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of those reasons is, that I have nothing to add to what has been fo fully faid on thefe heads by others; and very lately, by a very ingenious writer, who has managed this part of the argument with great ftrength, in his Third Letter to the Deifts. Thefe confiderations, and these only, have made me omit this their character, as witneffes: and not either overlooking or under-valuing it. For I am very fenfible how much strength is added to the evidence of the truth of the doctrine, but especially of the teftimony of the apostles, by their being foretold by him that fent them, that they should get nothing by either, but a bare maintenance; and that they must fuffer great fatigue, reproach, imprisonment, scourging, and death, in publishing the facts and doctrines of chriftianity to the world: and by that eminent felf-denial, piety, and virtue, that fhone in their conduct, altogether anfwerable to the character of men who were fully perfuaded of the truth of this prediction, and were ready to fubmit to every part of the charge of their mafter; those of selfdenial and patience under fuffering not excepted.

I cannot have a more proper place than this, where I am treating of the powers of the apoftles, to take notice of a peculiar honour and preeminence, which thofe who were, er were to be, apoftles, feem to have had above chriftians

chriftians of any other rank in the church: namely, "of feeing the Lord," and having "immediate revelations from him, after his "affenfion." Thus, at the vifion of the fheet, the Lord faid to Peter," Arife, Peter, kill and "eat" and then difcovered to him, that he fhould go and preach the gofpel to the profelytes of the gate. So likewife the glory of the Lord appeared to Saul, in the road to Damafcus, and a voice faid, "Saul, Saul, why

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perfecutest thou me?" And on Saul's faying, "Who art thou, Lord? and what wilt thou "have me to do?" The Lord fays, "Go into "the city, and it shall be told thee what thou "fhalt do P." So likewife the fecond time he was at Jerufalem, after his converfion, the Lord ftood by him, "ordering him to depart "from Jerufalem, where they would not re"ceive his testimony, and go far thence to "the Gentiles 1." And when Paul was in the caftle of Jerufalem, the Lord appeared to him, faying, "Be of good cheer, Paul, for as "thou haft teftified in Jerufalem, so must "thou bear witness alfo of me at Rome;" in order to direct him to appeal to Cæfar; that fo by that means he might have a fit opportunity to preach the gofpel at the metropolis of the world. Whereas, when God faw fit to fend Philip orders to meet the eunuch, the

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orders were delivered him by an angel, And fo likewife when Peter had a vifion of the Lord to go to Cornelius, Cornelius had only a vision of an angel to fend for Peter '.

With fuch propriety and diftinction are things managed in the oeconomy or kingdom of Chrift; and that not only with regard to the meffengers, but to the meflage on which they are fent. When that is of great impor tance, and draws great confequences after it, the Lord himself vouchfafes to give the meffage; and fends the apoftles on the errands: as when they are ordered to go, and open the kingdom of heaven to the devout or idolatrous Gentiles; or to go to the feat of the empire of the world. But at other times, and on occafions of lefs importance, an angel is fent to them alfo; as to Peter ", and to Paul *. And yet, on the other hand, when it was neceffary in a like cafe, the Lord appears to Ananias, a difciple; for Saul was to know, that it was the Lord, even Jefus, whose glory had appeared to him in the way, and had told him, that he fhould receive farther orders at Damafcus; from whom he now re, ceived those orders by the mouth of Ananias. Wherefore the Lord in this cafe, out of the road of his common difpenfations, appears to Ananias, and fends him to Saul, with particu Ibid. x. 3-8. "Ibid. xiii. 7. y Ibid. ix. 10.

As viii. 26.
Ibid. xxvi. 23;

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lar inftructions what to fay, and to do in relation to him: whereby Saul, who was to be the great apoftle of the Gentiles, could not but be fully certified, that it was Jefus who had appeared to him in the way, and had ordered him to go to Damafcus; fince a man at Damafcus, named Ananias, unknown to him, could come and tell him from the Lord, that the Lord had appeared to him (though that was unknown to any but Saul, even to his companions), and since, pursuant to what the Lord had faid to him, of the farther orders he fhould receive at Damafcus, he was fent by the Lord to bring thofe orders to him; and fince, to affure him farther of the truth of all this, Saul had in a vifion feen Ananias coming to him, and restoring to him his fight.

Thus far we have confidered the apostles in common. But it may not be improper, on this occafion, to confider them as ranked under the apostleship of the Jews, and of the Gentiles. Their provinces feem to me to have been distinct: and the eleven chosen by our Saviour, with Matthias, making twelve, seem to have been the apostles of the circumcifion; and Paul and Barnabas the apoftles of the Gentiles. That thefe twelve were the

z Ads ix. 7. xxii. 9. The fenfe of the laft place, in my apprehenfion, being that "Paul's companions heard,

"that is, understood not the voice, or the language in t

"which the voice (pake."

H 4

apoftles

apostles of the Jews, and that the other two were chiefly the apoftles of the Gentiles, has been pretty generally allowed. But I am apt to think, that the twelve were the apoftles of the Jews only, and not of the Gentiles; and that the other two were the apoftles of the Gentiles only, and not of the Jews,

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In all the accounts we have of the twelve, they preach to the Jews, and to the Jews only; that is, to Jews either by birth and nation (who were either Hebrew Jews of Jerufalem, Hebrew Jews of Judæa, of Galilee, of fprung from them, or Jews of Samaria) or by religion; that is, the profelytes of righteoufnefs; and are fome of those that are menti oned among the "devout men dwelling at Jerufalem, out of every nation ;" and who, generally, where they are mentioned in fcripture, happened to be Hellenist Jews, or Jews that spoke Greek as their mother tongue; and to them, and them alone, they write. Thus St. James writes to the twelve tribes 2. That St. John writes his epiftle to the Jews, appears from his writing fo much of love and charity, against the zealots for the law; from his opposing those hereticks who had sprung up from among the Jewish chriftians; and particularly from his firft epiftle', where he fays, Jefus is the propitiation for our fins; and not for ours only, but for the fins of the whole world." I think it is the more

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Acts ii. IC.
I

1

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* James i. 1.

1 John ii. 2.

probable

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