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ter Proof made of the Fact, caft the first Stone; and were immediately seconded by the rest of the People; who purfued the Criminal, with Stones, till he died.

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Deut. xvii. 2,

As to ferving Strange Gods, it is thus written; If there be found among you, within any of thy gates which the LORD &C. thy God giveth thee, man or woman, that bath wrought wickedness in the fight of the LORD thy God, in trangreffing his covenant, and hath gone and ferved other Gods, and worshipped them; either the fun, or the moon; or any of the host of heaven, which I have not commanded: And it be told thee, and thou hast heard of it, and enquir'd diligently, and behold it is true, and the thing certain, that fuch abomination is wrought in Ifrael. Then shalt thou bring forth that man, or that woman, which have committed that wicked thing, unto thy gates, and halt ftone them with ftones till they die. At the mouth of two witnesses or three witneffes, fhall be, that is worthy of death, be put to death; but, at the mouth of one witness, he shall not be put to death. The hands of the witnesses fhall be first up

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Deut. xiii.1,&c.

on him, to put him to death, and afterward, the bands of all the people.

Again; If there arife among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams; and the fign or wonder come to pass whereof be Spake unto you, faying, Let us go after other Gods; or if thy brother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend which is as thine own foul, entice thee fecretly; faying, Let us go and ferve other Gods: Thou shalt not confent unto him, nor bearken unto him, neither fhall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither fhalt thou conceal him. But thou shalt furely kill him; Thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. And thou shalt Stone him with ftones, that he die.

As to the Law concerning Blafphemy, we read; that the Son of an Ifraelitish

Woman, whose Father was an Egyptian, Lev. blafphemed the name of the LORD, and xxiv. 10, curfed. And they brought him unto Mofes,

&c.

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and put him in ward, that the mind of the LORD might be fhewed them. And the LORD spake unto Mofes, faying, Bring forth him that hath curfed, without the camp;

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camp; and let all, that heard him, lay their hands upon his head; and let all the congregation ftone him. He that blafphemeth the name of the LORD, fhall furely be put to death, and all the congregation fhall certainly ftone him; as well the Stranger as he that is born in the land, when he blafphemeth the name of the LORD, Shall be put to death.

Numb.

In relation to Sabbath-Breaking, the Law fpeaks thus; While the children of xv. 32. Ifrael were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the fabbath-day. And they that found him brought him unto Mofes and Aaron, and unto all the congregation. And they put him in ward, because it was not declared what should be done to bim. And the LORD faid unto Mofes, The man shall be surely put to death; All the congregation fhall ftone him with ftones, without the camp.

xxii. 23.

22. 13,

In the Cafe of Adultery, it is faid; If Deut. a damfel that is a virgin he betrothed unto an husband, and a man find her in the ci- &c. ty, and a man lie with her: Then ye Shail bring them both out unto the gate of that city, and ye shall flone them with ftones

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that they die: The damfel, because he cried not, being in the city; and the man because he bath humbled his neighbour's wife. And, If a man be found lying with a woman that hath an husband, then they shall both of them die. And fo, the damfel that was married, and upon whom the tokens of virginity were not found, was to be brought out to the door of her father's house, and there Stoned to death, by the men of her city.

But, by an Inftance that we meet with, in the Gospel, it should seem that our LORD (who came to abolish the typical fhadowy Parts of the Ceremonial Law, and had fufficient Authority to mitigate what he thought was too rigorous and inconfiftent with his new Law of univerfal Charity, in the Judicial Law) thought this Punishment too fevere for frail Mortals to inflict upon one another, for a Crime to which, though a very heinous one, the Generality of them are much John vit, too prone. We are told, that The Scribes and Pharifees brought unto him a woman

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taken in adultery: And, when they had fet her in the midft, They fay unto him; Mafter, This woman was taken in adultery, in

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the very act Now Mofes, in the law, commanded us that fuch fhould be ftoned; but what fayeft thou? This they did, tempting him, that they might have to accufe him. But JESUS Stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. So when they continued asking bim, He lift up himself and faid unto them, be that is without fin among you, let him, first, caft a fone at her. And again be Stooped down and wrote on the ground. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own confcience, went out, one by one, beginning at the eldeft even unto the laft: And JESUS was left alone, and the woman ftanding in the midst. When JESUS bad lift up himself, and faw none but the woman, he faid unto her, Woman, where are thefe thine accufers? Hath No man con→ demned thee? She Said, no man, LOR D. And JESUS faid unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: Go, and fin no more.

As much as to fay, I have no Proof whereby to condemn you; but, in cafe what has been affirm'd against you be true, I admonish you not to be guilty of fo great a fin any more; a Sin, which, though it be

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