Ornari res ipsa negat, contenta docere. DIM as the borrow'd beams of moon and stars To lonely, weary, wand'ring, travellers, Those rolling fires discover but the sky, And as those nightly tapers disappear, When day's bright lord ascends our hemisphere; } 10 15 So pale grows Reason at Religion's sight; 20 } As blindly grop'd they for a future state; This every little accident destroy'd: A thorny, or at least a barren soil : In pleasure some their glutton souls would steep, 25 30 In this wild maze their vain endeavours end: Or finite reason reach infinity? 40 For what could fathom God were more than He. The Deist thinks he stands en firmer ground; 45 This general worship is to praise and pray; 50 The sacrifice for crimes is penitence. 55 65 Thus man, by his own strength, to heav'n would And would not be oblig'd to God for more. (soar, Vain, wretched creature, how art thou misled, To think thy wit these god-like notions bred ! These truths are not the product of thy mind, But dropt from heav'n, and of a nobler kind. Reveal'd religion first inform'd thy sight, And Reason saw not till Faith sprung the light. Hence all thy nat'ral worship takes the source; 'Tis revelation what thou think'st discourse: Else how com'st thou to see these truths so clear, Which so obscure to Heathens did appear ? Not Plato these, nor Aristotle found, Nor he whose wisdom oracles renown'd. Hast thou a wit so deep, or so sublime, Or canst thou lower dive, or higher climb ? 70 75 Canst thou by reason more of Godhead know Than Plutarch, Seneca, or Cicero? Those giant wits, in happier ages born, 80 When arms and arts did Greece and Rome adorn, Knew no such system; no such piles could raise To one sole God: Nor did remorse, to expiate sin, prescribe, 85 The guiltless victim groan'd for their offence, If sheep and oxen could atone for men, 90 By off'ring his own creatures for a spoil! Dar'st thou, poor worm, offend Infinity? And must the terms of peace be giv'n by thee? Then thou art justice in the last appeal; 95 Thy easy God instructs thee to rebel; And, like a king remote, and weak, must take But if there be a pow'r too just and strong To wink at crimes, and bear unpunish'd wrong, Ioa Look humbly upward, see his will disclose The forfeit first, and then the fine impose: A mulct thy poverty could never pay, Had not Eternal Wisdom found the way, 105 And with celestial wealth supply'd the store; Th' offended suff'ring in the offender's name; All thy misdeeds to him imputed see, And all his righteousness devolv'd on thee. 115 For granting we have sinn'd, and that th' offence Of man is made against Omnipotence, Some price that bears proportion must be paid, And infinite with infinite be weigh'd. See then the Deist lost; remorse for vice Not paid, or, paid, inadequate in price: What farther means can reason now direct? Or what relief from human wit expect? That shews us sick; and sadly are we sure Still to be sick, till Heav'n reveal the cure: If then Heav'n's will must needs be understood, (Which must, if we want cure, and Heav'n be good) Let all records of will reveal'd be shown, With Scripture all in equal balance thrown, And our one sacred Book will be that one. 125 120 Proof needs not here; for whether we compare That impious, idle, superstitious ware Of rites, lustrations, offerings, which before, In various ages, various countries bore, } With Christian faith and virtues, we shall find 130 None answ'ring the great ends of human kind, |