tho' in fome particular cafes, this may perhaps be all that we have to offer; yet, fuch an implicit fubjection of our understandings in matters of Faith, can I prefume, have little tendency towards either the converfion of a fober infidel, or the fatisfaction of a rational believer. When a perfon is seriously contemplating any parts of Nature, and folicitoufly enquiring into the ends and uses of them; no pleasure furely can arise to himfelf, nor any true, lively Devotion to their Author, merely from the unaccountableness of these parts; nay, every fuch inftance one would imagine must rather caft a damp upon his fpirit, and produce nothing morethan an uncomfortable reflection upon his own weaknefs,-a mortifying argument of his ignorance and imperfection. Whereas a single difficulty cleared up, or an objection compleatly anfwered, is a piece of useful knowledge gained; whereupon he can chearfully congratulate himfelf, and glorify his Maker. Our Author therefore was not contented with evading difficulties, by removing all defects from external things to ourfelves, by multiplying inftances of the narrowness, and weakness of our understanding, (of which any thoughtful perfon will foon be convinced, and of courfe with to find it fomewhat enlarged and improved, to which this kind of argumentation contributes very little), but he attacks his adverfaries in their ftrongest holds, and plucks up that ancient Herefy by the roots. He fhews by pre-established rules, and the neceffary confequence of these rules, that we can reduce all to one Supreme Head, and comprehend how the prefent ftate of things, furrounded as it is with darknefs, may yet be the best, and worthy of a moft wife, powerful, and beneficent Author; and why taking the whole system fyftem of created Beings together, and every class of them in its own order, none could have been more perfect, or placed in a more eligible fituation. He demonstrates, that in the first place, no created beings could be abfolutely perfect; and in the fecond, that no kind of imperfection was permitted amongst them, but what in their clafs and order of existence was either unavoidable, or productive of fome good, more than equivalent; in both cafes, there will be the fame reafon for creating fuch, together with their concomitant evils, as there was for any Creation at'all, for which the fole ground will appear to be an uniform determination, of communicating happiness to as many Beings as could confiftently be made capable of it, on the best. terms poffible; or an intention never to omit the leaft degree of pure good,, on account of any fuch evils as cleave to it, yet do not on the whole counterbalance it; or, which is the very fame, (fince it will appear that the prevention of all the prefent evils, would have been of worfe confequence than the permiffion of them) a refolution always to choose the lefs of two inconveniences, when both could not be avoided. must be granted to come up to the point, and when it is once made evident, will be a fufficient answer to the old triumphant query Tode tò naxdy; it will prove an ample vindication of the power, wisdom and goodness of God in the production, government and preservation of the universe, and as much as a reasonable man can with any fhew of reafon expect. And it is greatly to be wished, that this method had been taken, by more of those Authors that have written on the present fubject, and the argument pursued a little farther, by the light of Nature, in order to add fome light and con This firmation * firmation to Revelation itself in these very captious times; wherein a great many perfons are unwilling to be determined by its authority alone. And yet fome of the most able writers on the fubject, often fly to Scripture when a difficulty begins to prefs them, which appears to be acknowledging with Bayle, that the point cannot be maintained on any other foot. Whereas if the objection be really unanfwerable by Reafon ; -if, as the forementioned author urges, we perceive by our clear and diftinct ideas, that fuch a thing is ' entirely repugnant to the Divine nature and attributes,' referring us to Scripture, which declares that fuch an all perfect Being did conftitute it after this manner, will be but fmall fatisfaction, fince we can have no greater affurance that the Scripture comes from him, than we have that the Doctrine faid to be contained therein is abfurd and impoffible. What that Writer's real intent might be in representing the matter thus, is not very easy to determine: fure I am, that his whole account of it ferves rather to betray the cause, and undermine the authority both of Reafon and Revelation, and is enough to induce a perfon who argues confequentially, to reject all kinds of Religion; tho' I have been informed that it had not this effect on Bayle himfelf. Farther, moft Authors here treat of the Almighty's difpenfations toward mankind, as if they were confidering men's behaviour towards each other. They think it enough to make him chufe the moft likely means of leading us to happiness, and act. upon the highest probability; though upon fome account or other, he fail of his end. This may indeed be the very best way of proceeding in all finite, imperfect Beings, and prove fufficient to acquit the justice and the goodnefs See an explanation touching the Manichees, at the end of his Dictionary nefs of their Maker, but is far from answering the general idea of his wisdom. To a Being who forefees all the effects of every chain of caufes, or combination of means and events, which the fame Authors allow to be one property of the Divine Nature, thofe only muft prove eligible, which will certainly conduce to the end propofed; nor is it a fufficient reason, why he should purfue a method which is apt to fucceed in moft cafes; if he knows it will fail in this: an inquifitive person who takes all the attributes of God together, and contemplates the whole plan of Providence, will hardly judge it a complete vindication of them, to affert that God either now makes men, or fuffers them to make themselves, miferable for rejecting that portion of felicity which he at first formed them capable of, by endowing them with fuch powers, and placing them in fuch circumftances as rendered it easy to be attained by them ;tho' this may clear his justice, as I have faid, and fix the blame upon ourfelves and yet thefe writers generally content themselves with going thus far. They derive all our fin, and confequent mifery, from the abuse of free will (i. e. a principle or power which enabled us to have acted otherwife than we did act, and thereby have prevented it) without explaining the true nature of this principle, the manifold use and excellence of it, and fhewing that, fo far as we can conceive, more good arifes to our whole fpecies from the donation of such a felf-moving power, together with all its forefeen abufes, than could have been produced without it. To demonftrate this, was an undertaking worthy of our Author, who has at least laid a good foundation for it, and feems to be the firft that ever propofed the true true notion of human liberty, and pursued it confiftently; most of the doubts attending which intricate fubject, will, I hope, be tolerably well cleared up, or at least such principles established as may fuffice for that purpose, by this Treatife of his, and the Notes upon it. I fhall only add here, that thofe Notes which have capital Letters prefixed to them, belong properly to the Author himself, the fubftance of them being communicated by his Grace's Relations, out of a great number of papers prepared by him, in defence of this Book, on which he fet fo high a value as to take the pains of vindicating it from the leaft cavil; in which view all that he wrote would make a much larger Volume than the Book itself, wherein fome think that there has been produced an abundantly fufficient number of objections, with fuch particular anfwers as the then imperfect ftate of Philosophy required. The Preliminary Differtation was compofed chiefly by the late Rev. Mr. Gay, and deferves to keep its place among fome others of a fimilar kind, fince it is upon a fubject that can never be too much inculcated, tho' this may occafion fome repetitions, and the dryness which has been complained of, muft amply be compenfated by a degree of accuracy, and precision, which cannot fail of recommending it to an attentive reader ; who may probably deduce more confequences from the principle laid down there, than are explicitly pointed out. In the prefent Edition of A. B. King's effay, the bulk has been confiderably reduced by omitting feveral things, that were fomewhat foreign to the main defign of this Treatife; particularly his noted Sermon upon Predeftination, which being wholly founded on the doc trine |