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"the Archipelago in Winter, Spring, "and Summer, but that the Garden "Fig is not ripe there, till the End "of Auguft, or the beginning of Sep"tember." From all which, we may be allow'd to conclude, that there might be Figs in Judea fit to eat, at the Time when our Saviour went to look for fome on this Tree: and therefore,

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Secondly, To accommodate the Words The difof St. Mark (28 nv naipo's σunwv) to ferent this Circumftance, fome have thought explainfit to read them by way of Interrogati- ing Mark on, for was it not the Time of Figs? Which small Variation, and including Part of the Sentence in a Parenthefis, will make the whole Verfe run thus; And, feeing a Fig-Tree afar off, having Leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon (and when he came to it he found nothing but Leaves) for was it not the Time of Figs? The Interrogation, fay they, has here the full Force of an Affirmation, and, by the help of the Parenthesis, is a very good Reason for what went immediately before it, viz. our Saviour's Expectance of finding Fruit on the Tree, for well might he do fo, when it was the proper Seafon for Figs,

: Dr. Pearce, p. 12.

Others

Others imagine, that by the Words, for the Time of Figs was not yet, may not improperly be meant, that the * Figtime, or time, when Figs were wont to be gather'd, was not yet come; and fo, keeping the Parenthefis, as before, in the middle of the Sentence, the Words will account for our Saviour's going to the Fig-Tree, if haply he might find any Thing thereon. The only Difficulty is to prove, that the Time of Figs may fignify the Time of gathering them; but for this they produce feveral Authorities, and, among others, one in St. Matthew, who, in the Parable, tells us, that when the Lord of the Vinyard fent his Servants to the Husband-men, that they might receive the Fruits of it, it was when the Time of the Fruit drew near, i. e. when the Time of gathering it was at hand. For, if it is not fuppofeable, that the Servants were fent more early, than there was occafion, the Time of ripe Grapes might then be come, tho' the Time of gathering them drew but near. Taking the Time of Figs then for the Time of gathering them, we muft obferve

! Ibid. p. 13. * Vid. Kidder's Demonft. Part 2. F. 38, 39, where, by feveral parallel Inftances he fhews both that this may be the Senfe of the Word nargis, and that a Parenthefis, in the Place, is neceffary.

ferve farther, that, on the Second Day of unleavened Bread, i. e. about five or fix Days after our Saviour's thus coming to this Tree, the firft Fruits of all that was then ripe were folemnly prefented in the Temple, nor were the Owners of any Trees permitted to gather in their Fruit, but oblig'd to let it hang (how ripe foever it was) until that Day was come; and, confequently, if no Fruit Trees were as yet gather'd, our Saviour was far from acting a ridiculous part, in expecting to find fomething upon a Fig-Tree, that look'd fo promifing at a Distance.

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But the cleareft Solution, feems to be that, which arifes from what has been obferv'd concerning the different kinds of Fig-Trees, which grew in Judea, and the different Times of their Fruit's coming to Maturity. For, if there were two Sorts of Fig-Trees in Judea, the one much earlier than the other, and thence two Seasons of ripe Figs, the one much later than the other, and (as 'tis natural to suppose) the later much more common and plentiful than the former; the later was properly called the Time. of Figs, and the Evangelift might very truly fay, that, at the Time of the Paffover, it was not yet come, i. e. the

Dr. Pearce, p. 14.

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common and ordinary Seafon for Figs was not come. "Some Trees, 'tis true, "might have Fruit at that Time, and "the Tree, which our Saviour faw at a "Distance, by the fhew of its Leaves, "promised no lefs. In the early kind, " he knew Leaves came later than the "Fruit, and therefore Leaves, at this "Time, he took for a good Sign of its "being one of those; but a strong "and vigorous Plant (though it was "of the later Sort) might fometimes

put out its Leaves, before it had "Fruit: And therefore he came, not "with Affurance, but with fome De(c gree of Doubtfulness, if haply he "might find any thing thereon; and, "when he came to it, he perceived, "that, it being of the later Sort, had "nothing but Leaves, for the common "and ordinary Seafon, for fuch Trees "to bear Fruit, was not yet come.

Thus, whether the Paffage in St. Mark be understood by Way of Negation, or Interrogation; or whether the Time, Chrift's mentioned therein, relates to the Time expectof ripening, or gathering the Figs, there can be no Folly or Abfurdity in our Saviour's expecting Fruit on the Tree, he faw in the Way, fince it is evident, from fo many Teftimonies, that in Judea there were certain Fig-Trees, which,

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at this very Season of the Year, bore ripe Fruit, though the particular Tree, which our Saviour went to at this Time, might not happen to be of that Species

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It is to be remembered however, that Chrift's this Tree (of what kind foever it was) ing the food" by the Way, i. e. " was a Tree Tree neiof common Right, which grew in a com- ther an unjust mon Field, and was diftinct from fuch, as were planted in Gardens and Orchards, and had their proper Owners; fo that the Fruit, which our Saviour expected to have had from it, would have been no other, than that of an uncultivated Tree, in a mere Hedge-Row, ufually as common, and as plentiful, as Apples growing by the Highway in Herefordhire. But, even if the Tree had stood in enclos'd Ground, and been never fo much the Property of any one Man, yet had our Saviour a right, and a legal right too, both to pull and eat of the Fruit of it, even in Virtue of the Law, that he then liv'd under: For thus we read, When thou comeft into thy Neighbours Vineyard, then thou mayeft eat Grapes to thy fill, at thine own Pleafure; but thou shalt not put any in thy Veffel: And when thou comeft into the ftanding

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* Matt. xxi. 19. Bp. Smallbroke's Vind. p. 418. Deut. xxiii. 24, 25.

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