with that modesty and energy which characterized him, referred him to the prophecies respecting a suffering and dying Messiah. This first interview did not, however, produce any other effect on the mind of Joshua, than to make him sensible that he had become acquainted with an amiable and learned man, in whom he found nothing to blame, but that he was a Christian.

Joshua, when in Prague, had begun a commentary on the prophecies of Isaiah. He had gone as far as chapter liii. when he was stopped by accumulating difficulties. Whenever he attempted to go on, he found himself involved in the thickest darkness. He consulted a great number of commentators, but found nothing that threw a satisfactory light upon the chapter. It appeared most evident to him, that it treated of a person different from him to whom the generality of the Jews applied it. But who that person might be, he was not able to make out, either from the commentaries of others, or from his own investigation. Overcome by his doubts, he had resolved to relinquish the work until a future period, when the thought struck him, that he might learn from Dr. Rheinhard, how the chapter was understood by Christians. thirst after truth overcame his natural antipathy to Christians; and he went to Dr. Rheinhard, who after having listened to his enquiries with Christian meekness, requested his attention while he should lay before him on the one side, the opinion of the Christians, and on the other, the opinion of the Jews, respecting this chapter, and he might then select for himself from the two explanations, that which he should find most reasonable. Joshua gladly accepted the proposal,

His

hoping to elicit from the two opposite explanations, a third, more in accordance with the text, than that of the Jews, and yet more favourable to his own views, than that of the Christians. The doctor, with strict impartiality, and in the clearest manner, placed before him both the Jewish and Christian exposition of this important chapter; and having done this, proceeded to prove, by the most convincing arguments, that the person spoken of by the prophet, must either be Jesus, the son of David, by whose sufferings, death, and resurrection, the prophecy had been fulfilled; or that the person to whom it referred, could never yet have lived upon earth.

Joshua felt the weight of the doctor's arguments; yet his objections against a suffering, despised, and rejected Messiah were not removed. Dr. Rheinhard, therefore, proceeded to prove from Scripture, that the Messiah must necessarily suffer, to fulfil the object of his appearing. But Joshua, who, like all his brethren, had been accustomed only to look upon the promised Messiah as a mighty monarch and irresistible conqueror, after having repeated his objections, left the doctor, and returned home in great uneasiness of mind. He reproached himself for having applied to a Christian for instruction; and yet he could not get rid of the impression which Dr. R.'s amiable character and solid arguments had made both on his heart, and on his understanding; the more he examined them, the more weight and strength they acquired. He wished to banish the subject from his mind, but he could not. At length he bent himself in prayer before the God of Israel, and besought him, with tears, to lead him into the right way.

Strengthened by this prayer, he determined to devote his time to a new and impartial examination of Moses and the prophets; and having gone through, and compared them, in the most careful manner, he felt convinced, that the office of the promised Messiah, implied more than a redemption from outward oppression. Even the fable of a twofold Messiah, a son of Joseph, who is appointed to die, and a son of David, who is expected to govern, made it probable to him, that the death of the Messiah could not be absolutely denied.

Following the light which had presented itself to his mind, Joshua continued, with increased zeal, to study the prophecies which refer to the Messiah; and his attention was particularly led to those passages which point out the time of his coming. And here he could not help observing, that if the Messiah were not already come, the town of Bethlehem, according to Micah v. 2, the temple, according to Haggai ii. 7-10, and the priests and sacrifices, according to Mal. iii. 4, must still have remained as they were, and that all trace of the family of David could not have been lost. The more he considered these points, the more he doubted as to the religion which he had hitherto professed, and the more it became evident to him, that Jesus of Nazareth must be the Messiah. Unable to decide, he turned again in prayer unto the Lord; and in the retirement of his closet, upon his knees, thus poured out his soul before the God of his fathers:-"O Lord God of Israel! thou hast been my protector and my redeemer in many dangers; thou hast broken the fetters of my bondage; thou hast rescued my life from the murderers; and thou hast delivered me from the jaws of death. O come thou now again also to

my help and deliver me from the tormenting doubts which beset me on every side; be thou my guide through the darkness which surrounds me, and lead me into light and truth." Having offered up this his mind became more calm, and prayer, his resolution was confirmed, to follow the light which had dawned upon him. He went, therefore, to Dr. Rheinhard, and laid before him the feelings of his heart without reserve; adding, that he was come to request his aid in finding Him, whom his own people for so many centuries had been looking for in vain. The pious minister, though delighted at this unexpected declaration, thought it prudent, notwithstanding, to conceal the joy of his heart, and thus gravely and affectionately addressed him:-" I fear, my young friend, you are taking a precipitate step. A man acquainted as you are, with the principles of the Jewish religion, can hardly give it up so lightly. One who is so accomplished by education and by study, and by acquaintance with the world, and who is, moreover, so highly esteemed by his nation, cannot surely mean to expose himself all at once to their contempt, their enmity, and their persecution. The beloved and only son of an affectionate mother, cannot mean to inflict so severe a wound upon her to whom he owes his life, in forsaking the religion of his fathers. The heir of a splendid fortune cannot surely intend to renounce his wealth, and to expose himself to poverty and misery, by embracing the Christian religion. I therefore intreat you, my valued friend, to remain as you are, unless you feel that you are influenced by motives of the very purest description."

Joshua, to whom such language from Doctor

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Rheinhard was quite unexpected, became deeply affected; and the tears which gushed from his eyes, evinced how deeply he felt the suspicion it implied. Doctor," said he, in a tone which seemed as it were to come from the bottom of his heart, "if temporal advantages were my object, then certainly I must remain a Jew; but neither my large patrimony, nor my mother, whom I love most dearly, nor the partiality of my people, nor any other worldly consideration, shall withhold me from seeking Jesus of Nazareth, whom I look upon as the only Saviour of mankind." This affecting declaration, the sincerity of which could not be doubted, satisfied Dr. Rheinhard as to the purity of Joshua's motives; but he deemed it prudent to advise him, while he was still wiping the tears from his face, to consider the matter most maturely, and in earnest prayer before the God of Israel: and he parted not with this beloved Israelite ere they had joined in humble supplication together, for the divine guidance and blessing.

Joshua returned home with a heavy heart; he stretched himself upon the ground, and sustained a most violent inward conflict. His imagination was strongly excited. He thought he saw on one side, the spirit of his father calling down upon him the vengeance of the God of Israel; and on the other, the likeness of his mother, now shedding tears of blood for his apostacy, and now fondly endeavouring to reclaim him; and it seemed to him in the excitement of the moment, as if his friends of the Jewish nation were stretching out their arms before him, and affectionately calling him by name. But he saw likewise Jesus of Nazareth, that Messiah whom his fathers had so long and so anxiously expected, who seemed in a