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# Title: An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding (shelfmarks Leibn. Marg. 38; ZEN Leibn. Marg. 38)
# Folio 312, page id 778263916:0328
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Knomledee of ihe Fxistense of a 6OD. B00K IV.
hal infallible Perception that Weare. In every Aet OE SenlatiOn, ReaIO.
nins or Thinkins, ere are conscious to our selres ot our omn Beins; an d
in ehis Matter, come not More os cheliphet dexree oE C’errainty.
H A P. 2.
Of our Rnomledze of che Fexistence of a GDD.
6. T. FTouch God has siven us noinnate Ideas os Him sels; choust he
has stamped no original Characters in our Minds, Wherein e
may read nis Beins: yet havins turnisted us wich thole Faculties, oux
Minds areendowed ith, he hath not lele himself Without wirness: spice
e have senle, Perception, and Realon, and cannor vant a clear proot
ofhim, 25 lonq as We carry our selres about us. Nor can We justy com-
plain of our Tgnorance in this great Point, since he has (0 plentitully pros
videdus with the means to dileover, and knor him, (o tar asis necessare
tothe end oF our Beine, andthe great concerument of our Frappiness. But
chouch ehis be the most obrious Pruth ehat Realon discovers; andthonoh
its Pvidence be (ifI miltake noc) equal to mathematical Certainty: yet
it requires Thoughe and Aetention; and the Mind must apelr its selE +o
2 regular deduction ot it trom lome unqueltionable parts of ourknom ledge,
Orelse e Mallbe as uncertain, and ignorant ot this, as oF other Propoli-
cions, Wrhiehare in themselres capable of clear Demonstration. To Mhe
theretore, etiat ve are capable of knovine, certaintr Knorine that there is
aCod, and hon ve come by it, Pchink we rieed lool no Parcher chanour
selves; and thai undoubted Rnow ledse rehare of our omn lxistence.
9. 2. Ichinle it is beyond Ouection, that Man has a clear Perception of
his oon Beine; hebnows cerrainly, thar he exists, and that he is some-
thiro. FTe that can doubt, Whether he beans thing, or no, I speale noE
to, no more than P vould argue rith pure noching; or endeavour tocor
vince Nonentir, thar it vere lomethiins. Ilany one pretendto be l0
Sceprical, as to deny his orn Existence, (Tor realIy to doube ot it, is ma-
nitestly impossible,) lec him Por me enjoy his beloved FTappinels of beine
nothins, until Iunger, or Pome orher P’ain convince hum oE the contra-
rY. Fnis then, L tinHE, L may tate For a Fruth, Wrtieh every ones cex-
tain Rnoledee assures him of, bexond the liberts of douhrins, viz. That
heis lomething thac actually exilts.
6. 3. In the next place, Man bnors by an intuitire Certaintr, that bare
nothine can no more produce any real Beine, than it can be equal to rwo rieht
Ancles. IFa Man LNOWS NOE That NOn entity, or the Ablence oF all Bein
cannot be equal to tworighe Angles, it is impossible he Mould bnor any
demonstration in Fuclid. IF theretore e lnor there is some real Beine,
and FhaF Non entity canmot produce any real Being, ic is an evident de
monstration, that trom Fternies there has been fomething. Since What
as not trom Eternity, hada Beginnins; and what had a Beginmins, must
De produced by Lomething elsc.
6. 4. Next, it is evident, that erhat had ies Beire and Beginnins from
ancther, must also have all chat erhich is in, and belones to ies Beins
from anorher t00. AIIthe Porersit has, mustbe orineto, and receired
trom thelame Source. This eterral Source then of all beino must also
Dethe Source and Origina l OE aII Porer; and (0 this eternat Being must
be also the most poverful.