phemy, and because that thou being a man makeft thyfelf God.' They underflood well enough the meaning of thofe words, I and my Father are one;' namely, that they were a plain affertion of his being God. This caufed their rage. And this the Jews all abide by to this day; namely, that he declared himfelf to be God, and therefore they flew him. Whereas therefore the first difcovery of a plurality of perfons, in the divine effence, confifts in the revelation of the divine nature and perfonality of the Son, this being oppofed, perfecuted, and blafphemed by thefe Jews, they may be justly looked upon and efteemed as the first afferters of that mifbelief, which now fome feek again fo earneftly to promote. The Jews perfecuted the Lord Christ, because he being a man, declared himself alfo to be God; and others are ready to revile and reproach them who believe and teach what he declared.

After the refurrection and afcenfion of the Lord Jefus, all things being filled with tokens, evidences and effects of his divine nature and power, Rom. i. 4. the church that began to be gathered in his name, and according to his doctrine, being by his especial inftitution to be initiated into the

exprefs

exprefs profeffion of the doctrine of the Holy Trinity, as being to be baptized in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost,' which confeffion comprifeth the whole of the truth contended for; and by the indifpenfible placing of it at the first entrance into all obedience unto him, is made the doctrinal foundation of the church; it continued for a feafon in the quiet and undisturbed poffeffion of this facred treasure.

The first who gave difquietment unto the difciples of Christ by perverting the doctrine of the Trinity was Simon Magus, with his followers; an account of whofe monftrous figments, and unintelligible imaginations, with their coincidence with what fome men dream in these latter days, fhall elsewhere be given. Nor fhall I need here to mention the Colluvies of Gnoftics, Valentinians, Marcionites and Manichees, the foundation of all whofe abominations lay in their mif-apprehenfions of the being of God, their unbelief of the Trinity, and the perfon of Chrift, as do thofe of fome others alfo.

In efpecial there was one Cerinthus, who was more active than others in his oppofition to the doctrine of the perfon of Christ, and therein of the Holy Trinity."

To

To put a stop unto his abominations, all authors agree, that John, writing his gofpel, prefixed unto it that plain declaration of the eternal deity of Chrift, which it is prefaced withal. And the story is well attefted by Irenæus, Eufebius, and others, from Polycarpus, who was his difciple: That this Cerinthus coming into the place where the apostle was, he left it, adding, as a reafon of his departure, left the building, through the juft judgment of God, should fall upon them. And it was of the holy, wife providence of God, to fuffer fome impious perfons to oppofe this doctrine before the death of that apcftle, that he might by infallible infpiration farther reveal, manifeft, and declare it to the eftablishment of the church in future ages. For what can farther be defired to fatisfy the minds of men, who in any fenfe own the Lord Jefus Chrift, and the fcriptures; than that this controverfy about the Trinity and perfon of Chrift (for they stand and fall together) fhould be fo eminently and exprefly determined, as it were immediately from heaven?

But he, with whom we have to deal in this matter, neither ever did, nor ever will, nor can acquiefce or reft in the divine determination of any thing, which he hath C ftirred

flirred up ftrife and controverfy about. For as Cerinthus and Ebionites perfifted in the herefy of the Jews, who would have flain our Saviour for bearing witnefs to his own deity, notwithstanding the evidence of that teftimony, and the right apprehenfion which the Jews had of his mind therein; fo he excited others to engage and perfift in their oppofition to the truth, notwithftanding this fecond particular determination of it from heaven, for their confutation or confufion. For after the more weak and confused oppofitions made unto it by Theodotus-coriarius, Artemon, and fome others, at length a ftout champion appears vifibly, and exprefly engages a gainst thefe fundamentals of our faith. This was Paulus Samofatenus, bishop of the church of Antioch, about the year 272, A man of moft intolerable pride, paffion, and folly; the greatest that hath left a name upon ecclefiaftical records. This man openly and avowedly denied the doctrine of the Trinity, and the deity of Christ in an especial manner. For although he endeavoured, for a while, to cloud his impious fentiments in ambiguous expreffions, as others alfo have done [Eufeb. lib. 7. cap. 27.] yet being preffed by the profeffors of the truth, and fuppofing his party

was

was fomewhat confirmed, he plainly defended his herefy, and was cast out of the church wherein he prefided. Some fixty years after, Photinus Bishop of Syrmium, with a pretence of more fobriety in life and converfation, undertook the management of the fame defign, with the fame fuccefs.

What enfued afterwards among the churches of God in this matter, is of too large and diffused a nature to be here reported. Thefe inftances I have fixed on, only to intimate unto perfons, whofe condition or occafions afford them not ability, or leifure of themselves, to enquire into the memorials of times paft amongst the profeffors of the gospel of Chrift, that these oppofitions which are made at prefent amongst us unto thefe fundamental truths, and derived immediately from the late renewed inforcement of them made by Fauftus Socinus and his followers, are nothing but old baffled attempts of Satan, against the rock of the church and the building thereon, in the confeffion of the Son of the living God.

Now, as all men who have ought of a due reverence of God, or his truth, remaining with them, cannot be but wary how they give the least admittance to fuch C 2 opinions,