doubt when he proposed to surrender all the kingdoms of the world to him for a single act of worhip; to divest himself of all property in, and authority over them, was the lealt thing in his thoughts; His defign was to devolve the Viceroyfhip upon the Son of God, while he maintained, as an Emperor, the fupreme Authority; and of courfe his hellifh Pride foared fo high as to have made the Son of God his Vaffal! But, blessed be God, he here met with more than his match. It was for this Purpose the Son of God came into the World to destroy the Works of the Devil. This Truth there is reafon to believe, that the Devil was not altogether a ftranger to, which made him make fuch great tenders down unto him of his honour and property..

If these facts be true, and who that believes the Bible can deny them? Is it any wonder that the world was drowned with a double Deluge; first, of all manner of impiety and wickednefs; and then of water? This was quickly followed by a general confufion of Languages; and that by Heaven exhibiting upon Earth a lafting fpecimen of Hell. upon the plains of Sodom, Suffering the vengeance of eternal Fire." Jude, 7. The Deftruc tion of Egypt, and of the nations of Canaan that quickly followed, were Types of the Deftruction. of Spiritual Egypt (Reu. xi. 8.) and Sodom, when a greater lake will make its appearance than that in the days of Abraham. Rev. xix. 20. v.

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Phil. Hence it is evident, That the Fall of the i Firft Man, and the confequent introduction of the Dominion of the Devil over the World as a God and tyrannical Defpot, are fufficient to account for all the evils of every kind, that have, do, or ever will afflict the worlds to velgi gay Didus. True And Philofophers may Tenter and Rack their brains, and ranfack, Nature, as long

as they please to refolve this grand question, Pothen ton Kakon? Whence came evil? But where will they find a better, or one fo full and true as the above? All the evils of this "Prefent evil Age," (Gal. i. 4.) fpring from these two fountains.

The Tree that formed the Teft of Adam's Trial, earried, in its very name, the fymbol of the State that tafting it would introduce into the World. From the name of this Tree, one might reasonably fuppofe, that Good and Evil might be equally poiled in human and the world's experience. But were it poffible to draw a Map, or write a history, in which might be seen all the Good and all the Evil that the World has feen and heard, fuffered and enjoyed, from Adam to this day, it would be found that the evil would greatly exceed the good in every age and nation. I know that this is ftrenuously denied by many both Philofophers and Divines. All the treasures of learning have been exhausted, all the powers of Reafon and Wit have been exerted, to prove the contrary. All this has been done by fome of the beft of Men, and that from the best of Motives, viz. "To vindicate the ways of God to Man." How far this end has in fact been attained, after all that has been faid, and that upon every Hypothefis, however plaufible in appearance, let libertinism and the vast increase of Libertines bear witness at this day. Be this as it will, the prefent Effay will exhibit fcenes tranfcendently glorious, and open an Avenue into future Ages of long continuance; in which, divine Philanthropy will act a part fuch as will aftomifh the most expanded, generous, and elevated Minds; and confound every narrow contracted fcheme of human invention; and that by a moft copious difplay of Nature Renewed; Paradife Reftored with almoft infinite improvement; Evil of every kind defroyed, or expiring; and the great

eft Good that human nature, in a new world, is capable of, for ages enjoyed; with a great prebability of ftill farther advancement in honour and happiness. It is this Reftoration, that will take place in Ages to come, and on this fide Eternity, but after this prefent evil age is over, which will vindicate the conduct of Providence in the prefent; filence every objection; and make it evident, that, taking the whole compafs of Time, and every tranfaction of Providence in it, the whole will appear worthy of God, and aftonish Men and Angels with its glorious completion. This will be feen in the fequel of this Effay, D. V. In the mean time, the equilibrium of good and evil is not to be found. Evil preponderates in the scale of fent enjoyments, take the world in general. Evil elections, arifing from free-agency, natural propenfions, bad examples and temptations to vice, &c. increase the multitude and fwell the magnitude of miseries of every kind, in the prefent ftate of things, by increasing human guilt, which feems to accumulate with growing knowledge in this age especially.

!!

pre

However, let us change the fcene, and brighten the black fhades of this affecting picture of human mifery, by laying a few lines upon it taken from fome typical characters drawn by the Pen of Mofes.

Let us begin with the morning of the old world,› which, as you heard, continued 1656 years, and

then was buried in water.

1. Abel, the fecond man born of woman, the first being of that wicked one. Thus Shem was younger than Japhet; Abram than Nahar; Ifaac than Ifhmael; Jacob than Efau; Jofeph than Reuben or Judah; and Mofes than Aaron, &c. Yet thefe had the Birth-right or the Blefing, although the younger.

Phil. And what then, I pray, my dear Didas.?

Didas. What then! Can you fuppofe that infinite wifdom ordered all thefe younger Brothers to have the pre-eminence and the Blefling without any defign?

"Phil. I fuppofe not. Wisdom fhines in all

God's ways.

Didas. True. Remember then, "The first man is of the earth, earthly: The fecond man is the Lord from heaven. That was not first which is fpiritual, but that which is natural; (like Cain, &c.) afterward that which is fpiritual. 1 Cor. xv. 46, 47. Thus, in the world's childhood and youth, did its Maker inftru&t it in thefe important Truths, by the pictures and living characters in their own Children in the most distant and interesting of all events. Such is that of our Resurrection. And this divine conduct, in preferring the Younger before the Elder, moft certainly typified this Glorious event, and that by the fame rule that Ifaac and Jacob typified the Gofpel, while Ishmael and Efau, the elder brothers, typified the Law as a former Difpenfation.

Abel! his heart and life were Righteous; his offering by faith accepted, even faith in his Antitype the proto-fhepherd and proto-martyr of Mankind; his blood was fpilt by his wicked Brother, because he was better than himfelf; whofe blood called for vengeance upon the murderer; and yet evidenced his Juftification by faith as a martyr, Allowing the facts, will Reafon admit that a Righteous Abel should fall a facrifice to the ambition and envious refentment of a wicked brother, being the only two fuch in the world, unless a future state existed, in which to reward the martyr and punish the murderer? Hark! the blood of Abel, (the first human blood that was fhed) is turned Vocal! It cries aloud from the newly-curfed ground, addreffes in the most convincing manner,

and

and demonftrates by its cries, a life different from that which the Murderer took away, and preaches the life and immortality of departed fpirits to all pofterity acquainted with the fact. See and comp. Rev. vi. 3 to 11.

In this righteous mourning martyr, we fee, as in a glafs, the mourning man of forrows-he falls under the murdering fentence of his Brethren by Roman hands, while his blood fpeaks better things than that of Abel, uniting its cry with his dying groans, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." Abel, the proto-fhepherd in the world, innocent as the flock he watched over, died as innocently-fo did the great Shepherd and Bishop of fouls, with this difference, that the latter laid and paid down his life a ranfome for his fheep. Herein both type and antitype, that original enmity between the two very different feeds eminently appeared, which in every age has filled the Church with martyrs, and inundated the world with human blood? Where is the foil that has not fucked it in ?

2.

Seth fignifies a Substitute, being put in the Place of Abel. He was the Second head of Mankind; and fince the extinction of Cain's Family at the Flood, the world of Mankind have all defcended from him. Thus was Jefus Chrift the Righteous, first, Subftituted a Second Head of Mankind with refpect to the world to come. He is therefore called Abi Gned, or a Father of the World to come.. Ifa. ix. 6. "For as in Adam all die, even so in Chrift fhall all be made alive," viz. in another age, by a Resurrection from the dead. Second, Abel was cut off by the envy and malice of Cain, who was of that wicked one, and Seth Put into his place-Chrift was cut off by the envy and malice of his brethren, but rofe again in human Nature a Father of a world to come, like Seth. What will