I am indebted to Mr. Houston Peterson, of Columbia University, for suggesting to me the idea of arranging a volume of selections from Spinoza. I am alone responsible, however, for the actual selections and arrangements, and for the idea of taking the _Ethics_ out of its geometrical form. Professor Morris R. Cohen, of the College of the City of New York, read this volume in manuscript; I am indebted to him for some valuable suggestions. I am also indebted very greatly to a friend (who prefers not to be acknowledged) for invaluable help in getting the manuscript into shape. JOSEPH RATNER. _October, 1926._ CONTENTS PAGE PREFACE v THE LIFE OF SPINOZA xi INTRODUCTION TO THE PHILOSOPHY OF SPINOZA xxvii FIRST PART ON GOD CHAPTER I. OF SUPERSTITION 3 II. OF THE INTERPRETATION OF SCRIPTURE 11 III. OF PROPHETS AND PROPHECY 36 IV. OF THE VOCATION OF THE HEBREWS 64 V. OF THE DIVINE LAW 71 VI. OF THE CEREMONIAL LAW 88 VII. OF MIRACLES 103 VIII. OF THE DIVINE NATURE 122 SECOND PART ON MAN IX. THE NATURE AND ORIGIN OF THE HUMAN MIND 155 X. THE NATURE AND EXTENT OF HUMAN KNOWLEDGE 173 XI. DETERMINISM AND MORALS 191 XII. THE ORIGIN AND NATURE OF THE EMOTIONS 211 XIII. THE PSYCHOLOGY OF THE EMOTIONS 236 THIRD PART ON MAN'S WELL-BEING XIV. OF HUMAN BONDAGE 251 XV. THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE MORAL LIFE 266 XVI. OF THE FOUNDATIONS OF A STATE 297 XVII. OF SUPREME AUTHORITIES 314 XVIII. FREEDOM OF THOUGHT AND SPEECH 333 XIX. OF HUMAN FREEDOM 345 XX. OF HUMAN BLESSEDNESS AND THE ETERNITY OF THE MIND 361 APPENDIX 377 THE LIFE OF SPINOZA