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of Abraham, of1 the Shiloh which was to come, of the Star out of Jacob, of "the Prophet like unto Mofes, of David's righteous Branch, of the Defire of all Nations, of a the Messenger of the Covenant, of the Meffiah the Prince, of the Ruler of Ifrael, whofe goings forth have been of old, and whofe Name was to be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Thefe are Titles of too high a Strain for any mortal Man, and must therefore be reputed express Prophefies of the Son of God incarnate.

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direct.

But, as "no Prophesy of the Scripture And ois of any private Interpretation, (i. e. the thers inmeaning of Prophefies is not, what perhaps the Prophet himself might imagine, in his private Judgment, of the State of Things then prefent,) because the Prophefy of old came not by the Will of Man, but holy Men fpake, as they were moved by the Holy Ghost; therefore is it reasonable to fuppofe, that fome Prophefies, though they may have reference to a nearer Eyent, may nevertheless be dictated by the Spirit in fuch Terms, as make them equally, if not more, applicable to another greater, G 3

and

" Deut. xviii.

9 Mal. iii. I.

'Gen. xlix. 10. m Num. xxiv. 17. 15. Jer. xxiii. 5. P Hag. ii. 6. 'Dan. ix. 25. Micah v. 2. Ifa. ix. 6,7. 2 Pet. j. 10.

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And others allufive on

ly.

and more diftant Event, which the Providence of God might then have in view: And these we may call indirect Prophefies.

X

The Analogies between the Pafchal Lamb, and the Lamb flain from the Foundation of the World; between the Egyptian Bondage, and the Tyranny of Satan; between the Baptifm of the Ifraelites in the Sea and the Cloud, and the Baptifm of Chriftians; between the Paf Jage through the Wilderness, and through the prefent World; and between the High-Priests entering into the holy Place, every Year, with Blood of others, and Chrift's once entering, with his own Blood, into Heaven it felf, to appear in the Prefence of God for us: These, I fay, and innumerable other Analogies between the Shadows of good Things to come, and the heavenly Things themselves, are abundant Teftimonies, that the Apoftles many times made ufe of typical Reasoning; and that, at other times, they applied Texts out of the old Teftament purely by the way of Allufion, is a Matter too evident to be contested. For, when our Saviour filences the Scribes, who were offended at the Childrens crying Hofanna's to him, with a Quota

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Clarke's Evidence of Natural and Revealed Religion. Heb. ix. 25.

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Quotation out of the Pfalmift, Out of the Mouth of Babes and Sucklings haft thou perfected Praife; when he excufes his Difciples for plucking the Ears of Corn, when they were hungry, on the Sabbath-Day, from the Words of the Prophet, I will have Mercy and not Sacrifice; and, in like manner, when St. Paul proves the Chriftian Minifters right to Maintenance from this Precept in the Law, Thou shalt not muzzle the Mouth of the Ox that treads out the Corn; and enforces the Duty of Liberality to the Poor, with a Paffage out of the Jewish Hiftory, He that gathered much, had nothing over, and he that gathered little, had no lack; 'tis obvious, that they both meant no more by these Citations, but only to allude to fome known Sentence in the Old Teftament, in order to ftrengthen the Argument, or illuftrate the Subject, they were upon.

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To fuch as are accustomed only to The meaning. modern Languages, and understand not of St. the Nature of the Hebrew and Syriack MatSpeech, it may feem very furprizing, that it that St. Matthew fhould fo frequently might he introduce his Citations, that it might be fulfilled. fulfilled, which was spoken by the Prophet: but whoever confiders the Idiom

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Matt. xxi. 26. Pfal. viii. 2. Deut. xxv. 4.
Exod. xvi. 18,

St. Mai

of thofe Languages, cannot but know,
that the Phrafe, anfwering to thefe
Expreffions, that it might be fulfilled,
means no more, than that hereby was vẹ-
rified, or that this Event anfwered to
the Prediction, or the like. For that
no Event can happen merely for the
fake of the Prediction, or, (in other
Words,) that nothing can be done, pro-
perly for this End, that a Prophefy may
be fulfilled thereby, is very evidenţ;
because, on the contrary, the reafon
why any thing is predicted, always is
because the thing was (before that Pre-
diction) appointed to be done. Since
the Jews then were accustomed to fay,
that a Paffage of Scripture was then
fulfilled, when any thing happened,
that was applicable to it, 'tis no won-
der at all, that St. Matthew, who him-
felf was a Jew, and very probably
wrote his Gospel in the Hebrew Tongue,
for the use of his Countrymen, fhould
naturally fall into their Style and Man-
ner of Expreffion.

Now, whoever confiders the State of theau's Ap the Jews in Egypt, their Bondage, and plication of Hafea Danger of utter Extinction, by reason xi. 1. of the Decree, that paffed for the De

ftruction of all their Male-Children
(had not the Providence of God pre-

Le Clerc upon Matt. ii. 17.

vented

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vented the Execution of it) will foon perceive the Caufe, why Egypt is made, in Scripture, the common Figure and Emblem of extreme Danger and imminent Death; and why a Deliverance out of Egypt fhould be applied to every great and furprizing Act of Prefervation, where there feem'd to be no vifible Means of escape, infomuch that, whenever any Inftance of fuch a watchful and protecting Providence happen'd, it was an ufual and proverbial Speech among the Jews, (who were wont then, as they are ftill, to apply Sentences out of Holy Writ to the common Occurrences of Life,) to fay, in Scripture Phrafe, Out of Egypt have I called my Son, or He hath called him out of Egypt, i. e. he hath refcued him from the Jaws of Death, or from the like Danger, that the Ifraelites were in, when he brought them out of Egypt with an mighty Hand and a fretched-out Arm. Since Jofeph then was ordered to flee into Egypt, and to tarry there until Herod was dead, for this Reafon, because Herod fought the young Child's Life; this distinguishing Prefervation of Jefus, by means of his Retreat, till the Danger was over, will juftify the Evangelift (even though it had been any other Country, as well as Egypt,

where

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