This section affirms that the Scriptures are in such a sense 'perspicuous that all that is necessary for man to know, in order to his salvation or for his practical guidance in duty, may be learned therefrom, and that they are designed for the personal use and are adapted to the instruction of the unlearned as well as the learned.

Protestants admit that many of the truths revealed in the Scriptures in their own nature transcend human understanding, and that many prophecies remain intentionally obscure until explained by their fulfilment in the developments of history. Nevertheless, Protestants affirm and Romanists deny {a) that every essential article of faith and rule of practice may be clearly learned from Scripture; and (6) that private and unlearned Christians may be safely allowed to interpret Scripture for themselves. On the other hand, it is true that, with the advance of historical and critical knowledge, and by means of controversies, the Church as a community has made progress in the accurate interpretation of Scripture and in the full comprehension of the entire system of truth revealed therein.

That the Protestant doctrine on this subject is true, is proved (a) from the fact that all Christians promiscuously are commanded to search the Scriptures. 2 Tim. iii. 15-17 ; Acts xvii. 11 ; John v. 39.

(6.) From the fact that the Scriptures are addressed either to all men or to the whole body of believers. Deut. vi. 4-9 ; Luke i. 3 ; Eom. i. 7 ; 1 Cor. i. 2 ; 2 Cor. i. 1. And the salutations of all the Epistles except tkose to Timothy and Titus.

(c.) The Scriptures are affirmed to be perspicuous.

Ps.cxix. 105, 130;2Cor. iii. 14; 2 Pet. i. 18,19; 2 Tim. iii. 15-17.

[d.) The Scriptures address men as a divine law to be obeyed and as a guide to salvation. If for all practical purposes they are not perspicuous they must mislead, and so falsify their pretensions.

(e.) Experience has uniformly proved the truth of the Protestant doctrine. Those churches which have most faithfully disseminated the Scriptures in the vernacular among the mass of the people have conformed most entirely to the plain and certain sense of their teaching in faith and practice ; while those churches which have locked them up in the hands of a priesthood have to the greatest degree departed from them both in letter and spirit.

These sections relate to the perfection and perspicuity of the Scriptures.

1, In regard to the ])erfection, or sufficiency, of the Scriptures, it is acknowledged that there are some circumstances concerning the worship of God, and government of the Church, in regard to which no express injunctions are given in Scripture, and which are to be ordered by the light of nature and Christian prudence, according to the general rules of the Word. The Apostolic rule in such cases is, — " Let all things be done decently and in order," — 1 Cor. xiv. 40 ; but this general iide does not authorise the introduction into the Church of rites and ceremonies of human invention, in order to set oft' the worship of God. This cannot be justified by any plea of expediency, with a view of rendering the services of the Church more attractive, and conciliating those that are withawt. " And it may be here remarked, that it was one of the first and greatest mistakes into which the Church fell, after insjnration ceased, to make too free a use of this doctrine of expediency. The abuses which have crept in under this specious disguise were not foreseen. The Fathers saw no harm in an indiff'erent ceremony, to which, perhaps, their new converts were attached from long custom. By adopting things of this kind, the Church, which was at first simple, and unencumbered with rites, became strangely metamorphosed ; and in place of her simple robe of white, assumed a gorgeous dress, tricked oft' with gaudy ornaments and various colours. And this practice of inventing new ceremonies went on increasing, until, in process of time, the burdensome vitual of the Levitical law was not comparable to the liturgy

16 CONFESSION OP FAITH. [^CHAP. I.

of the Christian Church. Who that now attends a Romish chapel on some ' high day,' would suppose that the service performed was connected with the religion of the New Testament ?" *

In maintaining the perfection of the Scriptures, we do not insist that every article of religion is contained in Scripture in so many words ; but we hold that conclusions fairly deduced from the declarations of the "Word of God are as truly parts of divine revelation as if they were expressly taught in the Sacred Volume. That good and necessaiy consequences deduced from Scripture are to be received as part of the rule of our faith and practice, is evident from the example of our Saviour in proving the doctrine of the resurrection against the Sadducees, — Matt. xxii. 31, 32 ; and from the example of Paul, who proved that Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ, by reasoning with the Jews out of the Old Testament Scriptures. — Acts xvii. 2, 3. " All Scripture " is declared to be " profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, foi instruction in righteousness ; " but all these ends cannot bft obtained, unless by the deduction of consequences. Legitimate consequences, indeed, only bring out the full meaning of the words of Scripture ; and as we are endued with the faculty of reason, and commanded to search the Scriptures, it was manifestly intended that we should draw conclusions from what is therein set down in express words.

By the jjerfection of Scripture, then, we mean, that the Scripture, including necessary consequences as well as the express words, contains a complete revelation of the will of God, concerning all things necessary for his own glory, man's salvation, faith, and life. The Scripture is represented as 2?e7'fect, fitted to answer every necessary end, — Ps. xix. 8, 9 ; it is sufficient to make " the man of God perfect," and able to make private Christians " wise unto salvation, through faith which is in Christ Jesus." — 2 Tim. iii. 15-17. So complete is the Scripture, that its Author has peremptorily prohibited either to add to, or to diminish ought from it. — Deut. iv. 2 ; Rev. xxii. 18, 19.

The perfection of the Scriptures is to be maintained in opposition to those enthusiasts who pretend to new revelations of the Spirit, and in opposition to the Church of Rome, which " receives traditions with the same veneration that they do the Scriptures." No new revelations are to be added to the oracles of God, for Christ and his apostles have foretold the rise of false prophets, and wai'ned us not to g'ive heed to their pretended revelations. — IMatt. xxiv. 11,

* Alexander on the Canon of the Scriptures.

24. The Apostle Paul denounces a curse upon all who preach any other gospel than that which is contained in the Scriptures.— Gal. i. 8, 9. The uncertainty of private revelations furnishes another argument against them. Such is the deceitfulness of the heart, that men are apt to mistake their own fancies and imaginations for revelations of the Spirit, and such is the subtlety of Satan, that he sometimes transforms himself into an angel of light. Private revelations, therefore, must be very uncertain to ourselves, and much more so to others. And it may be observed, that none plead for the authority of private revelations but such as, by the contrariety of their oj^inions and practices to the Scriptures, manifest themselves to be led by a spirit of delusion.

Neither are the traditions of men to be added to the Word of God. Traditions have been a fertile source of corruption in religion, both among Jews and Christians. The Jews pretended that besides what Moses committed to wiiting, he received from God a variety of revelations, which he communicated verbally to Aaron, and w^hich w^ere orally transmitted from generation to generation. These traditions multiplied exceedingly, especially after the Sjiirit of prophecy was withdrawn from the Church ; and when Christ appeared on earth, he found the Jews so far degenerated, that their religion consisted almost entirely in the observation of such traditions. Plence we find him declaring, " Ye have made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition." " In vain they do w^orship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." — INIatt. xv. 6, 9. In the same way have a multitude of the corruptions in the doctrine and worship of the Romish Church sprung iip. They, after the example of the Jews, pretend that Christ and his apostles delivered many things which are not found in the Scriptures, and which have come down to us by tradition. But how can it be shown that those articles of religion, or institutions of worship, which they say have come down by tradition, were really received from the mouth of Christ, or from the teaching of his apostles ? Or, supj^osing that they were derived from this source, how can it be ascertained that they have been conveyed down to us without alteration or corruption ? The fact is, many of these traditions, which are called ajjostolical, can be traced to their commencement, at a period much later than that of the apostles. To admit unwritten traditions would open a door for all the innovations and corruptions which the fancies of men may devise, and would ma;ke void the law of God. But as our Lord strongly conB

18 CONFESSION OF FAITH. [[cHAP. I.

demned the Jewish tradilions, so we justly reject the mass of traditions received by the Romish Church.

2. The Scriptures are clear and perspicuous in all things necessary to salvation. We allow that there are doctrines revealed in the Scriptures which surpass the comprehension of created beings, such as, the doctrine of the Trinity, the eternal generation and the incarnation of the Son of God, These are mysteries which we cannot comprehend, but the doctrines themselves are plainly taught in the Scriptures, and we must receive them on the divine testimony. We also admit that in the Scriptures there are some things obscure and " hai'd to be understood." But this obscurity is chiefly in history and prophecies, which do not so nearly concern our salvation. As in nature everything necessary for the support of life occurs almost everywhere, and may be found on the most easy search, while other things less necessary, such as its gems and gold, lie concealed in certain places, and can only be discovered and obtained by great exertions and unwearied industry ; so there are things in the Scriptures, ignorance of which will not endanger the salvation of the soul, that are abstruse and difficult to be imderstood, even by those who possess acute minds and great learning. But we maintain, that all those things which are necessary to be known, believed, and observed, for salvation, are so clearly revealed in some place of Scripture or other, that every serious inquirer, in the due use of ordinary means, may iindei'stand them. This may be inferred from the fact that their author is God. If he intended them to be a rule of faith and life to men, surely he has adapted them to the understandings of men. There are numerous injunctions to read and search the Scriptures, but these necessarily imply that they are perspicuous and intelligible. Christians are also commended for searching the Scriptures, and trying by the written Word the doctrines delivered to them. — Acts xvii. II. If the Scriptures were unintelligible to common Christians, and the interpretation of the Church were necessary to discover their meaning, then such Christians would have no foundation. upon which a divine faith could rest. Their faith must be ultimately resolved into the testimony of men; but human testimony, being fallible, cannot be the ground of an infallible persuasion.

Notwithstanding the subjective perspicuity of the Scriptures, we acknowledge the imvard illumination of the Spirit of God to be necessary for the saving understanding of such things as are revealed in them. This arises from the blindness and perversity of the human understanding, as now corrupted

I

and depraved. — 1 Cor. ii. 14. If the enlightening influences of the Holy Spirit were unnecessary, then the greatest ade})ts in human literature would he best acquainted with the Scriptures ; this, however, is not the case. — INIatt. xi. 25. In the promises of God, and in the prayers of the saints, the special illumination of the Spirit is i-epresented as necessa.ry to enable us savingly to understand the things of God, — John xiv. 26 ; Ps. cxix. 18, &c.