ction to them, to say nothing of their historical
character. They would favor fatalism, take away human freedom, and be
irreconcilable with the Divine perfection. What Christ said concerning
the destruction of Jerusalem is not a prophecy, because not stated with
sufficient clearness. Jesus followed the style of interpretation found
in the Talmudic and Rabbinical writings, and transferred to himself many
things in the Old Testament, which really referred to future changes in
the state of the Jews. He used the Jewish ideas of a Messiah to further
his own notions of founding a spiritual kingdom. The prophecies in the
Old Testament merely give a poetical dress to affairs occurring in the
prophet's or the poet's life time.[50] Even the prophets made but little
if any claim to the great gift ascribed to them. They were good
politicians who had made a study of their subject; and, from the mere
force of natural shrewdness and long experience, could see coming
events. Paulus argued at length against Christ's prophecy of his own
resurrection. His first proof is that the apostles did not so understand
him, as is clear from the women seeking to embalm him; and from the
apostles not believing at first the story of his resurrection. Then
Christ had no notion of returning shortly. He would not have thought it
necessary to cheer his disciples as he did before his death if he could
have prophesied that in three days he should join them again. All the
promises of meeting again refer to his joining them in a future life.
Wegscheider adds that Christ, though he reproaches his disciples with
their want of faith, does not allude to their distrust of any prophecy
of his; and that the phrase _three days_ is often used of what will soon
happen. Scherer, a clergyman of Hesse-Darmstadt, represented the
prophets of the Old Testament as so many Indian jugglers, who made use
of the pretended inspiration of Moses and of the revelations of the
prophets to deceive the people. He treated those who still have any
regard for the prophecies of the New Testament as enthusiasts and
simpletons; called all the predictions respecting the person of the
Messiah, nonsense; accused the prophets of being cunning deceivers; and
said that the belief of those prophets has preserved incredulity on the
earth.

THE PERSON OF CHRIST. The historical method of interpretation was
applied by the disciples of Reason to the Gospel narratives of the
character and atonement of Chr