Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
scripture_n	authority_n	divine_a	infallible_a	2,602	5	9.2547	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A32818	Quod tibi, hoc alteri, ne alteri quod non vis tibi a profitable enquiry into that comprehensive rule of righteousness, do as you would be done by : being a practical discourse on S. Matt. vii, 12 / by Benjamin Camfield.	Camfield, Benjamin, 1638-1693.	1671 (1671)	Wing C382B; ESTC R25964	104,175	262

the Prophets Thus S. Luke speaks of our Blessed Saviour S. Luke 24.27 that beginning at Moses and all the Prophets he expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself Where we have express mention of all the Scriptures and them divided into these two parts Moses and the Prophets To this purpose Abraham replies unto the Rich man in torments concerning the provision made for his Brethrens escaping of them S. Luke 16.29 They have Moses and the Prophets let them hear them And when S. Paul would clear himself from Heresie and Irreligion to the Jews he proffesseth his belief of all things written in the Law and the Prophets Act. 24.14 The Scribes and Pharisees had much in their mouths the Law and the Prophets the Law and the Prophets were read daily in their Synagogues Act. 13.15 and yet so blind were they in their practice as to overlook that which was most considerable in the Law and the Prophets The better therefore to infore this excellent Rule of Life our Blessed Lord and Saviour tells his Disciples That this is the Law and the Prophets i. e. This 1. is that which they undeniably call for This is indeed 2. the sum of that Duty they require And this 3. they put a special Emphasis upon above all external and ceremonial Observances whatsoever Under this three-fold Gloss I shall endeavour to give you an account of our Blessed Saviours Argument For this is the Law and the Prophets First This is that which the Law and the Prophets do unquestionably and undeniably call for The foundations and grounds of this Rule are there clearly expressed the Branches to which it extends self are there commanded and enjoyned This Rule hath the Authority of the Holy Scriptures to back and enforce it So far is Christ from disparaging the Law and Prophets that he establiseth his Precepts by them S. Mat. 5.17 Think not saith he that I am come to destroy the Law or the Prophets I am not come to destroy but to fulfil q. d. I came not to abrogate or take away the binding power of the Law and Prophets but my self to fulfil what they prescribed and not only to injoyn it upon my Disciples but to fill up and explain the true sense and meaning of that in my Ministry which was more darkly shadowed and adumbrated only by them The Jewish Laws are usually distinguished into Moral Judicial and Ceremonial The Moral Law is the Law of Nature revived the Law leaning on eternal and never-failing Principle and Rules of Equity And this is so far from being destroyed by Christ that he hath ratified and improved it The Judicial or Civil Law is that which respecteth them as a particular State Body and Society separate and distinct from the rest of the World this stood in force so long as their Commonwealth and Government remained but appertaining unto them in particular cannot reasonably be thought to oblige others further than the natural and real equity of its Precepts agrees with the Circumstances of other Governments The Ceremonial or Ecclesiastical Law is that which prescribes the Religious Rites and Ceremonies of their Church which were but Types and Shadows of something more perfect to succeed them and Types and Shadows do of their own accord cease and vanish when the Substance or Body is introduced So that the nature of these Laws set a bound and limit to their obliging Power and Christ hath not so much dissolved and destroyed as fulfilled them The Law and Prophets are as authentick and divine as ever and as fit to oblige us to those Laws which are built on eternal Principles of Equity and so extend themselves as really to us as ever they did to the Jews But as for those other Laws which respected their peculiar Polity in Church and State and so were for a certain People Place and Time they are to have their Obliging Power determined according to those mutable Circumstances We must reverence and receive the Holy Scriptures as well of the Old as the New Testament for the infallible Word of God speaking to us with a Divine Authority and commanding both our belief and obedience Si scire vis quid tenendum sit saith Salvian excellently well Salvian l. 3. speaking particularly of providence habes sacras literas perfecta ratio est hoc tenere quod legeris If thou wouldest know what is to be holden and embraced thou hast the Holy Writings for thy direction and 't is perfect reason to hold and embrace that which thou shalt there read Plus est Deus quam omnis humana ratio humana dicta argumentis ac testibus egent Dei autem sermo ipse sibi testis est quia necesse est quicquid incorrupta veritas loquitur incorruptum sit testimonium veritatis God is more to thee than all Humane Reason Mens words want Arguments and Witnesses but the Word of God is it self sufficient Witness to it self for it is necessary that whatsoever uncorrupted Truth hath spoken should be an uncorrupted Testimony of Truth 'T is S. Augustine's Prescription never to be forgotten by us S. Aug. contra Faustum Manich l. 11. c. 5. Canonicae Scripturae serviat omnis fidelis pius intellectus Let every faithful and pious Understanding submit it self to the Canonical Scripture and therein if any thing shall at any time appear like an absurdity non licet dicere author hujus libri non tenuit veritatem we may not say the Author of this Book missed the Truth but aut codex mendosus est aut interpres erravit aut tu non intelligis either the Print or Writing is faulty or the Translator and Interpreter mistaken or thou understandest not and though we find the same Truths in other mens Writings as in these longe tamen est impar authoritas the Authority is infinitely greater here Contra Crescon And again speaking elsewhere of the Canonical Books of the Bible he adds Quos omninò judicare non audeamus secundum quos de caeteris literis vel fidelium vel infidelium judicamus These we may not presume or dare at all to judge but according unto these we judge of other Writings whether of Believers or Infidels And yet again Ep. 19. ad Hieron in an Epistle of his to S. Hierom I for my part saith he have learned to yield this reverence and honour to those Books only which are called Canonical most firmly to believe none of their Authors scribendo aliquid errâsse to have erred any thing in their writing but I so read others that be they never so eminent for Piety or Learning I do not therefore think it true which they write quia ipsi ità senserunt because they have so thought and judged but because they are able to perswade me of the truth of it vel per illos authores canonicos vel probabili ratione either by those Canonical Authors or some probable

Reason A Scripture should be more to us than any Reason provided only that we mistake it not that we misunderstand it not that we misapply it not for we can have no greater confirmation than Divine Authority We must therefore take heed lest at any time we prove irreverent Rejecters of the Word of God or any thing propounded to us out of the Holy Scriptures Abraham prefers the voice of Moses and the Prophets before the testimony of one arising purposely from the dead for the warning of the living S. Luk. 16.31 If they hear not Moses and the Prophets saith he neither will they be perswaded though one arose from the dead But if once the Law and the Prophets Moses and the Prophets find credit the Old Testament will usher in the belief of the New as well as the New confirm and strengthen the belief of the Old Had you believed Moses sayings S. John 5.46 you would have believed me saith Christ for he wrote of me Why what wrote he of Christ This expresly God shall raise up unto thee a Prophet like unto me Deut. 18.15 of thy Brethren according to thy desire and I will put my words into his mouth and whosoever will not hearken unto the words which he shall speak in my Name I will require it of him I urge the venerable estimation and reception of the Holy Scriptures from the force of our Blessed Saviour's Argument For this is the Law and the Prophets He backs his Golden Rule and Precept with that Divine and Infallible Authority which whoever are found despisers and contemners of will be sentenced as rejecters of the Testimony and Commands of God himself for the Holy Scripture is no other than his Voice who hath the most absolute Authority over both our Faith and Obedience And were there no other Reason or Account to be given of this Prescription of Christs it were abundant proof That it is Gods peremptory Command made known in the Law and Prophets But then Secondly We may further paraphrase the meaning of our Blessed Saviour's Argument thus This is the sum of all that the Law and the Prophets require at our hands To that purpose S. Chrysostom See Sect. 1. p. 1. as I noted in the beginning The whole Law in S. Paul's language 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Rom. 13.9 is sum'd up into this Sentence as into an Head Thou shalt love thy Neighbour as thy self To this Head he refers expresly all the Commands of the Second Table that respect our duty to others For this saith he Thou shalt not commit Adultery Thou shalt not kill Thou shalt not steal Thou shalt not bear false witness Thou shalt not covet and if there be any other Commandment it is briefly comprehended in this saying 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in this namely Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self which I have shewed before to be the inward and vital Principle of our Saviour's Rule Sect. 4. To this Second Table therefore some limit and confine the Text. Intelligendum est de lege monitis spectantibus mutua inter se hominum officia Grot. in loc Videtur autem hoc praeceptum ad dilectionem proximi pertinere non autem ad Dei cum in alio loco duo esse praecepta dicat in quibus tota lex pendet prophetae cum autem hic non addit tota lex quod ibi addidit fervavit locum alteri praecepto quod est de dilectione Dei S. Aug. de Serm. Dom. cit in Cat. D. Tho. 'T is to be understood saith Grotius of the Law and those Monitions in the Prophets which concern the mutual Offices of men one towards another S. Augustine in like manner This Precept seems to belong to the Love of our Neighbour only and not the Love we owe to God since that in another place Christ saith that there are two Commandments upon which hang all the Law and the Prophets Now since he addeth not here the whole Law or all the Law which he addeth there expresly he hath left room for the other Precept of the Love of God to be supplied The Text he refers to is that of S. Mat. chap. 22. where our Saviour being asked S. Matth. 22.36 40. Which is the great Commandment of the Law answers Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thy mind This is the first and great Commandment And the second is like unto it Thou shalt love thy Neighbour as thy self On these Commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 They conspire and meet together in these two to these two they are reducible The Jews themselves called these Summas magnas Vniversalia magna the great Sums and the great Universals The first of the Love of God can by no means be omitted for our Obligations to him are antecedent to all other and most considerable We must therefore have a special respect to the first and great Commandment But yet the second too saith Christ is like unto it being as universal and extensive as the former Quia actus non externos tantum sed in ternos praecipit vim suam quam latissime extendit priori necessario nexu cohaeret propter quam cohaerentiam à Paulo dicitur de posteriori quod Christus de duobus dixit Grot. in loc reaching both the inward and outward man and inseparably connected with the former for which coherence or connexion sake saith Grotius that is spoken by Paul of this later which Christ said of them both For so far may that Phrase of his reach in his Epistle to the Romans chap. 13. And if there be any other Commandment viz. not only of the Second but of the First Table Ut sit vivum ac sensibile corpus agnitio Dei necessaria est quasi caput omnes virtutes quasi corpus Vide Lactant. l. 6. It must needs be granted that these two great Commandments have that mutual dependence and tye each to other that the one necessarily as it were includeth and carrieth the other along with it The love of God includeth the love of our Neighbour and the love of our Neighbour presupposeth the love of God 1 S. John 4.20 If a man say I love God and hateth his Brother he is a liar saith S. John for he that loveth not his Brother whom he hath seen how can he love God whom he hath not seen ch 3.17 How dwelleth the Love of God in him The love of God then includes the love of Man and the love of Man is used by the same Apostle as a plain demonstration of our love to God Beloved ch 4. v. 7 8. let us love one another for Love is of God and every one that loveth is born of God and knoweth God He that loveth not knoweth not God for God is Love S. Augustine therefore