mortified to find their Master give way and seem to decline any further contest. But the obscurity of his

retreat could not conceal him from the multitudes who flocked to him from all quarters, bringing with them their sick and diseased; and his heavenly goodness healed them all. Nor would the disciples have been offended at this mild and peaceable conduct of their Master, had they attentively considered the prophecy of Isaiah, where this peaceable disposition iş particularly insisted on as eminently distinguishing the character of the Messiah. Behold my servant whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles. He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoaking flax he shall not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory. And in his name shall the Gentiles trust. Matthew xii. 12, &c.

The small variations between this prophecy, as quoted by St. Matthew, and the original in the book of Isaiah, are of no consequence, as the sense is the same; and here it may be worthy of remark, that this prophecy describes the publication of the Christian religion by JESUS CHRIST, vastly different from that of the Jewish religion by Moses. The law of Moses was published with thunder and fire, and the strongest circumstances of terror from mount Sinai, and only extended to the single nation of the Israelites: the doctrine of salvation, as published by the Messiah, was mild, peaceable, and gentle, and was extended to every nation and people under heaven. Accordingly, our Lord, by retiring to Galilee, fulfilled the first part of this famous prophecy, He shall shew judgment to the Gentiles; for we are informed by the evangelist that great multitudes came to him from beyond Jordan, and from Syria, and from the countries about Tyre and Sidon.

While our Lord remained in Galilee, there was brought unto him a blind and dumb man, possessed with a devil; but he, with a single word, cast out the evil spirit, and immediately restored to the poor man the noble faculties of sight and speech. An event so surprising, so miraculous, and so suddenly wrought, could not fail of exciting the astonishment of the beholder; and the honest plain-hearted part of the nation were inclined to believe. But the Pharisees, who had followed him from Jerusalem with the basest intentions, were filled with the most tormenting envy at seeing him perform such surprising miracles and burning with all the rage of disappointed malice, contrary to all the rules of reason and the conviction of their own minds, impudently and wickedly ascribed his miracles to the power of the devil: an affirmation so horrid, abominable and desperately wicked, could not escape the notice, or fail of exciting the sharp rebukes of the Son of God; who addressing himself both to his enemies and the surrounding multitude, demonstrated the absurdity and impossibility of such a conclusion from the common affairs of life. Every kingdom said the blessed JESUS, divided against itself shall not stand: and if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself: how then shall his kingdom stand? How foolish and ridiculous is it to suppose that the Devil would act against himself, and undermine the foundations of his own kingdom! To which our great Redeemer thought fit to add, If I by Belzebub cast out devils, by whom do your children cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then is the kingdom of God come unto you. You did not impute the miracles of your prophets to Belzebub but received them on the evidence of these miracles as the messengers of God: but ye reject me, who work greater or more numerous miracles that they, and impute them to the power of the Devil. Is this conduct consistent; or is it possible to reconcile it to reason or common sense? These prophets therefore shall be your

judges; and they shall condemn you. But if it is true, that I cast out devils by the Almighty Power and Spirit of God, it follows, that the kingdom of God so long expected, and ardently desired, is going to be established amongst you. Is not the horrid impudence of this blasphemy of yours really astonishing! But great as your crime is, it may yet be forgiven; because fuller and more manifest evidences of the truth of my mission, may hereafter convince you of your wickedness, and excite you to believe; and the time is coming, when the Son of man shall be raised from the dead and the gift of miracles by the power of the Holy Ghost will be bestowed on almost every believer. The nature of the Messiah's kingdom will be more fully explained, and such proofs given, as if attended to, will be abundantly sufficient to remove your prejudices and overcome your obstinacy and prevailing unbelief. But if you then shut your eyes, and speak evil against the Holy Ghost, contrary to the conviction of your minds, maliciously ascribing the miracles wrought by his power and his extraordinary gifts, to proceed from the prince of darkness, you have willfully shut your eyes against the light; you have dared to insult the eternal God to his face; you have resisted, wilfully resisted, the last means which he will use to convince you and you never will be forgiven, but shall surely fall under the fierceness of his wrath, both in this world and that which is to come. Werefore I say unto you, all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.

And

whoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.

The awful and alarming denunciation against the blasphemy of the Holy Ghost, was probably laid down by our Saviour at this time, to apprise the Pharisees of their danger, to awaken them to a sense of their

obstinate and envious opposition to the truth, and make them afraid of the consequence, if they persisted in such detestable calumnies, when their own hearts told them that they had no foundation in reason, but what flowed from malice and resentments: but the most powerful arguments, or the most awful threatenings, had no effect on this obstinate and perverse race of mortals, who sarcastically answered, Master, we would see a sign from thee. What astonishing stupidity! Had he not, the moment before, cast out a devil, and restored the faculties of sight and speech to the blind and dumb! Had not he cleansed lepers, raised the dead, and rebuked the tempestuous winds and raging waves of the sea! Were not these signs sufficient to have convinced the most obstinate and bigotted mortal! What therefore could these stubborn doctors of the law require! Well might the great Saviour of the world call them a wicked and adulterous generation; for certainly they could justly pretend to no part of the faith and piety of their great father Abraham ; he believed God, and, it was imputed to him for righteousness: but they, by their malicious obstinacy, and determined unbelief, added sin to sin, and plunged themselves into the depth of iniquity and wickedness. Persons of such perverse dispositions, and incorrigible tempers, merited no indulgence; and, therefore, our great Redeemer told them, that no sign should be given them, but that of the prophet Jonah, who, by lying three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, was a type of the Son of God, who should continue three days and three nights in the chambers of the grave.

Our Lord then proceeded to observe, that the obstinacy, perverseness, and wickedness of that generation, was greater than that of the most barbarous, ignorant, and idolatrous nations, who would rise in judgment with them and condemn them.

The people of Nineveh repented at the preaching

Y

of Jonah; and the queen of the South took a long journey to behold the wisdom of Solomon; but the obstinate, wicked, and unbelieving Jews, would not repent at the preaching, and repeated warnings of the Son of God, nor learn wisdom from the Eternal Fountain of Wisdom itself.

Our Lord then concluded his discourse with a parable, which shewed the great danger of wilfully opposing and resisting the truth, as such practices tend to make men habitually and desperately wicked, and, in every respect, more obdurate and abandoned than before.

During this dispute with the rulers of Israel, JESUS was informed, that his mother and his kinsmen waited without, desiring an interview with him; upon which, with a look of the tenderest affection, he stretched out his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren ! for whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister and mother, Matt. xii. 49, 50. These remarkable words ought to be received with the warmest gratitude, and the most exalted joy, by every christian: since from this divine declaration, it may be learnt, that a faith in CHRIST, which works by love, and produces a conformity to the precepts of the gospel, gives the believer a claim to the high title of a Son of the Most High, and a near relation to his dear Redeemer: by this divine principle, the believer lays hold on the blessings and privileges which belong to his spiritual birth, he claims a kindred to the skies, he becomes acquainted with his union with the Divine Nature, and can stand before the throne of the Eternal God, and call him his Father,