fet of refined spirits, capable only of being enamoured of virtue, yet what would become of the bulk of mankind, who have grofs understandings, but lively fenfes, and ftrong paffions? What a deluge of luft, and fraud, and violence, would in a little time overflow the whole nation, if these wife advocates for morality were univerfally hearkened to! Laftly, opportunities do fometimes offer, in which a man may wickedly make his fortune, or indulge a pleasure, without fear of temporal damage, either in reputation, health, or fortune. In fuch cafes, what restraint do they lie under, who have no regards beyond the grave? the inward compunctions of a wicked, as well as the joys of an upright mind, being grafted on the fenfe of another state.

The thought, that our existence terminates with this life, doth naturally check the foul in any generous purfitit, contract her views, and fix them on temporary and felfifh ends. It dethrones the reafon, extinguishes all noble and heroic fentiments, and fubjects the mind to the flavery of every prefent paffion. The wife heathens of antiquity were not ignorant of this: hence they endeavoured by fables and conjectures, and the glimmerings of nature, to poffefs the minds of men, with the belief of a future ftate, which has been fince brought to light by the gospel, and is now most inconfiftently decried by a few weak men, who would have us believe that they promote virtue by turning religion into ridicule.

То

Mena agit at molen......

Virg.

one who regards things with a philosophical eye, and hath a foul capable of being delighted with the fenfe, that truth and knowledge prevail among men, it must be a grateful reflection, to think that the fublimest truths, which among the heathens only, here and there one of brighter parts and more leifure than ordinary could attain to, are now grown familiar to the meanest inhabitants of thefe nations.

Whence came this furprifing change, that regions, formerly inhabited by ignorant and favage people, fhould

now

now outshine ancient Greece, and the other eastern countries, fo renowned of old, in the most elevated notions of theology and morality? Is it the effect of our own parts and industry? Have our common mechanics more refined understandings than the ancient philofophers? It is owing to the God of truth, who came down from heaven, and condefcended to be himself our teacher. It is as we are chriftians, that we profefs more excellent and divine truths than the reft of mankind.

If there be any of the free-thinkers, who are not direct atheists, charity would incline one to believe them ignorant of what is here advanced. And it is for their information that I write this paper, the defign of which is, to compare the ideas that chriftians entertain of the being and attributes of a God, with the grofs notions of the heathen world. Is it poffible for the mind of man, to conceive a more auguft idea of the Deity, than is fet forth in the holy fcriptures? I fhall throw together fome paffages relating to this fubject, which I propofe only as philofophical fentiments, to be confidered by a free-thinker.

Though there be that are called gods, yet to us there is but one God. He made the heaven, and heaven of heavens, with all their hofts; the earth, and all things that are therein; the feas, and all that is therein. He faid, let them be, and it was fo. He hath ftretched forth the heavens. He hath founded the earth, and hung it upon nothing. He hath fhut up the fea with doors, and faid, hither fhalt thou come and no further, and here fhall thy proud waves be stayed. The Lord is an invifible fpirit, in whom · we live, and move, and have our being. He is the fountain of life. He preferveth man and beaft. He 'giveth food to all flesh. In his hand is the foul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind. The Lord maketh poor and maketh rich. He bringech low and lifteth up. He killeth and maketh alive. He woundeth and healeth. By him kings reign, and ' princes decree justice, and not a sparrow falleth to the K 2 ground

ground without him. All angels, authorities, and powers are fubject to him. He appointeth the moon for feafons, and the fun knoweth his going down. He thundereth with his voice, and directeth it under the whole heaven, and his lightning unto the ends of the earth. Fire and hail, fnow and vapour, wind and ftorm fulfil his word. The Lord is king for ever and ever, and his dominion is an everlafting dominion. The earth and the heavens fhall perish, but thou, O Lord, remaineft. They all fhall wax old, as doth a garment, and as a vefture fhalt thou fold them up, ・ and they fhall be changed; but thou art the fame, and thy years fhall have no end. God is perfect in knowledge: his understanding is infinite. He is the father of lights. He looketh to the ends of the earth, and feeth under the whole heaven' The Lord beholdeth all the children of men, from the place of his habitation, and confidereth all their works. He knoweth our down-fitting and up-rifing. He compaffeth our path, and counteth our steps. He is acquainted with all our ways; and when we enter our clofet, and fhut our door, he feeth us. He knoweth the things that come into our mind, every one of them; and no thought C can be withholden from him. The Lord is good to < all, and his tender mercies are over all his works. He is a father of the fatherlefs, and a judge of the widow. He is the God of peace, the father of mercies, and the God of all comfort and confolation. The Lord is great, and we know him not: his greatnefs is unfearchable. Who but he hath measured the < waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out the heavens with a fpan. Thine, O Lord, is the greatnefs, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty. Thou art very great, thou art cloathed with honour. Heaven is thy throne, and earth is thy footstool.'

Can the mind of a philofopher rife to a more juft and magnificent, and at the fame time, a more amiable idea of the Deity, than is here fet forth in the strongest

images,

images, and moft emphatical language? And yet this is the language of thepherds and fishermen. The illiterate Jews, and poor perfecuted chriftians, retained these noble fentiments, while the polite and powerful nations of the earth, were given up to that fottish fort of worfhip, of which the following elegant defcription is extracted from one of the infpired writers.

yea

Who hath formed a god, or molten an image, that is profitable for nothing? The fmith with the tongs, both worketh in the coals and fashioneth it with hammers, and worketh it with the ftrength of his arms: he is hungry, and his ftrength faileth. He drinketh no water, and is faint. A man planteth an afh, and the rain doth nourish it. He burneth part thereof in the fire. He roafteth roaft. He warmeth himfelf. And the refidue thereof he maketh a god. He <falleth down unto it, and worshippeth it, and prayeth unto it, and faith deliver me, for thou art my god. • None confidereth in his heart, I have burnt part of it in the fire, yea alfo, I have baked bread upon the coals thereof; I have roafted flesh and eaten it; and • fhall I make the refidue thereof an abomination? fhall I fall down to the ftock of a tree?"

In fuch circumftances as thefe, for a man to declare for free-thinking, and difengage himself from the yoke of idolatry, were doing honour to human nature, and a work well becoming the great afferters of reafon. But in a church, where our adoration is directed to the Supreme Being, and (to fay the leaft) where is nothing either in the object or manner of worship, that contradicts the light of nature, there, under the pretence of free-thinking, to rail at the religious inftitutions of their country, fheweth an undiftinguishing genius that mistakes oppofition for freedom of thought. And, indeed, notwithstanding the pretences of fome few among our free-thinkers, I can hardly think there are men fo ftupid and inconfiftent with themselves, as to have a ferious regard for natural religion, and at the fame time use their utmost endeavours to deftroy the credit

K 3

of

of thefe facred writings, which, as they have been the means of bringing thofe parts of the world to the knowledge of natural religion, fo, in cafe they lose their authority over the minds of men, we should of course fink into the fame idolatry, which we see practised by other unenlightened nations.

If a perfon who exerts himself in the modern way of free-thinking, be not a stupid idolater, it is undeniable, that he contributes all he can to the making other men fo, either by ignorance or defign; which lays him under the dilemma, I will not fay of being a fool or a knave, but of incurring the contempt or deteftation of mankind.

SECTION VI.

Excellency of the Chriflian Institution.

-Aptiffima quæque dabunt Dii,

Charior eft illis homo, quam fibi

JUV.

IT is owing to pride, and a fecret affectation of a certain felf-exiftence, that the nobleft motive for action that ever was propofed to man, is not acknowledged, the glory and happiness of their being. The heart is treacherous to itself, and we do not let our reflections go deep enough to receive religion as the most honourable incentive to good and worthy actions. It is our natural weaknefs, to flatter ourfelves into a belief, that if we fearch into our inmoft thoughts, we find ourfelves wholly difinterefted, and divefted of any views arifing from felf-love and vain-glory. But, however fpirits of fuperficial greatnefs may dildain at firft fight to do any thing, but from a noble impulfe in themselves, without any further regards in this or another being; upon ftricter enquiry they will find, to act worthily, and expect to be rewarded only in another world, is as heroic a pitch of virtue, as human nature can arrive at. If the tenor of our actions have any other motive, than the defire to be pleafing in the eye of the Deity, it will neceflarily follow, that we must be more than men, if we are not too much exalted in profperity, and depreffed in adverfity. But the chriftian world has a leader, the

contem