Jews, who were so tenacious of their privileges, would have eagerly embraced this opportunity of enlarging them by interceding for the discharge of Jesus of Nazareth, who was more deserving of it than Barabbas. It was also a finesse in him, that, in his address to the Jews, he mentioned Jesus by such titles as tended to prejudice the minds of the people in his favour. He stiles him Christ, and King of the Jews. As if he had said, "You have for a long time expected a Messiah. Now as I understand, that this man is held to be that person by a great number of the Jews, it would become you to shew him more love and esteem. You accuse him of giving himself out to be the King of the Jews; and I am informed, that the other day, at his entry into Jerusalem, you publicly proclaimed him to be a king. Consider therefore, that it will little redound to your honour to suffer your king to be crucified as a slave." So far there was a great deal of artifice and cunning in this question.

But this artifice was intermixed with wickedness and malice. For, in the first place, it ill becomes a judge to ask the people, what he shall do with a prisoner: He ought to be guided by the laws, according to which he should proceed in punishing criminals. In the next place, he redicules both our Saviour's prophetic office of Messiah, and his regal dignity; for he himself did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah and King of the Jews, and yet he makes use of this as the means of promoting his release. Hence Pilate's meaning seems to be this: If you do not regard Jesus as an innocent man, yet you ought to shew a reward to your own honour and reputation; for every one will be apt to think it strange, that you have consented to have this person crucified, whom by your acclamations you had so lately proclaimed King of Israel. Now reflect, what all people of any sense or honour will think of such an inconsistent conduct. But it appeared by the event what little

effect such representations had on an inflamed, out rageous multitude: For when the question was put, What shall I do with Jesus?' all the people immediately cried out with one voice, Crucify him! Crucify him!'

Hereupon Pilate puts another question to the people, viz. Why, what evil hath he done?'

6

1. Pilate again bears witness to the innocence of Jesus, both interrogatively and affirmatively, in these words: What evil hath he done? I have found no cause of death in him.' As if he had said, It is not a sufficient reason for me to order Jesus to be crucified, that you cry out in the face of open day, Crucify him! Crucify him! He must have been found guilty of some enormous crime, deserving of such an infamous and painful death. Now I have not found any such crime in the man; and you yourselves have not been able to prove him guilty. If you have any thing of weight to urge, speak out; I am ready to enter on a fresh examination, and for this reason I ask you, What evil hath he done?' For as to what has hitherto been alleged against him, that does not at all amount to a capital crime. Thus Pilate a third time delivers his testimony of the innocence of Christ. Upon this,

2. He proposes a medium, by way of expedient to put an end to the affair: 'I will therefore chastise him, and let him go.' Thus he intended to keep the middle way in this critical situation. His conscience loudly protested against putting Jesus to death; yet, in order to appease the tumultuous rage of the Jews, he was for giving them some satisfaction; and to this end, he proposed the barbarous expedient of scourging him after the Roman manner. But how unjust this proceeding was, has been already shewn in the ninth Consideration. This was the method Pilate took to silence the people who demanded that Jesus should be crucified.

We find in this behaviour of Pilate some things worthy of our imitation, and some things which we are to avoid.

In his repeated remonstrances to the people, in order to preserve the life of the innocent Jesus, he is a pattern to us, who should thus stand up in behalf of God's injured honour, and the welfare of our neighbour. We should spare no pains, avoid no labour; but risk all the storms which malice can raise against us, when engaged in so good a cause. Pilate's ques

tion, What evil hath he done?" is likewise commendable, and worthy of imitation; and is frequently heard among Christians. If this question was put on proper occasions, many persons wrongfully defamed would be vindicated and comforted; the mouth of malice would be stopped, infamous calumnies discouraged, and so many scandalous falsities against good men would no longer go current. But if, on the other hand, we only ask what ill is said of a person, in order to defame him, good men will still suffer the lash of calumny; venomous tongues will wonton in an unbounded licentiousness, and audaciously spread the worst reports of the best men. But it a man is so far prejudiced against the innocent as to agree to that absurd maxim. That he of whom evil is spoken, must be in some measure guilty, it is the very triumph of the spirit of lies. Let it rather be our equitable and generous resolution, always to obviate calumny in this manner, "You, who speak evil of your neighbour, ought to go to him, and before his face prove unanswerably what evil he has done.” But though Pilate on this occasion did something which may shame many Christians, and serve for their imitation; yet is he not to be approved or imitated in other particulars. He only opposed the rage of the multitude against the innocent Jesus with words, without making use of the power, which God had put into his hands, for quelling the tumult. No more, indeed, is to be expected from him whose

power does not extend beyond fair words; but from a person invested with sufficient power and authority, it is justly required that he should go farther in the protection of innocence. From this behaviour of Pilate we may learn the following truths:

1. God has imprinted on the conscience of man such an abhorrence of manifest injustice, that it often makes a long resistance before it gives itself up to commit injustice.

Our conscience is certainly corrupted by the fall, and the abhorrence of evil, which was at first infused into us by our Creator, extremely weakened; yet natural conscience frequently holds out a long time, before it suffers itself entirely to be overcome by, and brought under the yoke of sin. Of this we have an instance in Pilate. He defends himself with questions and protestations, rather than consent to this iniquitous proceeding, or surrender himself a slave to wickedness and sin. His conscience is strongly impressed with the idea of the injustice of putting an innocent man to death. And since he was convinced of our blessed Saviour's innocence, he could not immediately bring himself to put him to death, and thus act contrary to the fundamental truths which were engraven on his conscience.

This innate power of conscience many who read this, it may be presumed, have experienced. A man when first seduced to commit a sin, from which he had always abstained before, generally feels in his conscience the most violent emotions, and reluctance against it. But by custom of sinning, his conscience becomes enured to sin, and his former abhorrence of cvil gradually wears off. Hence every one may judge of the state of his own conscience, by attending to the faintness or vigour of its motions, when he is about to commit any sin. Let us therefore treat our consciences with the greatest tenderness: and let us by no means endeavour to quench that abhorrence of evil which is naturally imprinted on the human mind;

since, by opposing this divine principle within us, we act in opposition to God himself. This is the greatest injury a man can do to his own soul; for it is the most certain way to incur the dreadful judgment of an obdurate insensibility.

2. The more opposition a man has met with in committing any heinous sin, either from his own conscience or from others, the greater is the guilt he incurs by sinning.

The chief Priests and Elders of the people had many difficulties to grapple with, before they compassed their wicked ends. Pilate, for a long time, opposed their unjust desires; and it must have cost them no small pains, before they could bring over the people to vote as they directed them. But this highly aggravated their sin; and consequently increased their guilt. This circumstance is likewise observed by St. Peter, who says to the Jews. 'Ye denied Jesus in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go: Ye denied the holy One, and the just, and desired a murderer to be granted to you.' (Acts iii. 13, 14.) St. Luke also carefully enumerates the impediments which God threw in the way of the Jews to divert them from this horrid injustice, in these words: And Pilate said a third time, Why, what evil hath he done?' (Luke xxiii. 23.) Thus all the obstructions, which God lays in a sinner's way to prevent the perpetration of any crime, are registered in God's book of remembrance, and there charged to his account. God often meets those persons who have purposed in their minds to commit a sin, as formerly the angel of the Lord met Balaam, with a flaming sword, with dreadful threatenings and agonies of mind. He causes every thing to obstruct them, and gives them not only warnings and smitings of conscience; but throws in their way many obstacles to the accomplishment of their wicked purposes, and such as they cannot overcome without great strugglings. When a man, notwithstand