Whereupon dissenting from the ancients, he delivers his own judgment, that tau in this place is taken technicos, for that sign or mark of the letter wherewith the Lord commanded to mark the elect for their safety and preservation. And so there was no mystery to be sought in that letter more than in any other. As for the use of that mark wherewith the elect in Jerusalem were at that time sealed, it was only for distinction and separation. It had the same use which that sprinkling of the posts of the doors had, Exod. xii. 7, only the foreheads of men and women, and not the posts of doors were here marked, because only the remnant according to election, and not whole families promiscuously, were at this time to be spared, as Junius noteth.
But the use of the sign of the cross pretended by Formalists, is not to separate us in the time of judgment, but to teach that at no time we ought to be ashamed of the ignominy of Christ.
Shortly, the sign wherewith they in Jerusalem were marked, was for preservation from judgment; but the sign of the cross is used for preservation from sin. Thus we see, that neither the sign nor the use of it, had any affinity with the cross. Now, the surest interpretation of that place, Ezek. ix. 4, is to take Tau for an appellative noun, signifying generally and indefinitely a mark or sign, so that there is no mark determined by this word; only there was a commandment given to set a certain mark, some sign or other, upon the foreheads of the elect. So have our English translators taken the place.
This exposition is confessed by Gasper [pg 1-243] Sanctius,[836] to be followed almost by all the Hebrew masters, and by the most ancient interpreters, to wit, the Septuagint, Aquilla and Symmachus. The word beareth this gloss, even according to the confession of those who expound it otherwise in this place, to wit, for an image or representation of the cross. Tau (saith Sanctius) commune nomen est, quod signum indefinite significat.[837] Tau is expounded by Bellarmine[838] to signify signum or terminus. Well then: our adversaries themselves can say nothing against our interpretation of the word tau. We have also Buxtorff for us, who in his Hebrew Lexicon turneth tau to signum, and for this signification he citeth both this place, Ezek. ix. 4, and Job. xxxi. 35. Taui signum meum.
Lastly, If tau be not put for a common appellative noun, signifying a mark or sign, but for the figure or character of the letter tau as an image of the cross, by all likelihood this character only should have been put in the Hebrew text, and not the noun fully written; vehithvith a tau, and mark a mark. As to the other place,[839] Rev. vii. 3, Pareus observeth, that there is no figure or form of any sign there expressed, and he thinks that seal was not outward and visible, but the same whereof we read, 2 Tim. ii. 19, and Rev. xiv. 1, which cannot be interpreted de signo transeunte; nam Christianum semper nomen filii, et patris in fronte oportet gerere, saith Junius.[840]
Dr Fulk, on Rev. vii. 3, saith, that the sign here spoken of is proper to God's elect, therefore not the sign of the cross, which many reprobates have received.
Sect. 7. Bishop Andrews will have the feast of Easter drawn from that place,[841] 1 Cor. v. 8, where he saith, there is not only a warrant, but an order for the keeping of it; and he will have it out of doubt that this feast is of apostolical institution, because after the times of the apostles, when there was a contention about the manner of keeping Easter, it was agreed upon by all, that it should be kept; and when the one side alleged for them St. John, and the other St. Peter, it was acknowledged by both that the feast was apostolical.
I answer, The testimony of Socrates deserveth more credit than the Bishop's naked conclusion.
“I am of opinion (saith Socrates[842]), that as many other things crept in of custom in sundry places, so the feast of Easter to have prevailed among all people, of a certain private custom and observation.”
But whereas Bishop Lindsey, in defence of Bishop Andrews, replieth, that Socrates propoundeth this for his own opinion only: