to his charge out of the Holy Scriptures, and that he will be diligent in reading and studying them. And I am fully persuaded, that this method of comparing Scripture with Scripture, which is so very beneficial to the people in plain and practical points, will also be found upon trial to be the best method that a minister can take, in order to form a just notion of the spirit of religion in general, and of the meaning of such particular passages as are less plain and need explication. Whether the difficulty arise from the phrase and language of Scripture, or from some peculiar offices and usages of those ancient times, or from any seeming incoherence in the reasoning and argument: in all these cases, and I will add, in all other difficulties, of what kind soever, the frequent reading of holy writ till the style and spirit of it become familiar to us, and the comparing particular passages with others of like nature and tendency, will appear to be our best help and most sure guide. And whoever has patience and resolution enough to proceed and persevere in this way, though he may go on slowly, will go on surely, and find himself in the end a far greater proficient than those, who, neglecting this method, shall wholly betake themselves to assistances of other kinds. Not that any assistance is to be neglected, which may furnish us with knowledge of so high and valuable a nature; but my meaning is, that, in general, Scripture is the best interpreter of Scripture, and that the comparing Scripture with Scripture is the surest way to the true understanding of it: and therefore, that recourse ought not ordinarily to be had to the other ways (however seemingly more short and easy) till this has been fully tried, and the mind still calls for further light and assistance. It was the saying of a great man, that the time which he thought he spent best was between his Bible and his Concordance: and however expositors may be useful, and even necessary,

upon some particular points, yet it is very certain, that no person who is possessed of those two, and has not at least a competent knowledge of the Holy Scriptures, can fairly charge his want of knowledge upon the want of books: on the contrary, it can be a want of nothing but industry and application in the business of his profession." Directions to his Clergy, 1724.

32. BUTLER, BISHOP OF DUrham.

"These communities, which together make up the Catholic visible Church, are, first, the repositories of the written oracles of God; and in every age, have preserved and published them, in every country, where the profession of Christianity has obtained. Hence it has come to pass, and it is a thing very much to be observed in the appointment of Providence, that even such of these communities, as, in a long succession of years, have corrupted Christianity the most, have yet continually carried, together with their corruptions, the confutation of them: for they have every where preserved the pure original standard of it, the Scripture, to which recourse might have been had, both by the deceivers and the deceived, in every successive age. Secondly, any particular Church, in whatever place established, is like a city that is set on a hill, which cannot be hid, inviting all who pass by, to enter into it. All persons, to whom any notices of it come, have, in Scripture language, the kingdom of God come nigh unto them. They are reminded of that religion, which natural conscience attests the truth of and they may, if they will, be instructed in it more distinctly, and likewise in the gracious means whereby sinful creatures may obtain eternal life; that chief and final good, which all men, in proportion to their understanding and integrity, even in all ages and countries of the heathen world, were ever in pursuit of. And, lastly, out

of these Churches have all along gone forth persons, who have preached the Gospel in remote places, with greater or less good effect: for the establishment of any profession of Christianity, however corrupt, I call a good effect, whilst accompanied with a continual publication of the Scripture, notwithstanding it may for some time lie quite neglected..

Whilst, together with our particular form of Christianity, the confessed standard of Christian religion, the Scripture, is spread; and especially whilst every one is freely allowed to study it, and worship God according to his conscience: the evident tendency is, that genuine Christianity will be understood and prevail." Sermon before the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel.

33. SECKER, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY.

"Since therefore the Scriptures contain a full and clear account of Christianity, written by the very apostles and first disciples of our Lord himself, and honestly delivered down into our hands, we have plainly such a rule for our faith as all men in all cases are ever satisfied with; nor have we any need to look farther. And yet the farther we do look into other pretended rules, the better we shall be satisfied with that we have already, For, let what will be said against Scripture, as not being a sufficient rule, it must be a sufficient one, unless there be some other; and, upon a fair examination, it will evidently appear there is no other. The Romanists indeed tell us of one which they speak of in very high terms, and that is the traditionary doctrine of what they call the Catholic Church. The apostles, they say, instructed their converts very diligently in every article of faith. Those converts again, knowing it to be their indispensable duty, could not fail to instruct, with the same diligence, ministers their flocks, parents their children, every Christian his neighbour.

And thus, by a continued succession of teaching, all the doctrines of religion are handed down in their Church, they tell us, uncorrupted to this day. Whoever either added, omitted, or changed anything, must, they think, by every one round him, be immediately charged with a mistake; and if he persisted in it, convicted of a heresy, while the rest were confirmed in the ancient truth. And therefore to hold what the Church holds, is a rule that can never mislead us. Now it must be owned indeed, that our Saviour delivered his doctrine to the apostles, and they to all the world by word of mouth; and this way of delivering at first was sufficient, and therefore St. Paul exhorts the Thessalonians, to hold first the traditions he had taught them whether by word or by letter. But then, in the nature of things, how long could this last? Suppose but the easiest common story were to be told from one person to another, without being written down, for only one hundred or two hundred years, and let each person, as he received it, have ever so strict a charge to tell it in the same manner; yet, long before the end of that time, what security could we possibly have that it was true at first, and unaltered still? And you cannot but see there is much less security, that a considerable number of doctrines, especially such as compose the Popish creed, should be brought down safe for seventeen hundred years together, through so many millions of hands, that were all liable, through ignorance, forgetfulness, and superstition, to mistake them, or, through knavery and design, to alter them. But it will be said, in a case of such importance as religion, men would be more careful in delivering truth than in others. Undoubtedly they ought; but who can be secure that they would? It is of equal importance to be careful in practising it too; yet we all know how this hath been neglected in the world; and therefore have reason

to think the other hath been no less so. But whoever made the first change, they say, must have been immediately discovered. Now, so far from this, persons make change in what they relate, without discovering it themselves; alterations come in by insensible degrees : one man leaves out, or varies, or adds one little circumstance; the next, another; till it grow imperceptibly into a different thing. In one age a doctrine is delivered as a probable opinion; the following age speaks of it as certain truth; and the third advances it into an article of faith. Perhaps an opposition rises upon this, as many have done : some have said such a doctrine was delivered to them, others that it was not: and who can tell whether at last the right side or the wrong have prevailed? Only this is certain, that whichsoever prevails, though by a small majority at first, will use all means of art and power to make it appear an universal consent at last, and then plead uninterrupted tradition. But though such things as these may possibly be done in almost any age, yet they are easy to be done in such ages, as were five or six of those, that preceded the Reformation; when by the confession of their own historians, both clergy and laity were so universally and so monstrously ignorant and vicious, that nothing was too bad for them to do, or too absurd for them to believe. But still they tell us, we Protestants receive it upon the authority of tradition, that Scripture is the word of God: and why can we not as well receive other things upon the same authority? I answer, we receive Scripture by no means upon the authority of tradition merely; much less the tradition of their present Church; but partly on account of its own reasonableness, and the character of divine wisdom in it; partly from the testimony which one part of it bears to the other; and lastly, upon the written evidence given us, chiefly indeed by the earliest Christians, but in some measure