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the Word of God, and to be firmly eftablish'd in the neceffary Points of Religion, especially in thefe wicked Times wherein we live in which there are fo many pernicious Errors and damnable Herefies crept into the Articles of fome Mens Faith, as do not only fhock the Foundation of the Church of Chrift, but ftrike at the Root of all Religion. The first thing, therefore, that, by the Grace of God, I am refolved to do, in reference to my everlafting Eftate, is to fee to my Faith, that it be both rightly placed, and firmly fixed, that I may not be as a wave toffed to and fro with every wind of doctrine, by the cunning craftiness of those that lie in wait to deceive; but that I may be throughly fettled in my Faith and Judgment concerning thofe things, the knowledge of and affent unto which is abfolutely neceffary to my future Happiness. Let therefore what Times foever come upon me, let what Temptations foever be thrown before me, I am refolved, by the Grace of God, ftedfaftly to believe as followeth.

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ARTICLE I

I believe there is One GOD, the
Being of all Beings.

The
He other Articles of my Faith, I
He other be true,

think to be true, because they are fo, this is true, because I think it fo: for if there was no GOD, and fo this Article not true, I could not be, and fo not think it true. But in that I think, I am fure I am, and in that I am, I'm fure there is a GOD; for if there was no GOD, how came I to be? How came I hither? Who gave me my Being? my felf? that could not be; for before I had a Being, I was nothing, and therefore could do nothing, much lefs make myself a Being. Did my Parents give me my Being alas, they knew not that I fhould be before I was; and therefore, certainly, could not give me my Being when I was not. As to my Soul (which I call myfelf) it is plain they cou'd not give ine that, because 'tis a Being of a fpiritual Nature, quite diftinct from Matter, as my own Experience tells me, and therefore cou'd not be the product of any natural or material Agent: For that a bodily

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Subftance fhou'd give Being to a fpiritual one implies a Contradiction. And if it cou'd neither make itself, nor take its sife from any earthly or fecondary Caule, I may certainly conclude, from my own Reafon, as well as from Divine Revelati on, that it must be infus'd by God, tho I am not able to determine, either when or how it was done? As to my Body indeed, I muft own it was deriv'd from my Parents, who were immediately concern'd in bringing the Materials of it together: But then who made up thefe coarfe Materials into the form or figure of a Body? Was this the effect of Natural Generation? But how came my Parents by this Generative Power? Did they derive it by Succeffion from our firft Parents in Paradife? Be it fo. But whence came they? Did they fpring out of the Earth? No, What then? Were they made by chance? This could not be for as Chance feldom or never produces any one Effect that is regular and uniform, fo it cannot be fuppos'd, that a Being of fuch admirable Beauty, Symetry, and Proportion, and fuch a nice contexture of Parts as the Body of Man is, fhou'd ever be jumbl'a together by a fortuitous concourfe of Atoms, which nothing but the Chimera's of Epicurus cou'd ever reduce into a regular Form and Compofition. And

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And the like may be faid of all other created Beings in the World. For there is no natural Caufe can give Being to any thing, unless it has that Being it gives in itself; for it is a receiv'd Maxim in Philofophy, that nothing can give what it has not. And fo however the Bodies of Men, or Brutes, or Plants, may now in the ordinary courfe of Nature be produc'd by Generation; yet there must needs be fome one fupreme Almighty Being in the World, that has the Being of all other Beings in itself, who firft created thefe feveral Species, and endu'd them with this generative Power to propagate their Kind. And this fupreme Being is that which we call GOD. Hence it is, that there is not a Leaf, no nor a Line in this great Book of the Creation, wherein we may not clearly read the Existence and Perfections of the Great and Glorious Creator, and that even by the glimmering Light of Nature. For who is it that bedeck'd yonder ftately Canopy of Heaven with thofe gliftering Spangles the Stars? Who is it that commands the Sun to run his Course, and the Moon to ride her Circuit fo conftantly about the World? Who is it that formed me fo curiously in my Mother's Womb? Who is it that gives my Stomach Power to digeft fuch variety

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of Meats into Chyle, and my Heart of Liver to turn them all to Blood; and thence to fend each Particle to its proper place, and all to keep up this crazy Car cafs? Doubtlefs thefe, and fuch like things, however ordinary and natural they may appear to us at prefent, are der tainly in themselves very great and wonderful Effects, that muft, at first, be produc'd by fome infinitely powerful and fupernatural Agent, the High and Mighty GOD, who is not only the chiefest of Beings, but the Being of all Beings what foever. I fay, the Being of all Beings, because whatsoever excellency or perfection is in any other thing, is eminently, yea, infinitely comprehended in Him; fo that He is not only the Creatures Perfection in the Concrete, but in the Abftract too; He is not only All-wife, Allgood, All-inighty, &c. but he is Allwifdom, All-goodnefs, All-might, All! mercy, All-juftice, All-glory, c. And as he is the ocean and abyfs of all these Perfections in himself; fo is he the foun tain of them all to us. Infomuch that we have nothing, not fo much as the leaft Moment of Life, but what is com municated to us from this everliving GOD. And not only what we poor finful Worms are, or have, but even what

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