The history of the Apostles Creed: with critical observations on its several articles. 1711
King, Peter King, Lord
— — ä——— — . — — Q — — — E Uw — = —— u : — 8 2 Ss - A ͤ—E—ͤ——̃—  — >< * — — = = -  —_— — . d ow 4 168 A Critical Hiſtory of ſuffered, and not as ſome Unbelievers affirm, that he only ſuffered reputativeh and according to outward appearance, and from the Comment of St. Cyril of Feruſalem on this Article, which is, That ! Feſus ſuffered Era Ines x7! danbd- l av VT» @dv/ov dvigdrov. U 5 1 uly for all Men; for NoxunTis 0 gag, de oxnotg his Croſs Was not in opi- # N οα, * ne 0 nion, nor his Redemption Nn Wm in opinion, nor his Death in opiniun. And indeed, the Paſſion of Chriſt is ſo convincing an Argument of the reality of his Incarnation, that it is ſurprizing how any could poſli- bly withſtand the force thereof ; for ="Tertull. de to affirm with the m Saturnilians, u Ba- 2 ſilidians, and others, That Cbriſt ſuffe- 5. 93. red only in fancy and ſhew, Was a poor dem Ibid. and moſt ridiculous Evaſion ; at which rate, a Man may argue againſt thoſe things that can be proved by the moi EI deujees ſenſible and viſible Demonſtrations. 9 4s dz When Marinus the Bardeſianiſt, al. Eccroy, o- : : Viel V Hes. firmed in the Dialogues of Origen, that A our Saviour thus suffered; his Antago- 70. enom- nit Adamantius thus closely replies up- 720 2 FN on him; F Christ suffered only in the » 0Q 8 Ages | 7 14 n ox n, & Lud natigor un, o = of Arb ont, Soxnod y T6 arpe evrs Jteexubn, Co Y e cutry ſerical "ovary ſerilovlo, Jornagd x, NU an dcr, x, Je- 2 eriiabe, oxnY » n Cela Fr arlgeror, Y antes. Dialog. 4+ P. 199, 110. | b Neno Wig inicn the Apostles Creed. opinion of Men, and not in reality, then Herod judged him in opinion, and Plato was shed his Hands in opinion, and Judas betrayed him in opinion, and the Apostles were only in opinion, and his Blood was shed in opinion, and the Apostles were only in opinion, and the Evangelists preached the Gospel in opinion, and he came down from Heaven in opinion, and in opinion returned thither again; and a word, the Salvation of Men is only in opinion, and not in truth and certain. Now as no Man would be so absurd and unreasonable, as to accuse all his to opinion and fancy, so it shows a oft wilful perversion and obscuration of any Man to accuse only one particular act thereto, when he seems others in the same circumstances to be undoubted and real; if the Actions of aaphas, Herod and Pilate, relating to our Saviour's Passion, were true and substantial, it was very unfair to deny the Passion itself so to be, seeing it as equally attended with the same peculiar and visible Demonstrations; therefore, the Fathers well understanding the strength of this Argument, equally prove the certainty of the carnation  Ty. Tullian, and others; and that all Cz vili might be prevented, and all Pretences be removed, as if it were; doubtful and uncertain Tradition, the compilers of the Creed have taken care to express the time of the Passover therein, viz. that it was under Pontius Pilate. This is the observation of Ruffing. P f y Cautifime autem qui Sym- That the from the bolum tradiderunt, etiam mo the Creed have most Call wo here, sub Pomtio Pilato felt: 73o1ufly mention d the ii — heron; & — — of the Passion, that i rum traditio vacillaret. Expo. in was under Pontius I 6200. $. 20. 09G late, left in any man of way it should be reputed a wondrous and uncertain Tale And indeed, the solicitous exactness of the ancient Churches is very remarkable herei since there is scarce any Creed extat wherein our Saviour's Sufferings : not expressly mentioned to have been under Pontius Pilate, that is, at the time when Pontius Pilate was Proctor, or Governor of Judea, will in the Creed observe the manner Calculation then used; for as in the Days, they made their computations by their Governours, and referred to Historical Events to the repeal 170 time of their Government, so the Passion of our Saviour is here referred to the Government of Pontius Pilate; who, as I the Martyr, with others, was Procurator of Judea in the year 1771. For the sake of the Emperor Tiberius, the King of the Jews, to exercise that Office, which chiefly was conferred in the receiving and disposing of the public Tribute and Revenue, being in subordination to the Governor of Syria, part of whose Province Judea was; with whom, nevertheless, he received from the Emperor power of Life and Death within his peculiar District and jurisdiction. But unto the Passover of our Saviour in general, there is added in the Creed the particular manner thereof, viz, that it was by Crucifixion, that he was publicly lifted up on a Cross, and being nailed thereunto, hung between Heaven and Earth in an open and visible place, where all the Spectators might, without any delusion of their senses, easily know that he was Man, and that he was that very man who was commonly known by the name of Jesus of Nazareth, and of Simon the Cyrenian, as Basilides and his Followers blasphemously imitated; concerning whom, the Primitive. 220 — — — 8 — - KLY 4 2 4 4 V 5 2 ry Te ee. e 7 Is bis Croſs, being taken h 172 A Critical History of tive Records have left us this account; 2 That they affirmed nada 5 eis whapas Christ did not suffer a 47% dana Liner, * Koglwas- | ng 2 | 2% e. all 5 but that Simon of bie i) Kerb, # J Rei, Cyrene, the bearer of Saito F Smvotay, —— N g. ig de kde A eig 7 Ac ange. the Jews for him, fi 4 my S 1 = fered in his ſtead, whill bib. 1. in Here). Baſilid. p. 87. be ft ood by, and laughed at their folly and ni. ſtake; from whence they farther affirmed that we mut not believe on him who ua really crucified, but on him who ſcene] ſo to be. Which horrid Opinion being an evident ſubverſion of the Goſpel, and a total deſtruction of the ver Foundation of Chriſtianity, it is no wonder, that to declare our Faith tha Feſus Chriſt was crucified, as well as tha a true and real Man ſo ſuffered, th: Compilers of the Creed inſerted this Clauſe therein, that every true Belie ver might at once yield his allent hereunto, that it was a real Man, and that it was really Feſus of Nazar who was crucified by the Jews at ft ruſalem: in a conformity to which Interpretation, Ignatius thus expreſſe Anda this Article in his Creed, That i ES aveo0n. E. ſ TAE truly crucified 3 and Where 77 f. ad Hal. phanius largely explains the Creed, h. 10. P. 52. F " N 413 „ ging the Apoſtles Creed, 173 gives this ſenſe of the preſent Article, that he © ſuffered in truth upon the. Haba, 2 roſs. | dune ont 7 But leſt it might be by any one ſup- at. ll. , poſed or imagined, that the eyes of the inCompend.Fid. Beholders were cheated by a deluſion e f. 463. and pretended Crucifixion, or that by a Vitcheraft, Sorcery, the distance of the Object, disturbance of the Air by wronged limbs, or any such like way, their Sight might be so far deceived and impeded upon, as to apprehend him who was nailed unto the Cross, to be true and substantial Man, whilst he was no other than an imaginary Apprehension, and a mere Chimera: It is another inerted in the Creed, That our Lord was not only crucified, but that he was also dead; when on the one hand, being deprived of all vital eration, he could not by Magick or any other Tricks deceive them; and on the other hand, they themselves without any impediment or hindrance, might freely employ all their senses to search into the certainty and reality of his bodily Substance; and easily discover his Deification and heat, if any such there were: therefore Ignatius doth in his Creed his mention this Clause, That he truly gen in his Creed thus expreſſeth it, Communem hat he rzruly died our commune hanc morrem; vere mortuus Death. eſt. In Prom. Now there may be several reasons alledged, for which the Death of Christ is placed in the Creed, and there employed to prove his Incarnation; of which I shall mention but one, that is urged to very good purpose by Tertullian against the Marcionites, and other aſſertors of a fantastic and imaginary Incarnation; the sum where of is this, that the whole Gospel is subverted, or is an unprofitable Expense and Whimſy, if Christ did not die; and Christ could not die, if he had not had real and substantial Flesh: For, as the said Father writes, by these bl e (phemous Imaginations that our Ss torum Dei o- Vour's Body was only in show an s, totum x | pus, om, Appearance, the whole work of Gul minis & pon- * n; 1 dus & fructus, mors Christi negatur, quam tam impreſſe A poſtola demandat, utique veram; summum eam fundamentum evangelii cot ſtituens, & sallutis noſtræ & prædicationis südæ; tradidi enim, inquſ vobis impri mis quad, &c. Porro sibi caro e Jus negatur, quo mors ejus aſſeveratur? quæ propria carnis eſt patho deverrentis i rerram, de  ve Soul and Body: at- PF AACR): r Which, each of thoſe two effen- il Parts of Man goes to its proper nd appointed place, the one to the I Grave, , 176 A Critical Hiſtory of Grave, and the other to the inviſible receptacle of departed Souls; accor- ding to which univerſal Law of Nature our Saviour died, that is, there was! ſeparation of his Soul and Body; and then, according to the manner and cuſtom of all Mankind, his Body was committed to the Grave, and his Soul went unto the Dwelling and Habitz- tion of - ſeparated. Spirits; both of which immediately follow in the Creed, the former in the term Buried, and the latter in this Clauſe, he di. ſcended into Hell. Now, as for the Burial of our $4- viour's Body, that as well as the pre. cedent Clauſes, was alſo introduced a. gainſt thoſe Hereticks, who 1mpugne the reality thereof; this being a mol ſenſible and andiniahle demonſtration, that he had a material and ſubſtantial Body, ſeeing any one might then have | both felt and ſeen, that what was bu- 1 | ried, was real and cettain, and that i could be no other than a true Body of | FPleſh, which was committed to the f Grave; for, as Theodoret well obſerves 1 ELON Kage againſt theſe Hereticks, The * Hur | eee, F our Saviour was a ſufficient confuth Avoai, te | xd 1% rdep, ru ſe Jebrns, — Tois © Cal. | do xa]aor ator). Dialog. 3+ rey p. 62. ; T / the Apoſtles Creed. 177 tion of them for it was neither his Soul nor his Godbead which the Grave re- ceived, but bis Body; for Graves are prepared for Bodies : In which ſenſe, this Article 18 generally applied by the Primitive Commentators on the Creed, as by Epiphanius, who writes, That hereby we are obliged to believe, that b bis Body was buried in | truth, remaining vit houut 12 Call c. raeti]O. 2, a Soul three Days, void 3 y «Lys li of Breath and "Motion, 7, anole 08 f Cute wrap'din a Linen Cloth, O aaleb H & md uvipa- laid in a Tomb, and „ Jig 7 Mile, | X (,veayil& 7 met or. ſecured by a Stone, Anacephal. p. 531. and the Seals of oy | who rolled it on; and by Maximus Tau- rinenſis to the ſame purpoſe, That 2 * : Sepultus eſt, our Saviour's © Burial declared him to ut — — be truly dead; not much unlike to esu c. which, Petrus Chryſologus faith here-p. 239. on, That © he Confeſ- . „ I Sepultum dicis, ut veram fron of tbe Burial of our camem Chriſti, mortemque non Saviour, proves that he perfuntoriam prober confeſſio aſſumed true Fleſh, and ICT. In Symbol. Serm. 60. That he really died. So that after our Saviour's Expiration on the Cross, and the Dissolution of the vital Union between Body and Soul, that he might in every thing become like unto us, (Sin only excepted) and by his personal Endurance sanctify every state and condition to all his Members, he permitted his Body, like unto ours, to be buried in Grave, and committed to the Earth, whilst his Soul fled to the invisible receptacle of disunited Spirits and separated Souls, which is contained under the following Article, he descended to Hell, and will be the Subject of the ensuing Chapter. The Dearest of our Saviour into Hell, as never by any: Differences in the Explanation thereof: Tix Moderation of the Church of England herein. This Article relates, First, Something done by Christ's Soul which excludes the Burial of his Body from being designed thereby; and, Secondly, Something done by his Soil in its separate state, exclusive of the sufferings thereof, whilst he was alive: No exact agreement in the Notions if the Primitive Writers bereabout: Tit explanation of the word Hell or Hides, as it is in the Greek: No other Word in the World. Modern English, 7 The Apostles Creed. Dutch, comprehenzive of the 41 - nification thereof Hell in old English, exactly an answer to the Greek Hades, which properly signifies the habitation or receptacle of all separated human Souls, whether good or bad: The Pagans, from whom the propriety of any Greek or Latin word is to be fetched, understood it in this sense: The modern, or at least the ancient Jews, placed all separated Souls in Hell. The Primitive Christians Recently after their separation from the Poly, Tea into a place of 50 and Happiness, which they termed Hell, as is at large proved. In the declaration of the Greek, and chiefly of the Latin Tongue, the word Hell began to be solitarily applied to the Manſion of departed wicked Souls: Origen amongst the Greeks, doubted of the Passage of faithful Souls into Hell, since the Re- urrection of Christ. But after him, the ancient Doctrine, that all Souls go to Hell, and remain there till the Re- urrection day, generally prevailed in the world, and after him Jerom, and others, entertained the same notion in the West, as Origen had in the East: N 2 Auftin N 2 Auftin N 2 Auftin N 3 Auftin N 3 Auftin N 4 Auftin N 5 Auftin N 6 Auftin N 7 Auftin N 8 Auftin N 9 Auftin  N 16 Auftin N 16 Auftin N 16 Auftin N 17 Auftin N 18 Auftin  the Earth; from whence it was Parated from his Body, went by A Critical History of Austin was uncertain and Wavering in his apprehensions hereof: The rest. cereus from the ancient Opinion, occasioned by Words The word Hell in thy Apostolick sense, could not accord to the propriety of Speech, signify any other thing, than the state or plat. The phrase or phrase was separated from the context, and the meaning of the word depended on one place to another. It sometimes on the signiſies a simple Removal in one place to another. It became a popular kind of Speech arising from the common opinion, that Hell was in the Bowels of the Earth, called by the Latins Infernum, and the like. Some were under the Earth; and some were uncertained of the situation thereof, but as a comprehended it to be the common Law of departed Souls; and in a conformity to the common Dialect, uustermed the passage thither a deluge into Hell, as in this Article of the Creed; by which they meant no other than that our Saviour's Soul being the same. Motion to the unſeu Habitation of departed Souls, where it remained till his Resurrection Day: Which is further proved from the ends of his going thither; which were chiefly the four; First, To sanctify unto his Followers the state and place of their Souls, during their separation from their bodies: Secondly, That he might persecute and as the Head of his Church, conquer Death and Hell, which he did by returning thereto, and bringing the Souls of believers with him. And, Fourthly, That he might subject himself unto the Laws of Death, and be in everything like unto us: From whence it more evidently appears, That the Dearest of Christ into Hell signifies no other, than the passage of Vis Spirit unto the receptacle of separated Souls. The occasion of inserting this Clause in the Creed, taken from the Arians, Romans, and Apollinarians, who in a more cunning way than the former Heretics, among the humanity of our Saviour, by denying, that he had a reasonable Soul: The difference between the two, and the one, is, that the one, in the first place, is the one who is the Father, and the other the Father. The Error of the Arians and Apollinarians herein proved, that the Arians, or at least some of them, with the Romans, beheld, That Christ's Body was void of a rational Soul. But that which rendered this here, the more considerable and dangerous, was the exposing of it by Apollinaris, the Munger, the most noted Person if his Age for Ability and Piety; in which account, his Fall was a very ten. der and sensible looses to the Church; The time when he vented his Heretics which was, that Christ had no human Soul, but that his Divinity supplied the place thereof: The consequences of which Opinion, are in existence in several particulars. In opposition whereunto, this Clause was inserted in the Creed, he descended into Hell: Which Point was pitched upon by the Governours of the Church, because of all the Arguments used against the Apollinaries, it was the most unanswerable On which at account, it is frequently urged by the Fathers again them, and it falls most naturally with the Frame of the by Creed, without disturbing the Or . thereof: The time of the Introdudition of this Article. The first Vol. tholick Creed, wherein it is found, is in that of Aquileia, recorded by Ruf- finus, though before that in a private Creed of Epiphanius, and even be- fore him in a Creed framed by a Party of Arians at the Council of Ariminum, eld Anno 359. Several probable De- ſins of thoſe Arians herein, as to clear themſelves from the ſuſpicion of the forementioned Hereſy, to diſgrace their great Amtagoniſt Apollinarius, and by that means to create Feuds and Quar- rels among it the Orthodox , who, fin- ding Apollinarius openly to declare for his Hereſy, entirely abandoned him, condemned him in ſeveral Synods:;, and at length, according to the Example of the Arians, inſerted in the Creed this Antidote againſt his Hereſy, That _ deſcended into Hell : Which in the Aquileian Creed is expreſſed in a greater Latitude, by deſcending into the lower Parts, wherein the Burial might be comprehended and deſigned : But as it is expreſſed in the Roman, or our preſent Creed, it can have no other than the forementioned fignifi- cation; which, to prevent Miſtakes, is again repeated. | N 4 VE 183 184 A Critical Hiſtory of WIA are at length arrived to that famous Article of our Saviour's Deſcent into Hell- The truth where of was never denied or queſtioned by any; for the Holy Scriptures do ſo expreſly aſſert it, eſpecially that Text : of St. Peter, cited from the Pſalniſ, © Ads ii. 244 © Thou ſhalt not leave my Soul in Hell, neither wilt thou ſuffer thine Holy One to ſee Corruption; that, as St. Auſtin Nb affirms, * none but an Infidel will deny nepaverit fuiſ- it. But, that which hath rendered this ſe apud infe- Article ſo noted and obſeryable, are riſt 2 3 a 4 8 g ros Chrifum the various Senſes and different Signi- rod. Epijt, gg. fications that have been given of it: oy The particulars whereof are ſo multi- plied, that I ſhall not here go about to enumerate them. In the Articles of Religion, set forth in the Days of King Edward the Sixth, this Deaconess of our Saviour into Hell, was expounded by the going of his Soul unto the Spirits where in Prison, or, in Hell, where he preached to them. But in a Synod ten Years after, in the time of Queen Elizabeth, when the Articles of the Church were framed, which are now subscribed, as Dr. Fuller informs us it the Ninth Book of his Ecclesiastical History, the Deacons. into Hell was barely mentioned, with- out any explication of the manner thereof; the Compilers of thoſe Ar- ticles judging it imprudent and unrea- ſonable, to impoſe upon others any Explanation whatſoever of a Point ſo intricate and obſcure, leaving every Man in love and charity to embrace that ſenſe thereof, which ſeemed to him moſt genuin and proper ; where- in the Moderation of the Church of England cannot be ſufficiently praiſed, and 1s a moſt worthy Pattern unto all others in the like caſes, that they im- poſe not their particular and private Expoſitions of a perplexed and obſcure Doctrine as Articles of Faith, and Terins of Communion. Seeing there- fore, that ſuch worthy Perſons as the ompoſers of the forementioned Arti- les, have left every one to his liber- y, to pitch upon that Interpretation df this Article which he eſteems to be oſt'natural and eaſy; it cannot be 4 way culpable in me, to make an ay towards the Explication there- f: Which that I may the more effe- ually do, I ſhall proceed by degrees, nd Firif obſerve, That what is ſpoken erein concerning our Lord's De- cent into Hell, relates to his Soul a- N lone; 1 A Critical Hiſtory of lone; as the diſpoſal of his dead By dy had been before declared in the term Buried, ſo now there follow; ſomething in the Creed reſpecting {6 litarily and peculiarly his Soul, or Sp. For the proof whereof, I need not say much in this place, seeing it will be fully confirmed by the whole enjoining part of this Chapter. But yet, that I may not affirm anything without a direct and immediate proof, this will be most evident from the consideration of the use that the Orthodox made of this Point again that heresy of the Gentiles, by which they denied the &.  lib. 5. c. 26. p. 356. an overturning the Order of the Resurrection, a denial of our Lord's decree into Hell, and by consequence of all a Followers, who, according to the said that at Death their Soul aſcended above the Het ven unto their determined place, from what they shall no more remain unto their Bodies; for gainst this Notion and Opinion they strongly argued, That it was pt tres of truth, must first go thither by: | | - the Apoſtles Creed. They can be admitted to the perfect fruition of the ever-blest God: Unto which convincing Argument, the Heretics could frame no other Reply, than that the Body was the Hell of the Soul, and that Christ's being in his Body here on Earth, was his descent into Hell; from the Pains whereof he was set free, when by Death he was delivered from his Body. From whence it is most apparent, that the Dearest into Hell is to be understood alone of our Saviour's Soul. For the further proof whereof, I might cite St. Jerome, who writes, That it was the Soul of Christ which went into the Dead, and that Christ was in his Body. Dicunt interos quidem ea, hunc mundum, qui sicundum nos, interiorem autem hominem ipse, cum in supercipiendum aecendere locum. Id. Ibid. p. 356. Anima ejus deacendic in inferqum. Tom. 5. Com. in 13, cap. Hell; as also Epiphanivs, Ambrose, in Origen, u Athanasius, with many others, Who all apply this Action of Christ. 5. p. 181. Vol. 2. Com. in Fohan. Tom. 32. 5.419 ey Tom. 1. de Incarn. v Christ, ad- our Saviour's to his wer: Soul alone; employing for this end that Text of the Apostle, cited by him from the Passover, on which this Article is principally founded, "Thou wilt not leave my Soul in. Hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One Apollinar. p. 630. Acts ii. 27. A Critical History of the Soul to See Corruption; where, by the Soul of Christ, which God would not leave in Hell, they understood the rational part of Man, that Spirit which distinguishes him from a Brute, and subjects after its dissolution and departure from the Body: Wherein it is most probable, they were in the right; for although the word Soul may by a Metonymy be sometimes taken in Scripture for the Body, yet it cannot be understood, where it is placed in opposition to, and contradiction from it, as in this Text it is. And, as for the Creed itself, the Burial of our Lord's Body having been already asserted, the bare repetition of the same in other Terms, would be an unaccountable Tautology, and contrary to that Brevity which this short Summary of Faith intends. But then, Secondly, The Dejection into Hell respects not only our Saviour's Soul, but relates something done by it in its separate state, after it was dissolved from its Body by Death; which excludes its having any reference to the Miseries and Agonies that he suffered in his Soul whilst alive. Now this will most evidently appear from the Sermon of St. Peter, recorded in the afternoon. The Apoſtles Creed. cond of the Acts, wherein he applies that Text of the Psalm, That God would not leave his Soul in Hell, unto our Saviour, after that the Fews had by wicked hands crucified and slain him; a cursing his Auditors therefrom, that although they had crucified and put to death the Lord of Life, by means whereof his Body was buried in the Earth and his Soul gone to Hell, yet those two essential Parts should return from their respective separated Manuscripts, and be conjoined in the same perfect living Manuscripts, and be conjoined in the same perfect living Manuscripts, according to the Prophecy of David, who seeing this before, spoke of the Resurrection of Christ, that his Soul was not left in Hell, neither did his Flesh see Corruption; where it is manifest, that the Being, or descending into Hell, related unto the Soul of Christ during the interval between his Death and Resurrection; that, as during that time, his Body was laid in the Grave, so his Soul went into Hell, where each of them remained in their particular Habitations, till the reunion of them again by his glorious Resurrection, which was the Third Day after his Death and Passion. Now suitable to this Explanation of the forementioned Texts, were the Notions of the Primitive Fathers. Arha-naſius in his Trad against Apolimarins, concerning the Incarnation of our Lord, N 2507 shows in sundry places, that while Moya his Body lay buried in the Grave, his Tap in the Soul went into Hell, to perform in that place those several Actions and Operations which were necessary for the complete Redemption and Salvatian of Mankind; that he performed after his Death, Ai. rent Actions by his two Eauxential Parts: by his Body he lay in the Grave, and conquered Corruption; by his Soul he went into Hell, and vanquish Death, Wherefore he writes in another Tract against the said Here- Mir r A tick, That after the — 4" Joe 2 ws Death of Christ, his ho. 4% Aoeld ohne, Oe 39 ki, dy lay in the Grave, and 78 for 22 Tegen un e. hig Soul went to Hell; xad]Me les F Avy lu wi 6s rg ze.. lest 1 neit her of which Were idev Siagd De sallut. ad- Fig adverſ. Abollinar. aef. erted by His Divinity, Tom.,. 645. according to that Saying of the Pſalmiſt, Thou ſhalt not leave my Soul in Hell, neither wilt thou ſuffer 22 — Holy One to see Corruption. And the Author of the Dialogues concerning the "Holy Trinity, extant among the Works of the said g 2 Father, the Apostles Creed. 191 Father, writes, That £ | g reg „ & dds Yori Chr iſt. for our sake 5 Ji F Jex, 32. went down by his Soul reh du ] Copa. Tom. 2. Into Hell, whilst his body was laid in the Grave. But, what need I multiply Quotations to prove a Point so universally attested by the Ancients in innumerable places of their Writings? Let therefore the Super-addition of the Single Testament of Fulgentius suffice, That after the Death of the Humanities vera Filius Dei nec tota in sepulchro fuit, nec rota in Son of God, his whole inferno, sed in sepulchro secundum. Humanity was neither in dum veram carnem Christi, but that he died in Ad Trausund. Lib. 3. c. 34. P. 76. The Grave with his Body, whilst he went into Hell with his Soul. From all which it is most evident, That the Dearest into Hell relates only to the Soul of Christ during its separation from the Body, or the time that intervened between his Death and Resurrection; which being presumed, I come now to consider the Article itself, or what is predicated therein concerning our Lord's separated Soul, which is, That he descended into Hell; wherein the two things shall be examined, First, The place Where he went, which was Hell; Secondly, A Critical History of Secondly, The manner of his going there, viz. by descending, he descended into Hell. Only before I speak to either of these, I must be forced to premise one thing more, which is, that I do not pretend to affirm; that all the Fathers and Primitive Writers had the same exact Notions and Conceptions of this Article of the Creed, since without any reflection it is too manifest; that several of them had no distinct and clear apprehensions thereof, but were uncertain and confused in their Notions thereabouts: Wherefore, it will be sufficient for my purpose, to prove what follows to have been the generally received Opinion, and that it is The most natural, easy, and unconstrained interpretation of this perplexed obscure Article, he descended from Hell. Now, as for the first thing, the place where Christ descended, which is said to be Hell; it is most certain that we have not any one word in our modern English Dialect, nor by what I could ever understand, in another of the present European Tongues to express the Greek word by: "The word in Greek," which is "ins", Hadts. Signifies an invisible place, wherein all separated Souls, whether good or bad, righteous or unrighteous, are received and contained, as shall be hereafter proved; the half of which significance, is only expressed in the French word L'Exeter, and in the English and they are always taken in an evil sense, and do not actually denote the Man's and Habitation of wicked and ungodly Souls. English Dialect, the word Hell was taken in a larger sense, for the general receptacle of all Souls whatsoever; and even no longer ago than which is still retained in the Common Prayer Book, it was used in this general Acceptation, as in Eusebius. Ixxxix. 47. What Man is he that liveth, and shall not see Death? Shall he deliver his soul from the Hand of Hell? Where shall he be understood of the general receptacle of all Souls, or otherwise the words of the Psalmist would not be true; for, all Souls do not go to that Hell which is the place of the Old Translation of the Psalms. Dutch words Hell and Hell, seeing it is true indeed, that in the ancient the old Translation of the Psalms, Damned: And even long before that, Dr. Tower "You inform us, in 27 —" "Comment on the Creed, A Critical History of Saxon Discourse written above Seven hundred Years ago, it is said of Aday, That after he had lived Nine hundred Years, he went with Sorrow into Hell; where, since none but reputed Heretics ever denied the Salvation of A. Dam, it is most reasonable to consider." clude, That by the Hell to which he went, nothing else is to be understood than the common receptacle of all departed Souls, whether good or bad. Which ancient sense of the word Hell, may be farther confirmed from the primary and original signification thereof; according to which, it imports no further than an invisible and hidden place, being derived from the old Saxon word Hell, which signifies to hide, or from the Participle thereof Helled, that is to say, hidden or covered; as in the Western Parts of England at this very day, to Hell over anything, signifies amongst the common People to cover it; and he that covereth an House with Tile or Slat is called an Hellar. From whence appears, that the word Hell, according to its Primitive Notion, exactly at wers to the Greek word and Haden which signifies the common Manfiol of all separated Souls, and was so the Apoſtles Creed, 195. certainty of the places whither de- "Ive arted Souls do go, and of their invi- | Ebilicy unto us. | But, from the literal ſignification of { the word, let us proceed to the thing iclf; where 1 ſhall endeavour to prove, That amongſt all the Antients, whether Heathens, Jews, or Chriſftions, the uſual Acceptation of the term Hell Vas, that it was the common Lodge or Habitation of ſeparated Souls, both | good or bad, wherein each of them, '| according to their Deſerts in this Life, and their expectations of the future Judgment, remained either in Joy or 1 Miſery. | . 5 bl place the Heathens with the Jews and Chriſtians, becaule the propriety of any Greek or Latin word is to be etched from them; and the Apoſtles peaking the words of their Language, It cannot be imagined, but that they — — — „poke them according to their vulgar 100 ienification, intending always by them ol deir  — natal - * = of we. = <- 7 £ bj ww - — — DD — -_ — — "2 — or copious Proof, ſeeing the leaſt per. he deſcribes to be the common plac A Critical Hiſtory of Now that the Heatheus, both Greek; and Latins, the one by their Hades and the other by their Inferi, did ge. 