Holy Ghost, and with fire?" These last words, in the plainest manner, foretell the future descent of the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles, in the shape of cloven tongues, like as of fire, as described in the Acts of the Apostles.

Of Christ's temptation I shall speak fully in the Letter on Atonement.

We now come to his heavenly sermon on the mount. This, it may be said by determined objectors, is no proof, however beautiful its language, however pure its doctrine, that the speaker was divine. I beg leave to differ in opinion, and am not afraid of being contradicted, when I say, on this occasion, "never man spake like this man." Of his various miraculous acts. I almost disdain offering to infidelity a proof of their superhuman commission ; but shall make a few observations on some of them as I proceed: if those observations will not prove the Divine Nature of him who performed them, the miracles themselves must be ascribed to

deception, to magical operations, or (which is the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, the only sin that can never be forgiven) to the influence and power of evil spirits.

I will first observe, that the chief inducement for the performance of a miracle towards any one, who asked for supernatural assistance, was the faith of the petitioner. For instance, Christ uses these expressions, "Be it unto thee according as thou hast believed." "Thy faith hath made thee whole," &c. &c. Consider the faith of the leper, (Matthew, chapter 8,)" Lord, if thou wilt thou canst make me clean." "I will, (or I am willing ) be thou clean and immediately his leprosy was cleansed." Lest there should be a comparison made between the power by which Moses and others in the Old Testament performed miracles, and the power by which Christ performed his, I will, before I proceed

He answers,

with further observations on his miracles, make the following remarks.

All miraculous acts performed previous to the coming of Christ, were performed by direction, and a delegated power from the great Jehovah. All was done to manifest the Creator's power and glory. Although, on some occasions, Christ, speaking in his human and official capacity, ascribes superiority to the Father; yet, on innumerable occasions, he speaks with self-derived divine authority, and performs his miracles to manifest his own glory.

I will now remark on the miracle of expelling the devils from the persons who were possessed by them in the country of the Gergesenes: here occurs another dispute of the worldly-wise, respecting the Dæmoniacs. Such assert, that this affliction was nothing more than that malady which is now called lunacy. I allow that a dæmoniac may be called a lunatic, but

a lunatic is not necessarily a dæmoniac. I believe the time is past since dæmons were allowed to possess mortal frames, yet, their power of temptation is, unhappily, in too many instances, so great, that we may almost consider the cool-blooded murderer, as actually possessed by a dæmon. In our Saviour's time, the dæmoniacal possession I consider as positively certain; we must otherwise read this miracle, as well as others similar to it, as a fabulous and figurative narrative, which never can be allowed. I consider the declaration of these infernal spirits, calling

Jesus the Son of God," as another proof of his Divine Nature, and acknowledgment of his Divine Power. On healing the paralytic, he declares, that the Son of Man has power to forgive sins. Then follows his bestowing on his twelve disciples the power of working miracles, of instantaneously healing the sick and casting out devils. When they executed this power, they did not ascribe it to

their own individual efficacy, but they always declared, they performed the miracles in the name and through the power of Christ. When the Pharisees, who strained at gnats and swallowed camels, who were formalists without sincerity, complained to Christ of his disciples having committed what they deemed a breach of the Sabbath, he reproves their blindness, and introduces these remarkable expressions, which, if his Nature were not Divine, he could never have uttered. "But I say unto you, that in this place is one greater than the temple." "The Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath-day." Towards the conclusion of the 12th chapter of St. Matthew, he refuses to gratify the curiosity of the Pharisees, who required a sign (i. e. a miracle) from him, and here expressly declares Jonas to have been a typical sign of himself and of his resurrection. "For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly, so shall the Son of