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When, being assembled together again, the point that was chiefly agitated was concerning the manner of Christ's coming. And, this, some said, shall be like a mighty prince, in the full power and authority of a King, yea, in greater power than ever any King had; and that he will deliver their nation out of the power of their enemics, and their temple shall be rebuilt again; and that the nations shall be of their religion, and worship God after their manner. For they hold, that the Messiah will not alter their religion, whensoever he cometh. And further, concerning his parentage, they did agree in this, that he should be born of a virgin, according to the prediction of the prophets; and they agreed also, that he may be born of such a virgin, which might be of mean note amongst their nation, as was the Virgin Mary. And here some of them seemed to me to incline to think, that Christ was come. Therefore when they came together again the next day, the propounder demanded of them, if Christ was already come? And who they thought he was? And to this demand they gave this answer, that they thought Elijah was he, if he was come, because he came with great power, which he declared by slaying the priests of Baal; and, for the fulfilling of the scripture, he was oppressed by Ahab and Jezabel; yet they esteemed him to be more than a mortal man, because he so strangely ascended up into heaven, And, because this opinion was contradicted by others, the day following, they took into examination the same question, to answer them that said Elijah was not the Messiah. They of the contrary opinion did urge the care and love of Elijah, for the good of their nation, in that he left them Elisha, his disciple to teach and instruct the people; which they expect to be the care of their Messiah. These were the chief arguments they had to defend their opinion; and, the same day towards night, it came into question amongst them, 'What he then was that said he was the son of God, and was crucified by their ancestors. And because this was the great question amongst them, they deferred the further consideration thereof, until the next day.

When, meeting again, the pharisees (for some of this sect were amongst them, that were always the enemies of Christ) they first began to answer this last night's question; and these by no means would yield that he was the Christ; and these reasons they gave for their opinion.

First, because (said they) he came into the world like an ordinary and inferior man, not with his scepter, nor royal power; wherewith they affirmed the coming of Christ should be glorious. 2, They pleaded against him the meanness of his birth, in that his father was a carpenter; and this they said was a dishonour, that Christ should not be ca pable of. 3. They accused him to be an enemy to Moses's law, in suf fering his disciples, and in doing works himself, that were prohibited on the sabbath-day; for they believe that the Messiah will punctually and exactly keep the law of Moses; and where the gospel doth testify of Christ, that he did fulfil the law, they reject the testimony thereof, because they do not own the gospel. But I observed, these reasons of the Pharisees did not satisfy all that heard them, but there still remained some doubt in some of them concerning Christ; for there stood up one rabbi called Abraham, and objected against the Pharisees the miracles that Christ wrought, whilst he was upon earth, as his raising of the dead

to life again, his making the lame to walk, the blind to see, and the dumb to speak. And the same Abraham demanded of the Pharisees, by what power he did those miracles? The answer, the Pharisees returned to him was to this purpose: They said he was an impostor, and a magician; and blasphemously traduced him of doing all his miracles by magick: Thus, said they, he first caused them to be blind, to be dumb, to be lame; and then, by taking away his magical charm, they were restored to their former condition. Nevertheless, this answer gave little satisfaction to the said Abraham; but thus he replied, that he could not charm those that were born in that condition, as blind, &c. and born also before Christ himself was born; as it appeareth some of them were: This seemed to him an absurd paradox; and truly the pressing of this argument did almost put them to a nonplus, till at last they had this evasion (though weak and vile) they were, said they, by other magicians convinced to be so in their mothers wombs; and that, although himself was not then born when they were born with these evils, yet he being a great dissembler, and more cunning than any magician before him, power was given him, by the devil, to remove those charms, which others had placed; and there was one Pharisee named Zebedee, that of the Pharisees there did most opprobriously revile him, and vehemently urge these things against him; but I conceive he did it not to the well-liking of many there that heard him, even members of the council. And as the Pharisees that day played their parts against him; so did the Sadducees also endeavour (for some of that sect were also of the council) to render Christ vile and odious to the rest of the Jews that were assembled there. I observed it was with them as it was once with Herod and Pilate; though they two could not agree betwixt themselves at other times, yet they could agree together to crucify Christ; for the Pharisees and Sadducees, though they be much divided in opinion among themselves, yet did they at this time too much agree to disgrace and dishonour Christ with their lyes, calumnies, and blasphemies; for the Sadducees, as well as Pharisees, did in other things accuse him for a grand impostor, and for a broacher of corrupt doctrine; in that in his gospel he teacheth the resurrection from the dead, which they there denied to be true doctrine; but it is no new thing to see factions dissenting, to agree in some evil design against others, as I found it by experience; being at Rome in the year 1650, which was the year of their jubilee, there was a great strife between the Jesuits and the Friars of the order of St. Dominick, both which were against the protestants; and although their differences have been, by the care and vigilance of the Pope, so smothered, that the world hath not taken much notice thereof, yet this fire broke out into a flame greater than ever it was before (as they certified me there) both by publick disputings, and by bitter writings one against another, opening the vices and errors of one another's faction, thus seeking to disgrace one the other; which caused the Pope to threaten to excommunicate the authors of all such black and libellous books, that did tend to the dishonour of his clergy and religion, to make them infamous to the world. But this by the way.

We are now come to the seventh and last day of their council; and, on this day, this was the main quere amongst them: 'If Christ be come,

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then what rules and orders hath he left his church to walk by?' This was a great question among them; and because they did not believe the New Testament, nor would be guided by it, they demanded some other instruction to direct and guide them, in this point; thereupon six of the Roman clergy (who of purpose were sent from Rome by the Pope, to assist in this council) were called in, viz. two Jesuits, two friars of the order of St. Augustine, and two of the order of St. Francis; and these, being admitted into the council, began to open unto them the rules and doctrine of the holy church of Rome (as they call it) which church they magnified to them, for the holy catholick church of Christ, and their doctrine to be the infallible doctrine of Christ, and their rules to be the rules, which the apostles left to the church for ever to be observed, and that the Pope is the holy vicar of Christ, and the successor of St. Peter; and for instance, in some particulars, they affirmed the real presence of Christ in the sacrament, the religious observation of their holy days, the invocation of saints, praying to the Virgin Mary, and her commanding power in heaven over her son; the holy use of the cross and images, with the rest of their idolatrous and superstitious worship; all which they commended to the assembly of the Jews, for the doctrine and rules of the apostles. But, as soon as the assembly had heard these things from them, they were generally and exceedingly troubled thereat, and fell into high clamours against them, and their religion, crying out, No Christ, no woman-god, no intercession of saints, no worshiping of images, no praying to the Virgin Mary, &c.' Truly their trouble hereat was so great, that it troubled me to see their impatience; they rent their cloaths, and cast dust upon their heads, and cried out aloud, blasphemy, blasphemy! and, upon this, the council broke up: Yet they assembled again the eighth day; and all that was done then, was to agree upon another meeting of their nation three years after, which was concluded upon before their final dissolution.

I do believe there were many Jews there, that would have been persuaded to own the Lord Jesus; and this I assure you for a truth, and it is for the honour of our religion, and the encouragement of our divines, one eminent Rabbi there did deliver his opinion, in conference with me, that he at first feared that those, which were sent from Rome, would cause an unhappy period to their council; and professed to me, that he much desired the presence of some Protestant divines, and especially of our English divines, of whom he had a better opinion than of any other divines in the world; for he did believe that we have a great love to their nation; and this reason he gave me for their good opinion of our divines, because he understood that they did ordinarily pray for the conversion of their nation; which he did acknowledge to be a great token of our love towards them; and, especially he commended the ministers of London, for excellent preachers, and for their charity towards their nation; of whom he had heard a great fame. As for the church of Rome, they account it an idolatrous church, and therefore will not own their religion; and, by conversing with the Jews, I found that they generally think that there is no other Christian religion in the world, but that of the church of Rome; and for Rome's idolatry, they take offence at all Christian religion; by which it appeared that Rome is the greatest enemy of the Jews conversion.

For the place of the Jews next meeting, it is probable it will be in Syria, in which country I also was, and did there converse with the sect of the Rechabites, living in Syria; they still observe their old customs and rules; they neither sow, nor plant, nor build houses; but live in tents, and often remove from one place to another, with their whole family, bag and baggage. And seeing I find that, by the Italian tongue, I can converse with the Jews, or any other nation, in all the parts of the world, where I have been; if God give me an opportunity, I shall willingly attend their next council. The good Lord prosper it: Amen.

RELATION OF THE EXECUTION

OF

JAMES GRAHAM, LATE MARQUIS OF MONTROSS,

At Edinburgh, on Tuesday, the 21st of May Instant.

With his last speech, carriage, and most remarkable passages upon the scaffold. Also a letter out of Ireland, more fully, concerning the taking of Clonmell.

London, printed by E. Griffin, in the Old Bailey, May twenty-eighth, 1650. Quarto, containing eight pages.

SIR,

TOTWITHSTANDING the great hubbub this place is in at the beheading of Montross, I shall give you a short account of affairs; On Saturday last Montross came hither; he was received at the end of the town by the bailiffs, and set upon a high cart, and tied with a rope, his hat being before taken off by the hangman, and the hangman riding upon a filly-horse, with his bonnet on, and a staff in his hand, and thus he was brought up, through the town; several persons have been with him, and upon discourse he told them, that, for personal offences, he hath deserved all this, but justifies his cause; he caused a new suit to be made for himself, and came yesterday into the parliament-house, with a scarlet rocket, and a suit of pure cloth, all laid with rich lace, a beaver, and a rich hatband, and scarlet silk-stockings. The chancellor made a large speech to him, discovering how much formerly he was for the covenant, and how he hath since broke it. He desired to know, whether he might be free to answer; and being admit

ted, he told them his cause was good and that, he had not only a commission, but particular orders for what he had done, from his Majesty, which he was engaged to be a servant to, and they also had professed to comply with; and upon that account, however they dealt with him, yet he would own them to be a true parliament. And he further told them, that if they would take away his life, the world knew he regarded it not; it was a debt that must once be paid, and that he was willing, and did much rejoice, that he must go the same way his Majesty did, and it was the joy of his heart, not only to do but to suffer for him. His sentence was, to be hanged upon a gallows thirty feet high, three hours at Edinburgh-cross; to have his head struck off, and hanged upon Edinburgh tollbooth, and his arms and legs to be hanged up in other publick towns in the kingdom, as Glascow, &c. and his body to be buried at the common burying-place, in case his excommunication from the kirk were taken off, or else to be buried where those are buried that are hanged. All the time while sentence was giving, and also when he was executed, he seemed no way to be altered, or his spirit moved, but his speech was full of composure, and his carriage as sweet as ever I saw a man in all my days. When they bid him kneel, he told them he would, he was willing to observe any posture, that might manifest his obedience, especially to them who were so near in conjunction with his Majesty. It is absolutely believed, that he hath gained more by his death, than ever he did in his life. The Scots are listing forces here, and have named their officers; they intend to make up their army twenty-five thousand, they are very much startled at the marching of the English army northwards. By the next you shall hear further from

Edinburgh, May 21, 1760.

Your servant,

H. P.

Further by another express from Edinburgh of the same date, thus:

YESTERDAY, after the sentence was pronounced against Montross, he said, That tho' he was cried out against for a bloody man, yet he never committed any act of cruelty, nor took away any man's life, but in an hostile way.

After he came to the place of execution, having been so used as before, he spoke to this purpose to one that was near him: You see what compliments they put upon me, but I never took more delight in all my life, in riding in a coach, than I did in this manner of passage to this place.

His late declaration and the history of his transactions were tied at his back, when he was hanged, but he would have nothing to do with the ministers who stood at the end of the scaffold.

The places where Montross's quarters are to be set up, are, Glascow, Sterling, Perth, alias St. Johnson, aud Aberdeen.

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