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CHAPTER XXXVII

OF MIRACLES, AND THEIR USE

A Miracle Is A Work That Causeth Admiration
By Miracles are signified the Admirable works of God: & therefore
they are also called Wonders. And because they are for the most part,
done, for a signification of his commandement, in such occasions,
as without them, men are apt to doubt, (following their private
naturall reasoning,) what he hath commanded, and what not,
they are commonly in Holy Scripture, called Signes, in the same sense,
as they are called by the Latines, Ostenta, and Portenta, from shewing,
and fore-signifying that, which the Almighty is about to bring to passe.

And Must Therefore Be Rare, And Whereof
There Is No Naturall Cause Known
To understand therefore what is a Miracle, we must first understand
what works they are, which men wonder at, and call Admirable.
And there be but two things which make men wonder at any event:
The one is, if it be strange, that is to say, such, as the like of it
hath never, or very rarely been produced: The other is, if when it is
produced, we cannot imagine it to have been done by naturall means,
but onely by the immediate hand of God. But when wee see some possible,
naturall cause of it, how rarely soever the like has been done;
or if the like have been often done, how impossible soever it be
to imagine a naturall means thereof, we no more wonder, nor esteem it
for a Miracle.

Therefore, if a Horse, or Cow should speak, it were a Miracle;
because both the thing is strange, & the Naturall cause difficult
to imagin: So also were it, to see a strange deviation of nature,
in the production of some new shape of a living creature.
But when a man, or other Animal, engenders his like, though we know
no more how this is done, than the other; yet because 'tis usuall,
it is no Miracle. In like manner, if a man be metamorphosed
into a stone, or into a pillar, it is a Miracle; because strange:
but if a peece of wood be so changed; because we see it often,
it is no Miracle: and yet we know no more, by what operation of God,
the one is brought to passe, than the other.

The first Rainbow that was seen in the world, was a Miracle,
because the first; and consequently strange; and served for
a sign from God, placed in heaven, to assure his people, there
should be no more an universall destruction of the world by Water.
But at this day, because they are frequent, they are not Miracles,
neither to them that know their naturall causes, nor to them who
know them not. Again, there be many rare works produced by
the Art of man: yet when we know they are done; because thereby
wee know also the means how they are done, we count them not
for Miracles, because not wrought by the immediate hand of God,
but by mediation of humane Industry.

That Which Seemeth A Miracle To One Man,
May Seem Otherwise To Another
Furthermore, seeing Admiration and Wonder, is consequent to
the knowledge and experience, wherewith men are endued, some more,
some lesse; it followeth, that the same thing, may be a Miracle to one,
and not to another. And thence it is, that ignorant, and superstitious
men make great Wonders of those works, which other men, knowing
to proceed from Nature, (which is not the immediate, but the
ordinary work of God,) admire not at all: As when Ecclipses of
the Sun and Moon have been taken for supernaturall works, by the
common people; when neverthelesse, there were others, could from
their naturall causes, have foretold the very hour they should arrive:
Or, as when a man, by confederacy, and secret intelligence, getting
knowledge of the private actions of an ignorant, unwary man,
thereby tells him, what he has done in former time; it seems to him
a Miraculous thing; but amongst wise, and cautelous men, such Miracles
as those, cannot easily be done.

The End Of Miracles
Again, it belongeth to the nature of a Miracle, that it be wrought
for the procuring of credit to Gods Messengers, Ministers, and Prophets,
that thereby men may know, they are called, sent, and employed by God,
and thereby be the better inclined to obey them. And therefore,
though the creation of the world, and after that the destruction
of all living creatures in the universall deluge, were admirable works;
yet because they were not done to procure credit to any Prophet,
or other Minister of God, they use not to be called Miracles.
For how admirable soever any work be, the Admiration consisteth
not in that it could be done, because men naturally beleeve
the Almighty can doe all things, but because he does it at
the Prayer, or Word of a man. But the works of God in Egypt,
by the hand of Moses, were properly Miracles; because they
were done with intention to make the people of Israel beleeve,
that Moses came unto them, not out of any design of his owne interest,
but as sent from God. Therefore after God had commanded him
to deliver the Israelites from the Egyptian bondage, when he said
(Exod 4.1. &c.) "They will not beleeve me, but will say, the Lord
hath not appeared unto me," God gave him power, to turn the Rod
he had in his hand into a Serpent, and again to return it into a Rod;
and by putting his hand into his bosome, to make it leprous;
and again by pulling it out to make it whole, to make the Children
of Israel beleeve (as it is verse 5.) that the God of their Fathers
had appeared unto him; And if that were not enough, he gave him power
to turn their waters into bloud. And when hee had done these Miracles
before the people, it is said (verse 41.) that "they beleeved him."
Neverthelesse, for fear of Pharaoh, they durst not yet obey him.
Therefore the other works which were done to plague Pharaoh
and the Egyptians, tended all to make the Israelites beleeve
in Moses, and were properly Miracles. In like manner if we consider
all the Miracles done by the hand of Moses, and all the rest of the
Prophets, till the Captivity; and those of our Saviour, and his
Apostles afterward; we shall find, their end was alwaies to beget,
or confirm beleefe, that they came not of their own motion,
but were sent by God. Wee may further observe in Scripture,
that the end of Miracles, was to beget beleef, not universally
in all men, elect, and reprobate; but in the elect only; that is
to say, is such as God had determined should become his Subjects.
For those miraculous plagues of Egypt, had not for end, the conversion
of Pharaoh; For God had told Moses before, that he would harden
the heart of Pharaoh, that he should not let the people goe: And when
he let them goe at last, not the Miracles perswaded him, but the plagues
forced him to it. So also of our Saviour, it is written, (Mat. 13. 58.)
that he wrought not many Miracles in his own countrey, because of
their unbeleef; and (in Marke 6.5.) in stead of, "he wrought not many,"
it is, "he could work none." It was not because he wanted power;
which to say, were blasphemy against God; nor that the end of Miracles
was not to convert incredulous men to Christ; for the end of all
the Miracles of Moses, of Prophets, of our Saviour, and of his
Apostles was to adde men to the Church; but it was, because the end
of their Miracles, was to adde to the Church (not all men, but)
such as should be saved; that is to say, such as God had elected.
Seeing therefore our Saviour sent from his Father, hee could not
use his power in the conversion of those, whom his Father had rejected.
They that expounding this place of St. Marke, say, that his word,
"Hee could not," is put for, "He would not," do it without example
in the Greek tongue, (where Would Not, is put sometimes for Could Not,
in things inanimate, that have no will; but Could Not, for Would Not,
never,) and thereby lay a stumbling block before weak Christians;
as if Christ could doe no Miracles, but amongst the credulous.

The Definition Of A Miracle
From that which I have here set down, of the nature, and use
of a Miracle, we may define it thus, "A MIRACLE, is a work of God,
(besides his operation by the way of Nature, ordained in the Creation,)
done for the making manifest to his elect, the mission of an
extraordinary Minister for their salvation.

And from this definition, we may inferre; First, that in all Miracles,
the work done, is not the effect of any vertue in the Prophet;
because it is the effect of the immediate hand of God; that is
to say God hath done it, without using the Prophet therein,
as a subordinate cause.

Secondly, that no Devil, Angel, or other created Spirit, can
do a Miracle. For it must either be by vertue of some naturall science,
or by Incantation, that is, vertue of words. For if the Inchanters
do it by their own power independent, there is some power that
proceedeth not from God; which all men deny: and if they doe it
by power given them, then is the work not from the immediate
hand of God, but naturall, and consequently no Miracle.

There be some texts of Scripture, that seem to attribute the power
of working wonders (equall to some of those immediate Miracles,
wrought by God himself,) to certain Arts of Magick, and Incantation.
As for example, when we read that after the Rod of Moses being cast
on the ground became a Serpent, (Exod. 7. 11.) "the Magicians of Egypt
did the like by their Enchantments;" and that after Moses had turned
the waters of the Egyptian Streams, Rivers, Ponds, and Pooles of water
into blood, (Exod. 7. 22.) "the Magicians of Egypt did so likewise,
with their Enchantments;" and that after Moses had by the power
of God brought frogs upon the land, (Exod. 8. 7.) "the Magicians also
did so with their Enchantments, and brought up frogs upon the land
of Egypt;" will not a man be apt to attribute Miracles to Enchantments;
that is to say, to the efficacy of the sound of Words; and think
the same very well proved out of this, and other such places? and yet
there is no place of Scripture, that telleth us what on Enchantment is.
If therefore Enchantment be not, as many think it, a working of
strange effects by spells, and words; but Imposture, and delusion,
wrought by ordinary means; and so far from supernaturall, as the
Impostors need not the study so much as of naturall causes,
but the ordinary ignorance, stupidity, and superstition of mankind,
to doe them; those texts that seem to countenance the power of Magick,
Witchcraft, and Enchantment, must needs have another sense,
than at first sight they seem to bear.

That Men Are Apt To Be Deceived By False Miracles
For it is evident enough, that Words have no effect, but on those
that understand them; and then they have no other, but to signifie
the intentions, or passions of them that speak; and thereby produce,
hope, fear, or other passions, or conceptions in the hearer.
Therefore when a Rod seemeth a Serpent, or the Water Bloud,
or any other Miracle seemeth done by Enchantment; if it be not
to the edification of Gods people, not the Rod, nor the Water,
nor any other thing is enchanted; that is to say, wrought upon
by the Words, but the Spectator. So that all the Miracle
consisteth in this, that the Enchanter has deceived a man;
which is no Miracle, but a very easie matter to doe.

For such is the ignorance, and aptitude to error generally
of all men, but especially of them that have not much knowledge
of naturall causes, and of the nature, and interests of men;
as by innumerable and easie tricks to be abused. What opinion
of miraculous power, before it was known there was a Science of
the course of the Stars, might a man have gained, that should have
told the people, This hour, or day the Sun should be darkned?
A juggler by the handling of his goblets, and other trinkets,
if it were not now ordinarily practised, would be thought to do
his wonders by the power at least of the Devil. A man that hath
practised to speak by drawing in of his breath, (which kind of men
in antient time were called Ventriloqui,) and so make the weaknesse
of his voice seem to proceed, not from the weak impulsion of
the organs of Speech, but from distance of place, is able to make
very many men beleeve it is a voice from Heaven, whatsoever he please
to tell them. And for a crafty man, that hath enquired into the secrets,
and familiar confessions that one man ordinarily maketh to another
of his actions and adventures past, to tell them him again is no
hard matter; and yet there be many, that by such means as that,
obtain the reputation of being Conjurers. But it is too long
a businesse, to reckon up the severall sorts of those men, which the
Greeks called Thaumaturgi, that is to say, workers of things wonderfull;
and yet these do all they do, by their own single dexterity.
But if we looke upon the Impostures wrought by Confederacy,
there is nothing how impossible soever to be done, that is impossible
to bee beleeved. For two men conspiring, one to seem lame,
the other to cure him with a charme, will deceive many: but many
conspiring, one to seem lame, another so to cure him, and all
the rest to bear witnesse; will deceive many more.

Cautions Against The Imposture Of Miracles
In this aptitude of mankind, to give too hasty beleefe to pretended
Miracles, there can be no better, nor I think any other caution,
than that which God hath prescribed, first by Moses, (as I have said
before in the precedent chapter,) in the beginning of the 13. and end
of the 18. of Deuteronomy; That wee take not any for Prophets,
that teach any other Religion, then that which Gods Lieutenant,
(which at that time was Moses,) hath established; nor any,
(though he teach the same Religion,) whose Praediction we doe not
see come to passe. Moses therefore in his time, and Aaron,
and his successors in their times, and the Soveraign Governour
of Gods people, next under God himself, that is to say, the Head
of the Church in all times, are to be consulted, what doctrine
he hath established, before wee give credit to a pretended Miracle,
or Prophet. And when that is done, the thing they pretend to be
a Miracle, we must both see it done, and use all means possible
to consider, whether it be really done; and not onely so, but whether
it be such, as no man can do the like by his naturall power,
but that it requires the immediate hand of God. And in this also
we must have recourse to Gods Lieutenant; to whom in all doubtfull cases,
wee have submitted our private judgments. For Example; if a man
pretend, that after certain words spoken over a peece of bread,
that presently God hath made it not bread, but a God, or a man,
or both, and neverthelesse it looketh still as like bread as ever
it did; there is no reason for any man to think it really done;
nor consequently to fear him, till he enquire of God, by his Vicar,
or Lieutenant, whether it be done, or not. If he say not, then
followeth that which Moses saith, (Deut. 18. 22.) "he hath spoken it
presumptuously, thou shalt not fear him." If he say 'tis done,
then he is not to contradict it. So also if wee see not, but onely
hear tell of a Miracle, we are to consult the Lawful Church; that is
to say, the lawful Head thereof, how far we are to give credit
to the relators of it. And this is chiefly the case of men,
that in these days live under Christian Soveraigns. For in these times,
I do not know one man, that ever saw any such wondrous work, done by
the charm, or at the word, or prayer of a man, that a man endued
but with a mediocrity of reason, would think supernaturall:
and the question is no more, whether what wee see done, be a Miracle;
whether the Miracle we hear, or read of, were a reall work,
and not the Act of a tongue, or pen; but in plain terms, whether
the report be true, or a lye. In which question we are not every one,
to make our own private Reason, or Conscience, but the Publique Reason,
that is, the reason of Gods Supreme Lieutenant, Judge; and indeed
we have made him Judge already, if wee have given him a Soveraign
power, to doe all that is necessary for our peace and defence.
A private man has alwaies the liberty, (because thought is free,)
to beleeve, or not beleeve in his heart, those acts that have been
given out for Miracles, according as he shall see, what benefit
can accrew by mens belief, to those that pretend, or countenance
them, and thereby conjecture, whether they be Miracles, or Lies.
But when it comes to confession of that faith, the Private Reason
must submit to the Publique; that is to say, to Gods Lieutenant.
But who is this Lieutenant of God, and Head of the Church,
shall be considered in its proper place thereafter.

CHAPTER XXXVIII

OF THE SIGNIFICATION IN SCRIPTURE OF ETERNALL LIFE,
HELL, SALVATION, THE WORLD TO COME, AND REDEMPTION

The maintenance of Civill Society, depending on Justice; and Justice
on the power of Life and Death, and other lesse Rewards and Punishments,
residing in them that have the Soveraignty of the Common-wealth;
It is impossible a Common-wealth should stand, where any other than
the Soveraign, hath a power of giving greater rewards than Life;
and of inflicting greater punishments than Death. Now seeing
Eternall Life is a greater reward, than the Life Present;
and Eternall Torment a greater punishment than the Death of Nature;
It is a thing worthy to be well considered, of all men that desire
(by obeying Authority) to avoid the calamities of Confusion,
and Civill war, what is meant in Holy Scripture, by Life Eternall,
and Torment Eternall; and for what offences, against whom committed,
men are to be Eternally Tormented; and for what actions, they are
to obtain Eternall Life.

The Place Of Adams Eternity If He Had Not Sinned,
Had Been The Terrestrial Paradise
And first we find, that Adam was created in such a condition of life,
as had he not broken the commandement of God, he had enjoyed it
in the Paradise of Eden Everlastingly. For there was the Tree of Life;
whereof he was so long allowed to eat, as he should forbear to eat
of the tree of Knowledge of Good an Evill; which was not allowed him.
And therefore as soon as he had eaten of it, God thrust him out
of Paradise, "lest he should put forth his hand, and take also
of the tree of life, and live for ever." (Gen. 3. 22.) By which it
seemeth to me, (with submission neverthelesse both in this,
and in all questions, whereof the determination dependeth on
the Scriptures, to the interpretation of the Bible authorized
by the Common-wealth, whose Subject I am,) that Adam if he had
not sinned, had had an Eternall Life on Earth: and that Mortality
entred upon himself, and his posterity, by his first Sin.
Not that actuall Death then entred; for Adam then could never
have had children; whereas he lived long after, and saw a numerous
posterity ere he dyed. But where it is said, "In the day that thou
eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die," it must needs bee meant
of his Mortality, and certitude of death. Seeing then Eternall life
was lost by Adams forfeiture, in committing sin, he that should
cancell that forfeiture was to recover thereby, that Life again.
Now Jesus Christ hath satisfied for the sins of all that beleeve in him;
and therefore recovered to all beleevers, that ETERNALL LIFE,
which was lost by the sin of Adam. And in this sense it is,
that the comparison of St. Paul holdeth (Rom. 5.18, 19.) "As by the
offence of one, Judgment came upon all men to condemnation,
even so by the righteousnesse of one, the free gift came upon
all men to Justification of Life." Which is again (1 Cor. 15.21,22)
more perspicuously delivered in these words, "For since by man
came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.
For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive."

Texts Concerning The Place Of Life Eternall,
For Beleevers
Concerning the place wherein men shall enjoy that Eternall Life,
which Christ hath obtained for them, the texts next before alledged
seem to make it on Earth. For if as in Adam, all die, that is,
have forfeited Paradise, and Eternall Life on Earth; even so
in Christ all shall be made alive; then all men shall be made
to live on Earth; for else the comparison were not proper.
Hereunto seemeth to agree that of the Psalmist, (Psal. 133.3.)
"Upon Zion God commanded the blessing, even Life for evermore;"
for Zion, is in Jerusalem, upon Earth: as also that of S. Joh.
(Rev. 2.7.) "To him that overcommeth I will give to eat of the
tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God."
This was the tree of Adams Eternall life; but his life was to
have been on Earth. The same seemeth to be confirmed again by
St. Joh. (Rev. 21.2.) where he saith, "I John saw the Holy City,
New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as
a Bride adorned for her husband:" and again v. 10. to the same effect:
As if he should say, the new Jerusalem, the Paradise of God,
at the coming again of Christ, should come down to Gods people
from Heaven, and not they goe up to it from Earth. And this differs
nothing from that, which the two men in white clothing (that is,
the two Angels) said to the Apostles, that were looking upon Christ
ascending (Acts 1.11.) "This same Jesus, who is taken up from you
into Heaven, shall so come, as you have seen him go up into Heaven."
Which soundeth as if they had said, he should come down to govern
them under his Father, Eternally here; and not take them up
to govern them in Heaven; and is conformable to the Restauration
of the Kingdom of God, instituted under Moses; which was a Political
government of the Jews on Earth. Again, that saying of our Saviour
(Mat. 22.30.) "that in the Resurrection they neither marry, nor are
given in marriage, but are as the Angels of God in heaven," is a
description of an Eternall Life, resembling that which we lost
in Adam in the point of Marriage. For seeing Adam, and Eve,
if they had not sinned, had lived on Earth Eternally, in their
individuall persons; it is manifest, they should not continually
have procreated their kind. For if Immortals should have generated,
as Mankind doth now; the Earth in a small time, would not have been
able to afford them a place to stand on. The Jews that asked
our Saviour the question, whose wife the woman that had married
many brothers, should be, in the resurrection, knew not what were
the consequences of Immortality; that there shal be no Generation,
and consequently no marriage, no more than there is Marriage,
or generation among the Angels. The comparison between that
Eternall life which Adam lost, and our Saviour by his Victory
over death hath recovered; holdeth also in this, that as Adam
lost Eternall Life by his sin, and yet lived after it for a time;
so the faithful Christian hath recovered Eternal Life by Christs passion,
though he die a natural death, and remaine dead for a time; namely,
till the Resurrection. For as Death is reckoned from the Condemnation
of Adam, not from the Execution; so life is reckoned from the Absolution,
not from the Resurrection of them that are elected in Christ.

Ascension Into Heaven
That the place wherein men are to live Eternally, after the
Resurrection, is the Heavens, meaning by Heaven, those parts
of the world, which are the most remote from Earth, as where
the stars are, or above the stars, in another Higher Heaven,
called Caelum Empyreum, (whereof there is no mention in Scripture,
nor ground in Reason) is not easily to be drawn from any text
that I can find. By the Kingdome of Heaven, is meant the Kingdome
of the King that dwelleth in Heaven; and his Kingdome was
the people of Israel, whom he ruled by the Prophets his Lieutenants,
first Moses, and after him Eleazar, and the Soveraign Priests,
till in the days of Samuel they rebelled, and would have a
mortall man for their King, after the manner of other Nations.
And when our Saviour Christ, by the preaching of his Ministers,
shall have perswaded the Jews to return, and called the Gentiles
to his obedience, then shall there be a new Kingdome of Heaven,
because our King shall then be God, whose Throne is Heaven;
without any necessity evident in the Scripture, that man shall
ascend to his happinesse any higher than Gods Footstool the Earth.
On the contrary, we find written (Joh. 3.13.) that "no man hath
ascended into Heaven, but he that came down from Heaven, even the
Son of man, that is in Heaven." Where I observe by the way,
that these words are not, as those which go immediately before,
the words of our Saviour, but of St. John himself; for Christ was
then not in Heaven, but upon the Earth. The like is said of David
(Acts 2.34.) where St. Peter, to prove the Ascension of Christ,
using the words of the Psalmist, (Psal. 16.10.) "Thou wilt not
leave my soule in Hell, nor suffer thine Holy one to see corruption,"
saith, they were spoken (not of David, but) of Christ; and to prove it,
addeth this Reason, "For David is not ascended into Heaven."
But to this a man may easily answer, and say, that though their
bodies were not to ascend till the generall day of Judgment,
yet their souls were in Heaven as soon as they were departed
from their bodies; which also seemeth to be confirmed by the words
of our Saviour (Luke 20.37,38.) who proving the Resurrection
out of the word of Moses, saith thus, "That the dead are raised,
even Moses shewed, at the bush, when he calleth the Lord,
the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
For he is not a God of the Dead, but of the Living; for they all
live to him." But if these words be to be understood only of
the Immortality of the Soul, they prove not at all that which
our Saviour intended to prove, which was the Resurrection of the Body,
that is to say, the Immortality of the Man. Therefore our Saviour
meaneth, that those Patriarchs were Immortall; not by a property
consequent to the essence, and nature of mankind, but by the will of God,
that was pleased of his mere grace, to bestow Eternall Life upon
the faithfull. And though at that time the Patriarchs and many
other faithfull men were Dead, yet as it is in the text,
they Lived To God; that is, they were written in the Book of Life
with them that were absolved of their sinnes, and ordained to
Life eternall at the Resurrection. That the Soul of man is in
its own nature Eternall, and a living Creature independent on the Body;
or that any meer man is Immortall, otherwise than by the Resurrection
in the last day, (except Enos and Elias,) is a doctrine not apparent
in Scripture. The whole 14. Chapter of Job, which is the speech
not of his friends, but of himselfe, is a complaint of this
Mortality of Nature; and yet no contradiction of the Immortality
at the Resurrection. "There is hope of a tree," (saith hee verse 7.)
"if it be cast down, Though the root thereof wax old, and the stock
thereof die in the ground, yet when it scenteth the water it will bud,
and bring forth boughes like a Plant. But man dyeth, and wasteth away,
yea, man giveth up the Ghost, and where is he?" and (verse 12.)
"man lyeth down, and riseth not, till the heavens be no more."
But when is it, that the heavens shall be no more? St. Peter tells us,
that it is at the generall Resurrection. For in his 2. Epistle,
3. Chapter, and 7. verse, he saith, that "the Heavens and the Earth
that are now, are reserved unto fire against the day of Judgment,
and perdition of ungodly men," and (verse 12.) "looking for, and hasting
to the comming of God, wherein the Heavens shall be on fire,
and shall be dissolved, and the Elements shall melt with fervent heat.
Neverthelesse, we according to the promise look for new Heavens,
and a new Earth, wherein dwelleth righteousnesse." Therefore where
Job saith, man riseth not till the Heavens be no more; it is all one,
as if he had said, the Immortall Life (and Soule and Life in
the Scripture, do usually signifie the same thing) beginneth not
in man, till the Resurrection, and day of Judgment; and hath for cause,
not his specificall nature, and generation; but the Promise.
For St. Peter saies not, " Wee look for new heavens, and a new earth,
(from Nature) but from Promise."