phemy: For it must be intended to deduct from the merit of that all-fufficient DEATH of the fole Redeemer of all mankind. In the fecond place, the action must be religious, and intirely voluntary, the effect of mature deliberation, and not a fudden fit of blind zeal. The oracle or fuppofed expounder of the divine will, whoever he is, muft declare it neceffary; and the action must be, a deliberate, voluntary, refignation of life, in confequence of the belief of the truth of that declaration. Any action therefore 'done in the heat of action, in war, and not previously thought of in calmnefs, and judgment, can not be of this clafs of heroifm and merit. Another neceffary circumftance is, the perfon fuffering mult be noble, and of fuch high digni ty, as to give foundation for an opinion of his life being a compenfation for others. For the expence of facrifices feems to have had fome degree of merit in the opinion of many of the antients, and the dearer the thing offered was to the votary, the H 3 higher a For the fentiment of the poet is a late fentiment. b This indeed comes pretty near the laft fentiment of the Prophet Micah. He hath fhewed thee, o man, what is good, and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God. But the questions previous to this fhew what the opinion of the multitude was, and perhaps the opinion of fome of the wifeft, before divine revelation, Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oyl? Shall I give my first born for my tranfgreffion, the fruit of my body for the fin of my foul? The prophet means to reprefent hypocrites, or bad people, by thefe queftions; but this fentiment was in the minds of fome, who are spoken of in the fcriptures with characters of praife, as David, who would not confecrate to the Lord, that which coft him nothing, but would pay Araunah for the ground, on which he built an Altar, and his fon Solomon after built the temple. He paid him alfo for burnt offerings. 2 Sam. xxiv. compared with Chr. 21, There is a great difpute about the va luc higher price he thought it would bear in the mind. of that being to whom it was offered. The laft circumftance is innocence, innocence at leaft in the opinion of men. For it is repugnant to common fenfe, to offer a faulty thing as a compenfation for thousands of the fame kind. Dealings with the fupreme being are not fo contrary to the rules of dealing between man and man, as to admit fuch an abfurdity. But innocence in a perfect degree is not to be looked for: That is only to be found in him, whofe habitation was Heaven, yet he defcended to earth, and became human. lue of the price amongst the critics, but it will be fufficient to remark, that the Jews fay; all the tribes contributed, and that they gave 12 times 50 fhekels of gold, that is 600. So that the Jews, by endeavouring to inhance the price, fhew plainly it was their opinion, that high prized things were acceptable to the fupreme Being. And what the opinion of the gentiles was may appear from a memorable paffage of Diodorus Siculus Lib. 20. The hiftorian gives an account of an eminent victory, which Agathocles obtained in Africa over the Carthaginians, which they imputed to the anger of the Gods, and then proceeds to tell the reasons why the Carthaginians imagined the Gods were offended at them. They alledged, fays he, that Saturn was become their enemy, because that, whereas in former times they used to facrifice to him the most noble of their children, at that time, they offered to him children, which they bought and bred privately; and inquiry being made, fuppofititious children were found amongst those who were to be facrificed. Whilft the enemy was at their gates a religious fcruple arofe; as if they had neglected the honours customarily paid to the Gods; in order therefore immediately to correct their errors, they publicly offered in facrifice two hundred boys of their principal nobility, &c. ᾐτιῶντο δὲ καὶ τὸν κρόνον αὐτοῖς ἐναντιουσθαι, καθόσον ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν χρόνοις θύοντες τούτω τῷ θεῷ των υιων τοὺς κρατίσους, ὃσε ρον ὠνούμενοι λάθρα πᾶιδας, καὶ θρέψαντες, ἔπεμπον ἐπί τὴν θυσίε και ζητησεω γενομένης, εὑρέθησαν τινὲς των καθιερουργημένων ὑποβολιμαῖοι γεγονότες. τούτων δὲ λαβόντες ἔννοιαν, καὶ τὰς πολεμίους πρὸς τοῖς τείχεσιν ὁρῶντες σρατοπεδεύοντας, ἐδεισιδαιμόνουν ὡς καταλελυκότες τὰς πατρίους των θεων τιμας, διορθώσαθαι δὲ τὰς ἀγμοίας σπεύδοντες, διακοσίους μεν των ἐπιφανεσάτων παιδων προκρίναν τες ἔθυσαν δημοσία. αλλοι δὲ εν διαβολαῖς ὄντες, ἑκουσίως ἑαυτες ἔδοσαν, οὐκ ἐλάττους ὄντες τριακοσίων, Diod. Sic. Lib. 20, The The inftances therefore to the purpose must have lived and fuffered, before the fuffering of Christ, or if after him, without any knowledge of him. For they not knowing the hiftory of Chrift, who was to come upon the stage of worldly action, fome ages after, or who had come without their hearing of it, must have acted, not upon the principle of rivalship, but folely upon the opinion prevailing amongst mankind, that the voluntary death of a noble innocent perfon would be an atonement for national fins; for mere human nature never went beyond this; the benevolence of any man before the preaching of Chriftianity, not extending further than to the national community, to which he belonged. For the confideration of mankind as one univerfal fociety, was one of the myfteries of chriftian faith, kept fecret from the world, till Chrift came, to gather together in one, the children of God, that were fcattered abroad. The paraphrafe upon this has already been given, and the fenfe of it explained. The death of Chrift therefore as a propitiation for the fins of mankind, as one family, or fociety, is a nobler action upon account of the extent of the merit of it, than any action, which can poffibly be brought in competition with it. The greateft of any of thofe, which bear any Analogy to it, being only that, of dying for one nation; the largest of which, in refpect to the whole human race, bears a very small proportion. The defign of exhibiting any actions as analogous to that of Chrift in fuffering death, is not at all to depreciate the merit of his death, but only to lead the human mind to affent to the belief of it, upon a reasonable and fteady foundation. For if there was a difpofition in mankind, before the preaching of Chriftianity, to believe things fimilar to it, that previous difpofition fhould render the H 4 mind mind ready to affent to the reality of things, when fairly declared by the divine word. But it is time to name the actions, upon which we mean to found the opinion of a difpofition in mankind, to think, that the voluntary death of a noble and innocent person may appease divine refentment, and be the means of faving a nation from a general calamity. Reafons have already been given, why many actions to this purpofe cannot be affigned. Two actions therefore fhall principally be the foundation of this opinion, though others may alfo be mentioned. The first of these is the action of Codrus, the last Athenian King, in confequence of the answer from the oracle, defignedly expofing himfelf to inevitable death; the other that of Marcus Curtius, a noble Roman leaping into the Gulph, upon the fame principle of religion. 66 Each of these actions deferves to be related more largely. As to the firft, we are told, "THERE was an old grudge between the Athenians and the the Dorians; for which the Dorians defigning to revenge themselves by a war, confulted the ora cles about the event of the conteft? Answer "was made them, that they should be fuperior, unlefs they killed the king of the Athenians. When they entered upon the war, order is given to the foldiers, above all things, to have a care of the King, Codrus was King of the Athenians at "that time, who having both understood the anfwer of the God, and the orders of the enemy, changing his royal habit, enters the enemy's camp ragged, carrying fticks upon his neck. "There in a crowd of people, that ftood in his way, he is flain by a foldier, whom he craftily "wounded with his knife. The King's body be. ing known, the Dorians march off, without fighting, and thus the Athenians are delivered from the war by the bravery of the Prince, offering himfelf himfelf, to death, for the fafety of his country. After Codrus, no body reigned at Athens, which was a refpect paid to the memory of his name: The management of the commonwealth was intrusted to annual magiftrates. " b The circumftances of this ftory are fo fully re lated, as to admit, of an immediate, and full application to the point in queftion. For here is a Prince, which is the higheft order of nobility amongst men, out of a religious principle in regard, ing the oracle, voluntarily expofing himself to inevitable death, for the fafety of his people; and the highest veneration to his memory is paid by them which laft circumftance is a fufficient proof of the innocence of this Prince. For if it had been a war of ambition, or revenge, his dying in that manner was very inconfiftent with fuch a defign; the ambitious, defire to out-live the events of war to enjoy the fruits of conqueft: And the revengeful defire to fee the deftruction of their enemies, rather than the preservation of their friends. Revenge though an appendage of human nature, was even antiently allowed to be unbecoming a religious and a ftout character. But this action of Codrus was religious, and ftout, to an high degree of heroifin. It is true, the hiftorian fays, the cause of quarrel was an old grudge, between the two nations, this does b Erant inter Athenienfes et Dorienfes fimultatum veteres offenfæ, quas vindicaturi bello, Dorienfes de eventu prælii oracula confulerunt. Refponfum fuperiores fore ni Regem Athenien fium occidiffent. Cum ventum effet in bellum militibus ante omnia cuftodia Regis præcipitur. Athenienfibus eo tempore Rex Codrus erat; qui et refponfo Dei, et præceptis hoftium cognitis, permutato regis habitu, pannofus, farmenta collo gereus, caftra hoftium ingreditur. Ibi in turba obfiftentium a milite, quem falce aftu convulnaverat, interficitur. Cognito regis corpore, Dorienfes fine prælio difcedunt. Atque ita Athenienfes virtute ducis, pro falute patriæ morti fe offerentis, bello liberantur. Poft Codrum nemo Athenis regnavit ; quod memoriæ nominis ejus tributum eft. Adminiftratio reipublicæ annuis magiftratibus permiffa. Juftin. Lib. 2. not |