unequivocal terms, he avowed, "Think not I am come to fend peace on earth: I am not come to fend peace, but a fword*." He goes farther than this; he not only anticipates the evils arifing from the propagation of his doctrines, but seems to express, what upon the hypothefis of our adversaries might be called, a criminal unconcern, how foon they should take place. "I am come to fend fire on the earth, and what will I if it be already kindled?" A good man would not venture upon a scheme, which he faw was to produce fo much actual misery; nor would a man of sense so openly profess to his converts his knowledge of these effects; without looking much further into future confequences, than a mere man can be supposed to do. Unless therefore we allow Jefus the character of a prophet, that is, unless we admit the truth of his pretenfions, we must accufe him both of rashness and cruelty for hazarding fo much actual evil for the fake of poffible eventual good; and we must confefs that his conduct is utterly inexplicable, in placing before those, whom • Vid. Matt. x. vv. 17-26. 34, &c. xxiv. 9, 10. + Luke xii. 49, &c. N N whom he wished to gain over to his party, fuch an unfavourable representation of the tendency and effects of his new inftitution. The whole tenour of his character, which difplayed the most confummate prudence, as well as the most tender fympathy for the forrows and miferies of man, forbids us to affign the leaft degree of probability to the fuppofition, against which we are contending. THERE are befides feveral other difficulties fpringing out of the hypothesis-Why, for inftance, if good were the object for which our Lord contrived his plan, fhould he affume fuch high and extraordinary pretenfions, as, combined with his appearance, could ferve only to disgust the minds, and shock the prejudices, of his countrymen? Why fhould he at the fame time feem even to court that appearance of poverty and humiliation, equally in contradiction to his own pretenfions, and to their expectations? Why, if he embarked in the fraud from fuch a motive, fhould he pursue a courfe of conduct, which would infallibly expose him in a short time to the envy and cruelty of the rulers, and quickly abridge his means of doing any more good? To what purpose, in fine, were those those repeated declarations of his own death, and his predictions of rifing again? Why were that death and that refurrection, not merely stated as events that were to happen, but incorporated into the whole fcheme of his religion? Are thefe only to be confidered as the fictions of his followers, when the cause began to prevail after his death?—If fo, let the writings be proved forgeries, or let the writers be convicted of falsehood! But till either the one or the other of these attempts be made with fome fuccefs, we may confiftently argue from them as facts, supported by fuch a body of evidence, that those who most wish to disprove, are constrained in a great measure to allow them. WITH whatsoever fpecioufnefs therefore the charge of errour or of fraud may appear to be directed against Christianity, it will, upon due examination, be found to impute such a want of candour, of integrity and piety, fuch a dereliction of moral principle, to the author of the fuppofed impofture, as cannot, with any fhew of fairness or probability, be laid to the charge of any man really good. Even in the acknowledgment of his enemies, the character of Jefus exceeds the ufual measure of human excel NN 2 excellence; confequently, by their confefsion, the accusation, which is levelled against his religion, is wholly inapplicable. So great is the inconfiftency, to which the imputation of fraud against the founder of our religion exposes those who urge it; and it is well worth their confideration, whether fimilar repugnancies to moral probability do not exist in every objection, which strikes at the divine origin of the Gospel. For my own part, I cannot but exprefs my most anxious wifh, that every fuch objector would maturely weigh the whole extent to which his arguments lead, the difficulties with which they are embarraffed, and the contradictions in which they are involved. I am fatisfied that, after a full and impartial enquiry, the violations of credibility, neceffarily arifing out of any infidel ground of objection, will be generally acknowledged to be much more numerous, glaring, and offenfive, than those which the most captious antagonist can represent, as neceffarily arifing out of a belief in the Gofpel history. CHAPTER CHAPTER VII. MR. GODWIN'S MISREPRESENTATIONS OF THE CHRISTIAN RELIGION AND THE CHARACTER OF IT'S FOUNDER EXA- Paffage from Mr. Godwin's Enquirer quoted.-The charges, contained in it, reduced to three heads.-1. That bigotry and intolerance are encouraged by the Chriftian religion, -2. That an improper ftrefs is laid upon faith.-3. That there are certain moral defects in the character and temper of Jefus Chrift.-Each of these charges examined feparately and confuted, partly by hiftorical documentspartly by a critical inquiry into the texts, Mark xvi. 16. Matth. xxiii. 33.-This writer fhewn to have mifunderftood or perverted them.—A fair deduction made, from the fubjects of the preceding inquiry, in favour of Christianity. MONGST the few, whofe moral feelings have been fo little in unifon with those of the rest of mankind, as to lead them to impeach the character of our bleffed Saviour, is Mr. Wm. Godwin. his publication called "The Enquirer," the following In |