Truth, Faithfulness, and of all the Fulness of the Godhead, wherewith he is filled, can be contained and wrapped up in the narrow and scant Bounds of Human Learning? How much truer Doctrine had it been to have taught, that all true Divinity is contained in God and his Word, and that we can know nothing of God aright, but by his Word, which holy Men have spoken by the Spirit, and Believers do receive by Faith; and out of this Word, all the Learning in the World doth not contain in it felf, neither can it reveal to us aright, the leaft thing of God, or of his Mind and Will.

But I conceive he might speak thus, That all Divinity is wrapped up in Human Learning, to deter the common People from the Study and Enquiry after it, and to cause them ftill to expect all Divinity from the Clergy, who by their Education have attained to that Human Learning which the plain People are deftitute of: For it is the Old and New Defign of Antichrift, to make the People depend on the Clergy for all Divinity, though the People have the Scriptures as near them, and the Grace of God ufually nearer tó them, than they; feeing God refifts the Proud, and gives Grace to the Humble.

Again, If all Divinity be fwadled in Human Learning, then muft it fadly follow, that all who want Human Learning, muft needs alfo want Divinity; and then how fhall poor plain People, who live in lawful Callings, and have not the Leifure to attain Human Learning, how fhall they do to be faved? Or what Help must they have to teach them Divinity, who have not Opportunity to gain Human Learning?

And yet farther, If all Divinity be fwadled in Human Learning, then Chrift and his Apostles had no true Divinity; for they had no Human Learning

PP

4.Error.

Answer.

Preacher

Learning to fwadle it in, nor would have any; fhall we fay now, according to Mr. Simpson's Do&trine, that they had no Divinity? I do with all Boldness affirm, that this Doctrine is contrary to the Chriftian Faith.

4. ERROR.

That Paul was brought up at the Feet of Gamaliel, and God took him fo fitted, (to wit, with Human Learning) and made him an able Instrument in kis Church.

Answer.

Paul made a Not fo, but God took Paul, not a good Scholar, through the and fo made him an able Preacher; but he took Grace of him as a Blafphemer and Perfecutor, and as a God, and cruel and enraged Enemy against Chrift and his not through Human Truth, and People, and magnified the Riches of Learning his Mercy in converting fuch an one: And Paul

having much forgiven him, loved much; and through his great Love, was the fitter to preach the Gospel, according to that of Chrift to Peter; Peter, doft thou Love me? Feed my Sheep. Yea, Paul himself afcribes his painful and profitable Preaching, not to his Learning and Education under Gamaliel (which alfo was, or ought to have been, only in the Law and Prophets, as hath been proved) but to the free Grace of God bestowed on him, faying, Ilaboured more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the Grace of God in me: So that Paul became fo excellent a Preacher, not by his fitting through Human Learning, but through the Grace of God.

And here I fhall mind Mr. Simpfox of a pallage which I have read in Chryfoftome, that comes home to this matter in hand; it is in his third Homily on the first Epistle to the Corinthians, where he faith, That God had no need, at the beginning of the Gofpel, of Learned men, and Sophifters to preach the Gospel, and to convince the World with Syllo

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gifms, but did only use the word of Faith, in the
mouths of plain Handicrafts men, and Artificers:
Wherefore (faith he) when the Greeks fhall accufe
the Difciples of Chrift, as ignorant of Letters, and
Unlearned, let Us our felves who are Chriftians, ac
cufe them more. Neither let any one fay, that Paul
was Wife and Learned, but let us say, Their Men were
Wife and Learned, but Ours were Rude and Ig-
norant; For in thus doing (according to the Truth)
we shall have the Greater Advantage against them. For
if Paul were Unlearned, and yet overcame Learned
Plato, his Victory was the Greater, and the Grace of
God the more Glorious. Now this
1 fay, (faith he) because the other
day, I heard a certain Chriftian
difcourfing ridiculoufly with a Greek,
each of them in their Difcourfe pre
judicing their own Caufer For the
Greek fpake that which the Chri-
ftian boul have faid; and the Chri-
ftian Spake that which the Greek
Should have faid. For the Question alo, &c.
between them being touching Paul and Plato, the
Greek endeavoured to prove that Paul was Rude and
Unlearned, but the Chriftian through his Simplicity,
did endeavour to prove, that Paul was more Learned
and Eloquent than Plato. And fo, the Greek should
obtain the Victory, if the Chriftians Reasons should
prevail. For if Paul were more Learned than Plato,
then might men object, That he overcame not the
World through Grace, but through Eloquence."
Wherefore that which the Chriftian pake, made for
the Greek, and that which the Greek Spake, made for
the Chriftian. Wherefore (be faith) when the Greeks
fhall fay the Apostles were Rude and Unlearned,
Poor, Mean, Simple, Obfcure Perfons, let us acknow
Ledge it as the Truth; For this is not their Reproach,
but their Glory; that being Such, they yet overcame
Ppå

the

Humane

Learning
a Man to
the Miniftry
of the Go

doth not fit

Spel.

Teftimonies.

the Learned Men,the Wife Men,the Philofophers, the Rhetoricians, the Orators, the Princes, and all the World,as if they had not been Men. For when any thing is done above the State and power of Nature, this doth exceedingly manifeft and magnifie the Grace of God.

And fo it appears, that Chryfoftome was of ano ther mind in this matter touching Paul, than Mr. Simpfon; and that Paul was of another mind touching Himself.

Now feeing Mr. Simpson doth here infinuate that Human Learning fits a man to the miniftry of the Gofpel; and feeing this also is the Opinion of all the Carnal and Unbelieving People, I do defire them to confider, what fome Godly men have fpoken clearly from the word of God in this mat

ter.

Chryfoftome Chryfoftome (who knew the mystery of the Gofpel more clearly than any of the Ancient Writers) in his Comment on the first Epistle to the Corinthians, doth wholly exclude Human Learning from contributing any thing, either to the Speaking or receiving the Gofpel. For (faith he) to believe in Him that was Crucified and Buried, and so be fully perfuaded that be Rofe again, and fus at the Right Hand of God, and hath all Power in Heaven and Earth given to Him; and that He is made of God to the whole Church, Wisdom, righteousness, SanEtification and Redemption; this Doctrine ftands not in need of Human Wisdom and Reafonings, but of Faith Kai only, and that both in them that spake it, and in them Απόςολοι that receive it. For the Apoftles did not proceed in copia this matter in outward Wisdom, but in Faith, and so FLT- became more Wife and Excellent than the Worldly Wife, HASOV, and so much the more, as it is a greater Matter to rese, yeceive the things of God by Faith, than to be perfwaded govaos into them by the force of Argument.

ἀλλὰ πί

લ,

σοφῶν σοφώτεροι, καὶ ὑψηλότεροι, καὶ τοσύτῳ μᾶλλον, ὅσῳ τὸ λογισμός κινῶν, τὸ πίσει τὰ τὸ θεῖ δέχεται μάζον. Chryfoft. in 3 Epift. ad Corinth. Hom. 4.

He

He adds alfo, That to the receiving the Doctrine of the Gospel, neither is the Wife man profited any thing by his Wifdom, neither is the Plain man bindred any thing by his Ignorance; Tea if I may speak a wonder-eds 28 78 ful thing (faith he) Ignorance is more fit and ready a to receive the Gospel, than Wisdom. And a Shep-nguyκήρυγ herd and Plowman will fooner receive the Gofpel, a Uand fubmit to it, than a Scholar who lives in the xv, Te ftrength of Human Wisdom and Reafon.

αγγελι

· σοφός

ὠφελῶται τι παρὰ ἢ σοφίας, ἔτε ὁ ἰδιώτης ἐβλάβη τι σας αμαθείας, &c Idem. ibid.

He farther faith there, that where the Wifdom of % via 1 God is, (as it is in the Gospel) there is no need of Otñ‚énére mans Wisdom, as where the Sun is, there is no xivneed of a Candle. θρωπίνης.

Chryfoft.

And he concludes there this matter thus, That the Preaching of the Gofpel is a Heavenly Thing, and that Humane Wisdom and Learning cannot help herein, but rather hinder, And that therefore when Chrift fent forth the firft Teachers of the Gospel, he took not Wife and Learned Philofophers, that the Crofs of Chrift might not be made void, and that the Faith of Chriftians fhould not ftand in the wisdom of man, but in the power of God; but he chofe plain Fishermen, Tent-makers, Publicans, Obfcure, Simple, Poor, Contemptible, Ignorant and Unlearned men; and thefe overcame Kings, Princes, People, Nations, Greeks, Philo- Av ir copia Tophers, Orators, Sophifters; they overcame the ancient Manners, Customs, and the very Religion ivy tỏ of the World; alfo their Laws, Judgments, divers xúgugua forts of Punishments, and innumerable kinds of ye Deaths; and by all this (faith be) it was manifeft, that their Preaching, was not in Human Wif. xel.

dom, but in the Grace of God.

And thus doth Chryfoftome affirm,and prove, that Humane Learning doth not fit Men to the Miniftry of the Gospel, but is rather 4 Hindrance thereunto,

PP3

and

λον ὅτι ἐκ