Immorality Reveal'd :: :: University of Virginia Library

Immorality Reveal'd

A poem. In four epistles. To a friend. [by Thomas Cooke]

Cooke, Thomas (1703-1756)

[epigraph]

[section]

IMMORTALITY REVEAL'D.

Collapse All | Expand All expand section

IMMORTALITY REVEAL'D.

THE FIRST EPISTLE.

Studious and grave has ever been thy Mind,
O Cœlius, Ornament of human Kind!
Intent on Truths, that Merit to be known,
That best deserve our Search, if not alone:
Ev'n in thy Youth, the Time when Passions reign,
When Pleasures urge, and Reason checks in vain,
No other Joys could win or move thy Heart,
But such as sacred Knowledge does impart;
And these unwearied still thy Thoughts pursue,
The World thy Scorn, the Things above thy View.

Hear then, my Cœlius, and awhile attend
His Verse, who glories to be call'd thy Friend;
The Subject must delight thy serious Ear,
And Friendship will th'unpolish'd Lines endear.

How much, by Nature's searching Light alone,
Of God and Things immortal may be known,
The Records of the ancient Sages show,
As yet preserv'd, and understood ev'n now.
On Contemplation's tow'ring Wings they soar'd,
And left no Theme or Subject unexplor'd;
To ev'ry Spring of Knowledge, ev'ry Source,
They turn'd unweary'd in their painful Course,
Wealth they despis'd, and Pomp, and spent their Years
Apart from busy Mortals, and their Cares;
Their Bodies they subdu'd, their Passions curb'd,
And kept their Minds sedate and undisturb'd,
Us'd all the Means, that tended to remove
The Weight, that clogg'd them in their Flights above,
To break the Cloud, that dimm'd their lab'ring Sight,
And clear their Prospect to the Realms of Light.

Such certainly were some of them at least,
And thus employ'd their studious Moments past;

Nor yet content with this they sometimes chang'd
Their native Soil, and distant Climates rang'd;
Where e'er fair Science seated deign'd to smile,
Or near Euphrates, or the Banks of Nile,
Thither allur'd their wand'ring Steps they bent,
On further Acquisitions still intent;
There with her Vot'ries in sweet Converse join'd
They drew fresh Stores t'enrich the curious Mind.

To Thee, their Ways, their Studies, and the Fruits
Of all their painful Labours and Pursuits
Are known, O Cœlius, nor with proud Disdain
Has e'er thy gentle Tongue pronounc'd them vain;
With pleasing Wonder rather, and surprize
Hast Thou observ'd the Heights, to which they rise,
When freed from sensual Chains through Paths untrod
They trace unbodied Forms, and Nature's God.

For Ages past before their Days Mankind
Had swerv'd from Wisdom, and debauch'd the Mind,
Slaves to the Pow'r of ev'ry craving Lust,
Proud, dissolute, revengeful, and unjust:

Few Traces of that ancient Light remain'd,
Which their first Fathers guided and restrain'd,
Darkness and Error enter'd in the Place,
And fill'd the Breast of this degen'rate Race:
The great Creator from his Creatures then
Was not distinguish'd by unthinking Men,
Altars were rais'd, and sacred Victims burn'd
To those, whose Deaths they saw, and lately mourn'd,
Ev'n Brutes and Things inanimate receiv'd
Divine Prostration, and were Gods believ'd.

Amidst this Ignorance, at diff'rent Times,
In distant Regions, and in various Climes,
Still one or other with a Soul possest
More rais'd and elevated than the rest,
Or more inquisitive and studious rose
In Truth's and Virtue's Cause; but chiefly those,
Whom Greece her Natives boasts; them chief in Fame
For ancient Knowledge Time delights to name:
Illustrious Sages! who attentive heard
The Voice of Reason, and her Light rever'd,
Surmounted all that Prejudice which springs
From Education, and which Custom brings,

O'ercame the Force of that prevailing Awe,
Which Superstition forg'd, and fix'd by Law,
Of Furies, Spectres, and fictitious Gods
The People's Terror, and their Rulers Rods.

In Ages thus corrupt, with bold Essay
Through dark and mazy Paths to urge their Way
In quest of Heav'nly Wisdom, and withstand
Establish'd Falshoods, must our Praise demand:
Th'Attempt was glorious, and if Some declin'd,
Bewilder'd, from the Point and End design'd,
Yet Others happier in their Search, or blest
With more discerning Judgment, or at least
More careful and observant kept the Road
Tow'rds Wisdom, Immortality, and God.

These one intelligent first Cause explor'd,
And Him with elevated Minds ador'd,
Who spread the Heav'ns, and form'd the fruitful Earth,
Who gave to every Creature Life and Birth,
Whose Providence inspected Great and small,
Sustaining, ruling, and directing all.
Him absolutely perfect they conceiv'd,
Eternal, self-existent, underiv'd,

Great Source of Happiness, of Truth, and Light,
The Sovereign Good, exhaustless, infinite.

These search'd the Nature of our thinking Part,
And all the Passions of the various Heart;
The first they judg'd to be from Death secure,
As simple, indivisible, and pure,
For endless, ever-during Life design'd,
As form'd in Likeness to th'eternal Mind;
The latter they describ'd, and show'd their use,
What Ends they serve, and what Effects produce,
How good! when Reason her just Pow'r maintains,
Directs their Motions, and their Fire restrains;
How bad! when they disdain her prudent Sway,
Break from their Bounds prescrib'd, and lawless stray.

These taught, that nothing could be fair and good,
When nearly view'd, and rightly understood,
But what was truly virtuous; and in this
They plac'd the stable Ground of human Bliss;
That Vice unmann'd us, and the Soul deprest,
O'erwhelm'd her Pow'rs, and sunk us to the Beast;
That all our Grievance, all our real Ill
Sprung from th'Abuse of Liberty and Will,

From not attending to the friendly Light,
Which Reason laid before the thinking Sight,
Or wilfully rejecting what she shew'd
Was truly useful, amiable, and good.

These taught, that Virtue only could endear
The Soul to God, and plant his Image there,
Alone secure its Passage when releast
From mortal Prisons to celestial Rest;
Whilst far from thence the Impious and Impure
For ever barr'd, Remorse and Woe endure:
That such a diff'rent Portion would attend
And follow Vice and Virtue in the End,
They judg'd from Grounds and Principles well laid,
And highly probable, when throughly weigh'd;
This they inculcated, and could infer
From God's Perfections, and his ruling Care.

Such were the Sentiments, at least of some
Among the ancient Wise of Greece and Rome;
These they profess'd, and publish'd, These maintain'd,
And some few Converts to their Doctrine gain'd;
Fair was their Arguing, nor wanting Weight,
And Men of Judgment might pronounce them right.

But yet, O Cœlius, for with studious Thought
Thou hast perus'd and weigh'd whate'er they taught,
Mixt with these Doctrines, say, do not we find
Some Things, which stagger and perplex the Mind,
Which seem to shake and undermine the Ground,
On which they build these Truths, and Reas'nings found?
Do not the wisest of them all appear
To puzzle what before they argu'd clear,
To fear their own Conclusions, and mistrust
What they inferr'd as rational and just?
Moan they not oft the Gloom of that Recess,
Where Truth abode remote? and moan they less
The Weakness of their Pow'rs to pierce that Shade,
That veils her Face, without celestial Aid?

Ev'n in that weighty Point, whereon depends
Fair Virtue's Hope, the chief of all her Ends,
A future State to crown her Suff'rings here,
To recompence her Pains, and pious Care,
Drop they not Scruples, and with doubtful Phrase
Weaken that Confidence, they meant to raise?

Leave us yet wav'ring, or at best not sure
What will succeed the gloomy dying Hour?
Further than probable none of them go,
This is the most, Themselves pretend to know;
The most, which they advance to gain Belief,
And sooth afflicted Virtue's present Grief;
To check the Vicious in their wild Career,
And from their vile, audacious Deeds deter.

Such was the Proof in this great Argument,
The wisest Ancients urg'd for our Assent;
And if than This no greater, who will blame
Their Search as fruitless, and their Works defame?
Something it was, nor yet beneath Applause,
To go so far in Aid of such a Cause,
To open, though in glimm'ring Light, a Scene
Of such Importance and Concern to Men,
That might dispose them readier to receive
Those clearer Views which Heav'n design'd to give.

Had Reason unassisted from above
Been able uncontestably to prove
The Certainty of this, their Strength of Mind,
With all th'Advantages of Art refin'd,

Would scarce have fail'd to set this Subject clear,
And triumph over all Mistrust and Fear;
But too remote and intricate it lay
For human Knowledge fully to display,
To clear in such a manner as might quell
Each bold Objector, and his Doubts dispel.

In this Uncertainty and Lab'rinth then
Age after Age remain'd the greatest Men,
Nor found they Means or Pow'r to extricate
Themselves or Others from this anxious State.
Ev'n He, who was reputed, at a Time
When Science in her Zenith shone sublime,
The wisest in the Grecian Schools, and made
The deepest Searches in this gloomy Shade,
Could not his own Misgivings quite subdue,
When Death approach'd, and rose in solemn View:
“If I, who now must quit this Stage, says He,
“Or you, who stay behind, the happier be,
“My Friends! God only knows.” Lo! was not this
To doubt at last a State of future Bliss?
To question whether Providence design'd
Beyond the Grave ought for the virtuous Mind?

Thus wav'ring stood on Life's dark Verge the Sage
For Wisdom judg'd the Foremost of his Age.
But grant, that such Expressions might arise
From Thoughts unguarded, or some quick Surprize,
That notwithstanding this He still retain'd
A firm Belief of what He had maintain'd,
A Life of Wretchedness and Bliss to come,
This Virtue's Portion, that of Vice the Doom;
Nay grant besides, that other Sages too
Believ'd and prov'd this Doctrine to be true,
Prov'd by such Reasonings as might convince
Impartial Judgment, and discerning Sense;
Could their Authority and Weight suffice,
Howe'er in Character reputed wise,
To propagate this Doctrine, and engage
A gen'ral Faith in Men from Age to Age,
To fix it as a Principle of Force
To sway their Actions, and direct their Course?
Could the mere human Reas'ning of a Few
This great Effect accomplish, and renew
The Days of Light and Virtue, when withstood
By Nature's common Bent to Bad from Good,
And by an Ignorance in some too blind
To see thro' Truths of an exalted Kind?

When num'rous other Teachers, and in Fame
Their Rivals, openly oppos'd this Scheme,
Or else obliquely aim'd to undermine
Its very Grounds, and baffle its Design,
Whilst in their labour'd Systems they disown
All of the Godhead, but the Name alone,
His ruling Care and Providence discard,
And make Mankind no Part of his Regard?
Whilst they contend, that Nought below could move
Anger, or Hate in God, Goodwill, or Love,
Affections, which, say they, in Men we find,
But have no Likeness in th'eternal Mind?
Whilst they mistake the Happiness of Man,
And place it in the Thing, we should disdain,
In that, which tends directly to subvert
The Pow'r of Virtue, and corrupt the Heart?
Whilst they attempt to prove the human Soul
But finer Parts of the material Whole,
Of course then dissoluble, and a Prey
To Death by Vi'lence, or by mere Decay?

Against such Opposition form'd with Art,
And no less boldly urg'd in ev'ry Part,

Manag'd by Heads of Sects in high Repute,
And celebrated Champions in Dispute;
An Opposition, which alluring draws
Deprav'd and vicious Nature to its Cause!
Which sooths Mens Vices, and allays the Fears,
That might disturb them in their loose Careers!
What less than Evidence and Light divine
Could triumph, and with Force resistless shine?
What less disperse the Clouds, and Doubts subdue,
Which interpos'd and broke their steddy View,
Impart such Faith, which apprehends, as seen,
The Things to come, and leaves the World between?

More probable indeed, in this Debate,
The Proofs and Reas'nings for a future State
Must to a Mind unprejudic'd appear,
When weigh'd with Judgment and attentive Care:
But that their Strength was such as could remove
Each rising Doubt, unaided from above,
Raise firm Belief, and throughly clear the Way
To Scenes of future Being, who will say?
Who? that has turn'd those hoary Pages o'er,
And search'd the Depth of all their learned Store.

Ah! short of this their greatest Authors fell
In all their Efforts, tho' they reason'd well;
Tho' what they taught with Nature's simple Light
Fairly agreed, or seem'd however right.
Much brighter Views they wanted, stronger Aid
T'enforce their Doctrine, and the Mind persuade,
To give it full Assurance, what might stand
All Opposition, and our Faith demand.

On Subjects, which to Things abstruse refer,
Or Things yet future, might not Reason err?
Tho' plausible her Proofs, might it be said,
Things must be so, we cannot be misled?
Alas! too weak for this, ev'n Pride must own
Degen'rate Nature's glimm'ring Light alone,
Too weak to penetrate that Veil of Night,
Which hid Futurity from mortal Sight.

Lack'd we not then in this uncertain State
Securer Grounds and Proofs of greater Weight,
A Revelation from th'unerring Mind
To dissipate our Doubts of ev'ry Kind,
To show this Truth in full convincing Light,
And lend our Faith a Strength like that of Sight?

This certainly we wanted; nought, but this,
Could cure our Jealousies, and Fears dismiss;
If so—to give this Light must surely seem
Worthy the Goodness of the Being supreme,
Befitting well his Bounty whose we are,
Form'd by his Hand, and circled with his Care:
Now whether this so needful, bounteous Heav'n
In Pity of his State to Man has giv'n,
Is next my Theme: And wilt Thou, Cœlius, deign
To hear what Thou more fully canst explain,
And couldst in Numbers far more sweet rehearse,
Shouldst Thou invoke the sacred Pow'rs of Verse?
I know thy Candour, and may rather fear,
Lest, when I strive to win thy list'ning Ear,
Thou shouldst too well, too partially approve,
Forget the Critic, and indulge thy Love.

Socrates.

THE SECOND EPISTLE.

Come then, my Cœlius, with thy Friend explore
The Truths long hid, or darkly seen before,
'Till Revelation with its glorious Light
Dispers'd the Gloom, and brought them into Sight:
But search we first, and traverse hand in hand
The Grounds, on which these Truths supported stand,
Weigh well the Proofs, that move us to receive
This Revelation, and from Heav'n believe.

That the All-wise, if so it pleas'd Him, cou'd
Reveal to Man Things once not understood,

Things far above his lab'ring Reach to find,
Or with new Lights relieve his doubting Mind,
Must be confess'd; and if Man's piteous Case,
Fallen perhaps, and sunk from what He was,
Might need such gracious Help to rise again,
And his lost former happy State attain,
Who will attempt presumptuous to dispute,
That with the Being Supreme it would not suit,
Not with his Nature stand to condescend
To grant such Aid, and grant to such an End?

View the Creation round, and ponder well
Th'Effects, which ev'ry where the Author tell,
His Wonders in the wide Expanse above,
The glitt'ring Lights, that rest, or circling move,
His Wonders in the pregnant Earth below,
The num'rous Sorts, that breathe, and those, that grow,
His Wonders in the Deep, each finny Kind,
The Fluxes of the Tide, and veering Wind;
Consider these, and in their End weigh then
The great Beneficence of God to Men;
Not more conspicuous shine his Pow'r and Art
Than this throughout the Whole, and ev'ry Part;

Seems not his Goodness rather to outdo
Whate'er of Both in all his Works we view?
Made, if not solely, chiefly for our Good,
Our Pleasure, some, and some, our Use, or Food,
Do not these Wonders ev'ry-where declare,
How much belov'd, how dear to him we are?
From such unbounded Goodness what Effect
Can we conceive too wondrous to expect?
What Boon too great, too rich for Him to grant
In Aid of human Exigence and Want?

If, as created mutable and free,
Subject to Error and Degen'racy,
Man had from Truth, and Virtue far declin'd,
Misus'd his Pow'rs, and vitiated the Mind,
Unable to recover unreliev'd
The Loss by such a Fall and Stain receiv'd,
Where is the Difficulty to conceive,
(Or rather what more easy to believe)
That Heav'n thus bounteous might with pitying Eye
Behold his laps'd Condition, and apply
Some wise and gen'rous Methods to redress
His Grievance, or alleviate his Distress?

Such Grace, tho' undeserv'd, must sure agree
With the All-good, All-gracious Deity,
Consist with all those Attributes, which join'd
Present his glorious Image to the Mind.

If backward up to distant Times we go,
And search the Facts, which ancient Volumes show,
Those of the best Account, and earliest Date,
That sing or treat of Man's primeval State,
With one Consent they all agree in this,
That his first Days were Days of Peace and Bliss,
More innocent, and happier far than those
Which after in succeeding Times arose,
That Guilt and Folly soon quite chang'd the Scene,
And o'er the Earth wide spread their baneful Reign,
Ingend'ring Maladies of divers Kind
Afflictive to the Body and the Mind:
This both the Poet and the Sage of old
Transmitting down to future Times have told;
This they lamented, tho' they could not trace
The real Spring of this disastrous Case,
Or else, if by Tradition partly known,
They have in mythic Dress but partly shown.

Thus fallen and deprav'd in Mind and Heart,
What Pow'rs had Man then left him to exert?
What Means, that might avail him to regain
His former Loss, and wipe away the Stain?
Lament his Case He might, we may believe,
But never of Himself his Loss retrieve:
Heav'n then must interpose, no Pow'r, no Light
But thence deriv'd could raise and set him right,
Nothing of weaker Energy alarm
His grov'ling Soul, and break the hellish Charm,
Much less renew his Nature, and restore
That Rectitude, from which he fell before.
This some Philosophers of ancient Note
Observing Man's corrupted State have thought,
Such Help alone they judg'd could have Effect
To cure his Blindness, and his Heart correct,
And this, they hop'd, that God would sometime send,
Sooner or later, for that gracious End;
Reas'nable Hope! how justly it agreed
With God's Perfections, and our real Need.

But can we then with Certainty conclude,
Because the Being divine is kind and good,

And thro' our Fault we needed such an Aid,
Therefore such Revelation must be made?
Not so—however it must be confest,
This seems from hence more probable at least;
Without such Aid vouchsaf'd, forbear who can,
To think that God had quite abandon'd Man.
If then consistently with what we know
Of God, and his Regard to Things below,
Such Kindness might be hop'd, tho' not of Right,
Should not such Hope our Pains and Zeal excite
To search whatever has a fair Pretence
For claiming its Original from thence.

'Tis true, intriguing Men have sometimes feign'd
To serve their Aims, and push some fav'rite End,
A secret Commerce with the Pow'r divine,
And thence drawn Weight t'accomplish their Design:
In diff'rent Ages, and in distant Parts,
Such Men have practis'd these delusive Arts,
Hero, and Statesman both; too well they knew
The Force of these to gain their Point in view;
Believing Crouds their Dictates press'd to hear,
And what they heard, as Oracles, revere.

This then, 'tis own'd, should teach us to beware,
And in our Search employ the strictest Care;
But, since from these successful Frauds we see
How easily receiv'd those Notions be,
That God by Revelation might convey
New Lights to guide us, and direct our Way,
Shall we from thence, before we search, disclaim
Whatever bears that Character and Name?
Or not believe that, which on search we find
Maintain'd by Proofs the strongest in their Kind,
Such as have satisfy'd in ev'ry View
Men of the keenest Sense and Judgment too,
Such as the deepest Artists in Dispute
Could never weaken yet, much less confute.

If we return, and carefully survey
The Means by which those Fictions made their Way,
Won the Assent of Crouds, and sometimes spread
Beyond the Countries where they first were bred,
Little appears t'have gain'd them Faith besides
The Word and Credit of those artful Guides,
The very Persons, who contriv'd those Schemes,
To help their Policy, or private Aims:

And can the sober Mind for this reject,
Or, for no other Reason, ev'n suspect
What brings, in Proof and Matter, ev'ry Sign,
Each wondrous Character of Truth divine?

No one can say, but God in Mercy might
Have sent us Guides instructed by his Light
To teach us what we were at first, and whence
So happy then, so blind and wretched since,
How to retrieve our Loss, and what expect,
If such a gracious Message we neglect:
Supposing this, let us reflect and try
Upon what Proofs we safely might rely,
That the Instructions, which they taught abroad
Were not Man's Dictates, but the Will of God.
No doubt we might expect the Hand of Heav'n,
Whence they affirm'd their solemn Pow'rs were giv'n,
Should by Effects attend them in the Course
Of their Commission, and their Charge enforce,
Be ready with its wondrous Signs to seal
The Truth of what, they as from thence reveal;
Such Evidence might justly be requir'd,
Before we deem them sacred and inspir'd;

If then at their Appeals to Heav'n addrest
T'assert their Doctrine, and its Truth attest,
A Pow'r unseen controuling Nature's Laws
Strait interpos'd, and vouch'd their pleaded Cause,
Work'd Wonders by their Hands of various Kind,
And of such Sort, as cannot be assign'd
To any Pow'r but his, whom Earth, and Sea,
The Air, and all the starry Host obey,
This surely must beyond all Question prove
Their Mission, and their Doctrines from Above;
What greater Evidence could God ev'n give,
Or we, for our Belief, than this, receive?

But is it so? does it in Fact appear
That Persons of this sacred Character
By Heav'n selected, authoriz'd, and taught,
Have to the World such gracious Message brought?
Did the same Pow'r, in whose most awful Name,
They solemnly asserted, that they came,
By Signs peculiar to itself alone
Attest their Message, and Commission own?
These Queries, Cœlius, are the chief and main,
On which depends the Cause, that we maintain;

These fully clear'd, what can remain behind
To stagger, or suspend th'attentive Mind?

That Jesus (whom the Christian World believe
Did such Commission from Above receive)
Assum'd this Office, and to Heav'n appeal'd
In witness of the Truths, which He reveal'd,
Nay further, in support of what He taught
Variety of signal Wonders wrought,
Is questionless; the Pagan and the Jew
Uniting here acknowledg'd this as true:
But that those Wonders were of Pow'r divine,
And of his Mission an undoubted Sign,
They both deny, and other Causes frame
From whence they urge his signal Actions came;
These chiefly, or than these no higher Source,
Infernal Agency, or Magic Force.

With Meekness, Cœlius, such as breathes thro'out
His Answers to each Calumny, or Doubt,
Let us repel these Slanders, be their Rise
From Rancour, Blindness, Pride, or Prejudice;
Still let our Zeal with Pity temper'd move
Within the Bounds of Charity and Love.

Suppose, what He perform'd, each wondrous Deed
Could from a Pow'r less than divine proceed,
Can it by Men of serious Sense be thought
That by malignant Spirits they were wrought?
What? when those very Miracles in Aid
Of Mens Distresses chiefly were display'd,
Acts of the greatest Charity and Grace
Apply'd in ev'ry piteous painful Case!
Could Wonders of such gen'rous, noble Kind
Come from an evil and malicious Mind?
From Pow'rs, whom in their Nature we suppose
To Acts of Love and Goodness utter Foes?
Besides, if we consider well the Ends,
To which his Doctrine principally tends,
Were they not plainly these, to triumph o'er
The Works of Darkness, which prevail'd before,
To root out Superstition, and reduce
Corrupt Religion to its pristine Use,
The Worship of the one true God, and show
Mistaken Man the Paths of Bliss and Woe?
What then can we imagine more absurd
Than that such Agents should their Help afford

To gain from Men Attention, Faith, and Fame
To Doctrine of such Tendency and Aim?

Well—be it, that such Wonders could not owe
Their Rise to evil Spirits, do we know
He could not by some secret, curious Art
Such Wonders to the vulgar Sight impart?

That Things surprizing might be done, 'tis own'd,
By those, who Nature's Depths unwearied sound,
Who trace her in her Mazes, and descry
Those Secrets, which escape th'incurious Eye:
Great are her hidden Pow'rs, when Art directs,
Compounds, or severs them, to work Effects.
But still whatever wondrous Feats may rise
From Skill in Nature's pow'rful Energies,
Who knows not, that some gen'ral Laws prevail,
'Gainst which all Art and Subtilty must fail?
Laws, which no Force can alter or suspend
But His, who form'd them for their proper End,
His only, or their Agency at least
Who far above the Rank of Man are plac'd,
Who next to God in Dignity and State
Attend his Will, and on his Pleasure wait?

Now if the Miracles, which Jesus show'd
In witness of the Truths by Him avow'd,
Were such, as did not only not depend
On Nature's Pow'rs, but all her Pow'rs transcend,
Quite break that Order, which has held the same
Since Things began in this establish'd Frame,
The Pow'r, by which those Miracles were done,
Must be most certainly from Heav'n alone;
And if from thence, must not his Doctrines too
Claim the same Rise, and, as divine, be true?

These Wonders let us then survey with Care,
How they were wrought, observe, and what they were.

No Means from Art, or Nature's Pow'rs explor'd
Did in these signal Acts their Aids afford;
Without such Help, strait, in a Moment wrought
They struck the gazing Eye and wond'ring Thought:
Nought but a Touch preceeding them appear'd,
Or else a Word pronounc'd, or Pray'r preferr'd.
These were the only Methods, which He us'd,
How vain! had Heav'n to interpose refus'd;

Could Means like these without celestial Aid
Have work'd such Wonders, and such Pow'r display'd?

Here from their Couches bended Cripples sprung
With Limbs now upright, and each Sinew strong;
There Lepers of distain'd and pallid Hue
The ruddy Bloom of Health assum'd anew;
Here joyless Mutes their long deep Silence broke,
And, their Tongues loos'd, in ready Accents spoke:
There too the mournful Blind restor'd to Sight,
Look'd up to Heav'n, and hail'd the blessed Light.
Know we the Plague, the Malady, the Ill,
But what at once submitted to his Will?
Now burning Fevers leave the boiling Blood,
And Dropsies cease to pour the watry Flood,
Now frantic Lunacies distract no more,
And Demons fly the Wretch they vex'd before;
Ev'n from his Garments Virtue flows around,
Raises the Sick, and heals the bleeding Wound.

By labour'd Process Art with Nature's Force
Its Purpose works, and gradual takes its Course,
We view th'Effects, and searching Nature's Laws
Find those Effects proportion'd to their Cause;

But instantaneous here produc'd we find
Effects the most stupendous in their Kind;
Must they not therefore from a Source have rose,
Of quicker Pow'r, and mightier far than those,
And is it possible we can assign,
Or think of ought but one, and that divine?

See Thousands here from Two small Fishes fed,
These only with Five Loaves the Table spread,
Fed to the full they saw in Fragments more
Than what at first compos'd that little Store.

There see Him walking on the rugged Main
Forc'd to receive his Laws, and Weight sustain;
Hush'd at his Word the hideous Tempests cease,
And warring Billows sink in silent Peace.

There see Him o'er the Dead with Hand and Eye
Uplifted to the Throne of God on high!
Lo! He prevails, and in a Moment now
The putrid Blood begins afresh to flow;
Restor'd to Sense and Soundness ev'ry Part
Receives the vital Fluid from the Heart;

Up they arise to joyous Life, and leave
This, the sad Bier, and that, the loathsome Grave.

If further Proofs than these we yet demand
That Jesus acted by divine Command,
Tho' sure it is not possible, but these
Must give the serious Searcher perfect Ease,
Let his Predictions of Events unite
Their Force to these, and lend their proper Weight.

Things future, which from God's high Purpose flow,
Or other Causes acting here below,
Above the Reach of finite Knowledge lye,
And all our curious, prying Pains defy;
In Time's dark Womb conceal'd they wait for Birth,
Still Secrets, till mature they issue forth,
Unless reveal'd by Him, who all Things sees,
And makes them Means to serve his just Decrees:
Beyond mere Guess the wisest never went,
And here they own their Labours vainly spent:
True Prophecy must then from God descend,
By Him imparted for some weighty End,
And may not this be justly deem'd as such
T'assert his Message, and his Truth avouch,

To give our Faith more firm and ample Ground,
Its Strength still greater, as its Proofs abound.

With ev'ry noted Circumstance behold
His Death and Suff'rings by Himself foretold!
His Resurrection and Ascent on high
Triumphant o'er Hell's boundless Tyranny!
The mighty Change that would from thence ensue,
The World his Vot'ries, whom it scorn'd and slew!
The utter and irreparable Fall
Of Salem's Temple, Palaces, and Wall,
The People's direful and disastrous Woes,
From Faction, Famine, Plague, and bloody Foes,
The wide Dispersion of the wretched Few,
That should survive the Ills, their Country knew,
From Clime to Clime thro' hated Nations hurl'd,
The Scorn and Mock'ry of the Gentile World!
Could such Events, unless reveal'd, be known
To any but to God himself alone?
If not—the Person, who (in Proof that God
Had sent him to declare his Will abroad)
Foretold these Things, must doubtless be receiv'd
As his true Delegate, and be believ'd.

But are we sure these very Proofs were giv'n
By Jesus, to avouch his Charge from Heav'n?
Have we such Grounds of Faith in this respect,
As no impartial Searcher can reject?
In Books of ancient Date, 'tis true indeed,
Such wondrous Things to Him ascrib'd we read;
But can we on those Monuments depend?
Will they suffice for this important End?
These Questions, Cœlius, must be solv'd before
We further search the Message, which He bore,
E're we extend our Views beyond the Grave,
And in our Thoughts these falling Mansions leave,
E're we contemplate those celestial Joys,
Those Scenes of endless Bliss, which He displays:
Upwards together then we'll soar on high,
And view those Scenes with Faith's exalted Eye,
Expatiate in the Prospect unconfin'd,
And look with Scorn on what we leave behind.

THE THIRD EPISTLE.

If e'er the Truth of Facts affirm'd as done
In Ages past may be discern'd and known,
If Grounds and Evidence of ev'ry Sort
Can be for such Belief a firm Support,
No free and fair Examiner will doubt
The Facts affirm'd to be by Jesus wrought.

The Books, wherein attested they appear,
Are granted to be theirs, whose Names they bear,
Persons, who liv'd upon the very Spot,
Both where and when He liv'd, of whom they wrote,

Some, who in Converse with Him spent whole Years,
Shar'd in his Labours, and partook his Cares;
The rest, if not Associates of his own,
Yet to the other intimately known:
This the great Infidels of old allow,
Nor will their Successors dispute it now.
We cannot then, 'tis plain, object to them,
What yet we may to Some in high Esteem,
That their Accounts of Things reach'd too remote,
Too far beyond the Times, wherein they wrote,
And therefore on Report too much rely'd
To pass for Truths, in which we may confide:
These could not be deceiv'd, nor could but know
Whether what they record was true or no;
And if these Miracles were never done,
They must be wilful Fictions of their own:
But can it possibly be thought, that Men,
Not mad, such Facts so circumstanc'd would feign,
Both feign and publish in the Country, where
The Falshood would most certainly appear,
Where Thousands might their Confidence oppose,
Confute the Story, and the Cheat disclose?
At least then we must grant, that These may claim,
If not more Faith and Credit, yet the same,

That any Authors, in th'Accounts they give
Of ancient Facts can merit to receive.

But Grounds and Motives more, and stronger yet
Remain to give their Testimony Weight,
Such as, when heard with Care and Freedom must
Convince the Mind, and banish all Mistrust.

Is there innate in Man a Principle
More deeply rooted than the Dread of Ill?
Of Ill in any Shape, but mostly what
With Violence destroys his present State?
The Cause must be uncommon, that controuls
This strong Aversion, and its Force o'er-rules.
If Persons therefore sound in Sense and Mind
Have triumph'd over Ills of ev'ry Kind,
Esteem'd the Loss of worldly Goods as Gain,
And freely barter'd Ease for Toil and Pain,
Despis'd the bloody Threats of lawless Pow'r,
Nay, smil'd at Torments and the mortal Hour,
Where after all our Searches shall we find
The Ground of this surprizing Strength of Mind?
Where but in Truth and Virtue, with a View
To something great and glorious to ensue?

On what Foundation else upheld could stand
Such Patience, Fortitude, and Self-Command?

That such were those who wrote and testify'd
The Acts of Jesus, cannot be deny'd;
With Boldness unexampled they declar'd,
That what they taught of Him they saw and heard;
Tho' Dungeons, Bonds, and Racks oppos'd their Way,
They still went on without the least Dismay;
This they maintain'd; and courted in this Cause
Each Peril, which the rest of Mankind awes;
Death in his grimmest Form not only fac'd,
But as a Friend with joyous Arms embrac'd.

Could stronger Proofs than these be giv'n by Man?
Tell me, ye Sceptics! tell me, if you can;
And would you have us doubt, if not believe
Their Purpose after all was to deceive?
Deceive! for what? something they must intend
By such Deceit; but what could be their End?
Not Riches, Pomp, Authority, or Fame,
These certainly could never be their Aim;
Their Doctrines, Manners, Actions all combine
To show them far from such a vain Design;

Instead of Views like these, Want and Disgrace
With ev'ry Evil star'd them in the Face,
Still met and menac'd them where'er they came,
And bore their Master's Message, and His Name.
Whence then could such unshaken Firmness rise
When such a Prospect lay before their Eyes?
Whence but from Hearts with pow'rful Truth sustain'd,
And Hopes of somewhat future to be gain'd?
Not gilded, glitt'ring short-liv'd Bubbles here,
But lasting Glories in a higher Sphere.
That they were acted thus Themselves profess,
Nor do the very Things declare it less,
Absurd must be the Thought, that would suggest,
That other Motives sway'd within their Breast.

If then we had no other Grounds, whereon
We might depend and rest but this alone,
Such signal Testimony could not fail
With ev'ry Mind unbiass'd to prevail.

But that our Faith in such a weighty Case
Might rest supported on the firmest Base,
By Heav'n confirm'd behold their faithful Word,
Both what they taught, and left upon Record!

Such mighty Signs, which they declare and say
They saw their Master openly display,
The same in Kind, if some not greater still,
They were empower'd to execute at Will:
Where'er throughout the World dispers'd they came,
These they perform'd, and acted in his Name;
By These assert his Mission from Above,
And all the Wonders of his Pow'r and Love,
By These confirm the Witness which they gave
Of his illustrious Triumph o'er the Grave,
Of his Ascent to Heav'n, and Glories there,
The Purchase of his Death and Patience here.

But have we other Proof of this beside
Their own Account whereon we may confide?
Or do we on their Word alone rely,
That Heav'n thus seal'd their Witness from on high?
Suppose the latter—what could we object
To make the wariest Breast their Word suspect?
If from their Evidence we could be sure,
That Jesus wrought such wondrous Works of Pow'r,
May we not on their Word depend as much,
That they by Aids from Heav'n deriv'd wrought such?

If by the one it were a wild Conceit
To think they meant to propagate a Cheat,
How by the other can we apprehend,
They aim'd at this, or could such Fraud intend?

Review their Writings, see! how they refer
To Countries, Cities, Towns, about and near,
To these appeal, as where in open Day,
They did these wonderful Effects display,
Where Multitudes beheld them, and became
Their Converts, and assum'd the Christian Name.
If this was Fiction all, and mere Pretence,
Could it have 'scap'd ev'n Men of vulgar Sense?
How then, the Curious, when at first withstood
These Authors rose, and publish'd it abroad?
Detected, censur'd it must soon have lost
All Credit, and the whole Design been crost,
Deep-branding Infamy, as justly due,
Had quash'd the Forg'ry and the Forgers too.

Before Tribunals where presiding sate
The sternest Rigour, and the fellest Hate,
Fearless they stood, and all Attempts defy'd
To fix one Proof of Falshood on their Side;

Thousands were ready to support their Plea,
As fearless, firm, and resolute as they,
Whose Eyes those signal Wonders had beheld,
To which the other in their Cause appeal'd,
Alike ambitious in a Cause so good
To seal their Testimony with their Blood:
Thus Opposition fell before them still,
Tho' arm'd with ev'ry Terror, ev'ry Ill;
That fierce Malignity, and Rage, they met,
Serv'd but to spread their Triumphs wider yet,
'Till o'er the then known World the Victors past
And distant Nations own'd their Lord at last.

If we consider justly, as we ought,
With what surprizing Speed this Change was wrought,
A Change of such Extent, and Nature too,
Mankind in Faith, and Manners form'd anew!
Th'Effect itself must lead us to assign
The real Cause, and point to Pow'r divine.

Can it be thought, a few poor lab'ring Men,
Obscure in Life, and quite unknown till then,
Rude, simple, and unskill'd in ev'ry Art
To move th'Affections, and to win the Heart,

Should in a Work of such stupendous Sort
Succeed, unaided with Divine Support?
Account for this, ye Infidels! and show
How this Effect from such a Cause could flow:
But not to make the Task so hard, suppose
Them Men of diff'rent Character from those,
Persons of Elocution and Address,
And for the deepest Learning fam'd no less,
Nay further to increase their Weight, to these
Add Birth and Fortune, and what else you please,
All the Accomplishments and Gifts, that raise
Our Veneration, and demand our Praise,
Yet that with these Advantages alone
They could accomplish such a Change so soon,
Can never be conceiv'd by those, that know
Ought of Mankind, and what occurs below.
What are the Things more hardly overcome,
More hardly forc'd to yield, and quit their Room,
Than Usages by long Prescription fixt,
By Laws upheld, and with Religion mixt?
Than Notions from our Ancestors convey'd,
By Time confirm'd, and venerable made?
Spite of Persuasion rooted they remain,
And Art and Reason both contend in vain,

In vain attempt with all their Force combin'd
To drive such Prepossessions from the Mind.

If superstitious Errors of old Date
Blended with Policy, and Schemes of State,
Could by such Means as these have been remov'd,
Thy Lessons, Socrates! had prosp'rous prov'd,
Athens reform'd the one true God had known,
And pull'd her glitt'ring Idols from their Throne,
Renounc'd her senseless Rites, and in their stead
A Worship somewhat worthy Heav'n had paid;
But ineffectual strove thy studious Care
Against so long-establish'd Falshoods there;
Thy Disappointment in that glorious Cause
Which but to undertake deserves Applause,
Is Proof, that more than Man his Aid must join
To give Success to such a great Design.

With such Assistance we may well conceive,
Th'Apostles might this arduous Work atchieve,
Traverse the various World, and where they go,
The Force of Vice and Custom overthrow,
Convert whole Nations in so short a Time,
And plant the Chrstian Faith in ev'ry Clime:

But who, that weighs the Obstacles, that lay
So strong against them, and oppos'd their Way,
Can think, that this could possibly be done
By any Means or Pow'r of Man alone.

Without that Gift of Tongues of divers Kind,
Which Heav'n they say imparted to their Mind,
Could they have publish'd to the World and taught
Th'important Message, which their Master brought?
As various as the Realms they travers'd o'er,
From India to the wide Atlantic Shore,
With diff'rent Languages they met, and these
Th'Event demonstrates, that they spoke with Ease.
By Study, Art, and Converse, who will say,
They gain'd this Knowledge in a common Way?
Their Education, Manner, private State
All show th'Absurdity of such Conceit:
To what but Inspiration then divine
Shall we this wondrous Pow'r of Speech assign?

Review th'Account of this, that which they give,
And see what Proofs we can from thence derive.
They tell the very Place, the Day, the Hour,
Both where and when they first receiv'd this Pow'r,

What at that Instant with Surprize they heard,
And what as awful to their Sight appear'd:

“A Sound like that of rushing mighty Winds
Sudden and all at once from Heav'n descends,
And fills the Place, where join'd in mutual Love,
They wait the gracious Promise from above;
Upon the Head of each a Flame of Fire
Sits glowing, and extends a double Spire
In form like cloven Tongues, (how fit to show
The great Effect, that was from thence to flow!)
Immediately they feel within their Breast
New Light infus'd, new Influence imprest,
And from their Tongues in various Accents broke
Each diff'rent Dialect, which the World then spoke;
Fame soon proclaim'd this Prodigy aloud,
And Multitudes alarm'd about them croud,
Some who from ev'ry Nation o'er the Earth
Had settled there, and left their Place of Birth,
Natives of Asia's wide extended Lands,
And Countries bord'ring on the Libyan Strands,
With European Strangers, these, say they,
Were present at the Wonders of that Day;

Each in his proper Language with Amaze
Heard them explain God's glorious Will and Ways,
And Thousands, e're went down that Ev'ning Sun,
Hence own'd their Lord, and to the Faith were won.”

Nor was this Gift so signal in its Kind,
So very wonderful, to them confin'd,
Thro Prayer and Blessing in their Master's Name,
By them conferr'd their Converts shar'd the same,
Spoke as they did, and understood no less
The various Tongues, which human Thought express.
If these Relations made and publish'd soon
After the Time, 'tis said, all this was done,
Were false and feign'd, what little Pains and Care
Might then have made the Falsity appear!
A fair Appeal to those, that yet surviv'd,
And at the Place, and in the Instant liv'd
Of these pretended Facts, had show'd the Fraud,
Quite stop'd its Progress and Success abroad;
Silenc'd with Infamy it must have dy'd,
Nor left one bold Abettor on its Side.
Nor Art nor Zeal were wanting in their Foes
To search, examine, censure, and oppose,

These were exerted to the full w'are sure,
With Threat'nings mix'd, and back'd with cruel Pow'r;
Yet vain were all their vigorous Attacks
To shake the Credit of these wond'rous Facts;
The stricter they were search'd, still the more clear,
More strong and piercing did their Truth appear,
'Till Opposition wearied out quite ceast,
Or reconcil'd confess'd the Truth at last.

Next to th'Apostles Writings let us see
What others say, and how with them agree.

Down from the Age, wherein the Former wrote,
We want not Authors of conspicuous Note,
Successive in their Times, to vindicate
The Truth of these great Things, which those relate,
Some, or Eye-witnesses of these, or who
Had else convers'd with them that had been so;
Others in Time not so remotely plac'd,
But that they might their Certainty have trac'd:
These they assert as Facts confirm'd and own'd,
And to the World for Proof appeal around,
To these ascribe that Prevalence and Force,
With which the Gospel triumph'd in its Course,

To these that strong Conviction, which abode
Such fiery Tryals, and unshaken stood,
Which in so many Martyrs overcame
All Fears of Death, and brav'd the threat'ning Flame.

Nor ceas'd immediately that mighty Pow'r,
By which th'Apostles wrought such Signs before;
For further Confirmation Heav'n thought fit
In After-ages to continue it:
Display'd in Deeds as marvellous as those
It still upheld the Faith, and check'd its Foes:
This publicly they vouch, and in Defence
Call in the strongest Evidence of Sense,
The Sight of Thousands, who in open Day
Beheld those Miracles, as well as they,
Nor with their Pen alone, and strenuous Page
Did these Defenders in this Cause engage;
Their Lives, and Fortunes, all they counted dear
Knowing they risqu'd, yet knew nor Dread nor Fear,
Proud rather with the Loss of all to gain
More credit to the Facts, which they maintain.

Thus Christianity attested spread
Around the Earth with most surprizing Speed,

As wond'rous in the Progress, which it made,
As in those signal Proofs by Heaven display'd:
O'er ev'ry Obstacle it urg'd its Way,
And triumph'd most, where most Resistance lay.

These are the Grounds, some of the first and chief,
On which we rest secure in our Belief,
Such as the nicest Scrutiny will bear,
And answer ev'ry Scruple, Doubt, and Fear;
The deeper search'd, the greater is their Weight,
Not weaken'd, but confirm'd by free Debate:
'Tis Falshood's Interest to lye conceal'd,
But Truth's in ev'ry Light to be beheld.

If then each wond'rous Sign, each mighty Deed
Ascrib'd to Jesus did from Heav'n proceed,
Th'Effect of Pow'r divine to evidence
His Mission and Authority from thence;
If his Disciples after in their Course
By Aids imparted from the same high Source
Perform'd such Wonders, as their Lord had done,
And thence confirm'd his Message, and their own,
The Doctrines, which he taught, and they from Him,
We must as Truths from God himself esteem,

A surer Consequence than this the Mind
In all her strict Enquiries cannot find;
He that will question this, may yet go on,
And say there's nothing clearly to be known,
That all our Reas'ning Pow'rs are quite too short
To come at Certainty of any Sort.

These Doctrines let us then attentive weigh,
And see what Light and Knowledge they convey,
What Benefits Mankind from thence derive,
And what clear Views of future Bliss they give.

By Them we learn, that all the Ills of Man
Created happy first from Sin began;
Hence Death, and those dire Waiters in his Train,
Care, Sorrow, Sickness, and tormenting Pain;
Hence those Disorders, which the Soul annoy,
And all her inward Peace and Calm destroy,
Vain restless Appetites, and Lusts impure,
With frantic Passions, which no Curb endure;
Hence to those Clouds, which intercepting rise,
And break the Force of Reason's searching Eyes,
Which hide, what else might yield her full Delight,
The Charms of Truth and Wisdom from her Sight.

By Them we learn, that propagated down
This direful Mischief spread from Sire to Son,
That, once our Nature tainted, none could be
Of the whole Race from this Corruption free,
And, if corrupted, then of Course were all
Involv'd in all the Effects of that first Fall,
To Wrath alike devoted, during Wrath!
Not temp'ral only, but eternal Death!

By Them we learn, that God with pitying Eye
Beheld Man's sad Condition from on high,
Not only pity'd, but of boundless Grace
Decreed to help him in that desp'rate Case,
Yet so, as might consistently agree
Both with his Justice, and his Purity.

That to this End he sent from Heav'n his Son,
His only Son, and Partner of his Throne,
The Image of his Person full exprest,
With all his excellent Perfections blest,
Begot e're Time began, by whom he made
Heav'n, Earth, and all his Pow'r in both display'd.

That no less Advocate than This alone
Could save Mankind, and all their Guilt atone,
No less regain them by his Prevalence
God's Love and Favour lost by their Offence,
Nor He, unless first humbled He assume
Our mortal Nature, and supply our Room,
Bow to the Stroke of Justice in our Stead,
And guiltless, for the Guilty dying bleed.

That ransom'd by this Debt to Justice paid,
And by his full Obedience righteous made
Through Faith, that works by Love, we triumph o'er
Those Ills, to which we were accurst before;
And as our great Deliv'rer burst the Chain
Of Death and Hell, and rose to Life again,
Ascended to the Glories, whence He came,
And took our Nature with Him to the same,
So shall we follow, pass from Death to Life,
And rise victorious from the painful Strife,
Not with the Body yet, but with the Soul,
Whose Flight no Force nor Fetters will controul,
We shall before Him instantly appear,
And blest enjoy his Love and Presence there.

That when determin'd Years shall bring the Day,
Wherein this lower World shall pass away,
And He himself a second Time descend,
Not as at first, but for a diff'rent End,
As Judge with awful Pow'r appointed then
To fix the Doom of all the Sons of Men,
Our Bodies by the same effective Might,
That quicken'd his, shall rise again to Light,
From all Corruption freed, the Soul rejoin,
And fashion'd like his own in Glory shine;
Mansions in Heav'n adjudg'd to be our Seat,
And Joys our Bliss for present Thought too great:
Whilst by another, yet just Sentence, Those,
Who with such gracious Means refus'd to close,
Such Means of wond'rous Grace with Justice join'd
By God's deep Counsel to redeem Mankind!
To Regions, which no Light or Comfort know,
Shall be condemn'd, and suffer ceaseless Woe.

These are in Brief the Doctrines, that relate
To Man, his present and his future State,

Reveal'd in Person by the Son of God,
And by his Delegates proclaim'd abroad,
Then written left by their unerring Pen,
To serve the Good of all the Race of Men,
To teach, to warn them, and point out the Way,
That leads from endless Woe to endless Joy.

Now more at large these, Cœlius, let us view,
And give them, what they claim, Attention due,
The deepest, strongest of the studious Mind
When from the Body most by Thought disjoin'd.
How vastly far below these Subjects are
The Things which usually engage our Care!
How light, how trivial, when compar'd with these,
Ev'n such as strike us most, and chiefly please!
What else but specious Trifles at the best,
That lure and draw us from a nobler Quest,
From the Pursuit of Things most truly Great,
Of lasting Worth, and most substantial Weight?

Grateful to Thee, whose Mind esteems as mean
Mens busiest Cares in this low transient Scene,

Will be my Theme I know; and if, like thine,
My Genius could but answer this Design,
Others might read the Labours of thy Friend,
And find, if candid, something to commend.

THE FOURTH EPISTLE.

E're yet from Heav'n this Revelation came,
Before was known, or heard the Christian Name,
Men from the Things, which to their Sight appear'd,
Where'er they look'd, might justly have inferr'd,
Th'Existence of a Pow'r All-good, All-wise,
Who form'd the fruitful Earth, and lucid Skies,
Each florid Plant, each living Creature here,
And ev'ry sparkling Luminary there,
Nor were there wanting Some of old, 'tis true,
Who reason'd thus, and this just Inf'rence drew,

Who, from a close contemplative Survey
Of Nature, found to Nature's God the Way:
Yet such were rare; though clearly to be known
In all his Works his great Perfections shone.

Others were then so far from tracing these,
Men too of boasted Learning in their Days,
That some of them conceiv'd, and gravely taught
That Heav'n and Earth without Design were wrought,
That Matter loose at first by Chance combin'd,
And gave the whole that Order, which we find:
Whilst others thought this universal Frame
Was ever, always, as it is, the same,
Without Beginning, therefore could not be
Th'Effect of Counsel and free Agency.

Other Opinions, and like these absurd,
On this high Subject ancient Books record,
Wherein the great Creator is deny'd,
Or else o'erlook'd, or partly laid aside.
Nay ev'n of those, who own'd Him, and confess'd
His boundless Pow'r and Wisdom deep impress'd
On ev'ry Part of various Nature, Few
Held to these Principles and Notions, true;

Mindless of his Perfections oft they err'd,
And Honours due to Him elsewhere transfer'd;
Mortals deceas'd, for Arts or Arms by Fame
Above the Vulgar rais'd, their Gods became;
To these they bow'd with Adoration low,
To these address'd their Pray'rs and solemn Vow:
So far the Graver with the Croud comply'd,
From Truth by slavish Custom led aside.

But who can read or hear without Amaze
Th'establish'd common Errors of those Days?
What num'rous idle Fictions were conceiv'd?
And what Absurdities for Truths believ'd?
What Rites, what Mysteries from thence ensu'd?
How cruel some, and some how base and lewd?
Worthy indeed of them, to whom they paid
That Worship, and those constant Off'rings made,
Thieves, Strumpets, Tyrants, deify'd, and Beasts!
These shar'd their Victims, and their sumptuous Feasts:
Acts of Religion in its solemn Guise
Were then but Acts of foul and shocking Vice,
By which the World more savage grew, and vile,
More bent to Lewdness, Rapine, Fraud, and Guile.

Such was the State in gen'ral of Mankind,
No less corrupt than ignorant and blind,
Most ignorant in Things of greatest Weight,
And which concern'd them most to know aright,
The Nature of the one true God supreme,
And of that Worship, He had Right to claim;
Man's happy State at first, and how from thence
He fell degen'rate, and how wretched since;
The Means to expiate the Guilt of Sin,
Appease God's Anger, and his Favour win;
Th'Assurance of another Life, and what
The real Nature of that future State,
What mighty Difference would then be made
In Bliss and Woe between the Good and Bad.

Of these important Truths the wisest Men
Had but at best imperfect Notions then;
Some, dark and intricate, with Fiction mixt,
Some plausible, yet varying and unfixt,
No better than Conjectures, nothing sure,
On which the Mind might rest itself secure.
Beyond the Reach of Reason's feeble Light
These arduous Points lay hid, and out of Sight,

And from the World must still have lain conceal'd,
Had they not been by Grace divine reveal'd;
Inestimable Grace! whence we derive
Such Knowledge, and such Benefit receive,
Discov'ries! that such wondrous Love display,
And to immortal Bliss direct our Way.

What are the Things, that can with these contend
Or in their Worth, or Tendency and End,
To challenge our Attention, and employ
The thinking Faculties, which we enjoy?
If what imports us most must be allow'd
To be our principal and greatest Good,
And if, as such, our chief Regard should claim,
Should still be first in all our Care and Aim,
This Preference the sacred Truths contain'd
In these Discoveries to Man demand.

In what conspicuous Light and Lustre here
Do the divine Perfections now appear!
His Goodness, Love, and Mercy, and no less
His Wisdom, Justice, Truth, and Holiness!
What Wonders in the Heav'ns, or Earth below
His glorious Attributes so strongly show

As that of our Redemption? here they join
In one great Splendor, and resistless shine;
Struck with their lovely Influence and Pow'r,
Willing we bend before Him, and adore;
Delightful Worship! and to Heav'n how dear,
Which flows from Light, and Truth, and Love sincere!
How different from that, which slavish Dread
And Blindness join'd with Superstition bred!
Once more review past Times, and, if you can,
Forbear to mourn the abject State of Man;
There see him bend, or groveling lye and prone
Before his own wrought Works in Wood and Stone!
Idols of various Form, which represent
Some, Beings vindictive, and to Mischief bent,
Some, Men once living like himself, some, Brutes,
Some, crawling Worms, some common Garden Fruits;
Prostration shameful! who at first would think,
That Reason thus degenerate could sink?

Stood we not then in Need of heav'nly Light
To chase that Gloom and Darkness from our Sight?
What less than this by Mercy shed abroad
Could guide us to the one true living God?

How amiable! how worthy now, since known,
To be address'd, rever'd, ador'd alone!

Nor stood we less in Need of Light divine,
To see and know the Heinousness of Sin;
To God how hateful; whence it first began;
What dire Effects it soon entail'd on Man;
And still what more and worse might thence ensue
Without Attonement made, to Justice, due.

That Vice is odious in itself, and base,
Was taught before the Days of Light and Grace;
Sages of old, 'tis true, without such Aid
This Truth discern'd and clearly too display'd;
But what avail'd it? did it gain its End?
Check the Corruption, and the Heart amend?
Ah! no, the foul Disorder still prevail'd,
And all their Reas'nings to subdue it fail'd:
Nor wonder here, when vicious Men could plead
Th'Example of their Gods for what they did,
Their first Rate Gods, and thence could justify
Lust, Rapine, Fraud, Revenge, and Cruelty.
But now to us, how different by far
From what it seem'd to Them, does Sin appear!

How much more heinous, as repugnant known
To God, whose spotless Purity we own!
How much more heinous, as we rate its Guilt
By that dear Blood for its Attonement spilt!
The only Means that could reverse the Doom
Denounc'd against it, Death and Wrath to come.

As early as his Days first Sire of Men,
Whose Disobedience wrought this direful Bane,
The Blood of Beasts in Sacrifice was shed,
And thence in future Times this Custom spread;
What else but Types at first by God design'd
Of that great Victim to redeem Mankind?
But more and more corrupt the World lost soon
The true Account of Things thus early done,
Or mix'd them so with Fictions of their own
That their first Grounds at length were quite unknown:
Nor less through Pravity of Heart and Mind
Their Notions of the one true God declin'd,
'Till worse and worse perverted they became
Unworthy of his Nature and his Name,
Scarce worthy of his Creatures, which in Time
Were fondly deify'd in ev'ry Clime;

These then, instead of Him, the Vow receiv'd
For Ill to be repell'd, and Good deriv'd;
To these the Altar rais'd sweet-fuming stood,
To these the harmless Victim pour'd his Blood;
Vain Worship! base Revolt! how weak, how blind
Self-left are all the Pow'rs of human Mind!

To Revelation then it is we owe
The happy Days of Truth and Knowledge now;
Happy! if we improve them, and embrace
The Benefits of this All-bounteous Grace,
If rescu'd out of Darkness we submit
To the Directions of this heav'nly Light.

What long before by Some was disbeliev'd,
Or else by Others doubtfully receiv'd,
The Doctrine of the Soul's immortal State
And Triumph o'er the common Stroke of Fate,
By this is fully clear'd, and made a chief
And leading Article of our Belief.
The Doubts and Jealousies, which then possest
The Minds of Men, the wisest and the best,
Are now no more; on other Grounds than those,
On which they argu'd, we our Faith repose;

Not on Conclusions drawn from Things obscure,
Or Things uncertain, or at best not sure,
But with new Light from Heav'n imparted blest
On God's unerring Word and Truth we rest.
Hence full assur'd, that Death but shifts the Scene,
The present to a future yet unseen,
Beyond the Bounds of this by Faith we range
And apprehend as seen the coming Change,
The Soul's Enlargement from its Fetters here,
Its Flight above, its State and Freedom there;
A Paradise of Rest its Seat, th'Abode
Of Him, who ransom'd it, the Son of God.

But further yet the Sight of Faith extends,
Ev'n where the present Course of Nature Ends,
Reaches that distant Scene, and there descries
Our Saviour coming through the op'ning Skies,
His coming to dissolve this Heav'n and Earth,
And from their Ruins raise a nobler Birth,
New Heav'ns, new Earth for better Days design'd,
For Pleasures more exalted and refin'd,
Where Righteousness shall reign in Love and Peace,
And ev'ry Evil, ev'ry Trouble cease.

Lo! with what Majesty He comes array'd!
The Father's Glory in the Son display'd!
Attending Angels his Descent proclaim,
Before Him bow, and sound his sacred Name;
Their Trumps celestial rend Earth, Sea, and Air,
And spread with ev'ry Blast a gen'ral Fear;
Yet e're the destin'd Fire begins to seize
The Face of Nature with its rapid Blaze,
And all her Works confound; the Dead shall hear
His quick'ning Voice, and issuing forth appear.
Where'er conceal'd their scatter'd Atoms lay,
With Fluids mixt, or lock'd in harden'd Clay,
Collected thence they now unite again,
And re-assume the Form erect of Man:
But O! how vastly far surpassing that,
Which serv'd the Purpose of this mortal State!
Not Gross, not Carnal, but from these refin'd,
Pure, Incorruptive as th'impassive Mind,
Quick, pow'rful, glorious, and approaching near
In Likeness what our Lord himself shall wear:
In Bodies fashion'd thus, fit to receive
Her high exalted Pow'rs, the Soul shall live,

For ever live and triumph over Fate,
Their Union endless, and their Bliss compleat.

Nor less shall be the Change of such, as then
Remain alive of all the Sons of Men;
Their Mortal swallow'd up of Life shall shine
With equal Glory, and alike Divine,
Immortal in a Moment made like those,
Who from their various Graves awaken'd rose.
Together rescu'd from the gen'ral Dread
Throughout the World by Breath of Angels spread,
From rolling Conflagrations ready now
To break the present Course of Things below,
They both at once from Earth ascend, and join,
With Joy replete the bright celestial Train;
Before their Judge they stand, and on Record
In Volumes wrote their Names are now explor'd,
Their Faith, and Works of Faith unfeign'd are read,
Their Acts of Love, and ev'ry pious Deed;
Applauded then with Ravishment they hear
This Gracious Sentence sounding in their Ear,
Ye Blessed of my Father! come, receive
What He, since Time began, decreed to give,

A Share in all my blissful, glorious Reign;
Yours are the Joys, and Glories, which are mine.

Such, Cœlius, is the Prospect, which we have,
Of Dignity and Bliss beyond the Grave:
And can thy Mind, exalted as it is,
With all its Pow'rs frame ought so great as this?
What so inviting can our Wishes claim,
Urge our Endeavours, and direct our Aim?

Run o'er each tempting Object here below;
What are they all, when try'd, but splendid Show?
Of solid Worth devoid, illusive Things!
Whence Grief and Disappointment ever springs:
They promise fair at first, but ah! how soon
Is all the Good, they promis'd fled and gone!
Their shortliv'd Pleasures dwindle into Pain,
And what we lik'd creates at last Disdain.
This we ourselves in Part find to be true,
And daily hear confirm'd by others too;
But greater Evidence for this is none
Than He, who third fill'd Israel's favour'd Throne.
Of all the envy'd Joys of Life possest,
Which strike the Fancy and allure the Taste,

In these He gave his Appetites the Rein,
And what they crav'd they never crav'd in vain.
In regal Pomp and Grandeur He surpast
The mightiest Monarchs of the gorgeous East,
In Riches too unrivall'd, and in Fame
Outshining ev'ry celebrated Name;
But chiefly, and transcending all the rest,
With Knowledge and superior Wisdom blest,
He search'd delightful Nature's winding Maze,
Discern'd her Workings, and explain'd her Ways,
Her Ways in Man, and Beast, and ev'ry Birth,
That shoots in blooming Verdure from the Earth.
Thrice happy Prince! might we not here exclaim,
If Happiness is ought beside a Name,
If to be found through all this Scene below
In what we feel, and taste, and see, and know.
Yet hear what Sentence he himself at last
On all these high-esteem'd Enjoyments past:
He, whom a long Experience from his Youth
To Years mature had taught this serious Truth,
“All all is Vanity, deceitful Joys!
Vexation waits them, and our Peace destroys.”

Weigh then the mighty Difference between
That other State, and this vexatious Scene:
Think first what instantly we gain as soon
As Death has made our mortal Part his own;
Not only freed from Cumbrances impure,
And from unnumber'd Ills escap'd secure,
But to our Lord and Saviour call'd above,
And join'd with Saints in Bonds of sacred Love,
How must the Soul in such a Change as this
Exult, and own a Sense of real Bliss!
What but in Part, or darkly once she knew
Now fuller, brighter open to her View,
The wond'rous and delightful Ways of God,
In all his various Works display'd abroad;
Those of Creation, and his ruling Care
Directing all Events and Changes here;
But chiefly that profoundest Mystery,
Wherein united all the Treasures lye
Of Love and Knowledge, his stupendous Scheme
To save lost Man, and all his Loss redeem!
Who can conceive the Pleasures, that will flow
From what we then shall comprehend and know,

When to the Mind these Wonders shall appear
Without Disguise or Shade, unveil'd and clear,
When Wisdom, Goodness, Clemency divine
Shall in that brighter, purer Lustre shine.

In this blest State, and in his Presence too,
To whose unequall'd Love so much is due,
How joyously must pass the Years assign'd
To bring that other Period yet behind,
His second coming! when another Scene,
Another Life more glorious shall begin.

Lo! vanquish'd Death now yields up all his Prey,
Whether in Earth detain'd, or in the Sea;
Rescu'd from thence by a superior Pow'r
Our Bodies rise to be dissolv'd no more;
Divested of their passive, mortal State,
And fitted to endure an endless Date,
They now become, prepar'd throughout the whole,
Companions worthy of a Godlike Soul,
Helps to her Operations and her Joy,
What ever Objects shall her Pow'rs employ.

After this blessed Union think again
What Happiness and Glories still remain:
As Heirs of God, and with his Son joint Heirs
We have our Seats assign'd and destin'd Shares
In that celestial Kingdom, where the Light
Of the pure Shechinah shall fill our Sight,
The Majesty of God himself exprest
In shining Glories, which his Throne invest;
Glories, which shall not only then be seen,
But felt, and heighten all our Joys within!
Incircled with these Splendors, whilst the Mind,
In all her Pow'rs and Faculties refin'd,
Contemplates the sublimest Truths above,
And pierces ev'ry Mystery of Love,
Ranges the Universe, and traces there
The Wonders, that adorn each splendid Sphere,
The Pow'r and Wisdom, that contriv'd the Whole,
And bade them in their various Circuits roll,
What can we wish for more, what further want,
Which the divine Benignity can grant?

From these exhaustless Stores our Bliss will grow;
We must be happier still the more we know;

Each new Discov'ry cannot but excite
Fresh Admiration, and give new Delight,
Augment our Love and Gratitude, and raise
More Matter for continual Songs of Praise.
With Angels seated, and like them in Form,
What Transports must we feel! how quick! how warm!
When mixt with ours in Harmony divine,
Their Voice and lofty Numbers shall combine
To sing th'Almighty's Wonders, and extol
Him first and last, Him Sov'reign Lord of All.

Think yet once more, that Time shall ne'er destroy
These glorious Mansions of Delight and Joy;
Eternal in the Heav'ns they stand secure,
And all the Force of Age unchang'd endure;
In these for ever brighten'd by the Rays,
Which the divine Effulgency displays,
From Heights to Heights of Knowledge, Truth, and Love,
Still as we rise, our Pleasures will improve,
Increase by such Degrees as those ascend,
And, as the Scale is boundless, never end.

Well has thy Heart then, Cœlius, long ago
Learnt to withdraw itself from Things below,

To scorn their poor Pretensions, and disdain
What Fools call Pleasure here, what Madmen, Gain,
How wisely hast Thou made the Things above
The Objects of thy warmest Zeal and Love,
Thy chief unrival'd Aim, to which is bent
The Main of all thy Study and Intent!
Next to Possession are the Joys, that rise
From Contemplation of our heav'nly Prize,
Whilst to those blessed Seats by Faith we soar,
And search by Light from thence their blissful Store,
By Light from God himself vouchsaf'd so far
As human Sight and Intellect can bear!

If ought can sooth the Troubles, than infest
Our present State, and discompose our Rest,
Can mitigate the Force of Pain and Grief,
And in the dying Hours dispense Relief,
It is this glorious View; this only can,
When other Helps and Means are all in vain.
In Trials of the heaviest, sharpest Kind,
Which but to hear might shock a common Mind,
This has supported Thousands, and endu'd
With Patience, Constancy, and Fortitude,
Such as Philosophy could never teach,
Nor Boasters of the Stoic Wisdom reach,

Invincible, beyond Example great,
Exerted in their fullest, noblest Height.

Such Aid, such Comfort does this View impart,
When Hope well-grounded fills and cheers our Heart,
When, all Mistrust and Doubting cast aside,
In God's most gracious Promise we confide.
But oh! how wretched is the Case of Those,
Who never feel the Joys, these Scenes disclose,
Who, if they look beyond the Grave, see nought
But what disturbs and terrifies their Thought,
Far other Scenes, where Guilt, and Shame, and Woe,
And Anguish with Despair their Horrors show,
Abodes of Wrath, how justly their Reward,
That could such gen'rous Offers disregard,
Could slight such precious Love! Love, more than what
A Soul the most sublime can justly rate!
O base Ingratitude! but why should I,
My Cœlius! interrupt thy present Joy?
Why turn thy ravish'd Thoughts from heav'nly Bliss
To such a doleful, horrid Scene as this?
Though thou couldst find fit Matter here for Praise,
To bless th'Allwise, and vindicate his Ways.

Be then thy Thoughts directed still above
In Acts of Faith, of Gratitude, and Love,
There let them rise on Meditation's Plume
Uplifted, and their former Flights resume,
Foretasting the Rewards, that sure await
The Christian Saint in that immortal State,
In Prospect, how attractive! though but seen
As yet in Part through Mists, that intervene.
Let this awhile suffice thee; Time will soon
From Prospect to Possession lead thee on,
Quite change the Scene, and give thee to enjoy
Those glorious Seats, which now thy Thoughts employ.
How amply then will be rewarded there
Thy Christian Virtues, Fruits of Faith sincere,
Thy Temp'rance, Meekness, Humbleness of Mind,
Thy Charity with Truth and Patience join'd,
Virtues, that in his Life so brightly shone,
Whose Name we bear, whose Right as Lord we own,
Whose Steps, whose Light, and Spirit guide our Way
Through this dark Vale to everlasting Day!

FINIS.