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their "believing in him," i. e. their believing him to be the Meffiah, because of the miracles he did; John vii. 31. " And many of the people believed in him, and faid, When the Meffiah "cometh, will he do more miracles than this man hath done?"" And when the Jews, at the feaft of dedication, John x. 24, 25. coming about him, faid unto him, "How long doft thou make us "doubt? If thou be the Meffiah, tell us plainly; Jefus anfwered "them, I told you, and ye believed not; the works that I do in 68 my father's name, bear witnefs of me." And John v. 36. he fays, "I have a greater witnefs than that of John; for the works "which the father hath given me to do, the fame works that I do, "bear witness of me, that the father hath fent me." Where, by the way, we may obferve, that his being " fent by the father," is but another way of expreffing the Meffiah; which is evident from this place here, John v. conpared with that of John x. laft quoted. For there he fays, that his works bear witnefs of him: and what was that witnefs? viz. that he was the Meffiah. Here again he fays, that his works bear witnefs of him and what is that witnefs?, viz. "That the father fent him." By which we are taught, that to be fent by the father, and to be the Meffiah, was the fame thing in his way of declaring himfelf. And accordingly we find, John iv. 53. and xi. 45. and elsewhere, many hearkened and affented to his teftimony, and believed on him, feeing the things that he did.

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2. Another way of declaring the coming of the Meffiah, was by phrafes and circumlocutions, that did fignify or intimate his coming, though not in direct words pointing out the perfon. The moft ufual of thefe were, "the kingdom of God, and of heaven;" because it was that which was ofteneft fpoken of the Meffiah, in the Old Teftament, in very plain words; and a kingdom was that which the Jews moft looked after, and wifhed for. In that known place, Ifai. ix. "The GOVERNMENT fhall be upon his fhoulders; he fhall "be called the PRINCE of peace: of the increase of his GOVERNMENT and peace there fhall be no end: upon the THRONE of "David, and upon his KINGDOM, to order it, and to establish it "with judgement and with justice, from henceforth even for ever." Micah v. 2." But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be "little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee fhall He come "forth unto me, that is to be the RULER in Ifrael." And Daniel, befides that he calls him "Meffiah the PRINCE," chap. ix. 25. in the account of his vifion" of the fon of man,' chap. vii. 13, 14, fays, "There was given him dominion, glory, and a KINGDOM, "that all people, nations, and languages fhould ferve: his domi"nion is an everlafting dominion, which fhall not pafs away; and "his KINGDOM that which fhall not be destroyed." So that the kingdom of God, and the kingdom of heaven, were common phrafes amongst the Jews, to fignify the times of the Meffiah. Luke xiv. 15. "One of the Jews that fat at meat with him, faid unto him, "Bleffed is he that fhall eat bread in the kingdom of God." chap. xvii, 20. The Pharifees demanded, "When the kingdom of God

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faying, Repent, "fhould come?" And St. John Baptift came, " "for the kingdom of heaven is at hand:" a phrase he would not have used in preaching, had it not been understood.

There are other expreffions that fignified the Mefiah, and his coming, which we shall take notice of as they come in our way.

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3. By plain and direct words, declaring the doctrine of the Meffiah; fpeaking out that Jefus was He: as we fee the apoftles did, when they went about preaching the gofpel, after our Saviour's refurrection. This was the open clear way, and that which one would think the Meffiah himself, when he came, fhould have taken; efpecially if it were of that moment, that upon mens believing him. to be the Meffiah, depended the forgiveness of their fins. And yet we fee that our Saviour did not; but, on the contrary, for the most part, made no other discovery of himself, at leaft in Judea, and at the beginning of his miniftry, but in the two former ways, which were more obfcure; not declaring himself to be the Meffiah, any otherwife than as it might be gathered from the miracles he did, and the conformity of his life and actions with the prophefies of the Old Teftament concerning him; and from fome general difcourfes of the kingdom of the Meffiah being come, under the name of the kingdom of God," and "of heaven." Nay, fo far was he from publicly owning himfelf to be the Meffiah, that he forbad the doing of it: Mark viii. 27. 30. "He afked his difciples, Whom do "men fay that I am? And they anfwered, John the Baptift; but "fome fay, Elias, and others, one of the Prophets." (So that it is evident, that even those who believed him an extraordinary perfon, knew not yet who he was, or that he gave himself out for the Meffiah; though this was in the third year of his miniftry, "And he faith unto them, But and not a year before his death.) "whom fay ye that I am? And Peter answered, and faid unto him, "Thou art the Meffiah. And he charged them that they fhould "tell no man of him." Luke iv. 41. "And devils came out of many, crying, Thou art the Meffiah, the fon of God: And he "rebuking them, fuffered them not to fpeak, that they knew him "Unclean fpirits, when they to be Meffiah." Mark iii. 11, 12. "faw him, fell down before, him, and cried, faying, Thou are the fon of God: And he ftraitly charged them that they fhould not make him known." Here again we may obferve from the comparing of the two texts, that "Thou art the fon of God," or Thou art the Meffiah," were indifferently ufed for the fame thing. But to return to the matter in hand,

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This concealment of himfelf will feem ftrange, in one who was come to bring light into the world, and was to fuffer death for the teftimony of the truth. This refervednefs will be thought to look as if he had a mind to conceal himfelf, and not to be known to the world for the Meffiah, nor to be believed on as fuch. But we thall be of another mind, and conclude this proceeding of his according to divine wifdom, and fuited to a fuller manifeftation and evidence of his being the Meffiah, when we confider, that he was

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to fill out the time foretold of his miniftry; and, after a life illuftrious in miracles and good works, attended with humility, meeknefs, patience, and fufferings, and every way conformable to the prophefies of him, fhould be led as a fheep to the flaughter, and with all quiet and fubmiffion be brought to the crofs, though there were no guilt nor fault in him. This could not have been, if, as foon as he appeared in public, and began to preach, he had prefently profeffed himself to have been the Meffiah, the king that owned that kingdom he published to be at hand. For the Sanhedrim would then have laid hold on it, to have got him in their power, and thereby have taken away his life; at leaft, they would have difturbed his miniftry, and hindered the work he was about. That this made him cautious, and avoid, as much as he could, the occafions of provoking them, and falling into their hands, is plain from John vii. 1. After thefe things Jefus walked in Galilee;" out of the way of the chief priests and rulers; "for he would "not walk in Jewry, because the Jews fought to kill him." Thus, making good what he foretold them at Jerufalem, when at the first Paffover, at his beginning to preach the gofpel, upon his curing the man at the Pool of Bethesda, they fought to kill him, John v. 16. Ye have not," fays he, ver, 38, "his word abiding amongst you: for whom he hath fent, him ye believe not." This was fpoken more particularly to the Jews of Jerufalem, who were the forward men, zealous to take away his life: and it imports, that because of their unbelief and oppofition to him, the " Word of God," i. e. the preaching of the kingdom of the Meffiah, which is often called the Word of God, did not stay amongst them: he could not tay amongst them, preach, and explain to them the kingdom of the Meffiah.

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That the word of God, here, fignifies "the word of God" that fhould make Jefus known to them to be the Meffiah, is evident from the context: and this meaning of this place is made good by the event. For after this, we hear no more of Jefus at Jerufalem, till the Pentecoft come twelvemonth; though it is not to be doubted but that he was there the next paffover, and other feafts between, but privately. And now at Jerufalem, at the feaft of Pentecoft, ncar fifteen months after, he fays very little of any thing, and not a word of the kingdom of heaven being come, or at hand; nor did he any miracle there. And returning to Jerufalem at the feaft of Tabernacles, it is plain, that from this time till then, which was a year and a half, he had not taught them at Jerufalem.

For, 1. it is faid, John vii. 2. 15, that he teaching in the Temple at the feaft of Tabernacles, "The Jews marvelled, faying, How "knoweth this man letters, having never learned?" A fign they had not been used to his preaching; for if they had, they would not now have marvelled,

2. Ver. 19. He fays thus to them; "Did not Mofes give you "the law, yet none of you keep the law? Why go you about to "kill me? One work," or miracle, "I did" here amongst you, C4

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"and ye all marvel. Mofes therefore gave unto you circumcifion, "and ye on the Sabbath-day circumcife a man: if a man on the Sabbath-day receive circumcifion, that the law of Mofes should not be broken, are ye angry with me, because I have made a man every way whole on the Sabbath-day?" Which is a direct defence of what he did at Jerufalem a year and a half before. The work he here fpeaks of we find reported John v. 1-16. He had not preached to them there from that time till this, but had made good what he then told them, ver. 38. "Ye have not the word of "God remaining among you, becaufe whom he hath fent, ye be"lieve not." Whereby, I think, he fignifies his not staying and being frequent amongst them at Jerufalem, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, because their great unbelief, oppofition, and malice to him, would not permit it.

This was manifeftly fo in fact. For the first miracle he did at Jerufalem, which was at the fecond paffover after his baptifm, brought him in danger of his life. Hereupon we find he forbore preaching again there till the feaft of Tabernacles immediately preceding his last paffoyer: fo that till half a year before his paffion, he did but one miracle, and preached but once publicly at Jerufalem. Thefe trials he made there; but found their unbelief fuch, that if he had ftaid and perfifted to preach the good tidings of the kingdom, and to fhew himself by miracles among them, he could not have had time and freedom to do thofe works which his father had given him to finish, as he fays, ver. 36, of this 5th of St. John. They all imaginable ways attacked him, and he as readily eluded all their attempts by the wonderful quicknefs and conduct of an unparalleled wifdom. Here at this feaft of Tabernacles, "The Scribes

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and Pharifees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; they fay unto him, Mafter, Mofes in the law commanded us that "fuch fhould be ftoned, but what fayeft thou? This they faid "tempting him, that they might accufe him." John viii. 3-6: It is plain they hoped that this criminal caufe of a woman just taken in the fact, brought before him in the fight of the people, would draw him, if he would preferve the opinion of being the Meffiah their king, to give judgement in it, and by the exercife of fuch an authority expofe him to the Roman deputy. Some such accufation they watched for; but they could never get any fuch advantage against him he marvellously defeated their defign, and, without leffening himself, fent them away covered with flame and filence.' When, upon the curing of the withered hand on the Sabbathday, "The Pharifees took counfel with the Herodians how they might deftroy him; Jefus withdrew himself with his difciples to "the fea and a great multitude from Galilee followed him, and "from Judea, and from Jerufalem, and from Idumea, and from "beyond Jordan, and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude; when they had heard what great things he did, came unto "him, and he healed them all, and CHARGED THEM THAT THEY SHOULD NOT MAKE HIM KNOWN: that it might be ful

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"filled which was spoken by the prophet Ifaiah, saying, Behold "my fervant whom I have chofen; my beloved, in whom my foul

is well pleafed I will put my fpirit upon him, and he shall shew judgement to the Gentiles: he fhall not ftrive, nor cry, neither "hall any man hear his voice in the ftreets." Matt. xii. and Mark iii.

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And John xi. 47. Upon the news of our Saviour's raifing Lazarus from the dead, "the chief priests and Pharifees convened "the Sanhedrim, and faid, What do we? for this man does many "miracles." Ver. 53. "Then from that day forth they took "counfel together for to put him to death." Ver. 54. Jefus "therefore walked no more openly amongft the Jews." His miracles had now fo much declared him to be the Meffiah, that the Jews could no longer bear him, nor he truft himself amongst them; "but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into

a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his difciples." This was but a little before his laft paffover, as appears by the following words, ver 55. "And the Jews paffover was nigh at hand :" and he could not, now his miracles had made him fo well known, have been secure the little time that remained till his hour was fully come, if he had not with his wonted and neceffary caution withdrawn," and walked no more openly amongst the Jews," till his time (at the next paffover) was fully come; and then again he appeared amongst them openly.

Nor would the Romans have fuffered him, if he had gone about preaching that he was the king whom the Jews expected. Such an accufation would have been forwardly brought against him by the Jews, if they could have heard it out of his own mouth; and that had been his public doctrine to his followers, which was openly preached by his apoftles after his death, when he appeared no more. And of this they were accused, Acts xvii. 5. 9. But the Jews "which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain "lewd fellows of the bafer fort, and gathered a company, and fet "all the city in an uproar, and affaulted the house of Jafon, and fought to bring them out to the people. And when they found "them [Paul and Silas] not, they drew Jafon and certain brethren "unto the rulers of the city, crying, Thefe that have turned the "world upfide down, are come hither alfo, whom Jafon hath re"ceived and thefe all do contrary to the decrees of Cæfar, fay"ing, That there is another king, one Jefus And they troubled "the people and the rulers of the city, when they heard these things and when they had taken fecurity of Jason and the "other, they let them go."

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Though the magiftrates of the world had no great regard to the talk of a king, who had fuffered death, and appeared no longer any where; yet if our Saviour had openly declared this of himself in his life-time, with a train of difciples and followers every where owning and crying him up for their king, the Roman governor of Judea could not have forborn to have taken notice of it, and have ade

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