The Ax Evil for VIII. The leaft Evil, you'll fay, ought not to iom about be admitted for the fake of the greatest Good. (For not doing to affirm that God does Evil that Good may come the fake of of it is Blafphemy.) Neither does the Diftinction Good, between Moral and Natural Evil help any thing todoes not ward the Solution of this Difficulty: For what we take place where the call Moral Evil, as fhall be fhewn below, is that leaft Evil which is forbidden; now nothing is forbidden by is chofen. NOTES. God But, zdly, Either this Diminution of the Pleasure would be a more fenfible los to us than Pain is now, or otherwife. If it were more uneafy to us than Pain, the exchange, as before, would be for the worse. If it were not, it would not be sufficient for we plainly fee that in many cafes the greatest pains and clearest prospect of them are not fufficient to divert us from what may be hurtful, when it comes in competition with a Pleasure. We have therefore no Reafon to complain of God, who has given us warning by Pain of what might destroy us, fince a lefs effectual means could not have fecured us. In short, this is God's way: and for us to think we could have found a better, is pride and impudence; and there needs no more to give us a fenfible proof of it, than to confider the folly of the expedient propofed by the Objector. But then it is urged that here is a farther Degree of our Mifery, and an argument that an ill Principle had a hand in framing us, that we cannot avoid one Evil but by the fear of a worse, and that we do not endure the pains and fears that accompany Life but on account of the greater fear we have of Death; and the imprinting in us fo great a Love of Life which has fo little Good in it, and in truth much less than it has Evil, must be the Work of a malignant and mischievous Author. But I answer, I have fhewed * that it is the Good we feel in Life that makes us love it and afraid to lose it, and we only apprehend the lofs of Life, and flee it, because we fear the lofing fo good a thing. The love of Life is no otherwife imprinted in us but by the fenfe we have of its Goodnefs, and then the Quarrel against God is, that he has given us fo good a thing that we are unwilling to part with it, and chufe to endure fuch pains as tend to preferve it, and without which we could not long enjoy it. It is a most wicked thought, to ima gine See the Note Z. God but generally, at leaft, on account of the Inconveniencies attending the forbidden Actions: These Inconveniencies are Natural Evils; therefore Moral Evils are prohibited on account of the Natural ones, and for that reafon only are Evils, because they lead to Natural Evils. But that which makes any thing to be fuch, is itself much more fuch: therefore the Natural, you'll fay, are greater Evils than the Moral, and cannot with lets Blafphemy be attributed to God. gine that God is like a Tyrant that delights to torture and toriment his Creatures. The contrary is plain by his fubjecting them to Pain, in no cafes but where that fene is neceffary to preferve a Good to them that counterbalances it. But then, in the 4th Place, the Objection urges, that these Pains are in many cafés fruitlefs, and no way tend to help us. 'Tis alledg'd that the Gout and Gravel, and many acute Pains, are of no use, nor do they any ways contribute to prolong our Lives, I reply, The Gout, Gravel, &c. are distempers of the Body, in which the Humours or folid Parts are out of order: The Question then is, whether it would be better for us to be infenfible of this Disorder, or feel it. Let us fuppofe then a Man in a Fever (i. e. that his Blood and Humours fhould be in fuch a Ferment as is obfervable in that Distemper) and that he should feel no Pain or Uneafinefs by it; the confequence would be that he would die before he were aware. He would not avoid those things that increase it, or take thofe Remedies that allay it: He would not know how near he were to Death, or when he was to avoid the Air or Motion, either of which would deftroy him. There are Difeafes that take away our Senfes and become mortal, without giving us warning: None are more terrible than these, and noft would chufe to die of the most painful Distemper rather than be thus furprifed: We may judge then how it would be with us if all Distempers were of the like Nature. I doubt whether we could furvive one fit of the Gout, Gravel, or Fever, if the Pain we feel in them did not warn us and oblige us to give ourselves that Quiet, Eafe, and Abftinence that are neceffary to our Recovery. Thus foolishly they reafon that go about to mend the work of God. Natural Evils for the fake of any Good; but chofe the leaft out of feveral Evils, i. e. would rather have Creatures liable to Natural Evils, than no Creatures at all. The fame will be fhewn hereafter concerning Moral Evils. The parts of the Bo it ftands in need A SECT. V. Of Hunger, Thirst, and Labour, Terreftrial Animal muft, as we have faid, neceffarily confift of mix'd and heterogedy fly off: neous Parts; its Fluids alfo are in a perpetual Flux and Ferment. Now 'tis plain that this cannot be therefore without the Expence of thofe Fluids, and Attrition of Repara- of the Solids, and hence follows Death and Dissotion, viz. lution, except those be repair'd: a new Acceffion by Food. of Matter is therefore neceffary to fupply what flies off and is worn away, and much more fo for the Growth of Animals. Choice II. But Animals have particular Conftitutions, and must be cannot be nourished by any fort of Matter: fome had in Choice therefore must be made of it, to which they Food, fince all are to be urged by an Importunity ftrong enough things are to excite their Endeavours after it. not equal- and Thirst come to affect the Soul; ly proper. are fometimes indeed troublefome, Hence Hunger Affections that but yet neceffary, and which bring more Pleasure than Pain along with them. The Mate III, But why, fay you, are we oblig'd to labour rials of in queft of Food? why are not the Elements themFood are felves fufficient? I answer, they are fufficient for fome Animals but Mankind required fuch a Difpofition of Matter as was to be prepared by vanot there rious Coctions and Changes, and that daily, be foon cor rupted: they can fore be caufe without God caufe 'tis foon liable to Corruption, and if kept procured long would be unfit for Nourishment. Hence La- Labour. bour becomes neceffary to provide Victuals in this present state of things: neither could Hunger, or Thirit, or Labour,* (which are reckon❜d among Natural Evils) be prevented without greater In- Every Aconveniencies. The Divine Goodness therefore had nimal is the highest Reason for affixing thefe to Animals. placed by IV. Now as Animals require different forts of where it Food, as was fhewn, according to their different may have Conftitutions, fo God has placed every one of them its proper where it may find what is proper for it on which ment; account there is fcarce any thing in the Elements hence albut what may be Food for fome. Every Herb has most every its Infect which it fupports. The Earth, the Water, the very Stones, ferve for Aliment to living Creatures. + Nourish herbmain tains its proper Infect. V. But fome ftand in need of more delicate Some AniFood: Now God could have created an inanimate mals are for Food to others, and ed on any other Machine, which might have fupplied them with produced fuch Food; but one that is animated does is much eafier and better. A Being that has Life is (cæteris would not paribus) preferable to one that has not: God there- have exiftfore animated that Machine which furnishes out provifion for the more perfect Animals; which was terms, both graciously and providently done: for by this means he gain'd fo much Life to the World as there is in those Animals which are Food for others; for by this means they themselves enjoy fome kind of Life, and are of fervice alfo to the reft. An Ox, for inftance, or a Calf, is bred, nourished, and protected for fome time in order to become fit Food for Man. This certainly is better and more eligible, than if the Matter of its Body had been converted into an inanimate Mass, such as a PomN 4 piona *See Note 33 . Pompion, or continued in the state of unform'd Clay. Nor is it hardly dealt withal, by being made for the Food of a more noble Animal, fince it was on this Condition only that it had Life given, which it could not otherwife have enjoyed, Matter which is fit for the Nourishment of Man, is alfo capable of Life; if therefore God had denied it Life, he had omitted a Degree of Good which might have been produced without any Impediment to his principal Defign, which does not feem very agreeable to infinite Goodnefs. 'Tis better therefore that it fhould be endow'd with Life for a time, tho' 'tis to be devoured afterwards, than to continue totally ftupid and unactive. The common Objection then is of no force, viz. That inanimate Matter might have been prepared for this Ufe; for 'tis better that it fhould be animated; efpecially as fuch Animals are ignorant of Futurity, and are neither confcious nor folicitous about their being made for this Purpose. So that fo long as they live, they enjoy themselves without anxiety; at least they rejoyce in the present Good, and are neither tormented with the Remembrance of what is paft, nor the Fear of what is to come; and lastly, are killed with lefs Pain than they would be by a Diftemper or old Age. Let us not be furpris'd then at the Univerfal War as it were among Animals, or that the Stronger devour the Weaker; for these are made on purpose to afford Aliment to the others. (30.) VI. As NOTES. (30.) What is here laid down will upon Examination be found to be perfectly confiftent with our Obfervation in Note 23. As |