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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53727	A short and plain answer to two questions: I. Where was your religion before Luther? II. How know you the Scriuptures to be the word of God? By a Protestant.	Owen, John, 1616-1683.	1682 (1682)	Wing O806A; ESTC R214595	12,344	27

much less to denominate the whole Work from the Translator I may say with good Propriety of speech that that Book was written by the Learned Sir T. Brown though I should find the same in Latine or French and had never seen the Original English Thus I scruple not to say the Rhemists Translation is the Word of God That is for the Substance and main Purpose of it it is not so spoil'd as to lose the Nature of Divine Truth but is profitable for Doctrine for Reproof for Correction for Instruction in Righteousness And to such as cannot procure a better it may doubtless be sufficient to make them Wise unto Salvation But I intend not in the mean time to Entitle God Almighty to the failings or frauds of that Version or of any other The Errors that have been occasioned from various Copies taken and Translations made are either of Infirmity or Knavery As for this latter I suppose it cannot be proved that ever any Person was so audacious as to attempt the palpable Corruption of the Scriptures until the Aspiring Popes had set up an infallible Chair at Rome a Court only fit to protect such Undertakings because indeed it could not be supported without them So that in the Primitive Times the Errors which have crept into the Bible have been first only such failings as have escaped unawares in the Transcribing thereof And secondly afterwards when it came to be Translated into other Languages some difficulty and contest could not choose but arise about the rendring such words as were of various doubtful signification from which I believe there are very few Languages entirely free Now I say it was impossible that both these together whilst Men were sincere and honest should ever stifle or quench the Divine Spirit which breaths every where in those Sacred Writings And we may reasonably suppose that the Christian Church was stockt with a competent number of good Copies before the Mystery of Iniquity came to such a height as to attempt the wilful depravation of the Scriptures Two things are considerable in this matter First That in the Infant State of Christianity Believers were cordial and in good earnest about the business of Religion The power of Godliness prevail'd and those who call'd themselves Christians were really such nor had they yet learn'd those Crafts of Cousnage and Deceit which afterwards the Mystery of Iniquity furnisht the World withall And therefore they would be careful in the highest degree to Transmit faithful Copies of those precious Papers unto Posterity A Duty more especially incumbent on them who had the keeping of the true Originals Secondly That God Almighty having by the Holy Ghost inspired his Pen-Men to deliver his Mind unto the World it is not likely that he should relinquish the same to perish in the hands of ignorant or wicked Men For since the Blessed Spirit did so manifestly appear in it Divine Providence was sure to guard it and will doubtless secure it to the end of the World These inducements with others of like nature are sufficient I count to convince any Man unto whose hands the Bible shall come that it doth contain the words of Eternal Life For it carries that Self-evidencing Light that Majestick plainness that unaffected Gravity and substantial Utility throughout the whole that no Man who will but consider can possibly doubt of its Original And though Mens Corruptions may prevail so far with them as to make them pretend at least to call in question the Being of God as well as the Truth of his Word Yet it shall certainly operate upon them so far as to leave them without excuse I do not believe that Nature ever yet produc'd so profligate a Wretch but would be sensible of some reluctancy and grief to see his Child murder'd his House fir'd and have his Limbs torn asunder without any just cause or provocation given But if these things have no evil in them why should any body be grieved at them If they have why should any one do the like to his Neighbour Now if Men ought not to do wrong in one respect no more ought they to do it in any other From whence ought to follow the universal rectitude of all our actions And where are there such Rules of Equity and Righteousness as the Scriptures afford teaching us to do unto others as we would that they should do unto us The faithful observation of which short Precept would confine Astrea to this lower World and yet banish all her Courts as being useless It would set such a face on things as would far exceed all the imaginary beauties of the Golden Age. From whence now should this proceed but from the Fountain of all Righteousness God Almighty There is yet a further means of assurance that the Scriptures are the Word of God namely from the evidence of the Spirit bearing witness in our Consciences to the truth of those things contained in our Bibles of which there is a Counter-part written in our Hearts and attested by the Holy Ghost There are indeed many false Spirits and many vain pretences to the true one yet a measure thereof is given to every Child of God and promised to all those that seek it with sincerity and perseverance Now I say this Evidence of the Spirit wherever it is doth fill the Mind with assurance and satisfaction about Divine Truth beyond all Arguments It is so convincing that St. Paul calls it a Demonstration And though perhaps it may not have that force to those who deride it in others and stifle its motions in their own Breasts for neither is Geometrical Demonstration of force to them that understand it not yet to a mind enlightened by it and brought under the power of it the Evidence and Demonstration of the Spirit is beyond all other Arguments and Demonstrations whatsoever To summ up all we need not to go to a Corrupt and Adulterous Church to have its Authority and Imprimatur stampt upon our Bibles from whence on the contrary it ought to derive its own Authority And it will one day sink under the weight and force of those Laws and Precepts which it now vainly pretends to Authorize I say then the Scriptures are known to be the Word of God beyond all possibility of mistake or dubitation by Evidence of Sense by Arguments of Reason and by Demonstration of the Spirit This Sir is all I shall trouble you with in this Matter till either I have your Objections or some further opportunity of discovering my Zeal to serve you according to the utmost of my power I am Sir c. FINIS These Books following to be Sold by Jonathan Hutchinson in Durham Folio DR Hammond 's Annotation on the New Testament H. Grotii Opera omnia Theologica 4 vol. 1679. Eusebii Socratis Sozomeni Theodoriti Evagrii Historia Ecclesiast Gr. Lat. notis Hen. Valesii 3 vol. Mogunt 1672 77 79. Bishop Taylor 's Course of Sermons for all the Sundays in the Year His Ductor Dubitantium or Rule of Conscience Quarto Bishop Nicholson on the Church Catechism Dr. Donns Pseudo Martyr Rogers on the Thirty nine Articles of the Church of England Octavo Dr. Combars Exposition of the Book of Common Prayer 4 Parts Dr. Hammond 's Practical Catechism Bishop Morton of Episcopacy Dr. Basire of Sacriledge Arraign'd and Condemn'd by St. Paul Twelves Dr. Breviul on the Sacrament Bishop Cousins Devotions THE END

Duty 4. Things to be believed or matter of Faith As for the Historical part of that Book how hath it bidden defiance to Time to discover any just Exception Nay even the Enemies of Truth have own'd and confirm'd the matters of Fact therein contained And many profane Writers who either knew not of or have not rightly acknowledged the Scriptures have nevertheless inserted into their own Stories the same things therein contained as is well known and hath been oft observed by those that look into Books And though the Divine History bears such Authority and Majesty in its Style that it needs not the Confirmation of Prophane ones yet the Testimony of Adversaries against themselves is always considerable And hath not much of the Prophetick part been verified to the amazement of all those that duly consider it How many and how punctually were the Prophesies concerning our Redemption by Christ How plain was that concerning the Type thereof namely Israels deliverance from Egyptian Slavery Gen. 15. verse 13 14. and yet how wonderfully fulfill'd many hundreds of Years after they were fore-told But I am not at leisure to enlarge upon these things many Learned Men have done it more especially the incomparable Sir Charles Wolseley And then for the Preceptive part containing Rules of Life and Manners it is so Rooted in the Nature of things so obvious to Sense so agreeable to Reason so beneficial to the World and so confirmed by the Experience of all Men whose Faculties are not depraved That Heaven and Earth shall pass away before one jot or tittle thereof shall fail or be found deficient Lastly The Divine Mysteries therein revealed as the Doctrine of the Trinity the Incarnation of the Blessed Jesus c. though they are above our Capacity to explain the Nature of them yet are they so suitable to Gods Goodness and do make such a Harmony of Divine Attributes that Reason it self will rather from thence infer the truth of their being than that they cannot be because we understand not the manner how they are How could God be Just if Justice were not satisfied And could be Merciful if all Men were to be damned How could lost Man Redeem himself Or how could he be saved if he should suffer for himself But now in the Person of our Blessed Redeemer the Law is satisfied Justice is done and even thereby Mercy doth the more eminently appear God is glorified and Man is not left to perish in his iniquity If a Man will be so morose as to urge that Three in one Eternal Generations a Virgins Conception and the like sound so harsh to Humane understanding that they cannot be true He may after the same rate conclude that there is no such thing as Humane Generation since the Nature and process thereof is very obscurely if at all understood That there are no Souls because it is not yet agreed whether they are immediately Created of God or they are Ex traduce or Pre-existent No such thing as Milk in a Womans Breast since Anatomists are confounded with difficulties to find what Matter it is made of or by what secret Chanels conveyed thither In so much that one very Learned Writer in that Faculty flies to the force of Imagination to produce it No such thing as Quantity because no Man ever yet could demonstrate unexceptionably whether it be infinitely divisible or ultimately resolvable into indivisibles No Bodies in the World since no Man knows what kind of Original Particles they are made of These and many things more as to the manner how they are have difficulties attending them which are insuperable and incomprehensible And methinks it is somewhat hard that we should do things our selves and see many things before our Eyes of which we can give no tolerable account and should yet think that God cannot do somewhat more than we can apprehend and should be so inclinable to reject even God himself his Word and all his Works of Wonder if they will not accommodate themselves to our little understandings From these considerations and many more that will occur to any impartial thinking Man it doth appear beyond all possibility of doubting that the Scripture is most certainly true and if so it must be the Word of God for it testifieth of it self that it is given by Divine Inspiration Never did any Book contain so much Wisdom Kindness and Usefulness to the Sons of Men as it doth Summ up the whole World together except the Bible and what is taken out of it and the Total will neither afford you half so many Excellent Rules and Observations for the government of Mens Lives nor one thousand part of that clear discovery of Divine Truth which that Book contains Shall we now say that this Book is a Forgery a Cheat and Imposture of the Devil For so it must be if it be not the Word of God And what follows Why that a Corrupt Tree brings forth good Fruit and that most pure and wholsome Streams proceed from a putrid Fountain That truth is falshood that good is evil and that light is darkness He that denies the Scriptures to be the Word of God must quit his Sense his Reason and his Conscience that he may admit of these Conclusions To which it may be added That all the malicious and cunning Adversaries of God and true Religion all the Pagans Popes and Hellish Apostates all the Devils themselves and their incarnate Brethren the Jesuits with all their Subtilty and Contrivance have not been able to destroy nor discredit that Book No nor to Corrupt it neither in any such degree but that still there remains good Copies thereof in several Languages And though there may be deficiency and Humane frailty in some Readings and Versions as to some particular words yet is not that any blemish unto or diminution of the Beauty and Excellency of the whole but may rather teach us to value it the more For since neither the failings of some nor the fraud of others hath availed in Sixteen hundred years to do any substantial dammage to that Book it is a convincing Argument that Divine Providence hath been engaged for it's preservation If it should be here objected That since there are so many various Readings of the Scriptures it may be doubtful which of them is the best I readily grant it but then there can be no doubt but that every one of them for the main Substance of it is the Word of God Let us suppose Religio Medici to be turned into several Laguages there may be divers faults in every one of them as is observed to be in the Latine Copy and some of them very gross ones But will any body from thence infer that Sir Tho. Brown is not the Author For though indeed he is not the Author of those Errors wherein the true Sense of some particular Words is mistaken Yet since they are not such nor so many as to evacuate the design and scope of the Book