gate amount; that which was in the nature of it was -the making an addition to that same afflicting ag gregate; to wit, by constant and unavoidable anticipation of the approach of such sufferings.

Of this talk, vague as it is, about sufferings, the obvious enough object was-the giving exaltation to the idea meant to be conveyed of the merits of the hero: an object, which, by this and other means, has accordingly, down to the present day, in no small degree been accomplished. So much as to sufferings: as to enjoyments, by any idea entertained of the enjoyments derived by him from the same source, this design would have been-not promoted, but counteracted. But, when the time arrives, whether the mass of suffering was not, to no small amount, overbalanced by that of his enjoyments-meaning always worldly sufferings and worldly enjoyments-the reader will be left to judge.

Here then we have the only promise, which in any direct way is expressed :-a promise which, in the first place would have been useless, in the next place worse than useless.

TOPIC 6.-Indirect Promise, that Paul shall spread the Name of Jesus.

In the whole substance of this promise, if there be any thing, which, with reference to the professed endto wit the giving extension to the religion of Jesuswould have been of use, it is in the foregoing part that it must be looked for. In this part then, if there be any such matter to be found, it will be this: to wit, a promise that he (Paul) shall bear, and therefore that he shall be enabled to bear, the name of the Lord, to wit, the name of Jesus, before the classes of persons specified, to wit the Gentiles, and kings, and children of Israel: Acts ix. 15. But, only in an indirect way is this solely material part of the promise expressed "He is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear

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my name," &c. i. e. When I chose him, it was my design that he should do so. But, in the case of the Lord, according to the picture drawn of him by this historian, how very inconclusive evidence intention is of execution, there will, in the course of this work, have been abundant occasion to see.

Bear the name of Jesus? so far, so good. But for this function no such special and supernatural commission was necessary: without any such commission, the name of Jesus had been borne to the people at large, if in this particular the Gospel history is to be believed. Luke ix. 49, 50: "And John an"swered and said, 'Master, we saw one casting out "devils in thy name: and we forbad him, because he "followed not with us.' 50. And Jesus said unto him, "Forbid him not, for he that is not against us, is for "us."" How inadequate soever, with reference to the professed end, to wit the giving extension to the religion of Jesus, the promise was perfectly adequate, and commensurate, to what we shall find to be Paul's real design; to wit, the planting a Gospel of his own, as, and for, and instead of, the Gospel of Jesus. The Gospel of Jesus was the Gospel of Jesus: and the Gospel, which, availing himself of the name of Jesus, it was Paul's design and practice to preach, was, as he himself declares, as we shall see him declaring in the plainest and most express terms,-a Gospel of his own; a Gospel which was not the Gospel of the Apostles, and which, for fear of its being opposed by them, he kept studiously concealed from those confidential servants and real associates of Jesus, as may be seen in the following passages: Gal. i. ver. 9, 11, and 12; "As we said before, so say I now again, If any "man preach any other Gospel unto you, than that ye "have received, let him be accursed.-But I certify

you, brethren, that the Gospel which was preached "of me is not after man.-For I neither received it of

"man, neither was I taught it but by the revelation "of Jesus Christ." Gal. ii. ver. 2: "And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that Gospel which I preach among the Gentiles; but "privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means, I should run, or had run, in vain."

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In the course of Paul's dialogue with the voice on the road-that voice which we are given to understand was the Lord's, i. e. Jesus's-the promise supposed to be made to Paul, it must be remembered, was-the promise to tell him, when in the city, what he was to do. "What thou must do," says the historian in his historical account :-" all things which are appointed for thee to do," says the historian in the supposed unpremeditated oratorical account, which, in this so often mentioned first of the speeches, he is supposed by the historian to have delivered.

Among all these things,-one thing, which it is manifestly the design of the historian, as it was that of his hero, to make men believe, was accomplished: to wit, the satisfying them what was the religious doctrine, for the dissemination of which the expense of this miracle was incurred. This, moreover, is the promise; which, in the reading of the story, every body looks for this too is the promise, which, in the reading of this same story, the believers in the religion of Jesus have very generally been in the habit of considering as performed. Not in and by this history, however, will they have any such satisfaction, when the matter comes to be looked into. For, in respect of this information, desirable a sit is,-Paul is, in this strangely supposed intercourse, put off-put off to another time and place: put off, for no reason given, nor for any substantial reason that can be imagined. Further on, when a show of performing the promise comes to be made, then, instead of accomplishment, we have more evasion. Instead of furnishing the in

formation to Paul himself-to Paul directly-(for, when the time and place for performance comes, performance-what the Lord is not supposed so much as to profess to do), what he professes to do is-to make the communication to this man, who (his existence being supposed) was an utter stranger to Paul -namely to this Ananias. Well, and for the conveying the information, in this indirect and inadequate way-for conveying it to and through this same Ananias-what is done?-as we have seen, what amounts to nothing.

When, for affording the information-had any information been intended to be afforded-the time and place are come; when Ananias and Paul have been brought together; what is it that, from the information afforded us by the historian (we are to understand) passed? Answer, that, after the scales had fallen from his eyes, Paul was baptized; that he ate meat, and that after he had eaten meat he was strengthened: strengthened, we are warranted to suppose, by the meat which he had so eaten. Moreover, that somehow or other, in this large city he was certain days-number not specified,-with certain disciples-neither names nor number specified, and preached Christ in the synagogues, saying that he was the son of God.

Thus far then we are got; and, of the supposed revelation, in all this time nothing revealed. Promises, put-offs, evasions-and, after all, no performance.

Among the purposes of this work, is the satisfying the reader-not only that Paul received not any revelation from the Almighty; but that, even upon his own showing, never did he receive any such revelation: that, on pretence of his having received it from the Almighty by a special revelation, he preached indeed a certain doctrine; but that this doctrine was partly one of his own, contrary to that of Jesus's apostles, and therefore contrary to that of Jesus: and that, in

the way of revelation, he never did receive any thing; neither that doctrine of his own which he preached, nor any thing else.

TOPIC 7.-Doctrine, supposed to be preached by Paul at Damascus in the synagogues.

Straightway, if the historian is to be believed;straightway after being strengthened by the meat;and straightway after he had passed the certain days with the disciples;-then did Paul preach Christ in the synagogues-preach that he is the son of God (ver. 20).

Here, had he really preached in any such placeshere would have been the time, and the best time, for telling us what, in pursuance of the supposed revelation, he preached. For, whatever it was, if any thing, that he ever learnt from his supposed revelation, it was not till he had learnt it, till he made this necessary acquisition, that the time for beginning to preach in the synagogues in question or any where else was come. And, no sooner had he received it, than then, when it was fresh in his memory-then was the time for preaching it. But, never having received any such thing as that which he pretended, and which the historian has made so many people believe, he received,no such thing had he to preach at any time or place.

Whatever of that nature he had had, if he had had at any time, Damascus was not the place, at any rate at that time, for him to preach it, or any thing else, in synagogues-in any receptacle so extensively open to the public eye.

Preach, in the name of Jesus-in the name of that Jesus, whose disciples, and with them whose religion, he now went thither with a commission to exterminate, preach in that name he could not, without proclaiming his own rebellion-his own perfidy;-his own rebellion, against the authorities, from which, at his own solicitation, the commission so granted to