858 ELEMENTARY FIRE THE TYPE AND 



space and duration, are innate in the reasoning 

 faculties, and wholly independent of the external 

 world, or of any material organization. On the 

 contrary, " the heavens declare the glory of God, 

 and the firmament sheweth his handy work." 

 (Psalm xix.) 



The truth is, that elementary fire is the only 

 appropriate representation of the Divinity ; be- 

 cause it is everywhere present, and performs 

 every operation in the physical universe. Could 

 we travel with the speed of lightning for myriads 

 of ages, we should still be encompassed by a 

 boundless ocean of eetherial fire, which generates 

 every ray of light, guides the planets in their 

 revolutions, and fills them with innumerable forms 

 of life. It is, therefore, not surprising that in so 

 many parts of the Old and New Testament, it 

 has been employed to represent the unknown 

 Cause of Causes, that it should have been de- 

 clared by Moses that " God is a consuming fire," 

 which he commanded to be kept perpetually 

 burning on the altar of the tabernacle. (Dent, 

 iv. 24 ; Levit. v. 13.) The sacred fire was also 

 kept burning in the Jewish temple, between the 

 cherubim, in the holy of holies, which is often 

 described as the special seat of the Divine Pre- 

 sence. And it is expressly declared in the First 

 Epistle of John, that " God is light," ch. i. v. 5, 

 a doctrine which seems to have been under- 

 stood literally by many of the most distinguished 



