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This is but wife and difcreet Caution; but to condemn all true Miracles for the Sake of fome Impoftures, is unreasonable Scepticism, and would tend to difpute all Truth and Certainty out of the World, and make all Men turn Pyrrhonicks and Seekers.

Instances of 6. And it is likewife falfe, which you in the next Place the Jews, lay down; That the Miracles, and Infpiration among the mon, con- Jews, had no Influence upon their Understandings, or fidered. Lives, from the Inftances of the idolatrous Jews in the Wilderness, and King Solomon. Indeed I can by no Means excufe the Jews for their perfidious Defection to idolatrous Worship, whilft Mofes was in the Mount; but yet I cannot go with you fo far, as to affert, that the Figure of a Calf was thought, by them, to be the divine Image. For this is fuch a Grofness as is not to be fuppofed in human Nature; it is moft probable that they defigned this only as an Hieroglyphick, or Emblem of the true God, in Imitation of the Ægyptians. For as the Egyptians, with whom they had long converfed, worfhiped their God Apis, under the Hieroglyphick of a Bull, or Calf: So the Jews, who loved a pompous ceremonious Wormhip, thought to worship the true God fo too. For it is plain, that they intended to pay their Devotion to the true God, because in the Relation of this Paffage, Exod. xxxii. 4 It is faid, This is the Elohim, or God, which brought thee out of the Land of Egypt. Which is more particularly explained in the next Verfe, To morrow is a Feaft to the LORD, or to Jehovah. And as for thofe Places in Ecclefiaftes, after all that is objected by Atheists, and Socinians, I do not fee any Thing to the contrary; but that these are only Profopopia's of Epicureans, wherein the Abfurdities of thefe Opinions are expofed, and brought into the Number of thofe other Vanities, which in this Book he is condemning.

Phil. But after all, Credentins, I cannot be perfuaded, but that it was the prejudiced Opinions of the unphilofophical Jews, and their Pretence more immediately to the divine Protection, which gave Occafion to the Rife of fo many Miracles in Scripture which might otherways be

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naturally accounted for. It would be too long to run through all the pretended Miracles in Scripture, which I could cafily make out to be done by the Power of Nature; I fhall only pick out one or two which may ferve as a Sampler for the Reft, and may prove, that they all may receive a philofophical Solution. Now, 1 Sam. ix. 15. God is related to fend Saul to Samuel, but in this Miffion there was nothing, but what the Order of Nature did require; for Saul at that Time was feeking his Father's Affes. So God is faid to fend the Locufts as a Plague upon Ægypt, of which there was a plain natural Caufe, for an Eaft-Wind blew them out of another Country, and a Weft-Wind carried them back again. So God is faid to fet the Rainbow in the Clouds, which is produced there by the natural Cause of Refraction. And again, there is a wonderful Miracle related in Joshua of the Sun's ftanding ftill, and making a long and miraculous Day, when it happened only by the Reflexion of the Sun-Beams on the neighbouring Hills, or the Refraction which was caufed by the Air, which at that Time was full of Hail and Snow, as is evident from the great Shower of Hail-ftones, which fo annoyed the Enemy. Now, these, and fuch like Miracles, were devised, only to raise the common People's Devotions, and to affect their Fancies, which would not receive an Impreffion by an or dinary Way of Relation; but when it was faid, That God immediately intereffed himself in fuch an Action, it made them presently to prick up their Ears, and be very atten tive and devout.

Cred. Although it cannot be denied, Philologus, but Miracles that the Jews had a religious Way of talking and attribu- not naturally come ting to God the ordinary Effects of his Providence, when to pass. brought to pafs by the most eafy and natural Means; yet it is impoffible that thofe fupernatural and ftupendous Relations, which are to be met with in many Places of Scripture, are to be accounted for this Way. Neither do your Inftances, which you have alledged, in any wife prove what you contend for. For as for your Inftance of God's fending Sanl; although Saul by the Bent of his

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own Inclination was feeking his Father's Affes ; yet God by making use of this natural Act of his Will and proper Refolution, brought it to pafs, that he should meet the Prophet Samuel, who came to anoint him King. For unless you allow that God Almighty has the Power of inclining, over-ruling, and turning to his own proper Ends the Wills and Defigns of Men, you must exclude God from having any Thing to do in the Government of the World; otherways Mankind would be the arbitrary Lords of the whole Creation, and as long as they had a Free-will, (unless oppofed by an open and apparent Refiftance) they must act in Defiance to their foveraign Lord and Maker. And therefore God in his infinite Wif dom is pleased, to let his Almighty Power mix and blend it felf with the natural Actions and Inclinations of Men, that he may gently lead them to the Ends he has propofed, whilft they are feemingly going thither themselves. Which is a great Kindness and Condefcenfion to human Nature, that he will not ruffle and ftruggle with them, and force them against their Wills to do what he would have them, but only cafts fuch a gentle Influence upon their Minds, that they fhould do that of their own ac cord, which he might otherwife have forced them to. 'Tis needlefs to give a philofophical Account of the divine Inclination of the Will, whether it be by exciting new Ideas in the Mind, or reviving old ones, by Reminifcence, or Memory, by raifing and fettling a keener Edge upon the Paffions, by bringing new Objects to the Senfes, or engaging them in a nicer Obfervation: For let the Modus of this be how it will, as long as God is the Governour of the World, and does exercife a Providence over his Creatures, fome Way or other, he must have an Influence over Men's Wills, tho' at the fame Time they feem to make use of them with the greatest Freedom. And this way God Almighty is faid to have fent Saul to Samuel, by gently influencing his Will, and the exterior Objects which inclined it, fo as to make him feem to do that of his own proper Motives, which God would have him do. It is not eafy to afcertain, where divine Influ

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ence gave the first Impreffion in this Cafe. It may be probable upon the Fancies of the Cattle, who had fome unufual Idea raised in their Imagination, which inclined them to wander, and then it was natural enough for Saul, their Mafter's Son, to pursue them, where he met Samuel. So that you fee, in this Cafe, that every Thing worked with its own proper Tendency, but yet all was managed and over-ruled by the Wisdom and Power of God. Bur as to your Inftance in the Rainbow. Now tho' this does proceed from natural Caufes, yet it is very properly in Scripture attributed immediately to God. For tho' it is probable, that the Rainbow was antecedent to the Defuge, (there being the Sun and Seas, and confequently Clouds and Rainbows) yet God is very properly faid to fet his Bow in the Clouds: because he fet it there for a Token, or a Sign; altho' it was a Rainbow, yet it was not a Sign or Token before it was a Rainbow by the ordinary Course of Nature, but it became a Token by God's fpecial Ordinance. And fo for the Matter of the Locufts, Exod. x. 14. What tho' they came with an Eaft-Wind, and went away with a Weft? Will the pure blowing of an Eaft-Wind produce Caterpillars? Or fuppofing them to be blown from another Country, fuch innumerable Quantities of them, as were never heard of before, fo great as utterly to deftroy all the Herbage of Egypt, were equally, as miraculous, as if there had been an inftantaneous Creation of them. And what Reafon is there to affert this Plague of Ægypt to be natural, when all the others are fo apparently miraculous? You muft either deny the Hiftory, or grant the Miracle; for there is no Bantering of all those wonderful and tremendous Plagues with fuch little Criticisms. And the fame I have to fay to your Explication of the Sun's ftanding ftill in Jofua's Time. Now let any reasonable Man confider, if there be any Thing in that Relation which looks like Spinofa's Account of the Matter, viz the Twilight, being at that Time more than ordinary protracted by the Refraction of the Sun-Beams, through the fnowy Air. I grant fomething like this may happen, for a Minute or two; but what is this to the Sun's ftand

ing ftill a whole Day? So the Sun ftood in the midst of Heaven, and hafted not to go down about a whole Day, Jofh. x. 13. Nay, tho' we fhould grant you, what fometimes comes to pafs from the thick fleety Air in Greenland, that the Sun was seen when it was a Degree or two below the Horizon; yet this will not falve the Matter. For the Text fays exprefly, that the Sun ftood ftill the whole Day in the midst of Heaven, or the Twelve a-Clock Line; that is, it was twelve a Clock for twelve Hours together, the Sun ftaying fo long in that one Point. But if your Account by Refraction were true, the Day must receive its Lengthening about Sun-fetting, when the Sun was near the Horizon, and that not above a Quarter of an Hour at the most. Neither could this eafily come to pafs, in fo thin an Atmosphere as that of Paleftine. Befides, the Scripture fays exprefly, that this was prayed for by Joshua, in order to encourage the fews, and to dif hearten their Enemies. But why fhould he pray for fuch a natural Effect as you would have this to be? Was it worth any one's while to wifh for a Minute or two more Day-light, which it was impoffible, that either the Jews, for their Enemies, could obferve? But I am weary of anfwering fuch Arguments as thefe, which fall of themfelves, and which I am confident can never convince those that urge them; and 'tis honefter to deny the Authority of Scripture altogether, than to explain the Force of it away, by fuch jejune Interpretations.

Phil. Why then, Credentius, if you would have me appear a bare-faced Infidel, I muft plainly tell you, that I do not think, that either Mofes, or the Prophets, who fucceeded him, had any Degree of that Infpiration which they pretended to. For what ever is infpired muft needs be true, and agreeable, both to Reason and Goodness; but there are many Things to be found in their Writings and Lives, which are contrary to both. I fhall begin with Mofes. Indeed, Credentius, you have, in fome Meafure, vindicated him from fome Abfurdities, which are ufually imputed to his Hiftory of the Creation*, but I Conference with a Theift, Part I.

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