utinam ipfe feciffet! Digna enim fuit illa natura,quæ meliora vellet, quæ quod voluit effecit." And again, "Velles eum fuo ingenio dixiffe, alieno judicio."

Now, by way of contrast, behold the character of the fame perfons, from the masterly and impartial hand of SOUTH:

"The Socinians are impious blafphemers, whofe "infamous pedigree runs back [from wretch to "wretch] in a direct line to the devil himself; and "who are fitter to be crushed by the civil magiftrate, "as deftructive to government and fociety, than to "be confuted as merely heretics in religion."

Such is the true agonistic ftyle and intolerant. Spirit; fuch the courage of a champion, who challenges his adverfary, and then calls upon the conftable to come and help him.

An tibi Mavors

Ventofa in lingua, pedibufque fugacibus iflis
Semper erit?

VOL. II. SERMON XVI.

"Jofephus flattered Vefpafian fo far, as to make him believe, that he was the man [the Meffias]; and thereupon perfuaded him to destroy the line of David, out of which the tradition was, that the Meffias fhould fpring, &c."

Jofephus did not give this wicked advice. Our Prelate perhaps had in his thoughts what Eufebius relates of Domitian, "that he ordered all the family of David to be deftroyed; and that fome

of our Lord's kinfmen were feized, and brought before him; and upon examination difmiffed, as poor and inconsiderable persons. Afterwards, in the time of Trajan, fome heretics laid an information against Symeon, the fon of Cleopas, as being of the family of David, and alfo a Chriftian: and, for this, Symeon was put to death, when he was an hundred and twenty years old. But thefe very accufers of the Martyr were alfo convicted of belonging to the royal tribe, diligent fearch being made at that time for fuch perfons."

Eufebius had thefe accounts from Hegefippus, and Hegefippus is far enough from infallibility. So the Stories reft upon his authority, fuch as it is. Eufeb. Evang. Hist. III. 19, 20, 32.

IBID. SERMON LXX.

"We must be ferious in our inftructions:"to which nothing can be more contrary, than to trille with the word of God; and to speak of "the weightieft matters in the world, the great "and everlasting concernments of the fouls of men, in fo flight and indecent a manner, as is not only beneath the gravity of the pulpit, but " even of a well-regulated ftage. Can any thing "be more unfuitable, than to hear a Minifter of "God, from this folemn place, to break Jefts

upon Sin, and to quibble with the vices of the "age? This is to fhoot without a bullet; as if we "had no mind to do execution, but only to make 166 men fmile at the mention of their faults: This

"is fo naufeous a folly, and of fo pernicious con"fequence to religion, that hardly any thing too fevere can be faid of it."

This was undoubtedly defigned as a cenfure upon South, for faying, that there is no fluxing

a foul out of its immortality," and a hundred things of the fame kind.

"The Being of God is fo comfortable, fo con"venient, fo neceffary to the felicity of mankind,

that (as Tully admirably fays) Dii immortales * ad ufum hominum fabricati pene videantur: If God "were not a neceffary being of himself, he might "almost seem to be made on purpose for the use " and benefit of men."

A learned perfon,-who fhall not be namedobferved, that Tillotson, taking the verb fabricati in a paffive fenfe, grofsly misunderstood Cicero; whofe words are thefe: "Sunt autem alii philofophi, et hi quidem magni atque nobiles, qui Deorum mente atque ratione omnem mundum adminiftrari atque regi cenfeant: neque verò id folum, fed etiam ab iifdem vitæ hominum confuli et provideri: Nam, et fruges, et reliqua quæ terra pariat, et tempeftates, ac temporum varietates, cælique mutationes, quibus omnia quæ terra gignat, maturata pubefcant, a Dîs immortalibus tribui humano generi putant; multaque, quæ talia funt, ut ea ipfa Di immortales ad ufum hominum fabripene videantur." De Nat. Deor. L. I. 2. Bb 2

cati

It

It is certain that these words, as they ftand in Cicero, will not admit of the fenfe which Tillotfon gives them but Tillotfon, in all probability, cited by memory, and without confulting the context; and put that meaning upon the words, which feemed the most reasonable and elegant: and, perhaps his good fenfe led him here to the true interpretation. Boherius, a learned French critic, understood this paffage juft as Tillotson has taken it; and to accommodate the fentence to this purpose, he proposed a flight emendation, which is approved by Davies. "Clarifs. Boherius legit,

ut ET

IPSI DII immortales ad ufum hominum fabricati

pene videantur. Audax fanè videtur loquendi ratio; fed fenfus facit, ut ei conjecturæ faveam."

In favour of this conjecture and interpretation it may be obferved, that, according to the Pagan Theology, the Dii immortales are the fun, the moon, the stars, the planets, and the earth, who furnish us with the comforts and conveniencies of life; and, fo highly beneficial are they to mortal men, that, although they be Gods, yet they feem almoft to have been made for the ufe of man.

66

If you afk, by whom were the Gods made?" the Pagan anfwer is, by Nature, or by the Supreme God; who drew them out of chaos, and who is called by Ovid, Mundi Fabricator."

Hanc Deus, et melior litem Natura diremit :

And

And then,

Aftra tenent cælefte folum, formæque Deorum.

Ovid, Met. I. 73.

Illa Deos omnes, longum enumerare, creavit, Says Ovid, Faft. IV. 95. fpeaking of Venus. Cicero advanced fomewhat that was bold, and` therefore qualified it with a penè videantur.

"I know not what fome men may find in themfelves; but I must freely acknowledge, that I "could never yet attain to that bold and hardy de

gree of faith, as to believe any thing for this "reafon-because it was impoffible. So that I am very far from being of his mind, that wanted, not only more difficulties, but even impoffibilities, in the "Christian religion, to exercise his faith upon.

The person whom Tillotfon had in view, was the author of Religio Medici. But by impoffibilities, Sir Thomas Brown, as well as Tertullian, meant feeming, not real impoffibilities; and what he fays fhould be looked upon as a verbum ardens, a rhetorical flourish, and a trial of fkill with Tertullian; in which however he had little chance to come off fuperior. Both of them were lively and ingenious; but the African had a warmer complexion than the Briton.

"Methinks there be not impoffibilities enough "in religion, for an active faith.-I can anfwer all "the objections of Satan and my rebellious reason, Bb 3

" with