which he had not heard of before; but, on the contrary, that it would only give him a particular, and fatisfactory account of all thofe important facts, which had already been made known, as well to him, as to all the difciples; and which had been conftantly affirmed by the Apostles themselves, from their first beginning to preach the Gospel; and, in confequence of their affirmations, firmly believed, from the very beginning, by all whom they had ever converted to the Chriftian faith.

YET, if it be supposed, that the particulars in queftion, relative to the conceptions, and births, of John the Baptift, and Jefus, were not a genuine part of this Gofpel; the Authors of this supposed forgery must have chofen to infert all these most aftonishing particulars of their own inventing; which no one could have heard of till they were fo inferted; immediately after this very introduction; which, in that cafe, must not only have given the lie, in the moft direct and ftriking manner, to the whole interpolation; but muft have pointed it out fo plainly for an interpolation, as to render it impoffible for it to have escaped the notice of even the moft dull, or inattentive reader. And this, certainly, we may venture to affirm, is utterly incredible.

So enormous, indeed, and extravagant, would fuch an interpolation as that in queftion have been,

been, that, in whatever part of St. Luke's Gofpel it had been introduced, it must have been obferved, and detected. But certainly, if it had been poffible for any one to resolve to try the experiment of inferting it at all, he could never have chofen to do it immediately after that particular declaration of St. Luke, which muft render the forgery more exceedingly ftriking, and confpicuous, than it would have been in any other place.

In fact, if it had been poffible for any one to have determined to make this interpolation, in this particular place; he muft, at the fame time, have determined to add to it another; by altering St. Luke's introduction, to fuit it to his purpofe; and making him inform Theophilus, that he should lay before him, not only a full and fatisfactory account of all those particulars, relating to Jefus, which he had before heard; but likewife, feveral moft important miraculous facts, which he had never before been informed of. And this fingle circumftance, therefore, that the particulars in queftion are placed immediately after fuch an introduction as they directly follow, is alone a decifive proof, that they muft have been a genuine part of St. Luke's original Gospel; and that the facts which they contain muft have been related by the Apoftles, as occafion required, to

all

all the disciples they made, from the very time of their beginning to preach the Gospel.

V. BUT waving for a moment all these confiderations, and fuppofing the forgeries in queftion to have been attempted, what muft have been the confequence? No fooner could the contrivers of them have brought them forward, than they must have been exploded by all who were not concerned in the forgery of them; fince no person could poffibly give credit to relations fo extremely remarkable as thefe, which no one of the Apoftles could ever have made mention of; and for which no authority whatever could be pretended. And wherever the experiment had been tried; whether in Palestinc, Syria, or Achaia; if notwithstanding their immediate rejection by thofe to whom they were propofed, they had ftill been contended for, as authentic, by those who contrived, and produced them; an account of them would certainly have been transmitted to Jerufalem, for the judgment of that Church upon them; and there they would certainly have been authoritatively condemned.

WHEN there arofe a difpute among the difciples at Antioch, about the neceffity of circumcifion, they fent Paul and Barnabas to Jerufalem, to have the point authoritatively decided by the Apoftles

Apoftles there *. And in the fame manner, no doubt, if St. Matthew's and St. Luke's Gospels were made public early enough to permit the forgeries in queftion to be attempted at any time. during the life of James the Juft; who prefided over the Church in Judea for about thirty years after the Afcenfion; that is, till the year 62; to him, undoubtedly, an account of them would have been fent; if they were at all perfifted in; and by him the falfehood of them would have been decifively declared.

AND if we should fuppofe the attempt not to have been made till after the death of James the Juft, in the year 62; but before the death of the Apoftle and Evangelift St. John, who lived to about the year 100; it cannot be doubted, but that as foon as thefe moft aftonifhing, and before unheard of relations were made public, the Bishop, and other moft confiderable members of the Church at Jerufalem would have fent a deputation to St. John; with copies of the fuppofed interpolated parts of Matthew's and Luke's Gofpels; for his Apoftolical judgment upon their authenticity, and truth. And after St. John had authoritatively condemned them as furreptitious, and falfe; as he would, and must have done; it would have been utterly im

Acts of the Apostles, ch. xv.

poffible

poffible for them to have been tranfinitted to us, as genuine parts of the Gofpels concerned, in the manner they actually have been. On the contrary, either the very memory of thefe forgeries would have died away, and we fhould never have heard of them; or elfe St. John's apoftolical condemnation of them would certainly have been tranfmitted to us, together with an account of the forgeries themselves.

OR if, for argument's fake, we put the fuppofition, that the contrivers of the supposed forgeries might ftill endeavour to keep up a party in their fupport; it cannot be queftioned, but that the fame heads of the Church at Jerufalem, who had applied to St. John for his judgment upon them, would immediately have informed him of the fupport ftill attempted to be given to them, even in oppofition to the judgment he had pronounced against them; and that St. John would then have addreffed an Epiftle to all the Chriftian Churches, to prevent the poffibility of their being misled by fuch an impious attempt. And certainly, That Epiftle, written upon fo very extraordinary an occafion, could not but have been delivered down to us; together with the three Epiftles of his writing which we now have. And as, after this Epifile of St. John had been made public, no Chriftians, except the fuppofed fupporters