Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
scripture_n	apostle_n	doctrine_n	prove_v	3,310	5	5.9535	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A35974	A discourse concerning infallibility in religion written by Sir Kenelme Digby to the Lord George Digby, eldest sonne of the Earle of Bristol.	Digby, Kenelm, Sir, 1603-1665.; Bristol, George Digby, Earl of, 1612-1677.	1652 (1652)	Wing D1431; ESTC R8320	74,300	238

how during all this tract of time there hath still bin great disputing out of Scripture against sundry most important propositions diuers of them directly impugning our Sauiour him●●elfe and his dignity and Godhead for the settling whereof in mens beliefes it appeareth that a great part of the Scripture was written And yet peraduenture neuer a one of them was euer conuinced and beaten downe by Scripture or by any other meanes then by Tradition and by the title of possession of the contrary Doctrine And shall not the consideration of this successe after so many attempts make vs very doubtfull and afraid that nothing can be conuinced out of ●●ole Scripture I haue heard some ●●ho haue employed their studies to be exact in the controuersy about Scriptures being the rule of faith challenge others that haue pretended to haue greatest skill and insight in Scripture to conuince out of it alone that there was but one God a point wherein all Christians agree and t●●ey could neuer receiue satisfaction in it The Ecclesiasticall stories informe vs how the Arrians defended their denying of our Sauiours d●●uinity by pregnant texts of Scripture and could not be conuinced otherwise then by Tradition And how it fared in like manner with sundry others The very nature of wordes so subiect to diuerses senses and vnderstandinges The length of the Bible whereby all sortes of metaphores and improper manners of speaking do occurre in it And th●● reiterating of the same speech diuersly in diuers occasions Do render it mainely suspitious that it is impossible to make a demonstration for proofe and explication of the true meaning of any passage in it which great wittes haue engaged themselues in explicating a contrary way And therefore before a man can rationally rely vpon Scripture for a sufficient rule to bring him to Beatitude he must be satisfyed and conuinced that there is a meanes whereby he may certainely know what is the sense of Scripture and how he may compasse this meanes For otherwise all that he draweth our of Scripture is vncertaine And no lesse vncertaine it is whither what he hath drawne be enough or whither more be not necessary And in a word he remaineth on all handes in perpetuall inc●●titude THE XVII CHAPTER That Tradition is the onely meanes of conueying Christes doctrine to succeeding ages OF the two wayes of conueying Christes doctrine to Mankinde in all ages the first of which is by writing and that ●●e haue bin hitherto reflecting vpon there remaineth onely the latter which is by handing it from one to an other to be considered A doctrine so conueyed implying thereby that it hath beene in all ages that is to say in the vniuersality of time belongeth onely to Catholikes to lay clayme vnto it and onely they who do so may properly be stiled Catholikes Neither can it be obiected that the Greekes may pretend it in such pointes of faith as they differ in from those that liue in communion with the Roman See Well may they in matters of custome But these are of such a nature as they may haue bin different in seuerall places euen att the very origine of them without any inconueniency att all And consequently in different places there may haue continued different practises euer since the Apostles time But lett vs examine more particularly what aduantages or prerogatiues this way of transmitting Christe's doctrine from hand to hand vntill our dayes hath ouer the retriuing it in Scripture First we shall find that it hath the prerogatiue of Possession All aduersaries hauing found the Catholike Church out of which they broke in a quiett credulity that her doctrine was so descended from the Apostles Next it hath the prerogatiue of all the approbation and commendation that our fathers could giue it by themselues by their lawes by their rewardes and punishements and by whatsoeuer else they could inuent for the continuation of it It hath a high straine of testification aboue all that is to be found in our titles to land inheritances legacies bargaines and all other morall transactions and concernements whatsoeuer It hath the testimony of all our aduersaries to haue continued for a thousand yeares euen in those pointes wherein they dissent from vs but in all others wherein they agree with vs they allow our continuance from the very origine of Christianity So as it can not be doubted euen by our Aduersaries confession but that this way is capable of bringing downe truths vnto us vncorrupted But aboue all it hath the euidence or its fidelity in conueying to posterity the doctrine of Saluation by the connexion of one age to an other Out of this maxime That it is impossible all fathers through out the whole world should conspir●● to deceiue their Children in so important an affaire For this Maxime doth so connect the knowledge of euery century to what was knowne in the century immediately preceding it that it is impossible for any error to creepe in betweene them And the maxime it selfe is as euident as any that belongeth to Mathematikes And so much more cleare then any of those as perpetuall dayly practise beateth vs into the knowledge and continuall view of it For as no man could doubt but that the braines of that person were crased who conuersing with marchants vpon the Exchange in London and hearing them speake dayly of Paris and of moneyes they remitt hither and of letters they receiue from thence Should neuerthelesse thinke confidently there were no such towne as Paris because he was neuer there himselfe So much more ●●ould he be held for a mad man that liuing in England and conuersing with all forces of people reading their bookes of all kindes hearing their sermons considering their lawes and the change of some particular ones in matter of Religion and innumerable other particulars which speake manifestly how Catholike Religion had course in England before Henry the VIII changed it should neuerthelesse deny it because he liued not in the time when that Religion was publikely professed For in this case the number of wittnesses is farre greater then in the other Now when a motiue of humane prudence is so preualent a one as to brand him with want of common sense who shoud not assent to what it induceth It is a manifest signe of a conquering axiomaticall euidence in the proposition that he should so deny And consequently by this discourse applying it to euery age since Christ's planting of his Church the descent of Christian or Catholike Religion from Christ is as euident as any Geometrical demonstration whatsoeuer One great prerogatiue more I must not omitt that Tradition hath aboue Scripture which is that Scripture is deliuered in precise and determinate wordes whose sense is not vnderstood But Tradition is deliuered in almost as many seuerall expressions as there be seuerall persons that deliuer it So that in Tradition the sense is constant though the wordes be vncertaine Whereas in a truth deliuered by writting though

and to draw the best meaning out of it that of themselues they are able He accompteth all who do so to be of his religion and communion if they agree thereunto If they will not communicate with him he presseth them not but if they will he refuseth them not The Socinian his difference from the Independent I take to be this That he iudgeth the Bible to be the wisest and most authenticall booke that euer was written such a one as no other humane writting can contest with it yet not such a one as no ●●ippe or error might fall into it euen in matters of importance and concerning our saluation And therefore that where reason is absolutely against it he may seaue it though for ciuility sake he will rather choose to putt a wrong glosse vpon it then plainely refuse it Further he thinketh it not fitting to no lest anyman who beareth the like respect to Scripture and proceedeth modestly in his actions Now it is cleare that both of these do sticke to the rule that they propose to themselues for attaining the science of Beatitude And therefore their deficiency is such as humane nature is lyable vnto It being incident to all men to faile in their discourse when it is long Whereas Protestants and Puritans do in the same breath contradict themselues and renounce the Principle which they lay for the first foundation of their receding from that Church they were borne in and of their erecting a new one This proceeding no man can excuse from barbarous impudence and irrationality or admitt them among the pretenders to religion vpon the score of Scripture which att euery turne they change into their owne fancy But as I can not but prayse the other two for going consequently and for sticking to their rule and principle and so esteeme them to be rationall men and such as deserue to be discoursed with So withall I can not allow that they haue properly speaking a religion among them or such a rule as they may securely rely vpon for the saluation of their soules Especially the Socinian according to the explication that I haue here made of his tenets which whither it agree or not to all those who passe vnder the name of Socinians I dispute not as not leuelling my arguments against Persons but against opinions Against these then that I haue related I thus frame my oppositiō If it be true as I haue already declared that ignorance of the way to Beatitude will hinder v●● from euer arriuing to it And that it importeth not whither it be by our owne default or no that we are ignorāt of it for be it vpon what score you will and be wee as inculpable as you will suppose still the missing of the way will bring vs to a wrong periode and end of our iorney where we shall be plunged in infinite and eternall miseries It followeth that it concerneth vs mainely to prouide that we haue more security in this point then in any other art or trade whatsoeuer that belongeth to our well being in this life Now whither the Socinian haue such security or no in the rule he relyeth vpon to bring him to Beatitude is that which we are to examine It can not be pretended that Scripture is his rule for seeing he supposeth Scripture to be fallible and that vpon all occasions he correcteth it by his discourse it is not Scripture but his discourse and his reasoning that is his true and supreme rule which is the cause that they or some of their party did denominate themselues Sanarations from right reason Now seeing that his discourse is not confirmed by sensible and reall effects abetting it as for example by miracles wrought to take away all doubts or scrupules against it or by the returne of soules from the other world to assure vs by their experience that we may safely rely vpon such a rule as hauing brought them to Beatitude It can not be denyed but that it hath no other strength then that which it comprehendeth within it selfe carrieth in its owne bowels And this strength ought to be no lesse then certainty and vnanswerablenesse if he intend that it shall settle all doubts and quiett all scruples in this affaire where it importeth euery man to be cautious inquisiti●●e doubtfull and scrupulous to the vtmost For if his discourse be any degree vnder certaine it is but probable And euery point that is but probable the contrary of it may peraduenture be true And consequently all bare probable pointes are either false or el●●e not knowne to be true which is no better then false to a man that can not be satisfyed with lesse then an infallible rule to rely on And therefore the Socinian can not satisfy a reasonable man nor doth he giue a good account of himselfe vnlesse he professe to demonstrate his assertions And not onely those assertions wherein he contradicteth Scripture but also those wherein he agreeth with it For seeing that Script●●re hath with him no further authority then of being probable all that he gathereth there can haue no more●● force then of being likewise probable and consequently to make it infallible he must support and Corroborate it with a demonstration But what I haue already sayd about demonstration in this subiect will coole our hopes in expecting any att the Socinians handes Neither do they as farre as I ha●●e vnderstood pretend there vnto There remaineth then onely the Independents rule of attaining to Beatitude to be discussed Whose proceeding is certainely more allo●●ble more iudicious and more pious then all the others that we haue hitherto looked vpon For he resolueth his beliefe and groundeth ●●his actions wholy vpon him that can neither be deceiued himselfe nor deceiue others In this matter he is not content with any lesse authority●● then Gods wor●● What he findeth not in Scripture belongeth not to his Creede Infine he giueth Scripture its true valew and he sticketh firmely to it as his rule But if all this may not suffice vnlesse he haue security of his tenets out of Scripture I doubt he will haue a hard taske to proue them sufficient for saluation For omitting that he must be assured of the texts of Scripture which he maketh vse of that those very wordes which belong to his purpose are in the originall that the translation he readeth is not discrepant from the originall in as much as concerneth his text both which are impossible to be knowne by ordinary Sti●●klers in controuersie I am persuaded it is much harder to demonstrate out of wordes the way to Beatitude then out of naturall principles if not wholy impossible Th●● which though I will not here dispute it being largely handled b●● others and particulary by Maist●● Rushwor●● in his second Dialogue yet I will craue leaue to represent vnto your Lordship how the preiudice of continuall experience for now att the least 1600. years is strong against the Independents vndertaking We know well