How view him in th' inhuman death he bore,
To Nature subject, with dominion o'er?
If not his Spirit, his enlight'ning grace,
Assist that life to scan, those steps to trace?

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BOOK THE SECOND.

THE ARGUMENT.

Invocation of the Spirit of Truth-The humble birth of our Saviour His poverty a proof of the disregard that heaven bears to riches and worldly success-In the days of the first Herod, the angel Gabriel appears to the priest Zacharias, and tells him his wife should bear the foretold Elias--Ap. pears to the virgin Mary, and tells her she shall bear a son-Christ's birth is declared by an angel to some shepherds at night-A host of angels sing glory to God and love to mun-The Magi, upon the appearance of Christ's star in the East, go to Jerusalem--The star throws its faithful light over the place where Christ is born, when the Magi spread their presents before the world's infant Lord-Suspicion of Herod-Kills all the children in Bethlehem and the coasts thereof (in which Rama is included) under two years of age-The Baptist appears, according to the prophecies-To raise his holy character still higher, even Christ condescends to be baptized by John; when Heaven opens, and a voice is heard to say, This is my beloved Son-Which we should bear in rapture over all the world-John is at length imprisoned by Herod the Tetrarch, and his head severed from his body at the request of the daughter of Herodias (who was married to Herod, though her true husband, Herod's brother, was living)-and who, in revenge for John's having reproved her second marriage, instigated her daughter to make the request-The faithful disciples of John come and take his body for burial.

SPIRIT of Truth, deign, as it rolls along,
To aid the sacred labour of my song!

Come from the heav'n of heav'ns, thy fair abode,
Where, at the side of the Eternal God,
Thou sitt'st in all the majesty of light,
And o'er my page diffuse thy visions bright.
Thou consecrated Pow'r, that dost impart
Thy gifts to none but to the upright heart,
That but the pure vouchsafest to inspire
With thy chaste impulse, and thy hallow'd fire;

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10

Thou that from guilt and discord fli'st away,
And scorn'st to wreath the blood-stain'd sword with
bay!

Without or grace or splendour to adorn,
In the low vale of humble life was born,
As prescient seers declar'd th’eternal plan,
The blest Redeemer of degraded man.
To manifest what Heav'n of wealth esteems,
How low, how little, fortune's sons it deems,
He bore himself the mere extremity
Of barren and uncheerful poverty;
For oft the day devoid of food he led,
And oft at night unhoused was his head.
When cruel Herod in its grief-ful day,
O'er vex'd Judea stretch'd his iron sway,
An angel was commission'd from above,
To bear the message of celestial love.
The object was a priest who knew no blame,
.And Zacharias was his humble name.

"O Zacharias, banish every fear!

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20

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For Heav'n, benignant Heav'n, has heard thy pray'r! Thy barren wife shall yield a wond'rous son,

And thou shalt call thy blest descendant John.
'Tis the foretold Elias, who shall be

A comfort both to Isr'el and to thee;
To those who stray a light he shall afford,
And many lead unto their heav'nly Lord.
'Tis Gabriel I, that bear the high command,
Who in the dread Almighty presence stand."
Next, to a virgin, promis'd to a man,
Whose honour'd blood from royal David ran,

Line 18.

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The apostle says, "Hath not God chosen the poor of this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?" Epistle of James, chap. ii. verse 5.

Line 39, &c. It was a custom among the Jews, as it is at this day a custom among some nations, to betroth a young pair to one another, for many years before they come together, for many years before the consummation of the marriage. The evangelist Matthew says, "Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: when as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost." Chap. i. verse 18. A party of men have lately arisen, who have revived an old error

Betroth'd, but not as yet in marriage join'd,
Of humble, meek, and unpolluted mind,
Great Gabriel went, and said in heav'nly love,
"Hail, thou art highly favour'd from above!
Let no solicitude thy mind molest,

For thou art blest 'mong women, greatly blest!

For thou a Saviour to the world shall give,
And wonderful a living son conceive."
This was the sign Isaiah had foretold,
In heav'n-instructed prophecies of old.

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In the fair East with Heav'n's own radiance bright, A star appear'd, which shed unusual light. Th' auspicious novelty the magi saw, And on the wonder gaz'd with sacred awe; Who went to worship at Jerusalem, The child foredoom'd to bear its diadem. For in the East, they said, they saw his star, And anxious him to see bad travell'd far. Suspicious Herod, who his sceptre fear'd, Inquir'd with care what time the star appear'd; Saying, "To Bethl'em blest immediate go, And diligently search the child to know; That I, with instant haste and rev'rence meet, May likewise go and worship at his feet."

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To render

in the church, who deny the miraculous conception. their supposition more probable, they have adopted the dangerous scheme of considering numerous passages of the New Testament as interpolations. If they could establish, however, these visionརྞ ary ideas relative to interpolations in the New Testament, there is a passage in the prophet Isaiah which is direct and full in opposition to their doctrine. Isaiah says, "Therefore the Lord him. self shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." Chap. vii. verse 14. Some are willing to translate the Hebrew word alma, in this passage, a woman, and not a virgin, against the authority of the Septuagint, and against the true meaning of the word in the Hebrew language. And in the name of common sense we may ask, if they say, that a woman shall conceive, where is the sign, where is any thing remarkable in all this? It is supposed by some, that the prophecy of Isaiah refers to something that happened in the days of Ahaz. Was any one born in the time of king Ahaz who could be called God? That the Hebrew word Immanuel signifies God is with us, is what every Hebrew lexicon will manifest. See (Grotius, Whitby's Paraphrase on the New Testament, and others, on this place.

The wise men went when they the king had heard; 65
And, lo! the sacred star again appear'd,
And, like the pillar of celestial fire

Which Is'rel in the desart wont t' inspire,
Led them exulting with a new delight,

And threw where Christ was born its faithful light: 70
Who the blest child with ready zeal ador'd,

And spread their splendid gifts to the world's infant Lord.

And as some shepherds watch'd by night their

sheep,

While all the careless world were wrapt in sleep,
Unnerv'd by fear they trembled on the ground,
While shone the glory of the Lord around.
But soon an angel's voice dispell'd their fears,
And sweetly ravish'd their attentive ears,
Saying, "A Saviour, on this hallow'd morn,
In David's town, of David's line is born;

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And there ye now may find, with glad surprise,
The sacred infant in a manger lies."

And, lo! a host of the celestial band,

With their blest voices cheer'd the favour'd land;

And at this ballow'd and auspicious birth,

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Made to resemble Heav'n this little earth;
Singing, "Be glory giv'n to God above,
And upon earth to man be boundless love."

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Th' astonish'd shepherds unto Bethl'em went, With rough unpolish'd minds, but innocent, Where in a manger the blest mother-maid The wond'rous boy with tender care had laid. And praising Heav'n when they the child had found, Returning spread the tale the country round. Yet this poor infant in a manger laid,

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His ill-form'd cradle, and but straw his bed,
On God's right hand exalted shall be plac'd,
And with God's own superior splendour grac'd,
When Heav'n's full choir their ardent songs shall

raise,

And tune their harps to his immortal praise.

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But Herod, fearing for his idol throne,

Gave loose to wrath, to which he was by nature prone. He sent his ruffian soldiers in the land,

To execute at once his fierce command;

Like rav'nous wolves that tear unguileful sheep, 105
Whom no brave shepherd can securely keep.
"Let ev'ry child from two and lesser age,
Be the just victims of your faithful rage;
All who in Bethl'em city shall be found,

And those who suck the breast in all the coast

around."

Then was fulfill'd what Jeremiah said,

When he the acts of future times display'd.
In Rama was a voice of piercing grief,
Extravagant, which would not know relief;
With bleeding heart-consuming anguish wild,
The mother wept upon her slaughter'd child.

But let us now the Baptist's works declare,
Sent the great Saviour's mission to prepare ;
As prophets taught by God himself foretold,
In the blest oracles of truth of old.

A camel's hair compos'd his garment rude,
Locusts and honey were his simple food;
The solitary desart was his home, where
The people crowded his discourse to hear.
'But be their sins in honest language told,
As harmless as a dove, but like a lion bold.
To sanctify his holy office more,
And raise the lofty character he bore,
E'en Christ himself no homage just despis'd,
But humbly deign'd by John to be baptiz'd.
When a voice strikes th' astonish'd people's ears,
Sweet as the music of th' harmonious spheres,
(Not such as that in Scripture we are told,
Was heard in Sinai's thund'ring mount of old,

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Line 111. Jeremiah says, "Thus saith the Lord, A voice was heard in Rama, lamentation and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they were not." Chap. iii. verse 15. St. Matthew says, that Herod slew all the children, from two years old and under, that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof," in which Rama was included.