men of the several parts of them, and that the Holy Ghost might permit them to use their own Style, so directing them still, and over-ruling them in every Word and Sentence, that it should infallibly express his own full Sense and Meaning, and speak the Truth which he inspired. And therefore, tho' there be divers Styles in the Scriptures, yet this is no Prejudice to the Authority and Certainty of them. Ifaiah, for instance, being of the Blood-Royal, and educated at Court, may write in a more refin'd and lofty Style; and Amos, who was brought up among the herdsmen of Tekoa, may speak in a more humble strain, and fetch his Metaphors from lower and meaner things, and yet the Sense and Substance of both may be from the Holy Ghost, and as exactly true and infallible, as if every Word and Syllable were dictated by him. But this has been already confidered under its proper head. W CHAP. IV. Of the Canon of the Holy Scriptures. Hatever Uncertainty there can be suppos'd to be, concerning the Canon of the Holy Scriptures, or the Catalogue and Number of Books of Divine Revelation, this ought to be made no Objection against the Certainty of Divine Revelation it self, or against the Authority of those Books of Scripture, which are universally acknowledg'd and receiv'd by all Churches. For if this be a true way of arguing, then whatever we are ignorant of, must be an Argument against the Certainty of what we know; and by confequence, no Man can be certain of any thing, since the wisest Man is ignorant of so many things, that he knows very little in comparison of what he is ignorant ignorant of. And as to the matter in hand, there is scarce any Author of great Note and Fame, but Criticks have had Disputes concerning the number of his genuine Works; and yet this has never been thought any prejudice to such as are allowed by all to be genuine. Would not that Man make himself ridiculous, who should reject the Philippicks of Tully, or Virgil's Æneis, as spurious, because other Books, either doubtful, or counterfeit, have pass'd under the Names of these two Authors ? If some Books have been disputed, the rest certainly are genuine beyond all dispute, because they have never been called into question or doubt. Now if these Books only were of Divine Revelation, concerning which there has never been any Dispute, they contain all things necessary to be believed and practised; and as to the rest, concerning which there has been any Controverfie, tho' they be exceeding useful to explain divers things, which we find in these, and perhaps to teach us some things (not essential to our Religion, nor necessary to Salvation) which are not to be found elsewhere: yet they are not absolutely necessary to be received, because whatever Doctrines are absolutely necessary, they are to be found fully and plainly delivered in those Books of Scripture, which have ever been received without contradiction or dispute. Many Men were undoubtedly saved, before the writing of these controverted Books, nay, before the writing of any Books at all; Writings being no farther necessary, than as they are necessary to convey the knowledge of what is written, when the things now written could be as well known without writing, Books were not necessary: and tho' for after Ages it became necessary, that the Prophets, and Apostles, and Evangelists, should consign their Doctrine to writing, yet no more of their Writings can be absolutely necessary to be known by us, than what may be sufficient to instruct us in the ways ways of Salvation. It is the infinite Goodness and Mercy of God to afford us more than is absolutely necessary for our spiritual and eternal Life, as he has done for our natural, and it is a great sin in any Man to reject any means of Salvation or Instruction, which God has been pleased to allow but still that Man would sustain his natural Life and Health, who should think all, that is not necessary to the support of it, common or unclean, and not fit to be used for Food. And if a Man, without any of his own fault or neglect, should come to the knowledge only of the uncontroverted Books, he would find them abundantly fufficient to answer all the ends of Revelation, and to procure his Salvation. It cannot be denied, but that one infallible Authority is as great a Security, as never so many could be: but the same Doctrines are taught in several places of Scripture, and we ought to be thankful to God for it, that he has been pleased to furnish us with so much more than is absolutely necessary, and to repeat the same things in sundry places, and in divers manners, for our farther instruction and confirmation in the Faith: tho' it would be absurd and wicked to say, that he who believes all the Points of necessary Faith, upon the Authority of any one Book of Scripture, has no fufficient means of Salvation, unless he likewife believe them upon the Authority of all the rest. Not that I suppose any wife and good Man can now find any cause to doubt of any Book in the Old or New Testament, whether it be genuine or no; but to suppose the most and the worst that can be supposed, if those Books, which at any time have been called in question, were not only dubious, but certainly spurious, the remaining Books, which were never doubted of, are sufficient for all the necessary ends and purposes of a Revelation: and therefore this ought to be no Objection against the Authority of the 1 Scriptures, that the Authority of some Books has been formerly Matter of Controverfie. I shall enter upon no Discourse concerning the A pocryphal Books, the Authority whereof has been fo often and fo effectually disproved by Proteftants, that the most learned Papists have now little to say for them, but are forced only to fly to the Authority of their Church, which is in effect to beg the thing in question, or to beg something as hard to be granted, viz. the Infallibility of the Church of Rome. But I shall here engage in no Controverfie of that nature. Both Proteftants and Papists are, generally speaking, agreed, that the Books of Mofes, and the Prophets in the Old Testament, and the Writings of the Evangelists and the Apostles in the New, are of Divine Authority; and if this be so, the Christian Religion must be true, whether there be, or be not others of the fame nature, and of equal Authority. These Books, in the main, have already been proved to be genuine, and without any material corruption or alteration. I shall now only propose such general Confiderations, as may be sufficient to obviate Objetions. The agreement between the Jews and Samaritans in the Pentateuch, is a clear evidence for its Authority. And tho' there were many and great Idolatries committed in the Kingdom of Judah, yet by the good Providence of God, there never was such a total Apostacy in the People, nor fo long a succession of Idolatrous Kings, as that the Books, either of the Law or the Prophets, can be supposed to have been suppress'd or alter'd. For three Years under Rehoboam, they walked in the way of David and Solomon, 2 Chron. xi. 17. and tho' afterwards he forsook the Law of the Lord, and all Ifrael with him, yet both he, and the Princes, humbled themselves at the Message and Declaration of the Prophet Shemaiah, ch. xii. 6. and his Reign was in all but seventeen Years, ch. xii. 1, 13. Abijam was a wicked King, but he reigned no longer than three Years, 1 Kings XV. 2. And tho his Heart was not perfect with the Lord his God, as the Heart of David his Father, ch. x. 3. yet both he, and his People, relyed upon the Lord God of their Fathers, and therefore gained a miraculous Victory over the Ifraelites, 2 Chron. xiii. 10, 12, 18. Afa the third from Solomon, and Jehoshaphat his Son, were great Reformers; and Asa reigned one and forty Years, and Jehoshaphat five and twenty Years, 2 Chron. xvi. 13. XX. 31. The two next Kings in succession, did evil in the fight of the Lord, but their Reigns were short; Jehoram reigned eight Years, and Ahaziah but one, 2 Chron. xxi. 20. xxii. 2. During the interval of fix Years under the ufurpation of Athaliah, the People could not be greatly corrupted: for she was hateful to them, as Jehoram her Husband had been before her, and they readily joined with Jehoiada in slaying her, and in restoring the Worship of God, 2 Chron. xxii. Joash, the Son of Ahazia, did that which was right in the fight of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada, 2 Chron. xxiv. 2. We are fure that he reigned well three and twenty Years, 2 Kings xii. 6. and probably much longer; for Jehoiada lived to a very great Age, 2 Chron. xxiv. 15. Amaziah his Son, reigned twenty nine Years, and has the same Character, and with the fame abatement, that he did that which was right in the fight of the Lord, but not with a perfect heart, 2 Chron. xxv. 2. or yet not like David his Father: he did according to all things, as Foask his Father did, 2 Kings xiv. 3. Uzziah, Son to Amaziah, reigned fifty two Years, and did that which was right in the fight of the Lord, according to all that his Father Amaziah did; and he fought God in the days of Zachariah, 2 Chron. xxvi. 45. and after he was seized with the Leprofie for invading the Prieft's Office, the Administration of Affairs was in the hands of his Son Jotham, ver. 21. who reigned fixteen Years, and imitated the good part of his Father's Reign, ch. xxvii. 2. Ahaz G |