without any Knowledge of God, or of the Manner of their Subfiftence, or Operation of the Trinity, and fo without God in the World.

We see what was faid of those Jews who came out of the Captivity when they returned. There is nothing writ by the Jews, that hath come to our Hands, which is fuppos'd to be older than about two or three hundred Years before the Coming of Chrift. We have feen and confider'd the Skill they had in the Hebrew Tongue, by their Performance for others, or themfelves, in their Translations, or Paraphrases of the Pentateuch, or Bible. We know, from the New Teftament, how ignorant they were of the Scriptures, nay, how they had corrupted their Notions of them by falfe Tranflations, Traditions, &c. at that Time: They then were theirs; but I may fay to the Chriftians, you, by retaining them, have made them yours. We fee what ftrange Rubbish they have compiled fince, as they pretend, to explain, but indeed, to deftroy the Text. We fee the ignorant Arguments of thofe who deny, that Jefus was Chrift. What great Knowledge can we expect from any of the Perfons educated to understand this Rubbish, when they are newly converted,

fave that they were fick of it. And Chrif tians have had little Confideration, who expected to find any clear Evidence of the Trinity or Chrift, from the Interpretations or Writings of the Jews, either antient or modern, upon the Words or Paffages concerning those Points.

As the Tranflators have rendered the Hebrew Words which are expreffive of the Effence by the Word Lord, and the Perfons, not only fingle but jointly, by the Word God, &c. which are not the Significations of the Words, which neither convey proper Ideas, nor answer to the Words ufed for Things, from whence we are directed to take the nearest Idea we have ; I fhall chiefly confine myself to a few. Words which are fo left, and the late Jews forbad to be meddled with, or meddled with them fo as to confound others: We must try if we can give them their proper Significations.

As the Scriptures were writ to Man in a fallen State, God has been pleafed not to use any Words for Names (if that be poffible) which exprefs abfolute Perfection, Power, Juftice, &c. fuch as a perfect Man might have been able to hear; but has been pleased to use, and make his Scribes ufe fuch Terms as diftinguish him

from

from created Objects, and fuch as are expreffive of the Condefcenfions made in the Covenant for recovering Man; and furely there is no good Occafion for Man to reprefent them otherwife. But there is fomething in Man which is averfe to owning his Condition, which hinders him from ftating the Cafe between himself and God, as 'tis in the Original. There is a furrendering of one's felf, and Notions of felf and others often mentioned, but now out of Fashion, neceffary to qualify one to understand the Scriptures, and take any Advantage from them. So we have left the Words framed by God, and the true Meaning of them, and are fallen into a Practice of making Words used by the Heathens, technical Names, and reafon about them: No Wonder if they will not fquare with the Truth.

For Example, the Word God: What this Word originally meant, they have not fhewed. But they have now put a Senfe upon it, fo as to frame a Contradiction to the Scripture, Words, &c. Vide Sir I. N's. Definition.

I fhall trace it back to the Qriginal Hebrew.

Sommer's

"God,

· Somner's Saxon Dictionary. Bona Res, Good Thing. Alfo, Bonus, Good: Alfo, Deus, God, By the by let it here be observed, that God in the Saxon Tongue fignified both God and good Men, both Man and Wickednefs.-GodSpell, the Myftic Word of God, the Hiftory of God, the Evangelium, the Go pel. They derive the Word from God, God and Spell, Word, Hiftory: But others from God, Good and Spell, Tydings, or News, or Meffage, as it were good Tydings: which is alfo the Signification of the Greek Word for Gofpel. And this is proper enough; fince by the Gofpel is declared to us the Goodness of God towards Sinners, through Chrift, &c." Dr. Hide in his Hiftory of the Religion of the antient Perfians, p. 428. and Herodotus by him cited, give Accounts of feveral Wars against them by the Goths, &c. and of their Conqueft and Poffeffion of Media twenty-eight Years; whence they brought, and we from them have many Perfian Words, as "Choda, Goda, God. Ibid. Sax. p. 289. Arab. 1, Goodness, Sweetness. So Dan. Clafenius in his Gentile Theology, p. 1. Athan. Kircher, Tom. 2. Oedipus Egypt. p. 1. d. 4. C. 7. fol. n. 287. Our German Word Gott perVOL. II. haps

B

haps drew its Original from the Heb. Arab. Good, guth. R.-to be good. Hotting. Hex. pag. m. 20.-The Dutch pronounce it Goed, the Danes Gud, the English Good, the Scotch goot, the Iflanders gubi, the Latins Deus, the Spaniards Dios, the French Dieu, the Italians Idio. S. T. Dis, ditis, (Gr. ПλTwv,) the God of Riches, and of Hell; a rich Man.-Varro, of the Latin Tongue, derives Dives from Divus God; because as God he feems to want nothing. Divus, as an Adjective, (Gr. Aios,) we use for the Eternal Gods, the Immortal Gods, Lucret. Book v.-Divum for the Air, as Horace, 2 Carm. Ode 3.-Under Divus, i.e. under the Air, Servius. Others read under Dius: Porphyry expounds it under the Heaven; Pliny, Book 14. chap. 21. -The Triform Diva (Goddefs.)-Valerius 4. of Argonautics. Horace, 3 Carm. Ode 22. ufes Dium as a Subftantive, (Gr. Ang, for what is under the Heaven, without the Houfe or Covering, from Jove faith Feftus. Thence the Phrase: To do any Thing, or live under Dium, Horace, Carm. Book 2, &c. Deus comes from Gr. Aos, Dios, that is, from Jove, Virgil, Book 2. Dium, (Gr. 'Ang) is called Deus, (God,) because he wants no