another Saviour of the World and of my posterity That Shilo should come to whom the gathering of the people shall be Agreeable to what hath been said are these words of Zacharias who said of the Lord God of Israel that he had raised up an Horn of Salvation for us in the house of his servant David Luk. 1.69 By Horn of Salvation for us is denoted the Kingdom and Power of our blessed Saviour And for the better understanding of this expression it is to be remembred that Dominion and Power is expressed by Horn among the Hebrew Writers Thus in the Prophet Daniel the ten Horns are said to be ten Kings c. 7. v. 24. Again I will make the Horn of David to bud Ps 132. v. 17. Instead of Horn the Chaldee Paraphrast hath 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a glorious King Kimchi in Psal 132. v. 17. And one of the learned Jews and a bitter enemy to Christianity confesses that that verse speaks of the Messias that was to come So that the Horn of Salvation does intimate to us the greatness of that deliverance which our Lord hath wrought Besides 't is said of Simeon that when he took Jesus into his Arms and blessed God he said Lord now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace according to thy word For mine eyes have seen thy salvation Luk. 2.29 30. Which agrees well with the words of Jacob I have waited for Thy Salvation O Lord. Indeed Aben Ezra tells us from R. Isaac Aben Ezra in Gen. 49.18 that Jacob having likened Dan to an adder by the path did thereupon fall into a fear and then as fearfull men are apt to call for help and deliverance he added I have waited for thy salvation O Lord And another of the Jewish Commentators would have those words to contain the prediction that Sampson's eyes should be put out by the Philistines R. Solom in loc and then that they imply that prayer of Sampson at the last O Lord God remember me I pray thee and strengthen me I pray thee onely this once O God that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes Judg. 16.28 It is enough that I have named these opinions I shall not need refute them for besides that their authority is not great who are the Authours of them they are not backed with any reasons at all But to return As those deliverances of Joshuah and the other Worthies were but temporal whereas our Lord 's was eternal So They were but Carnal but our Lord's is Spiritual They delivered their people from thraldom and bondage the yoke of a Tyrant the tribute of an Oppressour the chains and fetters of some potent Prince But our Jesus saves his people from their sins Mat. 1.21 He was manifested to take away our sins 1 Joh. 3.5 And to destroy the works of the Devil v. 8. Or as Zacharias expresses it we are delivered out of the hands of our enemies that we might serve God without fear In holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life Luke 1. 74 75. This is the deliverance that our Lord hath wrought He sets us free from our sins and hath redeemed us from the wrath to come This Jesus does for all them that will obey him He destroyed the Devil's Kingdom stopt his mouth in his Oracles overturned his Temples dispossessed him of his Idols destroyed his Worship and baffled him in all his Designs He cast him out not of the bodies onely but of the souls and hearts of men and wrested from him that Kingdom which he had so long and so unjustly got the possession of The World was over-run with Idolatry and Superstition with violence and oppression with ignorance and prophaneness Men were proud and covetous unchast and intemperate full of envy and malice But Our Lord came and by his life and doctrine by his death and divine grace he sent away that darkness that overspread the World he knocked off those Chains in which men were shackled and restored Mankind to the Worship of the true God and to his image and likeness Let 's hear the excellent words by which the Apostle expresseth all this For we our selves says he also were sometimes foolish disobedient deceived serving divers lusts and pleasures living in malice and envy hatefull and hating one another But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward mankind appeared Not by works of righteousness which we have done but according to his mercy he saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour Tit. 3.3 Such was the deliverance which our Jesus wrought For the grace of God which bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly righteously and godly in this present world Looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ Who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purifie unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works Tit. 2.11 Moses delivered the Israelites from the Egyptians he brought them from the bondage of those Infidels but he did not save them from their infidelity For we see they could not enter into the promised land because of their unbelief Heb. 3.19 Joshua brought them into Canaan but left them on this side heaven Others delivered them from the men of Midian and the Philistines but none of them delivered them from the evil men themselves They were saved from their enemies frequently but not from their sins They fell into their folly and their misery again But our blessed Redeemer saves us from our sin He gives repentance and forgivenss of sins Acts 5.31 And turns us from our iniquities Acts 3.26 This exalts him above Moses and Joshua this speaks him the great Redeemer and Shepherd of our Souls The Jews expected a Temporal Messiah one that would restore them their Kingdom and advance them to worldly splendour and greatness But our Lord came to erect a spiritual Kingdom in the hearts and minds of men He came to vanquish our lusts and destroy the power of sin in the hearts of men This was a design worthy of God and becoming our Lord Jesus And that which the greatest Kings and Princes were never able to doe Our Lord hath wrought the greatest deliverance Others have conquered their Enemies Our Lord hath done more He hath reconciled them and made them friends Others have killed the bodies of men our Lord hath done more he has saved their souls Others have gotten wealth and worldly greatness our Lord does more when he enables his followers to despise these things Others have saved their followers from dying our Lord delivers us from the fear of death He kills our pride destroys our covetousness purges away our lust plants in us the love of God and the contempt of the World
purpose in hand in shewing that this Doctrine is in it self false When God was about to send Moses to the Israelites in Egypt Ex. 4.1 we find Moses objected and said they will not believe me Hereupon God bids him cast his rod upon the ground and the rod was turned into a serpent And this that they may believe that the Lord God of their fathers v. 5. c. hath appeared unto thee saith God to Moses After this the hand of Moses was turned leprous and restored again upon which Moses is told that if the Israelites would not believe him upon the first v. 8. that they should believe the voice of the latter sign Moses tells Pharaoh that at his request the plague of frogs should be removed Ex. 8.10 that thou mayst know says he that there is none like unto the Lord our God So far it is evident that Moses wrought signs to procure belief But let us follow Moses out of Egypt into the Wilderness and see whether it be true which Maimon affirms that those Miracles were not wrought to gain belief to his Prophecy I shall content my self with one of the Miracles which Maimon himself mentions as a work that Moses did to serve a present necessity and not to gain credit to his Prophecy And that is the Miracle which was wrought upon occasion of the rebellion of Corah and his company Now it is very evident from the Text that that Miracle was wrought to assert the Prophecy of Moses as well as the right of Aaron as will appear from the words of Moses to Corah and his company Numb 16.5 To morrow says he the Lord will shew who are his and who is holy and will cause him to come near unto him even him whom he hath chosen will he cause to come near unto him Again when those evil men were about to be swallowed up we find Moses saying Hereby ye shall know that the Lord hath sent me to doe all these works for I have not done them of mine own mind If these men dye the common death of all men or if they be visited after the visitation of all men then the Lord hath not sent me v. 28 29 30. But if the Lord make a new thing and the Earth open her mouth and swallow them up with all that appertain unto them and they go down quick into the pit then ye shall understand that these men have provoked the Lord. Hence it is evident that the Miracle confirmed the Mission of Moses and so had a direct tendence to gain credit and belief unto his Prophecy and that a Miracle is a good confirmation of a Doctrine No wonder then that we find our Saviour frequently appealing to his Miracles as the evidences of his commission I have says he greater witness than that of John for the work which the father hath given me to finish Joh. 5.36 the same works that I doe bear witness of me that the father hath sent me Again we read elsewhere to the same purpose Then came the Jews round about him and said unto him how long dost thou make us to doubt If thou be the Christ tell us plainly And thereupon it follows presently Jesus answered them Joh. 10.24 25. I told you and ye believed not The works that I doe in my father's name bear witness of me Again Believe me that I am in the father and the father in me or else believe me for the very works sake And in another place our Saviour says Joh. 14.11.15.24.10.37 38. If I had not done among them the works which none other man did they had not had sin Again if I doe not the works of my father believe me not but if I do though ye believe not me believe the works that ye may know and believe that the father is in me and I in him Besides we find that men were greatly convinced by the Miracles which Jesus wrought when he had miraculously fed five thousand men with five loaves and two fishes as it is said then those men when they had seen the Miracle that Jesus did said Joh. 6.14.2.11.23 this is of a truth that Prophet that should come into the world And when he had turned water into wine 't is said that his disciples believed on him And when he was at Jerusalem at the Passover in the feast-day many believed in his name when they saw the Miracles which he did The works of Jesus were very convictive and great was the evidence that they were attended with When our Saviour raised the widows son of Naim There came a great fear on all Luk. 7.16 and they glorified God saying that a great Prophet is risen up among us and that God hath visited his people To this purpose Nicodemus tells our Lord. Joh. 3.2 Rabbi say he we know that thou art a teacher come from God And then follows that which gives him the ground of this perswasion of his For no man can doe those Miracles which thou doest except God be with him And the blind man who was restored to sight speaks to the same purpose Joh. 9.32 33. Since the world began says he it was not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind If this man were not of God he could doe nothing whence it appears that the people were greatly convinced by the works which they saw Jesus doe Indeed our Saviour appeared in a mean and poor condition in the world he was reproached and traduced and accused by evil men But then the works which he did which were the works of the spirit did clear and justifie our Saviour 1 Tim. 3.16 And to this sense I understand the Apostle's words where he tells us that God was manifested in the flesh and adds that he was justified in the spirit Or justified and cleared from false accusations by the spirit ' Ev signifies by Matt. 17.21 ch 23. v. 16. Luk. 4. v. 1. Heb. 1.1 Matt. 12.28 For so those words may be rendred which we render in the spirit It was we know 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by the spirit of God that Jesus cast out Devils His miraculous works did proceed from the spirit of God And he was justified by that spirit when he wrought miracles This is no new interpretation We find it in one of the ancient Fathers He was justified by the spirit i. e. by the divine spirit he wrought miracles But if I cast out Devils by the spirit of God says he It was therefore demonstrated and plain by miracles that he was true God Theodoret in 1 〈◊〉 c. 3. v. 16. and the Son of God Thus the Centurion by the Cross when he saw the earthquake and the darkness said This of a truth is the Son of God The Holy Spirit did acquit our blessed Saviour from the aspersions which were cast upon him And may very well be said to be an Advocate to our
by Our Lord used no Arts to deceive the people He does his works in an open and clear light And when it so happened that he did them more privately he forbids the divulging what he had done that there might be no shadow of any artifice or secret contrivance For our Lord did all things with a great 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and though he desired not the praise of his works yet he did them at least so openly that there could be no suspicion of fraud and imposture This was an argument of our Lord's sincerity He wrought miracles that men might believe and therefore he did that which did most of all tend to beget this belief in them For Miracles are for the sake of unbelievers and therefore had need be wrought and that openly also among them Thus Moses wrought his miracles among the unbelieving Egyptians The Prophet goes to Bethel and shews his sign in the sight of Jeroboam Elijah works a miracle in the sight of the Priests of Baal and our Lord does his before the multitude The Church of Rome talks much of miracles wrought within the verge of her own Communion She maintains doctrines that need confirmation And if she work miracles she should send some of her Children hither to work them among us that we might be convinced or left without a plea. They of her own Communion who believe her doctrines do not need her miracles If there be any need of them at all it is among us who cannot believe her Tenents till we see them better confirmed than yet they are It is to be suspected that they want that power which they are not able to make appear For it is but reasonable they should be done where there is need of them 5. Our Lord's works were perfect and complete It appeared by the effects that the work was completely done Matt. 8. chap. 9. When the Paralytick was restored it did appear to be a perfect cure by his taking his bed and walking It is said that the dumb spake who was restored by our Lord. Mar. 5.42 When he restored the Damosel to life Luk. 7.15 she arose and walked And of the Widow's Son of Naim it is said Joh. 11.44 chap. 9.7 Joh. 2. Luk. 8.35 Joh. 5. Mat. 14.20 that he that was dead sate up and began to speak And of Lazarus it is said that he came forth with his grave cloaths about him When he cured the man that was born blind he came seeing from the pool of Siloam And when he turned the water into wine the effect was discerned by the company Of the Demoniack that was dispossest it is said that he was found sitting at the feet of Jesus cloathed and in his right mind And the poor man that lay helpless at the pool of Bethesda takes up his bed and walks When Jesus fed the multitude he did not delude them with shadows and phantastick food and with the bare accidents of bread and fish but they did all eat and were filled The effect was very discernible they were not imposed upon by Spectrums and Collusions and pious frauds CHAP. VI. The CONTENTS The Miracles which Jesus did compared with those which were really wrought by the hands of Moses with the pretended ones of the Church of Rome and with those storied of Apollonius Tyanaeus and some other Heathens Of the sufficient assurance which we have that Jesus did those works which are reported of him BEfore I proceed to consider what may be objected against what hath been said before I shall for the farther confirmation thereof shew that the works which Jesus did were greater works than ever were done by any other person whatsoever And to that purpose I shall compare our Saviour's Miracles with those true and divine Miracles which Moses wrought with the pretended Miracles of the Church of Rome and those which are storied in the writings of the Heathens and more especially such as are told of Apollonius Tyanaeus I shall consider the Miracles which were wrought by the hands of Moses There arose not a Prophet since in Israel like unto Moses whom the Lord knew face to face Deut. 34.10 11 12. In all the signs and the wonders which the Lord sent him to doe in the Land of Egypt to Pharaoh and to all his Servants and to all his land and in all that mighty hand and in all that great terrour which Moses shewed in the sight of all Israel Upon the account of the Miracles which Moses did he was mightily famed among the Heathens as among his own Countrey men the Jews The Jews magnifie Moses above the rest of their Prophets Menasseh B. Israel Conciliat And one of their late Writers summs up the Miracles of Moses and those of the other Prophets from the beginning to the destruction of their first Temple and does affirm that the Miracles wrought by Moses or upon his account exceed the number of those which were wrought by all the Prophets together For whereas as all the Prophets for the space of above three thousand years wrought but 74 Miracles the Miracles of Moses alone were 76. I shall not examine his account let it be as it will but I shall shew that his works are not to be compared with those which our Jesus did I shall especially consider the Miracles which were wrought in Egypt these miracles which were then done in order to the bringing out the Israelites from the bondage in which they were And I must needs confess they were mighty works and such as did plainly speak a supernatural and Divine power And I ought not by any means to disparage those mighty works I shall before I proceed any farther shew you that those miracles were such as did indeed give sufficient credit to the mission of Moses and abundantly confirm the truth of his words And that will appear if we consider seriously these three things First the plagues themselves which were miraculously inflicted These were such works as were above the power of any Creature The works themselves declare a divine power It is true they were not all alike and the Magicians did the same works which Moses did for a while Exod. 7.12 22. ch 8. v. 7. They turned their rods into Serpents and water into bloud and brought frogs upon the land of Egypt as well as Moses These Magicians went as far as they could And it amounts to no more than this that they were able to inflict some evils upon their Countrey but not able to remove them For though it be said that the Magicians brought the Frogs upon the land of Egypt yet it is also said that when Pharaoh would have them taken away he applied himself to Moses and Aaron Exod. 8.7 8. which he would never have done if the Magicians could have done it for him nay more than this these Magicians were out-done by Moses after this They attempted to follow him but could not doe it they were
not able to bring forth lice as Moses did Then the Magicians said unto Pharaoh ch 8.19 this is the singer of God They were forced to confess a divine power Secondly the difference between the Egyptians and the Israelites during these Plagues This was indeed very miraculous and an evident proof not onely of the divine power but also of God's more special care of the Israelites his people whom he sent Moses to bring out of Egypt And we have very remarkable instances to this purpose viz that of the swarms of flies Exod. 8.22 23. ch 9.4 6. ch 10.23 ch 11.7 which infested the Egyptians but were not in the dwellings of the Israelites that of the Murrain which fell upon the Cattel of Egypt and not upon that of Israel And that of the darkness upon the Egyptians when the Children of Israel had light in their dwellings Again that of the death of the first-born of the Egyptians when the first-born of Israel escaped This difference was made that it might be known that God was the Lord in the midst of the earth ch 8.22 These things could not be supposed casually to happen but were a great proof of God's providence and care as well as of his being and his power Thirdly I consider after what manner these Plagues were removed For the very removal as well as the infliction speaks a divine hand in all this We do not find the Magicians able to remove however they were suffered to inflict a Plague But Moses does not onely remove the Plague but which is well worthy our observation does it at the time appointed Thus in the case of the Frogs he leaves in to Pharaoh to set the precise time when the Frogs shall be removed and removes them accordingly Exod. 8.9 10 29. that thou mayst know says Moses unto him that there is none like unto the Lord our God The same may be observed of the swarm of flies ch 9.29 and of the thunder and hail These things put together do speak the hand of God in the mighty works which were wrought by Moses and were sufficient proofs that Moses was sent by God and were enough to convince at once both the Egyptians as well as the Sons of Israel But whatever these works of Moses were yet they came far short of the works which Jesus did I shall not need to say that the works of Jesus were more in number than those of Moses Joh. 20.30 with ch 21.25 when it is apparent that in that respect they were more than those of Moses and all the other Prophets beside For besides the many which we read that Jesus did in a little time we are assured that he did very many more which are not written I shall therefore insist onely upon the following severals 1. I consider the works themselves which Jesus did and we shall soon find that they do very much transcend those of Moses Joh. 15.24 If I had not done among them the works which none other man did says Jesus they had not had sin The works which our Lord did were very stupendious and convincing Some of the works which Moses did the Magicians did also and for the rest they came short of the works of Jesus Indeed by the hands of Moses the dust is turned into lice and Egypt is plagued with flies and murrain darkness frogs and hail with the death of their cattel and of their first-born But Jesus did greater works than these He cures the blind heals the most inveterate diseases and raises the dead to life It is a greater instance of power to save than to destroy to cure the sick than to make them so and to raise one man to life speaks a greater power than to slay thousands And he that cured a man that was born blind does more by far than he who turned a rod into a serpent or water into bloud Every little thing deprives us of life and health to save and to restore speaks the greatest power Nay Jesus or Joshua the Son of Nun an eminent type of our Lord does a greater work Josh 10.12 when he stopped the Sun in his course than any of those which Moses did in Egypt 2. I consider the power of working Moses was but an instrument and could not work miracles at all times Jesus was indeed the Author of those which he wrought God tells Moses I will stretch out my hand and smite Egypt with all my wonders Ex. 3.10 ch 4.21 ch 7.9 19. ch 8.16 ch 8.12 21 30. which I will doe in the midst thereof And again See that thou doe all those wonders which I have put in thine hand And we find Moses directed by God when the miracle should be wrought and when Moses had wrought it and brought a plague upon the Egyptians he is not able to remove the same plague without crying unto God So that the miracles is altogether God's not the work of Moses Jesus was the Author of the mighty works which he did Joh. 5.19 Luk. 10. Matt. 10. and he did them when-ever he pleased He did them by a word of his mouth a touch of his garment when he was present and when he was at a distance Nothing withstands his power or resists his will What things soever He the Father doeth these also doeth the Son More yet our Saviour conferred this power upon others Upon the seventy and upon his twelve Apostles and after his ascension into heaven his followers retained a power of doing miracles in the name of Jesus Christ 3. The works of Jesus were better than the works of Moses Arguments they were not onely of greater power but of greater goodness The works of Moses in Egypt were at first but so many plagues our Lord's miracles were actions of rescue works of mercy and relief 'T is a more blessed and God-like thing to save than to destroy Moses his works speak dread and terrour And all along we see the face of great severity He comes into Egypt with a rod and as if that had not imported sufficient terrour he turns that rod into a serpent and instead of turning the water into wine he turns it into bloud He sends most uncomfortable creatures such as frogs and lice and flies amongst them He inflicts murrain upon the Cattel and boils and blains upon the people After this he sends hail with fire and thunder and smote man and beast as well as every herb and brake every tree After this the whole earth is covered with devouring locusts and with thick darkness and the first-born are killed and the Egyptians drowned in the midst of the Sea When the law was given in the wilderness you find mention of thunder and lightning and a thick cloud and the voice of a trumpet exceeding loud The Mount was on a smoke and the Lord descended in fire Exod. 19. and the smoke of it was like the smoke of a furnace and the whole mount