SERM. trines it propounded. The Jews were uncapable of conXXIX. viction by any other way, than by miracle; no other reason would have been apprehended by them, or would 2 Cor. i. 22. have had any force upon them: The Jews, faith St. Paul, John iv. 48. require a fign; and, Except ye fee figns and wonders, ye will

not believe, faid our Saviour to them. The Gentiles also had been so used to the winding off and on the fubtilties and the plausibilities of disputation, that nothing probably in that kind would have fufficed to perfuade them; and therefore fomewhat miraculous in the highest kind might be needful to convert them: alfo the most peculiar and eminent doctrines of our religion (fuch as are, Our Lord Jefus being the Meffias, the Son of God, and Saviour of the world; the future refurrection, general judgment, and difpenfation of rewards, answerable to men's practice in this life) cannot more immediately and directly be affured, than by the refurrection from the dead of him who principally did reveal them.

Wherefore Almighty God in confirmation of our religion did perform this great work in raising Jefus our Lord from the dead; and withal (for the conviction of the world, for rendering our faith reasonable and our infidelity inexcufable) he did take especial care, that the fact fhould by very fufficient teftimony be conveyed unto us; Acts x. 41. to which purpose he did, as St. Peter faith, poxaporoVETY, predesign, pick out, and appoint a competent number of perfons, in all refpects capable and fit to affert it: thus is that which St. Luke in our text doth in way of historical narration affirm. And because the truth thereof is in its kind the principal argument, whereby the truth of our religion in grofs may be evinced, we fhall for the confirmation of our faith against all impreffions of this incredulous (and therefore impious) age, endeavour by God's affift→ ance now to declare and maintain it. That Jefus truly died, all the world could teftify; no death was ever more folemn or remarkable; nor do any adverfaries contest it; that he after that death was by divine power raised again to life is that which we believe and affert. Now whoever with reason fhall doubt thereof or deny it, must do it,

either because of fome repugnance in the fact itself, im- SERM. plying that it could not well be done; or from deficiency XXIX. of the testimony proving it, as to its authors, or circumftances: but neither of these exceptions may reasonably be admitted.

As for the fact itself, or the notion of a refurrection in general, there cannot, (admitting that, which, as capable of antecedaneous proof, and as acknowledged by all perfons owning any religion, may be presupposed, the power and providence of God, together with his chief attributes of wisdom and goodness incomprehenfible,) there cannot be any repugnance therein, or any incredibility. For it was neither in its nature impoffible to God, or in its defign unworthy of him; it contained nothing apparently either beyond the power of God, or prefumeable to be against his will.

1. To raise a dead man to life, is indeed, we confefs and avow, a work furpaffing the power of any creature not affifted by God; but no reason can be affigned, why it fhould go beyond the divine power. The doing it doth not involve contradiction, and is therefore an object of power, and at least is achievable by Omnipotence: let the foul be what it will, and in whatever life may be fuppofed to confift, nothing can hinder that God may reduce the parts of a man into the fame ftate they fometime before were in. And very eafily it is conceivable, that he who (according to the general notions and current traditions of mankind) did first inspire the soul of man into his body, may reinfuse it being feparated; that he who after death keepeth it in his hand, may thence restore it; who also (according to hiftories received in all the principal religions that have been in the world) hath often actually performed it. Pliny indeed doth reckon this among instances of things abfolutely impoffible; a It is, faith he, a great folace of our imperfect nature, that even God cannot do all

2 Imperfectæ vero in homine naturæ præcipua folatia funt, ne Deum quidem poffe omnia; nam neque fibi poteft mortem confcifcere fi velit, (quod homini dedit optimum in tantis vitæ malis) nec mortales æternitate donare, nec revocare defun&tos. Plin. ii. 7.

17.

29.

SERM. things; for neither can he bring death upon himself, if he XXIX. would, nor bestow eternity on mortals, nor recall the dead to life: but it is no wonder, that he, who thought the foul quite to perish by death, should conceive the restitution thereof impoffible; although even fuppofing that, his opinion was not reasonable; for even any thing, how corruptible foever by diffolution of its ingredients, or alteration of its temperament, may, by recollecting and rejoining thofe ingredients, or by reeftablishing the causes of fuch a temperament, be restored, (as a house whose materials are dispersed may be reedified, or as a liquor by a new fermentation may be revived;) which to effect may not be deemed hard to him that made the whole world: however to fuch as him we may say, as our Saviour did to the Jer. xxxii. Sadducees, Ye err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the Matt. xxii. power of God. Efpecially to those who acknowledge the immortality of the foul, or its permanence in a separate ftate, and who admit the truth of the ancient hiftories among the Jews, it is not only most evidently poffible, but very credible, that God upon any confiderable occafion fhould perform it with fuch St. Paul might well Acts xxvi. thus expoftulate; What? doth it seem incredible to you, that God should raise the dead? to you that have fuch previous notions and perfuafions about God's omnipotency; (such as the prophet Jeremiah expreffeth when he Jer. xxxii. faith, Ah Lord God! behold, thou haft made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched-out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee :) to you who avow God Heb. xii. 9, to be the Father of Spirits, who formeth the Spirit of man Num. xvi. within him, and that when man dieth, his spirit returneth to God who it: to you gave who believe that our fouls are Zech. xii. 1. spiritual substances, like unto angels, fubfifting after death, Eccles. xii. and destined to future rewards: to you, in fine, who may in your holy records find fo many experiments of this power exerted by God in his Prophets; fuch as that of Elias's reftoring the widow of Sarepta's fon; of Elisha 2 Kings iv. raifing the fon of the Shunamite; that of the dead man 35. xiii. 21. reviving when his body touched the Prophet's bones: to

8.

17.

Zech. viii.

6.

Job xlii. 2.

22. xxvii.

16.

9.

Ifa. lvii. 16.

1.

1 Kings

xvii. 21.

you therefore this fact cannot be in itself incredible; nor

indeed ean it, for the reafon fuggefted, to any man reafon- SERM. ably seem impoffible.

2. Nor was it apparently in its defign unworthy of God, or inconfiftent with his holy will: for the ends thereof (fuch as were pretended by the attefters of it) were, as very great and important, fo moft good and reasonable; it aimed at no flight or trifling matter, but fuch as in appearance highly concerned the glory of God, and conduced to the welfare of mankind; it profeffing itself to be a credential of the greatest embaffy that ever came down from heaven to men, importing the complete revelation of God's will and procurement of falvation to the world; and did therefore in that respect well become the wifdom and goodness of God to use it. It pretended to confirm a doctrine containing moft true and worthy representations of God, the best that could be; declaring moft gracious intentions in God of mercy and kindness toward men ; no less proper for him than grateful and needful for us; prefcribing most excellent rules and patterns of life, (wherein the most genuine piety and virtue, most exact justice and hearty charity, most strict purity and fo-* briety are prescribed,) yielding the most effectual helps to the practice of all goodness, and tendering the best encouragement thereto; and upon this account therefore alfo moft worthy of God. So that indeed God could not be conceived to perform fuch a miracle to better purpose, than for promoting the defigns it pretendeth, being fo very great, and fo very good: it could not be improper for the Divine power to be thus exerted in favour of a religion fo apt to promote his glory, and to procure our benefit.

If it be faid, that it is abfurd or improbable, that God fhould choose to perform this miracle upon a person of this fort; one fo mean and obfcure in the state of his life, fo wretched and infamous for the manner of his death; that God rather fhould have chofen for the interpreter of his mind, and minifter of his purposes, a perfonage more illustrious in rank, and clear in repute; I answer, first, that our fhallow fancy is a bad and incompetent judge of what

XXIX.

7. Ifa. lv. 8. xl. 13.

15.

1 Cor. v. 13. Rom. xi.

33.

Job xi. 7.

SERM, is reasonable or abfurd, convenient or unfit, in fuch cafes, XXIX. touching the counfels of God; who feeth not as man feeth; 1 Sam. xvi. whose thoughts are not as our thoughts, nor ways as our ways; whofe folly is wifer than men, (that is, whofe counfels, however seeming ftrange to our dim apprehenfions, 2 Cor. i.25 do yet far excel the refults of our best wisdom;) before Luke xvi. whom, whatever is high among men is abominable; with whom the wisdom of this world is folly; whofe judgments are unsearchable, and his ways are past finding out; as the (Pf. xcii. 5. holy Scriptures teach us; and as good reason, confidering xxxvi. 7.) the vaft diftance between God and us, muft acknowledge: fo that no fuch appearance of incongruity can bottom a good exception against this, or any fuch matter, otherwife well attested. I fay farther, that God's choice herein, being weighed by a pure and well difpofed mind, will appear upon many accounts full of admirable reafon and wisdom; all the divine economy concerning our Lord, 1 Cor. ii. 6, being rightly apprehended, will foon appear wisdom to the Matt.xi. 19. perfect, and will be justified by the children of wisdom; as that wherein God's tranfcendent goodness, and perfect jus*tice, and glorious power are with greatest advantage difplayed; whereby the hearts of men are most sweetly comforted under their fenfe of fin and fear of misery, their minds are most clearly inftructed in the ways of duty and happiness, their affections are moft ftrongly excited and encouraged to the practice of all goodness: to fuch purposes (for caufes which, were it now feasonable, we could produce) our Saviour's low condition and hard circumstances did admirably ferve; and therefore upon that score it could not be unlikely, that God fhould raife him from the dead.

7, 14.

3. But neither (which is the moft confiderable point) is the teftimony afferting this fact anywife defective or infufficient, but hath all the conditions imaginably requifite to the most entire affurance of any fuch matter. The defect in the teftimony, if any be, must arise from weakness or from wilfulness in the witneffes, (their want of knowledge, or mistake, their want of honesty or their unfaithfulness,) or from fome circumftances belonging to their