The Wonderful Workmanship of the World, Discourse · Chapter 11 – Chapter 12
The xi. Chapter. Whether there bee one worlde onelyonly, or many.
S.
THis I vnderſtande, diſcourſe now of ſuch thinges as next are wount to bee moued concerninge the worlde.
M.
That is this, whether there bee manye worldes, or but one onelyonly?
S.
HaueHave there beene ſome of opinion that there bee many worldes?
M.
Yea truely. And in thys point they are of two opinions.
S.
Declare them.
M.
Some thinke that there bee many, and thoſe of ſundrie kindes. Others alſo, that there are manye, but all of them of one nature.
S.
What meane thoſe firſt; which think that the worlds are of ſundrie kindes?
M.
They make two ſortes of worldes, whereof the one is intelligible, Ideall, or as a patterne, which indeede ſubſiſteth, but it is reſidēt aboue this world: the other is earthly and figuratiue, which God hath created according to the repreſentation and image of that ſpirituall and ideall worlde, which ſubſiſteth alſo, and it is this worlde which wee mortall men doe inhabite.
S.
Doe ſome ſaye thus?
M.
Plainely they affirme it. And thoſe not onelyonly prophane▪ Philoſophers, as Plato, Philo Iudeus, and Plu tarch in his booke of the Moones face: but alſo graue men, and ſome among the Chriſtian writers not to bee contemned.
S.
Is their opinion true?
M.
No veryly. For the Scripture in no place maketh mention of this ideall worlde, as they call it: and they that are of that opinion, they ſpeake to childiſhly, I will not ſay reprochfully, of GOD, as if hee were an ignorant and an vnſkilfull younge woorkman, that could doe nothing vnleſſe hee hadan example or patterne laid before him, and that hee could deuiſe on nothing, nor thinke vponupon any thing in his mind, nor vnderſtand any thing without a fourme layd before his eyes. All which, how well they agree with the omnipotencie of God, and his incomprehenſible wiſedome, let them ſee, for I cannot ſee. Finally, where, and in what place at the length this ſpirituall world is, and how it ſubſiſteth, whether it bee in Gods minde, as one ſubſtaunce in another▪ Surely, it can not ſo bee. For GOD is a moſt ſimple nature, whiche receiueth and conteineth none other thing then it ſelf: but if indeede it were ſo, whether were it as an accident, and a certaine fourmyng, or a phantaſie & fiction of Gods mind? Truely it cannot bee ſo neither. For there ſalleth no ſuch accident vponupon God, who in that hee ſeeth the thinges that are preſent, hee gathereth not in his minde the fourmes and repreſentations of thinges that are obiect vntounto hym: when hee thinketh and meditateth, hee diſcourſeth not from one thing to another: when hee woorketh and maketh ſomewhat, hee doeth not conſider of it, and examine it according too ſome patterne which hee hath conceiued in his mind▪ to the ende hee would not erre.
S.
Howbeit, the Lord cōmaunded Moſes, that hee ſhould doo all thing accordong to the example and patterne which was ſhewed hym in the Mount, as in Exod. the 25. chap. and 40. verſe: and in the Epiſtle to the Hebrues the 8. chapter and 5. verſe.
M.
Firſt, if I liſt, I may make exceptiō, that in that place are handled heauēly things only & not things appertaining to natural Philoſophy. Then again, there is difference betweene God the moſt wiſe creatour, and Moſes a creature & a man, ſubiect vntounto the ſame blindneſſe & infirmitie that other men were. Wherefore, to theintent hee might well execute that which hee was commaunded to doe, ſurely hee had neede of ſuche an example, or patterne. This patterne alſo which the Lord ſhewed hym in the Mount, did not indeede ſubſiſt, nor was a ſubſtanciall thing, as I am of opinion: but it was ſutch a repreſentation and image, ſutch as were the images of many thinges to come, whiche were afterwarde by God reuealed to the Prophetes, and beefore that, vntounto Abraham and the Patriarkes.
S.
They that defend that there bee many worlds of one kinde, what doe they ſay?
M.
This for ſooth, that like as wee inhabite this world, ſo others inhabite other worldes, in whiche is alſo an other earth like vntounto ours, and other heauens, and another Sunne, and a Moone, and all other things in them as in ours. Wherefore, ſome of them ſuppoſe that there are an infinite number of worldes, ſome moe, ſome fewer. Among whom are rekoned the followers of the Philoſophers Epicurus, and Democritus.
S.
Are there in deede many worldes?
M.
Fie vponupon this infinite or multitude of worlds. Ther is one and no moe: although S. Ierome out of a certeine Epiſtle of Clements diſputeth of the ſame in his Commentaries vponupon the Epiſtle of S. Paule to the Epheſians, the 2. chapter, and 2. verſe.
S.
Tell mee why you iudge wee ſhould thinke ſo?
M.
Firſt, for aſmutch as when the holie Scripture doeth diligently reckon vp the ſpecial viſible works of God, wherein his maieſtie and omnipotencie may eaſilye bee perceiued, hee maketh mention of this one worlde only, and not of any other. Whiche if there had bine many, doubtleſſe hee would hauehave made mention of them. For that poinct had made verie mutch to the ſettyng foorth of Gods glorie, and power. Moreouer, what is their ſtate, order, condition, fall, conſtancie, Sauiour and Jeſus: what likewiſe is their life euerlaſting, and from whence commeth the ſaluation of this ſecond or third world, it is no where declared, neither in what ſort theſe other worldes were made and created: but al theſe thinges are expreſſed concernyng this one onelyonly. Wherefore, it muſt needes bee, either that thoſe worldes were made by ſome other God, or that they came of themſelues, both whiche opinions are plainly blaſphemous. Or if they bee created by the ſame God by whiche this was whiche wee dwell in, why doeth the Scripture ſpeake nothing of it? Surely there can bee no probable reaſon alleaged of ſo enuious and daungerous ſilence. And therefore it came to paſſe, that the auncient fathers in fore time did verie well thinke and gather that there is but one God, bicauſe there is but one worlde, and cōtrariwiſe that there is but one worlde, bicauſe there is but one God. Moreouer, all this framing of manye and ſundrie worldes, how fooliſh and childiſhe is it? For why ſhould God make many worldes, ſince hee might cō prehend althing more commodiouſlie in one, and the ſame beeyng of ſo greate receite, whiche hee ment to comprehende in thoſe diuerſe and ſundrye worldes? But, as it is commonly and truely ſayd, God and Nature make nothyng in vaine, and that is vainlye and raſhlye doone by moe things which may bee doone by fewer. For admit that GOD had created moe in number, thoſe worldes ſhoulde differ in number onelyonly, and not in kinde or likeneſſe. What neede hee then to create one maner of thing ſo often? To conclude, whē the ſelfe ſame Scripture oftentymes addeth the Greek article foreign, when it ſpeaketh of the world, the auctoritie of S. Iohn in the 1. chap. and 10. verſe witneſſeth, that there are not many, but one onelyonly, and that a certeine one. For the article whiche is ioyned vntounto it, doeth ſignifie a certeine and ſure thing. But if wee graunte that there bee manie worldes, euen by the very ſame reaſon wee muſt confeſſe, that they are in number infinite. I let paſſe thoſe abſurdities whiche notwithſtanding doe neceſſarily followe, to wit, that neuer almoſt wee ſhould hauehave any Eclipſes of the Sunne or Moone. Yea, wee ſhould neuer hauehave night, ſince one Sunne or another of one of the other worlds, ſhould either riſe vntounto vsus when ours goeth downe, or elſe ſhould ſhine in the middes of Heauen, when ours is ſhadowed, and in the Eclipſe.
S.
But why did not God make manye worldes?
M.
Truely, not by reaſon of any impotencie, or lacke of power: ſince that hee is omnipotente. Not that hys ſenſes were exhauſted in the framinge of ſo huge a mole, or his ſtrength weried: for hee made althinge with his woord onelyonly, as it appeareth in the 33. Pſalme. Not alſo that it happened ſo for wante of matter, as the Peripatetikes ſuppoſe, for that all the matter that was prepared was ſpent in makinge of the bodie of ſo great a frame. For hee that coulde firſte make thys ſo great a worlde of nothing, coulde, if hee had luſted, hauehave prepared matter for him ſelfe to make infinite other worlds of. But this is onelyonly the cauſe that ther were not many worldes made, bycauſe God woulde not: for hee made whatſoeuer hee woulde, Pſalme 115. and 3. verſe. But why hee would not, it may bee, the cauſe is not knowne to vsus, notwithſtandinge it cannot bee an vniuſt cauſe: hee himſelfe ſawe that thys worlde was an argument great ynough vntounto vsus, to ſet foorth the cōmendation and renoume of his wonderfull mercye and iuſtice, who knoweth all thynge: and therefore hee created this one onelyonly.
The xii. Chapter. VVhether this worlde bee finite.
S.
BUT is this worlde finite, as ſome doe diſpute?
M.
It is not onelyonly one, but it is alſo finite, and hath boundes.
S.
Howe prooue you that?
M.
Bycauſe that is finite, whoſe extreame partes may plainely and perfectly bee ſhewed, but the Scripture hath appointed heauen and earth to bee the extreame partes and endes of this worlde, whereof Heauen is the fartheſt, and the earth the neareſt, as it appeareth in the 20 chap. of Exo. & 11. verſe: and Geneſis the 2. chapter and 2. verſe, and alſo in other places. Wherfore, truely it cannot bee doubted, but that it is finite. Moreouer, what difference ſhoulde there bee noted to bee beetweene the Creator and the Creature, if, as hee is infinite, and without meaſure, the creature alſo ſhoulde bee infinite, diffuſe, and without meaſure. Finally, there ſhoulde bee two infinites appoynted, which by no meanes can bee indeede, or bee defended.