their incarnate god Chrishna, (who much resembles "the mystical Iacchus," of the Greeks; and was counted a generated god of the third order, among the Egyptians; Herod. 2.) it would be the alteration of "that which is" in the third line, into "who 66 28 -which would accord better with the

following Masculine pronoun "He," of the last line.

And Wilford informs us, Asiat. Res. vol. v. p. 259, "That the Brahmens themselves acknowledge, that their sacred scriptures, the Vedas, are not natives of India, but that they descended into the plains of Hindostan, through the pass of Hindwar."-The inference is obvious.

DISSERTATION VII.

ON PSALM II.

I Now return to the consideration of the remaining Prophetic Psalms descriptive of the MESSIAH, cited in the Introduction of the Epistle to the Hebrews, as applicable to JESUS CHRIST; which has been suspended during that of the PRIMITIVE NAMES OF THE DEITY; but neither unprofitably, I trust, nor irrelevantly to the main design of these specimens of SACRED CRITICISM; which is, to explain the Scripturul "NAME," authority or character, of the Son of God, "OUR LORD," or spiritual Sovereign, and "OUR GOD," or future judge of quick and dead:-" For WE ALL must appear before "the tribunal of CHRIST; in order that "EVERY ONE may receive [a recompense] "of the deeds done in the body, whether

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good or bad." See John xx. 28, and v. 22.

2 Cor.

2 Cor. v. 10, Rom. xiv. 10, and 9, 5, Acts x. 36.

The second Psalm, (to which I next proceed,) cited by St. Paul to prove the peculiar Sonship of JESUS CHRIST, has been materially injured by the double sense, supposed to be attached to it; as if it related primarily to David, and secondarily to CHRIST: a malignant fiction, forged by the later Jewish Rabbins, to invalidate its prophetic evidence; and unwarily adopted by several respectable Christian commentators, Grotius, Patrick, Chandler, Dodd, Mudge, Durell, Horne, &c.

Happily for the cause of CHRISTIANITY, the fiction itself, or the misapplication of the Psalm to David in the literal sense, is irrefragably proved by the testimony of the primitive Jewish Church, and of the earlier Rabbins, and also by the confession of the framers and abettors themselves.

1. The Chaldee Paraphrast renders the clause, ver. 4, “ THE REGENT (IN) shall "deride them," thus: "THE ORACLE OF "THE LORD (D) shall deride them. -And in the various applications of different

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passages

passages of this Psalm to JESUS, as THE CHRIST, throughout the NEW TESTAMENT, its reference to THE MESSIAH or CHRIST, is uniformly taken for granted, as the unquestionable doctrine of the Primitive Jewish Church; the only question under consideration at that time, was, whether the character corresponded to JESUS OF NAZA

RETH.

2. In the new edition of the Breshit Rabba (a Rabbinical work composed about A.D. 300), Wilmersd. p. 30.-" R. Jonathan said, "there are three, to whom a, Ask, was "said: namely, Solomon, Ahaz, and King "Messiah.-1. Solomon: For it is written, * 1 Kings iii. 5, In Gibeon THE LORD apແ peared unto Solomon in a dream by night, "and GOD said, Ask what I shall give thee. "2. Ahaz: For it is written, Isa. vii. 11, "Ask thee a sign of the Lord.-3. King "Messiah: For it is written, Ps. ii. 8, Аsă, "and I will give thee the Gentiles for thine "inheritance."

3. It is likewise declared in the Talmud, Cod. Succa, cap. v. "Our Masters deliver: "That the BLESSED GOD said unto THE "MES

"MESSIAH, Son of David, (who is shortly "to be revealed in our days,) Ask of me "somewhat, and I will give it thee. For "it is said, Ps. ii. 7-8, I will declare "the decree: THE LORD said unto me, "Thou art MY SON, this day have I be

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gotten Thee: Asк of me, and I will give "the Gentiles for thine inheritance."

4. The Midrash Tillim understands "the "Gentiles," (ver. 1,) of Gog and Magog: plainly referring to Balaam's signal prophecy, respecting the MESSIAH's conquests, Numb. xxiv. 7. "His KING shall be higher than

GOG." And the MESSIAH is represented as He, "who shall smite the impious with lo"custs." And in a curious critical remark, (on verse 7) it states, that he is styled in the divine decree, ", "My Son," [absolutely]; not ‹ ¡, "to Me a Son," or as a Son, [relatively].

5. R. Obadiah Gaon observes, that "This "Psalm alludes to the days of CHRIST, "when mankind shall be converted to the "worship of God." [And this accords with the titles of this Psalm prefixed to the Syriac and Arabic versions.] And on verse 5, " He "shall

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