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

3 14 Egyptians, /^Jferters of Incorporeal Stihjlance. Book I.the virtuous and pious fouls Iliould after this life enjoy a ftate of happinefsin celeflial or fpiritual bodies. And the Egyptian dodlrine is reprefentedafter the fame manner by Porphyrius in Stobxus ', as alfo in the Hermetick orTrifmegiftick writings. MoTcover,Cbalcidius reports, that Hermes Tnfmegifi,when he was about to die, made an oration to i.'iis purpofe; Tbat be had herelived in this earthly body but an exile andftranger, and was now returninghome to his own country ; fo that his death ought not to be lamented^ this life beingrather to be accounted death. Which perfuafion the Indian Brachmansalfo were embued withal, whether they received it from the Egyptians (asthey did fome other things) or no; tov ^ue^ evS-^'Js (3i'ov, wV oi-j ci.xy.^v y.-~.oy.i\'uvtZiai, Tov Je ^-dvi/lov ykiTui c'l; rov ovin^q Eiw, "That this life here is but the life ofembryo's., and that death [/o good men'] is a generation or birth into true life,Straho I. 15. And this may the better be believed to have been the Egyptian dotftrine, be-P- 7'S- caufe Diodorus himfeif hath Ibme pafTages founding that way ; as that theEgyptians lamented not the death of good men, but applauded their happinefs,viq rov aiwva ^ixr^iScrj m-AAovtsj xxi' olSv jxirix, tu'j ejVfScov, as being to live ever inDomkilia Vi- the Other world with the pious. However, it being certain from this Egyptianventtum ^'- doftrine of pre-exiftence and tranfmigration, that the Egyptians did aflcrcts/tant^Diod.^^^ foul's incorporeity, it cannot reafonably be doubted, but that they acknowledgedalfo an incorporeal Deity. The objecflion againft which, fromwhat Porphyrius writeth concerning Charemon, will be anfwered afterwards.We come in the laft place to the theology of the Egyptians. Now it iscertain, that the Egyptians befides their vulgarand fibulous theology (which isfor the mod part that which Diodorus Sicules'- defcribes) had another a7io^'p'»'](,rS-foAoj/ia, arcane and recondite theology, that was concealed from the vulgar,and communicated only to the kings, and fuch priefts and others, as werethought capable thereof; thefe two theologies of theirs differing, as AriflotW^Exotericks and Acroamaticks. Thus much is plainly declared by Origen,whofe very name wasEgyptian, it being interpreted Horo-genitus, (which HornsL. \. p. 11. was an Egyptian God) upon occafion ofCelfus his boafting, that he thoroughlyunderftood all that belonged to Chriftianity : Celfus (faith he) fcemcth hereto me to do jufi as if a man travelling into Egypt, where the wife men of theEgyptians^ according to their country. leartiing, philofophize much about thofethings., that are accounted by them divine., wbiljl the idiots in the mean timehearing only certain fables, which they know not the meaning of, are very muchpleafed therewith: Celfus, T fay, doth as if fiich a fojourncr in Egypt, whohad converfed only with thcfe idiots, and net been at all infiruSled by c'.ny of thepriefls in their arcane and recondite myjleries, Jhould bcajl, that he knew allthat belonged to the Egyptian theology. Where the fame 0, tgen alfo adds» thatthis was not a thing proper neither to the Egyptians only to have fuch anarcane and (rue theology, diftinft from their vulgar and fabulous one, butcommon with them to the Perfians, Syrian?, and other Rirbarian Pagans ;a 01 liTTOJ TTl^t Aly-OTr] ,'u]/ iToiPji'J T£ KCcl WlxTMU J'oUJtTOV ElVfii xai 1 7r£f rifPITUl', &C. H'^hatwe have now affirmed (faith ht) conctrning the difference betwixt the wife menend the idiots amongft the Egyptians, the fame may be faid alfo of the PcftanSyamongfi whom the religious rites are performed rationally by thofe, that• Eclog. Phyf. Lib. II. Cap YII. p. 200. ! Lib. I. p. 33.are4