man foul. It has alfo, like most other opinions of the heathen world upon these important points, it has, I fay, its foundation in truth, as it fuppofes the fouls of good men after this life to be in a state of perfect happinefs; that in this ftate there will be no barren hopes, nor fruitlefs wishes; and that we fhall enjoy every thing we can defire. But the particular circumftance which I am moft pleafed with in this scheme, and which arifes from a juft reflection upon human nature, is that variety of pleafures which it fuppofes the fouls of good men will be poffeffed of in another world. This I think highly probable, from the dictates both of reafon and revelation. The foul confifls of many faculties, as the understanding, and the will, with all the fenfes both outward and inward; or to fpeak more philofophically, the foul can exert herself in many different ways of action. She can exert herself in many different ways of action. She can understand, will, imagine, fee, and hear, love, and difcourfe, and apply herself to many other the like exercifes of different kinds and natures; but what is more to be confidered, the foul is capable of receiving a moft exquifite pleasure and fatisfaction from the exercife of any of thefe its powers, when they are gratified with their proper objects; the can be entirely happy by the fatisfaction of the memory, the fight, the hear ing, or any other mode of perception. Every faculty is as a diftinét tafte in the mind, and hath objects accom. modated to its proper relifh. Doctor Tillot fan fomewhere fays, that he will not prefume to determine in what confifts the happiness of the bleft, because God Almighty is capable of making the foul happy by ten thoufand different ways. Befides thofe feveral avenues to pleasure, which the foul is endowed with in this life, it is not impoffible, according to the opinions of many eminent divines, that there may be new faculties in the fouls of good men made perfect, as well as new fenfes in their glorified bodies. This we are fure of, that there will be new objects offered to all thofe faculties which are effential to us.

We are likewife to take notice that every particu

lar faculty is capable of being employed on a very great variety of objects. The understanding, for example, may be happy in the contemplation of moral, natural, mathematical, and other kinds of truth. The memory likewife may turn itself to an infinite multitude of objects, especially when the foul fhall have paffed through the fpace of many millions of years, and shall reflect with pleasure on the days of eternity. Every other faculty may be confidered in the fame extent.

We cannot queftion that the happiness of a foul will be adequate to its nature, and that it is endowed with any faculties which are to lie ufeless and unemployed. The happiness is to be the happiness of the whole man, and we may eafily conceive to ourselves the happiness of the foul, while any one of its faculties is in the fruition of its chief good. The happiness may be of a more exalted nature in proportion as the faculty employed is fo; but as the whole foul acts in the exertion of any of its particular powers, the whole foul is happy in the pleasure which arifes from any of its particular acts. For notwithstanding, as has been before hinted, and as it has been taken notice of by one of the greatest modern philofophers, we divide the foul into feveral powers and faculties, there is no fuch divifion in the foul itself, fince it is the whole foul that remembers, underftands, wills, or imagines. Our manner of confidering the memory, understanding, will, imagination, and the like faculties, is for the better enabling us to prefs ourselves in fuch abstracted fubjects of fpeculation; not that there is any such division in the foul itself.

Seeing then that the foul has many different faculties, or, in other words, many different ways of acting; that it can be intenfely pleafed, or made happy by all thefe different faculties or ways of acting; that it may be endowed with feveral latent faculties, which it is not at present in a condition to exert; that we cannot believe the foul is endowed with any faculty which is of no ufe to it; that whenever any one of

thefe faculties is tranfcendantly pleased, the foul is in a ftate of happiness; and in the laft place, confidering that the happiness of another world is to be the happiness of the whole man, who can queftion but that there is an infinite variety in those pleasures we are fpeaking of; and that this fulness of joy will be made up of all thofe pleafures which the nature of the foul is capable of receiving?

We fhall be the more confirmed in this doctrine, if we obferve the nature of variety, with regard to the mind of man. The foul does not care to be always in the fame bent. The faculties relieve one another by turns, and receive an additional pleasure from the novelty of thofe objects about which they are converfant.

Revelation likewife very much confirms this notion, under the different views which it gives us of our future happiness. In the defcription of the throne of God, it reprefents to us all thofe objects which are able to grauify the fenfes and imagination: In very many places it intimates to us all the happinefs which the understanding can poffibly receive in that state, where all things fhall be revealed to us, and we shall know, even as we are known; the raptures of devotion, of divine love, the pleasure of converfing with our bleffed Saviour, with an innumerable host of angels, and with the fpirits of juft men made perfect, are likewife revealed to us in feveral parts of the holy writings. There are alfo mentioned thofe hierarchies or governments, in which the bleft fhall be ranged one above another, in which we may be fure a great part of our happinefs will likewife confift; for it will not be there as in this world, where every one is aim ing at power and fuperiority; but, on the contrary, every one will find that ftation the most proper him in which he is placed, and will probably think that he could not have been fo happy in any other ftation. Thefe, and many other particulars, are marked in divine revelation as the feveral ingredients of our happiness in heaven, which all imply fuch a variety of

for

joys, and fuch a gratification of the foul in all its dif ferent faculties, as I have been here mentioning.

Some of the Rabbins tell us, that the cherubims are a fet of angels who know moft, and the feraphims a fet of angels who love moft. Whether this diftinction be not altogether imaginary, I fhall not here examine; but it is highly probable, that among the fpirits of good men there may be fome who will be more pleafed with the employment of one faculty than of another, and this perhaps according to thofe innocent and virtuous habits or inclinations which have here taken the deepeft root.

I might here apply this confideration to the fpirits of wicked men, with relation to the pain which they shall fuffer in one of their faculties, and the respective miferies which shall be appropriated to each faculty in particular. But leaving this to the reflection of my readers, I fhall conclude with obferving how we ought to be thankful to our great Creator, and rejoice in the being which he has bestowed upon us, for having made the foul fufceptible of pleasure by fo many different ways. We fee by what a variety of paffages joy and gladness may enter into the thoughts of man; how wonderfully a human fpirit is framed, to imbibe its proper fatisfactions, and tafte the goodness of its Creator. We may therefore look into ourselves with rapture and amazement, and cannot fufficiently exprefs our gratitude to him who has encompaffed us with fuch a profufion of bleffings, and opened in us fo many capacities of enjoying them.

There cannot be a ftronger argument that God has defigned us for a ftate of future happinefs, and for that Heaven which he has revealed to us, than that he has thus naturally qualified the foul for it, and made it a being capable of receiving fo much blifs. He would never have made fuch faculties in vain, and have endowed us with powers that were not to be exerted on fuch objects as are fuited to them. It is very manifeft, by the inward frame and conftitution of our minds, that he has adapted them to an infinite variety VOL. II.

of pleasures and gratifications, which are not to be met with in this life. We fhould therefore at all times take care that we do not disappoint this his gracious purpose and intention towards us, and make those faculties which he formed as fo many qualifications for happiness and rewards, to be the inftruments of pain and punishment.

SPECTATOR, Vol. VIII. No. 600.

HILPA AND SHALUM-AN ANTEDILUVIAN
COURTSHIP.

HILPA was one of the hundred and fifty daughters of Zilpah, of the race of Cobu, by whom fome of the learned think is meant Cain. She was exceedingly beautiful, and when he was a girl of threefcore and ten years of age, received the addreffes of feveral who made love to her. Among thefe were two brothers, Harpath and Shalum. Harpath, being the first born, was master of that fruitful region which lies at the foot of mount Tirzah, in the fouthern parts of China. lum (which is to fay the planter in the Chinese language) poffeffed all the neighbouring hills, and that great range of mountains which goes under the name of Tirzah. Harpath was of a haughty, contemptuous fpirit; Shalum was of a gentle difpofition, beloved both by God and man.

Sha

It is faid that among the Antediluvian women, the daughters of Cobu had their minds wholly fet upon riches; for which reason the beautiful Hilpa preferred Harpath to Shalum, because of his numerous flocks and herds, that covered all the low country which runs along the foot of mount Tirzah, and is watered by feveral fountains and streams breaking out of the fides of that mountain.

Harpath made fo quick a difpatch of his courtship, that he married Hilpa in the hundredth year of her age; and being of an infolent temper, laughed to fcorn his brother Shalum, for having pretended to the beautiful when he was master of nothing but a long chain Bilzar