How came Daniel to tell, that about 490 Years after the Edict to rebuild Jerufalem, one fhould lay Claim to be the Meffias? I grant it is very difficult, and has puzzled the Heads of Chronologers, to bring exactly these Weeks, and the Time of Chrift's Suffer ing together, because of the different Accounts of the Length of Kings Reigns, given by diverfe Hiftorians, and the different Ways in reckoning the Beginnings, and Extent of Years in feveral Nations; yet, I fay, granting all this, How fhould Daniel pitch upon the Time of the Meffias, fo near as he doth, to the Preaching or Suffering. of Jefus Chrift, upon any Computation whatsoever? Ten, or a Dozen Years, is no great Matter here. You may think 'twas by Chance, but this must be a very. ftrange Chance, and much harder to be believed, than that Daniel had the Spirit of Prophefy. It is a good deal above two thoufand Years ago, fince Daniel lived; and if his Prophefy was owing to Chance, he might as well have conjectured the Meffias to come, in any other Part of this long Time between the Date of his Prophefy and us, or any other Part of Time which the World' fhall laft beyond us; he might have made him come long before, or after our Saviour; but to nick in his prophetick Conjecture, juft with the Time of Jefus Chrift; and fo luckily to appoint the Time of the Meffias's coming, when our Saviour lived, who not only laid Claim to the Office of the Meffias, but has been owned as fuch by fo many Myriads of Men, by fuch a Number of Nations, and throughout fo many fucceffive Ages; I fay, for a Man, fo many hundred Years before, to fay, that the Meffias fhould come juft about the Time of the famous JESUS CHRIST, who has been fo generally reputed the Meffias, is a thing hardly within the Power of Chance; and, by all confidering Men, must be attributed to the Prediction of God's Holy Spirit.

But the Prophet does not only fortell the precife Time, when the Meffias fhould come, but fays fomething of him, which, at that Time, it could have entred into

no

no one's Head to have fufpected, That the Meffias bould be flain, or, as it is in the Hebrew Phrafe, fhall be cut off*. Tis plain, by this Prophefy, that the Meffias, who was to come into the World about this Time, was to die too. Nay, the unbelieving Jews themselves make this Prophefy yet clearer of our Saviour, when they fay, The Meffias fhall not only fuffer, but shall be killed by the Jews. The Words of Rabbi Simeon, the Son of Joba, in the Book Mekkar-haffodoth, are very remarkable. For there Hofea is brought in weeping, and faying, We to thofe wicked unrighteous Murderers of Ifrael, for the Love of whom God fhall fend his own holy Son, having put o human Flesh, that he may forgive them their Sins. W to them; for by their wicked Actions, they shall be rebellions to the Meffias, neither shall they regard the Words of b who fhall command them to be purified with the Wan of Purification, to expiate their Sins; but they shall not walk in Ways acceptable to God, but, being enraged by a mighty An ger, he fhall kill him.

Nay farther, this Prophefy foretells the Satisfaction of Chrift; That Chrift should die for the Sins of the World; That he should be cut off, and not for himself. This could be owing to no fanciful Opinion of the Jews; for if it had its Foundation from their fond Conjectures only, they would not have gueffed him to have come into the World with this Character of dying for their Sins, but to have made his Entry, like a triumphing Monarch, treading upon the Necks of their Enemies, freeing them from their forlorn Captivity, and bringing their Masters into the fame Subjection, which they groan

ed under.

This Prophefy doth moreover predict, That after the 'Meffias's Death, the City Jerufalem, then lately rebuilt by Cyrus's Decree, fhould, at the End of the feventy Weeks, together with the Sanctuary, be destroyed with a Flood, or impetuous Torrent of Defolation; when the

* Iccareth shall be cut off, fignifies, fhall be flain, Gen. ix. 11. Ezek. xxi. 3. 1 Kings xviii. 13.

Sacrifices

Sacrifices and Oblations should for ever ceafe. How can all these Predictions be attributed to any thing, but to the Spirit of God? Was it poffible, for Mankind to have foreseen any of these Contingences? Suppofe, that Daniel, being converfant in the Intreigues of the Perfian Court, could poffibly have foreseen, that the Edict of Cyrus would come out, for the building of Jerusalem, yet how could he forefee, that it fhould laft but 490 Years after it? This was a little too much, for any Politician to pretend to. Or, fuppofe, that Daniel here had a Mind to give out an unintelligible and obfcure Prediction, only to puzzle the Jews, and that fome Part of it has chanced to come to pafs. But, I pray then, How comes Daniel to be fo particular, in his Prophefy? Such Kind of Prognofticators love to talk as much, as they can, in the Clouds; they apply their Difcourfe only to general Mat ters, as Wars, Seditions, and Plots, &c. which happen almoft every Day; but they have a great Care of Particulars, as being too many to be gueffed at, and, if one of them should unluckily fall out wrong, the Credit of the Predicter would be ruined. Therefore no one can imagine, that Daniel, or any other Man of ordinary Senfe, fhould venture upon contriving a fham Prophefy, with fo many Particularities in it, and those too fo unusual ones, and fo out of the Road of the common Hit of Accidents, that it was ten thoufand to one, if any of them ever came to pass. There was a great Deal of Contingency in the rebuilding of the City and the Temple of Jerufalem, after the Captivity; and there was a great Deal more in their being deftroyed again 490 Years after that; but there was a thousand to one more odds, that the Inhabitants should not have the ordinary Fortune of o ther conquered People, in a While to rebuild their City again, and that their Temple should be forced to be for ever defolate to the Confummation, or End of the World. These are such a hardy fort of Conjectures, that the fillieft Prognofticator (much lefs a Court Politician, as Daniel was) would not have ventured upon. It remains therefore, that fo many different Events, fo long before,

and

and fo particularly foretold, must be owing to the divine Power, which defigned them, as a previous Light to Mankind, to give them a View of the Redemption by the Meffias before-hand; and to be a lafting Evidence of the Truth of Chriftianity, which, fo many Ages before, was fo clearly predicted. Do but seriously read over this Prophefy, and confider the Time when the City was to be deftroyed, and that too with a Flood and Torrent of Defolation; that it was never to be built again; but that the Sacrifices and Oblations thereof, fhould for ever cease: And read the fad Story of this in Jofephus; that bloody War, the lamentable Defolation, and the dreadful Famine, Seditions, and Murders, which accompanied it; the Fire from Heaven, which burnt their Temples, notwithstanding all Endeavours to the contrary; and, after the rafing of the City, fuch a Difperfion of the People, as difabled them ever to return again: I fay, if you feriously read and confider this, you must needs own, that this Prediction came from God, to whom the Circumftances of future Ages are only known.

But there is one Particular more in this Prophefy, which I forgot to mention; and yet it is so remarkable, that I cannot pass it by. It is here faid of the Meffias, that He fhall confirm the Covenant with many for a Week, and that in the midst of the Week, he shall cause the Sacrifice and the Oblation to ceafe. Which was most exactly fulfilled by our bleffed Saviour, who by preaching the Gospel, for half one of these Weeks, or about three Years and a half, confirmed the New Covenant with many, instituted the Chriftian Religion, which was to fave the Souls not only of the Jews, but of all other, or many Nations; and, in the middle of the Week, fubmitted to the Death of the Cross, which abrogated all the old Sacrifices and Oblations, which were only Types of this one great Sacrifice for the Sins of the whole World.

Now to take all this together, one would think, that all these Particulars, fo exactly mentioned, look more like an History than a Prophefy; and 'tis a Wonder, confide

1

ring the Plainnefs of it, that the Unbelievers don't pretend it was wrote fince Chrift came into the World.

Phil. I confefs, Credentius, there is fomething in this, which a little fhocks me at prefent, and which I cannot get over now; but hereafter, when I have Leifure, I will give it a more attentive Confideration, and weigh it impartially And therefore, in the mean time, if you have any thing farther to urge upon this Head, I pray go

on.

Cred. I will trouble you but with one Argument more, and that is the remarkable Prediction of the Place of Chrift's Birth, foretelling, That he should be born at Beth-lehem, Micah the 5th Chap. ver. 2. But thon, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the Thousands of Judah, yet out of thee fall come forth unto me, he that is to be a Ruler in Ifrael; whofe Goings forth have been from of Old, from Everlasting. That this Prophefy was underftood, by the Jews of old, as a Prediction of the Meffias, is plain from Mat. ii. 4, 5. And when Herod had gathered all the chief Priests and Scribes of the People together, he demanded of them where Chrift should be born. And they faid unto him, In Beth-lehem of Judah: For thus it is written by the Prophet; And thou Beth-lehem, &c. And it is plain likewife, from the Writings of the Jews themfelves, That fome of them allowed, that the Meffias was to be born at Beth-lehem, Jonathan, the Targumift, upon thefe Words of Micah, makes Beth-lehem to fpeak thus: From my Part the Meffias ball come out. And R. Solomon Farchi fays the fame: And thou Beth-lehem haft deferved to be leaft of the Families of Judah, because of the Prophanation of Ruth, the Moabitiih, with thee; nevertheless, the Meffias, the Son of David, fhall go out of thee, as it is written, Pfal. cxviii. 22. The Stone which the Builders refufed, is become the Head Stone of the Corner. 'Tis plain therefore, it was the Expectation of the Jews, that the Meffias was to be born at Beth-lehem, from this Prophefy; and 'tis plain, that Jefus Christ was born there, and therefore he has another undeniable Mark that He is the Meffias. Grotius, indeed, has endeavoured to prove, that

the