fort or Happiness, Favor or Protection, in, to, or amongst Men. But what will this advantage our Adversaries? Certainly God or Christ may in this sense enlighten Men, or be a light to them, altho' there be no such thing as what the Quakers mean by the Universal Light within. For will any Man conclude, that because God is a light to Man, or enlightens him, when he yields him Comfort, Protection, &c. or because Christ is a light to lighten the Gentiles, that is, a Teacher to instruct others besides those of the Jewish Nation; that therefore, I say, there is a certain substance or principle, in which God, as Father, Son, and Spirit, dwells?

Secondly, Those Texts wherein Man is faid to be, 1. enlightened, 2. to have light, or to have a light in him, 3. to be light, do afford us no proof of what the Quakers mean by the Univerfal Light within.

1. Those Texts wherein Man is said to be enlightened, do not afford us any proof of it. For if Man be therein said to be enlightned by God or Christ; then, in the same sense that God or Chrift gives or yields light to Man, in the same sense is Man enlightened by God or Christ. And consequently, because when God or Chrift is faid to give or yield light to Man, 'tis meant that God or Chrift gives him instruction, comfort, or the like; therefore, when Man is said to be enlightned by God or Christ, 'tis meant that Man is comforted, instructed, or fomething of that Nature, by God or Christ. And furely a Man may be instructed, comforted, or the like, by God or Christ, altho' there be no such thing as what the Quakers call the Universal Light within.

There

There are, I confefs, some other Texts, which speak of Man's being enlightned after a different manner. Thus Elihu saies, Lo, all these things worketh God oftentimes with Man, to bring back his foul from the pit, to be enlightened with the Light of the Living, Job 33.29,30. in which passage to be enlightened with the Light of the Living, plainly fignifies to enjoy life. The Eyes of Jonathan also were enlightned, that is, he was refreshed, after he had eaten a little honey, I Sam. 14. 27. But I am perfuaded, our Adversaries will never pretend to prove what they mean by the Universal Light within, from these and the like passages, wherein the light enlightning Man is not God or Chrift; and therefore I shall not enlarge upon them.

2. Those Texts wherein Man is faid to have light, or to have light in him, do not afford us any proof of it. For instance, our Savior saies, Matth. 6. 22, 23. the light of the body is the eye. If therefore thine eye be fingle, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness? In these Words our Lord calls the bodily eye the light that is in Man. Our Savior saies alfo, If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not; because he seeth the light of this World. But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth; because there is no light in him, John 11.9, 10. that is, he stumbleth, because he has not the light of the Sun to shew him the way. That light therefore which he hath not in him, and confequently that light which he that walks in the day hath in him, is the light of the Sun which is that of this World. The Wifeman also saies, the spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, Searching all the inward parts of the belly, Prov. 20.27. The Rational

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Rational Soul therefore is compared to a lighted Candle in the midst of a Man's body, and confequently is a light in Man. But it appears from what has been faid in the foregoing Chapter, that none of these, viz. neither the bodily Eye, nor the Sun, nor the Rational Soul, is what our Adverfaries mean by the Universal Light with

in.

And as for those other Texts, in which 'tis said that Man hath light, or light in him, they do only import his being enlightned, or enjoying light. For that to have light, does in Scripture-phrafe fometimes fignity to be enlightened or to enjoy light, appears from If. 50.10. that walketh in darkness, and hath no light; in which words to have no light, is the fame thing as to walk in darkness; and consequently to have light, is not to be in the dark, but enlightned, or to enjoy light. It appears alfo from the Words of our Savior already mention'd, If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this World. But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because there is no light in him, John 11.9, 10. For 'tis evident, that a man's having light in him, is his feeing the light, that is, his being enlightned therewith, or enjoying it. And accordingly, when Ifaiah faies, ch.8. v. 20. To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this Word, it is because there is no light in them; he means, they are not enlightned, or do not enjoy light. Now, if those Texts, where. in Man is faid to be enlightned, do afford us no proof of what the Quakers mean by the Universal Light within; then neither do those Texts, wherein Man is faid to have light, or to have light in him, prove the fame,

3. When

3. When Man is said to be light, that phrafe also imports his being enlightned. Thus, Eph. 5.8. for ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord, that is, ye were sometimes in darkness, but now are light in (or rather by) the Lord. And if Man's being faid to be enlightned by God is, as I have shewn, no proof of the Quakers pretended Universal Light within; then neither is his being light in, or by, the Lord, a proof thereof.

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Thirdly, Those Texts wherein God, Chrift, or the Spirit, is said to be in Man, do afford us no proof of it. For those phrafes do import no more than the favorable Prefence of God, Christ or the Spirit, to protect, assist, and bless Men. And this may certainly be done, altho' there be no such thing as what the Quakers mean by their Universal Light within. Nay, tho those phrases did import more than the favorable Prefence of God, Christ or the Spirit, to protect, assist, and bless Men; yet they will never prove what our Adversaries call the Universal Light within. For whatsoever be meant thereby, God, Christ, or the Spirit may be in Man, altho' there be no Universal Light within. Nor can any person argue thus, God, Chrift, or the Spirit is in Man; and therefore there is a certain principle or substance, in which God, as Father, Son, and Spirit dwells...

From what has been said it appears, that those words in particular of the Apostle, which is Chrift in you, the hope of glory, Col. 1. 27. do by no means prove the pretended Universal Light within. Tho' indeed the Original ought to be tranflated thus, which is Christ (c) ὑμῖν) among you, the hope of glory; for so the word usually fignifies, when

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when it governs a word betokening Multitude, as ὑμῶν does; and accordingly 'tis translated in the very next words going before, To whom God would make known, what is the riches of the glory of this mystery (cὦ ἔθνεσιν) among the Gentiles, which (mystery) is Christ among you, the hope of glory.

Fourthly, As for all those other Texts, which our Adversaries alledge to prove their pretended Universal Light within, I shall shew that they make nothing for it, by a particular Examina tion of them in the following Chapter.

CHAP. XII.

Diverse Texts explained.

1. They alledge Gen.

6.3. And the Lord said, My Spirit shall not alwaies strive with man. But will it follow from thence, that there is a certain substance or principle, in which God, as Father, Son, and Spirit dwells? or is not the Spirit able to strive with Man, unless there be an imaginary Universal Light within to assist him?

2. They alledge Eph.5.13. For all things that are reproved, are manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest, is light. I shall not inquire, whether these words are rightly tranflated; because, altho' we allow the present Translation of them to be never so exact, they cannot favor the Doctrine of our Adversaries. For I have already shewn, that Doctrine, particularly that of the Gospel, is called Light, This then being premised, let