A Motion Tending to the Public Good of this Age and Posterity, Part 4
THe Appendix to the Galathians, as the occaſion of Reſolving this Epiſtle thus at the firſt was my ſincere purpoſe and indeavour to ſtir up my Auditory to the Reading and Meditation of the Scriptures, ſo now my ſincere affection & wiſh is to beſeech the Lord that this may be an occaſion to others who intend to edifie their hearers to take the like courſe in hand: For I have found and doe finde daily by experience that there is no truly and abſolutely grounded knowledge of the Myſteries of Salvation but in the Scriptures, and that to apprehend it in them, there is no other meanes but Prayer and conſtant Meditation, and that to meditate rightly, there is no ſure way, but firſt to lay aſide all prejudicate opinions in giving over ones ſelfe to bee captived by the evident ſence of plaine places. Secondly, to lay hold of a quiet minde in ſuſpending and captivating ones ſelfe from raſh reſolutions till it pleaſe the Lord to reveale the ſence in doubtfull and obſcure places: And thirdly never to ſettle fully and infallibly the mind to reſt in any thing till it be evident that all the parts of the diſcourſe in the ſcopes and matters of every one of them, anſwer directly in all reſpects to eſtabliſh that truth which is apprehended to be abſolutely infallible, when it is found that a place is ſo confirmed by the joynt coherence and reference of all places of the ſame treatie unto it, with a mutuall harmony and agreement of altogether to the analogie of faith; Then a man may infallibly conclude of the meaning of a place, (and as I ſuppoſe) not before then; Now to comprehend the joynt coherence and harmonically diſſonant references of all the parts and particles of a treaty, me thinkes it is very neceſſary to goe exceeding warily and orderly to worke, for we are eaſily deceived either by Philoſophicall or Rhetoricall conceits of humane wiſedome, or elſe by incident imaginations of our owne to which readily wee are bent to force all to agree, wracking it and wreſting it to our purpoſe, ſo that if wee once give way to our owne fancy, our preconceived opinion becomes as a torture whereupon wee binde the places of Scripture and racking them with violence we make them confeſſe and ſpeake what we will and not what they meane, therefore a ſafe and well grounded courſe muſt be taken firſt of all in ſanctifying and purifying the heart and intentions from all by reſpects before a man undertake this meditation, by prayer craving grace, and by grace aiming onelyonly through the love and fear of God to attain to the true knowledge of the teſtimony of Jeſus Chriſt, that he may be ſerved and glorifyed according to a good conſcience in the obedience of faith. Secondly in proceeding in the work it ſelfe by degrees not caſting, firſt a Mould of thine owne, and then framing it afterwards with the tool as Aaron did his golden calfe, but framing firſt all the particulars ſeverally according to the Paterne which thou ſhalt ſee in the mount of the Analogie of faithfull and ſound doctrine, and then joynting and connecting all thoſe together every one in its owne place, and ſo rearing it up to be one body as Moſes did his tabernacle of the Lord, and to frame theſe particulars conveniently (if I were to give this my advice how it muſt be done til the Lord enable me more fully for preſent I only can ſay thus much, me thinks our beſt courſe is to follow the type, as I take it of knowledge, ſet forth in Ezekiel 47. where it is ſaid, that waters did flow from the houſe of God by degrees of depth, which I think may be Allegorized thus▪ There be foure degrees of Ezekiels paſſage through the waters, the firſt is up to the Ancles, the ſecond is up to the knees, the third is up to the loynes, and the fourth is up to the head and eares, and above ſo, that there was no way to paſſe over but by ſwimming, let us alſo wade in the waters of life contained in the Scriptures by the ſame degrees, and I doubt not but we ſhall go ſafely without danger: Firſt, let us go with our underſtandings but up to the ancles, where the waters are ſhallow, that is let us comprehend the true and plain literall ſence and phraſe-ology of the text firſt, then afterwards let us wade in to the knees, that is, let us intend to conceive the ſeverall and evidently diſtinct ſentences, and clear points of inſtruction, or exhortation or correction, or reproofe, &c. openly offering themſelves unto us, taking them as wee finde them, plainely diſtinguiſhed by themſelves. Thirdly, let us go from theſe materiall points and ſentences after that they are all conceived to things more materiall which binde up all the diſtinct parts in one body, and knit them together as it were in the place of conjunction, where ſuperiour and inferiour parts meet together, as in the loynes of a man, and that is done, when we conceive aright of all the rationall connections of theſe ſeverall ſentences in joyning as the words themſelves do require one ſentence to another to make up of two one conception, and ſo going on to all the joynts and knots of the ſeverall matters, we muſt joyn one to one, and two to two by degrees, till we conceive fully of the whole lump of the matter handled throughout the whole treatie, and of the contrall ſcope and maine intention to which all doth at leaſt in a generall manner aime, When now this is done, it is permitted to a man to go ſo farre, as to ſtretch forth his armes and to ſwimme, then you may come to the waters, which cannot be paſſed over, becauſe they ſhall in your mind riſe to be a river, and that is, when you ſhall in the feare of God ſeek to comprehend the whole drift of the ſpirit of knowledge, in the whole treaty, and in all the parts of it as they are both ſeparately and conjoyntly diſpoſed in a mutuall courſe of ſubordination or coordination, when you ſhall comprehend in the onelyonly matter and ſcope both the maine, the direct, and the collaterall reſpects, aſwell of ſentences and words for the matter, as of faſhions of propoſing them and confirming them, and concluding them for the manner, when finally, you ſhall be able, by the perpetuall collation of all things propoſed to ſee a ſtreame and river of wiſedome flowing continually in ſuch a breadth and depth, that none can paſſe over it, from one beginning to one end by continuall conſequences of infinite drops and reſpects of knowledge which all make up but one body of waters, and thus you muſt go (in every paſſage, whoſoever thou art) not of thine owne motion ſo much, as by the leading of the man that hath the line in his hand (of whom look Iſa. 28. 16. 17. and elſwhere) and thus thou muſt go betwixt every paſſage, leaving a convenient diſtance and not haſtily nor raſhly, and thus thou muſt go▪ not comming to the fourth degree till thou be brought through the three firſt degrees, for Ezekiel was brought through them firſt, and then he tels us by experience what depth they were of, but when he comes to the laſt, he confeſſeth that neither he himſelfe, nor any man elſe could paſſe over the waters, teaching us by that experience the rule which Saint Peter ſets downe clearly, 2. Pet. 1. 20. No propheſie of the Scripture is of any private interpretation, foreign, of proper reſolution, ſo then thou muſt never be ſo confident and full in thine owne ſence but thou muſt alwayes in the fear of God be ready to heare others alſo, for perhaps thy neighbour hath ſwimmed as far as thou, Now the Lord of his mercy ſend unto us the Spirit of direction and knowledge, of meckneſſe and love to bear one with another, and to learne willingly of him one by another, that ſo we may become trees of life, planted by the rivers of theſe waters, to bring forth our fruits in due ſeaſon, Amen. And as for me, beloved, as I have wiſhed at the beginning ſo do I now wiſh and pray againe, that it would pleaſe the Lord to move the hearts of teachers to propoſe unto their flocks the body of the Scripture it ſelfe, as it were in a lumpe, furniſhing unto them ſufficient directions and ability to ſtudy and meditate in it diligently for themſelves, and to propoſe to others their hearers in lively practice and clear inſtitutions, both evident examples, and manifeſt rules how to exerciſe their hearts underſtandingly in it, to the growth of knowledge and the unity of faith, which now a dayes is ſo greatly requiſite, for all men are now for the moſt part drunken with their owne opinions, reeling to and fro in uncertainties, and the more ignorant ſort, which is oft times ſuch as think themſelves the wiſeſt, are ſo incapeable of true heavenly wiſedome that all things delivered unto them out of the Scriptures, muſt be delivered as unto little babes, line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little, and ſo we alwaies ſtay in the very elements of knowledge, and never go forward to perfection, becauſe we cannot bear one with another, and hear one another with patience, becauſe we pray not one for another, that things unknown may be revealed, but we blame one another, and ſuſpect one another, and envie one another to our mutuall deſtruction, now the Lord of his mercy mend theſe things both in the teachers and in the hearers, that by the faithfull prayers and endeavours of Gods people, once at laſt the divine order of the holy wiſedome of God revealed in the Scriptures, may be made manifeſt: for me thinkes, that Babilon which is the confuſion of the whole world in all things, but chiefly in the originall language of Canaan, which is the true ſence of the Scriptures, will never be overthrown till this generall order of the text in the uniforme ſence of all the diſtinct parts of it be raiſed up by God, and brought forth as a true Zorubbabell to confound this confuſion of uncertaine ſences, and when this ſhall be effectuated by the Lord of Hoſts, who is wonderfull in counſels▪ and excellent in working, then I am ſure that the queſtion ſhall be determined who ought to be judge of controverſies, the Pope or the Scriptures, then Atheiſts mouthes who acknowledge not the divinitie of it ſhall be ſtopped, and all thoſe that ſeek the Lord, ſhall find him, and be fedd with underſtanding, for there is ſuch an incomprehenſible extent of knowledge in a little parcell or book of the Scriptures, and ſo uniforme a ſence and light through the manifold parts of it, that I cannot compare the parts of it more fitly then unto the body of the Sunne in our worldly firmament, which though in appearance it ſeemes but a hand breadth, yet it fils the whole world with the glory of one light by the meanes of infinite beames, making up but one ſtream of reſplendencie on every ſide alike defuſed, ſo is it with one epiſtle even with every one of the epiſtles, they are but as a hand breadth in ſubſtance, but in light of knowledge, through the infinite reſpects and references of divers parts as of great beames, they are able to fill the whole church, and the heart of every living ſoule with the reſplendencie of the glory of God in the face of Jeſus Chriſt, and as Ideots that wote not what optike or opticall demonſtrations mean, cannot beleeve or perceive although it be told them, that there is an orderly diſpoſitions of the beames of the Sunne amongſt themſelves, and a ſubordinate proceeding of their parts from the body of the Sunne, and that there is an unſpeakably and incomprehenſibly exact order in the diſpoſition of all the parts of light, ſo the ſpirituall Ideots that have no optike Organs, it is no marvaile that they never beleeve nor ſee any order to be in the body of the Scriptures, but ſo many of you as can make evident demonſtrations, or experimentall tryals, in gathering the beames of the light together in your looking glaſſes, to doe by the meanes of refraction, or reflection, ſome wonderfull effect, either of repreſentation or of burning in the hearts, and before the eyes of godly ſoules, you (I ſay) may know and can ſee, that in this light is not onelyonly an excellent order and diſpoſition of all the parts of it, but alſo the very cauſe of all order that is or ever ſhalbe in this world for even as darknes is the mother of all confuſion & diſorder, becauſe it bears under its wings as it were the ſhadow of deſtruction, and the nature of a Chaos, and as light is the mother of comlineſſe and order, ſetting forth and making manifeſt by the onelyonly preſence of it ſelfe, the whole decency, diſtinction, varietie, unitie, and ſymmetricall diſpoſition, of every thing in heaven and earth, and of the whole world, ſo alſo ignorance hath been hitherto the mother of Babel, and knowledge ſhall beget Zorubbabell, now no knowledge is certaine but that which is in the word of God, even as no light is pure light but that which comes from heaven by the ſame, therefore that light can onelyonly and ſhall bring all order and righteous diſpoſition of all things in the church and world, for in it onelyonly is the true weight, meaſure, proportion, and ſituation of every thing, and by it onelyonly the diſpoſition of the Creatour who hath framed every thing moſt orderly and decently can be made manifeſt unto mankind, and can any now be ſo ſenceleſle as to think, that that word and light, which is and muſt be the onelyonly cauſe of order in every thing ſhould want order and be confuſed in it ſelf? can any be ſo confuſed in judgement, and drowned in fooliſh and diſorderly imaginations, as to think that Gods ſpirit (who by wiſedome hath in the firſt creation of this temporary world ordered all things in ſo admirable a manner, that whoſoever beholds it cannot but acknowledge the infinite providence of the workman of ſo ſtrange a frame) ſhould not in the ſecond creation of an eternall world (which is his church) order and expreſſe in the Scriptures, the very decrees and precepts of wiſedome it ſelfe orderly? If the kingdome of nature which ſhall periſh is eſtabliſhed by ſo wonderfull an effect of wiſedome, and ſtands only by it (for heaven and earth are naturally ſubſiſtant by no other thing but by the pillars and foundation of order) ſhall the kingdome of grace, and of the word of God which laſteth eternally be leſſe wonderfull in the ſame effect of that ſame wiſedome? No ſurely for if order be one of the moſt certaine and chiefe effects and conſequents of wiſedome, then whereſoever wiſdome is expreſſed, there order muſt be alſo, and where wiſdome is moſt eminently and highly expreſſed, there alſo order muſt be found in the moſt eminent and high degree of prudencie, righteouſneſſe, decencie, and comlineſſe, and for this cauſe I hold for certaine, that in the text of the Scripture a divine order and diſpoſition not only of matter but alſo of words and manner of expreſſing that matter is to be found, which being perceived and found, will bring a new light to all mens eyes, and will diſcover hidden things more evidently hereafter, then ever knowne things have been knowne heretofore, which I beſeech the Lord in his merciemercy to performe, and to make manifeſt by his ſpirit of propheſte in the teſtimony of Ieſus Chriſt, that in the revelation of his deare ſonne, all thoſe that love him may be filled with joy, and that the glory of his wiſdome and goodneſſe may be knowne in the truth of his word to the praiſe of his holy and glorious ame both now and evermore, Amen, Even ſo come Lord Ieſus, and let him that hear it ſay come. Rev. 22. and 20. and 17.
Finis
End of the text · John Dury, A Motion Tending to the Public Good of this Age and Posterity (1642)