ry to fuch attainments, than a juft and careful exercife and employment of the capacities they are poffeffed of. But on the contrary; if ftones should reason well, and brutes come to have the faculty of speech, and trees to walk and act as men ; this would justly be accounted miraculous, and the effect of fome fupernatural opera

tion;

because these things are certainly

known to be above the reach of the powers and faculties of their refpective natures, and there is nothing in them that can be the proper caufe of fuch effects. Thus alfo for the fame reafon; if a man should stop the fun in his course, calm the winds and waves, create bread for the hungry, restore limbs to the maimed, fight to the blind, and health and cafe to the dif eafed and pained, by his meer word and command; these things being manifeftly and certainly above the reach of all the powers of human nature, must be allowed to be truly miraculous in the man that doth them I fay in the man that doth them ; because these very inftances would be no matter of just wonder or miracle at all, if they were vifibly performed by fuperior beings, of powers and faculties capable of fuch

opera

operations; no more miraculous, than that the effect fhould be anfwerable to its caufe; or that God himself, to whom all power belongs, fhould be able to bring fuch events to país, which are above the power of all created beings whatsoever.

Hence I think a miracle in general should de defined, An action done, or an operation visibly performed by any being, that is really and truly above the reach, natural power and capacity of that being who doth it, of himself, and without the affiftance of fome fuperior agent, to perform. And therefore a miracle, when spoken of as done by a man, in confirmation of a divine miffion, is fomewhat visibly performed by him, in order to prove himself to be sent of God, which is strictly and truly above all his natural powers and capacities; and which he could not of himself perform, without the influence and affistance of fome fuperior agent. Speech is a faculty natural to man; but that a stone should speak, is as truly a miracle as that a man fhould fly. That a man fhould command the winds and waves into submission and filence, or stop the course of the heavenly bodies, is as real

a miracle, as that he should, by his word, create the world out of nothing. But fhould an angel vifibly perform these things, we might indeed be furprized at fo unexpected an event; but could not, according to the foregoing account, determine it to be a miracle, till we could prove the operation to be beyond the power and ability of the performer.

Hence it follows, that the fame action may be a miracle, or not, according as it is performed by an agent of inferior, or fuperior abilities; as in the already mentioned inftance. Should the fun ftop, or change his motion, at the word or command of a meer man, this would be a proper miracle, because above the reach of all the powers of human nature : but fhould fome fuperior agent arreft the fun, and hold him fixed and immoveable, or caufe him to run a quite different courfe from what he now doth; it would be no more a miracle, fuppofing his power equal to fuch a work, than for a man to hold a bowl in his hand, or throw it East or Weft, just as it suited his purpofe or inclination.

Hence alfo it follows, that no beings whatfoever can, of themfelves, perform real mi

racles. Men may do miracles by the affiftance of angels, and angels by the affistance of some superior powers, and these again under the special influence of almighty God: i. e. with fuch affiftance they may bring to pass events, which otherwife they could never have done. But that they cannot of themselves do proper miracles, according to the account I have given of them, is as evident, as that they cannot perform impoffibilities. Even the actions of God himself will not, upon this scheme, be miraculous ; because he can act by the assistance of no being fuperior to himself, being the first and greatest of all beings; and because nothing, that is an object of power, can be impoffi ble to him, to whom all power belongs.

So that what is, or what is not a miracle, is to be determined, not by the extraordinarinefs of the work, or the opinion of the fpectator; but by the agreement and proportion between the action performed, and the capacities and powers of the agent. If the action done be certainly above all the powers of the agent, of himself, and unaffifted, to perform; it is a true and proper miracle, and proves all that a miracle can, or need to prove, viz. the co-operation

and

and affiftance of fome invisible and fuperior being; as fhall afterwards be more fully fhewn.

Upon this fcheme we need not spend many words to prove the poffibility of miracles. 'Tis but to fuppofe, what I apprehend few will deny; that there are other beings exifting, fuperior to us, by whofe affistance and influence we may be enabled to do things, which otherwife we could not do at least 'tis but fuppofing fuch a power in God, to act upon, and influence the creatures he hath made: and I believe it will appear, that there remains no farther difficulty about miracles, from the impoffibility of them.

'Tis a much more material objection that may be raised against the matter, as I have now stated it, that even this account leaves us at a lofs how to determine, when any thing is a proper miracle, or not; because we know not all the powers of human nature, and therefore cannot pafs a fafe judgment, as to many things, whether they are within, or beyond its reach.

But even to this it may be answered, that there is not really fo much difficulty in this matter, as fome may imagine. Moft perfons

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