peace with many, which agrees with the peace the Romans made with the Parthians, of which Tacitus makes mention Annal lib. 15. which peace was concluded juft seven years before the deftruction of Jerufalems The fecond is the ceafing of the daily facrifice, which happened three years and a half after the peace made with the Parthians, as Jofephus hath obferved. The third is the deftruction of the Jews, which arrived exactly three years and a half after the ceafing of the daily facrifice, and feven years after the faid peace made with the Parthians.

I know that fome famous men begin the weeks of Daniel, from the fecond year of Darius Nothus, and make them to end with the deftruc tion of the Jews, which happened in the year 490, accounting from the fecond year of the faid Darius; and they conceive themselves oblig'd thereto, by an argument, they believe invincible, because from the fecond year of Darius Nothus to the thirty second of Artaxerxes Mnemon, they find juft forty nine years, that is the feven weeks defigned by Daniel for rebuilding of the ruins, and fortifying of the city; and the rather becaule Nehemiah returned to Artaxerxes in the thirty fecond year of his. reign, having finished that work, Nehemiah XIII. 6.

But this opinion cannot ftand, for two reafons, which feem to be de cifive: the firft is because they joyn that which God hath feparated, viz. ́the death of the Meffiah with the laft week, which ends at the destruction of Jerufalem. The fecond is that without thinking of it they deprive Jefus Chrift of the glory, of having determined the time of the deftruction of the Jews, as if inftead of a prophefie about this event, Jefus Chrift had onely given the world an explication of a former prophefie."

Now these obfervations being fuppofed, as indeed they are matters of the greatest evidence, it neceffarily follows, that the Meffiah was to appear before the deftruction of Jerufalem by the Romans. The fame is fet down fo precisely by Daniel, as leaves no pretence to doubt of this truth. And indeed, tho' the Jews feem after the time of our Saviour, to have adopted the opinion I mentioned before, and therefore carried the ap pearing of the Meffiah to the end of the feventy weeks, viz. to the deftruction of their temple, notwithstanding Daniel exprefly tells us, that the Jews were not to be deftroyed till after the cuting off of the Mef fiah; the Jews I fay, being convinc'd by the force of this argument, have owned that the Meffiah was born about the time of the deftruction of the fecond temple, but that he hath hid himself ever fince.

The fecond oracle concerning the time of the coming of the Meffiah, is, that of Haggai, which exprefly tells us, that the Meffiah was to appear during the fecond temple, which was begun to be built by the order of Cyrus, finished under Darius son of Hyftapes, and destroyed by Vefpafian. The words of the Prophet are as follows, Chap. II. verf. 7, 8, 9. And I will shake all nations, and the defire of all nations shall came and I will fill this houfe with glory, faith the Lord of Hofts. The filver is mine, and the gold is mine, faith the Lord of Hofts. The glory of this latter house shall be greater than that of the former faith the Lord of Hofts: and in this place will I give peace, faith the Lord of Hofts. It is worth our noting. 1. That this oracle promises a very great change. 2. It defcribes the Meffiah as the expectation of the Gentiles, fuitable to the idea God had given of him to Abraham. 3. That it fixes the coming of the Mef

fiah to the time of the fecond houfe, that is to fay, of the temple built by Zorobabel. 4. It makes the glory of that houfe to depend upon its being honoured with the prefence of the Meffiah.

In short, if we would be convinc'd of this truth, we need only confider three things: the firft is, That the Prophets Zachariah and Malachy do represent to us the coming of the Meffiah as near at hand; Balaam had said, almost ten ages before, I fee him, but not nigh, which in timated his coming to be then at a great distance. But Zechariah fpeaks thus concerning it, Chap. III. verf. 8, 9, 10: Hear now O Joshuah the high priest, thou and thy fellows that fit before thee, for they are men wondred at: behold, I will bring forth my fervant the BRANCH; for behold, the ftone that I have laid before Jofhua; upon one ftone shall be feven eyes; behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, faith the Lord of Hofts, and I will re move the iniquity of that land in one day. In that day faith the Lord of Hofts, fball ye call every man his neighbour, under the vine and under the figtree.

Malachy expreffes himself, concerning the approaching coming of the Meffiah, thus, (Chap. III. verse 1.) Bohold, I will fend my messenger, and he fhall prepare the way before me; and the Lord, whom ye feek, fhall fuddenly come to his temple, even the meffenger of the covenant whom ye delight in, be bold he fhall come faith the Lord of Hofts.

One ought to obferve two very confiderable things in this Prophecy: the firft, That the Meffiah was to come fuddainly. The fecond, That Malachy exprefly points to us, that the appearing of the Meffiah was to be during the second temple; the words of the prophecy distinctly expreffing it.

And fure it is, that all who gave any credit to thefe oracles, did un→ derstand them fo.

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The first, both Jews and Gentiles looked for the Meffiah during the fecond temple. We find a paffage exprefs to the purpose in Tacitus; and it was on this ground that Jofephus gave the title of Meffiah to Vefpafian.

2. They expected him at the end of the feventy weeks, which was the third year after the death of Jefus Chrift. This was the occafion of their being deluded by fo many falfe Meffiah's about the time of our Saviour, and a little after.

3. They never despair'd of his coming (taking the promise of the Meffiah's coming to be conditional, when as indeed it was abfolute) until they began to believe that the term fet down by God himself was expired.

4. The reafon of their curfing those that compute the times fet down fo diftinctly and precifely by Daniel, was, because they found themfelves disappointed in his calculation, finding that the time which Daniel had pointed at for the coming of the Meffiah, feem'd to be already expired.

5. 'Tis but of late that they have try'd to evade it, by maintaining that the temple will be built a third time, and that then the Meffiah fhall appear; but this evafion is unanswerably refuted: 1. Because Daniel affigns a certain term which is expired 1600 years fince. 2. Because be exprefly tells us, That the defolation of the temple was to be for ever, as

will appear in the following chapters. And 3dly, Becaufe Haggai in effect calls the temple of which he speaks, The fecond or third house, by which expreffion he fo diftinctly points out the fecond temple to us, that it would be ridiculous to fuppofe it meant of a third temple, to be built 1700 years after the ruin of that of which he prophecied.

That the Meffiah was to be born of a Virgin of the House of David.

**ITHERTO we have feen that the Meffiah was to be born H of the pofterity of Abraham by Ifaac, of that of Ifaac by Jacob, XX and of that of Jacob by Juda." This hath been fufficiently made out already.

I have alfo fhew'd from the oracle in the I Sam. Chap. VII. That he was to be born of the pofterity of David; and we find the fame very particularly and fully fet down in the LXXXIX Pfalm.

The following prophets have expreft themselves to the fame purposes Ifaiah XI. verf. 1, 2, 3. and the prophet Jeremy hath pursued the fame idea's, Chap. XXIII. verf. 5, 6. and Chap. XXXIII. verf. 15, 16, 17.

Neither do the prophets only diftinguish the Meffiah by his being born of a virgin, but also by determining that virgin to the House of David. Neither need I repeat here what I have already obferv'd, That this is a truth, the grounds whereof God had laid down in his firft promife, viz. The feed of the woman fhall bruife the ferpents head: where he makes mention of the feed of the woman only, without naming that of the man, the word of feed or pofterity very evidently defigning a man to be born of the woman, which is acknowledg'd by the Jews in another prophecy, and the fame which the apoftle St. Paul (e) takes notice of as a maxim generally owned by the doctors of the fynagogue. It is alfo evident that the word woman plainly denotes the sex of which this person was immediately to be born.

It was obvious to judge, That fomething miraculous was to attend the birth of the Meffiah. We fee Ifaac born of a barren mother, paft the age of child-bearing: We find alfo fomething very fingular at the birth of Sampson and Samuel; and 'tis well known that the promise of the Meffiah was fomething far greater than the birth of these now mentioned, how illuftrious foever they might be; and that therefore probably his birth was to be attended by a greater miracle. But because this was a thing wholly new, we ought to obferve in what manner God did parti cularly foretel it.

The prophecy of Ifaiah expreffeth it thus, Chap. VII. verf. 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17. Moreover the Lord fpake again unto Ahaz, faying, Afk thee a fign of the Lord thy God, afk it either in the depth, or in the height

Galat. iii.

above.

above. But Ahaz faid, I will not afk, neither will I tempt the Lord. And be faid, hear ye now, O houfe of David, is it a fmall thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God alfo? Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a fign; behold a virgin fhall conceive and bear a fon, and shall call his name Immanuel. Butter and honey fball he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good: for before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land that thou abhorrest shall be forfaken of both her kings. The Lord fhall bring upon thee, upon thy people, and upon thy father's houfe, days that have not come from the day that Ephraim departed from Juda, even the king of Affyria. Where we may observe,

1. That the promise here is made to a wicked king, but of the family of David, to whom the prophet particularly addreffes himself.

2. That this prophecy was given at a juncture of time very capable of awakening their attention to it, at a time when the ftate of the Jews was reduced to the greatest extremity, and the house of David in particular in a very great confternation.

3. The prophecy was utter'd by a very illustrious prophet, who was of the royal family.

4. It was fealed and confirmed with the prediction of the birth of a child, which came to pafs accordingly.

5. It is fet forth as a very extraordinary fign, inftead of that which the wicked King refused to afk, when Isaiah offer'd it him, in the name of God.

I am not ignorant that the modern Jews deny that this character of being born of a virgin belongs to the Meffiah: but it is an eafie matter to confute them.

For firft, Would it not have been ridiculous for the apoftles to go about to apply this oracle to their Meffiah, if it had not been a thing univerfally own'd by the Jews, that this was the meaning of Ifaiah's prophecy? Is it not evident that this character, fo difficult to gain belief, would rather perplex than ftrengthen their proofs. And yet certain it is that St. Matthew has done fo, Chap. I. verfe 23. as likewife St. Luke, Chap. I. verfe 31.

Juftin Martyr obferv'd, That the notion of this oracle, as we understand it, hath been entertain'd amongst the heathens, who built their fable of Perfeus upon it, whom they pretend to have been born of a virgin.

3. It appears that all thofe laws which I mentioned in my reflexions upon Exodus, and the following books, Chap. XX. and which have relation to the diftinct knowledge of the ftate of virginity, receive much light from this notion; and are without it altogether use→ lefs.

4. 'Tis evident that the Jews did not difpute this character, till after they faw that the chriftians apply'd it to Jefus Chrift; and thereupon have fallen upon fuch childish fancies as may juftly cover them with confufion.

But we shall be yet further fatisfied hereof, if we add to all thefe juft prejudices, only the following reflexions on the terms the prophet makes ufe of.

The first is, That the LXX interpreters have in tranflating this pro

phecy,

phecy, made ufe of a word that fignifies a virgin, and not a young woman, as the Jews have understood it fince our Saviour's time. The firft who rejected the interpretation of the Septuagint was Symmachus (f), who lived in the fecond century, as it is obferved by Justin Martyr and Tertullian, who for this reafon accuse the Jews of having falfified the holy fcripture.

The fecond is, That the Hebrew word exprefsly fignifies fuch an one, as, according to the law of virgins, was kept under lock and key from the eyes of men, according to the cuftom of the eaftern nations, and efpecially of the Jews, which continues amongst them till this day.

The third is, That this word hath been taken by the Africans in the fame fignification, as St. Jerome obferves.

The fourth is, That the prophet doth fet forth this child-bearing as a prodigy and miracle altogether unheard of, and as a particular character, by which the houfe of David was to be strongly confirmed in the hope of feeing the accomplishment of the promife which God had made of fetling an eternal kingdom upon it, which could not be accomplished but by means of the Meffiah.

The fifth is, That tho' fome Jews have applyed this prophecy to king Hezekiah (g), which yet to others of them feems very ridiculous, he being nine years of age when the prophecy was uttered by Ifaiah, and themfelves never making ufe of this evafión, except in their difputes against the christians, and fo on this occafion have dropt a confeffion which alone was fufficient to confound them. Yet it hath been a thing fo generally received amongst them, That this prophecy did refpect the Meffiah, that after they had applyed it to Hezekiah, one of their most famous doctors concludes (b), That they ought to look for no Meffiah, fince the time of Hezekiah, that prophecy having had its accomplishment in him; an opinion' which thofe that fucceeded him have rejected with the greatest abhorrence.

The fixth is, That the title of Immanuel, given to this fon, whofe birth is here promised, is reprefented to us Chap. VIII. as the name of him who was lord of the land, which is a true reprefentation of the heir prómifed to David, to whom David faid, O God, thy God hath anointed thee with the oil of gladnefs above thy fellows. Pfal. XLV. 7, 8.

The feventh is, That the prophet Isaiah having alledged and cited two witneffes, Uriah the fon of Shemaiah, a prophet, who was put to death by Jehoiakim, and Zechariah the fon of Jeberechiah; the former of which lived long after Ahaz, and the latter fince the captivity, under Darius king of Perfia, according to the account the Jews themselves give of them, he fufficiently hints by this circumstance, That the prophecy concerning the birth of the Immanuel he speaks of, was to be fulfill'd many ages after, and not in that age wherein he prophecies.

(f) In dialog. cum Tryphon. Tertull. cont, Jud, cap. 9. (g) Rafchi in. h. 1.

(b) Gemar in Sanked. Cap. Chelech.

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