50 77je Wisdom of GOD Parti. 



external intelligent Agent, either God himfelf 

 immediately, or fome Plajlick Nature^ 



Happening lately to read The Chrijitan Vir- 

 ttiqfdy written by the fame Author of the Enquiry 

 into the vulgar Notiom of Nature^ (the illuftri- 

 ous Mr. Boyle) I find therein thefe Words : 

 *' Nor will the Force of all that has been faid 

 " for God*s fpecial Providence be eluded, by 

 *' faying, w'ith fome Deifts, That after the firil 

 *' Formation of the Univerfe, all Things were 

 " brought to pafs by the fettled Laws of Nature. 

 " For though this be confidently, and not with- 

 *' out Colour, pretended, yet, I confefs, it doth 



" not fatisfie me : For I look upon a Law as 



" a Moral, not Phyfical Caufe, as being indeed 

 " but a notional Thing, according to which an 

 '* intelligent and free Agent is bound to regukte 

 " its Adtions. But inanimate Bodies are utterly 

 " uncapable of underftanding what it is, or what 

 " it enjoins, or when they aft conformably, or 

 *' unconformably to it : Therefore the Adions 

 " of inanimate Bodies, which cannot incite, or 

 " moderate their own Adlions, are produced by 

 ** real Power, not by Laws. 



All this being confonant to what I have here 

 written, againft what I took to be this Honour- 

 able Perfon's Hypothejis, I muft needs, to do him 

 Right, acknowledge my felf miftaken -, perceiving 

 now, that his Opinion was, that God Ahnighty 

 did not only eftablifh Laws and Rules of local 

 Motion among the Parts of the univerfal Mat- 

 ter, but did, and does al fo himfelf, execute 

 them, or move the Parts of Matter^ according 



to 



