150

He

goes from thence to keep the Paffover at Jerufalem, SECT. 24. of Mofes, that all the Males fhould appear before the Lord: (Exod. xxiii. 17. John II. 13. and Deut. xvi. 16.) And therefore Jefus, who maintained a Religious Regard to the Ceremonial, as well as the Moral Part of the Law, went up to Jerufalem to worship at the Temple.

14

And at his coming thither, he found in the outer Court and Cloysters of the Temple, thofe that under a Pretence of accommodating fuch as came to worship there with proper Sacrifices, fold Oxen, and Sheep, and Doves (b); and he alfo faw there the Moneychangers fitting at their Tables, who, for a certain Profit, changed any foreign Coin into that which was current, and larger Pieces of Money into Half-Shekels, which were on fome Occafions to be paid into the Sacred 15 Treafury. (Exod. xxx. 15.) Now at the Sight of this, Jefus was moved with a Jefus was moved with a juft Indignation, to think that fo facred a Place, honoured with fuch peculiar Tokens of the Divine Prefence, fhould be profaned in this audacious Manner; and fo great an Affront be put on the Devout Gentiles, in whose Court this Market was kept: And therefore having made a Whip of the Small Cords, (with

14 And found in the

Temple those that fold
Oxen, and Sheep, and
Doves, and the Changers of
Money, fitting:

part i. chap. 11. and the most confiderable of them will be touched upon in their proper Places. Mr. Manne has with great Learning and Ingenuity attempted to revive a long exploded Notion, that Christ's Ministry continued but fixteen Months; (fee Manne's Second Differtation, pag. 146, & feq.) fo that there were but Two Paffovers during the whole Courfe of it. Mr. Whifton's Reasoning against this Hypothefis, in the fixth of his late Differtations, appears to me unanfwerable. For he there fhews, that if this was true, Chrift must have travelled on an Average near ten Miles a Day, during the Course of his Ministry. Befides, the Tranfpofitions in Scripture, which this would introduce, feem very unwarrantable and dangerous; and among other Difficulties, it is none of the leaft, that Mr. Manne is obliged to fuppofe, that Christ only purged the Temple at his laft Paffover, and confequently that St. John has misplaced this Story; tho' ver. 24. of this Chapter, and ver. 22, 23, 24. of the next, (Sect. 27.) afford fuch ftrong Arguments to the contrary Compare Note. (c), and Note (m), of

this Section.

(b) Sold Oxen, and Sheep, and Doves.] There muft have been a grand Market for thefe Animals at fuch Times; for Jofephus tells us, that no less than 256,500 Victims were offered at one Paffover. See Jofeph. de Bell. Jud. lib. vi. cap. 9. (al. vii. 17.) §. 3. pag. 399. Edit. Havercamp.

(c) He

and drives the Traders there out of the Temple.

out of the Temple, and the Sheep, and the Oxen; and poured out the Changers Money, and overthrew the Tables;

16 And faid unto them that fold Doves, Take thefe Things hence; make not my Father's Houfe an Houfe

of Merchandise.

17 And his Difciples remembred that it was writ

ten,

151 (with which they were used to tie the Beafts SECT. 24. to fome Rings fixed in the Pavement for that Purpose,) he drove them all out of the John II. 15. Temple, and the Sheep, and the Oxen, which they had brought into it; and he also poured out the Money of the Exchangers, and overturned the Tables at which they were fitting. And he faid to them that fold Doves, 16. Take all thefe Things away from hence directly; [and] do not, for Shame, make my Father's House, by such scandalous Practices as these, an House of publick Traffick, and turn it to a common Market-place, or Exchange. Now by his faying thus he openly proclaimed, that GOD was his Father (c), and made fuch a Declaration of his Divine Miffion, as could not but be greatly obferved by the Multitude. And his Difciples, when they faw 17 fo meek a Perfon in fuch an unusual Tranfport of juft Displeasure, remembered that

it

(c) He openly proclaimed, that GOD was his Father.] The most confiderable Argument, which Mr Manne has brought to prove, that this Expulfion of the Merchants from the Temple happened only in our Lord's laft Paffover, and confequently that it is here tranfpofed, is, that fuch an open Declaration, that the Temple was his Father's Houfe, would have put him too much into the Power of his Enemies, and would have been inconfiftent with the prudent Referve, which Chrift kept on this Head, (fee Manne's Differt. pag. 179, 180. and compare Locke's Reasonableness of Christianity, pag. 91, & feq.) as well as with the Reflection of his Brethren; John vii. 3, & feq. (the Notes on which Place in Sect. 98. may be confulted here.) But in Reply to this Objection, I would beg Leave to obferve, (1.) That for Jefus to call the Temple his Father's Houfe, did not amount to an exprefs Declaration that he was. the Meffiah; fince the Jews in general fpake of GOD as their Father. (John viii. 41. (See John x. 24, 25. with the Note there, Sect. 134.) And (2.) That though in the Circumstances that here attended it, there was an oblique Intimation of fomething extraordinary, it might not be fo dangerous now, as afterwards; because our Lord not having opened the Spiritual Nature of his Kingdom, or as yet rendered himfelf obnoxious to the Pharifees by fuch juft Invectives as he afterwards ufed, they, who expected the Meffiah to appear about this Time, and longed for his Appearance, might be inclinable for a while to wait the Iffue of Christ's Pretenfions, and so much the rather, as he now wrought fome wonderful Miracles. (Compare ver. 23. and chap. iii. 2.) Accordingly we find in the Beginning of the next Chapter, one of the Chief among the Pharifees comes privately to confer with Chrift in a very refpectful Manner. It feems neceflary to acquiefce in thefe Solutions, because the Conference, which refers to the Miracles wrought at this Feaft, is expressly faid to have been, before John the Baptift was imprifoned. Compare John iii. 22,-24. Sect. 27.

(d). Re

152

CHRIST's Saying of the Temple of his Body.

SECT. 24.it was written of David (d), in Words ten, The Zeal of thine Houfe which well expreffed the Character of Chrift hath eaten me up.

John II. 17 on this Occafion, (Pfal. lxix. 9.) "The Zeal

18

19

of thine Houfe bath eaten me up ;" as if it were faid, A Regard for the Honour of thy Sanctuary, like a fecret Flame glowing in my Bofom, preys upon my Spirits, and would have confumed me, had I not given it Vent.

A Fact fo publick and remarkable as this, could not but immediately come to the Knowledge of the Priests, and Rulers of the Jews (e), whofe Supreme Council fate in a magnificent Chamber belonging to the Temple (f): Some of them therefore, when they heard of it, anfwered and faid unto him, By what Authority doft thou thus take upon thee to reform what is amiss here, and what Sign doft thou fhew us, feeing that thou doft thefe Things, to prove thy having a Divine Commiffion, fince it is certain thou haft none from the Government? Jefus anfwered and faid unto them, You fhall not want convincing Evidence, that I have an Authority far fuperior to what Man can give me; for if you demolish this Temple, I promise and affure you, I will raife it up again in

three

18 Then answered the

Jews, and faid unto him, to us, feeing that thou doeft thefe Things?

19 Jefus anfwered and faid unto them, Destroy this

Temple, and in three Days
I will raife it up.

(d) Remembered that it was written of David.] That these Words were originally fpoken of David, and not of Chrift, is plain from the fifth Verse of the lxixth Pfalm'; O GOD, thou knoweft my Foolifonefs, and my Sins are not bid from thee; which cannot be applied to Chrift. Abundance of other Scriptures are quoted, with such a beautiful Accommodation as this.

(e) Rulers of the Jews.] It feems most probable, that the Jews here mentioned were Rulers, because we know, that the great Affembly of Jewish Rulers, (that is, the Sanhedrim,) fate in the Temple, and that the chief of them often attended Publick Worship there. This Action of Chrift (in driving out the Buyers and Sellers) muft undoubtedly come to their Knowledge; and as their Office would feem to authorize them to call him to an Account, we are fure their Prejudices against him would incline them to do it.

(f) A magnificent Chamber belonging to the Temple.] This fine Rotunda was called from its beautiful Pavement, Lifhcath-Haggazith, and ftood on the Wall of the Temple, Part of it within, and Part of it without, its facred Precincts. See Calmet's Dictionary, at the Word Sanhedrim; Lightfoot's Defcription of the Temple, chap. 9. and Witfii Mifcell, Sacr. Lib. i. Diss. iii. §. 66.

7

(g) Demolifb

20 Then faid the Jews, Forty and fix Years was this Temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three Days?

153

in which he foretells his Refurrection in three Days. three Days (g). The Jews then faid unto SECT. 24° him, in proud Derifion and Contempt of what they did not understand, This Temple John II. 20. hath been no less than fix and forty Years building (b), (for it is now fo long, fince Herod began to repair it,) and notwithstanding many thousand Men have been employed upon it, it is not yet entirely finifhed; and wilt thou undertake to raise it up in three Days? None certainly will be foolish enough, to pull it down, to try the But they were quite miftaken in the Senfe of what he faid; for what they understood him to have spoken of the Temple at Jerufalem, he spake of the much more facred Temple of his own Body, in which the Deity dwelt, in a far nobler Man

21 But he spake of the Experiment. Temple of his Body.

(g) Demolish this Temple, and I will raife it up in three Days.] It is moft evident, that Chrift intended nothing more in thefe Words, than the Paraphrafe expreffes, and did not mean to command them to demolish the Temple; though his Enemies indeed did, fome Years after, mifrepresent this Saying, as if he had intimated a Purpose of doing it himself. Compare Mark xiv. 58. Sect. 185.

(b) This Temple hath been fix and forty Years building.] Mr. Whiston, (in his View of the Harmony, pag. 143.) would render it; Forty and fix Years hath this Temple been built: But as it would have been abfurd to argue from the Time fince the Temple was built to the Time it would require to rebuild it, this Senfe must certainly be wrong; and Dr. Lightfoot has well fhewn, that the Word whoopnen may fignify (as we render it,) it hath been fo long building. Hor. Hebr. in loc. Mr. Fleming's Calculation, (in his Christology, vol. ii. pag. 366,-371.) to prove, that the fecond Temple was forty-fix Years building, is not only very precarious, but also very unneceffary; for the Words refer to the Time, fince Herod began to rebuild it, which he first propofed to the People in the eighteenth Year of his Reign, (Jofeph. Antiq. fud. lib. xv. cap. II. (al. 14.) §. 1. Havercamp.) and tho' he finished what he propofed in eight or nine Years, it feems, (as Dr. Lightfoot, and Dr. Lardner have judiciously observed,) that the Jews ftill went on improving and adorning it: For long after this, under the Government of Florus, (about the Year of Christ 65,) Jofephus fpeaks of the Temple's being finished, and the Workmen difmiffed: So that it feems, they were at work upon it, all the Time of Christ's Miniftry and Life. (Compare John viii. 59. Sect. 105. John x. 31. Sect. 134. and fee Jofeph. Antiq. Jud. lib. xx. cap. 9. (al. 8.) §. 7 pag. 978, and Lardner's Credib. Part i. vol. i. pag. 534-539. and vol. ii. pag. 856,-860.) Now as the eighteenth Year of Herod's Reign from the Death of Antigonus began fome Time in A. U. C. 734. and his Propofal to rebuild the Temple might then be made to the Jews at the Feast of Tabernacles, it will from thence be but a few Months more than forty-fix Years to the Pallover, A. U. 781. Or fince a Year or more might probably be spent in preparing for the Work, before he actually began it, it may thus be brought down to A. U. 782, or 783, which is the lowest Time to which this Paffover can be referred.

VOL. I.

U

(i) The

21

154 SECT. 24. Manner than in their Holy Place; (Col. ii. 9.) and he might give fome Intimation John II. 21. of it, in the Gesture that he ufed. in fpeak22 ing. When therefore he was rifen from the Dead, juft on the third Day after his Crucifixion, bis Difciples remembered, that he had faid this to them; and they yet more firmly believed the Scripture, in all its Prophecies concerning the Meffiah's Kingdom, and their Faith in him was confirmed by the Word which fefus had spoken: For fuch a wonderful Event as the Refurrection of Chrift, confidered in its Connection with this folemn Prediction (1), justly appeared as the fullest conceivable Proof of his Divine Miffion.

CHRIST will not truft himself to the Jews.

23

And while he was at the Paffover in Jerufalem, on the Feaf-day, many of the Jews who were then prefent there, feeing the Miracles which he wrought (k), believed in him (1), and were inwardly perfuaded, that he was 24 the Meffiah : But Jefus did not care to truft himself to them (m), fo far as to acknowledge it exprefsly, that he was actually the promifed Meffiah, and by confeffing who he was, to put himself into their Power; because 25 he knew them all, And had no Need that

22 When therefore he

was rifen from the Dead, his he had faid this unto them: Disciples remembred, that and they believed the Scripture, and the Word which Jefus had faid.

23 Now when he was in

Jerufalem at the Paflover, in the Feaft-day, many believed in his Name, when they faw the Miracles which he did.

24 But Jefus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all Men,

25 And needed not that

for

any one should teftify, or tell him any thing, any fhould teftify of Man:
of the Character of any Man, tho' ever fo
much a Stranger to him: For he himself by
an immediate and unerring Penetration

knew

(i) The Refurrection of Chrift, confidered in its Connection with this folemn Prediction.] This important Thought is fet in a very strong Light by Dr. Jenkins, in his Reafonableness of Christianity, vol. i. pag. 25, 26.

iii. 2.

(k) Seeing the Miracles which he wrought.] Thefe Words, as alfo thofe in John and iv. 45. plainly refer to fome Miracles wrought by Christ, the Particulars of which are not tranfmitted to us.

(1) Believed in him.] It is in the Original, believed in his Name; a Hebraifm, which it did not feem neceffary to retain. Nothing is more common, than to put the Name of a Perfon for the Perfon himself. Compare John i. 12. xx. 31. Pfal. lxxv. I. i. 15. and Rev. iii. 4.

Aas

(m) Did not trust himself to them.] I look upon this as a Demonftration, that the Paffover here fpoken of, was not that, at which Chrift fuffered; for then there had been no need of fuch a Precaution, and indeed no room for it.