rily have the knowledge of his own purposes and dedgns, which is properly termed fore-knowledge. For, by knowing his own decrees, he necessarily knows all actuals; that is, all things that ever will exist. Hence it appears, that his understanding is infinite, and his knowledge boundless. His great and capacious mind comprehends, at one view, all things past, present, and to come. And more than this, cannot be known.

5. The first, supreme, and intelligent Cause of all things must be Eternal. To suppose the first Cause had a cause of his existence, is to suppose there was a cause before the first Cause. Or to suppose he was the cause of his own existence, is to suppose that he existed and operated, before he did exist. Or to suppose that he came into existence without any cause, is to suppose what has been proved to be impossible. Hence we are constrained to suppose, that there is something in his nature, which renders his existence absolutely necessary and eternal. And though we cannot explain the necessity and eternity of the divine existence; yet this is no real objection against it, because it is reasonable to suppose, the great Creator should exist in a manner, which surpasses the comprehension of all his creatures.

6. The Framer of our bodies and the Father of our spirits must be a Being of moral rectitude.

He hath engraven the evidence of this upon the minds of all intelligent creatures. For, when he made them, "he bent them to the right;" or gave them a capacity of discerning the moral beauty or deformity of every moral agent. But can we suppose, the Creator would furnish his creatures with a faculty, by which they could discover his own moral character, unless he knew himself to be possessed of perfect rectitude and spotless purity? For, if he were not of such a character, his creatures whom he endued with moral powers would be capable of discovering it; and whenever they should discover it, they would be under moral obligation to hate and detest the Author of their existence. Hence the moral faculty in man carries in it a clear demonstration of the moral rectitude of his Maker. Besides, the whole world bears innumerable marks of the divine goodness. It is every way adapted to satisfy the reasonable desires of all reasonable creatures. And the more the works of God have been explored, by the most inquisitive and discerning minds, the more of his goodness, as well as of his wisdom, has been discovered. All the works of creation and providence have such a natural and direct tendency to promote the holiness and happiness of mankind, that, notwithstanding the prevalence of natural and moral evil, there is abundant reason to conclude that he, who built all things, is Good. And it is well known, that goodness is the sum and comprehension of all moral excellence. Thus it appears, by the most natural and conclusive mode of reasoning, that there must be a first and supreme Cause of all things, who is possessed of every natural and moral perfection. It now remains to make a few deductions from the subject.

1. If it be true, that the visible world displays the being and perfections of the Deity; then all who reason themselves into atheism, are guilty of extreme folly. Those who assume the name of Atheists, generally profess to be masters of superior knowledge and penetration, and affect to despise the rest of mankind, as weak, ignorant, superstitious creatures. But if the world in which we live, and all the objects which come to our view, hear clear and obvious marks of the supreme power, wisdom, and goodness of their Author; then the imputation of folly and weakness must re,

bound upon those, who, in defiance of reason and common sense, deny the being and perfections of the first and supreme Cause, who hath impressed his own great and amiable character upon all his works. Professing themselves to be wise, they become fools, and expose their folly to all men, who make a proper use of their rational powers. It requires much learned labor in any of mankind, to become Atheists in speculation. They must stifle the plain dictates of reason and the common feelings of humanity, by deep and subtile sophistry, before they can renounce the idea of the necessary connexion between cause and effect, which is the last step in the road to Atheism. But when they have taken this step, they have leaped over all the principles of fair reasoning, and put it out of their own power to prove the existence of any other intelligent being, beside themselves. For, if it be once allowed, that any thing can begin to exist, and consequently continue to exist, without a cause; then the actions of men are no evidence of their intellectual powers. And the Atheist, who makes this concession, has no principle left, upon which he can justly conclude, that there is any being in the universe, except himself, who possesses the least degree of perception or intelligence. He, therefore, who says and believes that there is no God; must, in order to be consistent, say and believe, that there are no men. But is it not extreme folly in any man to say and believe, that all mankind are fools, but himself? Such shame must be the promotion of learned and voluntary fools.

It

behoves those, therefore, who are leaning toward Atheism, and laboring to reason themselves into the disbelief and denial of the Deity, to turn from their dangerous folly, and employ their noble powers to the better purpose of pursuing the chief end of man, which is to glorify God, and enjoy him for ever.

2. If there be a being of supreme power and intelligence, who is the Creator and Proprietor of the world; then there is great reason to think, that he will dispose of all things to his own glory. The same motive which led him to create, will necessarily lead him to govern all his creatures and all their actions. His own glory must have been his highest motive in creating the world, and therefore must be his supreme end in governing every creature, and directing every event. When a man has built a neat and convenient house, we naturally expect, that he will convert it to his own use, or dispose of it according to his own pleasure. So we may reasonably expect, that He, who built all things, will dispose of all things after the counsel of his own will. If there be a God, we may rely upon it, that he will dispose of us and of all our interests, for time and eternity, to his own glory.

3. If there be a Being, who hath made us, and who will absolutely dispose of us; then it is very desirable to receive a Revelation of his will. We are very deeply interested in the purposes of his pleasure concerning us, and therefore have great reason to desire the knowledge of our present duty, and of our future and final destination. If we are to pass through different states of existence, and if one state is to be preparatory to another; then it is very desirable to be made acquainted with the various states through which we have to pass, and the various preparations which are necessary to fit us for a happy transition from one state to anoth er, until we reach the last, in which we are to take up our everlasting residence. To live in God's world, and under his supreme disposal, without any intimations of his mind and will, must be extremely painful to creatures, who are capable of looking forward, and anticipating their future and final condition. This has been found to be true, by the unhappy experience of those, who have been deprived of the Oracles of God. Socrates, one of the wisest and best of the Heathens, felt and lamented the want of divine Revelation; and at the same time expressed his hope, that the kind Parent of all would, in some future period, indulge his reasonable creatures with such a desirable and important blessing. The bare light of nature discovers only the supremacy of the Creator, and the dependence of creatures. And this light leaves them in the most deplorable darkness. What person of common prudence, would be willing to launch into the mighty ocean, without knowing whither the master of the ship designed to steer his course? But it would be of far less importance to the passenger in the ship, to know the designs of the master; than it is to mankind to know the designs of their Creator. For the master of the ship could only transport the passenger to some remote part of this world, and there leave him for a time; but the great Creator can convey his rational creatures to a distant world, and there fix them for eternity. Every human creature, therefore, who feels the importance of his own existence, must desire some better information concerning his future and eternal state, than he can possibly derive from the bare light of nature. This shows the stupidity and absurdity of those, who deny the inspiration and authority of the sacred Scriptures, merely because they cannot see any need of a divine Revelation.

4. If there be a God, who is possessed of every natural and moral perfection, then it is fruitless for those, who believe and acknowledge his existence, to deny the divinity of the Scriptures, in order to get rid of their disagreeable doctrines. No man would wish to disbelieve and discard the holy Scriptures, if they con