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os God and man. For bocavis God is incorruptibie and immortal, and therefore persect hecause He is evertasting, His Wisdom also is perfeci, as Ηe Himself is; nor can anything pose it, because God Himseli is subject in nothing. But because man is subject to passion, his misdom also is subject to error; and as many things hinder the lite os man, sothat it cannot bo perpetuat, so also his misdom must be hi dered by many things: so that it is not perfeci in entirely pe ceiving the truth. Theresoro there is no human wisdom, is it strives by itsolt to attain to tho conception and knowledge of
mander at large, nor clearly to perceive the truth, the knowladgs of which belonga to tho divino naturo. For his Woas are known to God Mone. But man cannot attain this knowledgeis reflection or disputation, but by learning and hearing DomΗim Who alone is abis to know and to Dach. Therelam Marcus Tullius, borrowing from Plato tho sentiment of S
ulterances of divine Volces. CHAP. III.- in nature, and of the woria; and a eansure of tha Soles and Epictaream.
And sinco We ars speahing os the errors of philosophera, the Stoics divide nature into tWo part-the one Which effecis, theother whicli afforda itseli tractabis for action. They say that intho tormer is contained ali the power os perception, in the lalter
the materiai, and that the one cannot aci Without tho other.
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E DIUINE INSTITUTES. 429 districta, and tho Aundations os many mountains, are laid Waste by latent and internat fire. And this is not enough, is Goddoes not spare His oWn members, uniess it is permitted manalso to have some poWer over the body oi God. Seas ars bulli up, mountains are cui doWia, and the innermost boweis of the earin are dug out to draW forth riches. Why, should I saythat me cannot even plough mithout lacerating tho divine body lSo that Wo ars at once Wiched and implous in doing violence totho members of God. Does God, then, suffer His body to bellarassed, and endure to Meahen Himself, or permit this in bedone by man Unless by chanco that divino intelligenco Whichis mixed with the worid, and with ali paris of the worid, aban-doned the first outer aspect* of tho earth, and plunged itfeliinto tho lowest depius, that it might bo sensibie of no pala Domcontinuat laceration. But ii this is tristing and absurd, thenthey themselves Were as devoid os intelligenco as those are Wholiave not perceived that the divine spirit is everywhero diffused, and that ali things aro held together by it, not ho ever in sucha manner that God, Who is incorruptibio, should Himself bomixed with heavy and corruptibie elementa. There oro that is mora correct whicli they derived froni Plato, that tho moridwas made by God, and is also governed by Ηis providence. It was theroforo bestiing that Plato, and thom .ho held thesamo opinion, should Dach and explain What mas tho cause, what the reason, tor tho contriving of so great a Work; Why orior tho salis of whom Ηρ mado it. But tho Stoics also say the world waa mado for tho salis of men. I hear. But Epicurus is ignorant on What accountor Who made men themselves. For Lucretius, When lis sald
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Which they being destituis, wero abis neither to reach nor Methe stirine os truth. Theresore, as I said a littio besore, Whenthey had assumed that which was true, that is, that the woridWas made is God, and was mado sor the salie of men, yet, sincetheir argument salied them in the consequences, they Were un- lo to desend that which they had assumed. In fine, Plato, that ho might not malis tho work os God weah and subject toruin, said that it Would remain tor over. Is it Was mado sor thosahe of men, and so mado as to be eternat, Why then are notthey on Whose account it Was made eternat It they ammortal on account of whom it Was mado, it must also itaeis bomortal and subject to dissolution, for it is not of moro valuethan thoso sor Whose sae it Was made. But is his argumentyWero consistent, he mould nnderatand that it must perish causeit Was made, and that nothing can remain for ever excepi that which cannot be touched. But he who says that it Was not mado for the salie of men has no argumenti For is ho says that tho Creator contrived these Works of suta magnitudo on His oWn account, Why then
means the creation of the human race, and of the othor livingcreatures why do me intercept tho advantages of others Τ Why,
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plan. But ths Worid has a plan by whicli it both exista and isgovemed; theresore also it Was made: it it mas made, it mill also bo destroyed. Let them thereiore assign a reason, it theycan, Why it Was eister made in tho beginning or mill heroastorbe destroyed. d beeause Epicurus or Democritus Was unablo in teachthis, he said that it Was produced os ita own accord, tho Meda coming together in ali directions; and that When theae aro again resolved, discord and destruction Will tolloW. Theroforo hoperverted that which he had correctly seon, and is his ignoranco of system entirely overthre the wholo system, and reduced the worid, and ali things which ars dono in it, to tholikeneas of a most tristing dream, ii no plan erisis in humanassalas. But sinco the worid and ali iis paris, as We see, Megoverned by a Wonderivi plan; since the traming of the heaven, and the course of the stare and of the heavenly bodies, which is harmonious' even in variety itself, the constant and wondertularrangement of the seasons, the varied fruitsulneis of tho lanti, tho lovel plains, tho defences and heapings up of mountains,
that they mere mado Mithout a cause, in Which a Wondaesul disposition os most provident arrangement shines forth ΙΤ, thereiore, nothing at ali exisis nor is done Without a causo; it
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the wondersul natum os iis Woris, it must bo that tho fame providenco created man and the other animati. Let us there- fore Me What remon iners was for the creation of tho humanrace, since it is evident, as the Stoica say, that tho morid Wasmado sor the salis of men, although they mahe no si tot error in this very matter, in saying it Was not mado sor the salie of man, but os men. For the naming of one individual comprehends tho Whole human race. But this arises from tho saetthat they are ignorant that one man only Was made by God, and they thinh that men mero produced in ali landa and soldsas mushmoms. But Hermes Was not ignorant that man was
both mado by God and aster tho liheness os God. But I returnio my subjeci. There is nothing, as I imagine, Which Was
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subservient to man, and were given sor his protection and service; since, Whether they are os the earin or of the mater, they do not perceive tho system of the worid as man does.
by, land and by ma ' A very wide subject for discussion, but it must be briefly touched upon, as in passing. Sinceman is formed os different and opposing elementi, mul and bodri that is, heaven and earili, that which is stight and that Which is perceptibie to the senses, that Which is eternat and that whicli is temporal, that Which has sensibili and that which is sensetess, that whicli is endued with light and that which is dark, reason iraeli and necessi required that both good and evit things should be set betore man ood thingsWhich he may use, and evit things Which hs may Mard against
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him on this account, because he had received Wisdom, them is forco os .hicli is occupied in distinguishing things modand evit. Great, there ore, and right, and admirabis is thedime, and Nason, and poWer of man, for Whoso saho Godmado sto morid iraeli and ali inings, as many as exist, and gaVehim so much honour stat He set him over ait things, sinis healono conld admire the moris of God. Most excellentin ther fore, does our Asclepiades, in discussing the providence of the Supremo God in that book Which he wroto to me, say: - Andon this account any one may With good reason thinii that thodisine providence gave the place nearest to itieis to him Who
as ablo to underetand ita arrangement. For that is the sun :
oi nothing, but on account of man, Who might fitly mari me
of them. CHAP. V.- of the ereation os man, and of the a ramgement of the worta, and of tha ehias good. Let us noW assign the reason Why He made man himself.
For it tho philosophere had known this, they Would either have
i Asclepiades mas a Christian writer, and contemporary of Lactantius, in Whom ho Wrote a book on tha providenos of God. Illis non quadrare rationem. Sacramentum. De transverso jugulamet. Tho Academica, assi ing that nothingvaa eertain, opposed the teneta of the other philosophera, Who maintainintheir ovn opinions respectivel
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commencement, and completion os His Worri. What more
a acattered manner in the former books, neVerihelem, sincellis subjeci noW specialty requires it, becauso κε have unde
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sor bringing sorth and producing various' things, that by the
Whicli mas tinen hom the earth, received the poWer of pr ducing omphing, that, in much as he was sormed os a fragiis substance, and could not exist for ever, When the space of his temporal liis mas past, lis might depari, and is a perpetuat succession ren- that Which he bore, Which was fresi and