the next and the lefs Men believe of the next World, the more fond they are to make fure of this. Ambition, and a Defire of Fame, and a Name after Death, rarely happens to Men of obfcure Birth and mean Education; and it was naturally impoffible, that it should now befal fo many of them, without any ground or reason to expect it, when in all humane Confideration, they had a certain Profpect of nothing but Infamy after Death, as well as of Difgrace, and Want, and Torment, during their Lives. And no Man could refolve upon attefting any thing on fuch terms, unless he had been abfolutely certain of the Truth of it, much lefs could fo many fet upon fuch a Defign together for as they could have no Arguments to perfuade one another to enter upon fuch an Attempt, fo if they had once confpir'd in it, they would foon have deferted and difcover'd each other when they lay under all the Difadvantages and Difficulties imaginable, and had nothing to fupport and unite them, but the Truth and Reality of what they deliver❜d. And it is farther obfervable, that in the first Ages of the Church, and the nearer Chriftians were to the Apostles, the more zealous they were to live according to the Gospel of Christ, and to die in defence of it: for they had then greater Opportunities of informing themselves of the Imposture, if there had been any, and had therefore the greater means of being certified that there was none. And Men of great Parts and Accomplishments, fuch as Sergius Paulus, Governor of Cyprus, Dionyfius the Areopagite, Juftin Martyr, Tertullian, and others, who were inquifitive Men, and able to make a true Judgment of things, upon a full Examination of all Particulars, became early Converts to the Christian Religion. 2. There are peculiar Marks of Sincerity in all the Writings of the Apostles and Evangelifts. They were not ambitious of being known to the World by their a their Writings, but wrote only as they were by neceffity drawn to it, for the farther propagation of the Gofpel. And upon all occafions they declare their own Frailties and Faults, and many times fuch as could never have been known but from themselves. St. Matthew had spent the former part of his Life in no very creditable Employment, but among Publicans and Sinners, as he fays himfelf: for he leaves recorded to all Posterity, the Cenfure of his own Life, fay-: ing, that he fat at the receipt of custom, Matt. ix. 9,10. and ftyling himself Matthew the Publican, Matt. x. 3. Eufebius obferves, that none of the other Evangelists have mention'd a thing fo reproachful of him, as his having been a Publican, but St. Matthew only has written it of himself: For it was the opinion not only of Eufebius, but of Origen, and of Heracleon, that St. Matthew and Levi, mention'd Mark ii. 14. Luke v. 27. were two different Perfons; and Grotius is of the fame opinion. Or if Matthew and Levi were the fame Perfon, St. Mark writes, that Jesus fat at meat in Levi's house; and St. Luke, that Levi made him a great feaft in his own house; but St. Matthew fays only, as Jefus fat at meat in the house, not mentioning in whose houfe, though he omits nothing that the others fet down, but the mention of his own Hofpitality. St. Ferom fays, that the other Evangelifts, out of Respect to St. Matthew, call'd him by that Name, which was lefs known than Matthew; being of opinion, that St. Matthew had alfo the Name of Levi. d Eufebius alfo takes notice, that St. Matthew places himself after St. Thomas, in the Catalogue of the Apostles, whereas the other Evangelifts place him first. с St. Peter gives an ample Teftimony to St. Paul's Epiftles, 2 Pet. iii. 16. notwithstanding what is writ a Euseb. Eccl. Hift. lib. iii. c. 23. b Eufeb. Demonftr. lib. iii. c. racl. apud Clem. Alex. ftro. lib. • Hieron. ad Matt. ix. 9. 5. Orig. contra Celf. lib. i. Eufeb. Dem, Evang. ib. He ten e ten of himself in that to the Galatians. In St. Mark's Gofpel, which was written from the account, that that Evangelist had from St. Peter, when St. Peter anfwer'd our Saviour, that he was the Christ, no farther is faid of our Saviour's Reply, but that he charged them that they should tell no man of him, Mark viii. 30. St. Peter, omitting that honourable Character given him by our Saviour, and the Power of the Keys beftow'd upon that occafion, which is at large related by St. Matthew, Matt. xvi. 16. But immediately after St. Peter's Behaviour towards our Saviour is fully related; which was fo unfeemly, as that he began even to rebuke Chrift for fpeaking of his Sufferings, and extorted that fevere Rebuke from Meeknefs it felf, 2 Get thee behind me Satan. This St. Peter has left written of himself by St. Mark, who wrote by the Approbation and Direction of St. Peter; but the honourable part is past over in Silence, though belonging to the fame time and place. So again, the Denial of St. Peter is related in all its Circumstances of Aggravation, by St. Mark, as well as by St. Matthew, Matt. xxvi. Mark xiv. He acquaints us, that without any Torments or Menaces, or the least Compulfion, at the bare question of a poor Maid, he deny'd his Master, and that he deny'd him thrice, and the laft time even with Oaths and Imprecations, which are not mention'd by St. Luke and St. John, Luk. xxii. Joh. xviii. A Man, that delivers these things of himfelf, plainly fhews, that he is fo far from all Vanity and feeking his own Praise, that he can be supposed to have no other aim or defign, but to declare the Truth to the Glory of God, and the Benefit of Mankind though it prove to be never fo much to his own Difgrace. And they relate, that as foon as our Saviour was apprehended, all his Difciples for fook him and • Tertull. adv. Marc. 1.iv. c. 5. Iren. 1. 3. c. 1. Origen. apud Eufeb. 1. 6. c. 25. fled, fled, when they might have been able to have witneffed in his behalf, and to have confronted Judas, who, they might well believe, would have turn'd his Accufer, after he had betray'd him. But St. Peter foon repented, and both he and St. John took courage, and return'd to fee what became of their Mafter, and both St. Peter's Denial, and their leaving their Mafter thus in his Distress, might never have been known, unless they had discover'd it themselves. The Reproofs, and fometimes very fevere Reprehenfions, which were given them by Christ, could never have come to our Knowledge, but by their own Information; as that they were blamed for having little Faith, Matt. xvi. 8. no Faith, Mark ix. 19. that our Saviour upbraided them with Unbelief and Hardnefs of Heart, Mark vi. 52. viii. 17. xvi. 14. for being foolish and flow of Heart, to believe all that the Prophets have spoken, Luke xxiv. 25. They declare, that they were ambitious, and emulous, and fond of Temporal Honours; that they had very wrong Notions of Chrift and his Kingdom, and they fet forth at large how timorous, and how difficult they were of Belief, and how very scrupulous and diffident of Chrift's Refurrection. St. Paul, the great Apoftle of the Gentiles, as St. Peter was the Apostle of the Circumcifion, by his Difciple and Companion St. Luke, has likewife left an account of himself, which none but a fincere honest Man, regardless of his own Praise, would ever have fuffer'd to be given of him. St. Luke says, that the Witnesses against St. Stephen, laid down their cloaths at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul, Acts vii. 58. and that he was confenting to St. Stephen's death, which he repeats twice, and once from St. Paul's own Mouth in his Speech to the Jews, Acts viii. 1. xxii. 20. He fays, that St. Paul made havock of the Church, A&ts viii. 3. and breathing out threatnings and flaughter against the Difciples of the Lord, went unto the high-priest, and and defired of him Letters to Damafcus, Acts ix. 1, These are not the words of one, that had a design to diffemble or extenuate in favour of any one. And out of a deep fense of this offence, though it were committed ignorantly in unbelief, St. Paul declares himfelf to be the leaft of the Apoftles, and not meet to be called an Apoftle, because he had perfecuted the Church of God, I Cor. xv. 9. and at another time ftiles himself less than the leaft of all Saints, Eph. iii. 8. and chief of finners, 1 Tim. i. 15. afcribing all to the Power and Grace of God. St. Luke relates, that there was a fharp contention between St. Paul and St. Barnabas, Acts xv. 39. and St. Paul tells the Galatians, that he had with stood St. Peter to the face, Gal. ii. 11, 14. So plain it is, that they did not act by any confederacy between themselves, and that the Truth was dearer to them than any thing befides. In the mean time the Apostles have left behind them little or no account of their journeyings, and labours, and fufferings, only St. Paul mentions fome things of himself upon a neceffary occafion; the reft we have from St. Luke, and he fpeaks chiefly of St. Paul, and of him only till his firft coming to Rome, and of St. Peter very little in comparison, of the reft of the Apoftles, fcarce any thing in particular: fo little defign had they of propagating themselves a Name to Pofterity. men. St. Paul ufed all lawful compliances, and he, who when the honour of Religion was concerned, made fo ftout oppofition to St. Peter himself, at other times, when he might fafely do it, became all things to all And he joins others together with himself in the beginning of many of his Epiftles, (1 Cor. i. 1. 2 Cor. i. 1. Gal. i. 1. Colof. i. 1. 1 Theff.i.1. 2 Thess. i. 1. Philemon i.) Which was a great condefcenfion, and a kind of communicating his Authority to them, whom he took, as it were, into commiffion with himfelf. But when through the malice and infinuations of falfe Apostles, he was forced to fpeak in his own defence, |