the apostles themselves, when our Lord was asleep in the ship with them, and a storm filled them with excessive terror. Now, surely they who had been a great length of time witnesses of his miracles (for this was after the second passover in our Lord's ministry) ought not to have entertained any such fears. Another instance of our Lord's requiring faith was in Jairus, one of the rulers of the synagogue at Capernaum, who applied to him to heal his daughter who was dying. He must have seen many instances of our Lord's power in Capernaum, the frequent residence of our Lord; and at that very hour, when our Lord was going to his house, he healed a woman of an inveterate issue of blood; and it is remarkable, that a message had been sent to Jairus, implying a distrust of our Lord's power; for one came from the ruler of the synagogue's house, saying to him "thy daughter is dead, why troublest thou the Master?"† On this message it was, that Jesus answered the ruler saying, "fear not, only believe, and she shall be made whole" This was a gracious encouragement, not an unreasonable requisition. Very soon after this resurrection was noised abroad, ‡two blind men applied to be healed, and of them also our Lord demands, "believe ye that I am able to do this?" They also had previous opportunities of being convinced of the divine power of Jesus. Another instance occurs in the Syro-Phoenician woman, § who though a Gentile, applied to him on hearing of his miraculous power. Our Lord put her faith to the severest test; but the design of this was evidently to convince the prejudiced Jews that the Heathens might be much more worthy of enjoying the benefits of his favour than themselves. Another instance was, when his disciples failed in curing a child, whose father had implored their interference. The afflicted parent, almost in despair, applied to our Lord, "if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us." Jesus said unto him, "if thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth; and straightway the father of the child * Vide Matt. viii. 24. Mark iv. 38. + Mark v. 22, to the end. Vide Matt. ix. 27-31. Newcome's Harmony, s. 5. Newcome's Harmony, s. 53. § Matt. xv. 22-28. Mark vii. 24-30. Vide Matt. xvii. 14. Mark ix 22-24. Luke ix. 37; cried out and said, with tears, Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief." This surely was as gracious as it was dignified on the part of our Lord. Finally, in all instances when faith was required, it was from those who deliberately and voluntarily applied to our Lord. Now, if such applications proceeded from idle curiosity, or insincere hearts, ought they to have been complied with? was not therefore an avowal of their sincere faith, natural and reasonable, before our Lord would exert his divine power in their behalf ? The real motive of our Lord in withholding his miracles, we shall be instructed in, by observing, that the inhabitants of Nazareth, amongst whom our Lord did not perform many miracles, were of dispositions so selfish, proud and malignant, that on his appealing to the practice of the prophets, to justify his exercising his power for the benefit of those who were not of his own country, they were "filled with wrath," and made an attempt on his life, to escape from which he exercised a supernatural power. "For they *led him to the brow of the hill, on which their city was built, to cast him down headlong, but he passing through the midst of them went his way:" doubtless by rendering himself invisible. Thus they received a proof of his power in such a way as they merited, not by his indulging their curiosity or their pride, but by exposing and defeating their obstinate selfishness, and base malignity. The priests and Pharisees, to whom our Lord refused the sign they sought, were of such dispositions, that they had immediately before imputed his miracles to the operation of Satan, and long after, when they were informed of the awful resurrection of Lazarus, and the multitude who believed on our Lord in consequence, far from being convinced, they were only the more enraged; "they took counsel to put him to death;" and not only our Lord, but Lazarus himself, "because that by reason of him many of the Jews went away, and believed upon Jesus." Herod also, who was glad to see our Lord at his last trial, hoping to see some miracle done by him," was that same Herod who had murdered John the Baptist, and who continued 66 * Luke iv. 29, + Vide Matt. xii. and John xi 47. to live in that state of incest and adultery, by rebuking him for which the Baptist had incurred his resentment. Such were the characters in whom our Lord did not find such dispositions, as induced him to work miracles for their particular advantage or conviction. And is this wonderful? Our Lord's sometimes appearing to conceal his miracles, has also induced a suspicion that they could not stand the test of rational inquiry. But it is easy to account for this circumstance, so as totally to repel the suspicion. It cannot surely be denied, that our Lord exhibited multiplied proofs of his divine mission even to his enemies, from whom however he was obliged frequently to shade the full splendour of these proofs, and to avoid disclosing the full extent of those objects which he came to accomplish, and the high majesty of that character which he was entitled to assume, because thus only could he secure the credibility, the reputation, and the success, of that religion which he laboured to establish. In order to secure these infinitely important objects, it was necessary "that he should * complete the time foretold of his ministry, and after a life illustrious in miracles and good works, attended with humility, meekness, patience and sufferings, and every way conformable to the prophecies of him, should be led as a sheep to the slaughter, and with all quiet and submission should be brought to the cross, though there were no guilt or fault in him: this could not have been, if as soon as he appeared in public, and began to preach, he had presently professed himself to have been the Messiah, the king who owned that kingdom he published to be at hand; for the Sanhedrim would have taken hold on it to have got him in their power, and thereby have taken away his life, at least they would have disturbed his ministry, and hindered the work he was about," obliging him perhaps to submit prematurely to their violence, or to use such supernatural methods of escape or resistance, and to inflict such supernatural punishments, as would be inconsistent with the humble, merciful, and unresisting character which it became him to support, and such as might prevent those final sufferings it was necessary he should undergo. Another purpose equally important to which this reserve was * Vide Locke's Reasonableness of Christianity. Watson's Tracts, vol. iv. p. 23. +Locke's Reasonableness of Christianity. Watson's Tracts, vol. iv. p. 58. necessary, was, that he "should not be seized for any thing that might make him a criminal to the government, and therefore he avoided giving those, who, in the division that was about him, inclined towards him, occasion of tumult for his sake; or to the Jews, his enemies, matter of just accusation out of his own mouth, by professing himself to be the Messiah, the king of Israel,* in direct words." Hence also he was obliged frequently to conceal his miracles, which would have roused the impetuous multitude, full of their ideas of a temporal Messiah, to repeat their efforts, to "take him by force and make him a king;” an event, which had it taken place, and been with any shadow of reason chargeable on our Lord's conduct, would have totally defeated the sacred purpose of his mission, since he would thus have appeared to have been justly punished for abusing religion to gratify ambition, instead of appearing the founder of a religion whose scheme was totally free from every mixture of temporal and narrow views, and every way worthy of the Son of God. Had our Lord been impelled by the violence of enthusiasm is it not conceivable that such would not have been his fate? But the consummate prudence which regulated his every action, enabled him to steer his way through all the dangers that surrounded him. In conformity to such prudence it was, that he so often commanded those on whom he wrought his miracles. "Go, and tell no man who has made thee whole." But his apostles he was ever careful should be eye-witnesses of all his wondrous works, and constant hearers of his words. To them he explained every difficulty, and condescended gradually to enlighten their understandings and dispel their prejudices. A select number of them attended his most private miracles; they beheld the awful anticipation of his divine glory at the transfiguration ‡ on the mount, which they were commanded not to declare till after his resurrection, because then only they could declare it without any danger of being understood to describe a temporal Messiah. Thus even the concealment of our Lord's divine works, which in some instances took place, so far from justifying any suspicion of their being founded on fanatic delusion, clearly shows they were under the direction of the most perfect wisdom, and performed, as well as related, with every mark of soberness. Locke, Ibid p. 47. † John vi. 15. Matt. xvii. Luke ix. Mark ix. SECTION IV. The nature of the Miracles wrought by our Lord during his public Ministry, and the circumstances which attended them, prove they cannot be ascribed to the power of Enthusiasm. THE least attention to the evangelic history will satisfy us, that the subjects of our Lord's miracles were most generally such as no power of imagination, no delusion of enthusiasm, could possibly influence. * To turn water into wine, † to feed five thousand persons at one time on five loaves and two fishes, and four thousand at another, on seven loaves and a few small fishes; § to restore a withered limb; to give sight to a man || forty years old, who had been born blind; to raise from the dead a carcase that was ¶carrying out to the grave; and **another that had lain four days in the tomb-in these and a variety of other miracles which our Saviour wrought, no force of imagination could have the smallest influence. In truth, nothing can be more repugnant to reason or experience, than the supposition that our Lord's miracles were the effects of any force of imagination, or enthusiastic impulse; or that if any delusion had taken place with regard to them, it would not have been immediately detected and exposed. In proof of this let us briefly consider their infinite variety, and their uniform success, the public manner in which they were performed, their being frequently wrought in the presence of his most inveterate enemies, and attended with circumstances, which attracted the immediate attention of these enemies and excited the severest scrutiny. These circumstances do not vindicate them more clearly from all suspicion of having been produced by the artifices of fraud, than from all possibility of being accounted for by enthusiasm. The impulse of fanaticism will produce its effects irregularly, uncertainly, and imperfectly, according to the different nature of the disease, the force of imagination in the diseased, the |