KKTayo/jLivov, no,) (rvft.TXiKeifiivi>v tv -^u^ii, Sia Tpiayofnutniuv raTs XoivccT; if/v^^^a'} to Ktxfuft-
fiiivov iv^yyiiXi — Tatian. Assyr. Contra. Grascos.
136 OPERATIONS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT [BOOK II.
diate internal work of the Spirit of God upon them. Witliout tliis the prophets might liave been imposed on by external audible voices, nor would they by themselves give then- minds an infallible assur- ance.
r Secondly, i)rea7?is vv'ere made use of under the Old Testament to the same purpose, and unto them also I refer all those visions which they had in their sleep, though not called dreams ;^ and these, in this case, were the immediate operation of the Holy Ghost, as to the divine and infallible impressions they conveyed to the minds of men. Hence, in the promiseof the plentiful pouring out of the Spirit, or communication of his gifts, mention is made of dreams : Acts ii. 17, "I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh : and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams." Not that God intended much to make use of this way of dreams and nocturnal visions under the New Testament; but the intention of the words is, to show that there should be a plenti- ful effusion of that Spirit which acted by these various ways and means then under the Old. Only, as to some particular directions God did sometimes continue his intimations by visions in the rest of the night. Such a vision had Paul, Acts xvi. 1 0. But of old this was more frequent. So God made a signal revelation unto Abraham, when the " deep sleep fell upon him, and horror of great darkness," Gen. xv. 12-16 ; and Daniel " heard the voice of the words" of him that spake unto him " when he was in a deep sleep," Dan. x. 9. But this sleep of theirs I look not on as natural, but as that which God sent and cast them into, that therein he might represent the image of things unto their imaginations. So of old he caused a " deep sleep to fall upon Adam," Gen. ii. 21. The Jews distinguish between dreams and those visions in sleep, as they may be distinctly considered ; but I cast them together under one head, of revelation in sleep. And this way of reve- lation was so common, that one who pretended to prophesy would cry out, "'^P.cO ""^^.-Oj "I have dreamed, I have dreamed," Jer. xxiii. 25. And by the devil's imitation of God's dealing with his church, this became a way of vaticination among the heathen also: Hom. i. 63, Ka/ yap r ovap s% Aiog Icr/v, — "A dream is from Jupiter." And when the reprobate Jews were deserted as to all divine revelations, they pretended unto a singular skill in the interpretation of dreams ; on the account of their deceit wherein they were sufficiently infamous.
" Qualiacumque voles Judsei somnia Ycndunt." — [Juv., vi. 546.]
Thirdly, God revealed himself in and by visions or representations of things to the inward or outward senses of the prophets. And
' " Sunt autem multa genera prophetandi, quoriun unum est somniorum quale fuit io Daniele." — Hieron. in Hieremian, cap. 23.
CHAP. I.] PREPARATORY TO THE NEW CREATION. 137
this way was so frequent that it bare the name for a season of all prophetical revelations; for so we observed before, that a projohet of old time was called a " seer," and that because in their receiving of their prophecies they saw visions also. So Isaiah terms his whole glorious prophecy, i^l^ "i^^ li^n^ " The vision which he saw," chap. i. 1; partly from the especial representations of things that were made unto him, chap. vi. 1-4 ; and partly, it may be, from the evidence of the things revealed unto him, which were cleared as fully to his mind as if he had had an ocular inspection of them. So, from the matter of them, prophecies began in common to be called " The burden of the Lord;" for he burdened their consciences with his word, and their persons with its execution. But when false prophets began to make frequent use and to serve themselves of this expression, it was forbid- den, Jer. xxiii. 33, 36 ; and yet we find that ther^e is mention hereof about the same time, it may be, by Habakkuk, chap. i. 1 ; as also after the return from the captivity, Zech. ix. 1, Mai. i. 1. Either, there- fore, this respected that only season wherein false prophets abounded, whom God would thus deprive of their pretence; or, indeed, the people, by contempt and scorn, did use that expression as that which was familiar unto the prophets in their denunciation of God's judg- ments against them, which God here rebukes them for and threatens to revenge. But none of the prophets had all their revelations by visions ; nor doth this concern the communication of the gift of prophecy, but its exercise. And their visions are particularly recorded. Such were those of Isaiah, chap.vi.; Jeremiah, chap. i. 11-1 6; Ezekiel,chap.i., and the like. Now, these visions were of two sorts :^ — 1. Outward repre- sentations of things unto the bodily eyes of the prophets; 2. Inward rej^resentations unto their minds. 1. There were sometimes appear- ances of persons or things made to their outward senses; and herein God made use of the ministry of angels. Thus three men appeared unto Abraham, Gen, xviii. 1, 2; one whereof was the Son of God ; himself; the other two, ministering angels ; as hath been proved else- ' where. So was the burning bush which Moses saAV, Exod. iii. 2 ; the appearances without similitude of any living thing on mount Sinai at the giving of the law, Exod. xix. ; the man that Joshua saw at the siege of Jericho, chap. v. 13, 14. Such were the seething-pot and almond-