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Show 7 extant, were written, not by persons pretending to any supernatural assistance, but by those who were styled recorders or writers of chronicles, an office of great honour and trust, but of a different kind from that of the prophets. 3d, But supposing that the books in question were written by those who Were truly prophets, it does not follow that they were written by inspiration Those very persons to w h o m the Holy Spirit revealed those things which are of the highest authority in religion, sometimes wrote only as faithful historians, and at other times as prophets under the influence of divine inspiration ; and these writings are so different from each other, that the one sort are to be imputed to themselves as the authors, and the other to God : the former are of service to increase our knowledge, the latter are of authority in religion, and are canonical. 4tb, The bare citaiion of any book in an allowedly canonical writing, is not sufficient to prove that the cited book was ever canonical; for if this were to be admitted, we should have to receive, as the word of God, the Greek poems of Aratus, Cleanthes, Menahder, and Epiroenides, from which several passages are quoted by St. Paul. Aratus and Cleu anthes are cited in Acts xvii. 28 ; Menander in I Cor. xv. 3 3; and Epimenides in Tit. i. 12. 5th, Most of the pieces supposed to be lost are still remaining in the Scriptures, though under different appellations ;" and sue!) as are not to be found there, were never designed for religious instruction, nor are they essential to the salvation of mankind. The Book of the Covenant, (mentioned in Exod. xxiv.'7,) which is supposed to be lost, is not a distinct book from the body of the Jewish laws ; but is merely a collection cfsKch injunctions and exhortations as are expressly laid down in the four preceding chapters. The Book of the Wars of the Lord, cited in N u m b . xxi. 14, is, in the opinion of an eminent critic, •{Dr. Lightfoot,) that very record, which, upon the defeat of the Amalekites, Moses was commanded to make as a memorial of it, and to rehearse in the ears of Joshua, i It seems to be nothing more than a short account of that victory, together with some directions for Joshua's private use and conduct, in the management of the subsequent war, but, in no respect whatever, dictated by divine inspiration, and, consequently, no part of the canonical Scriptures. Again, the book of .lasher, mentioned in Josh. x. 13, was, in the opinion of Joseph us, composed of certain records which contained an account of what happened to the Jews from year to year, and particularly of the sun's standing still, and also directions for the use of the bow, (see 2 Sam. i. 18,) "i. e. directions for instituting archery and maintaining military exercises. So that this was hot the work of an inspired person, but of some common historiagrapher,. w h o wrote the annals of his o w n time, and might therefore deserve the name of |