curve history to ferve fyftem is neither wife nor juft; but Augufline knew how much depended on affirming that only his own party could baptize. There is in the royal library at Turin a manufcript of the twelfth century, containing a fabulous hiftory of the old and new teftament, and in it is a fanciful reprefentation of baptifm, and on one fide of the picture thefe words, "Ubi XPS. et Ihoannes in Iordane flumine tin&ti fyerunt.”—"Where Chrift and John were baptized in the river Jordan (2)." It is not wonderful that fuch a man, pretending to infpiration, fhould utter oracles; but it is really aftonishing that any fhould be fo inconfiftent, with the true hiftories in their hands, as to believe him. It doth not appear that John baptized any perfons of rank and fortune. No great names were feen among his converts. The Pharifees in reputation for piety, and the lawyers famous for their knowledge of the law, rejected the counfel of God by John, and were not baptized by him. This, however, to fuch as know the men, doth not form even a prejudice in disfavour of the miniftry of John. It is generally fuppofed, John baptized great multitudes. His converts indeed were of the multitude, but it is far from being clear that they were very numerous. All Jerufalem, all Judea, and all the region round about, went out to him; many of the Pharifees and Sadducees. came to his baptifm, but they went only as spectators, they went out, as the Lord Jefus expreffes it, for to fee (3), and this will appear most worthy of belief to fuch as confider the general character of the Jewish populace and their blind guides, and the pre-requifites neceffary to John's baptifm, especially when it is obferved, that after the refurrection of Jefus (and it is fuppofed all Chriftians faw him) the greatest number of believers affembled together at any one time were not many above five hundred (4). John's difciples were of the common people, of that clafs of mankind, which of all others is most friendly to free inquiry. In the kingdom of heaven which John was forming, rank was nothing, fuperiour faculties were nothing, moral excellence was all in all, and faith and repentance were indifpenfible qualifications for baptifm; for on John's part there was no collufion, on that of his converts no blind credulity, and the individuals whom the Baptift formed into a people were diftinguished. by three characters, a character of freedom, a character of piety, and a character of virtue. I. A character of freedom. John taught, but he employed no force, he used no allurements, offered no bribes, nor did any thing to give (2) P. M. PACIAUDII Antiq. Chriftian. Romæ 1755. Differt. 2. cap. 8. Membranaceus is eft, fignatus que D. v. 39. (3) MAT. iii. 5. 7.....xv. 7, 8, 9. (4) 1 Cor. xv. 6.....MAT, xxviii, 10.....JOHN xx. 17. an It was an unworthy biafs. He publifhed a fact, of the truth of which all the II. A character of piety. The fact was contained in the prophecies, and the difciples of John believed them, giving themfelves up by baptifm to the guidance of him whomfoever God had appointed Lord of the œconomy, whenever it should please God to make him known. III. A character of virtue. I baptize you, faid John, at, or upon your repentance, your invifible abhorrence of fin, manifefted by fruits meet for repentance, that is, by reformation. Except in one inftance, John baptized only perfons having these characters. This one inftance was the baptifm of Jefus. In perfect freedom, with eminent piety and virtue, but without any profeffion of repentance, Jefus was baptized. By this he entered on his publick miniftry. When John began to baptize at Bethabara beyond Jordan, his first baptifinal ftation, Jefus refided at Nazareth in Galilee, and he did not arrive at Bethabara till all the people had been baptized (5). There is fome difficulty in harmonizing this part of the hiftory. The following appears the most probable train of events. The Jews had many ills of various kinds, and they expected a deliverer, but, more fenfible to civil inconveniences, than to fpiritual diforders, and to the condition of their own nation than to that of all mankind, they hoped to fee a temporal prince invefted with power to gratify the ambition and avarice of the feed of Abraham. When John appeared proclaiming the coming of the Meffiah, the rulers of the metropolis fent meffengers to him to obtain authentick information of what he meant. John informed them of what he knew, that he did not pretend to be the Meffiah, that however he was standing among them, and would in due time be made known. John and Jefus were near akin, their mothers were intimate, and John it feems knew him when he came to be baptized, and paid that refpect to him which was due from a man of inferiour talents and virtue to his fuperiour. When Jefus came to Jordan, John, knowing his general character, faid, I have need to be baptized of thee; but he did not know till after he had baptized him, that he was the Meffiah, for He, who fent him to baptize, had informed him that he fhould know the Meffiah from every other man by a vifible fign. I knew him not, but that he should be made manifeft unto Ifrael. I knew him not, but he that fent 31. 33. John i me to baptize with water, the fame faid unto me, upon whom thou shalt fee the Spirit defcending and remaining, the fame is he. To Bethabara, amidft a great multitude of spectators, in prefence of those who had been baptized, and were now in waiting for him, a people prepared for the Lord, and while John was converfing with the deputation from Jerufalem, Jefus came to be baptized, giving by his conduct, as well as by his language to John, the most unequivocal proof of his intire approbation of water baptifm. Thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteoufnefs. The very handfome and refpectful manner in which John received Jefus, and the converfation that paffed between them, no doubt, held up Jefus to the multitude as fome perfon of fingular merit, produced a pause, and a profound filence, and attracted every eye to behold the man. Immediately after John had baptized Jefus, he went up out of the water praying, and while he was going up the clouds. parted, and a bright light appeared hovering over him, falling and rifing, rifing and falling, as a dove hovers when it is about to alight, and at length fettling on him. This was placing his perfon in full view, fo that his features could not be mistaken, and, to thofe who faw him, his face muft ever after have been the best known face in Judea. While the fpectators were beholding this new and ftrange appearance, a voice from heaven faid, This is my beloved fon, in whom I am well pleafed. John feeing the promifed fign, exclaimed, addreffing himself to the deputation from Jerufalem, This is he of whom I faid, he that cometh after me is preferred before me, and he repeated the fame record the two fucceeding days, on feeing Jefus walking, and fo engaged his difciples to deliver themfelves up to the Son of God, which was the chief defign of his miniftry. It is fuppofed the deputation from Jerufalem was prefent, because fome time after, when Jefus was at Jerufalem he reproved the citizens. for their obftinate infidelity, fpoke of the embaffy to John, and, according to fome criticks, referring to the voice from heaven and the luminous. appearance, afked, Have ye never at any time heard his voice, or feen his Shape (6)? implying that they had. John had foretold that Jefus would baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire, and various opinions are formed of his meaning. An ingeNum. xxxi. nious foreigner fuppofes (7), that John alluded to a ftatute in the law,. 23. which (6) JOHN v. 33, &c. DR. MACKNIGHT quoted in the Theological Repofitory. Vol. i. p. 55.fecond edit. (7) CONRAD. IKINI. Differt. Philol-Theol. Lugd. 1749. Dif. xix. Johannes ut minister et præcurfor fervatoris baptizabat tantum externa aqua ad refipifcentiam, fervator autem ut Dominus, imo ut longe potentior digniorque, baptifinum fpiritualem efficaciorem que erat adminiftraturus, partem graciofis blandifque fpiritus fancti donis, aquæ luftrali et purificanti. comparari fulitis, illifque qui fpiritualem mundationem anhelabant concedendis, partim vero acerbioribus which fays, Every thing that may abide the fire, ye fhall make it go through the fire.. and all that abideth not the fire, ye fhall make it go through the water: and that he intended to inform the Jews, not of the tongues of fire to be exhibited at Pentecoft, but only in general, that Jefus would exercise a much more effectual miniftry than he, that he would purify fome by exciting in them acute convictions, and by trying them with great calamities, and that he would punish the refractory and finally impenitent with destruction. Others (8) understand this of the effufion of the spirit at Pentecoft, which fenfe feems to be countenanced by these words, John baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days bence. CHAP. V. Whether the Baptifm of John were taken from any Jewish Washings, particularly that of Profelytes? IT T is not pleasant to leave the high road of narration for the thorny paths of controversy. It is a drudgery, however, which men of great refpectability have obliged fuch as narrate the ftory of Baptifm to undergo. It is not impoffible to ftate the cafe without entering into the difpute. Before any reasonings from Jewifh wafhings, or the baptifm of profelytes, as it is improperly called, can be admitted in debates concerning. Chriftian baptifm, order requires, that the fact be afcertained. Purifications of profelytes indeed there were, but there never was any fuch ceremony as baptifm in practice before the time of John. If fuch a rite had exifted, the regular priests, and not John, would have administered. it, and there would have been no need of a new and extraordinary acerbioribus convictionibus, quin et tribulationibus atque afflictionibus, obftinatioris duriorifque ingenii homines velut igne purgans, et ad meliorem frugem reducens, aut graviffimis judiciis in plane refractarios jufte animadvertens, qualis duplicis luftrationis, in mundatione feu baptifmo vaforum inquinatorum aqua aut igne facto, elegantiffimum emblema quondam non folum a Deo ipfo in lege exhibitum, fet et perpetuo ufu inter Judæos femper obfervatum eft, et in hunc diem ufque conftanter obfervatur, quemadmodum et ab ipfis idcirco jam fimilis metaphora inde defumpta, et ad ipfum baptifmum ejufque myfterium tranflata eft.....Num. xxxi. 23. (8) ZVINGLII de Baptifmo. Lib. De prima baptifmi origine.....CALVINI Inft. iv.. 15. 10. CHEMNITII Exam. Trident. ad Canon. de Bapt... BULLINGERI adv. Anabapt. Lib. vi. cap. i.....MUSCULI Loc. com. De Bapt.....CHAMIERI Panftrat, tom. iv. De Bapt. appointment: appointment from heaven to give being to an old eftablished custom, nor would it have been decent for John, or any other man, to treat native Jews, efpecially Jefus, who had no Paganifm to put away, as Pagan profelytes were treated. This uninterefting fubject hath produced voluminous difputes, which may be fairly cut fhort by demanding at the outfet fubftantial proof of the fact, that the Jews baptized profelytes before the time of John, which can never be done. It is remarkable of this controverfy, that they, who moft earneftly take the affirmative, are of all men the least interested; for could a chriftian rite be taken off the ground of immediate divine appointment, and placed on that of human traditions, Chriftianity would lofe much of its glory; leaft of all are they interested in it, who intend to establish a law to fprinkle the infants of Chriftians, upon proving, that the Jews had a custom of dipping men and women when they renounced Paganism. In this hopeless affair, could the fact be demonftrated, no advance would be made in the argument; for it would be eafy to prove, that if it were by tradition, Jewish traditions neither have nor ought to have any force with Chriftians: and that if it were even an inftitute of Mofes, the ceremonies of Mofes were abolished in form by an authority which Acts xv. 24. no Chriftians will oppofe. The legislator of the Jews inftituted what an apostle (1) calls divers washings, which were not intended to be perpetual, but were impofed by Mofes on the Jews until the time of reformation by the Meffiah, as all the other ceremonies of that religion were. The regular way of confidering this fubject is to fet out with an inquiry into the duration of the Mofaical economy, or, to use the language of fcripture, the precife period in which Mofes was to be heard in the character of a lawgiver. This queftion receives an answer from Mofes himself, who faid to the Jews of his own time, and entered it into a publick record (2) for the information of their fucceffors, The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall bearken. According to all that thou desiredft of the Lord thy God in Horeb, in the day of the affembly, faying, Let me not hear again the voice of the Lord my God; neither let me fee this great fire any more, that I die not. And the Lord faid unto me, they have well spoken that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth, and he shall Speak unto them all that I fhall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whofoever shall not hearken unto my words, which he shall speak in (1) HEE. ix. 10. 12) DEUT. xviii, 15, &c. my name, I |