reasonably be meant, by bruifing its Head; it was only the falfe Gloffes of fanciful Commentators, that would understand the Meffias's triumphing over the Devil by his Crofs, from this Paffage. That mighty Prophecy of Balaam, concerning the Star's coming out of Jacob, and the Scepter's rifing out of Ifrael, Numb. xxiv. 17. relates not at all to Chrift, but to the People of the Jews*, whom the Seer, for fome Reafons beft known to himfelf, had a Well-wishing to, and faid that, notwithftanding Balak's Oppofition, they were like to be a very flourishing People. And as for the Scepter's not departing from Judah till Shilo come, 'tis hard to make that a Prediction of Chrift, till we are able to understand what is understood by that obfcure Word; and befides, 'tis plain that there never was a Scepter in the Tribe of Judah fince Zedekiah; fo that, if this be a Prophesy of Christ, you must make him to have come at the Time of the Jewish Captivity, which is a little too foon for your Purpose.

But as for the Prophefies quoted in the New Teftament, they are ten Times lefs to the Purpose than the other; for they all relate to fuch different Matters from what they are brought to fpeak for, that it fhocks the ftrongest Christian Faith to confider; and fhews, that the Allegers of thofe Paffages are fo far from being infpired Authors, that they do not feem to understand the common Senfe of Words. St. Matthew, who feems to have the most unlucky Hand at these Quotations, has two or three of these Paffages all together at the beginning of his Gofpel. He quotes the 14th of Ifaiah, for a Prophefy of Chrift's being born of a Virgin †, and yet there is nothing of the Matter to be found there. For the word Gnalamah, in that Place, fignifies only a young Woman; and fo it is ufed in other places, as Proverbs xxx. 18, 19. where the wife Man reckons, among the Things not to be discovered, or which leave no Footsteps behind, The

Jul. in Cyrill. Ed. Span. 262. + Celfus in Orig. Lib. 1. Julian in Cyr. Lib. 8.

Way

Way of an Eagle in the Air, &c. and the Way of a Man with a Maid. Now fuch a Kind of Maid as this is, does not make much for your Purpose. Befides, if there be any Truth in this Prophefy, it must relate to fome young Woman of that Time, probably the Prophet's Wife, who shortly was to have a Child, before which Child fhould be of Years of Difcretion, the Jews fhould be delivered from their Oppreffors. And then there is fome Senfe in this Sign. But to make Ahaz have a Sign given him to be accomplished at the Birth of Chrift, fo many hundred Years after his Death, is a Jeft, and which a Man muft not only have a great deal of Faith, but a good Stock of Fancy, to make out. And fo juft after, when he quotes that Text of Jeremy, Jer. xxxi. 15. Matt. ii. 17. where Rachel, the Mother of the Benjamites, who dwelt in Ramah, is described weeping for her Children the Inhabitants, which were deftroyed by God's Judgments; he applies it, without any Dif cretion, to Herod's Murther of the young Children. So the Words of Hofea, Out of Egypt have I called my Son, he makes a Prophefy of Chrift's Stay in Egypt, during Herod's Perfecution, Matt. ii. 15. when 'tis plain to any one, that they are to be understood of the Jews Deliverance out of their Bondage there, if you read but the whole Verfe whence this is taken. When Ifrael was a Child, then I loved him, and called my Son on of Egypt, Hof. xi. 1. And fo Paffages out of the 2d, 72d and 22d Pfalm, are brought to as little Purpose. For the two firft of thefe are compofed upon Solomon, and the Title of the 72d does exprefsly fay fo. And as for the 22d, that is only a pathetical Defcription of David's Sufferings. And as for most other Places which are alleged on this Behalf, I think with Celfus, they are ἄγνωσα, πάροιςεα καὶ παντὴ ἄδιλα, &c. Unintelligible, enthufiaftical, and perfectly obfcure Sayings, which no wife Man can understand a Tittle of, but only afford Occafion to Fools and Jugglers to apply to their Purpofes. What do you fay to all this, Credentius?

Cred.

Cred. Say to you! you have crowded together fo much Blafphemy and Infidelity, I can hardly tell where to begin with you. But to bring you to a better Opinion of the Predictions of our Saviour, I would have you confider with your felf,

modation.

1. Whether or no feveral of thefe Paffages which you Texts quorefer to, and others in the New Teftament, that are ted by Way; quoted out of the Old, be not brought in by Way of of AccomAllufion or Accommodation, rather than Prophefy? Now unless you were fure that all thofe Places of the New Teftament, which you are wont irreligiously to expofe, cannot poffibly be understood this Way, you do a very great A&t of Injuftice to these Writers. For why fhould not St. Matthew, or St. Paul, quote a Paffage of Ifaiah, or the Pfalms, and apply it to another Senfe, as well as you or I make the like Ufe of a Verse of Virgil or Ovid? Suppofe I fhould befpeak the Apoftles, thofe firft famous: Propagators of our Chriftian Faith, in the Words of Virgil's Invocation of the Sun and Moon, Virg. 1 Georg.

Vos O clariffima Mundi

Lumina, &c.

You would not look upon this to be any great Solecifm. Now why has not St. Paul the Liberty to do the like, when he quotes a Paffage of the 19th Pfalm, which is understood of the Sun and the Moon, and applies it to the Preaching of the Apoftles? But I fay, have they not heard? Yes, verily, their Sound went into all the Earth, and their Words unto the Ends of the World, Rom. xv. 18. So our Saviour makes Ufe of Ifaiah's Words, which he fpake of the Jews of old, to defcribe the Jews of his Time; This People honoureth me with their Lips, but their Heart is far from me, Matt. xv. Ifa. xxix. 14. There is hardly any Body will deny, but that these Texts may fairly be accounted for, by Way of Accommodation. And I fee no good Reafon, but feveral of the Texts, which you have mentioned, may be explained the fame

Way.

Way. Suppofe, I fay, when St. Matthew quotes that Text of Hofea, in his Relation of Chrift's coming back from Egypt, he had only a Mind to use the Prophet's Words, Out of Egypt have I called my Son, rather than in plain Words to fay, And thus God's Son came back out of Egypt: You will not be able to make good the contrary against me. Nay, in what fitter Words could the tragical Effects, of Herod's barbarous Murther of the Infants, be expreffed in, than in those of the Prophet which St. Matthew chofe? In Ramah there was a Voice heard, Lamentation and Weeping, and great Mourning, Rachel weeping for her Children, and would not be comforted, because they are not. Yes, you will fay, thefe Paffages cannot be quoted by Way of Allufion, because they are brought in with this Claufe, That the Scripture might be fulfilled, which fhews they are meant for Prophefies. But I cannot think, that the Jews always, when they used this Phrase in quoting a Text of Scripture, thought that Text was a Prophefy of what it was applied to. I only take it to be an Inftance of the religious Way of fpeaking, which the Jews above all Nations used. For, as they were wont to attribute the common Actions of Life to God's doing, and to entitle Things great and remarkable to God, reflecting thereby an Honour upon God himself; fo, I fuppofe, they defigned a Refpect to the Scripture, by feeming to attribute a Propheticalnefs, to every Part of it which they quoted. Not that they thought every Paffage, fo alleged, to be truly prophetical of what they accommodated it to; but only they made Ufe of this honourable Expreffion, to fhew their great Regard to God's Word. I doubt not but this Phrafe, That the Scripture might be fulfilled, and the like, were used firft in quoting real Prophefies; but that this (as all other honourable Expreffions) by long Ufe funk in its Value, and was more vulgarly applied; fo that, at laft, it was given to Scripture only accommodated. There are an hundred Inftances of this Nature to be given, in all Languages; I fhall inftance but in one, out of the Bible, which is very nigh of kin to this we are speaking

fpeaking of; and That is the Signification of the Word Prophet. In its firft and ordinary Signification, we all know, that it fignified an infpired Meffenger of God, and yet in Procefs of Time it came to denote Poets, Tit: i. 12. and Singers of Pfalms, 1 Sam. x. 16. 1 Cor. xiv. 1. Now if Prophecy could at laft come to fignify only Singings why might not the Phrafe Fulfilling of Scripture, or Prophecy, fignify only Quotation?

2. It is to be observed, That many of thefe Places In a feconquoted out of the Old Teftament in the New, are to be dary, or myAical Senfe. fuppofed to be understood in a myftical or allegorical" Sense; and therefore it is not fair to fay they are falfly alleged, or not to the Purpose, because the literal Senfe of the Original doth not import fo much. Nothing was more common, among the Jews, than to explain Scripture in fuch a Sense; and therefore the Writers of the New Teftament, who converfed chiefly among the Jews, are not to be blamed, if they made ufe of their own Way of Interpretation, in their Difputes with them; which muft be, at leaft, good Argumentation ad Hominem, and be more convincing to them than Proofs, which we might account more folid. For moft Men are very fond of their own Way of Reasoning; and this the Apostles understood very well, and therefore, when they fpeak to the Greeks, they addrefs themselves to them in their own Way, and fometimes quote their Authors, as St. Paul does Aratus, and Epimenides: But when they speak to the Jews, as for Inftance, in the Epiftle to the Hebrews, they argue, in the Jewish Way, from the Types and Prefigurations of the Law and Prophets. It cannot be denied, but that it was the Opinion of the ancient Jews, that the inspired Writings of the Old Testament, had a great deal more hidden Senfe couch'd in them, than what did at firft Sight appear; and this Doctrine I take to be as old as the Pfal mift's Time. I have feen an End of all Perfection, but thy Commandment is exceeding broad, Pfal. cxix. 96. That is, the Scripture is fo full of Senfe, has fo much of Prophefy, typical Prefiguration, and the like, (befides the literal Meaning, which is obvious to every one) that there is Z