evidence which has descended to us from ancient times is superior to the small improbability of the facts in ordinary history-but that, in truth, after full deduction has been made for the incredibility of miracles, there remains an overpassing superiority of evidence in their favour above all that can possibly be claimed for the best attested histories which have been transmitted to the present day, any other records of past ages. Christianity on this ground too, as on many others, has we think not only won for herself the safety of a defence; but has been enriched by the spoils of a victory. in If in the first Book of this work, we have chiefly to do with the miraculous argument in the abstract; we pass in the second to that argument in the concrete, or consider the actual evidence for the miracles of the gospel. Even in this department it will be found to be more a work of principles than of details; and there are few of its lessons which we should, in opposition to a prevalent bias, so like adequately to impress on the understanding of the reader-as the inherently greater strength of evidence given by the scriptural than by the exscriptural, or by the original than the subsequent witnesses for the truth of the evangelical history; and also the far superior value of the christian to the heathen testimonies. Although we have assigned to the third Book, which commences the second volume of this work, our considerations and views on the internal evidence of Christianity-we are abundantly sensible of the difficulty which there is, in tracing the precise line of demarcation between this and the external evidence. If the one consist in those marks of credibility which we observe when looking to the witnesses of the message-the other may be regarded as consisting in those marks of credibility which we observe when looking to its contents or its subject-matter. It is with this last that the third Book is chiefly conversant, with the selfevidencing power of the Bible-the chief ingredient of which, as being far the most effectual in the work of Christianization or conversion, has been denominated the manifestation of the truth unto the conscience; or, otherwise, the experimental evidence for the truth of Christianity. We shall endeavour to make palpable the distinction between this most solid of all the evidences, and a certain other internal evidence which we have long regarded as of a spurious or at least a very questionable character. The fourth and last Book is taken up, in great part at least, with what may be termed the bibliography of scripture the evidence on which its various pieces have been admitted into the cunon, so as to form constituent parts of our present Bible; and the security we have for the general correctness of the present readings in the received original X scriptures, as well as of the renderings in the various popular versions of Christendom; or, in other words, our security both for the state of the text and for the truth of its generally received interpretations. This argument has given rise to distinct chapters on the respective functions of scripture criticism and systematic theology. But over and above we have thought it right to discuss both the evidence and the degree of that inspiration, by which we hold the sacred Volume to be distinguished from all other writings—a topic of incalculable importance, and which prepares the way for our concluding chapter on the supreme authority of revelation. It will be perceived, in this department of the work, how closely the two questions of the canon of scripture and its inspiration are related to each other. CONTENTS. MR. HUME'S OBJECTION TO THE TRUTH OF MIRACLES. SECT. I. On the Origin of our Belief in Testimony, 70 II. On the Power of the Evidence of Testimony, 92 III. On the Power even of a single Testimony to accredit improbable or singular Events, 108 CHAP. II. On the Genuineness of the different Books of the New Testament, IV. On the Testimony of the Original Witnesses to the Truth of the Gospel Narrative, V. On the Testimony of Subsequent Witnesses, . VI. On the secure and impregnable Character of the VIII. On the Connexion between the Truth of a Mira- |