ment was as much more excellent than the civil, as Heaven was than earth, yea much more so; that the episcopal honour, and sublime dignity, could not be equalled by the glory of kings, and the diadems of princes; that kings and queens ought to bow down to the priests with their face towards the earth, and lick up the dust of their feet"-with whole volumes more of such blasphemous trash, as is vended by Dr. Hicks, Mr. Leslie, and indeed by almost all the high-church writers; and yet not publickly disapproved, or censured by the convocation, or any body of the clergy, though they have shewn an outrageous enmity to all who have asserted the contrary principles. If the apostles had told them too, that they themselves had a right, not only to the tenth part of their estates, but of their labour, and that since they (their hearers) administered so many things to a king, who administers peace and war for bodily safety; how ought they not to administer more liberally to him, who administers the priesthood towards God, and secures both body and soul by his prayers?"

I say, if any of this choice fustian had been broached to the world, at the first opening of the gospel, what progress could Christianity have made? how could the apostles have been disinterested witnesses, of the truth of the doctrines, which gave them such jurisdiction, dominion and riches? and how justly would the princes and powers of the earth have punished such usurpations upon their civil and ecclesiastical authority

The silence alone of the enemies to Christianity, is a sufficient confutation of this wicked and black calumny, cast upon them by their pretended successours; but which their bitterest opposers had more modesty than to charge them with, though they ransacked earth and hell for all other sorts of scandal.

T. & G.

1

NUMBER 8.

DR. TILLOTSON, in his sermon against transubstantiation, tells us, that it might well seem strange if any man should write a book to prove that an egg is not an elephant, and that a musket bullet is not a pike." He might have added, that this was the hard circumstance the laity were reduced to in their disputes about religion with most sets of ecclesiasticks; and what is still worse, when they had proved these propositions, they were never the better.

The greatest part of mankind have learned to judge of religious matters, by other faculties and senses than those which God Almighty has given them. The first thing they are taught is, that reason may be on one side of the question, and truth on the other; which maxim being well established, there will be an end of all reasoning ever after; and there can be no longer any criterion between truth and false

Dood: But those, who, by education and custom, have once got possession of their superstition and fears, may impose upon them what crafty and advantageous doctrines they please.

By these means the Christian religion, most easy and intelligible in itself, and adapted to the meanest capacities, is become in most countries a metaphysical science, made up of useless subtilities, and insignificant distinctions; calculated to gratify the pride of corrupt clergymen, by making them admired and reverenced by the people, for their profound knowledge and deep learning; and consequently religion is wholly left to their care and conduct, as being infinitely above poor lay-apprehensions. And to this the world is beholden for the depravation of virtue and morality; and for all the domination, pomp, and riches of the Popish priesthood.

1, therefore, hope, that no one will condemn an undertaking intend-ed to restore Christianity to its primitive innocence, and native simplicity; to oppose common sense against pompous nonsense, and learned absurdity; and to shew how, and in what meaning, the kingdom of heaven is said to be revealed to babes and sucklings, and hid from the learned and wise. That is to say, it is easily learned and known, by those who make use of their natural faculties, and uncor rupted reason, but will always be hid from such, who hunt after it in the schools of the philosophers, or in any ambitious and factious assem blies and synods of Popish ecclesiasticks. I shall therefore endeavour to keep this plain and easy subject clear of all vain philosophy, and metaphysical gibberish, with which the adversaries always attempt to entangle it; as knowing well, that if they can but make it unintelligible, their authority alone will decide every question in their own favour.

As I conceive I have fully shewn, in my last paper, that the apostles claimed no jurisdiction, authority, or coercive power of any kind whatsoever, over their hearers; but only obeyed the will of their master, in delivering a message from heaven, for the infinite benefit of mankind; and to prove their mission, brought their credentials, namely, the power of doing miracles, along with them: So I shall shew, that what power they had, (except that which was miraculous, and died with them;) or, to speak more properly, what right they had to perform the duties and offices of Christianity, did not descend to one Christian more than another; but that all were equally empowered to exercise alike the functions of their most holy religion.

When a command is given from God to men, to do and perform any action, it is not only the right of every one, but it becomes his duty, to execute it himself, when he is capable of doing it; unless the precept directs some other manner of performance: and whoever asserts that it does, is obliged to prove it. And he must not be surprized, if in a case of this great consequence, we shall expert plain and direct tests, describing the extent of the power demanded, and the persons to whom it is given. It will not do his business to pick up two or three scattered and disjointed sentences, and putting them upon the rack, torture them till they confess what they never meant, against the whole current of scripture. It must be laid down plainly and directly, and made obvious to the meanest capacities; not depending upon the criticisms of Rabbinical learning; not sublimated from Jewish and hea

then traditions; nor extorted from doubtful, equivocal, and unintelligible expressions. It is not consistent with the goodness of God, to suffer a power, upon which the being of Christianity, and the temporal and eternal happiness of all the world depends, to remain in obscurity and darkness; and therefore we may be sure, that whatever of this kind does so, is the invention of ambitious and wicked men, and not the will of the great and good God.

It will be incumbent on them to shew one clear and direct text, where our Saviour confines the administration of the sacraments to any set of men whatsoever. The contrary of which is so evident, that there is not in scripture one instance where the sacrament of our Lord's supper was ever administered by any one, who, in our trans lation of the New Testament, is styled bishop or presbyter. And it is as plain, that the right of baptizing belonged to all Christians equally. Both which, I shall make out unanswerably hereafter, in separate pa pers. I shall also shew that the boasted power of excommunication, is nothing else but a liberty which every man has over his own actions, in conversing or mingling with what society he pleases; or, at most, only a precept or exhortation, not to keep ill company, and to remove such, or separate from them.

But to proceed with my subject: If a chain of uninterrupted succession had been necessary, an uninterrupted course of talents, graceand abilities, superiour to those of all other lay Christians, had been necessary also, to have made the clergy resemble those whom they were to succeed in an employment which required the highest. But there is no such peculiar genius or virtue found amongst them. They are qualified by means evidently human for this divine calling. They are sent to schools and universities to learn to be successors to the apostles; (I will not say of them, what Mr. Dodwell says of the Jewish priests, that they make use of wine, amongst other bodily helps, to ob tain the prophetick spirit:) And all who have the same sense and op portunities, thrive at least as fast as those who are candidates for the priesthood: They might, if they pleased, apply their learning to the same uses. And as to grace, piety, and humanity, I think verily that the modesty of the clergy will not let them pretend to excel their lay neighbours in those endowments.

The apostles were inspired, had the gift of working miracles, could bestow the Holy Ghost, had the discernment of spirits: They were consequently proper judges of the fitness of men for the ministry, and could confer that fitness. Our modern divines are not inspired, cannot work miracles, nor give the Holy Ghost; nor can many of them even find out their own spirit, so far are they from discerning that of other people.

The apostles were a set of extraordinary persons, appointed by the. Son of God to convert all nations, and had extraordinary endowments given them for that end. Their pretended successors are a race of very ordinary men, possessed of no extraordinary abilities; sent by no divine authority; nor to convert any nation; but only take up a trade to get a livelihood.

Christ's apostles were penmen of the Holy Ghost, and writ books of scripture but, pray, what new gospel do our modern apostles give us? (I wish none of them had ever confounded the old.) They are at best

but note makers and commentators; in which characters laymen have succeeded as well, even by their own acknowledgment.

Minellius and Gronovius have written notes upon Virgil and Livy: pray, are they successours to Virgil and Livy, for that reason? and are the stupid comment tors successours to the great Roman orator, be cause they have slept over his works, and darkened them with illustrations? or is every one who sails to America for gain, a successour to Christopher Columbus, who discovered and pointed out the way to the new world?

The great business and commission of the apostles, was to convert mankind. Now, I would be glad to know how they can be succeeded in a thing, which could be done but once; and in countries, where it is already done: I mean, the converting of a nation, suppose Greece, England, or any other. What must the Jews have thought of a set of hair-brained Israelites, who would have demanded of them vast respect and revenues, for succeeding Moses in redeeming them from captivity to Pharaoh, and for leading them every day of their lives out of the land of Egypt, seventeen hundred years after they had left it? Or could any number of Jews succeed Nehemiah in bringing back the captive tribes from Persia, and Babylon? Can any one succeed the duke of Marlborough, in fighting the battle of Hochtsted, and relieving the German empire? I presume that every foot soldier is not a successour to Alexander the Great ; nor every serjeant of the guards descended in a military line from Julius Cæsar.

N. B. Having shewn that the apostles have left no successours, there is an end of the question, whether their no-succession is interrupted, or not? But my respect to the high clergy obliging me to give them all advantages, I will, in some future paper, admit that such a succession had once a being; and then will undeniably prove that it has been frequently, I may almost say constantly, interrupted and broken, under all those heads which they make necessary to the continuance of it. T. & G.

NUMBER 9.

Of the Clearness of Scripture.

I SHALL in this paper endeavour to confirm what I have said in my last; by shewing, that God Almighty, in revealing his will to mankind, has always taken effectual care that it could not be mistaken, and therefore made it so plain, as to need no farther explanation, in all things which are necesstry for us to know.

When God would have his pleasure known to men, it is agreeable to his goodness to make it evident: when he would not, it is agreeable to his wisdom to make it impenetrable. Scripture was not given to make work for interpreters; nor to teach men how to doubt, but how to live. The Holy Spirit has made undeniably clear and manifest, all these

precepts that enjoin faith and obedience, which are the great points of religion; and weak men cannot correct him, and do it better themselves.

! I think it is generally granted, that revelations are no more, and that prophecy hath ceased. The reason given for this, I take to be a very good one, namely, that God has already sufficiently discovered his mind to men, and made his meaning manifest. If it were, other wise, we should doubtless have his extraordinary presence still; but as we have not, it is to be presumed that there is no occasion. He ap peared himself whilst men were in darkness; but now that he hath shewn them his marvellous light, he appears no more. His presence is supplied by his word; which being addressed to all men equally, and not to one tribe of inen to interpret it for the rest, it follows, that all men have in their power the means to understand it. Old revelation therefore does not want the assistance of new, nor has the Omnipotent any need of prolocutors.

While God is delivering his law to the world, he is plain even to exactness; and his orders are full and circumstantial even about the minutest points. This is eminently proved by his manner of giving laws to the Jews. Every ceremony, every instrument and garment used in their worship, is precisely described and directed. The trum pets, the candlesticks, the lamps, the spoons, the snuffers, are all of his own appointment, both as to the materials and the use of them. He makes it impossible to mistake him. He calls the priests by their names, points out their persons, and shews them every branch of their office. He limits and governs their behaviour while they are about it; and does not leave it to their wisdom to invent such postures and ceremonies, as they think fit to call decent and significant. They had not Moses, who was the cithe privilege to chuse their own garments. vil magistrate, had it in his charge to sanctify and consecrate their persons. Their business in the sacrifices is pointed out to them: They are to put their hands upon the head of the beast, and to receive its blood, and to make fires. They are not, as I remember, once made use of to speak God's mind to his people; that is the duty and commission of the civil magistrate, and Moses performs it. They had not the least hand in the celebrating of the passover, the Jewish sacrament, to which ours of the Lord's supper hath, it is said, succeeded: and as little were they employed in that other of circumcision, the reputed ancestor of baptism. In short, their whole function was to be servants and operators in the house of sacrifice.

If Almighty God was thus punctual and particular in the rituals and outside of his worship, can we imagine that he was defective or obscure, in declaring the more weighty points of the law? No-When our first parents broke the covenant, they did it wilfully, and could not pretend that they understood it not; Of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it, was all the injunction that was laid upon them. And there was no need of a commentator here. The text might have been rendered more perplext; but not more plain.

The covenant which he made with Abraham was not less clear. He was to be the God of Abraham and of his seed; and every male of his race, and those that were bought with money, were to be circumcised. There were no more words to this contract; and the patriarch and his