me to him. His eyes are like eagle's eyes, and he is a man of talent and wealth. I showed him the New Testament; he read in it the fourth and fifth chapters of Matthew. He was struck when he read, "Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil." He read it twice over, and continued to read.

I. Do you approve of this doctrine!

Joseph Hassan. I cannot yet give you my decided opinion, for I never have read the New Testament; I know only the Old Testament, but I will tell you my view about the Messiah, and about Jesus. The design of the Messiah was, according to the prophets, to restore Israel into their own lands, and to make them kings and priests; to redeem them from their captivity, and to make them a righteous people. And he, the Messiah, must be their king, and mighty to save. But Jesus was sacrificed, it may be for a good purpose, but this very circumstance shows that he was not the Messiah.

I. I am entirely of the same opinion that the Messiah will come again, and restore Israel to their own land, and every true Christian believes it: but they must first look on him whom they have pierced, and mourn.

J. Hassan. If I do not mistake, the Christians believe that the Messiah was to redeem Israel from eternal wrath by his death; but how can this be proved by the Old Testament? to which we ought to refer.

I referred him to Gen. iii. 15, and Is. liii.

J. Hassan. How can you prove that he is already come?

I referred him to Gen. xlix. 10, and Dan. ix.

J. Hassan. I cannot now go into argument, for I have not yet read your book, as I declared from the beginning. I have no hesitation to acknowledge Jesus was sent by God. I shall examine both the Old and the New Testament. The state of the Jews is bad indeed; they are the worst nation upon earth.

I. I love the Jews, and have pity and pray for them, that they may be saved by believing in Jesus, who is God above all, blessed for ever.

J. Hassan. I cannot believe that he was God.

I. Why?

J. Hassan. I cannot comprehend such things with my

reason.

I. Do you take your reason for an infallible guide in matters of religion; or do you take the revelation of God laid down in Moses and the prophets?

J. Hassan. The revelation of God.

I. "A child" (I cited this text in Hebrew)" is born unto us, a son is given unto us, and his name is called, Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

J. Hassan (Repeated with visible surprise in Hebrew.) "A child is born unto us, a son is given unto us, and his name is called, Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

After he had repeated this verse, he said, "Let us speak about the seventh chapter of Isaiah."

I. My dear brother, let us not spring from one point to another, but acknowledge candidly that the Son is called Mighty God."

J. Hassan. Yes,

I. Then Jesus is Mighty God for he was that Son of God.

J. Hassan. I must read the New Testament.

Our conversation was half in Italian, half in Hebrew, and half in English. I then requested Doctor P. to continue the discourse with my brother according to the flesh, which he did, and J. Hassan listened with great patience longer than half an hour, so that our conversa tion lasted an hour and a half. Dr. P. spake of the necessity of an atonement. J. H. confessed his entire ignorance of the New Testament, and promised us to read it.

I called again on Rabbi Gabay, and took with me. some tracts and a copy of the Hebrew Psalter, of which Mr. Lewis Way has made me a present. Gabay was alone, for his wife and children were gone to town. He received me with all the kindness imaginable, and accepted from me the tracts and Psalter.

I. Rabbi, will you allow me to talk with you freely? Gabay. With pleasure.

I. I am, as you know, a Jew by birth, the son of a Rabbi, but, I believe, by the grace of the Lord, that. Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ, for the prophets and Moses assure us of it with clear and distinct words: and by him alone, by Jesus of Nazareth, remission of sins is obtained, if we believe in him. Rabbi,, you may be persuaded that I do not tell you this with the intention of offending you, for I love the Jews, and am grieved when I see them persecuted by nominal Christians, who have not the spirit of Christ; but I know at the same time that the Jews are now dispersed throughout the world on account of their unbelief. Their heart is hardened— they hear not him who loves them-they read not his Gospel, which gives joy and peace. I never felt that joy I now feel, when I was a Jew. I tell you therefore, again, Jesus is the Shiloh who was to come.

Gabay. Jesus is Shiloh-how do you prove it?

1. For the sceptre is departed from Judah, and the lawgiver from between his feet.

Gabay. You translate shebet (1) sceptre.

1. What other meaning can you give ? Gabay, Shebet has ten meanings. First,

(scep

שֶׁבֶט מוּסַר ,(the sceptre of the empire) שֶׁבֶט מַלְכוּת,(tre

(rod of chastisement), after I have premised this, I translate Gen. xlix. 10, "The chastisement shall not depart from Judah, until Shiloh (Messiah) comes."

1. 1. You have left out a pan, which, if you had candidly translated it, would shew that your translation will not hold. I will translate after your man

ner, but I shall only translate those words which you have left out, and you will see the incompatibility of it. "CHASTISEMENT shall not depart from Judah, and the LAWGIVER from between his feet until Shiloh comes." Chastisement cannot consist with the privilege of the power to enact laws. 2. Jacob blessed Judah, and predicted that his brethren shall praise him; and being represented as a young lion, it is not probable that chastisement should be his lot. 3. Neither Jews nor Christians have the right of altering the sense according to their pleasure, in order that they may maintain their views and opinions. I confess freely, that there are Christians who do the same as you, but I do not approve of it, it produces partiality. W was in this passage translated in the LXX. 280 years before Christ, in Jerome, in Targum Onkelos, and in the modern times by all the learned Jews, " sceptre:" why do you alter the sense? Gabay. How did your father translate it?

1. Sceptre.

Gabay. But did he apply it to Jesus?

1. No; for he was not enlightened by the grace of the Lord, for only the grace of God can teach us to know the Lord Jesus, God above all, blessed for ever.

Gabay. Shiloh is Moses.

I. Prove it.

Gabay. Begimatria, () or by the Cabalistical account of the letters; W signifies Moses;,,

n.

I. I reject every proof which is not taken from the Bible.

Gabay. Then I will shew you the opinion of the great Rabbi More.

I. I have nothing to do with More-the Bible only! Gabay. Moses has received two Torahs, 771

תורה שבכתאב and שבעלפה

תורה

I. Prove by Naw 1, the written word, the truth, or the existence of yaw, the traditional,

As I saw that he began to make a poor figure, I broke off, and turned the conversation to Isaiah liii.

Gabay. Israel's sufferings are described in this chapter, I. According to this opinion, the 8th verse must be interpreted and translated in the following manner: "Israel (he) was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people (Israel) was he (Israel) stricken."-Gabay was silenced, but not convinced.

After a little while Gabay said, "How could Jesus abolish circumcision?" I answered him by Jeremiah xxxi. Gabay. It is clearly said, that the uncircumcised go to hell. He showed me for a proof Ezek. xxxii.

I. It is not said that they go to hell on account of that uncircumcision of the flesh; and we must not confound the old with the new covenant.

The conversation lasted two hours. We separated as friends, and he asked me to come to him again.

May 24. Lieutenant Bailey introduced me yesterday morning to Mr. Ben Oliel, who is not only the richest Jew, but the richest man, at Gibraltar; he is Consul general of the emperor of Morocco. He received us with great kindness, and told us he should be glad to see us at his country house, where he would give me all the information he could about the East. Dr. Parker and Lieut. Bailey went with me to Mr. Ben Oliel, and he received us with the cordiality of an Israelite indeed. And although I had told him I was a Jew, and had through conviction entered the Christian church, he, as a strict Jew, did not change his countenance, but promised to give me letters for the prior of the Spanish convent at Jerusalem, that he may introduce me to the Jews at Jerusalem. He was rejoiced that I could talk with him in Hebrew, although not fluently, and also in Arabic, and was pleased to hear accounts of the Jews residing at Paris and Germany. He promised to introduce me to the three presidents of the three synagogues at Gibraltar that they might shew me their synagogues.

G