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EXAMINATION

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DR. TAYLOR's ideas of the nature, efficacy, and defign of Sacrifices.

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HEN I join with the public, in acknowledging Dr. Taylor's great learning, and uncommon abilities as a writer; his indefatigable diligence in fearching after truth, with a juft and laudable difregard to popular opinions and human systems; and his exemplary candor and integrity in communicating to the world the real and genuine refult of his ufeful inquiries; I only do justice to his character, without any mixture of unmeaning compliment. The freedom of thought, zeal for pure, unadulterated revelation, immoveable attachment to the interests of truth, and integrity B

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and courage in expofing error, however popular, which fhine forth in his writings, raife in me an high efteem of his character, as they must in every ingenuous mind, which has a fenfe of true worth. After all, the Dr. with all these fine accomplishments, cannot be thought to be exempted from the common foible of fallibility. He has written many things well: but too much, for leaving room to think, that his valuable performances may not be blended with fome mixture of involuntary error. And if any fuch errors should be found in them, or in the works of other eminent writers; these errors ought to be expofed, not only for the fake of truth, but because they are of a very infectious nature, and the confequences of them more permanent than those of the errors of ordinary writers are.

THE most exceptionable things, which I have yet met with in the Dr's excellent writings, are those which he has taught concerning the nature, efficacy, and defign of Sacrifices, in his Scripture-doctrine of Atonement examined, and in his other writings.- -These therefore, I propofe to examine with candor, and just freedom. And if the rules of good manners be observed in the examination of them, I hope, the importance of the fubject, and the Dr's prefatory caution to his reader, may be fuffi

cient

cient to excuse me, both to him and the public, for this undertaking.

In the piece juft now mentioned, the Dr. examines the fcripture-doctrine of atonement, ift. In relation to Jewish facrifices: And 2dly. In relation to the facrifice of Jefus Chrift. I fhall observe the fame method in examining what the Dr. has taught, as fcripture-doctrine, concerning these two forts of facrifice.

PARTI.

Containing an examination of what Dr. Taylor has taught, in his fcripture-doctrine of atonement examined, concerning the meaning, efficacy, and defign of Jewish sacrifices. §. 1.DR. Taylor gives us the following definitions of Jewish facrifices, viz. Sacrifices were a fymbolical addrefs to God; intended to express before him the devotion, affections, difpofitions, and defires of the heart, by fignificative and emblematical actions *. Again, Sacrifices were fymbolical addresses to God, expreffing by outward figns, what is expreffed in prayer and praife by words, or, in the course of life, by deeds".

2 See Scripture-doctrine of Atonement examined, Chap. II. §. 24.

Ibidem, Chap. VI. §. 118.

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2. THESE two are the only definitions which the Dr. has given us of Jewish facrifices. And it appears from them, that thefe facrifices, in his idea of them, were fymbols or emblems of prayer and praise, and of those internal affections and difpofitions of the mind which are expreffed by prayer and praise. Agreeably to this notion of facrifice, he tells us, that piacular facrifice" was a penitent addrefs to God;" that is, the fymbol or emblem of penitent address to him, or, which is the fame thing, of repentance expreffed by prayer.

§. 3. WHEN I Confider the great mischief which has been already done, and may still be done, by indulging a luxuriant imagination, and multiplying fymbols, emblems, types, or allegories, without any reafon or neceflity; I

great opimust confess, that I have no

great opinion of the way of explaining scripture-doctrines by the help of fuch means as thefe, except where the fcripture itself points them clearly out, and warrants the ufe of them. By this way of explaining fcripture-doctrines, the true and genuine doctrines of revelation have been both obfcured and mifreprefented; endless, inexpli cable mysteries fet on foot, and propagated; the whole bible converted into figure and allegory; and numberlefs hot contentions

< See Script. doc. of aton, Chap. II. § 28.

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and difputes about trifles, deftructive of chriftian temper, raised and kept up in the church of Chrift. And, indeed, is there any whim ever fo ridiculous, or any doctrine ever fo false or abfurd, but what, by a free and liberal ufe of this fingle engine, may be fathered upon the holy fcriptures, and even fupported and defended by their authority? These confiderations, methinks, should make christian divines, the rational ones especially, extremely cautious against introducing fymbols, emblems, types, or allegories, in their explanations of fcripturedoctrine, without clear warrant from the fcripture itself, or from the nature and circumstances of the cafe. But the Dr. thinks, that he has abundance of fcripture-evidence to fupport his idea of the emblematic nature of Jewish facrifices. And as this is pretended, 'tis fit and reasonable, that we should carefully attend to every thing of this kind, which he has advanced, and give it a fair hearing and trial.

§. 4. BUT, before I enter upon this work, it will be proper to make the following obfervations concerning the nature of fymbols or emblems, and the proper rules which are to be observed in interpreting the fense of figurative expreffions in the holy fcriptures, and other writings; which will be of great ufe to illuftrate the criticisms and reafonings which occur in the courfe of this work.

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