and bare a fon, who was nam'd (k) IMMANUEL; after whofe birth, the projects (1) of REZIN and PEKAH were foon confounded, according to the prophefy and fign given by the prophet. And the prophet himself puts it paft dif pute, by exprefs words, as well as by his whole narration, that his own child was the Jign mention'd, when he says, (m) Behold I and the children, whom the Lord hath given me, are for figns and for wonders in Ifrael; from the Lord of hosts, that dwel leth in mount S This is the plain drift and design of the prophet, literally, obviously, and primarily. understood; and thus is he understood by one of the most judicious of interpreters, the great GROTIUS. Indeed, to understand the prophet as having the conception of the vir gin MARY and birth of her fon Jesus lite rally and primarily in view, is a very great (n) abfurdity, and contrary to the very in tent and defign of the fign given by the prophet. For the fign (0) being given by the prophet to convince AHAZ, that he brought a meffage from the Lord to him to affure him that the two kings fhould not fucceed against (k) See Grotius in Matt. 1 22.) (1) Ifa, 8. 8, 10. Ib. 7. 1. & 8. 4. (m) lb. v. 19. (n) White in hunc locum, & Pref. p. 20. (0) Ifa. 7. 14, & 8. 4, against him; how could a virgin's conception and bearing a fon feven hundred years afterwards, be a fign to AHAZ, that the prophet came to him with the faid meffage from the Lord? And how useless was it to AHAZ, as well as abfurd in itself, for the prophet to fay, (p) Before the child, born feven hundred years hence, fhall diftinguifh between good and evil, the land fhall be forfaken C both her kings? which fhould feem a banter instead of a fign. But a prophefy of the certain birth of a male child, to be born within a year or two, feems a proper fign; as being not only what could not with certainty be foretold, except by a person infpir'd by God; but as immediately or foon coming to pafs, and confequently evidencing itfelf to be a divine fign, and anfwering all the purposes of a fign. And fuch a fign is agreeable to the divine conduct on the like occafions. God gave (9) GIDEON and (r) HEZEKIAH immediate figns to prove, that he fpoke to them; and that the things promis'd to them fhould come to pafs. Had he given them remote figns, how could they have known, that the figns themfelves would ever have come to pafs? And how could those figns evidence any thing? Thofe figns would have (p) Ifa. 8. v. 15, 16. () 2 King. 20. (2) Judg. 6. have ftood in need of other figns to manifeft, that God would perform them in time. This prophefy therefore not being fulfill'd in JEsus according to the literal, obvious, and primary fense of the words, as they stand in ISAIAH; it is fuppos'd, that this, like all the other prophefies cited by the apoftles, is (s) fulfill'd in a fecondary, or typical, or myftical, or allegorical fenfe; that is, the faid prophefy, which was then literally fulfill'd by the birth of the prophet's fon, was again fulfill'd by the birth of Jesus, as being an event of the fame kind, and intended to be fignify'd, either by the prophet, or by God who directed the prophet's fpeech. I fay, like all other prophefies cited by the apoftles, not only upon having myself particularly confider'd all thofe prophefies, but upon what I find afferted by an eminent divine, who fays, (t) 'Tis poffible in the confi deration of fingle prophefies to find out fome other perfon or event, (befides JESUS and the matters relating to him) to which thefe might be adapted without great violence to the text. And this fuppos'd allegory or obfcurity (which indeed reigns in all prophefies that ever were, whether Pagan, Jewfh, Chriftian, or Mahometan, that have ex (3) Le Clerc Bib. Univ. Tom. 20. P. 54 |