Herein "he who commanded the light to shine out of darkness shineth in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ," 2 Cor. iv. 6. He irradiates the mind with a spiritual light, whereby it is enabled to discern the glory of spiritual things. This they cannot do " in whom the god of this world hath blinded the eyes of them that believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine into them," verse 4. Those who are under the power of their natural darkness and blindness, especially where there are in them also superadded prejudices, begotten and increased by the craft of Satan, as there are in the whole world of unbelievers, cannot see or discern that divine excellency in the Scripture, without an appre- hension whereof no man can believe it aright to be the word of God. Such persons may assent unto the truth of the Scripture and its divine original upon external arguments and rational motives, but
58 THE EEASON OF FAITH. [BOOK VI., PAET I.
"believe it with faitli divine and supernatural, on those arguments and motives only, they cannot.
There are two things which hinder or disenable men from believ- ing with faith divine and supernatural, when any divine revelation is objectively proposed unto them: — First, The natural blindness and darkness of their minds, which are come upon all by the fall, and the depravation of their nature that ensued thereon. Secondly, The prejudices that, through the craft of Satan, the god of this world, their minds are possessed with, by traditions, education, and con- terse in the world. This last obstruction or hinderance may be so far removed by external arguments and motives of credibility, as that men may upon them attain unto a moral persuasion concerning the divine original of the Scripture; but these arguments cannot re- move or take away the native blindness of the mind, which is removed by their renovation and divine illumination alone. Wherefore, none, I think, will positively affirm that we can believe the Scripture to be the word of God, in the way and manner which God requireth, without a supernatural work of the Holy Spirit upon our minds in the illumination of them. So David prays that God would " open his eyes, that he might behold wondrous things out of the law," Ps. cxix. 18; that he would " make him understand the way of his pre- cepts," verse 27; that he would "give him understanding, and he should keep the law," verse 34. So the Lord Christ also " opened the understanding of his disciples, that they might understand the Scriptures," Luke xxiv. 45 ; as he had affirmed before that it was given unto some to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, and not unto others, Matt. xi. 25, xiii. 11. And neither are these things spoken in vain, nor is the grace intended in them needless.
The communication of this light unto us the Scripture calleth re- vealing and revelation: Matt. xi. 25, "Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes;" that is, given them to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, when, they were preached unto them. And " no man know- eth the Father, but he to whom the Son will reveal him," verse 27. So the apostle prayeth for the Ephesians, " that God would give them the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Christ, that, the eyes of their understanding being enlightened, they might know," etc., chap. i. 17-19. It is true, these Ephesians were already believers, or considered by the apostle as such; but if ha judged it necessary to pray for them that they might have " the Spirit of wisdom and revelation to enlighten the eyes of their understanding/' with respect unto farther degrees of faith and knowledge, or, as he speaks in another place, that they might come unto " the full assur- ance of understanding, to the acknowledgment of the mystery of
CHAP. IV.] MORAL CERTAINTY INSUFFICIENT. 59
God," Col. ii. 2, then it is much more necessary to make them be- lievers who before were not so, but utter strangers unto the faith.
But as a pretence hereof hath been abused, as we shall see after- ward, so the pleading of it is liable to be mistaken; for some are ready to apprehend that this retreat unto a Spirit of revelation is but a pretence to discard all rational arguments, and to introduce enthusiasm into their room. Now, although the charge be grievous, yet, because it is groundless, we must not forego what the Scripture plainly affirms and instructs us in, thereby to avoid it. Scripture testimonies may be expounded according to the analogy of faith; but denied or despised, seem they never so contrary unto our apprehen- sion of things, they must not be. Some, I confess, seem to disregard both the objective work of the Holy Spirit in this matter (whereof we shall treat afterward) and his subjective work also in our minds, that all things may be reduced unto sense and reason. But we must grant that a " Spirit of wisdom and revelation" to open the eyes of our understanding is needful to enable us to believe the Scripture to be the word of God in a due manner, or forego the gospel; and our duty it is to pray continually for that Spirit, if we intend to be established in the faith thereof.