32 The laft period then only remains to be confidered, namely, from the Egreffion. Now at

that

to the Ifraelites and to their pofterity. To judge otherwife, is reducing all God's commands' to one and the fame fpecies.

Having thus far cleared the way, I proceed to fhew that the Jewish fabbath is a mere pofitive inftitution,

1. From the account the Prophet Ezekiel gives of it - Moreever alfo I gave them my SABBATH, to be a SIGN between me and them. A fign of what? A fign of a covenant. And fo was. circumcifion called by God himfelf-And ye shall circumcife the flesh of your fore-fkin, and it shall be a TOKEN [or fign] OF THE COVENANT between me and you †. Now nothing but a Rite by inftitution of a POSITIVE LAW, could ferve for a fign or token of a covenant between God and a particular felected People; for befides it's ufe for a remembrance of the covenant, it was to ferve them as a partition-wall to feparate them from other nations: And this a Rite by positive inftitution might well do, tho' ufed before by fome other people, or even borrowed from them. But a natural duty has no capacity of being thus employed: becaufe a practice obferved by all nations, would obliterate every tract of a fign or token of a covenant made with one. Indeed, where the Covenant is with the whole race of mankind, and fo, the fign of the covenant is to ferve only for a remembrance, there, the fign may be either a moral duty or a natural phænomenon. This latter was the cafe in God's promise or covenant, not to deftroy the earth any more by water. Here the Al. mighty, with equal marks of wisdom, made a natural and beautiful phenomenon, feen over the whole habitable earth, the token of that covenant. And GOD faid, This is the TOKEN OF THE COVENANT. I do SET my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a Covenant between me and the earth, GEN. ix. 12, 13. Yet it is wonderful to confider how this matter has been mistaken. Perhaps the word, fet, did not a little contribute to it: the expreffion being underflood abfolutely; when it fhould have been taken in the relative fenfe, of fet for a token. And in this fenfe, and only in this fenfe, the bow was then FIRST fet in the cloud. However, Dr. Burnet of the Charterhoufe, who had a viĥonary theory to fupport, which made it neceffary for him to maintain

* Chap. xx. ver. 12.

+ GEN. chap. xvii. ver. 11. that

that time and from thence-forward, we fay, the Egyptians would not borrow of the Ifraelites, for thefe

that the phenomenon of the Rain-bow did not exist before the flood, endeavours to countenance that fancy from the paffage above, by fuch a kind of reasoning as this, " That, had there been a Rain-bow before the flood, it could not have been properly used as a token of God's Covenant, that he would no more drown the earth, because, being a common appearance, it would give no extraordinary affurance of fecurity." And to this Feafoning Tindal, the author of Chriftianity as old as the Creation, alludes, Perhaps (fays he) the not knowing the natural caufe of the rain bow, occafioned that account we have in Genefis of its infiitution, page 228, 229. Its inftitution! The expreffion is excellent. God's appointing the rain-bow to be a token or memorial, for perpetual generations, of his covenant with mankind, is called, bis inflitution of the rain-bow. But ill expreffion is the homage to nonfenfe, for the privilege of Freethinking. However, his words fhew, he took it for granted that Mofes reprefents GOD as then FIRST fetting his bow in the clouds. And it is the reasoning which we are at prefent concerned with. Now this, we fay, is founded in grofs ignorance of the nature of fimple compacts and promises; in which, the only security for performance is the known good faith of the Promifer. But, in the cafe before us, the most novel or moft fupernatural appearance "Could add nothing to their affurance, which arofe from the evidence of God's veracity. As, on the contrary, had the children of Noah been ignorant of this attribute of the Deity, such an extraordinary phenomenon could have given no affurance at all. For what then ferved the rain-bow? For the wife purpose so well expreffed by the facred writer, for THE TOKEN OF THE COVENANT. That is, for a memorial or remembrance of it throughout all generations. A method of univerfal practice in the contracts of all civilized nations. Indeed, had this remnant of the human race been made acquainted with God's Covenant or promife by a third perfon, and in a common way, there had then been occafion to accompany it with fome extraordinary or supernatural appearance. But for what? Not to give credit to GOD's veracity; but to the veracity of the meffenger who brought his Will. Now God revealed this promise immediately to the children of Noah. But here lies the mistake: Our Deifts have put themfelves in the place of thofe Patriarchs, when a much lower belonged to them; and, the promife being revealed to them only by a third hand, and in a common way, they refuse to believe it, because not accompanied with a miracle. In the mean time they forget the condition of the Patriarchs when this covenant VOL. IV.

D

was

these two plain and convincing reasons. 1. They held the Ifraelites in the greateft contempt, and

abhor

was made with them; filled with terror and aftonishment at the past, and with the moft difquieting apprehenfions of a future Deluge, they needed fome fuperior affurance to allay their fears. Had not that been the cafe, a particular Covenant had not been made with them; and had their pofterity all along continued in the fame condition, we may certainly conclude, from the uniformity of God's dealings with mankind, that he would, from time to time, have renewed this Covenant, in the way it was first given; or have secured the truth of the tradition by a fupernatural appearance. But thofe fears foon wore out: and Pofterity, in a little time, became no more concerned in this particular promife, than in all the other inftances of divine goodness to mankind. But Mofes, as this great philofopher concludes, had no knowledge of the natural caufe of the rainbow. It may be fo: because I know of no use that knowledge would have been to his Miffion. But he was acquainted with the moral cause, and the effects too, of COVENANTS, which was more to the purpose of his office and character; and which this freethinking DOCTOR OF LAWS fhould not have been so ignorant of.

2. But fecondly, if the Jewish Prophets can not convince our Sabbatarians, that the mofaic day of reft was a pofitive infitution; yet methinks the express words of Jefus might, who told the Sabbatarians of that time, the Pharisees, That the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Mark 11. 27. Now were the obfervation of the Sabbath a natural duty, it is certain, man was made for the Sabbath, the end of his creation being for the obfervance of the MORAL LAW, the worfhip of the Deity, Temperance and Justice: nor can we by natural light conceive any other end. On the contrary, all pofitive inftitutions, were made for man, for the better direction of his conduct in certain fituations of life; the obfervance of which is therefore to be regulated on the end for which they were inftituted: for (contrary to the nature of moral duties) the obfervance of them may, in fome circumftances, become hurtful to man, for whose benefit they were inftituted; and whenever this is the cafe, God and nature grant a difpenfation.

3. Thirdly, the primitive Chriftians, on the authority of this plain declaration of their bleffed Master, treated the Sabbath as a pofitive Law, by changing the day dedicated to the fervice of Religion

abhorrence, as SHEPHERDS, SLAVES, and ENEMIES, men who had brought a total devastation on their Country: and had embraced a Religion whofe Ritual daily treated the Gods of Egypt with the utmost ignominy and defpite'. But people never borrow their religious Rites from thofe towards whom they ftand in such inveterate distance. 2. It was part of the Religion of the old Egyptians to borrow from none": most certainly, not from the Jews. This is the account we have, of their natural difpofition, from those Ancients who have treated of their manners. While, on the other hand, we are affured from infallible authority that the Ifraelites, of the time of Mofes, were in the very extreme of a contrary humour, and were for BORROWING all they could lay their hands on. This is fo notorious, that I was surprised to find the learned Witfius attempt to prove, that the Egyptians were greatly inclined to borrowing": but much

Religion from the seventh to the first day, and thus abolished one pofitive Law, THE SABBATH inftituted in memory of the Creation, and, by the authority of the Church, erected another, properly called THE LORD'S DAY, in memory of the Redemption.

1 See Spencer, De Leg. Heb. Rit. vol. i, p. 296.

m Egyptii detefari videntur quicquid οἱ γονεῖς & παρέδειξαν, parentes non commonftrarunt, Witfii Egyptiaca, p. 6.-Пalgia δὲ χρεώμενοι νόμοισι, ἄλλον ἐδένα ἐπικλέωναι τοῖσι. Herodot. 1. ii. 6. 78. - Ελληνικοῖσι δὲ νομαίοισι φεύγεσι κρᾶσθαι· τὸ δὲ σύμπαν εἰς πεῖν, μηδ' ΑΛΛΩΝ ΜΗΔΑΜΑ ΜΗΔΑΜΩΝ ἀνθρώπων νομαίοισι. οἱ μὲν νῦν ἄλλοι Αἰγύπλιοι ἔτω τ8το φυλάσσεσι. C. 91.

a His words are thefe: Magna quidem laterum contentione reclamat Doctiffimus Spencerus, prorfufque incredibile effe contendit. confiderato gentis utriufque genio, ut ab Hebræis Ægyptii in fuam tam multa religionem adfciverint. At quod ipfi incredibile videtur, id mibi, poft alios eruditione atque judicio clariffimos, perquam probabile

D 2

more surprised with his arguments; which are these. 1. Clemens Alex. fays, that it was the cuftom of the Barbarians, and particularly the Egyptians, to honour their legiflators and benefactors as Gods. 2. Diodorus Siculus confirms this account, where he says, that the Egyptians were the most grateful of all mankind to their benefactors. And 3. The fame hiftorian tells us, that when Egypt was become a province to Perfia, the Egyptians deified Darius, while yet alive; which honour they never had done to any other king.-This is the whole of his evidence to prove the Egyptian genius fo greatly inclined to foreign Rites. Nor fhould I have expofed the nakedness of this learned and honeft man, either in this place or in any other, but for the ufe which hath been made of his authority; of which more hereafter. But Witfius, and thofe in his way of thinking, when they talk of the Egyptians' borrowing Hebrew rites, feem

probabile eft: IPSO EGYPTIORUM ID SUADENTE GENIO In eo quippe præftantiffimi Auctores confentiunt, folitos fuiffe Egyptios maxima eos exiftimatione profequi, quos fapientia atque virtute excellentiores cernerent, & a quibus fe ingentibus beneficiis affellos effe meminerant: adeo quidem ut ejufmodi mortales, non defunctos folum, fed & fuperfites, pro Diis haberent. Lib. iii. c. 12. p. 262.

• Clemens Alexandrinus clarum effe dicit, Barbaros eximie femper honoraffe fuos legumlatores & præceptores Deos ipfos appellantes. Inter Barbaros autem cum maxime id præftiterint Ægyptii. Qui etiam genus Ægyptium diligentiffime illos in Deos retulit. Affentitur Diodorus; Ægyptios denique fupra cæteros Mortales quicquid bene de ipfis meretur grata mente profequi affirmant. Neque popularibus modo fuis atque indigenis fed Peregrinis Facit huc Darii Perfarum regis exemplum, quod Diodori iterum verbis exponam. Tandem Darius legibus Fgyptiorum animum appuliffe dicitur Nam cum Sacerdotibus Ægypti familiaritatem iniit, &c. Propterea tantum honoris confecutus eft, ut fuperftes adbuc Divi appellationem quod nulli regum aliarum contigit, promeruerit. Lib. iii. c. 12. p. 253.

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