therefore, that they should be more inclined to believe sincerely in a future retribution, than the Pagans, who had not the same experimental assurance, that the Deity is, indeed, the moral Governor and Judge of mankind.

Still, their belief, however confidently held by many of them, must have been, as has been said, fundamentally erroneous, as far as it consisted in thinking they had eternal life in the Scriptures," held out as the reward of obedience to the Mosaic Law; which was sanctioned (as was remarked above) by no such promise. For the only just ground on which immortal happiness can be looked for, whatever some arrogant speculators have urged on the other side, is that of an express promise of it, as a free gift, and not as a natural and merited recompense of virtue.

- that immortal

This latter notion, indeed, happiness after death is the just and natural consequence of a well-spent life, (an error analogous to that of the Jews, lately mentioned,) has prevailed to a degree which, considering its utter want of foundation, either in reason or revelation, is truly surprising. A large proportion

of deists, and many who admit the truth of the Gospel, though miserably ignorant of it, have either maintained, or (which is much more common, because much easier) have taken for granted, and alluded to as indisputable, the natural and necessary connexion between a virtuous life on earth, and eternal happiness after death. And this is more especially the case with such as lean towards the opinion that Christianity is a mere republication of the religion of nature; a circumstance which confirms what has been just said concerning the extreme ignorance of the Gospel scheme under which these professors of Christianity labour: since if Nature taught us to expect a happy eternity as the fair, natural, and well-earned reward of virtue, it would follow, that Christianity, which undoubtedly teaches no such doctrine, nor can be understood to favour it, by any one who has even a moderate acquaintance with Scripture, must be, on that very account, essentially different from Natural-religion, and even at variance with it.

§ 11. Not only, however, is Christianity very far from being a republication of natural religion,

but the notion we are speaking of is, as has been just observed, equally unfounded in reason and in revelation. As the Scriptures speak of eternal life as "the gift of God through Jesus Christ our Lord," so reason also shews, that for man to expect to earn for himself, by the practice of virtue, and claim as his just right, an immortality of exalted happiness, is a most extravagant and groundless pretension. It would indeed be no greater folly and presumption to contend, that the brutes are able by their own efforts to exalt themselves to rationality.

In the case indeed of some eminent personages of antiquity, the arrogant hope seems to have been cherished by themselves or their followers, that their great exploits and noble qualities would raise them after death into the number of the gods; and this is precisely the expectation we are now speaking of: for it should be remembered, that by the term which we translate " God," the ancient heathens understood, not, as we do, the Author and Governor of all things, but merely, a Being of a nature superior to man, perfect, happy, and immortal;

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such, in short, as the Christian hopes to become after death. Now to pretend that man is naturally capable of raising himself to this stateof thus elevating himself into a god-is surely no less extravagant than to suppose that a brute is qualified to exalt itself into a rational being. Nor did this absurdity escape the more intelligent of the ancient heathen; their sentiments were probably the same as the Bramin is reported to have uttered, who on being asked by Alexander "what a man should do in order to become a god," is said to have replied, that "he must do something impossible to man." And accordingly, the most judicious writers of antiquity make little scruple of alluding to the temples erected to those who were canonized as heroes, as merely a more splendid kind of monument; and the sacrifices offered to them, as merely a kind of solemn commemoration, to support their posthumous fame.

Nor does the belief in a Deity who is the Moral-Governor of the universe, in reality alter the ease so much as many seem to suppose; for if by the practice of virtue man were entitled to claim such a reward from the justice of God,

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he might strictly and properly be said to earn and acquire it for himself, as a labourer his wages. Men are apt indeed to speak of the justice of the Deity as leading Him to the rewarding of virtue, as well as the punishing of sin, in the next world, (considering such reward and punishment as the natural consequence of each respectively,) as if the two cases. were parallel; whereas in truth they are even inconsistent with each other. for a man deserves reward only for doing something beyond his bounden duty-something, consequently, which he would not deserve punishment for omitting. This obvious rule of justice every one assents to in human affairs: no positive rewards are proposed to men by legislators for merely fulfilling their engagements, and paying their debts; though if they fail to do so, punishments are denounced; those, on the other hand, who voluntarily devote their fortunes, their services, or their persons, to the public good, we consider as worthy to be rewarded by riches, honours, or rank; while no one ever thought of denouncing punishment for the mere absence of such munificent liberality and generous