WHEN our Lord was about to ſend his Diſciples forth into the World to preach the Goſpel, he thought it juſt and neceſſary to ſpeak of the Dangers unto which they certainly ſhould be expoſed by doing their duty, and to prepare their minds againſt them; ſo that they might neither be ſurpriſed by Tribulations and Sufferings when they came, nor ſink under them.

And to enable them to deal with the moſt malicious Enemies of his Holy Religion, he commands them to furniſh their Souls with two excellent Virtues, Wiſdom and Innocence. They were to be wiſe as Serpents, and as harmleſs as Doves. As Wiſdom would cauſe them to decline and avoid all needleſs hazards and difficulties; ſo Innocence would make them gentle, and meek, and tenderhearted, and not apt to revenge injuries.

But then that true Wiſdom which would ſecure them from running into unneceſſary danger, would likewiſe prompt them readily to encounter and ſubmit to thoſe pains, troubles, and hardſhips, which were neceſſary to eſtabliſh the Heavenly Doctrines of their Maſter; to endure ſmall evils, to eſcape greater; and to lay down their lives, rather than have both Soul and Bodydeſtroyed for ever. And it muſt be a mighty encouragement to undertake the Office of Preaching the Goſpel, which Chriſt had allotted them, that the cruelty of their fierceſt Oppoſers could extend no farther than the body: whereas that God, whoſe meſſage they were to Publiſh, could deſtroy both Soul and Body. And fear not them which kill the body, &c. From which words we may deduce ſeveral Obſervations.

(1.) That the Soul and Body are diſtinct Beings.

(2.) That after the diſſolution of the Body, the Soul doth live in the ſeparate ſtate.

(3.) That nothing leſs than the Almighty Power of God can deſtroy the Being of the Soul.

We have a noble Argument before us, and which the Infidelity of our times hath render'd very neceſſary. It is our Soul, which makes us like God, and ſuperior to other Creatures; and its ſubſiſtence in the boundleſs Eternity, which ſhall ſucceed our ſhort abode in this World. In treating whereof, I ſhall endeavour to avoid all needleſs Speculations, and confine my ſelf to thoſe Arguments, which ſeem moſt clearly and ſtrongly to prove the great Truths contained in the Text. The Propoſitions I chiefly ſhall inſiſt upon at this time, are theſe two:

(1.) That the Soul and Body are diſtinct Beings. (2.) That after the Diſſolution of the Body, the Soul doth exiſt and live in the ſeparate State.

(1.) That the Soul and Body are diſtinct Beings. The very Argument our Lord uſes to perſuade the Diſciples not to fear thoſe who can kill the Body, reſts upon this Suppoſition, That the Soul and Body are Beings diſtinct one from another. For if Men had no Souls; or if the Soul was not a different thing from the Body; or if other Men had as much Power over the Soul as the Body, there would be no Force in his Reaſoning. But to make this Truth the more evident, I ſhall draw Arguments from theſe three heads.

(1.) From the diſtinct Properties of the Soul and Body.

(2.) From the Incapacity of Matter to think.

(3.) From the difference every where ſuppoſed in Scripture between the Soul and Body.

(1.) From the diſtinct Properties of the Soul and Body. Now if we will give our ſelves leave a little to contemplate our own Nature, we ſhall diſcover in us Powers, Qualities, and Actions, which are peculiar to the Soul, and quite different from the Affections and Qualities which belong to the Body. Eſſential Properties of the Soul are to think, to underſtand, to will, to conſider, to judge, and the like. But Inſeparable Properties of Body, are length, breadth, thickneſs, ſize, ſhape, &c.

But as theſe things may be eſteemed Eſſential, ſome to the Mind, and ſome to the Body; for if either you ſever Thinking from the Mind, or Extention from the Body, you can have no Conception or Apprehenſion of the one, or the other; So they are very diſtinct, not having the leaſt Affinity each with other; thus Conſideration, Remembrance, Judgment, Liberty, Conſcience, have no Relation unto Body, and do not enter into the Notion and Idea of it; neither doth Length, Breadth, Size, Figure, Hardneſs, Softneſs, enter into the Conception of a Soul; for we never ſpeak of the length, or the ſhape, or the bulk, or the colour of our Thoughts, ſince that would be abſurd Speech, by which we could mean nothing.

So that it is manifeſt, our Souls are diſtinguiſht from our Bodies by Properties, which are peculiar and eſſential to each of them; and that we have as clear, full, and diſtinct Apprehenſions of the Attributes that are Eſſential to the Soul, as of thoſe which are inſeparable from the Body. For does not every Man as plainly comprehend what is meant by Thinking, Conſidering, and Judging, as by Dimenſions, Motion, and Diviſibility in Bodies? Euſeb. praep. Lib. XV. p. 810. Every Man judges (ſays Atticus Platonicus) that they are the Properties of the Soul, to deliberate, to conſider, and after any manner to think. For when he looks upon Body, and its Powers, and likewiſe concludes, that thoſe kind of Operations cannot belong unto Bodies, he preſently yields that there is in us ſome other Thing, which does deliberate or adviſe, and that is the Soul.

(2.) I argue that the Soul and Body are diſtinct ſubſtances from the incapacity of matter to think. All we know of the Nature and Qualities of Matter, we learn from its Operation on our Senſes; for further than it acts upon ſome of our Senſes we have no notice of it. But Matter can no other way work upon our Senſes, but by motion, which is the Cauſe of all that variety, which ſhews it ſelf in bodies. If then Matter can perceive and think, and all the Effects and Changes in Matter be wrought by Motion, then unto Motion muſt be aſcribed Thought and Perception. But as nothing is more unlike than Corporeal Motion and Cogitation, ſo it is unconceiveable how one ſhould be the cauſe of the other, that is, how ſtupid matter by any degree of Motion communicated to it, ſhould acquire a Power to conſider, reflect, and remember.

The Epicureans indeed, who hold the Soul corporeal, to explain how Matter may perform the Functions of the Mind, do teach that the Parts of Matter which go to making a Soul, are light and ſmall, and of a globular or round Figure. Juſt as if a maſſy piece of Lead, when melted and form'd into Bullets, was in a nearer capacity to think, meditate, debate, and act like a Soul. But I appeal to the common ſenſe of Mankind, whether that Philoſopher has a right to call any Legendary Tale into queſtion, who can believe that little balls of Matter, by being briskly moved, can come to have Underſtanding, Will, and Judgment.

Surely they ought to doubt of nothing, who can be perſwaded that ſmall Bodies round, or of any other ſhape, ſhould by juſtling and moving one againſt another, be endued with Reaſon and Wiſdom, and a Talent to diſpute concerning the Nature of their own Beings; to raiſe Queſtions, whether they are Matter or Spirit, bodily or incorporeal Subſtances? And not only yield to, or reſiſt the impreſſions of Objects preſent to them, according to the acknowledged Laws of Motion, but alſo reflect on the times long ſince paſt, and meditate on thoſe which are to come, nay, ſtretch out their conſideration to infinite Space, and eternal Duration.

But as the Epicureans would rid us of our Difficulties by aſſigning the Figure of the Parts, which compound a corporeal Mind; ſo the Stoicks would make the thing intelligible by deſcribing the kind or ſort of Motion which cauſes Matter to think. Now it's their Doctrine that the Soul is Fire, and conſequently, that it performs its Office by ſuch motion as is in Fire.

But this is ſtrange Fire which gives us Underſtanding, and yet no Light, whereby we may any whit more eaſily conceive in what manner it is poſſible for Matter to think. For who can ſhew ſo much as the ſhadow of an Argument to move a ſober Man to conclude, That there ſhould be Reaſoning Powers and Faculties any more in a Fire of Coles, than in a lump of cold Clay; or that a Log of Wood ſhould get ſenſe and underſtanding by being put into a Flame.Sive anima, ſive ignis ſit animus, eum jurarem eſſe divinum, Cic. Tuſc. quaeſt. lib. 1. If Materialiſts will make their Senſes, to which they ſo often appeal, the Judges, they muſt confeſs, That the Natural Effect of Fire is to ſeparate and rend the Parts of Bodies aſunder, which action can bear no faint reſemblance to the Thoughts, Deliberations, and Judgments of the Soul, nor to that freedom of Will with which it either ſets its Faculties on work, or ſtops them.

Theſe are ſome of the groſs and nauſeous Abſurdities, which unhappy licentious perſons are forced to cram down, who yet are ſo nice and ſqueamiſh, as not to yield their Aſſent to any Truths of Religion, for which there is not Mathematical Proof or Demonſtration.

Ariſtoteles longè omnibus (Platonem ſemper excipio) praeſtans & ingenio & diligentia, cum quatuor illa genera Principiorum eſſet complexus, e quibus omnia orirentur, quintam quandam naturam cenſet eſſe, è qua ſit mens. Cogitare euim, & providere, & diſcere, & docere, & invenire aliquid, & tam multa alia, meminiſſe, amare, odiſſe, cupere, timere, angi, laetari, haec & ſimilia corum, in horum quatuor generum nullo ineſſe putat. Cic. Tuſc. quaeſt. lib. 1. Ariſtotle, a man of moſt profound Judgment, and penetrating Thoughts, who was of opinion that every thing under the Sun was compounded of the four Elements, obſerving that the Faculties and Operations of human Souls were ſo remotely diſtant from all the Phoenomena or Appearances of Bodies, was compelled to believe, that there was a fifth Eſſence or Element, of which only Souls were formed. To remember the paſt, to conſider the preſent, and provide for the future; to encreaſe our own Knowledge, and to improve others, and ſuch like; all the products of a thinking faculty, were things in the Opinion of this great Philoſopher, not poſſible to be accounted for by the Affections and Modes, and Qualities of matter. My dear Friend, have not you and I concluded an hundred times, that how much ſoever we ſtrained our Underſtanding, we could never concsive how from Inſenſible Corpuſcles there could ever reſult any thing ſenſible, without the intervention of any thing but what is Inſenſible; and that with all their Atoms, how ſmall and how nimble ſoever they make them, what motions and figures ſoever they give them, and in what order, mixture, or diſpoſition they range them; yea, and whatever induſtrious hand they aſſign them for Guidance, they would never be able (ſtill ſuppoſing with them, that they have no other properties or perfection than thoſe recited) to make us imagin how thence could reſult a Compound, I ſay not that ſhould be Reaſoning like a man, but that ſhould be meerly Senſitive, ſuch as may be the vileſt and moſt imperfect worm on earth. How then dare they pretend that they will make it out, how thence can reſult a thing Imagining, a thing Reaſoning, and ſuch an one as ſhall be the Imaginations and Ratiocinations themſelves. Mr. Bernier's Letter of Atoms and the mind of man, p. ult.

(3.) The Soul and Body will appear diſtinct Subſtances from the difference every where ſuppoſed in Holy Scripture between them. To ſhew which, I begin with the Creation of Man.Gen. c. 1. v. 26. And God ſaid, Let us make man in our image, after our likeneſs. But man is not like God in reſpect of his Body, becauſe God hath no body. Beſides, the body in its nature is diviſible and corruptible: but God without change or decay is eternally the ſame, a Being for ever infinitely perfect. The ſimilitude therefore between God and Man muſt be with relation to the Soul, which is a Spirit as God is a Spirit.

The diſtinction between Soul and Body may alſo be obſerved from the manner wherein God created Man. And the Lord formed man of the duſt of the ground, and breathed into his noſtrils the breath of life, and man became a living ſoul. C. 2. v. 7. His Body was made of the Earth, but his Soul which gave life to it, came immediately from God. J. Philoponus de Mund. Creat. p. 21. The Soul therefore was not created of the ſame Subſtance, nor together with the Body, but of one better and more Divine, as the Scripture ſhews. For of the brute Creatures void of Reaſon, it ſays, That the Water brought forth ſome, and the Earth others; but of Man, that God breathed into him the breath of Life. Manifeſting thereby that he had an Intellectual and Rational Nature, more noble than that of Brutes, and near of kin to the Divine Beings above.

Accordingly alſo Solomon pronounceth, that at the hour of death,Eccl. 3. 21. The ſpirit of man goeth upward, and that the ſpirit of the beaſt goeth downward to the earth. In which Author, the wiſeſt of men, (if his Authority may be of any weight) there is another Paſſage that demonſtrates the Soul and Body to be diſtinct Subſtances, and puts the matter beyond a poſſibility of a contradiction.Cap. 12. 7. Then ſhall the duſt return to the earth as it was, and the ſpirit ſhall return to God who gave it. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Phocylid. Poem. The Soul of the dead remain uncorrupted. For God lends men the Spirit, and 'tis his Image: But the Body we have of the Earth, and we all being diſſolved into it, ſhall be duſt; 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Triſmegiſt. but Heaven ſhall receive the Spirit.

In purſuance of our Argument it may here be proper to obſerve, how difficult it will be for them, who maintain that the Soul is only a mode, accident, or quality of the Body, to give a rational account of Chriſt's words in our Text: Fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the ſoul, &c.

According to theſe Philoſophers other men may kill the Body, but are not able to hurt the Accidents and Qualities of the Body, which they are pleaſed to call the Soul. And yet it is moſt certain, that men only can deſtroy the Accidents and Qualities in Bodies, but cannot deſtroy their Subſtance, which after all force uſed to it, will ſtill ſubſiſt in other forms and ſhapes. Inſomuch as they quite invert our Saviour's Doctrine, it following manifeſtly from their Aſſertions, that men have only power to kill the Soul, that is, to deſtroy the Modes and Accidents in the Body, but can do no injury to the Body or Subſtance it ſelf.

In one Inſtance more give me leave to ſhew how repugnant theſe wild Opinions are to the Chriſtian Religion: And it ſhall be in the Promiſe of our Lord to the Penitent Malefactor, who was crucified with him, to day ſhalt thou be with me in paradiſe; Luke c. 23. v. 43. which in their ſenſe muſt be thus: While the Body of this Sincere Penitent was on the Croſs, or in the Grave, the Modifications and Qualities of his Body were to attend our Saviour into Paradiſe. But I think only to name ſuch ridiculous ſtuff is ſufficient to confute it; nothing being plainer than that men muſt either part with theſe Principles, or the Doctrines of their Saviour, for they can never conſiſt and agree together.

(2.) That after the Diſſolution of the Body, the Soul doth exiſt and live in the ſeparate State. It appears from our Lord's words, fear not them which kill the body, &c. that he does rather ſuppoſe, than go to prove the Immortality of the Soul, which he took for a granted truth by them ſteddily believed. And therefore it was not his deſign to convince them, that the Soul does live after its ſeparation from the body; but to ſhew that it is ſuch a ſimple and incorruptible ſubſtance, that nothing beneath Almighty Power can deſtroy it.

But I fear a general decay of Faith and Piety will not only juſtify, but make it requiſite, that we ſhould endeavour to prove that fundamental Doctrin of the immortality of the Soul, the truth whereof our Lord ſuppoſed, while he was inſtructing his Diſciples.

(1.) The firſt Argument I ſhall uſe for the Immortality of the Soul, ſhall be from the general ſenſe and perſwaſion of men, that the Soul does ſurvive the Body. This Belief ſeems to be as early as the firſt Inhabitants on the earth; for Authors of the greateſt Reputation and Antiquity, who write of the Opinions and Manners of men, do relate almoſt of every Country, that they thought the Soul did ſubſiſt after death.

This Perſwaſion prevailed among the Joſephus lib. 3. Jews, Philo de Mundi opiſicio, de ſomniis de praemiis & Poenis. not only whileAnimaſque praelio, aut ſuppliciis peremptorum aeternas putant hinc Moriendi contemptus. Haec de Judaeis Tacitus, lib. 5. Hiſt. they were the immediate and peculiar Care of God,Maimonid. de fund. Legis, p. 47. but hath been diligently preſerved and tranſmitted to their Poſterity;Vide Manaſſ. Ben. Iſrael de reſurrect. Mort. the Sect of unbelieving Sadduces being long ſince extinct. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 . Herodot. in Euterp. The Aegyptians, Diodor. Bibliothec. p 83. a Nation famous for Invention ofDion. Halicarn. Rom. Antiq. p. 523. 3. Arts and Sciences, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Strabo l. 4 p. 197. id l. 3. p 76. are ſaid firſt to have taught the Doctrine of ImmortalityCaeſar. l. vi. p. 118. Pompon. Mela. lib. 2. c. 2. p. 28. of Souls. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Diog. Laer. proeem. Segm. 11. Which Opinion found Entertainment among all the Antient Inhabitants of the Eaſt; was the Perſwaſion alſo of the old Greeks and Gauls, and Thracians.

This was the Opinion ofII. ι'. Odys λ' Homer, who preceded all the Sects of Philoſophers, he in words, very like our Saviour's, declaring that nothing was ſo valuable to him as his Soul, and he makes Ulyſſes to ſummon before him the Souls of the dead, and to hold diſcourſe with them. And among the old Greek and Latin Poets, ſcarce more than a Diſſenter or two from the Judgment of Homer are to be found.

〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Diog. l. 1. Segm. 24. Thales, ſuppoſed by ſome the firſt Phyſiologer who treated of Nature,Herod. in Euterp. is ſuppoſed alſo firſt to have taught the Immortality of Souls. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Pauſan. But as Herodotus does aſcribe the firſt publication thereof to the AEgyptians; Pherecydes Syrus primus dixit animos hominum eſſe aeternos. Cic. Tuſcul. l 1. ſo Pauſanias aſcribes it to the Chaldaeans and Indian Magi; Vide Menagii in Diog. Laert. li. 1. Seg. 116. Obſervationes. as Tully does it to Pherecydes, Pythagoras's Maſter; and ſome to others: inſomuch, that this belief of the Souls future Subſiſtence ſeems ſo general and very ancient, that the firſt Writers are not able to diſcover the Authors of it, or fix the time of its beginning.

This alſo is the avow'd Doctrine of Pythagoras, the Founder of the Sect of Italick Philoſophers, and of Plato, with all his judicious Interpreters, and Plotinus, Amelius, Porphyrius, Proclus, Alcinous. And into this Liſt we may bring Ariſtole, about whom tho' there is ſome Controverſy, yet 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Photii Biblioth. Col. 1317. Photius affirms, that they did not dive deep enough into his Profound Mind, who were of another Opiníon. And as Moſes relates, that after the body was formed of the Earth, God did breath a living Soul into it; ſo 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Ariſtol. l. 4. de gen. animal. Ariſtotle expreſly teaches, that the Soul only enters the body from without, and is of Divine Extraction: he may alſo paſs for a good Witneſs, both when he affirms that the Renowned Philoſophers who were before him, believed that the Soul lived after it had left the body, and alſo when he ſays no Philoſopher before him held the World to be Eternal.

That great manOmni autem in re conſenſio omnium gentium, lex naturae putanda eſt—Atque haec ita ſentimus natura duce, nulla ratione, nulla doctrina.—Quod ſi omnium conſenſus naturae vox eſt: omneſque qui ubique ſunt, conſentiunt eſſe aliquid, quod ad eos pertinent, qui vita ceſſerint nobis quoque idem exiſtimandum eſt—Sic permanere animos arbitramur conſenſu nationum omnium.—Tuſc. qu. lib. 1. Tully urges for the truth of this Doctrine, Immemorial Tradition, that we have the conſent of all Antiquity for it; and that the voice of all men is the Law of Nature; and that all are much concerned for thoſe things, which ſhall take place after death. Cum de animarum aeternitate diſſerimus non leve momentum apud nos habet conſenſus hominum, aut timentium inferos, aut colentium, utor hac publica perſuaſione. Epiſt. 117. Nihil aliud intercidet, quam corpus fragilitatis caducae, morbis obnoxium, caſibus expoſitum, proſcriptionibus objectum. Animus vero divina origine hauſtus, cui nec ſenectus ulla, nec mors, oneroſi corporis vinculis exſolutus, ad ſedes ſuas & cognata ſidera recurret. Suaſoriar. p. 129. Seneca alſo treating of the Eternity of Souls, does affirm that he has the Publick perſwaſion on his ſide, and the conſent of men, who either fear the inviſible Powers below, or worſhip thoſe above; and that the Soul is of Divine Original, obnoxious neither to old age nor death; and that as ſoon as it is ſet at liberty from the heavy Chains of this Body, it will return to its place in Heaven.

Obtinuiſſe non minus de incorporalitate animae, quam de immortalitate ſententiam. Macrob. in ſom. Scipio. l. 1. c. 14. Macrobius declares that the Opinion hath univerſally obtained, as well that the Soul is an incorporeal ſubſtance, as that it is immortal.

And as the Belief of Immortality was generally received among the Antients; ſo men all along ſince have been ſtedfaſt and conſtant to it. For from Modern Hiſtories, Voyages, and Travels, it is found to be the common Opinion of the World as much in theſe later days, as it was in old time. TheUt condones mihi peccata mea, & Statuas mihi immunitalem ab inferno.— Turks have ſo ſtrong a perſwaſion both of the Reſurrection of the Body and the ſubſiſtence of the Soul after it leaves the body,Cuſtodi me ò adjutor meus—in hac & futura vita peculiariter in die reſurrectionis. Muhammedan. Prec. p. 18. & p. 399. Vide Hottinger. Hiſt. Orient. p. 254. that not only the Alcoran, but their Offices of Prayer have frequent relation thereunto. The Anima imbuta hiſce perfectionibus, cum diſceſſerit à corpore experietur in ſemet ipſa voluptatem maximum, & laetitiam immenſam, efficieturque anima illa tanquam Angelus ex Angelis Propinquis Deo. Propoſitae Sapientiae Arabum Philoſoph. p. 75. Arabian Philoſophers think that a virtuous Soul, when it has taken leave of the body, ſhall partake of immenſe Pleaſures and Joys, and be as the chief Angels which are neareſt to God.

The Joh Mendoza de Regno Chinae, l 2. 6. Chineſe hold the Soul ſpiritual, Trigautius de Chriſt. expedit. apud ſinas. p. 102. and ſeparable from the body,Linſchoten Voyag. p. 39. and that after death pious Souls Varenius de diverſ. Gent. Religion. p. 255, 269. ſhall be rewarded,Lerius Navigat. c. 16. and bad ſouls tormented.Oſorii Hiſt. l. iv. They who have of Benzo Hiſt. Nov. orb. p. 29. late travelled in Perſia, Harriot. Virgin. India, Tavernier Perſian Trav p. 165. Japan and other Countries of the Eaſt,Ind. Trav p 167. have obſerved the ſame Belief toJoſ. Acoſta lib. 5. c. 7. prevail among the preſent Dwellers of thoſe places:Rauwolf's Trav. p. 240. and the like accounts we have of Southern Inhabitants from them who have viſited Guinea, and other parts of Africa. And though they who firſt touched at the Cape of Good Hope, either through want of time rightly to be informed, or not having Curioſity ſufficient to diſcover the Truth, did relate the people of thoſe Parts to have no Religion; yet we have quite another ſtory of them from late Travellers, who with more care and accuracy have ſearched into thoſe matters. And what is remarkable the firſt Diſcoverers of America, found the people of Braſil, Canada, Virginia, &c. tho ſevered from the reſt of the world by the vaſt Ocean, and with whom probably they had no intercourſe in many ages to have generally the ſame belief of the Souls Immortality.

But after all it muſt be allowed, That there have been here and there ſome, who reſolving to live wickedly in this Life, have pretended to deny a Future One: even the Chriſtian Church hath not wholly eſcaped this Infection. For within its Pale ſome have ſtarted up, who maintain the Impious Doctrines of Epicurus, to the great diſhonour of the Lord who bought them, and the reproch of their Holy Profeſſion.

Of this ſort of ill men about the beginning of the laſt Century,Eſſe quandam vim in natura humana, qua caetera animantium genera deſtituantur, ut neminem ſenſu rationis nitentem, praeter Pomponatium, & aſſeclas, dubitare arbitror. Poſtellus de orbis Concord. p. 114. Italy produced a plentiful Crop, who valuing themſelves more upon the Reputation of their Philoſophy, than Religion;O Italia, etiam ea hominum monſtra alis, qui non ſatis habent eſſe impii, niſi etiam virus ſuum omnibus coeteris propinent, & cum hac pernicie in Aulas principum penetrent. Idem ib. taught openly, that the Soul did periſh with the body: ſo that it ſeemed neceſſary to have their wicked opinions condemned by a Concil Lateran Seſſio 8. 19. Decemb. An. 1513. Council. But notwithſtanding theſe vain glorions perſons by venting ſuch ſtrange Notions, hoped to have been accounted the only Maſters of Senſe and Reaſon, yet by the judicious and ſtrong Confutations of the worthy Men who anſwer'd their Writings it does appear, that they were as weak Philoſophers, as bad Chriſtians.

But as thoſe who bid defiance to God, and ridicule Religion, bear no proportion to the Bulk of Mankind, ſo 'tis no wonder ſome ſuch ſhould be found. For when Men abuſe the liberty God has given them over themſelves, and by continual Debauchery weaken and corrupt their Faculties, it may ſo come to paſs, that they ſhall hardly form a true Judgment of any thing. Indeed, a Mind enfeebled and clouded with the ſteams of brutiſh Luſt is no more able to contemplate the Glorious Nature of God, or to be affected with pure and intellectual Pleaſures, than a Body brought into the World without Eyes and Hands, is capable to do the ordinary Works of Life.

For Men may make themſelves Monſters, as well as be born ſo;Quid enim eſt tam falſum tamque abhorrens à vero, ut non ad id probandum argumenta excogitari queant?—Neque quicquam eſt tam abſurdum, quin dicendo probabile fieri; neque tam verum & exploratum, quin dicendo in dubium vocari, aut etiam coargui queat. Muretus in Ariſt. Eth. p. 150. but then by the Example of a few ſuch Monſters we ought not to ſuffer either our Faith to be ſhaken, or our Manners to be perverted.

Before I part with this Head, I would obſerve, where Piety, and Virtue, and Wiſdom, have thriven moſt in the Converſation of Men, and the greater good they have done to the World, ſo much the more firmly they have been perſwaded, that their Souls ſhould ſubſiſt after they had left their Bodies; and on the contrary, that there hardly ever were found any much dipoſed to ſcoff at Providence, and deny a Future State, who had not been infamous Livers.

A Heathen Philoſopher hath ſpoke of this Point with ſo much Wiſdom and Piety, that I think it will be no loſs of time here to preſent you with what he hath ſaid, Hieroc. in carm. Pythag. p. 165. If Conſcience awaken in a bad Man a ſenſe of his evil Deeds, which tortures his Mind, and puts him in fear of Puniſhment in Hell, his only remedy is to fly to Non-entity, or Not-being; ſo he cures one Evil with another, ſupporting his Wickedneſs by the Deſtruction of his Soul. He gives Sentence of himſelf that after Death he ſhall be nothing, to fly the Penalties of Future Judgment. For a wicked Man will not have his Soul immortal, that he may not ſubſiſt to ſuffer puniſhment. He anticipates his Judge, by declaring it is ſit that a wicked Soul ſhould be rereduced to nothing. But as through want of Counſel he was drawn to Sin, ſo through Ignorance of the meaſure of Things he paſſes wrong Judgment on himſelf. For the Judges of Spirits departed, framing their Sentence according to the Rules of Truth, do not judge it meet the Soul ſhould be annihilated.

(2.) My next Argument ſhall be taken from the fears Men have of Puniſhment after this Life for their Sins. Sin troubles the Minds of Men in ſuch inſtances, as the Law takes no notice of; and in ſuch, which notwithſtanding they are puniſhable by Law, yet were acted too-ſecretly to be detected; and then alſo, when the Offenders having fled their Country, were out of reach of the Secular Judge. Such Perſons likewiſe have been perplext with the remembrance of their Wickedneſs, whoſe height and power made them ſtrong enough to break through the Laws, and trample on them; in which ſeveral Caſes there was nothing but the Natural Suggeſtions of Conſcience to terrify them.

Now, whence can all this inward Trouble proceed, but from an invincible perſwaſion, that after Death will come Judgment. If any doubt this, we may appeal to diſconſolate Sinners themſelves, who often finding no eaſe in the buſineſs of their Calling, in the Converſation of their Friends, nor in the change of Company or Place, have been driven to ſeek for relief of another kind, and to apply themſelves to proper Perſons, unto whom they may unburden their Souls, and confeſs their ſecret Offences, hoping by their devout Prayers, and ghoſtly Aſſiſtance, to procure ſome remedy for their diſtreſſed Minds.

I may add, That ſo inſupportable have been the Horrors of a wounded Conſcience, that men have diſcloſed their capital Crimes to the Magiſtrate, when they well knew it was his duty to puniſh ſuch Criminals with Death. And the reaſon why they expoſed themſelves voluntarily to Temporal Death, was to eſcape Divine Vengeance in another World, which they of all things dreaded. They did truſt, that having confeſt their Sin, and repented of it, and made all the ſatisfaction they could to Civil Juſtice, God would not enter into Judgement with them, but out of his infinite Compaſſion forgive them, and ſave their Souls alive.

Neither was the Courſe here taken to be imputed to Melancholy or Diſtraction, ſince experience aſſures us, many hereby have quieted their Minds, and found comfort in Death.

Now, if the fears of what ſhall become of us after Death, were the Effects only of the falſe Principles which are owing to bad Education; certainly they would not be ſo general, nor ſo deeply rivetted in our Nature, nor ſo terrible, that Men ſhould be willing to ſacrifice their Lives to get rid of them.

(3.) The third Argument I would urge for the Immortality of the Soul, and that Men were not made only to live here, is this, That there is nothing in the World which fills the mind with ſatisfaction. Men are always diſſatisfied with their preſent Condition, and endeavouring to make ſome Alteration in it; and after the Alteration is made, they do not continue any long time pleaſed; but rather diſcover that they have only changed their old Grievances for new ones, and are diſturbed with a freſh ſet of Complaints.

Thoſe who have the greateſt opportunities to ſupply themſelves with the various pleaſures of Senſe, ſhould, if any were, be eaſy in their Enjoyments; and yet experience declares, that what lately they with much eagerneſs deſired, does pall their Appetites, and grow flat and inſipid.

It is well known that Men, who have had their Treaſuries filled with Gold, who have commanded Great and Victorious Armies, and conquered and ruled over many Nations, have after the large encreaſe of their Wealth, their Power, and their Glory, upon little occaſions been diſturbed, and diſcontented, and fallen into ſuch fits of Rage, or Luſt, or Melancholy, as are in no wiſe conſiſtent with true Contentment of Mind. And therefore they ſtill poſt and preſs forward from one deſign to another, but with the ſame diſſatisfaction; either truſting thoſe who will deceive them; or ſtriving to remove that which will never leave them; or vehemently coveting what they ſhall never obtain.

Now, what reaſon can be given why worldly Goods ever ſhew better and greater at a diſtance, than they prove in our Poſſeſſion, but this; that they carry no proportion to the Appetites of the Mind, which is of a Spiritual and Heavenly Nature, and can never hope to receive adequate Satisfaction from any thing here below?

Wherefore if theſe vaſt Capacities and Deſires were placed in us by a Being of Infinite Wiſdom, and if a Being infinitely wiſe can do nothing in vain, then it follows, that our Souls were created not only for this World, but to live in another, where they ſhall converſe with, and enjoy ſuch bright and glorious Objects, as will compleatly gratify and delight them. And from hence I deduce a fourth Argument for the Immortality of the Soul; viz.

(4.) From the common appetite in Men to live for ever, and in that Eternal State to poſſeſs the chiefeſt good which will ſatiate the higheſt and moſt extenſive Deſires of the Mind. Every Man that comes into the World loves happineſs, and would enjoy it eternally; it was not only the deſire of St. Paul to be diſſolved, and be with Chriſt; but the wiſh of Balaam, to die the death of the righteous. He believed a future Life, and that good Men ſhould be bleſſed in it, and he wiſht he might have a ſhare of their Bleſſedneſs.

We have had great experience of God's Goodneſs, who hath enriched us with many favours, and therefore we ought to believe that he loves us, and did intend good to us in the whole contrivance and conſtitution of our Nature, wherein he only could put theſe unextinguiſhable Appetites to live and ſubſiſt happily for ever, and to partake of ſuch Felicity as this World does not afford, and which indeed is no where to be found, but in his infinitely perfect Being.

Now he who loves us exceedingly well, and of whoſe Bounty we have ſhared thus largely already, would not have endued our Nature with thoſe vehement Appetites, which, unleſs he be pleaſed in fit time to give them ſatisfaction, can only ſerve to diſtract and torture our minds, and render us extremely miſerable. For ſuch a Treatment would be not only inconſiſtent with his infinite Wiſdom, which appears in every part of the World; but repugnant to his boundleſs Goodneſs, which always diſpoſes him to promote the Happineſs, pity the weakneſſes, and ſupply the wants of his poor Creatures.

'Tis hope of enjoyment of Everlaſting Happineſs, which makes us to bear Injuries, Pains, and Loſſes patiently, and at length yield to the ſtroke of Death with a willing and contented mind. But had we reaſon to believe, that Death would make an utter end both of Body and Soul, as the conceit thereof all-along this Life would be an intolerable burthen, ſo we ſhould leave the world with deep Horror.

But if there be a God; and that God is the Author of our Nature; and the Author of our Nature is infinitly Good, and always acts ſuitably to that Goodneſs; and if it be the property of infinite Goodneſs to beſtow all that endleſs Bliſs and Felicity upon its Creatures, which it not only hath made them capable of, but which it hath inclined their very Nature earneſtly to deſire and hope for; then we may from hence, beyond all queſtion and doubt, conclude the Immortality of our Souls. And our hope of a joyful Eternity can no where reſt ſo ſafely as upon the Divine Goodneſs.

(5.) I ſhall but name one Argument more, tho it is of unconquerable Force, to prove the future ſubſiſtence of the Soul; and that is Divine Providence which governs the World, preſerves all things in their natural order, and obſerves whatever is done upon Earth, to the end all men may receive a Treatment from God, agreeable to their behaviour. That thoſe who love, and fear, and ſerve God, may partake of the Glories with which he will reward the Heavenlyminded; and that they who neglect, and forget, and diſhonour God, may be baniſht into outer Darkneſs.

That they who have done good in their Generation, and ſhew'd pity to their fellow-creatures, may obtain a Recompence; and they who have been impure, and malicious, and have laid wait for the righteous, oppreſt the poor, and not ſpared the widow, may receive Judgment without Mercy.

But ſince this equal diſtribution of Rewards and Puniſhments, which the Divine Juſtice does require, is not made in this world, we have full aſſurance our Souls ſhall live in another, and there have Judgment paſs upon them according to their deſerts.

It now but remains that I make a ſhort Reflection or two upon this Diſcourſe.

(2.) If our Souls ſhall ſurvive our Bodies, it ought not only to encourage us to be patient and reſigned to the Will of God, under the great variety of Troubles and Afflictions which happen in this Life, but alſo to arm us againſt the fear of Death.

Since Death only will lay open a paſſage for us into another Life, which will infinitely ſurpaſs this For as much as there we ſhall be deliver'd from all thoſe things, which render our preſent condition either dangerous or uncomfortable. We ſhall no longer be expoſed to the Temptations of wicked men, or of our own Luſts, now ſo dangerous and dreadful to us, when admitted into the Converſation of Angels and Souls made Perfect; we ſhall not ſo much as ſuſpect treachery and wrongs when out of reach of the Malice of Men and Devils: we ſhall not fear Pains, and Diſeaſes, wherewith it is not poſſible our incorruptible nature ſhould be affected; in a word, we never again ſhall be liable to the power of Death, the King of Fears, for our Lord ſays we cannot die any more.

The Poet ſuppoſes the Soul of Achilles after he was ſlain,Quintus Calaber lib. 14. p. 678. to be introduced into the preſence of his Son, and to exhort him, not to grieve and be caſt down for his Fathers Death, by means whereof he was admitted to familiarity with the Bleſſed Gods, but to furniſh his mind with his Virtues, from which he ſhould reap moſt pleaſant Fruit.

Arrian. in Epict. l. 1. c. 9 p 109. Is not Death not Evil? Are we not of kin to God, and come from him? Let us go back thither from whence we came; and get looſe from theſe Fetters, which are ſtrait and heavy. Here are Robbers, and Thieves, and Judicatures, and Tyrants, who if they have Power over us, it is with reſpect to our BODY, and its Poſſeſſions. Let us ſhew they have no power, and wait the pleaſure of God, unto whom, as ſoon as he ſhall diſcharge us from our Duty in the preſent Station, we ſhall return.

What befals the righteous Man in his Death, and how little reaſon he has to be concerned and dread it, we learn from the Excellent Author of the Book of Wiſdom:C. 2. 23, 24. For God created man to be immortal, and made him to be an image of his own eternity; nevertheleſs through the envy of the devil came death into the World; and they that do hold on his ſide do find it.C. 3. 1, 2, 3, 4. But the Souls of the righteous are in the hands of God, and there ſhall no torment touch them. In the ſight of the unwiſe they ſeemed to die, and their departure is taken for miſery, and their going from us to be utter deſtruction; but they are in peace. For tho they be puniſht in the ſight of men, yet is their hope full of immortality.

O deſirable Immortalicy! from the belief of which not any Evil can come, no real Good can be loſt; but the worſt of Miſeries may be eſcaped, and the chiefeſt of Goods obtained. Thou putteſt the Souls of the righteous in the Hands of God, a place of the greateſt Peace and greateſt Safety, where without fear of being diſturbed, or dipoſſeſſed, they ſhall praiſe, and glorify, and magnify, his Name for ever.

(2.) Since our Spirit muſt return to God, who gave it, it does highly concern us to keep it always in a fit Condition to be given back unto him. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 . This is a great work, if we conſider what our Soul is, or whither it is going. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 . 'Tis our Soul which hath the Image of God impreſt upon it,Nazianz. Iambic. 2. and which is more valuable to us than the whole World; and this Soul is going to receive a Sentence, which will make it either infinitely Happy or Miſerable, from that God, who is of purer Eyes than to behold evil, and therefore if it take leave of the Body polluted with the Luſts of the Fleſh, he will abhor it.

If we have not baniſht Envy, and Wrath, and Hatred, and all Malicious Paſſions out of our Souls, how ſhall we preſume to ſurrender them into the Hands of God, who is Love; and when the Condition on which only he will now dwell in us, and perfect his Love in us, is that we love one another?

God is juſt and true, and his Eyes behold the things that are equal; therefore if we are falſe, and perfidious, and deceitful, and oppreſs or over-reach our Neighbours, he will command us workers of iniquity to depart from him.

It is an admirable Saying of the Pythagoreans, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 . Hieroc. in Carm. Pythag. p. 25. That there is no place on Earth more acceptable to God, than a pure Soul.

I am ſure it is the Doctrine of St. John, that every one that hopes to ſee God as he is, muſt purify himſelf even as he is pure. That is, muſt endeavour to become like God in his Purity, Juſtice, Love and Mercy, and other Perfections which are imitable by his reaſonable Creatures.

May we then not only not give our ſelves up to commit acts of Uncleanneſs, but not ſo much as harbour or cheriſh any impure Thoughts. And may God in his infinite Mercy, beſtow on us ſuch a meaſure of his Grace, as may enable us to ſubdue our unruly Luſts, and bring them under the government of our Reaſon, and the Laws of our Holy Religion.

And may not the Horrors of a guilty Conſcience ſeize upon us when the Terrours of Death ſhall approch us; but our Merciful Lord at his coming may find us labouring in his Vineyard, and ſay, Well done good and faithful Servants, come ye bleſſed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the World.