(40) Next I inquired, why the Hebrews were called God's chosen people, and discovering that it was only because God had chosen for them a certain strip of territory, where they might live peaceably and at ease, I learnt that the Law revealed by God to Moses was merely the law of the individual Hebrew state, therefore that it was binding on none but Hebrews, and not even on Hebrews after the downfall of their nation.

Idee uniformi nate appo intieri popoli tra essoloro non conosciuti,debbon’avere un motivo comune di vero.

147 The nature of things is nothing but their coming into being (nasci- mento) at certain times and in certain fashions. Whenever the time and fashion is thus and so, such and not otherwise are the things that come into being.

144 Uniform ideas originating among entire peoples unknown to each other must have a common ground of truth.