Miscellaneous Discourses, Illustration – Preface
JOHN RAY, F.R.S.
Printed for J. Hinton, at the King's Arms in Paternoster Row
Miſcellaneous Diſcourſes Concerning the DISSOLUTION AND CHANGES OF THE WORLD. WHEREIN The Primitive Chaos and Creation, the General Deluge, Fountains, Formed Stones, Sea-Shells found in the Earth, Subterraneous Trees, Mountains, Earthquakes, Vulcanoes, the Univerſal Conflagration and Future State, are largely Diſcuſſed and Examined.
By JOHN RAY, Fellow of the ROYAL SOCIETY.
LONDON, Printed for Samuel Smith, at the Prince's Arms in St. Paul's Church Yard. 1692.
TO THE Moſt Reverend FATHER in GOD, JOHN Lord Arch-Biſhop of Canterbury, Primate of all England, and Metropolitan.
My Lord,
IT was no Intereſt or Expectation of mine, that induced me to dedicate this Diſcourſe to your Grace. I am not ſo well conceited of my own performances, as to think it merits to be inſcribed to ſo great a Name, much leſs that I ſhould oblige your Lordſhip, or indeed a far meaner perſon by ſuch inſcription. My principal motive was, that it would give me opportunity of congratulating with the ſober part of this Nation, your advancement to the Archiepiſcopal Dignity; and of acknowledging His Majeſty's Wiſdom in making choice of ſo fit a Perſon to fill that Chair, endued with all Qualifications requiſite for ſo high a Calling; ſo able and skilful a Pilot to govern the Church, and ſo prudent and faithful a Counſellor to ſerve himſelf. But I will not enlarge in your juſt praiſes, leſt I ſhould incur the unjuſt Cenſure or Suſpicion of Flattery: Give me leave only to add, what I may without injury of Truth, and I think alſo without violation of Modeſty; that your Grace's Election hath the concurrent Approbation and Applauſe of all good men that know you, or have had a true Character of you; which may ſerve to ſtrengthen your Hands in the Management and Adminiſtration of ſo difficult a Province, though you need no ſuch Support, as being ſufficiently involved and armed by your Vertues, and protected by the Almighty Power and Providence. Thoſe that are Good and Wiſe are pleaſed and ſatisfied, when great Men are preferred to great Places; and think it pity that Perſons of large and publick Spirits ſhould be confined to narrow Spheres of Action, and want field to exerciſe and employ thoſe rich Talents and Abilities wherewith they are endowed, in doing all the Good they are thereby qualified and inclined to do.
My Lord,
I am ſenſible that the Preſent I make you, is neither for Bulk nor Worth ſuitable to your Perſon and Greatneſs; yet I hope you will favourably accept it, being the beſt I have to offer; and my boldneſs may pretend ſome excuſe from ancient acquaintance, and from my forwardneſs to embrace this opportunity of profeſsing my name among thoſe that honour you, and of publiſhing my ſelf,
My Lord, Your Graces moſt devoted Servant and humble Orator, John Ray.
THE PREFACE.
VVERE it not cuſtomary and expected by the Reader, this Diſcourſe would need no Preface. All that I ſhall premiſe, ſhall be ſomething by way of Apology or Excuſe.
Firſt, For the two long Digreſſions I have made, the one concerning the general Deluge in the days of Noah, the other concerning the Primitive Chaos and Creation of the World. My firſt Plea is, their Affinity and near Relation to my Subject, The future Diſſolution of the World by fire inviting me to ſay ſomething of the former Deſtruction of it by Water. And the deſtruction being oppoſite to the formation, I had as good a Pretence to diſcourſe likewiſe concerning that. My ſecond excuſe is, their agreement with my Subject in being alike matters of Ancient Tradition. Five matters of Ancient Tradition I have taken notice of, and four of them, by reaſon of their now-mentioned Relation one to another I have had a fair and inviting occaſion to treat of in this Work. They are 1. That the World was formed out of a Chaos by the Divine Wiſdom and Power. 2. That there was once an univerſal Flood of Waters, in which all Mankind periſhed, excepting ſome few that were ſaved in an Ark or Ship. 3. That the World ſhall one day be diſſolved by Fire. 4. That there is a Heaven and an Hell, a Tartarus and an Elyſium, and both eternal, the one to reward good men, and the other to puniſh wicked. 5. Of which I have no occaſion to treat, That Bloody Sacrifices are to be offered for the Expiation of Sin. It may be doubted, whether theſe Traditions among the Heathen had their Original from ſome paſſages in Scripture, as that of the Chaos from the ſecond Verſe of the firſt Chapter of Geneſis. And the Earth was Tohu vabohu, which we render without form and void; and that of the Deluge, from the Hiſtory of it in the ſeventh Chapter of the ſame; and the future conflagration from ſeveral paſſages in the Prophets, &c.; or were antecedent to the Scripture: I rather think the latter, becauſe we find them among ſome Nations, which it's likely never had underſtanding of the Scriptures, nor indeed ever heard of them.
Secondly, For Writing ſo much, for which perchance ſome may cenſure me. I am not ignorant, that men as they are mutable, ſo they love change; and affect variety of Authors, as well as Books. Satiety even of the beſt things is apt to creep upon us. He that writes much, let him write never ſo well, ſhall experience that his laſt Books, though nothing inferiour to his firſt, will not find equal acceptance. But for mine own part, though in general I may be thought to have written too much; yet is it but little that I have written relating to Divinity.
Thirdly, For being too haſty in huddling up and tumbling out Books. Herein I confeſs I cannot acquit my ſelf wholly from blame. I know well, that the longer a Book lies by me, the perfecter it becomes. Something occurs every day in reading or thinking, either to add, or to correct and alter for the better; but ſhould I defer the Edition till the Work were abſolutely perfect, I might wait all my life-time, and leave it to be publiſhed by my Executors. But I ſee that Poſthumous Pieces generally prove inferiour to thoſe put out by the Authors in their lives. And perchance did the Reader know my Reaſons for this ſpeed, which I think it not fit now to lay open, he would judge them ſufficient to excuſe me. However haſty and precipitate I am in writing, my Books are but ſmall, ſo that if they be worthleſs, the Purchaſe is not great, nor the Expence of Time waſted in the peruſal of them very conſiderable. Yet is not the worth of a Book always anſwerable to its Bulk: But on the contrary foreign is uſually eſteemed foreign for foreign. One …hing ſtill remains to advertiſe the Reader of, that is, that upon ſecond thoughts, I do revoke what I have delivered as my Opinion or Suſpicion concerning the Continuance of the Rain at the Time of the Deluge for one hundred and fifty dayes, becauſe it is ſaid the Waters prevailed ſo long upon the Earth, that is, as I underſtand it, increaſed. I now grant that it laſted but forty natural days; becauſe thoſe words of God to Noah, predicting the Continuance of the Rain. Gen. 7.4. For yet ſeven days and I will cauſe it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights, &c. ſeem to limit it to that term. So that we muſt ſeek ſome other reaſon for the prevailing of the Water for one hundred and fifty days; which probably might be the Continuance of the Emotion of the Center of the Earth for ſo long time.