4 If things had no beginning,1 if the world was from eternity; what is the reason there are no monuments of more ancient times, than there are? For, if we consider what eternity is, and what the vastness of it is, that when you have thought of millions of millions of years, yet still there is more beyond: if the world hath been of so long continuance, what is the reason, that things are but, as it were, newly ripened? what is the reason, that things are of no greater antiquity than they are? Take all the Writers that ever wrote, (besides the Scripture) and they all exceed not above four thousand years; for they almost all agree in this, that the first man, that had ever any history written of him, was Ninus, who lived about Abraham's time, or a little before; Trogus Pompeius, and Diodorus Siculus agree in this. Plutarch saith, that Theseus, was the first, before him there was no history of truth, nothing credible; and this is his expression: Take the Histories of times before Theseus, and you shall find them to be but like skirts, in the maps, wherein you shall find nothing but vast Seas. Varro, one of the most learned of their Writers, professeth, that before the kingdom of the Sicyonians, which begun after Ninus time, that before that time nothing was certain, and the beginning of that was doubtful, and uncertain. And their usual division of all history, into fabulous, and certain, by Historians, is well known, to ⟨p. 12⟩those that are conversant in them; and yet the Historians, that are of any truth, began long after the Captivity in Babylon; for Herodotus, that lived after Esthers time, is counted the first that ever wrote in Prose, and he was above eight hundred years after Moses time. For conclusion of this, we will only say, that which one of the ancientest of the Roman Poets, drawing this conclusion from the argument we have in hand, saith, If things were from eternity, and had not a beginning;
Cur supra bellum Thebanum & funera Trojae
Non alias alii quoque res cecinere Poetae?
If things were from eternity, what is the reason, that before the Theban and Trojan war, all the ancient Poets, and ancient Writers did not make mention of any thing? Do you think, if things had been from eternity, there would be no monuments of them, if you consider the vastness of eternity, what it is? So likewise for the beginning of Arts and Sciences;
4 If things had no beginning,1 if the world was from eternitie; what is the reason there are no monuments of more ancient times, than there are? For, if wee consider what eternity is, and what the vastnesse of it is, that when you have thought of millions of millions of yeares, yet still there is more beyond: if the world hath been of so long continuance, what is the reason, that things are but, as it were, newly ripened? what is the reason, that things are of no greater antiquity than they are? Take all the Writers that ever wrote, (besides the Scripture) and they all exceed not above foure thousand yeares; for they almost all agree in this, that the first man, that had ever any history written of him, was Ninus, who lived about Abrahams time, or a little before; Trogus Pompeius, and Diodorus Siculus agree in this. Plutarch saith, that Theseus, was the first, before him there was no history of truth, nothing credible; and this is his expression: Take the Histories of times before Theseus, and you shall finde them to be but like skirts, in the maps, wherein you shall finde nothing but vast Seas. Varro, one of the most learned of their Writers, professeth, that before the kingdome of the Sicyonians, which begun after Ninus time, that before that time nothing was certaine, and the beginning of that was doubtfull, and uncertain. And their usuall division of all history, into fabulous, and certaine, by Historians, is well knowne, to ⟨p. 12⟩those that are conversant in them; and yet the Historians, that are of any truth, began long after the Captivitie in Babylon; for Herodotus, that lived after Esthers time, is counted the first that ever wrote in Prose, and he was above eight hundred yeares after Moses time. For conclusion of this, we will only say, that which one of the ancientest of the Roman Poets, drawing this conclusion from the argument we have in hand, saith, If things were from eternitie, and had not a beginning;
Cur supra bellum Thebanum & funera Trojae
Non alias alii quoque res cecinere Poetae?
If things were from eternitie, what is the reason, that before the Theban and Trojan warre, all the ancient Poets, and ancient Writers did not make mention of any thing? Doe you thinke, if things had beene from eternitie, there would be no monuments of them, if you consider the vastnesse of eternitie, what it is? So likewise for the beginning of Arts and Sciences;
- 1Else, where be any monuments of times before those mentioned the Scriptures.
