who had endured fo much before, and had hung bleeding and languishing for three hours at least upon the Crofs till he expired by the force and extremity of his Torments, could not have done, and his being dead fooner than was expected, and ་ fooner than the Malefactors were, caused the fulfilling this prophetical Type, a Bone = of him shall not be broken, Exod. xii. 46. Numb.ix. 12. (i) He died likewife in the (1) Light. year of Jubilee, (as Dr. Lightfoot proves) Harm. N. by which the releafe and redemption, T. Sect. 'lix. p. 243. which he purchased for Mankind was typified And as the fulfilling of these feveral Types concurred in our Srviour, fo the fulfilling of them was brought to pass by the malice and cruelty of his Enemies, and of thofe very Jews, who had ever underftood thefe Types to relate to the Mef fias.

The Prophecies in. like manner were fulfilled in him, not by any defign or contrivance of his own, but by the mere envy and malice of his Murtherers. The thirty pieces of Silver, for which he was betrayed, were by the Chief Priefts given to buy the Potters Field, by which was fulfilled a noted Prophecy, that ftands recorded in the Book of Zachariah, but becaufe Jeremiah had prophefied of the fame thing before him, or for fome other reafon, it was better known among the Jews

by

by the name of Jeremiah's Prophecy, unlefs, as fome fuppofe, Jeremy be put for Zachary by a mistake of the Tranfcriber, which was obvious enough in tranfcribing the Abbreviation of the name of Zachary, as it is now to be seen in fome ofthe Ancient MS. 7. not much differing from I. Our Saviour was buffeted, and fpit upon according to a Prophecy of Iaiah If 1, 6. He had Vinegar given him to drink mingled with Gall, and his Garments were parted amongst the Souldiers by cafting of Lots, both which were foretold Pf. xxii. 18. Ixix. 21. They pierced his hands and his feet, Pf. xxii. 16. They that pafs'd by reviled him in the very words of the Pfalmift, and in his Agony he cried out in the words of the fame Pfalm, v. 1.7, 3. His death was voluntary, for though it was in the power of his Enemies to crucify him yet his Life was in his own power, which he refigned in the words of another Pfalm, Pf. xxxi. 5. and he caufed another Prophecy to be fulfilled by dying at that very point of time, which, if his death had been deferred a little longer had not been fulfilled for the Soldiers broke the Legs of the two other that were crucified with them, but finding him dead, they broke not his Legs, though one of them fufpecting that he could not be fo foon dead, pierced his fide, to try whether he were really

dead

Pearfon.

dead or not, by which that Scripture was
fulfil ed, which faith, they shall look en him,
whom they pierced, Joh. xix. 34. Zach. xii.
10. which (Text the Ancient Jews inter-
preted of the Meffias The lii Chapter See Bp.
of Ifaiah is a clear defcription of our Sa-
viour's Paffion almost in every circum-
ftance of it. He was defpifed and rejected
of men, a man of forrows and acquainted with
grief, he was wounded for our Tranfgressions
and bruifed for our Iniquities; he was oppref-
fed and he was afflicted, yet he opened not
bis mouth; he was brought as a Lamb to the
Slaughter, and as a Sheep before her Sharers
is dumb, fo he opened not his muth; his Si-
lence being taken fpecial notice of by Pi
late himself, and his meeknefs towards Ju-
das, his most ungrateful Difciple, is won-
derful beyond all example. He made his
Grave with the Rich in his Death, though he
died in that fhameful manner, under the
imputation of fo much wickedness, yet
Jofeph of Arimathea, an honourable Coun.
fellor, was fuffered by Pilate to bury him,
which he did in his own new Tomb. He
was numbred with the Tranfgreffors; and in
that fenfe made his Grave alfo with the
wicked, being crucified between two
Thieves; and fo was not only reputed a
Malefactor, and underwent the punish-
ment of Tranfgreffors, but was executed
at the very time and place with them, and

.

buried when they were. He made [interceffion for the Tranfgreffors, for the Penitent Thief in particular, whom he promised, that he should be with him that day in Paradife, and for his Perfecutors them. felves, praying that they might be forgiven. The Prophecies of this Chapter are fo very plainly and directly fulfilled, that I have known a Child apply them to the Paffion of Chrift.

2

One of the most glorious Characters, by which the Meffias was defcribed by the Prophets, was, that he fhould be their Prince and King, and this led the Jews into that fatal mistake of a Temporal Meffias : for Meffias or Anointed, fignifies King as well as Prophet or Prieft, (in which three Offices Unction was ufed, and they were all united in our Saviour, who was the Mellias anointed and inaugurated by the defcent of the Holy Ghoft upon him in a vifible shape, and with a distinct and audible voice declaring him to be the Son of God. And that all the world might know our Saviour to be the King of the Jews, that Title was fixt upon his Cross in three several Languages, the most vulgar Tongues then in the world, that no Nation might be ignorant, that Chrift the King of the Jews was then crucified. For Pilate would not alter the Infcription ; but though they had frighted him before by obferving

༣

obferving to him,that it was Treafon against Cafar to call any one King befides him, yet when they would now have had him change the Infcription, and have written only, that he said, I am King of the Jews, Pilate gave a fhort and refolute Anfwer, what I have written, I have written. How much foever it were at his Peril to provoke a malicious people, in a point, wherein they thought the honour and fafety of their Nation fo much concerned, and in a point, which could not but be exceeding tender to fo jealous an Emperor asTiberius; but Pilate had fuffered himself to be carried too far already against his own Confcience, and had fhewn great 'averfion to their proceedings, in the whole management of his Tryals and the fame providence, which had ordered every cir cumftance to the manifeftation of the Truth, and the conviction both of the Jews and Gentiles, now fo difpofed this remarkable particular, that the last period of his Life, in oppofition to all the spight of the Jews, fhould be adorned and dignified with his true Title and Character, under which he had been foretold by the Prophets, in Capital Letters upon his Crofs.

Thus were the Prophecies concerning the Birth, and Life, and Death of the Meffias, exactly fulfilled in our Bleffed Sa