The truth of these observations may be illustrated by the various attempts which have been made to elicit a spiritual signification from the miracle at Cana3. St Cyril, after directing attention to the fact, that the miracle was performed in Galilee of the Gentiles, proceeds: "And hereby was manifestly intimated, that the Jewish Church would reject Christ, but that the Gentile would readily receive him; for Christ did not go to this marriage of his own accord, an unbidden guest; but was invited by many believers." Quesnelle observes, "God gives the new wine of a strong and powerful grace, which enables us to fulfil the law; which inebriates the heart in a holy manner, and causes it to forget all present things. Let us desire, pray, and taste this wine of our heart, which is so necessary to our salvation. This is the wine of the marriage of the Lamb." The next extract we are sorry to be obliged to curtail. It shall be in the beautiful language of Bishop Taylor: "Every man," says he, "sets forth good wine at first, and then the worse; but God not only turns the water into wine, but into such wine that the last draught is the most pleasant. When, after the manner of the purifying of the Christians, we fill our waterpots with water, watering our couch with our tears, and moistening our cheeks with the perpetual distillations of repentance;-then Christ

turns our water into wine, first penitents, and then communicants; first waters of sorrow, and then the wine of the chalice; for Jesus keeps the best wine till the last; not only because of the direct reservation of the highest joys, till the nearer approaches of glory; but also, because our relishes are higher after a long fruition, than at the first essays; such being the nature of grace, that it increases in relish, as it does in fruition, every part of grace being new duty, and new reward1." The unfortunate Dr Dodd on this miracle says, "This, too, is that great mystery of predestination, even God's decree from all ages, to call and marry in Christ the Gentiles, his elect. ***** And as this was the great purpose of Christ's coming in the flesh, and dying upon the cross, thus to purchase to himself an universal church, by shedding his most precious blood; so is it spiritually figured out to us, in this first or chief miracle, which he wrought in Cana of Galilee; for the great, the principal, and the chief miracle which he wrought was the shedding of his blood, and rising again on the third day to purchase to himself his spouse the Church. The Holy Ghost informs us, that this marriage in Cana was on the third day; now, as there is no word in Scripture without its spiritual, as well as literal use, so we may be assured, that this also was intended to teach us something,-it hath re'Life of Christ, Vol. 1.

ference to the resurrection of Jesus, which was on the third day. * * * This water made wine was to be presented to the governor of the feast, who here represented God the Father, who receives this good wine of his Son's blood, and accepts and approves it." By others the same miracle has been interpreted as bearing a reference to the sacrament of our Lord's supper.

Other miracles have been made the source of even more various and contradictory expositions. Surely the very fact of there existing such, or any, diversity of opinion, should be sufficient to warn us that there is something radically erroneous in the system. What confidence can we entertain in our own conclusions, while others, perhaps with as much reason, maintain a different one? Wherever a miracle is susceptible of two interpretations, we should hesitate before assigning any. Nor is the instruction derived from the universal application of the mystical system in any degree proportionate to its danger. If the type be obvious, there cannot subsist any diversity of opinion: if dark, we may rest satisfied with the conviction, that we are not required to understand it. For, surely we are not to believe, that Providence, which hath otherwise so wonderfully cared for us, has been so stinted in its Gospel revelation, that we must grope in the depths and darkness of mysteries, for any neces2 On Mir. Vol. 11. pp. 48-52.

sary doctrine of it. We may rest assured, that all that is essential to our salvation,-all that the Supreme Being, the author of that revelation, -designed us to know, is imparted so clearly that all may comprehend it, and so certainly that none need dispute. If men did but direct more of their attention to the essentials of religion, and less to its curiosities, much of that unprofitable discussion, which has marred the peace, and retarded the prosperity of the Church, might have been avoided. How admirable is the advice of St Paul to Timothy: "Oh Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science, falsely so called; which, some professing, have erred from the faith1."

Far be it from us, in the face of the distinguised authority which there is for a contrary opinion, to assert positively, that there is not a typical intention in all the miracles. Arguing from the analogy of those cases in which its presence is undoubted, it is at least possible that the principle may be universal. But if there is to be error, (as on one side there must), surely the least dangerous, the least vital, is on the side of caution. In the absence of authoritative information, it is wiser and safer to rest contented with the measure of light allowed to us; and not to seek to be "wise beyond what is written."

1 1 Tim. vi. 20.

There is another question of a similar nature to that which we have just been discussing; and which applies equally to those miracles which we have ascertained to be undoubtedly, in their general scope, emblematic. Are those adventitious circumstances, which preceded and accompanied the miracle,-which were not essential to it, and varied with its every repetition,-to be regarded as forming a portion of the emblem,as entitled to and requiring the same species of interpretation?

The advocates for minute spiritualization are perhaps led thus to exhaust (if we may use the term) the typical capabilities of the literal account, from confounding the parable and the typical action together. These are in reality directly opposed to each other. In the parable, the great, nay, the only intention, is the figurative lesson; which is therefore worked out

with the greatest minuteness. In the typical action, on the contrary, (at least in the New Testament,) the literal intention is the predominant. Accordingly, in the spiritualization of the miracles our Lord follows a different method from that employed in the parables. He seizes upon the prominent feature, the sine qua non of the transaction, i. e. the miracle itself, divested of its accidents, declares that to be emblematic, but never stops to weaken the effect of the figure by the infusion of unnecessary