suffering all that was necessary to procure the salvation of mankind.

But, although it was not our Lord's intention to make a complete revelation of the gospel in person, he occasionally delivered many of its doctrines and precepts in the hearing of his followers, that, when the persons commissioned by him to preach the gospel in its full extent executed their commission, the world, by observing the perfect conformity of their doctrine with his, might entertain no doubt of their authority and inspiration, in those farther discoveries which they made concerning the matters of which Christ himself had spoken nothing.

The Son of God, in prosecution of the purpose for which he took on him the human nature, came to John at Jordan, and was baptized. To this rite he submitted, not as it was the baptism of repentance, for he was perfectly free from sin, but as it prefigured his dying and rising again from the dead, and because he was, on that occasion, to be declared God's beloved son by a voice from Heaven, and by the descent of the Holy Ghost upon him, in the view of the multitudes who were assembled at John's baptism.

Having received these miraculous attestations, Jesus began his ministry; and from that time forth showed himself to Israel as their long-expected deliverer, and, in the hearing of the people, spake many discourses, in which he corrected the errors of the Jewish teachers, and explained many of the doctrines and precepts of true religion. And while he thus employed himself, he confirmed his doctrine, and proved himself to be the Son of God, by working great miracles in all parts of Judea, and even in Jerusalem itself. But the chiefs of the Jews, envying his reputation with the people, laid hold on him, and condemning him for calling himself the Son of God, constrained Pontius Pilate, the governor of Judea, to put him to death. But whilst the Jews, with wicked hands, crucified Jesus, his death, by the sovereign appointment of God, became an atonement for the sin of the world. And, to wipe away the stain which the Jews endeavoured to fix on Jesus as a deceiver, by putting him to death, God raised him from the dead on the third day, according to Christ's own prediction, and thereby declared him, in the most illustrious manner, his son. After his resurrection, Jesus showed himself alive to many witnesses; and, having remained on earth forty days, a sufficient time to prove the truth of his resurrection, he ascended into heaven, in the presence of his disciples, who were assured, by the attending angels, that he would return from heaven in like manner as they had seen him go away; namely, at the end of the world.

I. The illustrious display just now described, which Jesus made on earth of his glory as the Son of God, by his virtues, his miracles, his sufferings, his resurrection, and his ascension, was intended, not solely for the people before whom it was exhibited, but for all mankind. And, therefore, that the knowledge of it might not be confined to the Jews, but spread through the whole world, and continued in it to the end, Jesus, in the beginning of his ministry, chose twelve of his disciples, and ordained them to be with him, that they might hear all that he should speak, and see all that he should do for the salvation of mankind; and that, as eyewitnesses of these things, they might report them to the world, with every circumstance of credibility. These witnesses Jesus named apostles, or bersons sent forth by him, and appointed them to bear that name always, that when they published his history, bare witness to his resurrection, and preached salvation to them who believed, all might be sensible that they acted by commission and authority from him. And, to prevent any error that might arise in the execution of this office, from the failure of their memory, he made them C

the following promises :-John xiv. 16. I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another comforter, that he may abide with you for ever. 17. Even the Spirit of truth; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. 26. The comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you: And, John xvi. 13. will guide you into all truth: Besides bringing to your remembrance the things I have said to you, he will give you the knowledge of the whole gospel scheme. And, because many of the doctrines of the gospel were darkly revealed, and many of the particulars of Christ's life were in diverse manners foretold in the writings of Moses and the prophets, Jesus opened the understanding' of his apostles, that they might understand the Scriptures;' Luke xxiv. 15.

Having in this manner educated and prepared the twelve, Jesus, before his ascension, declared to them the purpose for which he had called them to attend him during his ministry, and explained to them their duty as apostles. Acts i. 8. Ye shall be witnesses unto me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth.' Then gave them their commission in the following words: Mark xvi. 15. 'Go ye, therefore, and teach all nations. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved: But he that believeth not shall be damned.' And that the things which they should teach might gain entire credit, in addition to what he had promised formerly, (Luke xxi. 15. 'Behold I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist), he now told them, Luke xxiv. 29. Behold I send the promise of my Father upon you. But tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endowed with power from on high.' And added, Mark xvi. 17. These signs shall follow them that believe: In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues. 18. They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them. They shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. 19. So, then, after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.' Such was the commission which Christ gave to his apostles, and such the supernatural powers which he promised to bestow on them, to fit them for executing it with success.

But one of the apostles, Judas by name, having fallen from his office by transgression, the eleven judged it necessary to supply his place; and for that purpose chose Matthias by lot. In this, however, they acted not by the direction of the Holy Ghost, for he was not yet given to them, but merely by the dictates of human prudence, which on that occasion seems to have carried them too far. No man, nor body of men whatever, could, by their designation, confer an office, whose authority bound the consciences of all men, and whose duties could not be performed without the gifts of inspiration and miracles. To ordain an apostle belonged to Christ alone, who, with the appointment, could also give the supernatural powers necessary to the function. Some time, therefore, after the election of Matthias, Jesus himself seems to have superseded it, by appointing another to be his apostle and witness in the place of Judas. In the choice of this new apostle, Jesus had a view to the conversion of the Gentiles; which, of all the services allotted to the apostles, was the most dangerous and difficult. For the person engaged in that work had to contend with the heathen priests, whose office and gains being annihilated by the spreading of the gospel, it was to be expected that they would oppose its preachers with an extreme rage. He had to contend, likewise, with the unbelieving Jews living in the heathen countries, who would not fail to

ir.flame the idolatrous multitude against any one who should preach salvation to the Gentiles, without requiring them to obey the law of Moses. The philosophers too were to be encountered, who, no doubt, after their manner, would endeavour to overthrow the gospel by argument; whilst the magistrates and priests laboured to destroy it, by persecuting its preachers and abettors. The difficulty and danger of preaching to the Gentiles being so great, the person who engaged in it certainly needed an uncommon strength of mind, a great degree of religious zeal, a courage superior to every danger, and a patience of labour and suffering not to be exhausted, together with much prudence, to enable him to avoid giving just offence to unbelievers. Besides these natural talents, education and literature were necessary in the person who attempted to convert the Gentiles, that he might acquit himself with propriety, when called before kings and magistrates and men of learning. All these talents and advantages Saul of Tarsus possessed in an eminent degree; and being a violent persecutor of the Christians, his testimony to the resurrection of Jesus would have the greater weight when he became a preacher of the gospel. Him, therefore, the Lord Jesus determined to make his apostle in the room of Judas; and for that purpose he appeared to him from heaven, as he journeyed to Damascus to persecute his disciples. And having convinced him of the truth of his resurrection, by thus appearing to him in person, he commissioned him to preach his resurrection to the Gentiles, together with the doctrines of the gospel, which were to be made known to him afterwards by revelation; saying to him, Acts xxvi. 16. I have appeared to thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness, both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; 17. Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee; 18. To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness,' &c. Such was the commission which Jesus in person gave to Saul of Tarsus, who afterwards was called Paul; so that, although he had not attended Jesus during his ministry, he was, in respect both of his election to the office, and of his fitness for it, rightly numbered with the apostles.

II. The apostles being ordered to tarry in Jerusalem, till they were endowed with power from on high, they obeyed their master's command; and on the tenth day after his ascension, which was the day of Pentecost, happening to be assembled in one place, with other disciples, to the number of about a hundred and twenty; Acts ii. 2. Suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a mighty rushing wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues, like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them: 4. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.' The Spirit manifested his presence with the disciples, by enabling them to speak fluently a variety of foreign languages, of which, till then, they were utterly ignorant. By this, his first gift, the Holy Ghost prepared our Lord's witnesses to preach his sufferings and resurrection to all nations, agreeably to their commission, without being obliged to wait till they learnt to speak the languages of the nations to whom they were sent. By this gift, likewise, the disciples were enabled immediately to publish those farther revelations of the gospel doctrine which the Spirit was afterwards to make to them, according to Christ's promise.

Although, on the memorable occasion above mentioned, all the hundred and twenty disciples were filled with the Holy Ghost, his gifts were bestowed more abundantly on the apostles, who had accompanied Jesus during his ministry on earth. and who were made his witnesses, for the purpose of testifying his sufferings and resurrection, and

of preaching the gospel to all nations. These, by their commission and illumination, being authorized to direct the religious faith and practice of mankind, it was of great importance to the world to know, with certainty, who they were to whom that high honour belonged. To give us, therefore, full assurance in this matter, three of the writers of our Lord's history, by the direction of the Spirit, have not only recorded his election of the twelve to the apostolic office, but each hath given a separate catalogue of their names and designations.

It is to be remarked, however, that notwithstanding the highest measures of inspiration and miraculous powers were bestowed on the apostles, they did not all possess these gifts in an equal degree. This we learn from Peter, one of the number, who tells us, 2 Peter iii. 15. that Paul wrote his epistles according to the wisdom given to him.' This Paul likewise has insinuated by calling Peter, James, and John, pillars, Gal. ii. 9. and chief apostles, 2 Cor. xi. 5; xii. 11. Add, that if all the apostles possessed the gifts of inspiration and miracles in an equal degree, it will be difficult to understand how it has happened that only six of the twelve have written the revelations which were made to them, and that, while the preaching and miracles of those who are called chief apostles are recorded by Luke in his history of the Acts, nothing is said of the preaching and miracles of the rest; which is the more remarkable, as the miracles and preaching of some of the inferior ministers of the word, such as Stephen and Philip, are there particularly related. The apostles, it would seem, had different parts assigned to them by Christ, and were qualified, each for his own work, by such a measure of illumination and miraculous power as was requisite to it. May we not therefore suppose, that the work allotted to the apostles who have left nothing in writing concerning our religion, was to bear witness to that display which their master made of his own character as the Son of God, by his miracles and resurrection; and to publish to the world those revelations of the gospel doctrine which were made to them in common with the other apostles! So that, being favoured with no peculiar revelation which merited to be committed to writing, they discharged the apostolical office both honourably and usefully, when they employed themselves in testifying to the world Christ's resurrection, together with the things they had heard him speak, and seen him do, while they attended on him; especially if, as tradition informs us, they sealed their testimony concerning these matters with their blood.

The apostles having received their commission to preach the gospel to all nations, and being furnished with inspiration and miraculous powers for that purpose, went forth and published the things which concern the Lord Jesus, first in Judea, and afterwards among the Gentiles; and, by the miracles which they wrought, persuaded great multitudes, both of the Jews and of the Gentiles, to believe the gospel, and openly to profess themselves Christ's disciples, notwithstanding by so doing they exposed themselves to sufferings and to death. It is evident, therefore, that the world is indebted to the apostles for the complete knowledge of the gospel scheme. Yet that praise is due only to them in a subordinate degree; for the Spirit, who revealed the gospel to the apostles, and enabled them to confirm it by miracles, received the whole from Christ. He therefore is the light of the world, and the Spirit who inspired the apostles shone on them with a light borrowed from him. So Christ himself hath told us, John xvi. 13. When the Spirit of truth is come, he will guide you into all truth; for he shall not speak of himself, but whatsoever he shall hear, that he shall speak, and he will shew you things to come. 14. He shall glorify me; for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. 15. All things that the Father hath are mine; there

In confirmation of this account of the superior illumination of the apostle Paul, I now observe, that the greatness of the mercy of God, as extending to all mankind, was made known to him before it was discovered to the other apostles; namely, in the commission which he received at his conversion, to preach to the Gentiles the good news of salvation through faith, "that they might receive forgiveness of sin, and inheritance among them that are sanctified by faith," Acts xxvi. 18. So that he was the first of the apostles, who, by Christ's command, declared that faith, and not circumcision, was necessary to the salvation of the idolatrous Gentiles. And as St. Paul early communicated to his brethren apostles the gospel which he preached among the Gentiles (Gal. ii. 2.), it seems to have been by him that Christ first made known to the other apostles the extent of the divine mercy to mankind.

For that the apostles, besides discover

ing to each other the revelations which they received, read each other's writings, is plain, from the character which Peter hath given of Paul's epistles, 2 Peter iii. 15,

It is St. Paul who, in his learned epistle to the Hebrews, hath largely explained and proved the priesthood and intercession of Christ, and hath shown that his death is considered by God as a sacrifice for sin; not in a metaphorical sense, and in accommodation to the prejudices of mankind, but on account of its real efficacy in procuring pardon for penitents: that Christ was constituted a priest by the oath of God: that all the priests and sacrifices that have been in the world, but especially the levitical priests and sacrifices, were emblems of the priesthood, sacrifice, and intercession of Christ; and that sacrifice was instituted originally to preserve the memory of the revelation which God made at the fall, concerning the salvation of mankind through the death of his Son, after he should become the seed of the woman.

It is this great apostle who hath most fully explained the doctrine of justification, and shown, that it consists in our being delivered from death, and in our obtaining eternal life, through the obedience of Christ that no sinner can obtain this justification meritoriously through works of law: that though faith is required as the condition thereof, justification is still the free gift of God through Jesus Christ; because no works which men can perform, not even the work of faith itself, hath any merit with God to procure pardon for those who have sinned: that this method of justification having been established at the fall, is the way in which mankind, from the beginning to the end of time, are justified: and that, as such, it is attested both by the law and by the prophets.

It is St. Paul who, by often discoursing of the justification of Abraham, hath shown the true nature of the faith which justifies sinners; that it consists in a strong desire to know, and in a sincere disposition to do, the will of God; that it leads the believer implicitly to obey the will of God when made known; and that even the heathens are capable of attaining this kind of faith, and of being saved through Christ. Also, it is this apostle who, by penetrating into the depth of the meaning of the covenant with Abraham, hath discovered the nature and greatness of those rewards which God taught mankind, even in the first ages, to expect from his goodness; and who hath shown that the gospel, in its chief articles, was preached to Abraham and to the Jews; nay, preach

ed to the antediluvians, in the promise that the seed of the woman should bruise the head of the serpent. So that the gospel is not a revelation of a new method of justification, but a more full publication of the method of justification mercifully established by God for all mankind from the very beginning.

It is the apostle Paul chiefly who, by proving the principal doctrines of the gospel from the writings of Moses and the prophets, hath shown, that the same God who spake to the fathers by the prophets, did, in the last days of the Mosaic dispensation, speak to all mankind by his Son that the various dispensations of religion, under which mankind have been placed, are all parts of one great scheme formed by God for saving penitent sinners; and, in particular, that there is an intimate connexion between the Jewish and the Christian revelations; that the former was a preparation for the latter: consequently, those writers show great ignorance of the divine dispensations, who, on account of the objections to which the law of Moses, as a rule of justification, is liable, and on account of the obscurity of the ancient prophecies, wish to disjoin the Jewish and Christian revelations. But all who make this attempt, do it in opposition to the testimony of Jesus himself, who commanded the Jews to search their own Scriptures, because " they are they which testify of him" (John v. 39.), who, in his conversation with the disciples on the road to Emmaus, "beginning at Moses and all the prophets, expounded unto them from all the Scriptures, the things concerning himself” (Luke xxiv. 27.); and who told them, ver. 44. That all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the Psalms, concerning him." The attempt is made in opposition also to the testimony of the apostle Peter, who, speaking to Cornelius of Christ, said, "To him give all the prophets witness, that, through his name, whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins," Acts x. 43. The Jewish and Christian revelations, therefore, are so closely connected, that if the former is removed as false, the latter must, of necessity, fall to the ground.

It is the apostle of the Gentiles who hath set the Sinaitic covenant, or law of Moses, in a proper light, by showing that it was no method of justification, even to the Jews, but merely their national law, delivered to them by God, not as governor of the universe, but as king in Israel, who had separated them from the rest of mankind, and placed them in Canaan under his own imme diate government, as a nation, for the purpose of preserving his oracles and worship amidst that universal corruption which had overspread the earth. Accordingly, this apostle hath proved, that seeing the law of Moses contained a more perfect account of the duties of morality, and of the demerit of sin, than is to be found in any other national law, instead of justifying, it condemned the Jews by its curse; especially as it prescribed no sacrifice of any real efficacy to cleanse the consciences of sinners, nor promised them pardon in any method whatsoever; and that, by the rigour of its curse, the law of Moses laid the Jews under the necessity of seeking justification from the mercy of God through faith, according to the tenor of the covenant with Abraham, which was the gospel and religion of the Jews. Thus, by the lights which St. Paul hath held up to us, the impious railings of the Manicheans against the law of Moses, and against the God of the Jews, the author of that law, on the supposition that it was a rule of justification, are seen to be without foundation; as are the objections likewise which modern deists have urged against the Mosaic revelation, on account of God's dealings with the Israelites.

It is St. Paul who hath most largely discoursed concerning the transcendent greatness of the Son of God, above angels and all created beings whatever; and who

hath shown, that, as the reward of his humiliation and death in the human nature, he hath, in that nature, obtained the government of the world, for the good of his church, and will hold that government till he hath put down the usurped dominion which the apostate angels have so long endeavoured to maintain, in opposition to the righteous government of God; that, as the last exercise of his kingly power, Christ will raise the dead, and judge the world, and render to every one according to his deeds and that, when all the enemies of God and goodness are thus utterly subdued, the Son will deliver up the kingdom to the Father, that God may be over all in all places.

It is this great apostle who hath made known to us many of the circumstances and consequences of the general judgment, not mentioned by the other apostles. For, besides repeating what Christ himself declared, that he will return a second time to this earth surrounded with the glory of his Father, and attended by a great host of angels; that he will call all the dead forth from their graves; and that, by his sentence as Judge, he will fix the doom of all mankind irreversibly, this apostle hath taught us the following interesting particulars :-That the last generation of men shall not die, but that, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, Christ will change such of the righteous as are alive upon the earth at his coming. And having said nothing of Christ's changing the wicked, the apostle hath led us to believe that no change shall pass on them; consequently, that the discrimination of the righteous from the wicked will be made by the difference of the body in which the one and the other shall appear before the tribunal; and that no particular inquiry into the actions of individuals will be needed to determine their different characters. The character of each will be shown to all, by the nature of the body in which he appears to receive his sentence. The same apostle hath taught us, that, after sentence is pronounced upon all men, according to their true characters, thus visibly manifested, the righteous shall be caught up in clouds to join the Lord in the air: so that the wicked being left behind on the earth, it follows, that they are to perish in the flames of the general conflagration. He farther informs us, that the righteous, having joined the Lord in the air, shall accompany him in his return to heaven, and there live in an embodied state, with God and Christ and the angels, to all eternity.

It is St. Paul who hath given us the completest account of the spiritual gifts which were bestowed in such plenty and variety on the first Christians, for the confirmation of the gospel. Nay, the form which the Christian visible church has taken under the government of Christ, is owing, in a great measure, to the directions contained in his writings. Not to mention, that the different offices of the gospel ministry, together with the duties and privileges belonging to these offices, have all been established in consequence of his appointment.

Finally, it is St. Paul who, in his first epistle to the Thessalonians, hath given us a formal proof of the divine original of the gospel; which, though it was originally designed for the learned Greeks of that age, hath been of the greatest use ever since, in confirming believers in their most holy faith, and stopping the mouths of adversaries.

The foregoing account of the matters contained in the writings of the apostle Paul, shows, that whilst the inspired epistles of the other apostles deserve to be read with the utmost attention, on account of the explications of particular doctrines and facts which they contain, and of the excellent precepts of piety and morality with which they abound, the epistles of Paul must be regarded as the grand repository, in which the whole of the gospel doctrine is lodged, and from which the knowledge of it can

be drawn with the greatest advantage. And, therefore, all who wish to understand true Christianity ought to study the epistles of this great apostle with the utmost care. In them, indeed, they will meet with things hard to be understood. But that circumstance, instead of discouraging, ought rather to make them more diligent in their endeavours to understand his writings; as they contain information from God himself concerning matters which are of the utmost importance to their temporal and eternal welfare. It is true, the ministers of religion, whose office it is to instruct others, are under more peculiar obligations to study the Scriptures with unremitting assiduity; nevertheless, others, whose leisure, learning, and genius, qualify them for the work, are not exempted from that obligation. In former times, by the cruel persecution and obloquy which followed those who, in matters of religion, happened to go out of the beaten track, men of liberal minds were hindered from searching the Scriptures, or, at least, from publishing what they found in them contrary to the received opinions. But the darkness of bigotry is passing away, and the light of truth is beginning to shine. Men have acquired more just notions of the rights of conscience; and the fetters in which the understandings of Christians, for so many ages, have been held bound by the decrees of councils and the establishment of creeds, are begun to be broken: so that the candid may now modestly propose the result of their inquiries into the word of God, without incurring either danger or blame. If, therefore, proper attention is paid to such publications as are designed for the illustration of the Scriptures, it is to be hoped that, in the progress of ages, the united efforts of many will dispel the obscurity which hath so long rendered some passages of Scripture hard to be understood; and the matters of fact above human comprehension really made known in the word of God, being separated from those which have been obtruded on it by ignorant or by worldly men, genuine Christianity will, at last, shine forth in its native splendour. And thus the objections raised against the gospel vanishing, it will at length be generally received, and acquire its proper influence on the minds and manners of mankind.

By attending to the various undoubted facts set forth in the foregoing essay, every Christian must be sensible of the divine authority of all the books of the New Testament; and, by forming a proper judgment of the purpose for which each of these books was written, he may easily learn the use he is to make of these divinely inspired writings.

ESSAY II.

of the Use which the Churches were to make of the Apostle's Epistles; and of the Method in which these Writings were published and preserved.

FORMERLY, books being of such value that none but the rich were able to purchase them, the common people were seldom taught to read in any country; and having no teachers given them by the public, they were generally grossly ignorant of moral and religious truths. The vulgar, however, of the Jewish nation, were better instructed. For Moses having ordered his law to be read to the people at the end of every seven years, during the feast of tabernacles, in the year of release (Deut. xxxi. 10, 11.), the knowledge of the doctrines contained in his writings was, by that institution, universally diffused among the Jews. Besides, it gave rise to the reading of the law and the prophets in their synagogues. For, in whatever part of the world the Jews resided, they assembled themselves every Sabbath for the worshipping of God, and for the reading of their sacred writings. Now, the Christian churches being destined for the same pur