no lefs ridiculous, than to afk one whofe eyes are open, How he knows the fun fhines at noon-day? And though this be the fureft and certainest way to answer all objections; yet by what is above written it may appear, that the mouths of all fuch oppofers as deny this doctrine may be shut, by unquestionable and unanfwerable reasons.

From these revelations of the Spirit of God to the faints have proceeded the Scriptures of Truth, which contain,

I. A faithful hiftorical account of the actings of God's people in divers ages; with many fingular and remarkable providences attending them. II. A prophetical account of feveral things, whereof fome are already paft, and fome yet to come. III. A full and ample account of all the chief principles of the doctrine of Christ, held forth in divers precious declarations, exhortations, and fentences, which, by the moving of God's Spirit, were at feveral times, and upon fundry occafions, fpoken and written unto fome churches and their pastors. Nevertheless, because they are only a declaration of

the fountain, and not the fountain itself, therefore they are not to be efteemed the principal ground of all truth and knowledge, nor yet the adequate primary rule of faith and manners. Yet because they give a true and faithful teftimony of the first foundation, they are and may be esteemed a fecondary rule, fubordinate to the Spirit, from which they have all their excellency and certainty: for as by the inward teftimony of the Spirit we do alone truly know them, fo they teftify, That John 16 13. the Spirit is that Guide by which the faints are F

led

Rom. S, 14.

the moft excellent writings in the world.

led into all Truth; therefore, according to the fcriptures, the Spirit is the firft and principal leader. Seeing then that we do therefore receive and believe the fcriptures because they proceeded from the Spirit, for the very fame reason is the Spirit more originally and principally the rule, according to the received maxim in the fchools, Propter quod unumquodque eft tale, illud ipfum eft magis tale: That for which a thing is fuch, that thing it felf is more fuch.

§. 1. though it needs no apology for itself,

HE former part of this propofition,

yet it is a good apology for us, and will help to sweep away that, among many other calumnies, wherewith we are often loaded, as if we were vilifiers and deniers of the fcriptures; for in that which we affirm of them, it doth appear at what high The holy rate we value them, accounting them, without all fcriptures deceit or equivocation, the most excellent writings in the world; to which not only no other writings are to be preferred, but even in divers refpects not comparable thereto. For as we freely acknowledge that their authority doth not depend upon the approbation or canons of any church or affembly; fo neither can we fubject them to the fallen, corrupt, and defiled reason of man: and therein as we do freely agree with the Proteftants against the error of the Romanists, fo on the other hand, we cannot go the length of fuch Proteftants as make their authority to depend upon any virtue or power that is in the writings themselves; but we desire to afcribe all to that Spirit from which they proceeded.

We confefs indeed there wants not a majefty in the style, a coherence in the parts, a good fcope in the whole; but feeing thefe things are not difcerned by the natural, but only by the fpiritual man, it is the Spirit of God that must give us that belief

of

of the fcriptures which may fatisfy our confciences; therefore fome of the chief among Proteftants, both in their particular writings and publick confeffions, are forced to acknowledge this.

that the

Hence Calvin, though he faith he is able to prove Calvin's that if there be a God in heaven, these writings have teftimony proceeded from him, yet he concludes another know- Scripture ledge to be neceffary. Inftit. lib. 1. cap. 7. Sect. 4.

certainly is

from the

But if (faith he) we refpect the confciences, Spirit. "that they be not daily molested with doubts, and "hefitate not at every fcruple, it is requifite that "this perfuafion which we fpeak of be taken higher " than human reafon, judgment, or conjecture; to "wit, from the secret teftimony of the Spirit." And again, "To those who afk, that we prove unto them, "by reafon, that Mofes and the prophets were infpired of God to speak, I answer, That the teftimony of the Holy Spirit is more excellent than "all reason." And again, And again, "Let this remain a "firm truth, that he only whom the Holy Spirit "hath persuaded, can repofe himself on the fcrip"ture with a true certainty." And lastly, "This "then is a judgment which cannot be begotten "but by an heavenly revelation, &c."

the French

The fame is alfo affirmed in the firft publick The conconfeffion of the French churches, published in the feffion of year 1559. Art. 4. "We know these books to be churches. "canonical, and the most certain rule of our faith, "not fo much by the common accord and confent "of the church, as by the teftimony and inward "perfuafion of the Holy Spirit."

Holland af

Thus alfo in the 5th article of the confeffion of Churches of faith, of the churches of Holland, confirmed by fert the Synod of Dort. "We receive these books only fame. "for holy and canonical,-not fo much because "the church receives and approves them, as be"cause the Spirit of God doth witness in our "hearts that they are of God."

Weftminfter confeffion the

fame.

Apocrypha.

Can. 58. in

Conc.Laod.

excluded

the Wif

And lastly, The divines, fo called, at Westminfer, who began to be afraid of, and guard against, the teftimony of the Spirit, because they perceived a difpenfation beyond that which they were under beginning to dawn, and to eclipfe them; yet could they not get by this, though they have laid it down neither fo clearly, diftinctly, nor honestly as they that went before. It is in these words, Chap. 1. Sect. 5. "Nevertheless our full "perfuafion and affurance of the infallible truth "thereof, is from the inward work of the Holy "Spirit, bearing witnefs by and with the Word in "our hearts."

By all which it appeareth how neceffary it is to feek the certainty of the fcriptures from the Spirit, and no where elfe. The infinite janglings and endless contefts of thofe that feek their authority elsewhere, do witnefs to the truth here

of.

For the ancients themselves, even of the first Conc. Laod. centuries, were not agreed among themfelves conCod. Ec. cerning them; while fome of them rejected books 163. which we approve, and others of them approved held in the thofe which fome of us reject. It is not unknown year 364 to fuch as are in the leaft acquainted with antiquifrom the ca- ty, what great contefts are concerning the fecond non Eccl. epiftle of Peter, that of James, the second and dom of So- third of John, and the Revelations, which many, lomon, Ju even very ancient, deny to have been written by as, the Mac- the beloved difciple and brother of James, but by another of that name. What fhould then become Council of of Chriftians, if they had not received that Spirit, Carthage, and thofe fpiritual fenfes, by which they know how to difcern the true from the falfe? It is the privilege of Chrift's fheep indeed that they hear his voice, and refufe that of a stranger; which privilege being taken away, we are left a prey to all manner of wolves.

dith, Tobi

cabees,

which the

held in the

year 399, received.

§. II.

truth.

§. II. Though then we do acknowledge the fcriptures to be very heavenly and divine writings, the use of them to be very comfortable and neceffary to the church of Chrift, and that we also admire and give praise to the Lord, for his wonderful providence in preferving these writings fo pure and uncorrupted as we have them, through fo long a night of apoftafy, to be a teftimony of his truth against the wickednefs and abominations even of those whom he made inftrumental in preferving them, fo that they have kept them to be a witness against themselves; yet we may The Scrip not call them the principal fountain of all truth not the and knowledge, nor yet the firft adequate rule of principal faith and manners; because the principal fountain grote of of truth muft be the Truth itfelf; i. e. that whofe certainty and authority depends not upon another. When we doubt of the ftreams of any river or flood, we recur to the fountain itself; and having found it, there we defift, we can go no farther, because there it fprings out of the bowels of the earth, which are infcrutable. Even fo the writings and fayings of all men we must bring to the Word of God, I mean the Eternal Word, and if they agree hereunto, we ftand there. For this Word always proceedeth, and doth eternally proceed from God, in and by which the unfearchable wifdom of God, and unfearchable counsel and will conceived in the heart of God, is revealed unto us. That then the fcripture is not the principal ground of faith and knowledge, as it appears by what is above fpoken, fo it is proved in the latter part of the propofition; which being reduced to an argument, runs thus:

That whereof the certainty and authority depends upon another, and which is received as truth because of its proceeding from another, is not to be accounted the principal ground and origin of all truth and knowledge:

F 3

But