appear vifibly, to have a power of conveying Chrift through the air to an exceeding high mountain, then to the fummit of the temple, (which was as miraculous as Philip's conveyance from Gaza to Azotus; Acts viii. 39, 40,) and to be able to fhew Jesus all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, in a moment, at one view, Luke iv. 5; which latter, when we confider the globular form of the earth, and the limited nature of human vifion, was abfolutely impoffible. The expreffions used in the narrative countenance its being a divine vifion. Matt. iv. 1: "Then was Jefus led up of the fpirit into the wilder"nefs." But he was now in the wildernefs, which he never left fince he was baptized; therefore it is not to be understood literally; the fpirit, means the fpirit of God: Luke iv. 1. In the power of this fpirit he afterwards returned to Galilee: Luke iv. 1, 14. Ezekiel, after he faid that he faw vifions of God, (i. 1 to 3; comp. 2 Kings iii. 15;) goes on to defcribe scenes in these vifions as if they had been objects of bodily fight: Ezek. i. 4 to 28. When he received new vifions, he defcribes them as if he had a local tranflation to thofe of the captivity, while he was already among them in perfon; fo the spirit took me up, lifted me up, and took me away: iii. 11 to 15; xi. 1, 24, 25. The word Expaw, in the fenfe of trying, or proving, not tempting to fin is used by Chrift, Matt. iv. 7; and being a key to the meaning of mapaw in the other parts of this relation, corresponds with the idea of a divine vifion. "Also,

“Mark i. 12, Luke iv. 1, accord with this idea. "Now all miraculous operations, visions particularly, "are in fcripture afcribed to God as their author: "Gen. xviii. 1, 2; xxviii. 12; Joshua v. 13 to 15; "I Kings xix. 11, 12; Acts x. 3, 11, to 19; 1 Kings "xxii. 19 to 22; and the books of Ezekiel, Daniel, "and Revelations." Doddridge on Rev. iv. 2. Farmer on Chrift's temptation, and appendix.

Mark iv. 15. "These are they by the way fide, "where the word is fown. Now when they have "heard, avag Satan cometh immediately, and "taketh away the word which was fown in their "hearts." In the parallel text, Matt. xiii. 19, he is called & πovrpos, the evil one. The Jews applied The Chaldee

this latter word to human beings. paraphrafe on Ifaiah xi. 4, reads thus, "With the "fpeech of his lips, fhall Meffias flay Romulus the "wicked one." Lightfoot's works, vol. i. p. 424. Topos is alfo applied to Haman, in Esther vii. 4, Sept.; fee alfo 1 Cor. v. 13.

In the explanation of the parable of the fower, Jefus adopts the popular language of Satan, and the evil one, as emblems of the various forts of temptation. The evil one, in Matthew, and Satan, in Mark, must both be taken in the plural, to correspond with the birds and fowls, in the plural, that in the parable itself are faid to come and devour the feed. In both inftances the terms must be taken allegorically, and be understood of every thing that diverts the mind from proper attention to, and im

provement of, the Gospel, and thus are adverfaries to its good effects. In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, our Lord, in like manner, adopts the language of the commonly-recceived notion among the Jews and other nations, that immediately after death both the wicked and the righteous would be in a state or place under-ground, and both upon the fame level, without faying any thing about the propriety or impropriety of the opinion upon which it is founded. Luke xxii. 31. "Simon, Simon, behold & calavas "Satan hath fought you, that he may Lift you like "wheat." See on Job i. 1, &c.; Amos ix. 9, 10.

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Agitate you violently by fevere trials." Newcome. Alluding perhaps to the trials which foon after led him to deny and forfake his mafter. See ver. 34, 40, 46, 55, to 62. Satan, here means the adverfaries of Jefus and his caufe who tried Peter. Paul fays to the Galatians, iii. 1, "Who hath bewitched "you? that is, who hath influenced you, as it were

by the power popularly attributed to magical words "and rites?" Newcome. Yet does any one think because of this expreffion, that Paul believed in the power of magic?

A&ts v. 3. "Peter faid, Ananias, why hath σε ὁ σάλανας Satan filled thine heart to lie to the "Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of "the land?" In ver. 4 this is expreffed plainly, without any figurative terms; "Why haft thou con"ceived this thing in thipe heart? Thou haft not "lied unto men, but unto God."

And ver. 9,

"How is it that ye have agreed together to try the "Spirit of the Lord?" The fin, then, is in direct and unequivocal terms attributed to Ananias and Sapphira themselves, to the evil fuggeftions of their own minds. The plain language muft interpret the figurative. See James i. 13 to 15.

1 Cor. vii. 5. "That σalavas Satan tempt 66 you not because of your incontinence." Newcome. Incontinence, then, inordinate defire, is here pointed out as the real tempter, which in popular and figurative language is called Satan.,

3. Ealavas is employed to denote a human adverfary, or opponent to the friends of virtue, piety, and Chriftianity, and to their endeavours to promote them; or a perfon's own evil difpofition.

Matt. xvi. 23; Mark viii. 33. "Jefus rebuked "Peter, and faid, Get thee behind me, σalava, "Satan, (thou adverfary, Newcome,) for thou re

gardeft not the things of God, but the things of "men." The intention of Peter to his master was kind, but he looked to his temporal profperity alone. The term Satan here fignifies an adversary to Christ's fpiritual kingdom, and to those sufferings which were neceffary to establish it on earth. Jefus could not intend to call Peter the prince of demons, or the chief of fallen angels, or the first principle of evil. pofition is, however, attributed to himself; gardeft not, &c.

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thou re

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Luke xxii. 3; John xiii. 2, 27; ver. 2, "Andfupper being come, (T8 diaboλ the Devil having

already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot to de"liver him up,) ver. 27, and after the fopo calavas "Satan entered into him." Obferve that this is part of the history which the Evangelift relates in his own language, and in that of the Jews in general, who attributed both moral and natural evil to Satan or the Devil. The phrase, ver. 2, "the Devil having

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put into his heart," denotes his having formed the intention. See fec. 4, fubd. 2, on Acts v. 3. Judas then conceived this intention in his own mind. expreffion, ver. 27, "Satan entered into him," is ftronger, and fignifies that he was determined upon the immediate execution of his purpose. Accordingly it is related, ver. 30, "he then who had received "the fop went out immediately, and agreed with the "chief priests, &c. to deliver Jefus up:❞ comp. Luke xxii. 3 to 6.

Luke x. 18. And Jefus faid to the feventy disciples, I beheld Tov σalavav Satan falling like lightning from heaven." Comp. ver. 17, 19, 20. Satan is here put for the adverfaries of truth, righteoufness, and Christianity, in general. Satan falling from heaven, is explained in the 19th verse by a synonymous figurative phrase, "Behold I give you power to tread on ferpents and Scorpions ;" comp. Pf. xci. 13; and by a plain phrafe, "over all the "Strength of the enemy." Satan, and the enemy, in the fingular, are put to exprefs the plural, which

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