lived after the manner of the Gentiles, "and not as the Jews." Gal. ii. 14. though, upon the arrival of Jews from Jerufilem, he abftained, for fear of giving offence; a conduct for which he was juftly reproved by Paul.

As long as the temple ftood, the fervice of it was kept up, and attended upon by the believing, as well as the unbelieving Jews, and none of the apoftles dropped fo much as a hint of there being any thing improper or wrong in it. When the temple was deftroyed, the fervice of it ceafed of course, just as it did at the Babylonith captivity. But it is remarkable, that in the prophecies of Ezekiel, relating to the restoration of the Jews, the most exprefs mention is made of the rebuilding of the temple, and the restoration of the temple- fervice, and efpecially of facrifices, Ezekiel xliii. 18. And it will hardly be fuppofed, that the converfion of the Jews to chriftianity will not take place at leaft very foon after their reftoration.

As

As the Jews are ftill to continue a diftinct people, and will probably be the medium of the divine communications, to the reft of the world, it is not improbable, but that they will always continue to be distinguished by certain peculiar obfervances and religious rites; but whether the whole, or what particular part of their antient ritual will be retained, it is impoffible for us to fay.

ALL

§ 4. Of Baptifm.,

LL the pofitive inftitutions, of which an account has yet been given, were antecedent to chriftianity. The two which remain to be treated of, viz. baptism and the Lord's fupper, are peculiar to it.

Baptifm is the appointed manner in which a perfon takes upon him the profeffion of christianity, or by which a perfon is admitted to the privileges of the difciples of Chrift; and was probably intended to reprefent the washing away, or renouncing the

impurities of fome former ftate, viz. the fins he had committed, and the vicious habits. he had contracted; and it is to be observed, that the profeffion of repentance always accompanied, or was understood to accompany, the profeffion of faith in Chrift.

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Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at "hand," was the general exhortation both of John the Baptift and of Chrift; and,

Repent and believe the gofpel; Repent "and be converted, that your fins may be "blotted out," was the general ftrain of the apoftles' preaching. Now, fays Paul to the Athenians, "God commandeth all men,

every where, to repent." Acts, xvii. 30.

We find no account of baptism, as a diftinct religious rite, before the miffion of John, the forerunner of Chrift, who was called the Baptift, on account of his being commanded by God to baptize with water all who fhould hearken to his invitation to repent. Washing, however, accompanied many of the Jewish rites, and, indeed, was required after contracting any kind of uncleannefs. Also, soon after the time of our Saviour,

Saviour, we find it to have been the custom of the Jews folemnly to baptize, as well as to circumcife all their profelytes. As their writers treat largely of the reafons for this rite, and give no hint of its being a novel inftitution, it is probable, that this had always been the custom antecedent to the time of Mofes, whofe account of the rite of circumcifion, and of the manner of performing it, is by no means circumftantial. Or baptifm, after circumcifing, might have come into ufe gradually, from the natural propriety of the thing, and its eafy conformity to other Jewith cuftoms. For, if no Jew could approach the tabernacle, or temple, after the most trifling uncleanness, without bathing, much lefs would it be thought proper to admit a profelyte from a ftate fo impure and unclean as heathenifm was conceived to be, without the fame mode of purification.

When a master of a family became a profelyte to Judaism, he was required to circumcife both himself and his houfhold. Thus Abraham was exprefly commanded

to circumcife both his fon Ifhmael, who had no intereft in the promife of which circumcifion was a feal, and alfo all his flaves, "thofe who were bought with his money." Gen. xvii. 13.

The reafon of this practice does not eafily appear to us, whofe cuftoms and modes of thinking are fo different from those which prev iled, and which ftill prevail, in the Eaft. The power of a mifter of a family was very extenfive, and the actions and cuftoms by which he expreffed his own character or refolution, generally extended to all the branches of it. Thus, when the Ninevites made folemn profeffion of their repentance, they clothed even their cattle in fack-cloth, and made them faft as well as themselves; not that they could imagine that the brute beasts were capable of repentance, or could have done any thing to displease God; but this mournful appearance of every thing about them, was conceived to be expreffive of their own contrition and humiliation. Jonah iii. 7.

It