in order to prove that he was descended from the house and family of David, as the prophets foretold he should be.

In this genealogy there are confessedly some difficulties, at which we cannot be much surprised, when we consider of what prodigious antiquity this genealogy is, going back some thousands of years; and when we know too that several Jewish persons had the same name, and that the same person had different names (especially under the Babylonish captivity) which is still the case in India and other parts of Asia. This must necessarily create some perplexity, especially at such a distance as we are from the first sources of information. But to the Jews themselves at the time, there were probably no difficulties at all; and it does not appear that they (who were certainly the best judges of the question) made any objection to this genealogy of Christ, or denied him to be descended from the family of David. We may therefore reasonably conclude, that his descent was originally D 2 admitted

admitted to be fairly made out by the evangelists, whatever obscurities may have arisen since. Indeed it is highly probable, that this genealogy was taken from some public records or registers of the ancient Jewish families, which it is very evident from Josephus that the Jews had, especially with regard to the lineage of David, and which were universally known and acknowledged to be authentic documents. I shall therefore only observe further on this head, that St. Matthew gives the pedigrec of Joseph, and St. Luke that of Mary. But they both come to the same thing, because among the Jews the pedigree of the husband was considered as the legal pedigree of the wife; and as Mary and Joseph were nearly related, and were of the same tribe and family, their genealogies of course must run nearly in the same line.

After the genealogy of Christ, follows an account of his birth, which, as we may easily suppose of so extraordinary a person, had something in it very extraordinary.

Accordingly

Accordingly the evangelist tells us, that "the angel of the Lord appeared unto Joseph in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost and she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS (that is, a Saviour,) for he shall save his people from their sins*":

This undoubtedly was a most wonderful and singular and unexampled event. But it was natural to imagine, that when the Son of God was to appear upon the scene, he would enter upon it in a way somewhat different from the sons of men. And in fact we find him appearing upon earth in a manner perfectly new and peculiar to himself; in a manner, which united in itself at once the evidence of prophecy and of miracle. He was born of a virgin, and, what is no less wonderful, it was predicted of him seven hundred years before, that he should be so born. "Behold," says Isaiah, “a virgin shall conceive and

* Matt. i. 20.

bear

bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel*;" a Hebrew word, signifying God with us. What man, but a prophet, inspired of God, could have foreseen an event so completely improbable, and apparently impossible? What impostor would have hazarded such a prediction as this? and, what is of still more importance, what impostor could have fulfilled it? What less than the power of God could have enabled Jesus to fulfil it. By that power he did fulfil it. He only, of the whole human race, did fulfil it, and thus proved himself to be, at the very moment of his birth, what the whole course of his future life, his death, his resurrection, and his ascension into Heaven, further declared him to be, THE SON of God.

And as such he was soon acknowledged, and due homage paid to his divinity by a very singular embassy, and in a very singular manner. For the evangelist proceeds to tell us in the beginning of the second

Isaiah vii. 14.

second chapter, that "when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him." As this is a very remarkable, and very important event, I shall employ the remaining part of this Lecture in explaining it to you at large, subjoining such reflections as naturally arise from it.

The name of these persons, whom our translation calls wise men, is in the original payo, in the Latin language, magi, from whence is derived our English word, magicians. The magi were a sect of ancient philosophers, living in the eastern part of the world, collected together in colleges, addicted to the study of astronomy, and other parts of natural philosophy, and highly esteemed throughout the east, having juster sentiments of God and his worship than any of the ancient heathens; for they abhorred the adoration of images made in the form of men and animals, D 4 and