Head J,; The Corruption of the Underflanding. 4:3 phers, the world by ~hat rwi)_dom _A~erw not Cod, t c .or • . i., 2 t. and all their refea.rches m rehg10n wer~ but gropmg m , tho dark, Afl! xvii. 2!]~ If we look,. within- the inclofure, and, except a few that were groat~ing and waiting for th---e · Confolation of 1fraei, .we will fee a grofs darknefs Qn the face of that generation. Tho' to them were committed the ~racles . ofGod; , y~t theywere mofl: corrupt in their dochine.. . 'Their ~r.aditions were multiplied; but the knowledge of th~fe '-things wherein the life of religion lies, was lofl: Mafiers– of lfrael, knew. not the nature and meceffi.ty of regeneration, John iii. 10. Their religipn was to build on their birth-pri– viledge as children of Abraham,· Matth, iii, I 9· to glory in their circumciG.on,. and other.external ordinances, Philip" ii-i, 2. 3· · and to rell: in the law, (Rom. ii. 17,) after they had, by\heir falfe glofres, c.ut it fo Qlort, as they might go well near to, the fulfi!l i ~g of it, Matth. v. ·Thus was darknefs over the face of the war Id when Chrifl: the trueJight came into it; and fo is darknefs over every foul, till he, as the day~fiar, arife in the heart. The former is ar1 evidence of the latter. , What, ,but the natural darknefs of mens minds conic' fl:ill thus wear out the light of external re .. , velation in .a ma.tter uppn which eternal happinefs did de• pend? Men did not forget the wayof preferving theirlives: but how quiGkly did they lofe the knowledge_of the way of falvation of their fouls, which are of infioite more weight anq WQr.th! when patriarchs and prophets teaching was in- , effeCtual, men behoved to be taught of God himfelf; wha !'I ·alone can open the eyes .of the underftanding. But, that it might appear, that the corruption~ of man's mind lay.dee per than to be cured by mere ex.ter~al revelation; there were b~:It\ very fe~ conv~rted by Chrifi's preaching, whoJPohe aJ. never manfpoke, John xii. 37, 38 . The great cure ,on the generation remained to be perforn1ed, by the ~piri~ accom'-' panying the preaching of the apo!Ues: who, :according to the promife (John xiv.r2 .) were to do greater v~orks. And ifwe look _to the miracles wrought by our bleffed Lord, we will find ) that by applying the remedy to the.foul, for the cure of bodil ydiftempers, (as in the cafeof theJJtanjick of' thf}a(;y, Matth. ix. 2.) he plainly difcovered, _that it was his main errand into the world to cure the difeafes of the j.oul. ' l nod a mi racle wrought up~m one .that was bor-n ' bind"
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