all to us. And Insomuch that we have nothing, not so much as the least moment of life, but what is communicated to us from this ever-living God. not only what we, poor sinful worms are, or have, but even whatsoever those nobler creatures the angels have, it is but a beam darted from the sun, it is but a stream flowing from this overflowing fountain. Lift up thine eyes therefore, O my soul, and fix them a little upon this glorious object! How glorious, how transcendently glorious, must he needs be, who is the Being of all beings, the perfection of all perfections, the very glory of all glories, the eternal God! He is the glory of love and goodness, who is good, and doth good continually unto me, though I be evil, and do evil continually against him. He is the glory of wisdom and knowledge, unto whom all the secret thoughts, the inward mo-. tions and retirements of my soul, are exactly known and manifest. Never did a thought lurk so secretly in my heart, but that his all-seeing eye could espy it out; even at this time he knows what I am now thinking of, and what I am doing, as well as myself. And indeed, well may he know what I think, and speak, and do, when I can neither think nor speak, nor do any thing, unless himself be pleased to give me strength to do it. He is the glory of might and power, who did but speak the word, and there presently went out that commanding power from him, by which this stately fabric of the world was formed and fashioned. And as he created all things by the word of his power, so I believe, he preserves and governs all things by the power of the same word: yea, so great is his power and sovereignty, that he can as easily throw my soul from my body into hell, or nothing, as I can throw this book out of my hand to the ground: nay, he need not throw me into nothing; but, as if I should let go my hold, the book would presently fall, so should God but take away his supporting hand from under me, I should, of myself, immediately fall down to nothing. This, therefore, is that God, whom I believe to be the Being of all beings; and so the Creator, preserver, governor, and disposer, of all things in the world. ARTICLE II. I believe, that whatsoever the most high God would have me to BELIEVE or DO, in order to his glory, and my happiness, he hath revealed to me in his holy Scriptures. UPON the same account that I believe there is a God, I believe likewise, that this God is to be worshipped; the same light that discovers the one, discovering the other too. And therefore it is, that as there is no nation or people in the world, but acknowledge some deity; so there is none but worship that deity which they acknowledge; yea, though it be but a stick or a stone, yet, if they fancy any thing of divinity in it, they presently perform worship and homage to it. Nay, that God is to be worshipped, is a truth more generally acknowledged, than that there is a God. No nation, I confess, ever denied the latter, but no particular person ever denied the former: so that the very persons, who, through diabolical delusions, and their own prevalent corruptions, have suspected the existence of a deity, could not but acknowledge that he was to be worshipped, if he did exist; worship being that which is contained in the very notion of a Deity; which is, that he is the Being of all beings, upon whom all other things or beings do depend, and unto whom they are beholden both for their essence and subsistence. And if there be such a Being, that is the spring and fountain of all other beings, it is necessary that all others should reverence and worship him, without whom they could not subsist. And therefore it is, that men are generally more superstitious in their worshipping than they ought to be, rather than deny that worship to him which they ought to give. That, therefore, there is a God, and that this God is to be worshipped, I do not doubt, but the great question is, who is this God whom I ought to worship? And, what is that worship which I ought to perform unto him? The former I have resolved upon in the foregoing article, as the light of reason and my natural conscience suggested to me; the latter I am resolved to search out in this, namely, Which of all the several kinds of worship that men perform to the Deity, and the several religions that men profess in the world, I had best make choice of to profess and adhere to. The general inclinations which are naturally implanted in my soul to some religion, it is impossible for me to shift off; but there being such a multiplicity of religions in the world, I desire now seriously to consider with myself, which of them all to restrain these my general inclinations to. And the reason of this my inquiry is not, that I am in the least dissatisfied with that religion I have already embraced, but because it is natural for all men to have an overbearing opinion and esteem for that particular religion they are born and bred up in. That, therefore, I may not seem biassed by the prejudice of education, I am resolved to prove and examine them all, that I may see and hold fast to that which is best. For though I do not, in the least, question, but that I shall, upon inquiry, find the Christian religion to be the only true religion in the world, yet I cannot say it is, unless I find it, upon good grounds, to be so indeed; for, to profess myself a Christian, and believe that Christians are only in the right, because my forefathers were so, is no more than the heathens and Mahometans have to say for themselves. Indeed, there was never any religion so barbarous and diabolical, but it was preferred before all other religions whatsoever, by them that did profess it; otherwise they would not have professed it. The Indians that worship the devil, would think it as strange doctrine to say that Christ was to be feared more than the devil; as such as believe in Christ think it is, to say the devil is to be preferred before Christ. So do the Mahometans call all that believe not in Mahomet, as well as Christians call those that believe not in Christ, infidels. And why, say they, may not you be mistaken, as well as we? Especially, when there is at least, six to one against your Christian religion; all of which think they serve God aright, and expect happiness thereby as well as you. So that to be a Christian, only upon the grounds of birth or education, is all one, as if I ever so different. was a Turk or a heathen; for if I had been born amongst them, I should have had the same reason for their religion, as now I have for my own; the premises are the same, though the conclusion be It is still upon the same grounds that I profess religion, though it be another religion which I profess upon these grounds; so that I can see but very little difference betwixt being a Turk by profession, and a Christian only by education; which commonly is the means and occasion, but ought by no means to be the ground of any religion. And hence it is, that in my looking out for the truest religion, being conscious to myself how great an ascendant Christianity hath over me, beyond the rest, as being that religion wherein to I was born and baptized, that which the supreme authority has enjoined, and my parents educated me in, that which every one I meet withal highly approves of, that which I myself have, by a long-continued profession, made almost natural to me; I am resolved to be more jealous and suspicious of this religion than of the rest, and be sure not to entertain it any longer without being convinced, by solid and substantial arguments, of the truth and certainty of it. That, therefore, I may make diligent and impartial inquiry into all religions, and so be sure to find out the best, I shall for a time, look upon myself as one not at all interested in any particular religion whatsoever, much less in the Christian religion; but only as one who desires, in general, to serve and obey him that made me, in a right manner, and thereby to be made partaker of that happiness my nature is capable of. In order to this, it will be |