Considerations of the existence of God and of the immortality of the soul, with…

And the enemies to Holiness restrained by no respects to a superior Power, will obey their brutish Lusts as their supreme Law; And if such diseases or troubles happen that the pleasant operations of Life cease, they may release themselves by a voluntary easy Death, and fall into a sleep never to be disturbed; so that they would be esteemed the only happy persons.

And the enemies to Holiness restrain'd by no respects to a superiour Power, will obey their brutish Lusts as their supream Law; And if such diseases or troubles happen that the pleasant operations of Life cease, they may release themselves by a voluntary easy Death, and fall into a sleep never to be disturb'd; so that they would be esteem'd the only happy persons.

In short, if we only regard things as they pass in the sensible World, we shall be in danger of being over-tempted to Atheism, and to rob God of his Glory and Worship, and that Faith, Fear, Love and Obedience that are due ⟨p. 208⟩to him. Of this I will produce only two Examples. Diagoras saw a Servant of his stealing from him, and upon his denial of the theft, brought him before the Statue of Jupiter thundering, and constrained him to adjure Jupiter for the honour of his Deity, and of Justice and Fidelity, to strike him dead at his feet with Thunder, if he were guilty of the fact, and after three times repeating the dreadful Oath, he went away untouched without harm. Upon the sight of this Diagoras cried out, as in the Poet; —Audis Jupiter haec,¹ nec labra moves, cum mittere vocem Debueras vel marmoreus, vel ahaeneus? ⟨p. 209⟩Dost hear This Jove, not movest thy lips, when fit it were▪ Thy Brass or Marble spoke? And whereas he should have been convinced that a Statue could not be a God, he impiously concluded that God was nothing but a Statue; and from that time was hardened in irreclamable Atheism. So that other