tend to the fame End; which, if properly explain'd, would all tend to illuftrate that Knowledge of natural Things in thofe facred Books, they are ignorant of and those Books or Men to whom they pay this Deference will be followed: And though the Freethinkers make a continual cry against the Prejudice of Education, I think that is very unjuft; for as Education is managed, the Advantage is on their Side. The only Plea which I have heard offer'd for introducing Ariftele is, that the Arabs when they broke into Europe, having been long poffefs'd of his Books, and made Comments upon them, were too expert in that Way of arguing for the · Chriftians (who had not feen thofe Books) till they had read them, and were by that Means able to pay the Arabs in their own Coin; tho' it was not to make that a Science, but to evade their Pretenfions to Science; not to be mix'd with Chriftianity, and preach'd in Chriftian Pulpits, but to be ftudied by fome who should make it their Bufinefs to detect thofe who made any fuch Attempts: Because greater difgrace cannot be done to any Body of Men, than by thofe who act, under pretence of being Members, directly contrary to the End of their Inftitution. And a few afpiring Clergy, who would not be conD 2

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tent to be Ministers to God or Christ, but Makers of Gods, or Chrifts, lifting themfelves as Andrews to, and fo striking in with the adverfe Party, make it pafs Current, that they know that Mofes knew nothing of the Matter, and that the whole is a Cheat. If it appears, when the Notions of the Authors now follow'd, are compar'd with Scripture, that any of them, or any of their Creatures who propagate them, who have had Education, and spent their whole Time, as they pretend, in studying Nature, have fhew'd that they are capable of forming one juft Thought, or discovering one valuable Truth, fo that they are fit in any Inftance, or in any Measure, to direct the Minds of Mankind, I'll give up and fuffer them to lead me.

The Method directed perhaps to Man at first, however prefcribed to the Jews, was to meditate upon the Works of God in the Creation and Formation; this was the Work for which their Sabbath was fet apart, while they preferv'd the Knowledge of thefe Works, and fo obferv'd the Sabbath, that proved the Being, and preferv'd the Senfe of the Obligations they were under to God, and them in their Duty. When they neglected that, and loft that Knowledge, fo often complain'd of under the Term of the Breach of the Sabbath,

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they fell away from God. If the antient Heathens had worshiped God through the Powers that they faw exifted in his created Syftem, as those who pretend they would give a good Turn to it affert, there would have been little or no Occafion for those Exclamations against them in Scripture: But alas! tho' we should be fo charitable to hope or allow that fome few of the wifeft of them did, that Suggestion in grofs has no Foundation. And the antient Heathens all worfhip'd the Powers of the Heavens instead of God; and they maintain'd that falfe Religion, even against the Power of Miracles, by being able to fhew the People that their Accounts of the natural Things were confiftent with the Things which were Evident. When the latter Heathens attributed Powers which appear'd to be inconfiftent with the Attributes of this material Machine, they begun to divide and dwindle: Whenever the Clergy of the true or the false Religion (for there never was more than two; where God was not ferv'd, these Powers, his Deputies, must be ferv'd) were Philofophers, and maintained, that the Knowledge of natural Things was confonant to the Revelation they had, or the Tradition, or FoundaD3

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tion of the Religion they profefs'd, the Body of the People follow'd them: But whenever any Set of Divines of either Religion cannot make Philofophy, or the Account of natural Things confonant to what they teach for Scripture, or facred Truths; or whenever any other Set of Men have been able to fhew really or to Appearance, that fuch Knowledge was inconfiftent with their Religion, or have prov'd, or been fuffer'd to contradict, or pretend to prove their Scripture, or Tra dition, falfe in thofe Points, fo that the Clergy could not difprove, gainfay, or hinder them; thofe Clergy have been in danger of falling into Contempt, their Scripture or Tradition has not been believ'd; the Opponents have carried away the Body of the People into fuch Notions, even in Religion, as they thought fit to propagate.

Chrift before he bestow'd the Spirit and Power upon his Difciples, order'd them to fearch the Jewish Scriptures for Evidence of God of himtelf, &c. but at the fame Time, Chrift fhew'd them in feveral Inftances, that the Jews had deftroy'd the Intent of the Scriptures, by their Interpretations or Traditions; fo I have good Authority for the Method I take: He

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does not refer them to the LXX, Tranflations, Targums or Traditions, much lefs has he referr'd us to them, or Traditions fince writ, nor to Rules of Grammar, or Pointings, whereby they have endeavoured to justify the wilful Errors or Mistakes those before them had made; and tho' every one knows, the Jews have not only grown more ignorant in these Matters, but worfe and worfe ever fince; I cannot expect to escape falling under the Dif pleasure of thofe who have spent most of their Time in ftudying, and making themselves Mafters of all their allegorical, or other ways of Evafion, nor their Charge against me, for difparaging them; particularly our primitive-will rave to see his Sam. Pent. demolish'd. Let the Scripture be true, though all Men fhould be made Lyars. How I fhall ftand with thofe who thought that Words were arbitrarily fram'd, and that there was a Set of them felected for Divine Things, and Actions, without any Relation to Matter, and fo could never come at any Knowledge of their Significations, but as others or they were pleas'd to give them, muft depend upon their respective Degrees of Value for the Truth. After the Difciples of Chrift had the Power of Miracles, and D 4 while