we cannot be certain of any miracle, how should we know, when God sent any thing extraordinary to us? Nay, how should we know the ordinary power of nature, if we know not what exceeded it? If we know not, what is natural; how do we know there is such a thing, as nature? That all is not supernatural, all miracles, and so disputable, till we come to downright scepticism, and doubt the certainty of our outward senses, whether wee see, hear, or feel; or all be not a miraculous illusion.

Which because I know Deists are not inclined to do, therefore I will pursue my argument upon the conviction of our outward senses, desiring only this, that they would allow the senses of other men to be as certain, as their own; which shey cannot refuse, since without this they can have no certainty of their

own.

XI. Therefore from what has been said the cause is summed up shortly in this; though we cannot see, what was done before our time; yet by the marks, which I have laid down concerning the certainty of matters of fact, done before our time, we may be as much assured of the truth of them, as if we saw them with our eyes; because, whatever matter of fact has all the four marks before mentioned, could never have been received, but upon the conviction of the outward senses of all those, who did receive it, as before is demonstrated, Therefore this topic, which I have chosen, does stand upon the conviction even of

men's outward senses; and, since you have confined me to one topic, I have not insisted upon the other, which I have only named.

XII. Now it lies upon the Deists, if they would appear, as men of reason, to show some matter of fact of former ages, which they allow to be true, that has greater evidence of its truth, than the matters of fact of Moses and of CHRIST; otherwise they cannot, with any show of reason, reject one, and yet admit the other.

But I have given them greater latitude, than this; for I have shown such marks of the truth of the matters of fact of MOSES and of CHRIST, as no other matters of fact of those times, however true, have; and I put it upon them to show any forgery, that has all these marks. This is a short issue. Keep them close to this. This determines the cause all at once.

Let them produce their Apollonius Tyanaus, whose life was translated into English by the execrable Charles Blount,* and compared

* The hand of that scorner, who durst write such outrageous blasphemy against his maker, the divine vengeance made his own executioner. Which I would not have mentioned (because the like judgment has befallen others) but that the theistical club have set this up, as a principle, and printed a vindication of this same Blount for murdering himself, by way of justification of self murder; which some of them have since as well, as formerly, horridly prac tised upon themselves. Therefore this is no common judgment, to which they are delivered, but a visible mark set upon them, to show how far God has forsaken them; and, as a caution to all Christians, to beware of them, and not to come near the tents of these wicked men, lest they perish in their destruction, both of soul and body.

with all the wit and malice, he was master of, to the life and miracles of our blessed SAVIOUR.

Let them take aid from all the legends in the church of Rome, those pious cheats, the sorest disgrace of Christianity; which have bid fairer, than any one contrivance, to overturn the certainty of the miracles of CHRIST and his apostles, and the whole truth of the Gos pel, by putting them all upon the same foot; at least they are so understood by the generality of their devotees, though disowned and laughed at by the learned, and by men of sense among them.

Let them select the most probable of all the fables of the heathen deities, and see, if they can find in any of these the four marks before mentioned. Otherwise let them submit to the irrefragable certainty of the Christian religion.

XIII. But if, notwithstanding all that is said, Deists will still contend, that all this is but priestcraft, the invention of priests for their own profit, &c. then they will give us an idea of priests, far different from what they intend; for then we must look upon these priests, not only as the cunningest and wisest of mankind, but we shall be tempted to adore them, as Deities, who have such power, as to impose at their pleasure upon the senses of mankind, to make them believe that they had practised such public institutions, enacted them by laws, taught them to their children, &c. when they had never done any of these things, nor ever so much, as heard of them before; and then, upon the credit of their believing that they had

done such things, as they never did, to make them farther believe, upon the same foundation, whatever they pleased to impose upon them as to former ages; I say, such a power, as this, must exceed all that is human; and consequently make us rank these priests far above the condition of mortals.

2. Nay, this were to make them outdo all, that has ever been related of the infernal powers; for, though their legerdemain has extended to deceive some unwary beholders, and their power of working some seeming miracles has been great; yet it never reached, nor ever was supposed to reach so far, as to deceive the senses of all mankind in matters of so public and notorious a nature, as those of which we now speak; to make them believe that they had enacted laws for such public observances, continually practised them, taught them to their children, and had been instructed in them themselves from their childhood; if they had never enacted, practised, taught, or been taught such things.

3. As this exceeds all the power of hell and devils, so is it more than ever God Almighty has done since the foundation of the world. None of the miracles, he has shown, nor belief, which he has required to any thing, he has revealed, ever contradicted the outward senses of any one man, much less of all mankind. For miracles, being appeals to our outward senses, if they overthrow the certainty of our outward senses, must destroy with it their

own certainty as to us; since we have no other way to judge of a miracle, exhibited to our senses, than upon the supposition of the certainty of our senses, upon which we give credit to a miracle, that is shown to our senses,

4 This, by the way, is a yet unanswered argument against the miracle of transubstantiation, and shows the weakness of the defence, which the church of Rome offers for it (from which the Socinians have licked it up, and of late gloried much in it among us) that the doctrines of the Trinity and Incarnation contain as great seeming absurdities, as that of transubstantiation; for I would ask, which of our senses it is, which the doctrines of the Trinity and Incarnation contradict? Is it our seeing, hearing, feeling, taste, or smell? Whereas transubstantiation contradicts all these. Therefore the comparison is exceedingly short, and out of purpose. But to return. If the Christian religion be a cheat, and nothding, but the invention of priests, and carried on by their craft; it makes their power and wisdom greater, than that of men, angels, or devils; and more, than GoD himself ever yet showed or expressed, to deceive and impose upon the senses of mankind, in so public and notorious matters of fact..

XIV. This miracle, which the Deists must run into, to avoid those recorded of MosES and CHRIST, is much greater and more astonishing, than all the Scriptures tell of them.

So that these men, who laugh at all mira

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