decrease keep pace with the accumulation, till the rule of Logic, that the conclufion follows the weaker part, comes in, to end the difpute.

This view of things, which presents to us the reward, held out by the Law of Nature, clears up, at the fame time, the more difputed queftion, concerning the efficacy of repentance alone, to reinstate us in God's FAVOUR ; and fhews, that this doctrine of Natural Religion is very confiftent with what Revealed Religion teacheth, concerning RECONCILIATION, on repentance: fince the rewards, promised by each Religion, being totally different, they may reafonably, when forfeited, have different means appointed for their recovery. Hence it is, that, by the firft, fimple repentance, we say, is deemed fufficient; and, by the latter, fome ATONEMENT may be reasonably required, together with repentance.

On the whole of what has been faid concerning Natural Religion, we fee, That REASON reclaims against the pride of such of its votaries, who expect eternal rewards,

when

when that Religion only promifeth very ample ones.

Come we now to the Condition of Man under REVEALED RELIGION, For God (as we must needs conclude) having tried Adam in the STATE OF NATURE, and approved of the good ufe he had made of his free-will under the direction of that light, advanced him to a superior station in Paradife. How LONG, before this remove, Man had continued subject to Natural Religion alone, we can only guefs. But of this we may be affured, that it was fome confiderable time before the Garden of Eden could naturally be made fit for his reception. Since Mofes, when he had concluded his Hiftory of the Creation, and of God's reft on, and fanctification of, the seventh day *, proceeds to speak of the condition of this new world, in the following terms:-And God created every living plant of the field, before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew; for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the Earth.

* Gen. ii. 2, 3.

Which feem

+ Gen. ii. 4, 5.

plainly

plainly to intimate, that when the feeds of vegetables had been created on the third day, they were left to Nature, in its ordinary operations, to mature by Sun and showers. So that when, in courfe of time, Paradife was become capable of accommodating its inhabitants, they were tranfplanted thither.

“And the Lord took the Man, and put "him into the Garden of Eden-And the "Lord God commanded the Man, faying, "Of every Tree of the Garden thou mayeft freely eat; but of the tree of the know

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ledge of good and evil thou fhalt not "eat: for in the day that thou eatest there"of thou fhalt surely die *.' In this manner, was the first extraordinary revelation of God's Will, or what we call REVEALED RELIGION, added to, or more properly built upon, the Religion of Nature; which continued to be the foundation of all God's extraordinary Difpenfations throughout the whole courfe of his moral Government of Man.

Well! Adam difobeyed.the Command, He ate, and became (as he was first created)

* Gen. ii. 5.

MORTAL.

MORTAL-And left (as the Hiftorian fays) be should put forth his hand, and take alfo of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever*, he is driven out of Paradise, and fent back again to his former State; the subject of natural Religion. And in this fubjection he continued till the giving of the Law.

From this account we learn, that, had Adam not difobeyed the Command, he would have lived for ever, exempt from the prefent condition of mortality; fince this return to it was the penalty of his tranfgreffion.

And left we should make a wrong inference from what we read, that immortal life was Man's natural claim from the time of his creation; and not a free gift bestowed upon him on his entrance into Paradife;" the Hiftorian tells us of the means employed to exclude him from the TREE OF LIFE, which conferred immortality on the Eater. The ideas which this language conveys are, indeed, allegorical; but they inform us of this, and of nothing but this, that immor

tal life was a thing extraneous to our Nature; and not put into our paste or compofition, when first fashioned by the forming hand of the Creator *.

If it be afked, why Mofes did not record this free gift of immortality, loft by the first Adam, in as open and clear terms as the fecond Adam proclaimed the recovery of it the reafon will be given, more at large, hereafter. At prefent, I fhall juft obferve (though, perhaps, a little prematurely) that the feveral MESSENGERS of God's feveral Revelations had each his proper office to difcharge. It was the office of JESUS to bring life and immortality to light, or to promulge the Doctrine of it in open day. It was MOSES's office to record the lefs, and TO SUPPLY THE WANT OF IT, in that Difpenfation which was committed to his Charge. He could go no further than just to hint at a recovery, in covert and obfcure expreffions.

*Gen. ii. 7. And the Lord formed man of the duft of the ground, &c. compared with Gen. iii. 19, + See the Subject of the DIVINE LEGATION.