fpirits who excel us in all endowments and happiness, who defpife their own bleffings and heavenly felicity, as 'no gifts of the Divine bounty, because we in this earth, are not fet upon a level with them? And is it not as foolish and abfurd to deny Revelation, or to argue against it, as improperly bestowed, and unworthy of the Divine goodness, because indeed it is not communicated to all the world, as well as to ourselves? It is very unnatural to dispute againft God's goodness in any shape, and very prefumptuous to direct him how to bestow it either as to quantity, quality, or extent. If it is fact, that he has given us any blefling, our duty furely is to be thankful, and to enjoy and improve it, whether he has beftowed more or lefs upon our fellow-creatures; being certain where less is given, lefs will be required; and that the Judge of the whole earth, will, in the laft day, deal with all in perfect equity and goodness. But,

If Revelation is fuch a bleffing, furely it would appear in the fruit or effects of it. Whereas great numbers, if not the generality of thofe who enjoy Revelation, are as bad as the very heathen, who are ftrangers to it. And fuch evils have been produced, fuch variance, difcord, and bloody perfecutions, on account of revealed religion, that it may justly be questioned, whether it has not done more harm than good. What reafon then have we to fay, it is a valuable gift, or worthy of the Father of the universe?

To this I reply- That natural caufes by a fort of neceffity produce their proper effects; fo fire always burns combuftible matter, and a good medicine heals a disease; and that is no fire which will not burn proper matter, nor that a good medicine, which never heals a disease. But moral causes are of a different nature, because their efficacy depends upon the choice and difpofition of the subjects to whom they are applied. And therefore a moral means, or cause, may be in itself most excellent, though it happens to produce no good effect; nay, though accidentally it may prove the occafion of very bad effects. Our Lord's miniftry and doctrine was perfectly divine, and yet it had but small influence for good upon the Jewish nation; nay, on the other hand, excited their malice to that degree, that they flew the Prince of Life.

Whatever effects therefore, Revelation may have produced in the world, ftill it is true, that it is a valuable gift, and worthy of the Divine goodness. But it muft ever be remembered, that it is abfolutely neceflary to our receiving any benefit from Gofpel-means, that we be truly defirous to fhake off the yoke of fin, and to cultivate and improve our minds in virtue and true holiness. If therefore we expect there is any life or power provided in the Gospel, which will anticipate our own thoughts and concerns; or that will begin to work upon our minds, and excite them to thoughtfulness and care, whilst we ourselves are thoughtlefs and unconcerned, we fhall but deceive ourselves. For fure I am,

there is nothing in the Gospel that encourages fuch an expectation; on the contrary, fuch an expectation is utterly inconfiftent with the grand defign of revealing the grace and mercy of God; which is to awaken our confciences, and to excite us to care and diligence in our fpiritual

concerns.

The notion I have just now mentioned, manifeftly tends to lull us afleep in fecurity and indolence; and encourages to go on in the con→

tempt

tempt of God and our own falvation; or in any of the paths of folly and fin, upon a prefumption, that we can never turn out, till we are conftrained by fome uncertain, unaccountable act of Almighty power. True indeed, our own thoughts, defires, and endeavours, will effect but little, without the help of Divine power; but yet, if we choose to live in ignorance, unbelief, or any branch of impiety and wickedness; if our hearts are so attached to the world, fo ingroffed by business, fenfual pleasures and amusements, that we can spare no ferious reflections for God, our fouls, and a future world, I cannot fee how we fhould be faved by any grace, which the Gofpel has provided in Jefus Chrift.

It is certain, the Gospel hath produced many good effects, and will always do fo, where it is received and attended to. For as for those pretended Chriftians who make it the occafion of variance, hatred, and perfecution, we cannot, with any juftice or propriety, fay, that they do receive or attend to Revelation; nay, it is very certain, that in fact, they do not. Nor must we allow, that in Popish countries, where corruption of manners greatly prevails, and fuperftition, idolatry, and perfecution are established, they enjoy the benefit of Revelation, when we know, that for many ages, the ufe of the Scriptures hath been forbiden, and a religion taught and professed, which is quite foreign to the word of God.

But how can we be fure, that we have now in poffeffion, thofe very books entire and perfect, in which Revelation was originally recorded? May they not in length of time be loft, or quite altered from what they were at firft? Or fo varied and changed by tranfcribers and tranflators, that we can never be fure that we have the true and genuine fenfe of Scripture?

I answer-No nation in the world, can be more fure of any of their publick acts and records, preferved in their archives with the utmost care, than we are of the truth of the Scriptures now in our hands. The Jews preferved the books of Mofes, as the laws of their kingdom, in the moft facred part of the tabernacle and temple; thofe books, the Pfalms and Prophets, were every where publickly read in their fynagogues, every week on the fabbath-day; their learned men, with the utmost exactness and fcrupulofity, infpected and guarded the text, even fo far as to count the very number of letters in every book. In fhort, our Lord, and the Apoftles, frequently quote Mofes, the Pfalms and Prophets, without any intimation, that those books were in any refpect altered or depraved. Whereas had they indeed been corrupted, we need not doubt but our bleffed Saviour would have reformed that as well as, or rather, more than any other inftance of corruption among the Jews.

From our Lord's time, the Scriptures of the Old Testament were publicly read by the Jews in all parts of the world; and thofe Scriptures, and the Apoftolic writings, as they came out, were read by Christians every where in their aflemblies, and difperfed over all the world,, where the religion of Jefus was profeffed; as containing the laws and rules of the religion he taught. Infomuch that it was impoffible to corrupt or deprave them. And for that reason, even the church of ROME, or thofe who erected that Antichriftian power, never durft attempt to make

M 4

the

f

the leaft alteration in the Scriptures, as knowing it would be to no purpofe; but instead of that, they claimed the fole right of interpreting the Scriptures, which ferved their ends full as well as corrupting them. For he who hath power to put what fenfe he pleases upon a law, may as effectually make it void, as he who destroys it.

And as for tranfcribers, or tranflators, it is for the fame reason impoffible they should make any material alterations. And it is in fact true, that they have not. For you may take any tranflation, in any language, or by any party among Chriftians, Papifts as well as Proteftants, and you will find they all agree in all things relating to the covenant of the Lord our God, and the feveral duties to which we are thereby obliged, though they may differ in fome things, and Commentators may put their own fenfe upon others. But the main things, I am well fatisfied, have been preferved pure and entire in every tranflation from the begining to this day.

Thus the Objections againft Revelation in general, which are all that I ever heard of, are removed, I hope to fatisfaction. Upon the whole, they feem to me to proceed not from a fober mind, fincerely defirous of the best knowledge and inftruction; for how can one allow him to be a true fcholar, or fincerely defirous of improving in ufeful learning, who meeting with a book excellently adapted to that purpose, refuses to make use of it, because he is already poffeffed of the faculty of reason, or because it is not in the hands of every body; or because some have made a bad use of it; or because he doubts whether it may not have undergone fome alterations; when the book, in itself confidered, is an èxcellent performance, and capable of giving him the most profitable inftruction?

The Bible, as we now have it in our hands, thanks be to God, is by far the most excellent book in our language; and as we have it in our translation, is in itself, feting afide all circumftances, a pure and plentiful fountain of Divine knowledge, giving a true, clear, and full account of the Divine difpenfations, and particularly of the Gospel of our falvation. So that whoever ftudies the Bible, the English Bible, is fure of gaining the knowledge and faith, which if duely applied to the heart and converfation, will infallibly guide him to eternal life. For which reason it is our wisdom and duty, to be much in reading and meditating upon the Bible, that our minds being well furnished with heavenly wif dom, and our hearts tinctured with a Divine Spirit, we may be prepared for glory, honour, and immortality.

CHAP. XL.

CHA P. XL.

That the Scriptures are given by INSPIRATION of God, appears from the exprefs and frequent Affertions of Mofes, the Prophets and Apostles.

** HAVE already given a general account and hiftory of revelaI tion; and have fhewn that it is perfectly confonant to the goodxx nefs and love of God, to the relation in which we ftand in to him, and the high and glorious purposes for which he has given us our being; and that he commited revelation to writing at a very proper time, when the shortness of human life, and the general corruption of the world, rendered tradition no longer a fafe mean of conveyance; and when the kingdom or peculiar congregation, he had erected, required a ftanding light for the prefervation of Divine truth.

I have likewise endeavoured to remove some objections against revelation in general.

On this head I would beg leave to repeat, that never were any books more publickly and commonly known, being read and heard with the greatest reverence once every week, in both Jewish and Chriftian affemblies; for a very long tract of time, the Old Teftament before the com-. ing of our Lord, and the Old and New after his coming, to this very day. So that it is, in the nature of things, impoffible that the holy Scriptures fhould be adulterated; nor could any man, who had a mind to alter or corrupt them, promife himself fuccefs in an attempt, which muft immediately be detected, and confounded, by thoufands of copies every where difperfed, and conftantly read before numerous affemblies, in the various languages of even more nations, than ever compofed the Roman empire in its largest extent.

Tranfcribers may indeed make literal mistakes, but those are eafily corrected by a variety of manufcripts; and tranflators may differ in giving the literal fenfe of fome words and phrafes, but not so as to render the main fubjects and substance of the Scriptures either obfcure or uncertain. For you may take any tranflations in any language, or done by any party among Chriftians, and you will find they all agree in all things relating to the covenant of the Lord our God, the state of things in a future world, and the several duties to which we are obliged, though they may not render the letter of the text in the fame words, nor with the fame propriety of expreffion. The more perfect; and exact in all things, any tranflation is, the better it is; but I am very fure, that all things pertaining to the difpenfations of God, his grace and promifes, and our hopes and duty, have been preserved pure and entire in every tranflation, from the begining to this day. And this is abundantly enough for our inftruction, comfort, direction, and edification.

Gentlemen in foreign bufinefs, who do not understand foreign languages, are obliged to carry it on by the help of translations. And if a letter in Italian, German, Spanish, or French, was put into the hands of twenty tranflators, there are great odds, but every tranflation would

differ,

differ, more or lefs, in fome expreffions. The fame words or phrases would hardly be rendered in the fame manner by every one of the tranf lators; and yet they might all agree with refpect to the sense of the merchant. And that being all his correfpondent wants to understand, he will never think it worth his while to enter into minute particulars, or a critical propriety of phrafes, which have nothing to do with his bufinefs. Juft fo it is with reference to the tranflation of the Bible. In above the space of an hundred years, learning may have received confiderable improvements, and by that means, fome inaccuracies may be found in a tranflation, more than a hundred years old. But you may reft fully fatisfied, that as our English translation is, in itself, by far the moft excellent book in our language, fo it is a pure and plentiful fountain of Divine knowledge, giving a true, clear, and full account of the Divine difpenfations, and particularly of the Gofpel of our falvation; infomuch, that whoever ftudies the Bible, the English Bible, is fure of gaining that knowledge and faith which, if duly applied to the heart and converfation, will infallibly guide him to eternal life.

[But you may fay, how then comes it to pass, that learned men differ fo much about the fenfe of Scripture? I anfwer. They differ not fo much about the literal fenfe, or tranflation of Scripture, as about the conftruction which they put upon the literal fenfe. For example, all are agreed that thofe words, Take, Eat, this is my body, which is broken for you, are rightly and well tranflated; but the question is, what is the meaning of them? The Papift will tell you, they mean, that the bread in the Lord's-fupper is really turned into the body, foul, and divinity of Chrift; the Proteftant very juftly denieth the monftrous and idolatrous abfurdity, and affirms, that the bread is only a figurative representation of Chrift's facrificed body. Tranflators are generally pretty well agreed, but divines differ very much about the fenfe of Scripture, which may afterwards be confidered.]

Thus, by demonftrating the reasonableness and expediency of revelation in general, by removing objections against it, and by showing the fufficiency of the tranflation, which, thanks to God, is in all our hands, the way is prepared

To advance a few arguments to establish the authority and excellency of the Scriptures; that they were indeed given by Inspiration of God, or that, in them, holy men of God fpake as they were moved by the holy Spirit.

We have fufficient reafon to believe that we have in our hands the very books that were writen by Mofes, by the Prophets, and by the Apoffles of Chrift. Now that thofe books were given by Inspiration of God, or that the perfons who wrote them have delivered to us what they received from heaven, will appear -'

From their own exprefs and frequent affertions. Mofes and the Prophets always declare they fpake in the name of the Lord, and delivered to the people what they received in commiffion from him; the Apostles likewife affure us, that they were taught by Jefus Chrift, the Son of God, were endued with the Spirit of God, and commiffioned by him to preach the Gofpel to all nations. And we have all the reafon in the world to believe they have told us the truth. For if they have not, they