' drink, wine, mingled with myrrh: but he re'ceived it not.' This seems likewise unasked, and previous to his faftening. Luke says-' And ' the foldiers also mocked, coming to him, and ' offering him vinegar.' This seems likewise unasked, but after he had been some time upon the cross; enduring, not only pain, but the scoffs and infults of the rulers and people. St. John says- After this Jesus, knowing that all things ، were now accomplished; that the fcriptures might 'be fulfilled, faith-I thirst. Now there was fet 6 a vessel full of vinegar, and they filled a sponge * with vinegar, and put it upon hyffop: and put ' it to his mouth. When Jesus therefore had re'ceived the vinegar, he said, It is finished. And 'he bowed his head, and gave up the ghoft.' Here we are told that Jesus did ask for the beverage whatever it was, and his motive for so doing is affigned. We are likewife told that he did receive or drink it; and the time fixed, by John, is just before he expired. I cannot pass this account, without remarking the impropriety of all the evangelifts, in saying, as they do in many parts of their gospel, fuch and such things were done-That the fcriptures might be fulfilledinstead of faying-Thus, or in this, were the scriptures fulfilled. Its prefent form might lead an unbeliever to suspect that Jesus, having afsumed the character of the promised Meffiah, endeavoured that the actions of his life, and circumftances cumstances of his death, should correspond with Chapter Verse the Jewish prophecies of that Meffiah. We will now pursue Matthew's history of what ensued upon the death of Jesus-And behold the vail xxvii. 51 ' of the temple was rent in twain, from the top to the bottom. (Was it poffible to behold this ' from Golgotha?) And the earth did quake, ' and the rocks rent, and the graves were opened, and many bodies of faints which slept, arose, • and came out of the graves after his refurrection, (that was polite) and went into the holy city, ' and appeared unto many. (After which, wé ८ 6 may suppose, they peaceably retired again to their respective graves, as we hear no more of them.) Now when the centurion, and they that were with him watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying-Truly this was the • Son of God.' St. Mark, if he did copy, here falls short of his original; he says And the ، vail of the temple was rent in twain, from the top to the bottom. And when the centurion • which stood over against him, faw that he fo ' cried out (My God, my God, why haft thou ' forsaken me?) and gave up the ghost, he said; ، Truly this man was the Son of God.' An excellent reason, and well expressed: here is no mention of an earthquake, rending the rocks, or opening the graves; and as to rending the temple vail, he could not fee it. What says Luke upon 52 53 54 this subject- Now when the centurion faw what was done (no earthquake mentioned) he glo'rified God saying, Certainly this was a righteous ' man.' Certainly this was a very reasonable conclufion. St. Luke has this fingular and extraordinary addition-' And all the people that came ' together to that fight, beholding the things ' which were done, smote their breasts, and re' turned.' St. John, though present, says not a word upon this interesting subject. He records neither the darkness; the rending of the temple vail; nor even the earthquake which (according to Matthew) produced such tremendous effects : therefore we are not to wonder that the poor centurion is unnoticed. He however gives us an anecdote upon which the fulfilling of two prophecies depended, and therefore wonderful that it should be omitted by the other three. It is, that the foldiers after breaking the legs of the two thieves, finding Jesus already dead, brake not his; but one of them pierced his fide with a spear, in the prefence of John, who says-These things were done, that the fcripture should be fulfilled -'A bone of him shall not be broken.' And again, another scripture faithThey shall look on him whom they pierced.' Matthew proceeds -And many women were there, beholding afar off, (notwithstanding the darkness) which fol'lowed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him. ، Among which was Mary Magdalene, and Mary ' the d the mother of James, and Joses: and the mother of Zebedee's children. (Why not the wife of Zebedee ? if she was so.) Mark fays' there were also women looking on afar off, among ' whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the * mother of James the less; and of Jofes, and Sa lome: who also when he was in Galilee fol *lowed him, and ministered unto him: and many other women which came up with him ' unto Jerufalem.' (Would not those women have been better employed at home? and was the idea of decency, the fame in that age as it is in this?) Luke says-' And all his acquaintance, and the women that followed him from Galilee, 'stood afar off beholding these things.' Thus we find Matthew, Mark, and Luke, though they differ as to the number, and particular women; unite in saying-' they stood afar off, beholding ' these things, Notwithstanding the darkness they all had recorded. John who was present, but records nothing of the darkness, fays-'Now ' there stood by the cross of Jesus, his mother, and ' his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, ' and Mary Magdalene.' What followed could not possibly have happened, had they stood afar off. Nor is is it very probable that it did happen in darkness. These discordant circumstances relative to the darkness; John's total omiffion of it: The earthquake and its tremendous effects, described fo fully by St. Matthew, only noticed 1 by Mark and Luke faying The vail of the tem ple was rent.' And passed wholly unnoticed by John, who, and him only of the evangelifts, was present when these very extraordinary things are faid to have happened-naturally produce a doubt in the mind, as to their reality. These doubts will not be removed by any information to be derived from what is called Prophane Hiftory. In an age of science and learning, how did these things escape the knowledge of the wellinformed historians who wrote in the reign of Tiberius? Nay at this very time Seneca, and the elder Pliny, were each recording, in a very full and accurate manner, every phenomena of nature, which they had observed, heard of, or learnt from history. In a Roman province could two, fuch as these are said to have been, pass neglected by a Roman governor; whose duty it was, at stated times, to tranfmit an account of every material occurrence which happened within his jurisdiction? These were not only within his jurisdiction, but under his eye; not only under his eye; but were (according to Matthew and Mark) the consequences of his own act of authority. What then occafioned his withholding this intelligence? Not the fear of punishment for consenting to the death of an innocent man, a Jew. Jesus was accused of sedition and treason; either of which was death by the Roman laws. What withheld both Pilate and Herod from communi |