and SAVIOUR, JESUS CHRIST; and his APOSTLES, &c. 257 it any tendency to caufe diflurbances in the government:. for, had that been the cafe, my fervants would have fought for me, and not fuffered me to have fallen into the hands of the Jews : but I tell thee plainly, my kingdom is wholly fpiritual, confining only in the obedience of the wills and affections ofmen to the laws ofGod. Pilate anfwered,Thou acknowledges then in general, that thou haft pretended to be a King? To which the bleffed Jesus re- plied, In the fenfe I have told thee I have declared, and do now declare myfelf tobe a King: for this very end Í was born, and for this purpofe I came into the world, that I fhould bear witnefs to the truth; and whofoever fincerely loves, and is always ieady to embrace the truth, will hear my tellimony and be convinced by it. Pilate anfwered, Mat is truth? And immediately went out to the Jews, and faid unto them, I have again examined this man, but can find him guilty of no fault, which, ac- cording to the Roman law, deferves to have the punifhment of death infliaed for it. Though the governor made this ge- nerous declaration of the innocence of our bleffed Saviour, it had no effect on the fuperflitious and bigotted Jews : they even perfifled in their accufations with more vehemence than before, affirming that he had attempted to raife a fedition in Galilee: He flirreth up, faid they, the people, beginning from Galilee to this place. JEsus, however, made no anfwer at all to this heavy charge : nay, he con- tinued filent, notwithftanding the governor himfelf exprefsly required him to fpeak in his own defence. A condua fo extraor- dinary, in fuch cireumftances, aftonilhed Pilate exceedingly ; for he had great reafon to be perfuaded of the innocence of our dear Redeemer. The truth is, he was al- together ignorant of the divine council, by which the whole affair was directed, and the end propofed by it. Many reafons induced the bleffed Jesus not to make a public defence. He came No. 22. into the world purely to redeem loft and undone mankind, by offerng.up hitnlelFa facrihce to appeafe the wrath of his Al- mighty Father; but had he pleaded with his ufual force, the people ;tad in all pro- bability, been induced to all; his releafe, and confequently his death had been pre- vented : befides, the profs falfhood of the áccufation, known to all the inhabitants of Galilee, rendered any reply abfolutely unneceffary. The chiefpricfls continued, in the mean time, to accufe him with great noife and tumult: and the meek and humble Jesus ftill continuing mute, Pilate fpake again to him, faying, Wilt thou continue to make no defence ? Doft thou not hear how vehe- mently thefe men accufe thee? But Pilate, recollecting what the chief priefts had Paid with regard to a fedition in Galilee, anted if Jesus carne out of that country ; and on being informed he did, he immediately ordered him to be carried to Herod, who then refided at Jerufalem ; for the governor fuppofed that Herod, in whofe dominions the fedition was faid to have been raifed, tnuft be 'a much better judge of the affair than himfelf: befides, his being a Jew, rendered himmore expert in the religion of his own country, and gave him greater influence over the chief priefts and elders ; he therefore confidered him as the moft proper perfon to prevail on the Jewifh council to defift from their cruel profecu- tion but if, contrary to all human proba- bility, he fhould, at their folicitation, con- demn Jesus, Pilate hoped to efcape the guilt and infamy of putting an innocent petfon to death. He might alto propofe, by this action, to regain Herod's friendship, which he had formerly loft by incroaching, in all probability, on the privileges he was inverted with. Whatever might be the motive that in- duced Pilate to fend our great Redeemet to Herod, the latter greatly rejoiced at this opportunity of feeing JEsus, hoping to have the pleafure of beholding hint perform fonie great miracle. In this he 3 R was
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