N01142:47
Corderius americanus. An essay upon the good education of children. And what may hopefully be attempted, for the hope of the flock. In a funeral sermon upon Mr. Ezekiel Cheever. The ancient and Honourable master of the Free-School in Boston. Who left off, but when mortality took him off, in August, 1708. the ninety fourth year of his age. : With an elegy and an epitaph upon him. / By one that was once a scholar to him. ; [One line epigram in Latin]
Boston: printed by John Allen for Nicholas Boone, 1708
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.
II. Our KNOWLEDGE OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES, is that by which we come to know the Rules of Religion, and be Religiously wise unto Salvation. The Rules of our Holy Religion, are all of them delivered in those Oracles of God, which we call, The Holy Scriptures. If ever we come unto Salvation, it must be by conversing with the Holy Scriptures. We are so called upon; Joh. 5.39. Search the Holy Scriptures, for in them ye think, ye have Eternal Life: and they are they who testify of me. It was very Fit, that the Will of God, giving us the Rules of Living unto Him, should be contained in some Writings or other. These Inspired Writings which we have in our Old and New Testament, are the only Ones, that can pretend unto this Dignity. In these Holy Scriptures we have the Rules of Religion, and the Rules by the Observation whereof we shall be wise unto Salvation. Here, […] i• the Gospel, whereof we are told; ⟨p. 6⟩Eph. 1.13. It is the Gospel of your Salvation. If we lack the Knowledge of this Gospel, we shall miss of Salvation, and be Destroyed for the lack of Knowledge. If we do not know the Gospel, we shall be a people of no understanding; Of such a people, how terribly it Thunders! He that made them will not have mercy on them; He that formed them, will show them no Favour. What is all the Learning in the World, without the Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures! There were (they say) two hundred thousand Books, in the Library which Ptolemy Erected at Alexandria; but it was the Addition of the Holy Scriptures, which made it a truly Learned Library. And whatever we have Learnt from all our Books, 'tis the Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures, that will bring us to the Truest, and indeed the only Learning. A Dying Grotius, or Selden will tell you so?
II. Our KNOWLEDGE OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES, is that by which we come to know the Rules of Religion, and be Religiously wise unto Salvation. The Rules of our Holy Religion, are all of them delivered in those Oracles of God, which we call, The Holy Scriptures. If ever we come unto Salvation, it must be by conversing with the Holy Scriptures. We are so called upon; Joh. 5.39. Search the Holy Scriptures, for in them ye think, ye have Eternal Life: and they are they who testifie of me. It was very Fit, that the Will of God, giving us the Rules of Living unto Him, should be contain'd in some Writings or other. These Inspired Writings which we have in our Old and New Testament, are the only Ones, that can pretend unto this Dignity. In these Holy Scriptures we have the Rules of Religion, and the Rules by the Observation whereof we shall be wise unto Salvation. Here, 〈…〉 i• the Gospel, whereof we are told; ⟨p. 6⟩Eph. 1.13. It is the Gospel of your Salvation. If we lack the Knowledge of this Gospel, we shall miss of Salvation, and be Destroy'd for the lack of Knowledge. If we do not know the Gospel, we shall be a people of no understanding; Of such a people, how terribly it Thunders! He that made them will not have mercy on them; He that formed them, will show them no Favour. What is all the Learning in the World, without the Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures! There were (they say) two hundred thousand Books, in the Library which Ptolomy Erected at Alexandria; but it was the Addition of the Hoi Scriptures, which made it a truly Learned Library. And whatever we have Learnt from all our Books, 'tis the Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures, that will bring us to the Truest, and indeed the only Learning. A Dying Grotius, or Selden will tell you so?
But what sort of Knowledge is requisite?
Be sure, A Doctrinal Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures is requisite, that we may be Wise unto Salvation. We read, 2 Cor. 4.3. If our Gospel be hid, it is hid unto them that be Lost. We must know Doctrinally the main Things that are communicated unto us in the Holy Scriptures. The Creation of Man by GOD; The Confusion of Man by SIN; The Redemption of Man by CHRIST. These are the main Things in the Holy Scriptures. If we are Ignorant of these Things our Ignorance will plunge us into Everlasting Darkness: Verily, It lays us in Chains of Darkness?
Be sure, A Doctrinal Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures is requisite, that we may be VVise unto Salvation. We read, 2 Cor. 4.3. If our Gospel be hid, it is hid unto them that be Lost. We must know Doctrinally the main Things that are communicated unto us in the Holy Scriptures. The Creation of Man by GOD; The Confusion of Man by SIN; The Redemption of Man by CHRIST. These are the main Things in the Holy Scriptures. If we are Ignorant of these Things our Ignorance will plunge us into Everlasting Darkness: Verily, It lays us in Chains of Darkness?
But then, a Practical Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures, is also requisite, We know to little purpose, except we Do according to what we know. We read, Joh. 13.17. Since ye know these things, Happy are ye, if you do them. Knowledge must be as John Baptist was to our Saviour, only a praecursor to Goodness; and we must say, That which comes after it is preferred before it. We must know the Truth and Walk […] the Truth. We must Know God, and Serve Him. We must Know Christ, and Grow in Grace. The Lamp is without Oil; it will go out in Everlasting Darkness, if the Knowledge be not soaked and dipped in Love. It was the saying of Maximus Tyrius long ago; Scientiae quis usus esse potest, nisi ea agamus? We must Know and Hear our Duty, and we must be Doers of the Word, and not Hearers only. Else we are ⟨p. 7⟩not Wise unto Salvation. We foolishly Deceive our selves, in our Hope of Salvation, If we do not Know practically, our Knowledge will not render us Wise unto Salvation. It will but Aggravate our Damnation; and there can be no Wisdom in That. If we Rebel against our Light, it will not be saving wisdom. No, It will be a Folly that will Damn the Rebellious. We read, Mat. 7.26. 'Tis the part of, A Foolish man, who builds his House on the Sand, and Great is the Fall of it. It has been well enough sometimes thus expressed, One Apple of the Tree of Life, in practice, is of more account than Ten of the Tree of Knowledge. Thus Homer makes Phoenix, the Tutor of Achilles, [Greek or Hebrew]. It is the sweet Conjunction of the Knowledge and Practice, of the Holy Scriptures, that will gain our point. A Conjunction that infallibly foretells a Salvation to the uttermost.
But then, a Practical Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures, is also requisite, We know to little purpose, except we Do according to what we know. We read,
III. The Inference from hence is; That the EARLY KNOWLEDGE of the Holy Scriptures, is the way to be BETIMES made wise unto Salvation.
And now there is a Twofold APPLICATION to be made of this Observation. We will discourse on this Observation, by Applying it unto two sorts of persons.
I. It is the Interest of all TEACHERS to Begin Betimes, in Teaching of Children, the Early Knowledge of the HOLY SCRIPTURES, that so they may be WISE UNTO SALVATION. It is to You, O TEACHERS; unto You first, there must now come the Word of the Lord. It must come, with an Answer to Divers Enquiries.
We will, First, Enquire, and Declare, WHEN should we Begin to Teach our Children, the Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures?
BETIMES! BETIMES! Let the Children have the Early Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures. That Princely Preacher, the Prince of Anhalt, would say; The Holy Scriptures, what are they but the swaddling Clothes of the Holy Child Jesus? HE is to be found in every Chapter. I will then say, Let us Teach our Children the Holy Scriptures, as soon as we can after they come out of their Swaddling Clothes. This is the Direction of the Holy Scriptures, Deut. 6.7. Thou shall ⟨p. 8⟩teach them diligently unto thy Children. And Eph. 6.4. Your Children, Bring them up in the Nurture and Admonition of the Lord. But the HOLY SCRIPTURES have not Expressly said, How Early, we shall Begin to Teach our Children, the KNOWLEDGE of them. However, we may easily Determine it.
BETIMES! BETIMES! Let the Children have the Early Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures. That Princely Preacher, the Prince of Anbalt, would say; The Holy Scriptures, what are they but the swadling Clothes of the Holy Child Jesus? HE is to be found in every Chapter. I will then say, Let us Teach our Children the Holy Scriptures, as soon as we can after they come out of their Swadling Cloaths. This is the Direction of the Holy Scriptures, Deut. 6.7. Thou shall ⟨p. 8⟩teach them diligently unto thy Children. And Eph. 6.4. Your Children, Bring them up in the Nurture and Admonition of the Lord. But the HOLY SCRIPTURES have not Expresly said, How Early, we shall Begin to Teach our Children, the KNOWLEDGE of them. However, we may easily Determine it.
First; How Early do the Children begin to be capable of Knowing & Minding what is in the HOLY SCRIPTURES? Most certainly we should Begin as soon as we can. As soon as the Children can know, so soon should we Teach them, what they should know. So much there is to be Learnt, it is pity any Time should be Lost. No doubt, they Began so soon with Solomon; Else he would not have said, Prov. 4.3, 4. I was any Fathers Son, a Tender and only one in the sight of my Mother, Then he Taught me.
Again; How Early do the Children begin to Know Other Matters? Why should we not begin to Teach them something from the Holy Scriptures, that may […] them. [Laeca•it hic Infans,] as Early as we Teach them things Less Worthy, Less Useful! Can we Teach them, what they have to us? Methinks, we may then Teach them, what they owe to the LORD, who made both us and Them? Their Little Souls are precious Cabinets. Why should not the Best Things be First put into them? We are so called upon; Matth. 6.31. Seek first the Kingdom of God. Even so, with the First, Let them Learn the Things that Concern the Kingdom of God.
Again; How Early do the Children begin to Know Other Matters? Why should we not begin to Teach them something from the Holy Scriptures, that may 〈…〉 them. [Laeca•it hic Infans,] as Early as we Teach them things Less Worthy, Less Useful! Can we Teach them, what they have to us? Methinks, we may then Teach them, what they owe to the LORD, who made both us and Them? Their Little Souls are precious Cabinets. Why should not the Best Things be First put into them? We are so called upon; Matth. 6.31. Seek first the Kingdom of God. Even so, with the First, Let them Learn the Things that Concern the Kingdom of God.
Once more; How Early do the Children Begin to Know, and to Do, what may be Hurtful to them? 'Tis very Early, that they Learn the Things Condemned in the HOLY SCRIPTURES. Why should they not as EARLY Learn the HOLY SCRIPTURES, which do condemn those pernicious and provoking Evils? Why should they not know the Precepts of God, as EARLY as they know how to Break the Precepts? Why should they not be Taught, that they must Fear God, and Love Christ, and Hate Sin, as EARLY as they can Learn to Sin? Especially since this would be the way to preserve them from Sin. A Child no sooner begins to do any thing Rational, but Satan begins to show it, how to do something that is Criminal. Methinks; ⟨p. 9⟩I see the Image of it; Rev. 12.4. The Dragon stood to devour the Child as soon as it was born, Then say I; It becomes us to be Aforehand with the Dragon, if it be possible: To stand Ready with the Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures, to rescue the Children from the Venomous Designs of the Dragon upon them.
There is a plausible Objection, against this Early Essay, to give our Children the Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures.
Will not this be to make the Children, Take the Name of the Lord in vain? Would it not be more Discretion, to stay till the Children are themselves come to some Years of Discretion?
It is Easily Answered. Will you never Teach the Children, till you see them have the Grace, that will keep them from Taking the Name of the Lord in vain? Rather Teach them, to Keep them from it. And let our Discretion Teach us to manage the matter wisely, in Teaching our Children. Teach them with all possible Gravity; And Teach them to be Gra•e, in every thing, that relates to God, and their Souls. Consider also the Capacity of the Children: Teach them, what shall be Good for Them; And forbear the Rest, until they shall be more Able to Bear it:
We will, Secondly, Enquire, and Declare, WHAT is that Knowledge of the Holy Scriptures, which we are to Teach our Children?
