It has been objected, that Jesus began to be about 30 years old at his baptifm *. IT muft indeed be admitted, that this date is mentioned in immediate connexion with that part of the hiflory. Hence fome of the Harmony-writers contend, that our Lord was baptifed in the first year of his forerunner's miniftry; others that his age, in the 15th in Tiberius, was but 26. But a very moderate degree of attention to the evangelift's method of arranging his gofpel will detect the fallacy of both conjectures. The author exhibits, in one orderly feries, the different parts of the fame fubject; and then introduces another, which he profecutes in the fame manner; for example: he opens his narrative with an account, firft of the Baptift's nativity, then of his Lord; and under either head notes the extraordinary circumftances relative to both. After a very concife view of a very few incidents, in the private life of either perfonage, he proceeds to the public character of each, and in the fame order. In the third chapter the miniftry of John is briefly described from verse 1 to 22, inclufively, where the baptifm of Chrift is mentioned, in connection with an advanced ftage of that miniftry. Hence a transition to another part of the general fubject;-the personal miniftry of Chrift, the notation of whose age he brings into coincidence with the laft-mentioned date, to which by a retrospective view, he virtually recalls the atten Luke, iii. 21-23. tion tion of his readers, who, without violating the contiguity of coexiftent events, may confider the concife account of John's miniftry as a parenthesis. Such then are two dates in juxta-position. "It came to pass, in the 15th year of Tiberius Cefar, that the word of God came to John, the fon of Zacharias, in the wilderness; and Jefus himself began to be about 30 years of age, being, as was supposed, the fon of Jofeph," &c. The evangelift could not, with more precifion, have defined Chrift's age, at the time of the vernal equinox in that year, except he had chofen to write 29 years fix months*. ANNALISTS are confined to the order of time, and fo exhibit fragments of hiftory. The hiftorian, collecting parts, unites them with skill, rejecting every thing incoherent, diffimilar, or fuperfluous, and fo frames one perfect and well-proportioned whole. In this method of hiftorical compofition, the evangelift exhibited a model for Suetonius, who, in his lives of the Cefars," proposes to present the feveral parts diftinctly, and not in the order of time, but to combine * The author would, with no lefs fatisfaction than justice, have acknowledged his obligation to any of the critics, in whofe works he expected to find this coexistence of time and numbers. As a very probable conjecture, little fhort of certainty, his fingular opinion is fubmitted to discerning judges. Thofe critics, if any fuch be, who will affirm, that at the time of his baptism the age of Jefus did not exceed 30 years, muft on the fame grounds maintain, that his baptifm was fubfequent to the imprisonment of John, which, in the order of things, is recorded as a prior tranfaction. things of like nature, that he might avoid confu IF to A. U. C. 779, the 15th of Nero, and 30th of Jefus Chrift, 3 years be added, the reckoning is continued to the autumnal equinox 783, the 19th and 34th of Nero and Christ respectively. This is the true date of his baptifm, to which fucceeded his temptations in the wildernefs; and then commenced his miniftry in the year of the 30th jubile from the partition of Canaan. All these direct evidences from hiftory and prophecy, refute as idle furmifes the pofitions of archbishop Ufher, that Jefus was baptifed in the firft of John's ministry, that he spent three years in private life, and then began to preach and confirin his doctrine by miracles. This train of arbitrary and incoherent arrangements disjoins events, which all the evangelifts combine in comely order and continuous fucceffion. Το prevent every fufpicion of fo long an interval, the recefs into the defert is connected with the baptifm at Jordan. " IMMEDIATELY the fpirit driveth him into the wildernefs, where he was tempted 40 dayst." JESUS having fuddenly disappeared, the priests and levites at Jerufalem, impatient to know whither he had retired, and anxious to learn what was his true character, fent a deputation to the Baptift, who was ftill continuing his miniftrations about Bethabara . The Partes exequar figillatim, neque per tempora, fed per spe cies; quo diftin&tius demonftrari cognofciquè poffint. Octav. cap 9. + Mark, i. 12. John, i 19. time of this conference with the deputies may, with every circumstance of probability, be referred to the lapfe of the 40 days nearly. For the next day, (after the return of the messengers), John feeing Jefus coming unto him, gave a fresh atteftation to his character, as the Lamb of God, fent with authority and a special commiffion, to take away the fins of the world. AGAIN the next day after, John, in the presence of two of his difciples, feeing Jefus as he walked, repeated his honourable teftimony. These difciples, (the one Andrew the brother of Peter, and the other very probably John the Evangelift, who feldom records his own name), defirous of an interview, followed Jefus, and abode with him that day. ON the following day, Jefus, on his way to Galilee, found Philip and Nathaniel, and having with the other two arrived at Cana, on the third day after the interview with Philip, or the 6th after the return from the wilderness, and the 46th from his baptifm at Jordan, THERE he turned the water into wine. "This BEGINNING OF MIRACLES did Jefus in Cana of Galilee, and manifefted forth his glory, and his difciples believed on him *. "AFTER this he went down to Capernaum, he, and his mother, and his brethren, and his disciples; and they continued there not many days t." This very short fpace of time, with the intermediate occurrences, the other evangelifts pafs over in filence. Luke, however, • John, i. 29–51. and ch. ii. 11. + Ch. ii. 12. records records the events in the exact order of time, fubfequent to the departure from Capernaum. "When the devil had ended all his temptation he departed from him for a feafon and Jefus returned in the power of the spirit into Galilee, and a fame of him went out through all the region round about *." "And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and, as his custom was, went into the fynagogue on (Saturday) the fabbath-day, and ftood up for to read. The book of the prophet Efaias was delivered unto him; and when he had opened the book †, he found the place where it was written, The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he From fundry notations in the context, it is obvious that feveral incidents, not here recorded, did intervene before our Lord's vifit to Nazareth, when his renown had, in a very short time, fpread far and wide. The honourable report concerning him was not a word (λoys) imparted by one individual to another, neither a rumour in a narrow corner, (Luke, vii. 7—17); but fame (anon), Mat. iv. 24. (pnun) Luke, iv. 14. Rumor eft paucorum, fama omnium. Whence could this FAME rife, but from his firft fignal miracle at Cana? That he had likewise done miracles at Capernaum is unequivocally intimated, verfe 14, "Ye will furely fay unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyfelf: whatfoever we have heard done in CAPERNAUM, do alfo here in thy country." Such indirect references to prior events are of effential use in afcertaining historical order. From the context it is likewife certain, that Chrift manifested forth his glory by ftupendous exertions of fupernatural power, before he fpake, as never man did by his doctrine. He delivered his first fermon at Nazareth, but there he worked no miracles. †TITUE 16 TO BOMLOV, unfolded the little volume, which, perhaps, contained Efaias' prophecy. alone |