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inquiries with religious views, to establish the minds of men in a firm belief and thorough sense of the infinite power and wisdom of the great Creator.

This account we have from one who was intimately acquainted with him, and preached his funeral sermon. "It appeared from those who conversed with him on his inquiries into nature, that his main design in that, (on which, as he had his own eye most constantly, so he took care to put others often in mind of it,) was to raise in himself and others vaster thoughts of the greatness and glory, and of the wisdom and goodness of God. This was so deep in his thoughts that he concludes the article of his will which relates to that illustrious body of the Royal Society, in these words, wishing them a happy success in their laudable attempts to discover the true nature of the works of God; and praying that they and all other searchers into physical truths may cordially refer their attainments to the glory of the great Author of nature, and to the comfort of mankind.

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In another place the same person speaks of him thus:-" He had the profoundest veneration for the great God of heaven and earth that I ever observed in any man. The very name of God was never mentioned by him without a pause and visible stop in his discourse."

Of the strictness and exemplariness of the whole course of his life, he says, "I might here charge the whole tribe of libertines to come and view the usefulness as well as the excellence of the Christian religion, in a life that was entirely dedicated to it." The veneration he had for the Holy Scriptures appears, not only from his studying them with great exactness, and exhorting others to do the same, but more particularly from a distinct treatise which he wrote, on purpose to defend the Scripture-style, and to answer all the objec

tions which profane and irreligious persons have made against it.

In his younger years he had thoughts of entering into holy orders; and one reason that determined him against it, was, that he believed he might in some respects be more serviceable to religion by continuing a layman. "His having no interests, with relation to religion, besides those of saving his own soul, gave him, as he thought, a more unsuspected authority in writing or acting on that side. He knew the profane had fortified themselves against all that was said by men of our profession, with this-that it was their trade, and that they were paid for it; he hoped therefore that he might have the more influence, the less he shared in the patrimony of the church."

Beauties of History.

MR. LOCKE.

MR. LOCKE, whose accurate talent in reasoning is so much celebrated even by the sceptics and infidels of our times, showed his zeal for the Christian religion, first in his middle age, by publishing a discourse on purpose to demonstrate the reasonableness of believing Jesus to be the promised Messiah; and after that, in the last years of his life, by a very judicious commentary upon several of the Epistles of St. Paul.

The Holy Scriptures are every where mentioned by him with the greatest reverence: and he exhorts Christians" to betake themselves in earnest to the study of the way to salvation, in those holy writings, wherein God has revealed it from heaven, and proposed it to the world; seeking our religion where we are sure it is in truth to be found, comparing spiritual things

with spiritual." And, in a letter written the year before his death, to one who asked this question, "What is the shortest and surest way for a young gentleman to attain to the true knowledge of the Christian religion, in the full and just extent of it?" his answer is,

Let him study the Holy Scriptures, especially the New Testament. Therein are contained the words of eternal life. It has God for its author; salvation for its end; and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter." A direction that was copied from his own practice in the latter part of his life, and after his retirement from business; when for "fourteen or fifteen years, he applied himself especially to the study of the Holy Scriptures, and employed the last years of his life hardly in any thing else. He was never weary of admiring the great views of that sacred book, and the just relation of all its parts. He every day made discoveries in it that gave him fresh cause of admiration.”

The death of this great man was agreeable to his life. For we are assured by one that was with him when he died, and had lived in the same family for seven years, that the day before his death he particularly exhorted all about him to read the Holy Scriptures; that he desired to be remembered by them at evening prayers; and being told, that if he chose it, the whole family should come and pray by him in his chamber, he answered, he should be very glad to have it so, if it would not give too much trouble; that an occasion offering to speak of the goodness of God, he especially exalted the care which God showed to man, in justifying him by faith in Jesus Christ; and returned God thanks in particular for having blessed him with the knowledge of that divine Saviour.

About two months before his death, he drew up a letter to a certain gentleman, and left this direction upon it: "To be delivered to him after my decease."

In it are these remarkable words:-"This life is a scene of vanity that soon passes away, and affords no solid satisfaction, but in the consciousness of doing well, and in the hopes of another life. This is what I can say upon experience, and what you will find to be true, when you come to make up the account."

Ibid.

SIR ISAAC NEWTON.

SIR ISAAC NEWTON, universally acknowledged to be the ablest philosopher and mathematician that this, or perhaps any other nation has produced, is also well known to have been a firm believer and a serious Christian. His discoveries concerning the frame and system of the universe were applied by him to demonstrate the being of a God, and to illustrate his power and wisdom in the creation.

This great man applied himself likewise with the utmost attention to the study of the Holy Scriptures, and considered the several parts of them with uncommon exactness; particularly, as to the order of time, and the series of prophecies and events relating to the Messiah. Upon which head he left behind him an elaborate discourse, to prove that the famous prophecy of Daniel's weeks, which has been so industriously perverted by the Deists of our times, was an express prophecy of the coming of the Messiah, and fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

Ibid.

MR. ADDISON.

MR. ADDISON, so deservedly celebrated for an uncommon accuracy in thinking and reasoning, has given abundant proof of his belief of Christianity, and his zeal against infidels of all kinds, in his Evidences of the Christian Religion. All his writings on religious subjects discover a strong, masculine, and steady piety: and his amiable conduct in every part of his life gives us the most convincing proof that what he wrote were the genuine sentiments of his mind. But his virtue shone out brightest at the point of death: for after a long and manly, but vain struggle with his distempers, he dismissed his physicians, and with them all hopes of life: but with his hopes of life he dismissed not his concern for the living, but sent for a youth nearly related, and finely accomplished, yet not above being the better for good impressions from a dying friend. He came but life now glimmering in the socket, the dying friend was silent. After a decent and proper pause, the youth said, “ "Dear Sir! you sent for me; I believe, and hope you have some commands; I shall hold them most sacred." May distant ages not only hear, but feel, the reply! Forcibly grasping the youth's hand, he softly said, "See in what peace a Christian can die." He spoke with difficulty, and soon expired. Through divine grace how great is man! through divine mercy how stingless death! who would not thus expire?

Ibid.

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