his time, he could not have written it, when he was himself in Palestine, still less in Hebrew, without subjecting himself to the charge of wilful and unqualified falsehood. Mark, on the other hand, would have safely written it at Rome; Luke at any other place; and John, after the destruction of Jerusalem, at Ephesus. But their testimony of what was a prevailing report at Jerusalem, is no more than the testimony of men whom, we, in other respects, may believe to be honest men. One word more: from whom do the enemies of Christianity require, that this information is to proceed, namely, of the soldiers going to the chief priests, and of being bribed by them? From John? His general mode is to omit what his predecessors have mentioned, and in this point of view, his silence is confirmation. Where there is a deficiency to supply, or an obscurity to rectify, he does so. From Mark? His gospel stops in the middle of the history of the women, and at the end of the eighth verse is broken off. Luke, therefore, alone remains. But if the silence of Luke forms an objection to the history of a writer, who was himself present and resident at Jerusalem, the admission of this objection would prove that the history was not true; and it would rest

upon this, that a writer, not resident in the country, who states in the beginning of his work, that he writes entirely from the information of others, has not mentioned a circumstance, which circumstance does not, in any degree, relate to parties who were at a distance from Jerusalem.

IX. JESUS SHOWS HIMSELF ALIVE TO TWO DISCIPLES, TRAVELLING TO EMMAUS.

MARK XVI. 12-13.

LUKE XXIV. 13-34.

Mark xvi. 12-13. "After that he appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country.

"And they went and told it unto the residue, nei ther believed they them."

12. "In another form."] Henman thinks that this alludes only to a different garment, which was the reason they did not know him. But the Greek word is not confined to clothing, it extends to the appearance both of the countenance and of the shape. Another garment would scarcely prevent our being recognized by

L

a friend, with whom we had been any time walking and talking. I believe, therefore, that the countenance was, in point of fact, supernaturally changed and appeared to the disciples in another point of view.

13. "The residue."] This does not relate exclusively to the apostles, to whom these two did not belong, but to the remaining disciples. This I collect from Luke xxiv. 33, where it says, that immediately upon this return, and after having brought the first intelligence of what they had seen, they met the apostles with other disciples, and related the story" to the eleven gathered together, and to them that were with them."

"Neither believed they them."] A contradiction has been here said to exist betwixt this history and Luke xxiv. 34. I find none, although I confess I am not very partial to this appendix to Mark, and think, according to the reading in Luke, that many of those who were present did not believe. But more of this hereafter, when I shall come to Luke. It is astonishing what pains have been taken by commentators to reconcile the contradiction between the two evangelists; their words have been twisted in every way. Some

have said that the disciples believed in the resurrection of Jesus, and in his appearance to Peter, but that the two disciples going to Emmaus did not believe. If a man believes what is next to incredible, that Jesus.is risen from the dead, and that Peter has seen him, will he be disposed to be incredulous, because two others maintain they have seen him also ?

13. "

LUKE XXIV. 13-35.

And, behold, two of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs.

14. "And they talked together of all these things which had happened.

15. "And it came to pass, that while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them.

16. "But their eyes were holden, that they should not know him.

17. "And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad?

18. “And then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering, said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days?

19. " And he said unto them what things? And they said unto him, concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet, mighty in deed and word before God, and all the people;

20. "And how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and crucified him.

21. "But we trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed Israel; and besides all this, to day is the third day since these things were done.

22." Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulchre ;

23. "And when they found not his body, they came saying, that they had also seen a vision of angels, which said that he was alive.

24." And certain of them which were with us, went to the sepulchre, and found it even so as the women had said, but him they saw not.

25. “Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken, 26.Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?

27. "And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

28. "And they drew nigh unto the village