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A Lunatick poffeffed with a Dumb Spirit is brought to him, zed, and running to him, and running to him, they faluted him with the greatest Sect. gr.

faluted him.

16 And he asked the

with them?

Mark IX.

Marks of Respect and Affection: Yet the Scribes
and Pharifees were not at all impressed, but con- 15.
tinued their ill-natured Attack on his Difciples.

And taking Notice of the warm Dispute they 16
Scribes, What question ye were engaged in, be asked the Scribes, What is
the Point you are debating, and what do you con-
tend with them about?

17 And [Lux. behold,] [a certain Man] of the Multitude, [kneeling down to him,) answered and [Luk cried out, saying,] Master, I have brought unto thee my Son, which hath a Dumb Spirit: [MAT. XVII. 14.

IX. 38.-]

MAT. XVII. 15. Lord,

[I beseech thee, look upon my Son, for he is mine only Child; and] have Mercy on bim, for he is Lunatick, and fore vexed: for oft-times he falleth into the Fire, and oft into the Water. [LUKE

ΙΧ.-38.]

LUKE IX. 39. And lo, [wheresoever] this Spirittak

eth him, he suddenly crieth out, and it teareth him, that he fometh again, [and gnasheth with his Teeth, and pineth away; and bruising him, it hardly departeth from him. [MARK ΙΧ. 18.-]

And presently upon his making this Enquiry, 17

behold, a [certain] Man of the Multitude came, and
kneeling down to him, anfwered the Question in Ef-
fect; and crying out with a loud and eager Voice
faid, Oh thou great Teacher and Master in our
Hrael, I have brought thee my poor afflicted Son,
who has for a long Time been poffefsed with a
Dumb Spirit, and the malicious Dæmon has de-
prived him of the Use of his Hearing and Speech :
And in this moving Cafe, Oh Lord, I beseech thee, Mat. XVII.
look upon my Son, for he is mine only Child, [and] 15.
yet instead of being any Comfort to me, is a most
melancholy Spectacle of Horror; let me intreat
thee therefore to have Compassion on [him,] for be
is Lunatick (b), and grievously tormented with ter-
rible Fits, which frequently seize him, and fome-
times endanger his Life; for he often falleth into
the Fire, and often into the Water. And behold, Luke IX. 39.
wherever [this] Spirit feizes him, he has no Strength
or Thought to take Care of himself, but fuddenly
cries out in a violent Manner; and it convulfses him
so, that he foams again at the Mouth, and gnashes
with his Teeth in Extremity of Anguish; and
thus he miferably pines, and withers away in the
Bloom of his Age: And [it] is with great Diffi-
culty that the malignant Dæmon departs from him
for a little while, having bruised him to such a
Degree by violent Distortions, that he is hardly
able to use his Limbs in the Interval of these

MAT. XVII. 16. And I dreadful Agitations. And I am perfuaded Mat. XVII. brought there is some more than ordinary Difficulty in the 16.

Cafe;

(b) He is Lunatick.] Grotius well observes, that this Word, (which exactly answers the Etymology of the Original,) might with great Propriety be used, tho' there was something preternatural in the Cafe; as the Evil Spirit would undoubtedly take Advantage of those Disorders, into which the Brain and Nerves of this unhappy Child were thrown by the Changes of the Moon.

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(c) From

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Mat. XVII.

Who had withstood the Attempts of his Disciples.

Sect. 91. Cafe; for I brought him to thy Disciples, and spake to [them] concerning him, and intreated [them] in the most affectionate Manner, to use their utmost Efforts to cast him out; and they could not accomplish it, nor heal him.

16.

17

Mark IX.

20.

21

Then fefus faid in Reply to kim, Oh ye incredulous and perverse Generation of Men, how long shall I be with you, before you will learn a becoming Regard to me? how long shall I endure that Infidelity, which you are shewing on so many Occasions? And thus did he mean at once to reprove, the Weakness of Faith, in the Father, and in his Disciples, as well as the Obstinacy and Perverseness of the Jewish Teachers, who were triumphing in their present Disappointment: And then turning to the Father of the Child and his Attendants, he said, Bring thy Son hither to me, and you shall fee what my Power can effect.

brought him to thy Disci

ples, [and spake to them,] [Luk. and besought them to cast him out,) and they could not cure him. [MARK IX.-18. LUKE IX. 40.]

17 Then Jesus answered

[him] and faid, Oh faithless

and perverse Generation,

how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring [LUK. thy Son] hither to me. [MARK IX. 19. LUKE IX. 41.]

T

MARK IX. 20. And

they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, [as he was yet a coming,] straightway the Spirit [threw him down, and] tare him, and he fell on the Ground, and wallowed foming. [LUKE IX.

And upon this, they brought him that was pof-
sessed to Jesus, and presented the poor Creature
to bim. And immediately, as foon as he saw him,
while he was yet coming, the Evil Spirit in a Rage
wrought in him with such Violence, that he
threw him down, and convulfed him; and he fell on
the Ground with great Force, and there lay, and 42.-]
rolled from one Side to the other, a Spectacle of
Horror, foaming at the Mouth, and sweating pro-
fusely, till Nature was almost exhausted, and he
seemed ready to die.

And, that the Greatness of the Cure might
more plainly appear, while the unhappy Youth
lay thus before him, he asked his Father, How long
Time is it, that he hath been thus afflicted? And

And

21 And he asked his Fa

ther, How long is it ago fince this came unto him? And he faid, Of a Child.

22 And oft-times it hath

him:

22 be faid, Even from his Childhood (c).
the Evil Spirit is so outragious, and so mali- cast him into the Fire, and
cious, that it frequently, as I faid, has thrown him into the Waters to destroy
into the Fire, and into the Waters, when he has
happened to be near them, as if he watched for
Opportunities to destroy bim; so that I am fenfible
it is a most difficult, as well as dreadful Cafe: But

if

(c) From his Childhood.] So the Word παιδιόθεν properly fignifies; and I think with Grotius. it is much more convenient to render it thus, than from his Infancy.

:

JESUS rebukes the Dæmon, and expells him.

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if thou canst do any Thing in it (d), have Compaffion Sect. 91.
on us, and belp us; for surely none ever needed
thy Pity more.

And Jefus faid unto him, The Question is Mark IX.
not at all concerning my Power, but concerning 23.
the Strength of thy Faith; for if thou canst firmly
and chearfully believe, the Deliverance will surely
be effected, as all Things of this Kind are poffible
to him that believeth.

And immediately the Father of the Child, touched 24 to the very Heart to think that his dear Son might poffibly lose the Cure thro' the Weakness of his own Faith, cried out aloud, and faid with Tears in his Eyes, and Ardor in his Countenance, Lord, I do from my Heart believe that thy Power is unlimited; yet such is my Frailty, that when I look on this Spectacle of Misery, my Faith is ready to fail me again: Help me therefore against my Unbelief, by mitigating the Circumstances of the Trial, or communicating suitable Strength to my Soul (e).

Then Jesus feeing that the Croud ran toge- 25 ther, and was continually increasing round them, rebuked the unclean Spirit, which had poffefsed the Child, and faid unto him, with an Air of fuperior Power and Divine Authority, Thou Dumb and Deaf Spirit, who hast so maliciously deprived this Youth of his Speech and Hearing, I strictly charge and command thee, immediately to come out of him, and prefume to enter into bim no more, nor farther to disquiet him as long as he lives.

And immediately, as foon as he had spoken 26 these Words, [the Evil Spirit, having cried out with great Earneftness, and thrown him into violent Distortions,

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(d) If thou canst do any Thing in it.] Perhaps observing the Fit grow more violent on his approaching Christ, his Faith might begin to fail. This was a very natural Manner of speaking, and yet strongly pathetick, and obliquely interesting the Honour of Christ in the Ifsfue of the Affair. See Raphel. ex Xen. pag. 73.

(e) Help my Unbelief, &c.] It seems an Inconvenience inseparable from this Method of Paraphrafing, that sometimes (as in the present Instance,) some lively and strongly pointed Sentences should lose something of their Spirit by it; yet keeping the Original thus diftinct, may in Part remedy it; and on the whole, many of these Expressions are so full of Meaning, that the general Laws of Interpretation require, they should be unfolded. To observe the exact Medium here, is a Felicity, which I dare not say I have obtained, tho I have laboured after it.

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12

Mark IX.

26.

This Kind comes not out but by Prayer and Fafting.

Sect. 91. stortions, came out of him; and the poor Youth had been so miferably handled, that he fell into a Swoon, and Seemed as one dead, so that many who were present faid, He is undoubtedly quite dead, 27 and will revive no more. But Jefus taking hold of him by the Hand lifted him up, and strengthened him, so that be arose and stood on his Feet. And when [be] thus had perfectly restored and healed the Child, he took and delivered him to his Father, who received him with an inexpressible Mixture of Joy and Amazement. And the Child was well from that very Hour, and these terrible Symptoms returned upon him no more.

out [of him ;] and he was as one dead, insomuch that many faid, He is dead. [МАТ. XVII.-18.-]

27 But Jesus took him by the Hand, and lifted him up, and he arofe: [LUK. and he healed the Child, and delivered him again to his Father.] [And the Child was cured from that very Hour.] [MAT. XVII.-18. LUKE IX.-42.]

LUKE IX. 43.- And

LukeIX.43. And they who beheld it, were all aftonished at the mighty Power of GOD, by which this illustri- they were all amazed at the ous Miracle had been wrought.

Mark IX.

28.

Mat. XVII.

20.

And when he had left the Multitude, and was
come into the House, where he then refided, bis
Disciples, something mortified at the Repulse they
had met with in their late Attempt, came to Jesus
when he was alone, and asked him privately, Why
could not we prevail so far, as to cast out this Dæmon,
and expell him, fince we have performed many Cures
which feemed equally difficult?

And Jesus faid unto them, It was because of
the Remainder of your Unbelief; for verily I fay
unto you, If you had but the least Degree of Faith
in a lively Exercise, tho' it comparatively was
but as a Grain of Mustard-feed (f), you might
perform the greatest Wonders, so as even to say
to this Mountain here in the Neighbourhood,
Remove from this Place to that, and it should ac-
cordingly remove; and in a Word, nothing will
21 be impossible to you.
But as to the Cafe that

was lately before us, be farther faid unto them,
This Dæmon which possessed the Child was one
of a very obstinate Kind, which cannot be ex-
pelled fo readily as others; nor must you ex-
pect

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mighty Power of God.

MARK IX 28. And

when he was come into the House, his Disciples [came to Jesus apart, and] asked him privately, Why could not we cast him out? [MAT.

XVII. 19.]

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suppose, that here is a is very trifling to

come

Refer

(f) Faith as a Grain of Mustard-feed.] It is ence to the Poignancy of Mustard-feed, as an Emblem of a vigorous and lively Faith. It is apparently a Proverb, to express any thing inconfiderably small, that being, as our Lord expresses it, one of the smallest among Seeds. Thus the Rabbi's fay, the Globe of the Earth is but as a Grain of Mustard-feed, when compared with the Expanfe of the Heavens. See Drufius, in loc.

(g) This

Reflections on the Neceffity of a lively Faith.

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come forth by nothing] but pect to have Power over such Spirits as these, to Sect. 91. by Prayer and Fafting. oblige them to go forth by any Means, unless you Mat. XVII. [MARK IX. 29.1

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do by frequent Prayer and Fafting intercede with 21.
God for his more abundant Co-operation, and
by such extraordinary Devotions endeavour to pre-
pare your Souls for his farther Influences (g).

IMPROVEMENT.

HE invidious Opposition, which these Scribes and Pharifees made Markix. 14. to our Lord, and the ill-natured Joy they expressed, in what they imagined would disgrace his Disciples, appears exceeding odious; and it shews us the fatal Effects of Ambition, Pride, and Avarice, when they possess the Hearts of those, who should be (as these by their Office were,) Teachers of others. Such Qualities render those in the Number of the most dangerous Enemies of Mankind, who ought to be its most affectionate Friends, and most useful Benefactors. May the Light of the Gospel break in on their Souls, and form them to a better Temper!

The folicitous Concern of this Parent, when he saw his Child under Mat. xvii. fuch sad Symptoms of Disorder, may surely remind Persons in that Rela- 14, 15. Luke ix. 38. tion, of the Sentiments, with which they should view those of their Children, who are in a Spiritual Sense under the Power of Satan; and of the Importunity with which they should intreat, that the Hand of Christ may be stretched out for their Rescue.

A lively Exercise of Faith is greatly to be desired in this, and all other Applications of this Nature. But, alas, how often do we find the Remainders

of

(g) This Kind cannot go forth by any Means, unless by Prayer and Fafting.] An ingenious Phyfician mentioned by the learned Author of the Enquiry into Dæmoniacks, &c. pag. 47. instead of εκ προσευχη και νηςεια, would read εν προσεχεϊ νηςεια, by constant Fasting; and fupposes it refers to the Neceffity of frequent and long continued Abstinence, in order to the Cure of such an Epileptick Distemper, as the Child in Question had been subject to. But as the Cri ticism is founded on mere Conjecture, contrary to all the Copies known in the World; fo I cannot think it at all natural in itself, or pertinent to the Occafion; for it seems not at all to our Lord's Purpose, to speak of the Natural Methods of Cure, in Answer to the Apostles, Demand, why they could not miraculously perform it? Nor can any Instance be produced to prove, that the Expression is Proverbial, for any Thing very difficult. I could therefore fee no Reason to recede from the usual Interpretation, which I have given in the Paraphrafe. Sir Norton Knatchbull's Sense is extreamly forced, who understands it, as if it had been faid, This Sort [of miraculous Faith] advances not but by Prayer and Fasting: Raphelius has abundantly shewn, how inconclusive those Authorities from Xenophon are, by which he would justify so odd a Version of εξελθειν. See Raphel. Annot. ex Xen. pag. 44,-46. And were the Words confidered, as they stand in Mark, where there is nothing said of Faith, it would be easy to perceive, our Lord is speaking of a Kind of Damans which they were not able to cast out: And that some Demons are more malignant than others, is most manifest from Mat. xii. 45. But oftentimes an Explication has been built upon the Words of one Evangelist, and many learned Remarks have been made to establish it, which could not be applied without great Violence to fuit the parallel Place in another, and presently has fallen to the Ground upon comparing them together.

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