29. Because, therefore, lying
heretics find not in the books of the New Testament any
precedents of lying which are meet to be imitated, they
esteem themselves to be most copious in their disputation wherein
they opine that it is right to lie, when from the old prophetical
books, because it doth not appear therein, save to the few who
understand, to what must be referred the significative sayings and
doings which as such be true, they seem to themselves to find out
and allege many that be lies. But desiring to have, wherewith they
may defend themselves, precedents of deceit seemingly meet to be
imitated, they deceive themselves, and “their iniquity lieth unto
itself.”2439
| 2439 Ps. 26 (Heb. xxvii),
12. “Mentitur eorum iniquitas sibi.” LXX. ἐψεύσατο ἡ
ἀδικία
ἑαυτῇ. Heb. and E.V.
“And such as breathe out cruelty.” |
Those
persons, however, of whom it is not there to be believed that they
wished to prophesy, if in doing or saying they feigned aught with
will of deceiving, however it may be that from the very things also
which they did or said somewhat prophetical may be shapen out,
being by His omnipotence afore deposited therein as a
seed and
pre-disposed, Who knoweth how to turn to good account even the
ill-
deeds of men, yet as
far as regards the persons themselves,
without doubt they lied. But they ought not to be esteemed meet for
imitation simply for that they are found in those books which are
deservedly called holy and
divine: for those books contain the
record of both the
ill deeds and the good deeds of men; the one to
be eschewed, the other to be followed after: and some are so put,
that upon them is also sentence passed; some, with no judgment
there expressed, are left permitted for us to judge of: because it
was meet that we should not only be nourished by that which is
plain, but exercised by that which is obscure.
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