CHAP. of the FOUR GREAT MONARCHS, whose succes

VII.

sion had been twice distinctly foretold by the prophet Daniel. THREE of these, namely, THE FOUNDERS of the Babylonian, the Persian, and the Macedonian empires-" Nebuchadnezzar,"

Cyrus," and "the king of Grecia,”—had already appeared; and, in their appointed periods, had fulfilled their courses. But THE FOURTH AND LAST, who was to conquer and subdue the earth, and to give origin to a new and universal empire, (that of ROME,) still remained to come.

Those TWO REGAL OBJECTS OF DIVINE PRO

PHECY were to appear, and actually did appear, within the compass of time described by Pr. Heyne, as THE END of the REPUBLIC, and BEGINNING of the EMPIRE, of ROME. When "a decree went forth from CESAR AUGUSTUS, "that all the world should be taxed," the arrival of ONE of those predicted sovereigns was publicly demonstrated to the view and experience of the whole earth; and in that same coincidence of time THE OTHER predicted sovereign likewise appeared, when "there was born in the "city of David A SAVIOUR, who is CHRIST

४

"THE LORD."* These were the great objects CHAP.

of the original prophecies; which, having been

propagated by natives of JUDEA," entered among "the great number of SIBYLLINE ORA"CLES;" and, though corrupted and deteriorated, "fixed, in awful expectation, the general "attention of the heathen world, at that same period of time."

The confusion of these two great objects, formed a distinguishing characteristic of that part of the Jewish nation which refused to acknowledge JESUS CHRIST for their MESSIAH. Those persons, who had inherited a persuasion, from the writings of their ancient prophets, of the rise of THE ROMAN EMPIRE, and of the coming of A KING of the HOUSE OF DAVID; but who now saw the long expected period of the world pass by, without offering to their view any other great and powerful sovereign than THE NEW MONARCH OF ROME; were exasperated by the pretensions of one so obscure, and in appearance so ignoble, as Jesus of Naza

VII.

* Luke ii. 1, 11.

VII.

CHAP. reth, and readily conspired to apply all the predictions, upon which their double expectation had been founded, to the only personage, whose external power and splendor corresponded with the notions which they had entertained.

An evidence of the early operation of that apostate principle, demonstrated itself in the conversation which the sacred historian reports to have taken place, between the Roman governor of Judæa and the heads of the Jewish nation, upon occasion of the arrest of CHRIST. "Pilate called JESUS, and said to him, Art "THOU the king of THE JEWS? JESUS answered "him, Sayest thou this thing of thyself, or did "others tell it thee?-Pilate said unto him, Art THOU then A KING? Jesus answered, Thou

sayest it, I am A KING. From thence

"forth Pilate sought to release him; but the "Jews cried out, saying, If thou let THIS MAN go, thou art not A FRIEND to CESAR: WHO

SOEVER maketh himself A KING, speaketh against CASAR. (αντιλέγει τῷ Καισαρι—opposes "CÆSAR.)—When Pilate heard that said, he

brought Jesus forth-and said to the Jews,

VII.

“Behold YOUR king! ιδε ὁ βασιλευς ὙΜΩΝ. CHAP. "But they cried out, Away with HIM! crucify HIM!-Pilate said unto them, Shall I crucify YOUR king? The CHIEF PRIESTS (o¡ APXIE"PEIE, the heads and lights of the Hebrew "nation) answered, WE have NO KING BUT “ CASAR! ΟΥΚ εχομεν βασιλεα, ΕΙ ΜΗ ΚΑΙΣΑΡΑ.”* Pilate knew, from his residence in Palestine, the national expectation of the Jewish people whom he governed; and what was meant by "A KING of THE JEWS;" he therefore pressed the Jewish leaders upon that point. But they, at once, strove to repel every insinuation of the Roman governor by an eager profession of their apostacy; declaring, that they would acknowledge "NO king but CESAR."

Another evidence of this same character appears in the narrative of another sacred historian, a few years after the former incident. When St. Paul was preaching in a Jewish synagogue at Thessalonica, a part of his auditory believed his doctrine; and those who did so, acknow

CHAP. ledged JESUS to be the CHRIST or MESSIAH,

VII.

that is to say, their PREDICTED KING. But "the "Jews which believed not,—oi ameibles Indaii,” accused their converted brethren before the rulers of the city, alleging, that "these men "resist the decrees of CESAR, saying, 'ETEPON

ειναι ΒΑΣΙΛΕΑ, that there is ANOTHER (OF A "SECOND) KING, one JESUS."* From hence it is evident, that the believing part of the Jews admitted the appearance of Two KINGS, (of characters indeed widely different,) CESAR and JESUS; while the unbelieving Jews allowed that of ONE ALONE, namely, Cæsar.

TWO

It was under the same cloud, of national inheritance, that the learned Josephus pronounced the prophecies which related to those great objects, to be xenoμos AMDIBOAOΣ,†—“ an equivocal, "or ambiguous, prediction." But it was ambiguous only for want of due discernment; and certainly where that discernment was not possessed, the objects were easily confounded. To Josephus, who did not discern that THE MES

• Acts, xvii. 7.

+ Joseph. de Bello Jud. vi. c. 5.