But to return to the history before us. Having listened for a time to the earnest discourse of the disciples, Jesus at length, as if a stranger, enquired into the subject, which engrossed their minds and rendered them so sorrowful: “And the one of them whose name was Cleopas, (the same, it is thought, as Alpheus, who was the father of two Apostles and nearly related to our Lord Himself,) answering, said unto Him, art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things, which are come to pass there in these days?” “And he said unto them what things?” said it, probably, with a view of giving them an opportunity of declaring their opinions, upon what had taken place, as also upon Himself and the nature of His kingdom: “and they said unto Him, concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word, before God and all the people: and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death, and have crucified Him. But we trusted, that it had been He who should have redeemed Israel; and beside all this, to-day is the third day since these things were done.” {101} They concluded, that their bright hopes of redemption were extinguished, were all dead and buried with Jesus: even though they had heard of His rising again, according to His own promise, which they had just alluded to, still they had no expectation of holding any further intercourse with Him, of any further display of His power in their behalf. “Then he said unto them, O fools (O unwise and blinded people) and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken; ought not Christ (ought not your Messiah prophesied of old) to have suffered these things and enter into His glory?” {102} Is it not clearly foretold by your prophets, by Isaiah especially in his 53d chapter, that the redeemer of Israel should be “despised and rejected of men,” should bear “their griefs and carry their sorrows,” “should be led as a lamb to the slaughter, should be numbered with the transgressors,” should make “His grave with the wicked (should die with malefactors) and with the rich in his death,” (should be buried in the sepulchre of the rich,) and after that “prolong His days,” and then that “the pleasure of the Lord should prosper in His hand?” According to your own prophecies then, and in order to their fulfilment, has not Jesus done that, as Messiah, which He was required to do? Instead of being offended, and giving up the cause, ye ought to be fully convinced, that He is “the Christ, the son of the living God.” {103a} Then, “beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded to them in all the sacred scriptures the things concerning Himself.” {103b} How enlightening and convincing must this discourse have been! But it is not preserved to us: with so complete a body of information and evidence, it did not please the Almighty to favour the world. We are left to gather the instruction by diligent observation and