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prefent, omnifcient, omnipotent, and, at the fame time, perfectly holy, juft, and good, that can alone infpire that deep reverence, humility, gratitude, fubmiffion, and confidence, which gives the greateft dignity to our fentiments, the nobleft ardour to our best affections, the moft ferene and chearful temper of mind under all events, and which thereby qualifies and prompts us to act our parts in life to the most advantage, so as to make the most of our fituation in every refpect, by being happy ourselves, and contributing to the happiness of others.

Whenever we quit our hold of this great doctrine of the divine unity, and imagine that there is no one object of our worship in whom all venerable and all amiable attributes unite, there is nothing we can contemplate that is capable of impreffing our minds fo forcibly, or in fo happy a manner. Our attention being divided by a multiplicity of objects of worship, and our ideas of their characters being neceffarily dif ferent, our affections, with refpect to them, will alfo vary, fo that we fhall be apt to love

fome

fome of them, and be afraid of others; and fince, in confequence of diftributing the divine attributes among a number of beings, they will all of them be, neceflarily, brought nearer to our own level, both our fear and love will be in danger of becoming little more than fuch as beings like ourselves are capable of infpiring. It is alfo impoffible but that, while we imagine there is fuch a multiplicity of fuperior beings, which confequently must have their peculiar characters, we fhall fuppofe them to have their peculiar taftes and inclinations, and that thofe of fome of them will interfere with thofe of others.

Laftly, it can hardly be, but that, among fuch a number of deities, of inferior natures and characters, the creatures of men's imagination, and confequently fuppofed to be in many refpects like themfelves, fome of them will be fuppofed to be capable of fuch capricious fancies, as men are influenced by; and confequently that, in order to please them, mankind would be led to a variety

of

of fuperftitious and unmeaning practices, and even fuch as are immoral and deftructive.

This appears to have been the natural and univerfal confequence of polytheism; fo that though at firft fight it may feem to be a matter of fpeculation only, whether there be more gods than one, it has, in fact, the moft ferious and alarming confequences in practice. By breaking the unity of God, and diftributing his attributes among a number of beings, the character of the divine adminiftration was debafed, a multiplicity of rites were devifed, in order to please a multiplicity of deities, and some of them were whimfical, fome flagitious, and fome cruel.

That the doctrine of the divine unity is a doctrine of very great importance, may be inferred with certainty, from the very great ftrefs that is every where laid upon it in the fcriptures. The facred writers always fpeak of one being, of incomprehenfible power, wisdom, and goodness; as the only maker, preferver, and fovereign dif

pofer

pofer of all things; who has exifted from all eternity, and who is abfolutely unchangable in his nature or defigns. He is the only invifible being to whom we are authorized to addrefs ourselves by prayer, while the worship of other beings is forbidden in the ftrongest manner; and other gods, whether fuppofed to be equal or fubordinate to him, are spoken of with the greatest indignation and contempt. More efpecially, whereas fome of the heathen gods were thought to prefide over fome particular parts of nature only, and others over other parts, and fome of them were fuppofed to be the authors of good, and others of evil; univerfal dominion is always afcribed to the one true God, and also the appointment of both good and evil, respecting both individuals and nations of mankind.

Indeed, it is not poffible to form an idea of the juftnefs, or propriety of thofe magnificent defcriptions of the perfections and government of God, which occur in the books of scripture, without keeping in view the very low ideas which other nations entertained

entertained of their Gods; nor can we fee the propriety of this fubject being fo much enlarged upon, and the precepts founded upon it being fo frequently repeated, or of the functions appointed to guard it being made fo awful, without confidering that very great propenfity to idolatry which has cver been difcovered by mankind, and the dreadful confequences of it with respect to the depravity which it has never failed to introduce into the fentiments and hearts of men, and the abominable and horrid cuftoms which it has occafioned refpecting fociety. Idolatry has never failed to infinuate itself, under fome form or other, into every difpenfation of religion, infomuch, that even christianity has by no means escaped this dreadful corruption.

Having undertaken to exhibit what it is that we learn from revelation, I fhall alfo endeavour to give fome idea of the relative importance of every article of faith, by noting the degree of ftrefs which the facred writers lay upon each of them; and I do not think that I can do my duty, and fulfil

my

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