SER M.ness, justice and gratitude. But of the divine, VII. peculiar and incommunicable attributes, ne

ceflary existence, eternity and immensity, we have not, nor are capable of forming any pofitive idea. It seems reasonable enough to believe that the human mind might have been form'd otherwife than it is, and not improbable that it may have capacities and ways of perceiving in another state of existence, different from those it now has, even such as fhall have God and his perfections for their immediate object. I do not fay, that it is poffible for a finite understanding to comprehend infinity; but as we have now an intuitive knowledge of the qualities and existence of fome objects, the effences of which are hid from us, it is not at all inconceivable, that we might have had, and may hereafter have a direct intuition of the Divine glorious Being and Attributes, tho' bis Effence and their utmost extent will ftill be paft finding out. Let it be obferv'd, that many of our original ideas, the materials of our knowledge, are not to be accounted for, and the reasons of them explained from the nature of things; but we must refolve them into an arbitrary conftitution of the Author of our being. No man can tell, (I mean give a reason from a prior knowledge of their nature and ours,)

why

why material objects raise the sensations in SER M. us which we find in fact they do raise, and VII. which is not in our power to hinder, or in the least to alter. Who then can take upon him to fay we could not poffibly have had, or that we may not in another state actually have, very different perceptions from the prefent; and particularly, that the absolutely perfect Being and his Attributes, may not be the immediate object of our perception ? This is what St. Paul means by the figurative expreffion of seeing God, and Divine things, face to face, not darkly and through a glass* as we do now, which he represents as the high attainment of perfected spirits: that is, their knowledge shall be as much fuperior to the present in clearness, and in its power of exciting good affections, and giving pleasure to the mind, as an intimate acquaintance with, and immediate vifion of the perfons and other objects we now know, is to faint images and obfcure diftant representations,

At present, our knowledge of the Deity is very dark and imperfect, collected from his works and the manifeftations he has made of himself, by reasoning; a more difficult and unaffecting way than that of direct intuition. By reflecting on ourselves, on the constitution of our own nature with its various

powers,

ten

*I Cor. xiii, 12,

SERM. tendencies, affections and operations, and by VII. confidering external objects, which we per

ceive by our fenfes, with their relations and dependencies, we are led to a perfuafion of his Being, power, wisdom and goodness. 'Tis true, by this method of inquiry, and exercise of our understandings, we are convinc'd, not enly of the Divine existence and perfections, but that God is intimately prefent with us and all beings in the universe, continually working on every fide; yet it is only by the means of fenfible effects, which are the direct ob jects of our perceiving powers, we attain to this conviction. The Divine nature and Attributes themselves, the inward principle of his various operations, no man bath feen at any time nor can fee: Not only he does not dif cern by his external senses, but he has not fuch a clear, immediate perception of them, as of other things which are neither feen, nor heard, nor felt, nor have no relation to body nor any of its properties, fuch as our own rational faculties and affections, and moral qualities. The obfcurity and imperfection of this kind of knowledge which we have of God is elegantly defcrib'd in the book of Job, * Bebold, I go forward but he is not there, (visible) and backward but I cannot perceive him; on the left hand where he doth work, but I cannot be

* Chap. xxiii. ver. 8, 9.

bold

bold him; he bideth himself on the right hand SER M• that I cannot fee him. Hence it follows, and VII. we find it fo in experience, that the perfections of God which are the most clearly manifefted, and immediately exercis'd in his works, are the best understood by us. We have much more diftinct apprehenfions of power, and wisdom, and goodness, than of those characters of the Divine nature which are, in no degree, communicable to any dependent being, its self-existence and infinity. The latter are not, nor can poffibly be reprefented by any image, nor is the notion of them conveyed by any discernible effect; the other have produc'd a resemblance of themfelves in inferior agents, and the marks of them are engraven on all the Divine operations. It is impoffible that the condition of a creature should lead us into the notion, as containing in itself any image of uncaused existence; that a temporary being should give us an idea of duration without beginning; or that a body circumfcrib'd within certain limits, tho' by the pofition of its parts and its fituation with respect to other bodies, we get our first notion of distance and place; that, I fay, it fhould give us a clear perception of immenfity. As these are the attributes which it is hardest for us to conceive, we shall still

SERM. think and speak of them the most clearly and VII. usefully, when, as far as that can be done,

we confider them with relation to the works of God, which are the means whereby we attain to any knowledge of him. Thus, I think, particularly, we have a much better notion of the Divine omniprefence, and more applicable to practical purposes, by confidering it as filling the whole univerfe, or the whole of created actual exiftence, not confin'd to any part of it; we have a better notion of his univerfal prefence in this view, because we confider him as continually working in all places, continually exerting his active perfections, his power, wisdom and goodness, than by applying our thoughts to the abstract speculation of abfolute immensity, or exifting in the whole of extramundane boundless space.

But tho' the manner of God's existence before the world was made, and of his being in infinite space beyond its limits now that it does fubfift, furpaffes our understanding, we cannot help being convinc'd that he does fo exist. We have a clear enough idea of space not fill'd with matter, indeed demonstrative evidence, that not only there must be an abfolute vacuity within the bounds of the corporeal system, but without it; for the greatest corporeal magnitude must be terminated.