And whereas it is declar'd, that (as Hierome faith) the Church does read thofe Uncanonical Books aforefaid, for Example of Life and Inftruction of Manners, but yet doth not apply them to establish any Doctrine, 1. St. Jerome does (b) exprefly fay, what is quoted from him, of the Church in his Days. His Words are thefe. Sicut ergo Judith, & Tobiah, & Machabæorum libros legit quidem Ecclefia, fed eos inter canonicas Scripturas non recipit : Sic & hæc duo volumina (fpeaking of Ecclefiafticus and the Book of Wisdom, both which are Apocryphal) legat ad ædificationem plebis, non ad auctoritatem Ecclefiafticorum dogmatum confirmandam. 2. With refpect to our Church's own Practice the fame is manifeftly true. 3. As for the Lawfulness of our fo reading thofe Uncanonical or Apocryphal Books, fee Numb. 2. of the Appendix to the Paraphrafe with Annotations on the Book of Common Prayer.

The Canon of the Holy Scriptures being thus fettled, let us now return to

The First Propofition. See the First Part of the Confutation of Popery.

The Second is the neceffary and immediate Confequence of the First.

The Third has fomewhat of Difficulty in it. Tis well known, that there has been Doubt in the Church of God, both of ancient and later Days, concerning the Authority of diverse of those Books which we receive and approve as Canonical Scripture. It may be therefore ask'd, How, or in what Senfe, it may be truly affirm'd, that there

never

(b) Præfat. in Proverb. Ecclef. & Cant. Salom. Tom. 3. p.692. Parif. 1624.

never was any Doubt in the Church of the Authority of those Canonical Books of the Old and New Teftament, which we do underftaud in the Name of the Holy Scripture, that is, which we do receive and approve as Canonical Scripture, or the infpir'd Word of God?

I answer, That this Part of the Article is manifeftly penn'd in Oppofition to the Papifts, particularly with refpect to their then late Determination at the Council of Trent, which in the Fourth Seffion thunders thus; Sacrofanita, Oecumenica, & generalis Tridentina Synodus, in Spritu Santo legitime congregata, præfidentibus in ea eifdem tribus Apoftolica fedis Legatis, hoc fibi perpetuo ante oculos proponens, ut fublatis erroribus, puritas ipfa Evangelii in Ecclefia confervetur: quod promissum ante per Prophetas in Scripturis fanctis, Dominus nofter Jefus Chriftus, Dei filius, proprio ore primum promulgavit : deinde per fuos Apoftolos tanquam fontem omnis, & falutaris veritatis, & morum difciplinæ, omni creaturæ prædicari juffit: perfpicienfque banc veritatem, & difciplinam contineri in libris fcriptis, & fine fcripto traditionibus, quæ ex ipfius Chrifti ore ab Apoftolis accepta, aut ab ipfis Apoftolis, Spiritu Sanito dictante, quafi per manus traditæ, ad nos ufque pervenerunt, orthodoxorum Patrum exempla fecuta, omnes libros tam Veteris, quam Novi Teftamenti, cum utriufque unus Deus fit auctor, necnon traditiones ipfas, tum ad fidem, tum ad mores pertinentes, tanquam vel ore tenus à Chrijto, vel à Spiritu Sancto dictatas, & continua fucceffione in Ecclefia Catholica confervatas, pari pietatis affectu, ac reverentia fufcipit, & veneratur. Sacrorum vero librorum Indicem buic decreto adfcribendum cenfuit; ne cui dubitatio fuboriri poffit, quinam fint, qui ab ipfa Synodo fufcipiuntur. Sunt vero infrafcripti, Teftamenti Veteris, quinque Moyfis, id eft, Genefis, Exodus, Levi

ticus,

ticus, Numeri, Deuteronomium, Jofue, Judicum, Ruth, quatuor Regum, duo Paralipomenon, Efdræ primus, & jecundus, qui dicitur Nehemias, Tobias, Judith, Hefter, Job, Pfalterium Davidicum centum quinquaginta Pfa!morum, Parabola, Ecclefiaftes, Canticum canticorum, Sapientia, Ecclefiafticus, Ifaias, Hieremias cum Baruch, Ezechie!, Daniel, duodecim Prophetæ minores, id eft, Ofea, Joel, Amos, Abdias, Jonas, Micheas, Nahum, Abacuc, Sophonias, Aggaus, Zacharias, Malachias, duo Machabeorum, primus & fecundus: Teftamenti Novi, quatuor Exangelia, fecundum Matthæum, Marcum, Lucam, & Joannem Altus Apoftolorum à Luca Evangelifta confcripti: quatuordecim Epiftola Pauli Apoftoli, ad Romans, due ad Corinthios, ad Galatas, ad Ephefios, ad Philippenfes, ad Coloffenfes, duæ ad Theffalonicenfes, duæ ad Timotheum, ad Titum, ad Philemonem, ad Hebræos: Petri Apoftoli duæ, Joannis Apoftoli tres, Jacobi Apoftoli una, Jude Apoftoli una, & Apocalypfis Joannis Apoftoli. Siquis autem libros ipfos integros cum omnibus fuis partibus, prout in Ecclefia Catholica legi confueverunt, & in veteri vulgata Latina editione habentur, pro Sacris & Canonicis non fufceperit; & traditiones prædi&tas fciens & prudens contempferit ; anathema fit. Omnes itaque intelligant, quo ordine, & via ipfa Synodus, poft jactum fidei confeffionis fundamentum, fit progreffura; & quibus potiffimum teftimoniis ac præfidiis in confirmandis dogmatibus, & inftaurandis in Ecclefia moribus, fit ufura.

'Tis plain from the foregoing Decree, that the Council of Trent receives thofe Books into the Canon which we reject as Apocryphal. Now the Reafon of our rejecting them is, because they were not receiv'd as Canonical by the Ancient Church; whereas the Ancient Church did unanimously receive those which we do now receive.

I

I do not fay, that there never was a Man, especially amongst the Heretics, that doubted of, or even rejected, fome of those that we receive. Nor do I fay, that every Book which we receive, was from the Beginning receiv'd by every Church. But I fay, that the main Body of Orthodox Chriftians did always receive thofe Books which we receive, when once they became acquainted with them, and had Opportunity of examining into their Authority. Now the far greater part of these Books were thus univerfally receiv'd in the First and Second Centuries: and others that were at firft fufpected by fome confiderable Bodies of Chriftians, who were not as yet acquainted with them, were, after Examination made, receiv'd also by those very Bodies of Chriftians, and never after either rejected or even fufpected by them.

When therefore the Article afferts, That there never was any Doubt in the Church of the Authority of those Books which we receive and approve as Canonical; it must be understood in a limited Senfe, not abfolutely, but refpectively. There have been Doubts concerning fome of them; but fo few, so short, fo fmall, fo inconfiderable, that comparatively, or with refpect to the Greatness of the Church's Extent, they are nothing, and none at all.

And in this the Papists as well as our first Reformers agreed. They well knew what Sufpicions had been entertain'd in fome Churches for a time, concerning fome Books which we receive, upon the Account before mention'd; and what Doubts fome particular Men have exprefs'd

in

in their Writings concerning them. And yet both our Reformers and the Papijts did allow, that those Books which we admit into the Canon, were never doubted of in the Church. But in what Senfe? Why, they were never doubted of, when once known, by the Church in general, or even by any confiderable Part of that diffusive Body. This therefore was infallibly the Meaning of the Compilers of our Article; and they must be understood in this Sense. What is comparatively none, they must be fuppos'd here to call none at all; as we often do in common Converfation, and in all forts of Writings. And if this be the Senfe of the Article (as it manifeftly is) 'tis certainly a found and a true one; as appears from what I have referr'd to touching the Canon of Holy Scripture.

In a Word then, our Church doth in this Propofition deliver the Reason, why fhe receives fome, and rejects others, of thofe Books which the Papifts acknowledge for their Canon of Scripture. She receives thofe, whofe Authority was (comparatively fpeaking) never doubted of; and the rejects thofe, whofe Authority never was acknowledged by her Predeceffors in the Faith.

The