248 The Sufferings of Chri/i con/ider'd, Vol. II. Secondly, Neither had the Heathers Philofophers Reafon, upon Account of the Story of our Saviour's Sufferings, to look upon the Gofpel as fo abfurd and unreafonable a Thing ; as will, I hope, evidently appear, if you will be pleafed to confider with me thefe following Particulars : I. That there is nothing more inculcated in the Writings of the wife4 and tnoft famous of the Heathen Philofophers than this, That worldly Greatnefs and Profperity is not to be admired, but defpifed by a truly wife Man. Ari- iotle, in his Ethicks, makes it the Property of a magnanimous and great Spirit, not to admire Greatnefs,. and Power., and PiR`ory, and Riches. So that according to their own Principles, our Saviour was not to be defpifed upon Account of his Meannefs and Sufferings. He might be a great Prophet, and come from God, though he enjoyed nothing of worldly Greatnefs and Profperity. II. They tell us likewife, that Men may be véry- .virtuous and good, and dearly beloved ofGod, and yet be liable to great Miferies and Sufferings. And to this Purpofe I could bring you almoftinnumerable Teftimoniesour of the Books of the Philofophers. Max. Tyrus the Platonifl, fpeaking of Ulyffls, fays, That the Gods forced him to wander, and beg, and wear Rags, andfuffered him to be reproached and reviled, for the Love and Friendfhip that they bare to him. EpWetos, a poor Slave, but inferior to none of all the Philofophers, for true Virtue and Wifdom, thanks the Gods for his mean Condition, and fays, He did not believe him- felf to be one jot the lefi beloved by them for that Reafon 5 and that he was not call into a State of Poverty andContempt, becaufe the Gods hated him, but that he might be fit to be a f'hitnefs to others. III. They tell us likewife, That a State of Affil&ion and Suffering is fo far from rendring a Man unfit to reform the World, and to be an Example of Vir- tue, that none fo fit as thofe that are in filch Circumftances. Arrian, in his Differtations of EpicTetus, defcribing a Manfit to reform the World, whom he calls, the Apofile and Meffenger, the Miniger and Preacher of God to Mankind, gives this Character of him : He mtß, fays he, be without Houfe and Harbour, and deitnte of all Worldly Accommodations; (juts as it is Paid of our Saviour, that the Son of Man had not where to lay his Head ;) he muff be armed with filch a Patience by the greateJl Sufferings, as ifhe were a Stone and devoidofSenfe ; he mug be a Speílacle of Afifery and Contempt to the World. And to mention no more, Plato, in the fecond Book of his Commonwealth, when he would reprefent a righteous Man, giving the moll unqueftionable Teftimony to the World of his Virtue, Let him, lays be, befiript of all Things in this World, except his Righteoufnefs; let him be poor and difeofd, and accounted a wicked and unjufi Man ; let him be whip'd, and tormented, and crucified as a Malefaelor ; and yet all this while retain his Integrity g which does fo exactly agree with our Saviour's Condition, that had he not wrote before his Time, one would have thought he had alluded to it. IV. At it Teems very convenient, (I am not fo bold as to fay it was neceffary, and that God had no other Way to bring about the Salvation of Men; for what are we that we fhould prefcribe to God, and let Bounds to infinite Wif- dom?) I fay, as it Teems very reafonable, that in order to our Salvation, the Son of God, who was to be the Author of it, fhould become Man, both that he might be an Example of Holinefs, and an Expiation for Sin ; and that he fhould be born after the Manner of other Men, to fatisfie us, that he was real- ly of the fame Nature with us, that fo he might converse more familiarly with us, and might be a more eafie, and encouraging, and imitableExample ofall Holinefs and Virtue ; fo likewife was it convenient that he fhould be fubjeec to the Mi- feries and Sufferings of our Nature, that through the feveral States and Condi- tions of Humanity, he might have an Experimental Knowledge of the Sufferings that Humane Nature is liable to, and from his own Senfe of our Infirmities might be a more Merciful and Companionate High- PrieJÉ. And this the Apoffle exprefly takes Notice of, Hebr. 5. That it was convenient that our High-Priefl ,4iould be taken from among Men, that he might learn to be compaffionate, by know- ing Experimentally what it was to be tempted and aflliáed g the Knowledge of 4 Expe-
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