pear fo formidable. But the truth is, those that most use it, neither study nor practise them. And yet, after all their pretences of obfcurity, they have a greater quarrel against the plain parts of Seripture than against the obfcure ones; they know many places of Scripture which are plainly against them, and this makes them fet themselves against all the rest.

What has been here faid in general, I hope may be, in fome measure, ufeful to thofe who defire to read the Scriptures, for their Inftruction and Edification; and in particular difficulties, Books must be confulted, or fuch Men as may be fuppofed to understand them. But no Man in common' reason, fhould have recourfe to the Enemies of revealed Religion for the explication of any Difficulties in it. Who ever expected from an Adverfary of Ariftotle's, a true explication of the obfcure and difficult parts of his Works? Or, what Man would learn the Geometry of Archimedes from Epicurus, who fet himself to difpute against it, but never understood it? As for all that are fond of Objections, and read the Scriptures only in search of them, it cannot be expected that Difcourfes of this Nature fhould fignifie much with them. Teach us, O Lord, the way of thy Statutes, and we fhall keep it unto the End. Give us Underftanding, and we shall keep thy Law: Yea, we shall keep it with our whole Heart. Great is the Peace, that they have who love thy Law, and they are not offended at it, Pfal. cxix. 33, 34, 165.

Auguft. de Utilitat. Credend. c. 6.

CHAP

I.

CHAP. VIII.

Of Places of Scripture which feem to contradict each other.

1.Though the facred Writers no where contradict

themselves, or one another, yet they were not folicitous to prevent the being fufpected to do fo by injudicious and rash Men, as they would have been very cautious of giving any pretence for fuch a Sufpicion, if they had written any thing but Truth. It could not be agreeable to the Sovereign Wisdom and Majefty of God to comply with the Humours and Fancies of Men; but rather, when he had, by an infallible Guidance and Direction, prevented the Penmen of the Holy Scriptures from writing any thing but Truth, to fuffer them to write fo, as that they might be liable to the Exceptions of the Wilful and Perverse. Because it is more fuitable to the fimplicity of Truth, not to be over-nice and folicitous about every Punctilio and fmaller Circumftance; but to speak fully and intelligibly, and then to leave it to Men, whether they will believe or not; especially in what is told them for their own Advantage, the Relators having no end or design to serve by it, but only to do them the greatest Good they can; and bringing all the evidence for their Conviction, that Miracles and Prophecies can afford, which are the only Means of God's revealing himself to Mankind; and then fuffering in Testimony of what they have delivered.

a

• Multum enim refert, ut eft in Epiftola Adriani, quam recitat Calliftratus L.Teftium D. De Teftibus, qui fimpliciter vifi funt dicere, utrum unum eundemque meditatum fermonem attulerint, an ad ea, quæ interrogati funt, ex tempore verifimilia refponderint. Grot. in Adject. ad Dan. c. xiii. 51.

Thus

Thus our Saviour, when, notwithstanding all his mighty Works, many would not believe in him, but queftioned his Authority, and reviled his Perfon, and blafphemed the Holy Spirit, by which they were wrought, was not concerned to work more Miracles, merely for the Satisfaction, or rather at the captious Demands of these Men, when they required him to do it. For if they would be convinced by any reasonable means, he had given it them; if they would not, it would be to their own prejudice, he was not folicitous what they thought of him. And thus it is likewife in the Government of the World; God has given Men fufficient evidence of his Being and Providence ; but if Men will disbelieve his Providence, and deny his Being, he doth not vouch fafe by any immediate and particular A&t of his Power to confute their pretences. And if, because of fome places that are difficult in the Scriptures, Men will reject the whole, rather than be at the pains to fearch out the true meaning of these places, or than be fo modeft and humble, as to fuppofe that there may be ways of reconciling thofe, which appear to them Contradictions, tho' they have not yet found them out; they must fall under the fame condemnation with thofe, who will deny the Being of God, if they cannot fatisfie themselves how he made and governs the World; or with those that would believe none of our Saviour's Miracles, unlefs he would work them when, and where, and juft in what manner they pleased. But the Wisdom of God fees that nothing would fatisfie thefe Men, and that they only tempt God, and defign no real fatiffaction to themselves: and therefore he cannot be obliged to new model the World, and alter the Scriptures for their fakes, fince there is enough in them for the fatisfaction of all that are fincere in their Enquiries after Truth.

II. The only way to judge rightly of the particular places of any Book, is to confider firft the whole

N

Design,

Defign, and Contrivance, and Method, and Stile of it, not to criticize upon fome difficult Parts of it, without any regard had to the reft. This is the method used by all, who would criticize with judgment upon any Author. And fome Paffages of Scripture are explained to our hands, to be a Key, as it were, and a Direction to us in the Explication of others. Thus, whereas in one place it is faid, that Jefus baptized, in another it is faid, that he baptized not, and the former place is explained to be meant not of Baptism performed by himself, but by his Difciples, who baptized in his Name, John iii. 22. iv. 1, 2.

b

III. A negative Argument is no proof against the Authority of any Hiftory; but if one Author omit what another relates, both may nevertheless write the truth. Behold, I fend the Promife of my Father upon you, Luke xxiv. 49. This Promife is not mentioned in St. Luke's Gofpel, nor in any other but St. John's; which is a thing, fays St. Auguftine, not flightly to be pafs'd over: But we ought from hence to take notice, how the Evangelifts confirm each others Testimony in fome things, which they do not relate themselves, tho' they had knowledge of them. And that here St. Luke omits all that pafs'd from Chrift's Refurrection to his Afcenfion, tho' he informs us in the Acts of the Apostles, that there was the space of forty Days between.

When two Facts, related by feveral Authors, agree in all but fome few circumstances, they are often taken for the fame Fact, and the Authors are fuppofed to write contrary the one to the other. Both St. Matthew and St. Mark relate, that Christ fed about Five thousand Men, befide Women and Children, with five Loaves and two Fishes, twelve Baskets full of Fragments remaining after they had eaten, Matth. xiv. 17. Mark vi. 38. And that with seven Loaves and a few little Fishes, he fed four thousand Men, be

b

Aug. de Confenf. Evang. 1. 3. c. 25.

с

fide Women and Children, and that seven Baskets full. of Fragments were taken up, Matth. XV. 34. Mark viii. 5. But, as St. Auguftine obferves, if one Evangelift had given an account only of the Miracle of the five Loaves, and the other had related only the Miracle of the feven Loaves, these two Miracles might have been taken for but one, and the Evangelists might have been thought to give a contrary account of the fame Miracle: From whence he lays this down for a Rule, that if a like Fact be told by two Evangelists in a different manner, we should rather conclude, that they speak of two different Facts, than that they contradict each other, because in this instance of the Loaves, if both Evangelifts had not related both Miracles, they might have been taken for the fame. But we may here also observe, that St.Matthem fays, about five thousand Men were fed by the first Miracle, befides Women and Children; St.Mark, that they were about five thoufand Men; and the number fed by the second Miracle, St. Matthew reckons four thoufand Men, befide Women and Children; St. Mark fays, about four thousand. St. Matthew is more particular as to this circumftance of the Fact, than St. Mark, who relates no more than was neceffary to give an exact account of the reality of the Miracle; for the Miracle was unquestionably true, whether about five thousand Men were fed, besides Women and Children, or only about five thoufand Men; or whether they were four thoufand Men befide Women and Children, or about four thousand. What St. Mark relates, was fufficient to prove the truth. of each Miracle; and of the Perfons fed thereby, St. Matthew had given a full account, which was difperfed into all hands.

IV. It is reasonable to observe, whether the Objections be not fuch as do fuppofe Mistakes, which a Man, who could write fuch a Difcourfe, as they are