exceptionable as throughout a whole Life, to have no fuch Charge on it. But in this Inftance 'tis plain that Jephthah's Vow, whatever it was, was rafh, for he lived to lament it, which is Demonftration that it was not worded with fo much Caution as is fuppofed. * As to his being " weak to a very great Degree, if he thought himself afterwards "obliged to do it, because God had given him "Success," I answer, he was not fo weak as to determine the Queftion, by confidering only one Side of it, without taking the leaft Notice of the other. I have fo good a Notion of Jephthah's Abilities, that I am perfwaded he knew much more than those, who are fo ready to cenfure him; that he took into View the Difficulties on both Sides, the Immorality of the Sacrifice, and the Heinoufnefs of Perjury, and formed his Judgment upon the greater fuppofed Malignity of the latter. Whether his Judgment be upon the whole to be approved or not, yet the Grounds of it were very ftrong in Appearance; and the Charge of Rafhnefs and Weakness will fall on those who have omitted in their Account, thofe very material Confiderations, which made this a Point of Cafuiftry, and induced this good Man to think himself obliged to fulfil his Vow, even by offering up his Daughter. It is added, "In either of thefe Refpects he must have "acted out of Character; in the firft without his "ufual Prudence for which he is commended, in "the latter without his Faith for which he is ce"lebrated." The Commendation of his Faith has been already confidered and explained, and fhewn not to be inconfiftent with the received Notion of

* Neque unquam adducar ut credam non incaute Principem promififfe Jephthe, cum et ipfum Voti pænituerit fui, poftquam Filia occurrit fibi, Ambrof. de Officiis. Lib. III. c. 12. vol. II. P. 38.

H 4

this

1

this Fact, but there is not the leaft Authority for the other Part of this Obfervation. I know of no Paffage, where Jephthah is commended for his Prudence. He is faid indeed to be a mighty Man of Valour, but Skill and Dexterity in military Affairs are fomething very diftinct from Difcretion and Caution in the Conduct of religious Vows. His Character was that of a good Warrior, and it was not acting out of that Character to fail in another Point, which related merely to Confcience: And though it is allowed farther, that he was a good, a fincere and religious Perfon, yet a fingle Inftance of Rashness and Error, not of wilful Tranfgreffion, will by no means difprove that Character.

The concluding Objection is ftil! the most extraordinary. "Whatever Jephthah was, yet God is

perfect, and how fhall we vindicate the Divine "Perfections, if he gave Succefs to those Means, "which led directly to an immoral End?" Why, we muft vindicate them in the fame manner, as in other Inftances, wherein his Providence fuffers Men not merely under an Error, but in defigned Schemes of Wickedness, to triumph and prosper, and not prefume to call the Succefs that he allows them, a Countenancing of their immoral Actions. If we will enter on fuch Subjects, it ought to be in the decent and humble Stile of the Prophet Jeremiah xii. 1. Righteous art thou, O Lord, when I deal with thee, yet let me talk with thee of thy Judgments; wherefere doth the Way of the Wicked profper, wherefore are all they happy that deal very treacherously? The Fact, the Holy Prophet could not difpute, but propofes with Modefty to enquire into the Reafons of it. He did not take it for granted, that all Actions which were profpered, were therefore justified by the Countenance of God; he faw and knew the

* P. 7.

contrary;

contrary; and though he seemed at firft at a lofs to account for it, he begs Leave to look into the Grounds of fuch a Difpenfation. But under our fuperior Light, one would think this fhould be no Difficulty, and that we should not be at a Lofs to vindicate the Divine Perfections, in giving Succefs to thofe Means, which are fuppofed to lead directly to an immoral End; or to interpret that Succefs as an Approbation of thofe Means, There are many Inftances in Sacred Hiftory, and many more in Prophane, of Perfons, who have profpered in the midst of their Wickedness, and made their Im. moralities inftrumental to their Profperity. And what Difficulty in all this, to thofe who believe a future State, where an equal Recompence will finally be affigned to all? There are indeed other Confiderations even of present Concernment, which take off much of the Weight of this Difficulty. The fuccefsful Event of War is rather a national than a perfonal Bleffing, and a bad Man may in this Refpect be made the Inftrument of Prosperity to a righteous Nation. Again, thefe Events are only to be judged of by their final Conclufion, and a prefent Success often happens to be only the Path to more effectual Ruin in the End; which was the principal Confideration, with which Jeremiah clears his Enquiry in the Conclufion of the forementioned Chapter: And it is obfervable to this Purpose, that though the People reaped the Benefit of the Deliverance wrought by Jephthah for them against the Ammonites, yet he himself was diftreffed by this very Succefs, and his rafh Vow fufficiently punished by his Obligation to the Completion of it. What is further offered in Illuftration of this Objection coincides with fome of the former Objections, and has been already anfwered. "The

Spirit of God was upon Jephthah when he made

his

"his Vow.", In what Senfe this is true, has been fhewn before, but not as immediately inspiring and directing it, on which alone the Force of this Difficulty depends. -"The Hand of God enabled "him to fucceed," which is very readily allowed.

And it was this Succefs, which obliged him "to perform his Vow." This may likewife be admitted, though here urged, I fuppofe, only as Argumentum ad Hominem, and not as the real Opinion of the Objector." In these Inftances he was certainly under the Divine Guidance." This I abfolutely deny, in the First of these, which is the main Point of all, the contrary having been plainly proved, and therefore to the next Question I anfwer in the negative; "Was it of God that he vowed to facrifice his Daughter?" No it was not. It was a rash inconfiderate Vow, which moft probably he never thought would reach his Daughter, and which, with Regard to any other Perfon, was at best questionable. But the other Part of the Interrogation requires more Diftinction. "Or could God in any

Senfe be the Means of fuch a Sacrifice? 'Tis oddly expreffed, but in any Meaning of it may be readily answered. God might grant Succefs to Jephthah in his military Undertakings, notwithstanding he had vowed, that in Cafe of fuch Succefs he would offer up the firft Perfon he met with. Lay the worst Imputation on fuch a Vow, the Fault was wholly in the Perfon who made it, and no way concerned the Conduct of Providence, which was not obliged to alter its intended Course of giving Victory to Ifrael, left their Commander fhould think himself bound to offer a human Sacrifice, God was no more the Means of fuch a Sacrifice, than of any other Event, which he does not think fit to prevent by a particular Interpofition. He overrules the Follies, the Faults, and even Vices of Mankind

Mankind to ferve his own wife Defigns, and is not bound, if they engage in wrong Purfuits, to change his intended Scheme, to prevent their Completion of them. The Cafe was plainly this-God had raised up Jephthah to be a Deliverer of his People, defigning by him to give Victory to his People, in Purfuit whereof he enters voluntarily into this Engagement on Condition of Succefs, which fome think was wicked, others rafh and inconfiderate, whilft there are not wanting, who are of Opinion, that it was excufeable at leaft, if not juftifiable in his Situation, from a particular Precept which has been mentioned. But whatever Interpretation is put upon it, was God obliged to alter his Defign, defert his People, and fuffer them to be defeated, left he should be thought acceffary to a wrong Engagement of their Governor? or was the Succefs he afforded a Teftimony of his Approbation of every Step that was taken in it? It may as well be argued to countenance all the Practices of thofe vain Men, which the Beginning of the Chapter tells us, were joined to Jephthah, as to countenance his Vow, fince all partook of the Benefit of the Victory over the Ammonites- But it was this Success "which obliged him to perform the Vow." "Tis true this Event was the Condition on which he had promifed to offer up the firft Perfon who met him, but did this therefore authorize his doing so, or fhew the Divine Approbation of it? His Victory, confidered in itself, obliged him to no fuch Return. If it was now at all binding, it was merely by virtue of fuch a Vow, which muft bear all the Blame and Cenfure of it, and not a Providential Event, which was defigned for other Purposes. Unless therefore the Counfels of Heaven are to be changed by the vain Purposes of Men; unless God is bound to provide, by a particular Interpofition, that Vows which

are