An exposition with practical observations continued upon the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh chapters…

The true Prophets complain often of the false, for crying up their deceivings, under the warrant of visions and dreams, when all was but a dream indeed, a mere fancy, or studied imposture to mislead the people, and gain credit to their lies. While a man hath nothing but ordinary humane authority, for things extraordinary, he is easily rejected.

The true Prophets complaine often of the false, for crying up their deceivings, under the warrant of visions and dreams, when all was but a dreame indeed, a meere phancy, or studied imposture to mislead the people, and gaine credit to their lies. While a man hath nothing but ordinary humane authority, for things extraordinary, he is easily rejected.

Man is subject to error, he may deceive and be deceived; therefore when they would put a new nothing upon the world, as an infallible truth, and have it swallowed without chewing, received without disputing, then usually they pretended that it was (quid Divinum) a doctrine or message received immediately from God. And it is well observed, that this course of pretending to Divine revelation, was very frequent amongst the Heathen: when their ⟨p. 73⟩Wise men had a mind to fasten, some unwonted opinion upon the vulgar. Among the Romans, Numa, (to the intent they might be received with greater authority) stamped his laws, with a kind of divinity, and told the people that he had received them from the Goddess Aegeria. As if he had said, these laws, are not such as I have coined and fashioned by my own policy, drawn up or enacted by my own power, I had them from the Goddess. So Plato informs us of another law-maker (Minos the Cretan) that he used to enter into Caves and solitary places, where (he told the people) he received laws and immediate dictates from Jupiter their God, to govern them by. This drew a great estimation and reverence upon him. Valerius Maximus and Herodotus tells us of those ¹other Law-makers, Lycurgus and Seuleucus, using the like State stratagems to over-rule the people. Lycurgus said, he received his laws from Apollo: Zaleucus and Pisistratus avouch, Minerva for the Directress or Doctress of Theirs. So that both among the people of God, and among Heathens, it hath been very frequent to pretend Divine authority; that they might with the more estimation put off either such points of doctrine, or such rules of policy, as themselves had invented.