how what was a God, ought to be reprefented and worshiped: So whatever the Heathens, or Unbelievers, attributed to the Heavens; by way of Claim, God, the Prophets, Chrift, and his Apoftles, attributed to God the Father, to Chrift, and to the Holy Ghost: (this settled) When St. Paul was at Athens, among People who knew nothing of the true God, and mocked at Immortality; he takes Advantage of the Attributes of their God, in their Writings, by intermixing them with the Attributes of, and applying them to the true God; he begins with an Infcription, To the unknown God, which they took to be an invifible Power, innate in the Heavens, their God; under the Cover of this Word, he tells them, that God made the World was Lord of Heaven. The first was new to them, and deftructive of their God, if made be to be taken for Creation; but if it be taken for Formation, the Heavens made this Orb, &c. as the Scriptures and their Writings agree; but the latter was the antient Title of their God, fometimes Lady of Heaven He giveth to all Life and Breath and all Things.-Thefe were antient Attributes of their God, Voffius de

Philof. Chrift, &c.

VOL. II.

"It is fit to honour

-This

the Cæleftial Gods with thefe Things, by
which we ourselves are nourished, fupport-
ed and live, and which they have vouch-
fafed from the Benignity of their Deity to
give us for Suftenance." In the Scriptures
moft fully in Ifaiah, Jeremiah, and Hofea,
-That they might feek the Lord if haply
they might feel after and find him, tho' he
be not far from every one of us.---
is dexterously infinuating, that the Object
of their Worship, which was always vifible,
and folidly prefent, was not the God, but
that he was invifible, unfound, and un-
known to them.-For in him we live, and
move, and have our Being; as certain alfo
of your own Poets have faid, for we are alfo
his Offpring. Here he again cites the
moft evident Attributes of their God, the
Heavens, the Air: In it, (but if a God) in
him we live, move, and have our Being
materially, and alfo by its, or in its Opera-
tions and Powers; this he applies to the
true God, Glaff. Philog. p. 1478. "There
remain fome Citations from profane Writ-
ings, three of which are in the Apostle
Paul. Acts i. 17, 28. For in bim (the
Lord God) we live, move, and have our
Being as certain of your Poets have faid,
This Hemiftich Clemens Alexan-
drinus attefts to be taken from Aratus in

his Phænomena, Strom. v. fol. 123. and he produces the entire Paffage of Aratus confifting of a few Verfès. In Aratus this Hemiftich is attributed to Jupiter, which Paul taking Notice to be perverfly and altogether unjustly made an Attribute of Jove, he moft juftly restores it to Jehovah. Clem. Alex. v. Strom. p. 435. And Aratus in his Phænomena faith,

From Jove we Spring, shall fove be then
unfung,

Jove who to fing enables ev'ry Tongue!
Where'er we Mortals go, where'er we

move,

Our Forums, Cities, Streets, are full of
Jove;

He flows the fwelling, ebbs the falling
Tide,

With him in Harbour Safe the Veffels
ride,

We feek him, tafte him, breath him every
where,

And all in common his kind Influence fare.
And then infers:

For we his Offpring are.

"And indeed all this both in Profe and Verfe, that is fung of Jupiter, refers the Mind to God; for that I may at once fpeak

it, Democritus writes that there are few Men under the Light, who ftretch out their Hand hither, which we Greeks call now the Air.

Ibid. 415. Sphinx is not the Intelligence of the Universe, and according to the Poet Aratus's Opinion, the converfive Force of the mundane System: But it may be perhaps the Tenour and Stress of the Spirit pervading and by its Compreffure bounding the Syftem: Yet it is better to fuppofe it the Ather (or Mixture of Light and Spirit) that bounds and binds all things, according as Empedocles faith."

The Sun's great Principle, fhall firft be
Jung,
And whence the vifible Creation fprung;
The Earth, the flowing Sea, the humid
Air,
Titan, or Ether's all encircling Sphere,
That binds the whole and confines.

«All

Voffius de Orig. & Prog. &c. Things are full of Jove.-Maro as Servius notes, uses Aratus's Expreffion."

"Ma

crobius Saturn. &c. called the Sun Phaneta from the Greek Phaos and Phaneros, i. e. Light and Illumination, because it is feen by all, and beholds all. It is called Dionyfos,

as

as the Poet fays, from Greek too, Dineifthai and Peripherefthai, that is, because it is carried round in a Circle, whence Cleanthes writes it is fo termed from tou Dionyfai, becaufe by a daily Impetus from Eaft to West, making Day and Night, it compleats its celeftial Race. Naturalifts call it Dionyfos, Jupiter's Mind, because they make the Sun the Mind of the World. The World alfo is called Heaven, which they term Jupiter. Whence Aratus in his Phænomena. From Jupiter we have our Being."

I need only infert the next three Texts, to fhew that they are nothing to the Purpofe. Deut. iv. 39. That the LORD he is God in Heaven above, and upon the Earth beneath: There is none elfe. Ibid. x. 14. Behold, the Heaven, and the Heaven of Heavens is the LORD's thy God, the Earth alfo and all that therein is. Pial. cxiii. 4, 5. Who is like Jehovah our Aleim, who exalteth bimfelf to dwell, and bumbleth him to look down in the Heavens and in the Earth. The next, as far as an Allufion can carry the thing, is expreffly against the Purpofe for which it is cited. 1 Kings viii. 27. But will God indeed dwell on the Earth? Behold the Heaven, and the Heaven of Heavens cannot contain thee, how much les

F 3

this.