a theologico-political treatise [part iii]-第6部分

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salvation。







（53）　V。　Lastly；　because　there　are　four　Evangelists　in　the　New　Testament；　and



it　is　scarcely　credible　that　God　can　have　designed　to　narrate　the　life　of



Christ　four　times　over；　and　to　communicate　it　thus　to　mankind。　（54）　For



though　there　are　some　details　related　in　one　Gospel　which　are　not　in



another；　and　one　often　helps　us　to　understand　another；　we　cannot　thence



conclude　that　all　that　is　set　down　is　of　vital　importance　to　us；　and　that



God　chose　the　four　Evangelists　in　order　that　the　life　of　Christ　might　be



better　understood；　for　each　one　preached　his　Gospel　in　a　separate



locality；　each　wrote　it　down　as　he　preached　it；　in　simple　language；　in



order　that　the　history　of　Christ　might　be　clearly　told；　not　with　any　view　of



explaining　his　fellow…Evangelists。







（55）　If　there　are　some　passages　which　can　be　better；　and　more　easily



understood　by　comparing　the　various　versions；　they　are　the　result　of　chance；



and　are　not　numerous：　their　continuance　in　obscurity　would　have　impaired



neither　the　clearness　of　the　narrative　nor　the　blessedness　of　mankind。







（56）　We　have　now　shown　that　Scripture　can　only　be　called　the　Word



of　God　in　so　far　as　it　affects　religion；　or　the　Divine　law；　we　must　now



point　out　that；　in　respect　to　these　questions；　it　is　neither　faulty；



tampered　with；　nor　corrupt。　（57）　By　faulty；　tampered　with；　and　corrupt；　I



here　mean　written　so　incorrectly；　that　the　meaning　cannot　be　arrived　at　by　a



study　of　the　language；　nor　from　the　authority　of　Scripture。　（58）　I　will　not



go　to　such　lengths　as　to　say　that　the　Bible；　in　so　far　as　it　contains　the



Divine　law；　has　always　preserved　the　same　vowel…points；　the　same　letters；　or



the　same　words　（I　leave　this　to　be　proved　by；　the　Massoretes　and　other



worshippers　of　the　letter）；　I　only；　maintain　that　the　meaning　by；　which



alone　an　utterance　is　entitled　to　be　called　Divine；　has　come　down　to　us



uncorrupted；　even　though　the　original　wording　may　have　been　more　often



changed　than　we　suppose。　（59）　Such　alterations；　as　I　have　said　above；



detract　nothing　from　the　Divinity　of　the　Bible；　for　the　Bible　would　have



been　no　less　Divine　had　it　been　written　in　different　words　or　a　different



language。　（60）　That　the　Divine　law　has　in　this　sense　come　down　to　us



uncorrupted；　is　an　assertion　which　admits　of　no　dispute。　（61）　For　from　the



Bible　itself　we　learn；　without　the　smallest　difficulty　or　ambiguity；；　that



its　cardinal　precept　is：　To　love　God　above　all　things；　and　one's　neighbour



as　one's　self。　（62）　This　cannot　be　a　spurious　passage；　nor　due　to　a　hasty



and　mistaken　scribe；　for　if　the　Bible　had　ever　put　forth　a　different



doctrine　it　would　have　had　to　change　the　whole　of　its　teaching；　for　this　is



the　corner…stone　of　religion；　without　which　the　whole　fabric　would　fall



headlong　to　the　ground。　（63）　The　Bible　would　not　be　the　work　we　have　been



examining；　but　something　quite　different。







（64）　We　remain；　then；　unshaken　in　our　belief　that　this　has　always　been　the



doctrine　of　Scripture；　and；　consequently；　that　no　error　sufficient　to



vitiate　it　can　have　crept　in　without　being　instantly；　observed　by　all；　nor



can　anyone　have　succeeded　in　tampering　with　it　and　escaped　the　discovery　of



his　malice。







（65）　As　this　corner…stone　is　intact；　we　must　perforce　admit　the　same　of



whatever　other　passages　are　indisputably　dependent　on　it；　and　are　also



fundamental；　as；　for　instance；　that　a　God　exists；　that　He　foresees　all



things；　that　He　is　Almighty；　that　by　His　decree　the　good　prosper　and　the



wicked　come　to　naught；　and；　finally；　that　our　salvation　depends　solely　on



His　grace。







（66）　These　are　doctrines　which　Scripture　plainly　teaches　throughout；　and



which　it　is　bound　to　teach；　else　all　the　rest　would　be　empty　and　baseless；



nor　can　we　be　less　positive　about　other　moral　doctrines；　which　plainly　are



built　upon　this　universal　foundation　…　for　instance；　to　uphold　justice；　to



aid　the　weak；　to　do　no　murder；　to　covet　no　man's　goods；　&c。　（67）　Precepts；　I



repeat；　such　as　these；　human　malice　and　the　lapse　of　ages　are　alike



powerless　to　destroy；　for　if　any　part　of　them　perished；　its　loss　would



immediately　be　supplied　from　the　fundamental　principle；　especially　the



doctrine　of　charity；　which　is　everywhere　in　both　Testaments　extolled　above



all　others。　（68）　Moreover；　though　it　be　true　that　there　is　no　conceivable



crime　so　heinous　that　it　has　never　been　committed；　still　there　is　no　one　who



would　attempt　in　excuse　for　his　crimes　to　destroy；　the　law；　or　introduce　an



impious　doctrine　in　the　place　of　what　is　eternal　and　salutary；　men's　nature



is　so　constituted　that　everyone　（be　he　king　or　subject）　who　has　committed　a



base　action；　tries　to　deck　out　his　conduct　with　spurious　excuses；　till　he



seems　to　have　done　nothing　but　what　is　just　and　right。







（69）　We　may　conclude；　therefore；　that　the　whole　Divine　law；　as　taught　by



Scripture；　has　come　down　to　us　uncorrupted。　（70）　Besides　this　there　are



certain　facts　which　we　may　be　sure　have　been　transmitted　in　good　faith。　（71）



For　instance；　the　main　facts　of　Hebrew　history；　which　were　perfectly　well



known　to　everyone。　（72）　The　Jewish　people　were　accustomed　in　former　times　to



chant　the　ancient　history　of　their　nation　in　psalms。　（73）　The　main　facts；



also；　of　Christ's　life　and　passion　were　immediately　spread　abroad　through



the　whole　Roman　empire。　（74）　It　is　therefore　scarcely　credible；　unless



nearly　everybody；　consented　thereto；　which　we　cannot　suppose；　that



successive　generations　have　handed　down　the　broad　outline　of　the　Gospel



narrative　otherwise　than　as　they　received　it。







（74）　Whatsoever；　therefore；　is　spurious　or　faulty　can　only　have　reference　to



details　…　some　circumstances　in　one　or　the　other　history　or　prophecy



designed　to　stir　the　people　to　greater　devotion；　or　in　some　miracle；　with　a



view　of　confounding　philosophers；　or；　lastly；　in　speculative　matters



after　they　had　become　mixed　up　with　religion；　so　that　some　individual



might　prop　up　his　own　inventions　with　a　pretext　of　Divine　authority。



（75）　But　such　matters　have　little　to　do　with　salvation；　whether



they　be　corrupted　little　or　much；　as　I　will　show　in　detail　in　the　next



chapter；　though　I　think　the　question　sufficiently　plain　from　what　I　have



said　already；　especially　in　Chapter　II。



















CHAPTER　XIII　…　IT　IS　SHOWN　THAT　SCRIPTURE　TEACHES　ONLY　VERY　SIMPLE



　DOCTRINES；　SUCH　AS　SUFFICE　FOR　RIGHT　CONDUCT。







（1）　In　the　second　chapter　of　this　treatise　we　pointed　out　that　the　prophets



were　gifted　with　extraordinary　powers　of　imagination；　but　not　of



understanding；　also　that　God　only　revealed　to　them　such　things　as　are　very



simple　…　not　philosophic　mysteries；　…　and　that　He　adapted　His



communications　to　their　previous　opinions。　（2）　We　further　showed　in　Chap。　V。



that　Scripture　only　transmits　and　teaches　truths　which　can　readily　be



comprehend