that he should have appeared not only alive, but in perfect health and vigour, walking about, and converfing, as if nothing at all had been done to him, fo early as at daybreak on the Sunday following. In the evening of that day he walked from Jerufalem to Emmaus, which was about eight miles, and alfo back again, and as fpeedily as two men in health, and who made all the hafte they could, were able to do the fame. This is the more extraordinary, confidering the wounds that had been made in the feet of Jefus. If a man had fuffered nothing more than this piercing of his feet, in the rough manner in which it was, no doubt, done in the act of crucifixion, this walk alone would have been abfolutely impoffible; and on the third day he would have been even lefs able to walk than on the firft, from the inflammation of the wounds. There muft, therefore, have been fome miracle in the cafe; and if any miracle was performed, why not that of a real refurrection?

It may be faid that the evidence of a real miracle would have been ftill ftronger, if the

the bones of Jefus had been broken, like thofe of the two thieves. But as the piercing of his feet, the wound in his fide, and even the hanging fo long on the croís, must have effectually incapacitated him from walking abroad within two days, the breaking of his bones would have made no real addition to the evidence; the impoffibility of his walking abroad being really the fame in both cafes. There would have been a difference only in the cafe of probabilities, which vary with circumstances. But any one natural and abfolute impoffibility furnishes as strong an argument as another.

In this very important view, therefore, the lefs was the time that intervened between Jefus' having been laid in the fepulchre, and his appearance alive and well out of it, the ftronger is the evidence of a divine interpofition, and unbelievers-would have had more to object if that interval had been longer, than they can have at prefent. Jefus, we can now fay, appeared alive and well fooner than it was poffible, in the ordinary courfe of nature, that he could have done. It was before the guard could have

been

been relaxed, before the difciples could have recovered from their confternation; and especially before it was poffible for him to have recovered from the languishing state in which crucifixion must have left any man; to fay nothing of the wound he had received in his fide, which alone, if it had miffed any vital part, muft have confined him, and have difabled him from going abroad, a very long time.

2. It may be proper to take fome notice of the story that was propagated by the Jewish priests, who, when the guard fled at the appearance of the angel and the earthquake, bade them say that the difciples of Jefus came by night, and ftole him away while they flept. This, however, was both in the highest degree improbable, and what is more, it would not have anfwered any purpofe; fo that they who had just before behaved in the most cowardly manner posfible, must have rifqued their lives for nothing. Indeed, fuch a story as this would -hardly have been fuggefted by the enemies of Christianity, if any thing had been known at the time befides the earthquake, the

ap

pearance

pearance of the angel, and a suspicion, perhaps a report, of the absence of the body, and if any thing had occurred to them more plaufible at the time. So weak a defence almost amounts to a confeffion of the weaknefs of the cause to be fupported by it.

The improbability alone of any confiderable number of men all fleeping, whose bufiness it was to keep awake, and not more than two or three hours, for which they had time enough to prepare themselves by fleeping the preceding part of the night (for this was the last watch, at break of day) and when the penalty of fleeping was death; and that they should all fleep fo foundly, as that the rolling of a large ftone (fo large that feveral women despaired of being able to move it) and this quite near to them, should not awake any one of them, is far too great to be admitted.

The difciples of Jefus, if fuch a scheme had come into their minds, difpirited and difperfed as they were, could have had no expectation of accomplishing of it undifcovered, even if there had been no guard at the fepulchre. The city of Jerufalem was

at

at that time full of people, beyond any thing that we can have an idea of at prefent, being the time of paffover, and when the moon was at the full, fo that numbers of people (the houses of the city not being fufficient to receive them) would be walking about at all hours; and the fepulchre was fo near to the city, that it is now inclosed within the walls. In that climate, and that time of the year, there was no inconvenience in paffing the whole night, and even fleeping, in the open air. The preceding night Jefus and his difciples had paffed in a neighbouring garden; and it is very probable that they had done the fame before, fince Judas expected to find them there. In thefe circumftances, the difciples could not have had any reasonable expectation of removing the body undifcovered.

Befides, what would the removal of a mere corpfe, admitting that they might have had the courage, and addrefs, to fucceed in fo unpromifing an attempt, have availed them? There would have been no evidence of a refurrection, unless the

dead