works of the Creation, than what our eyes behold at all, or that we have only now and then a glimpse of. But if they are planets of other fystems, some of those erraticks revolving round some of the fixt ftars, then do they lay open a ftill more glorious fcene of God's work, and give us fuch a representation of the ftate of the universe, that the world never dreampt of before, and that even angels themselves may be amazed at the fight of.

BOOK

BOOK II.

THE DUE

SITUATION

OF THE

HEAVENLY BODIES.

CHA P. I.

OF THE DUE, AS WELL AS GREAT DISTANCE OF THE

I

HEAVENLY BODIES.

HAVE before taken notice of the immenfe

distance of the heavenly bodies, that it is fuch as makes those vaft bodies the fixt ftars (no lefs in all probability, as I faid, than the fun itself) to degenerate into fo many points, yea to escape our eye; nay more than this, that it causeth even our own great orb which our earth defcribes about the fun, to fink into almost a

6

point

point, or at least a circle of but few feconds diameter. I fhall therefore fay no more on that matter. But that which I fhall fpeak of in this book, is the due proportion of the diftance of the heavenly bodies; that they are not fet at random, like a work of chance, but placed regularly and in due order, according to the best methods of proportion and contrivance. Which will be manifeft from the following chapters, which will fhew that the distance is fuch, that none of the globes interfere with one another : but, instead of that, are in due and the most nice, commodious proportion.

CHAP.

CHA P. II.

THAT NONE OF THE GLOBES OF THE UNIVERSE

INTERFERE.

HAD the universe been the work of chance,

or any thing but of a wife architect, there would have been a great many blunders and inconveniences in the fituation of fuch a prodigious number of immenfe globes, as the univerfe doth contain. Some would have been too near, fome too far off, fome would have met with, knocked and ftopped one the other, and fome would have fo interfered as to have incommoded the other, fome way or other. But inftead of this, every globe throughout the whole creation is, as far as it is poffible for us to obferve, fet at fuch a due distance, as not only to avoid all violent concourfes, but also so as not to eclipfe or fhade one the other, wherever it may be prejudicial, or indeed not useful and convenient, or fo as to hinder one another's kindly influences, or to prejudice one another by noxious ones. This is very manifeft in our

own

And now to reflect upon the whole, and fo conclude what hath been faid concerning thefe feveral motions; we may all along perceive in them fuch manifeft fignals of a Divine hand, that they all feem, as it were, to conspire in the demonftration of their infinite Creator and Orderer. For befides what, in all probability, is in other parts of the univerfe, we have a whole fyftem of our own, manifeftly proclaiming the workmanship of its maker. For we have not these vaft and unwieldy maffes of the Sun, and its planets, dropt here and there at random, and moving about the great expanfum, in uncertain paths, and at fortuitous rates and measures, but in the completeft manner, and according to the ftricteft rules of order and harmony; fo as to anfwer the great ends of their creation, and the divine providence; to difpatch the noble offices of the feveral globes; to perform the great works of nature in them; to comfort and cherish every thing refiding on them, by those useful changes of day and night, and the feveral seasons of the year.

These things are fo evident to the reafon of all men, that Tully might well make his Stoic to alledge this as one of his principal arguments

for