It is not that I wish well to your Cause of Infidelity, that I thus encourage you. You have more Sense and Reason than to suspect me tainted with unbelieving Principles. Christianity will stand its Ground against your battering Armour; and the Church of Christ will be the more firmly establish'd on a Rock of Wisdom, for that Opposition you make to it. Tho' you will entirely vanquish the literal _Schemists_, and ride in Triumph over them, yet other Defenders of the Faith, call'd _Allegorists_, will arise to your Confutation and final Overthrow. If I am not mistaken, _Sirs_, your Adversaries, the literal _Schemists_, whom I call _Apostates_, are about making a Retreat, and yielding the Field of Battle to you. The _Bishop_ of _Litchfield_, the greatest General on their Side, will not only find it hard to levy any more Forces in Defence of his _twelve_ literal Prophecies; but he knows that, if he draws his Sword any more against you, he must attack too the Authority of the Fathers for the allegorical Interpretation of some of those Prophecies, already urg'd in my _Supplements_ to the _Moderator_; or, if the Fathers are neglected by him; they and I, keeping out of the Reach of his _Bug-Bear_, will treat him with such familiar Language, as never was given to one of his Order. Mr. _Scheme_ seems to promise us a Discourse on the Miracles in the Scriptures; I hope he'll be as good as his Word, and ere long publish it. This Discourse of mine can't possibly supersede his. As I question not but his Thoughts and Remarks on Miracles will be very considerable; so I shall be a little impatient till I see them. But be his Discourse on Miracles of what Kind soever, I believe it will hardly be an Obstruction to my Undertaking in Hand, which I intend, by God's Leave, to go on with, to the Honour of the holy _Jesus_, our spiritual _Messiah_, to whom be Glory and Praise for ever and ever. _Amen._ ~_FINIS._~ FOOTNOTES: [1] Page 44. [2] Page 53. [3] Universam porro Sacram Scripturam tam Novi quam Veteris Testamenti ad allegoricum sensum esse sumendam, admonet nos vel illud, Aperiam os meum in Parabolis. _In Prasat. ad Form. Spirit. Intell._ [4] Si quidem Symbola quædam erant quæ tunc gerebantur eorum, quæ Jesu virtute semper perficiuntur. _In Mat._ C. xv. [5] Omnis languor & omnis Infirmitas quam sanavit salvator tunc in Populo referuntur ad Infirmitates spirituales Animarum, _&c._ _In_ Mat. _C._ xvii. [6] Christi Gesta aliud portendunt. _In_ Mat. _C._ xii. Evangelicis gestis est interior Sensus, _C._ xiv. Hæc licet in præsens gesta sunt, quid tamen in futurum significent contuendum est, _C._ x. Peragunt formam futuri gesta præsentia, _C._ xxi. [7] Quæ a Jesu facta sunt, alicujus significantia erant. _Serm._ 77. [8] Omne quod fecit Jesus, Sacramenta sunt. _Homil._ 31. _in_ Marc. 9. [9] Si enim temporalis erat ab eo Utilitas, nihil grande præstitit iis, qui ab eo curati sunt, _L. V._ C. 12. _S._ 6.