42 ADVANCEMENT OF LEARNING 



works produces knowledge, though, with regard to him, not 

 perfect knowledge, but wonder, which is broken knowledge. 

 It may, therefore, be properly said, &quot;That the sense resem 

 bles the sun, which shows the terrestrial globe, but conceals 

 the celestial ; * 13 for thus the sense discovers natural things, 

 while it shuts up divine. And hence some learned men 

 have, indeed, been heretical, while they sought to seize the 

 secrets of the Deity borne on the waxen wings of the senses. 

 5. As to the point that too much knowledge should incline 

 to atheism, and the ignorance of second causes make us 

 more dependent upon God, we ask Job s question, &quot;Will 

 ye lie for God, as one man. will do for another, to gratify 

 him?&quot; 14 For certainly God works nothing in nature but 

 by second causes; 16 and to assert the contrary is mere im 

 posture, as it were, in favor of God, and offering up to the 

 author of truth the unclean sacrifice of a lie. Undoubtedly 

 a superficial tincture of philosophy may incline the mind to 

 atheism, yet a further knowledge brings it back to religion; 18 

 for on the threshold of philosophy, where second causes 

 appear to absorb the attention, some oblivion of the highest 

 cause may ensue; but when the mind goes deeper, and sees 

 the dependence of causes and the works of Providence, it 

 will easily perceive, according to the mythology of the 

 poets, that the upper link of Nature s chain is fastened to 

 Jupiter s throne. 17 To conclude, let no one weakly imagine 

 that man can search too far, or be too well studied in the 

 book of God s word, and works, divinity, and philosophy; 

 but rather let them endeavor an endless progression in both, 

 only applying all to charity, and not to pride to use, not 

 ostentation, without confounding the two different streams 

 of philosophy and revelation together. 18 



13 Phil. Jud. de Somnis, p. 41. 14 Job xiii. 7. 



15 Hooker, Eccl. Pol. i. 2 ; Butler, Anal, part i. c. 2. 



16 See the author s essay on Atheism, and Mr. Boyle s essays upon the 

 Usefulness of Philosophy. 



&quot; Iliad, viii. 19 ; and conf. Plato, Theset. i. 153. 



18 The dispute between the rational and scriptural divines is still on foot ; the 

 former are for reconciling reason and philosophy with faith and religion ; and 

 the latter for keeping them distinct, as things incompatible, or making reason 



