and by the authority of God, with a-Thus saith the Lord, and, Hear the word of the Lord. Then as to the other class of writings in the Old Testament, which are chiefly or only of a moral nature; they were either composed by men who are known to have had some extraordinary intercourse with heaven, or at least they were always received by the Jewish church, as drawn up under a divine influence; and they appear to be quoted under that character by Christ and his apostles, in like manner as they quote the other scriptures. David does not only say of himself, The Spirit of the Lord spake by me, and his word was in my tongue; but Christ also, the Son of David, plainly intimates the same thing; How then doth David in spirit call him Lord? And having occasion to quote to the Jews a passage from the Psalms, he tells them, that it was written in their law. And when, after his resurrection, he expounded to his disciples in all the scriptures, the things concerning himself, he tells them in conclusion, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the Law of Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the Psalms concerning him. St. Peter says expressly, that David was a prophet ; and in a psalm of imprecation, which has often been the mark of profane reproach, he declares the Holy Ghost spake by the mouth of David". St. Paul has many allegations from the Psalms, too numerous to be repeated; argues from them in the same manner as he does from the scriptures of the prophets, and lays an equal C 2 Sam. xxiii. 2. d Matt. xxii. 43. 8 Acts ii. 30. e John xv. 25. h Acts i. 16, 20. stress upon their authority i. St. Paul, in more places than one, alleges the Book of Proverbs, and St. James in one place seems plainly to ascribe what is said there to God himselfk. These apostles likewise bear testimony to the book of Job; and the last recommends it, together with the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. But there is the less occasion to be solicitous about every particular book in the Old Testament, since St. Paul has confirmed the authority of them all, not only in the words of the text, but also where he tells us, that whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope". Every one in St. Paul's time understood by the scriptures a system of writings that claimed to come from God. And would he have countenanced this claim by such a passage as this, unless he had thought that it was justly founded; and that these scriptures, through patience and comfort of which iSee the following passages; viz. Rom. iii. 4, 10, &c. iv. 6, 7, 8. viii. 36. x. 18. xi. 9, 10. xv. 3, 9, 11. 1 Cor. iii. 20. xv. 25, 17. 2 Cor. ix. 9. Ephes. iv. 8. Heb. i. 5. to the end of the chapter. Heb. ii. 6, 7, 8, 12, 13. iii. 7, 8, 9, &c. iv. 3, 5, 7. v. 5, 6. vii. 17, 21. x. 5, 6, &c. xiii. 6. It seems clear from these passages, that St. Paul did not consider the Psalms of David as a "book of songs," that had "nothing of prophetic in them." See Five Letters concerning Inspiration, &c. p. 103. * The author of the Five Letters says, that "neither Christ nor "his apostles ever cite the works of Solomon or the book of Job; except that St. James praises the patience of Job," &c. p. 105. But see Calamy on Inspiration, p. 106. 11 Cor. iii. 19. James v. 10, 1I. VOL. I. HORBERY. L m Rom. xv. 4. we might have hope, did really come from the God of patience and consolation"? As to the inspiration of St. Paul himself, no one, that calls himself a Christian, can with any consistency deny it. His pretensions to it are so frequent, and so plain, that if he had it not, he must have been a grand impostor. He declares that the gospel he preached was not after man, that he conferred not about it with flesh and blood, or with any of the other apostles; neither received he it of any man, neither was taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ. What could this Gospel be, which was the subject of St. Paul's preaching, but the same which is the subject of his writings? The whole scheme of salvation by Jesus Christ, the privileges and the conditions of the gospel-covenant, the doctrine of justification, though not by the works of the law, either natural or Jewish, yet by a faith that worketh by love P, that comprehends all Christian morality, and is the root and foundation of all Christian obedience. This gospel he received by the revelation of Jesus Christ, and this gospel he preached with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven ¶ : which things (says he, joining himself with the other apostles) we also speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth. It is very unreasonable then to suppose, that he did not write, as well as preach, this doctrine, under the same divine conduct and direction. Indeed the very character of his writings themselves n Rom. xv. 4, 5. 4 1 Peter i. 12. • See Gal. i. r I Cor. ii. 13. P Gal. v. 6. allow us not room to doubt of it. For they abound with prophecies and doctrines of mere revelation, and doctrines that are themselves a sort of prophecies; as are all those that relate to the future state of Christ's church, his second advent, the rise of Antichrist, and the like. So that here, to borrow our author's own observation, "the events which we "see in the world establish the credit of the apo"stle, and prove that he had some intercourse with "heaven; they prove that he was actually inspired." But then, We are reminded in another place, that "there "are some things in the Epistles, which are spoken "without any commandment from the Lord, in "which the apostles gave their judgment;" and here, it seems, we have no authority to say, that they did it by inspiration. The case here referred to, though expressed in this general manner, is only that of St. Paul in 1 Cor. vii., where, supposing all to be true which this writer suspects, it only shews, that in a particular point of present expediency, about which the apostle had been consulted, he had received no immediate direct command from heaven. This exception, in this particular case, is so far from hurting his general claim to inspiration, that it strengthens it: it shews the honesty of this apostle, and his care not to obtrude any thing upon the church, under the stamp of divine authority, which really wanted that impression. But, after all, the matter may be wholly mistaken; and the opposition may lie, not between 8 Page 205. t Page 126. St. Paul and himself, as sometimes writing by inspiration and sometimes not, but between what St. Paul determined in the then present distress, and the commands delivered by our Lord himself while he was here on earth, obliging all Christians in all ages of the world. And as to this apostle's saying, in the conclusion of the chapter, and I think also that I have the Spirit of God, it intimates no distrust that he himself had of his inspiration; but is a fine, and at the same time a severe rebuke to some certain persons in the church of Corinth, who seem to have been as cautious in this affair of inspiration as some certain teachers now in ours. But to all such teachers St. Paul said then, and to all such now his words may be applied, If a man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord". With regard to the other apostles who wrote any part of the New Testament, we must remember, that according to our Lord's most true promise, they were filled with the Holy Ghost; who guided them into all truth, taught them all things, and brought all things to their remembrance, whatsoever Christ had said unto them". St. Mark and St. Luke indeed were not of this number, but the reason of the case extends to them; and there is no cause to think, that in that miraculous age, when there was so plentiful an effusion of the Spirit, these men should be left wholly to themselves in compiling those writings, which are of perpetual use and bene |