of being unsound in the faith, and unfit for christian communion? Will nothing do but man's comment instead of God's text? His consequences and conclusions, in the room of sacred revelation? I cannot see how any man can be obliged to receive, or believe revealed truths in any other language than that of the revelation itself; especially if those that vary the expression have not the same spirit to lead them in doing so, or that it appears not to me that they have the guidance of that holy spirit. If the Holy Ghost had left doubts in Scripture, which is yet irreverent to believe, I see not how men can resolve them; it is the work of that spirit. And since men are so apt to err, doubts are better left in Scripture, than made or left by us. But it is to cross that order of prudence and wisdom among men, who choose to conform their expressions to the thing they believe. If an honest man hath related a story to me, of something he hath seen, and I am to declare my faith about it, if I believe the fact, I will choose to deliver it in the terms of the relator, as being nearest to the truth.

Suppose a father, dying, makes his last will and testament, and as he thinks so plain, that there can be no mistake made by the executors, but what is wilful; if they, instead of proving this will and acting according to the plainness of it, turn commentators, make more difficulties than they find, and perplex the whole matter to the children and legatees, and send them to the law for right; will we not esteem such

executors ill men, and justify those persons concerned in their refusal of their paraphrase? "God hath, at sundry times, and in diverse manners," by his prophets, his beloved Son, and his Apostles,* delivered to the world a declaration of his blessed will; but some have claimed and taken to themselves the keeping, explanation, and use of it, so as those that choose to be concluded by the letter and text of Christ's testament, in its most important points, expose themselves to great prejudice for so doing; for they are excommunicated from all other share in it, than the punishment of the breakers of it; which is part of their anathema, who, of all others, are most guilty of adding, or diminishing, by undertaking to determine, for others as well as themselves, the mind and intention of the Holy Ghost in it.

But if it be true, as true it is, that few have writ of the divine authority of Scripture, who do not affirm that the very penmen of it were not only inspired by the Holy Ghost, but so extraordinarily acted by him, as that they were wholly asleep to their own will, desires or affections, like people taken out of themselves, and purely passive, as "clay in the hands of the potter," to the revelation, will, and motion of the spirit; and for this end, that nothing delivered by them might have the least possibility of mistake, error, or imperfection, but be a "complete declaration of the

* Heb. i. 1.

will of God to men," I cannot see which way such men excuse themselves from great presumption, that will, notwithstanding, have the wording of creeds of communion, and reject that declaration of faith as insufficient, which is delivered in the very terms of the Holy Ghost; and deny those persons to be members of Christ's church, that in conscience refuse to subscribe any other draught than that the Lord has given

them.

Two things oppose themselves to this practice; the glory of God, and the honour of the Scripture ; in that it naturally draws people from the regard due to God and the Scripture, and begets too much respect for men and their tradition. This was the difficulty Christ met with, and complained of, in his time; they had set up so many rabbies to teach them religion, that the Lord of the true religion could hardly find place amongst them. And what did they do? "They taught for doctrines the traditions of men;" they gave their own and their predecessors' apprehensions, constructions, and paraphrases upon Scripture, for the mind and will of God, the rule of the people's faith. They were near at this pass in the church of Corinth, when they cried out, "I am for Paul, I am for Apollos, and I am for Cephas," though they had not the same temptation.

And that which followed then, ever will follow in the like case, and that is, distraction; which is the contrary to the second thing that opposeth itself to

this practice, and that is the concord of Christians. For the sake of peace consider it; Lo here, and lo there, always followed; one of this mind, and another of that; as many sects, as great men to make and head them. This was the case of the Jews; and yet I do not hear that they devoured one another about their opinions and commentaries upon Scripture; but the Christians have done both; divided and persecuted too. First, they have divided, and that mostly upon the score of opinions about religion. They have not been contented with the expressions of the Holy Ghost; they liked their own better. And when they were set up, in the room of Scripture, and in the name of Scripture, submission was required, upon pain of worldly punishments. This dissatisfied curiosity, this unwarrantable,-what shall I say? This wanton search, has cost christendom dear, and poor England dearest of any part of it.

All this while, the head is set at work, not the heart; and that which Christ most insisted upon, is least concerned in this sort of faith and Christianity ; and that is, "keeping his commandments." For it is opinion, not obedience; notion, and not regeneration, that such men pursue. This kind of religion leaveth them as bad as it findeth them, and worse; for they have something more to be proud of. Here is a creed, indeed, but of what? The conclusions of men! and what to do? To prove they believe in Christ, who, it seems, never made them. It had been

happy for the world, that there had been no other creeds, than what he and his apostles gave and left; and it is not the least argument against their being needful to christian communion, that Christ and his Apostles did not think so, who were not wanting to declare the whole counsel of God to the church.

To conclude; if you desire peace, love truth, seek piety, and hate hypocrisy, lay by all those things called articles of faith, and canons of the church, that are not to be found in express terms in Scripture, or so plainly authorised by Scripture, as may, with ease, be discerned by every honest and conscientious person. And in the room of those numerous and disputed opinions, made the bond of external communion, let some plain, general, and necessary truths be laid down in Scripture terms, and let them be few.