Such is the strict unity of design, and the accurate harmony of parts, between the Jewish and the Christian schemes, so clearly establishing their common and heavenly original.* As the period approached when the promised Messiah was to appear, we have seen this unity and harmony display itself in more illustrious characters. The visible and immediate interference of Providence in rewarding virtue and punishing vice, seems to have been gradually withdrawn from amongst the Jews after the Babylonish Captivity;† and the expectations of a future retribution, now plainly ‡ and authoritatively established by their sacred writers, left to operate in its room; so that at the time of our Lord's appearance, these expectations were a leading article of the popular creed; and when promulgated anew with additional miracles, to impress them on mankind in general, found amongst the Jews minds prepared to receive them, wher ever worldly views or vicious propensities did not resist and defeat the influence of truth. began, but is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus "Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel whereunto I am appointed a Preacher, and an Apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles." Now is it not evident that the Apostle here means to unfold the whole scheme of the Gospel, the eternal purpose of God to admit in the fulness of time the Gentiles into his church, notwithstanding their antecedent idolatries and crimes; the abolition of death, by depriving it of its terrors and its sting, and redeeming men from the power of death eternal; and aid to secure eternal life, arising from that spirit of power and love and religious wisdom, with which divine grace supplies the true Christian? It is not then the simple promulgation of the doctrine of a future life, which the Apostle here understands, but a promul gation of it, accompanied with such clear instruction how to seek, and such merciful assistance to obtain life and immortality, as were now first brought to light by the Gospel. "Thus," to adopt the words of the pious Doddridge, hath Jesus Christ in effect abolished death, hath deposed it from its tyran"nical empire, and thrown a light on the important doctrine of life and im"mortality by the Gospel, which gives us a more express assurance and a more lively view of it, than any former dispensation had ever done or "could possibly do."-Vide also Parkhurst's exposition of this passage, as quoted by Dodd in loc.; Bishop Sherlock's opinion in opposition to Warburton, illustrated and vindicated by Dr. Parry, in his defence of the Bishop of London; and the judicious Benson, in his paraphrase and notes on this passage, who admits "the Jews had expectations of a resurrection even be"fore the coming of our Saviour;" and refers to Matt. xxii. 32. and Dan. xii. 2. "but the more full and clear discovery is owing to the Christian Revelation." * Vide Hartley on the truth of Christianity, Propos. 26, 35, 36, 37, 38. † Vide Warburton, Book iv. sect. iv.; 1 Maccabees, ii. 38. and vi. from 49 to 60. Vide supra, Part III. Lect, IV. particularly sect. ii. Thus also the gracious intention of Providence, to admit the" heathen world into the church, and for this purpose abrogate that ritual which formed the wall of separation excluding them, was gradually more plainly notified;* until by the last Prophets it was distinctly announced, and as we perceive, clearly understood by all whom national pride and prejudice did not induce to close their eyes against the light. Of this we find signal instances in John the Baptist and the devout Cornelius; and certainly there were multitudes of others amongst the Jews and Gentiles, who like them looked for salvation by the appearance of that Messiah, "who was to be a light to lighten the Gentiles, "and the glory of his people Israel," and we know that the whole nation of the Samaritans acknowledged the same truth. As this glorious era drew near, we see various events crowding on our observance preparatory to its arrival; the translation of the Jewish Scriptures into Greek; the general expectation of a great king to arise in Judea, diffused over the East; the increasing light of philosophy; the extension of the Roman empire-all combine to prepare for, and facilitate the promulgation of the Gospel. But still the Jews are the more immediate instruments whom God meant to employ in effecting his gracious purposes; and accordingly we find that after the Babylonish Captivity, they are rapidly prepared to act their part in the great and important change which now approached. It is certain that in the interval between the Babylonish Captivity and the advent of the Messiah, the Jews were gradually settled and multiplied, not only in Egypt, but in all Asia, Greece, Italy, and the western regions of Europe. The Jewish Historian cites numerous decrees of the magistrates, the senate, and the emperors of Rome, encouraging and protecting them.† Julius Cæsar ordered that tables of brass, containing his decrees to this effect, should be fixed up in the Capitol, and communicated to the quaestors and prætors where the Jews resided. We find similar decrees formed by, or directed to, the governors and people of Ephesus, Sardis and Miletus, Athens and Pergamus, as well as the islands of the Ægean Sea; and we have * Vide the first Section of this Lecture. + Vide Josephus' Antiquities, Book xiv. ch. x. where extracts from the original decrees are given; also Book xvi. ch. ii. and xix. ch. v.; also, Lardner's Credibility, Part I. Book ii. ch. ii. & iii. the most decided classical authorities* to prove the multitude of the Jews at Rome, the number of their proselytes, and the pularity of their opinions. po As the Jews were thus dispersed and situated, so that they might most generally spread their opinions, there is also reason to believe that their general character and conduct, especially in heathen countries, were such as to recommend them; they seem in general to have been humble and rational, peaceable and industrious. "Natural justice (says their historian) is most to the "advantage of all men equally, Greeks and Barbarians, to "which our Laws have the greatest regard; and thereby render 66 us, if we abide in them after a pure manner, benevolent and friendly to all men; on which account we have reason to expect the like return from others, and to inform them that they "ought not to esteem difference of positive institutions, a suffi"cient cause of alienation, but join with us in the pursuit of "virtue and probity."+ 66 66 By this providential distribution and settlement of the Jews in almost every part of the civilized world, they were every where to be found carrying with them their Law and their Prophets, establishing their synagogues, celebrating their sabbaths, bearing constant testimony to the unity, the supremacy, and the providence of God, in opposition to Pagan superstition and idolatry; and numbers of them declaring their firm belief in a * Vide Horat. Sat. lib. i. sat. ix. line 69, 70, 71; and still more expressly, sat. iv. line 140. Multa poëtarum veniet manus, auxilio quæ Sit mihi (nam multò plures sumus) ac veluti And sat. v. line 100, where the "credat Judæus Apella" is used as a proverbial expression, opposed to the incredulity of the Epicureans. The sar casm of Persius, sat. v. 184, Recutitaque sabbata palles, equally shews the prevalence of the Jewish opinions. Vide also Martial's Epigram, lib. iv. 4: « Jejunia sabbatariorum," &c.; and various passages of Juvenal, sat. iii. line 13, sat. vi. 158, and from line 541 to 546, and particularly sat. xiv. from 95 to 105.-Vide also Lardner's Credibility, Part 1. Book i. ch. ii. on the State of the Jews in Judea, which gives also much informa tion on the general state of the nation in Egypt and elsewhere; but especi ally his second chapter, on the State of the Jews out of Judea.-Vide also Tacitus Annal. lib. ii. cap. lxxxv.; Suetonius Vita Tiberii, cap. xxxvi. + Vide similar sentiments in the conclusion of the second book against Apion: and Antiquities, Book iv. ch. viii. future state of retribution; while all maintained a constant connexion with Jerusalem, attended there at the three great festivals, whenever it was practicable, sent thither their pious and charitable contributions, and universally gloried in the expectation of that Messiah, "who was to be a light to lighten the Gentiles," as well as "the glory of his people Israel." The influence of such a preparation for the reception and diffusion of the Gospel must have been great and salutary: every where its preachers found synagogues, where the Law and the Prophets were expounded each sabbath; every where they found not only Jews, but proselytes of righteousness, who, without binding themselves under the heavy yoke of the Mosaic ritual, acknowledged the great truths of natural religion, and complied with the sacred precepts of the moral Law; every where some, like the officer of Candace, queen of Ethiopia, * studied the Scriptures; others there were, like the devout Cornelius, † who "feared God, with all his house, and gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God always." Hence the preachers of Christianity almost every where instantly found hearers, who could understand and feel their addresses. Thus at Antioch in Pisidia, Paul and Barnabas were invited to preach by the rulers of the synagogue; and after the Jews went out of it, "the "Gentiles and religious proselytes besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath; and on that day "came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God."+ Thus also at Iconium, when these Apostles went to the synagogue, they found an audience not only of Jews but of Gentiles (who were undoubtedly such proselytes); and "when they had "preached, a multitude both of Jews and Greeks believed." § Thus again at Thessalonica, "of the Jews some believed, and "of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few." || And finally, we see that "at Jerusalem "were dwelling Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven," who were attracted by the very first sound of the Gospel of Christ; for when the Apostles "were filled with the "Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance, the multitude came together, and 66 66 、 *Acts viii. 27, &c. Ibid. xvii. 1-4. + Ibid. x. Ibid. xiv. 1. Ibid. xiii. 15, 42 and 44. "were confounded, because that every man heard them speak "in his own language-Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, " and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judea, and Cappa“docia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in "Egypt, and in the parts of Lybia about Cyrene, and strangers "of Rome, Jews and Proselytes, Cretes and Arabians, exclaim. "ed, We do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful "works of God." * Of this assembly, which may be considered as a collective representation of all the nations of the earth, three thousand souls converted on this memorable day, and at least five thou sand+ on a second illustrious miracle within a few days after, formed a body of missionaries, to bear to their respective countries the tidings of the appearance of that promised Messiah, in whom all the kindreds of the earth were to be blessed;" a promise which in these signal instances began to be so conspicuously verified. The rejection of Christianity by the great bulk of the Jewish nation, assuredly forms no valid objection to the connexion and consistency of the Law and the Gospel. This rejection was not obscurely intimated by the Prophets, § was expressly predicted by our Lord, and was the natural consequence of that national ambition, that carnal and worldly temper, which induced the great bulk of the Jewish people to misunderstand and misinterpret the prophecies, by directing their attention exclusively to those predictions which speak of the supremacy and extent of the Messiah's kingdom, and which they understood of a temporal instead of a spiritual reign, by which the Jewish nation, as they vainly imagined, was to be rescued from the Roman yoke, and exalted to the dominion of the world; while they *Acts ii. 4-11. + Ibid. iv. 4. I refer for a full refutation of the objection against the truth of the Gospel history, derived from the rejection of Christianity by the Jews, to two Sermons lately preached in the Chapel of Trinity College, by Dr. El rington, and to be immediately published, at the desire of the Provost and Senior Fellows. I have only taken such a brief view of it as my subject indispensably required.-Vide also Lardner's Collection of Jewish Testimonies, ch. ii. and vii, § Vide Doddridge's Lectures, Lect. cxxx. Prop. 112; Isaiah xlix. 16, 21. lii. the entire liii. I to 9; and the passages quoted in the first section of this Lecture. || Matt. xvi. 21. xxvi. 2. and the parallel passages, |