5o6 Of the Miracles rrought its Vol. II. culons Power of all kinds and particularly with aPower of railing thedead : and then there was no difficulty in receiving their Teflimony concerning our Saviour's Refurreélion, when men law them in his Name raife others from the Dead. And of this we have two inftancee in the Ails of the Apofiles; of St. Peter's railing Dorcas, Alit 9. And St. Paul's railing Eutyrhur, Ati`s to And /renews, ho lived in the Age after the Apostles, tells us, that in his time this Power continued a- mong Chrifhans. Fifthly, Another miraculous Gift was that ofdifcerning Spirits; the principal use of which was, to try and judge who were true Prophets. And of this the A- poflle fpeaks, 1 Cor. 14. 29. Let the Prophets fpeak two er three, And let the other judge, And, ver. 32.TheSpirits of the Prophets are Suljr¿I to the Prophets. And this is likewife call'd by the fame Apoftle, the gift of difcerning Spirits. t Cor. Iz. to. 7o another is given the difcerning of Spirits. Thofe who pretended tothis Gift, were ttyed by the Bilbops and Elders of the Church, as the Prophets were tryedamong theYews, by the Sanhedrin. And of theft: kind of Affemblies among the Christians, for the Tryal ofProphets, Eufeliuc fpeaks particularly in his 5th Book. And it should ken likewife that this Gift of difcerning Spirits, extended alto to the Difcovery ofthe Secrets of mens Hearts; by the revealing whereof, unbelievers were many times fuddenly struck and convinced ; as may very probably be colle- íted from r Cor. 14.24, t5. But if all prophefie, and there come in ene that believeth rot, or one unlearned ; he it convicted rf all, he if judged of all. And thus are the ferrets of his heart made manifeJI, and fo falling down on his face, he will worJiipGod, and report that Gain in you of a trotth. And upon this miiaculous Gift of knowing the Secrets of menshearts. it feems to be very probable, that that which is commonly call'd the power of the Keys did de- pend ; I mean the power of remitting or retaining fins : for they who had the privi- ledge of knowing mens Hearts, might do this upon certain grounds, and were fe- cured from miflake in the exercife of their power upon particular Persons; which the Priests and Minifters of the Churchnow are not, nor can be; because they can- not fee into mens Hearts, whether they be truly penitent and qualified for forgive- nefs or not. For I cannot eafily believe butthat thofe words of our Saviour, whofe fins ye remit, theyare remitted; mod wholefnsyeretain, theyare retain'd, were inten- ded to liignife something more than a meet Declaration of the Promiles and Threat- flings of the Gospel, which any Man might make, as well as the Aposles and Mi- niflers of the Church, Fcr that God will forgive the penitent, and that he will not pardon the (inner, except he repent, is as true from any Man's mouth, as from an Apuftlés, and as to the Abfolutionofthis or that particular Perlon, rho' a Minifterby the skill and knowledge of his Profefíion, is ordinarily and reasonably prefumed by vertue of his Office, to be a better Judge of a Man's Repentance, than other Perlons are, and therefore may with more Authority and Satisfa&tion to the penitent, de- clare his judgement and opinion concerning him ; yet not being able to fee into his heart, he may be miftaken toncerning him ; and if he be, his declaringhis fins to be forgiven, that is, his abfolution of him, will do him no good: and on the other hand, his refufal to abfolve him, if he be truly penitent, will do him noharm. As the judgementofa skilful Lawyer isof greater Authority, and more fatisfaétory to us concerning our title toan Elate, than theopinion of another Man who is not of the Profession, nor prefumed to have the like skill; but yet for all this, his judg- ment does not alter the cafe ; and if in truth theLaw be otherwife, our title is bad for all thisskilful Man's opinion of the goodnefs of it. And thus much is granted by the Church of Rome, that ifthe Prieftbemiflaken in the ufe of the Keys, and gives abfolution to one that is not truly Penitent, his fins are not remitted ; or if a perfon be Excommunicated that is not truly guilty; his fins are not retained; what he binds on earth, is not bound in heaven ; andhe whom he loofah andabsolves on earth, is not abfolved in heaven. But the Proteftanta go farther, and do not only make a millaken Abfolution or Excommunication void in it self ; but they do not make the Abfolution of the Prieft at all neceflary to the forgivenefs of funs, but only convenient for the Satifa&lionand Comfort of the Pe- nitent,
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