expofition which is here given of John's meffage. Bleed is he whofoever shall not be offended in me; bleffed are they who fhall not be offended upon account of the low condition in which I appear, of the fufferings which I muft endure, and of those which my fervants fhall undergo in this world.

Laftly; there remains another folution of this difficulty, to which fome may perhaps give the preference.

n

John, for the reasons already mentioned, could not well doubt whether the perfon, whom he had baptized, and to whom he had borne teftimony, were the Meffias; but being in prison, and hearing the fame of Chrift's miracles, he wanted to be satisfied of two things, whether Jefus were that very person whom he had baptized and proclaimed, and whether the rumour concerning his miracles were true. He fends therefore his difciples, and bids them ask Chrift if he were the expected Meffias, and bring him an account of all that paffed upon that occafion, that, by Chrift's answer

But I should prefer the former.

and

and their report, he might form a furer judgment.

But, whether John had or had not any doubts at the the time when he fent the meffage, thus much is highly probable, that, after the return of his disciples, he and they were fully fatisfied, firft, because Christ's answer and miracles were fufficient to convince any wife and good man, and fecondly, because St. Matthew relates that, when John was beheaded, his difciples came and took up the body and buried it, and went and told Jefus; which was plainly an act of respect and kindness, and the behaviour of men who entertained an honourable opinion of Christ.

VI. The

VI.

The Scriptures of the New Teftament.

TH

HE following obfervations relate to the truth, the importance, and the authority of the Scriptures of the New Teftament.

- I. The books of the New Teftament were written by thofe to whom they are afcribed, that is, by Apostles, or by

believers

• Ἐν τοῖς νόθοις καταλλάχθω καὶ τῶν Παύλο πράξεων ἡ γραφὴ, ὅ, με λεγόμεν© Ποιμήν, καὶ ἡ ἀποκάλυψις Πέτρε καὶ πρὸς θέτοις, ἡ φερομένη Βαρνάβα Επιςολή, και Τῶν ̓Αποσόλων &ι λεγομέναι διδαχαί. Pro fpuriis habendi funt etiam Actus Pauli, et liber Pafioris titulo infcriptus, et Revelatio Petri: Barnaba item Epiftola, et quæ dicuntur Inftitutiones Apoftolorum. Eufebius E. H. III. 25. Where Eufebius by the word vólos cannot poffibly mean less than that these books were of ambiguous and contefted authority. See Valefius, and Beverege, Cod. Can. Vind. L. ii. 9. and Pearson, Vindic. Ignat. i. 8. and Turner's Difcourfe on the Conftitutions. The authority of Eufebius in points of this kind is great, and has been fo accounted by all good judges.

If

believers who lived and converfed with the

Apostles. Of this we have as clear proof

as

If the Διδαχοί ̓Αποςόλων are not the Apoftolical Conftitutions, Eufebius never mentioned the Conflitutions.

The Epifle of BARNABAS is extant, and is fufficiently illuftrated by learned men. Perufe him ; Perufe him; he shall Speak for himfelf.

Clemens Alexandrinus often cites this Epiftle; yet he fcruples not to contradict its author, Pædag. ii. x. p. 221. as the Archbishop obferves in his notes.

In the APOSTOLICAL CONSTITUTIONS we find the following paffage, VI. 24. It hath pleafed God that the law of righteoufnefs hould not only be publiked by us, [the Apoftles] but that it should be made confpicuous and illuftrious by the Romans; for they also believing in the Lord have forfaken their idolatry and iniquity, and fhew favour to the righteous, and punish the wicked; but they have the Jews for tributaries, and fuffer them not to exercife their own laws and ordinances. Ου μόνον δὲ τῆς δικαιοσύνης νόμον δι' ἡμῶν ἐπιδείκνυθαι βέλεται, ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ Ῥωμαίων ευδόκησεν αυτὸν φαίνεται καὶ λάμπειν· καὶ γὰρ καὶ ἔτοὶ πιςευσαν]ες ἐπὶ τὸν Κύριον, καὶ πολυθείας απέσησαν καὶ ἀδικίας· καὶ τὲς ἀγαθὸς ἀποδέχονται, καὶ τὰς φαύλες κολάζεσιν. Ιεδαίος δὲ ὑποφέρεις ἔχεσι, καὶ τοῖς ἰδίοις δικαιώμασιν ἐκ ἐῶσι κεχρήθαι. All this was true; but it was not true till all the Apostles had been long dead.

The Conflitutions ftrictly prohibit the reading of Pagan books : Τῶν ἐθνικῶν βιβλίων πάντων ἀπέχε. i. 6. Clemens Alexandrinus calls the maintainers of this opinion weak and ignorant perfons. Indeed, if they were in the right, he was a great finner. Οὐ λέληθεν δέ με καὶ τὰ θρυλλόμενα προς λινων ἀμαθῶς ψοφωδεῶν, χρήναι λεγόντων περὶ τὰ αναγκαιότατα και συνέχοντα τὴν πίσιν καταγίνεσθαι τὰ δὲ

ἔξωθεν

as the nature of the thing can admit, or any reasonable perfon can defire, namely the testimony

ἔξωθεν καὶ περιττὰ ὑπερβαίνειν, μάτην ἡμᾶς τρίβολα και κατέχοντα περὶ τοῖς ἐδὲν συμβαλλομένοις πρὸς τὸ τέλος. Strom. I. 1. p. 326. See also Socrates Hift. Eccl. iii. 16. If the ancient Chriftians had obferved this precept, Julian would have had no occafion to forbid them to teach Claffic authors, grammar, rhetoric, philosophy, &c. Epift. p. 192

195. Not only Christian writers reproached Julian for it, but Ammianus Marcellinus honeftly condemned this fpiteful and fcandalous Edict.

The LXXXVI. Apoftol. Canon fays that the Conflitutions ought not to be made public; ἃς ἐ χρὴ δημοσιευειν ἐπὶ πάνων. It muft be confeffed that this order was juft and prudent, on many accounts.

See Remarks on Eccl. Hift. vol. I. p. 228. where several obfervations are made on the Conftitutions.

Concerning the SHEPHERD of HERMAS, it is obfervable that the persons who act in it are most of them allegorical perfons and ideal beings, fuch as appear in the Table of Cebes, and in the Hercules of Prodicus Ceus. An ancient Lady converfes with him, and tells him that she is the Church of God. Afterwards feveral Virgins come and difcourfe with him, and when he wants to know who they are, he is told by the Shepherd-Angel, that they are Faith, Abftinence, Patience, Chaflity, Concord, &c.

There is a great conformity between Hermas and the author of the fecond book of Apocryphal Efdras; for a Woman converses with Efdras, who, as the Angel tells him, was Sion, or the Jewish Church: and as in the same book the Woman vanishes away, and in her place appears a City; fo in Hermas the Church is reprefented to him under the image of a Tower.

The