1. A Direction to the Prophet, ver. 2,3. 2. A Declaration of his holy will in the general administration of Justice.

1. Concerning the Direction given to the Prophet.

And the Lord answered me and faid] For the manner how God maintained intelligence with his holy Prophets, we are not wery particularly informed; we find inspiration, and revelation, and vision mentioned; he that made the light that is in us, and gave us our understanding can best make his ways known to his holy ones; and as I do not think that Habakkuks conteftation with God was verbal and vocal, but rather a wrastling and striving of his spirit and inward man: neither do I think this answer of God was audidle, presented to the eare, but by forfe fecret divine illumination suggested.

And where he faith, The Lord answered and said.. These phrases do expresse so plain an answer, as is made in conference between man and man.

Write the vision] That is, wet down in writing my answer. It is our manner for the better preservation of such things as we would not forget, to set them down in writing.

But because this request of the Prophets doth concerne others that he may inform them, God addeth, Make it plain upon Tables that he may run that readeth it.

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That is, write my answer in a Table in great Characters, that though a man be in haste and run by, yet he may read as he run neth, shewing that he was defirous to fatisfie all fuch as the Prophet fpake of before, who should argue against him.

As our manner is to fix publike Proclamations and Edicts on wals, or on Posts in ways of common passage, that any Paffenger may take notice thereof feeing it concerneth every one: to that the Lord a'ludeth in this place, giving the Prophet great charge for the declaration of his holy will in this great matter; to to expreffe it, that every one of his People may receive information thereof, Vult aperia esse verba, & apertè fcribi, faith St. Hierom.

For the vision is yet for an appointedtime]

The time is not yet fulfilled for the execution of the Will of God; but it is in the holy wifedome and purpose of God determined when it shall be fulfilled.

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At the end it shall/peak and not lie] That is, in the time prefixed by Almighty God it shall take effect, and the counsel and de cree of God shall be executed: For God that hath promised can

not lie.

The answer of God is full as it after will appear, and doth nor only clear the Iuftice of God in the present cause of the oppreffed Iewsagainst the Chaldæans, but it maketh a further and more general overture of Gods decree, against all unrighteousnesse and ungodlinesse of men, so that this Prophecy shall not only comfort that Church and those times, but it is directed to the perpetual use of the Church in all the ages thereof. He therefore addeth, Though it tarry wait for it, do not think by any importunity to draw down the judgements of God upon the ungodly, or to haften the deliverance of the Chureh, God doth all things temporefuo in his time, and the servants of God must carry his lea

fure.

Because it will surely come it will not tarry] He giveth affurance of the complement of his Will in the proper and prestitute season thereof, which nothing shall then hinder.

The parts of this text, containing Gods direction given to his holy Prophet, are three.

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1. The care that God takes for the publishing of his Wil
to the Church, verf. 2.

2. The affurance that he gives of the performance thereof
in the time by him appointed;

3. The patient expectation which he commands for the
performance thereof.

1. The law that he takes for publishing it.

The Prophet must not only hear God speak, the Seer must not only behold the vision, but he must write the same: litera fcripta manet, the written letter abideth.

I will not ftand to search how ancient writing is, wherein some have loft time and labour.

I know that many do make God the first immediate Author of it, and do affirm that the first Scripture that ever was, was Gods writing of the law in two Tables, Exod. 32.

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But because I find in Exod. 24 that Mofes wrote all the word Use 4. of the Lord, and Josephus doth report a tradition of the He

Ex.17. 14.

Job.19 23

Verf. 24.

brews for writing and graving before the flood; I hold it pro bable that both Scripture and Sculpture are as ancient as the old world.

1. Cor, 4.

6.

I will not question Jofephus his Record of the two pillars, ereAed before the flood, engraven for the use of pofterity, with some memorable things to continue in succeeding ages, whereof ane remained in Syria in his own time.

It is frequent in Scripture to expresse a perpetuity of record by writing. In the case of Amalek,

Write this for a memorial in a book.

Iob. O that my words were now written, that they were printed in a book, Graven with an iron pen, in lead and in the ink for ever!

Isay the Prophet. I heard a voice from heaven, saying to me write, all flesh is graffe.

Ioh. Audivi vocem dicentem, Beati mortui. I heard a voice from heaven saying, Blessed are the dead.

Beloved thus have we the light that shineth upon the Church, and guideth our feet in the ways of peace by writing; for all Scripture is given by inspiration: holy men wrote as they were inspired.

It was given to them by inspiration to know the will of God, they impart it to the Church of God by writing, and that boundeth and limiteth us, τὸ μὴ ὑπερ, τὸ γέγραπται φρονεῖν.

Thus hath God revealed himself to his Church, both fufficiently, that we need no more knowledge for eternal life, then what is contained inScripture, and so clearly that the word giveth understanding to the simple.

And as this word from the immediate mouth of God, doth warrant this particular prophecy, so doth the Apostle say of all the body of Canonical Scripture, that all Scripture is given by inspiration: and Gods care is double.

St. That it be written to continue.
22. That it be written plain to be read.

Witten 1. It must be written that it may remain. For in the old world, because of the long life of the fathers, the oracles of God were committed to them, without any mention of writing, because they were both wife and faithful in the custody and tranfmiffion

of

of them; For Adam himself living nine hundred and thirty years to teach this children, had under his teaching

Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalaleel, lared, Henoch, Methusa lab, and Lamech the fatherof Noab.

And Noah lived with Abraham 57 years.

But after the flood when the Church in the posterity of Iacob encreased, and no doubt had many corruptions by dwelling in Ægypt; then was Mofes appointed both to be the deliverer of the People of Ifrael from Ægypt, and to be the Penman of God, to write those things which God would have to remain in the Church for all iucceeding times, and after him successively holy men wrote as they were inspired.

And a better Argument we cannot give for the danger of unwritten traditions, which the Church of Rome doth so much commend even above Scripture, then this.

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God saw that men had corrupted their ways, and he found the imaginations of mens hearts only evil continually, and that the Church was a very few: therefore he stirred up Noah to be a Preacher of righteousnesse in whom the light of truth was prelerved, he destroyed the old finful world, and by Noahand Sem; he began tew Church to the restored world...

Yet after Noahs death the worship of strange gods were brought in; fochat to heal this grief, and to prevent the danger... of traditions, and caused the Word to be written by holy men, for the perpetual we of his Church, whose books were faithfully preferved in all ays thereof.

Then came the Son of God, and he left his fpirit in the Church, to lead the Church into all truth, by which spirit the New Testament was endited and written.

So that now all things necefary to salvation are so clearly revealed, that traditions of men have no necessary use in the Church, in the substance of true Religion: for that which is written is fufficient.

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The Church of Rome denieth the sufficiency of Scripture. Ma ny of their great learned men write both bafely and blafphemoufly thereof.

But they are not agreed upon the point: for

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Scotus, Gerson, Oecam. Cameracenfis, Waldenfis, Vincentius

Doct.

Reaf.1.

Lerinenfis, do all confeffe what we teach of the sufficiency of
Scripture, as the learned Deane of Glocefter, Dr. Field l. 3. de
Ecalef, c. 7. hath fairly cited them.

And Dr. White in his way of the Church, addeth Tho. Aquinas, Antoninum Arch-bishop of Florence, Durandus Alliaco a Cardinal, Conradus Clingius.

Perefins Divinity Reader at Barcilena in Spain, and Cardi nal Bellarmine: Of whom Poffevinus writeth, that he is one of the two that have won the Garland. De verbo Dei l. 1. 6. 2.

Sacra Scriptura regulæ credendi certiffima & tutissima est: Per corporales literas quas cerneremus & legeremus, erudire nos

voluit Deus.

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Writing against Swenck field and the Libertines; this is a legal witneffe. Pro Orthodoxo heretici testimonium valeat.

I know to whom I speak, and therefore I forbear the Polemi cal bands of arguments to and fro upon this question, which in print and in English is so fully and learnedly debated.

Our leffon is, seeing Gods care of his Church, for the instruAion thereof is here exprest, in commanding his revealed will to be written, that

God would have his Church to be taught his ways in all the ages thereof.

1. Becaufe the ways of God, and the saving tealth of God cannot be parted; none can have the saving heata of God without the knowledge of his ways, no ignorant dan can be saved: it is said of Chrift,

Ifa. 53. 11. By his knowledge sball my righteous serrant justifie many, per fcientiam, qua fcitur.

Reaf. 2.

Therefore Davids Prayer is, That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among all nations. 2. Because the promise of God doth run in semine, in the feed; I will be thy God, and the God of thy feed. Our children are the Lords inheritance: his care extendeth so farre.

Deut. 5.33 That yee may live, and that it may be well with you, and that

you may prolong your days. But that is not all.

Verf. 29. That it may be well with them and their children for ever.

Reaf. 3.

3. For his own fake, that his Wisdome, Power and Iuftice may beknown to men, that they may be able to plead the caufe of

God