J.H. Heidegger's Corpus of Christian Theology: Sacred Scripture: Summary

1.  Divine Revelation up until Moses was propagated by tradition alone, without Scripture.  2.  The manner of the preservation of the tradition until Moses.  3.  The commencement of Scripture.  4.  The necessity of consigning the same to writing is asserted.  5.  And it is defended against the blasphemies of the Papists.  6.  A definition of Scripture.  7.  The perversity of those doubting concerning the Divinity of Scripture without the testimony of the Church.  8.  That Divinity is demonstrated from those notions that the conscience and reason of man suggest, but Scripture illustrates and perfects.  9.  And from the manner of tradition, and from testimonies, which confirm the truth of the Revelation contained in Scripture as composed by God.  10.  And from the predictions, verbal and real, that are contained in the same, and also the effect produced by the same.  11.  And from the character of the sacred Writers; the sublimity, holiness, and harmony of the written doctrine, and the efficacy of the doctrine and discourse, and also its accidental properties, its antiquity, preservation, and propagation by infidels and Antichrist himself.  12.  Yet this Divinity only shines in the eyes of the spiritual.  13.  Because the natural man is blind and an enemy of God.  14.  Therefore, the testimony of the Holy Spirit is necessary, who testifies by illumination, so that we might see the rays of Divinity; neither is this Spirit private or ἄδηλος/uncertain.  15.  Which not even the very Papists have dared to reject; but they strive to achieve only this, as to the Church testifying, that the Scripture is the word of God.  16.  The testimony of the Church in proving the Divinity of Scripture is occasional and introductory.  17.  Not principal and authentic.  18.  As fallible.  19.  And liable to error, whether it be considered as collective, or as representative.  20.  Neither a particular Church, nor the universal Church, exhibits a testimony of this sort.  21.  The testimony of the Church presupposes the Divinity of the Scripture, even with respect to us.  22.  Scripture, since it is the principium of faith, and impresses itself of its own accord upon a well-disposed faculty, is the law of God Himself, and has authority in itself, does not need another authentic testimony.  23.  The concealment of the error of our opponents.  24.  The Church, although the pillar and ground of the truth, does not therefore authentically confirm Scripture.  25.  Nothing prevents Scripture from being the witness of its own Divinity:  neither does the belief of it rest upon reason.  26.  The way of Scripture is safer than the authority of the Church.  27.  Neither does this make every private person infallible.  28.  The Church did not fix the Canon of Scripture by its own authority.  29.  The sayings of Augustine on this matter are set forth.  30.  The impiety of Hobbes, suspending the authority of Scripture upon the civil power.  31.  The holy writers are the Prophets and the Apostles.  32.  Upon whom was enjoined the necessity of writing, not by fortuitous occasion, but by the calling and inspiration of God.  33.  The threefold mode of this Divine Inspiration is set forth.  34.  Both the matter and the words are divinely inspired.  35.  Refutation of Bellarmine, Spinoza, a Dutch Theologian, and Simon.  36.  The Sacred Writers wrote according to their own wisdom and intentions, and in various styles.  37.  Yet without any error, and infallibly.  38.  Certain ἐναντιοφανῆ/ paradoxes and insoluble matters do not prevent.  39.  There is Scripture of the Old and of the New Testament.  The distribution of the Books of the Old Testament.  40.  Moses is the author of the Pentateuch.  41.  Simon’s reckless invention, that the Scripture of the Old Testament is a compendium compiled by certain Scribes, is refuted.  42.  Survey of the Books of the Old Testament.  43.  The Canon of the same was neither restored, nor established, by the authority of Ezra.  44.  The preservation of the books of the Old Testament was divinely commanded.  45.  The same were by no means corrupted by the Jews.  46.  The innocence of the Massoretes.  47.  The corruption of Scripture is not argued by the various readings.  48.  Nor by the unknown origin of the vowel points.  49.  Nor by anything asserted by Elias Levita.  50.  Nor by the Tikkun Sopherim.  51.  None of the Canonical books of the Old Testament have perished.  52.  Which is proven by an induction of the books that are thought to have perished.  53.  The Apocryphal Books do not pertain to the Canon.  54.  The figment of Genebrard, establishing three Canons of the Hebrews, and other arguments of the Tridentines, refuted.  55.  The use of the Books of the Old Testament under the New is proven against the Manichees and Socinians.  56.  The objections of the same are refuted.  57.  Enumeration of the Books of the New Testament.  58.  They were written by those, whose names they display.  59.  Even indeed in the Greek language, distinguished by various dialects.  60.  Matthew did not write in Hebrew, nor did Mark and Paul to the Romans in Latin.  61.  Saint John closed the Canon of the Books of the New Testament.  62.  Doubt, rising after John, concerning certain books of the New Testament, was quickly removed.  63.  No Canonical Books of the New Testament have perished.  64.  Pseudepigraphical books of the New Testament rejected.  65.  The essential and integral perfection of Scripture is distinguished relatively and simply.  66.  And it is proven by the testimony of Sacred Scripture, and rational arguments.  67.  The wiles of the Devil opposing the same, whereby before all things he persuaded the Jews of the necessity of oral law.  68.  And that upon the frivolous pretext of the words of Deuteronomy 5:30, 31.  69.  Christ rejects Jewish tradition as imperfect and having leaven.  70.  The Muhammadans and Papists, imitating the Jews, defend their Traditions.  71.  The hypocrisy of the Papists, feigning that they acknowledge the perfection of Scripture, is detected.  72.  The arguments opposed to their Traditions are enumerated.  73.  And the contrary things are refuted.  74.  The opinion of the Enthusiasts, feigning an internal Word, with the external Word of Scripture rejected, and the consensus of the private spirit as Pope.  75.  The opinion of the Enthusiasts is false, foolish, and impious.  76.  The arguments of the same are refuted.  77.  The impious Enthusiasm of Spinoza is detected.  78.  The Scripture consists, not in words, but in the sense of the words.  79.  The sense of Scripture is one, the literal.  80.  In the same a distinction is introduced between the manner of signification.  81.  And the application.  82.  The example of the Fathers variously explaining the Scriptures does not favor the Papists.  83.  In necessary things the Scripture is so perspicuous that no human authority is needed to understand it.  84.  Which is proven by the testimonies of Scripture itself.  85.  And by various arguments.  86.  The objections of Papists are answered.  87.  The interpretation of Scripture always exists in the Church.  88.  Its norm and judge is not the sense of the Roman Church.  89.  The Church makes use of four modes of eliciting the sense of Scripture.  90.  The hypothesis of an Anonymous Author and of Spinoza, that Philosophy and natural light alone is the interpreter of Scripture, is touched upon.  91.  And it is answered by contrary arguments.  92.  The necessity and utility of the interpretation of the words of Scripture in translations.  93.  Every version ought to be carefully composed from the Hebrew font of the Old Testament, and the Greek of the New.  94.  Various ancient Eastern and Western versions are enumerated.  95.  And also newer ones.  96.  Although the Original Codices are copies, they nevertheless do not cease to be authentic.  97.  The authenticity of Scripture is defined; and in what sense it is applicable to the fonts and Versions is shown.  98.  How might the unlearned be sure, that they have or hear the word of God?  99.  No version is absolutely authentic.  100.  Refutation of the Tridentines, declaring the Vulgate Version to be authentic.  101.  The reasons of the same examined.  102.  The Church has no power to prohibit vernacular versions, or the reading of Scripture.  103.  The objections of the Papists are refuted.  104.  Scripture is the only norm and rule of our faith and life.  105.  Neither is it partial, nor waxen.  106.  And, since it is the norm, it ought also to be the judge.  107.  With the common blasphemies notwithstanding, that it is mute and deaf, not able to be approached, to deliver a sentence, to compel the refractory.  108.  No other supreme judge, and so no human and personal judge, is required.  109.  Because conscience and faith are subject to no human power and judgment.  110.  Hence the Pope determining ex Cathedra is not able to be the judge of the sense of Scripture and of controversies of faith.  111.  Nor a Council, with or without the Pope.  112.  The contrary arguments of the Papists are refuted.  113.  Nevertheless, the judgment of discretion is applicable to believers, either as individuals, or as gathered in the assembly of the Church and her doctors; which is explained.  114.  And it is proven at length.  115.  The norm of that judgment is not the dictum, or pronouncement, of the Church and of the Pope, but is the Scripture read and understood.  116.  That judgment of believers is not ἰδία ἐπίλυσις, the private interpretation, of Scripture.  117.  The private Spirit judging is either Christian, or Antichristian and Enthusiastic.  118.  The former belongs to all believers, and is not able to be reproached.  119.  The latter belongs to the Pope, and is damnable.  120.  Believers’ judgment according to the Scriptures does not prevent those erring and heretics from claiming that for themselves also.