and fo useful to the world, that it seems to be an imitation of the devil's fpite and malice to go about to deprive us of it. 'Tis this hope only can make all men equally happy, and fend the poor, the unfortunate as to the circumstances of this world, and the oppreffed, to bed as contented as the greatest prince. 'Tis this only that can make us chearfully difpenfe with the miferies and hardships of life, and think of death with comfort. Except therefore these patrons of natural religion can fhew as fure and effectual means to comfort us on thefe occafions as revealed religion affords us, they are spiteful and unreasonable; for they go about to take from us that which gives us patience in our fickness, relief in our diftreffes, and hope in our death; and offer us nothing in lieu of it. If a man be oppreffed by his enemies, if he be in sickness, pain or anguish, if the agonies and terrors of death approach him, what comfort or support can he have without religion? What a difmal thing muft it be to tell a man that there is no help, no hope for him, to bid him despair and die, and there is an end of him. Such reflections may make a man fullen, mad, curse himself and nature; but can never give him any fatisfaction, without a well-grounded hope of a blessed immortality. Now only revelation can give the generality of mankind, especially the unphilofophical part of it, who are not capable of long or fubtle reasoning, fuch a clear and well-grounded hope. For we may add to this, that if we take natural religion with all the advantages that reason can give it, yet the rewards and punishments difcoverable by it are not fo clear or determined, as to be a fufficient encouragement to fuch as are good, or difcouragement to the evil. Revealed religion ferves all these ends; and therefore we ought firmly to adhere to it, and not hearken to wicked and unreasonable men, or fuffer them to wrest it out of our hands. It is our joy, our comfort and our life; it carries us beyond death, and fecures our eternal felicity. Juftice, and charity, and peace are the fruits of it here, and glory hereafter.

IN DE X.

A.

Bfolute infinity what it is, pag. 13. 68, 69.

Abfolute neceffity an abfurd term, 18, 19, 20. cannot be
the ground of the Divine Existence, ib. and 57, 58, &c.
The fame as cause, ib. cannot be applied to the relations
of things, 245-248. 252, 253. inconfiftent with the divine
freedom and diverfity of attributes, 41. cannot be urged a
priori, ib.

Abstract ideas what, 5. of fubftances, modes and relations, 5, 6,
7. how made, ib. not formed by analogy, 7. have no objec-
tive reality, ib. are positive and adequate, ib. and the foun-
dation of all general knowledge, ib.

Accidents, how to be diftinguifhed from fubftance, 3.
Action twofold, 189, 209. cannot be neceffary in either fenfe,
ib. whether all human liberty confifts in it, 190, 191.
Active powers, two, 186, 187, 199, 204.

Adam, whether naturally mortal, 106, 130, 167, 168. whether
his powers were different from thofe of his pofterity, ib. and
334. The scheme of Providence in his fall, 335, &c. 383.
His happiness not fo great as that which is attainable by us,
375, &c.

Addifon (Mr.) on the scale of beings, 102. on the quantity of
animal life, 117.

Affections, their origin, xxxiv.

Alteration, there can be no partial one in this fyftem for the
better, 123. 196. &c. a total one inconceivable, ibid. The
fame may be fhewn in the moral world, 390.

Alternative of good and evil neceffary to improve our happiness,
87,88. 339, &c. If we were incapable of the one, we could
not attain to fo high a degree of the other, ib. and 275, &c.
a general answer to Bayle's objections, 374, 375.

L1

Angels,

Angels, why we were not made as perfect as they, 93, 94. whe-
ther they ftill have freedom of will, 321. 328. fome reasons
why their fall might be permitted, 334. 343. 394. vide Fall.
Animals, made for each other, 143.

57:

Antecedent neceffity, not the ground of Divine Exiftence, 25,
Nor of the Relations of things, 245. 247, 248. 252.
The very fame as caufe, 57. in no fenfe capable of being
confidered a priori, ib. and 41. Whether any relations of
things are properly antecedent to the will of God, 251,
252, &c.

Anxiety, in what fenfe it may be said to determine the will, 205,
206, 207. does not determine it phyfically, 186, 187. gene-
rally confequent upon its determination, 201, 202, 203.
Appetites, may be oppofed and overcome by the will alone, 274,

280.

Arbitrary, in what fenfe the Divine Will is fo, 59, 60. 239,
240. this inconfiftent with the notion of abfolute antecedent
Neceffity, 58, 59. 190.

Argument a priori, cannot be applied to the Divine Being, 40,
41, 42. 56, 57, 58, 59. in what fenfe the author argues a
priori, 49.

Affociation, a very extenfive law of Nature, 57. lix. vide Habit.
Affociations formed throughout a common fenforium, lv.
Attributes of God primary and fecondary, 38. how we get our
ideas of them, 66, 67. not from Analogy, 68. not capable of
being proved a priori, 49. 57.

B.

Bayle, his objections to the plan of Providence defended by our
author, 15. 110. 354. 366. 417. 426. 431.

Being of God, proof of it, 35, 36, 37, &c.

Beings, whether all ought to have been created at first in the
highest degree they are capable of, 83, 84, 85. Arguments
for the affirmative, 83, 84. Answer, 86-89. Scale of them,
92, 93, 94.

Bentley, his B. Lectures, on the figure, motion, &c. of the earth,
169.

Body muft neceffarily affect the foul, 132-139.
Bounds, why we can fee none to Space, Number, Duration, &c.
10-15. this does not infer their abfolute Infinity, ibid.
Bramhall, (Bp.) his answer to Hobbs on Free-will, 292, 293.

Calumny

C.

Calumny no conviction, by Mr. Jackson, 61.

Calvinifts, the confequence of their believing themselves to be
neceffarily determined, 338, 339.

Chance, the will not determined by it, 280, 281. the author's
notion of liberty different from it, ib. and 231, 232.
Change, every one requires a caufe, 56, 57. There could be
none in this fyftem for the better, 99, 100. 123-125.
Chafm, none in the chain of beings, 92, 93, 94. 102, 103.
Choice, moft of our happiness confifts in it, 195-198, &c. is
under limitations as to its exercife, 196, 197. 227, 228. 214,
215. the foundation of all merit, 232.

Chubb on prayer, 352, 353,

Clarke, (Dr. S.) his proof of the existence of a Deity from an-
tecedent neceffity, 25. 57. of his attributes from our abstract
ideas of space and duration, 25. his foundations of morals in
the fitness of things without any end or use of such fitneffes,
76.
Claffes of beings down from God to nothing, 92, 93. Illuf-
tration of it, 94. 117, 118. the neceffity for fuch, 102, 103.
364-372. Answer to Bayle's objection, ibid.

Colliber, (Mr.) his impartial enquiry, 53. 56. 122.

Comparisons, the impropriety of thofe of Bayle, concerning free-
will, 399

Compulfion, freedom from it not fufficient to conftitute moral li-
berty, 187, 188.

Confcience of guilt and mifery very diftinct perceptions, 272,
273. 'tis impoffible to have a guilty confcience without li
berty, ib. the confcience of having ufed our liberty aright is
the fource of all our happiness, 338, 339, 340.

Consciousness of liberty proves that we are abfolutely free, 203,
204. 268-270. whether all men have it, 338.

Confequences of certain actions not fufficient to excufe the doing
of them, 382, &c.

Contingency as certain to the Divine Knowledge as neceffity,
362.

Contingent actions may be the objects of the Divine Know-
ledge, ibid.

Continuance, an abstract idea, 6. how acquired, ibid.

Corruptibility a neceffary confequence of materiality, 1:6, 107.
127, 128, 129, 130.

Corruption a confequence of the Fall, 106, 107. 129.

L12

Creation

Creation did not add to the Divine Happiness or Perfection, 45.
why no fooner, ibid. the effect of goodness, 47, 48. in what
fenfe it was indifferent to God, 249, 250-256.

Creatures not all made for the happiness of man, 92, 93. but
for each other, ib. and 97-101. none could be abfolutely
perfect, 81. whether all ought to have been made equally
perfect, 83, &c. 92-95. 358, &c. or abfolutely fixed in any
degree of perfection, 84. Objections answered, ib. alteration
and increase neceffary to their happiness, 86-90. 368, 369.
Cudworth on fpace, 10, 11. on the end of the creation, 45, on
infinity or rather perfection, 67-68.

D.

Death, a neceffary confequence of the general laws of nature,
106, 107. 127, 128. could not have been prevented natu-
rally in paradife, 127, 128, 229, 130. 167-169. the fear of
it neceffary, 135-139. 154, 155. of great benefit to the
world, ib. is not the occafion of our fondness of life, 374, Sc.
Defect, whence this evil arifes, 91. whether all defect requires
a caufe, 60, 61.

Degree infinite, what is to be understood by it, 67, 68.

Degrees of being and perfection, 83. 91, 92, 93, 94. Necef-
fity for them, 99, 102, 103.

D'Oiley, (Mr.) on the Fall, 384.

Defert found in choice, 231, 232. 325, the pleasure attending
it, 338, 339.

Defires the fame with volition, 208. cannot be opposed to it,

35I.

Difeafes unavoidable, 106, 107. 132. Pains of them neceffary
in the prefent ftate, 133-139.

Distance leffens the effects of either pleasures or pains, 375.
Duration, an abftract idea, 6. 51, 52. how formed, ib. not ap-
plicable to the Deity, 52. 54. incapable of abfolute infinity,
14, 15. 55, 56.

E

Earth, the advantages of its prefent figure, 145, 146. fituation,
ib. motion, inclination of its axis and parallelifm, ib. and
146.

Earthquakes,