Online Bible 1995 March/ROM-1025.iso/olb/gill/d_400.lzh/D_423.TXT

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CHAP. ll.                                                                             423

OF THE IMMORTALITY OF THE SOUL.
·

stop, is obliged to return, and cannot go on; it is like
a bird that attempts to soar aloft, and take .flights !t is
not used nor equal to, it flutters and hangs its wing,
and is forced to descend. But when the soul fixes its
thoughts on an eternity to come, how readily does it
apprehend how that shall proceed without end ? with
what pleasure does it roll over millions of ages in it ?
The reason of this difference is, because the soul itself
is not from eternity, but has a beginning; whereas it
will endure to eternity, and have no end; there is,
Cicero says {7}, though he knows not how it is, inherent
in the minds of men, a sort of au augurlure, sooth-
saying, divination, or foresight of future ages; and
which chiefly and most easily appears in the greatest
minds, and in the most exalted geniuses. There is in
men a natural notion of futurity, a desire after it, and
an expectation of it; which are things not in vain im-
planted in it; and would not appear if the soul was
not immortal; it has knowledge of things past, pre-
sent, and future; which proves its immortality
(3.) The knowledge which the mind and understand-
ing of man has of things in the present state, is very
imperfect, through the brevity of life; and therefore
it may be reasonably concluded, that there is a future
state, in which the soul will exist, and its knowledge of
things be more perfect: it has been a constant and
continual complaint of the sons of learning and science,
ars longa, vita brevis; art is long, and life is short;
man has not time enough to cultivate the knowledge
he is capable of. It has been said {9}, that it would re-
quire a man's whole lifetime, and that not sufficient,
to get a thorough knowledge of that single mineral,
antimony: let a man employ all his time and studies
in.any one branch of literature, any particular art or
science, or language, yet would his knowledge be im-
perfect, and room would be left for those that come
after him to improve upon him: arts and sciences have
been cultivating many thousands of years, and in some
ages great improvements have been made, and espe-
cially in later ones; and yet there is room for farther
improvements still: the knowledge of the best things,
which good-men have, as of God, of Christ, and of
the mysteries of grace, is now very imperfect; those
that know most, know but in part, and see through a
glass darkly: but there is a state in which their souls
will exist, when they shall see God face to face, see
him as he is, and know as they are known; when their
minds will be employed on more noble and interest-
ing subjects than now, and have perfect knowledge of
them..    (4.) The knowledge the mind of man has
of things now, is not in proportion to the powers that
he is possessed of. How many are there that die in
infancy, and as soon as they are born, whose reasoning
powers are never called forth into act and exercise
and how many die in childhood and youth, before
these powers ripen, and are brought to any maturity ?
and how many are there that even live a long life,
and yet, either through want of education, or through
their situation, circumstances, and employment in life,

~ Tuscul. Qusest. 1.1.
s Ut qui prmterHa teneat, prmsentia comprehendat, fijtura prospi-
clat, multarumque terum et artlure scientiaut complectatur, immorta-

 have not their faculties exercised in proportion to the
 capacities their are endowed with? Now can it be
 thought that these powers are bestowed upon them in
 vain ? There must be then an after-state, in which the
 soul exists, when its powers will be employed in greater
 things, and to nobler ends and uses.                  (5.) Let a
man know ever so much in this present life, he is de-
sirous of knowing more; let his acquisitions of know-
ledge be ever so large, after a life of studious search
and enquiry, he is not satisfied, he still wants to know
more; and what he has arrived unto, is only to know
this, that he knows but little: now this desire of know-
ledge.is not implanted in man, by the author of na-
ture, m vain; wherefore the soul must remain after
death, when it will arrive to a more perfect knowledge
of things; this was the argument Socrates used, to
prove to his scholars the immortality of the soul. But
with respect to truly good men, the argument receives
farther strength; they that know most of God, of
Christ, and of divine things; they desire to know
more, they follow on to know, they make use of all
means to encrease their spiritual knowledge, and. after
all, find it imperfect; and therefore are unsatisfied,
and long after a future state, when all darkness and
imperfection will be removed, and they shall see all
things clearly. Now these gracious and earnest desires
are not implanted in vain by the God of all grace, as
they would be, if the soul was not immortal.
2. The will of man is another faculty of the sou],
the object and actings of which shew it to be immor-
tal..    (1.) The will has for its object universal good.
It naturally desires complete happiness, which some
place in one thing and some in another, but it is not
perfectly enjoyed by any; some place it in riches, but
find themselves mistaken in them, nor do they give
the satisfaction expected from them; some in the
gratification of carnal pleasures, but these soon pall
and perish with the using, and new ones are sought
after; some in enjoying posts of honour, and in the
applause of men; but these depend, the one on the
pleasure of princes, by whom they are set in high
places, and which become slippery ones; the other on.
popular breath, which is as variable as the wind; some
place it in wisdom, knowledge, learning, and science;
which, as they are not only imperfect, but attract the
envy of others, and, as Solomon says, are vexation of
spirit, and cause grief and sorrow, Eccl. i. 17, 18.
now there must be a future state, in which true hap-
piness will be attained, at least by some, or else the
actings of the will about it will be in vain. . .(2.)
God is the su.mmum bonum, the chief good, the wiII
of man rightly pitches upon, nor can it be satisfied
with any thing less; good men .choose him as their
portion; and which is the foundation of their faith,
hope, love, peace, and joy; but then he is not per-
fectly enjoyed as such in this life: their faith and ex-
pectations are, that he will be their portion for ever;
nor will they be fully satisfied until they enjoy him as
such in another world; wherefore in order to this, the

!era esse, Lactantius ut supra. An potest esse mortalis qui immortalem
desiderat ? !bid.
,9 Basilius Valentinus apud Boyle's Nat. Hist. p. 13.