H! H I o (pH) o (pW) o O pM < POPULAR HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT, GEORGE GUMMING M c WH0RTER. NEW YORK: HARPER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS, FRANKLIN SQUARE. , 18 64. £5 £33° .'rtss- Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year one thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, by Harper & Brothers, In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the Southern District of New York. lk*j q ^ £l)e ittemorg of tno £att)cx, GEORGE H. M c WH0RTER, MY EARLY INSTRUCTOR EH THE GREEK TESTAMENT, THIS VOLUME IS AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED. PREFACE, In presenting this work to the public the author wishes entirely to disclaim all pretensions to origin- ality. Having examined the best authorities within his reach, and derived assistance from many, he must in justice acknowledge particular obligations to the works of Tregelles, Westcott, Wordsworth, Trench, and especially to the elaborate Greek Testament of Alford. The latter has been freely used and extens- ively quoted. This work, though theological in its character, and embracing to some extent the results of modern schol- arship, is not written for the professed theologian. To him are open the sources from which such a book must be derived. It is, as its name denotes, a Popu- lar Hand-Booh of the New Testament, and is adapted to the use of those who may possess neither time nor opportunity to consult original authorities. PREFACE. There are many upon whom devolves the duty of instructing the young in the New Testament, who must often have wished for some book containing in a concise form the information they require. There are others, doubtless, who would gladly seek a knowl- edge of the New Testament beyond that which the text affords without having recourse to voluminous Commentaries. For all such persons this work is intended. If it shall prove either a guide to the stu- dent, an aid to the teacher, or an incentive to any to more deeply consider the subject, and thus make the New Testament their own Book — the Book of their lives — the author will not be without a reward. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. PAGE Introduction.— Mutual Relation of the Old and New Testaments. —The Word of God One 13 CHAPTER II. The Genuineness, Authenticity, and Canonicity of the New Test- ament 17 CHAPTER III. Inspiration of the New Testament. — Inspiration affirmed in Scripture, and proven by it. — Nature of it unrevealed. — The- ories. — Can not be defined. — Plenary and Sufficient. — Con- clusion 22 CHAPTER IY. Sources of the Text. — Manuscripts. — Uncials. — Cursives. — Five great Codices. — Farther Account of the Manuscripts. — Num- ber and State. — Contain the whole of the New Testament. — Their substantial Integrity 31 CHAPTER V. Greek Testament. — Erasmus. — Complutensian. — Stephens. — Elzevir. — Received Text. — Nearly identical with Erasmus. — Mill. — Bengel. — Wetstein. — Griesbach. — Scholz. — Davidson. — Tregelles. — Lachmann. — Tischendorf. — Muralt. — Alford ... 35 Ylll CONTENTS. CHAPTER VI. PAGE Versions of the New Testament. — Peschito. — Egyptian or Cop- tic. — Gothic. — Ulfilas. — Vulgate and Italic. — Luther's. — Its Influence upon the German Language. 41 CHAPTER VII. Saxon. — Anglo-Saxon. — St. Cuthbert's Gospel. — Rushworth's Gloss. — Bede's Anglo-Saxon Version. — English. — Wickliffe's Version. — Tyndale's. — Mathews's. — Cranmer's. — Geneva. — Account of the Subdivision of the Bible into Chapters and Verses. — Bishop's Version. — Parker's. — Thompson's. — Rheims. — King James Version — how made. — Authorized. — Eliot's Indian Version 46 CHAPTER VIII. The Gospels. — Note upon Mode of calculating Time 54 CHAPTER IX. St. Matthew's Gospel 61 CHAPTER X. St. Mark's Gospel , 65 CHAPTER XI. St. Luke's Gospel 70 CHAPTER XII. St. John's Gospel 77 CHAPTER XIII. The Acts of the Apostles. — List of the Apostles. — Genealogy of the Herods 86 CHAPTER XIV. St. Paul.—The Epistles.— Style of St. Paul 96 CONTENTS. ix CHAPTER XV. PAGE Epistle to the Romans 108 CHAPTER XVI. First Epistle to the Corinthians « 121 CHAPTER XVII. Second Epistle to the Corinthians 139 CHAPTER XVIII. Epistle to the Galatians , 144 CHAPTER XIX. Epistle to the Ephesians 151 CHAPTER XX. Epistle to the Philippians 159 CHAPTER XXI. Epistle to the Colossians 165 CHAPTER XXII. First Epistle to the Thessalonians 172 CHAPTER XXIII. Second Epistle to the Thessalonians 178 CHAPTER XXIV. First Epistle to Timothy...., 182 CHAPTER XXV. Second Epistle to Timothy 191 X CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXVI. PAGE Epistle to Titus 195 CHAPTER XXVII. Epistle to Philemon 201 CHAPTER XXVIII. Epistle to the Hebrews 205 CHAPTER XXIX. Epistle of James 232 CHAPTER XXX. First Epistle of Peter 244 CHAPTER XXXI. Second Epistle of Peter 262 CHAPTER XXXII. First Epistle of John 267 CHAPTER XXXIII. Second and Third Epistles of John 275 CHAPTER XXXIV. Epistle of Jude 279 * CHAPTER XXXV. The Revelation of St. John the Divine 285 CHAPTER XXXVI. Conclusion 293 Blessed Lord, who hast caused all holy Scripture to be written for our learning: grant that we may ln such wise hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them, that by patience, and comfort of thy holy word, we may embrace, and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, WHICH THOU HAST GIVEN US IN OUR SAVIOUR JeSUS CHRIST. AMEN. A POPULAR HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. CHAPTER L INTRODUCTION. MUTUAL RELATION OF THE OLD AND NEW TESTA MENTS. — THE WORD OF GOD ONE. It is not the object of this work to furnish elaborate evidence of the genuineness, authenticity, canonicity, and inspiration of the New Testament. A thorough exhibition of the proofs, and a complete analysis of the arguments connected with these points, would exceed its limits and be foreign to its design. It is not a work upon the evi- dences of Christianity : it is intended for those who believe the Bible to be the written word of God — containing the revelation of His will — and would desire to be better in- formed concerning that Book, which is able to make them wise unto salvation. Although the present work especially relates to the New Testament, it by no means ignores the Old. The Bible is one ; its central fact is one ; its life is one, and that life is Christ. Of Him did Moses speak ; of Him did David sing ; of Him did the prophets prophesy. He is the be- ginning and the end of all revelation ; the whole of Scrip- 14 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. ture is one consentient voice to Christ ; the New Testa- ment is but the development of the Old. The authenticity and inspiration of the Old Testament must be first established. That has been done by irrefrag- able proofs and arguments, sufficient for all who are open to conviction or do not require a miracle in their especial behalf. A brief allusion to them will explain their nature and force. In the authentic records of profane history there is evi- dence of the existence and character of the Jewish nation, as much and as reliable as of any other of the nations of antiquity. Josephus furnishes a list of the books which that peculiar people considered holy and inspired. It is well known that they deemed them sacred oracles, and regarded them with an almost superstitious veneration. In their protection the utmost care was exhibited ; and in their preservation from error, in the process of transcrip- tion and multiplication, no pains or labor were spared. The words, the very letters, were numbered and registered, and every safeguard employed that the most watchful cau- tion could devise to insure their integrity and freedom from error. Besides, says St. Jerome, "The Lord and His Apostles, who prefer charges against the Scribes and Pharisees, in regard to this greatest of crimes — the corrupt- ing the sacred Scriptures — are entirely silent." Would they have omitted to notice such a sin ? There can be no reasonable doubt, then, that an authentic text of the He- brew Scriptures has been handed down. That these Scriptures were given by inspiration of God is manifest not only from abundant internal evidence which A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 15 can not be controverted, but from the literal fulfillment of the prophecies contained in them, especially of those which terminate in Jesus Christ. Their historic narratives have received, where the nature of the case admitted, from evi- dence discovered in the investigation of the ruins of Nine- veh and the tombs of Egypt, the fullest corroboration. Profane history in nowise contradicts them. Science has been invoked against them in vain. Geology now confesses that the records written on the tablets of the globe by the great water-floods, and preserved in the everlasting hills, are in perfect harmony with Holy Writ. The Hebraist and the astronomer unite to acknowledge that the Lord declared to Job from the whirlwind the revolution of the earth.* The more carefully these Scriptures are studied and examined, the more in accordance with history and science, the more consistent and harmonious are they found. The word and works of the Lord stand fast for- ever, f * Job xxxviii. 14 is rendered by Mr. Carey, in his elaborate work on Job : "It turneth round like a seal of clay, And things stand out as though in dress. 1 ' Mr. Carey is correct. Both in Assyria and Egypt these clay seals are found. They haye their designs in relief upon the tire, and when used were rolled over the wax, or whatever was intended to receive the impression. Thus objects "stand out" as the light of the sun falls upon them, and the revolution of the earth is demon- strated. f The Verity of the Pentateuch has been assailed by Bishop Co- lenso and others. The Bishop's work has attained notoriety through the prelatical dignity of the author. "But," says the Church Jour- nal, "the thoroughness with which, in various forms, the leading points made by Bishop Colenso have been exploded, and his igno- rance of, and his manifest and frequent disingenuousness have been 16 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Christ, as has been before said, being the central fact of the Scriptures, the point to which and from which they extend, the New Testament is necessary to their perfec- tion. " The Apostles," saith Justin Martyr, " have taught us, as themselves did learn, first the precepts of the Law, and then the Gospels. For what else is the Law but the Gospel foreshadowed ? What other the Gospel than Law fulfilled ?" In .like sort Augustine : " What the Old Test- ament hath, the very same the New containeth ; but that which lieth there as under a shadow is here brought forth into the open sun. Things there prefigured are here per- formed." Again : " In the Old Testament there is a close comprehension of the New, in the New an open discovery of the Old.' 5 * The two Eecords complete and confirm each other. They are one — God's Word ivritten, " That all the mortals He hath made may learn." demonstrated." The spirit which prompts the Bishop, as Professor Mahan justly says, is " infidel," and the influence of such works can be but temporary. Like noxious exhalations they will disappear be- fore the rays of the sun of truth, and the value of the Holy Scrip- tures mil be the more appreciated as the Church's Record teaching redemption to fallen man through Jesus Christ. * Hooker, Book V. CHAPTER II. THE GENUINENESS, AUTHENTICITY, AND CANONICITY OP THE NEW TESTAMENT. The New Testament is the complement of the Old. It therefore possesses a sure testimony to its truth. Apart, however, from this verification are grounds, both inde- pendent and satisfactory, upon which the genuineness, au- thenticity, and canonicity of the New Testament securely rest. The genuineness of the New Testament depends upon the authorship of the several books of which it is com- posed being known ; or, in case the name of the author of one of them be lost, upon its being evidently written in good faith by a competent person. Except the Epistle to the Hebrews, the authorship of every book in the New Testament has been fully estab- lished. The name of the author of Hebrews has not been preserved. Cogent reasons exist for referring it to Apol- los, but absolute proof is wanting, and no certainty in re- gard to its author can be attained. It must be admitted, however, that this wonderful composition could only have flowed from one intimately acquainted with the Old Test- ament, and every thing appertaining to Judaism, and who was at the same time a faithful and fervent minister of Christ, B 18 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. The genuineness of the New Testament must therefore be conceded. The authenticity of the New Testament involves the gen- eral correctness of the text, and the substantial truth of the facts narrated. In regard to the text it must be said that the original manuscripts are not known to be in existence. Numer- ous copies of them have been preserved, all varying more or less. Notwithstanding this variation, there is a general agreement, and no one doctrine or fact of Christianity is in the slightest degree endangered by controverted opin- ions in regard to the text. The sublime mystery of the Holy Trinity — comprehending the Unity of the Godhead and the clear distinction of the Three Persons who com- pose it ; the Atonement — involving Christ, both as God and man ; the Two Sacraments — the signs and seals of the true Faith ; the Doctrine of Justification by Faith, of Eepentance, of Good Works as evidences of faith ; the pure and noble system of ethics elaborated in the Sermon on the Mount, and condensed in the Two Commandments of our Saviour ; all these, were every passage of Scripture that can be questioned with any degree of fairness, or re- gard for the rules of sound criticism, excluded from the text, all these would remain firm and unshaken — the im- mutable truths of the Gospel. The enemies of Christianity have denied the truth of the narratives of the Four Evangelists, and exhausted ev- ery device which human ability and animosity could in- vent to carry out their design ; but in every case they have been fully refuted. The attempts of Strauss to re- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 19 duce the life of Christ to a myth, and the efforts of 13aur to overthrow the New Testament by casting doubt upon the text, have proven equally futile. Rationalism has done its utmost, but the authenticity of the New Testament has not been shaken. The evidences of it will abundantly ap- pear to all who may honestly undertake the labor of in- vestigation. The Canon of Scripture is the rule of revealed truth ; the measure which defines the limits within which revela- tion is comprised ; the summary of the Bible. The Canon of the Old Testament was settled by Ezra after the captiv- ity. Subsequent writings were termed Apocryphal, and rejected by the Jews. The New Testament Canon was formed gradually, and was the choicest fruit of the wisdom and care displayed by the Primitive Church in keeping that which had been intrusted to her. The traditions of the Apostles remained fresh, and exclusively authoritative, some years after the Apostles themselves had disappeared from the scene of their labors. As time went on pretensions were made in favor of writings hitherto unrecognized by authority, but valuable in themselves. The feelings of all were deeply interested in so important a subject as the definition and preservation of the Sacred Oracles. In this position of affairs the Fathers of the Church determined what was authentic and inspired, and declared the residue 'apocry- phal; thus dividing their writings, as the Jews formerly did theirs. Catalogues of the Apostolic Scriptures are recorded by the Fathers of the third and fourth centuries. Origen derives his from the " ancients ;" Eusebius refers 20 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. his to " ecclesiastical tradition ;" Athanasius declares his to proceed from " eye-witnesses and ministers of the Word from the beginning;" and St. Cyril claims the " Apostles" themselves as the authors of his. Their statements evince not only of how great importance they considered the mat- ter, but what care and attention they bestowed upon it. As they had no inducement to vary from the truth, but rather the most absorbing interest to adhere to it, and to preserve the integrity of the sacred oracles, their records may be relied upon ; and it may be safely assumed that a certain and continuous testimony from the earliest age was handed down by them. Could an error be supposed to have occurred, it would have arisen, not from the admis- sion, but from the too scrupulous rejection of a book ; which gives additional strength to the claims of those received. At the Ecumenical Council of Nice, a.d. 315, Constan- ' tine, in his closing address, refers to the " Books of the Evan- gelists and Apostles as teachings of the most Holy Spirit." The Ecumenical Council of Constantinople, a.d. 381, embodied in its Creed the statement that Christ "rose again on the third day according to the Scriptures." No other Scriptures than those of the New Testament could have been meant. By the sixtieth Canon of the Provincial Council of La- odicea, a.d. 365, were defined the Books of the Old and New Testament. The Apocalypse is omitted from the list. The Provincial Council of Carthage, a.d. 397, declared all the Books now contained in the English Version of the New Testament to be canonical. The Apostolical Canons — a collection of canons made A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 21 from different Synods, it is supposed about the commence- ment of the third century — contain a list of a majority of the Books of the New Testament. The age and authority of these canons, however, remain unsettled, and they are not entitled to entire confidence, though some of them are doubtless quite ancient. The Canon of the New Testament, thus gradually formed and finally settled, was accepted by the Christian Church throughout the world, and has ever since been esteemed valid and obligatory. It is true the Romanist Council of Trent, in the sixteenth century, enlarged the Canon to serve their purposes, and endeavored to add to and corrupt the "Word of Life ; but the acts of that body are not binding on the consciences of Christians, and need not be considered. The Canon, perfected as abov^e stated, did not make Scripture : it only confirmed and defined what had been handed down as Scripture from the earliest age, and the sacredness of which had never been doubted. Its object was to determine limits by which unacknowledged and unauthoritative writings could be excluded, and those de- clared which had been recognized from the beginning, and could be henceforth appealed to as the final arbiter under all circumstances. It was a noble duty with which the Primitive Church was charged, and well and truly did she keep that which her Head intrusted to her. Under Him who is over all, to her belongs the honor due to the con- servation and preservation of the oracles of God. The genuineness, authenticity, and canonicity of the New Testament having been thus briefly presented, of not less importance to be considered is the question of inspiration. CHAPTER III. INSPIRATION OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. INSPIRATION AF- FIRMED IN SCRIPTURE, AND PROVEN BY IT. NATURE OF IT UNREVEALED. THEORIES. CAN NOT BE DEFINED. PLENARY AND SUFFICIENT. CONCLUSION. A response to the question of Inspiration must be sought in the New Testament itself. The authenticity of the latter having been shown, an appeal to it is warranted, and its voice should be heard. Its declaration is not only that all Scripture is gi^en by inspiration, but that it is profitable, and able to make men wise in what concerns their highest interest. To be able to do this, it must have proceeded from the Spirit of Truth ; for who, save the Spirit, who knoweth all things, can guide fallen men in the paths of virtue and wisdom? Internal evidence further confirms the claim in a variety of ways. The character of Christ ; His life ; His doctrines and teachings ; their benign and w r onderful influence upon man in every age; the sublimity and beauty of the Christian system ; the lives of the Apostles and Martyrs ; their commands and instruc- tions, in perfect agreement with those of their Divine Mas- ter ; the unforeseen and unarranged coincidences ; the gen- eral air of truth and candor; the harmony that reigns throughout the whole: all witness for the inspiration of the New Testament with a power and eloquence that can A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT.. 23 not be either denied or resisted. Indeed, to suppose that such a work could be the fruit of man's device would be to require credence in something far more incomprehensi- ble than to believe it to be the result of inspiration. But the authenticity of the New Testament being conceded, its immediate acceptance and continued recognition by the Christian Church as the Word of God, from the earliest period to the present time, puts the matter beyond a ques- tion. No candid mind can doubt that the New Testament proceeded from the inspiration of that Beneficent Spirit who guides unto all truth, in direct fulfillment of the prom- ise of Christ : " When the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of Truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me : and ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been w T ith me from the beginning." What further testimony is needed? The New Testament is silent in regard to the nature of its inspiration. As upon such a subject nothing can be known except what is revealed or evident from the case itself, the nature of inspiration must remain forever unex- plained. Notwithstanding, the question has been much speculated upon, and two theories w r ith reference to it have principally obtained. The first is the Verbal Theory. It claims that every word is inspired, or that the waiters were but mouth-pieces of the Holy Spirit. " I believe," says Tregelles, " the six- ty-six books of the Old and New Testaments to be verbal- ly the Word of God, as absolutely as w r ere the Ten Com- mandments w r ritten by the finger of God upon the two ta- 24 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. bles of stone." Serious objections to this theory can be easily shown to exist. It destroys the individuality of the respective writers : an individuality which is apparent to every fair-minded critic, and accounts for a variety exhibited in the treat- ment of subjects, which would otherwise be inexplicable. " We do not," says Alford, " find the Apostles transformed, from being men of individual character, and thought and feeling, into mere channels for the transmission of infalli- ble truth. We find them, humanly speaking, to have been still distinguished by the same characteristics as before the descent of the Holy Ghost. We see Peter still ar- dent and impetuous, still shrinking from the danger of human disapproval ; we see John still exhibiting the same union of deep love and burning zeal ; we find them pursuing different paths of teaching, exhibiting different styles of writing, taking hold of the truth from different sides." Discrepancies also exist, which the verbal theory fails to elucidate. 1. Compare the healing of the blind, recorded in Matt., xx. 29-34 ; Mark, x. 46-52 ; Luke, xviii. 35-43. There is hardly a doubt that the three writers refer to the same miracle ; and yet how differently it is related, though concurring in the leading fact. " He must be indeed," says Olshausen, " a slave to the letter who would stumble at such discrepancies, and not rather see in them the cor- roborating coincidence of testimonies to the fact itself. 2. Compare Matt., xxvii. 7, and Acts, i. 18. In the first, they— the chief priests, verse 6 — purchased the field ; in the second, he — Judas — purchased it ; but in both state- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 25 ments the main fact is preserved, as in the case of the mir- acle. 3. The title over the cross runs thus : Matt., xxvii. 37: This is Jesus the King of the Jews. Mark, xvi. 26 : The King of the Jews. Luke, xxiv. 38: This is the King of the Jews. John, xix. 19 : Jesus of Nazareth the Ktng of the Jews. The cardinal fact is not weakened by the variation, but, on the contrary, enforced by the quadruple inscription. What, however, becomes of the verbal theory 1 A last objection to the theory is, that the original man- uscripts, in the wisdom of God, having been allowed to perish, nothing but another revelation would furnish satis- factory evidence that an accurate copy of them could be compiled from a collation of the transcripts that remain. A single error would be fatal to so exacting a principle ; and as a miracle can not be predicated in support of the purest text which the most elaborate scholarship might produce, the verbal theory may be fairly dismissed as un- tenable. The second theory of inspiration may be termed the Theory of Superintendence. By which is understood : — an influence exerted upon the mind of the writer, which suggests what it is necessary he should know, but what he could not know of himself; recalls what he has forgotten ; quickens what remains; and so guides and controls the commissioned writer, that he can not err in any thing that relates to his commission or that which is intrusted to him. It enables him, under the energizing influence of the Holy Spirit, to reveal what God's purpose requires should be revealed ; to teach and preach, in season, the 2G A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Word of His grace ; to record, for all time, whatsoever he may have witnessed or received ; and to unfold whatever is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for in- struction in righteousness, in order that man may be thor- oughly furnished to glorify God, through Christ his Sav- iour. A distinction is made between revelation and in- spiration, but both result from the action of the same Spirit working through the natural intelligence. The Spirit and the man co-operate. " The plenary inspiration of the sacred writers," says Al- ford, " consisted in the fullness of the influence of the Holy Spirit specially raising them to, and enabling them for, their work, in a manner ivhich distinguishes them from all other writers in the ivorld, and their work from all other worJcs. The men were full of the Holy Ghost — the books are the pouring out of that fullness through the men — the con- servation of the treasure in earthen vessels. The treasure is ours, in all its richness : but it is ours as only it can be ours — in the imperfections of human speech, in the limita- tions of human thought, in the variety incident first to in- dividual character, and then to manifold transcription and the lapse of ages. The men were inspired, the books are the results of that inspiration." Plenary inspiration to the fullest extent is affirmed in the above passage; but no explanation is afforded of the mode, the way, in which the inspiration acts. Indeed Scripture, from which all correct views on the subject must be derived, and from which there can be no appeal, while it convincingly maintains the fact of its own inspiration, is entirely silent with respect to the hidden operation of the A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 27 power. It may therefore be conceded, with proper defer- ence to all theorizers, in the words of Bishop "Williams, that "the construction of a complete and exhaustive the- ory of Inspiration is a simple impossibility." " What," says Bishop Wilberforce, " does Holy Scripture claim to be ! The word of God. The < Oracles of God' — God-breathed, 2 Tim., iii. 16 ; and what must this im- ply ? Surely that there is a mighty and mysterious pres- ence of God in His word. So much God's word declares : so much His Church has received: so much every faithful man believes. But if curiosity seeks for further insight — if the flesh asks to have the dividing line between the op- eration of the Divine and the Human in the inspired word marked sharply out, so as to meet all objections and an- swer all questions ; if it asks for a perfect theory of in- spiration — the answer must be that no perfect theory is possible, unless we would first fathom the infinite and re- duce to definite proportions the hidden nature of the un- fathomable Godhead. So far as we can conceive, a written revelation for man must be communicated through man, while it must, for its knowledge of much, for the certain accuracy of all the revelation, depend upon God as the Kevealer. There must therefore be combined in it the action of the two natures ; and if the two natures are both present and both in action, it must be beyond our power to have a perfect theory for that which is thus the united action of two powers — seeing that of the higher of those powers we know only what has been revealed to us as to its law and mode in combining its action with the lowest nature (which we do know), since nothing has been re- 28 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. vealed to us, we can know nothing. We are surrounded by mysteries of God's working which reveal themselves sufficiently to satisfy a humble faith; but which are an impenetrable barrier against proud curiosity, which ever- more leads men on to be as gods, knowing good and evil." Hence the Christian believer will not be disturbed by the failure of theories to account for and define inspira- tion, but will possess his soul in patience, satisfied with the word that God has given him, and content to receive it in the way God has vouchsafed it to him. He will not cavil about the mode of inspiration, assured of the fact. An attempt has been made to deduce from St. Paul's two statements in the seventh chapter of First Corinthians — verse 10, "And unto the married I command, yet not I, but the Lord," and verse 12, "But to the rest speak I, not the Lord"; — the conclusion that the Apostle did not always speak from inspiration ; that only part of what he said was inspired, and of course what was so spoken was entitled to much higher consideration than the other, thus involving the reader in the dilemma of having to ascertain what was inspired and what was not. The attempt, how- ever, has proved futile. St. Paul, in the first passage, re- fers to some command uttered by oar Saviour, while on earth,, in support of his words. In the second, he speaks with the authoritative voice of the inspired Apostle. The whole of the epistle is equally inspired. There is no dif- ference between any of the parts. All are entitled to the same consideration. The enemies of the Faith have likewise endeavored to invalidate St. Paul's claims to inspiration, from the fact A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 29 -that it may be inferred from the same chapter that he be- lieved that the time was short, that the end of the dispen- sation was approaching, and that the day of the Lord was at hand. This attempt has met with no better success than the former. He might have thought so, and might have been mistaken on such a subject, without prejudice to his inspiration. " Of that day," says our Lord, " knoweth no man, neither the Son, but the Father." It can hardly be supposed that he would know what the Father had de- termined to keep in his own power ; neither was it neces- sary to the exercise of his office that he should. All that was necessary, it is quite clear, he was very fully informed upon, so as not to come behind the chiefest of the apostles. Besides, the Day of the Lord is always u at hand" and the Apostle was only enforcing the command of his Master : "What I say unto you I say unto all, Watch." On the question of Inspiration, it may be justly con- cluded, then, that the whole of the Scriptures are inspired; and although the mode in which the Holy Ghost operates has not been revealed, and therefore can not be defined, yet it may be confidently affirmed that the inspiration is plenary, is sufficient, rendering the Scriptures the Word of God. The genuineness, authenticity, canonicity, and inspira- tion of the New Testament have thus been succinctly traced, in accordance with the design proposed, and have been established as fully as the limits of that design would permit. Enough has been said to confirm the faith of those who are disposed to believe, and to convince others who may have been too easily inclined to doubt. Those 30 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. who may desire to investigate so interesting and so import- ant a subject will find, upon a candid examination of the proper authorities, that the evidence adduced from them in support of the four points referred to has not been over- stated. But, above all that has been said, the faithful believer in the Lord Jesus has a testimony to the truth of the Bible, higher, and broader, and deeper than any thing that the most careful and earnest student can furnish. It is the witness of the Spirit in himself. The Spirit of God speaking to his spirit and telling him these things are so. Let him give heed to that still voice, for he is taught of God. CHAPTER IV. SOURCES OF THE TEXT. MANUSCRIPTS. — UNCIALS- CUR- SIVES. FIVE GREAT CODICES. FARTHER ACCOUNT OF THE MANUSCRIPTS. NUMBER AND STATE. CONTAIN THE WHOLE OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. THEIR SUBSTANTIAL INTEGRITY. The credibility of the New Testament having been suf- ficiently established, an explanation of the sources from which the original text is derived will not be inappropri- ate. The whole of the New Testament was written in the Greek language ; not the Greek of antiquity — perhaps the most noble vehicle of thought that the world has known since speech was confounded at Babel — but the Greek of a later age, when Greece had ceased to live — often called the Alexandrian. The original autographic manuscripts are lost. The transcripts which have been preserved are technically styled Codices, and are divided into two classes. The first comprises the Uncial Manuscripts — those written in undivided capital letters. The second includes the Cursive Manuscripts — those written in small letters, divided and accented. They are more numerous and of less value than the former. A brief description of a few of the leading Uncials will be given : 32 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. A. Codex Alexandrinus. In the British Museum. It was writ- ten at Alexandria, in the fifth century, on parchment, and is in folio form. Cyril, Patriarch of Alexandria, and afterward of Constantinople, presented it, in the year 1628, to Charles I. B. Codex Yaticanus. In the Vatican Library, Romet It belongs to the fourth century, and is the oldest copy of the Greek Testa- ment extant. Nothing is known of its history. It is written on vellum, in quarto. Vercellone published an edition of it in 1854, and another in 1859. The latter, though not free from errors, is said to be a great improvement on the former. Ver- cellone says a facsimile will be granted if desired. C. Codex Ephraemi. In the Imperial Library, Paris. Lascaris probably obtained it in Constantinople, whither he was sent by Lorenzo de Medicis to collect manuscripts. Catherine de Medi- cis received it from Cardinal Ridolfi, into whose hands it had passed, and brought it with her to France. The name proceed- ed from the Syrian Ephraem having written some of his works over it. The latter were removed by chemical process, and the original writing restored. Manuscripts thus recovered are usu- ally called rescripts or palimpsests. It was written at Alexan- dria, and belongs to the fifth century. The oldest copy known of the Apocalypse, save the Sinaiticus, is included in it. D. Codex Beza. In the University Library, Cambridge. Beza obtained it from the monastery of St. Iremeus, at Lyons, and presented it to the University of Cambridge, in 1581. It may be referred to the commencement of the sixth century, but is of inferior value to the previous three. It is written on parchment, in folio, and embraces the Gospels and Acts, with a Latin ver- sion. Codex Sinaiticus. At St. Petersburg. It was found by Dr. Tisch- endorf, in 1859, at the monastery of St. Catherine, Mount Sinai. It is written in uncials, on parchment. Besides the Hebrew por- tion, it contains the New Testament entire. Dr. T. considers it older than the Codex Vaticanus. It is being superbly pub- lished. The above comprehend the Five Great Codices, and though there are at least thirty more preserved in the dif- ferent Public Libraries of Europe, these five, in the estima- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 33 tion of critics, occupy the first rank, and are considered of the highest authority. The Codex Laudianus — in Greek and Latin — brought from Sardinia by the venerable Bede, and afterward presented by Archbishop Laud to the Bod- leian, and the Codex Claromontanus, in the Royal Library at Paris — a Graeco-Latin manuscript of the sixth century, containing all the Pauline Epistles, except sixteen verses comprised in two lacunae — are of great importance and worthy of being specially mentioned. All can not be de- scribed ; but, from what has been stated, a sufficient idea may be gained of the Uncial Manuscripts, or those em- braced in the first class. The Cursive Manuscripts, or those contained in the sec- ond class, are much more abundant than the Uncials. A list of them would be quite uninteresting. The Codex Mosquensis, containing the Epistles of St. Paul, may be attributed to the ninth century, and is probably the oldest. They are found from the tenth to the sixteenth centuries ; few of them, however, can claim an early date. It is pos- sible that some of them may have been transcribed from ancient manuscripts which have been lost ; one which Eras- mus had, and which he valued as being very old, has dis- appeared. The Cursives are not considered of high au- thority; indeed, critics are undecided in regard to the weight that should be given to them in the construction of an emended text. It must be remarked, in relation to the Codices of the New Testament, that all are not manuscripts of the whole Testament. " Transcripts," says Tregelles, " of the vari- ous parts were made just as there might exist demand ; C 34 A HAND-BOOK OP THE NEW TESTAMENT. thus copies of the four Gospels are very numerous, from their having been used both in public and private, but es- pecially the former. Copies of the Epistles of St. Paul have also come down to us in considerable numbers ; of the Acts of the Apostles and Catholic Epistles there are fewer copies ; but even these are numerous when compared with those of the Revelation." It may also be added that lacunce of one or more verses are sometimes found in the manuscripts of the respective books, and, what is incident to all transcripts, verbal differences, which occasion vari- ous readings of the same passage. The Codices combined, however, contain the whole of the Greek Testament. Gen- eral confirmation is also drawn from quotations preserved in the writings of the early Fathers, and from ancient ver- sions ; but neither of these can be appealed to in support of words. . Such are the ample and ultimate sources from which the original text of the New Testament is derived. "It is indeed," says Tregelles, " a cause for thankfulness that God has preserved the Scripture to us in such substantial integrity: it has been subjected to many casualties, it has passed through the hands of many copyists, but in doctrine and precept it is unchanged." CHAPTER V. GREEK TESTAMENT. ERA SMUS. COMPLUTENSIAN. STE- PHENS. ELZEVIR. RECEIVED TEXT. NEARLY IDENTIC- AL WITH ERASMUS. MILL. BENGEL. WETSTELN. GRIESBACH. SCHOLZ. DAVIDSON. TREGELLES. LACHMANN. TISCHENDORF. ALFORD. The first printed edition of the Greek Testament was published by Erasmus, at Basle, in the year 1516. The second printed edition was published in 1520, at Alcala (Complutum), by the celebrated Cardinal Ximenes, under the editorship of four scholars, to whom the respons- ible duty was intrusted. No conference took place be- tween the editors of the two editions. Both received the express sanction and approbation of Leo X. "It is not a little remarkable, and it shows, I think," says Tregelles, " the overruling providence of God, that at so short a time before the commencement of the Eeformation these two editions of the original text of the New Testament should have been published ; both of them sanctioned and ap- proved by Rome, though really among the most import- ant instruments for the establishment of evangelical doc- trine.'' Erasmus published, in all, five editions. The fourth he corrected by aid of the Complutensian of Ximenes, and the fifth was almost a reprint of the fourth. The Eras- 36 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. mian and Complutensian editions formed, therefore, the starting-point for all Greek Testaments. Robert Stephens subsequently printed several editions of the Greek Testament. In his third he adhered almost entirely to Erasmus's fifth. It was brought out in the year 1550. Theodore Beza, the colleague of Calvin at Geneva, also put forth five editions of the New Testament. In 1624 was published by the celebrated Elzevir press at Leyden an edition of the Greek Testament, founded upon a collation of the Beza editions, with the third of Ste- phens's, above referred to. A second edition of the Elze- vir appeared in 1633, and was styled by the editor Textus ab omnibus Receptus ; since which time the appellation of Textus Receptus, or Received Text, has been applied to the Elzevirs. The value which connoisseurs attach to Elzevir copies of Greek and Latin authors is too well known to need comment. It will be observed that Stephens's third followed Eras- mus's fifth — a reprint of the fourth, which had been cor- rected by the Complutensian — and that the Elzevirs re- sulted from a collation of the Beza editions with Ste- phens's third. Hence the Received Text is almost the same as Erasmus's fourth and fifth — the two latter being nearly identical. u The critical authority of the Received Text," says Alford, "is very feeble." The next attempts to produce a corrected text of the Greek Testament were made by John Mill, of the Church of England, in the last half of the seventeenth, and by Bengel and Wetstein, of Germany, in the first half of the A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 37 eighteenth century. Much time, ability, and labor were devoted by them to the subject. In 1806, Griesbach, also a German, published a com- plete edition of the Greek Testament, in which the first really great effort was made to revise the text on critical principles. The fifteen rules of Griesbacli may be regard- ed as forming the canon of textual criticism. Dr. Scholz, a Eomanist of Bonn, likewise collated many manuscripts discovered by himself, and rendered valuable service in that direction ; but his edition of the Greek Testament is of small benefit to the student. During the present century the desire to obtain a pure text of the Greek Testament has stimulated the efforts of the ablest and most learned Greek scholars in England and on the Continent. The contributions of Dr. Samuel Davidson to the cause of Biblical Criticism can not be too highly appreciated. Tregelles, whose belief in verbal in- spiration renders him peculiarly anxious that the text should be freed from the slightest corruption, has edited the Revelation — perhaps the most difficult Book in the Canon to edit — in a very elegant manner, and labored ex- tensively on the general question of a revised text. Lachmann's edition of the Greek Testament, published at Berlin in 1842, makes great pretensions, which, in the opinion of Tregelles and Alford, are not sustained. The former says that he made a mistake in the " choice of his critical materials;" the latter, that his edition "possesses hardly any critical value." Lachmann's services, however, in the matter of punctuation are important. Muralt, of Petersburg, put forth an edition in 1846, 88 HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. for which he claimed particular merit, on the ground of having been permitted access to the Codex Vaticanus, of which little was known at that time. He was allowed by the Librarian of the Vatican to see it, but not to consult it. Since then the Codex has been twice collated and given to the .public. Tischendorf, the collator and editor of the Codex Ephra- em, published in the year 1850, at Leipsic, an edition of the Greek Testament, in which he professed to follow the ?nost ancient manuscripts, without, however, entirely neglect- ing the later ones. His services have been of the greatest importance, both as a collator and editor; and the text of his Berlin copy is generally regarded as a great advance upon any thing which had then appeared. He is now fur- ther distinguished as the editor of the Codex Sinaiticus. Of late years Tregelles has been engaged in editing a critical text of the Greek Testament. Portions of it have already been given to the public. Bloomfield's edition of the Greek Testament is familiar to many. It was the best work of its day, and has much to recommend it now. The American reprint is said to be inferior to the English copy. Wordsworth completed his edition of the Greek Testa- ment in the year 1861. It is one of the finest extant, elaborate in every respect, and is a work of a very high order of merit. Bishop Ellicott has put forth editions of the Pastoral and of some of the Pauline Epistles — all of a high charac- ter, and exhibiting the author's fitness for such an import- ant duty. A HAND-BOOK OP THE NEW TESTAMENT. 39 Finally, Dean Alford has published a most elaborate Greek Testament. Besides a commentary, it contains a digest of various readings, which render it a work of the greatest value to the textual student. What influence the publication of the Codex Vaticanus and the Codex Sinaiticus will have upon future recensions of the text of the Greek Testament we are unable to say. From what we have learned, however, we infer that Al- ford' s text will be little, if any, varied by either. The three Greek Testaments of the day which take first rank are those of Wordsworth, Ellicott (as far as it goes), and Alford. "They are," says the London Quarterly, in a fine article on the subject, " the work of three minds of different classes, viewing questions independently, and from different points of view, coming at times in collision with each other, but for that very reason more convincing and authoritative when they coincide. And they will enable the moderate Greek scholar to read his Greek Testament not only with the profit always to be derived from the study of Scripture, but with safety and satisfaction in re- gard to the numerous questions now opened by Biblical criticism. In Dr. Wordsworth the- Patristic spirit of in- terpretation predominates ; in Bishop Ellicott, the sound old English theology of the seventeenth century ; in Dean Alford, the German element. But none of them excludes the other. All of them have entered into that haunted chamber of German theology, which only requires to be unlocked and thrown open to the light to lose its fascina- tions and its terrors. All of them face that formidable phantom of textual criticism, with its 120,000 various 40 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. readings in the New Testament alone, and will enable us to march up to it and discover that it is empty air ; that still we may say with the boldest and acutest of English critics — Bentley — ' choose' (out of the whole MSS.) 'as awkwardly as you will — choose the worst by-design out of the whole lump of readings, and not one article of faith or moral precept is either perverted or lost in them.' " We need hardly say that the scholar armed should pos- sess the three Testaments thus described. CHAPTER VI. VERSIONS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. — PESCHITO. — EGYP- TIAN OR COPTIC. GOTHIC. — ULFILAS. VULGATE AND ITALIC. LUTHER'S. ITS INFLUENCE UPON THE GERMAN LANGUAGE. All translations of the Scriptures, or renderings of them from the original text to another language, are termed versions. The command being to " preach the Gospel to all nations," and a most important part of that duty being to furnish them with the word of life in such form that it could be read by all, numerous versions have been made. Indeed there are few tongues into which the Scriptures have not been translated. An account of some of them will not be found uninteresting. The oldest and most distinguished version of the New Testament is that known as the Peschito or pure version. It is in Syriac, and was probably executed in the second century. A high value attaches to it, not only on account of its antiquity, but from its being in the language which was spoken in Palestine during the period our Lord was upon the earth, and probably the one in which He usually conversed. The Revelation is not included in it, which is considered an additional evidence of its age. Doctor Mur- dock published an English translation of the Peschito a few years since.* * A manuscript of a Syriac version of the Gospels was discovered a few years since in one of the Nitrian monasteries (Egypt). It is 42 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. The next version is the Egyptian or Coptic, . It is re- ferred to the third century. The Copts are the lineal de- scendants of the old Egyptians, and their language, which is the representative of the ancient dialect, and was prob- ably the vulgar tongue in the days of the Pharaohs, be- came, according to Muller, "dead after the seventeenth century." It is preserved in this version. The letters are Greek, with a few Shemitic additions. The Gothic is another version entitled to be remembered with honor, on account of its author, the good Bishop TJ1- filas. It is in Moeso-Gothic, the oldest of all the written Germanic idioms. "The Gothic letters, of vital import- ance to the first Christians of our race," says De Vere, " owe their origin to the noble efforts of Bishop Ulfilas, who in the year 376 obtained permission from the Emperor Valens for the hard-pressed Visigoths to cross the Danube and to occupy Moesia. These Moesogoths became his i be- loved children on earth ;\ to them he preached the i Gos- pel of his Lord' during a long life of suffering and resigna- tion, and for their benefit he crowned his labors of love by inventing or forming a series of letters, adapted to as yet their unwritten language. A version of the Word of God, it is well known, was the glorious fruit of his rare ingenu- ity and unsurpassed energy; the first translation into a Germanic tongue, and a touching relic of the early dark referred to the fifth century, but is believed to have been rendered from earlier Greek manuscripts than the Peschito. The MSS. from which both were made are not now in existence. The Nitrian ver- sion differs from the Peschito, and confirms the authority of the old- est Greek MSS. It was collated and published by Dr. Cureton, the discoverer of the Syriac MSS., in 1858. (Edinb. Rev., July, 1859.) A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 43 • ages. The famous Codex Argenteus, the pride of the Uni- versity Library, in Upsala, Sweden, exhibits these venera- ble letters in their original form." The Vulgate also deserves particular notice. It is writ- ten in Latin. During the second century certain Latin versions, called Italic, were made, it is supposed, in Africa, but by whom is unknown. About the year 383 St. Jerome executed a translation of the New Testament, which was in all probability a revision of the African Italics, then in common use. The Romanist Council of Trent, in the six- teenth century, declared this version of St. Jerome authen- tic, and Sixtus V., in 1590, caused an authorized edition to be issued. In 1592, however, Clement VIII. issued an- other authorized edition, which, up to the present time, has been recognized as the standard, and is universally employ- ed in the services of the Papal Church. But both these authorized editions differ, not only from each other, but from the genuine version of St. Jerome, which had been adopted at Trent. Since then other versions of the Scrip- tures, in different languages, have been made under the au- thority of the Vatican. What faith can be placed in the accuracy and sincerity of Romanist translators may be gathered from the following extracts from two of their edi- tions of the Old Testament. In the Douay Bible, Gen- esis iii. 15 is rendered: " She shall crush his head, and thou shalt lay in wait for her heel. r ' And in an edi- tion formerly put forth at Dublin, and intended exclusive- ly for that region, the same passage is rendered : " The Virgin Mary shall crush the serpent's head, and thou shalt crush her heel." Mr. Roy remarks " that they have since 44 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. altered this too glaring error, and it now reads as be- fore." ' In justice, however, it must be admitted that the Vul- gate proper is a valuable version, and is thought by some to be a very serviceable aid in textual criticism. Luther's Version must not be omitted. During the pe- riod in which Luther was forcibly secluded in the castle of Wartburg, by the direction of the Elector of Saxony, and was thus shielded from the rescript of Charles, the untiring monk, temporarily metamorphosed into a knight, rendered the New Testament from the original into Ger- man. This translation was published in 1522, and not only did much for the cause of religion and the Reformation, but acquired great literary celebrity from its settling the German idiom, and thus becoming the stand-point of that language. It may be necessary to explain that the Teu- tonic language is divided into three dialects ; viz., the Goth- ic, into which Ulfilas translated the Scriptures in the fourth century, and which is now represented by the Low Ger- man ; the High German ; and the Scandinavian. The High German exhibits, in its history, three phases ; viz., the Old, the Middle, and the New. The Middle was in vogue up to Luther's time ; but " the Reformation and the Bible-translation of the great Reformer," says De Vere, "gave the New High German, the dialect of a single prov- ince inhabited by Slaves, the supremacy over all rival dia- lects ; and Slavic writers point with pride to the fact that modern High German owes its supremacy, as they believe, to the admirable pliancy of Slavic organs of speech applied to the pronunciation of a Germanic idiom." The German A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 15 tongue, then — that language which, as Klopstock justly affirms, is so " rich in manifold adaptations to ever-new and yet German forms of thought," and is graced by so noble a literature — owes its position to Luther's version of the Bible. Although versions of the New Testament have been made since the second century, as occasion required, and all are of interest, not any are of so much importance, or demand such particular attention, as the English. A chapter, therefore, will be devoted to their consideration, and especially to a succinct account of that one so familiar to all — the authorized version of the Church of England. CHAPTER VII. SAXON. ANGLO-SAXON. ST. CUTHBERT's GOSPEL. RUSH- WORTH'S GLOSS. BEDE's ANGLO-SAXON VERSION. — EN- GLISH. — wickliffe's version. — tyndale's. — math- ews's. CRANMER'S. GENEVA. ACCOUNT OF THE SUB- division of the bible into chapters and verses. bishop's version. — Parker's. — Thompson's. — rheims. king james version — how made.-- authorized. ELIOT'S INDIAN VERSION. The Saxon, a descendant of the Low German — the first of the three Teutonic dialects — was domiciliated in the British Isles, after the formation of the Heptarchy, in the fifth century, and there gave birth to the Anglo-Saxon tongue. The latter, expelled by the proud Norman from palace, and lower, and hall, disappeared, as a national lan- guage, in the eleventh century. It was not, however, ban- ished from the cottage ; it was preserved at the hearths and lived in the homes and hearts of the people, to give them " the inestimable privilege of reading the Word of God in their own tongue." The first versions of any part of the New Testament that were made in Britain were in the Anglo-Saxon. "The famous Durham Book, or St. Cuthbert's Gospel, in the Cottonian Library of the British Museum," says De Vere, " and Rushworth's Gloss, in the Bodleian at Oxford, are noble and interesting witnesses of the zeal of the early A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 47 Anglo-Saxon Church, which thus possessed, at least, the four Evangelists in the vernacular, at a time when the cognate German was but little esteemed, and the Bible of Ulfilas the only other instance of a vernacular version of the Word of God." The next version of which a record has been preserved was that of the Venerable Bede, who has already been al- luded to, as having brought the Codex Laudianus from Sardinia. About the commencement of the eighth centu- ry Bede executed an Anglo-Saxon version of the New Testament. The following is the Lord's Prayer : Uren Fader thic arth in Heofnas, sic gehalgud thin noma, to cymeth thin ric, sic thin willa sue is in Heofnas and in eortho. Uren hlaf ofer wirthe sel us to daeg, and forgef us scylda urna sue we forgefan scyldgam urum, and no inlead urith in custnung, al gefrig urich from ifle. Amen. The Anglo-Saxon and the Norman-French united to produce the Engleis, in which, however, the former pre- dominated ; for it is universally acknowledged that to the Anglo-Saxon is the English language indebted, not only for its strength and vigor, but for its form and structure. The English versions proper of the New Testament will be described in order as they are recorded in history. The dates are approximated. a.d. 1360. Wickliffe's Version. WicklifFe, Professor of Theology in Baliol College, Oxford, was the earliest En- glish Reformer, and was protected by old John of Gaunt, the friend of Chaucer and Gower. He rendered his version from the Vulgate, not being acquainted with Greek. It was of immense importance in establishing the language, 48 A HAND-BOOK OP THE NEW TESTAMENT. and was regarded with " national partiality and pious rev- erence." The following is the translation of the Magnifi- cat, and exhibits the language in its early stage : And Marye seyde, My soul magnifieth the Lord. And my spiryt hath gladid in God myn helthe. For he hath behulden the mekenesse of his hand-mayden : for lo for this alle generatiouns schulen seye that I am blessid. For he that is mighti hath don to me grete things, and his name is holy. And his mercy is fro kyndrede into kyndrede to men that dreden him. He hath made myght in his arm, he scatteride proude men with the thoughte of his herte. He sette doun myghty men fro seete, and enhaunside meke men. He hath fulfillid hungry men with goodis, and he has left riche men voide. He heuynge mynde of his mercy took up Israel his child, As he hath spoken to our fadris, to Abraham, and into his seed into worlds. Luke, i. 46. , a.d. 1526. TyndaWs Version. It was the first English version of the New Testament that was printed. The translation was made in Hamburg, whither Tyndale had fled from London. Great efforts were made by the Papists to suppress it, and many copies were destroyed ; notwith- standing, it was widely circulated and much read. The publication was commenced at Cologne and completed at Wittemberg. Dr. Geddes remarks that " in point of per- spicuity and noble simplicity, propriety of idiom and purity of style, no English version has yet surpassed it.*' The following specimen indicates the advance made in the lan- guage since the days of Wickliffe : And Mary sayde, My soul magnifieth the Lorde, and my sprete rejoyseth in God my Savioure. A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 49 For he hath loked on the poore degre off his honde mayden. Beholde no we from hens for the shall all generacions call me blessed. For he that is myghty hath done to me greate thinges, and blessed ys his name : And hys mercy is always on them that feare him thorow oute all generacions. He hath shewed strengthe with his arme ; he hath scattered them that are proude in the ymaginacion of their hertes. He hath putt doune the myghty from their seates, and hath exalt- ed them of lowe degre. He hath filled the hongry with goode thinges, and hath sent away the ryche empty. He hath remembered mercy, and hath holpen his servaunt Israhel. Even as he promised to oure fathers, Abraham and to his seed for ever. — Luke, i. 46. a.d. 1537. Mathews's Version. This was a republica- tion of the former, made at Hamburg after the martyrdom of Tyndale at Vilvoord. John Rogers, the celebrated mar- tyr, and Miles Coverdale revised Tyndale's Bible, and pub- lished it with a dedication to Henry VIII. Notes from Luther's Bible were appended, and the whole issued under the borrowed name of jVIathews. Hence its appellation. It was recommended to the King by the Primate Cranmer, and received the license of His Majesty. a.d. 1562. Cranmer 's Version. It was the first version printed by authority in England, and was placed in the churches to be read by the people, and was used in the public services of religion. The name was given to it from the preface, which Cranmer added to a revision of the Tyndale version by Coverdale. a.d. 1560. Geneva Version. This was made by some English exiles, 'and printed at Geneva. It was much es- teemed by the Puritans on account of the annotations D 50 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. which accompanied the text. The chapters were divided into verses for the first time in this translation, though no breaks were made. Versification, according to Dr. Hook, originated thus : "Hugo de Sancto Claro, who flourished about the year 1240, pro- jected the first concordance, which is that of the Latin Vulgate Bible. As the intention of this work was to render the finding of any word or passage in the Scriptures more easy, it became necessary to divide the book into sections, and the sections into subdivisions. These sections are the chapters into which the Bible has been divided since that time. But the subdivision of the chapters was not then into verses as at present. Hugo subdivided them by the letters a, b, c, r>, e, f, g, which were placed in the margin at an equal distance from each other, according to the length of the chapters. About the year 1445 Mordecai Nathan, a famous Jewish Eabbi, improved Hugo's invention, and subdivided the chapters into verses, in the manner they are at present." a.d. 1568. The Bishop's Version. It derived its name from Archbishop Parker, who employed learned men to make a new translation from the original. Having been published in folio it was also called the Great English Bible. An octavo edition was also printed in fine black letter, and the text divided into chapters and verses after the manner of the Geneva version. a.d. 1572. Parker's Version. The same as the former, with some corrections added by the Archbishop. It was long used in the churches, though the Geneva obtained most in private families. Above twenty editions were published of it in as many years. a.d. 1582. Thompson Version. A private translation, made from Beza's Latin version, with Beza's notes ap- pended. It differs but little from the Geneva. a.d. 1584. Rheims Version. The Eomanists, finding it A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTA^IENT. 51 impossible to prevent the people from reading the Protest- ant versions, caused a translation to be made at Eheims ■which should accord with their tenets. Many Hebrew and Greek words were left unrendered, and in most cases Sax- on words w r ere avoided w r hen those of Latin derivation could be found to express the idea. A number of the copies were confiscated by order of the Queen, and Dr. Fuike w r as appointed to confute it. Able refutations of the Rheimists, by Drs. Fulke and Cartwright, subsequently appeared. The version is of an inferior character. a.d. 1613. King James Version. At the Hampton Court Conference, which was called to settle the difficul- ties between the Church and the Puritans, Dr. Keynolds moved His Majesty that there might be a new translation of the Bible. To this the King very willingly acceded, as he disliked the Geneva version on account of its annota- tions, and the Bishop's (Parkers) Bible was not free from faults. Indeed, in the opinion of His Majesty, there was no good translation of the Bible. Learned men were shortly appointed by the King, who had become deeply interested in w T hat proved the great glory of his reign, and w r ere furnished with a code of fourteen rules, by which they were to be governed in the execution of their office. They were directed to adhere to the Bishop's (Parker's) Bible as far as the original Hebrew and Greek w T ould per- mit, but where other versions were found to agree better wdth the original texts to amend the Bishop's version by them. Passages of special obscurity were to be submitted to the most distinguished scholars of the land, and the best counsel obtained. The work was to be first individually 52 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. and separately done, and afterward compared and settled in conference. The translators did not enter upon their duties until the year 1607. The New Testament was divided between two companies. The first, consisting of eight, met at Oxford, and was charged with the translation of the Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, and the Apoca- lypse. The Epistles were allotted to the second company, composed of seven, which met at Westminster. Previous- ly to assembling in bank each member translated, in ac- cordance with the rules of the King, -the whole of the portion committed to the company to which he belonged. The company then conferred, and from a collation of all the translations of the several members produced one ap- proved copy. The two companies then met together and consolidated their respective copies into one. This in turn was revised by another Commission appointed by the King. After that the revised copy of the Commissioners was again revised by Bilson, Bishop of Winchester, and Miles Smith, afterward Bishop of Gloucester. Finally, the revision of the two latter was submitted to Bancroft, Bishop of Lon- don, who retouched the whole, adding what might be nec- essary to render the work complete. The version of the New Testament, thus carefully made, was published, with a dedicatory epistle to the King, in 1613 ; and having re- ceived the sanction of the Crown and the Church, was henceforth recognized by all Protestants as the Authorized Version. Of its merits it is hardly necessary to speak. With not less taste than discretion the translators closely followed Tyndale, and this noble version well deserves the ■ tribute paid to Dan Chaucer by the author of the " Faerie A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 53 Queene :" "A well of English undefiled." Long may it continue to be the household words of the Anglo-Saxon race, and the pride and glory of the English language ! Before closing this account of the versions of the New Testament, an allusion to the first American version of the Scripture may gratify the reader. John Eliot, the apostle of the red men, in the latter part of the seventeenth century, having by untiring zeal and devotion converted to Christianity over three thousand of the Indians of New England, crowned his exertion's by making a translation of the Bible in the language of the Massachusetts, one of the tribes of the great Algonquin race. The following is a specimen, containing the first part of the Lord's Prayer as Eliot rendered it for his red children : Nooshun kesukqut quttianatamunacli koowesuonk. Peyau- niooutch kukketassootamoonk, kuttenantarndonk nen nach ohkeit heane kesukqut. But the white men have destroyed the Indian before their face, the Massachusetts have perished from off the earth, and the sound of the forest tongue, in which Eliot proclaimed the Gospel of Christ's redeeming love and the '•'praying Indian" appealed to his Father in heaven, is heard no more at all. CHAPTER VIII. THE GOSPELS. The Gospels are four separate narratives of the life of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. They are called in the Greek euangeliai, or glad-tidings ; in the Saxon, God- spells, or God's-words. The first three, from the common order pursued by the respective authors, are termed the Synoptic Gospels, and were written prior to the destruc- tion of Jerusalem, which occurred a.b. 70. The fourth was probably not written until a few years after that event. No precise date can be affixed to each one ; nor is it, important. It is enough to know that they were cur- rent during the lifetime of many eye-witnesses of the facts related. Before entering upon an examination of the narration contained in the Gospels, it is important to consider: from what sources they were derived ; the distinctness of the four accounts, and their independence of each other. Some have thought that there was a proto-evangel, or Original Gospel, from which all the others were compiled. History, however, is silent upon the subject of the exist- ence of any such proto-evangel, and nothing in the Gos- pels themselves sustains the idea. Had there been such an original Gospel, the basis of the subsequent Gospels, it would have been embodied in each one; and in that re- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. GO spect the latter would be alike, although there might be a difference in their dimensions arising from an expansion of the narrative, or the addition of new matter otherwise derived. The theory, therefore, of a proto-evangel is un- tenable. It has been inferred by others that the Gospel first writ- ten must have been familiar to the authors of the remain- ing three, and that they availed themselves of the assist- ance which it afforded in the composition of their several narratives. Supposing Matthew's Gospel to have been the earliest written, it is by no means apparent that the other evangelists could have seen it. If Matthew's Gos- pel was in the hands of the subsequent writers, why did they omit any thing which he had recorded ? The same objections generally exist to tracing the three latter Gos- pels up to the first as have been stated in regard to the supposed proto-evangel. It has been suggested that the events of our Saviour's life, the circumstances and facts bearing upon or connect- ed with it, and His discourses and conversations, had been repeatedly rehearsed by the eye-witnesses and hearers of our Lord, and had thus become not only very familiar to the first Christians, but perhaps had been in part written down, as inclination prompted. This would account both for the verbal coincidences and the variety exhibited in the four narratives. Each writer, according to his particular characteristics, would be more affected by some features of his* Master's life than others, more interested in some of His sayings or teachings, or attach more importance to them than to others ; and as each evidently wrote upon a 56 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. plan, and with an object peculiar to himself, so each would more fully elaborate those portions with which he was 1 ' most deeply impressed, or which bore especially upon the particular object he had in view. It seems quite clear that they all had different purposes, and were desirous of pre- , senting the one subject under somewhat different aspects, in different modes, as if for different classes of readers. Besides, it must not be forgotten that though they were inspired, yet they were still men, and acted under the nat- ural impulses of diverse character and education. The Gospels not only differ from each other, but the synoptic Gospels differ from the fourth. Matthew contains a gen- ealogy of Christ extending to Abraham, and an account of the wise men. Mark has neither. Luke contains a genealogy extending up to Adam, and does not refer to the Magi, but contains an allusion to the early life of Christ. The synoptic Gospels omit entirely our Saviour's ministry in Judea, while the fourth Gospel records it in full. The synoptic are simpler in their teachings, narrate more than the fourth, and are more engaged upon extern- al matters. John is full of the sublime discourses of our Saviour, and records the deep things of God, and what relates to the mystery and inner life of Christ. John has sometimes been termed the supplementary Gospel ; but as there is no evidence, either internal or external, that John had seen the first three, there is no good reason for so con- sidering it. That it contains some things which they do not, or completes the circle of the Gospels, is no reason. On the contrary, it is an evidence of its independence. In- deed, the four Gospels are so diverse in their style, so va- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 57 rious in their treatment of the subject, so dissimilar in many respects, and yet so harmonious in the one grand design, that they must be regarded as entirely individual productions. With respect to the whole matter, after a careful investigation, Alford concludes : "That the synoptic Gospels contain the substance of the Apostles' testimony, collected principally from their oral teaching current in the Church — partly, also, from written documents embodying portions of that teaching : that there is, however, no reason from their internal struc- ture to believe, but every reason to disbelieve, that any one of the three Evangelists had access to either of the other two Gospels in its present form." In reference to John's Gospel, he adds : " I have no hesitation, therefore, in receiving as the true account of the source of this Gos- pel that generally given and believed — viz., that we have it from the autoptic authority of the Apostle himself." It has been said that the Gospels contain the life of Christ. This fact has induced some to endeavor to form out of them what is technically termed a harmony, or a collation of every passage in each Gospel, according to the plan adopted by the compiler of the harmony. To har- monize the Gospels in many points is comparatively easy, but to bring them into a state of perfect unity, so that they shall accord in every minute detail, is probably im- possible. Expedients must be resorted to in order to ef- fect such an accord, and passages must sometimes be forced into accommodation. An illustration may be drawn from the miracle of healing performed upon the blind man, al- ready alluded to in the chapter on Inspiration. No fair 58 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. process can harmonize the different accounts, though the miracle is the same. Other instances of course occur where the difficulty is equally apparent. But the life narrated by the four Gospels is one ; and a general agreement exists by which a harmony can be con- structed that, without attempting^ tQ assimilate every mi- nute detail, will enable the reader, to grasp the life of Christ in one view. This has been admirably done by Dr. Jar vis in the following manner : Sect. A. — "The commencement of St. John's Gospel proclaims the eternity of God the Word, his incarnation, and mediation be- tween God and man." Sect. 1. — "The prefatory parts of the Gospels of St. John and St. Luke, comprehending all that is related of St. John the Baptist pre- vious to his ministry." Sect. 2. — "Our Lord's incarnation, birth,* infancy, and child- hood ; containing all that is recorded till the time of his baptism." Sect. 3. — "From the commencement of St. John the Baptist's ministry to our Lord's baptism, with which act His ministry began as & prophet sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." Sect. 4. — "Our Lord's ministry, principally in Judea, until the imprisonment of John the Baptist." Sect. 5. — " Our Lord's ministry in Galilee, the dominions of Her- od Antipas, from his taking up his abode in Capernaum to the death of St. John the Baptist." Sect. 6. — "Our Lord's ministry in the country beyond Jordan, or the dominions of Herod Philip, from the death of John the Baptist until the death and resurrection of Lazarus ; after which he retired * The exact date of the birth of Christ has been disputed ; but Dr. Jarvis, after a most profound and exhaustive chronological in- vestigation, demonstrates that "He was born on the twenty-fifth day of December a.j.p. 4707," or six years before the vulgar era; the year which was signalized by three conjunctions of Jupiter and Sat- urn ; and "the very same year in which Augustus shut the temple of Janus the third time, in token of universal peace." A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 59 to Ephraim, in Samaria, where He remained till He went to be crucified." Sect. 7. — "Our Lord's Passion ; or his acts as Priest, and his suf- ferings as Victim, for the sins of the world." Sect. 8. — "Our Lord's Resurrection, declaring Him to be King as well as Priest, and his ascension into heaven in his regal and sacerdotal character." These divisions comprehend all that need be said on the subject. From an attentive examination of them one idea can be obtained of the general purport and action of the Gospels, and that unpleasant confusion avoided which is incident to reading four separate accounts of the same transaction. By keeping this arrangement in view, and thus following the footsteps of our Saviour, and listening to His voice and seeing His works, the Gospels as a whole, or any part of them, may be read or studied with increased advantage and pleasure. And, to profit withal to the ut- most, let it be remembered that " the euaungeliste rehers- eth what Christ said and did simplye and truely, whiche story we must so place in vnderstandyng, as we tryfle not the mysterie, at stayng and stoppyng of lettres and sylla- bles." " There stands the messenger of Truth : there stands The legate of the skies ! His theme divine, His office sacred, his credentials clear. By him the violated law speaks out Its thunders ; and by him, in strains as sweet As angels use, the Gospel whispers peace." NOTE UPON MODE OF CALCULATING TIME. The ancient Hebrews divided the day into four parts — viz., morn- ing, noon, first evening, last evening 3 p.m. : the night into three parts — viz., night, midnight, morning watch. The second evening 60 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. ended and the night began at sunset. The whole day of twenty- four hours was reckoned from sunset. The Greeks and Romans divided the day into twelve hours, the length of which varied according to the position of the sun and the length of the day itself; the first hour began at sunrise, and coin- cided with our 6 a.m. at the equinox. The night they arranged in four watches of three hours each ; the first began at sunset, or 6 p.m. at the equinox. The Roman custom prevailed in Palestine during the time of our Saviour, and is the one referred to by the writers of the New Testament. CHAPTER IX. st. Matthew's gospel. The Gospel according to St. Matthew, though no pre- cise date can be affixed to it, was conceded by the early Church to have been the first written. The author of it was Matthew the Publican, one of the Twelve Apostles. He is called by Mark (ii. 14) Levi, the son of Alpheus, or Cleopas; and as the latter is believed to have been the husband of Mary, the sister of the Virgin, Matthew, or Levi, was the cousin of our Lord. Of his life little is known. The scene of his early apostolic labors must have been among the first Christians in Palestine. Tradition refers to Ethiopia and Macedonia as countries which had been visited by him, but it is probable that the most of his life was spent in Palestine, and that there his Gospel was written. It is eminently Hebraistic in style and tone, much more so than the other Gospels. From its having been the first written, an inference has been drawn that it was written in Hebrew or Syriac, and an effort has been made to sub- stantiate the idea by aid of early writers ; but the effort has not proved successful, and a Greek original may be safely acceded to. Matthew wrote for the first Christians, or the early con- verts from Judaism. His Gospel presumes an acquaint- 62 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. ance with Jewish ideas and customs, and with the Jewish conception of the Messiah. Very few explanations are therefore made, and references to the Prophets are fre- quent. But it was not intended exclusively for Jewish Christians. There are interpretations of Hebrew words in it, and its general scope and design are ample enough to include all believers in Christ of every nation what- soever. " The internal character of this Gospel answers," says Alford, " to what we know of the history and time of its compilation. Its marks of chronological sequence are very vague, and many of them are hardly, perhaps, to be insist- ed on at all. When compared with the more definite no- tices of Mark and Luke, its order of events is sometimes superseded by theirs. It was to be expected, in the earli- est written accounts of matters so important, that the ob- ject should rather be to record the things done, and the say- ings of our Lord, than the precise order in which they took place. It is in this principal duty of an Evangelist that Matthew stands pre-eminent, and especially in the report of the longer discourses of our Lord. This seems to have been the peculiar gift of the Spirit to him." It has been already said that differences between the Gospels exist, which are often perplexing to the reader. One of these is the discrepancy between the two genealo- gies of our Saviour, recorded by Matthew and Luke. To remove the difficulty as far as possible, a brief elucidation, derived from Eusebius, will be given. Matthew deduces his from Abraham, that being a point of great importance in the eye of a Jew, and one evidence that the writer was A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 63 desirous of enlisting the sympathies of the chosen people in the cause of the Son of David, the King of Israel. Luke traces his to Adam, as if it were intended for all nations e Matthew makes Jacob the father of Joseph, and Luke says Joseph was the son of Eli. Matthew's genealogy is not full ; omissions were made in order to exhibit it in tesse- radecads. Supposing Eli and Jacob to have been uterine brothers, and that Jacob formed a levirate marriage with Eli's widow, then Joseph would have been legally the son of Eli, and Jacob would have begot him. To reconcile them entirely, however, may be impossible, and perhaps ought not to be attempted. The object of the writers was simply to exhibit external evidence of the " Davidical de- scent of Joseph, the putative father of the Lord." The two genealogies are therefore of Joseph. " But the real Davidical descent of Christ does not depend on either of them, but on Luke, i. 32, 35," and, as Alford remarks, "is solely derived through His mother.'' Matthew's Gospel possesses some features which may be noticed with advantage. It is the only one which re- cords the visit of the Magi, the flight into Egypt, and the murder of the Innocents — three points not only involving the fulfillment of prophecy, and therefore important, but extremely interesting in themselves. The names of the Magi, according to the old legends, were Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar. Their inquiry for the 'King of the Jews is a clear proof that they were Gentiles, for, as Trench ob- serves, had they been Jews, they would have inquired for the King of Israel. Tradition relates that, at a later day, they were baptized by St. Thomas in India. But nothing 64 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. authentic is known beyond the brief account contained in the Gospel. The Sermon on the Mount has been preserved by St. Matthew in all its fullness and beauty. It may be proper to add that the doxology appended to the Lord's Prayer, contained in the Sermon, is an interpolation, and can not be admitted into a critically revised text. The Received Text contains the passage, but it is unsustained by manu- script authority, and was probably derived from one of the Liturgies which the early Church so constantly used. St. Matthew also has handed down the Apostolic Com- mission at length in chapter x., and exceeds the other Evangelists in the number of the parables which he has recorded. He is quite full on the subject of the Resur- rection, of which he was, by virtue of his office, an espe- cial eye-witness, but singularly enough omits all mention of the ascension. Perhaps it may be implied from the con- clusion. The Gospel terminates with our Saviour's mission to the Apostles — a fitting consequence of their commission ; His explicit command for the affirmation of the Holy Trin- ity in baptism — conclusive arguments in support of both ; and the solemn asseveration, "Behold I am with you al- ways, even unto the end of the world." CHAPTER X. ST. mark's gospel. St. Mark, the author of the Gospel of events, was the son of Mary, and cousin* of Barnabus, and consequently of Levitical extraction. Mary was one of the first converts from Judaism, and her house appears to have been one of the resorts of the Christians, as Peter, on his delivery from prison by the angel, repaired thither, and found a number of them engaged in prayer. Barnabus and Saul, on their return to Antioch from Jerusalem, whither they had gone to bear alms, carried Mark with them. They also select- ed him for a companion in their missionary journey to Asia Minor. Mark's zeal, however, proved unequal to the en- terprise, and deserting the Apostles at Perga, he returned to a more congenial scene at Jerusalem. Subsequently, when Paul and Barnabas had determined to revisit the churches which they had planted, Barnabas proposed to take Mark, who was then in Antioch, along with them. But Paul, who had neither forgotten nor forgiven his de- parting from the work at Perga, positively refused, and the result was that Paul went on a separate mission with Silas, and Barnabas took his cousin and departed for Cy- prus. From St. Paul's language many years afterward * Ahepsios, Col., iv. 10, should be rendered cousin, not "sister's son," as in the English version. E 66 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. (Col., iv. 10 ; 2 Tim., iv. 11) it is evident that the division between himself and Mark had been healed, and that the latter had obtained the regard and confidence of the aged Apostle. The place where, and the time when, Mark wrote his Gospel are matters of conjecture. Various opinions are extant, but nothing reliable on the subject can be ascer- tained. Perhaps it was written at Rome about a.d. 67. From the verbal coincidences that exist between Mat- thew and Mark, some have inferred Mark's Gospel to be only an abridgment of that of Matthew ; but the signs of individuality and the original matter which it contains, to say nothing of open dissimilitudes, exclude the presump- tion. Eusebius and other Fathers were of the opinion that St. Peter, who calls Mark his son,* and who perhaps converted his mother Mary and himself to the faith of Christ, had controlled Mark, if not directly assisted him, in the composition of his Gospel. Whether the Gospel was written before or after St. Peter's death, it is not un- reasonable to suppose, in case they were much together, that the ardent mind of Peter should have exerted an in- fluence over the young Evangelist. Nevertheless the Gos- pel is not Peter's : it is the Gospel according to St. Mark. * 1 Peter, v. 13, " Marcus my son, v perhaps, and so most have thought, the well-known Evangelist, Euseb., ii. 15 ; vi. 25 ; perhaps the actual son of St. Peter, bearing this name. From Coloss., iv. 10, we learn that Mark was, a.d. 61-63, with St. Paul in Rome, but in- tending to journey into Asia Minor : and from 2 Tim., iv. 11, we find that, a.d. 67 or 68, he was in Asia Minor, and was to be brought with Timothy to Rome. He may have spent some of the interval between the two notices with St. Peter in Babylon on the Euphrates. — Alford. A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 67 Tradition reports Mark to have been the first Bishop of Alexandria. It is obvious that he wrote especially for the Gentile Christians. Having doubtless passed the larger portion of his ministry among them, and knowing that the Christians of Judea would be well informed by others, he would naturally have been predisposed to bring the Gos- pel home to the Gentile converts, that they also might have knowledge of the Son of God, and obtain life through him. But his interpretation of Hebrew phrases ; his explanations of Jewish manners and customs; his entire omission of all reference to the law, and apparent avoidance, as far as pos- sible, of any allusion to the Old Testament, put the ques- tion beyond a doubt. Eegarding our Saviour not only as the Messiah, the son of David, who should redeem Israel, but the Son of God, the Great Shepherd who was manifested that He might draw all nations into His fold, he hastens, with the least possible delay, to relate His official life. He therefore simply alludes to John, and passes directly to the baptism of Jesus — the point at which our Saviour's active work on earth in the redemption of man commenced. His style is generally terse and pointed, and if sometimes abrupt it oft- en rises to grandeur. The latter part of the ninth chapter and the whole of the thirteenth are truly sublime. St. Mark is distinguished for the accuracy of his details, the nice appreciation of truth in apparently unimportant matters, the minuteness of his observation, and fidelity to order in narration. The latter has afforded a corrective to Matthew's looser mode of narration. The cure of the child of the Syro-Phoenician woman, chapter vii. — the 68 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. healing of the possessed boy, chapter ix. — the discourse on the Mount of Olives, chapter xiii. — the passing reference to the young man in the linen cloth, peculiar to himself, chapter xiv. — and the account of the double crowing of the cock and three denials of Peter, chapter xv., are strik- ing examples of the care bestowed by the writer upon de- tails, and are well worthy of observation. The Gospel closes abruptly with the eighth verse of the last chapter. The remaining verses, for strong reasons, are now rejected from the original text by some critics. Both external and internal evidence are against them, and they can no longer be regarded as genuine. Either the final leaf of the autographic manuscript was lost, or some- thing prevented the author from concluding it, and a later hand added the last twelve verses as a substitute. They are, however, very ancient, and are entitled to reverence and confidence. As a whole, St. Mark's Gospel must be considered, from the limited number of discourses recorded, and its action, as principally intended to bring out the official life of Christ by rendering the events of it prominent — by show- ing forth rather what He did than what He said. " While it contains," says Alford, in conclusion, " little matter of fact which is not related in Matthew and Luke, and thus, generally speaking, forms only a confirmation of their more complete histories, it is so far from being a bar- ren duplicate of that part of them which is contained in it that it comes home to every reader with all the freshness of an individual mind, full of the Holy Ghost, intently fixed on the great object of the Christian's love and wor- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 69 ship, reverently and affectionately following and recording His positions, and looks, and gestures, and giving us the very echo of the tones with which He spoke. And thus the believing student feels that the Gospel of Mark is as precious to him as any of the others." CHAPTER XI. st. luke's gospel. Of St. Luke, the beloved physician, who heard St. Paul preach — the second wish of St. Augustine ; of the faithful friend of whom the old man wrote, " Only Luke is with me," but very little is known. That little, however, is of great value. Some writers have confounded him with Lu- cius of Cyrene, but without reason, for the names in Greek are quite different. Tradition with equal truth has at- tributed to bim the role of an artist, and the aid of le- gendary lore has been invoked to prove that the old Mas- ter's ideas in regard to the Virgin may have been derived from a Madonna of Luke. This Evangelist is first referred to in Acts xvi. 10 as one of the party which in the year 54 sailed with St. Paul from Troas to Macedonia, in answer to the call, " Come over and help us." From his profession, and the sup- posed feeble state of St. Paul's health — cf. Acts, xvi. 6, with Gal., iv. 13, 14 — it has been inferred that Luke joined the Apostle with a view to render medical assistance. This, though highly probable, is by no means certain. For he went no farther than Philippi, where he would hardly have paused had he been merely the Apostle's medical adviser. Nothing more is heard of him until the return of St. Paul to Philippi in the spring of 58, when he rejoined the Apos- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 71 tie, accompanied him on his journey to Jerusalem, spent two years with him at Cesarea, and finally went with him to Rome, where he probably remained during Paul's two years' residence in his " hired house." The latter, in his second Epistle to Timothy, makes one last and touching allusion to his faithful fellow-laborer : " Only Luke is with me." After the death of St. Paul he may have left Rome, but whither he went, or where he passed the residue of his life, or how he died, are quite uncertain. Mr. Taylor, in his biography of St. Luke, maintains that he removed to Achaia on the conclusion of his history (the Acts), where he soon died, at the age of eighty-four. There is also a tradition that his bones were interred in the church of the Apostles at Constantinople by Constantine or his son. It is highly probable that St. Luke wrote his Gospel during his residence at Philippi. He may have previous- ly collected materials for its composition, and must have had frequent conversations with St. Paul concerning the life of Christ during his short journey with the Apostle, which would have aided him in his task. He may also have revisited Judea and returned to Philippi. Nothing prevents the supposition. On the contrary, as Luke's Gos- pel must have been in part compiled from written memo- randa, either he must have taken them with him when he went to Troas, or he must have returned to obtain them. The speech of Elizabeth, the Magnificat, the Song of Zach- arias, and many other passages, were undoubtedly pre- served in some of those " declarations" to which he al- ludes in his introduction, and were verified by the Virgin herself. As there would have been no object for holding 72 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. V back the Gospel after its completion, and as it contains no evidence of having been retouched at a later day, it may be justly assumed that it was published in Macedonia prior to the spring of 58. St. Luke's Gospel, the last of the synoptic series, is in many respects different from the other two. The author does not claim to have been an eye-witness of what he re- lates, and therefore could not have been one of the seventy, even had he not been excluded from the number of the latter by his Gentile birth ; but he claims to have had a " perfect understanding of all things from the first," and therefore to have been especially qualified to write an au- thoritative narrative of those things which had been deliv- ered by the eye-witnesses. He refers to " declarations" of others on the subject, but without impugning their truth- fulness. , Alford believes these declarations to have formed part of the " common substratum of apostolic teaching," which formed the " original source of the common part of the three Gospels." Clearly they were not evangels, or they would have been so styled. Mark and John having written later, and Matthew's variations from Luke, utter- ly forbid the possibility of the latter having had access to the other three. Although St. Paul must have exercised great influence over Luke, and may have generally affected the author's treatment of his subject, yet the hand of St. Paul can only be directly traced in the account of the institution of the Lord's Supper — Luke, xxii. 19. That account accords al- most verbally with the one in 1 Cor., xi. 23, which the Apostle says he received from the Lord himself. The A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 73 Evangelist doubtless availed himself of all ordinary means to obtain thorough information. From the Virgin Mary herself he unquestionably derived so much of the Gospel as relates to John, the birth of Christ, and the personal history of Mary. He could not have failed, also, to have conversed at length with eye-witnesses who had journey- ed from Jordan to Calvary, seen the prints of the nails, and witnessed the ascension of the glorified Redeemer, the Son of God with power. From such sources, and with such opportunities, then, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Evangelist produced the narrative which has been not less admired for its beauty than for its ac- curacy. Presuming the Gospel to have been written for the Church, and not simply for Theophilus, to whom it is ad- dressed, it can not fail to be observed that it is more gen- eral in its character than the other synoptic Gospels, more intended for universal circulation. " There is no marked regard paid," says Alford, " to Jewish readers, as in Mat- thew ; nor to Gentiles, as in Mark ; if there be any pref- erence, it seems rather on the side of the latter." The genealogy, though Adamic, the allusions to the Old Testa- ment, and especially the Magnificat, the triumphal song of the Mother in Israel, arouse the Jewish mind ; the clear expression of the doctrine of justification by faith (chap. xvii. 10; xviii. 14) comes home to the Gentile reader; and the record of those sayings which affirm Christ's un- restricted love for all men, whom he had made of " one blood," evince that it was written for both Jews and Gen- tiles. It is the universal Gospel; it witnesses to the 74 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Christian Church in every nation, and appeals with equal force to the hearts and consciences of all. St. Luke associated much with Jews as well as Greeks. The style of his Gospel is therefore not altogether pure, though pure Greek was very rare at that time. It is, how- ever, refined and harmonious, and displays the educated mind which might be predicated of the writer from his profession. The introduction is probably the finest speci- men of classic Greek in the New Testament, and could only have come from the cultivated pen of one well ac- quainted with the Grecian models. His residence in Greece is thought by some to account for this, but educa- tion and reading must have laid the foundation of a style so replete with grace. St. Luke's Gospel is more extended in its narration, and more lucid in its arrangement than any of the other Gos- pels. It comprehends not only the events of our Saviour's life, but records with accuracy worthy of imitation his " dis- courses, observations, and even occasional sayings." The diversity between the genealogies of Matthew and Luke has already been alluded to in the chapter on Matthew's Gospel. In regard to the chronological error supposed to exist in Luke, ii. 2, it is only necessary to say that Mr. Zumpt, of Berlin, after a thorough investigation, has es- tablished that Cyrenius was twice Governor of Syria, and that the taxing or enrollment referred to occurred during the period of his first official term. Thus the error which has worried so many proves to be no error, and the accu- racy of Luke's narrative is sustained. Were there data extant by which the accounts of the Resurrection could be A HAND-BOOK OF TPIE NEW TESTAMENT. 75 examined, no doubt they would be found to harmonize perfectly. But diversities in the Gospels have their ad- vantage ; for, if there were a perfect verbal agreement be- tween them, the enemies of Christ would find in that fact undoubted evidence of collusion. As it is, no such charge can be made, and a want of harmony in every minute point does not detract from the reliance to be placed on the main and important facts recorded. It may be added that rationalistic writers have endeavored to cast a doubt upon the authenticity of the first two chapters of Luke, but their arguments have been entirely refuted. St. Luke's Gospel contains many things peculiar to it- self — viz., the incidents connected with the birth of the Forerunner John : the Taxing : the Annunciation and oth- er facts relating personally to the Virgin : the watching of the Shepherds and the Song of the Heavenly Host : the testimony of Simeon and Anna : the return to Nazareth : the visits to the Temple in accordance with the law : our Saviour's conversation with the Doctors : the being sub- ject to his parents : the miraculous restoration of the young man at Nain : the very long and deeply important array of events, parables, and discourses, almost entirely pecul- iar to Luke, recorded from chapter ix. 51, to chapter xviii. 15 : among which may be especially mentioned the mis- sion of the Seventy; the parable of Lazarus; the message to Herod; the incident of the penitent thief; the visit of Peter and John to the Sepulchre ; the journey to Em- maus ; and, to crown all, the Ascension. Such are some of the striking peculiarities of the Gospel, according to the " brother whose praise was in all the churches." "In 76 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. completeness," says Alford, "it must rank first among the four. The Evangelist begins with the announcement of the birth of Christ's Forerunner, and concludes with the particulars of the ascension : thus embracing the whole great procession of events by which our Bedemption by Christ was ushered in, accomplished, and sealed in heaven. And by recording the allusion to the promise of the Father (chap, xxiv. 49) he has introduced, so to speak, a note of passage to that other history, in which the fulfillment of that prom- ise, the great result of Redemption, was to be related." CHAPTER XII. st. john's gospel. The disciple whom Jesus loved was the son of Zebedee and Salome, and the brother of James the Great. His mother was one of the Galilean women who were devoted to Jesus during his earthly course. Of Zebedee it is only- known that he was a Galilean fisherman, in which occu- pation he was assisted by his sons and hired servants. James and John were both called by our Saviour " Boan- erges." Whether John was older or younger than his brother is uncertain, but it is generally supposed that he was younger than James, and the youngest of the Twelve. Indeed there is very little doubt of it. There is eveiy rea- son to believe that John was one of the two disciples of the Baptist (John, i. 35) who followed Jesus on hearing John exclaim, " Behold the Lamb of God!" He was, therefore, one of the first attracted by our Saviour, though his actual call did not take place until Jesus saw him again, by the sea of Galilee (Matthew, v. 21), in company with his father and brother. At the sound of the voice of Jesus he and his brother left their father and followed Him. John appears to have enjoyed the nearest and most affectionate relations with his Lord, and save for a few minutes, at the time of His apprehension, when all desert- 78 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. ed Him except the Father, he continued the devoted fol- lower of Christ until his life's end. St. John was always selected by our Saviour, along with Peter and James, to be with Him on every occasion of peculiar interest or importance. He was present at the restoration of the daughter of Jairus to life, and was on the Mount of the Transfiguration. He occupied the seat of honor at the last Paschal feast ever held, and received the first eucharistic bread and ivine ever delivered from the hands of the Great High-Priest of our profession. He was in the Garden of Gethsemane, though he was weary and could not watch. He was present from the beginning to the end of the most fearful tragedy that ever was enacted — the trial, and mocking, and scourging, and execution of the Son of man ; and in the last minutes of that awful scene received — in the words, " Mother, behold thy son" — tjie most touching evidence of love and confidence which his Master could bestow. He heard the expiring cry of Jesus as He committed His spirit to the Father, and saw the water and the blood flow from the body of Him whom they had pierced. At the report of the Resurrection he outran Peter, in his ardor, and arrived the first disciple at the sepulchre ; and again, by the sea of Galilee, he pre- ceded Peter with those solemn words, which burned with- in his heart and trembled on his lips — " It is the Lord ;" and he was not the least among the men of Galilee who stood gazing into heaven when the Lord Jesus, having fin- ished His course on earth, ascended to heaven in glory. After the crucifixion John seems to have temporarily returned to his former occupation, but abandoned it again A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. id on discovering his Master on the shore, and it does not appear that he ever resumed it. Of his ministry very little has been recorded. He remained at Jerusalem, in accordance with the command (Luke, xxiv. 49), until he was baptized with the Holy Ghost on the day of Pente- cost, and took part in the first preaching of the Word. Subsequently he appears to have been associated with Peter, and to have yielded precedence to the latter. As their apostolic power and office were perfectly equal, this must have arisen not merely from Peter's superior age, but from a natural boldness and energy of character which prompted the latter to take the lead. John was sent also by the Church with Peter to Samaria — the restriction (Matt., x. 5) having been removed (Acts, i. 8) — to lay hands upon those whom Philip had baptized. At a later day, in the year 50, when St. Paul was at Jerusalem on the matter of circumcision, John was there (Gal., ii. 9), and must therefore have been a member of the first Coun- cil of the Church. No further allusion is made to John in the New Testament, except what is contained in the first chapter of the Apocalypse, and which came from his own pen. The early Fathers of the Church concur in the opinion that St. John passed the latter part of his life at Ephesus. When he went to Asia is a matter of conjecture. But as St. Paul founded the Church in Asia, and in his last Epis- tle to Timothy makes no allusion to John, it is manifest that the latter could not have gone to Ephesus until after Paul's, death. That took place in 68 at the latest ; and as prior to the encircling of Jerusalem by Titus, in 69, 80 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. doubtless many Christians withdrew — some, according to Eusebius, to Pella — it is not unreasonable to suppose that John, if he had been residing at Jerusalem, departed at that time to Ephesus. The Church in Asia, if not plant- ed, was at least watered by St. John, and was for a num- ber of years under his authority. In the exercise of his apostolic office he gave offense to the Emperor Domitian, and was banished to Patmos. Nerva, however, who suc- ceeded to the empire the same year, 96, released John from confinement, and permitted him to return to Ephesus. The youngest, and now the last and oldest of the Twelve Apostles, passed his declining years in teaching his chil- dren to love one another because Christ had loved them. He was the Apostle of love unfeigned — the charity of St. Paul. Polycrates says that he "rests. at Ephesus." His death occurred in the third of Trajan, a.d. 100, at the age of ninety-four. A tradition adds that John was buried on the side of Mount Prion, near Ephesus, and that his bones w r ere translated from thence by Constantine or his son to the Church of the Apostles at Constantinople. Irenasus, Bishop of Lyons — the pupil of Polycarp, Bish- op of Smyrna, who was the pupil of St. John — who lived in the second century, relates in one of his epistles that " John the disciple of the Lord, who also leaned upon His bosom, put forth a Gospel while he abode in Ephesus of Asia." The time when Irenaeus wrote, and the oppor- tunity he possessed of obtaining exact information, render his testimony conclusive in regard to the place where John's Gospel was published. But the time when it was written can not be so satis- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 81 factorily ascertained. There are two opinions on the sub- ject. One places it before and the other after the destruc- tion of Jerusalem. The proem affords sufficient evidence that it was written in a Grecian atmosphere. Ephesus may therefore be justly considered the place where it was composed as well as published. John removed to Asia, as has been shown, about 69. It is not probable that he would have commenced writing immediately ; neither, if it had been in his mind to put forth a Gospel, would he have very long deferred the duty. Liicke observes that the style is that of a matured but not of an aged writer. a.d. 80 may therefore be assumed as a sufficient approx- imation to the time of its publication. From St. John having written last, and from his having recorded much that is important which the previous writ- ers had omitted, not a few have concluded that he wrote to supply the deficiencies of the synoptic Gospels. But it does not appear from the passages common to all that John could have seen those Gospels, though he must have been acquainted with the " declarations" referred to by Luke. There is no ground therefore for believing the Gospel of John to be merely a supplementary work. St. John has been likewise charged with having written merely to combat the heresies which had crept into the Church through the operation of the Grecian philosophy. That grievous heresies in regard to the person and nature of Christ were developed in Asia as early even as the first century can not be doubted. That the Apostle contended ardently for the " faith once delivered," against the open enemy and the secret foe, will be readily admitted ; but F 82 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. that he wrote his Gospel to oppose Gnostic error alone, can hardly be supposed. Neither a supplementary nor a polemic object can be exclusively predicated of it, nor yet, as late writers imagine, a combination of both. And it is not a complete life of Jesus, after the manner of St. Luke. It is the independent and convincing testimony of an eye- witness to the nature, person, and office of Christ — the Light that came into the world. Deistic writers have attempted to impugn the authority of the prologue to St. John's Gospel, or the Golden Proem as it was anciently called. But the genuineness of the proem has not been shaken, and were it not that it affords such incontrovertible evidence of the divinity of Christ it probably never would have been called in question. In regard to chapters vii. 53, viii. 1-11, it must be admitted that the passage presents such serious difficulties that crit- ics have felt compelled to exclude it from an emended text. No point of doctrine, however, is affected by it, and the question of the authenticity of the passage is only of ma- terial interest to the Greek scholar. The last chapter of the Gospel, the genuineness of which has been denied by some critics, is found in' all the principal Codices, and is supported by ample internal evidence. " I am persuaded," says Alford, "that in this chapter we have a fragment, both authentic and genuine, added, for reasons apparent on the face of it, by the Apostle himself, bearing evidence of his hand, but in a c second manner' — a later style— proba- bly in the decline of life." St. John's Gospel is marked by great simplicity and beauty of style, though it is Hebraic in diction and the A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 83 treatment of the subject. The Apostle does not simply narrate like the other Evangelists, nor does he reason like St. Paul-; but he speaks with " dogmatic authority." His theme is the mystery of Christ. He records the sublime discourses of our Saviour, and unfolds His Divine nature and covenant relation with man. Being occupied with the deep things of God, with the life of Christ, which is the life of the world — the life which dwells in the Church by the Holy Spirit — there is a depth of tone, a harmony, and a beauty which render the Gospel of St. John truly wonderful. "This is the only one of the four Gospels," says Alford, " to which a pre-arranged and systematic plan can with any certainty be ascribed. The prologue contains a formal setting forth of the subject-matter of the Gospel : l That the Eternal Creator Word became flesh, and was glorified by means of that work which he undertook in the flesh.' This glorification of Christ he follows out under several heads: 1. The testimony borne to Him by the Baptist; 2. His miracles; 3. His conflict with the persecution and malice of the Jews; 4. His own testimony in his dis- courses, which are copiously related ; 5. His sufferings, death, and resurrection. And this His glorification is the accomplishment of the purpose of the Father, by setting Him forth as the Light and Life of the world — the one Intercessor and Mediator, by ivhose accomplished work the Holy Spirit is procured for men ; and through whom all spiritual help, and comfort, and hope of glory is derived." Such are the general features, scope, and design of the Gospel according to St. John. 84 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Among many marked peculiarities, all of which can not be detailed, John's Gospel is distinguished — for the pro- logue, which proclaims the eternity of the Word which was made flesh, and gives tone and character to the whole : for a report of the sayings of John the Baptist, which might have been expected from one of his disciples : for a history of the ministry of our Lord in Judea, omitted en- tirely in the synoptic Gospels : for a record of the first three Passovers : for the first purification of the Temple and the attending circumstances, both before and after: for an account of the first of miracles which Jesus did at Cana of Galilee : for the interview of our Saviour with the woman of Samaria : for the stupendous miracle of the raising of Lazarus, which so stimulated the wrath of the Jews : for the prophecy of Caiaphas (chapter xi. 49) : for the visit to Ephraim: for the voice from heaven in the Temple: for the washing of the disciples' feet: for the wonderful discourses, embraced in the 14th, 15th, and 16th chapters, and the nobly beautiful prayer to the Fa- ther contained in the 17th : for the fact of the going back and falling to the ground of the guard at the sound of His voice in the garden — evidence that His submission was voluntary : for the statement that it was Peter who smote off the ear of the servant of the High-Priest, and that the servant's name was Malchus : for the saying of Jesus, "Behold thy mother:" for the fulfillment of the prophecies (chapter xx. 36, 37), "A bone of Him shall not be broken," and "They shall look on Him whom they pierced:" for the exclamation of Thomas, "My Lord and my God :" and for the whole of the last chapter, compre- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 85 hending events and narrations of the deepest interest and importance. St. John the Baptist came in the spirit and power of Elias to testify of the Messiah. St. John the Evangelist recorded the promise of the Comforter. As the Baptist, the last of the prophets, who preceded the Gospel, wit- nessed of Christ, so the Evangelist, the disciple of the Baptist, and the disciple whom Jesus loved, witnessed of the Holy Ghost. The Gospel of St. John is the Gospel of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit — the sublime testimony to the Holy, Blessed, and Glorious Trinity, CHAPTER XIII. THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. The Gospels terminate with the renewed assurance of the immediate fulfillment of the promise of the Holy Ghost, and the ascension of the Lord Jesus. The frui- tion of that promise on the day of Pentecost, and its im- portant consequences, form the subject of the Acts of the Apostles. "With this great event — the descent of the Holy Ghost, to abide with his Church till He shall come again to judge the. world — commences," says Jarvis, "the History of the Christian Church." The author of the first Christian History, which has re- ceived from the transcribers of the Manuscripts the appel- lation of the "Acts of the Apostles," is universally con- ceded to have been St. Luke. The exordium would be conclusive were not the style sufficient evidence of the fact. Luke probably commenced his second work during the two years which he abode at Cesarea, a.d. 59-61. From the final verse, however, it is apparent that he did not publish it until the year 63, or the conclusion of Paul's first imprisonment, which was passed under military ward in "his own hired house" at Rome. It is evident also, from the subsequent portion of Paul's life being omitted, that the publication took place about that time. The last A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 87 Epistle tcr Timothy (chap. iv. 11) refers to Luke as being then at Kome. As this Epistle was written when the old man was "ready to be offered" — perhaps in 68 — the lat- ter part of his life must have been well known to Luke, and would have been embodied in the Acts of the Apos- tles had they not been previously published. The text of the Acts abounds with difficulties, and pre- sents more various readings than that of any other book in the New Testament, except the Eevelation. This is sup- posed to have arisen from the midway position which the Book occupies between the Gospels and Epistles. The transcribers, observing its connection with what preceded and what succeeded it, were doubtless prompted to indulge a spirit of correction, in order to accommodate their ideas of harmony. Notwithstanding the difficulties attending it, an excellent text has been obtained. Three passages con- tained in the Anglican Version may be mentioned as now excluded from a pure text of the original — viz., chapter viii. 37 ; chapter ix. 5, last half — 6, first half; chapter xv. 84. It will be perceived that they are not of material im- portance. For the composition of the Acts of the Apostles the au- thor had various and abundant sources of information. From the Church at Jerusalem he could have obtained accurate accounts of every thing that occurred there. Written documents, containing the speeches of Peter, of Stephen, of James, and of Paul, had doubtless been pre- served, as well as transcripts of letters, and other memo- randa, valuable and interesting to the early Christians. Some of these Luke probably only copied or translated. 88 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. for all the speeches made at Jerusalem must have been in the Hebrew dialect of the day. There are internal evi- dences which sustain such an opinion. The apology of Stephen, though no doubt verified by the "young man" who was consenting unto the death of the first martyr, is so characteristic that it bears evidence to its own genuine- ness. It is neither a composition of St. Paul nor of St. Luke. The speeches of Peter bespeak the ardent disci- ple, who wrapped his fisher's coat about him and cast him- self into the sea, and sfrongly resemble in point of style the epistles which he afterward wrote. The decision of James at the First Council (chap. xv. 14) bears the im- press of the Apostle of works, and the Greeting contained in his circular letter is precisely the same as that contained in his epistle, and evinces that Greek was the language employed. From Philip the Evangelist, who resided at Cesarea, Luke could have learned all that related to his ministry. At Cesarea, also, he might easily have gather- ed the story of Cornelius, and the particulars which dis- tinguish his minute account of Herod Agrippa — so supe- rior in details to that of Josephus. He could likewise have obtained at the same place a copy of the letter of Claudius Lysias to Felix — evidently translated verbally from the original Latin. St. Paul, of course, fully recount- ed to Luke all that took place during their separation, and in some instances, perhaps, reported his very words. The conversion of Saul, beyond all cavil, came from the great actor in that wonderful scene. No one can mistake the hand of the Apostle in the speech on Mars Hill. The dis- course to the Ephesian elders, according to Alford, is a A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 89 " rich store-bouse of phrases and sentiments peculiar to Paul." And the apologies before the Jews, before Felix, before Agrippa, and before Festus, are in the highest de- gree Pauline. Yet it may be admitted that where Luke was present and recorded from memory he may not have reported with absolute verbal accuracy ; but a comparison between Paul's speeches and Paul's epistles removes all question in regard to the authorship of the former. A wide difference exists between St. Luke r s Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles in reference to the part taken by St. Paul in their composition. The former was written by the Evangelist when alone, and bears very little evidence of Paul's hand ; the latter was written under Paul's eye, and indicates clearly that he aided and interested himself in its composition. The narrative part of the Acts, how- ever, strongly resembles Luke's Gospel, and many minor points evince that the work was written by the cultivated and beloved physician. A better guaranty could not be given for accuracy and beauty. Our Saviour having visited the barren fig-tree — the Jew- ish Nation — during three years, and having found no fruit thereon, commanded it to wither. It was already dead at the root, although it continued to exhibit some external signs of life. But the latter were no longer of any avail ; henceforth the Gospel, which had been hid under the law, and confined to the Chosen People, was to be preached to every nation under heaven, and all men were to be com- manded every where to repent. After the ascension of the Lord the Apostles remained quietly at Jerusalem, waiting the promise of the Holy Ghost. No sooner had He de- 90 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. scended than the Christian Church became a living, act- ive, aggressive organization — aggressive against all other forms of religion, against sin in every shape, and witness- ing both to Jew and Gentile, bond and free, that men should turn unto the Lord Jesus, for there was "none other name under heaven given among men whereby they must be saved." A history of the planting of the Church, which ensued upon the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, was the object of Luke in writing the Acts of the Apostles. That planting was commenced by St. Peter on the day of Pentecost, when the Church was reopened to the House of Israel, salvation offered to the Jew, and the barren fig- tree, watered by the precious blood of Christ, was called upon to blossom and bear fruit for the crucified Redeemer. About three thousand, pricked in their hearts by Peter's Pentecostal speech, believed and were baptized. Subse- quently, in Cesarea, at the house of Cornelius, St. Peter opened the Church to the Gentiles, and the Holy Ghost was poured out in confirmation. Thus St. Peter was made the leading agent in carrying Christ and His Church to the Jew first, and afterward to the Gentile, and verified the appellation of the " rock" given to him by his Divine Mas- ter. But it pleased God to raise up a chosen vessel in the person of St. Paul, who should especially preach the Gos- pel unto the Gentile world. The ministry of Paul occu- pies the larger part of the Acts, and need not be described. Of the other Apostles very little is said. A tradition was current among the early Christians that the Apostles had been commanded to remain ten years in Palestine, but no foundation for it can be traced. It is probable, however, A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 91 that they did not immediately separate, for the persecu- tion which followed the martyrdom of Stephen scattered the Church, "except the Apostles." In due time, how- ever, each one addressed himself to the work, and went whither the Spirit carried him, preaching the Lord Jesus, and declaring the glad tidings of salvation which was through His name, and only through His name, promised to those who should believe and be baptized. In regard to their lives and deaths but little has been preserved, but it is generally supposed that the former were passed in un- wearied devotion to the cause, which was finally, except in the case of St. John, sealed by their blood. The Acts of the Apostles comprehends, therefore, the planting of the Church. The following chronological digest is nearly all copied from Alford, and is adapted to assist the reader in the pe- rusal both of the Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles of St. Paul : a.d. 34. — The Ascension (Thursday, May 6), precisely one year after the Transfiguration. Pentecost (Sunday, May 16), the anniversary of the giving of the law on Mount Sinai. Events at Jerusalem, chaps, ii. vi. — Progress of the Faith. a.d. 37. — Martyrdom of Stephen, chap. vii. — Dispersion of the Disciples, chap. vhi. 4. — Philip, and afterward Peter and John, at Samaria — Philip converts the Ethiopian eunuch, and preach- es from Azotus to Cesarea. Conversion or Saul late in the year. a.d. 38. — Peace of the Churches, chap. ix. 31. — Circuit of Peter, chap. ix. 32-43. — He preaches to Cornelius and his Gentile friends at Cesarea, chap. x. 1. — Gives an account of the same to .the Church at Jerusalem, chap. xi. 1. — Saul spends three years in Arabia and Damascus, Gal., i. 15-18. a.d. 40. — First Visit of Saul to Jerusalem. — Meets Barnabas and 92 A HAND-BOOK OP THE NEW TESTAMENT. Peter, chap. ix. 26-29; Gal., i. 18. — Remains fifteen days; then, being in danger of his life, is sent by the brethren to Tar- sus. a.d. 41. — Meantime the Gospel had been preached to Gentiles at Antioch, chap. xi. 19. — Barnabas is sent thither by the Church at Jerusalem — Consequently he was an Apostle. — He rejoices at what had taken place, and fetches Saul from Tarsus. They remain a year at Antioch, chap. xi. 26. — The disciples are first called Christians. — Agabus prophesies a famine : supplies sent to the brethren in Judea by the hands of Barnabas and Saul. a..d. 43. — Second Visit of Saul to Jerusalem. a.d. 44. — Martyrdom of James the Great, brother of John, chap, xii. 2. — Imprisonment (at the Passover) and miraculous escape of Peter. — Death of Herod Agrippa at Cesarea. a.d. 45. — First Missionary Journey of Barnabas and Saul (Paul) to Cyprus and Asia Minor, chaps, xiii. and xiv. a.d. 46. — This journey hardly occupies more than a year. A..D. 47. — They return to Antioch in 47 or 48, and remain some time there. a.d. 48. — Dispute respecting circumcision, chap. xv. 1. — Paul and Barnabas go up to Jerusalem on the matter. a.d. 50. — Third Visit of Paul to Jerusalem, chap. xv. 2, 3; Gal., ii. 1 — fourteen years inclusive from Paul's conversion*. They return and tarry at Antioch, teaching and preaching, chap. xv. 35. — Interview between Paul and Peter, Gal., ii. 11. — Dispute and separation between Paul and Barnabas, chap. xv. 39. a.d. 51. — Second Missionary Journey of Paul with Silas, chap. xv. 40 ; also Timothy, chap. xvi. 1-4. — They visit the churches, de- liver the decrees of the First Council, and go through Phrygia and Galatia. — Paul sick, Gal., iv. 13, 14. — They are forbidden by the Holy Ghost to preach in Asia,* chap. xvi. 6, and Bi- thynia, 7. They pass by Mysia and go to Troas. Macedonian Call. — Luke joins Paul, perhaps as a physician. — They arrive at Philippi. — Luke remains at Philippi. — Paul visits Amphipolis, Apollonia, Thessalonica, and Berea, where he leaves Timothy and Silas. He goes to Athens, probably by sea. He remains there alone, and sends a message to Silas and * The Boman Province of Asia here referred to includes only Mysia, Lydia, and Caria. Cf. Acts, ii. 9. A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 93 Timotheus to coine to him. Preaches in Athens. — He goes to Corinth, where he remains a year and a half, chap, xviii. 11. First and Second Epi 'sties to the Thessalonians written. Paul sails for the Pentecost at Jerusalem. He stops at Ephesus. a.d. 54. — Fourth Visit of Paul to Jerusalem via Cesarea, chap, xviii. 22. — He returns to Antioch, whence he traveled through the "upper coasts and came to Ephesus." Meanwhile Apollos is preaching at Corinth, chap. xix. 1. Paul remains three years at Ephesus, chap. xx. 31 — until Pentecost, 57. (Epistle to the Galatians ?) An unrecorded visit to Corinth Alford supposes to have oc- curred during Paul's three years' residence at Ephesus. On his return the Apostle must have written a brief letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor., v. 9), which has been lost, a.d. 57. — First Epistle to the Corinthians written about Easter. — About Pentecost, after the tumult (chap. xix. 23), Paul jour- neys to Macedonia (chap. xx. 1 ; 2 Cor., ii. 12, 13), where he writes the (2 Cor., ix. 2) Second Epistle to the Corinthians. After he had gone over those parts which included Illyricum* (Rom., xv. 19), he came to Greece. There he winters, chap. xx. 2. a.d. 58. — Epistle to the Romans written from Corinth. Rom., xvi. 1, 23. (Epistle to the Galatians ?) In the spring Paul sets out by land for Jerusalem — spends Easter at Philippi — is rejoined by Luke. — They sail April 5, touch at Troas, Miletus, Patara, Tyre, Ptolemais, and arrive at Cesarea, where they find Philip. Fifth Visit of Paul to Jerusalem, a few days before Pente- cost, chap. xx. 1 ; xxi. 1G. Cf. xx. 16. He is seized by the Asiatic Jews in the Temple, brought before Ananias and the * From the expression used in Rom., xv. 19 it is questionable whether the Apostle went into Illyricum or only to the boundary of it. But if he had not preached in Illyricum, would he have alluded to it at all ? Besides, Dalmatia, the Southern District of Illyricum — the place which Titus went to (2 Tim., iv. 10) — is probably the country referred to. The region of Illyricum lay upon the north- western frontier of Macedonia, and, according to the Apostle's con- temporary, Tacitus, included within its extensive limits Dalmatia, Panonia, and Moesia. 94 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Sanhedrim, rescued by the Tribune Lysias from the plots of the Jews, and sent to Cesarea and to Felix, where he is accused by Ananias and the Sanhedrim, and kept in prison by Felix, chap. xxi. 27 ; xxiii. 25. a.d. 59. — Paul in prison at Cesarea. a.d. 60. — Porcius Festus supersedes Felix. Paul being accused be- fore Festus by the Jews, and in danger of being taken to be tried at Jerusalem, he appeals to Caesar, chap. xxv. — is heard before Agrippa and Festus — and sent off by sea to Rome late in the autumn. He is shipwrecked at Malta, where he winters. a.d. 61. — Paul arrives in Rome (in February), and, being kept in military custody, dwells and preaches two years in his own hired house. a.d. 63. — At the end of this time, probably, the publication of the Acts takes place, and all beyond is tradition or conjecture. Epistles to the JEphesians, Colossians, Philemon, and perhaps Philippians, written probably during the two years' imprison- ment, from 61 to 63, at Rome. The Book of the Acts of the Apostles terminates at this point. The residue of St. Paul's life and ministry will be ajluded to elsewhere. To facilitate the reader, a list of the Apostles is added, and a portion of the genealogy of the Herods referred to in the Gospels and Acts. LIST OF THE APOSTLES. See Matthew, x. 2 ; Mark, iii. 16 ; Luke, vi. 14 ; Acts, i. 13. 1. Andrew. John, i. 40. 2. Simon Peter. 3. James, son of Zebedee. 4. John, son of Zebedee. 5. Philip. John, i. 43. 6. Bartholomew or Nathanael. John, i. 45. 7. Matthew or Levi, son of Alpheus. Luke, v. 27. 8. James, son of Alpheus. 9. Jude, son of Alpheus, Thaddeus, or Lebbeus. 10. Thomas, or Didymus. A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 95 11. Simon Zelotes, or the Canaanite. 12. Judas Iscariot. Matthias numbered with the eleven. Acts, i. 26. James, the brother of the Lord. Acts, xii. 17; xv. 13 ; xxi. 18. 1 Cor., xv. 7. Gal., i. 19 ; ii. 9, 12. Paul. Barnabas. Acts, iv. 36 ; xi. 22. PART OF THE HEROD GENEALOGY. Herod the Great. Matt., ii. 1. Herod married ten wives. We subjoin the names of four: 2. Marianme. | 5. Mariamne, j 6. Malthace. | 7. Cleopatra. | l ' i | Herod Agrippa. | Herodias. [ | Herod Philip, | | Archilaus. | Herod Antipas. | | Philip | Acts, xii. 1; Matth., deserted by Matth., Matth. xiv. married xx. 20. xiv. Herodias. ii. 22. Salome the dan- cer. I | King Agrippa. | Berenice. | Drusilla, | Acts, xxv. wife of Felix. CHAPTER XIV, ST. PAUL. THE EPISTLES. STYLE OF ST. PAUL. St. Paul was a Jew of Tarsus. With reference to the descendants of Abraham three appellations, quite different in their acceptation, are employed in the New Testament. A Hebrew is one born of Hebrew parents, and whose na- tive tongue is Hebrew. A Grecian, or Hellenist, is one born of Hebrew parents, but whose native tongue is Greek. Jew is the national distinction as opposed to Gentile, Is- raelite is the theocratic name, and involves the highest privilege of the chosen people — the knowledge of the true God. St. Paul "was not a Grecian, but he combined in himself the other three terms, or was, as he styled it, a Hebrew of the Hebrews. He was also a Roman citi- zen ; neither libertus, a freed-man, nor libertinus, son of a . freed-man ; but ingenuus, free-born of free-born parentage. Whence he obtained this right of citizenship is a matter of conjecture. No satisfactory conclusion has been reached in regard to it. Only the fact, therefore, is known. Pre- viously to his conversion he was called Saul. After he left Antioch on his first missionary journey he was called Paul. Some have supposed that he took the name from Sergius Paulus, the Roman Deputy whom he converted at Paphos (Acts, xiii. 6-12), but there is no ground for the supposition. He either had two names — a custom very A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 97 common among the Jews as well as the Gentiles — or, what is more likely, Paul is the Grecian form of the Hebrew Saul. Tarsus, the birth-place of Paul, was a city of Cilicia, situated upon the Cydnus. The latter is celebrated for having nearly caused the death of Alexander, on his first expedition, by the coldness of its waters, the purity of . which had induced the youthful monarch unwarily to plunge in. It was also the scene, in later years, of that display of Oriental magnificence exhibited by Cleopatra to win the heart of Antony, and which has been rendered famous by the descriptions of Shakspeare* and Dry den. Tarsus vied with Athens, Alexandria, and Corinth in lit- erature and luxury. It was a Grecian city in an Asiatic atmosphere. Its gymnasia abounded with scholars, and its academies and groves with genius and learning. Art, intellect, cultivation, and refinement lent their aid to ren- der the place attractive. It was no "mean city" of which St. Paul boasted himself a citizen. In this abode of learning the Apostle acquired that knowledge of Greek literature and philosophy which he subsequently displayed to so much advantage, and which peculiarly fitted him to be a chosen vessel to the Gentiles. After his education had been completed at Tarsus he re- moved to Jerusalem, where he became the pupil of Gama- liel. The Jewish Doctors were divided at that time into two sects— the Sadducees and the Pharisees. The former were cold and heartless moralists, the latter legal formal- ists* Gamaliel was a leading Pharisee, and the cousin of * Antony and Cleopatra, Act II., Scene 2. G 9o A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Nicodemus (John, iii. 1 ; vii. 50 ; xix. 39). According to tradition Simeon, who blessed the infant Jesus in the tem- ple (Luke, ii. 5), the son of the Great Rabbin Hillel, was the father of Gamaliel. Paul could therefore claim to have been " taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers," without fear of contradiction, and de- mand the sympathies of the sect of the Pharisees. During his residence at Jerusalem he became a zealous exponent of the law, and an efficient instrument in the hands of the Chief-Priest for the persecution of the hated Nazarenes. As every male was obliged by the law to present himself three times in the year before the Lord — in the feast of un- leavened bread (the Passover), and in the feast of weeks (Pentecost), and in the feast of tabernacles (Deut., xvi. 16) — it would seem reasonable to infer that Paul must have seen the Lord Jesus at one of those feasts. Jarvis is con- fident of it, and asserts that Paul recognized Jesus when He appeared to him in the w r ay to Damascus. Alford, however, is of opinion that Paul then saw the Lord for the first time. That he did see Him is evident from 1 Cor., ix. 1 ; but whether he saw Him in the flesh or only in visions is uncertain. The first allusion made to Paul in the New Testament is contained in Acts, vii. 58, where it is said that the wit- nesses to the death of Stephen laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man whose name was Saul. His sub- sequent career, to the year 53, is already familiar to the reader from the narrative contained in the Acts. But as it is almost certain that the Apostle's death did not take place until 68, four or five years more remain to be ac- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 99 counted for. Davidson makes but one imprisonment, which only terminated with the life of St. Paul. Others maintain, and with strong reason, two, with an interven- ing period in which the Apostle traveled in various quar- ters. From Phil., i. 27 ; ii. 24, and Philem., 22, written prior to the year 63, or in the early part of that year, it may be confidently assumed that St. Paul expected a speedy release "from the soldier that kept him/' and in- tended in the event thereof to revisit the brethren in ev- ery city where he had preached the Word, and see how they were. That liberation probably took place in the spring of 63, at the end of the two years referred to in the conclusion of the Acts. Alford supposes the Apostle then " to have journeyed Eastward, visiting Philippi, which lay on the great Egnatian road to the East, passing into Asia. There, in accordance with his former desires and inten- tions, he would give Colosse, and Laodicea, and Hierapo- lis the benefit of his apostolic counsel, and confirm his brethren in the faith. And there, perhaps, as before, he would fix his head-quarters at Ephesus." He may not have spent much time there, in consequence of the recol- lection of events (Acts, xix.) which had previously com- pelled him to withdraw from that city; "but that he did visit Ephesus must be assumed, notwithstanding his confi- dent anticipation, expressed in Acts, xx. 25, that he should never see it again. It was not the first time (cf. 2 Cor., v. 4, 5, with Phil., i. 23) that such anticipations had been modified by the event." Supposing the Apostle not to have remained long at Ephesus at this time, he may have fulfilled his old intention (Rom., xv. 24, 28) of going to 100 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Spain, as stated by Jerome and Theodoret, and may like- wise have " preached the Gospel in the Western parts (Briton)," and " brought salvation to the islands that lie in the ocean." There is no evidence of it, however, be- yond tradition. But, wherever he went, he returned again to Ephesus, where he left Timothy (1 Tim., i. 3) and pro- ceeded to Macedonia. Thence he went with Titus to Crete. Having placed the latter in charge over the Church in that island, he came back to Ephesus. . u We may venture," says Alford, " to trace out this last journey as having been from Crete by Miletus, Ephesus, Troas to Corinth, and thence to Nicopolis of Epirus, where he had determined to winter. Titus, iii. 12." Mr. Connybeare supposes that, being a leader of the Christians, he was arrested at Nicop- olis — a Roman colony — for supposed participation in the fire of 64, which was charged upon the Christians, and se*it to Rome for trial. Arrived thither, he was incarcer- ated in the Tullium, subsequently called the Mamertine — the only State Prison at Rome. A fearful description of the Tullium has been given by Sallust ; but his description applies only to that portion — the condemned cell — which was technically called the Tullium, from having been con- structed by Servius Tullius. The whole edifice, which had been greatly enlarged since the days of Servius, also bore the appellation of the Tullium. In some part of that prison St. Paul was closely confined. Onesiphorus (2 Tim., i. 16) was no longer there to seek him out and refresh him. Of his old companions in toil only Luke was with him. Doubtless Linus, Eubulus, Pudens, and Claudia minister- ed to his necessities as far as circumstances would permit. A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 101 But he wished to see his "beloved son," and, thoughtful to the last for the cause of his Master, he wanted " the parchments" (2 Tim., iv. 13) and Mark, because he was profitable to him for the ministry. 2 Tim., iv. 11. Thus situated the aged Apostle wrote his last Epistle to Timo- thy, urging him to use " diligence to come quickly"' (chap, iv.), and bring Mark. He evidently expected to live to see them. The result is unknown. One hearing had taken place ; probably Nero was absent, in Greece, at the time. The second terminated in his condemnation. He was executed late in 67 or early in 68, most likely the lat- ter. According to the constant voice of tradition, he es- caped the cross by virtue- of his Roman citizenship, and was put to death with the sword. Thus perished St. Paul. The church outside the walls of Rome, which now bears his name, is said to mark the spot where he suffered, and an old legend declares that the three fountains which gush forth hard by sprang originally from three drops of the Apostle's blood. Tradition represents St. Paul to have been small and unattractive in person. His " eyebrows were contracted and overhanging," and it is probable that he never recov- ered his sight as before he gazed upon the " light above the brightness of the sun" (Acts, xxvi. 13). Allusions are made (Acts, xiii. 9 ; xxiii. 1 ; 2 Cor., xii. 7, 9 ; Gal., iv. 13, 15; vi. 11) to a weakness of the eyes; and that in- firmity, Alford thinks, may have been the " thorn in the flesh*' referred to in 2 Cor., xii. 7. "The scoffing Lucian calls him," says Jarvis, " ' The bald-browed Galilean, who went through the air to the third heaven' (2 Cor., xii. 102 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 2-5), and he speaks of himself as 'rude in speech' (2 Cor., xii. 6), and of his enemies at Corinth saying that his 'bodily presence was weak and his speech contemptible' (2 Cor., x.). Consummately learned, he wanted nothing but a majestic exterior and a graceful and pleasing elocu- tion. These are qualities which the world greatly admires ; and perhaps for that reason they were denied him, as in- compatible with the designs of divine wisdom, and lest the 'cross of Christ should be made of none effect' (1 Cor., i. 17)." In the previous chapter it was stated that the Acts contained the history of the planting of the Church by the Apostles. The Epistles open an entirely different field: they record, as far as it has been recorded, the training of the Church. It was of course impossible for the Apostle, the account of whose ministry has been most largely pre- served, and who perhaps did more than any other to spread the knowledge of the Lord, to be every where. After he had planted a church he appointed an overseer of it, and charged him how to walk. Then he continued his mis- sionary course to other cities. Doubtless he revisited the brethren as often as circumstances would permit, and it seems that the "care of the churches" was ever on his mind. To those, however, whom he was prevented from seeing in person he addressed epistles as opportunity of- fered and occasion demanded, either for the purpose of re- sponding to letters and messages which had been addressed to him, or to admonish and advise, that they might be comforted and strengthened during his absence. But as A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 103 soon as the churches were left alone the influence of Juda- ism, of Greek philosophy, and of Asiatic mysticism, fos- tered by the great enemy of Christ, caused heresies to spring up, corrupting the very fountains of religious life, and tending to subvert the faith itself. Individual jeal- ousies, petty divisions, and violations of good morals fol- lowed of course. Thus the churches needed the sound mind and firm hand of their founder to guide them in the path which he had marked out for their feet to walk in. To correct such influences, to repress whatever error had taken a definite form, to heal divisions and promote the harmony and prosperity of the churches, was the object of St. Paul in writing his Epistles. It has been asked why the Apostle was not more full and exact in his training and instruction ; in a word, why he did not define the Church in every particular, and so elaborate its form and doctrine that neither could be open to discussion. Had an epitome of the faith been left by an inspired teacher of the Word, there can be little doubt that the rest of the New Testament would have passed into desuetude; and men, contented with a bare knowledge of the epitome, would have lost the beneficial influence of the Gospel as a whole ;* for though only four books are technically called Gospels, yet the whole New Testament is the Gospel. Besides, the Apostle had done that orally and distinctly in each case of the planting of a church, and he did not intend to write complete treatises upon faith, order, and doctrine. He did not intend to define every thing. He wrote with the rea- sonable* presumption that the main features of the Church * Whatelv. 104 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. were known. Certainly he had run in vain if they were not. He wrote to the brethren who had the church, to put them in mind, and to urge them to the performance of every duty which that possession involved. He thanked them for every remembrance of himself; he reproved them for their faults ; he warned them of the consequences of sin ; he admonished them in regard to the present ; he counseled them with respect to the future ; he comforted them under every affliction ; he gave them his earnest prayers and his blessing ; he was in all things an example unto them, and omitted nothing that was incident to the office of a faithful Apostle, an affectionate Father of the Church, and a true servant of the Lord. He did not, how- ever, write either essays or histories, but letters, and as such they were subject to all the exigencies and pecul- iarities of correspondence. "Whoever," says Wetstein, " Writes a history for those who are unacquainted with the matter should narrate every thing simply and clearly; but an epistle is a colloquy with an absent friend, who performs his part in it." Much therefore is always understood, and much mutual knowledge is always presumed. The remark of "Wetstein is true of all the epistles which the Apostles addressed either to individuals or to. church- es. Each epistle was written on a particular occasion, and for a specific purpose. Each writer confined himself to those points which he then deemed of most importance to enforce, and passed over or merely alluded to the rest. It must be remembered, also, that the Apostles always wrote to Christians. They preached that men should re- pent and turn unto the Lord, but they wrote to those who A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 105 were baptized and had thus put on Christ, and were obli- gated to continue in the Apostles' doctrine and fellowship. The Epistles are not narrative papers, but official writings of the Apostles, for the government, the admonition, and the strengthening of the churches. They must not, how- ever, be separated from the Gospels and Acts, for they often explain them, and are of equal authority, while all unite to herald forth to the world the salvation which is offered through Jesus Christ. St. Paul's Epistles are divided into two classes : the Epistles to the Churches, and the Pastoral Epistles. The latter were later written, and differ somewhat in style from the former. A late attempt has been made, on that account, to question their genuineness and authenticity, but it has proved unavailing. " They seem," says Alford, who has analyzed the whole question completely, " to have been from the earliest times known and continuously quoted in the Church." They are included in the Peschito, and all the early Fathers recognize them. "Among the Gnos- tic heretics" — who principally flourished in the second century, though Gnostic is sometimes used as a generic term for all Eastern heresy — " they did not, however, meet with such universal acceptance." But "from their time to the beginning of the present century the authenticity of the Pastoral Epistles remained unquestioned." Eich- horn, De Wette, and Baur may be mentioned as their strongest impugners. They have not in the least affected their authenticity, and the question now is reduced to a "negation of their genuineness or Pauline origin." But " external testimony," says Alford, after full consideration, 106 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. " is so satisfactory in favor of the genuineness of the Pas- toral Epistles as to suggest no doubt on the point of their universal reception in the earliest times. Objections on internal grounds are not adequate to raise a doubt of their genuineness in any fair-judging mind." They may, there- fore, be accepted as genuine and authentic, and placed upon the footing of the other canonical books without fear of refutation. Indeed, it is waste time to assail the canon at the present day, and the failure of every fresh attack shows it. Although St. Paul received his first education at Tar- sus, and was undoubtedly trained in the Greek literature and language, it is perfectly evident that his mother tongue was the Hebrew dialect of the day. His language is He- braistic ; much more so than might have been expected in one thus educated. For, even if provincial Greek had been spoken at Tarsus, St. Paul must have been familiar with the Athenian writers. But his mind was not He- braic ; it had received the ineffaceable impress of the Greek logicians. The contrast between St. John and St. Paul is illustrative of this. " The intelligent reader," says Alford, " must be carrying on an undercurrent of thought, or the connection in St. John will not be perceived. The Epis- tles of Paul, in which while external marks of Hebrew diction abound, there is yet an internal conformation of style and connection of thought more characteristic of the Greek mind : they are written more in periods, and ac- cording to dialectic form." St. Paul's style is greatly in- fluenced by the weight and importance of his subject. It is characterized by a disregard of all rhetorical trammels, A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 107 and the entire subjection of manner to matter. Hemster- husius observes that " the Epistles of St. Paul are free from oratorical art, and seem to have been written under an almost celestial excitement of mind." The writer is full of matter, and rushes into his subject with ardor. ITence his style is frequently involved and parenthetic, sometimes fraught with antithesis, and now and then in- tensely vehement. Longinus places Paul among the lead- ing orators of antiquity; and Jerome remarks that his " words are thunder - bolts." "Power, fullness, and warmth" according to Tholuck, distinguish Paul as a man, and characterize him as an author — a proof that the indi- vidual training, cast of thought, and attainments of an apostle were not obliterated by his office, but admirably adapted to the work for which he had been selected. The Epistles of St. Paul, says Chrysostom, " are an adamantine wall to the Church throughout the w r orld, and stand forth as a leader in the midst, casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.*' CHAPTER XV. EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS. The Epistle to the Romans was written by St. Paul at Corinth, during the winter of the year 58, and forwarded, the following spring, through Phebe, a deaconess of the Church at Cenchrea. The planting of the Church at Rome has not been re- corded. History is singularly silent in regard to so inter- esting a subject. Romans, however, were' among those who listened to the voice of the Spirit on the day of Pen- . tecost ; and some of those Christians who were scattered abroad upon the martyrdom of Stephen, a.d. 51, may have gone as far as Rome. From chapter xv. 20 it must be gathered that the Church at Rome was not planted by an Apostle, and that, however early its origin, it was not the work of any one minister of the Gospel. " The history of the Roman community," says Milman, " is most remark- able. It grew up in silence, founded by some unknown teachers, probably those who were present in Jerusalem at the first*]Dublication of Christianity by the Apostles." With respect, however, to the origin of the Roman Church no- thing certain can be predicated. In all probability it was cradled among the Jewish inhabitants of Rome. Both Horace and Josephus allude to the existence of the latter in the time of Augustus, and Philo mentions that a region A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 109 beyond the Tiber was set apart to the Jews for the freer exercise of their religion. During the reign of Claudius disturbances among them reached to such an extent that they were expelled from the city. Christianity is thought by some to have been the cause of the dissensions referred to. But it is by no means certain. Among those ban- ished were Aquila and Priscilla (Acts, xviii. 2), who went to Corinth, and were there converted by St. Paul during his first visit to that city. Subsequently they accompa- nied the Apostle to Ephesus, where they probably re- mained until the edict of Claudius was repealed or had fallen into desuetude, when they returned to Eome. Although the Church at Rome* originated among the Jews, it soon drew many of the Gentiles within its fold — especially those who had removed from the East, where Christianity was better known, and had more adherents. From St. Paul's salutations it is evident that there were at Eome some who had been in Christ before himself, and others who had been converted through his agency. The latter undoubtedly exerted an important influence in the development of the Gospel among the Romans, and there- fore Paul could lay claim to being a " proximate founder" of the Roman Church. Of this Church, therefore, whose faith was spoken of throughout the world (chap. i. 8), which contained so many of his friends and companions, and of which tidings had been frequently conveyed to him in the course of his travels, "though not his own imme- diate offspring in the faith, Paul takes charge," says Al- * In regard to the Church at Rome see further in the chapter on the Epistle to the Hebrews. 110 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. ford, "as being the Apostle of the Gentiles. He longs to impart to the Roman brethren some spiritual gift (chap. i. 11): he excuses his having written to them more boldly in some sort (chap. xv. 15) by the dignity of that office, in which as a priest he was to offer the Gentiles an accepta- ble and sanctified offering to God." It may seem singular that an Epistle to the Romans was not written in Latin. It is not certain, however, that St. Paul was acquainted with the language. It would not necessarily have formed part of his education, and the cir- cumstances of his life may not have required him to ob- tain a knowledge of it. He did not make his apologies before Felix and Festus in Latin, nor make his first ad- dress to the Roman Jews in that language. Yet it can hardly be supposed that he was ignorant of it. And even had he been so, he could certainly have obtained at Cor- inth the services of an amanuensis who could write for him in Latin had he deemed it necessary. Being aware, perhaps, that most of his Christian friends at Rome were either Greeks or Hellenists, and that a large portion of the humbler members of the Church had come from the East, and were therefore familiar with Greek, he doubt- less considered that language as best suited to the occa- sion. Besides, it was the language which he always wrote in, and therefore the most convenient ; and, if necessary, his Epistle could easily be translated for the benefit of the Italians. It need not excite surprise, then, that the Epis- tle to the Romans was written in Greek. At the time the Apostle wrote, Nero, the last Roman emperor in whose veins flowed the blood of Cresar, was on A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Ill the throne. Of his character it is unnecessary to speak. It is familiar to all. The Julian line had been founded by the greatest man of antiquity ; it now terminated with the worst. History fails to furnish a parallel for either. Eome at that period was the metropolis of the world. It was not then, however, the splendid city which it after- ward became. Augustus was in the habit of saying : " I found Rome of brick; I shall leave it of marble." It is true, he did make considerable effort to embellish the city, but at his death little progress in improvement in building had been realized. The structures were generally mean, and wood predominated in them even over brick. In- deed, owing to the mixture of materials, the city, as De Quincey remarks, must have presented a rather "grotesque'* appearance. At that time the Baths, the Triumphal Arch- es, and the Colosseum were not in existence.* It was not until after the great fire, which occurred a.d. 64, and last- ed nine days, destroying nearly every memorial of former glory, that Eome arose in marble splendor to weary the eye with its magnificence. But Eome was the metropolis of the world ; she exer- cised universal sway, and contained a large and varied population derived from every quarter of the empire. In the midst of this vast city the Gospel was preached, and * The commencement of the age of Roman luxury is generally dated from the year 148 B.C., when the fall of Carthage and Cor- inth elevated the power of the Republic to a conspicuous height. Yet more than fifty years afterward no marble columns had been in- troduced into any public buildings, and the example of employing them «as decorations to private houses was set by Crassus in the first century B.C. {Buck's Ancient Ruins.} 112 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. the Church of Christ silently grew up until its importance was such that the story of its faith reached the brethren throughout the world. The Roman Christians were no insignificant body. A few years later they were charged with having set fire to the city — a charge which would not have been made had they been few in numbers and of lit- tle estimation. Personally connected as St. Paul was with some of them, related also through his office as Apostle of the Gentiles, and feeling a deep interest in their prosperity and welfare, he was especially induced, upon learning their state, to address them an epistle. "The occasion of writing an epistle is one thing" says Alford, " the great object of the epistle itself another. The ill-adjusted questions between the Jewish and Gentile be- lievers, of which St. Paul had doubtless heard from Rome, may have prompted him originally to write to them : but when this resolve was once formed, the importance of .Rome as the centre of the Gentile world would naturally lead him to lay forth in this more than in any other Epis- tle the statement of the Divine dealings with regard to the Jew and Gentile, now one in Christ." With a view to settle the difficulties which had arisen among the brethren at Rome, and which had been called to the attention of the Apostle, he had determined to visit them, knowing that his presence would be effectual (chap- ter i. 10-13). Circumstances, however, prevented him from carrying his purpose into effect. He therefore sent them by letter the counsel and advice which he was unable to offer in person, intending, at the same time, to see them on his journey to Spain (chapter xv. 24). A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 113 "The contents of that letter," continues Alford, "plain- ly show what their difficulties were. Mixed as the Church was of Jew and Gentile, the relative position in God's fa- vor of each of these w r ould, in defect of solid and broad views of the universality of man's guilt and God's grace, furnish a subject of continual jealousy and irritation. And if we assume that the Gentile believers much preponder- ated in numbers, we shall readily infer that the religious scruples of th.e Jews as to times and meats would be likely to be with too little consideration overborne." " From such circumstances we may w r ell conceive that, under divine guidance, the present form of the Epistle was suggested to the Apostfe. The main security for a proper estimate being formed of both Jew and Gentile would be the possession of right and adequate convictions of the universality of man's guilt and God's free justifying grace. This accordingly it was Paul's great object to furnish; and on it he expends by far the greatest portion of his labor and space. But while so doing w r e may trace his continued anxiety to steer his way cautiously among the strong feelings and prejudices which beset the path on either hand. If by a vivid description of heathendom he might be likely to minister to the pride of the Jew, he forthwith turns to him and abases him before God equally with the others. But when this is accomplished, lest he should seem to have lost sight of the pre-eminence of God's chosen people, and to have exposed the privileges of the Jew to the slight of the Gentile, he enumerates those priv- ileges, and dwells upon the true nature of that pre-emi- nence. Again, when the great argument is brought to a H 114 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. close, in chapter viii., by the completion of the bringing in of life by Christ Jesus, and the absolute union in time and after time of every believer with Him — for fear he should seem amidst the glories of redemption to have for- gotten his own people, now as a nation rejected, he devotes three weighty chapters to an earnest and affectionate con- sideration of their case — to a deprecation of all triumph over them on the part of the Gentile, and a clear setting forth of the real mutual position of the two great classes of his readers. Then, after binding them all together again, in chapters xii. xiii., by precepts respecting Chris- tian life, conduct toward their civil superiors, and mutu- al love, he proceeds, in chapter xiv., to adjust those pe- culiar matters of doubt — now rendered comparatively easy after the settlement of the great principle involving them — respecting which they were divided. He recommends forbearance toward the weak and scrupulous, at the same time , classing himself among the strong, and manifestly implying on which side his own apostolic judgment lay. Having done this, he again places before them their mu- tual position as co-heirs of the divine promises and mercy (chapter xv. 1-13), and concludes the Epistle with matters of personal import to himself and them, and with saluta- tions in the Lord. And probably on re-perusing his work, either at the time, or, as the altered style seems to import, in after years at Rome, he subjoins the fervid and charac- teristic doxology with which it closes." The genuineness of the last chapter of this Epistle, and especially of the doxology with which it closes, has been questioned. St. Paul probably finished his work with the I A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 115 fifteenth chapter, and then laid it away until a conven- ient opportunity should offer for its transmission to Rome. Upon finding that Phebe of Cenchrea was about to re- move thither he added another chapter, and forwarded the whole by her. Perhaps the doxology, as above suggested, was affixed a few years later at Rome. The genuineness, however, of the whole chapter must be admitted by every candid critic. St. Paul's style has already been alluded to. In this Epistle the parenthetic feature of it is particularly promi- nent. " The peculiarity of the Apostle's parenthesis con- sists," says Alford, "in this, that owing to the fervency and rapidity of his composition he frequently deserts, in a clause apparently intended to be parenthetical, the con- struction of the main sentence, and instead of resuming it again, proceeds with the parenthesis as if it were the main sentence/' Examples of all St. Paul's characteristics . have been pointed out in this Epistle, especially in the fifth chapter, where they are said to " culminate." These peculiarities, joined to the abstruseness of the subject, render it by no means easy even to the scholar ; while the English reader, confused by the " lax renderings of the Anglican Version," finds the greatest difficulty in apprehending it. It is cer- tainly one of the most profound, and some regard it as the most profound, of the Epistles of St. Paul. In none is the subject treated so thoroughly and logically worked out, and in none is the wonderful intellectual power of the Apostle so fulry displayed. In view of this, "some critics," says Alford, "have sup- 116 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. posed that an elaborate plan of written doctrinal teach- ing, to supply the want of oral, was present to the mind of the Apostle; but," he adds, " there seems quite enough in the circumstances of the Boinan Church to have led naturally to such an Epistle" without the supposition. " We must not forget," he continues, " to whom he was writing, nor fail to allow for the greater importance natur- ally attaching to an Epistle which would be the cherished possession and exemplar of the greatest of the Gentile churches. It was an Epistle to all Gentiles, from the Apostle of the Gentiles : For I speak to you Gentiles, in- asmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office (chapter xi. 13). It had for its end the settle- ment, on the broad principles of God's truth and love, of the mutual relations and union in Christ of God's ancient people and the recently engrafted world. What wonder, then, if it be found to contain an exposition of man's un- worthiness and God's redeeming love, such as not even Holy Scripture itself elsewhere furnishes ?" To facilitate the reader in obtaining an insight into the argument contained in the Epistle to the Romans — a knowledge of which is necessary to a due comprehension of the theology of the New Testament— an analysis of the Epistle, compiled from the notes of Alford, is subjoined. The language employed is almost entirely Alford's, or abridged from his notes. First. The grand subject of the Epistle is, the Gospel the power of God tfnto salvation (chapter i. 16). Justifi- cation by faith is only a subordinate part of the great theme — only the condition necessitated by man's sinfulness A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 117 for his entering the state of salvation ; whereas St. Paul's argument extends beyond this, to the death unto sin, and life unto God, and carrying forward of the sanctifying work of the Spirit from its first fruits even to its completion. Second. The Gospel is the power of God to salvation to the believer, because in it God's righteousness is unfolded — not the righteousness of God, which is His attribute, but God's righteousness — the righteousness which flows from and is acceptable to Him. Third. Man having no righteousness of his own, and it being impossible for him to obtain any — there being none even in the law* — that will avail before God (Gal., ii. 1C), is, by the imputation of God's righteousness, declared (not made) righteous — i. unnatural, again, that he should send greeting from Christian Jews so widely scat- tered, thereby depriving the salutation of all reality. If neither in Rome nor Italy, what reason can be suggested for his sending an especial salutation to Jews in Palestine from some present with him who happened to be from Italy 1 ? "Again, the historical notices in our Epistle do not fit the hypothesis in question. The great notice of chapter u. 3 would be strictly true of any church rather than that A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 217 of Jerusalem. Another notice (chap. vi. 10) would be less applicable to the churches of Jerusalem and Palestine than to any others. "Again, if the Epistle were addressed to the Church at Jerusalem, it seems strange that no allusion should be made in it to the fact that our Lord Himself had lived and taught among them in the flesh, had before their eyes suf- fered death on the Cross, had found among them the first witnesses of His Resurrection and Ascension." Can it then be reasonably believed that the Epistle was addressed to the Church at Jerusalem ? Not to the Church at Corinth. For, though Apollos labored long and effectively in that Church, yet it could not have embraced a sufficient number of Jews or Hellen- ists to have induced even him to write such an Epistle.* Not to the Church at Alexandria. For, though there were the greatest number of resident Jews next to Jeru- salem, and there was another temple (at Leontopolis), and from thence the Epistle appears first to have come forth to the knowledge of the Church — an Epistle too Alexandrine in language and style — yet the Alexandrine writers make no allusion to its having been written to them. Besides, no reason can be assigned for the salutation, and no such relation of Timotheus to the readers as is supposed in chap- ter xiii. 23 can be imagined.* Was it addressed to the Church at Koine ? The following are some of Alford's reasons for answer- ing the question in the affirmative : " 1. The fact of the Church at Eome being just such a * See A (ford. 218 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. one, in its origin and composition, as this Epistle seems to presuppose ; that is, a Church not consisting exclusively of Judeo-Christians, but one in which Jewish believers formed a considerable portion — the primary stock and nu- cleus. Now this seems to have been the case at Rome, from the indications furnished in the Epistle to the Ro- mans. ' The Jew first, and also the Gentile' (Rom., ii. 9, 10), is a note frequently struck in that Epistle ; and the Church at Rome seems to be the only one of those with which St. Paul had been concerned which would entirely answer to such a description. "2. The great key to the present question, the historic- al notice (chap. ii. 3), fits exceedingly well the circum- stances of the Church at Rome. That Church had arisen not from the preaching of any Apostle among them, but from a confluence of primitive believers, the first having arrived there probably not long after the Lord's Ascen- sion : see Acts, ii. 10. In Rom., i. 8, written, in all prob- ability, in the year 58 a.d., St. Paul states, ; Your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world;' and in xvi. 19, ' Your obedience is come abroad unto all.' And in Rom., xvi. 7 we find a salutation to Andronicus and Junia, Jews ' who are of note among the Apostles,* who also were in * Rom., xvi. 7. — "Two renderings are given to this passage: (1) 'of note among the Apostles' — i. e., so that they themselves are counted among the Apostles ; or (2) * noted among the Apostles' — i. e., well known and spoken of by the Apostles. I may remark that for Paul to speak of any persons as celebrated among the Apostles in sense (2) would imply that he had more frequent intercourse with the other Apostles than we know he had, and besides would be im- probable on any supposition. The whole question seems to have A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 219 Christ before me.' So that here we have a Church, the only one of all those with which St. Paul and his compan- ions were concerned, of which it could be said that the Gospel ' was confirmed unto us by them that heard Him :' the Apostle himself not having arrived there till long after such ' confirmation' had taken place. " 3. It was in Rome, and Rome principally, that Juda- istic Christianity took its further development and forms ^)f error ; it was there, not in Jerusalem and Palestine, that at this time the 'divers and strange doctrines,' against which the readers are warned (chap. xiii. 9), were spring- ing up. We have glimpses of this state of Judaistic de- velopment even in St. Paul's lifetime at two distinct peri- ods : when he wTote the Epistle to the Romans, a.d. 58 (cf. Rom., xiv., xv. to verse 13), and, later, in that to the Philippians, a.d. 63 ; cf. Phil., i. 14-17, and iii. 2, and the following verses. " 4. The personal notices found in our Epistle agree remarkably well with the hypothesis that it was addressed to the Church at Rome. The ' know that brother Timo- thy is dismissed' (chap. xiii. 23) may w r ell refer to the termination of some imprisonment consequent upon the Neronian persecution, from which perhaps the death of the tyrant liberated him. Where this imprisonment took place must be wholly uncertain. But the information could not come amiss to those who had been addressed 'Timothy my workfellow salutes you' (Rom., xvi. 21); who had been accustomed to the companionship of l Paul sprung up in modern times from the idea that ' the Apostles' must mean the twelve only." (Alford.) 220 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. and Timothy' among them (Phil., i. 1; Col., i. 1; Philem., 1) : and the they of Italy salute you (chap. xiii. 24) re- ceives a likely interpretation if we believe the writer to be addressing his Epistle from some place where were pres- ent with him Christians from Italy, who would be desirous of sending greeting to their brethren at home. If he was writing at Alexandria, or at Ephesus, or at Corinth, such a salutation would be very natural. And thus we should give to oi apo t they of/ its most usual New Testament* meaning, of persons who have come from the place indicated (cf. Matt., xv. 1 ; Acts, vi. 9, x. 23). "5. On this hypothesis, the use evidently made in our Epistle of the Epistle to the Romans, above all other of St. Paul's, will thus be satisfactorily accounted for (cf. Heb., x. 30, and Rom., xii. 19 ; Heb., xiii. 1-6, and Rom., xii. 1-21 ; Heb., xiii. 9, and Rom., xiv. 7). Not only was the same church addressed, but the writer had especially before him the matter and language of that Epistle, which was writ- ten in all probability from Corinth, the scene of the labors of Paul and Apollos. " 6. The sort of semi-anonymous character of our Epis- tle, already treated of when we ascribed the authorship to Apollos, will also come in as singularly in accord with the circumstances of the case, and with the subsequent tradi- tion as regards the Epistle, in case it was addressed to the church at Rome. Supposing, as we have gathered from the notices of Apollos in 1 Cor., that he modestly shrunk from being thought to put himself into rivalry with St. Paul, and that after the death of the Apostle he found it necessary to write such an Epistle as this to the Church A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 221 in the metropolis, what more likely step would he take with regard to his own name and personality in it than just that which we find has been taken : viz., so to con- ceal these as to keep them from having any prominence, while by various minute personal notices he prevents the concealment from being complete % And with regard to the relation evidently existing between the writer and his readers, all we can say is that, in defect of positiye knowl- edge on this head connecting Apollos with the Church at Rome, it is evidently in the metropolis, of all places, where such a relation may most safely be assumed. There a teacher, whose native place was Alexandria, and who had traveled to Ephesus and Corinth, was pretty sure to have been : there many of his Christian friends would be found : there alone, in the absence of positive testimony, could we venture to place such a cycle of dwelling and teaching, as would justify the 6 that I may be restored to you' of our chap. xiii. 19, in the place whither was a general conflu- ence of all, and where there is ample room for such a course after the decease of St. Paul. "And what more likely fate to befall the Epistle in this respect than just what did befall it in the Roman Church — viz., that while in that Church, and by a contemporary of Apollos, Clement, we find the first use made of our Epis- tle — and that the most familiar and copious use — its words are never formally cited, nor is any author's name attach- ed ? And was not this especially likely to be the case, as Clement was writing to the Corinthians, the very church where the danger had arisen of a rivalry between the fau- tors of the two teachers 1 222 A JIAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. " And as time goes on the evidence of this hypothesis seems to gather strength in the nature of the traditions re- specting the authorship of our Epistle. While in Africa and the East they are most various and inconsistent with one another, and the notion of a Pauline origin is soon suggested, and gains rapid acceptance, it is in the Church of Borne alone, and among those influenced by her, that we find an ever-steady and unvarying assertion that it was not written by St Paul. By whom it was written none ventured to say. How weighty the reasons may have been which induced silence on this point we have now lost the power of appreciating. The fact only is important for us, that the few personal notices which occur in it were in course of time overborne, as indications of its author, by the prevalent anonymous character: and that the same church which possessed as its heritage the most illustri- ous of St. Paul's own Epistles, was ever unanimous in dis- ' claiming, on the part of the Apostle of the Gentiles, the authorship of the Epistle to the Hebrews. " 7. The result may be shortly stated," in answer to the fourth question, To whom was it addressed ? "As 'the current of popular opinion in the Church has gradually set in toward the Pauline authorship, inferring that a document at first sight so Pauline must have pro- ceeded from the Apostle himself, so has it also set in to- ward the church at Jerusalem as the original readers, in- ferring that the title 'To the Hebrews' must be thus in- terpreted. But as in the one case so in the other, the general popular opinion does not bear examination. As the phenomena of the Epistle do not bear out the idea of A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 223 the Pauline authorship, so neither do they that of being addressed to the Palestine churches. And as in the other case there is one man, when we come to search and con- jecture, pointed out as most likely to have written the Epistle, so here, when we pursue the same process, there is one place pointed out to which it seems most likely to have been addressed. At Eome such a church existed as is indicated in it ; at Rome, above all other places, its per- sonal and historical notices are satisfied ; at Eome we find it first used ; at Eome only is there a unanimous and un- varying negative tradition regarding its authorship. To Eome, then, until stronger evidence is adduced, we believe it to have been originally written." Fifth, When was it written ? " Almost all commenta- tors," says Alford, " agree in believing that our Epistle was WTitten before the destruction of Jerusalem. And right- ly ; for if that great break up of the Jewish polity and re- ligious worship had occurred we may fairly infer that some mention of such an event would have been found in an argument the scope of which is to show the transitoriness of the Jewish priesthood and the Levitical ceremonies. It would be inconceivable that such an Epistle should be ad- dressed to Jews after their city and temple had ceased to exist." St. Paul was probably put to death a.d. 68, the last year of Nero's reign ; and the city of Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed October, 70. As the Epistle to the He- brews was written at some time between these dates, it may be inferred that the writing took place " during the siege of Jerusalem by the armies of Titus, to which we 224 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. may perhaps discern an allusion in chap. xiii. 14 : ' For here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come.'" Where was it written? "With regard to the place of writing we are almost entirely in the dark. Taking the usual New Testament sense, above maintained, for 'they of Italy' (chap. xiii. 24) — persons whose home is in Italy, but who are now here — it can not have been written in Italy. Nor is Apollos likely, after what had occurred, again to be found fixed at Corinth. Jerusalem, and indeed Palestine, would be precluded by the Jewish war then raging. Ephe- sus is possible, and would be a not unlikely resort of Tim- othy after his liberation (xiii. 23), as also of Apollos at any time (Acts, xviii. 24). Alexandria, the native place of Apol- los, is also possible, though the i if he come quickly,' ap- plied to Timothy, would not so easily fit it, as on his lib- eration he would be more likely to go to some parts with 'which he was familiar than with Alexandria, where he was a stranger. In both these cities there may well have been ' they of Italy' sojourning ; and this very phrase seems to point to some place of considerable resort. On the whole, then, I should incline to Ephesus as the most probable place of writing : but it must be remembered that on this head all is in the realm of the vaguest conjecture." Such being the case, it may be permitted to suggest: (1.) That there is no good reason for supposing that Apol- los would not be " found again fixed at Corinth after what had happened." St. Paul writes (1 Cor., xvi. 12): ""I greatly desired him to come nnto you : but his will was not at all to come at this time [< apparently on account of A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 225 their divisions'] ; but he will come" Besides the intention expressed (chap. xiii. 12) of going to see the readers of the Epistle leaves it to be inferred that the writer was no more " fixed" than St. Paul when he wrote to the Romans from Corinth. (2.) The relation between the Epistle to the Eomans and the Epistle to the Hebrews — the salutations (Rom., xvi. ; Heb., xiii. 24), taken in connection with the fact that Corinth was the resort of Italian Jews, and doubt- less of Christians who had been confounded with the for- mer by Claudius (Acts, xviii. 2) — are points which should not be overlooked in connection with this question. (3.) Corinth lay upon one route frcmi Ephesus to Italy — the route which Paul probably pursued on his last journey, via Nicopolis, to Rome (2 Tim., iv. 20) — and as Apollos was expecting Timothy to accompany him thither, what more likely place for the former to have been sojourning at than Corinth? On the whole, is it not a reasonable " conjecture," that the Epistle to the Hebrews, if it was written by Apollos to the Church at Rome, was written by him at Corinth % The genuineness of the Epistle to the Hebrews has been somewhat obscured by the cloud which involves the name of the author. It must be admitted, however, that it was written by an eminent Christian teacher of the first cen- tury. The early Fathers of the Church recognized its au- thenticity; Clement, the fellow-laborer of the Apostles, quoted largely from it ; and the book soon obtained a place in the Sacred Canon. Of the genuineness, authenticity, and canonicity of the Epistle no reasonable doubt, there- fore, can be entertained. It must be accounted as a " por- P 226 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. tion of the New Testament canon, and regarded with the same reverence as the rest of the Holy Scriptures." The occasion which called forth the Epistle, the object of writing it, and the contents are thus finely treated by Alford: " The occasion which prompted this Epistle evidently was, the enmity of the Jews to the Gospel of Christ, which had brought a double danger on the Church; on the one hand that of persecution, on the other that of apostasy. Between these lay another, that of mingling with a certain recognition of Jesus as the Christ, a leaning to Jewish practices and valuing of Jewish ordinances. But this latter does not so^much appear in our Epistle as in those others which were written by St. Paul to mixed churches ; those to the Romans,* the Galatians, the Colos- sians. The principal peril to which the Jewish converts were exposed, especially after they had lost the guidance of the Apostles themselves in their various churches, was, that of falling back from the despised following of Jesus of Nazareth into the more compact and apparently safer sys- tem of their childhood, which, moreover, they saw tolerated as a legal religion, while their own was outcast and pro- scribed. " The object then of this Epistle is, to show them the * "One remarkable trace we have of allusion to this form of error, in its further development, as appears by the verdict of past experience which is appended, but otherwise singularly resembling a passage in the Epistle to the Romans (xiv. 17, 'For the kingdom of God is not meat and drinks but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost'), in our chapter xiii. 9, ' For it is good that the heart be established with grace, not with meats, which have not pro- fited them that have been occupied therein.' " A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 227 superiority of the Gospel to the former covenant : and that mainly by exhibiting, from the Scriptures, and from the nature of the case, the superiority of Jesus himself to both the messengers and the High-Priests of that former cove- nant. This is the main argument of the Epistle, filled out and illustrated by various corollaries springing out of its different parts, and expanding in the directions of encour- agement, warning, and illustration. "This argument is entered on at once without intro- duction in chapter i., where Christ's superiority to the angels, the mediators of the old covenant, is demonstrated from Scripture. Then having interposed (ii. 1-4) a cau- tion on the greater necessity of taking heed to the things which they had heard, he shows (ii. 5-18) why He to whom, and not to the angels, the future world is subjected, yet was made lower than the angels — viz., that He might become our merciful and faithful High-Priest to deliver and to save us, Himself having undergone temptation like ourselves. "Having mentioned this title of Christ, he goes back, and prepares the way for its fuller treatment, by a com- parison of Him with Moses (iii. 1-6), and a showing that the antitypical rest of God, from which unbelief excludes, was not the rest of the seventh day, nor that of the posses- sion of Canaan, but one yet reserved for the people of God (iii. 7 ; iv. 10), into which we must all the more strive to enter, because the word of our God is keen and searching in judgment, and nothing hidden from His sight, with whom we have to do (iv. 11-13). "He now resumes the main consideration of his great 228 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. subject, the High-priesthood of Christ, with a hortatory note of passage (iv. 13-16). This subject he pursues through the whole middle portion of the Epistle (v. 1 ; x. 18), treating it in its various aspects and requirements. Of these we have (v. 1-10) the conditions of High-priest- hood : (v. 1 1 ; vi. 20) a digression complaining", with refer- ence to the difficult subject of the Melchisedek priesthood, of their low state of spiritual attainment ; warning them of the necessity of progress, but encouraging them by God's faithfulness : (vii. 1 ; x. 18) the priesthood of Christ after the order of Melchisedek, in its distinction from the Levit- ical priesthood, as perpetual — as superior, in that Abra- ham acknowledged himself inferior to Melchisedek — as having power of endless life — as constituted with an oath — as living forever — as without sin — as belonging to the heavenly sanctuary, and to a covenant promised by Qod himself — as consisting in better ministrations, able to pu- rify the conscience itself, and to put away sin by the one Sacrifice of the Son of God. " Having thus completed his main argument, he devotes the concluding portion (x. 19 ; xiii. 25) to a series of sol- emn exhortations to endurance in confidence and patience, and illustrations of that faith on which both must be founded. In x. 19-39 we have exhortation and warning deduced from the facts lately proved, our access to the heavenly place, and our having a High-Priest over the house of God ; then, by the Pauline citation, ' the just shall live by faith' (taken from Pom. xii. 19), a transition-note is struck to chapter xi., which entirely consists in a pane- gyric of faith, and a recounting of its triumphs ; on a re- A HAND-BOOK OP THE NEW TESTAMENT. 229 view of which the exhortation to run the race set before us, and endure chastisement, is again taken up (chap. xii.). And the same hortatory strain is pursued to the end of the Epistle ; the glorious privileges of the Christian covenant being held forth, and the awful peril of forfeiting them by apostasy; and those graces and active virtues, and that steadfastness in suffering shame being enjoined which are necessary to the following and imitation of Jesus Christ. The valedictory prayer (xiii. 20, 21), and one or two per- sonal notices and greetings, conclude the whole. "The style of our Epistle," Alford concludes, "has al- ready been touched upon in the inquiry respecting the au- thorship. From the earliest times its diversity from the writings of St. Paul has been matter of remark.* The main difference for us, which will also set forth its charac- teristic peculiarity, is, that whereas St. Paul -is ever, as it were, struggling with the scantiness of human speech to pour forth Iris crowding thoughts, thereby falling into gram- matical irregularities, the style of our Epistle flows regu- larly on, with no such suspended constructions. Even where the subject induces long parentheses, the writer does not break the even flow and equilibrium of his style, but * Clement, writing in the first century, says : ' ' One finds the same character of style and of phraseology in the Epistle to the Hebrews as in the Acts." Origen, in the third century (quoted by Eusebius), writes: "The style of the Epistle, with the title 'To the Hebrews,' has not that vulgarity of diction which belongs to the Apostle, who confesses that he is but common in speech, that is, in his phraseology. But that this Epistle is more pure Greek in the composition of its phrases, every one will confess who is able to dis- cern the difference of stvle." 230 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. returns back to the point where he left it. See chapter xii. 18-24. x " Again, the greatest pains are bestowed on a matter which does not seem to have engaged the attention of the other sacred writers, even including St. Paul himself — viz., rhetorical rhythm, and equilibrium of words and sen- tences. In St. Paul's most glorious outbursts of eloquence he is not rhetorical. In those of the writer of our Epistle he is elaborately and faultlessly rhetorical. The ' sundry times' and ' divers manners' of the opening are, as it were, a key-note of the rhythmical style of the whole. The par- ticles and participles used are all weighed with a view to this effect. The simple expressions of the other sacred writers are expanded into longer words, or into sonorous and majestic clauses: the ' reward' (1 Cor., iii. 8) of St. Paul becomes (Heb., xi. 26) i recompence of reward :' the < blood' (Col., i. 20), < blood-shedding' (Heb., ix. 22) : where St. Paul describes our ascended Lord as .sitting ' on the right hand of God' (Col., iii. 1 : cf. Kom., viii. 34 ; Eph., i. 20), here we have (i. 3), ' sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high' (viii. 1), 'set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens' (xii. 2), ' set down at the right hand of the throne of God :' where St. Paul de- scribes Him as 'the image of God' (2 Cor., iv. 4), or as < the image of the invisible God' (Col., i. 15), here we have (i. 3), 6 the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His Person.' " Abounding, as this admirable Epistle does, in noble pas- sages, there is one which, in conclusion, it may be said, should not only be bound upon the hands for a sign, and A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 231 be as a frontlet between the eyes, but be pondered in the hearts of all : "Let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus." Again, " Follow peace with all, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord ; and see that ye refuse not Him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape if we turn away from Him that speaketh from heaven." CHAPTER XXIX. EPISTLE OF JAMES. The Epistles now to be considered are known in the Canon as the Catholic* or General Epistles. The appel- lation, which is of later date than the Epistles themselves, was probably conferred upon them while the Canon was in process of formation. The Second and Third Epistles of John, though included in the number, are not general, * The word Catholic signifies universal or general. Thus the gen- eral resurrection at the last day is called the Catholic resurrection ; and the sacrifice of Christ for the sins of the whole world is called the Catholic sacrifice. After the arrangement of the Empire by Con- stantine into thirteen Dioceses, the fiscal agent- of the Emperor in each was called the Catholicos. It was afterward used in the Church, and is so employed now by the Armenians and Syrians to denote their chief Bishop. In ecclesiastical usage the Catholic Church sig- nified the Church Universal, or General, dispersed through the whole world. It is Catholic, as enduring throughout all ages ; as not lim- ited, like the Jewish Church, to one people ; and in respect to faith and practice, as teaching all truth, and requiring holiness from all. (See Jarvis's Reply, page 21 ; and Theoph.Americanus, page 5.) The pretension of the Roman Church to the appellation of the Catholic Church is simply an absurdity, and the phrase Catholics, usually employed to designate the people of that communion, an unfortu- nate misnomer. So far from being Catholic, the Roman Church is heretical, in having perverted the faith — schismatic, in having rent the body of Christ, which is the Catholic Church — and corrupt in life and practice. But she has the ministry and the Scriptures, and therefore, with God's grace, she can wash and be clean. A IIA~ND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 233 and it is very likely were not admitted into the Canon un- til after the appellation had obtained currency. The Epistle of James is the first of the Catholic Epis- tles. Latterly the identity of the author has excited much discussion. There were certainly two, and perhaps three, Apostles of that name. James the Great, the brother of St. John, was one of the three favored disciples who were selected by our Sav- iour to be with Him on the Mount of the Transfiguration and in the Garden of Gethsemane. The two brothers were surnamed Boanerges. In the persecution that took place during the reign of Herod Agrippa L, a.d. 44, James was put to death (Acts, xii. 2), and thus obtained the dis- tinction of being the second martyr, and the first of the Twelve to fulfill the prophecy of His Master in being bap- tized with the baptism wherewith He was baptized (Mark, x. 39). He is the only one of the Apostles whose death is recorded in the New Testament. James the Less, one of the Twelve, was the second who bore the name. He was the son of Alpheus, or Cleopas, and the sister of the Virgin Mary ; consequently, the cous- in of Jesus. Three of our Saviour's cousins, it will be re- membered, were among the Twelve disciples — Matthew, James, and Jude. In regard to James the Less nothing particular has been recorded. James, the Lord's brother (Gal., i. 19 ; ii. 9, 12 ; 1 Cor. xv. 7), was also an Apostle, and, from the great purity of his life, received the surname of The Just (Compare Acts, xii. 17 ; xv. 13 ; xxi. 18.) He was first Bishop of Jeru- salem, presided in the Council of the Mother Church (Acts, 234 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. xv.) a.d. 50, and pronounced the decision of that body on the question of circumcision. Afterward he embodied his decision in a letter, which Paul delivered to the brethren at Antioch, and subsequently circulated among the churches of Asia (Acts, xv. 23 ; xvi. 4). The classic form of the salu- tation employed (Acts, xv. 23, and James, i. 1) — cf. the let- ter of Lysias, Acts, xxiii. 26 — is, as Bleek remarks, "a coin- cidence" showing that both emanated from the same hand. But was James the Just identical with James the Less ? Was the former actually the brother of the Lord, or only the cousin? It is said in Matt., xiii. 55, 56; Mark, vi. 3, that Jesus had four brothers — James, Joses, Simon, and Judas, besides sisters. It is stated likewise, in John, vii. 5, that our Saviour had brethren who did not believe in Him at the very time that the Twelve did believe in Him (John, vi. 69). After the Ascension the Eleven are re- corded (Acts, i. 13, 14) by name as having continued in prayer with the women and Mary, the mother of Jesus, and with His brethren. And in 1 Cor., ix. 5, St. Paul alludes to the brethren of the Lord in a way which gives room for the inference that they were not of the Twelve. Who were they ? Alford states, as the "result of an inquiry based on Scripture testimony only, (1.) That there were four persons known as the brethren of the Lord, or His brethren, not of the number of the Tivelve. (2.) That these persons are found in all places (except Matt., xiii. 55), where their names occur in the Gospels, in immediate connection with Mary, the mother of the Lord. (3.) That not a word is any where dropped to prevent us from inferring that the A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 235 brothers and sisters were His relations in the same literal sense as we know His mother to have been ; but that His own saying, where he distinguishes His relations accord- ing to the flesh from His disciples (chap. xii. 50), seems to sanction that inference. (4.) That nothing is said from which it can be inferred whether Joseph had been mar- ried before he appears in the Gospel history. (5.) That the silence of the Scripture narrative leaves it free for Christians to believe these to have been real younger breth- ren and sisters of our Lord, without incurring any imputa- tion of unsoundness of belief as to His miraculous concep- tion. The fact is, that the two matters, the miraculous conception of the Lord Jesus by the Holy Ghost, and the subsequent virginity of His mother, are essentially and en- tirely distinct." The simple interpretation of Matt., i. 25 confirms the above opinion ; and Alford adds, " No one would have thought of interpreting the verse any other- wise than in its plain meaning, except to force it into ac- cordance with a preconceived notion of the perpetual vir- ginity of Mary." Psalm lxix. 8, 9, seems also to point in the same direction. "I believe," continues Alford, "Jatnea the Just, the author of the Epistle, whom we find presiding over the Church at Jerusalem, to have been one of those brethren of the Lord (Matt., xiii. 55) whom I have maintained were His real maternal brethren, sons of Joseph and Mary — to have been an Apostle, as Paul and Barnabas, but not of the number of the Twelve — and to have been, therefore, distinct from James, the son of Alpheus, enumerated (Matt., x. 3, 11) among the Twelve." 236 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Alford likewise mentions two traditions respecting the brethren of the Lord. " (1.) That they were all sons of Alpheus, or Cleopas, and Mary, the sister of the mother of our Lord, and so cousins of Jesus, and called, agreeably to Jewish usage, His brothers. (2.) That they were chil- dren of Joseph by a former marriage (or even by a later one with Mary, wife of Cleopas, to raise up seed to his dead brother — as Cleopas is said to have been).*' But he argues strongly in opposition to these traditions, and ar- rives at the conclusion above stated. Others, however, have sustained these traditions, being unwilling to admit that Mary was not ever Virgin. Ezekiel, xliv. 2 has been curiously quoted in support of that position. That James the Just, who presided over the Church at Jerusalem, was the author of the Epistle, can not be doubt- ed ; but whether he was, as we believe, the uterine broth- er of our Saviour, or identical with James the Less, the son of Alpheus, and cousin of Jesus, is a question which will never be settled to the satisfaction of all, as there is not sufficient Scriptural evidence to put the matter beyond a doubt. James the Just suffered martyrdom at Jerusalem, a.d. 69, the same year that the city was invested by the Ro- mans. His death did not long precede the destruction of the Temple. "He was," says Alford, "among all the sacred writers of the New Testament the representative of the strictest adherence to, and loftiest appreciation of, the pure standard of legal morality. All that the law was, from its intrinsic holiness, justice, and goodness (Rom., vii. 12), capable of A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 237 being to Christians, he would be sure to attribute to it. And therefore, when his judgment (Acts, xv. 13), as well as that of Peter, was given in favor of the freedom of the Gentiles, the disputers, even of the Pharisaic party, were silenced." St. Paul, in regard to the controversy that arose be- tween himself and St. Peter at Antioch about Judaizing, writes : " Before that certain came from James, Peter did eat with the Gentiles,'' etc. (Gal., ii. 12). As this took place after the decision of the Council at Jerusalem (Acts, xv.), both the courage and the sincerity of St. James would seem to be open to question. Alford thinks, however, that the consistency of James can not be impugned with rea- son. Eecognizing in Gal., ii. 12 "a mission from James for the purpose of admonishing the Jewish converts at An- tioch of their obligations, from which the Gentiles were free," he maintains "that, even after the decision of the Council at Jerusalem, James may have retained his strict view of the duties of Jewish converts." " Thus," he adds, " there is no occasion to assume that he had been overper- suaded in the Council by the earnestness and eloquence of Paul, and had afterward undergone a reaction. His own words (Acts, xv. 9), 'them which from among the Gentiles,' tacitly imply that the Jews would be bound as before. The course of James, therefore, is consistent throughout." From the tenor of his Epistle James has received the appellation of the "Apostle of Works;" and as St. Paul is distinguished as the "Apostle of Faith," not a few have inferred that there must be an inconsistency between the 238 A. HAND-BOOK OF THE NEAV TESTAMENT. doctrines of the two. To avoid, however, this misappre- hension, it is only necessary to observe that St. Paul, while he defends the doctrine of Justification by faith in opposi- tion to Justification by the law, never fails to exhort Chris- tians to a life of holiness. Every one of his Epistles con- tains requisite counsels and admonitions on the subject. In Titus (chap. iii. 4-8), after setting forth the "love of God our Saviour toward man," he enjoins that they who " believed" should " be careful to maintain good works." And James, though he lays great stress upon works, in no way contradicts St. Paul's doctrine of faith. " His con- tention," as Alford observes, " is rather in the realm of practice: he is more anxious to show that justification can not be brought about by a kind of faith which is des- titute of the practical fruits of a Christian life, than to trace the ultimate ground, theologically speaking, of justifi- cation in the sight of God." But both Apostles undoubt- edly considered works as the genuine evidences of faith — the fruits which a living faith should bring forth. "The altered meaning of the word 'religion,'" says Trench, "involves a serious misunderstanding in that well- known statement of St. James, i Pure religion and unde- fined before God and the Father is this, To visit the fa- therless and widows in their affliction.' i There,' exclaims one who wishes to set up St. James against St. Paul, that so he may escape the necessity of obeying either, c listen to what St. James says ; he does not speak of faith in Christ as the condition necessary to salvation ; there is nothing mystical in what he requires ; instead of harping on faith, he makes all religion to consist in practical deeds of kind- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 239 ness one to another.' But let us pause a moment. Did 'religion,' when our translation was made, mean godli- ness ? did it mean the sum total of our duties toward God ? for of course no one would deny that deeds of kindness are a part of our Christian duty, an evidence of the faith which is in us. There is abundant evidence to show that 6 religion" did not mean this ; that, like the Greek threskeia, for which it here stands, like the Latin religio, it meant the outward forms and embodiments in which the inward principle of piety arrayed itself, the external service of God ; and St. James is urging upon those to whom he is writing something of this kind : ' instead of the ceremonial services of the Jews, which consisted in divers washings, and in other elements of this world, let our service, our threskeia, take a nobler shape — let it consist in deeds of pity and love ;' and it was this which our translators in- tended when they used 'religion' here, and 'religious' in the verse preceding. How little religion once meant god- liness, how predominantly it was used for the outward service of God, is plain from many passages in the Homi- lies, and from other contemporary literature." On the subject of faith and works there are two fatal errors. Some, like Selden, apparently suppose faith to be an opus or work, and therefore sufficient of itself. It may be feared that such faith will prove, as Coleridge remarks of faith without charity, " mere reprobate faithlessness." Others regard works even done out of Christ as meritori- ous. All, however, that is not of faith in Christ is sin, and the only value that a work can have is that it is done of faith, and therefore sanctified by the acceptable merits 240 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. of Christ. Believe in Christ, find maintain good works (Titus, iii.). Have not the faith of Christ with respect of persons, for faith without works is dead (James, ii.). This is the doctrine of Christ and His Apostles. It is all one. To suppose that there is a want of harmony between the " Apostles of faith and works" is as reasonable as to sup- pose that the " Apostle of love" is opposed to both. The Epistle of James was written at Jerusalem. Of that there can hardly be a doubt, though the fact is not mentioned in the Epistle itself. The majority of modern commentators attribute to it a date prior to the Council at Jerusalem, or about a.d. 45. " It consists," says Bloomfield, " of three parts : the first of which (chap, i.) is hortatory ; the second (chap. ii. 6) is accusatory ; the third (chap. v. 7) is partly hortatory and conciliatory, partly accusatory and monitory" "The immediate design of the Epistle," according to Bishop Tomline, " was to animate the Jewish Christians to support with fortitude and patience any sufferings to w T hich they might be exposed, and to enforce the genuine doctrines and practice of the Gospel in opposition to the errors and vices which then prevailed among them." "The Apostle begins," continues Mant, "by showing the benefits of trials and afflictions, and by assuring the Jewish Christians that God would listen to their sincere prayers for assistance and support ; he reminds them of their being the distinguished objects of Divine favor, and exhorts them to practical religion (chap, i.) : he enforces a just and impartial regard for the poor, and a uniform obe- dience to all the commands of God, without any distinc- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 241 tion or exception ; and he shows the inefficacy of faith without works, that is, without a performance of the mor- al duties (chap, ii.) : he inculcates the necessity of a strict government of the tongue, and cautions them against cen- soriousness, strife, malevolence, pride, indulgence of their sensual passions, and rash judgment (chaps, iii. iv.) : he de- nounces threats against those who make improper use of riches ; he intimates the approaching destruction of Jeru- salem ; and concludes with exhortations to patience, devo- tion, and a solicitous concern for the salvation of others'' (chap. v.). No benediction is given. According to the English version two passages in the Epistle of James are very difficult of comprehension. They are thus rendered and explained by Alford : x Chap. ii. 13 : " For the judgment (which is coming) shall be unmerciful to him who wrought not mercy : mer- cy boasteth over judgment (cf. Matt., v. 7). The meaning is, the judgment which would condemn all of us is, in the case of the merciful, overpowered by the blessed effect of mercy, and mercy prevails over it/' Chap. iv. 5 : " Do ye think that the Scripture saith in vain, the Spirit that He placed in us (when the Spirit de- scended on the Church) jealously desireth (us for His own)f " These words connect naturally with the fore- going. We are married to one, even God, who has im- planted in us His Spirit ; and He is a jealous God, who will not suffer us to be friends of His enemy and His friends at the same time. The Apostle is speaking of the eager and jealous love of God toward those whom He has united, as it were, in the bond of marriage with Himself.'' Q 242 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. "The letter," says Alford, "is full of earnestness, plain speaking, holy severity. The brother of Him who opened His teaching with the Sermon on the Mount seems to have deeply imbibed the words, and maxims of it as the law of Christian morals.* The characteristic of his readers was the lack of living faith — the falling asunder of knowledge and action, of head and heart. And no portion of the di- vine teaching could be better calculated to sound the depths of the treacherous and disloyal heart than this first expo- sition by our Lord, who knew the heart of the difference between the old law, in its externality, and the searching spiritual law of the Gospel." Huther characterizes the style and diction of the Epis- tle as "not only fresh and vivid, the immediate outflowing of a deep and earnest spirit, but at the same time senten- tious and rich in graphic figure. Gnome follows after gnome, and the discourse hastens from one similitude to another: so that the diction often passes into the poet- ical, and in some parts is like that of the Old Testament prophets. We do not find logical connection like that in St. Paul; but the' thoughts arrange themselves in single groups, which are strongly marked off from one another. We every where see that the author has his object clearly in sight, and puts it forth with graphic concreteness. Strong feelings, as Kern remarks, produce strong diction : and the style acquires emphasis and majesty by the cli- max of thoughts and words ever regularly and rhetorically arrived at, and by the constantly occurring antithesis." * The connection between our Epistle and the Sermon on the Mount has often been noticed. The parallels are numerous. A UAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 243 ••The writer ever goes at once into his subject/' says Wiesinger, ;; and with the first sentence which begins a section — usually an interrogative or imperative one — says out at once fully and entirely that which he has in his heart : so that in almost every case the first words of each section might serve as a title for it. The further develop- ment of the thought, then, is regressive, explaining and grounding the preceding sentence ; and concludes with a comprehensive sentence, recapitulating that which he be- gan." u The Greek style of this Epistle," observes Afford, in conclusion, i; is peculiar. It is comparatively free from Hebraisms ; the words are weighty and expressive : the constructions for the most part those found in the purer Greek. It does not sound, in reading, like the rest of the New Testament. Considering the native place and posi- tion of its writer, it must ever remain one of those diffi- culties with which it is impossible for us now to deal sat- isfactorily.*' CHAPTER XXX. FIRST EPISTLE OF PETER. Simon, the son of Jonas, was a native of Bethsaida,* in Galilee. With his brother Andrew he pursued the occu- pation of fishing, an employment quite common among the Galileans who inhabited the shores of the Sea of Tiberias. The brothers belonged probably to the middle station of life, but were^ doubtless in humble circumstances, as they seem to have carried on their business without assistance. Simon was married,! and resided at Capernaum. Wheth- er ho had children or not is unknown. { His mother-in- law appears to have formed part of his family, and perhaps Andrew also. It is generally supposed that our Saviour lodged at Simon's house during His sojourn in Capernaum. Upon the advent of John the Baptist Andrew became * There were two Bethsaidas, one on the western bank of the Lake of Gennesareth, the other, Bethsaida Julius, at the top of the lake, on the east side of the Jordan. The former was the city of Andrew and Peter (John, i. 45). The latter is referred to in Luke, ix. 10. (See Alford.) t His wife is named Concordia or Perpetua in the legends. She is probably the person (not church) referred to in 1 Peter, v. 13, as " elected" in Babylon. Compare 1 Cor., ix. 5, where it is said Cephas led about a wife, and therefore no doubt had his wife with him at Babylon. Tradition says that she was martyred. (See Alford.) X "Marcus my son" (1 Peter, v. 13) may have been the actual son of Peter. The truth can not now be ascertained. A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 245 one of his disciples, and was with him at Bethabara when he uttered the exclamation, " Behold the Lamb of God !" (John, i. 36) upon observing Jesus pass by. Excited by the expression, and perhaps remembering the wonderful baptism wdiich had lately taken place, Andrew and anoth- er disciple of the Baptist, supposed to have been John, fol- lowed Jesus in order to ascertain where He abode. Al- though invited by our Saviour to " come and see/' they did not immediately accompany Him, but went in pursuit of Simon. Andrew was the first to find his brother. He informed him that they had found the Messiah, and brought him to Jesus. When our Lord beheld him, He said : " Thou art Simon, the son of Jona, thou shalt be called Cephas," or Peter. The former is the Aramaic, the latter the Greek term for "a stone." Paul, in speaking of the disciple (Gal., i. 18; ii. 9), uses both. The Spirit of prophecy no doubt prompted the name. A change of appellation, however, on important occasions, was not in- frequent among the Hebrews. It will be remembered that Abram, Sara, and Jacob received new names as signs of new covenant relations with God. After the above event Andrew and Peter returned to Galilee, and resumed their customary avocation of fishing. Our Saviour, on His first visit to Capernaum, found the two brothers in the act of "casting a net into the sea." He commanded them to follow Him, saying, "I will make you fishers of men" (Matt., iv. 19). They immediately obeyed the command, and were subsequently ordained to the apostolate. When the Twelve were sent forth "two by two" (Mark, vi. 7), to fulfill the first apostolic mission, 246 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. doubtless the two brothers were associated in their la- bors. The following is a summary of the most important no- tices of Peter found in the New Testament : John, i. 42. — Peter named by Christ. Matt., iv. 18.— Called. Matt., x. 2.— Ordained. Luke, v. 8. — Alarmed at the draught of fishes. Mark, v. 37.— Present at the restoration of Jairus's daughter. Matt., xiv. 29. — Attempts to go to Jesus upon the water. Matt., xvi. 16. — Confesses Christ. Matt., xvi. 22. — Rebuked for his pride. Matt., xvii. 1. — Present at the Transfiguration. Matt., xvii. 26. — Answers in regard to the tribute. Matt., xxvi. 34. — Reproved for his self-confidence. John, xiii. 24. — Beckons John to ask who should betray Him. Matt., xxvi. 37.- — Present at the agony in Gethsemane. Matt., xxvi. 51. — Wounds (Malchus, John, xviii. 10) the High-priest's servant. Matt., xxvi. 69. — Denies his Master: Mark, xiv. 66-, Luke, xxii. 54; John, xviii. 15. Luke, xxii. 61. — The Lord having looked upon him, he repents. John, xx. 6. — Is the first to enter the sepulchre. John, xxi. 3. — Casts himself into the sea to go to Jesus. John, xxi. 15. — Is thrice questioned by our Saviour. John, xxi. 22. — Rebuked for his curiosity. Acts, i. 15. — Addresses the disciples. Acts, ii. 14.— Preaches on the day of Pentecost, and opens the Church to the Jews. Acts, iii. 1. — Goes with John to the temple, and heals the impotent man at the beautiful gate. Acts, iii. 12. — Preaches to the Jews at the temple. Acts, iv. — Arrested, he twice addresses the Council with great bold- ness. Acts, v. 1. — Rebukes Ananias and Sapphira. Acts, v. 29. — Defends himself before the Council. Acts, viii. 14. — Sent with John to Samaria a.d. 37. Acts, viii. 20.— Rebukes Simon Magus. A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 247 Acts, ix. 32. — At Lydda, and heals Eneas a. d. 38. Acts, ix. 36. — At Joppa, and heals Tabitha. Acts. x. — Sees a vision — Goes to Cesarea and preaches to Corne- lius, and opens the Church to the Gentiles,* a.d. 38. Acts, ix. 26.— At Jerusalem— Is visited by Paul a.d. 40 (Gal., i. 18). Acts, xi. — Rehearses the matter of Cornelius to the Jews. Acts, xii. — Imprisoned (at the Passover), and miraculously deliver- ed, a.d. 44. Acts, xii. 17. — Conceals himself — place unknown. Acts, xv- 7. — Addresses the Council of the church at Jerusalem, a.d. 50, on the subject of circumcision — Separates himself from the Gentiles at Antioch a.d. 51, and is rebuked by Paulf — Sub- sequently he testifies of Paul (2 Pet., iii. 15). John, xxi. 18. — Peter's death foreshown (2 Pet., i. 14). Of the subsequent life of St. Peter, beyond what may be gathered from his Epistles, nothing reliable is known. " Tradition," says Connybeare, "makes him the fellow- worker, at Eome, of St. Paul, and the companion of his imprisonment and martyrdom. The tradition seems to * Compare Acts, xi. 19-26. In consequence of an error in the received text, verse 20, the English Version improperly employs the word " Grecians," or Hellenists. It should be Greeks — v.ncircum- cised Gentiles. Admitting, however, as claimed by Alford, "that their conversion took place before any tidings had reached Jerusa- lem of the Divine sanction given in the case of Cornelius," and that in one sense "the commencement of the Gentile Church took place at Antioch," and the sanction of the Holy Spirit was not refused to the proclamation of the Gospel any where, yet the legal extension of the Church to the Gentiles was first publicly and authoritatively made at Cesarea. t It has been supposed by some that the interview between Peter and Paul at Antioch took place prior to the meeting of the Council at Jerusalem. The opinion originated merely with a charitable de- sire to shield Peter from the charge of inconsistency. St. Paul says (Gal., ii. 11), "When Cephas came to Antioch, I withstood him to the face because he was condemned — i. e., self-convicted," as Alford renders it, " of inconsistency by his own conduct.*' 248 A HAND-BOOK OP THE NEW TESTAMENT. have grown up gradually in the Church, till at length, in the fourth century, it was accredited by Eusebius and Jerome. If we trace it to* its origin, however, it appears to rest on but slender foundations. In the first place, we have an undoubted testimony to the fact that St. Peter died by martyrdom, in St. John's Gospel, chapter xxi. 18, 19. The same fact is attested by Clemens Romanus, a contemporary authority. But in neither place is it said that Rome was the scene of the Apostle's labors or death. The earliest authority for this is Dionysius, Bishop of Corinth (about a.d. 170), who calls ' Peter and Paul' the 6 founders of the Corinthian and Roman churches,' and says that they both taught in Rome together, and suffered martyrdom ' about the same time.' The Roman Presby- ter Caius (about a.d. 200) mentions the tradition that Pe- ter suffered martyrdom in the Vatican. The same tra- dition is confirmed by Irenseus, frequently alluded to by Tertullian, accredited by Eusebius and Jerome, and fol- lowed by Lactantius, Orosius, and all subsequent writers till the Reformation. This apparent weight of testimony, however, is much weakened by our knowledge of the fa- cility with which unhistoric legends originate, especially when they fall in with the wishes of those among whom they circulate ; and it was a natural wish of the Roman Church to represent the ' chief of the Apostles' as having the seat of his government and the site of his martyr- dom in the chief city of the world. It can not be denied that St. Peter may have suffered martyrdom at Rome ; but the form which the tradition assumes in the hands of Jerome, viz., that he was Bishop of Rome for twenty-five A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 249 years, from a.d. 42 to 68, may be regarded as entirely fabulous." " That he was not there," says Alford, " before the date of the Epistle to the Eomans (about a.d. 58) we are sure : that he was not there during any part of St. Paul's im- prisonment there we may with certainty infer :* that the two Apostles did not together found the Churches of Cor- inth and Rome we may venture safely to affirm : that St. Peter ever was, in any ^ense like that usually given to the word, Bishop of Rome, is, we believe, an idea abhorrent from Scripture and from the facts of primitive apostolic history. But that St. Peter visited Rome, and suffered martyrdom there, we would fain believe as the testimony of Christian antiquity. " It may be permitted us," he adds, on this point, " un- til the day when all shall be known, to follow the cherish- ed associations of all Christendom — to trace still in the Mamertine prison and the Vatican the last days on earth of him to whom was committed especially the feeding of the flock of God :" in the words of Stanley, " To witness beside the Appian Way the scene of the most beautiful of ecclesiastical legends, which records his last vision of his* crucified Lord :| to overlook from the supposed spot of * " Jerome's assertion that the two Apostles suffered martyrdom on the same day may be safely disregarded. Upon this tradition was grafted a legend that St. Peter and St. Paul were ' nine months' fellow-prisoners in the Mamertine — obviously irreconcilable with 2 Tim., iv. 11, 'Luke alone is with me.' It is likewise commem- orated by a little chapel on the Ostian Road, outside the gate of San Paolo, which marks the spot where the Apostles separated on their way to death." (CoJinybeare.) f " St. Peter's martyrdom is commemorated at Rome, not only by 250 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. his death* the City of the Seven Hills : to believe that his last remains repose under the glory of St. Peter's dome." t Peter possessed in an eminent degree the regard of our Saviour, and occupied a distinguished, if not the chief po- sition among the Apostles.- He was one of the three fa- vorite disciples. With John and James he was chosen by the Lord to witness the raising of the daughter of Jairus, the transfiguration, and the agony in the garden ; he was one of the four to whom the destruction of Jerusalem was foretold ; with John he was sent to make ready the Pass- over ; by order of the angel he was especially informed of the resurrection of Christ ; and he was the first man, as Magdalene was the first woman, to whom our Lord ap- peared after that event. How large and how important a part he played, both during the presence of Christ upon the earth and in the subsequent inauguration of His Church, may be readily gathered from the Scripture summary here- tofore given. The events of Peter's life are indicative of his character. the great basilica which bears his name, but also by the little church of Domine quo Vadis on the Appian Way, which is connected with one of the most beautiful legends of the martyrology. The legend is that St. Peter, through fear of martyrdom, was leaving Rome by . the Appian Road in the early dawn, when he met our Lord, and casting himself at the feet of his Master, asked Him, 'Domine quo vadis ?' — ' Master, whither goest thou ?' To which the Lord replied, 'Venio iterum crucifigi.' — 'I am coming to be crucified afresh.' The disciple returned penitent and ashamed, and was martyred." {Connybeare.) * " The eminence of S. Pietro on the Janiculum." {Stanley.) f u The remains of St. Peter, as is well known, are supposed to be buried immediately under the great altar in the centre of the fa- mous basilica which bears his name." {Stanley.) A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEAV TESTAMENT. 251 Affectionate in feeling, ardent in temperament, and impet- uous in action, be is prompt to confess Christ ; but the confession is hardly cold on his lips when be becomes an offense, and receives the same rebuke which had been meted out to the tempter. He is ready to die with Christ, and fiercely draws his sword in defense of his Master, but only to render his subsequent denial of Him more conspic- uous. In the Council of the Church he espouses the cause of the Gentiles, maintains their rights, and shortly after, at Antioch, separates himself from them, and shrinks from the consequences of his own act. These inconsistencies, however, may in some measure be traced to Peter's birth and education. His Jewish prejudices, which had become almost a part of his nature, made him shrink first from acknowledging a suffering Messiah, and then from abandoning the customs of his fathers. But who can measure the anguish of the warm- hearted disciple as he wept bitterly for his sin, or describe the wounded feeling with which he replied to the thrice- urged question (John, xxi.) that recalled his three-fold de- nial? It may be credited, also, from Peter's commenda- tion of St. Paul's writings (2 Peter, iii. 15), that he list- ened to his reproof at Antioch, and amended his course. Indeed, his Epistles are evidence of it. The residue of Peter's life w r as consistent. Under the influence of Satan, who had sifted him like wheat, he wavered in his action, but he did not finally fall. The same hand which had supported him on the waves of Galilee sustained him to the end of his course — until he should win the crown which fadeth not away. 252 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Relying upon Matt., xvi. 13-19, the Koman Church claims for St. Peter a supremacy among the Apostles ; and upon this claim, long asserted, the spiritual assumptions of the Papacy have been built. The following is the whole passage: "When Jesus came into the coasts of Cesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I, the Son of man, am? And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist ; some, Elias ; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona : for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heav- en. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church ; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven : and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." " The excellence of St. Peter's confession is," says Al- ford, " that it brings out both the human and divine na- ture of the Lord : Christ is the Messiah, the son of David, the anointed King : the Son of the living God is the Eter- nal Son, begotten of the Eternal Father, as the last word most emphatically implies ; not ' Son of God' in any infe- rior figurative sense, not one of the sons of God, of an- gelic nature, but the Son of the Living God, having in Him the sonship and the divine nature in a sense in which A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 253 they could be in none else. This was a view of the per- son of Christ quite distinct from the Jewish Messianic idea, which appears to have been that he should be a man born from among men, but selected by God for the office on account of his eminent virtues. This distinction ac- counts for the solemn blessing pronounced. " The name Peter (not here first given, but prophetical- ly bestowed by our Lord on His first interview with Si- mon, John, i. 43), or Cephas, signifying a rock, denotes the personal position of this Apostle in the building of the Church of Christ. He was the first of those foundation stones (Eph., ii. 20; Rev., xxi. 14) on which the temple of the living God was built : this building beginning on the day of Pentecost by the laying of three thousand liv- ing stones on this very foundation. That this is the sim- ple and only interpretation of the words of our Lord, the whole usage of the New Testament shows : in which not doctrines nor confessions, but men, are uniformly the pil- lars and stones of the spiritual building. (See 1 Peter, ii. 4-6 ; 1 Tim., iii. 15; Gal., ii. 9 ; Eph., ii. 20; Rev., iii. 12.) And it is on Peter, as by a divine revelation making this confession, as thus under the influence of the Holy GhosVas standing out before the Apostles in the strength of this faith, as himself founded on the one foundation, Je- sus Christ (1 Cor., iii. 11), that the Jewish portion of the Church was built (Acts, ii.-v.), and the Gentile (Acts, x. xi.). Nothing can be further from any legitimate inter- pretation of this promise than the idea of a perpetual pri- macy in the successors of Peter ; the very notion of suc- cession is precluded by the form of the comparison, which 254 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. concerns the person, and him only, so far as it involves a direct promise. In its other and general sense it applies to all those living stones on whom the Church should be built. "The meaning of the promise (verse 18) is, that over the Church so built upon him who was by the strength of that confession the Rock, no adverse power should ever prevail to extinguish it. "The personal promise to Peter (verse 19) was remark- ably fulfilled in his being the first to admit both Jews and Gentiles into the Church ; thus using the power of the keys to open the door of salvation. As a witness of his shutting it also witness his speech to Simon Magus — ' Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter' (Acts, viii. 21). The same promise is repeated (chap, xviii.) to all the disciples generally." Similar and equal authority is also granted to all in John, xx. 23. "But we must not," as Wordsworth remarks, "con- found primacy with supremacy. St. Peter often appears as first in order among his brethren, but never as higher in place than the rest of the Apostles ; as ' first among equals, not as a superior over inferiors.' " It is perfectly evident, therefore, that St. Peter, though the Rock by virtue of his confession (which, both Cyprian and Augustine agree, was made in the name of all the dis- ciples as a type of unity), was himself founded upon the great Rock, the Chief Corner-stone, Jesus Christ ; and that he possessed no greater powers than the other Apostles. Besides, the position which James occupied in the Church at Jerusalem ; the conduct of Peter toward that A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 255 Apostle (Acts, xii. 17; Gal., ii. 12); the reproof admin- istered by St. Paul to Peter (Gal., ii. 11-21) ; and the as- sertion of the former, " that he was not a whit behind the very chiefest Apostles" (2 Cor., xi. 5), demonstrate beyond contradiction the utter futility of the Romanist assump- tion of a Petrine supremacy. Further, in the language of Wordsworth : " As it is certain that St. Peter had no su- premacy, none can rightfully be claimed for his pretended successors. First, St. Peter never was Bishop of Eome in the ordinary sense of the term ; for if he traveled to Eome — which can neither be proved nor disproved — he could not have arrived there until toward the close of his life, and consequently could have no successors among the Bish- ops of Rome. Second, it is certain that St. Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna (the Angel of Rev., ii. 8), knew nothing of a supremacy in Anicetus, Bishop of Rome, a.d. 155 ; that Polycrates, Bishop of Ephesus, and the synod of Asi- atic Bishops, and St. Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons, and the Council assembled in that city, knew nothing of any such supremacy in Victor, Bishop of Rome a.d. 187 ; that St. Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, and the African Bishops, knew nothing of it in Stephanus, Bishop of Rome a.d. 255 ; that St. Augustine and the Bishops of Africa knew nothing of it in Zosimus and Boniface, Bishops of Rome a.d. 417 and 418 ; and the Bishops of Eome themselves, the fabled successors of St. Peter, were so far from knowing any thing of such supremacy as residing in themselves or in any one else, that Gregory the Great (a.d. 590) denounced the title of Universal Bishop as arrogant, wicked, schismatical, blas- phemous, and anti-Christian. It was not until a.d. 606, 256 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. when Mauricius, being deposed and murdered by the Em- peror Phocus, and the latter conferred on Boniface III. that honor, which his predecessors, Gregory and Pelagius, had declaimed against as monstrous, blasphemous, and sa- voring of Anti-Christ, that the Papacy was originated. And with the Papacy was joined the fiction of the one sin- gle Visible Head of the Church on earth. On that point, however, it is enough to say that Christ is the Head of all Principality and Power; He is over all things to the Church, which is His Spouse, and has no other Head or Husband but Christ. He only that hath the Bride is the Bridegroom. He is the Chief Pastor." The First Epistle of Peter was written in Babylon, on the Euphrates. " It is scarcely necessary," says Conny- beare, "to notice the hypothesis that in 1 Peter, v. 13, where St. Peter sends salutations from ' Babylon,' he uses Babylon for Rome. We know from Josephus and Philo that Babylon in the Apostolic Age contained an immense Jewish population, which formed a fitting field for the la- bors of the Apostle of the circumcision." And Alford, who concurs in this opinion, add^ : " It is some corrobora- tion of the view that our Epistle was written from the Assyrian Babylon to find that the countries mentioned in the address are enumerated, not as a person in Pome would enumerate them, but in order proceeding from East to West and South ; and also to find that Cosmas, in the sixth century, quotes the conclusion of our Epistle 6 as a proof of the early progress of the Christian religion with- out the bounds of the Roman Empire.' " The precise time when the Epistle was written is quite A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 257 uncertain. It is supposed, however, that the writing took place somewhere between the years 63 and 67. The Epistle was evidently addressed to churches in Asia Minor, consisting principally of Gentile converts, but also containing Jews. Those churches had been directly or in- directly planted by St. Paul ; they had been the scene of his sufferings and labors ; and until his latest moment they were the subjects of his care. Why then did St. Peter ad- dress them ? Was it consistent with the agreement — viz., that one should go to the heathen, and the other to the circumcision (Gal., ii. 9)? No satisfactory explanation has been given. Perhaps none can be. The bearer of the Epistle was Silvanus (chap. v. 12). Who he was it is useless to inquire, as absolutely nothing is known on the subject. It is not impossible, however, that he was the same as the person referred to Acts, xv. 22, 40, or 1 Thess., i. 1. St. Paul having laid the foundation of the Asiatic churches in sound doctrine, the object of St. Peter's Epis- tle was to remind them of that doctrine — " the true grace" in which they then stood — and to exhort them to be " holy in all manner of conversation." Admonitions and coun- sels are likewise given to guide them with respect to their several duties, and govern them in regard to their indi- vidual life and practice. The following summary by Steiger is copied from Al- ford: Chap. i. 1, 2. Address to the elect of the triune God. Chap. i. 3-5. Preciousness of that mercy of God which has thus chosen them to salvation. R 258 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Chap. i. 6-9. Manifested even in their temporal trials. Chap. i. 10-12. Salvation of which the prophets spoke, and which angels desire to look into. Chap. i. 13-17. Therefore the duty of enduring hope, and of holi- ness in the fear of God. Chap. i. 18-21. Considering the precious blood paid as the price of their ransom. Chap. i. 22-25. And of self-purification, as begotten of God's eter- nal Word. Chap. ii. 1-3. And of growth in the Truth. Chap. ii. 4-5. And of building up on Christ as a spiritual priesthood. Chap. ii. 6-10. Who is to the faithful precious, but to the disobe- dient a stone of stumbling. Chap. ii. 11, 12. The duty of pure conversation among the heathen. Chap. ii. 13-17. Of obedience to authorities. Chap. ii. 18-20. To masters even when innocently suffering at their hands. Chap. ii. 21-25. [For such is the calling of those for whom Christ suffered innocently.] Chap. iii. 1-6. To husbands. Chap. iii. 7. [Reciprocal duties of husbands.] Chap. iii. 8-17. All, to one another, being kind and gentle even to enemies. Chap. iii. 18-20.* For Christ so suffered and so lives for the living and the dead. Chap. iii. 20-22. And through His Resurrection and exaltation saves us by baptism. Chap. iv. 1-7. Thus then die to sin and live to God, for Christ is ready to judge all. * Chap. iii. 18-20. " The literature of this passage is almost a li- brary. I understand the words to say that our Lord in His disem- bodied state did go to the place of the detention of departed spirits, and did there announce His work of redemption, preach salvation, in fact, to the disembodied spirits of those who refused to obey the voice of God when the judgment of God was hanging over them." (Afford.) Various, and sometimes absurd enough, have been the interpretations given to this celebrated passage. The above seems to be simple, natural, and in accordance with Hooker's rule of exe- gesis. A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 259 Chap. iv. 8-11. Watching, edifying one another, and glorifying God. Chap. iv. 12-19. Submitting to trial as the proof of your participa- tion in Christ's sufferings. Chap. v. 1-4. Elders tend His flock for His sake. Chap. v. 5, 6. Younger be subject : all be humble. Chap. v. 7-9. Full of trust: watchful, resisting the devil. Chap. v. 10-11. And may He who has graciously called you, after short suffering, strengthen and bless you. Chap. v. 12-14. The bearer and aim of the Epistle : salutations ; concluding blessing. St. Peter was evidently well acquainted with the Epis- tles of St. Paul. A harmony of thought between himself and St. James and St. John may also be traced. He has, however, forms of expression which are entirely his own. The resemblance between the recorded speeches of St. Pe- ter and his Epistles, both as to language and in other re- spects, is quite apparent. "The style of the present Epistle," says Alford, "has an unmistakable and distinctive character of its own, aris- ing very much from the mixed nature of the contents, and the fervid and at the same time practical rather than dia- lectical spirit of its writer." There is in it no logical in- ference, properly so called — no evolving of one thought from another. The link between one idea and another is found not in any progress of unfolding thought or argu- ment, but in the last word of the foregoing sentence, which is taken up and followed out in the new one. "It has been noticed," continues Alford, "that the same thought is often repeated again, and nearly in the same words. This is consistent with the fervent and earn- est spirit of the Apostle ; which, however, as might be ex- 260 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. pected from what we know of him, was chastened by a sense of his own weakness and need of divine upholding grace. There is no Epistle in the Sacred Canon the lan- guage and spirit of which come more directly home to the personal trials, and wants, and weaknesses of the Chris- tian life. Its affectionate warnings and strong consola- tions have ever been treasured up close to the hearts of the weary and heavy-laden but onward-pressing servants of God. The mind of our Father toward us, the aspect of our Blessed Lord as presented to us, the preparation by sufferings for our heavenly inheritance — all these, as here set forth, are peculiarly lovely and encouraging. And the motives to holy purity spring direct out of the simple and childlike recognition of the will of our heavenly Father to bring us to glory." This Epistle of St. Peter has been almost universally a'dmired. Its praises have engaged the pens of many com- mentators. Erasmus regards it as " full of apostolic dig- nity and authority, and well worthy of the chief of the Apostles ;" and Bengel, in strong language, commends the sweet influence which it exercises over the reader. Wie- singer, too, a late writer, thus beautifully characterizes the Epistle: " Certainly it entirely agrees in tone and feeling with what we have before said of the character of the Apostle. His warm self-devotion to the Ldrd, his practical piety and active disposition, are all reflected in it. How full is his heart of the hope of the revelation of the Lord ! With what earnestness does he exhort his readers to lift up their eyes above the sufferings of the present to this future glory, A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 2G1 and in hope of it to stand firm against all temptation ! He who in loving impatience cast himself into the sea to meet the Lord, is also the man who most earnestly testi- fies to the 'hope of His return : he who dated his own faith from the sufferings of His Master, is never weary in hold- ing up the suffering form of the Lord before the eyes of his readers to comfort and stimulate them : he before whom the death of a martyr is an assured expectation, is the man who most thoroughly, and in the greatest variety of aspects, sets forth the duty and the power, as well as the consolation of suffering for Christ. If we had not known from whom the Epistle comes, we must have said, It must be a Eockman of the Church who thus writes : a man whose own soul rests on the living Kock, and who here, with the strength of his testimony, takes in hand to secure the souls of others, and against the harassing storm of present tribulation to ground them on the true Bock of Ages." "The whole may be summed up," concludes Alford, " by saying that the entire Epistle is the following out of our Lord's own command to its writer, c And thou, when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.' " (Luke, xxii. 32.) CHAPTER XXXI. SECOND EPISTLE OF PETER. It was assumed in the last chapter that St. Peter prob- ably traveled to Rome about a.d. 68 — the last year of Nero's reign — and there suffered martyrdom. It may like- wise be assumed that the Apostle, during his brief resi- dence in Rome, perhaps just before his death (chap. i. 13- 15), wrote his Second Epistle (chap. iii. 1). But much obscurity involves the questions of time and place, and nothing positive can be stated in regard to these points. The dissimilarity that exists between the First and Sec- ond Epistle — especially the second chapter of the latter — has caused the genuineness and authenticity of the Second Epistle to be questioned. It is true, difference in style may be traced, but not greater, perhaps, than would natu- rally arise from difference of subject. This difference is only particularly prominent in a comparison of 2 Peter, ii. with 1 Peter, and may be easily accounted for when it is considered that the writer had no doubt seen the Epistle of Jude, and been influenced by it in the composition of part of his own. Resemblances, however, between the First and Second Epistles can easily be traced which point to Peter as the author of both. Since the time of Euse- bius, about a.d. 300, the Second Epistle has occupied a place in the Sacred Canon, and been generally recognized A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 263 as the work of Peter. It is only necessary to add that the conclusions of the most eminent critics are in favor of its genuineness and authenticity. "The relation between this Epistle and that of Jude" is an interesting subject of inquiry to Biblical critics, and one which can not be overlooked. " It is well known," says Alford, " that, besides various scattered resemblances, a long passage occurs, included in the limits Jude 3-16, 2 Peter, ii. 1-19, describing in both cases the heretical enemies of the Gospel, couched in terms so similar as to preclude all idea of entire independence. If considerations of human probability are here, as every where else, to be introduced into our estimate of the Sacred Writings, then either one saw and used the text of the other, or both drew from a common source of oral apos- tolic teaching." Demurring to the latter hypothesis " as not answering to the curious phenomena of concurrence and divergence," and for other convincing reasons, he continues : " We have then to fall back on the supposition that one of the Sacred Writers saw and used the text of the other. And if this be so, there can be but little hesitation in answering the inquiry on which side the preference lies as to priority and originality." Numerous examples are adduced by Alford in elucida- tion of this question. It will be sufficient to give one — perhaps the most striking among them. " St. Jude (verse 9) cites at length from the apocryphal book of Enoch an instance of the different conduct of mighty angels in con- tending with God's adversaries. St. Peter merely asserts 264 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. generally that such is the conduct of mighty angels, but gives no hint of an allusion to the fact on which the gen- eral assertion is based ; nor does the great adversary ap- pear in his sentence, but in his stead are substituted these heretics themselves ; i where angels, being greater in strength and might, bring not against them before the Lord a railing judgment' (chap. ii. 11). This, standing as it does thus by itself, would constitute, were it not for the original in St. Jude being extant, the most enigmatical sentence in the New Testament. "As we pass on through 2 Peter, ii., while the priority of St. Jude," he adds, "is at every step confirmed, we de- rive some interesting notices of the way in which the pas- sage in St. Peter's Epistle was composed — viz., by the Apostle having in his thoughts the passage in St. Jude, and adapting such portions of it as the Spirit guided him to see fit, taking sometimes the mere sound of St. Jude's words to express a different thought, sometimes contract- ing and omitting, sometimes expanding and inserting, as suited his purpose/' Davidson and other critics likewise maintain the priori- ty of Jude. And if it be admitted that the latter, as sup- posed by some, was the coadjutor and successor of St. Pe- ter in the East, hardly a doubt of it can be reasonably en- tertained. Indeed it may be fairly assumed that St. Peter saw the Epistle of St. Jude when he was in Babylon, and perhaps took a copy of it with him when he removed to Pome. " The design of this Epistle," says Bloomfield, " is (with the exception of chapter ii.) very similar to that of the for- A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 265 mer. With respect to its nature and character, it is con- firmatory, cautionary, and hortatory. 1. The Apostle es- tablishes them in the truth and profession of the Gospel. 2. He cautions them against false teachers (whose tenets and practices he graphically describes), and warns them of the mockers and scoffers who should soon start up and deride their expectation of Christ's coming. And after confuting their false assertions, he tells them why the great Day of the Lord was deferred ; and, having described its circumstances and consequences (in which there is a strong coincidence with the account given by St. Paul ; see refer- ence), he subjoins suitable exhortations to prepare for that momentous period. After which he concludes with a truly Apostolical commendation of them to the grace of God." The celebrated passage (chap. i. 19-21) is thus rendered by Alford: "And we have more sure' the prophetic word, to which ye do well in paying attention, as to a candle shining in a dark place, until day shall dawn and the morning-star shall rise in your hearts. This first know- ing that no prophecy of Scripture (Old Testament) comes of private interpretation (i e., springs not out of human interpretation, is not a prognostication made by a man knowing what he means w r hen he utters it). For prophe- cy was never sent after the will of man ; but men spoke from God (£ e., as emissaries from God) borne by the Holy Spirit." By this almost literal rendering all difficulty is removed, and the passage, hitherto obscure, is made per- fectly plain and comprehensible. The Second Epistle of Peter is justly distinguished for the sublime description which it contains of the "Day of 266 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. the Lord'' (chap. iii. 8-13) — one of the grandest and most fearful passages in the New Testament. The total de- struction of the earth by fire, and the coming of the new heavens and the new earth, are there distinctly foretold. The Day of the Lord cometh — words of solemn import, it cometh, it is on the way — and on that day of mercy and of wrath, when the heaven shall be rolled up like a scroll, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, all things will be refined by fire, and from their ashes will arise the bright and new-born world, to be the paradise of the beau- tiful and the good. " The final crisis," says Mr. Black, " will involve the banishment forever of all evil influences and power from a creation which, then in its great Pentecost, shall be re- generated by the Holy Ghost, and shall through Christ be presented by the human race, made divine, to the Father as the glorious offering of His children. " 'For that consummation all nature groans.' " But our souls long after Thee, O Holy God, our Sav- iour ; that we may be transfigured into that likeness which the wasted heart of human nature so feebly conceives ; that likeness whose light is now. so quickly lost to affec- tions agitated by sin, and sorrow, and fear. The enemy came in upon us when we were young, and the desires of our after-years were not for Thee ; and we are sore smit- ten and disquieted. Oh look upon us as we are tossed upon the waves, and beaten by the winds, and scared by the darkness. Oh come to us, Lord Jesus, over the wa- ters, and guide us to the everlasting land 1" CHAPTER XXXII. FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN. St. John removed to Asia after the death of St. Paul, or about the year 69, and, except the short period passed at Patmos in banishment, remained in that region until his death, a.d. 100. His Epistles were probably written at Ephesus, the traditional place of his residence, and where it is supposed that he died. From the ' character of his Epistles, and perhaps of his Gospel also, St. John has been styled the Apostle of love. " Legend," says Milman, "has delighted in harmonizing its tone with the character of the beloved disciple. When he grew so feeble from age as to be unable to utter any long discourse, his last, if we may borrow the expression, his cycnean voice, dwelt on a brief exhortation to mutual charity. His whole sermon consisted in these words : ' Little children, love one another.' " It must be borne in mind, however, that this exhortation was addressed to Christians who, the Apostle presumed, were grounded in faith. "The Christian life," says Tholuck, "is a trans- figured childhood — a glorified childhood in faith, love, and hope. Like children, we believe without suspicion ; like children, we love without distinction ; like children, we hope without limitation ; and to, with this, has the Spirit of grace given to our faith light, to our love wisdom, and 268 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. to our hope an everlasting foundation. Honor, praise, and worship to Him who hath done such great things for us." The First Epistle of John too clearly betrays the hand of the author of the Gospel to leave any sane doubt con- cerning the writer. Its authenticity is equally apparent. It was probably written sometime between the years 70 and 85. Presuming as it does on the part of its readers an acquaintance with the author's Gospel, it must have been written subsequently to the latter. We can not doubt that it was especially intended for the Asiatic churches. Before noticing the contents of the Epistle it is neces- sary to refer to the celebrated disputed reading in chapter v. The passage is known as that of the "Three Witness- es" and extends from the words " in heaven" (verse 7) to the words "in earth" (verse 8) inclusive. In the correct- ed text the passage reads : " For there are three that bear record, the spirit, and the water, and the blood : and these three agree in one." Dr. Jarvis, whose opinion is second to that of no one in this country in regard to this passage, remarks: "The present writer has no prejudices against the text ; for he fully believes in its doctrinal truth, and can therefore read it with a safe conscience, as he could any other apocryphal passage ; but he can not quote it as a part of the canon or rule of faith Let us examine the passage 1 John, v. 7,8. " The greatest number now known of the manuscripts of this Epistle in the original Greek is 149. Of this num- ber 145 do not contain the clause from ' in heaven' to * in A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 269 earth,'* and the remaining four are of little or no critical value. If there then be so little authority for the dis- puted passage, how, it may be asked, did it creep into the Latin Version ? We answer, by means of marginal anno- tations, derived from a gloss upon the eighth verse." " At the end of the fourth century," says Bishop Marsh, " the celebrated Latin Father Augustine — who wrote ten treatises on the First Epistle of St. John, in all of which we seek in vain for the seventh verse of the fifth chapter — was induced, in his controversy with Maximin, to compose a gloss upon the eighth verse. Augustine gives it profess- edly as a gloss upon the words of the eighth verse, and shows, by his own reasoning, that the seventh verse did not then exist. f The high character of Augustine in the Latin Church soon gave celebrity to his gloss, and in a short time it was generally adopted. It appeared, indeed, un- der different forms ; but it was still the gloss of Augustine, though variously modified. The gloss having once ob- tained credit in the Latin Church, the possessors of Latin manuscripts began to note it in the margin, by the side of the eighth verse. Hence the oldest of those Latin manu- scripts which have the passage in the margin have it in a different hand from that of the text. In later manuscripts we find margin and text in the same hand. After the eighth century the insertion of the passage into the body of the text became general. Further, when the seventh * It is found neither in the Codex Vaticanus nor in the Codex Sinaiticus. t In the Greek, the disputed passage is all in the seventh verse. It appears differently in the English version. 270 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. verse made its first appearance, it appeared in as many different forms as there were forms to the gloss upon the eighth verse. And though it now precedes the eighth verse, it followed the eighth verse at its first insertion, as a gloss would naturally follow the text upon which it was made. It is not therefore matter of mere conjecture that the seventh verse originated in a Latin gloss upon the eighth verse : it is a historical fact, supported by evidence which can not be resisted." "In Cranmer's Bible," continues Jarvis, "the suspected passage was printed in parenthesis and in smaller type, but the Bishop's Bible made no such distinction." The version of King James followed the latter. "To account for this change," Jarvis adds, " let it be observed that in 1550 appeared the famous third edition of Stephens, which was supposed to settle the question in favor of the disputed text. A mistaken reliance upon his accuracy induced the belief that it was contained in the manuscripts collated for his edition. All controversy on the subject died away; nor was it revived until the manhood of criticism began with Mill in 1707." Of course the passage is now re- jected by all competent critics. The authenticity of the last half of 1 John, ii. 23, has also been much questioned, and in consequence it will be found in the authorized English version printed in italics. But the passage is in the style and manner of John, and has been admitted to be authentic by Griesbach, Lach- mann, Tischendorf, and Alford. Not a few of the enemies of Christianity who deny the doctrine of the Trinity — the grand mystery of the Faith — A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 271 have hastily concluded that, with 1 John, v. 7, that doc- trine has lost its firmest support. The wish probably is "father to the thought." An examination, however, of one hundred and nineteen texts, collated by Jones of Nay- land, will convince any one willing to be convinced that there is abundant scriptural evidence for the doctrine of the Trinity without 1 John, v. 7. So cardinal a doctrine was never left dependent upon one text. "The style of this Epistle/' says Alford, "has been often truly described as aphoristic and repetitive. And in this is shown the characteristic peculiarity of St. John's mode of thought. The connection of sentence w r ith sen- tence is slightly if at all pointed out. It depends, so to speak, on roots struck in at the bottom of the stream, hid- den from the casual observer, to whom the aphorisms ap- pear unconnected and idly floating on the surface. Lucke well describes this style as indicating a contemplative spir- it, which is ever given to pass from the particular to the general, from differences to the unity which underlies them, from the outer to the inner side of Christian life. Thus the Writer is ever working upon certain fundamental themes and axioms, to w r hich he willingly returns again and again, sometimes unfolding and applying them, some- times repeating and concentrating them : so that we have side by side the simplest and clearest and the most con- densed and difficult sayings : the reader w r ho seeks merely for edification is attracted by the one, and the 'scribe learned in the Scriptures' is satisfied, and his understand- ing surpassed and deepened by the other/' Dusterdieck thus divides the Epistle. "Regarding," 272 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. says Alford, "chap. i. 1-4, as the Introduction, in which the Writer lays down the great object of apostolic preach- ing, asserts of himself full apostolicity, and announces the purpose of his writing — he makes two great divisions of the Epistle : the first, i. 5-ii. 28, the second, ii. 29-v. 5 : on which follows the conclusion, v. 6-21. "Each of these great divisions," continues Alford, "is ruled and pervaded by one master-thought, announced clearly in the outset, which we may call its theme. These themes are impressed on the readers both by positive and negative unfolding, and by polemical defense against er- roneous teachers : and, this being done, each principal por- tion is concluded with a corresponding promise. And both principal* portions tend throughout to throw light on the great subject of the whole, viz., Fellowship with God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. • " This idea" — the necessity of a right faith in the Son of God manifest in the flesh working the above fellowship — " which pervades the whole Epistle, is set forth in two great circles of thought, which have already been described as the two portions of the Epistle. These two, both re- volving round the one great theme, are also, in their inner construction, closely related to each other. God is light — then our fellowship with Him depends on our walking in the light : God is righteous — then we are only mani- fested as children of God, abiding in His love and in Him- self, if we do righteousness. But for both — our walking in light and our doing righteousness — there is one common term, Love: even as God is Love, as Christ walked in Love, out of Love became manifest in the flesh, out of A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 273 Love gave Himself for us. On the other side, as the dark> ness of the world, which can have no fellowship with God, who is Light, denies the Son of God and repudiates Love, so the unrighteousness of the children of the world mani- fests itself in that hatred which slays brethren, because love to brethren can not be where the love of God in Christ is unknown and eternal Life untasted." "The tone of this Epistle," says Ewald, "is not so much that of a father talking with his beloved children as of a glorified saint speaking to mankind from a higher world. Never in any writing has the doctrine of heavenly Love, of a love working in stillness, a love ever unwearied, never exhausted, so thoroughly proved and approved itself, as in this Epistle." We have stated that St. John wrote this Epistle for the Asiatic Churches. In those Churches heresy had sprung up during the lifetime of St. Paul, and had drawn from - him both advice and admonition. Since then false teach- ers had increased, and heresy had reached a larger devel- opment. The generic term for the heresy referred to is Gnosticism. Naturally growing out of the influence of Eastern mysticism, its leading trait, although its forms were legion, consisted in a denial of the Deity of Christ. From that grievous errors not only in belief but in prac- tice resulted. St. John, through his long residence in Asia, became familiar with Gnosticism of every shade, and combated it vigorously, both as an Evangelist and an Apostle. Our Epistle is his pleading, warning voice, urg- ing his children to maintain themselves steadfast in the love of Christ — a love w r hich is inseparable from a belief S 274 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. in His Divinity. It directly follows the Author's Gospel ; and we would commend both to any who may fondly im- agine they can be saved by a human device or religion — who vainly think they can do without the truth as it is in Christ, without the love which is in Jesus, without God the Father to whom only there is access by God the Son. CHAPTER XXXIIL SECOND AND THIRD EPISTLES OF JOHN. These Epistles, though quoted by the early Fathers, • were not established in the Canon as soon as the first. About the beginning of the fourth century, however, we find them fully received. It has been asserted by some critics that they were not written by St. John the Evangelist, but by a Presbyter of that name. The idea originated in the days of the Fathers. Jerome mentions it. It did not obtain much strength, however, and indeed had almost faded out when Erasmus revived it in the sixteenth century. Ebrard, the continuer of Olshausen, avers the same as the u most prob- able hypothesis" in regard to the Second and Third Epis- tles of John. Alford furnishes means for each person to form an opinion for himself. TTe think that, after exam- ining the references, nearly every one will be disposed to " infer" with him, that " from the testimony of the ancient Fathers, and from the absence of sufficient reason for un- derstanding the title Presbyter of any other person than the Apostle himself (as in the case of St. Peter, 1 Peter, v. 1), that these two smaller Epistles were written by St. John the Apostle and Evangelist." In addition, we are inclined to think that our Epistles are two out of many which the Apostle wrote as circumstances demanded. 276 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. There is no reason why some of the Epistles of John should not have perished as well as some of those of St. Paul. In regard to the latter we believe there can be no doubt. The Second and Third Epistles were probably written by the Apostle during his residence at Ephesus. Nothing certain can be predicated with respect to the date of these Epistles. Alford suggests that "the jour- neys mentioned in 2 John, 12, and 3 John, 10, 14, may be one and the same." Eusebius refers to a journey of the Apostle after his discharge from Patmos, in the course of which he established Bishops, regulated churches, and ap- pointed ministers. ".It may have been," says Alford, "in prospect of this journey that he threatens Diotrephes in 2 John, 10. If so, both Epistles belong to a very late pe- riod of the Apostle's life, and probably subsequently to the writing of the Apocalypse." This would place their date at the latter part of the first century.^ In regard to the Second Epistle the question arises : To whom was it addressed ? Beza says : " Some think Eclecta (translated < elect') a proper name, which I do not approve, because in that case the order of the words would have been < to the Lady Eclecta.' Others think that this name denotes the Chris- tian Church in general. But that is disproved, first, by its being a manner of speaking altogether unusual ; sec- ondly, by the Apostle's expressly promising, in the two last verses, to come to her and her children ; thirdly, by send- ing to her the salutation of her sister, whom he calls Eclec- ta, I therefore think that this Epistle was inscribed to a A HAXD-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 277 woman of eminence, of whom there were some here and there who supported the Church with their wealth, and that he called her Elect, that is, excellent, and gave her the title of ' Lady/ as St. Luke gave to Theophilus, and St. Paul gave to Festus, the title of ' most excellent.' For the Christian religion does not forbid such honorable titles to be given when they are due." Of the thirteen verses which compose this Epistle, " eight/' says Dr. Lardner, " may be found in the First Epistle, either in sense or in expression." "The design of the Second Epistle was,*' says Bishop Tomline, " to caution the lady to whom it was addressed against those false teachers who asserted that Christ was not a real man, but only a man in appearance, and that he did not actually suffer what he seemed to suffer. This doctrine the Apostle condemns in very severe terms as be- ing destructive of the atonement of Christ ; and he recom- mends that no encouragement or countenance should be given to those who maintain it ; he inculcates also the ne- cessity of obedience to the commandments of God, and of mutual love and benevolence among Christians." Of such importance does St. John consider soundness in the faith, that he directs her not to receive into her house or bid God-speed to any one who should come with- out the doctrine of Christ. What, it may be asked, would St. John think of the manner in which the hand of fellow- ship is now extended by Christians to those w r ho deny the Divinity of Christ, and reject the Lord that bought them ? The Third Epistle is addressed to one Gaius, but who he was or where he lived we can not tell. Probably he 278 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. was some disciple of John residing near Ephesus. It would be idle to conjecture further. " The design of the Epistle/' says Mant, " was to com- mend Gaius for having shown kindness to some Chris- tians as they passed through the place where he resided ; to censure Diotrephes, who had arrogantly assumed some authority to himself; and to praise the good conduct of Demetrius. It is not known who the latter were." In style the Third Epistle resembles the two others, and is marked by the same simplicity and sweetness which characterize all the writings of St. John, the Apostle of the love which rejoice th in the truth— of the love which loves God because He first loved us. CHAPTER XXXIV. EPISTLE OF JUDE. Writers differ in regard to the author of this Epistle almost as much as in regard to the author of the Epistle of James. "Those/' says Alford, " who see in that James the Apostle James, son of Aipheus, regard our writer as the Apostle Jude, also the son of Alpheus : the ' Judas not Iscariot' of John, xiv. 22. Those, on the other hand, who see in that James not one of the Twelve, but the act- ual brother of our Lord, the son of Joseph and Mary, re- gard our writer as the Judas of Matthew, xiii. 55, another brother of our Lord, and a younger son of Joseph and Mary." As we incline to the latter opinion, it follows that we must regard our author as the uterine brother of Jesus. He does not assume to be, and probably he was not, an Apostle. A comparison of verses 1 and 17 seems to show this. But, as delicacy and modesty would forbid his boast- ing his fraternal relation to his Lord, he styles himself simply his "servant, and the brother of James," who, as Bishop of Jerusalem, and Chief of the first Council of the Church, enjoyed no small distinction among the Christians of that age.— Cf. Acts, xv. 13 ; xxi. 18 : Gal., i. 19 ; ii. 9, 12. Of the personal history of Jude we can say nothing, ex- cept that, with his brethren, he did not believe upon the Lord (John, vii. 5) until after the Resurrection. Eusebius 280 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. records an anecdote of two of bis grandsons, but it is of not much importance. A few doubts have been cast upon the authenticity of this Epistle, but the weight of evidence is so decidedly in its favor that the doubts do not claim particular consid- eration. As to where Jude wrote we are entirely in the dark, knowing so little of the author's life. Alford conjectures Palestine. As to what particular body of converts his Epistle was addressed we are equally at fault. We can only say that, though entitled u General," it was especially intended for some circle of Jewish Christians living in contact with the grossest corruptions of the age. These, acting upon the contiguous Church, gave birth to the false teachers equal- ly reprobated by St. Peter and our author, . The date of this Epistle we place somewhere between the years 63 and 67. Greater definiteness can not be at- tained. The relation between Jude, 3-16, and 2 Peter, ii., 1-19, has already been noticed in the chapter on the Second Epistle of St. Peter. The priority and originality of the Epistle of Jude as a composition were there conceded. The following passage from Alford is confirmatory of the position taken, and affords a fine comment upon the style of St. Jude : "In verse 11, the Apostle, fervidly borne along in his impassioned invective, collects together three instances of Old Testament transgressors, to all of whom he compares those whom he is stigmatizing. They were murderers like A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 281 Cain, covetous like Balaam, rebellious like Korah. But out of these St. Peter, dealing with /a fee teachers, whom lie is comparing with the false prophets of old, selects Balaam only, and goes at length (verses 15, 16) into his sin and his rebuke. Can any one persuade us that in the impetuous whirlwind of St. Jude's invective he adopted and abridged the example furnished by St. Peter (ii. 15), prefixing and adding those of Cain and Korah V 9 The design of the Epistle is apparently the same as that of the Second Epistle of Peter. Bishop Tomline thus sums up the contents : "St. Jude, after saluting the Christian converts, and praying for divine blessings upon them, exhorts them earn- estly to contend for the genuine faith as delivered origin- ally to the saints, in opposition to the erroneous doctrines taught by false teachers ; he reminds the Christians of the severity of God's judgments inflicted upon the apostate an- gels and unrighteous men of former times ; from these ex- amples he warns them against adopting the seducing prin- ciples of those who were endeavoring to pervert them from the truth, and denounces woe against all persons of impi- ous and profligate character ; he reminds them of the pre- dictions of the Apostles concerning mockers in the last days, and exhorts them to preserve themselves in the true faith and love of God, and to use their best exertions for the preservation and recovery of others. He then con- cludes with an animated doxology suited to the general design of the Epistle." The prophecy of Enoch (verses 14, 15) is found in an apocryphal book of that name well known to the Fathers. 282 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. The Greek Church long preserved fragments of it. An Ethiopic Version of the whole book, however, was discov- ered by Bruce, and carried to England the latter part of the last century. This has been published both in En- gland and Germany. "The book consists," says Alford, "of revelations purporting to have been given to Enoch and to Noah ; and its object is to vindicate the ways of Divine Providence ; to set forth the terrible retribution reserved for sinners, whether angelic or human ; and to 'repeat in every form the great principle that the world, natural, moral, and spiritual, is under the immediate gov- ernment of God.' " The date of the book of Enoch is un- certain. Some attribute it to an ante, and some to a post Christian period. We are unable, therefore, to decide which borrowed from the other, or whether, indeed, each did not draw upon some independent and early authority. • The incident of the dispute about the body of Moses (verse 9) Alford holds " most likely to have been a frag- ment of primitive tradition." On this subject Townsend observes: "Throughout the Apostolical writings there are many facts alluded to which are not recorded in the Jewish Scriptures : the sin and pun- ishment of the evil angels (2 Peter, ii. 4) ; Noah's preach- ing righteousness to the people before the flood (2 Peter, ii.5); Abraham's seeing Christ's day (John, viii. 56); Lot's vexation at the iniquity of the Sodomites (2 Peter, ii. 7) ; the emblematical purpose of the slaying of the Egyptians by Moses (Acts, vii. 25) ; the names of Pharaoh's magi- cians (2 Tim., iii. 8) ; Moses's exclamation on the Mount (Heb.,xii. 21); with many others: which things seem to A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 283 prove beyond a doubt that the inspired writers of the Old Testament did not record all the revelations made to them by God, any more than they related every event in the lives of those persons whose histories they have written." All the facts recorded in Scripture, we may add, rest upon the authority of the inspired writers — an authority which must be deemed amply sufficient. Another point in this Epistle is worthy of particular notice. From the author's allusion to the gainsaying of Core (verse 11) it is apparent that the same sin (schism) which Corah committed in the Jewish Church can like- wise be committed in the Christian Church ; else the illus- tration would not be apposite. It is a point which should be remembered by those who maintain that the sin x)f schism can not now be committed. So far from the latter being the case, St. Jude clearly admonishes all Christians to avoid the sins of false doctrine, heresy, and schism,* by enjoining upon them the duty of building themselves up in their most holy faith, and keeping themselves in the love of God, who only is able to keep them from falling. The style of St. Jude's Epistle is forensic, and marked by great oratorical power. Lauerman thinks that the writer was well versed in that species of composition, and * False doctrine is unintentional error, fallen into through igno- rance and not willfully held. Heresy is corruption of doctrine, or open denial of the true faith. Schism is violation of order, or rend- ing of the body of Christ. They are apt to run into each other, and no person guilty of one can be sure that he will not end in being guilty of all. Hence each one of these sins is severely reprobated by the Apostles in their several Epistles, and by our Saviour Him- self in the Revelation. 284 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. that he sometimes "rises to a height that can not easily be paralleled." This is eminently true of his invective, which perhaps exceeds every thing of the kind known. The concluding doxology is remarkable for its grandeur and energy, and may be compared with those of St. Paul. CHAPTER XXXV. THE REVELATION OF ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. St. John was banished to Patmos by Doinitian, in the last year of his reign, a.d. 96. The place thus distin- guished for all time was a small rocky island, one of the Sporades, and lay south of Samos, in the centre of the Ica- rian Sea, and not far from the Roman Province of Asia. It was frequently employed by the Emperors, on account of its desolate character, as a place of punishment for those who had the misfortune to incur their displeasure. The modern name is Patimo, or Palmosa. A cave is still point- ed out by the inhabitants as the traditional spot where the Apostle was "in the Spirit on the Lord's day." During St. John's seclusion in Patmos he received and committed to writing the Revelation which bears his name. It is probable that he published it shortly after his return to Ephesus, whither he went, on his recall from banish- ment, on the death of Domitian, and the accession ofNer- va, a.d. 96. The Apocalypse, or Revelation, was the last book ad- mitted into the Canon of the New Testament. Notwith- standing, as Lowman observes, " hardly any one book has received more early, more authentic, and more satisfacto- ry attestations." The mysteriousness of its contents was doubtless the cause of the delay exhibited in receiving it. The same cause unfitted it to be read publicly, or even 286 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. generally, and explains why fewer copies of the Apoca- lypse have been handed down than of any other book in the New Testament. We do not deem it necessary to enter further inro ques- tions concerning the genuineness, authenticity, and canon- icity of this book — by whom, when, or where it was writ- ten. Alford has elaborately unfolded and discussed all these points, and arrived at the conclusions above set forth —viz., that St. John, the Apostle and Evangelist, author of the Gospel and three Epistles, wrote "in the Spirit" the Revelation, in the Greek language, when he was in banishment in the Island of Patmos, a.d. 96. This, we may add, has ever been the constant opinion of the Church. Until lately, the original text of the Revelation was in a more confused state than that of any other portion of the Greek Testament. This proceeded from the Received Text, which abounds with erroneous readings, having been fol- lowed for many years. But this is no longer the case. Tischendorf, Tregelles, and Alford have each resorted to MS. authority, and revised the text upon critical princi- ples. The edition of Alford is the latest ; and as he was aided by the last-published collation of the Codex Vatica- nus, and had partial access to the Codex Sinaiticus, it is the finest extant, and as nearly correct as may be. The Revelation is acknowledged by all to be the most sublime portion of the New Testament. In style it resem- bles the other writings of St. John, though it is far less pure. "It abounds," says Townsend, "with Hebraisms, and with images derived from the Jewish traditions and peculiarities ; whereas the Gospel and Epistles of St. John A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 287 are written both correctly and elegantly," though not clas- sically, as the first four verses of St. Luke's Gospel. " It is true the three books are proved to be the work of the same author, by their general agreement both in style and expression. Numerous instances of this coincidence have been collected ; but the chief barbarisms of the Apocalypse are to be found neither in the Epistles nor in the Gospel of St. John. In this respect they are remarkably distin- guished from each other." The " roughnesses and sole- cisms in the Apocalypse have been shown by Davidson," says Alford, " to have been very much exaggerated : there are hardly any which may not be paralleled in classical authors themselves, and their occurrence is no more than is due to the subject and occasion." He afterward avers that the diversity between the Greek of the Gospel and the Greek of the Apocalypse must be sought in u psycho- logical considerations." He is not alone in this opinion. " The occasion of writing the Apocalypse," says Home, " is sufficiently evident from the book itself. John, being in exile in the island of Patmos, is favored with the ap- pearance of the Lord Jesus Christ to him, and is com- manded to commit to writing the visions which he beheld. " The scope or design of the book is twofold : first, gen- erally to make known to the Apostle ' the things which are' (chap. i. 19), that is, the then present state of the Chris- tian Churches in Asia ; and secondly, and principally, to reveal to him i the things which shall be hereafter,' or the constitution and fates of the Christian Church through its several periods of propagation, corruption, and amendment, from its beginning to its consummation in glory." 288 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. " The prophecy of the Revelation/' adds Daubuz, " was designed as a standing monument to the Church, to know what destinies attend it ; and that, when men should suf- fer for the name of Christ, they might here find some con- solation both for themselves and for the Church : for them- selves, by the prospect and certainty of a reward ; for the Church, by the testimony that Christ never forsakes it, but will conquer at last." The following analysis of the Apocalypse is principally derived from Home's Introduction : PART I.— i.-iv. THE THINGS WHICH ARE. Sect. 1. Introduction (i. 1-3). The Epistle of John to the seven churches, and his account of the appearance of the Lord Jesus — His eternity — John's com- mission to write (i. 4-20). Sect. 2. Epistle to the angel of the Church of Ephesus (ii. 1-7), No. 1. Sect. 3. Epistle to the angel of the Church of Smyrna (ii. 8-11), No. 2. Sect. 4. Epistle to the angel of the Church of Pergamos (ii. 12-17), No. 3. Sect. 5. Epistle to the angel of the Church of Thyatira (ii. 18-29), No. 4. Sect. 6. Epistle to the angel of the Church of Sardis (iii. 1-6), No. 5. Sect. 7. Epistle to the angel of the Church of Philadelphia (iii. 7- 13), No. 6. Sect. 8. Epistle to the angel of the Church of Laodicea (iii. 14-22), No. 7. The seven churches of proconsular Asia were probably planted by or under the direction of St. Paul. The names of the angels — apostles — who were in charge of the Asi- atic churches are, with one or two exceptions, unknown. A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 289 Timothy, it is not improbable, was the angel of the Church of Ephesus ; and Polycarp, the well-known disciple of St. John, the angel of the Church of Smyrna. " It is observ- able,-' says Wordsworth, "that in the original Greek of the Revelation the epithets assigned to the several church- es agree in gender wdth the word angel, and not with the word church, so that the Holy Spirit seems emphatically to identify each church with its respective president." " We read," remarks St. Jerome, " the Apocalypse of the Apostle John, in which the angels of the church.es are praised for the virtues, or censured for the vices of those over whom they are said to preside." The Epistles ap- pear to be twofold — addressed, first, to the angels them- selves personally; and, second, through them to the church- es. And though written to the angels of particular church- es, they are adapted, in some measure, to all Christians. " He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches." PART II.— iv.-xxii. • THE THINGS WHICH SHALL BE. Sect. 1. The representation of the divine glory in heaven (iv.). Sect. 2. The sealed book, the Lamb who opens it, and the praises sung by the heavenly choir (v.). Sect. 3. The opening of the first six seals (vi. vii.). 1st seal, Vision of the White Horse. 2d seal, Vision of the Red Horse. 3d seal, Vision of the Black Horse. 4th seal, Vision of the Pale Horse. 5th seal, Cry of the Souls under the Altar. 6th seal, Great earthquake, followed by the change in the sun and moon, the falling of the stars, the rolling up of heaven, and universal horror at the day of the wrath of the Lamb. Vi- T 290 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. sion of the four angels holding the four winds, and the angel from the East. Sealing of the 144,000, and the presentation of the white-robed palm-bearing multitude before the throne. Vision explained (vii.). Sect. 4. 7th seal, Silence. Vision of the seven angels with the seven trumpets, and the angel with the golden censer. 1st trumpet, third part of all trees and grass destroyed by fire and hail. 2d trumpet, third part of all ships and fishes destroyed by the burning mountain cast into the sea. 3d trumpet, Star Wormwood cast upon the fountains to corrupt them. 4th trumpet, third part of the sun, moon, and stars smitten. Vision of the flying angel, and the denunciation of the three woes. 5th trumpet, first woe. Bottomless pit opened. Fierce locusts go forth under Apollyon and afflict men. 6th trumpet, second woe. Vision of the loosing of the four an- gels, bound in the Euphrates. Army of horsemen destroy the third part of men. Vision of the angel standing upon the sea and upon the land. The seven thunders — unwritten. Angel swears time shall be no longer. Vision of the little book— the measuring of the temple — the two witnesses — Glory to God. Sect. 5. 7th trumpet sounds. Vision of the woman persecuted by the dragon, and of the wild beasts from the sea and the land (ix. 15 ; xiii;). Sect. 6. Vision of the Lamb and the 144,000 elect on Mount Zion, and the proclamations or warnings. i. The Lamb on Mount Zion (xiv. 1-5). ii. The first angel proclaims (6, 7). iii. The second angel proclaims (8). iv. The third angel proclaims (9-12). . v. The blessedness of those who die in the Lord (13). vi. The vision of the harvest and vintage (14-20). Sect. 7. Vision of the seven vials, and the episode of the harlot of Babylon and her fall. i. Vision preparatory (xv. ; xvi. 1). ii. The pouring out of the seven vials (2-21). iii. The great harlot (xvii.). A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. 291 iv. The judgment of Babylon (xviii.). v. Exultation over the fallen Babylon, and the approach of the Lamb (xix. 1-10). Sect. 8. The grand conflict — the millennium— the conflict renewed — the judgment — the new creation. i. The appearance of the Lord with His followers (xix. 11-18). ii. The conflict and victory over the beast and false prophet (19-21). iii. Satan bound, and the Millennium (xx. 1-6). iv. Satan loosed, deceives the nations, cast into the lake of fire (xx. 7-10). v. General Kesurrection and Judgment (11-15). Sect. 9. Description of the New Jerusalem (xxi.-xxii. 5). Sect, 10. Conclusion (xxii. 6-21). It is not intended here to attempt any explanation of the prophecies contained in this mysterious book. No part of Scripture "has been more commented on," says Home, "or-fcas given rise to a greater variety of interpretations, than the Apocalypse, which has ever been accounted the most difficult part of the New Testament. The figurative language in which the visions are delivered; the variety of symbols under which the events are presignified ; the extent of the prophetical information, which appears to pervade all ages of the Christian Church, afford little hope of its elucidation at present. "Many parts of the Apocalypse/' continues Home, "are necessarily obscure to us, because they contain predictions of events still future, yet enough is sufficiently clear to con-* vey to us the most important religious instruction. This book is to us precisely what the prophecies of the Old Testament were to the Jews, nor is it in any degree more inexplicable." 292 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. "No prophecies in the Revelation," says Gilpin, "can be more clouded with obscurity than that a child should be born of a pure Virgin — that a mortal should not see corruption — that a person despised and numbered among malefactors should be established forever on the Throne of David. Yet still the pious Jeiv preserved his faith entire amidst all these wonderful and, in appearance, contradic- tory intimations. He looked into the holy books in which they were contained with reverence, and with an eye of patient expectation ' waited for the consolation of Israel.' We in the same manner look up to the prophecies of the Apocalypse for the full consummation of the great scheme of the Gospel, when Christianity shall finally prevail over all the corruptions of the world, and be universally estab- lished in its utmost purity." The Revelation closes with an anathema against alHvho shall add unto or take away from the w r ords of the Book of this Prophecy. Owing to the Revelation being the closing Book of the Canon of Scripture, some have treated this anathema as applying to all who may add to or sub- tract from the whole Bible ; others, to any wdio may add to or take away from the text of this particular Book. The former exegesis is clearly unwarrantable. In regard to the latter Alford remarks : " The adding and the tak- ing away are in the application and reception in the heart. All must be received and realized." The comment is ap- plicable to the whole Testament. We add the final benediction to the Church, according to the reading of the Codex Sinaiticus : The grace of the Lord Jesus be with the Saints. CHAPTER XXXVI. CONCLUSION. The New Testament having been thus considered in its various parts, it only remains to add one or two reflec- tions which the subject suggests before taking leave of the reader. So much has already been said on the scope and design of the New Testament, so frequent and familiar are eulogies in regard to it, that to enlarge further upon those points would be superfluous. Although the surpassing excellence of the New Testa- ment is universally acknowledged, and it is every where revered as the law and the testimony to which all good men will defer, it must ever be borne in mind that, how- ever noble the Book may be as a composition, however beautiful its language, however pure its morality, however sublime the religion which it inculcates, the only just com- pliment that can be paid to it, the only true honor that can be conferred upon it, by man, is to use it. Neither the mere possession of the Sacred Volume nor the simple in- tellectual appreciation of its worth, and admiration of its wonderful beauty, avail any thing. It is only the faithful use of the N^fv Testament which will profit. " Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved," is, in brief, the sum of the New Testament. A sincere belief involves the full recognition of man's sinful- 294 A HAND-BOOK OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. ness, and the personal application of Christ as the gracious means w T hereby alone man may be restored. The mode by which Christ's merits are appropriated is faith, faith which worketh by love. Such a faith will exhibit itself in an earnest desire to find out His will and perform it, to know Him and keep His commandments. The import- ance, therefore, of the study of the Volume which contains His will can not be overestimated. The more, too, that it is studied, the greater will be the admiration which it will excite, and the stronger the attachment which it will in- duce. Mere bibliolatry, however, is to be avoided. It is the life of the Book which must be apprehended. Not men- tal only, but spiritual cultivation must be the object — the fitting the man>to be the "temple of the Holy Ghost." Knowledge alone is insufficient for such a purpose. Man must be built up in faith, enlivened by hope, and warmed by charity, that he may be fully edified. The intellectual nature need not be neglected, for true " edification con- sists in the improvement of the whole man. To edify the soul is not merely to lay the foundations of a good charac- ter, not merely to raise the superstructure, but to improve the spiritual being in every excellence."* With this principle in view, every study will be useful, all valuable and proper in their places ; but none will com- pare in excellence with the study of the Scriptures, for they teach the way of the Lord, they point t>ut the path to heaven. Be wise then unto salvation. "Spend not your time * Professor Park, Bib. Sac, ii. 41. A HAND-BOOK OP THE NEW TESTAMENT. 295 in that which profits not ; for your labor and your health, your time and your studies are valuable ; and it is a thou- sand pities to see a diligent and hopeful person spend him- self in gathering cockle-shells and little pebbles, in telling sands upon the shores, and making garlands of useless dai- sies. Study that which is profitable, that which will make you useful to churches and commonwealths, that which will make you desirable and wise. Only I shall add this to you, that in learning there are variety of things as well as in religion : there is mint and cummin, and there are the weighty things of the law ; so there are studies more and less useful, and every thing that is useful will be re- quired in its time ; and I may in this also use the w r ords of our blessed Saviour : i These things ought you to look after, and not to leave the other unregarded.' But your great care is to be in the things of God and of religion, in holiness and true wisdom, remembering the saying of Ori- gen, 'That knowledge that arises from goodness (Matt., xix. 17) is something that is more certain and more divine than all demonstration' — than all other learnings of the world."* * Jfererav Taylor. THE END. v ^. •*■ rtS 53° JtW -.■/■J'- Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process. Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide Treatment Date: June 2005 PreservationTechnologies A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATION 1 1 1 Thomson Park Drive Cranberry Township. PA 16066 (724)779-2111