is come unto man; for thus He expresses Himself, If I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.

Q. What then is the general instruction which you learn from the above miracle?

A. I learn, in the first place, again to adore the divine mercy and omnipotence of that INCARNATE GOD, who was manifested to destroy the works of the devil, whether wrought on the bodies or in the minds of men, and whether they appear in a simple or in a compound shape. In the next place, I learn to distinguish in myself the two mental defects of want of eyes, and want of speech, or of spiritual blindness, and spiritual dumbness, and to see that the latter is always a necessary consequence of the former. Lastly, from the different effects produced on different minds by the above miracle, whilst it led some, under the impulse of a sacred awe, to confess the BLESSED JESUS to be the true Messiah, and led others to pervert and blaspheme the ETERNAL TRUTH, I am taught the great importance of attending well to the temper and disposition of my own mind, that I may always be in a state willingly and thankfully to confess the operation of the DIVINE OMNIPOTENCE, and thus to escape the dreadful crime of perverting and profaning divine purposes and intentions.

I am resolved therefore from henceforth, under every state of spiritual blindness and dumbness, to apply to my SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST for his omnipotent aid. I am resolved further to watch well over all the affections and thoughts of my own

heart, so that I may always entertain just and worthy sentiments respecting divine agency, and never, like the Pharisees of old, impute the operation of the SPIRIT of GOD to any inferior power, and especially to that infernal one, the power of Beelzebub. So may I humbly hope to experience the healing virtue of my GoD and SAVIOUR, in the cure of all my spiritual blindness and dumbness, and being enabled both to see and to speak, may rejoice in the discovery of the glory of His DIVINITY, and in telling forth his praises from generation to generation. ΑΜΕΝ.

109

MIRACLE of the FIVE LOAVES

AND TWO FISHES.

MATT. xiv. verses 14 to 22.

And

And JESUS went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion towards them, and He healed their sick. tchen it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; send the multitude away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves victuals, &c. &c.

Q. WHAT do you here understand by Jesus going forth, and seeing a great multitude?

A. According to the letter of the history, by JESUS going forth, and seeing a great multitude, is to be understood His going forth as to His personal or bodily presence, and His taking a view of the people who followed Him; but according to the internal or spiritual sense of the history, by JESUS going forth, is to be understood the divine influx of His divine love into His church, thus into the truths and knowledges in which His church was principled;

and by seeing a great multitude, is to be further understood the influx of His divine wisdom into those truths and knowledges, to note their several characters and qualities. It therefore follows, that He was moved with compassion towards them, and healed their sick; because to be moved with compassion is an effect of His divine love towards His church or people; and to heal their sick is an effect of His divine wisdom, in removing the false principles and persuasions, which at that time prevailed amongst them.

Q. And what do you further understand by the words which follow, where it is written, that when it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; send the multitude away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves victuals?

A. According to the sense of the letter, the meaning of the above words is so plain, as to require no explanation; but according to the spiritual sense, it may be necessary to explain them. By the evening then here spoken of, is to be understood the last state of the Jewish church, or a state when there was no longer any faith or love prevailing amongst that people; and by the disciples coming to JESUS, saying, This is a desert place, the time is now past, is to be further understood an acknowledgment of that state of the church by those who were principled in the truths of the new or Christian church; for by the disciples are signified those who received the doctrines of this latter church; and by their say◄

ing, This is a desert place, the time is now past, is further denoted a perception that there was no longer any desire of heavenly good, or any understanding of heavenly truth remaining; the one being signified by a desert place, and the other by the time is now past. By their adding further, Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves victuals, is further to be understood ignorance on the part of the disciples, who were not as yet fully instructed as to the divine origin of spiritual food, and who therefore supposed that the multitudes might procure it for themselves, in a state of separation from the BLESSED JESUS; for by sending the multitudes away, is manifestly denoted such a state of separation; and by their going to the villages to buy themselves victuals, is further to be understood the procuring to themselves spiritual food in that state.

Q. But it is added, that Jesus said unto them, They need not depart; give ye them to catwhat do you conceive to be the force and meaning of these words?

A. According to the literal sense of the histo ry, these words contain an intimation on the part of the BLESSED JESUS, that His disciples should provide bodily food for the multitude; but according to the spiritual sense, they have relation to spiritual food, which is instruction from the holy Word in truth and wisdom, and thus contain an intimation, that that food should be provided by those, who were already instructed in truth and wisdom. For by JESUS saying, ac