contrary to Truth, or Christianity which is the fame thing; nor any to offend a good Chriftian: For if Men may be indulged in burlesquing the Bible without understanding it, affronting Christianity, and fneering at humble Addreffes in defence of it; why may not a Christian in his turn aim at expofing their Ignorance in their own Way, without giving Offence? I am forry there fhould be occafion to caft Mites into the Stock, when fo many have Talents to spare; but if they will wrap them up in Napkins, and bury them in the Earth, ought they not to be urged to bring them into the Treasury?

One Defign of this Pamphlet is to prefs fuch to use and improve their Talents, left they fhould be found unfaithful Stewards; if in doing this I have been a little too corrofive, your Lordship's known Candour prompts me to believe, you can, and will excufe an honeft Zeal, and diftinguish between that and perfonal Hatred, or Disrespect to any Man. The Things this Pamphlet relates to, will be found to be nearly as ancient as the Fundamentals of the World; to lie at the Root of Chriftianity and our Methods of Reasoning about it: Therefore, I humbly ask, whether a Plan of this Nature (founded on, and connecting Revelation and Nature) ought not to be impartially examined, adopted, or rejected? And whether we ought not to know, who are for God, and who for Baal? Whether Christianity or Heathenifm are to be hereafter the Religion of our Country? And whether it would not be a most eligible thing to fee the original Records of the Evidences for Chriftianity produced, and set in fuch a Light as to overcome every Objection of the thinking Mind: I will venture to fay, this is

poffible,

poffible, and Infidelity may be made to hide its monftrous Face without Force or Perfecution; but whether this can, or will be done while Men ftudy Claffic Learning instead of God's Word, and his Works; and, as the Refult of it, fubftitute and preach Morality inftead of Chriftianity; or, while they fill their Heads with Jewish Dreams and Heathen Fables inftead of Divine Truths, thofe I mean of Revelation aud the Natural World; or while Men, to be Orators, wafte their Time over Demofthenes, Cicero, &c. inftead of the Scriptures, I fhall leave to your Lordship to judge; as alfo whether all those Studies with respect to Christianity, be not of a piece with fending my Son to Conftantinople to learn Chriftianity, or to Portugal to make him a Proteftant. As the Providence of God has placed you in a very high and a very honourable Station, so I hope it is for the higheft, the most Honourable, and beft Purposes, and that the Grace of God will preserve you from tottering on, or falling from a Pinacle.

As your Lordship fills the highest Office in the Chriftian Church, fo you are able to do the most Good in it; and as you must be perfectly acquainted with, and a Judge of the Attacks made on Chriftianity of late by Perfons who profess it, but oppofe and wound it; I thought it my Duty to fay thus much, with the frongest Confidence that the most falutary Remedies your high Station has put in your Power will be apply'd to prevent thefe growing Evils.

I have lived till I have not much more to hope for, nor much more to fear from the World, yet would not therefore affront it; but as Truth, i. e. Christianity, is dearer to me than any conceivable

Riches

Riches or Honours, and as the Evidences för it lie abfolutely in the Hebrew Language, and no where else, and as this is not a vain Opinion of mine, nor the Enthufiaftic Workings of a heated Imagination; I hope I may be indulged to breathe the Sentiments of my Heart, without being thought to dictate; and plead, that asScience received its first, so it must its laft Luftre from the Scriptures in that Language, and must remain imperfect while that facred Repository lies neglected, and is not made the Clue to it; for it is ftampt with the Character of Divinity, while all others (the Greek not excepted) wear the Badge of Babel: Thus it ftands fixed as a Monument of Brafs or Rock of Adamant, and its infallible Certainty not to be destroy'd by all the Efforts of Men, while all others must be refolved into that Confufion which gave them Birth; and while these are the Channels of all Error, that remains the Source of all Truth; the Fountain from whence it fprings, the Point in which it centers, the Garden where it grows, the Mine from whence it must be dug, or we must go without it: Would not this therefore, added to the prefent School Learning, be an Ornament and give a Luftre to it, analogous to the Sun's difpelling the Darkness of the Night, or the Light's burfting forth in the Day that the Elabim fpake it into Being, when it rent the rigid Bands of Darkness, and pierced to the Center of the Chaos, and brought Confufion

into Order.

Give me leave, therefore, to afk, Why should Men be intimidated by Mocks and Sneers, from the Study of Hebrew Learning? Or why indulg'd

in

in the Neglect of it? efpecially fince its divine Original is as demonftrable, as that twice three are equal to fix; and fince there is in it an inexhaustible Fund of Truth and Learning; and fince from this facred Armory there is an invincible Artillery to be got more than for Defence, and quite fufficient to batter down the ftrong Holds of Hell, to put to Flight the whole Army of Aliens, to break their Shields, and dash their Helmets to pieces, to wound the hairy Scalps of the whole Rout of Enemies, and make them hide themselves in Holes like fo many baffled Cowards. Why this has not been done, becomes not me to say; but that it will be done, is more than probable; and I can wish your Lordship no higher Glory here than to be the Author of it.

I humbly conceive while this continues to be neglected, as it has been too long, it would be wonderful indeed not to fee Error, Libertinism, Superftition, Bigotry, Enthusiasm, and Infidelity put forth their hideous Heads by turns. I am not for cutting them off, for they would grow again; but for depriving them of Subfiftence, by destroying that Ignorance upon which they all live and have their Being. How this can be done, but by the use of those means which Chrift himfelf commands and recommends, to enlighten and enliven, and make us like himself, is above my Conception. John v. 39. Search the Scriptures, &c.

The Confideration of thefe Things make me willing to rifque my all in this World and in the next upon that Truth which is to be found in thofe Scriptures: To rifque, did I fay? To reft, b

to

ہو

to trust all, I mean, as upon a table and everlafting Foundation, which will stand when the Heavens fail, and the Pillars of the Earth tremble, and all Nature be wreck'd, and turn'd into Confufion.

Is not the Neglect of this facred Language the true Reason of that forrowful Divifion found amongst us visible to every one, of all the Rant obfervable among the Sectaries, of that fenfeless Oppofition to and Departure from that excellent Summary of Doctrine contain'd in the thirty pe Articles of the Church of England, of all that want of Communion in the Chriftian Church, inftead of which we behold nothing but bitter Divifions and contentious Callentures burning up her very Vitals; as if Christianity had no Standard, but depended only on a few uncertain cabbaliftical Traditions, or heathen Customs; as if Chriftians were to be claffed into Parties according to the Humours of Men, without Evidence, Rule, or Reafon founded on Revelation! Who can fee thefe Things, when the Remedy for them is fo eafy, fo defirable, fo falutary, without weeping Tears of Blood?

The Knowledge of thefe Thiugs, and their Remedy too by the Grace of God, you know, my Lord, depends not on tedious Deductions, nor on fcholaftic Subtilties, but on ftudying the Original Scriptures, and obferving the Medium there given us, to take our Knowledge of Spiritual Things from the Glafs (as St. Paul calls them) of natural Things, Cor. xiii. 12 When the Idea to the Hebrew Word relating to them is fix'd by the indubitable Rules peculiar to that Language; this, I

presume