it

part

fhall perish, part continue unto all eternity; by which fomething which had a beginning shall have an end, and fomething not.

The fecond fallacy which led them to this novelty was the very name of Universe, which comprehended in it all things; from whence they reafoned thus: (a) If the World or Universe were made, then were all things made; and if the World shall be diffolved, then all things fhall come to nothing which is impoffible. For if all things were made, then must either all, or at leaft fomething, have made itself, and so have been the cause of itself as of the effect, and the effect of itself as of the caufe, and confequently in the fame instant both have been and not been; which is a contradiction. But this fallacy is easily discovered: for when we fay the Universe or all things were made, we must be always understood to except him who made all things, neither can we by that name be supposed to comprehend more than the frame of heaven and earth, and all things contained in them; and fo (b) he which firft devised this argument hath himfelf acknowledged.

Far more grofs was that third conceit, that if the World were ever made, it must be after the vulgar way of ordinary natural generations: in which (c) two mutations are obfervable, the firft from lefs to greater, or from worse to better; the fecond from greater to lefs, or from better to worse. (The be→ ginning of the firft mutation is called generation, the end of it perfection: the beginning of the fecond is from the fame perfection, but concludeth in corruption or diffolution.) (d) But none hath ever yet obferved that this frame of the World did ever grow up from lefs to greater, or improve itself from worfe to better nor can we now perceive that it becomes worse or less than it was, by which decretion we might guefs at a former increafe, and from a tendency to corruption collect its original generation.

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generation. This conceit, I fay, is far more grofs, For certainly the argument fo managed proves nothing at all, but only this, (if yet it prove fo much) that the whole frame of the World, and the parts thereof which are of greater perfection, were not generated in that manner in which we fee fome other parts of it are which no man denies. But that there can be no other way of production befide these petty generations, or that the World was not fome other, way actually produced, this argument doth not endeavour to infer, nor can any other prove it.

The next foundation upon which they caft off the constant doctrine of their predeceffors, was that general affertion, That it is (e) impoffible for any thing to be produced out of nothing, or to be reduced unto nothing: from whence it will inevitably follow, that the matter of this World hath always been, and must always be. The clear refutation of which difficulty requires an explication of the manner how the World was made: the fecond part before propounded for the expofition of this Article.

Now that the true nature and manner of this action may be fo far understood as to declare the Christian Faith, and refute the errors of all oppofers, it will be neceffary to confider it first with reference to the Object or Effect; fecondly, in relation to the Caufe or Agent; thirdly, with refpect unto the Time or Origination of it.

The action by which the Heaven and Earth were made, confidered in reference to the effect, I conceive to be the production of their total being; fo that whatsoever entity they had when made, had no real existence before they were fo made. And this manner of production we ufually term Creation, as excluding all concurrence of any material cause, and all dependence of any kind of fubject, as prefuppofing no privation, as including no motion, as fignifying a production out of nothing; (f) that is,

by

any

by which fomething is made, and not any thing preceding out of which it is made. This is the proper and peculiar fenfe of the word Creation: not that it fignifies fo much by virtue of its origination or vulgar ufe in the (g) Latin tongue; nor that the Hebrew word ufed by Mofes, In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth, hath of itself fuch peculiar acception. For it is often used (b) fynonymously with words which fignify any kind of production or formation, and by itself it feldom denotes a production out of nothing, or proper creation, but most frequently the making of one fubftance out of another pre-exifting, as the fishes of the Gen. i. 21. water, and Man of the duft of the earth; the re- Gen. 1. 27. novating or restoring any thing to its former per- . 10. fection, for want of Hebrew words in compofition; Ifa.lxv. 17. or lastly, the doing some new or (i) wonderful work, the producing fome ftrange and admirable effect, as the opening the mouth of the earth, and the fignal Numb. xvi. judgments on the people of Ifrael.

& ii. 7.

30.

Ifa. xlv. 7.

We must not therefore weakly collect the true nature of Creation from the force of any word which by fome may be thought to exprefs fo much; but we must collect it from the teftimony of God the Creator, in his word, and of the world created, in our reason. The opinion of the Church of the Jews will fufficiently appear in that zealous mother to her feventh and youngeft fon; I beseech thee, my 2 Mac. vii. fon, look upon the heaven and the earth, and all that is 28. therein, and confider that God made them of things that were not which is a clear defcription of Creation, that is, production out of nothing. But becaufe this is not by all received as Canonical, we shall therefore evince it by the undoubted teftimony of St. Paul, who expreffing the nature of Abraham's faith, propoundeth him whom he believed as God who quickeneth the dead, and calleth thofe things which be not, as though they were. For as to be called in the language of the Scripture is to be, (Behold

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23.

ותקרא

1John iii. 1. (Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the fons of God, faith St. John in his Epiftle, who in his Gospel told us, he had given us power to become the fons of God:) fo to call is to make, or caufe to be. As where the ProJer. xxxii. phet Jeremy faith, Thou haft caufed all this evil to come upon them, the original may be thought to speak no more than this, thou haft called this evil to them. He therefore calleth thofe things which be not, as if they were, who maketh thofe things which were not, to be, and produceth that which hath a being out of that which had not, that is, out of nothing. This reafon, generally perfuafive unto Faith, is more peculiarly applied by the Apostle to Heb. xi. 3. the belief of the Creation: for through faith, faith he, we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, fo that things which are feen were not made of things which do appear. Not as if the earth, which we fee, were made of air; or any more fubtil body, which we fee not; nor as if those things which are feen were in equal latitude commenfurable with the worlds which were framed: but that those things which are feen, that is, which are, were made of those which (k) did not appear, that is, which

were not.

Vain therefore was that opinion of a real matter coæval with God as neceffary for production of the World by way of fubject, as the eternal and Almighty God by way of efficient. For if fome real and material being must be presupposed by indifpenfible neceffity, without which God could not caufe any thing to be, then is not he independent in his actions, nor of infinite power and abfolute activity, which is contradictory to the divine perfection. Nor can any reafon be alledged why he fhould be dependent in his operation, who is confeffed independent in his being.

And as this coeternity of matter oppofeth God's Independency, the proper notion of the Deity, fo doth

it alfo contradict his All-fufficiency. For if without the production of fomething befide himself he cannot make a demonftration of his attributes, or cause any fenfibility of his power and will for the illuftration of his own glory; and if without fomething diftinct wholly from himself he cannot produce any thing, (2) then must he want fomething external: and whofoever wanteth any thing is not all-fufficient. And certainly he must have a low opinion and poor conception of the infinite and eternal God, who thinks he is no otherwise known to be Omnipotent than by the (m) benefit of another. Nor were the Framers of the Creed fo wife in prefixing the Almighty before Maker of heaven and earth, if out of a neceffity of material concurrence, the making of them left a mark of impotency rather than omnipotency.

The fuppofition then of an eternal matter, is fo unneceffary where God works, and fo derogatory to the infinity of his power, and all-fufficiency of himself, that the later (n) Philofophers, fomething acquainted with the truth which we profefs, though rejecting Christianity, have reproved thofe of the School of Plato, who delivered, as the doctrine of their Master, an eternal companion, fo injurious to the Father and Maker of all things.

Wherefore to give an answer to that general pofition, that out of nothing nothing can be produced, which (0) Aristotle pretends to be the opinion of all natural Philofophers, I must first obferve, that this univerfal propofition was first framed cut of particular confiderations of the works of Art and Nature. For if we look upon all kinds of (p) Artificers, we find they cannot give any specimen of their art without materials. Being then the beauty and uniformity of the World fhews it to be a piece of art moft exquifite, hence they concluded that the Maker of it was the most exact (q) Artificer, and confequently had his matter from all eternity prepared

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