the Powers of Nature; and if it were not fo, God had made a World, and made Nature to no purpose, to do every Thing himself by an immediate Power, without making ufe of the Powers of Nature: But the ordinary Government of Nature does not fignify to act without it, or to over-rule its Powers, but to fteer and guide its Motions, to ferve the Wife Ends of his Providence in the Government of Mankind. For as God does not ufually act without Nature, nor againft its Laws, fo neither does Nature act by fteady and uniform Motions, without the Direction of God: But while every Thing in the Material World acts neceffarily, and exerts its Natural Powers, God can temper, fufpend, direct its Influences, without reverfing the Laws of Nature. As for Inftance; Fire and Water, Wind and Rain, Thunder and Lightning, have their Natural Virtues and Powers, and Natural Caufes; and God produces fuch Effects as they are made to produce by their Natural Powers; he warms us with Fire, invigorates the Earth by the benign Influences of the Sun and Moon, and other Stars and Planets, refreshes and moiftens it with Springs and Fountains, and Rain from Heaven; fans the Air with Winds, and purges it with Thunders and Lightnings, and the like: But then, when and where the Rains fhall fall, and the Winds fhall blow; in what Meafure and Proportion, Times and Seafons, Natural Caufes fhall give or withhold their Influences, this God keeps in his own Power, and can govern, without altering the Standing Laws of Nature; and this is his Government of Natural Caufes, in order to reward or punish Men as they shall deferve. Thus Thus God reafons with Job concerning his Power and Providence, 38. Job 31, 32, &c. Canst thou bind the sweet influences of the Pleiades, or loofe the bands of Orion? Canft thou bring forth Mazaroth in his feafon, or canst thou guide Arctu rus with his fons Knoweft thou the ordinances of beaven, or canst thou fet the dominion thereof in the earth? Canft thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, that abundance of waters may cover thee? Canft thou fend lightnings, that they may go, and fay unto thee, bere we are? This is above Human Power, but belongs to the Government and Providence of God: Fire and hail, fnow and vapour, and ftormy winds fulfil his word, 148. Pfal. 8. Sometimes God reftrains the Influences of Nature, fhuts up beaven, that it fhall not rain, 2. Chr. 7. 13. At other times, he calls to the clouds, that abun dance of water may cover the earth. He gives the former and the latter rain in its feafon, and preferveth to us the appointed weeks of harvest, 5. Jer. 24. As he promised to Ifrael, 11. Deut. 14, 15. I will give you the rain of your land in bis due feafon, the first rain, and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thy oyl; and I will fend grafs in thy fields for thy cattel, that thou mayest eat and be full. He prefcribes in what Proportions it fhall rain, 2. Joel 23, 24. Be glad ye children of Sion, and rejoice in the Lord your God; for be bath given you the former rain moderately, and be will caufe to come down for you the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. Nay, God appoints on what Place it fhall rain, 34. Ezek. 26. And I will make thee, and the places round about my bill, a bleffing; and I will cause the Shower to come down in his feafon, there fhall be showers of bleffing, 4, Amos 7, 8. And alfo I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three three months to the harvest; and I caufed it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: One piece was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not, withered: So two or three cities wandred to one city to drink water, but they were not Satisfied. It is impoffible to give any tolerable Account of fuch Texts as thefe, without confeffing, That God keeps the Direction and Government of all Natural Caufes in his own Hands: For particular Effects, and all the Changes of Nature, can never be attributed to God, unlefs the Divine Wisdom and Counsel determines Natural Causes to the producing fuch particular Effects. Great Part of the Happiness or Miferies of this Life is owing to the good or bad Influences of Natural Causes, that if God take care of Mankind, he muft govern Nature; and when he promises Health and Plenty, or threatens Peftilence and Famine, how can he make good either, if he has not referved to himself à Sovereign Power over Nature? The Sum is this; That all Natural Causes are under the immediate and abfolute Government of Providence; that God keeps the Springs of Nature in his own Hand, and turns them as he pleases. For mere Matter, tho' it be endowed with all Natural Virtues and Powers, which neceffarily produce their Natural Effects, yet it having no Wifdom and Counsel of its own, cannot ferve the Ends of a free Agent, without being guided by a Wife Hand: And we fee, in a Thoufand Inftances, what an Em. pire Human Art has over Nature, not by changing the Nature of Things, (which Human Art can never do) but by fuch a skilful Application of Caufes, as will produce fuch Ef fects, fects, as unguided, and if I may fo fpeak, untaught Nature could never have produced; and if God have fubjected Material Nature to Human Art, furely he has not exempted it from his own Guidance and Power. This fhews how neceffary it is, that God, by an immediate Providence, fhould govern Nature; for Natural Caufes are excellent Inftruments; but to make them useful, they must be directed by a Skilful Hand; and thofe various Changes which are in Nature, especially in this Sublunary World, (which we are moft acquainted with) without any certain and periodical Returns, prove, that it is not all Mechanism ; for Mechanical Motions are fix'd and certain, and either always the fame, or regular and uniform in their Changes. It is of great ufe to us to understand this, which teaches us, what we may expect from God, and what we must attribute to him in the Government of Nature: We muft not expect in ordinary Cafes, that God fhould reverse the Laws of Nature for us; that if we leap into the Fire, it fhall not burn us; or into the Water, it fhall not drown us: And by the fame Reason, the Providence of God is not concerned to preserve us, when we destroy our felves by Intemperance and Luft; for God does not work Miracles, to deliver Men from the Evil Effects of their own Wickedness and Folly. But all the kind Influences of Heaven, which fupply our Wants, and fill our Hearts with Food and Gladness, are owing to that good Providence which commands Nature to yield her Increase; and those Disorders of Nature which afflict the World with Famines, and Peftilence, and Earthquakes, are the Effects of God's An ger ger and Displeasure, and are ordered by him for the Punishment of a wicked World. We muft all believe this, or confefs that we mock God, when we blefs him for a healthful Air, and fruitful Seafons, or deprecate his Anger, when we see the visible Tokens of his Vengeance, in the Disorders of Nature: For did not God immediately interpofe in the Government of Nature, there would be no Reason to beg his Favour, or to deprecate his Anger upon these Accounts. 2dly. Let us confider God's Government of Accidental Caufes, or what we call Chance and Accident, which has a large Empire over Human Affairs: Not that Chance and Accident can do any Thing properly fpeaking; for whatever is done, has fome proper and natural Cause which does it; but what we call Accidental Causes, is rather fuch an Accidental Concurrence of different Caufes, as produces unexpected and undefigned Effects; as when one Man by Accident lofes a Purfe of Gold, and another Man walking in the Fields without any fuch Expectation, by as great an Accident finds it. And how much of the Good or Evil that happens to us in this World, is owing to fuch Undefigned, Surprizing, Accidental Events, every Man muft know, who has made. any Obfervations on his own, or other Mens Lives and Fortunes. The Wife Man obferved this long fince, 9. Eccl. 11. I returned and faw under the Sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battel to the ftrong, neither yet bread to the wife, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all. Some unusual and cafual Events change the |