faith of them in the year of our Saviour 204. (b). They wander up and down the world like defperfed vagabonds, banished from their climate and country, without man, without God for their king, and are not permitted, as Strangers, to fet foot on their native foil. We read a decree of Honorus the emperour, which deprives them of the right of nominating their patriarchs, or of paying them any tribute; which fhews that their authority was wholly extinct.

Thirdly, Their temple at Jerufalem being deftroyed in the seventieth year of our Lord, as that in Egypt called Onion was the year following, it could never be built again, notwithstanding that Julian the apoftate, out of his hatred to the Chriftians, favoured that enterprise in the year of our Saviour 363. There is a letter ftill extant which Julian writ to the Jews, to affure them of his protection, and to encourage them to that work, but it was not so much his death which dashed that undertaking, as a very memorable oppofition from Heaven.

Marcelinus a Heathen gives us this account of it (c). And being defirous to propagate the memory of his government by the greatness of his works, he with vaft expence defigned to rebuild the fplendid temple which was formerly at Jerufa lem, which after many and bloody battels, being besieged by Vespalian, and af terwards by Titus, was at laft taken with difficulty: he committed the care of haftning the business to Alypius of Antioch, who had formerly been Pro-prafect of Britain. As therefore this Alypius was vigorously profecuting the work, being affifted by the Lieutenant of the Province, terrible balls of fire frequently breaking forth near the foundations, fometimes burnt the workmen, and made the place inacceffible: thus the defign was laid afide, the element it felf beating them back on purpose. Julian eafily apprehended that their religion would perifh, and that it could never be reftored without the temple.

In the fourth place, the observation of fome of their laws was absolutely forbidden, as being contrary to thofe of the Roman empire. Thus they were not fuffered to have many wives.

Upon this overthrow many inconveniencies followed, which it will be convenient to represent at one view.

1. They no longer know thofe perfons who at the firft divifion of the land by Joshua, were owners of the different parts of the land of Ca

naan.

2. Their families and tribes are confounded; their jubilee, which could not be kept but in the land of Canaan, and which obliged them to study their genealogies, having ceafed long fince.

3. The

(b) Difperfi, palabundi, & cæli, & foli fui extorres, vagantur per orbem, fine bomine, fine Deo rege, quibus nec advenarum jure terram patriam jaltem veftigio, falutare conceditur. Apolog. cap. 21.

(c) Lib. 23. Imperiique fui memoriam magnitudine operum geftiens propagare, ambitiofum quondam apud Hierofolymam templum quod poft multa & interneti-va certamina, obfidente Vefpafiano pofteaq; Tito, agre eft expugnatum, inftaurare fumptibus cogitabat immodicis: negotiumq; maturandum Alypio dederat Antiochenfi, qui olim Britannias curaverat Pro-præfectis. Cum itaq; rei idem fortiter inftaret Alypius, juvaretq; provinciæ Rector, metuendi globi flammarum prope fundamenta crebris affultibus erumpentes, fecere locum exuftis aliquoties operatibus inacceffum: bocq; modo elemento deftinatius repellente, ceffavit inceptum.

3. The family of David is at this day utterly unknown.

4. They have no more lawful priests to obferve the primogeniture, to examine the tokens of virginity, tho' it appears, that according to God's defign, these laws were given on purpose to afcertain the knowledge of the Meffiah, and to be like inclofures about this important truth, in the compafs of which it might be the better examined.

Certainly if the Jews were ftill in poffeffion of Judea, if they had their kings of the tribe of Judah, if they had their priests, if they were affured of their genealogies, if they still enjoyed all the other neceffary means for establishing the certainty of their defcents, if their temple had ftill fubfifted in its former luftre, and that the facrifices appointed by the laws were ftill offered there: the Jews might boldly answer that the Shiloh was not yet come, that is, they ought not to despair of seeing the Meffiah born at Bethlehem, of the feed of David, and entring the temple of Jerufalem. Then the prophecy of Daniel, which determines 490 years for the term in which the Meffiah was to appear, and be cut off by a violent death and punishment, would feem to be eluded.

But the term of the Meffiah's coming is paft, the commonwealth of the Jews is overturned, the temple of Jerufalem is deftroyed 1600 years fince; there are no more genealogies among the Jews, they do not know their tribes, much less their families: how then can it be fuppofed that God fhould be true in his oracles (as we must acknowledge him to be) if they were never answered by the event.

To speak the truth, it is impoffible to confider the arguments we have alledged to prove that Jefus Chrift is the Meffiah, and especially those demonftrations which the Apostles have given us, without acknowledging these two things:

The first is, That it was very eafie at the time of Jefus Chrift's appearing, to examine whether he who declared himself to be the Meffiah, were fo indeed; fo it is abfolutely impoffible to examine it, or know it, fince the deftruction of that model, if we fuppofe that God at firft framed it, for the determining of this question, as we have no reason to doubt it.

The fecond.is, That the Chriftians exactly followed this Divine model, and being convinced of the truth of the facts which exactly correfponded with it, and which answered it in all its parts, they had all the reason imaginable to believe that Jefus Chrift was the Meffiah.

In fhort, if we confider it well, we fhall find that the whole Chriftian religion is nothing but a queftion of fact between the Jews and Chrif tians: but fuch a queftion as the Jews at present are not in a condition to maintain against the Chriftians.

Both Jews and Chriftians agree in the characters of the Meffiah, or at least about the most of them. According to these characters the Mes fiah ought to be come: the Chriftians maintain that they may be found in Jefus Chrift, and they prove it by matter of fact; wherefore we must conclude, That either these characters attributed to the Meffiah, are not proper characters to know him by, and fo the wisdom of God will be eluded, and both Jews and Chriftians equally deceived, in taking that for a character of the Meffiah which is not; or else that both the Mer

fiah is certainly come, and that he is no other than that Jefus whom we worship.

CHA P. XXI.

That the Greatness of the Mysteries of the Chriftian Religion; and the Divifion which is amongst Christians, cannot be any Prejudice to the Proofs of the Truth of the Chriftian Religion.

S COME now to examine the double ftumbling block which the Jews pretend against the Chriftian religion. This religion, CHH fay they, propounds doctrines that are inconceivable, and contrary to reafon for inftance, that of the Trinity, that of the Incarnation and the Divinity of the Meffiah. These are the doctrines which the Jews reject, as abfolutely incompatible with the books of the Old Teftament, which we have received from their hands.

But it is an eafie matter to answer this objection; 1. It is founded upon a total forgetfulness of the folidity of thofe proofs of fact, which I have alledged. Jefus Chrift is rifen from the dead, this is a fact confirmed by feveral witneffes. It appears from Tacitus, that Jefus Chrift fuffered death under Tiberius, Pontius Pilate being governour of Judea. It is known that Claudius banished the Chriftians from Rome, in the year of our Lord 54. It is evident from Tacitus, in his life of Tero, that he accused the Chriftians of burning the city of Rome, which imfelf was the author of; the Chriftians therefore made a confiderabl (body in the capital city of the empire, and this happened in the year of our Lord 64. Suetonius fays the fame thing. 2. It appears that Pliny, in Trajan's time, takes notice of the manner of their meetings. 3. Dion Caffius fets down the accufation brought in against Flavius and Domitilla, as against Atheists; which is the title Julian the apoftate gives to Conftantine, becafe the Chriftians rejected the worship of the Heathen gods. .4. It appears by the latter end of the Acts of the Apostles that this book was writ in the year of our Lord 63, and yet this book fupposes the Gofpel of S. Luke to have been written before it, and S. Luke's Gospel takes it for granted, that fome of the other Gofpels were already published. 5. It appears from the writings of Clemens Romanus, that the epiftle to the Hebrews was then written, and the fame may be gathered from the books of S. Ignatius, Polycarp, and S. Juftin. Thefe facts which are certain, are fufficient to prove that immediately after the ath of Jefus Chrift, his Apoftles, and their Difciples, as eye-witneffes, maintained the truth of his refurrection. After this it may indeed be difputed, by what power he was raised, whether by a Divine power, or by his own; but it is ridiculous to difpute the fact by reafonings drawn from pretended abfurdities which one may think to find in the doctrines of the Gospel. Secondly, These myfteries, as for inftance, that of the Trinity, re

lates

lates to the Divine nature, which is incomprehenfible, fo that it is no ftrange thing if an idea of it be propofed to us, which not being distinctly known by us, may raise difficulties and perplexities in our minds. If I would difcourfe with one born blind, of the fun, of its light and heat, and should attribute to the fun the production of light, and afterwards of heat, he would find an infinite trouble not to imagine three funs. It is known how the philofophers, who agreed about the unity of the foul, have notwithstanding been obliged to attribute feveral faculties to it, which the common people look upon as very different things, and which feem to oppose the idea's of its unity and fimplicity.

In the third place, The Chriftians prove very folidly, that these myfteries have been clearly propofed by the Apostles, who received their light from heaven as to thefe truths, and fo might neceffarily be believed upon their word, for the fame reason that the Prophets of the Old Testament were formerly believed.

Moreover, they affert that thefe doctrines were firft expreffed, tho' not fo clearly, in the Old Teftament, which is in the hands of the Jews, the mortal enemies of Chriftians.

. I add to thefe remarks, that most of those facts whofe truth is fo invincibly established, fuppofe thefe doctrines; and that the whole frame of the religion doth fo neceffarily require them, that we rob it of a confiderable part of its glory in questioning or contefting any of them.

Thefe reflexions may fuffice in general to refolve this difficulty of the Jews; and for a more particular fatisfaction, we refer the reader to those books which purposely treat of these myfteries, defiring him to obferve carefully, that commonly the most difficult objections of Hereticks against these matters, do rather oppose the terms which are made use of, or the notions which men follow in speaking of these truths, than the propofitions contained in the writings of the New Teftament.

At least one may be affured, that the Jews are conftrained to refolve feveral parallel objections, to which one can fcarcely give a fatisfactory answer, without borrowing some diftinctions and notions from the Chriftians.

Neither can the fecond objection of the Jews give us any more difturbance. It is true that there have been divifions amongft Chriftians, and are still to this day; What can we conclude thence? Can we rea fonably conclude that therefore the firft founders of Chriftianity were doubtful concerning the truth of those facts which are the fupport and foundation of it.

On the contrary, upon an attentive obfervation one may find,

1. That herefies have only ferved to render the truth of these facts more incontestable, by obliging thofe that had confider'd of them, to examine their certainty with more care and application. This is the judgment one ought to make upon all those herefies in the second age, about the truth of the flesh of Jefus Chrift, or about the truth of his death from thence men took occafion to take notice of, and collect with great care all the circumftances that prove the truth of both these facts. 2. We find that the greatest part of these contests do not concern the truth of the facts, but the feveral confequences drawn from them, the truth of those matters continuing ftill beyond difpute. This we find in

the difpute raised about the millenium, the truth of the promises of Jefus Chrift being equally believed by both the difputing parties; but differently understood, according to the temper of thofe that confider'd of them; fome forming grofs and fenfual conceptions concerning them; others having a more fpiritual relifh, which they had acquired by study. ing the prophecies, and their true fenfe.

3. We find that this divifion which hath fprung up amongst Christians, is one of the most folid proofs of the truth of the books of the New Teftament. If fome fools have endeavoured to decry some of them, or to falfifie fome particular places, we see that both parties unite to repel that violence, by producing their copies, and beating back the impoftors with their united strength. One fee's that Tertullian, tho' a Montanist, writ prefcriptions against Hereticks; and Epiphanius takes notice (without any respect to fome that were orthodox) of their crime in blotting out of their copies, that Chrift had wept.

It is known that the divifion of the Jews into Kargites and Thalmudifts, the jealoufie between the Jews and Samaritans, and the divifion between the Jews and Chriftians, is a means of preferving the Scripture, and hindering its corruption, each party being very vigilant to hinder their adverfaries from attempting any thing to its prejudice, in corrupting a book which they confider as common to them all.

I might obferve many other advantages which accrew to the truth from these human failings; but I will only instance in one, which has always feem'd to me very confiderable; and that is, That thefe Hereticks diftinctly prove the truth of the predictions of our Saviour. An impious person would have reason to accuse our oracles as false, if there had never been any herefies. But truth triumphs in seeing fo great a multitude of them, who the more they encrease, the more the fee's her felf confirm'd and established. This is the reason induced God to permit fo great an increase in the firft ages, when the truth, meeting with the greatest oppofition by perfecutions, ftood in the greatest need of fenfible characters, by which it might be known.

I conclude this work with defiring my reader to confider these reflexions upon the holy Scripture here propounded, with a serious attention, and to examine the coherence and indiffoluble connexion of them; and with prayer to God that it may please him to make them serviceable to advance the glory of his Name, which is the only end I have propofed to myself in the writing of them

END OF VOLUME FIRST.