fouls are united to their bodies? These things ought to be confider'd coolly, and it should not be thought fufficient, to put them off with an arch expreffion. But Mr. Watts 9 tells us, that, "In this enlighten'd age of fearch and enquiry, men will not be fatisfied to hear us make use of inexplicable and mysterious terms, and tell them, that the sense of them is never to be known: they will not think that doctrine can be of fo much importance to us, which must be wrapt up in perpetual darkness, and can never be understood." That our age is an age of fearch and enquiry, I own; but that it is an enlighten'd age, I can hardly allow, feeing the black clouds of Deifm and Arianism hang fo thick over us. As to the doctrine under confideration, no one ever fetter'd it with more inexplicable terms, than our author, nor do I know of any writer, who has wrapt it up in greater darknels. When we give the clearest proof from Scripture, that the Father, the Son, and the Spirit are three perfons, that they are all divine, and yet are but one God, because there can be but one true God; it is the greatest injuftice done us, to charge us with wrapping up the doctrine of the Trinity in darkness, because we own our idea of the mode, how the facred three are one, is not clear, but confuse, inadequate, and indeterminate, and are content to look upon the infinitely great God, as the incomprehenfible unknown. Our author farther urges, that, "fince the Scripture bids us grow in the knowledge of God our Father, and of Chrift our Saviour, men will not count it a profane thing to attempt 9 Ibid. p. vii. to to turn afide the veil of ignorance, and endeavour, at least in fome measure, to know God, and understand what they are required to believe concerning him." I am fatisfied, upon reflection, he will scarce think, that what the Scripture calls growing in the knowledge of God and Chritt, is to be meant of a fearching into the manner how they are one; for it would give us an odd notion of Scripture, to suppose we are commanded by it, to prefs after the knowledge of a thing we can never know, without revelation, and which yet is not revealed. I do not think it is profane, to attempt to turn afide any veil of ignorance, but I can not help thinking, it is arrogant and irreverent, for us to be eager in prying into things, before which the infinitely wife God has thought fit to draw a veil of fecrecy. As the doctrine of the Trinity is a mystery of revelation, vaftly transcending our finite understandings, our ideas of it can never be clear; therefore i can fcarce think the fhadows which overfpread our minds, as to the mode of this mystery, will fly away, tho' the morning of the later glory fhould approach; becaufe as this matter is a thing not reveal'd, we can never be let into it without a new revelation; and that we have no more reason ever to expect, than we have need to defire it. However, let the cafe be as it will, I can hardly think we should turn afide the veil of ignorance, if we were to fay, that when the Son of God declared himself to be one with the Father, the most agreeable expofition of fuch a text is, to make the word Father fignify the Godhead, which is common to the Father, the Son, and the Spirit, because this wraps up the text in darkness, inftead of clearing it; neither can I think, we fhould better understand what. we are required to believe concerning the Father and the Son, if we were to enter ever so far into fuch questions as thefe: "Whether the Godhead which is ascribed to the Son be the full, complete, and adequate idea of the Godhead which is of the Father; or whether, in fome Scriptures, it may mean an inadequate idea of Godhead, which may be fuppofed to be call'd the Word or the wifdom of God; or whether it be the entire Godhead, under the special idea of wisdom." I do not apprehend, the difcuffing fuch obfcure and unprofitable queftions, would produce any beams of light, which we should meet with longing eyes, and falute with holy joy. The inventive fancies of men, may work hard to put Scripture truths in an agreeable drefs, but fiction can only deck them with fpurious rays; they appear divinely bright, in their own native cloathing: and their beauty is fullied, when they are fet off with that borrow'd blaze, and that falfe glare, which is caft round them by the wit of man. Certainly the draughts of infinite wisdom do not need to be retouch'd, by the fingers of men, whofe underftandings are fo impair'd, by the fall, that they often call light darkness, and darkness light. I would be willing always to lie open to conviction, but till it can be fairly made out to me, that any good has accrued to Chriftianity, by mens ftriving after clear and bright ideas of things which infinitely furpass their reason, I f Mr. Watts's Sermons, Vol. III. p. 432. muft t muft take the liberty to condemn all fuch attempts, as dangerous, as well as ufelefs. The ftriving after the knowledge of what God had not reveal'd, was the fpring of the apoftacy of our firft parents, and was the occafion of fin and death, being transmitted to us their unhappy pofterity: therefore we ought to be afraid of an undue curiofity, and should start back from it, as it was the fource of all the woes and miferies, which we feel, in our tiresom paffage, thro' the wilderness of this world. It has been infinuated, by Mr. Watts, that it is neceffary we should have fome fcheme of the Trinity to go upon, otherwise it is hardly poffible to filence gainfayers; but I do not think we fhould put our felves in a way better to answer our adverfary's cavils, against the catholic doctrine of the Trinity, by running into the very thing, which has given birth to all the herefies and errors which have sprung up, as to this article, in all ages. What was it occafion'd the rife of Sabellianifm, Arianism, Tritheism and Socinianifm? it was this, men of vanity and felfconceit, would not be content to take the matter on the foot on which Scripture has left it, but would be for forming schemes, which might bring it down to their conceptions. Certainly we are not in a fair way to convince those who oppose themselves, if we betake our felves to the very thing which has occafion'd all the oppofition, that has been made to our common faith, and has been the cause of all the herefies Remember that the curft defire to know, And rafhly catch at the forbidden fruit? Prior's Solomon, B. I. p. 174. that that have pester'd the church, from the beginning till now v. I do not think any thing more unhappy in divine, than to turn projector, and to go about to fay, what may be, and what must be, as to Scripture-myfteries. When a man cannot get an adequate idea of what he searches after, it fignifies very little for him to boast of his having acquired brighter ideas of it, than he fancies others have attained. It is no difgrace for us to own our imperfect knowledge of matters that vaftly transcend our finite capacities; it is rather an evidence of our prudence, as well as of our humility: whereas to fet up for folving all difficulties, fhews a man not to be overfraught with modefty, and not to be rightly fenfible of the imperfection and frailty of human understanding. Some may, perhaps, think, that when I fpeak against Mr. Watts's attempt, to gain clear and adequate ideas of the Trinity, I mistake him; because it may be hard for them to allow, that a perfon of his reafon and modesty would engage in a matter, where there is fo little ground to expect fatisfaction. I never faid, that he peremptorily affirm'd, he had actually attain'd, clear and bright ideas of the mode of this mystery; for I would not charge him with what might favor fo much of vanity and arrogance; but This must be for a lamentation and prognoftic of defolation, if not prevented by infinite grace and mercy, that after so many years Gofpel-light, there fhould be regard to falfe teachers, privily bringing in damnable herefies, even denying the Lord that bought them; privily indeed, pretending an enquiry after fenfible ideas of fpiritual and fupernatural truths of eternal life, fuborning alfo a fpectre of rational demonftration to determine and judge of things invifible, which can only be the objects of faith in the word of God. Sir Edward Harley's preface to his fcriptural and rational account of the Chriftian Religion, page v, vi, that |