A90280:12
Of the divine original, authority, self-evidencing light, and power of the Scriptures. With an…Of the divine originall, authority, self-evidencing light, and povver of the Scriptures. With an…
Of the divine original, authority, self-evidencing light, and power of the Scriptures. With an answer to that enquiry, how we know the Scriptures to be the Word of God. Also a vindication of the purity and integrity of the Hebrew and Greek texts of the Old and New Testament; in some considerations on the prolegomena, & appendix to the late Biblia polyglotta. Whereunto are subjoined some exercitations about the nature and perfection of the Scripture, the right of interpretation, internal Light, revelation, &c. / By John Owen: D.D.Of the divine originall, authority, self-evidencing light, and povver of the Scriptures. With an answer to that enquiry, how we know the Scriptures to be the Word of God. Also a vindication of the purity and integrity of the Hebrew and Greek texts of the Old and New Testament; in some considerations on the prolegomena, & appendix to the late Biblia polyglotta. Whereunto are subjoyned some exercitations about the nature and perfection of the Scripture, the right of interpretation, internall Light, revelation, &c. / By Iohn Owen: D.D.
Oxford: printed by Henry Hall for Tho, 1659
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
What then have these men done in the discharge of their pretended trust? nay what hath that Synagogue ⟨image 3⟩left unattempted? yea what hath it left unfinished, that may be needful to convince it of perfidiousness? that says the Scripture was committed to it alone, and would, if it were able, deprive all others of the possession of it or their lives; what Scripture then was this, or when was this deed of trust made unto them? The oracles of God, they tell us, committed to the Jews under the Old Testament, and all the writings of the New; and that this was done from the first foundation of the Church by Peter, and so on to the finishing of the whole Canon. What now have they not done in adding, detracting, corrupting, forging, aspersing those Scriptures to falsify their pretended trust? They add more books to them, never indited by the Holy Ghost, as remote from being [Greek or Hebrew]: so denying the self evidencing power of that word, which is truly [Greek or Hebrew], by mixing it with things [Greek or Hebrew], of an humane rise and spring; manifesting themselves to have lost the spirit of discerning, promised with the Word, to abide with the true Church of God for ever. Isa: 59. 21. They have taken from its fullness and perfection, its sufficiency and excellency, by their Massora their, oral law or verbum [Greek or Hebrew], their unknown, endless, bottomless, boundless treasure of traditions; that [Greek or Hebrew] for all their abominations. ⟨image 4⟩The Scripture its self; as they say, committed to them, they plead, to their eternal shame, to be in the Original Languages corrupted, vitiated, interpolated, so that it is no stable rule to guide us throughout in the knowledge of the will of God. The Jews, they say, did it whilst they were busy in burning of Christians. Therefore in the room of the Originals, they have enthroned a translation that was never committed to them, that came into the world they know neither how, nor when, nor by whom. So that one says of its author, Si quis percontetur Gallus fuerit an Sarmata, Judaeus an Christianus, 1vir an mulier, nihil habituri sint ejus patroni quod expeditè respondeant. All this to place themselves in the throne of God, and to make the words of a Translation authentic from their stamp upon them, and not from their relation unto, and agreement with, the words spoken by God himself.