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

they292 Empedocles his Ma?ty Gods. Book I.friend fhip. Neverthelefs, lirsce, according to Empedocles^ contention andfriendQiip did chemfelves depend alio upon one fupreme Deity, which hewith Parmenides and Xenophanes called To £v, or the very One ; the writerDe Mundo might well conclude, that, according to Empedocles, all thingswhatfofcver, and not only men, but Gods, were derived from one fupremeDeity. And that this was indeed Empedocles his fenfe, appears plainly from^ , ^ , jirijhtle in his Metaphyficks^ Ti6*io-i //.£» yi^ ['E/ATrfJoxAr;] a.f/Ji,\i nm r~( (pUf^j[P ip^.Tom. TO viiy.'^, iO^iK iJ' *u tiiv -^xlou t^ t»t8 ysuav f^ cJts t? 'Ei-ef. "A'lrtx.vlxyd^ tKTdTiiIV. Oper.J x' aAAa £rt ttAh'v o ©-cf AsJ/fi J'iV,'E^ m 7rx)){l' ajxr h, oix r icfj', oVa t' fWi CTrioTi', &C.Empedocles Wi^/^w contention to he a certain principle of corruption and generation: neverthelefs, he feems to generate this contention it felf alfo from the veryOne, (that is, from the fupreme Deity.) For all things, according to him, arefrom this contention, God only excepted ; he writing after this manner, fromwhich (that is, contention and friendfhipj all the things that have been, are,and fljall be (plants, beads, men and gods) derived their original. ForEmpedocles it leems fuppofed, that were it not for vfiV.®^, difcordor contention,all things would be one : fo that, according to him, all things whatioeverproceeded from contention or difcord, togetiier with a mixture of friendfhip,fave only the fupreme God, who hath therefore no contention at all in him,becaufe he is elfcntially t'> eu, unity itfelf and friendfhip. From whenceAriflotle takes occafion to quarrel with Empedocles, as it it would follow fromhis principles,that the fupreme and moft happy God was the lead wife of all,as being not able to know any thing befides himfclf, or in the world withoutyet. L i.-c-A- h'rn ; J'lo >^ (rxjfx^xnu au'rw, tov ivSxi>j.oviro^o\i Sjm rir/ov (p^oufJ.Q\i tiiaj twi/ aAAwv, «[p.2(;5 Torn. yxB yvoifi^n ra {"cip^fTa ttx^Ix to yx^ iiity.'^ ax £p(,£i' 1 of J'VUiri; tk OjUoik Tt c^ue;ai,iV. Upcr]This therefore happens /o Empedocles, that, according to his principles, themofi happy God is the leajl wife of all other things, for he carmot knoiv theelements, becaufe he hath no contention in him ; all knowledge being by that, whichis like : himfelf writing thus ; We know earth by earth, water by water, air byair, and fire by fire ; friendfhip by friendfloip, and contention by contention. Butto let this pafs Empedocles here making the gods themfclves to be derived-,from contention and friendfhip, the fupreme Deity, or moft happy God, onlyexcepted, (who hath no contention in him, and from whom contention andfriendfhip themfelves were derived) plainly acknowledged both one unmadeDeity, the original of all things under the name of to iv, the very One,and many other inferiour gods, generated or produced by him •,beingjuniors to contention, ordilcord, as this was alio junior to unity, the firft andfupreme Deity. Which gods of £w//)c^(?f/fj, that were begotten from contention(as well as men and other things) were doubtlels the ftars anddjemons.Moreover,