16. God hath appointed no means in vain, which men must either not use, or use despairingly. But his command to use any means for any end, containeth (though not an explicit promise, yet) great and comfortable encouragement to use that means in hope.[424]
17. Therefore the world is now in comparison of the catholic church, much like what it was before Christ's incarnation in comparison of the Jews' church; who yet had many ways great advantage, though God was not the God of the Jews only, but also of the gentiles, who had a law written in their hearts, and an accusing or excusing conscience.
18. Those over-doing divines who pretend to be certain that all the world are damned that are not christians, do add to God's word, and are great agents for Satan to tempt men to infidelity, and to atheism itself, and to dissuade mankind from discerning the infinite goodness of God; and occasion many to deny the immortality of the soul, rather than they will believe, that five parts in six of the world now, and almost all before Christ's incarnation, have immortal souls purposely created in them, to be damned, without any propounded means and possibility natural of remedy; and as I know they will pour out their bitter censure on these lines, (which I could avoid if I regarded it more than truth,) so with what measure they mete, it shall be measured to them; and others will damn them as confidently as they damn almost all the world; and I will be bold to censure that they are undoers of the church by over-doing. See more in my "Vindication of God's Goodness."
[408] Mark xvi. 16; John iii. 16-20; i. 11, 12.
[409] Psal. xix. 1-5; Acts x. 2, 3, 35; Rom. ii.
[410] 1 Tim. ii. 4; iv. 10; Tit. ii. 11; John i. 29; iii. 17; iv. 42; Rom. i. 21.
[411] John v. 1, &c.; ix. 12, &c.; Matt. xvi. 22; John xii. 26; Luke xviii. 34.
[412] Mal. iii. 1, 2; John iv. 25.
[413] Rom. ii. 12, 14, 26; Luke xii. 47, 48; xvi. 10.
[414] Gen. iii. 15; ix. 1-4.
[415] Psal. cxxxvi.; ciii. 27; c. 5.
[416] Gen. iii. 15; Jonah iii. 9, 10; iv. 2.
[417] Jonah ibid.; Rom. ii. 4; Luke xiii. 3, 5; Acts l. 35; John iii. 19-21.
[418] 1 John iv. 2, 3; 1 Tim. iii. 16.
[419] Rom. i. 20, 21; Acts xiv. 17; Rom. ii. 15, 16; Psal. xix. 1-3; Prov. i. 20-24; Exod. xxxiv. 6; Jer. iii. 12; John iv. 2; Luke vi. 36; xviii. 13.
[420] Psal. cxlv. 9; 1 Tim. iv. 10; Rom. x. 20
[421] Acts iv. 12; John xiv. 6, 7.
[422] Heb. xi. 6; Acts x. 35; 2 Thess. i. 11, 12; Jer. x. 25; Rom. x. 12-15.
[423] Acts xiv. 47; xvii. 27-30; Rom. i. 19-22; ii. 4, 7, 10, 14-16, 27; Isa. lv. 6, 7.
[424] Jonah iv. 2; iii. 10; Acts x. 35; Mal. iii. 14; Isa. xlv. 19; Deut. xxxii. 47; Mal. i. 10; Prov. i. 22-24; Gen. iv. 7; Rom. ii.; iii.
Quest. CLVIII. _Should not christians take up with Scripture wisdom only, without studying philosophy and other heathens' human learning?_
_Answ._ I have already proved the usefulness of common knowledge called human learning, by twenty reasons in my book called "The Unreasonableness of Infidelity," part ii. sect. 23. p. 163, to which I refer the reader; and only say now, 1. Grace presupposeth nature; we are men in order of nature at least before we are saints, and reason is before supernatural revelation. 2. Common knowledge therefore is subservient unto faith: we must know the Creator and his works; and the Redeemer restoreth us to the due knowledge of the Creator: human learning in the sense in question is also divine, God is the author of the light of nature, as well as of grace. We have more than heathens, but must not therefore have less, and cast away the good that is common to them and us; else we must not have souls, bodies, reason, health, time, meat, drink, clothes, &c. because heathens have them. God's works are honourable, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein; and physical philosophy is nothing but the knowledge of God's works. 3. And the knowledge of languages is necessary both for human converse, and for the understanding the Scriptures themselves. The Scriptures contain not a Greek and Hebrew grammar to understand the languages in which they are written, but suppose us otherwise taught those tongues that we may interpret them. 4. The use of the gospel is not to teach us all things needful to be known; but to teach us, on supposition of our common knowledge, how to advance higher to supernatural saving knowledge, faith, love, and practice. Scripture telleth us not how to build a house, to plough, sow, weave, or make our works of art. Every one that learneth his country tongue of his parents hath human learning of the same sort with the learning of Greek and Hebrew; he that learneth not to read, cannot read the Bible. And he that understandeth it not in the original tongues, must trust other men's words that have human learning, or else remain a stranger to it.[425]