law, and oblige them to a, careful obfervation of it. And all that Ezra and Nehemiah did was to bring things back as near as poffible to the original inftitution and defign. The fignal calamities inflicted upon the Jews in the time of the Babylonish captivity, the greatest that had ever befallen them, the utter defolation of their country, and their having been fo long banished from it, which calamities had been originally threatened in the law itself, and were regarded by them as fignal punishments from heaven for their violation of it: This, together with their wonderful restoration at the time that had been fixed for it by the prophets, awakened in them a zeal against idolatry, and an attachment to their law, greater than ever they had fhewn before.

He urges farther, that " a divine law fhould have fuch a "clearness and precision in its terms, that it may not be in "the power of perfons to elude and perplex the meaning of "it. And that if it be not fo, all that is said about marks of "divinity in any law that pretends to be revealed by God, is "mere cant f." This is particularly intended against the law of Mofes. And yet certain it is, that if the people frequently. fell off into idolatrous practices, and perhaps endeavoured to reconcile these their practices with the worship of God as there prefcribed, this could not be justly charged upon any want of precifion in the terms of the law. For what can be clearer and more precife than the commands there given against polytheism' and idolatry? Nothing can be more unreasonable, than what he fometimes infinuates, that if a revelation be given at all, it must be fuch as it fhould not be in the power of any man to misap prehend or misreprefent 8. It may be of fignal ufe to perfons' of honeft and candid minds, though it be not abfolutely incapable of being perverted and abused; which it could not be, if delivered in human language; except God fhould by an omnipotent energy, and by a conftant miracle, over-rule all the paffions, inclinations, and prejudices of the human nature: The abfurdity of which fuppofition, though it be what this writer feems fometimes to infift upon, I need not take pains to expofe.

He thinks," the Scriptures ought to be more perfect accord"ing to our ideas of human perfection, whether we confider "them as books of law or of history, than any other books, "that are avowedly human h." I fuppofe he means that there

f Vol. iii. p. 292, 293. 296. p. 261. 267. Vol. iii. p. 299.

& Vol. v. p. 545. Vol. iv.

fhould

161 fhould be greater elegancy of compofition, beauty of language, exactnefs of method, or that they fhould be more strictly philofophical. But perhaps what feems elegant to one nation would not appear fo to another. The notions of elegance in style and compofition were different among the Greeks and Romans, from what they were in the Eastern nations. And what might render the Scriptures more perfect in the eyes of fome perfons, might render them lefs perfect in other refpects, and lefs fitted to answer the end for which they were defigned. To talk of elegancy of compofition in human laws, or to blame acts of parliament for not being oratorial, would be thought a very odd objection. But it is the great excellency of the fa cred writings, that there is in the different parts of Scripture what may please perfons of all taftes. There is a fimplicity and plainness accommodated to the vulgar: And yet there is in many paffages a fublimity and majefty not to be equalled, and which has gained the admiration of the ableft judges.

As to what he fometimes mentions concerning the multipli city of copies, various readings, interpolations, I had occafion fully to confider these things in the Reflections on Lord Boling broke's Letters on the Study and Ufe of Hiftory, p. 65, et feq. and shall not repeat what is there offered. He has flirts here and there against some particular paffages of Scripture, a distinct examination of which would carry me too far. And they are only fuch as Dr. Tindal had urged before him, and which have been confidered and obviated in the answers that were made to that writer. See particularly Anfwer to Christianity as old as the Creation, vol. ii. chap. xi, xii.

VOL. II.

M

LET.

LETTER XXXI.

The favourable reprefentation made by Lord Bolingbroke of the excellent nature and defign of the original Chriftian revelation. He gives up feveral of the Deiftical objections, and even feems to acknowlege its divine original. Yet endeavours to expofe its doctrines, and to invalidate its proofs and evidences. The law of nature and Christianity not to be opposed to one another. The Gofpel not a republication of the doctrine of Plato. The pretended oppofition between the Gospel of Chrift and that of St. Paul confidered. This apoftle vindicated against the cenfures and reproaches caft upon him. The miracles of Chriftianity, if really wrought, owned by Lord Bolingbroke to be a fufficient proof. The Gof pels, by his own acknowlegement, give a just account of the difcourfes and actions of Jefus. Yet he has attempted to destroy their credit. His pretence, that it would be neceffary to have the originals of the Gospels in our hands, or attefted copies of thofe originals, examined. The feveral ways he takes to account for the propagation of Chriftianity fhewn to be infufficient. What be offers concerning the little effect Chriftianity bas bad in the reformation of mankind confidered. Want of univerfality no argument against the divinity of the Christian revelation. Its being founded on faith not inconfiftent with its being founded on rational evidence.

I

SIR,

Now come, according to the method I proposed, to confider what relates to the Chriftian revelation ftrictly and properly fo called, as it was taught by Christ and his apostles, and is contained in the facred writings of the New Teftament. In

deed

deed whofoever carefully confiders and compares the several parts of Lord Bolingbroke's fcheme, must be fenfible, that the whole of it may justly be regarded as an attempt against Christianity. If the principles he has laid down with regard to the moral attributes of God, divine providence, the immortality of the foul, and a future ftate, fhould take place, the Christian religion would be fubverted at the very foundations. This is alfo the manifeft intention of the account he gives of the law of nature. And one reason of the extreme virulence with which he hath attacked the law of Mofes and the Scriptures of the Old Testament, seems to be the near connection there is between this and the religion of Jefus, which he represents to have been origi nally intended by our Saviour as a system of Judaism, and defigned for no other nations but the Jews only. But though all he hath offered against the Scriptures of the Old Teftament may be regarded as defigned to strike at the authority of the Christian revelation, yet there are fome parts of his work which appear to be more particularly intended for that purpose, which therefore it will be neceffary to take a diftinét notice of.

But first it will be proper to make some obfervations on feve ral paffages in his writings, in which he feems to make very remarkable conceffions in favour of pure genuine Christianity as taught by our Saviour and his apostles in the New Testament, and to make an advantageous reprefentation of its excellent nature and tendency.

After having obferved, that fome represent all religion founded on divine revelation as inconfiftent with civil fovereignty, and erecting a private confcience that may and often is inconfiftent with the public confcience of the ftate, and after inveighing against the spirit of Judaism and Mahometanism, he undertakes to defend Christianity against this objection-And afferts, that "no religion ever appeared in the world whose "natural tendency was fo much directed to promote the peace " and happiness of mankind." See the fourth fection of his fourth Effay b. He declares, that "no fyftem can be more fimple and plain than that of natural religion as it ftands in "the Gospel ." And after having obferved, that "befides "natural religion, there are two other parts into which Chri"stianity may be analysed-Duties fuperadded to those of the former, and articles of belief that reafon neither could discover, nor can comprehend. He acknowleges, that both the duties required to be practised, and the propofitions required to be b. p. 281, 282. Ib. p. 290.292.: believed,

*Vol. iv. p. 305. 328. 350.

M 2

"believed, are concifely and plainly enough expressed in the ori"ginal Gospel properly fo called, which Chrift taught, and "which his four Evangelifts recorded. But they have been "alike corrupted by theology d." Speaking of the Christian facraments of Baptifm and the Lord's Supper, he fays, "No "inftitutions can be imagined more fimple, nor more void of "all those pompous rites and theatrical representations that "abounded in the religious worship of the Heathens and Jews, "than these two were in their origin. They were not only "innocent but profitable ceremonies, because they were ex"tremely proper to keep up the fpirit of true natural religion "by keeping up that of Christianity, and to promote the ob"fervation of moral duties, by maintaining a respect for the "revelation which confirmed them "." He declares, that "he "will not fay, that the belief that Jefus was the Meffiah is the "only article of belief necessary to make men Chriftians. There 86 are other things doubtlefs contained in the revelation he made "of himself, dependent on and relative to this article, without "the belief of which, I suppose, our Christianity would be very "defective. But this I fay, that the fyftem of religion which "Christ published, and his Evangelifts recorded, is a complete "fyftem to all the purposes of religion natural and revealed. "It contains all the duties of the former, it inforces them by "afferting the divine miffion of the Publisher, who proved his "affertions at the fame time by his miracles; and it enforces "the whole law of faith by promifing rewards, and threaten"ing punishments, which he declares he will distribute when "he comes to judge the world f." And he afterwards repeats it, that "Christianity as it ftands in the Gofpel contains not only a complete but a very plain system of religion. It is in "truth the fyftem of natural religion, and fuch it might have "continued to the unfpeakable advantage of mankind, if it "had been propagated with the fame fimplicity with which "it was originally taught by Chrift himself." He fays, that "fuppofing Chriftianity to have been an human invention, it "had been the most amiable and the most useful invention that was ever imposed on mankind for their good.-And that "Chriftianity as it came out of the hands of God, if I may ufe "the expreffion, was a moft fimple and intelligible rule of belief, worship, and manners, which is the true notion of a religion. As foon as men prefumed to add any thing of their

66

a Vol. iv. p. 294. * 76. p. 316.

e Ib. p. 301, 302.

Ib. p. 314.