of hatred, but on the contrary much that is great, sublime, heavenly, and divine. At length he charged himself with silly simplicity and blind folly, and resolved to open the book no more. In this resolution he persisted some days. But the consolatory and heavenly instructions which he had read, and which left an indelible impression on his mind, and the glorious prospect of life eternal, which had opened before him, did not suffer him to rest either day or night. Now he resolved to read the New Testament a second time, fully determined to be more careful in ascertaining that Jesus and his apostles had justly deserved the hatred of all the Jews in all ages. But again he was unable to discover any thing that is absurd, or bears the stamp of falsehood; but much wisdom, inexpressible comforts for an afflicted mind, and a hope of immortality which seemed to rescue him from that dreadful anxiety, with which the thoughts of futurity had often filled him. Still he could not divest himself of his prejudices, but read the New Testament a third time with the following resolution: If I discover nothing the third time, why Jesus and his apostles and their doctrine should be hated by Jews, I will become a christian; but if my wish in first opening the book is now gratified, I will forever detest the christian religion. During the third reading of the history of Jesus, his doctrines and promises, he often could not refrain from tears; his soul was affected in a manner which no pen can describe. Now he was

quite overcome, the love of the most holy and most lovely of the children of men filled his soul. Being fully determined to become a christian, he went with out delay and made his desire known to a christian minister. Now the student returned from his journey and brought the borrowed money with interest, to redeem his two books. The Jew asked him if he would sell the New Testament. The student was unwilling to part with it, but after some persuasion yielded. What do you demand for it? asked the Jew. A rix dollar will satisfy me, was the reply. The Jew opened a chest, and laid down one hundred Louis d'ors. Take that, said he; gladly will 1 pay more if you desire it: and if at any time I can be of use to you, only apply to me and I will be your friend to the utmost of my power. The student was surprised, and supposed that the Jew made sport of him. But the latter related to him, what change of mind had been wrought in him by reading the New Testament, upbraided him with setting so little value on that precious book, and said 'never will I part with this book, and you, will oblige me by accepting the money.' From that time he became a sincere christian."

The Appendix of the Christian Observer for 1812, from which this pleasing account was taken, is filled with various intelligence, which must gladden the hearts of christian readers. In this you behold the united brethren, extending their benevolent missionary exertions in Greenland, the W. India islands,

Surinam, and the Cape of Good Hope. You may also see auxiliary Bible Societies springing up in the various parts of the British dominions, and many other societies for relieving the wants of the poor, and extending the blessings of religion. While God is pouring out the vials of his wrath on all the nations of christendom, it must afford ground of hope and comfort, to see so

many of his professed people awaking from their slumbers, and uniting their efforts for such benevolent purposes. Happy will be the day, when all the animosities among professed christians shall be sunk into oblivion, by united efforts to promote the cause of the redeemer, the happines and salvation of mankind.

16

Luke iii. 2. "Annas and Caiaphas being the high priests."

Ir is well known, that there were not, properly, two high priests among the Jews at the same time. Caiaphas was at this time the high priest; and Annas had been, but was not now Did Luke then mean to say, that Annas and Caiaphas were actually high priests at the same time? By no means.

In the first verse, says Selden, Luke gives an account of the external government of the Jews, by Tetrachs, and Procurators, or Governors; and in the second, an account of that civil and sacred government, which the Romans permitted the Jews to exercise by the Sanhedrim, and the high priest; and because Annas was then the prince of the Sanhedrim, and Caiaphas the father of the Sanhedrim, they are named together, because they possessed the chief authority, ciil and sacred. They decided all

controversies which were determinable by their law; though without the power of life and death, to enforce their sentences.

That there was a power of this sort possessed by the Jews at this time, is indicated by Josephus. "They assembled in the temple," he says, "and appointed several generals; and Joseph, the son of Gorion, and the high priest Ananus, were chosen to be supreme governors of all things in the city.” us, here called the high priest, was not, at this time, in the office of the priesthood. But suppose Annas and Caiaphas to have been "supreme governors in the city," and the difficulty in the text is solved.

Anan

There was, says Josephus also, a disturbance between the Jews and the Samaritans, in the reign of Claudius. Cumanus, the Procurator, was not able to compose it, and appeals were made to Quadratus, the president of

Syria. He, having punished several, "sent two others of the most powerful men of the Jews, as also the high priests Jonathan and Ananias, and Ananus the son of Ananias, and some other considerable men, to Cæsar." This is very nearly parallel with the words of the Evangelist. Jonathan had been high priest, but had been put out of the office long before this time by Vitellius. Ananias was now high priest. In like manner, in the text, Annas had formerly been high priest, but Caiaphas was now in that office. It may also be remarked, that Jonathan, who had been high priest, is named before Ananias; and the two names stand in the same order in the text.

There is however another solution which demands our notice. An officer was annually appointed, called the sagan, who was next to the high priest in dignity, and was his vicegerent. If the high priest was disqualified to officiate, by any legal uncleanness, the sagan acted for him on the day of expiation. It is said in the Babylonish Talmud, that "when Simeon Ben Kamith, the high priest, walked with the king on the evening of the day of expiation, his garments receiv. ed some of the spittle of another. His brother Judah therefore entered, and officiated for him; and thus their mother, on the same day, saw two of her sons high prists."

Note. The Jewish day began at six in the evening; and consequently, the evening of the day of expiation was the evening preceding the day on which the expiatory sacrifices were of

fered. Thus says the book of Genesis, "the evening and the morning were the first day."

the common

Others suppose the sagan not to have been the vicegerent of the high priest, but his bishop, whose peculiar duty it was to assist him in the affairs of the temple, and the service of the priests; but whose office referred as much to priests, as to the high priest. Maimonides says, that "all the priests were at the command of the sagan," and in the Talmud we find the sagan saying to them, "go and see if it be time to slay the victim;" "come and draw lots, who shall slay the victim, who shall sprinkle the blood," &c. Caiaphas was high priest, and it is supposed that Annas was the sagan; who, on account of his diguity, was called, equally with Caiaphas, the high priest; and was named first, because he was the father in law of Caiaphas.

See Whitby and Hammond on the text. Lardner v. i. p. 383-6. Lightfoot's Hor. Heb. in verse, and Jenning's Jewish Antiq. v. i. p. 260-5.

Note. As we may often have occasion to name the Mishna, and the Talmuds or Gemaras, it may be proper in this place to explain the nature of these Jewish authorities.

The Mishna is the true text of the pharisaical traditions, so often mentioned in the New Testament. Maimonides, (who was one of the most learned of the Jews, and born in 1131,) says, that all the laws which were given by God to Moses, were given with an interpretation. The text was written, but the inter

pretation was committed to memory. Rabbi Juda the holy, fearing that this law would be lost, committed it to writing, adding to the traditions which were believed actually to have been received from Moses, consequences drawn by reasoning from the premises, in which there was no disagreement, and conclusions upon disputations which were determined by the majority. The Mishna was made about A. D. 190.

The Mishna being preferred by the Jews, to the written law which was received from Moses, they bestowed upon it far the greatest part of their attention; and for several generations to gether, they incessantly disputed about its sense, and made interpretations, every man according to the measure of his understanding. The traditions and opinions of these disputants having grown to a vast bulk, and being liable to be lost, Rabbi Johanan, for the Jews of Palestine, made collections of the decisions and explanations of the Mishna. This is the Jerusalem Gemara, or Talmud, which proceeds only through a part of the Mishna, and is contained in one volume folio. The Babylonian Gemara, or Talmud, which is a similar collection, was made by Rabbi Ashe, or Asa, and consists of twelve folios.

As the Talmuds then are the body of the religion and morality of the Jews, whose authority they prefer to that of their own scriptures; as they believe these traditions and explanations are from God himself; that Moses revealed them to Aaron, and to

the elders of Israel, who communicated them to the prophets, from whom they passed to the members of the great synagogue, and from thence to the Rabbies, who reduced them to the form of the Mishna and Gemaras-they of course enable us to understand with the greatest precision, what were the received sentiments or customs to which our Saviour referred, in reasoning with the Jews, or in inculcating upon them the doctrines and precepts of the gospel.

See Watton's Diss. or the traditions of the Scribes and Pharisees in the time of Christ. v. i. p. 10-24, and Calmet on the word Talmud.

17

Matthew 3. i. "Preaching in the wilderness of Judea."

This is one of the texts by which the New Testament has been supposed to encourage the retirement and abstinence of hermits. But what was the wilderness in which John preached, and what were the deserts in which he resided, (Luke i. 80.) "till the day of his shewing unto Israel?"

"The seah of Jerusalem," says the Babylonian Talmud, "exceeds the seah of the wilderness," that is of the country, “a sixth part." (Note. The seah is a measure of a little more than two and an half wine gallons.)

The ex

Paul says, that he was "in perils in the city, and in perils in the wilderness." pression of the evangelist means no more than, that John preached in the country, before he preached in the city. See Lightfoot on the verse.