and piety, demand. The learned prelate who preached his funeral fermon, and one who feldom wanted words when he meant to deforibe any character, owns himfelf at a lofs in the performance of this laft duty to Mr Boyle. We may, therefore, with greater reafon excuse ourselves, as well on account of the great length of this article, as the difficulties that lie in the way of framing a character for one, whofe memory, like the paintings of a great mafter, has been meliorated by time, and is now, not the object barely of admiration, but of veneration alfo. He was a man, who, in the beginning of his life, raised fuch hopes as hurt themfelves, for thofe who confidered him most attentively, fcarce thought it possible that they should be answered, and yet, without fear of flattery, we may affirm, that these, even thefe, hopes, were exceeded. He attained the vigour of his age in thofe deplorable times, when the Church and State lay buried in confufion, which gave him fo true a notion of the vanity of titles' and the danger of power, that he not only never courted either, but was induftrious in fhunning both. He made philofophy the business of his life, from the two nobleft motives man could poffibly conceive, the defire of doing good to others, and of manifefting the goodnefs of that Divine Being who is the parent of all. Yet, full of thefe ferious and fublime intentions, he not only condefcended to behave, in all the common offices

of

of life, like other men, but even with a peculiar civility, which he fhewed especially towards foreigners, by whom he was often vifited, and who never went away from him but with full fatisfaction.

His temper was naturally hafty; but he corrected this fo early in his youth, that, except now and then in his countenance, it was never difcerned afterwards. The fweetnefs of his difpofition, and that meekness of mind which difcovered itfelf in all he did, never led him into any of those faults which ufually attend the excefs even of those amiable qualities. He could be warm when there was a proper occafion for warmth; that is, in the cause of truth, which he always vigorously defended; and we have an inftance of his zeal for the effentials of religion, of which it would be an injury done his fame not to take notice.

As great as Mr. Boyle's moderation and charity was, in refpect to all the different fects in which Chriftianity was divided, yet he was a conftant member of the church of England, and went to no feparate affemblies; but, fome time before the restoration, either out of curiofity, or, perhaps, from some more weighty motive, he went to Sir Henry Vane's house in order to hear him, who, at that time, was at the head of a fect who called themselves Seekers: neither was this visit of his attended with any disappointment, for he there heard him preach, in a large thronged VOL. VIII. G

room,

room, a long fermon on the text of Dan. xii. 2. And many of them that sleep in the duft of the earth fhall awake; fome to everlafting life, and fome to fhame and everlafling contempt.

The whole fcope of Sir Henry's fermon was to fhew, that many doctrines of religion, that had long been dead and buried in the world, fhould, before the end of it, be awakened into life; and, that many falfe doctrines, being then likewise revived, should, by the power of truth, be then doomed to fhame and everlasting contempt.

When Sir Henry had concluded his dif course, Mr. Boyle fpoke to this effect to him before the people: That, being informed, that, in fuch private meetings, it was not uncuftomary for any one of the speakers or hearers, who was unfatisfied about any matters there uttered, to give in his objections against them, and to prevent any mistakes in the fpeakers or hearers, he thought himself obliged, for the honour of God's truth, to fay, That this place in Daniel, being the clearest one in all the Old Testament, for the proof of the refurrection, we ought not to fuffer the meaning of it to evaporate into allegory; and the rather, fince that inference is made by our Saviour in the New Teftament, by way of afferting the refurrection from that place of Daniel in the Old: and, that, if it Thould be denied that the plain and genuine meaning of those words in the prophet, is to

affert

affert the refurrection of dead bodies, he was ready to prove it to be fo, both out of the words of the text and context in the original language, and from the beft expofitors, both Christian and Jewish. But that, if this be not denied, and Sir Henry's difcourfe of the refurrection of doctrines true and falfe, was defigned by him only in the way of occafional meditations from thofe words in Daniel, and not to enervate the literal fenfe as the genuine one, then he had nothing further to fay.

Mr. Boyle then fitting down, Sir Henry rofe up, and faid, that his difcourfe was only in the way of fuch occafional meditations, which he thought edifying to the people; and declared, that he agreed that the literal fenfe of the words was the refurrection of dead bodies, and fo that meeting broke up.

Mr. Boyle afterwards fpeaking of this conference to Sir Peter Pett, obferved, that Sir Henry Vane, at that time, being in the height of his authority in the ftate, and his auditors at that meeting, confifting chiefly of dependants on him, and expectants from him, the fear of lofing his favour would, probably, have restrained them from contradicting any of his interpretations of fcripture, how ridiculous foever. But I," faid Mr. Boyle, " having no little awes of that kind upon me, thought myfelf bound to enter the lifts with him, as I did, that the fense of the fcriptures might not. be depraved."

G 2

The

room, a long fermon on the text of Dan. xii. 2. And many of them that fleep in the duft of the earth shall awake; some to everlafting life, and fome to fhame and everlafling contempt.

The whole fcope of Sir Henry's fermon was to fhew, that many doctrines of religion, that had long been dead and buried in the world, fhould, before the end of it, be awakened into life; and, that many false doctrines, being then likewife revived, should, by the power of truth, be then doomed to fhame and everlasting contempt.

When Sir Henry had concluded his dif courfe, Mr. Boyle fpoke to this effect to him before the people: That, being informed, that, in fuch private meetings, it was not uncustomary for any one of the fpeakers or hearers, who was unfatisfied about any matters there uttered, to give in his objections. against them, and to prevent any mistakes in the fpeakers or hearers, he thought himself obliged, for the honour of God's truth, to fay, That this place in Daniel, being the clearest one in all the Old Testament, for the proof of the refurrection, we ought not to fuffer the meaning of it to evaporate into allegory; and the rather, fince that inference is made by our Saviour in the New Testament, by way of afferting the refurrection from that place of Daniel in the Old: and, that, if it Thould be denied that the plain and genuine meaning of those words in the prophet, is to

affert