CHAP. XV.
There is another Place of Scripture that is objected, that seems as if the Soul went out of the Body when they die; as in 1Kingsxvii. 21. whereElijahprayed, thatthe Child's Soul might come into him again. The Meaning is this, thatElijahdid pray in Faith unto God, that he would assist him in this or other Things; as in shutting up the Heavens that it should not rain, and calling for Fire from Heaven to destroy those two Captains and their Fifties, and many other wonderful Things he did; so he prayed unto God to strengthen his Faith, so that he might have Power to raise this Child's Life out of Death again.
Therefore he stretched himself upon the Child, and prayed that the Child's Soul might come into him again; that is, that the Child's Soul or Life might quicken in the Body of the Child again; forElijahknew the Soul of the Child was dead, and by the warm Flesh of the Prophet laid upon the Child's dead Flesh, and the Faith and Prayer of the Prophet together, it begot Life in the Child again; so that the Soul that was dead it became Life in the Child again; and that Life that was quickened, it run through the Veins of the Childs Body, and so the Child's Soul did come into him again.
For this I say, if the Soul of the Child had been gone out of the Body, thenElijahdid not raise the dead Child to Life again; for how can a Man be said to be dead, when as Life doth not die, but slips out of the Body, as most People do vainly imagine; but it may be clear to those whose Understandings are enlightened, thatElijahdid raise the Child from Death to Life, and that the Child's Soul was dead in its Body, and that the Soul of the Child was revived in the Child's Body again by the Power of Faith inElijah.
And the very same thing was done by the ProphetElisha, as in 2Kingsiv. 34. the ProphetElishadid the same thing to theSunamiteWoman's Son, hewent up, and lay upon the Child, and put his Mouth upon his Mouth, and his Eyes upon his Eyes, and his Hands upon his Hands, and he stretch himself upon the Child; and the Flesh of the Child waxed warm, andElishastretched himself upon the Child a second time: Here the Reader may see, that the Child was dead, and by the Faith and Prayer, and by the Warmness of the ProphetElishahis Flesh, the Child revived to Life again both Body and Soul. AndElishadid use the same Means and Way asElijahdid? for he went in and shut the Door, and prayed unto the Lord asElijahdid, and stretched himself upon the Child asElijahdid, and raise the Child to Life again by the Power of Faith.
YetElishamaketh no mention of the Soul coming into the Child again, but he delivered the Body and Soul of the Child, that were both dead together, he delivered them both alive together to the Child's Mother. It was the same thing done byElijah, only some difference in the Words, but the Sense and Meaning is all one.
So that the Reader may understand, if any true Light of Life be in him, that the Soul of the Child went not out of its Body, but died in the Body; and by the Power of Faith in the Prophet, it quickened alive out of Death in the Child's Body again; for the Soul or Life of the Child never went out of the Body as is vainly imagin'd; but the Soul, Life, and Spirit of the Child was absolutely dead in the Body, and by the Power of Faith in the Prophet, the dead Soul or Life of the Child was quickened alive again, and caused the Body to live also. For if the Woman should have had the Soul of the Child given unto her without the Body, she would have given the Prophet no Thanks for raising her Child's Soul without a Body; but the Body and Soul being one Person, they were both dead together, and the Prophet raised them both together alive, and the Woman received them both together, and rejoyced greatly in God, and gave Honour to the Prophet.
Thus in short, I have given the true Interpretation of all those Scriptures that most seem, or most commonly are objected against the Mortality of the Soul, or to prove that Spirits do go out of the Body at the time of Death, or that Spirits may be raised without Bodies, or have any Being without Bodies, or that a Spirit may appear in a Shape without a Body, or that a Spirit can assume what Shape it please, yet have no Body or Substance.
These things the vain Imagination of Reason in Man hath created in it self, to fright it self with, for their is no such thing as Spirits walking without Bodies, neither doth any Spirit go out of the Body when Men die, as is imagined by most People; but these are Fictions of Mens Brains, created by the Imagination in the dark Minds of Men and Women, for God never created any such thing, as I have shewed before.
And as for that saying ofSolomon,Eccl.xii. 7.Then shall the Dust return to the Earth as it was, and the Spirit shall return to God who gave it.His Meaning (I suppose) in these Words is, as is generally conceived by all People, the Body to the Dust, and the Spirit returns to God that gave it when Men die: But these Sayings ofSolomonare no Scripture, forSolomonwas no Scripture Writer, for his Writings were not written by the Revelation of Faith, but by the Revelation of Reason; yet it was the purest of Reason, and he had the greatest Measure of the Wisdom of Reason, and the Knowledge of Nature, of any that was before him sinceAdam, or any that shall come after him.
Therefore God chose him King, and gave him the purest Wisdom of Reason, according to his Desire in his Prayer to God, that his Wisdom might resemble Heaven for Glory, as it did; for what Glory could a King have upon Earth greater than he had? Which was a true Resemblance of the Glory of Heaven; and this Glory was procured by that Power and great Wisdom of Reason in him; yet for all this he was ignorant of the Revelation of Faith, and of spiritual and heavenly Things, ignorant of the true God, and of the right Devil, and of some things in Nature.
As that the Spirit of a Man should return to God that gave it without a Body; when as God never gave any Spirit to Man without a Body, nor to no other Creature: ButSolomonbeing ignorant, that the Spirit or Soul of Man is generated and begotten by the Law of Generation as well as the Body; this was in the Creation when God made Man in his own Image, the Ignorance of this caused him to speak thus; for he knew not where the Spirit went when the Body is laid in the Earth, no more than the learned Philosophers do, who say, A Spirit cannot die; as if the Spirit and Life of every Creature were the Spirit or Life of God, else they think no Creature could move and have a Being.
And thoughSolomonwas a wise Man, as the Heathen Philosophers were wise Men in Nature; yet they were all ignorant in this one thing, of the Law of Generation or Procreation, to increaseand multiply, as God hath placed in Nature, when he created the World in the beginning; for every Creature as well as Man, were to increase and multiply by the Law of Generation; and this I am sure, they begot Spirit, Life, and Soul by Generation, as well as Bodies.
But if it be objected, that God breathed into Man the Breath of Life, and he became a living Soul; and so Man's Spirit is of a more noble divine Life or Spirit than any other Creature.
To this I say, the Law of Generation to increase and multiply, was placed in Man's Seed and Nature by God the Creator, as in other Creatures: For this is to be observed, thatAdamdid not come to be a living Soul by Generation, as we do ever since; but he andEvewere first made as a Foundation for Generation; so that God made or created but one Man and one Woman, all Men and Women that have been generated and begotten ever since, cannot properly be said to be made nor created, but begotten by Generation; for God never made and created but one Man and one Woman, all others are generated and begotten.
Therefore when Man begets a Son or Daughter in the way of Generation, he begets the Soul or Spirit of the Child as well as the Body; and the Soul or Spirit came out of the Man's Loin well as the Body: As it was said byJacob,Seventy Souls came out of his Loins; if so then that Spirit or Soul that is begotten by Generation, it must and doth die: For this I say, God never breathed the Breath of Life into no Man, but intoAdam: The Spirit of Life in all Men and Women else or since have been generated and begotten, and what Spirit and Soul of Man that is generated, it doth die and turn to Dust, till the Regeneration, when God shall raise it again, which will not be a Minute of an Hour to the dead Spirit, as I said before. So it may be clear to those that have the true Light of Faith in them, that the Soul or Spirit of Man doth die as well as the Body: They both came into the World together alive, and they shall both go out of the World again dead, as I have shewed before. Also the Reader may see, that those Scriptures have been misunderstood through the Ignorance and Darkness of Mens Minds, to think that the Soul or Spirit of Man doth not die, but slips out of the Body; but to imagine that Spirits may walk without Bodies, or that any Witch can raise any Spirit without a Body; and many other Conceits that do arise out of the dark Mind of Man; which have been grounded upon those Scripture Words; therefore I have given the Interpretation of all those Places of Scripture that are of most Concernment,and seem to bear such a Sense, as is generally conceived among Professors of the Scriptures: So that whoever understands the Interpretation, may receive great Satisfaction in their Minds in this Point; so much for Satisfaction of the Understanding in Heart, and for the Discontent of the Ignorant and Dark-minded People, who believe by Tradition that their Spirits do not die, but slide out of the Body at the time of Death; and if they have been evil and wicked Livers, their Spirits do walk afterwards, and cannot be at rest. These Conceits have been exceeding brief in the World heretofore, when People were in Darkness, and so is still where the Darkness of Mind ruleth.