N00303:208
The child's portion
The child's portion: or The unseen glory of the children of God, asserted, and proved: together with several other sermons occasionally preached, and now published. / By Samuel Willard teacher of a church in Boston, New-England. ; [Five lines from Psalms]
printed by Samuel Green, 1684
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
It can declare or conclude nothing at all about ⟨p. 77⟩it; and this is that which we call ignorance. Sometimes this ignorance is attended with a fond apprehension that he doth see it; mistaking, and confidently concluding it to be that which it is not; & this is properly Error, which is buil• upon Ignorance accompanied with an opinion of knowledge. Sometimes he doth see or discern these differences, and is able to make a true Aphorism, or Declaration about them, and this is called Judgement; which is nothing else but a skill of putting simple Truths together, right as they should be, and according to the natural and genuine relation they have each to the other so as to make them into a true conclusion.
It can declare or conclude nothing at all about ⟨p. 77⟩it; and this is that which we call ignorance. Sometimes this ignorance is attended with a fond apprehension that he doth see it; mistaking, and confidently concluding it to be that which it is not; & this is properly Errour, which is buil• upon Ignorance accompanyed with an opinion of knowledge. Sometimes he doth see or discern these differences, and is able to make a true Aphorisme, or Declaration about them, and this is called Judgement; which is nothing else but a skill of putting simple Truths together, right as they should be, and according to the natural and genuine relation they have each to the other so as to make them into a true conclusion.
2. Relating to the things themselves: We must consider that the reason of our compounding, or putting Truths together, is, from some connection which there is, and appears to us to be between them: as when I see that there is a connection between the nature of Man and Reason, my judgement thence compounds and concludes that Man is a reasonable creature. Now these connections are not all alike, some are tied of a slip knot, or are so connected as they may easily be separated; such is the Relation between all contingent causes and effects, or only probable and conjectural antecedents and consequents: as when we say, the diligent hand maketh rich; here is some rational connection between diligence and prosperity, but yet there are so many