* been brought to the knowlege of his being the 'first born of God, and before all the creatures; ⚫ and at the fame time the fon of the patriarchs, inafmuch as he was defcended from them, by a virginof their race, and became an ordinary mortal, expofed to ignominy and fuffering.'

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And towards the end of his dialogue, Juftin fays, (x) Do you think, Sirs, that we fhould have 'been able to have understood thefe things in the fcriptures, unlefs, by the will of God, we had re'ceived the gift from him.'

As Juftin was a perfon of unquestioned probity, we cannot doubt of his fincerity in believing himfelf to have had an extraordinary insight into the fcriptures given him by the Almighty, though he moft (y) wretchedly impofed upon himself in it.

His

(*) Εγω τε αν είπον· οιεσθε αν ημας άδε, ω άνδρες, νενοηκεναι δυ νηθηναι εν ταις γραφαις ταύτα, ει μη θεληματι το θελησαντος αύτα ελάβος

μεν χάριν τε νοήσαι ;

(y) Juftin attributes Jofhua's victory over the Amalckites, Exod. xvii. 9.-12. not fo much to the prayers of Moses, as to the circumftance of Jofhua's leading the battle and having the fame name with Jefus in the hebrew, and to the hands of Mofes making the figure of the cross. 8 γαρ ότι είως ηυχείο Μωσης, δια τελο κρείσσων ο λαος εγενετο αλλ' ει εν αρχή της μάχης τα ονόματος το 1ησε ολος, αυτός το σημείον το τάυρο επριες. Id. lbid P. 188.

In the fame page, in Deut. xxxiii 13.-17. he finds the great power and mystery of the crofs, particularly in the uni

M

corn's

His alleging that he himself was inspired, is no proof to us of it; and we can no more admit any new revelation from his own word, without fome ftamp of a divine authority, than we can pay refpect to the waking dreams and revelations of (z) Baron Swedenborg.

corn's horns. And after mentioning thefe inftances, he goes on to say, p. 189. If therefore any one hath not received this great favour from God, to understand the things faid and done by the prophets, it will be of no avail to him to read their fayings, or the things done by them, if he can give no reason for them.

(z) I cannot here omit an account, which I received from a perfon living, of great worth and credit; that a friend of his, feveral years ago, walking with Baron Swedenborg along Cheapfide, in one part, the Baron fuddenly bowed very low down to the ground; when the gentleman, lifting him up and afking, what he was about, the Baron replied, by afking him, if he did not fee Mofes pafs by; and told him, that he had bowed to him. A man that could fee Mofes walking along Cheapfide, might fee any thing. And Juftin's word, and pretence for being inspired, is as little to be trufted, who could ascribe a victory of the Ifraelites to the pofition of Mofes's hands, and to Joshua's particular name.

SECTION

SECTION XV.

Whence it was that Juftin took up the idea of his being infpired in this refpect.

The probable account of Juftin's delufion may feem to have been this. Being of a warm enthufiaftic turn, it struck his imagination, that Chrift was the logos, the chief of those emanations from the fupreme Being, of which his favourite Plato fpoke. And as what we much wish, we eafily perfuade ourselves to be true, he was led to fancy, that he had a private revelation from God, that his mind was extraordinarily enlightened to fee, that it was Chrift, as the logos, who was mentioned by Mofes and Solomon in thofe paffages, in which we have feen him fo egregioufly miftaken.

What might at first promote, and continually confirmed this difpofition in Justin to exalt the character of Chrift, was the fhame of the cross, the difgrace of having the founder of his new religion, a mere suffering mortal; which was flightły obferved above.

It is remarkable, that he feldom mentions this latter circumstance, of Chrift's being of the human race, but he immediately endeavours to wipe

off the ftain of it, by throwing in something concerning his fuppofed divine generation.

In his apology to the emperors, after a fine paffage, in which he defcribes the pure and rational worship which the chriftians paid to the creator of the universe, he says (a), I fhall fhew you, that with reafon we honour him, who was

our preceptor in these things; and who was for ⚫ this end born, even Jesus Christ, who was crucified by Pontius Pilate, the procurator of Judea, in the reign of Tiberius Cæfar; whom we are taught to have been the Son of the only true God, and hold him in the fecond rank; and in the third, the prophetic fpirit. But in this we are counted to be perfons out of our fenfes, in affigning the fecond place after the unchangeable and eternal God, and father of all things, to a

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man that was put to death upon the cross. But they know not the great mystery that is in it.

A little after he goes on thus to acquaint the emperors (b). "But Jefus, who is called the Son of God, if he had been only a man, was, for his wifdom, worthy to have been called the Son of God; fince all writers agree in ftiling

God, the father of men and of gods. But if, befides this common generation, we say that Jefus was born of God, as being the Word of God, which I have obferved before, we only herein

(a) Justin. Op. p. 51. (b) Juftin. Op. p. 56. 57.

< agree with you, who call Mercury, the word, ⚫ who carries meffages from God, his interpreter. • And if any object to us, that he suffered upon a 'crofs; we may reply, that it is nothing more

than happened to thofe, who are by you reckon⚫ed the fons of Jupiter, who are reported to have ' undergone different kinds of death: fo that in

his peculiar kind of death Jefus had nothing more ⚫ reproachful than they. But how far he furpassed them in virtue and goodness, will appear in what fball follow, or rather has already appeared. For true excellency can best be difcerned by men's " actions.'

It is to be lamented, that Juftin did not always abide by this fuperior excellency of moral character, as Chrift's greatest honour and dignity; fince it is in itself the highest poffible perfection: instead of placing it, in a supposed preexistence, and a fanciful divine generation.

SECTION XVI.

Juftin was the inventor of the doctrine of Christ's preexistence, and of his being the agent of the deity, in the old Teftament.

It may hence be inferred, that Justin was the first author and propagator of the doctrine of Christ