By future contingences, we understand things that are accidental, or, as we commonly say, happen by chance, without any fore-thought, or design of men. Now that many things happen so, with respect to us, and therefore we cannot certainly foreknow them, is very obvious; but even these are foreknown by God[54] For, 1. Things that happen without our design, or fore-thought, and therefore are not certainly foreknown by us, are the objects of his providence, and therefore known unto him from the beginning: thus _the fall of a sparrow to the ground_ is a casual thing, yet our Saviour says, that this is not without his providence, Matth. x. 29. Therefore, 2. That which is casual, or accidental to us, is not so to him; so that though we cannot have a certain or determinate foreknowledge thereof, it does not follow that he has not; since, 3. He has foretold many such future events, as appears by the following instances. (1.) Ahab’s death by an arrow, shot at random, may be reckoned a contingent event; yet this was foretold before he went into the battle, 1 Kings xxii. 17, 18, 34. and accomplished accordingly. (2.) That Israel should be afflicted and oppressed in Egypt, and afterwards should be delivered, was foretold four hundred years before it came to pass, Gen. xv. 13, 14. And when Moses was sent to deliver them out of the Egyptian bondage, God tells him, before-hand, how obstinate Pharaoh would be, and with how much difficulty he would be brought to let them go, Exod. iii. 19, 20. (3.) Joseph’s advancement in Egypt was a contingent and very unlikely event, yet it was made known several years before, by his prophetic dream, Gen. xxxvii. 5, &c. and afterwards, that which tended more immediately to it, was his foretelling what happened to the chief butler and baker, and the seven years of plenty and famine in Egypt, signified by Pharaoh’s dream; all which were contingent events, and were foretold by divine inspiration, and therefore foreknown by God. (4.) Hazael’s coming to the crown of Syria, and the cruelty that he would exercise, was foretold to him, when he thought he could never be such a monster of a man, as he afterwards appeared to be, 2 Kings viii. 12, 13. (5.) Judas’s betraying our Lord was foretold by him, John vi. 70, 71. though, at that time, he seemed as little disposed to commit so vile a crime as any of his disciples. Thus having considered God’s knowledge, with respect to the object, either as past, or future, we shall conclude this head, by observing some properties, whereby it appears to be superior to all finite knowledge, and truly divine, _viz._