z I 2'he fil:ft Sign PART III. tho' it be of a very beautiful human Body, with a Tweet Smile in his Countenance, or Arms open, or Blood running from Hands, Feet, and Side : That Sort of Power which can reprefent Black or Dark- nefs to the Imagination, can alto reprefent White and fhining Bright- nefs : The Power and Skill which can well and exaaly paint a Straw, or aStick of Wood,on a Piece of Paper orCanvas ; the fame inKind, only perhaps further improved,will be fufficient to paint the Body of a Man, with great Beauty and in royal Majefly, or a rnagnificentCity, pav'd with Gold,full of Brightnefs, and a glorious Throne, &. So 'tis no more than the fame Sort of Power that is requifite to paint one as the other of thefe on the Brain. The fame Sort of Power that can put Ink upon Paper, can put on Leaf-Gold. So that it is evident to a Demonftration, if we fuppofe it to be in the Devil's Power to make any Sort of external Reprefentation at all on the Fancy, ( as without Doubt it is, and never any one queftioned it who believed there was a Devil, that had any Agency with Mankind) I fay, if fo, it is de- monftrably evident that a created Power may extend to all Kinds of external Appearances and Ideas in the Mind. From hence it again clearly appears, that no fuch Things have any thing in them that is fpiritual, fupernatural and divine, in the Senfe in which it has been proved that all truly gracious Experiences have. And tho' external Ideas, thro' Man's Make and Frame, do ordinarily in fome Degree attend fpiritual Experiences, yet thefe Ideas are no Part of their fpiritual Experience, any more than the Motion of the Blood, and Beating of the Pulfe, that attends Experiences, are a Part of fpiritual Experience. And tho' undoubtedly, thro' Men's Infir- mity in the preterit State, and efpecially thro' the weak Conftitution of Tome Perfons, gracious Affeaions which are very ftrong, do ex- cite lively Ideas in the Imagination ; yet 'tis alto undoubted, that when Perfon's Affeaions are founded on, Imaginations, which is often the Cafe, thole Affections are meerly natural and common, becaufe they are built on a Foundation that is not fpiritual and fo are entire- ly different from gracious Affeaions, which, as has been proved, do evermore arife from thofe Operations that are fpiritual and divine. Thefe Imaginations do oftentimes raife the carnal Afe ions of Men to an exceeding great Height 1. : And no wonder, when the Subjeas }- There is a remarkable PA-age of Mr. fohn Smith, in his Dif- courfe on the Shortnefs of a PharifaicRighteoufnefs, p. 370,371, of his Selea Difcourfes, defcribing that Sort of Religion which is built on fuch a Foundation as I am here fpeaking of. I can- not forbear tranfcribing the whole of it. Speakingof a Sort of Chriftians, whofe Life is nothing but a firongEnergy of Fancy, he
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