IX.

dence ever after. This reafoning holds LET. good, refpecting them, as well as other facts; and to reafon otherwise, would be to introduce univerfal confufion.

It is faid,

They are things in "their own nature far removed from

66 common belief.”

They are things which do not happen every day, to be fure. It were abfurd, from the very nature of them, to expect that they fhould. But what reafon can there be for concluding, from thence, that none ever were wrought? Why fhould it be thought a thing more incredible, that the ruler of the world should interpofe, upon proper occafions, to controul the operations of nature, than that he fhould direct them, in ordinary? It is not impoffible that a teacher fhould

1X.

LET. fhould be fent from God. It may be neceffary that one fhould be fent. If one be fent, he must bring credentials, to fhew that he is fo fent; and what can those credentials be, but miracles, or acts of almighty power, fuch as God only can perform?-In the cafe of Jefus, common sense spake by the mouth of the Jewish ruler, and all the fophiftry in the world cannot invalidate or perplex the argument-" Mafthou art a teacher come from

66 ter,
"God; for no man can do the mira-
"cles which thou doeft, except God
"be with him."

"They (miracles) require fomething more than the ufual teftimony "of hiftory for their fupport."

Why fo? If they may be wrought, and good reafons are affigned for their having been wrought upon any parti

cular

IX.

cular occafion, "the ufual teftimony LET. "of history" is fufficient to evince that they were wrought. But the truth is, that they have " fomething "more than the ufual teftimony of history; they have much more; for no facts in the world ever were attested by fuch an accumulated weight of evidence, as we can produce on behalf of the miracles recorded of Mofes and Chrift; infomuch that the mind of any perfon tolerably well informed concerning them, till fteeled against conviction by the prejudices of infidelity, revolts at the very idea of their being accounted forgeries.

P. 3. "fweating blood, of it's raining hot "ftones, and the like, we juftly re

"When Livy speaks of shields

ject and disbelieve the improbable

"affertions."

Doubt

LET. nominy.*

VI.

planted pr

very power

But how

this, as in i

planted prin

pains, may preffed. O.

comes nece

other criter

dent to all,

left obdura

proof of i

man feels :

prehend no

For us C

tled by a la wife, and

friendly to

* See Bp. Ch. 11. Rule