FOOTNOTES:
[a] Equidem ne laudare quidem satìs pro merito possum ejus Sapientiam ac Potentiam, qui animalia fabricatus est. Nam ejusmodi opera non Laudibus modò, verùm etiam Hymnis sunt majora, quæ priusquam inspexissemus, fieri non posse persuasum habeamus, conspicati verò, falsos nos opinione fuisse comperimus. Galen. de Us. Part. L. 7. c. 15.
[] Non tamen pigere debet Lectores, ea intelligere, quemadmodum ne Naturam quidem piguit ea reipsà efficere. Galen. ibid. L. 11. fin.
[c] An igitur etiamsi quemadmodum Natura hæc, & ejusmodi, summâ ratione ac providentiâ agere potuit, ita & nos imitari aliquando possemus? Ego verò existimo multis nostrum ne id quidem posse, neque enim artem Naturæ exponunt: Eo enim modo omnino eam admirarentur, Sin minùs, eam saltem non vitaperarent. Galen. ib. L. 10. c. 3.
CHAP. II.
That God’s Works ought to be enquir’d into, and that such Enquiries are commendable.
The Creator doubtless did not bestow so much Curiosity, and exquisite Workmanship and Skill upon his Creatures, to be looked upon with a careless, incurious Eye, especially to have them slighted or contemned; but to be admired by the rational Part of the World, to magnify his own Power, Wisdom and Goodness throughout all the World, and the Ages thereof. And therefore we may look upon it as a great Error, not to answer those Ends of the infinite Creator, but rather to oppose and affront them. On the contrary, my Text commends GOD’s Works, not only for being great, but also approves of those curious and ingenious Enquirers, that seek them out, or pry into them. And the more we pry into, and discover of them, the greater and more glorious we find them to be, the more worthy of, and the more expressly to proclaim their great Creator.
Commendable then are the Researches, which many amongst us have, of late Years, made into the Works of Nature, more than hath been done in some Ages before. And therefore when we are asked, Cui Bono? To what Purpose such Enquiries, such Pains, such Expense? The Answer is easy, It is to answer the Ends for which GOD bestowed so much Art, Wisdom and Power about them, as well as given us Senses to view and survey them; and an Understanding and Curiosity to search into them: It is to follow and trace him, when and whither he leads us, that we may see and admire his Handy-work our selves, and set it forth to others, that they may see, admire and praise it also. I shall then conclude this Inference with what Elihu recommends, Job xxxvi. 24, 25. Remember that thou magnify his Work, which Men behold. Every Man may see it, Men may behold it afar off.
CHAP. III.
That God’s Works are manifest to all: Whence the Unreasonableness of Infidelity.
The concluding Words of the preceding Chapter suggests a third Inference, that the Works of GOD are so visible to all the World, and withal such manifest Indications of the Being, and Attributes of the infinite Creator, that they plainly argue the Vileness and Perversness of the Atheist, and leave him inexcusable. For it is a sign a Man is a wilful, perverse Atheist, that will impute so glorious a Work, as the Creation is, to any Thing, yea, a mere Nothing (as Chance is) rather than to GOD[a]. ’Tis a sign the Man is wilfully blind, that he is under the Power of the Devil, under the Government of Prejudice, Lust, and Passion, not right Reason, that will not discern what every one can see, what every Man may behold afar off, even the Existence and Attributes of the CREATOR from his Works. For as there is no Speech or Language where their Voice is not heard, their Line is gone out through all the Earth, and their Words to the End of the World: So all, even the barbarous Nations, that never heard of GOD, have from these his Works inferred the Existence of a Deity, and paid their Homages to some Deity, although they have been under great Mistakes in their Notions and Conclusions about him. But however, this shews how naturally and universally all Mankind agree, in deducing their Belief of a God from the Contemplation of his Works, or as even Epicurus himself, in Tully[] saith, from a Notion that Nature it self hath imprinted upon the Minds of Men. For, saith he, what Nation is there, or what kind of Men, that without any Teaching or Instructions, have not a kind of Anticipation, or preconceived Notion of a Deity?
An Atheist therefore (if ever there was any such) may justly be esteemed a Monster among rational Beings; a Thing hard to be met with in the whole Tribe of Mankind; an Opposer of all the World[c]; a Rebel against human Nature and Reason, as well as against his GOD.
But above all, monstrous is this, or would be, in such as have heard of GOD, who have had the Benefit of the clear Gospel-Revelation. And still more monstrous this would be, in one born and baptized in the Christian Church, that hath studied Nature, and pried farther than others into God’s Works. For such an one (if it be possible for such to be) to deny the Existence, or any of the Attributes of GOD, would be a great Argument of the infinite Inconvenience of those Sins of Intemperance, Lust, and Riot, that have made the Man abandon his Reason, his Senses, yea, I had almost said his very human Nature[d], to engage him thus to deny the Being of GOD.
So also it is much the same monstrous Infidelity, at least betrays the same atheistical Mind, to deny GOD’s Providence, Care and Government of the World, or (which is a Spawn of the same Epicurean Principles) to deny Final Causes[e] in God’s Works of Creation; or with the Profane in Psal. lxxiii. 11. to say, How doth God know? And is there Knowledge in the most High? For as the witty and eloquent Salvian saith[f], They that affirm nothing is seen by GOD, will, in all Probability, take away the Substance, as well as Sight of God.——But what so great Madness, saith he, as that when a Man doth not deny GOD to be the Creator of all Things, he should deny him to be the Governour of them? Or when he confesseth him to be the Maker, he should say, GOD neglecteth what he hath so made?