Page images
PDF
EPUB

"with God and Chrift, as Chrift is with God; members of each "other; heirs of God, and coheirs with Chrift; heirs of all things," &c. Expreffions which, have the strongest tendency to raife in us an unbounded love to God, and an equal one to our neighbour, and which include and convey the moft exalted, and at the fame time the most folid, conceptions of this great fyftem of things. And if we suppose that these high titles and privileges are, according to the Scriptures to be hereafter extended to all mankind, the divine original of the Scriptures will receive a new acceffion of evidence on this account.

PROP. XXIV.

SUBSERVIENCY

OF PAIN

THE DOCTRINE OF THE NECESSARY
TO PLEASURE, UNFOLDED IN THE SCRIPTURES, IS AN EVI-

DENCE OF THEIR DIVINE AUTHORITY.

THE Scriptures give frequent and ftrong intimations, that the ultimate happiness which they promife, is not to be obtained in this our degenerate state, but by a previous paffage through pain. "Bleffed are they that mourn. We must rejoice in tribulation. "palm-bearing multitude comes out of great tribulation.

[ocr errors]

The

The

Captain of our falvation," and therefore all his foldiers, "must be "made perfect through fufferings. Without fhedding of blood, there " is no remiffion of fins. It is good for us to be afflicted, that we "may learn to keep the commandments of God." The Jews must be captivated, and undergo the fevereft affictions, before they can be made happy finally, as the people of God. "Man muft eat his "bread in the fweat of his brow all his life, and return to duft at last; " and yet ftill the feed of the woman shall bruife the ferpent's head, "and gain readmiffion to the tree of life, whofe leaves fhall heal the "nations," &c. &c. Now there is a furprifing correspondence between fuch expreffions as thefe, and many modern difcoveries, which fhew that pain is, in general, introductory and fubfervient to pleasure; and particularly, that fuch is the prefent franie of our natures, and conftitution of the external world, which affects our organs, that we cannot be delivered from the fenfuality and selfishness that feize upon us at our firft entrance into life, and advanced to fpirituality and difinterested nefs to the love of God and our neighbour, we cannot have our wills broken, and our faculties exalted and purified, so as to relish happiness wherever we fee it, but by the perpetual correction and reformation of our judgements and defires from painful impreffions and affociations. And all philofophical inquiries of this kind feem to caft a peculiar light and evidence upon the Scripture-expreffions before mentioned, and to make their accuracy, and congruity with experience and observation, be much more plainly feen and felt.

[ocr errors][merged small]

PROP. XXV.

THE MUTUAL INSTRUMENTALITY OF BEINGS TO EACH OTHER'S
HAPPINESS AND MISERY, UNFOLDED IN THE SCRIPTURES, IS

AN ARGUMENT OF THEIR DIVINE AUTHORITY.

TO this head is to be referred all that the Scriptures deliver concerning good and evil angels: Chrift, the Lord of all, becoming the Redeemer of all; Adam's injuring all his pofterity through his frailty; Abraham's becoming the father of the faithful, and all nations being bleffed through him; the Jews being the keepers of the oracles of God, and of the true religion; tyrants being fcourges in the hand of God; the fulness of the Gentiles being the occafion of the final reftoration of the Jews; and, in general, the doctrine that God prepares and disposes of every thing fo, as that nothing is for itself alone, but every perfon and nation has various relations to others; cooperates with them through Chrift, "who is the head, and through "whom the whole body being fitly joined together, and compacted "by that which every joint fupplieth, increaseth and edifieth itself in "love, till all things, both in heaven and earth, arrive, in their "feveral orders, to the measure of the stature of the fulness of Chrift." Now, whoever compares thefe Scripture expreffions and doctrines with the various mutual relations, fubferviencies, and ufes of the parts of the external world, heavenly bodies, meteors, elements, animals, plants, and minerals, to each other, cannot help seeing a wonderful analogy between the works of God and the Scriptures, fo wonderful as juftly to entitle the laff to the appellation of "the word of "God."

And thus we may perceive, that the Scripture-account of the fall of man, his redemption by Chrift, and the influences exerted upon him by good and evil angels, is fo far from affording an objection against the Chriftian religion, that it is a confiderable evidence for it, when viewed in a truly philofophical light. God works in every thing by means, by those which, according to our prefent language and fhort-fightedness, are termed bad and unfit, as well as by the good and evidently fit ones; and all these means require a definite time, before they can accomplish their respective ends. This occurs to daily obfervation in the courfe and conftitution of nature. And the Scripture doctrines concerning the fall, the redemption by Chrift, and the influences of good and evil angels, are only fuch intimations concerning the principal invifible means that lead man to his ultimate end, happiness in being united to God, as accelerate him in his progrefs thither. According to the Scriptures, Adam hurts all, through frailty; Chrift faves all, from his love and compaffion to all; evil angels tempt, through malice; and good ones affift and defend, in obedience to the will of God, and his original and ultimate defign of making all happy. These things are indeed clothed in a confiderable variety of expreffions, fuited to our present ways acting, conceiving, and fpeaking (which ways are, however, all of

F2

of

divine

[ocr errors]

divine original, God having taught mankind, in the patriarchal times, the language, as one may fay, in which he fpake to them. then and afterwards); but thefe expreffions can have no greater real import, than that of fignifying to us the means made ufe of by God; he being, according to the Scriptures, as well as reason, the one only real agent in all the transactions that relate to màn, to angels, &c. And to object to the method of producing happiness by this or that means, because of the time required to accomplish the end, of the mixture of evil, &c. is to require, that all God's creatures fhould at once be created infinitely happy, or rather have exifted fo from all eternity, i. e. fhould be Gods, and not creatures.

PROP. XXVI.

THE DIVINE AUTHORITY OF THE SCRIPTURES MAY BE INFERRED FROM THE SUPERIOR WISDOM OF THE JEWISH LAWS, CONSIDERED IN A POLITICAL LIGHT, AND FROM THE EXQUISITE WORKMANSHIP SHEWN IN THE TABERNACLE AND TEMPLE.

ALL these were originals amongst the Jews, and fome of them were copied partially and imperfectly by ancient heathen nations. They seem alfo to imply a knowledge fuperior to the refpective times. And I believe, that profane history gives fufficient atteftation to these pofitions. However, it is certain from Scripture, that Mofes received the whole body of his laws, alfo the pattern of the tabernacle, and David the pattern of the temple, from God; and that Bezaleel was inspired by God for the workmanship of the tabernacle. Which things, being laid down as a fure foundation, may encourage learned men to inquire into the evidences from profane hiftory, that the knowledge and skill to be found amongst the Jews were fuperior to thofe of other nations at the fame period of time, i. e. were fupernatural.

PROP. XXVII.

THE WANT OF UNIVERSALITY IN THE PUBLICATION OF REVEALED RELIGION IS NO OBJECTION TO IT; BUT, ON THE CONTRARY, THE TIME AND MANNER IN WHICH THE SCRIP TURES WERE WRITTEN, AND DELIVERED TO THE WORLD, ARE ARGUMENTS FOR THEIR DIVINE AUTHORITY.

HERE I observe,

Firft, That objections of this kind ought never to be admitted against historical evidence; and, in fact, are not upon other fubjects. It is evident, as was obferved in the beginning of this chapter, that to allow the truth of the Scripture hiftory, is to allow the truth of the Chriftian religión. Now it is very foreign to the purpofe of an inquiry into the truth of the Scripture hiftory, to alledge that it has not been made known to all mankind in all ages, and under all circumftances of each individual. It muft require much abstracted and fubtle reasoning, and fuch as can never be put in competition with plain hiftorical evidence, to connect this objection with the

propofition

propofition objected to. This is therefore, at least, a strong prefumption against the validity of such an objection.

Secondly, This objection feems to derive its whole force from fuch pofitions relating to the moral attributes of God, as make it neceffary for us to fuppofe, either that he deals with all his creatures at prefent in an equally favourable manner, or, at leaft, that nothing fhall be ultimately wanting to their happiness. Now the first fuppofition appears, upon the moft tranfient view which we take of things, to be utterly falfe. There are differences of all degrees at prefent, in refpect of all the good things which God has given us to enjoy; and therefore may be in the beft of all good things, revealed religion. And indeed, if it was otherwife in refpect of revealed religion, one ftrong argument in its favour would be wanting, viz. its analogy with the course of nature. The moral attributes of God are to be deduced from obfervations made upon the courfe of nature. If, therefore, the tenor of revelation be agreeable to that of nature, it must be so to the moral attributes of God. But if any one fuppofes, in the second place, that, notwithstanding present and apparent differences in the circumftances of God's creatures, there are no real and ultimate ones; at leaft, that the balance will ultimately be in favour of each individual finitely, or perhaps infinitely; 1 answer, that this fuppofition is as agreeable to revelation as to natural reafon; that there are as probable evidences for it in the word of God, as in his works, there being "no acceptance of perfons with God, no difference "between the Jew and the Gentile," according to the Scriptures; and that we may infer as ftrongly from the Scriptures, that Chrift will fave all, as it can be inferred from philofophy, that all will be made happy in any way; both which pofitions I fhall endeavour to eftablish hereafter, with the mutual illuftrations and confirmations which thefe glorious doctrines of natural and revealed religion afford to each other. And the gradual diffufion of the Patriarchal, Judaical, and Chriftian revelations, compared with the prophecies relating to the future kingdom of Chrift, and with the prefent circumstances of things, will afford great fatisfaction and joy to every pious, benevolent perfon, who inquires into this fubject. These confiderations will incline him to believe, that the Gofpel will, fooner or later, be preached to 66 every creature in Heaven, in Earth, under the "Earth, &c." and not only preached, but received, obeyed, and made the means of unspeakable happiness to them. And thus this objection will be removed, not only in fpeculation, and according to reafon, but, in fact, from the prefent unhappy objectors; and "they "will look on him whom they have pierced.'

Thirdly, having fhewn that a gradual and partial promulgation is not inconfiftent with the fuppofition of a true revelation, we may farther affirm, that the particular time and manner, in which the feveral Patriarchal, Judaical, and Chriftian revelations, have been publifhed to the world, are even arguments in their favour. This ubject has been well handled by various learned men, particularly by Mr. Arch. Law, in his " Confiderations on the state of the world," &c.

F 3

&c. Thefe gentlemen have fhewn, that, cæteris manentibus, which is in these things always to be previously allowed, the difpenfations recorded in the Scriptures have been, as far as we can judge, perfectly fuited to the ftates of the world at the times when these difpenfations were made refpectively; ie. to the improvement of mankind in knowledge fpeculative and practical, to their wants, and to their ability to profit in moral accomplishments; fo that, if we fuppofe either much more, or much lefs, light to have been afforded to mankind in a supernatural way (cæteris manentibus; and particularly their voluntary powers over their affections and actions, or free-will in the practical fenfe, remaining the same), their advancement in moral perfection, in voluntary obedience to, and pure love of God, would probably have been lefs: which suitableness of each revelation to the time when it was made, and to the production of the maximum of moral perfection, is an argument for the fyftem of revelation, of the fame kind with those for the goodness of God, which are drawn from the mutual fitneffes of the finite and imperfect parts of the natural world to each other, and to the production of the maximum, or greatest poffible quantity, of happiness,

PROP. XXVIII.

THE EXCLUSION OF ALL GREAT DEGREES OF ENTHUSIASM AND IMPOSTURE FROM THE CHARACTERS OF CHRIST, THE PROPHETS, AND APOSTLES, PROVES THEIR DIVINE AUTHORITY.

THAT Chrift, the Prophets, and Apoftles, cannot be charged with any great degrees of enthufiafm or impofture, feems allowed by many unbelievers; and is evident from the first view of their difcourfes and writings, and of hiftory, facred and profane. We might say, that much more is evident. However, for the prefent, let us only fuppofe all great degrees of enthufiafm and impofture excluded, and inquire how far their divine miffion may be inferred from that fuppofition.

First, then, if all great degrees of enthufiafm be excluded, Chrift, the Prophets, and Apoftles, must know, whether or no they were under the influence of the divine fpirit, fo as to prophefy, fpeak, and interpret languages which they had never learnt, and work miracles. Indeed to fuppofe them not capable of diftinguishing thefe powers in themselves and each other, is to charge them with downright madness.

Secondly, fince then they claimed thefe powers every where, as the feal of their commiffion from God; if they had them not, i. e. if they had not divine authority, they must be impoftors, and endeavour to deceive the world knowingly and deliberately. And this imposture, whether we confider the affront offered to God, or the injury done to mankind, or its duration, its audacioufnels, &c. would be the deepest and blackest that has ever appeared in the world. It is therefore excluded by fuppofition; and confequently, fince a lefs degree will not account for a falfe claim to divine au

thority,

« PreviousContinue »