were particularly foretold by the Prophets, and accordingly expected at that time by the Jews.

Concerning the Tribe and Family of which our Saviour was born, I shall obferve, that effectual Care was taken by the Law of Mofes to keep a perpetual Distinction of their several Tribes and Families for by the Law of Inheritances, no Inheritance could pass out of a Family, either by Sale of Lands, (for every fiftieth Year was a Year of Redemption, and every man returned to his own poffeffion, and every man to his own family, Lev. xxv. 10.) or by defect of Heirs Male; for if there were Daughters, they were to inherit; and if there were no Daughters, it was to pafs to the nearest Kinfman, Numb. xxvii. and the Daughters, who were Heireffes, were obliged to marry to one of their Father's Tribe and Family, chap. xxxvi.8. But if a man died without Children, his Brother, or his next Kinfman was to raise up Seed unto the deceafed, and the First-born was to fucceed in the name of him that died without Iffue, Deut. xxv. 5,6. Ruth iii. 12. So that he had a Natural and a Legal Father, the Names of both which must be enroll'd in their Registers, to entitle him and his Heirs to their Inheritance. All which was appointed with a peculiar regard to the Meffias, that the Prophecies concerning his Tribe and Family might be known to be fulfill'd at his Birth.

The Genealogies of the Jews therefore were of two kinds; one of their Natural, and the other of their Legal Defcent and Parentage; and we have both these Genealogies of our Saviour fet down, the one by St. Matthew, and the other by St. Luke, which must be exactly the fame with the Registers of the Genealogies then extant, which both in their publick Records, and in their private Books, were kept with great Care and Exactness, their Expectation of the

i Lightf. on Matt. i. 1.

Meffias

Meffias obliging them to it, and the Conftitution of their Government neceffarily requiring it for all the Title and Claim they could have to their Inheritances entirely depended upon it, and they were fo careful herein, that their Genealogies were preferv'd to the Destruction of Jerufalem; and if the Genealogies in St. Matthew and St. Luke had been different from those in the publick Registers, this had for ever filenc'd and extinguish'd all Pretences to our Saviour's being the Meffias; but they being exactly the fame, did prove that the Prophecies concerning the Meffias were fulfill'd in him. For the Virgin Mary being the only Child of her Father, or at least having no Brother, it was lawful for her to be efpous'd to none out of her own Family, and therefore the Pedigree of Jofeph, as was customary in fuch cafes, is fet down, this fhewing her Lineage and Family, as certainly as her own Pedigree could have done for the poorest amongst the Jews obferv'd the Law of Inheritances, as ftrictly as the rich, and even in Exile it was observ'd, as well as when they were in poffeffion of their Inheritances, Tob. vi. 10, 11.

m

1 Ifaiah and Jeremiah had prophefied, that the Meffias fhould be born of a Virgin, and fo their Prophecies had been understood by the ancient Jews. And that a Virgin fhould bear a Son, can feem to no man incredible, who will but confider, that the God of Nature cannot be confined to the Laws of his own Institution, and that to make Man of the Duft of the Earth, or by other means than by natural Generation, as the first Man and Woman must certainly be made, whatever Hypothefis be admitted, is as unaccountable, and as wonderful as this can be. Bút to make this Conception of the Blessed Virgin the more easily be

k

ἡ παρθένΘ παρεδίδοτο της Ἰωσήφ, κλήρων εἰς τότο ανα naσáv av auTl new, Epiph. Hær. 78. n. 7.

Ifai. vii. 14. Jerem. xxxi. 22.

See Bishop Pearfon on the Creed.

Q4

lieved,

lieved, the Birth of Ifaac, when his Mother Sarah was old, and had been barren, and other Births of the like nature, were both Types of Chrift's Birth, and an Evidence of the Power of God above the Courfe of Nature; particularly St. John Baptift, being born of a Mother, who was both old and barren, was in this, as well as in other things, the Fore-runner of Christ.

But this Virgin was to be efpous'd to Joseph, a juft and good Man, both that he might be a Security and Protection to her, and might be affifting to her, in her Care and Tenderness for the Blessed Infant; and likewife that he, who was most concern'd to make the Discovery, if it had been otherwise, might testify to the World, that an Angel from Heaven had fatisfy'd him, that she was with Child of the Holy Ghost. Jealousy, the wife Man fays, is the rage of a man, therefore he will not fpare in the day of vengeance: he will not regard any ransom, neither will be be content, though thou giveft him many gifts, Prov. vi. 34, 35. And the Jewifh Law in this cafe was as fevere, as any could well be: For a Virgin betroth'd, who had been thus found guilty, was to be stoned to Death, Deut. xxii. 23. And tho' Jofeph not being willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily; yet this fhews, that if it had prov'd, as he at firft fufpected, he was not a man, that would have been infenfible of the Injury; and it is a good Evidence, that there was nothing to be objected, when there was nothing that Jealoufy could object; and no Teftimony could poffibly have fatisfy'd thofe, who will not be fatisfy'd, tho' Joseph himself testify'd, that the Angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a Dream, faying, Jofeph, thou Son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy Wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghoft. And his carrying the Infant into Egypt at another Appearance of an Angel, and all his Behaviour fhews, that as he was the most competent perfon to deliver this Meffage of the Angel to the World, fo he was the

moft

most zealous and forward Afferter of this Article of our Faith.

And befides his firft Sufpicions, his other Prejudices and Difcouragements must be fo great, that nothing but a clear and undoubted Revelation could poffibly remove them; he could expect nothing but Trouble and Danger to himself; he could not hope to be reputed the Father of the Meffias, fince the Prophets had foretold, that he was to be born of a Virgin. The Jews had this Notion of him, When Christ cometh, no man knoweth, whence he is, Joh. vii. 27. and how should they be perfuaded that he was the Son of Jofeph and nothing could be more contrary to the Expectation they had of the Meffias, than that he fhould be a Carpenter's Son, this was thought by them a fufficient reafon to reject both his Doctrine and his Miracles and Jofeph had no caufe to flatter himself that it would be otherwife. Simeon prophefied of Christ, that he was fet for a fign, which should be spoken againft; and Herod prefently feeks to take away his Life by a terrible Maflacre: yet Jofeph was fo well fatisfy'd of the Angels Revelation to him, and was fo well affur'd of the Certainty of it; that he willingly exposed himself to all the Inconveniencies and Dangers, which he could not but fee must be the neceffary Confequence of it, and which he foon faw come fo thick and violently upon him: A Sword was to pierce through the Virgin's own Soul alfo. But all the Hazards and the Sorrows, which were foretold them, and which accordingly they underwent, may abundantly convince us, that they could have no Design or Profpect of any Advantage, but of declaring the Truth, and of that Salvation, which was brought to them and to all Mankind by it.

Thus we fee that both the Time and Place of our Saviour's Nativity, and the Perfon of whom he was born, are evident Proofs of his being the Chrift. He was to be born whilft the fecond Temple ftood, he was

to

to be born at Bethlehem, and he was to be born of a Virgin of the Tribe of Judah, and of the Lineage of David; all which most exactly agree in the Birth of our Saviour.

II. The Prophecies concerning the Life of the Meffias, were fulfill'd in our Saviour. The Meannefs and Obfcurity, and Sorrows of it are exprefs'd, Ifai. liii. 23. For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness and when we shall fee him, there is no beauty that we should defire him. He is defpifed and rejected of men, a man of forrows, and acquainted with grief, and we hid as it were our faces from him, he was defpifed and we efteemed him not. His Meeknefs and Patience are defcribed, Ifai. xlii. 2, 3, 4. He fhall not cry, nor lift up, nor caufe his voice to be heard in the street; a bruifed reed fhall he not break, and the fmoaking Flax fhall he not quench; be fhall bring forth judgment unto truth; he fhall not fail nor be difcouraged, till he have fet judgment in the earth, and the Ifles fhall wait for his Law. His Abode was to be chiefly in Galilee, Ifai. ix. 1. Matt. iv. 14. And accordingly, he was brought up at Nazareth, and dwelt at Capernaum.

His Miracles are every where inculcated by the Prophets, and this was fo well understood by the Jews of that time, that many of the people believ'd in him, upon the account of his Miracles, and faid, When Chrift cometh, fhall be do greater Miracles than thefe which this man hath done? Joh. vii. 31. And when St. John Baptift fent two of his Difciples to enquire of our Saviour, whether he were the Chrift, he gives them no other Answer, but that they should acquaint John with what things they had feen and heard, how that the blind fam, the lame walked, the lepers were cleanfed, the deaf heard, the dead were raised, to the poor the Gofpel was preached, Luke vii. 22. which was the literal fulfilling of that Prophecy, Isaiah xxxv. 5, 6. and it was the very Character which all the Prophets had