The history of the church from our Lords incarnation, to the twelth year of the Emperour Maricius Tiberius, or the Year of Christ 594 / as it was written in Greek, by Eusebius Pamphilius ..., Socrates Scholasticus, and Evagrius Scholasticus ... ; made English from that edition of these historians, which Valesius published at Paris in the years 1659, 1668, and 1673 ; also, The life of Constantine in four books, written by Eusibius Pamphilus, with Constantine's Oration to the convention of the saints, and Eusebius's Speech in praise of Constantine, spoken at his tricennalia ; Valesius's annotations on these authors, are done into English, and set at their proper places in the margin, as likewise a translation of his account of their lives and writings ; with two index's, the one, of the principal matters that occur in the text, the other, of those contained in the notes.

CHAP. XXV. Concerning those Divine writings, which are with∣out controversie acknowledged; and of those which are not such.

BUt it will in this place be seasonable sum∣marily to reckon up those books of the New Testament which have been before mentioned. In the first place therefore is to be ranked the four sacred Gospels: next to which follows the book of the Acts of the Apostles: after that are to be reckoned the Epistles of Paul; after which follows that which is called the first Epistle of John, and in like manner the Epistle of Peter is to be admitted as authentick. Then is to be placed, if you think good, the Revelation of John: the opinions concerning which I will in due place declare. And these are the books that with general consent are acknowledged. Among those which are questioned as doubtfull, which yet are approved and mentioned by many, is that which is called the Epistle of James, and that of Jude, also the second Epistle of Peter, and those called the second and third Epistles of John, whether they were written by the Evangelist, or another of the same name with him. A∣mongst

the a 1.1 Spurious works let there be ranked, both the work intituled the Acts of Paul, and the book called Pastor, and the Revelation of Peter; and moreover that which is cal∣led the Epistle of Barnabas, and that named the b 1.2 Doctrines of the Apostles; and more∣over, as I said, the Revela∣tion of John (if you think good) which some, as I have said, doe reject, but others allow of and admit among those books that are received as unquestionable and undoubted. And a∣mong these some doe now number the c 1.3 Gospel ac∣cording to the Hebrews, with which those of the Hebrews that have embraced the faith of Christ are chiefly delight∣ed. All these books may be questioned as doubtfull. And I thought it requisite to make a Catalogue of these also, that we may discriminate those Scriptures that ac∣cording to Ecclesiastical tra∣dition are true, and un∣forged, and with general consent received as undoubt∣ed, from those other books which are not such, nor in∣corporated into the New Testament, but are questioned as doubtfull; which yet have been acknowledged and al∣lowed of by many Ecclesiasti∣cal persons: and further that we may know these very books, and those other that have been put forth by Here∣ticks under the name of the Apostles, containing as well the supposed Gospels of Pe∣ter, Thomas, and Matthias, and of some others besides them; as also the supposed Acts of Andrew and John, and other of the Apostles. Of which books no d 1.4 Ecclesiasti∣cal writer even from the A∣postles times hitherto hath in any of his works voutsafed to make the least mention. But moreover also, the man∣ner of the phrase and the stile wherein they are written are much different from the Apostolick natural propriety and innate simplicity: and the meaning and drift of those things delivered in these books, being mightily disso∣nant from Orthodoxal truth, doth manifestly evince that they are the forgeries of Heretical men. Upon which account they are not to be ranked amongst the Spurious writings, but altogether to be rejected, as wholly absurd, and impious. But we will now proceed to what follows of our History.

Notes

• a 1.1

  Eusebius does here use this word [〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉] very im∣properly, to wit, to signifie those books whose authority is doubt∣full; whereas those books are to be called 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, which are adul∣terated and forged by Hereticks, of which sort he makes mention at the end of this chapter, which that it may more manifestly ap∣pear, you must understand, there are three sorts of Sacred Books. Some are without controversie true; others without controversie false; a third sort are those, of which the antients doubted. This latter sort can't be called 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, because many accounted them to be genuine: it remains therefore that the second sort onely be cal∣led 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, i. e. Spurious books. Of which sort is Pauls Epistle to the Laodiceans, which S^t Jerom says was with one consent exploded by all. But Eusebius corrects him∣self in chap. 31▪ of this Third book, where he manifestly differences the Spurious Books from those which are doubtfull. See his words there. Gregory Naz. in Iambico carmine ad Seleucum, manifestly confirms our opinion. For of the books of Sacred Scripture, some, says he, are genuine and true, which he there reckons up; others are sup∣posititious, which he calls 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, Spurious; a third sort he makes those to be, which come nearest to those books that are genuine, which division Gregory had from Origen, out of his 13 Tome of Ex∣planat. in Johan. But to speak properly, there are but two sorts of Sacred books, those namely that are true, and those whose autho∣rity is asserted by some, and que∣stioned by others. For the Spurious books deserve not to be reckoned amongst the Sacred Books. Vales.
• b 1.2

  Concerning this book see the Learned Arch-Bishop Usher in his dissertation on Ignatius Epistles, Chap. 7. Edit. Oxon. 1644.
• c 1.3

  Concerning this Gospel, S^t Jerome, in Catalogo, where he, speaking of James the brother of our Lord, says thus, Evangelium quoque quod appellatur secundum Hebraeos, & à me nuper in Graecum-Latinumque Sermonem translatum est, quo & Origenes saepe utitur, &c. Julianus Pelagianus, Lib. 4. speaks of this Gospel, where he accuses Jerome, because in his dialogue against the Pelagians he made use of an authority of a fifth Gospel, which he himself had translated into Latine. But that which Eu∣sebius adds, that the Jews which embraced Christianity are chiefly delighted with this Gospel, makes him seem to mean the Nazareans and Ebionites; for they use to reade that Gospel written in He∣brew, as S^t Jerom shews, in E∣saia c. 11. and in Ezech. c. 18. Vales.
• d 1.4

  Euse∣bius speaks not here of the succes∣sours of the Apo∣stles, which title be∣longs onely to Bishops; but he speaks of the Ecclesiastical writers who in a perpe∣tual succession have flourished in the Church. Therefore 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, is the same as 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, i. e. of the Ecclesiastical writers in every Age. For, as heretofore among the Jews there was a succession of Prophets, though sometimes interrupted (as Josephus says in his first book against Apion;) so in the Church there always was a succession of Learned men and Writers which were called Ecclesiasticks. Moreover in the M. SS. Maz▪ Med. & Fuk. it is written 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, with the Article. Vales.