and hopes do fail. But these lamentable occurrences carry me farther than I had purposed when I put my pen to paper. I shall be right glad to hear of your lordship's health and welfare, which the Lord vouchsafe to continue; gladder to -see the remainder of your former learned and laborious work abroad. The Lord bless and protect you. And thus ready to do your lordship any service I may in these parts, I rest, &c."*

Mr. Gataker had not yet finished all his writings on points of controversy. His zeal and courage in the cause of protestantism engaged him to enter the list of disputants against the popish party. Observing that the papists laboured to prove the doctrine of transubstantiation to be agreeable to the holy scriptures, he resolved to shew, in the most convincing manner, the absurdity and impossibility of their attempts; and, having driven them from this, which was their strongest post, he prosecuted his attack, and forced his opponents to quit every other refuge. This he did in his work entitled "Transubstantiation declared by the Popish Writers to have no necessary Foundation in God's Word," 1624. He also published a "Defence" of this work. His learned performances in this controversy proved a great and seasonable service to the cause of protestants, and very deservedly rendered him conspicuous in the eyes of the most worthy persons of those times, who admired his erudition and his fortitude as much as his humility and his readiness to serve the church of Christ.t

In the year 1640, he was deeply engaged in the controversy about justification, which greatly increased his reputation. In 1643, he was chosen one of the assembly of divines, and constantly attended during the session. His endeavours in this learned synod, for promoting truth and suppressing error, were equally strenuous and sincere; yet his study of peace was so remarkable, that when his reason concerning Christ's obedience in order to our justification, could not obtain the majority of that assembly, by whom the question was determined contrary to his sense, his peaceable and pious spirit caused him to keep silence, and hindered him from publishing the discourses which he had designed to publish on that subject. In the year 1644, he was chosen one of the committee for the examination of ministers. He was repeatedly urged to take his doctor's degree, but he always

* Parr's Life of Usher, p. 76.

VOL. III.

+ Biog. Britan. vol. iv. p. 2164.

P

refused: and when he was offered the mastership of Trinity college, Cambridge, by the Earl of Manchester, he declined the honourable preferment.*

Mr. Gataker, content with his own pastoral charge, was more ambitious of doing good to others than of exalting himself; he therefore assiduously applied himself in those turbulent times to his ancient studies, which could give offence to no party, and which might entitle him to the gratitude and approbation of all the friends of good literature. With this object in view he published his judicious and laborious discourse on the name by which God made himself known to Moses and the people of Israel. In this performance he shewed himself a very great master of Hebrew; and the work was so well received by all competent judges, that it has been often reprinted. This very profound, curious, and instructive treatise is entitled, "De nomine Tetragrammato Dissertatio, quâ vocis Jehovah apud nostros receptæ usus defenditur, & a quorundam cavillationibus iniquis pariter atque inanibus vindicatur," 1645. The work was reprinted in 1652; it is also inserted amongst his " Opera Critica;" and it found a place among the ten Discourses upon this subject, collected and published by Hadrian Reland, the first five of which were written by John Drusius, Sextinus Amama, Lewis Capel, John Buxtorff, and James Alting, who opposed the received usage, which is defended in the other five dissertations, the first of which was written by Nicholas Fuller, the second by our author, and the three others by John Leusden.

This celebrated scholar, by his continual application to the study of the best Greek authors, his wonderful memory, his uncommon penetration, and his accurate judgment, was enabled to look into the very principles and elements of that copious, elegant, and expressive language. This might seem beneath the attention of so great a man; but he resolved to vindicate these inquiries, and to shew how much a thorough knowledge of grammatical learning contributes to the improvement of science. He was aware that the singularities of his opinion might lessen his reputation, if they were not clearly and fully established. He knew that they did not spring either from a naked imagination, or an affectation of opposing common opinions; but were in reality the produce of much reading and reflection, and they had, at least to himself, the appearance of certain, though not vulgar truths. It

* Clark's Lives, p. 152-155.

was from these motives, therefore, that he ventured to publish a work which would scarcely have been noticed from any other hand, but which, from its own merit, and the respect due to its author's skill, especially in Greck literature, was very well received, and highly commended, by able and candid judges. This learned and critical work is entitled, "De Diphthongis sive Bivocalibus Dissertatio Philologica, in qua Literarum quarundam sonus germanus natura genuina figura nova et scriptura vetus veraque investigatur," 1646. This is also printed amongst his "Opera Critica." The point which he endeavours to establish is, that there are in reality no diphthongs, and that it is impossible two vowels should be so blended together as to enter into one syllable. This, as we have observed, was one of our author's singularities. We shall not enter into this controversy, nor attempt to decide whether he was right or wrong in his views of orthography.

Notwithstanding Mr. Gataker's assiduous application to these deep and critical studies, he paid the most exact attendance to his pastoral duties, and to the assembly of divines. In obedience to their appointment, he wrote the annotations upon Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Lamentations, published in the Assembly's Annotations on the Bible. Though he was a divine most distinguished for moderation, he disapproved of many things in the national church, but would have been satisfied with moderate episcopacy. He was of opinion, that bishops and presbyters, according to the New Testament, were the same. He was always opposed to the great power and splendour of the prelates; and concluded, that they ought to be divested of their pompous titles and their seats in parliament. He differed more than once with the very learned Dr. Lightfoot, in their meetings at the assembly; and though they sometimes debated warmly, they never lost their tempers, or indulged any rancour on account of these disputes.

As our divine advanced in years, his incessant labours, both of body and mind, brought upon him those infirmities which slackened his speed, but did not wholly stop the progress of his studies. For even under these infirmities, and when confined to his chamber by the direction of his physicians, he was continually employed in his beloved contemplations.

Biog. Britan, vol. iv. p. 2165.

+ This useful work is improperly ascribed to the assembly of divines, but was undertaken by certain divines appointed by the parliament, part of whom were members of the assembly. Each person had his portion of scripture appointed him by those who set him on work. Several of them were celebrated puritans, as the reader will find noticed in this work. Clark's Lives, p. 256, 257.

But when, through the excellency of his constitution, his temperate manner of living, and the skilful efforts of the faculty, he recovered a moderate share of health, he betook himself again to the duties of his ministry; but was afterwards under the necessity of declining the exercises of the pulpit, though he continued to administer the sacraments, and to deliver short discourses at funerals. The chief part of his time was now employed in study, and in composing several learned works. He employed his learning, his zeal, and his moderation in the antinomian controversy, by publishing a work, entitled, "A Mistake or Misconstruction removed, (whereby little difference is pretended to have been acknowledged between the antinomians and us,) and Free Grace, as it is held forth in God's Word, as well by the Prophets in the Old Testament, as by the Apostles and Christ himself in the New, shewed to be other than is by the Antinomian Party in these times maintained. In way of Answer to some Passages in a Treatise of Mr. John Saltmarsh, concerning that subject," 1646. This is written in answer to Mr. Saltmarsh's "Free Grace, or the Flowings of Christ's Blood freely to Sinners; being an Experiment of Jesus Christ upon one who hath been in Bondage of a troubled Spirit at times for twelve years," 1645. Mr. Gataker in his work observes, "That it seems a thing much to be feared, that this course, which I see some effect, and many people are much taken with, of extracting divinity in a kind of chymical way, even chimerical conceits, will, if it hold on, as much corrupt the simplicity of the gospel, and the doctrine of faith, as ever the quirks and quillets of the old schoolmen did." During the same year he published "Shadows without Substance, in the pretended New Lights," in answer to Saltmarsh's "Shadows flying away." Also his "Mysterious Clouds and Mists," in answer to Mr. J. Simpson.

Mr. Gataker soon after published his discourse on the style of the New Testament, in which he opposed the sentiments of Pfochenius, who maintained that there were no Hebraisms in those sacred writings, which he endeavoured to prove as well by authorities as arguments. All this our author undertook to overthrow, which, in the opinion of the best critics, he most effectually accomplished; and more than this, he so clearly and concisely explained the true meaning of many texts in the Old as well as the New Testament; corrected such a variety of passages in ancient authors; and discovered such a consummate skill in both the living and dead languages, as very justly gained him the character of

if by them, why not by the ancients? "I could readily grant you that," says our divine, "and yet deny the consequence that you would draw from it. For the Greek language itself was much declined, in the time of the apostles, by the admission of a multitude of exotic words and phrases borrowed from the Italians, Sicilians, Cyrenians, and Carthagenians, partly from their being under the same government, and partly from their commercial intercourse with those nations. But, after all," says he, "if Demosthenes could live again, it is most likely he would find many obstacles in reading Paul's writings, and would object to many of the words and phrases.' He then quotes a long passage from Beza's Annotations on the Acts of the Apostles, in which that learned commentator shews the reasons why the apostles were not studious about their style, but endeavoured to make themselves understood by those with whom they conversed, rather than to render their discourses elegant from their pure and correct language.

In the same manner he proceeds through the rest of his treatise, in which he explains, as they occur, a multitude of passages in sacred and profane authors, correcting some and commending other critics who have gone before; but with so much mildness and moderation, with such apparent candour and respect to truth above all things, that it is impossible for the reader not to admire his excellent temper, while he ruins the reputation of the contrary party. In the fortyfourth chapter, Mr. Gataker gives a recapitulation of the whole dispute between him and Pfochenius, and observes, that the true state of the question is, whether the style of the New Testament in Greek is every where the same with that which was used by the ancient writers, at the time when the language was in its greatest purity? Or, whether it is not such as frequently admits of Hebraisms and Syriasms? Pfochenius affirms the former, and denies the latter; while our learned critic maintains the opposite sentiments. Mr. Gataker concludes by observing, that, notwithstanding all that Pfochenius has urged, he does not doubt that nearly six hundred phrases might be produced from the New Testament, and a much greater number from the Greek version of the Old Testament, the purity of which Pfochenius seems tacitly to maintain, in which there are plain characters of the Hebrew or the Syriac tongues, and not the least resemblance of the ancient Greek, so far as men of the greatest labour and erudition have hitherto discovered. The venerable primate of Ireland,

* Biog. Britan, vol. iv. p. 2167-2169.