and he went, and beheaded them in the Priſon, and brought his Head in d Ch.rzer , and gave it to the Damſel , and the Damſel gave it t> her Mother. {The King' was exceeding ſorry :] He could have with:d the had” askt fomerhing elſe; he was troubled ; f9r we hcard berore , that alrho' he feared nor God, yer he feared the People. { Yet tor his Oaths ſhe, ) nor our of any Religion of = O:th. 7uramentum nn potest efſe vinculum Iniquitatis. They mu be tortitlity ignorant, rhar think their calling God to witne!s chat they wili do a thins which God hath forbidden them -to do, ſhould oblige them in any manner to the doing ot the thing, Buc for his Oaths (:2, in point of Honour, becauſe his ord was 2one our, that he mizhe not appear guilry of any Temerity, or Levity; and for the lake of choſe char were with him, that he mizht not ſeem before them ro vary from his Word; or 1t may be, as well to gratifie them, as ro gratihe the Damſel and her Mocher, he ſends an Executioner, who took; off John the Baptist S Head, and gave ic ro the Damſel in a Charger, who carried 1t tO hcr Mcther: What could be more Unjuſt, and Inhumane, and Bioody ? 7obn was nor tried, nor condemned : Ir was a great Feſtival, and ſhould not have been profaned or deiiled with Blood. Tixcte rings were nothing , when an unſariable Majtce was to be gratiiied. Herrdias will have her Husband and his Gueſts ſce, that 7oin Bids Read in a Charger, was to her as pleaſing a Diſh as Tny was at /7724s great Feaſt, Thus died this Great Man , to {1m ic the Malice and Luſt of a leud and 1mperious Woman : And to reach vs, What we muſt expe, if we will be faithful ro the Truſt which God repoſerh in us.
i 2 And his diſciples came, and took up the body,
3nd bnried ir, and went and told Jeſus. The Diſciples of Foþn, in Teſtimony of their reſpe to their
MATTHEW.
|
17 And they ſay unto him, We have here hy; five loaves and two filhes.
18 He ſaid, Þring them hither to me.
19 And he commanded the multitude to fit down on the graſs, and took the five loaves, and the two.
diſciples to the multitude.
20 And they did all eat, and were filled, and th tvok up of the fragments that remained tive! baskets full.
21 And they that had eaten were about five thoy-
{and men, beſides women and children.
In the Relation of chis Stcry by the other Evangeliſts, there js no difference in whar is Material ; the others relate fome Cir. cumſtances more; as, that they ſat down on the Graſs, and ly Fifties ; one faith by Hundreds, and by Fifties, &c. But they alj agree 1n the quanriry of the Provition, five Loaves,and two Fiſhes - the Number of the Perſons fed five Thouſand, (only one addeth. beſides Women and Children, ) and in the Number. of the Backers tull of Fragments; and in our Saviour's lifting up his Eyes t9 He.ven, and bleſſing them. Theſe are the main things obſeryable in this Hiſtory, In the Hiſtory of the Miracle; as there is no difference berween the Evangelits to be reconciled,fo there is no dithculry to be explained, Ir is a plain Relation of a matter of Fatt, by which our Lord evidently ſhewed himſelf to be the Son of God , God bleſſed fer ever; ror he muſt in this necetlarily cxert a'Creating Power, Kere muſt be a ProduQtion of a /ub/tarcs or being, our of a not being; or it had not been poſſible thar five Thouſand Men (beſide Women and Children) thould have heen ted with five Loaves, and rwo Fiſhes; and therefore tome think, that it 1s faid , that Chriſt bleſſed the Loaves, as he bleſſed rhe living Creatures, Gen, 1. 22, But we have not here the follow. ing words, Increaſe and Multiply ; which incline me rather to chink, thar the Bleſſing mentioned here,upon his lifting up of his Eyes to Heaven, was a Bezging God's Bleſſing upon their Food ; himfelf thereby paying che Homage of his Humane Nature to his Fz- ther; and reaching us, according to that, x Timoth. 4. 4, 5. to receive the good Creatures which God's Providence aftordecl u; tor our Nouriſhment , with Thankſgiving , SanRityins them hy Prayer, By this Miracle, and others of the like Nature, our $1- viour took from the Unbelieving Fews all manner of Cavil, and Exception to his Works. Tho” Devils might by Compat jive
ey Ve
Matter, and of their owning of his Doftrine, and gratefut Re- membrance cf kim, hearing whar Herod had done, came and took up 7-br's Body, ind buried it in a Tomb; and they ſoon aiter went and acquainted our Saviour wich what had happened, which was the cauſe of our Saviour's withdrawing to a place wher? he might be lets caken notice of, as we ſhall hear.
12 *When Jefts heard of z7, he departed thence, by {hip into a defart place apart : and when the p2ople had heard zbercof, they tollowed him on foot out of the cities. :
1.1 And Jeſus went forth, and ſaw a great mult!- tude ard was moved with compathon toward them,
and he healed their lick.
Mark hath the ſame, chap. 6. 32. Our Lord knew that the rime for his ſuffering was not yet come; and poflibly conſulred alto rhe fatery of his Diſciples: the People follow him on Foot ; bur our Saviour going by Sea, how could che People follow him on F: :? Ir 1s anſwered, That it was but a Creek of the Sea whict our Saviour pailed over; and the People, by going three
or for.c Miles abour, might tollow him on Foor. He ſeeing a great |
Mulricude, had Compaſſion on them, and healed the Sick Perſons that were amon-tt them.
15 And when it was evening, his diſciples came ro him.Jaying, This is a defart place, and the time 15 now paſt, tend rhe multirude away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themſelves victuals.