so great uncertainty and confusion so much partiality and inconsistency with each other It remains now that I proceed to demonstrate the credibility of that account of ancient times which is reported in the Sacred Scriptures which will be the second part of our Task BOOK II. CHAP. I. The certainty of the Writings of Moses In order to the proving the truth of Scripture-history several Hypotheses laid down The first concerns the reasonableness of preserving the ancient History of the world in some certain Records from the importance of the things and the inconveniences of meer tradition or constant Revelation The second concerns the certainty that the Records under Moses his name were undoubtedly his The certainty of a matter of fact enquired into in general and proved as to this particular by universal consent and settling a Common-wealth upon his Laws The impossibility of an Imposture as to the writings of Moses demonstrated The plea's to the contrary largely answered HAving sufficiently demonstrated the want of credibility in the account of ancient times given by those Nations who have made the greatest pretence to Learning and Antiquity in the world we now proceed to evince the credibility and certainty of that account which is given us in sacred Screptures In order to which I shall premise these following Hypotheses It stands to the greatest reason that an account of things so concerning and remarkable should not be always left to the uncertainty of an oral tradition but should be timely entred into certain Records to be preserved to the memory of posterity For it being of concernment to the world in order to the establishment of belief as to future things to be fully setled in the belief that all things past were managed by Divine providence there must be some certain Records of former ages or else the mind of man will be perpetually hovering in the greatest uncertainties Especially where there is such a mutual dependence and concatenation of one thing with another as there is in all the Scripture-history For take away but any one of the main foundations of the Mosaical history all the superstructure will be exceedingly weakened if it doth not fall quite to the ground For mans obligation to obedience unto God doth necessarily suppose his original to be from him his hearkening to any proposals of favour from God doth suppose his Apostacy and fall Gods designing to shew mercy and favour to fallen man doth suppose that there must be some way whereby the Great Creator must reveal himself as to the conditions on which fallen man may expect a recovery the revealing of these conditions in such a way whereon a suspicious because guilty creature may firmly rely doth suppose so certain a recording of them as may be least liable to any suspicion of imposture or deceit For although nothing else be in its self necessary from God to man in order to his salvation but the bare revealing in a certain way the terms on which he must expect it yet considering the unbounded nature of Divine goodness respecting not only the good of some particular persons but of the whole society of mankind it stands to the greatest reason that such a revelation should be so propounded as might be with equal certainty conveyed to the community of mankind Which could not with any such evidence of credibility be done by private and particular revelations which give satisfaction only to the inward senses of the partakers of them as by a publick recording of the matters of Divine revelation by such a person who is enabled to give the world all reasonable satisfaction that what he did was not of any private design of his own head but that he was deputed to it by no less then Divine authority And therefore it stands to the highest reason that where Divine revelation is necessary for the certain requiring of assent the matter to be believed should have a certain uniform conveyance to mens minds rather then that perpetually New revelations should be required for the making known of those things which being once recorded are not lyable to so many impostures as the other way might have been under pretended Revelations For then men are not put to a continual tryal of every person pretending Divine revelation as to the evidences which he brings of Divine authority but the great matters of concernment being already recorded and attested by all rational evidence as to the truth of the things their minds therein rest satisfied without being under a continual hesitancy lest the Revelation of one should contradict another For supposing that God had left the matters of Divine revelation unrecorded at all but left them to be discovered in every age by a spirit of prophecy by such a multitude as might be sufficient to inform the world of the truth of the things We cannot but conceive that an innumerable company of croaking Enthusiasts would be continually pretending commissions from heaven by which the minds of men would be left in continual distraction because they would have no certain infallible rules given them whereby to difference the good and evil spirit from each other But now supposing God to inspire some particular persons not only to reveal but to record Divine truths then what ever evidences can be brought attesting a Divine revelation in them will likewise prove the undoubted certainty and infallibility of those writings it being impossible that persons employed by a God of truth should make it their design to impose upon the world which gives us a rational account why the wise God did not suffer the History of the world to lye still unrecorded but made choice of such a person to record it who gave abundant evidence to the world that he acted no private design but was peculiarly employed by God himself for the doing of it as will appear afterwards Besides we finde by our former discourse how lyable the most certain tradition is to be corrupted in progress of time where there are no standing records though it were at first delivered by persons of undoubted credit For we have no reason to doubt but that the tradition of the old world the flood and the consequences of it with the nature and worship of the true God were at first spread over the greatest part of the world in its first plantations yet we see how soon for want of certain conveyance all the antient tradition was corrupted and abused into the greatest Idolatry Which might be less wondered at had it been only in those parts which were furthest remote from the seat of those grand transactions but thus we finde it was even among those families who had the nearest residence to the place of them and among those persons who were not far off in a lineal descent from the persons mainly concerned in them as is most evident in the family out of which Abraham came who was himself the tenth from Noah yet of them it is said that they
ORIGINES SACRAE OR A Rational Account of the Grounds OF Christian Faith AS TO THE TRUTH AND Divine Authority OF THE SCRIPTURES And the matters therein contained By EDWARD STILLINGFLEET Rector of Sutton in Bedfordshire 2 Pet. 1. 16. For we have not followed cunningly devised Fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ but were eye-witnesses of his Majesty Neque religio ulla sine sapientia suscipienda est nec ulla sine religione probanda sapientia Lactant. de fals relig cap. 1. LONDON Printed by R. W. for Henry Mortlock at the sign of the Phoenâ—â— in St. Pauls Church-yard near the little North-door 1662. To his most Honoured Friend and Patron Sr. ROGER BURGOINE Knight and Baronet Sir IT was the early felicitie of Moses when exposed in an Ark of Nilotick papyre to be adopted into the favour of so great a personage as the Daughter of Pharaoh Such another Ark is this vindication of the writings of that Divine and excellent Person exposed to the world in and the greatest ambition of the Author of it is to have it received into your Patronage and Protection But although the contexture and frame of this Treatise be far below the excellency and worth of the subject as you know the Ark in which Moses was put was of bulrushes daubed with slime and pitch yet when You please to cast your eye on the matter contained in it you will not think it beneath your Favour and unworthy your Protection For if Truth be the greatest Present which God could bestow or man receive according to that of Plurarch 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 then certainly those Truths deserve our most ready acceptance which are in themselves of greatest importance and have the greatest evidence that they come from God And although I have had the happiness of so near relation to You acquaintance with You as to know how little You need such discourses which tend to settle the Foundations of Religion which you have raised so happy a Superstructure upon yet withal I consider what particular Kindness the souls of all good men bear to such Designs whose end is to assert and vindicate the Truth and Excellency of Religion For those who are enriched themselves with the inestimable Treasure of true Goodness and Piety are far from that envious temper to think nothing valuable but what they are the sole Possessors of but such are the most satisfied themselves when they see others not only admire but enjoy what they have the highest estimation of Were all who make a shew of Religion in the World really such as they pretend to be discourses of this nature vvould be no more seasonable then the commendations of a great Beauty to one vvho is already a passionate admirer of it but on the contrary vve see how common it is for men first to throw dirt in the face of Religion and then perswade themselves it is its natural Complexion they represent it to themselves in a shape least pleasing to them and then bring that as a Plea why they give it no better entertainment It may justly seem strange that true Religion which contains nothing in it but what is truly Noble and Generous most rational and pleasing to the spirits of all good men should yet suffer so much in its esteem in the world through those strange and uncouth vizards it is represented under Some accouting the life and practice of it as it speaks subduing our wills to the will of God which is the substance of all Religion a thing too low and mean for their rank and condition in the World while others pretend a quarrel against the principles of it as unsatisfactory to Humane reason Thus Religion suffers with the Author of it between two Thieves and it is hard to define which is more injurious to it that which questions the Principles or that which despiseth the Practice of it And nothing certainly will more incline men to believe that we live in an Age of Prodigies then that there should be any such in the Christian World who should account it a piece of Gentility to despise Religion and a piece of Reason to be Atheists For if there be any such things in the World as a true height and magnanimity of spirit if there be any solid reason and depth of judgement they are not only consistent with but only attainable by a true generous spirit of Religion But if we look at that which the loose and profane World is apt to account the greatest gallantry we shall find it made up of such pitiful Ingredients which any skilful rational mind will be ashamed to plead for much less to mention them in competition with true goodness and unfeigned piety For how easie is it to observe such who would be accounted the most high and gallant spirits to quarry on such mean preys which only tend to satisfie their brutish appetites or flesh revenge with the blood of such who have stood in the way of that ayery title Honour Or else they are so little apprehensive of the in ward worth and excellency of humane nature that they seem to envy the gallantry of Peacocks and strive to outvy them in the gayety of their Plumes such vvho are as seneca saith ad similitudinem parietum extrinsecùs culti vvho imitate the walls of their houses in the fairness of the outsides but matter not vvhat rubbish there lies within The utmost of their ambition is to attain enervatam felicitatem quâ permadescunt animi such a felicity as evigorates the soul by too long steeping it being the nature of all terrestrial pleasures that they do 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by degrees consume reason by effeminating and softening the Intellectuals Must we appeal then to the judgement of Sardanapalus concerning the nature of Felicity or enquire of Apicius what temperance is or desire that Sybarite to define Magnanimity who fainted to see a man at hard labour Or doth now the conquest of passions forgiving injuries doing good self-denial humility patience under crosses which are the real expressions of piety speak nothing more noble generous then a luxurious malicious proud and impatient spirit Is there nothing more becoming and agreeable to the soul of man in exemplary Piety and a Holy well-orderd Conversation then in the lightness and vanity not to say rudeness and debaucheries of those whom the world accounts the greatest gallants Is there nothing more graceful and pleasing in the sweetness candour and ingenuity of a truly Christian temper and disposition then in the revengeful implacable spirit of such whose Honour lives and is fed by the Blood of their enemies Is it not more truly honourable and glorious to serve that God who commands the World then to be a slave to those passions and lusts which put men upon continual hard service and torment them for it when they have done it Were there nothing else to commend Religion
to the minds of men besides that tranquillity and calmness of spirit that serene and peaceable temper which follows a good conscience whereever it dwells it were enough to make men welcom that guest which brings such good entertainment with it Whereas the amazements horrours and anxieties of mind which at one time or other haunt such who prostitute their Consciences to a violation of the Lawes of God and the rules of rectified reason may be enough to perswade any rational person that impiety is the greatest folly and irreligion madness It cannot be then but matter of great pity to consider that any persons whose birth and education hath raised them above the common people of the World should be so far their own enemies as to observe the Fashion more then the rules of Religion and to study complements more then themselves and read Romances more then the sacred Scriptures which alone are able to make them wise to salvation But Sir I need not mention these things to You unless it be to let You see the excellency of your choice in preferring true Vertue and Piety above the Ceremony and Grandeur of the World Go on Sir to value and measure true Religion not by the uncertain measures of the World but by the infallible dictates of God himself in his sacred Oracles Were it not for these what certain foundation could there be for our Faith to stand on and who durst venture his soul as to its future condition upon any authority less then the infallible veracity of God himself What certain directions for practice should we have what rule to judge of opinions by had not God out of his infinite goodness provided and preserved this authentick instrument of his Will to the World What a strange Religion would Christianity seem should we frame the Model of it from any other thing then the Word of God Without all controversie the disesteem of the Scriptures upon any pretence whatsoever is the decay of Religion and through many windings and turnings leads men at last into the very depth of Atheism Whereas the frequent and serious conversing with the mind of God in his Word is incomparably useful not only for keeping up in us a true Notion of Religion which is easily mistaken when men look upon the face of it in any other glass then that of the Scriptures but likewise for maintaining a powerful sense of Religion in the souls of men and a due valuation of it whatever its esteem or entertainment be in the World For though the true genuine spirit of Christianity which is known by the purity and peaceableness of it should grow never so much out of credit with the World yet none who heartily believe the Scriptures to be the Word of God and that the matters revealed therein are infallibly true will ever have the less estimation of it It must be confessed that the credit of Religion hath much sufferd in the Age we live in through the vain pretences of many to it who have only acted a part in it for the sake of some pâ—ivate interests of their own And it is the usual Logick of Atheists crimine ab uno Disce omnes if there be any hypocrites all who make shew of Religion are such on which account the Hypocrisie of one Age makes way for the Atheism of the next But how unreasonable and unjust that imputation is there needs not much to discover unless it be an argument there are no true men in the World because there are so many Apes which imitate them or that there are no Jewels because there are so many Counterfeits And blessed be God our Age is not barren of Instances of real goodness and unaffected piety there being some such generous spirits as dare love Religion without the dowry of Interest and manifest their affection to it in the plain dress of the Scriptures without the paint and set-offs which are added to it by the several contending parties of the Christian World Were there more such noble spirits of Religion in our Age Atheism would want one of the greatest Pleas which it now makes against the Truth of Religion for nothing enlarges more the Gulf of Atheism then that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that wide passage which lies between the Faith and Lives of men pretending to be Christians I must needs say there is nothing seems more strange and unaccountable to me then that the Practice of the unquestionable duties of Christianity should be put out of Countenance or slighted by any who own profess and contend for the Principles of it Can the profession of that be honourable whose practice is not If the principles be true why are they not practised If they be not true why are they professed You see Sir to what an unexpected length my desire to vindicate the Honour as well as Truth of Religion hath drawn out this present address But I may sooner hope for your pardon in it then if I had spent so much paper after the usual manner of Dedications in representing You to your self or the World Sir I know You have too much of that I have been commending to delight in Your own deserved praises much less in flatteries which so benign a subject might easily make ones pen run over in And therein I might not much have digressed from my design since I know few more exemplary for that rare mixture of true piety and the highest civility together in whom that inestimable jewel of religion is placed in a most sweet affable and obliging temper But although none will be more ready on any occasion with all gratitude to acknowledge the great obligations You have laid upon me yet I am so far sensible of the common vanity of Epistles Dedicatory that I cannot so heartily comply with them in any thing as in my hearty prayers to Almighty for your good and welfare and in subscribing my self Sir Your most humble and affectionate servant Iune 5. 1662. ED. STILLINGFLEET THE PREFACE TO THE READER IT is neither to satisfie the importunity of friends nor to prevent false copies which and such like excuses I know are expected in usual Prefaces that I have adventured abroad this following Treatise but it is out of a just resentment of the affronts and indignities which have been cast on Religion by such who account it a matter of judgement to disbelieve the Scriptures and a piece of wit to dispute themselves out of the possibility of being happy in another world When yet the more acute and subtile their arguments are the greater their strength is against themselves it being impossible there should be so much wit and subtilty in the souls of men were they not of a more excellent nature then they imagine them to be And how contradictious is it for such persons to be ambitious of being cryed up for wit and reason whose design is to degrade the rational soul so far below her self as to make her become like the beasts
demonstrating the undoubted antiquity of one beyond the other whereby we must do as Archimedes did by the crown of Hiero find out the exact proportions of truth and falshood which lay in all those Heathen Fables And this now leads to the third account why truth is so hardly discerned from errour even by those who search after it which is the great obscurity of the History of Ancient Times which should decide the Controversie For there being an universal agreement in some common principles and a frequent resemblance in particular traditions we must of necessity for the clearing the truth from its corruption have recourse to ancient history to see if thereby we can find out where the Original tradition was best preserved by what means it came to be corrupted and whereby we may distinguish those corruptions from the Truths to which they are annexed Which is the design and subject of our future discourse viz. to demonstrate that there was a certain original and general tradition preserved in the world concerning the oldest Ages of the world that this tradition was gradually corrupted among the Heathens that not withstanding this corruption there were sufficient remainders of it to evidence its true original that the sull account of this tradition is alone preserved in those books we call the Scriptures That where any other histery seems to cross the report contained in them we have sufficient ground to question their credibility and that there is sufficient evidence to clear the undoubted certainty of that histery which is contained in the sacred Records of Scripture Wherein we shall observe the same method which Thales took in taking the height of the Pyramids by measuring the length of their shadow so shall we the height and antiquity of truth from the extent of the fabulous corruptions of it Which will be a work of so much the greater difficulty because the truth we pursue after takes covert in so great antiquity and we must be forced to follow its most flying footsteps through the dark and shady paths of ancient history For though history be frequently called the Light of Truth and the Herald of Times yet that light is so faint and dim especially in Heathen Nations as not to serve to discover the face of Truth from her counterseit Error and that Herald so little skill'd as not to be able to tell us which is of the Elder house The reason is though Truth be always of greater Antiquity yet Errour may have the more wrinkled face by which it often imposeth on such who guess antiquity by deformity and think nothing so old as that which can give the least account of its own age This is evidently the case of those who make the pretence of ancient history a plea for Insidelity and think no argument more plausible to impugn the certainty of Divine Revâ—lation with then the seeming repugnancy of some pretended histories with the account of ancient time reported in the Bible Which being a pretext so unworthy designed for solill an end and so frequently made use of by such who account Infidelity a piece of antiquity as well as reason it may be worth our while to shew that it is not more liable to be baffled with reason then to be confuted by Antiquity In order therefore to the removing of this stumbling-block in our way I shall first evince that there is no certain credibility in any of those ancient histories which seem to contradict the Scriptures nor any ground of reason why we should assent to them when they differ from the Bible and then prove that all those undoubted characters of a most certain and authentick historie are legible in those records contained in Scripture Whereby we shall not only shew the unreasonableness of Infidelity but the rational evidence which our faith doth stand on as to these things I shall demonstrate the first of these viz that there is no ground of assent to any ancient histories which give an account of things different from the Scriptures from these arguments the apparent desect weakness and insufficiency of them as to the giving an account of elder times The monstrous confusion ambiguity and uncertainty of them in the account which they give the evident partiality of them to themselves and inconsistency with each other I begin with the first of these the defect and insufficiency of them to give in such an account of elder times as may amount to certain credibility which if cleared will of its self be sufficient to manifest the incompetency of those records as to the laying any foundation for any firm assent to be given to them Now this defect and insufficiency of those histories is either more general which lies in common to them all or such as may be observed in a particular consideration of the histories of those several Nations which have pretended highest to Antiquity The General defect is the want of timely records to preserve their histories in For it is most evident that the truest history in the world is liable to various corruptions through length of time if there be no certain way of preserving it entire And that through the frailty of memory in those who had integrity to preserve it through the gradual increase of Barbarism and Ignorance where there are no wayes of instruction and through the subtilty of such whose interest it may be to corrupt and alter that tradition If we find such infinite variety and difference of men as to the histories of their own times when they have all possible means to be acquainted with the truth of them what account can we imagine can be given by those who had no certain way of preserving to posterity the most authentick relation of former Ages Especially it being most evident that where any certain way of preserving tradition is wanting a people must soon degenerate into the greatest stupidity and Barbarism because all will be taken up in minding their own petty concerns and no encouragement at all given to such publick spirits who would mind the credit of the whole Nation For what was there for such to employ themselves upon or spend their time in when they had no other kind of Learning among them but some general traditions conveyed from Father to Son which might be learned by such who followed nothing but domestick employments So that the sons of Noah after their several dispersions and plantations of several Countries did gradually degenerate into Ignorance and Barbarism for upon their first setling in any Countrey they found it employment sufficient to cultivate the Land and fit themselves habitations to live in and to provide themselves of necessities for their mutual comfort and subsistence Besides this they were often put to removes from one place to another where they could not conveniently reside which Thucydides speaks much of as to the ancient state of Greece and it was a great while before they came to imbody themselves together
God that day seeing it was neither new-moon nor Sabbath Whereby it is both evident that the Prophets did undertake the office of instructing the people on their solemn Festivals and that it was their custom to resort to them for that end Thus we see what care God took for the instruction of his people in a time of so general an Apostacy as that of the ten tribes was when the Church of God could not be known by that constant visibility and oâ—tward glory which some speak so much of but was then clouded in obscurity and shrouded it self under the mantlâ—s of some Prophets which God continued among them and that not by any lineal succession neither though the Iews would fain make the gift of Prophecy to be a kind of Cabala too and conveyed in a constant succession from one Prophet to another Neither were these Schools of the Prophets only in Israel but in Iudah likewise was God known and his Name was great among these Schools there In Ierusalem it self there was a Colledge where Huldah the Prophetess lived 2 Kings 22. 14. some render Mishna in secunda urbis parte for Ierusalem was divided into the upper and nether part of the City Abulensis and Lyra will have it refer to the three walls of the City in which the three chief parts of it were comprized in the first the Temple and the Kings Pâ—lace in the second the Nobles and the Prophets houses and in the third the common people Iosephus seems to favour the devision of the City into three parts but Pineda thinks the second part of the City was most inhabited by Artificers and that the Prophets and the wise men and such as frequented the Temple most dwelt in the City of David within the first wall and therefore he conjectures that the Colledge was upon Mount Sion and so properly called Sion Colledge and he explains that house which wisdom is said to have built and hewn out her seven pillars Prov. 9. 1. by this Colledge which he supposeth was built by Solomon in Mount Sion and thence ver 3. she is said to cry upon the highest places of the City Thus much may serve concerning the original and institution of these Schools of the Prophets I now come to the second thing promised concerning the Schools of the Prophets which is that it was Gods ordinary method to call those persons out of these Schools whom he did employ in the discharge of the prophetical office Two things will be necessary for the clearing of this First what tendency their education in those Schools had towards the fitting them for their prophetical office Secondly what evidence the Scripture gives us that God called the Prophets out from these Colledges The first of these is very requisite to be cleared because the prophetical office depending upon immediate inspiration it is hard to conceive what influence any antecedent and preparatory dispositions can have upon receiving the prophetical spirit It is commonly known how much the generality of Iewish Writers do insist on the necessity of these qualifications antecedent to a spirit of prophecie 1. An excellent natural temper 2. Good accomplishments both of with and fortunes 3. Separation from the world 4. Congruity of place which they make proper to Iudaea 5. Opportunity of time 6. And divine inspiration These are so largely discoursed of by many learned men from Iewish Writers that it will be both tedious and impertinent to recite much of their opinions concerning them who since they have lost the gift of prophecie seem to have lost too that wisdom and natural understanding which they make one of the most necessary qualifications of a Prophet It is not easie to imagine what subserviency riches could have to a prophetical spirit unless the Iews be of Simon Magus his opinion that these gifts of the Holy Ghost may be purchased with money and if so they think themselves in as likely a way to bid fair for a prophetical spirit as any people in the world Or is it that they thiâ—k it impossible any without them should have that fâ—ee cheerful and generous spirit which they make so necessary to a prophetick spirit that it is an axiome of great authority with them Spiritus sanctus non residet super hominem moestum and they think Elisha his fit of passion did excuss his prophetick spirit from him which he was fain to retrive again with a fit of Musick There are only two sorts of those antecedent dispositions which seem to bear any affinity with the prophetick spirit And those are such as tended to the improvement of their natural faculties and such as tended to their advancement in piety and consequently to the subduing all irregular motions in their souls Not that either of these did concur by way of efficiency to the production of a spirit of prophecie which is an opinion Maimonides seems very favourable to but that God might make choise particularly of such persons to remove all prejudices against them in those they were sent unto For nothing could possibly dissatisfie them more concerning divine inspiration then if the person who pretended to it were of very weak and shallow intellectuals or known to be of an irregular conversation In order therefore to the fuller satisfaction of men concerning these two qualisications this Institution of them in the Schools of the Prophets was of great subserviency because therein their only imployment was to improve in knowledge and especially in true piety This latter being the most necessary disposition since the Apostle hath told us that the Prophets were Holy men who spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost And in order to this the greatest part we can find of the exercises of those who were educated in these Schools of the Prophets were instructions in the Law and the solemn celebration of the praises of God Which appears in Scripture to have been their chief employment as Prophets and by which they are said to prophecie So at Gibeah at the Oratory there we find a company of Prophets coming down from the high place with a Psaltery a Tabret and pipe and a Harp before them and prophecying It may seem somewhat strange to consider what relation these Musical instruments had to the prophecying here mentioned Are Musical notes like some seeds Naturalists speak of which will help to excite a prophetick spirit Or do they tend to elevate the spirits of men and so put them into a greater capacity of Enthusiasm Or is it because Musick is so excellent for allaying the tumults of inward passions and so fitting the soul for the better entertainment of the Divine Spirit Or was all this prophecying here spoken of nothing else but vocal and instrumental Musick So some indeed understand it that it was only the praising God with spiritual songs and melody wherein one as the Praecentor began a hymn which the rest took from him and carried on
put too great a restraint upon the boundless spirit of God For sometimes as will appear afterwards God sent the Prophets upon extraordinary messages and then furnished them with sufficient evidence of their Divine commission without being beholding to the Testimonials of the Schools of the Prophets But besides these God had a kind of Leiger-Prophets among his people such were the most of those whom we read of in Scripture which were no pen-men of the sacred Scripture such in Davids time we may conceive Gad and Nathan and afterwards we read of many other Prophets and Seers among them to whom the people made their resort Now these in probability were such as had been trained up in the Prophetick Schools wherein the spirit of God did appear but in a more fixed and setled way then in the extraordinary Prophets whom God did call out on some more signal occasions such as Isaiah and Ieremiah were We have a clear foundation for such a distinction of Prophets in those words of Amos to Amaziah Amos 7. 14 15. I was no Prophet neither was I a Prophets son but I was a herdman and a gatherer of Sycamore fruits And the Lord took me as I followed the stock and the Lord said unto me Go prophecie to my people Israel Some understand the first words I was not a Prophet that he was not born a Prophet as Ieremiah was not designed and set apart to it from his mothers womb but I rather think by his not being a Prophet he means he was none of those resident Prophets in the Colledges or Schools of them not any of those who had led a prophetick life and withdrawn themselves from converse with the world nor was I saith he the son of a Prophet i. e. not brought up in discipleship under those Prophets and thereby trained up in order to the prophetick function Non didici inter discipulos Prophetarum as Pellican renders it nec institutione qua filii Prophetarum quasi ad donum Prâ—phetiae à parentibus praeparabantur saith Estius Non à puero educatus in Schol is Propheticis so Calvin and most other modern Interpreters understand it as well as Abarbinel and the Jewish Writers Whereby it is evident that Gods ordinary way for the Prophets was to take such as had been trained up and educated in order to that end although God did not tye up hmself to this method but sometimes called one from the Court as he did Isaiah sometimes one from the herds as here he did Amos and bid them go prophecie to the house of Israel There was then a kind of a standing Colledge of Prophets among the Israelites who shined as fixed Stars in the Firmament and there were others who had a more planetary motion and withall a more lively and resplendent illumination from the fountain of prophetick light And further it seems that the spirit of prophecie did not ordinarily seize on any but such whose institution was in order to that end by the great admiration which was caused among the people at Sauls so sudden prophecying that it became a proverb Is Saul also among the Prophets which had not given the least foundation for an adage for a strange and unwonted thing unless the most common appearances of the spirit of Prophecie had been among those who were trained up in order to it Thus I suppose we have fully cleared the first reason why there was no necessity for the ordinary Prophets whose chief office was instruction of the people to prove their commission by miracles because God had promised a succession of Prophets by Moses and these were brought up ordinarily to that end among them so that all prejudices were sufficiently removed from their persons without any such extraordinary power as that of miracles CHAP. V. The tryal of Prophetical Doctrine Rules of trying Prophets established in the Law of Moses The punishment of pretenders The several sorts of false Prophets The case of the Prophet at Bethel discussed The tryâ—l of false Prophets belonging to the great Sanhedrin The particular rules whereby the Doctrine of Prophets was judged The proper notion of a Prophet not forâ—telling future contingencies but having immediate Divine revelation Several principles laid down for clearing the doctrine of the Prophets 1. That immediate dictates of natural light are not to be the measure of Divine revelation Several grounds for Divine revelation from natural light 2. What ever is directly repugnant to the dictates of nature cannot be of Divine revelation 3. No Divine revelation doth contradict a Divine positive Law without sufficient evidence of Gods intention to repeal that Law 4. Divine revelation in the Prophets was not to be measured by the words of the Law but by the intention and reason of it The Prophetical office a kind of Chancery to the Law of Moses THE second reason why those Prophets whose main office was instruction of the people or meerly foretelling future events needed not to confirm their doctrine by mirales is because they had certain rules of tryal by their Law whereby to discern the false Prophets from the true So that if they were deceived by them it was their own oscitancy and inadvertency which was the cause of it God in that Law which was confirmed by miracles undoubtedly Divine had established a Court of tryal for Prophetick Spirits and given such certain rules of procedure in it that no men needed to be deceived unless they would themselves And there was a greater necessity of such a certain way of tryal among them because it could not otherwise be expected but in a Nation where a Prophetick Spirit was so common there would be very many pretenders to it who might much endanger the faith of the people unless there were some certain way to find them out And the more effectually to deterre men either from counterfeiting a Prophetick Spirit or from hearkâ—ning to such as did God appointed a severe punishment for every such pretender viz. upon legal conviction that he be punished with death Deut. 18. 20. But the Prophet which shall presume to speak a word in my name which I have not commanded him to speak or that shall speak in the name of other Gods shall surely dye The Iews generally understand this of strangling as they do alwayes in the Law when the particular manner of death is not expressed And therein a salse Prophet and a seducer were distinguished each from other that a meer seducer was to be stoned to death under sufficient testimony Deut. 13. 6 10. But the false Prophet is there said in general only to be put to death Deut. 13. 1 5. The main difference between the seducer and false Prophet was that the seducer sought by cunning perswasions and plausible arguments to draw them off from the worship of the true God but the false Prophet alwayes pretended Divine revelation for what he perswaded them to whether he gave out that he had that revelation
resolve the particular emergent cases concerning predictions The prediction of future events is no further an argument of Prophetick spirit then as the fore-knowledge of those things is supposed to be out of the reach of any created understanding And therefore God challengeth this to himself in Scripture as a peculiar prerogative of his own to declare the things that are to come and thereby manifests the Idols of the Gentiles to be no Gods because they could not shew to their worshippers the things to come Isaiah 44. 6 7. From this hypothesis these two Consectaries follow 1. That the events which are foretold must be such as do exceed the reach of any created intellect for otherwise it could be no evidence of a Spirit of true Prophecy so that the foretelling of such events as depend upon a series of natural causes or such as though they are out of the reach of humane understanding yet are not of the Diabolical or such things as fall out casually true but by no certain grounds of prediction can none of them be any argument of a Spirit of Prophecy 2. That where there were any other evidences that the Prophet spake by Divine Revelation there was no reason to wait the fulfilling of every particular Prophecy before he was believed as a Prophet If so then many of Gods chiefest Prophets could not have been believed in their own Generations because their Prophecies did reach so far beyond them as Isaiahs concerning Cyrus the Prophet at Bethel concerning Iosias and all the Prophecies concerning the captivity and deliverance from it must not have been believed till fulfilled that is not believed at all for when Prophecies are accomplished they are no longer the objects of faith but of sense Where then God gives other evidences of Divine inspiration the credit of the Prophet is not suspended upon the minute accomplishment of every event foretold by him Now it is evident there may be particular Divine revelation of other things besides future contingencies so that if a reason may be given why events once foretold may not come to pass there can be no reason why the credit of any Prophecy should be invalidated on that account because every event is not exactly correspondent to the prediction It is most certain that what ever comes under Divine knowledge may be Divinely revealed for the manifestation which is caused by any light may extend its self to all things to which that light is extended but that light which the Prophets saw by was a Divine light and therefore might equally extend it self to all kind of objects but because future contingencies are the most remote from humane knowledge therefore the foretelling of these hath been accounted the great evidence of a true Prophet but yet there may be a knowledge of other things in a lower degree then future contingencies which may immediately depend upon Divine revelation and these are 1. Such things which cannot be known by one particular man but yet is certainly known by other men as the present knowledge of things done by persons at a remote distance from them thus Elisha knew what Gehezi did when he followed Nâ—aman and thus the knowledge of the thoughts of anothers heart depends upon immediate Divine revelation whereas every one may certainly know the thoughts of his own heart and therefore to some those things may be matters of sense or evident demenstration which to another may be a matter of immediate revelation 2. Such things as relate not to future contingencies but are matters of faith exceeding the reach of humane apprehension such things as may be known when revealed but could never have been found out without immediate revelation such all the mysteries of our religion are the mystery of the Trinity Incarnation Hypostatical union the death of the Son of God for the pardon of the sins of mankind Now the immediate revelation of either of these two sorts of objects speaks as much a truly Prophetical spirit as the prediction of future contingencies So that this must not be looked on as the just and adequate rule to measure a spirit of Prophecy by because the ground of judging a Prophetical spirit by that is common with other things without that seeing other objects are out of the reach of humane understanding as well as future events and therefore the discovery of them must immediately flow from Divine revelation 3. The revelation of future events to the understanding of a Prophet is never the less immediate although the event may not be correspondent to the prediction So that if it be manifest that God immediately reveal such future contingencies to a Prophet he would be nevertheless a true Prophet whether those predictions took effect or no. For a true Prophet is known by the truth of Divine revelation to the person of the Prophet and not by the success of the thing which as is laid down in the hypothesis is no further an evidence of a true Prophet then as it is an argument a posteriori to prove Divine revelation by If then the alteration of events after predictions be reconcileable with the truth and faithfulness of God there is no question but it is with the truth of a Prophetical spirit the formality of which lies in immediate revelation The Prophets could not declare any thing more to the people then was immediately revealed unto themselves What was presently revealed so much they knew and no more because the spirit of Prophecy came upon them per modum impressionis transeuntis as the Schools speak and not per modum habitus the lumen propheticum was in them not as lumen in corpore lucido but as lumen in aëre and therefore the light of revelation in their spirits depended upon the immediate irradiations of the Divine Spirit The Prophets had not alwayes a power to Prophecy when they would themselves and thence it is said when they Prophesied that the Word of the Lord came unto them And therefore the Schools determine that a Prophet upon an immediate revelation did not know omnia prophetabilia as they speak in their barbarous language all things which God might reveal the reason whereof Aquinas thus gives the ground saith he of the connexion of diverse objects together is some common tie or principle which joynes them together as charity or prudence is in moral vertues and the right understanding of the principles of a science is the ground why all things belonging to that science are understood but now in Divine revelation that which connects the objects of Divine revelation is God himself now because he cannot be fully apprehended by any humane intellect therefore the understanding of a Prophet cannot comprehend all matters capable of being revealed but only such as it pleaseth God himself freely to communicate to the Prophets understanding by immediate revelation This is further evident by all those different degrees of illumination and Prophecy which the Iews and other
mysteries our faith stands upon this twofold bottom First that the being understanding and power of God doth infinitely transcend ours and therefore he may reveal to us matters above our reach and capacity Secondly that whatever God doth reveal is undoubtedly true though we may not fully understand it for this is a most undoubted principle that God cannot and will not deceive any in those things which he reveals to men Thus our first supposition is cleared that it is not repugnant to reason that a doctrine may be true which depends not on the evidence of the thing it self The second is That in matters whose truth depends not on the evidence of the things themselves infallible testimony is the fullest demonstration of them For these things not being of Mathematical evidence there must be some other way found out for demonstrating the truth of them And in all those things whose truth depends on Testimony the more creditable the Testimony is the higher evidence is given to them but that testimony which may deceive cannot give so pregnant an evidence as that which cannot for then all imaginable objections are taken off This is so clear that it needs no further proof and therefore the third follows That there are certain ways whereby to know that a Testimony delivered is infallible and that is fully proved by these two Arguments 1. That it is the duty of all those to whom it is propounded to believe it now how could that be a duty in them to believe which they had no ways to know whether it were a Testimony to be believed or no. 2. Because God will condemn the world for unbelief In which the Justice of Gods proceedings doth necessarily suppose that there were sufficient arguments to induce them to believe which could not be unless there were some certain way supposed whereby a Testimony may be known to be infallible These three things now being supposed viz. that a doctrine may be true which depends not on evidonce of reason that the greatest demonstration of the truth of such a doctrine is its being delivered by infallible Testimony and that there are certain ways whereby a Testimony may be known to be infallible Our first principle is fully confirmed which was that where the truth of a doctrine depends not on evidence of reason but on the authority of him that reveals it the only way to prove the doctrine to be true is to prove the Testimony of him that reveals it to be infallible The next principle or Hypothesis which I lay down is That there can be no greater evidence that a Testimony is infallible then that it is the Testimony of God himself The truth of this depends upon a common notion of humane nature which is the veracity of God in whatever way he discovers himself to men and therefore the ultimate resolution of our faith as to its formal object must be alone into the veracity of God revealing things unto us for the principium certitudinis or foundation of all certain assent can be fetched no higher neither will it stand any lower then the infallible verity of God himself and the principium patefactionis or the ground of discovery of spiritual truth to our minds must be resolved into Divine Testimony or revelation These two then not taken asunder but joyntly God who cannot lye hath revealed these things is the only certain foundation for a divine faith to rest its self upon But now the particular exercise of a Divine faith lies in a firm assent to such a particular thing as Divinely revealed and herein lyes not so much the Testimony as the peculiar energy of the Spirit of God in inclining the soul to believe peculiar objects of faith as of Divine revelation But the general ground of faith which they call the formal object or the ratio propter quam credimus is the general infallibility of a Divine Testimony For in a matter concerning divine revelation there are two great questions to be resolved The first is Why I believe a Divine Testimony with a firm assent The answer to that is because I am assured that what ever God speaks is true the other is upon what grounds do I believe this to be a Divine Testimony the resolution of which as far as I can understand must be fetched from those rational evidences whereby a Divine Testimony must be distinguished from one meerly humane and fallible For the Spirit of God in its workings upon the mind doth not carry it on by a brutish impulse but draws it by a spiritual discovery of such strong and perswasive grounds to assent to what is revealed that the mind doth readily give a firm assent to that which it sees such convincing reason to believe Now the strongest reason to believe is the manifestation of a divine Testimony which the Spirit of God so clearly discovers to a true believer that he not only firmly assents to the general foundation of faith the veracity of God but to the particular object propounded as a matter of Divine Revelation But this latter question is not here the matter of our discourse our proposition only concerns the general foundation of faith which appears to be so rational and evident as no principle in nature can be more For if the Testimony on which I am to rely be only Gods and I be assured from natural reason that his Testimony can be no other then infallible wherein doth the certainty of the foundation of faith fall short of that in any Mathematical demonstration Upon which account a Divine Testimony hath been regarded with so much veneration among all who have owned a Deity although they have been unacquainted with any certain way of Divine revelation And the reason why any rejected such a Testimony among the Heathens was either because they believed not a Deity or else that the particular Testimonies produced were meer frauds and impostures and therefore no Divine Testimony as it was given out to be But the principle still remained indisputable that on supposition the Testimony were what it pretended to be there was the greatest reason to believe it although it came not in such a way of probation as their sciences proceeded in From which principle arose that speech of Tully which he hath translated out of Plato's Timaeus Ac difficillimum factu à Diis ortis sidem non haber◠quanquam nec argumentis nec rationibus certis eorum oratio confirmetur By which we see what a presumption there was of Truth where there was any evidence of a Divine Testimony And no doubt upon the advantage of this principle it was the Devil gained so great credit to his oracles for therein he did the most imitate Divine revelation From hence then we see what a firm bottom faith in the general stands upon which is nothing short of an Infallible Divine Testimony other things may conduce by way of subserviency for the discovery of this but nothing
it to attest the truth of such things by any real miracles For so it would invalidate the great force of the evidences of the truth of Christianity if the same argument should be used for the proving of that which in the judgement of any impartial person was not delivered when the truth of the doctriâ—e of Christ was confirmed by so many and uncontrouled miracles But hereby we see what unconceivable prejudice hath been done to the true primitive doctrine of the Gospel and what stumbling-blocks have been laid in the way of considerative persons to keep them from embracing the truly Christian faith by those who would be thought the infallible directors of men in it by making use of the broad-seal of Heaven set only to the truth of the Scriptures to confirm their unwritten and superstitious ways of worship For if I once see that which I looked on as an undoubted evidence of divine power brought to attest any thing directly contrary to divine revelation I must either conclude that God may contradict himself by sealing both parts of a contradiction which is both blasphemous and impossible or that that society of men which own such things is not at all tender of the honour of Christain doctrine but seeks to set up an interest contrary to it and matters not what disadvantage is done to the grounds of Râ—ligion by such unworthy pretences and which of these two is more rational and true let every ones conscience judge And therefore it is much the interest of the Christian world to have all such frauds and impostures discovered which do so much disservice to the Christian faith and are such secret fomenters of Atheism and Infidelity But how far that promise of our Saviour that they which believe in his name shall cast out Devils and do many miracles may extend even in these last ages of the world to such generous and primitive-spirited Christians who out of a great and deep sense of the truth of Christianity and tenderness to the souls of men should go among Heathens and Infidels to convert them only to Christ and not to a secular interest under pretence of an infallible head is not here a place fully to enquire I confess I cannot see any reason why God may not yet for the conviction of Infidels employ such a power of miracles although there be not such necessity of it as there was in the first propagation of the Gospel there being some evidences of the power of Christianity now which were not so clear then as the overthrowing the Kingdom of Satan in the world the prevailing of Christianity notwithstanding force used against it the recovâ—ry of it from amidst all the corruptions which were mixed with it the consent of those parties in the common foundations of Christianity which yet disagreâ— froâ— each other with great bitternâ—ss of spirit though I say it be not of that necessity now when the Scriptures are convâ—yed to us in a certain uninterrupted manner yet God may please out of his abundant provision for the satisfaction of the minds of men concerning the truth of Christian doctrine to employ good men to do something which may manifest the power of Christ to be above the Dâ—vils whom they worship And therefore I should far sooner believe the relation of the miracles of Xaverius and his Brethren employed in the conversion of Infidels then Lipsius his Virgo Hallensis and Asprecollis could it but be made evident to me that the design of those persons had more of Christianity then Popery in it that is that they went more upon a design to bring the souls of the Infidels to heaven then to enlarge the authority and jurisdiction of the Roman Church But whatever the truth of those miracles or the design of those persons were we have certain and undoubted evidence of the truth of those miracles whereby Christianity was first propagated and the Kingdom of Satan overthrown in the world Christ thereby making it appear that his power was greater then the Devils who had possession because he overcame him took from him all his armour wherein he trusted and divided his spoils i. e. dispossâ—ssed him of mens bodies and his Idolatrous Temples silenced his Oracles nonplust his Magicians and at last when Christianity had overcome by suffering wrested the worldly power and Empire out of the Devils hands and employed it against himself Neither may we think because since that time the Devil hath got some ground in the world again by the large spread of Mahometism the general corruptions in the Christian world that therefore the other was no argument of divine power because the truth of Christianity is not tyed to any particular places because such a falling away hath been foretold in Scripture and therefore the truth of them is proved by it and because God himself hath threatned that those who will not receive the truth in the love of it shall be given up to strong de'usions Doth not this then in stead of abating the strength of the argument confirm it more and that nothing is fallen out in the Christian world but what was foretold by those whom God employed in the converting of it But we are neither without some fair hopes even from that divine revelation which was sealed by uncontrouled evidence that there may be yet a time to come when Christ will recover his Churches to their pristine purity and simplicity but withall I think we are not to measure the future felicity of the Church by outward splendor and greatness which too many so strongly fancy but by a recovery of that true spirit of Christianity which breathed in the first ages of the Church whatever the outward condition of the Church may be For if worldly greatness and ease and riches were the first impairers of the purity of Christian Religion it is hard to conceive how the restoring of the Church of Christ to its true glory can be by the advancing of that which gives so great an occasion to pride and sensuality which are so contrary to the design of Christian Religion unless we suppose men free from those corruptions which continual experience still tells the world the Rulers as well as members of the Christian society are subject to Neither may that be wonderd at when such uneveness of parts is now discovered in the great Luminaries of the world and the Sun himself is found to have his maculae as though the Sun had a purple feaver or as Kiroher expresseth it Ipse Phoebus qui rerum omnium in universo naturae Theatro aspectabilium longè pulcherrimus omnium opinione est habitus hoc seculo tandem fumosa facie ac infecto vultu maculis prodiit diceres eum variolis laborare senescentem I speak not this as though an outward flourishing condition of the Church were inconsistent with its purity for then the way to refine it were to throw it into the flames of persecution but that
an heroickfreedom of spirit appears in these words what magnanimity and courage was there now in that person who durst in the face of this Court tell them of their murder and that there was no salvation but by him whom they had crucified Well might they wonder at the boldness of the men who feared not the same death which they had so lately brought their Lord and Master to Neither was this singly the case of Peter and Iohn but all the rest of the Apostles undertook their work with the same resolution and preparation of Spirit to under go the greatest hardship in the world sor the sake of the truths they Preached And accordingly as far as Ecclesiastical history can ascertain us of it they did all but Iohn and that to make good the prediction of Christ suffer violent deaths by the hands of those who persecuted them meerly for their doctrine And which is most observable when Christ designed them first of all for this work he told them before hand of reproaches persecutions all manner of hardships nay of death its self which they must undergo for his sake All that he gave them by way of encouragement was that they could only kill the body and not the soul and therefore that they should fear him only who could destroy both body and soul in hell all the support they had was an expectation in another world and that animated them to go through all the hardships of this Where do we ever read of any such boldness and courage in the most knowing Philosâ—phers of the Heathens with what saintness and misgiving of mind doth Socrates speak in his famous discourse suppoâ—ed to be made by him before his death how uncertainly doth he speak of a state of immortality and yet in all probability Plato set it forth with all advantages imaginable Where do we finde that ever any of the great friends of Socrates who were present at his death as Phaedo Cebes Crito and Simmias durst enter the Areopagus and condemn them there for the murther of Socrates though this would be far short of what the Apostles did why were they not so charitable as to inform the world better of those grand truths of the being of God and immortality of souls if at least they were fully convinced of them themselves Why did not Plato at least speak out and tell the world the truth and not disguise his â—iscourses under feigned names the better to avoid accusation and the fate of Socrates how doth he mince his excellent matter and playes as it were at Bo-peep with his readers sometimes appearing and then pulling in his horns again It may not be an improbable conjecture that the death of Socrates was the foundation of the Academy I mean of that cautelous doctrine of withholding assent and being both pro and con sometimes of this side and sometimes of that for Socrates his death had made all his friends very fearful of being too dogmatical And Plato himself had too much riches and withall too much of a Courtier in him to hazard the dear prison of his soul viz. his body meerly for an aethereall vehicle He had rather let his soul flutter up and down in a terrestrial matter or the cage it was pâ—nt up in then hazard too violent an opening of it by the hands of the Areopagus And the great Roman Orator among the rest of Plato's sentiments had learnt this too for although in his discourses he hath many times sufficiently laid open the folly of the Heathen worship and Theology yet he knows how to bring himself off safe enough with the people and will be sure to be dogmatical only in this that nothing is to be innovated in the religion of a Common-wealth and that the customs of our Ancestors are inviolably to be observed Which principles had they been true as they were safe for the persons who spake them the Christian religion had never gained any entertainment in the world for where ever it came it met with this potent prejudice that it was looked on as an innovation and therefore was shrewdly suspected by the Governours of Common-wealths and the Preachers of it punished as factious and seditious persons which was all the pretext the wise Politicians of the world had for their cruel and inhumane persecutions of such multitudes of peaceable and innocent Christians Now when these things were foretold by the Apostles themselves before their going abroad so plainly that with the same saith they did believe the doctrine they Preached to be true they must believe that all these things should come to pass what courage and magnanimity of spirit was it in them thus to encounter dangers and as it were court the slames Nay and before the time was come that they must dye to seal the truth of their doctrine their whole life was a continual peregrination wherein they were as so many Iobs in pilgrimage encounterd with perills and dangers on every side of which one of the most painful and succesful S. Paul hath given in such a large inventory of his perils that the very reading of them were enough to undo a poor Epicurean Philosopher and at once to spoil him of the two pillars of his happiness the quietness of his mind and ease of his body Thus we see what a hazardous imployment that was which the Apostles went upon and that it was such as they very well understood the diâ—â—iculty of before they set upon it Secondly We cannot find out any rational motive which could carry them through so hazardous an employment but the full convictions of their minds of the undoubted truth and certainty of the doctrine which they delivered We find before that no vulgar motives in the world could carry them upon that design which they went upon Could they be led by ambition and vain glory who met with such reproaches where ever they went and not only persecutions of the tongue but the sharper ones of the hands too we never read of any but the Primitive Christians who were ambitious of being Martyrs and thought long till they were in the flames which made Arrius Antoninus being Proconsul of Asia when Christians in multitudes beset his tribunal and thronged in to be condemned say to them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 O miserable people had not ye wayes enough to end your lives at hâ—me but ye must croud for an execution This was a higher ambition by far then any of those mancipia gloriae those Chamaeleons that lived on the breath of applause the Heathen Philosophers ever reached to who were as Tertullian expresseth it homines gloriae eloquentiae solius libidinosi unsatiable thirsters after the honour and eloquence of the world but the Spirit of a Christian did soare too high to quarry on so mean a prâ—y When the more sober heathens had taken a stricter notice of the carriages and lives of the Preachers of the Gospel and all
their genuine followers they instead of the common and rude name of impostors gave them a more civil title of Philosophers and looked upon their doctrine as a sublimer kind of Philosophy non utique divinum negotium existimant sed mag is Philosophiae genus as Tertullian tells us because the Philosophers pretended so much to moral vertues which they saw the Christians so excellent in but as Tertullian there replies nomen hoc Philosophorum Daemonia non fugat The Devil was never afraid of a Philosophers beard nor were diseases cured by the touch of a Philosophick pallium There was something more Divine in Christians then in the grave Philosophers and that not only in reference to their lives and the Divine power which was seen in them but in reference to the truth and certainty of their doctrine it being a true character given of both by that same excellent writer in behalf of the Christians of his time Veritatem Philosophi quidem affâ—ctant possident autem Christiani what the Philosophers desired only the Christians enjoy which was Truth and as he elsewhere more fully speaks mimicè Philosophi affectant veritatem affectando corrum punt ut qui gloriam captant Christianieam necessariò appetunt integri praestant ut qui saluti suae curant Truth is the Philosophers mistress which by courting he vitiates and corrupts looking at nothing but his own glory but truth is the Christians Matron whose directions he observes and follows because he regards no glory but that to come And to let them further see what a difference there was between a Christian and a Philosopher he concludes that discourse with these words Quid adeo simile Philosophus Christianus Graeciae Discipulus et coeli famae negotiator et vitae verborum et factorum operator rerum aedificator et destructor amicus et inimicus erroris veritatis interpolator et integrator furator ejus et custos As much distance saith he as there is between Greece and Heaven between applause and eternal glory between words and things between building and destroying between truth and error between a plagiary and corrupter of truth and a preserver and advancer of it so much is there between a Philosopher and a Christian. The Heathens might suspect indeed some kind of affinity between the first Preachers of the Gospel and the antient Sophists of Greece because of their frequent going from place to place and pretending a kind of Enthusiasm as they did but as much difference as there is between a Knight Errant and Hercules between a Mountebank and Hippocrates that and much greater there is between a Greek Sophist and an Apostle Socrates in Plato's Euthydemus hath excellently discovered the vanity and futility of those persons under the persons of Euthydemus and Dionysodorus and so likewise in his Protagoras their intent was only like the retiaries in the Roman Spectacles to catch their adversaries in a net to intangle them with some captious question or other but how vastly different from this was the design of the Apostles who abhord those endless contentions which then were in the Heathen world and came to shew them that Truth which was revealed with an intent of making them better men We see the Apostles were not carried forth by any mean and vulgar motives neither did they drive on any private ends of their own all that they minded was the promoting of the doctrine which they preached Nay they accounted no hazards comparable with the advantage which the world enjoyed through the propagation of the Christian Religion This shewed a truly noble and generous spirit in them which would not be hindred from doing the world good though they found so bad entertainment from it yea they rejoyced in their greatest sufferings which they underwent in so good a cause wherein those Primitive Christians who were the genuine followers of the Apostles did so far imitate them that etiam damnati gratias agunt they gave the Iudges thanks that they thought them worthy to lose their lives in a cause which they had reason to triumph in though they died for it And when any of them were apprehended they discovered so little fear of punishment ut unum solummodo quod non ante suerint paeniteret that nothing troubled them so much as that they had been Christians no sooner as one of their number speaks And when the Heathens usually scoffed at them and called them Sarmentitii and Semaxii because they were burned upon the Cross one of them in the name of the rest answers hic est habitus victoriae nostrae haec palmata vestis tali curru triumphamus the Cross was only their triumphant chariot which carried them sooner to Heaven Now this courage and resolution of spirit which was seen in the first planters of Christianity in the world made all serious and inquisitive persons look more narrowly into those things which made men slight so much the common bug-bears of humane nature sufferings and death Quis enim non contemplatione ejus concutitur adrequirendum quid intus in re sit quis non ubi requisivit accedit ubi accessit patiexoptat These sufferings made men enquire this enquiry made them believe that belief made them as willing to suffer themselves as they had seen others do it before them Thus it appeared to be true in them 〈◊〉 qâ—â—que crudelitas illecebra magis est sectae plures â—fficimur quâ—â—ties metimur a vobis semen est sanguis Christianorum The cruelty of their â—nemies did but increase their number the harvest of their pretended justice was but the seed-time of Christianity and no seed was so fruitful as that which was steeped in the blood of Martyrs Thence Iustin Martyr ingenuously saith of himself that while he was a Platonick Philosopher he derided and scoffed at the Christians but when he considered their great courage and constancy in dying for their profession he could not think those could possibly be men wicked and voluptuous who when offers of life were made them would rather choose death then deny Christ. By which he found plainly that there was a higher spirit in Christianity then could be obtained by the sublime notions and speculations of Plato and that a poor ignorant Christian would do and suffer more for the sake of Christ then any of the Academy in defence of their master Plato Now since all men naturally abhor sufferings what is it which should so powerfully alter the nature and disposition of Christians above all other persons that they alone should seem in that to have forgot humanity that not only with patience but with joy they endured torments and abode the flames What! were they all pâ—ssessed with a far more then Stoical Apathy that no sense oâ— pain could work at all upon them or were they all besotted and infatuated persons that did not know what it was they underwent â—t is true some of the
seek for satisfaction as ever for granting that a Divine power is seen in one and not in the other he must needs be still dissatisfied unless it can be made evident to him that such things are from Divine power and others cannot be Now the main distinction being placed here in the natures of the things abstractly considered and not as they bear any evidence to our understandings in stead of resolving doubts it increaseth more for as for instance in the case of the Magicians rods turning into scrpents as well as Moses his what satisfaction could this yeild to any spectator to tell him that in the one there was a Divine power and not in the other unless it were made appear by some evidence from the thing that the one was a meer imposture and the other a real alteration in the thing it self I take it then for granted that no general discourses concerning the formal difference of miracles and wonders considered in themselves can afford any rational satisfaction to an inquisitive mind that which alone is able to give it must be something which may be discerned by any judicious and considerative person And that God never gives to any a power of miracles but he gives some such ground of satisfaction concerning them will appear upon these two considerations 1. From Gods intention in giving to any this power of doing miracles We have largely made it manifest that the end of true miracles is to be a confirmation to the world of the Divine commission of the persons who have it and that the testimony is Divine which is confirmed by it Now if there be no way to know when miracles are true or false this power is to no purpose at all for men are as much to seek for satisfaction as if there had been no such things at all Therefore if men are bound to believe a Divine testimony and to rely on the miracles wrought by the persons bringing it as an evidence of it they must have some assurance that these miracles could not come from any but a Divine power 2. From the providence of God in the world which if we own we cannot imagine that God should permit the Devil whose only design is to ruine mankind to abuse the credulity of the world so far as to have his lying wonders pass uncontrouled which they must do if nothing can be found out as a certain difference between such things as are only of Diabolical and such as are of Divine power If then it may be discovered that there is a malignant spirit which acts in the world and doth produce strange things either we must impute all strange things to him which must be to attribute to him an infinite power or else that there is a being infinitely perfect which crosseth this malignant spirit in his designs and if so we cannot imagine he should suffer him to usurpe so much tyranny over the minds of men as to make those things pass in the more sober and inquisitive part of the world for Divine miracles which were only counterfeits and impostures If then the providence of God be so deeply engaged in the discovering the designs of Satan there must be some means of this discovery and that means can be supposed to be no other in this case but some rational and satisfactory evidence whereby we may know when strange and miraculous things are done by Satan to deceive men and when by a Divine power to confirm a Divine testimony But how is it possible say some that miracles should be any ground on which to believe a testimony Divine when Christ himself hath told us that there shall arise false Christs and false Prophets and shall shew great signs and wonders in so much that if it were possible they should deceive the very elect and the Apostle tells us that the coming of Antichrist will be with all power and signs and lying wonders How then can we fix on miracles as an evidence of Divine testimony when we see they are common to good and bad men and may seal indifferently either truth or falshood To this I reply 1. Men are guilty of doing no small disservice to the doctrine of Christ when upon such weak and frivolous pretences they give so great an advantage to infidelity as to call in question the validity of that which yeilded so ample a testimony to the truth of Christian religion For if once the rational grounds on which we believe the doctrine of Christ to be true and Divine be taken away and the whole evidence of the truth of it be laid on things not only derided by men of Atheistical spirits but in themselves such as cannot be discerned or judged of by any but themselves upon what grounds can we proceed to convince an unbeliever that the doctrine which we believe is true If they tell him that as light and fire manifest themselves so doth the doctrine of the Scriâ—ture to those who believe it It will be soon replyed that self-evidence in a matter of faith can imply nothing but either a firm perswasion of the mind concerning the thing propounded or else that there are such clear evidences in the thing it self that none who freely use their reason can deny it the first can be no argument to any other person any further then the authority of the person who declares it to have such self-evidence to him doth extend its self over the mind of the other and to ones self it seems a strange way of arguing I believe the Scriptures because they are true and they are true because I believe them for self-evidence implyes so much if by it be meant the perswasion of the mind that the thing is true but if by self-evidence be further meant such clear evidence in the matter propounded that all who do consider it must believe it I then further enquire whether this evidence doth lie in the nâ—ked proposal of the things to the understanding and if so then every one who assents to this proposition that the whole is greater then the part must likewise assent to this that the Scripture is the Word of God or whether doth the evidence lie not in the naked proposal but in the efficacy of the Spirit of God on the minds of those to whom it is propounded Then 1. The self-evidence is taken off from the written Word which was the object and removed to a quite different thing which is the efficient cause 2. Whether then any persons who want this efficacious operation of the Spirit of God are or can be bound to believe the Scripture to be Gods Word If they are bound the duty must be propounded in such a way as may be sufficient to convince them that it is their duty but if all the evidence of the truth of the Scripture lie on this testimony of the Spirit then such as want this can have none at all But if â—astly by this self-evidence be meant
of Rambam or R. Moses Maimon It is said that the King of Persia desired of him a sign and he told him that he should cut off his head and he would rise again which he cunningly desired to avoid being tormented which the King was resolved to try and accordingly executed him but I suppose his resurrection and Mahomets will be both in a day although Maimonides tells us some of the Iews are yet such fools as to expect his resurrection Several other Impostors Maimonides mentions in his Epistle de Australi regione One who pretended to be the Messias because he cured himself of the leprosie in a night several others he mentions in Spain France and other parts and the issue of them all was only a further aggravation of the miseries and captivities of the poor Iews who were so credulous in following Impostors and yet such strange Infidels where there were plain and undoubted miracles to perswade them to believe in our blessed Saviour as the true Messias We freely grant then that many pretended miracles may be done in the world to deceive men with but doth it hence follow that either there are no true miracles done in the world or that there are no certain rules to distinguish the one from the other But as Origen yet further replyes to Celsus as a Woolf doth very much resemble a dog yet they are not of the same kind nor a turtle Dove and a Pigeon so that which is produced by a divine power is not of the same nature with that which is produced by Magick but as he argues Is it possible that there should be only deceits in the world and magical operations and can there be no true miracles at all wrought Is humane nature only capable of Impostures or can none work miracles but Devils Where there is a worse there may be a better and so from the impostures counterfeits we may inferr that there are true miracles wrought by a divine power otherwise it were all one as to say there are counterfeits but no Iewels or there are Sophisms and Paralogisms but no lâ—gitimate demonstrations if then there be such deceits there are true miraclâ—s too all the business is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 strictly and severely to examine the pretâ—nders to do them and that from the life and manners of those that do them and from the effâ—cts and consequents of them whethâ—r they do good or hurt in the world whâ—ther thâ—y correct mens manners or bring men to goodness holinâ—ss and truth and on this account we are neither to reject all miracles nor embrace all pretâ—nces but carefully and prudently examine the rational evidences whereby those which are true and divine may be known from such which are counterfeit and Diabolical And this now leads us to the main subjâ—ct of this Chapter viz. What rules we have to â—roceed by in judging miracles to be true or false which may be these following True Divine miracles are wrought in confirmation of some Divine Tâ—stimony Because we have manifested by all the precedent discourse that the intention of miracles is to seal some divine revelation Therefore if God should work miracles when no divine Tâ—stimony is to be confirmed God would set the broad Seal of heaven to a blank If it be said no because it will witness to us now the truth of that Testimony which was delivered so many ages since I answer 1. The truth of that Testimony was sufficiently sealed at the time of the delivery of it and is conveyed down in a certain way to us Is it not sufficient that the Chartâ—r of a Corporation had the Princes broad Seal in the time of the giving of it but that every succâ—ssion of men in that Corporation must have a new broad Seal or else they ought to question their Patent What ground can there be for that when the original Seal and Patent is preserved and is certainly conveyed down from age to age So I say it is as to us Gods Grand Charter of Grace and Mercy to the world through Iesus Christ was sealed by divine miracles at the delivery of it to the world the original Patent viz. the Scriptures wherein this Charter is contained is conveyed in a most certain manner to us to this Patent the Seal is annexed and in it are contained those undoubted miracles which were wrought in confirmation of it so that a new sealing of this Patent is wholly needless unless we had some cause of suspicion that the original Patent it self were lost or the first sealing was not true If the lattâ—r then Christian Religion is not true if the miracles wrought for confirmation of it were false because the truth of it depends so much on the verity and Divinity of the miracles which were then wrought If the first be suspected viz. the certain conveyance of the Patent viz. the Scriptures some certain grounds of such a suspicion must be discovered in a matter of so great moment especially when the great and many Societies of the Christian world do all consent unanimously in the contrary Nay it is impossible that any rational man can concâ—ive that the Patent which we now rely upon is supposititious or corrupted in any of those things which are of concernment to the Christian world and that on these accounts 1. From the watchfulness of Divine providâ—nce for the good of mankind Can we conceive that there is a God who rules and takes care of the world and who to manifest his signal Love to mankind should not only grant a Patent of Mercy to the world by his son Christ and then sealed it by divine miracles and in order to the certain conveyance of it to the world caused it by persons imployed by himself to be recordâ—d in a language fittest for its dispersing up and down the world all which I here suppose Can we I say conceive that this God should so far have cast off his care of the world and the good of mankind which was the original ground of the Grant it self as to suffer any wicked men or malignant spirits to corrupt or alter any of those Terms in it on which mens eternal salvation depends much less wholly to suppress and destroy it and to send forth one that is counterfeit and supposititious instead of it and which should not be discovered by the Christians of that age wherein that corrupt Copy was set forth nor by any of the most learned and inquisitive Christians ever since They who can give any the least entertainment to so wild absurd and irrational an imagination are so far from reason that they are in good disposition to Atheism and next to the suspecting the Scriptures to be corrupted they may rationally suspâ—ct there is no such thing as a God and providence in the world or that the world is governed by a spirit most malignant and envious of the good of mankind Which is a suspicion only becoming those Heathens among
this God may do for the tryal of means faith whether they will forsake the true doctrine confirmed by greater miracles for the sake of such doctrines which are contrary thereto and are confirmed by false Prophets by signs and wonders Now in this case our rule of tryal must not be so much the wonders considered in themselves whether real or no as the comparing them with the miracles which were wrought in confirmation of that doctrine which is contrary to this which these wonders tend to the proving of Therefore Gods people under the Law were to examine the scope and drift of the miracles if they were intended to bring them to Idolatry whatever they were they were not to hearken to those who did them So now under the Gospel as the worship of the true God was then the standard whereby to judge of miracles by the Law of Moses so the worship of the true God through Iesus Christ and by the doctrine revealed by him is the standard whereby we ought to judge of all pretenders to work miracles So that let the miracles be what they will if they contradict that doctrine which Christ revealed to the world we are to look upon them as only tryals of our faith in Christ to see whether we Love him with our whole hearts or no. And therefore I think it needless to examine all the particulars of Lipsius his relations of miracles wrought by his Diva Virgo Hallensis and Asprecollis for if I see that their intention and scope is to set up the worship of Daemons or a middle sort of Deities between God and us which the Scripture is ignorant of on that very account I am bound to reject them all Although I think it very possible to find out the difference between true miracles and them in the manner and circumstances of their operation but this as it is of more curiosity so of less necessity for if the doctrine of the Scriptures was confirmed by miracles infinitely above these I am bound to adhere to that and not to believe any other doctrine though an Angel from heaven should preach it much less although some Popish Priests may boast much of miracles to confirm a doctrine opposite to the Gospel which I know not how far God may in judgement give those images power to work or others faith to believe because they would not receive the truth in the love of it and these are now those 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 lying wonders which the Scripture forewarns us that we should not believe viz. such as lead men to the belief of lyes or of doctrines contrary to that of the Gospel of Iesus Christ. Where miracles are true and Divine there the effects which follow them upon the minds of those who believe them are true and Divine i. e. the effect of believing of them is the drawing of men from sin unto God This the Primitive Christians insisted much upon as an undoubted evidence that the miracles of Christ were wrought by a Divine power because the effect which followed them was the work of conversion of souls from sin and Idols to God and Christ and all true piety and vertue As the effect of the miracles of Moses was the drawing a people off from Superstition and Idolatry to the worship of the true God so the effect which followed the belief of the miracles of Christ in the world was the purging mens souls from all sin and wickedness to make them new creatures and to live in all exactness and holiness of conversation And thereby Origen discovers the great difference between the miracles of Christ and Antichrist that the intent of all Antichrists wonders was to bring men 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to the deceivableness of unrighteousness whereby to destroy them but the intent of the miracles of Christ was 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not the deceiving but the saving of the souls 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 who can with any probability say that reformation of life and dayly progress from evil to good should be the effect of meer deceit And therefore he saith Christ told his Disciples that they should do greater works then he had done because by their Preaching and miracles the eyes of blind souls are opened and the ears of such as were deaf to all goodness are opened so far as to hearken to the Precepts and Promises of the Gospel and the feet of those who were lame in their inward man are so healed as to delight to run in the way of Gods Commandments Now is it possible that these should be the effects of any evil spirit But on the contrary we see the effects of all impostures and pretended miracles wrought by Diabolical power was to bring men off from God to sin and to dissolve that strict obligation to duty which was laid upon men by the Gospel of Christ. Thus it was in that early ape of the Apostles Simon Magus who far out-went Apollonius Tyaneus or any other Heathen in his pretended miracles according to the report which is given of him by the Primitive Christians but we see the intent of his miracles was to raise an admiration of himself and to bring men off from all holiness of conversation by afferting among other damnable heresies that God did not at all regard what men did but only what they believed wherein the Gnosticks were his followers Now when miracles are wrought to be Patrons of sin we may easily know from whom they come Those miracles are wrought by a Divine power which tend to the overthrow of the Kingdom of Satan in the world This is evident from hence because all such things as are out of mans power to effect must either be done by a power Divine or Diabolical For as our Saviour argues Every Kingdom divided against its self is brought to desolation and every City or house divided against its self cannot stand and if Satan cast out Satan he is divided against himself how shall then his Kingdom stand Now Christ by his miracles did not only dispossess Satan out of mens bodyes but out of his Temples too as hath been shewn already And besides the doctrine of Christ which was confirmed by those miracles was in every thing directly contrary to the Devils design in the world For 1. The Devils design was to conceal himself among those who worshipped him the design of the Gospel was to discover him whom the Gentiles worshipped to be an evil and malignant spirit that designed nothing but their ruine Now it appears in the whole history of Gentilism the grand mystery of State which the Devil used among the Heathens was to make himself to be â—â—en and worshippâ—d for God and to make them believ◠〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—â—ns were very good and benigne spirits 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—â—â—onists and other Philosopherâ—â—o â—o much 〈◊〉 against the Primitiâ—â— Christians when thâ—◠〈◊〉 their Daemons to be nothing â—he but inâ—â—â—al and wicked spirits which sought the
those Magnetical hooks of obedience and eternal interest there are few would be drawn to a due consideration of much less a delight in so amiable and excellâ—â—nt a nature And it is impossible to conceive why God in the revelation of his Will should ever so much as mention a future punishment or promise an eternal reward were not the consideration of these things the sinews of Religion Which they whose design was to undermine the very foundations on which all Religion was built understood far better then those weak pretended advancers of Religion who while in such a way they pretend to advance it do only blow it up For if men ought not to have an eye and respect to their own future condition nor serve God on the account of his power to make our souls miserable or happy much less ought men to serve God with any regard to his Providence since the matters which Providence is employed about in this world are of infinitely less moment then those which concern our future state And if we are to have no eye on Divine providence in the exercise of Religion we shall scarce be able to understand for what end God should take so much care of mankind and manifest so much of his goodness to them were it not to quicken them in their search after him and excite them to the more chearful obedience to him And when once we question to what end God troubles himself with the world we are come next door to Epicurus and may in few steps more delight in the flowers of his Garden For this was his strongest plea against Providence that it was beneath the Majesty and excellency of the Divine nature to stoop so low and trouble himself so far as to regard what was done on earth This being one of his Ratae Sententiae or undoubted maximes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The Blessed and Immortal Being neither hath any imployment himself nor troubles himself with others Which as Maximus Tyrius well observes is rather a description of a Sardanapalus then a Deity nay of a worse then a Sardanapalus for he in the midst of all his softness and effeminacy would yet entertain some counsels for the safety and good of his Empire but Epicurus his Dâ—ity is of so tender a nature that the least thought of business would quite spoile his happiness This opinion of Epicurus made the more raisedspirited Moralists so far contemn the unworthy apprehensions which he entertained of the Divine nature that they degraded him from the very title of a Philosopher in it and ranked him beneath the most fabulous Poets who had writ such unworthy things of their Gods as is evident by the censures which Tully Plutarch and others pass upon him for this very opinion And they tell him that some of their own men were of a more noble and excellent spirit then Epicurus his Deity who abhorred softness and idleness and made it their greatest delight to do good to their Countrys But Epicurus must needs make his God of his own humour the usual flattery which men bear to themselves to think that most excellent which they delight in most as Xenophanes was wont to say of his horse if he were to describe a God it would be with a curled main a broad chest c. and in every thing like himself Had E icurus himself so little of an Athenian in him as not to make it some part of his delight to understand the affairs of the world or at least did he take no pleasure in the walks of his famous garden nor to order his trees and set his flowers and contrive every thing for his own delight Woulâ— Epicurus then count this a part of his happiness and is it inconsistent with the happiness of the Deity to take notice of the world and order all things in it for his own glory Must so excellent a nature as Gods was by his own acknowledgment be presently tired with business when the more excellent any nature is the more active and vigorous it is the more able to comprehend and dspatch matters of moment with the least disturbance to its self Is it pleasure to a Nurse to fill the child with her milk doth the Sun rejoyce to help the world with his constant light and doth a Fountain murmur till it be delivered of its streams which may refresh the ground and is it no delight to the Divine nature to behold the effects of his goodness upon the world We see here then the foundation on which Epicurus went viz. that his God must be like himself or there must be none and truly he might more suitably to his principles question his existence then supposing his existence deny his Providence on such miserable accounts as these are which yet are the chief which either Epicurus or Lucretius could bring against it from the consideration of the Divine nature The which to any one who considers it doth necessarily infer a peculiar eye and hand of Providence in the world For can we imagine that a Being of Infinite knowledge should be ignorant of what is done in the world and of Infinite power should stand by and leave things to chance and fertune which were at first contrived and brought into Being by the contrivance of his Wisdom and exercise of his Power And where the foundation of existence lies wholly and solely in the power of an Infinite Being producing the ground of continuance of that existence must lye in the same power conserving When men indeed effect any thing the work may continue whatever become of him that did it but the reason of that is because what man doth is out of matter already existent and his work is only setting materials together but now what God effects he absolutely gives a Being to and therefore its duration depends on his conservation What is once in its Being I grant will continue till some greater force then its self put it out of Being but withall I add that Gods withdrawing his Conservation is so great a force as must needs put that Being which had its existence from his power out of the condition it was in by it The Light of the Sun continues in the air and as long as the Sun communicates it nothing can extinguish the light but what will put out the Sun but could we suppose the Sun to withdraw his beams what becomes of the light then This is the case of all Beings which come from an Infinite power their subsistence depends on a continual emanation of the same power which gave them Being and when once this is withdrawn all those Beings which were produced by this power must needs relapse into nothing Besides what dependence is there upon each other in the moments of the duration of any created Being The mode of existence in a creature is but contingent and possible and nothing is implyed in the notion of an existent creature beyond meer
the testimony and reason of Simplicius and Hierocles is as large and clear in it as the other with expressions much of the same nature 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Mans nature lying between those beings which perpetually contâ—mplate Gâ—a and those which are uncapable of it it sometimes ascends to those and sometimes descends to these according as it observes or rejects the dictates of reason and so by reason of the Indiffâ—rency of the will is lyable to take upon it the siâ— ilituâ—e of God or a beâ—â—st 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And whoever throughly considers this will easily understand how men are the causes of their own evils and become unhappy and miserable through their own choice and self wills Which he brings in by way of explication of that truly golden Pythagorean verse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Men are grown miserable through their ownfault And afterwards Hierocles excellently describes the nature of evil in these words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Both our natural and contracted pravity is nothing elsâ— but the unnatural motion of our free wills according to which saith he 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 We dare to contradict the Laws of God â—et being sensible how much we injure our selves when we â—o it and only look at this that we are able to cast off the reins of 〈◊〉 Laws from our necks And he truly saith that it is the greatest abuse of liberty to offend God â—â—en we either do what he forbids or neglect what be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 So that on both sides men bring misery upon themselves by transgrâ—ssing the divine Law both by not doing what they are commanded and by doing what they are forbidden So that he tully ascribes the Origine of evil to the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as he calls it the irregular motion of the will of man which we have already shewed to be the doctrine of the Scriptures As to the necessity of the souls recovery from this condition in order to her felicity we have these Philosophers expressing their consent with the Scriptures Porphyrius as St. Austin tells us in the end of his first book De regressu animae doth acknowledge the necessity of a way of recovering souls which should be universal Cum autem dicit Porphyrius nondum receptam unam quandam sectam quae universalem viam animae contineat liberandae nondumque in suam notitiam eandem viam historiali cognitione perlatam proculdubio confitetur esse aliquam sed nondum in suam venisse notitiam But the necessity of the purgation of the soul in order to its felicity is so largely and fully discoursed of by all the Platonists and Pythagoreans that it will be needless to insist upon it Thus far then we finde the account given of the Origine of evil in Scripture to be embraced by the sublimest of the Heathen Philosophers as most rational and satisfactory which was the thing to be proved Neither do we sind only the main of this account acknowledged as rational but we may trace some not obscure footsteps of the truth of the particular circumstances which concern the fall of man among the Heathens such as the Devils envying of mans happiness his disguising himself under the form of a serpent and mans being thrown out of Paradise upon his fall 1. The Devils envying the happiness of man It hath been truly observed by a learned man that the original of that very ancient opinion among the Heathen de invidia Daemonis had its rise from the history of the fall of man which he hath made out so fully that I shall the less need to prove it And that there was an undoubted tradition of some malignant spirits which envyed the 〈◊〉 of mankinde appears by that ample Testimony of 〈◊〉 in his Dio mentioned by the same Author 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Plutarch was much troubled to give an account of the apparitions which Brutus and Dio who were learned and Philosophical men were haunted withall and doubts he can give no just account of it unless he embraced that very ancient tradition which yet seemed absurd and incredible viz. that there are certain wicked and malignant Daemons which envy good men and withstand their enterprises by raising fears and troubles to them that so they might hinder them in their pursuit of vertue lest if they continue stedfast and unmovable in good they should be at last partakers of greater felicity then they enjoy There being then so ancient a tradition of such 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as the learned man mentioned hath more fully shewed in his notes on this place of Plutarch gives a great confirmation to the truth of what the Scripture reports concerning the Devils being so great an instrument in procuring the fall of man To him therefore I refer the inquisitive reader and shall only add to the Testimonies of him cited that of Xenocrates in Plutarch de I side Osiride where he saith that the calamities of life and misfortunes men meet with do not agree with that veneration which we have for the Deity and good spirits 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But that there are in the air some great and potent Beings which are of a surly and malignant nature and rejoyce to do men all the mischief they can Iamblichus in his answer to Porphyrius concerning the Aegyptian mysteries undertakes to give an account of these evil Spirits or Daemons and that from them the Origine of evil in the world is for thus he speaks as he is translated by Ficinus Si verum est quod de Idolis dicebamus improbisque Daemonibus hinc sane exoritur multiplex origo malorum Simulant enim Deorum praesentiam daemonumque bonorum ideoque 〈◊〉 suum jubent esse justum ut ipsi videantur boni sici◠〈◊〉 Dii quoniam vero natura sunt mali rogati mala inferre libenter inferunt atque nobis ad injusta conducunt Hi sunt omnino qui in oraculis mentiuntur fallunt turpia consulunt atque peragunt By which we see he acknowledgeth some spirits whoâ—e natures are wicked and help men to do evil and that these very spirits may sometimes command that which is good lest they should be suspected to be what they are of a wicked and malignant nature which only design the ruine of men By which we have a good account of whatever was commendable delivered by the Heathen oracles which yet might come from the Devil still by this confession of Iamblichus himself For the Devils appearing under the form of a serpent It is very probably conjectured that from hence it was that the Prince of those who contended with Saturn was by that aenigmatical writer Pherâ—cydes Syrius called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Celsus who had so little â—kill in antiquity as to think that the history of Moses was as to many passages of it taken out
not to have a mixture of evil in them and as they have a mixture of evil so they have but a mixture of punishment none lying under so great miseries here but withall they have some share in the comforts of this life And therefore it is less wonder that this part of Divine Providence which concerns the sufferings of good men hath not wanted some among the Heathen Moralists who have made it their design to vindicate it which setting aside what Simplicius on Epictetus and many others have done is fully performed by Seneca in his tract on this very sâ—â—â—â—ct â—â—ur bonis male sit cum sit Providentia as Muretuâ—â— restores the title of that book wherein these following accounts are given of it 1. God brings them up as his children under sharp discipline for their future benefit A good man in Seneca's language is discipulus Dei aemulatorque vera progenies which in the language of the Scripture is one taught of God a follower of God and one born of him Now saith he Parens ille magnificus virtutum non lenis exactor sicut severi patres durius educat God who is the great Father of good men keeps them under discipline while under age and by hardship fits them for the practice of vertue Thence he bids us take notice of the different indulgence of Fathers and Mothers to their Children the Father he hastens them to school suffers them not to be idle on their playdayes makes them toyle and sometimes cry the Mother she is all for holding them in her lap keeping them out of the Sun and from catching cold would not willingly have them either cry or take pains Patrium habet Deus adversus bonos animum illos fortius amat God bears the indulgence of a Father towards his children and loves them with greater severity 2. Good men receive benefit by their sufferings quicquid evenit in suum colorem trahit saith Seneca of a good man which in the language of the Apostle is every thing works together for his good The sea loseth nothing saith he of its saltness by the rivers running into it neither doth a good man by the current of his sufferings And of all benefits which he receives that of the exercise and tryal of his vertue and patience is most discernable Marcet sine adversario virtus as soon as Carthage was destroyed Rome fell to Luxury True wrestlers desire to have some to try their strength upon them cui non industrio otium poena est an active spirit hates idleness and cowardise for etiamsi ceciderit de genu pugnat though his legs be cut off he will fight on his knees 3. It redounds to Gods honour when good men bear up under sufferings Ecce par Deo dignum vir fortis cum mala fortuna compositus It is a spectacle God delights to see a good man combat with calamities God doth in Seneca's phrase quosdam fastidio transire passeth them by in a slight an old wrestler scorns to contend with a coward one who is vinci paratus ready to yeild up presently Calamitates sub jugum mittere proprium magni viri est It argues a noble spirit to be able to subdue miseries 4. It tends to the tryal and increase of their strength Seneca highly extols that speech of the Philosopher Demetrius Nihil infelicius eo cui nihil unquam evenit adversi non licuit enim illi se experiri He is the most unhappy man who never knew what misery meant for he could never know what he was able to bear And as he saith to pass ones life away sine morsu animi without any trouble it is ignorare rerum naturae alteram partem not to know what is upon the reverse of nature Idem licet fecerint qui integri revertuntur ex acie magis spectatur qui sancius redit Though he that comes home sound might fight as well as he that is wounded yet the wounded person hath the more pitty and is most cryed up for his valour The Pilot is seen in a tempest a Souldier in battel and a good man in sufferings God doth by such as Masters do by Scholars qui plus laboris ab his exigunt quibus certior spes est who set the best wits the hardest tasks 5. God exerciseth good men with sufferings to discover the indifferency of those things which men value so much in the world when he denyes them to good men Blindness would be hateful if none were blind but such whose eyes were put out and therefore Appius and Metellus were blind Riches are no good things therefore the worst as well as the best have them Nullo modo magis potest Deus concupita traducere quam si illa ad turpissimos defert ab optimis abigit God could not traduce or defame those things more which men desire so much then by taking them away from the best of men and giving them to the worst 6. That they might be examples to others of patience and constancy For as Seneca concludes nati sunt in exemplar they are born to be patterns to others If to these things we add what the Word of God discovers concerning the nature grounds and ends of afflictions and that glory which shall be revealed in comparison with which exceeding weight of glory these light and momentany afflictions are not at all to be valued then we have a clear and full vindication of Divine Providence as to the sufferings of good men as well as to the Impunity of such as are wicked But how ever from hence we see how far the meer light of reason hath carryed men in resolving these difficulties concerning Gods Providence in the world and what a rational account may be given of them supposing evil of punishment to arise from sin and that there is a God in the world who is ready to punish the wicked and to reward the good Which was the thing to be shewed CHAP. IV. Of the Origine of Nations All mankind derived from Adam if the Scriptures be true The contrary supposition an introduction to Atheism The truth of the history of the flood The possibility of an universal deluge proved The flood universal as to mankind whether universal as to the earth and animals no necessity of asserting either Yet supposing the possibility of it demonstrated without creation of new waters Of the fountains of the deep The proportion which the height of mountains bears to the Diameter of the earth No mountains much above three mile perpendicular Of the Origine of fountains The opinion of Aristotle and others concerning it discussed The true account of them from the vapours arising from the mass of subterraneous waters Of the capacity of the Ark for receiving the Animals from Buteo and others The truth of the deluge from the Testimony of Heathen Nations Of the propagation of Nations from Noahs posterity Of the beginning of the Assyrian Empire The multiplication of mankind