Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.—Isaiah xxxv. 5.

Is it not highly proper, that those who profess to be intrusted with offices of authority, should be able to exhibit the credentials of their appointment, in order to be accredited? The prophet Isaiah was commissioned to proclaim many of the marks by which the Messiah should be distinguished. Amongst other signs "the eyes of the blind were to be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped." Jesus of Nazareth not only declared himself to be that long-promised Messiah, but constantly exhibited, in the most public and open manner, the credentials of his high official character, and confirmed his claim to our belief by his numerous miracles. Could we inquire of Bartimeus, who, of old, sat by Israel's way-side begging, who was the skilful oculist that restored to his long sightless eyeballs the power of vision; joyfully would he point to Jesus the Son of David, as the gracious benefactor whose almighty word had again caused him to behold the gladsome light of day. Might we hold converse with him who had never beheld the cheerful face of man, whose eyes had rolled in gloom and darkness, deprived of the sight of nature's beauteous works; no doubt he would, with the same undaunted courage he displayed before the Jewish Pharisees, declare that Jesus of Nazareth had opened the eyes of one born blind. Nor were these the only recipients of his Divine bounty. By his almighty voice the deaf were made to hear: the 'ephphatha' of Jesus could "clear the obstructed paths of sound, and bid new music charm the unfolded ear," for it was the voice of one whose biddings were enablings. When the disciples of John came to inquire of Jesus if he were the illustrious personage so long promised, or if they were to look for another, we are told, "in the same hour Jesus cured many of their infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits, and unto many that were blind he gave sight," and requested the disciples of John "to return, and tell the things which they had seen and heard;" how that "the blind saw, the lame walked, the lepers were cleansed, the deaf heard, the dead were raised, and to the poor the gospel was preached." To one so well instructed, as we may presume John to have been in the writings of the Old Testament, he could not wish for more satisfactory evidence to prove that Jesus was the Messiah. John bore witness unto the truth, but Jesus "had greater witness than that of John, the works which the Father had given him to finish, the same works which he did, bore witness of him that the Father had sent him."

That Jesus wrought miracles his enemies could not deny; but how absurd they should attribute them to satanic influence. The Devil is not wont to be a benefactor to our race; we should not expect to find him lending his power to destroy his own kingdom, or to benefit the children of men. The miracles of Jesus were not an useless display of power, wrought to gratify idle curiosity, or for sordid or ambitious motives; they were all designed to promote some honourable or useful purpose, and were of the most benevolent character, not unworthy the incarnate Deity whose pity for his creatures is commensurate with his power. His miracles were numerous and diversified; they were wrought openly, and proclaimed publicly; not confined to one place: Jesus went about healing all manner of sickness and disease among the people. The disciples were not the only witnesses to these extraordinary events. Jesus was surrounded by great multitudes when he healed the leper. Jairus's daughter was raised to life in the presence of her friends and the mourners. The Pharisees beheld the devil cast out of the dumb man—the whole congregation in the synagogue witnessed the instantaneous cure of the withered hand—four thousand, and five thousand men not only beheld the miraculous increase of twelve loaves and a few small fishes, but their bodies were refreshed by the plentiful repast. All the people of Gennesaret sent to collect the diseased, so convinced were they of the wondrous cures effected by a touch of the hem of his garment. When in Galilee, great multitudes came unto Jesus, bringing the lame, blind, dumb, and maimed, and he healed them all. When the poor father's lunatic son was cured, multitudes witnessed the fact. Jesus was surrounded by crowds when he gave sight to the two blind men. The Chief Priest and Scribes saw the wonderful things he did in the temple—driving out the merchants, and healing the lame and blind. In the synagogue he cast out an unclean spirit. When the widow of Nain's son was raised from the dead, much people of the city were with her. The lawyers and Pharisees watched Jesus when he cured the man of the dropsy. Many Jews were present when he called Lazarus from the grave. Jesus was surrounded by his persecutors when he healed the ear of Malchus. The enemies of Jesus witnessed his miracles; they possessed every opportunity that incredulity itself could desire, of examining the several objects on whom he had displayed his omnipotent power: this circumstance, together with the diversity of time and place, precluded all possibility of deception. Peter boldly declared to the "men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem," that "Jesus of Nazareth was a man approved of God among them, by miracles and wonders and signs which God did by him, in the midst of them, as they themselves also knew." The intrepid disciple feared no contradiction, it was a fact too clearly established for any of that age to deny; and what madness is it for any in a later period to cavil against a truth they possess not a single fact to disprove. The more minutely the New Testament of our Lord Jesus Christ is examined, the clearer do its marks of divine authenticity appear. The exalted character of the Man of Nazareth requires only to be known to ensure admiration. Who, that attentively considers the sketch given of that model of all perfection, can imagine the history of the Evangelist to be only a cunningly devised fable? The schools of philosophy, with all their boasted learning and virtue, could not conceive any thing half so refined, or so far exalted above the most elevated of the human race. From whence, then, did the beloved physician, the tax-gatherer, and the two fishermen, obtain that beautiful model of holiness, presented to us in their writings? They must have copied from life—they must have witnessed the living character—those unlearned Jews could not have invented so correct a likeness of incarnate Deity. Even if they had taken the united virtues of the most eminent saints in the Old Testament for their pattern, it would not bear a comparison with the artless grandeur and majestic simplicity discoverable in this history of the life of Jesus of Nazareth; which, it should be remembered, was written at a time when the religion of the Jews was little more than superstition; for the law of God was made void by the absurd tradition of the fathers.[57] Yet no trait of false Judaism is discoverable in the character of Christ. In short, the history of the four evangelists is the very reverse of what might reasonably be expected from ignorant men, who had strongly imbibed their nation's bigotry and superstition. The gospels carry their own evidence, and prove the men who wrote them not only had the example of Jesus for their guide, but that they were divinely inspired.[58] They have mixed up none of their own corrupt notions or false ideas, but presented us with a book which is not unfitting the God of Truth to acknowledge as his own.