And, as old ZENO motion did difpute,
And by his walking did himself confute;
So he, altho' he ev'ry where descries
Things made, a Maker foolishly denies.

The accufation read, the tryal's done, His guilt's as plain as is the noon-day fun. There's not one man in court but's heard to cry, The treafon's clear; fo, let the traytor die!

To fentence then we juftly may proceed,
And make the obftinate rebellious bleed.
In lakes of brimftone must our Atheist dwell,
Plung'd to the bottom of the hottest hell,

Where no day enters, where no

no fun

appears,

And the fad place with its bright presence chears;

There he to all eternity must lie

In pangs of death, but yet must never die;

Doom'd by that power,whom he too late will know, To never-ceafing pains, and everlasting woe.

Nor

Nor will their guilt or punishment be less,
Who fcepticks in the case themselves profess,
Who think the case some scruples may admit,
And fo fufpend their faith and thoughts of it.
We have no medium left for doubting fools,
No caftles in the air for faithlefs fouls.
Wing'd with belief of a Divinity,

Our happy fouls shall to his mansion fly:
But disbelief, and fcepticism we know,
Will foul and body into ruin throw.

Befides, in doubtful cafes we deride That man who will not chufe the fureft fide; Prudence commands us with a cautious care, Against the worst may happen to prepare; And names those men alone discreet and wife, Who chuse their road where certain fafety lies.

For once then, let the cafe as doubtful go, Whether there be a Deity or no,

Till

Till after death the point must needs remain
Unfolv'd, and death alone can make it plain.

A wife man therefore would believe it here,
That after death he may no danger fear.
Our faith is purchas'd at no mighty coft,
And we shall sleep fecurely if 'tis lost.
But if the fad event fhall prove a God,

Then will the disbeliever feel his rod.

Why then will men their wisdom thus betray,

And by their folly caft themselves

away? In things of leffer moment and concern, They can with eafe the safest way difcern; But when th' immortal foul is made the ftake, With what contentedness the fools mistake!

If we on roads of war and danger go, And are not fure but we may meet our foe,

Wifely we arm against the worst event,

Left made his flaves we should too late repent; This differs from our cafe in terms and name, But in reality is juft the fame.

Belief of God our fouls fecurely arms,

And makes them proof against all future harms.`
But if unarm'd we venture to appear,

And find a God, 'twill coft us very dear.
Darkness and horror, pain and misery,
Will be our doom to all eternity.

Belief like weapons we about us bear,

To guard our felves from danger and from fear.
Thus arm'd, we hope to find a God at last,
After a life in peace and quiet paft,

If we fucceed, as there's no doubt we shall,
We fave our ruin and eternal fall;

If not, the worst event that we can have,
Is to lie fenfless in the filent grave.

For

For the third fort, who by their lives dethrone
That God, whom they for fashion's fake will own;
Thefe do more mischief in the world than those
Who do with open force a God oppose.
'Tis much the better, and the wiser way
To difallow a God, than disobey,

Better to own no Lord, than this our Lord betray.
Some men, with fatal prejudices blind,
Seek for a Deity they cannot find;

And this is fome, tho' but a bad excuse,
And no way fit for men of fenfe to use.
But they, who in their finful courses live,
And yet protest they do a God believe,
Speak contradictions, and must either think
That God will at their fin and lewdness wink;
(Which plainly fhews their thoughts are much
amifs,

And that they might as well affirm no God there

is)

Or