The brute is clothed by Nature; the earth uncultivated produces the herb; the feed the berry that is fit for its nutriment; raw meat fuits the ftomach of the carnivorous, nor is there any occafion for cookery or drefs: but it is otherwise with Man; tho' Nature furnish abun dantly the materials, yet skill, and induftry is neceflary to fit them for his ufe. By much the greateft part of the Globe would be uninhabi ted, if industry did not furnish clothing; grains must be raised; the juice of grapes and fruits must be fermented, and meat must be prepared for the ftomach, before Man can make use of it,

Becaule Nature furnishes abundantly for all the occafions of the brute, they are each independent of the other, without connection, or fociety, except in a few inftances where inftin&t calls them to it; be caufe it is in thofe inftances neceffary for the prefervation, or propa gation of the fpecies.

But because men have occafion for the labour, the skill, the talents' of each other, they are naturally focial, and dependant on each o ther; they are fitted to promote the interefts of each other. The foul is fo made, as to reap fatisfaction from acts of beneficence, to feel' concern from the fufferings of its fellow-creatures, and to be knit in" bonds of friendship, and alliance with such as entertain the same sen timents.

Thus Nature has made men fit for fociety, as it has made fociety' neceflary for them; but the end of making fociety neceflary for men, leads to a further confideration. No one can think that the infinitely wife, and powerful, could not have fo framed men, that Nature, a. lone and unaided, thould have fupplied all their wants; but, if he had done fo, folitude must have been the Inclination of the rational creature, and no more of the perfection of the Creator would have been known, or celebrated, than what fell within the observation of cach individual. But as effential wifdom has difpofed man neceffarily for fociety, has provided them with proper faculties to communicate to each other their obfervations, and their fentiments, and has furnished them with inclinations to make fuch communications, and to join in acts of acknowledgment, and praise; it cannot be doubted that the chief, the high, and honourable end of fitting men for faciety, was to advance, and propagate the knowledge of Nature, and of the Author of it, and to promote and perfect that exercise of the foul, for which it was given to man.

When Man furveys his own fpecies, framed for the contemplation. of the works of God, fitted for admiring, and adoring the author, and fupporter; lo contrived as to aid each other in that great defign, and to contribute to one another's happiness, not only in that, but in the common enjoyments of the animal life; he cannot help confide, ring each individual as the immediate fervant of the Creator; he can. not difpenfe with obferving the clofe relation, and connection between the whole, and the neceffary dependance each has on the other

And

And, when he recollects what pleasure refults to the foul from coff fciousness of beneficent and merciful acts, what horror arifes from the thoughts of cruelty, and injuftice; he muft needs fee his duty to wards his fellow fervants, and with thankfulness acknowledge the goodness of the Creator, who has annexed immediate pleasure to each act of duty, and joined horror to tranfgreffion.

View then Man in his perfect ftate, as from the ruins ftill remaining, we certainly know he must have been Bleffed with all the enjoyments that give relifh to the animal life; Diftinguithed, from the reft of the vifible creation, by that intelligent principle that enables him to fee the infinite wifdomi, power, and goodness of the author of nature in his works; Chofen to be a witnefs to the boundless perfections of the Eternal; Poffeffed of an infatiable defire of knowledge, and fresh difcoveries pouring in upon him, without ceafing Quali fied to admire, to praife, and to adore, and perpetual occations offer ing themselves for thofe rapturous exercifes; Placed in fociety, with companions fitted for the like enjoyments, and fo made as to pro mote his felicity, under tyes of duty to them, but duty the perfor mance whereof was neceffarily to be rewarded with pleafure; Con fcious of the favour of his infinitely powerful, and beneficent Creator, and therefore bleffed in the exercife of perpetual thankfulness: View man, I fay, in this light, and fay whether imagination can fuggeft to itself a state of higher felicity, or conceive how man came by choice, and of his own free-will to relinquish it?

Such was man! but view him in his prefent condition, and you fee a creature ftill poffeffed of all thofe qualities that fitted him for feeing and enjoying the chief good, with fupreme delight; but you fee. thofe Talents monftroufly and mischievously employed; thofe eyes, and that understanding, that were given to perceive with transport the perfections of the Creator in his works, are now no more em ployed in that glorious fervice; the heart, and the defire, that pant ed after, and rejoiced in the favour and protection of the fountain of goodness, have ceafed to act upon that object; all the mental powers, all the fprings of the heart, are ftill at work in fearch of felicity; but they feck for it where no real good is to be found, and contribute to the real mifery of unfortunate man. The fovereign good neglect. ed, all those talents, that were given for difcovering and enjoying it, are turned to the improvement of thofe pleafures that man has in common with the brutes. The skill and induftry of that intelligent creature, are occupied in pursuing the gratifications of the brutal appetites; and, in fo doing, weaken and difable even thofe appetites from answering their real ufes; or are employed in finding, and laying up means for fuch beaftly gratifications. In the place of focial affection and benevolence to mankind, malice, envy, fraud, rapine, murder prevail; in the place of God, love chufes Self for its object. Knowledge, if looked after, is fought to gratify a vain, an ufelefs cu.

tiofity,

riofity, but not to lead to the fource of knowledge, and life; in fhort, rebel to God, man fets up the vileft of his creatures in his room, and employs thofe faculties that were given for the fervice and enjoyment of the Eternal, in pursuits infinitely difhonourable, and of fenfive.

In this diftreffed, this frightful condition, human nature can hardly bear looking in upon it felf: the crime, as well as the folly, is fo monftrous, that serious reflection on it must four all the filly enjoyments that men amuse themselves with, and create apprehenfions which, without fome foundation for hopes, would be abfolutely in tolerable; and therefore mankind, to avoid reflections fo very difa greeable, fuffer the active principle, intended to lead to God, to carry them away from one brutish pursuit to another: if any beam of light, darting in upon their foul, fhould fhew them their duty, they fhut it out, because it points out the forfeit, and, because the ama zing long fuffering, and patience of the Deity, delays deserved pu nishment, unhappy mortals are ready to harden themselves into a belief, that there is no God to be offended at their treason, or to flatter themselves with hopes, that, as they live like brutes, they shall die like brutes, and by ceafing to be, escape vengeance.

per:

Such is the depraved ftate of wretched mankind! and fuch the verfe turn of those whofe minds are fo debauched with brutal pleafures, as to like the beaftly state in which they are. But they, in whom the Image of God is not altogether defaced, who entertain honourable notions of the fupreme Goodness, who fee with wonder the long fuffering and forbearance of the infinitely Juft, and who cannot conceive, that Effential Juftice could difpenfe with vengeance for a moment, if fome confideration of infinite value did not interpose, are willing to entertain hopes that fome random may have been found for the offence of mankind, fome expedient provided, by the wisdom and goodness of God, for obliterating their crimes, and reftoring them to the favour and protection of the Eternal; and to have those hopes confirmed, and improved into a well-grounded and certain belief, is the chief object of their wishes, as it would be the only folid foundation of their happiness.

Whoever has the fainteft glimpse of such hopes, if he acts rationally, will not ceafe enquiring, with the utmost carneftness and accuracy, till he discover whether there is any just foundation for them, or no; he will confult nature, he will examine authorities, and will be equally follicitous not to admit insufficient, as he will be not to reject fufficient evidence.

in fuch an enquiry, beginning with the natural light ftill remaining unextinguifhed, and carefully feparating what does, from what does not flow from it; examining the notions commonly received about the Deity, and comparing them with the dictates of reason, many propofitions will appear demonftratively true: for example;

1. That

1. That the Deity is infinitely powerful, good, and intelligent, is deducible from nature.

2. That the Deity is merciful, fo as to pardon fin, and to be re concileable to finners, is not deducible from nature.

3. That the Deity is poffefied of qualities like to those in the foul of man, fuch as love, anger, compaffion, is not deducible from

nature.

4. That there is a plurality of Perfons in the Deity, is not dedu cible from nature.

5. That man's fin, upon atonement, is to be pardoned, and he reconciled to the Deity, is not deducible from nature.

6. That the fufferings of a man, to whom one of the Perfons of the Deity was to be joined, was to be that atonement, is not de ducible from nature.

7. That the effect of this atonement and reconciliation, was to give all mankind a right to approach, and rely on the protection and beneficence of a placated Deity, is not deducible from nature. 8. That the Deity, thus appeafed, is delighted in prayers and praises, is not deducible from nature.

9. That there is a correfpondence between the fouls of men and the Deity, is not deducible from nature.

10. That the prayers of men are acceptable to the Deity, heard, and anfwered, through the interceffion of that Perfon whose fuf ferings atoned for fin, is not deducible from nature.

If then these things concerning the Deity, and man's ftate, are true, and of abfolute neceffity to be known to man, for his comfort, and towards enabling him to perform any acceptable duty to his Creator, his knowlege must come by revelation, and that knowledge must be kept up by inftitutions, or records.

I. That there is fuch a thing as right and wrong, may, and must be known, without revelation.

2. That right must be attended with reward, and wrong with punishment, is known without revelation.

3. That therefore there must be a future ftate, for rewards and punishments, must be known without revelation.

4. That man is in a depraved state, at enmity with the Deity, is known without revelation; and must have been known so foon as that ftate of enmity began.

In this depraved ftate, man, attentive to his own circumstances, must have been in a condition infinitely wretched, the object of the juft indignation of the Almighty, here and hereafter; helpless, and hopeless, becaufe no defence againft offended juftice; and must have

B

continued incapable of hope, or comfort, or of attempting any means of placating, or of obtaining the protection of the Deity, unless the mercy of God, and his acceptance of the atonement provided, had been revealed to him, with evidence of the authority of that revelation, lo convincing as to gain absolute belief; this, and nothing less, 'could render life tolerable.

1. We know certainly that all men are, and from the earliest ages have been, in a state of enmity and corruption.

2. That men now have, and from the earliest times have had, comfort from a perfuafion of mercy and forgiveness from God, contrary to reafon, and the strongest evidence which from thence can refult.

3. That the whole world, from the earliest times, used nearly the fame rites, ceremonies, and inftitutions religious, for placating the Deity, averting wrath, procuring favour, returning thanks, by Sacrifices, Burnt-offerings, Blood; means that, in nature, have no fort of connection with the end proposed, and therefore could not poffibly have had their origin from reason, or natural light.

And, as this belief, and these religious obfervances, prevailed over all mankind, without any fupport from, but rather contrary to reafon, it is a juft conclufion, that the authority for fuch a belief, and fuch obfervances, muft have been exceeding high and strong; and man cannot think of any fufficient authority to have produced that u niverfal faith, fhort of divine revelation.

The doctrine of remiffion of fins, and expiation by blood, is, 'till the fecret is explained by revelation, fo deftitute of any foundation in reason, and apparently fo contrary to it, that no Reafoner could c ver have thought of it; and, if he had, no one could have given credit to it, without fome convincing proof for the authority of that do&trine, which, as has been faid, could not poffibly have been from teafon. The univerfal reception then of that doctrine, is a demonftration, in its own kind, that it had a divine authority.

: If the Deity had determined to pardon man, by and through an Interceffor, and upon fatisfaction, that would not have antwered the end; without man were acquainted with, and believed it, he would remain in the fame gloomy state of defpair, without the least glimpse of hopes, or encouragement to pray, to praise, to love, or to rejoice in the mercy and falvation of God; which would have left him a prey to his terrors and his lufts, and must have determined him to have fhut out all thoughts of the Deity. For nothing could poffibly determine man to hope, to pray, to praise, to ferve, to rejoice in the protection of the Deity, but a firm conviction and belief that God was placated, would forgive, and protect, and was pleased with fervices.