'Senn. CXL. aflér'téd andproved. z6 w Thing, which is continually fpending, and continually renewing it fell, every Day lofrngfomethingof the Matter which it had before, and gainingnew fo that molt Men have newBodies, oftnerthen they have new Cloaths; only with this Diffe- rence, that wechange ourCloaths commonlyat once, but our, Bodies byDegrees. And this is undeniablycertain from Experience. For fo much as our Bodies grow, fo much new Matter is added to them, over and betides the repairingof what is continually (pent; and after a Man be come to his full Growth, fo much of his Food, as every Day turns into Nourifhment, fo much of Body is ufually wafted, and carried off by infenfible Perfpiration, that is, breathed out at the Pores of his Body; whichaccording tothe Static!¿ Ex- periment of Santtorius a Learned Phyfician, who for feveral Years together weigh- ed himfelf exaály every Day, is (as I remember) according to the Proportionof Five to Eight, of all that a Man eats anddrinks. Now according to this Propor- tion, every Man muff change his Body feveral Times in a' Year. 'Tis true indeed,the more folidParts of the Body, as the Bones, do not change fooften as the fluid and flay but that they alfo rio change, is certain,becaufe they grow, and whatever grows is nouri{h'd and fpends, becaufe otherwife it would not need to be repaired. IÍ. The Body which a Man bath at any time of his Life, is as much bis own Body, as that which he bathat his Death; fo that if the very Matter of his Body, which a Man had any timeof his Life, be raifed, it is as much his own and the fame Body, as that which he had at his Death, and commonly much more perfeá; becaufe they who die of lingering Sicknefs, or old Age, are ufually meer Skele- tons when they die ; fo that there is no Reafon to fuppofe, that the very Matter of which our Bodies confift at the Time ofour Death, {hall be that which {Ilan be railed, that beingcommonly the worft, and molt imperfeá Body of all the refl. ThefetwoThingsbeing premifed, the Anfwer to this Objeáion cannot be diffi- cult. Foras to the more folid and firm Parts of the Body, as the Skull and Bones, 'tis not I think pretended that the Canibals eat them; and if they did, fo much of the Matter, even of there folid Parts, wafles away in a few Years, as being colleáed together would füpply them many Times over. And as for the flefhy and fluid Parts, thefe are fo very often changed and renewed, that we can allow the Canibals to eat them all up, and to turn them all into Nourifhrnent, and yet no Man need contend for wantof a Body of his own at theRefurreáion, viz. any bf thofe Bodies which he had ten or twentyYears before ; whichare every whit as good, and as much his own, as that which was eaten. You will pardon me I hope, that I have dwelt fo long upon fo contentious an Argument, when you confider how neceffary what I have Paid is to the vin- dicating of fo great an Article ofour Religion ; and efpecially in this Evil Age of Unbelief, when greater Matters than this are called in Quellion. . Having thus fhewn that the Refurreftion is not a Thing incredible tonatural Reafon, 1 fhould now proceed to {hew the Certainty of it from Divine Revelation. For as Reafon tells us, it is not impoflìble; fo the Word of God bath affur'd us, that it is certain. The Texts of Scripture are fo many and clear to this Purpofe, and fo well known to all Chrifhans, that I will produce none. .I (hall only tell you, that as it is exprefly revealed in the Gofpel, fo our bleffedSa- viour, for the Confirmation of our Faith, and the Comfort and Encouragement of our Hope, bath given us the Experiment of it in his own ReCurreáion, which is the Earneft and Firfl-fruits of ours. So St. Patti tells us, that Chrift it riferfrom the Dead, and become the Fit:It fruits of them that flept. And that Chrifl did really rife from the Dead, we have as 'good Evidence, as for any ancient Matter of Faá which we do moft firmly believe ; and more and greater Evi- dence than this, the Thing is not capable of; and becaufe it is not, no realon-. able Man ought to require it. Now what remains, but to conclude. this Difcourfe with thofe praáicál Infe- reaces which our Apolik makes from this Doárine of the Refurrc bon , and I {hail Mention there tiro The Firft,, for our Support and Comfort under the Infirmities and Miferies of this mortal Life.. . The
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