which he hath determined in Jesus Christ before the creation of the world. Nor can any one, by his own power, procure unto himself so great a blessing: because we cannot by nature nor of ourselves excite in ourselves any one good motion, thought, or affection, until such time as God does prevent, and incline us to it by his grace.

"ART. XIII.-We believe that whatsoever is requisite to our salvation, is offered and communicated to us now in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is made of God unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption; so that whosoever leaveth Christ doth renounce all interest in, and title to, the mery of God the Father, to which, as to our only sanctuary, we are bound to have recourse.

"ART. XIV.-We believe that Jesus Christ, being the Wisdom and Eternal Son of the Father, took upon him our nature, so that he is one Person, God and Man-Man, that he might be able to suffer both in soul and body, made like unto us in all things, sin only excepted; so that as to his human nature, he was in truth the very seed of Abraham and of David, conceived in due time in the womb of the most blessed Virgin, by the secret and incomprehensible power of the holy God. And, therefore, we detest, as contrary to that truth, all those heresies with which the Churches were troubled in times past; and, particularly, we detest those diabolical imaginations of Servetus, who ascribed to our Lord Jesus Christ an imaginary deity, whom he asserted to be the Idea and Pattern of all things, and the counterfeit of figurative Son of God. In short, he framed him a body, compacted of three elements uncreated, and so did mingle and overthrow his nature.

"ART. XV.-We believe that in one and the same Person, to wit, the Lord Jesus Christ, his two natures are truly and inseparably conjoined and united, yet, nevertheless, in such a manner that each nature doth retain its distinct properties. So that even as in this divine conjunction, the Divine nature retaining its properties, doth still abide uncreated, infinite, and filling all places, so also the human nature remaineth finite, having its form, measure, and property. And although the Lord Jesus Christ, when he rose from the dead, did give immortality unto his body, yet he never deprived it of the verity of its nature. Therefore, we do so consider Christ in his Deity, that we do not spoil him of his humanity.

" ART. XVI.—We do believe that God, by sending his Son into the world, did declare his infinite love and inesti

mable goodness to us, delivering him over unto death, and raising him again from the dead that he might fulfil all righteousness, and purchase everlasting life for us.

“ART. XVII.—We believe, that by that only sacrifice which Jesus Christ offered upon the cross, we are reconciled unto God, that so we may be held and accounted righteous in his sight, because we can never please him, nor be partakers of his adoption, but so far only as he forgiveth us our sins, and burieth them in his grave. Therefore, we affirm, that Jesus Christ is our entire and perfect Washing, and that by his death we obtain full satisfaction, whereby we are delivered from all those sins of which we are guilty, and from which we could never be absolved by any other means or remedy.

“ ART. XVIII.—We believe that our whole righteousness is founded in the remission of our sins, which is, as David calleth it, our only happiness. Wherefore, we do utterly reject all other means by which men do think they may be justified before God, and casting away all conceits of our own virtues and merits, we do altogether rest upon the sole obedience of Jesus Christ, which is imputed to us, as well for the covering of our offences, as that we may find grace and favour with God. And, indeed, we believe, that should we in the least forsake this foundation, we could not find elsewhere any repose, but must needs be agitated with inquietudes in our consciences, because we are never at peace with God till we be persuaded upon good grounds that we are beloved in Jesus Christ. For that in ourselves we have served to be hated by him.

"ART. XIX.—We believe that by this means we have liberty and privilege of calling upon God, with full confidence that he will show himself a Father to us, for we have no access unto the Father but in and through Christ the Mediator; and, that we may be heard in his name, it is meet that we should hold and derive our life from him as from our Head.

"ART. XX.-We believe that we are made partakers of this righteousness by faith only, as it is written, "He suffered to purchase salvation for us, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish. And this is, therefore, done because the promises of life offered to us in him are then applied to our use, and made effectual to us, when we do accept of them, and in no wise doubt, but that we shall enjoy those things which the Lord, by his own mouth, hath assured us

of. So that the righteousness which we obtain by faith dependeth upon the free gracious promises of God, by which God doth declare and testify unto us that we are beloved of him.

"ART. XXI.-We do believe, that by the secret grace of the Holy Ghost, the light of faith is kindled up in us, so that it is a gracious and special gift which God bestoweth upon whom he pleaseth; and the faithful have nothing whereof they may boast, because they are doubly obliged unto God for having preferred them before others, and for that he never gave faith unto the elect once only to bring them into the good way, but also to cause them to continue in it unto the end. For as God doth begin faith, so doth he also finish and perfect it.

“ART. XXII.—We believe that by this faith we are regenerated unto newness of life, we being naturally imbondaged under sin. And we do by faith receive that grace to live holily, and in the fear of God, in our receiving of the promise which is given us through the Gospel, to wit, that God will give us his Holy Spirit. So that faith is so far from freezing our affections to godliness and holy living, that contrariwise it doth engender and excite it in us, necessarily producing all manner of good works. Finally, Although God to accomplish our salvation, doth regenerate and reform us, that we may do those things which are well-pleasing; yet, notwithstanding, we do confess that the good works which we do by his Spirit, are never accounted to us for righteousness, nor can we merit by them that God should take us for his children, because we should be always tossed with doubts and disquiets, if our consciences did not repose themselves upon that satisfaction by which Jesus Christ hath purchased us for himself.

"ART. XXIII.—We believe that all the types of the Law ended when as Christ came in the flesh. But although the ceremonies are no longer in use, yet, nevertheless, the substance and truth of them abideth always in His person who fulfilled them. Moreover, we must be holpen by the law and the prophets for the right ordering of our lives, and that the promises of the Gospel may be confirmed to us.

"ART. XXIV.-We believe, that forasmuch as Jesus Christ is conferred upon us to be our alone Advocate, and that he commandeth us, even in our private prayers, to present ourselves before the Father in his name; and that it is in no wise lawful for us to call upon God in any other way

than he hath taught us by his Word;-that, therefore, all those imaginations of men about the intercession of saints departed is none other than an abuse and imposture of Satan, whereby he may turn men aside from the right method of prayer. We do also reject those means which men presumed they had, whereby they might be redeemed before God, for they derogate from the satisfaction of the death and passion of Jesus Christ. Finally, We hold purgatory to be none other than a cheat, which came out of the same shop from which also proceeded monastical vows, pilgrimages, prohibitions of marriage, and the use of meats, a ceremonious observation of days, auricular confession, indulgences, and all other such like matters, by which grace and salvation may be supposed to be deserved. Which things we reject, not only for the false opinion of merit which was affixed to them, but also because they are the inventions of men, and are a yoke laid by their sole authority upon conscience.

"ART. XXV.-And forasmuch as we are not made partakers of Christ but by the Gospel, we believe that that good order in the Church, which was established by his authority, ought to be kept sacred and inviolable; and, therefore, that the Church cannot subsist unless there be pastors, whose office it is to instruct their flocks, and who having been duly called, and discharging their office faithfully, are to be honoured and heard with reverence. Not as if God were tied unto such ordinances or inferior means, but because it is good pleasure in this sort to govern us. So that, for these reasons, we detest all those fanatical persons who, as much as in them lieth, would totally abolish the preaching the word and administration of the sacraments.

"ART. XXVI.-Therefore, we believe that it is not lawful for any man to withdraw himself from the congregations of God's saints, and to content himself with his private devotions, but all of us jointly are bound to keep and maintain the unity of the Church, submitting themselves unto the common instruction, and to the yoke of Jesus Christ, and this in all places wheresoever he shall have established the true discipline, although the edicts of earthly magistrates be contrary thereunto; and whosoever do separate from this order do resist the ordinance of God, and in case they draw others aside with them, they do act very perversely, and are to be accounted as mortal plagues.

"ART. XXVII.-However, we do believe that we ought to distinguish carefully and prudently betwixt the true and

false Church, because the word church is very much abused. We say, then, according to the Word of God, that the Church is an assembly of believers who agree among themselves to follow God's Word, and the pure religion which dependeth on it, and who profit by it during their whole life, increasing and confirming themselves in the fear of God, as being persons who do daily need a further progress and advancement in godliness. Yet, notwithstanding all their endeavours, they must have continual recourse to the grace of God for the forgiveness of their sins. Nor do we deny but that among the faithful there be some hypocrites or despisers of God, or ill-livers, whose wickedness, however, cannot blot out the name of the Church.

"ART. XXVIII.—In this belief we protest that when the Word of God is not received, and where there is no professed subjection to it, and where there is no use of the sacraments, if we will speak properly, we cannot judge that there is any Church. Wherefore we condemn those assemblies in the Papacy, because the pure Word of God is banished out of them, and for that in them the sacraments are corrupted, counterfeited, falsified, or utterly abolished, and, for that among them, all kinds of superstitions and idolatries are in full vogue. We hold, then, that all those who meddle with such actions, and communicate with them, do separate and cut themselves off from the body of Christ Jesus. Yet, nevertheless, because there is yet some small track of a Church in the Papacy, and that baptism, as to its substance, hath been still continued, and because the efficacy of baptism doth not depend upon him who doth administer it, we confess that they which are there baptized do not need a second baptism. In the meanwhile, because of those corruptions which are mingled with the administration of that sacrament, no man can present his children to be baptized in that Church without polluting of his conscience.

"ART. XXIX.-We believe that this true Church ought to be governed by that discipline which our Lord Jesus hath established; so that there should be in the Church, pastors, elders and deacons, that the pure doctrine may have its course, and vices may be reformed and suppressed, that the poor, and other afflicted persons, may be succoured in their necessities, and that in the name of God there may be holy assemblies in which both great and small may be edified.

"ART. XXX.-We believe that all true pastors, in whatever places they may be disposed, have all the same author