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Show I98 rm 35 OF A CHRISTIAN COMMON-WEALTH. chime, Chap.33. if a man that teacheth not falfe Doetrine, ihould pretend to bee a Prophet without fliewing any Miracle, he is never the more to bee regarded for his pretence, as is evident by Dan. 18. 1." 21, 22, 1 CHAP. thoufi} in thy heart,Hmflufl we know that the Word (of the Prophet) i ‘. ‘ ~21 " .w-g-v it not that which the Lard hathjpoken. r lt? . tr t F, l tif t f tl ( y l , at. i XXXIII. When the Prophet flmll haw fpohm in the rum ofth: Lord, that which (hall not mm to "3?, {1141'5 the mm' which the Lorlhnlh 1mfro/cm , hut the Prophet hasfpaltm it out afthqride ofhp'; own heartfear him "LBut a man may here again ask,When the Prophet hath foretold a thing,how flial we know when ther it will come to paffe or note For he may foretel it as a thing to ar. rive after a certain long time, longer then the time of mans llngOl' in definitely,that it will come to pafle one time or other : in which cafe this mark of a Prophet is unufcfull; and therefore the miracles that 0fthe Number, Antiquity, Scope; Authorit}; and Interpreter: ofthe Book: of Holy SCRirTuRE. Y the Books of Holy S c RI p ru RE , are underflood thofe,which 0f the Boole, ought to be the 64mm, that is to fay, the Rules of Chriflian life. 0fH91) 5W?And becaufe all Rules of life, which men are in confcience "‘7‘" Revelation to be acknowledged; neither of them being fingly fufli~ bound to obferve, are Laws; the queflion of the Scripture , is the que ition of what is Law throughout all Chriflendome,both Natural], and Civill. For though it be not determined in Scripture, what Laws every Chrifiian King {hallconfiitute in his own Dominions; yet it is determined what laws he [hall not conl'titute. Seeing therefore I have already proved, that Soveraigns in their own Dominions are cient to oblige any other man to regard what he faith. the {ole Legiflators ; thofe Books only are Canonicall, that is, Law, oblige us to beleeve a Prophet, ought to be confirmed by an immediate, or a not long deferr'd event. So that itis manifei‘t , that the teaching ofthe Religion which God hath eflabliflied, and the (betting ofa ptefent Miracle, joined together, were the only marks whereby the Scripture would have a true Prophet, that is to fay , immediate \Irrdem cm- Seeing therefore Miracles now ceafe,we have no fign left, whereby fing, Pmpbm to acknowledge the pretended Revelations , or Infpirations of any in every nation, which are eltablilhed for fuch by the Soveraign Au~ Craft, and "I" private man 5 nor obligation to give ear to any Doctrinefarther than therefore, when he {peaks to any Subject , he on ht to be obeyed, whatfoever any earthly Potentate command tot contrary. But the queftion is not ofobedience to God, but ofwhen, and what God hath laid, which to Subjects that have no fu ernaturall revelation, cannot be known, but by that naturall reafon,w ich guided them, for the obtaining of Peace and Jui‘tice , to obey the authority of their feverull Common-wealths, that is to fay, oftheir lawfull Soveraigns. According to this obligation, Ican acknowledge no other Books of 5""P'Wfi‘?‘ it is conformable to the Holy Scriptures ‘ . of our iv time ‘ the . , which fince ~ - _ be: their Z,4,,,1 Savroui,fupply the place, and fulfioently rccompcnlc the want of all other Prophecy; and from which, by wife and learned intci'prcm, tion, and careful] ratiocination, all rules and precepts neceiTary m the knowledge ofour duty both to God and man , without Enthufiafme, or fupernaturall Inlpiration,inay eafily be deduced. And thi; Scripture is it, out of which I am to take the Principles of my D": thority. It is true, that God is the Soveraign of all Soveraigns-7 and courfe, concerning the Rights ofthofe that are the Supream Gover- the Old Tef‘tament, to be Holy Scripture, butthofe which have been nors on earth, of Chrifiian Common-wealths; and ofthe duty or Chriftian Subjects towards their Soveraigns. And to that end , 1 commanded to be acknowledged for fuch , by the Authority of the Church of£ngland. What Books thefe are, is futficiently known, (ball fpeak in the next Chapter, of the Books, \Vriters , Scope and Authority of the Bible. without a Catalogue of them here -, and the are the fame that are acknowledged by St. 100m, who holdeth tlie refi, namely, the Wifa'me afSolomon, Eulefidflirw, Iudith, Tohiwr , the firfi and the fecond of Mareahm, ( though he had feen the firlt in Hehrm ) and the third and fourth of Efdm, for Apocrypha. Ofthe Canonicall, Iof:p/mi a learned law, that wrote in the time ofthe Emperour Domitian, rec konctli twenty two, making the number agree With the Hthrew Al habet. St. Itram: does the fame, though they reckon them in tin erent manner. For Iafiphm numbers five Books ofiwfer, thirtem of Prophet: , that writ the Hiltory of their own times ( which nor. it agrees with the Prophets writings contained in the Bible wee null ice hereafter ), and {our of Hymmr and Morall Precepts. But 5!. Ierome reckons fiw Books ofMofer, eight ofl'raphm, and aim of ulllcl‘ Holy writ,which he calls ofHAgiogrtpha. The Septuagint, who Were 70. learned men of the Iewr, [em for by Ptolemy King of Egypr. :otranilue the lap/{I7 law, out of the Hehmv into the G mi", have C c 3 left |