e openly
in _Judea_, he sent the twelve to preach in all their cities: and in the
end of the year they returned to him, and told him all they had done. All
the last year the twelve continued with him to be instructed more
perfectly, in order to their preaching to all nations after his death. And
upon the news of _John_'s death, being afraid of _Herod_ as well as of the
_Jews_, he walked this year more secretly than before; frequenting desarts,
and spending the last half of the year in _Judea_, without the dominions of
_Herod_.

Thus have we in the Gospels of _Matthew_ and _John_ all things told in due
order, from the beginning of _John_'s preaching to the death of _Christ_,
and the years distinguished from one another by such essential characters
that they cannot be mistaken. The second Passover is distinguished from the
first, by the interposition of _John_'s imprisonment. The third is
distinguished from the second, by a double character: first, by the
interposition of the feast to which _Christ_ went up, _Mat._ viii. 19.
_Luke_ ix. 57. and secondly, by the distance of time from the beginning of
_Christ_'s preaching: for the second was in the beginning of his preaching,
and the third so long after, that before it came _Christ_ said, _from the
days of _John_ the Baptist until now_, &c. and upbraided the cities of
_Galilee_ for their not repenting at his preaching, and mighty works done
in all that time. The fourth is distinguished from the third, by the
mission of the twelve from _Christ_ to preach in the cities of _Judea_ in
all the interval. The fifth is distinguished from all the former by the
twelve's being returned from preaching, and continuing with _Christ_ during
all the interval, between the fourth and fifth, and by the passion and
other infallible characters.

Now since the first summer of _John_'s baptizing fell in the fifteenth year
of the Emperor _Tiberius_, and by consequence the first of these five
Passovers in his sixteenth year; the last of them, in which _Jesus_
suffered, will fall on the twentieth year of the same Emperor; and by
consequence in the Consulship of _Fabius_ and _Vitellius_, in the 79th
_Julian_ year, and year of _Christ_ 34, which was the sabbatical year of
the _Jews_. And that it did so, I further confirm by these arguments.

I take it for granted that the passion was on friday the 14th day of the
month _Nisan_, the great feast of the Passover on saturday the 15th day of
_Nisan_, and