et in the Body's prifon fo the lies, As through the Body's windows the must look, Her divers powers of fenfe to exercise, [book. By gathering notes out of the world's great Nor can herself difcourfe or judge of ought, But what the fenfe collects, and home doth bring; and yet the pow'rs of her difcourfing thought, From thefe collections is a diverfe thing. or though our eyes can nought but colours fee, Yet colours give them not their pow'r of fight; , though thefe fruits of fenfe her objects be, Yet the difcerns them by her proper light. The workman on his ftuff his skill doth thew, And yet the ftuff gives not the man his skill: ings their affairs do by their fervants know, But order them by their own royal will. o, though this cunning miftrefs, and this queen, Doth, as her inftruments, the fenfes ufe, o know all things that are felt, heard, or feen ; Yet the herfelf doth only judge and choose, en as a prudent emperor, that reigns at things of weight and confequence indeed, as the man whom princes do advance, Upon their gracious mercy-feat to fit, th common things of courfe and circumstance, To the reports of common men commit: it when the cause itself must be decreed, en, like God's angel, he pronounceth right, And milk and honey from his tongue doth flow: ppy are they that ftill are in his fight, To reap the wildom which his lips doth fow. ght fo the Soul, which is a lady free, them the forms of outward things fhe learns, For they return into the fantafie, hatever each of them abroad discerns, And there enroll it for the mind to fee. ut when he fits to judge the good and ill, And to difcern betwixt the falfe and true, e is not guided by the fenses skill, But doth each thing in her own mitror view. Then the the fenfes checks, which oft do err, And e'en against their falfe reports decrees; And oft fhe doth condemn what they prefer; For with a pow'r above the sense, she sees. Therefore no fenfe the precious joys conceives, Her harmonies are fweet, and full of skill, When on the Body's inftruments fhe plays; But the proportions of the wit and will, Those sweet accords are even th' angels lays. Thefe tunes of reafen are Amphion's lyre, Wherewith he did the Theban city found: Thefe are the notes wherewith the heavenly choir, The praife of him which made the heaven doth found. But why do I the Soul and Senfe divide, When Senfe is but a pow'r, which the extends; Which being in divers parts diversify'd, The divers forms of objects apprehends? This power spreads outward, but the root doth grow In the inward Soul, which only doth perceive ; For th' eyes and ears no more their objects know, Than glaffes know what faces they receive. For if we chance to fix our thoughts elsewhere, Then is the foul a nature, which contains "The pow'r of Sense, within a greater pow'r; Which doth employ and use the Senfe's pains, But fits and rules within her private bow'r. SECTION III. That the Soul is more than the Temperature of the Humours of the Body. i If he doth then the subtle sense excel, Nor can her wide embracements filled be; All things receiv'd, do such proportion take, And narrow webs on narrow frames are weav'd. hen what vaft Body must we make the mind, Wherein are men, beafts, trees, towns, feas, and lands; and yet each thing a proper place doth find, Joubtless, this could not be, but that she turns As we our meats into our nature change. From their grofs matter she abstracts the forms, This doth she, when, from things particular, And can be only lodg'd within our minds. And thus from divers accidents and acts, VOL. II. That it cannot be a Body. Again; how can fhe fev'ral Bodies know, If from all shapes and forms it be not clear? Nor could we by our eyes all colours learn, Nor can a man of paffions judge aright, If, laftly, this quick pow'r a body were, Her nimble Body yet in time must move, In point of time, which thought cannot divide: She's fent as foon to China, as to Spain; And thence returns, as soon as fhe is fent : As then the Soul a fubftance hath alone, But is a fpirit, and immaterial mind. Since Body and Soul have fuch diversities, [gan; And fix'd the earth, first form'd the foul in man. How can we fay that God the Soul doth make, For if God make her firft, he makes her ill, And yet we fee in her fuch pow're divine, ANSWER. Thus thefe good men with holy zeal were D'A By light of nature, and by light divine. None are fo grofs as to contend for this, That Souls from Bodies may traduced be; Between whofe natures no proportion is, When root and branch in nature still agree But many fubtle wits have juftify'd, That Souls from Souls fpiritually may spreg Which (if the nature of the Soul be try d) Will e'en in nature prove as grofs a thing, SECTION VIL Reafons drawn from Nature. For that is proper to th' Almighty's hand. If then the Soul another Soul do make, Because her pow'r is kept within a bercs, She must fome former ftuff, or matter take; But in the Soul there is no matter found. Then if her heav'nly form do not agree With any matter which the world costly Then the of nothing muft created be; And to create, to God alone pertains. Again, if Souls do other Souls heget, 'Tis by themfelves, or by the Body's p** If by themfelves, what doth their working But they might Souls engender ev'ry hour! If by the Body, how can wit and will Join with the Body only in this ac, Since when they do their other works fe They from the Body do themfelves abund Again, if Souls of Souls begotten were, Into each other they fhould change anim And change and motion fili corruption bear. How fhail we then the Soul immortal prot (Which God forbid our thoughts faculd yield If, laftly, Souls do generation ust, unto;) Or makes the Body her fair form to fpill, Net Adam's Body, but his Soul did fin, Ere he had fun'd, either in act, or thought: Then thould they spread incorruptible ferdWhat then becomes of that which they de When th' act of generation do not ipee!? And tho' the Soul could caft fpiritual fe hich makes them think, God doth not make He looks on Adam, as a root, or well; the mind. SECTION VIII. Reafons from Divinity. doubtlefs, makes her, and doth make her good, nd grafts her in the Body, there to spring; ch, though it be corrupted flesh and blood, in no way to the Soul corruption bring: is not God the author of her ill, hough author of her being, and being there: if we dare to judge our Maker's will, e can condemn us, and himfelf can clear. God from infinite eternity ecreed, what hath been, is, or fhall be done; was refolv'd, that ev'ry man fhould be, nd in his turn, his race of life fhould run: fo did purpofe all the Souls to make, hat ever have been made, or ever fhall; that their being they should only take a human Bodies, or not be at all. it then fit that fuch a weak event Weakness itfeif, the fin and fall of man) confel's execution should prevent, creed and fix'd before the world began ? And on his heirs, as branches, and as ftreams: He fees all men, as one man, though they dwell In fundry cities, and in fundry realms. And as the root and branch are but one tree, And well and ftream do but one river make; So, if the root and well corrupted be, The ftream and branch the fame corruption take. So, when the root and fountain of mankind Did draw corruptiou, and God's curfe, by fin; This was a charge, that all his heirs did bind, And all his off-pring grew corrupt therein. And as when th' hand doth ftrike, the man offends, (For part from whole, law fevers not in this) So Adam's fin to the whole kind extends; For all their natures are but part of his. Therefore this fin of kind, not perfonal, But real, and hereditary was; The guilt thereof, and punishment to all, By courfe of nature, and of law doth pafs. For as that eafy law was giv'n to all, To ancestor and heir, to first and laft; So was the first tranfgreffion general: And all did pluck the fruit and all did tafle. Of this we find fome footfleps in our law, |