thoritative promulgation of the Gospel, as is evident from the laft verfe, Thefe things are written that ye might believe: and this led him no farther than to observe that the preachers and publishers of the Gofpel were eye-witneffes of the things they attefted, and therefore unexceptionable witneffes. This is. the true foundation of the Apoftles' authority confidered as promulgers of Christianity; which depended upon what they themselves had feen or heard, and not upon what others had feen or heard, whether friends or foes. Other circumstances may be good collateral evidence; but the teftimony of the Apoftles refts upon this, that they themselves faw and heard what they have reported. And therefore the fame Apostle in his firft Epiftle fets forth this evidence in the very fame manner: That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have feen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the word of life-that which we have feen and heard, declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us.

You have alfo the reafon affigned which moved St. John to publish his Gospel, which extends likewife to all the other writings of the New Testament: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jefus is the Chrift the Son of God, and that believing ye might have life through his name. This reason is not fo strictly to be urged, as if writing were the only way of publishing the Gofpel, which we know was effectually published to great multitudes, before any book of the New Teftament was written, by the preaching and working of the Apoftles. But thus far perhaps we may justly argue, that writing is the

beft, if not the only method of perpetuating the teftimony, and delivering down the doctrines of Chrift uncorrupted to diftant ages: and this way has had the consent and approbation of all civilized nations; from whence it is that fcripta lex is used in the best writers to fignify an inftituted law, as diftinguished from the law of nature arifing either from instinct or reafon.

The Gospels then were published that they might be a standing evidence to all ages of God's purpose to redeem the world by fending his Son to take our nature on him, that he might die for our fins, and rife again for our juftification: and it was abfolutely neceffary to convey this knowledge to the world by a proper authority; for revelation cannot obtain the force and authority of law, or any way oblige the confciences of men, till it be fufficiently published and declared. This is univerfally true of all laws whatever, both human and divine: and the reason of it is plain; because otherwise men would be bound to an impoffibility, to obey a law before they knew what the law was. For the fame reason also it must be allowed, that the promulgation of the law is the proper care and concern of the lawgiver: for the law muft come from the governor to the governed; and the subject, till he knows the law, that is, till it is promulged and fufficiently declared to him, can have no concern in it. Apply this to revelation, and you will perceive, that it is abfurd to suppose that God has given any law to the world which he has not fufficiently promulged and declared; for that would be to fuppofe that God intended to give, and not to give, a law to mankind at the fame time. An

infufficient promulgation is no promulgation; and therefore all powers and qualities neceffary to give credit and authority to the publishers of a revelation are always fuppofed, when we speak of the truth and authority of revelation. God may reveal what he fees fit to one or two or more men; but, unless such men are commiffioned and duly qualified to fatisfy others that fuch things have been made known to them, others are no more concerned in the revelation, than if it had never been made. It would take up too much of your time to inquire particularly what are the neceffary qualifications to constitute a proper witness to revelation. It may fuffice to observe, that no man is naturally qualified for it, for this plain reason, because all natural qualifications are eafily counterfeited to ferve a purpose. Honefty, fincerity, and religion may be put on in appearance; and a man may bear himself so well in the disguise, as not to be discovered. Things in common life are eafily believed upon the report of honest men: but then it must be confidered, that the moral probability of fuch things goes a great way in rendering them credible. It is no fhock to our minds to believe that fuch a thing happened at fuch a time, which we know often does happen in the course of things, and probably might happen then. In fuch cafes a small weight inclines the mind to affent: but it requires other kind of evidence to make the mind fubmit to the belief of things which are fupported by no moral probability, but are quite out of the ordinary courfe and nature of things. This thews that no revelation can be fufficiently promulged and declared to the world by men, unless they

are extraordinarily qualified and commiffioned to that purpose. We do not therefore rely merely upon the honefty or moral character of the first preachers of the Gospel, but on their authority proved and supported by many wonderful works which God enabled them to do, and on their integrity fufficiently established by what they did and fuffered for the fake of the Gospel.

But here the question is afked, How shall we diftinguish between the pretences to revelation, which are so many and various, all of which have an equal right to be heard, that it is endless to look for religion in fuch a crowd of pretenders to it, and difficult to determine the merit of the feveral claims? So that the only fure way is to take up with natural religion, which is every where uniformly the fame, and in which there is no danger of being deluded and misled by imposture; for natural religion admits of no counterfeit: and, fince every man's reafon is judge in this cafe, no man can be cheated but by himself: and all men are so much their own friends, that in a matter of fo great moment, which fo nearly concerns their present and their future happiness, they may fecurely truft themselves.

Now, to form a true judgment upon this cafe, it will be neceffary first to state the question right upon the foot of this objection, and then to examine what weight of reafon there is in it.

First then, the question must relate to revelation, confidered only as the rule and measure of religion: for the dispute between nature and revelation is confined to this one point, Which is the beft and fafeft guide in religion? It is abfurd therefore to

bring inftances of any revelations in this case, which do not pretend to this property, that were never given, or pretended to be given, as a rule of religion for, when men talk of the various revelations that have been in the world, and the difficulty of determining which they ought to obey, they cannot take into their confideration the answer of the oracle to Crofus, or the feveral other anfwers on particular occafions recorded in the Greek and Roman hiftories, nor yet the particular meffages which God fent by the hands of different prophets to the people of Ifrael; for these revelations, whether true or falfe, being confined to particular occafions, are out of the prefent question, and have no relation to the inquiry concerning a rule or measure of religion. This obfervation will in a great measure overthrow the truth of the fact upon which the objection is built; for upon this view there are not many revelations that can come into competition : in the heathen world I know of none; for, though there were fundry pretences to revelation, yet none was fet up as a common ftandard for the religion of mankind. The religion of Rome was chiefly introduced by Numa, who pretended a revelation for the foundation of his authority: but it is plain he aimed at nothing farther than modelling the religion of his city, and had no thought of the reft of the world in what he did. Nor had the Romans any sense that their religion concerned any but themfelves and therefore, when they extended their conquefts, religion was their leaft concern; they left the world in that respect as they found it, and men were not fo much as invited to take their reli