my

to pole, the inner globe may be supposed to be at an equal distance from each pole. If I am afked, What I take to be the cause that the earth's axis twice every month, as well as twice every year, changes its inclination to the plane of the annual orbit, or, in other words, varies in a small degree from perfect parallelism? I answer, That with Sir Ifaac Newton I think, and I rejoice that fentiments coincide with what that great philofopher has delivered, that the moon is the cause of this variation, from the influence or effect her body and light may have upon the equatorial parts of the earth, or the equatorial annulus, as the Newtonians chufe to call it, by interrupting the columns of spirit or of light in their paffage to that part of the equatorial ring, where the moon paffes her fyzygies, and thereby throwing a greater preffure upon the other parts. When the moon is in her quarters, the preffure of the fpirit will be equal upon the ring; but as she approaches either of her fyzygies, the preffure will become unequal; and the quality will be always at the

greatest inetime of her

fyzygies,

fyzygies, as the equilibrium will again be pretty nearly restored at her enfuing quarters. -But these I throw out only as conjectures, or hints, which others may hap→ pily improve; and hope for pardon, if I am mistaken; fince the mistakes of one perfon have sometimes paved the way for another to come at the truth.

may

I have fallen short in my explication of the manner how the agents act and perform their office: but I think it will evidently appear to an unbiassed reader, that the fcriptures make the Shemesh, or the folar light, and the spirit, the agents that move the earth; and that there is a perfect harmony in their accounts. The Royal Pfalmist describes the Shemesh as having a tabernacle fixed in the heavens, from whence, as from one extremity, viz. the centre, he goes out in light, and returns in fpirit from the other extremity, the circumference, or verge of this system. The Shemesh, and his tabernacle, are spoken of here as two diftinct things; the one is faid to be fixed in the heavens, C c

the other

to

,מקומו fuck in the fpirit at

to iffue from this fixed point, and to run its appointed race. The Shemesh therefore cannot, in this place, be the orb of the fun, nor the orb of the fun be faid to move. In like manner, in Solomon's description, the shemesh is faid to fpring up or out (1) upon the earth, and to go in to draw or its ftation ; namely, at the equator, where the light has a continued station; to fpring up thence, or give way to what is fucked in, viz. to the fpirit; to go towards the fouth, and turn round to the north, making or circuiting a circuit, the spirit on, pursuing the light; cuits the spirit returns,

out.

Here

continually going and upon its cirviz. to the fame

place whence the folar light first sprang is, as I take it, the autumnal equinox, because the folar light is faid to go from thence to the fouth; which it really does. And from hence there is great probability to conclude, that the earth began its motion from the oppofite point of the equator, with the fun in Libra. So here is an exact description of a tropical year. So Job ix.6. Who shaketh (or shook) the earth out of

ber

`her place,, (nipp, the fame word as above), and the pillars thereof tremble. This too,

perhaps, may refer to the giving progreffive motion to the earth, at first, at the equatorial point, as above. However that may be, it has, by fome commentators, been looked upon as a ftronger proof of the local motion of the earth, than any of the others ufually produced for its reft: and so in truth it is; especially if we take in the next verse, He commandeth the fun, and it rifeth not; and fealeth up the stars. This is an exprefs declaration, that the fun is at reft, and moves not; and cannot be fpoken ad captum vulgi, or according to the appearances of things; because to appearance the fun both rifes and fets. And if the other texts fpeak of the orb or body of the fun, then the scriptures affirm, that the fun rifes, and does not rife; or moves, and yet is at reft. For in this text the fun is faid not to rife, and that God has fo ordained that it should not rife. And Ecclef. i. 5. and in many other places, we read of the fun rifing and fetting. Now, as in the original there are two different words Cc 2 ufed,

ufed, both of which are rendered fun, we must conclude, that in the text of Job above, where it is fo pofitively afferted that the fun does not rife, that the body or orb of the fun, or folar fire, is there fpoken of; and in the other texts, where it is as pofitively afferted that the fun rifes and sets, that the folar light, or flux from the body or orb of the fun, is meant. Dn, HeReS, is the word in Job; and wow in Ecclefiaftes, and other texts. The first is the folar fire, or orb wherein the fire acts; the other the folar light, which flows from, or more properly is pushed out every way in rays from the focus by the influx of the spirit. So in Job, it is the folar fire or orb which God has ordered not to n, to fpring up or out, as the wow, the folar light, is described to do by the fame verb n by Solomon *.

חרס

I

D, which perhaps may be a compound of, to beat; and on fregit, contrivit, to tear or break in pieces, is used, Deut. xxviii. 27. for a burning ulcer, or fome fuch thing; whence it fhould, I think, mean the body or focus where the fire acts. But I must acquaint the reader, that there are two texts produced where the fun under this word is faid to rife and fet. And if therefore it means, as

We