MASTER NEGA TIVE NO. 92-80471 MICROFILMED 1992 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES/NEW YORK as part of the _ . „ "Foundations of Western Civilization Preservation Project Funded by the NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES Reproductions may not be made without permission from Columbia University Library COPYRIGHT STATEMENT The copyright law of the United States ~ Title 17, United States Code ~ concerns the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material... Columbia University Library reserves the right to refuse to accept a copy order if, in its judgement, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of the copyright law. AUTHOR: PHIPPS, JOSEPH TITLE: ALL SWEARING PROHIBITED UNDER PLACE: LONDON DA TE : 1781 Restriction:; on Use: COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES PRESERVATION DEPARTMENT Master Negative # Ali^hX^zJd. DIDLIOGRAPHIC MICROFORM TARGET Original Material as Filmed - Existing Bibliographic Record ^4 f ~p7-g P,^r-=La3-e.pJn_iTi)^^ I ^y ^ns— oospel. — J-4-P . I I25M ■A". / "/ a wl. i,f jHnin>nK,^. FILM SIZE: 3^^^ TECHNICAL MICROFORM DATA REDUCTION RATIO: //A- IMAGE PLACEMENT: lA QDl IB IIB DATE Fi:.MED:___4//'^/.^ INITIALS____72>^__ HLMEDBY: RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS. INC WOODDRIDGE. cf c Association for Information and image Management 1100 Wayne Avenue, Suite 1100 Silver Spring, Maryland 20910 301/587-8202 Centimeter 12 3 4 liiiiliinl nil 5 6 7 8 1 lllilllllllllllllllllMllllllllMllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 9 10 11 iliiiiliiiil 12 13 14 iiliiiiliiiiliiiiliiiili 15 mm lili Inches TTT TTT 1 1 1.0 I.I 1.25 Mill 2.8 in 1 63 3.6 4.0 1.4 2.5 2.2 2.0 1.8 1.6 r 1 I MfiNUFflCTURED TO, fillM STRNDRRDS BY RPPLIED IMRG^, INC. 1 k I M.. ALL Swearing Prohibited UNDER THE % GOSPEL I-../ •■ By JOSEPH PHIPPS. LONDON: Printed and Sold by J. PHILUPS, George- Yard, Lombard -Street. MDCCLXXXI. I'l 't —I.' \ A tr ALL Swearing Prohibited UNDER THE G O S P E L» fJ^.^ DIVERS of the people called Quakers having of late been repeatedly urged, both in courts of judicature and elfewhere, to produce their reafons for refufing to give evidence upon oath ; for the fatisfadion of inquirers, the following are briefly ex- hibited. It hath appeared to this people, from their beginning, that the great Legiflator of the Chriftian difpenfation, in his evange- lical fermon upon the mount, intending to fhew the fuperior excellence of this difpen- fation to that of the Mofaic law, obferved. Mat. v. That the law condemned iniquity in its adual branches; but the gofpel ftiould require the prevention of them, by ftriking at the root from whence they fpring. A3 He \ A o a Q I 7 \ i.^ y W f ALL Swearing Prohibited UNDER THE GOSPEL. DIVERS of the people called Quakers having of late been repeatedly urged, both in courts of judicature and eli'ewhere, to produce their reafons for refufing to give evidence upon oath ; for the fatisfadion of inquirers, the following are briefly ex- hibited* It hath appeared to this people, from their beginning, that the great Legiflator of the Chriftian difpenfation, in his evange- lical fermon upon the mount, intending to fhew the fuperior excellence of this difpen- fation to that of the Mofaic law, obferved. Mat. v. That the law condemned iniquity in its aftual branches; but the gofpel (hould require the prevention of them, by ftriking at the root from whence they fpring. 3 He \ 1 Ho 'J i. ^ i \ P I I » [ 6 ] He noted that the law forbad the com- miflion of murder, adultery, and perjury; but he commanded, not to be angry, not to look upon a woman to luft after her, and not to fwear at all. For if people may give place to anger, it may kindle into rage, and end in murder ; if they may indulge a luft- ful eye, fornication and adultery may be the confequence^ and if they are allowed to fwear, evil-doers may forfwear to obtain their purpofes, or to efcape the punifliment due to their demerits. Our Saviour, therefore, laid the axe to the root ; and, with regard to fwearing, he faith, ** Ye have heard it was faid by them «* of old time, thou fhalt not forfwear thy «' felf, but (halt perform unto the Lord «* thine oaths. But I fay unto you. Swear ** not at all.'' — Here, as in the cafes of murder and adultery, he cuts up the root, the fureft. way to deftroy both the growth and exiftence of the branches, and perfeft the work of reformation ; for ** JfJi?," as John faid ** will throughly purge his floor.'' This perfedt work was not the bufmefs of the law, but that of the gofpel : for the law made nothing perfeB ; but the bringing in of a better hope did. By the total pro- hibition of oaths, the gofpel, where it is duly obferved, efFeftually prevents perjury, equivocations, or lying, as well as the pro- fanation MM i«a*> [ 7 J fanation of the facred name in common converfe. Proceeding then to fome particular ob- jefts the Jews were accuftomed to fwear by, our Lord adds, " Neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, •^ for it is his footftool ; neither by Jeru- falem, for it is the city of the great ** king. Neither (halt thou fwear by thy ** head, becaufe thou canft not make one ** hair white or black." If we are not to fwear by any thing that is his, becaufe it is his, nor by any thing that we can nei- ther makey nor change the nature of; then certainly not by the gofpel, which is wholly his, and which never could be in our power either to make or alter. t€ €€ Thefe paflages relating to murder, adul- tery, and fwearing, are comparative, and profefledly intended by our Lord to fhew the preference of the precepts and dodlrines of the gofpel to thofe of the law. He knew that taking the Lord's name in vain, fwearing by the gods of the heathen, and forfwearing, were all ftriftly forbidden by the law; and had he only forbad thefe, he had not at all exceeded the law, which he manifeftly meant to do by his introducing A 4 his \. \ f ;i [ 8 ] his own command, with the diftlnftlon, But, and following it with, I fay unto you. Swear not at ally &c. Having delivered the negative part of his command, he comes to the pofitive, ** Let ** your word (which AoJo? in the Greek fig- ** nifies, and not communication) be yea, <* yea, nay, nay ; for whatfoever is more •* than thefe, cometh of evil." In whatfo- ever we affirm or deny, therefore, and on whatever occafion, our yea or nay ought to be fimply fuch; for whatfoever is (or amounts to) more than thefe, (as an oath certainly is or does,) cometh of evil. For though fwearing by the name of the Lord, on folemn occafions, had been allow- ed to the Ifraelites, under the miniftratioii of Mofes, the fervant, yet, under the purer difpenfation of the Son of God, oaths were exprefly forbidden by him. Confcious of this, the apoftle James, alfo, chap. v. 6. exhorts, '' Above all things, my brethren, fwear not, neither by hea- ven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath-, but let your yea. <( <( €t ft be yea; and your nay, nay; left ye *« fall into condemnation." If we are neither to fwear by heaven or earth, nor by any other oath, we ought undoubt- edly < \ [ 9 1 edly to abftain from oafhs of all kinds, upon all occafions, and not to exceed the terms of fimple affirmation in any cafe whatever; that we may avoid the condem- nation confequent upon a breach of this Chriftian precept. To fay, that our Lord's defcending to a few particulars after his general command " Swear not at all," fhews that he meant only to prohibit fwearing by thofe parti- culars, implies, that he firft commanded what he had no intention to eftablifh, and ufed an expreffion both improper and fu- perfluousj for in that cafe, he needed only to have faid. Swear not by heaven, for it is God's throne ; nor by the earth, for it is his footftool, &c. But, furely, he no more intended to revoke his general command, by a brief affumption of particulars after It, than the Divine Wifdom, Exod xx meant to recall the general command! " Thou fhalt have no other gods before *' me," by adding, " Thou fhalt not make !! v?'° ^^^^/"3^ g^^^^" ^"lage* or any hkenefs of any thing," &c. In both cafes, the general command ftands equally independent of the particulars that follow, and not only comprehends them, but all others of like nature. As V ( L^-_ * \ [ 10 ] As to the allegations, that God himfelf fware, and divers of his infpired fervants fware*, I anfwer with Athanafius; * Seeing it is certain it is proper in fwearing to fwear by another, thence it appears, that God, to fpeak properly, did never fwear but only improperly : whence, fpeak- ing to men, he is faid to fwear, be- caufe thofe things which he fpeaks, becaufe of the certainty and immuta- bility of his will, are to be efteemed for oaths/ Compare Pfalm ex. 4. where it is faid, '' The Lord did fwear, and it did not repent him," &c. And I fwore (faith he) by myfelf :" and this is not an oath ; for he did not fwear by another, which is the property of an oath, but by himfelf. Therefore God fwears not according to the manner of men, neither can we be induced from thence to fwear. But let us fo do and fay, and fhew onrfelves fuch by fpeak- ing and adling, that we need not an oath with thofe who hear us; and let our words of themfelves have the teftimony of truth : for fo we fhall plainly imitate God/ Bifliop Burnet, in his Expofitlon of the Thirty-nine Articles, article 39, fays * It • See Barclay'! Apology, p. 549* * muft t " ] « muft be confeffed thefe words feem to be * fo exprefs and pofitive, that great regard is * to be had to a fcruple that is founded * on authority that feems to be fo full/ ' The learned Huetius, Bifhop of Avran- ches, in France, fays, '' It is well known by that precept of Chrift," Mat. v. 34. That fwearing is to be entirely avoided ; and the fame is repeated in the epiftle of James, chap. v. 12/' And Jofephus fhews, that, ' the Effenes looked upon an oath to be worfe than perjury, becaufe he feemed to be already condemned, who could not be believed, unlefs he attefted the name of God. And when Maimo- nides would prove the fame thing, he makes ufe of the very words of Chrift, But let us return to Pythagoras, whofe precept about fwearing was obferved fo ftriaiy by his difcipies, that one of them let a fine of three talenXs be fet upon him, rather than affirm the truth by fwearing; he is called Syllas, by Jamblicus, but Clinias, by Bafil. The whole nation of the Phrygians were very much againft oaths; they neither required others to take them, nor did they take them themfelves. Amongft the adages of the Arabs, this is a celebrated one, '' Never fwear, but let ' thy word be yes or no;" 'which cuftom -^ * the / t " ] • the Talcpoins of Siam obferve, manifeftly * according to the dodlrine of Chrift. * What Bafil has faid of Clinias, Dr. Potter, Bifhop of Oxford, fays, is con- firmed by Hierocles, in his Commentary on the Second Precept of the Golden Verfes of Pythagoras; and another author fays. This is likely to be done out of love to truth, and the refpedt he bore to his Mafter's doftrine, who faid. Let no man atteft God by an oath, though in courts of judicature, but ufe to fpealc fuch things, as that he may be credited with- out an oath. See Jamblicus de Vita Py- thagor. p. 1 20 and 126.' € € C € € € € € € € As to the other allegation of its be- ing faid in fcripture, ** Men verily " fwear by the greater, and an oath for ** confirmation, is to them an end of ** all ftrife;" this was only a tranfient obfervation on the common pradiice of unbelievers, and is no reafon for the con- tinuance of oaths among Chriftians. To all fuch kind of pleas, it is anfwered, that we are not authorifed to imitate what has been formerly done under the law, nor to follow the cuftoms of others, againft the exprefs commands of Chrift, the Law-giver appointed us of God; but > 1 [ 13 ] but ought always inviolably to obferve his precepts. It hath been infinuated, that his prohi- bition of oaths * was not meant to ex- ' tend to the counteradlion of the great * ends of publick juftice and focial fecu- * rity.' But it is very clear to us, that our Lord, by commanding, Swear not at ally and his apoftle, by exhorting, " Above •^ all things, my brethren, fwear noty nei- ** ther by heaven, neither by the earth, ^' nor by any other oath^' intended a total prohibition of fwearing in the Chrif- tian church. They indubitably knew, that the maintenance of publick juftice and focial fecurity, depends on truth and faithfulnefs, and not on the impofition of oaths, which are neither needful to the virtuous, nor binding to the vicious ; for were it not for the penalties annexed, it is to be feared, the oaths of thefe latter woul4 not hold them. The confcientious amongft the people called Quakers, are willing to give their evidence in a way confiftent with the in- jundions of Chrift and his apoftles ; but they dare not do it in the manner that they verily believe is forbidden. It is not ^he evidence, but the oath, that they fcruple i fcriiple ; becaufe they are fenfible that no human authority can excufe them before the tribunal of Divine Juftice : but they have always ftood ready to give their evi- dence, w^here it might be admitted with-r out a violation of the precepts of Chrift and his apoftles ; and therefore are not to be charged with the ohjlrudlion of jujiice. Where Almighty God requires one thing, and human powers the contrary, w^hich is the confcientious fubjecl to obey? The apoftle Peter anfwers, Afts v. 29, ** We ought to obey God rather than ** men." Ought not the divine autho- rity ever to be held facred and fupreme ? Why then are any reproached and ridi- culed for praftically maintaining its due preference, that they may keep a con-i fcience void of offence towards God ? ^■1 F I N I S.