Joh.15.26.

Joh.10.30. ther are one, Joh.10.30. One in power, and therefore one in nature. He speaks not of the fpirit,becauseChrift was not yet glorified,nor was the Spirit yet manifefted by that eminent and glorious miffion and effufion which was to follow after the Afcenfion of our bleffed Lord. But he did foretell that the third witneffe was to be fent from the Father by the Son, Joh. 15. 26. But when the comforter is come, whom I will fend unto you from the Father, even the spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall teftifie of me. I might adde to thefe teftimonies all other places of Scripture, wherin all the three witnefles are named together,and then produce all the places which have been formerly cited in this booke to prove the coeffential Trin-unity of those heavenly witneffes.

5. The copulative [And] in the begin1Joh. 5. 8. ning of the verle, 17oh. 5. 8. doth very fitly connect the whole feventh verfe with the eighth, as they are printed in our ordinary translation.

"

6. Hierome doth affure us that the words in question were expanged by the Arrians, because thefe few words do hold forth an undeniable proofe of the divine and Coeffentiall Trin-unity of thefe heavenly witneffes. And divers other learned and judicious men conceive that these words were blotted out in the time of Canftanti

us and Valens the Emperours who were fworn enemies of the bleffed Trinity, and profeffed Patrons of Arrianifme.

7..

The Hereticks did blot out those words, Iob.4,24. God is a fpirit, as Ambrofe VideAm. affures us and therefore this practise of brof.lib. 3. de Spiritu expunging fuch words in the Scripture as Sando. did refute their errours was too common cap. II. amongst the Hereticks of old, as we might prove by witneffes enough,if that were our bufinefle.

Jurati

veritatis hoftes lu

cem hanc

non tulerunt ideoque eraferunt. Vide Heinfium in 1 Joh,5.7

8. These words, 1Iob.5.7. are to be found in copies of great antiquity and best credit.

9. This Text is cited by the Ancient __Athanas. Fathers, by Athanafius in his difpute with Tom. 1. Arrius at the counfell of Nice, and Arrius pag. 91,92 93. Cypri. never denyed it for to be Scripture, which an lib. de certainly he would have done, if there had Unitate been any doubt made of it in the Primitive Ecclefiæ times.

Paxillus

de Mono

It is cited by Cyprian alfo in his book de machia. Unitate Ecclefia. Paxillus in his booke Calovius de Monomachia proves by an induction of lib. de Fide the learned Doctors of the Church both Patrum before and fince Athanafius, that the Do- cilium Ni

ante Con

cenum.

See Mr. Eftwicks learned difcourfe of the Godhead of the boly Ghoft. Dr.Alting bis Vindication of this Text in bis confutation of theRacovianCatechifm.

Arine oftheCoeffentialTrin-Unity of these heavenly witneffes was generally received by all that were esteemed Orthodox and pious in the Church of Chrift. Calovius alfo in his Fides Patrum ante Concilium Ni cenum, gives in a Catalogue for the fatiffaction of all that defire refolution in this weighty point.

10. These three heavenly witnesses are one in Power,nature and Will; all three bear witneffe to the fame truth, and their teftimony is divine, 1 Joh.5. 9. And the truth which they bear witneffe to is a fundamentall truth,a faving truth,that we may beleeve on the Sonne of God and have eternall life. 1Joh.5.11, 12, 13. And if the authority of any one of these three heavenly witnesses be called into question, all may be queftioned upon the fame grounds, because their teftimony is of equall authority; their teftimony is perfonall and divine; and if the teftimony and authority of thefe witneffes were not divine, our faith which is built upon their testimony and authority, would not be a divine Faith, Quale eft teftimonium, talis eft fides. All three heavenly witneffes joyne with one consent and will in propounding this fundamentall truth, and therefore if we do not beleeve and embrace it, we give the lye to all the three witnesses in heaven, 1Joh. 5.10. And if we do beleeve that Jefus is the naturall Son of God, in

and

and by whom all beleevers have eternall life, then we must acknowledge that Jefus Christ is one God with his Father,the true God and eternall life, 1Joh.5. 20- Christ is God Attributivè, Joh. 1. 1. Subjectivè, Act 20.28. 1 Tim. 3. 16. This one propofition, That Jefus Christ is the naturall and proper Son of God,is thatFundamental Confeffion of Faith upon which the Christian Church is built, Mat. 16. 16, 17, 18. Thou art Chrift the Son of the living God: This is the Rock upon whichChrift hath so firmly built his Church, that the gates of Hell shal never prevail against it, or this fundamen¬ tall truth. We are all built upon Chrift through the Spirit for an habitation of God Eph.2.20,21,22.Father, Son,&Holy Ghost all three joyn in laying this foundation,and all three are one and the felf-fame great God, who is the only true God bleffed for ever, as hath been fully proved already in this book,and therfore I may be the briefer in the difcuffion of this weighty point.

The Form of Baptifm doth contain in it a fhort Creed, or Rule of Faith, Mat 28. 19. And when the ancient Fathers speak fuch high things of the Creed,they understand it of this fhort Creed which is part of Canonicall Scripture, and not of that form which is commonly called the Apofiles Creed. In like manner when they expound Eph.4.5. One Lord, one Faith, one Baptifm, they fay, there

2.

there is one Faith and one Baptifm, becaufe the fum of our Faith is contained in the forme of Baptifm.

When Epiphanius hath reckoned up all the Herefies in his Anaceph. he opposes this one Scripture, Mat. 28. 19. to them all, to fhew that he looked upon the Doctrine Ireneus of the Trinity as a Breviary or at leaft fib. 1. cap. prime fundamentall of the ChriftianFaith, Tertullian and Eufebius Pamphilus doth the like. I de Præ- might produce many pertinent places out fcript. c. of Irenaus,Tertullian, Athanafius, Bafil,Na14.& 20. zianzene, Auguftin & others to make good Athanaf this useful obfervation, That the prime FunEpift. ad ubique damentall of the Chriftian Faith is contained Orthodox in the Form of Baptism, and founded on Mar. & Orat.C. 28. 19. It were eafie to fhew upon what G. Sab. & occafion other * Articles were added to the rian. publique confeffions of Faith in the most Bafilius renowned Churches in feverall ages. And vel Au- it is as eafie to prove that the Doctrine of thor libri the CoeffentialTrin-unity was for the matde Spuitu San&o lib ter and fubftance, if not in expresse terms, in

contra Ar

1. cap. 2.

Greg Nyffen.de Refur. Orat.2. Epiphanius Anacephal. Eufib. Pamphilus Epift. ad Paleflin. Augustin, contra Donatift, lib.6.cap. 25, & Sermone in Symbolum. Hanc fidei nor. mam Chriftus afcenfurus reliquit. Ait enim euntes baptizate &c.

Danaften. de fide Orthod. lib.1.cap. 8. van. de Spiritu Sancto, 2.

Didymus Alexander.

Concil. Ancy“

*See Dr.Ufher bis Sermon of the Vaity of the Faith.

terminis