SCRIPTURE POLITICKS : Or the Impartial Account of the Origin and Measures of Government Ecclesiastical and Civil. Taken Out of the Books of the Old and New Testament, With a Postscript Relating to the Report of The Committee of Convocation . etc

First edition, 1717. Book size - c. 8 x 5.25 inches, pp. 4 (blank) + 2 + xxii + 148 + 4 (blank), disbound copy now housed in custom built drop-back box. Book condition - Poor ; disbound missing the boards and spine, stab binding and spine glue holding firm, preliminaries marked and with some soiling, textblock with ligher soiling/dustiness and some light foxing mostly towards the fore-edge, all pages with corners and edges worn and creasing at the corners, no inscriptions. The book is housed in a custom built drop-back box with leather spine and marbled paper covered 'boards' and interior green felt cloth lined ; leather spine mimics a rounded book with false raised bands and paper title label; the box is in very good condition with next-to-no wear. Please see photos for indications of condition and contents. William Whiston ( 1667 - 1752) was an English theologian, historian, natural philosopher, and mathematician, a leading figure in the popularisation of the ideas of Isaac Newton. He is now probably best known for helping to instigate the Longitude Act in and his important translations of the Antiquities of the Jews and other works by Josephus. He was a prominent exponent of Arianism and wrote A New Theory of the Earth. Whiston succeeded Newton as Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge. In 1710 he lost the professorship and was expelled from the university as a result of his unorthodox religious views. Whiston rejected the notion of eternal torment in hellfire, which he viewed as absurd, cruel, and an insult to God. What especially pitted him against church authorities was his denial of the doctrine of the Trinity, which he believed had pagan origins. (Biographical information taken from Wikipedia where a much fuller account can be found ). A rare copy of the first edition, with no other copies found online at the time of listing. …