3. Tho' they both would, yet with ill fuccefs. For, tho' 'tis they could not carry on fuch a probable enough God's SenCheat. Can Cheats Prophefie? tence against Saul of rending Can they foretel the exact E-the Kingdom from him, might vent of a Battle, while yet in be commonly known to the the dark Womb of future Con- People, yet the time when it tingencies, which fome, tho' fhould be executed, is no where unjuftly, deny to God himself reveal'd, nor that he himself Can they know the Time, the fhould come to an untimely Circumftances, the Slain? To End, which feems more partiMorrow, Thou and thy Sons cularly a Punishment on him fhall be with me. 'Tis all the for his thus confulting the greatest Abfurdity imaginable. Witch, as we find exprefly, Nay, fuppofing for once, the 1 Chron. 10. 13. So Saul died for old Crone, and this her new his Tranfgreffion, &c. and alfo Son, fuch wonderful Politici for asking Counfel of one that ans, as to know exactly the had a Familiar Spirit. State of both Armies; fuppo- This to prove, 'twas not a Confing farther, That they knew federacy. To which if we add, God had rejected Saul; yet from that Saul both faw and heard neither of thefe Circumftances this Apparition, whatever it could they fo much as rational- was, in the Form of Samuel, ly Guefs, much lefs fo exactly nay perceived that it was Samuel, Foretel the Event. For the viz. his Likenefs; we think Armies, they could not be more that firft Point (for which unequally Match'd than they we are most concered) will be had been formerly, when all fet in as good a light as can be but a few Hundred ran away defired. before the Battle; when not a For the fecond, Whether the Sword with thofe few left, real Soul of Samuel, or the Debefides with Saul and Jonathan ; vil in his Shape? This we conwhen Jonathan and his Armour- fefs a greater Difficulty, LearBearer alone difcomfited the ned Men being extreamly diwhole Philiftine Army. For vided therein. However, fince Saul, tho' God had indeed re- 'tis neceffary to embrace one jcted him, and an evil Spirit Opinion, we rather adhere to was come upon him, yet he the latter, That 'twas the Dehad fome fuccefs afterwards in vil, not the real Samuel; his Wars. He was actually that for this, as appears to us, prefent at the Battle, when very cogent Reason: Because Goliah was kill'd; at which it feems very harsh to fuppofe, time, Saul and all Ifrael were either that a wicked Witch Fighting against the Philistines fhould have fuch Power over before, and purfu'd them after. the holy Soul of Samuel, then Befides, 1 Sam. 23. when the at Reft in Abraham's Bofom, as Philistines had Invaded the to drag it thence by her accurfed Land, he went againit them; Arts; or that God thould fend and that, not that we read of him from the Place of Blifs.on

and

fo fad an Errand, when the ma- Samuel be called by that Name, licious Fiend, the deftroying when neither could that proAngel, the Inftrument of his perly be faid to be Samuel? For Vengeance, the Tempter to another Difficulty, the Devil's Defpair, and Adverfary of Man- toretelling future Events, bekind, was fo ready, fo proper a fides his fhrewd Gueffes, it Meffenger for fuch a Bufinefs. might be reveal'd to him, as The chief Arguments to the we are fure 'twas in the cafe of contrary are thefe: 1. The ex-Job. Thus have we endeaprefs repeated mention of Samuel voured to remove Objections, through the whole Story. The and fhew Reafons, why it was Woman faw that it was Samuel, neither a Confederate, nor the Saul perceived it was Samuel, real Samuel, but an illufive DeSamuel faid unto Saut; befides mon which appear'd to Saul in the Apparition it felf, ver. 17. the Shape, Drels, and Form of "The Lord hath done as he that holy Man. fpake by me. 'Tis acknowJedged this is a weighty ArguQ. Where go the Souls of Good ment, and not eafily answered. Men immediately after Death? But this may be, we think, A. 'Tis impoffible but we tairly faid to't, That the Holy muft Talk improperly of fuch Fenman here, ties not himself things, whereof we can have to ftrict Logical Expreffions; none but borrowed Notions. but defcribes things as they apWhereness or Ubiety, and all Phyfipeared, or were taken to be incal Progreffive Local Motion, vulgar Acceptation. Many In which must be in a vbi, do ftances might be given from o-not, that we know of, agree to ther places, take one in the pure Spirits; nor can we convery words, Samuel did, Samuelceive how they fhould, being faid, whereas really, in ftrict only the Attributes of Body. nefs and exact propriety, even lowever, Exift they must, and granting their Suppofition, tha we can't conceive any Exiflence twas Samuel's Soul, it could but what is Somewhere; and not however be real Samuel: if we allow Vehicles, could The Soul being but part of the much more easily Think and Man, of whofe Effence 'tis to Difcourfe of thefe things. But be Body as well as Soul. But for the prefent, confidering of meerly becaufe here was the feparate Spirits as in a Place, Likeness of his Body, or a Bo- tho' we know not how the dy of Air, (for his own was Queftion is, Where thofe, if Buried at Rama-Miles from Good Men, refide immediately Endor) he is called Samuel. This after Death? If by Immedi being granted, we fee no illately here, the Querift fhould Confequences in advancing a mean the very next Inftant afftep further, and asking, Whyter Separation, we conceive mayn't as well the appearance twould be the fame thing as of Samuel be called Samuel, tho' if that term were to be taken it was not fo; as the Soul of in a lax Senfe, for the time be

fore

9

Q. Who was that Melchizedech, mentioned Heb, 7? Whether Chrift, an Angel, or Man?

fore the Refurrection; feeing Metaphyfical Motion is perform'd in an Inftant; And by the leave of very good Men, we can fee no neceffity, nor fo A. Melchizedech was neither much as a Congruity in what an Angel, nor the Son of God, is generally called, a Particular but a Man, notwithstanding Judgment. We believe then, and thofe Objections that have been affert, that the Souls of Pious brought, especially that, With Men, as foon as departed out of out Father, without Mother, &c. this Life, are in Manu Domini,(Ift,) Gen. 14. 18. 'tis faid, He with God that gave them. If brought forth Wine, &c. If we are further ask'd, to be more the Text had been, He brought explicit, we answer, They are Wine, &c. it had been proper in Paradife, as was the good for an Angel, &c. but the word Thief's, Lazarus's, &r. But ftill, forth fuppofes a place of Refiwhether that Paradife be the dence, and a Humane Entertainhighest Heavens, the Seat of ment. (2d,) Here's no need of ineffable Glory, and the Throne a Perfonal Type, (I mean as to of the moft High; or only a a Similitude in Perfons) no Place of Eafe and Refreshment, more than there was betwixt prepared for the Spirits of good old Elias, and young St. John Men, between Death and the the Baptift, twas the likeness laft Judgment, (which is far e- and power of their Spirits; fo nough from Purgatory, and was here, the Type or Similittide the unanimous Doctrine of the lies in the Order, as is plain by first and pureft Ages of the 16th and 17th Verfes of the Church, we think not fit here to 7th of the Hebrews. (3d,) The enquire, fince it belongs not fo Holy Ghoft gives the exprefs immediately to the prefent Que-Characteristick of a Man, ver. 4. ftion. He had a Perfonal defcent, that Q. Whether was that of Dives is, a Natural Father and Moand Lazarus a Parable, or anther, gathered from Verse 6. Hiftory? and was fubject to Mortality: A. I can meet with no Wri- See Verfe 8. the beginning of ter either Ancient or Modern the Verfe; for the latter part. that takes it otherwife than alludes not to his Perfon, but Parabolical; tho' of all Para-his Order. His Natural Gebles it looks moft like an Hi-nealogy is plainly inferred in ftory, because 'tis fo Particular; Ver. 6. but not fet down, it as to Dives, his Father's Houfe, being only the custom of the his number of Brethren, &c. Jews to Regifter their Genea But whether Parable or Hiftory, logies in order, to preferve it is not without its ufe: It is their Claims to outward Proeither a real Truth, or a real mifes, Bleflings, Privileges, &c. Representation of Truth, feeing Chrift himself had a reputed it came from his Lips who is Defccnt; but when he was a Truth it felf. bout this Order of Righteouf

nefs,

Vol. II. nefs, Peace, he plainly re-blance or Apparition of fomeprefents his Prototype Melchi- thing like fuch or such a Deedech, in faying, he own'd no ceafed Party haunts a Place, other Relation but fuch as did you may find the Body of fuch the Will of his Father in Hea- a Perfon in the Grave, as by ven. The Difficulty and Mi- the Spirit is reprefented. So fake, was a Confounding the that I cannot fee it Irrational Perfon of Melchizedech, with his to conclude, that it may be Order; it was Righteoufnefs, either the Spirits of fuch PerPeace, which have no Re-fons, who yet in Love with gifter, which are without be- their Bodies, after their Sepaginning of Days, or end of ration, do wander up and down Time; and fo reprefenting the Reftlefs and Diffatisfied; or Son of Righteoufnefs, who is that the Devil, according to a now, and ever will remain fo, Learned Author, affumes fuch eternally fulfilling that Order likeneffes in his Pride, as if he which Melchizedech perfonally boasted over that Mortality reprefented for a little time. which he has been the Caufe We need not fay any more aof. gainst Melchizedech's being an Angel, or Chrift, or Sem, &c. fince they are Opinions already confuted by feveral Learned Authors.

Q. 'Tis faid of St. Peter's fecond Denial, St. Mark 14. 69. A Maid saw him again, But St. Luke 22. 58. That 'twas a Man, for fo St. Peter calls him; Man, I am not. How does this Quadrate?

4. Phyficians have imputed A. The thing founds much this Shuterkin (which refem-harfher in our Tongue than in bles a Weezle) to the Steam the Original. For Man, the and Warmth of the Stove-Word 'Argan is there used, Pots, which vivifies the natu in Latin Humo both which ral Irrigation of the Uterus, Words are of the Epicene Genwhich has a Tendency to form der, and apply'd, as every fomething, as the Guts and School-Boy knows, either to Inteftines, by an undue Difpo- Man or Woman. As even in fition of Heat, &c. from our own Language, when we Worms; it ufually comes forth fay Man or Beaft, we include with the Birth of the first the Feminine in the first as well Child, which it fometimes Cor- as the Mafculine. rodes; as foon as it comes into the open Air, it will run up the Walls, and ftrive to hide it felf, but they do all they can to kill it immedi

ately.

But if this fhould feem fomething ftrain'd there's a fecond Interpretation, which is very natural and eafie. Once more, we are always to interpret thofe Texts which are not fo full, by thofe which treat more

Q. Do the Deceased walk? A Not Corporally; for at amply of the fame Subject. the fame time as the Refem-Grant but that reafonable De

mand,

1

mand, and there's no Difficulty Thou canst not fee my Face and Live. How do these agree? in these Places.

A. The Face of God is taken

In a

We fay then, that there was more than one Perfon, who fometimes for God's Effence, charg'd St. Peter at this fecond and perfect Glory: at other time with being in the Garden. times for his Prefence only, Nor is this faid Gratis; for his Favour, and perhaps his St. John, who gives a more di- Church, as Cain complains, From ftinct Account of thofe Occur-thy Face fhall I be hid, and afterrences than other Evangelifts wards he went out from the (being alfo, as 'tis generally Prefence of the Lord. own'd, there actually prefent third Senfe 'tis taken for a with St. Peter) tells us at his more particular Manifestation fecond Denial, THEY faid un-of God's Glory, more than the to him, &c. And if more than latter, lefs than the former, one, as 'tis in the Plural Number, that Shechinah, as the Jews call where's any Incongruity, that it, for the Glory of the Lord, both a Maid and a Man, and which appeared fo often over feveral of 'em too (were there any need of it) might at the fame time charge him with the fame thing? We own the Pronoun They Said, in the Greek Tov, is commonly taken indefinitely for one or more, fig

the Mercy-feat, both in the Tabernacle, and fometimes afterwards in the Temple of Solomon. This Glory of God the Jews call the Prefence of God, or Face of God; and those who were honour'd with any fnch

nifying no more than 'twas extraordinary glorious Appearfaid: But granting this, the ance, though but of an Angel, other Senfe is as ufual; and are faid to have feen God, the yet further is plainly intended Face of God, or feen God Face here, and relates to more Per- to Face; As Facob, Manoah, the fons than one; which appears Children of Ifrael, and here in the to any who fhall compare the 11th v. Mofes, as appears fur18. . and the 25. In the 18. ther from the preceding Verses, thus The Servants and Offi- The Clondy Pillar defcended, and cers flood there, who had made the Lord talked with Mofes (in a Fire, and they warm'd them- other places, the Glory of the Lord felves; and Peter ftood and appear d.) But ftill Mofes defir'd warm'd himself- the fame mat- to have. fome greater Tokens ter is evidently return'd in the of God's Favour, and to fee 25th. And Simon Peter food and him; 'tis probable, as the Blefwarm'd himself, They faid there-fed Angels do in Heaven: I fore unto him, &c. Who, but the Servants and Officers beforementioned?

Q. Exod. 33. 7. II. And the Lord Said unto Mofes, Face to Face; compared with 7. 20.

befeech thee, fays he, v. 18. fhew me thy Glory; to which he is answered, Thon canft net fee my Face, for no Man fhall fie me and Live: He cou'd not have fuch a Sight of God as was too bright for a Mortal to bear

and