In the same Gospel it is found to be recorded, that when the Virgin Mary was at Bethlehem, (where, with her husband, she had gone up to be taxed, in pursuance of the order of the Emperor Augustus,) she was there delivered of a son: "And there were "in the same country shepherds abiding in "the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord "came upon them, and the glory of the "Lord shone round about them: and they

66

66

66

were sore afraid. And the angel said unto

them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you

good tidings of great joy, which shall be to "all people. For unto you is born this day, "in the city of David, a Saviour, which is "Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign "unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped "in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. "And suddenly there was with the angel a "multitude of the heavenly host praising "God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will to"wards men."

66

The first criterion being fully verified, namely, that a personage appears on earth, who is born only of the seed of the woman, and, as predicted, in Bethlehem, and of the

tribe of Judah; the examination is continued, to observe whether the second mark is equally verified, which predicted the precise period of his coming. He finds it does exactly; for Archelaus, the last king of Judæa, was at this time deposed by Augustus Cæsar, which put an end to the Jewish government; and thus the sceptre departed from Judah when Shiloh, or the Messiah, came; and Judæa from that time became a Roman province, and the tribe of Judah was no longer to be distinguished; a convincing proof that the Messiah was come, and ought ever to be so considered by the Jews. The other marks are equally recorded in the most natural and artless manner in the New Testament; he is there declared to be the Son of God by a voice from heaven, and which voice, in his 2d Epistle, St. Peter positively affirms himself to have heard. "For we have not followed cun"ningly devised fables, when we made "known to you the power and coming of "our Lord Jesus, but were eye-witnesses of "his majesty. For he received from God the "Father honour and glory, when there came "such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I

66

"am well pleased. And this voice which 66 came from heaven we heard, when we were "with him in the holy mount."

St. John the Baptist likewise particularly testifies in the following precise manner that he was the Son of God: "I saw the spirit

descending from heaven like a dove, and it "abode upon him, and I knew him not: "but he that sent me to baptize with water, "the same said unto me, Upon whom “thou shalt see the spirit descending and

66

66

remaining on him, the same is he which

baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw "and bare record, that this is the Son of God." This was again confirmed by a voice from heaven, when our Saviour was baptized by St. John*. The criterion of the Messiah's being preceded by the voice of a prophet crying in the wilderness, was precisely verified by the preaching of John the Baptist, who, to the -Priests and Levites that were sent from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? confessed that he was not the Christ, but that he was the "voice of one crying in the wilderness, "Make straight the way of the Lord. He it

* Matth. iii. 17.

"is who coming after me is preferred before

66

me; whose shoes latchet I am not worthy "to unloose." It was predicted by Isaiah, that at the time of his coming there should be peace on earth; which was most singularly fulfilled; for Christ was born in the Roman empire during the latter part of the reign of Augustus Cæsar, which empire was at that time mistress of the world, and was then in a state of peace; which it had only been for three short intervals before, from the foundation of Rome to the battle of Actium, a period of rather more than seven hundred years.

On our Saviour's entering on his ministry, by his life, death, resurrection, and doctrines, he completes all the other prophecies respecting him. He is a prophet like Moses, establishing like him a new religion; he appears to the Scribes and Pharisees as the son of a carpenter, and accordingly is despised and rejected; he affirms of himself, that he knew not where to lay his head; that he was grieved for the hardness of the hearts of the Jews; and that his soul was exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death: thus he proves that he was a man of sorrow, and

acquainted with grief. By his sermon on the Mount he preached, in the most open and public manner, his Gospel to the poor, to the lowest classes of the people, and informed them of the true nature of the Deity; which Plato expressly asserts it to be an impossibility for any human being to do. In the same open and public manner he cured the lame and blind, and raised the dead: in short, he performed all the miracles it was predicted he should do. He likewise destroyed the power of the Devil, by abolishing idolatry and su, perstition; for the Emperor Julian and other Heathen writers particularly affirm, that all power and efficiency in their oracles had ceased, in consequence of the prevalence of Christianity. He told mankind the exact measure of duty God expected them to perform, and defined it in so short, clear, and comprehensible a way, that no one could misunderstand it; declaring to the human species, if they accomplished that duty, or sincerely endeavoured to do so, and had so proper an idea of the infinite goodness of God, as to believe it to be such as induced him to send his Son into the world, that mankind should not perish, but have everlasting life; that they should then enjoy for their portion