and ftrength of their adverfaries; nor do Chriftians appear to be more fair and inge-, nuous, in that refpect, than other men. Befides, in those times both Jews and Gentiles were fond of miracles and prodigies, which they thought were fometimes wrought by the power of evil spirits, as well as by the power of God; and therefore, they judged it fufficient for their purpose to afcribe the miracles Chrift wrought to the power of the devil, without attempting to prove that thofe miracles were not wrought; and, indeed, without entering into the question whether thofe facts had really taken place, or not had the oppofers of Christianity undertaken to prove the negative fide of this question; that is, that the miracles referred to were not wrought, this must have been a childish and a fruitless attempt, fuppofing it had been the truth of the cafe; because the diftance of time and place would have put fuch proof wholly out of their power; and therefore, as it would have been childish for them to have pretended to it; fo it would have been greatly unreasonable in the Chriftians, either to have demanded, or expected it. Moreover, it was very natural for the Jews, after the apoftles had taken upon them to abolish Judaifm, and to unite Jew and Gentile in one body under Christ; I say, after this had taken place, it was very natural for the Jews, in their controverfies with the Christians, to afcribe the miracles Chrift wrought to the power of the devil, rather than to the power of God; because, in this latter view of the cafe, the Jews, (according to the fundamental principle upon which all their religion and policy was grounded, viz. their being fingled out from the rest of the world to be God's peculiar people) must have confidered God as fighting against himself, feeing those miracles had been wrought in favour of, and had introduced a religion which had fubverted and fet afide the everlasting covenant and promife, which they apprehended God had made to their forefathers, Abraham, Ifaac, and Jacob, viz. that they (the Jews) fhould be God's peculiar people through all generations, till time should be no more; this new religion having broken down the wall of partition betwixt Jew and Gentile, and put the Jews upon a level with the reft of mankind. Thefe are things which appear to me to be of weight. And tho' what I have here obferved does not fink the credit of thofe hiftories; yet, furely, it weakens that credit, as the facts related in them appear to be less certain, than under other circumstances they would be. Add to this, that those hiftories have paffed through a very dangerous medium, in their conveyance down to us, by which they have been greatly expofed to corruption and alteration; and this, of neceffity, weakens the credit of thofe facts that are related in them. Thus ftands the cafe with regard to those miracles that were wrought by Chrift himself, they come to us under fuch circumftances as leaves room for doubting whether they did really take place, or not. SECONDLY, the miracles the prefent queftion is concerned with, are thofe that were wrought by the immediate fucceffors of Jefus Christ, with refpect to which we, the unlearned, have no other account put into our hands than what is contained in the book entitled The acts of the holy Apoftles, which account, no doubt, is deemed the most valuable, as the hiftory is placed amongst those books that are called facred. But then, as the credit of what is contained in this book arifes from, and refts wholly on the authority of it's author, viz. one fingle nameless historian; fo the facts related in it, muft of neceffity, and from the very nature of the thing, be less certain; because a fingle unknown author has no pretence to fuch credit as feveral well known and approved authors may have a right to claim. Befides, this book of the acts of the apostles. contains fome relations which look more like fictions than real facts, as the relations themselves feem, at least, to have the marks of incredibility upon them. An inftance of this kind we have in what is usually called the descent of the Holy Ghoft. Acts ii. 1, 2, 3. And when the day of Pentecoft was fully come, they were all with one accord, in one place; and fuddenly there came a found from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, which filled all the house where they were fitting; and there appeared unto them cloven tongues, like as of fire, and it fat upon each of them. As the apoftles were not acquainted with the languages of those several countries which they were defigned and appointed to preach the gospel to; so the gift of tongues, or an ability to speak the feveral languages of thofe countries, without being at the trouble, or fpending the time, which the ordinary way of learning thofe languages languages would require, this feemed abfolutely neceffary to enable them to execute their commiffion, and to answer the purpose of their ministry. But then, what had the miniftry of the apoftles to do with what is called the defcent of the Holy Ghoft, which, according to the above relation, was external and visible. The gift of tongues, I apprehend, confifted in the ideas of foreign languages being impreffed upon the mind of the receiver, who otherwise would have been ignorant of thofe languages; and by which the preacher was enabled to Speak, to the people of every country, in the language of that country, which otherwise he would have been uncapable of doing. But then, with this gift of tongues, things external and visible, fuch as rushing mighty winds and cloven fiery tongues, do not seem to have any affinity, connection, or relation; and could ferve only to ftrike terror or excite wonder and amazement in thofe that bebeld or felt them. And this, I think, renders the ftory less credible, as it is very unlikely that God fhould thus interpofe for the fake of pomp and fhew, or to anfwer any fuch low purposes as thefe. And if we fuppofe this rufhing mighty wind |