them to, and to filence all the oppofition and clamour that might' be made against thefe meffengers, or the perfons fent to on that account. And perhaps it is this immediate defcent of the Holy' Ghoft on thefe Gentiles, that St. Paul refers to *, when he fays,' "that he was the minifter of Jefus Chrift to the Gentiles, minif"tering the Gospel of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles (or) "perhaps the firft fruits of the idolatrous Gentiles) might be acદ ceptable; being fanctified by the Holy Ghoft (alluding per"haps to the oil that was to be poured on the firft fruits,' Ifaiah' "lxvi. 20.)" as Peter fays, "The Holy Ghoft bore witnefs, that " he had purified Cornelius's and his family's hearts by faith," (who' were the first fruits of the devout Gentiles); alluding perhaps to the fymbol of fire, in which it is moft likely it fell upon them; or perhaps to the notion of baptifm in general, which is called purification †, or it may be to both. And these firft fruits of the devout and idolatrous Gentiles being thus declared clean and holy, the whole lump was declared fo too; as St. Paul argues in a like cafe, Rom. xi. 16. from whence perhaps it is, that St. Paul speaks fometimes int his Epiftles to the believing Gentiles among the Romans and the Coloffians, where he had not then been, in a ftrain as if they had all the Spirit; for the firft fruits under the law confecrated the whole harveft; though not in fo high a degree as thofe first fruits them-' felves were by which the harvest was confecrated. These feem to me to have been the feveral and the only inftances of the pouring out of the Spirit. But the time of the first and greatest of these effufions deferves our particular attention. It was ten days after Chrift's afcenfion, Acts i. 3. compared with Acts xi. 1. Far be it from me to pretend to give any other account of this celeftial transaction than that the Scriptures lead me to and though I cannot pretend, from what has occurred to me on my reading them, to account why ten days precifely are allotted to it; yet I think there are plain hints why this effufion was not made immediately after Chrift was parted from the apoftles. Those hints I will mention with the modefty that becomes fo great an occafion, and fubmit them to the judgement of the diligent and candid readers of the Bible. After Chrift had finished all the work that God had given him to do, had fhewed himself alive to the apoftles after his paffion, and had given them the commandments which he saw neceffary at that time for their conduct, he is wafted up from the ground, gradually mounts the air in their fight, till a cloud of glory received him out of it. Thus, after his conquering death, and him that had the power of death, that is, the devil, he afcends in triumph in "the chariots of God, which are twenty "thoufand, even thoufands of angels;" as Jehovah defcended on Mount Sinai at the giving of the law. In them he afcends far above the heavens, leading captivity captive:" when firft entering the holy of holies for us, he was feated on "the throne at the Rom. xv. 16. VOL. IV. "right-hand of the Majefty on high; far exalted above all princi"pality and power, and had a name given him above every name, "that at the name of Jefus every knee fhould bow, and every "tongue confefs that Jefus Chrift is Lord *; angels, and autho "rities, and powers being made fubject to him." Nor did any thing remain that was not put under his feet, until the confum"mation of all things, Him only excepted who placed them in this "fubjection to him." He is then anointed with "the oil of "gladnefs," or with the Holy Ghost, "above his fellows," as the king and head of his church +: or "filled with all fullness, receiv"ing the promife of the Father, even gifts for men, that out of "his fulinefs he might fill all things, and we might receive grace "for grace." To fuch a folemnity as this, ten days were appointed at the end of which, after he had thus entered into the most holy place, was feated on his throne, was fitted for all mediatorial power, and invefted with it; he, out of his royal bounty, gives gifts unto men, and bleffes them with all fpiritual bleffings from the heavenly places ; fitting fome to be apoftles, fome to "be prophets, fome to be evangelifts, fome to be paftors and "teachers for the work of the miniftry, for the edifying of the "church;" by their miniftry of the word of reconciliation," he "ruled in the midst of his enemies," fubduing them immediately from the womb of the morning, by this the rod of his ftrength, "or power; and making them a willing people in this the day of "his power §:" who, in token of their ready fubjection to his just authority, pay him the homage which was proper to recognize him as the Lord and heir of all things; and offer their profeffions for the fupport of his kingdoms, by relieving the neceffities of the minifters, and of thofe needy fubjects of which it was chiefly compofed. This confideration of the time of the firft and greatest effufion of the Holy Ghoft may help us to explain what St. John says ||, that "the Holy Ghoft was not given because Jefus was not glorified." Thus much may be observed in general about the time of this effufion. But St. Luke, having pointed out another circumstance of time relating to it, very particularly informs us, that it was "when "the feaft of Pentecoft was fully come **." Now the reason why God feems to have chofen that time for this great event was to fhew, that, as in Chrift's fuffering at the feaft of paffover, Chrift was our true paffover, fo that the giving of the Spirit was that which was prefigured by the feaft of Pentecoft; as it is most probable he was born at the feaft of tabernacles, to point out to us, that the word, or the brightness of the Father's glory," was come to dwell "(or tabernacle) among us ++." The feaft of Pentecoft was appointed to be the morrow after feven weeks from the passover ‡‡, that is, fifty days. The reafon of this was to commemorate the giving of the law at Mount Sinai; it being precisely fifty days from Phil. ii. 9. 12. Deut. xvi.g. + Heb. i. 3.9. ** Aûs ii. I. Eph. i. 3. †† John i. 14. § Pfal. cx. 2, 3. 11 Lev. xv. 16. the the night that the children of Ifrael obferved the firft paffover to God's giving the law there*. Whence all the Jewish writers conclude, that this feast was inftituted in commemoration of giving the law; which Maimonides fays was the great reafon of bringing the children of Ifrael out of Egypt +. Thus it was likewife fifty days after Chrift our paffover was facrificed for us (who refted in his grave on the fabbath, and by rifing, on the firft day of the week, when the fheaf, or the first-fruits of the barley-harveft, was offered unto the Lord, became the firft-fruits of those who flept); it was, I fay, from that day fifty days, that the Holy Ghoft was thed down on the Apostles and their company; to teach them first the laws and doctrines of Chrift, or the things of the kingdom of Chrift, and then to enable them to publish them to others, from Mount Sion, or Jerufalem (the place that God had appointed for his worfhip, and from whence Chrift's fceptre was to go forth to Jews and Gentiles ), who had been ignominioufly crucified there fifty days before. At this feaft the first-fruits of wheat-harvest were to be offered to God in two loaves, which were for the use of the priests §. And on those loaves, as on all the meat-offerings, oil was poured. After which they began to gather in their wheat-harvest, and complete it. Thus likewife the apoftles, having "themselves received the firft"fruits of the Spirit," gathered in that day three thousand fouls, whom they prefented, or offered up unto God, and unto the Lamb, fanctified by the Holy Ghoft, as a kind of first-fruits of his creatures, or his new creatures, or as the firft-fruits of the Jewish-Chriftian church. And then, agreeably to the feafting and rejoicing at all those feafts, and particularly this of Pentecoft |, all the first Chrif tians continued daily in the temple; " and breaking bread from "houfe to house, did eat their meat with gladness, as well as fingle"nefs of heart; praifing God alfo, as well as having favour with "the people **." And the apoftles proceeded farther in their great harvest. Thus was this day well fuited to the dignity of the event, as well as to confirm the truth of the Christian religion, and to furnish several moral inftructions to those who confider this circumftance' of time with the attention it deferves. And as to the feast of Pentecoft being fully come, it carries in it, as Dr. Lightfoot learnedly obferves, a manifeft reference to the inftitution of Pentecoft; which was to be on the morrow after the fabbath, or after the feventh fabbath from the paffover; which makes the fifty days complete, and was called," the day of the first fruits ††," namely, of wheat harveft. But as the Jews reckoned their days evening and morning, this fiftieth day began Saturday-evening, but was not fully come, or completed, till the first day of the week, when the Holy Ghoft fell on them in the morning ft. When the Holy Ghoft did not defcend, but was communicated by the laying on of hands; it is called, "the giving and receiving the See Bishop Patrick's Com. on Exod. xix. 1. Deut. xvi. 11. ‡‡ Acts ii. 15. + Mor. Nev. Exod. xii. 12. xxiii. 16. Lev. xxiii. 17. **Acts ii, 46, 47. tt Numb. xxviii. 26. "Holy E e 2 Holy Ghoft*, and the miniftering of the Spirit †, and imparting fpiritual gifts ." I cannot tell whether the confideration of thefe two different ways, by which the Holy Ghoft came on believers, either inmediately, and in the fymbol of cloven tongues as of fire, or by the laying on of hands, will not help us through a difficulty that occurs, Heb. vi. 2. where the doctrine of baptifms, and of laying on of hands, are reckoned among the first principles of Chriftianity. May not the fenfe of that place be this; namely, the meaning of the doctrine of baptifins be the baptifm of water by which all believers, and the baptifm of the Holy Ghoft and fire be the baptifm by which the firft difciples among the Jews, and the first converts among the devout and idolatrous Gentiles, were initiated? and the meaning of the laying on of hands, fignify the conferring thefe gifts on believers, who had not received them immediately (by the Holy Ghoft's coming down upon them with fire) by the laying on of the hands of the apoftles? and fo both thefe doctrines be the first principles of Chriftianity, inafmuch as baptifms are the firft entrance into it, and the laying on of hands the great evidence of it; as faith and repentance are the fubftance of it, and as a resurrection to eternal judgement is the great motive to induce mankind to embrace it? The moft remarkable things which feem to attend the conferring the Holy Ghoft by the laying on of hands, are, 1. That none but apoftles could confer it. But I fhall do no more than mention this here; referring the reader to the fecond Effay, to which this head more properly belongs. 2. The next thing remarkable in the conferring of the Holy Ghoft by the laying on of the apoftles hands is, that they feem to have communicated it to none but believers (I mean believers unto righteoufneis), and to all believers where they came: whereas the Holy Ghoft fell down but on a few, and very rarely. That the apoftles gave it to none but believers, appears from hence; that they always conferred it after baptifm, when with the mouth "confeffion was made of what they believed in their heart; "making the answers of a good confcience." So we find it was, Acts ii. 38-42. viii. 12- 18. xix. 5-8. And Acts ii. 38. Peter tells the Jews, in anfwer to their question, "What fall we do? "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jefus "Chrift, for the remiffion of fins, and ye fhall receive the gift of "the Holy Ghoft." And because the Spirit was always imparted after baptifm (the cafe of Cornelius only excepted), therefore are believers faid to be "baptized by one Spirit into one body, whether "Jews or Gentiles, bond or free §." And hence came the ancients to talk of the illumination conferred at baptifin, as I have already mentioned on another occafion. From hence it is that St. Paul' places the washing of regeneration, and of the renewing of the Holy Acts xviii. 15. 17, 18, 19. Gal. iii. 5. ‡ Rom. i. 11. Ghof, Ghoft, together (λύτρον τῆς παλιγγενεσίας καὶ ἀνακοινώσεως πνεύματο άyi*). And Acts ii. 32. Peter and the other apoftles tell the council, that "they are Chrift's witneffes, and fo is the Holy "Ghoft, whom he hath given to them that obey him." And St. Paul tells the Galatians, that it is becaufe "they are fons, that God "hath fent forth the Spirit of his Son into their hearts †." And becaufe "Simon Magus's heart was not right with God, but that "he was in the gall of bitterness, and the bond of iniquity; "therefore he had neither part nor lot in that matter ‡." And St. Jude joins mens being fenfual, and not having the Spirit, together §. That the communication of the Spirit, fome way or other, was to be very general, appears from the ancient prophecies of this matter. David fpeaks of Chrift's fcattering his gifts, and loading us with his benefits . And Ifaiah, foretelling various circumitances of the Meffiah's kingdom **, adds ++, " And all thy children fhall "be taught of God." Which our Saviour applies to himself t who was to teach the world by the Holy Spirit. Jeremiah alfo, prophecying of thefe days, fays, " Behold the days come, faith the "Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the houfe of Ifrael, " and with the houfe of Judah. Not according to the covenant " which I made with their fathers, in the day that I took them out "of the land of Egypt. But this fhall be the covenant that I will "make with the houfe of Ifrael after thofe days, faith the Lord, I "will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their "hearts; and they fhall teach no more every man his neighbour, "and every mair his brother, faying, Know the Lord; for they "fhall all know me from the leaft to the greateft of them, faith the "Lord." The promise is here very general; "all, all from "the leaft to the greateft, fhall be fo taught of God as to want "little affiftance from others." Which St. Paul refers to his times, Heb. viii. 8--12. and perhaps alluding to it, 2 Cor. ii. 3. The words of Joel are likewife as extenlive; for he fays, "I will pour out my Spirit upon all fleth . And thus John Baptift fpeaks in a manner to give us to underftand, that. Chrift's baptifin by the Holy Ghoft and fire fhould be as extentive as his by water. All this fhews, that the communication of the Spirit was to be very general and diffufive, fome way or other. How far it was communicated immediately, we have feen already. And that it was given, or ministered, by the apostles, "to all believers where they came,' who had not received it before, may appear from the following inftances. Peter conferred the Holy Ghoft on the three thousand fouls that were added to the church at the feaft of Pentecoft. For when they, being pricked to the heart by his difcourfe, fay, " Men "and brethren, what shall we do?" Peter anfwers, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jefus Chrift for the re |