'living and effectual,' Heb. iv. 12. and 'sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow; and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.'. It is designed of God to declare τὴν ἐνέργειαν τῆς δυνάμεως, the effectual working of his power. See John. vi. 68, 69. 2 Cor. vi. 41. xv. 58. Gal. ii. 8. By virtue of this power, it brought forth fruit in all the world; Col. i. 6. Without sword, without (for the most part) miracles, without human wisdom, or oratory, without any inducements or motives, but what were merely and solely taken from itself, consisting in things, that' eye had not seen, nor ear heard, nor could enter into the heart of man to conceive;' hath it exerted this its power and efficacy, to the conquest of the world; causing men of all sorts, in all times and places, so to fall down before its divine authority, as immediately to renounce all that was dear to them in the world, and to undergo whatever was dreadful, terrible, and destructive to nature in all its dearest concernments.

It hath been the work of many to insist on the particulars, wherein this power exerts itself; so that I shall not enlarge upon them. In general, they have this advantage, that as they are all spiritual, so they are such, as have their seat, dwelling, and abode in the hearts and consciences of men, whereby they are not liable to any exception as though they were pretended. Men cannot harden themselves in the rejection of the testimony they give, by sending for magicians to do the like; or by any pretence that it is a common thing, that is befallen them on whom the word puts forth its power. The seat and residence of these effects, is safeguarded against all power and authority but that of God. Its diving into the hearts, consciences, and secret recesses of the minds of men; its judging and sentencing of them in themselves; its convictions, terrors, conquests, and killing of men; its converting, building up, making wise, holy, obedient; its administering consolations in every condition, and the like effects of its power, are usually spoken unto..

These are briefly the foundations of the answer returned to the inquiry formerly laid down, which might abundantly be enlarged. How know we that the Scripture is the word of God; how may others come to be assured thereof? The Scripture, say we, bears testimony to itself, that it is the word

of God; that testimony is the witness of God himself, which whoso doth not accept and believe, he doth what in him lies to make God a liar. To give us an infallible assurance that in receiving this testimony, we are not imposed upon by cunningly devised fables, the αἱ γραφαί, the ἵερα γράμματα, 'the Scriptures' have that glory of light and power accompanying of them as wholly distinguisheth them by infallible signs and evidences from all words and writings not divine; conveying their truth and power into the souls and consciences of men with an infallible certainty. On this account are they received, by all that receive them as from God; who have any real distinguishing foundation of their faith, which would not be, separated from these grounds, as effectual an expedient for the reception of the Alcoran.

CHAP. V.

Of the testimony of the Spirit. Traditions. Miracles.

BEFORE I proceed to the consideration of those other testimonies, which are as arguments drawn from those innate excellencies and properties of the word which I have insisted on; some other things, whose right understanding is of great importance in the cause under debate, must be laid down and stated. Some of these refer to that testimony of the Spirit, that is usually and truly pleaded, as the great ascertaining principle, or that, on the account whereof we receive the Scriptures to be the word of God. That it may be seen in what sense that is usually delivered by our divines, and how far there is a coincidence between that assertion and what we have delivered, I shall lay down what that testimony is, wherein it consists, and what is the weight or stress that we lay upon

it.

That the Scripture be received as the word of God, there is required a twofold efficacy of the Spirit. The first respects the subject or the mind of man that assents unto the authority of the Scripture; now concerning this act, or work of the Spirit, whereby we are enabled to believe the Scripture, on the account whereof we may say that we receive the Scripture to be the word of God, or upon the tes

timony of the Spirit, I shall a little inquire, what it is, and wherein it doth consist.

First, Then, It is not an outward or inward vocal testimony concerning the word, as the Papist would impose upon us to believe and assent. We do not affirm that the Spirit immediately, by himself, saith unto every individual believer this book is, or contains, the word of God; we say not that the Spirit ever speaks to us of the word, but by the word. Such an enthusiasm as they fancy is rarely pretended; and where it is so, it is for the most part quickly discovered to be a delusion. We plead not for the usefulness, much less the necessity, of any such testimony. Yea, the principles we have laid down, resolving all faith into the public testimony of the Scriptures themselves, do render all such private testimonies altogether needless.

Secondly, This testimony of the Spirit consists not in a persuasion that a man takes up, he knows not well how, or why; only this he knows, he will not depose it though it cost him his life. This would be like that, which by Morinus is ascribed to the church of Rome, which though it knew no reason why it should prefer the vulgar Latin translation before the original, yet by the guidance of the Spirit would do so, that is, unreasonably. But if a man should say, that he is persuaded that the Scripture is the word of God, and that he will die a thousand times to give testimony thereunto; and not knowing any real ground of this persuasion, that should bear him out in such a testimony, shall ascribe it to the Spirit of God, our concernment lies not in that persuasion. This may befal men by the advantage of traditions, whereof men are usually zealous, and obstinate in their defence. Education in some constitutions will give pertinacy in most vain and false persuasions. It is not then a resolution and persuasion induced into our minds we know not how, built we know not upon what foundations, that we intend in the assignation of our receiving the Scripture to be the word of God, to the effectual work and witness of the Holy Ghost.

Two things then we intend by this work of the Spirit upon the mind of man: 1. His communication of spiritual light; by an act of his power, enabling the mind to discern

a Morin. Exercit. de Heb. Tex. sincer. Excercit. 1. cap. 1.

the saving truth, majesty, and authority of the word, avevμaTIKA TVEVμATIKÕÇ. There is a blindness, a darkness, upon the minds of men, πνεῦμα μὴ ἐχόντων, that not only disenables them from discerning the things of God, in their certainty, evidence, necessity, and beauty (for uxixòs äv≈ρwπos vi δέχεται τά τοῦ θεοῦ) but also causes them to judge amiss of them as things weak and foolish, dark, unintelligible, not answering to any principle of wisdom whereby they are guided; 1 Cor. ii. Whilst this yλaúxwμa abides on the minds of men, it is impossible that they should on any right abiding fourdation assent to the word of God. They may have a prejudicate opinion, they have no faith concerning it. This darkness then must be removed by the communication of light by the Holy Ghost, which work of his illumination is commonly by others spoken unto; and by me also in another place.

2. The Holy Ghost, together with and by his work of illumination, taking off the perverse disposition of mind that is in us by nature, with our enmity to, and aversation from, the things of God, effectually also persuades the mind, to a receiving and admitting of the truth, wisdom, and authority of the word. Now, because this perverse disposition of mind, possessing the rò nyeuovikov of the soul, influences the will also into an aversation and dislike of that goodness which is in the truth proposed to it; it is removed by a double act of the Holy Ghost.

(1.) He gives us wisdom, understanding, a spiritual judgment, whereby we may be able to compare spiritual things with spiritual, in a spiritual manner, and to come thereby to a clear and full light of the heavenly excellency and majesty of the word; and so enables us to know of the doctrine, whether it be of God. Under the benefit of this assistance all the parts of the Scripture, in their harmony and correspondency, all the truths of it in their power and necessity, ce in together to give evidence one to another, and all of be whole; I mean as the mind is enabled to make dgment of them.

́es aloInow πvevμaτikηv, a spiritual sense, a taste themselves upon the mind, heart, and conn we have αισθητήρια γεγυμνασμένα • senses exer n such things. These things deserve a ing, and to be particularly exemplified fro

Scripture if the nature of our present design would admit

thereof.

As in our natural estate in respect of these things of God, the mind is full of vanity, darkness, blindness, yea, is darkness itself, so that there is no correspondency between the faculty and the object; and the will lies in an utter unacquaintedness, yea, impossibility of any acquaintance with the life, power, savour, sweetness, relish, and goodness, that is in the things proposed to be known and discerned, under the dark shades of a blind mind; so for a removal of both these, the Holy Ghost communicates light to the understanding, whence it is able to see and judge of the truth, as it is in Jesus, and the will being thereby delivered from the dungeon wherein it was, and quickened anew, performs its office, in embracing what is proper and suited unto it in the object proposed. The Spirit, indeed, discovereth to every one Kaç Boúλera, according to the counsel of his will; but yet in that way, in the general, whereby the sun gives out his light and heat, the former making way for the latter: but these things must not now be insisted on.

Now by these works of the Spirit, he doth, I say, persuade the mind concerning the truth and authority of the Scripture, and therein leave an impression of an effectual、 testimony within us: and this testimony of his, as it`is authoritative, and infallible in itself, so of inconceivably more efficacy, power, and certainty, unto them that do receive it, than any voice or internal word, boasted of by some, can be. But yet this is not the work of the Spirit at present inquired after.

2. There is a testimony of the Spirit, that respects the object, or the word itself; and this is a public testimony, which, as it satisfies our souls in particular, so it is, and may be, pleaded, in reference unto the satisfaction of all others, to whom the word of God shall come. The Holy Ghost speaking in and by the word, imparting to it virtue, power, efficacy, majesty, and authority, affords us the witness, that our faith is resolved unto. And thus, whereas there are but two heads, whereunto all grounds of assent do belong, namely, authority of testimony, and the self-evidence of truth, they do here both concur in one. In the same word we have both the authority of the testimony of the Spirit,