flicts, not only every particular Society, but the whole Race of Mankind muft inevitably perifh. Thefe Evils natural to Man can only be removed by the true Ufe of Free-Will in fpiritual Things, which confifteth in a right Application of the Mind to fuch Thoughts as relate to it's State of Life in another World.

499. This Subject is capable of receiving further Illuftration from the following Confiderations; that unless all created Things, both animate and inanimate, poffeffed fome Kind of free Determination, no Creation could poffibly exift, for without Freedom of Détermination in natural Things, with Refpect to the Brute Creation, they would have no Choice of Food conducive to their Nourishment and Prefervation, nor would they have any Power of Prolification, or any Regard for their Young, confequently they must cease to exift. Suppofing the Fishes of the Sea, and the Shells contained in the great Deep, to be deprived of this Freedom, it is plain to fee, that neither Fith nor Shell could have Existence. In like Manner unless every Infect was gifted with the fame Freedom, there could be no Silk-Worm to produce Silk, nor Bee to to produce Wax and Honey, nor Butterfly to fport in the Air, and feed on the Juices of Flowers, thereby exhibiting an Emblem of the happy State of Man in the heavenly Atmofphere, when like a Worm he cafleth off the outward terrestrial Covering, which confineth him to these lower Regions. Unless again there was Something analagous to Freedom of Determination in the Soil of the Ground, in the Seed fown therein, and in all the Parts of the Plant or Tree thereby produced, in it's Fruits, and alfo in it's new Seeds, no Vegetable of any Kind could poffibly exift. The fame muft of Neceffity be the Cafe with every Metal, and with every Stone, of whatever Value they might be, nay with every smallest Grain of Sand, unless each Metal, Stone, and Grain of Sand, poffeffed Somewhat analagous to fuch Freedom; for even thefe nineral Subftances freely imbibe the ætherial Particles, and breath forth their native Effences, and caft off what is obfolete, and renew themselves with fresh Subftances, in Confequence whereof each is encompafled with it's circum-ambient Sphere, as the Magnet with a magnetical Sphere, Iron, Copper, Silver, Gold, Stone, Nitre, and Sulphur, each with a Sphere accord

ing to their refpective Natures and Qualities; nay, the very Duft of the Earth exhales alfo it's particular Sphere, by Virtue whereof the inmoft Principle of every Seed is impregnated and caused to vegetate, for without such a spherical Exhalation from every Particle of Duft, there could be neither Beginning nor Continuation of Vegetation, inafmuch as the Earth could not poffibly penetrate, with it's Duft and Water, into the inmoft Center of the feed fown in it, but by Means of the Substances exhaled from it, as into a "Grain of Mustard Seed, which is the leaft of all Seeds, but when it is grown it is the greatest among Herbs, and becometh a Tree," Matt. xiii. 31, 32. Since therefore all created Objects are endowed with Freedom of Determination, each according to it's Nature, how much rather ought Man to be endowed with the fame Freedom, according to his Nature, which is to become a spiritual Being! It is a great Truth therefore that Man enjoyeth Free-Will in fpiritual Things from the Day of his Birth, till the Day of his Death, and afterwards to all Eternity.

That on a Suppofition of Man's wanting Free-Will in fpiritual Things, it would be poffible for all Men throughout the whole World, in the Compass of one Day, to be induced to believe on the Lord; but the Impoffibility of fuch an Effect taking Place is grounded on this Circumftance, that Nothing remaineth or continueth with Man, but what is received freely, or from a free Principle.

500. In Confequence of fome wrong Notions concerning the Divine Omnipotence, it hath been fuppofed, that God was able to engage all Mankind, in the Compass of one Day, to believe on Himfelf, without endowing him, with FreeWill in fpiritual Things. It is poffible for fuch as do not conceive a right of the Divine Omnipotence, to imagine either that no fuch Thing as Order exifteth, or that God can act contrary to Order, with the fame Eafe that he can act according to Order, when nevertheless without Order there could not have been fuch a Thing as Creation, It is a primary Law of Order, that Man fhould be an Image of God, confe quently that he should be perfected in Love and Wisdom, and thereby become more and more fuch an Image, This is the

Intent of God's continual Operation on Man; but without Free-Will in Things fpiritual, whereby Man hath the Power to turn himself unto God, and enter into mutual Conjunction with him, fuch Operation would be to no Purpofe, because the Intent thereof could not poffibly be accomplithed; for Order is that, from which, and according to which, the whole World, with all and every Thing contained therein, was created, on which Account God is called effential or real Order, wherefore it is the fame Thing whether we fpeak of acting contrary to Order, or contrary to God, and therefore God himself cannot poffibly act contrary to his own Divine Order, becaufe that would be to act contrary to Himfelf; of Course he leadeth every Man according to Order, that is, according to Himfelf, endeavouring to guide the Wandering and Backfliding into the Ways of Order, and to reduce the Difobedient to Order. Suppofing it poffible for Man to have been created without Free-Will in fpiritual Things, what in fuch a Cafe would have been more eafy than for an Omnipotent God to caufe all Mankind to believe on the Lord? Would it not have been in his Power to have excited this Faith in every Man, both immediately and mediately, immediately by his abfolute Power and irrefiftable Operation, which is continually at Work to effect Man's Salvation; or mediately by exciting in his Confcience the Pangs of Guilt, and plaguing his Body with violent Convulfions, and keeping him under the conftant Alarms of Death, in Cafe he refufed to receive that Faith? Might he not alfo have ufed other Means to produce this Effect, fuch as laying open the infernal Kingdoms, and expofing to View the Inhabitants thereof with burning Torches in their Hands, or raifing up from the Dead a Man's Friends and Acquaintance to alarm him under the Shapes of terrible Apparitions? To this Reafoning we may reply in the Words of Abraham to the rich Man in Hell, If they bear not Mofes and the Prophets, neither will they be perfuaded though one rose from the Dead," Luke xvi. 31.

501. It may poffibly be afked, why Miracles are not wrought now-a-days, as they were formerly, from a Prefumption that, in Cafe they were wrought, every Man would inftantly give an hearty Affent to all the Doctrines of Faith. But the Reafon why Miracles are not wrought now

as in former Times is, becaufe Miracles carry Compulfion with them, and take away Man's Free-Will in fpiritual Things, and change him from a fpiritual into a natural Agent. Since the Time of the Lord's Coming into the World, every one that is born in a Chriftian Country hath a Capacity to become spiritual, which Spirituality of Nature is effected folely by the Lord through the Word; but this Capacity would be deftroyed in Cafe Man's Faith was influenced by Miracles, inafmuch as Miracles, as was obferved, carry Compulfion with them, and take away Man's Free-Will in fpiritual Things, and whatever is received by Compulfion entereth no further than the natural Man, where it closeth up the spiritual or true internal Man, and depriveth him of all Capacity of feeing any Truth in it's proper Light, the Con& fequence whereof is, that the Man afterwards frameth all his Reafonings on fpiritual Things from a mere natural Ground, and thereby feeth all spiritual Truths according to an inverted View. Miracles indeed were wrought previous to the Lord's Coming into the World, and the Reafon was, because the Members of the Church at that Time were mere natural Men, incapable of seeing the fpiritual or internal Things of the Church, or who would have profaned fuch Things had they been permitted to fee them; wherefore all their Divine Worfhip confifted of Ceremonies, which reprefented and fignified the internal Things of the Church, and to the Performance of which there was no poffible Method of engaging them, but by Miracles; and that even Miracles were infufficient for this Purpofe, as being reprefentative of an internal Spirituality, is plain from the Cafe of the Children of Ifrael in the Wildernefs, who, notwithstanding their having feen fo many Miracles wrought in Egypt, and afterwards that greatest of all on Mount Sinai, yet within a Month after Mofes's Departure, danced about a golden Calf, and cried aloud that that Idol had brought them forth out of Egypt; equally profane was their Behaviour in the Land of Canaan, notwithstanding the extraordinary Miracles wrought by Elijah and Elifha, and laftly the truly Divine Miracles wrought by the Lord. There is alfo an efpecial Reafon why Miracles are not wrought at this Time, which is because the Church hath taken away from Man all Freedom of Will, in Confequence of infifting that Man cannot poffibly contribute any Thing towards the receiv→

ing of Faith, nor towards Converfion, nor in general towards Salvation, as may be feen above, No. 464. The Effects of fuch a Belief muft needs be to render Man more and more natural, and the natural Man, as was fhewn above, beholdeth every Thing of a fpiritual Nature according to an inverted View, and confequently in Thought oppofeth it, in which Cafe the fuperior Region of the human Mind, where FreeWill in fpiritual Things principally refides, is closed up, and the fpiritual Things, which to all Appearance were confirmed by Miracles, occupy the inferior Region of the Mind, which is merely natural, whilft all Sorts of falfe Notions refpecting Faith, Converfion, and Salvation, remain in the Region above, the Confequence whereof muft be, that Satanic Spirits would have their Habitation above, and Angelic Spirits beneath, like Vultures over Poultry, till after fome Time the Satans would break down the Barrier between, and would rush with all Fury upon the fpiritual Things below, and would not only deny, but would alfo blafpheme and profane them; hence the latter State of fuch a Man would be worfe than the first,

502. Whofoever is reduced to a mere natural State of Heart, by imbibing falfe Notions refpecting the fpiritual Things of the Church, muft needs conceive the Divine Omnipotence to be above Order, and confequently without Order; wherefore in the Wildness of Imagination he will ask,—To what Purpose did the Lord come into the World, and accomplish the Work of Redemption, when God, by Virtue of his Omnipotence, might have effected the fame redeeming Work in Heaven, without coming down here on Earth? Why was not the whole Race of Mankind, without Exception, faved by Redemption, and why was the Devil permitted to prevail in Man over the Redemer? Why is their fuch a Place as Hell? Hath not an Omnipotent God Power to deftroy it, and to rescue thence it's miferable Inhabitants, and make them Angels of Heaven? To what End is their final Judgment? Could not God tranflate all the Goats on the left Hand to the right, and there change them into Sheep? Why did God caft down the Angels of the Dragon, and the Dragon himself from Heaven, when he might have converted them into Angels of Michael? Why doth he not give Faith alike to all, and im