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no coming to an End of it. And it is plain likewife, that this was the received Doctrine about our Saviour's Time,by that Saying of St. Paul in the tenth Chapter of the first Epiftle to the Corinthians, where fpeaking of feveral Actions in the Hiftory of the Old Teftament, of the Ifraelites paffing thro' the Sea, drinking out of the Rock, &c. the Apoftle fubjoins, Which things happened rumxas, by way of Types and were written for our Inftru&tion, eἰς ως τα τέλη των αιώνων και THY THEY, on whom has lighted the Completion of the former τήντησεν, Ages: Not as we tranflate it, On whom the Ends of the World are come. Where you may obferve, that the oi nimel the Prefigurations of the former Ages are oppofed to the TA, or the Completions of the Apoftolick Age. Sa again, Gal. iv. 4. he calls that Age paxeirs, the Fulfilling of Time, or the clear making out those typical Paffages of the former Ages. And Ephef. i. 10. he calls the Time of the Gofpel οικονομοίων τι πληρώματα των καιρών, The Difpenfation of Completion, or Fulfilling of Times; where all Things aranza, are gathered into one in Chrift, both which are in Heaven, and which are in Earth: That is, in him is made a Recapitulation of all the Types of the Old Teftament; all the ancient Law; and remarkable Actions of former Times, do as it were center in Him ; and his Life and Paffion is a Kind of Anacephaleofs of them all. And fo St. Chryfoftom explains the Place, A ori pancer degourva, &c. That the Life of Chrift is a compendious Relation, of what is said, at Length, in their Types in the Old Testament. And fo St. Jerom (who wonders, that the Old Latin Tranflation fhould render ανακεφαλαιώσαι γενouare, when it is a Metaphor taken from an Orator's Recapitulation, or winding up his whole Dif courfe) fays, Omnis Difpenfatio tam visibilium quam invifibilium creaturarum adventum Dei filii pollicebatur, &c. The Difpenfation of all Things vifible and invifible, did foretell the Coming of the Son of God; the driving of Man out of Paradife did forefhew his being re-called by Chrift; the Division of Tongues did prefigure the Apostle's Gift of Tongues; and Ifaac in a Type did carry the Cross of Chrift. Nor is it the Opinion and Practice only of the Writers of the New

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Teftament, but alfo of the ancient and modern Jews; the only Fault is, thefe, latter generally carry on the Matter too far in their Midrafb's and Cabbala's; they often run all Matters of Fact into fuch strange Allegories, and find fuch wonderful Mysteries in Letters and Syllables, as makes a meer Jeft of God's Word. But the fobereft of them do just as the Writers of the New Teftament do; they allow an original literal Senfe of fome remarkable Paffage, and leave a typical One to prefigure fomething in the Time of the Meffias. Thus the Targum allows the fe venty-fecond Pfalm to be spoken principally of Solomon, but fays, that typically, or by way of prophetick Excurfion, it is to be

by Sonderftood of the Meffias. And the like is afferted

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by Solomon Farchi, a learned Jewish Rabbin. And, this Way, feveral of the Paffages quoted in the New Teftament, fome of which you have alleged, may be fairly accounted for. As for Inftance, That, which the Infidels make the most terrible Work with of all, And behold a Virgin fhall conceive, &c. It is true, That Place in Ifaiah, from whence this is taken, is not fpoken folely of Chrift, nei ther does the Apoftle fay it is, but only that the Prophet's Relation of That Hiftory did more eminently agree to Chrift's Birth; and that the Virgin there mentioned, and the Child called Immanuel, were Types, or Prophetick Defcriptions of Chrift, and his immaculate Conception. Nays unlefs we will allow in fome Measure this typical Prefigu ration of our Saviour, and his Difpenfation, there is no. Senfe to be made of an hundred Rites commanded in the old Law; for Mofes was a Man of good Senfe, though you should own him only as a fecular Legiflator, and cannot be fuppofed, to have commanded fo many ftrange Rites, to fo little Purpofe, as any other Account allots, them. But, if we allow them to be enjoined, principally by the Infpiration of God, though inftrumentally by the Mouth of Mofes, (as we Chriftians do) and to be pri-. marily defigned for the good Government, and religious Worship of the Jews, but fecondarily, for Types of our Saviour; there is a great Deal of good Reafon to be fhewn, why fome very strange Ceremonies fhould be used, as par

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ticularly the Paffover, which is fo clear an Emblem of Chrift's Paffion, all the Ceremonies of which ancient Sacrament anfwer exactly to the Circumftances of his Death. And I queftion, whether fome particular Paffages in the Bible, the Hiftory of which is fo fhort, would ever have been related, or at leaft in their full Circumftances, if they had not been defigned to prefigure Things of a higher Nature.

Phil. I find if I do not ftop you, to cool a little in your Heat, you will talk fo much of Types and Prophe fies, that you will be running, by and by, into an Enthufiaftical Comment upon Daniel or the Revelations. But by the Way, Credentius, if we fhould once allow this typical or allegorical Way of explaining Scripture, one might prove the Hiftory of Guy of Warwick out of the firft Chapter of Genefis. Nay, the moft Enthufiaftical Phanaticks would be the beft Expofitors; for they are for a World of myftical Expofitions, and have pretended to find Prophefies of Old Noll and Muggleton, almoft in every Book of the Bible. Nay, the principal Fathers of the Church have perfectly balderdash'd the Scripture, by thefe Types and Allegories; by making whatever they have a Mind to, out of any Part of Scripture, and giving us rather a fine Exercife of their Fancy, than a true Explication of the Text. And, indeed, fome of your foberer Interpreters fhew fo little a Liking to this Way, that they do not look upon thofe Texts of Scripture, which are quored* as Prophefies in the New Teftament, to be any folid Proof of the Chriftian Religion; and Grotius himself owns, that the Apoftles did not prove that Chrift was the Meffias by thefe prophetick Teftimonies, but rather appealed to his Miracles; allowing thefe only to be brought in for Ornament fake, and as Arguments which were of no Force to convince Infidels †, but were only fitted a little to strengthen thofe, who were good Chriftians already.

★ Socin, Lect. Sacr. Smalc. De Div. Chrift. Cap. 9.

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Grot. in Mat. Cap. 1.

Cred.

Cred. It is not my Bufinefs to apologise for all the Exceffes, which fome have been guilty of, in explaining Scripture in the allegorical Way, as knowing there have been feveral Abufes committed in this Kind; I am only to defend the Writers of the New Teftament, all whofe Arguments of this Kind are very fober and natural; and, they having the Spirit of God to affift them in their Compofitions, and to guide them into all Truth, there is no Doubt to be made, but that the Types they refer to, were certainly by God defigned as fuch. Nay, farther, I fee not, but why the fame Kind of Arguing may be ufed, by modern Divines; if they take Care not to be too. fanciful this Way, but keep themselves within the Bounds of Moderation and good Reafon. And an ancient Father lays down a very good Rule in this Cafe, Neves de x xal isociav, &c. Let us wifely understand those things in Scripture, which are fpoke according to the Hiftory, and fo let us receive thofe Prophefies, which are made out according to the Theory. But let us not make Theory of that, which ought hiftorically to be understood, nor force that into an hiftorical Senfe, which ought to be Theorized; but let us adapt a proper and convenient Senfe to both. But if the Prophefy be fuch, that it may be properly interpreted according to the Hiftory, and yet the Theory of it be not forced, then may both of them be fed. And truly, there does not want good Reason to think, there is more couched under fome Expreffions and Paffages of Scripture, than upon firft Sight, and in the primary Intention does appear. Because the Scriptures are a divine Compofition, written by the Directions of an All-knowing Mind, which can forefee a thoufand Accidents and future Contingencies, befides the principal Matters, which the indited Words have Relation to. Indeed we Men, by reafon of the Scantinefs of our Knowledge, are forced to adapt our Words folely to the Thing, which we are at prefent thinking of; because our Thoughts will

Ifidor. Peluf. Ep. cii.

T The Ancients called the Allegorical Way of expounding Scripture Qgia, Theory,

not extend to more than one Thing at the fame Time; and because all future Accidents are beyond the Ken of our Understanding. But what Reafon is there, that we Thould tie God Almighty to this Rule, and make our Imbecillity the Measure of his boundlefs Knowledge? His Thoughts are not like our Thoughts, nor his Ways like our Ways. 'Tis true, all other Books, befides the Scriptures, being the Productions of human Understandings, are only to be interpreted according to the moft obvious Senfe of the Words; because it is to be fuppofed, that the limited Thoughts of the Writer had no farther a Reach. But when the great God of Heaven and Earth is pleafed, for the Good of his Creatures, Himself to indite Writings, which are to be the standing Directions to Mankind, for all future Generations; there is no Doubt to be made, but almoft every Word of that divine Compofition takes its Place there, by the Direction of an infinite Wisdom; and that He, by his Fore-knowledge, has an Eye to the Circumftances of future Ages, whilft He is directing Himfelf feemingly only to thofe, in whofe Time the Books were wrote. Such an heavenly Compofure muft needs bear many Impreffes of the boundlefs Thoughts of its Almighty Author; and cannot eafily be thought, to be limited to the narrow Particulars they were first defigned for. One might inftance in many Texts of Scripture, where 'tis obvious, that the Holy Ghoft has induftrioufly worded an Expreffion fo, as that it might be a Direction, either for the Faith, or Morality of future Ages; and yet feemingly, it may be, to the infpired Writers themfelves, nothing like it was intended. I fhall content my Self with one Particular. Our bleffed Saviour is recorded by the Evangelift, Mat. xxvi. 27. in the Delivery of the Cup in the bleffed Sacrament, to fay to the Communicants, Drink ye all of this. Now I doubt not, but that the Holy Ghoft, befides the bare Relation of the Hiftory of this Sacrament, which was all that the Church for feveral Hundreds of Years, and perhaps the Evangelift himfelf understood by it; I fay, befides this, I doubt not, but that the Holy Ghoft did defign particularly, to fet up

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