They might indeed much more juftly have claimed fuch a Priviledge, than any ever fince their Times; as being perfonally infallible, and endued with the Power of working Miracles. Yet they never endeavoured to command the Affent of their Hearers, before they had informed and fatisfied their Understandings. But proceeded in a more rational Method; and following the Example of their Master, chofe rather to convince their Judgment with Arguments, whofe Attention they had before excited by Miracles.

Thefe Arguments, when directed to the Jews, were chiefly taken from the Old Teftament: Whofe Prophecies they demonstrated to have plainly foretold and described the Actions and Sufferings of Chrift, of which Actions themselves were Witnesses.

Thus we find St. Peter in his Sermon made to the Jews upon this Day to have used no other Method. And not fo much to have urged the Illuftrious Miracle of the gift of Tongues newly conferred on them, as the conformity of that, and all other Actions of Chrift to the Antient Predictions of the Prophets.

His Sermon in the following Chapter, proceeds from the fame Foundation. And St. Stephen in the vii. Chap. St. Paul in the xiii. ufe no other Argument, when difputing against the Jews.

From a clear Interpretation of the Prophecies in Scripture, concerning the Meffias, Philip convinced the Eunuch, who was a Jewish Profelyte,

Profelyte of the Divinity of Christ, Acts viii. and Acts xviii. Apollos is faid to have mightily convinced the Jews, and that publickly, fhewing by the Scriptures, that Jefus was Chrift.

St. Paul pleading before King Agrippa, endeavoured before all Things, to prove that he stood there to be judged for the Hope of the Promise made by God unto the Fathers, Acts xxvi. 6. And ver. 27. appealed to the Prophets, and asked Agrippa, whether he believed not them, infinuating that if he truly believed the Prophets, and understood their genuine Senfe, he could not but embrace the Chriftian Religion.

Lastly, To say no more, his Difputes with the Jews at Rome were employed in expounding and teftifying the Kingdom of God: Perfwading them concerning Jefus, both out of the Law of Mofes, and out of the Prophets, from Morning till Evening, Acts xxviii. 23.

It appears then, Thatthe chief reason of the choice of the Apoftles to a familiar Converfation with our Saviour, before his Afcenfion, was no other than that they might thereby be enabled to teftify and publish to the World his Actions, Miracles and Sufferings; which being received from them, might then by every private Man be examined and compared with the Antient Predictions of the Prophets, concerning the Meffias.

And

And if fo, then it was not neceffary that Chrift fhould carefully inftruct his Disciples before his Afcenfion, in the true Sense of Scripture, and the antient Prophecies conerning him, or elaborately explain to them the Myfteries of his Incarnation, Paffion and Afcenfion. Since this conduced not directly to the end before mentioned, and might more conveniently be effected, when it fhould become neceffary after his Afcenfion, by the Defcent of the Holy Ghoft. And accordingly we find not our Saviour in all his private Difcourfes and Inftructions to his Apoftles, profeffedly explaining the Scriptures to them, before his Refurrection.

He frequently admonished them of the Dangers and Afflictions they should undergo, in executing their Miffion; of the Courage, Patience and other Vertues, wherewith they ought to be endued, and the perpetual Af fiftance which they might expect from him; but feldom inculcated the confideration of thofe Prophecies, which might bring them to a right apprehenfion of the Nature and Defign of his coming into the World. Or if at any time he mentioned and explained fuch Prophecies to them, it was only by way of Propofal, without any fuch extraordinary illumination of Mind, and infused Capacity of understanding them, as was afterwards beftowed on them, by the Miffion of the Holy Ghost. He never denyed to them indeed that ordinary Grace and Affiftance, which he

is

is wont to give to all well-difpofed Perfons, who rightly ask it; but the Efficacy of that ordinary Affiftance, was overthrown and ftifled by the more potent Resistance of inveterate Prejudices, and falfe preconceived Opinions concerning the Meffias.

But if the Apostles received no extraordinary Inftructions of the Holy Scripture from their Mafter, before his Refurrection, we cannot hope that they should obtain any competent Knowledge of it by their natural Strength, or acquired Learning. Many Reafons had induced our Saviour to choose to him Disciples, rather out of the meaneft of the People, than from the Learned Doctors and Expofitors of the Law. And at that time, in the Jewish Church, by an intollerable Corruption of Difcipline, the common People were by their Doctors and Teachers ftudioufly deprived of the Means of an exact and accurate knowledge of Scripture.

They were deterred from a diligent search of Scripture, by many Artifices and Pretences; by amplifying the difficulty of their Undertaking, the obfcurity of thofe Oracles, and rafhnefs of inquiring into thofe facred Myfteries with unwafhen Hands, that is, as themselves explained it, without a tedious preparation of Learning and Education.

By thefe Arguments the Scribes and Pharifees had engroffed the Study of Scripture to themselves; and taking away the Key of Knowledge, had fuffered none to enter into

a Difquifition and Examination of those fa cred Prophecies. Upon account of this Ignorance in the common People, the Scribes and Pharifees, in the vi. St. John, verse 39. pretended that they were no competent Judges of the true Meffias, who could be known no otherwise than from Scripture. But this people, who knoweth not the Law are curfed. We cannot imagine the Apoftles to have been exempt from this common Calamity, but rather more deeply engaged in it than others; if we confider the meannefs of their Condition, the nature of their Employments, their grofs and perpetual Mistakes of our Saviour's Doctrine, and till the reception of the Holy Ghoft, their infuperable flowness of underftanding.

If then, a right knowledge of Scripture was abfolutely neceffary to a perfect underftanding of the Nature and Office of the Meffias; if the Apoftles were naturally devoid of this knowledge, and not extraordinarily endued with it by Chrift, before the defcent of the Holy Ghoft, all which we have already proved; it muft needs follow, that the Apostles, before the reception of that extraordinary knowledge, were ignorant of the Mysteries and Defigns of their Master's Miffion. And accordingly if we look into the Hiftory of the Gofpel, we fhall find their ignorance of Scripture to be affigned as the chief cause of their Mistakes in all other points. So that what our Saviour said to the

Jews,