Either the Jews had no Books or Writings before Chrift, except those which are come to our Hands, or, if they had, they were private Books, and not difperfed. So, if they had any fuch, they would not answer their Ends, and they have deftroyed them. And if they had produced any, and pretended they had been ancient, and had not been difperfed before Christ, they could not have been produced in Evidence; yet they have the Impudence to offer us what they please, under the Name of Tradition, for ancient, for Evidence, &c.

The LXX, and more especially the oldeft or Targ. Onkelos, have hinted at fome few Traditions of Things, before Writing; of which below. But they, and the Apocryphal Writings, which, 'tis likely, were forged before their grand Forgeries; when they occafionally mention the Sentiments of their refpective Authors, or Practice about the Precepts in the Law, or the Expofition of the Scriptures, differ widely from, and knew nothing of the Traditions, and Conftructions, and Stories, which these Apoftates have long after attempted to palm upon us, for ancient Traditions. The Jews, Scribes, Pharifees, &c. in the Time of Chrift, who, as they pretend, were fome of the Keepers of

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thefe Forgeries, had quite other Sentiments of their Traditions, were exceedingly ignorant of the Scriptures, and what they called the Tradition of their Elders, and Chrift calls the Traditions, not of Mofes, but of Men; were not only different from what thefe offer us fince, but vaftly different from the Intent of the Scriptures, and had made them of no Effect to themselves, nor to those who blindly followed them. Philo Judeus, JoJephus, the Oppofers of the firft Fathers of the Church, whofe Writings have come to us; nay, thofe Jews who forged the Alcoran, had, each and all, quite other Sentiments of their Law and Prophets, and other Manners of understanding, and explaining almost every Article which is occafionally mentioned; as of keeping their Sabbath, the Obligation of an Oath, &c. Therefore thefe, which were published many hundred Years after Chrift, are apparently forged, to ferve their Scheme, at that time. Voifin. in Proœm. Pugio Fid. p. 24. gives us an Account from thefe Apoftates, of the Schifms, Sects, Divifions, and Contentions that were among them, about the Affairs of this oral Tradition; fo, of the Meaning of the Scriptures, long before the Time

they attempted to put them into Writing, which is fufficient to prove what those Writings would be.

Godwyn, in his Mofes and Aaron, gives us an Account of the fham Titles of these

Apoftates, p. 23. In the third Period, when Prophecy ceafed, then the Office of expounding Scripture was more common, and instead of Prophets, came in a Multitude of other Expofitors; in general we may call them, Teachers of Ifrael, John iii. 10. We may diftinguish them into three feveral Sorts, 1. Wife-men. 2. Scribes. 3. Difputers. The Apoftle comprifeth them all, 1 Cor. i. 20. Where is the Wife? Where is the Scribe? Where is the Difputer? You may fee in this, and many other Authors, what these poor Creatures affumed to themselves; without Inftitution, without understanding the Language of the Scriptures, without Aleim, without any Expectation, but a Man who was to deliver them out of Slavery.

Waggenfel. Tela Ignea Satana Carmin. Lipman. Confut. 580. "It is a common faying among them My Son, attend more to the Words of the Scribes than to the Words of the Law: In the Book Misbeach Haffabab, c. 5. you read It is imposible to ftand upon the Foundation of our boly D.2

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Law,

Law, which is the written Law, but by the Oral Law which explains it. Aben Efra, in his Preface to the Commentary on the Pentateuch, fays, The whole of the Matter is, we can give no fure and certain Explanation of what is commanded, unless we reft on the Words of our wife Men, H. M. for as we received the written Law from our Ancestors, fo have we the Oral Law, nor is there any difference between 'em. In the Book Mizvat Hakketon, -Think not that the written Law is the Foundation of our Religion; for on the contrary, the Oral Law is its Foundation; and it was upon the Oral Law that the Covenant of God was made with the Jews; for it is written, Exod. xxxiv. 27. For upon the Mouth of thefe Words, I have made a Covenant with thee, and they are the Treasure of the Blefied God; for he knew that the Ifraelites would be carried away into many Nations, and that the People would tranflate the Jews Books into their own Tongues, and therefore would not commit the Oral Law to writing." I cannot pass the ftupid Impudence of these Authors, who would make us believe, our Mafter Mofes explained his Hebrew in Heathen Chaldee, a Mixture of Confufions, beyond any other Language, except

that one which is called Arabic.

What is

writ in Hebrew, can never be better defcribed in the most perfect of other Languages, that ever was, or ever will be; and when they loft the Hebrew, they loft the Knowledge of all that was worth knowing. Ib. Waggenf. 585. after shewing the Perfection of the written Law, from Exod. xxiv. 3, 4. Deut. iv. i, 2. he fhews their Evidence " If

If any Controverfy arofe, or Errors had crept in; the Decifion was from the written Law only; there was their recourse. So in the time of Abaz, when the Church was over-run with Corruptions, and scarce any Thing was confulted but the Southsayers and cunning Men, Isaiah fends them to the Law and Teftimony." This was to the Oracle; but if they will have it to Men, the Evidence of Mofes's Miracles, and so of his Authority, came to Men, by the Teftimony and Tradition of Men. But when his Doctrine was written, and limited to those Writings, no Evidence or Tradition of Men could alter thofe Writings, even Witneffes to the Execution of a Writing cannot be allowed to give Evidence about the Meaning of a Writing, that would deftroy the very End of Writing. Pug. Fid. 65. Obfer. Voifin." The Jews, in their Account of the Doctrine of the Times,

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