that whatever he fays is true, I cannot fee what divine revelation can fignify. For God's revealing or declaring fuch a thing to us, is no neceffary argument that it is fo, unless antecedently to this revelation we be poffeffed firmly with this principle, that whatever God fays is true. And whatever is known antecedently to revelation, must be known by natural light, and by reafonings and deductions from natural principles. I might further add to this argument, that the only ftandard and measure to judge of divine revelations, and to diftinguifh between what are true, and what are counterfeit, are the natural notions which men have of God, and of his effential perfections.

Thirdly, If the notion of a God be not natural, I do not fee how men can have any natural notion of the difference of moral good and evil, just and unjuft. For if I do not naturally know there is a God, how can I naturally know that there is any law obliging to the one, and forbidding the other? all law and obligation to obedience, neceffarily fuppofing the authority of a fuperior Being. But the Apoftle exprefly afferts, that the Gentiles who were deftitute of a revealed law, were a law unto themfelves; but there cannot be a natural law obliging mankind, unless God be naturally known to them.

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And this Socinus himself, in his difcourfe upon this very argument, is forced to acknowledge. "all men (fays he) there is naturally a difference "of just and unjust, or at least there is planted "in all men an acknowledgment that juft ought "to be preferred before unjuft, and that which is

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honeft, before the contrary; and this is nothing "elfe but the word of God within a man, which "whofoever obeys, in fo doing obeys God, though "otherwife he neither know nor think there is a God; "and there is no doubt but he that thus obeys God, " is accepted of him." So that here is an acknowledgment of a natural obligation to a law, without any natural knowledge of a fuperior authority; which I think cannot be; and which is worfe, that a man may obey God acceptably, without knowing and be

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lieving there is a God; which directly thwarts the ground of his first argument, from thofe words of the Apoftle, without faith it is impoffible to please. God; for he that cometh to God, that is, he that will be religious and pleafe. God, must believe that he is: fo hard is it for any man to contradict nature, without contradicting himself.

· Fourthly, My last argument I ground upon the words of the Apoftle in my text, that which may be known of God, is manifeft in them; for God bath fhewed it unto them. Is manifeft in them, ev durois, among them. God hath fufficiently manifefted it to mankind. And which way hath God done this by revelation or by the natural light of reafon He tells us at the 20th verfe, For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly feen, that is, God, who in himself is invisible, ever fince he hath created the world, hath given a visible demonstration of himself, that is, of his eternal power and Godhead, being understood by the things which are made. The plain fenfe of the whole is, that this wife and wonderful, frame of the world, which cannot reasonably be afcribed to any other caufe but God, is a fenfible demonftration to all mankind, of an eternal and powerful Being that was the author and framer of it. The only queftion now is, whe ther this text fpeaks of the knowledge of God by particular revelation, or by natural light and reafon, from the contemplation of the works of God? Socinus having no other way to avoid the force of this text, will needs understand it of the knowledge of God by the revelation of the gofpel. His words are thefe: "The Apostle therefore fays in this place,

that the eternal Godhead of God, that is, that which God would always have us to do, (for the "Godhead is fometimes taken in this fenfe) and his "eternal power, that is, his promife which never "fails, (in which fenfe he said a little before, that the gofpel is the power of God) thefe, I fay, which were never feen by men, that is, were never known to them fince the creation of the world, are known by his works, that is, by the wonderful operati

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on of God, and divine men, especially of Christ and his Apoftles." Thefe are his very words, and now I refer it to any indifferent judgment, whether this be not a very forced and constrained interpretation of this text; and whether that which I have before given, be not infinitely more free and natural, and every way more agreeable to the obvious fense of the words, and the fcope of the Apostle's argument. For he plainly fpeaks of the heathen, and proves them to be inexcufable, because they held the truth in unrighteousness, and having a natural knowledge of God, from the contemplation of his works, and the things which are made, they did not glorify him as God. And therefore I fhall not trouble my felf to give any other answer to it; for by the abfurd violence of it in every part, it confutes itself more effectually than any difcourfe about it can do.

I have been the larger upon this, because it is a matter of fo great confequence, and lies at the bottom of all religion. For the natural knowledge which men have of God, is, when all is done, the fureft and fafteft hold that religion hath on human nature. Befides, how should God judge that part of the world. who are wholly deftitute of divine revelation, if they had no natural knowledge of him, and confequently could not be under the direction and government of any law? For where there is no law there is no tranfgreffion; and where men are guilty of the breach of no law, they cannot be judged and condemned for it; for the judgment of God is according to truth.

And now this being eftablished, that men have a natural knowledge of God; if they contradict it by their life and practice, they are guilty of detaining the truth of God in unrighteousness; for by this argument the Apostle proves the heathen to be guilty of holding the truth in unrighteoufnefs, because notwithstanding the natural knowledge which they had of God by the things which are made, they lived in the practice of grofs idolatry, and the most abominable fins and vices.

And this concerns us much more, who have the glorious light of the gofpel added to the light of naLure. For if they who offended against the light of

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nature, were liable to the judgment of God, of how much forer punishment fhall we be thought worthy, if we neglect thofe infinite advantages which the revelation of the gofpel hath fuperadded to natural light He hath now fet our duty in the cleareft and ftrongest light that ever was afforded to mankind; fo that if we will not now believe and repent, there is no remedy for us, but we must dy in our fins ; if we fin wilfully, after fo much knowledge of the truth, there remains no more facrifice for fin, but a fearful looking for of judgment, and fiery indignation to confume us.

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The fum of what hath been faid on this argument is briefly this; that men have a natural knowledge of God, and of thofe great duties which refult from the knowledge of him; fo that whatever men fay and pretend, as to the main things of religion, the worship of God, and juftice and righteousness towards men, fetting afide divine revelation, we are all naturally convinced of our duty, and of what we' ought to do, and those who live in a bad course, need only be put in mind of what they naturally know, better than any body elfe can tell them, that they are in a bad courfe: fo that I may appeal to all wicked men, from themselves rafh and heated, and intoxicated with pleasure and vanity, tranfported and hurried away by luft and paffion; to themfelves ferious and compofed, and in a cool and confiderate temper. And can any fober man forbear to follow the convictions of his own mind, and to refolve to do what he inwardly confents to as best 2 Let us but be true to ourfelves, and obey the dictates of our own minds, and give leave to our own cons fcience to counfel us and tell us what we ought to do, and we shall be a law to ourselves. I proceed to the

Sixth and laft obfervation, namely, that the clear revelation of the wrath of God in the gofpel, against the impiety and unrighteousness of men, is one principal thing, which renders it fo very powerful and likely a means for the falvation of mankind. For the Apoftle inftanceth in two things, which give the gofpel fo great an advantage to this purpose, the

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mercy of God to penitent finners, and his feverity towards the impenitent; both which are fo fully and clearly revealed in the gospel. The gospel is the power of God to falvation, to every one that believeth, be caufe therein the righteousness of God is revealed; that is, his great grace and mercy in the juftification and pardon of finners by Jefus Chritt, which I have already fhewn to be meant by the righteousness of God, by comparing this with the explication which is given of the righteousness of God, chap. iii. ver. 22.

The other reafon which he gives of the gofpel's. being the power of God to falvation, is the plain declaration of the feverity of God toward impenitent finners, because therein also the wrath of God is revealed from heaven, against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. The force of which argument will appear, if we confider these following particulars :

First, That the declarations of the gospel in this matter are so plain and express.

Secondly, That they are very dreadful and terrible. Thirdly, That there is no fafety or hope of impu nity for men that go on and continue in their fins. Fourthly, That this argument will take hold of the most desperate and profligate finners, and still retain its force upon the minds of men, when all other confiderations fail, and are of little or no efficacy. And,

Fifthly, That no religion in the world can urge this argument with that force and advantage that Christianity does.

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First, That the declarations of the gospel in this matter are most plain and exprefs; and that not only against fin and wickedness in general, but against particular fins and vices; fo that no man that lives in any evil and vicious courfe, can be ignorant of his danger. Our Lord hath told us in general, what fhall be the doom of the workers of iniquity, yea, though they may have owned him, and made profeffion of his name, Matth. vii. 21. Not every one that faith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doth the will of my Fa

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