Creation or now, is infinitely extended, nor even that his Power of Framing and Dominion is at prefent, infinitely extended; and though he has ftill, and always will have, a Power of extending them, I cannot conceive how at any Period of Time it can be truly faid to be infinitely extended. The folid Bodies God has created, are each in its Place fubftantially prefent, and he by them has conftituted Space (if they will have it called fo) where each of them fubfifts; but call it what they please, it is their folid Subftances; and there is no Occafion for conftituting Space for folid Subftances beforehand, Creation does it. Whatever is co-eval with God, is God, and whatever is co-eval with created folid Matter, is the Subftance of that Matter, and whatever Words they ufe, when a few Deceptions of our Senfes are obviated, and Matters fairly stated, even the Ideas of each, and what they call Space, cannot be parted. When he fays, God by exifting conftitutes Infinity, he has not told us of any Thing, but only of Space; I hope he does not mean Infinity of Matter, if he does, he will lofe his infinite Space, and if Matter be finite, what is infinite Space for? it can have no Relation to created Matter: I know not

what

what he means by a Particle of infinite Space, if inftead of that he had said, the Space of a Particle, I could have underftood what he meant, as the Antients meant. B. C.. " Melufa, Space, a void Place: Latitude, Area, He who felleth a Court, fells nothing but the Melufa, the Space of the Court. Tal. Bara Bathra, fol. 67. 1. In the Mifna, the fame Place, the Space in which Air is, is called Auira, Air." He alfo tells us, that God by exifting, conftitutes Duration and Eternity, and proves this the fame Way; every Moment of Duration is every where, tho' Matter be compofed of Particles, and Time of Moments; how Particles will make up Infinity, or Moments Eternity, I cannot conceive; Infinite, either Way, apply'd to God, expreffes, that his Effence had no Commencement, nor will have any Determination, or Ceffation; but that Epithet is no more applicable to Extenfion, than it is to any other uncertain, or falfe Attribute of God. Whatever Comparison we make between God and other Things, to explain our Idea, of the Manner of his Existence, they not only come fhort, but differ vaftly; fuppofe of fome Beings which have Duration and Power of Action, and that it seems to us, that a Sub

ftance

stance is neceffary to every Being while it exifts, and Space neceffary to every Subftance, and that Time, or Duration, feems to be neceffary to every Being while it endures, and that Power is neceffary to eve ry Agent while it continues an Agent; be it fome fort of Matter, which we fuppofe has mechanical Powers, be it fome living Creature which has bodily Powers, or fome Prince which has political Powers; and fuppofe it seems, that God exifts in Subftance, in Space, in Duration, in Power, tho' indeed after what Manner only he knows, 'tis as wide to compare the Subftance of inanimate Matter, or the Body of a Creature, or the Perfon of a Prince, (the Image of God in him excepted) to the Subftance of God; or the Space they exift in, to the Manner of the Existence of his Effence, as 'tis to compare the Manner of their Duration, or the Manner of enjoying, or exercifing their Power, to the Manner of his Duration, or the Manner of enjoying or exercifing his Power (tho' Time or Duration is certainly enjoyed in common among all Beings or Substances while they endure; much more certainly than that all Beings are Substances) because in created Beings they are all derivative, and temporary, and fi

nite: Time was when thofe Things which are now his Creatures, had neither Subftance, Space, Duration, nor Power, and may be when fome of them, in all these Refpects, may ceafe; but God's Duration and Power is in his Effence, and his Effence in his Duration and Power; they must neceffarily be infeperable, or as they put it of Space, his Being conftitutes Space only for his own Being, not for his Creatures, other than fo much, and of fuch a Sort, as he is pleafed at Creation or Formation to communicate to them; not for Comets and Planets to have Duration to all Eternity; not for Matter to enjoy its Powers, either fuch as they imagine it has, or fuch as really has, to allEternity. As every Thing which can be faid of God is comparative, and taken from created Things, or what relates to them, fo is his Time, we can but fay before any Time; his Duration has nothing to do with Creatures, nor they with Duration, but the Time they endure; nor has his Space any Thing to do with Creatures, or they with Space, but the Dimenfion of their Bodies. If we were to take the Comparison thro', as we have no other Idea of Subftance but Space, one might have expected it fhould have conftituted Impenetrability; but the Idea

he

he gives of this Subftance is, that it hin ders nothing from paffing in it, either shifts and gives Way, or lets other Substances poffefs its Space. They may fay truly he constitutes Power, but yet he could, and as I fhall fhew, has created Matter with Space, Duration, &c. without any Power of Action. But left their reafoning in thefe Points fhould not be fufficient, they have cited a Heathen Author, and several Texts of Scripture, with a Complement of, So the Antients thought, to prove that all Things are contained in the Substance of God, and that his Subftance constitutes infinite Space; but they do not at all speak to the Point, or determine any thing about the Substance of God, much less that it conftitutes infinite Space: Thofe Texts were to set the People right, and free them from fome miftaken Notions about the Power, and other Attributes of God, but not to defcribe his Subftance, and make it conftitute infinite Space; and there are other Texts which determine the Points quite contrary. I have fhewed already, and thall add Proofs below, that most of the Scripture was writ to determine the Contest, whether the Creator and Former of all Things and Powers was God; or the Heavens and their Powers was God; and

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