to heaven, and the angels of God afcending and defcending on it. And the Lord ftood above it and faid, I am the Lord God of Abraham, thy father, and the God of Ifaac, the land whereon thou lieft to thee will I give it, and to thy feed; and thy feed fhall be as the duft of the earth, and thou fhalt fpread abroad unto the west, and to the eaft, to the north, and to the fouth, and in thee and in thy feed fhall all the families of the earth be blessed; and I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places wherever thou goeft, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee until I bave done that which I have spoken to thee of. According to the prophet Daniel, this prophecy was complete and full at the coming of the Meffiah. 9th chapter: Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people, and upon the holy city, to finish the tranfgreffion, and to make an end of fins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to feal up the vifion and prophecy, and to anoint the Moft Holy. By comparing and taking both prophecies in their true meaning, the firft covenant gives place, and is tranflated into the new or covenant of the Meffiah. I am with thee and will keep thee in all places wherever thou goeft, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee until I have done that which I have Spoken to thee of; that is, Jacob's pofterity should be preferved a nation, and inhabitants of the, promised land until the Meffiah whom, according to Daniel, juft quoted, vifion and prophecy fhould be fealed up.

The death of the Meffiah put the feal and completion to the firft covenant; fettled, confirmed and established the second, which explains the prophecy; that in the middle of the week he fhall caufe the facrifice and the oblation to cease. The laft of your prophets confirms the rejection of the Jewish facrifices and worship; and introduction and confirmation of Malachi 1ft chapter, I have no pleaJure in you, faith the Lord of Hofts, neither will I accept an offering at your hand; for, from the rifing of the fun even unto the going down of the fame, My Name fhall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incenfe fball be offered unto My Name and a pure offering; for My Name fhall be great among the Gentiles, faith the Lord of Hofts.

the new.

Mofes. The arguments you bring to prove the legal right of Jefus Chrift to the Meffiahfhip, and confequently chriftianity to the new covenant, are our own fcriptures, which we cannot refuse our affent to. All Ifrael expected their Meffiah, according to the prophecies, at the time Jefus Chrift appeared; but have always rejected him with fcorn, and, therefore, condemned him to the most shameful, ignominious death, deftined for none but malefactors for the most heinous crimes.

Luther. He was obftinate and a gainfayer. If perfons will make themselves obnoxious to the higher powers they must take the blame on themselves, and not lay it on the guardians of the laws. I am refolved, on my return, to give no respite to gainfayers of any defcription whatfoever, but immediately to fend out the edicts

`or

.

or penal laws to scrape and glean both body and goods; fo that I hope in a fhort time to find myself the darling of all nations. I am refolved alfo to pare, clip, fqueeze, and prune my court of Doctors Commons; I will put them on a religious diet. It is the advice of the faculty that vegetables are productive of much health and long life; by an abftemious reform I fhall reduce the number to one-third, and, putting them on a small income, will make a great faving to the treasury, and likewife a very large amount will be brought into my coffers by an act of justice and charity, in bringing before my fpiritual court all Doctors, Proctors, and other abdominous, unwieldy, and paunchbellied, hungry wolves, who gather where they have not fown, and whofe hearts gre Alint-ftones. Another refolve is to clear St. Peter's, my church of the abbey, horfe- armoury, St. Paul's, and other places of religion, or otherwise from all images or idolatry whatsoever, to give reafonable room to my darling flocks to attend divine fervice, and bring large fums, by fetting thofe idols to fale at common vendue, and amazing other riches may be acquired by prudent, watchful and religious litigations.

Boy. What were the crimes laid to the charge of Jefus Chrift?

Mofes. Seduction, blafphemy, magic, and a common disturber and feditious culprit, which crimes and many others rendered him hateful and obnoxious to all but a few vagrants, like himfelf, who were his followers, and paid no obedience either to the law of God or man. /

Luther.

Luther. These are heavy charges, and stand foremost in the little regard us proteftants pay to his worship; few of my cloth pay any other refpect than what is abfolutely obligatory to keep our livings; our new philofophy lays the whole afide, convincing ourselves there is no fpirit, but that productions of what kind foever, animal or vegetable, &c. return in full from whence they were produced. And fo be it. Man's nature is to eat, drink, and enjoy himfelf.

Boy. What were the feductions proved against Jefus Chrift?

Mofes. Seducing Ifrael from the commandments and ceremonies of their law.

Boy. Pray enter more minutely in this charge? Mojes. Breaking the Sabbath, by doing cures and healing every difeafe; making the deaf to hear, the blind to fee, the lame to walk, cafting out devils, curing the lepers, paralytics, raifing the dead, with many others. By what authority his difobedience, though commanded by our chief-priefts and others, never would declare, fuffering his difciples to go through the corn-fields, rubbing and eating the corn, and eating in common without washing their dirty hands. All these and many other misdemeanors and by choice on the Sabbath.

Boy. His blafphemies, if you will indulge

me?

Mofes. Turning himself the Son of God, taking upon himself to forgive fins, faying, if the temple, that was upwards of forty years in building, was deftroyed, he would raise it in

three

three days; fpeaking against cuftoms and dif refpectfully of the fcribes, doctors, and honourable men.

Boy. His magic, if you please?

Mofes. I call the whole, that feems fupernatural, magic, or flight of the enemy; and his walking on the water as if it was dry land; commanding the ftorms to ceafe; feeding at different times feveral thousands with three or four loaves, and two or three small fishes, and many other deceptions, which draw the world after him to make him their king.

Luther. This I will avow to my dying day, which I hope is ata long diftance, as I fhould with to enjoy the fweat of my brow, you know what I mean, Peter's Chair, to which I bequeath the first affection of my loving heart, the glory of the king's daughter is within; for, moft certainly, he is my elder daughter, and few princes will equal me either in honour, glory, greatnefs, or riches. All these aforefaids belong and appertain to one and the famé cause; for a poor prince makes but a forry figure in life. Yet, I own there is a rival fifter, as Efau and Jacob, ftruggles hard in the womb of my heart, violent competitors for the birthright, which is the fenfe of the palate and feel of the stomach. I also am importuned by a third, which wraps me into extacy. O Rachel, O mandrakes; give me Rachel, give me mandrakes, or I die. Luther throws himself back in the chair and fends forth a deep figh and groans.

Boy. You have explained the accufations of feduction, blafphemy and magic, laid by Ifrael

to