wherein all the reason and philosophy of atheism is confuted, and

Chap. IV. Champions for Paganifm aJJ'ert Monarchy. 265S'fo?, the God over all; o 5ei; xynyPio;, «uroJ/SDr,-, aJro^u^f, aC^vTro—xJo^, thsingenerate or unmade, felf-originated and felf-fuhfifiing Deity ; Mwac, a Monad;To Vu >^' K'JTO «5^a^2v, CTw/Vy ««.'/ Goodnefs itfelf ; To 'friy.eivx TJi? ^Qm;, and to'vTTi^xtJiov, that which is above e£ence cr fuper-fjfenlial ; To 'nrUtna vs, thatwhich is above mind and underjfaKjing ; Summum ilh'.d iS Sternum, ncque fnut'abileneqiie interiltirum, that Supreme and Eternal Being, tvhich is ir,i;nutai}leend can never perijh ; 'A^yjfi, '>«Jt;a^, >c) fj.'ico\i airavTOu, the Beginning, andEnd, and Aliddle of all things ; "Ek xJ Trxvrx, One and all things ; Deus Unas(^ Omnes, One God and All Gods : and laftly, to name no more, v' u^ijoix^or Providence, as diftinguifhed from ^'^0,*^, Nature, is often ufed by themalfo as a name for the fupreme God, which becaufe it is of the femininegender, the impious and atheiilical Epicureans therefore took occafion tocall God, ridiculoufly and jeeririgly, Antim fatidicam Prencean '. Now allthefe, and other fjch like expreffions, being found in the writings of profefiedPagans (as we are able to fhew) and fome of them very frequently, U:cannot be denied, but that the Pagans did put a manifeft difference betwixtthe fupreme God, and all other inferior gods.XV. What hath been now declared, might, as we conceive, be judgedfufficient, in order to our prefent undertaking; which is to prove, that themore intelligent of the ancient Pagans, notwithflanding that multiplicity ofgods vvorfhipped by them, did generally acknowledge one fupreme, omnipotent,and only unmade Deity. Neverthelefs, fince men are commonly fomuch prepoffl-fied v/ith a contrary perfuafion, fthe rcafon whereof feems tobe no other than this, that becaufe the notion of the word God, which is nowgenerally received amongft us Chriftians, is fuch as does cflentially includefelf-exiftence in it, they are therefore apt to conceit, that it muft needs dofo likewife amongft the Pagans; ) we fliall endeavour to produce yet ;bmefurther evidence for the truth of our affertion. And firfl:, we conceive thisto be no fmall confirmation thereof, becaufe after the publication of Chriftianity,and all along during that tugging and conteft, which was betwixtit and Paganifm, none of the profefled champions for paganifm and antagoniftsof Chriftianity, (when occafion was now offered them) did ever affertany fuch thing as a multiplicity of underflanding deities unmade (orcreators) but on the contrary, they all generally difclaimed it, profefTingto acknowledge orte fupreme felf-exifbent Deity, the maker of the wholeuniverfe.It is a thing highly probable, if not unqueftionable, tliat Apollonius Tyanaus,fhortly after the publication of the gofpel to the world, was a perfon madi;choice of by the policy, and affifted by the powers of the kingdom of darknefs,for the doing of fome things extraordinary, merely cut of defign toderogate from the miracles of our Saviour Chrift, and to enable paganifmthe better to bear up againfb the affaults of Chriftianity. For amongft themany writers of this philofopher's life, fome, and particularly Philojlratus.,feem to have had no other aim in this their whole undertaking, than only todrefs up Apollonius in fuch a garb and manner, as might make him beft:fcem to be a fit corrival with our Saviour Chrift, both in refpedl of fandityM m 2and'Vide Ciceron. de Natur. Deor. Lib. I. Cap. VIII. p. 2890. Tom. IX. Oper.