several heads of our teftimony, and afterwards, to repeat the fame propofitions in fo many diftinct fections, with the neceffary authorities fubjoined to each *.

The following, then, are the allegations upon the fubject, which are capable of being established by proof:

I. That the hiftorical books of the New Teftament, meaning thereby the four Gofpels and the Acts of the Apoftles, are quoted, or alluded to, by a series of Christian writers, beginning with those who were contemporary with the apoftles, or who immediately followed them, and proceeding in close and regular fucceffion from their time to the prefent.

II. That when they are quoted, or alluded to, they are quoted or alluded to with peculiar refpect, as books fui generis; as pof

*The reader, when he has the propofitions before him, will obferve that the argument, if he fhould omit the fections, proceeds connectedly from this point.

feffing

feffing an authority which belonged to no other books, and as conclufive in all queftions and controverfies amongst Christians.

III. That they were, in very early times, collected into a diftinct volume.

IV. That they were distinguished by appropriate names and titles of refpect.

V. That they were publicly read and expounded in the religious affemblies of the early Christians.

VI. That commentaries were written upon them, harmonies formed out of them, different copies carefully collated, and versions of them made into different languages.

VII. That they were received by Chrif tians of different fects, by many heretics as well as catholics, and ufually appealed to by both fides in the controverfies which arose in thofe days.

VIII. That the four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, thirteen Epiftles of St. Paul, the first Epistle of John, and the first of Peter, were received, without doubt, by those who doubted concerning the other books which are included in our present canon.

IX. That the Gofpels were attacked by the early adversaries of Christianity, as books containing the accounts upon which the religion was founded.

X. That formal catalogues of authentic scriptures were published; in all which our present facred histories were included.

XI. That these propofitions cannot be affirmed of any other books, claiming to be books of fcripture; by which are meant those books, which are commonly called apocryphal books of the New Testament.

SECT.

SECT. I.

The hiftorical books of the New Testament, meaning thereby the four Gofpels and the Acts of the Apostles, are quoted, or alluded to, by a series of Chriftian writers, beginning with those who were contemporary with the Apostles, or who immediately fol lowed them, and proceeding in clofe and regular fucceffion from their time to the prefent.

THE

HE medium of proof ftated in this propofition is, of all others, the most unqueftionable, the leaft liable to any practices of fraud, and is not diminished by the lapse of ages. Bishop Burnet, in the History of his own Times, inferts various extracts from Lord Clarendon's Hiftory. One fuch infertion is a proof, that Lord Clarendon's Hiftory was extant at the time when Bishop Burnet wrote, that it had been read by Bishop Burnet,

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Burnet, that it was received by Bishop Burnet as a work of Lord Clarendon's, and also regarded by him as an authentic account of the transactions which it relates; and it will be a proof of these points a thousand years hence, or as long as the books exift. Quintilian having quoted as Cicero's *, that well known trait of diffembled vanity,

"Si quid eft in me ingenii, Judices, quod fentio quam fit exiguum-”

the quotation would be ftrong evidence, were there any doubt, that the oration, which opens with this address, actually came from Cicero's pen. Thefe inftances, however fimple, may serve to point out to a reader, who is little accustomed to fuch researches, the nature and value of the argument.

The teftimonies which we have to bring forward under this propofition are the following.

I. There is extant an epiftle afcribed to

* Quint. lib. xi. c. 1.

Barnabas,