which infidels, and the most profligate men, CHAP. would have been fo moved with, that they IV. would have done public penance, and covered themselves with fackcloth and afhes. Thefe comparisons, fo grating to natural pride, and fo oppofite to the opinion the Jews had of their juftice, would doubtlefs have induced them abfolutely to difown these prodigies, if they had been doubtful, or to depreciate them, if they had not been manifeft: and Jesus must have expofed himself to public cenfure, inftead of rendering himself formidable by his anathemas, if there had not been a complete evidence on his fide.

ARTICLE V.

Fifth proof. The ancient tradition of the Jews, who allow the miracles of Jefus Chrift, but attribute them to the pronouncing the name of God, or to magic.

N fine, the Jews cotemporary with

were had

wrought miracles, that tradition has delivered them down to their pofterity, and they may be traced in their ancient monuments, where they are attributed to the fecret which Chrift had found of pronouncing properly the name of JEHOVAH; or to magic, which his mother learnt in Egypt.

Thefe

PART

These fuppofitions, one of which is abfurd IV. and the other impious, are cogent proofs, and teftimonies fo much the more convincing, as envy and malice are forced to fubmit to the evidence. We need not the Jews to inform us by what power Chrift operated these prodigies; we are content that they acknowledge their being wrought. 'Tis a conjecture futable to the groffnefs of their understandings, to afcribe them to the literal pronunciation of a word; and 'tis a calumny agreeable to their impiety, to attribute them to Satan or magic. By this black accufation they manifefted themfelves true children of their fathers, who maintained, that Chrift cured the poffeffed, because himself was poffeffed; and that he caft out the inferior devils by the power he received from Beelzebub their chief. This calumny Chrift refutes by invincible reafoning +, from whence there refults, at least, a public renouncing of Satan, a folemn execration of his tended power, and so terrible a qualification of the crime, which afcribes the works of the Holy Ghoft to that lying fpirit, that it is esteemed for ever irremiffible, and cannot obtain pardon either in this world or in the next. Do magicians thus declare their horror for him whofe minifters they are? do they thus renounce him from whom they derive their power? and if it be true, that the inferior devils fubmit to their chief, is that the way

He hath Beelzebub, Mark iii. 22.

pre

+ See Huetius's demonftratio evangelica, p. 421, 422. Boffuet bishop of Meaux's reflections on the univerfal hiftory, and Buxtorf on the name .

way to fubject the weakest by defpifing him CHAP. who is their fuperior? One is afhamed to an- III. fwer feriously fuch false afperfions, the ignominy of which reflects upon those who oppose the truth, and treat as fabulous upon other occafions every thing which is faid of magic.

ARTICLE VI.

Confutation of the Jewish calumny with respect to magic.

L'

ET the Jews, and those who authorise their unjuft fufpicions, liften to what a legion of devils proftrate at Chrift's feet declared; and let them learn of those affrighted fpirits who is it that held them in fubjection, and what power he had of cafting them out into the deep. They fay, *" Jefus thou Son of

God, what have we to do with thee?" (Let calumny hearken to this, and feek for a darker place than hell to hide itself), "are you "come to torment us before the time? we "beseech you not to command us to go out "into the deep." Let them listen alfo to what one of thefe fpirits declare, being conftrained to leave the poffeffed, even before Chrift had laid his external command. + "What have we to do with thee, thou Jefus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy СС us ? I know thee who thou art, the holy "One of God." This confeffion extorted from

*Matth. viii. 29. + Luke viii. 31. Mark i. 23.

PART from the mouth of falfhood is moft magnifiIV. cent and auguft; for it is actually acknowledging Chrift to be the holy One of God; and nevertheless Chrift anfwers only by putting him to filence, who confeffed and adored him in this manner. "Hold thy peace, he faith, rebuking him, and come out of the " man."

Thus he filenced many devils, who when they came out of the poffeffed, cried, "Thou cc art Chrift the Son of God. And he rebuking them, fuffered them not to speak: for they knew that he was Chrift." Such a prohibition appeared oppofite to the progress of the gofpel, which received an unquestionable teftimony on the fide of the devils, fince they were compelled to give it at the very time Christ treated them as impure fpirits, and by his command they were conftrained to relinquish the poffeffed. But from this teftimony the devils might afterwards have derived honour, for having favoured the truth; now they were unworthy of this honour; every thing which came from them was odious; and Chrift was fo imbittered againft thefe impious fpirits, that he looked upon his name to be prophaned in their mouth, even at the time they paid him adoration...

If it be affirmed, that these facts were advanced by the evangelifts with a design to raise the reputation of Chrift, it rather enforces than extenuates my reafoning; for the evange lifts could invent them only in confequence of

↑ Ver. 25.

* Luke iv. 41.

their

their hatred to the devil, and of every thing CHAP. which iffues from him; and fuch an hatred, IV. which doubtlefs was inftilled into them by Chrift, is incompatible with the fufpicion of any commerce with that fpirit of darknefs, either for their mafter or themselves.

We have seen, when the apostles and their miracles were examined, how much their doctrine was oppofite to all impious curiofity, and to all the methods fuggefted by the devil of knowing future events. How much they endeavoured to fubvert his dominion, and eradicate all fuperftition and idolatrous pageantry; how much they detested his approbation and praife by putting him to filence, as Chrift had done; how very folicitous they were to demand of all thofe, who were baptized, to renounce Satan and his works; and how they infpired their difciples with estrangement and hatred, not only in refpect to magic, but to every thing which could affect the fimplicity of the worship due to God alone. A perfon must be void of all understanding, not to discover from what fource fuch fentiments and conduct proceed, and not to give glory to Chrift for the fanctity of his apoftles, and their exact severity in all these points.

But as I have already obferved, 'tis doing too much honour to fo grofs a calumny, to offer a ferious confutation. Chrift rifen from the dead, fitting at the right-hand of his Father, fending his Spirit down on his difciples, destroying every where the idols and their altars, exiling the devil to his ancient darkness,

I

is