the Manner of facrificing to God by Fire, they fell to facrifice to Fire, by Fire. From the Revelation of the Manner of facrificing Fruits, to offer them to the Heavens. From that of the Manner of Atonement, not only to offer the Shadow, the Sacrifice of Beafts, and their Blood, but their Firft-Born, and their Blood; and held Feafts of Blood. From the Representation of the Trinity, by a Vifion of Beafts and Man emblematically, to reprefent the Trinity of the Perfons, and Man taken into. the Trinity, to make thofe, Reprefentations of the Trinity in the Heavens: And the Figure of Man, whatever it was at firft, low down for an Intelligence, and I know not what; and confequently to make those and fuch Species of Beasts facred to the Heavens, and to worship them. The Brazen Serpent which Mofes fet up to cure those by looking upon it, who were bit by the Serpents of Fire, was made an Object to burn Incenfe to, till the Reign of Hezekiah. Nay, as I faid, need we wonder, when the very Writing which was to record the Demonftration of the Power, and fo the Knowledge of the Effence and Trinity, and fet Men right in thofe Affairs; nay, even the written Account of the Manifestation and Suffering

of Christ, which was to establish the Chriftian Religion, are perverted and made ufe of to deftroy them"?

But left it should be thought that I have fuppofed Men in the prefent Difpenfation more favoured than thofe before, I must declare, it appears to me as if God had, if one may fo exprefs it, limited himself that the firft Man and all his Race fince, who would attend the Means, fhould at each Time be in a State of Freedom or Option, upon reafonable Evidence, whether they would chufe the Machine or God. At first, the Evidence of the Formation of Eve, &c. mentioned before the Fall, the Alterations in the State of Men, and fo in their Minds, &c. confidered, feems to be equal to what was after. And that of the Promife, and of the Manifeftation of it by the Cherubim, feems to be equal, all Things confidered, to what was after. But before. I can go further, I must take in another State of the Cafe. Adam and Eve, who were formed with Capacity for fufficient Knowledge, and Strength, after they had acquired that, and a Law was published, might have performed perfect Obedience But if they had perfevered till Children had been born, new Terms must have been made for them; for they could

neither

neither have Knowledge, nor Strength, fo muft commit Faults, and must either have thofe Faults allowed, or fet off for want of Knowledge, or thofe Faults must be atoned for by fome other: For if they could have obferved the Law, after they were at Age, that without fuch a Condition in the Law, would not make up for their Defaults in Youth. Here was but one Precept, but as Numbers increased, the Precepts of the Social Law, &c. muft have taken place: As the Fall intervened, in Mercy an Atonement was provided for them. After they were driven out of Paradife, befides Tradition of what they had feen, heard, and had been given in Charge there, they had no other Representations, but those of Trees, Beafts, Birds, &c. nor no other Books, except the Cherubim continued, but the Heavens, which made them study, to preserve, and fo on to underftand the Evidence in them fo earneftly; nay, even after that Knowledge was abused by the Heathens, fomething of what they knew appears by the accurate Tables of the Motions of the Orbs, &c. which guide our Pretenders to Calculations now. In the Beginning, and fo for the first Ages, Mankind lived together, and many lived to great Ages; fo that the State

F 4

State of what had paffed between God and Man, was effectually handed down; and though every Man was to proceed from a Child, and fo by Degrees into the Enquiry after the State he was in, and the Terms upon which he was to get out, yet if his Parents were in an Error, he was fiable to be feduced by them, to aquiefce in the Methods they had taken; liable to be deceived by his Preceptors; after that, by those who had Right to, or took upon them the Adminiftration of the Prieft's Office; or to be forced by those who had the Right, or took upon them, to exercise the Office of Ruler. And though a Youth once feduced, cannot easily reclaim himself, yet there would be fome eminent Exemplars of Knowledge and Virtue, who would procure fuch a Reverence, that their Authority would be fufficient to rectify the Miftakes in Judgment, or Practice of any who were willing to be informed. This Evidence down, till it began to be oblite rated, then that of the Flood, were, as one may fay, confidering their long Lives, Evidence enough of the Exiftence, Perfonality, Power, and Will of God, to thofe Races. But when a great Part of Men began to err in the chief Point,

JA

and

and not only feparated, but divided into Sects, each Sect compofed of those of the fame Opinion, and that Communication between the Sects, and thofe who perfevered in the right Way, even between one Sect and another, ceased; and their Enmity carried them to Hoftilities: Then, as God fays, these were given up, all Poffibility of reclaiming one in an Error, or of his reclaiming himself, except from that Evidence they had perverted, was at an End. But as this Virtue in Parents who perfevered, gave their Pofterity this Advantage, and the Vice in those who fell away put their Pofterity into this defperate State, it follows that these Advantages and Disadvantages must come in Evidence, and be in fome Degree Charges or Allowances in the final Account. But to return, when thofe Evidences among those who perfevered, were nearly defaced by Abufes, by Force, and Length of Time, God gave a Commiffion to his Servant Mofes, to thew his Power, and to convince Men of the Miftakes their Parents had made, and they had continued in, by a new Series of proper Miracles, and thereby renewed the Evidence of thofe firft Things, and committed the Evidence of his Commiffion, thofe Miracles,