , as I hope the
Danger of Mens falling into Superftition
may be much lelTen'd by our joynt
Endeavours ; fo I am fure, the above-
mentioned Advantages of true Religion
will fufliciently juftify us in the At-
tempt.
2p
S E R M.
3t
SERMON 11.
1 ThESSALONIANS v. 21.
Vrove all Things : hold fafi
that which is good.
HE Reafonablenefs of Ob-
ferving this Rule of our
Apoftle, is grounded upon
this undoubted Matter of
Fact, That there has been
always a Mixture of Trutli and Falfe-
hood in the World : That there have
always been Perfons who have endea-
vour'd to propagate falfe, as well as
true Doctrines, and therefore no Safety
in holding faft any Opinions, before we
have carefully prov'd and examined
them.
If
/
32 S E R xM 0 N It.
If our Apoftle might have a par-
ticular View to the trying of Revela-
tions or divine Infpirations ; yet this
Advice of his will equally extend to
every SubjeQ; that is propofed to our
Confideration ; and if we are guided by
it, we fhall never give our Ailent to
any Propofition, till we have fully and
fairly examin'd it \ For if, as in the pre-
fent Cafe, which the Apoftle feems par-
ticularly to referr to, we fuppofe a Man
led into Error by fome mere Pretender to
Infpiration, if it would not, I fay, be a
good Excufe before God, that he be-
lieved fuch a Perfon infpired, ahd pra-
6:ifed amils in the Virtue of fuch a Be-
lief, becaufe he ought to have examin'd
his Credentials, and proved his Spirit,
whether it was of God, or not ; neither
would it be a good Juftification of a
Man, if he fliould plead. That he aded
fuitably to his own Opinions; unlefs
'twas alfo true, that he had carefully
examined them before he efpoufed them ;
becaufe every Man will be as much con-
cerned to avoid Miftakes concernino-
the Truths of Natural, as well as
thofe
Sermon 11. 33
thofe of Revealed Religion. And he
that afTents to either upon any other
Motive than that of Evidence, alcho''
he fhould embrace the Truth, as this is
purely accidental, may be anf^verable
to God for not making a due Ufe of
his Faculties : for St. Paul's Rule is. To
prove ail Thi^^gs : and then to hold fnfi
that which is good.
We who are guided by St. Vaul
and the reft of the infpired Teachers,
do require, and pfefs Upon all PerionS
a thorough Examination of the Argu-
ments on which Religion is built : Y/e
defire nothing more than a fair Trial,
and are willing to abide by the Suc-
cefs of it. And therefore the Author
of the Difcourfe of Free-Thinkifigy is a
Slanderer of his Brethren , vv^hen he
would infinuate, as if the Jlehgious
Man was averfe to a free and impar-
tial Examination of Rehgious Truths.
We defire Men would examine with
the utmoft Stridnefs; we only defire
them to lay afide all Partiality, and
every Prejudice ; we are only againft
Licentioufnefs in Thinking, as we are
D perfuaded
34 S E R M O N II.
perfuaded, That a Man may as well
abufe his Freedom in Thinking , as
he may his Liberty in Acting ; as I
fliali have Occafion to fhew in Confider-
ing another Evafion the Jtheifl has to
avoid the Apprehenfions of a future
State, vijc. That a Man cannot deferve
Blame or Punifliment, fo long as he
ads confiflently with his own Opinion,
or that himfelf cannot deferve Blame
or Punifhment for not Honouring God,
becaufe he does not beheve there is
one.
F o R if this Excufe be a good one,
one of thefe two Things muft be true,
either i/, That a Man cannot deferve
Blame for ading according to his Opi-
nions, how groundlefs foever they be.
Or, 2dly, Becaufe he had made a due
Examination and Trial of this Quefti-
on, and could find no Evidence for a
God.
A s to the firfl of thefe : Let us fee
what Grounds the Atheifl can have to
hope for Impunity, merely becaufe he
ads according to his Opinion, when he
refufes Refped to a Supreme Being.
I
Sermon 11.
I Must confcfs, I cannot fee much
in the Argument ufed by jbme great
Men againft incurring this Blame and
Punifhment, 'viz,, they advife the Atheifi^
That he fhould ftrive to have Faith
and beheve to the utmoft ; becaufe,
i^ after all there be nothing in the
Matter , there will be no Harm in
being thus deceived ; but if there be
any thing, it will be fatal for him
not to have believed to the fall i
And my Reafon is this : Becaufe the
Perfon \ve advife to believe, is fuppofed
at beft to be doubtful, whether there
is a G 0 D ai)d Providence ; And how^
then can the Man believe them, who
at the fame time is not perfuaded of
their Truth ; but rather believes there
is no fuch Thing ? For if a Man fbould
affect to believe, what he does not be-
lieve, there is little Reafon for thinking
that fuch a Procedure would be agree-
able to God; becaufe this would be
acting againft the Light of his own
Mind, which no one that believes a
God, will fuppofe to be a probable
Way of recommending any one to his
Favour- D 2 I
3S
§6 S E R M O T'T It.
I Should rather advife the Afheiji
to examine carefully, What were tJie
real Motives that prevailed upon him
to quit the Religion he had been edu-
cated in, and to take up with Infide-
lity ? Whether a fmcere Love of the
Truth, or rather fome fecret Paflion
had influenced him ? If he would deal
fairly with himfelf in this Self-examina-
tion, I am perfuaded he would find,
that the Alteration of his Opinion is
not fo much owing to any rational
Convidion of his Mind, as to fome vi-
cious Inclinations, which had made Ar-
guments appear weighty. to him, which
would pafs with other People for mean
and trifling ; as I fliall afterwards fhew
when I come to corifider the Argn-
ments by which he pretends to fupport
liis Material Scheme.
I N the mean time I am to fhew,
That there are many Motives befides
rational Evidence, which have deter-
mined Men to the Opinions that they
efpoufe, and confequently, that this Eva-
fion of the Atheifl, i/iz. That a Man
cannot deferve Blame or Punifliment
for
Sermon it. 37
for acting agreeably to his Opinions,
cannot be relied upon by any prudent
or confiderate Man, And then the J-
theiji can never fecure himfelf againft
the Apprehenfions of future Punifhment
upon this Foot of Reafoning.
When I am fliewing, that a Man
may be anfwerable for his Opinions,
and for what he does in Virtue of them ;
I woulcj aot be thought to alTert,
That 'tis in any Man's Power to be-
lieve what he has a mind to beheve;
for his Belief and his Opinion mull de-
pend upon the Evidence, fuch as it ap-
pears to the Man ; and yet thus much
is certain, That a Man may defervc
Blame for his Opinions, i^ he has not
duly qualified himfelf for Evidence when
'tis offered to him. As,
I /?, I F when he is enquiring after
Truth, he fuiTers himfelf to be byafs'd
by any predominant PafTion or Appe-
tiie; for thefe are known to make
Men deaf to the plained Evidence of
Reafon. Or,
2^/j, If thro' Lazinefs he declines a
full or thorough Examination of any
Jj I Queftioi^
;8 S E R M O N II.
Qiieftion in which he is much con*
cerned. That thefe may be, and often
are, the true Caufes of many Per-
fons Infidelity, will appear probable,
by confidering fome of the Motives
wliich too often govern Men, with Re-
gard to the Perfuafions or Opinions
that are held by them : The Prejudices
which I fliall at prefent confider, as
having a great Influence upon us, and
which may lead Men into an Inclination
for the Principles of Infidelity, are
thefe ;
1. An Affectation of Singularity;
which is v/ont to take much with fuch
Perfons as defire to be diftinguifhed by
being thought to fee farther than their
Neighbours.
2. An Averfioji to the Errors that
have crept into true Religion, .has in^
fenfibly led many Perfons into a total
Disbelief of all Rehgion.
^. A Desire of being independent,
and uncontroulable by any one : When
this meets with Perfons of an impe^
rious Temper, 'tis a lirong Temptation
to Infidelity.
Whenevhr
S £ R M O N 11. 39
Whenever any of tliefe prevail,
they muft be allowed to be falfe Grounds
pf Perfiiafion, and for which a Man will
be juftly accountable, if there be a Su-
preme Being to whom an Account is
jto be given for the Ufe, or Abufe of
our underftanding Faculties.
i/. An Affedation of Singularity is
wont to have a powerful Influence up-
pn a Man's Opinions, efpecially when
it meets with a proud Temper.
A Man muft have pafs'd his Life
without much RefleQ:ion upon human
Nature, that has not obferved, That
Men are more commonly influenced,
as to the Opinions they hold, by fome
predominant PafTion, than by any Con-
y'lEtion from the Principles of Reafon.
The ftriking out into a difl'erent Way
of Thinking fl'om the red of Mankind,
flatters the Vanity of a proud Man with
this pleafing Imagination , That he
fliall be thought to fee farther than
any Body elfe. For he that contradids
any received Notions, expects the World
fhould beheve, that he does fo, becaufc
he reafons with greater Freedom and Im-
P 4 partiality
Sermon ii.
partiality than other People ; and the
more p^^enerally received the Opinions
are which he oppofes, the greater Credit
he hopes to gain by it \ and therefore,
Reh'gion having been the general Per-
fuafion of Mankind, is for that Reafon
the fittell: Mark for the proud Man to
point his Arguments againll: : for the
Fewer he has on his Side, the more he
hopes to fliine, as he knows a Man is
apt to be Ipil: in a Croud, and that if
he would be taken Notice of, he muft
fland fingle, or have but Few in his
Company.
The Author of the Difcourfe
about free-thinkii^g , has acknorvledged
this fecret Temptation to Infidelity,
when he would put it off as the
common Opinion of Mankind, that the
Aiheiji has more Senfe than other Peo-
ple. For^ fays he, // ar/y good Chrijiian
happens to Reafon better thra ordmnrj^ they
(meaning the Chriftians) charge him with
Athtifm. He takes this fly Way of
commending the Atheifts for good Rea-
foners, in fuggefting that thofe very
Perfons who believed a God and future
State^
Se RMON II. 4^
State, could not forbear ownmg Atheifm
to be the Effe6: of good Reafoning, and
the Atheijls better Reafoners than other
People. How weak and groundlefs fo-
ever this Notion may be of Mens be-
ing better Reafoners in proportion as
they beheved lefs of a G o d and Pro-
vidence ; yet thus much may be obferv-
ed from it to my prefent Purpofe, That
fome Perfons may have been, and ftill
are tempted to appear on the Side of
Infidelity, from the vain Hopes of be-
ing thought more difcerning and faga-
cious than the reft of the World.
Monsieur Bayle^ whofe Writings
will free him from any Sufpicion of be-
ing overpartial in the Caufe of Religion,
does honeftly ackflowledge, That the
Infidelity of many People is owing
more to fome Degree of Vanity, and a
Defire of diftinguiiliing themftlves, than
to any Force of Evidence : and nothing
can be truer than what he has faid up^
on this Qccafion in his Hifiorical Dicfia'
n^ry^ " It is plain enough, jays he ^
*' that thofe who make a Shew in
j- Company of pppofing the moft
" common
42 S E R jM O N II.
^' common Truths of Religion, fpealf
" what they do not really think ; their
" Vanity has a greater Share in their
" Debates than any Convidion of their
" own Minds ; they pleafe themfelves
*' with the Thoughts that the Boldnefs
*' and Singularity of the Opinions which
" they defend, will gain them the Repur
*' tation of great Genius's, and of Men
*' of a fuperior Way of Thinking to
*^ the reft of Mortals. Thus they are
" tempted againft their Confciences to
" fet forth the Difficulties which the
" DoQrines of Providence and tliofe of
" the Gofpel are fubjeft to ; fo that by
" Degrees they get a Habit of fpeaking
" impiouily : And if their Vanity be
^' attended with tlfe Love of Scnfua-
" Iky, they go on fafter ia their Im-
" piety ". Thus far Mr. Bajle ipeaks
in relation to an ingenious Fref?ch Li-
bertine, and to all of that Sort ia
the Title Des Barnaux. The Jthei/l
has perhaps heard too, That the E-
ficurean Atheifl was wont to impute
the Belief of a God to Mens Igno-
rance of the Povvers of Matter iri
Motion :
S E R M O N II. 43
Motion; and therefore hopes by the
Denial of Him, to acquire a great Re-
putation for Knowledge.
Another common Fountain from
whence Infidelity is wont to arife, is,
An Averfion to Superftition. Some Men
do no fooner difcover the Errors that
are crept into true Religion, than they
conceive fuch an Averfion to thefe Er-^
rors, as that they begin to fufped all
the reft to be a Miftake, and from be-
ing Enemies to Superftition, become
Enemies to all Religion in general. This
I take to be the moft ufual Way by
which Men arrive at a State of Infide-
lity ; but this is an unjuftifiable Proce-
ding in any one that pretends to be a
Lover of Truth; becaufe it fuppofes
that where there are Errors, there can
be no Truth, There are Errors in all
Communities of Men profefTing Reli-
gion, therefore there can be no Truth
at all in Religion itfelf ; Men have made
great Miftakes in the Pidures they have
drawn for the Deity, therefore there
can be no Deity at all ; becaufe they
are fure there cannot be a God with
'"' "' human
44 S E R JVf O N II.
human WeaknefTes, therefore there can-
npt be one with divine Perfections:
They might with as much Juftice ar-
gue, That becaufe there is a Wrong,
there can be no fuch Tiling as a
Right.
But they are not only unjuftifiable,
when they have no better Reafon for
leaving us, but alfo (which I believe
will concern the Atheift more, becaufe
it reflects upon his Underflanding) they
fhew great Weaknefs when they are
byafs'd to Infidehty by their Averfion
to Superflition, as this fhcws a great
Defeat in Point of Judgment. Fqr
when Men flee from one Extream to
the other, when they take Refuge m
Atheifm out of an Hatred to Superfl:ition,
the Reafon muft be becaufe they know
not how to difl:ingui(h what is true
from what is falfe. They And they
have not Skill enough to take ofl' the
Difguife froiji Religion, to feparate the
Appearance from the Reahty; and
therefore finding they mufl: take all or
none \ the Hatred they have conceived
againft the Errors they have already de-
tected;.
S E R M O N 11. 4$
tested, prompts them to quit Religion
entirely, as the only Way for fuch poor
Reafoners to be fecure againft Errors
in Rehgious Matters. This is the true
Reafon and Foundation of that Obfer-
vation fo often made, That where there
is moft Superftition, as in luly, Atheijis
are moft frequent; becaufe the Gene-
rality of People are apt to conceive
fo ftrong a Prejudice againft any Caufe,
how juft foever, when they difcover any
Fraud ufed in the Support of it, that
they immediately conclude the whole
to be a Cheat. Their Averfion for the
Fraud, makes them overlook all tlie
Arguments that can be given them for
the Support of the Truth ; as i? it was
an IrtipoiTibility in the Nature of the
Thing, for evil Men to defend the
Truth by a FalQiood. But this has
fo often happened in the World, that
no Man can be accounted a fair Ex-
aminer that rejects Religion merely
upon this Account.
3^/7, A Desire of being uncontrouFd
and unaccountable as to their Thoughts
and Behaviour, tempts fome Perlbns to
the
/^6 S E R M O N II.
the Denial of God's Exiftence. Men of
haughty and imperious Tempers would
be Monarchs to themfelves, they care
not to believe themfelves obliged to
any Body, and therefore are fond of
the Material Scheme, as it fets them
at fiiU Liberty from all Obligations;
for no one can think himfelf obliged
to any Being merely for doing for him
what it can't help doing. Atoms by
luckily jumbling together for my Good,
or the neceffary and unalterable Laws
of Matter in Motion producing all that
we fee, tho' I received never fo much
Benefit from them, could lay me un-
der no Obligation of Gratitude to them ;
I fhould ftill be under the fulleft Li-
berty of Thinking and Ading as I
liked beft ; (if any fuch thing as Li-
berty were confident with either of
thofe Schemes) But if a Man fliould ac-
knowledge an Intelligent Being for
his Creator and the Author of all the
Comforts he meets with in Life, he
cannot forbear thinking fometimes that
fonie fuch Submiflion may be due to
Him
Sermon II. 47
Him, as may reftrain his Fulnefs of
Freedom in Thinking and Ading.
And this St. Evremonty who was
never thought to be troubled with Be-
lieving too much in Rehgious Matters,
acknowledges might be a Temptation
to Ferfons of an imperious Temper ;
if he was truly tlie Author of a Trea-
tife afcribed to him ^, where it is faid,
" That there are others who in an
" extravagant Prefumption of their ov/n
" Abilities, fcorn to . depend on their
*' Maker; vainly imagining, that the
" Obedience that is paid to this Infi-
*' nite Majesty, muft necelTarily take
" away the Freedom of their Thoughts
" or Opinions. " We have already
feen by the ConfelTion of Lucretius f,
that the Defire of being in a State of
Independence, and of having none to
controul them, was a great Induce-
ment to many Perfons to enter them-
felves in the School of Eficurus ; and v/e
cannot doubt but the fame Caufe is
ftill
ff Vid. Curious Mucellanie?. t Sevmon I.
48
Sermon il
flill working the fame Effecl: in the
Children of Difobedience : Efpecially as
to thofe who are Libertines in Action
as well as Thought, who defire to gra-
tify every irregular Appetite, and to
extinguifli the Clamours of theii- Con-
fciences, 'tis their Interefl: to throw off
the Belief of a G o d and turn Atbeip : as
long as they have any Reafon left, they
muft for Peace and Quietnefs Sake en-
deavour to perfwade themfelves, that
there is no Superior Underftanding to
take notice of and animadvert upon
them for ading againft the Senfe of
their own Minds. Atheifm is the only
Refuge they have to take to; for fo
long as Men will a£b againft their
ownUnderftandings, they muft wiili that
there were no Underftanding Being to
obfcrve what they are doing : but
thefe are the Fools, which the Pfalmijt
tells us have [aid in their Hearts^ that
there is no God,
The Ufe that I would make of this,
fhould be to advife the Atheijl^ That
fince there are confeifedly vicious Motives
that have led Men into their Opinions,
that
S E R M O NT II.
that he would examine, whether none
• of thok I have already mentioned had
determin'd him to exchange the Reh^
gion he was brought up in for Jthe^fm.
For i[ he has left it without fufficient
Reafon, his pleading that he ads ac-
cording to his Opinion, will not ex-
cufe him from Blame and Punif[>
ment.
I A M eafy to believe, that the M.
■del will difregard the Advife I have
given him of examining what were the
Motives that principally occafioned his
. Infidelity, and may think, that his Mif-
take, if it fhould prove fuch, can do
lym no Harm. I fliall therefore chufe
to put him m mind of what Monfieur
BAjite fays of fuch as have been drawn
into Infidelity thro' any vicious Mo-
tives, particularly thofe he infiances of
Pride or Senfuality in his Hiftorkal Dicii^
onary^ Title Des Barrea^x : '' That qviI
^' Cufiom, fays he,, which fome Perfons
" had taken up in Converfation of oppo-
" fing the great Truths of Religion, oc-
*| cafion'd either by Vanity, or a Defire
'' of being thought more knowing than
^ ** others.
49
^O S E R M O N II.
" thers, or to juftify themfelves in their
" Senfuality, may for fome time filence
^^ the inward ConviQ:ionsof their Minds,
" and make them to have entirely for-
^' got what they had learnt in their
" Youth concerning a God, a Hea-
" ven and a Hell: but they cannot
" wholly extinguifh the Belief of them,
'^ it being only like a Fire concealed
** under the Afhes, which will quickly
" fliew its Adivity, efpecially when
*' tliere is any ProfpeQ: of Danger ;
*' then, fays he^ we find them Trem-
" bhng, and more in Fear than any
*' body elfe ; they become then even
*' fuperiiitious : '* And he gives this
Reafon for it ; " That the Remembrance
" of their having fliewn more Con-
** tempt for Holy Things than others,
*' increafes their Uneafinefs. " If this
Obfervation of Monfieur Baylis be juft
and agreeable to Truth, the Advice I
have given the Jt'^eijl of examining the
Motives that induced him to renounce
Religion, may not be altogether amifs.
Becauic whatever he may think while
he is in Health, and out of Danger, he
cannot
S E R M o jsr II. 5 r
cannot fecure himfelf againft the Ap-
prehenfions of Punifhment, i? he has
wantonly taken up the Caufe of Infi-
delity.
But fome one may fay, That this
Way of arguing againfi: Atheijis^ is en-
tring into the Hearts of Men, and charg-
ing them with what may be as eafily
denied as affirmed ; that it is an un-
fair Procedure with them, becaufe 'tis
taking for granted, that a Man mail: be
influenced by fome Prejudices whenever
he embraces Atheifm ; that this might
be with equal Juftice retorted upon
the Believer, that he too is prejudiced,
and willing againft Evidence to believe
a G o D, becaufe he wifhes there was
one, and thinks it would be better for
him that there fhould be one; and
therefore that the Argument drawn
from Prejudices ihould be omitted by
both Sides.
The Anfwer is, That I ought to fhew,
if I could, that other Motives befides
Evidence, might influence Men in their
Opinions; that fuch Motives were \\-
cious and punifhable if there fhould be
E 2 a God :
^2 Sermon n.
a God : And this, in order to engage
the Atheifi to examine carefully upon
what Motives he took up his Opini-
ons : If the Reh'gious Man is under a
ftrong Prejudice to believe a God, and
he fliould be miftaken, his Miftake can-
not be dangerous or hurtful to him.
I ought alfo not to have omitted thefe-
Prejudices as probable Motives to In-
fidelity, becaufe many of thofe who
feem to difown all Religion, have been
(as we have alrady feen from the Con-
feffion of unfufpecled Writers ) in-
fluenced by fome or other of them.
If there are any others who have
from any thing like a ferious Confide-
ration wrought themfelves into a Be*
iief. That this Frame of Things might
have either cafually fallen into the Or-
der we find it in, or necefTarily have
exifted fuch as it is from all Eternity,
they are not concerned with what has
been faid under the Head of Prejudices,
and fliall be diftinftly confidered by
themfelves, when I come to confider
another Evafion of the Atheifi s^ 'viz.
That after tlie bell: Enquiry, he
could
Se R M O N II. 52
could find no Evidence for a G 0 d, and
therefore could deferve neither BJame
nor Punifliment for being confident
with himfelf, in. not paying any Re-
fped to One whom he did not acknow-
ledge for God.
Having confidered certain Preju-
dices which might be fuppofed to have
determined many of thofe who have
efpoufed the Caufe of Jtheif^^ it can-
not be amifs to put them in mind, That
their Anceftors in Iniidehty fupported
their Pj'inciples by Reafons which our
Modern Jtheifls mull acknowledge to be
falfe, and therefore were certainly to
blame in concluding againft a God up-
on fuch Reafonings, as a further and
more careful Examination into Nature
would have difcovered to be faife. Tiiis
fhould difcourage the modern Jcbeift
from being over-confident in his Scheme,
left further Difcoveries in Knowledge
Ihould make his Caufe lefs defenfibie,
and himfelf culpable for determining
haftily againft a God, before a full and
thorough Examination of the feveral
Particulars on which he is wont to
K ? groun<i
54 S E R M O NT II.
ground his Infidelity. Which brings
me to confider another Defed in try*
ing any Qiieftion, viz,
2dly. That we defer ve Blame, i^
tliro"* Lazinefs we decline a thorough
Examination before we take up our
O'g'mioTis.
Ir cannot be doubted that there are
in the world Half-Thinkers as well as
Free-Thinkers ; fuch as lead themfelves
into Miilakes, either becaufe they want
Abihties or Inclination to make a cjofe
Inquiry into Things. The great Lord
Baco^ places Atheifm to the account of
Short-Thinking, to a fmattering in Phi-
lofophy. I know our modern Unbe-
lievers would think themfelves greatly
injured li we charged them with any
V/ant of Ability, and fo would their
PredecefTors ; for we find Lucretius per-
petually Talking with fuch an Air of
AlTurance, as if he had adually wreft-
ed the Thunderbolt out of Jupiter\
Hands ; and yet he appears to have
been a carelefs Examiner into Nature,
when he accounted for the Produ-
clion of x^nimals from infenfible Mat-
ter
S E R M O N II. 55
ter, by Worms arifmg from corrupted
Carcafles ; which was the only Ac-
count he could give of Animal Pro-
dudions, z'iz, of Life and Senfation ^ ;
And yet our prefent Atheip muft ac-
knowledge, That he pronounced in this
Cafe as a poor Philofopher, and be-
fore he had made a fair Examination :
For I think Equivocal Generations are
now generally given up. This there^
fore muft pafs with our Unbelievers for
a Proof, That their Anceftors were ia
this RefpeQ: Short-Thinkers, and took
up their Opinions upon infufficient Mo-
tives.
There is another Inftance may
be given, in which the Atheifts have
taken up their Opinions before their
having made a due Examination ; which
is this : That nothing could aO: upon
Matter but by Contad ; from thence
they inferred, there could be no real
E 4 Being
Quippe videre licet vivos exiflere vermes,
ftercore de tetro putrorem cum fibi nafta eft, ^c.
55
Sermon ii.
Being but Matter, or, which would
be the fame thing , that if there was
any thing immaterial in Nature, it
could have nothing to do with the
Material World ; becaufe Matter could
be acled upon in no other Way but
by Contacl, and then nothing but
Matter could aQ; upon Matter ; and con-
fequently, an Immaterial Being, which
could not a£l in the Way of Contact,
could have no E&iency or Aftion up-
on Matter : But a farther Examinatir
on into the Laws by which Nature is
govern'd, has convinced the World,
that Bodies themfelves can a8: upon
cne another at the greateft Diftance
from each other, and in another Way
than that of Contact ; and then it muft
be allowed, that the Argument built
upon it was form'd before a due Ex-
amination had been made into the
Nature of Things.
Avery Learned Man and a great
Thinker in our Time, who had af-
ferted, " That we might as well con-
" ceive that God might have added
" a Thinking (Quality to Matter, as
'* make
Sermon. II. 57
'^ make a material Subftance capable of
" Ading or being aded upon by an
''* Immaterial one ; becaufe there could
" be no relation of Contact between
^^ fuch heterogeneous Subftances ; " was
afterwards convinced, that there was
another Way than that of Contad by
which Bodies might be afted upon;
as may be {qqh in his Pojihumous Let-
ters.
The Ufe that I would make of
this, is, That in a Matter of fo great
Concern as that of a God and Pro-
vidence, the Unbehever would fufter
himfelf to be perfuaded to re-examine
his Conclufions, and fee whether he
has not been deceived in any of his
Premifes. he fees his Predecellbrs ia
Infidelity by a clofer Infpedion into
Nature, ftripp'd of fome Part of that
Armour in which they trufted moft :
And how can he be fure , that far-
ther Enquiries into Nature may not
ftill weaken his Caufe ? And if thro'
Lazinefs he fliould dechne fuch En-
quiries , and his Opinions fhould at
kft prove falfe, his Negled will be
Criminal,
58 Sermon II.
Criminal, and himfelf anfwerable for
not taking due Information , before
he took his Opinions for Better , for
Worfe,
S E R M.
SERMON III
I Thessalonians v. 21*
Trove all Things : hold fajl
that "which is good.
5?
HAVE already in difcour-
fing upon thefe Words
fhewn how we muft pre-
pare ourfelves for a fair
Examination of any Que-
ftion ; that we muft, previoufly to
our Inquiries, diveft ourfelves of every
Prejudice and Paflion, fuffer no Incli-
nations, nor any Defires, but thofc of
finding the Truth, to influence our
Judgments : That we muft be con^
tented
(5o Sermon hi.
tented in Qiieftions of great Moment, to
undergo the Fatigue of a full and care-
ful Examination, and not thro' Lazinefs
decline a thorough Search into the Ar-
guments on both Sides, or draw our
Conclufions before we have well con-
fidered our Premifes.
I HAVE fhewn that the Want of
obferving thefe Rules, doth often lead
Men into Errors ; and that the greateft
and worft of all Errors, 'viz. Infidelity,
would decreafe in its Numbers, and
lofe a great Part of its Profelytes^
whenever the World ihall refolve to
take up their Opinions from no other
Principle but a fincere Love of the
Truth. That the Jtheifl ought to lay
his Hand upon his Heart, and declare
if he can, That nothing but a Love
for the Truth had determin'd him to
exchange Religion for Atheifm ; and
that it concerns him to be fincere in
fuch a Declaration ; becaufe every o-
ther Reafon for making the Exchange,
would render him a Criminal for the
Abufe of thofe Faculties of his Mind
which
Sermon hi. 6i
which would have dire£led- him bet-
ter*
I AM now to confider ihe other
Excufe the Athcift is wont to make,
That he has made the befl: Enquiry
he can, without being able to difcover
any Evidence for a G o d.
But before I confider what thofe
have to fay for tliemfelves, who pre-
tend to have taken up Atheifm after
a ferious Confideration of Things, I
mull infift upon this, .as a Prelimina-
ry to the Debate, That the Atheifi
ought not to bring againft us any
fuch Objeftions, whofe whole Strength
arifes merely from our Incapacity of
conceiving the Nature and Operations
of G 0 D ; and for this plain Reafon,
Becaufe 'tis agreed betwixt us, that we
are finite or limited Beings ; and muft
therefore have limited Underftandings :
But that the neceffarily exifting Being,
w^hoever He is, muft be an Infinite and
Eternal One, filling all Time and all
Place. For there is no denying that
Something muft have been from Eter-
nity j becaufe if it were not fo, Some-
thing
62 Sermon hi.
thing mufl: have arifen abfolutely from
Nothing, or exifted without having
any Caufe or Reafon of its Exift-
ence : Which is plainly impofTible. And
yet 'tis certain, we can form no No-
tion of an eternal Duration already
paft ; an Argument therefore drawn
from our Inability to conceive the Na-
ture of a Being that has actually ex-
ifted from Eternity, or to comprehend
its Manner of Operation, ought to
have no Weight,with «^, nor be urg'd
by the Jiheift, becaufe his Material
God would be equally affeded by it.
If then he would juftify himfelf, the
only rational Inducements that can pof-
fibly be aflign'd for exchanging Re-
ligion for Atheifm y muft be one or
other of thefe :
Either for the avoiding fome par-
ticular Difficulties, which he thinks
may be proved to amount to Impof-
fibilities in our Notion of a God,
and which too his Material Scheme is
not attended with :
O R elfe, becaufe in general there are
far leis Difficulties to be gotten over
m
Sermon m. 63
in accounting for Appearances by the
material Scheme, than there would be,
fhould we once admit a God and
Providence. Thefe are the only juftifia-
bk Inducements that can be affigned
for quitting Religion and embracing
Atheifm, And if the firfl: of thefe fhould
appear to be fuch as cannot be de-
fended, and the other to be falfe ia
Fad ; then it muft be granted, that
the Atheif has not taken up his Ma-
terial Hypothefis after a fair Examina-
tion ; and will be therefore highly cul-
pable for not aOiing with that In-
genuity which becomes a Lover of
Truth.
A s to the firft of thefe Inducements,
I will fhew, That it can never juftify
him in rejecting Religion.
i/?, Because he can never prove
that the particular Difficulties he
complains of, do amount to an Im.-
poffibility or a Contradiction.
2flJ/j, Because his Material Scheme
which he takes up with for avoiding
thofe Difficulties, is attended with infi-
nitely greater ones than thofe which he
finds
6j^ S e r xM o n Hi.
finds fault with in our Notion of a Gop'i
And then, as to the other Induce-
ment, 'viz. That in general, there are
fewer Difficulties in accounting for
Things by a Material Principle ; I will
ihew, that fome of the moft confidera-
ble Ph£»omena in Nature, cannot be ac-
counted for by fuch a Principle only.
The firft Inducement for embra-
cing Atheifm^ is not defenfible, becaufe
the Atheift can never prove, That the
particular Difficulties he complains of
in our Notion of a G o d, do amount
to an Impoffibihty or a Contradi6;ion.
The chief Difficulties which the Jtheifl
is wont to charge upon our Idea of a
God, are thefe:
17?, That we afcribe Immateriality
to Him.
idly^ That we allow Him a Pow-
er of making Something out of No-
thing : Both which are thought by him
to be impoffible , whenever they are
fuppofed to be the Nature or the Ope-
rations of any Thing whatfoever. And
^dly^ Because we make Goodnefs
a Part of his Charader j which they
think
Sermon III. 65
think to be fufficiently contradicted by
the many Natural and Moral Evils
that appear in his Workmanfliip.
ly?, I A M to confider the Difficulties
which are raifed againft a God from
his Immateriality. If the Jtheift would
prove an immaterial or incorporeal Sub-
ftance to be impoflible or a Contra-
di£lion ; in order to prove it fuch, he
muft undertake the Proof of this Pro-
pofition, " Whatever is immaterial, is
" Nothing." And therefore an imma-
terial Subftance, a mere Non Entity, And
he muft prove this, one of thefe two
Ways ; either^ That what we have no
Idea of, can have no Exiftence in the
Nature of Things; that we have no
Idea of an immaterial Subftance, there-
fore there can be no fuch Thing. Or
elfe he muft affirm, That the only fub-
ftantial Thing in the World is Matter
or Body ; and therefore an incorporeal
Subftance would be the fame thino- as
an incorporeal Body : Which muft be
a Contradiclion in Terms.
The Anfwer we give to the firft of
thefe Obieclions, is, That we cannot
F allo^
66 Sermon III.
allow them to fpeak Truth, if they af=
firm, That we have no Conception of
•an immaterial Subftance. 2^'/j, That if
it were a Truth, it could not be a good
Proof of the Impoflibility of its Ex-
iftence.
A s to the firft of thefe Objeftions, we
are perfuaded,That we as certainly know
fome of the Properties of immaterial ,
as we do thofe of material Subftance ,
that Perception, Underftanding, and a
Power of beginning Motion , are as
certainly the Properties of an immate-
rial Subftance, as Solidity, and a Ca-
pacity of receiving and communicating
Motion are Properties of Matter or Bo-
dy. I know the Atkift would make
all thefe Properties of immaterial Sub-
ftance, to be only Qualities refulting
ft-om Matter. But as I ftiall after-
wards have Occafion to fliew, Tiiat this
Suppolition of the Athsiji is Groundlefs
and Unphilofophical, I will for the
prefent take it for granted, what fhall
afterwards be proved, viz,. That thefe
are Properties of immaterial Subfence ;
and iis a Confequence of that, that we
are
S E R M O M III. 67
are able to form fome Notion of an
Immaterial Subftance ^. And as for
the Subftance itfelf of an Immaterial
Being, it would be 'm vain and to no '
Purpofe to argue, that we knew no-
thing of it, or could form no Idea
about it; becaufe the fame Objeftion
would equally affeQ: Material or Cor-
poreal Subftance, of which we know
as little as we do of the other.
But fuppofing it never fo certain,
That we could form no Idea of an
Immaterial Being ; this would not prove
the Impoflibihty of its Exiftence ; un-
lefs it was as certain, That the Facul-
ties of a limited Nature, fuch as ours
confeiTedly is, could reach to the ut-
moft Extent of every Truth, and no
PofTibility of Being could efcape the
Searches of our Underftanding. Where-
as all the Knowledge we can pretend
to have of the Exiftence of Things
without us, muft be derived to us thro'
fome or other of the Senfes ; for thefe
F 2 are
^ Vide Serm. VI, VH^ VIII, IX.
6S S E R xM O N HI.
are the only Carriers of all the Intel-
ligence that the Mind receives con-
cerning External Exiftences. And then
which Way will the Jtheiji take to
convince any Body, that our Five Senfes
are all the poiTible Ways of receiving
Information concerning the Nature and
Operations of External Objects. If we
fhould confult our Reafon in this Mat-
ter, that would probably tell us. That
this particular Number of Informers
was rather calculated for our prefent
State (in which we find ourfelves be-
fet on all Sides with Corporeal Objects,
fome of which are good for us, and
others would hurt us) than to give us
an exad Infight into the Nature of
Things. And that probably there may be
many more Chanels of Knowledge than
thofe we are furnifhed with, and fuch
as would have given us farther Views
into Things than we are capable of
in our prefent Condition. And there-
fore we fliould with juft the fame Rea-
fon and Juftice pronounce againft the
PofTibility of any Thing which is not
the Objed of one of our Five Senfes,
as
Sermon lir. 6p
as a Man that is born blind might de-
clare againft the Poflibihty of Light or
Colours, becaufe • he has no Idea of
them ; or as we all fhould have done,
had our whole Species come into the
"World with only Four of them, or with-
out the Senfe of Seeing.
It is certain we can form no Idea
of an Eternal Duration already paft ;
and yet the Atheijl^ as well as we, is
forced to acknowledge the Exiftence
of Something from all Eternity. And
his Want of an Idea of Eternity, is not
fuJiicient, even in his own Opinion, to
exeufe him from believing it true. Let
but Immaterial Subftance have the
fame fair Play, and we are in no Pain
from this Objection againft a God. For
the very fame Reafon which obliges
the Atheifi to admit Something Eternal,
tho' he has no Idea of Eternity ; will
equally hold in the Cafe of Immaterial
Subftance, if there are, as I fhall after-
wards prove ^ certain Appearances in
F I the
Vide Sermon VII, VIH, IX, X.
70 Sermon hi.
the World which cannot be accounted
for by the mere Mechanical Laws of
Matter in Motion. For then he will
have the fame Motive for taking in
forne Being that is not a Material one,
as he has for that of an Adual Eter-
nity. For he takes Refuge in this,
that he may avoid the Abfurdity of
Acknowledging, that any Thing can
come into Being abfolutely from No-
thing, or without any Caufe of its Be-
ing ; and if he cannot make it very
probable, that certain Powers I lately
mentioned, may arife purely from Mat-
ter ; he muft then either acknowledge
thofe Powers to have exifted without
any Caufe or Reafon of their Exiftence,
or elfe with us he muft admit Immate-
rial Subflance.
The other Argument againft Im-
material Subflance, viz. That there is
nothing fubftantial in the World but
Matter ; is a fhameful begging of the
Queftion in Difpute, and taking for
granted, what they know we con-
ftantly deny. For how would the
Jtheijl prove this? Why thus Spinofa
does
Sermon ill- 7 v
does it, he gives us a Definition of
Subftance, that " 'Tis Something In-
^' dependent of every other Thing, and
'^ exifting by a Neceflity of Nature. "
From thence lie inferrs. That fince
there can be but One Self-exillent or
Independent Being, and Exten-
fion or Matter is confelled to be a
fubflantial Being, therefore there can
be no other Subftance in the World
befides Matter ; and confequently, no
fuch Thing as Immaterial Subftance.
But all this Proof amounts to no more
than if he had only told us, there is
Nothing but Matter, therefore no Im-
material Being. For he knows very
well that we denied Matter to be the
Self-exiftent Being; and therefore that
if his Definition of Subftance was a
good one, that we fhould deny it be-
longed to Matter, or in this Senfe
of the Word, that Matter itfelf could
be a Subftantlal Being, or indeed any
Thing except the One Self-exiftent Be-
ing : And then how will his Definition
prove to us the impoffibility of Imma.
terial Subftance ? Thus far then we can
F 4 §0
7? Sermon m.
go in Defence of a God, That his
Immateriality cannot be proved to be
impofTible, or to imply a Contra*
diction.
2dlj, Another Difficulty the
JtkfJI: is wont to raife againft our No-
tion of a G o D, is, The Power that
we afcribe to Him of making Some-
thing from Nothing. Here the Jtheijl
is wont to triumph, as if we had found
out a Power that could not pofTibly
have any other Exiftence than in our
own Imaginations : Here they perfuade
' themfelves, that they are fupported by
Authority as well as Reafon. The
Jtheifl does feldom take Refbge in Au-
thority, but in this particular Cafe he
condefcends to part with his beloved
Singularity, and is contented for once
to be found in a Croud, and to take
Shelter m Numbers. But he might as
well have kept out of them for any
Advantage they will be to his Caufe
For he fuppofes the Meaning of this
Jxtom, Nothing can he made out of No^
thing, to. be defigned by all thofe who
made ufe of it, not only againft the
Produftioa
Se rmon 111. 73
Produfiton and Annihilation of any Spe-
cies of Things ; but alfo that there can
be no other ProduQ:ions but what are
from pre-exiftent Matter; that every
Thing muft have a Material as well as
an Efficient Caufe of its Being. But
here his Numbers forfake him, and he
is reduced to thofe of his own SqS:,
For altho' it was generally believed
before the Appearance of Chriftianity,
That Matter was eternal and unmade,
yet we are fure that all thofe, at leaft,
who acknowledged our Souls to be in-
corporeal, did not derive them from pre-
exiftent Matter : For thus Plato fays ^,
^^ That if the Soul be ancienter than
" the Body, then muft the Things of
" the Soul alfo be ancienter than thofe
" of the Body ; and therefore Cogita-
*^ tion, and the feveral Species of it
^f muft be in the Order of Nature, not
" only before local Motion, but alfo
*^ before the Longitude, Latitude and
^t Profundity of Bodies. " From whence
'tis
* Plato de Legib. Ub. X. pag. 8^5,
74 Sermon hi.
'tis evident, Plato could not poffibly
fuppofe the fiijR: Produdion of Souls to
be derived from pre-exiftent Matter :
Wliich is diredly contrary to the Act
count which the Atheifi gives of Things :
For he muft fay, That the Things of
the Soul, viz. Thought, &c, are pofte-
rior in the Order of Nature to the
Formation of Things, being an EfFe6t
of Matter properly moved. And there-
fore fuppofing the Antients to have been
unanimous in Denying the Produftion
of any Subftances ef «» ov\av ; yet fince
they did not derive all Beings from
Matter, they will do the Atheiji's Caufe
little Service ; for if the Atheift will not
allow their Authority, when they fup-
pofe that there muft be forne adive
Subftance not derivable from Matter ;
neither are we obliged to allow it, when
they fuppofe the EiTences ol^ all Things
to be eternal.
But the Atheifl may fay, that their
Agreement in denying a Power of pro-
ducing Subftances , will be of great Ser-^
vice to him, becaufe a juft Purfuit of
that "Principle muft neceflkrily end m
the
Sermon 111. 7$
the Denial of a God, as the advan-
cing of two Independent Principles, is
a fetting up two Gods,, which is the
the fame Thing with pulling down
one.
And therefore if they had feen the
Impofllbility of two Self-exiftent Prin-
ciples, they muft have joyn'd with the
Atheift, in deriving all Things from that
which every Body's Senfes affure them
to be a fubllantial Being, viz. Body
or Matter.
To this we anfwer, That alltheSeds
of Philofophy, excepting that oi Epicurus,
fpeak fo fully their Senfe as to the Ne-
cefTity of fome aftive Being diftinft in
its Original from Matter, in order to
account for the Appearances- of Things,
that we may with much better Rea-
fon conclude, that if they had feen the
Confequcnce of their Dodrine, they
would rather have allowed of a Crea-
tive, than have given up to the Metft
an Mive Power diftinft from Matter,
As the Stoick is generally fuppofed to
be the greateft M^teridifi of all the
Seds, next to that oiEpcurus^hQ will
be
l6 Sermon hi.
be the fitteft Perfon to be interrogated
upon this Occafion ; and I think it cannot
be difficult to .fhew, that if the Stokk
argued confiftently, he muft have been
more eafily perfuaded to admit a Pow-
er of Creating Matter, than to part
with his Adive Power or Principle ;
for io long as he fuppofed Matter or
his Materia friwa (which, according to
him, was the Principle of all material
Exigences) to be a lazy and inactive
Being, it would be impoflible for him
to give any Account of this Frame of
Things, without an a6i:ive Power to
work upon the Inertia of Matter, or
rouze it out of its Stupidity ^.
And therefore 'tis reafonable to be-
lieve , that- had he been reduced to
this Dilemma y of either admitting
a Power of Creation , or rejeding an
Adive
* Dicunt, ut fcis, Stolcl noftrl duo efle in rerum
N^tura, ex quibus omnia fiant, Caufam & mate-
riam : Materia jacet iners, res ad omnia parara,
cefTatura, ft nemo moveat. Caufa autem, id eft,
Ratio, materiam format, & quocunque vult verfat,,
fix ilia varia opera producic. Smcca Epift. 65.
Sermon HI. yj
A(Elive Principle , that he would have
chofen the former, rather than have
owned himfelf to be of a Sed of
Philofophy that could give no Ac-
count concerning the Formation of
Things. For it cannot be faid, that
the Stoical Active Principle might be
a very volatile Matter, and what he
called Matter, the grolTer Part of ky
to diftinguilh it from the former ; be-
caufe there is no other Difference be-
tween the fineft and the grofleft Mat-
ter, if Matter, as Matter, be inadive,
than that the fineft requires a lefs Force
to put it into Motion : and then this
Adive Principle, inftead of giving Mo-
tion to every Thing, muft be moved it-
felf by Something ; and therefore could
not be a Principle of Adion, or account
for the Formation of Things.
But however that be, if we con-
fider the Reafons by which he and the
rell of the Philofophers were deter-
mined in rejeding the Creative Power,
they will appear to be fo weak and in-
conclufwe, that their Authority in this
particular Point ought to have httle
Weight
78
Sermon hi.
Weight with us; they either argued
from Natural Generations, or Artificial
Produdions. Becaufe we do not now
fee Nature producing any Subftances,
but only different Modes of Being,
therefore the Author of Nature never
could : Becaufe all Works of Art are
only the Management of pre-exiftent
Matter , and fitting it for particular
Ufes, therefore God, as well as eve-
ry other Artifl:, muft have a Subjed
prepared to his Hands to work upon.
But this Way of Reafoning will never
prove what ought to be proved, viz.
That it is impoffible in the Nature of
the Thing, that there fhould be any
fuch Power. For this Power of ma*
king Something out of Nothing, or of
creating a Subftance, is no more than
the bringing Something into Being,
which before had no manner of Ex-
iftence ; but this is not to aiiirm, That
a Thing may be, and not be at the
fame Time; which is a Contradiction,
and therefore the Object of no Power
whatfoever ; but only that Something,
which once had no Being at all, may
be
Sermon iil 19
be brought into Being. If we, who
work only upon pre-exiftent Matter,
cannot conceive how this fhould be
done ; this can be no good Argument
againft the PofTibiUty of its being done
by an Infinite Power; for there will
always be fomething in fuch an Ob-
-ject as the Infinite Being, that will
more than fill our finite Capacities.
And Sfinofa himfelf confeffes as
much, when he tells us, ^ " That he
" cannot underil:and the Manner how
" many Things are brought about by
^' his Self-exiftent Being, fuch as the
" Cohasfion of the Parts of Matter,
" and the Connexion which particu-
** lar Beings have with each other.
And
* Seriem rerum fingularlum murabilium impof-
fibile foret humance imbecillitati afTequi, cum prop- "
ter earum omnem numerum fuperantem multitu-
dinem, turn propter infinltas iclrcumflantias, in una
& eadem re, quarum unaquseque poteft efle caufa ut
res exiftat aut non exiftat. Traft. de Emend.
Intellea. p. 38S.
Cognofcere quomoJo partes nature revera co
haereant, 8c quomodo unaqusque pars cum fuo to-
to convemat, id me ignorare dixi in antecedenti
mea Epiftola, quia ad hoc cognofceudum rcquire-
rerur totam naturam omnefque ejus partes co^-
nofceie. p. 439.
8o Sermon ill.
^^ And yet he is fully perfuaded, that
*^ there is a Chain and Connexion of
" particular Beings; that there is fuch
*' a Thing as the Cohaefion of the
" Parts of the Body, and an Union of
" all the Parts with the whole. " And
therefore, in Purfuance of the fame
Way of Reafoning, Altho"" we cannot
tell how God could make all Things
out of Nothing, our Ignorance will
never prove the Thing to be impof-
fible, no more than Spwofa^s Ignorance
of the Caufe of Cohaefion in the Parts
of Matter, will prove that there cari
be no fuch Thing.
The Neceflity of admitting a Crea-
tive Power, will appear ftill ftronger,
when we come to fhew the Abfurdities
which the Mutertdift for Want of fuch
a Power is reduced to. But
^dljy Another ImpolTibility the
Atheift is wont to charge upon our
Notion of a G o D , is on account of
our afcribing Goodnefs to Him, which
they fay, is plainly contradicted by the
many Marks and Tokens of Natural
and Moral Evil which appear in that
Part
Sermon ill. 8i
Part of his Workmanfhip which we
are beft acquainted with. Before the
Atheift can prove that thefe could not
poflibly proceed from a Good Being,
it will be incumbent on him to (hew,
That 'tis inconfiftent with the Nature
of Goodnefs to make Beings with dif-
ferent Degrees of Perfedion. If he
cannot do that, then certainly every
Degree of Imperfedion makes an A-
batement of the Happinefs of the Crea-
ture; and fuch an Abatement confti-
tutes what we call Natural or Phy-
fical Evil. Thus for Inftance, 'Tis an
Imperfeftion m us Men that we
want a perfeQ: Knowledge of our own
Frame and Conftitution ; fuch a Know- '
ledge, I mean, as would enable us
to find out (antecedently to the tedi-
ous Way of Trial and Experience)
what would be good for us, and what
would be prejudicial or hurtful to us.
To fupply the Want of this Know-
ledge, God has affix'd the Idea of
Pain to our Natures, which is de-
figned to give us Warning of any
Thing that might hurt us. Pain fs
G acknow-
82 Sermon hl
acknowledged to be a real Evil, and
yet if we were not admonillied by
it to avoid fuch Things as would be
hurtful to us, what thro' Inadvertence
and Ignorance of our own Frame,
we fliould never know when it was
Out of Order, nor endeavour to fet it
aright, till it was too late. If there*
fore it be not repugnant to the Idea
of Goodnefs to create a Being with
fuch a limited Knowledge; neither
could it be inconfiftent with the fame
Goodnefs to make him capable of re-
ceiving painful Ideas, when fuch a
Conflitution was fitted for the Ufe and
Benefit of fuch a Creature.
And thus for Moral Evil, the
Atheift can never fliew its Exifi^
ence to be a Contradiction to the
Idea of Goodnefs, till he can fully fatisfy
us, that there can be no fuch thing
as a Creature endued with a 'Power
over its own Actions ; becaufe if that
is pofTible, which the Atheift cannot
difprove, fuch a Creature may mofl: cer-
tainly make an ill Ufe of that Power,
and involve itfelf in. Moral Evil.
But
Sermon" m.
But I fhall decline faying any more
upon this Head of Natural and Moral
Evil, becaufe this Subjed has been aj.
ready Handled by the Learned Perfon
who lately Preached thefe Leftures-
^o whom the Reader is referred for
farther Satisfadion.
83
G
serm.
SERMON IV.
I ThESSALONIANS v. 21-
Trove all Things : hold fafi
that which is good.
H
AVING in the preceding
Difcourfe fhewn that the
Jtheift cannot prove a Con-
tradition upon our Notion
of a God ; and yet lure if
there was a real Contradiction in it, he
might help others to a Sight of it as
well as himfelf; I proceed to confider
the Difficulties attending his Scheme,
by which he will appear to be a very
partial Enquirer after Truth, as he
G 3 might
S6 S E R M O N IV.
might have feen much greater Diffi-
culties in his Material Scheme, than
thofe which he makes Obje£l:ions againft
the Religious one ; that under the Co-
lour of avoiding the three Difficulties
of an Immaterial , Omnipotent , and
Good G o D, he is fore'd to take Re-
fuge in fuch Explications of Things as
are evidently falfe and impoffible ; and
is therefore inexcufable in making thofe
Difficulties a Pretence for rejeding Re-
ligion.
Spinosa is the only Perfon among
the modern Atheifls, that has pretend-
ed to give us a regular Scheme of
Atheifm j and therefore I cannot aO: un-
fairly in making him the Rcprefenta-
tive of their Party, and in. proving the
Weaknefs and Abfurdities of the Athe-
iftick Scheme, by fliewing the Faults
of his : tho' I flaall not fo entirely con-
fine myfelf to the Examination of his
Scheme, as not to iliew occafionally^
that every other Scheme that leaves
out the Religious Notion of a God,
will be liable to great Abfurdities. And
if we examine the Hypothefis which
Spnofa
Sermon iv- 87
spinoff has fubftltuted as a Remedy to
the above-mentioned Difficulties, I am
fully perfuaded his Remedy will appear
to all indifferent Perfons to be much
worfe than the Difeafe he complains
of.
He fuppofes with us, " That Some-
" thing muft have exifted from all
" Eternity, without having any other
" Caufe of its Exiilence than the abfo-
" lute Neceflity of its own Nature : "
Thus far we are agreed. He further
fuppofes, '' That there is Nothing in
" Nature, that is, no Subftance or rtal
" Being, befides this One NeceiTarily
" Exiitent Being ; and fince the Ex-
*' iftence of Material Subftance is moft
" evident, that this muft be the One
*^ Self-exiftent Being, and all the va-
" riety of Beings in the ^yorld, no-
" thing but ditferent Modifications of
" this One Material Subftance. He fup-
*^ pofes this Subftance to be Infinite
" or Immenfe, and to have an in^iiitQ
" Number of Attributes, two of which
" he fuppofes to be Thought and Ex-
^[ tenfion ; he then affirms in Confe-
G 4 " quence
88 Sermon iv.
" quence of this , That all Bodies
" are Modifications of this One Sub-
^^ ftance, confidered as extended ; as alt
" Souls or Thinking Beings are the
'' Modifications of this One Subftance
^' confidered under the Notion of
" Thought. So that God, the Neceffari-
" ly Exiftent Being, and endued with
" infinite Perfeftions, is the Caufe of
" all Things that exift, tho' at the fame
" time He himfelf differs not really
" from thofe Things that exift ; they
" being all of them Confubilantial with
" him, and not fo much as perfonally
" differing from Him. He is at the
' " fame time Agent and Patient, Caufe
*' and Effed, and every Thing He pro-
"' duces, is only praftifing upon Him-
" y^(/ ; and generating a new Appear-
" ance of Hmjelf. "
This is the extraordinary Scheme
that Sf'mofa has thought fit to ered, in
order to get himfelf clear of the Three
above-mentioned Difficulties. From this
Account of his Syftem 'tis evident, that
tho' 6pmofa and we do differ as to
the Subjed of the Self-exiflent Nature ;
yet,
Sermon IV. 89
yet, as to certain Characters or Pro-
perties of it, we are both agreed ; fuch
i/, The Unity or Simplicity of the
Self-exiftent Being. And 2^/7, Its
Immutability. For whatever Diverfi-
ty, whatever Changes there may feem
to be in the Nature of Things, yet all
this does feem to pafs with him for
nothing ; fo long as 'tis but one and the
fame Numerical Being appearing in
different DrefTes : As a Man fuffers no
real Change by alTuming different Cha-
racters, or by perfonating any State or
Condition of Life different from his
own : Which he thinks fuiBcient to fe-
cure both the Unity and Immutability
of his Self-exiftent Being. Thus far
then being agreed, we are to enquire,
How far he has mended the Reli-
gious Scheme by rejecting Immaterial
Subftance; and whether his Material
Scheme can poffibly anfwer the above-
mentioned Characters.
The infuperable Difficulties which
thinking Men found in reconciling thefc
Attributes with material Extenfion, in-
clia'd
90 Sermon IV.
clin'd them to admit, altho' their Senfes
could give them no Information con-
cerning the Exiftcnce of any fuch Be-
ing, that there might be in Nature
fome more perfeQ: Manner of Exiftence
than the Material one ; and this they
called Immaterial jubilance, ^pwofa
himfelf was well aware of the Diffi-
culties that would difturb his Material
Scheme, and therefore tound it necclla-
ry to give us a new Notion of Matter,
and different from what the World had
hitherto fufpedled of it. Matter had
always been thought capable of Di-
vifion into numberlcfs Parts ; each of
which Parts might exift feparately from
the whole ; and confequently, if Matter
was the Self-exiftent Being, according to
the common Notion the World had of
it, there muft have been as many Self-
exiftent Beings as there are Parts into
which Matter is divifible. But Spinoja
was feniible that the Being which
was NecelTarily Exiftent, could be but
One ; he therefore lays it down as the
Foundation of his Undertaking, " That
" there is no more than One,Material
" Subftance
Sermon iv. ^
^' Subftance in the World ; that what
" every Body before him had calfd di-
*' {\'m8: Subftances, were to be no long^
*^ er fuch. " And tho' the feveral Parts
of Matter are every Day feen to be
feparated from each other without lo-
fing their Exiftence, as when the Parts
of Wood are divided from each other
into Smoke and Afhes and tho' the
feparate Exiftence of Individuals, and of
the feveral Concretions of Matter look
never fo much like diftinO: Subftances ;
yet they fhall all pafs with Spif?ofa for
nothing more than different Modes of
one and the fame Being.
But if we know any thing at all,
we know this to be falfe and impoili-
ble : if we have any diftinft Ideas, and
if fuch diftind Ideas will at all prove a
real Diftindion or Difference ia Things
exifting without us, we are as certain
as we can be of any Thing, that there
muft be more than one Material Sub-
ftance ; as many as there are or can be
of feparate, material Exiftences, and
thofe as many as the Divifions which
Matter is capable of receiving. And
therefore
p2 S E R M O N IV.
therefore Spifjofa by fubftituting Mat-
ter in the Room of Immaterial Sub-
ftance, has avoided a Difficulty, and
taken up with an Impoflibility. For
let there be never fo much Difficulty
in conceiving Immaterial Subftance, yet
when we find ourfelves reduced to this
Dilemma, of either admitting it for true,
or elfe acknowledging Matter to be a
Simple Being, the Choice which Side
to take, cannot be long in making :
For all that any one can fay againft Im-
material Subftance, is only this ; That his
Senfes give him no Account of any fuch
Exiftences 5 but as for Matter or the
Material World, he fees nothing plain-
er than that this is a Compound Being,
each of whofe Parts may exift feparate-
ly ; and therefore can never be made
confiftent with that Unity and Simpli-
city which are neceflary Confequences
of that Onenefs of Subftance which Spi^
nofa. afcribes to the NecelTarily Exifting
Being. The only Subterfuge Spinoff
has, and a mere Subterfuge it is, is
this; That he takes it for granted,
there is no fuch Thing as a Vacuum ;
and
S p R M O N IV. 93
^nd therefore that there can be no real
Separation of one Part of Matter from
another.
I N the firfl: place, This is taking for
granted, and Building his whole Scheme
upon what Sir Ifaac Newton, a much
better Philofopher than himfelf, has
fince his Time given the World ftrong
Reafons for believing to be falfe, viz:.,
That there are no Spaces void of Matter.
But fuppofing there is no fuch Thing
as a Vacuum ; yet thofe who maintain'd
the Infinity of Matter, or that all Space
was filled with Matter, did acknow-
ledge, that the Parts of Matter were
really divifible and feparablc from each
other ; and confequently did not think
void Spaces necejGfary in making a Se-
paration of one particular Part of Mat-
ter from another, however necelTary
they might be to make a total Sepa-
ration from all Matter in general : For
\irho will not fay, that two Perfons are
as really feparated from one another,
tho' the Space or Diftance that fepa-
rates them fhould be filled with other
Perfons, as if it were taken up by any
Thing
94 S E R xM O N IV.
Thing elfe? and therefore one Part of
Matter may be really divided from' an-
other, altho' the Space between thoie
two Parts of Matter fhould be filled
up by other Matter.
Indeed, Spmofa himfelf feems to
miftruft the Strength of this Argument,
and therefore thinks it beft to provide
himfelf a Retreat in cafe he were beat-
en out of it, by faying. That he does
not know whether he attributes any
thing to God, that is unworthy of
him, i£ he fhould grant that He was di-
vifible *. And all the Reafon he gives
why Divifibility fhould be an Imper-
fe6lion in God, is, " Becaufe if He is
*' divifible. He is divided by Himfelf^
" and not by any External Caufe. " But
this Anfwer leaves the Difficulty in all
its Strength : For let the Divifibility be
caufed by what it will, ftill the Dif-
ficulty remains, how a partable and
feparabte
♦ Se nefcire cur dlvina Natura indigna efTet, (I
akatur Dlvifibilis. in tbi latter End of the ScholiOT
<m Prop. 15. Part i.
Sermon iv.
feparable Nature, can be a Simple
or Uncompounded Being. Till the
Materidift can fatisfy us in that Point,
we muft beg Leave to affirm, That he
is no fair Examiner; that he could
not be deterniined by the greater Evi-
dence, when he left Religion to free
himfelf from the Belief of Immaterial
Subftance, becaufe at the fame time he
faw himfelf under a NecelTity of fwal-
lowing an Article of Belief of much
harder Digeftion ; I mean, that Divifi-
bility is irreconcileable with Unity.
idly^ Another remarkable Diffi-
culty the Atheifl brings upon himfelf, \s^
To make a fufficient Provifion for the
Immutability of his Self-exiftent Being,
while he makes Matter to be the Sub-
ject of it. We are fully perfuaded that
we know the Difference between a Be-
ing that always continues the fame, and
a Being that is perpetually changing the
Manner of its Exiftence ; that a Being
who is what it is by a Neceffity of
Nature, cannot be fubjed to Change
or Corruption : we are alfo well alTured
that Material Beings are fo far from
being
pd S E R M O N IV.
being without Variation or Shadow of
TuYning^ that they are fubjedt to all
manner of Alterations, that they are
fucce (lively putting on new Modes of
Being, acquiring fome Forms that they
had not before, and lofing others that
they had.
How much foever Our modern Atheif
may think fit to laugh at the Eficurems^
yet I think, in this Refped, they have
taken better Care of their Gods than he
lias done. The Eftcuream faw that their
Material Gods could never be perma-
nent Beings, if they were in the Way
of their Atoms; that their Frame
would be in continual Danger of be-
ing difordered, if not deftroyed by their
continual Incur fions : and therefore they
wifely removed them out of their num-
berlefs Worlds, where the Atoms were
continually joftling each other, and
placed theni in Security in their Intra-
mundan Spaces: But our modern A-
theiji has taken no fuch Care of his
God , for he has left him in all the
Hurry and Confufion of Things,continu-
ally altering and changing his State and
Condition,
S E R xM O N IV, ^J
Condition, fometimes for the better,
fometimes for the worfe; he is the Sub-
jed of all the Generations, and all the
Corruptions that are feen in the World.
For, as what others would call parti^
cular Beings or Subftances, are with
S^imfa, only Modes of the fame One
Subftance God; fo it muft be God
that is the Subjed of all the Changes;
and yet Cotta in Ttd) de Natura Deorumy
ipeaks of it as an undoubted Axiom in
Philof'phjj Si ortus eji DeoruWy intcritus
[it mceffe efl. p. 56.
Mutability has fo plain a Mark
of Imperfedlion upon it, and is fo in-
confiftent with necelFary Exiftence^ that
it gives Spinoff no fmall Trouble to
dear his NecefTary Being from any fuch
Imputation ; and the only Way he could
think of, was this : That tho' the Man-
ner of Being was always changing,
yet the Subftance or SubjeQ: of thofe
Changes always continued the fame.
But this Plea will never excufe his. Self-
exiftent Being from Variablenefs and
Change, whenever we appeal to any
of the Ancients who have made ufe of
H thefe
pS SerxMon IV.
thefe Words: For they all maintained,
as much as Spimjk, the Immutability of
the Subftance of Body ; they fuppofed
that the Sublknce of Matter was never
created or annihilated, but always conti-
nued the fame ; and yet believed it a
Being that was akkoU^q- & r^iirVoi,
becaufe o'l its fo often altering the
Manner of its Exiftence.
The Proteus of the Ancients, tho'
the Emblem of the greateft Inconftan-
cy, would be as immutable a God,
with all the different Forms he threw
himfelf into, as Sfinofa\ Self-exiftent Be-
ing. For 'twas always the- felf-fame
Being, tho' fometimes in one Shape,
fometimes in. another. And therefore
to deny the Mutability of any Being
merely becaufe the Subftance remains
the fame, is to give a new Significa-
tion to the Word, and different from
what was ever given before. For in
every Mutable Being 'twas always un-
dei'ftood, that the Subftance remained
what it was, only the Mode of its Ex-
iftence was altered ; otherwife there
would be no Difference between the
Change
Sermon IV.
Change and the Annihilation of a Being ;
and yec the Poets as well as Pliilofopliers,
the fabulous Mitiimorphofes of Ovid^ as
well as the real Chajiges and Corrup-
tions, as explained by the PhilofoplierSj
have always fuppofed a Difference be-
tween thefe two Ideas. And therefore
Si)inofa\ Argument will only prove the
Iin mortality, not the Immutability of
his Self-exiftent Being.
'T I s plain from Flutnrch^ That lie
thought a Being might be immortal, and
yet an imperfect and mutable Being .^
For thus he expreiles himfelf in his
Treatife asrainft the Steicks. where he is
ridiculing the Stoical Notion of Jr/plter^
into whom the Stdich fuppofed all o-
ther Beings, Gods as well as Men, to
be transformed at the Conflagration 5
" CLryftppus ^ fays he^ and l leant he s ^
" when they had filled the whole
" World with what they called Gods„
" tjiey took no Care of fecuring any
"" of them from Corruption but "JuPiter
*' only, m whom all the reft of the
" Gods were lod. And then he makes
this Remark, " Tliat his d&^Xvoymgoi
H 2 '' them.
loo Sermon IV.
^' them was no better a Proof of his
" own Immutability than it was of
** theirs. For, fays he, it is no more
" an Argument of Weaknefs and Mu-
'^ tability in the Gods, that they are ^
^* changed and corrupted, into ^upter^
" than it is in Jupiter into whom they
^ are changed ^. "
Besides, this Argument of the
Spinolifts cannot be a good one, be-
caufe it would prove too much : for
it would prove not only that the
Self exiflent Being was not a Mutable
Being, but alfo that there could be no
fuch Thing as a Mutable Being in the
World. For if the Self-exiftent Being
could be an Immutable one amidftall
the
* Plutarch. Tlzeit ^ koiv&^v Ivvoiuv -TS-fSf ti^j
'S.Tco'iKVi. Seft. looo.
il) 70 (JLijetCoiKKoV di iTfJV (pQei^iJttl, K^ 70 ToTf Ahhtlf
Sermon IV. loi
the Changes He went thro', only be-
caufe his Subftance was not deftroy-
ed but remained the fame ; then what
fhould hinder Man from being an
Immutable Being , altho' he fhould
change his Opinions, Inclinations and
Purpofes every Day, or, if you will,
every Hour of the Day ? for amidft
all thefe Changes, he is ftill the fame
Perfon or perfonal Being. And there-
fore by the Reafoning of the S^ino^
Iffls, he too would be a moil fteady
Being, tho' his Thoughts and Purpofes
were unfteady enough.
These Difficulties , or rather
ImpofFibihties , muft aHecl: every
Scheme that the Atheiji can ra ife up-
on the Foot of a A'Jaterial God. And
now I will leave it with every
Thoughtful Perfon , whether the A*
theifi could be moved by any rational
Conviftion, when he took Refuge in
the Material Hypothefis, to avoid the
Difficulty of conceiving an Immate-
rial Exigence ; ' and whether he has
not a.Q;ed the fame foolifh Part, which
H 3 Coiu
102 Sermon IV.
CoUx charged upon Epicurus in another
Cafe ^. But,
2^/7, I AM now to confider how hq •
has mended the Matter by rejefting
a Power of making Something from
Nothing. As he allows no fuch Power,
he is under a Necellity of deriving all
the Powers of Nature from the Sub-
iftance of Matter, as from an Emamtive
Caufe, producing them by adling upon
iifelf; and thus Thought, Senfe, and
Life, as well as Material Extenfion ,
muft all be drawn out of the ^^cwels
of this fimpie Subftance of Matter.
As there are evidently Thinking,
as well as Unthinking Beings in the
World ; the Difficulty is, how to de-
rive both of them from one fingle Prin-
ciple. SpifwfA and we are agreed. That
there is but One Principle 01' all Things :
we account for it, by fuppofmg an Om-
nipotent, Subftantial Intelhgence to have
given Being to Matter, not as an Ema-
native
* GravJorein plagam recipiclMt, ut Icv'orcm repe'-
?.£vet, r>. 58. d« Nar. Deoiam. Da-j'.es''^ EJIr.
Sermon iv. 103
native Caufe, by producing it out of
its own Subflance; for we do not fee
how material Extenfion fhould flow from
the Subftance of a Thoughtflil Being,
any more than how Thought fhould
arife from Matter ; but that God gave
a Being to Matter from Nothings or
when it had no manner of Exigence
previoufly to the Exercife of this Pow^
er of his.
The Atheift^ that he may avoid
afcribing this Power of producing Sub-
ftances, or of making Something from
Nothing, which he thinks to be the Ob-
ject of no Pov/er whatever, is forced to
have recourfe to Material Subifance as
the only Source from whence mull a-
rife both Thought and Extenfion, all
the Variety of Corporeal Beings, all
their Powers and Qualities, -and alfo all
the Powers of Mind, fuch as thofe of
Perception and Intelligence. A hard
Task I his is for him to perform ; and
yet hard as it is, he mull go thro^
with it, if he will not with us admit -o^
Power of Creation.
H4. ^yE,
loz}. Sermon iv.
^' We agree to what the Author of the
Char act ertfiicks has faid concerning the
Production of either of thefe Sub-
ftances, (to wit, Extended and Think-
ing) out of the other, when he fays ^,
" That the poor Dregs of forry Mat-
" ter, can no more be made out of
^' the fimple, pure Subftance of imma-
" teriai Thought, than the high Spi-
" rits of Thought or Reafon can be
^' extracted from the grofs Subftance
^' of heavy Matter. '' We joyn, I fay,
with him in this Reafoning, and do
therefore aifert the NecelEty of having
Recourfe to a Creative Power • for fince
neither Materia} Subftance can flow
from Immaterial, nor Immaterial Think-
ing Subftance from Material m the Way
of Emanation ; there mupj either be two
Independerit Principles from whence we
may draw out thefe two dilferent Kinds
of Being ; or eife on^ of them muft
neceftarily be produced from Nothing.
If the Aiheifi will affirm, That Thought
and
* Vol. II. p. z^C, "-97.
Sermon IV. i o$
and Extenfion may arife from the fame
Subftance; the Abfurdities he will be
reduced to, are thefe; he muft fay,
That Senfe and Infenftbility are the At-
tributes of the fame Simple Subftance
of G o D ; and yet he nor no Man a-
hve can tell how fuch incompatible At-
tributes could be identified, fo as to
conftitute one Simple Subftance ; that is,
how the fanie fimple Subftance could
be both fenfible and infenfible, thought-
ful and thoughtlefs.
To avoid this Abfurdity, he muft
then fay, That there is no real Diffe-
rence between Thought and Extenfion ;
he muft fall in with that abfurd No-
tion of Mr. Hobbs, " That all Matter
*^ is furnilhed with adual Senfation and
" Thought ; altho' only Matter Orga-
" nized and in Life, can make Evidence
" of its Perceptions." And Spwofa feems
to be under a Neceffity of acknow-
ledging this ; becaufe he makes Thought
and Extenfion to be Two Attributes
of his One Subftance, and fays, " That
f' there is no real Difference between
f the Attributes and the Subftance. "
" ■ ' ~ For
io6 Sermon iv.
For if there be no real Difference be-
tween the Attributes and the Subftance,
there can be none between the At-
tributes themfclves , to wit, between
Thought and Extenfion, according to
that known Rule, That thofe Things
which agree in a third, muft agree a-
mong themfelves.
Thus we fee Sfinofx in avoiding the
Difficulty of conceiving Something made
out of Nothing, reduced to the Neceflity
of making no real Difference between
Thought and material Extenfion, tho'
every Body elfe fees a manifeft Difference
between them. Whatever Difficulty then
there may be in conceiving it poffible
that Something fliould be made from No-
thing ; yet I hope there is a great deal
of DiiTerence between our not conceii'ing
the Vojiihilitj of a Thing, and the con^
celvhg it hn^ofjlhle to be : That Thought
and Extenfion (hould be really the fame
Thing, we fee, if we fee any thing, to be
impoffible ; becaufe our Ideas of 'em are
evidently the Ideas of different Things *,
and
* Vide Serm. VJII.
Sermon iv. 107
and we mufl: defpair of ever knowing
that one Thing is not another, if fuch
Marks of Diftinclion in our Ideas will
not prove a Difference in the Things
themfelves.
2^/)', There is another Abfurdity
which Sp/mja is led into by rejefting
the Creative Power, which is this :
He mufl: make his Self-exiftent Being
the Subjed of all the contradictory In-'
clinations and Paflions which are met
with in Mankind ; for if there be
no Creative Power, there will be no
other Way in accounting for the Exifl:-
ence of Things, but by deriving them
from the Subllance of the Self-exiftent
Being: But all fuch Derivations can
be nothing but fo many different Modes,
as himfelf confeffes, of the Divine Sub-
ftance ; and confequently, tli€ Souls of
Men, all their Thoughts and Paflions,
will be only different Modes of the
Divine Being. And therefore it will
be God, and not the Man (for he
is only a Mode of the Divine Being)
that thinks, affirms or denies, loves or •
jiates , fo often as Man feems to do
either
ic8 Sermon IV.
either. For it is an undifputed Jjchm
in Phllofophy, That whenever we affirm
of any Thing , That it is an Agent
or a Patient, we mean, that the Sub-
ftance, and not the Accidents , does
or fuffers this or that ; as when we
fay, Iron is hard, or Wax foft ; we
mean not to fay, that the Accident of
Hardnefs is hard, or of Softnefs is foft,
for this would be ridiculous ; but that the
Subftance or EfTence which conftitutes
thefe Bodies is hard or foft : fo when
we fay that a Man thinks of any Thing,
affirms or denies, loves or hates any
Thing ; we do not mean, that the
Thoughts themfelves (which are only
Accidents or Modes of the Soul) but the
Man himfelf or his Soul thinks , affirms
or denies, loves or hates. From thence
it muft follow, that the Souls' of Men,
being according to Sfdnofx's Scheme,
Modifications of the Divine Subllance,
we mud not (if we v/ould fpeak pro-
perly) lay; that the Man affirms or de-
nies, loves or hates j but that Gop
loves or hates, affirms or denies, as of-
ten as Men do fo : And as on^ Ivlari at
th^
StiRMON IV. IOC)
the fame Time, and in the fame Re-
fpefts, afiirms what another denies, and
loves what another hates. According to
this Account of Things, God muft at
the fame Time, and in the fame Re-
fpect affirm, and not affirm or deny,
love, and not love or hate, which are
palpable Contradictions ; and if we
know any thing at all, cannot poffibly
belong to any Being. Yet thefe, or as
great Abfurdities will ftick fafl: to all
the Deniers of Creative Power.
For they muft either affirm, with
Spinofa, That all the feveral Beings in
the "World are only Modes of the Ne-
celTarily-exiftent Being, which muft
end in the Abfurdity I have now men-
tioned, of making all the contradi([iiory
Volitions and Paffions of Men to be the
Affections of one and the fame Being :
Or if they affirm thefe Modes of Spinoff
to be real and fubftantial Beings ; they
muft admit what is equally abfurd, an
infinite Number of Neceffarily-exiftent
Beings, as many as there are real Be-
ings in the World : Or elfe they muft
with us, allow, how difficult foever it
may
no Sermon iv.
may be to conceive, that there muft be
fomewhere or other a Power of ma-
king Subftances or real Beings, which
is the fame thing with what we call
the Creative Power. For nothing can
be plainer, than that all particular Be-
ings (fuppofing them to be real or fub-
ftantial Beings) muft exift by a Necef-
fity of Nature, if there be no fuch
Thing ia the World as a Power of
making real Exiftences.
S p I N o s A was well aware of this
Confequence, and therefore as he was
neither willing to admit a Power of
Creation, nor a Plurality of NecefTari-
ly-exiftent Beings, he could fee no other
Way of extricating himfelf out of this
Difficulty, but by advancing this new
Notion, " That what the World had
" before him called real Beings, was no-
" thing more than different Modes of
" Being." And tho' Mr. Boyle feems
to think the Chinefe Notion, which
makes all particular Souls to be {q
many Self-exiftent Beings, or 'UemocrU
tus and Epfcurus\ infinite Number of
Self-exiftent Atoms, to be a more ra-
tional
Sermon IV. xii
tional Account of Things, than that
which makes all particular Beings to be
only Modes of Being ; yet thus far I
think fuiSciently clear, That the Jtheifi
a£ls a moft fooiifh Part when he takes
Refuge in. either of thefe, to excufe him-
felf from admitting a Power of Creation.
For as to a Plurality of Self-exiftent
Beings, nothing can be more abfurd
than to make all the Diverfity of Be-
ings, with different Degrees of Power,
to be all NeceiTarily-exiilent. The Rea-
fon which induced the Chinefe to fup-
pofe a great Number of Self-exiftent
Souls with dijftrent Powers, was, That
they might the better account for their
animating dijftrent; and tmequd Portions
of Matter ; and the Reafon why the
Epicure am fuppofed their Self-exiftent
Atoms to be of different Figures, was,
That they might give a more proba-
ble Account of the different Combina-
tions of Material Beings. But i^ tliis
Inequality of Souls, and the Different
Figures of Atoms, was really necefTa-
ry in accounting for the Diverfity of
Beings in the World, it will be ntQt.{-
fary.
112 Sermon IV.
iary to look farther, and enquire for
the Caufe of this Difference in the
Chinefe and Eficurean Principles: For if
. the Inequahty in the feveral Portions
of Matter, was a good Reafon for fup-
pofing an Inequality in the Self-exiftent
Principles, what Reafon can they give
why we fhould not as well look out
for the Caufe of the Inequality of their
Principles, as well as they provide a
Caufe of the different and unequal
Combinations of Bodies ? They could,
I fay, have no more Reafon for fup-
pofing the Difference of their Princi*
pies to have arifen from the Neceflity
of their Natures, than that the diffe*
rent Combinations of Matter, fhould
have arifen from fuch a Neceffity ;
which latter they do not fuppofe. And
therefore, if they would argue con*
fiftently with themfelves, they muff ac-
knowledge fome external Caufe of the
Difference that is fuppofed to be in
their Principles; and this Caufe mufl
be fome One Simple Being, not ma-
ny Beings ; becaufe all Diverfity of Be-
ing does plainly fuppofe a Reafon of
its
Sermon IV. 113
its being what it is, extrinfical to the
Nature of the Being , to wit, that it
muft have fome external Caufe, that
makes it to be what it is, or different
from any Thing elfe.
And thus I have fhewn that the
Atheifi does not acb hke a fair Exa-
miner, when lie rejects a G o d with a
Power of Creation ; becaufe he either
takes up with a Number of Self-exiilent
Peings of unequal Forces, or ehe, with
Spif7oJa, he makes the Self-exiftent Be-
ing to be every Thing, in the flrid-
eft and propered: Senfe of the Words;
which are fuch Abfurdities, that we
may without Breach of Charity, deny
fuch Perfons to be impartial Searchers
after Truth.
I S E R M,
11^
SERMON V.
I ThESSALONIANS v. 21.
Trove all Things : hold faji
that which is good.
HAVE already fliewn that
the Jthei/l cannot be a
fair Examiner, wlien he
quits Religion for the a-
voiding fome Difficulties in
the Religious Scheme • becaufe he muft
fwallow much greater, if he will ac-
count for the Appearances of Things,
and abide by his Material one. As to
two of the Difficulties which he is
wont to complain of, "jiz. The Imma-
I 2 teriality
II 6 Sermon V.
teriality of God, and his Power of
Creation, or of making Something from
Nothing, we have already feen, that if
he will not admit thefe, he muil ad-
mit fome Things that are much hard-
er of Belief, and that therefore he can-
not be juftified by any f4ir an^ can-
did Reafoner in rejecfing Religion, for
the Sake of thefe Difficulties.
I AM now to confider one other
Difficulty, which he makes in Excufe
for not believing a G o d, which is,
That it would obhge him to believe
that Evil may be reconciled with the
fuppofal of a Good Being • and am to
fhew, That all the Ways he can pof-
fibly take to account for the real State
of Good and Evil upon the Foot of
Atbsifm^ are impoffible to be true ; and
therefore that he is an unfair Examiner
in rejecting Religion for the Sake oi
this Difficulty. 1 will begin with that
Account Spwofa is able to give' of tjiis
Vh£nome-rion^ confidently with his Syfleni
of the World , which is built upon a
fmgle Principle, from whence he is tp
drav/ both Good and Evil.
If
Sermon V. 117
If there was in the World nothing
tut Natural and Moral Good, or no-
thing but Natural and Moral Evily
there would be no Difficulty in deriving
either of them from one fingle Prin-
ciple; but as there is an evident Mix-
ture of both in the World, SpjKofa judged
it to be impolTibie that fuch a Mix°
ture fhould arile from a good Prineiple^
and therefore ere£ts a new Syftem with
a Material God at the Head of ir, tliat
lliould be neither Good nor Evil, but
in its own Nature indifferent to both :■
Such a Being then acting necefTarily ac«
cording to its Nature, which Nature is
fuppofed to be perfedly indifferent as
to Good and Evil, and a£l:ing by an
infinite Force or Power, mult produce
all the Poflibilities of Being. For Spi^
nofn, fays *, Ex Neceffitate D:vm£ Naturd
wfinitA infinitis modis^ hoc ejiy omnU qua
fub intelUBum infiifnttim aider e poffunt^ fe-
qui debent. Arid therefore, fince Errors
and Crimes, Grief and Pain, are as real
Modifications of Being, as Truth and
I 3 Virtue'^
"■ Piop. XTI,
1 1 8 Sermon V.
Virtue, Pleafure and Happinefs ; confe-
quently one as well as the other muft
have a Place in the Univerfe. For this
Principle being in its own Nature in-
different to either what we call Good
or Evil, and producing all that is pof-
fible to be produced, it muft of courfe
pfoduce Evil as well as Good.
W E will now fee whether 'twas
worth S^mofa's while to quit Religion
in order to get rid of that difficult
Queflion, If a Good God, '^'ohv t^ aclka.
I would grant Spnofa^ that his Infinite
Being fliould produce all the Polli-
bilities of Being ; but then I can never
grant, that ContradiQ:ions are PolTibi-
lities of Being. And yet furely it looks
as much like a Contradiction as can be,
to draw out of the fame Simple, Un-
compounded Subftance both Wifdom
and Folly, Virtue and Vice, Happinefs
and Mifery ; and yet if this Account
could , be true, thefe muft all flow
from the EfTence of the Self-exiftent
Beingv
Homer has fhewn much better
Senfe, when he accounted for the Goods
and
SfiRMON V. tip
and Evils of this Life by placing two
Tuns near the Throne of Japiter, one
filled with good Things, the other with
Evils, and that Goods and Evils came
from Heaven, as JufheripouYQd out of ei-
ther of them ; if he poured out of both
at the fame Time, then there was up-
on Earth an Appearance of both Good
and Evil, or a Mixture of both. He
faw that if he had made both Happi-
nefs and Mifery to be drawn out of
the fame VeiTel, that it would have had
too much of the Air of Incredible, even
.for a Poem; that it would have been
as bad as if he fhould have pretended
to fetch both /i/^ Water and frefjj froni
the fame Spring or Fountain, v/hich was
in. St. Jamesh Time a proverbial Saying
:,by which they ufed to exprefb an Im-
pofTibility. Had Spinofa lived m thofe
Days, and broached this DoQirine, his
God might have been in Danger of
.becoming a proverbial Expreilion for
..any Thing that was thought iiTtpofTi"
ble.. For to fuppofe a Simple Being to
be neither Good nor Bad, but a Mix-
ture of both, is fuppoling what is al-
I 4 togetbg!'
I 20 S E R M d N V.
togethei* unintelligible. The Spwojiji
muft allow a real Difference between
Phyfical Good and Pliyfical Evil, Plea-
fure and Pain, Happinefs and Mifery :
And yet if his Account of Things were
true, thefe muft be fo like one another,
and fo much of the fame Nature, as to
come indifferently from the fame Un-
compounded Subftance.
But this is not all, here is not only
a DiiHculty of giving Birth to both
Good and Evil from fuch a fmgle
Principle, but alfo when that is done,
of freeing fuch a Principle from the
Contradidion of being at the fame
Time happy and miferable, in Joy
and in Grief, as often as Men or any
other Beings are in thefe Circumftances,
which is always the Cafe of fome or
other of them. Tulfy ^ ridicules a No-
tion of Pythagoras^ which made the
Souls of Men to be Parts of the Di-
vine Being; becaufe Go d muff in.
fuch Cafe be often miferable ; but this
was not to be reconcil'd with his fuppofed
Happinefs^
• Tull. De Natura Deorum.
Sermon v. 121
Happmefs. Na^ Fythagoras qui cenfuit
Deum animum effe per Natr/ram rerum om^
mm intent um Isf commemtem^ ex quo nojlri
anim'i carp:rentur^ non vidit diftrAciione hu-
nt a nor um animorum difcerpl £jf dilacerari
Deum : dr cum wiferi ejfent animi, quod
plerifque contingeret^ turn Dei partem ejfe
miferam. We fee that it was then
thought a good Argument againfl: Py-
thagor^ih Opinion, That if it were true^
the Deity muft be miferable, which
could not be, becaufe God was a Hap-
py Being, and they hctle thought that
'twas pofTible to be both happy and
miferable at the fame Time ; and there-
fore Pyth.\2^oras\ Notion was juftly re-
jeded, and fo muft SpinoJa*s too for the
fame Reafon ; for i[ Pjthagcras made
the Souls of Men to be Parts of the
Divine Being, Spinofa makes them to
be Modes of the fame Being, or the
fame Nature of God, differing only
in the Manner of its Exiftence ; and
therefore the Divine Being muft be
at leaft equally affeiSled in the one as
in the other Cafe.
The
1^2 SeR MO N V.
The Religious Man ftands (4lar of
any fuch Abfurdities ; as he fuppofes
thefe particular Exiftences wliicli are
the Subjeds of Evil, to be made not out
of the Divine Subftance, but from No-
thing^ and to be created with different
Degrees of Perfection, and confequent-
iy, that the Evils they are obnoxious
to, whether Phyfical or Moral, do not
proceed from Him, but are, as I be-
fore obferved, merely the Effects of
their imperfed Natures. And we do
not think that the Atheijl can prove it
inconfiftent with Goodnefs to make li-
mited or imperfeO: Natures. Thus far
we are fure we can talk Senfe. Where-
as Spmoja having no Creatures nor li-
mited Natures to take Refuge in, muft
neceflarily fuppofe all the Evils and Im°
perfe«Etions of the World to be the At-
tributes of his Infinite Being: And
therefore cannot avoid the Abfurdities
I have now charged upon him.
There is aUb one other Abfur-
dity chargeable upon Sfwofah Syftem,
viz. That . all the fooliili and wicked
Thoughts of Men, as well as thofe that
ars
Sermon V. 123
are good and rational, muft be the
Thoughts of his Self-exiftent Being;
but fo long as we fee a real Difference
between good Senfe and Foolifhnefs,
Virtue and Vice, we can never fee how
fuch incompatible Properties can flow
from the fame Principle. For this would
be to make a moft Simple Being to
be not only a Compound Being, which
is Contradiftion enough; but alfo com-
pounded of fuch inconfiftent Ingredients
as could never be united together in
the fame Being, but would battle each
other till one of them had fubdued and
deitroyed the other.
But then, it may be faid, Why may
not this be true, as well as what the
Chriftian Religion fuppofes to be true^
w^ That" the fame Perfon may be the
Subjed of both human and divine At-
tributes? For human Wifdom, or the
Wifdom which human Nature, for In-
ftance, is capable of, when compared
with divine Wifdom, is no better than
Folly: And if this be true, then the
Subjea of both Natures muft be at the
fame Time divinely and humanly wife,
that
12^ S E R M 0 N V.
that IS, wife, and not wife ; but this
can no more be conceived than the
other ; and if thefe Things can be fup-
pofed by the ReUgious Man to exift in
God, why not by the Spinofift in his Self-*
exiftent Being. Some Christians to avoid
this Difficulty of uniting God and Man
in the Perfon of our Saviour, either
fuppofcd one of the Natures to be fwal-
lowed up, loft or confounded in the
other, 'viz, the Man in G o d ; or elfe,
that after the Union there ftill conti-
nued two diftind Subjefts of the two
diiferent Natures ; but there is no Need
of either of thefe Solutions to clear the
Union of God with Man from the Ob-
jections I have raifed againft Sfi}?ofa\
Self-exiftent Being. For when God took
upon him human Nature, that human
Nature was per eftly fubmitted to the
Divine, and conftantly followed its Gui-
dance, and the AQiions of the Perfon
were always the laft Determinations, not
of the PafTions and Appetites of the
Man, but of the Divine Logos. No con-
trary Volitions, no ConfliQ: between
God and Man, but the Word direded,
and
Sermon V. 125
and the Man followed- And tho' cue
Saviour, as a Man, is faid to have en-
creafed in Wifdom as wd\ as Stature ;
yet it is enough for my prefent Pur-
pofe, that there was no Clafhing be-
tween the Wifdom of the Divine and '
Human Nature : If the Wifdom of the
latter was lefs extenfive, yet it was
without any Mixture of Folly : Where-
as I objecled again ft Spinofa*s Syftem,
becaufe it introduced a Nature which
was a perfed Scene of Contention and
Inconfiftency, as it was evident from
the many rational and foolijh Thoughts
of Men ; which if we know what Con-
tradidions are, muft be fuch, when-
ever they are both made to be at the
fame Time the Thoughts of one and
the fame Being. And yet (as I have
already ihewn) his Self-exiflent Being,
fo long as he fuppofes him the only
Subftance or real Being in the World,
and all other Beings only the fame Be-
ing in different Shapes and Dreffes, ac-
cording to the Diverfity and Variety
that we fee in Nature, muft be charge-
able
12(5 Sermon v.
able with all the foolifli as well as ra-
tional Thoughts of Men ^.
H A. V I N G now fliewxi that 5/>/>r/^'s
Hypothefis is fo far from giving a bet-
ter Account of that Mixture of Good
and Evil which appears in the World,
than the Religious Scheme, that it will
by no means introduce any fuch Mix-
ture into the World ; and therefore that
every Spinofift is Culpable when he re-
jects Religion for the Difficulty of re-
conciling Good and Evil with a Good
God :
I COME now to fhew, That no o-
ther Atheiftick Scheme ought to be ta-
ken up by any fair and impartial Exa-
miner; becaufe every other Atheiftick
Scheme, different from that of Spinofa,
will fuppofe more than One Neceffa-
rily-exiftent Principle; but a Plurahty
pf Self-exiftent Beings cannot poffibly
be true. And therefore how well foe-
ver a Plurality of Principles would ac-
count for this particular Difficulty, yet
it
Vide Serm IV,
Sermon V. 127
It ought not to be admitted for a So-
lution of it ; becaufe every good Syftem
ought to be built upon clear and evi- '
dent Principles of Reafon, as well as to
be qualified for folving Appearances of '
Things : But every Scheme that fup-
pofes a Plurality t>f Independent, Ne-
cejGTarily-exiftent Beings, is fo far from
being fupported by clear, evident Prin-
ciples of Reafon, that 'tis diredly re-
pugnant to the cleareft Ideas we have
of the Order of Things. All the real
Perfections that Men have ever had
any Notion of, they have been wont to
give to the Self-exiftent Being; they
were fure that Something muft be
boundlefs in its Exiftence, both with
regard to Time and Place ; and as the
Exigence of that Something was exclu-
ded from no Place nor Time, that its
Operation could not be hindered any
rvhere nor any when. As thefe Powers and
Privileges, I fay, were always thought
to have a real Exiftence in Nature,
they were as conftantly afcribed to
the Self-exiftent Being ; for the Excel-
lency of fuch a Nature muft be, accord-
ins
128 Sermon v.
ing to our Conceptions, if any Thing
be fo, entitled to all pofTible Perfedi-
ons ; but then it mull: be very hard
to conceive two fuch Beings with all
thefe Powers and Privileges; as for In-
ftance, We fhall be hard put to it to
find Room for more than One of fuch
a Kind of Beings, as would by Itfelf
fill up and exift in every Part of the
infinite Space, as it muft of Necedity,
fince 'tis fuppofed to be Infinite or
Iramenfe.
'Till the Jtheifi can tell us how to
provide a Reception for a fecond Infi-
nite, when all is already taken up by
the other ; we muft beg Leave to af-
firm, that he has a much greater Dif-
ficulty upon his Hands, than the Reli-
gious Man has, when he is called upon
to account for Good and Evil upon the
Foot of a Good God. For as the Atheiflh
Self-cxiftent Beings, are fuppofed to be
Material, they cannot be both in the
fame Place ; and therefore a Second can-
not be. at all, becaufe the Firft is fup^
pofed to be Infinite, and to have alrea-
dy filled all the infinite Space.
Bu T
Sermon V, 120
But farther, The Idea of Power
ftfcks clofe to our Idea of the Self-ex-
iftent Being, and yet our Ideas will
not allow of halfing or dividing the Pow*
er between Two ; becaufe this would be
to admit Two Powers that could con-
troul one another, and difturb each other
in their Operations ; which furniilies out
a very faint Idea of Power, too much
limited and retrained to be given -to
a NecefTarily-exilknt and Infinite Be-
ing. For in this Cafe, neither of the
Self-exiftent Beings would be able to
produce any one Thing without the
Interpofition of the other. And there-
fore every Being m the World would
be the Effedt of their oppofing one an-
other, and fo receive not its Nature
from either, but from both.
As the Appearances of Things are
no where pure or unmix'd Good;, nor
pure or unmixt Evil, fome Perfons have
difcovered a great Fondnefs for Two
Contrary and Independent Principles,
hoping that fuch a Syftem would per-
feOily well account for the Mixture of
Good and Evil, as whatever fhould be
K produced
I ^o Sermon V.
produced from the Struggle and Con.
Aid of two contrary Powers, muft of
Courfe partake of the Nature of both.
But however fond they may be of
this Way of folving the Diiiiculty, they
may do well to confider, whether the
afcribing to the NecefTarily-exiftent Be-
ing fuch a limited Power as evident-
ly contradi8:s our clearefi: Ideas, be not
a better Proof of the Falfliood of this
J^ypothefsy than any Arguments they can
bring againft the Being of a God from
their Fhxnomenon of Good and Evil,
the firfl: we are lure cannot be the
Truth, for Reafons I have already gi-
ven ; the lall may poffibly be true, al-
tho' we cannot clear up every Difficul-
ty that may offer itfelf to us, when we
are endeavouring to reconcile Good and
Evil with a Good God. But,
2^/7, I WILL now fhew, that fup-
pofing the PofTibility of the Exiftence
of Two or more Contrary, Indepen-
dent Principles, that yet they would
not, any more than SpnofA's Syftem,
account for the Appearances of Good
and Evil in tl:e World.
r
Sermoh v. 131
I HAVE, as T before cbferved, a-
voidecl entring into a particular Detail
of the DiiHculties that are met with in
reconciling Evil with a Good B e i i^ g^
becaufe the Learned Dr. Joh/f Clark has
lately ex profcjjo examined them ; howe-s
ver, I hope, even in this Way of Hand-
h'ng the Matter, to fliew, That the
Atheiii is an Unreafcnable Pcrfon, if he
has left Religion for the Sake of this
DiiKcuky. As I have already fliewn,
That the Scheme of many Self-exillent
Principles, the Refuge of fome Atheijis
from this particular Dificulty, is incon=
fiftent with our plaineil Ideas : If I
t'an alfo fneW, That fhould we give
jiim any of his Schem.es on the Foot of
Plurahty, yet he would not be able
to account for the Difficulties ; v/e fliall
^ leave him without any Shew of an Ex-
cufcj if he pretends to have hft us^ tliat
he might itand clear of Di&ulties.
Supposing then for once, the Pof-
fibility of the Exigence of Tv/o or more
Independent Principles of contrary Na--
tures • thefe Principles mull either havd
sn equal or unequal Force. . If they v/erd •
K 2 unequal
132 Sermon V.
unequal Powers, tlien the fuperior Pow-
er adiiig necefTarily and to the utmoft
Stretch of its Power, muft, in an eter-
nal Duration, have deftroyed all the
Effects of the weaker Power ; And
then if the fuperior Force were Good,
there could be mw no fuch Thing as
Evil; or if Evil, no fuch Thing as Good;
neither of which will anfwer to the
true Appearance of Things. The
Atheifi cannot defend himfelf by the
Ancients, who fuppofed unequal, con-
trary Powers to have always had an Ex-
iftence, without deftroying one ano-
ther : For altho' the ancient Theology of
the Pagans J as we find by the Poets
and other Mythologies^ confiftcd of many
contrary Principles endued with une-
qual Powers; tho' the good Beings,
fuch as Jupiter J ^c. were fuppofed by
them to be fuperior in Power to their
Ve'joi'e^ : yet they might eafily beheve
the eternal Co-exiftence of fuch unequal
Powers, or that the leffer were not de-
ftroyed by the Greater; becaufe they
fuppofed "Jupter and the rcll of the
Good Principles to be hee' jfgenty that
aded
Sermon V. 133
a£ted with Views and for Ends, and
might therefore believe that the Good,
the' a fuperior Principle, had permitted
the Aftion of the inferior Evil Being,
in a Way of Punifhment to fuch as
had broken the Laws- of thofe Beings,
whD were the Principles of Goodnefs.
But as to the Atheiftick Principles which
a6t neeeffarily, or becaufe they can't
help it ; and confequentiy, a£t to the
utmoft of their Power, the eternal
Subfiftence of unequal contrary Forces
muft be impoffible, for the Reafon al-
ready given 5 and therefore they can-
not account for the State of Good and
Evil in the World. But,
2dly^ I F we take two contrary Prin-
ciples of equal Force to account for
Good and Evil, then as they 2.8: necef-
farily, and therefore to the utmoft of
their Powers, their continual Oppofitiori
to each other muft either produce no-
thing but Confufion ; that is, the evil
Principle muft deftroy as faft as the
Good Principle produces any Thing,
becaufe the Evil Principle is fuppofed
to have as much Power, and to be
K 5 under.
J 24 S E R M O M V.
uflcter as great a Ne^^elTity of ufmg th^t
yovver as the Good One: Or elfe an
equal Mixture of Good and ^vil n?iujfl:
run thro' all Things, as the neccfTary
Refult of the Equality of liieir mutual Op-
pofition. For there is no third Way of
conceiving the Effect of the Ageney of
two neceiXary, equal, and contrary Pow-
ers. But if neither of thefe be agreeable
to the truth of Things, then the /Itheiji is
not to be juftified in. rejcding Rehgion for
the Difficulty of folving the Appear-
ances of Good and Evil, becaufe every
pretended Solution upon the Foot of
Jtheijm^ will then appear to be lalfe.
i/, The Appearance of Good and
Evil cannot be accounted for by Two
contrary, equal Principles; becaufe if
they aded NecefTarily, the Effed of
their mutual Aclioii would be nothing
but Diforder and Confuilon, as Two
equal, contrary Powers mull of Ne>
celRty deftroy the Operations of each
other. Monfieur Bayle^ as fond as he
fliews himfelf upon all Occafions of the
H^pothefii which pretends to account
ibr Good and Evil by Two contrary
Principles:
Sermon v. 135
Principles; was yet fenfible, that Two
fucli contrary Natures, unlefs they aft-
ed with fomething Hke Freedom, could
never account for Good and Evil ; and
therefore v/hen he is making an Apo-
logy for Zorodjier^ he reprefents him as
juftifying his Two Principles in this
Manner : " That it was with his Two
Principles for fome Time, as it was with
" Mr. Hobbs's Men in a State of Na-
^' ture, and before the Eftablifhment
" of Societies ; that every Man was an
" Enemy to every other Man, and did
" each other all the Miichief they
" could ; and thus, fays he, it was with
^' the Two Principles at firll, till they,
^' as well as Mr. Hohbs^s Men, weary
*' of fuch a confufed State of Things,
•■' in which one Principle was conti-
*^ nually overturning what the other
*^ • was building up, came at laft to an
^' Accommodation, and joyned arnica-
■^ bly together for the future, in the
'* feveraj Produdions of Nature *. "
K 4 Mr.
* 'Hlftcr. DiS:. in voce Zoroaflier,
I 3<^ S E R M O N V.
Mr. Baj/le enters into fo many Particu-
lars in Iiis Vindication of this Dodrine
of X^ronfie-^^ that we may believe he
look'd upon it as the molt rational Soluti-
on of the prefent Difficulty. But from
hence we may obferve, That Two con-
trary Principles, fo long as they aded
NeceiTarily and to the utmoil of their
Power, could produce nothing but a State
of the utmoft Confufion and Diibrder ;
bccaufe this is fuppofed and allowed to
have been the State of Things previoufly
to the Agreemenf of the Two Principles :
and then without fuch Agreement, every
Thing muft have been ftill in. Confufion,
and different from what we fee at pre-
fent J and therefore were it polTible that
this Account of Things could be the
Truth, yet it would do the Atheijl no
Service, unlefs he would allow the Exi-
gence of Beings that ad upon Choice,
which he always fteadily denies, and
while he does fo, can have no Right to
any Advantage from this Bjpcthejis,
If it be faid, That fuch an Accom-
modation is confident with NecefTity,
and that a good Principle is necelfarily
determined
Sermon V. 137
determined to fuch an Accommodation,
as a Mixture of Good and Evil is bet-
ter than no Good at all ; the Anfwer
is, That fuch a Determination muft
be the Efted of Choice and of a Free-
dom of ading, and not of any abfolute
Neceflity of the Nature of the Being;
becaufe the Operations of a Being that
ads from a Neceflity of Nature, will
always be as invariable as its Nature ;
and therefore if they both aded from a
Neceflity of their Natures, the EfTed
of their acting muft be always the
fame, and no Room for Variation, which
this Accommodation fuppofes. 'Tis true,
the Jtheiji allows Men the fame Pow-
er of tranfading with each other for
their mutual Benefit, and yet denies
them a Liberty of Adion : but I am
perfuaded they would not perfift in
denying fuch mutual Agreements be-
tween Men, to be an Argument of
Choice and Freedom, if they could fee
any Poffibility of reconciling Liberty
with their Material Scheme. For they
cannot but fee a Difference between
]Moral and Phyficai Motives, between
being
1 q8 Sermon v,
being moved to a£b by a Reafon, and
being forced into Action by an exter-
nal Impolfe ; and that this Difference
exilb in the Nature of Things, and
therefore they would never have made
them to be the fame, if they could have
fetched them both from Matter, and
yet fuppofed any Difference between
them. But,
T o proceed, If the Atheift finding
he can make no Advantage of this ima-
ginary Accommodation between the
Two Principles for a Solution of the
prefent Difficulty, fliould rather take up
with another, which the fame Mr. Bnyie
propofes in the Title Paulkians^ viz,.
That the Good Principle oppofes with
all its Might and without ceafing the
Sin and Mifery of the Creature ;
but that the Evil Principle ading on
its Side with all its Strength inOp-
pofition to it, there refults from this
continual Shock of the Two Prin-
ciples, that Mixture of Good and Evil
which we fee every where, as the
Action and Reaction of two contrary
Qualities produces a third Quality par-
" taking
Sermon v. 139
^^ taking of the Nature of both : " If, I
fay, he has any Hopes fcom this Way
of folving the Difficulty, we will fhew,
that tliis cannot be the true one, Be-
caufc fuppofing fuch a Conflia between
Two contrary Principles, if they did
not, as I have already obferved, turn
all into Confufion, then the Confequence
would be, that there muft be an equal
Mixture of Good and Evil running
thro' all Things ; whereas if this were
the Cafe, there muft be an invariable
and uniform Appearance of Good and
Evil; the Mixture of Good and Evil
muft be the fame in every Part of
Space, as well as every Part of Time,
b^caufe it pi*oceeds from Two contrary
Caufes ading necefTarily and to the ut-
'moft of their Powers ; and therefore no
Reafon can be given why their AQrion
and Reaftion, or the Refult of them,
fhould not be the fame ^n every Part
of the infinite Space, their Powers be--
ing fuppofed to be equal. But if the
fame Qiiantity of Good and Evil had
been blended together from Eternity,
-and uniformly diHufed thro' the Infinite
- ■ Extenfiouj
140 Sermon V.
Extenfion, there could have hcQn no
fuch Thing as human Condud or Wif^
dom, no PofTibility of chufing the lefs
Evils or Inconveniencies to avoid great-»
cr ones; becaufe the Inconveniences
muft be equal which Way foever we
aQ:, i£ the Evil be equal or as much
in every Part of Infinite Space as the
Good is»
Away then with all the Maxims
of Wifdom which Men have hitherto
pretended to diflinguifh themfelves by,
i£ the fame Degree of Evil muft be
cxpc8:ed, 2.Q: as wifely as we will. But
if the real State of Things proves 9
that there js more evil in one Way of
afting than in another, this fhews that
the Mixture of Good and Evil did not
proceed from Two contrary Principles
acting neceflarily ; but froni One Free
and Intelligent Being, that has judi-
cioufly annexed different Degrees of Evil
or Inconvenience to different Ways of
afting, in order to make a Trial of our
good Senfe in chufing the leaft Inconve-
niences. In this Way of accounting for
Good and Evil, we can fyppofe them
mixed
Sermon v. 141
mixed together, and yet leave Room
for the Exercife of good Senfe : Becaufe
a Being that ads not from any Ne-
ceflity of Nature, but with every De-
gree of Freedom which is confiftent
with aQ:ing wifely, may fo order the
Conftitution of Things, as to leave it
in the Power of fome Beings, if not en-
tirely to feparate the Evil from the
Good, yet, at leaft, when there are dif-
ferent Degrees of Evil, to take the lejffer :
Whereas if Good and Evil proceeded
from two diflerent and contrary Caufes
ading neceffarily with all their Force,
it could never be in the Power of any
particular Beings, fuch as Men, to alter
fo far the Original Conftitution of
Things as to take Good without taking
an equal Portion of Evil ; becaufe it
cannot be fuppofed, that what has been
joyned together by two infinite Pow-
ers, can pofTibly be feparated by Man.
But lince all the World allows a Dif-
ference between wife and foolifli Con-
duQ:, the Appearance of Good and Evil
fuch as it really is, cannot pofTibly be
reconciled
14.2 Sermon V.
reconciled by an Hypothefis of Two con*
trary Principles a8:ing neceflarily.
Again, as Wifdom and Folly are
not reconcileable with Two contrary
Principles afting necefTarily; fo neither
will the linequal Allotment of Good and
Evil to fome Sorts of Men, receive a
Solution from Two contrary Pi'inciples ;
for Beings that a6t necefTarily, it mufl
be granted, cannot be Refpefters of
Perfons, but muft difperfe their Favours
or Refentments promifcuoufly to all
that come in the Way of them, and
not fingle out particular Perfons for that
Purpofe. This is fo plain a Dedutlion
from the Atheipck Scheme, that Lucre-
tius could not deny it ; and therefore
when he comes to that Part of Na-
ture which relates to the Difpenfation
of Good and Evil, he plainly gives lip
the Caufe of Atheifm^ in acknowledg-
ing that this was not to be accounted
for by any Laws of mere Matter and
Motion ; for Ipeaking of the Misfortunes
of great Men, of which the Hiftories of
all Times had furnifhed great Num-
bers of Inftanccs^ he drops his Atoms,
aud"
Sermon v. 143
and has Recourfe to I know not what
hidden Power that took a Delight in
making a Jeft of all human Grandeur.
%)Jc^ue adeo res humanxs vis ahdita quadam
Ohterity dr fulchros fafces jUvafyue jecures^
^roculcare i^ ludibrio fthl habere videtur *.
We may by • the Way obferve, That
Lucretius does here the fame Thing for
which he and other Atheifis have
thought fit to laugh at the Religious
Man \ becaufe his Material Caufes were
found by him not fufficient to anfwer
this ?h^nomenon of Nature, he is con-
tented to take Refuge in an unknown
Caufe, a ®-M ^ ^MX*f'"fj and yet when
we have recourfe to a God, they wii!
allow it no better a Name in us than
a Cloak for our Ignorance. But if the
Atheifl v/ould declare as fairly with
regard to feveral other ^ImmnmiA as
Lucretius has done in this particular
one, he would find as much Want of
a G o D for extricating him out of
other Difficulties, as Lucretim did hi tliis
concernino: sood and Evil,
If
* Liicrr-r lib- 5,
144^ Sermon v.
If the Religious Man meets with
ibme Difficulties in reconciling the
Misfortunes of great and good Men
with a Good Being, yet nothing
has been thought clearer than that
Something befides the necefTary Laws
of Matter and Motion njull: have had
a Hand in human Affairs. There was
always fo much feeming Caprice,
fuch Inconftancy, and Changes fo fud-
den, and fo unaccountable in the Hi-
ftory of great Men, particularly of fuch
as had been great and good Men, th at
it has been always thought necefTary to
have Recourfe to fome Agent that go-
verns all Events with perfeft Freedom,
and not to Matter in Motion, whofe
Laws were too fteady and too regular
to account for them. For 'twas eafily
feen that the Workings of NecefTary
Agents mull be as unchangeable as
their Natures. And therefore a more
regular Courfe of human Affairs than
the prefent, mufl have arifen from the
Adion of a Being or Beings that
brought Things about from a Necef-
fity of Nature.
Thus
Sermon V.
Thus we fee the Jtheift is never
the nearer towards giving himfelf Sa-
tisfaction concerning Good and Evil,
when he exchanges Religicn for Atheifm :
but if he deals fairly with himfelf, he
will only find this Difference, That
whereas he tumbled at fome Appear-
ances of Evil which he could not re?
concile with Goodnefs or the Exiftence
of a Good Principle, he muft now fee
every Solution he can give of this
Fhammenon upon the Foot of Atheijm^
plainly impoflible to be th-e Truth,
H$
L
S E R M.
'J.- .-^fcg^jsfea*
SERMON VI.
Acts XVII. 28.
For in Him we live^ and
mo'Ve^ and have our Be-
ing.
147
HESE Words are Part of
a Speech St. Faul made
upon Mirs-YiiW at Athem
in Juftification of himfeif
againil the Charge of en-
deavouring to introduce a new Reli-
gion into that City ; he tells them ,
That he had Preached no ftrange Gods,
but the very fame God whom they them-
fclyes \vorJhipped, under the Title of
L z tlie
Sermon VI.
(he Unknown God, tho' they were
entirely ignorant of his Nature, as
was plain by their ereQ:ing Temples to
Him for his Habitation and Refidence.
Whereas himfelf had ereded this {late-
ly Frame of the Univerfe, and there-
fore could never be in Want of a Room
or Place to dwell in ; neither could He
want the Afliftance of Men for making
Him Altars and Images, for that He
had given Life and Breath to thofe ve-
ry Men by whofe Skill and Workman-
lliip they pretended to honour Him.
We find by the i8th Verfe, that the
Epicureans made a Part of our Apo-
ftle's Congregation, for they went along
with him from the Market-place, where
-they had been Difputing, to the Areo-
fagus, Thefe Men had wilfully mif-
taken the Nature of G o d, and impi-
oufly ftripp'd the Deity of all the
Privileges that had been univerfally al-
lowed to belong to it ; for the God of
Epicurus had no Hand in , the making
the World, he neither moved the Mat-
ter of the World, nor directed its Mo-
rions, he was neither concerned in the
Inanimate
Sermon vi. I49
Inaminate nor Animate Part of it, and
muft be therefore fliut out of all. For
as to the Motion of Matter, from Whence
all its Variety arifes, that was fuppofed
by them to ' have been Eternal ; and
as for Life, that was nothing more
than the particular Organifation or
Structure of the Parts, fuch as is feen iil
Animals ; which Organifation too was
entirely owing to Chance or Fortune,
without the leaft Interpofition of their
Gods. And as to the Nature of their Gods,
we find by Democritus (from whom
Epicurus took a great Part of his Ph^-
lofophy) that they were beholden to
Matter for their Exigence ; for he fup-
pofes them to be nothing but the I-
mages of Objefts, which according to
his Way of Thinking, were continually
flying off from all Corporeal Objefts ;
as appears by lully ^. Had this been
the real Truth of the Cafe, a Worfhip,
L 3 fuch
.* Democritus qui turn imagines earumque Circu-
,, ki^s in Deorum Numero refert. Cicer. de Nacura
peorum. i,ib, i. p, :S.
Sermon VI.
fuch as that at Athens by Images, had
been worthy enough of fuch imaginary
Beings, or rather more than they de-
ferved : But St. Paul tells them, That
this was to miH-ake entirely the Na-
ture of G o D ; for that He was the
fole Caufe of all Things, and the fole
Giver of all our Powers of Adion ;
for that 'twas in Him We all of us
both lived, and moved, and had our
Beings.
Having already confidered fome of
the moft material Objeclions which the
Infidel is wont to urge againft the Be-
ing of a God, and fliewn that they
cannot be a good Reafon for denying
Him, becaufe the Appearance of Things
will neceflarily require the Exiftence of
fuch Powers and Properties as we
afcribe to Him, and which the Atheiji
pretends to find Fault with ; I am now
to reprefent fome of the Arguments on
which the Religious Man grounds his
Belief of a God, drawn from the moft
confiderable Phenomena in Nature, fuch
as Motion, Thought, and the Oi'der of
Things, ^\Mc\\VUio calls the Ti<iO' k^ Kuh2<.
I
S E R iM O N VT. I 5 I
I will begin with that of Motion, and
Ihew, That there is no pofTible Way
of accounting for its Exigence, unlefs
we will admit a G o d, or which is the
fame Thing to the Jiheifl, a Being di-
{tmdi from JVlatter, and yet aSing
upon it«
There are but three pofRble Y/ays
of accounting for Motion, either by
fupppfing that there has been an in-
finite Succeflion of Impulfes communi-
cated from one Body to another from
Eternity, without any adive Principle
either /> Matter or without It ; or that
there is an A8:ive Principle in Matter,
that it is Self-aclive, and Motion eilen-
tial to it, or elfe that there is fonie Be-
ing diftinci: from Matter, that is the
Caufe of its Motion. I will (hew, that
neither of the two firft ^Yays of ac-
counting for Motion, can poiTibly be
the Trath ; and therefore that the Caufe
of Motion, muft be fome Being diftind
from Matter, the fame Being, which
our Apoftle made the Subjed of his
Difcourfe to the Athemans^ the God
that made Heaven and Earth; the
L 4 fole
1^2 Sermon VI.
idle Giver of Life and Animal Motion,
for that 'tis in Him we live, and have
a Power of moving ourfelves. And,
i/, A N infinite Succeffion of Im-
pulfes without an Active or Moving
Principle, will never give Birth to Mo-
tion, becaufe this would be to bring an
Effect upon the Stage without the Help
of a Caufe. And yet abfurd as this is,
Sjfinofa was able to give no better an
Account of Motion, or at leaft thought
this to be better than to fuppofe with
fome, That Motion was a necefTary At-
tribute of Matter. And tho' all the
"World agrees. That in a finite Time
'tis abfurd to fuppofe an Eifed without
a Caufe, which mufl: be the Cafe, if
Motion was not an eflential Attribute
of Matter ; yet Spinofa, would never un-
dertake to fliew how an infinite Time
would make any Senfe of it ; and there-
fore always avoided giving a dire(Et
Anfwer, when he was prefb'd by his
Friends to explain how Matter could
ever come into Motion, if Motion was
neither elfential to Matter, nor proceed-
ed from any external Caufe. This laft
he
Sermon VL 153
he could never own without giving up
the Caufe o^ Atheifm^2ind therefore would
never fpeak plainly to this Point, as
appears by the Sixty-third and follow-
ing Epiftles m his Poftliumous Works.
This Behaviour of Sfwofa\ makes it
reafonable to believe, that he himfelf
would have given up his Account of
Motion, if he could have faved his
Scheme and his Reputation. And as
Toland too has thought fit to rejed it
as indefenfible, I fhall take no farther
Notice of it, but proceed to the other
Atheipck Account of Motion, which
ToUnd thinks will be fuiiicient, with-
out troubling the Supreme Being,
viz. That Motion is efTential to all
Matter, and Aftion as much an Attri-
bute of Matter, as Extenlion or Soli-
dity ; and confequently, every Atom of
Matter is necclTarily Self-moving, or
adlive from the NecefTity of its own
Nature.
The World has had fo flrong an
Opinion of the natural Ina^livity of
Matter, that Sphofa had not Courage
Enough to oppofe it; but ToUf/d fi tid-
ing
1^4- Sermon VI-
ing Atheifm was not tenable, if Matter
was really Inadive, was refolved to try
whether he could not defend its Acti-
vity, as the only Refuge left for the
finking Caufe of Atbajm, The Argu-
ments he makes ufe of to prove the
Activity of Matter, are thefe :
ly?, '^ B EC Aus E, he fays, Motion,
" as well as Extenfion and Solidity, is
" included in our Idea of Matter ; that
" whenever we feparate Motion from
^' Matter in our Idea of it, 'tis only a
" partial Confideration of it, or an ab-
" fi:ra£led Notion of the Mind ; and
" therefore no more a Proof that Mat-
" ter can exift without Motion, than
" that Mathematical Lines, Surfaces
" and Points, have any Exiftence in
" Nature, becaufe they are in the
*' Heads of Mathematicidns,
2dly^ Another Reafon he urges
for the Activity of Matter, is, " Be-
*' caufe in Fad all Matter is in Mo-
*' tion.
A THIRD Reafon is this : " That
*^ tho' there fliould be fome Objedi-
" ons againft it, that much greater
** ones
Sermon vi. 155
*^ Ones would lie againft an External
" Mover of Matter. "
In anfwer to thefe Arguments of
his I will fhew,
ift-, That our Idea of Matter, when
we leave Motion out of it, is no ab-
ftraOied Notion of the Mind, but a
compleat and adequate Idea of it.
2dty^ That tho' all Parts of Mat-
ter were in Motion, it would not fol-
low that Motion was an elfential At-
tribute of Matter.
5%, That the Adivity of Mat-
ter is inconfiflent with fome Appear-
ances in Nature.
^thly^ That the Obje8:ions againfl
God's being the Author of Motion,
are not fuch as fhould difcourage any-
rational or unbyafs'd Perfon from ac*
knowledging, That 'tis in G o d we
live, and have our Animal Being.
i/, I am to fhew. That our Idea
of Matter without Motion, is not a
partial Confideration of Matter, but a
compleat Idea of it.
The Reafon which has always deter-
mined the >Yorld to look out for a Caufe
of
Sermon VI.
of Motion extrinfical to Matter,was this :
Tho' they could eafily conceive it ca-
pable of being moved and divided ;
yet the conceiving it to be undivided^
undiverfified, and unmoved , was a
more fimple Notion of Matter, than
the conceiving it divided and moved.
This being firfl in Order of Nature,
and an adequate Conception of it too,
they thought it neceffary to enquire
and give themfelves an Account how
it came out of this State, and by what
Caufes Motion, from whence this Di-
verfity in Matter arofe, could come
into the World ? Defcartes , altho'
he allowed the Infinity of Matter as
well as ToUffd, was yet fenfible that
even this would not alter the Nature
of Matter, nor the Idea that every
Body had of its Inactivity, and there-
fore could fee no other Way of alter-
ing its primitive Idea, and reconciling
it with the Motion of Matter, but by
introducing another Infinite Being, 'viz.
a God that had fufficient Power to
roufe Matter out of that fleepy, in-
a^ive State in whicli its Original Idea
had
Sermon vi. 157
had reprefented it. And ToUnd^
would have found himfelf under the
iame Neceflity of admitting a God
for the Mover of Matter, if he had
not endeavoured to impofe upon his
Reader by confounding Divifibihty and
Mobility, with actual Divifion and an
a£live or moving Power, as we fhall
fee prefently. For he acknowledges, that
the true Conception of Matter is this :
That it is every-where the fame, and
only diverfified by Motion; fo as by
his own ConfeiTion, the conceiving
Matter in Motion, is a departing from
that Unity of Subftance, that Samenefs
of Nature in. which our Ideas repre*
fent it to us. For all Diverfifications
of Matter muft of Necellity be fo
many Removes from the natural Unity
and Identity of Matter, according to
his Conception of it.
Aristotle, who was confeifedly
the beft Reafoner among the Ancients,
and not thought to be at all preju-
diced in Favour of Religion, is yet ve-
ry clear in this Point : in his firfl: Book
of the Met/ifhyfukSj cap, 3. he condemned
thofc
158
Sermon vi.
thofe who ftop'd fhort at the material
Caufe of Generations and Corruptions,
without looking after the Efficient
Caufe. " For, fays he, altho' all Cor-
" ruptions and Generations, are vari-
" cully produced from Beings more
" or lefs compounded, yet 'tis necef-
*^ fary to enquire. How this happens,
^' and what is the Caufe? For the
" Subject of all thefe Changes cannot
*^ poffibly change itfelf, "jU. The Wood
" and the Brafs cannot be the Caufes
^ that one of them is turned into a
" Bed, the other into a Statue ; " but
" Something elfe muft be the Caufe
" of thefe Changes. But to enquire
" after this, is to enquire after a Prin-
" ciple of Motion, or fome Being that
" has a Power of beginning Motion,
" and communicating it to Matter *. "
For he could fee nothing in the Idea
of Matter, that would qualify it for
a6:ing upon itfelf Mr. Hajle 'm voce
hmci^^us^ confefTes, " That our Idea of
" Matter
!. Vid. Ariflot. Metaphyfic. Lib. i. can. 3.
Sermon vl
*' Matter is compleat when it repre-
" fents nothing to us but Extenfion
" and Solidity, and that Motion is not
^* included in it, but is a perfect exo-
^' tick, a foreign Idea, that has no
'^ more relation to Matter , than
^' Thought or . Underftanding. " The
Evidence againft the Adivity of Mat-
ter from its Idea, is fo clear and
ftrong, that one would hardly have ex-
pected that this Idea fliould have been
prefsM into a contrary Service , and
made to ipeak m behalf of the Adi-
vity of Matter. And yet Mr. ToUnd
has attempted to prove Matter an
adive Being from its Idea.
As 17?, " From the Divifibility of
"Matter, which always makes a Part
'' of our Idea of Matter. And,
2dlyy " Because our Idea of Mat-
" ter always contains fome Quahty or
" other, which necelTarily fuppofes Mo-
" tion. "
ifty Fp.om the Divifibility of Matter,
his Argument from hence is founded
upon this ; becaufe, as he fuppofes, we
caiinoi; conceive Divifibility without
Motion;
i6o Sermon VI.
Motion j therefore we cannot conceive
Matter which is always conceived as
divifible, without conceiving Motion as
infeparable from Matter. But this is
plainly to make Mobility or the Capa-
city of receiving Motion, and Motion
itfelf, or the Vis moirix, to be one and
the fame Ideas. For altho', mdted^ we
cannot conceive Matter to be adually
divided, without adding Motion to our
Idea of Matter ; yet nothing more than
a Capacity of receiving Motion is ne-
celTary to the making up our Idea of
Divifibility : But this laft has a plain
and evident DiiHnftion in our Concep-
tions of Things from the former. For
we can conceive a Thing to be divifi-
ble, tho' it never fhould be adually
divided ; and when we conceive Mat-
ter as divifible, we at the fame Time
as well fuppofe it capable of continuing
in an undivided State, as of changing it
into a divided one. And therefore Mo-
tion is not necefTarily included m our
Idea of Divifibility. And confqquently
to fay, That Divifibility makes a Pare
of our Idea of Matter, would be no
Proof
Sermon VI. i6i
Proof that Motion too muft belong to
our Idea of it.
But Toland goes further , and
would prove, That Motion muft ne-
ceiTarily be included in the Divifibihty
of Matter ; becaufe whatever, is divi-
fible, mufl: have within itfelf a Power
of dividing itfelf; for thus he fpeaks in.
his Letter concerning Motion * ; *' li^
" fays he, there was no Internal Ener-
** gy. Matter would be incapable of
" Alteration or Divilion. " But this can
never be proved by him, unlefs he
takes it for granted, that there is no-
thing in Nature befides Matter ; which
would be to beg the Queftion in Dil^
pute between us and tho Athttft: For
'tis plain if any Thing befides Matter
had an Exiftence, he might have con-
ceived Matter to be divifible without
thinking of the internal Energy of Mat-
ter, becaufe Matter would be as truly
divifible, altho' we fuppos'd it divided
by fomething ' elfe, as if we fuppos'd
it divided by itfelf, and the Idea of
M Divifibility
• Page 194.
Sermon VI.
Divifibility would be exadly the fame
in either Cafe. As to what he fays,>
^* That Motion is contained in our Idea
** of Matter : Becaufe .1
s^/j/, " \V E can never form an Ideaj
". of Matter devoid of all Qualities ;^
" and all Qualities are an EHed of
^^ Motion ; confequently Motion is not
" to be feparated from our Idea of
*' Matter : " If by Idea, he means an
Image or what may be an Objed of
our Senfes, 'tis agreed, that in this
Senfe we can form no Idea of Matter
divefted of all Qualities ; but this is to
fay nothing more than this, That we
can't form an Image of a Thing which
has no Image, or is no ObjeQ: of our
Senfes; but ftill the Idea of folid Ex-
tendon remains a diftinO: Idea from
that of Motion, and therefore from all
the Qualities that are a Confequence
of Motion ; which ihews tliat there is
nothing in tlie Nature of the Thing
that fliould have hinder'd Matter
from exifting without Motion. And
Toland himfeif acknowledges, " That
^' Motion is not included in the Idea
" of
Sermon VI. 1^6^
" of Extenfion, nor any ways dedu-
" cible from it ^. " And therefore if
we can have any Idea of Solidity, a
foh'd extended Subftance may be con-
ceived to exift without Motion, or
without any Quahties that fhall affedl
our Senfes. Whereas there is no con-
ceiving Matter to exift without Soh'*
dity and Extenfion, which fliews them
to he efTential to Matter, and at the.,
fame time fl:iews Motion to be not ef-
fentiaL And therefore he has plainly
beg'd the Qiieftion in Difpute, in cid-
dmg to the Idea of Matter a new At-
tribute, without any Proof tliat 'tis
one.
He was fenfible that the univcr-
fal Belief of a Cljaos, was an ugly Ar-
gument againft him , and therefore
takes fome Pains ia ridiculing the feve-
ral Methods the Ancients took of bring-
ing Matter out of that Confufion,. m
which all Things were fuppofed to b*
while the Chaos lafted. But how ridi-
»•■
M 2 culous
■:e /;.":• Letf;r emarnlnz Mstimi,
1 64 Sermon
culous foever their Schemes might be^
yet this is evident, that they could and
did conceive Matter to have an Ex-
igence altho^ unmoved, and of courfe
without any of thofe Qualities that re-
fult from the Movement of Matter.
Ovid ia defcribing the Chaotick State,
tells us, " That there was no Kind
'^ of Diverfity, but the fame Face of
^^ Things thro' the infinite Extenfion.^ "
That the whole was rudis mdigeftac[ue
moleSy nee quiccj^uam ntft fondus iners. By
which the Poet intended to exprefs
the lazy and ftupid State ia which
Matter lay during the Chaos ^ and till
the Chaotick Matter began to be ftirr'd.
Mr. Ba.yle was as much out of Humour
with the Account that Ovid had given
of the ancient Opinion concerning a
Chaos^ as ToU'/fd^ and therefore un-
'^feafonably falls out with the Defcrip-
^on he has given us of it. That he
may
* Ante mare Sc terras, 8c quod tcgit omnia Coc-
[lum,
Unus erat toto Naturx yultus in orbe,
Qucm dixere Chaos. OviH.Metamor. L. J.
?i
Sermon VI. i6^
may make his Account inconfiftent with
itfelf, Ovid is brought in reprefenting
all the Variety in Nature as if it had
an aftual Exiftence, before there was
any fuch Thing as Motion; when he
fays, fpeaking of . the Chaotick State,
Frigida fugnxbmt calidis, ■ humentia jtccis,
moUia cum duris^ l^c, and yet he had
jufl before told us, that the Whole was
an homogeneous Subftance , Vmis trat
Natura vtdtm ; whereas what Ovid fays
is very confident. He fuppofes the
QhAos ta be an homogeneous Subltance,
which, upon its being moved, was di-»
verfified into Bodies of very diJerent
Natures, and not that any fuch Di-
verfity had any other than a poffible
Exiftence, till it was moved. And if
Mr. BiiyU had not been prejudiced a-
gainft a Qhnos^ it ought to Jiave pafs'cl
with him for a fine Piece of Imagery,
when the Poet reprefents the Change
that was made hy Motion, that Earth,
Air, Fire and Water, which had been
hitherto blended together, were then
feparated from each other. For the
beft Philoi©phers are agreed, That all
M I Matter
1 66 Sermon Vl
Matter is really the fame, and that all^j
the Diverfity that appears in it, is ow-
ing to Motion. And thtreibre a Pcet
might well reprefent the fimple and
uniform Face of Matter, as containing
within itfelf all thefe Diverfities, even
before it was moved, becr^ufe it was
capable of receiving them ; without, i
fuppofing them to have had an adlual;
Exigence till tlie Chaos was put into,i
Motion : which is enough to clear tlie>t
Poet from the Inconfiftency which Mr^|
Bajle would charge upon liim^ and at '
the fame time to fatisfy us, that the
Ancients had a Conception of Matter
as an uniform Being before it was
moved. And confeqaently, that To--
Ufid's Conceiving Faculty was very dc-
fectiv'c, if he could not conceive Mat-
ter without Motion. But,
2^/;, I AM to flicw the Weakncfs
of another Argument he brings for
the Adivity of Matter, viz,. " That
** in Fad all Matter is in Motion."
And fuppofing it true, it would not
follow that iVlotion was an eilenti-
af Attribute of Matter, For ii Mo-
tion
Sermon VL' i6y
tion is not, as we have alrea<ly fhewni''
included in oar Idea of Matter, but we
can as well conceive it at Reft as in
Motion; altho' there fnould be no Bo-
dies perfedly at Reft, it w^ould not yet
follow that Motion is efT^ntial to Mat-
ter; but on the contrary, for this very
Reafon, {viz. That Motion is not con-
tained in the Idea of Mutter) v/e ought
to look fomewhere elfe than in Matter
for a Caufe of its Motion ; and as 'tis
proved to be foreign to our Idea, to
look abroad for a Powerful Gaufe, fuch
as God, that had imprefs'd Motion up-
on Matter. But ToUnd lays Strefs upon
this Argument, and fays *, " Seeing
" every Part of Matter is always in
" Motion, you fhould conclude that
" Motion is eiTential to the Whole, for
" the fame Reafon that you think Ex-
" tenfion to be fo ; becaufe every Part
*' is extended. " But the Cafe fure is
very different between Motion and Ex-
tenfion, becaufe Extenfion is confelledly
included in cur Idea of Matter, where-
M 4 as
* Page 2c*,
i68 Sermon VI.
as Motion is not fo. Befides, if Tehnci
reafons juftly, the Univerfality of Mo-
tion can be no Proof of its being ef-
fential to Matter, becaufe he allows
the Centripetal Force to be univerfal,
and belonging to all Bodies ; for he
defcrFoes it thus : " 'Tis that by which
"all the Bodies of the Earth are drawn
*''. or tend towards its Centre, as all
"others to the proper Centres of their
" Motions. ^ " And yet he does not
allow that particular Determination,
which we call Gravity, to be effentiai to
Matter , and therefore Motion may be-
long to every Part of Matter, and not
be eflential to it ; it may be univerfal,
and yet proceed from an external Caufe
that has moved the Whole. But,
'^dlj^ That Motion cannot be ef-
fential to Matter, may be made plain
from thefe Three Reafons.
ifty Because there could be no
fuch Things in the World as Bodies
or any Concretions of Matter •, which
would render the Face of Things quite
diiferent
'-- 1 Page ic5.
Sermon vi- 1^9
different from what it appears at prc,-
Q-dly, Because there would be no
Variation as to the Quantity of Motion,
1^ all Matter was Self-a£tive ; and yet
we think it very evident that the Quan-
tity of Motion does and muft conti-
nually vary.
^^/j, A THIRD Reafon that demon-
ftrates the InaQiivity of Matter , isy
That Bodies of equal Bulk or whofe
Surfaces are equal, do yet weigh un-
equally.
i/, Because there could be no
fuch Things in the World as Concre-
tions of Matter, if Matter was felf-
adive. The prefent Face of Matter
appears to us to be divided into Mther^
and an infinite Number of large Com-
binations of Matter floating in that
jEther ; whereas if Matter had been
felf-aftive, it could never have concre-
ted into fuch Globes as thofe of the
fix'd Stars, Planets and Comets; but
mufl: have every-where appeared in. the
higheft State of Fluidity, as fine as the
prefent 4^ther in which they fwim. For
if
fjo Sermon VI.
if Motion were elTential to Matter, it
mull belong to every the fmalleft Part
of Matter, and confequently muft be :
equally fpread thro' the whole Mafs of l
Matter, and then no pofTible Reafon to
be given why fome Parts of A4atter
iliould be more divided than others,
llnce every Atom of Matter muft e-
qually partake of the dividing Princi-
ple. This fhews that there can be no
Reafon given upon this Hypothefs, why
the dividing Eifed of Motion fhould ''
ever ceafe till Matter was ground (b
fmall as to be incapable of any fur-
ther Divifion ; the Confequence of
which would be a World not at all
like what we hve in; and therefore
ours can never be accounted for by
any fuch Scheme as Toiand^ ; but
the AfTiftance of a God will be
necelTary for moving the Matter of
the Univerfc, if we pretend to account
for the Diverfity that is feen in the
different Portions of Matter. But,
idiy^ A Second Reafen why Mat-
t-cr cannot be felf-adive, is this ; Ee-
caufe there , could be no Variation as,
to
.ZiOi-'QV
Sermon VI. 17 1
to the' Qtiantity of Motion, no increaf-
ing nor lelTening tli£ Qijantity of it ;
for i!^ Motion be elTential to every
Particle of Matter, no one Particle of
Matter can any otherwife lofe its Mo-
tion, but by lofing its Being in the
Univerfe ; and yet we think it very
evident, that the Qiiantity of Motion
does, and muft continually diminifh.
'Tis certain the greateft Philofopher
that ever this Globe produced, is ful-
ly perfuaded that Motion muft vary,
that 'tis Generable and Corruptible:
" But, lie fays, what by the Tena-
" city of fluid Bodies, the Wearing of
" their Parts, and the neccfTary im- '
^^ pairing of the elaftick Force in fo- •
" lid Bodies, the Quantity of Motion
" muft diminifh rather than encreafe,
^^ unlefs the Lois of Motion be repair-
" ed by. an A(^ive Being that can
'' fupply thofe LciTes *. " And 'tis
certain, that he is fupported in his
Perfuafion by a plain Matter of Fad,
as in the Cafe of two hard Bodies of
equal
■■
* Newton's Opdcks.
172 Sermon VI.
equal Force, that are not elafticaljwhen
fuch Bodies meet together, they Jofe
all the Motion they were before pof-
feiTed of. And if this be true, the next
Enqui/y to be made, is. What be-
comes of this Morion or adive, im-
pulfive Force? If it cannot be dif-
perfed among the Parts of fuch Bodies,
'tis plain, that then all the Motion is
entirely funk and loft. That it cannot
be To difperfed, is as plain ; becaufe
the Parts of fuch Bodies are incapable
of any tremulous Motion for Want of
Elafticity ; and if it fhould be denied
that the Parts of thofe Bodies would
lofe the Motion of their Wholes, there
is this plain Argument againft it, That
it would then follow, that Bodies per-
fedly hard and elaftical would refle£l:
with a double Force, vtz, the Force
arifing from the Elafticity, and more-
over ail, or at leaft, part of the original,
direO: Force ; which, as the very Learn-
ed Dr. Samuel Clark has obferved in
his Letters to Leibmzy is contrary to
Experience.
I CA K^
Sermon VL 173
I CANNOT but obferve by way of
Inference from the lofs of Inanimate
Motion, that as the Original Laws of
Motion could never have taken Place;
or had any Being in the World, unlefs
there did Exift fomething Superior to
Matter that had ImprefTed thofe Laws
of Motion upon it ; fo thofe Laws could
never have continued, unlefs there were
an Active Being in Nature, that was
always ready to Exert upon Matter a
certain Force or Adivity, in proporti-
on as the Motion was diminifhed ;
which proves the Exiftence of a Be-
ing, that not only gave Motion to
Matter, but alfo of a Being that
ftill continues conftantly to repair the
weakning by Time of the firll Im-
preflion of Motion. And this fhews the
Neceflity of admitting a Governour of
the World, who by his Providence may
Interpofe in the prefervation of it, as
well as of an Original Author of Motion,
and of this World, which is an EtTeQ:
of a wonderful Direction of that Mo-
tion. From whence it follows, Thar
the Notion of fome Perfons who be-
lieve
174 Sermon vi.
b'eve that God had ImprefTed a cer-
tain Quantity of Motion upon Matteif
at the Creation, and then left it to fliift
for itfelf, beheving this to be a fufficf-
ent Account of the Appearances of
Things, cannot polTibly be true ; be-
caufe we have already fliewn, that the
Qiiantity of Motion muft necelTarily di-
minifb, unlefs there was fome A6i:ive
Being that could conjlamly keep it
up in the fame State and Condition.
And if the Inanimate Part of the
World could not have been preferved
in Motion without the continued Acti-
on of fome Being putting forth its
Force according to thofe Original
Laws of Motion, mucli lefs could the
Bodies of Plants and Animals , which
are vaftly the moft confiderable Parts
of our Earth be formed and preferv-
ed by Matter directed at fir ft accord-
ing to any whatever Laws of Motion.
From hence too it appears, that God
does not acl as an Anima, Mtirdi^ not
as a Part, but as a Governor of ths
World ; becaufe fuch a Being would be
nothing but Fate and Nature, which
can
S E R M O NT VI. 175
can never be reconciled with the ap-
parent Diminution of the Quantity of
Motion in the Univerfe; as Fate or
Nature muft always a6t to the utmoft
of their Powers ; and therefore it tlie
Effe(9: of their Activity could be at
any Time abated, it could never be
reftored or repaired egain. Confe-
quently we have gained a Being that
not only made the World, and efta-
blifhed at the Beginning the Laws by
which it fliould for the future be go-
verned ; but alfo a B e i n g that ilill
watches over his Workmanfhip, repairs
any Failures in it^ and continues it in
its State as long as He thinks fit:
Which is the Religious Man's Notion
ofaGoD, a Being that is not far
from any of us ; For 'tis /> Him we
live, movBy and have our Beings,
SERM.
Ki)^ ■
SERMON VII
Acts XVII. 28.
Fbr in Him we live^ and
move^ and have our Be-
ing.
177
AVING already ibewri ,
That if we will not admit a
God for a mover of Mat-
__ ter, there will be only
thefe two poflible Ways of accounting
for its being in the World, either ik
fuppofing an Infinite Series of Impulfes
or Communications of Motion from one
Part of Matter to another, without a-
ny Original Caufe of thofe Impulfes,
N which.
Sermon VII.
which is fuppofing an EfFed without fup-
pofing any Caufe of that Effe£l : Or,
2dly^ That Motion is an efTential
Attribute of Matter, and therefore all
Matter an adive Being.
In anfwer to the fuppos'd A6livity
of Matter, I proposed to fhew,
i/, Th AT our Idea of Mattel', is
a compleat and adequate Conception of
it when we leave Motion out of it.
2dly^ That it would not follow,
that Matter was an adive Being, were
it, never fo true, that every Particle of
Matter was in Motion. And
j^/j, That the Aftivity of Matter
js inconfiflent with fome Appearances
^.Nature: As,
ijt^ With the great Diverfity that
appears in the Face 6f Nature, that
fome Parts of Matter are condensed
into folid Bodies, and others in a high
Degree of Rarcfadion ; whereas if Mat-
y^ was felf-aclive, the Whole muft ne-
ceifarily be reduced into the fmalleft
Particles into which Matter is capable
of being divided. A llcond Reafon I
avc, why Motion could not be an
ejOfential
^^
Sermon VII. 179
efTentkl Attribute of Matter was, be-
caufe there could then be no Variati-
on as to the Quantity of Motion in the
Univerfe, and yet 'twas evident that
the Qtiantity of it muft gradually di^
minifh, unlefs its LofTes were conftant-
ly .repaired by fome adive Being*
Thus far I proceeded in the laft Dif*
courfe.
A 3d Reafonby which I propofed to
ihew the Ina6livity of Matter was from
hence, That Bodies of equal Bulk or
whofe Surfaces are equal, do yet weigh
unequally; for if there is no account-
ing for this Ph.-znomenorf^ without fuppo-^
fing the heavier Body to contain more
Matter than the lighter one of the
fame Bulk, then 'tis plain, that Mat-
ter muft be an inaftive Being, fince
the encreafing the Quantity of Matter
ifl any Body, tho' there be no encreafe
of its Surface, by which its Motion
might be retarded, {hall encreafe the
Difficulty of putting it into Motion;
This very Argument will hang as a
Milftohe upon the Neck of the Jtheifly
as it makes it impoflible to reconcile this
N a Fh^nomerion
180 ^^^^^^ Sermon VII.
Fh^nomenon of Nature with the Me-
chanical Laws of Motion, which is all
that the hjfidel has to depend upon for
the Support of his Hypothefts. For 'tis
certain that all Mechanical Caufes do
a6l in proportion to the Surfaces of
the Particles that they ad upon ; where-
as 'tis as certain, that Gravity, whate-
ever be the Caufe of it, afts propor-
tionally to the Quantity of folid Matter,
without any regard to the Superficies
of the Bodies ; fo as Bodies which are
the fame in Bulk, fliall be very diffe-
rent in their Weight. Lucretius faw
plainly that there was no accounting
for the different Gravity of Bodies of
equal Bulk, without having recourfe to
a y^acufdntj and fuppofing a greater Quan-
tity of Matter in the heavier Body. He
indeed, very weakly fuppofes Gravity
to be an inherent Quality m Matter,
•and that all Bodies had a natural Ten-
dency downwards, tho' we are fure
there could be no fuch thing as down-
ward or upward in an infinite Space,
But however, he faw evidently that the
general Activity of Matter, which he
believed
Sermon VII. i8r
believed as well as ToU^d, would not
account for tJiis Ph^mmenorf^ without ad-
mitting another Principle of Adion,
'viz.. Gravity; he believed his Atoms
had been in. Motion from JEternity, but
did not think that Motion fufficient to
account for the different Gravitation of
Bodies towards a Centre ^. "
L E T us now fee how Toh^d would
derive this peculiar AffeQiion of Matter,
viz, of moving towards a Centre, from
the general Adion of Matter ; or how
he would account for the umqual Re*
fiftance of Bodies of equal Bulk. It will
quickly appear that he is fo far froni
being able to derive Gravity from the
N 2 general
* Denique cur alias aliis pr^fliare videmus
Pondere res rebus, nihilo majore figura.
Nam fi tantundem eft in Laiiacglomere quantum
Corporis in Plumbo eft, tantundem penderc
fpar eft,
Corporis Officium eft quoniam premere omnia
[deorfum :
Ergo quod magnum eft xque, leviufque videtur ,
Nimirum Plus efle fibi declarat Inanis :
At contra gravius plus in fg Corporis efleu
yidq Liucretium. Lib. I,
1 82 Sermon vil.
general Adion of Matter, that this ve-;
ry Gravity proves to a Demonfl ration
tlie Inadivity of Matter. 'Tis plain,
as I have ah'eady obferved, that all
Mechanical Caufes ad by Contad, and
upon the Surface of Bodies ; and 'tis as
plain, that Gravity acts quite other-
wife, and afteds the folid Contents of
Bodies, by penetrating the very Sub-
fiances of them, and therefore can ne-
ver be produced by the general Adion
of Matter, becaufe that is fuppos'd to
ad fuperficially , as all Mechanical
Caufes are wont to do. But fuppo-
fing it polTible to derive Gravity from
the general Adion of Matter, which
ToUnd aims at, it would do him no Ser-
vice, becaufe he cannot avoid making
an increafe of Gravity, and confequent-
ly of Refiftance to Motion, to depend
upon an increafe of Matter : For he
fuppofes the Centripetal Force to be,
not indeed as Lucretius^ a Qtiality inhc-
rent in Matter, but one of the Modes
of ABion in general, or a particular
Determination of the general Adivity
of IVJatter, . Let it be foj lince 'tis
evident
Sermon VII. if ^
evident, that the Quantity of Motion
in the Body muft be the Sum of the
Motive Forces of all the Particles of
Matter that are in that Body ; i[ this
Centripetal Force be only a particular
Determination of the general Adion of
Matter , there would be no giving
a Reafon why the Quantity of that
Force, or of that particular Deter-
mination too, fhould not be computed
after the fame manner ; and be the
Sum of all the felf- moving Atoms in
any Body ; the Confequence of which
would be, That whenever we obferved
two Bodies of equal Bulk and Gravi-
tating unequally, or tending towards a
Centre with unequal Force , if we
would account for fuch a Fh^mmemn
confidently with Tolan^s Account of
Gravity, we muft fay, that one of the
Bodies had a greater Number of the Self-
moving Atoms than the other, which
necelTarily fuppofes in the lighter Body
a Space void of Matter, which levels
one of the ftrongeft Retrenchments of
the Infidel^ vtz. The Infinity of Matter,
^uA at the fame time its Adivity : Be-
N 4 c^jUfe
1^4 Sermon VII.
caufe Experience tells us, That the
more weighty any Body is, tho' no-
tiling be added to its Bulk, the more
it reiilb to Motion ; whereas if Matter
was an adive Being, an increafe of
its Quantity could never- increafe itsr'i
Refifbance, unlefs its Surface, by which
alone Bodies could be retarded, was
increafed too. All that ToLt?id has to
fay for , himfelf, is, *' That this Difte-
" rence of Refiftance in Bodies of equal
'^ Bulk, may poiGTibly arife from the dif-
" ferent internal Contexture of thofe Bo-
^' dies " ; and all the Reafon for fuch a
Sufpicion is drawn from the great Re-
finance that fome Fluids are obferved
tQ make above others, altho' of near
the fame fpecifick Gravity, and confe-
quently near the fame Quantity of Mat-
ter ; which can be refolved into no-
thing, but a Difference in the internal
Contexture of fuch Fluids : But this
Plea can have Force only in fuch Bo-
dies as are not equally fluid. For what-
ever be the Figure of the Internal Parts
of Fluids, if they are equally devoid of
Tenacity, their Force ^f Jlefiftance to
Sermon Vll. 18$
any particular Determination as well as
the abfolute Force of Motion, can be
only the Sum of the Forces of the Self-
moving Particles in thofe Bodies. And
therefore if a Cubical Inch of Water, and
the fame Qiiantity of Quick-filver, which
are fluid Bodies, and free from Tenacity,
did really contain the fame Number of
Self-moving Particles, whatever were
the Figure of thofe Particles, they would
€c[ually refill: to any Change that fhould
be made of the Determination of their
Motion. But as Experience fhews this
to be falfe; confequently, that fluid
which makes the greateft Refifl:ance to
Motion, mufl: have the greatefl: Quan-
|:ity of Mattel- ; and then the different
internal Contexture of Bodies will not
account for their different Weights, nor
clear Matter from the Imputation of
being inactive. But,
^thly^ I AM now to fhew. That the
Objeftions againft God's being the
Author of Motion, are not fuch as fliould
diicourage any rational and unbiafs'd
Perfon from acknowledging, that 'tis in
God we live and have our animal
Being.
i86 Sermon VII.
Being. The Difficulties that are raifed
againil: G o p's being the Author of Mo-
tion, are thefe :
I/?, " That we cannot conceive
'" how an Immaterial Being, fuch
" as G o D is fuppofed to be, could ad
" upon Mattel", confequently, how He
*'• lliould move it.
2^//, "That if it were poflible
" for Him to be the Author of Moti-
*' on, there would be, as ToUnd thinks,
^' this evil Confequence attending fuch
" a Suppofition, that God muft be the
*' fole Caufe of all the Evil and Wick-
^' ednefs that is committed by Men;
" 'twill then be God that adually
" moves the Tongue of a iying WiUtejs^
" the HAnd. And, T> agger of a Murder tr, "
The firft Objedion is grounded up-
on this, " That nothing but Matter
" can move Matter. This is proved
thus; " That the Mobility of Matter,
" or its Capacity of receiving Motion,
*^ is wholly founded upon its Impene-
" trability or Refiftance ; by the Means
" of which 'tis • qualified for hindring
M any thing from coming into its Place
'' tiU
Sermon vil. 187
'• till 'tis removed out of it ; and con-
^' fequently, the Adive Principle muft
" be a Material or Solid Being, be-
" caufe Matter could make no Refift-
" ance to the Action of a Being that
*' was not Material, and therefore could
*f'not be moved by it, as there can
" be no Adion without a Readion
" or Refiftance on the Part of Mat-
" ter. " In anfwer to this it may be
faid, . that tho' this Argument fliould
hold good in all the Mechanical Com-
munications of Motion from one Par-
cel of Matter to another, yet it would
prove nothing to the Purpofe in the
Prefent Cafe, unlefs it was big with
another Proof, z'iz. That all Caufes
muft be Mechanical Ones. Suppoling
the Exiftence of fuch a Thing as Mo^
tion, which our Atheifis will not ven-
ture to deny, we have made it evident
that an Infinite Series of Impulfes
without any Original Caufe of thofe
Impulfes is a plain ImpoiFibility and
dired Nonfenfe , and alfo that the
Self-Adivity of Matter is not only
repugnant to the Conceptions we
have
1 88 Sermon vii.
have of it, but is inconfiftent with
fome Appearances in Nature : And
tlierefore tho' we could not give a
fatisfaftory Anfwer to thofe Objedions
againll: an Immaterial Agents being
the Author of Motion, it would by-
no Means follow that he was not.
When Zs»o was raifing Difficulties a-
gainft the PofTibility of Motion, a Man
m Company with him rofe up and
walk'd ; this has been always look'd
upon as a fufficient Anfwer, tho'' no
particular Solution was given of the
Objedions. If there are but Three
poffible Ways of accounting for Mo-
tion, and Two of them be evidently
talfe, we fhall have as good Evidence
for the Third's being the true Account
of Motion, as the Man that walk'd.
had for the Exiftence of Motion. And
therefore how difficult foever it may
be to conceive the Aclion of an Im-^
material Being upon a Material One^
yet as there is no other poffible Way
left, every unbyafs'd Pcrfon muft and
ought to have Recourfe to a God^
for a Solution of this ?h4f?umem-f?.
But
Sermon VII. 1 89
But farther we have ihtn already
that there is a Principle of Adion
in Virtue of which Bodies aQ: upon
one another in a different Manner from
what they would do by the Mecha-
nical Laws of Motion, 'viz,. Gravita-
^On., Whatever be the Caufe of this
A&ion, the Fa£t is evident , that it
penetrates the folid Subftances of Bo*
dies, and therefore its Action cannot
be founded upon the Impenetrability
of Matter, or the Refiftance it makes
to it ; it going beyond the Surface
of Bodies. Whereas the Argument a-
gainft an Immaterial Being's afting
upon Matter is founded upon this Sup-
pofition, that there can be no Afti-
on upon Bodies but by Contad or
Striking upon the Surfaces , and the
confequent Refiftance that Body makes
to fuch a Shock or Impulfe ; which
being evidently falfe, the Argument
drawn from it »can be of no Mo-
ment.
But this is not all; when we come
to confider the Matter clofely, I am
perfuaded we fliall find as much Dif-
ficulty
ipO S E R xM O NT VII.
ficulty in conceiving how Matter aQ:s
upon Matter , as in conceiving how
an Immaterial Subftance fhould a£l
upon a Material One : For I will ven-
ture to referr it to any unprejudic'd
Perfon, whether he cannot as eafily
conceive that an Immaterial Being
may a£l upon Matter without Cor-
poreal Contad 5 as that an Impulfe
upon a Part of the Body fhould move
the whole Body ; for nothing can ac-
count for this, but the Adhefion of
the Parts of Body to each other ,
which is as much beyond our Con-
ception of the divifible Nature of
Matter, as the Adion of Immaterial
upon Material; and the Difficulty of
conceiving it would encreafe upon our
Hands, if we fhould fuppofe with To-
hnd that every Particle of Matter was
Self-adive ; becaufe then, as we before
obferved, all Matter muft neceffarily
be in the higheft Stat© of Fluidity, and
confequently the Particles of Matter
could have little or no Union with one
another.
2dly, The
Sermon vii. 191
2^/7, The other Obje8:ion agaiiift
God's being the Author of Motion, is
this; " That then He muft be the
" fole Caufe of all the immoral Actions
" that Men are fuppos'd to be guilty
" of; As when a Man bears falfe Wit-
^* nefs, it is not the Man that bears falfe
*' Witnefs, but God that gives Moti-
'* on to his Tongue ; when lie commits
" Murder, it is God that does it, be-
" caufe 'tis God that moves his Hand
" and the Dagger by which he com-
" mits this Ad. " Whatever Strength
there is in this Obje£i:ion, it muft entire-
ly rely upon the Truth of this Suppo-
fition, That if God were the Origi-
nal Author of Motion, nothing elfe, no
other Being whatfoever could have this
Power of moving Matter : And the Rea-
fon of this muft be, either becaufe this
is a Power which is ia the Nature of
the Thing incommunicable, as much -fo
as necefTary Exiftence and Independence,
or at leaft, that 'tis fuch a Power as
Man is incapable of receiving : If nei-
ther of thefe be true, this Objedion.
muft amount to nothing.
As
ip2 Sermon VII.
A s to the firft Reafon ; If we con-
tended for a Power of ading as we
pleasM , where and as long as we
pleas'd, and this independently of God,
we might be thought to plead for a
Power which could not be difpofed
of, becaufe there cannot be two or
more Independent Beings , no more
than there can be two or more Gods :
But if when we contend for a Power
of Self-motion in Man, we only mean
a finite or limited Power, confined to
. a fmall Portion of Matter, and wholly
depending upon the firft Mover
for its Continuance, no Reafon can be
given why fuch a Power as this may
not be CO mmunicated. And therefore
Mr. Bajle need not have put on fuch
an Air of Concern, as he affeds to
do * at the Hypothefis of free Agents ;
as it the admitting fuch particular
Self-movers muft neceffarily exclude
an Univerfal Mover. He brings aa
Inltance from the Chinefe , among
which
* In voce Spinofa.
S E R M O M VII.
which People the Behef it feems of
many Self-movers had this EfFeO: ; the
firft Univerfal Mover being wholly
left out of their Syftem of Religion.
But then it muft be cbferved, That the
Belief of Free Beings had not this Effea,
till they had fo far funk the Notion of
a G o D^ as to make Him only an Jm-
ma Mundi^ that was acted upon by Mat-
ter, as our Souls are a£led upon by our
Bodies ; and had raifed the particular
Souls, that animated the feveral Parts of
the World, to fuch an Height, as to
be almoft entirely independent upon
Him ; which is the Chinefe Philofophy^
&s Mr, Lormere allures us. But folong as
'tis acknowledged, that the Self-moving
Power is derived from God, and de^.
pends upon Him for its Continuance ;
fo long as 'tis confelTed, that in Him we
live, and move, fo long there can be no
Fear of fliutting out a G o d, from our
taking in free Agents. And I am per-
fuaded Mr. BajU ^ would have fccn no
Danger to Religion from free Agency
'f this had not threatned his darling
5_^ ^ Notion
! B.7/f's Diftionary, Voce Splnofa,
193
194- Sermon VIL
Notion of a Principle of Evil ; for he
could eafily fee that all his Arguments
drawn from the Moral Evil that ap-
pears in the World, muft lofe much of
their Force, if once Free Agents were
allowed of; becaufe then God might
be the Original Caufe of Motion, and
yet not the Caufe of Moral Evil, of the
wicked Ads committed by Men, or
of the blafphemous Words they fome-
times utter. But,
2^/;, As to the other Reafon, That
granting fome Degree of this Power
might be communicated, that yet Man
would be a SubjeQ: incapable of re-
ceiving any fuch Power ; 'tis confeiTed,
that God cannot give any Powers or
. QuaUties to a Being that are inconfillent
with that Nature which He has already
given it, and that fuch a Being would
be incapable of receiving them; that
Axiom in Phdojophj being very true,
Quicqmd recifitur^ Ad modum Reciphntis
rectpuur ; therefore that God could not
give to Matter a Power of moving it-
ielf, becaufe Matter is naturally and
cflbntially Inadtive; aad confequently the
com-
Serm on viK 195
communicating fuch ^d'^ Power to it,
would be deftroying its Nature, and
making it ceafe to be what it is. And
if Man was altogether a Material Being,
the Argument might be a juft one ; but
as we have already fhewn, That the
Author of Motion cannot be a Mate-
rial Being, the Athetjl will never be able
to prove, that there cannot exifl: other
Beings befides him that are not Mate-
rial, and which may therefore be ca*
pable, tho' Matter be not, of receiving,
from G o D a Power of moving them^
felves, or of beginning Motion.
The Jfheift wiW perhaps fay, That
if the Immateriality of an Infinite Be-
ing be conceiveable, yet not the Im-
materiality of a Finite or Limited one ;
becaufe 'tis not eafy to fee what an Im-
material Being fhould be limited or
confined by, nor what fhould give it
any particular Locality, or ieparate orie
Immaterial Being from another; that
if we fuppofe them to be diftinguifhed
from one another by the different Sy-
ftems of Matter that they animate ; we
ihall be forced to fuppofe fomething ve-
O 2 ry
1^6 Sermon VII-
ry unintelligible, becaufe Matter is per-
fectly heterogeneous to Immaterial Be-
ing : And whatever is fuch, can have
no kind of Relation to it, and there-
fore not that of terminating its EfTence,
and by necefTary Confequence we mull
be miftaken in accounting for human
Adlions by an Immaterial Principle,
and then 'tis already granted, that God
mufl: be the fole Caufe of all a Man's
Actions, and therefore of his wicked
ones too.
To avoid the Force of this Argu*
ment, fome have fallen into a Notion of
an Anima, MunU that informed the Bo-
dies of all Animals, and confequently,
that all that which wc call particular
Souls, was really one and the fame
Soul; that the Difference in different
Individuals, was not a real, but only a
feeming Difference ; that it was every
where the fame numerical Soul that
animated the feveral particular Syftcms
of Matter, all the different Bodies of
Individuals. But this was getting clear
of one Difficulty at the expence of a
much greater one. For if we have any
clear
SeRxMon VII? 197
c:Iear Ideas, they are certainly thofe
which concern Identity. And yet no-
thing can be more evident than this,
That whatever it is that thinl^s in fe-
veral Individuals, it cannot be one and
the fame in all of them, becaufe th^t
which thinks in each Individual, thinks
only for itfelf, and knows nothing of
what palfes in another, and therefore
cannot be the fame in both of them,
no more than in two Atoms of Mat-
ter, one of them can be the fame witfj
the other. For Confcioufnefs will be
as neceHary to the Identity of a Thinkr
ing Being, as the fame Particles of Mat-
ter can be to conftitute the fame Ma-
rerial Being.
B u T in anfwer to the Difficulties of
fuppofing Souls to be immaterial, and
yet feparate or diftinO: Portions of Im-
materiality, it would be. fuificient to
fay, that Immaterial Beings may be
feparated from each other, tho' we could
not conceive what it was that fnouki
bound or feparate them ; becaufe the
narrow Faculties of our Minds cannot
be fuppofed to take m all poilibk
:. O I ModC|
ipS We r m o n VII.
Modes of Being. This I fay would be
a fufficient Anfwer to this Difficulty;
for a Difficulty that owes all its Strength
to our Weaknefs, can never be a good
Argument. If it could be one, then
the Difficulty of conceiving the Action
of Immaterial upon Material, would
fufficiently prove that there neither
was nor could be any fuch Thing, and
yet we have already (hewn it muft be
true with regard to One Immaterial
Being, 'viz'. G o d 5 and no one will
pretend to fay, that there is any more
Difficulty in conceiving the Limitation
of Immaterial Beings, than there is in
conceiving this very A6lion of Imma-
teriil upon Material. The hmited Nature
therefore of an human Soul ought no
more to be urged as a Proof of its being
Material, than its a£ling upon an hu«
man Body be brougiit as an Argument
to prove it a Body too. Since then the
Sc>ul may be immaterial, confequcntly
God may have communicated to it
a Pov/cr of Seh- morion : and then Man
and n'jt God, will be the immediate
Caufe of all the evil Adions that are
com--
Sermon VII. ipp
committed by him, and none of thofe
ill Confequences will attend the Sup-
pofition of God's being the Original
Author of Motion, which W^^^feemed
to be afraid of. And then too he might
have exchanged his fingular Opinioa
concerning the effential AOiivitY of Mat-
ter, for the Religious one wliich n^akcs
God the Caufe of its Motion.
I H A V E infifted the longer upon this
Point of Motion, becaufe if I have well
proved, That there is no introducing
Motion into the World without admit-
ting a Being diftinO; from Matter, the
Atheift muft then be contented to give
over all Speculations concerning the
Nature of the Univerfe, and of the
Caufes of that Variety we fee in it j for
no body will mind fuch an Empirick
in PhHofophy^ as pretends to furnifh us
with a World, when he knows not
where to look for a Being that would
be able to move the Materials out of
which he is to raife the Fabrick of it.
For this is plainly to introduce an Efied
without being able to afTign a Caufe of
thatEffed..
O 4 F K O M
200 S E R MO N Vll-
From the Poflibility of God's com-
municating to fome Beings, as Men, a
Power of beginning Motion, I cannot
but obferve the Hazard which the j
Jtheijl runs, i^ he fhould be mxftaken^'
in his Clock-work Scheme, and he and
the reft of his Fellow-Creatures lliould
prove to be fomething more than mere
Mechanifm ; becaufe if he had a Power,
of direding any of his Adions with
Freedom, he mjght be accountable for
his Behaviour in fuch Adiorfs, if there ;
was any Being that could and would
take account of them. Tliis Propofi-
^ion carries with it fo much Evidence,'>
that I beheve the Atkeiji will not yen-."
ture to difpute it.
I HAVE already fhewn, That there
muft he a Principle oi Motion diftind
from Matter ; that fome Appearances
m . Nature prove to a Dernonftration^;
that this Principle of Motion does not*
acl as an Anma, Muniii-, but with the
utmoft Freedom ; and therefore may '
take Account of the Athetfih Eeliavi*
pur, if by Freedom of ailing he is qua-^i
lified to give fuch Account. It vyilf
there-
Sermon VII. 201
therefore very much concern him to
be well affured, notwithftanding we
have fhewn, That there are, and muft
be Caufes that ad not by any Laws of
Meclianifm, that yet Man does; and
yet if there are other th^n Mechanical
Caufes upon our Earth, the Jtheiji can-
not deny that Man may put in as fair
as any Thing whatever for being one
of them ; and therefore he may do well
to confider which way he can poflibly
fatisfy himfelf that he is not one of
them. Efpecially too when every Man
thinks he feels within himfelf in many
of Iiis Adions a Power of beginning
Motion at Pleafure, and independently
of any external Mover. But,
2dlyy Jf the DiiBculties a,ttending
fhe Religious Scheme of Gqd's being
the Author of Motion, be fuch as may
f eafonably be accounted for ; the Seep-
ick too may do well to conlider, whe*
ther his mere doubting what is true
or falfe on account of thofe Difficulties,
will be a fuificient Juftification of hin^
for not embracing Rehgion. Whether
he ought not rather to enter into a
carq-
202 Sermon VII.
careful Review of thofe ObjeQ:ions, for
Fear his Inclination to doubt of every
Thing might have tempted him to tak«
for DiiBculties thofe which are not
really fuch. The Lazy Part of Man-
kind, who have fome Wit and lefs
Learning, defpairing to gain any Credit
hy forming Schemes that would give
fome tolerable Account of Things, have
in all Ages chofe the much eafier Task
of puzzling, than of clearing up any
Thing. They do not pretend to tell
you, as the Atheifi does, how the Mat-
ter of the Univerfe may be ftirred with-
out the AfTiftance of a God ; but on-
ly, " That there are fo many Difii-
" culties in accounting for Motion ei-
*^ ther with or without a God, that
*' they cannot fee which Side of the
*' Qaeftion preponderates; and there-
" fore hope they may be juftified in
^' Doubting where the Truth lies."
Tho' I fhould think that rejeding Re-
ligion when a Man pretends not to fee
any thing elfe to be true, fhould be
more Criminal, than rejeQ:ing Religioa
becaufe a Maa fees, or thinks he fees
fome
Sermon VII.
fome other Thing to be the Truth,
and confequently, the Sceptick will not
run lefs Hazard than the Atheifi^ if his
doubting concerning Religion, as well as
the other's pofitive Denial of it, ihould
at laft prove to be ill-grounded. Perhaps
the Security which both of them might
promife themfelves, fuppofing them to
be miftaken m denying or doubting the
Exiftence of a Firft Mover diftind from
Matter, would be this : That altho'
there fhould exift fuch an Original Caufe
of Motion, yet it might not be an In-
telligent Being, and therefore they fhould
be fafe, as it could take no Cognizance
of what they were doing here. But I
believe it would be hard enough for any
Man to conceive Freedom without Intel-
ligence. 'Tis poflible indeed to conceive
an Intelligent Being without Freedom
of A(9:ion ; but there is no conceiving
how a Being fhould ad freely without
knowing what it does, and why it does
any Thing; but the Intelligence of the
Supreme Be in g will be made evident,
when we come to fiaew, that Matter
cannot be the Subjed of Intelligence.
S E R M.
203
3
//
.'li
20
5
SERMON VIII.
Acts XVII. 28.
For in Him we live^ and
movCy and have our Be-
ing.
AVING already fhewrt,
That there is no intro-
ducing Motion into the
World without the Help
of a Being diftinQ: from
Matter, it would be plain
enough that without fuch a Being, no
fuch Thing as Thought or Intelligence
could ever have had an Exiftence in the
World. For if Motion be necefTary for
the making Matter an Intelligent Being,
as
2o6 Sermon VIII.
as it muft be i£ Spinofas or Hohbs\ No-
tion of Perception, which places it m
the Adion and Re-afbion of Bodies
upon one another, were the Truth, then
Intelligence could not be an elTential
Attribute of Matter, unlefs Motion was
fo too ; and therefore muft have fome
external Caufe of its Being : This, I
fay, would be fufficient to fhew, That
Spinofa*s Notion concerning the Exiftence
of Intelligence, is altogether unphilofo-
phical ; becaufe in fuch Cafe, Cogita-
tion would be made to arife from no-
thing, unlefs he could believe this great
Abfurdity, viz. That Thought andEx-
tenfion were the fame Thing, or that
Extenfion whether in Motion or at Reft
was endued with aftual Perception :
Altho' if we can judge at all of the
Nature of Intelligence from our own
Perceptions , we muft obferve the
Action of external Obje^ls to be ne-
pellary to our having any actual Per*
cep:ion of what palfes without us.
Tolmd was fo fenfible of the Force of
this Reafoning, that m his Difcourfe
coucetiUac^ Motion, he gives up Spwofii
as
Sermon vill. 207
as a Perfon, that upon this Account Is
not %o be defended. " The Spn*oftp^
fays he, " have afforded Matter of Tri-
" umph-to the Spirttudtjts^ (for fuch he
calls the Believers of a Go d) " by ac*
" knowledging the Inadivity of Mat*'
" ter ; for m this they were fo unphilo-
" fophical as to aflign an Effect with-
^* out aay Caufe of it ; as in the Cafe
" of Cogitation, when they made it
^' to belong to all Matter, and yet al-
" lowed Matter to be naturally with-
*^ out Motion or inadive ^. " And
yet as unphilofophical as it is to
make Thought arife from ftill or in-
adive Matter, it will prefently appear
that thofe have not much the Advan-
tage, who are forced to pump Senfe
and Intelligence out of fenfekfs and
unintelligent, tho'. adive Matter. Yet
ToUnd mull: do this, or elfe with us
confefs, That there is fome Eternal,
Intelligent Being that is the Caufe
of all the Intelligence which is feen in
Mankind.
For
*-"■ . -
* S«« hi§ Leuer concerning Motion.
2oB Sermon VIII.
For there are but three poffible
Ways of accounting for the Exigence
of Thought or Intelligence :
i/, E I T H E R by fuppofing it an
eflential Attribute of Matter, as much
fo as Extenfion or Solidity ; which is
the Way S^inofA and Mr. Hobbs liave
taken. Or,
2dlj^ In fuppofing that 'tis not ef-
fential to Matter, but is an EffeQ: of
tht Motion of Objects on fome parti-
cular Arrangement of the Parts of
Matter ; fuch as is feen in the Bodies
of Animals. Or,
idlj. That there is in all Intelli*
gent Beings a Principle diftind from
Matter, and of a different Nature, from
whence Thought or Intelligence does
arife; which is the Opinion of the
Religious Man. Mr. Lock^ indeed, fup-
pofes a fourth Way of accounting for
Intelligence : " That tho' Matter was
" a thoughtlefs and fenfelefs Being, and
" no Difpofition of the Parts of it, how
*^ curioufly foever they might be put
" together, would ever naturally rife
** up into Thought and Underllanding,
" and
Sermon VIII. 209
" and tho' there was no Principle of
*' Thought in. Man diftind from Mat-
*' ter; that yet God by his infinite
" Power might fuperadd a Thinking
" Quality to Body or Matter. " But
were this poflTible, it would do the
Atheift no Service, becaufe it fuppofes
the Being of a G o d as neceffary to the
producing fuch an EffeQ: upon Matter
as that of Intelligence ; or if it could at
all favour him, it muft then fall in
with the fecond Way of accounting for
Thought, viz. That fuch a Qiiality as
Thought might foffibly arife from Mat-
ter difpofed in fuch a Manner as are
the Bodies of Animals, there being no-
thing in the Nature of Matter that
fhould make it incapable of receiving
Intelligence, and confequently, if the
Bodies of Animals could be formed
without tlic Help of a God, there
would be no Want of Him in account-
ing for that Thought and Intelligence
which belongs to thofe Bodies. But this,
fo far as the Jtheifi is concerned in it, is
exactly the fame with the fecond Way of
^•accounting for Intelligence ; and there-
P fore
2IO Sermon VIII.
fore I fliall pafs it over without any
farther Remark.
And proceed to a Confideration of
the two Atheiftick Accounts of Intelli-
gence, and ill Oppofition to them ; 1
will fhew, That Intelligence cannot be
an eifential Attribute of Matter, nor
an E&B. of any peculiar Structure of the
Parts of a fenfelefs Being, fuch as Matter
is fuppofed to be by the fecond Scheme.
i/, That Intelligence cannot be
elTential to Matter.
That which gave Spimfa the Har-
dinefs of advancing the EiTentiality of
Thought to Matter was, That he
thought he could not be difproved ia
his Alfertion, becaufe we did not fuf-
ficiently know the Nature of Intelli-
gence to determine concerning the Sub-
ject of Thought ; or to fay what Sort
of Being it mull be that is capable of
having fuch a Quality ; and therefore
Matter might be the Subje£l: of it, for
any thing we could fay to the contra-
ry. But the Aniwer to this is plain;
Tho' I do not know all I could wifli
concerning Thought and the Subjedl of
it;
SfeRMON VIII. 211
it; yet I may know that Thought is
not Extenfion ; which is enough for
t)ur prefent Parpofe : Becaufe I fhall
Jliew, That it muft be Extenfion, if it
be an efTential Attribute of Matter.
I may be certain, I fay, that Thought
cannot be Extenfion ; becaufe to affirrti
this, would be juft as if \^e fliould af-
firm, that any Confequence of Extenfi-
on, fuch as a Triangular or Square Fi-
gure, and the Perception that the Mind
has of fuch a Figure, were the farrib
Thing; but the Ideas of the Trine Di-
menfion and Thought, are fo evident-
ly different, that the Things reprefeiit-
ed by thofe Ideas cannot poffibly be the
fame, unlefs all our Perceptions are mere
Deceptions; and then 'tis to no Piif-
pofe to argue at all. But 'tis the 5f^^-
tkky not the Atheijl that pretends to de-
fend himfelf in this Way, whereas the
latter always brings Reafons, fuch as
they are, in. Support of a contrary
Scheme to the Religious one. It mufl:
then be granted me, that Thought and
Extenfion cannot be the fame Thing,
and therefore we are only to fhew,
P 2 That
212 Sermon VIII.
That Spimfa's Notion of Thought's be-
ing eflential to Matter, does by necef^
iary Confequence make Thought and
Extenfion the fame Thing.
That there can be no real Diffe-
rence between them, may be made e-
vident by this one Confideration, That
fuppofing them really different, one of
them mufl arife from Nothing ; for
both Thought and Extenfion cannot be
neceiTarily exiftent, if there be a real
Difference between them, any more'
than there can be two Neceffarily-
exiilent Beings, which Spimfa^ as welt
as we, denies : And yet by this Scheme
of Things, Thought cannot be a Mode
of Extenfion, or derivable from it, but
muft be equally Self-exiftent with Ex-
tenfion. Spinofa indeed pretends to af-
fert. That the fame Numerical Sub-
ftance may have an infinite Number of
efTential Attributes, and of thefe he
names particularly Thought and Ex-
tenfion, as different Attributes of the
fame Subftance. But if the Difference
he means, be a real, and not a no-
tional, or at lead a modal Difference,
the
S E R M O ]Sr VIII. 2 I 3
the Subftances or Subje£ls of thofe dif-
ferent Attributes muft be different too,
otherwife he deftroys the Foundation
of all our Reafoning, which is laid in
this Axiom ^ That thofe Things which
agree with a third, muft agree among
themfelves : And therefore if Thought
and Extenfion were fo united together
as to conftitute the fame ElTence or Be-
ing, and not different Beings, they muft
be the fame in Reality, and not diffe-
rent from one another, any more than
the fame Subftance can differ from it-
felf. For, if every Part of Matter be
endued with Perception, and every
Part of it extended, unlefs Extenfion
^nd Thought be of the fame Nature,
or one of them a Mode of the other,
it will be impoffible to conceive how
they fhould conftitute the fame Sub-
ftance or Being • there being no Room
left for a real Difference, when the
Whole and every Particle of Matter is
fuppofed to be both extended and in-
telligent.
That which led Sfinofa into this
Miftake was, his confounding "notional
V \ Attributes
214 Sermon VIII.
Attributes with real ones ; as appears
from what he fays in one of his Epiftles
in thefe Words : Quod autew addisy nos ex
dejimtione cujufqae ret co^Jiderata unicam
t ant urn proPrietcttem deducere valere^ locum
habet in rebus fim^liciffimis vel entibus ra^
tionisy at non in redibus. Nam ex hoc folo
quod Deum defnio effe ens ad cuius Ef-
Jentiam prtinet Exifientia^ plures ejus pro-
prietates concludo , nempe quod neceffario
exijiit^ quod fit Unicus^ Inrniutahilis^ Infini"
tuSy i^c, Et ad hunc modum plura alia^
ExempU ajferre pojfem qua imprdjentiarum
omitto ^. But there is nothing plainer
than that thofe Attributes of G o d he
has inftanced in , and which he calls
Properties, do no otherwife differ from
each other, than as any other abftract-
ed Notions of Mind do differ from one
another. For the Onenefs of God, his
Immutabihty and Infinity , are Pro-
perties neceffarily flowing from a Ne-
ceilarily-exiftent Nature , and cannot
poiTibly be feparated from fuch a Na-
ture
* vide Spinofje Epiftol, 78. p. 598, 599.
Sermon VIII. 215
ture without deftroying it. Which
lliews them to be only partial Cohfi,
derations, and not really difTerent At-
tributes of the Divine Nature. Thus
for Inftance, the Exigence of the Di-
vine Nature may be confidered without
; Vegard to Time or Place ; but this is
. plainly a partial Confideration, becaufe in-
finite Time and infinite Place, are the
liecellary Confequences of fuch an Exi-
gence, and therefore cannot be really
feparated from it. Thus then it appears
by thefe Inftances which Spiaofa has
brought for the Support of his Opi-
nion, that he did not diftinguifli be-
tween real and notional Attributes.
And therefore that he has not proved
it poflible for Thought and Extenfioa
to be Attributes of the fame Subflance,
fuppofing them really different.
But as our prcfent Unbelievers feem
more inchned to depend upon the fe^
cond Account of Intelligence, I fhall
proceed to conuder how the Jtheifi
defends it, and what Arguments may
be brought for the Support of it. All
the Arguments tliat can b.e brought to.
P 4 defend
2i6 Sermon VIIL
defend fucli a Suppofition as that whicli
makes Thought to be Figure and Mo-
tion^ or to arife from them, will be re-
duced to thefe : Either,
ifiy That we are ignorant of thcs
Nature of Thought m rvhat it confifls p^
and therefore it may be for all we'
know only Matter curioufly put to^9.
gether, as in the Bodies of Animals,
and we know not all the Effects that
may arife from Matter in Alotion, and
therefore Thought may be one of them ;
that the Difference between Thought and
Figure can be no good Argument againfb
it, becaufe we find certain Qualities,
fuch as Colours, Sounds and Taftes, to
be produced by the different Motions
and Figures of Bodies, and therefore
why not the Thoughts of the Mind,
which are no more unlike to Figure
and Motion than thefe are. Or, \
Q.dlyy I T may be faid that there
is as much Difficulty in conceiving
that Corporeal Motions fhould excite
different Ideas by a£ting upon an Im-
material Subftance , 'viz. that certain
Motions in ObjeQ:s Ihould be the Reafon
of
Sermon VIIL 217
of there being conftantly certain Senfa-
tions in an Immaterial Being, as that
Thought fhould arife from fome parti-
cular Situation of the Parts of Matter ;
and therefore where the Difficulties are
equal, a Man may be at Liberty to
take which Side of the Queftion he
pleafes.
I N anfwer to the firft Argument ^r.
That we are ignorant of the Nature
of Thought, and know not all the Ef-
fe8:s that may arife from Matter in
Motion ; We fay, That we may know
enough of the Nature of Thought, and
the Nature of Body (without knowing
every Thing belonging to either) which
may fatisfy us, That Thought cannot
poflibly arife from Matter or Body,
manage it as cunningly as you will.
What Tu/lj has faid in his TufcuUr/ Quc-
ftions in Anfwer to a like ObjeOrion,
will be a juft Anfwer to this. An ft
omnia, ad Intelltgendum non habeo quA hci^
here vellem^ ne its quidem qu£ habeo mihi uti
licehh ? Becaufe we are ignorant of Ibme
Things which would much enlighten
the Subjed, it does not therefore fure
follow
3i8 Sermon viii.
follow that we may not make ufe of
vliat we do underll:and concerning it.
If we do not know what Thought or
Perception is, nor know all the Effeds
that may poflibly. arife from all the
polTible Ways of putting Matter toge-
ther; yet we may know fo much of
the Nature of Thought and Figure, as
to fee that Thought is not mere Fi-
gure, nor a mere Paifion or Reception
of the Motion of Bodies. And then
who fhall hinder us from declaring
what we do know of it, for this Rea-
ibn only, Becaufe we do not know
every Thing belonging to it. I lay^
We may know that Thought is not
Figure, altho' we know not every
Thing belonging to Thought and Fi-
gure.
I ft B E c A u s E in our Conceptions
pf Things, according to which we can-
not help Judging, we find a real Differ
rence between Thought and Figure, or
between local Motion and the Percep^
tion of that Motion ; and yet unlefs
Thought be Figure and Motion, it will
be impoflible for any Man alive to
conceive
Sermon VIII. 219
conceive that Thought fhould arife from
either or both of them. If Extenfion
or Matter was a Thinking Being, we
might then indeed conceive that irom
a more or lefs curious Arrangement of
the Parts of Body, might arife more
or lefs perfed Ways of Thinking *,
ftronger or fainter Degrees of Percep-
tion and Senfation. But thefe Men
grant Matter as Matter, to be as ftu-
pid and fenfelefs as we could wifh for.
They acknowledge, that there is no
more Excellency in the Atoms that
compofe the Eyes, Ears and Nofe of
a Man, than there is in any other
Atoms that enter into the Compofi-
tion of Bodies that are the farthefl re-
moved from any Thing like Life or
Perception, and yet would vainly pre-
tend from a good Management of
thofe Atoms to derive Thought and
Senfation. But let them prepare Mat-
ter as they will, fo long as they con-
ftfs it to be without Thought, they
muft have good Luck if they make
any Body believe, that a fingle Thought .
can ever be drawn out of her, Mr.
220 Sermon VIII.
Bajile confelTes, " That all thofe who
*' deny the Di{]:inQ:ion between Soul
^' and Body, talk childilhly, unlefs they
^* fuppofe the whole World to be ani-
^^ mated or endued with Underftand-
" ing. " And therefore in his Opinion,
there is no conceiving the Exiftence of
Tliinking Beings, fuppofing the Soul to
be material, unlefs we believe all Mat-
ter to be furnifhed with Thinking. And
both Spinofa and Hobhs^ who could nei-
ther ot them endure the Belief of Im-
material Beings, were plainly forced to
take Shelter in fuch a monftrous Doftrine
as the efTential Intelligence of Matter, be-
caufe they faw there was no conceiving
how the bare Movement of the Parts
of Matter fhould ever produce Thought,
if there was originally no fuch Thing
as Thought in Matter. For he that
fays he can fuppofe the meer Difpofi-
tion of the Organs of an human Bo-
dy fhall make a Subftance to become
thoughtful that had never Thoughj;
te.ore, fays what is impoflible for hira;.
or any Man alive to conceive. For
then he mull: make the Difpofition gf
the
Sermon viii. 22r
the Organs of an human Body to be
Thought, altho' every Body elfe fees
it can amount to nothing more than
local Motion differently modified ac-
cording to the Structure of thofe Or-
gans, as the Movements in a Clock or
Watch are regulated by the Difpofi-
tion of its Wheels. But no Body has
ever ventured to affirm, That he could
clearly conceive local Motion alone to
be fufficient to make a Subftance de-
void of all Thought and every Senti-
ment, to pafs into adlual Thought, or
that any Subftance could poiTibly pafs
from a Privation of all Thought
to adual Thought, merely by being
moved. Becaufe this would be to fay,
That a Change of the Situation of the
Parts of Matter, was a Senfe of Plea-
furc and Pain, an Idea of Moral Virtue,
of Truth or Falfhood, an Affirming or
Denying a Propofition, tho' at the fame
time we are fure we know fully the
Nature and EITence of Change of Situa-
tion, without conceiving any thing of
Senfe or Perception as belonging to it.
And therefore if an evident Difference
in
^22 Sermon VIii.
in our Ideas will prove any Difference
in the Things themfelves of which they
are the Ideas, Thought cannot be Mo-
tion or Figure, nor Motion or Figure
be Thought.
Aristotle, after he had as he
thought fufficiently provided by the
Help of his Four Elements for all the
Variety that appears in the Corporeal
World, when he came to Thought, he
prefently faw that his Elements would
never help him out, becaufe mix them
together in. any Proportions he would,
he iaw no Likelihood of getting a fingle
Thought out of them. And therefore,
as Tully tells us, he faw himfelf under a
NecefTity of fupplying the Deted of his
Four Elements by adding a fifth to
them, out of which he might extrad
all the Faculties of the Soul. Arijioteles
cum qtiatfior ilia not a gemrit frincifiorui^t
ejfet complexus e quibus ommx orireni'ur^
QuintAm quandam Naturam cenfet ejf&^ c
qua fit mens. Cogitare cnim i3' povide^e
& difcere, & docere, & invenirc alt quid ,
i^ tarn muUa alia memmjfey a-mare^ odif-^
fe ; cuverej timere • tf^gi^ Ixuri, H£c &
fimili4
S E R M O N VIII.
fmlia eorum in horum quatuor geHerum
nullo inejfe putat, TufcuL Q^xft. And
therefore the Arijiotelians as they be-
lieved Beafts to be Thinking Animals,
would not truft to the mere Organi-
zation of their Bodies for an Account
o? their Thinking • but contrived for
them a fubft'antial Form entirely diftinO:
from the Arrangement of the Parts of
their Bodies, which fhould be the Caufe
of their Thinking; for this fubftan-
tial Form, according to them, was nei-
ther Matter nor Body, nor compofed
of Matter. The Carte fians who on the
contrary fuppofed Beafts to be barely
Material Beings, would not allow them
to be Thinking Beings, or to have any
real Senfe of Joy or Grief, Pleafure or
Pain : So impoilible did it appear to
both thofe Seds of Plnlofophy to refolve
Thought into mere Organization, or to
make it a Mode of Extenfion. We may
by the Way obferve, that our modern
Atheift does actually aiErm Cogitation,
Underftanding and Volition, to be no-
thing but local Motion or Mechanifm
in the inward Parts of the Brain and
Heart ;
223
224 SeRxMON VIII.
Heart; whereas the Epicureans went
no farther than afTerting them to be
caufed by Motion; but Hill thought
Motion and Cogitation to be different
Things.
The fingular Notion which Des
Cartes advanced concerning Brutes, That
all their Aftions, tho' fome of them
looked like an Effed of Thinking, were
yet nothing but the Movements of a
Macliine ; and the Succefs this Opi-
nion met with in the World, did pro-
bably give our prefent Athetfi theHar-
dinefs of affirming, That all Kind of
Thought was nothing but Motion in a
proper StruQ;ure of the Parts of Body.
And it muft be confelTcd, That if his
Notions concerning the Actions of Brutes
were true, there would be a plaufible
Reafon for refolving all the Faculties
of an human Mind into mere Mecha-
nifm ; for altho' he did not allow Brutes
Xo be Thinking Beings, yet fo long as
their Actions have an Appearance of
good Senfe, if fuch Appearances may
be refolved into the Powers of Mecha-
nifm, there would be no great Diffi-
culty
Sermon VIII. 225
culty in. Accounting for the Opera-
tions of Iiuman Thought by the Help
of a. more curious and elaborate Orga-
nization j fuch as that of an human
Brain. For if fuch Appearances of
Thought, as thofe in Brutes, might be
nothing but Motion, why might not
Refledion, and fuch other A(Els of the
-Mind by which we are wont to di-
ftinguifli ourfelves from Brutes, be per-
formed by Motion too ? But I am per-
fuaded the more we confider this Mat-
ter, the more it will appear impof-
fible that Thought fliould be Motion,
or even that it fhould be drawn out of
any Conlfruftion oF Matter by the. Help
of any Degree of Motion whatfoever,
unlefs a Way could be found out for
furnifhing Matter with the Gift of
Thinking. For fo long as Matter or
Extenfion has not that Gift, the Jfheijl
will be forced to father upon it a Brat
that has not any the lead Refemblance
to its Parent, to affign an Effed to a
Caufe that has no Kind of Relation to
ft, We fee an evident Dependence
that the Divifibility of Matter has
(^ upon
226 Sermon VIII.
upon folid Extenfion, we fee in this
Extenfion a Reafon a prw t of all that
Variety of Figures that Matter is ca-
pable of receiving, and of all the Me*
chanical Quahties which depend upon
its Figure. But the Atheift no more
than we can fee any Kind of Con-
nexion, or any Dependence of Thought
upon Figure or upon Extenfion in any
Shape whatever. And therefore here
is a Vhanomenon in Nature for the Ex-
illence of which, upon the Foot of A-
thetfm^ no Reafon can Be given.
I c A N fee no Way the Athei(l has
left for retaining his Opinion of Thought
depending upon the Organization of the
Parts of Body, if he muft acknowledge,
tliat there is no Kind of Refemblance
between Thought and Figure; unlefs he
fiiould fay. That in tliis he fuppofes
nothing more inconceivable than what
the Religious Man fuppofes, when he
afcribes to G o d Effeds that have no
Kind of Similitude to Him : And fuch
confefTedly are all Material Eflfefts, that
'tis as hard to conceive that Matter
fliould be derived from Thought, as
that
Sermon vill. 227
that Thought fliould be wrought out
of Matter. But the Anfwer to this
will be eafy; for the ReHgious Man
does not fuppofe Material EffeQ:s to
have flowed from God as from an
emanative Caufe, but to have been
brought by Him into Being from No-
thing ', and therefore is not obliged to
look out for any Refemblance between
the Caufe and the Effefl: ; whereas the
Jtheiji^ rejeding all creative Power,
mufl look out for fuch a Caufe of the
Exiftence of Beings as may have fome
Kind of Refemblance with the Effects
depending upon it. Otherwife he muft
introduce Beings into the World with-
out a fufficient Reafon for their Ex-
igence.
He will perhaps fay, That Colours,
Sounds and Taftes, are produced by
Matter and Motion, and yet that there
is as little Refemblance between thefe
Qualities and the Figure of Bodies, as
there is between Thought and Figure.
And this would be a juft Objection, if
Matter and Motion did really produce
Colours and Sounds ; but thefe are in.
0^2 the
228 Sermon VIII
the Bodies themfelves nothing more
tlian different Degrees of Motion a-
rifing from the different Contexture
of thofe Bodies. Whatever goes be-
yond this, has no real Exiftence in the
Bodies, but is only a Cloathing which
the Mind puts upon thefe Motions,
which Motions are nothing more than
an occafional Caufe of the Mind's re-
ceiving fuch or fuch Ideas.
Having now fhewn from the
Ideas " Xve have of Matter and
Thought, that there is no Poflibility
of drawing Thought out of Matter,
I will now proceed to fhew. That
the Unity and Simplicity of Thought,
and the Continuance of one and the
lame Thinking Being for many Years
together, which we mufl all of us con-
fels to be true, can never be reconciled
either with the Compound Nature of
Matter, or with the continual Changes
to which all Material Compofitions are
fubje£t : I fay therefore,
2dly^ That Unity of Thought, by
which we find all our Senfations united
m one Thinking Being, could never a-
- rife
Sermon VIII. 229
rife from any Compound Subftance,
fuch as Matter, and every Conftruftion
of Matter is known to be ; and therefore
tlio' we did not know all that we could
\vi[\i. for concerning the Nature and
SubjeQ: of Cogitation ; yet fo long as
we may know that a fingle Principle,
fuch 4s that of Thought is, cannot be
an Effed or Refult from the A61:ion of
any Compound Being, we may venture
with all our Ignorance of the Nature
of the Soul to affirm , That human
Thought was not caufed either by Ex-
tenfion or by the. Figure of an hu-
man Body.
'Tis evident that Man is one, not
many Thinking Beings ; that amidft all
his various Senfations and Perceptions,
there is fome one fingle Principle that
is the Subjed of all of them j 'tis plain
too, that there is fomething in Man,
which thinks and contrives for the
Benefit of his whole Syftem ; from
whence nothing can be more evident
than that there muft be a Principle
of Individuation, whatever it be, that
joyns certain Parts of the hunian jpa-
30 Sermon Vlll.
brick together, and which thinks and
ads confonantly for the Ufe and Pur-
pofe of thofe Parts : That there muft be
Ibmething ia our Compofition like to
what I have already defcribed, cannot
be deny'd by any Body. The only
Enquiry that wants to be made, is,
Whether Matter in any Shape is ca-
pable of ading as a Principle of Indivi-
duation ? And we are fure that 'tis utter-
ly incapable for any fuch Employment ;
becaufe which ever Atheiftick Scheme
we take, the Principle of Confcioufnefs
would be a Compound Being. For, to
begin with SpKoja\ Scheme, which
makes every Particle of Matter to be
Cogitative, 'tis plain there muft be as
many Thinking Beings in Man as there
are Particles in an human Body, unlefs
the Spmcfifi would attempt to fhew us
a Way by which an infinite Number of
confcious Parts of Matter may be melt-
ed do vn into one confcious Part. For
notwithilanding the Union of Parts in
a Com]')oand, the Parts ftill remain as
diflferent irom each other as ever, and
tlierefore there mufl be good Reafon
for
Sermon vill. 231
for believing that the Thoughts of
thofe Parts of Matter could be no
more united than the Parts themfelves.
And as to the Government of the hu-
man Fabrick, it would be neceffary for
the Spmfijt to fhew how all the Atoms
of an human Body were perfuaded tq
chufe one Atom, and inveft it with a
Power of Ading for the whole, and
what it is that hinders them from re-
calling their Grant, and a£ling fepa-
rately ? Till thefe Queftions are an-
fwered, S^tnofa will appear to have
built a fingle Thinking Principle upon
a very precarious Foundation. As he
has never thought fit to give us any
Satisfaction in thefe Inquiries, his
Scheme mull: defervedly pafs for a
groundlefs and filly Account of Things
in this Particular.
The other Scheme, which would
derive Thought from fome particu-
lar Organization of the Parts of Mat-
ter, is liable to the fame Inconveni-
ence. For every Organization of Mat-
ter, being a Compofition of Matter,,,
will for that Reafon be unable to,
Q, 4 furaift
232 Sermon VIII.
furnllli us with a finglc Confcious
Being. 7"////; liippofes them to be
mere Blockheads that h^ve advanced
a Compounded Being into a Principle
of human Thought. la animi Cogniticne
dubitare non poljumusy nifi flane tn Phji'
fuis flumbei jumus^ quin mhil fit ammis
admixtum, nihil comretum^ nihil copula^
tum^ nihil duplex, Tufcul. Qu^xfl, And
the Reafon is plain ; becaufe if the
Principle of Thinking was a Being
compounded of Parts, all thofe Parts,
as I have already obferved, being the
Subjed of Thinking, would conltitute
as many Confcious Beings as there are
Parts that conftitute the Thinking Prin-
ciple. For the Union of Parts in a
Compound, is not an Union clofe e-
nough to produce Unity of Thought ;
this will neceilarily require the ftrid-
eft of all Unions, viz,, that by which
Beings are united into a Samenefs or
Iden ity. Any Unity Icfs than this,
would never make a Man feel as he
does , that all his Perceptions have
a Relation to one and the lame Think-
ing Being.
That
Sermon viil. 233
That fucli an Union as that of
Identity, is necellary to account for
Unity of Thought, is evident from this
Confideration, That without fuch an
Unity in the Principle of Thinking, we
could never, for Inftance, fee the whole
of any ObjeO: whatfoever ; becaufe if the
Soul was a Being compounded of many
Parts, every Part would only receive
a Part of the Image of an Objed, and
no Part would receive the Whole, and
confequently a Man could have no
Image of the Whole of an Objeft, un-
lefs the Parts of the Soul could com-
municate ro each other their Part of
the Image. But there is no Ground
for fuch a Suppofition ; becaufe 'tis cer-
tain, that when any folid Body is put
into Motion, every Part of the Body
retains a certain Degree of Motion ia
Proportion to its Bulk, without com-
municating that Degree of Motion to
any of the other Parts of the fame
Body. The Athdff^ who owns the Re-
lation between Thought and Motion,
cannot except againft this Argument,
nor fhew any Reafon why one Part of
Matter
234 Sermon^ viii.
Matter fhould communicate to an-
other Part its Share of Thought, when
there are no fuch Communications of
Motion from the Parts of Body to each
other. But fuppofing it polTible that
the whole Image of an Objtd might
be imprefs'd upon every one of thofe
Parts that are the Subjed of Think-
ing, there would be this Inconvenience
attending fuch a Suppofition ; that we
muft admit an Abfurdity, and fome-
thing harder to conceive than the Do-
Qrine of the Schoolmen, which the
At hi ft is wont to laugh at, 'vtz. That
the Soul or perceptive Faculty would
be then tot a in to Oy o* tor a in [if/gu'/i par-
tihus. For in this Cafe there would be
a double Image of every Objeft , for
every Atom that conftitutes the Sub-
jecl of Thinking , would have the
whole Image of the Object, and all
the Atoms taken together, would have
the fame whole Image too ; which
is plainly fuperfluous or needlefs , as
Well as 'tis inconceiveable. If the
Atheifl looks upon this as Nonfenfe m
a Schoolman, when 'tis applied to an
immaterial
Sermon VIII. 235
Immaterial Soul, he ought to give a
Reafon why it fhould not pafs for
fuch in him, when he applies it to a
Material one. He ought to fhew, That
a Reprefentation of Objeds twice over,
is impertinent in the one Cafe, but not
{0 in the other ; that the one is con-
ceivable in a divifible Subject, but not
fo in an indivifible one, which an im-
material Soul is fuppofed to be. When
he has done this, we will acknowledge
that a Compound Being, fuch as Mat-
ter is, may be, for all that we have
faid to the contrary, the true Princi-
ple of Thought.
Before I leave the Atheift^ I can-
not but obferve his unfair Dealing,
when he pretends the Difficulty of
conceiving fome Powers afcribed to
God, as a Reafon for his rejecting Re-
ligion, and yet at the fame time fub-
mitting quietly to the Drudgery of
believing fome of the moft incredible
Things in the World. This Particular
of Intelligence will furnifh me with a
plain Inftance of it, if we do but take
Notice of his Method of extrading it
out
2^6 Sermon VIII.
out of Matter. He defires only Mo-
tion and a little Curiofity in the Com-
pofition of Matter, and then he has
gotten Intelligence, tho' he knows
Motion, before it came into fuch a
Compofition as that of an human Body,
had no Senfe at all; He knows too,
that every Configuration of Matter
without Motion is as fenfelefs as any
Thing that is mof? fo ; and this Man
fo hard to beheve any thing of Reli-
gion, can believe that a Compofition of
Matter and Motion fhall be Thought
and good Senfe, tho' feparately there
is not a Grain of Senfe in either of
them. He can believe one Sort of Fi-
gure to be nothing more than a Ter-
mination of Extenfion, but another Fi-
gure befides this Ihall be an Aft of
Senfation, by which it perceives its
own Exigence, and that of the Figures
that furround it ; that if Matter hap-
pens to fall into the Shape of Nerves
and Bones, then Thought fhall imme-
diately Ikrt out of them ; but if you
mix up Matter in any other Shape,
'twill be nothing but fenfelefs Matter,
and
SeR mo NT VIII. 237
and not a fingle Thought to be got
out of her. He can believe one Sort
of Motion to be nothing but bare
Change of Situation, when another Sort
of Motion fhall be, befides this, an Ad of
Joy or Grief, of Hope or Truft in God,
He would be thought to be more nice
and fcrupulous in Examining into the
Bottom of every Queftion than other
People ; and 'tis for this Reafon he can-
not go fuch Lengths in believing as the
Religious Man. And yet this very Cau-
tious Perfon can eafily fee that a Be-
ing made up of infinite Parts, may be
the Caufe of the moft fimplc Thing in
Nature, viz. Perfonality ; That the
Union of the Parts of Matter, is the
fame Sort of Union as that by which
all our Senfations are united into one
Thinking Perfon. He can beheve as we
have juft now feen, that a Material, Di-
vifible Soul may be tot a in toto, & tot/t
in ftnguUs pan^^us ; and yet can fee no-
thing but unintelligible Jargon in it, if .
a Schoolman oflers to apply it to a
Soul that is not Material or Divifible .
into Parts. But I am perfuaded thefe
will
238 Sermon vill.
will appear to be Articles of Belief of
fo hard a Digeftion, that the Jtheiji
muft not pretend to defend his Infi-
delity by objeding Difficulties m Re-
ligious Belief.
Now to the KJng Eternal^ Immortal^
Inviftble^ the Onely Wife G O d, he
all Honour dnd Glory for ever and
ever. Amen. .
SERM.
2 39
SERMON IX.
Acts XVII. 28.
For in Him we livCy and
move J and have our Be-
ing.
N the precedent Difcourfc
I have fhewed, That the
Unity of Thought by which
all our Senfations are uni-
ted into one Thinking Be-
ing, and by which we are conicious
to ourfelves that we are not many,
but one Thinking Being, could never
be reconciled with the Compound and
DiviTibie
24.0 Sermon ix.
Divifible Nature of Matter ; and there-
fore not with any Conftrudion of Mat-
ter whatfoever.
I COME now to ofler another Ar-
gument, why Thought cannot be an
Effect of any Compofition of Matter.
Becaufe we fee the Confcioufnefs of
being the fame Thinking Being, not
only continued with all the particular
Scnfations of the Body, but even car-
ried thro' all the Changes of Figure or
Organization, that muft happen to the
Body, in the different Stages of a Man's
Life. The Man fliall be confcious to
himfelf that he is the fame Thinking
Being, for Inftance, at this prefent,
that he was Forty Years ago ; or as
far as his Memory will carry him back-
wards to any diftant Part of his Life
already pafs'd. Thofe who place Think-
ing in every Particle of Matter,cannot tell
how 'tis poffible to continue the fame
Thinking Being for even Twenty Years
together, in which Time and much Ms^
any Amtowifi can tell us there will be
a Sett of Atoms wholly new, and not
one of the old ones left j and yet the
Man
Sermon IX. 24.1
Man is fully perfuaded that he is ftlll
the JAme Thinking Being he was, and
not mother; a6ts accordingly, blames or
commends himielf for what he did
fome Years ago, as much as he does
for his prefent A£lions. The Athtijt of
this Kind will be obliged to fliew how
the iame Confcioufnefs can be preferved
in a total Change of the Subjed of
Thinking, when that is wholly fpent,
and not one Particle of it left. Any
one. but himfelf would from hence
conclude, that the Subjed of Thought
muft be fome Permanent Being , and
therefore not Matter or Body, which
are always changing and ihifting the
Scene.
I F it be faid, That Confcioufnefs of
being the fame Perfon, depends upon
our Memory, aud that our Memory
may deceive us, that we may imagine
that we have thought, and confider-
ed thus or thus^ but we may be mi-
llaken ; we might be confcious of that
as a Truth , which was perhaps no
more than a Dream ; and we may be
confcious too of that as a pafs'd Dream,
. R which
242 Sermon ix.
which was perhaps never fo much as
drearn'd of. Suppofing all this to be
true, that we are not really the fame
Thinking Being that we were fome
Years ago, but only think that we are
fuch; yet the Atheifi would be obliged
to fhew fome probable Reafon of a
Man's thinking himfelf to be the fame
Perfon, when he is not fuch. And this
I believe would prove as great a Dif-
ficulty as the other; for when the
Subjed of Thought is wholly chang-
ed (as we fuppofe) and a new one
fucceeds, there can be no more Rea-
fon for a Man's being confcious of
what was done by his former lelf,
than there would be for his being con-
fcious of what was done by any other
Perfon in the World. His prefent
Self would have no more Relation or
Acquaintance with his former one,
than it would have with the mod
diftant Man upon Earth, of whofe
Thoughts he neither knows nor pre-
tends to know any Thing.
And as to the fecond Account of
folving human Thought by the peculiar
Organization
Sermon ix. 243
Organization of an human Body.^ this
will as little account for the Samenefs
of Perfon in the different Stages of Life
as the former ; for thofe who make
Thought to depend upon the particu-
lar Arrangement of the Parts, muft al-
low, that the Diiference in a Man's
Opinions, in his IncHnations and Paf-
fions, will depend upon the Difference
of Organization ; and yet a Man
when he lias changed his Opinions
and Thoughts of Things , and has
quite different Inclinations from what
he had before, is yet fully perfuaded that
he is if ill one and the fame Perfon
with him who held thofe different Opi-
nions, with him who had Inclinations
different from his prefent ones. The
Obje£ls that move the Paflions and In-
clinations of Children, are ufually very
different from the Obje6ls tha tdelight
-the fame Child when grown up into
a Man ; and yet the Child and the
Man, for all this Difference, are uni-
ted into the felf-fame Perfon ; if we
fliould compare a Man of the greateft
natural Abihties that ever was, fup-
R 2 pofe
244- S E R M O N IX.
pofe C^far with himfelf when Five
Years old (for fo far backwards a Man's
Memory may polTibly carry him into
the Childifh Part of his Life, and we
have already feen that the Confcioufnefs
of being the fame Perfon, reaches as far
as the Memory can acquaint us with
what was done by ourfelves) I fay, if
we fliould compare the Man Cafar with
himfelf at Five Years of Age, there
would, be as much Difference between
the Spirit and Underftanding, the Paf-
fions and Affedions of the Boy and the
Man, as there would be between C^-
far the Man and another Man: And
yet the Boy and the Man, with all their
different Sentiments are acknowledged
to have been the fame Perfon. But
this would be impolTible, if Organiza-
tion was the Subject of Perfonality, be-
caufe then every Change in the Orga*
nization, muft of NecefTity produce a
Change of Perfon ; for I will ddy any
Man to conceive it poflible, that the
Subject of Perfonality fliall be changed,
and yet the Perfon continue the fame.
There being no poffiblc Reafon to be
given,
S E R MO N IX. 245
given, why Two Men, confidered as
Perfons, fhould be really diflcreiit from
each other, but becaufe the Subje6^ of
Perfonality is not the fame in both of
them : Which fhews to a Demonflration
that the Subjed of Thought in Men,
muft be fomething that is Steddy and
Permanent, not any Compofition of
Matter which is perpetually changing.
According to the Religious Man's
Scheme of Things, this Diverfity of Opi-
nions and Pradices in the different Parts
of Life, is very conceivable by fuppofing
fome Alteration made in thofe Organs
of Senfe, by the Means of which the
Soul has Notice conveyed to it of what
pafTes without it. This, I fay, would
be eafy enough to conceive, were there v
no Difficulty in conceiving the Union of
an Immaterial Being with one that is
Material, no Difficulty in imagining
what thofe Bands and Ligaments fliould
be, that could faften together a Pair
that are fo little hke one another, that
there is not any one Qiiality or Fea-
ture, any one Difpofition, internal or
external, in which they referable one
R ^ another;
2^6 Sermon ix.
another ; and yet to find that whenever
Body is affected by external Objeds, that
Pfyche conceives aThought, as if Body was
th^Naturd Parent of that Thought ; that
from the Motion or Agency of Matter
in. an human Body, Thought jfhould
^s certainly and fteddily arife, as if
Thought was the genuine Off-fpring
of Matter, and its Motion the real and
entire Caufe of that EffeO: : Thefe 'tis
acknowledged are great Difficulties ;
and come now in Courfe to be confi-
dered with the fecond Argument by
which the Atheifl is wont to juftify
himfelf, viz, ^^ That there is as much
" Difficulty in conceiving that Corpo-
" real Motions fhould conftantly ex-
" cite different Ideas by aQing upon
" an Immaterial Subftance, viz. that
" certain Motions in Objeds fliould be
" the Reafon of there being certain
" Senfations in an Immaterial Being ;
" as that Thought lliould arife from
" fome particular Situation of the Parts
" of Matter. " And yet we cannot
allow this Difficulty to be a fuffici-
ent Reafon for rcjeding an Immaterial
Soul:
Sermon ix. H7
Soul •, becaufe we find by Experience
that there are many Difficulties in
Nature, which the Aiheifl muft allow
as well as we. For he muft grant
Something to be Infinite, and then
there muft be fome Effeds flowing from
the Adion of an Infinite Power, that
will not fall within the Cognizance or
View of a limited Underftanding ; and
therefore the faireft Way of Determin-
ing, when there is a Neceffityof Deter-
mining one Way or other, is to weigh
the Difficulties on both Sides, and fee
which preponderates, and determine
ourfelves accordingly. And then 1 am
fure the Jtheijt will gain nothing by
this Obje8:ion; for if we have fhewn
it to be impoflible that Thought
fhould be Figure or Motion, or fhoukl
arife from either feparately, or from
both together, or that it fliould be an
elTential Attribute of Matter, and that
there is no other poflible Way of Ac-
counting for Intelligence, unlefs they
will admit an Immaterial Soul ; there
can be no Reafon for fufpending a De-
termination in. fuch a Cafe oa account
R 4 9.(
248
Sermon ix.
of any Difficulties in conceiving the
Adion of Material upon Immate-
rial.
But the S^eptick will perhaps put the
Obie8:ion in this manner ; " That the
" Diificulty of conceiving the Opera-
*^ tion of Material upon Immaterial,
" muft be at leaft as great as that of
" conceiving Thought to arife from
" the A6lion of Matter or Body ; be-
'' caufe fuppofing the lafl: to be incon-
*' ceivable, 'tis no more fo than the
" former, which no Body pretends to
" underftand ; and if the Inconceivable-
" nefs of it be no Reafon for rejeding
" the Action of Material upon Imma-
'^ terial, neither ought the Inconceiv-
'' ablenefs of Thought's arifing from
^^ Matter, be a Reafon for our rejefliing
" a Material Soul ; becaufe Matter be-
*' ing Infinite, many Effecls may arife
" from it that a Finite Being can-
" not conceive; and then. Why not
" Thought ? If we think ourfelves fure
^' that Thought is not Figure and
" Motion ; we may be as fure that
^\ Matter can have nothing to do
" with
Sermon ix. 249
<^ with what is not Matter. Confequently
** the Difficulties being equal, the Scfp^
" tick will fay, there can be no fuffi-
^^ cient Reafon for determining this
" Queftion either Way. "
■In Anfwer to this, 'Tis granted
that we can no more conceive the
Adion of Material upon Immaterial,
than the producing Thought from Fi-
gure and Motion, that is, we can con-
ceive neither of them ; fo far then
they fhall be equal. But this is not all,
we aiGfert not only that we cannot con-
ceive the Production of Thought from
Figure and Motion, but alfo that we
are fure 'tis impoflible it fliould be
produced merely from Figure and Mo-
tion ; and this we are perfuaded of,
not becaufe fuch a Thing is out of the
Limits of our Conceptions, which the
Scevtick\ Objection drawn from the
Infinity of Matter fuppofes ; but becaufe
we fee in fuch an Affertion a manifeft
Repugnance or ContradiOiion to our
Conceptions, as I have already fliewn *.
But
See Sermon VIII-
^6 S E R M O N IX.
But I will defy the Sce^ick to fhew~
fuch a Repugnance in the AQ:ion of Ma-
terial upon Immaterial ; for lince we have
proved ^, That the Principle of Motion
cannot be a Material Being, thence it
muft follow, that an Immaterial Being
does, and mud ad upon a Material
one. And if Immaterial may ad upon
Material, I am fure it can never be
proved impoflible, that Matter Ihould
ad upon that which is not Matter,
For it can't be denied, that we may as
eafily conceive Matter to ad upon that
which is not Matter, as that what is not
Matter fliould ad upon Matter: We can
as eafily conceive that Thought fhould
be a Confequence of the Motion of Body
upon an Immaterial Soul, as that Mo-
tion in Body fhould be a Confequence
of VolttKmy which is the jt^pfojtd Adi-
pn of an Immaterial Being upon a
Material one. This being plain, a fair
Examiner would conclude , tho' he
j^oes not underftand how 'tis, that the
Adion of Matter or Body upon the
Soul
' See Sermon VI.
Sermon IX. 251
Soul depended upon the arbitrary Dif-
pofition of that God, who tho' Im*
material Himfelf, does move Matter*;'
and was therefore able to unite Ma-
terial and Immaterial in fuch a Man-
ner, that the Motions of the former
/liould affect the latter; and not, as
the Atheift pretends, that fuch a Dif-
ficulty as this hinders him from feeing
that fome Simple Being, {exempt from
thofe Changes which Matter, and eve-
ry Organization of Matter is fubjed
to) is the Caufe of Perfonality, or the
Samenefs of a Thinking Being. We
have then gained the Exigence of fome-
thing in. Man that is not Material, viz.
an Immaterial Soul.
From whence we may obferve,
That the Atheifi is deprived of the
principal Advantage he propofed to him-
fdf in quitting Religion. We are told
by the Epieuream, That the cliief Aim
they had in quitting Religion, was to
free themfelves from any Solicitude
and anxious Fears concerning a fijture
State, as appears by Ftrgil and Lr^cre-
tms»
2^2 Sermon IX-
tins * When our modern Freethinker
quotes with PlealiKe thefe or fuch-
like PafTagcs, we may fairly believe
him to be fwayed by the fame Mo-
tive ; but 'tis evident he can never free
himfelf upon any rational Grounds from
fuch Fears. For if the Principle of Think-
ing cannot be a Being of a Compound
Nature, he ought to tell us, and fa-
tisfy himfelf if he can, what can alter
iuch a B^ing, and make it leave off
Thinking as fopn as his Corporeal Stru-
Q:ure becomes unfit for continuing any
longer the Vital Funftions. We can
cafily conceive that the Union of the
Parts of a Compound Being, fuch as
an human Body, may be broken ; the
Parts dibbaiid and take diilercnt Routs,
and aiterwards appear in another Form,
by
* Felix qui potuit rcrum cngnofcere caufas,
Atque metus omnes & inexorabile fatum
Subjecit pedibus, ftrepitumque Achcrontis avari..'
VirgH. (ji€on. Lib. 2. v. 49O;.,
Et metus illefbras praeceps Acherontis agendus
Fuiidicus, humanam qui turbat Vitam.
Liicret. Lib. ■\.
Sermon ix. 253
hy joyning together in a different man-
ner, and compofing fome new Syftem
with different Qualities : Becaufe fuch
Parts, notwithftanding their Union, are
really different from each other , and
therefore will be capable of exifting
apart from each other ; whereas there
is no conceiving any real Difference
in a fimple Subftance : Therefore as
fuch it muft be incapable of putting
on another Form, or being divefted
of any Qualities that 'tis naturally pof-
fefs'd of, and then the Diffolution of
the Parts of an human Body will ne-
ver infer a Total Ceffation of Thought
in fuch a Being as Man.
If it be faid that fince a Defeat in
certain Organs of the Body fhall caufe
a Diforder and a Diffemper in our
Thinking Faculty, why fhould not a
Total Deftrudion of all the Organs
bring on the Death of the Thinking
Being, or a Total Ceffation of its
Thinking ; or i[ an Original or Acci-
dental Fault in any one of the Inftru-
ments of Senfe, fuch as thofe of fee-
ing and hearing, Ilaall make us incapa-
ble
^zj. Sermon IX.
ble of having any Thoughts concern-
ing Colours and Sounds, or make us
incapable of receiving any further No-
tices concerning the vifible or audible
Qualities of Bodies ; therefore why
fliould not the entire Deftrudion of all
the Organs of Senfe put a final End to
all our Thoughts : It will be a iuffici-
ent Anfwer to this Objection, if we
fay that the Dependence which the
Principle of Thought has upon the
Body in its Operations of thinking
while 'tis united to it, can never be
fo good a Proof of its totally ceafing
with the Body, as the Simplicity of
the thinking Principle will be to prove
that it has no feparable Parts, by whofe
Separation from each other, the whole
might be fuppofed (as in Compound
Beings) to exchange its thinking Qua-
lity for another that was not fucli.
And therefore the DifTolution of a
Compound Being, fuch as an Human
• Body, can never give the Jtheifi any
reafonable Grounds for believing the
Extinction of a Simple Being, fuch as
the Principle of Thought is already
proved
Sermon ix. 2$$
proved to be. And as he allows not
any Annihilations of Beings, he will
never be able to tell us by what
Means the thinking Principle in Man
Ibould lofe its Faculty of thinking.
Thus then the Atheift feems to be en-
tirely difappointed, when he hopes by
throwing off Religion to get quit of
the Fears of an After-ftate.
2.diy^ Granting the Spinofift for
once that the Confcioufnefs of a
Man's being the fame Perfon or think-
ing Being in all the different Parts of
his Life, may be reconciled with the
Flux Nature of Body, with the conti-
nual Changes of its Materials; giving
him even this I fay to make the beft
he can of it^ I am confident that up-
on fecond Thoughts he would not
thank me for this Conceflion : For he
will then be as little able to fecure
himfclf againft the Fears of Evil in
an after-State as he would be by be-
lieving a God; becaufe there will
be no deftroying Thought even m this
Cafe by deftroying the Body. For
fuppofing Thought to be Extenfion,
then
2^6 Sermon IX.
then the Diffolution of the Body at
Death could by no Means put an End
to its thinking , any more than it
could to its Extenfion : And notwith-
ftanding the Separation of the Parts
of an human Body when 'tis corrupted,
yet all the Particles ftill continue to
be extended Subftances, and therefore
thinking Subftances, if Thought be
Extenfion , and Extenfion Thought.
And then fuch thinking Subftances,
may be obnoxious to as great or
greater Evils and Miferies in another
State than they are in this. For when
the Corporeal Particles that compofe
our Atheifi are feparated at his Death,
they muft ftill retain a Senfe of Plea-
fure and Pain, or be capable of re-
ceiving either, if every Atom of Mat-
ter be thoughtful ; and he cannot be
fo weak as to think that no other
Atoms , but thofe that form the
Thoughts of a Man, can be malici-
ous, and do him a Mifchief. And then
there may be many Thinking Subftan-
ces in the Air and elfewhere, that may
be as well qualified to do him a Mif-
chief
Sermon IX. 257
chief in the future State, as the Atoms
that compofe the Thoughts of Men are
in this prefent One.
I F he fays that the Thinking Atoms,
of which his dead Carcafs will confift,
can have no more relation to him than
the Atoms of any other dead Body, and
therefore that he fhall not be afteded
by any Sufferings of theirs ; I would then
ask him the Reafons he has for believ-
ing fo, fo long, I mean, as he believes
that the fame Confcious Being fhall con-
tinue in a Man for Seven, or twice Se-
ven Years; and yet every Body knows,
that in fuch a Diftance of Time, there
is not perhaps a fingle Atom left of the
old ones. If after all thefe Changes
the Man ftill feels to his Grief, that
he is the fame Man now in a Fit of
the Gout, fuppofe, that he was Ten
Years pafl in a Fever ; what Security
can the Atheift have that Death will
put an End to his Troubles ? Why not
rather fear, that his dead Body may en-
ter into the Compofition of fome other
Syftem of Thinking Matter ; and he be-
come as fenfible of the Good or Evil
S that
258 Sermon iXc
that fliall befal fuch a Syfterriy as he is
of what befals his prefent Frame ? I
muft aiErm this to be as conceivable,
as that every Atom, in a Man's Body
fhoutd be. changed, and yet the fame
Perfon or Thinking Being continue ;
foppofing the Atheijfs Scheme a true
one, 'viz. That human Thought liath
no other Caufe of its Beings befides
the perpetual Changes in the Particles
that compofe an human Body. Thus
we fee that giving the Spmofift what he
contends for, he is yet as far as ever
from gaining v/hat he chiefly aimed
at, and which he could not hope for
in Religion, 'uiz. Reft and Impunity
after he is dead.
But perhaps the other Account of
Thought, wliich places it in a particu-
lar Organization, may be efpoufed by
fome Perfons as a better Security
againft the Apprehenfions oi Evil in
another World ; as they thinJi the De-
ftrudion of that particular Organization
muft carry with it a total Extindion of
Thought, and confequently of Confci-
oiifnefs, Becaufe if the Soul be nothing
more
Sermon ix. 259
more than what Diceanhus beheved it,
'viz, A Body confifting of Parts of fuch
a particular Figure as is neceffary to
Life ^, when the Body lofes that Figure
which is neceffary to its Life, the Pow-
er of Thinking muft be entirely loft
with it. But even here, fafe as the
Atheifi thinks himfelf, while he endea-
vours to avoid the Immortality of
Thought by denying that it is an effen-
tial Attribute of Body, is not fo near
a total CeiTation of Thought as he
hopes for. For he muft allow Thought
to be one of the Modifications which
Body is capable of receiving ; and then
he muft acknowledge, that there is no
deftroying any Mode, without pro-
ducing another of the fame Kind ; be-
caufe it fares thus with all the Modes
of Body with which we are acquaint-
ed ; for the Corruption of one Mode
is always the Generation of another of
S 2 the
Nee quidquam nld corpus ka figuratum, uc
temperatione Naturx vlgeat §<: fentlat. Vid. Ci-
CTO Tufcul. Qugpft.
26o Sermon IX.
the fame Sort; as we fee the difchargw
ing of one Colour, is an introdu£i:ion
to another ; the lofs of one Figure the
gain of another. If it be faid, That
Motion is a Mode, and may be total-
ly extinguiflied, and therefore why not
Thought ? I anfwer. That Motion is
not a Mode which depends upon Bo-
dy or any Attribute of Body for its
Production, but upon a Caufe wholly
different from and foreign to it, as IjV
have already fliewn * ; whereas Thought
is fuppofed by the Atheiji to be entire-
ly derived from the Body, and there-
fore muft either depend upon fome At-
tribute of Body, or proceed from no-
thing. But of all fuch Modes as are
founded upon the efTcntial Attributes of
any Subftance, and derive their Moda-
lity from thence, it will be always moft
true to affirm, that you only Change
one Mode for another of the fame Sort,
but no more deftroy them all, than you
can deftroy the effential Attributes from
whence they flow. And therefore tho"
that
■' See Sermon VL
Sermon IX.
that particular Way or Mode of Think-
ing which belongs to the human Fa-
brick may ceafc, yet we can fee no
Reafon why all Sort of Thinking fliould
be extinguifhed with it, any more than
.why the Extinction of one particular
Figure in Body fliould draw after it
the Deftrudion of all Figure, which
we know to be impolTible without an
utter Annihilation of the Body. This
Reafoning would equally hold tho'
Thought was hot a Mode of Extenfion,
but of fome unknown Attribute of
Matter, becaufe it would be no more
poflible to deftroy a Mode of that un-?
known Attribute without generating an-
other, than it would be in the Cafe
of Extenfion.
But then the Jthelfi will fay, That
a different Mode will have no concern
with him, and he cannot be aifedecl
by any Sentiments of Pain that his Bo-
dy may be afFe£led with in another
State. I will allqw him to be as pofi-
tive in this as he pleafes, when he is
able to tell me (I mean upon any Foot
of Afhsifm) what 'tis makes him to be
.•? I th^
'261
4(52 Sermon IX-
tlie fume Pcrlbn at this Time, wlicn he
htlicvcs Matter or the World to be
the fuprcmc and onely Bcin:';, with that
fcir who perhaps tbrmerly luhevcd, as
we do, an Intelhgcnt Being that created
the Woild. What it is that makes him
believe himl'eU' as mucli concerned in
tlie Pleal'ure and Pains of the Ibrmer
Pa lib of hi:» Life, as in thofe oi' tlie pre*
feut 1 'ime, tlio* many confiderable Al-
terations may have happened in his in-
ternal and external Fabrick. When he
can reconcile this Samenefs of Perfon
with all the Changes that his Body has
undergone in a Courle oi' many Years,
it will be then time to grant, that
the Thoughts of the ilead Perlbn may
have no Concern with thofe of the liv-
ing one. Till then, tlie Jthcf/i by this
Scheme, no more than the SfinDftft^ will
be able by any lair Dednd ions from his
own Principles to fecure himfelf againft
the Pears of Evil in a future State, lincc
we have already fcen he cannot prove
a total Ceiruion of Thought after
Death, nor icll us what C>hange of
Or^nisiatioii will ctrtuiiiiy ildtroy Con-
icioufncfs
Sermon ix.
fcioufneCi. Or that fucli a Change as
that at our Deaths, imill iiccciUrily
do it, fo long as lie allows ConHiour*..
nefs to keep pace witli all the Changes
that iiappc'u to a Man in a long c\^
tended Lilc. '..
Thus then the Atht'ijl mull be a
moft unhappy Creature, when he can-
not live without God in this Wt)rld,
but he mull be witliout Hopes too of
being at Reft when he is out of it.
263
s ^
S E R M.
26$
SERMON X.
Romans I. 22.
Trofeffing themfelves to he
Wije^ they became Fools,
HESE Words were de-
figned by St. Paul againft
thofe who frequented the
Schools of the Philofo-
"" phers , and yet did not
leave off the AfTemblies of the Hea-
then Temples, where God was wor-
fbipped m an Image or Similitude of
a Man , or what was more unwor-
thy of Himfelf, a Bird or Beaft, or
Qven a Reptile or creeping Thing, as
* ■ we
366 Sermon' X.
we find by the 23^ Verfe. No doubt
thefe Men richly deferved this Cenfure
of St. Paul\ 'viz. That notwithftand-
ing all the Learning of the Schools,
their ConduQ: fbewed them to be as
ignorant of the Nature of G o d as any
of the meanell of the Vulgar, whilfl;
they joyned with them in paying Ho-
nour to fuch ridiculous Reprefentati-
ons of the Deity. And yet I can-
not help beheving that the School
of Epicurus in St. PauPs Days, and
their Succelfors the Sfinofjls in ours,
have a much better Title to this Cen-
fure of our Apoftle, than any other
Sed or Sort of Men that either now
are, or ever were in the World ; and
that they have not fhewn ftronger
Marks of Ignorance and Folly in any
one Point of their Philojojjh)/, than when
they endeavour to account for the
curious Contrivance of this World,
without the Help of a Contriving
Agent. '
The Athsift\ Way of Rearing up
the World is thus : He fuppofes the
whole Material World, fuch as we
and
Sermon X. 2^7
find it, to* be the onely God oi' Necef*
farily-exiftent Being; that the whole
Frame of Things, the Heavens, the
Earth, and the regular Order in which
they appear to us, proceeded as an
Eiied from the unguided, but necefi^
fary Laws of Motion from Eternity ^
That the feveral Species of Animals^^'
as well as the Inanimate Parts of the"
World, and even Rational Beings, fueh'
as Men, did all fpriiig up from thefe
unguided Motions.
The Alchjmtfis with their Philofo-
pher's Stone , may pafs for fober and
ferious Perfons wlien compared with
thefe Men ; for they pretended only to
the Secret of moving Matter in fuch a
Manner as to tranfmute it into Gold ;
but thefe People pretend to give us a
World full of Contrivance and Curio-
fity merely by the Help of Motion,
tho' there iliall be no Body to dired
that Motion. For tho' Spimfa fuppofed
his Matter to be furnifhed with Un-
derstanding, yet he did not allow it to
make ^ny Ule of its Underftanding in
direding any of its Motions ; for thth
are
268 Sermon X.
are fuppofed by him to be the Necef-
fary Laws of Matter in Motion : Where-
as the Chymift^ Matter that was to make
Gold was managed by an Intelligent
Agent, and 'tis pofTible to fuppofe a
proper Motion among the feyeral Per
grees of Motion might be given it.
but the Atheijl has left his Matter to
fhift fqr itfelf, he allows it may be
ftirred, tho' he cannot tell by what, or
hy whom, as we have already feen * ;
but however, he will have no Senfe or
Wifdom to ftand by, either to diftri-
bute proper Quantities of Motion, or to
direO: the Line they were to defcribe;
and yet he is confident that this regu-
lar and orderly Frame of Things fhall
arife from fuch undirefted Motions, an
admirable Conceit ! as the Author of the
Characierijlicks fays, helieve it who can.
And yet this Man pretends to be
fhocked at Difficulties in religious Be^
lief, at the fame time as he fees na
Difficulty in Rearing up this World
without any Affillance. The greater.
the
* See Serm. VI.
Sermon X. 269
the Undertaking, the greater, I fuppofe,
is the Share of Credit he propofes to
himfelf ; but fure I am, his Share of
Credit will dwindle into that of the
Wife Men in my Text, who frofeffing
themfdves ivi/e^ became Fools, For none
but a Fool would offer to confound
the Differences between Wifdom and
Folly, Senfe and no Senfe, Contrivance
and Chance , or uncontriving Necef-
fity. For i^ unguided Motions fhall
execute as regular a Piece of Work,
and as well fitted for anfwering any
Ends or Purpofes, as thole that are di-
re6led by the befl Senfe, we have then
nothing left us whereby to judge what
makes the Difference between good
Senfe and no Senfe, between Wifdom
and Folly. If it were poffible for us to
be miftaken in the Nature of Thought
and Motion ; yet as the Atheijl will not
fay, that all Motions are wife, and di-'
reeled by good Senfe, we will ask him,
how he diftinguifhes thofe that are fucii,
from others ? If he judges by their
Effefts, fo may we too ; and I would
willingly ask him, Whether he can
give
270 S E R M O ISf X.
give us any better Criteria to help us in
difl-inguifliing them, than thefe? That
fuch ^yorks are an Effect of Motions
guided by Underftanding, as difcover a
Regularity in them, and a Propriety
or Fitnefs to anfwer fome End or Pur-
pofe ; efpecially if we fee a great Di-
verfity in thofe Works, and yet much
Curiofity in them ; in thefe Cafes we
are apt to judge them to belong to
fome Mafterly Hand* Thefe are our
Ways of Judging, when we determine
whether any Thing is a Work of Ar^
contrived by fuch Intelligent Beings as;
we GonfelTedly are ; or whether 'tis on-
ly a Quantity of Matter heaped up
without any kind of Order, and unfit to
anfvver any particular Purpofe. Thefe
are the Rules by which we are willing
to try the Works of Nature, and the
Athei(l mull: be contented with them,
unlefs he will give us a Reafbn, Why
in a Work of Art thefe fhall be Indi-
cations of Thought and Contrivance,
and none in a Work of Nature ?
All that the Atheifi fays, comes to
this, " That the Greateft and Beft of
'•' all
Sermon x. 27
''i all Beiogs, in the Religious Man's
" Opinion, is no Eifci^ of Wifdom or
" Contrivance; and therefore why muft
'^ the World, which he believes the
" greateft and beft of all Beings, be
" an Eifed of any Thought or Defign;
*', altho' particular Works do arife from
" the Agency of fome Thinking Be*
f^ ings. That the Religious Man be-
«? lieves G o d to be the moft Accom-
*^ plifhed Being, and yet that He
". owes not his AccompUfhments to
*^ any Wifdom or Contrivance, but is
" Necefliarily what He is ; . and there-
of fore, Why may not the Curiofity
f^ ia the Works of Nature be an Et-
f' fed of NecelTity, tho' lels perfe£l
" Works, fuch as thofe of Art, be an
f Effed of Thought and Counfel. "
Let us fee then, whether the EvI*
dence for the Frame of the World's
proceeding from Neceflity, be fufficient
to out-weigh the Evidence for its be-
ing the Contrivance of fome Intelligent
Being. And fince the only Argument
he brings againft the Appearances of
Thought and Intelligence in the Works
of
272 Sermojst X.
of Nature, is, that the Frame of the
World rnAy be the NeceiTarily-exiftent
Being : If I can fliew, That there is
no Ground for fuch a Suppofition, that
the Appearances of Nature do argue
the Caufe of them to have aded ar-
bitrarily, and difpofed of Matter with
the utmoft Freedom, it muft then fol-
low, that if there be any Thing Hkc
Wifdom or Contrivance in the Fabrick
of the World, thcfe , and not Ne-
ceflity, are the true Caufes of it. I
will therefore fhew,
i/, That the Frame of the World
cannot have its Exiftence from Ne-
ceflity.
2^/;, That there are plain Sig-
natures of Wifdom and good Senfe m
thofe Parts of the World with which'
we are belt acquainted; and therefore
that it mult have been the Effed of
fome Wife and Intelligent Being.
i}/, That the Frame of the World
cannot have its Exiftence from a Necef-
fity of Nature, and that for thefe two
Reafons.
ly?, Because
Sermon X. 273
ly?, B E c AU s E no Compound Be-
ing (fuch as the World is) can have
NecefTary Exiftence.
2dlj, Because there are evident
Marks of a free and arbitrary Difpo-
fal in its Conftitution : Such an arbitra-
ry Difpofal, I mean, as is confillent
with good Senfe.
i/?, B E c A u s E no Compound Be-
ing (fuch as the World is) can have
NecelTary Exiflence.
The Atheijlh Argument, That as
God is fuppofed by the Religious
Man to be the moft Accomplilhed of
all Beings in Point of Wifdom, and yet
to be no Effed of Wifdom, that there-
fore there may be great Appearances of
Wifdom without any original Cauie of
that Wifdom, will amount to no more
than this ; That there muft be Some-
thing Wife and Intelligent from the
Neceflity of its own Nature, or with-
out any Original Caufe of its Wifdom.
'Tis agreed, That there muft be fuch
a Being, otherwife there could be no
fuch Thing as Wifdom ; but the Que-
ftion between us and the Athdfi is^
T What
274 Sermon X.
what Sort of Being this muft be ; and
whether Matter in its various Com-
pofitions, iiich as the Frame of the
Univerfe is made up of, can be that
Wife and Intelligent Being ? and,
Whether it could look fo much like
a Produ£^ion of Wifdom and Contri-*
vance as it does, if it were the real
.Parent of Wifdom, and owed that
Wifdom to nothing but the Neceflity
of its own Nature ? The Being that
the Religious Man fuppofes to be Ne-
ceiTarily-exiftent, is a moft Simple Be-
I N G, and whofe Nature is for that
Reafon not fubjed to Change or Al-
teration» The Atheijlh NecefTarily-ex-
iftent Being, is a Compound one, a
Being capable of receiving all manner
of Changes, fuch as Matter and all
its Compofitions are ^ for Spinofa allows
all the Modes of Being under which
Matter appears (as well as the Sub-
ilance of Matter abftrafted from any-
particular Mode of Exiftence) to be the
NeceiTarily-exiftent Being ; and fo muft
all who affirm the Frame of the World
- t<3L_be NecelTarily-exiilent. But the
Religious
S E R M O N X. >2 7 5
Religious Perfon is perfiiaded, that a
Compound Being, or any Being that is
capable of receiving different Modes
of Being, can never be reconciled with
the Idea of NeceflTary Exiftence; be-
caufe every Compofition in a Coni-
pound Being may be conceived by us
capable of being changed into fome
other, that {hall be entirely different
from what it was. And tlierefore no
one Compofition can be truly and pro-
perly NecejTary ; unlefs a Poffibility of
being or not being , were confiftemt
with Neceility. Spimfa faw there was
no Avoiding the Force of this Rtalbn-
ing, and that there was no defending
Matter unlefs he could make her' a
Simple Being : And therefore he entire-
ly alter'd the received Notion of its being
divifible and changeable ; tho' without
Reafon, as I have already proved ^^:,
thinking it would be eafier to perfuade
the World even to alter their Notion
of Matter, than to make them believe
that any Compofition of Being could
T 2 be '
* See Sermon IV.
276 Sermon X.
be a fufficient Support for Neceflary
^ Exiftence.
2dly^ The Frame of the World can*-
not- be the NecelTarily-exiftent Being,
becaufe there are evident Marks of a
free and arbitrary Difpofal in its Con-
ftitution, fuch an arbitrary Difpofal, I
mean, as is confident with good Senfe.
If there was one uniform Appearance
of Bodies m the Infinite Space, if all
the Compofitions of Matter were ex-
a(5lly of the fame Bulk, and did all ex-
adly defcribe the fame Motions ; there
would be an Appearance that would
much better refemble NecefTity, than
the prefent Face of Things ; tho' even
this would not prove thefe Magnitudes,
and thefe Motions to be necelTary ; be-
caufe there miglit be conceived very
different Combinations of Matter float-
ing in an infinite Space, very different
Lines of Motion, and yet equally uni-
form ; therefore none of them could be
abfolutely neceffary : becaufe, as I have
already proved, whatever exiils from
a Neceffity of Nature, cannot be con-
ceived to be any Thing but what it
is.
Sermon X. 277
is. But the prefent Face of Things has
ajl imaginable Variety ; inftead of one
vail Syftem confifting of a great Num-
ber of uniform Bodies with a Sun at
the Centre of it, we have probably a
prodigious Number of Syftems, as .ma-
ny as there are fix'd Stars, with fuch a
Star, as we have a Sun, at the Centre
of each of them ; and yet we can fep
nothmg in the Nature of Matter that;
fhould determine it into this great Di^
verfity of Syftems, rather than into
one. The Syftem of which our Earth
is a Part might have been different
from what it is, it might have been
bigger or lefs than it is, as Space is in-
finite, and nothing but Will and Ple4-
fure can be a Reafon of the Dimenfions
of oursy or of any other Syftem. No
other Reafon can be given for the par^
ticular Number of Planets, and of their
different Magnitudes in this Syftern \
nor why forae of them have more, pr
thers fewer, Satellites attending upon
them ; and if we were as capable of
Judging of any of the other Syftems,
as we are of our own, we Ihould pro-
T ^ ■ babl|V
278 Sermon X.
bably find great Differences in all thefe
Refpeds from ours; but to confine
ourfelves to our own of which we have
fome Knowledge, we will confider the
different Odks in which the Planets and
Comets of our Syftem nnove ; the one
move in Elliptical^ the other in Parah'
lical Figures : 'Tis evident, that the
moving Force, imprefs'd upon Bodies
that defcribe fuch different Orbits^ muft
be different too ; and 'tis as evident
tliat fuch a Diverfity can have no Foun^
dation in Neceffity; but muft be re-
folved into the free Agency of fome Be-
ing who thought fit to imprefs a great-
er Quantity of Motion, or more of the
Projedile Force upon fome Parcels of
Matter than He did ijpon others.
A G A I N, we muft never look for a
Reifon ia Neceflity of the Earth's
moving about its Axis m a Motion
oblique to its JEc[uator ; becaufe we are
fure that the moft fimple and the moft
obvious Motion had been in an Orbit
that was parallel to it ; and that its
Motion upon the Ecliptick is a Devia-
tion from that fimple Motion; and
therefore
Sermon X. 279
therefore the Atheiji ought to give a
Reafon why the Earth muft needs have
been of fuch an outward Form, or have
I'uch a Difference in its inward Con-
texture, as might be the Caufe of the
Obliquity of its Annual Motion to its
Diurnal. But I am perfuaded he will
never find any thing like a Reafon for
it, till, with us, he looks for it in fome
Free and Intelligent Caufe that was
pleafed to contrive it in this Manner.
I do not pretend to fay, That any Va-
riation from the prefent Appearance of
Things, would have been for the bet-
ter. But that fuch a Suppofition would
carry with it no Repugnance to our
Conceptions of Things, and that wo
cannot fee any Reafon for fuch a Di-
verfity, unlefs we refolve it into the
Will and Pleafure of fome Being who
made fuch Divifions of Matter, and
gave them fuch Motions, when Mat-
ter was equally fufceptihle of any
other.
I K N o w Spinopi in the fixteenth Pro-
fo fit ion of his Poft humous Works ^ would
e^ideavour to account for all the Di-
T 4 Yerfity
28o Sermon x.
verfity in the World by Neceflity, when
he fays, £jc neceffitate *Divind Nature In*
finite injirdtis modis (hoc efl, ommA qu£ fub
Intellecium cadere pojfu^/t) Jequi dehent.
That is, that all Poflibility of Being
muft of Neceflity flow from the Divine
Nature ; confequently all that Variety
of Concretions, and Diverfity of Mo-
tions, which we have inflanced in as
Arguments of Freedom, would be the
Ei^eds of Neceffity ; but let us fee
how he proves this ; why, he refers
us to his fixth Definition in the fame
Book, in which he defines God to be
a Being that confifts of an infinite Num-
ber of Attributes that are different
from one another ; from which Infi-
nity of Attributes, by necelTary Con-
fequence, muft arife an Infinity of Things
infinitely varied in the Manner of their
Exiftence, He does not tell us how a
Simple Being may have many Attri-
butes really differing from one another,
nor whether thefe different Attributes
are not beholden to Motion for their
Exiftence, which would be fuppofing
Matter to have been always in Motion,
altho''
Sermon X. 281
altho' we have already feen that S^^
n^fa. would never give an Anfwer to
thofe who ask'd him, How it came in-
to Motion * ? But to let that pafs ; fup-
pofing Matter to be infinitely moved,
or la infinitely various Degrees, yet no
one can give a Reafon why this parti-
cular Variety of Beings fhould be more
necelTary than any other. For if eve-
ry PofTibility of Being muft arife from
the Motion of Matter infinitely varied,
then the prefent Frame of the World
muft contain in it all that Variety
which 'tis pofTible to conceive ; and yet
nothing is plainer than that the Mind
of Man does conceive it pofTible, that
the Order of Beings might have hteu
different from the prefent one. And
yet I would not have the Atheift quit
his Neceffity to take up with Chance,
as fomething that would be better qua-
lified to account for this Variety ; be-
caufe Chance is a Word that fignifies
nothing but the Ignorance of him that
makes Ufe of it, and can have no Sig-
nification
* See Sermon VI.
Sermon X.
nification nor Ufe in. a Philofophical Ac-
count of Things ; for if the Motions of
Matter be not direded by a Free Be-
ing, they muft be pure Mechanical Ne^
cefTity, or neceflary Confequences of
Matter in Motion, which leaves no
Room for Epicurus^ Fortuitous Con-
courfe of Atoms.
Having now fhewn, That the great
Variety which appears in Nature could
not proceed from NecefTity, but muft
be the EfFe6t of fome Being that afts
with Freedom; it muft be perfedly
unreafonable to Doubt whether that
Agent, who freely produced tliis Va-
riety, be a Wife and Intelligent Being,^
if we can obferve as ftrong Appear*
ances of Thought and Contrivance m
the Works of Nature, as we do iri
thofe Artificial ones which do confef-
fedly owe their Birth to fome Intelli-
gent Beings. The Rules we have of
diftinguifhing Works of Art from thofe
which are merely the EffeQ: of Chance-.
or a blind NecelTity, are thefe: That
there be a Regularity in the Work,
and a Fitnefs to anfwer fome End or
Purpofe.
Sermon x. 2.83
Purpofe. Whenever we find thefe, we
never hefitate in pronouncing them to
be the Work of fome Being that knew
what he did, and why he did it. The
Atheijl himfelf, fince his beloved Ne-
ceflity will not help him out, muft al-
low this to be a fair Way of proving
the Wifdom of the Maker of the
World, or elfe be fo Ridiculous as to
believe that there may be fuch a Thing
as Art without an Artificer. I fhall
therefore proceed to ihew
2^/r, That if we Judge of the
World by the Rules now mentioned,
wc cannot avoid difcovering many Sig-
natures of Wifdom and good Senfe in
thofe Parts of it with which we are
beft acquainted. I am fenfible this Ar-
gument has been fo often and fo tho-
roughly urged againft the Inpdd by
many of thofe Learned Perfons who
have Preached thefe Le£i:ures, that I
fhould have entirely pafs'd it over, but
that it compleats the Proof of Un-
reafonablenefs upon the hfidel, if he
defends himfelf by any Difficulties in
"Religious Belief j becaufe the Difficulty
-^^'^' himfe^
284 S E R M O K X.
himfelf lies under, will appear to be no
Ipfs than that of Believing, that there
is neither Thought nor Contrivance in
a World, vi^hich every Body elfe fee^
to be mofl Artificial. However, what
I have to fay upon it, fhall be in a few
Words, by offering aninftance or two
of Regularity in the Works of Nature,
^nd plain Indications of Thought and
Defign in adapting thofe Works to cer-
tain Ends and Ufes.
The firft Inftance I Ihall mention,
is. The Annual Motion of the Earth,
by Means of which every Part of the
Earth receives as proper Degrees of
Heat for the Plants and Animals of
that; Part, as if this Motion had been
contrived on Purpofe by the beft Un-
derftanding. As I have already fliewn,
that the Obliquity of the Earth's An-
nual Motion about the Sun, to its Div
urnal one about its Axis, muft have
fgme Free Agent for the Caufe of it,
it being Nonfenfe to fay, That this
particular Obliquity was neceffary,
when there are lb many other Degrees
of Obliquity befides this particular one ;
Iwiil
SfiRAlON X. 28$
I Will now Ihew, That it muft have
for its Caufe a Wife and Contriving
Being that faw the Confequences of
every other Degree of Obh'quity, and
pitched upon this, as what wbuld be
fitted for the feveral Animals that were
to be difperfed over the Face of the
whole Earth. That fome Degree of
Obliquity would be more beneficial to
the Inhabitants of this Earth in gene-
ral than none, cannot be denied, with-
out Denying that the different Seafons
of the Year are a Benefit, or that thofe
Plants and Animals that hve near the
Poles would fare as well, and receive
as^ comfortable a Share of Heat, with-
out a Summer as with one. For 'tis
evident if its Annual Motion had httn
parallel with its Diurnal one, we muft
have wanted the VicilFitudes of the
Seafons of Summer and Winter ; ii it
had been much Icfs oblique than it is,
the Inhabitants near the Foles would
have received little Benefit from the
Summer ; and if it had been much
more oblique to the jEquator than it is
at prefen t,the Heat muft have been
much
286 Sermon X.
much greater in the Torrid T^ne fjian
it is now. And if the Ancients thought
it, fuch as it is, to be incapable of re-
ceiving Inhabitants by Reafon of the
extream Heat, they would have liad
much more Reafon for fuch a Belief
upon an Increafe of the Obliquity of
the Earth's Annual Motion. But if no
Declination at all, or any other De-
gree of it, that fhould differ much from
what we , have at prefent, muft have
h^^n worfe for the Plants and Animals
m general than it is ; we can have
no Pretence to look any where for the
Caufe of this exact Contrivance of the
Earth's Motion, but in the Fore-thought
of fome Wife and Intelligent Being.
He that will do otherwife, will £n4
hi mfelf reduced to the Neceflity of Af-
ferting, with hucretius^ That the Eye
w^as not defignedly contrived for ad-
mitting the Rays of Light, nor tlie Ear
for receiving the tremulous Motions of
Bodies, tho' an Organ well fitted for
that Purpofe, nor the Air, tho' aMf-
dium well fitted, for conveying thofe
tremulous Motions to it. And as the
modern
Sermon x. 287
modern Atheift will confefs this to be
ridiculous upon the Epicurean Foot of
Chance, fo it will be equally ridiculous-
to affirm, that this particular Degree of
Obliquity in the Earth's Annual Motion,
(altho' there are fo many other De-
grees of Obliquity which our Earth
might have been equally capable of re-
ceiving) was the Produce of a blind
Neceffity.
ndly^ Another Inftance I fhall
give of Fore-thought and Contrivance,
is, the Natural Oeconomy of the World,
by which a fufficient Provifion is made
for that vaft Family of Animals that dwell
upon the Face of the Earth. If we had
found our Globe filled with a Variety
of Animals, and the Quantity of Provi-
fion for Food and Maintenance no ways
anfwerable to fuch a Number, or if
there were Food enough, that thofe
Animals had not Skill enough to find
out fuch Food as would be proper
for the Support of their Lives, we
fhould judge aright, ii we concluded
they came here by Chance or Necef-
fity. But if we find that nothing is
wanting
Sermon X.
wanting for the Suppott of fo large a
Family of Creatures as there are upon
our Earth, fuch a Variety of feveral Sorts
of Food as fully anfwers the Occafions of
fuch different Kinds of Creatures, and
that all thefe Kinds, whether living in
the Air, the Water, or the Earth, have
a great Sagacity in finding out each
their proper Food, which is undeniably
the Truth of the Matter ; and was
long ago taken Notice of as an Argu-
ment of Senfe and Contrivance *; we
mult confefs) that there mufi: have btQii
fome Underftanding Being that had
computed what Qiiantity of Food would
be neccffary for their Maintenance,
and had alfo furnilhed them with pro-
per Inftinds for finding out in a wide
World fuch Food, and fuch Accom-
modations,
* Vide Tull. de Natura Deorum, Lib. 2. p. 2o5.
bnvicf. Paftuni anlmalibus large &c coplofe Na-
tura eum qui culque aptus erat comparavlt. /i?ki
a little further^ Dedit eadein Natura belluis & fen-
fum St appeticum, ut altcro conatum habcrent ad
Naturales partus capcfTcndos, altero fecernerent pe*
ftifera a falutaribus. p. 207.
Sermon X. 289
modations, as would be fitteft for
them ; or if all this will not amount
to a Proof of Fore-thought and goocl
Senfe, we muft for ever defpair of find-
ing any fuch Thing, and muft believe
that a Fleet or an Army of Men may
be as well provided with all Necef*
faries, fo as nothing fliall be want-
ing, whether we computed and pro-
portioned the Supplies to the Num-
ber of the People, and the Time that
either was to be out upon Duty ; or
whether no Confideration was had be-
forehand what would be needful for
fuch Numbers, and for fuch a Time t
But i[ this be ridiculous to the lafl:
Degree, we cannot but joyn with the
* PjAlmiji in adoring and admiring
God's Wifdom in the Contrivance of our
Earth, v/here we find all well adjuftcd
to the Occafions of the Creatures that
were to inhabit it, and fay with him*
0 L. o R D, how njanifoid are thy Works !
in Wijdom hajl The ft made them all ; The
Earth */ full of Thy Riches, <So is this
U great
;4, '.K, -7, ire
2po Sermon X?
great And wide Sea^ nhercin are Thinz^s creep'
ing innumerable^ both jm all and qreat Beafls,
Theje wait all upon Ihee : that Thou mayjl
give them their Meat in due Seifon ; That
Thou givefi them, thej gather : Thou openeft
Thine Handy they are filled jvith Good. For
we ftill fee the fame good Provifion hold-
ing out for the Ufe of the Animal Race,
without any confiderable Diminution
from what it was in the Pfalmijt\ Days j
tho' fome Thoufands of Years have
pafsM fince the Ffalmifi made this Ob-
iervation, yet the Stock of Provilions
has not failed , and the Eyes of all do
ftill, as well as then, wait upon God,
and He giveth them their Meat in due
Seafon, The Inftances of Wifdom and
Contrivance . are as many as the Things
of the World ; \i we cannot find out all
the Ufes they ferve for, we fliould be
fo fair as to acknov/ledge. That fuch
Things may have proper Ufes, tho' we
know not what they are. This I think
is rcafonable, fo long as we cannot
deny, that there are many Things
which do as regularly tend to a cer-
taia End and Furpofe, as if they had
been
Sermon X? 291
been formed and contrived for fuch an
End by the bed Underftanding. In
fuch Cafe our not knowing the Ufes
of fome Works of Nature, ought to
pafs for no Proof of any Thing, un-
lefs it be of our own Ignorance ; and
we might as well argue, that there
is ho Contrivance in the Works of
human Art, becaufe perhaps, the Ani-
mals below us cannot difcover our In^
tention in the Contrivance of them, as
that there was no Intention or Dc-
fign in the Works of Nature, only
becaufe v/e cannot always find what it
was.
Having now, by the Help of
Motion, Intelligence, and the Regular
Hty of the VYorld^ evidently proved,
That there muft be fome Powerful,
Wife, and Intelligent Being diiferent
from Matter, the Atheift mufl be con-
tented to come into the Number of
thofe Perfons which my lext v/as fit-
ted for, who profefilng themfelves to be
v/ifer and more knowing than others,
were yet k> unfortunate as to make
s^ao other Difcoveries but that of their
aasci U 2 own
V
292 SeR NiON" ' t.1
Own Folly. For whilft he pretends
feme Difficulties in Religious Belief, as
t\\Q Reafon of his leaving us, he is, as
I have already fhewn, contented to
take up with much greater ones ia
avoiding them, and can give no tole-
rable Account of the moft remarkable
Thdnomena in Nature, fuch. as Mo-
tion, Intelligence, and the regular Va-'
ficty that appears in the Univerfe ;
and therefore muft have fuffered him-
felf to be byafs'd by Prejudices while
he was examining the Queftion in dif-
pute between us; the Confequence of
which will be, That he cannot fe-
cure himfelf from the Apprehenfions
of Punifliment from the Hands of
Thnt God, whom he has wilfully de-
nied. For I have already fliewn. That
a Man may be culpable for his Er-
rors and Miftakes, if he has not taken
due CaVe to avoid them , but has fuf-
fered himfelf to be fwayed by any
Padion or Inclination, or any other
Motive beiides a fincere Love for the
Truth *. The only Refuge he ha!j
left
Sermon X.
left muft be this ; That tho' there be
a Wife and Powerful Being, that
at firft created, and does fiill govern
and direO: the Natural World , yet
he fees no Reafon for believing,- that
He has any Regard to the Mord World,
to the Virtues and Vices of Men, or
to their Religious Behaviour here ; that
there is no fuch Things in Nature as
Vertue and Vice, Honefty and Bafe-
nefs ; or if there be, that Go d will
take no Notice of them. What Grounds
there are for fuch a Suppolition, will
be confidered in the following Dif-
courfe.
293
•nflj
V I S E R M.
29S
SERMON XI.
Isaiah V. 20.
W^o unto them that call Evil
Good, and Good Evil ; that
put Darknefs for Eighty
and Light for Darknefs )
that put Bitter for Sweety
and Sweet for Bitter.
HE Petfons here mentioned
were not Speculative Atheijts,
but only very wicked Livers,
that endeavoured to conceal
their own bad A£lions by the pretence of
fome good and laudable Deliga they had
in their View ; and would therefore
\} 4 pais
296 Pk R M O N XI.
pafs thcni upon the World for Atts of
Virtue and Goodnefs, whereas the rea^
ly good Ads of others, by their Mif-
reprefentation of them, pafs'd for either
Ads of Weaknefs or Wickednefs. They
were not hardy enough to deny "a
real Difterence between Good and
Evil, Light and Darknefs, Bitter and
Sweet ; they only endeavoured to put
off their own Deeds of Darknefs^ for
fuch as would bear the Light, and die
niceil Obfervation ; and the Aclions of
their Adverfaries, tho' they had never fo
fair an Appearance, for fuch ^ would
not bear to be look'd upon, or abide
the Teft of a careful Infpedion. Tiieir
ovfj Ads of Injufticc , how bitter fo-
ever to thofe who -fulTcr'd by them,
muft be taken for Ads of Kind nets,
and the Effeds of Sweetnels of Tem-
per ; whiiil: the mod: indulgent and
beft natured Ads of other People fliall
pals with them for a bitter and mali-
cious Defign of Cheating and Ruining
TVlcn. .. :,
:^ 'Tis true, the Charader of tdicfe
'Men does not come up to that of oiir
Sermon Xl 2f7
Hohbiji ; becaiiTe tho' they did in Rea-
lity confound all the Diftindions of
Moral Good and Evil; yet they did
not offer to tell the World, as the H&b^
liji, with great Gravity pretends to do^
That there was no Difference between
Virtue and Vice ; much lefs did they
undertake a ferious Defence of fo mon-
ftrous a Propofition : But neither any
facred or profane Author would furnifh
me with a Ttxt or a Motto that would
exadly anfwer this Charader of our
Hobbift\ becaufe there was generally
more Modelty in the World, before A>
made his Appearance in it. For he
fcorns to palliate his Faults, or to im*
pofe upon the World by making them
pafs for Virtues, but openly and aloud
maintains, That there are no Faults,
or any fuch Differences n\ Nature
as thofe of Virtue and Vice, in the
ufual Meaning of thofe Words; and
that nothing deferves fuch Names,
initwhat is profitable or unprofitable,
plealant or unpleafant ; that whoever
talks of an unprofitable or unpleafant
Clood, or a profitable and pleafant EviJ;
^? , * talk^ .
S E R M O N XL
taJksr rNonfenfc, has no Meaning in
what he. fays, but utters mere Sounds
without any Signification beioaging to
them, i
I HAVE akeady fhewn the Necef-
(ity of admitting a Wife and Intelli-
gent Being that concerns himfeif in
the Government of the Natural World,
in keeping up that Order which He at
firft deligned, and does continually exe-
cute ; there are many who profefs to be-
lieve this, true, and yet pretend, " Tiiat
" they cannot fee the fame Evidence
'' for his concerning himfelf with the
*' Behaviour o^ Moral Agents ; and think
" that God does not mind which Way
'' Things go in the Moral World ; they
*^ are contented to believe that he has
^V taken all proper Care in ordering
*'.and contriving the Motions of Na-
" turd Agents^ and in feeing them fully
*' executed according to his firil: De-
" fign; but that a Moral Ag<r/t having'
" received from Him a Freedom of
'* Acting as he pleafes, whenever hc*>
'^ a£ts freely, he ads in purfuance oS
" tliat Nature which He has given
• *'i " him.
Sermon xt 295^,
«f him, and his Aftions are equally agree-
'' able to him, whether properly Free'
" or Licentious, morally Good or mo-'
" rally Evil." The Reafons by which
they pretend to Support this Opinion;^
are thefe :
■ I//; " That they cannot fee any
" biSerence between Moral Good and
" Evil, Virtue and Vice. Or,
^dly, *Mf there (hould be fuch a
" DiiTerence, they are fure that God
" would not concern himfelf about the
" Behaviour of" Mord Agents^ becaufe
"they cannot obferve Him making a-^
" ny DiPiinaion by Rewards and Pu-^'.
" nifliments, between the Obfervance
" or not Obfervance of what is called
" Moral Good. "
As to the firft of thefe : *' They are
" perfuaded that there is no fuch Thing
" in Nature as Virtue or Vice, but that
^' 'tfs merely the Fafbion and Fancy of
'' People, becaufe it varies m different
" Countries , and at different Times :
'' that Legiflators have always made the
" Publick Utility, fuch as it appeared
^^ to them, the only Rule of their Laws.
'' This
300 Sermon XL
^^y.This they think cannot be doubted ;
" becaufe when 'twas beheved that the
^' Publick might be better ferved by
" the Breach of a Law of Moral Ho-
" neily, they made no Scruple of en*
" 'couraging the Subjed, to break it.
" Confequeiitly, Utility is the only Rule
". whereby to judge of Moral Ho-
*^ neffy : And therefore no fuch Thing
" as Moral Good , when it differs
^^ from the Natural Good ; but it lofes
^^ its Nature from the Time it ceafes
" to be Profitable, and becomes Evil
" or Unprofitable. Which fhews Ho-
*' nefty or Virtue, when defer ted by
*' Utility, to be an empty Name that
" has no Exiftence in Nature, and a
*' fit Subjeft for none but a Stoick, who
*\ knew little of Nature, and was al-
'' ways talking againft it;, to fpend his
" Time upon. " K
But for all this Objection, the Re-
ligious Man aiiirms Virtue to be Vir-
tue in Adverfity, even when the Pra-
ikice of it is Unprofitable to us ; and
Vice to be Vice, tho' we outwardly
thi'i.v^
^Sermon XI. got
thrive and feem to be Gainers by it:
And for thefe Reafons :
i/, Because if we fuppofe the
Exiftence of Intelligent Beings, fuch
Beings I mean, as can compare one
Thing with another, and underjimd as
well as feel Differences, the different
Circumftances of Perfons will necefla-
ril7 make a Difference in the Charader
of their Anions, with regard to the
Judgment of fuch Intelligent Beings.
2dlj^ Because thofe who have con-
fidered the Nature of human Adions
with the moft Care, fuch as Philofophers
and Legiflators, have built their Rules
and Laws upon the Suppofition of there
being fuch a Difference in Nature.
^^/j, Because thofe who leaft of
all obferve Moral Differences in their
Praftice, but referr all to Pleafure or
Profit, cannot but confefs a Difference
in fome Cafes.
i/?, Because fo long as there are
fuch Intelligent Beings, as can compare
one Thing with another, and under-
jU/id as well as feel Differences ; tlie
different Circumffances of Perfons will
neceffariiy
502 Sermon xi.
n^ceffarily make a Difference in the
Charader of their Aftions, with Re-
gard to the Judgment of fuch Intelli-
gent Beings. The great Fallacy of the
HoihijPs Argument lies in this : That
they confider a Man only as capable of
receiving the Ideas of Pleafure and
Pain, Convenience or Inconvenience^
without confidering him as a Rational
Being that by comparing one Thing
with another, and obferving how far
they agree, and wherein they difagree,
may take Notice of other Differences,
which his Reafon affures him to be as
real as thofe of Pleafure and Pain, Con-
venience and Inconvenience. That the
Animals inferior to Man difcover no-
thing in the Nature of Things beyond
the Pleafure and Pain they receive from
them, may be probable enough ; becaufe
we do not find they have luch a Pow^
er as Man has, of comparing their Ideas
with one another, and of forming Com-
plex ones, fuch as are thofe con-
cerning Moral Truths ; or of forming
general Propofitions from any reflex
Ad of the Mind upon particular
;:;!Vf:i;?i: -; Things j
^-
S E R'M O N XL 503
Things ; but to: ait IntelleQ:ual Being
furniflied with fuch Powers of Mind,
wliich Man confelTedly is, we affirm,
that tliere muft appear to be what we
call Moral as well as Natural Differences
antecedent to all pofitive Laws made
concerning them ; becaufe the different
Circumftances of Things and Perfons
muft neceffarily make a Difference iii
human Adions, altho' the Material or
Natural Adion confidered by itielf,
and without Regard to thofe Circum-
ftances, be exa(Sly the fame. For it
cannot be denied that different Cir-
camftances will neceffarily make the
Relations of Perfons to each other real-
ly different, and muft therefore fo far
alter the Nature of any Adion, as to
give it a different Chara<Eler; as fo^
Inftance, The AQiion by which we put
an End to a Man's Life, may be va-
ried very much by the Circumftances
of the Perfon whofe Life we take
away; as, Whether he be an innocent
Man, or whether I had been much
obliged to him, or there were none of
tliefe Cortfiderations, but I did it for
■: <^»iui A preferving
304. S £ R xM O N Xt
preferving my own Life ; tho' the Adi-
on be the fame in either Gafe, con-
fidercd as the taking away the Life
of a Man; yet fure every one muft
fee a Difference between taking away
another Man's Life for the Prefer-
vation of his own , and , taking it
away from a Man that has done him
no Hurt at all, nor given any Indi-
cation of any fuch Intention ; much
more, if he has always been a great
Benefactor and a Friend to him. Thefe
Differences in Cafes, Reafon by diftin-
guifhing Circumftances does difcover to
us ; and fo long as there are fuch Ra-
tional Agents as Men, Reafon will make
fuch Difcover ies, let the Hobbiji wink
as hard as he pleafes. And vye have a re-
markable Proof of it in VAninus^ vi^ho gave
ftronger Evidence of his being a fincere
Atheift^ than any of the Brother Atheijls
(ince have cared to give us ; for tho' he
might have faved his Life by renounc-
ing thofe Atheiftick Opinions he was
charged with, yet he chofe rather to
die, than to do fo mean and unworthy
an Ad, as to deny or difown what he
himfelf
S E R xM O N XI. 30$
himfelf believed to be true. Atheift as
he was, he could not avoid giving his
Teftimony againft our Hohbift, and ac-
knowledging, " That a Man may be
" in fucli Circumftances of Life, as ihall
" make him guilty of a bafe and di^-
" honeft Adi in faving his own Life. "
And therefore that there may be fuch
Things in Nature as Honour and Ho-
iieif y, Bafenefs and Cowardice, abftrad-
ing from all Confiderations of Pleafure
and Profit. The labouring a Point fo
plain as this, might look like a Mifre-
prelentation of our modern Atheifl^ if
Mr. Hobbs had not told us ^, " That
** all t\\Q natural Right God has to
^ our Obedience, is founded upon this ;
*^ That his Power is infinite, and that
" all our Obligations to obey Him m
" Virtue of the Law of Nature, arife
" from this, that his Power is irrefift-
" able." The Confequence of which
mud be. That in a State of Nature we
can be under no Obligation to Him or
any other Being on account of Juftice
X or
:- ., ; ilobbs, De Give, pag. ^Jo, z6i-
^o6 Sermon XI.
or Gratitude for the Benefits of Crea»
'.tion, and Prefervation of our Beings;,
or for any other Reafon, but only this •
plain one, That we cannot help it. I
cannot fee any Thing the -Hubkift can
with any tolerable Shew of Senfe anfwer
to the Arguments I have already urg'd
againll him, unlefs it be, That our con-
ceiving fuch Moral Differences in'hu--^
man Aftions, will not prove their reat'.
Exigence in Nature ; as the Mind of
Man is capable of forming Complex-
Ideas, that liave no Exiftence out of the
Mind ; and that Moral Differences muft
be fuch, becaufe if they had a real Ex-
iftence in Nature, there could be no
more Difpute about them, than there
is about Pleafure and Pain. But our
Anfwer is. That the Cafes are not pa-
rallel; becaufe Pleafure and Pain are
felt and judged by our Senfes, without
any Want of Refledion to affure us of
their Difference, and therefore all Per-
fons whether wife or unwife, are equal-
ly affeded by them ; but the Beauty of
Virtue, and the Deformity of Vice, will
require feme Degree of Reafofling from
us.
Sermon XL 307
lis, if we would difcover them ; and yet
this Reafoning of ours does not make
thefe DiiTerences, but finds them what
they are in Nature. For no Man fure
will allow it to be a good Argument
to prove there is no fuch Thing in Na-
ture as Symmetry and Proportion, be-
caufe all Perfons are not equally aflpe-
6:ed by them, or becaufe fome Perfons
fhall admire that which has neither
Juftnefs nor Elegance. And why then
fhould it be an Argument againfl: the
Difference between Vertue and Vice,
that all Perfons are not equally fenfi-
ble of the Beauty of one, and the Ugli-
nefs of the other ; but that fome fhall
have fo corrupted a Tafte, as to fee
as much Beauty in the one as the
other? The internal CharaO:ers of Mind,
as well as the external Proportions of
Body, will continue to be whaf tliey
are, notwithftanding any wrong Judg-
ments we may make of them ; for the
Nature of Things is inflexible, wdiat-
ever Thoughts w^e entertain of them.
What' the Author of the Cktra^criftkks
lias faid on this Occafion is very juft:,
X 2 in
308 Sermon XI.
ia thefe Words : " Should a Writer up-
" on Mf^fick (addreifing himfelf to the
Lovers of that Art) " declare to them,
" that the Meafure or Rule of Har-
^' mony was Caprice or Will, Humour
^* or Fafliion, 'tis not very Hkely he
" flaould be heard with great Atten-
" tion, or treated with real Gravity ;
*' for Harmony ;is Harmony by Na-
'•' ture , let Men judge ever fo ridf-
<' culoufly of Mujick ; fo is Symmetry
^' and Proportion founded ftill in Na-
" ture, let Mens Fancy prove ever fo
^' barbarous or Gothick in their Ar-
" chite8:ure, Sculpture, or whatever
" other defigning Art : 'Tis the fame
" Cafe, lays he, where Life and Man-
•*' ners are concerned, the fame Num-
" bers, Harmony and Proportion, have
*' Place in Morals, and are difcoverable
" in 4:he Characters of Mankind *. "
If this Author has Reafoned truly, the
Hobbifi^s Denial of Moral Differences
will be no better a Proof of there being
no fuch Things in Nature, than ignorant
Perfons
* Chai-aftcrlfticks, Vol. i. p. ^j}.
Sermon XL 509
Ferfons not difcovering the juft Propor-
tions of any Work, would be a Proof
that there is no fuch Thing in Na-
ture as Proportion; for fince there is
and muft be a wrong as well as a right
Taile in judging of the internal Charar
^ers of the Mind, as well as -of the
Proportions and Figures of Bodies, the
vitiated Tafte of a Hohbifl ought to pafs
for no better an Argument againft Ethi^
Gal Truth, than the Gothick Tafte of
an illiterate Perfon be taken as an Evi-
dence againft the Truth of any other
Science.
2dly^ Those who have confidered
human Nature with the^ moft Exacl-
nefs, fuch as Philofophers and Legilla-
tors, have formed their Ethical and
Political Schemes upon the Suppofl-
on of Moral Differences in Nature.
And
17?, Of the Philofophers, there was
none of them of any Note, without ex-
cepting' even Epcurus himfelf, who did
not agree in prefcribing Vertue, as that
which would beft of all alleviate th?
Miferies that human Nature is fubjed'
X ^ to,
Sermon Xi.
to, and, generally fpeaking, procure for
it all that Happinefs which it was ca-
pable of receiving. They all of them
obfcrved that there were two principal
Motives of human Adions, viz,. Rea-
fon and Appetite, together with all the
Train of PalTions accompanying thofe
Appetites ; they obferved that thefe laft
did often incline us to purfue either im-
proper Objeflts, or proper Obje6ls in an
improper or undue Manner ; but that
there was another Principle of human Ac-
tions, ^V^. Reafon or good Senfe ; which
wheni t prevailed and could be hearkned
to, would direct what Objects ought to
be courted, and in what Degree ; that
as the former Motive inclined us to
take the Agreeable, as the Way to true
Happinefs, -fo this laft difcovered a
more excellent Rule of A6lion. Wc
cannot polTibly miftake their Meaning,
becaufe we fee the whole Defign of
their Ethical Treatifes turned upon pro-
moting the Influence of this Rational
Principle, and becaufe we find them
always making Honefty or Moral
Good, the Rule of this Principle, which
is
Sermon xi. ^U
Is taking for granted, That the Hap-
pinefs of Man, confidered as a Rational
Creature, was no other wife attainable,
but by hearkning to Reafon , and that
there was no Truth, Reafon Or good
Senfe, feparate from Virtue. The ^toicks
were fo far from being of Mr. Hohk\
Opinion, that there was nothing in
Nature but Pleafant and Unpleafant,
Convenient and Inconvenient, that they
.would not allow thefe even a Share m
making up human Happinefs ; but that
the Happinefs of Man confifted in his
haying fo reduced his Appetites, as to
be able to hve without them ; and to
be contented with the ra b' I'/^ri/, by
which they meant the Praftice of Vir-
tue, which was always in a Man's
Power, as 'tis always in his Power to
be an honeft Man, tho' not to be a
rich Man or at his Eafe. Even tlie £-
ficuream themfelves, who firft pretend-
ed to make Men happy by refcuing
them from the Fear of the Gods, and
from the Reftraints which KQligionthen
laid upon them, were fo far from ta-
king off thofe Reftraints which Virtue
X 4 lavs
Sermon XL
lays upon Men, that, as the Lcarnet}
Dean of Norwich tells us, they acknow-
ledged Virtue to be the only Way
that leads to all that Happinefs wloicli
the Life of Man is capable of receiv-
ing * ; and 'tis certain, the good Dean
did not fpeak too favourable of them,
if what Laeretius fays of Epicurus in
his Life be true -!-. He owned, " There
" could be no fuch Thing as Pleafure,
(in which he made the Happinefs of
human Life to confiil,) " without Vir-
" tue. That bodily Pleafures or Free-
" dom from Pain, were among the
<^ ri. ctAAct, which might be feparated
" from Happinefs ; but Virtue was m.
" feparable from it : That Pleafure and
" Profit were Things of a change-
" able Nature , Bf«T*\ fuch as were
^' fomctimcs Good for a Man, and
" fometimes Evil, according to the Dif-
" cretion
* Pride.^'jx Connexion. P^nt I. f. 454
Sed. 138. ■ '
Sermon XL ^13
" cretlon of the Man that enjoyed
" them; but Virtue was always Good
" for him. " So far was Epicurus froilf
denying Moral Differences ; which ought
to ihame our Atheijls^ who would fub-
vert the original Nature of Things, in
order to gratify their bafe Appetites ;
and therefore, as the before mentioned
Learned Dean expreffes himfelf, " Tho*
^* our modern Infidels build their impi-
^' ous Dodrines upon Epicurus^s Philofo-
** phy ; (they both agreeing to make
all Things fpring from Matter in Mo-
tion, without taking in a Powerful and
Wile Being to move Matter, and di-
rect its Motion) ^* yet they cannot their
" immoral and wicked Lives." And
therefore muft be inexcufable, while
they pretend not to fee any Difference
between Virtue and Vice, tho' the
Beauty of the one, and the Deformity
of the other, were acknowledged by all
thofe Jtheifts, who lived under a Reli-
gion in which Virtue and Vice were
^ ' not
■•-5
I Ibidem. Par: I- p. 434
314. Sermon XL
not near fo truly defcribed, as tliey are
p oiir Chriftian Religion- But,
2dlj^ I AM to £hew, That all Legi-
flators or Founders of Free- States have
fuppofed the Obligation to be juil: and
honell, as the Foundation of their feve-
ral Conftitutions, and the beft Supports
of them. It cannot be denied that Le-
giflators were Perfons fufiiciently qua-
lified for Deciding this Queflion, as
they are fuppofed to have been as well
acquainted with the Springs of human
Adions as any Perfons whatever. That
they took for granted there was fuch
a Thing in Nature, as Moral Honefty,
and believed that the World too was
of the fame Opinion, is evident from
hence, That they depended more upon
the Confent of the People than upon
Force (the only Support of Tyrannical
Governments) for the Prefervation and
Continuance of their Eftabliflimentii :
But every Body fees that the Confent
of the People could never be a Founda-
tion for a durable Society, unlefs they
fuppoled the People prepofTefs'd with an
Opinion, Tliat this Confent of theirs
once
Sermon Xtl 9;i§
once made, hkd laid them under an
Obligation of continuing it ; which they
could have no Reafon to believe, un-
lefs they fuppofed them under an Obli-
gation of keeping their Word , even
wiiilft they were m a State of Nature,
or before they met together, and had
given their Confent. The Hohhift fup-
pofes them obhged by Virtue of their
Com pad, but that antecedently to this
Bargain made with their Governor,
there was no Obligation upon any of
them to be faithful or jull : becaufe
there was no fuch Thing as Faith or
Juftice in Nature, the Obligation to
Pradice thefe being to be fetched en-
tirely from the voluntary Agreement
we made at our fir ft entring into So-
ciety. But fuppofing the ancient Foun-
ders of States to be perfuaded, as Mr.
Hobbs pretended to be, That there was
no fuch Thing as Faith or Jullice,
Breach of Promife or Iniquity, before
the Laws of Societies had made fuch a
Diftindion m human Aftions, they
muft fee that Men would be no more
obliged by any Confent they had given,
-■ or
Sermon XL
or any Promifes they had made, ei-
ther to continue their Confent, or to
make good their Promifes, than if they
liad done nothing at all of either 5 for
it would be impoflible in the Nature
of the Thing, that by any Ad of theirs
they fhould lay themfelves under an
Obligation, becaufe fuch an Ad: would
be made in a State of Nature, when
'tis fuppofed there was no Difference
between Faithfulnefs and Unfaithfulnefs,
breaking of Promifes, and keeping
them : And therefore their Confent be-
ing given at a Time, when they were
under no Obligation of keeping their
Word, they cannot be obliged to make
good what they had confented to.
This is fo evident, that had the Foun-
ders of Free States believed as Mr.
HcUf, they cannot be fuppofed weak
enough to have laid any Strcfs upon
the Peoples Promifes : but as we are
fure they did, and thought them tlie
beft Security of their Ellablifhments,
we cannot doubt whether moral Diffe-
rences were acknowledged in their
Times as Obligatory, even before any
pofitivc
Sermon xt pi
pofitive Conftitutions were made by
them. And if Mr. Hobhs had not been
the worft Politician in the World, he
would have kept his Thoughts to him-
felf, and not taken away the ftrongeft
Supports of thofe Societies, which the
Ancients thought to be the only So-
cieties worth preferving ; and left us
the Poflibility of only fach, as none
that had either Courage or Honefty
^vould care to be concerned in.
■^ But it may be faid, That fome of
the ancient Legiflators could not believ«
there was any Juftice or Injuftice in-
dependent of pofitive Conftitutions, be-
caufc they gave Impunity, and even
Encouragement to the Breach of fomie
Moral Laws : an Inftance of which is
feen in Lycurgti-s^ the Spartan Legiflator,
by whofe Laws a Licence was given
to young People of robbing their
Neighbours, if they could do it with-
out being difcovered ; and this Licence
was given by him as a Means of
iharpening the Wits of the Spartan
Youth, and making them fitter for
Out-witting their Neighbouring States :
Here
8 S E R M O N XL
Here it Ihould feem that Equity and
Honefty were forced to give way to
an Appearance of Publick Utility.
In Anfwer to this Objedion, we
fay, That the making Laws concern-
ing Property, is making Laws concern-
ing a Thing which is allowed to be
of a Changeable and Pofitive Nature:
And as no Body doubts, that a Legi-
flator may take away Part of a Man'^
Property for the Support of the Pub-
lick ; fo Lycurgus might think it lawful
or equitable for him, without offend-
ing againft the Eternal Rules of Right
and Wrong, to fubjeO: the Properties of
particular Perfons to fuch an Inconve-
nience as this , for obtaining what
he imagined would be a Publick Ser-
vice. But,
idly. The laft Aft of Lycurgus be-
fore he left Sfma^ evidently fliews that
he was fully perfuaded of the Obliga-
tion of one Law of Nature, 'viz. Of
performing a Religious Promife , at leaft,
he believed that the People of Sparta.
were univerfally of that Opinion : for
in order to make his Laws perpetual,
as
Sermon xi. 319
as Plutarch tells us ^, He gathered all
the People together, and perfuaded them
to bind themfelves by an Oath not to
alter his Laws, till he fhould return
again ; which he never intended. This
would have been a very weak Contri-
i^ance, unlefs he fuppofed the Sp^rtam
thought themfelves obliged by their
Promifes. For if there was no Diffe-
rence in Nature between keeping one's
Word, and breaking it, there would be '■
no Reafon to fear the Difpleafure of
the Gods for doing what was in its
own Nature indifferent ; and therefore
he could not be fo weak a Man, as
to believe they would obferve their
Oaths when he was gone, if he had.
not been well affured that his Spartans
did univerfally believe there was fuch
a Thing as Faith and Honour, before
he had given them a Being by his
Laws.
'* idlyy Th o s E who leafl: of all ob-
ferve Moral Diiierences in their Prac-
tice, and referr all toPleafure or Pro-
fit,
* Plutarch in Vita Lycurgi.
Sermon XL
fit, cannot but confefs a Difference id
ibme Cafes ; for if tHey can have their
Pleafure or Profit as well by obferving
the Rules ofEqukyy as other wife, there
are Few that would not choofe to
have them in ah honeft Way; fcarce
any Man of the moll vitiated Tafte,
would choofe to have what he wifhed
for by injuring his Neighbour, if he
might have it as well without hurt-
ing him. If at any Time there have
been particular Perfons that have wan-
tonly injured their Fellow-Creatures,
they have been wont to pafs under the
Chara£ter of Monfters. The Unbeliev-
. er ought to aflign fome Reafon of this
conftant Appearance in Behalf of what
we call Virtue; for if the Reafon of
this Fhdnomenon is to be drawn from
hence,. Either that the Reafon of Man
difcovers, even to the mofl vicious Per-
fon, a Fitnefs and Unfitnefs of Things
abftrafted from Pleafure and Profit,
and which he cannot avoid taking ]s^o-
tice of when his own Pleafure and
Profit are not concerned ; or that there
is an Inclination in the human Species
which
Sermon xi. 321
which moves it to AQ:s of Benevolence
and Good-nature , when not checked
by private Intereft » which ever of thefe
be affigned as the Caufe of this Ap^
pearance, it will ftill be a ftrong Proof
of a Difference in the Nature of Things.
For if Rational Creatures in Virtue of
their Reafon difcover any fuch Things^
they muft have as good a Foundation
in Nature as the Reafon of Rational
Agents ; or if Inclination] leads them to
fuch a Behaviour, fo long as this Incli-
nation appears to be almofl: Univerfal
admitting very few Exceptions, nothing
lefs than the Nature of Things can be
a Caufe fufficient of fo regular and ex-
tenfive an Effed:.
There is one other DiiBculty, which
is fometimes raifed againil: the Proof
of Moral Differences, which is, That
granting fuch Differences do indeed
appear to us, yet they may not ap-
pear fuch to the Supreme, Intelligent
Being J that is, That Truth, Juliice
and Goodnefs, may appear otherwife
to God than they do to us Men: and
they pretend to fupport this Opinion of
Y theirs,
Sermon XL
theirs, in this Manner : That the Na-
ture and Perfedions of G o d are Incom-
prehenfible, liis "Ways are in the Deep,
and ]iis Footfteps not known ; and there-
fore what may be juft and equitable in
Our Opinions, may not be fo according
to the Judgment He forms of Things;
confequently, the hfdel will fay. Let it
be never fo certain that fome Things
do appear to us Morally Good, others
Evil ; yet till it appears that God
judges of them as we do, we may ftill
be fafe, altho' we do not practice agree-
ably to thofe Differences as apprehend-
ed by us. And they pretend to be
confirmed in this Belief, becaufe they
cannot fee God making any vifible
Diftin61:ion between Good and Bad
Men.
In Anfwer to the firft Part of the
Objection, we fay. That how in-
comprehenfible foever the Nature of
the Supreme Being, and his Man-
ner of Thinking, may be to us, yet
as we have proved, That the Morality
of human Anions is founded upon
the Nature of Things, upon the Fitnefs
or
Sermon XI.
or Unfitnefs which Things evidently
appear to us to have in their Relation
to each other, if we could be fuppofed
to miftake when we judge according
to fuch Evidence, and that Things ap-
peared quite different to God than
they did to us , it would be beft for
us to leave off Reafoning upon any
Kind of Truth whatever, and content
ourfelves, as fome of the Antients did,
with the bare Appearances of Things.
For if thofe Relations of Things which
are the Foundation of Moral DiiTerences,
appear to us with as ftrong an Evi-
dence, as any Thing ofwhofe Nature
and Exiftence we think ourfelves mod
afTured, we muft then believe them to
be really fuch as they appear to us,
or elfe be contented to doubt of every
other Kind of Truth, as well as Religious
Truth. And then the AtheijVs Safety
will lie m this ; That Men are always
deceived : Wliich may be true enough
with Regard to himfelf and his Friends,
while they mifpend their Time in. ac-
CQunting for Things by Chance or Ne-
Y 2 ceiTity:
324 Sermon XI.
cejfTity ; but I am perfuaded the reft of
the World will conclude that Caufe to
be a very bad one, which cannot be
defended without giving up the Truth
of our Faculties. For let there be ne-
ver fo much Difference between the
Perfection of God's Knowledge and
that of ours; yet 'tis pilain, our Know-
ledge, as far as it reaches, miift be
real ;. or elfe there will be no fuch
Thing as human Knowledge.
A s to the fecond Part of the dbje-
Gion, That God makes no vifible Di-
ftindion of Good and Bad Men ; which
they think a good Proof, that He does
not judge of Good and Evil as we do :
In Anfwer to it, I will fhew,
^dl)^ That God may have fuch
Apprehenfions of Virtue and Vice as
we have, (abating for the Difference
between a perfeQly Wife Being, and
a Being whofe Knowledge reaches to
few Things) and yet not make any
greater Diftindion between the Good
and the Bad, than what we fee at
prefent. The Ujidely as I have al-
ready
Sermon xi.
ready proved *, cannot be fufe that
he fliall not continue to Think after he is
dead, and be confcious too of his being
the fame Thinking Perfon he was ;
and therefore he can never be fare
that this Life is not a State of Pro-
bation for another ; and then he may
be a Sufferer afterwards, tho' not
now, by his Infidelity. For it is not
at all inconfiftent with the Notions we
have of Holinefs, that a Holy Be ik g
Ihould permit Wickednefs to thrive
for a Time, and Goodnefs to be the
Sufferer , fuppofmg a Time to come
when the Good and Bad fhall be vi-
fibly diftinguillied by Rewards and Pu-
nifhments ; unlefs any Man could prove
it inconfiftent with Goodnefs to make
a Trial of the Behaviour of Free A^
gents, (which no Body I think will
offer to fay. ) For 'tis certain an ex-
act Difcrimination of the Good and
the Bad by Rewards and Punifhments,
would not be confiflent with any State
pf Probation : i[ the Wicked conftantfy
Y ^ met
r Sec Sermon IX,
32(5 Sermon xi.
met with Vengeance from Heaven for
Ads of Wickednefs, who would dare
to be wicked? And what Merit in
being otherwife? Which is Reafon
enough for a Good Being's not ma-
king any fuch Difference, altho' there
be a real Diiierence between Virtue
and Vice, and altho' this Difference ap-
pears fi/ch to the Supreme Bei ng as
it does to us. We ought rather to judge
from God's making no Diil:inQ:ion at
prefent between Good and Bad Men,
that He intends to do it fome other
Time. That 'tis only delayed for the
prefent, becaufe fuch a Diftindion would
not ferve the Purpofes of trying how
Free Agents would behave themfelves ;
but that when the Time of Trial fliould
be over, which will be at our leaving
this World, that then Virtue fliould
meet with that Happinefs that natu-
rally belongs to it, and Vice the Evil
and Mifery which are its proper Por-
tion. Thefe are fuch necelfary Confe-
quences from the different Natures of
Good and Evil, and from their being ap-
prehended as fuch by the Supreme B e-
Sermon XI.
iNG, that 'tis as impolTible that it Chould
be otherwife, as that Bitter fl:ould have
the fame Efleds as Sweety or Srveet as
Bitter ; Light as Darknefs, or Darkmfs as
Light: And therefore God's Forbear-
ance of Sinners at prefent, is no reafon-
able Ground for the Atheift to build
any fuch Hopes upon, as tho' it muft
dwajs fare as well with him, as it does
now.
327
Y 4 S E R M.
329
SERMON XII.
John XV. 24.
If I had not done among them
the W^orks which none 0-
ther tjMan did^ they had
not had Sin.
a
God,
in the
of our
N the foregoing Difcourfe
I proved, That the Beha^
viour of fuch a Moral A-
gent as Man, could not be
indifferent in the Sight of
becaufe there is a real Difference
Nature of Things between fome
Moral Adions, and others of
them,
330 Sermon Xll.
them, between thofe we call virtuous,
and the vicious ones: and that fuch a
Difference muft appear to the Supreme
Being. The Confequence of which
will be, That it concerns every Man
that has a Regard to his own Wel-
fare, to inform himfelf what Behaviour
will be moft agreeable to Him; and
what will be difpleafing to Him. And
as he has heard of many Perfons who
pretend to have received Inftru^tions
from Heaven, in order to tell Men what
Behaviour God would require at their
Hands, to examine, Whether there be
not Truth in the Pretcnfions of fome
or other of them.
I N Anfwer to this, the Infidel fays,
" He has no Reafon to concern himfelf
" in any Pretenfions to Revelation, be-
caufe he is perfuaded, . .
i/, " T H A T there can be no ratio-?
" nal Proof - given of any Revelation
" from Heaven. ; ^
2dly, That if there were any Means
" of proving, that a Perfon had receiv-
" ed Authority from G o d to difcover
^* fome Truths to Mankind, that all
" fuch
Sermon XII. qc^i
" fuch Difcoveries would be ufelefs or
" imnecefTary ; and therefore cannot
" come from God, becaufe He does
" nothing in vain, or without great
'^ and good Reafons.
-^dly^ " Because there have been
" lb many Pretences to Revelation, and
" all of them pretending to have been
" fupported by the extraordinary Pow-
*' er of God, that there is no finding
" which of them is the true one, i(
'' any fuch were. "
As to the firft Argument againft Re-
velation, '^ That there can be no Ra-
" tional Proof made of any Revelation
" from Heaven ; they fupport it thus:
" That the Nature or Goodnefs of the
" Dodrine which a Man pretends to
" have received from Heaven, will ne-
'' ver of itfelf prove its Extraclion to be
" from thence ; becaufe the fame good
" Dodrines have been taught by tliofe
^^ who never pretended to any Reve-
^' Jation, as well as by thofe that did;
" and therefore that the only Means
" left of proving a Perfon to be a
" Teacher commillioned from Above,
" muif
33^ Sermon XII.
" muft be his doing fome uncommon
*^ Works in Proof of his Commiflion,
** which cannot poflibly be done by
" any Powers that are lodged in Na-
" ture ; by the mere Power of Man, or
" of any Agent inferior in Power to
*' G o D himfelf. " But the Spinofift fays,
*' That extraordinary and uncommon
*^ Works are as much the Efiefts of
" fome Powers of Nature, tho' un-
*' known to us, as thofe that are the
^* moft common, and for that Reafon
^* better known to us ; confequently,
" whenever they happen , they will
" never prove that the Perfon by
" whom they feem to be done, was
" impowered by God, That the Ar-
" gument here ufed by our Saviour
" to prove his Divine MilFion, drawn
^* from the uncommon Works He had
" done among them, as being more
" and greater than any other Per-
** fon had pretended to before him,
" might be a good Argument to the
" "^ews , and make them worthy of
*' Blame in not accepting Him upon
" fuch
Sermon Xil. 333
" fucli an Evidence , becaufe they
^' muft acknowledge fuch uncommon
" Works to be a good Proof of a
" Divine Miflion, their Religion
" being founded upon fuch Kind of
^* Works ; That Origen himfelf thought
*^ our Saviour chofe to come among
*' the Jews rather than any other Na-
*' tion, becaufe they having been ufed
" to Miracles, would be more eafily
" convinced by comparing our Savi-
" our's Works with what they had
" heard of ^. But that in themfelves
" they really prove nothing but our
** Ignorance of the Powers of Nature ;
*' and therefore can never prove, to a
*^ Perfon not prepofTefs'd in Favour of
** Miracles, that God is any more con-
" cerncd in producing them, than He
'* is in any the mod common Appear-
" ances of Nature. '' For S^inofa plain-
ly
* Contra Celfum. Lib. 2. p. jj.
A/a, <niT8 J^' oifjLou )df lif 'Iwa"?/ J» a^Ko%
334 Sermon Xli.
ly places miraculous FaQ:s to the Ac-
count of Mens Ignorance of the Works
of Nature, in thefe Words : MiracuU
t^ ignorantiam fro aquipollentihm fumpCu
And he gives this Reafon for his ma-
king Miracles and Ignorance to be
equivalent Terms ; Quia ij qui Dei Ex-
iflentiam S"^ Religionem miraculii adftruere
conmtnr^ rem oh four urn per alt am magis
ohfcuram i^ quam maxim e ignorant
{viz, the Powers of Nature) ojlendere
volunt^ atque ita novum argumentandi ge^
nus adferunt , redigendo fcilicet non ad
impoffibile^ ut aiunt ^ fed ignorantiam '|\
That is, " We pretend to prove the
" Truth of certain Propofitions, of
*^ which we can judge by our Rea-
'^ fon, by certain wonderful Fafts of
" whofe Caufes we are not able to
" judge at all, and therefore mtift
" be lefs known than the Propofitions*
" which they are intended to prove."
From thence he inferrs, " That Mi-
" racles,
t Epift. ;3-
SerxMOn XII. 535
" racles, the Caufes of which are iin-
" known to us , can never be a Proof
*^ of any Thing, unlefs it were pof-
" fible or allowable to enhghten an
" obfcure Propofition by another that
'' was equally or more obfcure than
" itfelf. " This is the chief Difficulty by
which the Unbeliever pretends to de-
fend himfe4f in not believing any Thing
of our Chriftian Revelation.
However Spnofa being aware that
he might be prelTed with fome extraor-
dinary Fa£ls mentioned in the Go/pels^
fuch as railing Lazarus to Life, after
he muft needs have been dead, having
lain Four Days in the Grave ; and our
Saviour's own Refurreftion, after
He had been known to be really dead
by vaft Numbers of Perfons, who
were Spectators at hjs Crucifixion ; and
by great Numbers who faw him alive
after his Refurredion ; that fuch Facts
as thefe feemed to exceed all the Pow-
ers of Nature, and therefore that Mi-
racles would not be, as he had fup-
pofed, an Argument whofe Strength
lay only in our Ignorance of the
Powers
33<^ S E R xM O N XIL
Powers of Nature ^ He goes on to
fay farther , " That if fome Fads
*' be related in the Gofpelsy which do
" truly exceed all the Powers of Na-
'^ ture, fuch Fads were not real, but
*' ia Appearance only. " Oldenburg had
prefs'd him to declare what he thought
of the Inftantaneous Cures, and the re-
ftoring of dead Bodies to Life again,
of which the Writers of the Go/pels
take Notice, whether thofe could be
the Effeds of fome occult Powers of
Nature, if really performed; or whe-
ther he thought they were to be ta-
ken in a figurative Senfe, or that the
Relators of thefe Fads intended to im-
pofe upon us. Spinofa. would not take
Refuge in the laft of thefe ; but frank-
ly owns, " That he could not deny
*' them to be in earnefl: in the Accounts
" they had given us of thefe Extraor-
*• dinary Works. " The Air of Simpli-
city, and a plain Sincerity which ap-
pears in their manner of Writing, ex-
torted tliis Confeflion from him ; and
therefore he grants in his Anfwer to
Oldenhurg,
Sermon Xli. 337
OUenhoarg ^, " That the Difciples of
^* our Lord were as fully perfuaded that
" they faw their Lord after his Refur-
" region, and at his Afcenfion, as they
" were of having ever feen Him du-
" ring his Life-time ; but that they were
" deceived in believing thofe Appear-
" ances of their Lord after his Death
*^ to have been real; or any thing
" more than Impofitions upon their
*' Senfes. "
I w I L L therefore (hew i/, That the
Extraordinary Works related in the
Gofpels, fuppofing them for the pre-
lent to have been really performed,
would be a fufficient Proof of a Divine
MiiTion.
2My, That the Difciples of our
Lord were well qualified for judging,
whether fome of thefe wonderful Works
were realij^ and not in Appearance only^
done ; and confequently their Teftimo-
ny concernirg fuch Miraculous Paxils,
would be as credible a Teftimony, as
it "would have been concerning any
Z other
* la eadem Epiftoli-
338 Sermon XIL
other Matters of FatEt, of which we
are able to affign a Natural Caufe;
and then a Revelation or Divine Mif-
fion may be made evident and credible
to Men.
1/ , That the Wonderful Works
related in the Go/pels, fuppofing them
for the prefent to have been really
wrought, would be a fuiEcient Proof
of a Divine MiflTion.
But before I proceed to the Proof
of this Propofition, it may not be a-
mifs to fbew the PofTibility of fuch
Works being done, as thofe our Savi-
our appeals to. in my Text, and yet
of not being the Effeds of fome Pow-
ers of Nature. For thofe who deny
the Authority of Miracles, do even de-
ny the Poflibility of them, when con-
fidered as Works done by fome Power
or other , fuperior to Nature, and add-
ing freely upon Nature. But the Rea-
fon of their Denying them, is built up-
on a Suppofition, which is a mere beg-
ging the Qtieition in Difpute between
us and the Atheiji-^ 'viz. That God
is a NecefTary Agent, and therefore
the
Sermon XII. 339
the Laws of Motion muft be neceffa-
rily what they are; for then it would
be true indeed, that all the Effeds of
thofe Laws would be equally natural,
tho' perhaps not equally common, or
coming fo often under human Obfer-
vation : And then fuch extraordinary
Occurrences, when they happened, muft
be as much the Effeds of the Powers
of Nature as any of thofe that are
moft common. But we fuppofe, and
have already proved, That the Motions
of Matter are by no means neceflarily
fuch as they are ; but depend upon an
Intelligent and Free Being, who mo-
ved Matter as He thought fit: And
tho' He chufes an uniform Manner
of ading upon Matter , according to
what we call the Laws of Matter ia
Motion; yet there can be no Diffi-
culty ia conceiving that He may ad
otherwife if He pleafes, as well as we
can conceive that He might have at
firft imprefs'd different Powers upon
Matter from the prefent ones; which
cannot be doubted while the Principle
of Gravifafion that ads upon Matter ,
Z 2 is
54-0 Sermon xii-
is not eflential to it ; for then 'tis plain,
there can be no abfolute Neceffity in
the Nature of Matter for its gravita-
ting at all, much lefs for its gravitating
according to thefe Lavi^s, by which our
Experience tells us it now does ; and
then there can be no Difficulty in con-
ceiving that God may change them
for a jhort Time as well as for a long one,
which makes all the Difference between
Miracles or Works produced only up-
on extraordinary Occafions, and fuch as
are the Effe£ts of the fettled Courfe of
Nature ; for, according to the Religious
Man's Scheme, the Laws of Nature
are nothing more than certain Rules
which God has freely propofed to
himfelf, according to which He would
ufually ad upon or move Matter ;
which ihews tliere could be no Foun-
dation for queftioning the Poflibility of
Miracles, without taking it for grant-
ed that there was no fuch Thing as
a Free Agent, or a Being that ads up-
on Choice. It being then not impof->'
fible that fuch Works fhould have been
performed, as are related in the Gofpeh
altho'
Sermon xii. 341
altho' they were not an EffeQ: of any
Natural Powers of Matter in Motion :
I COME now to fhew that fuch
extraordinary Works, fuppofing them tq
be done, will be a fuiKcient Proof of a
DiWne Miflion; for thefe Two Rea-
fons :
i/, Because they could not be the
natural Effeds of any Laws of Nature
whatever.
2Mj, Because they could not be
done by any inferior Agents indepen-
dently of G o D : For the only Reafons
that can be polTibly given, why the Ex-
traordinary Works related in the Gofpeh^
Ihould not prove, that the Perfon who
appeared to work them, was impow-
erred by G o d, and therefore fent by
Him, muft be either becaufe thefe
Works were as much the Effedls of
Natural Caufes, as any other not fo
much taken Notice of, becaufe not fo
ufual ; or that they might be perform-
ed by fome invifible Agents fuperior in
Power to Man, tho' vaftly inferior to
God.
Z ^ i/. The re
342 Sermon XII.
i/, There is no Ground for fup-i
pofing that the extraordinary Works
related in the Go/pels^ as performed by
our Saviour, were the natural Ef-
fe6:s of any Laws of Nature unknown
to Men; becaufe if they were fuch,
no Reafon can be given,
i/, Why no more of them are
produced. And,
2dlyj Because fuppofing them to
be fo ', yet how fhould our Saviour
come to the Knowledge of them ? Since
they are fuppofed to be unknown to
Men.
ift, I fay, That the Works we are
told to have been done by our Savi-
our, could not be the Effeds of any
Laws of Nature; becaufe no Reafoa
can be given why no more of them
are produced. 'Tis certain, if we take
in all the fretended as well as red Refur-
redions of dead Bodies, with which the
Hiftory of Mankind will furniih us,
that they are exceeding few in Num-
ber ; and if we leave out thofe that
want a due Atteftation, their Number'
will be much fmaller. That Nature
Ihould
Sermon XII. 343
fLould be many Hundreds of Years, I
may fay, many Thoufands, in bring-
ing forth the RefurreQ:ion of a dead
Man; and yet that this fliould be as
natural a Produd of hers, as the Birth
of a Man, which happens every Day,
is what no Body fure can be perfuaded
to believe. As natural as the common
Way of propagating Mankind is, yet if
there had been very few Inftances of
its Succefs in many Ages, we (hould
fcarce have judged the Productions in
that Way a Work of Nature ; becaufe
there is no fuppofing any Thing to be
the real Caufe of an Effed, when it
fcarce ever produces that Effect. 'Tis
not doubted that a real Caufe may be
fometimes defeated by the contrary a6:-
ings of other Caufes ; but that it liiould
be almoft always fo, is what ca^ ncr
ver be reconciled with thofe Signatures
of Wifdom and Contrivance, which ap-
pear in all thofe Parts of Nature, with
which we are beft acquainted ^. An^
tho' the Mheifl will not allow them to
Z 4 be
* See Serm. X.
344- Sermon xil.
be the Products of an Intelligent Be-"
IN G, yet he will not deny that there
is any Regularity in the Productions of
Nature, or that generally fpeaking, na-
tural Caufes do produce their proper
EiTeds ; but no Body will fay there can
be regular Produdlions, when the Caufes
of thofe Productions fliall fail a Million
of times for once fucceeding.
I DO not deny that many natural
EffeiCts may have pafsM upon the World
for Prodigies, becaufe Men have not
been always careful in obferving the
"Workings of Nature, and that more ac-
curate Inquiries have juftly enough
thrown many of them out of the Num-
ber of fuch Works as exceeded its Pow-
er : That many Things, if feldom taken
Notice of, have pafs'd upon the World
for Prodigies or fuper-'hatural Effeds in
fome illiterate Ages, which are now ac-
counted for by the ordinary Laws o£
Nature. But then 'tis alfo to be con-
fidered, that it has not been for Want
of obferving the Nature of ^ead Bodies,
that the RefurreClion of fucli Bodies
has pafs'd for a Prodigy , but be-
qaufe
Sermon xil. 345
caufe Men were well afTured by a con-
tinued Obfervation of them, that it was
not the Nature of fuch Bodies to fpring
out of their Graves, as Corn does out
of the Ground ; and becaufe in all their
Obfervation and Reading, they had met
with exceeding few Inllances of this
Nature, and therefore rightly judged,
that Nature was not qualified for ma-
king dead CarcafTes to fpring out of
the Ground. For whatever occult Qua-
lities there may be ia the Nature of
Things, yet they might eafily fee that
if any Thing fell out dire£lly contrary
to the conftant and fettled Courfe of
Things, or that a dead Body fliould
become a livif^g one, inftead of a //V-
ffig Body becoming a dead one, that
this could not be a mere Effed of the
Laws of Nature ; but muft have fome
Caufe fuperior to thofe Laws, that was
able to ad upon Matter in a different
Manner from wliat was ufual. Some
Caufe that had chofen to acl for the
moft Part upon Matter in an uniform
Manner, and yet referved to itfelf a
Liberty,
34^ Serimon XII.
Liberty, upon fome Occafions, of de-
parting from that Rule. But,
2i/j, Supposing fome of thofe Ex-
trordinary Works which feemed to be
done at our Saviour's Command,
becaufe they appeared immediately up-
on his Speaking, as in his Inftantaneous
Cures of Blind, Lame, and Sick People ;
fuppofing, I fay, thefe to have been
merely EfFeds of fome fecret Laws or
Powers ia Nature, there ftill remains
a great DiiBculty ia accounting for thefe
Miracles, and that is. How our Sa-
viour could know, when thefe un-
known Powers would exert themfelves ?
He foretold before his Death, That af-
ter he had been laid in his Grave, He
Ihould rife out of it the third Day.
Taking it for granted, that the Refur-
redion of a Man falls within the Com-
pafs of the Powers of Nature, tho' un-
known to us, becaufe they feldom ap-
pear, it would be natural to ask this
Qucftion, How our Saviour could
know that the Laws of Nature would
be ready to reftore a dead Body to
Life again juft at that Time v/hcn He
had
Sermon xil. 347
had foretold He ihould rife again?
There had been Millions and Millions,
of Bodies, that had lain very quiet in
their Graves for many Ages, and no
Hiftorical Obfervations could pofTibly
Jiave furnillied our Saviour with any
Light, whereby to difcover when Na-
ture would be ftrong enough to raife
a dead Body; becaufe the Inftances
mufl: have been too few to afford any
Ground for forming a Judgment upon
them. When He raifed Lazarus out of
his Grave, it feems to be as impofTible
that he fliould know that Nature would
have Power to reflore him to Life
again juft at that Time when he called
to him to come out of his Grave, as .
it would be for a mere Man by liis
own Natural Powers, to reftore a dead
Body to Life again. So again. What
could have induced our Saviour to
have attempted the giving Sight to a
Perfon that had been blind from his
Birth, had He trufted to the Powers
of Nature for the Succefs of that Ope-
ration ? When there had not been at
that Time one Inftance from the Crea^ .
tioa
^48 Sermon XIL
tion of the World, of a Perfon's Seeing
that had been born bh'nd ; Swce the
World begitn was it not heard^ that any
Maff opened the Eyes of one that was born
blind ^. How our Saviour fhould be
poilefs'd of a Piece of Knowledge which
no Body has ever had either before or
fince his Time, and is confefs'd by the
Spinoftjl to be a Secret which he pre-
tends not to fathom, is what he ought
to give fome Account of. Till fuch
Time, we have a Right to infift upon
it, That thofe Inftantaneous Cures our
Saviour performed upon the Perfon
born blind, upon the Dumb and Deaf,
upon the Sick of various Diftempers,
and even upon fuch as were really dead,
fhould be taken for fome uncommon
Exercifes of the Power of God, and
not for any Natural Effe£i:s of certain
Powers of Nature.
2dly^ Having fhewn that fome
Miraculous Works mentioned in our
Gofpels, fuppofing them to have been
really performed, could not be the Ef-
fects
* John IX. 32,
SeR MOIST xil. 349
fe£ls of any Powers of Nature, I am
now to flaew, That fuch Works could
not be performed by any Agents infe-
rior to God ; and for this plain Rea-
on, Becaufe fome of them, as for In-
ftance, the raifing a Body to Life that
has been once really dead, requires as
great a Power as the giving Life at
firfl: to fuch a Body. For, if we can
judge at all , it will require as great
a Power to reftore a Piece of Matter
to Life again, when that Organization
is fpoiled which was necefTary to Life,
tho' it had been before animated, as to
animate any Parcel of Matter, that ne-
ver had any of the Organs necelTary
for Life. And therefore the fame Pow-
er, which could re-animate a Body that
was reduced to an inanimate State,
would be fufficient for animating any
^ Part of Matter whatfoever. But what-
ever Extraordinary Works may be done,
whether really or in appearance, by any
Invifible Agents inferior to the Supreme
Being, yet fo long as the Daft be-
lieves him to be the Maker of the
World, and of all Things that are con-
tained
g^o Sermon XII.
tamed in it, he cannot believe any In-
feriour Beings to have a natural Power,
or a Power independent upon God, of
making any new Species of Animals,
or of forming any Individuals out of
lifelefs Matter, of the fame Species with
the prefent ones of God's making \ be-
caufe a Power lodged in any Hands
different from thofe of the Creator,
of encreafing the Number of Animals
in any other way than of His Appoint-
ment, would be inconfiftent with the
Oeconomy of the World, and the Fit-
nefs of Provifions, both with Regard
to the Qiiantity and Quality of them,
for the Ufe of fuch Animals. For there
is no conceiving how there fhould be
fuch an exa6^ Adjuftment of Provifions
for the Animate Part of the World, as
I have already fhewn there is ^, with-
out fuppofing that there was fome In-
telligent Being, who had calculated
what Qiiantity of Provifions would be
neceifary for fupplying the AVants of
fuch- -a Number of Animals, as He in-
tended
Sc» Sermon X
Sermon xii. 351
tended fhould dwell upon the Face of
the Earth. And it cannot be fup-
pofed that God would furnilh any of
his Creatur'es with a Power of difturb-
ing his own Plan, and making it un-
becoming his Wifdom to execute.
If there have been any Inftances
pretended of the Exercife of fuch a
Power by inferior Agents without
G 0 d's AfTiftance, becaufe in Oppofition
to Him ; as in the Cafe of the JEgyp.
^Un Magicians, and of A^ollonim\ raif.
xng a Lady to Life in Rome when Ihe
was carrying to the Funeral Pile :
I Answer, That as to ih^ Inflance
of the Magicians, there is no Evidence
that their Performances were more thaa
Delufory or in Appearance : The Works
which they did, as well as Mofes, were
thefeTwo; the turning their Rods in-
to Serpents, and bringing Frogs upon
the Land of %/? : Thefe are the on-
ly Wonders performed hy the JEgypUns,
that have any Pretence to the making
any of the AnimAte Kind : And yet
neither of thefe Inftances will prove,
that they had a Power of giving Life
to
352 Sermon xil.
to Lifelefs Matter. For as to the firft,
njiz. the Converfion of their Rods into
Serpents ; we have no Reafon 'to think
that this was a real Change or Con-
verfion into a living Creature ; becaufe
we finc{ that AAYon\ Rod, after it had
beeji at two different Times converted
into a Serpent ; this fame Rod, I fay,
was ever after called by the Writer of
the Book of Exodusy a Rod or Wand,
and employed to the Purpofes of a
Rod '?-, The Rod which was turned into a
Serfenty Jbdt thou take' in thine Hand,
and Verfe 17, 'tis employed as a Rod to
fmite upon the Waters; Chap. viii. 16..
it was ufed in fmiting the Duft of tht
Land. So as after it had been twice
a Serpent, it refumed its primitive Na^-
ture of a Rod, and this too without
the Help of any miraculous Change, ^s
far as appears by the Hiftory ; and
feems to have continued in that State
ever after. But however it might have
been with Jaronh Rod, yet had the
Magicians Converfion of their Rod in-
t6
* Exodiif, Chap. IV. and Chap. VH. y. JS-
Sermon XIL 353
to a Serpent, been a real Change, it
would be hard to give a Reafon, why
they were not able to form Lice out
of the Diift, as well as a Serpent out
of tJieir wooden Wand : For as to the
firft of thefe, the Magicians immediate-
ly cry\i, as foon as they faw it, That
it XV AS the Finger of GoD, and did not
pretend to any Thing like it. And yet
no Body will pretend to fee more
Difficulty in animating Duft than m
giving Ufe to a Piece of dead
Wood.
As to the fecond Inftance, the Scri-
ptures fay nothing of Frogs being made
by the Incantations of the Magicians, ^
but only that they brought them out
of the Water upon the Land ; which
certainly may be done without the
Power of forming fuch Animals as
Frogs. The laft Inftance is that of
Apollonius of Ty.tna^ railing a Lady to
Life that had been carried cut for
dead. The Account which Vhihjlratus
gives of it, tiio' he was well inclined
to do all the Honour he could to
Apc!loniu<j ihevvs it to be very doubC»
A a fal,
354 Sermon XII.
ful, whether the Lady was really dead
or only in a Trance. " For, fays he,
'" whether there was any Spark of Life
" left in her, which her Phyficians did
'^ not perceive, or whether flie was
" really dead, Is a Matter of Doubt
^' not only to me, but was fuch to
" thofe who were prefent when JpoU
" lomus feemed to bring her to Life
" again *". And therefore this Inftanc'e,
any more than the former, will never
have "Weight enough to prove, that
any inferior Agents have a Power, in-
dependent of God, of giving Life, or
making new Individuals. Confequent-
ly, it cannot invalidate my Proof of a
Divine Miffion, drawn from the Exer-
cife of fuch a Power as that of giving
Life to a dead Body.
If
rj&^Tyx"^/*'- Philoftrat. de vita Apollonii Tyan.
Lib. IV. cap. 45-
SerxMOn XII. 35$
If we may believe Mr. Bayle ^j,
Spimfa hlmkli acknowledged , if lie
could have believed the Matter of Fa6t
of LazATus^s being raifed to Life again,
after he had been really dead, that lie
would have given up his Syflem of
infidelity, owned our -Saviour's Mif-
fion to have been from (j o d, and em-
braced the Chriftian Faith. Mr. Bayle.
tells us, That Spimfa confelTed tliis tp.
fome of his moft intimate Friends. We^
cannot doubt whether Sfinofa had hear^
of the Account that Phlofiratus has
given of Jpollonius raifing a Rcm^i»Ld.dy
to Life ; whether he believed any moi'e
of this than he did of our Saviour's
raifing Lazarus to Life 5 yet thus much
may be inferred from this ConfefTion of
his, which is all I want it for at pre-
fent, That if good Proof could be made
of any fuch Fad, it would be a good
Evidence of a Divine Million.
Having finilhed the Proof of Mi-
racles, and fliewn, That fome of the
Works which our Saviour is faid
A a 2 to
* Bayle Hil^or. DIft. voce Splnofa.
> (Y JIa a o h
3$<5 .;f{^9f!;SERM0N XII.
to have done, could not be the B&
fe£ls of any Powers of Nature, nor of
any Agent inferior to G o d,
*'T AM to fhewj^^^^/j, That the Dif-
ciples of our L ok d were quali%dNfor
judging, Whether fucli Works v<m^
really done or not; particularly v?it;Ji
Regard to his Refurrection, that they
were able to judge, whether it was Kedy
or only in Appearance, For I canijot find
that Spinafa doul^ted, whether the Apo-
ftles were fincere Perfons , and fpoke
what themfelves believed to be true.
The ObjeOiion which 0/^;;^//r_^ had made
to him upon this Head, and his Anfwer
to it , fuppofes him fatisHed of their
Sincerity : For thus he fays ^^ At 'Sees
Apoflolos omms ommno credidijfey quodChru
(itis a morte refurrexerit^ quod ego fion mgo^
And he fays farther t, " That the Cir-
" cumftancesofour Saviour's Appearing
'* to his Difciples were fo ftrong, that he
*' does not only fay, that they believed
f^ what they reported of his Appearing to
*' them J but that even Infddi would have
" thought
* Eplft. 23. t Ibid. 25.
Sermon Xii. 357
*^ dioughl: they had feen him, if they had
" been prefent in thofe Places in which
" He appeared to his Difciples. " Fa^eor
quidtm banc viz,, Kefurre^ionem^ iis'narrari
circumftamiSy ut negtire npn fojjimus ipfos
Evangeliflas credidijfe Cljfijli corpus refu^r
rexfjfe, & quod df> hfidelibus etiam potuijfep
VfdeHy f - una in iis locis adfuiffent in qui^
bus i^fe Chrijlus difcipuUs app^ruif. This
I think is fpeaking fully in Behalf of the
Sincerity of our W itnejOTes, and of tlie
Motives too of their Belief in the Re-
furreftion ; tho' after all thefe Concef-
fions, he will have it, that the Difciples
might be deceived, aiid take an Ap-
pearance for a Truth, * I have therefore
nothing more to do, but to flaew from
th^ Circumftances they give of this
Fad, that they could .not be deceived
as to the Fad of the Refurredion ;
that they muft have been able to di-
^iftinguifh their real Mafter from his
Sj-Cyhoft or Apparition.
tr In the Morning immediately after
(.the Sabbath was over, certain Women
r went with Spices to embalm our Sa-
viour's Body ; when they carae to. the
.^^^^ 3 Sepulchre.
3$8 Sermon Xll;
Sepulchre, they found the Stone rolled
away, tho' they could not imagine by
whom ; they went into the Grave,
and were in a great Confternation upon
not finding cur Saviour's Body there ;
they went and told this to Two of his
Difciples, who went to the Sepulchre,
and found what the Women had told
them to be true ; no Bodj there, only
the Burying-Cloaths to be found. Thus
far then mufl be evident to them, That
the Body was not in the Sepulchre,
whatever was the Caufe of its Re-
moval : This is a Matter of Fad, of
which no Body will deny they might
be good WitnelTes : The only Difficul-
ty that can be made, is, Whether the
Appearances of our Saviour to his
Difciples were real^ or only imagimty.
It muft be obferved, from the Account
which all our Evangelifts give of this
Matter, that the Difciples were fa far
from being credulous, or ready to be-
lieve that their Mafter was rifen, that
they all rejedcd the Story of the Wo-
men, concerning his being rifen to Life,
as2n idle Tale; They might therefore
.^ A be
Sermon XIL 359
be capable of being good WitneiTes,
when they witneffed agdnft their Pre*
judices. But let us fee what Reafons
prevailed upon them, prejudiced as they
were, to believe that He was really ri-
{Qn ; and whether fuch Reafons would
not have determined any Reafonable
Man to believe as they did. They faw
him at feveral Times, knew thzt He
was exaftly Hke that Perfon, whoiti
they faw t'other Day hanging upon a
Crofs : They heard him talk often with
them, they knew 'twas fo hke their
Mailer's Voice, that they did not doubt
they as really heard him talk, after
He was dead, as they had done, while
He was alive ^ and as if the Teftimo-
ny of two of their Senfes was not a
fufficient Proof of his being their ol(|
Mafter , One of them , viz, Thomas
was fo incredulous, that he declared'
he would not believe it was really his
Mafter, unlefs he might not only fee
in his Hands the Marks of the Nails,
with which the Jews had faftned them
to the Crofs, hut alio thrujihis fingers
into the Hc^leSf and thrufi his Hand into
A a 4 hh
3<5o S E R M O N XII.
his Sid^j that had been wounded by the
Spear. Thomas was gratified in all this,;
and convinced that it was not an Appa-
rition that only counterfeited the Afped
and Voice of his Mafter, but really and
truly his Mafler raifed to Life again ;
for by touching and handling his Mafter,
he had a farther Evidence that it was hisi
Mafter, and not an Apparition, becaufe-
fuch h/tve not fk^j and. Boim^ as Thomas
found his Mafter had, and therefore
cried out for Joy, My Lo r d^ ^nd. my
God. He did not appear to his Dif-
ciples once, twice, or thrice, but a
great many Times before his Afcenfion ;
and thefe Appearances were not fhort
and tranfient, but in fome of them H«
ftaid lb long with them, as to eat and
drink with them ; fo as they had fuf-
ficient Opportunities, and Time enough
for examining, whether it was He or
not; and at laft they faw the fame
Perfcn whom they had fo o^ten feen,
parted from them, and afcending up
into Heaven. If after all this Evi-
dence , thefe Witneffes were deceived,
we mull give up the Teftimony of
the
Sermon XH- 5^5%
the Senfes as not. td be depended on
in any Cafe whatever; and die Sfin(Mt.
fift might, if. he had pleafedj with >as
good Reafon have faid, That the Dil^
ciples of our L o ii d were deceived in
believing their Mafter was any Thing-
more than a Man i» Jpi>earance only evejf
before Crucifixion ; 'till he is pleafed to
tell us what Sort of Evidence he would
have infifted upon, which theApoftles-
had not. ; Lrct
I T will not be fufficient to fay, That
I have allowed tjie Magicians Rods to
be only in Appearance turned into Ser-
pents, and yet no doubt the Standers
by were as fully perfuaded that the
Rods were really become Serpents, as
the Apoftles were that they faw their
Lord, when they faw his j4pparmo;i>y
Becaufe we don't find that the Standers
by were difficult in believing the Con-
verfion of the Magicians Rods, and
therefore not careful in examining;
whether it was fo or not. Whereas
in this Inftance of the Refurreftion, Kjs
Difciples were averfe to beheving ii
true, and therefore nice in thbir Exi-
^'' mination : .
^62 Sermon XII.
mination ; they had feveral Opportu-
nities at different Times of feeing our
Saviour ; whereas this Converfion of
the Magicians Rod was once made, and
quickly deftroycd by Aaron's Rod, fo
Ijhat there was not much Time allowed
for examining the Truth of that Ap-
pearance; and there was no Necellity
for Mofds\ difcovering that the Change
was not rul ; becaufe their Rods being
made to difappear by Aaron's Rod, was
a fu&ient Confutation of the Power
\yj which the Magicians a8:ed, altha'
the Converfion in both Cafes had been
only m ifpearance.
If it be faid, That had our Saviour
really rifen with the fame Body He
laid down in the Grave, the Two Dif-
cipies of his whom He joyned as they
were travelling to Emmaus^ muft have
fenown iiim, becaufe they both faw
Jiini, ?jid hctd a long Difcourfe with
him. Our Anfwer is, That St. Mark
|;ells us, our Saviour appeared to
them i* Wif^ i^oe(pir, in a different Drefs
from what thofe Difcipies had been
>\fed to fee hiro in j as He appeared at
another
Sermon Xll. ^6^
another Thtie to Mary Magdalen in the
Habit of a Gardmer. That it often
happens that we do not know out
moft intimate Friends, when they have
difguis'd themfelves with a Defign to
he concealed from us ; efpecially if we
meet them at a Place or Time, when and
wikre we not only did not expeffc to
fee them, but were fully perfuaded they
were at that Time in another Place;
\^hich was plainly the Cafe of the Two
Difciples with Regard to our Sa-
viour: For notwithftanding the Re-
port the Women had made to them of
his being living, they feem to have
fcelieved nothing of the Matter, and
therefore could have no Thoughts
of meeting upon the Road a Perfon
whom they did not believe to be alive :
And then 'tis very poflible, they might
entertain no Sufpicion of its being their
MaJIer^ altho' the Perfon tliey faw and
converfed with, might very much re-
femble him, both in his Afped and his
Voice. And therefore nothing can be
inferred from this Fad, to the Preju-
dice of a red Refurredioji : Nothing
that
364 Sermon XII.
that ought to hinder us from coticlu-'
ding, That if after thofe frequent Occa-
iSons which the Difciples of our LoRi^i^'
hdid of feeing Him, of eating and drink-
ing with Him, of handling Him after
|iis Refurredion, their Teftimony of
of his being alive might ftill be falfe ;
they muft have been Deceivers,, and be-
lieved nothing themfelves of the Fads
they tell us : But Sj/inofa has. already
acquitted them from any Defign of im-»
poling upon us ; confequently, our Sa-
.viouR muft have really rifen ^gain,
and not iti Jppearame only : But by «S'^/-
yjofa^s Confeflion, fuch a Faft exceeding
all the Powers of Nature, muft have
God for its Author. Which is enough
to fhew, That fome uncommon Works
may be a good Proof of a Divine Mifr
fion : and therefore that it cannot be a
good Reafon for refufing a feir Exami^
nation to any Revelation, to plead, Tljat
there is no other Way of Proving it
fuch, but by fome Extraordinary or yn^
common Works.
HOUMfLC
moSi
3<^5
SERMON XIII.
ijc
I Cor. X 21.
'.•••■'ii!
For after that, in the Wif
dom of God, the World
hy JVifdom knew not God,*
it pJeafed God iy the
fooUjhnefs of Preaching to
fave them that believe.
HE Dcfign of our Apoftle
in this Chapter was, to
mortify fome Perfons, who
at that Time pretended to
'*' defpife the Chriitian Reli-
gion, becaufe of its Plainnefs and Sim-
plicity. Befides many other Exceptions
"^"they madcagainftitj fuch as the mean
Eftate
'^66 Sermon xili.
Eftate of its firft Author , and his '
dying fo much like a common Male-^
fador, they were not a little offended
at it, becaufe its Profeffors did not
give their Dodrines the Air and Turn
of the Schools, nor proved them from
any of the then admired Principles of
Truth; but required Men to take them
upon the Credit and Authority of one
Jesus, whom they affirmed to have
been fent on Purpofe by God to pub-
lifh them to the World: They expe-
fted to have had the Immortality of
the Soul, a Refurredion, and fuch-like
Doctrines made out to them from Prin-
ciples of Reafon and Philofophy ; for, as
the Apoftle tells us. They fought after
Wifdom^ v. 22. with which goodly Title
they were wont to dignify their Spe-
culations in Philofophy ; but when they
found the Apoftles were Perfons alto-
gether unacquainted with any of their
Syftems, the then reputed Standards of
Truth and good Senfe ; and that they
chiefly infilled upon the Authority of
their Master, they flighted their
Preacliing, as fit only for the Enter-
tainment
Sermon XIII. ^5/
tainment of the illiterate and credulous
Part of Mankind J the Authority of a
Mailer, efpecially of One that came to
ib bad an End, appeared to them to
be no better than Foolifhnefs, or foohfh
Talking. Christ crucified ^ to the
Greeks FooUfhuejs^ v. 2j. As an An-
fwer to this Way of Reafoning, St. Faul
tells them, That if Chriftianity was FooU
ifhmjs, it was only fuch to thofe who
perifhed by rejefting it ; but as to thofe
who embraced it, it was the Power of
God, and the Wifdom of God : And
as a Proof of the Truth of what he
faid, he bids his Corinthians ask thefe
vain Men, What they with all their
Wifdom had done towards bringing the
World to a true Senfe of Religion, and
whether they could fhew any fuch Ef-
fects of their Inftrudions, as were eve-
ry Day produced by the Preaching of
the Gofpel ? Where is the Wife ? Where is
the Scribe ? Where is the Difiuter of this
Ags^ Hath not God made foolifh the
Wifdom of this World ? v. iK>. Of which
he gives an undeniable Inllance, Tlmt
after all their Attempts, and all their
boafted
368 Sermon XilL
boafted Wifdom, they were not got fo
far as to know the ObjeQ: of their Wor-
fliip aright ; or, allowing fome Few of
them to have had juft Notions of the
Deity, that yet they were never able
to propagate any of them among the
Reft of the World. And therefore as
the Way of Wifdom and Knowledge
had not fufliciently anfwered the Pur-
pofes of informing the Bulk of Man-
kind in their Duty, he tells them,
God was pleafed to proceed with Men
after a new Method, and to bring them
to Himfelf and an holy Life, without
profound Kj^owledge^ in a Way of Be-
lieving, For after that, in the Wtfdom of
God, the World by Wifdom knew not God,
it f leafed Gob hy the Foolijhnefs of Preach^
ing to fave them that believe.
From the Text thus explained, I
fhall take an Occafion of comparing to-
gether thefe two different Ways of In-
Itrudion, by Faith, and Reafon : And
after having eftablifhed the Reafonable-
nefs of fubmitting to the Inftruiiions
of Faith , fhew, That this is on ma-
ny Accounts better fitted for Teaching
Men
Sermon- Xlll. 3^9
Men their Duty, and the Principles that
enforce ky than Reafon or Phiiofophy :
And coiifequendy) tho' the Nature and
Will of God, as far as is necelTary to
be known, was diiccverable (as the D^//
fays]) by Natural Light ; yet a Reve-
lation might be of great Ufe to Man-
kind ; and therefore fuch a Method of
Inftrudion not unworthy or unbecom*
ing the Wifdom of G o d.
I HAVE already obferved, That the
Reafons by which . the Deiji pretends
to defend himlelf, while he rejects Re-
velation, without giving it a fair Hear-
ing, arc thefe :
i/, *' That there is no proving
a Revelation, but by Miracles; and
that Miracles will never prove any
Thing but .our own Ignorance.
2dly, ^^ Th AT if they could be made
to prove Something, they could not
prove a Revelation, becaiife a Reve-
lation would be ufelefs, and therefore
cannot have God for its Author, who
*' does nothing in vain, or without good
** Reafon.
B b jdly, Be* .
370 Sermon XIII.
^dly, " Because there are fo ma-
^* -ny Pretences to Revelation, all of
" them pretending to be fupported by
" the Extraordinary Power of God,
^ " that there is no difcovering which
" of them is the true one, if any fiich
*' were."
These are the Difficulties which
hinder him, as he pretends, from be-
lieving as we do.
•'As to the firft ofthefe, I have con-
fidered it already ^. The fecond Difii-
iculty they fupport by thefe two Rea-
fons : I * " Becaufe Authority cannot be
*^ a fufficient Ground to form a Ra-
" tional AHent upon. 2. Becaufe what-
" ever is needful to be known in Re-
*• ligious Matters, may be found out
*' by Reafon and Difcourfe."
I SHALL therefore fliew i/, That
Authority may be a good Reafon for
giving our Affent to a Propofition.
i?^/y. That a Revelation is better
fitted on many Accounts for Teaching
Men their Duty, than Reafon or Phi-
lofophj.
* SecScrra. XII.
Sermon XIII. 37 r
lofofhy : And therefore that 'tis not un-
becoming the Wifdom of God 'to
make one.
iff. The Reafonablenefs of Believing,
or the Reafonablenefs of fuch a Perfua-
fion, as is entirely built upon Faith or
Authority, is to be proved. By a Perfuafi-
on formed upon Fai(h or Authority, in Di-
ftindion from a Perfuafion that refts up-
on Reafon only ; I mean, a Perfuafion,
That a Propofition is true, altho' our
Reafon cannot difcover any necelTary
Agreement between the Parts of the
Propofition ; but believes them to be
truly conne8:ed, becaufe we are told as
much; fo as if God reveals a Propo-
fition to us, which Natural Reafon dif.
covers to be evidently and neceffarily
true, as He has done in the Moral Law ;
all fuch as do evidently perceive it to
be true, can't be properly faid to take it
for a Truth upon Faith, or the Authority
of G o D, but upon the Reafon and Evi-
dence of the Thing : becaufe where the
Proof is clear and evident, the Reafon
of Aflent will be refolved into its Evi-
dence, not into the Authority of the
B b 2 Perfon
\
2^72 Sermon XlII.
Perfon who relates It to us for a TrutL
And therefore when a certain f Au-
thor tells us, '' We neither ought, nor
" can AfTent to any Propofition, till the
." Mind does thoroughly underftand, and
"evidently perceive it to be true;"
-he efre£lually excludes Authority from
being any Reafon of our Aflent j it be-
ing then only that our AlTent proceeds
from a Principle of Faith, when 'tis giv-
en before any fuch Evidence appears.
God had left Mankind, except a
very fmall Part, the jF^iv/, almoft with-
out any other Diredions, than what
Natural Reafon could furnifli them
with. For excepting fome few Tradi-
tions, fuch as thofe concerning the For-
mation of the Earth, and the Drown-
ing it by a Deluge of Waters, and fome
others, (which too had the ufual Fate
of Dodrines conveyed in the Way of
Tradition, viz, of being fo confounded
with Fable and Story, that to difcover
how much of them was true, what added
to the Original Tradition, was near as
difficult,
; ^ II
t Chrillianity not Myfterious.
Sermon XIII. 373
difficult, as it would have been to have
difcovered thofe Truths without the
Help of any Tradition ;) excepting fome
few Traditions, whatever they found
put, was in a Way of Reafon and Phi-
iojophy^' by fuch Inferences as Keafon wa^
able to draw from its own Principles.
God fent no Prophets amongft them
to declare authoritatively what their
Duty was, but every one was to find
it out as well as he could. Not but that
He raifed up Great and Learned Men,
fuch as many of the Philofophers in tlie
feveral Seels were, to be the Interpre-
ters of Duty to the People, and perhaps
aflifted them too in thofe great Difco-
veries they made concerning Himfelf,
and their Duty to Him ; but then God
did all this in a Way of Reafon and
human Wifdom : They never pretend-
ed they had them from G o d, or urged
Men to the Belief of them on that Ac-
count ; the only Arguments they infill-
ed on , were fuch rational Deductions
from the Nature of Things, as Reafon
^nd Obfervation might have furnifl^ed
them \yith. But notwithftanding all
B b ^ their
374 S'feRMoN xin.
th'etr 'wife Inftruflions, and the Difco-
veries made by them concerning tW
Object of Worfhip; yet we find th#
Bulk of Mankind made fmall Improve-'
ments under them •, for St. P^/// tells us,
the World with all its Wifdom was not
gotten fo far, as to know the True
God; and therefore God obferving
the fmall Proficiency Men made under
this Sort of Teachers, was pleafed to
take it upon Himfelf to teach Mankind,
and free them from the Trouble of
Searching what their Duty was, by long
and elaborate Dedudions from Princi-
ples of Reafon ; that now they fliould
"rely upon his Credit for fucli Truths
-as they wanted to be fatisfied in ; that
they fhould have His Authority for a
Proof, inftead of thofe tedious, and of-
ten Times flippery Inferences from Rea-
fon, or thofe much more uncertain and
ill-grounded Traditions, which tverethe
'beft Means they had of coming at the
Knowledge of fome Truths of the great-
eft Importance.
One would think that Mankind
fhould have received this Method of
id a being
Sermon xiil 375
being Taught byGop with the great-
efl: Satis&aion, and a due Senle of
their Obligations to G o d their Teach-
er ; that no one iliould have puf Him
upon proving what He alTerted, before
they could beheve Him ; that his Ve-
racity, whom Natural Reafon difcovers
to be too Wife to be impoled upon
flimfelfy and too Good to impofe upoqi
others^ fliould have removed all Objer
Sions againft fuch a Method of Inftru-
£lion : And yet fame People pretend to
affure us, That Alfent given to what
we don't thoroughly underfland, tho'
Supported by the greateft Authority, is
repugnant to the Nature of a Rational
Being : That clear and diftiiiQ: Idea^
iire ;to the Underifanding, what Light
and a fit Medium are to the Eye; and
that a Man may as well fee an ObjeQ:,
when either of thefe are wanting, as
the Mind aflent to any Truth, of whidi
|t has not clear and dilfin^i Ideas :
Tliat Authority, as fuch, being a Thing
foreign to the Propofition, to which we
give our Aifent, and not making it more
intelligible than it was before, cannot
B b 4 therefore
37^ Sermon XIII.
therefore induce a Rational AITent ; and
confequently , that the Obedience of
Faith, and Refignation of Underftand-
in^y fo much talk'd of, are a perfe^
Contradiftion to the Nature of an hu-
man Mind. '^^
I F tliis Objedion were juft, it would
not be eafy to make out what the Apo-
ftle contends for, viz. The Preferable-
nefs of the Way of Faith above that of
Wrfdomy for the Salvation of Mankind.
For, li all Affent muft be refolved into
clear and diftin6l Ideas as the fole Caufe
of it, and no Man could Affent, 'till
he had fuch Ideas ; there would be no
Room left for Affenting upon a Princi-
ple of Faith ; for, as I before obferved,
all Propofitions of Faith, properly fo
called, do fuppofe that the Peribn to
whom they are fuch, does not tliorougli-
ly underfland them. That all Affent
muft be grounded on fome Kind of
Evidence or other, is very certain ; and
alfo that a Man muft have a clear and
diftinfl: Perception of the Senfe of a
Propofition, before lie can give any Af-
fent to it J otherwife he would Ai^cm
Sermon Xllt. gff
to he knows not what: But then it
does not follow that a Man can't give
his AiTent, 'till he is able to iind out
thofe Proofs, which ihew the Connexi-
on and Agreement between the Parts
of the Propofition ; for why may not
Authority, affirming the Truth of
a Propofition, be a fuiBcient Evidence
to warrant our Ailent ? 'Tis true.
Authority , as fuch , does not help*
us to underftand the Propofition bet-
ter than we did before ; and yet
the Opinion we may have of the Per-
fon's "Skill and Veracity, who tells us
tlie Propofition is true, may be to us,
who have this Opinion of him, a pro-
bable Evidence of its Truth, and a Ra-
tional Ground of Perfuafion. For no
one can doubt, whether a Man may not
rationally enough give his Aifent to the
Truth of any one Propofition in Euclid^
if he underilands the Terms of it, al-
tho', being unacquainted with that Sci-
ence, he may not be able to demon-
ftrate it ; and yet the only Ground of
his Affent, in luch Cafe, would be the
Authority of fome Perfon, whom he
believed
37^ Sermon XIIL
believed able to do it. For the iarae
Reafoii, tho' we are far from having
any clear and diftinft Ideas of a Re«
furredion, and can fee no Connexion
between our dying and rifnig to Life
again, yet we may Affent to this PrOf
pofition, That the Dead fhall Hve again,
i^ we be once fatisfied that the Perfon
who tells us it fhall be fo, is a Lover
of Truth, and able to conned the Parts
<jf this Propofition. And therefore ^
clear and diftincl Underilanding of a
Truth, cannot be previoufly necef-
fary to every AiTent of the Mind of
. Man.
If we fhould alfo confider the li*
mited Nature of our Faculties , that
they fall vaftly fhort of reaching the
whole Extent of Being ; that there are
few Things about which we can cer-
tainly determine ; many Trutlis of great
Importance to us, for which in a Way
of Reafon we fhould want evident
Proofs ; that there are many more,
which the Generality of Mankind would
fcarce be capable of underftanding ,
for want of Skill to ufe fuch Proofs as
Reafon
Sermon XIII.
Reafon difcovei"s : Confidering ail this,
one might think it no Injury done to
any Man's Underftanding, i{ he receiv-
ed thefe Truths in a more certain^ and
much eafier Way, as I fhall prefently
fhew, from the Etei*nal Fountain of
Knowledge. For no Body, I thinkv
would blame a Perfon who was fenfi-
ble of a DeteQ: in his Eye-fight, for
believing the Report of anotlier upon
the Subjed of Seeir>g, if he thought
him to be an honejR: Man, and to have
better Eyes than hrmfelf ; and yet the
Report of fuch a Perfon does not help
him to fee the Thing better, than he
did before. But,
■ 2%, I Proceed to fhew fome of
the Advantages of this Way of Teach-
ing the World by Faith, above that of
Reafon : As,
i/, Upon account of its Certainty;
Whilil Mankind was left to the Dire-
Qions of Natural Reafon, we meet
%ith nothing but Uncertainty and Ir-
refolution about Truths of the Kigheft
Concern; they were perpetually Dif-
puting about the Origh of the World,
'-" fome
38(
Sermon xiii.
fome contending it owed its Original
to a lucky jumbling together of the
Parts of Matter : Others, That befidcs
Matter, there was another Principle,
viz. Mind, that a8:uated Matter, and
raifed it into that beautiful Order we
now fee it in. Others not feeing how
the rnany Goods and Evils that he eve-
ry where fo intermixed, could, being fo
contrary in their Natures, proceed from
the fame Principle, concluded, That be-
fides Matter, there muft be Two other
Principles, One the Author of all the
Good, and the Other of all the Evil
m the World. Nor were they lels at
a Lofs about the Government of the
World ; one, and that no inconfidera-
ble Se£t of Philofophers, leaving it to
the Guidance of Chume ; others to Fate
or Nectffipj ; and others to a G o d or Free
Jgent, The Generality of Men were
under great Uncertainty as to their For*
givenefs, after their having offended
the D iL 1 T Y. Some hoped their Concern
for having done fo, and a Refolution
to beimve better for the future, would
be fufiicient to make their Peace with
Go D ;
Sermon XIII. 381
God; but the greateft Part would
not trufl: to this, without adding a Vi--
carious Death, as an Atonement for
their Faults: But whether either, or
both of them, would be accepted, was
more than Reafon could inform them;
becaufe it could not appear that God
was obliged by any of his Perfections
to accept of either or of both ; and fuch
Things as depend upon his Will, and
are Ads of Bounty or Favour, cannot
be known 'till He pleafes to reveal them.
If we look into their Debates concern-
ing the Happinefs which God defigned
Man for, we fhall find them at a great
Lofs where to fix it ; however, they
generally look'd no farther for it than
on this Side the Grave, many of them
denying any Reward beyond this Life,
and the reft very much doubting it ; io
as St. Paul might juftly charge the Gen-
tile World with not knowing the True
God. For tho' fome of them had ve-
ry juft and honourable Notions of God,
and did difcover there was a Great and
Good Being, that at firft made, and
does ftill govern the World : yet they
could
382 Sermon XIIL
could not, neither was it likely that
they lliould, perfuade the reft of the
World to be of their Mind. Becaufe
there were feme Objedions which the»
lay againft this Suppofition, for which
Reafon was unable to account ; as for
Inftance, They could never give any
Man a fatisfaftory Account of the ma-
ny Evils, both Moral and Natural, that
were too vifible in the World ; or recon-
cile them with the Suppofal of a Good
and Gracious Being at the Helm of our
AjBPairs; becaufe they knew nothing of
the happy State of the firft Parents of
Mankind ; and that they were deprived
of it for an A6t of wilRil Difobedience,
and that our Mortality, with all the
Confequences attending fuch a State, is
an Effed of their Mifmanagement *.
For as to the pre-exiftent State, which
was the beft Account they were able
to give of this Difficulty, no Proof
could be made of it; and therefore
thofe who would not take up their
Opinions upon truft, chofe to afcribe
the
* Rom. V. 19.
Sermon Xlll. 385
the Government of the World to Fate,
or any Thing rather than God, upon
whofe Goodnefs they thought it would
highly refled, if He had created a Ra-
tional Being with fuch a Biafs to Evil,
_and placed it in fo uncomfortable an
Habitation. The Difficulties attending
fome Rehgious Truths in a Way of Rea-
fon,feem to have determin'd fome of them
to the Way of propoling their Senti-
ments as Matters difputable ; in which
Manner the Academy proceeded with
their Scholars. They declared againfi: all
Dogmatical Determinations in Matters
of Religion, and contented themfelves
with examining the feveral Pretences
of others, without eftablifliing any Opi-
nion of their own upon more than fro^
hable Grounds. Thus we find Cfcero
who was one of the Learnedefl: among
them, engaging the feveral Seds of Phi-
lofophers in a Difpute about the Nature
of the Gods, expofing m their Turns
the Weaknefs of each of them, and at
laft refufing, tho' defired by Cotu,
to tell us, what himfelf thought of
the
384 Sermon XIII.
the Subjed *. We have then the moft
confiderable Man of a Sed remarkable
for Men of Abihties, at a Time too
when Learning and good Senfe were at
the higheft Pitch in Greece and Rowe,
tacitly giving up the Caufe .of Reafon
and Philofophy, as infufficient to in/fire
any Man m Truths concerning God and
Religion.
What then could the reft of the
World do, when their greateft Men
were fo much divided in thefe Matters ?
efpecially when thofe who had the
moft Truih on their Sides, made the
leafl Pretences to Certainty ; we may
eafily imagine that but Few, j^nd thofe
of very inquifitive Tempei's, would give
themfelves the Trouble of entring into
their Speculations, that the reft of the
World would flight their Lectures, as
defpairing to find where the Truth
lay, when they were fo much divided
about it. And fo it proved ; their Di-
vifions did fo weaken their Authority,
and the Influence which otherwife they
mult
* Viue Lib. -J. Ad fvnem, de Natura Deoruiiu
Sermon Xlli: 38^
mufl: have had, that altho' many of
them were convinced of the Unity of
the Deity themillves, they were ne-
ver able to ftop the Progrefs of Polj-
theifm^ Of oblige the Government of any
one State in the World, to fet up the
Worfhip of the One True God. They
were fo little able to reform Mankind
in this Particular, that in St. Paul's Time
their Difciples (the Heathers World) ftill
went on in their old Way of Worfl7ip ;
In changing the Glory of the mcorrupttUe
God, into an Image wA^e like to corru^^
iihle Many and to Birds, and Four-footed
^eaflsy and Creep/^g Things ^. Whereas
when God Himfelf undertook to teach
the World in a Way of Faith, all Wa-
vering and Irrefolution concerning his
Nature and Will, quickly vaniQi'd. The
Apoftles were well agreed in publifhing
the fame Dodrines, and propofed them
to their Hearers as certain Truths ; and
thofe that gave in their Names hearti-
ly to this New Inftitution, Mt off all
Difputes of this Kind, and adhered fted-
C c dily
Rom.
[86 S E R xM O N XIII.
dily to what the Apoilles taught them ;
being fully perfuaded that what they
taught them was the Truth : The good
Efte£ls of this Agreement quickly ap-
peared in the wonderful Succefs they
had in Propagating the Chriftian Do-
ftrine ; Foljthcijm and Idolatry being
forced every where to give Place to the
Worlliip of the One True God, which
in a very few Centuries became the
eftabhflied Worfliip of almoft the then
known World. And tho' the firlt
Preachers of this Way lay under great
Difadvantages, as being of a Nation
that the Greeks and Romam look'd up-
on as little better than barbarous, the'
they were not verfed in the Ways of
Reafoning, and the Arts of Perfuafion,
that were then moft likely to hav^e re-
commended their Do6lrines ; yet when
the World came to confider the Strength
of that Evidence, which they brought
in Proof of them , and from thence
faw plainly that Truth was to be found
amongfl: them, which the endlefs Dis-
putes and Wrajgliiigs of their great
Men had forbidden them to expert,
they
Sermon XIII. 387
they quickly came over to them, quit-
ted all their old Engagements in Favour
of the Religion of their Country, and
fubmitted themfelves to their Inftru-
6i:ions ; which was more than the Phi-
lofophers, thofe great Mafters of Rea-
foning, and who fo well underftood
the Art of managing Mens PalTions,
could ever effe8:. For, whatever Re-
pute their Schools might have as fit
Places for Teaching Men the Rules of
human Wifdom ; yet it is plain from
the Multitude of their Oracles, and
the frequent Recourfe that was had
to them upon all Occafions, that the
World did not think their Reafonings
in Matters of Religion were much to
be depended on, and that Faith was a
much more certain Principle of Truth.
Perhaps it may be thought I
have ufed an Argument that may be
turned upon me, and upon that Faith
which 'tis brought to defend, becaufe it
does not appear that there has ever
been any better Agreement in O^iraom
among Chriftians, than there was a-
mong Heathens ) and therefore if the
C c 2 great
\
388 Sermon XIIL
great Diverfity of Opinions amongft
thern, be a good Argument to prove
the Vncertat.-itj they were in, then as
great a Difference amongft Chriftians,
ought in all Reafon to inferr as great
an Uncertainty ; that the Hiftories of
pafs'd and prefent Times , and the
large Catalogues of Herefies that are
given us by E^^iphanius, Philajlrius and
others do abundantly [hQW, that the
Difputes between Chriftians concerning
Articles of Religion, come not fhort of
thofe among Heathens. That tho' the
Authority of Scripture be granted, yet
the World is never the nearer to an
Agreement in the Articles of Religion,
as is plain by the infinite Number of
Commentaries upon the fame Scriptures,
and the conftant Appeal of all Seds
of Chriftians , how oppofite foever la
their Opinions, to the lame Holy Wri-
tings : and therefore the Way of Faith
feems not to have any great Advan-
tages above that of Reafon on the
Score of d-rtainty.
In Anfwer to this, it may be faid,
That as to the Catalogues of Herefies
given
Sermon XIII. 389
given us by the Ancients, they were
not much to be relied upon ; that many
of them were concerning Matters of
fmall Confequence, and not belonging
to the Eflence of Rehgion, as appears
by the Catalogues themfelves ; and the
Writers of thofe Times obfcrve, That
People were then very forward in mar
king unfair Reprefentations of their Ad-
versaries Opinions, and calling every O-
pinion that differed from their own, by
the odious Title of Herefy. That if
Chriftians did differ about the Senfe of
fome Places of Scripture that contain^
ed Articles of Importance, fuch as thofe
which concerned the InC'Xrrjation of the
Word in the Verfon of our Saviour,
a Trinity in "Vnttj^ and fome other
difficult Dodrines ; that yet as to thofe
Articles in which I have charged the
Heathens with being very much di-
vided, fuch as thofe concerning the Ma-
K E R and Governor of the World,
whether there was any one Intelligent
Being to whom thefe Titles did of
Right belong : If there was, whether
He had made any Provifion in fome
Q Q I othr
390 Sermon XIII.
ether State for fuch as had ferved Him
faithfully, tho' imperfedllyn this : As
to any of thefe Articles, the Difputes
among fuch as profelTed the Chriftian
Religion were always exceeding few,
if compared with thofe amongft the
Heathens : And no Chriftian Se6: of
any Note at this Time, denies any of
them. That thefe are of all others
Truths of the greateft Concern, as
without which there could be no fuf-
ficient Reafon for ferving God at all ;
for he that cometh to G o d, muft be-
lieve thefe two Things ; that He ii^ and
that He is a Rewarder of them that feek
Him, That the Belief of the other Do-
ctrines of Religion is chiefly required of
us for this very End, that our Faith
m thefe might be more firm and bet-
ter grounded ; and therefore an Agree-
ment amongft Chriftians, fo much want-
ed among fuch as were under the
Guidance of Natural Light, tho' it were
to be found only in thefe Truths; yet if
we confider the Importance of them
to Religion, would fufiiciently prove a
ReveUtio-a to be better qualified for
Teaching
Sermon Xlli. 391
Teaching Mankind the Principles and
Motives to Duty, than Reafofi or Pht-
lojbphy.
However, fuppofing that by De-
dudions made from Principles of Rea-
Ibn, the wiler and more intelligent Part
of the World could have arrived at as
great Certainty^ and been as well a-
greed in thefe Articles I have now
mentioned, as we Chriftians are hy the
Help of Revelation ; yet ftill the Way
of Faith would be much more efleclual
towards a general Inltruction of the
World, than that of Reafon ; becaufe a
Revelation teaches in a Method that is
better fuited to the diiierent Opportu-
nities and Apprehenfofis of Men. And
that
i/, Because its Way of Teaching
is much lliorter and more compendi-
ous than that of Reafon, therefore bet-
ter fitted for the different Opportunities
of Men.
2dly^ Because 'tis more eafy and
more intelligible ; confequently, better
fuited to the different Degrees of Un?
derilandigg among Men.
C c 4 i/?, H-^-
392 Sermon XIII.
ly?, Because its Method of Teach-
ing is fliorter. If we confider the State
of Mankind, we may obferve that much
the greatefc Part are given up to La-
bour, and enflaved to a mean Condi-
tion, almoft all their Time and Pains
laid out in making the necejlTary Pro-
vifions for Life. And therefore if we
would undertake to teach fuch Perfons
their Duty, we mud ufe the fliortefl:
Method with them that's pofTible ^ -,
but if we compare together the diffe-
rent Ways of Proof from Re a Jon and
from Faub^ we fhall eafily obferve that
any Truth will be much fooner learnt,
when 'tis proved by an Argument
drawn from Faith^ than the fame Truth
would be by Reafo/2 ; for if we would
learn any Thing in the Way of Arguing
from Principles of Reafon^ we mulf be
oftentimes content to go Step by Step
thro' feveral Confequences, before we
can arrive at our Conclufion ; efpeciaUy
if the Truths we would underftand, be
of a Complex Nature, fuch as are thofe
wliich
; Ongen contra Celfum. Lib, i. p, 9,
Sermon Xlll. 393
which concern our Duty. For before
we can underftand our Obligation to
any of the Moral Laws by Reafon^ we
muft confider our own Natures, and
obferve the natural Tendencies of
Things ; and from thefe inferr our Obli-
gations. As for Inftance ; If I would
underftand whether I am obliged to
be juft in my Dealings, Reafon would
difcover it to be fo, becaufe Man is
naturally made for Society, and can't
live with tolerable Comfort without it ;
and tlie World is fo ordered, that un-
lefs juft and fair Dealings were obferved,
no Society could poftibly be kept up,
but would quickly end in Tumult and
Confufion : From thence I would con-
clude, That fince God had made Juftice
fo necefTary to the Well-being of Man-
kind, that He intended Men fhould pra-
ctice this Virtue ; to underftand our
Obligation to this, or any other Duty
in a Way of Faith, nothing more is
neceflkry, than feeing what the Scrip-
tures, which are the Word of God, de-
termine m this Matter. There we may
prefently learn what our Duty is, by
applying
g94 Sermon Xiii.
applying what the Scriptures fay, to
our own Cafe, and difcover at one View
what Reafon can't make evident to us,
'till it has put us to the Trouble of
ranging our Thoughts, and obferving
the Relation and Dependence they have
one upon another. This is none of the
leaft Advantages which Faith has above
Reafon, that it inftruds us in fo com-
pendious a Method, that there is no
Man, let his Circumftances be never
fo ftrait, but may find Time enough to
learn his Duty.
2.dly^ As Faith teaches us in a fbort-
er Way, fo in a more intelligible one,
and which is therefore better fitted for
the different Degrees of Underftanding
amongft Men. Whiift there was no
other Way of Teaching the World but
by Natural Reafon, we find the wifer
Heathens were fo fenfible of the Diffi-
culty of Teaching Men their Duty, that
they would conftantly run thro' a
Courfe of the difficult Parts of Know-
ledge, with their Scholars, before they
could think them capable of learning
Morality, The Epcurems required the
Knowledge
Sermon XIII. 39$
Knowledge of Natural Things, the PU-
tomjls fome Skill in the Mathematicks^ as
a Preparatory to their Ethical Le£lures.
They found by Experience how little
the Generality of the World could ap-
prehend them, when they were Rea-
foning concerning the Supreme Being,
and their feveral Duties to Him, and
therefore generally agreed in excluding
the Bulk of Mankind from a PofTibi-
lity of attaining to any great Degrees
of Virtue ; looking upon fuch only as
capable of Virtue, who were furnifhed
with good Natural Abilities, and had
enjoyed the Benefits of a hberal Edu-
cation ; but as to all the reft of the
"World, we find Sen ecu ranking them
among the Beafts that perifli ; fo as by
their own Confeflion, the Way of K^4-
fon could never have done much to-
wards bringing the World to a Senfe
of their Duty, when they fhut out the
greateil Part of it from a Capacity of
receiving Benefit by it. And 'tis eafy
to obferve, that the Generality of Men
are hardly capable of any other No-
tices of Things, than what are imprefs'd
by
3p5 Sermon XIII.
by the Objects of Senfe ; they have not
Skill enough to compare fimple Terms
fb exactly with one another , as to
compound them into true Propofitions,
and then to inferr from every Propo-
fition its Natural Confequences and De-
dudions; nor vi^hen they are made for
them, always to fee the Connexion and
Force of the Argument. An Argument
that ftrikes their Senfes fball much
more effectually convince them of any
Truth, than any the moft exa£l and
elaborate Reafonings upon it : And
therefore the Miracles performed by
our Saviour and his Apoftles, did
quickly draw the Multitude after them,
and in a little Time brought them in.
more Difciples, than the abftrufe Spe-
culations of the Philofophers had ever
done before. For every Man is able to
judge whether a blind Man had been
reftored to his Sight • whether the Deaf
to their Hearing, and whether the Dead
had been raifed to Life again ; Senfe
being the proper Judge in thefe Cafes,
and then any Man, that had either
feen Of heard of fuch Tilings done,
would
Sermon XIII. '397
would naturally draw the fame Con-
clufion from them, as the poor Man in
the Go/pel did, when cured of his blind-
nefs, that the Perfon who had performed
that Cure muft be one that came with
Power from above ^ // this Man were
not of God he could, do nothing *. Thus
far every Man will be able to Reafon,
let his Underftanding be never fo mean
or fhallow. The Advantages of a Re-
velation for teaching Men their Duty
would be farther feen, by comparing
the Pra8:ice of Preaching the Rehgion
to the People, as 'tis done in our Chur-
ches, with the Lectures of the Philo-
fophers, or the Tnftrudions of Pagan
Priefts : Which will be done in the
following Difcourfe.
- I'N the mean Time this Obfervation
naturally arifes from the Whole, That
all Endeavours of undermining Reve-
lation, and weakning its Authority,
are direO: Attempts upon the Good
and Happinefs of Mankind ; fince the
deftroying its Credit, is bringing the
World
.* Johii ix. 35"
398 Sermok XIII.
World back again to the InftruQions
of Natural Reafon , which how little
qiiahfied it is for an Univerfal Guide,
we have already feen. And therefore,
before any undertake to run-down Re-
velation, I would beg of them to con-
fider a few Things ; That they would
look back upon former Times, thofe
Times of Ignorance , which God is
faid to have wink'd at; I would defire
them to refled upon the extravagant
Superftitions , and abfurd Rites that
made the greateft Part of the Efta-
blifhed Worfliip of the Heathen Na-
tions, and then I would ask them, Whe-
ther it was not greatly for the Ho-
nour and Happinefs of Mankind, to be
refcued from fuch Errors as were a
Reproach and Scandal to human Na-
ture ; and to have a Rational Wcrfhip
and Religion in the Room of 'em ? And
whether 'tis not highly probable, that
if the Credit of Revelation were once
deftroyed, the World would in a few
Ages return to as bad a State as that
in \vhich Chriftian Religion found it?
I am fure they can't bring any good
Arguments
Sermon xill. 395?
Arguments to prove it would not be
fo j and tho' it mufl: be confefTed, that
notwithftanding Revelation, the World
is ftill bad enough ; yet if we compare
the Hiftories of the Times that were
before, with thofe that fucceeded, we
Ihall foon fee that it has been much
improved by it; as might be fhewn
in the many irrational Cuftoms, and
obfcene Rites of Worlhip (fuch as thofe
paid to the Mother of the Gods ^) that
have been abolifhed in the feveral Na-
tions , where If has been received ;
when the Preachers of Natural Reli- '
gion could never prevail with the Peo-
ple to part with any of them.
From hence too we may obferve,
That the Unbeliever cannot be fafe
from the Apprehenfions of Punifhment
in a future State, while he has no bet-
ter Arguments for rejecting our Chri-
ftian Revelation, than pleading the Dif-
ficulty of feeing what Ufe a Revelation
could be of to Mankind.
S E R M.
* Vide Aug. de CIvitate Dei. Lib. 2. cap. -^, & 5,
401
SERMON XIV.
I Cor. I. 21*
For after thaty in the Wif-
dom of Go Dy the World
hyWifdom knew not God,
it pJeafed God ly the
foolijhnefs of Preaching to
fave them that believe.
HE Want of a Revelati-
on has been proved from
the Uncertainty in which
Mankind was, with regard
to fuch Truths as it nearly
concern'd every Body to know. Sucli
as thefe ; Whether there were any Su-
preme Intelligent Being that took no-
D d tice
402 Sermon XIV.
tice of the A£lions and Behaviour of
Men ; and whether, fuppofing fuch an
ofi^ He would forgive Mens voluntary
Miftakes, upon their being fincerely con-
cern'd for them, and refolving to do
better for the fiiture ; and whether He
defigned to take any farther notice of
them after they were once dead, by re-
floring them to Life again, and Re-
warding or Punifhing them for their
Behaviour here. As to all thefe, I have
already fliewn, That the World labour-
ed under great Uncertainties. I have
alfo proved the Infuificiency of Reafon
for^refcuing Mankind from this Uncer-
tainty, and for inftruding them in their
Duty, from the Confideration of thofe
diiPerent Ranks and Orders feen amongft
Men : That the lower Order, which is
> tl:^e J Generality of Men, is enflaved to
^ mean Condition, that fuch a Condition
will . not allow Time fulncient for Spe-
culation,, or for confidering in a Way
.q£ Reafi»wlut their Duty was. That
hx a W^y pf Author it) Mens Duty
igiglit be made much more eafy and
.intelligible to ^ them than by Reafon or
Fhilojo^hj,
SfiRWb^'XlV. '403
Vhllofophy, I am' further to prove the
Ufeftibefs of a Revelation by one Me-
thod of Teaching Men their Duty z^-
hsf//> 't6 'it, which is, By Preaching
that Rehglon in mix'd AfTemblies, where
Perfons of all Degrees may meet, and
receive Inftruttion by that which the
Vain Philofophers in my Text called the
Toolijbmfs of Freachwg.
1 AM not obliged to confider, Whe-
ther under Natural Religion the World
might not have been better taught than
they were, in Virtue of fuch Princi-
ples as Natural Reafon might have fug-
gefted to them; tho' I have already
Siewn^, That Morality could not be
explained fo familiarly in a Philofophi-
cal Le8:ure, as it is in our Homilies or
bifcourfes to the People; but whe-
ther in FaQ, after a Trial of Four
or Five Thoufand Years, they did hit
upon fo good a Method of Reform-
ing the World, as this of Preaching ,
which was introduced among us by
RevtUtiof?, The Excellency of this In-
^^." D d 2 ftitution
1* •
"^ SeQ SeriT). XIII-
404
Sermon XIV.
flitution will eafily appear, if we cor^
fider it as inviting all Sorts of Perfons
ta come and be Hearers; and alfo the
Number of Places which have been
ufually fet aj)art for the Performance
of this Religious Exercife. I have al-
ready obferved, That only Perfons of
Letters or of a liberal Education, pre-
tended to go to the Schools of the Phi-
lofophers, but now all Ranks of Men,
the loweft and moft indigent of the
People, all Ages, the Old as well as the
Young, "Women as well as Men, have
always had a free Accefs to thefe Schools
for the Education of a Chriftian, I mean
our Churches. And if the Schools of
Philofophers had made their Le£iures
as intelligible as our Sermons', yet it
muft be confidered that their Difcourfes,
fo far as Religion was concerned in
them, were merely Ethical^ regarding
Mens Behaviour towards one another,
without concerning themfelves to tell
the People the Manner of Reverence or
"Worfhip, that would be moft agreeable
to- the Supreme Being; they none
of
Sermon xiv. 4.0$
of them approved any of the then efta-
biifhed Ways of Addrefling the Di-
vine Being, and had not Courage
enough to teach their Scholars any other,
only in general Terms, That the bell
Way of Worfbipping Him, was to imi-
tate Him, and that they told them was
beft done by ftudying and obferving
his Laws ; which was, in other Words,
nothing more than perfuading them tq
obferve Moral Duties jon account of
their Be.iuty znA Excellency^ as being a
Tranfcript of the Divine Nature ; with-
out prefTing upon their Difciples the
Pradice of Morality upon any Keligi-
ous Motives, fuch as the Hopes of
God's Favour, and the Fear of his
Difpleafure ; without telling them, they
mull: practice Virtue, becaufe God
would reward them for fo doing, an(i'
punifh them if they did otherwife. Ac-'
cordingly we find fome of the Fathers
of the Church reproaching the Pagans
with this unlawful Divorce which tleir '
Philofophers had made of Religion from
Morality, " The Pagan Philofcphy, fa^'s.
D d 3 LiiciA-r}t}u\
4o6f Sermon XlV.
Lic^amus ^, ^' and ReligioK^ are Two
"Things quite diftind one from the
" other ; Morality has its particular Do-
" dors, ( meaning the Philofophers )
" who do not teach the Manner of
" approaching the Gods. " So that had
the Ledures read in their Schools^'?
been more intelHgible than our Sermons,:
yet this Infiitution would have been in-
feriour to our VreMhingy as one great
Branch of Rehgion, ^-/-si. The Manner
of Addreffing to Gqd in Rehgious
Worfhip, together with the only folid
Supports of a Virtuous Life, viz., A
Religious Fear of the Deity, were
not taught by them.
And as to the Heathen Priefts,
whofe peculiar Bufinefs ic was to
teach the People how to behave to-
wards God; thefe, I fay, made no
Difcourfes to the People concerning
their
"* Philofophia 5c religio Deorum disjurifta funt,
tl quidem alij funt profefTores fapieritix per quoS
utiquc ad Deos non aditur. Alij lleliglonis anti-
ftites, per quos fapere non dlfcitur, Laftant. In-
ftitut. Lib. 4. cap. 3.
their Duty to their Neighbour; thcf
never gave themfelves the Trouble to
teach Men the Rules of Virtue ; but
fpent their Time in performing S:icriii-
cal Rites , and certain Ceremonies of
their Religion, and in inftrucling Peo-i ;
pie to follow the preicribed Formulary
of external Devotion. " Thofe (fays
" L^cfamus ^) who teach the Wor-
" fhip of the Gods, take no Notice of
*' any Thing that may ferve to regu»
^^ late Manners and the. .Condud of
^' Life, they do not in the. leaft feared
" after Truth, but apply themfelves
" only to learn the Ceremonies of Dir
'^ vine Worfliip, which require nothing
" but the MiniHry. of tlie Body, and
"in which the Sentiments of the Heart
" have no Part. " And in another
Place f , " Religion has hkewife its
^' Minifters , who do not teach the
D d 4 *' Rules
* Nihil ibi difleritur quod proScjat ad mores
excolendos vitamque formandam, nee habet in-
quificionein aliquam Veritatis, fed tancumaiodo ri-
tuin colendi, qui non Officio mentis, fed iniaffteriqr
corporis coaftac. Inftitut, Lib, 4. cap. 3,
t Ibidem.
4o8 Sermon XIV.
"Rules of Morality. " St. Aufim,m
has a PafTage to the fame Purpofe, in
which he challenges the Heathens to
Ihew " any fuch Places as our Church-
" es, where the Precepts of the Mc-
" ral Law are ufually read by the
" Priefts, and heard by the People,
\V which, he tells them, is the Cafe
** wherever the Chriftian Religion pre-
"vails." .:
We have no Reafon to think thefe
Fathers have wronged the Heathen
Priefts, if we confider that they could
not with any Decency pretend to have-
given the People any LefTons of Mo-
rality ; becaufe they muft have founded"
very ill from the Mouths of fuch Per^
fons as were obliged, if they would
talk confiftently with the Principles . of
that Religion, to give fuch frightful
Ideas;
— ■ in-?
- - .'•
* Dicatur in quibus locis hxc docentium Deo-
rum folebant prsecepta recitarl, Sc a culteribus c6-7
rum populis frequenter audiri, ficut nos oftcndimns"
ad hoc Ecclefias inftitutas, quaquaverfuni Religia,
Chriftiana Di^ditur. lib. 2. cap. 6. De Civi-
uzc Dei.
Sermon XIV.-^ 409
Ideas of the Divinity, afcribe to it fo
many grofs Imperfedions, Weakneffes,
and even Vices, as v^ould be abhorred
by any Man that; had but a moderate'
Senfe of Honefty. * ^- ''
' But farther, if we confider the
Number of Places fet apart for the
Performance of this Rehgious Exercife,
we fliall ftill find the Advantages to
lie on the Side of a Revelation ; thefe
Places are to be met with, not only in
Cities and great Towns, but even in
the meaneft Villages, by which a Pro-i'
vifion is made for the Countryman, as.
well as the Citizen, that he may be
taught his Duty, and well skilled in
his Religion, without ftirring out of
the Bounds of his Village or Parifh.
Whereas the Schools of. the Philofo-
phers were very few, and thofe in
Places only where there was on other
Accounts a great Refort ; they were not
enough difperfed, as our Churches have
been from the Beginning of Chrifli-
^nity, for the general Inftrudlon of
Mankind; fo that had their Ledures
been as plain as pur Sei^ljapjis , tl;^"
greatefl
4io Sermon XIV*
greatefl: Part of the World could not
have reforted to them, by reafon of
the Diftance they lived from thofe
Schools : The lower Sort of People not
having Time from their Trades and
Employments, to travel far for Inftru-
6:ion. I cannot forbear tranfcribing the
Words of the moft Learned Dr. Prideaux
in his Connexion * upon this Occafion"
^f.As the JVjvi-, fays he, had their Syna-
" gogues, m which the Law and the
" Prophets were read unto them every
*' Sabbath Day, fo the Chriftians had
" their Churches, m which from the
^^ Beginning all the Dodrines and Du-
*^ ties of their Religion were every
" Lord's Day taught, inculcated and
" explained to them ; and by G o d's
*' Bleffing upon this Method, chiefly
" was it, that this Holy Religion ilill
" bore up againft all Oppreflions, and
** notwithftanding the Ten Perfecutions
" and all other Artifices and Methods
" of Cruelty and OpprefTion , which
*' Hell and Heathenifm could devife to
" fupprefs
* Connexion, PArt i. pag.^ 309.. _
" fupprefs it, grew up and increafed^
" under them ; which "Julian the Jpo-^'
'^ JUfe was fo fenfible of, that when
"he put all his Wits to work to find
" out new Methods for rellori ngthe
^' Heathen Impiety, he could not think
'' of any more effeaual for this Pur-J
" pofe than to employ his Philofopher$^
" to preach it up every Week to the
" People, in the fame Manner as the
" Minifters of the Gofpel did the
« Chrift ian Religion ^. " The Ufe that
I would make of this Paffage is, To
fhew, what Opinion one of the fubtileft,
a^ well as moll malicious Adverfaries,"^
that ever the Chriftian Religion met
with, had of this Way of doing Ser^-^
vice to any Religion, by Preaching it
to the People, as 'tis done in our
Churches. Which is a fufficient An-
fwer to fuch of our Unbelievers, as will
not allow it potable for a Revelatioa
to be of any Ufe or Service to Man-
kind.
But
■* Gregory Nazianzen Oratio contra Ji'.lianum.
412 Sermon XIV.
, JBu T then, if a Revelation be realljf
of fuch Ufe to Mankind, it may be
a^k'd, Why there have not been more
Preachers of it, fo that all the World
niight have had the Benefit of it ? and
• in particular , Why the Chriftian Re-
ligion was confined to the Rom apj Em-
pire, or at leafl not extended much
farther? That as God is acknowledg-
ed to be the Common Father of
All, and no Refpecter of Perfons or Na-
tions, if this Religion had God for its
Author, it would have been communi-
cated to the Vpper as well as the Lorn-
er Jfia, to the Chine fe and Tartars^ as
well as to thofe Parts of Afia which
were m the Roman Empire, or border-
ing upon it ; to the Urge Continent of
Amertcay as well as to the fmaller one
of Europe, The Want of fuch an Uni^
verfaiity, has been urged by a late Au-
thor f, as a fufficient Reafqn for Re-
jecting any Revelation, tho' . it comes
recommended by every other Proof that
can be defired; and for this Reafon,
That
\ Blount's Mlfcellanics, p«f out by Gildon.
Sermon Xl^. 413
" That if no one Revelation has been
^ equally made known to All, that none
" can be wanting or needful to any,
" And then, there being no real Want
" of a Revelation , there can be no
" Reafon for expeding any other- Light
*' from God, than what He commu-
" nicated to us when He gave us our
^' Reafoning Faculty, as He does no-
" thing in vain, or gives any extraor^
^'di/tary Fowersy when i\\Q ordinary ones
.^^: are fufficient. "
I HAVE already fhewn, That a Re-
velation was wanting on feveral Ac-
counts ; and therefore am only obliged to
fee, whether a partial Revelation be as
good an Argument to prove that fuch
a Religion cannot come from God, as
any Miracles or extraordinary Works
would be to prove that it muft come
from Him. That the firfl: cannot be
fo good an Argument to invalidate
2l Revelation, as the latter is to con*
frm it, is evident, becaufe we are fure
'tis inconfiftent with the Nature of
Go D to exercife his Power in fo extra-
Ordinary as Manner, as is that of a Mi-
racle,
4H
Sermon XIV.
racle, in Behalf of a Falfhood, (which
muft be the Cafe, if a falfe Reh'gion
was fupported by true Miracles *) as
'tis impoliible that a 'Being, whofe
Charader is that of a Lover of Truth,
Ihould, conliftently with its own Na-
turCj countenance an Impofture or Falf-
hooi Whereas we are fo far from fee-
ing any Inconfiftence with the Nature
of G o D, altho' a Religion fbould be
communicated to fome, and not to o-
tliers, that fuch Communications appear
to be mere Matters of Favour, which
may be granted or refufed, without af-
fecting any Moral Attribute of God i
And then the Argument drawn from
the former cannot be depended upon ;
becaufe there is nothing for it but the
Will and Pleafure of a Being, who
was not at all reftrained from acting
either Way ; whereas the latter depends
upon his Nature, which is necefTarily
what it is ; and therefore the A6ls flow-
ing from it as incapable of Change, a^
the Nature itfelf from which they
flow. But, 2d!y,
— "» '
' - ■ ' Sre Sermon XIL
Sermon X1V< 4.!^
2dly^ Supposing it was not a Mat-
ter of mere Favour ; yet i{ it was to be
communicated at fome Time or other to
all Nations, and any Reafon could be gi-
ven, why not to all at the fame Time,
then no Argument could be drawn
from the partial Preaching of the Chri-
ilian JReligion, which would afFe£t its
Divinity. But,
i/, Altho' when we confider the
Uncertainty Mankind was in with Re-
gard to the Will of G o D , we might
have believed that Goo of his Good-
nefs would, fome Time or other, make
Himfelf better known to us, yet it
would be a Favour m Him to go out
of the common Courfe of his Providence
for any of our Advantages. The Light
of Reafon He had given us for our Di-
rection, and if that fhone but darkly^
yet if God would have been merciful
to fuch as made the beft Ufe of that dim
tf^hty neither his Juftice nor Goodnefs
CQuld have been called in queftion, tho'
He had not made any extraordinary Com-
munications of his Will to Mankind.
We can be grateful in owning the Ai-
vantages
j\.i6 Sermon XlV,
vantages we ChrifiUns have above HeA-
thens (in as much as we are aflured
of Forgivenefs of our Sins on Account
of the meritorious Death of our Savi-
our, of which the Heathen could not
be certain) without prefuming to fay,
that God could not, confiftently with
his Attributes, have remitted our Of-
fences, and will ftill forgive thofe, who
never had the Gofpel Preached to them,
without the Knowledge of fuch an A-
tonement. We freely own the Advan-
tages of Faith or Revelation for a gene-
ral Inftrudion of the World, and yet
will not fay that God has left himfelf
without a Witnefs in the heathen World :
that It was poflible for Men to find out
the main Strokes of their Duty, and to
hope that God would pardon upon Re-
pentance, is Evident from many of the
Heathen Writers upon Morality. If o-
thers of meaner Capacities, and whofe
Opportunities of Improvement were left,
could not flrike out their Duty in a way
of Reafon ; this plainly fliews that God
was not obliged to give all Men equal
Abilities for underftanding Natural Re-
ligioa,
Sermon XIV.
ligion, and therefore it can never be a
good Argument againft a Revealed Reli-
gion, fhould any one argue, That 'tis not
from God, becaufe not equally com-
municated, or not giv^en to All, as well
as to Some. Since no Reafon can be
given, why God ihould be at per-
fect Liberty in diftributing Natural
Light in various Degrees to different
Men, and different Nations, which will
not equally hold with Regard to Su^
prmtural Light , or that fuperadded
Alfiftance, in the Way of a Revelati*
on. But,
2.dlyj Supposing it was not a
Matter of Favour in G o d to make a
Revelation of our Duty ; yet if our
Chriftian Revelation fliall be commu-
nicated to All at fome Time or other,
and fome Reafons might be affigned,
why it fhould be communicated to
Some and not to Others ; then its Want
of Univerfality would not affeft its Divi-
nity, or its having God for its Author,
ibr thofe who lay Strefs upon this Ar-
gument, muft take thefe Two Things
tor granted, viz. That the Gofpel will
E e never
4(,§ . Sermon XIV?
nev^r be univerfally propagated ; and
timt no polTible Reafons can be afligned,
why ^11 Nations, as well as fome^ have
not the Gofpel communicated to them
at the fame Time, If there is no Rea-
fon for taking either of thefe for grant-
ed ; then the whole Support of this Ob-
jection is taken away.
As- to the firft of thefe, an Apoftle
of our Saviour's, St. Faul f, has
told xis, That the. Time will come,
vVheii the Fulnefs of the Gentiles
Ihaii be brought into the Church of
Christ; and that then the "Jem too
fhould univerfally come into a Profef-
fion of our Chriftian Religion. A Preach-
er then of this Religion having told us,
that this would be the Cafe^ no Deifi can
with Reafon object , that becaufe the
Time is not yet come, therefore it will
never come. If St. Paul had told us the
precife Time, when this fliould be ;
and fuch Time had been elapfed, we
muft have given up this Argument con-
cerning the Univerfal Propagation of our
Religion,
,■ I iji %\f II*,; III — III I . ■ I II ,11 —
:. .' t Romans xi." ^$,
Sermon XIV. 419
Religion, and owned that the Apoftle'
had miliaken our Saviour's' Meaning*
But as there are no particular Marks or •
Signatures, by which we may judge
at what particular Time this lliould be.
brought to pafs, no Argument can be
fairly drawn againft our Chriftian R^^l-
ligion, from its not being as yet uni^x
verfal. But then it may be faid, That
if Revelation is a great Benefit, it can-
not be thought, that as the whole Earth >
is the Lord's, and the Fulnefs thereof
and that He is as much the Common:
Father of the paji Generations, as of
thofe which are yet to come; it cannot
be thouglit, that He would have left fo
many Parts oi the Earth in Darknefs-
for fo many Ages fince the Go/pel wa$
firft pubiiibed in the Roman Empirec;-
but would have long e'er this commu-
nicated the G off el to them. Our An-
fwer to this is, That tho' we do not
pretend to tell the particular Reafons
which determined an infinitely >Vife
Being not to fend his Apoftles into
Chipd^/T^rtary, or America^ at the fame
Time .as. He fent them over all the
E e 2 Roman
.4.20 Sermon XIV.
Romm World : Yet l^ any probable
Reafon can be afTigned, why it was not
at the fame Time Preached to them,
thdt will be fujSicient to deftroy the
Force of this Objedion.
One Reafon why the Chriftian Re-
ligion was not Preached to every Na-
tion of the Earth, at the fame Time as
it was to thofe who lived within the
Bounds of the Roman Empire or bor-
dered upon it, might be. That fuch
Nations were not qualified for receiv*
ing the Gojfel at that Time. All Law-
givers have been won't to fuit their
Laws to the Nature of the People for
whom they defigned them ; if the Peo-
ple they were to govern were igno*
rant and unpolillied , the prefcribing
to them at frjl the moft exad Rules
of Behaviour , would be Labour loft
upon them, they would be incapable of
bearing with them, and therefore re-
ceive no Benefit from them. As their
Barbarity wore off, fome Irregularities,
which had been before tolerated, would
be then with good Reafon corrected
aad reformed, according to the ftrifteft
Rules
Sermon XIV. 42 1
Rules of good Senfe. The Great lie-
giflator of* the World feems to Imve
aded in this Manner, with Regard to
the Two Inftitutions He gave by M?-
fes and by Christ; by the firft He
allowed of fome Things in Condefcen-
lion to the Obftinacy and Stupidity of
the Ifraelites, fuch as Divorces upon the
flighteil: Pretences; He enjoyned many
carnal Ordinances, of which the Pro-
phet ^ Ezekid fays, by Order from God,
that they were not good in themfelves>
nor acceptable to Him on any other
Account, than as they were at tha
Time neceflary to preferve them from
imitating the Fafhions of their Neigh-
bouring Nations , aad paying Divine
Worfhip to Stocks and Stones. When
they were well cured of this Inclination
to worfhip the Deity after the Man-
ner of their Neighbours, as 'tis allow-
ed on all Hands they were before our
S A V I o u r's coming amongft them. He
then fent a Perfon to deliver them a
more perfed Religion. When their
E e 3; Notions
42 2 S E R ISf O N XIV.
Notions concerning the Nature of the
Supreme Being were improved by the
fpiritual Interpretations jwhich their Pro-
phets from Time to Time- gave of the
Law of ^foJesy and by their Converfe
with the Greek Philofophers, which ap-
pears plainly by the Writings of thofe
Jen^s that lived after the Bai?jlomfi Cap-
tivity, fuch as the Writers of the Book
oiWifdomy Ecclejiajiicus, and others, then
God fent his Son to them., to teach them
a more Spiritual Worfliip ; a Worfbip or
Honour more fuitable to the real Nature
of G o D, than entertaining Him, as they
bad hitherto done, with Sheep and Oxen,
which God was pleafed to accept at
their Hands, 'till they were capable of
knowing Him better. At this Time,
'tis to be particularly obferved. That all
Nations, as well as the Jervsy viz. all
that lived within the Bounds of the Re-
v}An Empire, or were Borderers up-
on it, had more or lefs profited by fre-
quenting the Schools of the Philofo-
phers, and Reading their Eihkd and Me-
taj^hyjicd Leclures, in which they treat-
ed coacerning the Nature of God, and
the
Sermqn XIV. 425
the Excellency of Virtue, in a much
clearer Manner than any othsrs^ m any
other Parts of the World, had eyer done
before them. And tho' their Excellent
Difcourfes were not fufficient for peiv
fuading People to give up the Eftablilh-
ed Religion ; yet they prepared Mens
Minds for receiving a better, when-
ever it fhould come to them well re-
commended.
Whereas the other Parts pf;,^)B
World which had no Commerce with
the RomafjSy as far as we know any
thing of them, were perfedly Barba-
rous, being ignorant of the firft Rudi-
ments, of Religion ; i£ they had any
Traditions o£ the firft Antiquity, yet
they knew not how to make any \J{q
of them, or draw any ufeful Conclu-
flons from them, as Dr. Burnet oh-
ferves '^, Tho' the Bd>jloviam and £-
gjptUns had been in- PofeiTion.qf ve-
17 ancient Traditions for many Ages,
yet nothing of Ufe was , drawn from
them, 'till the Greek f hjofophers uja-
E e 4 .^der^oqk
' ■.\;:r-. ,■• — ' — — v^: ;j^i «>,it:
* Archasologia, cap. S. p. 72, 75.
424^^ Sermon XI V.
dertook them, of which he gives one
remarkable Inftance, " That tho' theft
** Nations had Records of all the Ecliiffes
^' that had been from the Beginning of
" the "World, yet they were never a-
" ble to foretell an Eclipje ; that this
" Difcovery was reft-rved for Thales^
" who from their Hiftorical Regiilers
" of ^aft Eclipjes, took the firft Hint of
" calculating the Timcso!^ future ones."
And therefore fuch Perfons for Want of
improving their Minds , would have
been incapable of relilhing a Religion
fo perfectly Rational as our Chriftian ;
It would have been cafting Pearls
before Swine, giving them what they
would not have thanked God for,
becaufe too much above their Way of
Thinking.
As to the AmericmSy we know not
when that Continent was firft peopled,
or wb^.ther it was at all before oifr
Saviour's Coming ; for Garcilajfo tells
us when the Spamards firfl: came there,
they could give no Account of them-
felves higher up than Five Hundred
Years , and therefore the Gofpel not
: ^^::^ii beins
Sermon XIV. 425
being preached in that great Continent
of America, at the fame Time , as it
was in the Romm Empire, ought to
be no Objedion againil it. I need
not take any Notice of the Objedion,
as it concerns the Scjthians or Tartars^
becaufe having none of their Hiftories
to inform us of them, we are at full
Liberty to fuppofe them as barbarous,
and as unqualify 'd for receiving Chri-
ftianity, as we pleafe.
The onely Nation which could
pretend to any Degree of • Politenels
at that Time, and which had not the
Gofpel preached to them, were the
Chirtefe : And yet how much foever
the Literature of thefe People has been
cried up, 'tis certain it was very
mean. 'Tis plain they were very
poorly skilled in Meuphyficks, not hav-
ing any Notion of a Supreme Being;
^nd this cannot be doubted. Since * Fa-
ther
' De fummo ac primo rerum Authore fhirjim
apud omnes Silentium ; quippe In tarn Coplbia
lingua, . ne nomen quidem Deus habec Marcini
Hilloria Sinica. Lib. i.
42(5
S/J? R M O N XIV.
tjicr Martini who was long jn . the
Country , and well underftood thejr
language, alTures us, " That there
*' was not a Name in the Qhinefe
^ Language which would exprefs the
^ lowdl Idea, which the moft barba-
" rous Nations had of a God : " And
the Synrn Infcription , difcover'd in
1625, is a farther Proof of it : For tho'
there had been Sjrian MifRonaries in
that Country for above One Hundred
Forty-fix Years, and therefore fome
of them mull: have throughly under-
wood the Qhinefe Language, yet when
they were to ereO: a Monument with
an Infcription for perpetuating the Me^
mory of their Mififion , they were
forced to exprefs the Soveraign f
'Being by the Syriack , Word Aloho :^
tho' every other Word of the Infcrip-
tion is in the Chine fe Language : Juft
as the Sfaniards ufe the Word Dios.XQ^
inftruQ: fuch of the Americans^ who have
not any Idea of a Go d, or any Word
* China Illuftrata. Kircheri, pag. 1:
/^
Sermon xiv. ^,2^
In their Language by which to exprefs
it. And therefore if any People were
difquahfied for receiving fo excellent
an Inrtitution as our Chriftian, the
Chweje mufl be of that Number, as
being ignorant of that which is
prefuppofed to every Revelation, the
Being of a God, or a Free, Intelli-
gent, and Powerful Agent. Whereas
the Greek Philofophy, being fpread o-
ver all the Roman Empire, had form-
ed Mens Minds into a truer Way of
Thinliing, and from thence infenfibly
led them into jufter Notions of Reli-
gion, than were to be met with in
thofe Places where it was not known *
and made them ready to embrace a
Rational Religion , as foon as it was
propofed to them ; which would be a
fuiJicient Reafon why our Gofpel fiiould
be preached to them^ and not to the
Chinefe^ and other barbarous Nations.
And therefore, for all this terrible Ob-
jedion, a Revelation might have God
for its Author, and be of ufe to Man-
kind, tho' all Nations were not at the
fame Time favoured with it.
Haying
4.28 Sermon XIV,
Having Ihewn fome of the Ad-
vantages of a Revelation, and that it
may be of Ufe to Mankind, altho'
no one Revelation has as yet been
communicated to ^, and that 'tis pof-
iible fuch Evidence may be given of
a Revelation's being from God, as
ought to fatisfie every Reafonable En-
cjuirer ; nothing more feems to be
neceHary , befides proving that our
xXJihriftiurt is fupported by fuch Evi-
dence.
{;: In the mean Time I flaall obferve,That
it concerns every feriousPerfon, who does
not beheve God has communicated Him-
^t\i by a Revelation, to examine care-
Hilly into the feveral Pretenfions to
Revelations: For fince there appears
nothing unworthy of God, nothing but
what highly becomes Him, as He is a
Good and Gracious Being, in com-
municating what would be a Benefit
to his Creatures ; it muft appear very
probable, that He has before this Time
niade fome Revelation fome where or
pther. As the Deiji has heard of the
Chriftian Religion, \ would particu-
larly
Sermon XIV.
iarly recommend That to his Confide-
ration ; and he will, if he be a ferious
Perfon, think himfelf obliged, before
he fettles himfelf in 'Delfm^ to confider
carefully the Nature and Force of the
Evidence by which 'tis fupported, and
not, as a great Part of our Ddjis^ re-
je6; it merely for fuch Reafons^ as
mull affed Revelation in general. For
if it were barely pofRble, that the
Goodnefs of God might have inclined
him fome Time or other, to fupply
the Defers of Natural Light by a
MeiTage from Heaven, it would be
both our Duty and Interefl: to en-
quire, Whether he had done fo or not,
and not offer to flaew our Wit asainft
the Ghriftian Religion, as the Manner
of fome is, before they have well con-
fidered it, and found any Thing in
either its Do£lrines or Precepts that
is unbecoming G o d to require of us. •
For fo much Refpe£l is due from us
to every Thing that carries the Title of
a Revelation from God, that we fbould
give it a fair Hearing before we re^
je£l it J left haply while we may think
we
430 S E R M o jsr XlV.
we are Expofing and Laughing at a<
Cheat, we be found in enrnejl fighting
againft God. So much Regard is due
to our own Intereft, as not to make
a Jeft of an Offer that may be to
our Advantage, 'till we were fure
tliat the Perfon who made the Of-
fer m God's N^me^ did it without
his Authority, We only defire that
the Deift would not laugh, before,
he knows what 'ris he laughs at ;
and then we are fure to hear no more
from him of the Religious Books ofi[,;
the Bramms, Perfee\ and Siamefe^ as. j
Books of Equal Credit and Authority
with thofe of our Chriftian Religion.
For I am perfuaded he cannot mean,
that all Religions are equally Ratio-
nal, or equally ufefull to Mankind, (be-»jr,
caufe if he knows any Tiling, he knows
they are not ;) but he thinks that they
are, and muft be all of equal Autho-
rity, one of them as much from
God as another, the fame Evidence
for one as another, that is , none
at all. And the Reafon given for
this
SeRxMon XIV. 431
this, is only this poor one, viz. That
there is no diftihguifliing what we
call Miracles from the meer EfFe6ls of
Natural Caufes, and then indeed there
can be no knowing when God fpeaks,
when not. If this be falfe, as I am
fully perfuaded it is, and havfe already
fhewn it to be fo in a former Dit
courfe ^, then the Deift will one Day
forely repent of his having made d^
Sport oftheChriftian Religion, and will
then call himfelf Fool, for not being
able to diftinguifh between the Voice
of G o D fpeaking to him in the Per-
fons of Christ and Lazarus raifed
from their Graves, and when it only
Ipeaks to him m the moft ordinary
and common A8:s of his Providence : He
will then wifh he had been fitote fe-
rious in a Concern of this Nature,
and not jefted, when he fbotild have
foberly examin'd , whether God had
not fpoken to hrm by his So?i ; xvhe-
ther
* SermoG XII.
ij.32 Sermon XIV.
tlier there was not Ibme Truth in
what St. Paul told the Corinthians in
the Words of my Text< that after the
World had tired itfelf in. feeking after
God by the Help of Wifdom or
Philofophy, it pleafed God by a Re-
velation, or what fome at that Time,
and what he, and his Brethren ftill
call Foolifhncfs of Preachings to fave them
that belisvs.
SERM.
433
SERMON XV.
2 P E T. I. l6.
For we have not followed
cunningly devifed Fables,
when we made known un^
to you the power and com-
ing of our Lord Jesus
C H R I s T,^^^ were Eye-
witnejfes of His kJM^-
H E Writer of this Epiftle in
thefe Words endeavours to
remove a Sufpicion, as if he
and the reft of his Brethren
their Mafter's Perfor-
He tells thofe that fliould read
F f this
had magnified
mances.
434- Sermon XV.
this Epiftle, that they had not drawn
up, as fome others, an artificial Ac-
count of Things, but had given them a
plain Narrative of the Miraculous Pow-
ers which themfelves had feen their
Lord Exercifing. That they had not,
as the manner of fome was, dreft up a
Life with a proper mixture of the Mar-
'velo^ to fet it off the better ; for they
had told them nothing concerning our
Saviqur but what themfelves had
been Eye-witnefles to. And as another
of the Difcipks lays ^, That which we
have Ifeardy which ive have feen with our
Ejes, which we- have looked upof^y and our
Hands hdve handled^ That which we have
feen and heard^ declare tve unto you. And
yet this plain and honeft Declaration of
thefe Apoftles will not fatisfy fome Per-
fons. They will not believe the Difci-
pies ever faw any of thefe miraculous
Works which, as they pretended, were
done by their Malter. I have already
Ihewn, that if fuch uncommon Works,
as are related in our Gofpels, had been
really
* \ John.i. I, J.
Sermon XV. 435
really done by Him, they would have
been a good Proof of his Mifiion,
and that the Religion He taught was
from God: We have alfo feen * that
our L o R d's Difciples could not be
impofed upon in the Account they have
left us of thofe uncommon Works, by
taking JppearAmes for Realities. The on-^
ly remaining Difficulty is, to fatisfy
the Unbeliever, That they were Ho-
neft Men, and believed their own Ac-'
count. fij'jd
-'This leads me to the third Rea-
ibn by which the Deift defends him-
felf, in not examining into the Merits
of any Revelation ; becaufe there are a
great many Pretences to Revelation, and
no certain Criteria whereby to diiiin-
guilh the true one, if any fuch were,from
Impoftures ; for that there will be al-
ways Reafon for fufpeCbing Perfons that
pretend to extraordinary Communica-
tions with Heaven : That to be the
Heads of a Religious Party, is a tempt-
ing Confideration ; if it meets with
F f 2 wifhed
■f See Sermon XII,
43<5 Sermon XV.
wifhed for Succefs, Riches and Honours
attend them : And therefore the Tefti-
mony of fuch Perfons will be always
fufpicious; and then as much Reafon
for fufpecting the Account given by the
Apoftles of our Saviour's Miracles,
as the fabulous Accounts contained in
other Religions ; "which if true, would
put the Gofpel upon a Level with the
Zs^^f of Z^yoajler^ the Shajlcr that con-
tains the Religion of the Mian Bramins^
or any other Book that pretends to be
Divine. That by the Confeffion of
Proteftants, the Succeffors of the Apo-
ftles have invented many cunningly de-
Vifed Fables of Miracles, and the Deifi
will not believe but that the firft Wit-
neffes to Chriftianity, as well as thofe
that came after them, might have fome
worldly Views in deceiving us; for
befides the Honour of being Heads of
a Party, they had not much to lofe,
and were like to have a Chance for
iiiending their Circumftances of Life.
I WILL therefore fhew, That the A-
poftles, as Things then were, could lie
under no Temptation of forging Mira-
cles ;
Sermon XV. 437
clcs, and that 'tis altogether improba-
ble they fliould intend to deceive us,
by giving an Account of Things that
they knew to be falfc ; becaufe fuppo-
fing their Account of our Saviour's
Miracles to be a falfe one, they would
have had no Inducement for making a
Profeflion of the Chriifian Religion, as
they muft fee, if they faw at all, that
the making fuch a ProfefTion, would
make them Abundance of Enemies,
that would have fhe Power, as well
as the Will, to ill ufe them, and no
Profpe6l of an Equivalent to balance
Inconveniences. Mankind does ufually
balance the Chances for Proiit with
thofe of Lofs, and fatjsfy themfelves,
that what they aim at , is feafible ,
before they will undertake it ; And
therefore if the Apoftles were Deceiv-
ers, they muft have propofed to them-
felycs an Advantage greater than the
Pains they were to take, otherwife
they would have been no better than
Fools, which they cannot be fuppofed
to have been by any that look into
their Writings ; befides, no body ^m
F f 5 beheve,
438
Sermon XV.
believe, that a few Fools fhould be
able to cheat all the Wife Men in the
World. But as the State of Things
was at that Time, there was no
Ground for expecting any Profit or
Advantage by Preaching the Religion,
unlefs the Generahty of thofe to whom
they Preached the Gofpel received it,
and that 'twas probable the Apoftles
would meet with fuch Succefs. But
I will fhew,
i/, That the Apoftles could not
poiTibly exped to live eafy, unlefs
they could reconcile the greateft Part
of thofe, with whom they lived, tp
a liking of the GofpeL -^
2dl)iy That there was no Proba-"
bility that the Gofpel would have any
fuch Succefs , at leaft in their own
Times ; and who would care to have
their Brains knock'd out for the Benefit
of they did not know w^ho, that were
to fucceed them ?
-t-ii/. The Apoftles could not expeft
to live^- eafy, unlefs they could recon-
cile the greatefl Part of thofe they
were obliged to converfe with, to a
liking
Sermon XV.
fiking of tKe GofpeL The World was
then divided in Point of Religion into
Jews and Gemles, The Writers that
are called profane, ^o agree with our
Received Gofpels^ that at the Time when
Chriftianiiy firfl; appeared, the World^
in Point of Religion, was divided into
Jews, and Heathms or Fagafis, With Re-
gard to the Jews^ the Apoftles could ex-
ped nothing from them, but the worft
of Ufage, as they were obliged to fpeak
In the beft Manner of that Perfon ,
whom the whole Nation of the Jews
had treated as a Malefa£i:or, and whofe
Crucifixion they had been very inflru-
mental m procuring. They could not
therefore but think they Oiould draw
lipon themfelves the utmoft Difpleafure
of the Jswifh Government, ii they re-
fleded upon its Proceedings ; efpecially
if they were to tell the People, as Fettr
did, That their Governors were either fo
weak, or fo wicked, as to procure the
Death of that Perfon, whom God had
fent to be the Saviour of their Nation.
And yet the Apoftles fpoke thus plain-
ly, and m a publick Manner; as we fee
F ^ 4 h
439
44-0 Sermon XV.
in the Acts of the ApoJIles ^. The chiet
Prieih and Elders miift fee, tint there
was no Way of keeping up their Au-
thority, unlefs they could Silence thefe
Perfons. And the Apoftles muft fee
too, that they would Hick at nothing
to flop the Progrefs of this Se8:. The
Apoftles alfo could not but know, that
a} People fo tenacious of the Ceremo-
nies of their Religion, would never en-
dure any Perfons, if they offered to
depreciate them, or draw Men off from
their Efteem of them ; they might rea-
fonably fear their Master's Predidion
would prove true, That thofe who
killed them, would think that they dtd
G o D good Service, The Account which
is given of the J^jry, by fuch Writers
as lived near the Time when the Go-
fid was firfl Preached , fuificiently
fhews their Fondnefs for the Ceremo-
nies of their Religion. "Juvenal tells usj
That they would not Ihew the moll
common A6ls of Civility, fuch as the
putting a Man right, when he was out
ef
* Chap. ii. 36.
Sermon xv. 441
of his Way , or directing him to a
Place, where he might find Water, to
any but fuch as were of the fame Re-
h'gion ^. And we may obferve from
Horace, That they were taken Notice
oi in his Time, as a Sed of Religion
that was moft induftrious in making
Prolelytes \, We may eafily guefs,
and fo might the Apoftles, what fort
of Entertainment they were to meet
with from a People fo much wedded
to their own Religion. And tho' the
Apoftles at jirfl allowed Converts from
Judaifm to retain many of the Cere-
monies of their Religion, together
with Chriftianity, and were even
fo complaifant to them, as to o-.
blige the Gentile Converts to abftain
from fome Things that were moft dK-
agreeable
* Non monftrare Vias, eadcm nifi facra colenti,
Qujefitum ad fontem folos deducere Verpos.
Juvenal Sat. 14. v. ic], 4.
t Ac veluti te
Judaei, cogcmus in hanc concedere turbam.
Horat, Lib. i. Sat. 4. V- 1-^;^}.
44^ Sermon XV*
agreeable to the Jervs, fuch as the eating
Things that had been offered, to Idols, and
Blood, yet there was no Reafon to think
that thefe Allowances would fatisfy the
Jem J becaufe they muft fee that the main
Part of their Religion , the Temple-
Service, muft fink, if Chriftianity pre-
vailed, and that the Apoftles only per-
mitted, without laying any Strefs up-
on , any other Ceremonies of their
Religion.
J-^N EITHER could the Apoftles look
for any better Quarter from the G^»-
tiles ; efpecially if they offered to make
any Profelytes from that Religion: They
muft foreiee, that they fhould be ha-
ted by them, for making Profeffion of
a Religion different from their own, as
they faw their own Countrymen, the
Jen?s, were univerfally detefted by them
for the fame Reafon. And that Rea-
fons of State as well as thofe of Re»
ligion , would oblige every Heathen
Government to fupprefs, i^ poffible,
thofe thdt oppofed the eftablifhed Su-
perftition , and to take away the
Lives and Liberties of fuch, as would
be
Sermon XV. 4^5
be judged by them Difturbers of the
State, for endeavouring to carry o^
Mens Minds from the Government-
Worfliip. And we find in Fa^t that
Chriftians were fo generally hated at
Rome^ when Chriftianity firfl: appeared
there, that when the City was fet on
Fire by Nero^ and the People general-
ly believed it was done by his Order,
yet they were pleafed to fee the Chri-
ftians fuffer as Incendiaries. For T^-
citus tells us, '' That when Nero laid
" the burning of the City to the
" Chriftians Charge, they were not fo
" much found Guilty by any Force
" of Evidence, as by the Univerfal
" Abhorrence which every Body had of
" that Sort of People ^ ". People be-
lieved them innocent as to the Firing
of Rome^ and yet were pleafed to fee
them puniflied as Incendiaries : It was
Jiot much doubted, as Tacitus tells us,
That Nero himfelf was the Incendi-
ary ; and yet the Averfion was fo
ftrong againfl: the Chriftian$ , that
the
* Convifti odio humani Generis. Tacit, Annal.
Lib, ly.
444 Sermon xv.
the CompafHon which ufually at-
tends upon the miferable, when they
are believed to be innocent , could
not be raifed by all their Sufferings :
And therefore 'tis plain whilft this A-
verfion lafted, there could be no Hopes
for the Apoftles of living tolerably
eafy with them. But,
2dly^ I AM now to confid^r whe-
ther they could have any Probability
of converting, at their firil: fetting out,
fuch a Number of Gentiles and 'Jem ,
as would fecure them , for the reft of
their Life, from the Ill-will of thofe
that continued in their Infidelity , and
reward them too for the Pains they
had taken in converting them. The
only Pretence for fufpe£ling the Apo-
ftles Honefty muft be, that they might
have an Eye to the ProHts and Emolu-
ments, which many of their SuccejGTors
met with. That St. Feter might dream
of faring as well as the beft of his
Succeffors at Rome have done. So For-
fhyry would have it thought. That
thofe who pretended to Miracles, by
which he means Chriftians , wer^
tempted
Sermon XV. 44$
tempted b^ a Profpect of Profit to
turn Chriftians ^. But we have al-
ready feen that this could not pofli-
hly enter into their Heads, unlefs they
believed they fhould quickly convert
fuch Numbers, as would be able to
fupport them againft all Oppofition.
But the Improbability of fuch quick
Converfions will eafily appear, if we
confider,
ifli The Nature of the Religion to
which they were to convert them, to-
gether with the State of Virtue and
Vice, as it was when they began to
preach the Gofpel. And
2dlyy The Difficulty of Impofing
upon the "World at that Time, when
they began to preach the Gofpel, by
falfe Miracles or a Suppofititious Re-
furreftion.
1/, Let us confider the Nature of
the Religion to which they were to
convert
Homines ruftlcani 6c pauperes, quoniam ni-
hil habebant, Magicis artlbus operati funt qux-
i&m Signa. Hieron, Breylarium Pfalterlj, Plalm.
8i.
44-5 Sermon XV.
convert the Jeiv or Gentile^ and how
they were difpofed at that Time for
receiving fuch a Religion.
Every one knows the Difficulty of
perfuading Numbers of Men to quit
their Opinions in Religion ; tho' they
be never fo weak and indefenlible, \i
they have been for a long Time the
Religious Profeflion of the Country
where they live. And 'tis as well
known that the Difficulty will be
greater, if the Religion they are to be
converted to, flatters none of the Vices
of Mankind ; and the Difficulty ftill
encreafes, when the Perfons that are
to be converted to fuch a Religion,
are notorioufly bad Livers. If this was
the true State of the Matter, it muft
be allowed that theApoftles, fuppofing
them to have common Underftanding,
could not flatter themfelves with the
Hopes of many Converts. That tlie
Doctrine which the Apoftles preached,
fuch as we have it in the Gofpels^
(and I fhall afterwards prove that we
have that Gofpel fuch as it was preach-
ed
Sermon XV.
ed by the Apoftles * ) does not in-
dulge Men in any irregular Behavi-
our, how agreeable foever to thePaf-
fions and Appetites of Mankind , can-
not be denied by any Deifi that has
ever read the Gofpels ; they cannot
deny that the Gofpel contains a more
perfed Morality, than ever appeared
before in the World : And that it re-
quires the Prafl:ice of every Thing
that delerves the Name of Virtue, and
ibrbids every Appetite and Paflion of
corrupted Nature ; fo far I mean as
fuch Appetite and Paflion are Effefts
of the Corruption of our Natures. It
does not allow Men to commute for
Internal Goodnefs by External Perfor-
mances ; it propofes no Advantage to
any Body upon any better Terms ,
than thofe of parting with every vi-
cious Inclination, and becoming truely
good and virtuous Perfons. It was a
meer Slander which Celfus, and after-
wards Julia'/^y caft upon the Chriftian
Religion, as if it drew People into it,
by
^ S^e Sermon XVI.
4.48 Sermon XV.
by promiiing them an Expiation of all
Crimes how great foever, if they would,
only perform fome External Ads ^ ,
fuch as beating the Head, and thump-
ing the Breaft, without any real Change
of their Way of Life. For every one
that reads our New Tejlament muft fee,
that this Uft was chiefly infifted upon
by the Apoftles. And "Julian too, as
he was once of the Religion, might
have known, from the Twelfth and
Thirteenth Canons of the famous Coun-
cil of Nice^ that the Church in his
Time did require a good Life, as a
neceflkry Part of Repentance, and not
meerly thofe External Signs of it.
Whatever Relaxations may have been
iinc'c allowed of, will not at all affe£l
my Argument, which is drawn from
the Religion fuch as it was preached
by, the Jpoftles.
If we look into the State of Man-
Jcind at that Time, we fliall find the
J^ivs fo attached to the Out-fide of
|:heir Religion , that they had almoft
loit
■ ■■■ ^ ■ ^ ■ '
^ Vide Juiiii)l-r.c files.
Sermon XV. 449
lofl the Spirit of it. Then there would
be fmall Hopes of perfuading fuch Per-
ibns to part with their Ceremonies ,
the only Cloak for their Wickednefs ,
for a Religion that required a fincere
and unafFeded Goodnefs. And as lit-
tle could the Apoftles hope for Succefs
among the Greek f and Romans', for all
the Hiftorians who have left us any
Account of thofe Times, give fuch a
Charader of the Corruptions that ge-
nerally prevailed in them, as would
make any Man, who had the leafl:
Remains of Virtue left, to deteft them.
A Religion that enjoins its Followers
to moderate their Defircs of Worldly
Things, would never fuit the Tafte of
fuch an Age. A Voluptuous, Ambiti-
ous , or Covetous Man would never
bear the Reftraints, which the Gofpel
lays upon Mens Inclinations ; and there-
fore the Apoftles could not expeft to
make many Profelytes out of this Kind
of People, and yet this was the Gene-
ral Charader of the Age.
B u T it may be faid, that tho' the
Mature of the Religion was forbid-
G g ding
450 Sermon XV.
ding enough to a bad Liver, yet they
might flatter themfelves, that it would
quickly make its Way in the World,
by the over-bearing Weight of thofe
aftonilhing Fafts, wliich they related
concerning the Author or firft Publilher
of it, as they knew Mankind, efpecially
the lower Part of it, with whom tlie
Apoftles fucceeded befl:, was always apt
to be much affeded with Prodigies and
marvelous Relations.
i WILL therefore fhew, 2^/y, The
extreme Difficulty which the Apoftles
muft have met with at the Time when
they began to preach the Goff^^ had
they intended to impofe upon the
World by fdfe Miracles or a fuppof%tf^
iious Refurredion. The Impoftui'es and
forged Miracles, that were pretended
to ibme Ages after the Times of the
Apoftles, have led many Perfons into a
Sufpicion, as if the Miracles which the
Apoftles relate, as performed by our
Saviour and themfelves, might be
of the fame Sort. But 'i!l we confider
the ' different Circumftances the Apo-
ftles were in from thofe of their Suc-
celTor^
Sermon XV. 451
ceiTors, who palmed upon the World
many cunningly devifed, Fables^ we fhall
find that nothing was eafier, than for
them to make the World believe, or
at leaft feem to believe, fi£titious Mi-
racles ; and nothing harder than for
the Apoftles to have fucceeded with
fuch Miracles. Which will be made
evident by confidering,
tfi y The Circumftances of the
Perfons that were to carry on the
Cheat, And,
2flf/y, The People that were to be
cheated.
. i/, The Perfons that were to car-
ry on the Cheat. The Number of
them was no lefs than Twelve ; if
they were to be employed as Wit-
nefles of a Matter of Fad, we would
not defire fewer ; but they were too
many if they were to be intrufted
with a Secret. They muft be mad
that Ihould embark in fuch a Defign
with fo great a Number, and believe
that a Secret could be kept by fo many
Perfons, when any of them might have
made his Fortune by betraying it, and
G g 2 had
4^2 Sermon XV.
had Reafon to fear Gibbets and Croffes
for keeping it. And yet had any one
of them been tempted by Promifes or
Threatnings to difcover the Secret,- the
Defign had been ruined beyond Recove-
ry, and all their Hopes of making Con-
verts extinguifhed. The Apoftles there-
fore muft have been very weak Men,
inftead of being Crafty Men, as the
Objedion fuppofes them to be, had they
built their Hopes of Succefs upon fuch
a fandy Foundation. Efpecially too, if
we confider the Perfons themfelves, as
well as the Number of them. Men
who by the Accoutt they give of them-
felves, had all forfaken their Mafter, as
loon as the Jemjh Government laid hold
of Him ; even the Perfon that appeared
to have the moft Courage, and Love
for his Mafier^ v^hen he faw Him charg-
ed with Capital Crimes, for Fear of fuf-
fering with Him, denied he had any
Knowledge of Him. Such Perfons, I
lay, that had not Courage enough to
ftand by a Truth, cannot be fuppofed
lit Inftruments for carrying on a Cheat :
As they would la all Probability fqueak,
as
Sermon xv. 453
as foon as their Lives were in Dan-
ger; for certain they could never have
trufted one another, after they had fo
notorious a Proof of their Unfaithful-
neis to their Mafter ; For why fhould
they fuppofe they could ftand morq
courageoufly by one another, than they
had done by their Majiery whonn they
difowned at the firft approach of Dan?
ger ? And no Body can believe that th?
■ Apoflles would have given fo fcandalous
i an Account of their own Behaviour ,
had it not been true.
"Whereas thofe who afterwards
counterfeited Miracles, if they had the
Ill-luck to be difcovered, ran no Ha-
, . zard of either Life or Fortune. The
■ Chriftian Religion had then the Support
and Encouragement of the Civil Go-
vernment, and therefore whatever was
done in Favour of it, would pafs for
a pious Zeal for the Service of G o d
and Christ: There would be little
Reafon to fear, that thofe who were
concerned in the Cheat, whatever their
Numbers were, fhould make a Difco-r
very of it, becaufe there would be no
G g J worl
it
454 Sermon xv.
worldly Motives to betray one another :
For if the Miracle fucceeded , they;
might hope to be Gainers by it ; and'
if it was difcovered , they had no-
thing worfe to fear, than that fome
People might fay of them, That they
had more Zjal t\i2iiiVnderJlandhjg, And
therefore 'tis a groundlels Sufpicion
which is drawn from the Counterfeit
Miracles of the Vlth, and following
Centuries to the Miracles of our S av i-
OUR and his Apoftles. But,
2dly^ I F we confider the People that
were to be cheated , the Cafe of the
Apoftles and their Succeffors was very
different.
ijly As the Perfons that were to be*
lieve their Account of Miracles, were
Enemies to tlie Chriftian Religion.
2dlfj As they were better able in
their Time to diftmguifh fiditious from
real Miracles.
r-ixAfty A.S the Perfons that were to be-
lieve their Account of Miracles, were
Enemies to the Chriftian Religion, and
as fuch^ would not eafily give Credit to
thofe Miracles which were to be the
chief
SeRxMON XV. 4$^
chief Support of that Religion. It is
natural to believe that thofe who ha-
ted the Religion, would be no Friends
to Miracles, becaufe tliefe were to give
it a Reputation in the World. The
Apoftles who muft fee that nothing but
the Force of Evidence would work upon
them, would have therefore little Reafon
for hoping that their Miracles, if counter^
feit^ Ihould pais the Examination of
fuch prejudiced Perfons ; whereas thofe
who boafted of Miracles in fome par*
tieular Ages of the Church , did it a*
mong fuch as were Friends to Chri*
ftianity, and wifhed to liave the fame
Evidence given to it m their Times |
as had been m thofe of the Apoflles^
And therefore fuch Perfons being pre-
poffefs'd in Favour of them, there v/ould
be little Difficulty m impofing falfe Mi*
racks upon them. They knew that
fuch Perfons would wifii, for th^ Ho^
|iour of the Religion, that their Mi-
racles wer-e true ones; and therefore
would not be too curious in exami-
ning, for fear they fhould find it to hz
otherwife than they wilhed for, Be^
fides, ^ g 4 o^dly^
45^ Sermon XV,
2dlj^ There was another Difad-
vantage which the Apoftles lay under,
which was that they lived in a difcerning
and inquifitive Age, that would not take
Things upon Truft, bccaufe well ^ble
to diftinguifh Ft^ions from - Realities,
When the Apoftles firft began to preach
the Gofpel , moft Parts of Learning
were in as great a Degree of Perfecti-
on as they had ever been before ; The
Inquiries into Nature and its feveral
Powers, carried to a very great Height,
when compared with fome fucceeding
Ages. And therefore the World would
have been much better qualified for dit
llinguifhing the Natural from the Mar-^
velous. The Apoftles, confidering their
Education, could not hope to impofe
upon fuch a People, or if they had been
fo vain to attempt it, muft have been
quickly convidled of an Impofture. If it.
be faid that they began with the lower
Part of the World, and made Converts
at iirft of fuch as were very ignorant,^
which Celfus charges upon them ; fup-}
pofing it to be true, that they at firft)
made Converts of only the lower Part;-
which
Sermon XV. 457
which yet is falfe ; it cannot be fup-
pofed that the upper Part of the World
would fit idle, and let them carry Peo-
ple ofl' from the Eftablifhed Worfhip ,
had they been able to detect them of
any Fraud. We find by P//>j's Letter
to Trajan, That the Great Men fpared
neither Coft nor Pains, neither Promifes
nor Threats, to make the Chrifl:ians con-
fefs or own a Clieat. If the Apofl:Ies
had been Men of fo much Cunning as
the Objection fuppofes, they would have
bti^n difcouraged from undertaking a
Cheat in fo unfeafonable a Time. The
proper Times for Impofture are Times
of Ignorance, when any Thing unufual
may be made to pafs for a ./^^/^ Mi-
racle, and Perfons are ready to believe
any Thing fi:range that is told them ,
and the more unlikely to be true, the.
more forward in beheving. Such are
the Times in which Fraud and Impo-r
ftures are wont to thrive, and fuch were
the Times, when to the Shame of Chri-
fliians, counterfeit Miracles crept into the
Church of God: And the Hiftorie%
of thofe Times fliew that the. Pretencesi
I. : ■ to
^^S Sermon XV.
to Miracles were multiplied, in Propoiy
tion as the Ignorance of the People en-
creas'd. And therefore tho' latter Ages
might carry on Cheats fuccefsfully, it does
not follow that the Apoftles could hope
to do fo : Or becaufe fome of the Suc-
ceflbrs of St. Peter in a dark Age, might
make People believe they work'd Mira^
cles when they did not, that St. Peter
in a Criticd Age might have made the
World believe the Refurre£lion of ouf
Saviour, altho' in Reality no fuch
Thing had been.
Thus I have fhewn that the Apc^
files could propofe no worldly Advan?
tage to themfelves by embracing th^
Chriftian Religion ; as they could nQ|;
reafonably expeCfc to make Converts of
the greateft Part of the Roman Em-,
pire , or to get the Chriflian to be
the Eftablifhed Religion in their own
Times; and that unlefs this could be
eiFeded, they muft, inftead of Honours
and Emoluments , exped the worft oif
Treatment from both "Jerv and Gentile^
and tbat if they built their Hopes of
Succefs upon pretending to a Power of
working
Sermon XV. 459
\Vorking Miracles, that there was not
any Likely hood they would be able to
make falfe Miracles pafs for true Ones,
with Perfons prejudic'd againft the Belief
of them. Such Perfons too as had Abili-
ties fufficient for diftinguilliiiig Kealmes
from Impjiures. Thefe are fuch Diffi-
culties attending the Deifi\ Suppofition
of the Apoftles being Deceivers ; fo ir-
reconcilable with the ufual Workings
of the Human Nature, that we ought
to believe them fincere Perfons.
I F it be faid that the Apoftles might
pleafe themfelves with being Heads of
a Party , and in Courfe efteemM by
fuch as they could bring into it ; which
h the only poflible Inducement left
them ; This is fuch thin Diet, as would
never fupport a Man againft the Diffi-
culties which the Apoftles expe^Eted, and
adlually met with : For what Induce-
ment would it be, to be efteemed by
a fmall Number of Perfons, almoft all
of them of mean Condition; and at
the fame Time to be defpifed by the
reft of the World; and not only
defpifed , but perfecuted even to
Death.
460 Sermon XV.
Death. "Whatever Pride and Vanity
there may be in our Natures, yet no
Man of Common Senfe can think the
Efteem of a few mean Perfons , a fuf-
ficient Recompence for being fcorned
and defpifed by all thofe who had any
Character for Reputation hi the World.
Had the Defire of Glory been their
Motive for Preaching the Gofpel, they
mufl: have been quickly difcouraged ,
when they faw themfelves treated with
greater Contempt than any other Sort
of Men, meerly for Preaching it. They
mufl: have given over the Attempt
when they found nothing got by it ,
but the Reputation of being Perfons
that were either mad or very wicked.
St. Vaul tells us they were looked up-
on as fools Jar Chris t's Sake ^, that
they were expofed in the Theatres to
be a SfeHacle to the People f , as pro-
fane Perfons, that were Enemies to all
Religion ; they were firft laugh'd at,
?nd then put to Death. Thofe who
can
'fM
-...J
;^ xCor. iy. jo. i ihld, v«r. 9,
''%
^ican believcj that any Perfons can be
tickled with fuch Sort of Fame, may
^believe any Thing: And therefore the
Deiji labours in vain, whilft he endea-
^vours to perfuade himfelf and others j
llhat the Apoftles were Deceivers.
The only Refuge left him would
be this: That the Apoftles preached
^no fuch Religion at the fame Time fet
down in the Writings of the New Te^
fiametJt^ but that the whole was a fi-
r (ftitious Account of Things and Perfons,
3publiflied fome Years after that Time,
'When it would not be eafy to confute
the Publilhers. But 'tis impoflible this
^'fhould be true, becaufe if the firft
Publication of the Religion had been
2 fome Yeai-s after that Time which the
Scriptures mention, as thofe Scriptures
exprefsly fay the Gofpel had been
preached fome Years before this Publi-
cation of it, and in fo Publick a Place
as Jerufalem, the Metropolis of Judea^
and the Jem difperfed over the Roman
Empire ; every one muft prefently have
found it to be a Cheat, becaufe the
Jews could have told them, they had
never
V
\62 Sermon XV.
never before heard of any fuch Reli-
gion preached in their Country. But
we are further aflurcd that the Gofpel
was not Jirji preached fome Years after
the Time fet down in the Kfew Tefta-
rnenty becaule we have an Heathen Author
of good Credit, that was born but a few
Years after the firft Preaching of it ;
who fpeaking of the Beginning of
Chriftianity tells us, '* That the Au-
^^ thor of this Sed was Christ;
" who m the Reign of Tiberius was
" put to Death by Pontius Pilate^ Go-
** vernor of Judea^ " which agrees
with the Times given by the Sacred
Writers: And then he fays, " The'
*^ it was thus nipped in the Bud by
" putting the Author to Death, yet it
" broke out anew, and fpread not on-
" \y through Judea^ but reached even
" unto Rome itfelf ^ ". This Author
was too exa£t an Hiftorian to give a
felfe Account of the Original of a
Se6i:, wliich was fo fiear his own Time.
But
"'ji>i''v--'* 'V- -M ' *-'-> '■■ - -i-'
■ " — • I
* Tackus Annal. Lib. 15.
Sermon XV. 463
But I Ihall fay no more to this Ob-
jeftion of the Deift^ becaufe it would
be doing it too much Honour to dif-
cover all its Weakneffes.
Having now fhewn, That the
firft Preachers of the Gofpel could not
be Deceivers, fuppofing the Gofpel to
have been Preached about that Time,
that the Writers of the New Ttjlament
tell us : That the Reafon of the Thing,
Ihews it muft have been Preached at
that Time .; that the Teftimony of an
Author that was an Enemy to the Chri-
ftian Religion confirms it : Having alfo
fhewn before, That if the Apoftles
were fincere Perfons, they could not be
deceived in the Relation they gave of
our Saviour's Miracles, by taking mere
Appearances for Realities : And that
fuch Extraordinary Works as they
relate, muft have the immediate Pow-
er of God for the Author of them;
we have then a folid Foundation for
the Divine Authority of our Chriftian
Religion to reft upon ; as it cannot be
fuppofed that God would have Coun-
tenanced
4(^4 Sermojst XV.
tenanced it in. fo extraordinary a Man-
ner, if it had not been from Heaven ;
efpecially when the Religion itfelf lays
Claim to fuch an Original: Nothing
more can be necelTary for juftifying the
Faith of a Chriftian, and at the fame
Time expofing the Unbeliever, for ma-
king Difficulties in Religious Belief his
Reafon for not receiving our Chriftian
Revelation, than Ihewing what AlTu-
ranee we have, that the Writings of
the New Teftament or our Four Gofpelsy
do contain a true Account of the Chri-
ftian Religion, fuch as it was at firft
Preached by the Apoftles. And the
Ground for any Doubt in this Cafe is,
Becaufe many Perfons did put out G<?-
fpels in the Names of the Apoftles, to
give them the greater Credit, and per-
haps thofe we have may be of that
Sort ; that fome of thofe that have born
the Name of an Apoftle, have differed
in fome very material Paffages from the
Received Go/pels* However, fuppofing
the Books we have were writ by thofe
whofe Names they bear, what Affu-
rance
Sermon XV.
ranee have we that many confiderabie
Alterations have not been made in
them, confidering the Malice and Care-
hfntfs of Tranfcribersj and the Number
of Copies which have been taken, fince
the Originals of the Apoftles were firft
Publiflied. The Anfwer to thefe Dif-
ficulties will be feen in
Difcourfe.
the folbwins
45$
H h
S E R M.
P? y ^^ O {
; ^-*J!-.-i^'
SERMON XVI.
467
2 Pet. I. 16.
For we have not followed
cunningly devifed Fahles^
when we made known un-
to you the power and com*
ing of our Lord Jesus
Christ, but were Eye-
witnejfes of His KjMd-^
T mufl be allowed that the
Difciples of our Lord, as
they were Eye-witnefTes,
were beft able to give us a
faithful Hiftory of the Actions of their
M^Jttr, And the Writers of Jpocrjphal
'■' '^ ' H h 2 B.ook^^
Sermon XVI.
QOU- Books plainly Ihew the Opinion the
" ^ye4d had. tk^ of- an Hiftory- of- our^,>,
Sjhxi o u R, writ by: them ; fince . they' ''
knew no better Way of gaining Cre-
dit to their Oofpels \, than - that * t)f
a&xiag. the Name of feme A'poftle to'
them -, and as we have proved them,
to be Honeft Men, nothing more can
be neceifary for clearing our GofpeU
fro^^ -^y -Sufpicipn of h^mg' ' stinmhgly ;
devij^ed F4/U\hvit iliewjng their A^vqq^.
ment with what was Preached, by the
4/11 .' ' T ■' V. •',- v.,i I Y^^ -.ff*-*
Jpofiler. • A .:^ - .^'^ -■ ..^^
I WILL therefore fliew, f/?, <\Ehat
we have good Reafori to believe, . tbat
thc^PLeceived Gofpeh were either writ,
or allowed of by- fome Apollle.
2!!^/)', Th AT "there is no good Evi-^^.
denes that any of the AjfocrjifhaLGof^els.A
were writ by that Apolfle or A'pollles,
whofe Name they bear : And how it
might come to pafs that they ^ere re-
ceived by fome , as the Writings of an
Ap9(tle> and yet be afterv/ards rcjecl-
ed.-
ijf, I AM to fliew, That we have
good Reafqn for believing that the jR^-
ceivcd
Se R M a:N XVL donJ: /^6^
cehed Go/pels were eitlier writ, ' or al-
lowed of by fome Apoftle. in proving*
this Propofition,
I WILL fhew i/,' That there were
Gofpels written from the Beginning of
Chriftianity, by the Perfons whofe
Names we have at the Head of our
Goffds, :■
2^/^, THAT.thQre, of them :^i^hicli
bear not the Name of an Apoftle, (as
Mark and Luke) were always fuppofed*
to have been {qqvi and allowed of by
fome Apoftle.
^ dly^ T H A T ; the^ Gofpvls which are
come down- to our Times, were thdrs^
and not any Jpocrjphal Go/pels,
jji. That, there were Gofpels writ*
ten from the Beginning of Chrillianity.
by the Perfons whofe Names we have
at the Head of our Gafpds. This is a
Matter of Fad, and muft therefore be;
determined by fuch Writers, as lived* ' '
neareft to the Times of their being
firft publifhed. If we can fhew, that'
both thofe Heretical Chriftians, who did
not in all Points approve of thefe Gdi^^
fpflsy and made ufe of others^ did yet
' -- H h ? allow
470 SERMt)N XVi.
allow them to be written by thofe Per-
fons, as well . as thoje Chriftians who
made Ufe of no others, we fliall fuf-
ficiently prove that thefe Perfons did
write thofe Go/pels. To begin with the
Orthodox, or fuch as allowed them in all
RefpeQ:s to be genuine. We find by
Iremus ^, a Perfon curious in enquiring
into Matters of this Nature, who flou-
rifhed in the lid Century, that St. Mat^
thewput out a Gofpel, after him St. Mark^
tJje» St. Luke , a^d laji of all St. John.
After him Eufehius ^, who took great
Pains in fearcliing for all Sorts of Wri*
tings from the very Beginning of Chri-
ftianity, whether Friends or Enemies,
tells us, That the Four Go/pels were
iv h^oxayys/j^oK^ among fuch Books as
were on all Hands allowed to be writ
by thofe Perfons whofe Names are pre-
fixed to them. It is needlefs to men-
tion any more Authorities of this Kind,
becaufe the Church which ufed thefe
Gofpeis,
"'^y^* Irenaus edit. Mafiuec. pag. 174/ . hf. .
.i:Eufeb. I lift. Ecclefiaft. Lib. 3. cap «5,
S E R M ON xyi. 47 1
Go/pels, mufl: be fuppofed to believe
them written by thofe Perfons.
And therefore I fliall proceed to'
the Heretical Chriftians, whole Teftimo-
ny will be more confiderable, as thefe
Gvfpels did in many Places oppofe fome
or other of their particular Opinions;
and yet we find thefe Go/pels were in
fuch an univerfal Efteem, that the ear-i
Heft Hereticks found it neceffary to havd
Recourfe to them, and to defend their
Opinions by the Authority of thefe Go*
fpi^^f, as Irefjdus afTures us *, " That the
'" Authority of thefe Gofpels is fo firni-
** ly Eftablifhed , that even Heretical
H h 4 '' Chriftians
(is — : ^„„i^
0"'
* Tanta eft aarem circa haec Evangella firmltas,
at 8c ipfi. Hxretici teftimonium reddant eis, Sc ex
ipfis egrediens unufguifque eorum , conetur fuam
confirmare doftrinam. Eblonxl etenim eo Erange-
lio quod eft: fecundum Matthscum folo utentes, ex
iilo ipfo convincuncur. Marcloii autem id, quod eft:
fecundum Lucam, circumcidens, ex his qux adhuc
iervantur penes eum, blafphemus in Deum Often-
ditur. Qui autem Jefum feparant a Chrifto, &
impafllbilem peiTeveraire Chriftum, pafTum vero Je-
fum dicunr, id quod fecundum Marcum eft prxfe-
rcntes Evangeliuni : Hi auteni qui a Valentino
fant, eo quod eeft fecundym Johannem plcnuTime ^
ptentes ad Oftenfionem conjugationum fiiaru^ji,. Ire*
hxiis, pag.:a9o, ,i^^.,^ f
472 Sermon XVL
^^ Chriftians could not difpute it, and
" were contented to fupport, as well
^' as they could, their particular Opini-
'' ons by them. That the Ebionites de-
** fended themfelves by St. Mattherv's
" Gofpsl ; the Marcionites by that of
*' St. Luke : Another Herefy ( whofe
" Name he does not tell us) juftified
" their Opinions by St* Mark''s Gofpel ;
*' and the Valentima^s by that of St.
" 'John ". That thefe laft received St.
John\ Gofpel^ becaufe they thought the
Firfl: Chapter of St. 'John was a Con-
firmation of their Notion of the ^Eons
hwg in Pairf. Thus we find the mod
early Hereticks endeavouring to defend
themfelves by the Authority of thefe
Gofpels,
I A M aware it has been queftion'd,
whether the Ebionites made ufe of St.
Matthew's Gofpel^ or whether it was an*
other Gofpel, which was commonly cal-
led according to the Hdrews ; which if
true, Irenmus was deceived in faying,
That the Four Gofpels were confirmed
hy the Teftimcny of Hereticks ; fince
one of them, ziz, St. Matthe)vs would
not
Sermon xvk 473
not have: had any fuch Confirmation.
That we may give a dillindl AnTwer
to this Objeftion, it muft be obferv'd,
that if theGo/j?el of St. Matthew was
writ by him in Hebrew or Syriack (which
the earlieil Writers affirm) it muft have
been for the Benefit of fuch Perfons, , as
underftood thofe Languages, and not the
<jretk : That thofe Perfons we;:e the
'^em in Palefime^ that the iirft Con-
verts to Chriftianity were made from
thefe "Jervs ; that fuch were for fomc
Time called Nat^arens ; that the Ebionites
were Sjrlaa. Jem too, and only diftin-
ilguifhed from them by a difterent Name,
on account of fome Errors which they
fell into ; that the ancient Eccleiiaftir
cal Writers liave beheved the Go/pel
ufed ^ by the J^azA/ens to be thq true
Goffd 0^ St. Mafthervy and at the fame
Time tell us f , That the E[?iomtes
made
* Eplphanius Hsref. 29. n. 9. '^t.yjicrt '^'^l xjx
' ■ MetrSct'To? ''ivAyy'iKiov rrx^^'i'^arov 'E/Bgiji/ri. •'
t^''t In Evangel io quo \xx.n\\v\x£ Nivzareni ^ Eh'tmlt£,
quod nuper In Grxcum Sermonem tranftulimus, quoi
,_., vocatur a plerifque Matthsei Authenticum. Hlcron.
"<^om. ■ in Matt. 12. Idem in Catftlog© Scriptor,
-' Ecclefiaft.
474 Sermon XVL
made ufe of the fame Gofpel with thefe
Nazarens ; that unlefs the Nazarem and
Ehiotfites did make ufe of this Gofpel of
St. Matthew in Hebrew^ we can fcarce
find any Chriftians that did ; but no
one will believe that an Apoftle fhould
write a Gofpel which no Body read y
that unlefs the Goffel ufed by thefe Per-
fons was St. Matthew^s Go/pel^ it muft,
have been entirely loft within a few
Years after it was publiflied. For neither
St. Jerom nor Origm before him were able^
to find any other Heherv Gofpel of St.
Matthew^ than what was in Ufe amongft
thefe Perfons ; and it cannot be faid
that it was neglected, and fo loft be-
caufe no Body wanted it ', for we are
certain that the Syrian or Syro-Chaldaick
Language which was called Hebrew ^^
continued for fome Ages after their
Times, to be the Language beft known
in that Country : It being the Mother
Language of that Country, till the Re-
ligion of Mahomet prevailed, which was
long after St. 'Jerom lived. Befides, it
IS
* Afts xxJ. 40.
h confefs'd by all V ^1^^-^ tlifere tvas a;
Gofnl in the nehn\v or "^yrmk m Ufe;
among fome Chriftians In St. ?er.^'^
Time, and therefore the Hehrexv Go/pet
of St. Matthew wouM not have been^
^hat this Objeaion fuppofts, ufelefs. If
it be ask'd how *tis poffible the Gofpd
iifed by the Nazarefts and Womter'9
fliould be generally reckoned' in Etifi^^
bittsh Time atnong Apocryphal Book^^
if it had been really writ by St. M^f^
ihe)V', the Anfwer is, that thofe who
make this ObjeEiion do not, as Father-
6Vw<7;^ obferves, duely refled upon thd
Original State of Chriftians. The Pri-
mitive Chriftians- of Jerufilem arid Fd^
leflifWy who made ufe of this tiebre^v Gof.
pel, having not long fubftfted in their firft .
Eftate, and the others on the contrar)^
who fpake Greek being difpers'd thro'
the whole Earth, it hath from thence
happened that the Greek Gofpel ofrt;f
was generally known, and therefor^
generally allowed of ; becaufe all th^
other Chriftians had taken their Verfi-
ons from this Copy. Whereas the ChaU
daick
^y6 Sermon XVI.
daick Xongue, in, which the Gofpel of
the N^nAnnes was writ, was only under^-.
ftood by feme y^:w. And befides, the-
Nazarenes who had retained Judaifm^i
with Chriflianity^ became odious to theil
other Chriftians who were converted
from Gentilifmy and there was an irre-w.,
concileable Hatred between them ; and ■
then no wonder if fome Gtntile Chri-
ftians were not for allowing fuch hatedi.it
Perfons the Honour of ufing St. Mat-^'-^
thetv*s GofpeL ri:
All then that can be urged with an?-"^-
fhewof Reafon, by fuch as deny that,
the Nazare^/es and Ebionites made ufe of ">7
the Hebrew Go/pel of St. Matthew, would ?i
be this, That thofe Writers who a^A
firmed that St. Matthew writ his Gofpel
in Hebrew y were deceived. And yet we^
know that Papias -^ in the Eaft, wha *?
converfed with the Difciples of the A*^ ^ .
poftles, and was very inquifitive to know
what they faid or did, tells us pofitive-
ly, that St. Matthew writ his Go/pel in
Hebrew ; he fpeaks of it as a Matter of
'-:■ Faa
.• * Eurebius. Lib. 3. cap. 39. ,
Sermion xvl ^Jf
Facl that was not> at that Time doubt-
ed of. St. Jremus in the Weft fays, St.
Mauherv, being among the Hebrews^ writ
his Gof^el m their Diale(!il ^ ; and others
fay I "St. Matthew writ it in that Lan-
guage for the Sake of fuch Sjria» Jews
converted to Chriftianity, as were ig-
norant of the Greek Tongue f . But for
all this Evidence, the many Additions
and /Differences from the Greek of St. .
Matthew y found in the Goffel ufed by\^
the Nazarenes and Ehionitesj have made
many believe, that they did not ufe j.
St, Matthen^'^s Go/pel. Whereas they ought
to confider (efpecially as the Evidence
is fo ftrong againft them) that thofe
Additions and Alterations might be ow-
ing to the Cuftom of thofe Times ,
when Chriilians took a great deal of
Pains to inform themfelves of what the
Difciples of the ApolHes had learn'd from
their Mafters, as appears by Papias || ;
and to preferve them would probably
put them down between the Lines ,
and
* Epiphan. Hxref. 51. f Eufeb. H. E. lib. 3.
cap. 8. jj Euf^b. lib. 5. cap. 39,
47 § Sermon XVL
and at the Margin of their Copy of
t;he Goffely from whence fuch Interlinea-
tions and Margmal Notes might by De-
grees flip into the Texty and fo become
Part of the Gof^d itfelf. Many Alterations
too might have been introduced by the
^biom^es into their Copies, with a De-
lign to favour fome of the pecuh'ar O-
pinions of their SeQ:. I am perfuaded
there is more Probability that thofe
Alterations which were found in fome
Copies af St. Matthem^s Hebrew Gofpel'^
(as appears by fome PafTages St. ^erom
has quoted from it,) might have been
introduced in fome fuch Way, than that
all the Ecclefiaftical Writers who have
fpoken of this Matter, even the earlieft
of them, fhould be deceived in thefe
two Matters of Fa£t, 'ulz.. That St.
Matthew writ his Gofpel in Hebrew, and
that the Hebrerv Go/pel which the Naz,A^
renes and Ebiomtes made ufe of, was St.
]\fattherv^3 GofpeL As to thofe who deny
^he firjl of thefe, Grotms fcruplesnot to
fay, Nullis ]ujf:ts de Caufis maximum pix
^^tiquitatis Qovfenfiomrf% repudiant ^, ^
* Ccm. in Match, cap. i. •:'''•
S E R M O N XVI. *479
pi But it may be faid that if thefe
Hereticks did quote the Go/pel of St.
Matihtrv, as^ well as the other Hereticks
tJid the other Gofpeis, that this would
only prove that fuch Gofpels with fuch
Titles were in their Times : But that
their not receiving them, fhould feem
to prove that thofe, which each reje£fc-
ed, were not thought by them to be
writ or authoriz'd by an ApolHe ; that
they only made ufe of them to defend
their own Opinions againft the Ortha-
doxy who allowed them to be writ by
thofe Perfons, whofe Names they bear.
The Anfwer to this is, That we can-
not find any of thefe Hereticks ever
denied thefe Gofpels being wrote by thofe
Perfons , even when they were hard
prefs'd to reconcile their Opinions with
thefe Gofpels. If there had been the
leaft Sufpicion whether Matthew, Marky
Luke and Joh^ had writ any Gofpels^
there would have been an eafy Anfwer
to the Orthodox, in telling them that it
was doubtful whether the Gofpels, which
oppofed their Opinions, were writ by
-thofe Perfons. But when the Church
prefs'd
480 Sermon XVI.
prefs'd them with PafTages, drawn from
thefe Go/pels, they anfwered them ei-
ther by giving a diflperent Senfe to the
"Words, if they would admit any ; or
by denying thofe Words to belong to
the Writer of th^ Gofpel ; for fome of
them, as particularly the Marchmtesy
ftruck out of their Copies of the Goft^ely
whatever was qffenfive to them, as we
have already feen by he?i£us : Or elfe
they defended themfelves by quoting
fome Apocryphal Gojptly which ia an
Age not over Critical , they found to
be of great Service to them : for by
prefixing the Name of an Apoftle to
Go/pels of their own putting out in Fa-
vour of their, particular Opinions, they
f^t up the Authority of one Apoftle
againfl: another. This fliews that in the-
earliefl: Times of Chriftianity, when
their Spurioufnefs might have been de-|
teded, there was, no PofTibility of dif-
puting , whether Four Go/pels were
writ by thofe, whofe Names they-
bore.
a-lly^ I AM to fhew now, That fuch
of the Gofptls Ijs bear not the Nam^ of
an
Sermon* XVI. 481
an Ai^oi\k,'viz,^M^rk'2ini Lake, weijb
always fuppofed 'to have b^en fqen' arid
allowed of by fome Apoftlc. To begin
with St. A^arl'. He is faid by Jrenaus to
have been a Follower of St. Feter^ and
an Interpreter of his Sermons ; And
•one that was antienter, being a Contem-
porary with the imnfiediate Difciples of
the Apoftles , ^ Fapas , fays, " That
** Mark, who was Peter^s Interpre-
" ter, had written exaOily all that he
" had retained in his Memory, with-
" out obferving the Order of the Words
'^ and Actioiis of Jesus Christ;
^' for he had not himfelf heard Jesus
" Chris t,' not having followed Him ;
*^ but he 'had followed Peter, who
'* Preached to the People, according as
" their Neceflities required. " Clemens
Jlexandrims tells us, That St. Mark^
who for a long Time followed Feter^
put into Writing the Gofpel which Sf.
Feter had Preached at (the Requeft of
the Faithful, and that this Gcfpel was
I i approved
* Marcus Interpres & Senator Petri. Ircnxus,
pag. 187. VideEufeb. Hift. Ecclef. Lib. 3. 0.3$?.
482 Sermon XVL
approved by St. ?eter ; for the Truth
of which Eufihfus brings not only Cle-
mensj but F/tfUs to be his Vouchers ^.
If in his t Vlth Book he quotes the
fame Clemens for faying, that Peter nei-
ther approved, nor difallowed of Sto
Mark^s Gofpely Valefius in his Notes up-
on the Place tells us, That this is eafily
reconciled; becaufe in the Vlth Book
he fpeaks only of a pubiick Approba-
tion of this Goffely and in the lid Book
of what Encouragement St. Peter gave
to it in private amongft his Friends.
As for St. Luke^ we find by [Origen and
Eufebius^ that it was the general Opi-
nion of Chriftians, That St. Faul meant
his Gofpely when he faid of him, " Luke
*' the beloved Phyfician, whofe Praifc
*' is in the Gofpel. " If this were true,
we have the Approbation of an Apo-
ftle given to his Go/pel, and an Anfwer
to Amyntor^ when he asks us, " Why
*' we do not receive the Epijiles oiBar-
<' nabas and Clemens among the Canoni-
y '' cd
" Eufeb. H. Ecc. Lib. 2. cap. 14.
t Eufcb, Lib, 6. cap. 14.
Sermon XVi. 48^
" cal Books, as wdl-^s Mark and. Luke,
" fince the RvHt were as much Com-
*' panions and Fellow-Labourers with
" the Apoftles as the later? " And
the Anfwer is this; That thefe Gof^eUy
were not only compofed by fuch as
had been Companions with an Apoflle,
but were aifo believed, to have received
the Allowance of fome Apoftle^ So
Eufehius tells us, That 'twas commonly,
beheved \ St. John look'd over the..
thrcQGoJpels oi Mdnhew, Mark and Luke:,
,and approved of them. But there is no
Evidence pretended for the Epijlles of
Barnabas and Clemens being approved by
any Apoftles. Some have even que-
ftioned, whether they were the real Au-
thors of thofe Epijihs which now bear
their Names, efpecially of that which
bears the Name of Bamahas, And there-
fore the Church might have good Rea-
fon for receiving Mark and Luke, and
not Qlemtm and Bamahas, into the Ca-
I i 2 non
A'^TVfn«"«tf7«, Eufeb. Lib. 3, cap z^. pag. 95.
484. Sermon xVL
non of the Holy Scriptures *,, and the
jFaith of a Chriftian may be well
grounded which receives thefe Gofpe
for a Part of its Rule, without con-
cerning itfelf about the Epiftles of Cle-
mens and Barftahas,
:^dlyy We are now to fee, whether
the Go/pels which are come down to
our Times, are really the Go/pels writ
by them, or only Apocryphal Writings,
with their Names to them. And the
Reafon for fuch a Sufpicion may be
grounded upon this, That if the Hebrew
Gofpel of St. Matthem could be altered
to fuch a Degree, and fo foon after its
Publifhing, that in the Time of Eufe-
* bius it was become doubtful, whether it
Was -his Gofpel or not; what Security
Gan we have , who live at a much
greater Diftance from the Time when
thefe Go/pels were firll Publifhed, that
our Gofpels are not as much alteredj
as the Hebrew Gofpel of St. Matthew was
in the Time of Eufebius : when the Al-
terations were fo many, as to make it
pafs with fcveral for an Apocrjphal Book,
entitled, The Gofpel nccordirjg to the He-
brews.
Sermon XVI. 4^$
brews. Our Anfwer is, That feoolcs in
the Hands of the Gentile Chriftians, couid
not be altered fo eafily, as thofe that
were in the Hands of only one Nation,
viz.. 'the converted Jem^ and thofe oa-
ly the converted Syrian Jews ; for only
thefe made Ufe of the Hehrew Gofpel
of St. Matthew. Whereas thofe who read
the Gofpel in Greek, were difperfed all
over the World ; confequently, a Mul-
titude of Copies in Places at the great-
:^€ft Dirtance from one another: And
'therefore if any confiderable Alterations
'■"had been made in om Place, they muft
'have been taken Notice of by thofe of
another Place, who had none of them in
their Copies of the Gofpel. Befides the
Number of Copies in Parts very di-
ftant from each other, which has always
heen the Cafe of our Greek Copies of
the Gofpel; there have been from the
Beginning a great Number of Tran^
(iations from the Greek, into the feveral
Languages that were commonly fpoken
in the feveral Countries which made Pror
feffion of the Chriftian Religion. If
there had beta any confiderable Alte-
I i I ration?
Sermon XYI.
rations made in our Greek Copies of the;
Gofpels, they muil have been difcover-
ed by fooie or other of the Old Verfu
bns.; as the Hebrew Copy of St. Mat-
thew was found to be greatly altered,
by comparing it with the Greek Verfion ;
whereas the Greek Copies agree for the
'/fwfi Part with all the Verfions that
iiave been made from the Greek : And
therefore we cannot doubt that the Go-
fpels which we receive as Canonkd^
\vere the Gofpels of Matthew^ Mark,
Luke and Jolm. I fiiall have occafion to
fpeak more particularly as to the Faith-
fulnefs of our Copies of the Gofpels ^
in the mean Time,
I Proceed to the Second general
Head which was, That thei-c is no
good Evidence that any of the Jpocrjh
fhal Gofpels were writ by that Apoftle,
or thofe Apoftles, whofe Name they
bear-, and therefore when they give
any Accounts different from the Re-
ceived Gofpels, that they are not to
be regarded. That no good Evidence,
can be produced in Behalf of the Jpch
i^rypbal Gofpels, will appear, if I can
prove.
Sbrmon XVI. 487
prove, i/, That they were not takea
Notice of 'till many Years after that Apo-
ftle's Time, whofe Writing they pre-
tend to be. Or,
zdljy That if they were quoted
early by fome Writers, they were not
quoted as the Writings of an Apoftle.
The Author of Nazarems has exprefs'd
a particular Fondnefs for the pretended
Gofpel of Barnabas^ and the Reafon of
his Fondnefs feems to be its contradict-
ing the Account our Cammed Gofpels
give of our S a v i o u r's Death and Re-
iurredlion. But 'tis certain, this Gofpel
efcaped the Searches of Inquifitive Men,
fuch as Eufebius and ^erom^ who made
it their Bufinefs to inform themfelves of
every Thing relating to Ecclefiaftical
Antiquity ; and was not difcovered 'till
^bove Four Hundred Years after it
muft have been writ, fuppofmg St. Bar-
mhos to have been the Author of it. For
the firft niention that ToUnd, could find
to be made of this Gofpel, was m the
Decree of Pope GeUfius^ in a Council
jield at Rome in the Year 49 j *. But
I i 4 I
I-" I ■ — - — '
* NaxarenuS' pag. <J, 7.
488
Sermon XVI.
I believe it will fcarce be thought pro-
babiie, that a Gofpel writ by fo cele-
brated a Perfon as St. Bar»ai?af, could
have lain hid for fo lor/g a Time, efpe-
ciaJly at a Time when we are told,
that Chriftians were very inquifitive
and defirous to learn any Particulars
relating to the Words and Actions of
our Saviour. 'Twas this ftrong De-
fire that encouraged Deceivers to put
out f^iitious Accounts of our Saviour's
Words and Aftions under the Name
o£ fome Apoftles ; and the fame Dcfire
would never have fuftered a Gofpel^
writ by a Compmion and Yellow- Labourer
with the Apoftle, to have lain in Ob-
fcurity for fo long a Time ^. The
Author of Nasiarent^s does not offer to
affign a Reafon, why this Gofpel was
riot taken Notice of before the Time of
GeUCtfUy o^ of Damaffi^ at the higheft ;
but contents himfelf with endeavouring
to Ihew, that this Gofpel might be as'
old as the Times of the Apoftles, al-
tho' it does not agree with tht Camm^
* Naxapcnus. -pag. 1 7
Sermon XVI. 489
cd Gofpels in this Particular concerning
the Death and Refurre^tion of our Sa-
viour. And the Reafon given for
this is, Becaufe this Gofpel is not the
only old one, that tells us, that Christ
was not really put to Death, and there-
fore that he did not *' rife again ; for
*' that the Cerinthians and Carpocratians
" did believe that it was not Jesus,
*' but one of his Followers, very like
** him in Perfon, that was crucified ia
" his Stead ; and yet Cerinthus was Con-
" temporary with Veter ^ Paid ^ and
" John ^\ Thus far Nazarems. But
this Writer was much deceived in ma-»
king Cerinthus to deny the Death and
Refurre8:ion of Jesus; for Iren^us^
who lived near the Time of Cerinthus
was certainly a better Judge of his O-
pinions, than Efiphanius , from whom
ToUnd had this Account of the Cerin^
thianiy as he lived at a much greater
Diftance from the Beginning of that:
Se(^. But Irenxus tells us, Cerinthus^
Belief was, that before the Death oi"
Jesus,
Nazaren. p- 17-
45)o Sermon XVL
Jesus, 'Christ left hirp, and flew
back to Heaven , but that Jesus
fuffer'd Death and rofe again. In fne
autem revoUfje Chrifium de Jefuy £ff Jefum
pajfum ejfe & refurrexiffe '(-. We fcQ
then this Account to be very different
from that of the Gofpel of St. Barnabas^
but agreeing with our Gofpels in. the
Fa£l of the Death and Refurredion ; and
that this particular Circumftance of fome
Qther Body being crucified, and not our
Saviour, vi^as a Novel Invention,
not heard of in the Times neareft to
our Saviour, either by the Ortho-
dox or Hereticks, and therefore a good
Proof that this Gofpel was writ fmce
the Time of Barttabas. But i
sly, As to thofe Apocryphal Gofpels
which were taken notice of, and cited
by the Early Writers ; there is no Evi-
dence that they were writ by thofc
Apoftles, whofe Name they bear; be-*
caufe when they quote any Paflage out
of them, they either fpeak of them as
Goffels forged by Hereticks ; or elfe as
of
t Irenjcus, p. J 95'
Sermon xvI. 491
of Books whofe real Authors were un-
known, altho' the Title of an Apoftle
was prefixed to them. I do not deny
that fome Early Writers have quoted the
Epiftle of Barnabas^ the Paftor of Hermas^
znd fome others, as the genuine Wri-
tings of thofe Authors ; but as to any
Go/pels, there were none but our Four
Gofpels, which had an undoubted Au -
thority ; it not being queftioned, whe-
ther thefe Gofpels were Writ by thofe
Perfons whofe Names they bear, as we
have already feen ; whereas every one
of the other Gofpels were rejeded by
fome or other of the Hereticks^ and all of
them by the CathoUcksy as Spurious
Pieces. Thus Orige^ tells us in his Firll
Homily on St. Luke's Gofpel, That the
^' Church has Four Gofpels, but He-
** retieal Chriftians many more ; " among
which are reckon'd by him the Gofpel
according to Thomas^ the Gofpel by
St. Mstthins : To thefe ^ Eufelfius adds
that of St. Peter and St. Andrew, The
Gofpel intitled St. Feter\ Gofpel is alfo
men-
* Ecclef. Hift. lib. 3. ca-p. ij.
Sbrmon XVI.
mentioned by Origen^ but rejected by
him as the f Work of fome other Aih
thor. If Ibme weak Catholicks did for
fome Time take thefe for Gofpels written
by Apoftles, this is no more than what
commonly happens in all Forgeries ,
which will have a Currency, till they
arc carefully look'd into, efpecially in
fuch Times as were thofe of the Firft
Ages of Chriftianity, when the Perfe-
cutions Chriftians met with from their
Enemies, did not give themLeifure or
Opportunity for enquiring what Evi-
dence there was to fupport them ; and
therefore the Reception given them by
fome Chriftians at firft can be no Proof
of their Authority , nor any Reafon
why they might not afterwards rejedl
them. ■ They might for fome Time
receive fuch Gofpels, as the Writings
of Jpoftlesy and afterwards find them".
felves miftaken, vv'ithout giving us any
Reafon for fufpeding the Authority of
our Four Gofpels ; becaufe Matthew^
Mark, Luke and 'John were from the Be-
ginning
»i " . , >
t Tom. xi. Cqmment. in Match.
Sermon xvl. 493
ginning univerfdy allowed to be the
Authors of them. And thus " I have
ihewh that tfie Canonical Gofpels re-
ceived by us were the Gofpels of M«f-
therv^ Mark, Luke and John, that both
the Gofpels of Mark and Luke were ge-
nerally thought to have received the
Approbation of an Apoftle, and 'there-
fore we may depend upon a true Ac-
count of the Chriftian Religion in thefe
Gofpels. That no cJther Gofpels are to
be regarded , when they differ from
.thefe, whatever pompous Titles . may
be at the Head of them ; becaufe no
good Evidence, that any of them were
the Work of an Apoftle. Therefore
nothing more can be necelTary for fet-
tling a Man's Faith ^- in the Chriftian
Religion , but to fhcw that notwith-
ftanding the Originals of the Evange-
lifts are loii , ( from which only we
could hope for an exa£l Copy of thefe
Gofpels) and the Copies that have been
ti-anfcribed from them , do differ in
many Particulars ; yet the Variations
cither do not affed any Thing necef-
fary to be believed or praftifedj or if
thcv
494- Sermon xvl
they doy the true Reading is flill prc-»
ferved in fome Copy or other.
'T I s evident to any one that has
confulted the Various Readings collcQ:-
cd by Dr. Mills, that a great Part of them'
are meer Trifles, that do not aiFed the
Senfe of the Writer of the Gofpel, whicli^
foever Reading we take. That many
of thofc, which are fuppofed to have''
been alter'd by Djfign, had only a Re* '
lation to Mifquotations of the Old Te-
ftAmenty or to reconciling one Evange-
lift with another, when they thought
them to differ in fome Circumftance of
a Fad ; or to leaving out fome Pa{^
iages which they thought might be ,
or they found a£lually were, perverted
and mifunderftood : Or fubftituting o-
thers lefs liable to Exception in the
Room of them ; Or elfe the Alteration
might affed fome mcejfary Dodrine of
a Chriftian's Faith. To fome one or o*
ther of thefe Heads may be reduced
moft of the Alterations, that are fup-
pofed to have been defignedly made
in our Gofpels. An Inftance of the firfi:
Sort is fuppofed to be found ia MattL
Sermon XVl. 49^
xiii. 55. ThAt it might be fulfilled by the
Prophet^ I will o^en my Mouth in Para^
hies, 8^0. ^ Porphyry read it in the
Copy he ufed, the Prophet Ifaiah, and
made it aa ObjeQion againft the Evan*,
gdifk. And St. Jerom owns he found
ia fome Copies the Prophet Ifaiahy but
that Ifjiiah was left out of the greattfi
Part of the Copies in his Time, be-
caufe no fuch Quotation was to be found
ia Jfftiah ; for which Reafon he fays,
Arbitror poftea fabUtum effe a frudentihus
viris ^, An Inftance of altering to rQ-
concile one Evangelift with another h
given in the Time of our Saviour's
Crucifixion, which St. Mark fays was
the Third Hour, and ^t. Jolm about
the Sixth , and yet 'tis obfcrved, that
fome Copies of St. John had the Third
Hour, as well as fome Copies of St.
Mark had the Si^th Hour, jtift as the
Tranfcriber was inclined either to bring
St. Joh» to St. Marky or St. Mark to
St.
* Hieron. Comment, fuper Matth. cap. 13.
* See the Author of the Commentar>- o;i the 7fth
Pfaltn. Breviariura Hieron
49^ Sermoh XVI.
St. Joh^. Of OmifTions, and of fubfti-
tuting one Word for another, the In-
ftances are , Luke xix. 41. and Joh»
vif. 8. The firft is Christ's Weep-
ing over Jerufdem ; this was thought
a Paffion unbecoming our Saviour
and therefore, as Epiphanius tells us ,
was , left out of thofe Copies which
were then thought moft corred ^. In
the other Place ofjoh» vii. 8. 'tis thought
that one Word is fubftituted in the
Place of another : Our Saviour had told
his Difciples, that He would have them
go to the Feaft of the Pajfover, but as
to Himfelf that He defigned not to go
thither ; and yet it appears by the Se-
quel of the Hiftbry, that He aftually
did go. St. Jerom obferves, that Por^
phyry had mark'd this PaiTage as an Ar-
gument of our Saviour's Inconflan-
cy J and therefore that the i«. was
changed
Epiphanius in Ancorato. cap. 31,
Sermon XVL 45)7
changed iiito «^9 to avoid the Force
of this Obje6iion.
Our Anfwer to all this is, That no
Body ever denied there have been fuch
weak Perfons among Chriflians, as
might alter their Copies of the Gofpels
in fuch Places, as they found themfelves
unable to defend againft the Objedions
the Heathens made to them. But then
we fay, tliat there is no Probability
that fiich Alterations fhould fo far ob-
tain, as to throw out the true Reading
in all the Copies of the World. That
Copies of the Gofpels in the Original
were difpers'd into fo many Hands, be-
fides the many Verfwm of thofe Go-
spels, that neither weak Cliriftians, nor
St„ Jeromes frttdeM Man^ would have it
in their Power to carry their Alterati-
ons into ail the Copies in all tlie diffe-
rent and diftant Parts of the World*
And we find it to be true in Fad, that
in thefe Places, which are ilippos'd to
have h^t]i altered by Defign, xh.Q ge-
nuine Reading is preferved at this E^y
^.1 fome Copy or other. And tho* St
^^^m fays, 'm his Time Ifxiah was \<^h
JC k oul:
S E R xM o N XVI:
out of moft Copies in Manh. xiil J5,
yet Kj^/ler in his Edition of iW/7/j's New
Tefiam^jt tells us of one Copy in the
Frefjch King's Library that has it at this
Day, viz. the 6th Parifian ; as to the
other Inilances of defigned Alterations,
we find that which isjuppofed to be the
true Reading, in more Copies than are
thofe that Want it ; but if it had been
otherwife, as no Part of a Chriftian's
Faith or Pradice would have been af-
feded by not having the true Read-
ing of the Evanieliji in any of thefe In-
ftances *,
I WILL proceed to confider the In-
ftances of defigned Alterations in a Point
of Faith, as concerning the Divinity of
the Son; 'tis thought, that the Dif-
pute between the Orthodox and Arians
was carried on with fo much Warmth,
that the ArUns altered their Copies m
fuch Places v/liere Christ was called
God, or equalled to the Father, as
I Tim. iii. 16. God maniftfitd in the Flejhy
this Ibme fay, was changed into, which
was mampjted in the flefb • to avoid the
Force .c?f • tlie . Word God. 'Tis certain
both
Sermgk XVI. 499*^
both Readings were fupported by a
great Number of Copies ; which Ihews
the Induftry of one of the Parties, to
jfupport its Opinion. And the famou's
Text in I 'John v. 7. of the Ihrre that
hear Witnefs in Heaven^ is fuppofed to
have been put into this £/(/?/^ to ferye
Purpofes.
Tho' thefe Inftances are not in the
Gofpels, but the Epiftles, yet as the Gof-
pels might have been as eafily altered^
as any of the Epiltles at that Time^ I
think myfelf obliged to fhew, that a
Chriflian has lefs Reafon to fear find-
ing the true Reading in thefe Inftances
of defigned Alterations , than in the
former Ones ; becaufe the Alterations
before mention'd were made fome of
them much earlier , when there were
fewer Copies of the Gofpels, than there
were of thefe Epiftles in the Time of
thQ Jriaff Controverfy. For when J*
j^ius firfl fet up his Doftrine, Chrifli-
anity was the Eftablifhed Religion, and
difperfed over all Parts of the Roman
Empire, and confequently Copies of the
^m Tejiamem very much multiplied;
K k 2 and
500 Sermon XVL
and it was the Intered of either Side
to watch one another , that neither
fhould corrupt the Witneffes. And
therefore whatever Inclination there
might be in the Orthodox or Arian to
alter the Scriptures, it would not be
in their Power , at leaft in all fuch
Places as related to this Controverfy.
Confequently every Chriftian may liave
enough to build his Faith upon in the
New Tejiament^ fuch as 'tis brought down
to our Times. If fometimes there be
a Difficulty of determining among ma-
ny, which is the true Reading, and we
know not whether fome neceffary Do-
ftrine of the Religion be not treated of
in the Place, we need not be follicitous ;
for if it be fuchy we fliall find it in
other Places, where there is no Diilicul-
ty in fettling the Tpxt ; becaufe thofe
which are undoubtedly the neceffary
Doftrines of the Chriftian Religion, are
fo often repeated in the New Teftame?3ty
fuch as we have it, and fo clofely wo-
ven into the very Body of it, that there
would be no removing any one of them
out of every Place of the New Ttfiamenty
without
Sermon XVI. $oi
without fubftituting another Sett of
Golpds and EpilHes in the Room of
the prefent ones, as will be evident to
every one that makes the Experiment
on any one Article of that which is
caird, the Jpo les Creed : But we have
already ihtwnit to be impofiible that our
Gofpels fhould be, as to the main Part
of them, any other tlian thofc whicli
were writ by Matthew, Mark, Luke and
Joh» ; and the fame Reafon will hold
as to thefe Epiftles, which were more
univerfally fpread, more Copies and
Tranflations of them in the Time of
Arius, than there were of the Gofpels,
when forac of the Alterations before
mentioned were made*
T H u s I have Ihewn that there is
no Ground for fufpefting, that the
Chriftian Religion was from the Be-
ginning of it a cunningly devijed Fxhle^
becaufe thofe who firft Preached it ,
muft have been fincere Perfons, and alfo
that it cannot have been lb altered fince
their Time, as to become one m ours ;
becaufe whatever Aherations may have
been made in fome Copies by Tran-
fcribers,
5o2 Sermon XVL
fcribers, they could not affe6t our ChrU
itian Faith, or hinder us from receiv-
ing the Gofpel, fuch as it was Preach-
ed by the Apoftles, in all material Points.
And therefore whatever the Ufdel may
think of the Gofpel, I doubt not, it
will appear to all impartial Enquirers
to be no lefs than a MeiTage from
Heaven made known to us., as St.
Feter expreffes it, in the Words of my
Tej^f, by the Fower andComirjg of our Lord
JesusChrist, as of a Perfon ap-
pointed by God to declare his Will to
Mankind., u «
And now I hope to have fully
Ihewn the dangerous State of Infideli-
ty ; or that all the Difficulties the Mn-
believer pretends to raife again ft Reli-
gious Principles, cannot fecure him a-
gainft the Apprehenfions of Puniflhment
in a future State ; we have therefore
nothing more - to do, but to beg of
God, That He would be fo Good as
to incline the Heart of the Unbeliever
to believe in Him and his Son Jesus
Christ.
O
Sermon XVI. 503
" O merciful God, who haft made
'' all Men, and hateft Nothing that
" Thou haft made, nor wouldeft
*' the Death of a Sinner, but ra-
^^ ther that he fhould be converted
" and live, have Mercy upon all
'* JewSy Turks, Infidels and Hereticks •
. '* and take from them all Igno-
" ranee, Hardnefs of Heart, and
vrr" Contempt of Thy Word; and
" fo fetch them Home, blefted
''Lord, to Thy Flock, that
' " they may be faved among the
*' Remnant of the true Ifraelitesy
• *' and be made one Fold under
" One Shepherd, JesusChrist
*' our Lord, who liveth and reign-
*' eth with Thee, and the Holy
"Spirit, One God, World
*' without End. Amen^
FINIS.
i
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