An answer, to a little book call'd Protestancy to be embrac'd or, A new and infallible method to reduce Romanists from popery to Protestancy

Subsect. This passage search the Scriptures, John chap. 5. makes nothing for Protestants.

TO prove that the Scripture is the sole Rule of Faith; at last our Adversary brings these Words of CHRIST to the Iews. Search the Scriptures, John cap. 5. v. 39.

Answer. You must know that there our Saviour was proving to the Iews his God-head or Divinity. And he proves it, First, by the Testimony of St. Iohn Baptist v. 32. and lets them understand how worthy a Person Iohn was of Credit with them. Secondly, he proves it by his Works, v. 36. Third∣ly, by the Testimony of his Eternal Father, viz. This is my Son in whom I am well pleas'd. Matth. 3. v. 17. Take notice that CHRIST for their Rule in believing his God-head, did not fend them first to the Scripture but to the Testimony of Iohn, his Miraculous Works, and the Testimony of his Father, and last of all he saies, Search the Scrip∣tures, as if he should have said, if you will not acknowledge me to be God for these great Argu∣ments and Motives I have brought: Take yet one more, which is, that since you think you have E∣ternal Life in the Scriptures, Search them, and there you will find that I am God, because the Prophets in them give Testimony of me. And this was said to their Doctors, not to every private Person.

Secondly, The Word Scrutamini in Lati•• 〈◊〉〈◊〉 Ereunate in Greek, is of the presenttence of 〈◊〉〈◊〉 dicative mood (Cyrillus takes it in the Indicative) as well as of the Imperative, and so signisies, you do Search the Scriptures, as if he should say, since you do Read diligently the Scriptures, you can't but find my Divinity there, since they give clear Testimony of me by the Prophets.

Our adversary shuts up this matter of Scripture by shuting us up, as he Imagins, or will seem to Imagin, in a circle, while we prove the Scripture, by the Church and run back saies he, to the Scrip∣ture to prove the Church.

Answer. To those who admit the Scripture and deny the Church, we prove the Church by the Scripture: to these who deny a part of Scripture, but hold the Infallible Authority of the Church, we prove the Scripture by the Church: to those who deny both Church and Scripture we prove first the Church by the signal marks of the true Church set down in the old and new Testament, (of which some alone are of sufficient force to move a Pagan) and having Established Her Authority; by Her ac∣knowledging the Scripture to be the Word of God, we prove it to be the Word of God. In this Dis∣course you see no Circle, but in the Imagination of our Adversary.

Now let us see if he who thought to catch us be not caught himself. For, therefore with him Scripture is the Word of God because it shows it self; and wherefore doth it show it self but because it is seen by those who only disclose (as he speaks) those Divine Letters: And wherefore again is it seen to those who open those Divine Letters but because it shows it self? And so while he walks between it is seen, and it shows it self, neither sees

〈…〉〈…〉 thing himself, nor shows or can show any thing to others, who desire to see because he can't show what he sees not, nor the Scripture show what it infallibly contains without another infallible Rule of Faith.