it. But that is not the worst of the case for revelation once set aside, the result will be (as it ever used to be) the taking up with a part of religion, and a part of morality, instead of the whole, and then corrupting even that part with adulterous mixtures. Natural light cannot demonstrate all that revealed light has discovered, either of religion itself, or the sanctions of it: besides, natural reason, left to itself, will undoubtedly bring in many corruptions, as past experience sufficiently testifies and it is certain, that the wisdom of man will never come up to the purity or perfection of the wisdom of God. Men will not, if they could, neither can they, if they would, carve out so pure a religion for themselves, as God, in the holy Scriptures, has carved out for them.

III. But I must further observe, that our modern unbelievers are in one point very singular, and come far short in that article, of the sagacity and good sense of their Pagan predecessors. None of the ancient unbelievers ever pretended to set up the mere wisdom of man, as such, to the wisdom of God; never thought that revelations were either not desirable, or that they were altogether needless, or useless. They generally pretended to revelation, of one kind or other, and were not so weak as to imagine that their natural parts or endowments were sufficient to supersede all use of supernatural notices, if such might be had. The common reason of mankind would have strongly remonstrated against such a plea; and it would have been thought betraying any cause, to make use of it. For to pretend to

believe that there is a God, and a providence, and a future state, and at the same time to desire no external revelation from God, no instructions from heaven, (as needing none, and being wise enough without any,) is so wild and so extravagant a thought, that nothing can match it, or compare with it. But such will commonly be the fate of attempting any new ways of opposing Divine revelation, as well as of defending it; because indeed the best in each kind have been long since anticipated and both believers and unbelievers must now be content with traversing over again the same beaten tracks, or they will take into worse, and will but expose their cause, instead of serving it.

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IV. I shall conclude therefore with recommending to you, my Reverend Brethren, the old and well tried principles of the ancient Apologists. They never had a thought that all revealed religion had been confined, for so many ages past, to the Jews

only but they looked upon the Jews as the proclaimers and publishers of true religion to the rest of the world. The Israelites were a kingdom of priests, an holy nation. They were made the preachers of righteousness to other nations, in order to convey the main substantials of religion all over the world; as is more than once intimated in Scripture itself P. It is in this view that the ancient Apologists, both Jews and Christians, considered this matter. Josephus therefore observes, that "like as the "Divine Being pervades the whole universe, so the Divine law (given by Moses) passes through all mankind 9."

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Of the same mind was Theophilus, Bishop of Antioch, of the second century; who says, "Moses, the servant of God, was the proclaimer (minister) of the Divine law to all the world, but "principally to the Hebrews, otherwise called Jews '."

To the same purpose speaks Origen, of the next century: "Moses's writings have brought many to the faith, even among "those that were aliens from the commonwealth of Israel: "because indeed the original lawgiver, who delivered his laws to "Moses, was no other than God himself, the Creator of the "universe, as the same writings testify. And it was meet, that "the Maker of all the world, giving laws to all the world, should "send such efficacy along with them, as should work its way "among all nations s."

Athanasius, of the following century, expresses the same thought, in terms still clearer, and, if possible, stronger.

"The law was not intended for the Jews only, neither were "the prophets sent only for their sakes: but the prophets were "sent to the Jews, and were persecuted also by the Jews, while they were in reality a kind of sacred school to all the world,

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• Exod. xix. 6.

P See the texts to this purpose, cited in Jenkin's Reasonableness, &c. vol. i. and in the Postscript to Scripture Vindicated, vol. iv. part ii. p. 289. 292.

4 Καὶ ὥσπερ ὁ Θεὸς διὰ παντὸς τοῦ κόσμου πεφοίτηκεν, οὕτως ὁ νόμος διὰ πάντων ἀνθρώπων βεβάδικεν. Joseph. contr. Apion. lib. ii. cap. 39. p. 494. Conf. Phil. de Vit. Mos. lib. i. p. 6o3. · Τούτου μὲν οὖν τοῦ Θείου νόμου διάκονος γεγένηται Μωσῆς, ὁ καὶ θεράπων τοῦ Θεοῦ, παντὶ μὲν τῷ κόσμῳ, παντελῶς δὲ τοῖς Εβραίοις, τοῖς καὶ

Ἰουδαίοις καλουμένοις. Theophr. lib. iii. cap. 8. p. 308. conf. cap. x. p. 312.

5 Τοῦ δὲ Μωσέως τὰ γράμματα πολλοὺς καὶ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων τῆς παρὰ τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις ἀναστροφῆς κεκίνηκε πιστεῦ σαι, ὅτι, κατὰ τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν τῶν γραμμάτων, ὁ πρῶτος αὐτὰ νομοθετήσας, καὶ Μωσεί παραδοὺς, Θεὸς ὁ κτίσας τὸν κόσμον ἦν. Καὶ γὰρ ἔπρεπε τὸν ὅλου τοῦ κόσμου δημιουργὸν, νόμους τεθειμένον ὅλῳ τῷ κόσμῳ, δύναμιν παρασχεῖν τοῖς λόγοις, κρατῆσαι τῶν πανταχοῦ δυναμένην. Orig. contr. Cels. lib. i. p. 15.

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as to what relates to the knowledge of God, and the concerns "of the soul t."

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I shall add but one writer more, the judicious Theodoret, of the fifth century, who, speaking of the Jews, says, "God or"dained this nation, to be a guide to all nations in Divine knowledge. For like as he appointed sometimes Moses, and "at other times Joshua, and then Samuel, and afterwards one "or other of the prophets, to take the charge of this people, "and by a single man, of approved wisdom, benefited the whole "brotherhood: so by the single nation of Israel did God vouch"safe to call all nations, partakers of one common nature, to "become partners also in the same common religion "."

From hence may be clearly seen what the current notion was among the ancient most judicious advocates for Divine revelation; namely, that though the Law of Moses was in a peculiar manner designed for one people, (because the select preachers of righteousness, the ministers or publishers of religion, were to be kept a distinct order of men from the rest,) yet the most necessary points of revealed religion, which concerned mankind in general, were to be communicated, more or less, to all the world, and that by means of the Jews, after they grew up to be considerable. Other nations or persons, ordinarily, were not obliged to become Jews: and therefore Moses did not insist upon it with his father-in-law Jethro; neither did Elisha expect it of Naaman the Syrian, nor Jonas of the Ninevites, nor Daniel of Nebuchadnezzar; neither did the prophets insist upon it with the Chaldeans, Egyptians, Sidonians, Tyrians, Edomites, or Moabites; as Grotius has well observed: but though they were

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* Οὐδὲ γὰρ διὰ Ἰουδαίους μόνους ὁ νόμος ἦν, οὐδὲ δι ̓ αὐτοὺς μόνους οἱ προφῆται ἐπέμποντο, ἀλλὰ πρὸς Ἰουδαίους μὲν ἐπέμποντο, καὶ παρὰ Ἰουδαίων ἐδιώκοντο· πάσης δὲ τῆς οἰκουμένης ἦσαν διδασκάλιον ἱερὸν τῆς περὶ Θεοῦ γνώσεως, καὶ τῆς κατὰ ψυχὴν πολιτείας. Athen. contr. Gent. cap. xii. p. 57. ed. Bened.

- Τῶν γὰρ ἐθνῶν ἁπάντων τοῦτο τὸ ἔθνος θεογνωσίας ἐχειροτόνει διδάσκαλον. Καὶ καθάπερ εἰς τοῦδε τοῦ ἔθνους ἐπιμέλειαν, νῦν μὲν ἐξελέξατο τὸν Μωϋσῆν, νῦν δὲ τὸν Ἰησοῦν, καὶ πάλιν τὸν Σαμουὴλ, ἄλλοτε δὲ ἄλλον τῶν προφητῶν, καὶ δι ̓ ἑνὸς ἀνθρώπου φιλοσοφίαν ἀσκοῦντος, ἅπαντας εὐεργέτει τοὺς ὁμος

φύλους· οὕτω δι ̓ ἑνὸς ἔθνους τοῦ Ἰσραὴλ, πάντα τὰ ἔθνη τὰ τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχοντα φύσιν, εἰς τὴν εὐσεβείας κοινωνίαν ἐκάλει. Theodor. de Provid. Serm. x. p. 454. Conf. p. 456.

x Grotius de Jur. N. et G. lib. i. cap. I. sect. 16. Grot. de Verit. R. Chr. lib. v. cap. 7.

The words of Clemens of Rome (an apostolical man) are so just, and so moderate, and so proper to compose all contests on this head, that they are well worth the quoting in this place.

Ατενίσωμεν εἰς τὸ αἷμα τοῦ Χριστοῦ, καὶ ἴδωμεν ὡς ἔστι τίμιον τῷ Θεῷ αἷμα αὐτοῦ, ὅ, τι διὰ τὴν ἡμετέραν σωτηρίαν

not obliged to become Jews, they were obliged to admit the true God, and the most substantial parts of true religion; the knowledge of which had been handed down by tradition, and was often renewed and revived by means of the Jews, who were the standing witnesses and memorials of it.

The consideration of these things may, I conceive, be of good use for the preserving just and worthy ideas of the Divine wisdom and goodness in his dispensations towards mankind, and for the more effectual silencing the ignorant or malicious cavils of unbelievers.

To be short our adversaries can never prove that revelation was needless, unless they could first prove that there had been no revelation; because they cannot know what natural light could have done without it, unless they could first shew that it ever was without it. Revelation might, for any thing they can tell, have been absolutely necessary to discover, even that natural religion which they plead for, and which appears so easy and obvious to the understanding, now it has been discovered. if revelation was ever needful for that purpose, then, by the tacit confession even of our adversaries, it must be true; and if it be true, then we are obliged to embrace the whole of it as God has given it us, and not a part only, according to every man's judgment or fancy; which is what these gentlemen seem to be aiming at under all their disguises.

But

However that be, they have certainly taken the wrong way to

ἐκχυθὲν παντὶ τῷ κόσμῳ μετανοίας χάριν ὑπήνεγκεν. ̓Ανέλθωμεν εἰς τὰς γενεὰς πάσας, καὶ καταμάθωμεν, ὅτι ἐν γενεᾷ καὶ γενεᾷ, μετανοίας τόπον ἔδωκεν ὁ δεσπότης τοῖς βουλομένοις ἐπιστραφῆναι ἐπ' αὐτόν. Νῶς ἐκήρυξεν μετάνοιαν, καὶ οἱ ὑπακούσαντες ἐσώθησαν. Ἰωνᾶς Νινευίταις καταστροφὴν ἐκήρυξεν, οἱ δὲ μετανοήσαντες ἐπὶ τοῖς ἁμαρτήμασιν αὐτῶν, ἐξιλάσαντο τὸν Θεὸν ἱκετεύσαντες, καὶ ἔλαβον σωτηρίαν, καίπερ ȧórpio TOû Oεoû ÖVTES. Clem. Rom. Epist. i. cap. vii. p. 32.

Which may be Englished thus: "Let us look up steadfastly to the "blood of Christ, and let us consider "how precious in God's sight his "blood is, which, being shed for our "salvation, hath obtained the privi"lege of repentance for all the world. "Run we back to all past ages, and "there we may learn, that in every

come at their point, have committed an uσTEрov πрóтεроv in their main argument; pretending to disprove a fact, by arguing that the thing was needless, when there is no possible way of proving the thing needless, but by first disproving the fact.

An additional Illustration to Note h p. 20, from Archbishop Sharpe, vol. iv. Serm. 12. p. 272, 273. relating to the traditional Computation of Time by Weeks.

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"WHAT account can be given of all the world's computing "their time by weeks; that is, counting seven days, and then beginning again: I say, what possible account can be given of "this, but that original distribution of time that God had ob"served in the works of the creation, and had delivered to the 'first parents of mankind, and they to their children. For men "to reckon time by days and nights, is obvious to sense; nay, "and to compute time by months and years, hath a sufficient "foundation in it from nature; for mankind cannot avoid the

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observing the course of the moon and of the sun, which makes "months and years: but why they should count seven days, and

then begin again, that hath no foundation in nature, but must "be taught them from the tradition of their fathers, which could "have no other original than that which I am now insisting on. "And yet this way of computing time by a weekly revolution, "obtained throughout all the world, as far as we can judge, from "the very beginning of time. That the Patriarchs did so some "hundreds of years before the law of the Sabbath was given to "the children of Israel, we have sufficient evidence from sundry "texts of Scripture. That all the ancient nations of which we "have any history, Egyptians, Chaldeans, Greeks, Romans, nay, "and the barbarous nations too; I say, that they did so like

wise, is proved to us from the ancientest records that are "extant about them. This practice now, that had no foundation "in nature, obtaining thus universally throughout the whole world, and that from time immemorial, is to me a démonstra"tion that they had it from the first parents of mankind, and that it was founded in God's institution of the seventh day being set apart for his service.

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"I do grant indeed, they did not know the true reason why