PART from the prince and magiftrates, who acted by V. his authority. Let any judicious man join all thefe together; let him examine himself as to his opinion of them, and let him judge, if it be natural that the apostles fhould never be tired of preaching in new places, a religion always perfecuted; that they fhould affect to publish it in the greatest cities in the prefence of governors, and of the emperor himself, and that they should perfift with an indefatigably industry in fo dangerous a function, tho they could expect neither protection nor asylum in that vaft extent of empire, from whence they were ordered to expel the devil, who had every where temples and altars, in order to make room for Chrift, whose cross was looked upon as folly, and whofe name was fo odious, that believing in him was fufficient to merit death.

ARTICLE VI.

The fulfilling the promife made to Chrift and his apoftles, to endue them with that wisdom, which their enemies could not contradict.

T apostles, co *

HE promife which Chrift made to his to give them a mouth and "wisdom, which all their adverfaries fhall "not be able to gainfay nor refift," was as fully accomplished as that of enduing them

with invincible courage and patience. We CHAP. have feen and heard the wife anfwers they III. made to the priests, doctors of law, and council of elders, who commanded them under fevere penalties not to fpeak of Chrift and his refurrection. "+They said unto them, Whether "it be right in the fight of God, to hearken unto you more than God, judge ye. For we can

not but fpeak the things which we have "feen and heard." And upon another occafion: "We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jefus, whom ye flew, and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand, to be a prince and a faviour, for to give repentance to Ifrael, and forgiveness of "fins. And we are his witneffes of these

re

things; and fo is also the Holy Ghost, whom "God hath given to them that obey him." These answers, fupported by evident proofs drawn from the prophets, at first astonished thofe, who knew that the apostles were illiterate men, and filenced them: but their inability to make a reply, threw them at length into rage and despair *. And this fury was a perfect conviction, that they were incapable to contradict with any fuccefs, a mouth and wisdom directed by Chrift.

+ Acts iv. 19.

When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and

"took counsel to flay them." A&ts v. 33.

"When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, " and gnashed on him with their teeth." Acts vii. 54.

PART

Saint Peter's speeches before the people and V. council, mentioned in the acts of the apoftles, and his two epiftles, are public monuments of that heavenly wisdom which he had received. Saint Matthew's and Saint John's gofpels, fo fublime from their very beginning, and fo fill of a fupernatural doctrine, are alfo fenfible witneffes thereof. And whoever reads, with due attention, Saint John's first epiftle, and that of Saint James, will trace out, without trouble, a wisdom much fuperior to that of man; which, when ftrictly examined, is only an empty pride and foolish oftentation of falfe or barren notions.

Saint Paul, who had ftudied more than the other apoftles, and who esteemed himself wife, and of found judgment, whilst he was in darkness, defpifed every thing that he knew before he had knowledge of Chrift, and * counted it as lofs, and dung in comparison of the wisdom he received from him; the principal effect of which was to confound and deftroy that falfe wisdom, and force it to fubmit to the feeming folly of the cross. "Chrift, he said, fent me to preach the

gofpel: not with wisdom of words, " left the crofs of Chrift fhould be of none "effect. For the preaching of the cross is to "them that perish, foolishness: but unto us

which are faved, it is the power of God. "For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom "of the wife, and will bring to nothing the "under

"understanding of the prudent. Where is the CHAP. "wife? where is the fcribe? where is the III. difputer of the world? hath not God made

foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that, in the wisdom of God, the world

by wisdom knew not God, it pleafed "God by the foolishness of preaching to fave "them that believe. For the Jews require a "fign, and the Greeks feek after wisdom: "But we preach Chrift crucified, unto the "Jews a ftumbling-block, and unto the "Greeks, foolishness: But unto them that

are called, both Jews and Greeks, Chrift "the power of God and the wisdom of "God. Because the foolishness of God is "wifer than men; and the weakness of God "is ftronger than men.".

ARTICLE VII.

The power of Chrift clearly proved by the triumph of a wisdom, which had the appearance of folly.

T

HE above is what Chrift had promised

his apostles, nobly explained by him who was most concerned in this promife: The design was to overcome and filence human fagacity, by a wisdom which seemed but folly: the defign was to make reafon fubmit to that which feemed moft proper to fhock it. The defign was, in fine, to triumph over all human

eloquence

PART eloquence by a manner of preaching plain in appearance, and void of all artificial colour.

L

V.

Chrift was not willing to confound human reafon by ways confonant to it, but on the contrary chofe those very methods which human reason defpifed. It would have been doing it too much honour to oppose it, by a wisdom whofe fublimity and elegance it had been forced to admire. 'Twas worthy God alone to filence it, by a wisdom which had the appearance of folly, and after having filenced it to prove, that what wore the garb of folly, infinitely furpaffed every thing which human reafon could have fuggefted as great and reasonable, had he been pleased to confult it.

The bufinefs is now to examine, whether this project fucceeded. But whom can fuch an examination avail?" Where is the wife? "where is the fcribe? where is the difputer "of this world?" Has not God fhewn the. wisdom of the world to be folly, a wifdom fo useless to piety, fo ambiguous in the most fimple truths, fo liable to illufion and error, fo blind to what relates to the defigns of God, fo incapable of difcerning the difference between real and counterfeited wisdom, fo prejudiced against folid wisdom, and the means of falvation, and fo grofly mistaken in regard to the mean external appearance of Christ, which concealed a divine power and wisdom?

Which of the two has been filenced, the apoftles, or the philofophers? which of the

two

1 Cor. i. 20.