The Holy State, Book 5 · Chapter 6
CHAP. 6. The Atheist.
THe word Atheist is of a very large extent: every Polytheist is in effect an Atheist, for he that multiplies a Deitie, annihilates it; and he that divides it, destroyes it.
But amongst the heathen we may observe that whosoever sought to withdraw people from their idolatry, was presently indited and arraign'd of Atheisme. If any Philosopher saw God through their Gods, this dust was cast in his eyes, for being more quick-sighted then others, that presently he was condemn'd for an Atheist; and thus Socrates the Pagan Martyr was put to death *Iustin. Martyr secund. Apolog. pro Christian. pag. 156.foreign. At this day three sorts of Atheists are extant in the world:
1 In life and conversation. Psal. 10.4. God is not in all his thoughts; not that he thinks there is no God, but thinks not there is a God, never minding or heeding him in the whole course of his life and actions.
2 In will and desire. Such could wish there were no God, or devil, as thieves would have no judge nor jaylour; Quod metuunt periisse expectunt.
3 In judgement and opinion. Of the former two sorts of Atheists, there are more in the world then are generally thought; of this latter, more are thought to be, then there are, a contemplative Atheist being very rare, such as were *August. tom. 7. lib. 3. contra Petilianum, c. 1. David cùm dicit, Stultus dixit in corde, &c. videtur Diagoram praedixisse.Diagoras, Protagoras, Lucian, and Theodorus, who though carrying God in his name was an Atheist in his opinion. Come we to see by what degrees a man may climbe up to this height of Profanenesse. And we will suppose him to be one living in wealth and prosperity, which more disposeth men to Atheisme then adversity: For affliction mindeth men of a Deity, as those which are pinched will cry, O Lord: but much outward happinesse abused occasioneth men, as wise Agur observeth, to deny God, and say, who is the Lord.
First he quarrels at the diversities of religions in the world:Maxime 1 complaining how great Clerks dissent in their judgements, which makes him scepticall in all opinions: Whereas such differences should not make men carelesse to have any, but carefull to have the best religion.
He loveth to maintain Paradoxes, 2and to shut his eyes against the beams of a known truth; not onelyonly for discourse, which might be permitted: for as no cloth can be woven except the woof and the warp be cast crosse one to another, so discourse will not be maintained without some opposition for the time. But our enclining-atheist goes further, engaging his affections in disputes, even in such matters where the supposing them wounds piety, but the positive maintaining them stabs it to the heart.
He scoffs and makes sport at sacred things. 3This by degrees abates the reverence of religion, and ulcers mens hearts with profanenesse. The Popish Proverb well understood hath a truth in it, Never dog bark'd against the Crucifix, but he ran mad.
4Hence he proceeds to take exception at Gods Word. He keeps a register of many difficult places of Scripture, not that he desires satisfaction therein, but delights to puzzle Divines therewith, and counts it a great conquest when he hath posed them. Unnecessary questions out of the Bible are his most necessary study; & he is more curious to know where Lazarus his soul was the foure dayes he lay in the grave, then carefull to provide for his own soul when he shall be dead. Thus is it just with God that they who will not feed on the plain meat of his Word, should be choked with the bones thereof. But his principall delight is to sound the alarum, and to set severall places of Scripture to fight one against another, betwixt which there is a seeming, and he would make a reall, contradiction.
5Afterwards he grows so impudent as to deny the Scripture it self. As Sampson being fastned by a web to a pin, carried away both web and pin; so if any urge our Atheist with arguments from Scripture, and tie him to the Authority of Gods Word, he denies both reason and Gods Word, to which the reason is fastened.
6Hence he proceeds to deny God himself. First in his Administration; then in his Essence. What else could be expected but that he should bite at last, who had snarl'd so long? First he denies Gods ordering of sublunarie matters; Tush doth the Lord see, or is there knowledge in the most Highest? making him a maimed Deity, without an eye of Providence or an arm of Power, and at most restraining him onelyonly to matters above the clouds. But he that dares to confine the King of heaven, will soon after endeavour to depose him, and fall at last flatly to deny him.
7He furnisheth himself with an armoury of arguments to fight against his own conscience: Some taken from
1. The impunity and outward happinesse of wicked men: as the heathen *Ovid. lib. 3. Amor. Eleg. 3.Poet, whose verses for me shall passe unenglished.
Esse Deos credamne? fidem jurata fefellit,
Et facies illi, quae fuit ante, manet.
And no wonder if an Atheist breaks his neck thereat, whereat the foot of David himself did almost *Psal. 73.2, 3.slip, when he saw the prosperity of the wicked; whom God onelyonly reprives for punishment hereafter.
2. From the afflictions of the godly, whilest indeed God onelyonly tries their faith and patience. As Absalom complain'd of his Father Davids government, that none were deputed to redresse peoples grievances; so he objects that none righteth the wrongs of Gods people, and thinks (proud dust) the world would be better steered if he were the Pilot thereof.
3. From the delaying of the day of Judgement, with those mockers 2. Peter 3. Whose objections the Apostle fully answereth. And in regard of his own particular the Atheist hath as little cause to rejoyce at the deferring of the day of Judgement, as the Thief hath reason to be glad, that the Assizes be put off, who is to be tryed, and may be executed before, at the Quarter-sessions: So death may take our Atheist off before the day of Judgement come.
With these and other arguments he struggles with his own conscience, and long in vain seeks to conquer it, even fearing that Deity he flouts at, and dreading that God whom he denies. And as that famous Athenian souldier *Iustin. lib. 2.Cynegirus catching hold of one of the enemies ships held it first with his right hand, and when that was cut off, with his left, and when both were cut off, yet still kept it with his teeth; so the conscience of our Atheist, though he bruise it, and beat it, and maim it never so much, still keeps him by the teeth, still feeding and gnawing upon him, torturing and tormenting him with thoughts of a Deity, which the other desires to suppresse.
8At last he himself is utterly overthrown by conquering his own conscience. God in justice takes from him the light which he thrust from himself, and delivers him up to a feared conscience, and a reprobate mind, whereby hell takes possession of him. The Apostle saith, Acts 17.27. That a man may feel God in his works: But now our Atheist hath a dead palsey, is past all sense, and cannot perceive God who is everywhere presented unto him. It is most strange, yet most true, which is reported, that the armes of the Duke of Rohan in France, which are fusills or lozenges, are to be seen in the wood or stones throughout all his countrey, so that break a stone in the middle, or lop a bough of a tree, and one shall behold the grain thereof (by some secret cause in Nature) *Because of these naturall forms in wood and stone, it seems that from thence the Dukes assum'd their armes.diamonded or streaked in the fashion of a lozenge: yea the very same in effect is observed in England: for the resemblances of starres, the armes of the worshipfull family of the Shugburies in Warwickshire, are found in the *Cambd. Brit. in Warwickshire.stones within their own mannour of Shugbury. But what shall we say? The armes of the God of heaven, namely Power, Wisdome, and Goodnesse, are to be seen in every creature in the world, even from worms to men, and yet our Atheist will not acknowledge them, but ascribes them either to Chance (but could a blind painter limme such curious pictures) or else to Nature, which is a mere slight of the devil to conceal God from men, by calling him after another name; for what is natura naturans but God himself?
9His death commonly is most miserable: either burnt, as Diagoras, or eaten up with lice, as *Paul. Diacon. lib. 15.Pherecydes, or devoured by dogs as Lucian, or thunder-shot and turn'd to ashes, as Olimpius. However descending impenitent into hell, there he is Atheist no longer, but hath as much religion as the devil, to confesse God and tremble:
Nullus in inferno est Atheos, ante fuit.
On earth were Atheists many,
In hell there is not any.
All speak truth, when they are on the rack; but it is a wofull thing to be hells Convert. And there we leave the Atheist, having dwelt the longer on his Character, because that speech of worthy Mr. *In his grave Counsell, p. 3.Greenham deserves to be heeded, That Atheisme in England is more to be feared then Popery.
To give an instance of a speculative Atheist, is both hard and dangerous: hard; for we cannot see mens speculations otherwise then as they cloth themselves visible in their actions, some Atheisticall speeches being not sufficient evidence to convict the speaker an Atheist. Dangerous; for what satisfaction can I make to their memories, if I challenge any of so foul a crime wrongfully? We may more safely insist on an Atheist in life and conversation; and such a one was he whom we come to describe.