fiery sword, which for a year together hung over the city. Another time, before the first revolt and war, the people being gathered together to the feast of unleavened bread, which was the 8th day of April at the ninth hour of the night, there was so much light about the altar and temple, as though it had been bright day; and it remained half an hour. This the ignorant people interpreted as a good sign; but they that were skilful in holy scripture, presently judged what would ensue before it came to pass. At the same festival, a cow led to be sacrificed at the altar, brought forth a lamb in the midst of the temple; and the inner gate of the temple, on the east side, being of massive brass, and which at night had always at least twenty men to shut it, and was bound with locks of iron, and barred with bars, the ends whereof went into mortice holes in the stones on either side the door, (the foresaid stones being on each side one whole stone) was seen at the first hour of the night to open of its own accord; which being presently. related to the magistrate by the keepers of the temple, he himself came thither, and could scarcely shut it. This also to the ignorant seemed a good sign, as if God opened to them the gate of his blessings, but the wiser sort judged, that the defence of the temple would fail of its own accord, and that the opening of the gate

foretold that it should be given to the enemies, and that this sign signified desolation. A little while after the feast days, on the one and twentieth day of May, there was seen a vision beyond all belief, and perhaps that which I am to recount might seem a fable, if some were not now alive that beheld it, and if that calamity worthy to be so foretold, had not ensued.

Before

the sun-rise, was seen in the air all over the country; chariots full of armed meu in battle array passing along in the clouds, and begirting the city. And upon the feast day, called Pentecost, at night, the priests going into the inner Temple to offer their wonted sacrifice, at first, felt the place to move and tremble, and afterward they heard a voice which said, let us depart hence, and that which was most wonderful of all, one Jesus the son of Ananus, an ordinary peasant, four years before the war begun, when the city flourished in peace and riches, coming to the celebration of the feast of tabernacles, in the temple at Jerusalem, suddenly began to cry out thus, "A voice from the east ; a voice from the west; a voice from the four winds; a voice against all Jerusalem and the temple; a voice against men and women newly married; a voice against all this people and thus crying night and day he went about all the streets of the city. Some of the quality, not able to

suffer words of so ill presage, caused him to be taken and severely scourged, which he endured without speaking the least word to defend himself, or to complain of so hard treatment; but he continued repeating the same words. The magistrates then thinking, (as indeed it was) that the man spake thus through some divine motion, led him to Albinus, general of the Romans, where being beaten till his bones appeared, he never intreated nor wept, but as well as he could, with a mournful voice, he cryed, 'Woe, woe to Jerusalem.' Albinus asked him what he was, and whence, and wherefore he said so; but he made him no answer. Yet he ceased not to bewail the misery of Jerusalem, till Albinus thinking him to be out of his wits, suffered him to depart, after which, till the time of war, this man was never seen to speak to any one, but still without ceasing he cryed, 'Woe, woe to Jerusalem. Neither did he ever curse any one, though every day some one or other did beat him, nor did he ever thank any one that offered him meat. All that he spake to any man was this heavy prophecy. He went crying, as is said, chiefly upon holy days; doing so continually for the space of seven years and five months; and his voice never waxed hoarse nor weary, till in the time of the siege, beholding what he foretold them, he ceased: and then once again upon the walls, going about the

city, with a loud voice he cryed, "Woe, woe to the city, temple, and people ;" and lastly he said, 'Woe also to myself.' Which words were no sooner uttered, but a stone shot out of an engine, smote him, and so he yielded up the ghost, lamenting them all."

REFLECTIONS.

Moses truly said unto the fathers, "A prophet shall the Lord God raise up unto you of your brethren like unto me. About fifteen hundred years afterwards this prophecy was found to square with the event in the person of Jesus Christ, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people." God, according to our feeble apprehension, may seem to delay the fulfilment of his predictions, and patience and faith may be sorely tried, and the scoffer be emboldened to ask, "Where is the sign of his coming?" But, what fidelity has spoken, omnipotence will effect. What holy men of old saw in prophetic vision, the generation to come, shall behold realized, as exactly as the impression answers to the seal.This is not mere conjecture; it has been verified by innumerable facts; and, as it is a duty, which we owe to God, to glorify him, by believing the things which he has foretold; so it is a privilege which belongs

to ourselves, to rejoice in hope of their fulfilment.

None of our Saviour's predictions are more awfully striking than those which respect the destruction of Jerusalem, and which were accomplished about forty years after they were delivered with a dreadful exactness. He did not deliver himself dubiously respecting the time of this desolation; but connected with it two most extraordinary circumstances, by which as criteria they were to judge. One was, that notwithstanding the most discouraging appearances which presented themselves, and the future heavy persecutions which he predicted were to follow his death; yet the gospel of the kingdom should first be preached in all the world (that is, throughout the Roman empire. Luke ii, 1.) for a witness unto all nations, and then, and not till then, should the end of the Jewish state come. Of the accomplishment of this, in less than thirty years after the crucifixion there is evidence which can never be disproved. In respect of the other criterion, hear his most solemn affirmation, "Verily I say unto you, this generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled;" and it is admitted as an indisputable fact, that in about the short space of forty years after his death, which was within the compass of that race they were, accomplished as he had foretold.