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tions were true, and confequently all that the Prophets had fpoken was true in the fenfe of the propofer; but yet as they did not understand what the fenfe and meaning of those prophecies were, which related to the fufferings, death, and refurrection of Chrift, so they did not affent to, or believe them. So far as they were flow to understand, fo far they were flow to believe what the Prophets had fpoken. And this our Lord upbraided them with, Luke xxiv. 25. faying, O fools, and flow of beart, to believe all that the Prophets, &c. And as the fhortnefs of their faith was occafioned from the fhortnefs of their underftandings; fo our Lord, to cure this evil, and remove this infidelity, helped their understandings, by explaining to them thofe prophecies, and giving them the fenfe and meaning of them, verfe 27. Beginning at Mofes and all the Prophets, be expounded unto them in all the fcriptures, the things con→ cerning himself: Or, as it is faid, verfe 45. He opened their understandings, that they might understand the fcriptures, faying unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to fuffer, &c. And in fo doing he made that the object of their faith, or made them capable of believing it, which be fore was not fo.

Again, I say, a man can affent so far, and to fuch a degree, as things are thus reveal'd to his understanding, and no farther; that is, he can extend his affent fo far as his understanding, goes into things, and no farther. For fuppofe God had made a declaration to men, which they understood but in part, then, I fay, they can affent to but part of that declaration, viz. to that part they do understand the fenfe and meaning of; and they muft fufpend their affent to the other part, 'till fuch time as they do understand it. For examples suppose this proposition [biary is miry] was con

tain'd in God's Word; and fuppose these two terms biɛtry and mistry have no known fignification; I fay, fo far as our understanding goes into this propofition, that is, fo far as we do apprehend the fenfe and meaning of it, fo far we are capable of believing it, and no farther. That biltry [is] mittry we apprehend, that is, we apprehend that God ufes these two words to exprefs one and the fame thing, and this we believe or affent to, because God hath declar'd that he doth fo. But then, as we do not understand what either of these terms do fignify, fo we cannot believe the least tittle about the thing itself, which is exprefs'd by them; and confequently we can believe but part of the foregoing propofition, viz. that part which we do understand; and, as to the other part, we must fufpend our affent, 'till fuch time as we do understand one or other of thefe terms: I fay, one or other, because if we understand one of them, then we should understand the wholé propofition; as fuppofe it was exprefs'd thus [bitry is defamation] here, as we understand that bitry and defamation exprefs the fame thing, fo we likewise understand what biary means, viz. the blafting a person's reputation; and confequently, we can affent to the truth of all the proposition, because we do underftand it wholly.

Again, If God declares a thing but in part, and does not declare the whole of the thing, in fuch a cafe our affent can also extend no farther than to that which is declar'd; for example, God hath declar'd, that there fhall be a refurrection from the dead, but hath not declar'd the precife time when that great work fhall be effected; here, fo far as God as reveal'd this matter to us, we can believe it, viz. that he will raife the dead; but when he will do it, as the [when] is not reveal'd, fo it is what we cannot aflent to. The precife time, when

when God will raise the dead, is a fecret, which is not yet difclos'd, and therefore we are incapable of believing it; fo that as far as we are ignorant of things, fo far our affent must be fufpended, let what will be the ground of that ignorance, and confequently of the infidelity occafion'd by it, whether carelesness, prejudice, or any other cause; whether it be our misfortune, or our crime, the cafe in this respect is the fame if we are ignorant; and fo far as we are so, so far, in the present circumstance of things, we are incapable of giving our affent to the truth of any propofition whatever. Upon the whole, I think it abundantly evident, that in the prefent circumftances of things, which fuppofe the impediments to faith remaining, a man can, or his capable of believing all thofe divine propofitions, and only thofe, which are reveal'd to his understanding, and which he doth actually apprehend the fenfe and meaning of; and only fo far, and to that degree, as they are thus apprehended; therefore all fuch propofitions, and only fuch, in this reepect, are the object of faith.,

Thirdly, What a mystery is? In anfwer to this enquiry, I fay, the word mystery, as I conceive, in its proper fenfe, fignifies a hidden thing. Any thing which is fpoken to us, which we do not underftand, is called a mystery, that is, it is to us hidden or conceal'd; and any thing which is done, that we do not conceive how, or in what manner it is done, the manner of the doing of that thing is alfo call'd a mystery; because bow, or in what manner it is done, is hid from us; not but that the word mystery is often ufed in an improper fenfe, and that in feveral refpect; as, firft, when a thing is fpoken or done in fuch a manner, as that it is difficult to conceive and apprehend it, this is often call'd a mystery, whether we apprehend it, or not. Secondly, That which was not difcoverT

able

able by human reason, without the help of divine revelation, is likewife call'd a mystery, after it is reveal'd and understood; thus the grace of God in Christ to mankind, and that the Gentiles fhould be fharers in this grace, is call'd a mystery, which. had been hid from ages and generations, but now was made manifeft by the preaching of the gospel. Thirdly, Any thing which was a mystery, before we did apprehend it, is likewife improperly call'd a mystery, after we do apprehend it; not that it is then really fo, but because it was fo, antecedent to our apprehending of it. But when the word mystery is applied to any thing that we do actually understand, I think it is fo only in an improper fenfe, and that, ftrictly fpeaking, a myftery is properly that which our understandings do not actually conceive or apprehend.

Fourthly, Whether a myftery is the object of faith? Note, By the object of faith, in this place I do not mean with refpect to what a man ought to beleive, nor what he can, or is capable of beleiving, fuppofing all impediments were remov'd but only with refpect to what a man does believe or is capable of believing, in the prefent circumftances of things, which fuppofe the impediments to faith ftill remaining. This being premised, in answer to the enquiry, I fay, we need only make application of what hath been obferved already, under the former heads. For 'tis evident, first, when the word mystery is ufed in a proper fenfe, then a mystery is not the object of faith, a myftery being that which we do not apprehend, and the object of faith, being always that which we do apprehend, Indeed, that, which is a mystery may become the object of faith, when it is apprehended, but then it ceafes to be a mystery properly fo call'd. Secondly, When the word mystery is ufed in an improper fenfe, then it may be the object

object of faith, or it may not. If it be improper ly used to fignify a thing difficult to be understood, then, if we de actually apprehend that difficult thing, it is the object of faith, because we do actually apprehend it; but if we do not apprehend it, then it becomes a mystery in a proper fenfe, and fo is not the object of faith. Again, if the word mystery be improperly used to fignify that which was not discoverable by human reafon alone, without the help of divine revelation; if the propofition is apprehended by us, it is the object of faith; but if it is not actually apprehended by us, it is then a mystery in the proper fenfe, and fo is not the object of faith at all, whilst it thus continues hid from us. Again, if the word mystery be improperly used to fignify that which was a mystery, before it was apprehended, and is so called after it is apprehended, upon that account, then it is the object of faith always. So then upon the whole it appears, that a mystery, properly and strictly speak ing, is not the object of faith, while it continues fo; and likewife what a weak excufe men make, when they excufe the obfcurity, abfurdity, and contradiction of their opinions with this plea, that 'tis a mystery, and that, as fuch, it is our duty to believe it, and not curiously to fearch into it; because say they, myfteries, at least mysteries in religion, are above the reach of human understandings, and therefore to be believed, and not reafon'd upon.

If to what is here faid it fhould be replied, that there are several articles of faith, which, as chriftians, we are obliged to affent to, and which we do actually exercife our faith upon, and yet we do not apprehend them, fo that they are myfteries in a proper fenfe; fuch as the conception of our Saviour in the womb of the Virgin, by the power of the holy Ghost, the refurrection of the body,

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