and did eat the fhew-bread, which was not lawful for him to eat, neither for them which were with him, but only for the priests?

5 Or have ye not read in the law, how that on the fabbathdays the priests in the temple profane the fabbath,and are blamelefs?

6 But I fay unto

you, that in this place

is one greater than the temple.

Abiathar the high
priest,

and did eat
the fhew-bread, which
is not lawful to eat,
but for the priests,
and gave alfo to them
which were with him?

LUKE.

CHAP. VI.

4. How he went in

to the house of God,

and did take

and eat the fhew-
bread, and gave also
to them that were
with him, which is
not lawful to eat, but
for the priests alone?

宁

Јонм.

The fabbath

was made for man, and

not man for the fab-
bath.

Houfe of Abiathar, who afterwards was High Priest, and with his permiffion not only eat himself, but divided among his Retinue the Loaves that had been confecrated to God, and which it was not lawful for any to eat befides the Priefts. Moreover, faid he, have you not read in Mofes, that Sacrifices are to be offer'd up to God on the Sabbath, whereby the Priefts violate the Reft due to that Day; and yet who ever blam'd them for it? Now, it was the neceffity that David was in, being unprovided of any other Victuals, that excus'd his making ufe of the dedicated Bread; and the neceffary Service of the Temple does alfo abfolve the Priefts. In like manner, 'twas Hunger that prefs'd my Difciples to the making ufe of the Ears of Corn; and this they did, being fatigu'd with their accompanying me in my Journey, whom it is much more their intereft to attend on, than on the daily Sacrifices of the Temple. Befides, know ye not that the Reft of the Sabbath was inftituted for the good of Men, not that it fhould be fo ftrictly obferv'd by them as to endanger their Lives by it, as if it had been made the very end of their Creation? If you had read, and duly weigh'd thofe Words of God

mention'd

mention'd by the Prophet, Hof.6. 6. I defir'd Mercy and not Sacrifice, you would have comprehended how God prefers thofe Virtues that are for the benefit of human Society, before all external Rites, not excepting those which are accounted the most facred by you; and you would have acquitted my Difciples for having thro neceffity deviated from the Duty of the Day in this one particular, rather than to have pafs'd this unjust Cenfure upon that Action.

Upon another Sabbath-day, having enter'd the Synagogue of a certain place he then refided at,he faw a man whom the Palfy had depriv'd of the ufe of his right hand. Wherefore fome of the Pharifees and Lawyers that were prefent, obferv'd Jefus to fee whether he would perform a Cure upon the Man, that they might accufe him of having violated the Sabbath. But he perceiving their Intentions, call'd the

they asked him, faying, Is it lawful to heal on the fabbathdays? that they might accufe him.

II And he faid unto them, What man fhall there be among you, that fhall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the fabbath-day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out?

12 How much then is a man better than a fheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the fabbath-days.

fick man to him, and plac'd him in the middle of the Synagogue. Thefe men hereupon ask'd Jefus whether it were lawful to do Cures upon the Sabbath-day, that according to his Anfwer they might have fomething to accufe him of. Jefus not at all afraid of their Malice, ask'd 'em whether it were not lawful, according to the opinion of the Doctors, and their ordinary practice, if a Sheep fall into a Ditch, to drag it out on the Sabbath-day? Why then, faid he, fhall it not be lawful to do good to Man, who is of fo much more value than a Brute Beast? But I will put another queftion to you: Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath-day; or (if this be not) is it lawful to do evil? May we by the Law preserve Life, or Q destroy

deftroy it? But they made him no reply, concealing their Malice under a fullen Silence, having nothing to object, and yet unwilling to affent to what he had faid

unto 'em.

Jefus then looking round about with indignation at their Obftinacy, with a loud Voice commanded the Paralytic. to ftretch out his Right Hand, which immediately recover'd its former firength and motion. Upon fight of this Miracle, the Pharifees and Sadduces, who were commonly call'd Herodians, tho of contrary Factions to one another, left the Synagogue in a rage, as not having been able to make any reply to the Questions propos d by Jefus, and confulted how to put him to death, or at least inflict fome grievous. Punishment upon him, whom they look'd on as a Violator of the Sabbath..

Fefus

lowed him,

G

and he healed

them all.

حمل

and

a great multitude fol

lowed him

from Galilee and from Judea,

8 And from Jerufalem, and from Idumea, and from beyond Jordan and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they had heard what great things he did, came unto him.

9 And he fpake to his difciples, that a fmall ship should wait on him, because of the multitude, left they thould throng him.

Jefus understanding their Defign, departed from thence with his Difciples, and came to the Country about the Lake of Gennefareth, to which place alfo a vast multitude repair'd, not only out of the adjoining parts of Galilee, but alfo from Judea and Jerufalem it felf, out of Idumaa, Perea, and Phenicia, about Tyre and Sidon, by reafon of his Miracles, the Report of which had been spread all over thofe Countries.

Therefore he order'd his Difciples to have a Boat in readiness for him, that he might avoid the Prefs of the Multitude that throng'd about him: for he not only cur'd thofe he spoke to,or on whom he laid his Hands; but also they that only touched his Clothes, were healed of their Infirmities. Befides, thofe that were poffefs'd,