Wilkins, John - A discovery of a new world : or a discourse tending to prove, that 'tis probable there may be another Habitable World in the Moon ; with a discourse concerning the Probability of a Passage thither; unto which is added, a discourse concerning a New Planet, tending to prove, that 'tis probable our earth is one of the Planets

Scan	Original
81	69
82	70
83	71
84	72
85	73
86	74
87	75
88	76
89	77
90	78
91	79
92	80
93	81
94	82
95	83
96	84
97	85
98	86
99	87
100	88
101	89
102	90
103	91
104	92
105	93
106	94
107	95
108	96
109	97
110	98

22040That the Earth may be a Planet. miſtake, 'tis likely did ariſe that groundleſs
obſervation of the ancient Jews; who would
not admit any to read the beginning of Ge-
neſis, till he was arrived to thirty Years of
Age. The true reaſen of which, wa this;
not becanſe that Book was harder than any
other; but becauſe Moſes conforming his
expreſlion to vulgar Conceits, and they exa-
mining of them by more exact rules of Phi-
loſophy, were fain to force upon them ma-
ny ſtrange Allegories, and unnatural Myſte-
ries.

Thus alſo, becauſe for the moſt part we
conceive the Stars to be innumerable, there-
fore doth the Holy Ghoſt often ſpeak of
them in reſerence to this opinion. So Jere-
my: As the Hoſt of Heaven cannot be num-
11Jer. 35. 22 bred, neither the Sand of the Sea meaſured ſo
will I multiply the Seed of David. So likewiſe
when God would comfort Abraham with the
promiſe of a numberleſs Poſterity, he bids
him look up to Heayen, and tells him, that
his Seed ſhould be like thoſe Stars for num-
22Gen. 15 5. ber: Which, ſaith Clavius, 33In 1. cup.
Sphæræ. eſt ſecundum communem ſententiam vulgi, ex-
iſtimantis infinitam eſſe multitudinem ſtellarum,
dum eas nocte ſerena confusè intuetur; is to be
underſtood according to the common opi-
nion of the Vulgar, who think the Stars to
be of an inſinite multitude, whilſt they be-
hold them all (as they ſeem confuſed) in
a clear Night. And though many of our
Divines do commonly interpret this Speech
to be an Hyperbole; yet being well

Page concordance

Text layer

Text normalization

Search

Scan	Original
81	69
82	70
83	71
84	72
85	73
86	74
87	75
88	76
89	77
90	78
91	79
92	80
93	81
94	82
95	83
96	84
97	85
98	86
99	87
100	88
101	89
102	90
103	91
104	92
105	93
106	94
107	95
108	96
109	97
110	98

Scan	Original
81	69
82	70
83	71
84	72
85	73
86	74
87	75
88	76
89	77
90	78
91	79
92	80
93	81
94	82
95	83
96	84
97	85
98	86
99	87
100	88
101	89
102	90
103	91
104	92
105	93
106	94
107	95
108	96
109	97
110	98

Scan	Original
81	69
82	70
83	71
84	72
85	73
86	74
87	75
88	76
89	77
90	78
91	79
92	80
93	81
94	82
95	83
96	84
97	85
98	86
99	87
100	88
101	89
102	90
103	91
104	92
105	93
106	94
107	95
108	96
109	97
110	98