Jefus ofNazareth the onlyTrue end r?romfedMefsiah. that fame hour be cured many of their infirmities and plagues , and of evil jirits, and unto many that were blind he gave fight. The particular ftories ofnone -ef thefe art any where mentioned; nor had that leafon been at all remembred , but upon oc- cation of thole Perfons who were Pent unto him; the prefént works which they law, being made the ground of that anfwer which he returned unto their Mallet; v. iz. Go tell John the things which ye have fèen and beard, how that the blindfee, &c. Coufdering therefore what is elfewhere written,ofall theRegions about bringing in their tick, weak, and impotent, and of thecures ofPerfons by the touching of his gar= ment, it is evident that his Perfonal Miracles amounted unto thoufands , which might well give occafion to theHyperbole ufed by John inrecounting of them. Renee fòme among the Jews wereconvinced that hewas the Mefiah, not only ,by the great- net but alto by the number ofhis works, John 7. 31. Many of the People believed on him, and faid, whenChrifi cometh will 'he more Miracles then theft, which this man doeth? And what are the feventy fix Miracles of Mofees unto thofe, as tonumber, . which in the tint placethe Jews glory in ? And if we may add thofe which. were wrought byhis power by them that preached the Gofpel'on his Commillion: as theyare all' of the fame efficacy into the end propofed, or confirmation ofhis being , the Meffiah, they amount not unto thoufands only, but probably unto millions. For Of this fort were all the miraculous gifts of the Holy Ghoft, that were granted unto the Church all the world over. So that asto the number ofMiracles, he was fuffici- ently by them attefìed unto, to be the Meffiah, the great Law-giver if the people of theNew Covenant. Again, The Jews much neat on this, thatall other Prophets wrought Miracles by theIntervention ofPrayer,. Moles alonewithout it at his own pleafure. The Rod they fay was committed unto him as a Kingly Scepter, todenote that Authority whereun- to the whole nature of things gaveplace. It is true indeed it is not recorded that Mofs prayed in words before every Miracle that was wrought by him; or in referenceunto his Miniftry : but yet this is plain in ftory , that he wrought no mighty work, but either uponhis prayer, or Come expree command and dirediorì from God in particular; which everts the Judaical pretence of an abiding power re- mainingwith him, enabling him to work Miracles when andhow he would.- But this which they falfly afcribe unto Motes, was eminently true in the Lord Jefui. Thofe thóufandsof miraculous works . whichhewrought, were the arbitrary effeds of a Word of command, withoutany efpecial direlion for every new work ; argu- ing the conftant_prefence of an infinite power, with him exerted according to his . Will. Come fáhth of him i come out of the grave , Iwill , be thou clean, be ye opened, and the like expreffions he ufed as Ggns and pledges thereof. Thus was it not withMofes , as the ftory manifef}s ; yea, he himfelf greatly doubted of the great= eft effel of theDivine power put forthby him, when he,fmote the Rockto bringforth water. The nature ofthe Mirades altowrought by the one and the other maybe corn- Ø. 65. pared, and we fhall fee from thence on which fide the pre- eminence will befound. For thofe wrought byMofes, or by God himfelf whileftheeteployedhim in thefer- vice ofgiving the Law, and the delivery of the, people, they were for the molt part portentous Prodigies, fuited to fill men with wonder, aftonifhment and fear. Such wereall the Ggns ofthe prefence ofGod on Mount Sinai. The effects alfo of molt of them were evilanddeltrudive, proceeding from wrath and indignation againft fin and tanners; fuch were all the mighty works wrought in Ægypt ; fuch thofe of the fwallowing up of Dathan andAbiram inthe Wildernefs. Thofethat tended Un- to the good and relief ofmankind, as the bringingofwater from the rock; were ty- pical, and occafienal. And thole kinds of works were fuited unto that MiniJiry of Death and Condemnation, which was committed unto him. But on the other fide, the mighty worksof the Lord3efus, wereevidently effects ofGoodnefs, as well as ofPower, and confifted in thingsufeful and helpful unto mankind. Healing the fick, opening the eyes ofthe blind, and eats of the deaf, giving ftrength to the lame ; eating outof Devils, feedinghungry multitudes, railing the dead, are things amia- ble and ufeful. And though terrible Prodigies may more ailed and aflonilh carnal minds, fuchas theyews were filled with, yet there works ofGrace and Goodnefs, do more allure thofe who attend unto the dilates 6f right Reafon. Evidences they were of a graciousMinißry, tending unto ['Ovation, and peace, in every kind; fuch as that of the Me /abwas promifed and foretold tohe. As Miracks. then were the H h 2 tokens
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=