Our Saviour does not deny the Coming of one from the Dead to be an Evidence of a future State; nor yet, allowing it to be an Evidence, does he determine of what Weight and Authority it is, or ought to be. This only he affirms; That, let the Authority of it be what it will, they who will not fubmit to the Authority of a divine Revelation, will not fubmit to this: The Reason of which Judgment may appear from the following Confiderations:

First, If the Evidence of Revelation be in itself greater and more convincing than the Evidence given by one from the Dead can poffibly be, then there is no Reason to expect that he who rejects the greater should submit to the less Authority.

Secondly, If the Objections which the Unbeliever makes ufe of against the Authority of Revelation, lie ftronger against the Authority of one coming from the Dead, it is not to be fuppofed, that he will pafs over that in one Cafe, which he fo mightily ftumbles at in the other. Or,

Thirdly, If Unbelief be the Effect of a vitiated and corrupted Mind, which hates to be reformed; which rejects the Evidence, because it will not admit the Doctrine, not the Doctrine,

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Doctrine, because it cannot admit the Evidence; in this Cafe all Proofs will be alike, and it will be loft Labour to ply fuch a Man with Reafon or new Evidence, fince it is not want of Reafon or Evidence that makes him an Unbeliever. And it is upon this Cafe chiefly that our Saviour grounds his Judgment in the Text.

First then, Let us confider, whether the Evidence upon which Revelation ftands be in itself greater or more convincing, than the Evidence of one coming from the Dead can be: If it is, we must fubfcribe to our Saviour's Judgment; That he who will not bear Mofes and the Prophets, or Christ and his Apoftles, would not be perfuaded, though one rofe from the Dead. Whatever a dead Man, who appears to you, may tell you concerning another World, all the Reason you can have to believe him is, because you fuppofe him to come from the other World, and to relate Things which he has feen and known: So that his Authority is no more than barely the Authority of a Traveller, who relates Things of the Countries through which he has paffed. And how will it appear to you, that one from the Dead cannot poffibly deceive you? As he is a Man, I

am

am fure you have Reason to mistrust him; and what Reafon you have to rely on him as a dead Man, I know not. Poffibly you may think that the very Seeing of one come from the Dead will of itself prove the great Point of all, the Reality of a future State. But are you fure it is impoffible for any Being of the other World to personate á dead Man, and to appear to you in the Shape and Figure of one you formerly knew? Surely, it is one Thing to prove that there is another World, and Beings belonging to it; and another to prove a future State, that is, a World in which dead Men fhall live.

Our Saviour's Refurrection was something more than merely the Apparition of a dead Man: He foretold the Time and Circumftances of his Refurrection, and put the Proof of his Miffion and Doctrine upon the Performance of this great Wonder: So that by this means his Refurrection became a direct Proof of this, That the Doctrine he taught was the Doctrine of Him who has Power to raise the Dead: And fince Part of his Doctrine is, That the Dead fhall be raised; we are thus far certain, that He, who has Power to raise the Dead, has

affured

affured us that the Dead fhall be raised: For no one can foretel the Time and Circumstances of a dead Man's rifing to Life, who has not the Power, or is not commiffioned by Him who has the Power, of Life and Death. So that the Authority of our Saviour's Word after his Refurrection was not barely the Authority of one coming from the Dead, but it was the Authority of Him who has Power to raise the Dead; which Authority we know belongs not to Man, and therefore is greater than the Authority of any Man either from the Dead or the Living. So that our Saviour's Refurrection proves a Commiffion from the Highest Power to teach the World; which cannot be proved merely from the Appearance of one from the Dead. And here lies the true Difference between the Refurrection of Chrift, and the Resurrection of those whom our Saviour himself raised from the Dead. We have been afked, why Lazarus and the reft did not publish their Knowledge of the other World? One plain Answer is, they were not commissioned fo to do: Their Refurrection was a Proof of his Power and Commiffion, who raised them

to Life, but of their own Power and Commiffion

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miffion it was no Proof: They were merely paffive in their Resurrection, and brought no more Authority from the Grave, than they carried to it; and therefore had no Right to fet up for Teachers.

Then, as to the Reality of our Saviour's Resurrection, there was Warning given to expect it; which of itself is a great Evidence of fincere Dealing. Men do not use to give public Notice of the Cheats they intend to play; or, if ever they have, the Success has been answerable to the Management, and yielded nothing but Shame and Confufion to the Contrivers. And, after his Refurrection, his Stay upon Earth was fo long, as to give full Satisfaction, to all concerned, of the Truth and Reality of what they faw. At his first Appearance, the Disciples were in the fame Case with others who think they see Spectres and Apparitions; that is, they were confounded and amazed, and did not know well what they faw: And, had not the Frequency of our Saviour's Appearances made them familiar to them, so that they bore the Sight of him with the fame Sedateness of Mind as they did in his Life-time, and confequently had all the neceffary Qualifications to judge rightly concerning what they heard

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