AN ENQUIRY INTO THE DOCTRINES OF CESSITY AND PREDESTINATION

1·10.9 MB·English

by  N.A.

An
Enauxy 7
DoeBunes oP Cogety Af
Preclerbraten

Uhrartan

Marpara Soy kasi :
Govt, of Wen Beoual

DISCOURSE L

Acts xv. 18.
KAQWN UNTO GOD ANE 434. HIS WORES, FROM THE
BEGINNING OF THE WORLD.

NEXT lo the idea of power in the sapreme
Being, dhot of his perfoot dmowledge of all
that is doing in the world seems to be the
first that arises in the mind of man, however
undisciplined and uninstracted, even before
any tolerable conception of what we call bis
mora} attributes is formed. The most igno-
vant person, who talks of Ciod’s seeing every
thing, and hearing every thing, never for a
moment juagines that he sees and hears by
such orgaais us we possess; or that the ure
of those facultics can be impeded in him aa
it often is in ourselves; that any thing, for
®
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instunce, can be hid eAighitig,,or come upon
him by surprise, o ee Mi Bld confusedly
discovered, Whatever knows, he knaws
perfectly : and although it is some imprave-
ment upon this idea, to couceive him know-
ing things beforehand, yet since hmman
wisdom arrives offen. at such a degree of
certainty aboul future events, that for all the
purposes of fife our foreknowledge is as
touch to be depended upon as our actual
knowledge, as. for instance, that the sun
will rine to-rmerrow—-that the 4ife will ebb
and flow at a given timecsince, Tsay, ox
perience teaches us this of ourselves, it is
no violent step, but a natural end eaay tron
sition, to attribute this faculty in a much
higher degree to God-—or rather 10 conceive
it ax existing in him without any fimitation
at all. The mere general statement indeed,
that Ged does not exist in dime but in eter
nity, and therefore that there ix no room for

the ideus éefere and after when speaking of
Aim, and that the succession of events cumnot
to such a Beng make any difference, ix
perhaps beyand the reach of minds not ac~
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customed to such abstraction: but the plain-
ext and most anpractised thinker will find no
difficulty in aowing, that God must see into

fatuvity better than man can sec 98 one man

sees better than another according to the
strength of his faculties, and his superior
acquaintance with the constiiution of the
universe: and if’ we assign these qualities
without measure or Limitation to God, what
measure or limitation can it he reasonable to
impose upon that foreknowledge which arises
out of thealft

Accordingly it may be observed, that one
of the earliest religions practices of rade
nations is to consnlt the Deity about that
which is 10 come::plainly implying that
foresight, which is the strongest evidence of
superionty among men, must. belong to God
in 4 fat more eminent degree. The counsel
of Ahilophel was (the sacred historian ob-
serves) “as if a mon had enquired at the
oracle uf God.”

The course indeed of the material world
seems to proceed upon such fixed and uni-
form laws, that short experience joined to

Be