reafon that they ihould have ufed the like method of
the fophifls, among the Greeks : but they difowned and
rejeded all thefe poor artifices of mean low-fpirited
men, " Their fpeech and preaching, v/as not with en-
" ticing words of man's wifdom, but in demonftration
" of the fpirit, and of power, that their faith fhould
*' not fland in the wifdom of mian, but in the power of
" God," I Cor. ii. ver. 4, 5. They declared the tef-
timony of God with fpiritual evidence : they renounced
the hidden things of difhonefty, not walking in crafti-
nefs, " nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but
" by manifeilation of the truth, commending them-
*' felves to every man's confcience, in the fight of

G 2 "^God,"



t 68 ]

^- 6od,*' 2 Cor. iv. lo. What could be more fuit-
able to fucli a defign, than that great plainnefs and
faithfuhiefs with which they fpake ? We find in the
teflimonies of the apoftles, (as Origen juilly obferves)
nothing that is fpurious or counterfeit, nothing favour-
ing of the cunning craftiriefs of fuch as he in wait tp
deceive.

It is impoflibk (faith he) to think that men, never
bred up in the fophiflry of the Greeks, nor experi-
enced in the rhetorical infinuations ufed among them,
could ever be able fo fuddenly to perfuadc the world
to embrace that which had been a fidion of their own
brains.

The truth isy the apoftles Ipcak like men very confi-
dent of the truth of what they fpeak, and not like
fuch, who were fain to fetch in the help of all their
fkill, to find out fome probable arguments, to make
mankind believe that, which, it is probable, they dkl
not believe themfelves, which was frequently the cafe
of the great orators among the heathens*

We find no pedantic flourifbes, no flattering infi*
nuations, no affe6led cadencies, no fuch great care of
the rifmg and falling of the words, in the feveral fen*
tences which make up fo great part of that which was
accounted eloquence in the apoftles times : no, every
thing they faid was grave and ferious ; every word had
its due weight, every fentence brim full of fpiritual
doquence, Their whole difcourfe was moft becoming
tilt majefty and authority of die holy Spirit of God,

V/liich



r 69 ]

which they fpake by. And herein was difcovered ^
great part of the infinite wifdom of God, in the choice
he made of theperfons who were to propagate the doc-
trine of Chrifl in the world : that they were not fuch,,
who, by their great repute and fame in the world,
might eafily draw whole multitudes to embrace their
didates ; but (that there might not be the leaft foun-
dation for an implicit faith) they were of fo mean a
rank and condition in the world, that in all probability
their names had never been heard of, had not their
dodrine made them famous. To this purpofe Origen
excellently fpeaks : I am of opinion, (fays he) that
Jefus did purpofely make ufe of fuch preachers of his
do&ine, that there might be no room for fufpicion,
that they came inilruded in the arts of fophiftry, but
that it be clearly manifell to thofe who might confider
of it, that there was no defign in thofe who difco-
vered fo much fimplicity in their writings, and that
they had a more divine power, which was mope effica-
dous than the greatcil volubility of ^xpreifion, or or-
naments of fpeech, or the artifices which were ufed in
the Grecian compofitions, Vid, C, Celliim, 1. 3, You
may be fure the apollles delivered their dodlrines with
the greateft opennefs and freedom of Ipeech ; they di4
pot give out one thing to the w^orld, and another to
their private difciples : but with great freedom and
boldnefs declared their dodrine in the moft public
places, and before their greatell enemies. They knew
they were looked on as deceivers by the world, but yet
they knew themfdves to be true, 2 Cor. vu 8.

G 2 Thli



[ 7° ]

This is the ufual requital good men have from the
world, that they are looked on as the greatefl deceivers
of it. If it be lb with others, we have much lefs caufe
to wonder at it, when he,- who ^ by the. prophet is- ftiled
" the defire of all natians/* Haggai H. 7. "and'
who is by another prophet - foretold, ''- as defpifed' -aii<i '
*' rejeded of men," Ifa. liii. yer.- 3.-; was, -when -in-
this world, cali'd " a deceiver, "v Matt;;. xxidi. '63. No ■
wonder then if^his dlfciples -were accounted . fuch; al-
though they -manifefled their veracit>y by their open car-
riage and free fp.eaking ta the faces ^of their greatefl
adveriaries. . - ...

' ~ . "■ ' . . t- •
The apoilles neither feared the ; Jews..-fkil-l in their
law, nor the wifdom and fubtilty 01 the Greejcs. St,
Paul preached Chrift openly among the Jews, in their
fynagogues : and. he encountered the epicureans and
ftoics among . the Athenians^ Acls xvii. 18. and
preached to them Jefus and the refurrcdion.- If the
apoflles had any thing of deceit in them, as to things
they related concerning Chrift, they would not cer- ■
tainly have Ipoken with ,fo much confidence in him, in
the prefence of thofe wlio had been his murderers -, but
we find they appealed to themfelves i as alfo to the mi- >
racks which he wrought among them •, and for the ■
truth of his refurrection, they were ready to lay down
their lives.

That his body was gone, was evident : that his dif-
ciples fhould take it was impofTible, as they had fuch
a ftrong guard of Ibldiers v/atching it, who would

have



[ 71 ]

have been glad to have difcovered any attempt of it.
But on the contrary, all his difciples were exceeding
fearful and timorous, infomuch that they fled upon
Chrifl*s being apprehended. Now v/hat could it be
^to make fuch fearful perfons afterwards fo courageous
and relblute as they were, had there not been fomething
more than ordinary to convince and encourage them ?
The apoflles delivered their tefliimonies with the greateft
particularity, as to all circumflances : they do not
change or alter any of them upon different examina-
tions before feveral perfons •, they all agree in the
greatefl conftancy to themfelves, and uniformity with
each other*

As to matters of indifferency, we find the apoflles
very yielding and condefcending, but as to any thino-
which concerned their teftimony, they were mofl con-
llant and fledfafl:.

Had the gofpel been fome cunningly contrived fancy,
it had been impofTible but fo many different perfons, in
fuch different places, and under fuch different conditions,
would have varied as to fome very material circumflancc
of it \ or elfe they would have been fo wife as to have
delivered it in general terms, without infifting much on
fuch particular circumflances, which if they had been
falfe, might have been very eafily difproved : but with
what particular enumeration of circumflances do the
apoflles preach Chrifl to the world ? Peter tells the
Jews, ''-'it was Jefus of Nazareth whom he preached,
" a man approved of God among you, by miracles,
" and wonders, and figns, which God did by him, in

G 4 th4.



[ 72 ]

" the midll: of you -, as ye yourfelvcs alfo know him,
*' being delivered by the determinate council and fore-
" knowledge of God : ye have taken, and by wicked
*' hands have crucified and flain whom God hath raifed
*' up, having loofed the pains of death, becaufe it was
*' not poiTible that he fhould be holden of it," Ads ii.
22, 23, 24. And left they fhould think it was not the
fame perfon who rofe again, with great boldnefs and
freedom of fpirit he faith to them, " Therefore let all
" the houfe of Ifrael know afluredly, that God had
" made that fame Jefus, whom ye have crucified, both
" Lord andChrift,'* ver. 36. Yea, that fame indivi-
dual perfon, " him hath God exalted with his right
" hand to be a Prince and Saviour, for to give repefi-
" tance to Ifrael, and forgivenefs of fins," A(5ls v. 31.

Now if there had been any ground of fufpicion, as
to the truth of thefe facts, who had been fo able to
difprove them, or fo willing and ready to do it, as
thofe perfons v*^ho had crucified him ? For we cannot
but conceive that thofe who had a hand in his death,
would have endeavoured by all polTible means to dif-
prove his refurrecftion from the dead. For what a cafe
were they likely to be in, if thefe things which the
apoftles conftantly preached were true ?

If Chrift had all the power in his hands, and there
was no falvation in any other name but only in his,
whom they crucified, they were like to be in a moft
deplorable condition. Therefore if any fet of men
can be fuppofed to be inquifitive after the truth of
tliefc circumftances, no doubt but they were -, and d

they



[ 73 ]

they could have found the leaft flaw in their teflimony,
the world had foon been alarmed of it. The Jews, who
were then fo much difperfed all over the nation, would
have divulged it in all parts. The apoftles would have
been told of it, as they preached Chrift in the public
''■iynagogues.

And can we in any reafon think, but thefe Jews wbo
perfecuted St. Paul, as he preached in the fynagogues
at Afia, and afterwards impeache-d him fo openly at Je-
rufalem, would have enquired into all the circumftances
concerning Chrift : and all the other Jews would have
wrote to their friends at Jerufalem to be fully informed
of thofe ftrange things, which were told them openly
in all places in their fynagogues, by men of their own
nation and language, concerning one Jefus who was
crucified, and rofe again from the dead, had there been
fo much as any the leaft plaufible pretext, that any of
thefe circumftances were not true ? Is it not moft rea-
fonable to believe, that fuch an obftinate people, who
were full of refentment and malice, who were fo vaftly
bigotted to their own ways and traditions, had propa-
gated any thing that might have tended to the difpa-
ragement of Chrift and his difciples ? But we find ma-
lice itfelf could not find any flaw in the apoftles tefti-
mony; for if they had, we fliould have aflljredly heard
of it from the Jews, or fome other great oppofers of
chriftianity among the heathens, who pretended to be
curious and inquifitive perfons, fuch as Celfus, JuHan,
Hierocles and Porphyry.

In the name of truth, what reafon can any one have
to fufped fuch a teftimony, which pafTed uncontroiJed at

that



[ 74 ]

that time, when it was alone capable of being dilprov-
cd, and when men's intereil and defign would have
put them fo much upon it ?

No teiiimony ought to be taken againft a matter of
facfl thus attefted, but from fuch perfons who- had equal
or greater knov/Iedge of the things attelkd, and mani-
fefl greater fidelity in reporting them. It is eafy to
make it appear that, fuppofing any perfons at that time
had contradifted the teiiimony of the apoflles concern-
ing our Saviour, yet there had been no reafon in the
world to have hearkened to their teflimony, in oppofi-
tiontothatof the apofrles •, and that on thefe accounts
the apoflles witneffed the aflirmative, which is more ca-
pable of being attefled than any negative can be. The
apoflles were converfant with Chrifl much more than
any other perfons were, by reafon they were chofen for
that very end by Chrill, to be, conflantly with him.

Could any therefore be as capable -of knowing the
truth of all particulars concerning Chrifl then as they
were ? Had there been any ground of fufpicion concern-
ing the defign of Chrifl, in the name of truth, why
could not the Jews have prevailed with Judas to dif-
cover it, as well as to betray his perfon ? Judas had
done but a good work, if Chrill had been fuch an im-
poflor as the Jews malicioufly and blafphemoufly faid
he was.

What made Judas fo little fatisfied with what he
had done ? he grew weary of his life upon it, fhock-
ingly deilroying himfelf on the reflexion of his horrid

crime.



[ 75 ]

crime. Certainly no perfon had been fo fit to have
been produced as a witnefs againfl the blefled Jefus, as
Judas, who had been fo long attending him both in
pubhc and private,- and had heard his fayings, and
faw his miracles, but had not patience enough to flay,
after. that abominable and moft deteflable crime, to be
a witnefe againft him. But Providence ordered it fo
that he was the greatefl witnefs at that time for himi -, for
he confelTed to the chief priefls and elders that he had
finned, by betraying innocent blood. They faid to
him, ." What is that to us ?, fee thou to that," Matth.
xxvii^,4. which anfwer of theirs amounts to an ac-
knowledgment of the. truth of his confefnon. What
pofTible evidence could have been given more in be-
half of our Saviour. than Judas, and the chief priefls
and elders tliemfelves ? .^ •

When a perfon fo' covetous as to betray his miafler
for thirty pieces of filver, v/as fo fick of his bargain,
that he goes and returns the money to the chief priefls
and elders v/-ho had bribed him, declaring pubUcly,
that the perfon was innocent whom he had betrayed ;
who alfo confirmed it by ^being immediately himfelf
confcious of his atrocious _ guilt ; and inflead of the
chief priefls and elders telling him that he had done
a good deed in betraying his mafcer, (when he confefTed ^
to them he was innocent, could not gainfay it, or dif-
prove it) otherwife would have readily done it for their
own JLiflification. Confider that vile mifcreant Judas
was one intimately acquainted with the blefTed Jefus,
and much better than any of the witnefTes whom after-
wards they fuborned againfl him j v'ho yet contradidl-

ed



[ 76 ]

ed each other, and at laft could produce nothing in the
judgment of Pilate, the heathen governor, to believe
Chrift worthy of death j " Who took water, and walhed
*' his hands before the multitude, faying, I am inno-
*' cent of the blood of this juft perfon •, fee ye to it,'*
Matth. xxvii, 24. The apoflles were more free from
defign than any counter witnefs could be, becaufe they
could not pofTibly have any other motive to affirm what
they did, but full conviAion of the truth of what they
fpoke. Therefore if any of the Jews at that time had
afferted any thing contrary to the apoflles, it would
have been on account of preferving their honour and
reputation with the people, and for fupporting their
traditions •, and on the account to defend themfelves in
their enmity againll the blefled Jefus, though they had
not the leaft foundation or reafon for it.

Who would believe the teftimony ot the fcribes and
pharifees, who had fo great authority among the peo-
ple, which they were like to lofe, if Chrifl's dodrine
was true, before that of the apoflles, who parted with
their all for the fake of him, and ventured themfelves
wholly on the truth of his dodrine ?

None ever did fo much to attefl the negative as the
Apoflles did, to prove their fidelity to the affirmative.
Had a fufficient witnefs been timely produced, it can-
not be reafonably thought that the apoflles would have
run fo many confiderable hazards in preaching the
things which related to the perfon and atflions of Chrifl,
Did ever any lay down their lives to undeceive the
world ? If the apoflles wxre guilty of afcufing it, the

number



I 77 ]

humber of fuch perfons had been inconfiderable, in
comparifon of thofe who were fo fully perfwaded of the
truth of thofe things which concern our Saviour : who
were all of them ready (as moft of them did) to atteft the
truth of it with their lives. Whence fhould fo many
perfons fuddenly grow fo confident of the truth of
fuch things which were contrary to their former perfwa-
fions, education and intereft, had they not been de-
livered in fuch a way, that they were alTured of the
undoubted truth of them ? matters of fa6l being firll:
believed, on account of the eye and ear witnelTes, and
received with an univerfal and uncantrouled alTent by
all fuch perfons who have thought themfelves concerned
in knowing the truth of them, is a fufficient foundation
for a firm aflent to be built upon. Such perfons there-
fore who thus became believers, had both liberty and
opportunity to be fully convinced of the truth of them
before they believed them \ confequently no reafon
or motive can be afTigned on which they fhould be in^
duced to believe thefe things, but the undoubted evi-
dence of truth, which were along with them. It mufl be
acknowledged that in Mahometifm vafl numbers of per-
fons have for feveral centuries continued in the belief of
that vile impoftor Mahomet \ but there is a very fufii-
cient reafon to be given for it •, the arbitrary power of
the fword kept them in awe, and flricfUy forbad all the
followers of Mahomet to difpute their religion at all, or
compare it with any other; confequently it is not
to be wondered at to find fo great part of the world
is under the tyranny of the Turk. Neither is it at all
to be wondered at that fuch a number of thofe pro-
felling



[ 7S ]'

felling chrlflians fliould : believe a great number of
erroneous dodlrines, and live in the practice o'f abfurd
fuperllitions, becaufe it is to be confidered that the
prevalency of education has a mighty and powerful
elred: on mankind, clpecially on weak heads and obfli-
nate hearts. ^ •• -

And when v/e confider what an awe an Inquifition mufl
have upon timorous and irrefolved perfonsyyeaupon ftout
hearts, (liberty being dear and precious to all manldnd)
it is not to be wondered at : but now when a great number
ofperfons who are fober and inquifitive, fhall, contrary
to the principles of their education, and without fear
of any human power and force, (which they before-
hand are fenfible will perfecute and punifli them) and
after diligent enquiry made into the ground on which
they believe, forfake all their former perfwafions, and
refolvedly adhere to the truth of the doctrine propound-
ed to them, though it cofl them their lives -, if this
is not a fufficient reafon to think their doftrine true,
we mufl believe mankind to be the mod filly, miferable,
unhappy creatures in the world, that will, with fo much
refolution, part with all the advantage of this life, for
the fake of one to come, if that be not undoubtedly
certain, and the dodlrine propofing it infallibly true.

It is an obfervable circumflance In the propagation
of the chriflian religion, that though God made
choice at firft of perfons generally of mean rank
and condition in the world, to be preachers of the
gofpel, " Choofing the weak things of the world,

as the apoHlc faid, to confound the things that

are






{ 79 3

*' are mighty," i Cor. i. 27. God thereby making
*' it clearly appear that " our faith doth not fland
♦' in the wifdom of men, but in the power of God,"
I Cor. ii. 5. yet foon ' after the gofpel was preached
abroad in the world, we find per ions of great rank
and reputation for great p^rts and abilities, engaged
in the profeflion of the chrillian faith.

In the hiiloryof the a6ls of the apoflles we read of
Sergius, a procehful of Dionyfius the Areopagite, con-
verted to the faith of Chrifl. And in the fucceeding
ages of the church, many perfons of great eminency
for their excellent learning and abilities, fuch as Juflin
martyr ; one, who before he became a chriflian, was
very converfant with, all the fedls of the philofophers,
ftoics, peripatetics, pythagoreans, and at laft was a
profefTed platonift, till he was converted from Plato to
Chrifb, and then found that true which he fpeaks of,
in his dialogue with Trypho : that after all his enqui-
ries into philofophy (fpeaking of the docftrine of Chrifl)
that he found chriflianity to be the only fure and pro-
fitable philofophy. And when Trypho derides him as
a man of very eafy faith, for leaving the dodrlne of
Plato for that of Chriil, (for we find by him, the Jews
then had a more favourable opinion of the Platonifls
than of the chriftians) Juftin Martyr is fo far from be-
ing moved with fuch reproaches, that he tells him, he
wpujd undertake to demonflrate to him, that the chrill-
ians did not give credit to empty fables, or any afTer-
tions that were not to be proved, but to fuch a doflrinc
as was full of a divine fpirit and power, and flourillied

with grace.

At



[ 8o ]

At Alexandria we meet with a fucceflion of excellent
perfons, who not only embraced chriflianity themfelves^
but became defenders of the faith.

Eufebius informs us, that Pantoenus was an excel-
lent floick before he became a chriftian, who after-
wards was very zealous for the caufe of Chrifl : that,
in imitation of the apollles, he went into India, in or-
der to convert the inhabitants to chriflianity, and at his
return was made redor of the fchool at Alexandria,
which (as the fame author informs us) was much fre-
qiTcnted by fuch, who were well ikilled in human, as
well as divine learning.

The learning of Origen is fufficientiy known, which
was in fuch great reputation, in his own time, that not
only chriftians but philofophers flocked to his le<5lures
at Alexandria, as Eufebius informs us, where he read
the mathematicks and other parts of philofophy, as
well as the facred fcriptures. And the fame author in-
forms us, that the philofophers dedicated their books to
him, and frequently chofe him as arbitrator, relating to
matters of difpute. And Porphyry himfelf, in his
book againfl: the chriftians, fpeaks with great refpedl
and veneration of Origen, and makes a high encomium
©n him for his excellent learning.

In Origen's time, Hercules, a prefbyter of Alexan-
dria, for five years together, frequented the fchools of
the philofophers, and put on the philofophic pallium,
and was very converfant in the books of the Grecian

learning.

At



[ 8i ]

At Cacfaraca among the chriflians, there was an emi-
nent fchool of learning for all branches of literature :
fuch were the famous Pamphilus : and Eufebius was
fo great an admirer of him, that ever after he was
called Eufebius Pamphili. At Antioch was Doro-
theus, as Nicephorus informs us, a perfon verfed in all
kinds of ingenious literature. Anetolius, bifhop of
Laodicea, one verfed in geometry, aflronomy, and all
kinds of philofophy, as well as in the do6lrine of
Chrill. We find in thofe early days of the Greek
church, what excellent perforis many of thofe were,
who were zealous profelTors of chriflianity.

As to the Latin churh, St. Auftin was a flar of the
firft magnitude among them. Tertullian, Arnobius,
and feveral others, may be defervedly added to them.
St. Auflin juftly obferves, that though the Ifraelites
went rich out of Egypt, yet it v/as their eating the pafT-
over, which faved them from deilru6lion. And though
thefe men had the ornaments of human learning, yet
it was their eating the true pafTover, (which was Chrift,
by their adhering to his do(5lrine) that was of more
advantage to them, than ail their other accomplifli-
ments. Therefore as we find in the firil ages of chrifl-
ianity, not only innumerable multitudes of perfons of
great integrity and fobriety in their lives and conver-
fations, who embraced the do6lrine of Chrift, but alio
many perfons diat were very inquifitive enquirers after
truth, and the reafon and nature of things ; we can
find no jiiil caufe to diftruftfuch a teflimony, which was
received in fo unanimous a manner, by perfons as well

II qualilied



[ 82 ]

qualified to judge of the truth and reality of it, and as
fearful of being deceived with reference to them, as
any one in that prefent age pofTibly can be, yea much
better, by reafon of their living almoil fixteen hundred
centuries nearer the time of the blelTed Jefus's appear-
ance in the world. Therefore as this teilimony was
received by perfons who v/ere very curious fearchers
after the truth and nature of things, fo the do6lrine
conveyed by it was a matter of the highefl moment.
Confequently we cannot but conceive, that perfons ori-
ginally inquifitive about other things, would be more
than ordinary fo about this, becaufe their eternal v/el-
fare and happinefs did depend upon it. All perfons
that are in reality truly religious, muft at lead be fup-
pofed to be very inquifitive after the ftate and condition
of their fouls, elpecially upon a teftimony, if they had
little or no affurance of the truth of it.

That none of all thefe perfons who were rational and
judicious in all human knowledge, lliould be able to
difcover the falfity, if any. It is not reconcilable with
the general prefumption of mankind concerning Divine
Providence, and the care God takes of them, to fup-
pofe fo many perfons who fincerely defire to ferve God
in that v/ay and manner v/hich is mioil pleafing to him,
to go on in fuch a continual delufion, and never have
it at all difcovered to them. If all thofe who have be-