Meffiah would have appeared in the mean time, and have proved his divine commiffion, long before John would have been old enough to fet himfelf up in his ftead. And then Zacharias had good reafon to think, that if he himself should be still alive; which, as this might happen very foon, might very probably be the cafe; his own forgeries of divine revelations, and the pretended lofs and recovery of his speech, would immediately be called to mind; and that he fhould meet with that infamy and punishment, which crimes of this particular nature, and among the Jews above all others, could not but incur. So that whether he himself lived or died, and whatever viciousness and cunning he might be able to inftil into his fon; He could not but think it extremely improbable, that John fhould ever have an opportunity to carry on the fuppofed impofture; and confequently, it is utterly incredible, that he could proceed to fuch dangerous and fhocking forgeries, merely to lay a foundation for it, if he fhould.

WHEN We lay together these most remarkable particulars, all neceffarily included in the very nature of the fuppofed impofture itself, its abfurdities muft appear at once fo many, and fo manifeft, as to fhew it plainly impoffible for any one but a downright ideot, or an abfolute madman, to have

en

engaged in it; at the fame time that it is equally impoffible even for these to have contrived it. And to suppose still, that fuch a plot could be the deliberate defign of an old, fubtil, and fuccessful impoftor, fuch as Zacharias, if any at all, must have been; would be judging in direct oppofition to the plaineft dictates of common fenfe, and in reality believing what is, humanly speaking, im poffible.

AND here, to conclude this part of the argument, it is neceffary to obferve, that every conclufion we have now drawn from the nature of the plot in debate, to prove the impoffibility of its existence, as far as relates to John, is equally applicable to all the circumftances of the birth of Jefus likewife; which, we have feen long ago, must have been the counterpart of the fame defign. His future birth was openly predicted by his parents themselves foon after his conception; his life was pofitively affured for the fame term of years; his whole employment and public character, were defined even more exactly than that of John; though they were of fuch a nature, that no human accomplishments whatever could poffibly fulfil them; and Jofeph and Mary themselves must have thought, at the very time, that in all probability Jefus would never have an opportunity to affume them.

THOUGH therefore the whole impofture, as it relates to Jefus as well as John, is rendered utterly incredible, by confidering its numerous abfurdities, as far as they concern John only; the impoffibility of the plot becomes, as it were, doubly evident, when we add the confideration of the feveral circumftances of the birth of Jefus to that of John, and furvey the whole connected tranfaction in one view.

SEC

SECTION II.

Some particular facts previous to the births of John and Jefus, confidered.

THUS far have we been proving the impoffibility of the impofture under confideration, merely by examining its own internal nature and conftitution. But the point in debate will ftill admit of no fmall additional illuftration, from confidering fome particulars that occur, in feveral distinct steps of these complicated tranfactions. For if the whole was an impofture, all the parts must have been fo many distinct steps, deliberately agreed on by thofe who devised and carried it on, Whereas feveral of

thefe, when clofely attended to, will be found fuch as the contrivers of the whole defign could not be capable of adopting,*

NE

To prevent an objection, which might otherwife arife, it is here proper to apprize the reader, that in the remainder of this part, as well as in the laft, the arguments are frequently drawn from various particulars related by the evangelifts, without giving immediate proofs, that the particulars themselves must certainly have come to pafs as they are related. This may poffibly appear at firft, like relying upon the authority of the Evangelifts for their truth. But when we recollect,

NEGLECTING then for the present what has been fo fully proved to the contrary, from the internal nature of the whole defign; let us fuppofe it not impoffible for Zacharias, Elizabeth, Mary, and Jofeph, to have forged fome fuch revelations as they actually pretended to have had made to them; and at the very time too, when they declared them to have happened. Are there not ftill fome important particulars occurring in the progrefs of the plot, which they could not have agreed on, had the whole been an impofture of their joint contriving?

In the account of Zacharias's vifion, befides the prediction of the future conception, birth, and divine character of John; we are told of a very fignal punishment inflicted upon Zacharias, by the Angel, for prefuming to doubt the accomplishment of his predictions. That he was inftantaneously ftruck dumb, for a fired period of about nine months, at the expiration of which time he was as inftantaneously restored to speech.

recollect, that it has been already proved, both from the circumftances of every perfon concerned, and from the internal nature of the thing, that there could not be any imposture in the cafe; for the fake of which only, any of thofe particulars, which may hereafter be made ufe of, could be forged; this Teeming objection falls immediately to the ground.

HERE