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light and his counsellors,* as we use to advise with those friends, in whom we take most pleasure. He had many wise men about him, but in all their meetings for advice the word of God was still of the quorum, and nothing to be concluded of in the result without its consent. Scripture must not only be heard in all our debates, but when any thing comes to be voted, always have a negative voice. Concerning Ahitophel's advice it was said, "what he counselled in those days was as if a man had enquired at the oracle of God; † which words (being, as it is well said by Peter Martyr, Comparatio non æquiparatio, a comparison only, not a parallel) sufficiently intimate that all the oracles of God are to be consulted, and also that their counsel is to be rested in. I shall therefore be bold to say to him that reads, whoever he be, as Jehoshaphat once did to Ahab, " Enquire I pray thee of the word of the Lord to day; ‡" as Paul to his Colossians, § "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom," yea as Christ to his hearers," Search the scriptures. " Other books may render men learned to ostentation, none but these can make them really wise to salvation. Philosophical speculations, quaint notions and strains of wit, if compared with these oracles, are but as so many spider's webs to catch flies, fitter for the taking of fancies than the saving of souls.

*Psal. cxix. 24. + 2 Sam. xvi. last. Coloss. iii. 16.

2 Chron. xviii. 4.

John. v. 39.

§ 5. IV. Those were exceedingly prized by such as enjoyed them, as the great advantage of their states, and the great donative of their gods, who were thought to gratify their worshippers by nothing more than by oracular discoveries. These are certainly the highest privileges wherewith a people can be gratified; witness that discourse of Paul in the beginning of his third chapter to the Romans; where he handles and decides the controversy between Jew and Gentile about precedency. Consent in religion is wont to tie the fastest knots of mutual accord; but there are no greater animosities than those that arise from diversity of professions. The Jews of old abhorred the Gentiles as uncircumcised, ignorant idolaters; the Gentiles on the other side derided the Jews for their circumcision, as favouring of obscenity, and for their sabbaths, as savouring idleness:* Paul who was by birth a Jew, by office a teacher of the Gentiles, well knew what feuds, and also what odds there were between them; yet equally involves them in the guilt of original sin throughout the whole second chapter. And because the Jew, who stood upon his points, esteeming himself every way the better man, would be ready to take offence at this, and to say, as it is in the first verse of the third

* Religionum vincula sunt arctissima. Religionum odia sunt acerbissima.-Reddimus obscœnæ convitia debita genti.-Quæ genitale caput propudiosa metit.—Septima quæq; dies turpi damnata veterno. Tanquam lassati mollis imago Dei. Rutil, Itiner. lib. 1.

chapter, “What advantage then hath the Jews, or what profit is there of circumcision ?" The Apostle answereth by way of concession: and though he hold his conclusion firm (which is that both Jews and Gentiles, considered in their naturals, are all under sin,* and that in this respect there is no difference) yet he readily granteth that in some regards the Jews far excelled the rest of the world. Divers of their privileges are insinuated in the former part of the second verse, "Much "Much every way;" in the latter, one instanced in, as most considerable, "Chiefly because unto them were committed the oracles of God."

§ 6. V. Those were preserved with much solicitude. History telleth us how great care the Romans took for the safe custody of the Sibylline oracles in their capitol after Tarquin had bought them when the capitol was burnt and those books in it, what means were used to get other copies out of Greece; and how a College of priests was appointed to keep them safe, These do surely deserve as much and more care in every suitable possible way. The ancient Jews preserved the letter of Scripture entire, but lost the sense; as the papists now keep the text, but let go the truth. the truth. A good Christian will not be backward in giving all diligence to hold fast both, by laying the scripture up in his

* Rom iii. 9.-22. + Vid. Molinæi Vates, lib. iii. cap. 12.

judgment, conscience and memory. We are all
desirous to have fair and well printed Bibles.
Believe it, the fairest impression of the Bible is
to have it well printed on the reader's heart. Mr
Fox telleth us of one Crow a sea-man, who being
shipwrecked lost all his wares, and also cast five
pounds in money into the sea, but kept his New
Testament hanging still about his neck, so swim-
ming upon a broken mast, till after four days
(all the rest of his company being drowned) he
was discovered and taken up in that posture
alive.* The only way of preserving souls from
being drowned in eternal perdition, is having the
grace and truth of Scripture so bound upon the
heart as to be willing to part with money or any
thing else, for the safety of them. It is well
worthy of our best consideration how much and
how often Solomon in the Proverbs presseth this.
It is known how careful the most are to get and
keep silver and gold, but "Receive my instruc-
tion (saith wisdom there) and not silver; and
knowledge rather than choice gold."+ Yet as
well as men love money, they will rather let go
that than lose their members, whereof none are
more dear than the apple of the eye.
"My son
(saith he) keep my words, and lay up my com
mandments with thee: keep my commandments
and live, and my law as the apple of thine eye.

* Acts & Monum. vol. 3. edition last, p. 705.
+ Prov. viii. 10.
Prov. viii. 1, 2.

Yet skin for skin and all a man hath will he give for his life; if the loss of a member or two will save that, they shall go. His advice to his son is, "Take fast hold of instruction, let her not go; keep her, for she is thy life."* Yet the martyrs parted even with their lives to save their souls; our keeping of these is really of as great concernment as the keeping of our very souls, for so saith Solomon," He that keepeth the commandment, keepeth his own soul."†

EXERCITATION IV.

How Scripture-Oracles far excel those of the heathen in point of perspicuity, of piety, of veracity, of duration, and of authority. The divine authority of Scripture asserted by two arguments. An inference from the whole Aphorism.

I am

1. HAVING shewed wherein they agree, now to make known wherein these Scripture-oracles differ from and excel those other.

viz.

1. In point of perspicuity. Apollo's oracles were delivered in so dark and ambiguous terms, as gave the Grecians, though they were his chief worshippers, occasion to style him by the name of nois, because he seldom answered directly in doubtful cases, but used such a form of words as

* Prov. iv. 13.

+ Prov. xix. 16. Euseb. præparat. Evangelic. lib. 4.

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