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Nor any Intelli

Whether the three, whom our Savigence from our was pleased to raise, after their rethem of turn to Life again, gave any Tidings a feparate concerning the Circumftances of their

State.

V

separate Existence, is what we cannot fo much as conjecture, unless we had some Knowledge, whether their Souls might exist, and yet be under a Sufpenfion of their Operations, at leaft without an Acceffion of any new Ideas, for as long a time, as they were out of the Body; or, if new Ideas were communicated in their feparate State, whether they retain'd them after their Re-union, or were permitted to divulge them, or capable indeed of expreffing them by the common Forms of Speech, which are only adapted to material and fenfible things. Our Saviour himself, who was from above, who was in the Bofom of the Father, and came to teach us all things necessary to Religion, has not thought fit to give us any distinct and particular Account of the other World. * St. Paul, who had abundance of Revelations, who was caught up into the third Heaven, and - into Paradife, has not attempted any fuch thing; but declares only, that what he heard there, were things unSpeakable, and what it was not lawful for a Man to utter. The Gofpel, in the main,

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Lardner's Vind. p. 48.2 Coy. xii. 2, 7.

main, has made known unto us the Certainty of the Resurrection of the Juft and Unjuft, their final Judgment, and the different Awards of everlasting Pu⚫ nifhment to the Wicked, and eternal Life to the Righteous. What they say of thefe Matters is great and awful, and fufficient to affect the Minds of all, that read and believe them; infomuch, that thofe, who will not be convinced by these general Declarations, would not be perfuaded, though one rofe from the dead, and told them never fo many Particulars concerning the State of a feparate Exiftence. Upon the whole therefore, we may be allow'd to say, that a Silence of thefe Particulars, inftead of difparaging, tends to the Honour of the Evan gelifts; who, when they wrote the Hiftory of the Preaching and Miracles of Jefus, have not recorded Dreams, and Visions, and abftrufe Theories of a future State, for the Amusement of Mankind, but certain and important Truths taught by him for their Edification.

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Hitherto it appears that there is no No CollIncongruity in the feveral Stories, as they fion or are related by the Evangelifts; and, that Fallacy in there can be no Sufpicion of Fallacy in racles. the Miracles themselves, is what we shall now endeavour to eyince. y That the

• Defence of Script. Hift. p. 13.

feveral

The Cafe of the Widow's Son.

feveral Perfons, whom our Saviour raifed to Life, were actually dead, or at leaft were all of them treated as dead Perfons by their Friends and Relations, is evident and inconteftible. For, when our Lord came to Jarus's House, he found the Minstrels there, and the People making great Lamentation; the Widow's Son was carrying to his Grave; and Lazarus had been actually buried feveral Days. But 'tis Nonfense to believe, that thofe about the Ruler's Daughter would have call'd in the mufical Inftruments, as the manner of Funerals among the Jews was; or that the Widow would have fuffer'd her only Son to be carried forth as a Corpse; or Martha and Mary their Brother to be fo long buried; had there not been, in these feveral Cafes, all the Evidence of Death that Reason and Senfe could give.

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'Tis confefs'd indeed, that common Fame affords Inftances of the mistaken Deaths of Perfons, who have fometimes been unfortunately buried alive, and at other times happily restored to Life; and therefore, for Argument's fake, let us fuppofe for once, that this Widow's Son of Nain, might poffibly be in a Lethargick State; yet fince all about him concluded

2 Vid. Lewis's Antiq. of the Heb. Rep. Vol. 3.

P. 371.

cluded him to be dead, and accordingly were carrying him to his Funeral, how could Jefus (fuppofing him to be an Impoftor) know, or fo much as fufpect, that he was only in a Lethargy; or if he fufpected that, how could he tell farther at what precife time the Man would wake out of it? a What then are we to believe in this Cafe? Why, that Jefus needlefsly offer'd himself to a publick Trial, without the leaft Profpect of Succefs. The Company met him accidentally upon the Road, but no-body asked or challenged him to raise this Man to Life. It was entirely his own offer; and thereupon he either did, or did not, fuppofe him to be dead. If he fuppofed him to be dead (as he had abundant Reason) he muft needs know (upon the foot we are now arguing) that it was not in his Power to raife him. If he did not fuppofe him dead, but hop'd that there might be fome Mistake in the Matter, the Hazard of being difappointed, in prefuming upon a Cafe, which scarce happens once in a Century, added to this farther Hazard, that (even prefuming this to be the Cafe) the Man might not poffibly awake upon his touching the Bier, and calling upon him

A a

• Defence of Script. Hift. p. 16.

to

Of Farus's

Daugh

ter.

to arife, makes the Chance against him to out-run all reckoning.

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The like is to be faid in the Cafe of Jarus's Daughter. Here a Perfon of Note requests of him to go and heal his Child, which was at the point of death : before he could get to the House, a Meffenger comes and acquaints the Father, that she was actually dead. Upon this change in the Cafe, Jefus is fo far from excufing himself, (as he had a fair Opportunity,) that he offers, of his own accord, to go forward, and tells the Father that he would raise her; Be not afraid, fays he, only believe, and fhe ball be made whole. Whatever the Cafe of the Child was in reality, 'tis certain, both by the Meffage of the Servant, and the Appearance of Things, when he came to the Houfe, that Jefus had all the reafon in the World to believe her dead. Here then is an Impoftor making a bold and defperate Pub, which muft either ruin him at once, or establish his Reputation for ever. He undertakes to raise a Person to Life, who, he was affur'd, was dead. If fhe was dead in good earneft, he was undone; his only Hopes refted upon a bare Poffibility, that there might be fome Miftake in the Cafe: Upon thefe Hopes he goes, and

when

Defence of Script. Hift. p.17. • Luke viii. 50.

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