and would touch his facred Body, Matth. xxviii. 9. John xx. 17. For this Reason perhaps too, as well as out of Devotion to him, that she might be able to give the Apostles the better account of his being risen again. But he forbad her, saying, Touch me not, for I am not yet afcended to my Father, and then sends her to his Disciples, to his Brethren, as he with infinite Love and Condescension styles them. He was not yet ascended, or was not then about to afcend, but to stay many Days upon Earth, and there would be time enough for her nearer approaches to him; either for the encrease and confirmation of her Faith, or for her Acknowledgment and Adoration. After his Refurrection, Christ made himself known to his Disciples by degrees, and by several Appearances to them at distant times, in divers places, and in different manners; he suffered them to doubt of that great Article of our Faith for a while, that he might overcome their Unbelief, and extort a Conviction from them by such means, as that no Man, unless he would be very unreasonable and obstinate, should pretend any cause to doubt of it afterwards. But when he had throughly convinc'd them of his Refurrection, we may conclude from what we read of his conversing with them, that from that time, he admitted them to a freer and more intimate Communication with himfelf, and discoursed with them in the most mild, and gracious, and inftructive manner, of all which it concerned them to know pertaining to his Kingdom, or which they were capable then of knowing, before the defcent of the Holy Ghost; sometimes perhaps vouchsafing his Prefence to one, and sometimes to others of them, and most commonly to them all together, when they were assembled, as we find they generally

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Οὔπω ἀναβέβηκa, the Preterperfect Tense for the Present. I do not yet afcend: As, ννὶ ἔγραψα, 1 Cor. v. 11. I now write; for the Apoftle speaks of the Epiftle which he was then writing. were

were. And when he withdrew himself, it was because their mortal state would not bear a constant and uninterrupted Attendance for so long a time upon their Blessed Master; and because it was requisite, that they by degrees should be accustomed to endure his Absence, and to walk by Faith, not by Sight; and after his Ascension, the Holy Ghost, the Comforter, did not immediately come upon his departure from them, but their Faith was to be exercised in the expectation of him for the space of Ten Days, and then his Promise was to be fulfilled in the fittest and most proper Season, on the Feast of Pentecost.

In few words, Christ was seen of them, says the Scripture, forty Days; which implies, that these, for the most part, were spent in his Presence; and we are in the same place told how this time was employ'd, in speaking of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.

II. We may observe the manner how our Saviour left his Disciples, when he afcended up from them into Heaven. He had before prepared them to expect his Ascension; for besides what he had faid to them before his Death, immediately upon his Refurrection he sent this Message to his Disciples by Mary Magdalen, Go to my Brethren, and say unto them, I afcend unto my Father, and your Father, and to my God, and your God, John xx. 17. They were in hopes, it seems, that he would at this time have restored again the Kingdom to Ifrael, and did not think he would have left them, before that, which they so much defired, had been accomplished. However, taking his leave of them, he commanded them that they should not depart from Ferusalem, but wait for the Promise of the Father, which, Says be, ye have heard of me. And whilst he was giving them repeated Affurances that this Promise should be most effectually fulfilled, while they beheld, he was taken up, and a Cloud received him out of their fight; he was not snatch'd away from them by a swift

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a swift and violent motion, like Elijah, and carried up in a fiery Chariot, which might dazle their sight, that they could not difcern him in his Afcent, but he was lifted up and removed from them leisurely, and by degrees, they looked stedfastly towards Heaven as he went up, by a visible and easie motion, and they had a clear view of him, 'till at last a Cloud received him out of their fight. It is probable, that all the Disciples to the Number of about an hundred and twenty, mentioned, Acts i. 15. were present to behold the Afcent of our Saviour. The Apostle St. Thaddeus declared, tho' this (as well as many other things) is not inserted into the Scriptures, that a great multitude of the Saints and Heavenly Host went up with him; we read of the Appearance of two Angels upon this Occafion, who acquainted the Disciples, that this fame Jesus, whom they had thus evidently seen, taken up from them into Heaven, should so come in like manner, as they had feen him go into Heaven. And St. Paul informs us, that the manner of his coming at the last Day, will be with his mighty Angels, or the Angels of his Power, 2 Thef. i. 7. St. Jude, that he will come with ten thousands of his Saints, (Jude, ver. 14.) and our Saviour himself, that all the holy Angels will attend him, Matth. xxv. 31. From whence we may conclude, according to the Account of St. Thaddeus, that the Holy Angels visibly attended him in his Afcenfion.

The Difciples were all much surprized at a thing so wonderful, and stood gazing up into Heaven after him, 'till they were certified not only by their own Senses, but by the Message of the Angels that he was gone from them into Heaven, no more to be expected from thence, till the Day of Judgment.

We have therefore the plainest and fullest Evidence that can be desired, both of the Refurrection and Af

cension of our Saviour. He shewed himself alive to his Disciples, after his Passion, by many infallible Proofs; he was seen of them forty Days, and conversed and discoursed with them, tho' we are not told after what manner, and by what intervals of time he was pleased to vouchsafe them his Presence; this being concealed from us, as very many of the Particulars are of his former Life before his Crucifixion. But at the end of the space of forty Days, whilft he was in the midst of them, he afcended into Heaven in the fight of them all, in such a manner, that they distinctly saw and beheld him, and kept their Eyes fix'd upon him in his Afcenfion, and a Vision of Angels besides informed them, that he is to return in the like manner, when he shall come to judge the World.

CHAP. XXX.

Why some Works of Nature are more especially ascribed to God; why Means was sometimes used in the working of Miracles, and why Faith was sometimes required of those, upon whom, or before whom Miracles were wrought.

I.

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LL the Powers of Natural Causes proceeding from God, that may juftly be afcribed to him, which is wrought by them, for he works as truly by Second Causes, as by his own direct and immediate Power, in producing any Effect. The Order and Frame of Nature was originally by his Appointment, and by his Care, and Providence, and Influence, it is upheld; and therefore the Scriptures ascribe the effects of Natural Agents to God as the Author of them; because these can do nothing but by his Support and Influence: and the continuance and prefervation

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vation of Natural Causes in the production of their Effects for fo many Ages in one constant Tenour, is a manifest and wonderful Demonstration of the Divine Power and Wisdom.

But those things may be said, more especially, to be done by God himself, whereby, upon some extraordinary occafion, his Power and his Will are more particularly manifested, or his Promise is fulfilled; for in those things, his Care and Providence is more concerned to bring them to pass; and therefore God may employ a more than ordinary concourse to fustain and influence the Powers of Nature, that they may not fail in such Cases to produce their Effects according to their ufual and fetled Course.

II. The Scripture takes no farther notice of the Works of Nature, than as they are manifestations of the infinite Power, and Wisdom, and Goodness of God; and therefore it refers all immediately to him, without any mention of the intermediate Natural Causes. But it gives such an Historical Account of Miracles, as to exclude all Natural Causes, and by defcribing with what Circumstances they were brought to pass, shews, that they could not be produced by the Natural Course of Things. Natural Effects are ascribed to God, as the Creator and Preserver of all Things; by whose Power and Influence alone it is, that Natural Causes can act. But Miracles are afcribed to him, as acting without any subserviency of inferior Causes. It is one thing to omit the mention of Natural Causes, and another to exclude them. Both Scripture and Reason teach us, that no Child can be conceived but by the Power of God: but we read, that Christ was miraculously conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of a Virgin. St. Paul preached to the Athenians, that in God we live, and move, and have our Being, Acts xvii. 28. But when Lazarus was raised to life again, after he had been dead four Days; and when St. Peter, by pronouncing only a few words, caufed