Obrazy na stronie
PDF
ePub

;

near him that he wounded himself with flints, and was without clothing." The converfation he held with Chrift is a farther proof of his infanity; as there will be occafion to fhew in the fequel. After his cure, he is described as being in his right mind; which before his cure therefore he could not be for this defcription of him is directly oppofed to his former ftate as a demoniac, or as one faid to be poffeffed by demons'. From hence it follows, not only that this demoniac' was a madman; but that his be ing fuch was an idea intended to be con

lus I. 6. 15. See alfo Hieronymus Magius, Variarum Lectionum, feu Mifcellaneorum, lib. iv. cap. 12

See Wetftenius on Mat, viii. 28. ftri edi * Ewola Mark v. 15. Luke viii. 35, v

[ocr errors]

They fee him that was poffeffed with a demon (Tor Sapovi Cóμevor) and had the legion, fitting, and clothed, and in his right mind, Mark v. 15. also Luke viii. 35. In like manner, Speaking the words of foberness (owPgoσúvns,) is opposed to being mad, Act xxvi. 25.

[blocks in formation]

veyed of him by the hiftorians, when they described him as a demoniac. They might alfo hereby farther intend, that his madness was regarded as the effect of poffeffion, or fuch as was ufually afcribed to that cause.

[ocr errors]

This man and his affociate are the only inftances of demoniacs, whose case is recorded with fuch particular circumftances. But when perfons are de scribed in the fame general terms as these men are, as having demons, or an unclean Spirit, and in terms of the fame import; ought we not to understand this language, on these occafions, in a fense conformable to the use of it in a case, where it is impoffible to mistake its meaning? If in the hiftory of the Gadarene demoniac, the evangelists used this language to express madness; did they exclude this idea from it at other times, for the fake of contradicting themselves, as well as all the reft of the world?

Thofe

Those who lived near the times of the evangelifts, were under no difficulty to understand their meaning; as appears from a paffage of Celfus concerning Mary Magdalene; in which he calls her a distracted woman', referring to the account given of her in the gospels, that out of her went feven demons. Seven was sometimes used by the Jews as the number of perfection, and it frequently denotes feveral, or many. The meaning therefore is, agreeably to what Celfus thought, that he was cured of the most violent phrenzy, fuch as was in that age described by the being poffeffed by many demons.

There is another inftance of reputed poffeffion mentioned in the New Testa

[ocr errors]

Ivan wágossgos, ws Palé, Celf. apud Origen. c. Celf. p. 96.

a Mat. xvi. 19. Luke viii, 1, 2.

b

Pf. xii. 6. compare Grotius on Mat. xii. 45.

Levit. xxvi. 18, 21, 24, 28. Deut. xxviii. 7, 25. 1 Sam. ii. 5. Job v. 19.

ment,

ment, of which it will be proper to take notice here. I refer to the cafe of the

[ocr errors]

damfel that had a spirit of Python or Apollo. She was supposed to be inspired and poffeffed by the fame spirit of Apollo that delivered oracles in the Pythian temple. But no prophetess was thought to be infpired or poffeffed, but when the was mad and raving". The Pythia in particular, no fooner received the prophetic afflatus, than the feemed like one diftracted The Philippian damfel therefore, fo far as fhe was thought to be under the fame afflatus, was proportionably difordered in her understanding. Minucius Felix exprefly reprefents the prophets and propheteffes who ran about

p. 78.

See above, p. 56.

Differt. on Mir. p. 276. See also above

.

Plato's Phædr. p. 1220, C, D. E Euripid. Bacch. v. 299, 664, 1091, &c. Euripid. Troad. v. 307, 341, 366, &c. Plutarch. de Orac, defect. p. 432. F. p. 438. & de Placit. Philof. lib. v. cap. 1.

[ocr errors]

Potter's Gr. Antiq. p. 246.

the

the ftreets as raving, raging, and rolling their heads, in the fame manner as thofe in the temples were used to do. The manner in which the Pythonefs at Philippi followed Paul for many days, confirms the other evidence of her infanity. And the facred hiftorian, (adopting the phrafeology of the age and country in which he lived) defigned to express the fpecies of her infanity, by defcribing the damfel as one poffeffed by the prophefying demon of Apollo. We have here then a new proof, that those who were thought to be poffeffed, were difordered in their minds.

With regard to epileptics, it hath been obferved above, that if their distemper was by the ancients afcribed to poffeffion, it was, because it was attended with a

Hi funt & furentes, quos in publicum videtis excurrere, vates & ipfi abfque templo, fic infaniunt, fic bacchantur, fic rotantur. Minucii Felicis Octavius, cap. 27.

h P. 89, 90.

« PoprzedniaDalej »