TO THE READER.

are; whereas everything that is visible, tangible, and sensible exists only for the senses and the body, and must age and decay along with them.

See, dear Reader, for these very weighty reasons, it is for this reason that I offer up to you here the final part of my curious exercises curious exercises Dutch: curieuse oeffeningen. In the 17th century, "curious" referred to careful, detailed scientific observation and investigation., and drive the same out like another Ishmael In the Bible, Ishmael was the son of Abraham born of human effort/a bondwoman, eventually cast out in favor of Isaac, the son of promise. or a son of my own and corrupted powers: so that I may become a partaker of the spiritual son of promises and graces, Isaac, by whom I understand the love of God. I have now spent enough of my time and labor in the investigation of nature, and followed my own corrupted will and pleasure therein. Therefore, I now intend to follow the will of God alone; to surrender my will to Him; and to withdraw all my thoughts from the multiplicities Dutch: meenighvuldigheeden. This refers to the distracting variety of the material world, which Swammerdam seeks to leave behind for the "Oneness" of God. in order to offer them up solely to heavenly reflections. For our life is as short as that of the Dayfly Dayfly Dutch: Haft. This is the Ephemeron, the subject of the book. Swammerdam uses its famously short life as a memento mori—a reminder of human mortality.; its miseries are infinite; its perils manifold; its enemies without number, and the hour of death is uncertain. Moreover, the way and the path that leads to life is so narrow and small that there are few who find it. Happy shall he be who, following this good counsel, shall set out upon that narrow way alongside me; and the...