JUDAH AND ISRAEL 
 
 OK, THE 
 
 Hcstoratum antr <onbmt'on 
 
 OF THE 
 
 JEWS AND THE TEN TRIBES. 
 
 SECOND EDITION. 
 BY THE 
 
 REV. JOSEPH SAMUEL C. F. FREY. 
 
 PREFIXED 
 
 BY THE FIFTEENTH EDITION OF THE AUTHOR'S 
 NARRATIVE, 
 
 AND HIS PORTRAIT. 
 
 LONDON: 
 WARD AND CO., 27, PATERNOSTER ROW : 
 
 AND G. WIGHTMAN, 24, PATERNOSTER ROW. 
 MDCCCXXXV1II.
 
 MACINTOSH, PRINTER, 
 GREAT NEW-STREET, LONDON.
 
 IEI 
 3630 
 
 183? 
 
 PREFACE 
 
 TO THE FIRST EDITION OF JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 IN the Preface to the " Jewish Intelligencer," published 
 in America, the Author considered that that work 
 would be his last. It is proper, therefore, to state the 
 reason for his again appearing before the public as an 
 author. During his late preaching tour through several 
 counties, he found it to be a very prevalent idea, that 
 all the past Christian efforts to promote the conversion 
 of the Jews had been in vain, and come to nought, and 
 that therefore it was not worth while to make any new 
 attempts. 
 
 This mistaken idea naturally arose from the cir- 
 cumstance, that the "London Society for promoting 
 Christianity amongst the Jews" having, in the year 
 1815, become exclusively Episcopalian, the Dissenters 
 were shut out from having any hand in the management 
 of its affairs, and receiving scarcely any information of 
 its proceedings and especially the generation which 
 has sprung up since the change of the Society took 
 place, who can just remember that in the days of their 
 youth some exertions had been made to promote the 
 conversion of the Jews, but having not heard anything 
 of it in their riper years they naturally concluded that 
 the whole scheme had failed.
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 Hence, after preaching on the subject of the Jews, 
 the people felt again deeply interested, regretted that 
 the sermon had been so short, and wished much to have 
 more information on the subject. 
 
 Having consulted with several brethren on the 
 expediency of laying the subject before the public in a 
 printed form, in a manner in which it could not be done 
 from the pulpit, and having received their full approba- 
 tion and encouragement, I redeemed a few hours every 
 morning during my daily journeys, in preparing the 
 following sheets. Considerable part of the matter has 
 been published before by the Author, in America, in 
 different works, but will be, most probably, new to the 
 people in this country. 
 
 As the present unparalleled efforts to promote the 
 conversion of the Jews were originally commenced by 
 the Author, it was thought the Reader would not be 
 displeased to know something of his history. He has, 
 therefore, prefixed a new and enlarged edition of his 
 Narrative. 
 
 That the reader may be deeply affected with the truly 
 deplorable condition of my Jewish brethren firmly 
 believe the many promises of God respecting their 
 conversion to the faith in Christ Jesus pray fervently 
 for " the Spirit of grace and supplication on the House 
 of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem" and 
 engage zealously in promoting the salvation of Israel, 
 is the sincere prayer of the Author. 
 
 London, September, 1837.
 
 ANALYSIS OF THE CONTENTS. 
 
 PART I. 
 
 Page 
 
 NARRATIVE OF THE AUTHOR'S LIFE FOR THE LAST SIXTY- 
 SIX YEARS: containing a History of the Origin and 
 Progress of the present Christian Efforts to promote the 
 Conversion of the Jews . . . .1 
 
 His birth and education. His religious offices sustained 
 among the Jews. Time and place of his embracing 
 the Christian religion. His conviction of sin, and saving 
 acquaintance with Jesus. His entrance into the Mis- 
 sionary seminary at Berlin. His design in coming to 
 England. His labours under the patronage of the Mis- 
 sionary Society. Origin of the London Society for 
 Promoting Christianity amongst the Jews, and his Mis- 
 sionary labours under its patronage. His Ministerial 
 labours in America. Origin of the American Society 
 for meliorating the Condition of the Jews. The objects 
 of his present agency. 
 
 PART II. 
 
 THE DUTY OF CHRISTIANS TO SEEK THE SALVATION OF 
 THE JEWS ..... 145 
 
 The Jews have Peculiar Claims. Their Misery demands
 
 Vi ANALYSIS OF THE CONTENTS. 
 
 Page 
 
 Sympathy Injuries inflicted demand Satisfaction. 
 
 Equity has a strong Claim Gratitude speaks power- 
 fully. 
 
 God has given us great Encouragement. In His Word. 
 By His Providence. Encouraging Signs of the Times. 
 Longing Desire of the Jews. Great Melioration of 
 their Condition. Deep interest of Christians. A dis- 
 tinct Society to promote their Conversion. Unpa- 
 ralleled Success. 
 
 Their Conversion will produce wonderful Effects. God 
 will be glorified. Angels will rejoice Men will be 
 blessed. The Jews saved. Infidels silenced. The 
 Gentiles converted. The Doctrines of the Bible con- 
 firmed. 
 
 PART III. 
 
 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED .... 200 
 
 To change our religion is wicked. To attempt the con- 
 version of the Jews is useless. It is presumption. It 
 is premature. It is needless. Answer : The Jews have 
 no preaching. They have not the Scriptures. Could 
 not hear the Gospel amongst Christians. The conduct 
 of Christians has greatly prejudiced their mind. No 
 good done. Objections against the Settlement. The 
 converted Jews are to be the lights of the world. Why 
 not have the Settlement in Europe ? What need of it 
 in America, where Jev/s have equal privileges with 
 other people ? What was the cause of the failure of the 
 former attempt ?
 
 ANALYSIS OF THE CONTENTS. 
 
 PART IV. 
 
 Page 
 
 THE RESTORATION AND CONVERSION OF THE JEWS. . 227 
 
 Different opinions on the Subject. The Literal Restora- 
 tion opposed. Rules to decide the Question. The 
 Literal Restoration proved : From Prophecies Lev. 
 xxvi. 32 ; xxxiii. 4245. Deut. xxx. 16. Ezek. 
 xxxvi. 25 27; chap, xxxvii. Hosea iii.4, 5. Jer. xxxi. 
 3140. Zech. xii. 10 14. From Facts The Jews 
 have never possessed all the Land promised Their 
 wonderful Preservation Their general Expectation 
 Their favourable Circumstances The Way preparing. 
 Question respecting the Rebuilding of Jerusalem, 
 answered. The Literal Restoration considered a He- 
 resy. Objections answered. Prayer recommended.
 
 PART I. 
 
 NARRATIVE OF THE AUTHOR'S LIFE FOR 
 THE LAST SIXTY-SIX YEARS; 
 
 CONTAINING 
 
 A HISTORY OF THE ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF THE 
 PRESENT CHRISTIAN EFFORTS TO PROMOTE 
 THE CONVERSION OF THE JEWS. 
 
 I. HIS BIRTH AND EDUCATION. 
 
 1. IT pleased God, in whom I live, move, and 
 have my being, to favour me with the light of this 
 world, Sept. 21, 1771. The place of my nativity is 
 Maynstockheim, near to Kitzingen, in Franconia, in 
 Germany. My father, Samuel Levi, was nineteen 
 years a private tutor in a Jewish family, at Mynburn- 
 heim ; and after he married, continued, as it were, 
 day and night in the study of the sacred Scriptures, 
 and the traditions of men, and acted as Morah Tzedeck, 
 whilst my mother carried on the trade, by which the 
 family was comfortably supported. 
 
 2. Morah Tzedeck, is a person to whom the 
 
 B
 
 NARRATIVE. 
 
 Jews apply for direction in difficulties arising from the 
 observation of the innumerable religious ceremonies 
 with which the Jewish ritual abounds ; and the cases on 
 which such a person is consulted are such as the fol- 
 lowing : If a grain of corn should be found in any 
 kind of food during the feast of unleavened bread, it 
 may happen that not only the food must be thrown 
 away, but even the vessels that contained any part of 
 it dare not again be used during the feast. Or suppose 
 a family, while feasting on meat or fowl, should find 
 that their knife or fork is one of those which are used 
 in eating food prepared with milk or butter, the com- 
 pany must desist eating any more of those victuals, nor 
 dare they use any of the knives, plates, or other vessels, 
 till the case has been decided by the Morah Tzedeck, 
 whose verdict is very frequently, that the food must 
 be thrown away, and the earthen and china vessels in 
 whidh it was served be broken in pieces. Such like 
 questions are daily brought before the Morah Tzedeck, 
 and in towns, where as many as seventy families live, 
 as is the case in my native place, such questions are 
 continually arising. 
 
 3. According to the religion of my parents, I was 
 circumcised the eighth day after my birth, and received 
 my name, Joseph Samuel. The reason why I have now 
 the addition of three names will be given hereafter. 
 Jewish children are called by the name of the nearest 
 relation who is dead, perhaps in reference to Deut. 
 xxv. 6 ; accordingly the first child was called by my 
 parents Levi, which was the name of my father's father ; 
 the second was a daughter, and received the name of my 
 mother's mother : and as I was the third child, I receii-ed 
 the name of my mother's father, which was Joseph. My 
 parents had ten children, five daughters and as many
 
 PART I. 3 
 
 sons. My sisters were taught to read the prayer-book 
 in the Hebrew language, i. e. to pronounce the words 
 without understanding even the literal meaning of a 
 single sentence. This, alas ! is usually all the religious 
 education which the females receive, and many of them 
 even not so much. But my brothers and myself were 
 put under the care of a tutor in our own family, who 
 instructed us daily according to the Law and the 
 Talmud, and every Saturday we were examined by 
 our father, in what we had learned through the week. 
 Our tutor took every opportunity to inspire us with 
 prejudices and hatred against the Christian religion. 
 Whilst explaining the five books of Moses, he men- 
 tioned in every place the opinions of the Christians, 
 raised objections against them, and endeavoured to 
 establish us in all the Jewish errors. On the evening 
 preceding the 25th of December, it being supposed 
 that Jesus Christ was born on that evening, we did not 
 study any thing sacred: but our teacher always made 
 us read a little book called Toldoth Jeshu, the genera- 
 tion of Jesus, which contains the most horrid blas- 
 phemies, and is calculated to fill any person who 
 believes it, with prejudice, disgust, and hatred against 
 Jesus and his followers. This common practice of the 
 Jewish teachers was more strictly observed by ours, 
 by the express desire of my mother, who was a most 
 inveterate enemy to Christianity, because her brother 
 had embraced the Christian religion, and had lived and 
 died at Strasburgh in the faith of the Son of God. 
 This circumstance gave rise to a common saying in my 
 native town, whenever a quarrel arose between the 
 Jewish boys and my brothers, and in particular as to 
 myself, who was always the wildest, it was generally- 
 said, " Let them alone, they will certainly turn Chris- 
 is 2
 
 4 NARRATIVE. 
 
 tians, as their uncle did." For ever blessed be the 
 Lord, who has accomplished this prophecy in me the 
 most unworthy. My mother herself narrowly watched 
 us, and would never suffer us to read any book but in 
 the Hebrew language, lest we should read any thing 
 about the Christian religion. Such was the enmity of 
 my dear mother against the blessed name of Jesus, 
 that when a Christian, who frequently came to buy 
 bread or flour, said, " I hope you will yet believe in 
 Jesus Christ," she would exclaim with great emotion 
 of soul, " I will rather be damned than believe in the 
 hanged one." Such also was the language of the 
 mother of " Emma de Lissau ; " and no doubt to such 
 conduct the apostle Paul alluded, when he said, " I 
 could wish that myself were accursed from Christ " 
 (Rom. ix. 3), or rather, " for I did wish," i. e. before 
 my conversion, " that myself might be damned, as 
 Christ himself was," agreeably to my opinion of him at 
 that time. Perhaps few passages have been considered 
 more difficult to be understood than this. But the 
 more I have examined what has been written on this 
 passage, the more I am convinced that the mind of the 
 apostle may be easily known ; 1st. If the second and third 
 verses are read without the clause, " for I could wish 
 that myself were accursed from Christ ; " 2dly. Let 
 the original word Euchomen, the imperfect middle 
 voice, be translated I did wish, instead of I " could," 
 i. e. before my conversion ; 3dly. Let this sentence be 
 read in a parenthesis, as a reason why Paul felt and 
 expressed greater sympathy for his brethren than any 
 other of the apostles did. As if he had said, " They 
 never hated Christ as I did ; for before my conversion 
 I was as bad as my unbelieving brethren are. For like 
 them I did wish myself accursed from Christ ; z. e. I
 
 PART I. 5 
 
 abhorred the idea of believing in him, or as being con- 
 sidered one of his disciples; and therefore, by sad 
 experience, I can sympathize with them more than 
 others," He who has just been rescued from a dan- 
 gerous fit of sickness, feels more for a sick person than 
 he who never knew what sickness means. Hence even 
 the Son of God himself needed to be tempted and tried, 
 that he might be able to succour them that are tempted. 
 The reader will not wonder at my mother's conduct, 
 when he is informed, that to embrace the Christian 
 religion brings greater reproach upon the family than 
 if all the children had been guilty of the worst of 
 crimes ; and the person himself who believes the Chris- 
 tian religion becomes the object of their utmost abhor- 
 rence. One of the names by which they call him or her 
 is Meshummad or Meshummedeth, from the root Sha- 
 mad, which signifies to destroy ; and to this name they 
 generally add, Yemach Shemo vesichro, i. e. Let his 
 name and memory be blotted out.* And if it were in 
 their power without Chillul Hashshem, i. e. without 
 bringing reproach on God, or exposing themselves or 
 nation to persecution, to take away the life of such a 
 person, like Saul of Tarsus, they would consider it a 
 service done unto God. 
 
 4. Dear reader, do not judge rashly of the motive 
 which actuates a Jew in thus dealing with his brother, 
 or even with his only son. Frequently I have been 
 told that the Jews must be a cruel and unfeeling people, 
 because they thus act towards their brethren and nearest 
 relatives. Verily, the contrary is the case. In all my 
 travels amongst different nations I have never found a 
 people more attached to each other, and ready to assist 
 
 * See D. LerL Ling. Sac. R. Elias Tishbi, and Buxtorf on the 
 toot Shamad. NLzzachon, P. 4. Beer Haggola. f. 44. c. 2.
 
 O NARRATIVE. 
 
 to the utmost of their power in every affliction, than I 
 have witnessed amongst the Jews ; and especially the 
 ardent love and affection which subsists between parents 
 and children. Yet I do not doubt the truth of the 
 assertion, that even some parents have put to death 
 some of their children because they would not renounce 
 the name of Jesus with blasphemy. Does any Christian 
 believe that our venerable father Abraham must have 
 been a very unfeeling and cruel father, because he was, 
 after three days' mature contemplation, found in the 
 very act of killing his son, his only son, his beloved 
 son Isaac. No, he is the more admired for his piety, 
 love, and obedience to God. For although he loved 
 his son Isaac most tenderly, yet he loved God still 
 more, and was ready to obey his most trying command. 
 Even so, every Jew is commanded that if any of theirs 
 should worship another God he is to be put to death, 
 and believing Jesus to have been but a mere man, they 
 look upon every Jew who professes Christianity, and 
 consequently worshipping Christ as he does the Father, 
 to be an idolater, and that therefore it becomes their 
 duty as much as it was that of Abraham to put him to 
 death. It should, therefore, not be considered strange 
 or surprising to find that multitudes of the Jews, whose 
 confidence in the present Judaism is shaken, and who 
 feel a strong desire of inquiring into the evidences of 
 Christianity, yet stifle their convictions for fear of the 
 awful consequences, as will be shown more fully in the 
 sequel of this narrative. 
 
 5. The advantages and disadvantages arising from 
 this mode of education I have often experienced; whilst 
 on the one hand it was the means of my progress in 
 Jewish learning, on the other hand it kept me in perfect 
 ignorance of all other useful knowledge : until my
 
 PART I. 7 
 
 twenty-fourth year I had not seen a New Testament 
 nor a translation of the Old. 
 
 When about three years, I begun the Hebrew alpha- 
 bet, and when but six years of age I could read any 
 chapter of the five books of Moses ; and although I had 
 no grammatical knowledge of the language, and under- 
 stood little of the true meaning of the precepts, or the 
 real design of the ceremonies contained in those books ; 
 yet ten thousand thanks to my dear parents, who taught 
 me the sacred Scriptures from a child, the fruits of 
 which I still enjoy. 
 
 6. About that time it pleased God to afflict me 
 with the small-pox, which brought on a long and pain- 
 ful illness, and my life was supposed to be in danger 
 for about a year and a half, during which time I 
 forgot what I had formerly learned; the sight of 
 my left eye was also injured, and I lost the use of 
 speech, but through the blessing of God I was 
 gradually restored to the use of both. The latter, 
 however, has always continued in a measure defective, 
 and even at present, in reading a long-continued sen- 
 tence, I experience some degree of hesitation. This 
 formerly was often a source of grief to me, but blessed 
 be God, for many years past I have seen the wisdom 
 and goodness of the Lord in this fatherly chastisement, 
 and through eternity I shall have reason to say that 
 this light affliction, which is but for a moment, has 
 worked out for me a far more exceeding and eternal 
 weight of glory. 
 
 7. On my recovery I was again instructed in the 
 section out of the law appointed for the week,* with the 
 
 * It is an ancient custom among the Jews to read in the synagogue 
 every Sabbath-day, a section of the five books of Moses, t. e. law, 
 so as to read the whole once every year ; and as their leap-year has
 
 NARRATIVE. 
 
 explanation of Rashee, i. e., Rabbi Solomon Yarehi, and 
 was also taught a chapter every day out of the former pro- 
 phets,* and writings or hagiographa, but never was any 
 part of the latter prophets, except what is contained in 
 the Haphtoroth,-]- explained to me ; no wonder, there- 
 fore, that I was ignorant of what they had written 
 concerning the Messiah. I have often been surprised, 
 that in the choice of these Haphtoroth, those parts 
 which speak the plainest of Immanuel are left out, 
 especially as the 52d and 54th chapters of Isaiah are 
 appointed, but the last three verses of the 52d 
 chapter, and the whole of the 53d, are skipped over. 
 The only reason I can assign, is that the people may 
 be kept in ignorance of the Messiah. The omission of 
 so many precious and most important portions of the 
 writings of the holy prophets, such as the 7th, 9th, 
 and 53d chapters of Isaiah ; the 23d chapter of Jere- 
 miah, and the whole book of Daniel, particularly the 
 9th chapter, has led me, among other reasons taken 
 
 fifty-four weeks, they have divided the law into so many sections, 
 each of which is called Sedrah. In those years which have not so 
 many weeks, and in which no festivals fall on the Sabbath, two sec- 
 tions are joined on certain Sabbath-days. 
 
 * The Hebrew Bible, or Old Testament, contains twenty-four 
 books, which are divided into three classes : Torah, i. e. the five 
 books of Moses. Neve-im, which is again divided into the former 
 prophets, comprehending Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings ; and 
 the latter prophets containing Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the 
 twelve minor prophets, which are considered as one book. Kethuvim, 
 containing Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Canticles, Ruth, Lamentations, 
 Ecclesiastes, Esther, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Chronicles 
 N.B. Ezra and Nehemiah are considered as one book. 
 
 t It is a tradition that, when Antiochus Epiphanes prohibited the 
 reading of the law, the Jews substituted fifty-four portions out of the 
 prophets, which they call Haphtoroth, one of which is still read every 
 Sabbath-day after the section of the law is finished.
 
 PART I. 
 
 9 
 
 notice of by Vitringa,* to suspect the truth of the 
 antiquity of the choice of the present Haphtoroth. 
 I am rather inclined to think, that at a much later date, 
 to prevent the people from reading the whole Bible, 
 this method has been adopted. Hence we find most 
 Jewish families in the possession only of that Hebrew 
 Bible which contains no more than the five books 
 of Moses ; the Haphtoroth for the Sabbath and 
 festival days, and five books out of Kethuvim or 
 Hagiographa, namely, the Song of Solomon, Ruth, 
 Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, and Esther. This may be 
 considered as one great cause why so very few of the 
 children of Israel know any thing of so great and use- 
 ful a part of the sacred Scripture. This opinion is 
 strengthened by the impious circumstance recorded by 
 several Jewish writers,-]- that a curse is denounced in 
 the name of Rabbi Jonathan, a great man among the 
 Jews, against the computers of the seventy weeks in 
 the 9th chapter of Daniel. " Let their bones rot, Avho 
 compute the times of the end." Dear brethren, I 
 beseech you, if you love your souls, if you wish to be 
 really happy, let nothing hinder you from " searching 
 the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal 
 life, and they are they which testify of the Messiah."^ 
 8. When I was nine years old, the holy book of 
 God was shut up and laid aside, and in its stead the 
 productions of men, as the Mishnah, Gemarah, &c., 
 were brought forth and eagerly studied in succession, 
 with great pleasure and satisfaction, for they were 
 nourishment to my earthly and sensual affections, and 
 
 * Vitringa, de Synag. Vetere, lib. iii. p. ii. c. xi. p. 1007- 
 f Maimonides, H. Melachim, c. 12. Yad chazakah, De Rrg. 
 ch. 12. See also Kiddor on the Mess. P. I. p. 29. Owen on the 
 Heb. V. I. Ex. p. 175. i John v. 39. 
 
 B 5
 
 10 NARRATIVE. 
 
 fuel to my corrupt heart; and thus was I for four 
 years longer absorbed in vain speculations, and spend- 
 ing my strength for nought. On the first Sabbath after 
 I was thirteen years and a day old, I read in the 
 synagogue, according to custom, the section of the law 
 appointed for the day, which happened to be the second, 
 called Noach. It is a custom among the Jews, that 
 when a boy has arrived at the age of thirteen years and 
 a day he is considered a man, fit to be one of the ten 
 necessary to constitute a full number for public prayer. 
 He is now obliged to observe the precepts of the law 
 himself, and therefore called Bar Mitzvah. He is also 
 considered of age to manage business, and his contracts 
 are valid. I was now arrived at that period of life in 
 which it is usual with the Jews to decide, whether a 
 person will engage in business, or qualify himself 
 farther for any religious office. Having chosen the 
 latter, I continued five years longer in the study of the 
 Talmud and its various commentators. 
 
 II. HIS RELIGIOUS OFFICES SUSTAINED AMONG 
 
 THE JEWS. 
 
 1. At the age of eighteen, I went, with the con- 
 sent of my parents, to Hesse, as a teacher, and during 
 the following three years I instructed six children in 
 reading Hebrew, and to understand the literal meaning 
 of the five books of Moses, together with some parts 
 of the Mishna, and also in writing and arithmetic : in 
 these occupations I was employed only six hours in the 
 day, and the remainder of my time I was often at a 
 loss how to spend. O that I had then known the value 
 of time ! Besides free board and lodging, I received 
 four guineas per quarter, with which in Germany a 
 person can live better -than with ten guineas in Eng-
 
 PART I. 11 
 
 land. Thus I thought myself rich, and " increased with 
 goods, and had need of nothing, not knowing that I was 
 wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and 
 naked." Rev. iii. 17. 
 
 2. At the age of twenty-one I received a second 
 honorary degree to be a Chazan or reader in the syna- 
 gogue.* At this period I was much esteemed amongst 
 my brethren, but the pride of my heart was not satis- 
 fied ; I therefore took great pains, and spent a whole 
 year in obtaining the knowledge of the Jewish method 
 of preparing the knife for killing fowls or beasts, and 
 of the nature of the lungs. None but those who have 
 learnt these ceremonies can judge how difficult they 
 are to be acquired, so as to be master of them all. A 
 person who sustains this office is called Schochat, i. e., 
 to kill or slay. 
 
 3. At length I likewise obtained this degree of 
 honour from the then presiding Ravf or Rabbi, of 
 
 * Every synagogue has a Chazan or Sheliach Tzibbur, whose 
 office is to read the public prayers and the law of Moses. 
 
 f By Rav or Rabbi the reader will understand one who has the 
 spiritual oversight or care, and in a limited sense the civil rule, over 
 a great number of Jews. In Britain there are but two, the Portu- 
 guese and the German Rav. By far the greatest number of Jews in 
 this country are under the jurisdiction of the latter, the Rev. Dr. 
 Hirschel. I have not the honour of a personal acquaintance with 
 either of these respectable gentlemen. But whilst with pleasure I 
 take this opportunity of expressing the highest esteem for Dr. Hir- 
 schel, on account of the amiable character he bears, both among Jews 
 and Christians ; I cannot but lament his want of that liberality of 
 mind which his venerable father, Rabbi at Berlin, possessed, and of 
 which the following is one of many instances that might be related. 
 In 1800 I applied to a Jewish printer at Berlin to print a sermon in 
 Hebrew, but finding that the contents were in favour of Christianity, 
 he said, "You must first obtain permission of the Rav." Accord- 
 ingly I went to the Rabbi himself. At first he seemed inclined to 
 refuse, but after a long, friendly, and very interesting religious con-
 
 12 NARRATIVE. 
 
 Hesse Cassel. In the use of these ceremonious observ- 
 ances I was extremely strict, although not one of them 
 is to be found expressed in the whole book of God, 
 but they are a few of the innumerable vain, and ex- 
 tremely burdensome, traditions received of the fathers. 
 O blessed Jesus ! thy yoke is easy, and thy burden 
 is light, for by thee the weary and heavy laden find 
 rest. Happy, thrice happy those who are brought 
 into the holy liberty of thy glorious and everlasting 
 Gospel ! 
 
 4. About this time my mother entered into a large 
 concern of business, namely, of supplying a part of the 
 Prussian army with grain and provision, lying then at 
 
 versation, he said, " You may tell the printer, as he has printed 
 other books without my permission, he might have printed this also." 
 In the present enlightened age, and in this happy country, where 
 liberty is considered as absolutely necessary to real happiness, the 
 Jews, who would ever submit to imprisonment, punishment, or death 
 itself, rather than be in bondage to any man, ought to be suffered to 
 enjoy liberty of conscience. But it is a lamentable fact, that Dr. 
 Hirschel has frequently prohibited the Jews from attending any 
 Christian place of worship, especially where the word of salvation is 
 professedly addressed to the children of Israel. Parents and guar- 
 dians also'have been forbidden, by his circular letters, to send their 
 children to a Christian school in general, and particularly to the Free 
 School, established for Jewish children, as will be shown hereafter. 
 
 Perhaps some who read this note may think it strange that I do 
 not style Dr. Hirschel High Priest, as others have done. But all 
 who are acquainted with the real state of the Jewish nation, know 
 that there exists no more a high priest, than there is a temple, altar, 
 or sacrifice. But rejoice, O Israel, that there is one high priest, 
 Jesus, the son of David, blessed be his name, made after the order 
 of Melchizedeck, who offered up himself a holy sacrifice, well pleas- 
 ing unto God, and entered the holiest of holies with his own blood, 
 ever living to make intercession for transgressors, according to the 
 following prophecies : Psalm xvi. 10 ; Ixviii. 18 ; ex. 4 ; Isaiah 
 liii. 1012.
 
 PART I. 13 
 
 Frankfort on the Maine, and, therefore, wished for my 
 assistance at home. I complied with her wish, and 
 returned to my father's house. But having neither 
 skill nor pleasure in trade, I once more left my kindred 
 and my country, and returned again to Hesse. On 
 the day of my departure, my dear father accompanied 
 me a little way out of the town, and at the moment of 
 parting he laid his hands upon my head to give me a 
 parting blessing. The words he made use of on that 
 solemn occasion were then deeply impressed on my 
 mind, and will never be forgotten by me ; they were 
 these : " The angel of the covenant be with thee." 
 Little did I then think that he alluded to the Angel 
 Jehovah, who appeared to the patriarchs Abraham, 
 Isaac, and Jacob ; that spoke to Moses out of the fiery 
 bush ; that gave to Israel the law from Mount Sinai ; 
 and of whom Jehovah himself said, " Behold, I send an 
 angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring 
 thee into the place which I have prepared. Beware of 
 him, and obey his voice ; provoke him not, for he will 
 not pardon your transgressions ; for my name is in 
 him" Neither could I have then conceived, what I 
 now firmly believe, viz., that that very Angel Jehovah 
 is Jesus of Nazareth, who, in the fulness of time, was 
 born at Bethlehem ; died on Mount Calvary, to atone 
 for our sins ; rose again for our justification ; for ever 
 liveth at the right hand of God to make intercession 
 for us ; and who will come again (to reign on the 
 earth a thousand years), and judge the whole world in 
 righteousness. O the rich, free, and sovereign love of 
 my God, who I trust has revealed in me Jesus Christ 
 his Son, the hope of eternal glory, whilst my dear 
 family were left in Jewish unbelief. However, from 
 the conduct of my dear father on this occasion ; from
 
 14 NARRATIVE. 
 
 his deadness to all worldly concerns ; from his delight 
 and study in the law of the Lord day and night, and 
 above all, from his secret devotion,* I have often been 
 led to indulge the hope that he has been a believer in 
 Jesus Christ our blessed Saviour; like Nicodemus, who 
 came to Jesus by night; and like Joseph of Arimathea, 
 who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of 
 the Jews; and the remarkable meeting of Solomon 
 Deutch and his friend, to be noticed hereafter; or ait 
 least one of those devout Jews who waited for the con- 
 solation of Israel. To return. 
 
 5. As I had saved some money in the preceding 
 years, I resolved to travel, and accordingly made a tour 
 through Westphalia to the borders of Holland, and 
 then back again to Gottingen, Hanover, and Ham- 
 burgh. Here I stayed about nine weeks, and boarded 
 in a Jewish family, where many strangers resorted. 
 
 * The reader, I hope, will permit me to mention the following 
 circumstance which had made such a deep impression upon my mind 
 when but a lad, as to be still before my eyes now, although old and 
 grey-headed. 
 
 One of my sisters, aged about five years, after an illness of a few 
 days, was found wrestling with death. My father, who was then in 
 his study, or place of devotion, being informed of it, simply replied, 
 " All is well," and remained undisturbed. About two hours after- 
 wards, my sister was found dead. My father, on being immediately 
 made acquainted with the fact, said, " I will come and see her." 
 About four hours after this, whilst all the family and friends were 
 in the deepest distress, my dear father entered the room, approached 
 the bed, touched the child's hand, and said, " My beloved daughter, 
 how are you ?" To our greatest astonishment, at that moment the 
 child opened her eyes, which had been covered over, and asked for a 
 drink of water. My sister gradually recovered, and I have not yet 
 been informed of her death. O, how great is the power of prayer ! *"> 
 /Lord, increase my faith, and give me a greater portion of the spirit I 
 of prayer and supplication. , -""^
 
 PART I. 15 
 
 One day a Jewish brother informed me that he had 
 received a letter from a friend, desirous to obtain a 
 teacher for his children. After some conversation on 
 different branches of learning, and examination of my 
 credentials, he said, " You are the very man that will 
 suit my friend ;" and offered me a letter of introduc- 
 tion. Being tired of an idle life, I accepted of his offer, 
 and gave him a few dollars for his remuneration. In 
 a few days I went with the stage to Schwerin, about 
 three days' journey from Hamburgh, to present my 
 letter of introduction. But how great was my astonish- 
 ment when the gentleman to whom I presented it, 
 assured me that he had neither written for a teacher, 
 nor had any children to be instructed ! My disappoint- 
 ment in not getting a situation, was far less than my 
 surprise to have been thus imposed upon by one of my 
 own brethren and kinsmen after the flesh. The words 
 of David came immediately to my mind : " It was not 
 an enemy that reproached me, then I could have borne 
 it." But, blessed be the Lord my God, who has so 
 overruled this circumstance that I can now adopt 
 the words of Joseph, my namesake, " He thought 
 evil against me, but God meant it unto good ; to 
 bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people 
 alive." 
 
 6. Among the passengers from Hamburgh to 
 Schwerin was a Jewish teacher, and a young Christian, 
 an agent for a tobacco factory in Hamburgh. The 
 latter having observed a great difference in our con- 
 duct (for my brother Jew plainly declared, by his 
 actions, that he had freed himself from the restraints 
 of Jewish ceremonies ; for he ate and drank freely of 
 every thing that was set before him ; whilst I, on the 
 contrary, according to my education, ate scarcely any
 
 16 NARRATIVE. 
 
 tiling but bread and butter, and that cut with my own 
 knife, during the whole journey), addressed us thus : 
 " If you will give me leave, I will state to you my 
 opinion concerning the different manner in which you 
 act, both professing to be Jews." Having obtained 
 permission, he said to my companion, " You, my friend, 
 are neither a Jew nor a Christian, neither hot nor cold; 
 if you think yourself freed from Jewish ceremonies, 
 you ought to believe that the Messiah has come." To 
 me he said, " I am sorry to see you denying yourself, 
 and so much troubled with the burdens which your 
 fathers were never able to bear, and which you need 
 no longer to observe; for," said he, in continuance, 
 " the ceremonial law is fulfilled, and taken away by the 
 Messiah Jesus, who has confirmed the new covenant 
 with his blood ; as it was foretold by the prophet Jere- 
 miah." Here he took out his Bible, and read as 
 follows : " Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that 
 I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, 
 and with the house of Judah ; not according to the 
 covenant that I made with their fathers, in the day 
 that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the 
 land of Egypt, which my covenant they brake, although 
 I was a husband to them, saith the Lord : but this shall 
 be the covenant that I will make with the house of 
 Israel : After those days, saith the Lord, I will write 
 my law in their inward parts, and write it in their 
 hearts : and will be their God, and they shall be my 
 people." " You perceive," said he, " that the covenant 
 of ceremonies should be succeeded by another and 
 better covenant. It is evident, therefore, that the 
 former has ceased ; for sacrifices, which were the life 
 of all other ceremonies, as well as Jerusalem, the place 
 where they were to be offered up, are both no more ,-
 
 
 PART I. 17 
 
 the new covenant must have been ratified, and this has 
 been done when Jesus died on the cross, and the 
 veil of the temple rent from the top to the bottom." 
 This portion of Scripture, which I had never read 
 before, for the reasons mentioned above, and his obser- 
 vations, made a deep and lasting impression upon my 
 mind, and for some time I was wretched and miserable, 
 full of doubts and fears, and knew not what to do. To 
 my Jewish brethren I could not disclose my feelings, 
 for the least suspicion of doubts respecting the truth of 
 their present religion, or a favourable opinion respect- 
 ing that of the Christians, would have inevitably ex- 
 posed me to their displeasure, hatred, or persecution, 
 and among Christians I had no acquaintance. 
 
 Having understood that my Christian friend had 
 gone to Rostock, I resolved to follow him. From this 
 time I must date the commencement of a new period 
 in my life. 
 
 Ill TIME AND PLACE OF HlS EMBRACING THE 
 
 CHRISTIAN RELIGION. 
 
 1. As soon as I arrived at Rostock I went to the 
 inn nearest the post-office, inquiring for my friend, but 
 was disappointed in not hearing of him. 
 
 Having been informed that no Jew was allowed to 
 remain in that town for a single night without permis- 
 sion from the magistrate, for which a certain sum was 
 to be paid, I told the landlord that I was a Jew by 
 birth, but that I had come to that place to inquire into 
 the truth of Christianity, and to embrace that religion 
 if I should be convinced of its veracity. On hearing 
 this he promised me every assistance, and the next day 
 he went with me to the house of a minister of the 
 gospel, who examined me concerning my knowledge
 
 18 NARRATIVE. 
 
 of the Christian faith, and of the motives which led 
 me to renounce Judaism. Having found that I could 
 produce no other proof that Jesus was the Messiah but 
 the 10th verse of the 49th chapter of Genesis, " The 
 sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from 
 between his feet, until Shiloh come ; and unto Him 
 shall the gathering of the people be," he suspected my 
 motives to be worldly ; nevertheless he did not altoge- 
 ther discourage me, but went with me to some other 
 ministers, and stated my request to the magistrate of 
 Rostock, before whose bar I was shortly after sum- 
 moned to appear, where I was strictly examined, and 
 my testimonials were approved ; but I was told that 
 there had been many Jews who had embraced Chris- 
 tianity only for secular advantages, who had lived after- 
 wards as heathens, which had made them very careful 
 of receiving any before they were thoroughly con- 
 vinced of their sincerity. 
 
 In order to assure them that I sought nothing but 
 the truth, I promised not to receive the least emolument 
 -from any Christian, but to learn a trade, that I might 
 obtain my daily bread by the labour of my own hands. 
 About a fortnight after this I received their resolution, 
 which was, that I should go to three neighbouring 
 towns, and if none of the ministers would be willing 
 to receive me, that I should return to them again, and 
 they would assist me in my undertaking. 
 
 2. From Rostock I went to Wismar, where I was 
 kindly and affectionately received by the Rev. Dr. 
 Haupt, to whom I went twice every week for instruc- 
 tion, and spent as much time at home as I could spare 
 from my employment in comparing the German 
 translation with the Hebrew Bible, and in reading the 
 New Testament, which I had never seen before. By
 
 PART I. 19 
 
 comparing the predictions respecting the Messiah, 
 contained in the Old Testament, with the history of 
 Jesus of Nazareth as contained in the New, my 
 judgment was soon convinced that he is the promised 
 Messiah ; and considering the doctrine and precepts of 
 the Gospel, I perceived that the dispensation of the 
 Gospel was far more glorious than the Mosaic. At this 
 early period of my Christian pilgrimage I began to 
 experience the truth of the declaration of my blessed 
 Redeemer, " He that will be my disciple must deny 
 himself, and take up his cross and follow me." The 
 reader may possibly expect that I allude to persecution 
 from my Jewish brethren ; this was not the case, for 
 there were no Jews residing in that city. But what is 
 more strange, many who called themselves Christians, 
 treated me as a hypocrite and deceiver. Not unfre- 
 quently I was told, " You are only come among us for 
 what you can get ; as soon as you have made your 
 fortune, you doubtless will give up your profession and 
 return to the Jews." These things often pierced my 
 heart sharper than a two-edged sword, especially when 
 comparing my former honourable, comfortable, and 
 promising condition, with my present low, poor, and 
 despised situation as a shoemaker's apprentice. For I 
 would observe that, in general, an apprentice in Germany 
 is treated very little better than a slave. My situation 
 was attended with peculiar difficulties. My master's 
 wife having been for several years melancholy, and 
 sometimes altogether deranged, reduced him into low 
 circumstances, and I soon found that no plentiful table 
 was to be my portion ; and my natural pride was 
 exceedingly humbled by the authority assumed by his 
 daughter, who was not fourteen years of age, whereas 
 I was now five-and-twenty, and having spent the
 
 20 NARRATIVE. 
 
 preceding years in so respectable a situation among my 
 own people, with whom, I had no doubt, if I had then 
 gone back to them, I could have gained one equally 
 good. These things were not pleasant to the flesh, but 
 grievous ; however, blessed be the Lord, who enabled 
 me to persevere, and who prepared me to bear still 
 greater hardships in his blessed cause. 
 
 3. At the expiration of a year and a half, my 
 master was obliged to give up business, which led to 
 a new difficulty ; the minister would not receive me as 
 a member of the church until I had learnt my trade, 
 and wished me to go to another shoemaker. But the 
 trade would not allow any other master to receive me 
 before I was baptized. The reason which they assigned 
 was, that no apprentice is allowed to stay longer than 
 three months with a master, without having his name 
 regularly registered in the book belonging to that 
 trade ; but as at that time no Jew could be bound ap- 
 prentice, my name could not be registered till after I 
 was baptized. Thus was I left almost without a single 
 friend in a strange place. 
 
 At that time a band of players was at Wismar, and 
 in order to gain support, I copied their lessons for 
 about two months. The master of the band was much 
 taken with me, and had it not been for the impediment 
 in my speech, caused by the small-pox, mentioned 
 above, I should doubtless have become one of the 
 company; but God in his wonderful mercy and gracious 
 dealings with me a poor sinner broke this snare also. 
 
 4. By the kind orderings of Providence, I met 
 with a gentleman, whose name was Matthias van 
 Gilben ; he advised me to go to New Brandenburg, in 
 Mecklenburg Strelitz, where he was acquainted with 
 the Rev. Cortum, a Lutheran minister, who would
 
 PART I. 21 
 
 receive me, to whom he gave me a letter of recom- 
 mendation ; I therefore took my leave of the minister 
 at Wismar, who also gave me a letter to the minister, 
 and I proceeded to New Brandenburg. In my way 
 thither, in every town where I came I waited upon the 
 ministers, who all severally wished me well, but were 
 not willing to do any thing in my favour. How few, 
 alas, are those who seek the salvation of Israel ! When 
 I reached the place of my destination, I delivered my 
 letters to the Lutheran minister, Cortum, who received 
 me kindly, and gave me effectual assistance. I was 
 again bound to a shoemaker for one year and a half, 
 and went, as formerly, twice a week to the minister for 
 instruction. 
 
 5. On the 8th of May, 1798, I was publicly bap- 
 tized, or rather sprinkled, and received as a member of 
 the church. 
 
 It has always been the custom, that, at the baptism 
 of a Jew, some respectable persons should stand god- 
 fathers, who make him many presents ; but I refused to 
 receive any, or any kind of presents, as another proof 
 that I did not embrace Christianity for the sake of 
 worldly gain. It is also an ancient practice in Germany 
 for a converted Jew to receive new names at his bap- 
 tism ; therefore, upon this occasion, the minister gave 
 me three additional names, viz. Christian Frederick 
 Frey. The first expressive of the religion I embraced ; 
 the second, which signifies rich in peace, to express his 
 good wishes ; and the last, as my surname, to remind 
 me of the text from which he preached on the occasion, 
 viz. John viii. 32, 36, " And ye shall know the truth, 
 and the truth shall make you free" " If the Son, 
 therefore, shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed." 
 Free, in English, signifies the same as Frey in the Ger-
 
 22 NARRATIVE. 
 
 man language, but Frey is pronounced Fry, and should 
 be pronounced in the English the same as the pronoun 
 they ; but most of the people, while I was in England, 
 attending more to the origin and signification than to 
 the spelling of my name, pronounced it generally as if 
 written free ; and I myself got into the habit of doing 
 the same. 
 
 6. Thus I was received into the pale of the Christ- 
 ian Church, as it is called, having an established belief 
 that Jesus Avas the Messiah, and that there was no sal- 
 vation but in him ; nevertheless, I acknowledge with 
 shame, that I had neither a clear perception of the 
 spirituality of the law, nor of the nature of the offices 
 sustained by, and the benefits to be derived from, 
 Christ. 
 
 A few months after this my apprenticeship was ex- 
 pired, and I was at liberty to go as a journeyman. It 
 was therefore my intention to accompany another young 
 man, of the same trade, to Rostock ; but God, in his 
 gracious designs, had appointed another place for me, 
 where I should be led to a fuller discovery of the truth 
 as it is in Christ Jesus. 
 
 IV. HIS CONVICTION OF SIN, AND SAVING ACQUAINTANCE 
 
 WITH JESUS. 
 
 1. Two days before the time on which we proposed 
 to leave New Brandenburg, my companion wounded his 
 hand in such a manner that he was obliged to give up 
 all thoughts of the journey. As I had given notice to 
 my master of my intention to leave him, I did not 
 choose to remain any longer, and therefore removed 
 to the next town, which was Prentzlow, in Prussia, 
 where I arrived on the 24th of December. The 
 weather was exceedingly cold, and there were many
 
 journeymen, but little work. I, however, not only 
 found employment, but was settled in the best situation 
 in the whole town ; thus lately out of my apprentice- 
 ship, yet the Lord in his kind providence gave me 
 success, and greatly blessed the work of my hands. 
 Surely goodness and mercy have followed me all the 
 days of my life. O that I could praise God for his 
 loving kindness to me an unworthy sinner. 
 
 2. In this situation I met with so much envy and ill- 
 will from the journeymen, that I was obliged to change it 
 for another, not so good in point of wages, and much more 
 laborious,but it proved more profitable to the welfare of 
 my soul. In this house I bowed my heart as well as my 
 knees before Jehovah, and prayed for the first time in 
 the Spirit as well as in the letter. I must here beg the 
 reader's patience whilsf I relate the following remark- 
 able providence of God. A few weeks before Easter, 
 the same gentleman, Mr. Matthias van Gilben, who 
 had recommended me to the minister at New Branden- 
 burg, paid me a visit, and made me a present, saying, 
 " Buy yourself an apron with this money, and wear it 
 as a remembrance of your friend." Accordingly I 
 went immediately -with his son to a tanner, by the name 
 of Michaelis. I have ever been fond of remarking 
 the ways of Providence, and now that I know more of 
 that God who alone orders all events, my delight is 
 still greater in looking back to those ways in which he 
 has so graciously led me even to the present hour. 
 We passed by several tanners' shops, as I saw after- 
 wards, in order to go to that of Michaelis, of whom I 
 asked for an apron, and when he told me the price, I 
 said, " Is not that too much ? for I know the value of 
 these things." " How came you to know it ?" replied
 
 24- NARRATIVE. 
 
 he. I answered, " When I was a Jew, I lived in a 
 family where such skins were sold." " So," replied Mi- 
 chaelis, " and you are now a Christian ?" " Yes," said 
 I, with the greatest confidence ; when he asked me fur- 
 ther, " In what manner do you live ?" This was 
 indeed a surprising question, for I had never perceived 
 that there were any different modes of living or con- 
 versation amongst Christians. " I live," said I, " as all 
 the shoemakers' journeymen live ; I go once every Sun- 
 day to church ; and then you know the young men 
 cannot be at home at their masters' houses, where they 
 lodge and board in the week, but must go to the inn 
 or house of call,* where they all meet ; there I spend 
 the remainder of the Sabbath, and generally till Mon- 
 day evening, as they all do, in playing at cards, and 
 sometimes dancing : the other days in the week I am 
 very diligent at my work." " I am sorry," replied 
 Michaelis ; " as you are a Christian, you ought to mani- 
 fest it in a different manner." To which I answered, 
 " I have no friends or acquaintances here, therefore I 
 must go to the inn, and being amongst the other 
 journeymen, I must join in their manner of life, else I 
 shall be laughed at and ridiculed by them all." Mi- 
 chaelis then said with great kindness, " You may come 
 to-morrow afternoon at five o'clock to the house of 
 Mr. Thorman, where several friends meet ; you will 
 become acquainted with them, and be able to spend 
 your time on the Sabbath at their houses." 
 
 Following the bent of my natural curiosity, I pro- 
 mised to go there the next day, this conversation hap- 
 
 * The house of call is an inn or tavern, where the masters' re- 
 gister their names if they want a journeyman, and the journeymen, on 
 their arrival in a town, call there to inquire for a master.
 
 PART I. 25 
 
 pening on a Saturday. On my return home I inquired 
 of the mistress if she knew the house of Mr. Thorman, 
 where some friends met every Lord's-day. She could 
 not speak evil of them, yet was unwilling to speak well, 
 therefore she only said, "It is a society of praying 
 brethren." 
 
 3. Early on the following morning, the appointed 
 day in which God designed most graciously to strip me 
 of my own self-righteousness, and clothe me with the 
 righteousness of his dear Son, our blessed Redeemer, 
 to adorn me with his glorious garment of salvation, I 
 felt my mind so uneasy that I could not remain in bed. 
 I arose, but the family being all asleep, I knew not 
 what to do ; in the mean time I heard the playing of 
 an organ, in a church near the place of my abode. I 
 went thither, but scarcely knew why. The Rev. Mr. 
 Wolff was at that moment confirming a great number 
 of children, it being Palm Sunday. At the conclusion of 
 the ceremony he addressed them thus, "My dear chil- 
 dren, I am afraid that some of you will soon return 
 again into the broad road which leadeth to destruction, 
 but my wish before God for you is, that you might be 
 saved ; I would therefore recommend to you the fol- 
 lowing passage of the holy Scripture, Job xxvii. 6, 
 'My heart shall not reproach me as long as I live ;"' 
 or, as he repeated it from the German Bible, " 'my con- 
 science does not reprove me for the whole of my life.' " 
 Reader, compare this with Acts xxiv. 16, " And herein 
 do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void 
 of offence towards God and towards men." " My dear 
 children," said he, with the greatest affection, " consider 
 these words at the close of every day, and examine if 
 your conscience does not accuse you for the day 
 which you have passed, and if it does, be sure to kneel 
 c
 
 26 NARRATIVE. 
 
 down and pray for the forgiveness of your sins through 
 Jesus Christ." 
 
 4, Dear reader, I must here be permitted to pause, 
 for it is impossible for me to express the feelings of 
 my heart on hearing these words. I found them 
 " sharper than a two-edged sword," Heb. iv. 12, and 
 stronger than " a hammer which breaketh the rocks in 
 pieces," Jer. xxiii. 29 ; my conscience accused me of 
 crimes innumerable, and, alas! "a wounded conscience 
 who can bear ? " I now firmly believed that I had not 
 only broken the double covenant as a Jew, which was 
 first made with God by my parents at my circumcision ; 
 and, secondly, by myself, when I was thirteen years 
 old ; but also that covenant with God in Christ, which 
 I had rashly made when I was baptized and joined the 
 Christian Church. It now pleased the Lord to teach 
 me something of the spirituality of the law; I not 
 only found myself guilty of very many sinful words 
 and actions in my life past, but I was also convinced 
 that " the thoughts and imaginations of my heart were 
 only evil continually," Gen. vi. 5 ; mine eyes, which 
 were formerly full of lusts, were now overflowing with 
 floods of tears ; the very ground beneath my feet 
 seemed ready to open itself to swallow me up, like 
 Korah and his company. I thought that the eyes of 
 God and of the congregation were fixed upon me with 
 the greatest abhorrence and disgust. I left the place, 
 and entered for the first time into my closet, and shut, 
 the door behind me, that I might pray in secret to my 
 Father which is in heaven. But alas ! I knew not how 
 to pray, nor had I confidence to draw nigh to that 
 God whom I had so often and so greatly offended. 
 Some passages of the holy Scriptures I remembered in 
 Hebrew, which I repeated again and again, such as
 
 PART I. 27 
 
 Psalm xliii. 1, 2, and others, but I found no 
 comfort. 
 
 5. I can therefore, my dear reader, say, from 
 personal experience, that there is nothing easier than 
 for a natural man to believe that God will pardon his 
 sins for some imaginary reason or other ; and nothing 
 more difficult than for a truly awakened sinner, to 
 believe that God can pardon his sins and yet be a holy, 
 just, and true God. It is not in the nature of any 
 means, although it be our bounden duty to use them 
 diligently, either to convince the natural man that he is 
 a guilty, defiled, and helpless sinner, nor to persuade 
 the convinced sinner that the Almighty can be a 
 righteous God, and at the same time the justifier of 
 him that believeth in Jesus. Both effects it is the 
 office of the same Holy Spirit to produce, who maketh 
 the means, graciously appointed by God, and diligently 
 used by man, effectual to the salvation of the soul. 
 " He who convinces the mind of sin, of righteousness, 
 and of judgment, must also take of the things of 
 Jesus, and show them to the heart of the mourning 
 sinner." John xiv. 8, 15. 
 
 Having described the circumstances which God 
 made to operate in overwhelming my heart with godly 
 sorrow, I now proceed to mention the manner in 
 which the Lord Jesus gave rest to my soul. 
 
 6. The reader will recollect the conversation 
 which had taken place between Mr. Michaelis and 
 myself on the preceding day, and his invitation to be 
 at five o'clock at Mr. Thorman's ; at that time I had 
 resolved to go out of curiosity, but now I was like "a 
 new-born babe, desiring the sincere milk of the word 
 that I might grow thereby." 1 Pet. ii. 2. Never was 
 a day so long as this day seemed to be. At length the 
 c 2
 
 28 NARRATIVE. 
 
 much-wished-for hour approached, and I joyfully 
 hastened to meet the Christian society; but when I 
 reached the house, the thunder and lightnings of 
 Mount Sinai terrified my breast afresh, my sins filled 
 my face with shame. All my natural boldness was 
 gone, and I could not look up with confidence to the 
 dear friends assembled together; like one of old, mine 
 eyes were fixed to the ground, and the language of my 
 heart was, " God, be merciful to me a sinner." Luke 
 xviii. 13. But Mr. Thorman, at whose house the 
 society met, and who had been for nearly sixty years 
 an experienced, useful, arid faithful soldier of Jesus 
 Christ, received me with the greatest affection, sympa- 
 thy, and compassion ; and from that very moment, to 
 the day I left that place, I esteemed, reverenced, and 
 trusted him as a man of God. 
 
 Amongst other questions, he asked whether the mi- 
 nisters who had instructed me for three years had prayed 
 with me on their knees. I am sorry to say that my 
 answer, dictated by truth, was a negative. 
 
 The service now began with singing, then followed a 
 short prayer, and after that he read a sermon on Isa. 
 liii. 4, 5 : " Surely he hath borne our griefs, and car- 
 ried our sorrows : yet we * did esteem him stricken, 
 smitten of God, and afflicted ; but he was wounded for 
 our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities : 
 the chastisement of our peace was upon him ; and with 
 his stripes we are healed." Jesus Christ was the sum 
 and substance of the discourse, from which I received 
 much comfort : then we all kneeled down, and he 
 
 * This is the confession of [every converted Jew ; but, O how 
 glorious will be the display of the grace of God, when the whole 
 Jewish nation shall be converted, and thus acknowledge their former 
 error! Zech. xii. 10 12.
 
 PART I. 29 
 
 prayed. More than twenty minutes were spent in 
 prayer for me, thanking God for calling me out of 
 darkness, and more particularly that it would please 
 the Lord to make me useful and faithful. 
 
 After the service was concluded, Mr. Thorman in- 
 vited me to visit him the next day. I now longed to 
 retire to my closet. On my return to my master's 
 house, all were surprised, for it was quite a new thing 
 to see me on a Sunday evening, and seldom on a Mon- 
 day. I told them I had been at Mr. Thorman's, and 
 wished rather to be by myself, than to go to the house 
 of call. I asked my master if Mr. Thorman had 
 studied : " No," was his reply. " But how is it possi- 
 ble," said I, " that a man could so long pray for me 
 without a book, and without even knowing of my com- 
 ing to him, and consequently he could not have stu- 
 died the prayer ? " " That is no wonder," said one of 
 the family, "these people pray always." Immediately 
 I went into my closet, fell upon my knees, and cried, 
 " Lord, teach me thus to pray." 
 
 7. After two hours' sweet meditation, I laid myself 
 down, and slept under the shadow of the Most High. 
 Early on Monday morning I arose with an eager desire 
 to read the Bible. On opening the sacred volume, my 
 eye was fixed on 1st Tim. i. 15 : "This is a faithful 
 saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus 
 came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am 
 chief." Having been used to catechise children, I put 
 the same questions to my own soul as I would have 
 done to a child in the school. Who is the person 
 spoken of? was my first inquiry. Christ Jesus. What 
 did he come into the world for? and where did he 
 come from ? From some place that is not in this 
 world from heaven. Why did he come into the
 
 30 NARRATIVE. 
 
 world ? To save sinners. What kind of sinners ? 
 Sinners that are in this world, and great sinners 
 too. 
 
 8. Whilst I was thus musing with myself, I was 
 enabled to conclude and believe, that though I saw 
 myself the chief of sinners, yet Christ was able to save 
 me, for he saved Paul, who called himself the chief of 
 sinners. From that moment I was led to rejoice in the 
 salvation of God my Saviour, and felt his love shed 
 abroad in my heart, which constrained me to vow an 
 eternal hatred against every sin, and to devote myself 
 to the service of him who lived and died for sinners. 
 Never did I enjoy an hour like that Monday morning. 
 I generally breakfasted at the house of call, having 
 spent the night there, as I observed before, but now I 
 went to my employment with pleasure, and with re- 
 newed strength. My master and his family were sur- 
 prised to see me at work on a Monday morning, and 
 could by no means account for the sudden change, not 
 knowing that the Gospel of Christ teaches a man to be 
 diligent in business and fervent in spirit. In the after- 
 noon two journeymen came to know why I had not 
 been at the house of call on the preceding day. On 
 being told by one of the family that I had been with 
 Mr. Thorman, and that I was now hard at work, singing 
 psalms, and making melody in my heart, they were sur- 
 prised, and endeavoured to persuade me to go with them 
 to our former place of supposed pleasure. I received 
 them affectionately, and assured them of the unspeakable 
 happiness I now felt in my soul, and that I had pro- 
 mised to go again in the evening to Mr. Thorman's. 
 Finding that they could not prevail on me by kindness, 
 they began to ridicule the society of Christians with 
 whom I had just formed an acquaintance, expressed
 
 PART I. 31 
 
 their sorrow for the unhappy change, they thought, I 
 had experienced, and left me, in the hope that God 
 would deliver me from the dangerous sect of " praying 
 brethren." O Lord, enable me to pray without ceasing ! 
 In the evening I called upon my dear friend Thorman ; 
 after some conversation he took me into his closet, 
 where we kneeled down together. He began to read 
 the first chapter in the Gospel by St. John, and changed 
 every verse into a prayer, introducing at the same time 
 parallel passages from the Old Testament, to illustrate 
 and confirm the truth which he had read from the Gos- 
 pel, and earnestly begging for the influences of the 
 Holy Spirit to bless it to our souls. This inestimable 
 privilege I enjoyed almost every day, especially on the 
 Sabbath, as long as I continued at Prenzlow. Mr. 
 Thorman would also frequently read the periodical 
 publications of the Basil Society, and other letters rela- 
 tive to the spread of the Gospel among Christians, and 
 especially the exertions of Christians in England to 
 send the word of salvation to the heathen. Very often 
 he would break forth with a deep sigh, and exclaim, 
 " O that I was again a young man like yourself ! I 
 would immediately go as a missionary." I do not recol- 
 lect that he ever spoke to me directly about offering 
 myself as a missionary, nor did I feel the least inclina- 
 tion to go, even if I had then been asked. However, 
 his labour of love and prayer of faith have not been in 
 vain, as it will be seen in the sequel. I had no sooner 
 tasted of the grace of God, but I was desirous to invite 
 others to come to the fulness of grace and mercy in 
 Christ Jesus. With pleasure I embraced every leisure 
 moment to visit the sick, and twice every week I went 
 to the poor-house. Here I had the first opportunity of 
 speaking of the love which my dear Redeemer bears to
 
 32 NARRATIVE. 
 
 sinners in general, and which he has manifested to me 
 in particular. 
 
 9. The happy change of my dispositions and con- 
 duct had a remarkable effect upon my master. Before 
 I became acquainted with Mr. Thorman and friends, I 
 spent generally one or two days in the week in idleness, 
 and whilst at work I only earned just enough to sup- 
 port myself. My master therefore treated me with the 
 greatest kindness, in order to keep me diligently at 
 work ; but from the time that I began to labour hard 
 and faithfully, on Mondays as well as on other days in 
 the week, and received nearly twice as much wages as 
 before, he not only looked coolly upon me, but very 
 soon dismissed me from his employment, without being 
 able to assign a single reason for his conduct. O the 
 enmity of the carnal mind ! But blessed be the Lord, 
 whose kind providence often overrules the bad conduct 
 of man to accomplish his own gracious purposes. It is 
 a custom in Germany for masters and journeymen to 
 dissolve their connexion at Midsummer and Christmas 
 only ; but my master having dismissed me about two 
 weeks before Midsummer, I could not expect to meet 
 with another situation until that day arrived. I went 
 to Mr. Thorman, and told him that I intended to leave 
 Prenzlow, as I could not bear the idea of spending my 
 time in idleness. Mr. Thorman informed me that a 
 friend of his, Mr. Boettcher,* was going to Berlin, who 
 
 * In my late visit to Berlin, understanding that Mr. Boettcher was 
 yet alive, I wrote him a letter, and in a few days received the follow- 
 ing answer : 
 
 "Prenzlow, June 4th, 1838. 
 
 " Very dear Brother, Yesterday I was highly gratified in receiving 
 your letter, and with great pleasure I hasten to comply with your 
 wish to write an answer. It is now forty-one years since we first 
 became acquainted, seeking after Jesus. O what unceasing thanks
 
 PART I. 
 
 would no doubt procure a master for me. He gave me 
 also a letter of recommendation to Mr. Burgert, a shoe- 
 do we owe to that faithful Redeemer who, during so long a period of 
 time through the dangers of life, the variety of changes, the temp, 
 tations to sin, and our own weakness, has kept us sensible of our 
 absolute dependence on him ! But, my dear brother, we are still in 
 the world where our faith is liable to suffer shipwreck, if we do not 
 watch and pray. Let us therefore continue in the school of the Holy 
 Spirit, then shall we not only be kept from the evil one, but we shall 
 at the same time be stronger in faith, more active in love, better 
 rooted and grounded in the truth, grow deeper in humility, and be 
 more steadfast and unmoveable in the hope of glory. 
 
 " Doubtless you, like myself, have often thought on the remarkable 
 circumstance which occurred on our way from Prenzlow to Berlin. 
 On the first evening of our journey at Closterfelde, we observed in 
 the inn an unusual stillness and solemnity, and a peculiar anxiety in 
 the countenance of the landlord. Having asked him what was the 
 matter in the family, he replied that his wife had been in labour for 
 the last twelve hours, and that her life was despaired of. We then 
 went out into the barn, and in a corner prayed to the Lord that he 
 would have mercy on this family, and send salvation to this house. 
 On returning to the house we were met by the landlord just coming 
 out of the room where his wife was, and said, ' The child is born, 
 and the mother saved.' We then exhorted him to render thanks to 
 God, for this deliverance was of the Lord. Thus the Lord does still 
 as he did of old ' fulfil the desire of them that fear him : he also will 
 hear their cry, and will save them.' 
 
 " I will now give you some information respecting the venerable 
 Mr. Wolff, the minister under whose exhortation on Palm-Sunday 
 you were awakened and brought to a knowledge of the plague of your 
 heart and of true Christianity. This venerable and beloved minister 
 was called to be Superintendent at Trebin. On his way thither, 
 whilst with his amiable wife sleeping at an inn, where the servant 
 having closed the door of the oven too soon, they were both 
 suffocated. You can easily conceive how we were affected at this 
 melancholy news ; and nothing but the idea that they were both with 
 the Lord Jesus could console us. You also will tenderly feel for 
 them, and yet silently adore the mysterious ways of the Lord. I will 
 now add a few words respecting myself and family. Of three wives 
 I have had eleren children born unto me, eight of which, four sons 
 c 5 x
 
 34< NARRATIVE. 
 
 maker at Berlin. On the 20th of June, 1799, I took 
 leave of my dear friend Thorman. Never was anything 
 more painful to me than parting with this friend. Nor 
 have I scarcely ever met a man altogether like him. It 
 would be unsiiitable, nor do I think it necessary, to de- 
 tain the reader by a particular account of this excellent 
 disciple of Christ- But as his praise is in all the 
 churches in Germany, I consider it my duty to insert, 
 for the benefit of the English reader, at least one of his 
 letters, out of many, with which he was pleased to 
 favour me whilst at Berlin and after I came to this 
 country. 
 
 10. " Dear Frey !* You are now going to Berlin. 
 It is possible we shall not see one another again in this 
 life. Remember what you have seen and heard in this 
 place ; and follow the instructions which you have re- 
 ceived. Read diligently the Word of God, and pray 
 at the same time that your understanding may be more 
 and more enlightened to see, and that you may feel 
 more of the deceitfulness of your heart. For in your 
 
 and four daughters, are still alive and are doing well. My health has 
 frequently been interrupted, and my hearing is becoming feeble ; yet, 
 under all these circumstances, has the Lord enabled me to sustain my 
 office (schoolmaster) for forty-three years to the full satisfaction of 
 the Trustees ; and seventy-two years has he guided and followed me 
 with unceasing loving-kindness and tender mercies. Bless, O my 
 soul, the living God ! Should we no more see one another in this 
 world, may it be in heaven in the presence of our God and Saviour. 
 If possible, let me hear from you from time to time, which will be a 
 great gratification. The Lord, who does great things in the world, 
 and will do greater things yet, be with us in life, in sufferings, and in 
 death. Amen. 
 
 " Your loving brother in Christ, 
 
 "BOETTCHER." 
 
 * This letter was given to me by Mr. Boettcher on the first day of 
 our journey to Berlin.
 
 PART I. 35 
 
 heart (as Bunyan observes) are seven abominations, 
 which you must see every day, as long as you live, and 
 which must constantly drive you to Jesus your Saviour. 
 The seven abominations are these : 
 
 1. Inclination to unbelief. 
 
 2. Forgetfulness of the love and mercy of Jesus 
 Christ. 
 
 3. Trust and confidence in your own works. 
 
 4s Wandering thoughts, and coldness in prayer. 
 
 5. Neglect of watchfulness after prayer. 
 
 6. Prone to murmur against God and man. 
 
 7. You can do nothing that God has commanded 
 you but you mix with it self-will, self-love, pride, posi- 
 tiveness, ambition, &c. 
 
 When you would do good, evil is present with you. 
 Now when you feel this, you must flee, by prayer and 
 supplication, to Jesus the crucified, as a poor miserable 
 and helpless sinner, that his atoning blood may cleanse 
 you from these abominations, and that his Holy Spirit 
 may change your heart and give you a new spirit. If 
 you do not this every day, truly, uprightly, and dili- 
 gently, you will be lost at last, notwithstanding you 
 have been baptized as a Christian, and received the 
 Lord's Supper frequently." 
 
 To be thus characterized, and to be directed to such 
 a remedy, was a hard lesson for flesh and blood. But, 
 through grace, I have learned to believe that these 
 seven abominations are but a part of that world of 
 iniquity within me, and that I am daily indebted to the 
 grace of God, by which I am restrained from sin, and 
 kept in the path of righteousness, holiness, and peace. 
 
 Mr. Thorman proceeds in his letter : 
 
 " You must likewise pray for wisdom and understand- 
 ing to learn your trade thoroughly. Be diligent and
 
 36 NARRATIVE. 
 
 faithful in your employment ; remember you work not 
 only for men, but you have a Master in heaven, even 
 Jesus Christ. If you feel your work to be hard, con- 
 sider that the Lord Jesus Christ has sweetened it, hav- 
 ing himself laboured (as is most probable) as a car- 
 penter till he was thirty years of age. If you do this, 
 even the ungodly master will esteem you ; and none 
 will hinder you in your devotion or prayer, if performed 
 in its season. Happy will you be if you follow my 
 advice, but miserable will you be if you despise my 
 counsel. The Lord be your guide. Amen. 
 
 I am your sincere friend, 
 
 J. F. THORMAN. 
 Prenzlow, June 20th, 1799." 
 
 11. On Saturday, June 22d, on our arrival at Ber- 
 lin, I went to the house of call, inquiring after Mr. 
 Burgert ; I was told that he was a dangerous and infec- 
 tious person, one of the " praying brethren," and that 
 he never visited the house of call. However, I soon 
 found out his place of abode, and was received by him 
 most affectionately. He recommended me to a pious 
 young man to lodge with, from whom I derived many 
 spiritual benefits. 
 
 The next day, being the Lord's-clay, I went in the 
 morning, with Mr. Burgert, to the Rev. Mr. Wolder- 
 sturff, a venerable aged minister of the Gospel. By 
 this valiant soldier of Christ I was privately instructed 
 how to put on " the whole armour of God." In the 
 afternoon I called upon a friend, to whom I had a 
 letter of recommendation. This gentleman took me 
 in the evening to a Moravian chapel, or congregation 
 of United Brethren. The Rev. Mr. Cunow preached 
 from Luke v. 8, "When Simon Peter saw it, he
 
 PART I. 37 
 
 fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me, for 
 I am a sinful man, O Lord." 
 
 The simplicity of the place of worship, the regularity 
 and order of the congregation, the subject of discourse, 
 and the manner in which it was delivered, made a 
 lasting impression upon my mind. Ever after I 
 attended the public meetings of this Christian society, 
 and very soon obtained liberty to attend their private 
 meetings on Wednesday and Friday evenings. I was 
 just at the point of being received as a member of this 
 highly respected community, when I was prevented, 
 by joining the Missionary Seminary. But although I 
 did not actually become a member, yet my attachment 
 to these Christians has never been diminished. My 
 heart has ever rejoiced to meet with one of these plain 
 and humble followers of the Lamb. It was among 
 these Christians I heard of the love of Jesus in every 
 sermon, and saw him, as it were, crucified before my 
 eyes. It is true, I have since seen the impropriety of 
 preaching nothing but the love of Christ, as manifested 
 in his sufferings, yet I still agree with them, that Jesus 
 Christ ought to be the sum and substance of every 
 discourse. A sermon without Christ, is like a body 
 without a soul. 
 
 I was but a few days at Berlin, when I obtained 
 employment from a master who feared God and 
 regarded men, at whose house I remained till I entered 
 the Missionary Seminary. The circumstances which 
 led to this change in my life are as follows. 
 
 V. HIS ENTRANCE INTO THE MISSIONARY SEMINARY 
 
 AT BERLIN. 
 
 1. The reader will not be surprised to find that 
 the trade which I had learned was almost beyond my
 
 38 NARRATIVE. 
 
 strength, if he considers but for a moment the manner 
 in which I had been educated, and the way in which 
 I had employed myself among my own nation. My 
 health was much impaired, and frequently I found such 
 pain in my breast as not to be able to work. My 
 master, who often sympathized with me under my 
 afflictions, one day proposed to procure my admission 
 into a free school, where persons are educated to be 
 schoolmasters. Nothing could have been proposed 
 more suitable to my education, former employment, 
 and natural inclination, than this ; I therefore approved 
 of the plan, and thanked my master for the kind 
 interest he took in my welfare. But O how wonderful 
 are the ways of the Lord ! One evening, at my devo- 
 tional hour, when reading the sacred Scripture, I was 
 forcibly struck with the following words : "Then said 
 Jesus unto his disciples, If any will come after me, let 
 him deny himself and take up his cross, and follow 
 me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: 
 and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find 
 it. For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the 
 whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a 
 man give in exchange for his soul ? " Matt. xvi. 
 24 26. Whilst meditating upon these words, my 
 mind was deeply impressed with the danger of entering 
 this school, where true religion was but little known ; 
 and I reflected, that although this situation might 
 greatly improve my bodily health and temporal circum- 
 stances, yet it was very likely to lead to the ruin of my 
 soul. After much prayer to God for direction, I 
 resolved to continue in my employment till Divine 
 Providence should point out a situation pregnant with 
 less danger to my eternal welfare. 
 
 2. On the same night I had a most remarkable
 
 PART I. 39 
 
 dream, the substance of which is briefly as follows : 
 It seemed to me as if I saw my dear Redeemer stand- 
 ing before my bed, and could hear him distinctly 
 saying, " Fear not, you shall be a physician to heal 
 many of their diseases." I replied, " By what means 
 shall I become a physician, who am a stranger in the 
 land? " The answer to this was, "You have many 
 friends in this place." With these words the vision 
 disappeared, and I awoke from my sleep, arose from 
 my bed, and fell upon my knees, spending a consider- 
 ble time in prayer and praise. This dream has often 
 since led me to adore the wonderful condescension of 
 the Son of God to strengthen the weak and feeble in 
 the flock, in various ways and by different means. 
 How fitly and faithfully does his conduct answer the 
 prediction concerning the Messiah! "He shall feed 
 his flock like a shepherd : he shall gather the lambs 
 with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall 
 gently lead those that are with young. A bruised 
 reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he 
 not quench." Isaiah xl. 11; xlii. 3. The young man, 
 mentioned above, who slept in the same room with me, 
 and had observed my getting up at night and praying, 
 gave me no rest till I told him what was the burden 
 upon my mind, and the circumstance which had 
 transpired in the night. Without my knowledge, he 
 spoke to his friends on the subject, and introduced rne 
 to many pious and excellent Christians, who comforted 
 me under my bodily afflictions, and in whose company 
 I was much builded up in our most holy faith. My 
 friend, as well as myself, understood the above- 
 mentioned dream only in its literal sense, namely, that 
 I was to be a practitioner of medicine; and therefore he 
 formed a plan, and used his influence amongst liiv
 
 40 NARRATIVE. 
 
 friends, to procure the necessary support whilst I was 
 studying that science. But this seemed not to be 
 the will of Providence, and therefore it came to 
 nought. 
 
 3. This amiable young Christian, a pattern of 
 brotherly love and affection, and clothed with humility 
 as with a garment, first introduced me to the Rev. 
 Mr. Jaenicke, minister of the Gospel to the Bohemian 
 congregation. Whilst mentioning the name of this 
 servant of Christ, I should certainly have considered it 
 my duty to speak of his excellent character, but con- 
 scious of my inability to do justice to the subject, I 
 shall merely observe, that he was a man of God, 
 anointed with the Holy Ghost, and constantly going 
 about doing good. 
 
 One Sabbath, towards the close of 1799, when 
 returning from the Moravian Chapel, I was met by 
 several young men, one of whom said, " Well, brother 
 Frey, should you like to go as a Missionary ? " "Yes," 
 said I, " I am willing to go any where whithersoever 
 the Lord Jesus Christ should be pleased to send me." 
 " You had better," said another, " go to Mr. Jaenicke 
 and give in your name." Accordingly I went to Mr. 
 Jaenicke, who, after having had some conversation with 
 me, especially on the nature of the work of a mission- 
 ary, inserted my name amongst those who had already 
 offered themselves as candidates " to preach among the 
 Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ." Several 
 months elapsed before we knew for a certainty that 
 the seminary would be established. Mr. Albrecht, one 
 of the candidates, and myself, went with letters of 
 recommendation from Mr. Jaenicke to Baron Van 
 Shiernding, of Dorbrylugk, in Saxony, at whose 
 expense the seminary was to be supported ; and a few
 
 PART I. 4-1 
 
 weeks afterwards we received orders from him to quit 
 our worldly occupations, and devote ourselves to study, 
 under the care and superintendence of Mr. Jaenicke. 
 In the month of February, 1800, the Missionary 
 Seminary was opened, and seven students were 
 received, viz. Messrs. Albre.cht, Hardwig, Langner, 
 Palm, Schreibfogel, Ulbricht, and myself. The Mis- 
 sionaries, in this seminary, were not designed for any 
 particular place among the heathen, nor to be sent out 
 by this Institution, but merely to receive the necessary 
 education, and then to be sent by any Missionary 
 Society. From this circumstance a very great difficulty 
 arose ; for not knowing the place of our future desti- 
 nation, it was impossible to determine what language 
 we ought to learn. Mr. Jaenicke, and his friends, 
 therefore resolved that we should be taught the rudi- 
 ments of several languages. Accordingly we began 
 Latin, Greek, Hebrew,* Dutch, French, Arabic, and 
 Syriac. Besides this, we had to attend on several 
 other lectures, such as theology, geography, music, 
 medicine, &c. &c. Our work was hard, and nothing 
 but love to immortal souls, and an earnest desire to 
 promote the honour of a precious Saviour, could have 
 supported us. Those who wished to make themselves 
 masters of the lessons they received, had need to 
 redeem every moment of their time. Seldom did I 
 allow myself six hours' sleep, and very frequently I sat 
 up whole nights. 
 
 4. While at this seminary, we had not the privi- 
 lege of preaching publicly, for none are licensed to 
 preach, but those who have been regularly educated at 
 a University ; however, we composed each a short dis- 
 
 * Although the Hebrew might be called my native language, yet 
 I attended the lectures, to learn it more grammatically.
 
 4*2 NARRATIVE. 
 
 course, once a fortnight, and delivered it at Mr. 
 Jaenicke's own house, where some friends were ad- 
 mitted. Before we had reached the end of the first 
 year in the seminary, a change took place in the cir- 
 cumstances of our excellent patron, which threatened 
 the ruin of the Institution, and we were actually told, 
 that in a month's time, we were to return to our former 
 employments ; but blessed be the Lord, who hears and 
 answers the prayers of his people. Mr. Jaenicke, our 
 dear father, as we wished to call him, wrote to different 
 societies and private Christians, to afford their aid to 
 support the infant cause. Under these circumstances, 
 the faith, hope, trust, and patience of Mr. Jaenicke, 
 were tried in a most remarkable manner. The funds 
 of the Institution were often so exhausted, that he was 
 obliged to pay our sustenance, for several weeks toge- 
 ther, out of his own property, without the least cer- 
 tainty of ever being repaid. Towards the close of 
 1800, Mr. Jaenicke received a letter from Dr. Knap, of 
 Halle, requesting that the candidates might be ex- 
 amined, and one of them chosen for the Danish Mis- 
 sionary Society, but that Mr. Frey should not be 
 examined, as they did not wish for him, on account of 
 his having been a Jew. 
 
 5. On the day of their examination, being left 
 alone in the academy, my mind was much affected by 
 the thought of my being excluded from the examina- 
 tion, and thought unfit or unworthy of the office. I 
 humbled myself before God, and after having spent 
 some time in prayer, I wrote the name of each candi- 
 date upon a piece of paper, and took one, to see, as it 
 were, whom the Lord had chosen.* To my great sur- 
 
 * Being at this time intimately acquainted with the Moravians, 
 who make use of the lot, I followed their example.
 
 PART I. -i3 
 
 prise, I had taken my own name ; but as I was expressly 
 excluded, I did not know what to make of it : however, 
 I comforted myself with these words, " What I do, ye 
 know not now; but ye shall know it hereafter:" nor 
 was it a long time before this circumstance was quite 
 plain; for though brother Schreibfogel was then chosen, 
 and left the seminary some time before me, yet it was 
 myself who actually entered upon the labours of a mis- 
 sionary before any of the others. 
 
 With the beginning of the year 1801, Mr. Jaenicke 
 received several very encouraging letters and liberal 
 donations from the Society in Basle, from the Mission- 
 ary Society in London, and from private Christians. 
 On the llth of June, 1801, Mr. Jaenicke informed us, 
 that the London Missionary Society had written for 
 three missionaries, to be assistants to Dr. Vander 
 Kemp, in Africa. After a most solemn prayer to God, 
 he chose brother Palm, Ulbricht, and myself. On the 
 llth of July, 1801, we left Berlin, and began our 
 journey to England. 
 
 But before I conclude this part of my narrative, I 
 will take notice of one circumstance, at least, which 
 occurred whilst at Berlin. One day, when taking my 
 dinner as usual in the eating-house, I was much 
 struck by the conversation of some persons at the table ; 
 their language and expressions, respecting our blessed 
 Saviour, were so horrid and blasphemous, that I could hear 
 it no longer, but addressed them in the following manner : 
 " My friends, you profess to be Christians, but by your 
 words, you manifest that you are at present as great and 
 bitter enemies to Jesus Christ, as those who crucified him. 
 Had you charged my brother or my friends, with half of 
 that with which you have charged my God and Saviour, 
 I should certainly have summoned you before a court of
 
 44- NARRATIVE. 
 
 justice : and suppose that you should not be able to prove 
 what you have asserted, what would be the consequence .- 
 But, alas ! there is no tribunal in this metropolis^ where 
 I could defend the character of my blessed Saviour : 
 however, be it known to you, that there is a day com- 
 ing, when both you and I shall stand before the Judge 
 of the whole earth ; when the books will be opened,- 
 and your present conversation will be read before an- 
 innumerable company, with the addition, that a person, 
 then present, who was once a Jew, but had embraced 
 the Christian religion, reproved you for the dishonour 
 cast upon your Saviour." Here I was interrupted by 
 a young man, Mr. Rockenstein, who said, " So, you 
 have changed your religion ? I think that is the worst 
 thing a person can be guilty of. Every person ought tr 
 keep the religion in which he was brought up." " B< 
 fore I answer your question," said I, "or justify in\ 
 my conduct, permit me to ask Do you believe tli = 
 Bible?" "I would," was his reply, "but I cannot 
 I should be glad to have some private conversation witi< 
 you." We paid for our dinner, and took a walk toge- 
 ther. Upon inquiry, I found that Mr. Rockensui- 
 was a native of New Brandenburgh, Strelitz Me^r . 
 burgh, the place where I had been received a mc^ 
 of the Christian Church, and where I finished ;rr .'> 
 prenticeship ; on which account I was considered a a 
 native of that place, and usually called Brandenburglier. 
 This circumstance united our affections, and rei.dered 
 our conversation free and unreserved. Mr. R. told me, 
 that he was led to doubt the truth of the Bible, because 
 there were several things in it which he could not re- 
 concile with the perfections of God, and other things 
 which he could not understand. I endeavoured to re- 
 move his doubts, and before we parted, he promised to
 
 PART I. 45 
 
 call on me the next day. Early in the morning, which 
 was the Lord's-day, he called on me, and we both went 
 to hear Mr. Jaenicke, who, in the course of his sermon, 
 pointed out the folly, guilt, and danger of those persons 
 who reject the Bible because it is above their compre- 
 hension. My friend Rockenstein concluded, from the 
 discourse of Mr. Jaenicke, that I had told him our 
 yesterday's conversation, for which he reproved me. 
 Having assured him that I had not done so, but that 
 Mr. Jaenicke was a man of much prayer to God, for 
 the influence of the Holy Spirit, to be enabled to speak 
 a word in season, Mr. R. seemed to be satisfied. On the 
 same day, we went together to Rixdorf, to hear a Mo- 
 ravian minister, where, to the great surprise of my 
 friend, the minister, Joannes Bellwitz, preached on the 
 divinity of our blessed Saviour ; and, like Mr. Jaenicke, 
 with holy zeal for the honour of Christ, and unfeigned 
 love for the souls of men, he warned every one of his 
 hearers not to reject any part of Divine revelation, 
 although it might exceed his comprehension. This 
 sermon was greatly blessed to my friend Rockenstein, 
 who afterwards attended regularly on the ministry of 
 Mr. Jaenicke, walked according to the Gospel of Christ, 
 and gave full evidence of his being a Christian, in deed 
 and in truth. After I had come to this country, I 
 received from him several edifying and satisfactory 
 letters, which led me to consider him as the first-fruits 
 of my weak and feeble endeavours. 
 
 Christian reader, let this circumstance, as well as 
 the word spoken to me in the stage-coach, as mentioned 
 above, encourage you to embrace every opportunity to 
 ivprove and exhort sinners, and to recommend Jesus 
 Cliri t and his glorious Gospel ; for " a word spoken in 
 -, how good it is."
 
 46 NARRATIVE. 
 
 VI. HIS DESIGN IN COMING TO ENGLAND. 
 
 1. Saturday, July llth, 1801, I left Berlin, in 
 company with Messrs. Palm and Ulbricht, for the 
 purpose of going to London, to the Missionary Society, 
 and from thence to Africa, to join Dr. Vander Kemp 
 in missionary labours. We arrived at Hamburgh on 
 the Monday following, and called on Mr. Vander 
 Smissen, who received us with Christian affection and 
 love. From Hamburgh we went to Hatzhausen, in 
 Friesland, to the Rev. Mr. Stracke, where we met with 
 a most cordial reception. At this place we remained 
 six weeks, to learn the Dutch language. While staying 
 with Mr. Stracke, we had the privilege of preaching 
 in the surrounding villages, to most attentive congre- 
 gations. We had also an opportunity of becoming 
 acquainted with several most excellent, pious, and 
 zealous ministers of the Gospel. 
 
 2. On the first of September the wind became 
 favourable, and we received orders to embark for 
 England. Three captains, friends to the cause of the 
 Redeemer, offered each to take one of the missionaries 
 gratis. Early on the next day we took an affectionate 
 leave of our friends, and went each to his respective 
 vessel, which lay at Emden. The separation from my 
 two missionary brethren was not a small trial. The 
 hope of seeing them again at London, afforded some 
 relief; but my greatest comfort and support was de- 
 rived from sweet communion with my blessed Saviour, 
 " who sticketh closer than a brother." The first day, 
 when on board the ship, I was unwell, but keeping 
 much on deck I soon recovered. The grandeur of the 
 sea, which I had never seen before, the rising of the 
 sun, the sight of an approaching ship, together with
 
 PART I. 47 
 
 the kind treatment of the captain, made the voyage 
 seem very short, and exceedingly pleasant. 
 
 3. On Tuesday, September 15th, we reached 
 Gravesend. At the Alien Office I was informed, that 
 the brethren Palm and Ulbricht had just gone up to 
 London, and that I must wait at least two days until I 
 received a passport from London. I went to an inu, 
 but, as I could not speak one word of English, I knew 
 not what to do. Whilst walking up and down in the 
 street, in great anxiety of mind, I met with a poor 
 German soldier, who could speak both German and 
 English ; him I took with me to the inn to be my 
 interpreter. In the afternoon I went to the Rev. W. 
 Kent, and delivered a few lines, which the pilot on 
 board the ship had given me, to inform Mr. Kent who 
 I was. Although I could not speak, yet it was very 
 encouraging to meet with a Christian friend, especially 
 as Mr. Kent was exceedingly kind to me, and intro- 
 duced me to several of his friends. In the evening I 
 was much depressed in mind, cast down, and full of 
 fears ; but I was enabled to pour out my heart before 
 God in fervent prayer, and retired with some confidence 
 and trust in Him who has said, " My grace shall be 
 sufficient for thee." About two o'clock in the morning 
 I had a most remarkable dream, which I recorded in 
 my day-book as soon as I rose, and which has since 
 been literally fulfilled. The dream, as it stands in my 
 Journal, introduced by an observation, and a short 
 prayer, is as follows : * 
 
 * I am quite aware of the observations to which I shall be exposed 
 from a certain description of readers and writers by the insertion of 
 this dream, and I must acknowledge I have had some reluctance in 
 doing so. Having, however, ample means of establishing its truth, 
 and being moreover anxious to imitate the sacred writers, by giving
 
 48 NARRATIVE. 
 
 " OBSERVATION. The design of my day-book is 
 to enable me, after many days, to survey with grati- 
 tude and praise, all the ways in which the Lord has 
 led me ; especially to record, from day to day, as much 
 as possible, the imaginations of the thoughts of my 
 heart, whether good or evil. I consider it, therefore, 
 my duty to observe what passes in my soul when 
 my body is asleep, as well as when awake ; and 
 though I would not believe every dream to be the 
 immediate communication of God to the soul, yet it 
 cannot be denied that there have been such dreams ; 
 and none can affirm that there shall be no such in our 
 days. It is true, I know not whether the present dream 
 shall come to pass ; however, like Mary, I will ponder 
 all these things in my heart, and preserve them in my 
 Journal." 
 
 " PRAYER. Blessed Jesus ! thou hast said, ' Whoso 
 shall offend one of these little ones, which believe in 
 me, it were better for him that a mill-stone were 
 hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in 
 the depth of the sea.' (Matt, xviii. 6.) I beseech thee, 
 O Lord ! let not this dream give offence to any who 
 may hereafter read it. If it be thy will, let it be 
 accomplished; but let me never be self-willed, or 
 obstinate, but may I ever be able to discern the direc- 
 tions of thy wise and holy providence, and cheerfully 
 acquiesce in thy gracious will, whether it be prosperous 
 or adverse. Now, Lord, unto thee I commit all my 
 ways; do thou with me, a poor sinner, as it seems 
 good in thy sight, for thy Name's sake. Amen" 
 
 a full and faithful account of every circumstance relating to my 
 public walk in life, and as the dream itself had a close connexion 
 with my future destination, I have not felt myself at liberty to with- 
 hold it from the public.
 
 PART I. 4-9 
 
 " DREAM. I read in a paper, that the two brethren, 
 Palm and Ulbricht, as well as myself, were to preach 
 in London : that the Jews in particular were (in a most 
 affectionate manner) invited to the discourse which I 
 was to deliver. The appointed day approached; an 
 immense crowd collected, and I was enabled to preach 
 to them with great freedom, and to lift up my voice 
 like a trumpet. I thought that the effect of this dis- 
 course was, that I was afterwards desired to stay in 
 London, to preach both to Jews and Christians : to 
 which I replied that I could not possibly part with my 
 dear brethren, Palm and Ulbricht, and let them go 
 alone ; but that if the directors would send for another 
 missionary, to accompany those brethren, I would con- 
 sent ; and with which the directors having complied, I 
 resolved to remain in England." 
 
 4. As soon as I awoke, I prayed to God for wis- 
 dom and grace to prepare me for his service, whether 
 in London, among Jews and Christians, or in Africa, 
 amongst the poor Hottentots. At five in the morning, 
 I went to meditate in the fields, and found great com- 
 fort and encouragement in that gracious promise of 
 our Saviour, " I am with you always, even unto the 
 end of the world." (Matt, xxviii. 20.) Having received 
 a passport, I went up to London. On my arrival at 
 the counting-house of Joseph Hardcastle, Esq., the 
 treasurer of the Missionary Society, I was directed to 
 the house of Mr. W. Smith, No. 105, Bishopsgate- 
 street, where I was to lodge. Here I expected to meet 
 my dear brethren, Palm and Ulbricht ; but as they had 
 gone on board their vessels, to spend the night with 
 their captains, of which none in the house could inform 
 me, on account of the language, I was greatly disap- 
 pointed. The people observing the cause of my dis-
 
 50 NARRATIVE. 
 
 tress, took me into the room where the brethren's lug- 
 gage was, the sight of which greatly revived my spirits. 
 In this house I remained until I went to Gosport. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Smith, behaved themselves exceed- 
 ingly kind to us ; they endeavoured, in every possible 
 way, to make us comfortable ; they also took great 
 pains to help us forward in the knowledge of the English 
 language. The method which I adopted to learn 
 English, was to compare the English Bible with the 
 German. In the five months which I stayed in London 
 I read the Gospel of St. John, in English, four times 
 over, and compared every verse with the German Bible, 
 and sought for the meaning of words in the dictionary, 
 by which means I could very soon understand what 
 %vas spoken, though I could not express myself fluently 
 till some time after I had left London. 
 
 5. On my first Sabbath in London, I went to 
 Rotherhithe, to hear the Rev. John Townsend. I was 
 much pleased with the manner in which the worship 
 was performed, but not being able to understand the 
 minister, I went to the German church, at the Savoy, 
 in the Strand, where at that time the Rev. Mr. Ringle- 
 taube, afterwards a missionary in India, under the 
 patronage of the Missionary Society, preached. Soon 
 after, the Rev. Charles Steinkopff was ordained in the 
 same church, where I continued to hear him with great 
 pleasure and edification. As I was not able to converse 
 in English, and having a great desire to promote the 
 salvation of my dear brethren of the house of Israel, I 
 went frequently to their synagogues, and to those parts 
 of the metropolis where they principally reside, to con- 
 verse with them in Hebrew, German, or Dutch. Very 
 often I returned to my abode weeping and lamenting 
 over the deplorable condition of these my dear breth-
 
 PART 1. 51 
 
 ren and kinsmen according to the flesh. Sometimes I 
 said to Mr. Smith, " Could I stay but one year in Lon- 
 don, I believe I should be able to preach to the Jews 
 in English, so as to make myself understood by them. 
 And, oh, how happy I should be to declare unto them 
 the word of salvation, if ever so much exposed to their 
 hatred and persecution." But although this was my 
 constant wish, and earnest prayer to God, yet for some 
 time I had no hopes of obtaining my desire, as we were 
 daily in expectation of meeting with a ship to go to the 
 Cape of Good Hope, as assistants to that venerable man 
 of God, Dr. Vander Kemp. But how mysterious are 
 the ways of the Lord ! Owing to rumours of wars, 
 five months elapsed without finding a vessel to take us 
 to our destined haven. Both my brethren, Palm and 
 Ulbricht, as well as myself, manifested impatience and 
 readiness to murmur at the dispensation of Divine Pro- 
 vidence ; but blessed be the name of the Lord, <; whose 
 thoughts are not as our thoughts, and whose ways are 
 not as our ways," with gratitude and praise I can now 
 say, " he has done all things well." 
 
 6. The directors of the Missionary Society having 
 learned that I was a descendant of Abraham, sent a 
 message by Mr. Ringletaube, whether I would like to 
 stay in London and preach to the Jews, and if so, to 
 furnish them with a narrative of my life, and reasons 
 for preferring to preach to the Jews. Before I returned 
 an answer to this proposal, I requested Mr. Ringletaube 
 to read in my journal what I had recorded at Graves- 
 end. 
 
 In compliance with the wish of the directors, I wrote 
 a short account, which appeared in the Evangelical 
 Magazine for January, 1 806, inclosed in a letter which 
 D 2
 
 52 NARRATIVE. 
 
 I wrote in the German language, and of which the fol- 
 lowing is a literal translation : 
 
 " Rom. ix. 1 3. ' I say the truth in Christ, I lie 
 not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy 
 Ghost, that I have great heaviness and continual sorrow 
 in my heart, (for I could wish that myself were ac- 
 cursed from Christ*) for my brethren, my kinsmen ac- 
 cording to the flesh.' 
 
 " Beloved brethren in our Lord Jesus Christ, these 
 and similar words of the apostle Paul, in which he 
 manifested his love to the Jews, and his heartfelt sor- 
 row on account of their unbelief, have often raised in 
 me so great a desire to go as a missionary among them 
 as to overbalance all the dangers which such a mission 
 might expose me to. Indeed, soon after I was truly 
 awakened, I felt an anxious wish, out of the love to my 
 dear Saviour, who gave himself for me unto the most 
 
 * Perhaps few passages have been considered more difficult to be 
 understood than this. But the mind of the apostle may be easily 
 known ; 1, if the second and third verses are read without the clause 
 " for I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ ; " 2dly, 
 let the original word Euchomen, the imperfect middle voice, be 
 translated I did wish, instead of I " could," i. e. before my conver- 
 sion ; 3dly, let this sentence be read in a parenthesis, as a reason 
 why Paul felt and expressed greater sympathy for his brethren than 
 any other of the apostles did. As if he had said, " they never hated 
 Christ as I did ; for before my conversion I was as bad as my unbe- 
 lieving brethren are. For like them I did wish myself accursed from 
 Christ ; i. e. I abhorred the idea of believing in him, or as being 
 considered one of his disciples; and therefore, by sad experience, I 
 can sympathize with them more than others." He who has just been 
 rescued from a dangerous fit of sickness feels more for a sick person 
 than he who never knew what sickness means. Hence even the Son 
 of God himself needed to be tempted and tried, that he might be abk 
 to succour them that are tempted.
 
 PART I. 53 
 
 painful and ignominious death, and out of love and 
 compassion to the ignorant amongst Christians, or 
 amongst heathens, to preach the blessed Gospel of Jesus 
 Christ, to tell that the Son of God has endured the 
 greatest sufferings, even unto the death of the cross, 
 for poor accursed helpless men : yet it is also true, that 
 as often as I saw a Jew, one of my own brethren and 
 kinsmen according to the flesh, my whole heart was 
 stirred up within me ; and my prayer to God was, O 
 that this poor lost sheep might find the right way to 
 the good Shepherd, who gave his life a ransom for our 
 souls. Whenever I found an opportunity to speak to 
 one of the descendants of Abraham, I told him that the 
 promised Messiah had already come, not only as the 
 Son of David, but also as the Son of God ; that he was 
 made a curse for us when he suffered and died on the 
 cross, to deliver us from the curse of the law, but that 
 the same person rose again from the dead on the third 
 day, according to Scripture prophecy ; that he ascended 
 on high ; and that in believing this I enjoyed happiness 
 that could not be expressed. I also translated, at 
 Berlin, into German-Hebrew (i. e. German language in 
 Hebrew letters) Mr. Cooper's sermon, preached to the 
 Jews in London, on the day when he had reached his 
 twentieth year, in expectation that the Baron Van 
 Shirnding would cause it to be printed for the use of 
 the Jews. I also translated Luther's Shorter Catechism, 
 and wrote several things, which I frequently read to 
 some of my dear brethren, and often observed, that 
 many of them resisted the truth merely out of fear 
 of men. On the Sabbath, I used to go to the synagogue 
 for the sake of having religious conversation with my 
 dear brethren. Two or three hundred would stand 
 round about me, to whom I spoke with the greatest
 
 54- NARRATIVE. 
 
 boldness respecting their unbelief and misery, and de- 
 clared to them the suitable, free, and full salvation 
 by Jesus Christ ; and assured them of his wonderful 
 love to poor sinners, yea, even to the chief of sinners. 
 Some brought forward objections against Christianity, 
 but, through grace, I was enabled, from the writings of 
 the Old Testament, to defend myself. Although I have 
 not yet seen any fruit of those labours, yet I know and 
 believe that the doctrine of the cross will produce its 
 effects in due season. 
 
 " The reasons, therefore, my dearly beloved brethren, 
 why I believe that my blessed Saviour will count me 
 worthy, if not here, yet somewhere else ; and if not 
 now, yet at some future time, to make known his 
 blessed Gospel to my brethren and sisters are these : 
 
 " First The inexpressible and irresistible wish and 
 desire which I feel to point out, through the grace and 
 assistance of Him whose strength is made perfect in 
 our weakness, to the poor and wandering Jews, the way 
 to obtain eternal life. 
 
 " Secondly It is well known that a Jew who has em- 
 braced the Christian religion is generally looked upon 
 by his own nation with the greatest contempt and re- 
 proach, yea, even persecuted, as much as lies in their 
 power ; yet, to my great surprise, I have been received 
 by many Jews in Berlin with friendship and respect. 
 Twice I had religious conversation with the presiding 
 Rabbi himself; and here, in London, I have dined with 
 some, at whose table I have not been ashamed nor 
 afraid to confess Jesus of Nazareth to be the true 
 Messiah ; and not a few have already visited me at my 
 apartments, for the sake of having religious conver- 
 sation. 
 
 " Thirdly I have observed that my brethren will
 
 PART I. o5 
 
 rather listen to what I say than to what they hear ad- 
 vanced by a Christian ; and they would open with 
 freedom and confidence their mind to me, which they 
 would never do to one who was born a Christian. 
 " The last reason which I assign for my wish is 
 " Fourthly That I humbly hope I am acquainted 
 with their peculiar dispositions and conduct : that I 
 know their religious sentiments ; and that I shall be 
 enabled, through the grace of my blessed Saviour, to 
 become all things to all men, that I may by all means 
 save some, especially of those of mine own nation, 
 whom I love with love unfeigned and inexpressible. 
 
 " It is, therefore, my dearly beloved brethren, my 
 humble wish to remain, if but one year in London, to 
 try, if possible, to save if but one soul from the power 
 of Satan, and lead them to the good Shepherd, who gave 
 his life for the sheep, &c. But Jesus is my Lord and 
 Saviour, who has bought me on the cross with his 
 precious blood ; to him I give myself again in body and 
 soul to be directed in this important object. He who 
 is infinite in wisdom, knows best what is good for me 
 a poor worm. He is perfectly acquainted with the 
 hearts of men, and turns them as he does the rivers of 
 water. The desires and motives of my heart are better 
 known to him than to myself; and he_will no doubt 
 lead and rule, according to his holy will, the hearts of 
 my dearly beloved brethren and directors. 
 " I am your willing servant, 
 
 C. F. FREY. 
 " London, Nov. 24, 1801." 
 
 7. After I had sent this letter to the directors, I 
 attended several of their meetings, to answer various 
 questions relative to a mission amongst the Jews ; and
 
 56 NARRATIVE. 
 
 on the 21st of December, I received the important in- 
 telligence, that " the directors had resolved that I should 
 stay at least one year in England." The workings pro- 
 duced in my mind on the receipt of this message, were 
 very opposite, and continued so for several weeks. 
 The idea of preaching the word of salvation to my 
 dear brethren, and the hope of rescuing some from 
 everlasting destruction, filled my heart with unspeakable 
 joy and pleasure ; but a consciousness of my utter un- 
 fitness for so great and arduous an undertaking, over- 
 whelmed my mind with inexpressible sorrow and grief, 
 and would have led me to despair, had it not been for that 
 gracious promise, " as thy day is, so shall thy strength 
 be." The following passages of Scripture likewise 
 greatly encouraged my heart, 2 Chron. xxxiv. 3, " In 
 the eighth year of his reign (i.e. Josiah), while he was 
 yet young, he began to seek after the God of David, 
 his father : and in the twelfth year he began to purge 
 Judah and Jerusalem from the high places, and the 
 groves, and the carved images, and the molten images.'' 
 2 Cor. v. 7, " We walk by faith, and not by sight." 
 The change respecting myself, affected likewise the 
 brethren Palm and Ulbricht ; instead of going directly 
 to the Cape, they were both sent to Rotterdam, where 
 they stayed for some time ; and afterwards several 
 brethren from the Missionary Seminary at Berlin joined 
 them. 
 
 Thus I have shewed the circumstances which led to 
 a change in the design of my coming to this country, 
 and the fulfilment of a great part of the dream which 
 I had at Gravesend. 
 
 8. The reader will, no doubt, now expect to hear 
 how I entered upon this new and most important part 
 of my life, and what success has followed my labours
 
 PART r. 57 
 
 amongst the Jews ; but I must beg his patience whilst 
 I call his attention to the gracious dealings of God with 
 me for the space of three years and a half, viz. from the 
 time it was resolved that I should stay in England, to 
 the time of my actually entering upon the field of labour. 
 As I knew nothing of the English language, and as preach- 
 ing to the Jews required some particular preparatory 
 studies, the directors resolved that I should go to Gos- 
 port, to their Missionary Seminary. Accordingly, on 
 the 28rh of February, 1802, I left London, and went to 
 Gosport. For ever blessed be the Lord, who in his 
 wise providence sent me to that place, to be under the 
 tuition of a man like the Rev. David Bogue. Would 
 to God I had words to express the high esteem which 
 I feel for this my dear tutor, and the great obligations 
 under which I am to him for the inestimable benefits 
 which I derived from his most excellent lectures on 
 various subjects ; from his wise, prudent, and most ju- 
 dicious advice ; and from his exemplary conduct, both 
 as a Christian, and as a minister. 
 
 9. The first thing I had to attend to in the semi- 
 nary, was the knowledge of the English language. I 
 had also to learn Latin and Greek. By the desire of 
 my tutor, I gave the students instruction in Hebrew ; 
 but the extreme difficulty of obtaining a suitable He- 
 brew grammar, led me to compose a new one, which I 
 afterwards revised and enlarged, the first edition of which 
 was printed in 1811, and several editions have since 
 been published, both in this country and in America. 
 
 A few weeks after I had been at Gosport, I engaged 
 for the first time in prayer, in the seminary, in the 
 English language. Towards the close of March, I 
 was invited by the Rev. Mr. Cox, of Fareham, to spend 
 the first Sabbath in April, at his house, and to partake 
 D 5
 
 .58 NARRATIVE. 
 
 of the Lord's Supper at his place of worship. I had a 
 great desire to prepare a few words in English, and to 
 deliver them on the next Sabbath, before the minister 
 to whom I was to pay a visit. I chose Matthew xvii. 5, 
 " While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud over- 
 shadowed them : and, behold ! a voice out of the cloud, 
 which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well 
 pleased ; hear ye him." On these words I wrote a few 
 thoughts in the German language, and translated them, 
 by the help of a dictionary, into English. According 
 to my promise, I went to Fareham, and early on the 
 Lord's-day, a number of people having met together in 
 the vestry, I engaged in prayer, and then read what I 
 had written on the above-mentioned passage of Scrip- 
 ture. Never in my life have I witnessed a scene like 
 that morning ; tears, like streams of water, flowed from 
 every eye, and the people blessed and praised God for 
 what they saw with their eyes, heard with their ears, 
 and felt in their hearts. I was afterwards informed, 
 that the Lord was pleased to bless those few imperfect 
 sentences in broken English to two persons, especially 
 to one who had disbelieved the divinity of our blessed 
 Saviour. This circumstance I considered then as a 
 proof, that it was the will of God that I should stay in 
 England ; and I looked upon those two, who received 
 the word with profit, as my first fruits, on British 
 ground, of a plentiful harvest. 
 
 In the same month, I went to an association at 
 Christ Church, where, for the first time, I ascended an 
 English pulpit to engage in prayer ; and in the follow- 
 ing May, I went up to London, to the Missionary 
 meeting, when the Rev. Rowland Hill introduced me 
 into his pulpit for the like purpose. The feelings of 
 my mind at the sight of such an immense congregation,
 
 PART I. 59 
 
 and on account of my imperfect knowledge of the lan- 
 guage, cannot be described. O that I could sufficiently 
 praise the Lord for his wonderful goodness and mercy 
 to me a poor sinner ! 
 
 10. Soon after I came to Gosport, I wrote a long letter 
 to my dear parents, stating the reasons for my believing 
 in the Lord Jesus Christ as the true Messiah, the Son 
 of God. On the receipt of this intelligence they per- 
 formed the same ceremonies as if they had been in- 
 formed of my death, and never corresponded with me 
 after that, and of course I was disinherited. But 
 blessed be the Lord, I have never wanted bread nor 
 friends. " When my father and my mother forsake 
 me, then the Lord will take me up." (Psalm xxvii. 10.) 
 From one of my brothers and one sister, however, I 
 have had several letters, and by them I have been 
 informed of the death of my dear parents. My father 
 died in 1811, and my mother in 1819, each of them 
 reaching the good old age of seventy-five years, without 
 much illness. 
 
 11. Whilst at the seminary, I made it a common 
 practice on a Saturday to go over to Portsea, where 
 many Jews live, to have religious conversation with 
 them. One time I was met by a\Mr. Lazarus, a Jew 
 constable, who asked me for my license, as a foreigner ; 
 I replied that I had a license at Gosport, but had not 
 thought it necessary to take it with me whenever I 
 crossed the water, as it was well known to several 
 Christians at Portsea that I belonged to the Missionary 
 Seminary, under the care of the Rev. D. Bogue. How- 
 ever, he would not be satisfied with this, but took me 
 to the mayor's house, who not being at home, I was 
 led by the constable directly to Portsmouth gaol. Being 
 late in the evening, I was put into a room where two
 
 60 NARRATIVE. 
 
 other prisoners were. Before I laid myself to rest, 
 having told the prisoners the cause of my imprisonment, 
 I prayed to God, and was enabled to pray particularly, 
 in a most affectionate manner, for my brother Jew, who 
 had imprisoned me. This was the first time I had ever 
 slept in a prison ; but I can assure the reader, that I 
 never enjoyed a more comfortable, sweet, and refresh- 
 ing sleep, than I had that night ; for I had not only 
 the testimony of my conscience, to be void of offence 
 towards God and towards men, but I could not help 
 thinking that I suffered, in a great measure, on account 
 of my religious profession. In the morning, when the 
 prisoners met in the yard, as usual, they said one to 
 another, " There is a wonderful man come amongst us : 
 we curse our enemies, but he prays for them ; nay, he 
 even prayed last night for Mr. Lazarus, who brought 
 him into the gaol." When I came into the yard, a poor 
 old woman invited me to breakfast with her. As I had 
 neither gold nor silver with me, I accepted thankfully 
 of her kind offer. After breakfast, I said to some of the 
 prisoners, " I am sorry that we are deprived (being 
 Sabbath-day) of the privilege of going to a place of 
 worship ; if you have no objection, we will sing a hymn, 
 and read a chapter in the Bible." Having obtained 
 their consent, I took Dr. Watts's Psalms and Hymns, 
 and on opening the book, the following hymn was the 
 first that presented itself : 
 
 " My God, my life, my love, 
 
 To thee, to thee I call ; 
 I cannot live if thou remove, 
 
 For thou art all in all. 
 
 " Thy shining grace can cheer 
 
 This dungeon where I dwell ; 
 'Tis paradise if thou art here, 
 
 If thou depart, 'tis hell."' Book II., hymn 93.
 
 PART I. 61 
 
 Having, like Paul and Silas, sung praises to God, I 
 also engaged in prayer ; after that I read the 26th and 
 2?th chapters in the Gospel of St. Matthew, made a 
 few observations on the sufferings of our blessed Saviour, 
 and on the conduct of the Jews ; where I took occa- 
 sion to inform them, that I had been a Jew myself, but 
 had embraced the Christian religion, on which account 
 I was hated by my brethren, the Jews, and which was, 
 perhaps, the real cause of my imprisonment. But to 
 shew that Christ did not only die for our offences, but 
 also rose again for our justification, I read also the 28th 
 chapter of the same Gospel, and concluded with a short 
 prayer. Whilst thus engaged, the Jew constable came 
 to the gaol, and desired the jailer to call me into the 
 house, as he wished to put some questions to me, with 
 a design to lay my case before the mayor. The jailer, 
 though at that time no friend to religion, refused, say- 
 ing, " I dare not interrupt him, for he is preaching to 
 the people." Two Jews, who knew that I frequented 
 the house of Mr. Brooks, went to him, on the same 
 evening that I was brought to gaol, and informed him 
 of my imprisonment. Mr. B. immediately sent word 
 to Mr. Bogue, and before one o'clock on the.Lord's- 
 day, I was liberated. Several of the poor prisoners 
 wept, and desired me to stay with them that afternoon, 
 that they might hear more of Jesus Christ. I promised 
 that T would pay them a visit. Not long after, when 
 I performed this promise, I obtained liberty to preach 
 to the prisoners every Lord's-day, which I did for two 
 years after ; but when I had sufficient knowledge of 
 the language to preach in regular congregations, the 
 gaol was supplied by one of the students, and continued 
 to be so for many years after. I have reason to believe, 
 that the word has been blessed to the jailer himself;
 
 62 NARRATIVE. 
 
 nor will it be in vain amongst the prisoners. The same 
 person who put me into the gaol, ever afterward treated 
 me with the greatest respect, and frequently heard me 
 preach. Thus, " the Lord maketh the wrath of men 
 to praise him, and the remainder thereof he does re- 
 strain." 
 
 12. In May, 1803, 1 went again to London, to the Mis- 
 sionary meeting ; and on the Sabbath after, I preached 
 my first sermon to the Jews, at Zion chapel, from Gen. 
 xiii. 8, " And Abram said unto Lot, Let there be no 
 strife, I pray thee, between thee and me : and between 
 my herdmen and thy herdmen ; for we are brethren." 
 The place, though immensely large, yet was exceedingly 
 crowded, and a great number of my dear brethren the 
 Jews attended ; the Lord graciously assisted me, both 
 in body and mind, to speak to so large a congregation, 
 with great freedom and affection. This I consider as 
 the complete fulfilment of the dream which I had at 
 Gravesend. In the same month I returned again to 
 Gosport, and remained there till May, 1805; when, 
 by the desire of the directors of the Missionary Society, 
 I left their seminary to begin my regular labours amongst 
 my dear brethren in London. 
 
 VII. HIS LABOURS UNDER THE PATRONAGE OF THE 
 MISSIONARY SOCIETY. 
 
 1. Having thus stated the origin of Christian 
 efforts to promote the conversion of the Jews, I proceed 
 to show their progress and success. The first sermon 
 which I preached, when I came to reside in London, 
 was at the Tabernacle, on the Saturday evening after 
 the Missionary meeting, from Phil. iii. 8, " Yea, and 
 I count all things but loss for the excellency of the 
 knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord." As there was
 
 PART I. 63 
 
 BO stated place of worship provided for me, I preached 
 for different ministers, both on the week days and on 
 the Sabbath. Several Jews attended whenever and 
 wherever I preached in London, or its vicinity. Almost 
 every day I had one or more Jews calling on me, 
 but scarcely ever one who would enter upon religious 
 conversation argumentatively or experimentally. I was 
 introduced to two Jewesses, who had embraced the 
 Christian religion. The one a member of Dr. Jenkins's 
 church, Walworth, and the other was convinced under 
 the ministry of the Rev. Mr. Wilkinson, of the Haber- 
 dashers' Alms-houses; but afterwards she became a 
 member of the same church at Walworth. With these 
 two Jewesses, together with three Christians, I began 
 a prayer meeting at my own apartments, on the 8th 
 of June, 1805, and continued the same every Friday 
 evening. Our number soon increased, so that the place 
 was not large enough : yet we continued to meet for a 
 whole year, and then removed the prayer meeting to 
 Zion chapel. At this meeting we had frequently a few 
 Jews attending. The prayers then offered up may yet 
 bring down gracious answers. With pleasure I do still 
 recollect the happy and profitable hours we spent to- 
 gether in prayer and praise. " O, how good and pleasant 
 it is for brethren to dwell together in unity." Frequently 
 we experienced, that " where two or three are met 
 together in the name of Jesus, there he is in the midst 
 of them, and that to bless them." 
 
 2. At a meeting of the directors, June 17th, 1805, 
 it was resolved that I should preach a weekly lecture 
 to the Jews. This lecture I commenced on Saturday 
 evening, July 6th, 1805, at the Rev. Mr. Ball's chapel, 
 Jewry-street, Aldgate, and twelve months after, it was 
 removed to Zion chapel ; but after a year, it was
 
 64- NARRATIVE. 
 
 preached again at the former place. These lectures 
 were attended by many ministers, and amongst them 
 was the late venerable John Newton, who was seen 
 bathed in tears. The place of worship was crowded to 
 excess, and the street was filled with Jews in such a 
 manner that it was considered dangerous for me to re- 
 turn to my habitation without a guard of twelve con- 
 stables. This was the time when most good was done. 
 My preaching to the Jews, however, was frequently 
 interrupted by my being sent to different parts of the 
 kingdom, to preach and collect for the Missionary 
 Society, perhaps no less than three months out of 
 twelve. At first a great number of Jews attended on 
 these lectures, but they were soon prohibited in the 
 synagogue, threatened, watched, and actually punished, 
 which was, no doubt, one great cause of their absenting 
 themselves : however there were always some who at- 
 tended with apparent seriousness. The lectures preached 
 from the beginning of the Institution, till the month of 
 November, in the same year, were remarkably blest. 
 Three of my dear people, who regularly attended those 
 lectures, were publicly baptized, in September, 1806; 
 two in Zion chapel, and one at Hoxton chapel, a short 
 account of which appeared in the Evangelical Maga- 
 zine for October, 1806. The latter of these was my 
 sister according to the flesh, became my child in the 
 Gospel, and afterwards became my dear partner in life, 
 and through mercy is my companion still. Blessed be 
 the Lord God of Israel, who has thus united us in " a 
 threefold cord, which cannot easily be broken." 
 
 3. There were also three other Jews who attended 
 at the same time, with their families, and gave full 
 evidence of their conversion to God. One of these 
 families was desirous of having their children instructed
 
 PART I. 65 
 
 in the Christian religion : I took two of their boys and 
 a girl into my own family until some time after a free- 
 school was established the commencement of the pre- 
 sent schools connected with the Episcopal Jews' chapel 
 at Cambridge Heath, Hackney, and the two boys are 
 now regular ministers in the Established Church. 
 " Who has despised the day of small things I " 
 
 4. Nor have these lectures been without a blessing 
 to Christians. I could mention several persons, who 
 bless God that they ever attended that place of worship, 
 although their motive, originally, was merely curiosity. 
 But I must forbear pursuing this subject, lest it should 
 become fuel to the natural pride of my own heart. 
 However, to the glory and praise of free, sovereign, 
 and all-sufficient grace, I must not pass over the fol- 
 lowing pleasing and singular circumstance : Mr. Jan- 
 son, a most respectable person of the Society of Friends, 
 who for many years refused to accompany his wife .to 
 any place of worship, except to those of his own com- 
 munity, whose business then brought him to London, was 
 one day prevailed upon, by one of his own denomina- 
 tion, to go and hear the Jew preach to his brethren ; 
 when the Word of the Lord, though spoken by a weak 
 and feeble instrument, came home with power to his 
 heart, and accomplished the design for which He sent 
 it. He afterwards attended the lectures regularly, and 
 at different places of worship on the Lord's-day. At 
 his return to his family, at Darlington, Durham, he 
 carried with him the blessed effects of the glorious 
 Gospel of the Son of God. He now commenced to 
 promote the glory of the Redeemer in the welfare of 
 Zion ; was the principal means of raising an Inde- 
 pendent interest in that place, and was chosen one of 
 the directors of the Missionary Society. At the death
 
 65 NARRATIVE. 
 
 of his wife he removed to London, where he married 
 the daughter of the Rev. John Clayton, sen., and died 
 in the faith at a good old age. 
 
 5. I now return to mention how the mission went 
 on among my dear brethren. It has already been 
 observed, that the number of Jews who attended the 
 lectures decreased, yet some continued. Several of 
 these applied to the Missionary Society for protection 
 and support. Here great difficulties arose, which 
 appeared insurmountable. To find employment for 
 Jews amongst Christians, seemed impossible, journey- 
 men of every trade refusing to work with a Jew : to 
 support them in idleness would be most injurious, as 
 it would be a sure means of making hypocrites, instead 
 of industrious and honest men ; yet, to suffer them to 
 starve, would be indeed cruel. Humanity, therefore, 
 directed to give them a trifle, from time to time, in 
 the hope of soon finding employment for them.* Every 
 application of the Jews produced opposite sensations 
 in my mind: whilst, on the one hand, I rejoiced when- 
 ever one of my dear brethren called on me ; on the 
 other hand, my heart was overwhelmed with grief, on 
 account of the above-mentioned difficulties. Having 
 stated these circumstances to a friend of mine, who 
 was not in connexion with the Missionary Society, he, 
 together with some others, proposed, that if the direc- 
 tors would devote a sum of money, to the amount of 
 one thousand pounds, some kind of a work-house, or 
 small manufactory, might be established, where many 
 Jews, of both sexes, and different ages, might be 
 
 * After many attempts to find employment for inquiring Jews, 
 both in this country and in different parts of Europe, the difficulties 
 are still as many and great as ever, as will be stated more fully here- 
 after.
 
 PAIIT I. 67 
 
 employed. Accordingly I mentioned this plan at a 
 meeting of the directors, but it was thought proper not 
 to adopt it. The original plan was pursued for some 
 months longer, but difficulties increased and multi- 
 plied. Difference of opinion arose among the directors. 
 Some objected (I am fully confident, from the best of 
 motives) against supporting Jews from the funds of the 
 Society : whilst others objected against spending so 
 much precious time, almost at every meeting, in behalf 
 of the mission to the Jews, without making scarcely 
 any progress, and whilst much business relative to the 
 heathen must be neglected. 
 
 6. To remove these objections a Committee was 
 appointed, called the Jewish Committee, to manage the 
 affairs of the Jewish Mission, and report their proceed- 
 ings to the Board of Directors ; and a resolution was 
 passed, the substance of which, as far as I can recol- 
 lect, was as follows : " That no Jews should be relieved 
 from the funds of the Society, except those who lost 
 their bread by embracing Christianity, or gave proof 
 of the sincerity of their profession." But these reme- 
 dies were very soon found inadequate to the disease. 
 The very nature of the thing made it impossible to find 
 out, whether the assertion of one, who said, that on 
 account of his attending my ministry, he had lost his 
 situation among the Jews, was true or not. That a 
 Jew, who is found to be favourable to Christianity, 
 would be dismissed by his Jewish employer, or lose his 
 bread among his brethren on that account, is too noto- 
 rious to need any proof; and whoever is acquainted 
 with the principles of the Talmudists, will not be sur- 
 prised to find that a Jew should assign any other reason 
 for his conduct, in dismissing one of his brethren for 
 embracing Christianity, rather than avow the true one;
 
 63 NARRATIVE. 
 
 nor could the story of the person himself be credited 
 till his conduct among Christians had proved the sin- 
 cerity of his profession. But here again rose the 
 difficulty, " By what means the poor individual should 
 be supported until his character was established ? " No 
 Christian would employ such a person till he knew that 
 he was trust worthy. A house of refuge and industry 
 was not yet found, and the resolution of the directors, 
 just referred to, had made no provision for such a per- 
 son till he had been found a just object of the patronage 
 of the Missionary Society. But what shall the poor 
 petitioner do in the mean time ? Shall he go back to 
 his former connexion ? Alas ! some have done so : but 
 adored and praised be the Lord, who has enabled some 
 to endure hardships, and to persevere. But how have 
 they been supported ? Why, to tell the whole truth, 
 the directors themselves, out of humanity, and sincere 
 wishes to promote the object they had in view, and 
 rather than break the resolution, and thereby give 
 offence to those who considered the Society's funds too 
 sacred to be violated, put their hands into their own 
 pockets, to keep those unhappy objects from starving, 
 who had no other source to supply their absolute 
 wants. 
 
 7. However, it was often absolutely necessary to 
 dispense with that resolution till the time that employ- 
 ment should be found : but, to the best of my recol- 
 lection, I can remember only two instances in which 
 the Society has been relieved from supporting their 
 pensioners, by getting employment for them amongst 
 Christians. The appointment of a sub-committee, 
 though a good and wise plan, was almost as insufficient 
 a remedy as the fore-mentioned resolution. Notwith- 
 standing their frequent meetings, wise consultations,
 
 TART I. 69 
 
 and earnest desires to promote the objects of the mis- 
 sion, their hopes were frequently disappointed, their 
 hands weakened, and their hearts discouraged ; fo|^ 
 whenever a new plan was laid before the board or 
 directors, or the periodical report was read, the old 
 question was renewed " Whether any of the Society's 
 funds could be applied in a temporal relief of Jews, to 
 encourage them in attending on the means of grace ; 
 or parents to send their children to the school ? " 
 
 VIII. ORIGIN OF THE LONDON SOCIETY FOR PROMOT- 
 ING CHRISTIANITY AMONGST THE JEWS, AND HIS 
 MISSIONARY LABOURS UNDER ITS PATRONAGE. 
 
 1. Soon after the dissolution of my connexion 
 with the London Missionary Society was known, the 
 following resolution was unanimously adopted on the 
 1st of March, 1809, at a meeting of several respect- 
 able gentlemen of different denominations. Resolved, 
 " That the Society formed on the 4th of August, 1808, 
 for the purposes of visiting and relieving the sick and 
 distressed, and instructing the ignorant, especially such 
 as are of the Jewish nation, shall henceforth be called 
 ' The London Society for Promoting Christianity 
 amongst the Jews.' " Firmly believing that this So- 
 ciety will continue its efforts until the Jews, as a nation, 
 shall have returned to their own country, and desirous 
 that its founders may be known, when the whole of the 
 present generation be no more, I shall here insert their 
 names, which are as follows : Thomas Chatteris, Esq., 
 Treasurer ; Joseph Fox, Esq., Secretary ; Rev. William 
 Gurney, Rector of St. Clement Danes ; Rev. John 
 Wilcox, Minister of Ely Chapel; Rev. Joshua Webb; 
 Rev. J. S. C. F. Frey ; Mr. T. Ackland ; Mr. A. Black; 
 Mr. T. Burn; Mr. M. Collins; Mr. E. Cooper; Mr. J.
 
 70 NARRATIVE. 
 
 Cooper ; Mr. W. Corston ; Mr. J. Fearn ; Mr. W. 
 Heriot; Mr. J. Pearce; Mr. W. Pearce; Mr. W. 
 l^tevens ; Mr. Saunders : Mr. T. Willats. 
 
 * 2. Under the patronage of this Society, I com- 
 menced a lecture at the Rev. Mr. Beck's meeting- 
 house, Bury-street, St. Mary Axe, on the 26th of 
 March, 1 809, but soon after a more extensive field of use- 
 fulness presented itself. The large building, the corner 
 of Church-street and Brick-lane, Spitalfields, occupied 
 for many years as a French Protestant Church, being 
 to let, the London Society bought the lease of it, and 
 designated it " The Jews' chapel." Here I continued 
 preaching for about three years to large and attentive 
 congregations of Christians, among whom were gene- 
 rally from two to three hundred Jews, a considerable 
 number of whom made a public profession of faith in 
 Christ Jesus. But here, alas ! the same difficulty of 
 finding employment for the Jews as had occurred 
 under the former Society was deeply felt ; and, what 
 was worse, a considerable jealousy arose between the 
 members of the Established Church and the Dissenters. 
 Several clergymen objected to contribute to a fund out 
 of which Mr. Frey, a Dissenting minister, was sup- 
 ported, whilst, on the other hand, Dissenters suspected 
 that attempts were making to get the Society into the 
 Established Church, and thus both parties withheld 
 their pecuniary aid, and the Society became gradually 
 involved in debt. To remove the conscientious 
 scruples of Episcopalians, it was resolved to have an 
 Episcopal chapel where a clergyman might preach, 
 whilst I was preaching in Church-street. Accordingly 
 the Episcopal Jews' chapel, Cambridge Heath, Bethnal 
 Green, was erected. This circumstance greatly in- 
 creased the weight of the debt, and threatened to sink
 
 PART I. 71 
 
 the Institution. The Rev. Lewis Way, of Stanstead 
 Park, near Chichester, proposed to me that if the Dis- 
 senters should be willing to give up the cause into tl 
 hands of the Episcopalians, he would pay the whc 
 debt. Having mentioned this circumstance to some 
 the leading brethren amongst the Dissenters, two public 
 meetings were held ; and at the meeting, Feb. 28, 
 1815, the Dissenters, by an unanimous vote, rather 
 than see the Institution perish, gave up the Society into 
 the hands of the Episcopalians on condition that the 
 debts be honourably paid. Mr. Way, as good as his 
 word, paid the whole, which was no less than 18,000. 
 But I understand the Society have since repaid him the 
 greatest part. 
 
 3. Immediately on the change of the Society the 
 following rule was adopted, viz. : " That public worship 
 in the future operations of the Society, shall be con- 
 ducted in strict conformity to the Liturgy and formu- 
 laries of the Church of England and Ireland." By this 
 rule I was necessarily excluded from preaching any 
 longer under the patronage of the Society, and soon 
 after my connexion was dissolved ; but I received an 
 annuity of an 1001. for the first year, and 50/. for the 
 next ten years. 
 
 The proceedings of the Society since that change has 
 taken place having been published monthly in the Jew- 
 ish Expositor and in their Annual Reports, I shall 
 only state, that having regularly read their publications, 
 I can most cheerfully testify that they have gone on 
 with Christian zeal, with British liberality, and with 
 success beyond expectation. My heart has ever rejoiced 
 in their prosperity. For although it has become an 
 Episcopalian Institution, and thereby excluded me from 
 being under its patronage, yet it is still my child, and I
 
 72 NARRATIVE. 
 
 love it dearly. The principal means which have been 
 used, the instruments employed, and the success at- 
 jgnded, will be more fully noticed in a succeeding part 
 " this work. 
 
 " Thus ended my nine years' missionary labours in this 
 country. During this period I was enabled, besides my 
 stated labours in London, to make preaching tours twice 
 through the greatest part of England, three times 
 through Scotland, once through North and South 
 Wales, and twice through Ireland. Since my return 
 from America I have had the unspeakable happiness of 
 meeting with no less than twenty-one instances of per- 
 sons who had come out of mere curiosity to see a con- 
 verted Jew or hear him preach, and the Lord was 
 graciously pleased to bless the word to their conversion. 
 How many more may have gone to glory will be known 
 only when the Lord shall make up his jewels. The 
 Name of the Lord be praised. 
 
 IX. HIS MINISTERIAL LABOURS IN AMERICA. 
 
 1. My connexion with the Society being dis- 
 solved, I consulted with my dear Tutor, Dr. Bogue, and 
 other friends, what plan to pursue ; some proposed the 
 formation of a new Society upon the old principles of 
 union, and wished me to unite with them, but I could 
 not bear the idea of opposition. Others wished me to 
 settle in a congregation, but I had ever objected to becom- 
 ing a regular minister in a Christian congregation, and 
 thereby lose sight of the work of a missionary to my 
 Jewish brethren. I could rather have chosen to go to 
 Germany ; but there I should have met with the same 
 difficulty of obtaining ordination, and without it I could 
 not have been admitted into their pulpits. Under these 
 circumstances it was thought best to remove to America,
 
 PART I. 73 
 
 where, though inhabited comparatively by few of my 
 Jewish brethren, yet the harvest is truly great, and the 
 labourers comparatively few, and a much brighter 
 prospect for the comfortable support of a growing 
 family. Accordingly, July the 23d, 1816, I left Lon- 
 don with my family, and embarked on board the brig 
 Factor, Capt. Malcomb. Our passage, on the whole, 
 through mercy, was safe and pleasant. We had mostly 
 contrary wind, and several heavy gales and boisterous 
 storms ; but, owing to the almost unparalleled attention 
 of the captain, not the least damage was sustained in 
 any respect whatever. By the kind permission of 
 Capt. Malcomb, we met morning and evening for 
 family worship, when I had an opportunity of reading 
 and expounding the sacred Scriptures ; and on Sundays, 
 as often as the weather would permit, we had a sermon 
 on deck ; and as soon as we had obtained a sight of the 
 land, we all met to give thanks to the Lord, and I de- 
 livered a discourse from John iii. 8, " The wind bloweth 
 where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but 
 canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth : 
 so is every one that is born of the Spirit." May the 
 bread thus scattered upon the face of the waters be 
 gathered again after many days. Early on Monday 
 morning, September 8th, we observed the lighthouse, 
 and in the afternoon we passed Sandy-Hook, and came 
 to anchor in the bay. At night the wind began to 
 blow from the north-east most violently, and continued 
 so for several days, and we were prevented from getting 
 into the harbour till the 15th (the very day on which I 
 set my foot on the British shore in 1801). It being 
 the Lord's-day, I went immediately to church, and re- 
 turned thanks to the God of providence for his past 
 mercies, and earnestly implored a continuance of his 
 E
 
 74 NARRATIVE. 
 
 gracious presence, assistance, and blessing, for the 
 future. 
 
 Having delivered my letters of introduction to 
 several ministers, and submitted to them other papers 
 and testimonials,* I was received by them most affec- 
 
 * " Gosfort, July 3, 1816. 
 
 " My dear Sir, The departure of your friend immediately after 
 our lecture hour, prevents me from writing to you at large. I have 
 only time to offer my best wishes for the temporal and spiritual 
 prosperity of you and Mrs. Frey, and your family. The enclosed 
 paper will, I hope, be of service to you. I shall be happy to hear 
 from you before you leave the country, and when you are settled in 
 America ; and with earnest prayers I remain, 
 " Dear Sir, 
 
 " Your affectionate friend, 
 
 "DAVID BOGUE." 
 
 " The Rev. C. F. Frey, of the seed of Abraham, was a student 
 of the seminary at Gosport upwards of three years. I believe him 
 to be a true disciple of Christ ; I consider him well qualified to teach 
 the Hebrew tongue in any of the schools or colleges of the United 
 States ; and I cordially recommend him to the kindness and pa- 
 tronage of the friends of religion in America. 
 
 "DAVID BOOUE. 
 
 " Gosport, July 3, 1816." 
 
 " London, July 15, 1816. 
 
 " I have been well acquainted with the Rev. Mr. Frey for many 
 years, and admire him as a man of very respectable attainments in 
 theology, particularly in biblical knowledge, and acquaintance with 
 the Hebrew Scriptures. I also esteem and love him for his piety ; 
 his talents for preaching are of no common order. Therefore I 
 cordially recommend Mr. Frey to the friendly attention and influence 
 of ministers and private gentlemen in America. 
 
 " GEORGE GEHMENT, D.D." 
 
 " We, the undersigned, being clergymen of the Established Church 
 of England, do certify that we do believe the Rev. Christian 
 Frederick' Frey, the bearer of this document, late preacher at the
 
 PART r. 75 
 
 tionately, and kindly invited by the different denomi- 
 nations to preach. On Sunday evening, Sept. 22, I 
 delivered my first sermon in America, in Dr. Romeyn's 
 church, to a crowded and most attentive congregation, 
 from Job xix. 25, " I know that my Redeemer liveth." 
 Blessed truth ! Jesus, my Saviour, not only died for 
 my offences, but also rose for my justification ; nay, he 
 also is at the right hand of God, ever living to make 
 intercession for us. To him I look for wisdom, grace, 
 and strength, equal to my day ; and after I have done 
 and suffered his will on earth, I humbly hope to join 
 the song of Moses and of the Lamb in the kingdom 
 above, for ever and ever. Amen. Hallelujah. 
 
 Jews' chapel, Spitalfields, London, from a personal acquaintance 
 with him, to be a truly Christian character, and to be actuated by a 
 sincere zeal to promote the glory of God our Saviour, and the exten- 
 sion of the Gospel ; and as such, cordially recommend him to the 
 patronage and regard of our Christian brethren in America, 
 " THOMAS SANDERS, M.A., 
 
 Christ Church College, Oxford. 
 " GEORGE WAY, B.A., 
 
 Merton College, Oxford. 
 " Dated Stansied Park, near Chichester, Sussex, July 14, 1816." 
 
 " In addition to the testimonials of my brother, the Rev. Geo. 
 Way, and the Rev. Mr. Sanders, minister of my chapel at Stansted 
 Park, in the county of Sussex, I, Lewis Way, do hereby certify, 
 that having known the said C. F. Frey intimately, and been con- 
 nected with him for upwards of three years in the concerns of the 
 Society for promoting Christianity amongst the Jews, do believe him 
 to be an honest man, and a sincere Christian ; and I can, from my 
 own knowledge, conscientiously recommend him to the notice and 
 protection of my brethren of the Church of Christ in any part of the 
 world, either for the purpose of instruction in Hebrew, or for the 
 extension of the knowledge of the Gospel in a ministerial or any 
 other capacity. 
 
 " Witness my hand, this 8th day of July, 1816. 
 
 " LEWIS WkY." 
 E2
 
 76 NARRATIVE. 
 
 This sermon was blessed to a person who had 
 attended out of mere curiosity, and who joined my 
 church two years afterwards, and is still living, adorning 
 the doctrine of God our Saviour. 
 
 2. From the pilot that came on board, we learned 
 that the Re"v. Dr. Mason had gone to England on 
 account of ill health. This information was very pain- 
 ful and discouraging, as he was the principal person 
 to whom my letters of introduction, especially one from 
 Dr. Waugh, were directed, and to whom I looked for 
 patronage and advice. Like good old Jacob, I was 
 ready to conclude, " all these things are against me ;" 
 but I soon discovered, like him, that instead of being 
 injurious, it was of considerable use to me. In the 
 first place, it gave me an opportunity of supplying his 
 pulpit regularly for some time ; and in the second 
 place, it enabled him to ascertain my standing at the 
 time I left England, and to know the correctness of my 
 testimonials, as will appear hereafter. Some time after 
 my arrival, it was proposed to me by three gentlemen, 
 to attempt the formation of an Independent or Congre- 
 gational church. As I had always been connected 
 with that denomination, I could see no objection. 
 Accordingly, I commenced, .in June, 1817, to preach 
 in a school-house in Mulberry-street. But this place 
 proved by far too small, although it was twice enlarged. 
 The congregation purchased a place of worship in 
 Pearl-street, which had lately been occupied by the 
 Universalists, but this also being too small for the 
 multitude that flocked to hear " the glorious Gospel of 
 the blessed God," they erected a house of worship in 
 Vandewater-street. 
 
 3. I had not preached long in the school-house 
 before a church was formed, and they gave me a call to
 
 PART I. 77 
 
 become their pastor. But, as rumours unfavourable te 
 my character had been whispered about, I refused to 
 accept a call until the return of Dr. Mason from 
 Europe, to testify respecting my character. Soon after 
 his arrival, a committee was appointed by the church, 
 who waited on the Doctor, and presented a letter from 
 the church, containing several queries respecting my 
 character. The Doctor, whilst in England, having been 
 informed by the officers of his church that I was sup- 
 plying his pulpit, and requested to investigate the 
 reports in circulation, informed the committee, and also 
 the church, by letter, that he had made diligent inquiry, 
 and could testify that the reports were vile slanders, 
 and my testimonials correct and true. The church, 
 by a unanimous vote, having expressed their perfect 
 satisfaction, I accepted their call, and was ordained as 
 their pastor, on Wednesday, April 15th, 1818, by the 
 Westchester and Morris County Presbytery. At my 
 examination for ordination, the Presbytery not only 
 carefully examined my credentials and testimonials, but 
 also appointed the Rev. Stephen Grover, and Gen. 
 Wm. Gould, of Caldwell, N. J., as a Committee to wait 
 on the Rev. Dr. Romeyn, and other clergymen, to make 
 inquiry into my character and standing since I came to 
 New York. Having received perfect satisfaction, my 
 ordination was agreed to by a unanimous vote. 
 
 In 1820, several circumstances occurred which led 
 the congregation and myself to dissolve our connexion 
 with that body, and to apply to the New York Presby- 
 tery for admission. But, lest there should yet remain 
 some prejudice against my character, I requested of the 
 Presbytery the appointment of a Committee to examine 
 my testimonials, and to write to England for further 
 information. This being done, and satisfactory answers
 
 78 NABRATIVE. 
 
 received from the Rev. George Burder, Secretary of 
 the Missionary Society ; from the Rev. S. Hawtrey, 
 Secretary of the London Society for promoting 
 Christianity amongst the Jews ; from my tutor, Dr. 
 Bogue, and from the late Dr. Waugh ; I was admitted 
 a member of that respectable body in October 1821. 
 My labours for the next four years will be seen in the 
 next section. 
 
 4. In 1825, an important change took place in my 
 views on the subject of Baptism. The circumstances 
 which led to it are as follows : At the christening of 
 one of my children, together with others, the minister 
 exhorted us "to bring up our children in the nurture 
 and admonition of the Lord." This scriptural, solemn, 
 and affectionate exhortation was enforced by observing, 
 " These children are now members of the Church, mem- 
 bers of the New Covenant, adopted into the family of 
 God" &c. &c. These declarations were forcibly im- 
 pressed upon my mind, as if I had never heard them 
 before. They appeared to me, at that moment, incon- 
 sistent with the doctrine of perseverance. I resolved, 
 therefore, not to present another child of my own, nor 
 to baptize the children of any other, before I had 
 thoroughly investigated the subject. 
 
 In June, 1827, the Lord blessed me with another 
 child, and immediately my resolution to investigate the 
 subject of baptism, before I could present another 
 child, came to my recollection. Accordingly I gave 
 myself to reading, meditation, and prayer. After 
 carefully comparing the best books on both sides of 
 the question, with the Word of God, I came to the full 
 conviction that believers are the only subjects of baptism, 
 and that immersion is the only Scriptural mode. I now 
 felt it my duty to obey the command of my Lord and
 
 PART I. 79 
 
 Saviour to be baptized, i. e. immersed. Therefore 
 without conferring with flesh and blood, or fearing the 
 consequences, I proposed myself as a candidate to the 
 Baptist Church, Mulberry-street, New York, under the 
 pastoral care of the Rev. A. Maclay, at the same time 
 requesting the appointment of a committee to ascer- 
 tain my standing as a member of the Presbytery. 
 The Committee having made a satisfactory report to 
 the Church, I was baptized on Lord's-day, August 28th, 
 1827- The arguments which produced the change 
 have been published in essays, three editions of whicli 
 have been published in America. 
 
 5. Having received a call from the Baptist Church 
 at Newark, N. J., I removed thither in January, 1828, 
 continuing to exercise the pastoral office until April, 
 1 830, when I accepted a call from the church at Sing- 
 Sing, in the State of New York. Here I continued 
 two years. Hitherto the Lord has continued to me a 
 far greater measure of health than falls to the lot of 
 most men. Hence I have been enabled to travel, 
 labour, and preach, for more than thirty years, almost 
 without interruption. Besides my stated labours since 
 I have joined the Baptist denomination, I have spent, 
 every year, a portion of time in visiting the churches, 
 and preaching daily the glorious Gospel of the blessed 
 God. In the first journey I spent six weeks in the 
 eastern part of the New England States. The next 
 year I travelled for three months in the States of New 
 Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, District of Columbia, 
 and Virginia. My next tour has been through the 
 States of New York, Vermont, and part of Massachu- 
 setts, for five months. In 1833, I went as far as New 
 Orleans, through the States of Virginia, North and South 
 Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama, and back through
 
 80 NARRATIVE. 
 
 Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Ohio ; about 8000 
 miles in eight months, visiting two hundred and seventy- 
 six churches, and preaching about three hundred times. 
 The next year I travelled through Pennsylvania, Ohio, 
 and New York States, about 4-000 miles, in four months, 
 and preached two hundred and forty -five times. In 
 the following year, 1835, I travelled again through the 
 New England States from May to the close of Novem- 
 ber, and preached two hundred and eighty-three times. 
 The reason why I so frequently travelled is, because 
 the brethren thought that in that way I was likely to 
 be more useful than preaching always to the same 
 congregation. The curiosity in most places to see a 
 Jew and hear him preach the Gospel of Christ secured 
 a congregation at any day and at any hour, from ten in 
 the morning until evening. 
 
 6. In December, 1835, I commenced preaching 
 near Jamaica, Long Island, in a school-house, to a 
 people scattered along the Atlantic coast, most of 
 whom seldom, if ever, went to a place of worship. 
 The place soon became too small, and was considerably 
 enlarged ; still it was not large enough, and the people 
 have liberally subscribed and erected a church. In 
 March, 1836, a church was constituted with eight 
 members, and ten or twelve have since been added. 
 Having accepted of my present agency I gave up my 
 pastoral charge in January, 1837, and the church have 
 since called an excellent brother as their pastor. 
 
 In looking over my Journal, I find that since my 
 arrival in America, in 1816 to 1837, I have been 
 enabled to travel more than 50,000 miles, and preached 
 five thousand one hundred and forty-seven times, and 
 I have abundant reason to believe that my labours have 
 not been in vain in the Lord.
 
 PART I. 81 
 
 Thus, like Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, I have moved 
 about from place to place, having no continuing city 
 here ; but I humbly hope and trust I am travelling to a 
 better country, even a heavenly. May my future days 
 be more holy, more humble, and more useful ! and the 
 glory shall be to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, one 
 Jehovah, now and for ever. 
 
 X. ORIGIN OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR MELI- 
 ORATING THE CONDITION OF THE JEWS. 
 
 1. Soon after my arrival in America, I received 
 a letter from D. Marc, one of my converted Jewish 
 brethren, Missionary to the Jews at Frankfort-on-the- 
 Maine, proposing the establishment of a " Christian- 
 Jewish Settlement." From this letter I give the follow- 
 ing extract, which, I believe, will be read with consi- 
 derable interest : 
 
 " From the time it has pleased God to call me from 
 darkness into his marvellous light, next to the care of 
 the salvation of my own soul, was the salvation of my 
 people, and kindred, that occupied my heart most. My 
 prayer was for my soul, and my request for my people. 
 By mature consideration, I soon saw that we could not 
 reasonably expect an extensive spread of Christianity 
 among the Jews, at least not a great number of true 
 converts, until Christians establish, or form a Christian 
 Jewish settlement. 
 
 " There are many difficulties in the way of a Jew, 
 by which the very first idea in favour of Christianity 
 is arrested in its progress. Some of these difficulties 
 are, 
 
 " 1. The ungodly lives of nominal Christians. 
 
 " 2. The want of kindness among many who are 
 true and sincere Christians, but whose heart the Lord 
 
 E5
 
 82 NARRATIVE. 
 
 has not yet stirred up to compassion towards this 
 afflicted nation. 
 
 " 3. The dreadful idea to separate from a nation, 
 whose distinct and lasting existence, as a peculiar 
 people, God had so clearly promised, saying, ' Though 
 I make a full end of all nations whither I have scat- 
 tered thee, yet will I not make an end of thee.' Jer. 
 xxx. 11. 
 
 " 4-. That brotherly love which he enjoys among 
 his own people, but which he no where else observes 
 in such a degree. 
 
 " 5. The mere idea of going among Christians ex- 
 cites in him a timidity indescribable. 
 
 " 6. The greatest difficulty lies in the way of the 
 poor. Where is he to seek for help and assistance in 
 time of need ? He stands alone in the world ; he is 
 forsaken by his Jewish brethren ; and to apply to 
 Christians the very thought is painful to his feelings ; 
 and from their past conduct to Jews, he is apprehen- 
 sive to be looked upon, nay, even treated as a self- 
 interested hypocrite. 
 
 " All these difficulties might be removed by forming 
 a Christian-Jewish settlement. Such a colony ought 
 to be established upon plans well matured, with all pos- 
 sible precaution and Christian prudence. The advan- 
 tages of such an institution are many : 
 
 " 1. It would excite the attention of the Jews in 
 every part of the world. 
 
 " 2. It would be the most suitable to carry on a 
 friendly correspondence with the Jews on the subject 
 of Christianity, especially if it should contain a number 
 of pious and learned men. 
 
 " 3. It would be of great use to those Jews among the 
 Roman Catholics, Mahometans, and Heathens, who,
 
 PART J. 83 
 
 through the multitude of superstitions and errors mixed 
 with the truth, and the numerous sects among Chris- 
 tians, are at a loss both how to judge of the truth of 
 Christianity, and which sect or denomination they are 
 to join. 
 
 " In Germany, and in most places in Europe, the 
 nature of the governments, and especially the prejudice 
 of the people, are very unfavourable to the formation of 
 such a colony, whilst America possesses every advan- 
 tage for such an institution. 
 
 " In that extensive country there must yet be much 
 ground uncultivated and uninhabited. There, where 
 every year colonies of poor people meet with assistance 
 and encouragement, might not a similar favour be 
 shown to Abraham's seed, every where else oppressed 
 arid persecuted ? / ask, now, whether you would be 
 willing to form a society of proper persons to assist 
 in this undertaking ? The assistance necessary would 
 be, 
 
 " 1. To select and procure a proper place for a 
 settlement for 200 families. 
 
 " 2. To facilitate, as much as possible, their passage 
 from Europe in American vessels. 
 
 " 3. To assist them, in case of necessity, during the 
 first year. 
 
 " This subject needs no farther recommendation to 
 the true Christian ; nor will any be required by the 
 philanthropist, who considers the barbarity and cruelty 
 with which the Jews are oppressed in most parts of the 
 world. Nor can it be doubted that, after so long and 
 bitter a persecution, they would be most faithful and 
 zealous adherents to a country of so liberal a constitu- 
 tion as that of the United States. 
 
 " Assistance may be expected from the London So-
 
 84 NARRATIVE. 
 
 ciety, as well as from other Christian countries, espe- 
 cially in Germany, where many true Christians, and 
 persons of great influence, are ready to assist, with all 
 their power, to promote this object." 
 
 2. Although I was much pleased with this proposi- 
 tion, and had but little doubt of its success, yet having 
 already met with so much ill-will, opposition, and 
 trouble, in my former efforts to promote the salvation 
 of my brethren, and having but lately come to that 
 country, I did not communicate the contents of this 
 letter to any person, but pondered it much in my heart, 
 and spread it frequently before the Lord. However, 
 the subject was pressed upon me by several other 
 letters, the last of which closed with these words, " I 
 now call heaven and earth to witness that I have laid 
 before you a plan calculated to promote the salvation 
 of our Jewish brethren, and which requires nothing 
 but your exertions, which, if you refuse, remember 
 that the blood of our brethren will be found on the 
 skirt of your garment." After this solemn and awful 
 exhortation I could no longer rest. Immediately I 
 translated his first letter, and resolved to lay it before 
 " the Board of Trustees of the Society instituted in 
 Morris county, N. J., for promoting Learning and Re- 
 ligion," of which I was a trustee. On the 17th of 
 April, 1819, in my way to meet the Board, on entering 
 Newark, I was overtaken by a most awful thunder- 
 storm. Having taken shelter in the house of the Rev. 
 Dr. Griffin, I informed him of the object I had in view 
 in visiting New Jersey, and read the letter of Mr. Marc, 
 after which we had a long and very interesting con- 
 versation on the present and future state of my Jewish 
 brethren. The Doctor, who is well known to take a.
 
 PART I. 85 
 
 deep interest in all benevolent institutions, manifested 
 a peculiar sympathy towards the wandering sheep of 
 Israel, greatly encouraged my heart, and became one of 
 the first and warmest advocates of this institution. At 
 the meeting of the Board I was authorized to invite 
 Mr. Marc to come to America at our expense, to act 
 as agent in executing the plan suggested by him. 
 Having communicated to him this resolution, and re- 
 ceived for answer that he could not accept of the invi- 
 tation on account of his previous engagements with the 
 London Society, the Rev. Stephen Grover, of Cauld- 
 well, together with myself, were appointed a committee 
 to consult with ministers and other gentlemen, and 
 especially with the late Dr. Boudinot, President of the 
 American Bible Society, on the expediency of forming 
 a society for the purpose of colonizing and evangelizing 
 the Jews. 
 
 3. In pursuance of this appointment, Mr. Grover be- 
 ing prevented from accompanying me, I proceeded alone 
 to Burlington. In my way thither I called on the late 
 Dr. Livingston, and consulted with him on the subject, 
 who after full and mature consideration, drew up and 
 signed the following : " Having understood, by a letter 
 from Mr. Marc, a Christian Jew, as well as by letters 
 from James Millar, Esq., of London, that an ardent 
 wish prevails among some Christian Jews in Germany 
 to emigrate to the United States, for the express pur- 
 pose of forming a settlement ; to obtain, without inter- 
 ruption, instruction for themselves ; and to promote 
 more effectually the Christian religion among the Jews ; 
 we, whose names are underwritten, do hereby Certify, 
 that as far as the object is at present comprehended by 
 us, we most cordially approve of the same." Thus
 
 86 NARRATIVE. 
 
 encouraged, I went on my way rejoicing, and at Prince- 
 ton I called on the Rev. Drs. Green, Alexander, and 
 Miller, who, after fervent prayer, and much serious 
 deliberation, signed the preceding paragraph. I now 
 proceeded to Burlington, where I was received by the 
 late venerable Dr. Boudinot with the greatest cordiality 
 and friendship. Having submitted to him the proposed 
 object and plan, together with various documents on 
 the subject, and conversed much about the state of 
 the dispersed in Judah, and the long-lost tribes of 
 Israel, he communicated to me his opinion in the fol- 
 lowing letter : 
 
 'Burlington, November 26, 1819. 
 " Rev. and dear Sir, I have carefully attended 
 to the important subject of our last evening's conver- 
 sation. It is only to a part of your plan, that is of 
 minor consequence, to which I have at present any 
 objection. As I have but a few minutes to express 
 my opinion in writing, your own memory will furnish 
 you with particulars. My present design is to express, 
 in as short a manner as possible, my cordial acquiescence 
 in the whole of your designs, if pursued with caution 
 in the detail. My wish would be to revive, as soon as 
 convenient, the late society for evangelizing the Jews, 
 established in New York a few years since that they 
 should apply, without further explanation, for a charter 
 of incorporation, to the legislature at their next session ; 
 afterwards a plan of further proceedings, and the ap- 
 pointment of the proper officers may then take place, 
 and every proper measure pursued for the effecting so 
 useful and essential a business to the Church of Christ ; 
 and may he bless you in all you do, agreeably to his 
 rich promises in the Gospel.
 
 PART I 87 
 
 " I have the honour to be, with every sentiment of 
 respect and esteem, 
 
 " Rev. and dear Sir, 
 
 " Yours in our common Lord, 
 
 "ELIAS BOUDINOT. 
 
 Rev. J. S. C. F. Frey" 
 
 4. With great thankfulness to the God of Provi- 
 dence, I now returned to New York, and called on 
 most of the ministers of different denominations, and 
 invited them to attend a meeting for the purpose of 
 taking into consideration the expediency of forming a 
 society for colonizing and evangelizing the Jews. They 
 all promised to attend ; and on the day appointed they 
 fulfilled their promise, I believe, without exception. 
 At this meeting, after a full discussion of the subject, 
 it was resolved to have another meeting, and that every 
 minister present was to bring with him two lay mem- 
 bers of his congregation. Accordingly a large meeting 
 took place, when it was unanimously resolved, that it 
 is expedient to form a society for colonizing and evan- 
 gelizing the Jews ; and at the next meeting, held on 
 the 8th of February, 1820, the society was actually 
 formed, a constitution adopted, officers chosen, and I 
 was appointed to apply to the Legislature for a charter. 
 Accordingly I went to Albany, where at first I met with 
 considerable discouragement, owing to the nature of 
 the application being novel in its kind, and radically 
 different from other societies. However, having given 
 public notice that I intended preaching a sermon on the 
 past and present state of the Jews, a large assembly was 
 collected, amongst whom were many members of the 
 Legislature, and a great interest excited. The very 
 next day, the subject was introduced into both Houses,
 
 00 NARRATIVE. 
 
 and referred to a committee. Whilst the subject was 
 in the hands of the committee, some objections were 
 made against the words " colonizing and evangelizing." 
 
 1 agreed to the proposal of erasing both words out of 
 the title, and substituting the word " meliorating," and 
 under this title the society was incorporated by an Act, 
 passed on the 14th day of April, 1820. 
 
 5. The original title of the Society, viz. " The 
 American Society for colonizing and evangelizing the 
 Jews," was much better than the present ; for it ex- 
 plained at once the object and design of the institution- 
 The former was the means to accomplish the latter. 
 The Jews were to be gathered into a colony, that there 
 they might have an opportunity of earning their bread 
 by their own industry, and at the same time be in- 
 structed and established in the doctrines and principles 
 of Christianity. But although the Legislature at the 
 time of granting an Act of incorporation, thought it 
 proper to alter the title, yet the original intention and 
 purpose of the society is still the same, as is evident from 
 the second article of the constitution, which reads thus : 
 
 " The object of this society is to invite and receive, 
 from any part of the world, such Jews as do already 
 profess the Christian religion, or are desirous to re- 
 ceive Christian instruction, to form them into a settle- 
 ment, and to furnish them with the ordinances of the 
 Gospel, and with such employment in the settlement 
 as shall be assigned them ; but no one shall be received 
 unless he comes well recommended for morals and in- 
 dustry, and without charge to this society; and both his 
 reception and continuance in the settlement shall be at 
 all times at the discretion of the directors." 
 
 6. Although the society was now incorporated, 
 yet two full years passed by without any attempt made
 
 PART I. 89 
 
 to promote its noble object. The subject was alto- 
 gether new, radically different from all other benevolent 
 institutions ; the public needed much information, which 
 could not easily be communicated by mere addresses 
 from the press. An agent was wanted to travel through 
 the country. Gladly would I have gone, but I was 
 then under a promise to my congregation, who were 
 building a new chapel, to solicit aid for them in the 
 New-England states. This caused another delay of 
 twelve months. Having fulfilled my engagement, by 
 mutual application to the presbytery, my pastoral con- 
 nexion with the church was dissolved in September 
 1822, and I engaged as agent to the society. In my 
 first tour to the south, during six months I travelled 
 2305 miles by land, preached 196 times, collected 
 about 4600 dollars, and formed 51 auxiliary societies. 
 
 Thus I continued travelling as agent for several 
 years, collecting many thousand dollars, and formed 
 more than four hundred auxiliary societies. 
 
 7. But although the Society had obtained suffi- 
 cient funds, yet they could not commence their opera- 
 tions for the want of Jews. For, notwithstanding the 
 many Jews in Europe desirous of emigrating to Ame- 
 rica, yet they had not the means of paying for their 
 passage, there was no society either in England or 
 in Germany to afford them the necessary assistance. 
 Hence, seeing no necessity of continuing my agency 
 any longer, I resigned it in 1826, and returned to my 
 ministerial labours, as stated above. 
 
 That the money collected by me as Agent has been 
 faithfully handed over to the Treasurer will appear, 
 First, by the following certificate : 
 
 " It is hereby certified that the accounts of the Rev. 
 C. F. Frey, as agent of the American Society for me-
 
 90 NARRATIVE. 
 
 liorating the condition of the Jews, were audited and 
 settled to the entire satisfaction of the Board, on his 
 ceasing to be their agent. 
 
 " By order of the Board, 
 
 " W. F. Pi ATT, Rec. Sec. 
 
 " New York, March 12th, 1829." 
 
 And, secondly, from the Treasurer's accounts pub- 
 lished monthly in " Israel's Advocate," containing a 
 list of all collections made, or money received by me 
 and delivered to the Treasurer, a copy of which pub- 
 lication was sent to every congregation where I had 
 preached and collected. 
 
 XI. THE OBJECTS OF HIS PRESENT AGENCY. 
 
 1. During my twenty years' residence in America, 
 I had but little opportunity of preaching to my Jewish 
 brethren, there being but, comparatively, few of them 
 in that country; still I never lost sight of their precious 
 and never-dying souls. The example of the apostle 
 Paul was deeply impressed upon my mind. He tells 
 us that he had had a great and repeated desire to visit 
 Rome, and preach the Gospel to them as he had clone 
 to other Gentiles, but he had been hindered. Now 
 observe, when he could not do as he would he did all 
 he could. He wrote them an epistle to supply his 
 bodily presence, and doubtless this epistle has done, 
 and will do to the end of time, more good than if Paul 
 had realized his wish, visited Rome, and had been the 
 happy and honoured instrument of the conversion of 
 every individual who then inhabited the capital of the 
 world. As I could not preach to my brethren and 
 kinsmen after the flesh, I resolved to write to them. 
 Accordingly I revised and enlarged those lectures 
 which I had preached for the space of ten years in
 
 PART I. 91 
 
 London to my Jewish brethren, and composed them 
 anew in the style of letters, being more simple and 
 plain, addressed them to one of my own brothers, 
 hose name is Benjamin, and as my first name is 
 Joseph, I entitled the work, " Joseph and Benjamin ; or, 
 a Series of Letters on the Controversy between Jews and 
 Christians, comprising the most important Doctrines 
 of the Christian Religion." My object in these lectures 
 was not only to prove that Jesus is the Christ, because 
 all prophecies were fulfilled in him, but also to remove 
 the great stumbling-block out of the way of my brethren, 
 who naturally are led to think that the Christian religion 
 and the Jewish religion are two different religions in 
 direct opposition to each other, whilst in fact they are 
 only two different dispensations, but not two religions. 
 I, therefore, proved that every doctrine which I believe 
 as a Christian, was revealed in the Old Testament, and 
 was believed by the ancient Jews, which I proved by 
 their own writings. These letters have been published 
 in America, and five editions sold in less than two 
 years.* Reviewers of different denominations not only 
 spoke in the highest terms of the work as, " beyond ques- 
 tion the plainest, fullest, and most popular exhibition in 
 English, on the controversy between Jews and Chris- 
 tians," but they also strongly recommended that these 
 two volumes ought to be circulated gratuitously amongst 
 the Jews in the English language, and also to be trans- 
 lated into the German language, for the use of the Jews 
 in Europe. The reader, I hope, will pardon me for 
 
 * The work is published in 2 vols. 12mo. cloth, price 10s.; 
 and sold by G. Wightman, Paternoster-row ; Simpkin and Marshall, 
 Stationers'-court ; Hatchard and Son, Piccadilly ; L. and G. Seeley, 
 Fleet-street ; Ward and Co., Paternoster-row ; and by the Author, 
 No. 1, Trinity-street, Borough.
 
 92 NARRATIVE. 
 
 introducing the sentiments of some of the reviewers in 
 their own words, to show the importance of my agency. 
 2. " We have read these volumes with pleasing 
 surprise ; for we expected something calculated to con- 
 vince the Jew, and we found a fund of matter equally 
 suitable to Jew and Gentile. In a series of letters 
 addressed to his brother Benjamin, the author (who 
 was once a Jewish rabbi) has explained and defended 
 the Christian religion, and its various doctrines, with 
 considerable ability. We do not hesitate to pronounce 
 the work to be a complete and valuable body of sound 
 divinity, exactly suited to the wants of the present 
 day. Free from the bigotry of party, and compressing, 
 in a small compass, the substance of many folios; 
 enriched with much that can only be obtained from 
 a learned Hebrew ; this work commends itself as no 
 ordinary production. Parents who would prepare their 
 children to meet the attacks of infidels, storing their 
 minds with systematic theology, should pu ' Joseph and 
 Benjamin' into their hands, and often read it in their 
 families. Sabbath-school teachers, and members of 
 Bible classes, who wish to excel, will here find the 
 information they need. Ministers, whose opportunities 
 for study have been but slender, will find this work a 
 most important requisite ; and all who would be ready 
 to give a reason for the faith they profess, and the hope 
 they indulge, may here be supplied with unanswerable 
 arguments. The style is familiar, pleasing, and intel- 
 ligible, and the second volume is accompanied by 
 copious indexes. Mr. Frey's former works were 
 valuable, but this is the most important production of 
 his pen : and we hope and expect that the immense 
 labour he has employed, will receive the reward of a 
 very extensive circulation." The American Baptist.
 
 PART I. 93 
 
 " These volumes remind us of the transparent theo- 
 logical works of the Puritans and Nonconformists, and 
 of the unalloyed gold which persons who delve in those 
 Evangelical mines will obtain as the remuneration for 
 their labour. 
 
 " The topics are elucidated with much interest, clear- 
 ness, and force. Mr. Frey has introduced his rab- 
 binical learning with considerable effect, to exhibit the 
 conformity between the opinions of the ancient Jews 
 and the most profoundly erudite Christians upon some 
 of the abstruse points of ' divine philosophy.' 
 
 " These volumes comprise a great variety of most 
 important matters, and so various in subject, that a 
 perfect analysis would comprise an abridgment of the 
 whole work. We cannot omit to mention, however, 
 that the third and fourth letters in the first part, 
 respecting the ' Evidence of Divine Revelation ; ' the 
 several letters adverting to ' the fall of man ;' the illus- 
 trations in the third part of the predictions concerning 
 the Messiah ; and the character of Jesus, as Prophet, 
 Priest, and Sacrifice, are to us very refreshing displays 
 of sound Christian theology. Few modern volumes, we 
 think, can be named which contain more sterling 
 Evangelical truth in a similar compass, and more edify- 
 ing in their tendency and effect, with less of human 
 errors. 
 
 " These volumes of ' Joseph and Benjamin ' we 
 conscientiously recommend, as a useful companion for 
 Bible classes, a valuable text-book to candidates for the 
 ministry, and an excellent system of divinity. G. B." 
 Protestant Vindicator. 
 
 11 Almost at the last hour of our preparing for press, 
 two works have fallen into our hands, which seem to 
 demand immediate attention. The most valuable of
 
 94 NARRATIVE. 
 
 these works is in two volumes, entitled, ' Joseph and 
 Benjamin,' c., and the other is the ' Jewish Intel- 
 ligencer.' Both of them are printed at New York, and, 
 we believe, have had a considerable sale on the other 
 side of the Atlantic. They well deserve a very wide 
 circulation, and serious study, for they contain a mine 
 of valuable discussion and scriptural information. The 
 author, the Rev. Joseph Samuel C. F. Frey, is now in 
 this country, as agent from ' the American Society for 
 ameliorating the Condition of the Jews,' to solicit aid 
 for the circulation of the former work, gratuitously, 
 amongst his brethren, and for its translation into the 
 German. We have examined his testimonials from 
 America, from whence he was introduced to us by a 
 letter from a highly respectable gentleman in New 
 York, and we commend both him and the object he 
 labours to promote, to the cordial reception of our 
 readers." The Revivalist. 
 
 " ' Joseph and Benjamin,' c. &c., and the ' Jewish 
 Intelligencer,' both by the Rev. Joseph Samuel C. F. 
 Frey, are works every way worthy of the attention of 
 our friends. They contain information no where else to 
 be found. We most cordially wish him all the success 
 he can desire." The Family Magazine. 
 
 Recommendations. 
 
 From JOHN ALLEN, Translator and Editor of " Calvin's 
 Institutes," &c. 
 
 "Hackney, April 27, 1837. 
 
 " My dear Sir, I have sincere pleasure in adding my 
 humble testimony, to the list of respectable divines on 
 the other side of the Atlantic. ' Joseph and Benjamin,' 
 though comparatively a small work, contains a full 
 body of divinity, doctrinal, experimental, and practical,
 
 PART I. 95 
 
 of the best kind; and I cordially agree with the 
 Reviewer, that ' the discussion is conducted in a manner 
 truly satisfactory. The Author is a champion in Hebrew 
 theology and criticism ; and a thorough-bred man in 
 the substantial good old divinity of the Bible and the 
 Reformed Churches. He is clear, judicious, earnest, 
 and truly orthodox. Nor need any one fear encounter- 
 ing a sectarian or controversial spirit ; from this it is 
 entirely free. This book will be of great value to the 
 theological student, and to every pastor also. If we 
 wish to be well furnished to meet a Jew in an argument, 
 or to combat his prejudices, we ought to be masters of 
 the contents of this book. It must also be very valuable 
 to youth, to prepare them to meet the Infidel. And the 
 Sabbath-school's library cannot be complete without it. 
 It is, beyond question, the plainest, fullest, and most 
 popular exhibition in English, on the controversy 
 between Jews and Christians.' May it have circulation 
 and success correspondent to its merits." 
 
 From the Rev. JOHN CAMPBELL. 
 
 " Kingsland, April, 21, 1837. 
 
 " My dear Sir, As you have desired my opinion of 
 the letters between 'Joseph and Benjamin,' on the 
 controversy between Jews and Christians, I can say 
 that they appear to me to be the result of much 
 thought, labour, and research, especially into rabbinical 
 writings. 
 
 " If the Jews will read the contents of these volumes, 
 they are well fitted to silence their objections against 
 Christianity ; and, upon ample evidence, oblige them to 
 confess that Jesus is the Messiah, and that it is vain to 
 look for another. 
 
 " They also furnish information, very important for
 
 96 NARRATIVE. 
 
 Christians to know, upon the matters at issue between 
 Jews and Christians, on the sentiments entertained by 
 Jewish rabbies in different ages, of the promises and 
 prophecies concerning Messiah ; a species of knowledge 
 possessed by few Christians of the present day ; there- 
 fore well worthy of their attentive perusal. 
 
 " For the sake of the numerous Jews on the Con- 
 tinent of Europe, a compressed or abridged translation 
 of these volumes is highly desirable, and I have no 
 doubt but many Christians here and in other countries 
 would contribute, in order to enable you to circulate 
 many of them gratis among your Jewish brethren. 
 
 " To the Rev. C. F. Frey." 
 
 " I think ' Joseph and Benjamin ' a very valuable 
 publication. W. B. COLLYER." 
 
 3. " The American Society for meliorating the 
 Condition of the Jews," having taken into serious con- 
 sideration the subject recommended by the reviewers, 
 appointed me as their Agent, as will appear by the fol- 
 lowing documents : 
 
 Agency. 
 
 New York, Nov. 22, 1836. 
 
 At a Meeting of the Board of Managers of the 
 " American Society for meliorating the Condition of 
 the Jews," the following Resolutions were unanimously 
 adopted ; namely 
 
 " That a proper agent be appointed to visit England, 
 Scotland, and Ireland, for the purpose of soliciting 
 donations, to create two distinct funds; viz. one for distri- 
 buting the book entitled ' Joseph and Benjamin ' in the 
 English language ; and another for getting it translated 
 and printed in the German language. 
 
 "That in the event it should be thought best by the 
 friends in England to appoint a Treasurer, to take
 
 PART I. 97 
 
 charge of the money to be collected by the Agent, and 
 to appoint a Committee to get the work translated and 
 printed in England, the Agent be authorized to comply 
 with their wishes. 
 
 " Whereas it is hoped that the time is not far distant 
 when the Society will have a Missionary Seminary, 
 which will require a suitable select library, therefore 
 resolved 
 
 " That the Agent be authorized to solicit books for 
 that purpose.* 
 
 " And whereas it is well known, that the Reverend 
 C. F. Frey has laboured for more than thirty years past 
 most faithfully, zealously, and disinterestedly, to pro- 
 mote the salvation of Israel ; and whereas he has gene- 
 rously offered to act as Agent for the above objects 
 without any other remuneration-^ than his travelling ex- 
 penses, therefore resolved 
 
 " That the Rev. C. F. Frey be appointed our Agent 
 for the above purposes, and we do most cordially and 
 affectionately recommend him to all our Christian friends 
 who look and pray for the conversion of Israel. 
 (Seal) "W. C. BROWNLEE, President of the Society 
 for meliorating the Condition of the Jews. 
 (Attested) " ALEX. M. BURRILL, Rec. Sec." 
 
 4*. Testimonials. 
 
 " Clinton Hall, New York, Dec. 5, 1836. 
 " The Conference of Baptist Ministers of the City of 
 
 1 Any books forwarded to the Agent, No. 1, Trinity-street, 
 lough, will be thankfully received. 
 
 f To prevent any mistaken ideas respecting the support of my 
 ily, consisting of a wife and six children, I thought it proper to 
 te, that they are wholly dependent on the small profit that may 
 arise from the aale of my publications in this country. 
 F
 
 98 NARRATIVE. 
 
 New York and Vicinity, to the Baptist Churches and 
 Ministers of Great Britain, greeting : 
 
 " We take great pleasure in commending to your 
 fellowship and Christian attention the bearer of this, 
 Rev. Joseph Samuel C. F. Frey, as a minister of the 
 Baptist denomination, esteemed an orthodox, able, and 
 faithful preacher of the Gospel, who enjoys the entire 
 confidence of his brethren. Our brother Frey visits 
 Britain for the purpose of securing a wider circulation 
 for his valuable work, entitled ' Joseph and Benjamin,' 
 and also to procure its translation and publication in the 
 German language a labour of love in behalf of his 
 kinsmen according to the flesh. We would, therefore, 
 bespeak your liberal co-operation in this enterprise. 
 By order and behalf of the Conference. 
 
 " Rev. Spencer H. Cone, Rev. C. H. C. P. Crosby, 
 
 Charles C. Sommers, J. Orchard, 
 
 D. Dunbar. L. Howard, Brook- 
 
 Jacob H. Brouner, lyn, 
 
 John Middleton, Oct. Winslow, ditto, 
 
 George Benedict, S. W T hite, Staten 
 
 - W. R. Williams, Island. 
 J. Dowling, 
 
 Rev. J. Going, 1 Secretaries of the American 
 
 L. Crawford, > Baptist Home Missionary 
 
 J. C. Murphy, j Society." 
 
 5. Testimonial from Ministers of Different Deno- 
 minations. 
 
 "New York, Dec. 5, 1836. 
 
 " Whereas the bearer, the Rev. J. S. C. F. Frey, is 
 about visiting Great Britain and Germany, as Agent for 
 the ' American Society for meliorating the Condition of 
 the Jews," to solicit funds to aid him in the gratuitous
 
 PART I. 99 
 
 circulation among the Jews of a work, entitled < Joseph 
 and Benjamin ; or, a Series of Letters on the Controversy 
 between Jews and Christians, comprising the most 
 important Doctrines of the Christian religion ;' the under- 
 signed ministers of the Gospel feel great pleasure in 
 expressing their entire confidence in the Christian cha- 
 racter and standing of Brother Frey as a devoted and 
 useful minister of Christ. As the object of his mission 
 commends itself to the approbation of all who pray for 
 the salvation of Israel, we cannot doubt that our brother 
 will enjoy the fellowship of the people of God, and trust 
 that he will be greatly blessed in the work whereunto 
 we believe the Lord has called him. 
 
 Episcopalian. 
 Rev. James Milnor, D.D., Rector of St. George's 
 
 Chapel, New York. 
 Rev. Thos. Breintnall, Rector of Zion Church, ditto. 
 
 Reformed Dutch Church. 
 Rev. John Knox, D.D. 
 
 Thomas De Witt, D.D. 
 
 W. C. Brownlee, D.D. 
 
 Jacob Brodhead, D.D. 
 
 Eli Baldwin, D.D. 
 
 Presbyterian. 
 
 Rev. A. Proudfit, D.D., Vice-President of the Ame- 
 rican Society for meliorating the Condition 
 of the Jews. 
 Rev. Thomas M'Auly, D.D. 
 
 - W. W. Philips, D.D. 
 
 - J. M'Elroy, D.D. 
 
 George Bourne. 
 
 J. Spencer, Brooklyn. 
 
 J. N. Campbell, Albany. 
 
 W. James, D. D., ditto. 
 
 F 2
 
 100 NARRATIVE. 
 
 Baptist. 
 
 Daniel Sharpe, D.D., Boston. 
 
 Baron Stow, Ditto. 
 
 - G. B. Ide, Ditto. 
 
 . Lucius Bolls, D.D., Ditto. 
 
 E. Thresher, Ditto. 
 
 F. Wayland, D.D., President of Brown Univer*- 
 
 sity, Providence, R. J. 
 
 B. T. Welch, D.D., Albany. 
 
 A. L. Covel, Ditto. 
 
 W. T. Brantley, D.D., Philadelphia. 
 
 Rev. Rufus Babcock, D.D., Philadelphia. 
 
 A. D. Gillet, Ditto. 
 
 J. M. Allen, Ditto. 
 
 Henry Jackson, Hartford. 
 
 G. Robins, Ditto. 
 
 6. To carry into effect the above objects, I em- 
 barked in the packet-ship, Quebec, in February, 1837, 
 and arrived here the following month, and met with a 
 cordial reception from many ministers of different de- 
 nominations, who signed my testimonials, and recom- 
 mended the objects of my agency.* 
 
 At a Public Meeting held at the Congregational 
 
 * Rev. George Coliison ; J. P. Smith, D.D. ; W. B. Collyer, 
 D.D., &c. ; F. A. Cox, D.D. ; C. F. A. Steinkopff, D.D. ; John 
 Clayton, jun. ; George Clayton ; John Styles, D.D. ; J. Knight ; 
 % J. Hunt ; Joseph Belcher ; J. Dyer ; J. Edwards ; G. H. Murch ; 
 Thomas Lewis; James Bennett, D.D. ; R. Stodhart; J. Campbell, 
 Kingsland; A. Fletcher; J. Arundel; E. A. Dunn ; E. Henderson, 
 D.D. ; E. Steane; W.Brown; C. Room ; Joseph Davis ; James Sher- 
 wood; J.Binney ; T hos. Price, D. D. ; Eli Davis; John Watts; Sam. 
 Green; Henry C. Reuse ; W. Gurney, A.M., Rector of St. Clement 
 Danes; A. Douglas, Reading; J. A. James, Birmingham ; Thomas 
 Young, Margate.
 
 PART I. 101 
 
 Library, April 28th, 1837, the following letter, ad- 
 dressed to John Allen, Esq., by Sir Thomas Baring, 
 " President of the London Society for promoting Chris- 
 tianity amongst the Jews," was read : 
 
 " Sir, I am sorry that you should have supposed 
 that your inquiry into the integrity of Mr. Frey 
 required any apology, as it gives me pleasure to con- 
 tradict the reports prejudicial to his character in this 
 respect, and to bear my testimony to his entire honesty 
 in every transaction connected with the pecuniary affairs 
 of the Society for promoting Christianity amongst the 
 Jews. Had Mr. Frey been guilty of embezzling or of 
 improperly appropriating to himself any part of the 
 funds of the Society, I must have been cognizant of the 
 fact; and you are perfectly at liberty to'make use of 
 my name in answer to any charge of dishonesty that 
 may be preferred against Mr. Frey, to give to it the 
 most decided contradiction. 
 
 " I am, Sir, yours, &c., 
 " Devonshire-place, " THOMAS BARING. 
 
 AprilW, 1837." 
 
 On the motion of the Rev. J. Campbell, Kingsland, 
 seconded by the Rev. Dr. Steinkopff, it was resolved 
 unanimously, 
 
 " That these charges are utterly unworthy of credit, 
 and that Mr. Frey being in honourable connexion with 
 the Christian Churches in America, is fully worthy of 
 the confidence and esteem of Christians in this country." 
 
 On the motion of the Rev. S. Green, seconded by the 
 Rev. S. T. Sturtevant, resolved unanimously, 
 
 " That this meeting, approving of the objects con- 
 templated by the American Society for meliorating the 
 condition of the Jews, commend Mr. Frey, Agent of 
 that Society, and advise that the donations and sub-
 
 102 NARRATIVE- 
 
 scriptions obtained by him, should be paid to Sir 
 Thomas Baring, as Treasurer ; that the Rev. J. Belcher 
 act as Secretary ; and that the following gentleman be 
 requested to act with them as a Committee, to superin- 
 tend the due application of the funds thus obtained : 
 the Rev. Drs. Cox, Price, and Steinkopff; the Rev. 
 Messrs. J. Campbell, Kingsland ; J. Campbell, Taber- 
 nacle ; G. Collison, T. Lewis, W. H. Murch, J. Young, 
 and John Allen, Esq." 
 
 A Committee having waited on Sir Thomas Baring to 
 inform him of the appointment, he kindly accepted of 
 the office of Treasurer, and liberally commenced the 
 subscription list with a donation of 20 
 
 7. Having forwarded a copy of the proceedings 
 of the forementioned meeting to the President of the 
 American Society for meliorating the Condition of the 
 Jews, and he having called an extra meeting of the 
 Board of Managers for the 26th of July last, the fol- 
 lowing Resolutions were adopted, and which have just 
 come to hand : 
 
 " Resolved That this Board view with much satis- 
 faction the proceedings of the meeting above referred 
 to, and that they do cordially respond to the expressions 
 of confidence and good will recorded on that occasion. 
 " Resolved That the thanks of this Board are clue to 
 the Chairman of the above-mentioned meeting, and the 
 other gentlemen then present, and to Sir Thomas Baring, 
 whose letter was read before them, for the spirited and 
 efficient manner in which they have come forward in 
 defence of the character of Mr. Frey against unmerited 
 imputations, as well as for the generous interest they 
 have manifested in his behalf, and the Christian dispo- 
 sition they have evinced to co-operate with him in 
 prosecuting the objects of his agency.
 
 PART I. 103 
 
 " Whereas this Board have received information that 
 reports unfavourable to the character of the Rev. C. F. 
 Frey, their Agent, now in England, have been circulated 
 against him since his arrival in that country, and that 
 attempts have been made to produce an impression 
 there that Mr. Frey was not considered in good standing 
 and repute in this country previous to his late departure 
 for Europe ; and whereas it is felt to be the duty of this 
 Board to sustain their Agent against all groundless 
 accusations, by all proper means ; and whereas it is 
 believed that an expression of the sentiments of this 
 Board in relation to the premises will be of material 
 service to their Agent in repelling such imputations, and 
 enabling him to prosecute with success the objects of his 
 mission : Therefore, Resolved, that this Board have never 
 had reason to question in the least degree the probity or 
 integrity of the Rev. Mr. Frey since his first connexion 
 with the Society which they represent ; nor have they 
 ever attached the slightest credit to any reports which 
 may have been circulated in the United States, affecting 
 his character and standing as a Christian minister. 
 
 " Resolved furthermore, that the confidence reposed 
 by this Board in Mr. Frey's integrity, and which induced 
 them to select him as their Agent on an important 
 mission remains at this moment unabated ; and that 
 they take pleasure in recording *this renewed expression 
 of their sentiments in his behalf on this occasion. 
 
 " Resolved That an official copy of the foregoing 
 Preamble and Resolutions be transmitted to Mr. Frey 
 by the earliest opportunity ; and that the President, the 
 Recording Secretary, and the Treasurer, J. E. Burrill, 
 be a Special Committee with full powers to carry this 
 Resolution into effect."
 
 104- NARRATIVE. 
 
 A true Copy from Minutes. In witness whereof 
 we hereunto affix the seal of our corporation. 
 
 (Attested) ALEX. M. BURRI LL, Recording Secretary. 
 
 (Seal) W. C. BROWNLEE, President of the 
 American Society for meliorating the 
 Condition of the Jews. 
 
 My Agency being thus sanctioned, I have since visited 
 many churches, and met with the same hospitality and 
 liberality with which I had been favoured in my former 
 journeys, before I left for America. The following 
 letters are from an Agent who has been employed to 
 circulate the work amongst the Jews : 
 
 " Rev. and dear Sir, I send you a list of names of 
 Jewish families, amongst whom are some of the first 
 and most respectable, among whom I have distributed 
 your excellent work, ' Joseph and Benjamin.' I rejoice 
 to say that they were received with great thankfulness, 
 and I have had several applications for more. I would 
 also mention that a Jew informed me, that he has lent 
 his own copy to several Jewish families, and that they 
 were read with much pleasure ; many were anxious to 
 know where he had obtained the work,' and whether 
 they could procure it. I wish you, therefore, to let me 
 have a fresh supply, and, by the blessing of God, I shall 
 be able to dispose of them amongst our brethren of the 
 house of Israel. I am anxious, dear Sir, to circulate 
 them, for I think the work exceedingly calculated, by 
 the Spirit of God, to promote the great object for which 
 you have so many years laboured ; and, blessed be God, 
 I can bear witness, with many others of our dear brethren, 
 that your labours have not been without success. 
 " I remain, dear Brother in Christ Jesus, 
 
 " Yours truly, 
 " London, Feb. 23, 1838." A. S.
 
 PART I. 105 
 
 " Dear Brother Frey, Going through the Jewish 
 quarters I was completely surrounded by members of 
 the house of Israel, applying for copies of ' Joseph and 
 Benjamin.' Conversing with a number of Jews, to 
 whom I had given the work, they appeared much de- 
 lighted, and declared that it is one of the best \vorks that 
 ever was circulated amongst the Jews, because the 
 letters are so plain, powerful, and convincing, that every 
 reasonable and God-fearing man must acknowledge 
 Jesus to be the Messiah. The Rev. Joseph Wolff ap- 
 plied to me for a copy of ' Joseph and Benjamin,' and 
 I complied with his request. He also desired to see 
 you. I hope you are well, and that you find Christians 
 of every denomination ready to come forward and do 
 something for the long neglected lost sheep of the house 
 of Israel. I rejoice when I think of that precious por- 
 tion of the Word of God, that they shall be gathered 
 together into one fold, under one Shepherd, Jesus 
 Christ the Lord. : 
 
 " I am, dear Brother, yours. 
 " London, April 10, 1838." 
 
 8. In addition to the objects already stated, there 
 is another of great importance connected with my 
 present agency, viz : " The promotion of a settlement 
 in America, to furnish Jews with Christian instruc- 
 tion and employment," as will be seen by the following 
 document : 
 
 ' ' Plan proposed to the Board of Managers of the American 
 Society for meliorating the Condition of the Jews. 
 "1. To procure a place of residence at a suitable 
 distance from New York, where twenty or thirty per- 
 sons may be employed, as a commencement. 
 F 5
 
 106 NARRATIVE. 
 
 " 2. That in this place shall be taught shoe-making, 
 tailoring, harness-making, &c. &c. 
 
 " 3. That any Jew choosing to adopt any of these 
 employments, for the purpose of obtaining Christian 
 instruction, shall be bound to the Society as a regular 
 apprentice for the period of three years, during which 
 time he shall have suitable board, lodgings, raiment, 
 &c., and to be charged no more than prime cost. 
 
 " 4. That a regular account be kept of his daily 
 earnings during his apprenticeship, at the close of which, 
 his expenses being repaid, he shall be entitled to the 
 surplus of his earnings, receive a certificate of his 
 character, and be at liberty either to remain and work 
 as a journeyman, or leave the institution. 
 
 " 5. That a proper journeyman for each of the 
 above trades be engaged to instruct the Jews in their 
 work. 
 
 " 6. That three members of the Board, one of each 
 of the above-mentioned trades, be appointed a Com- 
 mittee of Superintendence, to receive a weekly report 
 from each journeyman^ and make a monthly report to 
 the Board of Managers. 
 
 " 7. That a proper Minister of the Gospel be 
 engaged to live in the institution, with whom all the 
 family is to board. 
 
 " 8. That no work be performed on any day of the 
 year after five o'clock P.M. ; that from five to six be 
 the hour for tea or supper, and recreation, and from six 
 to nine be employed in religious instruction." 
 " Resolution passed by the Board, January 23, 1 837. 
 
 " Resolved That the further consideration of the 
 above plan be postponed until the return of our Agent, 
 the Rev. C. F. Frey, from Europe, and that he be 
 furnished with a copy of the plan and of this Reso-
 
 PART I. 107 
 
 lution, to present the same to the friends in England 
 and Germany, for the purpose of ascertaining their 
 sentiments and securing their co-operation. 
 
 (Signed) "Rev. W. C. BROWNLEE, President. 
 
 "ALEX. M. BURRILL, Recording Secretary." 
 
 9. The necessity and expediency of such an insti- 
 tution need no proof nor arguments with those who 
 have been engaged for the last thirty years in promoting 
 the salvation of Israel. The insuperable difficulties of 
 providing employment for those who are desirous of 
 inquiring into the truth of the Christian religion, as 
 well as for those who have made a profession by bap- 
 tism, has been deeply felt and greatly lamented, both by 
 the London Missionary Society, (who first commenced 
 the efforts amongst the Jews,) by the London Society 
 for promoting Christianity amongst the Jews, by the 
 American Society, and by all the missionaries amongst 
 the Jews in Europe or in Asia ; but, alas ! no effectual 
 remedy has as yet been provided. But as it is made a 
 part of my Agency to ascertain the sentiments of the 
 friends in this country and in Germany, I will insert 
 
 1. A letter, dated Warsaw, addressed to the late Rev. 
 Charles Simeon, by the Rev. S. R. Maitland, Perpetual 
 Curate of Christchurch, Gloucester, who visited the 
 different Missionary Stations in Europe. 
 
 10. "Let me, therefore, without wasting time in 
 explanations, which I trust are needless, express the 
 strong conviction which I feel that it is impossible 
 practically to separate the temporal and spiritual con- 
 cerns of proselytes and inquirers, as the line is now 
 drawn, without defeating the very object of the Society, 
 or, at least, laying the greatest stumbling-block in the 
 way of success, which human sagacity (or any of worse 
 origin) could suggest. It sounds very well to talk of
 
 108 NARRATIVE. 
 
 promoting only the spiritual interests of the Jews, but 
 I have no hesitation in saying that, construing that 
 phrase as we commonly do, it is impracticable ; or at 
 least that nine-tenths of what might be done for the 
 spiritual instruction of the Jews, is actually prevented 
 by that rigid abstinence from all that looks like giving 
 temporal assistance, which the Society is required to 
 maintain. 
 
 " I speak very strongly ; but my mind is deeply im- 
 pressed with many instances which I have seen. There 
 is a proselyte whom I saw at one station, with his wife, 
 who is also baptized, and his five children, three of 
 whom (the others being infants) are receiving Chris- 
 tian instruction. I believe him to be a man of good 
 abilities ; and heartily desirous to earn his bread if he could 
 possibly learn how; but his Jewish education, though it 
 raised him to a post of some consideration among his 
 brethren, is now useless, and he is helpless and destitute. 
 Would it be injurious to the cause of religion would 
 it impede the promotion of Christianity among the Jews 
 in general, or in the hearts of those seven individuals 
 nay, to go further, would subscribers be in any very 
 great danger of wasting their money, if we had some 
 institution where such a man might be received, and 
 instructed, until he was somewhat built up in the Chris- 
 tian faith, and had learned Christian habits, and a trade 
 by which he might support himself and his family ? I 
 might add many such cases, but in fact they do not 
 precisely touch the point at which I aim. This man is 
 baptized, and we have reason to believe that he is a 
 sincere Christian. The friends of the Society, therefore, 
 will feel themselves authorized to seek a situation for 
 him, and to give him their recommendation in case any 
 should be found; and if he should be starved to death m
 
 PART I. 109 
 
 the mean time, we may hope, that as it regards what is 
 most important, he is safe. But what I principally 
 refer to, is the situation of inquiring Jews. As an 
 instance, allow me to mention the case of one whom I 
 met with at another station. He was a very respectable- 
 looking young man, whose situation furnished him with 
 ample means of subsistence in his native town of Russian 
 Poland, when Mr. Moritz visited the place. He heard 
 of the missionary's proceedings through other Jews, but 
 never visited him. After, however, Mr. Moritz had 
 gone to a town about one hundred and fifty of our miles 
 distant, he wrote to him, and this led to a little cor- 
 respondence. He read those parts of the Old Testament 
 which were pointed out to him, and was thus led to 
 investigate the matter ; but he never ventured to get 
 any Christian book, or to speak to any person on the 
 subject of Christianity. At length he became very 
 uneasy > and anxious to see Mr. Moritz ; and having 
 learned where h was supposed to be, (though the dis- 
 tance was several hundred miles,} he determined to 
 forsake his home and find him out. He did not venture 
 to make known his purpose even to his wife ; and the 
 reason which he assigned for this was, that his brother- 
 in-law, who had been baptized, had been afterwards 
 poisoned (as he believed) by his own father and mother. 
 So fearful was he of exciting suspicion, that he would 
 not apply for a passport to any part of that kingdom, 
 in which he hoped to find an instructor, but taking two 
 hundred silver rubles, (about 33/. 6s. Sd. English,) he 
 set out in a totally different direction, as if on business. 
 I need not trace him through the circuitous route which 
 at length brought him to the place of his destination. 
 There, when arrived, he had no means of safely inquir- 
 ing, except at the post-office, but from that source he
 
 110 NARRATIVE. 
 
 learned that he had set out on a false report ; but they 
 could give him no further information respecting Mr. 
 Moritz, than that he was not and had not been in that 
 city. This did not daunt him; and learning that there 
 were missionaries in another part of the country, he set 
 out forthwith on another expedition, which proved 
 equally fruitless; but still persevering, he at length 
 found his way to one of our missionary stations, Avhere 
 I met with him, after he had thus wandered about 
 sixteen hundred English miles. Of course his means 
 were exhausted ; and indeed he had, very early in his 
 journey, sent back a part of the money he had brought 
 with him, under an impression that his family might 
 need it, or that at least he might be reflected upon as 
 having robbed them. Now, my dear Sir, what could I 
 say to him ? He did not profess to believe in Christ, 
 or even have any clear idea of Christianity ; but only 
 to be much disquieted in his mind, and dissatisfied with 
 his own religion, and anxiously desirous for Christian 
 instruction. After the pains which he had taken, I 
 could not well doubt that he was in earnest, and I wish 
 I could have said to him, (and I believe he would have 
 heard me with gratitude and joy,) ' Go to our Institu- 
 tion ; you will find plainer food and harder work than 
 you have been used to, but you will receive Christian 
 instruction, and be taught some kind of handicraft, which 
 if it does not restore you to the easy circumstances 
 which you have quitted, will enable you to gain your 
 bread honestly when your course of instruction is 
 finished.' But we have no institution, no asylum of 
 any sort ; and Christian love, anxious as it is for the 
 spiritual welfare of the Jews, trembles at the idea of 
 giving its bread, and its water, and its flesh, to these 
 men of whom it knows not whence they be, and who
 
 PART I. Ill 
 
 after all may turn out hypocrites. My dear Sir, what 
 could I say to this man ? What could our friend Mr. 
 Hawtrey himself have said, if he had been there as the 
 representative of the Society ? Could he have said more 
 than, ' Well, my friend, we are truly thankful to see you 
 thus giving up your home and all its comforts ; risking, 
 nay, even enduring, the loss of all things in the search 
 for truth. Such an earnest and disinterested spirit of 
 inquiry, it is our great desire to promote among your 
 nation. It is the very object of our labours, and the 
 subject of our prayers. We are waiting anxiously to 
 meet it, and shall do all in our power to encourage and 
 reward it. Do not however mistake me ; our Society 
 can take no cognizance whatever of any thing but your 
 spiritual wants. What we can do, however, we shall 'do 
 most cheerfully ; and as it seems from your story that 
 your only choice is, to stay here and be starved to death, 
 or to go home and be poisoned, I will take upon me 
 to assure you, in the name of our Society, that in case of 
 your preferring the former alternative, our missionaries 
 will sedulously impart Christian instruction as long as 
 you retain a capacity for receiving it ; and that if you 
 choose the latter, we will do full justice to your candid 
 spirit of inquiry, by an article in the ' Jewish Expositor,' 
 headed ' Horrible cruelty exercised towards a Jew by 
 his brethren.' 
 
 " My dear Sir, I do not mean to trifle ; but there are 
 some grave absurdities which mock us till we strip 
 them. Seriously, what could I say to this man ? I felt 
 that I could say, and I actually did say, nothing ; and 
 whether he is now living there on private charity ; 
 whether, overcome by recollections of his wife and 
 children, he has gone home and been poisoned ; whether, 
 as the pangs of hunger have increased, he has listened
 
 112 NARRATIVE. 
 
 to his brethren and done penance ; whether he has 
 been tempted by distress to use dishonest means of sup- 
 porting himself which of these things has happened 
 (and I suppose one or other must) I know not ; but I 
 do not think any one of them calculated to promote 
 Christianity among the Jews. 
 
 " This is only one of many cases which might be 
 adduced, and which are indeed continually occurring. 
 Now, surely such an institution as I would suggest, 
 makes no very exorbitant demand on Christian charity, 
 and runs no very great risk of being abused. Let the 
 taskmaster stand by and see that the carnal things are 
 paid for by labour, and ' he that will not work, let him 
 not eat.* This is just and right; and multitudes of 
 Jews will kiss your hand if you will bestow Christian 
 instruction on these terms. Believe me, nay, you know 
 it yourself, such an institution would hold out no in- 
 ducement to the hypocrite. You have too much ac- 
 quaintance with the manners and modes of life peculiar 
 to the Jews, to imagine that many of even the most des- 
 titute among them, would avail themselves of the offer, 
 and submit to be so disciplined, unless they had, at least, 
 such a wish for Christian intercourse and instruction, 
 as it is the very object of our Society to promote, and 
 as no Christian would venture to repress. 
 
 " But I must go further; and state my conviction that 
 through the want of some such institution, a very great 
 part of the labour of our missionaries is thrown away ; 
 and though I will not venture to say that the transient 
 impression which they may make is altogether without 
 consequence or value, yet I firmly believe that it fre- 
 quently is transient and without effect, principally be- 
 cause there is no way of following up any impression 
 that may have been made. The harvest truly is great,
 
 PART I. 113 
 
 and the labourers are few : and when you reflect on the 
 extent of country which it is the duty of the missionaries 
 to visit, as they have opportunity, it will be obvious 
 that they cannot go frequently to the same place, or 
 stay long in it at one time. This is particularly the case 
 in this country, so full of Jews, and in which travelling 
 is altogether impracticable during so great a part of the 
 year. Now suppose an impression is made by the first 
 short visit, is it not too likely to be effaced in the long 
 interval that must elapse before a second ? One of our 
 missionaries told me, that on a late visit to a town, about 
 eighty English miles from his station, he was particu- 
 larly interested by a Jew who listened with great serious- 
 ness to his preaching, and appeared to be much 
 impressed by it. Before the missionary left the place, 
 the Jew said, ' I believe you are right I do not know 
 I cannot prove it but I feel as if it must be so, 
 because I feel that I need such a Saviour as you describe 
 but now you are going away, what shall I do to learn 
 more ? I will follow you to ****.' < No,' said the 
 missionary, ' you must not do that you could not 
 support yourself there, and we have no means of help- 
 ing you.' ' Oh ! then,' said the Jew, clasping his hands 
 with strong emotion, 'you should not have come here ! 
 you should not have come here I you have dis- 
 quieted me very much, and I shall be distressed in all 
 my business you should not have come here ! ' * 
 Another of our missionaries informs me, that when he 
 and one of his brethren visited L., a young Jew became 
 convinced of the truth of Christianity. At length he 
 openly avowed his conviction, and informed the mis- 
 
 * How much, dear reader, it is to be lamented that the missionary 
 did not send him and many others to the American Settlement ! 
 Frey.
 
 114- NARRATIVE. 
 
 sionaries, that before he came to them, he had agreed, 
 not only with several Jews, in that place, but with 
 several others in a neighbouring town, to let them know 
 his opinion on the subject ; and that on his representa- 
 tion they would be ready to come for instruction. 
 Could the missionaries encourage them to do this? 
 Of course they felt that they could not take upon 
 themselves the responsibility of bringing these men 
 from their homes, and from all means of support. 
 
 " To avoid, however, being tedious, I will now just 
 recapitulate the positive advantages which I think may 
 be expected from such an institution, some of which 
 I trust have appeared from what has already been 
 said. 
 
 " The benefits I apprehend are principally these : 
 " 1. That many Jews would gladly obtain Christian 
 instruction if they had the prospect of obtaining a 
 bare subsistence while receiving it, who are deterred 
 from making any application for it, because they know 
 that any intercourse with Christians would probably be 
 followed by the loss of all means of supporting life. 
 How many such persons there are, of course, the very 
 circumstances of the case preclude us from knowing ; 
 but we have sufficient means of ascertaining that there 
 are very many ; and every now and then we find them 
 breaking through all difficulties, as I have already 
 shown by more than one instance, and more are well 
 known to you. In fact, since I began to write on this 
 sheet of paper, two Jews have arrived from Russia, 
 giving notice that eighteen more are following. What 
 is to be done with them I know not ; but I confess I 
 am alarmed when I think of the responsibility we are 
 taking upon us. By God's blessing we have kindled a 
 spirit among the Jews which is now setting them in mo-
 
 PART I. 115 
 
 tion, and I grieve to think that, should these men come, 
 our missionaries, after fulfilling their spiritual function, 
 can only say, ' Be ye warmed be ye clothed,' and 
 turn them into the street. I pray God that they may 
 not shake off the dust from their feet as a testimony 
 against us. I have, however, been rather led aside by 
 this new occurrence ; for my purpose is to speak of 
 those who are virtually excluded from spiritual instruc- 
 tion by (his system. These Russians have broken through 
 all difficulties, but we are not to expect, even in every 
 sincere inquirer, the faith and fortitude of a martyr. I 
 am not speaking of those who fear to profess what they 
 believe, and whose cowardice is sin, but of those who 
 are afraid to inquire about that which they wish to un- 
 derstand. Indeed, I may truly say, that the day of 
 trial to a Jew is, not the day of his baptism, but the day 
 when he makes up his mind to apply to the mission- 
 aries ; and if, during the course of instruction, he is to 
 be hourly exposed to all that love and hatred can do to 
 turn him from his purpose, is it strange that he should 
 shrink from the trial, or fall under it ? I believe I do 
 not exaggerate when I say, that ten times as many Jews 
 would come to our missionaries for instruction, if they 
 knew that they could sJielter themselves from their 
 friends and their enemies during the experiment. Let 
 me ask the prudent Christian, whether it is from his 
 knowledge of human nature in general, or judging only 
 from the feelings of his own heart, that he expects 
 every man who is sincere, to be able to withstand the 
 prospect of utter destitution, the persecution of his 
 nation, and the seductions of affection ? Whether he 
 supposes a Jew to be wholly insensible ; and if not, 
 what right he has to appoint him this bitter trial, before 
 he will vouchsafe to him even spiritual instruction ? I
 
 116 NARRATIVE. 
 
 say nothing of stripes, and imprisonment, and excom- 
 munication ; I will not talk of the confiscation of his 
 property but why must the wretched man, brought 
 up with all the sensibilities of a child-like and warm- 
 hearted nature, live day after day in the midst of his 
 family, to mark every step of the progress by which 
 tender and passionate love is changed into bitter and 
 unrelenting hatred why must he be always present to 
 excite and to witness all the tears that must fall, all the 
 alternations of passion, and grief, and tenderness, that 
 must take place, before the mother that bare him is 
 wrought up to curse him, and cast him off, and his own 
 little ones have learned to repeat the execration ? 
 
 " You know, my dear Sir, that I do not exaggerate 
 the trial which many a Jew has had, and would have, 
 to undergo ; and need I say that it is one to which no 
 man has a right to subject another ? Are we not-binding 
 on them a burden, which neither we nor our fathers 
 could have borne ? Have we a right even to require 
 that a man should give up all means of procuring a 
 livelihood before he receives Christian instruction ? and 
 can we wonder that the fear of starvation prevents 
 many a man from inquiry ? A missionary lately in- 
 formed me, that at one of our stations, some years ago, 
 ten Jews, chiefly teachers, came for a considerable time 
 for inquiry and discussion. They seemed in earnest, 
 yet gradually fell away and came no more. One of 
 them, whom he met a short time afterwards, said, 
 ' When we had been with you we used to talk much 
 among ourselves, and always came to this conclusion 
 Bread and water, and Christianity.' But where to get 
 bread and water, if they embraced Christianity, of 
 course they knew not ; and at length they resolved to 
 inquire no further into a matter on which their judg-
 
 PART I. 117 
 
 ments were already convinced, and on which their 
 consciences began to be uneasy. Very lately, however, 
 the same missionary met one of these men, and re- 
 minded him of the subject which they used to discuss 
 together. ' Yes,' he replied, ' but I cannot talk about 
 that now ; I endeavour to keep it out of my thoughts, 
 for it only troubles me. If. in case of my embracing 
 Christianity, I could get any employment by which I 
 might earn two florins (about one shilling) a-day, I 
 should be content ; but as it is, I should lose all means 
 of support and there is no use of talking about it ; it 
 only unsettles my mind, and makes me unhappy.' 
 
 " I have dwelt the longer on this point, because it is 
 the most important. I will now very briefly state the 
 other advantages which I should expect to arise from 
 the institution, and which seem to be so obvious as to 
 require only to be mentioned. 
 
 " 2. In such a place of security, a Jew could more 
 calmly reflect on the instruction which he receives. 
 Suppose (though it is obvious how improbable it is) 
 that a missionary could devote an hour every day to 
 his instruction, how much of the effect is likely to be 
 lost if the rest of the day is to be passed in listening to 
 the sophistry of his brethren, and he is to return each 
 time to his instructor fresh charged with new doubts, 
 and difficulties, and cavils, until his head is puzzled, and 
 his time wasted, with carrying backwards and forwards 
 between the missionary and the rabbi, a load of Tal- 
 mudical rubbish, which he never pretended to under- 
 stand himself ! 
 
 " 3. The advantage which it would afford the mis- 
 sionaries is unspeakable. Not only would it gather the 
 learners round them, and enable them to instruct all of 
 them at once ; but being always at hand, they would be
 
 118 NARRATIVE. 
 
 able to give them ' line upon line, and precept upon 
 precept.' They could do this at any and at all times, 
 with the variety which circumstances would suggest ; 
 and moreover, with such a knowledge of individual 
 character as it is possible for them to obtain under pre- 
 sent circumstances. 
 
 " 4. Inquirers thus living together, would have the 
 advantage of association among themselves, which I 
 apprehend would be no small benefit. But, a benefit 
 incalculably greater, would be their thus becoming a 
 part of a Christian family having family prayers in 
 the morning and evening, and thus being provided with 
 means of grace, of which they are now, of course, wholly 
 destitute. This indeed is a circumstance which strongly 
 impresses the Jews, who have a very low idea of the 
 state of religion among Christians. A respectable Jew 
 who was passing through this place a week ago, was 
 brought by a Jew who knows the missionaries, (and 
 who, by the way, acts almost as a sort of missionary 
 among his brethren, having been for several years con- 
 vinced, but afraid to declare himself, lest he should be 
 starved,*) to the service at the Missionary House. He 
 
 * It occurs to me that it may be asked, " Why cannot a Jew gain 
 his bread after he has become a Christian, in the same way that he 
 did before ?" The answer is, that many of them have had means of 
 subsistence, which, from the very nature of things, must cease on 
 their becoming Christians, One perhaps has been a singer in the 
 synagogue ; another, a teacher of the Talmud ; a third, a slaughterer 
 (which from theTalmudical learning and precision which are required, 
 is reckoned among the learned professions) ; a fourth, a marchalik 
 (whose business is to attend festive meetings, particularly weddings, 
 and make sport for the company) ; a fifth, a circumciser ; a sixth 
 (one of the class likely to furnish the greatest number of proselytes), 
 a student of the Talmud, and so on. How are such persons to gain 
 an honest livelihood when they become Christians ?
 
 PART I. 119 
 
 seemed much surprised, and when it was over came up 
 to one of the missionaries, and said, ' Do you say grace 
 too ?' ' Yes.' ' Indeed !' And his wonder was re- 
 doubled. Besides this, however, the benefit of Christ- 
 ian domestication is obvious to all who have any ac- 
 quaintance with the education and habits of the Jews. 
 
 " 5. Such an institution would form a test of sincerity. 
 Those who come from mere curiosity, or to show their 
 learning, will not submit to such a course of regular 
 work and domestic discipline. 
 
 " 6. Among the persons admitted, it is almost certain 
 that some would be found capable of teaching their 
 brethren, and thus the institution would become a most 
 valuable seminary for catechists and assistant mission- 
 aries. How desirable it is to obtain such agents I need 
 not say ; yet how to obtain men whom we can trust, 
 until we have some such means of studying their cha- 
 racter, it is not easy to say." 
 
 11. To add any remarks of my own on this all- 
 important communication I consider not only needless, 
 but may even weaken the all-powerful conviction it is 
 calculated to produce in the minds and feelings of every 
 reader, of the necessity and expediency of an institu- 
 tion like that proposed by the American Society. To 
 describe my own feelings whilst copying it is utterly 
 impossible, except in the words of Jeremiah, " Is there 
 no balm in Gilead? is there no physician there? 
 Why then is not the health of the daughter of my 
 people recovered ? Oh that my head were waters, 
 and my eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep 
 day and night for the slain of the daughter of my 
 people !" 
 
 I shall add, 
 
 2. A few extracts from the journals of missionaries
 
 120 NARRATIVE. 
 
 under the patronage of the London Society for Pro- 
 moting Christianity amongst the Jews. 
 
 12. The Editors of the "Jewish Intelligence" of 
 Oct. 1837 say, "We earnestly recommend the follow- 
 ing journal of the Rev. S. Farman, Missionary at Con- 
 stantinople, to the careful consideration of our readers. 
 It is indeed most affecting to read Mr. Farman's re- 
 marks on the difficulties which a missionary has to 
 encounter. ' There are yet other difficulties, ' says 
 he, ' which ought to be mentioned, in order that the 
 Society may form a right judgment of this station : 
 and adopt, if possible, their plans to its wants. The 
 first question that arises on this head, is, what is Isaac 
 to do after baptism ? He was formerly cashier to a 
 Jewish banker. He is not, however, beneath taking 
 any kind of employment. Speaking to him to-day on 
 the subject, he said he was willing to do anything, or 
 go anywhere, provided it would not endanger his ad- 
 vance in Christian knowledge, and would not deprive 
 him of the means of grace. But the difficulty is to 
 find him anything at all to do. Being, of course, cut 
 off from his Jewish connexions, it would appear almost 
 impossible for himself to meet with employment. Were 
 it even possible to get him engaged with any Protest- 
 ant, I should still be very unwilling for him to accept it, 
 as the generality of them are literally what the Turks 
 term us " Deensiz " (without religion). I would rather 
 he should go to a native than to such Protestant, as 
 he would know what to expect from them, and arm 
 himself accordingly. I would not myself urge this 
 consideration against his baptism ; but the Society 
 must be made acquainted with the fact, that after 
 baptism, he will be dependent upon their charity for a 
 time. For it would be far better not to baptize him,
 
 PART I. 121 
 
 than, after baptism, to send him on the wide world, 
 like, alas ! too many, who have thus made shipwreck of 
 the faith.'" 
 
 13. Speaking of Mr. Jacob H. he saith, " If I can 
 believe him, he has a great love for the Protestant 
 religion, and said, ' Could you only send me to some 
 Protestant country, where I could be baptized and 
 enjoy the Protestant form of worship, I would not mind 
 begging my bread even for my support. Send me to 
 Malta, send me to Corfu, or send me to England or 
 France, if I can but be English (i. e. a Protestant), I 
 am content to undergo any hardships!' Telling him 
 that, if he loved Jesus Christ in sincerity, he should be 
 willing to suffer persecution even unto death, he re- 
 plied, ' Yes, it would be nothing to have my head cut 
 off, but the idea of the Bagnio to be confined there 
 perhaps for life, undergoing such and such things ! 
 Death I could endure but not the Basrnio for the 
 love of Christ !' He seemed to be earnest and sin- 
 cere in his professions. His great desire seemed to 
 be to get to some place where he might live and 
 die English (i. e. a Christian), and escape out of the 
 hands of the Turks, into whose power he was afraid 
 again to be delivered by the Jews, should it become 
 known that his latent attachment to Christianity was 
 about rekindling by his acquaintance with me. I, of 
 course, had to tell him I could do nothing abso- 
 lutely nothing for him ; but that, if he could come, 
 and read and pray with me, and get better acquainted 
 with Christianity, I should be most happy to devote my 
 time to his spiritual improvement. More than this I 
 could not promise. Among other things, during our 
 conversation, he observed, that it was utterly impossible 
 for him to be baptized at Constantinople, for fear of the 
 
 G
 
 J22 NARRATIVE. 
 
 ierrible results. ' This will never do,' he exclaimed 
 more that once. He had too severely felt the conse- 
 quences, poor Jew ! This poor Israelite's tale is per- 
 haps the sad story of many a one, who spend their time 
 in deploring the untoward circumstances of the country 
 in which they live. And what a sad reflection, that 
 many have thus for years lived, and thus have at last 
 died ! O that I knew what to do with such that T 
 knew what to do with such, in order to bring them 
 into the glorious liberty of the sons of God, before the 
 unseen and eternal world opens with all its everlasting 
 realities before them ! At present I know not what to 
 do with these two promising descendants of Israel. It 
 is not improbable that it may be the last time they will 
 hear the Gospel's sound ; as the persecuting spirit of 
 their brethren will be quite sufficient to intimidate 
 them, and, consequently, prevent their again attending." 
 Dear reader, how important that the proposed American 
 settlement should be brought into activity ! Then the 
 dear brother Farman, and all the other missionaries, 
 would no longer be at a loss what to do with such 
 sincere inquirers after truth. Arrangements might be 
 made to send such persons to America from every part 
 of Europe and Asia, without much expense. Many a 
 pious merchant or captain would gladly take two or 
 three of these poor creatures for little or no remunera- 
 tion at all. 
 
 14-. A few days after, we read in Mr. Farman 's 
 journal thus : " The Jew mentioned on the 9th, did 
 not make his appearance, nor did his companion. The 
 fear of the Jews, doubtless, kept them back. Indeed, 
 this is not greatly to be wondered at, when we consider 
 the dire consequences which would assuredly befal them, 
 should they be discovered. They having felt them too,
 
 PART I. 123 
 
 in a degree, renders them more wary in what they do. 
 Who can but deplore this sad state of things, and pray 
 the Lord of the harvest to show us how to act under 
 such distressing circumstances?" 
 
 On the 18th of May he writes thus : " Philip came. 
 He acquainted me, that having made inquiries con- 
 cerning Jacob H , the Jew mentioned last week, 
 
 he had found that his account of himself proved to be 
 true, by what he had to-day heard, which is in a few 
 words, as follows: This H was one day in con- 
 versation with other Jews, to whom he happened to 
 say, ' The Messiah is already come, and we are lost ! ' 
 How he could have uttered this in the presence of 
 Jews I cannot conjecture. However, this was imme- 
 diately laid hold of by the hearers, and was conse- 
 quently as quickly carried to the chief rabbi. H 
 
 was seized and brought before him, and there interro- 
 gated as to what he had said. He denied having made 
 any such observation. However, the witnesses having 
 deposed to the truth of their accusation, he was thrown 
 into the Jewish prison (rather Mad-house), and there 
 sadly maltreated. He was now questioned as to his 
 advisers and teachers ; and, being worn out by his suf- 
 ferings, he confessed that John the Evangelist was his 
 
 teacher. H was afterwards delivered into the 
 
 hands of the Turks, and therefore found, at any rate, 
 a release from great corporal punishment. He after- 
 wards got his liberty by denying any attachment to 
 Christianity." Deplorable condition indeed ! Lord, 
 have mercy on the poor scattered and persecuted Jews, 
 and let the obstacles in their way be speedily removed, 
 that they may no longer be either ashamed or afraid to 
 acknowledge Jesus as the Christ the Son of God. 
 
 15. May 23. Speaking of another Jew he says, 
 G 2
 
 124- NARRATITE. 
 
 ' He has read some Hebrew tracts, and has made him- 
 self thoroughly acquainted with the prophecies, and 
 also with a little of the New Testament. His only 
 object, he affirmed, in coming to me, was the concern he 
 felt for the salvation of his soul ; being fully convinced 
 that the Messiah was come, and that consequently 
 there was no salvation to be found in the Jewish faith. 
 Though he well knew them, still I thought it my duty 
 to set before him all the difficulties of his case. This 
 Israelite is a ' Rayah,' and therefore exposed to the 
 full vengeance of the synagogue. The next thing was, 
 therefore, to consider what was to be done. Though I 
 have often thought of these things, and again anxiously 
 re-considered them to-day, still I came to my former 
 conclusion, that the difficulties were so great, and of 
 such a nature, that I know not what to do." Dear 
 Farman, send them to America. 
 
 May the 29th he writes thus : " The Jew mentioned 
 on the 23d came. While reading with him, my ser- 
 vant came and told me that the other native inquirer 
 was come. No sooner did the one with me hear this, 
 than he begged of me to send him away, till himself 
 had finished and was gone. I was consequently obliged 
 to yield to his request. Such, you see, is the fear of 
 the Jews. Inquirers cannot even trust to their fellow- 
 inquirers. No one can wonder at this, when it is remem- 
 bered what these poor Jews have to suffer, if once 
 within the walls of the Jewish prison, called the Mad- 
 house. Indeed, I have been inclined to liken this place 
 to the Inquisition. Those of the inquirers whom I 
 know, seem to have as great a horror of the former as 
 many among ourselves had formerly of the latter. It 
 is true they fear the Bagnio, but they appear to dread 
 almost instinctively the Mad-house."
 
 PART I. 125 
 
 16. June 7. Mr. Farman writes, " The Jew men- 
 tioned on the 23d came for instruction ; and, speaking 
 of his baptism, the Jew said, ' Why should you delay it ? 
 Do you think I am not sincere in wishing to embrace 
 Christianity? My only motive is to become a true 
 Christian. Why, in coming here to receive instruction, 
 should I now be daily hazarding almost my life ? No ; I 
 am really sincere : and besides (a thing which hurts me 
 much), I am, as I am now situated, obliged to go to the 
 synagogue, and unite in the prayers and services of the 
 Jews, which I am persuaded are false. I come here to 
 profess Christian principles I go to the synagogue, 
 and confess Judaism is true. Am I, during all the 
 time of my receiving instruction, to be like a hypo- 
 crite ? ' I leave this matter," says Mr. Farman, " as it 
 stands for the Society's consideration, only observing, 
 that it cut me to the quick, because I actually can do 
 nothing for him. I have not the pecuniary means. I 
 feel I have already gone far beyond my own means. 
 Before leaving me the poor Jew said he would get by 
 heart some of our Church of England prayers, so that 
 he might repeat them in the synagogue. I felt so per- 
 plexed at this truly pitiable ease, that I could give him 
 no answer. May God Almighty direct us ! for direc- 
 tion I do indeed need." 
 
 17. In the "Jewish Intelligence" of January, 
 1838, the Editor remarks thus : 
 
 " Mr. Farman 's journals have become exceedingly in- 
 teresting and important, in presenting to our view the 
 difficulties which Jewish inquirers have to encounter 
 in the Turkish dominions, and in calling the minds of 
 the friends of Israel to the consideration of the means 
 whereby those difficulties are to be overcome. 
 
 " OBSERVATIONS. ' In forwarding to you extracts
 
 126 NARRATIVE. 
 
 from my Journal, I have to lament the many hindrances 
 and obstacles which have arisen to impede the work of 
 the evangelization of the Jews in this city. I do not 
 intend to intimate that these political restrictions are 
 new ; no, for I have had to refer to them in almost all 
 my communications from the commencement of this 
 mission, and have implored, time after time, the assist- 
 ance of the Committee towards a plan of operations, 
 by which, in my opinion, such restrictions might be re- 
 moved, at least in a degree. Though not new, still I 
 was in hopes they were in a somewhat dormant state, 
 but circumstances of not more, perhaps, than six weeks' 
 date, have proved that they can be brought into vigor- 
 ous action ; that the sword of the law can be wielded 
 by the Jews with the bitterest acrimony and cruelty, 
 which they term " zeal for God," but we " zeal for 
 God, but not according to knowledge." These circum- 
 stances have thrown such obstacles in the way of mis- 
 sionary exertions among Abraham's descendants here, 
 as will not be easily removed ; for they are become so 
 afraid of being at all suspected of any the least desire 
 of learning the tenets of Christianity, that it is with 
 difficulty one can hold converse with them. I am 
 no advocate for over-prudential modes of carrying 
 on missionary operations ; but at the same time I must 
 say, I do not well know what to do under such circum- 
 stances ; for to expose inquirers to such torments as 
 those the Jew A. had to undergo, without any the least 
 prospect of the smallest good arising from it, seems to 
 me not right. Could they but have time sufficient for 
 proper instruction, by which to be well grounded in our 
 most holy faith, then indeed I should make very little 
 account, comparatively speaking, of that authority, 
 bought of the Turkish Government, which the syna-
 
 PART I. 127 
 
 gogue possesses. On the contrary, I am inclined to 
 think that the patient suffering of some who have had 
 time and opportunity to learn, know, and experience 
 what true Christianity is of some who, having felt the 
 love of Christ, are prepared to brave any kind of per- 
 secution, nay, death itself, if it should please God, from 
 love to the crucified Nazarene ; I say, I firmly believe 
 and this I do from the experience of all ages of the 
 Church that such firmness under such circumstances, 
 would prove to be the seed of the Church among the 
 Jews in this city. But, alas ! as I said before, present 
 circumstances do not allow them either time or oppor- 
 tunity of " thus learning Christ," of being thus settled 
 upon this Rock of Ages of being grounded and 
 rooted in love. It will be easily perceived, therefore, 
 that when an inquirer, who has received (if I may so 
 say) only a few lessons in Christianity, is put to the 
 torture, it is no marvel that he should deny Christ, 
 that he should deny that of which he has not had time 
 to be acquainted scarcely with the first rudiments. 
 This, then, I do consider the great obstacle to missionary 
 exertions among the Jews in this place. It is not to 
 be supposed for a moment that the hindrance itself 
 will be removed. Present appearances do not allow of 
 such a supposition. But then the effects of it may, in 
 a degree, be counteracted by that line of operations to 
 which I have had so frequently to advert. It will cost 
 something, it is true ; but ought good Christians to 
 reckon up the cost when the question is concerning the 
 affording opportunity to so many Israelitish inquirers 
 of obtaining the knowledge of that which is able to 
 save their souls? " I trow not." A person, to obtain 
 the pearl of great price himself, will willingly sell all 
 he possesses ; and so, methinks, those who have already
 
 128 NARRATIVE. 
 
 been so blessed as to find this treasure, will part with a 
 little to facilitate the way towards Israel's finding it. 
 The case appears to me so plain that nothing can ex- 
 ceed my astonishment and regret at not learning that 
 something has been done and determined upon in the 
 way above alluded to.' " 
 
 Dear reader, attend but once more to Mr. Farman's 
 relation of another most interesting case of a poor 
 Jew. 
 
 18. "I have been kept back from instructing him 
 (the Jew A.), by not having received an answer from 
 home to my questions respecting him (how is he to be 
 supported ?). I therefore told him to-day that I did 
 not know what to do ; as it would be impossible for me 
 to procure him employment after baptism, and that I 
 could not support him. I would again conjure you to 
 take our wants into consideration, for they are pressing. 
 Unless the friends of Israel wish to see promising in- 
 quirers, and promising converts too, fall short of their 
 expectations, they will come forward and help us. I 
 may be told, ' Why, surely we have done our duty in 
 sending you out to preach the Gospel to them.' What ! 
 done one's duty in merely declaring Christ to these 
 outcast inquirers, and then suffering them to perish of 
 want, thus driving them back to the synagogue, to 
 perish body and soul in hell ? Surely we have not 
 done our duty till we have done all in our power to 
 prevent such awful and tremendously terrific conse- 
 quences. The apostles did not think they had done 
 their duty when they had preached the Gospel, but 
 afforded to the converts temporal relief also. In fact, 
 experience says, that converts cannot be maintained and 
 kept in their holy faith, unless attention be paid to this 
 principle of the apostolic age." Mr. Farman proceeds
 
 PART I. 129 
 
 to state that Mr. A. having divulged to a person with 
 whom he lodged the secret of his attending to Christian 
 instruction, was betrayed to the Jews. The result was, 
 " He now lies confined in chains in the Jewish Mad- 
 house, there left without any means of rescue, to deny 
 Christ ! and to blaspheme that holy name ! Poor 
 Jew ! Would to God I could help him. Alas ! the 
 wish is vain. What this inquirer so much feared has 
 come upon him. By a little assistance from home, all 
 this, as well as the sad consequences which will cer- 
 tainly result to impede my missionary proceedings, all 
 this, I repeat, might have been avoided. Christians of 
 England, need I make any reflections upon this Israel- 
 ite's case ? I need not I cannot -further than this, 
 that we stand self-condemned for lukewarmness and 
 -negligence. Any assistance for A. himself is now in 
 vain. Once within the precincts of this Jewish inqui- 
 sition, all attempts to recover are in vain. May God 
 help, seeing man cannot," or will not. 
 
 19. In Sept. 17th he writes thus: "Philip says, 
 and I believe his information is correct, that the other 
 native Jew whom I have before mentioned as becoming 
 a Mohammedan, took this step in order to save himself 
 from a fate similar to that of the Jew A. The Jews 
 were machinating against him, of which, being by some 
 means aware, he saved himself by embracing Islamism ! 
 Such is the unhappy result of my connexion with these 
 two Rayah inquirers ! Does not this show the absolute 
 necessity of determining upon some means by which 
 the effects of the existing political obstructions may be 
 counteracted? 
 
 " Sept. 23. Philip informs me that A. has been com- 
 .pelled, from his complicated sufferings, to confess his 
 crime of having been receiving instruction in Christi-
 
 130 NARRATIVE. 
 
 anity. He likewise tells me that one day during the 
 past week, he was conducted, rather dead than alive, 
 and led through the streets with the iron collar round 
 his neck, before the chief rabbi. The Jews have also 
 compelled him to divorce his wife. They think him 
 unworthy, I suppose, to be connected with their body 
 in any way. His poor wife did not wish to be sepa- 
 rated from her husband ; but notwithstanding her bitter 
 tears and earnest entreaties, they have effected the 
 divorce. It is now reported that the Jew himself is to 
 be sent into exile to Salonica. The young Jew, whom I 
 call Nisim, of Ortakoy, has, together with his family, also 
 been exiled to some village here, with the express in- 
 junction not to set foot in Ortakoy. Having a European 
 passport the Jews could not put him into prison, as they 
 much wished. Thus it will be perceived that the Jews 
 are carrying things with a high hand. They show that 
 they have indeed a zeal for God, but, alas ! it is not 
 according to knowledge ! May God have pity upon 
 this his poor people and turn their hearts to himself, 
 that so their enthusiasm may be according to the 
 truth ! 
 
 " During the week, Philip, according to my wish, went 
 to see a person who, it was thought, was desirous of 
 embracing Christianity ; but, alas ! this Jew says he 
 lias no passport, and consequently for fear of the Jews 
 he cannot think of it ! This fear has become so great 
 that no Jew can even hold converse with us without 
 being suspected by his brethren. They have gone even 
 further, in insulting Philip and Giovanni in the streets, 
 so that with difficulty it is that they can be seen in those 
 places where many Jews are to be found. As they 
 cannot put these into prison, they annoy them as much 
 as they can.
 
 PART I. 131 
 
 " From what I have said in this as well as in previous 
 letters, you will easily perceive our wants and distresses, 
 and the remedies to be applied." 
 
 20. Nor is the case of the poor inquiring or even 
 baptized Jews any better in Europe. This has already 
 been shown in Mr. Maitland's letter, published some 
 years ago, and inserted in the preceding pages, nor has 
 time made any change for the better. Mr. Bergfeldt, a 
 missionary at Konigsberg, relates the following cir- 
 cumstance : 
 
 "About the middle of last month, a young Polish Jew, 
 who had been repeatedly with me, told me that he was 
 tired of the study of the Talmud, and had learnt to see that 
 all the rabbinical doctrines were inventions of men, with 
 which he could not be satisfied any longer. He then 
 begged of me to take him under protection against the 
 Jews, instruct him in the Christian religion, and put 
 him into the way of getting forward in general know- 
 ledge. I stated to him the importance of the step he 
 was going to take, and the difficulties he would have to 
 encounter in this way ; but he remained firm in his 
 resolution. As he had a little property, which he in- 
 trusted to me, I got him a lodging with a pious family, 
 and began immediately to instruct him. Thus I had 
 an opportunity, for nearly three weeks, to represent to 
 him the saving knowledge of the Christian religion ; 
 and, besides, he read almost the whole of the day in 
 the New Testament, and other Christian books. I had 
 every reason to be satisfied with him, and the family 
 too where he lodged gave him a good testimony. His 
 disappearing, however, among the Jews, made a great 
 stir ; and although he never appeared in the street, and 
 other precautions had been taken that his lodging 
 should not be known to the Jews, they soon found out
 
 132 NARRATIVE. 
 
 that I had taken care of him, and at last they spied out 
 his lodging too. Every day the Jews that came to me 
 inquired after him; but in general they gave him a 
 very good character, that he was of a very respectable 
 family, and well instructed in rabbinical knowledge. 
 They all were of opinion that he was baptized already, 
 which of course I contradicted ; but it gave me many 
 opportunities to explain to them the real grounds on 
 which alone a Jew may be lawfully baptized, and what 
 instruction and probation must precede it. Thus I 
 seemed to hope everything would end well. The young 
 Jew had for some time had visits from Jewish 
 acquaintances, and resisted their allurements and 
 threats ; and it was expected that he would soon give 
 up his retirement and come to me for instruction, in- 
 stead of my going to him, as I had hitherto done. 
 But the heaviest attack was still behind. The Jews 
 had lost no time in informing the father that his son had 
 been baptized. He therefore set out, and came these 
 several hundred miles in the greatest haste, to rescue 
 his son, if possible. The first interview was truly affect- 
 ing ; neither of them could speak much. The father 
 had, however, some consolation in seeing his son still 
 in the Jewish dress, and hearing that he was not bap- 
 tized yet. He repeated his visit the same day, and told 
 his son that he would not by force prevent him from 
 proceeding in the course he had entered upon, only he 
 should not do it in this place, where so many Jews con- 
 tinually come who know him and all the family. He 
 begged of him that he would accompany him home 
 again, and having stayed there a little time, he should 
 then be at liberty to go to another place in pursuance 
 of his plan ; so much obedience he owed to him as his 
 son. He did not promise his father any thing without
 
 PART I. 133 
 
 having consulted with me first. But what could I do 
 in this case ? I told the young man that his own soul 
 was concerned, he should pray to the Lord earnestly to 
 direct him in what he is to do, and what way to go ; 
 that if he believed in Christ from the heart, and was 
 convinced that there is no salvation except in him, he 
 of course must confess him before men, but that such 
 confession was not exactly necessary in this place. He 
 must not, however, expect to enter the kingdom of 
 heaven any where without difficulty, &c. When he 
 visited me again a few days ago, he seemed almost re- 
 solved to accompany his father home, but assured me 
 that the instructions I had given him should not be lost 
 upon him ; that he saw clearly, from the Bible, that the 
 Messiah was come in Christ Jesus, and that he certainly 
 hoped what he had begun would be accomplished, 
 though he might not be permitted to do it here in 
 Konigsberg. He also assured me that he would take the 
 New Testament and other little books with him ; and 
 I endeavoured to impress his mind with the solemn 
 truths of the Bible respecting our salvation, to the last 
 moment. It was indeed not without heartfelt sorrow 
 that I parted from this nice young man. 
 
 " Another Jew declared that he had no business here 
 in town this time, but had come merely for the purpose 
 of being baptized. He looked respectable, and was 
 rather better educated in general knowledge than most 
 of the Russian Jews. But he said, as his transition to 
 Christianity must be a secret to the Jews, he would 
 thereby be deprived of the means of his support during 
 the time of his instruction, and consequently gave me 
 to understand plainly enough that he expected it from 
 me. Now if I had been able to observe that a real 
 work of grace was begun in his heart, I might perhaps
 
 134 NARRATIVE. 
 
 have found it possible to procure the necessary main- 
 tenance for him during the time of his instruction. But 
 as this was not the case, and his applying for baptism 
 seemed rather to be the effect of discontent with Juda- 
 ism, I did not feel myself at liberty to engage with him, 
 but told him that he should remain a Jew till he had 
 made himself better acquainted with the principles of 
 the Christian religion, and thus come to the conviction, 
 that he must embrace the faith of Christ if he would 
 save his soul. Thus, after having entreated me again 
 and again that I would receive him as a candidate for 
 baptism, he went away. I know well enough that 
 acting in this manner we do not all that we ought to 
 do as Christians, and to say the least, do not afford to 
 the Jews full opportunity of becoming acquainted with 
 the truths of the Gospel, and giving them a trial if they 
 will receive them with the heart, or rather make a 
 trial with them to see if the Spirit of God will work 
 upon their hearts under the instruction given to them, 
 and thus being prepared, profess Christ as their Saviour. 
 But as matters stand at present, and no provision is 
 made for entering upon such a trial, I do not know 
 how to act otherwise than I acted in this case, and in 
 many similar cases." 
 
 21. " This evening Isaac M. came to me. He is a 
 native of Wilna, and well instructed in talmudical 
 learning. He told me that he had never before been 
 in Prussia, but that he had received a Hebrew New 
 Testament, and the tracts Nos. 8 and 9, from a Jew in 
 Wilna, who had brought them from Konigsberg. He 
 was thereby led to examine into the truths of the 
 Christian religion, and was satisfied that the Messiah 
 was come in the person of Jesus Christ, and was there 
 fore come here to be further instructed and baptized.
 
 PART I. 135 
 
 I found him pretty well acquainted with the New Tes- 
 tament, and the difference between the Jewish and 
 Christian religion, and as far as I can judge, he is a 
 .sincere and well-meaning Israelite. But, like almost 
 all the scholars and teachers of the Talmud, he is poor, 
 and in want of every thing. And as he is about twenty- 
 seven years old, and, by much reading, short-sighted, 
 he is unfit to learn a trade, and consequently his pros- 
 pect of future subsistence very dark. But what shall I 
 do ? For one or the other reason I have sent so many 
 away already this year, who applied for baptism, and 
 shall I send this one again, who in all other respects 
 seems indeed very promising, except that he will want, 
 considerable assistance ? By the help of God I will 
 try to do what I can to him and for him. 
 
 " Nov. 20. I. M. has come to me, since his arrival 
 here, more than once every day. We have read toge- 
 ther in the Old and New Testament, and I pointed out 
 to him, as much as possible, the proofs concerning the 
 Messiahship of Jesus, and represented to him what is 
 necessary on our part to become personally interested 
 in his salvation. I have seen no reason to change my 
 opinion of him ; on the contrary, I seemed to see more 
 and more that he is a sincere character, and the Spirit 
 of God working in his heart. But as I could not lodge 
 him myself, nor point out to him a lodging in a Chris- 
 tian family immediately when he came here, he was 
 obliged to go to an inn where other Jews lodge. His 
 sentiments and intentions were soon known to thein, 
 and this brought him not only into present troubles, 
 but threatened to prepare still greater ones for him. 
 Some Jews from the same place with him have declared 
 that they will immediately write to his father, inform- 
 ing him of the steps of his son ; which, no doubt, will
 
 136 NARRATIVE. 
 
 bring him here without delay. M. honestly confessed 
 he should not mind it so much, if he was already more 
 settled and strengthened in the faith, but as he is but a 
 beginner, he is afraid that the temptation might be too 
 great for him, and prove dangerous. He, therefore, 
 asked me, if he could not go to Berlin, where he would 
 be able to pursue his object without being observed 
 and watched by the Jews. I must say that I have 
 always serious objections to a Jew travelling from place 
 to place, but in this case I could not say much against 
 it. Consequently, I gave him a line of introduction 
 to the Rev. Mr. Kuntze, and recommended him to the 
 Lord of our salvation, praying that he may reveal his 
 love and mercy to him more fully, and thereby draw him 
 to himself entirely." 
 
 In the month of May last, whilst at Berlin, I became 
 personally acquainted with this most interesting rabbi, 
 but am sorry to say, that after having been under the 
 care of the Jewish Society, they were obliged to with- 
 hold from him any further support, not being able to 
 find suitable employment for him. Oh ! how gladly 
 would I have taken him with rne to America, and at 
 least fifty more who wished to accompany me, had the 
 settlement been actually established and ready to re- 
 ceive them. O Lord, hasten it for thy name's sake. 
 
 22. I will now close this part of my narrative 
 with a short extract from the Journal of the Rev. F. 
 C. Ewald, Missionary at Tunis. " With the five 
 young Jews, whom I had for instruction, I had great 
 trouble and anxiety. One of them, who was so cruelly 
 attacked and ill-treated by his relatives when they 
 discovered that he wished to become a Christian, that 
 he fainted on the spot, fell sick, and lingered till a few 
 - days ago, when he died. Another has been quite
 
 PART I. 1J/ 
 
 removed from here ; a third is yet here ; the fourth does 
 not come near me ; Elkan only has remained faithful ; 
 as soon as he is baptized I shall send him to London ; 
 for it will be impossible for him to remain here." Alas ! 
 what is the poor baptized Jew to do in London ? Will 
 he meet here with circumstances more advantageous to 
 his temporal support ? Certainly not. For although 
 the Society has had nearly 20,000. income during the 
 last year, yet not a penny dare they spend to supply 
 the temporal wants of the poor inquiring, or already 
 baptized Jew. Nor will he meet with much more 
 encouragement from the Operative Institution, as 
 appears from the many promising applicants which 
 have been refused admission. To be supported by a 
 few friends for some time till he is baptized, and then 
 to give him a certificate of his baptism, and a box of 
 goods to the value of five or six pounds, and send him 
 out into the wide and wicked world to get his live- 
 lihood, is only to expose him to temptations, want, and 
 misery, and to throw upon the Christian public, and 
 especially on the ministers of the Gospel, another 
 heavy burden, of which they have already so much and 
 so justly complained. The same expense, and perhaps 
 less, would carry him to America, where, I hope and 
 trust, he will soon find divers employments, as well as 
 Christian instruction. 
 
 24. The following letters are from one who has 
 had much to do with the cause of the Jews : 
 
 " Rev. and Dear Sir, The bearer of this note, J. F. 
 is a Jew, whom I believe to be seeking after the 
 truth, as it is in Jesus. I am afraid that unless some 
 Christian friend takes this young man by the hand, he 
 will be compelled to return to Jewish darkness and 
 superstition for the want of employment. You will
 
 138 NARRATIVE. 
 
 find him a very interesting person, and much improved 
 since he has visited the Mission-house. But we are 
 compelled to say, ' Depart in peace, be ye warmed and 
 filled, notwithstanding we give them not the things 
 which are needful for the body.' 
 
 " Yours truly." 
 
 " Rev. and Dear Sir, I send you another wandering- 
 Israelite, seeking for employment as a shoemaker, but 
 finding none. He is anxious to embrace Jesus as the 
 only hope of salvation ; but there are no means for his 
 support during instruction. He has visited the Mission- 
 house for some weeks, and has been very diligent in 
 reading the Word of God. The more I read and 
 consider the ' Circular' respecting the American Set- 
 tlement for Jewish proselytes, the more I rejoice, 
 because I think it will remove the greatest stumbling- 
 block which prevents hundreds of Jews from embracing 
 Jesus, the only way, the truth, and the life. I do not 
 speak at random, for after more than twenty years' 
 experience, I am more and more confirmed in the 
 opinion, that teaching a Jew some useful trade, that he 
 may work with his own hands, is the only effectual way 
 to promote Christianity amongst the Jews. I knew a 
 young man, some years back, who was baptized, and 
 not being able to obtain employment, was driven to 
 madness, threw himself into the New River, and was 
 drowned. 
 
 ''London, May 10th, 1838." 
 
 25. Third To ascertain the sentiments of the 
 friends in Germany on the subject of a Settlement, and 
 to arrange matters relative to the printing and circula- 
 tion of " Joseph and Benjamin," I have lately visited 
 that country. 
 
 With respect to the publication, I delivered to the
 
 PART I. 139 
 
 Berlin Society for promoting Christianity amongst the 
 Jews, a complete translation of the work in the German 
 language, and gave them the sole copyright of pub- 
 lishing the same, for the purpose of circulating it 
 amongst the Jews, either for money or gratuitously, as 
 circumstances may direct, and for selling it to other 
 persons ; and the money thus received from the sale of 
 the book, to be a sacred fund to print future editions, 
 the first edition to consist of 5000 copies, and the 
 expense of printing and binding to be paid out of the 
 money collected by me for that purpose. 
 
 With respect to the Settlement, I submitted the 
 subject to the Berlin Society for affording Christian 
 Supplies to Jewish Proselytes, who, after a full and 
 deliberate discussion, came to a unanimous Resolution, 
 of which the following is a correct translation : 
 
 " Having received from the Rev. C. F. Frey, Agent 
 of the American Society for Meliorating the Condition 
 of the Jews, a plan of a proposed settlement to be 
 established in the vicinity of New York, for Jewish 
 proselytes, where they are to be taught trades, and to 
 receive Christian instruction, we cannot help expressing 
 our most cheerful approbation of this scheme, and 
 most cordially wish that it may soon be realized and 
 crowned with rich blessings from above. 
 
 " Much and repeated experience with individual pro- 
 selytes, has taught us the. great difficulties of procuring 
 for them suitable places of employment, as well as the 
 necessary care and inspection over them, which can be 
 had only in a separate and distinct institution. We 
 have, therefore, often wished that a Settlement for 
 Jewish proselytes might be established in this country, 
 but as none could be established hitherto, and as there 
 is no prospect under present circumstances of such an
 
 140 NARRATIVE. 
 
 establishment, we have greatly rejoiced to hear of the 
 proposed plan for establishing a Settlement in the 
 vicinity of New York ; and as we shall not want oppor- 
 tunities of recommending this Institution, as soon as it 
 shall be open, to such Jews as are inquiring after truth 
 and are willing to learn a trade, we are ready to assist 
 such proselytes as may apply to us, and are found to 
 have the necessary qualifications, in their emigration to 
 America, as soon as they shall have received the 
 Government sanction or passport. 
 
 " Signed and sealed by order of the Committee, 
 " VOCKE, President. 
 
 "Berlin, June 1, 1838." 
 
 I have just received a letter from Berlin, informing 
 me that a most respectable converted Jew has promised 
 to give five hundred dollars to pay the expenses of 
 Jewish proselytes in their emigration to join the pro- 
 posed settlement. 
 
 26. On my return from Berlin, I preached at 
 Hamburgh, by appointment, a sermon on the present 
 and future state of the Jews, and after service the 
 friends had a meeting on the subject of the Settlement, 
 and the following Resolution was unanimously adopted, 
 and signed by the Rev. J. Rheeder, Rev. J. C. Moritz, 
 Missionary to the Jews, and many others : : " We the 
 undersigned, considering the great difficulties with 
 which converted Jews, and such as are inquiring after 
 truth, have to contend, springing out of the prejudices 
 of their brethren, and their inability to procure em- 
 ployment, are convinced that some place of refuge into 
 which they can be received, would be very desirable ; 
 we therefore recommend the brethren in London to 
 take the subject into their most serious consideration. 
 
 " Hamburgh, June 11, 1838."
 
 PART I. 141 
 
 27. Having also corresponded on the subject with 
 the Society for the Jews at Frankfort-on-the-Main, and 
 with several missionaries who have laboured amongst 
 the Jews for many years, I have received their answers 
 all in favour of the proposed Settlement, and strongly 
 recommending the formation of a Society in London, 
 to aid Jewish proselytes in their emigration to join the 
 American Settlement. 
 
 28. During my preaching tours through a great 
 part of this country, the following Resolution has been 
 signed by more than one hundred ministers of different 
 denominations : " We, the undersigned, convinced 
 that some plan to furnish employment, in connexion 
 with Christian instruction, to such Jews as are pro- 
 fessedly inquiring after truth, is absolutely necessary 
 to give effect to the efforts made for their conversion to 
 the faith of the Gospel, and approving on the whole 
 the design of the American Society for Meliorating the 
 Condition of the Jews, as detailed to us by the Rev. 
 C. F. Frey, beg to recommend the formation of a 
 Society in London, and in other parts of Europe, to 
 aid inquiring Jews in their emigration to the United 
 States." 
 
 Thus, dear reader, I humbly hope that what has 
 now been stated, and much more might have been 
 added, will be sufficient to show the necessity and 
 expediency of the proposed Settlement for Jewish 
 proselytes, and the desirableness of forming a Society 
 in London, to aid such proselytes in their emigration to 
 America. 
 
 29. The preceding statement will also furnish a 
 satisfactory answer to the question so frequently pro- 
 posed, and that with much surprise, viz., Why the 
 great and respectable body of Dissenters are doing
 
 142 NARRATIVE. 
 
 nothing for the conversion of the Jews ? It will 
 evidently appear, that it is owing to a want of oppor- 
 tunity, rather than a want of zeal and love for the 
 salvation of Israel. Comparatively few of the present 
 generation are acquainted with the origin of the 
 present efforts to promote the conversion of the Jews ; 
 and the circumstances which led to the change in the 
 London Society for promoting Christianity amongst the 
 Jews to become an exclusive Episcopalian Society.* 
 It was the love and zeal of Dissenters which originated 
 and continued these efforts for the space of ten years ; 
 but when the Society had become involved in a heavy 
 debt which threatened the utter ruin of the Institution, 
 and an individual having proposed to pay the whole 
 debt on condition that the Dissenters would give up 
 the cause to the Episcopalians ; the Dissenters, rather 
 than seeing the cause sink, at a public meeting in 1815, 
 complied with the condition; and since that period, 
 they have neither been permitted to have any hand in 
 the management of the affairs of the Society, nor have 
 they been solicited to afford their aid in any other way. 
 But as the Society is professedly a spiritual Society, 
 and makes no provision for the temporal support of the 
 Jews, and as no other effectual means have hitherto 
 been adopted, it is exceedingly desirable that a new 
 distinct Society should be formed, composed of Chris- 
 tians of different denominations, to aid Jews in their 
 
 * Last summer, at a Meeting of an Auxiliary Society for the 
 Jews, the Bishop in the chair, and most of the clergy in the diocese 
 present, a Report was read, in which it was stated, that the Episcopal 
 Church was the only Church in the world that did anything for the 
 Jews, and that their efforts commenced in 1815. I leave the reader 
 of the preceding narrative to judge of the correctness of that state- 
 ment.
 
 PART I. 143 
 
 emigration to join the American Settlement for Jewish 
 Proselytes. May the Lord incline the heart of every 
 reader to come up to the help of the Lord in this good 
 and important cause. 
 
 30. And are there no arguments or motives to n- 
 force the duty of Christians to aid in this good and all- 
 important cause ? Yes, there are, and that not a few, 
 as will be shown in the next Part. In the meanwhile 
 I would beg the reader most earnestly to peruse care- 
 fully and prayerfully the following passages of Sacred 
 Writ : " O Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me." 
 (Isa. xliv. 21.) " Touching the election, they are 
 beloved for the fathers' sakes." (Rom. xi. 28.) 
 " Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for 
 Israel is, that they might be saved." (Rom. x. 1.) 
 " Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of 
 Zion ! " (Ps. xiv. 7.) " There shall come out of Zion 
 the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from 
 Jacob." (Rom. xi. 26.) " Salvation is of the Jews." 
 (John iv. 22. J " What advantage then has the Jew? 
 Much every way : chiefly, because that unto them were 
 committed the oracles of God." (Rom. iii. 1, 2.) " To 
 whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the 
 covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service 
 of God, and the promises ; whose are the fathers, and 
 of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is 
 over all, God blessed for ever. Amen." (Rom. ix. 4, 5.) 
 " Through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles. 
 For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet 
 have now obtained mercy through their unbelief : even 
 so have these also now not believed, that through your 
 mercy they also may obtain mercy." (Rom. xi. 11, 30, 
 31.) " Now if the fall of them be the riches of the 
 world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the
 
 144- NARRATIVE. 
 
 Gentiles ; how much more their fulness ? For if the 
 casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, 
 what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the 
 dead?" (Rom. xi. 12, 15.) Suppose, dear reader, 
 the Saviour should add, " Do this in remembrance of 
 me, and what you do to these my Jewish brethren and 
 kinsmen after the flesh, you do unto me, and I will 
 reward you openly." Would you, could you withhold 
 your helping hand ? No ! No ! surely not ! 
 
 KND OF PART I.
 
 145 
 
 PART II. 
 
 THE DUTY OF CHRISTIANS TO SEEK THE 
 SALVATION OF ISRAEL. 
 
 1. To illustrate and enforce this part of the subject, 
 I might commence with the comprehensive command of 
 our Divine Redeemer, Thou shalt love thy neighbour 
 as thyself." This command is binding upon every 
 Christian the duty of endeavouring to promote the 
 eternal happiness of every son and daughter of Adam; 
 and are the Jews excluded ? Surely not. For whatever 
 arguments can prove our duty to seek the salvation of 
 any people, will apply equally to the Jew, as to the 
 Mahomedan, or the heathen. But this mode of rea- 
 soning," said my venerable tutor, Dr. Bogue,* does 
 not satisfy me. I feel that I am not doing justice to 
 God's ancient chosen people, while I place them on a 
 level with the mass of the Gentile world. They have 
 more particular claims upon us ; they have a superior 
 * 
 
 * I would observe, in this place, that in illustrating and enforcing 
 the duty of Christians, I felt a great difficulty in using my own 
 thoughts and words, lest I should" be charged with pride or selfish, 
 ness, or be carried away by feelings of love, pity, and compassion for 
 my dear Jewish brethren, "to speak unadvisedly with my lips." I 
 have, therefore, frequently and largely preferred quoting what others 
 have said on the subject. 
 
 II
 
 146 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 title to our regard ; and our obligations to seek their 
 conversion and salvation, are bound upon our hearts 
 with stronger cords."* 
 
 /I will endeavour, dear reader, to select a few argu- 
 / ments, from out of the many, that will enforce the duty 
 / of Christians to seek the salvation of Israel. 
 
 First, let us consider the superior claims which the 
 V Jems have upon Christians. 
 
 2. 1. THEIR AFFLICTED AND DEGRADED CONDITION 
 
 DEMAND THE TENDEREST PITY AND COMPASSION. 
 
 " To him that is afflicted pity should be shown from 
 his friends," Job vi. 14. Were a man of wisdom to form 
 a scale of degrees according to which pity should be 
 shown, he would doubtless write the Jews upon the 
 uppermost line, as a body of people who have the most 
 powerful claim to the tenderest compassion of the dis- 
 ciples of Jesus Christ. " The recollection of ancient 
 grandeur and glory tends to enhance the sense of pre- 
 sent humiliation and distress." 
 
 Persons who have always been poor and miserable, 
 have a claim on our pity and relief ; such is the state of 
 the poor heathen. But when persons who were once 
 elevated to the throne of dignity, and stood in the fore- 
 most rank of human exaltation, but have since sunk 
 into the very abyss of wretchedness, and their very 
 names serve to express contempt and misery, their state 
 more forcibly moves the soul. Such is the case of the 
 poor Jews. What then must be the feelings of my dear 
 people, when comparing their present degradation and 
 misery with their former glory and felicity ? " Formerly 
 they were the people of God, when none else were his 
 
 * Sermon before the London Missionary Society, 1806.
 
 PART II. 147 
 
 people ; and among them Jehovah dwelt, when no 
 other nation raised him a habitation. By them was he 
 honoured and adored, while every one else fell down 
 and worshipped stocks and stones." From the days of 
 Abraham to the coming of Christ, they were unto God 
 "3J5eculi.ar treasure above all people, a kingdom oi 
 priests, and a holy nation," Exod. xix. 5, 6. " To them 
 pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, 
 and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and 
 the promises ; whose are the fathers, and of whom, as 
 concerning the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, God 
 blessed for ever," Rom. ix. 4, 5. " WJialLnation^jaaLS 
 tliei'e ever like unto that great nation, that has had God 
 so nigh unto them as the Lord their God was unto 
 Israel ? " " But how is the gold become dim ; how is 
 the most fine gold changed !" Lam. iv. 1. " How does 
 the city sit solitary that was full of people ! How is she 
 become as a widow I She that was great among the 
 nations, and princess among the provinces, how is she 
 become tributary!" Lam. i. 1. Ifjher honours were 
 unparalleled, no less unparalleled have been her calami- 
 ties. Having rejected the Messiah, and called for his 
 blood on them, and on their children, a righteous God 
 has hid his countenance from them, and wrath has come 
 upon them to the very uttermost, and that for ages 
 
 together without mitigation. 
 
 How awfully true the prediction of Hosea iii. 4-, 
 " The children of Israel shall abide many days without 
 a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and 
 without an image, and without an ephod, and without 
 teraphim." And in the language of Asaph, my dear 
 people may say, " They have burned up all the syna- 
 gogues of God in the land ; we see not our signs ; there 
 is no more any prophet, neither is there among us any 
 H 2
 
 148 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 that knoweth how long," Ps. Ixxiv. 8, 9. Did our 
 fathers sit down at the rivers of Babylon, weeping and 
 hanging their harps on the willows, refusing to sing the 
 Song of Zion in a strange land, although they knew that 
 their captivity was only to be for seventy years ; how 
 much greater the affliction of Israel, which has conti- 
 nued for nearly eighteen hundred years, and none can 
 tell " how long." Well may they adopt the bitter 
 lamentation of Jeremiah and say, " Is it nothing to you, 
 all ye that pass by ? Behold, and see if there be any 
 sorrow like unto my sorrow which is done unto me, 
 wherewith the Lord had afflicted me in the day of his 
 fierce anger; from above hath he sent fire into my 
 bones, and it prevaileth against them," Lam. i. 12, 13. 
 With greater propriety than Job may Israel say, " Have 
 pity upon me, have pity upon me, O ye my friends ; for 
 the hand of God has touched me." Job. xix. 21. How- 
 ever great his afflictions were, they were but of an 
 earthly nature and of a short duration ; and under all his 
 troubles he had not lost the favour of God, nor the 
 powerful support of a full assurance of an interest in his 
 Saviour, and the hope of a glorious resurrection to 
 eternal glory and felicity. Hence, immediately after he 
 had uttered the forementioned bitter complaint, he 
 checked himself, as it were, and from a heart everflowing 
 with peace, comfort, and joy in believing, he exclaimed, 
 " Oh that my words were now written ! OhJjjalJtljey, 
 were printed in a book ! that they were graven wi 
 iron pen and lead in the rock for ever I 
 my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand . a_t_the latter * 
 day upon the earth: and though, after my skin, iconn ; 
 destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God : whom 
 I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and 
 not another ; though my reins be consumed within
 
 PART II. 149 
 
 me," Job. xix. 23 27. But how widely different has 
 "Been the condition of my dear people ? Their cup of 
 affliction has been unmixed with a drop of consolation. 
 With the loss of their country, their city, and their 
 temple, they have lost all the comforts and supports of 
 true religion. Sacrifices, the life and soul of the Mosaic 
 dispensation, having ceased, their present code of 
 religion has become a mere dead skeleton ; so far from 
 comforting and supporting, it has served them like " the 
 lamp of the sepulchre, which serves to discover, whilst 
 it cannot disperse, the blackness of the surrounding 
 darkness." My,ydearjpeoj)le having^Jost^sight of^tliti 
 glorious Gospel, the glad tidings of salvation, of pardon, 
 peace, and eternal glory, through the all-atoning sacri- 
 fice of the Messiah, and still clinging to the holy, just, 
 and good law, which, whilst all-sufficient to condemn, 
 is neither able to pardon the guilty, nor cleanse and 
 purify the defiled and polluted conscience of the sinner; 
 have found by sad experience the force of that declara- 
 tion of God's holy Word, "The_spirit of a man will^ 
 sustain his infirmity ; but a wounded spirit who can 
 
 " ' i i m*i tr~" ^ ~ ii ii i ii I' 
 
 bear?" Prov. xviii. 14. Hence they are without 
 spiritual consolation and support under affliction, and 
 without a joyful hope in the all-important hour of death. 
 For seven long years, whilst officiating rabbi in the 
 synagogue, it was my painful lot to attend the sick 
 and the dying ; and whilst I found all of them sensible 
 of their being sinners, exposed to the wrath of Almighty 
 God, I never found one saying, like good old Simeon, 
 " Now, Lord, lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, for 
 mine eyes have seen thy salvation ! " Oh, how painful 
 the scene of a dying sinner without the hope of salvation ! 
 How often did it bring to my mind the following affect- 
 ing story which I had frequently read in the Talmud :
 
 150 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 " When Rabbi Jochanen Ben Zachai was sick, and 
 his disciples saw him weep, they said, " Thou light of 
 Israel, the right hand pillar, the strong hammer, why 
 dost thou weep? " He answered, "If they were carrying 
 me before a king of flesh and blood, who is here to-day 
 and to-morrow in the grave ; who if he were angry with 
 me, his anger would not last for ever ; if he put me in 
 bondage, his bondage would not be everlasting; if 
 he condemned me to death, that death would not be 
 eternal : whom I could soothe with words and bribe 
 with riches ; yet even in these circumstances I should 
 weep. But now I am going before the King of kings, 
 the only blessed God, who liveth for ever and ever ; if 
 he be angry with me, his anger will last for ever ; if he 
 put me in bondage, his bondage will be everlasting ; if 
 he condemn me to death, that death will be eternal ; 
 whom I cannot soothe with words or bribe with riches. 
 When besides there are before me two ways ; the one 
 to hell, the other to Paradise, and I know not to which 
 they are carrying me, should I not weep? " Talmud 
 J3erac/ioth, fol. ii. col. 12. 
 
 Now, dear reader, if such were the agonizing and 
 desponding feelings of a Rabbi, so renowned for learning 
 and piety, what must not be the fear and terror of the 
 people at large ? And is it then not the duty of 
 Christians to weep over their ignorance and misery, 
 and inform them, as Paul did the Hebrews, " Forasmuch 
 then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he 
 (Christ Jesus) also himself likewise took part of the 
 same ; that through death he might destroy him that 
 had the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver 
 them who through fear of death were all their life-time 
 subject to bondage."* Heb. ii. 14, 15. 
 
 * See the fear of death to which the Jews are in bondage, to
 
 PART II. 151 
 
 3. But whilst the spiritual misery of the Jews 
 beggars description, their temporal circumstances have 
 not been any better; scattered through every country, 
 the predictions of the prophets respecting them minutely 
 fulfilled, they have for many centuries been a by-word 
 and a proverb, the very scorn and outcast of the world. 
 What persecutions, what massacres, w r hat confiscations, 
 what expulsion and banishment, have not my afflicted 
 people endured in all ages of their dispersion ! But 
 between their spiritual and temporal afflictions there is 
 this great difference. The former was inflicted by the 
 hand of a righteous God as the just reward of their 
 deeds, but the latter was inflicted by wicked men who 
 hated them without a cause, and persecuted them 
 without pity. "Is, then," says the eloquent Hugh 
 Stowell, " this accumulated charge of guilt against the 
 Church, as well as the thrilling appeal we would adduce 
 from it, to be warded off by the irrational, unscriptural, 
 and heartless argument, that all the hardships inflicted 
 on Jews having been judicial, we have only been 
 accomplishing the determinations of heaven in all that 
 we have committed against them ? Judas in betraying, 
 and Pilate in condemning the Lord of Glory, were 
 accomplishing the determinations of heaven were they 
 therefore held guiltless before God? Let the dark 
 horror and fearful end of the betrayer tell ! The 
 determinations of heaven against the Jews must have 
 been fulfilled, but were there not sufficient instruments 
 besides the Church to fulfil them? It was consistent in 
 the fierce impostor of Mecca it was consistent in the 
 barbarous devotees of idolatry, to ravage the descendants 
 of Abraham ; but for the Christian Church to have 
 which the Apostle alludes in this passage, fully stated in "Joseph 
 and Benjamin," vol. i. p. 375-
 
 152 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 lifted up her heel against them ; for her, inheriting, as 
 she did, all her blessings through them, to have outdone 
 the false prophet, and rivalled the idolater in oppressing 
 them, involves a parricidal baseness which language can 
 scarcely exaggerate." I most sincerely pray, " Father, 
 forgive them." " Now if our compassion ought to be 
 proportioned to the wretchedness which we compas- 
 sionate, can it be denied that the unexampled afflictions 
 of the Jews entitle them to supreme commiseration ? 
 Taking the lowest ground, simply asserting their su- 
 premacy in woe, how oyerjDowering thejrjdjimjgjdg-jQn 
 our pity ! But were we to discover that the misery 
 which thus demands our sympathy had been either 
 inflicted or enhanced by ourselves, what accumulated 
 force would their appeal derive from such a circum- 
 stance."* I proceed, therefore, to consider another 
 claim which the Jews have upon Christians, viz. : 
 
 . 4. II. THE INJURIES INFLICTED REQUIRE RESTITU- 
 TION AND SATISFACTION. 
 
 " Brethren, I feel myself at a loss for words to ex- 
 press this motive with becoming force, and for skill to 
 set it in that strong light which it demands. Could I 
 but even approach to what this subject has a title to, 
 every heart must be moved and yield itself to the power 
 of conviction." Bogue. 
 
 The Jews have been injured both negatively and 
 positively. Christians are verily guilty both of the 
 sin of omission and commission. For ages past no 
 man cared for their souls. Need I to prove again that 
 it was always the duty of Christians 1 o seek the salvation 
 of Israel ? that there never was a time when we were 
 
 * Sermon at the Anniversary of the London Society for Pro. 
 moting Christianity amongst the Jews. May, 18.'iG.
 
 PART II. - 1.53 
 
 not bound by the law of love to use our most earnest 
 endeavours to deliver them from their unbelief, and to 
 bring them to Jesus as the Saviour of sinners ? And is 
 neglect no sin ? Is there no criminality in having been 
 inattentive to their eternal happiness ? If a brother 
 had been perishing for hunger, and we had let him 
 remain in that situation till death overtook him, how 
 severe afterwards would our reflection have been I And 
 is there no ground for severe reflections here ? How 
 comes it, that Christians never thought of their unhappy 
 brethren, the seed of Abraham ? " How mournful," 
 says Dr. Bogue, " that we could be insensible of the 
 obligation to so great and so plain a duty ! It is a 
 humbling consideration to us all ; and we may well lie 
 in dust and ashes at Jehovah's feet, crying out, Guilty, 
 guilty ! unclean, unclean !" 
 
 But the Gospel has not only been withheld from the 
 Jews, but various stumbling-blocks have been thrown 
 in their way. Instead of presenting before their eyes 
 the principles of Christianity in their divine, heavenly, 
 and lovely character, the conduct of its professors has 
 led them to despise and hate them. For as the tree is 
 known by its fruit, so the Jews judged of the Christian 
 religion by the conduct of its professors. " In every 
 country where the Romish faith exists, and especially 
 where it is established, the sight of their worship and 
 of their churches must be disgusting and revolting to 
 the Jews in the extreme. The worship of one U'ut., 
 God i.-s the fundamental article of their religion ; bat 
 in the communion of Rome, they hear prayers addressed 
 to creatures, to the Virgin Mary and the saints. The 
 adoration of graven images has justly been held by the 
 Jews in the fullest abhorrence. But in every place of 
 worship they appear in silver and gold, in wood and 
 
 H5
 
 154- DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 stone, and the lowliest adoration is paid them. When 
 they pass along the street, and meet a priest carrying 
 the host, which they will call, in plain language, a wafer 
 in a box, and see the people all kneel down in the 
 mire with deepest reverence, and they are told that this 
 is fie bon DieuJ, the gracious God what can be ex- 
 pected of Jews in these situations ? That they should 
 embrace such a religion ? No ! who could wish them ? 
 But that they should look upon it with cordial detesta- 
 tion and sovereign contempt. 
 
 " Nor are the wicked lives of Protestants less stum- 
 bling to the Jews than the idolatry of the Romans. Do 
 they not see what is as bad or worse ? Do they not 
 hear blasphemies, and oaths, and imprecations, coupled 
 with the name of the blessed Jesus, every hour ascend 
 to heaven ? Do they not behold intemperance,* lewd- 
 ness, injustice, nay, every crime committed that can 
 offend God, or render man guilty? To instance in one 
 sin ; while the Jews profess, and in general do actually 
 show much regard for the Sabbath, as a day of rest, 
 from business and from pleasure, do they not see the 
 mass of those who call themselves Christians, making 
 it a day of business or of pleasure, and treating the 
 Divine command which they profess to reverence, with 
 the utmost contempt ? What ideas can they form of our 
 religion ? and have they no claim, that justice should 
 award them a suitable compensation ?" 
 
 But most of all have the Jews been made to stumble 
 by the cruel manner in which they have been treated, 
 both by Roman Catholics and Protestants : " In lands 
 
 * What would Dr. Bogue have said if he had witnessed those 
 abominable gin-palaces, which abound so much in the metropolis, 
 and especially in those places already the abodes of ignorance, misery, 
 and wretchedness ?
 
 PART II. 155 
 
 designated Christian, no less than in Pagan realms, 
 derision, oppression, spoliation, and proscription have 
 hunted the exiles of Judah fiercely as the bloodhound 
 tracks his prey. Their property has rarely been held 
 sacred, or their persons inviolate : unsparing confisca- 
 tions have a thousand times stripped them of their 
 possessions, and inexorable banishments driven them 
 from shore to shore ; alike the victims of the rapa- 
 cious tyrant and the infuriate rabble, they have been 
 alternately ground down by political cupidity and 
 trampled in the dust by the frenzy of popular fanati- 
 cism. To murder them has scarcely been reputed a 
 crime, and to torment them has been regarded as a 
 meritorious service. France, Spain, Germany, and 
 Russia, are equally infamous for Jewish suffering and 
 stained with Jewish blood. Would that England, our 
 native land, were guiltless ! But history testifies that 
 her criminality is dark indeed. During the period of 
 the crusades, indiscriminate havoc was made of the 
 devoted people. On one occasion, in the city of York, 
 fifteen hundred of them, including women and children, 
 having been hemmed in on every side, refused all quar- 
 ter, and goaded on to madness, became, in the frenzy 
 of despair, their own mutual murderers. On another 
 occasion, a British monarch libeller of the name 
 ordered seven hundred Jews to be butchered, their 
 dwellings to be pillaged, and their synagogue consumed. 
 Another English king, disgracing the sceptre which he 
 swayed, first plundered the Jews resident in this country 
 of all their property, and then drove them forth into 
 desolate banishment fifteen thousand pennyless, home- 
 less, hopeless wanderers. Centuries passed away before 
 the footsteps of this outraged race again marked our 
 desecrated shores." Stowell,
 
 156 DUTY Of CHRISTIANS* 
 
 Shall justice cry aloud for restitution and satisfaction 
 for injuries so various, accumulated, and aggravated, 
 and not be heard ? What ! not be heard in Britain ? 
 Will the nation who has so liberally paid twenty mil- 
 lions to free the West Indian slave, do nothing to 
 emancipate the poor Jews, and restore them to the 
 land of their fathers ? May I not hope that a zealous 
 advocate will stand up and plead their cause in Parlia- 
 ment, and the Queen become a nursing mother ? O 
 Lord, hasten the deliverance of Israel ! 
 
 5. HI. THE VOICE OF EQUITY AS WELL AS JUS- 
 TICE DEMANDS OUR MOST SERIOUS ATTENTION. 
 
 " That we Gentiles," says Dr. Bogue, " received the 
 Gospel from the Jews, and are indebted to them for all 
 that we know of Jesus, and redeeming love, will be 
 universally acknowledged, for the Gospel came forth 
 from Zion, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem, 
 and on this account their debtors verily we are. What 
 I plead for, brethren, is that you and I should acknow- 
 ledge and pay the debt, by communicating to them that 
 Gospel which they first communicated to us. That 
 this may be placed at the head of the list of cases of 
 equity, will appear from a more ample statement. 
 
 " It is the very same thing that the Jews did to us, 
 which it is required that we should do to them. It was 
 the Gospel which they gave to us ; and it is the Gospel 
 which we are called upon to give to them. This can 
 be done without injuring ourselves. The assistance 
 required from each individual Christian for this pur- 
 pose is such, that impoverished by it no one can be, or 
 even sensibly affected in his circumstances. If there be 
 a change, he will consider himself the richer for what 
 he gives. Those Jews who first communicated the Gospel
 
 PART II. 157 
 
 to the Gentiles, left father and mother, brethren and 
 sisters, and their home, and their country, and their 
 worldly business and substance, in order to enrich us, 
 with the heavenly treasure : but how small in respect 
 to sacrifice is that which is required of us in return ? 
 Further, it can be done too with far less difficulty and 
 danger. Those benevolent Hebrews, who conveyed 
 the Gospel to us, whether immediately, or by the inter- 
 vention of others, in order to accomplish the object, 
 were obliged to leave their native country, and to travel 
 through many a land in much labour and toil, or to 
 embark on the ocean with danger a hundredfold greater 
 than at present, that they might reach the wished-for 
 rest : and wherever they went, they carried their lives 
 in their hands. (See 2 Cor. xi. 23 28.) To the savage 
 caprice, to the cruel hatred of our ancestors unfeeling, 
 bigoted, barbarous pagans they were exposed. Con- 
 tempt, reproach, ridicule, insult, injury, were their 
 daily lot : they had trial of cruel mockings and scourg- 
 ings, yea, moreover, of bonds and imprisonments ; and 
 many of them suffered death in its most horrid and 
 cruel forms. To repay the mighty debt, we need not 
 leave our own country, nor our fathers' house. The 
 posterity of Abraham dwell in the midst of us ; and if 
 they receive the Gospel, they will carry it for us to 
 their brethren in foreign lands.* I shall only add," 
 continues Dr. Bogue, " that the debt has long been 
 owing ; and, therefore, it is more than time that it 
 should be paid. It is now upwards of sixteen hundred 
 years since the inhabitants of this island first received 
 
 * When this sermon was preached in 1806, 1 was the only Jewish 
 preacher known in the world : there are now, blessed be God, more 
 than forty of my Jewish brethren who preach " the glorious Gospel of 
 the blessed God." What has God wrought?
 
 158 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 the Gospel, and the Jews communicated to us of their 
 spiritual things. How much may we now consider it 
 as enhanced in value ; and the obligation of repaying it 
 increased ? Were we to suppose the original debt of 
 us Gentiles to the Jews to be valued at ten thousand 
 pounds, I ask you who are skilful in calculation, what 
 at the distance of sixteen hundred years is its amount, 
 when laid out at interest to the best advantage ? All 
 the gold and silver, all the precious stones on the face 
 of the earth, which are so carefully preserved and 
 highly prized by the hundreds of millions of their pos- 
 sessors, would not be sufficient to repay it. By all 
 these considerations may I not hope that your minds 
 are so strongly impressed with your obligations, that 
 you are anxious to depart, that you may begin this day 
 to pay the debt of equity. But stop till I present some 
 other considerations to your notice." 
 
 6. IV. GRATITUDE FOR FAVOURS RECEIVED CALL 
 
 FOR ACTS OF BENEVOLENCE AND KINDNESS. 
 
 Public opinion, in every civilized age, has always 
 sanctioned the demands of gratitude by her powerful 
 voice, and holds out her finger with contempt and de- 
 testation at the man on whose forehead is written in- 
 gratitude; but the Gospel marks ingratitude with the 
 hottest brand of infamy, and it holds up gratitude as 
 one of the most powerful principles in the Christian's 
 breast, in which it confides, for the production of the 
 most powerful and important effects. 
 
 " We cannot unfold the sacred volume," says Mr. 
 Stbwell, " but every page is fitted to remind us how 
 much we are indebted to the Jews. The holy men of 
 old, who wrote as they were moved by the Holy Ghost, 
 Vjcere Jews. It is next to certain tliat not one inspired
 
 PART II. 159 
 
 penman sprang from any other race. Realize this as 
 often as you dwell upon the records of eternity, and it 
 cannot fail to enlarge your hearts towards the desolate 
 posterity of patriarchs, prophets, and apostles. When- 
 ever, therefore, the simple but most sublime Mosaic 
 records fill you with adoring awe, invigorate your faith 
 in the Paternal Providence, and enhance your reverence 
 of the glorious majesty of God remember Moses was 
 a Jew. Whenever the sweet Psalmist of Israel awakes 
 the deepest echoes of your souls ; whenever he enables 
 you to pour forth the fulness of your hearts, whether in 
 the bitterness of sorrow, the importunity of prayer, or 
 the extacy of praise, forget not David was a Jew. 
 Whenever the son of Amoz, in his chariot of fire, wafts 
 your spirit to the skies, or bears you with eagle flight 
 along the glowing path of prophecy now kindling you 
 into awful rapture, and now melting you into hallowed 
 sadness, bear in mind Isaiah was a Jew, As often as 
 the four Evangelists lead you to trace the footsteps of 
 your blessed Master, hang on the gracious accents of 
 His lips, or watch His miracles of mercy ; as often as 
 they conduct you to Getisemaae and Calvary, to weep 
 over his agony and bloody sweat, His cross and passion, 
 or guide you to the garden, bidding you ' Behold the 
 place where the Lord lay,' and triumph in His glorious 
 
 resurrection and ascension, be it recollected the 
 
 .- 
 
 Evangelists were Jews. As often as the fervid Paul 
 
 ^ 
 
 overpowers your understandings with divine demon- 
 stration, rivets the anchor of your hope Avithin the veil, 
 or fans your glowing gratitude to Him that washed 
 you in His blood, bethink you the great apostle of the 
 Gentiles was a -Jew*- As often as the tender John 
 breathes through your souls the influence of a Saviour's 
 love, and yields you the fruition of that more than
 
 160 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 earthly luxury the luxury of loving others as your- 
 selves, or as often as he transports you to the loftiest 
 pinnacle of prophecy, and thence discloses to your view 
 in mystic vision, all the future history of the Church, 
 her conflicts, and her conquests, till the glorious con- 
 summation when time shall be no longer, remember-^, 
 the beloved disciple \vas a Jew. What shall we more 
 say ? every statute that guides xis, every admonition 
 that guards us, every consolation that cheers us, every 
 hope that animates us, every promise that rejoices, every 
 assurance that sustains us, all we enjoy in this life and 
 all we anticipate in the next, stands associated with the 
 house of Israel. 
 
 " And is the measure of our obligations to Israel yet 
 full? No, men and brethren, Jesus was a Jew. 'He 
 took not on him the nature of angels, but he took on 
 him the seed of Abraham,' " Hebrews ii. 16. " Oh, 
 Christians," says another writer, " by whom have you 
 been reconciled to God ? Was it not a Jew, who shed 
 his own blood, that by his death you might live : 
 through whose intercession the Holy Ghost conde- 
 scends to dwell in your hearts, to cheer you by his 
 grace in every time of need ?" " If," says Dr. Bogue, 
 " when we were labouring under a painful disease, 
 a kind physician stepped in and healed us : if, when 
 we were groaning in a state of abject bondage, 
 a person who saw us there and felt for us, kindly paid 
 the price of our redemption, and procured our release : 
 if, when we were exposed to the punishment of death, 
 and justice called aloud for the execution of the sen- 
 tence of the law, he, to our astonishment, put himself 
 in our place, and suffered that death which we de- 
 served ; that by suffering it we might live : if, 
 when we were involved in debts which we could
 
 PART II. 161 
 
 never pay, he generously, without solicitation, dis- 
 charged them all : if, in addition to this, he loaded us 
 with riches, and put into our hands the title-deeds of 
 an inheritance ! to such a friend what does gratitude 
 say is due ? But was there ever such a friend in this 
 depraved world ? Yes, such a friend there was, nay 
 such a friend we have, who healed our spiritual diseases, 
 who rescued us from the slavery of sin, and the tyranny 
 of Satan. Who died in our room to deliver us from 
 eternal death, and to purchase for us everlasting life. 
 Who paid all our debts, ' who, though he was rich, for 
 our sakes became poor, that we through his poverty 
 might be made rich ; ' and who has conferred upon us 'an 
 inheritance which is incorruptible, undefined, and which 
 fadeth not away.' And who is this friend ? He is a 
 Jew, Jesus of Nazareth, of the seed of Abraham accord- 
 ing to the flesh. For such favours, what does grati- 
 tude say is owing to the Jews ? I might rather ask, 
 what does she say is not due that we may render, in order 
 to deliver them from all their miseries which they suffer, 
 and put them in possession of all the happiness which 
 it is possible for them to enjoy." Now, dear reader, if 
 bowels of compassion form a peculiar feature in the 
 Christian character if ingratitude be a monstrous sin 
 if it be our duty to be just in all our dealings, and 
 whenever we have wronged others, to make restitution 
 to the utmost of our power, then it is our duty to attend 
 to the present state of the Jews, and to employ means 
 for their conversion. 
 
 I proceed to the second argument, to enforce the 
 duty of Christians to seek the salvation of Israel, viz. : 
 
 Secondly, The great encouragement ivhich God has 
 given us, both in his Word and in his Providence. 
 
 1. To the man of the world the hope of success is 
 the sole motive and spring of his actions, but the will
 
 162 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 of God is the pure motive, and the all-powerful spring of 
 action to the Christian. Had he the prospect of gaining 
 a world without the approbation of his heavenly Father, 
 he would not attempt the enterprize. But in seeking 
 the salvation of the Jews, he is sure both of acting 
 agreeably to the will of God, and of meeting with suc- 
 cess. That it is the will of God that the Jews shall be 
 converted will hereafter be proved by the many pre- 
 cious promises contained in the unerring Word of God, 
 written and preserved for the encouragement of our faith, 
 prayer, and action ; and that our efforts will be crowned 
 with success, is evident from the remarkable dispensa- 
 tions of God's providence in the present period. 
 
 Our blessed Lord reproved the Jews for neglecting to 
 observe " the signs of the time " respecting his kingdom, 
 and shall we neglect to observe the wonderful signs of 
 the time respecting the restoration and conversion of 
 Judah and Israel ? For the last fifty years, the way for 
 their restoration to the land of their fathers has been 
 preparing in a manner unparalleled in the history of the 
 world. When the deliverance of Israel from Egyptian 
 bondage drew nigh, God raised up Moses and Aaron ; 
 when the captivity of Babylon came to a close, God 
 called for Cyrus his servant ; and has God done 
 nothing in our day to show that the captivity of my dear 
 people is drawing to a close ? Yes ! dear reader, to 
 point out all the remarkable events which have taken 
 place since the beginning of this century only, would 
 by far exceed the limits of this work. I confine myself, 
 therefore, to a few of those only which directly relate to 
 the present subject. Is it not a striking fact, that my 
 dear people have of late years manifested a more earnest 
 desire and firmer expectation of a speedy return to the 
 land of Canaan than has ever before been known ? 
 
 "Wesley's Journal" mentions a national fast being
 
 PART II. 163 
 
 appointed, which all sects observed. The Jews showed 
 their loyalty by fasting and prayer. A remarkable part 
 of their public petition in the synagogues was, " Come, 
 let us return to Jehovah, for he hath torn, and he will 
 heal us ; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. Oh, 
 Lord ! incline the heart of our Sovereign Lord King 
 George, and the hearts of his Lords and Councillors, to 
 use us kindly and all our brethren, that in his days and 
 in ours, we may see the restoration of Judah, and that 
 Israel may dwell in safety, and the Redeemer come to 
 Zion. May it be thy will ! and we all say, Amen." 
 
 " From Poland a large emigration has taken place of 
 those who go to await Messiah's coming on Mount 
 Zion, whilst many have beheld him in Jesus. Their 
 writers and their chief men everywhere, and indeed, all 
 sorts, express this expectation. The existence of such 
 expectations is a phenomenon unparalleled in the history 
 of any people, and unaccountable, except by the influ- 
 ence of Revelation. The late revival of these ex- 
 pectations by D. Levi's work on the prophecies and 
 signs of the approach of the Jews' deliverance is 
 remarkable." Graves Pentat. 
 
 2. A general change in the treatment of Jews, who, 
 till this century, were everywhere "trodden down of 
 the Gentiles," is another preparation sign. Buonaparte 
 had made declarations in their favour, and given them 
 citizenship, in which most countries, subject to his arms, 
 followed him. Alexander published an ukase for the 
 settlement of all converts in his royal establishment at 
 Moscow, like Cyrus' edict for their return from Babylon. 
 The very discussion of the subject in all states the 
 Protocol at the Congress at Aix-la-Chapelle all show 
 the abolition of tyranny over Judah, and " the accom-
 
 164* DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 plishment of the indignation against the holy people to 
 be near." 
 
 " A proclamation at Frankfort admitted the Jews to 
 equal participation in all rights and privileges. So did 
 Saxony. A consistory of Israelites was established at 
 Rome. 1803, an establishment was formed at Copen- 
 hagen to instruct their youth. 1800, the Church 
 Missionary Society devoted a portion of their funds to 
 the Jews. 1806, Buonaparte convened, at Paris, a 
 Jewish Sanhedrim to re-organize their worship. They 
 embraced this opportunity to appeal strongly to the 
 justice and toleration of Christendom ; to express 
 gratitude for the favour shown them by the Christian 
 clergy ; to state their views of the present state of their 
 people, with their expectations concerning their re- 
 storation ; to disavow several corruptions of the moral 
 law, and to declare the superiority of the Divine books 
 to the Talmud. This meeting was a means of rousing 
 their nation to consider the subject. 1809, our distinct 
 Society arose, and bishops, princes, and clergy, nobles, 
 and laity, both Churchmen and Dissenters united to 
 speak peace to Jerusalem. 1811, several Italian prin- 
 cipalities permitted Jews to acquire landed property, &c. 
 The recent persecutions in Constantinople, and some 
 German towns, appear to me providential means of 
 collecting the Jews under that influence which is to 
 prepare them for returning to the worship of Abraham. 
 Turkey may probably be led to expel all her Jewish 
 population before her final overthrow. And, possibly, 
 the Papal and Infidel powers, wherever they can act, 
 may do the same, till they summon those Jews who 
 remain unbelievers to the last conflict against the con- 
 verts, and their faithful protectors." See Faber.
 
 PART II. 165 
 
 3. The unprecedented interest Christians have 
 taken in promoting the conversion of the Jews, is 
 another encouraging sign of the time. 
 
 When we see Christians, not only fervent in prayer, 
 but also diligent in the use of proper means, we may 
 safely expect the blessing of God. Hence, says the 
 Psalmist, " Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon 
 Zion : for the time to favour her, yea the set time is 
 come. For thy servants take pleasure in her stones, 
 and favour the dust thereof. So the Heathen shall 
 fear the name of the Lord, and all the kings of the 
 earth thy glory. When the Lord shall build up Zion, 
 he shall appear in his glory. He will regard the prayer 
 of the destitute, and not despise their prayer. This 
 shall be written for the generations to come ; and the 
 people which shall be created shall praise the Lord." 
 Ps. cii. 13 18. In a former part I gave an account 
 of the origin of Christian efforts in behalf of my dear 
 people of the formation of a distinct Society for pro- 
 moting Christianity amongst the Jews, and of its having 
 become exclusively Episcopalian. In my late journeys 
 I discovered everywhere that my Dissenting brethren, 
 in general, have, since that change took place, totally 
 lost sight of the Jewish cause, and, for the want of 
 regular information, have been led to conclude that the 
 whole has fallen to the ground. For their sakes, there- 
 fore, I will briefly show that much good has already 
 been effected, and that far greater things may yet be 
 expected. 
 
 The following statement was published by the Society 
 in May, 1837: 
 
 4. " Amongst the means used by this Society are 
 the following :
 
 166 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 " The Holy Scriptures are put iuto the hands of the 
 Jews. 
 
 " The Old and New Testaments, in Hebrew, are 
 circulated extensively among them. 
 
 " The entire Scriptures have been translated into the 
 Jewish, or Judeo-Polish language, and the New Testa- 
 ment, with parts of the Old Testament, have been 
 printed, the remainder having been delayed through 
 the want of requisite funds. 
 
 " The New Testament in Syriac, with Hebrew cha- 
 racters, has been recently published, for the use of the 
 Chasidim and Cabalistic Jews. 
 
 " Other versions of portions of the Holy Scriptures 
 have also been published. 
 
 " Tracts in various languages are distributed among 
 the Jews. Amongst those last published may be men- 
 tioned a selection of Christian Hymns, translated into 
 Hebrew metre ; and a series of papers, under the title 
 of the ' Old Paths ; or, A Comparison of the Principles 
 and Doctrines of Modern Judaism with the Religion of 
 Moses and the Prophets.' 
 
 " The Episcopal Chapel, at Bethnal-green, is opened 
 for Divine service, under the license and sanction of 
 the Bishop of the Diocese. The Jews are earnestly 
 and affectionately invited to attend ; sermons are 
 preached by the Chaplain, and not unfrequently by 
 Missionaries of the Society, with a special view to the 
 objections and difficulties of the Jews ; and converts 
 are received into the bosom of a Christian congre- 
 gation, who have been taught to obey the Divine call, 
 ' Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with His people.' 
 
 " Schools for Hebrew children have been established 
 at home and abroad.
 
 PART II. 167 
 
 " In the schools at Bethnal-green, the children are 
 maintained, clothed, and educated, until they are old 
 enough to go out as servants or apprentices. The 
 schools are capable of accommodating 100 children. 
 A blessing has attended this Institution. 
 
 " Schools have also been established on the Conti- 
 nent. Eight schools in the Grand Duchy of Posen, in 
 which the progress of the children is very gratifying, 
 have afforded an average attendance of 348 Jewish 
 children. There is a school at Dantzic, in which the 
 number has often amounted to upwards of eighty 
 children. 
 
 " Missionaries to the Jews have been sent forth by 
 the Society, many of whom are ordained clergymen, 
 and others are in different capacities engaged in testi- 
 fying to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ. There are 
 forty-two Missionaries and Missionary Agents engaged 
 at this time in preaching to the Jews, conversing with 
 them, distributing the Scriptures and tracts, or trans- 
 lating important works into Hebrew or other languages ; 
 and of these sixteen are converted Jews. 
 
 " The success which has attended this Society has 
 been great under the Divine blessing. 
 
 " With reference to the actual results of their labours, 
 under God's blessing, the Society has great reason to 
 thank God for the success by which their efforts have 
 been attended. Many proofs have been detailed in the 
 Reports, and in the.' Jewish Intelligence,' from time to 
 time. 
 
 " It must also be remembered, that there are manv 
 encouraging circumstances of too private a character 
 to be detailed on any public occasion. In the majority 
 of instances we have to relate only the particulars of 
 that tedious, and often painful course of missionary
 
 168 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 duty, by which the good seed is sown. For its fruitful 
 increase we may wait for years, and it may be that the 
 tidings of it may be borne by other witnesses than those 
 whose lot it was, perhaps, to sow in tears. The recol- 
 lection of the establishment of the Warsaw Mission, 
 by the Rev. A. M'Caul and F. W. Becker, many years 
 ago, affords a striking illustration of this remark. They 
 sowed the good seed, distributing the Word of God 
 and scriptural tracts abundantly among the crowds of 
 Jews that flocked to hear and see this new thing. And 
 many were ready to ask, What then ? How many 
 were converted to Christianity ? Following years have 
 given an encouraging answer to a question which none 
 could answer then ; and we are now frequently hearing 
 of converts whose first impressions were received from 
 a portion of the Scripture, or a tract distributed at that 
 period. The case of Mr. Neuhaus, as related by Mr. 
 Oster, affords an instance of this kind. 
 
 " A great desire for the Word of God has been ex- 
 cited amongst the Jews, who had previously but little 
 acquaintance with their own Scriptures, and but scanty 
 means of obtaining them. Let the crowds of Jews 
 bear witness in that interesting country, Poland, teem- 
 ing with a dense Jewish population, where the intelli- 
 gence that an English Missionary has arrived with 
 Bibles, often produces such a sensation that it might be 
 said, ' The whole city was moved : ' and where again 
 and again the missionaries have been engaged in discus- 
 sions and conversations from morning till evening, pro- 
 claiming to eager and attentive crowds the unsearchable 
 riches of Christ, opening to them the Scriptures, and 
 showing that all things are fulfilled in Jesus of Naza- 
 reth. At Konigsberg, Mr. Bergfeldt has received as 
 much as 115/. in one year from the Jews, and, still
 
 PART II. 169 
 
 more recently, 50/. in one quarter, for the sale of the 
 Hebrew Scriptures, at the same time expressing his 
 deep regret that he was obliged to send away so many 
 persons disappointed. At Cracow, Dr. Gerlach bitterly 
 laments his want of Bibles, and estimates that 1,000 
 copies would be sold in a few months, many of which 
 would find their way into the various countries under 
 the Austrian dominions, where the Jews are numerous, 
 almost inaccessible to the personal labours of the mis- 
 sionary, and very destitute of the Word of God. In 
 the same way Hebrew Bibles find their way to the dis- 
 tant provinces of the Russian empire, more especially 
 from Konigsberg, which has been already mentioned. 
 At Jerusalem, Mr. Nicolayson could frequently have 
 sold Bibles at a reduced price to Jewish merchants 
 trading to Bagdad and the interior of Asia, where, 
 after all the additional expense incurred by conveyance 
 to such distant places, they were sure of purchasers for 
 this blessed book. In reading Mr. Ewald's accounts of 
 his proceedings at Tunis, and his journeys along the 
 coast of Africa, the satisfaction felt in hearing of the 
 joyful reception given to God's blessed Word, in a 
 country where but very few entire copies were known, 
 almost yields to the disappointment excited by learning 
 that numbers reluctantly went away with their money 
 in their hand, because the missionary had exhausted 
 his little stock. 
 
 "What can be more affecting than the account given 
 by this Missionary of his preaching salvation through 
 the name of Jesus in the wretched village of Menzel, on 
 the wild shores of Gabis, in Northern Africa, where the 
 Jews had never so much as heard of the Gospel, but 
 where the general cry was, ' Give me a Bible, give me a 
 Bible: here is the money for it!' so that the Mission- 
 i
 
 170 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 ary could not reserve one for other places ; and at 
 Shara, and in the Island of Gerba, and at Tripoli, the 
 poor Jews cried out for the Word of God like children 
 perishing for hunger, but he had none to give them. 
 
 " Numerous conversions also attest that the Gospel is 
 not preached, nor the Word of God distributed in vain. 
 The Baptismal Register of the Episcopal Jews' Chapel 
 contains a list of two hundred and thirty-six indi- 
 viduals of the Jewish nation received into the Church 
 of Christ by baptism, one hundred and fifty-seven 
 having been baptized in the chapel, and seventy-nine 
 previously to its having been opened for Divine service. 
 Of the whole number, seventy-eight were baptized as 
 adults, and the rest as children. Besides these, many 
 Israelites have been baptized in different parts of the 
 kingdom, of whom we have no accurate account. Is it 
 no evidence of the Divine blessing on the work in gene- 
 ral, that there are now at least eight clergymen of the 
 Church of England who are of the Hebrew nation, or 
 that sixteen of the Missionaries and Agents of the 
 Society are converts from Judaism ? As a proof that 
 similar encouragement is met with on the Continent, 
 where the Jews are more numerous, we quote the testi- 
 mony of Dr. Tholuck, an eminent Professor in the 
 Prussian University of Halle. He says 
 . " ' It is undoubted matter of fact, that more proselytes 
 have been made during the last twenty years, than since 
 the first ages of the Church. No one can deny it on 
 the Continent, and no one, I am sure will deny it. Not 
 only in Germany, but also in Poland, there has been 
 the most astonishing success, and I can bear testimony 
 to what has come under my own observation in the 
 capital of Silesia, my native place, where many con- 
 versions have taken place. In this capital I shall speak
 
 PART II. 171 
 
 only of such individuals as I am acquainted with myself 
 in the profession to which I belong. In the University 
 of Breslaw there are three professors who were formerly 
 Israelites. A professor of philology, a professor of 
 chemistry, and a professor of philosophy : there is, be- 
 sides, a clergyman, who professes the Gospel, and he 
 was a Jew. In my present station at Halle, there are 
 no less than five professors, formerly Jews ; one of 
 medicine, one of mathematics, one of law, and two of 
 philology. 
 
 " ' I might show that some of the Jewish conversions 
 have taken place amongst men of the highest literary 
 attainment ; and, amongst others, I might mention Dr. 
 Neander, of Berlin ; Dr. Branis, of Breslaw : and Dr. 
 Stahl, of Erlangen. These are all persons of the highest 
 scientific reputation, and now faithful followers of our 
 Lord Jesus Christ.' 
 
 " The city of Berlin is said to number upwards of 
 700 resident baptized Jews, many of whom are known 
 to be truly converted : and the Rev. Mr. Kuntze alone, 
 who has always taken such a lively interest in the cause 
 of Israel, stated last year that he had himself baptized 
 eighty Jews. He observed, referring, as it is well 
 known, to his own labours among the Jews, 
 
 " 'In Berlin there is one minister, who alone has 
 been the means of bringing eighty individuals to believe 
 in Christ, and I am sure that the cause of preaching 
 the Gospel amongst the Jews will go on more and 
 more.' 
 
 "On the 18th of November, 1836, the Rev. W. 
 Ayerst made the following statement 
 
 " ' Berlin is a very important place. I have baptized 
 here thirty-three Jews in two years and four months, 
 instructed at least one hundred more, for a longer time, 
 i 2
 
 J72 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 besides one hundred more who only came irregularly. 
 I have here considerable intercourse with Jews ; it is a 
 central place ; those who cannot on account of family 
 circumstances join the Christian Church in smaller 
 places, where they are known, meet with less obstacles 
 here in a large town.' 
 
 " And, on the 29th of March last, he states, that 
 during the last quarter, he had baptized five adult 
 Israelites, besides a child. 
 
 " The Society received very lately an official docu- 
 ment, furnished by the Royal Consistory of Silesia, 
 containing a statement of the number of Israelites 
 baptized within the limits of their jurisdiction between 
 the years of 1820 and 1834 inclusive, from which it 
 appears that 347 individuals of the Jewish nation were 
 baptized in the Protestant communion, and 108 in that 
 of the Roman Catholics, making a total of four hundred 
 and fifty-five Jewish converts baptized in fifteen years, 
 in the province of Silesia alone. These persons are in 
 all ranks of life, and many of them are personally 
 known to the friends of our Society as adorning their 
 Christian profession. 
 
 " Another similar official statement, from Konigs- 
 berg, gives a total of two hundred and thirty-four 
 baptisms in twenty-four years; of which 217 are in the 
 Protestant Church, and seventeen among the Roman 
 Catholics. 
 
 " The Missionaries at Warsaw have just furnished a 
 list of 109 baptized by themselves. 
 
 " The Committee are expecting to receive official 
 statements of this kind from several other places, and 
 they ask, is there not abundant evidence that a blessing 
 rests on the work of your Society ?" 
 
 5. In addition to the preceding account, I doubt
 
 PART II. 173 
 
 not the reader will be pleased with the following ex- 
 tracts from the Society's last Report. Mr. Bergfeld^ 
 a Missionary at Konigsberg, writes thus : 
 
 " The real results are of course only known to Him 
 who beholds the secrets of the heart, but I am confident 
 that I have not laboured in vain. Many hundreds 
 heard the Gospel way of salvation stated to them, and 
 not a few for the h'rst time in their lives. Some seemed 
 amazed and struck by it, others gladly consented to it, 
 and on the whole there was a readiness to receive, and 
 in some cases an eagerness to obtain, the New Testa- 
 ment, such as I have never witnessed before. And 
 even the enmity against the Gospel and its ministers 
 which now and then manifests itself, is still such as 
 clearly to demonstrate that they are not able to over- 
 turn his arguments. How often have they confessed 
 to me ' If we go by the Scriptures alone, then you 
 are right ; but if we take the Talmudical writings in 
 connexion with them, then we are right." But even 
 these fortifications begin to totter seriously. According 
 to them the ultimate date for the coming of the Messiah 
 is expired within three years ; and many eyes and 
 hearts are now directed towards that last period. If 
 then their hopes and expectations should not be realized, 
 they confess that they shall be obliged to give up their 
 hope. Yea, their hope and trust in men and human 
 writings they shall indeed be obliged to give up, but 
 not their hope in the real and true Messiah the Lord 
 our Righteousness. 
 
 " O Lord, hasten thy coming to thy waiting people, 
 and appear to them gloriously in these latter times! 
 And may we be ready to take the children of the Lord's 
 people, and carry them in our arms to the Saviour of 
 sinners, that they may be washed from their guilt and
 
 174" DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 shame, and adorned with the robes of righteousness 
 and the garments of salvation." 
 
 6. Extract from Mr. Hausmeister's Journal, Stras- 
 burg : " To-day a young Jew, twenty-two years of age, 
 called upon me. I had previously known him through 
 the Rev. Mr. Brenner, at Bale. He came from Baden, 
 and was till lately a dealer in cattle. In St. Gallen 
 he obtained from a pious minister my tract, and was 
 thereby brought to the knowledge of the Saviour. He 
 reflected much upon Christianity, and spoke of it at 
 home, where he was persecuted. Then he thought, 
 for a while, he could believe in Christ inwardly, and 
 still remain w ith the Jews ; but his conscience would 
 not permit this ; so he left home and all, and came and 
 asked for instruction. He makes an impression as 
 an upright man. I spoke earnestly with him, and tried 
 especially to bring home to him this truth, that a Jew 
 who is converted must know what he believes ; that he 
 must undergo many trials, especially he who was ac- 
 customed to go about as a tradesman ; that he who 
 had been independent, must now be dependent, and 
 learn a trade, and work diligently. He said, ' I know- 
 Jesus is the Messiah, and my soul is only happy in 
 believing in Him.' Now I have confidence in the Lord 
 that he will provide for this man, if he is really upright, 
 and sincere. It is a serious thing for a man of twenty- 
 two years to change all the customs and manners of his 
 life yea, more, to leave all ; yea, still more, to become 
 a new creature. But thou, O Spirit of the Lord, art 
 almighty ; thou canst regenerate also this dear son of 
 Abraham !" 
 
 After continuing similar details of his labours during 
 the year, at the end of December he gives the following 
 sketch of the proceedings of the Strasburg Society :
 
 PART II. 175 
 
 " During this year we were in connexion for a short 
 time with seven Jews, who asked for instruction and 
 baptism. Some of them were sent to other places, be- 
 cause we could not find employment for them ; some 
 left us because they were not sincere ; and one was dis- 
 missed from us, having been baptized at Warsaw. Then 
 we had the care of two Jews, who though baptized iri 
 other places, were residing here. Three Jews and one 
 Jewess are at this moment receiving instruction. One 
 of these Jews has made great sacrifices, and all seem 
 to be sincere, and attend regularly, and with devotion, 
 to their instruction. The Jewess is not only poor, but 
 so ignorant, that she knows nothing of religion, except 
 some foolish rites of the Jews and Roman Catholics. 
 We are also in connexion with the five proselytes 
 formerly baptized here, and we are glad in being able 
 to say that they walk in the way of peace and right- 
 eousness. With two of them do we stand specially 
 united one, the dear brother, Lichtenstein, who is 
 studying at Geneva, in order to become a luminary 
 among his brethren. He is growing in grace and in 
 the knowledge of the Lord. As living is very dear in 
 Geneva, he puts us to great expense. The second, 
 Neuhaus, prepares himself here, in order to become 
 schoolmaster, if we are enabled to open a school for 
 Jewish children." 
 
 7. The following interesting account is from the 
 missionary Becker, at Magdeburgh : 
 
 " Here has been baptized of late a very respectable 
 and rich Jewish merchant, who was very distinguished 
 amongst the Jews, by his great knowledge of the Talmud 
 and Rabbinical learning, and in high reputation as well 
 amongst Jews as Christians. He is a man of about fifty- 
 five years. He was born in Poland, and instructed from
 
 176 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 his childhood in all manner of Jewish learning. But, 
 though diligently instructed in his paternal religion, he 
 was dissatisfied with the inconsistencies of the present 
 Jewish creed, and longed sincerely for internal peace 
 and reconciliation with God. Having two friends, with 
 whom he diligently searched the Scriptures, these latter 
 came, according to many passages of the Old Testament, 
 to the firm persuasion that the Messiah must have come 
 already. They both, in consequence, left their native 
 town, in order to seek the truth, and came to Magde- 
 burgh. Here they found what they sought, their Saviour 
 Jesus Christ, and love and sympathy amongst Christian 
 friends. They receive instruction in the Christian 
 doctrines, and were, after their public confession, 
 baptized in the name of the Triune God. After they 
 had embraced the Christian religion^ they established 
 here an employment, becoming merchants, and the 
 Almighty God crowned with his blessing their efforts, 
 so that after some years they had gained a considerable 
 fortune. One of them married a pious Jewish person, 
 who had also embraced Christianity ; both have already 
 gone to eternity, but one of the two friends is yet living, 
 and is a dear friend and brother in the Lord to me, 
 with whom I often converse. When these friends had 
 found in Magdeburg what they had sought so long, 
 they wrote also to their friend, who was retained in 
 Poland by many circumstances and hindrances, and told 
 him that they had found the Messiah for whom their 
 fathers had waited, Jesus Christ ; and invited him to 
 come also to Him, who came into the world to save 
 sinners, and to seek what was lost. In consequence of 
 this he likewise left Poland, and came to Magdeburg to 
 his friends. Here he began a little trade, to secure hi* 
 subsistence. But the Jews, seeing his inclination tu
 
 PART II. 177 
 
 Christianity, they endeavoured with all their power to 
 prevent his open renouncement of Judaism ; and he 
 was feeble enough to cease. They promoted his 
 marriage with an obstinate Jewish person, who endea- 
 voured to keep him back from the truth, as it is in 
 Christ ; and the devil induced him to think he could 
 secretly serve Christ without being baptized. He. 
 therefore, visited Christian churches without the know- 
 ledge of his wife. Having three children, two daughters, 
 and one son, he allowed them to be instructed by Chris- 
 tian teachers, and when the son was of age he studied 
 theology in Bonn and Berlin, was baptized, and is at 
 present a highly-esteemed and faithful pastor in the 
 neighbourhood. The two daughters were also baptized 
 unknown to the mother, and both afterwards married 
 pious proselytes, one of whom was a merchant here in 
 town, and the other a lawyer in the country. The 
 mother was strongly opposed to all these events, and 
 her husband, for fear of her, remained outwardly a Jew. 
 I then spoke often with him concerning this, reminding 
 him of Matt. x. 32, 33, and saying, that if his wife 
 knew that he was baptized, she would cease from her 
 opposition, seeing it was useless, and he had saved his 
 soul ; for as long as he should remain a Jew, she would 
 doubtless continue in her way, in order to keep hin> 
 back, &c. These and other reasons prevailed, and by 
 the grace of the Lord he broke through, and was 
 baptized suddenly some weeks ago, without having 
 received further instruction, because this was not neces- 
 sary with him, for he had acquired a great knowledge of 
 the plan of salvation by Christ, his Messiah. He is now 
 full of joy, and confesses publicly, that he is a member 
 of the Christian Church. May the Lord preserve him, 
 i 5*
 
 178 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 that he may grow in grace, and inherit the everlasting 
 kingdom of the Lord his Saviour ! " 
 
 8. " As touching Dr. Wolfson," says Mr. Hoff, 
 " who was not long ago appointed physician of the dis- 
 trict of Lublin, he, last Easter, was introduced to the 
 Missionaries by one of our proselytes, who held a serious 
 conversation with him on Christianity. Mr. Wolfson 
 declared that he did not as yet come with the inten- 
 tion of embracing Christianity, but only of becoming 
 acquainted with it, in order to compare it with his own 
 religious views. These were, however, as we soon 
 found, of a Deistic nature. Several of the subsequent 
 conversations, therefore, referred to natural religion to 
 the necessity of a revelation and to the revelation of 
 the Bible as the only true one. As he was searching 
 tor the truth, we recommended and gave him suitable 
 books, as Dr. Bogue's ( Essay on the Divine Authority 
 of the New Testament,' and others. After some time 
 he acknowledged the Divine authority of the Bible in 
 general ; but the person of Christ caused him new 
 difficulties, especially his work of redemption. He 
 allowed him to be an infallible teacher of religion, and 
 the highest example of man, but could not acknowledge 
 him to be the true Son of God and the Redeemer of the 
 world, because he did not as yet know himself. For 
 this reason, also, the supernatural birth, and the atoning 
 death of Christ caused him great difficulties, as he 
 confessed afterwards ; but, by the grace of God, these 
 scruples were removed. His spiritual conflict was 
 decided, particularly by the prophecies of the Old 
 Testament, and more especially by Isaiah vii. 14, and 
 liii. He now persuaded his wife, who had arrived in 
 the mean time, to commence tak'ing with him a regular
 
 PART II. 179 
 
 course of instruction in the Christian religion. She 
 had been educated after the manner of the thus-called 
 enlightened Jews, without any religious instruction, but 
 now willingly submitted to be taught in Christianity, 
 without making any objections, whilst her husband, who 
 is the son of a rabbi at Wilna, and well versed in the 
 Jewish literature, was opposed to several dogmatical 
 points. But the Divine truth of Christianity prevailed 
 over his heart more and more, and he felt more strongly 
 the blessed influence of faith in our Lord Jesus, as it is 
 held out in the Scriptures. A confession of his faith, 
 which he himself composed, and read with a deep-felt 
 emotion of heart, when he and his partner were 
 baptized, on the 23d of December, shows that the 
 grace of God in Christ has found its way to his 
 understanding and heart. The introduction of this 
 confession is ' I believe in the Triune God, the creator, 
 preserver, and governor of the whole world. I believe 
 in Jesus Christ, as the true Messiah, and the only- 
 begotten Son of God.' He then confesses farther, that 
 ' the prophecies of the Old Testament, which were given 
 hundreds and thousands of years before the coming of 
 Christ, oblige every Jew to acknowledge Jesus as the 
 true Messiah ; that their accurate fulfilment in him is a 
 proof of his divinity, as, on the other hand, his appear- 
 ance is a proof of the Divine origin of those prophecies. 
 He then especially mentions Isaiah liii., as the key to 
 Christ's humility, rejection, and death on the cross. It 
 struck him particularly, that the unbelief of his own 
 nation, and the faith of other nations was so plainly 
 foretold in Isaiah Hi. 15, and liii. 1. This confession 
 concludes in the following words : ' I shall for ever 
 praise the Lord, who delivered my soul from perdition. 
 I was already sinking very deeply ; the cords of hell
 
 180 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 compassed me about ; but he stretched out his arm, 
 and lifted me up ; his beam enlightened me, and I was 
 made whole. Let my salvation and my blessing now 
 be God, the Lord, the Governor of all, and his only- 
 begotten Son, Jesus Christ, who suffered for me, was 
 crucified, in order to deliver me from sin, which gnaws 
 at my soul. May the Holy Ghost strengthen me, that 
 I may love God with my whole heart and soul, and 
 become a worthy member of that holy congregation and 
 Church, into the bosom of which I am now to be 
 received, that I may live and die as a true Christian. 
 Amen." This confession was then, with the blessing of 
 the Lord, sealed by the holy sacrament of baptism, for 
 the edification of the assembly, and may it be sealed 
 by the grace of God for the life everlasting !" 
 
 9. After these statements of the success which 
 has already attended the past efforts of Christians to 
 promote the conversion of the Jews, and the half has 
 not been told, what do you think, dear reader, of the 
 signs of the times ? Are they not of a most encouraging 
 nature ? To find the Jews everywhere hungering and 
 thirsting after the pure Word of God, the New as well 
 as the Old Testament ; to read of their travelling a 
 thousand miles or more, to meet with a Missionary to 
 tell them what they must do to be saved ; to be told of 
 more than two thousand Jews converted to the Christian 
 religion in less than twenty years ; to know that about 
 forty converted Jews are now preaching that Jesus 
 whom they from their childhood had been taught 
 to blaspheme ; and to be assured that thousands of 
 Jewish children are daily instructed in Christian schools: 
 these, I say, are events, which, had they been predicted 
 fifty years ago, would have been considered idle tales, a 
 mere chimera, things utterly impossible.
 
 PART II. 181 
 
 What would the venerable Dr. Bogue, Scott, &c., 
 &c., say, were they now living and beheld these delicious 
 first-fruits of that plentiful harvest which must surely 
 follow ? They, however, being dead, yet speak. Their 
 sentiments how to estimate these first-fruits are left on 
 record for our instruction and encouragement. " I 
 regard it, my brethren," says Dr. Bogue, " as a farther 
 encouragement that God has raised up a preacher of the 
 Gospel to the Jews from among themselves.* Here is 
 an instrument fitted for the work, and whose soul is 
 burning for their conversion. The value of a fit 
 instrument to begin a work of difficulty and importance 
 we can easily appreciate. I add one more encourage- 
 ment, that his labours have been accompanied with 
 success. He has certainly been able to attract the 
 attention of a considerable number of his kinsmen : and 
 what is still more important, there are instances in 
 which his preaching has been accompanied with the most 
 powerful efficacy. Two or three persons of the seed of 
 Abraham, have, we trust, been converted from the 
 Jewish religion to the faith of Jesus. To some 
 this may appear a matter of little moment : by 
 others, it will be considered as a great thing. But 
 there is one point of view, in which it must be regarded 
 by all as of the first importance. If an army of an 
 hundred thousand men entered a country with a view to 
 conquest, and a report was spread abroad, that the 
 soldiers were all invulnerable, it would exceedingly 
 discourage the people in their attempts to defend it 
 against them. But, if after a skirmish of half an hour, 
 two or three of the invaders should be found dead on 
 the field of battle, this would wonderfully encourage the 
 inhabitants in their exertions against their enemies. 
 
 * Joseph Samuel C. F. Frey.
 
 182 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 Three individuals out of an hundred thousand is an 
 inconsiderable number: but it infallibly demonstrates 
 that they are not invulnerable, and they may all be 
 slain. Ideas somewhat resembling these, some have 
 entertained in respect to the Jews ; namely, that it is 
 impossible to convert them. This has utterly dis- 
 couraged many Christians from ever attempting their 
 conversion. But when we see two or three actually 
 converted, their conversion is proved to be a possible 
 thing, and we reasonably conclude that, with persevering 
 diligence and zeal, tens of thousands of Israel may be 
 saved. Weigh this, my brethren, with the attention 
 which it deserves; and I hope the effects will be to 
 produce the most vigorous exertions for their salvation." 
 God grant it may be so ! 
 
 The venerable Mr. Scott describes the importance of 
 providing for the future harvest, by not neglecting the 
 time of sowing ; observes that " should the produce of 
 a few grains of wheat be sown every succeeding year, it 
 would soon suffice for sowing a whole county. Thus," 
 he adds, " should the attention of Jews be but called to 
 the subject, should some be led with this view, to study 
 their own Scriptures, the few who become Christians 
 would necessarily be zealous for the conversion of their 
 brethren where they reside. Let then only a few avow 
 faith in Jesus, the aggregate effects on their kindred in 
 no long term of years is incalculable." Happily the 
 experiment made in faith has succeeded since he 
 preached that sermon to the Society. Its first tract was 
 the means of converting Murtheim, who devoted him- 
 self for labouring among his brethren (and such Maho- 
 metans as would listen) in Barbary and Palestine. In 
 several places he left little companies of believers who 
 assemble every Sabbath to read St. Luke, which he 
 copied for them, and to pray in the name of Jesus.
 
 PART II. 183 
 
 Were not St. Paul, c. thankful if a few souls were 
 given to their ministry in each place ? even so few as to 
 find "an upper chamber" sufficient for their church? 
 Let us not despise the day of small things ! 
 
 I proceed now to consider 
 
 Thirdly, The many and glorious benefits which will 
 result from the conversion of the Jews, as another power- 
 ful argument to seek the salvation of Israel. 
 
 These benefits, if I am not greatly mistaken, will rank 
 next to those that followed the incarnation of the Son of 
 God. At his birth the angels sang, " Glory to God in the 
 highest : and on earth peace, good-will towards men ;" 
 and when the Jews are converted, God will be glorified, 
 angels will rejoice, and men will be blessed. 
 
 1. In Psalm cii., a prophecy concerning the 
 future conversion of the Jews, as will be shown here- 
 after, it is foretold that " When the Lord shall build 
 up Zion, he shall appear in his glory." 
 
 If we be Christians indeed, there is no one object 
 which we have more at heart than this, ' that God in all 
 things may be glorified through Jesus Christ.' And how 
 astonishingly will the conversion of the Jews promote 
 it ! Long, long, have that unhappy people dishonoured 
 God by rejecting the Messiah promised to the fathers. 
 For seventeen hundred years they have trodden under 
 foot the Son of God, and accounted the blood of the 
 covenant, shed for the remission of their sins, to be an 
 unholy thing. But when the children of Israel return 
 to the Lord ; when they look upon him whom they have 
 pierced, and mourn ; when they believe in him whom 
 God hath sent, and trust in him for righteousness and 
 strength ; and when in him the house of Israel shall 
 seek to be justified, and glory, God will be glorified 
 in an eminent degree. To see this people lying at Je-
 
 184- DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 hovah's feet confessing the heinousness of their guilt 
 in rejecting Christ, acknowledging themselves altogether 
 in the wrong, and God altogether in the right, intreating 
 him to pardon their sins, and be reconciled to them 
 again ; this is highly honourable to him. To hear them 
 professing their belief, that Jesus of Nazareth is the 
 true Messiah ; to behold them covered with shame and 
 confusion efface, because they refused to receive him; 
 to hear them express their cordial faith in his name, and 
 their entire dependence on him for wisdom, righteous- 
 ness, sanctification, and redemption ; and their solemn 
 purpose to li\*e no longer to themselves, but to him who 
 died for them and rose again, is glorifying God in the 
 highest degree ; for it is a profession from his own 
 people of their approbation of his great plan for man's 
 redemption, and a cordial acknowledgment that God is 
 infinitely wise, holy, righteous, good and faithful in the 
 whole of it, both in the contrivance and execution. 
 When we add to this, their living in subjection to the 
 Lord Jesus Christ, and their zealous labours throughout 
 the world for bringing the nations to Christ, and the 
 astonishing display of the Divine dispensations towards 
 that people, presented to the wondering eyes of the 
 whole Christian Church, we may form some idea of the 
 vast revenue of glory which will hence accrue to God. 
 2. Angels too will greatly rejoice at the conver- 
 sion of the Jews. For " are they not all ministering 
 spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs 
 of salvation ? " When God created the world, " the 
 morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God 
 shouted for joy ; " how much greater will be their 
 rejoicing when a whole nation shall be born in a day. 
 If there be "joy in heaven amongst the angels over 
 one sinner that repenteth," how much greater will that
 
 185 
 
 joy be when " the house of David and the inhabitants 
 of Jerusalem shall look unto him whom they have 
 pierced, and mourn for it (i. e. the act of having pierced 
 him,) "as one that mourneth for his only son, and shall 
 be in bitterness for it, as one that is in bitterness for 
 his first-born," Zech. xii. 10. 
 
 3. But let us consider more particularly the 
 beneficial effects which the conversion of the Jews will 
 have both upon themselves and upon the whole human 
 race. Their conversion to God will be the commence- 
 ment of true happiness, the greatest felicity to their own 
 souls. The misery of their present state is'truly deplor- 
 able, as has already been shown ; but, by receiving the 
 Gospel of Christ, and believing in the name of the Son 
 of God, how happy will they become ! Blessed with 
 the forgiveness of sins, enjoying peace of conscience, 
 renewed in the spirit of their minds, and daily tasting 
 the sweetness of communion with the Father, and with 
 his Son Jesus Christ, they will be introduced into a new 
 world, and find, under the dominion of the Messiah, a 
 happiness unknown to them before. And to all this 
 happiness will be added, in the world to come, ever- 
 lasting life. Having thus obtained mercy, they will 
 prove a blessing to others also. 
 
 4. At the very call of Abraham, Jehovah promised, 
 that " in his seed all the families of the earth should be 
 blessed." Now it is cheerfully granted that Messiah is 
 emphatically that seed; but it cannot be denied that, in 
 the literal and natural seed of Abraham, all civilized, 
 and especially all Christianized nations, have already 
 been blessed, and reason and Scripture teach us that 
 their conversion will prove a still greater and far more 
 extensive blessing. " The Jewish people," says Dr. 
 Bogue, "have been raised up to hold a distinguished
 
 lob DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 rank in the history of man, and in promoting his most 
 important interests. Till their dispersion by the Romans, 
 no nation or kingdom was to be compared to them. The 
 various preceding scatterings of them in Chaldea, in 
 Persia, in Egypt, in Syria, in Greece, and at Rome, 
 were eminently beneficial to the inhabitants of these 
 countries, for they carried with them their sacred books, 
 and the worship of the true God. What blessings the 
 Prophets of God, and the Apostles of Jesus Christ, and 
 the first preachers of the Gospel were, need not be said. 
 The world never saw such men ; the human race never 
 could boast of such benefactors ; nor do the annals of 
 the nations contain names to be once mentioned with 
 theirs, in promoting the highest happiness of mankind ; 
 but, when they shall be converted, they will resume 
 their ancient dignified spirit, and become again a 
 blessing to mankind." 
 
 5. Nor have the Jews ceased from being a blessing, 
 even in their present captive state. Their unparalleled 
 sufferings in exact fulfilment of the predictions 
 contained in the Sacred Scriptures, have silenced the 
 Infidel, and convinced many a sceptic of the truth of 
 Divine Revelation. Such was the case with Lord 
 Rochester and others ; and " there is now," saith Mr. 
 Stowell, "in a northern county, a distinguished minister, 
 who, in earlier life, whilst serving as a military officer, 
 having been plunged into licentiousness, would fain have 
 silenced conscience, by becoming an unbeliever; but he 
 could not overcome the ocular demonstration of the 
 truth presented by the Jews. In the bitterness of his 
 spirit he often cursed them as the destroyers of his 
 peace, whereas now he blesses them as having been the 
 last barrier between him and the dread abyss." Now, 
 if in their present dispersed and degraded condition, they
 
 PART II. 187 
 
 are still a light to shine in darkness, how much clearer 
 will that light be, and how much stronger those evidences 
 arising from the fulfilment of those many predictions 
 relating to the restoration and conversion of my dear 
 people ? The conversion of a Jew, in his present abject 
 condition, is generally ascribed to sinister motives; but, 
 when the Jews are brought back to their own land, 
 rebuild their city and their temple, and enjoy all that 
 for 1 800 years they longed for, and after that, voluntarily 
 give up all as vanity, and less than vanity, and believe 
 in the name of that Jesus whom they have so long 
 hated and blasphemed, and trust in his righteousness 
 alone for salvation, to what other cause will such a 
 change be ascribed, but to "the glorious Gospel of the 
 blessed God, as the wisdom and power of God unto 
 salvation ? " 
 
 6. " Were there no prophetic star to guide us in our 
 expectations for the house of Jacob, their present state 
 and circumstances might well induce us to conclude 
 that they are reserved for mighty purposes, altogether 
 unprecedented and unparalleled in the condition of that 
 marvellous people. Not only was the signal prophecy 
 delivered in the outset of their career, " Lo, the people 
 shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the 
 nations," Numb. xxii. 9, verified during the period of 
 their national establishment in Judea, and during the 
 season of their captivity in Babylon, but it has now been 
 verifying during eighteen hundred years of universal 
 dispersion and desolation ; they continue like oil on the 
 surface of the ocean, everywhere diffused, yet nowhere 
 blended ; a Jew in Britain and a Jew at the antipodes, 
 the comely Israelite of Europe and the swarthy Israelite 
 of India, retain the same broad lineaments of identity, 
 are characterized by the same bold national peculiarities.
 
 188 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 The iron footprints of centuries have not obliterated 
 their distinctive features, nor all the fury of despotism 
 and power succeeded in even diminishing their number. 
 There is much reason to suppose that they are at this 
 moment as vast a multitude as they were in the meri- 
 dian of their country's splendour. They stand forth, 
 therefore, in the face of the world a living and a lasting 
 miracle a mighty though a dislocated monument, on 
 every fragment of which the truth of Scripture is 
 inscribed in characters of light. We fearlessly challenge 
 Infidelity to gainsay the irrefragable testimony ; its 
 energy has been felt. 
 
 " Have, then, the Jewish race been so preternaturally 
 preserved merely as a beacon of Divine vengeance, 
 setting forth the fearful judgment, but never to set 
 forth the superabounding grace of God? God forbid I 
 The imagination cannot be entertained. Sound philo- 
 sophy would, therefore, from an enlightened survey of 
 the Jewish people, be predisposed, if not to anticipate 
 at least to embrace the glorious prospects which the 
 prophetic page unfolds for Israel. 
 
 7. What Providence most distinctly intimates, 
 prophecy most unequivocally confirms. 
 
 That the Jews, after their conversion, will prove a 
 greater blessing to the world at large than they have 
 ever been before, is clearly and positively declared in 
 the Word of God. The Apostle not only assures us 
 that the conversion of the Jews is possible and certain, 
 but he also declares that their restoration will prove a 
 more extensive means of the conversion of the Gentiles 
 than their dispersion has been. For he thus reasons, 
 " I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? 
 God forbid ; but rather through their fail salvation 
 is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to
 
 PART II. 189 
 
 jealousy. Now, if the fall of them be the riches of the 
 world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the 
 Gentiles, how much more their fulness? For, if the 
 casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, 
 what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the 
 dead?" Rom. xi. 11, 12, 15. 
 
 Amongst many other excellent remarks upon the 
 passages here quoted from the Apostle, Mr. Scott has 
 the following : " As their conversion will fulfil so very 
 many ancient prophecies concerning their restoration, 
 and will probably be effected by the fulfilment of many 
 other prophecies ; so it will doubtless conduce to the 
 conversion of the remaining heathen nations." " The 
 event will accomplish so many prophecies, in so open 
 and signal a manner, that Infidelity in every form must 
 be finally confuted and silenced, and the attention of 
 the most heedless must be excited to the astonishing 
 display of the power of God, in performing his word ; 
 and, as He delighteth in mercy, He will effectually 
 concur with these impressions, by pouring out his Holy 
 Spirit to convert the nations, and to render genuine 
 Christianity universally triumphant; probably to a very 
 great degree by ministers and missionaries of converted 
 Israel." See also Doddridges Expositor, note ( a ) on 
 Rom. xi. 12. 
 
 The predictions and promises relative to this subject, 
 contained in the Old Testament, are too numerous to be 
 introduced in this place. I shall select but a few, and 
 commence with the most Evangelical Prophet, Isaiah. 
 " And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the 
 mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in 
 the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the 
 hills, and all nations shall flow unto it. And many 
 people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to
 
 190 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of 
 Jacob : and He will teach us of his ways, and we will 
 walk in his paths ; for out of Zion shall go forth the 
 law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And 
 He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke 
 many people ; and they shall beat their swords into 
 plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks ; nation 
 shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they 
 learn war any more ! " ch. ii. 2 4. 
 
 " The myriads of the natural Israel," says Bishop 
 Horsley, commenting upon Hos. ii. 23, " converted by 
 the preaching of the Apostles, were the first seed of the 
 universal Church. And there is reason to believe, that 
 the restoration of the converted Jews will be the occa- 
 sion and means of a prodigious influx of new converts 
 from the Gentiles, in the latter ages," Rom. xi. 12, 15; 
 Isaiah xiv. 1, " For the Lord will have mercy on 
 Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their 
 own land ; and the strangers shall be joined with them, 
 and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob." 
 
 Mr. Scott upon this and the verse which follows it, 
 observes, " We do not read that the Jews ever ruled 
 over the Chaldeans, or had any number of them for 
 servants. (See ver. 2.) It may therefore be inferred, 
 that still more important events were predicted : and in 
 general all the prophecies relating to the destruction of 
 Babylon have, no doubt, a typical reference to the 
 destruction of Rome and the Papal domination, as fore- 
 told by St. John : which will be followed by the restora- 
 tion of both Judah and Israel in great honour and 
 prosperity, and then this part of the prophecy will 
 receive a far more signal accomplishment." 
 
 Isaiah liv. 1, 2, 3, is decidedly in favour of our posi- 
 tion, " Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear ; break
 
 PART II. 191 
 
 forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not 
 travail with child: for more are the children of the 
 desolate than of the married wife, saith the Lord. En- 
 large the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth 
 the curtains of thine habitations : spare not, lengthen 
 thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes. For thou shalt 
 break forth on the right hand and on the left ; and thy 
 feed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate 
 cities to be inhabited." 
 
 " In the foregoing chapter the prophet describes the 
 sufferings of Christ, and here he prophesies the increase 
 and glory of the Church, which should follow ; which 
 indeed were to commence from the time of Christ's pas- 
 sion, but would not be completed till . . . after the Jews 
 were again restored to God's favour." Bishop Louth. 
 
 Passing by several predictions in Jeremiah, we will 
 notice one or two from Ezekiel : " I will accept you 
 with your sweet savour, when I bring you out from the 
 people, and gather you out of the countries wherein ye 
 have been scattered ; and I will be sanctified in you 
 before the heathen." Ezekiel xx. 4. 
 
 " This was fulfilled in part by their restoration from 
 captivity ; but it seems to be a prediction of the estab- 
 lishment of the Christian Church ; and also, and indeed 
 more expressly, of the future conversion of the Jews, and 
 their restoration to their own land." Scott on verses 
 40 44. 
 
 " And I will make them and the places round about 
 my hill a blessing ; and I will cause the shower to come 
 down in his season ; there shall be showers of blessing ! " 
 Ezekiel xxxiv. 26. " Yes, my brethren," saith Mr. 
 Bingham, " these will prove enriching showers for the 
 whole world : and when the Lord shall return to Jeru- 
 salem with loving-kindnesses, then all the rest of man-
 
 192 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 kind shall be remembered for good. The fructifying 
 influence of the former and latter rain, while it enriches 
 the valleys of the delightsome land, shall also cause 
 the barren wilderness of the Gentile world to blossom 
 as the rose ! " 
 
 Mr. Scott observes upon the context, " That the 
 destruction of Antichrist, the calling of the Gentiles, 
 the restoration of the Jews into the Church and to 
 their own land, and the consequent peace and prosperity 
 of the Church and of the world, can alone fully answer 
 to the energetic language of these predictions." 
 
 Again, saith the prophet Ezekiel, " And the heathen 
 shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity 
 for their iniquity : because they trespassed against me, 
 therefore hid I my face from them, and gave them into 
 the hand of their enemies : so fell they all by the 
 sword ! " And in ver. 27 29, " When I have brought 
 them again from the people, and gathered them out of 
 their enemies' lands, and am sanctified in them in the 
 sight of many nations ; then shall they know that I 
 am the Lord their God, which caused them to be led 
 into captivity among the heathen ; but I have gathered 
 them into their own land, and have left none of them 
 any more there, neither will I hide my face any more 
 from them : for I have poured out my Spirit upon the 
 house of Israel, saith the Lord God I " 
 
 Mr. Scott makes the following important remarks 
 upon these words : " The return of a few Jews from 
 Babylon, and their continuance, increase, partial refor- 
 mation, and prosperity, till the days of Christ, followed 
 by their present long-continued dispersion, under the 
 frown of God, and destitute of his Spirit, could in no 
 degree answer to these predictions. We are, therefore, 
 constrained, either to explain them exclusively of the
 
 PART II. 193 
 
 blessings conferred on the Church at large, or to con- 
 clude that some future events, exactly answerable to 
 them, shall take place in respect of the nation of Israel ; 
 and this latter interpretation is far more consistent with 
 the obvious method of explaining the Scriptures." 
 
 Let us also appeal to the prophet Zechariah : " And 
 it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among 
 the heathen, O house of Judah, and house of Israel ; so 
 will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing : Fear not, 
 but let your hands be strong." Chapter viii. 13. " This 
 may fairly be looked upon as an unfulfilled prediction, 
 Judah and the ten tribes having an equal interest in the 
 promise : and can any thing be more decided ? This 
 cursed race shall yet be a blessing! May the Lord 
 hasten it in his time ! " Bingham.. " The mentioning 
 of both Judah and Israel, which had been so long sepa- 
 rated, shows that both the curse and the blessing here 
 spoken of, in the ultimate sense, belong to the whole 
 body of the Jews : who, as they are a public instance of 
 God's judgments now, so shall they hereafter be of his 
 blessings, viz. at the general restoration and conversion 
 of that nation." Lowth. " It may be added that this 
 event will be <ts life from the dead to all the nations ; 
 and the Jews shall then indeed be a blessing to mankind 
 at large." Scott. And further, the testimony of the 
 last-cited passage is doubly strengthened by the 20th 
 and two following verses of the same chapter : " Thus 
 saith the Lord of Hosts, It shall yet come to pass, that 
 there shall come people and the inhabitants of many 
 cities. And the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, 
 saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, 
 and to seek the Lord of hosts : I will go also. Yea, 
 many people and strong nations shall come to seek the 
 
 K
 
 194? DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the 
 Lord ! " Verily it will be a blessed period for the 
 world universally, when such delightful prospects shall 
 indeed be realized ! Let us lift our hearts in earnest 
 prayer to Jehovah, and fervently ejaculate, " Thy king- 
 dom come I " 
 
 " These verses refer to the great accession of converts 
 which the Jewish Church received between the captivity 
 and the coming of Christ ; to the number of Christian 
 disciples which the Jewish preachers (the Apostles and 
 Evangelists) made ; and to the future conversions, of 
 which the restoration of the Jews will be an eminent 
 cause." Bishop Neiccombe. 
 
 " This prophecy has never yet been accomplished ; 
 for it is absurd to suppose it accomplished in the few 
 Gentile proselytes, made occasionally before the days 
 of the first advent. And if it be not yet accomplished, 
 we must look for its completion in the days of the second 
 advent, agreeably to many predictions to which this is 
 exactly parallel." See Isa. ii. 1 5; Ixvi. 12, and 
 1 9 24> ; and Mic. iv. 1 3. Mr. Faber. 
 
 Consult also an interesting note in Mr. Scott, which 
 is too long for insertion here, excepting his valuable 
 testimony to our views in the following words : " And 
 it is highly probable, indeed there can scarcely be a 
 doubt, that numbers of the converted Jews will be 
 employed and greatly prospered in the future conver- 
 sion of the Gentiles ! " See Isa. Ixvi. 19. 
 
 8. From these predictions it evidently appears that 
 the conversion of the Jews will be a most extensive 
 blessing to the nations of the earth. Mr. Faber, the 
 pious and most profound student of prophecy, has, I 
 believe, proved to a demonstration, that the general con-
 
 PART II. IU5 
 
 version of the world will not take place till after the con- 
 version of the Jewish nation.* But let not the reader 
 suppose for a moment that I am an opponent to efforts 
 made by any Society to promote the conversion of the 
 Gentiles. God forbid ! I have ever been the friend and 
 advocate of missionary efforts, and most sincerely wish 
 that the number of the dear missionaries may be multi- 
 plied a hundredfold. For although the conversion of the 
 world may not take place till after the Jews are con- 
 verted, yet much good has already been done by Mis- 
 sionaries during the last forty years, and much greater 
 things will yet be accomplished. Surely no one who 
 is acquainted with the missionary proceedings of the 
 present century will suppose for a moment that the late 
 venerable Dr. Bogue, the father of the London Mis- 
 sionary Society, was an opponent to missionary efforts, 
 and yet he also considered the conversion of the Jews 
 as a most effectual means of promoting the conversion 
 of the heathen world. Hear his own words : " The 
 Gentile Christian Church will by their means be com- 
 forted, revived, and animated to glorify God, and pro- 
 mote the cause of Christ, while the Mahomedan and 
 Pagan nations will feel the happy effects of their active 
 zeal, and by their labours be brought in vast multitudes 
 to the knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus. The 
 language of prophetic Scripture concerning them fully 
 confirms this assertion, Rom. xi. 12, 15, Zech. viii. 23. 
 Not to multiply quotations, may we not plainly gather 
 from these two, that as the Jews, who were converted 
 by our Lord's ministry, and commissioned by him to 
 preach the Gospel to the Gentiles, were the grand 
 instruments in planting the Christian Church in the 
 world, and of founding the kingdom of the Redeemer 
 * Sermon on the conversion of the Jews, 1822. 
 K 2
 
 196 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 among the nations; so in the latter days, the Jews, 
 when converted by Gentile believers, will be active, 
 zealous, and successful preachers of the Gospel, and, 
 in a very eminent degree, contribute their aid in bring- 
 ing all the Mahomedan and Pagan nations into subjec- 
 tion to Jesus Christ ? Every friend of missions, then, 
 must be deeply convinced that in seeking the salvation 
 of the Jews we are promoting the conversion of the 
 heathen, and are enlisting fellow-labourers to assist us 
 in the work. Their dispersion in almost every country, 
 and their knowledge of almost every language, give 
 them peculiar advantages for missionary exertions ; 
 and, I doubt not, is designed by Providence for that 
 end. Nothing is wanting but their conversion, of which 
 prophecy has assured us. Let every heart, then, be 
 united to bring to pass that great and blessed change." 
 The same idea is thus stated by Mr. Stowell : 
 
 " Not only from isolated predictions, however, but 
 from the general tenour of the prophecies relating to 
 the latter periods of the Church, may it be clearly 
 deduced, that the conversion of Israel is to be the first- 
 fruits of that magnificent harvest which is ultimately to 
 be gathered from the whole earth. The exaltation of 
 Zion shall be the elevation of a standard, to which all 
 nations shall flow together. When the Lord shall arise 
 upon her, the Gentiles shall come to her light, and 
 kings to the brightness of her rising, Isa. Ix. 3. Her 
 redemption is, therefore, the hinge on which revolve 
 the destinies of the human race. We may glean many 
 rich clusters before her deliverance ; but not till then 
 shall the full vintage be gathered. It is an incontro- 
 vertible fact, that since the Jewish champions of the 
 cross were wholly withdrawn from the Christian host, 
 comparatively circumscribed and insignificant have been
 
 PART II. 197 
 
 the conquests of the Church. It was conclusively ar- 
 gued, on an occasion kindred to the present, by a dis- 
 tinguished expositor of prophecy, that there has been 
 nothing deserving the name of national conversion since 
 the earlier triumphs of Christianity. Does not history 
 thus appear to give her testimony in support of that 
 interpretation of prophecy which we have been advo- 
 cating ? And even judging according to the operation 
 of secondary causes, it is not difficult to conceive that 
 the restoration, conversion, and exaltation of Israel, 
 must exert a mighty, an overpowering influence on the 
 kingdoms of the world. An accomplishment of pro- 
 phecy so stupendous, a miraculous interposition so 
 universal, must arouse the most insensible, arrest the 
 most heedless, and stagger the most sceptical. 
 
 " But directly, as well as indirectly, are the Jews to 
 subserve the evangelization of the world. It is strongly 
 intimated by the voice of revelation, that they are to be 
 the seed ' sown in the earth,' and ' the joy of the whole 
 earth.' Let it be remembered that there have been no 
 such evangelists as those which Judah furnished. The 
 quarry whence a Paul, a Peter, and a John, were hewn, 
 is the quarry whence we ought to look for the noblest 
 missionaries of the latter days. There they exist, pre- 
 eminently qualified already for the missionary enter- 
 prize, and only needing the vivifying touch of heavenly 
 grace to make them stand up a mighty army, trained 
 and harnessed for the conflict. Scattered among all 
 people, inured to all climates, familiar with all lan- 
 guages, intimate with all customs, disciplined to all 
 hardships, they would require no tedious process of 
 preparation they might leap at once, fully appointed, 
 into the battle-field. Long and loud have been the 
 complaints of the Church, that whilst the harvest is
 
 198 DUTY OF CHRISTIANS. 
 
 plenteous, the duly-fitted labourers are lamentably few. 
 Why have not her eyes been turned with more intense 
 expectancy to that people, who supplied the glorious 
 band that bare the cross triumphant round the globe ? 
 If indeed she travail in birth till the world be redeemed; 
 if she be very jealous for the honour o her Lord ; if 
 her bowels yearn over the miseries of mankind ; if she 
 be weary of her humiliation and reproach ; if she be 
 oftentimes constrained to exclaim, ' O Lord, how long ! ' 
 then let her sympathies, her efforts, her expectations, 
 and her intercessions, be more concentrated on the lost 
 sheep of the house of Israel." 
 
 9. To close this subject, I would name the con- 
 firmation of the doctrines of our holy religion as 
 another happy effect of the conversion of the Jews. It 
 cannot but be exceedingly painful to the lover of truth, 
 when seriously reflecting how almost every doctrine of 
 the Bible is either openly denied or awfully perverted 
 and corrupted ; and this is not the case with the wicked 
 and profane only, but many honest and sincere pro- 
 fessors of the Christian religion, hold pernicious errors, 
 as if they were truth taught in the Bible, merely be- 
 cause they were handed down to them as a legacy of 
 their forefathers. Such was the case with the apostle 
 Paul before his conversion ; he verily thought that Jesus 
 Christ had been an impostor, deceiver, and blasphemer. 
 But after his conversion, when he was led to examine 
 the Scriptures, he renounced the vain traditions received 
 of the fathers, and became a zealous defender of the 
 faith delivered unto the saints. The Jews, being once 
 convinced by the Spirit of God of their guilty and 
 helpless condition as sinners before the bar of Jehovah, 
 will receive no other Messiah but one who is a Divine 
 person, made a perfect satisfaction for sin, and brought
 
 PART II. 199 
 
 in an everlasting righteousness. Like Thomas, they 
 will acknowledge Jesus Christ as their Lord and their 
 God. Then the Jews, as a nation, will adopt the whole 
 of that glorious prediction of Isaiah, which has never 
 been fulfilled, and say, " He was despised and rejected 
 of men ; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief : 
 and we hid as it were our faces from him ; he was 
 despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has 
 borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows : yet we did 
 esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 
 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was 
 bruised for our iniquities : the chastisement of our 
 peace was upon him ; and with his stripes we are 
 healed." Isa. liii. 3 5. Notwithstanding all that 
 has been said, there have been many objections raised 
 against the Christian efforts made to promote the con- 
 version of the Jews. Those considered the most 
 weighty I shall answer in the next Part.
 
 200 
 
 PART III. 
 
 OBJECTIONS TO THE EFFORTS MADE TO 
 PROMOTE THE SALVATION OF ISRAEL. 
 
 1. HAVING been engaged for more than thirty 
 years in behalf of my Jewish brethren, I have had more 
 frequent opportunities than others to hear objections, 
 which would fill a volume. A gentleman in Wiltshire 
 thought the object a very bad one, because thousands 
 had nothing to live upon but a little pork, but when the 
 Jews are converted he thought pork would become so 
 scarce and dear that many would starve. Another 
 person at Leith was quite shocked at the thought of the 
 Jews being converted, for he had been taught to believe 
 that, when the Jews are converted, the world would be 
 at an end, and that to him seemed to be a great 
 calamity, for the world was his only portion. But such, 
 and a multitude of other objections, I shall pass by, 
 and notice only one common objection with Jews and 
 Infidels, and then proceed to answer such as are ad- 
 vanced by those who profess to " pray for the peace of 
 Jerusalem." 
 
 It is a too common assertion, " that for a person to 
 change the religion in which he was born and brought 
 up, is the worst thing he can do, and is a sure evidence
 
 PART III. 201 
 
 of his being a bad man, and therefore, it is very wrong 
 to persuade the Jews to become Christians." To my 
 Jewish brother I would say, you would certainly be 
 shocked at the very thought that our father Abraham, 
 who renounced the idolatrous religion of his fathers, 
 and worshipped the true God, " did the worst thing a 
 man could do, and thereby evinced himself to be a bad 
 man." Besides, if his conduct was blamable, the blame 
 falls on Jehovah, whose express command was the rule 
 of his conduct. And dare any one, who is called by the 
 name of Jesus, assert such a principle ? Did not He 
 commission his apostles and ministers to preach his 
 Gospel to every nation ; to open their blind eyes ; and 
 to turn them from darkness to light ; from their dumb 
 idols, to serve the living and true God ? If a Jew or a 
 Gentile, for renouncing the religion of his fathers, and 
 believing in Jesus Christ, be blamable, the blame 
 belongs to Jesus, who commands all to believe in him, 
 and not to him who obeys this divine command. 
 Further, is it not universally considered contrary to 
 reason, to continue in the erroneous belief and practice 
 of our forefathers, in matters of a temporary or worldly 
 nature ? The husbandman, the mariner, the mechanic, 
 the artist, the lawyer, and the statesman, each and every 
 one considers it his duty and privilege to depart from 
 the old mistaken views, principles, modes, and manners 
 of his forefathers, and to follow the more correct, 
 improved, and useful ideas and principles of the present 
 day : and why should we not much more renounce the 
 religious errors of our forefathers, and embrace the true 
 religion of the Bible ? Surely it is of infinitely greater 
 importance to secure our spiritual and eternal happiness, 
 than to improve our temporal and worldly circumstances ; 
 for " what is a man profited," saith the Lord of 
 K 5
 
 202 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 heaven and earth, ; ' if he gain the whole world, and 
 lose his own soul ? or what shall a man give in ex- 
 change for his soul ? " Matt. xvi. 26. However un- 
 scriptural and unreasonable this maxim is, alas ! it is 
 very common. I have observed, with much grief and 
 sorrow of heart, that it is the foundation of the religious 
 creeds of mankind in general, until the Spirit of God 
 impresses on their hearts the importance of caring for 
 their precious and immortal souls. Few can assign a 
 better reason why they are heathens, Mahomedans, 
 Jews, or Christians, than that their forefathers had been 
 of the same persuasion. O, Christian reader ! what is 
 the foundation of your hope ? why are you a Christian 
 and not a Jew ? why a Protestant and not a Roman 
 Catholic? why an Episcopalian or a Presbyterian, 
 &c. &c. Is it because, like the noble Bereans, you 
 have examined the Scriptures, and built upon the 
 foundation that God has laid therein ; or have you 
 followed the mere example of your forefathers ? Re- 
 member, that religion is a personal thing, and that you 
 and I must very soon appear at the bar of Almighty 
 God, and be either acquitted or condemned, after being 
 tried and judged, not by the peculiar creed of our 
 parents, but by his revealed will, contained in the 
 Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. 
 
 That those who do not care for their own souls 
 should object to the efforts made to convert Jews or 
 Gentiles, is not strange ; but, what shall we say to 
 those who profess to pray for the prosperity of Zion, and 
 yet object to these efforts? In charity, however, we 
 hope that these objections arise from mistaken ideas, 
 rather than from a disposition to oppose that which is 
 good. This was the case with the Church at Rome, 
 and, to rectify their mistakes, the Apostle favoured us
 
 PART III. 203 
 
 with that all-precious lith chapter in the Romans, so 
 full of encouragement to seek the salvation of Israel. 
 Some of these objections I will notice and answer. 
 
 2. It has frequently been objected that " the sins 
 of the Jews are so aggravated, and their nature so 
 depraved, that all efforts to promote their conversion 
 are useless." 
 
 I was present, and there are others still living who 
 remember, when a Doctor of Divinity, who had come 
 500 miles to preach at the Jews' Chapel, Church-street, 
 Spitalfields, a " demonstration " sermon, took for his 
 text the institution of the cities of refuge for the pro- 
 tection of the manslayer, and the command of God to 
 put to death the wilful murderer ; and from these 
 premises he argued, at a considerable length, the impos- 
 sibility of the salvation of the Jews, because they had 
 murdered the Lord of Glory. It will be in vain to 
 attempt a description of my feelings whilst sitting 
 beneath the pulpit. For, if the preacher's doctrine had 
 been true, how wretched would have been my own con- 
 dition, as well as that of my dear Jewish brethren ! 
 But the Lord gave me patience till the speaker had 
 finished. I then apologized for him, that doubtless the 
 infirmities of age had so weakened his memory, that he 
 had forgotten, that on the day of Pentecost 3000 Jews, 
 whom the Apostle had charged with having crucified 
 Christ, when they asked, what they must do to be 
 saved, Peter said, " Repent, and be baptized, every one 
 of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of 
 sins." And, blessed be God, that the same grace which 
 made Peter's preaching effectual to the conversion of 
 3000 is still the same ; and the same precious blood of 
 Christ, which procured the pardon of their sins, never 
 loses its pardoning and cleansing influences.
 
 204- OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 " Can a Jew be in a more hopeless state than that in 
 which we and all mankind were brought by sin ? even 
 to be dead in it ; neither desiring nor knowing any need 
 of pity or help. Why then, if ' God hath quickened us 
 in Christ,' why doubt him who declared, ' He that 
 believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live,' 
 Avhy doubt this for Jew or Gentile ? The venerable 
 Scott says, ' When I remember how hard and obstinate 
 an unbeliever I myself once was, and that I was 
 brought to call Jesus my Lord and my God ! I cannot 
 despair of any human being, nor doubt but the same 
 agency is sufficient to make the most scornful Jew 
 worship the crucified Nazarene.' None had ever 
 greater proof of their enmity against Jesus than St. 
 Paul ; but did he despair ? No ! for he remembered 
 his own former enmity, when he had 'wished himself 
 accursed from Christ,' cut off from his name, cause, and 
 people ; can he doubt of others ? No ! In Romans ix. 
 he shows that their fall is neither total nor final,* that 
 God has an election among them still (ver. 1 5), that 
 their conversion is practicable (ver. 23), probable (ver. 
 24), certain* (ver. 26), that means are to be used (ver. 
 14), that it will not only be a blessing to the Avorld 
 (ver. 12, 15), but will accomplish the great end of all 
 things, the glory of the Lord (ver. 33, 36), when they 
 shall be* called and saved in the latter day (ver. 26, 27, 
 32). Hence Paul expected to save some, because he, as 
 well as we, lived in the dispensation of the fulness of 
 times (Eph. i. 10). In ver. 17th, &c., speaking of our 
 being grafted in as a miracle, because the scion lost its 
 native evil qualities, he considers it less extraordinary 
 that the natural branches should bud again, they having 
 
 * As say almost all the fathers. See Whitby's Appendix to 
 Notes on Romans xi.
 
 PART III. 205 
 
 an aptness to unite with the original stock, which there 
 is not in the wild, to receive of the fatness of the true 
 olive. Grace accomplishes both ; it cut us out of the 
 olive, wild by nature, and graffed us into the true olive, 
 and it is ' able to graff them in if they abide not in 
 unbelief.' That they do not so abide he declares to be 
 our charge, who are put in trust of the glad tidings 
 purposely for them. ' Salvation is come to us, in order 
 to provoke them to jealousy." They are enemies for our 
 sakes ! Blindness in part has happened to them, and 
 we, through their unbelief, have obtained mercy. Our 
 blessings are granted purposely, 'that, through our 
 mercy, they may obtain mercy.' " Letter to a Friend. 
 
 3. Others have objected that, " to attempt the con- 
 version of the Jews is presumptuous. It is interfering 
 with the work of God. Their conversion will be mira- 
 culous. A nation will be born in a day." 
 
 I freely grant that the national conversion of the 
 Jews will, in a great measure, differ from the conversion 
 of individual sinners, whether Jews or Gentiles, and that 
 such a conversion of the nation will not take place till 
 after they be returned to their own land ; yet, may not 
 thousands and tens of thousands be converted before 
 that event takes place? Is not the salvation of one 
 sinner more valuable than the conquest of a world ? 
 Hath not the Lord already graciously blessed the present 
 efforts to many Jews ? (as has been shown above). Did 
 not our blessed Saviour know that the conversion of 
 the Jews was yet a great way off? and yet he com- 
 manded his Gospel to be preached first in Jerusalem ; 
 and the apostle Paul, who assured us that the fulness 
 of the Gentiles must first come in, before all Israel be 
 saved? yet he went, in every city, first into the synagogue 
 to preach to the Jews.
 
 206 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 4. Another objection, frequently met with, is, that 
 " It is premature ; the time is not yet come ; their 
 blindness is not yet removed; and the fulness of the 
 Gentiles is not yet come in." 
 
 I am aware that this objection is built upon the 
 declaration of the Apostle, " that blindness in part is 
 happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be 
 come in ;" but surely the Apostle never designed it as 
 an objection to prevent Christian efforts to promote the 
 conversion of the Jews, for none was more zealous than 
 he himself was to convince the Jews that Jesus was the 
 Christ. But let us for a moment inquire into the 
 nature of that blindness, and the meaning of the word 
 "fulness," the Apostle speaks of, and I trust the 
 reader will be convinced that it ought not to hinder our 
 efforts in behalf of the poor Jews. It is acknowledged 
 by all, that the nature of that blindness was not the 
 blindness which has come upon all men, as the effect of 
 sin a want of spiritual discernment ; but a judicial 
 blindness, not to be able to discern the truth of the 
 Messiabship of Jesus, foretold by the prophet Isaiah, 
 saying, " I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom 
 shall I send, and who will go for us ? Then said I, 
 Here am I, send me. And he said, Go, and tell this 
 people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not ; and see 
 ye indeed, but perceive not; make the heart of this 
 people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their 
 eyes ; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their 
 ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and 
 be healed." (Isaiah vi. 8 10.) To this prediction our 
 Lord himself referred, as well as the Apostle, in this 
 passage, and elsewhere, as a reason why the Jews did 
 not believe in Christ in their days. But, that this 
 judicial bb'ndness has ceased long ago, is evident from
 
 PART III. Z07 
 
 the answer given by Jehovah himself to the question 
 proposed by the Prophet at the time the awful com- 
 mission was given to him, and which reads thus : 
 "Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, 
 Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the 
 houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate, 
 and the Lord have removed men far away, and there be a 
 great forsaking in the midst of the land." Seeing, then, 
 that this part of the prediction was literally fulfilled at 
 the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus and the dis- 
 persion of my beloved people, it follows that the 
 threatened judicial blindness has ceased. But, if it be 
 asked, " If that judicial blindness has ceased, how comes 
 it to pass that the Jews have continued so long in unbe- 
 lief ? Are they not blind still, and do not discern the 
 truth of the Messiahship of Christ? " I answer, there may 
 be two different causes why a person does not discern 
 the true nature of an object first, if there be a veil 
 upon his eyes ; and, secondly, if the light, by which the 
 object is to be discerned, be removed from him. Now 
 the former was the case with the Jews in our Lord and 
 the Apostle's time, when they had the means of grace, 
 and the evidences of the truth of the Messiahship set 
 before them, but they could not discern them, although 
 it was given to some ; but, since their dispersion, no 
 judicial blindness was necessary, because they have been 
 destitute of the means of grace, &c., as will be shown 
 more fully hereafter. 
 
 As it respects the other part of the objection, viz., 
 " that the fulness of the Gentiles is not yet come in, and, 
 therefore, the Jews cannot be converted," I would 
 answer, the word " fulness" certainly cannot mean " the 
 last Gentile that ever shall be converted," for the 
 Apostle reasons, in this very chapter, to jrove that, after
 
 208 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 the Jews are converted, more Gentiles will be called 
 than have ever been before (as we have already seen). 
 The word " fulness," therefore, must mean the same as 
 it does in Galatians iv. 4 : " When the fulness of the 
 time was come, God sent forth his Son," i. e., when the 
 full period of time was elapsed, which God hath de- 
 signed and determined, Christ became incarnate ; .but 
 there has been more time since. So, in like manner, 
 when " the fulness of the Gentiles be come in," i. e., 
 when the full number of Gentiles be converted, which 
 God has determined in his own mind to be called, be- 
 fore the Jews, as a nation, shall be converted, then all 
 Israel shall be saved, and, after that, the conversion of 
 the rest of the Gentiles will take place, which will be in 
 comparison as the full harvest to the first-fruits. Now, 
 however distant that glorious event may be, it should 
 not prevent us from using all proper and necessary 
 means to promote the conversion of those whom God 
 has designed to be called before the conversion of the 
 nation takes place, and to be afterwards carried as " a 
 present to the Lord of hosts, to a people scattered and 
 peeled, terrible from the beginning hitherto." Hence, 
 although in the beginning of my labours I believed that 
 the conversion of my beloved nation would not take 
 place in my day, yet I thought it my duty and privilege 
 to seek the salvation of my dear people, in hopes of 
 being useful to some of them ; and, that our labours 
 have not been in vain, but have been blessed beyond the 
 most sanguine expectations, has already been shown. 
 I proceed to mention another objection, viz. : 
 
 5. It is needless to use any efforts to promote the 
 conversion of the Jews, for " they have every opportu- 
 nity of being convinced of the truth of Christianity, but 
 they are so prejudiced against the religion of Jesus, and
 
 PART III. 209 
 
 so hate its professors that they will not believe." Fre- 
 quently I hear good people say, " Is it not strange that 
 the Jews, after so many years and so much evidence, 
 should still continue in unbelief ? What an obstinate, 
 stubborn, and unbelieving people they are ! " Now, my 
 dear reader, what would you think if I were to speak 
 thus concerning the Gentiles under the Old Testament, 
 viz., " Is it not strange that the Gentiles should have 
 continued for two thousand years in unbelief respecting 
 the promised Messiah, when the Jews firmly believed, 
 and anxiously waited for his coming ? What a ' stub- 
 born, obstinate, and unbelieving people they were ! ' " 
 Would you consider their unbelief a matter of surprise ; 
 and the opprobrious language just ? Would not you be 
 ready to say with the Apostle, " How then shall they call 
 on him in whom they have not believed ? And how 
 shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? 
 And how shall they hear without a preacher? And 
 how shall they preach, except they be sent ? " and is 
 not this just and powerful way of reasoning, equally 
 applicable to the state of the Jews for many ages past ? 
 "How shall they hear without a preacher? and how shall 
 they preach, except they be sent? " and who shall send 
 the preachers of the Gospel to the Jews, if Christians do 
 not do it? But Christians have not done it; for since 
 the time that the Apostle said, " It was necessary that 
 the Word of God should first have been spoken to you: 
 but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves 
 unworthy of everlasting life, we turn to the Gentiles," 
 who have turned again to the Jews to preach to them 
 "the glorious Gospel of the blessed God?" Should it 
 be asked, " What ! have they not heard of Jesus ? " I 
 answer, Yes, they all hear of him from their very child- 
 hood : for their parents and teachers take good care to
 
 210 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 inform them that there had been such a person as Jesus 
 of Nazareth, whom our fathers condemned to be cruci- 
 fied, because he had been a deceiver, an impostor, and 
 blasphemer. Hence his very name is held in abhor- 
 rence, and on hearing it pronounced they are taught to 
 spit on the ground. And are not children bound in 
 duty to believe their parents and teachers until they are 
 convinced by arguments and evidences that their parents 
 and teachers taught them errors ? But where are they 
 to get these arguments and evidences ? To this it is 
 often replied, " Have not the Jews places of worship ? " 
 Yes, they have ; and to their credit, and for the 
 information of new settlers, be it known, that wherever 
 there are but ten Jewish families, they generally meet 
 for worship ; but what has that to do with the subject ? 
 It is replied, " What ! do not they preach the Gospel ? " 
 Strange, indeed, that any Christian should ever have 
 drawn the conclusion that because the Jews have places 
 of worship, therefore they hear the Gospel ! Whoever 
 went to a Christian place of worship expecting to hear 
 the Mahomedan religion ? How strange and shocking 
 it would sound to a Christian ear if he were to hear a 
 Christian minister recommending Mahomet, the false 
 prophet, in preference to Jesus Christ I And would it 
 not sound equally strange and shocking to a Jewish ear, 
 if the rabbi in the synagogue were to preach Christ 
 and him crucified ? Besides, why did not the heathen 
 philosophers preach about the promised Messiah, as 
 well as they did about arts and sciences, and delivered 
 lectures on morality ? The reason is evident, for they 
 themselves were ignorant of the Messiah, and, therefore, 
 it was necessary that when the time was come that the 
 Messiah was to be " a light to enlighten the Gentiles," 
 that Jewish apostles and missionaries should preach to
 
 PART III. 211 
 
 them. In like manner it has now become necessary 
 that Christian ministers and missionaries should preach 
 again the Gospel to the Jews. Besides, it is not gene- 
 rally known amongst Christians, that for centuries past 
 there has been no preaching amongst the Jews. All 
 their worship consists, as has already been shown, in 
 reading their forms of prayer, a section out of the law 
 called Sedrah, and a chapter selected from the other 
 parts of the Old Testament called Haphtorah; these 
 portions are read in the Hebrew language, without 
 being either interpreted or explained, and few, alas ! 
 understand the literal meaning of the words they pro- 
 nounce. How can such_a worship be either instructive 
 or edifying ? " Oh that the salvation of Israel were 
 come out of Zion ! " 
 
 6. Still it is objected that, " although the Jews 
 hear not the Gospel, yet they have the Scriptures, and 
 they are able to make them wise unto salvation." But 
 this objection also rests upon a mistaken idea. It takes 
 for granted that the Jews have the Scriptures, which is 
 not the case. Let it be remembered that the great and 
 all-important question between Jews and Christians is, 
 whether Jesus be the promised Messiah or not. To 
 decide this question, it is absolutely necessary to have 
 both the Old and New Testament. The former con- 
 taining the characteristics by which the Messiah was to 
 be distinguished from all others ; and the latter, to show 
 that all these characteristics have been fulfilled in Jesus 
 Christ. But it is a fact well known, that the Jews have 
 never yet acknowledged the New Testament as the 
 Word of God, and hence they are ignorant of its con- 
 tents, and know not the true character of Christ, nor the 
 nature of his religion. The Old Testament only the 
 Jews believe to be the Word of God, but it has already
 
 212 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 been stated that very few of them possess more than 
 those portions read in the synagogue. Hence, although 
 I was educated to be a rabbi, and officiated for seven 
 years as a teacher and reader in the synagogue, yet at 
 the age of twenty-five I had never seen the New 
 Testament, nor read the whole of the Old Testament, 
 nor heard a single sermon preached. How could I 
 then know what kind of a Messiah God had promised 
 to the fathers, or whether Jesus Christ had answered 
 the characteristics as laid down in the Old Testa- 
 ment? 
 
 Let Christians, therefore, send first the Gospel to 
 the Jews, and furnish them with the Scriptures of the 
 Old and New Testament, that they may have an oppor- 
 tunity of weighing the evidence in favour of Christianity, 
 and if after that they still refuse to believe them, they 
 may with some propriety say, " They are an obstinate, 
 stubborn, and unbelieving people." 
 
 There remains, however, another part of the objec- 
 tion to be answered, viz. : " The Jews might have gone 
 to hear the Gospel in Christian places of worship, but 
 they are so prejudiced against the Christian religion, 
 and hate its professors, and therefore it is useless to 
 preach the Gospel to them." To this objection I would 
 answer first, there have been and still are many and 
 great difficulties in the way of a Jew going to a 
 Christian place of worship. For as soon as such a 
 thing be known amongst his people, he is suspected of 
 being favourably inclined to Christianity, his conduct 
 is narrowly watched, he is forsaken by his friends, 
 admonished by the rabbi, and if he persists in going, 
 he will be cast out of the synagogue ; and what is he 
 to do for his living, if single, and still worse if it be a 
 father or mother of a family ? " The young generation
 
 PART III. 213 
 
 of Polish-Russian Jews," saith the missionary, Mr. Berg- 
 feldt, " are only, as it were, kept in fetters by their 
 parents and relatives, or else we should see numbers of 
 them come forward and profess the Christian religion." 
 The reader will doubtless remember what has already 
 been stated in the extracts of letters from Mr. Maitland, 
 and from the journals of missionaries, and much more 
 might be added to show that the fear of man has kept, 
 and still does keep, multitudes of my dear people from 
 attending Christian places of worship, nay, even from 
 inquiry. 
 
 The following fact is extracted from the well-authen- 
 ticated narrative of Solomon Duitch, a learned rabbi, 
 and teacher of several synagogues in Germany, who 
 having travelled for seven years from place to place, 
 under doubts as to the truths of Christianity, at length 
 openly confessed himself a disciple of Christ, and lived 
 and died in Holland, as a minister of the everlasting 
 Gospel. The Rev. Mr. Vos, with whom I became 
 personally acquainted in London, had been his fellow- 
 student at the University of Utrecht, and they fre- 
 quently afterwards, in the exercise of their ministry, 
 exchanged pulpits with each other. 
 
 " In the year 1762, October 21, I arrived at one of 
 the chief cities of Saxony, which, for particular reasons, 
 I shall not mention. The rabbi of the city behaved in 
 the most friendly manner to me. The 24th November 
 I had read so far of my Bible as the 53d chapter of 
 Isaiah, which I took now, for the first time, under my 
 proper consideration. The Lord was pleased to open 
 the eyes of my understanding plainly to comprehend 
 that the prophet spake here of the Messiah, who was to 
 suffer death for our sins. But Satan endeavoured to 
 raise in me many doubts against that explanation.
 
 214- OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 Wherefore I resolved to converse with my friend (the 
 above-mentioned rabbi) about the contents of this 
 chapter : neither could I find rest within me till I ac- 
 tually went to him. I had scarcely introduced my desire, 
 when he looked steadfastly in my face, and made signs 
 with his eyes to be silent, immediately repeating some- 
 thing out of the Talmud. In the evening his wife and 
 children went to the playhouse, leaving us to ourselves. 
 They were scarcely out of sight, before he took me into 
 another room, which he locked upon us. This put me 
 into a terrible fright, imagining for certain that he had 
 received some intelligence of my case, and would now 
 seek to make me answerable for my conduct with my 
 life. But I was soon freed from my fears, when, 
 with tears in his eyes, he spake thus to me : * O, Mr. 
 Solomon, my beloved and faithful brother ! I will 
 disclose all the secrets of my heart unto you ; but it is 
 under the express condition that you keep the secret, 
 for if the least word should get vent by you among the 
 Jews, I shall, for my own security, charge you with 
 what I shall confess to you, and make you the author 
 of it ; in which case, it is easy to comprehend what a 
 persecution you will be exposed to. This presupposed, 
 I will now no longer withhold from you the secrets of 
 my heart. Did you not desire me to explain to you the 
 53d of Isaiah ? ' Having answered in the affirmative, 
 he went into another room, and brought from thence a 
 German Bible, out of which he read to me, with the 
 greatest reverence and devotion, the 26th chapter of 
 Matthew, and then addressed me thus : ' My beloved 
 friend, you see here, in the 53d of Isaiah, the clearest 
 prophecy of the Messiah, who should be scorned and 
 despised, and even suffer death ; and for what for his 
 own trespasses ? O no ! it was for our iniquities, and
 
 PART III. 215 
 
 for our trespasses ; which you will clearly perceive, and 
 must be allowed by many of our rabbies. But in that 
 chapter which I have read to you out of the German 
 book, is contained the fulfilment of the prophecy of 
 Isaiah. Jesus of Nazareth is the true Messiah ; but, 
 alas ! what an unhappy thing is that to us ! Our fore- 
 fathers, who lived in his days, would not receive nor 
 acknowledge him as the true Messiah and Saviour; 
 and, should you ask me why they did not, I could 
 answer you a great deal on that head ; but I am sorry 
 our time is too short to give a full insight into the 
 extreme blindness and prejudices of our forefathers in 
 general, in those days: their poor and unhappy off- 
 spring, following their example, have continued in their 
 blind ways, and have led us on as blind leaders to this 
 very day. O what shall I, poor wretched creature, now 
 do or undertake ? I see clearly the beams of the sun 
 shining into my understanding, but cannot possibly rise 
 out of the dark cloud. How could I leave my wife, 
 whom I love as myself? and how could I abandon my 
 children, who are of my own flesh and blood ? O, my 
 heart, my fatherly heart, cannot bear the thought of it ! 
 Besides, by what means could I get my bread ! I can- 
 not labour, having learnt no business, and to seek my 
 support from charity is revolting against my nature ; 
 besides this, I am afraid of being turned off by the 
 Christians, who, without doubt, would mistrust my 
 sincerity, after they have so often been deceived by 
 false and inconstant proselytes. What shall I do, 
 miserable as I am ! ' Having related to him all the 
 ways in which the Lord had led me from the beginning, 
 he fell down on his knees and shed a flood of tears. It 
 is impossible for me to describe the anxiety of his soul ; 
 he prayed with a broken and contrite heart before God,
 
 216 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 that he might in pity look down upon him, and grant 
 him the same grace as had been granted to me ; to 
 deny himself, and unloose his heart from all temporal 
 concerns, enabling him to rely and trust in him alone." 
 See S. Duitch's Narrative, London edition, 1771, 
 page 33. 
 
 Oh that the God of my fathers may incline the gene- 
 rous and benevolent people of this country to co-operate 
 in the establishment of the American Settlement to 
 afford my dear people a place of refuge, where they 
 may be able to obtain both employment and Christian 
 instruction. 
 
 7. Besides, where was the Jew to hear the Gospel 
 for centuries past ? Was not all the western part of the 
 Christian world under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of 
 the Pope ? Suppose then, that a Jew had gone into 
 a place of worship in Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, 
 Germany, Britain, &c. &c., and with tears in his eyes, 
 had anxiously inquired, " Men and brethren, what shall 
 I do to be saved ? " And, suppose again, that the Pope 
 himself had been the preacher, what would have been 
 his answer ? Why, to be sure, the Pope, professing to 
 be the successor of Peter, would give no other answer 
 than Peter did. And what said Peter ? " Repent, and 
 be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus 
 Christ, for the remission of sins." But, would the 
 Pope have said so ? No, that would be too easy a way 
 of going to heaven ; that would never have filled their 
 coffers with silver and gold, nor erected their cloisters 
 and cathedrals more magnificent than king's palaces. 
 The Pope's answer would have been, " Go to the priest, 
 confess your sins, and pay so much for each prayer 
 or mass ; * give much alms to the poor, fast often, go 
 
 A few years ago, whilst residing about five miles from the city
 
 PART III. 217 
 
 on long and frequent pilgrimages from one cloister to 
 another, and do many things besides ; but remember 
 that after all you have done, when you die the work is 
 not finished ; your soul must go into purgatory, and, 
 therefore, the more money you leave, the more prayers 
 will be offered, and the sooner the soul will be released 
 from its torments and enter paradise." How amazed 
 and astonished would the poor inquiring Jew have been 
 at such an answer ! Would he have supposed this to be 
 the Gospel of Christ or a part of Christianity, or would 
 he have imagined to have heard the head of the Chris- 
 tian Church? No, he would certainly have concluded 
 the preacher to have been a Jewish rabbi, for such 
 is the creed and hope of salvation of every Jew, 
 and the only way he knows how to work out his 
 own righteousness. 
 
 8. As it respects the last part of this objection, viz. 
 "the prejudices of the Jews against the Christian 
 religion, and their hatred of its professors," I deny not 
 the fact ; but could it be expected otherwise than that 
 they would hate those persons who for ages together 
 have robbed them of their property, persecuted them 
 in every country, tormented them in prisons and inqui- 
 sitions, and massacred them by hundreds and thousands 
 in cold blood, and all that under the sanction of the 
 
 of New York, we had a Roman Catholic for a servant. She was ex- 
 ceedingly economical, and yet every first Sabbath in the month, let 
 the weather be what it may, she would walk to and from New York 
 solely to confess her sins to the priest and pay him half-a-dollar each 
 time. Oh, the delusions of Popery ! And, oh, how astonishing 
 great the zeal and liberality of the worshippers of such delusions ! 
 How few members of Protestant Churches pay half as much for the 
 support of the precious Gospel which publishes pardon and peace 
 through the blood of the Son of God, as this poor woman did to 
 purchase the pardon of her sins from the hand of a priest ! 
 L
 
 218 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 Pope, the head of the Christian Church ? How could 
 it be expected that they would approve of and choose 
 to embrace such a religion ? The reader I hope will 
 excuse the insertion of the following extract from 
 " Emma de Lissau," a most interesting publication, 
 written by a converted Jewess : 
 
 " Rabbi Selig * detailed many hardships endured by 
 the Jews on the Continent, particularly in Roman 
 Catholic districts. In some places, Jews were not 
 allowed to reside. In others they might only trade 
 during the day, but dare not sleep within the gates : sub- 
 jected to a degrading tax, and heavy imposts ; despised, 
 rejected, and oppressed, even in parts where the light 
 of the Reformation had spread its beneficial influence, 
 though the Jew was excluded from receiving the prac- 
 tical effect of that divine principle, inculcated by Paul 
 in so emphatic a manner, 1 Cor. xiii. 
 
 " ' No wonder then,' added Rabbi Selig, ' that in 
 addition to the already invincible barrier which Judaism 
 opposes to Christianity, oppression and injustice have 
 raised another formidable fence. Nazarenes adopt our 
 Scriptures; trace the pedigree of their God to the house 
 of David; use the divine songs of the inspired Prince 
 in their worship ; and declare, that their religion is 
 founded on ours; nay, is the very fulfilment of all the 
 types of our august worship, yet deride, hate, and 
 oppress us ! What can the most liberal-minded among 
 us think of a religion producing such fruits ? ' ' 
 
 * The author in a preceding page saith, " Rabbi Selig was a man 
 of learning, deeply versed in cabalistic mysteries, and devoted to 
 the Jewish faith. But he was polished, affable, and as liberal. 
 minded as a devout Jew could be, whose creed is an exclusive one. 
 His venerable appearance, for he had numbered seventy-four years, 
 gave weight to all he said."
 
 PART III. 219 
 
 But it will be said, "This is not the religion of Jesus ; 
 the principles of the New Testament are principles of 
 justice, love, and humanity." I thank God that now 
 I know that the principles of the New Testament, and 
 the principles of Popery, are as different as light and 
 darkness ; but this happy change was effected by the 
 reading of the New Testament, and by the hearing of 
 the Gospel in its purity. Let. Christians, therefore, 
 furnish the Jews with the same means, and exemplify 
 the spirit of the Gospel by their conduct towards them, 
 and, by the blessing of God, the same happy change 
 may be expected. 
 
 9. This leads me to notice another objection, viz. 
 No good has resulted from all the efforts which have 
 been made. This objection is owing to the mere want 
 of information. First, great good has actually been 
 done, as, has been already shown. Deep-rooted preju- 
 dice has been removed ; an unparalleled spirit of inquiry 
 has been excited ; and more than 3000 Jews have 
 made a public profession of faith in Christ Jesus ; and 
 more than forty are now preaching the Gospel to their 
 brethren. But when we consider the peculiar situation 
 and circumstances of the Jewish nation, we ought to 
 be exceedingly thankful, even if no more had been 
 effected than the mere removal, in a few years, of those 
 difficulties which had been accumulating for centuries 
 together. Suppose that a large and magnificent palace 
 were to be erected on a spot of ground, where an 
 immense large and rocky mountain stood, and many 
 labourers had been employed at a great expense in 
 removing it, no one would say that nothing had been 
 effected, although the foundation had only been laid. 
 I cannot withhold from the reader the just remarks 
 made by the pious Farman when writing on this sub- 
 L 2
 
 220 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 ject : " A thought strikes me here which I cannot 
 omit mentioning, viz., That it is only by patient con- 
 tinuing in this work that we can expect to see any 
 good done. There are, I fear, many good Christians 
 many real friends of Israel, who, perhaps, from not 
 having well enough considered the matter, expect that 
 to arise under extraordinary circumstances, which they 
 could never think of looking for under ordinary. They 
 seem to be disappointed, if under the complicated dif- 
 ficulties which exist in all Jewish missionary stations, 
 and which beset us in this capital in a giant-like form, 
 multitudes of converts are not made, when under the 
 most favourable circumstances in England (I speak 
 particularly of the non-existence of political obstacles) 
 in any parish they would not even look for the con- 
 version of one-tenth of that number. They seem to be 
 disappointed if we do not, even before we have had 
 time to entrench ourselves, and take a survey of the 
 enemy's battlements, if Ave do not, I say, send them 
 an account that the city is stormed and taken. They 
 appear to flag in their love, if we do not quickly send 
 them home very encouraging accounts of success. We 
 know very well that experience teaches us a different 
 lesson among baptized Christians at home ; why should 
 we then expect more from unbaptized Jews, who, the 
 moment they are suspected of any attachment to Chris- 
 tianity, are thrown into prison, there tormented with 
 various cruelties, and confined to an indefinite period ? 
 Christians of England ! judge ye whether you ought 
 to expect more from such a sphere than from a district 
 where the people can come to hear the Gospel unmo- 
 lested ! I said, I fear many good Christians have wrong 
 ideas of, and consequently have wrong expectations 
 from, our missionary work. In writing to a friend, not
 
 PART III. 221 
 
 long since, I had occasion to make the following re- 
 marks, which seem to be apropos here : ' Before a 
 missionary enters on his work he generally has very 
 wrong ideas of it. He pictures to himself many atten- 
 tive hearers perhaps, a field of what he may term 
 extensive usefulness ; but when he enters upon it, he 
 finds that he had underrated the power of the devil 
 on the depraved heart of man, and had overrated his 
 own powers. Experience soon teaches him to trust 
 implicitly to God in this work of faith and labour of 
 love. And if he does not, he will utterly fail in his 
 enterprize. We must dig and re-dig, plough and re- 
 plough, the rocky soil. We must sow and re-sow the 
 same ground, morning, noon, and night, earnestly pray 
 for the showers and dews of heaven, and patiently wait 
 for the blessing. If he should thus be the means of 
 bringing one sinner to repentance one lost sheep of 
 the house of Israel to the foot of the cross of the only 
 true Messiah, how immense in value is the object 
 gained ! Could the world itself be put into the balance 
 and not be found wanting ? Thus, my dear Sir, would 
 I labour, till God, of his infinite mercy, be pleased to 
 water by his Spirit the seed sown ; but at the same time 
 struggle with him in prayer, and give him no rest till 
 he redeem and set free his long outcast captives." 
 
 That long, and tried, and faithful missionary, Mr. 
 Marc, speaking of the same subject, says : " The con- 
 viction they now have that Christians oifer them the 
 genuine Word of God, and even to the poor gratis, 
 makes an unspeakable impression upon them,' and be- 
 gins visibly to melt their hearts. Even the Jews in the 
 towns, as well the bigoted as the enlightened, begin 
 now to pay more attention, and often very great atten- 
 tion, to the Holy Scriptures, and, no doubt, the London
 
 222 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 Society has very much contributed to this happy change. 
 We are at the door of a great and happy event among 
 the Jews in Germany. It will surely go on by degrees, 
 and even when the Holy Spirit shall be visibly poured 
 out upon them, it will go on by degrees. The same 
 was the case with the Christians in the first century. I 
 thank, and praise, and bless God, that he has let me 
 live to see this time." 
 
 Having noticed the principal objections brought 
 against Christian efforts to promote the conversion of 
 the Jews, I will now answer those suggested against the 
 proposed American settlement for Jewish proselytes. 
 
 10. It is objected that to collect the converted Jews 
 into a Settlement is improper. That under the Chris- 
 tian dispensation there is to be no distinction between 
 the Jews and Christians ; and that the converted Jews 
 are designed to be lights in the world. 
 
 Answer. This objection must refer either to the Jews 
 as a nation or as individuals. It cannot refer to the 
 former, for no one intends shutting up the Jewish nation 
 in a Settlement. If it respects individuals, I answer. 
 They are not to be separated from Christians, but are 
 only to dwell together till they have finished their 
 apprenticeship, and then mix with Christians. Further, 
 if they are to be lights in the world, it must be either 
 as missionaries or as private Christians. In either 
 case, it is most desirable that they should be for a time 
 in a Settlement to receive the necessary preparatory 
 instructions. This will be freely granted as it respects 
 missionaries; and those who are acquainted with the 
 mode of education and habits of life of those persons 
 who are designed to form the Settlement, which are 
 neither the rich nor the well-educated, will need not 
 many arguments to convince them of the advantages of
 
 PART III. 223 
 
 a Settlement. The friends of the Jews, who are anxious 
 for their conversion, are not only desirous that they 
 should be saved, i. e. that they should escape the misery 
 of hell, and enjoy the felicity of heaven, but they wish 
 them also to adorn their profession, and thus by their 
 conversation, life, and conduct, be a light and example 
 to others. Hence it is necessary that they should have 
 an opportunity of becoming acquainted, by precept 
 and example, with the doctrines, principles, conversa- 
 tion, and deportment of a true Christian, a real dis- 
 ciple and follower of Christ. Now, as most of the 
 Jews likely to join the Settlement must be expected to 
 come from Russia, Poland, Prussia, and Germany, I 
 ask, will it be an easy matter for a Jew to meet with 
 such Christians ? The Lord, indeed, knoweth them 
 that are his, but to the poor Jew they are a hidden 
 people. Suppose that none of the difficulties mentioned 
 above of finding employment should exist, and that as 
 the Jew makes up his mind to inquire into the truth 
 of Christianity, he should be so fortunate as to meet 
 with a master to take him as an apprentice, what will 
 be the consequence ? He may, indeed, learn his trade, 
 and thus be able in future to earn his bread by his own 
 industry, but is it likely that he will become a light and 
 example as a true Christian ? Alas ! what he sees and 
 hears is much more likely to make him an infidel, or 
 much worse than he was before, Matt, xxiii. 15. As 
 a Jew he was taught to say his prayers morning and 
 evening, and never to sit down to eat without first 
 washing his hands and repeating his prayers both 
 before and after meals ; and the Sabbath to him was a 
 day of rest ; but now, instead of hearing the family 
 calling upon God with the voice of prayer and suppli- 
 cation, he hears the name of the blessed Jesus taken in
 
 224- OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 vain, and that on every trifling occasion. On the 
 former part of the Sabbath-day he is compelled to 
 work, and during the remainder of the day he wit- 
 nesses the family, like most others, spending it in vain 
 and sinful amusements. With many it is a common 
 case, that knowing the contempt and ridicule they 
 would be exposed to were it known that they have 
 been Jews, studiously conceal it, instead of becoming 
 a light to the world. This is very generally the case 
 with those who have already been baptized. Now in 
 a Settlement these difficulties will have no existence. 
 As for Christian instruction to be communicated by 
 ministers both before and after baptism, notwithstand- 
 ing the zeal and faithfulness of the minister, yet for 
 want of employment and opportunities it is too often 
 lamentably defective, whilst in the proposed Settlement 
 the proselytes are to receive Christian instruction for 
 three hours every day during their apprenticeship. 
 
 11. It has been asked, " Why should the Settle- 
 ment be in America and not rather in Europe, which 
 would save much expense?" 
 
 Answer. It has already been stated in the Resolu- 
 tion of the Berlin Society, that they have long felt 
 the want of a Settlement for Jewish proselytes, and 
 tried to establish one, but have not been able to suc- 
 ceed. In other places also attempts have been made, 
 but in vain. The nature of governments, the preju- 
 dices of the people, the multitude of Christians them- 
 selves out of employ, &c. &c., have proved insur- 
 mountable difficulties, but happily none of these exist 
 in America. But this leads to another objection, viz : 
 
 12. " What need is there of a Settlement in 
 America ; do not the Jews enjoy equal privileges with 
 other people ? "
 
 PART III. 225 
 
 Answer. ' Even if there were no difficulties of 
 getting employment for Jews in America, yet for the 
 reasons assigned in 10, it would be highly desirable 
 to have a Settlement ; but the case is otherwise. 
 Although many of the difficulties which exist in 
 Europe do not exist in America, yet the poor Jew 
 will meet with obstacles which no other emigrant meets 
 with. The Society for meliorating the Condition of 
 the Jews are not ignorant of their difficulties. To the 
 best of my recollection, not a single Jew has been 
 received under its patronage for the last ten years. 
 Numbers indeed have applied, but no situation has been 
 found for them. The President, Dr. Brownlee, and 
 others, know how often out of mere compassion they 
 have been compelled to give them some temporal relief, 
 which, however, is no effectual relief to the poor Jew, 
 and yet it becomes a burden on the charity of the 
 friends of the Jews, and opens a door of hypocrisy. 
 Before I close this part of the work I will notice but 
 one objection more, viz : 
 
 13. " What is the cause that the scheme of a 
 Settlement already tried has failed ? What need, 
 therefore, of another trial ? " 
 
 Answer. It is true that the Society had a farm to 
 employ Jews, and that several had been on it for a 
 time, but did not continue. It is not necessary to enter 
 into all the circumstances of the failure of that scheme. 
 From the beginning I disapproved of it, convinced that 
 agricultural employment is not suited for the Jews. 
 Besides, the rules adopted for the management of that 
 farm, as well as other circumstances, may justly be 
 considered as the cause of its failure. The proposed 
 plan, which is free from all those difficulties, has never 
 been tried. It is not connected with agriculture, nor 
 L 5
 
 226 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 
 
 with the establishment of a manufactory that will 
 require a large capital ; and yet it will furnish employ- 
 ment to multitudes, and may be carried on with com- 
 parative little trouble by men whose heart is in the 
 work. And whilst it is designed to encourage the 
 industrious, it will at the same time furnish them with 
 Christian instruction; it will prove a school for the 
 dear Jewish children, a seminary for Jewish mission- 
 aries, and be ultimately the brightest gem in the crown 
 of American benevolence. America, which is the only 
 Christian nation that has not persecuted the Jews, is 
 also the only country that can afford them an asylum. 
 And will American Christians not do it? Yes, surely 
 they will. None has had a better opportunity of wit- 
 nessing their love, zeal, and benevolence towards the 
 Jews than I had whilst travelling as Agent for the So- 
 ciety. And is that spirit of love, zeal, and benevolence 
 extinct ? God forbid. It has only been slumbering, 
 and as soon as the public shall be convinced of the 
 necessity and expediency of the proposed Settlement, 
 they will certainly afford the necessary aid and not 
 be weary in well-doing, especially when they shall duly 
 consider the precious promises in the next part of 
 this work.
 
 227 
 
 PART IV. 
 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 THE RESTORATION AND CONVERSION OF THE JEWS 
 AND THE TEN TRIBES. 
 
 1. Who can read seriously the history of the 
 Jews and not feel himself compelled to exclaim with 
 Moses, " What nation is there so great ! " Their past 
 exaltation, their present degradation, and their future 
 glory, are events unparalleled in the history of nations- 
 The first and second of these events constitute a part 
 of my "Jewish Intelligencer,"* their future glory is 
 proposed as the subject of the following sheets. That 
 the Jewish nation will be delivered from their present 
 captive state, and advanced to a greater degree of 
 
 * " The Jewish Intelligencer," large 8vo., pp. 5?2. Price 8s. 
 Sold by G. Wightman ; Thomas Ward and Co., Paternoster-row ; 
 Simpkin and Marshall, Stationers'-court ; Hatchard and Son, Picca- 
 dilly; L. and G. Seeley, Fleet- street ; and by the Author, No. 1, 
 Trinity-street, Borough. 
 
 CONTENTS. I. History of the Jews, particularly since their 
 present dispersion. II. Origin, Dispersion, and future Restoration 
 of the Ten Tribes. III. Jewish Antiquities. IV. Modern Ju- 
 daism. V. History of the Origin and Progress of Christian Efforts 
 to promote the Conversion of the Jews since the year 1800. VI. 
 Correspondence with Missionaries amongst the Jews. VII. Narra- 
 tives of Converted Jews.
 
 228 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 happiness and honour than they have ever enjoyed, is 
 acknowledged by all who believe the Bible. But very 
 diverse are their opinions respecting the nature of that 
 
 "It usually and necessarily happens, that every new periodical 
 interferes more or less with preceding ones. 'The Jewish Intelli- 
 gencer,' however, forms an exception : for while it treats on topics 
 confessedly of great interest, there is no work in the country in which 
 they are professedly discussed. It furnishes, therefore, a large 
 amount of valuable reading which can be found no where else." 
 American Baptist. 
 
 " This work, which has appeared earlier than was at first proposed 
 in the Editor's Prospectus, is exceedingly interesting. In treating of 
 the history, the condition, the character, and the prospects of the 
 Jews, he handles these interesting subjects as a workman who is 
 a perfect master of his business, who has all the necessary tools and 
 implements at hand, and who knows how to apply them with readi- 
 ness and effect to their appropriate uses." Morning Star. 
 
 " We doubt whether there is a man living so well qualified to give 
 correct information concerning the origin, history, dispersion and pre- 
 sent condition of the Jews as Mr. Frey. The volume is full of most 
 interesting matter. The style is clear, forcible, and elegant; the 
 arrangement of the matter judicious; and the typographical execu- 
 tion highly commendable. We hope the ' Intelligencer ' will have, 
 what it deserves, a wide circulation." Eastern Baptist. 
 
 "The volume before us contains several subjects, written in an 
 elegance of style and diction worthy of the reputation of the learned 
 editor. Whatever is connected with the history of the Jews, especi- 
 ally in their dispersed state, must be particularly interesting to the 
 
 reader of the Bible, and especially to the student of prophecy The 
 
 Jews, in every age, have been the wonder and admiration of every 
 people ; but at this time they are more particularly an astonishment 
 and a ly-word among all nations. Without an abiding place on the 
 earth, they are found a 'peculiar people,' in every country sternly 
 and heroically refusing all alliance with any other, they are ' the most 
 ancient unmingled race known to exist on the face of the earth.' 
 But prophecy plainly assures us, that though they have been exiles 
 for nearly eighteen centuries from the land of their fathers, yet that 
 they shall return thilhep again. Already the religious community 
 are interested in their behalf. Inquiry is daily made as to their pre-
 
 PART IV. 229 
 
 deliverance, and the means by which it is to be effected. 
 Many divines suppose that the Jews will be converted 
 to Christ in their present dispersed state by the usual 
 
 sent condition, and the prospect of their future advancement to that 
 primitive pre-eminence from which their infidelity has so long 
 degraded them. We know no work so well calculated to answer that 
 inquiry as the one before us. The Jews are an abiding monument 
 of the truth of our religion. Their history is a miracle ; not less so 
 in their present dispersed state, than when pioneered from Egyptian 
 thraldom through the Red Sea and the Arabian deserts, by a cloud 
 by day, and a pillar of fire by night. A work, then, devoted to the 
 cause of such a people, must be interesting, and must receive encou- 
 ragement." Baptist Banner, 
 
 FROM THE REV. J. KNIGHT. " Brixton Hill, May 26, 183?. 
 I have read the ' Jewish Intelligencer ' with pleasure and profit. 
 It is in my opinion a most interesting work. Many histories of the 
 Jezes have at different times been published ; but what renders this 
 volume particularly valuable is, its being the production of a con- 
 verted Jew of no ordinary attainments in Hebrew science, whose 
 statements, having been once a Jewish rabbi, it may be expected are 
 correct, and will afford much instruction respecting that once highly- 
 favoured people, which is seldom to be found ; while at the same time 
 it is well adapted to confirm the minds of Christians in the faith and 
 hope of the Gospel. 
 
 "Your account of ' the origin, dispersion, and future restoration of 
 the Ten Tribes,' is, I think, entitled to special notice ; and whatever 
 differences of opinion may exist on that subject, no one who reads 
 your remarks with attention, can refuse to give you credit for your 
 endeavours to elucidate it. 
 
 " I rejoice to hear of the success of your labours in America, and 
 most sincerely do I hope, that on your return to that country, it will 
 be long continued and increased ! You have two objects it seems in 
 view in visiting Europe ; one is to collect materials and open a 
 correspondence to enrich the future volumes of the ' Jewish Intelli- 
 gencer! ' God grant that in this laudable undertaking your inten- 
 tions may be fully answered ! The other object is, ' to facilitate the 
 gratuitous distribution amongst the Jews of your publication, entitled 
 ' Joseph and Benjamin,' in the English language, in which it is now 
 published, and also to get it translated and printed in the German
 
 230 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 means of grace, and then be mixed with Christians so 
 as to be no longer known as a distinct people. Others 
 are of opinion that they will be converted in their dis- 
 persed state, and after that return to their own land 
 and be still preserved a distinct people ; but there are 
 not a few who believe that the nation at large will 
 return to their own land before their conversion, and 
 that a remnant will be converted who will not return 
 with the nation, but will afterwards be carrried " as a 
 present unto the Lord of hosts of a people scattered 
 and peeled, and from a people terrible from their 
 beginning hitherto ; a nation meted out and trodden 
 under foot, whose land the rivers have spoiled, to the 
 place of the name of the Lord of hosts, the Mount 
 Zion," Isaiah xviii. 7 ; when the nation will be con- 
 verted in a remarkable manner as was the apostle Paul, 
 beholding the Lord Jesus Christ. That the last of 
 these opinions appears to be the most scriptural, I shall 
 now endeavour to prove. 
 
 2. An opponent to the literal restoration of the 
 Jews says, " It is possible, we say, that the Jews may 
 be restored to their own land, with very mistaken ex- 
 pectations, retaining still their carnal prejudices, reject- 
 ing the Son of David, who is come, and vainly looking 
 for another ; and that they may afterwards, by a fresh 
 pentecostal effusion, be cured of their fatal blindness, 
 
 language.' May your efforts likewise for the accomplishment of this 
 benevolent and important design be amply rewarded ; for it appears 
 to me that ' Joseph and Benjamin,' is a book which is eminently 
 calculated for usefulness both to Jews and Christians, to convince the 
 former, if they will read it, that Jesus Christ is the Messiah, 
 of whom Moses in the Law and the Prophets did write; and to 
 establish, strengthen, and settle the latter in their knowledge and 
 belief of the truths of Christianity. ' Ora et labora,' is an excellent 
 motto. Follow this advice, ' Nil desperandum ! ' "
 
 PART IV. 231 
 
 and become obedient to the faith. The question is, 
 what are the scriptural grounds for such an expec- 
 tation?" Eclectic Review for 1829. (Third series, 
 No. 3.) 
 
 Well, " to the law and the prophets," and after I 
 shall have established, from the Scriptures and other 
 arguments, the literal restoration of our people to their 
 own land in an unconverted state, I will endeavour to 
 answer the principal objections that have been brought 
 against the proposed scheme. But there are two me- 
 thods which have been alternately employed to evade 
 the force of the arguments in the passages I shall quote, 
 which evasions I shall endeavour to notice as I go 
 along. These methods are, either that the prophecy 
 has been already fulfilled, or that it is to be understood 
 in an allegorical sense, and to be applied either to the 
 spiritual conversion of the Jews, or to the conversion of 
 Gentiles, the spiritual Israel. 
 
 3. " The following rules may be useful in assisting 
 us in ascertaining whether prophecies respecting the 
 Jews are yet to be fulfilled. 
 
 1. "When Judah and Israel (the name Israel being 
 used, in contradistinction to Judah, to designate the 
 Ten Tribes) are both included in the promised bless- 
 ings. 2. When the house of Israel, or Ephraim, or 
 Joseph, is evidently the object of the promise. 3. When 
 the promise, though addressed to Judah, can with no 
 propriety from the nature of the language be considered 
 as fulfilled in the recovery from Babylon. 4. When 
 the prophecy was delivered after the return of the Jews 
 from Babylon. 5. When the time for the event is de- 
 signated by the term, latter days, or the order and 
 series of the prophecy necessarily refer us to a period 
 subsequent to the first advent of Christ. 6. When the
 
 232 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 promise is accompanied by predictions of universal 
 peace." * 
 
 4. A judicious writer in the "Jewish Expositor" 
 says, " They have generally applied the prophecies re- 
 lating to the restoration of the Jews, and the ten tribes, 
 and the consequent happy state of that nation, and also 
 of the whole Christian world, which is to happen in the 
 latter times (and which is frequently styled in Scripture, 
 the reign or kingdom of Christ), to the Church of Christ, 
 as it has hitherto subsisted in the world ; applying the 
 terms Israel, the seed of Abraham, the city of Jerusa- 
 lem, in an allegorical sense to the Christians, or the 
 Christian Church in general, whenever they meet with 
 them with a promise of great happiness annexed ; 
 whereas the great happiness, which is the principal 
 subject of all the Old Testament prophets, appears to 
 me to be no way applicable to any state of Christianity 
 that has ever yet existed, but to relate to the conversion 
 and restoration of the literal Israel, the Jews, and the 
 ten tribes, in the latter times, and to that reign of Christ 
 when the Church shall be triumphant." 
 
 Another writer observes, " The Gentile takes up his 
 station on Gerizim, and engrossing all its blessings, 
 consigns its original occupants to the possession of the 
 curse of Ebal. The Gentile, enjoying the figure, over- 
 looks a literarfulfilment to the Jews. Canaan is trans- 
 ferred to his own bosom, or placed in heaven above, 
 any where but in the land of Canaan" American 
 Christian Spectator, 1826, p. 514. 
 
 Another says, " We would ask our spiritualizing in- 
 terpreters what they would have to offer with respect 
 to this prophecy?" (alluding to Ezek. xxxvi. 1 5, 
 8, 12.) " Without doubt, spiritualizing will boldly 
 * Bingham's Discourses.
 
 TAUT IV. 233 
 
 affirm that the prediction which Ezekiel addresses to 
 the mountains of Israel, contains nothing about their 
 return to their own land, as the Papists maintain that 
 after the consecration of the wafer, nothing of real 
 substance remains, but it is really and substantially 
 transubstantiated into the body of Christ, although 
 they cannot deny that the outward appearance con- 
 tinues to be that of a wafer. So these persons, taking 
 a bold flight in allegory, will tell us that the mountains, 
 hills, rivers, valleys, desolate wastes, and cities of Israel 
 in the prophecy, are to be understood of the Christian 
 Church among the Gentiles ; and that the return of the 
 children of Israel to those places only means their con- 
 version to Christ." Ibid. 
 
 5. I will now proceed to show from the Scriptures, 
 that the Jews, as a nation, will return again to the 
 literal Canaan before their conversion. There is scarcely 
 anything more frequently foretold than this glorious 
 event. To quote all the passages relating to it would 
 be an endless task : I shall therefore select but a few as 
 a specimen. We will begin with Moses. " And I will 
 bring the land into desolation ; and your enemies that 
 dwell therein shall be astonished at it : and I will scatter 
 you among the heathen, and will draw out a sword after 
 you ; and your land shall be desolate, and your cities 
 waste. Then will I remember my covenant with Jacob, 
 and also my covenant with Isaac, and also my covenant 
 with Abraham will I remember ; and I will remember 
 the land. The land also shall be left of them, and 
 shall enjoy her Sabbaths, while she lieth desolate with- 
 out them : and they shall accept of the punishment of 
 their iniquity ; because, even because they despised my 
 judgments, and their soul abhorred my statutes." Lev. 
 xxvi. 32, 33, 42 45. In the preceding verses God
 
 234 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 threatens judgments to overtake our nation for their 
 sins and disobedience to his law ; and then promises 
 that he will not utterly destroy them, but remember his 
 covenant made with our fathers Abraham, Isaac, and 
 Jacob, which covenant reads thus : " And the Lord 
 said unto Abraham, after that Lot was separated from 
 him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place 
 where thou art, northward, and southward, and east- 
 ward, and westward ; for all the land which thou seest, 
 to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever." Gen. 
 xiii. 14, 15. 
 
 6. The learned Dr. Mede, in his answer to Dr. 
 Swift's fourth letter, gives the following explanation of 
 this text, which deserves particular notice: " I doubt 
 not," says he, "but you have felt some scruple (as well 
 as others) at our Saviour's demonstration of the resur- 
 rection in the Gospel. Matt. xxii. ; Mark xiii. God 
 said to Moses in the bush, ' I am the God of Abraham, 
 and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob : God is 
 not the God of the dead, but of the living.' Ergo, 
 Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, must one day rise again 
 from the dead. How does this conclusion follow ? Do 
 not the spirits of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, yet live ? 
 God should then be the God of the living, though their 
 bodies should never rise again. Therefore some So- 
 cinians argue from this place, that the spirits of the just 
 lie in the sleep of death until the resurrection. Or, 
 might not the Sadducees have replied, the meaning to 
 be of what God had been, not of what he should be, 
 viz., That he was that God who had once chosen their 
 fathers, and had made a covenant with them ; ' I am 
 the Lord that brought Abraham out of Chaldea, who 
 appeared to Isaac and Jacob whilst they lived,' &c. 
 But how would this then make for the resurrection ?
 
 PART IV. 235 
 
 Surely it doth. He that could not err said it. Let us 
 see therefore how it may. 
 
 " I say, therefore, the words must be understood 
 with a supply of that they have reference to, which 
 is the covenant which the Lord made with Abraham, 
 Isaac, and Jacob, in respect whereof he calls himself 
 their God. This covenant was to give unto them and 
 to their seed the land wherein they were strangers 
 (mark it) ; not their seed, or offspring only, but to 
 themselves. 
 
 " To Abraham, Gen. xiii. 15 ; xvii. 8. To Isaac, 
 Gen. xxvi. 3. To Jacob, Gen. xxxv. 12. To all three, 
 Exod. vi. 4, 8. Deut. i. 8 ; xi. 21 ; and xxx. 20. If 
 God then made good to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, 
 this his covenant, whereby he undertook to be their 
 God ; then they must needs one day live again to in- 
 herit the promised land, which hitherto they have not 
 done. For the God that has covenanted with them, 
 covenanted not to make his promise good to them dead, 
 but living. This is the strength of the divine argument 
 and irrefragable ; which otherwise would not infer any 
 such conclusion." 
 
 Now, as the essence of the covenant made with our 
 fathers and their natural posterity, was the possessing 
 the land of Canaan literally, and as the Lord has pro- 
 mised he will remember the covenant during their cap- 
 tivity, it must mean that he will bring them again into 
 the literal Canaan. What else can be the meaning of 
 these words, " and I will remember the land," but this, 
 that God would put an end to its desolation, by restoring 
 it to its ancient inhabitants, to be cultivated and re- 
 plenished by them ? 
 
 7. It is a poor evasion, to say that this promise 
 was fulfilled at their return from Babylon, because the
 
 236 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 restoration to their own land for a few ages, and a 
 subsequent dispersion for near four times as long a 
 period, among all nations, without any hopes of return, 
 can never be the true meaning of giving that land to 
 the seed of Abraham for ever. Besides, it has justly 
 been observed, " that it is not unusual for the same 
 thing (the passover, for instance) to refer immediately 
 to one event ; and remotely to another ; so it is common 
 for a prophecy to have a partial fulfilment in something 
 at, or near the time, and a more perfect one at some 
 distant period. God's works being whole, and the end 
 seen from the beginning, there is often a dignified ana- 
 logy between them : system, as it were, within system ; 
 one train of events making way for another, and fur- 
 nishing an earnest of its fulfilment. Thus the kingdom 
 of the Messiah is manifestly predicted in the 72d Psalm, 
 though it is mostly under the form of the prosperous 
 reign of Solomon." 
 
 Mr. Faber, speaking of the prophecy in Joel, says, 
 " This is applied by St. Peter, to the effusion of the 
 Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, though strictly re- 
 lating to the era of the restoration of the Jews, and the 
 glorious period of the millennium. The first advent of 
 Christ is frequently considered by the inspired writers 
 as a sort of type of his second advent ; whence we find 
 that predictions which properly belong to the one period 
 are often applied by anticipation to the other. Thus, 
 in a similar manner, the apostles apply the prophecy of 
 David in the second Psalm, to the conspiracy of the 
 chief princes with Herod and Pontius Pilate against our 
 Lord : yet, if any one will compare that second Psalm 
 with the description of the Word of God routing his 
 enemies congregated in the 19th chapter of the Apoca- 
 lypse, he will be convinced that it does not receive its
 
 PART IV. 237 
 
 ultimate accomplishment till the second advent, whether 
 literal or spiritual, at the commencement of the millen- 
 nium." 
 
 In like manner in this place, as the calamities threat- 
 ened were not to be inflicted at once, but gradually, 
 and some repeatedly, as ver. 29, "Ye shall eat the 
 flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters shall 
 ye eat ;" which has literally been fulfilled in the siege of 
 Samaria by Benhadad (2 Kings vi. 28, 29) ; in the siege 
 of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans (Lam. iv. 10) ; and in 
 the last siege of Jerusalem by the Romans, as re- 
 corded by our own historian Josephus ; so likewise the 
 promise was to be fulfilled as often as needed ; as often 
 as they are banished from the land given by the 
 covenant to our fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, 
 so often shall they be restored to enjoy it, and there- 
 fore the promise is yet to be fulfilled. I wish you, 
 dear reader, to remember this observation, as it is 
 applicable to many other predictions, which I shall 
 name hereafter. 
 
 8. " The reader who consults the marginal refer- 
 ences," says Dr. Scott, " will in them find the most in- 
 structive comment on this chapter ; and be more and 
 more convinced as he proceeds, that it is a kind of pro- 
 phetical history of that nation, even to this present time.'* 
 
 Again he says, ver. 31 35, "Indeed the dispersed 
 state of the Jews since the destruction of the temple by 
 the Romans, more fully answers the import of the sub- 
 sequent prediction than even the desolations of the 
 Babylonish captivity." And on ver.' 43 45 he says, 
 " A glorious accomplishment of this part of the pro- 
 phecy may hereafter be expected by the conversion of 
 the Jews to Christ, and probably by their restoration to 
 their own land ; and after the fulfilment of the previous
 
 238 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 threatenings, in their present dispersion of above twelve 
 hundred years' duration, they are still most miraculously 
 preserved a distinct people, evidently in order to this 
 most desirable event." 
 
 9. I will next call your attention to the prophecy 
 in Deut. xxx. 1 6. " And it shall come to pass when 
 all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and 
 the curse which I have set before thee, and thou shalt 
 call them to mind amongst all the nations whither the 
 Lord thy God hath driven thee, and shalt return unto 
 the Lord thy God, and shalt obey his voice, according 
 to all that I command thee this day, thou, and thy 
 children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul ; 
 that then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and 
 have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather 
 thee from all the nations whither the Lord thy God 
 hath scattered thee. If any of thine be driven out unto 
 the outmost part of heaven, from thence will the Lord 
 thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch 
 thee. And the Lord thy God will bring thee into the 
 land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess 
 it ; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above 
 thy fathers. And the Lord thy God will circumcise 
 thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord 
 thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that 
 thou mayest live." Now, that this is a prediction yet 
 to be fulfilled in the literal restoration of my beloved 
 people to their own land, and that afterward they shall 
 be truly converted to God, will evidently appear, if we 
 consider that it has never had its fulfilment. It is in- 
 applicable to their return from the Babylonian captivity, 
 during which time they were very far from being 
 scattered among " all people, from one end of the earth 
 to the other." Neither can it be said that the hearts
 
 PART IV. 239 
 
 of the people were generally circumcised, so that they 
 loved God with all their heart and all their soul, during 
 the interval of their return from Babylon and their 
 being scattered by Titus. For the rabbins themselves, 
 as well as Josephus, say that our nation, at the time of 
 the siege of Jerusalem by the Romans, were more 
 wicked than ever, and that therefore the coming of the 
 Messiah was delayed until they shall repent ; nor has 
 the other promise been realized, ver. 5, " to do them 
 good, and to multiply them above their fathers." Con- 
 sider next, that as it is allowed by all, that at least 
 many of the calamities in ch. 27 30 were inflicted 
 literally on our nation soon after their dispersion by 
 Titus, why should not the blessing of deliverance and 
 restoration to the land which " our fathers possessed, 
 and shall possess, be literally fulfilled ? 
 
 10. Bp. Newton says, " The design of the work 
 will permit us to take notice of such (predictions) 
 only as have some reference to the latter ages ; and we 
 will confine ourselves principally to the 28th chap, of 
 Deuteronomy, the greatest part whereof we may see 
 accomplished in the world at this present time. I know 
 that some critics make a division of these prophecies, 
 and imagine that one part relates to the former captivity 
 of the Jews, and the calamities they suffered under the 
 Chaldeans ; and that the other part relates to the latter 
 captivity of the Jews, and to the calamities they suffered 
 under the Romans : but there is no need of any such 
 distinctions ; there is no reason to think that any such 
 was intended by the author : several predictions on the 
 one part, as well as on the other, have been fulfilled at 
 both periods, but they have all more amply been ful- 
 filling during the latter period ; and there cannot be a 
 more lively picture than they exhibit of the state of the
 
 240 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 \ 
 
 Jews at present." And after having pointed out in 
 many particulars the literal fulfilment of these predic- 
 tions, he observes, " Here are instances of prophecies, 
 prophecies delivered about three thousand years ago, 
 and yet we see them fulfilling in the world at this very 
 time." 
 
 11. Dr. Scott says, " All these curses, which were 
 denounced against the Israelites when disobedient, 
 have indeed uniformly overtaken them, in every situa- 
 tion and in every country, from that day to this ; as 
 must be evident to every person who is in the least 
 acquainted with their history." And on the prediction 
 under consideration he says, " This passage evidently 
 refers to the prophetical denunciations of the two pre- 
 ceding chapters, which had their main accomplishment 
 in the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, and in 
 the consequent dispersion of the Jews to the present 
 day; little doubt can therefore remain that these pro- 
 phetical promises are yet unaccomplished, and that the 
 relics of the nation shall, in some future, if not very 
 distant period, be converted to Christ, and probably be 
 gathered together, and reinstated in Canaan. The 
 language here used is in a great measure absolute, not 
 containing merely a conditional encouragement) but 
 predicting an event which would absolutely take place : 
 for the Lord himself engaged ' to circumcise the hearts' 
 of the people; and when regeneration has taken place, 
 and divine love has supplanted the love of sin, then 
 certainly they will consider and repent, and return to 
 God and obey him." 
 
 12. From what has been said, dear reader, you 
 will perceive that this prediction proves my proposi- 
 tion, that our people will return literally to the land 
 which God gave to our fathers ; and that they will re-
 
 PART IV. 211 
 
 turn in an unconverted state ; for the circumcision of 
 the heart, or true conversion to God, is to succeed 
 their restoration to the land. It is of great importance 
 to remember this order established by God himself; 
 for you must know that there are not a few who grant 
 that this prediction has not been fulfilled, but will be 
 accomplished in the conversion of the Jews wherever 
 they are ; and that to be gathered to the land of Canaan, 
 " the land which our fathers did possess," is not to be 
 understood literally, but allegorically of heaven ; of 
 which Canaan was a type. True, Canaan was a type 
 of heaven : but does God promise to gather them 
 " out of all people from one end of the earth to the 
 other, and bring them into heaven ?" What, before 
 their hearts are circumcised to love him? Has Christ 
 changed the order of things ? Has it now become pos- 
 sible for sinners to ehter the kingdom of God without 
 being born of the Spirit ? Consider also, that surely 
 the land which Abraham could " see with his eyes," and 
 " in which he was a stranger," the land in which Isaac 
 " sojourned," the land on which Jacob " lay," must be 
 the very land of Canaan itself, and no other place in 
 heaven or earth. But these are the terms which the 
 Lord employs to define the promised land, that land 
 which he promised to the patriarchs, " and their seed 
 for ever, for an everlasting possession." Besides, what 
 does it mean when God adds, " I will multiply them 
 above their fathers?" "And the Lord thy God will 
 bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, 
 and thou shalt possess it ; and he will do thee good, 
 and multiply thee above thy fathers." (Deut. xxx. 5.) 
 Is this applicable to the inhabitants of heaven? No, 
 my dear reader, it is the Canaan once possessed, which 
 they shall possess again. 
 
 M
 
 24-2 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 13. But let us proceed to hear what the prophets 
 say on this interesting subject. We begin with the 
 36th chapter of Ezekiel, which, after you have carefully 
 read over, you will perceive that it contains a promise 
 of temporal and spiritual blessings. The spiritual 
 blessings consist in regeneration and reconciliation with 
 God. " Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, 
 and ye shall be clean ; from all your filthiness, and 
 from all your idols will I cleanse you. A new heart 
 also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within 
 you ; and I will take away the stony heart out of your 
 flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. And I will 
 put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my 
 statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them," 
 Ezek. xxxvi. 25 27; by the power and influence of 
 the Holy Spirit they should be quickened and have a 
 new nature implanted, the blood of Jesus applied to 
 their hearts to cleanse their guilty conscience from 
 dead works to serve the living God ; and the purifying 
 and sanctifying influence of grace, to enable them to 
 die unto sin and live unto newness of life ; and thus 
 God would again be their God, and they should be his 
 people. Amongst the temporal blessings promised, is, 
 first their return to their own land, which is to precede 
 their regeneration, agreeably to the order, ver. 25 ; 
 then, i. e., after having been " gathered out of all 
 countries and brought into their own land," ver. 24, 
 then they shall experience the change of heart promised. 
 
 14. Now, whatever partial fulfilment this prophecy 
 may have had at the return of our fathers from Babylon, 
 it is very evident that a far more complete accomplish- 
 ment of it is to take place in future. For in verse 1 1 , 
 the promise is that God would do better unto them 
 than at their beginning; but it is a fact well known,
 
 PART IV. 243 
 
 that the outward condition of our people was never so 
 prosperous after the captivity as it had been before that 
 catastrophe. This remark is equally true with respect 
 to their spiritual state ; for, as has been observed before, 
 that when our fathers had returned from Babylon, 
 instead of being regenerated and reconciled to God, 
 they rather grew worse, and crucified the Lord of glory ; 
 and instead of God's being their God, and they his 
 people, they were cut off; the wrath of God came upon 
 them to the uttermost, and others, who were not the 
 people of God, were adopted in their stead. The land, 
 instead of being like the garden of Eden, the admiration 
 of men, has become the habitation of owls, and the 
 dwelling-place of wild beasts. Further, the persons to 
 be restored are repeatedly said to have blasphemed the 
 name of the Lord amongst the heathen ; but this cha- 
 racter is not applicable to our fathers in the Babylonish 
 captivity ; instead of being profane they seem to have 
 been so conscientious as not to sing the song of Zion in 
 a strange land. 
 
 Again, in verse 12, &c. it is promised, that the land 
 should never be bereaved of its inhabitants ; but, since 
 the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, very few 
 of our people have lived in the land of our fathers. 
 Further, this people is to be gathered out of all countries ; 
 but the captives of Babylon were chiefly confined to one 
 country. This prophecy, therefore, dear reader, is in 
 perfect unison with that of Moses, which we have con- 
 sidered before ; and they both confirm the sentiment 
 that our nation, however scattered in all countries, will 
 return to the land which our fathers did possess ; then, 
 as a nation, they will be converted to God, and clothe 
 themselves in dust and ashes ; then the Lord will do 
 them good, better than heretofore. 
 M 2
 
 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 15. On this prophecy Dr. Scott has the following 
 notes : " The Lord declared that he would replenish the 
 land, and not suffer it any more to be desolated, as it 
 had been during the Babylonish captivity ; and that he 
 would not any more give the heathen occasion to re- 
 proach it. Though the whole land of Israel was not 
 desolated after the destruction of Jerusalem by the 
 Romans, as it had been after that by the Chaldeans, yet 
 the slaughter made among the Jews was far greater, and 
 they were entirely driven out of the land, and have con- 
 tinued in a state of exile from it for above seventeen 
 hundred years. It seems therefore unavoidable but 
 that we must refer the full completion of this prophecy 
 to some future event, when the land shall again become 
 fruitful, and be inhabited by the nation of Israel to the 
 end of time. 
 
 " In allusion to the divers washings and sprinklings 
 of the ritual law, the Lord promised to sprinkle clean 
 water upon his people, and make them clean from all 
 their filthiness and idols. Clean water is the universal 
 purifier of our persons, garments, houses, streets, and 
 cities ; and, under both the Old Testament and the 
 Christian dispensation, it hath been used as an emblem 
 of the cleansing of our polluted souls from sin. But no 
 water, however clean, or in what mode soever it be 
 applied, can do more than take away the filth of the 
 flesh ; except as it is used as an outward sign of the 
 inward spiritual grace of the Gospel. Water especially 
 is the sacramental sign of the sanctifying influence of 
 the Holy Spirit ; yet this is always connected with the 
 atoning blood of Christ. When the latter is applied to 
 the conscience, through faith, to cleanse it from dead 
 works, the former is always applied to all the powers of 
 the soul, to purify them from the love and pollution of
 
 sin ; and thus the sinner is washed and sanctified, and 
 justified in the name of our Lord Jesus, and by the 
 Spirit of our God. But of whom was this spoken ? 
 Doubtless, many of the Jews who returned from Babylon 
 were thus renewed and sanctified ; yet numbers of them 
 continued strangers to such special blessings, though 
 preserved from outward idolatry. These promises are 
 pleaded by all true believers, in every age, and fulfilled 
 to them ; and this may be called the spiritual meaning. 
 But the context speaks so expressly and repeatedly of 
 the house of Israel being restored to the land which the 
 Lord had given to their fathers, that in the prophetical 
 meaning, I apprehend it greatly confirms the opinion of 
 those who suppose, that, after the Jews shall be con- 
 verted to Christ, they shall also be restored to their 
 own land. Then these promises will be fulfilled in 
 them, in their fullest meaning ; and the subsequent part 
 of the prophecy will be literally accomplished in the sight 
 of all nations ; and the Jews no doubt are preserved a 
 distinct people on purpose to make way for this great 
 display of the Lord's power and truth, and thus demon- 
 strate to all the world the divine original of the holy 
 Scriptures." 
 
 " In this chapter," says Matthew Henry, " we have 
 two distinct prophecies ; the one seems chiefly to relate 
 to the temporal estate of the Jews, wherein their present 
 deplorable condition is described, and the triumph of 
 their neighbours in it ; but it is promised that their 
 grievances shall be all redressed, and that in due time 
 they shall be settled again in their own land in the 
 midst of peace and plenty (Ver 1 15). The other 
 seems chiefly to concern their spiritual estate." 
 
 16. There are other prophecies, which will be 
 considered hereafter, some relating to the restoration of
 
 246 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 the ten tribes, and others speaking both of Judah and 
 Israel. The two we have now considered relate to 
 Judah, or the two tribes dispersed by Titus. I agree, 
 that the spiritual blessings promised in these predictions 
 are applicable to the conversion of every sinner, whether 
 Jew or Gentile ; but the circumstances mentioned before 
 and after the spiritual change, in ver. 25 27, ought to 
 lead us to be just before we are charitable ; i. e. we 
 ought to apply them first literally, as a promise to the 
 natural descendants of Jacob, and then use them as an 
 illustration of the nature of the conversion of every 
 other sinner. The persons to whom the promise 
 primarily belongs, are such as have dwelt in the land of 
 our fathers, but have been driven out for a reason, 
 because of their sins ; but for the covenant made with 
 Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Jehovah will gather them 
 again, and bring them into their land, and they are to 
 possess it for ever. This character, therefore, is not 
 applicable to every sinner. 
 
 CONTINUATION OF THE SUBJECT. 
 
 I will again invite your attention, my dear reader, to 
 a few more predictions which foretell the restoration of 
 my beloved people to their own land, and their conver- 
 sion unto God, and the happy re-union of Judah and 
 Ephraim. I begin with, 
 
 1. Ezekiel, chap, xxxvii. in which you will observe, 
 that the prophet sees in a vision a valley of dry bones ; 
 he is interrogated with respect to the possibility of their 
 living ; he is commanded to bid them live in the name 
 of the Lord. On issuing the proclamation, he perceived 
 a noise among the bones ; the bones shook, and came, 
 each to his kindred bone ; the sinews, flesh and skin,
 
 PART IV. 247 
 
 then came upon them, and in answer to his prayer, life 
 was communicated to them. 
 
 This allegory may be considered as a partial descrip- 
 tion of the state of our people in Babylon, and their 
 unexpected deliverance from it : it may also, in some 
 sense, be applied to the conversion of every sinner ; but 
 God himself interprets it of the future restoration, 
 conversion, and reunion of the ten tribes with the house 
 of Judah. It is evident that neither this vision, nor the 
 remainder of the chapter, can be said to have received 
 its full accomplishment in the return of our people 
 from Babylon, or in the conversion of any sinner. It 
 is not applicable to the return from the Babylonish 
 captivity, for the following reasons : 
 
 The number of the ten tribes that might have returned 
 with Judah was too small to contain a full accomplish- 
 ment of this prophecy, which is expressly applied to the 
 whole house of Israel. Those who were to return, are 
 described as an exceeding great army ; " but those of 
 Judah and of the other ten tribes which returned from 
 Babylon, were very far from answering this description. 
 The people, to whom the promises in this chapter 
 belong, have been scattered far and wide; they are said 
 to be gathered " from all the heathen," to be gathered 
 on every side; but during the Babylonish captivity our 
 people were not far from each other. Again, they are 
 to return to the land which had been always desolate, 
 which is peculiarly applicable to the land of our fathers, 
 since their dispersion by the Romans. The pious 
 character of the people that were to return, and the 
 delight and pleasure God would have in the midst of 
 them, is not applicable to the character of our people 
 after their return from Babylon. Though the company 
 which returned with Zerubbabel were many of them
 
 248 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 godly people, yet the whole history of our nation, from 
 thence to the coming of Christ, is far from answering 
 to what is said of them in this prophecy, " that they 
 should walk in God's judgments, to observe his statutes, 
 and do them ; such promises also of " his tabernacle 
 being with them, and his sanctuary in the midst of them 
 for evermore," seem to be much too strong for the 
 above period. Further, Ephraim, and the tribes that 
 joined with him, and Judah, together with his associates, 
 are to return and become one nation upon the moun- 
 tains of Israel, which certainly has never been fulfilled, 
 but will surely be accomplished. Again, it is promised, 
 that, after this union shall have been effected, David, 
 God's servant, shall be king over them, and he shall be 
 their prince for ever; now it is evident that our people, 
 after their return from Babylon, had no temporal prince 
 of David's line to reign over them, nor have they had 
 one since ; but, after their return from their present 
 lost condition, Christ Jesus, the Messiah, the true David, 
 shall reign over them for ever and ever, as will also 
 appear from Hosea, 3d chapter, to be considered next. 
 Observe also, my dear reader, that it is declared in the 
 strongest terms, that God would never again cast them 
 off, or disinherit them ; which is surely not applicable 
 to their first return; for in a very few centuries they 
 were again cast off and more miserably wasted than 
 before. The time when this prediction is to be fulfilled 
 is called " the latter days," an expression which always 
 refers to the time after the coming of the Messiah, 
 which shows it was a long time after the prophet had 
 spoken, see chap, xxxviii. 8, 16, 17. Lastly, you will 
 please to notice that, in connexion with this prophecy 
 mention is made in the next three chapters of a war 
 made against the inhabitants of Judea, who had just
 
 PART IV. -49 
 
 returned to their land, and, therefore, had not had time 
 to fortify their cities; the enemy is represented as such 
 a numerous army as have never met before Jerusalem ; 
 and their destruction, and the deliverance of our people 
 thereby, is ascribed to the immediate hand and power of 
 God, or to a miracle, and that too of the most extra- 
 ordinary kind. But it is evident, that, since the days 
 of Ezekiel to the present time, no such event has 
 happened, either to our people or to their enemies. 
 
 2. From a consideration of all these things together, 
 we may certainly conclude that this prophecy has never 
 had its accomplishment, but refers to an event that is 
 still future, and is not to happen till after our dear 
 people are again settled in their own land of Canaan, 
 and Judah and Ephraim united in one nation, under the 
 happy reign of David their Lord and King, for ever 
 and ever. 
 
 Neither can this famous prophecy be spiritualized, or 
 applied with any propriety to the general conversion of 
 winners from amongst the Gentiles. For the people are 
 declared by Jehovah himself, to jbj3jEj^raim_ and the 
 house of Israel his companions, and Judah and his com- 
 panions ; and they shall be gathered out of all their 
 dn'clliny-2>laces, where they have sinned, " and they 
 shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob n*<j 
 x.rratit, wherein your fathers have dwelt, and they shall 
 dwell therein, even they and their children, and thf-'r 
 children's children for ever." 
 
 A very sensible writer in the "Jewish Expositor" (vol. 
 vii. p. 13) has the following observation : " That thLs 
 chapter is not to be applied in an allegorical sense, or 
 applied to the Gentile churches, is evident from ver. 
 21 and 22: for how can the churches of the Gentiles, 
 or the Christians in general, become one nation in the 
 M 5
 
 250 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 land upon the mountains of Israel? Does not the stick 
 of Judah and the stick of Joseph, &c. which are to 
 become one, evidently mean the two kingdoms of Judah 
 and Israel which had been divided ? These are the 
 true and literal children of Israel which are to be taken 
 from among the heathen, and not any allegorical off- 
 spring, as some commentators suppose, in order to 
 obscure some of the most clear and plain passages of 
 the Scripture prophecies. If, then, a literal restoration 
 of Israel is here intended, it is plain that the prophecy 
 is not yet fulfilled, from ver. 25, where it is said, that 
 after the restoration here spoken of, ' they shall dwell 
 in the land of their forefathers, they and their children, 
 and their children's children for ever. But this we 
 cannot suppose to have been verified by any former 
 return, as they have since been dispersed among all 
 nations. 
 
 " This prophecy, therefore, is yet to be fulfilled, 
 though not without some powerful opposition, which 
 shall be unsuccessfully made against it by some great 
 and populous nations in the latter days; which is the 
 subject of the two following chapters." 
 
 3. M. Henry, in his introduction to this chapter, 
 says, " God has assured them in the foregoing chapter, 
 that he would gather the house of Israel, even all of it, 
 and would bring them to their own land ; but there 
 were two things that rendered this very unlikely : 
 
 " 1st. That they were so dispersed amongst their 
 enemies, so destitute of all helps and advantages which 
 might favour or follow them on their return, and so 
 dispirited likewise in their own minds upon all these 
 accounts. They are here, in vision, compared to a 
 valley full of dry bones of dead men, which should be 
 brought together and raised to life. Ver. 1 14.
 
 PART IV. 251 
 
 ' 2d. They were so much divided among themselves, 
 too much of the old core remaining even in their cap- 
 tivity. But as to this, by a sign of two sticJiL.in J ajie 
 one in the hand of the prophet, is foreshown the happy 
 coalition that should be, at their return, between the 
 two nations of Israel and Judah." Ver. 15 22. 
 
 " The vision was evidently intended," says Dr. Scott, 
 " in its primary meaning, to encourage the desponding 
 Jews ; to predict both their restoration after the cap- 
 tivity, and also their recovery from their present long- 
 continued dispersion." 
 
 Speaking of the union of the two sticks in the hand 
 of the prophet, he says, " This was partially accom- 
 plished after the Babylonish captivity, when all the 
 Israelites that returned with the Jews from Babylon 
 settled under the same government, and formed with 
 them one nation. But it is probable that there will 
 hereafter be a more remarkable accomplishment of ^-"^_^/^ 
 
 On ver. 25 he says, " This cannot possibly be inter- 
 preted of any events that took place before the coming 
 of Christ ; and after his coming, the Jews were soon 
 driven from their own land, and have never regained 
 possession of it : yet the language is so expressive, that 
 it seems plainly to mean that the Jews should dwell in 
 Canaan, under the rule of Christ, from the time intended, 
 through all generations to the end of the whole." 
 
 4. Mr. Faber having proved the future restora- 
 tion and conversion of Judah, he goes on to say, 
 
 " But the lost ten tribes of Israel are still dispersed 
 through the extensive regions of the north and of the 
 east. These, according to the sure word of prophecy 
 however they may be now concealed from mortal know- 
 ledge, will be found again, and will be brought back 
 
 1
 
 252 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 tongues shall come and see the glory of the Lord ; for 
 he will set among them a sign, even the sign of the Son 
 of man, the sign of the illuminated Shechinah; and will 
 send unto them those that have escaped from the 
 slaughter of the antichristian confederacy, that they 
 may declare his glory among the nations. Convinced, 
 by ocular demonstration, that God doth indeed reign in 
 Zion, and at once divinely impelled and enabled both to 
 seek out from among them, and to find the long-lo^t 
 sheep of the house of Israel, they will bring by land, in 
 vast caravans, all the brethren of Judah for an offering 
 unto the Lord, as the great maritime power had already 
 brought the converted Jews for a present unto the Lord 
 to his holy mountain. Then shall the stick of Joseph 
 be united for ever with the stick of Judah: Ephraim 
 shall be no more a separate people, but the whole house 
 of Jacob shall become one nation under one king, even 
 the mystic David, Jesus the Messiah. 
 
 " The various prophecies, which speak of the restora- 
 tion of the ten tribes, certainly cannot relate to the 
 restoration of those detached individuals out of them, 
 who returned with Judah from the Babylonian captivity. 
 This is manifest, both because their restoration is 
 represented as perfectly distinct from the restoration of 
 Judah, and because it is placed at once subsequent to 
 that event, and to the overthrow of Antichrist. In fact, 
 the converted fugitives from the armies of Antichrist 
 are described as being greatly instrumental in bringing 
 about the restoration of the ten tribes. Hence their 
 restoration is plainly future ; and hence we cannot with 
 any degree of consistency apply the predictions which 
 foretell it, to the return of a few individuals from 
 Babylon with Judah. Of the Jews who were carried 
 away captive to Babylon only a very small part, accord-
 
 PART IV. i5 
 
 ing to Houliegan, not more than a hundredth part, 
 returned to their own country. Those who were left 
 behind will doubtless, at the time of the second advent, 
 be brought back along with their brethren of the ten 
 tribes; just as those individuals of the ten tribes, who 
 returned with Judah from Babylon, and (adhering to 
 him notwithstanding the Samaritan schism) were after- 
 wards scattered with him by the Romans, will be brought 
 back with their brethren the Jews. So far, but no 
 farther, the otherwise distinct restoration of Judah and 
 of Joseph will in some measure be mingled together. 
 This circumstance is very accurately noted by Ezekiel, 
 even when predicting the twofold restoration of Judah 
 and Joseph, and their subsequent union under one king. 
 He speaks neither of Judah nor Joseph simply ; but 
 styles the one division, Judah and the children of Israel 
 Jbis_c^rmoanipns ; and the other division, Joseph and all 
 fhp Violin of Tsraeriiis companions; thus plainly 
 intimating that some of the children of Israel shall 
 return with Judah ; but that numbers of all the tribes, 
 not of the kingdom of ten tribes only, but of all the 
 tribes, shall return with Joseph." 
 
 A similar prophecy of the return and conversion of 
 the ten tribes together with Judah we have in, 
 
 5. Hosea iii. 4, 5. " For the children of Israel 
 shall abide many days without a king, and without a 
 prince, and without a sacrifice, and without ah image, 
 and without an ephod, and without teraphim : afterward 
 shall the children of Israel return and seek the Lord 
 their God, and David their king ; and shall fear the 
 Lord and his goodness in the latter days." 
 
 Known unto God are all his works, from the begin- 
 ning of the world ; and whatever he has predetermined 
 in hi? eternal counsels, shall surely be fulfilled. Often,
 
 254- JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 indeed, is the execution of his purposes delayed, till 
 unbelievers begin to think that his word has failed of its 
 accomplishment : but " in the evening time it shall be 
 light ;" and when the obstacles to his will seem almost 
 insurmountable, he will glorify himself in fulfilling it 
 beyond all human expectation. Thus he acted, when, 
 according to his promise, he brought our fathers out of 
 Egypt. He suffered them to be detained till the very 
 last day that they could be consistently with the truth 
 of his promise ; and then, when my people themselves 
 were almost reduced to despair, he brought them out 
 with a mighty hand and stretched-out arm. Thus, also, 
 will he act yet once more toward the children of Israel, 
 his chosen people. They have been for ages " cast 
 out," almost beyond hope of recovery ; but there is a 
 period when they shall return, and commit themselves 
 to the government of Christ, as ever they did to the 
 direction of Moses. Of this glorious event the prophecy 
 under consideration assures us. It consists of two 
 parts. It announces the calamities which should befall 
 the children of Israel, and foretells their happy deliver- 
 ance. And as their calamities had respect both to their 
 civil and religious state, so in like manner, their deli- 
 verance. 
 
 That this precious prophecy of their restoration to 
 the knowledge, service, and enjoyment of God, and the 
 happy government of the Messiah over them, was not 
 fulfilled at the return of my people from the Babylonish 
 captivity, but is yet to be accomplished, is evident ironi 
 the following consideration : 
 
 6. That by " David their king," is meant the pro- 
 mised Messiah, is acknowledged by almost all the 
 Rabbins (as will be shown hereafter), and by almost all 
 Christian divines.
 
 PART IV. 
 
 This is a title ascribed to him in several other 
 passages, Jer. xxx. 9; Ezek. xxxiv. 23, 24; xxxvii. 21, 
 22, 24. The context and the manifest scope of them 
 determine them to belong to him. 
 
 He is called David, not only because he was the son 
 and Lord of David, but because he was an eminent 
 type of him, in the meanness of his descent, the come- 
 liness of his person, his wisdom and prudence, his 
 courage and valour ; in his holiness and the extraordi- 
 nary gifts of the Spirit with which he was endowed, as 
 also in his kingly office, and in the battles which he 
 fought, as well as in the conquests which he obtained. 
 
 Now, it is a fact too well known to need proof, that 
 my people, after their return from Babylon, were so 
 far from " seeking the Lord their God, and David their 
 king, and fearing the Lord and his goodness," that they 
 grew worse and worse, till they had filled up the 
 measure of their iniquity in crucifying the Lord of 
 glory, and rejecting the offers of mercy through that 
 very precious blood which they had imprecated upon 
 themselves and their children, and for which the wrath 
 of God has come upon them and continued to the pre- 
 sent day. 
 
 7. Hence, I observe further, that the prediction 
 of their return cannot yet have been accomplished, 
 because their calamities have not yet ended. How 
 remarkably striking has been the fulfilment of the 
 former part of this prediction ! For many centuries 
 past, my dear people have not been a body politic, 
 having no rule and dominion among themselves ; they 
 have no king nor prince of their own : the sceptre is de- 
 parted from them ; neither is any sacrifice offered by 
 them, for their daily sacrifice has ceased ; and what is 
 very remarkable, although my people were once very
 
 256 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 prone to idolatrous worship, as their history shows, yet 
 it is well known that there is not now an image among 
 them. And for this reason, many of my brethren, who, 
 at their conversion, joined the Roman Catholics, as soon 
 as they became acquainted with their image worship, 
 left them and joined the Protestants. Witness Joseph 
 Wolff, And for this reason also, when the great 
 council of the Rabbins in the valley of Hungaria, after 
 many days' controversy \vith Romish priests, had re- 
 solved to embrace the Christian religion, but were told 
 by the priests that they worshipped saints and their 
 images, my people were so disgusted that they ex- 
 claimed, " No idols!" and the council broke up without 
 further discussion. 
 
 Now, since it must be acknowledged, and actually is 
 by most divines, that the former part of this prophecy 
 has been fulfilled and is still fulfilling, both with respect 
 to Juclah and Ephraim, it follows that the second part 
 is also to be fulfilled, after they return to seek the Lord. 
 Besides, it is expressly said that the children of Israel 
 should be, for many days deprived of their privileges, 
 and that they shall seek the Lord in the latter days. 
 Both Jewish and Christian commentators agree that 
 the latter days refer to the coming of the Messiah, and 
 therefore this could not have been fulfilled before the 
 coming of Jesus ; and I 4iave already shown that my 
 people did not receive him as " David their king." 
 Permit me now, my dear reader, to add the testimony 
 of the Rabbins, of blessed memory, and of a few Chris- 
 tian writers. 
 
 8. Kimchi says, " These are the days of the cap- 
 tivity in which we now are ; % at this day we have no 
 king, nor prince out of Israel, and we are under the 
 power of the nations, and of their kings and princes ;
 
 PART IV. 257 
 
 and have no sacrifice for God, nor image for idols ; nor 
 ephod for God, that declares future things ; and tera- 
 phiin for idolatry, which show things to come, accord- 
 ing to the mind of those that believe in them." , 
 
 Yarchi speaks much to the same effect : " Without 
 sacrifice in the sanctuary of Judah, without an image 
 of Baal in Samaria for the kings of Israel, without an 
 ephod of Urim and Thummim, that declare hidden 
 things, and teraphim made for a time to speak of, and 
 show things that are secret." With this agree the 
 words of Aben Ezra and Abarbanel ; and the Targum 
 paraphrases it thus : " Without a king of the house of 
 David, and without a ruler over Israel, without sacrifice 
 for acceptance at Jerusalem, and M'ithout a high place 
 in Samaria, and without rfn ephod in him that shows, 
 i. e., what shall come to pass." 
 
 That the Messiah is meant by David, is acknowledged 
 by all the Rabbins : Zohar, Exod. p. 93, c. 3. Jerusalem, 
 Talmud, Berachoth, 5:1; Bab. Tal. Megilah, 18:1; 
 Abarbanel Mash. Yeshua, 55 : 4. Ab. Ezra, in loco. 
 Chizuk Emuna, 44; Michlal Yophi, Ps. cxliv. 14; 
 Abendana, Note in Mich. Yophi, 1 Kings xi. 39; 
 Hag. ii. 23. The Targum says, " Seek the worship 
 of the Lord their God, and obey Messiah the son of 
 David their king." 
 
 Rabbi Judah Monis, a learned Jew, who made a 
 public profession of faith in America, at Cambridge, 
 Ms. 1 722, in one of his discourses he says, " The first 
 part of this prophecy, we do see, hath been fulfilled to 
 the very last tittle, they having been, for the space of 
 above 1650 years (since the destruction of their com- 
 monwealth), deprived of all these things mentioned in 
 the 4th verse ; and reduced from that state they were 
 formerly in, which was such as could make any nation
 
 258 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 happy, to such an one as they are now in, scattered all 
 over the world, subject to all sorts of nations that are 
 willing to let them live among them, ruled by their own 
 enemies ; paying tribute to all nations where they live ; 
 and finally enduring all the calamities and opprobrious 
 treatment that can make them unhappy ; and as we 
 have seen the first part accomplished, so I hope the 
 second part will be fulfilled also, i. e., they shall return 
 and seek the Lord, and David their king, i. e., the Mes- 
 siah, the Lord Jesus Christ, and fear him, and his good- 
 ness in the latter days, and look on him whom they 
 have pierced," Zech. xii. 10. 
 
 9. The learned Dr. Pocock says, " By the children 
 of Israel are meant the ten tribes, for these does the 
 prophet peculiarly now prophesy to, and the things 
 more especially concern them. This prophecy is not 
 applicable to the children of Israel before the destruc- 
 tion of the second temple." 
 
 Mr. Fuller, having proved, by the first and second 
 chapters of Hosea, the future conversion of Judah and 
 Israel, proceeds to say, " The third chapter contains 
 another prophecy on the same subject. Like the 
 former, it is introduced under the form of a parable. 
 The case supposed is that of a man attached to a woman 
 who is an adulteress. Go, saith the Lord to the prophet, 
 see if thou canst love such an one ; yet, such, if any 
 thing, must be my love to this people. The prophet 
 is further supposed to go and covenant with this adul- 
 teress, engaging her to desist for many days from her 
 lewd courses, living, as it were, as a widow, by herself, 
 and afterwards she should become his wife. Such was 
 the love of the Lord to the children of Israel. He 
 loved them notwithstanding their idolatry, and intended, 
 at a future time, to take them to be his people. He
 
 PART IV. 259 
 
 would not receive them, however, in their idolatry, nor 
 till a proper time had elapsed, in which they should 
 live in a state of separation ; but in due season he would 
 take them to himself as his Church and people, remem- 
 bering their sin no more. 
 
 " The children of Israel shall abide many days with- 
 out a king, and without a prince, and without a sacri- 
 fice. Never surely has a prophecy corresponded more 
 exactly with fact. Nor is this all ; the whole of the 
 Israelitish race, with whom we have any acquaintance, 
 have also been without an image, and without an ephod, 
 and without teraphim ; that is, though mixed with the 
 nations of the world, and in other respects wicked in 
 the extreme, yet they have not been suffered to go into 
 their former idolatrous practices ; and have thus an- 
 swered to the adulteress ceasing from playing the harlot, 
 and abiding for her husband, in a state of separation 
 many days. Afterwards shall the children of Israel 
 return and seek Jehovah their God, and David their 
 king ; and shall fear the Lord and his goodness in the 
 latter days. On this no reflection need be made, save 
 this, that the superabundant grace of God towards them, 
 in their outcast and perishing condition, shall not only 
 fill their hearts with gratitude, but inspire them with a 
 holy fear of offending him any more." 
 
 10. Dr. Scott says, " Some interpret this almost 
 wholly of the kingdom of Israel : but the prophecy 
 seems to require us to understand it of the whole people 
 descended from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." Again, 
 " The kingdom of Israel was, soon after this, entirely 
 ruined, and the people were incorporated either with 
 the Jews or the nations among whom they resided; and 
 have had neither king, prince, priest, sacrifice, nor re- 
 ligious establishment from that day to this. The Jews
 
 260 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 remained several years without these advantages, during 
 the Babylonish captivity ; yet their civil and religious 
 constitution was again restored. But since the rejec- 
 tion of that nation at the introduction of Christianity, 
 and the destruction of their city and temple by the 
 Romans, they have continued to this time, for much 
 above seventeen hundred years, without a king or prince 
 of their own nation ; and without priest and sacrifice, 
 or any thing substituted in the place of the temple 
 worship: and (what is still more remarkable) they have 
 also remained without an image, ephod, or teraphim ; 
 without any of those idolatrous observances and ap- 
 paratus to which they were so generally attached when 
 this prophecy was uttered." " It was also predicted 
 that afterwards they should return, (from their state of 
 rejection and unbelief,) and seek the Lord their God, 
 and David their King." " This, even their own writers 
 explain of the promised Messiah, and doubtless it fore- 
 told their future conversion to Christ ; for which they 
 are evidently preserved a separate people, neither a 
 part of the true Church, nor yet given up to spiritual 
 adultery ; but put aside on a separate, scanty mainten- 
 ance, in a debased condition, for a long time, (like 
 Hosea's wife,) to be at length received to favour again." 
 Now, my dear reader, there are many more predic- 
 tions of a similar nature with those we have already 
 considered, such as Isa. ii. 1 5; xi. 11 16; xlix. 
 14, 26. Amos ix. 11 15. Zephaniah iii. 820. 
 Zech. viii. 18 23, &c., &c. But I shall solicit your 
 attention to only two more.
 
 261 
 
 THE SUBJECT CONTINUED. 
 
 J. I commence with Jer. xxxi. 31 4-0, "Be- 
 hold, the days comp, saith the Lord, that I will make a 
 new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the 
 house of Judah : not according to the covenant that I 
 made with their fathers, in the day that I took them by 
 the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt ; 
 (which my covenant they brake, although I was a hus- 
 band unto them, saith the Lord:) but this shall be the 
 covenant that I will make with the house of Israel ; 
 After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in 
 their inward parts, and write it in their hearts, and will 
 be their God, and they shall be my people. And they 
 shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every 
 man his brother, saying, Know the Lord : for they shall 
 all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest 
 of them, saith the Lord : for I will forgive their iniquity, 
 and I will remember their sin no more. Thus saith the 
 Lord, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the 
 ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by 
 night ; which divideth the sea when the waves thereof 
 roar; The Lord of hosts is his name : If those ordinances 
 depart from before me, saith the Lord, then the seed 
 of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me 
 for ever. Thus saith the Lord, If the heaven above 
 can be measured, and the foundations of the earth 
 searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed 
 of Israel, for all they have done, saith the Lord. Behold, 
 the days come, saith the Lord, that the city shall be 
 built to the Lord, from the tower of Hananeel unto the 
 gate of the corner ; and the measuring-line shall yet go 
 forth over against it upon the hillGareb, and shall com-
 
 262 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 pass about to Goath ; and the whole valley of the dead 
 bodies, and of the ashes, and all the fields unto the 
 brook of Kidron, unto the corner of the horse-gate 
 towards the east, shall be holy unto the Lord ; it shall 
 not be plucked up, nor thrown down any more for 
 ever." 
 
 Although this prediction respecting a New Covenant 
 is applied by the apostle (Heb. viii.) to the commence- 
 ment of the New Testament dispensation, and was ac- 
 tually made or established by the death, resurrection, 
 and ascension of Jesus ; and although the blessings of 
 this covenant are the same as are enjoyed by every con- 
 verted sinner, yet literally and more fully it respects 
 my nation, with whom the other covenant had been 
 made when God brought them out of Egypt. Nor was 
 this prediction fulfilled in the conversion of my brethren 
 in the apostolic time, for, however many of them may 
 have been converted, they all have been mixed with 
 the converts of other nations ; but the promise in this 
 prophecy is the conversion, not of a few or many, 
 " but the whole house of Israel and the house of 
 Judah," ver. 31, "the nation," ver. 36, just as the 
 covenant of Sinai had been made with the nation. 
 " They shall all know me, from the least of them unto 
 the greatest of them," ver. 34. Further, this promise 
 was made to the ten tribes as well as to the house of 
 Judah. Long before the giving of this promise, my 
 people were divided into two parts. The one of them, 
 in a way of distinction from the other, retained the 
 name of Israel. These were the ten tribes which fell 
 off from the house of David, under the conduct of 
 Ephraim ; whence they are often also in the prophets 
 called by that name. The other, consisting of the tribe 
 properly so called, with that of Benjamin and the
 
 PART IV. 263 
 
 greatest part of Levi, took the name of Judah, and 
 afterwards was called the Jews, and with them the pro- 
 mise remained in a peculiar manner. But whereas they 
 all originally sprang from Abraham, who received the 
 promise for them all, and because they were all equally, 
 in their forefather, brought into the bond of the old 
 covenant, they are here mentioned distinctly, that none 
 of the seed of Abraham might be excluded from the 
 tender of this covenant. Hence, unto the whole seed 
 of Abraham according to the flesh, it was that this 
 covenant was first to be offered. So Peter tells them 
 in his first sermon, that the promise was unto them and 
 their children who were there present, i. e. the house of' 
 Judah, and to them that are afar off, i. e. the house of 
 Israel, or the ten tribes, in their dispersion. Acts ii. 39. 
 It appears therefore plainly, that the promise is yet to 
 be fulfilled in the conversion of the ten tribes as well as 
 the house of Judah^ Besides, at that time " the city 
 shall bt; built, which shall not be plucked up or thrown 
 down any more for ever," ver. 38, 40. 
 
 It is evident, therefore, that Judah will first return 
 to the literal Canaan, rebuild the city, and after that be 
 converted as a nation ; and the sure fulfilment of it is 
 more certain than the stability of heaven and earth. 
 
 2. " This new covenant," says the learned and judi- 
 cious A. M'Lean, " was promised to be made with the 
 house of Israel and with the house of Judah. These, in 
 the first place, signify the election among the natural 
 posterity of Abraham, with whose fathers the old cove- 
 nant was made, ver. 9. To them, in the first instance, 
 belong ' the covenants and the promises,' Rom. ix. 4 ; 
 and among them they had their first accomplishment, 
 Acts ii. 25, 26 : and though the bulk of that nation was 
 broken off, through their unbelief and rejection of the
 
 264- . JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 Messiah, Rom. xi. 20 ; yet this covenant still wears a 
 favourable aspect towards that people, when the fulness 
 of the Gentiles shall be come in ; for this is God's 
 covenant unto them, when he shall take away their sins," 
 ver. 2,5 27. "When Israel shall be again called into 
 the Church," says Dr. Scott, " it will not be according 
 to the Sinai covenant ; but by having the law written 
 in their hearts, and the covenant thus inwardly ratified 
 to them. As much as the heavenly bodies will continue 
 their settled course to the end of time, so surely will 
 Israel be continued a separate people, without being 
 finally excluded from the Church ; nor will God ever 
 cast them all off for all their sins, till it be possible for 
 man to measure the height of the heavens, or to search 
 out the foundations of the earth." The last prediction 
 I shall name is that by the Prophet, 
 
 r 3. Zechariah xii. 10 14-, "And I will pour upon 
 / the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jeru- 
 / salem, the spirit of grace and of supplications ; and they 
 shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they 
 shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, 
 and shall be in bitterness for him. as one that is in bit- 
 terness for his first-born. In that day shall there be a 
 great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Ha- 
 dadrimmon, in the valley of Megiddon. And the land 
 shall mourn, every family apart ; the family of the house 
 of David apart, and their wives apart ; the family of the 
 house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart ; the family 
 of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart ; the 
 family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart; all the 
 families that remain, every family apart, and their wives 
 apart." 
 
 1st. That this is a prophecy respecting the Messiah, 
 is acknowledged by the Rabbins, Succah, fol. 52. 1 ;
 
 PART IV. 265 
 
 R. S. Ben. Melech in loco ; Ber. Rab. fol. 905 ; Yarchi 
 and Kimchi in loco ; R. Haddarsham, Gen. 28. Some 
 think that part of ver. 10 was spoken by the prophet, viz. 
 " they shall mourn for him," because it is spoken in the 
 third person_/br him; but no converted sinner, whether 
 Jew or Gentile, needs to mourn for him, i. e. Messiah 
 or Christ, but they will mourn for the act of having 
 pierced him ; for the word alav, translated him, signifies 
 also it, or on account of it, concerning it. To return. 
 
 2d. Two things are ascribed to the Messiah. He 
 was to be pierced ; and he was to pour upon the house 
 of David, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit 
 of grace and of supplications. 
 
 3d. The effect of the operations of the Holy Spirit 
 was twofold. Faith in the Messiah, " they shall look 
 unto him," by which faith is expressed : great mourning 
 and true repentance for having pierced him. We have 
 then a description of the nature and extent of the 
 mourning. The former is compared to that of a tender 
 mother, having lost " an only son, or a first-born," 
 which mourning is sincere, deep, and lasting ; and the 
 extent is compared to that mourning which was occa- 
 sioned by the death of Josiah, who was slain at Ha- 
 dadrimmon, in the valley of Megiddon ; the greatest 
 mourning my people were acquainted with, and on that 
 account it grew up into a proverb ; and as that mourning 
 was national, so would this be also. 
 
 Such, my dear reader, is the outline of this precious 
 promise. Now, although this prediction may have been 
 partially fulfilled in the conversion of many of my 
 Jewish brethren in the apostolic times, and however 
 applicable it is to the conversion of every sinner; yet 
 it must be allowed that its proper and complete fulfil- 
 ment is yet to come. It is evident that no such 
 
 N
 
 266 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 repentance and faith, such general and particular 
 mourning for piercing Christ, has ever taken place 
 amongst my dear people ; nor has the preceding part of 
 the chapter, closely connected with the prediction under 
 consideration, been fulfilled. Jerusalem must first be 
 rebuilt, before it is besieged by the united power of 
 many kings, who shall then be destroyed in a miracu- 
 lous manner. I conclude, therefore, that this is a pro- 
 phecy concerning the future restoration of my nation to 
 the literal land of Canaan ; that they will rebuild the 
 city Jerusalem ; that they will afterwards be besieged 
 by many nations, who shall be destroyed by God him- 
 self: and in that day Judah and Israel shall be con- 
 verted unto God. 
 
 4. " That we may perceive," says Dr. Fuller, " the 
 connexion of the prophecy (Zech. chap, xii.), it will be 
 proper to observe, that chapter xi. contains a prediction 
 of the overthrow of the Jewish nation by the Romans : 
 but chapter xii. contains a prophecy of their restoration ; 
 and this is, therefore, called, ' the burden of the word 
 of the Lord,' ver. 1. 
 
 " The events of this and the foregoing prophecy ? 
 though asunder as to time, yet very properly follow each 
 other. Paul takes but little notice of the state of the 
 Jews, during their long dispersion : but passing over 
 that chasm, as included in their being broken off] 
 proceeds to speak of their being graffed on again, 
 Rom. xi. 
 
 " It were presumptuous to be very positive as to the 
 meaning of a prophecy which is yet to be accomplished ; 
 but, comparing it with other prophecies of the same event, 
 the following particulars appear to be conveyed by it : 
 
 " 1st. That the Jews will be restored to their own 
 land prior to their conversion, ver. 6.
 
 PART IV. 267 
 
 " 2d. That a grand combination will be formed 
 against them, with a view to dispossess them, ver. 2. 9. 
 
 " 3d. That the nations engaged in this combination 
 will be repulsed and sorely punished for their presump- 
 tuous attempt, ver. 2 6. 
 
 " 4th. That the country and city shall be united 
 against the enemy, ver. 5. 7. 
 
 " 5th. That they shall be guarded by Providence, 
 and strengthened to encounter the greatest difficulties, 
 ver. 8. 
 
 " 6th. That after these temporal interpositions, the 
 Lord will pour upon them a spirit of grace and of sup- 
 plications ; and they shall lament over their sins, and 
 the sins of their fathers, particularly in having crucified 
 the Lord of glory, ver. 10. 
 
 " Finally, The remedy to all this grief is mentioned, 
 chap. xiii. 1, 'In that day there shall be a fountain 
 opened to the house of David, and to the inhabitants of 
 Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness.' By looking to 
 Jesus, they were wounded ; and by looking to Jesus, 
 they are healed. The first-fruits of this great work 
 appeared on the day of Pentecost, when thousands were 
 pricked to the heart, repented, and were baptized in 
 that name which they had despised ; but the lump is 
 yet to appear. ' Blessed be the Lord God, the God of 
 Israel, who only doeth wondrous things : and blessed 
 be his glorious name for ever : and let the whole earth 
 be filled with his glory. Amen and amen.' " 
 
 5. Some expositors consider this as predicting the 
 victories of the Maccabees over Antiochus ; but that 
 persecutor never besieged Jerusalem ; " and the lan- 
 guage," says Bishop Newcomb, " is much too strong to 
 denote the success of the Maccabees." Again he says, 
 " God's signal interposition in behalf of Judah and 
 N 2
 
 268 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 Jerusalem, at their future restoration, having been fore- 
 told, the prophet proceeds to foretell their conversion 
 to Christianity." 
 
 " The former part of this chapter relates to an inva- 
 sion made upon the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem 
 in the latter times of the world, probably after their 
 restoration and settlement in their own land." Bishop 
 L,owth. 
 
 "However it may be accommodated," says Dr. Scott, 
 " some special events were doubtless intended by the 
 Holy Spirit, and it is probable that the grand accom- 
 plishment of it is yet to be expected. The ancestors of 
 the Jews caused Christ to be nailed to the cross, and 
 pierced by the soldier's spear ; for they employed the 
 Romans to execute the sentence which they had de- 
 nounced, exclaiming, ' His blood be upon us, and on 
 our children ; ' and their posterity have ever since been 
 consenting to this deed by their obstinate unbelief. 
 But at the predicted period they will know who this 
 crucified Jesus was, and then they shall by faith look 
 to him, and mourn over him, as pierced and slain by 
 them. A partial fulfilment of this took place at and 
 after the day of Pentecost, in the conversion of num- 
 bers of the Jews who had just before crucified Christ, 
 and it is descriptive of the conversion of sinners in 
 every age. Yet there can be no reasonable doubt but 
 it is an intended prediction of the conversion of the 
 Jewish nation, when they shall, as one body, embrace 
 the Gospel of Jesus Christ." 
 
 Thus, my dear reader, I hope I have established, 
 upon Divine testimony, the proposition that my dear 
 people, both Judah and Ephraim, will be brought back 
 to their own land, and after that be brought to the 
 belief in the Lord Jesus Christ ; yet it may not be
 
 PART IV. 269 
 
 improper to remind you of a few facts, as collateral 
 evidence. 
 
 6. It is the opinion of many eminent writers, that 
 my people have never yet possessed all the land which 
 God promised to their fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and 
 Jacob ; but the time will surely come, when our faithful 
 covenant God will fulfil his promises in the fullest 
 extent. (See this subject ably discussed in the "Jewish 
 Expositor," 1822, p. 271 276. See also the quotation 
 from Joseph Mede, in the preceding pages.) 
 
 7. The wonderful preservation of my people as a 
 distinct nation, is another argument in favour of their 
 return to their own land. It has been foretold by 
 Moses and the prophets, that though they shall be 
 dispersed amongst all nations, yet they should not be 
 totally destroyed, but still subsist as a distinct people. 
 Read carefully, my dear reader, the following passages : 
 Lev. xxvi. 44 ; Numb, xxiii. 9 ; Jer. xxx. 1 1 ; Amos 
 ix. 8. My beloved nation, like the bush of Moses, 
 hath been always burning, but it is never consumed. 
 And what a marvellous thing it is, that after so many 
 wars, battles, and sieges, after so many fires, famines, 
 and pestilences, after so many years of captivity, slavery, 
 and misery, they are not destroyed utterly, and though 
 scattered among all people, yet subsist as a distinct 
 people by themselves. Where is anything comparable 
 to this to be found in all the histories and in all the 
 nations under the sun ? How just and beautiful is the 
 observation of Bishop Newton on this subject : " The 
 preservation of the Jews through so many ages, and 
 the total destruction of their enemies, are wonderful 
 events ; and are still more wonderful, by being signified 
 beforehand by the spirit of prophecy, as we find parti- 
 cularly in the Prophet Jeremiah, xlvi. 28, ' Fear not
 
 270 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 thou, O Jacob my servant, saith the Lord ; for I am 
 with thee ; for I will make a full end of all the nations 
 whither I have driven thee, but I will not make a full 
 end of thee.' The preservation of the Jews is really one 
 of the most signal and illustrious acts of Divine Provi- 
 dence. They are dispersed among all nations, yet they 
 are not confounded with any. The drops of rain which 
 fall, nay, the great rivers which flow into the ocean, are 
 soon mingled and lost in the immense body of waters : 
 and the same, in all human probability, would have been 
 the fate of the Jews ; they would have been mingled and 
 lost in the common mass of mankind ; but, on the con- 
 trary, they flow into all parts of the world, mix with all 
 nations, and yet keep separate from all. They still 
 live as a distinct people, and yet they no where live 
 according to their own laws, no where elect their own 
 magistrates, no where enjoy the full exercise of their 
 religion. Their solemn feasts and sacrifices are limited 
 to one certain place, and that hath been now for many 
 ages in the hands of strangers and aliens, who will not 
 suffer them to come thither. No people have continued 
 unmixed so long as they have done, not only of those 
 who have sent forth colonies into foreign countries, but 
 even of those who have abodes in their own country. 
 The northern nations have come in swarms unto the 
 most southern parts of Europe, but where are they now 
 to be discerned and distinguished ? The Gauls went 
 forth in great bodies, to seek their fortune in foreign 
 parts ; but what traces or footsteps of them are now- 
 remaining any where ? In France, who can separate 
 the race of the ancient Gauls from the various other 
 people who from time to time have settled there ? In 
 Spain, who can distinguish exactly between the first 
 possessors, the Spaniards and Goths, and the Moors,
 
 PART IV. 271 
 
 who conquered and kept possession of the country for 
 some ages ? In England, who can pretend to say with 
 certainty which families are derived from the ancient 
 Britons, and which from the Romans, or Saxons, or 
 Danes, or Normans? The most ancient and honourable 
 pedigrees can be traced up only to a certain period, and 
 beyond that, there is nothing but conjecture and un- 
 certainty, obscurity and ignorance ; but the Jews can 
 go up higher than any nation, they can even date their 
 pedigree from the beginning of the world. They may 
 not know from what particular tribe or family they are 
 descended, but they know certainly that they all spring 
 from the stock of Abraham. And yet, the contempt 
 with which they have been treated, and the hardships 
 which they have undergone in almost all countries, 
 should, one would think, have made them desirous to 
 forget or renounce their original ; but they possess it, 
 they glory in it : and after so many wars, massacres and 
 persecutions, they still subsist, they still are very nu- 
 merous : and what but a supernatural power could have 
 preserved them in such a manner as none other nation 
 upon earth hath been preserved ? " 
 
 8. As another argument, I would simply remind 
 you, my dear reader, of the general expectation of my 
 people to return to the land of their fathers. This desire 
 is interwoven in all their prayers from day to day, and 
 more particularly so in the prayers for the festivals, 
 especially on the feast of the passover, when it is said 
 repeatedly, " This year we are here, at the next year 
 we shall be in the land of Israel." Now, I cannot but 
 hope that these prayers are "the prayers of faith," i. e. 
 believing the many promises of God on this subject, 
 just as Joseph, my namesake, who, just before his death, 
 said to his brethren, " I die, and God will surely visit
 
 "27 V JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 you, and bring you out of this land, into the land of 
 which he sware unto Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob," 
 (Jen. I. 24-. It was this promise that supported our 
 fathers in the house of the Egyptian bondage, and en- 
 couraged them, even when every appearance of hope 
 was gone, to groan, and sigh, and pray unto the Lord 
 for deliverance : " And Jehovah said, I have surely 
 seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and 
 have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters ; 
 for I know their sorrows, and am come down to deliver 
 them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them 
 up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto 
 a land flowing with milk and honey ; unto the place of 
 the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and 
 the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Now 
 therefore, behold the cry of the children of Israel is come 
 unto me ; and I have also seen the oppression wherewith 
 the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, 
 and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest 
 bring forth my people the children* of Israel out of 
 Egypt," Exod. iii. 7 10. In like manner my dear 
 people, under their present long and unparalleled 
 afflictions, have been supported solely by the " full 
 assurance of faith and hope" in God's many and pre- 
 cious promises, that he will surely gather them again 
 out of every nation, and bring them into the land which 
 he gave to their fathers ; and they will not be disap- 
 pointed in their expectation. 
 
 9. Let it also be considered, my dear reader, as a 
 most remarkable circumstance and strong argument in 
 favour of my people's returning again to the land of 
 their fathers, that they are so situated that at the shortest 
 notice they are ready and able to depart as easily as 
 when they came out of Egypt. They have no country
 
 PART IV. 27S 
 
 they call their own besides the land of Canaan ; they 
 are strangers and sojourners as their fathers were ; they 
 have no landed property to dispose of; they do not 
 intermarry with other nations, so as to be detained by 
 attachments to relations, friends, or possessions. Thu^ 
 God makes " the wrath of man to praise him, and the 
 remainder thereof he will restrain." Nay, their former 
 enemies will become their friends, and help them in 
 their way to their original possession. " That in all 
 the countries where they are," says the Rev. J. Lunn, 
 " they should, generally speaking, have no property, 
 either in houses or lands, no heritable possession or 
 share in the Government, or any thing to detain them 
 from returning to their native country, in case an op- 
 portunity should happen, looks as if Providence intended 
 one day to turn back their captivity, and to put them 
 into possession of their ancient inheritance. The many 
 disappointments which that people have met with, in 
 attempting to obtain a settlement, or the privileges of 
 citizens, in different countries, may indeed be looked 
 tipon as a punishment, and part of the curse that lies 
 upon them for their sin in crucifying the Saviour, and 
 continuing so long to reject his Gospel ; and no doubt 
 so it is : but when we consider the kindness of Provi- 
 dence to them in other respects,, his preserving, sup- 
 porting, and even multiplying them, notwithstanding 
 the numberless massacres and persecutions they have 
 sustained, I say, when we consider these things, we 
 cannot help thinking that Providence, in disappointing 
 them of a settlement, has some other end in view 
 besides punishing them for their infidelity. If we deny 
 the restoration of the Jews, we will find it hard to 
 account for their prosperity. But if we admit of their 
 future restoration, then the reason not only of their 
 
 N5
 
 274- JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 worldly prosperity, but of all the other dispensations 
 of Providence towards them, is most apparent. He 
 denies them a settlement in the countries where they 
 are, to prevent them having any attachment to them, 
 and that they may be under no temptation to stay still, 
 or look back, whensoever they are called in the course 
 of Providence to remove ; and for this reason, also, he 
 suffers them to be hated and persecuted, namely, that 
 they may be the more willing to quit the places where 
 they are so used ; and lastly, he endows them with 
 riches, that they may have wherewith to support them- 
 selves on their journey to their native country, and to 
 establish themselves therein : for as many of them live 
 at a great distance from Palestine, to travel so far, and 
 to erect a settlement for themselves in a country almost 
 desolate, is a thing not to be done without considerable 
 wealth ; and their being endowed with such wealth, as 
 it renders their return possible, so it adds to the pro- 
 bability of it. Thus both the kindness and the severity 
 of Providence towards this people serve to confirm the 
 doctrine I have been endeavouring to prove, viz., their 
 future conversion and restoration." 
 
 10. Permit me, dear reader, to mention one more 
 argument in favour of the speedy return of my dear 
 people to the land which, though it once flowed with 
 milk and honey, has for many ages been desolate, but 
 will soon become like " the garden of Eden," viz., the 
 removal of the obstacles out of their way. Not 
 only are they prepared by the remarkable hand of Pro- 
 vidence to return at a moment's warning, but the way 
 is also preparing for them. The great river Euphrates 
 is drying up : the once terrible Turkish empire is 
 crumbling into pieces ; and the determined time " for 
 the land to be trodden under foot by the Gentiles" is
 
 PART IV. 275 
 
 near its close ; and kings talk of becoming their nursing 
 fathers, and queens their nursing mothers. On each of 
 these particulars, my dear reader, I should gladly 
 expatiate at considerable length, had not I already 
 greatly exceeded my prescribed limits. 
 
 Before I proceed to answer the objections generally 
 brought against the preceding proposition, I will 
 endeavour to answer a question very frequently pro- 
 posed, viz. 
 
 11. If the Jews return to their own land, will they 
 rebuild the city of Jerusalem ? Will they have a 
 temple, altar, sacrifice, and priest ? 
 
 First, as it respects Jerusalem, there can be no reason- 
 able doubt in the mind of those who will be guided by 
 the plain Word of God. Almost in every passage, 
 where the restoration of my people to their own land is 
 mentioned, the building of the city of Jerusalem, in its 
 own place, is also mentioned. Read only the following 
 predictions : Jer. xxx. 8 11, 18; xxxi. 38 40; Zech. 
 xii. 1 8. Nor ought we to lose sight of the prediction 
 of the blessed Jesus himself, who said, " And Jerusalem 
 shall be trodden down of the Gentiles until the times of 
 the Gentiles be fulfilled," Luke xxi. 24 ; which evidently 
 implies that when the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled, 
 Jerusalem shall no longer be trodden down, but be 
 rebuilt and inhabited again by her own people. Dr. 
 Guise, on this passage, says, " Jerusalem itself shall be 
 sacked and trampled upon with indignation and con- 
 tempt ; and shall be kept under the jurisdiction of the 
 Gentiles, and never be rebuilt again, with any grandeur, 
 suitable to its present state, till the glorious days shall 
 come, which are appointed for the general conversion 
 of the Jews, and bringing in of the fulness of the Gen tiles. 
 Our Lord hereby seems to intimate, that then Jerusalem
 
 276 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 shall be rebuilt, and the Jews gathered to their own 
 country and city again ; and that the Gentiles shall 
 then no longer lord it over them, but all nations shall 
 flow in unto them, and shall walk in their light, rejoicing 
 in God's mercy to them, and sharing in all spiritual 
 blessings with them." Dr. Doddridge says, " It seems 
 reasonable to suppose that here, as in most other places, 
 the Gentiles are opposed to the Jews ; and consequently 
 all the period between the destruction of Jerusalem and 
 the restoration of the Jews to their own land, so expressly 
 foretold in Scripture, is here intended." (See Isaiah 
 xxvii. 12, 13; Ezek. xi. 17; xx. 4-0, 42; xxxiv. 13; 
 xxxvi. 24-, 28 ; xxxvii. 21 28 ; xxxix. 28, 29 ; Hosea 
 iii. 5; Amos ix. 14-, 15; and Zech. xiv. 10, 11.) 
 
 Dr. Gill says, " Then the Jews will be converted, 
 and return to their own land, and rebuild and inhabit 
 Jerusalem : but till that time it will be, as it has been, 
 and still is, possessed by the Gentiles." My dear 
 reader, 1 might greatly multiply quotations of this 
 nature, but these may suffice. 
 
 12. And as it respects the other part of the 
 question, about building a temple, and having an altar 
 and sacrifice, &c. &c., my answer to the whole is in the 
 affirmative. For, how could I doubt it for a moment, 
 even if the Word of God were perfectly silent on the 
 subject ? Suppose a company of five thousand pious 
 and conscientious Christians had gone to Africa to 
 colonize, and had drawn up various articles how to 
 proceed when arrived there ; viz., to build a city of 
 such and such dimensions, to erect so many houses, to 
 plant vineyards, to establish certain factories, &c. &c. ; 
 but not a word is said in this compact about keeping 
 the Sabbath and building a place of worship, forming a 
 church and administering the ordinances ; and suppose
 
 PART IV. ii77 
 
 also that intelligence has been received, giving an 
 
 account of their safe arrival and establishment according 
 
 to the original agreement, but again not a word is* 
 
 mentioned about their religious deportment; would any 
 
 one who had known these five thousand pious Christians 
 
 suppose for a moment that they kept no Sabbath, that 
 
 they had no place of worship, that they had constituted 
 
 no church, and consequently administered no ordinances, 
 
 merely because they had not expressly covenanted to do 
 
 so, and because the intelligence that has reached us of 
 
 their perfect establishment made no mention of these 
 
 things ? Would such a supposition not be a stigma on 
 
 their character ? Would it not loudly proclaim their 
 
 former religious professions to have been an hypocrisy 
 
 of the most heinous kind ? Or, must it not rather be 
 
 taken for granted, by all who believe them to be 
 
 sincere Christians, that after their arrival, in imitation 
 
 of the pious patriarchs, who, wherever they pitched 
 
 their tents, erected immediately an altar unto the Lord, 
 
 the very first thing they attended to after their safe 
 
 arrival, was to build a house of worship, and to walk 
 
 in all God's appointed ways ? And now, dear reader, 
 
 why should it be thought strange to believe that my 
 
 dear people, who have, for nearly eighteen hundred 
 
 years, most conscientiously observed all the religious 
 
 rites which God gave to our fathers, in all countries, 
 
 amongst all people, and under all circumstances, as far 
 
 as the law of God allows them to observe them in a 
 
 strange land, although these observances exposed them 
 
 to reproach, hatred, persecution, and death itself, would, 
 
 when they are brought back by the wonderful goodness 
 
 of God, to the land which God gave to our fathers, 
 
 build again a temple for the worship of God, erect an 
 
 altar unto the Lord, and offer up their sacrifices, and
 
 278 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 observe all other ceremonies which they observed 
 before their dispersion by the Romans ? Did they not 
 do so after their return from the Babylonish captivity ? 
 How strange and unaccountable would it appear if my 
 people, who, whilst the chastening hand of God was 
 upon them for ages, were, notwithstanding, steadfast 
 and immovable in worshipping that God, should cast off 
 all their religious profession, love, and attachment to 
 him, when he has performed his promises in delivering 
 them out of their captivity, and brought them back to 
 the goodly land ? Would not such a supposition charge 
 them with " having denied the faith, and become worse 
 than infidels ? " God forbid that they should ever act 
 so basely. 
 
 13. I am aware, dear reader, that this sentiment is 
 not only open to an objection which I hope to meet by 
 and by ; but some will even charge me with heresy. 
 For a learned and pious author has already thus 
 expressed himself: " It will not be denied that the 
 possession of the land of Canaan by the natural posterity 
 of Abraham formed an integral part of that covenant. 
 Accordingly as long as that covenant remained in force, 
 Israel retained possession of the land ; but when Paul 
 wrote his Epistle to the Hebrews, that economy had 
 waxed old, and was ready to vanish away. Now, to 
 me," he says, " it appears, that to contend for the 
 return of the Jews, as a nation, to their own land, is in 
 effect to ' build again the things that are destroyed ;' 
 it is virtually denying that the Sinai covenant has 
 vanished away it is pleading for its restoration it is, 
 in a word, denying that Christ is come, or, if come, it 
 is denying that his kingdom is not of this world." 
 
 These are hard sayings. Here is multum in parvo. 
 A bad spirit, bad theology, and bad reasoning. This
 
 PART IV. 27y 
 
 is condemning in a lump a host of the most eminently 
 learned and pious Christians in every age, who have 
 believed that the Jews will return again to their own 
 country. Here is a sad confounding of the covenant 
 which God made with Abraham, which had the land of 
 Canaan for its object, the natural prosperity of Abraham 
 for its subjects, and circumcision for its seal; and that 
 covenant which the Lord made with our fathers when 
 he brought them out of Egypt, which had the promised 
 Messiah, and salvation by him, for its antitype. The 
 former is called the Abrahamic, the second the Sinaic 
 covenant. Hence the latter vanished away when Christ 
 came, as the shadow gives way to the substance ; but 
 when and where did God say that the Abrahamic 
 covenant should be disannulled, or vanish away? On 
 the contrary, " heaven and earth may sooner cease than 
 this covenant," Jer. xxxi. 35 38. These two cove- 
 nants are as distinct in their nature and duration, as 
 the covenant made with Noah and that made at the 
 foot of Mount Sinai. And although the Abrahamic 
 was included in the Sinaic, yet as the former existed 
 before the latter was made, so likewise it continued 
 in force after the other waxed old and vanished away. 
 Besides, what has the mere restoration of the Jews 
 to their own land to do with the coming of Christ ? 
 What difference does it make where the Jews reside, 
 whether in Judea or Europe ? In a former work J 
 have proved that the Messiah has come, not from the 
 location of the Jews, but from his having fulfilled 
 all that was written of him in the Law, in the Pro- 
 phets, and in the book of Psalms ; and I have also 
 proved in the same work, in a variety of particulars, 
 that Christ's kingdom is not of this world ; yet I believe 
 that he will reign on the earth for a thousand years,
 
 280 JU0AH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 but not in a worldly spirit, after the manner and customs 
 of this world. 
 
 Having, I trust, dear reader, established the point, 
 that my beloved people, both Judah and Ephraim, are 
 to return to the literal Canaan before their conversion ; 
 that they will rebuild Jerusalem, and establish Judaism 
 for a season, and afterwards be converted, " and seek 
 the Lord their God, and David their king, and shall 
 fear the Lord arid his goodness in the latter days;" I 
 will now endeavour to answer the principal objections 
 brought against this sentiment. 
 
 14. A writer in the " American Christian Spec*- 
 tator " of 1826, over the signature of " Aleph," proposes 
 the following question : " Will the Jews, after their 
 conversion to Christianity, be restored to any of their 
 former peculiar distinctions?" He then goes on to 
 state his imaginary difficulties in a literal fulfilment of 
 the prophecies. Now you will easily perceive, my dear 
 reader, that this writer, by putting " the cart before the 
 horse," has run into a slough of despond, from which he 
 thought he could extricate himself only by making a 
 desperate leap of spiritualizing all that the prophets 
 have said concerning the future condition of my people 
 and nation. Had he put the question thus, " Will the 
 Jews be restored to any of their former peculiar dis- 
 tinctions, and afterwards be converted to Christianity ? " 
 all would have been plain and easy. This has been the 
 fatal mistake of almost all the writers in opposition to 
 the literal restoration of my people that I have seen, 
 viz., putting the conversion of Israel before their re- 
 storation instead of after it. 
 
 " Aleph" objects that the New Testament speaks 
 only of their spiritual conversion, but is silent respect- 
 ing the return to Canaan, &c. Answer, The reason
 
 PART IV. 281 
 
 is plain : the Jews were, at that time, still in their own 
 land ; the only question agitated was, whether all Israel 
 was cut off, or only a part. Nor was the literal 
 restoration denied till ages after their dispersion by the 
 Romans. 
 
 " Without going into the subject at length, it is pre- 
 sumed that many quotations might be taken from our 
 Lord's discourses, and from the book of the Revelations 
 to say nothing of passages from the writings of St. 
 Peter and St. Paul, which would tell more for the 
 restoration of the Jews to their own land, than the 
 supposed discrepancy, or absence of harmony, referred 
 to in p. 24, would against it. 
 
 " Though much stress is laid on the supposed silence 
 of the New Testament writers on this subject, it is 
 suggested that this is scarcely fair. The old dis- 
 pensation was a shadowy one, and a figure of one to 
 come. It related primarily to the literal Jerusalem ; 
 spiritually, to the Christian Church ; figuratively, to the 
 united Church, consisting of Jews and Gentiles in 
 millennial glory. The business therefore, of the Evan- 
 gelists and Apostles was to trace out the substance of 
 the shadow, to fill up the great outline. 
 
 " The Jews, in the days of the Apostles, needed to 
 have their minds drawn in a particular manner to the 
 spirituality of religion, and it being in the Divine pur- 
 pose, ere the close of the sacred canon, to make a more 
 full development of the glory that should follow, it 
 were absurd to draw an unfavourable conclusion merely 
 because the New Testament might not abound with 
 prophecies of the future earthly felicity, as well as the 
 Old. Because the name of Christ is not named in the 
 Law and the Prophets, would it be fair to conclude
 
 282 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 that he is not the substance of either? and the cases 
 are parallel.* 
 
 Next he says, " that at the time of the conversion of 
 the Jews, there will be but one fold, under one Shep- 
 herd." True, this is my belief, but that does not pre- 
 vent their literal return before their conversion, and their 
 re-establishing Judaism, and remaining, probably for 
 forty years, till the Lord shall pour out the spirit 
 of grace and supplication, agreeably to Zechariah xii. 
 1014. 
 
 Again he objects, that " the end for which God kept 
 them distinct is answered." How does " Aleph " know 
 that God had but one end to answer, in keeping my 
 people distinct from all other nations of the earth ? 
 
 If the end has been obtained, why has God kept 
 them distinct in so wonderful a manner hitherto ? 
 Does God act without design ? May not the Lord 
 have some wise design in bringing them back to 
 their own land, and permitting them to re-establish 
 Judaism in all its former splendour, and afterwards 
 opening their eyes to see infinitely more glory in Jesus 
 and his cross than in these things, and thus laying 
 aside Judaism, for the establishment of which they 
 had waited so long, and trusting only in Jesus Christ, 
 as their Saviour and their God ? Would not such a 
 mode be a much greater display of the power of the 
 Gospel, than if the Jews were converted gradually in 
 their dispersed state ? 
 
 In answer to the objection against the restoration of 
 
 the Jews, a writer in the "Jewish Expositor" (1829, 
 
 p. 207) fiays, "To all this the friends of the restoration 
 
 might reply, if things be so with the Jews, why are 
 
 * Jewish Expositor, 1829, p. 208.
 
 PART IV. 283 
 
 they still kept as a distinct nation ? Why do they not 
 all, as some individuals of them have done, amalgamate 
 with the inhabitants of all those countries among whom 
 they dwell, seeing it would be their interest so to do, 
 and seeing that they always from principle willingly 
 obey "the powers that be?" Surely nothing but the 
 purpose of God to mark them by some national dis- 
 tinction, for some grand national object, can account for 
 this. " God has not cast away his people : all Israel 
 shall be saved." And, surely, there is reasonable 
 ground of hope that, as the predicted curses, because of 
 their sin, have come literally and fully upon them, so, 
 likewise, will the mercies promised, " when they shall 
 appoint them one head, and come up out of the land : 
 for great shall be the day of Jezreel," Hosea i. 11. 
 
 He further objects, that because Christ did not com- 
 ply with the repeated wishes of the Jews to restore to 
 them the kingdom, therefore he will never restore it. 
 Answer That Christ did not comply with their carnal 
 wishes, was because that was not his errand at his first 
 coming; but when did he say that he would never 
 restore them after their dispersion, or that he would 
 never reign personally on the earth ? 
 
 15. Others have objected, "that their return is 
 promised upon their repentance, and therefore their 
 conversion must precede." True, God expects their 
 repentance ; but repentance and conversion do not 
 always go together. There never will be conversion 
 without repentance, but there may be repentance with- 
 out conversion. Surely their repentance cannot mean 
 that of a converted soul such godly sorrow, such 
 repentance as flows from a renewed heart; for this 
 condition is to be performed before they return to their 
 own land, but the change of heart is promised as sue-
 
 284 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 ceeding their restoration. Deut. xxx. 1 6 ; E/ek. 
 xxxvi., &e. " It is, however," says a son of Abraham 
 in the " Jewish Expositor," " by no means true that the 
 patriarchal promises were conditional. The terms in 
 which they were given are as absolute as can possibly 
 be conceived ; the blessings are most evidently made to 
 depend, not on the conduct of men, but on the sovereign 
 will and power, the eternal foreknowledge, and the 
 unchangeable faithfulness of Jehovah: he does not say, 
 ifthou, or thy seed; but, I have given by my self have I 
 sworn, I will not leave thee, until I have done that 
 which I have spoken to thee of. It is true that the 
 covenant of Sinai was conditional ; but this was only of 
 temporal duration : even while it was in full force, the 
 prophets foretold that the days were coming when the 
 Lord would make a new and an unconditional covenant 
 'with the House of Israel and with the House of 
 Judah,' (Jer. xxxvi., &c.); and with this, as contra- 
 distinguished from the other, the Holy Spirit has 
 explicitly identified the patriarchal covenant, for he has 
 taught us by a prophet of the New Testament, that 
 ' the covenant which was confirmed before of God in 
 Christ, the law, which was four hundred years after, 
 could not disannul, that it should make the promise of 
 none effect ; for if the inheritance were of the law, it 
 would be no more of promise, but God gave it to 
 Abraham by promise.' " Gal. iii. 
 
 There is but one objection more that I shall notice, 
 viz., "that if the Jews are to return to Canaan before 
 their conversion, then it is needless to make exertions 
 to promote their conversion." Does it follow, dear 
 reader, that, because we do not expect the national 
 conversion of my people till after their restoration to 
 Canaan, that, therefore, no individuals may be con-
 
 PART IV. 285 
 
 verted before that time ? The Apostle Paul said and 
 believed that my dear people would continue under the 
 influence of spiritual darkness until the fulness of the 
 Gentiles be come in, yet that did not prevent him from 
 going into the synagogue every Sabbath-day, and 
 reasoning with them, from the Scriptures, that Jesus is 
 the Christ, the Son of God. " Who hath despised the 
 day of small things ? " 
 
 Now, my dear reader, having given you a historical 
 account of the origin and progress of the present 
 Christian efforts to promote the conversion of the Jews ; 
 enforced the duty of Christians to aid in promoting the 
 salvation of Israel ; answered the objections generally 
 stated to avoid this duty ; and proved the conversion of 
 Judah and Israel : may I not hope that you are anxiously 
 inquiring, " In what way can I aid this good cause ? " If 
 this work had not already exceeded the original limits, 
 I might easily point out several ways of usefulness. 
 Your pecuniary aid, if ever so small, will be thankfully 
 received ; by your conversation, with a just and kind 
 treatment, you may be very useful ; but above all, 
 by your fervent prayer you may bring down the 
 " Spirit of grace and supplication upon the house of 
 David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem." 
 
 To have heaven engaged on our side is to gain the 
 cause. In everything relating to our temporal con- 
 cerns, but much more in every thing relating to 
 the kingdom of Jesus Christ, God is to be acknow- 
 ledged, and his blessing, patronage, and help implored : 
 and from his Almighty power, and his infinite good- 
 ness and mercy, what may we not expect? Is there 
 any object of which we can conceive, on which the 
 heart of Jehovah is more set, than the conversion of 
 his ancient people the Jews ? With how strong a
 
 286 JUDAH AND ISRAEL. 
 
 faith may we then pray for the accomplishment of that 
 event ? If, when Israel had provoked him to wrath, and 
 he threatened to destroy them, the prayers of Mose? 
 turned away his anger, and he spared his people ; 
 how much more may we expect to be heard, when our 
 prayer is, that Israel may be saved with an everlasting 
 salvation. When Daniel the Prophet understood that 
 the deliverance of the Jews from the Babylonish capti- 
 vity drew near, " I set my face," said he, " unto the Lord 
 God, to seek him by prayer and supplication." Let us 
 imitate his example, and entreat our God, in the 
 humblest and most fervent manner, to deliver this 
 people from their long captivity to sin, and their long 
 rejection of the Messiah. What wonders has prayer 
 done ! what deliverances procured ! what blessings 
 brought down from heaven! what evils averted! Its 
 power is still as great as ever. Let us, then, without 
 doubt or wavering, beseech God to smile on the work 
 we have in view, to enable us to act with wisdom and 
 love ; to strengthen his servants engaged to labour in 
 the spirit of the Gospel ; to rouse the mind of my dear 
 people to a deep concern about the true Messiah ; and 
 take away the veil of unbelief from off their hearts, that 
 they may turn unto the Lord. Without prayer, nothing 
 that respects the cause of Christ can be expected to 
 prosper. Much and persevering prayer will bring 
 every thing to a happy issue. Now, if it be our duty 
 " to make prayer and supplication for all men," then we 
 ought certainly not to neglect the Jews. The wretched 
 condition of the Heathen nations has excited the prayers 
 of almost every Christian denomination ; but the Jews, 
 besides deserving your sympathising prayers, because of 
 their misery, may also claim your prayer as a debt of 
 equity and gratitude for the many prayers which they
 
 PART IV. 287 
 
 have offered up for the conversion of the Gentiles long 
 before Christ was born. King Solomon, in his dedi- 
 cation-prayer, supplicated blessings for the Gentiles, as 
 well as for his Jewish brethren. So did the sweet 
 Singer of Israel in many of his Psalms: "That thy 
 way may be known upon earth, thy saving health among 
 all nations. Let the people praise thee, O God : let all 
 the people praise thee," Ps. Ixvii. 2, 3. "Let the 
 whole earth be filled with thy glory. Amen, and amen," 
 Ps. Ixxii. 19. And the princely Prophet Isaiah saith, 
 " For Zion's sake will I not hold my peace, and for 
 Jerusalem's sake will I not rest, until the righteousness 
 thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof 
 as a lamp that burneth. And the Gentiles shall see thy 
 righteousness, and all kings thy glory." Isa. Ixii. 1, 2. 
 Did believing Jews thus pray for the conversion of the 
 idolatrous Gentiles : then let believing Gentiles again 
 pray for the unbelieving Jews. And when we enter 
 our closet, surround a family altar, or worship in the 
 sanctuary, and remember that our prayers must be pre- 
 sented to the Father by the dear Mediator, who is of 
 the seed of Abraham, and is not ashamed to call the 
 Jews his brethren, let us not forget to pray for the poor 
 outcasts of Israel, and the dispersed of Judah. 
 
 Now to Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and 
 Jacob, be all honour and glory. Amen, and Amen. 
 
 THE END.
 
 289 
 
 HYMNS. 
 
 HYMN I. 
 
 GENTILES PRAYING FOR JEWS. 
 
 1 pATHER of faithful Ab'ram, hear 
 
 Our earnest suit for Abr'am's seed ; 
 Justly they claim the softest prayer 
 From us, adopted in their stead, 
 Who mercy through their fall obtain, 
 And Christ by their rejection gain. 
 
 2 Outcast from thee, and scattered wide 
 
 Through every nation under heaven, 
 Blaspheming whom they crucified, 
 
 Unsav'd, unpitied, unforgiv'n : 
 Branded like Cain they bear their load, 
 Abhor'd of men and curs'd of God. 
 
 3 But hast thou finally forsook, 
 
 For ever cast thy own away ? 
 Wilt thou not bid the murderers look 
 
 On him they pierced, and weep and pray 
 Yes, gracious Lord, thy word is pass'd : 
 " All Israel shall be saved at last." 
 
 4 Come then, thou great Deliverer, come, 
 
 The veil from Jacob's heart remove ; 
 Receive thy ancient people home, 
 
 That, quickened by thy dying love, 
 The world may their reception view, 
 And shout to God the glory due.
 
 290 
 
 HYMN II. 
 
 CHRIST'S CORONATION. 
 
 1 A LL hail, the power of Jesus' name ! 
 
 Let angels prostrate fall ; 
 Bring forth the royal diadem, 
 And crown him Lord of all. 
 
 2 Ye chosen seed of Israel's race, 
 
 A remnant weak and small ! 
 Hail him who saves you by his grace, 
 And crown him Lord of all. 
 
 3 Ye Gentile sinners, ne'er forget 
 
 The wormwood and the gall ; 
 Go spread your trophies at his feet, 
 And crown him Lord of all. 
 
 4 Oh that, with yonder sacred throng, 
 
 We at his feet may fall; 
 We'll join the everlasting song, 
 And crown him Lord of all. 
 
 HYMN III. 
 
 THE INCREASE OF THE CHURCH PROMISED AND 
 PLEADED. 
 
 1 "BATHER, is not thy promise pledg'd, 
 
 To thine exalted Son, 
 That through the nations of the earth 
 Thy word of life shall run ? 
 
 2 Hast thou not said, the blinded Jews 
 
 Shall their Redeemer own ; 
 While Gentiles to his standard crowd, 
 And bow before his throne. 
 
 3 From east to west, from north to south, 
 
 Then be his name adored ! 
 Europe, with all thy millions, shout 
 Hosannas to the Lord. 
 
 4 Asia and Africa, resound 
 
 From shore to shore his fame ; 
 And thou, America, in songs 
 Redeeming love proclaim.
 
 291 
 HYMN IV. 
 
 ENCOURAGEMENT TO USE MEANS. 
 
 1 J^EHOLD, th' expected time draws near, 
 
 The shades disperse, the dawn appear ; 
 Behold the wilderness assume 
 The beauteous tints of Eden's bloom. 
 
 2 Events, with prophecies, conspire 
 To raise our faith, our zeal to fire : 
 The ripening fields, already white, 
 Present an harvest to our sight. 
 
 3 The untaught heathen wait to know 
 The joy the Gospel will bestow ; 
 The scatter'd Jews wait to receive 
 The freedom Jesus has to give. 
 
 4- Come, let us with a grateful heart, 
 In the blest labour share a part ; 
 Our prayers and offerings gladly bring, 
 To aid the triumphs of our King. 
 
 5 Where'er his hand hath spread the skies, 
 Sweet incense to his name shall rise ; 
 And Tyre and Egypt, Greek and Jew, 
 By sovereign grace be form'd anew. 
 
 HYMN V. 
 
 PRAYER FOR THE CONVERSION OF THE JEWS. 
 
 1 O H ' ^ vh5r snould Israel's sons once blest, 
 
 Still roam the scorning world around ; 
 Disowned of heav'n, by man opprest, 
 Outcasts from Sion's hallow'd ground ! 
 
 2 O God of Judah, view their race, 
 Back to the fold the wand'rers bring ! 
 Teach them to seek thy slighted grace, 
 To hail in Christ, their promised King. 
 
 3 While Judah views his birthright gone, 
 With contrite shame his bosom move, 
 To own the Saviour he denied, 
 
 To love the Lord he crucified.
 
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 4 Haste, glorious day, expected long, 
 
 When Jew and Greek one prayer shall pour ; 
 With eager feet one temple throng, 
 One God with grateful praise adore. 
 
 HYMN VI. 
 
 1 O.REAT God of Abraham ! hear our prayer, 
 
 Let Abraham's seed thy mercy share : 
 Oh I may they now, at length return, 
 And look on Him they pierc'd, and mourn. 
 
 2 Remember Jacob's flock of old ; 
 Bring home the wand'rers to thy fold : 
 Remember too, thy promised word, 
 
 " Israel at last shall seek the Lord." 
 
 3 Oh, haste the day, foretold so long, 
 When Jew and Greek (a glorious throng), 
 One house shall seek, one pray'r shall pour, 
 And one Redeemer shall adore. 
 
 HYMN VII. 
 
 THE FIELDS WHITE FOR HARVEST. 
 
 1 T IFT up your joyful eyes and see 
 
 A plenteous harvest all around, 
 Rip'ning for bliss, and not a grain 
 Shall ever fall unto the ground. 
 
 2 A harvest of immortal souls, 
 Secur'd by an Almighty power ; 
 
 Nor heat, nor cold, nor storms shall hurt, 
 Nor ravenous beasts of prey devour. 
 
 3 Oh happy day, Avhen all th' elect 
 Complete in number shall be found, 
 And, like the great, their mystic Head, 
 Be with eternal honours crown'd. 
 
 Macintosh, Printer, Great New-street, Loudun.
 
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