ing the Meffiah have betrayed them, they will at length give them up, and acquiefce in Chrift Jefus, as the only Saviour promised to their fathers?

Another reafon we have to hope for the converfion of the Jews, is, that they have access to the means of conviction. They live generally amidst a people profeffing Christianity; and, by, converfing with them, have an opportunity of learning the principles and grounds of our religion, which, we truft, are fufficiently clear to convince any impartial inquirer of their truth. And though the Jews prejudices, and hopes of a temporal kingdom, have hitherto shut their eyes, and hindered them from difcerning the evidences of our religion, yet it is to be hoped, that, when length of time hath weakened their prejudices, and cooled their enmity at the Christian name, a more impartial inquiry will lead them to a discovery of the truth.

Some, perhaps, will imagine this argument to have rather a contrary tendency, and that instead of adding to the probability of the converfion of the Jews, it seems rather to detract from it. A perfon's having long had access to the means of grace, without being converted or reformed by them, feems rather to exclude the hope of his converfion; yet certainly there is more reafon to hope for the converfion of fuch a perfon, if he still has access to the means of grace, than if he were in a fituation where he could have no access to them.

A person who has long been under the hands of the physician, and on whom the power of medicine has often been tried in vain, is evidently in a more hopeless condition, than if no attempt had ever been

made

made for the recovery of his health; yet if he ftill has access to the proper remedy, or to the aid of able and faithful Phyficians, there is certainly more hope of his recovery, than if he were in a fituation in which he could have no accefs to these things.

Had the Jews, during their prefent ftate of infidelity, obtained a fettlement either in their own country, or any other part of the world, at a distance from the nations that make profeffion of the Christian Religion, or where they fhould have had lefs access to converse with them, their converfion would also have been lefs probable: But their continuing to live in fuch numbers among Chriftians, and to be in a fituation that gives them accefs to know the evidences of Chriftianity, affords, at leaft, fome ground to hope that they may one day be brought to the acknowledgement of it; and though they have hitherto been proof againft all attempts made to convince them, yet as Divinity, and the knowledge of the Scriptures, as well as of the Arts and Sciences, is daily improving and advancing towards perfection, by which means many new proofs in fupport of Christianity have been of late discovered, and many prophecies of the Old Teftament concerning our Saviour fet in a clearer light, it is probable we shall at length be able to demonftrate the truth of our religion with fuch evidence, as fhall be fufficient, to conquer the prejudices of that obftinate people. But to this it may be objected, that feeing the Jews withstood the force of the preaching and miracles of our Saviour and his Apoftles, there is little reafon to think that any arguments we can now produce will prevail with them. To this it may be answered,

that, in order to convince the Jews of the truth of the Gospel, it does not seem necessary that they should have the fame evidence of it which they had who lived in the times of the Apoftles. The fame degree of evidence is not neceffary to the conviction of all men, nor of the fame perfon at different times. Faith depends as much on the inward difpofition of the mind, as on the ftrength and number of external proofs; and a much lefs degree of evidence will fatisfy a good man, than one of an oppofite character. This being granted, (which might be proved if neceffary) the unbelief of the Jews, in the times of the Apoftles, can be no objection to the poffibility of their converfion in after ages, unlefs we could prove them equally wicked and abandoned; a talk that would be as difficult as uncharitable

The Jews, in the times of our Saviour, were the most wicked generation that ever exifted, as appears from the account given of them by the Evangelifts and their own hiftorian Jofephus; and though their pofterity are not much beholden to fame, yet there is no reafon to think they are quite fo bad, much lefs that they both are, and will be fo, in all fucceeding ages.

It is indeed difficult to determine the degrees in which virtue or vice prevail amongst a people in different ages. But if we may judge of the prefent temper of the Jewish nation by the things they have fuffered, and by the natural tendency of the difpenfations of Providence towards them fince their difperfion, there is reafon to think it is confiderably meliorated. Many are the perfecutions they have fuffered, not only among Chriftians, but in all parts of the

world

world where they have refided: Often have they been deluded by falfe Meffiah's, and difappointed in their carnal hopes; and as these things have a natural tendency to humble their pride, and convince them. of their error, it is hardly to be fuppofed but they have had fome good effect, though they have not yet produced the one that we could wish. Though they are not yet convinced of the falfehood of their peculiar tenets, yet the affent, by which they adhere to them, may be confiderably weakened; and therefore the fame evidence for the truth of the gofpel does not seem neceffary to the converfion of the Jews now as in the days of the Apoftles, and yet it may doubted whether the evidences of Chriftianity are any thing at all diminished from what they were then. It is true, we see no miracles wrought in confirmation of it; but we have all the reafon in the world to believe that they were wrought. Befides the teftimony of the facred writers, and ancient fathers of the Chrif tian church, we have the acknowledgement of fome of the bittereft enemies of Christianity in ancient times in favour of our Saviour's miracles. We have not the lively preachings of the apoftles to perfuade us, but we have their writings and many of their fermons ftill on record. We have alfo many proofs of the Gospel which they who lived in the time of its publication wanted; fuch as the care of Providence in preferving it fo long in the world; in fupporting it against fo many enemies, and refcuing it when buried under the rubbish of antichriftian errors: To which we may add, the accomplishment of the prophecies both of the Old and New Teftament concerning the

lot

lot of the church in the latter days, particularly concerning the rife and fall of the Papacy. So that there is no reason to defpair of the converfion of the Jews for want of evidence to convince them.

Another reason we have to hope for the converfion of the Jews, is the fuccefs that the Gofpel had amongst them at the first promulgation thereof.

In handling the laft head, I afferted, that the Jews of that time were the moft wicked generation of men that ever exifted. But this is only to be understood of the greater part of them; for we are informed by the Evangelift, that great numbers of them were converted by the preaching of the apoftles, which fhews the poffibility of the Jews' converfion, and fo removes a doubt which is apt to rife in the mind when reflecting on this fubject, viz. that there is fomething naturally in the difpofition of that people incompatible with the belief of the Gofpel: It fhews alfo the probability of their converfion; for the Jews, who were brought in at that time, were a kind of firft fruits or earneft of the general converfion, and ingathering of that people It was a fign, that Providence had ftill a kindness for them; that though he had determined, for his own wife ends, to exclude them from the church for a time, yet he would not finally caft them off. Had he not had fome defigns of mercy towards them, he might have rejected them altogether, which would have rendered his juftice in inflicting that judgment more remarkable, and confequently, fo far as we can judge, have answered the defign of it better. He would not in all probability have admitted fuch numbers of them into the Chriftian church, feeing a much

lefs