r74 OPERATIONS OF pattern of the temple, and the manner of the whole wor- ship of God therein by the Spirit; I Chron. xxviii. 12. I-Ie says, " ee All this the Lord made me understand in u writing by his hand; upon me, even all the work of this pattern," ver. 19. 'I'he Spirit of God not only revealed it unto him, but so guided him in the writing of it down, as that hemight understand the mind of God out of what himself had written; or he gave it him so plainly and evidently, as if every particular had been expressed in writing by the finger of God. Sect. 11. It remaineth that as unto this first extra- ordinary work and gift of the Holy Ghost, we consider those especial ways and means which he made use of in the communication of his mind unto the prophets, with some other accidental adjuncts of prophecy. Some fol- lowing Maimonides in his more nebuchim, have from the several ways of the communication of divine revela- tions, distinguished the degrees of prophecy, or of the gifts of it, preferring one above another. This I have elsewhere disproved, Expos. Heb. chap. i. Neither in- deed is there either hence, or from any other ground, the least occasion to feign those eleven degrees of pro. phecy which he thought he had foundout; much less may the spirit or gift of prophecy be attained by the ways he prescribes, and, with Tatianus, seems to give countenance unto, fThe distinct outward manners and ways of revelation mentioned in the scriptures may be reduced unto three heads. (1.) Voices. (2.) Dreams, (3.) Visions. And the accidentaladjuncts of it are two; (1.) Symbolical actions. (2.) Local mutations. The schoolmen, after Aquinas 22. q. 174. A. I. do common- ly reduce themeans of revelation unto three heads. For whereas there are threeways whereby we come to know any thing: (1.) By our external senses. (2.) By impres- sions on the fancy or imagination. (3.) By pure acts of the understanding; so God, by three ways, revealed his will unto the prophets; (1.) By objects of their senses, as by audible voices. (2.) By impressions on the imagi- nation in dreams and visions. (3.) By illustration, or THR HOLY SPIRIT,' enlightening of their minds. But as this last way ex- presseth olivine inspiration, I cannot acknowledge it as a distinct way of revelation by itself. For it was that which was absolutely necessary to give an infalliblesas- surance of mind in the other ways also. And, setting that aside, there is none of them but are obnoxious to delusion. Sect. 12.First; God sometimes made use of an ar- ticulate voice, speaking out those thing3 which he did intend to declare inwords significant of them. Sohe re- vealed himself, or Isismind, unto Moses, when he spake to himface toface, as a man speaketlsunto hisfriend, Exod. xxxiii. 1 i. Numb. xii. S. And as far as I can observe, the whole revelation made unto Moses, was by outward audible articulate voices, whose sense was impressed on his mind by the Holy Spirit. For an external voice, without an inward elevation and disposition of mind, is not sufficientto give security and assurance of truth un- to him that doth receive it. So God spaketo Elijah, 1 Kings xix. 12, 13, 14. as also to Samuel and Jere- miah, and it may be to all the rest of the prophets at their first calling and entrance into their ministry. For words formed miraculously by God, and conveyed sen- siblyunto the outward ears of men, carry a great majes- tyand authority with them. This was not the usual way of God's revealing his mind, nor is it signified by that phrase of speech, the word of the Lord came unto me; whereby no more is intended but an immediate re- velation by what way or means soever it was granted. Mostly, this was by that secret effectual impression on their minds which we have before described. And these voices were either immediately created by God himself, as when he spake unto Moses, wherein the eminency of the revelation made unto him principally consisted, or the ministry of angels was used in the formation and pronunciation of them. But as we observed before, the divine certainty of their minds, to whom they were spoken, with their abilities infallibly to declare them un- to others, was from an immediate' internal work of the Spirit of God Upon them. Without this, the prophets might have been imposed on by external audiblevoices; nor would they by themselves give their minds an infal- lible assurance. Sect. 13.Secondly; Dreams were made use of un- der the Old Testament to the same purpose, and unto -them also 1 refer all those visions which they liad in Nec ser voce pulsates ad aures eorum perveniebat, sed Deus loque- batur is animo Prophetarum, Hiero.. Proem. in lib. 1. Commenter. in Ise. f IIno se I ra ()es asea eras, ¡esr Is fs+r. haca ór Toss Toss asasen aoA,sevearress sarayactrer, ,ÿ rvptaAeaealror rn yoxt, a,a aeeayeesoctmr toss Aoraars rÿvya, re o,sgsf,seror drayyr,A:._Ta. tian. Assyr. contra Grwcos.
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