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limb1 perfect, those who were bowed double, straight, those who shook with the palsy, robust,-nerving the withered arm with strength, restoring the insane and demoniacs to reason, and raising the dead to life. That great miracle of raising the dead, in particular, Christ performed no less than four times; once on the ruler's daughter, just after she had expired, again on the widow's son, as he was carried on his bier to be interred, a third time on Lazarus when he had lain in his grave four days, and lastly, the greatest instance of all, in himself. We behold the apostles also expelling demons, restoring the lame from his birth, giving sight to the blind, healing all manner of diseases, and giving life to the dead. These supernatural works were not performed in a few instances, with hesi tation and diffidence; but every week and every day were witnesses to numerous instances of them for a successive series of years, so that all suspicion of human management, compact, and juggle, was for ever precluded. In short, not only man but every other being bows in ready subjection to their voice; not only animate but inanimate creatures, feel the power of God, and act contrary to their natures, at his will. The winds, the waves, the rocks, the sun, the earth, the heavens, all are the subjects of those who first introduced the Christian dispensation.

2

(3.) The DESIGN of Christ's miracles, the very kinds of which were foretold by the prophet Isaiah, nearly seven centuries before, was truly important, and every way worthy of their Almighty Author. If we reflect on the end and purpose for which these miracles were wrought, we find it grand and noble, full of dignity, majesty, and mercy. It was, to carry on one vast and consistent plan of Providence, extending from the creation to the consummation of all things, to establish a system of belief, hope, and practice, adapted to the ac

1 So Kuous signifies. It is a different word from xwλous, and has a different signification. Both these words occur in Matt. xv. 31. kuddous byisis, xwdovs wepinaTOUTES. He made the maimed to be whole, those who wanted a limb, perfect, and the lame to walk. What an amazing instance of divine power, of creative energy, must the reproduction of a hand, foot, or other limb be, by the mere word or touch of Jesus! How astonishing to the spectators! That the above is the meaning of KUAAos, see Wetstein, Kypke, and Elsner on Matt. xv. 31.

2 The circumstance of Christ's miracles being predicted so many years before the performance of them, is particularly worthy of notice. It removes all suspicion of any design to impose on the understandings of men, to sway them by the power of novelty, or to surprise them by a species of proof, of which they had never before heard. In this respect the miracles of Jesus have a great advantage over those of Moses. When Moses appeared, the notion of a miracle must have been new and unprecedented: allowing this, there was no impropriety in the use of miracles among a rude uncivilised people. But, when the world became more polished, and, by the frequency of imposture, more suspicious and inquisitive, it was highly proper that the species of proof, by which any new system was confirmed, should be previously notified, or be such as men had been in the habit of attending to. This applied particularly to the Jews, the witnesses of the miracles of Jesus. They were much prepossessed against him; and it was of importance that the proof from this quarter should appear in the most unexceptionable light. Jesus had this in view, in the answer given to the disciples of John the Baptist, when they inquired if he was the Christ. He directs them to his miracles, in proof that he was, and appeals to the predictions of the same prophet who had described the character and actions of their master. Compare Isa. xxix. 18, 19. xxxv. 4-C. and lxi. 1. with Matt. xi. 4, 5. and Mark vii. 37.

tual wants and conditions of mankind; which had been revealed in part to the Jews, promised to the prophets, and tended to destroy the four great moral evils, so prevalent and so pernicious, viz. atheism, scepticism, immorality, and vice. In subservience to their grand object, the confirmation of his divine mission,- the miracles of Christ were wrought for the most benevolent of all purposes, the alleviation of human misery in all its forms, and they carry in them the characters of the greatest goodness as well as of the greatest power. Most of them were performed in consequence of application or entreaty; and on these occasions, the character and conduct of Jesus appear, adorned with the most delicate expressions of compliance and pity.

The instance of the leper, who applied for himself, as Jesus came down from the mountain (Matth. viii. 3.);-of the centurion, applying for a favorite servant (viii. 8.) ;-of the sick of the palsy, brought in his bed, and let down by the roof (Luke v. 18.);—and of the ruler, whose daughter lay at the point of death, and expired before his arrival (Luke viii. 41.);∙ are all so many occasions which display that divine compassion, which was ever open to the cries of the miserable; a compassion surmounting every obstacle, unconquerable by opposition, and with dignity triumphing over it. The circumstances of the last mentioned application are remarkably beautiful. We see a ruler of the synagogue falling down at the feet of Jesus, beseeching him to come into his house; the more importunate in his entreaty, as probably he had been either an enemy, or liable to the imputation of being one, and, on that account also the more doubtful of success; to crown all, his case was pitiable and pressing: He had one only daughter about twelve, and she lay a dying. As Jesus went to the house, the people crowded about him, and in the throng a most compassionate cure was wrought, only by touching the hem of his garment. In the meantime, the young woman expires, and messages are sent to prevent his taking any further trouble. This new distress has the effect of heightening the compassionate favour. It instantly drew forth from the mouth of Jesus that reviving declaration, the prelude of the miracle: Fear not, believe only, and she shall be made whole (Luke viii. 50.).

Beautiful as these instances are, yet they yield to others, where Jesus wrought his miracles without application. To prevent entreaty, to watch for opportunity of doing good to others, is the very essence of a benevolent character, and is the perfection of an amiable one. The miraculous draught of fishes (Luke v. 1.) is perhaps one of the lowest of these instances. We cannot suppose that the disciples could either ask or expect such an appearance in their favour. But, as the miracle, by its greatness, was fitted to inspire every sentiment of respect; so the occasion of working it served to give a full opening into the indulgent character of their master at the moment of his calling them. His entering soon after into Peter's house, and healing his wife's mother, who lay sick of a fever (Matth. viii. 14.), was also an act of indulgence, and peculiarly

fitted to secure the attachment of this zealous disciple. The feeding of thousands miraculously with a few loaves and fishes, gives a happy and striking instance of an attention descending to the most ordinary wants of men. The cases of dispossession have the most humane aspect, where the misery was great, and no application supposable, nor any desire of relief.

There are two instances of such distresses as every day occur, in which we see Jesus interposing, unasked, with the most exquisite sensibility. One is a case of infirm old age; the other, of youth cut off in its bloom; distresses mortifying to the pride of man, and always deeply affecting to a generous mind. Wilt thou be made whole? says Jesus to the old man lying at the pool of Bethesda. (John v. 6.) The helplessness of distressed old age cannot be painted in more lively colours, than in the simple account which the man gives of himself; and never was relief dispensed with more grace and dignity: Jesus saith to him, Rise, take up thy bed and walk. (John v. 8.) The other distress is still of a more tender kind, the untimely death of an only son; a distress always great, but on the present occasion heightened by the concurrence of affecting circumstances. Jesus went into a city called Nain. Now, when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And much people of the city was with her. (Luke vii. 11, 12.) In attending to the narration, we sympathize deeply with the distress of the sorrowful mother, we even participate in the sympathy and sorrow of the attendants. Such a distress was adapted to the divine pity of Jesus. When the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not (Luke vii. 13.); and he came and touched the bier, and said, Young man, arise. (14.) And, lest the immediate object of the miracle should escape us, the historian concludes the account of it with observing, that Jesus delivered him to his mother. (15.) Great actions in ordinary life have often much of the terrible in them; if they have beauties, yet they are usually of the awful kind: but, in the miracles of Jesus, there is nothing alarming; they were hurtful to none, and beneficial to all who felt their influence. We naturally wish ourselves to have been spectators of those agreeable scenes. This was the charm which overpowered the stupidity or prejudices of the multitudes, when the other charms of the miracles seemed to have operated faintly. On occasion of one of the lowest exertions, the multitude was capable of making the following reflection: He hath done all things well; he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.1

"Compare with these evangelical miracles the pagan miracles, as delivered to us by report, or the ecclesiastical miracles, after the church was supported by the state:-but there is no comparison. The latter were usually such as would make fools stare, and wise men suspect; and as they began, so they ended in vain, establish1 Dr. David Hunter's Observations on the History of Jesus Christ, vol. i. pp. 286 -291. Edinburgh, 1770.

ing nothing, or what was worse than nothing; if false, the tricks of deceitful men; if true, the frolics of fantastical demons."

In short, the miracles of Christ had nothing in them fantastical or cruel, but were glorious acts of kindness and beneficence, done to persons to whom it is usually least done, but who most needed his kindness and beneficence, the poor, the needy, the desolate, and the afflicted. They were, moreover, calculated to excite gratitude rather than fear, and to persuade rather than to terrify. Jesus performed no miracles of the severe kind, and the apostles very few, no more indeed than were necessary for wise and good purposes, viz. the detection and the punishment of sin and hypocrisy in the infant state of the Christian church.

Of the vast multitude of miracles, performed by Jesus Christ, there are only two which carry in them any marks of severity, namely, his suffering the demons to enter the herd of swine, in consequence of which the whole herd perished in the waters; and his causing the barren fig-tree to wither away.

With regard to the destruction of the swine (Matt. viii. 28-34. Mark v. 12-17.), it should be considered that Jesus did not, properly speaking, command or do this, but only suffered it to be done; and it is no more an impeachment of his goodness that he suffered this to be done, than it is of the providence of the Almighty, that he permits any evil to be committed in the world. Jesus might suffer this, perhaps to show the great power and malice of evil spirits if not restrained by Omnipotence; perhaps, if the Jews were the owners of the swine, to punish them for keeping such animals in direct violation of the Mosaic institute, which forbad the eating of swine and even the keeping of them; or, perhaps, if the owners of them were Gentiles, to convince them of the sacredness and divinity of the Jewish laws, which (it is well known) they ridiculed on many accounts, and especially for the prohibition of eating swine's flesh; and farther, it may be, to punish them for laying a snare in the way of the Jews. But, whoever they were that sustained this loss, they seem to have deserved it for their covetous and inhuman temper; for they were not so much pleased with the good that was done to the afflicted men, as they were offended with the loss of the swine; and, instead of being awakened by so great a miracle to confess their sins and revere the power of Christ, they desired him immediately to depart out of their coasts. They could not but be sensible that He, who had wrought this miracle among them, must be a divine person; yet, because they had sustained some loss by it, they never applied to him for mercy, but sent him away, and thus shewed themselves still more worthy of the punishment that had been inflicted upon them.

In causing the barren fig tree to wither and die away (Matt. xxi. 19. Mark xi. 14. 21.), Jesus never invaded private property, nor did any injury to the community at large. But the lesson, which this action dictated to his disciples, and now dictates to us, is of the first importance to every man alive, to the deist as well as to the be

1 Dr. Jortin's Remarks on Ecclesiastical History, vol. i. p. 266. 2d edit.

lever. If the opportunities which God has given us for our improvement in religious knowledge and the purification of our affections, be neglected or misemployed;-if we be found unfruitful in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus, and in good works, which are the fruits of faith in him, we must expect to be withered like the barren fig-tree, before the fiery blast of his displeasure, when he cometh to judge the earth.1

There were good reasons, therefore, for Christ's severity in these two cases; but in all other instances he was perfect goodness and benevolence. He went about doing good.' He was the greatest physician to bodies as well as souls; his constant employment was, feeding the hungry, healing the sick, casting out demons, and raising the dead. The first of his miracles was at a wedding, converting water into wine, thus sanctioning the sacred institution of marriage, and at the same time shewing that he was no enemy to innocent festivity and one of the last was restoring the ear of the high priest's servant which Peter had cut off. The gospel was a covenant of mercy, and it could not be better ratified and confirmed than by acts of mercy.

(4.) Consider further the GREATNESS of Christ's miracles. - If any actions can be called miraculous, those of Jesus are indisputably so. In the simplest instances of cures performed, we always find some circumstances fixing this point, such as, that the disease was in its nature incurable, that it was inveterate, and had baffled every effort of art; that it was instantaneously removed, by a single word, sometimes without it, sometimes by a touch, or by applications, from which in a natural way no relief was to be expected, for example, anointing with clay the eyes of a man born blind. In the higher instances of exertion, such as raising the dead, we have no difficulty in determining them to have been miraculous. To explain them in any other way, is an attempt which must terminate in confusion and absurdity, on which account very few have ever engaged in it. But it is of consequence to observe, that works so great could never have been admitted as true, by a scrupulous and inquisitive age, had there

1 The above, doubtless, was the general design of the emblem of the barren figtree. It was usual, among the people of the east, to designate things by actions; and there are frequent instances of this nature in the prophets of the Old Testament. In like manner, Jesus Christ, by a familiar type, gave the Jews to understand what they must expect for making only a formal profession of religion.The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof, (Matt. xxi. 43.) This figure of the fig-tree was employed by Christ, more than once to the same purpose, as may be seen in the parable related in Luke xiii. 6-9. In Matt. xxi. 19. and Mark xi. 14. 21. it is by way of type; there, by way of parable here the malediction is executed upon it; there it is denounced (ver. 7.) — Cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground.

2 There was a peculiar propriety in Jesus casting out evil spirits, which, by Divine Providence, were permitted to exert themselves at that time, and to possess many persons. "By this he showed that he came to destroy the empire of Satan, and seemed to foretel that, wheresoever his doctrine should prevail, idolatry and vice should be put to flight. He foresaw that the great and popular objection to him would be, that he was a magician; and therefore he confuted it beforehand, and ejected evil spirits, to show that he was in no confederacy with them." Jortin's Rem. on Ecel. Hist. vol. i. p. 268.