Richard Baxter's dying thoughts upon Phil. I, 23 written for his own life and…

§ 33. VII. But the greatest difficulty to Natural Knowledge is, Whether Souls shall continue their individuation, or rather fall into one common Soul, or return so to God that gave them, as to be no more divers (or many) individuals as now; as extinguished Candles are united to the illuminated Air, or to the Sun beams. But of ⟨p. 22⟩this I have elsewhere said much for others; and for my self I find I need but this: 1. That as I said before, either Souls are partible substances, or not: If not partible. how are they unible? If Many may be made One by conjunction of substances, then that One may (by God) be made Many again by partition. Either All (or Many) Souls are now but One (individuate only by Matter, as many gulfs in the Sea, or many Candles lighted by the Sun) or not: If they are not One now in several bodies, what reason have we to think that they will be One hereafter, any more than now? Augustine (de Anim.) was put on the question, 1. Whether Souls are One, and not Many: (and that he utterly denieth.) 2. Whether they are Many, and not One; (and that it seemeth he could not digest.) 3. Whether they were at once both One and Many (which he thought would seem to some ridiculous, but he seemeth most to incline to:) And as God is the God of Nature, so Nature (even of the Devils themselves) dependeth on him, as I said, more than the Leaves or Fruit do on the Tree: And we are all his Off-spring, and Live, and Move, and Are in Him, Acts 17. But we are certain for all this, 1. That we are not God; 2. That we are yet many Individuals, and not all One Soul or Man. I• our Union should be as near as the Leaves and Fruit on the same Tree, yet those Leaves and Fruit are numerous and individual Leaves and Fruits, though parts of the Tree. And were this proved of our present, or our future state, it would not alter our Hopes or Fears: For as Now, though we all Live, Move, and Be in God, (and, as some dream, are parts of a common Soul) yet it is certain that some are Better and Happier than others; some wise and good, and some foolish and evil; some in pain and misery, and some at ease and in pleasure; ⟨p. 23⟩and (as I said) it is now no ease to the miserable to be told that radically all Souls are One; no more will it be hereafter, nor can men reasonably hope for, or fear such an Union, as shall make their state the same.