Probity, we shall produce a Paffage out of Quintus Curtius, who is thought by fome to have liv'd in the Reign of Auguftus.

ALEXANDER having fent to the Scythians, a great People, to require that they would take an Oath of Allegiance to him, The Scythians return'd him this Answer, † Let not Alexander think that the Scythians are bound to Fidelity by fwearing, No, They fwear in observing their Pro• mile. The Practice of Swearing we leave to the Greeks, who fign Leagues and call the Gods to witnefs: Our Religion lies in keeping our Word. They who are not faithful to Men, deceive the Gods, and Alexander can have no Need of a Friend of whofe Benevolence he • doubts.

INSTANCES alfo might be given of fome amongst the Heathen, who, by the Integrity of their Lives and Morals, obtain'd fo great Reputation, as to have their bare Affirmation pafs inftead of an Oath before the Magiftrates.

CICERO a great Statefman and Philofopher, who liv'd about 40 Years before the Coming of Chrift

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+Jurando gratiam Scythas fancire ne credideris, colendo fidem, jurant. Græcorum ifta Cautio eft, qui acta confignant, & deos invocant. Nos Religionem in ipfa fide novimus. Qui non reverentur homines, fallunt deos. Nec tibi Amico opus eft, de cujus Benevolentiâ dubites. Jo. Freinshemius in his Commentary on this Place of Q. Curtius, comments on the Words In ipfa Fide. Quæ nobis, ut Dea, religiosè colitur. Ridiculum ergo putamus, advocatis per jusjurandum Diis religionis metu nos adftringere,fi ii fimus, ut Fidei numen poffimus contemnere. Phrygas etiam abftinuiffejurejurando fcribit Nichol. Damafcenus, in Excerpt. Valef. page 517. Sane jurandi parum validum videbatur • Vinculum Augufto apud Dion. lib. 54. Qua fponte fiunt, ea etiam citra juris jurandi vinculum obfervantur: at que fust ingratiis, non, fi Millies jurata funt, præftantur. Nisi vide; licet cum Scythis religionem in ipfâ Fide noverit.

‹ * They

Christ, relates this remarkable Paffage, fay at Athens, when a certain Man amongst them, who had liv'd in an holy and grave Manner, was to have given a publick Testimony, and, as is the Custom of the Greeks, was going ⚫to the Altars to Swear, all the Judges with one < Voice cry'd out, Let not thisMan fwear. This is thought to be spoken of Xenocrates, for Laertius, in his Lives of the Philofophers, fays, <**That ⚫ he was fo faithful to his Word, that the Athenians gave him alone the Liberty of delivering his Teftimony without Swearing, which was not allowed to others.

AND Clemens Alexandrinus, who liv'd about 150 Years after Chrift, fpeaking of that pure and unfpotted Mind one who converses with God ought to have, and of the pious Way of Living the true Chriftian is always found in, fays, One ⚫ that is grounded in such an holy Life, must be very far from being given to Lie or Swear. For

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* Cicero In Orat. pro Balbo. Athenis aiunt, cum quidam apud eos, qui fan&tè graviterque vixiffet, teftimonium pub licè diceret, &, ut mos Græcorum eft, jurandi causâ ad Aras accederet, unâ voce omnes Judices, nè is juraret, reclamaffe.

**Laertii Diogenis Lib. 4. voxparns ñv dè nai džióπιςος σφόδρα ; ως μὴ ἐξὸν ανώμοτον μαρτυρεῖν, τέτω μόνο συνεχώρουν Αθηναίοι.

What Regard had the Athenians to Integrity, and how like were those Judges of Athens to fome in our Days, who have admitted the folemn Affirmation of the People call'd Quakers, to be taken inftead of an Oath: For which A&t they fhall always be bound to have a grateful Remembrance, and cannot but admire, when they look back and confider the Sufferings they underwent for refufing to fwear, the good Hand of Providence towards them, which infpir'd the Legislature, with fuch beneficent Principles, and fo tender a Regard to the Eafe of the Subject,

⚫an *Oath is a Definitive Teftimony with a divine Affumption. But he that is once faithful, how fhall he render himself fo unfaithful as to ftand in Need of an Oath, and not let his whole Life ⚫ be one firm and definitive Oath, and fhew the • Faithfulness of his Teftimony by the Steadiness • of his Life and Conduct, and being always true

to his Word. He therefore never Swears, for ⚫ the Form of Speech he uses when he affirms any Thing, is Yes, and when he denies any Thing, No. But to Swear is to ufe an Oath, or fomething like an Oath, with a Design to enforce Be• lief. To him it is fufficient only to add to what • he denies or affirms, I speak truly, for a Confirmation to those who see not the Stability of <his Answer. It behoves him then, I think, to lead a Life that may gain him fuch Credit amongst those without, that they may not require an Oath of him, and to have in himself and towards his intimate Friends, a Difpofition and Equity of Mind, that is ever willing to do what is juft. He is one that believes that God

is

* Clementis Alexandrini Stromatum Lib. 7. pag. 801. Oxonii Editio. Πολλές γε δὲ ἢ ἐν τοιαύλη εὐσεβεία ἐξεταζόμε νον, πρόχειρον ειναι περί τε τὸ ψευσαθαι, περί τε τὸ ὁμοσαι. ὅρκος μὲν γαρ εσιν ὁμολογία καθορισικὴ μετὰ προσπαραλήJews desas. Longe autem abeft ut qui in tali pietate probatus eft, fit ad mentiendum propenfus & ad jurandum: eft enim jusjurandum Confeffio definitiva cum divinâ Affumptione. Qui eft autem femel fidelis, quomodo feipfum infidelem præbuerit, ut etiam opus habeat jurejurando, & non ita vitam inftituat, ut ea fit firmum ac definitum jusjurandum, fidemque oftendat confeffionis in conftanti ftabilique vitâ & Sermone.- Sed neque jurat, ut qui in Affirmati one quidem, Ita, in Negatione, Non, ufurpare conftituerit. Jurare enim eft jusjurandum, vel tanquam jusjurandum, mente conceptum proferre ad aliquid perfuadendum. Sufficitergo ei vel Affirmationi vel negationi addere illud vere dico, ut fidem iis faciat, qui refponfi ejus non perspi giunt Stabilitatem, &c.

is every where, and being asham'd not to speak the Truth, and knowing it to be unbecoming him to Lie, he is contented with the Witness of • God and his own Confcience only, and there•fore never Lies, nor does any Thing contrary to his Agreement. He never fwears an Oath, tho' requir'd, nor can he be brought to deny the • Truth and to fpeak a Falfhood, tho' he were to die • upon the Rack.

*

AGREEABLE with this Account of a Chriftian's Belief and Practice, is what + Tertullian, Origen, Cyprian, Bafil, Theodoret, and others of the Ancients, have deliver'd as the Belief and Practice of Chriftians; but to give the general and united Senfe of the Fathers upon the Words of Chrift Mat. v. 34. we shall tranfcribe the Expofition which Theophylact, who is reckon❜d to be an Epitomizer of Chryfoftom, has given of thefe Words For whatfoever is * That is, to more than thefe cometh of Evil. fwear, it being more than Yea and Nay, is of the Devil. But thou wilt fay then, was the Law of Mofes evil, which commandeth to

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fwear?

* ταύτη δὲ οὐδὲ ὄμνυσιν ὅρκον ἀπαιτηθεὶς, οὐδὲ ἔξαρνος ποτέ γίνεται, ἵνα μὴ ψεύσαι, καὶ ἐναποθνήσκη τοῖς βασάνοις. Ea ratione neque jurat, fi fuerit rogatus; neque unquam negat, ne falfum dicat, etiam fi moriatur in Tormentis.

Tertul. de Idololatrià. Taceo de perjurio, quando ne jurare liceat. Origen. Comment in Jer. 4. Cyprian. Teftimonium a I Quirinum Lib. 3. Dico vobis, non jurare in totum. Sit autem Sermo vefter, Eft, Est, Non, Non. Bafil. Comment. in Pfa. xiv. Theodoret ad Græc. Sermo ix. de Legibus. καὶ περὶ ὅρκων ἢ νόμος τιθεὶς, καὶ αυτές απαγορεύει τὲς ὅρκους, ἀπὸ χρῆν λέγων τὸ Ναὶ, καὶ τὸ Οὔ, πρὸς τὴν τῶν λεγομένων Beßdiwa. Cumque de jurejurando mentionem faceret, jurare prorfus inhibuit; fatis effe inquiens ad confirmanda ea quæ loquamur, fi dixerimus, Eft, Non est.

* The phylac in Mat v. Τὸ ὀμνύειν, περισσὸν ὅν παρὰ τὸ ναὶ α ὶ τοου, το διαβολῶ ἔσιν. ἀλλ ̓ ἐρεῖς ὅτι καὶ λοιπὸν ὁ νόμος

fwear? Learn therefore, that it was not Evil to fwear then, but after Chrift it is evil, as it is • alfo to be circumcifed; and fimply to Judaize.

THIS being the general Senfe of the Ancient Christians, we shall give also the Sense of an ancient Jew about Swearing. Philo, who liv'd foon after the Death of Chrift, fays,* It would be very profitable and moft agreeable to Man endow'd with Reafon, to abftain altogether from Swearing, and fo accuftom himself to Truth, that a bare Yes or No might have the • Force of an Oath.

It is now left to the judicious Reader to determine, whether the Quakers, who take Chrift to have prohibited all Swearing, be in the Right, or those who say he has only prohibited profane Swearing and voluntary Oaths. And let thofe who talk much of the Faith and Tradition of their Church, and yet teach that 'tis lawful for a Chriftian to fwear before a Magistrate, reconcile fuch Doctrine to the Faith and Tradition of the holy Apostles and Ancient Fathers.

Μωσεώς, κελέυων ὀμνύειν, πονηρὸς ἦν ; μάθε ὤν, ὅτι ἐκ ἦν πονηρὸν τὸτε τὸ ὀμνύειν, μετὰ δὲ χρισὸν ἐςὶ πονηρὸν, ὥσπερ καὶ τὶ περιτέμνεθαι, καὶ ἁπλῶς τὸ Ἰνδαΐζειν. jurare (inquit) & adjicere amplius ad etiam vel noň, a Diabolo eft. Porrò fi dixeris quòd & lex Mofis mala erit, quoniam jurare jubet: difce quòd tunc non erat malum jurare: poft Chriftum autem malum eft, ficut & circumcidi, & in fummâ quicquid eft Judaicum.

S Philonis Judæi Liber de Decalogo. κάλλιςον δὲ καὶ βιωφελέςατον καὶ ἀρμότζον λογικῇ φύσει, τὸ ἀνώμοτον, οὕτως ἀληθεύειν ἐφ' ἑκάσου δεδιδαγμένη, ὦ τοὺς λόγους ὅρκους είναι w vouial. Proinde utiliffimum fuerit & rationali naturæ convenientiffimum omnino abftinere à jurejurando, & fic veritati affuefcere, ut fimplex Sermo vim juramenti habeat.

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