John Gill
As what I shall say hereafter
concerning God, his essence, perfections, persons, works, and worship, and
everything relative to him, will be taken out of the sacred scriptures, and
proved by them; it will be necessary, before I proceed any further, to secure the ground I go upon; and establish the divine authority
of them; and show that they are a perfect, plain, and sure rule to go by; and
are the standard of faith and practice; and to be read constantly, studied
diligently, and consulted with on all occasions.
By the
Scriptures, I understand the books of the Old and of the New Testament. The
books of the Old Testament, are the five books of Moses; Genesis, Exodus,
Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy, sometimes called the Pentateuch; the
historical books, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, the two books of Samuel, the two of
Kings, the two of Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther; the poetical books,
Job, the Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Solomon's Song;
the prophetic books, the larger Prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, with the
Lamentations, Ezekiel, and Daniel; the lesser Prophets, Hosea, Joel, Amos,
Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. The
books of the New Testament the four Evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John,
and the Acts of the Apostles; the fourteen Epistles of the
Apostle Paul; one of James; two of Peter; three of John; one of Jude, and the
Revelation. These books are commonly called Canonical Scripture, because they
have been always received by the church into the canon, or rule of faith. The
books of the Old Testament, by the Jewish church; with which entirely agree
Josephus's account of them, and the catalogue of them brought from the East by
Melito; and the books of both Testaments agree with the
account which Origen gives of them in his time, and which have always been
acknowledged by the Christian church; and which testimony of both churches,
respecting them, deserves our regard, and tends to corroborate their divine
authority. Now these are the books which the apostle calls, "all
Scripture", or the whole of Scripture, said by him to be "given by inspiration of God": which include not only the books of
the Old Testament, which had been long in being in his time; but the books of
the New Testament, which were all of them then written, excepting the book of
the Revelation; since these words of his stand in an epistle supposed to be the
last that was written by him; and however what is said by him is true of what
might be written afterwards, for the uses he mentions, as
well as before.
From these must be excluded,
as un-canonical, the books that bear the name of Apocrypha; which are sometimes
bound up with the Bible, to the great scandal and disgrace of it; for though
there may be some things in them worthy to be read, as human
writings; there is such a mixture of falsehood and impiety, that they cannot by
any means be allowed to be placed upon an equality with the sacred scriptures.
Likewise all such spurious books falsely ascribed to the apostles, or to some
of the first Christians; as, The Gospel of the Infancy of Jesus; The
Constitutions of the Apostles; Hermes's Pastor, &c. which carry in them
manifest marks of imposture. To which may be added, all
human and unwritten traditions, pleaded for by the papists; and all dreams and
visions, and pretended revelations and prophecies, delivered out in later ages,
by enthusiastic persons. Blessed be God, we have a more sure word of prophecy
to attend unto; concerning which, I shall,
1. Observe
the divine authority of the Scriptures, or show, that they are from God, or
inspired by him; they lay in a claim to a divine original; and the claim is
just, as will be seen. They are called the law, or doctrine of the Lord; the
testimony of the Lord; the statutes of the Lord; the commandment of the Lord;
the fear of the Lord; and the judgments of the Lord; by the Psalmist David, #Ps
19:7-9. And the prophets frequently introduce their
prophecies and discourses, by saying, "the word of the Lord came" to
them; and with a, "thus saith the Lord", #Isa 1:10 Jer 2:1,2. And our
Lord expressly calls the scripture the word of God, #Joh 10:35 as it is also
called, #Heb 4:12. And which God "at sundry times, and in divers manners,
spake by the prophets"; and by his Son, and his apostles, in later times,
#Heb 1:1,2. And is represented as the oracles of God, and
may be safely consulted and depended on; and according to which men are to
speak, #Ro 3:2 1Pe 1:11. But before I proceed any further, in the proof of the
divinity of the sacred Scriptures, I shall premise the following things.
1a. First,
That when we say that the Scriptures are the word of God, or that this word is
of God; we do not mean that it was spoken with an articulate voice by him; or
written immediately by the finger of God: the law of the Decalogue, or the Ten
Commands, indeed, were articulately spoken by him, and the writing of them was
the writing of God, #Ex 20:1 31:18 32:15 in which he might set an example to
his servants, in later times, to write what might be
suggested to them by him; that it might remain to be read: it is enough, that
they were bid to write what he delivered to them, as Moses and others were
ordered to do, #De 31:19 Jer 30:2 Hab 2:2 Re 1:11,19 and what was ordered by
the Lord to be written, it is the same as if it was written by himself; and
especially since the penmen wrote as they were directed, dictated
and inspired by him, and "spake as they were moved by the Holy
Ghost"; for they did not speak and write of their own head, and out of
their own brains, nor according to their will, and when and what they pleased;
but according to the will of God, and what he suggested to them, and when he
inspired them, #2Pe 1:21.
1b.
Secondly, Not all that is contained in the scriptures is of God. Some are the
words of others; yea, some are the speeches of Satan, and very bad ones too; as
when he suggested that Job was not a sincere worshipper of God; and requested
he might have leave to do an injury both to his property and to his person,
#Job 1:9-11 2:4-6. So when he tempted our Lord, and moved him to cast himself
down from the pinnacle of the temple, and destroy himself;
and not succeeding in that, urged him to fall down and worship him, #Mt 4:5,9.
But now the penmen of these books, in which these speeches are, were moved and
directed by the Lord to commit them to writing; so that though they themselves
are not the word of God; yet that they are written, and are on record, is of
God; and which was directed to, and done, to show the
malice, pride, blasphemy, and impiety, of that wicked spirit. There are also
speeches of bad men, as of Cain, Pharaoh, and others, ordered to be written, to
discover the more the corruption of human nature: and even of good men, as of
Moses, David, Jonah, and particularly the friends of Job, and their long
discourses, in which they said not that which was right of God, as Job did; and
he himself did not say in every speech of his what was
right of God; though he said more, and what was more correct, than they did;
and yet these speeches are on record, by divine order, to prove matters of
fact, to show the weaknesses and frailties of the best of men. Some of the writers
of thee scriptures, as Moses, and the historical ones, being eye and ear
witnesses of many things they wrote, could have written them of their own knowledge, and out of their own memories; and others they
might take out of diaries, annals, and journals, of their own and former times;
yet in all they wrote, they were under the impulse and direction of God; what
to leave, and what to take and insert into their writings, and transmit to
posterity. So that all they wrote may be truly said to be by divine authority.
In the writings and discourses of the apostle Paul, are
several quotations out of heathen authors; one out of Aratus, when he was
discoursing before the wise men at Athens; "as certain, says he, of your
own poets have said, for we are also his offspring", #Ac 17:28. Another
out of Menander; "Evil communications corrupt good manners", #1Co
15:33. And another out of Epimenides, a poet of Crete, a testimony of his
against the Cretians, who said they were, "always
liars, evil beasts, slow bellies"; which were produced "ad
hominum", for greater conviction; and which he was directed to quote and
write in his epistles and discourses, for that reason. So that though the words
are not of God, yet that they were quoted and written, was of God.
1c.
Thirdly, Let it be observed, that not the matter of the Scriptures only, but
the very words in which they are written are of God. Some who are not for
organic inspiration, as they call it, think that the sacred writers were only
furnished of God with matter, and had general ideas of things given them, and
were left to clothe them with their own words, and to use their own style;
which they suppose accounts for the difference of style to
be observed in them: but if this was the case, as it sometimes is with men,
that they have clear and satisfactory ideas of things in their own minds, and
yet are at a loss for proper words to express and convey the sense of them to
others; so it might be with the sacred writers, if words were not suggested to
them, as well as matter; and then we should be left at an uncertainty about the
real sense of the Holy Spirit, if not led into a wrong one;
it seems, therefore, most agreeable, that words also, as well as matter, were
given by divine inspiration: and as for difference of style, as it was easy
with God to direct to the use of proper words, so he could accommodate himself
to the style such persons were wont to use, and which was natural to them, and
agreeable to their genius and circumstances; and this may
be confirmed from the testimonies of the writers themselves: says David, one of
the writers of the Old Testament, "The Spirit of the Lord spake by me, and
his word was in my tongue", #2Sa 23:2. And the apostle Paul speaks of
himself, and other inspired apostles of the New Testament, he says, "Which
things we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the
Holy Ghost teacheth", #1Co 2:13 and it is "the
writing", or the word of God as written, that is, "by inspiration of
God", #2Ti 3:16. But then,
1d. Fourthly, This is to be
understood of the Scriptures, as in the original languages in which they were
written, and not of translations; unless it could be thought,
that the translators of the Bible into each of the languages of the nations
into which it has been translated, were under the divine inspiration also in
translating, and were directed of God to the use of words they have rendered
the original by; but this is not reasonable to suppose. The books of the Old
Testament were written chiefly in the Hebrew language, unless some few passages
in Jeremiah, Daniel, Ezra, and Esther, in the Chaldee
language; and the New Testament in Greek: in which languages they can only be
reckoned canonical and authentic; for this is like the charters and diplomas of
princes; the wills or testaments of men; or any deeds made by them; only the
original exemplar is authentic; and not translations, and transcriptions, and
copies of them, though ever so perfect: and to the Bible,
in its original languages, is every translation to be brought, and by it to be
examined, tried and judged, and to be corrected and amended: and if this was
not the case, we should have no certain and infallible rule to go by; for it
must be either all the translations together, or some one of them; not all of
them, because they agree not in all things: not one; for then the contest would
be between one nation and another which it should be,
whether English, Dutch, French, &c. and could one be agreed upon, it could
not be read and understood by all: so the papists, they plead for their Vulgate
Latin version; which has been decreed authentic by the council of Trent; though
it abounds with innumerable errors and mistakes; nay, so far do they carry this
affair, that they even assert that the Scriptures, in their originals,
ought to submit to, and be corrected by their version; which is absurd and
ridiculous. Let not now any be uneasy in their minds about translations on this
account, because they are not upon an equality with the original text, and
especially about our own; for as it has been the will of God, and appears
absolutely necessary that so it should be, that the Bible should be translated
into different languages, that all may read it, and some
particularly may receive benefit by it; he has taken care, in his providence,
to raise up men capable of such a performance, in various nations, and
particularly in ours; for whenever a set of men have been engaged in this work,
as were in our nation, men well skilled in the languages, and partakers of the
grace of God; of sound principles, and of integrity and faithfulness, having
the fear of God before their eyes; they have never failed
of producing a translation worthy of acceptation; and in which, though they
have mistook some words and phrases, and erred in some lesser and lighter
matters; yet not so as to affect any momentous article of faith or practice;
and therefore such translations as ours may be regarded as the rule of faith.
And if any scruple should remain on the minds of any on
this account, it will be sufficient to remove it, when it is observed, that the
Scriptures, in our English translation, have been blessed of God, either by
reading them in it, or by explaining them according to it, for the conversion,
comfort, and edification of thousands and thousands. And the same may be said
of all others, so far as they agree with the original, that they are the rule
of faith and practice, and alike useful.
Here I cannot but observe the
amazing ignorance and stupidity of some persons, who take
it into their heads to decry learning and learned men; for what would they have
done for a Bible, had it not been for them as instruments? and if they had it,
so as to have been capable of reading it, God must have wrought a miracle for
them; and continued that miracle in every nation, in every age, and to every
individual; I mean the gift of tongues, in a supernatural way, as was bestowed
upon the apostles on the day of Pentecost; which there is
no reason in the world ever to have expected. Bless God, therefore, and be
thankful that God has, in his providence, raised up such men to translate the
Bible into the mother tongue of every nation, and particularly into ours; and
that he still continues to raise up such who are able to defend the translation
made, against erroneous persons, and enemies of the truth; and
to correct and amend it in lesser matters, in which it may have failed, and
clear and illustrate it by their learned notes upon it. Having premised these
things, I now proceed to prove the claim of the Scriptures to a divine
authority, which may be evinced from the following things.
1. First,
From the subject matter of them.
1a. In general there is
nothing in them unworthy of God; nothing contrary to his truth and
faithfulness, to his purity and holiness, to his wisdom and goodness, or to any
of the perfections of his nature; there is no falsehood nor contradiction in
them; they may with great propriety be called, as they are,
"The Scriptures of truth", and the "Word of truth", #Da
10:21 Eph 1:13. There is nothing impious or impure, absurd or ridiculous in
them; as in the Al-koran of Mahomet; which is stuffed with impurities and
impieties, as well as with things foolish and absurd: or as in the Pagan
treatises of their gods; which abound with tales of their murders, adulteries, and thefts; and the impure rites and ceremonies, and inhuman
sacrifices used in the worship of them. But,
1b. The things contained in
the Scriptures are pure and holy; the Holy Spirit dictated them, holy men spoke
and wrote them, and they are justly called "holy Scriptures",
#Ro 1:2 and plainly show they came from the holy God. The doctrines of them are
holy; they are doctrines according to godliness, and tend to promote it; they
teach and influence men to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live
soberly, righteously, and godly: they are indeed, by some ignorant persons,
charged with licentiousness; but the charge, as it is false, it is easily
removed, by observing the nature of the doctrines, and the
effects of them; the precepts the Scriptures enjoin, and the worship they
require, are strictly holy; the legal part of them is "holy, just, and
good", #Ro 7:12. It is holy in its own nature, and requires nothing but
what is for the good of men, what is but a reasonable service to God, and what
is just between man and man; it forbids whatever is evil, strikes at all sorts
of sins, and sets them in a just light, exposes and
condemns them. And hence it is that there is in natural men, whose carnal minds
are enmity to God, such a backwardness, yea, an aversion to reading the
Scriptures; because the doctrines and precepts of them are so pure and holy;
they choose to read an idle romance, an impure novel, or any profane writings
and histories, rather than the Bible; and from whence may be drawn
no inconsiderable argument in favour of their being of God. The style of the
Scriptures is pure and holy, chaste and clean, free from all levity and
obscenity, and from everything that might be offensive to the ear of the chaste
and pious. And there are remarkable instances in the marginal readings of some
passages in the Hebrew text, to prevent this; and care should be taken in all
translations, to make use of language neat and clean; and
keep up, as much as may be, to the original purity of the Scriptures.
1c. There are some things
recorded in the Scriptures, which could never have been known but by revelation
from God himself; as particularly, with respect to the creation
of the world, and the original of mankind; that the world was made out of
nothing; when made, how, and in what form and order, and how long it was in
making; who were the first parents of mankind, when, how, and of what made;
hence, without this revelation, men have run into strange, absurd, and
extravagant notions about these things. Yea, the Scriptures inform us what was
done in eternity, which none but God himself could reveal,
and make known to men; as the choice of men in Christ to everlasting salvation,
which was from the beginning; not of their being, nor of their conversion, nor
of time; but before time, or they or the earth were, even "before the
foundation of the world", #Eph 1:4. And also the council held between the
divine Persons, concerning the salvation of man; for as there was a consultation held about making him, so about saving him; which
may he called the "council of peace", #Zec 6:13. When "God was
in Christ reconciling the world unto himself", and the scheme of peace and
reconciliation, and plan of salvation, were formed and agreed upon: so the
covenant of grace made with Christ from eternity, on the behalf of the chosen
ones; whose "goings forth in it were of old, from everlasting";
covenanting with his Father for them, and agreeing to be their Surety and
Saviour; to become incarnate, and obey and suffer for them, and so work out the
salvation of them; representing their persons and taking the charge and care of
them, and of all blessings of grace given them, and of all promises made to
them, in him, before the world began; in which covenant he was set up as
Mediator, "from everlasting, or ever the earth
was", #Pr 8:22,23 Mic 5:2 #2Ti 1:9 Eph 1:3,4. All which could never have
been known unless God himself had revealed them.
1d. There are some things
recorded in the Scriptures as to the future, which God only could foreknow would
be, and foretell with certainty that they should be; and which
have accordingly come to pass, and proves the revelation to be of God. Some of
them relate to particular persons, and contingent events; as Josiah, who was
prophesied of by name, as to be born to the house of David, three or four
hundred years before his birth, and what he should do; "offer up the
idolatrous priests on Jeroboam's altar, and burn mens' bones on it"; all
which exactly came to pass, see #1Ki 13:2 compared with
#2Ki 23:17,20. Cyrus, king of Persia, also was prophesied of by name, more than
two hundred years before his birth, and what he should do; what conquests he
should make, what immense riches he should possess; and that he should let the
captive Jews go free, without price or reward, and give orders for the
rebuilding their temple; all which was punctually fulfilled, #Isa 44:28
45:1-3,13 see #Ezr 1:1-4. Others relate to kingdoms and
states, and what should befall them; as the Egyptians, Moabites, Ammonites,
Edomites, Assyrians, Babylonians, and others; of whose destruction Isaiah and
Jeremiah prophesied, and who now are no more, have not so much as a name on
earth: and particularly many things are foretold concerning the Jews; as their
descent into Egypt, abode and bondage there, and coming
from thence with great riches; which was made known to their great ancestor
Abraham, before they were, #Ge 15:14 see #Ex 12:35,40,41 their captivity in
Babylon, and return from thence after seventy years, #Jer 29:10,11 see #Da 9:2
and all their miseries and afflictions in their last destruction, and present
state, are prophetically described in #De 28:1-68 and their exact case, for
about nineteen hundred years, is expressed in a few words;
as well as their future conversion is prophesied of, #Ho 3:4,5. But especially
the prophecies concerning Christ, are worthy of notice; his incarnation and
birth of a virgin; the place where he should be born; of what nation, tribe,
and family; his sufferings and death, his burial, resurrection, ascension to heaven,
and session at the right hand of God: all which are plainly
pointed out in prophecy; and which, with many other things relating to him,
have had their exact accomplishment in him. To which might be added,
predictions of the calling of the Gentiles, by many of the prophets; and the
abolition of paganism in the Roman empire; the rise, power, and ruin of
antichrist; which are particularly spoken of in the book of the Revelation;
great part of which prophetic book has been already
fulfilled.
1e. There are some things in
the Scriptures, which, though not contrary to reason, yet are above the
capacity of men ever to have made a discovery of; as the Trinity of persons in
the Godhead; whose distinct mode of subsisting is mysterious to us; the eternal, generation of the Son of God, which is ineffable by
us; his incarnation and birth of a virgin, under the power of the Holy Ghost,
which is wonderful and amazing; the union of the human nature to his divine
person; which is, "without controversy, the great mystery of
godliness": the regeneration of men by the Spirit of God, and the manner
of his operation on the souls of men; which, on hearing of, made
a master of Israel say, "How can these things be?" and the
resurrection of the same body at the last day, reckoned by the Gentiles
incredible; and which things, though revealed, are not to be accounted for upon
the principles of nature and reason.
1f. The
things contained in the Scriptures, whether doctrines or facts, are harmonious;
the doctrines, though delivered at sundry times, and in divers manners, are all
of a piece; no yea and nay, no discord and disagreement among them; the two
Testaments "are like two young roes that are twins"; to which some
think they are compared in #So 4:5 7:3 and to the Cherubim over the mercy seat,
which were of one beaten piece, were exactly alike, and
looked to one another, and both to the mercy seat; a type of Christ, who is the
foundation of the apostles and prophets, in which they unite, and both agree to
lay; the apostle Paul said none other things than what Moses and the prophets
did say should be. And as to historical facts, what seeming contradictions may
be observed in any of them, are easily reconciled, with a
little care, diligence, and study; and some of these arise from the
carelessness of transcribers putting one word or letter for another; and even
these instances are but few, and not very material; and which never affect any
article of faith or practice: such care has divine providence taken of these
peculiar and important writings, which with the harmony of them show them to be
of God.
2. Secondly, The style and
manner in which the Scriptures are written, is a further evidence of their
divine original; the majesty in which they appear, the authoritative manner in
which they are delivered; not asking, but demanding, attention and assent unto
them; and which commands reverence and acceptance of them; the figures
used to engage hereunto are inimitable by creatures; and such as would be
daring and presumptuous for any but God to use, with whom is terrible majesty;
such as, "Hear, O heavens", and "I will speak", #De 32:1
Isa 1:2 the sublimity of the style is such as exceeds all other writings:
Longinus, an heathen orator, who wrote "upon the Sublime", admired
some passages in the writings of Moses, particularly #Ge
1:3. That early composition, the book of Job, abounds with such strong and
lofty expressions as are not to be found in human writings, especially the
speeches Jehovah himself delivered out of the whirlwind, #Job 38:1-41:34 the
book of Psalms is full of bright figures and inimitable language, particularly
see #Ps 18:7-15 29:3-10 113:3-8 139:7-12. The prophecies of Isaiah are fraught
with a rich treasure of divine elocution, which surpasses
all that is to be met with in the writings of men; and it is remarkable, that
in some of the inspired writers, who have been bred up in a rustic manner, are
found some of the most grand images, and lively picturesque, and highest
flights of language, as in Amos the herdman, #Am 4:13 9:2,6.
3. Thirdly, Another argument
for the divine authority of the Scriptures may be taken from the penmen and
writers of them.
3a. Many of these were men of
no education, in a low station of life, and were taken from
the flock, or from the herd, or from their nets, or other mean employments; and
what they wrote, both as to matter and manner, were above and beyond their
ordinary capacities, and therefore must be of God; what they wrote could not be
of themselves; but they "spake and wrote as they were moved by the Holy
Ghost".
3b. They
lived in different times and places, and were of different interests and
capacities, and in different conditions and circumstances; and yet they were
all of the same sentiment, they speak and write the same things, deliver out
the same truths and doctrines, and enjoin the same moral duties of religion,
and the same positive precepts, according to the different dispensations under
which they were; and this shows that they were dictated,
and influenced in all, by the same Spirit of God.
3c. They were holy and good
men, partakers of the grace of God; and therefore could never give into an
imposture, nor deliver out a known lie, nor obtrude a falsehood
upon the world.
3d. They appear to be plain, honest,
and faithful men; they conceal not their own failings and infirmities; so Moses
published his own weaknesses and mistakes, and spared not the blemishes of his
family; not of his more remote ancestor Levi, in the case
of the Shechemites; nor of his immediate parents, their illegal marriage; nor
of his favourite people the Israelites, their rebellion and obstinacy, and
idolatry: and the same may be observed of other inspired writers.
3e. They were disinterested
men; they sought not popular applause, nor worldly wealth,
nor to aggrandize themselves and their families. Moses, when it was offered to
him, by the Lord, to make of him a great nation, and cut off the people of
Israel for their sins, refused it more than once; preferring the public good of
that people to his own advantage; and though he was king in Jeshurun, he was
not careful to have any of his posterity to succeed him in his office; and
though the priesthood was conferred on Aaron his brother,
and his sons, yet no other provision was made for his own family, than to
attend the lower services of the tabernacle in common with the rest of his
tribe: and of this disposition were the apostles of Christ, who left all, and
followed him; and sought not the wealth of men, nor honour from them; but, on
the contrary, exposed themselves to reproach, poverty, vexation, and trouble;
yea, to persecution, and death itself; which they would
never have done, had they not been fully satisfied of their mission of God, and
of their message from him; and therefore could not be deterred from speaking
and writing in his name, by the terrors and menaces of men, and by all the
afflictions, bonds, and persecution, and death in every shape, which awaited
them. In short, the writers of the Scriptures seem to be men
that neither could be imposed upon themselves, nor sought to impose on others;
nor would it have been easy, had they been bad men, to have succeeded, had they
attempted it.
4. Fourthly, Another argument
may be drawn from the many wonderful effects the sacred writings,
attended with a divine power and influence, have had upon the hearts and lives
of men. Many have been converted from error, superstition, and idolatry, and
from a vicious course of life, to embrace and profess the truth, and to live a
holy life and conversation, upon reading the Scriptures, or hearing them
explained; and even some of great natural parts and learning, who could not
easily be prevailed upon to relinquish former tenets and
practices, had they not had full and clear conviction of them. This "Word
of God has been quick and powerful, sharper than a twoedged sword"; it has
pierced and penetrated into the recesses of the heart, and laid open the
secrets of it; it has been the means of enlightening the mind, quickening the
soul, regenerating and sanctifying the heart, and of producing faith,
and every other, grace in it, and of strengthening, comforting, and reviving
the spirits of the people of God when in distress, by afflictions, or Satan's
temptations; so that every good man has a testimony within himself of its
divine authority; see #1Jo 5:9,10.
5.
Fifthly, The testimony bore to the Scriptures by miracles, abundantly confirm
the genuineness of them, and that they are of God; such as were done by Moses,
and the prophets of the Old Testament, and by the apostles of the New; even
such as are above, and contrary to the laws of nature, and are beyond the power
of a creature to perform, and which only Omnipotence itself could work: now
these God would never do to establish the character of impostors,
or to confirm a lie; which yet he has done to witness the truth of divine
revelation; see #Mr 16:20 Heb 2:3,4.
6. Sixthly, The hatred and
opposition of men, and the enmity of devils, to them, afford no inconsiderable
argument in favour of the divinity of them; for were they of
men, they would not have such a disgust at them, and disapprobation of them,
and make such opposition to them: by this are to be known the Spirit of truth,
and the spirit of error; what is of the world, and merely human, is approved by
the men of the world; but what is of God is rejected, #1Jo 4:5,6 and if these
writings were of Satan, and the work of forgery, imposture, and deceit, that
wicked spirit would never have shown such despite unto
them, nor have taken such pains to tempt men, and prevail upon them not to read
them; and to persuade others to use their utmost efforts to corrupt or destroy
them, and root them out of the world.
7. Seventhly, The awful
judgments of God on such who have despised them, and have
endeavoured to destroy them, are no mean evidence that they are of God; who
hereby has shown his resentment of such conduct and behaviour; which might be
illustrated by the instances of Antiochus Epiphanes, king of Syria, who cut to
pieces the copies of the book of the law wherever he found them, and burnt
them, and put to death all with whom they were,
``59 Now the five and twentieth day of the month they did sacrifice
upon the idol altar, which was upon the altar of God. 60 At which time according to the commandment
they put to death certain women, that had caused their children to be
circumcised.'' (1 Maccabees 1)
this man died of a violent
disorder in his bowels, his body was covered with worms, his flesh flaked off,
and was attended with an intolerable stench,
``But the Lord Almighty, the
God of Israel, smote him with an incurable and invisible
plague: or as soon as he had spoken these words, a pain of the bowels that was
remediless came upon him, and sore torments of the inner parts; ''(2 Maccabees
9:5)
``So that the worms rose up
out of the body of this wicked man, and whiles he lived in
sorrow and pain, his flesh fell away, and the filthiness of his smell was
noisome to all his army.'' (2 Maccabees 9:9)
and of Dioclesian, the Roman
emperor, who by an edict ordered all the sacred books to be burnt, that, if
possible, he might root Christianity out of the world; and once fancied that he had done it; but when he found he had not
accomplished his design, through madness and despair, in the height of his imperial
glory, abdicated the empire, and retired to a private life, and at last
poisoned himself: the one showed a despite to the books of the Old Testament,
the other more especially to the books of the New Testament; and both were
highly resented by the divine Being, who hereby showed
himself the author of both. Many more instances might be produced, but these
may suffice.
8. Eighthly, The antiquity and
continuance of these writings may be improved into an argument in favour of
them: Tertullian says, "That which is most ancient is most true." Men from the beginning had knowledge of God, and
of the way of salvation, and in what manner God was to be worshipped; which
could not be without a revelation; though for some time it was not delivered in
writing. The antediluvian patriarchs had it, and so the postdiluvian ones, to
the times of Moses; whose writings are the first, and are more ancient than any
profane writings, by many hundreds of years; the most early
of that sort extant, are the poems of Homer and Hesiod, who flourished about
the times of Isaiah; and the divine writings have been preserved
notwithstanding the malice of men and devils, some of them some thousands of
years, when other writings are lost and perished.
To which
may be added, that the Scriptures receive no small evidence of the authority of
them, from the testimonies of many heathen writers agreeing with them, with
respect to the chronology, geography, and history of them; as concerning the
creation of the world, Noah's flood, the tower of Babel, the confusion of
languages, the peopling the earth by the sons of Noah, the burning of Sodom and
Gomorrah; with many other things respecting the people of
Israel, their origin, laws, &c. {1} I go on to consider,
2. The "Perfection"
of the Scriptures. When we assert the perfection of them, we do
not mean that they contain a perfect account of all that God has done from the
beginning of time, in the dispensations of his providence in the world, and in
the distributions of his grace to the sons of men; though they relate much of
the state and condition of the church of God in all ages, and as it will be to
the end of time. Nor that they contain all the discourses, exhortations,
admonitions, cautions, and counsels of the prophets,
delivered to the people of Israel, in each of the ages of time: nor all the
sermons of the apostles, which they preached to the Jews, and among the
Gentiles: nor are all that were said and done by our Lord Jesus Christ recorded
in them; there were many signs done by him which are not written, which if they
should be written, as the evangelist observes, "even the world itself
could not contain the books that should be written",
#Joh 20:30 21:25. But then they relate all things necessary to salvation,
everything that ought to be believed and done; and are a complete, perfect
standard of faith and practice: which may be proved,
2a. First, From the Author of
them, who is God; they are the word of God, and are "given
by inspiration of God; " as is asserted
in them, and has been clearly shown. Now since God is the author of them, who
is a perfect Being, in whom is "no darkness at all"; not of
ignorance, error, and imperfection; they coming from him, must be free from
everything of that kind; "he is a rock", and "his work is
perfect"; as his works of creation, providence, and redemption; so this
work of the Scriptures.
2b. Secondly, From the name
they go by, a "Testament": we commonly divide the Scriptures into the
Books of the Old Testament, and the Books of the New Testament; and that there
was a First and a Second Testament, an Old and a New one, is plainly intimated,
#Heb 9:15. Now a man's testament, or will, contains the whole
of his will and pleasure, concerning the disposition of his estate to whomsoever
he pleases, or it is not properly his will and testament; a man's testament,
"if it be confirmed", as the apostle observes, "no man
disannulleth or addeth thereto", #Ga 3:15. Such the Scriptures are; they
contain the whole will of God, about the disposition of the blessings of grace,
and of the heavenly inheritance, to those who are appointed
by him heirs; and being ratified and confirmed by the blood of Christ, are so
sure and firm as not to be disannulled, and so perfect that nothing can be added
thereunto.
2c. Thirdly, From the epithet
of "perfect" being expressly given unto them; "the law of the Lord is perfect", #Ps 19:7 which is to be
understood, not of the Decalogue, or Ten Commands, but of the doctrine of the
Lord, as the phrase signifies; even what was delivered in the sacred writings
extant in the times of David; and if it was perfect then as to the substance of
it, then much more must it appear so by the accession of the prophets, and the
books of the New Testament since, in which there are
plainer and clearer discoveries of the mind and will of God.
2d. Fourthly, From the
essential parts of them, the Law and Gospel; to which two heads the substance
of them may be reduced: the Law is a perfect rule of duty; it contains what is
the "good, acceptable, and perfect will of God", #Ro 12:2. What he would have done, or not done; the whole duty of man, both
towards God and man; all is comprehended in these two commands, "Thou
shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, &c. and thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself", #Mt 22:37-40. The Gospel is the "perfect
law", or doctrine "of liberty", the apostle James speaks of,
#Jas 1:25 which proclaims the glorious liberty of the children of God by
Christ; and it is perfect, it treats of perfect things; of
perfect justification by Christ; of full pardon of sin through his blood, and
complete salvation in him; and contains a perfect plan of truth; every truth,
"as it is in Jesus"; all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge: it is
the whole, or all the counsel of God, concerning the spiritual and eternal
salvation of men, #Ac 20:27.
2e. Fifthly, From the integral
parts of them; the Scriptures, containing all the books that were written by
divine inspiration. The books of the Old Testament were complete and perfect in
the times of Christ; not one was wanting, nor any mutilated and corrupted. The
Jews, he says, "have Moses and the prophets"; and he himself, "beginning at Moses and all the prophets, expounded in
all the scriptures, the things concerning himself", #Lu 16:31 #Lu 24:27.
So that they had not only the five books of Moses, but "all" the
prophets, and "all" the scriptures of the Old Testament: nay, he
affirms, that "till heaven and earth pass, one jot, or one tittle, shall
in no wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled", #Mt 5:18. The Jews
had the oracles of God committed to their care, #Ro 3:2 and
they have been faithful keepers of them, even some of them to superstition and
scrupulous nicety, numbering not only the books and sections, but also the
verses, and even the words and letters: and there never was nor now is, any
reason to be given why they had corrupted, or would corrupt, any part of the
Old Testament; on the coming of Christ it was not their interest
to do it; and even before that it was translated into the Greek tongue, by
which they would have been detected; and after the coming of Christ they could
not do it if they would, copies of it being in the hands of Christians; who
were able to correct what they should corrupt, had they done it: and whatever
attempts may have been made by any under the Christian name, to corrupt some
copies of either Testament, they may be, and have been
detected; or whatever mistakes may be made, through the carelessness of
transcribers of copies, they are to be corrected by other copies, which God, in
his providence, has preserved; and, as it seems, for such purposes: so that we
have a perfect canon, or rule of faith and practice. It is objected to the
perfection of the books of the Old Testament, that the books of Nathan, Gad, and Iddo, the prophets mentioned therein, are
lost; but then it should be proved that these were inspired writings, and,
indeed, that they are lost; they may be the same, as some think, with the books
of Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles. And it is also objected to those of the New
Testament, that there was an epistle from Laodicea, #Col 4:16 and another to
the Corinthians, distinct from those we have, #1Co 5:9
neither of them now extant: as to the first, that is not an epistle
"to" Laodicea, but "from" it; and may refer to one of the
epistles, we have, written by the apostle Paul, when at that place: and as to
that to the Corinthians, it does not appear to be another and distinct, but the
same he was then writing: but admitting, for argument sake, though it is not to
be granted, that some book, or part of the inspired
writings is lost; let it be proved, if it can, that any essential article of
faith is lost with it; or that there is any such article of faith wanting in
the books we have: if this cannot be proved, then, notwithstanding the
pretended defect, we have still a perfect rule of faith; which is what is
contended for.
2f.
Sixthly, This may be further evinced from the charge that is given, "not
to add unto, nor diminish from, any part of the sacred writings, law or
gospel": this is strictly enjoined the Israelites to observe, with respect
to the law, and the commandments of it, given them by Moses, #De 4:2 12:32. And
with respect to the Gospel, the apostle Paul says, "Though we, or an angel
from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you, than that
which we have preached unto you--and ye have received, let him be
accursed", #Ga 1:8,9. And the wise man, or Agur, says of the Scriptures in
his time, "Every word of God is pure--add thou not unto his words".
And the apostle and evangelist John, closes the canon of the Scripture with
these remarkable words, "If any man shall add unto these things, God shall
add unto him the plagues that are written in this book; and
if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God
shall take away his part out of the book of life", &c. #Re 22:18,19.
Now if there is nothing superfluous in the Scriptures, to be taken from them;
and nothing defective in them, which requires any addition to them; then they
must be perfect.
2g. Seventhly, This may be
argued from the sufficiency of them to answer the ends and purposes for which
they are written; as, "for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for
instruction in righteousness", #2Ti 3:16 they are sufficiently profitable
and useful "for doctrine"; there is no spiritual truth, nor
evangelical doctrine, but what they contain; they are
called "the Scriptures of truth"; not only because they come from the
God of truth, and whatsoever is in them is truth; but they contain "all
truth"; which the Spirit of God, the dictator of them, guides into, and
that by means of them; (see #Da 10:21 Joh 16:13) every doctrine is to be
confirmed and established by them: our Lord proved the things concerning himself,
his person, office, sufferings, and death, by them, #Lu
24:25-27 the apostle Paul "reasoned out of the Scriptures", in
confirmation and defence of the doctrines he taught; "opening and
alleging", that is, from the Scriptures, "that Christ must needs have
suffered and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus is Christ",
whom he preached; and, indeed, he said "none other things than what Moses
and the prophets did say" should be, and which he was
able to prove from thence, #Ac 17:2,3 26:22,23. Every doctrine proposed by men,
to the assent of others, is not immediately to be credited; but to be tried and
proved, and judged of by the holy Scriptures, which are to be searched, as they
were by the Bereans, to see whether those things be so or not; and being found
agreeable to them, they are to be believed, and held fast;
for "to the law and to the testimony; if men speak not according to this
word, it is because there is no light in them". #Isa 8:20. See #1Jo 4:1
1Th 5:21 Ac 17:11 and these are serviceable "for reproof", for the
detection, confutation, and conviction of error: thus Christ confuted the error
of the Sadducees by the Scriptures, #Mt 22:29,30 and the apostles, with these,
warred a good warfare; these were their spiritual weapons,
the word of God is the sword of the Spirit, they used in fighting the good
fight of faith, against false teachers; by sound doctrine, fetched from thence,
they were able to convince and stop the mouths of gainsayers: there never was
an error, or heresy, broached in the world yet, but what has been confuted by
the Scriptures; and it is not possible that anyone can arise in opposition to "the faith once delivered", but what may receive
its refutation from them. They are also of use "for correction" of
every sin, internal or external; of heart, lip, and life, secret or open; sins
of omission or commission; all are forbidden, reproved, and condemned by the
law of God; which says, "Thou shalt not covet", nor do this, and
that, and the other iniquity, #Ro 7:7 13:9. And the Gospel agrees with the law herein; and what is contrary to the law, is to sound doctrine;
the Gospel of the grace of God, teaches to "deny ungodliness and worldly
lusts", #1Ti 1:9-11 #Tit 2:11,12. There is not a sin that can be named,
but what the Scriptures inveigh against, forbid, and correct. And another end
answered by them is, that they are "for instruction in
righteousness", in every moral duty of religion, and in every positive precept of God, according to the different dispensations; they
instruct in everything of a moral or positive nature, and direct to observe all
that is commanded of God and Christ; and now writings by which all such ends
are answered, must needs be perfect and complete.
The
Scriptures are sufficient to "make a man of God perfect, and thoroughly
furnish him unto all good works", #2Ti 3:17. Not a private good man only,
but one in a public character and office; a prophet, a preacher, and minster of
the word; in which sense the phrase is used both in the Old and New Testament,
#1Sa 9:6,7 1Ti 6:11. An acquaintance
with these fits him for the work of the ministry, and furnishes
him with sound doctrine, to deliver out to the edification of others; by means
of these he becomes "a scribe well instructed in the kingdom of God; and
to be able to bring out of his treasure things new and old": and if they
are able to make such a man perfect, they must be perfect themselves.
Another
use of the Scriptures, and an end to be, and which is, answered by them, is not
only the learning and instruction of private men, as well as those of a public
character; but to make them patient under afflictions, and comfort them in
them, and give hope of deliverance out of them, as well as of eternal salvation
hereafter; for the apostle says, "Whatsoever things were written
aforetime, were written for our learning; that we, through
patience and comfort of the Scriptures, might have hope", #Ro 15:4. Nor is
there any afflictive circumstance a good man can come into, but there is a
promise in the word of God suitable to him in it; and which may be a means of
enlivening, cheering, and comforting him, #Ps 119:49,50 yea, the Scriptures are
written to promote and increase the spiritual joy of God's people, and that that joy might be full, and therefore must be full and perfect
themselves, #1Jo 1:3,4.
2h. Eightly, The Scriptures
are able to make a man "wise unto salvation", #2Ti 3:15. One part of
them being the gospel of salvation; which points out to men the way of salvation; gives an account of Christ, the author of it, and
of the salvation itself wrought out by him; and describes the persons that have
an interest in it, and shall enjoy it; and who, through the grace of God, are
made wise enough to see their need of it, seek after it, and embrace it; for it
is not barely by reading the word they become so wise; but through the Spirit
of wisdom and revelation opening their eyes to see what is
contained in it, and applying it to them; whereby the gospel becomes "the
power of God unto salvation" to them. In short the Scriptures contain all
things in them necessary to be believed, unto salvation; and, indeed, they are
written for this end, that men "might believe that Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of God; and that believing, they might have life through his
name", #Joh 20:31 and hereby, under a divine influence
and blessing, they come to have the knowledge of God and Christ, and of God in
Christ; which is the beginning, earnest, and pledge of eternal life, #Joh 17:3.
I proceed,
3. To prove the
"perspicuity" of the Scriptures; for since they are a rule of faith
and practice, they should be clear and plain, as they are:
not that they are all equally clear and plain; some parts of them, and some
things in them, are dark and obscure; but then by comparing spiritual things
with spiritual, or those more dark passages with those that are clearer, they
may be plainly understood. Moreover, the light of the Scriptures has been a
growing one; it was but dim under the dispensation of the law
of Moses; it became more clear through the writings of the prophets; but most
clear under the gospel dispensation; where, "as in a glass, we behold,
with open face, the glory of the Lord"; and of divine things: though in
the gospel dispensation, and in such clear writings and epistles as those of
the apostle Paul, who used "great plainness of speech", there are
some things "hard to be understood", see #2Co 3:12-18
2Pe 3:16. And this is so ordered on purpose to remove all contempt and loathing
of the Scriptures, and to humble the arrogance and pride of men, to engage
reverence of them, and to excite attention to them, and to put men on searching
them with close study, application, and prayer. Nor is every doctrine of the
Scriptures expressed in so many words; as the doctrine of the Trinity of
persons in the Godhead; the eternal generation of the Son
of God, his incarnation and satisfaction, &c. but then the things
themselves signified by them are clear and plain; and there are terms and
phrases answerable to them; or they are to be deduced from thence by just and
necessary consequences. Nor are the Scriptures clear and plain to everyone that
reads them; they are a sealed book, which neither learned
nor unlearned men can understand and interpret without the Spirit of God, the
dictator of them; the natural man, by the mere light of nature, and dint of
reason, though he may understand the grammatical sense of words; yet he does
not understand the meaning of them, at least in a spiritual way, with
application to himself; and so far as he has any notion of them, he has a
disgust and contempt of them, for the most part; yet they
are so fully expressed and clearly revealed, that if the gospel is hid to any,
it is to those that perish, who are left to the native darkness of their minds,
and to be "blinded by the god of this world", that the glorious light
of the gospel might not shine into them, see #Isa 29:11,12 1Co 2:14 2Co 4:3,4.
But then the Scriptures are plain to them that have a spiritual understanding;
who are spiritual men, and judge all things; "to whom
it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom". What are more clear and
plain than the precepts of the law, commanding one thing to be done, and
forbidding the doing of another? in what plain language are they expressed,
"Thou shalt have no other gods before me, &c.", "Thou shalt not kill, &c.?"
And how clearly is asserted the great and fundamental doctrine
of the gospel, "That salvation is alone by Jesus Christ, through the free
grace of God; and not of the works of men?" and so everything necessary of
belief unto salvation. In short, as Gregory says {2}, they are like a full and
deep river, in which the lamb may walk, and the elephant swim, in different
places.
The
perspicuity of the Scriptures may be argued,
3a. From the author of them,
God, as has been proved, who is "the Father of lights"; and therefore
what comes from him must be light and clear, in whom is "no darkness at
all".
3b. From the several parts of
them, and what they are compared unto. The law, or legal part of them, is
represented by things which are light, and give it; "The commandment is a
lamp, and the law is light". #Pr 6:23. The commandments of the law, as
before observed, are clearly expressed; and are a plain direction to men what to do, or shun; the same David says of the word of the Lord in
general, and more explicitly, "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a
light unto my path", #Ps 119:105. directing how to walk and act. The
evangelical part of the Scriptures, or the gospel, is compared to a
"glass", in which may be clearly beheld, "the glory of the
Lord"; of his person, offices, grace, and righteousness; and everyone of
the glorious truths and doctrines of it, #2Co 3:18. Hence
the ministers of the word are called the light of the world; because by opening
and explaining the Scriptures, they are instruments of enlightening men into
the will of God, and the mysteries of his grace, #Mt 5:14.
3c. From
other testimonies of Scripture, particularly from #De 30:11-14. "For this commandment,
which I command thee this day, is not hidden from thee; neither is it far
off--it is not in heaven--neither is it beyond the sea--but the word is very
nigh unto thee; in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it".
And if it is not hidden, nor at a distance and inaccessible, then it must be
open, and the knowledge of it to be come at; and this is to
be understood, not only of the law of Moses, but more especially of the gospel,
the word of faith, preached by the apostles, as the apostle Paul interprets it,
#Ro 10:6-8. And the whole of Scripture is the "sure word of prophecy;
whereunto men do well to take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark
place": and so the means of dispelling the darkness of ignorance, error,
and unbelief; and of giving light all around, both with
respect to doctrine and duty, see #2Pe 1:19.
3d. From exhortations to all
sorts of people to read them, and who are commended for so doing. Not only the
kings of Israel were to read the law of the Lord, but all that
people in general; and there was a certain time of the year for them to
assemble together to hear it read, men, women, children, and strangers; but if
it was not plain and clear, and easy to be understood, it would have been to no
purpose for them to attend it. #De 17:19 #De 31:11-13. Our Lord advises to
"search the Scriptures"; which supposes them legible and
intelligible, #Joh 5:39 and the Bereans are commended as
more noble than those of Thessalonica; because they searched the Scriptures
daily, and compared what they heard with them; that they might know whether
they were right or not, #Ac 17:11 see #Re 1:3.
3e. From all sorts of persons
being capable of reading them, and hearing them read, so as
to understand them. Thus in the times of Nehemiah and Ezra, persons of every
sex and age, who were at years of maturity, and had the exercise of their
rational faculties, had the law read unto them, #Ne 8:3 Timothy, from a child,
knew the holy Scriptures, #2Ti 3:15 believers, and regenerate persons of every rank
and degree, have knowledge of them, whether fathers, young men, or little
children, #1Jo 2:12 #1Jo 2:13,14. Nor is the public
preaching of the word, and the necessity of it, to be objected to all this;
since that is, as for conversion, so for greater edification and comfort, and
for establishment in the truth, even though it is known; and besides, serves to
lead into a larger knowledge of it, and is the ordinary means of guiding into
it, and of arriving to a more perfect acquaintance with it, #1Co 14:3 2Pe 1:12 Acts 8:30,31 Eph 4:11-13 So that it may be concluded, upon the
whole, that the Scriptures are easily understood.
A sure, certain, and
infallible rule to go by, with respect to things both to be believed and done:
a rule they are, #Ga 6:16. And since they are of divine authority, and are perfect and plain, they are a sure rule, and to be depended
on; "The testimony of the Lord is sure", #Ps 19:7 and a "more
sure word of prophecy" than all others whatever, #2Pe 1:19 these are the
witness of God, and therefore greater than man's; and to be believed before any
human testimony, #1Jo 5:9 yea, must be reckoned infallible, since they are the
Scriptures of truth, and not only contain what is truth, and
nothing but truth in them: but have a true, even a divine testimony bore unto
them, and come from the God of truth, who cannot lie, #Da 10:21 Tit 1:2. They
are the judge of all religious controversies, to which all are to be brought,
and by them determined; according to these, spiritual men, who have their senses
exercised, to discern between good and evil, try and judge all things. The
Scripture is the best interpreter of Scripture, or the
Spirit of God therein; nor are the church or its pastors, nor councils and
popes, the infallible interpreters thereof; there is a private interpretation
of Scripture, which every Christian may make, according to his ability and
light; and there is a public one, by the preacher of the word but both are
subject to, and to be determined by the Scripture itself, which is the only
certain and infallible rule of faith and practice. And,
4. There seems to be a real
"necessity" of such a rule in the present state of things; and,
indeed, a divine revelation was necessary to Adam, in a state of innocence;
how, otherwise, should he have known anything of the manner of his creation; of
the state and condition in which he was created, after the
image and in the likeness of God; the extent of his power and authority over
the creation; by what means his animal life was to be supported; in what manner
God was to be served and worshipped by him, especially the parts of positive
and instituted worship, both as to matter, time, and place; and particularly
the will of God, as to abstinence from eating of the fruit of
the tree of knowledge of good and evil? And if our first parents stood in need
of a divine revelation, as a rule and guide to them in their state of
integrity; then much more we in our present state of ignorance and depravity.
And after the fall, it was owing to divine revelation, that man had any
knowledge of the way of his salvation, by the woman's seed; and of the
appointment, nature, import, use, and end of sacrifices;
and though this revelation was for a time unwritten, and was handed down by
tradition to the patriarchs before the flood, and for some time after, while
the lives of men were of a long continuance, and it required but few hands to
transmit it from one to another; but when mens' lives were shortened, and it
was the pleasure of God to make further and clearer discoveries of his mind and
will, and to frame new laws and rules of worship, in
different dispensations; it seemed proper and necessary to commit them to
writing, both that they might remain, and that they might be referred to in
case of any doubt or difficulty about them; and particularly that the ends
before mentioned might be answered by them, which it was intended should be;
namely, the learning and instruction of men in matters of faith
and practice, their peace, comfort, and edification, #Ro 15:4 #2Ti 3:15-17 and
the rather, since nothing else was, and nothing less than the Scriptures are, a
sufficient rule and guide in matters of religion; even not the light of nature
and reason, so much talked of, and so highly exalted; and since it has been set
up as such against divine revelation, it may be proper to show the
insufficiency of it. Now the light of nature or reason, is
not to be taken in an abstract sense, or considered only in theory, what it has
been, may be, or should be, but not subsisting in men or books; as such it can
be no rule or guide at all to have recourse unto; and besides, reason in such
sense is not opposed to revelation; there is nothing in revelation contrary to
reason, though there are things above it, and of which it is not a competent judge, and therefore can be no guide in such
matters; but it must be considered as it is in fact, and as it subsists, either
in single individuals, or in whole bodies of men, and these unacquainted with,
and unassisted by divine revelation; and then its sufficiency, or rather
insufficiency, will soon appear. If it is considered as in individuals, it may
easily be observed it is not alike in all, but differs, according to the circumstances of men, climate, constitution, education,
&c. some have a greater share of it than others; and what is agreeable to
the reason of one man, is not so to another; and therefore unless it was alike
and equal in all, it can be no sure rule or guide to go by: let one of the most
exalted genius, be chosen, one of the wisest and sagest philosophers of the
Gentiles, that has studied nature most, and arrived to the
highest degree of reason and good sense; for instance, let Socrates be the man,
who is sometimes magnified as "divine", and in whom the light of
nature and reason may be thought to be sublimated and raised to its highest
degree, in the Gentile world, without the help of revelation; and yet, as it
was in him, it must be a very deficient rule of faith and practice; for though
he asserted the unity of the divine Being, and is said to
die a martyr for it; yet he was not clear of the heathenish notions of inferior
deities, and of worship to be given them; for one of the last things spoken by
him was, to desire his friends to fulfil a vow of his, to offer a cock to
Esculapius, the god of health; and he is most grievously slandered, if he was
not guilty of the love of boys in an unnatural way; and besides, he himself
bewails the weakness and darkness of human nature, and
confessed the want of a guide. If the light of nature and reason be considered
in large bodies of men, in whole nations, it will appear not to be the same in
all. Some under the guidance of it have worshipped one sort of deities, and
some others; have gone into different modes of worship, and devised different
rites and ceremonies, and followed different customs and usages, and even differed in things of a moral nature; and as their
forefathers, guided by this light, introduced and established the said things;
they, with all their observations, reflections, and reasonings on them, or
increase of light, supposing they had any, were never able, by the light of
nature and reason in them, to prevail over, and demolish such idolatry, and
such profane and wicked practices that obtained among them;
and the insufficiency thereof, as a rule and guide in religion, will further
appear by considering the following particulars.
4a. That there is a God may be
known by the light of nature; but "who" and "what" he is,
men, destitute of a divine revelation, have been at a loss about. Multitudes have gone into polytheism, and have embraced for
gods almost everything in and under the heavens; not only the sun, moon, and
stars, and mortal men, they have deified; but various sorts of beasts, fishes,
fowl, creeping things, and even forms of such that never existed: and some that
have received the notion of a supreme Being, yet have also acknowledged a
numerous train of inferior deities, and have worshipped the
creature besides the Creator; whose folly is represented in a true and full
light by the apostle, #Ro 1:19-25 and though the unity of the divine Being, is
the voice of reason as well as of revelation; yet by the former, without the
latter, we could have had no certain notion, if any at all, of three divine
persons subsisting in the unity of the divine essence; and especially of each
of the parts they have taken in the economy of man's
salvation; for as for what Plato and others have been supposed to say
concerning a Trinity, it is very lame and imperfect, and what was borrowed from
eastern tradition.
4b. Though the light of nature
may teach men that God, their Creator and Benefactor, is to
be worshipped by them; and may direct them to some parts of worship, as to pray
unto him for what they want, and praise him for what they have received; yet a
perfect plan of worship, acceptable to God, could never have been formed
according to that; and especially that part of it could not have been known
which depends upon the arbitrary will of God, and consists of positive precepts
and institutions; hence the Gentiles, left to that, and
without a divine revelation, have introduced modes of worship the most absurd
and ridiculous, as well as cruel and bloody, even human sacrifices, and the
slaughter of their own children, as well as the most shocking scenes of
debauchery and uncleanness.
4c. By the
light of nature men may know that they are not in the same condition and
circumstances they originally were; for when they consider things, they cannot
imagine that they were made by a holy Being subject to such irregular passions
and unruly lusts which now prevail in them; but in what state they were made,
and how they fell from that estate, and came into the present depraved one,
they know not; and still less how to get out of it, and to
be cured of their irregularities: but divine revelation informs us how man was
made upright, and like unto God: and by what means he fell from his uprightness
into the sinful state he is in; and how he may be recovered from it, and
brought out of it by the regenerating and sanctifying grace of the Spirit of
God, and not otherwise.
4d. Though, as the apostle
says, the Gentiles without the law, "do by nature the things contained in
the law; and are a law to themselves, which show the work of the law written on
their hearts; their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts the
meanwhile accusing, or else excusing one another", #Ro 2:14,15 and so have some notion of the difference between moral good and
evil; yet this is not so clear and extensive, but that some of the greatest
moralists among them gave into the most notorious vices, and allowed of them,
and recommended them; Chrysippus {3} allowed of incest; Plato {4} commended
community of wives; Socrates a plurality of wives, and which he enforced by his
own example {5}; Cicero {6} pleaded for fornication; the
Stoics, a grave set of moralists, for the use of obscene words {7}, and
recommended suicide as becoming a wise man {8}, and as his duty to commit in
some cases. So dim was this light of nature in things of a moral kind!
4e. Though in many cases
reason taught them that certain vices were disagreeable to God,
and resented by him, and he was displeased with them, and would punish for
them; and they were very desirous of appeasing him; but then how to reconcile
him to them, and recommend themselves to his favour, they were quite ignorant;
and therefore took the most shocking and detestable methods for it, as human
sacrifices, and particularly burning their innocent infants. But revelation
shows us the more excellent way.
4f. Men may, by the light of
nature, have some notion of sin as an offence to God, and of their need of
forgiveness from him; and from a general notion of his mercy, and of some
instances of kindness to them, may entertain some faint hope of the pardon of it; but then they cannot be certain of it from
thence, or that even God will pardon sin at all, the sins of any man; and still
less how this can be done consistent with his holiness and justice: but through
divine revelation we come at a clear and certain knowledge of this doctrine,
and of its consistence with the divine perfections.
4g. The
light of nature leaves men entirely without the knowledge of the way of
salvation by the Son of God. And even without revelation, angels of themselves
would not be able to know the way of saving sinful men, or how sinful men can
be justified before God; wherefore, in order to know this; they "desire to
look into it", #1Pe 1:12. Some have thought that Socrates had some notion
of it; who is made to say {9},
``It is necessary to wait till
some one teaches how to behave towards God and men:''
but then this respects only a
man's outward conduct, and not his salvation: nor does the
philosopher seem to have any clear notion of the instructor, and of the means
he should use to instruct, and still less of the certainty of his coming; and
besides, the relator of this, Plato, might receive this as a tradition in the
East, where it is well known he travelled for knowledge. But the divine
revelation gives an account of this glorious person, not merely as an
instructor of men in the way of their duty, but as a Saviour
of them from their sins; and in what way he has wrought out salvation, by his
sacrifice, blood, and righteousness.
4h. The light of nature is far
from giving any clear and certain account of the immortality of the soul, the
resurrection of the body, and a future state of happiness and
misery: as for the immortality of the soul, the heathens rather wished it to be
true than were fully satisfied of it; they that were for it made use of but
mean arguments to prove it; and they themselves believed it only "fide
dimidiata", as Minutius Felix {10} expresses it, with a divided faith;
they did, as it were, but half believe it; and as for the resurrection of the
body, that was denied, as Tertullian says {11}, by every
sect of the philosophers: and in what a low manner do they represent the
happiness of the future state; by walking in pleasant fields, by sitting under
fragrant arbours or bowers, and cooling shades, and by shelter from inclement
weather; by viewing flowing fountains and purling and babbling streams; by
carnal mirth, feasting, music, and dancing: and the misery of it, by being
bound neck and heels together, or in chains, or fastened to
rocks, and whipped by furies, with a scourge of serpents, or doomed to some
laborious service. But not the least hint is given of the presence of God with
the one, nor of his absence from the other; nor of any sensation of his love or
wrath. Let us therefore bless God that we have a better rule and guide to go
by; "a more sure word of prophecy to take heed unto": let us have constant recourse unto it, as the standard of faith and
practice; and try every doctrine and practice by it, and believe and act as
that directs us, and fetch everything from it that may be for our good, and the
glory of God.
--------------------------------------
{1} See Gale's Court of the
Gentiles.
{2} Praefat. in Job.
{3} Laertius in Vita ejus.
{4} Vid. Grotium in Eph. 5, 6.
{6} Orat. 34. pro Coelio.
{7} Vid. Ciceron. Ep. l. 9.
ep. 22.
{8} Vid. Lips. Manuduct.
Stoic. Philosoph. Dissert. 22. p. 365.
{9} Plato in Alcibiad. 2. p.
459.
{10} Octav. p. 37.
{11} De Praescript. Haeret. c.
7. p. 232.
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