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Trinity. However, to do him justice, though he has made too many concessions, and has not sufficiently considered his subjects, he has yet given us a neat methodical summary of the doctrine of the ancients upon that head. Only it would grieve a man to observe, how disadvantageous circumstances he chooses to place those venerable saints in, as overruling the natural sense of words, and making that heresy which Scripture has not made so, having no authority for doing it, but what they are forced to borrow from a particular Church', which gives the same to every article of the Trent Creed. But leaving this gentleman to take his own way, let us now proceed to the business in hand.

There is no occasion for magnifying antiquity at the expence of Scripture; neither is that the way to do real honour to either, but to expose both; as it is sacrificing their reputation to serve the ends of novelty and error. Antiquity ought to attend as an handmaid to Scripture, to wait upon her as her mistress, and to observe her; to keep off intruders from making too bold with her, and to discourage strangers from misrepresenting her. Antiquity, in this ministerial view, is of very great use; which I shall endeavour to show as distinctly as may be.

• This appears from his lame and confused account of the word person, p. 5-11, 38.

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The very pious Mr. Nelson, in a Letter to a Popish Priest, has some reflections worth the inserting in this place.

"I am not ignorant that two of your great champions, Cardinal Perron "and Petavius, to raise the authority of general councils, and to make the "rule of their faith appear more plausible, have aspersed not only the holy "Scriptures, as uncapable, by reason of their obscurity, to prove the great "and necessary point of our Saviour's Divinity, but have impeached also "the Fathers of the first three centuries as tardy in the same point.———— "Blessed God! that men should be so fond of human inventions, as to sa"crifice to them those pillars of our faith, which are alone proper and able << to support it; I mean Scripture and primitive antiquity. But to do jus"tice to the memory of so learned a man as Petavius, the Bishop of Meaux << told me, discoursing with him once on this subject, that in the last edition << he made of his works, he retracted this opinion: which I am willing to << believe upon the authority of that great man, &c." Dr. Hickes's Letters, &c. p. 334. Compare Chillingworth, pref. sect. 16, 17, 18.

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But, first, let me premise a few things, in order to give the reader a clearer idea of the true state of the whole case. It is to be considered, that Scripture consists of words, and that words are but signs, and that common usage and acceptation is what must settle their meaning. And when any thing comes down to us in a dead language, as Scripture now does, the customary use of words in that language, at the time when they were spoken or written, must be the rule and measure of interpretation"; only, taking in with it the drift and intention of the speaker, or writer, so far as it may be certainly known, or probably presumed from evidences or circumstances.

It is next to be considered, that there is something of equivocalness and ambiguity, for the most part, in words, or phrases, though ever so well and wisely chosen; and that many through ignorance, or inattention, or prepossession, may mistake or pervert their true meaning. Subtile wits may at any time take advantage of this natural imperfection of all languages, and may wrest the plainest expressions from their true and certain meaning, to a false and foreign one. The nature of language, I say, is such, that it may be done, and the depravity or weakness of mankind is such, that it often will be done: and then disputes will arise about the jarring and dissonant interpretations, all perhaps appearing severally possible, and all plausibly recommended, though amongst them all there is but one which is truly reasonable.

It may further be considered, that all languages abound with metaphors, tropes, figures, or schemes of speech; and it is allowable to interpret figuratively, allegorically, emblematically, as often as there is a necessity for it, or good reason to apprehend that the thing was written in the way of figure, allegory, or emblem. This allowable liberty may easily be extended too far, through want of judgment, or want of care, or want of honesty and sincerity. Indeed most of the abuses, with regard to inter

"See Rogers's Review, p. 41-51.

preting of Scripture, when traced up to their fountain head, will appear to have been owing to this, that some will fancy the plain and obvious sense unreasonable, or absurd, when it really is not; and will thereupon obtrude their own surmises, conjectures, prejudices upon the word of God. For having taken their own conceits for certain truths, and having determined beforehand, that the letter of Scripture shall give way to them, they will of course rack and torture Scripture, as far as wit, learning, or invention can assist them, in order to contrive some construction or other, which may but seem to favour their preconceived opinions; unless they choose rather to reject or adulterate the texts which make against them, or to devise new Scriptures to serve the purpose.

Add to this, that the art of torturing plain words has been advanced to great perfection in these latter ages, since the revival of learning and sciences; and especially since the Socinians and Romanists have taken almost incredible pains to make themselves complete masters in that way. There is nothing now almost, but what some

* The Socinian management is thus elegantly described by Abr. Calovius. Dici non potest quam nefario ausu, quam profana impietate, quam horrendo sacrilegio versentur illi Scripturarum corruptores in sacris literis, ut suæ aut favere videantur, aut saltem non adversari sententiæ: modo enim scripta Jós, partim Novi partim et imprimis Veteris Testamenti, de sublimi auctoritatis divinæ fastigio deturbant; modo sententias et periodos quasdam Scripturæ sacræ in dubium revocant; modo distinctiones parenthesium et cola intervertunt, ac trajectionum novo signμarı Spiritus S. sensum invertunt; modo per apostrophas, vel exclamationes mentem Scripturæ corrumpunt; modo per constructiones recens excogitatas, modo per vocum significationes inusitatas, nùllisque lexicographis cognitas; modo per àváλvov violentam, modo per ižna prorsus insolentem, interdum et xarà diáμerg” oppositam et contrariam, sacras literas detorquent: quadrata rotundis, supera inferis, cælum terris miscent, horrendaque sgibλórnrı oracula sanctissima pervertunt, detestanda μsraμogpáru transformant: quicquid denique apertum et clarum in sacris literis, id veluti sepiæ rationis suæ obscurant atramento. Ipsam autem Scripturam perplexitatis, νισορησίας, ἀπαιδευσίας, ἀνακολουθείας, ambiguitatis, obscuritatis, incertitudinis, erroris, falsitatis, impie postulant et accusant; scilicet juxta illud Hieronymi veriverbium, hæretici convicti de perfidia, conferunt se ad maledicta. Vid. Wucherer. Vindic. adv. Whiston p. 21. A. D. 1732.

or other will attempt (if there be occasion) to drag over into the service of any cause, and to wrest to what sense they please, though ever so contrary to the words themselves, or to the known intention of the authors or compilers. The ancient misbelievers most of them were young practitioners in comparison: for they commonly rejected or adulterated the Scriptures which they did not like y, not understanding, or however not trusting to qualifying interpretations, which might steal away the sense, without injuring the letter.

Lastly, it should be considered, that God has provided no other general remedies against these and the like abuses, or against men's being imposed upon by them, than what he has provided against any other wiles of Satan, or any other temptations; namely, prayer and watchfulness, care and endeavour, and the use of proper means. We are no more secure against heresy, than we are against any other sins: but there are as strong temptations to it, (founded in natural pride, vanity, curiosity, emulation, ambition, or sometimes credulity, supineness, secular interest, or revenge,) as there are to other vices of a coarser kind.

These things considered, it will be highly expedient to take in all the helps we can procure, for the ascertaining the true and full meaning of sacred Writ, and for preserving, so far as in us lies, the doctrines of Christ. No proper means are to be neglected or set aside, lest we fall into error for want of the use of such means, or be found guilty of despising the gifts of God. Now we may come to the main question, whether antiquity may not be justly reputed one of the proper means, or how far it is so? In which inquiry I shall proceed by several steps or degrees, for the clearer and more distinct conception of what belongs to it, under its several views.

I. The ancients, who lived nearest to the apostolical

y The heretics, so charged, are Cerinthus, Ebion, Saturninus, Carpocrates, Cerdon, Marcion, Lucian, Appelles, Tatian, Ptolomæus, Theodotus, Artemon, Manichæus; the Ophitæ, Cainites, Sethoites, Alogi, Pepuzians, Severians, and perhaps some others.

times, are of some use to us, considered merely as contemporary writers, for their diction or phraseology. Any other coetaneous writers, Jewish or Pagan, are of use in that view but home writers, Christian authors, will be so more especially, as conversant in the same subjects, and breathing the same spirit with the sacred writers themselves. This, however, is the least, and the lowest use of the ancient Fathers; besides that we have but few, and those very short tracts, which bear so early a date.

II. A further use of the ancient Fathers is seen, in their letting us into the knowledge of antiquated rites and customs, upon which some Scripture allusions may be formed, and upon the knowledge of which the true interpretation of some Scripture phrases or idioms may in some measure dependa. But this general use is such as may also be answered, in a lower degree, by any as early writings, Jewish or Pagan; as likewise by Lexicons, or books of antiquities.

III. The ancient Fathers are further useful, as giving us insight into the history of the age in which the sacred books (of the New Testament, I mean) were written. For there is nothing which is apt to give so much light to any writing, as the well understanding and considering the historical occasion of it: a much surer and safer rule to go by, generally speaking, than mere criticizing upon words; as is manifest in the case of charters, statutes, records, and other ancient monuments.

IV. I come, fourthly, to mention some more peculiar and eminent views, in which the ancientest Fathers may be exceeding useful, for fixing the sense of Scripture in controverted texts. Those that lived in or near the apostolical times might retain in memory what the Apostles themselves, or their immediate successors, thought and said upon such and such points. And though there is no trusting, in such case, to oral tradition distinct from Scrip

* Vid. Dodwell. Dissert. in Iren. in præfat. sect. 15. et Dissert. 1.

• Dodwell. Dissert. in Iren. i. e. 44.

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