Selected quad for the lemma: lord_n
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A58185
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The wisdom of God manifested in the works of the creation being the substance of some common places delivered in the chappel of Trinity-College, in Cambridge / by John Ray ...
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Ray, John, 1627-1705.
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1691
(1691)
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Wing R410; ESTC R3192
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111,391
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260
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Methods their Actions their various parts and uses from p. 86. to p. 112. 120. 122. From whence the uses of things p. 112. The Study of Nature recommended p. 114. 116. 122 123. prefer'd to other Studies to 132. Of the Terraqueous Globe its Figure and use its Motion Posture Situation Constitution and Consistency p. 135. to 150. Of the Body of Man its external and internal Mechanism the Textures Situations Proportions Actions and Uses of the several parts many Anaiomical Physical and Theological Observations thereupon from p. 151. to 235. More particularly upon the Head p. 169. The Eye and Vision p. 170. to 184. The Suspensory or seventh Muscle and the Membrana Nictitans common to many Beasts yet wanting in Man p. 133 184. The Ear p. 185. to 187. The Teeth p. 187. 197. The Tongue p. 190. 192. The Windpipe p. 203. The Heart p. 204. to 209. The Hand and the Analogous parts in other Creatures p. 209. to 213. Generation and Formation explain'd from p. 217. to 223. Observations on the propagations of several Animals and Plants ibid. Many Divine Reflections and Conclusions from p. 222. to the end Psalm 104. 24. How Manifold are thy Works O Lord In Wisdom hast thou made them all IN these Words are two Clauses in the first whereof the Psalmist admires the Multitude of God's works How Manifold are thy Works O Lord In the second he celebrates his Wisdom in the creation of them In Wisdom hast thou made them all Of the first of these I shall say little only briefly run over the Works of this visible world and give some guess at the Number of them Whence it will appear that upon this account they well deserve Admiration the Number of them being uninvestigable by us and so affording us a demonstrative Proof of the unlimited extent of the Creators Skill and the foecundity of his Wisdom and Power That the Number of corporeal Creatures is unmeasurably great and known only to the Creator himself may thus probably be collected First of all The Number of fixt Stars is on all hands acknowledged to be next to infinite Secondly Every fixt Star in the now received Hypothesis is a Sun or Sunlike body and in like manner encircled with a Chorus of Planets moving about it Thirdly Each of these Planets is in all likelihood furnished with as great variety of corporeal Creatures animate and inanimate as the Earth is and all as different in Nature as they are in Place from the terrestrial and from each other Whence it will follow that these must be much more infinite than the Stars I do not mean absolutely according to the Philosophick exactness infinite but only infinite or innumerable as to us or their number prodigiously great That the fixt Stars are innumerable may thus be made out Those visible to the naked Eye are by the least account acknowledged to be above a Thousand excluding those towards the South Pole which are not visible in our Horizon Besides these there have been incomparably more detected and brought to light by the Telescope the Milky Way being found to be as was formerly conjectured nothing but great Companies or Swarms of minute Stars singly invisible but by reason of their proximity mingling and confounding their Lights and appearing like lucid Clouds And it 's likely that had we more perfect Telescopes many Thousands more might be discovered and yet after all an incredible Multitude remain by reason of their immense distance beyond all Ken by the best Telescopes that could possibly be invented or polished by the Wit and Hand of an Angel For if the World be as Des Cartes would have it indefinitely extended that is so far as no Human Intellect can fancy any bounds of it then what we see or can come to see must be the least part of what is undiscoverable by us the whole Universe extending a Thousand times farther beyond the utmost Stars we can possibly descry than those be distant from the Earth we live upon This Hypothesis of the fixt Stars being so many Suns c. seems more agreeable to the Divine Greatness and Magnificence But that which induces me much to doubt of the Magnitude of the Universe and immense Distance of the fixed Stars is the stupendious Phaenomena of Comets their sudden accension or appearance in full Magnitude the length of their Tails and swiftness of their Motion and gradual diminution of Bulk and Motion till at last they disappear Neither do I think the Universe indefinitely extended as Des Cartes upon a false ground that the formal ratio of a Body was nothing but Extension into length breadth and profundity or having partes extra partes and that Body and Space were synonimous terms assert ed For it may as well be limited this way as in the old Hypothesis which places the fixt Stars in the same spherical Superficies according to which old Hypothesis they may also be demonstrated by the same mediums to be innumerable only instead of their distance substituting their Smalness for the reason of their Invisibility But leaving the celestial Bodies I come now to the terrestrial which are either inanimate or animate The inanimate are the Elements Meteors and Fossils of all sorts at the Number of which last I cannot give any probable guess Bur if the rule which some considerate Philosophers deliver holds good viz. how much more imperfect any Genus or Order of Beings is so much more numerous are the Species contained under it as for Example Birds being a more perfect kind of Animals than Fishes there are more of these than of those and for the like reason more Birds than Quadrupeds and more Insects than of any of the rest and so more Plants than Animals Nature being more sparing in her more excellent Productions If this Rule I say holds good then should there be more Species of Fossils or generally of inanimate Bodies than of Vegetables of which there is some reason to doubt unless we will admit all sorts of formed Stones to be distinct Species Animate Bodies are divided into four great Genera or Orders Beasts Birds Fishes and Insects The Species of Beasts including also Serpents are not very numerous Of such as are certainly known and described I dare say not above 150. And yet I believe not many that are of any considerable bigness in the known Regions of the World have escaped the Cognizance of the curious I reckon all Dogs to be of one Species they mingling together in generation and the breed of such Mixtures being prolifick The number of Birds known and described may be near 500 And the number of Fishes secluding Shelfish as many but if the Shelfish be taken in more than double the number How many of each Genus remain yet undiscovered one cannot certainly nor very nearly conjecture but we may suppose the whole sum of Beasts and Birds to exceed by a third part and Fishes by one half those known The Insects if we take in
would he in all likelyhood have made had he seen these incredible small living Creatures How would he have admired the immense subtilty as he phrases it of their Parts for to use Mr. Hook's Words in his Microscopium p. 103. If these Creatures be so exceeding small what must we think of their Muscles and other Parts Certain it is that the Mechanism by which Nature performs the Muscular Motion is exceedingly small and curious and to the performance of every Muscular Motion in greater Animals at least there are not fewer distinct parts concerned than many Millions of Millions and these visible through a Microscope Let us then consider the Works of God and observe the Operations of his Hands Let us take notice of and admire his infinite Wisdom and Goodness in the Formation of them No Creature in this Sublunary World is capable of so doing beside Man and yet we are deficient herein We content our selves with the knowledge of the Tongues and a little skill in Philology or History perhaps and Antiquity and neglect that which to me seems more material I mean Natural History and the Works of the Creation I do not discommend or derogate from those other Studies I should betray mine own Ignorance and Weakness should I do so I only wish they might not altogether justle out and exclude this I wish that this might be brought in Fashion among us I wish men would be so equal and civil as not to disparage deride and vilifie those Studies which themselves skill not of or are not conversant in no Knowledge can be more pleasant than this none that doth so satisfie and feed the Soul in comparison whereto that of Words and Phrases seems to me insipid and jejune That Learning saith a wise and observant Prelate which consists only in the form and pedagogy of Arts or the critical notions upon Words and Phrases hath in it this intrinsical Imperfection that it is only so far to be esteemed as it conduceth to the knowledg of Things being in it self but a kind of Pedantry apt to infect a man with such odd Humors of Pride and Affectation and Curiosity as will render him unfit for any great Employment Words being but the Images of Matter to be wholly given up to the Study of these What is it but Pygmalions Phrenzy to fall in Love with a Picture or Image As for Oratory which is the best skill about Words that hath by some Wise men been esteemed but a voluptuary Art like to Cookery which spoils wholsome Meats and helps unwholsome by the variety of Sawces serving more to the Pleasure of Tast than the Health of the Body It may be for ought I know and as some Divines have thought part of our business and employment in Eternity to contemplate the Works of God and give him the Glory of his Wisdom Power and Goodness manifested in the Creation of them I am sure it is part of the business of a Sabbath-day and the Sabbath is a Type of that eternal Rest for the Sabbath seems to have been first instituted for a commemoration of the Works of the Creation from which God is said to have rested upon the Seventh Day Let it not suffice us to be Book-learned to read what others have written and to take upon trust more Falshood than Truth but let us our selves examine things as we have opportunity and converse with Nature as well as Books Let us endeavour to promote and increase this Knowledge and make new Discoveries not so much distrusting our own Parts or despairing of our own Abilities as to think that our Industry can add nothing to the Inventions of our Ancestors or correct any of their mistakes Let us not think that the bounds of Science are fixed like Hercules his Pillars and inscribed with a Ne plus ultra Let us not think we have done when we have learnt what they have delivered to us The Treasures of Nature are inexhaustible Here is Employment enough for the vastest Parts the most indefatigable Industries the fairest Opportunities the most prolix and undisturbed Vacancies Much might be done would we but endeavour and nothing is insuperable to pains and patience I know that a new Study at first seems very Vast Intricate and Difficult but after a little Resolution and Progress after a man becomes a little acquainted as I may so say with it his Understanding is wonderfully cleared up and enlarged the difficulties vanish and the thing grows easie and familiar And for our Encouragement in this Study observe what the Psalmist saith Psal. 111. 2. The works of the Lord are great sought out of all them that have pleasure therein Which though it be principally spoken of the Works of Providence yet may as well be verified of the Works of Creation I am sorry to see so little Account made of real Experimental Philosophy in this University and that those ingenious Sciences of the Mathematicks are so much neglected by us and therefore do earnestly exhort those that are young especially Gentlemen to set upon these Studies and take some pains in them They may possibly invent something of eminent Use and Advantage to the World and one such Discovery would abundantly compensate the Expence and Travel of one mans whole Life However it is enough to maintain and continue what is already invented neither do I see what more ingenious and manly Employment they can pursue tending more to the Satisfaction of their own Minds and the Illustration of the Glory of God For he is wonderful in all his Works But I would not have any man cross his natural Genius or Inclinations or undertake such methods of Study as his Parts are not fitted to or not serve those Ends to which his Friends upon mature Deliberation have designed him but those who do abound with leisure or who have a natural Propension and Genius inclining them thereto or those who by reason of the Strength and Greatness of their Parts are able to compass and comprehend the whole Latitude of Learning Neither yet need those who are designed to Divinity it self fear to look into these Studies or think they will engross their whole time and that no considerable Progress can be made therein unless men lay aside and neglect their ordinary Callings and necessary Employments No such matter Our Life is long enough and we might find time enough did we husband it well Vitam non accepimus brevem sed fecimus nec inopes ejus sed prodigi sumus as Seneca saith And did but young men fill up that time with these Studies which lies upon their hands which they are incumbred with and troubled how to pass away much might be done even so I do not see but the Study of true Physiology may be justly accounted a proper 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Preparative to Divinity But to leave that It is a generally received Opinion that all this visible world was created for Man that Man is the end of