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CHAP. XV.

A continuation of the Objections of Atheists.

A

S we propose the Oeconomy of our Thoughts and Passions, the Subordination of the Motions of our Heart, Natural Law, Conscience, and those Inclinations which unite Men together into Society, as so many proofs of the Existence of a Supream Wisdom, which has skilfully contrived the Composition of Man; so Atheists on the contrary endeavour to prove their Opinion, by the Disorders of the Thoughts and Passions, and by those Crimes God fuffers Men to comnait.

For, says the Atheist, if there Vanninus in Ambe a God, either he cannot phitheatro Providenprevent Sin, and then he must tie. want Power; or he will not, and then we conceive him to be Wicked. The First Reflection to be made in answer to this Objection, is, that we must distinguish Power confidered as purely Absolute and Supream, from the same power considered as temper'd by Wifdom, Justice and other Vertues. If you consider only the Absolute Power of a King, he may cause half his Subjects to be put to Death in one Day. But if you consider this power as tempered by his goodness, and his other Vertues, you will own that he cannot do it, and that it is a happy and commendable impotence which denotes his Strength, and which springs from his Perfections: So that to know, not what God, but what

what a fimple Monarch may prevent or permit, it is not fufficient to consider his Power only, but we must take a view of him in all the exrent of his Relations, and know all his other Vertues which temper and allay his Power. As Good, he may do a thing, which he cannot as Fuft; and as Just, he may do another thing which he cannot do as Wife: And unless you are throughly acquainted with his Interests and Perfections, Rights and Vertues, you cannot resolve what he may prevent or permit ; and if this holds when Man confiders Man, how much more when Men confider God?

Bot after what we have said, we have this to obferve still, that even according to our weak Ideas, 'tis not without reason, that God permits Sin. I shall not here assert, that as Monsters in Nature do serve to illustrate the order, conexion, and veconomy of regular Beings; so likewife the Disorders of Sin are of use to make us better understand the value and advantages of Reason, Conscience, and natural Religion, which are all violated by Crimes. This is one of the least confiderations that might be made on this Subat, though it is not altogether without Foundation.

To this we may add, that Sin gives occasion to most part of our Vertues, to exert and shew themselves, that the patience of the oppressed, appears by the Violence of their Oppressors; that Humility would be of very little use, were there no Pride for it to overcome; that the difficulty of quering our Lufts, makes Temperance so ned; that Justice would have no business ld, but for Self-interest and Covetous. in fine, there are a great many other Vertues

Vertues which owe their birth and manifestation to Vices.

Further, It is certain, that several Vertues belonging to God, are discovered by occasion of Sin, which had otherwise layn concealed from us. If it had not been for Sin, we should have been for ever ignorant of the Mercy and Justice of God, that is, we should have been ignorant of what renders him most amiable and most terrible to our Souls.

We may affirm, that the blotting out the Sins of Men by the Mercy of God, or the severe Punishment of them by the Laws of his inexorable Justice, do create everlasting motives of Fear and Love, and such motives as were necessary to counterpoise the Propensions Men have to all sensible Objects, or even to retain within the bounds of their Duty. Some other, Creatures we know not. For we are to think, that God deals with Men, as with rational Creatures, and consequently that he ought to influence them by certain Motives or Objects, which he proposes to them, and not by a blind impression; and to ask why Men should be governed after this manner, is to ask why they are Men.

Certainly we cannot doubt, but that as Gods Wisdom is infinite, so is also the Scheme of his Designs, and that answerable to that Scheme, there is an infinite Succession of Objects, united to one another. This World, this Life, and all that we have ever seen, or learnt of things, prove another Succeffion of Objects, which enter into God's Design; so that these are but a point in respect of that Eternal Succeffion of Objetts which perpetually roul along, (if I may fo speak) in the Divine Intellect. The Wisdom of

God

God is so immense, that it makes the greatest Events depend upon an Accident, and turn upon a Point, as upon an immoveable Axel-Tree. Let us for a while, for the better clearing this matter, suppose the thing in question: A Vapour in Pharaoh's Head, produces a Dream, which Dream is the occasion of the advancement of Jofeph, and the coming of the Children of Ifrael into Egppt, and of so many other Illustrious Events, which all turn upon this Dream as upon a point. The deliverance of the People of Ifrael, their Profperities, their Victories, and all those continued Blessings heaped upon them by the favour of Heaven, do all at length terminate in the Birth of Jesus Chrift, which seems but a very inconfiderable Event. And yet, this last Event is the fixt Axel-tree which supports the Calling of the Gentiles, the Establishment of God's Kingdom, the Abolishing of Idols, and the Conversion of the World; and these very last mention'd Objects which fill our Souls, and aftonish us by their vastness, are perhaps but another point or hinge which suppose an infinite Succession of other Objects and Oeconomies that shall eternally tend to the Glory of God.

As therefore a Man who had lived in Jacob's time, and had been a witness of the Selling and Imprisonment of the Chaste and Innocent Foseph, would have wondered at Gods thus permitting Vertue to be oppressed, only through ignorance of what the Wisdom of God designed to effect by that means; and as those who believed in Jesus Chrift, and were Spectators of his Death, were surprised at it, only because they did not perceive the mighty Benefits the Mercy of God purposed to draw from it, so in

like manner, the only reason why God's permitting of Sin in general, does surprise us, is because we do but in part, and confusedly know, what good the Wisdom of God will bring about by those means.

I may, I hope, be allowed to make use of these Examples, fince I do not bring them as Proofs, but only as Illustrations which serve for a double purpose; the First whereof, is to Thew us, that there is not a more false or despicable Argument than this; viz. I do not throughly understand the Designs and whole extent of the Wisdom of the Deity: Therefore there is no fuch Deity at all. God permits Evil, therefore he is Wicked; because such an Argument cannot be conclusive, unless our Understanding were infimite, and had the priviledge of knowing all things. The Second use of these Examples, is to shew us, that the common and most plaufible Objections of the Atheists, are insensibly overthrown by the Principles of that Religion against which they were at first levelled.