in Job xii. 7, 8, 9. “But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and "they shall tell thee; or speak to the earth, and it "shall teach thee; and the fishes of the sea shall de"clare unto thee. Who knoweth not in all these, that "the hand of the Lord hath wrought this?" Here we are directed to hold a conference with the creatures, that they may instruct us concerning the Creator. That conference can mean nothing but an attentive consideration of the creatures, in their origin, in their nature, in their capacities, in their operations, in their order and mutual subserviency to each other, in the law to which they are subject, and which is inviolably observed for the preservation of the whole. The response which they give, the doctrine which they unfold, is the demonstration of the Deity. They had no power to produce themselves, and even now they have no power to uphold themselves in being, far less to govern themselves with so much wisdom, that every one, in its own sphere, should both possess what is sufficient for the continuation of its own existence, and be adapted for assisting others and for serving the whole universe, as if most judiciously ranged in a family and state. Notwithstanding, therefore, the profound silence which they observe, they proclaim to every reflecting mind, that, as they were originally created, so they are still directed, by the hand of an infinitely wise, as well as infinitely powerful God. Let it be remarked, also, that this conclusion is not ascribed to any tradition received from the fathers, but to that very instruction which the creatures themselves afford, independently of all human tradition.

XIII. No less forcible is the testimony which we have,

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Psalm xix. 1, 2, 3, 4. which I shall explain by a short paraphrase. "The heavens declare the glory of God;" for they are his throne, which he has curiously fashioned, and which testify his power, majesty, and magnifi"And the firmament showeth his handy-work;" proclaiming that it was adjusted by his word alone, that things below might be aptly and commodiously united with things above, and that things terrestrial might be maintained by the influence of things celestial, communicating itself through the medium of the firmament. "Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night teacheth knowledge." The vicissitudes of light and darkness, succeeding one another in so exact and so uniform an order; and, (which is the cause of these appointed vicissitudes,) the revolution of the sun and the stars, neither moving more slowly than at the first, nor revolving with a more rapid motion, but still preserving the original measure of their course,-clearly manifest a Ruler of unbounded wisdom. Nor is there a single day, or single night, which doth not at once utter something for itself respecting God, and bear witness to another; as if it were the scholar of the preceding, and the teacher of the following. No word is uttered, no speeches are made, their voice " is not heard." They do not teach by words; because, were this their manner of giving instruction, it would cease with the utterance of the words. They do not instruct by speeches, or discourses, which consist of a train of arguments artfully connected; for, in such discourses, some degree of obscurity could hardly be avoided. Nor do they utter an audible voice in our ears, the sound of which might dun us by its excessive noise. But the heavens instruct us, constantly, clearly, and pleasantly, whilst they exhibit the perfections of their Creator to view, as

in a mirror. Some, however, choose to translate the words thus, (of which we do not disapprove :) "There "is no speech, nor language, where their voice is not "heard." Though the nations differ from one another in their languages, and though the Greek may not be able to understand the Barbarian, yet the language of the heavens is common to all, and equally capable of imparting instruction to all. Nothing but listlessness hinders those, whose tongues and customs are the most opposite to each other, from receiving knowledge, so to speak, from the mouth of one and the same teacher. "Their line is gone out to all the earth."* The manner in which the heavens give instruction, bears a resemblance to the method of teachers, who instruct boys in the first principles of literature by means of figures which they draw for their use: For the luminaries of heaven, by the beams which they shed, form lines, and, as it were, first principles; which, being mutually combined, and variously connected, compose one entire book of wisdom. This idea is suggested by the word 'P line; as in the expression pp line upon line. It may be observed, also, that there is but little difference betwixt this Hebrew term, and the Greek loyyos, made use of by the Apostle;" for pooyyos signifies not only a sound, but likewise a letter; as in Plutarch on Fabius; of which Scapula has taken notice in his Lexicon. This line, then, has gone out to all the earth, and their words to the end "of the world.". All mankind, whether they inhabit cultivated regions, or the most desert and uncultivated parts of the earth, are instructed by this preceptor:

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There is no quarter of the world in which the figures of heaven, which are so many proofs of the divine perfections, are not beheld.

XIV. Though this exposition of the passage is at once simple, consonant to the words, and worthy of the divine perfections, Socinus most perversely contends, that it is here taken for granted, that it is not evident from the contemplation of the heavens, that they were created by God. He denies that they proclaim the glory of God to any but those who have been previously persuaded, by other means, of the existence of God, and of the creation of the world. What is said, too, about their line going out to all the earth, he restrains to Judea alone, adducing in confirmation of this sense, Psalm xlv. 16. cv. 7. ii. 8. This, however, is a daring perversion of the Scriptures; for, 1st, It is clear to any one who looks into the Psalm, that the Psalmist points out two ways of knowing God; the one by nature, which he describes from the beginning to the seventh verse; the other by revelation, which he then illustrates, and extols as far more perfect. Nor does he represent the latter as the foundation of the former, but the former as the foundation of the latter. 2dly, The words of the Psalm, cannot bear the interpretation which Socinus puts upon them, to wit, "The firmament show"eth the nature and kind of the work, or celebrates "the work :"* But they must be interpreted thus, "The firmament showeth the work of his hands;" that is, proclaims itself to be the work of divine omnipotence. In this sense the heavens, the sun, the moon, and all the sparkling stars, are said to praise God; because, since they were all created at his command, they

• Firmamentum indicat quale sit opus, seu celebrat opus.

furnish men with the most abundant matter and ground for the celebration of his praise. 3dly, Nor is this proclamation made to the Jews only: it is published in a language equally intelligible to Israelites, Greeks, and Barbarians; for he never left himself" without witness," even to the Gentiles. 4thly, It is published

through the whole earth, even to the uttermost parts of the habitable globe; which are by no means comprehended within the narrow circuit of Judea: unless one chose also to confine within the limits of Judea, what the Apostle expresses in the same words, concerning that Gospel which is preached "to every creature." 5thly, Nor is the heretic able to point out any passage of Scripture, where these expressions, the whole earth, and the uttermost parts of the world, signify only the land of Judea; for the testimonies which he produces, are foreign to the purpose. Psalm xlv. 16. is a prophecy respecting the calling of the Gentiles; as appears from verse 17th. Psalm cv. 7, "His judgments are in all the earth," is with no appearance of reason confined to Judea; since God executes judgments in the whole world, and those which he executed among his people, were published to the Gentiles. The heretic erroneously confounds the judgments of God's works with the judgments of his law; which, under the old dispensation, were made known to the Israelites alone. Though we should grant that Judea is sometimes called the whole earth, yet the ends of the habitable world, are never limited to so inconsiderable a spot of earth. The words in Psalm ii. 8. refer not to the kingdom of David, but to the kingdom of Christ; to

Ps. cxlviii. 1, 3, 5.

* Rom. x. 18.

* Ps. cxlvii. 20.

Acts xiv. 17.

y Mark xvi. 15.