he had no conception, that this circumftance made any alteration in the cafe; for then he would have taken care to remark it. Nor is it lefs evident, that the Baptift's own difciples, and even the Baptift himself, confidered it in the fame light, as if Jefus had performed the ceremony with his own hands. For, while Jefus was baptizing in this manner, John's difciples came, and faid unto him*; "Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond "Jordan, to whom thou bareft witnefs, behold, "the fame baptizeth, and all and all men come to "him."

Bur, had they looked upon it as a circumftance, which made any difference in the cafe, that Jefus himself did not actually baptize, but only his dif ciples; certainly they would not have failed to obferve it, on this occafion, to their mafter. As, on the other hand, had this been an agreed particular between Jefus and John, in order to fave the credit of John's divine infpiration; John would now at leaft have made that use of it, for which it was contrived; by teaching his difciples to reconcile his own predictions to Jefus's conduct; which was, feemingly, in every particular, fo contradictory to it.

* John iii. 26.

AND

AND now confidering both these particulars, as the nature of the cafe requires we should, in one connected view; firft, that John exprefsly foretold, as a touchftone of Jefus's being the true Meffiah, that Jefus would adopt a new and very fingular kind of baptifm; which however, from his firft public appearance to his death, He never did, nor ever mentioned a defign of doing it and in the next place, that John expreffed himself in fuch a manner, as he could not but think, might very probably make the people understand him to mean, that Jefus would not baptize with water; which, however, Jefus prefently after did, even in a greater degree than John himself had done: when we confider all this, how is it poffible to believe John and Jesus to have been confpiring impoftors?

HAD they been fuch, John could not have foretold any part of Jefus's conduct, in order to 'convince the people, that He was the Meffiah; which Jefus had not before agreed with him, for this very purpose, to perform. Nor could Jefus, after fuch an agreement, lay afide the defign of doing any thing, which he had before agreed, that John fhould foretel; without giving him timely notice of the alteration of his defigns. For though we have no authority to believe, that the Jews did, in fact, ever object to the truth of their divine preT tenfions,

tenfions, on account of this feeming contradiction, between Jefus's baptifin, and John's prophecy concerning it; yet was it, from the nature of the thing, fo extremely probable, that they would; and, at all times, fo very poffible that they might; that no impoftors can be fuppofed capable of deliberately expofing themselves, for no end whatever, to fo manifeft a hazard of detection,

SEC

SECTION IV.

Jefus baptized by John.

VERY foon after John had delivered the prophecy juft confidered, concerning the nature of Jefus's baptifin, we meet with another very remarkable tranfaction, which will ferve to throw still greater light upon their true characters, and the connection really fubfifting between them.

"THEN Cometh Jefus from Galilee to Jordan, unto John, to be baptized of him. But John "forbad him, faying, I have need to be baptized "of thee, and comeft thou to me? And Jefus anfwering, faid unto him, fuffer it to be fo now; for thus it becometh us to fulfill al righteoufnefs. Then he fuffered him. And "Jefus, when he was baptized, went up ftraightway out of the water; and lo! the heavens were opened unto him, and he faw the Spirit "of God defcending like, a dove, and lighting upon him. And lo a voice from heaven, faying, this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleafed."

Matthew iii. 13-17,

Ir will readily be acknowledged, that if John and Jefus were joint deceivers, Jefus's coming to defire baptifm of John, muft have been an artifice first privately concerted between them. It is plainly incredible, that Jefus fhould apply publicly to his Forerunner, on fo particular an account; unless they had previously agreed upon this ftep, for the fake of fome advantages, which they hoped to derive from it. So that, upon the fuppofition of any impofture, John muft in reality have approved of Jesus's requeft; and his refusal at first to baptize Jefus, as if it were more proper that Jefus fhould baptize Him, could be nothing more than a well-chofen expedient, to prevent the people from fufpecting any such preconcerted agreement be

tween them.

A

WHAT then could thefe propofed advantages be? very little reflection upon the cafe will presently convince us, that Jefus's being baptized by John; confidered only as to the nature of the thing itself; was a step so far from being calculated to promote the fuccefs of their fuppofed impofture; that, if it should have any effect at all upon the opinions of the people, it must neceffarily tend to prevent it.

JOHN's baptifm was plainly borrowed * from that, which the Jews made ufe of, in the admif

* See note, p. 266.