operation of man's understanding; this is also that part of the mind, which Aristotle, and all his followers, meant by their Intellectus agens, this is that candle of the Lord, or light within them, which the unfound teachers of old, and those more innocent ones of late*, would have to be a fufficient guide to everlasting life: But if it be fo, it will be good hearkning to it, while it doth remain in its strength; for this Sun alfo, as years come on, doth certainly decline, and great must that declenfion be. For if the light of the body, which is the eye, be darknefs, great must that darkness be, Luke xi. 34much more furely if the light of the foul, which is the Sun, be darkned, how exceeding great muft that darkness needs be! Indeed, there must be a defect in the whole understanding, when this primum mobile can scarce act any longer; and therefore it is, that the apoftle fpeaks concerning the spiritual understanding, alluding therein unto the natural; Having their understanding darkned, through the ignorance that is in them, becaufe of the blindness of their heart, Eph. iv. 18. When there is ignorance to receive, and blindnefs to guide, in this principal faculty, all thofe which are thereby acted, muft certainly be weakned, as the next word doth clearly import.

The LIGHT.

By the Light therefore, I understand all thofe more inferior powers of the rational part of the C 4

Pelagius.

foul

foul of man, that are any way set on work by vertue of the principal Agent; which is an ef flux from the before mentioned fun; the poffible understanding alfo, in all its operations participates in like manner of this ftate of weaknefs. Now the operations of mans understanding are various, both ad extra, in respect of the objects; and ad intra, in respect of the will

The first, are fpeculative, the last, are practical. The first (whereby the understanding is converfant about things as they have in their own nature a diftinct being) are principally three, The first is perception, or the fimple apprehenfion of an object, from the immediate impreffion thereof by the miniftry of the before-mentioned fun. The fecond is compofition, or complexion, whereby we try, and weigh the particulars that we have before received, and compound, and divide, join, and separate one thing from another, as may be most convenient for the improvement of them, to their appointed ends. The third is, reafon, or difcourfe, whereby we gather up to ourfelves fomewhat farther than we understood before, and make our felves masters of a new and better knowledge, which the things themselves received, as in themselves, could not administer.

The laft (whereby the understanding is conyerfant about things as they are good or evil) may also be reduced to three. The first is confcience, which is a reflection of the understand

ing upon a man's actions, together with a fentencing them to be good or evil, according to thofe unquestionable principles which are already received. This is the fearch which the candle of the Lord makes in the lower part of the belly, Prov. xx. 27. The second is direc tion, or judgment, whereby the understanding doth propose an end to be desired and prosecuted, the execution of which, that is, the refting satisfied in, and defiring of that end, is that which moralifts afcribe to the will, and term βέλησις. The third is confultation, or βέλευσις, the reasoning about the means to attain that end, together with an inquifition and collation of feveral means among themselves, and an election of those which are moft proper, the embracing of which, and putting them in execution, is that which they call goalgsons.

Now thefe, and all the operations of the rational foul, however they may be diftinguished, have in this ftate an answerable imbecillity. Be a man never fo apprehenfive, be he never fo ingenious, be he never fo rational, be he never fo confcientious, be he never fo judicious, be he never fo prudent; when his Sun begins to fet, and his Light to decline, he must become weak as another man, nay, weak as a child. And this the author of our defcription here, though he fo well knew it, and forefaw it, yet was not able to prevent it in himself, but found his own words fadly verified in his own condition.

tion. For it came to pass when Solomon was old that his wives turned away his heart after other Gods, 1 Kings xi. 4. he that for understanding furpaffed all men, fince God gave unto him wifdom more than to any man, before him, or fince, to this very day; and for light of conscience also, fince the Lord had appeared to him twice, v. 5. 7. yet, when he was old, he fell to fuch irrational, fottish, fenfelefs abominations, and that only by the feduction of women, as nothing but the frailty of age could poffibly have given way unto.

Now as the foul is, by reafon of age, weakned in the directing part, which usually is called, the understanding; so alfo in the executing part, which ufually is called, the will. Old men when they do apprehend an end, and the means to attain it, they hefitate about profecuting the mandates of the mind, and stand for the most part timorously and child-like at, fhall I, fhall I. I find one commentator upon the place fay, Non fruitur libero arbitrio*. There is not a ready embracing, nor a free acting towards the attainment of what is by the understanding firft dictated. Farther yet, old men are very easily drawn off, and led afide from their own intentions, every weak fuggeftion is too ftrong for them, and takes them captive at pleafure; and as our Saviour faid to Peter, though in another sense, so may it be faid to every one who shall live to the time, When thou waft young, thou

* Lorinus.

thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldeft, but when thou shalt be old, another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldeft not, Joh. xxi. 18. A man fhall not then be master of his own actions, but be very liable to the feductions of whomsoever shall befet him.

And thus by these two words, the Sun, and the Light, you perceive is meant, the whole rational foul, with all its powers and operations, as it may be found exercising itself both inwardly and outwardly.And tho' here be two words more fignificantly fet down, for the fuller and clearer manifeftation of what is here intended, yet it might have been expreffed (though not fo plainly) by one word only. And therefore it is, that the Syriac tranflation, and fome followers of it, have only the Sun expreffed: Antequam Sol obtenebrefcetur: for the Sun may fignify, not only that light which is contained within its own body, but all those emanations that illuminate whatsoever is thereby enlightned. And the woman's candle in the gospel, by which she found her groat, might fignify, not only the light in the candle itself, (which answereth here to the fun,) but all the light in every part of the room alfo, (which answereth here to the light.) And thus we find the greater light, which rules the day of man, to be darkned; the leffer, which rules the night, is that which followeth.

The