and SAVIOUR, JESUS CHRIST, and his APOSTLES, &c. 321 " Every thing that had been written by the prophets concerning him, being now fulfilled, they took him from the tree, and depofited his body in the chambers of the grave but death had no power to detain him ; his Almighty Father railed him from the habitations of the dead. After which, he was Peen during many days by his dif- ciples who attended him from Galilee, and who are the witnef es chofen by Omnipo-, tence, of thefe great and miraculous works. And we now declare unto you glad-tidings, namely, That the promife made by the Almighty to our forefathers, he hath per- formed to ustheir children, by raifingJssus from the dead. The prophet David alfo faid, Thou art my Son, this day have I be- gotten thee. He alto foretold, that he fhould return from the chambers of the duff, and no more be fubjef to corruption: Iwillgive him, faid he, thefare Mercies of David. And again, Thou "/halt not Puffer thine Holy One tofee corruption. Now this prophecy mull relate to the Meffiah, for David himfelf, after he had fwayed the fceptre of Ifrael a certain time, fell afleep, wasdepofited in the chambers of the grave, and his flefh law corruption : but the great Son of David, whom the Almighty raifed from the dead, never law corruption, as it was written ofhim. " Therefore, be it known unto you, men and brethren, that through This Sa- viour is preached unto you the forgivenefs of fins : it is by his merits we are juflified from all things, which was impoffible by the law of Mofes. Be careful, therefore, left what was foretold by the prophets come upon you, Behold, ye defpifers, and wonder; and per : for I work a work in your days, a work which you(hall in no wife believe, though a man declare it unto you." The apoftle's fpeech had the defired effe&; for feveral of the Jews, who were convinced of the truth, defired to hear him on the next Sabbath, and the apoflles perfuaded them to continue firm in the belief of thefe things. The enfuipg Sabbath, No. 27. almoff the whole city flocked to hear the apoftles ; at which the Jews were filled with envy, and contradiéted Paul, uttering many blafphemous expreffions againft the name of Jesus of Nazareth : but their op- pofition could not daunt the apoflles, who boldly declared, that our bleffed Saviour had charged them to preach thegofpel firft to the Jews ; but as they fo obftinately re- jelled it, they were now to addrefs them- felves to the Gentiles ; who, hearing this, rejoiced exceedingly, magnifying the word of the Almighty, and many of them em- braced the do&rines of the gofpel. This increafed the malice and fury of the Jews, who, by falle and artful infinuations, pre- vailed on force of the more devout and honourable women to bring over their huf- bands to their party ; by which means, Paul and Barnabas were driven out of the city. At which the apoflles departed, fhaking off the duff from their feet, as a teflimony againft their ingratitude, infide- lity, and rejeltion of the gofpel. They went from Antioch to Iconium, the metropolis of Lycaonia, a province of the Lefler Afia, where they again entered into the fynagogue of the Jews, notwith- ffanding the ill-treatment they had met with from the Jews in other places ; for fo great was their zeal for the gofpel, that they were not to be deterred from preach- ing it by ill ufage, however great. There- fore, according to their ufualtnethod, they again began their preaching in the affembly of Ifraelites ; and the Almighty fo far af- filled their endeavours, that many, both Jews and profelytes, believed. Their fuc- cefs encouraged them to continue a confi- derable time in this city, to inftruét the converts, and confirm their faith by mi- racles. But, though they had gained a confiderable part of the city to the faith, yet many continued in their infidelity: the old leaven of Jewifh malice began again to ferment, and the unbelieving Jews, ha- ving ftirred up the Gentiles againft the apoflles, at laff prevailed on the multi- tude to hone them : but the apoflles having 41 timely
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