The Certainty of Christianity Without Popery, Chapter 6 – Chapter 9
CHAP. VI.
Quest. III. What Certainty we have what is a real Revelation of God?
§. 1. Answ. AS I have before partly distinguished of Certainty, I will now tell you as to some sorts, what it is that goeth to make up Certainty, and then how much and what of this we have.
§. 2. I suppose you to remember that it is not subjective Certainty (in our selves) that we speak of, but Objective; which may be at hand when men see it not. And that it is not meer Truth which we now speak of, but the Evidence of Truth, or its perceptibility, and that neither the lowest, nor only the highest degree, but any of the various degrees which truly satisfie quiet and resolve the soul.
§. 3. And that Objective Infallibility or Certainty, is 1. Not only that which deceiveth no man which receiveth it (for that's the case of all truth) 2. Nor yet that which no man can be deceived about (for that is nothing at all, that I remember, unless it be me cogitare, vel sentire.) 3. But it is that which, in all its right conditions, may give a man satisfactory, resolving certainty of mind.
4. To this is necessary, I. That the Thing have intrinsecally the requisites of an Object. II. That it have extrinsecally the necessary concomitant conditions.
§. 4. I. To the Nature of a perceptible Object it is necessary; 1. That it be something whose nature is within the reach of the perceiving faculty, and not out of its orbe (as spirits are to sense).
2. That it have a perceptible degree, or Magnitude: For the Minima rerum are not perceptible to man.
3. That it be Hoc aliquid, a distinct being, or unum as its called.
4. That it have a special congruence to the special perceiving faculty: For Light must be seen and not heard, and so of the rest. In a word, that it be Ens, Vnum, Verum, Bonum, thus agreeably conditioned. And the contraries reductively, or rather the Propositions about them.
§. 5. II. To the Accidents and Extrinsick Conditions which go to make up Evidence, it is necessary, 1. That the Object have a due Position or site. 2. That it have a due distance, neither too far off, nor too near; 3. And a due Medium (as the air is to the sight and hearing) 4. And a due abode or stay; For neither sense perceiveth motion perfectly swift, nor the Intellect things absolutely instantaneous, that have no Time of continuance.
§. 6. Because Objective Certainty is Relative to Subjective, I must add what is necessary to that, I. On the part of sense, II. Of the Intellect.
I. To true sensible perception it is necessary, 1. That the sensitive faculty of the soul intend the business: Else the Organs will be as a Lute not touched: as we see in hard Students, that hear not the Clock at hand. 2. It is necessary that the spirits which are actuated in sensation be present and sufficient for their part. 3. It is necessary that the Organs be in a competent soundness. 4. It is necessary that it be the proper Organ that is used which agreeth with the object (not the eye to hearing, &c.) 5. That the sense be not oppressed by Impediments.
II. And further to Intellective perception, 1. Of things sensible; It is necessary, 1. That the thing be truly perceived by the sense, 2. And truly Imagined, and therefore that the Imagination have a Competent soundness; 3. That the soul be Attentive to to the matter, and not alienated: 4. That the internal sense, Imagination and Sensitive-memory be in a fit state of vicinity, conjunction or union for the Intellect to operate on and with them. 5. That the Intellect it self be in act, according to its formal Virtue.
2. But to the Intellection of our own Immanent Acts of Intellection and Volition, there is no more necessary but that such Acts be; and then we can Intuitively perceive them.
3. And by easie collection, the Intellect without further help of sense can gather, that [I that understand and will, am sure I have a Power so to do: For nothing doth that which it cannot do: And hereby I apprehend that there are Intellective Volitive Agents, and what they are].
§. 7. It is here supposed, that God hath not a Voice to speak by as man hath; but yet that he can cause a voice at his pleasure, either by the use of a creature, that naturally hath a voice, or by the motion of other creatures, a thousand waies, of which it is not needful for us to be acquainted.
§. 8. When God revealeth his mind, not by voice, but by inward Inspiration, it carrieth its own notifying Evidence with it, which no man can formally conceive of, but he that hath it; But this is the case of Prophetical persons only, and not of us.
§. 9. In this Question, How to know that a Revelation is of God? It is supposed that the Revelation it self, that is, the notifying sign, whether Voice, Writing, or other Act or thing, be known already, For we must first know that such a thing really is, before we can know whence it is. And this is afterward to be spoken of.
§. 10. And here it is not enough to know that God is some way a Cause of that Act, Voice or Writing. For no doubt but he is a universal cause at least, of all the Real beings, and actions in the world: But we must be sure that he is the Determining Cause of this special and individual act or thing as such; so as that he may properly be called The Author of it, and it be called His work.
§. 11. And here (Negatively) 1. We have not sensible Evidence ascertaining us, that these words or signs are the word of God. Sense is not the perceiver of this, as it is of light, heat, motion, &c.
§. 12. 2. Therefore neither doth the Intellect perceive it, by the sense, as it doth these sensed things forementioned.
§. 13. 3. Nor is it the object of Immediate Intellective Intuition, or known as we know the acts of the soul it self, by Immediate perception, as that we Think, Know, Will, and Feel.
§. 14. 4. Nor do we (alwaies at least) know it as we do self-evident Principles, which a man using Reason about them, cannot choose but understand.
§. 15. 5. Nor are all the Parts of Divine Revelations, notified to us with equal Certainty, nor altogether by the same media; nor are they all of equal necessity to be known to be Divine, and so to be believed.
§. 16. But (Affirmatively) 1. We know these Revelations to be Divine, as we know the Truth of Conclusions, by Virtue of the Evidence of their Premises. 2. And this variously, as the Consequence is more or less evident and certain.
§. 17. 1. Supposing that we are Certain that there is a God; (whether as a self-evident Principle, or as the Certainest of Conclusions) and so that he is Perfect, and therefore True, we are certain, as of a most neer and Evident Conclusion, that all Gods Works are his Revelations to man (which are within our reach): that is, That they are signs by which God Revealeth Himself and his Will to us: The Glass in which he must here be seen: The Divinity of this Natural Revelation is past doubt: But all the doubt is of the sense of it.
§. 18. 2. There are Naturally Evident Verities in the Scriptures, which upon the first considerate hearing we may be sure are true: As that there is a God, that he is One, that he is Infinite, Perfect, most Powerful, Wise and Good, the Beginning, Governor and End of all things; that he is our Owner, Actor, Ruler, Benefactor and End: That we ought to Love him, Please and Obey him, above all others, with all our hearts and Powers. The whole Body of the necessary Law of Nature is there conteined; and so is known by a double Revelation.
§. 19. 3. There are other points which are so greatly congruous to the common experience of mankind, as that they have also a Certainty in the thing from that experience; As the common pravity of mans nature, and the great necessity that we have of Deliverance by Pardon and Sanctification; the malice and endeavour of Devils or evil spirits to tempt us from God, and destroy us; the need of Gods continual help against them and our selves, with such like. And these also we have a double Revelation of.
§. 20. 4. The Principal part of the Supernatural Revelations, are so exceeding congruous to those which are of Natural and Experienced Certainty, and are so aptly adjoyned to them, and have so Divine a design and tendency apparent in them, as that they are the more easily believed.
§. 21. 5. And the main frame of the book hath so much of the same spirit and design, and is adapted to the Communication of these principal parts (that is, the Essentials of Christianity) and thereto so compaginated, as that the Belief of the said Estials, maketh it the more easie to believe that the whole system of books is of God.
§. 22. 6. But where we are uncertain of any thing whether it be really a part of that book or system (as some questioned Books, some various Readings, some Texts whose sense is not understood) we must needs be equally uncertain whether those be the word of God.
§. 23. 7. But that Medium which ascertaineth us that these supernatural Revelations are indeed Divine (I mean the proper Truths of Christianity) must be something, which is Lower, or is Notius & prius cognitum, better known than Christianity, and known (in order of Evidence) before it. For all proof of conclusions must be from something first and better known.
§. 24. 8. These things which are sooner and better known than the supernatural Revelation, can be nothing but Natural Revelations, by Gods works in the Nature of things compared, and our natural experience. For there is nothing else antecedent to be a medium of proof. The forementioned natural Verities, about God and Holiness carry their own Evidence with them, either as first principles or as certain conclusions; And the Essentials of Christianity have a self-commending Goodness, which rendreth them sweet to a man that is already a true Believer, and desireable to all truly rational men, and the Congruencie rendreth it credible, supposing further proof. But that really the Incarnation, Deity, Life, Satisfaction, Resurrection, Ascension, Offices and Coming of Christ, are truth, with the Trinity of persons, and such other points, must be proved by some more notorious Medium, proving that they are Divine assertions; which must be some Natural Verities.
§. 25. 9. Therefore the Ascertianing Inference must be this, that If this be not a Divine Revelation, then some Certain Natural Verity must be denied; (which at last will amount to the denying of a God.)
§. 26. 10. Here the Matter of fact is supposed to be known by sight and other senses to the first Christians, and the first Churches, where Christ and his Apostles, and multitudes of other Christians wrought them. And to be known by Certain History to those that saw them not; And the existence of the Persons, Words and Books is supposed known the same way. And on this supposition, we infer that [These Impressions of Divine Power, Wisdom and Goodness, set upon this Doctrine: and all these Miracles by Christ, and multitudes of his servants wrought, in attestation of it, and all this sanctification of all true Believers by this word through the world, are either done by Gods will, or against his will. If they be done by his will, he is the Author of them and approver: And seeing it is evident that they are to the common capacity of mankind, so notorious a signification that God is the Author or approver of that word which be so evidently and wonderfully attesteth, if yet this word prove false, mankind is unavoidably deceived, and Governed in the greatest concernments and business of all his life by this deceit. For he hath no principle, no means left him to know that these are not Divine attestations, nor to disoblige him from judgeing them so to be. But if God shall thus necessitate mankind to a false belief and thereby Govern him, while in Nature he hath taught man to value Truth and hate Lying, he must do this either for want of Power to do otherwise, or for want of Wisdom to do otherwise, or for want of Will and Goodness to do otherwise. And if he wanted any of these he is not God. Or if he Govern not the world himself, but permit some Evil Spirit to do all this; he is not God. For to be God is to be the Supream Governor, and to be every where, the nearest universal Agent.]
These consequences being plain, (though there are vain Objections which I must not stay to answer) we certainly infer: There is a God who is the perfect Governour of the world, and therefore is Gracious, True and Iust; and therefore doth not rule even the best of men by unavoidable deceit and falshood: and therefore this word is True which he so notoriously owneth and attesteth as aforesaid.
§. 27. And hence it is that we take our selves bound about the Sacrament to believe that all mens senses are not deceived; because if they be, man hath no remedy: For God hath made our sense the perceiver of things sensible; and if it be not a Certain perceiver, we have no Certainer nor other about those objects. And if the apprehensions of sense be uncertain, (having all the natural requisites) then all Gods Miracles by which he attested the word, (as well as the word it self) are so: And if it be not contrary to Gods perfection, Veracity and Justice, to deceive all mens senses in the Sacrament, we cannot prove it contrary to them to deceive them by Miracles.
§. 28. As an unbeliever is not so well disposed to receive the Gospel as a holy person after is, and recipitur ad modum recipientis; so usually a more wavering belief goeth before a fuller Certainty: And the holier and more experienced any man is, the more he is Certain of the truth of the Gospel, because he hath the witness in himself, in the Gust and Certain Effects of it: But yet there is that Evidence of Truth which Preachers may and must use to the Conviction of Infidels, to bring them to true belief.
§. 29. The holy Scripture Containing all the Divine Revelations belonging to Religion, compleatly, Essentials, Integrals and Accidentals; the parts of it are not of equal necessity to us. All that truly have the Essentials in Head and Heart and Life, shall be saved: yea though culpably they understand not other points as plainly revealed, and so believe them not to be Divine. For this is the Covenant of Grace: No wonder then if many less necessary parts are less evident.
§. 30. We have a fuller Evidence that all these Miracles, Prophesies and subsequent operations of the Sanctifying Spirit, do attest the New Covenant, and Substance of the Gospel, than we have that they attested every book, (e.g. the Chronicles, the Canticles, &c.) or that they attested every phrase, method, yea or the truth of every word of the penmen, so as that none of them could through oversight or forgetfulness, misrecite a name, number or circumstance. Though we have here sufficient satisfaction, yet not so full a Certainty as we have of the Doctrine of the Gospel, which the Apostles converted the world by Preaching of, before the New Testament was written; and which in the Sacramental Covenants, the Creed, Lords Prayer and Decalogue and Catechisms, was distinctly by it self delivered to the Churches; and so cometh to us by a double way of tradition.
CHAP. VII.
Quest. IV. What Certainty have we of the Copies.
§. 1. Answ. THE same that we have of the Statute Books in England (save that the Recorded Originals of some Laws remain) And the same that you have of the Copies of the most Certain Councils, and Authors extant.
§. 2. 1. They are delivered to us by men of so many Countries, minds and interests, as could not possibly agree to falsifie them, in the substance, and in those points in which the Copies agree.
§. 3. 2. They were constantly read in the holy Assemblies through the Christian world, and by private Christians, and especially all Teachers: And therefore any great depravation could not grow common.
§. 4. 3. The Copies all over the world, of Greatest antiquity, still agree so far as is aforesaid; and the Commentaries of the Fathers, containing the Text, with all the Citations, are the same in the main. So that we have a Historical Certainty of the Copies so far as they are commonly known to agree: which the Old Translations also Confirm.
§. 5. The words in which they disagree, though many, are such as no article necessary to Salvation dependeth on: and are plainly the errors of Scribes, and not of the holy Penmen.
§. 6. In the points where any late or inconsiderable Copy differeth from the generality which have Evidence of Antiquity and Concord, that singularity, is no cause of doubting.
§. 7. Many slips are such as the Context will sufficiently detect.
§. 8. In all those points where the Copies so differ, as that it cannot be proved which is the truest, by certain proof, we can have no certainty: Nor is our uncertainty of any danger to us.
CHAP. VIII.
Quest. V. What Certainty have we of the Canonical Books.
§. 1. Answ. 1. OF all those Canonical Books which the Christian world now commonly receiveth, there is the same Certainty by the same means, which I before mentioned of the Copies. The Doctrine of them was spoken of before, it being that Divine Revelation which God hath attested as was opened. We have the Certain History and Tradition of all ages from the first common notice and reception of them, agreeing which are the true Books.
§. 2. 2. But yet even of these Canonical Books agreed on, the Evidence of Divinity is not equal. For, 1. Some of them have. more Evident Impressions of Gods Image upon them in the Matter than others have (As the Psalms more than Ruth, the Chronicles, &c. The Doctrinal Books more than the Genealogies, Chronologies, particular Histories,) 2. God did confirm some more notoriously by Miracles and publick attestations than others: So Moses his words, had more confirmation by Miracles than Ruth, Chronicles, Ecclesiastes, Canticles, &c. 3. Some have had a fuller testimony by Tradition than others; As the Pentateuch and Psalms, more than the Chronicles, part of Daniel, &c. 4. In all these respects, the New Testament cometh to us with fuller and clearer Evidence than the Old: As being of later date, and so the Historical proof more discernible; And hath more clear Impressions of Divinity, and was confirmed by the most notorious multiplied long-continued Miracles, and by the most notable effects of holiness in all true Believers, &c. And indeed its attestation to the Old Testament is not our weakest proof of its Divinity.
§. 3. There is less doubt of those few books of the New-Testament, which were unknown or doubted of but by some Churches for a time, than of those which are controverted as belonging to the Old.
§. 4. As to those Books which he saith the Ebionites and Valentinians denied, they have as full Historical proof as any; And those that denied them denied Christs Resurrection or some Essentials of Christianity, and were no Christians, but mad-brained factions withdrawn from Christians, (the Valentinian Gnosticks in their whole heresie, plainly shewed themselves crackt-brained Fanaticks, as Irenaeus and Epiphanius describe them,) so that for Number, Quality and Cross-interest their Exceptions were not any considerable discredit of the History; and indeed but excite the Christians the more carefully to examine and preserve their Canon: Nor were their exceptions so much against the Matter of Fact (whether Mark, &c. wrote those books,) as about the Divinity of them: And were but of the like nature with all the Turks, Heathens and other Infidels exceptions against the whole Gospel.
§. 5. And as for those Apocryphal books which are in Controversie between the Papists and us, some Protestants say that they are Certainly none of Gods word, and some that it is utterly uncertain to any man that they are his word: And let the Papists who assert the Certainty that they are, give us the proof of it, and we will thank them. Till then our denial or uncertainty of those books, maketh no alteration in the Great and Necessary Articles of our faith.
CHAP. IX.
Quest. VI. What Certainty have we of the truth of Translations.
§. 1. Answ. 1. THose that understand the Original and the Language into which it is Translated; have a Certainty from the Known signification of the words, answerable to the degree of their skill in those tongues. The signification of the words is Certain to them by Infallible Tradition. The use and sense of the words in Hebrew and Greek is known by Lexicons, and the constant use of Authors, and by the confession of all parties, friends and Enemies, and by present use: so that as your Priests understand a true Translation of any Latine, Greek or Hebrew Author, (Cicero, Plutark, Demosthenes, Antonine, Maimonides, &c.) by the same means do the Learned know a true Translation of the Bible.
§. 2. In the Essentials of Christianity, and all the necessary Articles of faith, the Ignorant themselves have an Infallible Certainty that the Translations are true, so far as that all that is necessary to Salvation is contained concordantly in them all. 1. Because it hath pleased God to deliver all those Necessary points, in various words, distinctly by themselves by all Baptizers and Pastors of the Churches, as is aforesaid: With which the Scripture Translations do agree. 2. Because there is a natural Impossibility that men of so various minds and interests as all the Translators, and all the Defenders of those Translations, should agree till this day to deceive the world, and not be discovered.
§. 3. And by the same evidence it is certain to an unlearned man, that all other plain points in which the Translators agree, are truly translated: Though the knowledge of it in lesser points is not so necessary.
§. 4. And thus (and no other way) both unlearned Protestants and Papists, that cannot read, must know that there is a Bible in the world, and that the Priests do ordinarily read truly that publickly read it to them, and that there are Canons of Councils in the world, &c. Because it is not possible, for so many men of cross interests to agree in feigning it, without detection.
§. 5. There are some passages in some Translations so palpably distorted to the Translators interests and ends, as that the Text and Context to the Learned, and the common agreement of the world to the unlearned, may notifie the error.
§. 6. There are many passages or words so difficult, about which Translators differ as that few or none are Certain which of them is in the right. And this uncertainty is of no danger to the Church or to mens souls.