cus Chap. II. Ver. ii, zi. That Theft may ye eat, of 
every flying ereeplng thing that goeth upon all four^ 
which have Legs ahove their Feet to leap withal upon the 
Earthy even thefe of them ye may eat ; the Locuji after 
his kindy and the laid LocuJl after his kind, and the 
Beetle after his kind ^ and the Grafhopper after his 
kind. 
Now I mufi confefs, notvvithftanding all that the 
learned Commentators have faid on this Paffage, it hi- 
•therto has ieemed to me, (and I believe to moft Readers) 
very ftrange and unaccountable, that here among the 
Pure, Whoie(bm Creatures, proper for humane Nou- 
rilhmenr, Beetles^ and thofe other Nafty, Dry, and 
Unpromifing Vermin, ihould be thought fit to be rec- 
koned up, as Clean and proper for the Food of Man. 
But fince' I have bad Tome little Experience of what 
has happen'd among cur felves, upon Swarms of one 
of thefe fort of Infeds infefling but a fmall part of our 
Country, I cannot but admire the Providence of God, 
and the fagacious Prudence of his Divine Law-giver, 
Mofes, who forefeeing the great Dearth and Scarcity 
that thefe Vermin might one Day bring upon his People, 
had a particular regard to it, and therefore gives them 
here a permiffive Precept, or a fort of Hint what they 
fhould do, when the Corn, Grafs, Olive-Trees, Fruit' 
Trees, Fines, and other Provifions were deftroyed by the 
Lociifi and BfS;^o{, or Beetles fwarming in the Land : 
why then for want of other Nouri(hment,' and rather 
than ftarve, he tells them, they might eat, and Hveuf- 
ort, the filthy Deftroyers themfelves, and yet be Clean : 
For no one can reafonably imagine, they would ever 
condefcend to make ufeof fuch vile, dirty Food, if ihey 
could at the fame time get any other. So we are to ur> 
derftand that Paffige of the l^ew Tedament^ in St, Matth, 
Chap> 3. Ver. 4. and Mark Chap. i. Ver. 6. where 'tis 
re- 
