exceedingly corrupt, and the practice of mankind every where scandalous beyond belief. Nor was this the ftate of barbarous countries only. Even Greece itfelf was in the fame condition, although the arts and sciences flourished there, and the minds of men were greatly improved by culture. So much do men's paffions and prejudices get the better of their reafon. Having this example before our eyes, to pretend that the excellency of the Christian doctrines and precepts was fufficient to deftroy all falfe religions, and to convert the world, without the aid of miracles, is abfurd. In fhort, he must be ignorant of mankind, who can imagine that the mere reasonablenefs of any religion, or the credible teftimony of other men concerning the facts on which it is founded, will profelyte people to the belief thereof; efpecially if it is diametrically oppofite to their strongest paffions and prejudices, and altogether inconfiftent with their interefts. I must therefore repeat it, that the speedy converfion of the world to Chriftianity, is the ftrongest proof imaginable of the truth of the gofpel-history; and particularly of the reality of the miracles, therein faid to have been performed by Jefus and his apostles, in confirmation of their miffion from God.

II. Conftrained by the evidence of the above arguments, fome of our adverfaries are fo candid as to acknowledge, that the prevalence of the Chriftian religion was certainly at the firft owing to an opinion of the miracles performed by its preachers. In the mean time, they pretend, that the general perfuafion which prevailed concerning the Chriftian miracles, arofe, not from their reality, but from the paffion for the marvellous, by which at all times the vulgar every where have been diftinguifhed. Men, fay they, always reject things credible in an ordinary degree: but they readily enough admit things utterly abfurd, the rather upon account of that very circumstance which ought to deftroy their authority. For the paffion for the marvellous excited by miracles ftrongly inclines them to believe and relate things, from which fo agreeable an emotion is derived. But to this the answer is eafy make the pleasure which men have in hearing and relating marvellous ftories as great as you please, ftill you ought to remember, that the belief of the Chriftian religion, about which the difpute is, was not a matter of mere fpeculation. It was followed with the most important confequences. It led men to renounce the religion in which they had been educated. It made them act contrary to their ftrongeft prejudices. It deprived them of all the fatisfactions of life. It expofed them to the most terrible fufferings. How ridiculous, therefore, muft it be for any one to affirm, that in the early ages the miraculous ftory of an obfcure perfon, the native of a far diftant country, told by the lowest class of a vagabond nation, was greedily fwallowed by great numbers of fenfible people of all ranks in every country, without the leaft proof, and for no reafon whatever, but the pleasure which accompanies the belief and relation of marvellous ftories. As if, for the fake of that, men would renounce the religion of their forefathers, throw off opinions riveted in their minds by education, crofs their strongest

inclinations,

inclinations, fet themselves at variance with their own relations, deliberately throw away their poffeffions, go calmly to torture, and willingly fubmit to the most painful and ignominious deaths. I appeal to every rational and unprejudiced man, if this be not marvellous indeed? For it fuppofes, that, when the gofpel was first preached, the effential principles of human nature, and the invariable rules of human conduct, were entirely fuperfeded in all those who anciently gave credit to the gospel.

If, notwithstanding all we have faid, it is ftill pretended that the Heathens fomehow or other may have been converted, without having had proper evidences of the truth of the gofpel-history laid before them, I would have our adverfaries to confider the cafe as it actually ftood. The apostles, who preached the Chriftian religion, were most defpicable in the eyes of all the Gentiles, by reafon both of their country and their religion; they were ftrangers of the loweft clafs of mankind, whofe honefty they could have no affurance of; their cloaths were often old and ragged, for the great apoftle of the Gentiles mentions his own nakednefs among his fufferings, I Cor, iv. II. They told stories of miracles done at a great distance, which would appear to every one utterly incredible; and they required the world to yield divine honours to a man, who by their own confeffion was rejected by their countrymen, and crucified as a deceiver of the people. In fuch circumftances, is it to be fuppofed that any perfon in his right wits would give them credit upon their own fimple report; efpecially as they took no pains to conceal the great and immediate dangers which attended the belief of the fe things? No: mankind could never have been engaged to give the leaft heed to their ftrange ftory, unless they had feen them work evident miracles, fuch as the Chriftian records affure us they did perform. Without this kind of proof, it would have been a greater miracle than any that is afcribed to the apoftles, if mankind in every country had given them credit in an affair so extraordinary. Here therefore the stress of the matter is juftly placed by the friends of Chriftianity. And it is with the highest reason they believe the proof of miracles to have been been given every where, in fupport of the gospel-history, by the first preachers thereof; becaufe without this proof, together with the concurring influence of the grace of God upon the minds of the Gentiles, the latter could never have been prevailed upon in fuch numbers to embrace the gofpel under perfecution. This all muft acknowledge without hefitation, who know any thing of the influence which men's lufts, paffions, prejudices, and interefts, have over their wills; and how great a ftrength of conviction is requifite to overcome the united force of this influence joined in one and the fame perfon; as was the cafe with all in the hrft ages who embraced the gofpel.

SECT. V.

SECT. V.

V. The truth of the gospel-history proved from the converfion of the learned Jews and Heathens in the early ages.

THE belief of the gospel hiftory, which the men of genius and education both among the Jews and Gentiles were impréffed with, who in the first ages embraced Chriftianity, is an argument for the truth of the gospel-history so illuftrious, that it well deferves a feparate confideration. These men embraced Chriftianity after having duly examined its evidences. Their character and education qualified them to judge of an affair of this fort. Their converfion was attended with no worldly advantage whatever, but with all manner of difadvantages. It is therefore beyond difpute, that they were fully convinced of the reality of those facts, for the belief of which they made fhipwreck of life and its joys. Moreover, their character for wisdom and learning leaves no room to doubt that they examined the proofs of the facts they received with that accuracy which the importance of their confequences demanded, and that they yielded not until constrained by the dint of irresistible evidence.

I. Among the learned Jews converted to Christianity in the firft age, the great company of the priests who became obedient to the "faith," Acts vi. 7. may justly be mentioned. But the inftance which merits moft attention, is the converfion of Saul, afterwards called Paul. This perfon, in the Chriftian record, Acts xxvi. is faid to have given an account of himfelf and of his converfion, to King Agrippa, and to Queen Berenice, in the hearing of Portius Feftus the Roman governor of Judea, of his chief captains, of the principal men of the city of Cæfarea, of the Jews who had come from Jerufalem to accufe him, and of a great concourfe of people affembled, as is ufual, to witness fuch tranfactions. The hiftory of the Acts, which narrates this folemn public tranfaction, came abroad at the time when, and in the country where, it is faid to have happened. We muft allow, therefore, that this tranfaction is no fiction of the hiftorian. Saul actually made the defence which is afcribed to him. And he made it in the prefence of Agrippa, Feftus, and the reft. This point fixed, we are fure that the account which Saul gave of himself in the hearing of this great affembly is agreeable to truth; because, if any particular mentioned by him before perfons of the first rank, and others from all parts of Judea, had been falfe, he might eafily have been detected. Befides, his accufers were prefent, among whom perhaps were fome of his former affociates, who, being enraged at his apoftacy, appeared now as his profecutors. Thefe, being well acquainted with his hiftory, muft have immediately contradicted and confuted him, to the utter ruin of his cause, if he had in the leaft departed from truth in the account which he gave of himfelf. To conclude, Saul on this occafion openly affirmed, that his Character and conduct from his youth up were known to most of the

principal

principal people in Jerufalem, who could atteft the truth of what he faid, more especially concerning his perfecuting the disciples of Jefus, a particular relation of which he now gave in the hearing of the whole affembly, Acts xxvi. 4. "My manner of life from my youth, which was at the first among mine own nation at Jeru"falem, know all the Jews. 5. Which knew me from the beginning, (if they would teftify) that after the most straiteft fect of our "religion, I lived a Pharifee. 9. I verily thought with myfelf, "that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jefus of "Nazareth. 10. Which thing I alfo did in Jerufalem and many

of the faints did I fhut up in prifon, having received authority from the chief priefts; and when they were put to death, I gave "my voice against them. 11. And I punished them oft in every "fynagogue, and compelled them to blafpheme; and being exceed

ingly mad against them, I perfecuted them even unto ftrange * cities." See likewife chap. xxii. 5. where on the ftairs of the caftle Antonia, in the hearing of the multitude, he openly appealed, for the truth of his having perfecuted the Chriftians, to the high priest and all the eftate of the elders from whom he received his commiffion. It is certain, therefore, that in his younger years Saul was a violent perfecutor of the Chriftians; that he punished them oft in every fynagogue; and that his zeal carried him fo far as to make him perfecute them even in ftrange cities. And as it is certain that Saul in his younger years was a furious perfecutor of the Chriftians, it is equally certain that afterwards he became a zealous preacher of the faith which he once deftroyed. It was for the preaching of this faith, that he was now in chains, had fuffered a long imprisonment, and was to be judged by Cæfar at Rome. An alteration of conduct fo extraordinary, in a perfon of Saul's fenfe and learning, can be accounted for only by one of three suppofitions. Either, firft, He was hurried into it by fome unaccountable enthufiafm wherewithal he was feized. Or, 2. Knowing the whole to be a fraud, he became a preacher of Chriftianity for the fake of fome advantage which he propofed to himfelf from that way; fo that his converfion was a downright cheat. Or, 3. We muft receive the account which he himfelf gave of his apostleship. His enmity againft Chriftianity and its difciples was difarmed by Jefus appearing to him from heaven, and giving him a commiffion to preach the gofpel. Now of these fuppofitions in their order. And,

1. We are fure that Saul's converfion was not the effect of enthufiafm. For, firft of all, the pretended vifions, revelations, and divine communications wherein enthusiasts deal, are all known to be the effects of their own imagination heated with intenfe meditation on fubjects which they have perfuaded themselves into the belief of, without any reafon at all. Now fo far was this from being the cafe with Saul, in what happened to him on the road to Damafeus, that, inftead of having perfuaded himself into the belief

of

of the refurrection of Jefus, and heating his imagination with intenfe meditation thereon, he looked upon it as a downright cheat; he took Jefus himself for a deceiver, he hated the Chriftians as deluded enthusiasts, or as bold impoftors, and therefore he perfecuted them to the death. To fuppofe that one in this temper was converted to Chriftianity by the power of enthufiafm, which produced in his diftempered brain a vifion of one whofe refurrection he denied, is to contradict the whole current of human experience.-In the fecond place, it ought to be remembered, that Saul was not the only perfon who faw this vifion. There were others in the company equally enemies to the Chriftian cause with himself, and who therefore were in no difpofition to form any vifionary fcene in favour thereof, who nevertheless "beheld a great light fhining around them, above the "brightness of the fun at noon-day," Acts ix. 3. and who were fo aftonished with the vifion, that they ftood fpeechlefs, hearing a voice, though not the words fpoken, Acts xxii. 9. If this vifion proceeded entirely from Saul's enthufiafm, how came the imaginations of the whole company to be seized with precifely the fame phrenfy? Or how came they to be feized with it at the fame inftant? That there was not the leaft difference, either in the matter or the time of their phrenfy, is truly wonderful.-In the third place, if we believe that the appearing of Jefus to Saul on the road to Damafcus was the pure effect of his own enthusiasm, we must affirm that the commiffion which he received from Chrift at that time, with all its confefequences, was in like manner the effect of enthusiasm; particularly, that the miracles by which he converted the Gentiles, exifted no where but in his own imagination; that all the converts every where, who believed in Jefus, because they thought they faw his apostle work miracles, were enthufiafts; that the power of working miracles and speaking with tongues, which the converted Gentiles received from this apoftle, were mere fallacies; that the fick themfelves whom they healed by virtue of this power, the lame whofe members they restored, and the perfons out of whom they caft devils, were deluded into the belief of cures, while no cure was wrought. Allo we must affirm, that the doctrine and precepts which he taught were the pure effects of his own enthufiafm, notwithstanding they were diametrically oppofite to all his former principles and practices as a proud felf-righteous Pharifee. In fhort, if we fancy Saul was an enthufiaft in his converfion, we muft believe that every thing he wrote, faid, or did, as an apoftle of Jefus, was the effect of distraction; that all who gave the leaft heed to him were infected with the like madness; and that whole nations to whom he preached, and who believed that he wrought miracles, were under the power of the groffeft delufion; fuppofitions fufficiently extravagant to demonftrate their own abfurdity.-Laftly. I might here fhew that all the arguments, by which the other apoftles are cleared from the charge of enthufiafm, confpire with double force to prove that Saul was no enthufiaft. But I fhall only obferve in general, that if, in the opinion

of