In treating of the subject proposed, I have sometimes found myself obliged to differ from persons, for whose learning and judgment I have a great regard. And though I am not conscious to myself of having made any wilful misrepresentations of things, yet it is very probable that, in the course of so long a work, I have committed mistakes, which will need the indulgence of the reader.

As a book of this kind must unavoidably contain a great number of quotations, I have not thought it necessary in every instance to give the words in the original language, though I have frequently done so; but have, to the best of my ability, always given a faithful account of their sense. Great care has been taken to make the references to the quotations particular and exact, that any man who pleases may the more easily have it in his power to examine and compare them.

After I had brought the following work near to a conclusion, I met with a book written by the late learned Dr. Archibald Campbell, Professor of Divinity and Ecclesiastical History in the University of St. Andrews, which I had not seen before, entitled, "The Necessity of Revelation: or, an Enquiry into the ex"tent of Human Powers with respect to Matters of Religion; "especially those two fundamental articles, the Being of God, "and the Immortality of the Soul." Published in 1739. As the design of this treatise seems in some measure to coincide with what I had in view, I read it over with great care, and must do him the justice to say that he has treated his subject with great learning and diligence. But the method he makes use of is so different from that which I have pursued, that the one does not interfere with the other; nor has it occasioned any alteration in the plan which I had formed. I have, however, in several places, added marginal notes referring to the Doctor's book, either where I thought it contained a fuller illustration of what I have more briefly hinted at, or where, as sometimes has been the case, I happened to differ from that learned writer.

Not to detain the reader any longer, the plan of the following work is briefly this:

That there was an original revelation communicated to mankind in the earliest ages, for leading them to the knowledge of God and religion, some vestiges of which continued long among

the nations: that, in process of time, through the negligence and corruption of mankind, religion, in its main articles, and particularly in what related to the knowledge and worship of the one true God, became, in a great measure, defaced, and overwhelmed with the grossest superstitions and idolatries: that this was the state of things even in the most polite and civilized nations, and all the aids of learning and philosophy were ineffectual and vain: that therefore there was great need of a new divine revelation from heaven, to set the great principles of religion in the most clear and convincing light, and to enforce them upon mankind by a divine authority, in a manner suited to their vast importance: that accordingly it pleased God to do this by the Christian revelation, which was fitted and designed to be published to all mankind, and was accompanied with all the evidences of a divine original which were proper to procure its reception in the world: that to prepare the way for this, there had been an extraordinary revelation several ages before, which, though immediately promulgated to a particular people, was, in several rėspects, of use to other nations, for checking the progress of idolatry and polytheism, and preserving the knowledge and worship of the one true God in the world, when it seemed in danger of being extinguished.

From all which it appears, that God never left himself without witness among men: that his dispensations towards mankind have been conducted with great wisdom, righteousness, and goodness: and that we, who have the favour of God, enjoy the benefit of the last and most perfect revelation of the divine will which was ever made to mankind, are under the highest obligations to receive it with the profoundest veneration, with the most unfeigned gratitude and thankful admiration to the Divine Goodness, and to endeavour to make the best use and improvement of it.

MAN, in his original constitution, and the design of his Creator, a religious

creature. Not left at his first formation to work out a scheme of religion for

himself. It is reasonable to suppose, and confirmed by the most ancient ac-

counts, that the knowledge of religion was communicated to the first parents

of the human race by a revelation from God, and from them derived to their

descendants. God made farther discoveries of his will to Noah, the second

father of mankind. Tradition the chief way of conveying the knowledge of

religion in those early ages.

CHAP. II.

.................

35

The first religion of mankind was not idolatry, but the knowledge and worship

of the one true God. Some vestiges of which may be traced up to the most

ancient times. A tradition of the creation of the world continued long

among the nations. The notion of one supreme God was never entirely ex-

tinguished in the Pagan world; but his true worship was in a great measure

lost and confounded amidst a multiplicity of idol deities.........................
55

CHAP. III.

The first corruption of religion, and deviation from the knowledge and worship

of the one true God, was the worship of heaven and the heavenly bodies.

This the most ancient kind of idolatry. It began very early, and spread very

generally among the heathen nations...

CHAP. IV.

The worship of deified men and heroes, another species of idolatry of an ancient

date, and which obtained very early in the Pagan world. Most of the princi-

pal objects of the heathen worship, the Dii majorum Gentium, had been once

dead men. The names and peculiar attributes originally belonging to the one

supreme God applied to them, particularly to Jupiter; to whom at the same

time were ascribed the most criminal actions. Jupiter Capitolinus, the princi-

pal object of worship among the ancient Romans, not the one true God, but

the chief of the Pagan polytheism, was only the worshipping one true God

under various names and manifestations, examined and shown to be insufficient.

The different names and titles of God erected into different deities.......... 87

CHAP. V.

Farther progress of the heathen polytheism. The symbols and images of the

gods turned into gods themselves. The physiology of the Pagans another

source of idolatry. They made gods and goddesses of the things of nature,

and parts of the universe, and of whatsoever was useful to mankind. The

qualities and affections of the mind, and accidents of life, and even evil quali-

ties and accidents, were deified, and had divine honours rendered to them.

The most refined Pagans agreed, according to Dr. Cudworth, in crumbling

the Deity into several parts, and multiplying it into many gods. They sup-

posed God to be in a manner all things, and therefore to be worshipped in

every thing. Divine honours were paid to evil beings, acknowledged to be

such. The Egyptian idolatry considered..

112

CHAP. VI.

The Pagan theology distributed by Varro into three different kinds: the poetical

or fabulous, the civil, and the philosophical. The poetical or fabulous theolgy

considered. The pretence, that we ought not to judge of the Pagan religion

by the poetical mythology, examined. It is shown, that the popular religion

and worship was in a great measure founded upon that mythology which ran

through the whole of their religion, and was of great authority with the

people................

125

CHAP. VII.

The civil theology of the Pagans considered. That of the ancient Romans has

been much commended, yet became in process of time little less absurd than

the poetical, and in many instances was closely connected and complicated

with it. The pernicious consequences of this, to religion and morals. Some

account of the absurd and immoral rites which were anciently practised in the

most civilized nations, and which made a part of their religion; being either

prescribed by the laws, or established by customs which had the force of laws.

The politicians and civil magistrates took no effectual methods to rectify this,、

but rather countenanced and abetted the popular superstition and idolatry.

134

CHAP. VIII.

The Pagan mysteries have been highly extolled, as an expedient provided by the

civil authority, both for leading the people to the practice of virtue, and for

convincing them of the vanity of the common idolatry and polytheism. The

tendency of the mysteries to purify the soul, and raise men to the perfection

of virtue, examined. At best they were only designed to promote the prac-

tice of those virtues which were most useful to society, and to deter men from

such vices as were most pernicious to it. In process of time they became

greatly corrupted, and had a bad effect on the morals of the people. The

pretence, that the mysteries were intended to detect the error of the vulgar

polytheism, and to bring men to the acknowledgement and adoration of the

one true God, distinctly considered: and the proofs brought for it shown to

be insufficient...

158

CHAP. IX.

Some farther considerations to show that the design of the mysteries was not to

detect the errors of the Pagan polytheism. The legislators and magistrates

who instituted and conducted the mysteries, were themselves the chief pro-

moters of the popular polytheism from political views, and therefore it is im-

probable that they intended secretly to subvert it by the mysteries. Their

scheme upon such a supposition absurd and inconsistent. The mysteries were,

in fact, of no advantage for reclaiming the heathens from their idolatries.

The primitive Christians not to be blamed for the bad opinion they had of

the Pagan mysteries...............................

CHAP. X.

The philosophical theology of the ancient Pagans considered. High encomiums

bestowed upon the Pagan philosophy. Yet it was of little use for leading the

people into a right knowledge of God and religion, and for reclaiming them

from their idolatry and polytheism. This shown from several considerations.

And first, if the philosophers had been right in their own notions of religion,

they could have but small influence on the people, for want of a proper au-

thority to enforce their instructions,.......

197

CHAP. XI.

another cause which rendered

Instead of clearly explaining

The affected obscurity of the Pagan philosophers

them unfit to instruct the people in religion.

their sentiments on the most important subjects, they carefully concealed them

from the vulgar. To which it may be added, that some of them used their

utmost efforts to destroy all certainty and evidence, and to unsettle men's minds

as to the belief of the fundamental principles of all religion: and even the

best and greatest of them acknowledge the darkness and uncertainty they were

under, especially in divine matters........................

204

CHAP. XII.

The fourth general consideration. The philosophers unfit to instruct the people

in religion, because they themselves were for the most part very wrong in

their own notions of the Divinity. They were the great corrupters of the

ancient tradition relating to the one true God and the creation of the world.

Many of those who professed to search into the origin of the world, and the

formation of things, endeavoured to account for it without the interposition of

a Deity. The opinions of those philosophers who were of a nobler kind con.