men of sense and learning to treat the whole account as fabulous, or at farthest to fufpend their belief of it, until all things food together in their full light.

III. Befides, the Jews were branded not only for fuperftitions different from all the religions of the Pagan world, but in a particular manner ridiculed for being a credulous people; so that whatever reports of such a nature came out of that country, were looked upon by the heathen world as falfe, frivolous, and inprobable.

IV. We may further observe that the ordimary practice of Magic in thofe times, with the many pretended Prodigies, Divinations, Apparitions, and local Miracles among the Heathens, made them lefs attentive to fuch news from Judæa, till they had time to confider the nature, the occafion, and the end of our Saviour's miracles, and were awakened by many furprifing events to allow them any confideration at all.

V. We are indeed told by St. Matthew, that the fame of our Saviour, during his life, went throughout all Syria, and that there followedhim great multitudes of people from Galilee, fudæa, Decapolis, Idumea, from beyond Jordan, and from Tyre and Sidon. Now had there been any hiftorians of thofe times and places, we might have expected to have seen in them fome account of thofe wonderful transactions in Judaa; but there is not any fingle Author extant, in any kind, of that age, in any of those coun

tries.

VI. How many books have perished in which poffibly there might have been mention of our Saviour? Look among the Romans, how few of

their writings are come down to our times? In the space of two hundred years from our Saviour's birth, when there was such a multitude of writers in all kinds, how small is the number of Authors that have made their way to the prefent age.

VII. One authentic Record, and that the most authentic heathen Record, we are pretty fare is loft. I mean the account fent by the Governor of Judæa, under whom our Saviour was judged, condemned, and crucified. It was the cuftom in the Roman Empire, as it is to this day in all the governments of the world, for the præfects and vice-roys of distant provinces to tranfmit to their Sovereign a fummary relation of every thing remarkable in their admi nistration. That Pontius Pilate, in his account, would have touched on fo extraordinary an event in Judæa, is not to be doubted; and that he actually did, we learn from Juftin Martyr, who lived about a hundred years after our Saviour's death, refided, made Converts, and fuffered martyrdom at Rome, where he was engaged with Philofophers, and in a particular manner with Crefcens the Cynic, who could eafily have detected, and would not fail to have expofed him, had he quoted a Record not in being, or made any falfe citation out of it. Would the great Apologift have challenged Crefcens to difpute the Caufe of Chriftianity with him before. the Roman Senate, had he forged fuch an evidence? or would Crefcens have refused the chal lenge, could he have triumphed over him in the detection of fuch a forgery? To which we must add, that the Apology, which appeals to this Record, was prefented to a learned Emperor,

and

and to the whole body of the Roman Senate. This father in his apology, speaking of the death and fuffering of our Saviour, refers the Emperor for the truth of what he says to the acts of Pontius Pilate, which I have here mentioned. Tertullian, who wrote his Apology about fifty years after Juftin, doubtless referred to the fame Record, when he tells the Governor of Rome that the Emperor Tiberius having received an account out of Palestine in Syria of the Divine perfon who had appeared in that country, paid him a particular regard, and threatened to punish any who should accufe the chriftians; nay, that the Emperor would have adopted him among the Deities whom they worshipped, had not the Senate refused to come into his propofal. Tertullian, who gives us this hiftory, was not only one of the most learned men of his age, but, what adds a greater weight to his authority in this cafe, was eminently fkilful and well read in the laws of the Roman Empire. Nor can it be faid, that Tertullian grounded his quotation upon the authority of Justin Martyr, because we find he mixes it with matters of fact which are not related by that Author. Eufebius mentions the fame antient Record, but as it was not extant in his time, I fhall not infift upon his authority in this point. If it be objected that this particular is not mentioned in any Roman Hiftorian, I fhall ufe the fame argument in a parallel cafe, and fee whether it will carry any force with it. Ulpian the great Roman Lawyer gathered together all the Imperial Edicts that had been made against the christians. But did any one ever say that there had been no fuch Edicts, because they were

not mentioned in the hiftories of those Emperors? Befides, who knows but this circumstance of Tiberius was mentioned in other hiftorians that have been loft, though not to be found in any ftill extant? Has not Suetonius many particularsof this Emperor omitted by Tacitus, and Herodian many that are not fo much as hinted at by either? As for the fpurious Acts of Pilate, now extant, we know the occafion and time of their writing, and that had there not been a true and authentic Record of this nature, they would never have been forged.

VIII. The ftory of Agbarus King of Edessa, relating to the letter which he fent to our Saviour, and to that which he received from him,. is a record of great authority; and though I will not infift upon it, may venture to fay, that had we fuch an evidence for any fact in Pagan his-tory, an Author would be thought very unreafonable who should reject it. I believe you will: be of my opinion, if you will perufe, with other Authors, who have appeared in vindication of these letters as genuine, the additional arguments which have been made use of by the late famous and learned Dr. Grabe, in the fe cond volume of his Spicilegium.

SECTION

SECTION II.

1. What facts in the history of our Saviour might be taken notice of by Pagan Authors.

II. What particular facts are taken notice of, and by what Pagan Authors.

III. How Celfus reprefented our Saviour's miracles. IV. The fame reprefentation made of them by other unbelievers, and proved unreasonable.

V. What facts in our Saviour's hiftory not to be expected from Pagan writers.

W

E now come to confider what undoubted authorities are extant among Pagan writers; and here we must premife, that fome parts of our Saviour's history may be reafonably expected from Pagans. I mean fuch parts as might be known to those who lived at a distance from Judea, as well as to those who were the followers and eye-witneffes of Chrift.

II. Such particulars are most of these which follow, and which are all attested by some one or other of those heathen Authors, who lived in or near the age of our Saviour and his difciples. That Auguftus Cæfar had ordered the whole empire to be cenfed or taxed, which brought our Saviour's reputed parents to Bethlehem: This is mentioned by feveral Roman historians, as Taci

tus