PART But it may be faid, " that a Revelation in II. "fome of the abovementioned Circumftances; one, for Inftance, which was not " committed to Writing, and thus fecured a

gainst Danger of Corruption, would not "have answered its Purpofe." I ask, what Purpofe? It would not have answered all the Purposes which it has now answered, and in the fame Degree: but it would have anfwered others, or the fame in different Degrees. And which of these were the Purposes of God, and best fell in with his general Government, we could not at all have determined. beforehand.

Now fince it has been fhewn, that we have no Principles of Reason, upon which to judge beforehand, how it were to be expected Revelation fhould have been left, or what was moft fuitable to the divine Plan of Government, in any of the forementioned Refpects; it must be quite frivolous to object afterwards as to any of them, against its being left in one Way, rather than another: For this would be to object against Things, upon account of their being different from Expectations, which have been fhewn to be without Reason. And thus we fee, that the only Question concerning the Truth of Chriftianity, is, whether it be a real Revelation; not whether it be attended

tended with every Circumftance which we CAHP. fhould have looked for: and concerning the III. Authority of Scripture, whether it be what it claims to be; not whether it be a Book of fuch Sort, and fo promulged, as weak Men are apt to fancy, a Book containing a divine Revelation fhould. And therefore, neither Obfcurity, nor feeming Inaccuracy of Stile, nor various Readings, nor early Difputes about the Authors of particular Parts; nor any other things of the like Kind, though they had been much more confiderable in Degree than they are, could overthrow the Authority of the Scripture: unless the Prophets, Apoftles, or our Lord, had promifed, that the Book contaning the divine Revelation, fhould be fecure from thofe things. Nor indeed can any Objections overthrow fuch a Kind of Revelation as the Chriftian claims to be, fince there are no Objections against the Morality of it, but fuch as can fhew, that there is no Proof of Miracles wrought originally in Atteftation of it; no Appearance of any thing miraculous in its obtaining in the World; nor any of Prophecy, that is, of Events foretold, which human Sagacity could not foresee. If it can be fhewn, that the Proof alledged for all these, is abfolutely none at all, then is Revelation overturned. But were it allowed, that the Proof of any one d p. 266.

or

PART or all of them, is lower than is allowed; III. yet, whilst any Proof of them remains, Revelation will stand upon much the fame Foot it does at present, as to all the Purposes of Life and Practice, and ought to have the like Influence upon our Behaviour.

From the foregoing Obfervations too, it will follow, and those who will thoroughly examine into Revelation, will find it worth remarking; that there are feveral Ways of arguing, which, though juft with Regard to other Writings, are not applicable to Scripture: at least not to the prophetick Parts of it. We cannot argue, for Inftance, that This cannot be the Senfe or Intent of fuch a Paffage of Scripture; for if it had, it would have been expreffed more plainly, or have been represented under a more apt Figure or Hieroglyphick: Yet we may juftly argue thus, with refpect to common Books. And the Reafon of this Difference is very evident that in Scripture, we are not competent Judges, as we are in common Books, how plainly it were to have been expected, what is the true Sense should have been expreft, or under how apt an Image figured. The only Question is, what Appearance there is, that This is the Senfe; and fcarce at all, how much more determinately or accurately it might have been exprest or figured.

;

"But

CHAP.

"But is it not Self-evident, that internal III. Improbabilities of all Kinds, weaken exter- UW "nal probable Proof?" Doubtless. But to what practical Purpose can this be alledged here, when it has been proved before, that real internal Improbabilities which rise even to moral Certainty, are overcome by the most ordinary Testimony; and when it now has been made appear, that we scarce know what are Improbabilities, as to the Matter we are here confidering: as it will farther appear from what follows.

For though from the. Obfervations above made, it is manifeft, that we are not in any Sort competent Judges, what fupernatural Inftruction were to have been expected; and though it is Self-evident, that the Objections of an incompetent Judgment must be frivolous: Yet it may be proper to go one Step farther, and obferve; that if Men will be regardless of these things, and pretend to judge of the Scripture by preconceived Expectations; the Analogy of Nature fhews beforehand not only that it is highly credible they may, but also probable that they will, ima gine they have ftrong Objections against it, however really unexceptionable: for fo, prior to Experience, they would think they had, ⚫ p. 244.

againft,

PART against, the Circumftances and Degrees and II. the whole Manner of That Inftruction, which

is afforded by the ordinary Courfe of Nature. Were the Inftruction which God affords to brute Creatures by Inftincts and mere Propenfions, and to Mankind by these together with Reason, Matter of probable Proof, and not of certain Obfervation; it would be rejected as incredible, in many Inftances of it, only upon account of the Means by which this Inftruction is given, the feeming Difproportions, the Limitations, neceffary Conditions, and Circumftances of it. For Inftance: Would it not have been thought highly improbable, that Men should have been fo much more capable of discovering, even to Certainty, the general Laws of Matter, and the Magnitudes, Paths and Revolutions of the heavenly Bodies; than the Occafions and Cures of Distempers, and many other things, in which Human Life feems fo much more nearly concerned, than in Aftronomy? How capricious and irregular a Way of Information, would it be faid, is That of Invention, by Means of which, Nature inftructs us in Matters of Science, and in many things, upon which the Affairs of the World greatly depend: That a Man fhould, by this Faculty, be made acquainted with a Thing in an Inftant, when perhaps he is thinking of fomewhat else, which he has in vain been fearch