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fume, this Work of the Divine Legation hath totally difcredited.)

Now (fay these men) if the light of Reafon hath inftructed us in what NATURAL RELIGION teacheth, it feems most confonant to common fenfe, that the REPUBLICATION of this Religion should be established in the fame manner that it was first PUBLISHED to the world. NOT SO (I reply), even on their falfe principle of a mere REPUBLICATION. For fince it was found, by experience, that the first publication of God's will, by natural light alone, hath proved infufficient to perpetuate the knowledge of it; we fhall think it most adequate to Reason, that the REPUBLICATION fhould be better guarded; to fecure it from the like mifchance.

But the truth is, this idea of Chriftianity's being merely fuch a REPUBLICATION arofe from the groffeft ignorance of the GOSPEL; which reveals more, infinitely more, important Truths than NATURAL LIGHT did or could difcover. It reveals the whole scheme of buman Redemption; which, till this Revelation took place, was a MysTERY,

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TERY, kept hid amongst the Arcana of the Godhead.

However, the fame Men have another objection to the belief of these miraculous Credentials. And the objection arises, it feems, from our SOPHISTICAL reafoning in fupport of them for thus (they fay) we argue

"So little being known of the powers of created fpirits, fuperior to ourselves, (fome of which we are taught to believe are beneficent to man, and fome averse) all that we can conclude of MIRACLES, confidered only in themselves, is, that they are the work of agents, able, in fome inftances, to controul Nature, and divert her from her established courfe. But whether this controul be performed imme diately by the God of Nature, or by Agents acting under his direction, (which amounts to the fame thing) or, on the contrary, by malignant agents, at enmity with Man, and, for a time, permitted to indulge their perverfe and hurtful purposes, cannot be known but by the nature of that Doctrine, in fupport of which, the pretended MIRA

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CLES are performed. The conclusion from this is, that THE MIRACLES ARE TO BE VERIFIED BY THE DOCTRINE.

But then, (fay they, again) fince we know fo little of the extent of the human understanding, we cannot determine of the true Original of the Doctrine propofed to our belief, till it be fupported by MIRACLES; now the conclufion from this is, that the DOCTRINE IS TO BE VERIFIED BY MIRACLES.

Such is the vicious Circle (fay our adverfaries) round which we run, when we first Prove the MIRACLES BY THE DOCTRINE, AND THEN PROVE THE DOCTRINE BY THE MIRACLES.

This is, without doubt, a Paralogism. But we deny that any fuch faulty reafoning is here employed. The term, DocTRINE, in the firft propofition, is used to fignify a Doctrine agreeable to the truth of things, and demonftrated to be fo by natural light. In the fecond propofition, the term, DOCTRINE, is used to fignify a Doctrine immediately, and in an extraordinary manner, revealed by God. So that thefe different figni

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fignifications, in the declared ufe of the word DOCTRINE, in the two propofitions, fets the whole reafoning free from that vicious Circle within which our Philofophic Conjurers would confine it. In this there is no fruitless return of an unprogreffive argument; but a regular proceffion of two diftinct and different Truths, till the whole reasoning becomes compleat. In truth, they afford mutual affiftance to one another; yet not by taking back, after the turn hás been served, what they had given; but by continuing to hold what each had imparted to the fupport of the other.

On the whole, we conclude, that if any Meffengers ever wanted the CREDENTIALS OF MIRACLES, they were the first MESSENGERS OF GOD in the revealed Mystery of the GOSPEL.

Indeed, divine Providence hath fo ftrictly appropriated MIRACLES for thefe CREDENTIALS, that JOHN THE BAPTIST, the Precursor of those Meffengers, destined only to announce the approaching GOSPEL, worked NO MIRACLES: yet, had Miracles been of no other use than what this new

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- fangled Doctrine affigns to them, namely, to make the hearers attentive to the excellence of the morals of the new Religion, none had more need of them than JOHN and his Penitents. St. CHRYSOSTOM feems to have understood the GOSPEL better than thefe modern Divines, when he fuppofed that even JESUS himself worked no Miracle till after his baptifm, i. e. till the time of his addreffing himself to his Miffion, when CREDENTIALS to his Character were naturally required; which Credentials had he not given, the unbelieving Jews, as he himself acknowledges, had been free from blame. IF I HAD NOT DONE AMONGST THEM (fays he) THE WORKS WHich nɔne OTHER MAN DID, THEY HAD NOT HAD SIN*,

II.

We come next to that fecond Species of Miracles, mentioned above, whofe fubject makes fo effential a part in the Oeconomy of the GOSPEL, that, without it, the whole would be vain and fruitlefs. The firft and

* John xv. 24.

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