CORNELL 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
"''llli™™i®Lliria.a,,.te.'l!b?W..B^^^ 
 
 oljn 
 
 3 1924 029 293 565 
 
Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of this book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
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 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924029293565 
 
THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
PUBLISHED BY 
 
 JAMES MACLEHOSE AND SONS, GLASGOW, 
 ^xtblisiuxs to thz Bmbtvsit^. 
 
 MACMILLAN AND CO., LTD,, LONDON. 
 
 New Yorkt The Mactnillan Co. 
 
 Toronto, - The Mactnillan Co. of Canada. 
 
 London, ' Simpkint Hamilton and Co. 
 
 Cambridge^ - Bowes and Bowes. 
 
 Edinburgh, - Douglas and Foulis. 
 
 Sydney., Angus and Robertson. 
 
THE ETHICS OF 
 ST PAUL 
 
 BY 
 
 AECHIBALD B. D. ALEXANDER, M.A. 
 
 AUTHOR OF ' A SHORT HISTORY OP PHILOSOPHY ' 
 
 GLASGOW 
 JAMES MACLEHOSE AND SONS 
 
 PUBLISHERS TO THE UNIVERSITT 
 
 1910 
 
GLASGOW : PRINTED AT THE UNIVERSITT PRESS 
 BY ROBERT MACLEHOSE AND CO. LTD. 
 
PREFACE 
 
 The theology of St. Paul has found exponents many and 
 able ; the ethics of St. Paul has not been so fortunate. 
 Some reference to the moral teaching of the apostle is 
 made by most of the modern treatises on New Testa- 
 ment theology as well as by several of the recent 
 works upon Christian ethics ; but, with the exception 
 of a small volume by Ernesti, entitled Die Ethik des 
 Apostels PauluSy published in 1868, and one or two 
 papers in English and German periodicals, there is a 
 singular dearth of writings specially devoted to this 
 theme. 
 
 No one can read the epistles of Paul without per- 
 ceiving the ethical character of a large portion of their 
 teaching, and noticing how even the great theological 
 principles themselves have a profound moral import. In 
 these days when the ethics of Christianity is claiming 
 attention, and when men are asking what has the Gospel 
 to say upon the great moral and social problems, it is only 
 natural that an attempt should be made to ascertain the 
 attitude to the practical questions of life of one who was 
 the first, as he was the greatest exponent of the mind of 
 Christ. It has been said that for many thinkers " St. 
 Paul is as obsolete as Tertullian or Calvin." Whether 
 this be an exaggeration or not, it may be that, for an age 
 impatient of the technical language of dogma, the prac- 
 tical teaching of the apostle with regard to the conduct 
 
vi PREFACE 
 
 of life may have a note of appeal and do something to 
 convince the modern mind that Pauline truth when 
 translated out of its theological nomenclature has a 
 deathless message for men of all times. It has seemed, 
 therefore, to the present writer that a separate view of 
 the ethical as distinguished from the doctrinal teaching 
 of the apostle may be of some service. It will scarcely 
 be denied that Paul dwells frequently upon the details of 
 human conduct, but the point to be noted is that such 
 details are not excrescences but of a piece with all his 
 thinking, his ethical precepts are not simply tacked on as 
 an appendix, but flow directly, as a natural sequence, 
 from his dogmatic principles. 
 
 The special aim of this volume consequently is not 
 only to present in a systematic whole the various virtues 
 and duties which the apostle inculcates, but also to show 
 (and this is indeed the central thought of the book) that 
 morality is absolutely vital to St. Paul's religion, and that 
 he ever seeks to bring the dynamic of the Gospel to bear 
 upon practical life. 
 
 'No man is independent of his environment, and with 
 all his originality Paul was affected by the conditions of 
 life and thought amid which he was reared. The writer 
 has therefore endeavoured to indicate the apostle's rela- 
 tions to the ethical conceptions of bis day, contrasting and 
 comparing at various points his teaching with the philo- 
 sophical systems of the ancient world. 
 
 The particular topics dealt with fall into three main 
 divisions : 
 
 1. Sources and Postulates, treating not only of the 
 influences which shaped the early life and thought of 
 Paul, but also of the presuppositions with regard to 
 man's moral nature which he brought over into the new 
 life from his pre-Christian days. 
 
PREFACE vii 
 
 2. Ideals and Principles, dealing with the new Ideal of 
 life, the peculiarity of which, as Paul conceived it, is 
 shown to be that it is at once Norm and Power, Vision 
 and Energy ; and the chief forms or virtues in which 
 the ideal is to be realized. 
 
 3. Duties and Spheres, indicating the particular obliga- 
 tions prescribed by the Christian ideal and the different 
 spheres amid which the Christian is called upon to 
 exercise the ethical life. 
 
 The attempt has been made to base the exposition 
 upon a careful study of the actual words of the apostle, 
 and the value of a work of this kind must largely depend 
 not only upon the appositeness of the quotations, but also 
 upon their cumulative force. While the author would 
 fain believe that no important passage bearing upon the 
 moral life has been overlooked, he has sought to avoid 
 giving to his treatment of the subject the character of a 
 mere mosaic of texts. 
 
 The detailed synopsis of contents as well as the 
 abundant references to other works, it is hoped, may 
 prove useful to those who desire to pursue the subject. 
 A large number of books upon philosophical and Christian 
 ethics has been consulted, but the author has endeavoured 
 as far as possible to acknowledge his indebtedness. 
 
 To the Kev. Charles Allan, M.A., Einnart Church, 
 Greenock, who with ungrudging kindness carefully read 
 each chapter in MS. and afterwards in proof, and placed 
 at his disposal many valuable suggestions, the present 
 writer tenders his most grateful thanks. 
 
 United Free Manse, 
 Langbank, bt Glasgow. 
 
Justitia et Caritaa unicum et oertissimum verae fidei 
 Catholicae signum est, et veri Spiritus Sancti fruotua ; 
 et ubicunque haec reperiuntur, ibi Christus re vera est, 
 et ubicunque haec desunt deeat Christus : Solo namque 
 Christi Spiritu duci possumus in amorem justitiae et 
 Caritatis. 
 
 Spinoza, Etkica. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 Chapter I. Introductory. St. Paul 
 AS AN Ethical Teacher. 
 
 Christianity at first doctrinal - 
 
 PAQB 
 1 
 
 Due to (1) Nature of Subject 
 
 1 
 
 (2) Early Environment - 
 
 2 
 
 Awakening of Ethical Spirit 
 
 % 
 
 (1) In Reformation Period 
 
 2 
 
 (2) In Modern Thought - 
 
 3 
 
 Ethical Element in New Testament 
 
 4 
 
 (1) In Synoptics - 
 
 4 
 
 (2) In Epistles 
 
 5 
 
 Paul as a Theologian 
 
 5 
 
 But his Writings have Ethical Purpose 
 
 7 
 
 Teaching of Jesus and Paul compared 
 
 8 
 
 As to (1) Source 
 
 9 
 
 (2) Motive - 
 
 10 
 
 (3) Aim 
 
 12 
 
 As Missionary, Paul laid stress on Ethical 
 
 15^ 
 
 Message met need of age 
 
 IS- 
 
 Religion must permeate Life 
 
 IS- 
 
 Nature and Definition of Ethics 
 
 17^ 
 
 Enumeration and Authenticity of Paul's Epistles 
 
 18 
 
 Evidence of development in Paul's Teaching 
 
 20 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PART FIRST. 
 SOURCES AND POSTULATES. 
 
 Chapter IL The Shaping Influences of 
 Paul's Teaching. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Teaching Developed by Contact with Age 27 
 Three Factors : Ancestry, Environment, Personality - 28 
 
 I. Hebrew Ancestry and Training 29 
 
 (1) Home Influences 29 
 
 (2) Holy Scriptures 31 
 
 Ethics of Old Testament 32 
 
 (3) Influence of Rabbinical and Alexandrian Learning 35 
 
 Logos and Thora 37 ' 
 
 IL Grbco-Roman Environment 38 
 
 (1) Tarsus Upbringing and Atmosphere 39^ 
 
 (2) Greek Language and Literature 40 
 
 (3) Stoic Philosophy - 42 
 
 Sketch of Stoicism - 42 
 
 Points of contact with Stoic Thought - 49 
 
 1. Divine Immanence - 49 . 
 
 2. Idea of Wisdom 51 , 
 
 3. Idea of Freedom 53. 
 
 4. Idea of Brotherhood 54 
 III. Influence of Christ — Personal Conviction 55 
 
 (1) Conversion - . gg 
 
 (2) Personality - . gw 
 
 (3) Originality ^ _ gg 
 
CONTENTS xi 
 
 Chapter III. The Psychology of St. Paul. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Apostle's Yiew as to "Natural Man" 60- 
 
 Substratum of Natural Endowments presupposed 62 
 
 DiFEicuLTY OP Subject 63 
 
 I. Statement and Examination of Terms 63 
 
 (1) Flesh, or '^dp^ 64 
 
 (2) Body, or Sw^ua 64 
 
 (3) Spirit, or Uvev/xa 64 
 
 (4) Soul, or "iTvxrj - - 65 
 
 (5) Heart, or KapSta 65 
 
 (6) Mind, or Nous - 65 
 
 (7) Conscience, or ^vvetSrjcris 66 
 
 II. Their Relation and Interdependence 67 
 
 Question as to twofold or threefold Constitution 67 
 
 Practical unity of Soul or Ego - 68 
 
 1. Consideration of higher or Spiritual Side 68' 
 
 (1) Soul as expressed in Heart and Mind 69 
 
 (2) Soul as expressed in Conscience 70 
 
 2. Consideration of Lower Side of Man 73- 
 
 (1) "Body" and "Flesh"- 74 
 
 (2) Flesh not Source of Sin - 77 
 
 (3) Conflict of Body and Spirit - 78 
 
 III. Ethical Significance of Natural Powers - 80 
 
 1. Accountability of Man presupposed 80' 
 
 Objections met 
 
 (1) Sin inherent in Flesh - - 81 
 
 (2) Universal participation in Adam's Sin 82 
 
 2. No disparagement of Body - * - 85 
 
 3. Intellectual Powers honoured - - 86 
 
 4. Latent Spirituality assumed - - - qq 
 
xii CONTENTS 
 
 PART SECOND. 
 IDEALS AND PRINCIPLES. 
 
 Chapter IV. The Ethical Ideal of St. Paul. 
 
 PAGS 
 
 I. Nature and Content of Ideal 97 •' 
 
 Three main Elements 
 
 1. Holiness as Will of God 99 
 
 Examination of principal Epistles 99 
 
 Chief End of Man, God's Righteousness 103 
 
 2. Christlikeness 104 
 
 (1) Christ as Pattern 105 
 
 (2) Christ as Power 107 
 
 (3) Christ as Principle 109 
 
 3. Brotherhood and Unity of Man 110 
 
 II. Characteristics of Ideai^ 113 
 
 1. Absoluteness - 114 
 
 No compromise 
 
 (1) With Judaism - 114 
 
 (2) With Asceticism of Rome - 115 
 
 (3) With Immorality of Corinth 115 
 
 2. Inwardness - 115 
 
 3. Symmetry and Proportion 118 
 
 (1) Balance between Gentle and Masculine virtues 119 
 
 (2) Between Renunciation and Affirmation - 121 
 
 (3) Between Individual and Social Virtues - 122 
 
 4. Comprehensiveness and Universality . - 123 
 
 Ideal Co-extensive with Humanity . 123 
 
 Embraces whole of Life - 123 
 
 Contrasted with Pre-Christian Morality 124 
 
CONTENTS xiii 
 
 Chapter V. The Dynamic of the New Life. 
 
 PAOB 
 
 Need of a "Virtue Making Power" 126 
 
 Absence of such in Ancient Ethics 127 
 
 Dynamic, distinctive of Christianity 129 
 
 I. Dynamic on its Divine Side 130 
 
 Ideal realized in actual Life 130- 
 
 This of itself not sufficient 131 
 
 Renewing and transforming Energy necessary 134 
 
 Communication of Divine Spirit 135 
 
 Connected with two Facts of Christ's Life 136 
 
 (1) The Sacrifice of Christ - 137 
 
 (2) The Resurrection of Christ 138 
 These united by Indwelling of Holy Spirit 139 
 
 II. The Dynamic on its Human Side 142 
 
 Relation of Divine Power and Human Freedom 142 
 
 The Subjective or Human Element 144 
 
 1. Repentance, or breaking with past 145' 
 
 2. Faith, or Appropriating Act - 146 
 
 (1) Faith as Mental Assent 147 
 
 (2) Faith as Spiritual Vision - 148 
 
 (3) Faith as Moral Energy 150 
 Three concluding Features 
 
 1. Faith, a Free Act of Appropriation 151 
 
 2. Faith, Energy of whole Man - 151 
 
 3. Faith, a Growing Power 152 
 
 Chapter VI. The Motives of the New Life. 
 
 Question of Motive akin to Questions of End and 
 
 Power 154 
 
 Consideration of Sanctions primal in Ethics 154 
 
xiv CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Motives and Sanctions 
 
 (1) In Natural Religions ^^^ 
 
 (2) In Greek Philosophy - 155 
 
 (3) In Old Testament • 156 
 
 (4) In New Testament - 157' 
 
 Sanctions of Christ 157 
 
 Sanctions of Paul 159 
 
 1. Rewards and Penalties - 160 
 
 Subservient to Higher Motives - 161 
 
 Charge of Hedonism 162 
 
 2. Grace of God, Supreme - 164 
 
 3. Sacrifice of Christ 165 
 
 4. Sense of Divine Calling 165 
 
 (1) Gives Dignity to Life 167 
 
 (2) Gives Sincerity to Character 167 
 
 (3) Gives Fidelity to Work - 168 
 
 5. Idea of Divine Sonship 168 
 
 6. Brevity and Uncertainty of Life - 169 
 
 7. Each Doctrine has its Special Obligation 170 
 
 8. Imitation of Christ 171 
 
 9. Paul's own Example 172 
 
 Chapter VII. The Virtues op the New Life. 
 
 Ideal to be realized in Character 174 
 
 Virtues not directly drawn from Christ's Life 175 
 
 Paul's Knowledge of Jesus' Earthly Life 176 
 
 No Systematic Enumeration of Virtues 178 
 
 I. The Classical Virtues 179 
 
 1. Wisdom, or o-o0ta ISO 
 
 (1) Relation of Paul to Gnosticism X80 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 XV 
 
 PAaB 
 
 (2) The False Gnosis 181 
 
 (3) The True "Sophia" 182 
 
 2. Fortitude, or dvSpta 183 
 
 3. Temperancej or <r(a<f)po(r6vr) 184 
 
 4. Justice, or 8iKaioa-vvr^ 186 
 
 II. The Amiable Virtues 187'" 
 
 Not merely added on 187 
 
 Give Richer Meaning to the Pagan 188 
 
 Stress laid upon Gentler Virtues - 188 
 
 (1) As Protest against Militant Spirit 188 
 
 (2) As expressive of Spirit of Christ 188 
 Sacrifice, Essence of Gospel - - 188 
 Manifested in three Self-effacing Virtues - 189 
 
 1. Humility 189 
 
 Attitude to God rather than Man 189 
 A Vice rather than a Virtue in Greek Philosophy 189 
 
 Humility rooted in Faith and Love, issues in 
 
 Peace and Joy - - 190 
 
 2. Meekness, or irpavrrj's - 190 
 
 Long suffering, or fxaKpo6vfj,ia 190 
 
 Contentment, or avrdpKsta - 190 
 
 Patience or Moderation, virofi6v7)j eTrtet/ceta 190 
 
 3. Forgiveness - 191 
 
 m. The " Thboloqicai. Virtues," or Christian Graces, 
 
 Faith, Hope, Charity 191 " 
 
 Love, Primal and Central 192 
 
 The Enduring Virtue - 193 
 
 Associated with Faith and Hope 193 
 
 Not Optional Accomplishments- - 195 
 
 But Essential Conditions of Character 195 
 
xvi CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Give Value and Coherence to all other Virtues - 196 
 
 Love the greatest, but all three abide- - - 196 
 
 Chapter VIIL The Progressiveness of the 
 New Life. 
 
 I. Dbtelopment of Character - - 197 
 
 1. The Idea of Growth - 198 
 
 (1) In Systems of Ethics generally - 198 
 
 Plato, Aristotle, Stoicism 198 
 
 (2) In New Testament generally 199 
 
 (3) In Paul's Conception of Life - 200 
 
 2. Enumeration of Passages which support Idea 201 
 
 Suggested by use of word " Fruit " 202 
 
 "Putting on" the "New Man" 203 
 
 Gradual appropriation of '* Image of God" 203 
 
 Gradual Conquest of Sin 203 
 
 Struggle between Flesh and Spirit 204 
 
 3. Sanctification both Divine and Human - 205 
 
 1. On the Divine Side, 
 
 As the Purifying "Work of Spirit 206 
 
 2. On the Human Side, 
 
 (1) As Effort to maintain Life 206 
 
 (2) As Effort to advance Life - 206 
 
 (a) Towards maturity of Knowledge - 207 
 
 (6) Towards maturity in Practice 207 
 
 Maintenance and Furtherance of Life illustrated 208 
 
 (1) Life a Battle - - 208 
 
 (2) Life a Race 209 
 
 (3) Life a Boxing Contest - 210 
 
CONTENTS xvii 
 
 II. 
 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Aids to Culture of Moral Life 
 
 211 
 
 1. Divine or Providential Aids 
 
 212 
 
 Life a Discipline 
 
 213 
 
 All Things working for good 
 
 - 214 
 
 Three appointed Types of Experience 
 
 215 
 
 (1) Temptation 
 
 215 
 
 (2) Suffering 
 
 216 
 
 (3) Work 
 
 218 
 
 •^liuman or Personal Aids 
 
 220 
 
 o. Objective Helps 
 
 220 
 
 (1) The Word of God 
 
 220 
 
 (2) The Church 
 
 221 
 
 (3) The Sacraments 
 
 222 
 
 6. Subjective Helps - 
 
 224 
 
 (1) Self-Examination 
 
 224 
 
 (2) Watchfulness 
 
 224 
 
 (3) Prayer 
 
 - 224 
 
 PART THIRD. 
 DUTIES AND SPHERES, 
 
 Chapter IX. Duties in Relation to Self. 
 
 Connection between Virtues and Duties 230 
 
 Distinction in Duties 231 
 
 All Duties, aspects of Supreme Obligation 232 
 
 I. Duties of Individual to Self 233 
 
 1. Self as Moral End, Self-realization 234 
 
 Two Reasons for Absence of Self-regarding Precepts 235 
 
 (1 ) As Protest against Greek Idea of Self -culture 235 
 
 (2) Self realized though Sacrifice 236 
 
xviii CONTENTS 
 
 PAQB 
 
 2. Stability of Purpose 237 
 
 Independence of Judgment 237 
 
 Supremacy of Conscience 238 
 
 Spiritual Man alone capable of proper Self -estimate 239 
 
 II. Individual in Relation to His Bodily Organism 239 
 
 1. Eegard for the Body - 240 
 
 2. Relation of the Sexes 241 
 
 3. Use of word " Sanctification " 243 
 
 Emphasis upon Physical Consecration 243 
 
 (1) In view of prevalent Temptations 243 
 
 (2) A Personal Reason 244 
 But not limited to Flesh 245 
 
 III. Individual in Relation to "Worldly Affairs 246 
 
 1. Worldly Goods 248 
 
 2. Legitimacy of Trade 250 
 
 3. Attitude to Recreation 252 
 
 4. Contentment with Station in Life 255 
 
 Chapter X. Duties in Relation to Others. 
 
 Man related to others by Constitution 258 
 
 But Duty based upon Christian Grounds 259 
 
 In Love of others Individual finds himself 259 
 
 I. Nature and Ground of Brotherly Love 260 
 
 Christ's Attitude and Motive of Service 261 
 New relation of Christian to God, basis of Brotherly 
 
 Love - 261 
 
 Relation to Christ defines extent and limits of Love 262 
 
 II. Chief Manifestations of Brotherly Love 263 
 
 1, Justice - 263 
 
 (1) Respect for others 264 
 
 Negatively refraining from Injury 265 
 
CONTENTS xix 
 
 PAGK 
 
 Positively, yielding Deference and Honour 265 
 
 Injunctions as to Litigation 266 
 
 (2) Truthfulness 267 
 
 Veracity in Word and Deed 268 
 
 Is Falsehood ever permissible? 269 
 Speak " Truth in Love," Courage and Kindliness 270 
 
 (3) Just Judgment of Fellow-men- 270 
 
 Condemns Censoriousness 271 
 
 Enjoins Tolerance 272 
 
 2. Goodness and Kindness 272 
 
 (1) Sympathy 273 
 
 (2) Service or Practical Beneficence 274 
 
 Towards physical need 275 
 
 Ministry of Comfort 275 
 
 Spiritual Edification 275 
 Good of others promoted 
 
 (1) Indirectly by Example 277 
 
 (2) Directly by Instruction 278 
 
 3. Patience 278 
 
 (1) Forbearance 279 
 
 (2) Peaceableness 281 
 
 Chapter XL Duties in the Sphere of 
 THE Family. 
 
 Family the Unit of Mankind 284 
 
 Ethical Significance of Marriage 286 
 
 Two Questions discussed by Paul 
 
 (1) Whether right to Marry at all 287 
 
 (2) Whether Believers should separate from un- 
 
 believing Partners 288 
 
XX CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 More exalted view of Marriage in Epheaians - 289 
 
 Place and Function of Woman - 290 
 
 Questions as to Female Adornment 292 
 
 1. Relation of Husband and Wife 293 
 
 Duty of Wife, Subjection 293 
 
 Duty of Husband, Love 294 
 
 Marriage indissoluble 294 
 
 Second Marriages 295 
 
 2. Relation of Parents and Children 
 
 In Children, Love of Parents enriched 296 
 
 Meagre reference to Child Life in Epistles 297 
 
 Duty of Children, Obedience 298 
 
 Duty of Parents 299 
 
 Negative, " Provoke not to Wrath " — Physical 299 
 
 Positive, Discipline and Nurture — Moral 299 
 
 The end of all Culture "in the Lord"— Spiritual 299 
 
 3. Relation of Masters and Servants 300 
 
 Paul's Attitude towards Slavery 301 
 
 Duty of Slaves, Obedience - 302 
 
 Not with eye-service, but as unto Christ - 303 
 
 Opportunity and Influence of Christian Slaves 304 
 
 Duty of Masters, Justice and Equity - 305 
 Christ, Pattern and Plea for Masters and Servants 305 
 
 Chapter XII. Duties in Relation to 
 THE State. 
 
 I. Theories of Origin of State - 307 
 
 (1) Social Contract 307 
 
 (2) Evolutionary Theoiy 308 
 
 (3) Psychological "Social Mind" 309 
 
CONTENTS xxi 
 
 PAGR 
 
 II. Paul's Relation to State 309 
 
 1. Partly negative 310 
 
 Due to existing Political System 310 
 
 Duty of Personal Fidelity to Station 311 
 
 2. But more Positive Reference 312 
 
 Analogy of Bodily Organism 313 
 
 Subjection to Higher Powers enjoined 314 
 
 State, as such, a Divine Institution 315 
 
 Views of Augustine and Hegel compared 316 
 
 Roman State comes short of Ideal 317 
 The King not Csesar but Christ - 317 
 Paul not a Eevolutionaiy but no tame Sycophant 318 
 
 The Ethic of Revolt - 319 
 
 lit. Paul's Relation to Problems of Modern Life 319 
 
 Attitude towards Art and Culture 320 
 
 Towards Economic and Industrial Questions 321 
 
 Paul's views of an Ideal Kingdom 322 
 
 The "Holy Roman Empire" 322 
 
 Gradual realization of the Ideal State 322 
 Indebted to Paul for democratic principles which 
 
 are shaping modern life 323 - 
 
 Personality and Equality 323 
 
 Development of these Ideas in History 324 
 
 Augustine, Luthei', Kant 325 
 
 Duty of State to Individual to secure for all 
 
 Equality of Opportunity 326 
 
 Duty of Individual to State to contribute to the 
 
 Common Good 326 
 
 Christ's truth for Paul inexhaustible 328 
 
 No Realm of Life alien to rule of Christ- - 328 
 
xxii CONTENTS 
 
 Chapter XIIL Relation to God, the Church 
 AND the Future. 
 
 PAOE 
 
 All Duties really Duties to God 329^ 
 
 Here Duty becomes Love 330- 
 
 I. Love the true Attitude to God 330 
 
 1. Love to God mediated by Love to Christ 330 
 
 Christ has value of God 331 
 
 Creator and Redeemer - 332 
 
 2. Love to God rests on knowledge and results in 
 
 surrender 334 
 Knowledge of God 
 
 (1) Witness of Nature - 335 
 
 (2) Witness of Consciousness 336 
 
 (3) Realized in Christ 337 
 
 3. Knowledge begets Reverence 337 
 
 Power, Wisdom, Mercy 337 
 
 a. Love to God manifested gene^^ally 337 
 
 (1) In Thankfulness- 337 
 
 (2) In Humility 338 
 
 (3) In Trustfulness 339 
 Trustfulness induces a twofold frame 340 
 
 (1) Freedom from immature judgment 340 
 
 (2) Reference of all Conduct to God 340 
 h. Love to God manifested particularly 341 
 
 (1) In Worship 341 
 
 (2) In Witness-bearing . 342 
 
 II. The Church, The Sphere of Worship and Witnessing 
 
 1. Three-fold figure of Church - 343 
 
 (1) Church a Temple 343 
 
CONTENTS xxiii 
 
 FAGR 
 
 (2) The Bride of Christ 344 
 
 (3) The Body of Christ 344 
 2. Ideas suggested by these figures 345 
 
 (1) Separateneas from World 345 
 
 (2) Unity of Believers 346 
 
 (3) Christ the bond of Union 347 
 
 III. Attitude of Christian to the Future 348 
 
 Hope, Completion of Communion 348 
 
 Activity not Apathy, attitude of Christian 348 
 
 Life short but not Worthless 348 
 
 Keserve of Paul regarding future - 34& 
 
 Does not shirk thought of Death 349 
 
 But does not court it 349 
 
 Courage and triumphant joy 350 
 
 Paul, best Exemplar of his Ethics 351 
 
 Chapter XIV. Ethical Ultimate of St. Paul. 
 
 Summary of Studies 352 
 
 Life, Measure of Doctrine 352 
 Originality of Paul not so much in Eange of Practical 
 
 Application 352 
 
 But in Ideal conceived as Power and Pattern 352 
 
 Idea of Power, Keynote of Teaching 353. 
 
 Power, at once root and fruit of Character 354 
 
 Fusion of Idealism and Dynamic force 356- 
 
 Christ, the dominating force of Life 357 
 
 All Questions really Religious 358 
 
 No finality in Paul - 353 
 
 Teaching applicable to all Problems 359 
 
 Paul's Philosophy of Life 360 
 
 Life not simple but complex 3gO 
 
xxiv CONTENTS 
 
 FAQS 
 
 Mystery and Contradiction 361 
 
 Unity amid Diversity 362 
 
 Not Suppression but Harmony 363 
 
 The Mysticism of Paul 363 
 
 His attraction for Great Minds 363 
 
 Incarnation, the central fact 363 
 
 Dogmatics and Ethics really one 364- 
 
 Life here, a service of common good 364 
 
 The ultimate Aim 365 
 
 INDEX 367 
 
CHAPTER I 
 
 INTRODUCTOEY. ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL 
 TEACHER 
 
 It was perhaps inevitable that the great historical 
 manifestation which we call Christianity, should at the 
 outset arouse a speculative interest and receive the 
 mould of a metaphysic rather than an ethic. It might 
 have been, as has been suggested, of infinite advantage 
 if the early church councils had concerned themselves 
 as much with the ethics as with the metaphysics of 
 the person of Christ,-^ But probably on account both 
 of the nature of the new faith, and of the environment 
 amid which it grew, it was not surprising that it should 
 assume the character of a system of doctrine. 
 
 When we consider the profound intellectual problems — 
 as to the Being of God, as to the Deity of the Son and 
 the relation of the two natures in Christ, as to the 
 origin and extent of sin and the character of the recon- 
 ciliation between man and God effected by the death of 
 Christ — which at once presented themselves, we see how 
 natural it was that Christianity should be first approached 
 on its speculative rather than its practical side. 
 
 Moreover, the new religion, though it sprang from 
 Jewish soil, had its first habitat in the intellectual 
 
 ^ Fairbaim, Philosophy of the Christian Religim, p. 565. 
 A 
 
2 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 atmosphere of the Greco-Koman world. It may be that 
 Christianity was saved by being thus assimilated to the 
 world in which it had come to live. But the asBimilation 
 cost it centuries of impotence and struggle, more or less 
 fruitless, to escape from the toils in which it had been 
 caught.^ In this home of its adoption the spirit of 
 Greek genius held sway, the characteristic of which was 
 to appropriate new truth as it presented itself and shape 
 it in the mould of its own native speculation. 
 
 One consequence of the scientific treatment of 
 Christianity, which marks the early ages of ecclesiastical 
 history, was the almost entire neglect of the ethical 
 nature and practical significance of the new religion. 
 For more than fifteen centuries the history of the Church 
 presents the dreary spectacle of bitter controversy and 
 futile strife, and Christianity takes the form of a com- 
 pound of dogmatic assumption and arid definition. 
 
 Fortunately, however, life has often proved stronger 
 than theory, and more than once in the course of the 
 ages the subtleties of theology have been fiung aside 
 and religion has come forth as an ethical power. The 
 spirit of the Eenaissance and the ideals of Eomanticism, 
 with their return to human interests, prepared the way 
 for the Eeformation, which was really a moral revival 
 as much, if not more, than a doctrinal movement. But 
 the ethical character which Luther gave to the Eeforma- 
 tion was once more thrust into the background by the 
 attempt of Calvin and his followers on the one side 
 and the Arminians on the other to systematise the 
 faith. The Gospels were neglected and the Bible 
 was resorted to as a quarry from which to extract the 
 stones suitable for the erection of a gigantic theological 
 edifice. 
 
 ^Fairbairn, Philosophy of the Christian Religion, p. 564. 
 
ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL TEACHER 3 
 
 Under the influence of the historical spirit, which 
 is perhaps the most marked feature of the thought 
 of our time, signs are not wanting of the revival of 
 interest in the ethical side of Christianity. The dis- 
 tinguishing characteristic of modern theology is, without 
 question, its new feeling for Christ. From the palimpsest 
 of the Church's changeful history over-written by the 
 glosses, the inevitable conflicts and controversies, the 
 misconceptions and partial conceptions of nigh two 
 thousand years, the life and teaching of Jesus are being 
 gradually restored. We are no longer content to regard 
 Christianity as an abstract system of doctrine, and to 
 construe its meaning through the decisions of Church 
 councils. We go back to the Gospels to interpret Christ 
 by means of His own character and thought. Under 
 the pressure of vital needs and the calls and claims of 
 the new time, the obscuring media of doctrinal abstraction 
 and mediaeval speculation are being slowly but surely 
 destroyed, that in Him who is its Light the world may 
 once more see light clearly and be guided on its way. 
 Viewed from the side of its expression in literature 
 the new movement may be said to date from Strauss' 
 Leben Jesu\ but perhaps the book which has most 
 decisively directed attention to the ethical elements in 
 Christianity is the ethics of Schleiermacher. Since his 
 time a host of brilliant writers — of whom Keim, Hausrath, 
 Bernard Weiss, Wendt, Harnack, and Hermann are 
 conspicuous — have sought to reveal to the world the 
 supreme value of the personal character and ethical 
 teaching of Jesus. 
 
 The reasonableness of this movement at once becomes 
 evident if we examine with unprejudiced minds the 
 original documents of our faith. If we turn to the 
 first three Gospels we discover that the atmosphere is 
 
4 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 entirely ethical. " One enters a region of homes and 
 fields, of natural and familiar experiences, and through 
 this rolling country with its varied vocations, its joys 
 and pains, its happiness and temptations ; among old 
 and young, rich and poor, good and bad, walks the 
 Teacher of the higher righteousness, showing by words 
 of blessing and deeds of mercy, the way that men should 
 go." ^ The Synoptic Gospels are not the exposition of 
 a doctrine, but the narrative of a life. Whatever further 
 disclosures as to the relation of man to God, or as to 
 the nature of Christ Himself, these Gospels may suggest, 
 are inferences rather than direct purposes of the narra- 
 tives themselves. The deity of the Son of Man, the 
 sacrificial and atoning power of His death, His 
 Eesurrection and His eternal Presence, are truths which 
 may be legitimately deduced from His life and teaching ; 
 but the inculcation of these doctrines is not the 
 immediate aim of the Synoptics. Jesus is concerned 
 with life and is in the first instance a teacher of 
 righteousness and purity. He does not address Himself 
 to the learned, but the simple. He does not begin with 
 a theology, but with the questions of personal and 
 practical life as they present themselves to fishermen 
 and publicans, to the doubting and the sinning. His first 
 blessings are offered to the poor, the humble, the merciful, 
 the peacemakers. His first rebukes are for hypocrisy, 
 worldliness, anxiety. He lays the emphasis upon chastity, 
 moderation, sincerity, brotherliness, love. The kingdom 
 of God is not a theological tenet but an ethical ideal 
 The kingdom is the end of His desire, but" the immediate 
 aim is the making of citizens. For Jesus has what 
 has been called a passion for humanity and His supreme 
 care is the individual. To fit men for the kingdom is 
 ^ Peabody, Jestts Christ and the Christian Character, p. 20. 
 
ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL TEACHER 5 
 
 everywhere the motive of His work, and always His 
 test of discipleship is ethical. " By their fruits ye shall 
 know them." His own life was presented as the ideal 
 of man, and the path to the ultimate goal lay through 
 personal loyalty and obedience. 
 
 This strong ethical feeling is not confined to the 
 Synoptics. Other portions of the New Testament exhibit 
 the same feature. A very slight examination of the 
 Epistles of St. Peter, of St. James, and of the writings of 
 St. John, reveals the fact that they are largely occupied 
 with the practical side of Christianity. 
 
 Eut when we approach the writings of St. Paul we 
 perceive at once a distinct change of atmosphere, and we 
 are apparently introduced into a region of speculative 
 theology. The difference of atmosphere must be freely 
 conceded, although its significance has been greatly over- 
 stated. A marked contrast is perceptible, so we are told, 
 between the teaching of Jesus and that of Paul. There 
 is little in the apostolic epistles of the ethical quality 
 of the Sermon on the Mount. New ideas and new terms 
 are introduced in the epistles of which no hint is given 
 in the gospels. Jesus, the ethical teacher, is at a great 
 remove from Paul the theologian. The one lays stress 
 on character, the other on doctrine. The Master is con- 
 cerned with the conditions of life and conduct, the 
 disciple is occupied with the elaboration of dogma. 
 
 This view, especially advocated in recent years, has of 
 course its measure of truth. But in the form in which 
 it is too often expressed it does serious injustice to an 
 important and too much neglected aspect of the work 
 and teaching of the great apostle. 
 
 That Paul was pre-eminently a theologian will not be 
 denied. His was the profomid intellect which developed 
 and shaped the great cardinal doctrine of Christianity. 
 
6 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 He is the Church's prime authority on the doctrine of 
 Sin, the Sacrifice of Christ, and Justification by Faith, His 
 epistles are undoubtedly the mine whence the great 
 dogmatic thinkers have derived their materials for the 
 elaboration of their theology. The mind of Paul was of 
 vast mental range and subtlety. He was just the 
 instrument which the new faith needed to consolidate 
 and unify its various elements in view of the intellectual 
 conflict which it was called upon to wage not only with 
 the philosophy of the Gentile world, but also with the re- 
 actionary element in the traditions of the Jewish people. 
 Paul was the man for the hour. The immediate and 
 clamant necessity was a thinker of broad massive make to 
 sketch the first outline of Christian truth, to gather up 
 all that the Lord had already uttered through His life 
 and teaching, and to interpret, in view of the breadth and 
 variety of human needs, the value and import of the 
 Incarnation, Death and Eesurrection of Jesus the Christ. 
 But it would be a mistake to conclude that because 
 the apostle was pre-eminent in the domain of dogma he 
 was distinguished in no other fields. As a matter of 
 fact the true theologian is always something more. The 
 genuine thinker is a maker of life, and the doctrine 
 which has no relation to character is sterile and dead. 
 Paul combined in a manner rarely paralleled in history 
 speculative acumen with practical talent. Though an 
 unwearied writer with a decided literary instinct and a 
 distinct liking for the elaboration of speculative ideas, 
 there was in Paul nothing of the recluse. He was at the 
 very storm-centre of the great world's surging life. In 
 him all its dumb need and pain and sorrow found voice, 
 
 " Desperate tides of the whole great world's anguish 
 Forced thro' the channels of a single heart." ^ 
 ^ Myers, Saint Paul. 
 
ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL TEACHER 7 
 
 He was practical alike by nature, by the necessities of 
 the situation, and by the inward propulsion of a Christ- 
 like pity. He proved himself an indefatigable organiser 
 and an untiring traveller. Every gift of intellect and 
 imagination as well as all his stores of knowledge and 
 experience were subordinated and consecrated to one 
 great end — the unveiling to the world for which He 
 died of the unsearchable riches of the crucified and risen 
 Lord. 
 
 The intensely practical character of the Pauline 
 epistles is apt to be lost sight of on account of their 
 frequently polemical character. From the very nature 
 of the case they are largely apologetic. One main object 
 is to justify and commend a new view of the world and 
 of life. The difficulties in conception and nomenclature 
 which naturally arose in introducing a new and revolu- 
 tionary faith involved at once a conflict with philosophical 
 ideas already in vogue, and the elucidation of principles 
 which lay at the basis of the religion and life he sought 
 to inculcate. But in spite of the necessarily speculative 
 attitude of a great part of the Pauline teaching, we cannot 
 for a moment mistake its distinctively ethical character. 
 The whole religious superstructure rests upon moral 
 assumptions. Its last appeal is to the universality of 
 human experience. Its great and distinctive ideas — Sin, 
 Kighteousness, Law, Works — are not mere abstract 
 dogmas, but really ethical conceptions which obtain their 
 whole significance from their bearing on life and 
 conduct. His writings cannot be regarded as systematic 
 treatises. They are strictly letters, the form and con- 
 tents of which arose out of the special conditions and 
 requirements of the communities or the individuals to 
 whom they were addressed. They have all the glow and 
 warmth of personal experience, and while they contain 
 
8 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 truths of universal interest, they are coloured and shaped by 
 the circumstances which called them forth. Paul scarcely 
 ever deals with merely abstract thoughts or discusses 
 problems of purely theoretic or academic interest. Every 
 question has a personal background, and though he is 
 prone to lift the discussion up to the general and deal 
 with principles rather than details, his thought has 
 usually some particular case or concrete example for its 
 starting-point, nor does he close his epistle without 
 focussing the truth in a series of precepts concerning 
 practical morality. No one, indeed, can read these 
 epistles without feeling that their author was more 
 interested in men than in thoughts, and more concerned 
 about character than creed. Life is everywhere his 
 theme, and he is more anxious to reconcile men to God 
 than to construct a theodicy. A supreme ethical interest 
 dominates the man and his life-work, and even the 
 epistles which are distinctively doctrinal are chiefly con- 
 cerned with principles upon which character ultimately 
 depends. The prime object of the Epistle to the Komans 
 is to explain the nature of righteousness, and if the 
 apostle takes pains to establish the doctrine of Justifica- 
 tion by Faith, it is to make men feel that it is not only 
 worth their while but within their power to attain 
 to righteousness. " It would be truer," says Edward 
 Caird, "to say that the ethical principle of St. Paul 
 begot the theological than that the theological begot the 
 ethical." ^ 
 
 Nor in this respect is it just to contrast the teaching 
 of Christ with that of St. Paul. Both have an ethical 
 purpose. Both lay the emphasis on character. The 
 great words of Christ are also the great words of Paul. 
 The latest attempt to overthrow the view predominant 
 ^ Evolution of Rdigion, vol. ii, p. 202. 
 
ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL TEACHER 9 
 
 in modern theology that Paul loyally and consistently 
 espoused and developed the teaching of Jesus is that 
 of Wrede,^ whose startling statements have already 
 called forth an army of hostile critics.^ " Paul," says 
 Wrede, "is far more widely removed from Jesus than 
 Jesus Himself is removed from the noblest form of 
 Jewish piety." "The picture of Jesus' life and work 
 did not determine the character of the Pauline theology." 
 It is nothing to Wrede that Paul regarded himself as a 
 disciple of Jesus, and so far from believing himself to 
 be an innovator, repeatedly claims to have the mind 
 of Christ. " The teaching of Jesus/' says Wrede, " is 
 directed entirely to the individual personality. Man is 
 to submit his soul to God's will without reserve. Hence 
 the preaching of Jesus is imperative." " The central point 
 with Paul is a divine and superhuman action manifested 
 in a historical fact, or in a complex of divine actions 
 which open to mankind a salvation prepared for man. 
 He who believes these divine acts — the Incarnation, 
 Death and Kesurrection of a divine being — can obtain 
 salvation." In other words, Wrede afifirms that the 
 standpoints of the Master and the apostle are opposed, 
 and the condition of salvation is in each case entirely 
 different. With Jesus the condition was merely human, 
 with Paul it was divine. According to Christ it was 
 simply a matter of personal decision ; according to Paul 
 it was a superhuman act done for man, and to be accepted 
 by faith. The supernatural element which was every- 
 thing to Paul meant nothing for Jesus. We are very far 
 from admitting that the assumptions of Wrede, so airily 
 
 ^ Paulus. 
 
 '^Kolbing, Hit Spirittial Influence of the Man Jesus upon Paul; 
 Kaftan, Je&us and Paid ; Jtilicher, Paul and Jesus ; and Joh. Weiss, 
 Paul and Jesus. 
 
10 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 and lightly made, can be substantiated. But we are only 
 concerned here with the unanimity of Paul and Christ in 
 their ethical teaching; and there is one consideration 
 going to the very root of the matter, which, if duly 
 weighed, will be sufficient, as we think, to refute Wrede's 
 contention, and to show that, fundamentally, the Master 
 and His apostle were at one in the requirements and 
 conditions which they taught as essential to the new 
 Hfe. 
 
 The inmost spring, the veryfons et origo of vital rehgion 
 in the new life of love and helpfulness is, we maintain, 
 the same for both. It will not surely be denied by any 
 student of the epistles, that the great object of the 
 Pauline dialectic is to place man, emptied of trust in 
 self, bankrupt in righteousness, in a condition of recep- 
 tiveness before God. This, for Paul, is where religion 
 begins — with the weakness which takes hold of the divine 
 strength, with the want which brings its empty vessel to 
 the fulness of God. And this, in Paul's reading of his- 
 tory, is the deepest meaning of the religious experience 
 of his own race. This, indeed, he declares to be the 
 very purpose of the law, to reveal and condemn sin and 
 shut a man up to the consciousness of his own utter im- 
 potence. The Jew seeking a righteousness " of his own " 
 failed utterly, even as did the Greek seeking a wisdom 
 " of his own " ; the reason being that righteousness and 
 wisdom alike have their source in God, and come to man 
 only as he forgets self and becomes the willing instru- 
 ment and receiver of the power and grace and wisdom 
 that are from above. But this idea, fundamental in Paul, 
 is fundamental also in the teaching of Jesus. It is, 
 indeed, the beginning of everything. It is the very first 
 of the laws of the kingdom. With it the Sermon on the 
 Mount (between which and Paul it is so often asserted 
 
ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL TEACHER 11 
 
 there is no vital point of contact)^ begins. *' Blessed 
 are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of 
 Heaven." Analyse that great saying of Jesus and what 
 does it yield you ? Surely the whole principle of the 
 Pauline dialectic and the living heart of the whole of the 
 Pauline religion.^ 
 
 In perfect agreement with all this is the fundamental 
 importance assigned both by Jesus and by Paul to faifch, 
 faith in God, the fountain of all good, faith in the 
 Fatherhood of God and in the sonship and calling of 
 man. With both faith is something more than mere 
 mental assent, or even implicit confidence in the provi- 
 sion and care of a Heavenly Father. It is the inspiration 
 and dynamic of life, the ruling principle in shaping 
 conrduct. It is the spiritual vision in man of the ideal 
 by which, in virtue of his vital relation to the living 
 source of all power and renewal, he already is what he 
 aspires to be and has what he longs for. The distinctive 
 note of Christ's ethics is the inwardness of the moral law 
 as distinguished from the externality of the ceremonial 
 law. He commends righteousness as the aim of man, 
 but it is not the righteousness of outward observance, 
 but of inward spirit, "Except your righteousness shall 
 exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye 
 shall in no case enter the kingdom of Heaven." Almost 
 in identical terms Paul insists upon the need of inward 
 purity, the purity of the hidden man of the heart. 
 Christ lays emphasis upon the fulfilment of our duties 
 
 ^ Even Weiss asserts that Paulas *' Ethical system based on super- 
 naturalism can never be harmonised with the commands given in the 
 Sermon on the Mount.'' Paul and Jesus j p. 112. 
 
 ^ The writer has pleasure in stating that the substance of this para- 
 graph has been suggested to him by his friend, Rev. Charles Allan of 
 Greenock. 
 
12 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 to our fellow-men. Paul also enforces the obligation of 
 mutual service, expressly declaring that it is in the bear- 
 ing of one another's burdens that the followers of Christ 
 fulfil His " law," 1 Further, the ethics of Christ and of 
 His apostle are one in declaring that man owes to his 
 feUow-man an even greater debt than duty. Christ's 
 principle is, " Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself"; 
 and in the spirit of his Master, the apostle's injunction 
 is, " Owe no man anything, but to love one another." 
 According to both, love is more than law, and he who 
 only, does his duty has not attained to the true spirit of 
 Christian service. Christ transforms morality from a 
 routine into a life ; and with Paid goodness ceases to be 
 a thing of outward rule, and becomes a spontaneous 
 energy of the soul. For both all ^artues are but various 
 expressions of a single Adtal principle. " Love is the 
 fulfilling of the law." The dynamic of devotion is, 
 according to Christ, God's love towards us. Nor is it 
 different according to Paul : " The love of Christ con- 
 straineth us." 
 
 If we turn from the motive of service to the aim and 
 purpose of life, again we find the Master and the disciple 
 in substantial agreement. " Be ye perfect as your Father 
 in heaven is perfect " is the standard of Christ ; to attain 
 to the perfect life, — " the prize of the high calling of God 
 in Christ " — is the aim of Paul. Nor do they differ in 
 their conception of the ultimate goal of the world. 
 It has been affirmed by Joh. Weiss that "we do not 
 know whether Jesus turned his gaze upon the inhabited 
 world as a whole."^ " His heart is preoccupied with the 
 people immediately about Him. He confines Himself to 
 the * little flock,' to the ' few ' who are ' chosen,' and it is 
 His task to save from impending judgment the souls of 
 
 ^ Gal. vi. 2. "^ Paul and JesuSy p. 65 ff. 
 
ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL TEACHER 13 
 
 the people of the towns and villages of Galilee." " To 
 Paul, on the other hand, the most important point is that 
 the Word vshould not be bound/ but that it should run 
 (2 Thess. iii. ; 2 Tim. ii. 9). He describes his work by 
 the metaphors of a triumphant campaign of God through 
 the land (2 Cor. ii. 14), and the reconciliation of 'the 
 world ' is his object. Paul, with his Greek culture and 
 Eoman citizenship, cannot rest content with gathering 
 believers upon a small spot of earth — so soon as he has 
 decided for Christ, plans for wide-world missionary enter- 
 prise come before his mind." But in our view, so far 
 from seeing in this perfectly true description of Paul's 
 aim an antithesis to that of Christ's, we regard it rather 
 as the natural and logical outcome of his Master's 
 teaching. Jesus' immediate care was for those about 
 Him, and He began with the people of His own land; but 
 we miss surely the whole significance of His Gospel and 
 the meaning of His message if we do not see that it was 
 an evangel for all men, tidings of hope for man as man. 
 Not only does He declare that the '* field is the world " 
 (Matt. xiii. 38), but He proclaims a kingdom into which 
 the heathen shall flock and sit down with Abraham and 
 Isaac and Jacob (Matt. viii. 4), Surely no one can 
 doubt that Christ's ethical ideal, which he looked for as 
 the realisation of the object of His mission, was a 
 redeemed humanity, a complete renewal and re-establish- 
 ment of human society — which he designated " the 
 kingdom of God." Paul, with his splendid conception of 
 humanity, sees that kingdom typified and realised in the 
 risen life of his Lord, but he is not therefore to be 
 regarded as offering a different idea of the ultimate aim 
 of Christianity. Por the advent of the Christ-like man 
 will be itself the realization of the social ideal, the coming 
 of God's kingdom on the earth. It is by growing up in 
 
14 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 all things unto Him who is the head that the whole body 
 will be perfected in the perfection of its members. And 
 this is what Paul means when he sums up in these 
 splendid words to the Ephesians, the goal and ideal of 
 all human faith and endeavour — " till we all come in the 
 unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of 
 God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature 
 of the fulness of Christ." 
 
 It is evident then that there is no radical difference 
 between the ethical teaching of Jesus and that of Paul. 
 On the contrary, there is everywhere identity of spirit 
 and aim, and in not a few instances a striking simi- 
 larity of language. In passages dealing with questions 
 essentially ethical,^ while there is no attempt at literal 
 quotation, we find reminiscences of the words of Jesus. 
 In emphasizing an ethical command Paul knows himself 
 to be acting entirely in the spirit of Jesus. " We have 
 the mind of Christ," he declares to the Corinthians, by 
 which he means not merely that we think as Christ, but 
 that " Christ thinks in us.'' " The mental processes of 
 the Christian are under the immediate inspiration of the 
 Spirit of Christ."^ He it is that enables His followers to 
 develop, apply and interpret, the will of God. Hence, 
 too, when in 1 Cor. iv. 1 7 he speaks of " my ways which 
 be in Christ " — (xa^ oSov^ fxov iv XofixTtt)), and in Romans 
 xvi. 14, "1 know and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus" 
 — (otSa Koi. 7r€7reia/jLat ev KvpiM 'Irjaov), he is implying that 
 the " way " and the " conviction " are his in virtue of his 
 inward communion with Christ. But it is no mystical or 
 mechanical obsession of Christ's spirit which Paul claims 
 as compelling him to utter Christ's mind and follow His 
 method. The idea is that in such matters the personality 
 
 ^E.g, Rom. xii. 13, 1 Cor. xiii., or Col. iii. 
 * J. Weiss, Pa^d and Jeaua, p. 115. 
 
ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL TEACHER 15 
 
 and teaching of Jesus as known to him are before his 
 mind and are directing his course. He acknowledges 
 himself to be a disciple or pupil of his Master and a 
 teacher of His ways. Whatever other elements, therefore, 
 there may be in Paul*s teaching, and however the 
 theological interpretations and implications of the epistles 
 may seem to go beyond the direct and personal narrative 
 of the Synoptics, there is no doubt that both in their 
 hidden spiritual depths and in their practical life the 
 precepts of the apostle are in essential agreement with 
 those of the Sermon on the Mount, and have a common 
 purpose — the presenting of every man perfect before God. 
 That the writings of Paul, long regarded as chiefly 
 theological and metaphysical in their character, should 
 turn out on examination to be essentially and funda- 
 mentally ethical will the less surprise us if we regard 
 not only the nature of the Christian religion as revealed 
 in the person and work and teaching of its Founder, but 
 also the peculiar vocation of the apostle and the psycho- 
 logical atmosphere in which he was called to discharge it. 
 Paul was a missionary, the first and incomparably the 
 greatest in all the long heroic succession, and it is not 
 surprising in the case of a missionary that the real stress 
 of his effort should be laid in the sphere of practical life, 
 and should be applied to the formation of moral char- 
 acter. Further, the peculiar nature of Paul's work 
 answered to a deep need of the age. The message of 
 Christianity was a welcome response to the sigh of 
 dissatisfaction and despair arising from the hearts of men 
 which the worn-out creeds and philosophies of the times 
 could not meet. But the claims of Christ went directly 
 in the face of the accepted morals of the age. And on 
 that very account the continued existence and success of 
 the new Faith made the treatment of and emphasis upon 
 
16 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 the moral life indispensable. Either the practices of 
 heathenism must crush the religion of Christ, or Christi- 
 anity must combat the prevailing modes of conduct with 
 a higher and nobler view of life. Thus, for the apostle 
 Paul, the moral life constituted the inevitable corollary 
 and indispensable consequence of the new religious condi- 
 tions into which he sought to introduce his fellow-men 
 by the declaration of the glad message of life in Christ. 
 What for us to-day, at least, is in theory but a common- 
 place — that religion must express itself in life, and that 
 morality is the test and measure of belief, was practically 
 a novel idea in the Greco-Koman world of Paul's time. 
 It was the apostle's deliberately chosen task to show that 
 religion must not isolate itself from life, but become its 
 mainspring and formative factor, working itself out 
 through every department of personal and social activity, 
 consecrating every faculty of man as well as every detail 
 of daily conduct. It was his constant e^ort, an effort 
 to which every epistle bears witness, by a variety of 
 precept and a wealth of illustration drawn from the 
 institutions and activities of his times, to enforce the 
 truth that faith does not consist in intellectual opinion 
 or outward ceremony, but in the actual service and 
 living devotion of the whole man to God. In thus con- 
 tending for the ethical embodiment of Christianity he 
 was faithful not only to the character of the Old Testa- 
 ment religion in which he was reared, and more especially 
 to the teaching of Jesus to which he owed the inspiration 
 of his life and mission, but also to the circumstances of 
 the historical situation and the peculiar needs of those 
 to whom he sought to minister. 
 
 Convinced as we are of the soundness of the views 
 just expressed regarding the real character of the 
 apostle's work, and in view of the patent fact that a 
 
ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL TEACHER 17 
 
 very large part of the Pauline writings is devoted to the 
 ethical side of life, and that it was his undoubted aim 
 not merely to establish the faith and expound the 
 kingdom of God, but quite as much to shape the 
 character of his newly-created converts and guide their 
 conduct in regard to the practical questions arising out 
 of their new standing as Christians, no apology is needed 
 for dealing, as we propose to do, with the ethics of St. 
 Paul. Notwithstanding the great and ever-increasing 
 mass of Pauline exegesis, this field has received less 
 attention than other departments of Paul's work. And 
 it has seemed to us that a separate view of the ethical as 
 distinguished from the doctrinal teaching of the apostle 
 will be of some service to the Church and to students of 
 the New Testament. Also, in an age in which the study 
 of ethics, both philosophical and Christian, is coming to 
 the front, it is surely desirable that the utterances of the 
 first and greatest exponent of the Christian life with 
 regard to its ideals, virtues and duties, should be system- 
 atized and co-related. 
 
 We have not deemed it necessary to enter upon any 
 elaborate discussion of the nature of ethics, or to ex- 
 amine the various imports and meanings which the terln 
 has received from the time of the Greeks to our own 
 times. On that aspect of the subject the following brief 
 remarks may suffice. 
 
 It was Aristotle who first gave to this science its 
 name and systematic form. Ethics, according to its 
 Greek signification, is the science of customs or morals. 
 It enquires into the worth of human modes of behaviour, 
 and its object is to guide man in the proper conduct of 
 life. It was in this sense the term was used by 
 Aristotle, and the function of ethics was, according to 
 him, to show how human life must be fashioned to realize 
 
 B 
 
18 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 its end and purpose. " What," asked Aristotle, " is the 
 highest good of life, in what virtues does it consist, and 
 what are the duties which must be performed in order 
 to realize that ultimate end?" Philosophical ethics, 
 therefore, might be defined as the science of the laws of 
 human action. All practical sciences, of which ethics is 
 one, are based upon a distinct theory of life. If we ask 
 then, what is Christian ethics, we assume the Christian 
 view of life; and the definition must be in harmony 
 with faith in the revelation of God in Christ. The 
 question of Christian ethics, therefore, comes to be, how 
 ought we, as Christians, to regulate our lives ? What 
 are the nature, meaning and laws of the moral life as 
 dominated by faith in Christ ? With the question. What 
 must we believe ? there inevitably arises this other 
 question, What ought we to do ? Ethics is based on 
 dogmatics. The one is the complement of the other. It 
 is important that we should know the meaning and 
 content of Christian faith ; but it is not less important 
 that we should know how to order our Christian life. 
 Doctrine shows us in what manner the kingdom of God 
 becomes to us an assured possession as the gift of God's 
 love; ethics shows how this assured faith of salvation 
 manifests itself in love to God and our neighbours, and 
 must be worked out in all the relationships of life.^ 
 These are the questions which bulk largely in the 
 epistles of Paid. Our subject, therefore, is the exposi- 
 tion of the apostle*s view of man's practical life and 
 conduct as conditioned and inspired by his faith in 
 Christ. 
 
 It is no part of our task to enter upon a critical 
 examination of the authenticity of the Pauline epistles. 
 In the case of at least four this has scarcely ever been 
 ^ See Haering, Ethics of the Christian Life, p. 4. 
 
ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL TEACHER 19 
 
 seriously questioned. The position of the earlier critics 
 of the Tubingen school, who denied the authenticity of 
 all the epistles except Galatians, 1 and 2 Corinthians 
 and Romans, is now largely discredited, and the tendency 
 is to accept an increasing number of the thirteen which 
 bear Paul's name. Uncertainty is still entertained in 
 many quarters with regard to the Pauline authorship of 
 Colossians and Ephesians ; while the authenticity of the 
 Pastoral Epistles is frequently regarded as doubtful. 
 Recent writers like Wernle and Weinel would deny 
 them a place among the writings of the apostle ; but it 
 is interesting to note that no less an authority than 
 Theodor Zahn in the latest edition of his EinleituTig in 
 das Neiie Testament, a work which has just appeared in 
 English translation, contends vigorously for the Pauline 
 authorship of all the thirteen epistles — the Pastoral 
 among the rest. Without discussing critical matters we 
 may assume for our purpose the genuineness of these 
 epistles, and that they represent, even those of them 
 which may be of doubtful authenticity, at least the mind 
 and teaching of the apostle. In addition to the epistles 
 we have in the Book of Acts a record of Paul's life and 
 work and a number of reports of his discourses. The 
 long cherished opinion that the author of this work was 
 Liike, the physician, a close companion of the apostle 
 during a portion of his missionary labours, has found 
 recently in Prof. Harnack in Germany and in Sir Wm. 
 Ramsay in our own country a brilliant and powerful 
 advocacy. 
 
 The Pauline Epistles may be arranged chronologically 
 in four groups, each of which has a well-marked 
 individuality: (1) Paul's earlier or missionary epistles, 
 1 and 2 Thessalonians, written at Corinth about the 
 year 52 a.d. These contain doctrinal and practical 
 
20 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 teaching of an elementary kind, and may be said to 
 inculcate the first principles of Christianity and the 
 practical inferences which are involved in them. (2) The 
 great controversial epistles — Galatians, written during 
 Paul's three years' residence at Ephesus, probably about 
 A.D. 55 ; 1 and 2 Corinthians, written at Ephesus and in 
 Macedonia respectively, a.d. 5 8 ; and Eomans, written at 
 Corinth during the winter of 58-59. The controversial 
 or doctrinal epistles, as they are sometimes called, 
 expound Christianity as a religion of grace in contrast 
 to legalism. (3) The epistles of the captivity — Colossians, 
 Philemon, Ephesians and Philippians — which were pro- 
 bably composed while the apostle was a prisoner at 
 Eome during the years 61-63. They set forth the 
 dignity and heavenly relations of Christ, as well as the 
 nature and privileges of those who are in vital fellowship 
 with Him. (4) The pastoral epistles — 1 and 2 Timothy 
 and Titus — supposed to have been written after Paul had 
 been released from his first imprisonment at Eome, the 
 first epistle to Timothy and Titus being written during 
 his period of freedom, and the second epistle to Timothy 
 during his second imprisonment and shortly before his 
 execution in 68 a.d. These epistles deal with Church 
 order and pastoral duty. 
 
 The question might be asked, and indeed has often 
 been debated, as to whether these groups disclose a 
 development or gradual modification in the teaching of 
 the apostle. Is Paul always consistent with himself? 
 Do his writings form a unity ? or do we find, as we 
 might expect, that these writings — occasional in their 
 character, written at different times, and addressed to 
 different communities and with different objects — express 
 views and exhibit elements which it is difficult to 
 reconcile ? It would be unnatural to expect that Paul's 
 
ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL TEACHER 21 
 
 literary labours would be exempted from the conditions 
 and limitations which affect most human compositions. 
 He himself does not disclaim the possibility of develop- 
 ment, and he associates himself with those who know in 
 part and wait for fuller light (1 Cor. xiii. 12). He 
 regards progress in knowledge as a subject of prayer and 
 a duty of the Christian (1 Cor. i. 5 ; Phil. i. 9). " It is 
 plain that his own life was marked by an intellectual 
 strenuousness which led him to sustained reflection on 
 the divine basis and on the manifold significance and 
 bearings of the verities of the faith." It cannot be 
 denied that the earlier epistles to the Thessalonians 
 contain a more simple and elementary exposition of truth 
 than that which we meet with in the controversial 
 epistles, while in the epistles of the captivity deeper and 
 larger conceptions of Christ's significance for the world 
 and humanity are unfolded. At the same time it would 
 be hazardous to affirm that any marked development in 
 the teaching of the apostle, or any real discrepaxicy 
 between the earlier and later compositions exists. The 
 critical readers might possibly fasten on what at first 
 sight seems serious inconsistency between the apostle's 
 views regarding marriage contained in 1 Cor. vii. and 
 those which he presents in Ephesians v. 22-33. In the 
 former passage he appears to incline to the ascetic view, 
 merely permitting marriage as a prevention of evil ; 
 while in the latter he glorifies it as a type of the relation 
 of Christ to the Church.^ Again, the epistle to Philemon 
 might be cited as an instance of ethical progress. The 
 new conception of the relation of man to God in Christ, 
 which is assumed in the earlier epistles, passes here into 
 an ethical application of the relations in which master 
 and slave stand to each other. The condition of slavery 
 ^But see chapter on "The Family." 
 
22 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 which was taken for granted in writing to the Corin- 
 thians, and assumed to be a necessary and natural insti- 
 tution of society not to be questioned or absolved (1 Cor. 
 vii. 24) becomes by the implications of his later teaching 
 morally impossible and indefensible. He shows Philemon 
 that a full realization of Christian discipleship involves 
 the abolition of slavery, and if Philemon is loyal to the 
 Gospel which he acknowledges, then he will no longer 
 regard Onesymus as a bondsman, but receive him as a 
 brother (Philemon 16). Finally, Paul in his earlier epistles 
 writes under the strong conviction that the end of the 
 world is at hand and that he himself and his contem- 
 poraries will not see death, whereas in his later writings 
 there is an indication that that persuasion was somewhat 
 modified if not departed from. In any case it does not 
 hold the prominent place in his latest letters which it 
 does in the earlier. 
 
 On the whole, however, it may be said that the 
 epistles of Paul are wonderfully free from inconsistencies, 
 and that the differences are differences of emphasis rather 
 than of contradiction. Greater stress is laid in one 
 place than another upon certain virtues and certain vices, 
 and sometimes a different perspective is given, or a 
 different motive is adduced from the same mode of action. 
 Sometimes with one set of hearers or readers one line 
 of argument is followed, while another is adopted with a 
 different class. Sometimes the emphasis is put upon 
 one doctrine, sometimes upon another. Faith is the chief 
 virtue extolled at one time, at another it is love, at a 
 third it is hope. JSTow he commands patient waiting, 
 now strenuous endeavour. The circumstances which 
 called forth the epistles of the captivity led the apostle 
 to give special prominence to certain truths which in 
 writing the controversial epistles he felt no call to 
 
ST. PAUL AS AN ETHICAL TEACHER 23 
 
 explain. Doubtless Paul, in common with all Christians, 
 was conscious of a growing enrichment in spiritual know- 
 ledge : and in his later epistles he shows that he has 
 reached calmer heights and breathes a purer air. He 
 beholds larger prospects of redemption than when he 
 first began to preach to the Gentiles. He knows the 
 spirit of Christ more profoundly, and as his experience 
 deepens and his relationship with all kinds and classes 
 of men widens he seems to attain to a fuller grasp of 
 the world-wide significance of the Gospel.-^ 
 
 But taken as a whole the moral teaching which is 
 presented in the epistles of Paul is one. It constitutes 
 a single normative authority of life and practice, and 
 may be made, as we now propose to make it, the subject 
 of careful and consecutive study. By Pauline ethics we 
 mean Paul's interpretation of the ethics of Christ : and 
 what we have to consider is the apostle's statement and 
 enforcement of the moral and practical side of Christianity 
 — of the ideals, virtues, and duties which flow directly 
 from a living faith in Christ. 
 
 ^Newman Smyth, Christian Ethics^ v. 63. 
 
PABT I 
 SOUBCES AND POSTULATES 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
 THE SHAPING INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 
 
 Before entering upon a detailed study of the ethical 
 ideal, or highest good, which Paul conceived as the end of 
 the Christian life, and of the manner in which he applied 
 it to the various spheres of duty, it will be necessary 
 to enquire what were the forces which shaped and 
 directed the ethical outlook of the apostle, the educative 
 influences which made him the man he was and fitted 
 him to become the great apostle of the Gentiles ? What 
 preparation, conscious and unconscious, did he imdergo 
 for his life-work, and what ideas with regard to God 
 and man did be bring into it from the intellectual and 
 moral world in which he was reared ? The teaching of 
 Paul did not, like Athene from the head of Zeus, spring 
 full-grown and perfectly equipped, from the mind of its 
 author. It was a growth which developed by contact 
 and antagonism with the thought of the age. It had 
 its historical setting and environment which acted upon 
 it and drew it forth. Some analysis, therefore, of the 
 elements of which it is composed is the necessary 
 preliminary to the understanding of the teaching itself. 
 For nothing could be truer than to say with Pfleiderer 
 that PauFs " whole past history and education acted 
 upon and co-operated with the truth which took 
 
28 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 possession of his mind at his conversion, and so modified 
 it, as to give it a tone and colour peculiar to himself." ^ 
 
 Had Paul been reared amid other intellectual and 
 social surroundings, the whole form and complexion of his 
 teaching would have been different. His knowledge of 
 the Old Testament, his Eabbinical training, his contact 
 with Greek life and thought, combined with his own 
 personal moral strivings, his individualistic temperament 
 and intensity of nature, constituted the material to which 
 the revelation of Christ supplied the magnetic centre. 
 And round this centre the whole complex and diversified 
 personality of the apostle crystallized. 
 
 In the making of every man, separable in thought 
 although acting as one, three formative influences are at 
 work ; ancestry, environment, and personality. A man 
 is partly what his fathers have been ! partly what the 
 thought and life of his - own day calls forth ; but along 
 with these two factors of heredity and environment, and 
 — in the cases of those who have made a deep impress 
 on history — more powerful than either, must be noted 
 a third — the plastic personal element. It must be 
 acknowledged that the great apostle of the Gentiles was 
 what he was and did what he did, chiefly because of 
 the mass and quality of those personal endowments 
 which enabled him to mould the material given in 
 heredity and supplied by circumstance to the one over- 
 mastering passion and all-embracing purpose of his 
 strenuous and beneficent life. Still all three forces 
 contribute to the making of Paul, all are important, 
 and it is, we think possible, within limits, to discover 
 the influence of each both in his life an d in his 
 teaching. 
 
 It is the aim of this chapter to discuss under the 
 ^ PauUniamuSf p. 4. 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 29 
 
 headings — Hebrew, Hellenistic, and Christian, — these 
 three factors in the first making of the apostle. The 
 Hebrew was obviously the chief hereditary endowment ; 
 the Hellenistic, the main contemporary influence. And 
 surely the Christian element, since it was the power 
 which discovered the apostle to himself, revealed the 
 true Paul, the man within the man, and linked the 
 human faculty to the infinite and eternal energies of 
 the unseen, may not inappropriately represent the depths 
 and powers of personality in the case of one whose 
 explanation of every achievement in thought and life 
 was the same : " Yet not I but Christ that dwelleth 
 in me." 
 
 First, then, we have to consider the ancestral element, 
 the influence on the ethic of Paul of his Jewish descent 
 and upbringing. The Jew in Paul was fundamental. 
 He was Hebrew by nationality and education, Israelite 
 by birth and creed. Born in Tarsus of Cilicia, he had a 
 certain pride in the place of his nativity; yet it was 
 not for the Cilician town, no mean city though it was, 
 but for the land of his fathers, that his heart glowed. 
 A citizen of Tarsus, he nevertheless felt as did so 
 many of the Jews of the Dispersion, that he was an 
 alien in a strange land. His father was probably one 
 of those numerous Jews who had wandered from the 
 Holy Land in pursuit of trade and had settled in one 
 of the many centres of commerce on the Mediterranean 
 Sea. The Jews did not readily coalesce with those 
 among whom they dwelt, but remained in dress, food 
 and faith a peculiar people. Sometimes, however, and 
 this seems to have been the case in Tarsus, the Hebrew 
 colony, or at least distinguished members of it, became 
 
30 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 permanent inhabitants of the city of their adoption 
 and received the full rights of burgesses. There was 
 indeed much in a heathen town like Tarsus to weaken 
 in the case of a Hebrew the influence of his ancestral 
 faith ; and as a matter of fact the Jewish residents in 
 foreign cities were less strict in their religious views and 
 more tolerant of surrounding customs than their brethren 
 in Palestine. Tarsus, however, was situated at no great 
 distance from Jerusalem, and being practically a sea- 
 port and a great commercial centre offered frequent 
 opportunities of intercourse. The family celebration of the 
 Passover, the constant household instruction, the regular 
 meeting of Synagogue — all tended to keep aUve the 
 national feeling and to induce the more devout to revisit 
 frequently the ancestral centre of religious life and 
 worship. To this class the father of the apostle 
 evidently belonged, for Paul calls himself a Hebrew of 
 the Hebrews, and he was brought up, as he tells us, 
 in the strictest sect of his people. The current Hebrew 
 or Aramaic dialect of Palestine was probably spoken in 
 the boy*s home, from which at an impressionable age, 
 probably about twelve years, he was sent to Jerusalem, 
 to become the pupil of Gamaliel, a celebrated leader of 
 the Pharisees, and to be trained in the calling of Eabbi 
 or teacher of the law. Thus by the influences of home, 
 through the instruction of Gamaliel, and by association 
 with his own people both in Tarsus and Jerusalem, he 
 was thoroughly imbued with the tenets of the Jewish 
 faith and became an apt enthusiast for the traditions 
 of his fathers. 
 
 It might be said of Paul, as he said of Timothy, that 
 from a babe he had known the Holy Scriptures. His 
 letters and spoken addresses show an intimate acquaint- 
 ance with the sacred literature of his race. Not only 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 31 
 
 does he make numerous quotations from the Old Testa- 
 ment, but his whole mind is saturated with its spirit. It 
 is the background of all his thinking, the presupposition 
 of everything he taught. No other New Testament writer 
 leads us so directly into the very heart of Judaism, or 
 reveals to us so profoundly the secret of Israel's greatness. 
 Isaiah is not more Jewish than Saul, the burgess of a 
 Koman city, who became the Christian apostle. The 
 same needs and the same hopes animate both. Only a 
 Jew could have written the Pauline epistles, and even 
 those which, like Eomans and Corinthians, contain truths 
 of universal application, bear in their entire matter and 
 form the traces of their Hebrew origin. "It is not," 
 says Sabatier, " the child of the city of Tarsus, but the 
 Pharisee of Jerusalem which explains the apostle of the 
 Gentiles."^ And in his recent life of Paul the late 
 Professor Wrede writes : " After all is said, the culture 
 of Paul is the culture of the Eabbis. He caught it at 
 its source . . . the fact that Paul went through the 
 Eabbinical school stands fast in his letters, the traces of 
 which are too clear to be denied." ^ If these expressions 
 are too strong, not allowing sufficiently for the apostle's 
 Hellenic culture, which, as we shall afterwards seek to 
 show, was also an important factor of his thought, it will 
 be readily admitted that from the Old Testament, in 
 which he was trained, the apostle derived his earliest and 
 most fundamental ideas, and that many of his ethical 
 principles must be traced directly to his Jewish education. 
 The Jews were essentially a moral people, a people 
 whose whole history is inspired and shaped by ethical 
 ideals. At least some brief account of these is necessary 
 if we are to understand the value and significance to Paul 
 as an ethical teacher of his ancestral heritage. 
 
 ^L'Apdtre Pavl, p. 29. ^-Wrede, Pavlua, p. 7- 
 
32 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 While the moral character of the Jewish dispensation is 
 unmistakably marked, there is no ethical system strictly 
 so called in the Bible.^ Ethical ideas underlie the 
 histories, prophecies, and legislation : they are not system- 
 atically deduced, but tacitly assumed as premises. Life 
 for the Hebrew was shaped mainly by the prevalent 
 conception of God and the peculiar relation in which 
 His own people stood to Him. A simple ethic, as was 
 natural among a primitive people, sufficed. In early 
 Jewish literature, indeed, questions with which Greek 
 speculation busied itself — as to the chief good, the nature 
 of virtue or happiness — have no place. The God wor- 
 shipped of the Hebrews was the supreme source and 
 author of the moral law, and throughout all the develop- 
 ment of their history, morality for the Jewish people was 
 embodied in the Divine Will. Early in the Pentateuch 
 the note of law is struck, and the fundamental elements of 
 Jewish morality are imbedded in the story of Eden and 
 of the Eall. The great antithesis of good and evil as 
 two opposed powers underlies the whole ethical con- 
 ception of life. God*s command is the criterion and 
 measure of man's obedience. Evil, which has its source 
 and head in a hostile though subsidiary power, consists 
 in violation of God's known will The Mosaic legislation, 
 centring in the Decalogue, and resting on the covenant- 
 relation of the nation with Jehovah, consists mainly of 
 precepts and prohibitions relative to man's attitude to 
 the Deity and to his fellow-men. Though these laws 
 promulgated by Moses may be shown to have their 
 roots in the moral consciousness of mankind, they were 
 naturally at first conceived by the Israelites to be 
 restricted in their scope and practice to their own tribes, 
 eo that the average Hebrew did not feel any overmastering 
 ^Hastings, Bible Dictionary, art. "Paul." 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 33 
 
 obligation to be truthful or honest in relation to 
 others beyond the confines of his own kindred or race. 
 The prevailing idea with regard to God, next to that of 
 sovereign might, was separation or holiness, and the 
 so-called " Priestly Code," consisting largely of a number 
 of ceremonial enactments, which gradually took its place 
 alongside of the Mosaic law, was established to guard the 
 Being and worship of God from profanation. Not the 
 priests, however, but the prophets are the great moralists 
 of Israel, and in their writings the most conspicuous 
 feature is the idea of the union of the nation with 
 God, and the consequent condemnation of all idolatry 
 and defection from proper allegiance to Him. They 
 are the champions of righteousness and integrity in 
 political life not less than of purity in the individual, 
 and they comment upon the social vices to which a 
 more developed people is liable. The prophets are not 
 only the preachers but also the philosophers of the 
 nation, and theories as to the origin and nature of evil 
 begin to emerge. While on the one hand the sense of 
 individual responsibility is emphasized, on the other the 
 idea is also developed that there is a hereditary taint of 
 evil, and that the consequences of sin may affect even 
 the innocent. Evil, it is felt, enters too deeply into the 
 constitution of things to be explained on the simple 
 principle that each man is accountable for and endures 
 only the penal consequences of his own sins. There are 
 sufferings which are inherited, and penalties which a 
 man incurs, not apparently through any fault of his own, 
 but simply by reason of his place in the solidarity of the 
 race. Problems like these awaken deep perplexity and 
 doubt, which find a voice not only in the prophets but 
 also in the Book of Job and in many of the Psalms. 
 But a solution is sought in the thought that God works 
 
 c 
 
34 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 through evil, and by its effects evolves man*s highest 
 good. These conceptions reach their climax in the 
 Second Isaiah, and particularly in the fifty-third chapter. 
 The inadequacy of mere ceremonial performance and the 
 failure of all material means of intercourse with God are 
 frequently dwelt upon as preparing the way for the 
 doctrine of salvation. " God is continually represented as 
 longing to pardon, anxious that men should return to 
 their allegiance and realize the blessings of their covenant- 
 union/' The two ideas — separation from God by self-will 
 and sin, on the human side, and forgiveness and recon- 
 ciliation on the side of God — which gradually merge into 
 and give shape to the conception of the Messianic hope 
 — of the suffering servant and triumphant Lord — are the 
 basal assumptions which underlie the ethical teaching of 
 the prophets.^ In the Book of Psalms — the devotional 
 manual of the people reflecting the moral and religious 
 life of the nation at various stages of its development — 
 the same exalted character of God, as a God of righteous- 
 ness and holiness, hating sin and jealous for the people's 
 devotion, is prevalent. There, as in the Jewish writings 
 generally, the divine character is represented as the 
 moral ideal of life and the divine will as the rule of 
 conduct. 
 
 Without dwelling upon the ethical ideas of the other 
 writings of the Old Testament, as, for example, the books 
 of wisdom, where moral practice is closely allied with 
 the fear of God and the right choice of wisdom, we may 
 sum up this rapid sketch of Jewish ethics by observing 
 that the central feature of Old Testament morality is 
 its religious character. It was simply the outcome and 
 counterpart of the national faith and worship. The 
 emphasis is everywhere laid upon the divine law, and 
 ^Haatings, Bible Dictionary^ art. *' Ethics." 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 36 
 
 the character of God is the rule and ideal of life. To 
 be like God, to obey His will, to fulfil His commands, 
 even to the remotest detail is the whole duty of man. 
 " What," says Micah, '* doth the Lord require of thee, 
 but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly 
 with thy God." Sin is disobedience of God, and all 
 particular vices, impurity, drunkenness, oppression of the 
 poor, extortion and deceit, are wrong because God has 
 prohibited them. Jehovah is the Jewish lawgiver who 
 orders and presides over the Hebrew people with 
 sovereign authority. 
 
 It must be remembered, however, that it was not 
 only the Old Testament, but especially the Kabbinical 
 interpretation of it which influenced Paul. He read 
 the Bible through the exegetical glosses of the Pharisaic 
 School.-^ Among the Pharisees there prevailed a strict 
 theory of inspiration, according to which the Scriptures 
 were not only regarded as the direct revelation of divine 
 truth, but even in some real sense identical with God 
 Himself. The immediate result of this was the adoption 
 of an allegorizing method which became common among 
 all Hebrew scholars, both of Palestine and Alexandria 
 in the time of Paul. This Eabbinical use of Scripture 
 may be frequently detected in the Pauline treatment 
 of the Old Testament.^ The most striking examples 
 are to be found in 1 Cor. ix. 9, and in Gal. iv. 21 £f. 
 But there is scarcely an outstanding character or 
 important incident in Jewish history which does not 
 furnish a type or allegory of Gospel truth. Adam, 
 Abraham, Joseph, Hagar, Esau, Jacob; the Exodus, the 
 Passover, the Crossing of the Eed Sea, the Giving of 
 
 ^ See Pfleiderer, Urchristentkumy p. 178 ff. 
 
 ^ Cf. Immer, " Das Jiidische in der Lehre des Paulua," in his Theologit 
 des N.T., pp. 247-257 ; also cp. Pfleiderer, Urchristtnthum. 
 
36 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 the Manna — these and many other figures and facts 
 are interwoven with Paul's teaching and are spiritualized 
 to illustrate and enforce his appeals. But, perhaps, when 
 we consider his training, the wonder is not at the extent 
 of Eabbinic interpretation, but that he should be so free 
 from its extravagancies and so sparing in its use. 
 
 Paul's education and native bent were strongly- 
 Palestinian, but it is not improbable that he was also 
 influenced by the broader Alexandrian theology which 
 had spread among the Greek Diaspora. An elaborate 
 attempt has been made by some scholars to prove that 
 Alexandrian thought had an important influence upon 
 the apostle*s teaching. Parallels have been traced 
 between his ideas and those of Philo, and coincidences 
 of thought are pointed out between his epistles and 
 certain apocryphal books.^ Many of these comparisons 
 both in idea and expression are instructive, although the 
 differences are also significant and may only suggest 
 that both authors were independently subject to the 
 same general influences. Pfleiderer is of opinion that 
 Paul was not directly acquainted with Philo's writings, 
 but that he was cognisant of an earlier work, the 
 apocryphal Booh of Wisdom to which Philo was also 
 largely indebted.^ Pfleiderer also points out some 
 coincidences between the epistles of Paul and the Book 
 of Wisdom^ which, however, other scholars, especially 
 those of the English School, do not regard as sufficient 
 to establish the derivation of the one series from the 
 other.* 
 
 There are two main lines of thought affecting Paul's 
 
 ^ See Jowett's Essay in his Commentary on Galations, also Siegfried, 
 Fhilo von Alexandria^ p. 303. 
 ^Das Urchristenthumy p. 158. ^P. 159 ff. 
 
 ** See Stevens, Pauline Theology, p. 57. 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 37 
 
 anthropological view of man and his ethical relation to 
 God which may possibly be traced, on the one hand to the 
 contemporary Hellenic literature of Alexandria, and on 
 the other to the Eabbinical School of Palestine. These 
 are the ideal forms of divine Wisdom and divine Law. 
 Paul's teaching with regard to wisdom, its divine source 
 and communication, man's capacity for receiving and 
 appropriating it, his possession of a reasoning soul con- 
 taining the potentiality of receiving truth, but not the 
 actual ability either to discern or to fulfil the will of God 
 till the Holy Spirit communicates it — these ideas, which 
 we find in 1 Cor, ii. 6-16, offer a parallel to similar 
 teaching in the Booh of Wisdom, On the other hand, 
 Paul's teaching with regard to the law, his high respect 
 for it, his elaborate proof of man's inability to fulfil its 
 requirements — may be considered as a reflection of Pales- 
 tinian theology. If the Alexandrian thinkers exalted 
 wisdom or the Logos, the Palestinian Kabbis exalted law 
 or the Thora. But both came to pretty much the same. 
 Both were the direct emanation and expression of the 
 mind of God. What divine wisdom was to Philo, the 
 Thora was to the Pharisees of Jerusalem — the summum 
 honum^ the fountain of all blessing, " the light and bread 
 of life." If the realization of wisdom was the aim of the 
 Hellenists of Alexandria, devotion to the law was the 
 essence of Eabbinical piety, a zeal which found its 
 expression in its diligent study and the unabated desire 
 to obey its behests. Whatever form the ideal assumed, 
 whether expressed in terms of wisdom or of law — and 
 both notions are present in the Pauline epistles — the 
 practical question of Alexandrian thinkers and of Pales- 
 tinian Eabbis was just the question which lay at the 
 basis of Paul's own life and gave colour and direction to 
 his entire ethical ideal : by what means can a man 
 
38 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 overcome the weaknesses of the flesh and attain to the 
 righteousness of God's holy law ? 
 
 Whatever then be the immediate channel of Jewish 
 influence upon Paul, no one can read his epistles without 
 perceiving that the Hebrew conception of God and of 
 man is the implicate of all his teaching. Por Paul the 
 law stands supreme as the expression of the divine will, 
 good and holy in itself; and his very proof of its 
 impotence as a means of justification with God and the 
 hopelessness of IsraeFs attempt through its observance to 
 win the Messianic salvation, is an evidence of the im- 
 portance he attached to it. His conception of the 
 supreme authority of the one true God ; his idea of 
 omnipotence and over-ruling providence, of predestination 
 and elective grace ; his view of two opposed powers, a 
 divine and a satanic, the contrast of two worlds, a 
 present earthly and a future heavenly ; the notion of the 
 universality of evil, of inherited sin through Adam's dis- 
 obedience, and the consequent belief in the inherent 
 weakness and inability of man : these are among the 
 elements underlying his ethical teaching which the 
 apostle Paul brought over from his Jewish upbringing 
 and education. 
 
 II. 
 
 The second feature which must be taken into account 
 in the shaping of Paul's thought was, undoubtedly, the 
 GrecO'Boman environment amid which he grew up. The 
 apostle was something more than a converted Hebrew 
 Eabbi. His Gentile mission presupposes a wider pre- 
 paration than that which his Jewish origin and education 
 supplied. " I am debtor," he says, " both to Greeks and 
 Barbarians." In him, indeed, Jew, Greek and Koman 
 met, and his ethical outlook was coloured by the complex 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 39 
 
 civilization of his day. The extent and force of Hellenic 
 influence upon the character and teaching of Paul is a 
 subject upon which considerable diversity of opinion 
 exists.^ 
 
 It is scarcely possible to imagine that the world-wide 
 mission of the apostle could have emanated from the 
 mind of a narrow Jew such as Eenan and others conceive 
 him to have been. Adaptability, curiosity, alertness, the 
 love of investigation — peculiarly Greek traits — were 
 among the most marked features of his character. In 
 the Greek city of Tarsus, the centre of life and com- 
 merce, the home of philosophy and culture, the meeting 
 place of east and west — every opportunity was afforded 
 for the stimulation and exercise of these qualities. It 
 was not surely without its significance for his after 
 life-work that he of whom his Lord said : " He is a 
 chosen vessel, to bear my name among the Gentiles," 
 should be first a Jewish boy in the streets of a Greek 
 town, in whose complex life there would be much to 
 stir in an impressionable child dreams of a larger world.^ 
 Everywhere in the epistles of Paul we see evidences of 
 his Greek environment. His mental imagery is not 
 drawn, like that of Jesus, from the quieter aspects of 
 nature, but from the scenes of human activity and the 
 monuments of cultivated life. The language of the 
 apostle is impregnated with the atmosphere of the city, 
 and is alive with the bustle of the Roman world. The 
 street, the market-place, the stadium, the arena, the 
 temple, the traffic of a Greek seaport — these are 
 the associations which have left their impress upon the 
 
 1 Hausrath, Renan, Harnack, Farrar, Bruce, Stevens, are disposed to 
 minimize it. On the other hand, Job. Weiss, Pfleiderer, Baur, Light- 
 foot, Jowett, Hicks, Ramsay, may be cited as favouring the view. 
 
 =* Art. " Paul," in Hastings, Did, of the Bible. 
 
40 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 writings of the apostle.^ In Tarsus he learned to speak 
 and to read Greek. His quotations are taken, not from 
 the Hebrew Bible, but from the Greek Septuagint. 
 "Speech," it has been truly said, "is not merely a 
 formal thing : it is the unconscious vehicle, and to some 
 extent the creator of ideas." ^ One cannot learn a foreign 
 language without imbibing something of the thought of 
 which the language is the expression. It has been the 
 custom to minimize Paul's acquaintance with the Greek 
 tongue, and to disparage his literary powers. It has 
 been said that his writing is uncouth if vigorous, and 
 that it bears little trace of classical culture. But the 
 tendency of more recent scholars is largely to modify, if 
 not to reverse this opinion. One of the most recent, 
 and certainly not the least learned, authorities, Theodor 
 Zahn, in his gigantic work, just translated into Enghsh, 
 says : " Paul writes Greek, not like one who has labo- 
 riously acquired a foreign language in his riper years, 
 but like one who has known it from his childhood." ^ 
 With wonderful skill he gives expression to every 
 emotion of his rich and complex nature. Now in 
 accents of touching pathos, now in tones of biting irony, 
 and now with an irresistible rush of eloquence, he knows 
 how to hold in thrall his hearers or readers. He can 
 invest the meanest theme — the affair of a collection, or 
 an unsavoury matter of discipline — with distinction ; and 
 whether he seeks to teach or prove, or controvert, the 
 most unsympathetic readers to-day, like his opponents of 
 his own time, are forced to acknowledge his dialectic 
 power.* If he sometimes repeats certain words, and 
 reiterates turns of expression within a narrow compass, 
 
 ^Cp. Howaon, Metaphors of Paid. ^Wrede, Pavliis. 
 
 ' Einleitung in das Neue Teatament^ vol. i. p. 36 ff. 
 
 * 2 Cor. X. 10 : '* His letters are weighty and powerful." 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 41 
 
 it is due to his intensity rather than to his poverty of 
 language. What strikes us, taking his epistles as a 
 whole, is the wealth of his vocabulary, rather than the 
 paucity of his diction. To quote Zahn once more, "in 
 comparison with the letters of Paul as literary pro- 
 ductions, the Fourth Gospel is monotonous, and the 
 Epistle of St. James poor." One cannot but form the 
 impression from his letters and speeches that Paul was a 
 highly cultured man, who was perfectly at home in all 
 the forms of cultivated Greek society. There is no 
 evidence that his familiarity with the poetic literature of 
 Greece was due to casual hearsay, and was not the result 
 of his own reading. It has been said that the few 
 quotations which he makes from Greek poetry were brief 
 and commonplace, of a popular proverbial character, 
 implying no special classical knowledge. But there is 
 nothing to show that these citations were current pro- 
 verbs. Even if they were well-known sayings, his 
 employment of them in the circumstances displayed both 
 intimate knowledge and no little skill in adaptation. In 
 writing to the Corinthians,^ he quotes from the Thais, a 
 lost play of Menander. In reproving the loose conduct of 
 the Cretans,^ he supports his reproach by an allusion to one 
 of their own poets, a poet of Crete. And in addressing 
 an audience in Athens, composed doubtless of Stoics and 
 Epicureans, could anything be more apposite or dexterous 
 than the clinching of his argument with a reference which 
 would appeal to his Stoic hearers, as the quotation is to be 
 found in more than one writer belonging to that particular 
 school ? " As certain of your own poets have said." ^ 
 
 ^1 Cor. XV. 33. ^xitus, i. 12. 
 
 ^Acta xvii. 28. Both Aratus and Cleanthes use the expression. 
 Both lived for a period in Athena, and both were ornaments of the 
 Stoic philosophy. See Zahn, Einleitwig in das Neue Testament, vol. i. 
 Notae, p. 51. 
 
42 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 That Paul lived in a world saturated with Greek ideas 
 is beyond doubt, and that he remained untouched by the 
 prevailing thought of his time is hardly credible. But 
 how far he was directly indebted to the prevalent philo- 
 sophy of the Stoics is a question not so easily answered. 
 
 It will be impossible here to present anything like a 
 full account of Stoicism as a system of philosophy, but 
 it is necessary to touch on some aspects of it which offer 
 points of contact with the ethical teaching of Paul. 
 
 To the Stoic philosopher this world was not a chaos 
 but a well-ordered unity, at the centre of which was the 
 (TTrepfxaTLKOfi \6yo<5 — the generative reason, which was the 
 seed or vital principle whence all things came and in 
 virtue of which they lived. The whole universe was one 
 polity — irokiTeiOL rov koo-julov — held together by the spirit 
 that was its origin and life.^ Everything in the world, 
 small and great, partook of the divine essence ; but the 
 soul of man, in so far as it shared the very nature of 
 God, stood nearer to Him and was the special manifesta- 
 tion of His life. All men were of one blood, of one 
 family — all and each, as Seneca says, were sacred to each 
 and all.^ " Man," says Epictetus, " is a fragment of 
 divinity." The Stoic united universality with individu- 
 ality — the universal essence and the individual soul — 
 the God without and the God within. " Jupiter," says a 
 Stoic writer, " is in all you see and all that lives within 
 you."^ "Providence," says Epictetus, "is over all: noth- 
 ing happens that is not appointed." To man God has 
 given the best of all gifts — the faculty of reason. We 
 may employ it to guide our lives. The external world 
 
 ^ See Glover, Conflict of Religions in the Early Roman Empire, p. 38. 
 '^See Ed. Caird, Evolution of Theology in Greek Philosophy, vol. ii, ; 
 also Zeller, Eclectics, pp. 235-245. 
 ^ Lucan quoted by Glover. 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 43 
 
 with its forces, we cannot alter or control ; but we can 
 make it serve us by living in harmony with it, ** Con- 
 fine yourself to what is within your power," says Epictetus. 
 " To live harmoniously," says Zeno, " is the end of man's 
 being '' — a statement which Cleanthes developed by add- 
 ing the words — " with nature." ^ To act in conformity 
 with self, our fellow-men, and above all with God — is at 
 once supreme wisdom and supreme happiness — the aim 
 and ideal of life. 
 
 But Stoicism was not merely a great philosophy, it 
 was a sublime system of ethics, and in the hands of its 
 latest exponents it was a religion, a gospel of blessedness 
 and life. It would be easy to cull from the writings of 
 the Eoman moralist sayings regarding providence, the 
 Holy Spirit, communion with God, worship and self- 
 examination, as well as precepts as to self-control, 
 patience, submission, trust, pity, generosity, scarcely 
 surpassed by the language of the New Testament. " The 
 first lesson of Philosophy " says Epictetus, " is that there 
 is a God and that he provides for the whole scheme 
 of things : and it is not possible to screen from Him 
 our acts or even our unspoken thought." " God is near 
 you, with you, within you — a Holy Spirit resides within 
 us, Spectator of our evil and our good, and our Guardian." 
 "Man is a Son of God, and it is his part to be His 
 interpreter. His soldier, to obey His signal and to await 
 His call."^ "We do not choose our parts in life: our 
 simple duty is confined to playing them well. The slave 
 may be as free as the consul : and freedom is the chief 
 of blessings : it dwarfs all others : beside it all others are 
 insignificant, with it all others are needless, without it 
 no others are possible." ^ Seneca tells us not only how 
 
 ^ See Glover. ^ Epictetus. 
 
 ^ Epictetus, Manual and Fragments. 
 
44 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 God is to be worshipped, but from the right attitude to 
 God he deduces the true relation to man. "We are 
 members of a great body. Nature has made us of one 
 blood and has planted in us mutual love. It is not 
 therefore enough not to injure your brother, you ought 
 to help him as well — must we not lend a hand to the 
 shipwrecked, point the way to the wanderer, share our 
 bread with the hungry. Let that verse be in. your head 
 and on your lips. . . . ' Homo sum, humani nihil a me 
 alienum puto.' " ^ " Nothing is meaner," says Epictetus, 
 " than love of pleasure, love of gain and insolence : 
 nothing nobler than high-mindedness and gentleness and 
 philanthropy and doing good." When asked how a man 
 could grieve his enemy he answered, " by preparing him- 
 self to act in the noblest way " — a reply which reminds 
 us of Paul's words, " in so doing thou shalt heap coals of 
 fire on his head." 
 
 History has shown that Stoicism was a philosophy 
 congenial to the Eoman character. Vigorous, clear, if 
 superficial, it appealed to the practical mind, and, as has 
 been well said by Mr. Lecky, '' it inspired nearly all the 
 great characters of the early Eoman Empire and nerved 
 almost every attempt to maintain the dignity and freedom 
 of the human soul." ^ 
 
 But while these quotations reveal the brighter side of 
 Stoicism (and we have purposely dwelt upon this aspect 
 to show its affinity with the teaching of Christianity) 
 it must not be forgotten that there is a darker side. 
 With all this talk of divine providence it was little more 
 than an impersonal destiny which the Stoics recognized 
 as governing the universe. This harmony with nature 
 was simply a sense of proud self-sufficiency. ''The 
 
 1 Seneca, E-p, 95. 
 
 ^History of European Morals, vol. i. chap. 2, 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 45 
 
 things within your power" is the refrain of Epictetus' 
 teaching. Stoicism is the glorification of reason, even to 
 the extent of suppressing all emotion. He only is a 
 good man who lives in accordance with his reason, and 
 what reason cannot justify must be extinguished. The 
 Stoics had no real sense of sin. Sin is simply a blunder, 
 an unreason. They recognized the presence of evil in 
 the world and they believed in moral progress ; but they 
 had not that terrible consciousness of inner strife, 
 "of another law in my members warring against the 
 law of my mind and bringing me into captivity," which 
 lies at the heart of Paul's ethical teaching. Hence 
 salvation to them came not from within. It lay not 
 in an inner power which renews and transforms man's 
 nature, but in an external control of the passions, a 
 subordination of desire to reason. The Eoman moralists 
 are more interested in the splendid conception of the 
 divine harmony of the universe than in man's deliverance 
 from evil, and the only counsel they can offer to the 
 helpless and perplexed is to follow reason and live in 
 conformity with the law of nature. 
 
 That there are remarkable affinities between Stoicism 
 and Pauline ethics has been frequently pointed out, and 
 the similarity both in language and sentiment can scarcely 
 be accounted for by mere coincidence. The corre- 
 spondence which was alleged by some of the early fathers^ 
 to have taken place between Seneca and Paul is now 
 generally regarded as a forgery. But that there was 
 some connection between the two systems of which they 
 were the respective exponents can hardly be denied. 
 
 The twofold question arises, was Seneca indebted to 
 Paul or was the latter influenced by the Eoman moralist ? 
 With regard to the first question, it is sufBeient to say 
 
 ^ Tertullian and Jerome. 
 
46 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 that the writings of Seneca were of an earlier date than 
 those of Paul, and generally that it is extremely 
 unlikely that Stoicism was a conscious borrower of 
 Christian ideas. But when we consider that Stoicism, 
 as has been recently pointed out, was of eastern 
 origin and owed many of its noblest ethical features to 
 oriental teaching, we may understand how Eoman 
 moralists like Seneca and Epictetus, without having a 
 direct knowledge of Christianity, may have been indebted 
 to those Jewish and other kindred writings which, as we 
 have seen, also largely influenced the apostle's teaching. 
 
 On the other hand, both indirectly and to some extent 
 also directly, the ethics of Paul were indebted to Stoicism. 
 That great moral system was the handmaid of the Gospel, 
 and prepared the way in no small degree for its diffusion. 
 The fusion of oriental thought with western culture 
 constituted the character of Stoicism, and gave it its 
 influence in the west at a time when moral unrest and 
 dissatisfaction with the aim of social and political life 
 made it most fashionable. The conquests of Alexander, 
 which rendered the union of east and west for the first 
 time possible, called forth the moral need which Stoicism 
 expressed, but which Christianity finally met. The 
 dream of the great conqueror of a universal dominion, in 
 which all nationalities would be fused, prepared the way 
 for the idea of Stoic cosmopolitanism — an idea which 
 found its counterpart and fulfilment in the Christian 
 conception of brotherhood. 
 
 But Stoicism not only created an atmosphere of thought 
 and feeling favourable to Christianity, it also supplied a 
 medium of language. It struck out those moral terms 
 and images which at once suggested themselves to Paul 
 as the most available and most suitable to describe the 
 duties and privileges, the trials and triumphs of the 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 47 
 
 Christian life. Though indeed these expressions remained 
 the same, yet in their new applications, when brought 
 into the service of the Gospel, they were exalted and 
 inspired with higher meanings. It is difficult for us 
 to overrate the extent to which the Stoic philosophy 
 leavened the moral vocabulary of the civilized world at 
 the beginning of the Christian era. Words like "con- 
 science," " virtue," " wisdom," " liberty," " the good, the 
 true, the beautiful," though not of course originated by 
 the Stoics, were made current coin by their repeated use 
 of them. It was inevitable that the first Christian 
 teachers should adopt the terms which they actually 
 found in circulation. 
 
 Paul lived in a world which was simply saturated 
 with Greek ideas. But there were special circumstances 
 in his history which conduced without doubt to a 
 more direct knowledge and appreciation of the truth of 
 Stoicism. 
 
 Tarsus, the birthplace of Paul, was at this period a 
 distinguished seat of learning, ranking, as Strabo tells us, 
 with Alexandria and Athens. It was specially the 
 stronghold of Stoic thought, and at least five of the 
 most eminent teachers of that philosophy were professors 
 in the university. It would be impossible, of course, to 
 say whether Paul actually attended the lectures of these 
 men. Yet it is scarcely conceivable that a young man 
 like Paul, with a zeal for truth, could grow up in a 
 place such as Tarsus was without receiving some mental 
 stimulus from its academic thought. We know that 
 Gamaliel himself was conversant with Greek philosophy 
 and encouraged its study. Paul's speech at Athens, as 
 we have already seen, shows more than a superficial 
 acquaintance with the tenets of Stoicism, and it is not 
 unlikely that after his conversion, when he returned to 
 
48 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Tarsus, where he remained for five years with his mission 
 to the Gentiles definitely in view, he took advantage of 
 the opportunities which his native town presented of 
 studying at first hand the speculative systems of the 
 day. 
 
 A number of parallel passages in the works of the 
 Eoman moralists and the epistles of Paul have been 
 collected by various scholars,-^ a selection of which may 
 be found in Lightfoot's essay on " Seneca and Paul " in 
 his commentary to Philippians. They are too numerous 
 and too close to be regarded as mere coincidences. But 
 it is not in single expressions or isolated texts that the 
 influence of Stoicism may be traced. It is much more 
 in the general tone and complexion of thought, in the 
 choice and trend of precept, in the common regard for 
 the dignity and responsibility of life. It is noteworthy 
 that many of the precepts which more particularly har- 
 monize with the teaching of Stoicism were addressed to 
 communities which were most likely to be familiar with 
 the prevailing ethics of the day. Paul desires to be all 
 things to all men, a Greek to the Greek no less than a 
 Hebrew to the Hebrews ; he takes advantage, therefore, 
 of their knowledge, and appeals to ideals and conceptions 
 of life to which his readers would readily assent. The 
 Gospel, according to Paul, represented no narrow or 
 negative view of life. It was to be rich and manifold. 
 It was to appropriate all that was true and noble in 
 the thoughts of men — "all things are yours and ye are 
 Christ's." 
 
 There were indeed elements in Stoicism which St, Paul 
 
 would not dream of assimilating, features of the system 
 
 with which he could not possibly have any sympathy. He 
 
 speaks with scathing scorn of " knowledge that puffeth up," 
 
 ^Fleury, Aubertin, Farrar, Lightfoot, Joh. Weiss. 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 49 
 
 of " philosophy falsely so called," and he has nothing but 
 contempt for the tricks of the rhetorician and the windy 
 disputations of the sophist, " the foolish and unlearned 
 questions that gender strife," with which he could not 
 but be familiar in a place like Tarsus, which prided itself 
 on its intellectual superiority. The Pantheistic view of 
 God and the material conception of the world, the self- 
 conscious pride, the absence of all sense of sin and need 
 of pardon, the temper of apathy and indifference, the 
 unnatural suppression of feeling and false asceticism, were 
 features of Stoicism which could not but rouse in the 
 apostle's mind strong antagonism. 
 
 But, on the other hand, there were certain well-known 
 characteristics of a nobler order in Stoic morality which 
 Paul does not hesitate to incorporate with his teaching 
 and employ in the service of the Gospel. 
 
 Of these we may mention the immanence of God as 
 the efficient and final cause of all life and activity, the 
 true idea of wisdom or knowledge as the ideal of man, 
 the true conception of freedom as the prerogative of the 
 individual, and the notion of brotherhood as the goal of 
 society. 
 
 1. The view of Divine Iminanence, Paul would have 
 repudiated the Stoic notion of Pantheism, but there are 
 certain passages in which he balances the Hebrew idea 
 of divine transcendence with the Greek idea of divine 
 immanence. This habit of complementing truths under 
 antagonistic forms is a characteristic of the apostle. 
 While he represents God as the "maker," the 
 " builder," the *' potter," the " husbandman " — figures im- 
 plying the divine transcendence — he also combines with 
 them the Stoic view of immanence. Thus, in his speech 
 upon Mar*s Hill, when he was actually addressing a Stoic 
 audience, he appealed to the Stoic view of God — " the 
 
 D 
 
50 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 God in whom we live and move and have our being." In 
 harmony with Greek philosophy, Paul discerns the divine 
 presence and agency throughout the whole of nature and 
 of life. Por him not less than for Plato and Aristotle, 
 the Neo-Platonists and the Stoics, the world was one, 
 everywhere instinct with the divine spirit. " For what 
 else is nature/' asks Seneca, " but God and divine reason, 
 immanent in the world and all its parts." "What is God ? 
 The sum total of all thou seest, and all thou canst not 
 see." ^ And in like manner Paul declares that to us 
 " there is but one God, the Father of whom are all things, 
 and we in Him and the Lord Jesus Christ, through 
 whom are all things, and we through Him." ^ If God is 
 immanent in nature, He must be immanent in man, as 
 the Stoics contended, since man is a part of nature. Man's 
 whole personality for Paul also is an integral part of a 
 divine system. His very body is the temple of God. 
 The indwelling spirit acts upon the material organism, 
 moulding it into gradual accordance with itself : " till the 
 expression of the eye, the lines of the face, the tones of 
 the voice, the touch of the hand, the movements, 
 manners, and gracious demeanour, all reveal, with increas- 
 ing clearness, the nature of the spirit that has made 
 them what they are. Thus the interior beauty of holi- 
 ness comes by degrees to be a visible thing ; and through 
 His action upon our spirit, God is manifest in our flesh."^ 
 But even more clearly God is immanent in man by 
 reason of his conscience, that mysterious attribute which 
 expresses at once the innermost self, and also something 
 " not ourselves which makes for righteousness." This 
 categorical imperative, or authoritative voice which we 
 
 ^ Seneca, Nat. En. ii. 45. 
 
 2 1 Cor. viii. 6. 
 
 ^ lUingworth, Divine Immanence, chap. 4. 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 51 
 
 can only ascribe to God, bears witness, according to Paul, 
 to the divine spirit within man : 
 
 " As God's most intimate Presence in the Soul 
 And His most perfect Image in the -world." * 
 
 It is as men are true to this inner voice, to the God 
 within them, that they realize the holiness of the God 
 without them. In all the spiritual struggles of their 
 inner nature, men have been aware of divine intervention 
 and assistance, of God working with them. No one 
 was more conscious of this than Paul himself. Hence, 
 while pursuing their own efforts along natural lines, he 
 bids the Corinthians work in the full faith that they are 
 co-workers with God. And writing to the Philippians, 
 while he bids them " work out their own salvation," he 
 reminds them that *' it is God that worketh in them 
 both to will and to do.*' The natural order of things — 
 the forces of nature and the agency of man — is the 
 channel through which God is evermore revealing Him- 
 self and realizing His purpose. This, which is a 
 fundamental principle of Stoicism, is one of the great 
 truths of St. Paul — the recognition of the divine will in 
 all life, and the loyal effort to make that will dominant 
 in every sphere of activity — first in the hidden life of 
 the spirit, and then in the family, in society, in the 
 church, in the world of trade, art, and literature — in 
 every field of human interest. Nature and grace, the 
 secular and the sacred, the human and the divine do not 
 stand in exclusive antithesis, but are rather parts of a 
 divine whole, knit and interwoven in mutual penetration. 
 2. The idea of Wisdom is also a prominent idea of the 
 Stoics. The wise man is the ideal man. He is sufficient 
 unto himself. He wants nothing. He alone is free and 
 
 ^ Wordaworth. 
 
62 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 happy. He is king of the world, the true possessor 
 of all wealth. The ideal of the Stoic seems to have 
 stirred both the earnestness and irony of Paul. He sees 
 the emptiness and futility of wisdom based, as the 
 Stoic based it, on self-isolation and proud independence. 
 But he also acknowledges the beauty of such wisdom 
 when it is founded on entire reliance upon and union 
 with an unseen power. The Christian is the wise man ; 
 he is king. " All things are yours, and ye are Christ's, 
 and Christ is God's.'' Of himself and his fellows in 
 the ministry he says : " as being grieved yet always 
 rejoicing, as beggars yet making many rich, as having 
 nothing yet possessing all things." " I have learned," 
 he says again, " in whatever circumstances I am to 
 be self-sufficing." " I have all things to the full and 
 overflowing." To be wise in Christ, to find our wealth 
 in Him, that for the apostle is the true realization 
 of the proud ideal which the Stoic philosophers had 
 painted in such attractive colours.^ 
 
 3. The idea of Freedom, again, is one of the great ideas 
 which the world owes to Hellenism. It has shown that 
 the freedom of the individual should be consistent with 
 an ordered and articulate government.^ No other ancient 
 people aimed so steadfastly as the Greeks at freedom as 
 the greatest good of life, and though the order and safety 
 of the state was sometimes endangered by the pursuit of 
 individual freedom, tending, as it did, to degenerate into 
 licence and caprice, yet it was the glory of Greece to have 
 formulated this notion : and no greater service have her 
 philosophers rendered to the world than just the present- 
 ment and development of this ideal. 
 
 1 1 Cor. iv. 8 ; iv. 10; iii. 22; 2 Cor. vi. 10; ix. 8, 11 ; Phil. iv. 11, 
 13* 18. 
 ^RamBay, Cities of St. Paul, p. 34. 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 53 
 
 No one can read the epistles of Paul without 
 recognizing that among Christian teachers he is at once 
 the earliest and the most strenuous champion of freedom. 
 At the very outset of his missionary work he made a 
 stand for liberty — setting himself in this respect not 
 only in opposition to the traditions of the Pharisaic 
 School, but even to the teaching of the apostles. It 
 can scarcely be doubted that this spirit of emancipa- 
 tion which he inculcates was caught from his contact 
 with the freer political life which he witnessed and 
 enjoyed as a Eoman citizen of Tarsus. It is especially 
 in writing to the group of Galatian cities that Paul 
 insists on the idea of freedom.^ He urges them to 
 stand fast in the freedom with which Christ had set 
 them free. He reminds them that they were called to 
 freedom. There was indeed a special need for insisting 
 on this idea in writing to the Galatians, but the idea 
 was to Paul an essential and fundamental part of the 
 new social order which he desired to realize. 
 
 While in the first instance it was freedom from 
 Jewish ritual that Paul insisted on, it would be a 
 mistake to limit the idea to such a relationship. 
 Freedom in one particular involves freedom of mind 
 and freedom of action in general, and it is not too 
 much to say that Paul had in view the larger social 
 and political freedom which undoubtedly follows from 
 religious liberty. Let a man realize what he is, let 
 him know his status as a Christian, and all kinds of 
 liberty must be his, liberty of thought, of action and 
 of judgment. The general tone of Paul's epistles shows 
 that he had a strong sympathy with the freedom of 
 life and thought which marked Greek society amid 
 which he had grown up at Tarsus ; and we are justified 
 ^Ramsay, Cities of St. Paul, p. 36. 
 
64 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 in asserting, as Sir Wm. Eamsay points out, " that the 
 freedom which he champions in the letter to the 
 Galatians was the freedom which the world owes to 
 Greek civilization — a freedom, ' in which Grecian licence 
 mingles with and is toned by Christian principle.' " ^ 
 
 4. The idea of brotherhood follows naturally from 
 that of freedom, and here again we think the apostle 
 has been influenced by the cosmopolitan tenets of the 
 Stoics. There rose before the minds of the Eoman 
 moralists the vision of a universal commonwealth in 
 which all men were equal. The far-reaching power 
 of the Eoman Empire seemed to give to this dream 
 a concrete form. "We are members of a vast body," 
 exclaims Seneca, " Nature made us kin, when she pro- 
 duced us from the same things and to the same ends." ^ 
 " We measure the boundaries of our state with the sun." 
 " Virtue is barred to none, she is open to all. She invites 
 all . . , freedmen, slaves, kings, exiles alike." ^ " Wher- 
 ever a man is there is room for doing good." 
 
 Do we not seem to hear an echo of this language 
 in many passages of Paul ? It is surely no mere 
 coincidence that he exclaims, " our citizenship is in 
 heaven." " Ye are no more strangers and sojourners, 
 but fellow-citizens with the saints and members of 
 God's household."* Of the many texts to be found 
 in all the epistles suggesting the same thought, we quote 
 but one more, " There is neither Jew nor Greek, there 
 is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor 
 female : for ye are all one in Christ Jesus." 
 
 Thus here, as in the other cases, Paul used the Stoic 
 
 ' Cities of St. Paul, p. 37 ff. ^ggngca, Ep. Mor. xcv. 52. 
 
 *DeBeni/. iii. 18. 
 
 *PhiI. iii. 20, Eph. ii. 19, Phil. i. 27, Rom. xii. 6, Gal. iii. 28, Col. 
 iii. 11. 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 55 
 
 imagery — but the ideas are cleansed from their alloy 
 and transmuted into pure gold. What was merely a 
 theory, a dream to the Stoic, became a practical principle 
 to the Christian. Greek cosmopolitanism is transfigured 
 into Christian brotherhood. Here, as elsewhere, the 
 magic word "m Christ" changes and glorifies the whole 
 conception. As Lightfoot finely says: "A living soul 
 has been breathed into the marble statue by Christianity, 
 and thus from the much admired polity of Zeno arises 
 the Civitas Dei of St. Augustine." ^ 
 
 III. 
 
 The third element which, as we saw, must be taken 
 account of in considering the ethic of Paul is that of 
 personal conviction — the new experience which came 
 to him and changed his whole life and thought. This 
 is the most important element in the man, without 
 which the other two have little value. This personal 
 plastic influence took up into itself all that the past 
 contributed, and moulded the various impressions and 
 experiences of his history into one all-embracing purpose, 
 subordinating all previous elements to one over-mastering 
 principle. It will, however, be unnecessary to dwell upon 
 this influence, because it has been repeatedly referred to 
 and assumed in all that has been already said. 
 
 The life-course of the Pharisaic zealot came to a 
 sudden end. Paul belonged to that rare class of men 
 whose life has been split into two halves by a single 
 overpowering experience. A cleft, sudden and decisive, 
 took place in his history reaching down to his innermost 
 soul, which made him another man, and changed com- 
 pletely his whole outlook and life-plan. What has been 
 
 ^ Commentary on Pkilippians, 
 
56 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 called his conversion, which took place on the way to 
 Damascus, was the turning-point of his career. He 
 became a new creature, old things passed away, and an 
 entirely new spirit and purpose animated him. The 
 revolution indeed at the inmost heart of it was intel- 
 lectual not less than moral. Even as Pharisee he had 
 served God with passionate devotion and strenuous 
 integrity. He did not need, like other converts, to turn 
 from a life of overt sin, or to forsake a course of sensual 
 pleasure and worldliness. The error of his life lay not 
 in moral delinquency or even disobedience, but rather 
 in a misconception of Christ, in a perverted idea of duty. 
 His conversion was, therefore, a radical change of conviction 
 which transformed his whole life. The basis of it was 
 a new revelation. Christ appeared to him in a new 
 light, and he responded with the whole force of his 
 personality. " Henceforth he was not disobedient unto 
 the heavenly vision." Life had a new meaning for him. 
 What he had formerly regarded as loss was now gain. 
 All his past experiences were recognized as parts of a 
 providential preparation for his life-work. All along he 
 had been God's chosen vessel to bear the name of Christ 
 before the Gentiles and the children of Israel. Of his 
 Gentile relations not less than of his Jewish antecedents 
 he is surely thinking, when, in the introductory verses 
 of his letter to the Galatians, he describes the chief stages 
 of his life.^ In the call of God to preach Christ which 
 he recognized as the epoch-making event in his career, 
 he sees a divine purpose for which he was destined even 
 from his mother's womb, and for which his whole early 
 life was a preparation. The family, the surroundings, the 
 education of Paul had been selected by God to fit him 
 for what he was to become, the apostle of the Gentiles. 
 
 ^Cf. Ramsay, Cities of St. Pavlj p. 86. 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 57 
 
 And yet, notwithstanding this revolution in his career, 
 Paul the Pharisee and Paul the Christian were not 
 two different persons, but really one and the same. The 
 direction of his effort was indeed wholly altered. Other 
 experiences were incorporated and his personality was 
 enriched, but fundamentally he remained the same. 
 The old fire, the former zeal and intensity, the fervour and 
 passionate energy with which he had persecuted believers 
 were the same, only they were now gathered up and 
 directed into a new channel. All his natural faculties 
 and powers were baptized with a new spirit, animated with 
 a new soul, and consecrated to a new and nobler service. 
 
 St. Paul did not cease to be a Jew, nor did he cease 
 to be a Greek when he became a Christian. He united 
 both elements in a higher synthesis. Each contributed 
 to and enriched his conception of life. The one partly 
 corrected and partly complemented the other. The 
 narrower and partial aspects of Judaism and Hellenism 
 fell into the background, while the broader and larger 
 truths of both were brought into prominence. The 
 austere view of God as transcendent sovereign, the rigid 
 regard for law, the painful effort after outward obedience, 
 gave place to a more gracious conception of the divine 
 Fatherhood and to a more spiritual idea of man's relation 
 to God. On the other hand, the inadequacies of Hellenism, 
 its lack of a sense of sin, its inadequate view of divine 
 personality, its mechanical idea of determinism and 
 destiny, were corrected and balanced by these religious 
 truths which St. Paul inherited from his Hebrew 
 upbringing. Law and love, justice and mercy, nature 
 and spirit were harmonized in a higher unity. Paul 
 was debtor both to the Jew and the Greek, and became 
 by his conversion a disciple and exponent of One in 
 whom there is neither bond nor free. 
 
68 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 We should form an inadequate and misleading idea 
 of Paul if we were content to explain his personality and 
 work by these influences which we have considered. 
 There has been too great a tendency, especially on the 
 part of such writers as Baur, Holsten, and Pfleiderer, to 
 explain the man Patd by his past and to refer the 
 various items of his teaching to this or that Jewish or 
 Greek source. We must allow something to his native 
 originality. It is, indeed, true that no man is independent 
 of his environment. Even the greatest is the child of 
 the past, the product of his age. But there is in 
 some men an unknown personal something we call 
 genius, in virtue of which they make a fresh start in 
 the world's history and give to humanity a new 
 inspiration. There is, indeed, a sense in which it may 
 be said that a man like Paul, so far from being the 
 creature of his time, is a maker of all time. 
 Genius, like Melchizedee, is without father and mother — 
 a spiritual fact which cannot be classified or accounted 
 for. It is said that if Stephen had not prayed, Paul 
 had not preached : certainly if Christ had not been, 
 there had been no apostle of the Gentiles. But when 
 all is said, it must be recognized that Paul was no 
 mere borrower or importer of other men's thoughts. 
 We must protest against the tendency to account for 
 the apostle Paul by "Eclectic patchwork."^ Let us allow 
 that Paul was acquainted with Philo (though Pfleiderer 
 doubts this), let us admit that he was intimate with 
 Alexandrian philosophy and more especially with the 
 Booh of Wisdorriy which is a literary product of the same 
 Greek spirit, let us acknowledge his cognisance of 
 Stoicism and his study under its famous teachers in 
 
 ^ Cp. Bruce, St. PavTs Conception of Ghrist^ p. 218 ; also Beyschlag, 
 Ntuiestamentliche. Theologie, vol. ii. p. 23. 
 
INFLUENCES OF PAUL'S TEACHING 59 
 
 Tarsus, yet who can doubt that these elements are all 
 transmuted and worked up by the creative mind of 
 the apostle into something entirely new and original. 
 Neither Hebrewism nor Hellenism will account for this 
 man and his teaching. He marks a new beginning. 
 He breaks with the past, and sets forth upon a fresh and 
 undiscovered path of religion and ethical thought. 
 
 The great achievement of this man is that he took up 
 that which was Greek and that which was Jewish — fused 
 the two elements, and then entirely subordinated them 
 to a third, the Christian, in Jesus Christ as he under- 
 stood Him,^ It is not, therefore, the amalgamation of 
 Hellenism and Hebrewism, but the conquest of both for 
 his Master that assigns to Paul his high place in the 
 world's history. Henceforth his estimate of things is 
 entirely a different one. He reverses his former judg- 
 ments and makes a complete revaluation of worths. He 
 sets up a new ideal and standard of life because he now 
 knows a new motive as well as a new power to realize it. 
 Christ becomes the measure and touchstone of duty, and 
 every word of his epistles flows from his Christian con- 
 sciousness. What he himself has become, he will make 
 others. The inner power which has transformed his 
 own life, he will communicate to the souls of men. 
 Eedemption through Christ is his new watchword. But 
 his purpose is not exhausted in his missionary efforts to 
 save the lost. He aims likewise at the shaping and 
 unfolding of the practical life of mature Christians. He 
 combines with his theology of salvation a new and nobler 
 system of morals. All the elements of his past ex- 
 perience unite to make St. Paul really the first Christian 
 moralist, the creator of Christian ethic. 
 
 ^ Wernle, An/dngty p. 222. 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 
 
 In this chapter it will be our object to enquire what 
 view the apostle held with regard to the " natural man " ; 
 what substratum of powers, physical, mental, and moral, 
 constituted the raw material of the new creature in 
 Christ. We are bound to assume such a substratum. 
 If man in a state of nature was without any knowledge 
 of, or affinity for, the truth, and possessed no powers 
 or faculties of body and mind to which the spirit could 
 appeal, the Christian life would be simply a kind of 
 magical phenomenon — a creation indeed, but a creation 
 out of nothing, having no connection with the past 
 history of the individual. But this is nowhere the view 
 of scripture. It is not the teaching of our Lord nor of 
 any of His apostles. 
 
 That Christian morality is the creation of God and 
 is not to be accounted for on naturalistic principles, is 
 indeed everywhere assumed in the New Testament. At 
 the same time the moral life is nowhere regarded as an 
 irresistible achievement, but is always viewed in its 
 connection with human responsibility and human freedom. 
 The spirit which takes hold of a man and renews his 
 life, is not conceived as a foreign power which breaks the 
 continuity of consciousness. It is not a new personality 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 61 
 
 so much as the completion and fulfilment of the old. 
 The spirit of God does not quench the natural faculties 
 of man, but works through them and upon them, raising 
 them to a higher value. Hence the consciousness of 
 Christians, that they are the recipients of a divine power 
 enabling them to live a higher life, presupposes a 
 natural capacity or disposition for the reception of such 
 a supernatural influence. The natural is the ground of 
 the spiritual. Man is made for God. And if there was 
 not that in him which predisposed him for the higher 
 life, Christianity would be but a mechanical or magical 
 appearance without ethical import or significance. But 
 this is by no means the view of Paul. While he regards 
 the new principle acting in and upon man, all pre- 
 Christian morality is not therefore vain and valueless. 
 A large domain of conduct is common to the Christian 
 and the non-Christian. Nor are the so-called Pagan 
 virtues of honesty, truthfulness, temperance, justice, 
 without their relative value. The heathen are neither 
 incapable of right actions nor unaccountable for their 
 doings. Man, as such, is not wholly averse from good or 
 wholly disposed to evil Degrees of depravity are to be 
 distinguished in nations and individuals, and a measure 
 of noble aspiration and earnest effort is to be recognized 
 in ordinary human nature. It has been said by some, 
 notably by Wernle, that the apostle in the interest 
 of salvation grossly exaggerates the conditions of the 
 natural man. " Paul," says Wernle, " first violently 
 extinguished every other light in the world so that 
 Jesus might then shine in it alone": and again, "he 
 made all men outside of the church as bad as 
 possible." Surely this is an overstatement of the case. 
 It must be admitted that no more scathing denun- 
 ciation of sinful human nature was ever presented than 
 
62 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 the account of heathen immorality to be found in the 
 first chapter of Eomans. Yet the apostle does not 
 actually affirm, nor does he imply, that Pagan society 
 was so utterly corrupt that it had lost all knowledge of 
 moral good. Though it was so bad as to be beyond all 
 hope of recovery of itself by natural means, it was not 
 80 bad that it had quenched in utter darkness the light 
 which lighteth every man. When he declares that " the 
 Gentiles which have no law do by nature the things of 
 the law, these having no law are a law unto themselves : 
 in that they show the work of the law written in their 
 hearts," Paul plainly assumes some knowledge and 
 performance on the part of the heathen. In another 
 passage he rebukes the Christians of Corinth for per- 
 mitting a vice which even the consciences of the heathen 
 condemned. And in yet another epistle he appeals to 
 the existing ethical standards of his day as standards for 
 his own converts.^ " Whatsoever things are true, noble, 
 just, pure, lovely and of good report, if there be any 
 virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." 
 The conclusion, then, to which we are led by these and 
 other passages, and still more by the whole tenor of 
 Paul's teachings, is that he not only assumed that man 
 had originally a certain knowledge of duty, but also 
 recognized a substratum of natural endowments and 
 faculties upon which the Christian life was to be 
 reared. 
 
 The " Psychology of Paul " or the attempt to exhibit 
 in their order and connection the Pauline presuppositions 
 with regard to the nature of the unregenerate man, is a 
 study which is attended with considerable difficulty. 
 Pirst, and chiefly, because the apostle nowhere states his 
 
 *See Expository vol. xi. p. 201, "Papers on Ethical Teaching of St. 
 Paul," by Rev, Geo. Jackson. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 63 
 
 conception of human nature previous to conversion in 
 any definite and systematic form. He does not write as 
 a philosopher. He has no interest in theoretic discus- 
 sion, nor is he always careful to avoid contradictions. 
 Also, he looks back upon man, from a Christian stand- 
 point, with all the preconceptions of man, of sin, and of 
 human freedom which that implies. Every word of his 
 epistles flows from his Christian consciousness, and even 
 those terms which refer to unregenerate man are tinged 
 and suffused with the light of a Christian significance. 
 That being so, it is no easy task to disentangle the 
 apostle's pre-Christian from his post-Christian concep- 
 tions, or to determine with any exactness his view of the 
 natural man. All we can attempt here is to 
 
 I. State and examine the various terms employed by 
 
 Paul in reference to man's nature ; 
 II. Show their relation and interdependence in the 
 
 apostle's use of them ; 
 III. Indicate their significance for the ethical life of 
 
 the Christian. 
 
 It may be convenient to present in one view the 
 principal terms of Pauline usage, and to state their 
 generally accepted meanings. The Greek language is 
 uncommonly rich in words expressive of man's natural 
 powers, both of body and mind, and Paul has availed 
 himself largely of the wealth which lay to his hands — a 
 fact somewhat obscured in our English version with its 
 more limited range of expression. 
 
 At least seven distinct terms play their part in the 
 Pauline psychology : Flesh (2dp^), Body (Sw/xa), Spirit 
 (ILveujuLa), Soul i'^v'x^), Heart (KapSid\ Mind (Novy), 
 Conscience (2vv€iSrj<n<!y 2we(^oy). 
 
64 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Eegarding these terms more particularly we find : (1) 
 Flesh, or 2a/)^, is sometimes the living tissue which 
 clothes the human skeleton ; sometimes man's physical 
 nature in its entirety, e.g. " the life which we now live 
 in the flesh." Again, it is the medium through which 
 natural relationships manifest themselves — descent, family 
 and natural affinity — as, " born after the flesh." More 
 important, from an ethical point of view, is its frequent 
 use to describe the natural side of man as contrasted with 
 the spiritual. Here the term begins to be charged with 
 ethical implications, and is used as interchangeable 
 with " man " or the " old man," in contrast to irvevixa 
 and in close association with sin. The apostle also employs 
 two adjectives — a-apKiKog and capKivo^, the former trans- 
 lated " fleshy," meaning composed of flesh, as " the fleshy 
 tablets of the heart " ; and the latter " carnal " or 
 " fleshly," that is belonging to man and not to God. " The 
 weapons of our warfare are not carnal," 
 
 (2) 2a)/jta is the general term for "body" as an organism 
 composed of parts (/j^iXrj), and itself serving as an organ 
 for the soul or spirit with which it is associated. This 
 word is also used in a figurative sense of the Church, the 
 " body " of Christ. 
 
 (3) Ilv€vfia, the breath, denotes, in classical Greek, 
 the vital principle, but is never so employed by Paul, 
 who uses it rather in the psychological sense of spirit or 
 mind of man, the inward self-conscious principle which 
 feels, thinks and wills, e.g. 1 Cor, ii. 1 1 : " For what man 
 knoweth the things of a man save the spirit of man 
 which is in him ? " Apart from this application to 
 man, it is most frequently employed in the spiritual 
 sense of a divine power or influence belonging to God, 
 and communicated in Christ to men, in virtue of which 
 they become Trvev/xariKol or spiritual. Thus the apostle 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 65 
 
 speaks of the " Spirit of God," " the Spirit of Christ/' 
 "the Holy Spirit." 
 
 (4) '^v')(t] indicates the individual life, the seat of the 
 personal ego, the self; and more specially the mind as 
 the sentient principle, the source of sensation and desire, 
 as in Eph. vi. 6, " doing the will of God from the heart" 
 or, as in Col. iii. 23, " whatsoever ye do, do it heartily 
 (from the soul) as to the Lord." In 1 Thess. v. 23, it is 
 associated with Trvev/jia and o-wywa, " I pray God that your 
 whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless/' 
 The adjective, yjrv)(^LK6$, translated natural, is used in con- 
 trast to irvevfxaTiKO's, spiritual. 
 
 (5) IK^apSla is more comprehensive in meaning than 
 the word " heart/' and signifies generally the inner central 
 organ of the personal life in man. It is the seat of the 
 intelligence, the receptacle of impressions, the source of 
 moral choice and decision, the organ of feeling and 
 emotion, and the object generally of the various operations 
 of the divine spirit. Equivalent to the inner or hidden 
 life, it is contrasted with the outward appearance, and 
 especially with the mouth, the organ of expression. 
 " With the heart man believeth : with the mouth confes- 
 sion is made." 
 
 (6) Noy? is the mind or reflective faculty which 
 consciously acts in the way of pronouncing moral judg- 
 ments. It is frequently translated " understanding." " I 
 will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the under- 
 standing also." ^ In Phil. iv. 7 it is associated with the 
 heart. The peace of God which passeth all understand- 
 ing (iravTa irovv) shall keep your hearts and minds (ra^ 
 Kapola^ vfJicov koi to. voYifxaTo). 
 
 The apostle uses two peculiar expressions. In Eph. 
 iv. 2 3 he speaks of " the spirit of your mind/' and in 
 
 1 Cor. xiv. 14 ff. 
 
 E 
 
66 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Col. ii. 18, of " the mind of the flesh." Without entermg 
 here upon the large discussion which these expressions 
 have called forth,^ it is enough to say that we agree with 
 the view of those who regard the vov? as having the 
 divinely given -Trvevfxa as its animating and impelling 
 principle, and who therefore see in " the spirit of the 
 mind " that which is diametrically opposed to the povs t?? 
 a-apKog, the mind as directed and controlled by the flesh. 
 (7) XvvelSrjcrig, 'EvueL§6g, signified originally the human 
 consciousness ; but in the language of the Stoics, and 
 hence in Hellenistic usage generally, it received the 
 narrower signification of conscience, and in this sense it 
 is usually employed in the New Testament, and par- 
 ticularly by Paul. The apostle regards it as a natural 
 power, by which man pronounces upon the Tightness or 
 wrongness of his own actions, as in Eomans ii. 15, 
 where it refers to the heathen — " their consciences also 
 bearing witness/' The conscience may be darkened or 
 blinded, it may be illimiined and stimulated. There 
 may be a good conscience as well as a bad conscience, 
 but no one dare act against one's conscience, nor is it 
 conceivable that it can be wholly destroyed. It has 
 been remarked that this word crvuelSijcri^ is perhaps the 
 only word which Paul uses throughout with uniform 
 consistency of meaning. While the other terms which 
 we have referred to are employed with no very marked 
 precision, this term is always used in the same definite 
 way as corresponding to the modern idea of conscience. 
 The use of a-uveiStjcrig is so definite and consistent as to 
 suggest that it must have been taken over by the apostle 
 from contemporary Greek thought as a full-fledged idea.^ 
 
 ^ See Prof. Dickson, Flesh a-iid Spirit^ pp. 441 if, 
 2 See Lightfoot, Com. on Philippians ; and Laidlaw, Bible Doctrine of 
 Man* 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 67 
 
 n. 
 
 Having thus briefly examined and defined the various 
 terms which Paul employs, we may proceed to indicate 
 their relation. It is true that Paul does not explicitly 
 state their connection or interdependence. But from his 
 employment of them separately and in association, it is 
 obvious that he did not regard them as independent and 
 distinct constituents standing side by side and all of equal 
 importance. He speaks of the body of man, and by 
 iaference of the life of man, as an organism or organic 
 whole of many parts which are interrelated and recipro- 
 cally subservient to each other. There must be some 
 kind of unity or hierarchy of the natural powers of man ; 
 and amid all the difference of function, and underlying 
 all the variety of operation, it is undeniable that the 
 apostle assumed a unity of consciousness, a single ego or 
 personal identity.^ 
 
 All the elements therefore which we have enumerated 
 may be said to come under two or at most three heads. 
 According to Paul human nature is constituted of body 
 and spirit ; or, if we draw a distinction, as some maintain 
 Paul does, between ^v)(fi and Trvevfxa, of three elements, 
 body, soul and spirit. On the basis of a passage in the 
 earliest of the Pauline epistles, 1 Thess. v. 23, where 
 'jTvev/jia ^v)(^ and a-wjuLa are brought together, as if they 
 were separate constituent elements, various Biblical 
 psychologists^ have elaborated a theory of a threefold 
 division of man as having the support of Paul. With- 
 out discussing the vexed question as to whether the 
 apostle adopts the twofold or the threefold division, we 
 may say that the writers who contend for the threefold 
 
 ^ 1 Cor. xiL ; Rom. xii. 4. 
 
 2 Usteri, Neander, Liinemann, Auberlen, Beck, Delitzsch and Heard. 
 
68 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 constitution, though they show much philosophical in- 
 genuity, can scarcely be regarded as successful from an 
 exegetical point of view. Biblical facts, as Prof. Dickson 
 says, do not lend themselves to modern psychological 
 distinctions foreign to Jewish modes of thought.^ The 
 argument for the threefold scheme is, as we have seen, 
 based upon the words, " I pray God that your whole 
 spirit, soul and body be preserved blameless." But this 
 passage not only stands alone in the earliest of the 
 Pauline epistles, there is in it no mention of the 
 term "flesh" or (rdp^ which plays so important a part 
 in the later epistles. Many passages, among others 
 Komans viii. 10 ff., 1 Cor. vii. 34, 2 Cor. vii. 1, 
 indicate that Paul recognizes in the natural man only 
 a twofold division — body and soul; and that when he 
 attributes to him in addition a spirit, as in 1 Cor. ii. 11, 
 Eph. iv. 23, this is not as in the regenerate, a third 
 division, but merely the soul viewed in its higher or 
 Godward side — the sphere of the religious life, the 
 recipient of grace or divine renewal, the capacity for 
 the divine life imparted by the Holy Spirit.^ 
 
 According to the apostle then, as we interpret him, 
 man is a unity constituted of body and soul; on the 
 one hand there is the body or flesh, words which the 
 apostle seems to use indiscriminately ; and on the other 
 hand there is the soul or the spiritual side of man.^ 
 
 1. Eegarding man first in his higher or spiritual side 
 the ■^I'X^ *-*^ ®'-*^^ ^^y ^® taken as the most general term 
 of which the reason, heart and conscience are special 
 aspects. Soul is not in Paul's view something between 
 body and spirit, but is regarded as their unity — the 
 
 '^ Flesh and Spirity p. 173. 
 
 ^Cp. Paterson, The Apostle's Teaching^ p. 31, 
 
 ^Cp. W. N. Clarke, Outline of Christian Theology, p. 183. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 69 
 
 living self underlying both the bodily forms and spiritual 
 faculties of man. It is the vital and animating principle 
 which is at once the source of all the sensations of the 
 body as well as the seat of the higher cognitive faculties. 
 This non-bodily part of man may be viewed in its 
 relation to God or in relation to the life it is living in 
 the body on the earth. In the first case it is regarded 
 as akin to God, and as adapted to communion with God 
 and capable of His indwelling : in this highest relation it 
 is termed " spirit." In the second case it is regarded as 
 related to the body which it inhabits, and is inherent 
 in all the experiences and activities of the earthly life : 
 in this sense it is more specially called the soul. But 
 whether viewed on its Godward or on its earthly side, 
 the soul is simply the central fact or distinctive feature 
 of man, of which the heart, mind and conscience are 
 the specially spiritual endowments witnessing to God 
 and His truth, and enabling man to feel the spell of 
 goodness. 
 
 The heart is never used as ^^xfl is of the subject to 
 whom the individual life belongs, or like irvevfxa to denote 
 the principle of that life divinely given. It signifies 
 generally the seat or organ of the personal life of man 
 regarded in and by himself, and hence is constantly 
 accompanied by the possessive pronoun " my/' " thy," 
 "his," "our," "your." There is no sharp distinction in 
 New Testament language as there is in EngHsh between 
 the head and the heart. While the heart, therefore, is 
 more generally the seat of feeling, vov^s or mivd is more 
 especially the organ of intelligence ; and though it is 
 scarcely to be distinguished from KapSla, it has in Paul's 
 use of it a special significance as the highest expression 
 of man's mental faculty — as that to which the divine 
 law makes appeal. Its field of exercise is especially 
 
70 THE ETHICS OF ST PAUL 
 
 ethical, and its functions relate pre-eminently to the 
 moral side of life — to action upon the will. 
 
 But while the mind impels the will to do its behests, 
 it offers no judgment as to the moral content of the will, 
 and does not of itself decide whether an action is good or 
 evil. This function is reserved for the " law " regarded 
 as the norm of will, not made by man, but written by 
 God Himself on man's heart.^ It is this " law " which 
 gives to conscieTice its content. And conscience as a 
 divinely appointed innate faculty of man's being bears 
 unmistakable witness to God. This word, which probably 
 came to Paul from Stoic sources, bears more than almost 
 any other word in the epistles the aspect of modernity. 
 The apostle uses it frequently in his writings, and always 
 in the meaning it has for modern thought. If we were 
 to attempt to bring it into line with the other terms we 
 have been considering, it might be reckoned as a function 
 of the spirit or soul in so far as it signifies " self- 
 consciousness " ; and as an expression of the heart or 
 mind when regarded as moral approval or disapproval. 
 In any case conscience is not a special or separate organ 
 existing alongside of the mind and heart, but simply a 
 function of man's soul by which he discerns the truth 
 of God. It is broadly equivalent in Paul's usage to 
 the " Daemon " of Socrates, to the " Light of Nature '' 
 of later philosophy, or to " the moral sense " of Shaftes- 
 bury, and is thus a point of contact between God and 
 man. Among the heathen Paul says, " God did not 
 leave Himself without a witness." Again, in the course 
 of his argument in the first chapter of Romans, in order 
 to show that the Jew as little as the Gentile can be 
 justified by legal obedience, the apostle incidentally 
 dwells upon the manifestation of God which is made 
 
 ^ Rom. ii. 15. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 71 
 
 directly to the conscience of the heathen man — " their 
 conscience also bearing witness." 
 
 There is probably no subject which requires more 
 thorough investigation, as there is none which involves 
 greater difficulty, than that of conscience. Whatever 
 theory we may hold as to its origin,^ whether the 
 intuitional, which regards it as an innate and complete 
 faculty in man, or the evolutional, which treats it 
 historico-psychologically, and views it as a function 
 gradually developed through the influences of custom, 
 law, education and the complex action of the hereditary 
 belief and wisdom of the race, there can be no doubt 
 that it is the distinctively ethical element in man, and 
 that Paul was right in presupposing in mankind a 
 certain inherent and inalienable faculty or organ which 
 recognizes the good and the true and responds to the 
 divine. Conscience may be developed and educated, but 
 it is there from the beginning in some rudimentary or 
 at least potential form, and it gives to the whole con- 
 sciousness or spiritual personality at each stage of life its 
 moral worth. 
 
 It is not, however, with the origin of conscience, but 
 with its capacities and functions in its developed state 
 that ethics is primarily concerned. The tendency of 
 modern physiological accounts of conscience is to under- 
 mine its authority and pave the way for a complete 
 moral irresponsibility. But no theory of its origin must 
 be permitted to invalidate the authority of its judgments, 
 and we may be justly suspicious of any system which 
 
 ^ See P. R^e, Ursprung des Gewissens ; Munsterberg, Ursprung der 
 Sittlichkeit ; Gass, Lehre vom Oewissen, Intuitionists : Shaftesbury, 
 Hume, Adam Smith, Rousseau, Butler, Kant, Fichte, Janet. Evolu- 
 tionists : Darwin, Spencer, Stephen, Hoffding. C3p. also for general 
 treatment : Paulsen, System of Ethics^ and Newman Smyth, Christian 
 Ethics. 
 
72 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 tends to depersonalize man.^ Conscience is the faculty 
 of moral perception, and it needs, like other intellectual 
 faculties, to be cultivated and developed. Paul dwells 
 upon the necessity of growing in spiritual knowledge and 
 perception.^ Thus the Gentiles became darkened in their 
 understanding, and were given over to a reprobate mind.^ 
 Conscience needs therefore to be constantly corrected, 
 educated and invigorated,^ and this is in one aspect the 
 supreme task of life. It has been maintained that, 
 according to the teaching of the New Testament, con- 
 science " bears witness not only to a better and worse in 
 human action, but to the existence of a higher than 
 myself, a Person to whom I am spiritually akin and 
 who has rights over me — the right of control and com- 
 mand,"^ 
 
 "God's most intimate presence in the Soul." 
 
 It is that through which God speaks to man in the 
 successive strata of his development ; that by which man 
 recognizes God's will as his supreme law. The conscience 
 becomes Christian as it is mastered by Christ. The 
 effect of conversion is to raise the natural conscience to 
 a higher value. Under the transforming power of the 
 spirit, the whole man, of whom conscience is the im- 
 mediate organ, is confronted with a higher ideal, and is 
 awakened to a larger sense of responsibility. 
 
 Summing up the psychical or spiritual side of man, 
 we may say that, according to Paul, the " ego " or soul is 
 one, and is constituted of three main elements — heart, 
 reason and conscience — in virtue of which it is capable 
 of apprehending, appropriating, and approving the world 
 of good or of evil. The heart, as the emotional and 
 
 ^ Cp. Ottley, Christian Ideas and IdeaU^ p. 59. 
 2 Phil. i. 9. SRom^ I 21, 28, 
 
 *1 Cor. viii. 7ff. ; x. 25 ff. ^Ottley, ibid. p. 60. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 73 
 
 impressionable part, receives impressions of objects; the 
 reason enlightens, coordinates and assorts them; the 
 conscience judges, approves or disapproves ; and all 
 together prompt the will to action. 
 
 2. So far the faculties which we have been considering 
 represent the higher side of man's being. Let xis turn 
 now to the lower outer side — that part of man's nature 
 which somehow easily lends itself to sin, and even in the 
 regenerate state acts as a formidable foe of the Christian 
 life. Nowhere does the apostle offer an abstract 
 doctrine of the body, and when he speaks of it, it is 
 usually as a fact of Christian experience with which 
 every believer has to do in striving after holiness. The 
 point of view is indicated in his exhortation to the 
 Galatians, " Walk in the spirit and do not fulfil the lusts 
 of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the spirit and 
 the spirit against the flesh ; for these are contrary to 
 each other, so that ye may not do the things that ye 
 would." ^ He also writes in a similar strain in the 
 epistle to the Eomans, " We are debtors, not to the flesh 
 to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh ye 
 must die, but if by the spirit ye do mortify the deeds of 
 the body ye shall live."^ The opposition between the 
 flesh and the spirit is thus strongly emphasized. It is for 
 every earnest man a fight between two opposing elements 
 — a matter of life and death. The struggle is one which 
 belongs not to the Christian state alone. The opposition 
 is already apparent in the natural man, as we may gather 
 from the seventh chapter of Eomans. But its strength 
 and peculiarity lie in the fact that the struggle is not 
 over when we enter on the Christian life. And Paul 
 shows in a significant passage that he himself knows by 
 experience the seriousness of this conflict and the need 
 
 ^Gal. V. 16, 17. 2 Rom. viii. 12, 13. 
 
74 THE ETHICS OF ST PAUL 
 
 of constant watchfulness and effort. " I bufiet my body," 
 he says to the Corinthians, "and bring it into bondage, 
 lest by any means, after having preached to others, I 
 myself should become a castaway." Now in these pass- 
 ages both words " body " and " flesh " are used, and in 
 so far as they are each regarded as obstructing holiness, 
 they would seem to be for the apostle synonymous terms. 
 He warns his readers against the flesh, while it is with 
 the body that he himself wages a persistent warfare. 
 This indiscriminate use of both words scarcely bears out 
 the distinction which Holsten, Liidemann and Pfleiderer 
 seek to substantiate, that the word " flesh " indicates the 
 material of which the " body " consists, while the word 
 " body " is the form of the material organism. This dis- 
 tinction has been made, as has been pointed out,^ in the 
 interests of a theory that Paul shared the Greek view of 
 all bodily matter as inherently evU. But this supposition 
 falls to the ground when we find that Paul, contrary to 
 the Greek view, regards both the trtS/Aa and the o-dp^ as 
 equally sanctifiable. Sometimes, indeed, it might seem 
 as if the apostle did regard the body or the flesh as 
 incurably bad. Thus he speaks of killing the deeds of 
 the body, and of the body as dead on account of sin. 
 But far more frequently the body is represented as the 
 subject of sanctification not less than the soul or spirit. 
 In the passage already quoted the apostle prays, *' that 
 the whole spirit, soul and body may be preserved blame- 
 less," ^ a-wfxa being the word used. But in 2 Cor. iv. 
 10, 11, the two words are interchanged, and the thought 
 is that the life-power of Christ revealing itself in the 
 mortal body of the apostle may exercise itself upon 
 
 ^ Prof. DickBon, Flesh and Spirit ; and Prof. Bruce, 8t, Paul's Concep- 
 tion of Christianity. 
 2 1 ThcBs. V. 23. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 75 
 
 the members of the Church. More decisive still is 
 the passage in 2 Cor. vii. 1, "Having therefore these 
 promises let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of 
 flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." 
 Here it will be noted " flesh *' is to be cleansed as well as 
 spirit. The passage would have no meaning if o-dp^ 
 really denoted mere bodily matter as in itself sinful. To 
 avoid this inference Holsten and Liidemann reject the 
 passage as spurious. 
 
 But without pressing the distinction between a-Sf/na 
 and crcijo^, as the earlier advocates of the Hellenistic 
 theory do, some recent writers, such as Wernle and 
 Weinel, still hold, not so much on linguistic grounds as 
 for doctrinal reasons, that Paul regarded man as com- 
 pelled to sin in virtue of the inherent evil of the body. 
 " Sin," says Wemle, " clings to man's bodily nature " : 
 " All men are flesh and sin dwells in the flesh. ... So 
 closely are the body and sin connected that St. Paul 
 creates the expression, ' body of sin.' This theory is 
 neither Jewish nor Greek, but an original creation of 
 the apostle's. . . . Where he goes on to say 'the flesh 
 lusteth against the spirit,' he appears to take flesh 
 as the principle of sin and sensuality just as matter 
 is the seat of evil for the Greeks. Here he is ranging 
 himself on the side of the dualism of the later philo- 
 sophy which is ultimately derived from Plato." That 
 which prevented Paul, according to Wernle, from going 
 the whole length of the Greeks and regarding the body 
 as essentially evil was "his belief as a Christian that 
 the world and all that is in it — the flesh, therefore, 
 included — belong to God and those that are His, and 
 that it is just the flesh in which the spirit is pre- 
 destined to dwell." ^ 
 
 ^ Anfdngei vol. i. pp. *2.Sl-4. 
 
76 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Wernle assumes that Paul wavers between two 
 theories of the origin of evil — the historical theory 
 which derives it from the fall of Adam, and the philo- 
 sophical theory which derives it from the inherent 
 sinfulness of the flesh. We are inclined to believe that 
 Paul did not formulate in his own mind any theory of 
 the origin of evil. Of two facts, nevertheless, he was 
 convinced — one was the universality of sin, and the 
 other was that, however it was to be accounted for, 
 evil was not due to our bodily organism. Holtzmann ^ 
 leaves the question as to which of the rival interpre- 
 tations of Paul is right an open one. Prof. Bruce 
 also admits that "the Pauline anthropology is by no 
 means free from obscurity." "The Pauline conception 
 of flesh seems to be a ' tertium quid ' — something inter- 
 mediate between Hellenism and Hebrewism." It is 
 true there are a few passages which seem to imply 
 the Greek conception that the flesh is inherently evil, 
 and, as the enemy of the soul, is to be mortified. But, 
 on the other hand, it is to be noted that the apostle does 
 not speak of sin as originating in the flesh. It takes up 
 its abode therein as a stranger from without and dwells 
 there as an intruder. Moreover, Paul certainly believes 
 that our Lord possessed a real body and that He was sin- 
 less — a belief he could not have held if he had also 
 maintained that the body was wholly evil of itself. 
 Further, he distinctly states that the body can be sancti- 
 fied and made the temple of the Holy Spirit, and that 
 its members are to be yielded instruments of righteous- 
 ness. Christians, he says, are "to present their bodies 
 a living sacrifice to God." Moreover, if human sin 
 were the inevitable outcome of the possession of a 
 body, redemption ought to culminate after death in 
 
 ^ Neutestamentliche Theologie, vol. ii. pp. 41-46. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 77 
 
 deliverance from it instead of its change and restora- 
 tion. To say tliat the matter of the body contains the 
 principle of evil, and also to affirm, as the apostle 
 does, that the result of the Eedeemer*s spirit indwelling 
 in us shall be to quicken our mortal bodies, involves a 
 contradiction with which we should be reluctant to 
 charge the apostle. 
 
 Theoretically the body does not necessarily induce 
 a sullying of the soul and a surrender to sin. But 
 practically it does so if it be met with no stronger 
 resistance than is offered by man's natural resources. 
 In the fearful conflict which is everywhere being waged 
 on the arena of man's life the flesh inevitably proves 
 the stronger and the mind is worsbed. That is no 
 theory, it is the plain narration of facts, account for 
 them as you will. Such is the apostle's own experience 
 and he assumes that it is the story of every man's life. 
 "I see a different law in my members warring against 
 the law of my mind and bringing me into captivity 
 under the law of sin which is in my members.^ Paul 
 is not theorizing here. He is not working out a 
 philosophical doctrine of the origin of evil. Whether 
 he was acquainted with Greek duality or not, we cannot 
 say. If he seems to agree with Philo, it is not on 
 theoretic grounds but on practical grounds of experience. 
 He states the facts as they present themselves to him. 
 Paul felt what all earnest men have felt — the hindering 
 power of the flesh. The true key to the apostle's view 
 of the body is contained in the autobiographical state- 
 ment already referred to — " I buffet my body." ^ He 
 was a man of like passions with ourselves, and he knew 
 by experience those awful temptations of the flesh as 
 
 ^ Rom. vii. 23. 
 
 ^ See Bruce, St. Paul's Conception of Christianity, p. 263. 
 
78 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 the seat of appetite and passion which the holiest of 
 men bear witness to. He is conscious of hindrances to 
 hoHness, solicitations to sin, which appear to him to 
 have their seat in the body. This body of death 
 becomes for him therefore the symbol of sin. To it 
 he traces all evil influences, not merely sensual sins 
 but sins of the spirit as well, such as pride, envy, hatred. 
 What wonder if at times it seems to him as if the 
 only chance of life were by mortifying the deeds of 
 the body ! 
 
 But this experimental view of the body as the 
 instrument of sin is not inconsistent with the other 
 that the flesh in its constitution is not necessarily evil. 
 It is a constituent part of man. The body is to be 
 redeemed, not less than the spirit, and it is to become 
 the instrument of righteousness, the abode of the spirit, 
 Paul is not careful to guard each theory. He does 
 not weigh his language with philosophical nicety. He 
 is not seeking to prove a doctrine. He is writing 
 at white heat on a matter of life or death. Perhaps, 
 as has been suggested by Prof. Bruce,^ the two theories, 
 if theories they may be called, find their reconciliation 
 when he says, speaking not merely of himself but as 
 spokesman of the race, " I am made of the flesh, sold 
 under sin." On the one hand we seem to get from 
 these words the doctrine that wherever flesh is, sin is^- 
 the theory of the inherent evil of matter. On the other 
 hand the words "sold under sin" suggest the other 
 doctrine, that, notwithstanding the universality of sin, 
 its source is not the body. The words imply that 
 the sinful proclivity of man is accidental, a departure 
 from the normal and original state of things, and there- 
 fore not irremediable. There is nothing wrong with 
 ^ See St. PauVa Conception of Ghristianity, p. 275. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 79 
 
 the flesh as such. It is God-given. It was made 
 holy. It was meant to serve our higher nature and 
 express our spiritual ends. But a strange foreign power 
 has invaded it. Man has become a slave. He is in 
 bondage to an element that does not belong to his 
 true being. It is not, therefore, the body we are to 
 get quit of, but the evil that has taken up its abode 
 there and is dominating the whole man. Hence the 
 cry, an idle one, if the flesh were itself synonymous 
 with sin, " who shall deliver me " ? The answer is 
 that nothing can deliver man, the whole man, body as 
 well as spirit, from this thraldom, but a redeeming 
 transforming power, a new creation. 
 
 We are warranted, therefore, in concluding that just 
 as TTvev/xa constitutes the new characteristic of the 
 Christian, the o-ap^ must be human nature without 
 the irvev^a — the creaturely state of man prior to, and 
 in contrast with, his reception of the divine element 
 whereby he is constituted a new creature.^ Practi- 
 cally, when applied to the unregenerate, flesh denotes, 
 as Eitschl points out, the whole man — man left to 
 himself, over against God — the natural man conceived 
 as not having yet received the grace of God.^ When- 
 ever the apostle speaks of flesh he means man as a 
 creature in his natural state apart from Christ. And 
 the fact that the apostle more than once lays it down 
 as a characteristic of the new life that he who possesses 
 that new life no longer lives to himself, warrants the 
 inference that the root or principle of sin is to be 
 found in man's thus living to himself, in the selfishness 
 
 ^ See Dickson, FUsh and Spirit^ p. 278. 
 
 2 This view is taken by several writers. Reuas says, "Flesh com- 
 prehends all that belongs to the natural existence." Godet says, 
 " Flesh comprehends human nature in its totality." 
 
80 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 which debases his natural life into a self-asserting 
 independence and makes himself the sole object of his 
 thought/ 
 
 ni. 
 
 It but remains to indicate the significance of the 
 natural powers of soul and body for the ethical life. 
 This may be best done by gathering up the results we 
 have arrived at under several heads. 
 
 1. Paul presupposes the accountability of man. This 
 is an assumption not of Pauline ethic alone but of all 
 ethic. Unless man is in some sense free to choose and 
 is responsible for his actions, his life has really no ethical 
 value. A science of ethic implies that no individual act 
 is necessitated. We could not treat man as responsible, 
 and still less as culpable, if at any single point he were 
 forced into wrong-doing. Freedom of will in the prac- 
 tical sense in which all men understand it, is a necessary 
 postulate of Christian as of all genuine ethic. This sense 
 of accountability underlies the Gospel's offer of salvation 
 and the call to repentance and faith, and it is the basis, 
 not only in the Pauline epistles but throughout the New 
 Testament, of the moral life and of the final judgment. 
 It is true there are some passages in which the apostle 
 seems to deny human n responsibility. The pathos of 
 man's lot lies in the world-wide prevalence of sin and of 
 its dire penalty. Never has the evil of mankind been 
 painted in darker colours, never has its universality been 
 proved more convincingly than in the language of the 
 apostle. " All have sinned and come short of the glory 
 of God." Observation and history alike witness to the 
 
 ^Cp. Augustine, Giv. Dei, xiv. cap. iii. where he says, "Man 
 a&sumes an evil character not because he has flesh, but because he 
 lives according to himself." 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 81 
 
 world-wide range of sin. It is only too evident that 
 Jews and Gentiles are equally under its dominion. " It 
 is written," says the apostle, ** there is none righteous, no, 
 not one." 
 
 That sin is no accidental phenomenon in human 
 experience, but a necessary consequence of man's nature, 
 is confirmed, it is alleged, by two Pauline lines of 
 argument. 
 
 (1) Sin is inherent in the flesh; it is an original part 
 of man's nature, and therefore he cannot be justly held 
 responsible for it. But we have just seen that this is 
 not the view of the apostle, jN"otwithstanding the high 
 authority of Pfleiderer we must dissent from the state- 
 ment that Paul identifies sin with flesh or associates evil 
 exclusively with the body or sensuous nature of man. 
 In Eomans vii. 17, 18, where he speaks strongly of the 
 power of indwelling sin, he takes care to distinguish it 
 not only from the ego, but also from the flesh in which it 
 dwells. So far from sin and flesh being identical, and 
 man being on that account irresponsible, he expressly 
 summons his readers in 2 Cor. vii. 1 to cleanse them- 
 selves from all defilement of the flesh and spirit. The 
 flesh is not in itself defiling though it needs and admits 
 of cleansing. It is not the flesh which determines the 
 value of man : it is man that determines the value of 
 flesh. The flesh of the lower animal has no ethical 
 worth, it is simply unmoral. That life in the flesh is 
 sinful does not imply that the flesh in itself is sinful. 
 Our vice does not consist in the fact that we are first 
 animals, but that we do not afterwards become men. 
 Our bodies, parts and passions are the stuff out of which 
 we shape and fashion ourselves. Saints and sinners are 
 made by opposite processes out of the same material. It 
 is the mind which gives to human passions and appetites 
 
82 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 their ethical significance. And it^ is just because man is 
 free to use his bodily powers for base or for noble 
 purposes that they may become the vehicles of sensuality 
 or the instruments of virtue. " What makes our heaven 
 that also makes our hell." In short there is nothing evil 
 but spiritual evil ; and the world of nature, all natural 
 creation, all material objects, all bodily parts become 
 good or evil as we make them. The whole natural order 
 is but the raw material which exists for the service of a 
 spiritual order. If we are sinners, our flesh becomes the 
 occasion and instrument of our sins. If we are spiritually 
 minded, it becomes the condition and instrument to us of 
 all purity and righteousness. Our body is a true part of 
 us, and it is not by leaving it behind but by taking it up 
 into our higher self that we become spiritual.^ 
 
 (2) But it is also alleged that in the passages in which 
 Paul refers to man's participation in Adam's sin, he 
 virtually denies human responsibility. Sin exercises a 
 sovereign dominion to which all are subject through 
 Adam's one act of disobedience.^ The interpretation of 
 the passage upon which this statement is founded has 
 been much disputed. Even granted that it means that 
 we actually become sinners by inheritance, and, by 
 reason of the solidarity of the race, do incur in some 
 actual sense the taint of our first father's iniquity, the 
 apostle is only giving expression to the now universally 
 acknowledged fact of heredity, which, while it may be 
 taken as a mitigating element in the final judgment, 
 does not prevent us from attributing to ourselves and 
 to others responsibility for our deeds. It is, however, 
 maintained by many that the passage can only mean 
 that we ourselves have sinned personally as well as 
 
 ^ Cp. Du Bose, The Oospel according to St. Paidj p. 261 ff. 
 2 Rom. V. 12 ff. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 83 
 
 Adam, and so have become liable to the same penalty 
 as he. The point of the parallel which the apostle 
 institutes between Adam and Christ is, that as the sin 
 of Adam brought forth not contracted guilt but death 
 upon all, so the obedience of Christ secures not our own 
 virtue but life. That is to say we all, as the children of 
 Adam, inherit the consequences of his guilt, but not the 
 guilt itself. We are born into a world of suffering and 
 death, but whether that world will mean also a world 
 of sin depends not on what Adam did, but upon what 
 we ourselves here and now do, upon the use we make 
 of the life that is given to us. 
 
 But apart from these passages there are many others 
 which indubitably affirm both accountability and culpa- 
 bility. In Romans i. 18 the wrath of God is revealed 
 from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness, 
 and in Romans ii. 6 the apostle writes that " God will 
 render to every man according to his deeds." The 
 whole argument of the first chapter of Romans rests 
 on the assumption that the heathen are guilty, not 
 because they have inherited a burden of sin from their 
 fathers, but because while they had the power to know 
 God, they glorified Him not as God. They sinned not 
 because evil was inherent and inevitable, but because 
 a revelation was given them both in outward creation 
 and in their own inward consciousness, and they 
 deliberately refused the light, turning their natural gifts 
 and privileges into means of degrading lust and idolatry, 
 so that they are without excuse. But the Jews are in 
 no better condition — " Thou that judgest doest the same 
 things." Both therefore, Jews and Gentiles alike, are 
 accountable for their deeds and answerable for the use 
 they have made of their respective revelations. God 
 is no respecter of persons. We have not, indeed, all 
 
84 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 received the same endowments and opportunities. But 
 as we have received so we shall be judged. " As many 
 as have sinned without the law shall perish without the 
 law, and as many as have sinned in the law shall be 
 judged by the law." The standard of verdict in the 
 final judgment is just the moral action of each individual.^ 
 That, and that alone, according to Paul, will determine 
 the eternal destiny of every man. "Por," says the apostle, 
 " we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, 
 that everyone may receive the things done in his body, 
 according to that he hath done, whether it be good 
 or bad." 
 
 Too often in the past has the apostle Paul been 
 presented as the fashioner of an iron system of 
 irresistible might and sovereignty. Men, it has been 
 alleged, are but the puppets of a divine destiny, which, 
 irrespective of their wills, arbitrarily doomed a part of 
 the race to perdition and a part to glory. No more 
 grotesque caricature of his teaching could be conceived. 
 Paul is really the great champion of human freedom, 
 the preacher of individual responsibility. And it is 
 because he is this that he is the teacher whom more 
 than all others the present day needs. Eising out of 
 the profundity of his thought and the subtlety of his 
 language, two highly ethical truths appear — the actuality 
 of personal sin and the accountability of the individual 
 man. Inherent depravity, human inability, the weakness 
 of the flesh — or their modern substitutes, heredity, 
 environment, constitutional frailty — will not avail as 
 excuses. One great fact stands clear and unassailable 
 in the letters of this apostle — the freedom and responsi- 
 bility of every man before God. Except upon the basis 
 of this fact his preaching of Christ has no value, and 
 ^Rom. ii. 6-10. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 85 
 
 his offer of the Gospel no meaning. Upon this truth 
 which shines forth on every page of his letters, his whole 
 Christology is built, and his entire ethical teaching is 
 based. 
 
 2. There is no real disparagement of the tody in 
 Paul's epistles ; on the contrary, as we have seen, the 
 highest honour is attributed to it. The various physical 
 powers have their uses and functions as necessary parts 
 of the human organism. The later ascetic views which 
 prevailed in the Church were due not to Paul's teaching, 
 but to the influence of the Greek and some of the Latin 
 fathers. If the apostle in some places preaches self- 
 renunciation and abstinence from marriage, it is not, as he 
 expressly says, because marriage is in itself evil, or the flesh 
 impure, but on grounds of expediency and personal safety. 
 He does not even go so far as Christ, who said, " if thine 
 eye offend thee pluck it out, if thy hand offend thee cut 
 it off." E"ot mutilation but transformation is the con- 
 stantly recurring thought of the apostle. " Present your 
 bodies a living sacrifice '* — make them fit, beautiful and 
 strong as the abode of God's spirit. In the passage in 
 which he refers to marriage, he says to the Corinthians, 
 "use the world as not abusing it." Again he says all 
 things belong to the Christian — the world, life, death, 
 things present and things to come. The body has a 
 high vocation and a glorious destiny. It may be the 
 means of our own spiritual enrichment and of our service 
 towards others. Even here it may be the temple of God, 
 in which the divine spirit may be manifested and glorified, 
 and hereafter it is to be a constituent part of man's 
 immortal life. 
 
 3. Paul honours the intellectual powers of man, Mr. 
 Lecky, as has been pointed out,^ brings the serious charge 
 
 ^Jackson, Expositor^ vol- xi. 
 
86 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 against early Christianity that it habitually disregarded 
 the virtues of the intellect. If there be any truth in 
 this statement, and the student of history can scarcely 
 gainsay it, it refers more to the centuries which followed 
 the conversion of Constantino than to the first. No 
 impartial reader of the epistles of Paul can aver that he 
 had made a virtue of ignorance and credulity. These 
 documents, which are the earliest and most authoritative 
 exposition of the mind of Christ, impress us rather with 
 the intellectual boldness of their attempt to grapple 
 with the greatest problems of life and thought. Paul 
 was essentially a thinker. He ranks, says Sabatier, with 
 Plato, Augustine, Calvin, Schleiermacher, Spinoza, Hegel. 
 An imperious necessity compelled him to give his belief 
 full dialectic expression, and to raise it above all con- 
 tradiction.^ His mind was of majestic breadth and force. 
 But not only had he from nature this speculative gift; 
 his talent was trained by education. He was not only 
 instructed in the Eabbinical Schools, but, as we have 
 seen, he was probably conversant with the tenets of 
 current Greek philosophy. 'Not on becoming a Christian 
 did he cease to value learning. In the solitude of the 
 Arabian desert he thought out the new revelation that 
 had come to him, and prepared himself diligently to give 
 a reason for the faith that was in him. And not only 
 was he a thinker himself, but he sought to make his 
 converts thinkers too. The early Christian churches 
 were not composed merely, as has sometimes been stated, 
 of the poor and illiterate, but had a sprinkling at least of 
 the more highly cultured of the Greeks. But the point 
 is that Paul did not disparage the understanding and did 
 not hesitate to make the utmost demands upon the 
 reasoniag powers of the educated and uneducated alike 
 ^Sabatier, Ap. Paul, p. 89. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 87 
 
 among his hearers. He appeals invariably not to the 
 feelings so much as to the mind. Mind and conscience 
 are frequent words in his epistles. Indeed the heart 
 itself, to which he so often addresses himself, is not so 
 much the seat of the emotions as the faculty of the 
 thinking subject. He takes for granted a native capacity 
 in man for apprehending the truth. To him the Gospel 
 is " the word of truth," or simply " the truth." He bids 
 men think on " whatsoever things are true," " to prove 
 all things," " to put on the girdle of truth." He 
 resolutely opposes all forms of fanaticism and seeks to 
 put a restraint upon the wild outbursts of emotion to 
 which semi-civilized oriental populaces were liable. Wor- 
 ship is not to be a superstitious ebullition of feeling, but 
 is to be enlightened and guided by thought. He says, 
 " I will pray with the understanding also : I will sing 
 with the spirit and I will sing with the understanding 
 also." " I had rather speak five words with my under- 
 standing, that by my voice I might teach others also, 
 than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue." 
 
 It is a strong virile Christianity he proclaims, because 
 he believes there is that in the mind of man which is 
 ready to respond to a thoughtful Gospel. He is anxious, 
 therefore, to present it in its clearness and purity to his 
 feUowmen. It is no magic spell he seeks to exert. He 
 everywhere honours the intellect of man. He claims 
 that he has neither "corrupted the word of God nor 
 handled it deceitfully," and he " commends himself to 
 every man's conscience in the sight of God." He bids 
 Timothy " prove himself a workman that needeth not to 
 be ashamed, handling aright the word of truth/' If only 
 men will give their unprejudiced minds to it, it will 
 make them wise unto salvation. Hence many of his 
 epistles (especially those of the captivity) contain a 
 
88 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 prayer for their readers that they may be led into a 
 fuller understanding of the truth of the Gospel which 
 they have received. If the apostle appears to speak at 
 times disparagingly of wisdom, it is the wisdom of pride, 
 of "knowledge that puffeth up"; and if he warns 
 Timothy against science, it is " the vain babblings and 
 oppositions of science falsely so called." Paul, in short, 
 exalts the intellect, and bids men attain to the full exer- 
 cise of all their powers. " Be not children in understand- 
 ing ; but in understanding be men." 
 
 4. Paul assumes that there is in man a laterU 
 spirituality only awaiting the spirit of God to call it 
 forth. Man has been made in God's image, and he bears 
 the divine impress m all the lineaments of his body and 
 soul. He has an affinity for God, and in his very make 
 there is a prophetic element which points to a higher 
 destiny. His degradation cannot wholly obliterate his 
 nobility, and his actual sin bears witness to his possible 
 holiness. The very fact that a man is sold under sin 
 and becomes its slave reveals his capacity for freedom. 
 A beast of burden cannot be a slave in any real sense. 
 A man can be enslaved, because he can be free. Sharply 
 as Paul marks the antithesis between sin and grace, 
 flesh and spirit, identifying the one with man and the 
 other with God, he implies none the less that divine 
 grace and spirit must have a spiritual point of connec- 
 tion with the man who is redeemed by them. Over- 
 whelmed with sinfulness as a man may be, there must 
 be a something in him in common with God which 
 makes redemption a possibility.^ 
 
 There is a law written in the heart, and when the 
 heathen do by nature the things contained in the law, 
 
 ^ See some suggestive remarks in The Christian Religion^ by J. S. 
 Lidgett, p. 445. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 89 
 
 they witness to their divine origin and destiny. Chris- 
 tian morality is, therefore, nothing else than the morality 
 prepared from all eternity, and is but the highest 
 realization of that which heathen virtue was striving 
 after. In two remarkable passages^ Paul argues that 
 before the giving of the law was the promise which 
 could not possibly be superseded by the entrance of the 
 law. The main work of the law is to lead up to and 
 prepare the way for the fulfilment of the promise. This 
 Pauline view of the pre-Christian promise implies that 
 there was in the nature of man from the very beginning 
 a potentiality for Christ. As Justin Martyr expresses 
 it : " the Word was in the world before it was in Christ." 
 The truth of the indwelling spirit in humanity before the 
 Word was made flesh, which was early recognized by some 
 of the Greek fathers, and which has become a prominent 
 idea of modern theology, seems to be justified by the 
 whole tone of the Pauline conception of human nature. 
 Within every natural man there is a spiritual man, poten- 
 tial or actual, and in every sinner there is the making of 
 a saint. The man who is unconscious, not merely of the 
 coexistence, but of the conflict of the two selves within 
 him, has not entered upon the reality of human life. 
 For it is this conflict, this choice and decision, presented 
 to every man that gives to life its meaning. There 
 is always the strife between the lower and the higher, 
 the presence of the two men within us, one of which 
 must die for the sake of the other.^ In some vital sense 
 the Christ is in every man, and it is the struggle to 
 bring Him to the birth, to manifest Him, that gives to 
 human life its grandeur and solemnity. Everywhere in 
 humanity there is a capacity for Him. Jesus Christ, 
 
 ^ Gal. iii. and Kom. iv. 
 
 2 Cp. Du Bose, The Gospel according to St. Pavl, p. 192. 
 
90 THE ETHICS OF ST PAUL 
 
 according to St. Paul, is the end and consummation of 
 the whole creation. In Him is made manifest the hidden 
 wisdom of God, foreordained before the world unto our 
 glory. Christ is the God-appointed heir of all things. 
 The divine idea of a creation from eternity is the idea of 
 a creation which is to be consummated in and through 
 the Son of Man. " He is before all things, and by Him 
 all things consist." ^ The world, as a moral work, is to 
 be regarded as made for the Kedeemer, and as having its 
 fulfilment in Him. In 1 Cor. xv. 47 Paul suggests that 
 God's idea of a moral creation is not finished in Adam, 
 but in the second man, who is of heaven. The ascent of 
 life, as it is now recognized by science, from the rudest 
 material beginnings up to the spiritual nature of man, 
 involves the presence and potentiality from the very 
 earliest of the Christ-germ. Christ brings to perfect 
 fruition the capacities of a higher spiritual life which lie 
 in all men. 
 
 All creation is indeed prophetic, ** The earnest ex- 
 pectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of 
 the sons of God." ^ Creation is a book of prophecy con- 
 taining foreshadowings of future glory. The prophetic 
 element is specially discernible in man. " Man awakens 
 for himself," says Nietzsche, *' an interest, a response, a 
 hope, almost a confidence, that something important is 
 about to happen, that something is in preparation." On 
 the one hand he is but a part of the world of nature, but 
 on the other, he is the vehicle of something above nature. 
 He is the partaker of the divine essence, the sharer of the 
 life of God. Man's history is a spiritual drama, the 
 unfolding of which becomes gradually more wondrous, 
 and from whose past and present a mystic finger points 
 towards somethiag greater yet to come, Paul's argument 
 iCol. ii. 17. 2 Rom. viii. 19. 
 
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL 91 
 
 seems to be that Christ, by taking human form and 
 manifesting Himself in our midst, awakens the sleeping 
 ideals of our souls and kindles there dormant yearnings 
 for Sonship to which our very creation bears witness. 
 
 " Were not the eye itself a sun 
 No sun for it could ever shine, 
 Bj nothing Godlike could the heart be won 
 "Were not the heart itself divine." ^ 
 
 Man is not simply what he now is, but all he is yet to 
 be. Paul compels us from the very beginning to an 
 attitude of expectancy. With all the seeming pessimism 
 which Wernle ascribes to the apostle in his description of 
 man's history, there is far more of optimism. He sees 
 man in the light of his future. Christ is the consumma- 
 tion to which his whole being points. A race that 
 includes a Christ and needs a Christ for its explanation 
 and fulfilment need not despair. As Schleiermacher says, 
 *' Christ's work is the completion of the creation of human 
 nature, for which all that went before was a preparation." 
 On every side man's life witnesses to its supernatural 
 origin and eternal destiny. The natural enfolds the 
 spiritual — the human has within it the potency and 
 promise of the divine. Body, soul, spirit, mind, heart, 
 conscience, attest a life that transcends the finite and 
 bears the signature of Him in whose image man has 
 been created. 
 
 ^ Gothe, Zenien. 
 
PART II 
 IDEALS AND PRINCIPLES 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
 THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 
 
 The subject of our last chapter prepares us for the theme 
 which must now engage our attention. For psychology 
 is the presupposition of ethic. Man's capacities involve 
 his ideals. What he is indicates what he ought to be. 
 This is the element of truth in the dictum of Kant as 
 expressed by Schiller — " Thou canst therefore thou 
 oughtest." Paul painted the moral degradation of the 
 Gentiles in the darkest colours ; and we have sufficient 
 evidence that the reality was not less black than the 
 picture. Paganism, like Christianity, must be judged by 
 its performances as well as by its ideals. And Paul is 
 justified of the historians. Yet his breadth of view 
 appears in the fact that he has not lost hope even of 
 those who answer to the terrible indictment of the first 
 chapter in his letter to the Komans. He appeals to the 
 reason and conscience of the natural man. Even if they 
 are without any knowledge of the Old Testament, the 
 heathen have the law written in their hearts, their con- 
 sciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts meanwhile 
 excusing or accusing one another, Paul even goes so far 
 as to acknowledge that by some in darkest heathendom 
 the law was not only known but kept. This recognition 
 of the divine in man involves some potency and promise 
 
96 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 of spiritual attainment. And so we are led inevitably 
 to the question — what, in the light of this view of the 
 natural man, and of the facts and forces of Christianity, is 
 Paul's conception of the moral ideal, the ultimate aim 
 and end of human life, what is for Paul the highest good ? 
 This is, and has always been, for moralists the prime 
 enquiry. Man being what he is, endowed with capacities 
 of body and soul which point to something above and 
 beyond his present attainment, must there not be some 
 supreme goal or ideal for which he is fitted, and which, 
 if he is to fulfil his being's end and aim, he must in some 
 measure realize ? " The moral lawgiver," says Newman 
 Smyth, " is always the man who has some pattern shown 
 him on the Holy Mount." ^ Wherever morality is a 
 living power, it reveals itself in consciousness in the form 
 of some vision of the ideal seeking incarnation in man. 
 Whatever may be our theory as to the nature of the 
 ultimate good, it is always a good to be made real, an 
 ideal which demands fulfilment in the actual, a word to 
 be made flesh. Aristotle ^ began his ethics by accepting 
 the definition of the good as that at which all things aim, 
 and he remarked that " knowledge of this end must have 
 a great influence on the whole conduct of life. Like 
 archers shall we not be likely to attain that which is 
 right, if we have a mark ? " Life divorced from an ideal 
 is ethically of no value. Man without vision or sense of 
 a higher purpose is undistinguishable from the brute 
 creation, 
 
 " Unless above himself he can 
 Exalt himself, how poor a thing is man,"^ 
 
 Some conception of the supreme good is the impera- 
 tive demand and moral necessity of man's being. Hence 
 
 ^ Christian Ethics^ p. 49. ^Nic. Ethics, 1. 2. 2. 
 
 ^Vaughan. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 97 
 
 the chief business of ethics is to answer the question : 
 what is that supreme good ? For what should a man 
 live ? What is that largest and best to which all 
 men's powers should be devoted ? What, in short, is 
 the ideal of life ? It would have been indeed strange 
 if Paul, in common with all the great moralists of 
 ancient and modern times, had not conceived at the 
 outset some definite end or ideal of life. That he 
 did so is everywhere evident in his writings. The 
 most superficial reader of his epistles cannot fail to 
 perceive that at the living heart of all his expositions of 
 truth, of all his appeals to communities and individuals, 
 lay a high conception of the meaning and worth of 
 life, an exalted idea of the duty of man. 
 
 What is the ruling conception ? What are the 
 nature, contents and leading characteristics of the moral 
 ideal of St. Paul ? 
 
 And first as to the nature of Paul's ideal. Here we 
 must find a starting-point in his own personal history. 
 For we are never allowed to forget that Paul's ethics, 
 like his theology, was the interpretation of his own 
 experience. All has been fused in the fires of his 
 own glowing heart, and shaped in the mould of his own 
 personal needs. Even in his pre-Christian days, before 
 he received the heavenly vision, his was a nature of 
 mtense moral earnestness. There was no frivolity or 
 indifference, either in his mental occupations or outward 
 manner of conduct. Even from the earliest he had his 
 ideal. He did not pursue a life of ease or pleasure. 
 Eightly or wrongly, he had a distinct view of man's 
 purpose, and his days were spent in the most assiduous 
 devotion - to it. The aim of Paul was the aim of every 
 
 G 
 
98 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 pious Jew — to obey God and by laborious effort to fulfil 
 the law of righteousness as enjoined in the Hebrew 
 Scriptures. We have nothing to do here with the 
 misgivings which may have troubled him as to whether 
 he could actually achieve the Pharasaic aim of life. 
 His very disquietude made him probably more diligent 
 in his endeavours. While he despaired of his ability, 
 he never wavered in his belief that the law itself was 
 holy, righteous and good. On his conversion, Paul's ideal 
 did not change essentially. It still consisted in the 
 fulfilment of divine righteousness. Life for him always 
 meant life in relation to God. God was to him the 
 beginning and end of existence. What Novalis said 
 of Spinoza might be said of the apostle : " He was a 
 God-intoxicated man." It was so before his conversion, 
 it was even more so after it. For God has now for 
 him a richer meaning and life's ideal is filled with a 
 new content. A new power has taken possession of 
 him and his whole outlook is enlarged. The revelation 
 of the risen Christ which he received on the way to 
 Damascus becomes henceforth the authority and inspira- 
 tion of his life. His first question is, " Lord, what wilt 
 Thou have me to do ?" and from that moment, as he himself 
 said, " he was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision." 
 God is still supreme : but God the stern lawgiver is 
 brought near in Christ and His will is interpreted 
 through the life of His Son. 
 
 A careful study of the epistles discloses three main 
 elements in the Pauline ideal. Man's highest good 
 consists generally in doing God's will and more particu- 
 larly in the attainment of likeness to Christ and the 
 realization of human brotherhood. The ethical ideal 
 is threefold — holiness, Christlikeness, brotherhood — a 
 relation to God, to Christ, to man. The first is the 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 99 
 
 pure white light of the ideal : the second is the ideal 
 realized in the one perfect life which is viewed as 
 standard or norm: the third is the progressive realization 
 of the ideal in the life of humanity which is the sphere 
 of the new life and becomes a holy brotherhood by its 
 means. 
 
 1. Holiness as the fulfilment of the divine wilL For 
 Paul man's chief end is to glorify God, Man is made 
 for God, and only in the service of God does he find 
 the clue to the meaning of his own life and the gift 
 of inward rest. " In God's will is our peace." If 
 you ask what then is the will of God, Paul answers 
 without any hesitation : God wills man to be, holy, 
 righteous, perfect. " Be ye holy, for I am holy," is 
 the note of the Old Testament ideal. " Be ye perfect, 
 even as your Father in heaven is perfect," is the require- 
 ment of Christ. Though Paul does not actually employ 
 this language, the whole tenor of his teaching is in 
 harmony with this aim.^ If we examine one or two 
 passages of the principal epistles we shall see that 
 this requirement of divine holiness lies at the very 
 basis of his ethical ideal for man. 
 
 In 1 Thessalonians he reminds his converts of the aim 
 of his missionary labours amongst them, telling them that 
 his preaching of the Gospel of God looks towards the 
 realization of the end of their Christian calling, " that ye 
 might walk worthy of God who hath called you unto His 
 kingdom and glory." ^ And his general exhortation 
 closes with the prayer that " the Lord may make them 
 increase and abound in love towards one another and 
 towards all men, even as we do towards you, to the end 
 
 ^ Though he does say to the Corinthians (2 Cor. xiii. 9, 11) : " This 
 also we wish, even your perfection " "Be perfect" 
 
 -^Thess. U. 12. 
 
100 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 he may establish your hearts unhlameable in holiness 
 he/ore God our Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus 
 Christ." So the felt nearness of the Parousia only 
 intensifies the need for blameless purity. Already in 
 this the earliest of the epistles, the doctrinal part is but 
 the basis of the ethical superstructure, and the more 
 important passages are concerned with moral precepts 
 which flow directly from the ideal of life he has just 
 enunciated, " We exhort you by the Lord Jesus . . . how 
 ye ought to walk and please God, for this is the mil of 
 God even your sanctijlcation" 
 
 In the epistle to the Galatians where he lays the 
 foundations of the Christian life, not in the works of the 
 law but in justification by faith, he bids his converts 
 " stand fast " in their new found liberty that they may 
 realize their high calling. "For we through the spirit 
 wait for the hope of righteousness.^^ ^ In a similar spirit 
 he writes to the Corinthians, " Circumcision is nothing 
 and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the 
 commandments of God" ^ And in the second epistle to 
 the same body of Christians, a perfected holiness motived 
 by godly fear is exhibited as the end and goal of all 
 Christian living. "Let us cleanse ourselves from all 
 filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the 
 fear of God." 
 
 It is the same aim of life which is presented through- 
 out the epistle to the Komans. In the sixth chapter the 
 apostle draws the conclusion that those who are justified 
 by faith and therefore belong to the kingdom of grace, 
 must live no longer under the dominion of sin but unto 
 holiness: they must no more yield their members as 
 instruments of unrighteousness unto sin but yield them- 
 selves unto God as those that are alive from the dead, and 
 iGal. V. 1-6. 2 1 Cor. vii. 19. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 101 
 
 their members as instruments of righteousness unto God.^ 
 In the twelfth chapter where begins that magnificent 
 description of practical Christian living in which the 
 mighty and massive foundations of doctrine have been 
 really laid as by a wise master-builder, the apostle urges 
 the Christians of Eome " to present their bodies a living, 
 holy and acceptable sacrifice unto God, not conforming 
 their lives to the fashion of this world, but transforming 
 them by the renewal of their moral nature that they 
 may realize the good and perfect will of God" Finally, 
 to cite no other illustrations, in the two epistles sent 
 from Eome, which were probably circular letters for the 
 use of the various Christian communities — the one 
 immediately addressed to the old and well-tried church 
 of Philippi, the other to the more recently founded 
 church at Colosse — the apostle, after expressing his 
 gratitude for the religious condition of the two communi- 
 ties, proceeds, in the former, to utter the prayer that 
 their love may abound yet more and more in knowledge 
 and in all judgment, and that they may be sincere and 
 without offence till the day of Christ ; that they may be 
 filled with the fruits of righteousness!^ To the Colossians 
 his words are almost identical, " that ye may be filled 
 with all knowledge of His will in all wisdom and 
 spiritual understanding, that ye might walk worthy of the 
 Lord unto all well-pleasing, being fruitful in every good 
 work and increasing in the knowledge of God." ^ In this 
 same epistle he proceeds to lay down the minutest 
 regulations as to family and social life as befitted the 
 unsettled condition of a new community like that to 
 which he was writing, and sums up his exhortations in 
 the general principle — as the all-embracing end of life — 
 
 iRom. vi. 1-13. 2piui^ j, 9^ 10. 
 
 3 Col. i. 9, 10. 
 
102 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 "whatsoever ye do, do it heartily as to the Lord, for 
 ye serve the Lord Jesus.*' In addressing, on the other 
 hand, the old established congregation of Philippi, he 
 does not dwell so particularly upon the details of the 
 moral life, but concludes with words which present 
 the ideal of manhood in its noblest form : " finally, 
 brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things 
 are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever 
 things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely and of 
 good report, if there be anything that is virtuous, if 
 there be anything that is worthy of praise, think on 
 these things." ^ 
 
 It will be seen from these passages and others that 
 might be quoted that blameless character, righteous 
 conduct, holiness of life, are still the essential elements 
 in Paul's ideal of goodness ; and not less under the 
 Gospel than as formerly under the law, obedience to 
 God is insisted on as the supreme standard and goal of 
 endeavour. To walk worthy of God, to fulfil His will 
 in all sincerity and purity, is for the Christian as for the 
 Jew the end of morality. Paul foresaw that it might be 
 objected to the new life that, because it rested upon a 
 supernatural basis and sprung from an unseen divine 
 root, men might imagine that the old requirements were 
 annulled ; and that if they were in Christ and justified 
 by faith, the old aims of righteousness and holiness and 
 the common virtues of justice and truth were no longer 
 elements in the ideal of man. He sets himself to con- 
 trovert this idea as emphatically as Christ Himself. He 
 too would have said, '* except your righteousness should 
 exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye 
 shall in no case enter the kingdom of Heaven." ^ There 
 are those, says the apostle, " who being ignorant of God's 
 'Phil. iv. 8. 2 Matt. v. 20. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 103 
 
 righteousness go about seeking to establish their own 
 righteousness, not submitting themselves to the righteous- 
 ness of God." Christ is indeed the end of the law of 
 righteousness to everyone that believeth j but righteous- 
 ness one way or other must be fulfilled as God's highest 
 ideal for man.^ 
 
 Life had a supreme worth and sacredness for Paul 
 because God was its end. To be a man was to fulfil in 
 his own person God's idea of humanity. That is why 
 man is here at all. That is his whole work and destiny. 
 If you had asked an ancient, what is the highest good or 
 chief end of man ? he would probably have answered 
 "happiness." If you had asked Paul, he would have 
 emphatically replied, "to do God's will." Doing God's 
 will may eventually bring happiness ; indeed, because it 
 is God's will, and is therefore the highest and the best 
 we know, it involves man's supreme blessedness. But 
 before every man, just because he is man, with the touch 
 of the divine hand on him, and his maker's end to serve, 
 lies this ultimate goal of existence — the realization of the 
 perfect life according to the idea of God. !N'ot self- 
 regarding happiness but God-regarding righteousness is 
 the Christian end. Paul strikes this strenuous note, the 
 key-note of the true ethical conception of life for serious 
 men in a serious world, in his great declaration that in 
 the Gospel is revealed the SiKaioavptj Qeov — the Eightness 
 of God. Rightness is more than righteousness. And it 
 is this positive and searching demand, and not mere 
 absence of imperfection or sin, which the apostle exhibits 
 as the goal of man. Rightness is God's holiness, and 
 this in its fulness is man's ultimate aim, the harmony of 
 all conflicting elements, the at-one-ment of all contrasts, 
 the complete realization of His divine humanity. So 
 iRom. X. 1-4. 
 
104 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 does Paul's Gospel aim at " presenting every man perfect 
 before God." 
 
 2. Christlikeness. The second element in Paul's ideal 
 is not something different from the first. It is a more 
 concrete way of presenting the same truth. If holiness, 
 Godlikeness is the end, Christlikeness is the norm or 
 standard in which that end is presented to man in the 
 Gospel. In Christianity God is revealed to us through 
 Jesus Christ, and the abstract impersonal ideas of holiness 
 and righteousness are transmuted into the features of a 
 living personality, whose spirit is to be embodied and 
 reproduced in men's lives. Christianity takes the old 
 aims of life and puts a new spirit into them, breathes into 
 them a living soul. Hence in the Gospel there is pre- 
 sented by Paul a new type of virtue, which wholly 
 distinguishes his ethic from that of the ancient world, 
 both as offered by the Jewish religion and by the philo- 
 sophy of the Greeks. Whatever view theologians may 
 take of the historicity of the Christ of the Gospels, and 
 especially of the incident on the road to Damascus — 
 that wondrous unveiling of the Lord of heaven to the 
 soul of His future disciple — no one can fail to recognize 
 the distinctiveness and uniqueness of the ideal which 
 this man sets before the world. It is not transcendental 
 and abstract, it is immanent and personal, a life and not 
 a laborious effort. The Christian is a new man. Christ 
 is born in him, and his whole after-life is but the exph- 
 cation of that fact, an unfolding of the divine seed 
 implanted in the soul. Christ has now for Paul, as 
 Eitschl would say, the value of God. All man is and 
 all he owes to God, he is and owes, the apostle would 
 tell us, equally to Christ. 
 
 In three different ways Paul presents Christ as ideaL 
 He is at once Pattern, Power and Principle. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 105 
 
 (1) Christ is for Paul the one perfect human, the one 
 Son of man in whom the fulness of manhood has been 
 realized, 
 
 "The first to insist on 
 The natural sovereignty of our race.'' 
 
 As such He is the Pattern of goodness which is to be 
 reproduced in human lives. It is characteristic of the 
 New Testament writers that they do not content them- 
 selves with imaginative descriptions of goodness, but 
 present a living ideal in the person of Jesus Christ. 
 The value of concrete example is indeed to some extent 
 recognized in non- Christian systems. In the " philosophic 
 king " of Plato, the " expert " of Aristotle, the " wise man " 
 of the Stoics, we have an imaginary embodiment of the 
 ideal. A similar tendency is apparent in modern systems, 
 as for example, in Utilitarianism and Comtism. "The 
 complexity of the ethical end is so great," says Mill, " that 
 it can often be best represented by a concrete example."^ 
 And Comte, " after denouncing the anthropomorphism of 
 other religions, ends with the adoration of actual men 
 and women." 2 But what other systems have only con- 
 ceived in an imaginative form, Christianity has realized 
 in an actual Person. " It is part of the profound adapta- 
 tion of Christianity to the actual needs of mankind that 
 it does not define the moral ideal, but manifests the very 
 thing itself. It proclaims Christ, not only as a revelation 
 of God but as a supreme type of character, as the typical 
 and representative embodiment of the kingdom of God."^ 
 When, therefore, Paul exhibits the new type of 
 character according to which the souls of his converts 
 
 ^ Mill, Utilitarianism, p. 15. 
 
 2 Martineau, Types of Ethical Theory, i. p. 432. 
 
 ^ Ottley, Christian Ideas and Ideals^ p. 139. 
 
106 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 are to be fashioned, it is the actual life of Christ he 
 holds up. When he seeks to bend the proud and 
 stubborn wills of the Philippians, he appeals to the 
 humility and self-denial of Jesus, and bids them imitate 
 His spirit. When he inculcates patience under suffering 
 and wrong, his restraining motive is the example of our 
 Lord. When he enjoins the duty of liberality, he 
 reminds the Corinthians of the grace of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, who, though He was rich became poor. And 
 when he would commend love to them, as greater, 
 grander, more abiding than eloquence, knowledge, power 
 or courage, he simply presents some of the features 
 of the life of Christ as he lived among men.^ "Be ye 
 followers of God," he says to the Ephesians, " and walk 
 in love as Christ hath loved us " ; and to the Philippians, 
 commending unselfishness and lowliness of mind, he writes, 
 "let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus." 
 When he exhorts the Colossians to forgiveness and long- 
 suffering, he quotes the example of Christ — '* even as 
 Christ forgave you, so also do ye." The Christlike 
 man is he who is striving to conform his life to the 
 image of his Master, and to reproduce in his character 
 the features of the man Christ Jesus. St. Paul does 
 not dwell, indeed, frequently upon the details of Christ's 
 earthly life, but there can be no doubt that though he 
 recognized the uniqueness of His moral relationship 
 to God, he also saw in Him one who was made in the 
 likeness of man, and who was in all points tempted like 
 as we are yet without sin. His life was, in a real sense, 
 normal in its general conditions, passing through the 
 ordinary stages of growth and participating in the 
 common experiences of man. There was the same call 
 in His case as ours to prayer, to patience, and to 
 
 ^ 1 Cor. xiii. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 107 
 
 endurance. There was the same demand for moral 
 decision and renunciation. His human nature was made 
 perfect by submission to the ordinary laws of spiritual 
 development. Hence for Paul He was the embodiment of 
 God's righteous will, the supreme example of holiness, 
 the highest pattern of human character, and to be a 
 disciple of Christ was to be one who sought to obey 
 Him, to follow, to imitate Him, and to carry His mind 
 and spirit into all the complex tasks and trials of 
 actual life.^ 
 
 (2) But to say that Paul presents Christ as example 
 and nothing more would be a most inadequate and 
 misleading account of the apostle's view of the ideal 
 life, and of the relation in which he believes Christ to 
 stand to the human race. Christ is example, but He 
 is more. He is also Power. He is the motive and 
 inspiration of the new life. Not example only, but 
 cause of life to all who believe.^ Mere mechanical 
 imitation of Jesus or literal reproduction of His image 
 is not what Paul enjoins. He says not, " be like Christ," 
 but "have the mind in you which was also in Christ 
 Jesus." Indeed, as has been well said,^ the literal 
 imitation of examples has but a limited reign and 
 inevitably passes into something higher. All imitation 
 is something of a discovery. It is not the mechanical 
 work of a copyist. The world of motives begins to 
 be revealed. Imitation deepens. It does not stop at 
 actions overt and visible. It strives to reproduce what 
 it divines to be the spirit in which the imitated acts 
 are done. The very nature of goodness forbids slavish 
 reproduction. Every look, word and gesture of the good 
 
 * Ottley, Christian Ideas and Idea^ls, p. 143. 
 
 2Eph. i. 19-20. 
 
 ^MacCunn, The Making of Character, p. 137. 
 
108 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 man, so far from being copied merely, are the direct 
 living expression of the moral spirit within. We can 
 never hope to interpret the character of another truly 
 unless there be within our own breasts that same moral 
 spirit from which we believe the interpreted word 
 or action to proceed. Hence there is a certain justi- 
 fication in Kant's sweeping assertion, that " imitation 
 finds no place at all in morality. . . . Even the Holy 
 One of the Gospels must first be compared with an ideal 
 of moral perfection before we can recognize Him as 
 sueh."^ Much as example may do for us, it cannot 
 implant the moral spirit nor create the capacity of 
 spiritual response without which there can be no real 
 appropriation of moral qualities. If that be partially 
 true of ordinary examples, it is truer still of the example 
 of Christ. Indeed, there is a sense in which Christ is 
 not even our example unless He is more. The question 
 " What would Jesus do ? " as the test of conduct may 
 cover a quite inadequate conception *of the intimate and 
 vital relation Christ bears to our humanity. Even in 
 the Imitatio Christi, with all its beautiful and exalted 
 spirit, one is conscious of a false note at times, as if 
 the new life were a thing of routine and outward copying, 
 and not an indwelling spirit. There are aspects of 
 Christ's personality and work, and these the most unique 
 and distinctive, which are not, and were never meant 
 to be, the object of human imitation. As Lord and 
 Eedeemer, Christ offers no pattern for us. " It is not 
 to copy after Him," says a modern writer, " but to let 
 His life take form in us, to receive His spirit and make 
 it effective — which is the moral task of the Christian." 
 It is not as the example of the new life, but as its 
 motive and creative power that Paul most frequently 
 1 Metaphysics of Ethics, sect. ii. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 109 
 
 presents Christ. " Let the love of Christ constrain you." 
 " Let Christ be born in you." " Christ in you the hope 
 of glory." Just here the grandeur and originality of 
 Paul's ideal appears. There is nothing of this in ancient 
 ethics. What the moralists of Greece sought for in vain, 
 Christ achieved for our humanity by His life-work — the 
 creative impulse of personal love and vital contact with 
 a divine power of renewal. We love Christ, but we also 
 live by Him. We could not even imitate Him if He 
 were not already within us. 
 
 (3) And so we are led by a natural and inevitable 
 transition to consider Christ not simply as pattern and 
 power, but also as Principle of the new life — the higher 
 and diviner self of every man. The Christ-life is one 
 with the idea of the good. The kingdom of God as the 
 perfected human ideal is inseparably bound up with 
 Christ. He is king of a new realm, head of a new 
 ■creation. " He is our life," says Paul. United in vital 
 relation to Him we belong to another world and a higher 
 order. In this world, the Christian is not of it. Par- 
 ticipating in the life of Christ he is a citizen of heaven, 
 a sharer of the unseen and eternal. " Being risen with 
 Christ, seek," says Paul, " those things which are above 
 where Christ is seated at the right hand of God," The 
 Christian is to feel the mystic drawing of the unseen, 
 to walk in the new life with Christ. Paul is never tired 
 of telling us that this is the principle of his own life. 
 "* For me to live is Christ " ; " to win Christ," to be found 
 in Him, is life's supreme end. Christ is all in all. To 
 know Christ is eternal life. To serve Christ is perfect 
 freedom. It is no bygone memory or buried hero of the 
 past that Paul holds up before us. All that is highest 
 -and best in manhood is centred in and achieved 
 through the living Christ. He is the risen and regnant 
 
110 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Lord — living and active now. To attain to personal 
 union with Christ, to share the fellowship of His spirib 
 now, to have implanted within us a living seed which 
 will unfold to perfect fulness hereafter, that is for Paul 
 the Christian ideal, God's best for man, " the last of life 
 for which the first was made." ^ 
 
 3. The Brotherhood and Unity of Man. Up to this 
 point, in our consideration of the ideal of Paul, the 
 emphasis h as seemed to lie on the perfection of the 
 individual. But none knew better than Paul that 
 the individual is not perfected alone. Paul's aim may be 
 individual, but it is not individualistic. He may endea- 
 vour to present every man perfect before God, but he 
 well knows that no man can find himself until he finds 
 his duties, and that the single soul is completed in the 
 brotherhood of the race. 
 
 Two things especially, according to Mr. Lecky, the 
 world owes to Jesus Christ — the new sacredness of life 
 and the new sense of brotherhood. These two ideas find 
 repeated expression in the epistles. The one is a con- 
 sequence of the other. To those who came under the 
 power of the Gospel life appeared to be of quite infinite 
 worth, for the Cross of Christ had supplied a new and 
 an unique standard of value ; and in addition the actual 
 character of Jesus had set before men an altogether new 
 ideal of humanity. If we compare the teaching of Paul 
 with the teachings of contemporary writers, we find 
 ourselves at once confronted with an entirely different 
 order of values. It is no longer the man as citizen, ruler 
 or philosopher ; no more the noble or the slave as such 
 that comes before us ; but man as created in the image 
 of God, man as redeemed by the blood of Christ, and, 
 
 ^See Du Bose, Gospel According to Fault p. 296, who works out the 
 three senses in which Christ ia ours in a somewhat diflferent manner. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 111 
 
 therefore, both to himself and to others, of transcendent 
 potential worth and dignity. Nor is there any longer a 
 distinction between man and man. God has made of 
 one every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the 
 earth. He has sent His Son to die for all men, and by 
 His word and spirit He is calling all into a common 
 fellowship in which there is neither Greek nor Jew, bond 
 nor free, male nor female, but in which all are one in 
 Christ Jesus.^ 
 
 Many of the precepts of the apostle refer, not to single 
 individuals, but to humanity as an organic whole. Paul 
 recognizes that no man can live to himself alone, and that 
 in seeking his own good he ought to seek his brother's 
 good as well. Christians can only fulfil the law of 
 Christ as they bear one another's burdens. One of the 
 first steps which the apostle took was to gather the 
 disciples together into organized communities. He recog- 
 nized that no Christian could have fought his way through 
 the dark night of idolatry and immorality which sur- 
 rounded him as an isolated unit. The congregation, or 
 the Church, as Paul calls it, was a necessary condition for 
 all permanent religious life. These organizations were 
 probably first modelled partly upon the Greek and partly 
 upon the Jewish pattern. But however they originated, 
 such communities of brethren, closely knit together for 
 religious and social purposes, gave to the individual 
 members a sense of strength and comfort, and often 
 stood to them in the place of the family.^ To these 
 congregations Paul's chief epistles were written, and, 
 though the aim of his preaching was in the first instance 
 the conversion of the individual, he conceived the power 
 of the new life to be centred in the Church. 
 
 1 Cp. Fordyce, The New Social Order y p. 39. 
 
 3 Wemle, Beginning of Christianity ^ vol. i. p. 190. 
 
112 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 The Church was Christ's body, of which individuals 
 were the members, necessary to one another, and deriving 
 their strength and nutriment from Christ, the head. The 
 daily needs of the congregations forced the apostle to 
 elaborate a kind of sociology. Though perhaps Paul can 
 scarcely be styled a social reformer in the modern sense 
 of the phrase, and though his first thoughts are for the 
 Church of God, the body of Christ, it must not be for- 
 gotten that the whole of humanity is for him the aim of 
 final redemption, and the field is the world. It is surely 
 a mistake to say, as Weinel does, " that Paul's teaching is 
 altogether cut off from national life ; his ethical system is 
 that of anarchism without and of a conventicle within, 
 ... it does not move along with the full stream of 
 a broad life in touch with the world at every point, 
 nor has it to do with people who either could or would 
 acquire any influence in the shaping of society or the 
 state."^ It is true " that the vices and virtues with which 
 he is concerned " are in the first instance those of a little 
 circle of believers, but they are the vices and virtues 
 which for the most part have to do with men and women 
 of all conditions and all times. Many of his precepts 
 may be particular ; but the principles from which they 
 are deduced are universal and applicable to all men. 
 Temporary and local as some of the questions may be 
 which Paul discusses, there is nothing trivial in his 
 treatment of them. The matter of eating meat offered 
 to idols has no practical interest for us now, but his 
 large-heartedness and moral earnestness, his resolute 
 appeal to the loftiest principles, lifts the subject out of 
 its immediate connection, and makes it an object-lesson 
 for all times in the delicate task of adjusting the rival 
 claims of Christian liberty and expediency .^ Indeed Paul, 
 ^Weinel, St. Paul, p. 334. '^ Jackson, Expos., vol. xi. p. 149. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 113 
 
 as Harnack says, " dominates all earthly things and cir- 
 cumstances like a king/*^ Instead of " provincial edicts " 
 he issues "imperial laws," which are applicable to the 
 whole moral world. He is the apostle of emancipation 
 and liberty, fighting as the conscript of posterity the 
 battle of spiritual freedom. His Gospel is social as well 
 as individual. His goal is the brotherhood of man. He 
 proclaims the unity and equality before God of Greek 
 and Eoman, of barbarian and civilized, of bond and free, 
 and yet it is a significant fact that the spirit of national 
 independence has nowhere been so strong as in those 
 nations which have received most plainly the impress of 
 his powerful mind. It is not too much to say that many 
 of the great political and social questions which are so 
 full of significance for modern times, though not directly 
 referred to by Paul, are to be solved only in the light 
 and by the application of the great broad principles of 
 equity and justice, of Christian charity and forbearance, 
 of brotherhood and unity which he lays down. It is 
 impossible to interpret the splendid ideal which the 
 apostle holds up before the gaze of the Ephesian Church 
 in any limited or local sense. It is nothing if not a 
 prayer and prophecy for the whole complex and manifold 
 life of humanity — " till we all come in the unity of the 
 faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a 
 perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the 
 
 fulness of Christ." ^ 
 
 II. 
 
 So far, we have considered in a general way the nature 
 and contents of Paul's ethical ideal. It may be well for 
 the sake of greater definiteness and clearness to specify 
 certain important characteristics which cannot fail to 
 strike the reader of the epistles. 
 
 1 What is Christianity ? p. 17. ^ gph. iv, 13, 
 
 H 
 
114 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 1. The ahsoluteness of Paul's ideal may first be noted. 
 Nothing higher or more commanding is conceivable. It 
 is like the ideal of Jesus Himself, absolute. God " hath 
 chosen us in Christ before the foundation of the world 
 that we should be holy and without blame before Him in 
 love."^ Our walk is to be worthy of God. Our thoughts 
 and actions are to be measured only by the highest 
 standard and authority known to us — the commandments 
 of God, which are to be read in the light of Christ — God's 
 image and the Eevealer of His character and will.^ What 
 Kant sought to secure for morality by his " categorical 
 imperative." Paul found in the living imperative of the 
 Spirit of Christ. " If any man hath not the Spirit of 
 Christ he is none of His."^ The Christian law is " the 
 law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus."* 
 
 Paul never forgets that he is the envoy of Jesus to the 
 nations. Never once does he lower his ideal or mitigate 
 his supreme demands. Everywhere the power of the 
 world was opposing and thwarting his work. One has 
 but to think of the condition of life in such cities as 
 Corinth, Ephesus and Eome to realize the greatness of 
 the apostle's task. Expressions like these — " be not con- 
 formed to the world," " set your minds on things which 
 are above," " our citizenship is in heaven " — show how 
 high the apostle bore among the nations the flag of the 
 Gospel's absolute and imperative demands. To break with 
 his heathen surroundings was the Christian's first and 
 foremost duty. With colossal courage Paul drove straight 
 against the mighty mass of heathen idolatry and vice. 
 He will listen to no terms with evil. He will make no 
 compromise with expediency. In every crisis he adheres 
 firmly to his principles. As against the Judaizing party 
 
 ^Eph, i. 4. 2 2 Cor. iv. 6. 
 
 ^Rom. viii. 9. *Rom. viii. 2. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 115 
 
 he proclaims the liberty with which Christ has set us 
 free. As against the Ascetics of Kome, who imagined 
 themselves compelled by religious scruples to abstain from 
 meat and wine, he champions the " strong " brethren.' 
 The success of his missionary work was threatened by 
 two great enemies, the gross vices and the fanatical 
 tendencies of his heathen converts. The vicious life, so 
 often continued after conversion, seemed to demand that 
 certain allowances should be made for the natural weak- 
 nesses of men. On the other hand, the foolish zeal 
 and ascetic practices of others, which sought to reduce 
 the Christian life to sloth and self-pleasing, tended 
 to loosen all discipline and control. With the uncom- 
 promising firmness which belongs only to the greatest, 
 Paul meets each case as it presents itself. He 
 excommunicates the immoral member of the Corinthian 
 Church. He recognizes no inferior form of Christianity. 
 He proclaims the inviolability of the Christian ideal. 
 Circumcision is nothing, uncircumcision is nothing, but 
 a new creature. The sacrifice that is well-pleasing to 
 God is not any outward form of worship or external 
 rite, but the devotion of body and soul to His 
 service. 
 
 2. A second characteristic of Paul's ideal is its 
 inwardness. The standard of righteousness is the law 
 of the spirit within the heart. The Christian character 
 is attained, not by any servile act of obedience to an 
 external authority, but by the free, glad and boundless 
 fulfilment of love. A new and living power within 
 renews and transforms the whole man, so that what he 
 formerly strove to do by painful effort he now accom- 
 plishes spontaneously and from the heart. " Love takes 
 the barrier at a leap." Instead of the ineffectual labor- 
 ^ See Wernle, Beginnings, vol. i. p. 216. 
 
116 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 iousness of " works," there grow up in his heart the 
 fruits of the spirit. The old legality of the Jew is 
 transformed into the living morality of the Christian. 
 Man is no more governed by " thou shalt," but by " I 
 will." From the heart of Christ's " new man " morahty 
 grows and expands naturally, like the flower from the 
 bud, the fruit from the seed. 
 
 It was from his own experience that Paul discovered 
 the inwardness of the ideal. He found that that moraUty 
 in its truest sense " can only blossom in the fiery heat of 
 religious enthusiasm." Try as he would, he found that 
 as a Pharisee he could not perform the works of the law, 
 although all that it bade him do was righteous, holy and 
 good. For moral compulsion does not suffice. The mere 
 categorical imperative, absolute though it be, is cold, 
 impassive and hard. It only condemns more hopelessly 
 than ever. A new element is needed, a power of inward 
 renewal and transformation. Duty and desire must 
 become one. Faith must supplant outward requirement, 
 and the ideal be transmuted from an abstract law into 
 the free and glowing life of love. 
 
 As a natural consequence of the inwardness of the 
 ideal, morality in Paul's view cannot any longer consist 
 in the performance of a number of isolated precepts, nor 
 can the ideal be presented in the form of outward com- 
 mandments. It is a principle, a spirit which must direct 
 and control from within the whole life. A man is not 
 moral by literally performing this or that duty, but only 
 as he gets behind all duties, and is true to the inner law 
 of the heart. All the commandments are but integral 
 parts of one ideal. It is not enough, as Jesus taught, 
 not to kill, not to steal, not to commit adultery. These 
 laws are but the outward expressions of an inward 
 principle of purity. " Commandments are but special 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 117 
 
 instances." ^ Morality is not a mechanical conformity to 
 an external code, but the personal decision which each 
 man once for all makes for himseK. What Paul 
 therefore aimed at was not a system of laws, but a new 
 moral sense, which everyone must apply to his own 
 conduct. He was compelled, indeed, in practice to 
 descend to the minutest details, and he has given us 
 in his epistles a wealth of single precepts. But we must 
 remember the class of converts to whom he was writing, 
 and the circumstances amid which they were placed. 
 They were for the most part Gentiles, but recently 
 emerged from Heathenism, and they were still in the 
 midst of a hostile world, exposed to the temptations and 
 perils of corrupt pagan cities. It was impossible merely 
 to tell such people to be faithful to the Gospel. The law 
 had been, after all, a necessary stage in the religious 
 evolution of the Hebrew, " his schoolmaster to bring him 
 to Christ," and Paul, quick to grasp the significance of 
 this divine leading in history, saw the necessity of legis- 
 lating in the details of morality if his converts were to 
 attain in the end to the true inwardness of Christian 
 obligation. But whatever the subject he is discussing, 
 the point to be noted is the skill and exquisite art with 
 which he deduces all his isolated precepts from one great 
 fundamental principle. Thus in Eomans xii. we find a 
 whole series of ethical injunctions, but they are all 
 grouped under one all-embracing appeal of reasonable 
 service in conformity with the perfect will of God. And 
 in the next chapter, alluding to Jesus' teaching with 
 regard to the commandments, he sums up the whole 
 in one immortal phrase, " Love is the fulfilling of the 
 law." 
 
 3. A third characteristic calls for mention, viz. the 
 
 ^ See Weinel. 
 
118 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 symmetry and proportion of the Pauline ideal.^ The 
 apostle is no faddist. He does not harp upon one form 
 of excellence to the exclusion of all others ; or denounce 
 one particular sin while making light of others. He had 
 a wonderfully sane mind and well-balanced judgment, 
 and if he dwells more upon one virtue at one time, or on 
 occasion emphasizes some particular vice, it is only 
 because the circumstances of those whom he addresses 
 demand this special treatment. Aristotle taught that 
 virtue lay in the mean between two extremes. And it is 
 true that the exaggeration of a virtue may easily become 
 a vice. There is a " pride which apes humility," and a 
 lowliness which is only the miserable counterfeit of the 
 first beatitude. Kindness may become weak amiability, 
 and thrift may pass over into penuriousness. Few men 
 present a weU-rounded character, " mind and soul accord- 
 ing well." Most of us have our idiosyncrasies and 
 partialities, and even the best men are apt to accentuate 
 some particular type of goodness to the neglect, if not the 
 disparagement of other forms of excellence for which 
 they have little affinity. None of His disciples attains 
 to the beautiful proportion and many-sided perfection of 
 the Great Master's life. Jesus united the tenderness of 
 womanhood with the strength of manhood. He combined 
 justice and mercy, meekness and courage, self-sacrifice 
 and authority. It might easily be shown that Paul's 
 vehement temperament was never completely subdued by 
 his ideal. He may not always have done justice to his 
 opponents in controversy, and he may have been at times 
 over-masterful and impatient of interference. But when 
 all is said, as even writers like Eenan, Wernle, Weinel, 
 
 1 This characteristic has been exceUently worked out by Mr. Jackson 
 in Expositor, vol. xi., to whom we are indebted for some thoughts which 
 foUow. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 119 
 
 Bousset and Wrede, who have been most diligent in 
 pointing out his deficiencies, have been also ready to 
 acknowledge there was in Paul's character and attitude 
 to his correspondents, as exhibited in his epistles, a fine 
 combination of heroic energy, ardent vehemence and 
 glowing passion on the one side, and of wonderful tender- 
 ness, delicacy of feeling, and appreciative sympathy on 
 the other. It takes a great man to be gentle, and only 
 a truly forceful nature can be pitiful. This strong man 
 is not ashamed of tears,^ and, if he had the Stoic's forti- 
 tude, he had nothing of his unruffled apathy. Of him 
 more than most men are Schiller's words true : " Eeligion 
 of the cross ! Thou alone dost interweave the twin 
 strands of humility and strength." 
 
 The balance and proportion of the ideal which Paul 
 presented may be the better appreciated if we glance at 
 one or two particulars. 
 
 (1) It has been justly pointed out by Mr. Lecky and 
 others that whereas antiquity extolled the masculine 
 virtues and disparaged the gentler, it is the distinctive 
 glory of Christianity that it has put a special honour 
 on meekness, humility, forgiveness. Not only in the 
 teaching of Jesus but in that of Paul as well, what 
 have been called the amiable virtues are pre-eminent. 
 "The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, 
 kindness, generosity, trustfulness, gentleness, self-control." 
 But we must not assume that because our Lord and 
 His apostles accentuated the gentler type of morality, 
 they ignored the more active and musculine virtues. 
 Justice is not incompatible with love, nor is meekness 
 opposed to courage. " No man," says Diderot, " is great 
 without passion." But he ought to have added that not 
 
 ^ See a fine discourse on " Ses Larmes " in Monod's Cinq Discours on 
 
 St. Paul. 
 
120 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 in his passion but in the control and guidance of passion 
 does his true greatness lie. It must be remembered that 
 there was less need on Paul's part to advocate the 
 bold assertive qualities of character. The age in which 
 he lived was a militant age, and the people to whom 
 he wrote belonged largely to countries which had been 
 taught to believe that " might is right." The proud 
 Koman, the self-suf&cient Greek, the self-righteous 
 Hebrew needed to be reminded rather of those aspects 
 of character which their training would lead them to 
 despise. Jesus and His apostles, therefore, put the moral 
 emphasis of the Gospel on those obligations which 
 human self-seeking is prone to pass over. Neither 
 Paul's life nor his teaching was deficient in the militant 
 virtues.^ But it was eminently true of him what 
 Lessing has remarked of great souls : " we speak least 
 of those virtues which are our truest possession." When, 
 however, occasions arose — and they were not few in those 
 " first Christian days " — for Christ's disciples to put 
 their courage to the front, they did not lack a leader 
 or a battle-cry. Something of "the stern joy which 
 warriors feel" rings at such times in the words of 
 the great apostle. " Quit you like men," he cries, " be 
 strong." Note the calm strength, the quiet assurance 
 of his message to the Philippian Church : " Stand fast 
 in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the 
 faith of the Gospel : and in nothing terrified by your 
 adversaries ... for unto you it is given in the behalf 
 of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but to suffer 
 for His sake ; having the same conflict which ye saw 
 in me and now hear to be in me." ^ These are some- 
 
 ^See the fine chapter on Courage and Perseverance in Howson's, The 
 Character of St. Paul. 
 
 2 Paul is usually represented in ancient art as bearing a sword. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 121 
 
 thing more than "brave words." They are the fine 
 and fit utterance of an essentially heroic soul. And 
 they shatter the strange delusion that a morality which 
 lays greater stress on passive endurance than on 
 active virtue, is in any sense easier or demands less 
 courage. There is a heroism of suffering as well as of 
 doing. It sometimes costs more to restrain anger than 
 to retaliate ; and the trophies of peace and forgiveness 
 are not less honourable than those of war and contention. 
 Heroic devotion, it has been said, takes many forms — the 
 Saviour's Cross, the martyr's stake, the soldier's glory, the 
 patience of daily suffering — but the spirit of consecration 
 in which the Lord gave His life for the world is at once 
 the ideal and norm of all possible manifestations.^ 
 
 (2) Once again in the matter of renunciation and 
 affirmation the apostle maintains a beautiful pro- 
 portion. Paul is debtor to the Greeks as well as 
 to the Hebrews, and in his attitude to all the great 
 questions of his time Greek culture has its place not 
 less than Jewish restraint. We have already seen that 
 Paul honours the intellect appealing repeatedly to 
 judgment and reason in men, and this without disparage- 
 ment to the lower powers. If he says, " I buffet my 
 body and bring it in subjection," it is only that it 
 may be the fitter instrument of higher service. If he 
 enjoins renunciation of the world, it is only in so far 
 as it is evil. The world of sense is to be conquered 
 not by suppression but by redemption. Paul is no 
 ascetic. Every gift of God is good if used wisely 
 and with due regard to the welfare of others. Nowhere 
 does he make morality consist in celibacy or abstention 
 from meat or drink. Temperance is his ideal to be 
 modified only at the clear call of altruism. We have 
 ^Newman Smyth, 
 
122 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 already noted the resolute spirit in which he meets 
 the ascetic tendencies of certain parties in Rome and 
 Colosse. In his own case he deemed it better not to 
 marry, but he lays down no general rule for all. Self- 
 renunciation is only a means to an end, and if at 
 times he commends abstinence it is as a temporary 
 service of love. Against the background of the earlier 
 moral systems and especially of Stoicism, the grandeur 
 of the Pauline ethics stands clearly revealed. Stoicism 
 narrowed life by suppressing its freedom, while it 
 aimed at the withering of the emotions and the sup- 
 pression of the passions. Paul everywhere taught and 
 enjoined development and self-expression as the true goal 
 of life. The monastic ideal which prevailed in the 
 earlier centuries of Christianity obtains no support 
 from his teaching. The Buddhist conception — that 
 redemption consists in the withdrawal of oneself from 
 the things of this world — is entirely opposed to the 
 spirit of the apostle. " Use the world," he exclaims, 
 " while not abusing it," " Ye have been called unto 
 liberty," he writes to the Galatians. " All things are 
 yours," he says to the Corinthians — "The world, life, 
 death, things present, things to come — all are yours, 
 and ye are Christ's and Christ is God's." 
 
 (3) The same may be said with regard to the relation 
 of the individtoal to the social virtues. Here, too, he 
 strikes the balance. Each man is to bear his own 
 burden, but the apostle is quick to add that we are to 
 bear one another*s burdens. While the individual has 
 to cultivate his personal character, he can only do so by 
 having regard to the affairs of his neighbour. For we 
 are all parts of a larger whole, and just as the various 
 members of the bodily organism find their exercise and 
 use in the service of the entire body, so individuals must 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 123 
 
 not live to themselves alone, but in mutual dependence 
 and reciprocal devotion. 
 
 4. Note finally the comprehensiveness and tmiversality 
 of the apostle's moral ideal. Man exists in a variety of 
 relationships. He is a member of the family, the state, 
 the Church ; he has duties to himself, to his fellow-men, 
 and to God, and it will be found that the ideal which 
 Paul proclaims extends to all these relations and touches 
 hfe at every point. Co-extension with humanity is the 
 necessary implicate of the Christian ideal. It will be 
 our task later on to show that the ethic of Paul takes 
 account of man's life in all his complex relationships and. 
 conditions. In the meantime, we content ourselves with 
 affirming its sufficiency. It will be found that the ideal 
 not only extends to every sphere of life, but embraces all 
 the highest ends of being. In this organic comprehension 
 of the ideal, social welfare not less than individual 
 attainment is included. Nothing was too trivial or 
 insignificant for the apostle to deal with. Work and 
 pleasure, dress and ornament, eating and drinking, worship 
 and common life, the position of woman, the relation of 
 husband and wife, of parents and children, of masters and 
 servants, of rulers and subjects — all the manifold interests 
 and activities of life have a moral worth. There are no 
 indifferent acts ; no sphere of action or of thought is 
 out with the moral ideal or beyond the jurisdiction of the 
 Lord of Life, " Whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of 
 Christ." And the apostle's ideal is as universal as it is 
 all-embracing. He appeals to man as man. He knows 
 no aristocracy of rank or intellect. The Christian ideal is 
 the same for all. " Admonishing every man, and teach- 
 ing every man in all wisdom, that we may present every 
 man perfect in Christ." ^ In this respect we see at once 
 iCol. i. 28. 
 
124 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 the crucial contrast between the ethics of the Christian 
 and the pre-Christian world. In general, classic morality 
 does not escape the limitation of a particularistic con- 
 ception of the good. It cleaves humanity in twain by an 
 arbitrary line of separation. The Greek moralists divided 
 the world into Greeks and Barbarians, masters and slaves, 
 wise and illiterate : and the blessings of life were attain- 
 able by the favoured few alone, the aristocracy of the 
 race. "The temper of Stoicism," says Lightfoot, "was 
 essentially aristocratic and exclusive, while professing the 
 largest comprehension it was practically the narrowest 
 of all the philosophical castes." ^ Zeno's remarkable pre- 
 diction of one state has often beeti cited as an evidence 
 of the universality of Stoicism. But how far the 
 Stoic idea fell short of the Chrititian conception of 
 the kingdom of God may be gathered from Plutarch's 
 commentary upon it. " What Zeno only saw in a dream 
 that has Alexander actually accomplished." ^ As Neander 
 has remarked, Zeno could not see how such a thought 
 could ever be realized; and the great world-conqueror 
 only attained the semblance of unity, a mere external 
 peace, by the force of arms, by the subjugation of 
 humanity under one sway. Nor did Plato and Aristotle 
 ever get beyond the limitations of their time and country. 
 Plato's ideal republic was bounded by the Greek state, 
 while the ethics of Aristotle contemplated nothing greater 
 or more exalted than the sphere of this earthly existence. 
 The kingdom of humanity as conceived by Paul was an 
 idea utterly foreign to the habit of mind of the great 
 masters of Greek philosophy. It is true that the later 
 Stoics preached a kind of cosmopolitanism and equality 
 of man, but we have only to compare the negative, 
 
 ^ Epistle to the PhiUppiatiSf p. 322. 
 ^ Quoted by Neander. 
 
THE ETHICAL IDEAL OF ST. PAUL 125 
 
 colourless sentiments of an Epictetus or a Seneca with 
 the warm, positive precepts of the Pauline epistles to see 
 how far short the Stoic ideal comes of the Christian 
 conception of brotherhood and charity — the unity of a 
 perfect man in Christ. 
 
 In this chapter we have considered the nature and 
 contents of Paul's ideal, and have discussed some of its 
 more important characteristics, comparing it briefly with 
 the ideals of antiquity * and we have seen that the key to 
 all that Paul taught is summed up in that word so often 
 upon his lips iv Xpla-Tw, "in Christ." That expression 
 at once determines the content and scope of his ethic, 
 giving to it its distinctiveness, its absoluteness, and its 
 universality. No bolder hope was ever cherished by man 
 than that of the possibility of raising every individual to 
 such a height that he shall become a moral law unto 
 himself. If we ask where did the apostle obtain this 
 splendid conception of life, we can only answer he 
 learned it in the school of Christ. The risen Lord, who 
 appeared to him on the way, transfigured his life and 
 made all things new. There is henceforth but one thing 
 needful for him who has heard the Father's call; he 
 must walk worthy of this God who has called him to His 
 kingdom and to His glory .^ 
 
 1 1 These, ii. 12. 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 
 
 Fkom the very earliest days of ethical speculation, the 
 need of some "virtue making power" has been recognized. 
 Naturally the conception of the " power '' has varied with 
 the character of the ideal, and with the more or less 
 adequate sense of the resistance to be overcome. With 
 Socrates, who may be regarded as the earliest of the 
 Greek moralists, virtue and knowledge were simply the 
 two sides of an equation. Vice is ignorance, although it 
 may be culpable ignorance — " the lie in the soul." This 
 is in essence only a part of that overestimate of know- 
 ledge which has persisted not only in philosophical but 
 even in religious thought down to our own day. To 
 Socrates it is simply unthinkable that evil is wrought by 
 want of will. Let man but see the good and he will 
 seek it inevitably. Morality is only a question of instruc- 
 tion. Socrates thus defined the moral idea according to 
 a eudaemonistic standard, failing to distinguish theoretic 
 knowledge and practical conviction which determines the 
 will. 
 
 Plato's conception of the highest good exalts him 
 above all previous workers in the realm of ethics, and 
 embodies an ideal which not only shaped Greek philo- 
 sophy but determined the character of all subsequent 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 127 
 
 moral enquiry. For it was he who first lifted his eyes 
 to that world of ideas which exists beyond and above 
 this evanescent earthly life, and declared the destiny 
 of the soul to be deliverance from the prison-house of 
 sense through union with the eternal. But Plato's 
 republic was an aristocracy only, a valhalla of moral 
 heroes. Virtue was spiritual aesthetics, the contempla- 
 tion of the morally beautiful. And, like Socrates before 
 him, Plato has no answer to the question, how shall he 
 who is without natural aptitude for the morally beautiful 
 attain to the beatific vision ? Plato came to call the 
 righteous not sinners to repentance. No place could be 
 found in his ideal state for the morally unfit, for the 
 spiritually blind. And while the uneducated herd were 
 left wholly outside, even for the candidates of the 
 virtuous life no adequate provision was made against 
 disastrous surprise or fall. It was tacitly assumed that 
 theory and practice were equivalent, and that the mere 
 knowledge of virtue guaranteed the actual acquirement 
 and retention of it. 
 
 Aristotle finds the highest good in the contemplative 
 life lived in a perfect environment. To reach the goal 
 of right thinking and right willing, suitable gifts of 
 nature, favourable surroundings and proper instruction 
 are indispensable conditions. Virtue is not virtuous until 
 it is a habit. The only way to be virtuous is to practise 
 virtue, and happiness is but another name for the out- 
 flowing of energy in this great endeavour. Dealing, 
 towards the close of the Nicomachean ethics, with the 
 question, how shall men become good ?, Aristotle can 
 only make the disappointing suggestion that the state 
 must compel them. For him, as for Plato, there is no 
 real hope for the bad, since the very presupposition of 
 the moral life is already existent virtue. 
 
128 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 The result of all this is that the ethics of Greece, 
 noble and imposing as it is, simply hangs in the air. 
 There is no real point of contact with life, no lifting 
 power. It must not be inferred that the work done by 
 ancient moralists was in all respects a failure. They 
 were the pioneers of moral philosophy. They broke new 
 ground. They estimated the value of motives. They 
 deduced the demand for virtue from the nature of man. 
 But where they came short was in failing to supply an 
 inspiration to their age, in bringing to bear upon the 
 wills of men no adequate motive-force. " They stood 
 aloof from human nature, and viewed it from the outside 
 as an object of natural history." ^ And as a consequence 
 of this, speculative ethics expressed itself chiefly " in the 
 construction of ideal figures." Plato's ideal state remained 
 a theory only : it was never meant to be realized. 
 Aristotle's virtuous man existed, and could only exist, in 
 the mind of his creator. The ideal figure always tran- 
 scended the range of ordinary conditions. The harmonious 
 life demanded a favourable society as its background. 
 Nor was the Stoic more successful in making his philo- 
 sophy of life a thing of actuality. His aim was to keep 
 himself independent of the sordid pursuits of the unen- 
 lightened and to occupy himself solely with theoretic 
 aspirations. His conception of true manhood was the 
 life according to reason which gave up the riddle of the 
 world, and his idea of the " wise man," except as supply- 
 ing a regulative principle for an individual here and 
 there, was impracticable and unrealizable.^ 
 
 Beautiful as these old-time ideals were, they lacked 
 impelling force, the power to change conceptions into 
 inspirations, dreams into realities. Aristotle put his 
 finger upon the weak spot, not of Plato's system only, 
 
 ^Strong, Christian Mhicsy p. 7. -Strong, p. 10. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 129 
 
 but of his own as well, indeed of all pre-Christian 
 theories, when he pointed out that its deficiency lay in 
 its narrow intellectualism. The old question which the 
 " master " raised, but was himself unable successfully to 
 meet, was left without an answer in Greek philosophy — 
 how to realize the ideal, how to translate theory into 
 practice, how, in a word, to make the unjust just and the 
 foolish wise ? 
 
 The problem which baffled G-reek philosophy, it is 
 the glory of Christianity to have solved. The Christian 
 ethic was no mere theory of truth, or vision of the good ; 
 
 "A dream for life too high. 
 ... A bird that hath no feet for earth/' 
 
 The Word was made flesh. The good was manifested in 
 a life, and He who lived the life claimed to be not 
 merely a moral teacher but a Creator, not only a pattern 
 but a Power. " I am," He said, " the way, the truth, 
 and the life." The first Christians were known as 
 those belonging to the " way," ^ and the practical 
 character of Christianity was thus indicated. It was 
 not merely a philosophic dream of perfection floating in 
 the air or existing only in the imagination of a few 
 visionaries. It was a new creative-force — a spirit given 
 and received, to be worked out and realized in the actual 
 life and conduct of common men and women. 
 
 It was in this manner that Paul regarded the moral 
 life : it was a thing conditioned and dominated by a new 
 spiritual force. It was a life inspired by and lived in 
 Christ. This is what we have to consider in the present 
 chapter. How did Paul conceive the Dynamic of the 
 Ethical Life: and what in his view are the means of 
 its realization ? 
 
 ^ Acts ix. 2. 
 I 
 
130 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 The Dynamic Power on its divine side. Christian 
 ethics, and in particular Pauline ethics, is distinguished 
 from philosophical ethics not so much by the uniqueness 
 of its ideal as by the recognition of a single definite 
 force which lies at the root of the new life, and forms 
 a fresh spring of ethical activity. We cannot, however, 
 agree with Wrede when he says that " the ethic of 
 St. Paul exhibits in the contents of its demands few 
 original traits." ^ Nor can we accept the somewhat 
 rash statement of Prof. M'Giffert, when he affirms that 
 " there was comparatively little difference between the 
 ethical principles of the Christians and the principles 
 of the best men in the pagan world." ^ Without dwelling 
 upon that point with which the previous chapter dealt, 
 it may be sufficient here to state that what in the first 
 place differentiated Christian from pre-Christian ethics 
 was the fact that its ideal was historically embodied and 
 actually realized in the life of Jesus Christ. The object 
 of the New Testament writers was to bring His example 
 to bear upon the conduct of their fellow-men. Here was 
 no imaginative picture such as the ancients drew, but 
 the historical record of an actual life. Christianity 
 claims that its ideal has been realized. That fact of 
 itself is sufficient to give uniqueness to the New Testa- 
 ment morality. It is no philosopher's dream. It is 
 matter of history. The Christian ideal has been em- 
 bodied, the ideal life has been lived. 
 
 At first sight it might seem as if this were the only 
 
 difference between classical and Pauline ethics — that 
 
 in the one case the ideal was imaginary, a poetic vision 
 
 merely, while in the other the ideal was a realized fact. 
 
 ^PauluSf p. 69. 2 The Apostolic Age, p. 506. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 131 
 
 But if the visionary ideal of the ancients failed to 
 change men's lives largely because it was external to 
 the will, the Christian ideal would not be likely to be 
 more successful simply by being historical.^ The actual 
 portrayal of perfection by Christ did indeed give a 
 definiteness and reality to the moral ideal which the 
 dreams of Greek philosophy did not possess. But on 
 the other hand, the very loftiness of this holy life would 
 be more likely to condemn as hopeless every unaided 
 attempt to achieve it and so would even tend to paralyse 
 all moral effort. It would be felt that it was as much 
 beyond the ability of man to attain to the perfection 
 of a holy life as to perform the requirements of a holy 
 law. 
 
 Hence the urgent problem which confronted the 
 apostle. How can man achieve that good which has 
 been embodied in the life and example of Jesus Christ ? 
 how can he, or any common man attain to the righteous- 
 ness of the one harmonious Son, and stand justified 
 before His Father God ? Not the mere vision of the 
 good as it floated before the minds of the Greeks, not 
 the. mere knowledge of the law as promulgated by 
 Hebrew moralists, not even the embodiment of the ideal 
 in the historical Person of Christ was sufficient to make 
 the moral life available for common men and women. 
 Not to dream of good, but to he good — that is man's 
 greatest need. To tap the sources of power, to link 
 his weakness with an all-conquering strength — nothing 
 short of that is necessary if man is ever to attain to 
 holiness of life. From the depth of his moral struggle 
 man lifts that despairing cry, never more powerfully 
 expressed than by Paul himself ; " to will is present 
 with me, but how to perform that which is good, I find 
 ^ Strong, Christian Ethics, p. 52. 
 
132 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 not. For the good that I would, I do not : but the evil 
 ■which I would not, that I do. I delight in the law 
 of God after the inward man, but I see another law 
 in my members warring against the law of my mind 
 and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin."^ 
 But though Paul recognizes the conflict between the ideal 
 and the fulfilment he does not admit that the antithesis 
 is irreconcilable. His whole argument is designed to 
 show that the Christian ideal is not a dream, an 
 aspiration only, but a fact at once realized and realizable. 
 He claims that the Gospel not only reveals the good, 
 but discloses a power which makes the good possible. 
 The originality of this position lies not only in the 
 moral conception of the new life in Christ, but also in 
 the hitherto unattempted derivation of the life from a 
 new birth under the influence of the Spirit of God. 
 If faith, hope, charity, and all the other manifestations 
 of the moral life are anything more than mere abstrac- 
 tions of the mind, if they are actual facts of the Christian 
 experience, then they demand a distinctive force behind 
 them which gives to them reality. Their existence in 
 the world as realized graces of character, as virtues 
 that have been actually manifested, bears witness to a 
 life behind, to a power to which they owe their being. 
 That there is such a moral life Paul never doubts. 
 What he calls, now, " the life of faith," now, " the life 
 of the Spirit," and now "the new life," is one which 
 he believes to be actually existent. Though Paul cannot 
 be accused of boasting, he does not hesitate to adduce 
 his own case as an example of one who has entered upon 
 such a life. And the state to which he himself has 
 attained, he desires that others may share. He recog- 
 nizes the existence of Christian virtue in the world. 
 JRom. vii. 18 ff. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 133 
 
 He sees a decisive contrast between the lives of those 
 who acknowledge the authority of Christ and those of 
 the surrounding pagan people. His epistles are written 
 not to heathen men and women untouched by higher 
 influences, but to communities in which a certain measure 
 of Christian virtue is not only recognized but practised. 
 He is convinced of the growing and expanding influence 
 of this life, and before his mind there arises the vision 
 of a redeemed world, a transformed humanity, when, 
 not here and there in isolated localities of the earth only, 
 but everywhere, men shall be combined in one perfect 
 society and all unitedly shall attain unto a perfect man, 
 unto the measure of the stature of Christ. What was 
 for Paul a prophecy, a thing of prevision and faith, has 
 become for us to-day largely a reality. "Kising out 
 of the silence and solitude, coming with no carnal 
 weapons, appearing with no gorgeous accompaniments, 
 this power may be said to have filled the habitable 
 world. It has touched every department of life, and 
 everything it has touched has been transformed. It has 
 given a new turn to ethics. It has given a new 
 department to politics, ... It has developed the insti- 
 tutions of modern charity. It has released the bonds 
 of despotism. It has tightened the bonds of family and 
 home. All this, and a hundred things more, Christianity 
 we do not say has claimed to do, but has actually done." ^ 
 Now, the question Paul sought to answer, and which 
 is fundamental to Christian ethics is this — what was, 
 and whence came, the power which could effect such 
 changes in the individual man and in the social life of 
 the community ? There must be a cause proportionate 
 to the effect, a power adequate to explain such mighty 
 transformations. 
 ^Geo. Matheson, Landmarks of Neiv Testament Morality ^ p. 139. 
 
184 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 First of all, Paul does not for a moment hesitate in 
 affirming that the power to achieve the moral life does 
 not lie in the natural man. The mere development of 
 the natural powers, or the education of the human facul- 
 ties, will not effect the change. No readjustment of 
 circumstances, no state-compulsion, no spread of know- 
 ledge or progress of civilization, is of itself equal to the 
 task of creating that entirely new phenomenon in the 
 world — the Christian character. This new life, which 
 Paul himself was conscious of possessing, and which he 
 recognized in others, was quite beyond the power of man 
 to realize. The apostle leaves us in no manner of doubt 
 that some renewing and transforming energy must act 
 upon man before such a life is possible. " Nothing," he 
 says, '* availeth but a new creature." The new ethical 
 state can only come about by a complete renewal of 
 man's inner nature, in virtue of which he becomes con- 
 scious that the divine anger is averted, that he is a 
 pardoned child of God, that he is no more under the 
 power of sin, but is translated from the domain of the 
 flesh into the kingdom of the spirit.^ The revelation of 
 the divine morality is one which flesh and blood could 
 not give, but which owes its origin to a cause com- 
 mensurate with itself. The claim which Paul makes for 
 Christianity is that it is a communicated life. He 
 declares that the gospel has brought a new force into 
 the world, and that with the coming of Christ men have 
 received not only new ideals and aspirations, but a new 
 power by which these ideals and aspirations may be, and 
 have been, realized. In the life of Christ moral excel- 
 lence reaches its height. An instance of true human 
 obedience is before the world. All that Greek sages 
 dreamt of and Hebrew prophets sighed after has been 
 
 ^ Rom. vi. 6. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 135 
 
 realized in historical form. But that is not enough. A 
 mere example, even the highest, will not avail of itself. 
 The principle and secret of that life must be unsealed, 
 otherwise it will remain at best a distant ideal and fade 
 into a remote memory.^ For Paul, therefore, there arises 
 the question, is there any force which will not only pre- 
 serve the ideal which has been given in Christ from 
 fading away, but make it a real and living power in men's 
 lives ? He believes that there is, and the aim of his 
 whole teaching is to show what that power is and how it 
 acts. Christ for the apostle is no mere historical em- 
 bodiment of perfection. He does not simply present 
 for the imitation of mankind an example of unblemished 
 virtue. He is the creator of a new humanity. He is a 
 new man, the second Adam, " the first fruits of a spirit 
 that had grafted itself afresh on the old tree of human 
 life." ^ That spirit which dwells in its fulness in Christ 
 repeats itself in the lives and experiences of His fol- 
 lowers. 
 
 Though Paul was not likely to have access to any 
 written records of Christ's life and ministry on earth, he 
 h^d come into contact with some of the apostles, especially 
 with Mark and Luke (both of whom became biographers 
 of Jesus), and he could not be ignorant that Christ 
 always represented Himself as acting in the power and 
 under the direct influence of the Spirit of God. Nor 
 could he fail to be cognisant of the fact that with the 
 promised outpouring of the Spirit after the departure of 
 Christ, not only the Master's life, but His work and 
 resurrection, had a new significance for His followers. 
 After Pentecost everything was changed. A new power 
 seemed to be liberated, a new force made available, which 
 
 ^ Strong, Christian Ethics, p. 55. 
 
 ^Matheson, Landmarks of Neio Testament Morality , p. 140. 
 
136 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 worked in and through the great facts of Christ's life, 
 and made them living factors in the experience of all 
 who accepted them by faith. 
 
 Hence it is that when Paul speaks of the new ethical 
 state of believers, he represents it generally as a renewal, 
 a rebirth of the Holy Spirit. This renewal, whether it 
 takes place suddenly or gradually, is an act of divine 
 creative activity. " All things are of God," he declares, 
 " who hath reconciled us to Himself." " Ye are justified 
 by the Spirit of God," he writes to the Corinthians.^ 
 The renewal is in fact represented as a new birth, a new 
 creation, inasmuch as it comes about by the act of God's 
 Spirit alone. Man in the very essence of his being is 
 recreated after the divine image. "Not by the works of 
 righteousness which we have done," he writes to Titus, 
 " but according to his mercy he saved us by the washing 
 of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost." 
 
 But while the apostle represents generally the renewal 
 as resulting from the influence, and by the power of 
 the Holy Spirit, he connects its working in particular 
 with two facts in the life of Christ, which for him 
 are the most important in history, — the Sacrifice and the 
 Besttrrection, These two facts are closely connected in 
 Paul's mind, and their significance for the ethical life of 
 man lies in the very nature of Christ Himself. Who is 
 this man whose life and death have such supreme value ? 
 He is for Paul none other than " Lord," in some way 
 identified with Jehovah, the God of the old covenant.^ 
 But though Christ is thus identified with God, He is not 
 merged in the being of God. He has a separate and 
 distinct personality, in virtue of which there are assigned 
 to Him unique mediatorial functions. To Him is given 
 the work of reconciliation, and by His life of obedience 
 
 n Cor. vi. 11. 2 strong, ibid. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 137 
 
 and death upon the Cross He has not only fulfilled the 
 law, but removed the barrier of sin and opened up the 
 way of access to God. This historical being is therefore 
 more than the realized ideal of man. He has all the 
 value of God ; He has even all the power which God 
 Himself has : the power of renewing men and making 
 them like Himself the sons of God, Here we are in 
 the region of dogmatics rather than ethics, and it does 
 not concern us to present a theory of the atonement. 
 All we have here to do with is the fact that between 
 man and the new life lies sin, the real source of man's 
 failure and the stumbling-block which must be removed 
 before reconciliation with the Father can be effected. 
 The deed which, according to the teaching of the apostle, 
 alone meets the case is the sacrifice of Christ. In the 
 light of his Hebrew training and of his own experience, 
 Paul sees that nothing else than a perfect propitiation 
 for sin can restore the broken harmony between God and 
 man and make the new life possible. This, Christ, in 
 virtue of His unique union with the Father and of His 
 special relation to man, is qualified and enabled to 
 achieve. Many passages in the epistles show the signifi- 
 cance for Paul of Christ's death. It is sufficient to quote 
 two. Writing to the Ephesians he says, "But now in 
 Jesus Christ, ye who sometimes were far off are made 
 nigh by the blood of Christ."^ And to the Corinthians he 
 writes, "All things are of God, who hath reconciled us 
 to Himself by Jesus Christ."^ It is the task of theology 
 to bring together these and other passages of Scripture 
 and exhibit their systematic connection, as well as their 
 relative values for a doctrine of soteriology. Whatever be 
 our theory of atonement, the ethical result of the death 
 of Christ is, according to Paul, the reconciliation of God 
 lEph. ii. 13. 2 2 Cor. v. 18. 
 
138 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 and man. In virtue of what Christ has achieved, a funda- 
 mentally new relationship exists. God and man are now 
 organically in full moral accord and deep vital union. 
 
 But not less important than the sacrifice of Christ as 
 a factor in creating the new life of the Christian is, in 
 Paul's view, the Eesurrection, Both are indeed for him 
 complementary truths. The resurrection is the crown 
 and seal of the Sacrifice. It is the one fact which sheds 
 light upon the nature of Christ and the significance of 
 His work. He who was born of the seed of David 
 according to the flesh was declared to be the Son of 
 God by the Eesurrection. It was the certainty that He 
 had risen that gave to His death its sacrificial value. 
 This was the ground of the apostle's conviction that the 
 old order had passed away and that a new order had 
 been established. " If Christ be not risen, ye are yet in 
 your sins."^ 
 
 It is, however, in no external or mechanical way that 
 Paul conceives the work of Christ. It is not an influence 
 exerted outside of and upon man. It is a power working 
 within the soul. The key to the new life is to be found 
 in the mystical union of the Christian with the risen 
 Eedeemer. The act of Christ in its twofold form of 
 death and resurrection, has its counterpart and expres- 
 sion in the experience of redeemed man. The great 
 central truth for Paul, on which indeed his whole ethical 
 teaching rests, is that man is born again into a new life 
 by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. This is no meta- 
 phorical truth or symbolic representation merely for the 
 apostle. It is a literal fact, a great spiritual truth. The 
 Christian is supposed by Paul to have experienced, 
 literally, the death and resurrection of Christ, and to 
 have become a new man. The apostle learned this truth 
 
 ^Strong, Christian Ethics, p. 61. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 139 
 
 from his own experience. In that hour on the road to 
 Damascus, when he was apprehended of Christ, convicted 
 of sin, and brought as by a flash to see the truth as it is 
 in Jesus, he himself died and he rose again. He became 
 a new creature, old things passed away, all things became 
 new. What was true of him was likewise true of all 
 believers. That is the story of every redemption. 
 Within the secret sanctuary of each human soul the 
 history of Christ is ever re-enacted.^ This thought finds 
 typical expression in 2 Cor. v. 1 4 ff. : " If one died for all, 
 then were all dead ; and that He died for all, that they 
 which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, 
 but unto Him which died for them and rose again.*' In 
 the sixth chapter of Romans a similar line of thought is 
 followed. The " old man " is crucified with Jesus, that 
 the body of sin might be done away, and that we should 
 no longer be in bondage to sin. But if we die with 
 Christ we shall also live with Him. In all the passages 
 which refer to this subject, the idea in Paul's mind which 
 he seeks to emphasize is that the changed life, in virtue 
 of which Christ comes to dwell in the heart, is based 
 upon an ethical dying and rising again with Christ.^ Or 
 as he sometimes puts it, Christ becomes the element in 
 which the new life moves and has its being,^ and from 
 which it henceforth derives its strength and purpose. " I 
 live ; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." * 
 
 We have already remarked that Paul frequently re- 
 presents renewal as the work of the Holy Spirit, or the 
 Spirit of God. It will not be necessary here to discuss 
 the difficult question of the precise relation of Christ to 
 the Spirit. In some passages, as in 2 Cor. iii. 17, Christ 
 
 ^ *' Every soul in which conversion has taken place is a symbol of the 
 history of the world." Amiel. 
 2 Eph. iii. 16, 17. ^ gph. v. 8. * Gal. ii. 20. 
 
140 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 is identified with the Spirit, and in the following verse 
 the two are combined in one title, "The Lord Spirit." 
 Indeed, it may be said that the terms " Spirit," " Spirit 
 of God," and " Spirit of Christ,'' are practically identical 
 in the Pauline epistles. Again and again he places the 
 two expressions, " Spirit of God " and " Spirit of Christ " 
 side by side, and, indeed, seems to attribute to them 
 a similar value in regard to their influence upon Chris- 
 tians. Whether or no we can say with Wernle, " Paul 
 spares no effort to bring the spirit under the influence of 
 Jesus," and that it is " the apostle's merit to have 
 Christianized the spirit," it may not be too much to say 
 that in his frequent use of the term " Spirit of Christ," 
 he has given definiteness and personality to an idea which 
 from its previous employment, both in Greek philosophy 
 and Jewish scripture, might have been misleading and 
 vague. "We owe it to Paul that the expression " Spirit of 
 Christ " is the peculiar possession of Christians, and that 
 when we as Christians attribute our renewal to the Spirit 
 of God, or to the Holy Spirit, we are justified in recog- 
 nizing in the divine influence the presence of the living 
 Christ. In the making of a Christian all three persons of 
 the Holy Trinity are engaged ; and it would be a bold man 
 who would say, " This I owe to the Spirit of God, this to 
 Christ, and this to the Holy Ghost." Each works 
 through all, and all work through each. God works for 
 us, and npon us, and in us. The threefold doxology 
 with which Paul closes so many of his epistles is the 
 expression of our faith, but the secret of our life, and the 
 inspiration of our activity, must ever be tha sublime word 
 in which Paul sums up his Christian experience — "the 
 life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of 
 the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me." ^ 
 iGal. ii. 20. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 141 
 
 The new creature then is the work of Christ. But 
 His creative power is not an external influence, hut an 
 inner spirit of life. He Himself is the head, and Chris- 
 tians are members of His body, in vital union with 
 which they find their peace and joy. All that makes 
 life, life indeed — an exalted, harmonious and completed 
 existence — is derived from union with Christ. But this 
 life in Christ, complete and perfect though in one sense 
 it is, is only the starting-point of the ethical life. The 
 dynamic force is there : it has to be appropriated and 
 realized. It is just here that we see the greatness of 
 Paul as an ethical teacher. It would have been easy for 
 him to say, " Nothing more is required of the Christian. 
 It is enough to know that the Spirit of God has taken 
 possession of a man. Jesus Christ dwells in him as a 
 new energy, quickening his mortal body and delivering 
 him from the guilt and dominion of sin. What need is 
 there of more ? " " There is now no condemnation to 
 them which are in Christ Jesus." But it is just here 
 that the apostle asserts his moral claim. Possession of 
 power implies obligation to use it. The Spirit of Christ 
 is not given to free us from the duties of the moral life. 
 It is the basis upon which that life is to be reared, and 
 the power by which it is to be realized. Paul knew 
 human nature, and how easily a man might rest in the 
 indolence of spiritual pride, and so turn his very privi- 
 leges into occasions of evil. Hence he says to the 
 Galatians, " If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in 
 the Spirit." ^ To the Eomans he writes, " Now we are 
 delivered from the law . . . that we should serve in 
 newness of spirit " ; ^ and to the Colossians, " As ye have 
 received Jesus Christ, the Lord, so walk ye in Him"; 
 and once more to the Eomans, " Put ye on the Lord 
 ^Gal. V. 25. ^Rom. vii. 6. 
 
142 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to 
 fulfil the lusts thereof." ^ It is true that all is of God, 
 who worketh in us both to will and to do, yet the 
 Christian is exhorted to work out his own salvation with 
 fear and trembling, lest the great work of G-od in him 
 and through him should prove of none effect. 
 
 II. 
 
 This brings us naturally to consider the subjective or 
 personal element in the creation of the new life. We 
 have to study at this point the relation of the Spirit of 
 Christ to the human personality — the relation of the 
 divine and human in the ethics of Paul. From what we 
 have said of the influence and possession of the indwelling 
 spirit in man, it might appear as if, in the apostle's view, 
 there was no room for self-determination on man's part. 
 Man is simply the passive recipient of the divine — the 
 vessel into which God pours His spirit, and which hence- 
 forth takes whatever shape and character the new content 
 gives it. Sometimes, indeed, Paul does speak of the 
 spirit under the image of a material eff'usion,^ as when he 
 says the love of God is shed abroad or poured forth into our 
 hearts.^ But innumerable passages in which the action of 
 the spirit is referred to, preclude such a crude and material- 
 istic interpretation of the apostle's meaning. It is true, 
 indeed, that Paul nowhere attempts to solve the antinomy 
 which lies in the notion of freedom. He does not once 
 discuss the problem of free-will. It causes him no difficulty. 
 He simply places side by side the two moments of the 
 antithesis — divine power and human determination. On 
 the one hand, he states in the most emphatic way that 
 every moral impulse and act on the part of man is due 
 
 I Rom. xiii. 14. ^^ernle, vol. i. p. 257. *Rom. v. 5. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 143 
 
 to the working of God, " If in simplicity and godly 
 sincerity we have had our conversation in the world, it is 
 by the grace of God." ^ " It is God that worketh in us 
 both to will and to do of His good pleasure." ^ It is the 
 very God of peace who is to sanctify the Thessalonians 
 through and through.^ It is God who, having begun a 
 good work in the Philippians, will perform it unto the 
 day of Jesus Christ.^ But, on the other hand, no less 
 emphatic is he in ascribing to the individual full freedom 
 of action. The Spirit of Christ is not conceived as a 
 mechanical force or irresistible influence. Eenewal takes 
 place, indeed, by the working of God, but it cannot come 
 about without the personal co-operation of man. Paul 
 recognizes a latent activity even in the very passivity of 
 the receptive subject. Man has his part to play, both at 
 the beginning and in the subsequent course of the new 
 life. !N"ot only is he " to put on the new man," " to put 
 on the armour of light," " to put on the Lord Jesus 
 Christ " ; but he is " to stand fast in the Lord." ^ 
 
 We pass from the " life in the spirit " to the " walk in 
 the spirit" by an act of free resolution. If Christians 
 have put on Christ, then the obligation rests upon them 
 to do so continually, so that they may be gradually 
 assimilated to His image. " The flesh lusteth against the 
 spirit," but it behoves man "not to fulfil the lusts 
 thereof." ^ It is the work of the Christian continually to 
 mortify his members.*' 
 
 If, therefore, the motive power of the Christian ethical 
 life is the Spirit of Christ, it must not be conceived as 
 operating by an irresistible necessity. It must rather be 
 
 ^2 Cor. i. 12. 2pijii^ ii, 13 
 
 nXhesa. v. 23. ^piiH, i q 
 
 ^Eph. iv. 22; Col. iii. 3, 10; Rom. xiii. 12-14; PhU. iv. 1. 
 
 «GaI. V. 17; Rom. xiii. 14. 'Col. iii. 5; Rom. viii. 13, 
 
144 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 thought of as a power which is to be appropriated by 
 man's moral nature and conditioned by his free action. 
 In his ethical teaching at least, Paul is no determinist.^ 
 As an evangelist he is constrained to reckon on the 
 liberty of his hearers. His missionary zeal and fiery 
 eloquence would have no meaning if he did not believe 
 that men were free to accept or refuse his message. As 
 a preacher the refrain of his appeal is " let not the grace 
 of God be offered to you in vain." Freedom is, indeed, 
 tiie distinc^tive .. note of Paul's ethical conception of life. 
 Life is a great and solemn trust committed to each by 
 God, for the use or abuse of which every man will be 
 called to account. The new life is a life of liberty as 
 the old life was a life of bondage. " If ye are led by the 
 Spirit, ye are not under the law." ^ " Where the Spirit 
 of the Lord is, there is liberty." ^ He bids the Galatians 
 " stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made 
 them free." * 
 
 When we enquire what constitutes the subjective or 
 human element, we find in the New Testament generally 
 two actions which belong to the soul entering upon the 
 new world in Christ — repentance and faith. These two 
 words are complementary and correlative, and constitute 
 together what is commonly called conversion. Eepentance 
 in the New Testament, and particularly in Christ's teach- 
 ing, is a change of mind, the turning away from a life of 
 sin, the breaking off from evil, because a better standard 
 of life has been accepted.^ The change may be calm or 
 
 ^ " The ethical sense of responsibility, the energy for struggle, and 
 the discipline of will was not paralysed or absorbed in Paul's case by 
 his consciousness of redemption and his profound spiritual experiences." 
 Joh. Weiss, Paul and Jesus, p. 113. 
 
 2Gal. V. 18. 32 Cor. iii. 17. *Gal. v. 1, 
 
 ^Cp. W. N. Clark, Outlines of TheoL, pp. 402 ff. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 145 
 
 accompanied by keen sorrow in view of sin. Yet it is 
 not the sorrow, but the change of life following on a 
 change of heart, which constitutes repentance. A man 
 repents when he begins to regard his sin as Christ regards 
 it and acts accordingly. It is a sharing of Christ's view 
 of evil, and the determination to break with it. But 
 repentance, though it be the beginning of the new life, 
 does not cease with advance in it. It is an ever recur- 
 ring act of the believer's experience. Every rejection of 
 a lower life as unworthy is of the nature of repentance, 
 and Christian progress consists in the perpetual rejec- 
 tion of lower ways, and the continual recognition and 
 acceptance of higher ways. But repentance, though it is 
 in a sense " the first step upwards out of unrighteousness 
 towards Christian character," ^ must not be regarded as a 
 self-originating movement on the part of the natural 
 man. It also is a work of God, prompted and inspired 
 by the Holy Spirit. The man who repents is already in 
 the grip of Christ. He has a vision of the good, and 
 the acts of confession and decision which are essential 
 elements in repentance are the immediate effects of the 
 revelation of Christ, and of the influence of the Holy 
 Spirit upon the heart. Here, as elsewhere, the earliest 
 impulse comes from the divine side. " We love Him 
 because He first loved us." It has been remarked that, 
 while repentance is a frequent topic of our Lord's 
 teaching, it has no prominent place in Pauline doctrine.^ 
 But though it is true that the apostle does not dwell 
 upon it to the same extent as Christ, as a separate 
 element in conversion, it is undoubtedly implied by 
 him as an essential condition of participation in 
 
 ^ Stalker, The Ethic of Jesus, p. 175. 
 
 -Wendt, Lehre Je^n, and Bruce, Conception of Christianity ^ p. 
 404. 
 
 K 
 
146 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 salvation. Keferring in his address to the elders of 
 Ephesus to his own activity, extending over three years 
 in the Asiatic capital, Paul says that he had testified 
 to both Jews and Greeks " repentance towards God 
 and faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ."^ We may 
 assume, therefore, that, though in the presentation of 
 his doctrine in the epistles repentance is not frequently 
 referred to, his preaching " always returned to these 
 two great topics, which would be remembered by his 
 hearers when all details were forgotten — repentance and 
 faith." 
 
 If repentance looks back and forsakes, faith looks 
 forward and accepts. In general it is the heartfelt recog- 
 nition of the living God as revealed in the character and 
 work of Christ. In the teaching of Paul, not less than 
 in that of our Lord, faith is the great watchword. 
 Though fundamentally both mean by the word the same 
 thing, it has for the apostle a more definite, or at least 
 more technical, signification. In his recent work, The 
 Essence of Christianity, Harnack^ maintains that Christ 
 did not enter as an element into his own preaching. 
 " It is faith in God, the Father alone, not in the Son 
 which Jesus declared." That statement could hardly, as 
 it seems to us, be supported by an examination of Christ's 
 teaching ; but, in any case, there is no doubt that Christ 
 was the object of the apostle's preaching. Faith is the 
 outgoing of the whole man towards Christ, a fact 
 rendered all the more significant when we remember 
 that, for the apostle, faith is fundamental and the chief 
 agent in the creation of character. " It is for Paul," 
 says Prof. Bruce, "as for the author of the Epistle to 
 
 ^Cp. Stalker, The Ethic of Jesus, p. 175. 
 
 ^See Stalker, p. 176; also Harnack, Das Wesen dea ChristenthumSt 
 p. 91. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 147 
 
 the Hebrews, the mother of heroic achievements, and 
 can not only please God, but enable men to make their 
 lives morally sublime." ^ 
 
 As our object is merely to show that Paul recognizes 
 man's part in appropriating energy or power, by which 
 he receives and makes his own the new life in Christ, it 
 will not be necessary to enter upon a full discussion of 
 justification by faith or to analyze minutely the various 
 shades of meaning which the term "faith" has in the 
 apostle's writings. In his Neutestamentliche Theologie, 
 Baur has distinguished at least five different shades of 
 meaning in Paul's use of the word "faith," ranging 
 from mental assent to moral appropriation and practical 
 energy. For our purpose it will be sufficient to notice 
 three. 
 
 (1) Sometimes faith means simply the theoretical 
 acceptance or intellectual conviction of the facts of 
 salvation as in Eom. iv. 25, or in the declaration that 
 God raised up His Son from the dead. But even in 
 such a case there is always a moral element which 
 depends not upon the knowledge of merely historical 
 fact but upon the personal confidence in God's character 
 and purpose. This confidence is not simply an assent 
 of the mind. " With the heart," says Paul, " man 
 believes." What Paul dreads and protests against in 
 his epistles both to the Eomans and Galatians is that 
 proud self-satisfied temper of legalism which assumed 
 that mere theoretic acceptance or verbal assent was 
 enough to make a Christian, the mere mental acknow- 
 ledgment of the terms of the ancient covenant. He 
 is everywhere contending for a new content of the 
 word " faith " which will exhibit itself in overt practical 
 life. 
 
 ^ St. PavTs Conception of Christianity t p. 225. 
 
148 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 (2) And hence it comes to mean for him, moral trust — 
 the -whole-hearted appropriation of Christ and all that 
 Christ offers to man 
 
 " In whom persuasion and belief 
 Have ripened into faith, and faith become 
 A passionate intuition." 
 
 For, in Paul's view, faith in Christ means union with Christ. 
 The believer distrusts himself and finds his new life in 
 his Lord. What Christ has done, he gratefully accepts 
 as his own. " Any one who examines Paul's doctrine and 
 religion as a whole must admit that his heart-felt and 
 ultimate intention when using the term ' faith ' was 
 to denote that pure faculty of receptivity which abandons 
 the guidance of self and simply receives the proffered 
 salvation, accepting justification ' as a gift ' (Swpeav) ; 
 thence follows the further idea that faith is the con- 
 fidence in the possession of righteousness and secure 
 reliance upon the a-wTrjpla to follow in the future."^ 
 Faith is thus for the Christian the vision of the ideal. 
 It is the acceptance of Christ's life as his life, and the 
 assurance that as he makes this life his own, the 
 Kedeemer's righteousness, grace and beauty are imputed 
 to him. The man is no longer commanded by an 
 authority without but is dominated by a Master within, 
 whose utterance is indistinguishable from the voice and 
 sanction of his own soul. " We are justified by faith," 
 Paul exclaims. The apostle feels, what all deeply 
 religious souls have ever felt in their greatest moments, 
 that " the outer and the inner light for him are one." 
 It seems to him as if his mind and the mind of Christ 
 were wholly reconciled. " I live, yet no longer I, but 
 Christ liveth in me." No other account can he give 
 
 ^ Joh. Weiss, Paid and Jesus, p. 109. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 149 
 
 of his experience than that his own spirit and that of 
 his Lord are made one in the unity of faith.^ 
 
 "A little while there was of Thee-and-me, 
 And then no more there was of me-and-Thee." 
 
 " The new and significant peculiarity," says Pfleiderer, 
 " in Paul's conception of faith, is the mystical union with 
 Christ, the self-identification with Him in a fellowship 
 of life and death. It is in this unreserved self -forgetting 
 surrender of the whole man to the Saviour, in which the 
 revelation of the divine love, as well as the embodiment 
 of the ideal for man is beheld as a personal life, that 
 the believer feels himself to be a new creature. All 
 this is expressed in the fine saying, " It is no longer I 
 that live but Christ that liveth in me, and the life that 
 I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son 
 of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."^ 
 
 Thus it is that faith justifies. This self- renouncing 
 trust God accepts for the righteousness we long after. 
 Justification is no mere fiat of God, no mere arbitrary 
 pronouncement ; nor, on the other hand, is it a legal 
 fiction. God reckons the true perfection of life as 
 already ours, because in identifying ourselves with Christ 
 we have entered upon the way of its increasing realiza- 
 tion. In the union of the soul with Christ and the 
 consequent participation of His life, there is the pledge 
 and promise of the completion in the believer's life 
 of the righteousness which is already by anticipation 
 accorded to him.^ Man is in a sense already what he 
 aspires to be. What we believe in we are. There must 
 be something in us of that moral beauty which we 
 
 ^Cp. Authority in Religion, J. H. Leckie, p. 104. 
 
 ^ Das Urchristenthum, p. 244. 
 
 ^Cp. Stevens, Pauline Theology ^ p. 288. 
 
150 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 admire in another, and to declare that we believe in 
 Christ and accept Him as the ideal of our faith and 
 endeavour is already to have something of the Christ- 
 life in our souL The implanted seed contains within 
 it the potency of the completed life.^ There is an 
 element of Pauline truth in Lowell's poem : 
 
 The thing we long for, that we are 
 For one transcendant moment, 
 Before the present poor and bare 
 Can make its sneering comment. 
 To let the new life in, we know 
 Desire must ope the portal : 
 Perhaps the longing to be so 
 Helps make the soul immortal. 
 
 (3) But justification is not all that faith obtains for 
 the Christian. It is moral energy as well as spiritual 
 vision. It contains the power of new obedience. In 
 faith, as Paul understands it, lie the roots both of a deeper 
 knowledge of God and of a new ethical activity. Even 
 in the common affairs of life faith is an energetic 
 principle. No matter what be its object it always 
 impels to action. It is the spring of all endeavour, the 
 inspiration of all heroism. Every enterprise is carried 
 out by faith, and by faith every noble aim is achieved. 
 In the Christian life it is not otherwise. In the making 
 of character and in the realizing of the kingdom of God, 
 in all personal and social effort, faith is the power in 
 whose might we expect great things and attempt great 
 things. Christian faith works by love. Love is at once 
 its object and its instrument. For it is faith which first 
 assures us of God's gracious character and of our adoption 
 as His children. And it is faith which enables us in the 
 
 ^ As Browning says : ** 'Tis not what man does but what man would 
 do, which exalts him." 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 151 
 
 strength of that divine love to live and work for Christ. 
 The Christian not only stands fast in the faith, but by 
 faith also grows and gradually attains to the stature of 
 the perfect man.^ 
 
 Faith, then, has a threefold function. It is a vision of 
 the ideal in Christ, it is participation in the " good " of 
 Christ, and it is obedience to the law of Christ. As the 
 principle of moral appropriation it has its root in personal 
 trust and its fruit in Christian service. It opens the 
 understanding to truth ; it quickens the spiritual imagin- 
 ation ; it contributes moral earnestness to character. It 
 brings the whole life into the domain of spiritual free- 
 dom, and is the animating and energizing principle of all 
 moral purpose. Faith, in short, may be considered as 
 the characteristic attitude and action of the whole 
 Christian personality in its relation to the spiritual good 
 offered to it in Christ. 
 
 We may sum up the character of faith as thus de- 
 scribed in three particulars. 
 
 1. It is a/ree active principle of appropriation of the 
 offered good. There is indeed a certain element of 
 passivity in it, for there is always implied in faith a 
 quiet acquiescence in the divine will which is described 
 as a waiting on God. But such calmness of spirit is 
 not to be confounded with apathy or the unconscious 
 assimilation of grace. Even in submissive trust there is 
 a free disposal of oneself. By an act of will we assume 
 the receptive attitude and wait upon God. The Spirit 
 of Christ does not enter a man against his will. The 
 door must be opened from within. The heart must be 
 turned to the light. The hand must be put forth to 
 receive the proffered gift. 
 
 2. It is the free and active determination of the whole 
 
 ^ Cp. W. R. Inge, Faith and its Psychology , p. 15. 
 
152 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 man. All the faculties of man must unite in one 
 receptive act. Faith is not the property of any single 
 power. It is not with the mind only that we receive 
 Christ. Nor is it with the heart, the feelings, or the 
 will alone that we respond to His Spirit and obey His 
 commands. In belief the entire manhood becomes 
 receptive. Faith is the resultant of all the forces and 
 experiences of the soul. It is the animating principle 
 of every activity. Life answers to life. It is with his 
 whole strength and heart and mind that man must 
 believe. 
 
 3. It follows that the appropriating power of faith is 
 not at once perfect or complete. It is a growing ;power. 
 Christ may be really, though not yet fully formed, within 
 us. We receive according to the measure of our faith. 
 The moral life is in Paul's view a progressive life. 
 Growth is the proof of its original vitality. Man is not 
 a thing to be acted upon, but a free spirit to be trans- 
 formed from within, and it is in accordance with this 
 that the work of faith is not a complete and ready-made 
 product, but the slow and gradual assimilation of grace. 
 There is a going from faith to faith^ and from strength 
 to strength. Salvation is potentially given at the begin- 
 ning, but it has to be worked out through the various 
 experiences of life into all the departments of character 
 and conduct, and faith is the continuous endeavour of 
 the soul to realize the possibilities of its ideal. 
 
 It only remains to add that the act of faith is not 
 conceived by Paul as a meritorious performance or good 
 work which God rewards with salvation. Paul's whole 
 contention as against the Judaistic legalists is that it is 
 the renunciation of self-righteous claim, a confession of 
 unworthiness, an act of homage to God's grace. It is 
 
 ^Rom. i. 17. 
 
THE DYNAMIC OF THE NEW LIFE 153 
 
 characterized by lowly modesty and an entire absence of 
 self-glory or sense of achievement. Like the bestowal 
 of the Holy Spirit it, too, is the free gift of God, and the 
 believer is what he is, and is able to do what he does 
 because the Father of lights has bestowed upon him the 
 illumination of His Holy Spirit. Faith links us to 
 Christ by vital and indissoluble bonds. In this fact 
 lie its power and its value. Through it we are con- 
 nected with the Source and Giver of Life. By it we are 
 made sharers of the divine Being. And all that the 
 Christ-life enfolds and is to be, though as yet unseen by 
 us, is ours. As the writer to the Hebrews says, " faith 
 is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of 
 things not seen " : or as another apostle says, " even now 
 are we the Sons of God, but it doth not yet appear what 
 we shall be." 
 
 There thus grows up a mystic union with Christ, an 
 identification of the believer and his Eedeemer, so that 
 Christ's acts become his acts. There is a beautiful 
 reciprocity and interchange of giving and receiving, love 
 answering to love, and life to life. In this self-forgetful 
 surrender of the whole man to Christ, the old ego with 
 its inner strife and trembling vanishes and a new self -less 
 personality, a new spiritual manhood takes its place, 
 of which we can give no other explanation than that 
 which Paul offers us, as the secret of his own experience — 
 " No more do I live, but Christ liveth in me." " Faith 
 in Christ" means *'life in Christ." And this complete 
 yielding of self and vital union with the Saviour, this 
 dying and rising again is at once man's supreme ideal 
 and the source of all moral greatness. 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 THE MOTIVES OF THE NEW LIFE 
 
 Closely akin to the question of end and of power is 
 the question of motive. The consideration of the 
 motives or sanctions of morality has always heen a 
 primal one in ethics, and it usually occupies an important 
 place in treatises on the subject. There must be a 
 motive for all human conduct otherwise it would have 
 no moral content or worth. Action without sanctions 
 would be wholly mechanical and necessitarian, and man 
 would simply be a link in the chain of material causes, 
 and his deeds, good and bad alike, would be but the 
 necessary effects of physical antecedents. Nietzsche, who 
 is a virulent assailer of Paul's teaching, as indeed he is 
 of all Christian ideas, has justly remarked that we must 
 always see the " for " or " wherefore " in an ethical system 
 to understand its character and estimate its moral worth. 
 If we understand by a motive that which moves the 
 will, and by sanctions of morality, the reasons or per- 
 suasions to moral conduct as well as the deterrents from 
 disobedience, we shall enquire in this chapter what 
 were the grounds upon which Paul based the new life, 
 and what were the incentives or motives to which he 
 appealed in urging his readers and hearers to make it 
 their own. 
 
THE MOTIVES OF THE NEW LIFE 155 
 
 The sanctions to which a religion or an ethic appeals 
 are an important element in estimating its worth and 
 a primary test of its elevation. The early natural 
 religions appealed frequently to material ends and sought 
 to secure the obedience of their devotees by preying 
 upon their fears and hopes. Buddhism, though in the 
 main a religion of great spirituality, whose h^hest good 
 is the annihilation of all personal ends, is yet not without 
 its appeal to the natural desires and native instincts of 
 man. Mohammedanism, on the other hand is emphatically 
 eudaemonistic, holding out to the faithful the promise of 
 sensual delights and gross material happiness in the 
 next world. Inasmuch as the future life scarcely 
 entered into the realm of thought of the Greeks, the 
 motives of rewards and punishments plays but little 
 part in Greek ethics. The Greek, as a rule, hardly con- 
 sidered what to the Christian is so important that " man 
 has forever." He had to seek his full development 
 in this world. The Eepublic of Plato is an ideal 
 earthly state to be realized amid conditions such as this 
 life presents. Aristotle's ethics also are thoroughly 
 mundane. " Death," he says, " is of all things the most 
 terrible, for it is an end." The wise man accommodates 
 himself prudently to the things of this world, observing 
 the mean between two extremes. Yet both the systems 
 of Plato and Aristotle are based, in a sense, upon 
 happiness as the highest good — though it is a rational 
 happiness to be sought by rational means. Plato does 
 not disdain to appeal to secondary motives of fear 
 and reward, promising material good to those who play 
 their part well in life: and in his doctrine of the 
 transmigration of souls, he reminds his readers that by 
 following evil courses they may sink into lower forms 
 of existence while he incites them to nobility of action 
 
156 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 by the prospect of an advance to higher and happier 
 conditions of being. 
 
 As we pass from the natural religions to the religions 
 of Scripture we are at once aware of a change of atmo- 
 sphere. We move in the midst of spiritual ideas. New 
 sanctions and new incentives confront us. It has been 
 said, indeed, that the blessings of the Old Testament are 
 material and temporal while those of the New are 
 spiritual and eternal. But the difference is only one of 
 degree not of kind. It is indeed true that in Hebrew 
 religion material prosperity plays an important part, and 
 the good which the patriarch or pious Jew contemplates 
 is something which will enrich his tribe or advance 
 his people. But the student of the Old Testament 
 cannot fail to perceive that God's revelation of His pur- 
 poses is progressive, and His dealing with men educative 
 and disciplinary. There is, as we should naturally 
 expect, a certain accommodation of the divine law to the 
 various stages of understanding and moral apprehension 
 of the Jewish people ; and on the human side a growing 
 sense of the meaning of life, and an advancing apprecia- 
 tion of the nature of righteousness. The law is the 
 schoolmaster which leads to Christ, and gradually the 
 nation is carried forward by the promise of material 
 benefits which enshrine spiritual blessings. If in the 
 messages of the prophets there is not wanting a large 
 measure of threats and penalties, we must remember the 
 character of the people they were addressing — a people 
 who were but children, wayward and stubborn, and 
 whose imaginations could scarcely rise above the material 
 and the present. At the same time we must judge pro- 
 phecy by its best, and we shall see that these motives of 
 punishment and reward which occupy such a large place 
 in Old Testament ethics were used as goads and spurs to 
 
THE MOTIVES OF THE NEW LIFE 157 
 
 stir up the apathetic and indifferent. They were not 
 ends in themselves but were made subservient to higher 
 ideals. Nor are the awards of health, prosperity, divine 
 favour presented as arbitrary adjuncts to morality. They 
 are invariably set forth as the natural and inevitable con- 
 sequences of evil or good conduct. We must interpret 
 the spirit of Old Testament morality by what it presaged 
 and foreshadowed, and by the religion of holiness which 
 was its crown. 
 
 When we turn to the New Testament we find not 
 only the highest ideal presented, but also that it is sup- 
 ported by the loftest of claims — the love of God. The 
 ideal and the motive are one. The highest good is at 
 once aim and incentive. The love of God experienced 
 in Christ is the deepest motive to Christian morality just 
 because it is held forth as the chief good. Love in 
 Christ's eyes is the supreme motive. As we ourselves 
 receive all our good gifts from God, so the giving of them 
 in our turn is the very law of our lives. We only live 
 through God's forgiving love-^Jesus presents Himself as 
 the highest pattern of service, and never is man so Godlike 
 as when he stoops to help another. No one can read 
 the discourses of our Lord or the epistles of His apostles 
 without being conscious that he is confronted with the 
 highest motives and appealed to by deeply spiritual aims. 
 Yet the charge of hedonism has been repeatedly levelled 
 against Christianity, and it has often been represented as 
 a religion which enjoins renunciation of this world for 
 the sake of happiness in the next. It must be freely 
 admitted that our Lord frequently represents heaven as 
 a place where His followers will attain to the perfect 
 life, and receive compensation for their present sufferings. 
 He repeatedly refers to the rewards which He gives to 
 His disciples, and does not scruple to paint the pictures 
 
158 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 of the future in colours dro-wn from this earth. But 
 the feature upon which He most frequently dwells is 
 the enjoyment of the company of the great and good of 
 former ages, and above all the fellowship with Himself 
 and with God, His Father and our Father, in the home 
 of many mansions above.^ He speaks of the love of the 
 Father which is promised to all the members of His 
 kingdom, of all " the other things that shall be added." 
 He speaks also of " the new heavens and the new earth," 
 of " drinking the fruit of the vine new," of " sitting down 
 with the patriarchs," and of inheriting " thrones and 
 crowns." But in the first place, it is to be noted that 
 riches and honours and sensual pleasures, such as are 
 promised by Mohammed to his followers, are entirely 
 absent ; and in the second place, that these sayings ought 
 to be taken in connection with, and subordinate to those 
 other and less figurative sayings which present the real 
 nature of the blessedness He speaks of. He who hungers 
 and thirsts after righteousness is filled with righteousness- 
 It is righteousness which is to constitute the character of 
 those who are to dwell in the new heavens and the new 
 earth. It is the pure in heart who shall see God — Whose 
 nature is spirit, light, love. If the word "reward" is 
 felt to be a difficulty let it be remembered that the idea 
 of reward is only hedonistic if it is united with the idea 
 of merit. " If it were possible by good action, and 
 especially by specific works which transcend mere duty 
 to merit happiness, and happiness of a different kind 
 from life in ' the good,' then the purity of the moral 
 incentive would be disturbed." ^ But the contrary is the 
 case, as is shown by such passages as St. Luke xvii. 7-10 
 
 ^ Cp. Stalker, Ethics of Jesus^ p. 36. See also Jacoby, Ne^Uestameiit- 
 Hche Ethik, where the notion of reward is fully discussed. 
 2 Haering, Ethics of the Christian Life^ p. 129. 
 
THE MOTIVES OF THE NEW LIFE 159 
 
 and Matthew xx. 1-16. Kighteousness and reward are 
 always in correspondence. The promise is no arbitrary 
 gift added on — it is no bribe or payment capriciously 
 bestowed. It is always the natural fruition of moral 
 endeavour and spiritual preparedness. 
 
 Jesus laid the very greatest emphasis upon the fear 
 of God. Our Father, He said, who is Lord of Heaven 
 and earth, shall judge of every evil word. In the 
 parable of the talents Jesus reveals a fear of God, such 
 as no Old Testament saint expressed more strongly. 
 Yet this fear is no abject terror, but that side of love 
 which finds expression in confidence and reverent trust. 
 Men are to cast all their care upon Him because He 
 is their Father to whom they are of more value that the 
 flowers of the field and the birds of the air. In the 
 midst of trouble they are to make trial of His love 
 and He shall grant them the attainment of their desire — 
 the Kingdom of Heaven. Happiness, the desire for 
 all that makes life beautiful and noble, has its roots 
 deep in human nature. If we have already tasted life 
 it is not selfish to yearn for its continuance. The man 
 who has risen to the perception of the beauty of 
 truth and goodness, and who finds these in communion 
 with a personal God, is not surely selfish in pressing 
 forward to a more complete realization of them, is indeed 
 less and less selfish as he advances. He forgets self in 
 a greater object — God : and experience shows that this 
 is the man who has always been the most ready to 
 prove his unselfishness in doing and suffering for others. 
 
 The sanctions of Christ do not in this respect differ 
 from those of the apostle, which are largely coloured by 
 the same high conception of life. The charge of hedonism 
 is, we might almost say, even less applicable to the 
 teaching of Paul than to that of Jesus. He, not less 
 
160 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 than his Master, does not scruple to support the claims 
 of morality by the sanctions of divine rewards and 
 punishments. But by reason of a certain poetic figurative- 
 ness and allegorical picturesqueness in the language of 
 Jesus, which we miss in the writings of Paul, it might 
 seem, at least to the superficial reader, as if the apostle 
 appealed to higher and less materialistic motives than 
 his Lord. But if his language is less metaphorical it 
 is not less emphatic. Knowing the terror of the Lord 
 he seeks to persuade men. More than once he adds 
 to a catalogue of vices the threat that they which do 
 such things shall not inherit the Kingdom of God.^ He 
 urges his Corinthian converts to cleanse themselves from 
 all defilements of the flesh and of the spirit, perfecting 
 holiness in the fear of God, because of the promises.^ 
 He bids the same church continue in patient endurance 
 of present evil, animating them with a tender and 
 comforting assurance of future recompense. " For our 
 light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for 
 us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory ; 
 while we look not at the things which are seen, but 
 at the things which are not seen : for the things which 
 are seen are temporal; but the things which are not 
 seen are eternal." ^ But here, as in so many of the 
 sayings of our Lord, it is evident that the charge of 
 hedonism is a meaningless one. In passages like these 
 the idea of reward is merged in a yearning which has 
 lost sight of all petty motives and passes into a glorious 
 expectation of a fuller and grander life which is to 
 follow as the result of unwearied fidelity in this present 
 life. And so generally it is only a crude misconception 
 of the apostle's meaning to interpret such passages as 
 
 iQal. V. 21 ; 2 Cor. v. 10. ^2 Cor. vii. 1. 
 
 32 Cor. iv. 17-18. 
 
THE MOTIVES OF THE NEW LIFE 161 
 
 1 These, i. 10, and Romans v. 9, as if he taught that 
 the death and resurrection of Christ were only to be 
 believed because they ensured deliverance from the 
 wrath to come, and the gift of eternal life. Eternal 
 life, signifying as it does a life of conscious fellowship 
 with God — a life which is to be begun here, but to be 
 consummated hereafter — is surely no selfish aim to set 
 before man. Not to seek it, to be indifferent to all its 
 inherent blessings and joys, would not be the mark of 
 pure disinterestedness, but the evidence rather of a lack 
 of appreciation of what life and its possibilities even 
 here involve. To bid men live and strive for the highest 
 they know, to aim at the realization of that heavenly 
 bliss of which, even upon the earth, we have in Christ 
 some dim vision and foretaste, is surely to appeal to no 
 selfish motive. 
 
 In his Easter Day Browning shows us how the 
 yearning for a higher good grows in intensity the more 
 unselfish a man becomes: 
 
 " Thou Love of God ! Or let me die 
 Or grant what shall seem heaven almost ! 
 Only let me go on, go on, 
 Still hoping ever and anon 
 To reach one eve the Better Land ! " 
 
 Whatever Paul's argument may be he never loses sight 
 of the absoluteness and intrinsic value of the spiritual 
 Hfe as an end in itself. If at times he refers to the 
 awards and penalties which are necessarily involved in 
 the intelligent comprehension of every gieat privilege, 
 he employs them as incentives to the realization of the 
 high calling of life in Christ rather than as ends to 
 be pursued or to be shunned in themselves. He exhorts 
 the Philippians to trustful and determined perseverance, 
 
 L 
 
162 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 reminding them that " He who hath begun a good work 
 in them will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." ^ 
 
 It is indeed true that Christianity has not always 
 been presented in its purest forms, and too often 
 prudence, superstitious fear and other-worldliness have 
 been made the motives of goodness, as if the Gospel 
 knew no higher claims. Even such an acute thinker 
 as Paley bases morality upon no higher ground than 
 enlightened self-interest. " Virtue," he defines, as the 
 " doing good to mankind in obedience to the will of God 
 and for the sake of everlasting happiness." ^ 
 
 Such misrepresentations of the real nature and 
 sanctions of the Gospel, which were common among the 
 utilitarian moralists of the eighteenth century, have led 
 secularist writers to assume that it is a nobler thing 
 to do one's duty without thought of God and without 
 hope of reward. A recent writer, Professor Westermarck, 
 in his masterly work on the Origin and Development of 
 the Moral Ideas, goes the length of saying that the 
 association of religion and morality has been in many 
 ways disadvantageous to the cultivation of the latter. 
 Eor the demands of conscience are then apt to be 
 satisfied by the performance of formal religious rites 
 to the exclusion of more substantial acts of morality. 
 " The frequent assumption," he says, " that the moral law 
 would hardly command obedience without the belief in 
 retribution beyond the grave is contradicted by an over- 
 whelming array of facts." Thus we hear of the Bedouins 
 that " the practice of religion may be taken as the sure 
 index of low morality in a tribe." Of the Mohammedan 
 peoples we are told " that those who attended to their 
 prayers most regularly were the greatest scoundrels." 
 And that the Copts " unite extreme religious bigotry 
 
 ^Phil. i. 6. 2 Paley, Principles of Moral and Political Philosophy, 
 
THE MOTIVES OF THE NEW LIFE 163 
 
 with deceit, faithlessness and indulgence in sensual 
 pleasure." " It is a common experience that contact with 
 a higher civilization exercises a deteriorating influence 
 upon the conduct of uncultured races, although we may 
 be sure that Christian missionaries do not fail to impart 
 the doctrine of hell to their savage converts." These 
 quotations only show that Prof. Westermarck, with all 
 his profound and subtle philosophical insight, fails to 
 gTasp and appreciate the real character and meaning of 
 the Christian religion. If the Bedouins, Mohammedans, 
 and Copts present a low morality, it is not because they 
 have too much religion but because they have too little, 
 and the little they have consists in belief in the efficacy 
 of external rites and forms and not in spiritual ideas. 
 No reputable Christian missionary of to-day would ever 
 imagine that in imparting the doctrine of hell he was 
 teaching the essential character of the religion of Jesus. 
 Over against the " overwhelming array of facts " adduced 
 by Prof. Westermarck, it would not be difficult to pro- 
 duce a still weightier host in proof of the power of 
 Christian faith in heathen lands, and to show that 
 holiness, spirituality of life, union with God, so far from 
 being hindrances to morality, have been the true cause 
 and condition of good conduct and moral life in millions 
 of converts. 
 
 Those moralists who speak of the doing of duty 
 without the thought of God as being a nobler thing, 
 regard morality as the ultimate end of man, and religion 
 as merely a means to that end, whereas Christ and Paul 
 make religion not a means merely but the crown of Ufe. 
 Life in union with God is the great end for which man 
 is here. Morality is a necessary means to such a life, 
 the mode of its expression ; but it is not the life itself.^ 
 ^ Cp. Ulingworfch, Christian Character, p. 107. 
 
164 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Noble as it may be to live truly, even without tbe 
 thought of God, the man who thus lives does not attain 
 to such a rich or complete conception of life as he who 
 lives with God for his object. To be spiritual is to 
 be more than moral, and it is a harder requirement, 
 as it is a higher attainment of manhood, to make the 
 love of God at once the motive and end of our life. 
 
 "'Tis by comparison an easy task 
 Earth to despise : but to converse with heaven 
 That is not easy.^'^ 
 
 In proportion as we rise to this ideal, every virtue, 
 every duty, every action becomes an expression of love, 
 a mode of fellowship and union with God. 
 
 If Christianity has sometimes been misrepresented by 
 its friends and caricatured by its foes, unworthy moral 
 sanctions receive no countenance from the apostle Paul. 
 To appreciate his appeal we must take his teaching as a 
 whole. Its very essence is the repudiation of all legalism 
 and slavish compulsion. Christian conduct is distin- 
 guished by having God for its object and the love of 
 God for its motive. " Whether we live, we live unto the 
 Lord, or whether we die, we die unto the Lord." The 
 grace of God is the supreme motive — " I beseech you by 
 the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living 
 sacrifice." Paul is at his finest in his persuasions. All 
 his severity of argument is laid aside, and a tender wistful- 
 ness breathes through his words of personal appeal. It 
 is the love of God revealed in the gift of His Son that he 
 delights to dwell upon. " Who loved me and gave Him- 
 self for me," is the irresistible plea he urges. Christ is 
 the object of all service. His sacrifice the incentive to 
 all devotion. " The love of Christ constraineth us ; because 
 
 1 Wordsworth. 
 
THE MOTIVES OF THE NEW LIFE 165 
 
 we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all 
 dead: and that he died for all, that they which live 
 should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto 
 Him which died for them, and rose again." ^ "Now, 
 then," cries the apostle, " we are ambassadors for Christ, 
 as though God did beseech you by us. We pray you in 
 Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." Such a truth 
 could not come into a life without making it different 
 from anything it had been before. So great sacrifice 
 must beget sacrifice. Noblesse oblige. Obedience must 
 take the shape of love, and the soul that has been 
 thrilled by the grace of Christ cannot but surrender 
 itself completely to His sway. " Ye are bought with a 
 price," he writes in 1 Cor. vi. 20, "therefore glorify God 
 in your body and in your spirit which are God's " — an 
 appeal which is repeated in the tenth chapter. "Whether 
 therefore ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to 
 the glory of God." A similar idea is expressed in a 
 shorter form when he beseeches the Thessalonians, as a 
 father appealing to his children, to walk worthy of God 
 who hath called them unto His kingdom and glory; while 
 in. Colossians i. 10 he utters the same thought in the 
 prayer that " they should walk worthy of the Lord unto 
 all well-pleasing." 
 
 From these and other passages we gather that the 
 ultimate and all-embracing motive for the moral life, 
 according to Paul, lies in the gracious call of God and the 
 loving service which such a call demands. Life is a 
 vocation — a call to serve God in a particular way. 
 Heredity, temperament, circumstances, opportunity, all 
 may be factors in shaping the course of our life, but in 
 and through and behind these impersonal agencies — the 
 accidents and chances, as they are so often named — we 
 
 12 Cor. V. 14-16. 
 
166 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 are to recognize as Christians the call of God.^ Through- 
 out the epistles this thought frequently recurs. "As 
 God hath called each so let him walk." " Let each abide 
 in that calling wherein he was called." This special 
 divine vocation is to overrule and subordinate to itself 
 all the various experiences and activities of life. "We 
 belong to a holy and merciful God, who has chosen, 
 elected, and determined us to a grand and glorious life, 
 and who has left nothing undone that even almighty love 
 could do to win us. Predestinated, called, justified, 
 glorified — such are the links in the golden chain of 
 redemptive grace by which God has bound us to Him- 
 self.^ It becomes us, therefore, to consecrate ourselves 
 wholly to God. It is much the same thought which the 
 apostle presents in the 6 th chapter of the same epistle, 
 where the ethical life is derived as an obligation arising 
 from the new religious relation which Christ has estab- 
 lished between God and man. The new life which has 
 been begun in the Christian through the indwelling 
 Christ, can be no other than moral in correspondence 
 with the nature of the Heavenly Being, " How shall we, 
 who are dead to sin, live any longer therein ? '* ^ " Let 
 not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye 
 should obey it in the lusts thereof ... for sin shall not 
 have dominion over you : for ye are not under the law, 
 but under grace." * In the 8th chapter he clinches the 
 argument which he has been working out, viz., that 
 religious privileges involve ethical obligations — by stating 
 the awful alternative involved. " Therefore, brethren,- we 
 are debtors not to the flesh to live after the flesh : for if 
 ye live after the flesh ye shall die : but if through the 
 spirit ye do mortify the deeds of the body ye shall 
 
 ' Cp. lUingworth, Christian Character, p. 109. 
 
 2 Rom. viii, 30. 3 Rom. vi. 2. •'Rom. vi. 12, 14. 
 
THE MOTIVES OF THE NEW LIFE 167 
 
 live." ^ It may be observed that we have here a com- 
 bination of two motives — the one based upon redemption 
 and the other upon retribution. But these are simply 
 the two sides of the shield, and must always go together. 
 A man cannot reject a high privilege without involving 
 himself in an equally serious penalty. There is a natural 
 law even in the spiritual world. God is not a God of 
 caprice. As the apostle elsewhere says, " He that sows 
 to the flesh, shall of the flesh, in the course of nature, 
 reap corruption. He that soweth to the spirit shall from 
 the spirit reap eternal life."^ It cannot be otherwise. 
 Shall we charge the apostle here with making an appeal 
 to the old legal righteousness of Judaism ? We cannot 
 agree with Weinel when he says that " Paul did not 
 perceive that two religious systems here jostle each other, 
 the Jewish religion of rewards and the new religion of 
 redemption."^ Surely it is no lowering of the high 
 sanction to which he appeals throughout, to remind his 
 converts of the dire consequences of spumiug the call of 
 God and quenching the light of life. 
 
 This conception of life as a vocation, which is the 
 leading motive of Paul, gives dignity arid stability to the 
 entire Christian life. It is not, indeed, without its 
 dangers, as Paul shows, being interpreted sometimes in a 
 way to engender fatalism, and sometimes in a way to 
 incite fanaticism. But, as a rule, the sense of life as a 
 mission or calling of God, not only gives to man a 
 definite aim, but encourages perseverance, which is the 
 secret of all fruitful work, and consecrates the conditions 
 of lowliness and pain.* 
 
 The idea of living to the Lord furthermore stimulates 
 sincerity of heart and integrity of eharacter. Living under 
 
 iRom. viii. 12, 13. ^^al. v. 25. 
 
 ^ Weinel, SL Paid, p. 342. ^ Illingworth, Christian Character. 
 
168 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 " the great taskmaster's eye " constrains us to search our 
 desires and intentions, and " to bring into captivity every 
 thought," as Paul enjoins. It is no formal profession or 
 external observance which he insists upon, but the entire 
 sanctification and devotion of the inner man. 
 
 ]:^ot only will this high conception of life, as a vocation 
 of God, encourage inward sincerity of thought, it will 
 also promote thoroughness and fidelity in work. Servants 
 are bidden to obey, " not with eye-service as men-pleasers, 
 but as unto the Lord." Masters are to rule as " having 
 a master in heaven." This thoroughness will permeate 
 every department and detail of activity. "Whatsoever 
 ye do in word or in deed, do all as unto God." Tor all 
 duty is one, and all distinctions of great or small are lost 
 in the supreme word — "This is the will of the Lord." 
 The worth and quality of an action depends not upon its 
 prominence, but upon its motive ; and as love to God 
 becomes the principle and inspiration of our work, the 
 smallest duty, not less than the largest, is filled with 
 infinite value, because it is at once the expression and 
 the vehicle of God's will. 
 
 " All service ranks the same with God ; 
 If now, as formerly he trod 
 Paradise, His presence fills 
 Our earth, each only as God wills 
 Can work — God's puppets, best and worst, 
 Are we : there is no last nor first." ^ 
 
 Akin to the thought of life as a divine vocation is 
 the idea of divine soTiship, which is frequently employed 
 by the apostle as a plea for holiness of life. He exhorts 
 the Philippians to do all things without murmurings and 
 disputings, that they may be blameless and harmless, the 
 sons of God.^ A reference is made to the same high 
 ^Browning. ^Phil. ii. 15. 
 
THE MOTIVES OF THE NEW LIFE 16^ 
 
 calling of sonship in Eomans viii. 14. "For as many 
 as are led by the spirit, they are the sons of God." 
 Delivered from bondage ye have received, he says, the 
 spirit of adoption, and can claim God as your Father. 
 It is to the same motive he appeals when he exhorts the 
 Thessalonians to watch and be sober.^ For he says, " Ye 
 are children of the light and children of the day/' Yours 
 is a high privilege. Ye have been called out of darkness 
 into hght. Live and work as those who understand the 
 worth and appreciate the opportunity of the day. This 
 passage suggests also another motive, which frequently 
 finds expression in the epistles of Paul — the shortness and 
 uncertainty of life, " The day of the Lord cometh as a 
 thief in the night," or, as he elsewhere says, " The fashion 
 of the world passeth away," " The Lord is at hand." It 
 was Paul's belief that the present world was speedily to 
 pass away, and he even doubted, at the beginning of his 
 ministry at least, if he and his contemporaries would see 
 death. This thought forms the great background of all 
 the apostle's conception of life ; his entire view of duty, 
 as well as his estimate of earthly things, are tinged with 
 the idea that " the time is short." He bids men not 
 bind themselves too closely or too fervently to the affairs 
 of this life, but to fix their hearts upon things which are 
 above. Those who have wives are to be as those who 
 have none, those who are slaves are to remain in their 
 present vocation, those who are Jews are not to envy the 
 condition of Gentiles. Let the Christian sit loosely to 
 all earthly considerations ; let him withdraw his gaze 
 from the immediate and the material, and fasten it upon 
 eternity, remembering that his true citizenship is in 
 heaven. "For the things which are seen are temporal, 
 but the things which are not seen are eternal." At the 
 1 1 Thess. V. 6. 
 
170 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 same time, while we cannot fail to detect the constant 
 presence of this thought in Paul's writings, it is to be 
 noted that he never urges it as a reason for indifference 
 or apathy. The brevity of time did not make him less 
 zealous in his missionary labours. On the contrary, 
 it spurred him to greater ardour. And so far from 
 permitting the brevity of life to act as an opiate, or 
 furnish an excuse for dreamy idleness, or fatalistic un- 
 concern, he bids men awake to the truth and solemnity 
 of life, putting on the whole armour of God, so that they 
 may valiantly withstand the world's wiles and conquer 
 its evils. If life is short, then let its days be nobly 
 filled, and if the fashion of the world is passing away, 
 then all the more earnestly must its opportunities and 
 experiences be seized and turned into instruments of our 
 highest good. 
 
 But apart from these central thoughts which apply to 
 the general spirit of the new life, it might be shown that 
 Paul deduces a special moral obligation from each sepa- 
 rate doctrine. No abstract truth ever remains abstract 
 with Paul. He has always an eye to life and practice, 
 and the most abstruse theological reasonings are sooner 
 or later brought to bear upon the immediate conduct of 
 those whom he is addressing. Prom the doctrine of 
 Justification he draws the conclusion of the proper use 
 of liberty — not for self-indulgence, but for the service of 
 each other in love.^ From the doctrine of Eedemption 
 he deduces the obligations of consecration. " Ye were 
 bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your 
 bodies."^ And so too he bases the claim of brotherly 
 love, not so much upon the principle that all Christians 
 are God's children, as upon the thought of the common 
 possession of Christ, Who makes all believers parts of one 
 iGal. V. 13. MCor. vi. 19. 
 
THE MOTIVES OF THE NEW LIFE 171 
 
 organism — members of His body, in whose joys and 
 sorrows all alike share — and who thus mutually serve 
 one another.^ 
 
 Along with these more abstract motives it is only 
 in harmony with what we might expect from the 
 supreme place which Christ holds in Paul's system of 
 thought, that he should repeatedly present the more 
 personal incentive of the imitation of Christ, Christ, as 
 we have already seen, is the Alpha and Omega of Paul's 
 whole conception of the Christian life. He is at once 
 end, norm and motive. He is the inspiration and 
 standard of the Christian character ih all its relation- 
 ships. As we have already pointed out, it is by no 
 mechanical drill into imitation of acts and obedience to 
 commands that Paul seeks to make Christ's example a 
 motive-power in men's lives. It is a spiritual likeness, 
 not an outward artificial conformity, which the apostle 
 everywhere urges. Everyone is so to hve as to please his 
 neighbour to edification even as Christ pleased not Him- 
 self. In the spirit in which He bore our burdens we 
 are to bear the infirmities of the weak.^ Paul does not 
 disdain to bring the great principles which were mani- 
 fested in the life of Christ to bear upon small duties. 
 Even with regard to such a minute and prosaic detail as 
 the making a collection for the poor he applies the pro- 
 found law which was exempUfied in the incarnation as an 
 ethical pattern. " Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus 
 Christ, that though He was rich yet for your sakes He 
 became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich."^ 
 Above all, it is the humility and sacrifice of the incarnate 
 Christ which the apostle habitually sets forth for imita- 
 tion. " In lowliness of mind let each esteem others 
 better than themseh^es " : " Let this mind be in you 
 
 ^Rom. xii. ; 1 Cor. xii. ^Rom. xv, 1. ^2 Cor. viii. 9. 
 
172 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 which was also in Christ Jesus, who emptied Himself of 
 His glory and took upon Him the form of a servant."^ 
 
 As Christ is the supreme ideal and motive, so everyone 
 who in any way reflects the image of the Master is also 
 a pattern and plea for the Christian life. With all his 
 humihty and self-depreciation Paul knows that the one 
 purpose of his life is to live for Christ, and he does not 
 hesitate therefore in so far as he is a follower of the 
 Master to invite others to be followers of him. "Be 
 ye imitators of me," he says. " These things, which ye 
 have both learned and received and heard and seen in 
 me, do." ^ He did not of course demand that men 
 should literally copy his life. Who was he any more 
 than Apollos or Cephas, or any other disciple of Christ, 
 that they should set him up as a supreme pattern ? He 
 was but an ambassador and witness, a finger-post point- 
 ing to Christ. He was a learner like themselves. He 
 was exposed to the same temptations, and he had to 
 exert the same watchfulness lest in preaching to others 
 he might himself be a castaway. There were, moreover, 
 many incidents in his career peculiar to himself which 
 he would have been the last man to wish others to 
 adopt. He was not married, he lived a life of constant 
 turmoil and unrest, travelling from land to land, often 
 without friends, occupation or settled abode. He had 
 infirmities and disadvantages of a special nature which, 
 however they might redound to the glory of God, he 
 could not wish that others should share. He knew 
 how to be abased and how to abound, how to be full 
 and how to be hungry — but in none of these particulars 
 did he desire to make his life a model for others. 
 
 It has been remarked that a man who could invite 
 others to imitate his character must indeed have a 
 iPhil. ii. 1-6. 2 Phil. iv. 9. 
 
THE MOTIVES OF THE NEW LIFE 173 
 
 conscience void of offence. Surely Paul more than 
 most men had a right to make the claim he did. In 
 his person manly independence, exalted ardour and 
 singleness of purpose were united to genuine humility 
 and self-forgetful love. For him to live was Christ, yet 
 he did not count himself to have attained. From the 
 beginning to the end, his life was one ceaseless endeavour 
 to know and to do the will of his Master. " This one 
 thing I do, I press towards the mark." If he asked 
 others to be his imitators it was not in the outward 
 accidents and disabilities of his life, but in his inner 
 convictions and aims. He desired for all men what he 
 uttered as he stood with upraised manacled hands before 
 Agrippa — "I would to God that not only thou, but all 
 that hear me this day were, with much or with little 
 persuasion, such as I am — except these bonds." 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 THE VIETUES OF THE NEW LIFE 
 
 So far we have been content to view in a general way 
 the Pauline conception of the Highest Good, noting that 
 the apostle's ideal of life may be summed up in thtee 
 great words : Holiness, Christlikeness, and Brotherhood, 
 We have also discussed, on both its divine and human 
 side, the Power or Dynamic by which the ideal is to be 
 realized. Lastly, we have considered the motives or 
 sanctions to which the apostle appeals in commending 
 and enforcing Christian morality. The whole might be 
 concisely summed up in the Pauline formula — " turning 
 from idols to serve the living and true God." ^ " Alive 
 unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord " ; ^ or in one 
 short but pregnant sentence which embraces all the 
 three elements which we have indicated — "Now being 
 made free from sin and become servants of God, ye 
 have your fruits unto holiness, and the end everlasting 
 life."' 
 
 But the apostle's genius was of far too practical a 
 kind to be content with general principles. It is never 
 enough to say to a man : " Serve God, be Christlike, 
 seek to live in newness of life with your Eisen Lord." 
 And Paul was writing to weak striving mortals who 
 1 1 Thesa. i. 9. ^Rom. vi. 11. ^j^om. vi. 22. 
 
THE VIRTUES OF THE NEW LIFE 175 
 
 needed much particular instruction and counsel as to 
 how the Christian ideal was to be realized, and in what 
 kind of character it was to be manifested. The good 
 man has to live in the world in contact with evil and in 
 relationship with his fellow-men. He cannot be content 
 therefore to remain a Christian in general. He must be 
 a Christian in particular in all the varied duty and detail 
 of his daily life. 
 
 We have to deal therefore in this chapter with the 
 constituents of the Christian personality, or the particular 
 virtues of character in which the ideal is realised. 
 
 Had Paul been writing a treatise on Christian ethics, 
 we might have expected him to start from Christ as 
 his standard, and analyzing His life and character into 
 its separate elements, to commend the special graces 
 which were manifested in Jesus. But, as we have seen> 
 the Pauline epistles are not formal expositions, but simply 
 letters which owe their form and contents to the par- 
 ticular circumstances which called them forth ; and while 
 the apostle does sometimes allude to the characteristic 
 excellences of Christ, especially to His humility, gentle- 
 ness, meekness, patience, it is to be remarked that it is 
 but seldom that he refers to the features of Christ's 
 earthly life at all.^ It may be an exaggeration to say 
 with WeineP that Paul attached no value whatever to 
 Christ according to the flesh, and that the man Jesus 
 can scarcely be said to have existed for him at all ; but 
 it is true that what interested him in Jesus was not so 
 much His earthly life as His present life in the believer ; 
 and even when he does hold up His life as an ethical 
 
 ^ When he does appeal to the example of Christ it is in connection 
 with commands to unselfishness and renunciation of self-advantage. 
 See Joh. Weiss, Paul and Jesus^ p. 117. 
 
 ^St. Paul, p. 314. 
 
176 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 pattern, the features chosen are such as depend for their 
 ■deepest significance on the fact that He was the divine 
 Son of God. So His epoch-making death was His 
 " obedience." ^ That His life was without self-pleasing 
 was seen in His vicarious endurance of reproach and 
 suffering.^ His great act of love was His giving Himself 
 up to death.^ Paul only once speaks of His gentleness 
 and sweet reasonableness in general, and that in such 
 a way as to suggest that he is alluding to the now 
 living and exalted Lord. The same remark applies 
 to the apostle's references to the love * and truth ^ of 
 Christ. The only other special incident in the earthly 
 life of Jesus besides His death to which he alludes is 
 the Incarnation, which he sets forth as an example of 
 humility and self-sacrificing love.^ Yet even here it 
 may be remarked that the object the apostle has in 
 referring to this act of self-humiliation is not merely to 
 commend the virtue of lowliness but also to exhort his 
 readers to worship the exalted Lord. "For He who 
 humbled Himself hath been exalted, that at the name 
 of Jesus every knee should bow, and every tongue con- 
 fess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the 
 Father." 
 
 We must not suppose, however, that Paul knew nothing 
 of Jesus' earthly life. On the contrary, as Weinel him- 
 self acknowledges, his epistles are our best and surest 
 witness in the controversy that has just been started 
 afresh regarding the historicity of the person of Christ. 
 As Paul tells us, he became acquainted with the outlines 
 of the life of Jesus from his immediate disciples them- 
 selves, and though his religion is derived from the Kisen 
 
 ^Rom. V. 19. ^B^otn. xv. 3 ff. 
 
 3 Gal. ii. 20 ; 2 Cor. v. 14 ff. "* Rom. viii. 35 ff. ; 2 Cor. v. 14. 
 
 f*2Cor. xi. 10. «Phil. ii. 6. 
 
THE VIRTUES OF THE NEW LIFE 177 
 
 Christ, " yet we find traces everywhere of his acquaint- 
 ance with these memoirs of Jesus which afterwards 
 assimied a definite shape in our Gospels." ^ 
 
 If, then, the apostle does not deduce the virtues of the 
 Christian life directly from the character of Jesus, it is 
 probably because Christ is to him rather a divine Power 
 than a human Pattern ; and also for the further reason 
 that the Christian virtues are not excellences which can 
 be acquired simply by imitation. They are the fruits of 
 the Spirit — consequences which spring directly and spon- 
 taneously from the new life of the Eisen Christ implanted 
 in the heart of the believer. 
 
 But though Paul presents the features of the ethical 
 life in his own way, it must not be overlooked that his 
 whole conception of the essentials of moral character is 
 in harmony with the teaching of Jesus. His idea of 
 virtue is essentially that of Christ, and the virtues 
 which he enumerates are similar to those inculcated in 
 the Sermon on the Mount. " The fruit of the Spirit is 
 love, joy, peace, long-suffering, goodness, faith, gentleness, 
 purity." The man who sets forth the features of the 
 moral life in this list of virtues shows clearly that he has 
 learned of Jesus, and that his aim is nothing else than to 
 reveal the mind of the Master. The emphasis is laid 
 where Christ himself laid it — on love. Love is the fulfil- 
 ment of the law. To serve Christ is to have righteousness 
 and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.^ It cannot be 
 doubted that there ever hovered before Paul's mind a 
 picture of the man Christ Jesus, the main features of 
 which were gentleness, self-denial, self-sacrifice. Never 
 is his language warmer or more enthusiastic than when 
 he is speaking of the love, unselfishness, and self-abase- 
 ment of Jesus. And it may be, as has been suggested, 
 
 MVeinel, St. Paid, p. 317. ^Ron,. xiv. 18. 
 
 M 
 
178 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 that in such passages as Eomans xii., where Paul depicts 
 love in all its forms, or in 1 Cor. xiii., where he rises to 
 lyric power in its praise, we have not only echoes of 
 the words of Jesus, but can see the reflection of His 
 personality.^ 
 
 The systematic enumeration and development of the 
 virtues has been one of the most difficult, as it is one of 
 the most important, tasks of ethics ; and neither in 
 ancient nor in modern times has complete success 
 attended moral philosophers in this respect. Plato's 
 famous classification is obviously too meagre, and as has 
 been said, " serves its purpose only because justice is 
 used to include everything not accounted for by the 
 rest." ^ Aristotle's list, on the other hand, though fuller, 
 lacks system, and is marred by serious omissions. The 
 list is aristocratic ; they are the virtues of a well-born 
 gentleman. Nor is there mention, any more than in 
 Plato's enumeration, of the gentler virtues. 
 
 It is, indeed, true that the apostle Paul in no single 
 passage offers a complete description of all the virtues 
 possible to faith. Perhaps the fullest list is that which 
 we have already referred to — the fruit of the Spirit in 
 Gal. v. 22-23. A rich cluster is also mentioned as the 
 fruit of light. " Walk," he says, " as children of the 
 light (for the fruit of light is in all goodness and righteous- 
 ness and truth), proving what is well-pleasing unto the 
 Lord." A fuller enumeration is given in Colossians iii. 
 12-13, where he bids the members of that Church "put 
 on, as God's elect, a heart of compassion, kindness, 
 humility, meekness, long-suffering; forbearing one another, 
 and forgiving each other if any man have a complaint 
 against any : even as the Lord forgave you so also do 
 
 1 Joh. Weiss, Paul and Jesus, p. 121. 
 '-'See Muirhead, Elements of Ethics, p. 177. 
 
THE VIRTUES OF THE NEW LIFE 179 
 
 ye." And to these may be added the oft-quoted series 
 in Philippians iv. 8, "Whatsoever things are true, 
 reverent, just, chaste, lovely, kindly spoken of." These 
 representations do not pretend to systematic completeness. 
 They cross and repeat one another; yet putting them all 
 together we obtain a wonderfully full enumeration of 
 what Paul conceived as the virtues of the Christian 
 man. 
 
 In looking a little more closely at the content and 
 import of the Pauline virtues, we may make a threefold 
 classification : First, the classical or heroic virtues, some- 
 times called the " cardinal " virtues ; second, the amiable 
 virtues ; and, third, the *' theological virtues " or " Chris- 
 tian graces," 
 
 The classical virtues. It is not unnatural to ask 
 whether Paul was acquainted with the virtues of 
 antiquity which were taught by the philosophers of his 
 time, and, if so, how far he adopted them in his own 
 teaching. There can be little doubt that he was not 
 only conversant with the so-called pagan virtues, but 
 actually exhorted his readers to the practice of the four 
 cardinal virtues, as they have been called, from cardOj a 
 hinge, which were derived from Greek philosophy and were 
 first defined and systematically treated by Plato ^ — a-ocpia 
 or wisdom, avSpla or fortitude, (r(jo(ppo(rvvfj or temperance, 
 and SiKaioa-vi/jj or justice. Virtue is defined by Plato as 
 the harmony and health of the soul, while vice is the 
 contrary condition. Socrates had identified all virtue 
 with wisdom, but Plato merely assigns to wisdom the 
 highest place among the virtues, while justice, which he 
 put last, he regards as the sum and harmony of all. 
 ^ Bep. bk. iv. 
 
180 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Paul refers to all these qualities, but he never mentions 
 them all together nor relates them as Plato does in a 
 systematic way. 
 
 (1) With regard to <TO(^la, of which Paul treats in the 
 opening chapters of first Corinthians, and to which he 
 alludes in the later epistles of Ephesians and Colossians, 
 as well as in the pastoral letters, it would seem at first 
 sight as if he disparaged it altogether. He knows well 
 the kind of learned jargon and windy conceit which passes 
 for knowledge in the schools, and he will have none of it. 
 He does not hesitate to pronounce the wisdom of men 
 foolishness. The wisdom which Paul had in view was 
 probably the aberrations of the Gnostic philosophy, which 
 even in his day had begun to ally itself with Christianity. 
 
 The problem of the origin of Gnosticism is a difficult 
 one; but so much is certain, that it was an eclectic 
 movement, of which Eastern myths and Greek philosophy 
 were dominant factors. The literature of apocalyptic 
 Judaism, and especially the writings of Philo and the 
 Alexandrian Neo-Platonists, were gradually incorporated 
 with it, and made it acceptable to some of the earliest 
 Christian teachers themselves. " The heretics were not 
 a hostile sect as in a subsequent age, but were simply 
 the advanced wing of the Church itself, and partici- 
 pated in the common worship and enterprise." ^ " Paul 
 himself speaks of the Gospel as a higher kind of know- 
 ledge. He invests it with the character of a mystery, 
 and distinguishes between the various grades of initiation,^ 
 probably communicating to his more advanced disciples 
 an esoteric doctrine which is not fully represented in his 
 writings." The leading feature of early Gnosticism was 
 the emphasis which it placed upon knowledge as the 
 central factor in the religious life. As a consequence of 
 ^ Scott, The Apologetic of the New Test. p. 153. - 1 Cor, ii. 1-6. 
 
THE VIRTUES OF THE NEW LIFE 181 
 
 this insistence on knowledge, a distinction was made 
 between " two classes of men — the spiritual, who were 
 capable of the higher wisdom, and the psychical, or lower, 
 natures." Moreover, a contrast was established between 
 the higher super-sensible world and the lower or material, 
 " and redemption consisted in passing from the world of 
 darkness into the world of light/' The practical effect of 
 this separation was a morbid view of the bodily life as a 
 thing to be suppressed, or even to be indulged, according 
 to the status of the spiritual man. Christ, the Logos, 
 who came into the world to manifest God and deliver 
 man, could enter into no real contact with human life. 
 His bodily appearance, his temptations, sufferings, and 
 death were illusory, a kind of allegory or symbol which 
 represented the conflict between the world of darkness 
 and light.^ Though the systematic elaboration of these 
 ideas did not reach a climax till the second century, their 
 dangerous tendency was early suspected. Even in the 
 epistle to the Corinthians it is obvious that Paul is con- 
 troverting the exaggerated estimate which philosophers 
 had put upon wisdom. In the epistle to the Colossians, 
 written towards the close of his life, his opposition to 
 such teaching is still more marked, and in the epistle to 
 Timothy ^ there is a direct allusion to " yvwatg falsely 
 so called." Elsewhere there are general references to 
 " false teachings " which imply that the Gnostic move- 
 ment within the Church had already become sufficiently 
 prominent to call for protest. 
 
 But it was false or inadequate wisdom which Paul 
 disparaged. He had a high regard for true <ro(pia^ and 
 these early chapters in Corinthians are an exposition of 
 it. That which distinguishes Christianity from all past 
 
 ^ Scott, The Apologetic of the New Test. pp. 152, 155 ff. 
 - 1 Tim. vi. 20. 
 
182 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 theories of wisdom is that it presents to men not so 
 much a new truth to be apprehended as a Person to be 
 relied on. Divine wisdom is not therefore on a level 
 with human philosophies, nor is it of similar origin. 
 It is not just one more added to the attempts of man 
 to define truth. Paul is most anxious that he should 
 not be regarded as the expounder of a rival speculative 
 system. It is a Life not a philosophy which he pro- 
 claims, nor is the wisdom he declares derived by the 
 ingenuity of man. It is a disclosure made by God of 
 knowledge imattainable by human endeavour. According 
 to Plato wisdom was the virtue of philosophers alone/ 
 and according to the Gnostics only the initiated could 
 fully understand it. But the wisdom which Paul extolled 
 was for all men. It depended not on exceptional ability 
 to see truth, but upon the spirit which God bestowed 
 upon all who sought Him. It comes from God and is 
 given in and through Christ : " Of God He is made unto 
 you wisdom." 
 
 Eut it is not only intellectual pride and the con- 
 tempt of others which an over-estimate of knowledge 
 engenders that Paul inveighs against. He condemns the 
 practical consequences in the lives of its adherents to 
 which such false doctrine leads. They are " lovers of 
 their own selves, boasters, proud, blasphemous, disobedient 
 to parents, unthankful, unholy." ^ They profess that they 
 know God but in their works they deny Him.^ They 
 forbid to marry, observe strict rules concerning meat and 
 drink, teaching such maxims as "touch not, taste not, 
 handle not."^ Such teaching led to a morbid, if not a 
 vicious view of life. As against such false tendencies 
 Paul laid down the true Christian principle that " every 
 
 ^See Plato, Meno and Phaedo. ^2 Tim. iii. 2. 
 
 3 Titus i. 16. ^Col. ii. 21. 
 
THE VIRTUES OF THE NEW LIFE 183 
 
 creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused if it 
 be received with thanksgiving." ^ Wisdom, then, according 
 to the apostle does not mean intellectual skill in pro- 
 poimding a theory of the world, but the possession of a 
 mind or heart for the right interpretation of the things of 
 God. It is a divine gift which comes from above. Only 
 the spiritual, indeed, can discern the things of the spirit, 
 but spiritual-mindedness is not the prerogative of an 
 intellectual dlite or a specially enlightened clique. " God 
 will have all men to be saved and come to a knowledge 
 of the truth." Christ has died for all. His message there- 
 fore must appeal not to the higher intelligence of the few 
 but to something which is common to all men.^ The 
 apostle's prayer for the Colossians, therefore, is that they 
 may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all 
 spiritual wisdom and imderstanding.^ 
 
 (2) Fortihtde or courage, according to Plato, is neces- 
 sary for a life of morality, and its task is to defend the 
 rational intelligence against the attacks of sensual desires. 
 Valour is a dominant virtue of the ancients, hut it is 
 worthy of note that it is not merely physical courage 
 which Plato extols. What he calls courage does not 
 consist only in a contempt of death and fortitude in 
 danger, but more especially in the maintenance of a right 
 attitude to good and evil.^ 
 
 In writing to Timothy the apostle gives to the virtue 
 of courage its more general sense of bravery — the deter- 
 mination not to be ashamed of bearing testimony, and 
 readiness to suffer hardship for the sake of the Gospel. 
 
 ^ 1 Tim. iv. 4. 
 
 ^Cp. Scott, Apologetic of ike New Testament, p. 169. 
 =*Col. i. 9. 
 
 ■"See Ritter, Ancient Philosophy, vol. ii. p. 410 ; also Plato's Republic, 
 book iv. 
 
184 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 " Por God," he says, " gave us not the spirit of fearfubiess 
 or cowardice (SeiXla), but of power and love and dis- 
 cipline." ^ Though Paul does not expressly commend 
 courage in any other passage, we may gather from the 
 tenor of his own life that it occupied a high place in his 
 esteem. While he made no parade of his sufferings his 
 life was a continual battle for the Gospel. His career as 
 an apostle begins in one supreme act of moral courage, 
 and right on to the end it is his heroism of spirit that 
 strikes us most in his life. Wherever we find him, 
 amidst friends or foes, separating from Silas because of 
 his refusal to take Mark as a fellow-traveller, withstand- 
 ing Peter to the face, preaching the Gospel in the cities 
 of Asia and Greece amid many adversaries, in perils by 
 land and sea, standing before the governor at Caesarea, 
 giving directions upon the deck of the foundering ship 
 on the voyage to Italy, or awaiting his doom in the 
 Mamertime prison at Eome — it is the same brave, heroic, 
 undaunted man we see.^ His courage is none the less 
 that it is not evinced in the warfare of the battlefield, 
 but in suffering for the Gospel's sake. What he himself 
 is he would have others to be. "You are now," he 
 writes to the Philippians, " engaged in the same struggle 
 which you saw in me, and which you hear I am stiU 
 maintaining." ^ He regards life as a battle. It becomes 
 us to quit ourselves as men, to be strong, to put on the 
 whole armour of God. 
 
 (3) Temperance or self-control — which, according to 
 Plato, directs itself to the sensual impulses, and is regarded 
 by him as that quality of the virtuous man which enables 
 him to reduce his desires within proper bounds, guarding 
 them from excess and from defect — is a virtue which 
 
 ^2 Tim. i. 7. ^ Jackson, Expositor^ vol. xi. p. 205. 
 
 3 Phil. i. 27-30. 
 
THE VIRTUES OF THE NEW LIFE 185 
 
 holds an important place in Paul's teaching. Among the 
 fruits of the Spirit it appears at the end of the list as a 
 kind of climax.^ The word used here is not arwc^poovvyi 
 but eyKpareia or self-control, although a-axppoavpij or 
 sobriety is mentioned along with justice and godliness 
 in Titus ii. 12 as making up the threefold requirement 
 of morality. It is one of the qualities required of a 
 bishop (Titus i. 6). It is inculcated by the example of 
 the zealous athlete (1 Cor. ix. 25). In regard to this 
 virtue we may see how the ethical ideas of the apostle 
 differed from the views of contemporary Greek writers. 
 According to the Greek conception the material side of 
 man was not an actual element in virtuous action. It 
 called for suppression, not control. The Christian virtue, 
 on the other hand, does not imply that the physical nature 
 of man is an evil to be crushed or a foe to be conquered, 
 but rather an element which is to be disciplined and 
 brought into proper relation to the whole of life. Though 
 in Galatians v. 23 Paul inculcates temperance in anti- 
 thesis to " drunkenness and revellings,'' which close the 
 list of the " works of the flesh," the word includes much 
 more than the avoidance of strong drink, as it is too 
 often narrowed down to signify in modern times. It 
 covers the whole range of moral discipline, and has to do 
 with every sense and passion of human nature. Temper- 
 ance is the practised mastery of self. It means the 
 control of hand, foot, eye, tongue, temper, tastes, and 
 affections. " He is the temperate man, according to the 
 apostle, who holds himself weU in hand, who meets 
 temptation as a disciplined army, meets the shock of 
 battle, by skill and alertness and temperate courage, 
 baffling the forces that threaten it." ^ This -sdrtue in a 
 Christian is exercised not for himself alone. He knows 
 
 ^ Gal. V. 33. 2 Findlay, Expositor's BibU, Epistle to Galatians, p. 388. 
 
186 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 what great issues hang on his personal faithfulness. But 
 he knows also, even if he be a Paul, that only through 
 self-mastery can he save his own soul alive. " I keep 
 my body under/' says the apostle, " I make it my slave 
 not my master, lest having preached to others I myself 
 should be a castaway." 
 
 (4) Justice in the Pauline use of the term has scarcely 
 the same connotation as with Plato. As used by the 
 Greek philosopher it does not simply mean the virtue 
 of rendering to all their due, but stands rather for 
 the harmonious development of the inner man by means 
 of which each faculty of the soul, without interfering 
 with the others, performs its due functions and thereby 
 produces within him complete and perfect order.^ The 
 place which Plato assigns to justice in the hierarchy of 
 the virtues, Paul gives to love, and when he refers to 
 justice it is in its more limited sense of equity or duty 
 to others. On the whole, however, justice in its ethical, 
 as distinguished from its theological use, is a word not 
 frequently employed by the apostle. It may be regarded 
 as more distinctively an Old Testament requirement. 
 It is not indeed superseded in the New Testament. 
 Christ came not to destroy, but to fulfil, and therefore 
 every Old Testament attribute is taken up and deepened 
 by the Gospel. Justice, as righteousness forms the 
 solid substratum of moral character both in God and 
 man, but mercy lifts it to a higher power. " He that 
 loveth his neighbour hath fulfilled the law." ^ 
 
 II. 
 
 The amiable virtues. If this were all that Paul had 
 to teach with regard to the moral life, the apostle would 
 
 ^ See Plato, Rep. book iv. ^ Rom. xiii. 10. 
 
THE VIRTUES OF THE NEW LIFE 187 
 
 have little claim to originality, and there would be some 
 ground for the statement of Huxley and others, that there 
 was comparatively little difference between the ethical 
 principles of Christianity and those of the best pagan 
 philosophers. But the most superficial reader of the 
 Pauline epistles is at once conscious that the so-called 
 cardinal virtues do not exhaust the apostle's list, nor 
 do they represent those that are most characteristic of 
 his teaching. " It is well," we coidd fancy Paul saying, 
 " to have the pagan virtues, nay, it is indispensable, 
 to be wise and brave, temperate and just, — even the 
 heathen acknowledge as much — but more is demanded 
 of the disciple of Christ. Humility is required not less 
 than courage; love not less than justice; patience as 
 well as temperance ; faith and hope as much as wisdom 
 and knowledge." But these other virtues are not to 
 be added on merely to the pagan virtues, or even 
 incorporated with them. They are the distinctive 
 elements of the Christian character which give a new 
 meaning and value to those which were already in vogue. 
 All virtue, in other words, has a higher worth for the 
 Christian, and even those which obtained in the heathen 
 world are baptized with a new spirit and are clothed 
 with a new beauty as the fruits of faith. It has been 
 truly said that Christianity so profoundly modified the 
 character of the moral conceptions which it took over 
 from the past, that they became largely new creations. 
 The order and proportion of the virtues were changed, 
 "The old moral currency was still kept in circulation, 
 but it was gradually minted anew." ^ Fortitude is still 
 the cool and steady behaviour of a man in the presence 
 of danger, but its range is widened by the inclusion of 
 dangers to the soul as well as the body ; it is the bravery 
 ^Strong, Christian Ethics^ p. 141. 
 
188 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 of the man who dwells in a spiritual world. Temperance 
 is still the control of the physical passions ; but it is 
 also the right placing of our affections and the consecra- 
 tion of our appetites to nobler ends. Justice is still the 
 absence of all self-seeking, the suppression of conflict 
 with the rights of others; but the source of it lies in 
 giving God the love and adoration which are His due. 
 Prudence is still the practical moral sense which chooses 
 the right course of action; but it is the prudence of 
 men who are pilgrims towards a country where the 
 object of their love is to be found.^ 
 
 If we compare the qualities of character which Paul 
 commends with those which were current in the old 
 world, the contrast is startling and significant. While 
 Plato lays stress on the intellectual and heroic features, 
 Paul brings into the foreground what may be called 
 the gentler virtues. Two reasons may have induced 
 the apostle to this preference. Pirst, he may have 
 specially dwelt upon the self-effacing side of character 
 as a protest against the spirit of militarism and worship 
 of physical power, which were prevalent in the ancient 
 world. Though he does not disparage fortitude, as we 
 have seen, yet he would remind his converts that 
 physical courage is not the only excellence, and that 
 indeed heroism may be shown as much by patience 
 and forgiveness, as by retaliation and self-assertion. A 
 second reason probably was that the gentler self- 
 sacrificing virtues more truly express the spirit of Christ. 
 The one element in all these virtues commended by 
 Paul is the element of sacrifice, of self-effacing love — 
 that which is of the very essence of the Gospel — that 
 attribute of God which the Saviour manifested in His 
 death. If we are to learn of Him who was meek and 
 
 ^Strong, Christian Ethics^ p. 141. 
 
THE VIRTUES OF THE NEW LIFE 189 
 
 lowly, then surely the distinguishing mark of our 
 character must be that love which seeketh not its own. 
 
 Eeserving consideration of love till we come to deal 
 with the special Christian graces, there are three promi- 
 nent types of the amiable or self-effacing virtues which 
 the apostle mentions as flowing from it. 
 
 ( 1 ) Humility (raTreivocppoaiji/tj), lowliness of mind. 
 It is the first exercise of love, and next to it the most 
 characteristic grace of the man who has come to know 
 God and himself as a sinner in the light of God's holiness. 
 It is essentially a religious virtue, and betokens a man's 
 attitude to God rather than to his fellow-men. It does 
 not consist in false demerit or meanness. 
 
 To be poor in spirit is not to be poor-spirited. In 
 nothing is the whole temper of Christianity as compared 
 with Greek conceptions of worth more truly disclosed 
 than in the prominence which it gives to this quality. 
 In Greek Philosophy it was regarded as a vice rather 
 than a virtue. It was the magnanimous man, the man 
 of arrogant spirit who was admired. The classical ideal 
 was based on the greatness of man : the Christian 
 on the goodness of God. All supercilious pride and 
 vaunting ambition are laid low in the man who has seen 
 the grace of God in Christ, Contrite, chastened, sub- 
 missive, he forgets himself as he gazes in wonder and 
 adoration on the image of divine love. But humility 
 is not a barren emotion which paralyzes the resolves 
 of the will. There is courage even in humility, and it 
 takes a great man to be modest. Lowliness of self 
 manifests itself in the service of others. Indeed, humility 
 is not so much a separate virtue as a quality which gives 
 tone to the Christian character, and is therefore the 
 common stamp set upon every excellence. Humility, 
 which has its root in faith and love, issues in the 
 
190 THE ETHICS OF ST, PAUL 
 
 possession of peace, which becomes again the ground of 
 all Christian joy.^ The man whom grace has humbled 
 cannot be a dull or peevish man. One with Christ he 
 shares His peace and tastes His joy — a joy which, as 
 Paul himself well knew, earthly sorrow cannot quench. 
 " Sorrowful yet always rejoicing." Thus, with the 
 consciousness of the nothingness of all that a man can be 
 or effect by his own power, Paul combines the elevating 
 sense of what a man is and achieves through Christ. In 
 this we see the unity and uniqueness of Pauline ethics. 
 The virtues merge and shade into each other. Let a man 
 begin with humility, the proper attitude to Grod, and he 
 rises step by step to the full realization of the blessedness 
 of eternal life in Christ. 
 
 (2) Closely allied to humility is meekness, irpavrt}^^ 
 and its sister, long-suffering {/iiaKpodupLta)^ — the attitude 
 of the Christian in the presence of suffering and wrong- 
 doing. With these may be connected contentment 
 (avTdpK€ia\ which makes a man independent of external 
 circumstances, not however to be identified with stoic 
 apathy — "I have learned in whatsoever state I am 
 therein to be content " ; and virofjiovri, patience, which 
 indicates not merely endurance but also perseverance; 
 and e-TneLKeia, which is sometimes translated " clemency," 
 sometimes " moderation," and sometimes " forbearance." 
 " Let your moderation be known unto all men " — which 
 means behave gently, kindly, considerately, making 
 allowances, not insisting on your pound of flesh. 
 
 Just as humility is not poor-spiritedness, so meekness 
 is not tameness nor cringing servility. It is self-suppres- 
 sion in view of the claims of others, and may consist with 
 the highest courage. 
 
 (3) Lastly, we may mention the virtue of forgiveness. 
 
 iQal. V. 23. 
 
THE VIRTUES OF THE NEW LIFE 191 
 
 It is not enough to be humble, or to be meek and 
 patient ; we have a duty to wrongdoers. We must 
 not only bear but forbear, not only forget but forgive. 
 It is not enough to refrain from rendering evil for evil ; 
 we are to follow after that which is good. " Bless them 
 that curse you."^ " Be ye kind one to another, tender- 
 hearted, forgiving each other, even as Gk)d also in Christ 
 forgave you."'^ 
 
 III. 
 
 The Christian graces or "theological virtues." "Now 
 abideth faith, hope, love ; but the greatest of these is love." 
 Some have been content to see in these three graces the 
 summary of Christian excellences. Neander works out 
 the whole ethical system of Paul from these three heads 
 alone.^ Others have made them the triple basis upon 
 which the whole edifice of Paul's theology is built.^ 
 Paith points to God, love to man, and hope to the life 
 beyond.^ Attractive as such generalizations are they are 
 fanciful and defective. These graces cannot be separated 
 from one another and made to represent different 
 divisions of life. Man is not made in water-tight 
 compartments. Nor can he exercise at one time faith, 
 at another love, and at another hope. They are all 
 of a piece. He who has faith has also love, and he 
 who has faith and love is not devoid of hope. We 
 may regard the threefold excellence as at once the 
 root and the fruit of the Christian character — its basis 
 and crown. 
 
 iRom. xii. 20. ^Eph. iv. 32. 
 
 ^Neander, Planting of Christianity, p. 480. ^Ernesti. 
 
 ^*' Faith founded the Church, hope sustained it. I cannot help 
 thinking it is reserved to love to reform it.'* Prothero, Life of Dean 
 Stanley, vol. i. p. 302. 
 
192 THE ETHICS OF ST PAUL 
 
 Love is the first and last word of apostolic Christianity. 
 In the New Testament even faith itself is not more con- 
 stantly used. No other term is so expressive of the 
 spirit of Christ. Even the apostle John, who has been 
 named the apostle of love, does not surpass Paul in his 
 praise of this quality. In the celebrated hymn of love, 
 unparalleled for beauty in all literature, he proclaims 
 the pre-eminence and permanence of this grace. " Now 
 abideth faith, hope, love, but the greatest of these is love." 
 
 Love was practically unknown in the ancient world. 
 epoosj the sensuous instinct or passion, and (piXla, the 
 bond of friendship, did exist. But aydin]^ love in its 
 highest sense, was the discovery and creation of the 
 Gospel. Pre-Christian philosophy exalted the intellect, 
 but left the heart cold and vacant. It was reserved for 
 the followers of Jesus to teach men the meaning of 
 charity and to find in it the law of freedom. 
 
 In the ethics of Paul, as in Christ's own teaching, love 
 is primal and central. It is the virtue in which all the 
 others have their setting. And thus, though the various 
 lists which the apostle gives us may seem wanting ia 
 system and formal connection, they have a deep under- 
 lying unity and coherence. All have this in common, 
 that they spring directly from love, and are manifesta- 
 tions of it. " Love is the bond of perfectness."^ It is 
 the golden thread upon which all the pearls are strung. 
 The several virtues are but facets of one rich and 
 manifold gem. 
 
 Love, says Paul, is indispensable to a true Christian 
 character. Without this no profession of faith, no 
 practice of good deeds has any value in the sight of 
 God. Though I have all other gifts and merits — the 
 knowledge of all mystery, the enthusiasm of ecstatic 
 ^Col. iii. 14. 
 
THE VIRTUES OF THE NEW LIFE 193 
 
 feeling, the sublimest heroism of courage, the most self- 
 denying sacrifice — all are nothing without love. Without 
 it enthusiasm becomes an empty play of feeling, know- 
 ledge a mere intellectual parade, courage a boastful 
 confidence, self-denial a useless asceticism. Love is the 
 fruitful source of all else that is beautiful and noble in 
 life.^ It imbues the entire character, and contains in 
 itself the motive of all Christian conduct. It not only 
 embraces but produces all the other graces. It creates 
 courage. It begets wisdom. It brings forth self-restraint 
 and temperance. It manifests itself in humility, meek- 
 ness, and forgiveness. 
 
 " As every lovely hue is light 
 So every grace is love." 
 
 Love is the enduring virtue. Paul associates with it 
 faith and hope. Indeed, the close connection of these 
 quaUties is so remarkable that it has been suggested 
 that Paul's combination of them may have had its basis 
 in some lost word of Christ Himself.^ Are faith and 
 hope, then, to be regarded as virtues of the same kind 
 ^8 love, only inferior ? We have already seen the place 
 which faith occupies in the teaching of the apostle. It 
 is the formative and appropriating power by which man 
 receives and makes his own the Spirit of Christ. Faith 
 is the practical principle from which is to be deduced 
 the whole Christian life. But it works through love, 
 ■and finds in the activity of love its outlet and exercise. 
 As all the actions of the believer may be traced back to 
 the " work of faith," so likewise they may be referred to 
 
 ^"Show me what thou truly lovest. This love is the root and 
 ■central part of thy being. What thou lovest is what thou livest." 
 ^ichte, Reden. 
 
 Harnack, Texte it UntersuckungeUi vol, v. and vol. xiv. 
 
 N 
 
194 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 the "labour of love." We may say that love is the 
 material, and faith the principle of Christian virtue. 
 Character is formed by faith : it lives in love. The two 
 belong as condition and completion to the same virtue.^ 
 
 And the same may be said of hope. It is a particular 
 form of faith which looks forward to a life that is to be 
 perfectly developed and completed in the future. The 
 man of hope knows in whom he trusts, and he anticipates 
 with assurance the fulfilment of his longings. Christian 
 hope is not the complacence of shallow optimism. It 
 recognizes the reality of evil. It does not conceal from 
 itself the significance of sin in this world, and its awful 
 consequences in the next. But confident in the mercy 
 of God, in spite of the world's trial and sorrow, it does 
 not hesitate to look forward to the gradual realization of 
 the divine purpose and the final triumph of good over 
 evil. Hope is faith turned to the future — a vision 
 inspired and sustained by love. 
 
 The superiority of love is due to the fact that it is 
 the quality which gives their value both to faith and 
 hope. It is the manifestation of the one : it is the 
 inspiration of the other. Faith and hope designate but 
 single phases of our relation to God, and therefore repre- 
 sent but partially the significance of the ethical life. 
 But love is the moral completeness, embracing in its 
 scope our duties both to God and man. Faith is unreal 
 without love ; love a mere sentiment without faith and 
 hope. If Paul is the apostle of faith, he is also the 
 champion of hope; and he is both because he is the 
 messenger of love. The Christian is a man of faith, 
 love and hope.^ He looks upwards, outwards and 
 
 ^Newman Smyth, Christian Ethics, p. 225. 
 
 2 "Love, hope, fear, faith— these make humanity. These are ita 
 sign and note and character." Browning, Paracelsus. 
 
THE VIRTUES OF THE NEW LIFE 195 
 
 onwards. His homon is bounded by neither space nor 
 time; and Christianity is pre-eminently the religion of 
 hope, because it is the religion of love. These virtues 
 have a universal sphere. They embrace all men. From 
 the Pauline point of view there is absolute value attach- 
 ing to every individual. Every man who comes within 
 the range of Christ's sacrifice has a personal worth, and 
 is important enough despite his outward circumstances 
 to have a place in the scheme of redemption. The old 
 barriers of country and caste which separated men in 
 the ancient world are broken down by the faith in God 
 and the hope for man which love inspires. 
 
 Faith, hope, and love are usually styled in contra- 
 distinction to the cardinal, " theological virtues." But if 
 they are to be called virtues at all, it must be in a 
 different sense from what the ancients understood by 
 virtue. These apostolic graces are not innate or consti- 
 tutional elements of the natural man, but states which 
 come into being through a changed moral character. 
 They connect man with God, and with a new spiritual 
 order, in which his life has come to find its place and 
 purpose. They were impossible for a Greek, and had no 
 existence in ancient ethics. They are related to the 
 new ideal which the Gospel has revealed, and obtain 
 their value as elements of character from the fact that 
 they have their object in the great distinctive truth of 
 Christianity — fellowship with God through Christ — a 
 imion which is begun in this life, but only consummated 
 in the life to come. 
 
 These three graces are not merely outward adornments 
 of character, or optional accomplishments added to life. 
 They are, as we have seen, the essential conditions of the 
 Christian man. They constitute his inmost and neces- 
 sary character. They do not, indeed, supersede or render 
 
196 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 the other virtues superfluous. But as we have already 
 observed, they transmute and transfigure them, giving to 
 them at once their value and their coherence. 
 
 Both in this life and that which is to come, faith, 
 hope, and love abide. We cannot conceive of a time 
 when even faith and hope shall cease. They, not less 
 than love, must be abiding elements of the perfect state. 
 But love is pre-eminent in this — that while new objects 
 of trust and desire will come into sight in the widening 
 visions of the eternal life, they shall bring to us no 
 higher or better blessing than love itself. 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
 THE PEOGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 
 
 What has been already said of Paul's conception of faith 
 as the faculty of gradual appropriation in the moral life, 
 might seem to render unnecessary any separate treatment 
 of the subject of this chapter. Faith, as we have seen, 
 is necessary not only at the beginning, but also at each 
 subsequent stage of the Christian career. It is the free 
 act of man, by which he accepts the life of Christ, and 
 also continues to walk in it. It was, however, only in 
 a passing way that this aspect of the new life was 
 touched; and it will be well, not only for the sake of 
 clearness, but also to combat certain false and one-sided 
 inferences that have been drawn from the apostle's 
 teaching, to examine how far the idea of growth and 
 development is recognized by Paul. We shall therefore, 
 in this chapter, consider, first some of the salient passages 
 in which this idea is presented or implied, in order to 
 show in what form the progress of the new life discloses 
 itself, and next we shall speak of the special aids by 
 which, according to the apostle, progress is to be achieved. 
 
 I. 
 
 1 . The idea of growth. In all systems of ethics, both 
 ancient and modern, the evolution of the moral life is a 
 
198 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 fundamental idea. No man is virtuous all at once. The 
 realization of the ideal is not an act, but a process. This 
 is the meaning of Plato's famous figure of the charioteer 
 and his winged horses, one of which is noble and the 
 other of ignoble origin. The noble element or soul is 
 striving continually to mount heavenwards, but the lower 
 element or the body is ever dragging it down to earth. 
 So there is a constant conflict, and only partially and 
 gradually is the ideal life attained. Aristotle, even more 
 explicitly than Plato, represents the moral life as a growth 
 to be achieved through practice, and perfected by habit. 
 The Stoics, indeed, present the only exception to this 
 common agreement among ethical thinkers. They alone 
 refused to make allowance for the weakness of human 
 nature, or to admit of a gradual progress towards virtue. 
 The wise man became wise by sudden conversion, and 
 man was either perfect or the reverse. But as time 
 went on, and as it was seen how rare a phenomenon 
 the wise man was, the later Stoics were led to make 
 concessions, and to allow that, after all, there are various 
 grades of attainment, and that pleasure and pain are 
 not absolutes, but may be steps towards a higher good. 
 Turning to Christianity, it might seem that here also 
 there was no room for progress. Conversion is a com- 
 plete renewal of life, and the man who is regenerated 
 has made an entire break with the past, and has entered 
 upon a state of perfection in which sin is no longer 
 possible. 
 
 There are innumerable passages in the New Testament, 
 particularly in the epistles of St. Paul, in which the dis- 
 tinction between the old and the new life is strongly 
 emphasized, and a decisive transition out of complete 
 darkness into light is implied. Paul says if any man is 
 in Christ he is a new creature : old things are passed 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 199 
 
 away; all things are become new} It is no longer I 
 that live, but Christ that iiveth in me.^ In this passage 
 and others of a like nature the idea is that of a sheer 
 division, a complete revolution of the innermost nature, 
 so that the man who is in Christ, and dominated by the 
 Holy Spirit, is completely lifted out of the realm of 
 weakness, and is no longer subject to the infirmities and 
 imperfections of the natural man. " The law of the 
 spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the 
 law of sin and death." ^ But a closer study of the New 
 Testament modifies this first impression. Not only do 
 we find that change of mind or conversion is required 
 of those who are already within the Church, and have 
 been there for a long time (and such words as " sanctify,'* 
 " renew/* " enlighten," " put on Christ," are employed in 
 a quite similar way, both of a decisive turning-point and 
 of a repeated turning again to the truly "good"), but 
 also the very man who uttered that enthusiastic confes- 
 sion — " old things are passed away " — is also the man 
 who reminds us that he has " not already attained or is 
 already perfect." It might appear that the only way to 
 get over this seemingly irreconcilable contradiction was 
 to deny one or other of the truths, and this is exactly 
 what has been attempted in the history of Christian 
 ethics.* A certain type of perfectionists sees pre- 
 viously to conversion nothing but darkness, and after 
 conversion no real sin. The rationalistic school, on 
 the other hand, does not recognize such a thing as 
 regeneration at all, and regards what is called conversion 
 as only a gradual evolution of the good. But neither of 
 these solutions is in harmony with the general teaching 
 of the New Testament. Our Lord distinctly states that 
 
 ^2 Cor. V. 17. 2 Gal. ii. 20. ^Rom. viii. 2. 
 
 * See Haering, Ethics of Christian Life (Trans.), p. 202. 
 
200 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 a man must be born again : but in the parable of the 
 ripening corn he no less decisively teaches the idea of 
 growth. It must be admitted, as Prof. Bruce points 
 out/ that we do not find in the Pauline epistles a simi- 
 larly clear conception of the law of growth. At the 
 same time it would be a mistake to say that St. Paul 
 held the view that the Christian life springs inta 
 complete maturity and perfection at the very first. 
 While there are passages, as we have seen, which 
 favour that view, there is a greater number implying 
 growth and advancement in holiness. Whatever his 
 ideal might be, Paul was well aware that both in his 
 own case and in that of his converts, the reality fell far 
 short. He frankly admits that he himself had not 
 attained. Constant struggle after the good was neces- 
 sary. His letters to the churches are full of exhortations, 
 encouragements, and reproaches, suggesting the idea that 
 the new life is at first an immature imperfect thing, cap- 
 able of improvement, and involving repeated effort. If 
 he did invest the beginning of the new life with an ideal 
 significance, representing it as a complete break with the 
 past, a dying to sin and a resurrection to a new state, a 
 prolonged experience of human nature taught the apostle 
 to cherish moderate expectations in reference to begin- 
 ners, and to recognize that, whatever it ought to be, the 
 divine life is not, in fact, a complete and finished pro- 
 duct, but a process, a gradual sanctification.^ On the 
 whole, the view which harmonizes with experience and 
 with Paul's teaching is that the change is a qualitative 
 and not a quantitative one. It does not concern the whole 
 compass of the moral life. The inner inclination of the 
 soul is different ; the heart is renewed. There is a new 
 
 ^*S^^ PauVs Conception of Christianity ^ p. 351. 
 2 Bruce, Ibid. p. 352. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 201 
 
 personality, a " new man," which now truly desires " the 
 good," and strives to realize it. But this " new man " is 
 not at the commencement a complete man. He has the 
 incentive and moral power essential to growth, but he 
 must grow from the very first. The seed is implanted, 
 and in one sense the seed contains within it the whole of 
 what it is yet to be. But in another sense the seed can 
 only maintain itself in life by unfolding and expanding 
 the energies which are potentially within its bosom. Not 
 completion but 
 
 " Progress is 
 
 The law of life, man is not man as yet, 
 
 But in completed man begins anew 
 
 A tendency to God." ^ 
 
 The spiritual element can only gradually spread its 
 influence through all the powers and over all the 
 departments of life. Those who are dead to sin are 
 under the obligation to destroy the individual sinful 
 impulses and allow the spiritual life to have free course> 
 and so dominate gradually the body and its members. 
 The more profoundly the changed person recognizes his 
 sinfulness the more matured become his convictions that 
 to live the new life requires daily endeavour and unre- 
 mitting combat with his lower self. 
 
 " Then life is — to wake and not to sleep, 
 
 Rise and not rest, but press 
 From earth's level, where blindly creep 
 
 Things perfected more or less 
 To the heaven's height far and steep." ^ 
 
 2. This idea of gradual sanctification is supported by 
 many passages in the epistles of St. Paul. Although he 
 does not actually employ the words of St. Peter, " grow 
 
 ^Browning, Paracelsus, * Browning, Reverie. 
 
202 THE ETHICS OF ST PAUL 
 
 in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ," he 
 represents the aim of the believer " to grow up unto 
 Christ in all things," ^ and he implies the idea of growth 
 in the expression " rooted in love,"^ where the comparison 
 of the Christian life to a tree planted in a good soil and 
 growing to full maturity is suggested. The same idea 
 is implied in the frequent use of the word Kapiro^? 
 The fruit of the spirit is contrasted with the works of the 
 flesh, and the idea is that both time and care are required 
 for fruit to mature. The comparison of the Church to 
 the human body growing up to the stature of manhood 
 is suggestive of organic growth.^ In the epistle to the 
 Galatians v. 5, we have by implication the notion of 
 growth in so far as the Christian is represented as waiting 
 for the hope of righteousness. In 1 Cor. iii. 2 the 
 apostle describes the members of the Church as vriirioi, 
 babes whom he can only feed with milk and not yet with 
 meat appropriate to a more advanced condition of faith. 
 In 2 Cor. iv. 16 the idea of daily renewal is expressed, 
 "although the outer man perish yet the inner man is 
 renewed day by day." And the same thought is 
 suggested in Col. iii. 9-11. The change from the "old 
 man " to the " new," though radical and complete, is 
 nevertheless a gradual one. The " new man," says the 
 apostle " is being renewed unto knowledge." This is one 
 of the instances ^ where minute accuracy in translation is 
 a clear gain. When we say with the authorised version 
 " is renewed," we speak of a completed act ; but when we 
 say with the revised version " is being renewed," we 
 speak of a continuous process, which is undoubtedly the 
 idea of the apostle. The growth of the " new man " is 
 
 lEphes. iv. 15. ^p^^^i, iii, 18, 
 
 ^Gal. V. 22, Rom. vi. 22. '*Ephes. iv. 11-15. 
 
 ^ Maclaren, Epistle to Goloss. p. 290. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 203 
 
 constant, perhaps slow and difficult to discern. But like 
 all habits and powers in exercise it steadily increases. 
 A similar process works to opposite results in the *' old 
 man," which, as Paul says, in the instructive parallel 
 passage in Ephesians,^ " waxeth corrupt after the lusts 
 of deceit/' The great change which the apostle describes 
 as " a putting off of the old man " and a " putting on of 
 the new," though taking place in the inmost nature 
 wheresoever a heart turns to Christ, needs to be in- 
 wrought into character, and to be wrought out in con- 
 duct. The " old man " dies hard and the sacrifice has 
 to be repeated from hour to hour ; the " new man " has 
 to be put on afresh from day to day. The teaching of 
 the apostle is that the Christian is to advance in holiness 
 and carry out in detail what he has already done in 
 principle. 
 
 The apostle declares that the new man is being renewed 
 " after the image of Him who created him." That is to 
 say, there is a gradual rediscovery of man's lost or dimmed 
 likeness to God. Man is still the image of God, though 
 the image has been sadly darkened and partially effaced 
 by sin. But the image of God, which the new man bears 
 from the beginning in a rudimentary form, is continually 
 imprinting itself more deeply upon him, and he is 
 gradually becoming more and more like to Him in whose 
 image he was originally created. This is the ultimate 
 purpose of God in all His self-revelation. This is the 
 will of God, even your sanctification.^ The same idea of 
 a gradual reproduction of the likeness of Christ is 
 suggested in 2 Cor. iii. 18, where the apostle represents 
 the Christian as undergoing a transformation through 
 the contemplation of the glory of Jesus Christ. "We 
 are being changed into the same image from glory to 
 lEph. iv. 22. ^Thess. iv. 3. 
 
204 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 glory." ^ The present tense implies a process continuaUj 
 going on, while the expression " from glory to glory '* 
 points to a steady gradual advance in likeness. 
 
 But it is in the epistle to the Eomans that we find 
 the conception of growth most clearly indicated. This is 
 all the more remarkable, as it is in this same epistle that 
 the idea of the Christian life as a finished product is also 
 most prominent. Here sanctification is described both 
 negatively and positively as a gradual purification from 
 the corruptions of the flesh, and as a gradual appropria- 
 tion of the fruits of the spirit. In Rom. vi. 14 the 
 apostle says, " Sin shall not reign over you, for ye are not 
 under the law but under grace." This statement implies, 
 if it does not actually express, a doctrine of gradual 
 sanctification.^ Sin, dethroned, may still attempt to 
 regain its lost sovereignty, and may continue to give 
 trouble. In verse 1 9 the apostle writes, " As ye have 
 yielded your members to uncleanness, even so now pre- 
 sent your members servants to righteousness unto sancti- 
 fication"; and in verse 22, "But now being made free 
 from sin and become servants of God, ye have your fruit 
 unto sanctification, and the end eternal life." The 
 Christian is under a new rule, which is gradually to 
 become effective through daily obedience and service. 
 The metaphor of " fruit " suggests gradual ripening in 
 holiness ; while " the end which is life eternal " points to 
 a consummation to be attained after a certain lapse of 
 time. 
 
 In Eomans vii. 24 ff. the struggle between the flesh 
 and the spirit is depicted, while in Eomans viii., from 
 verse 12 onwards, the gradual conquest of grace over sin 
 and the final deliverance from corruption into the liberty 
 
 12 Cor. iii. 18. 
 
 '^ See Bruce, St, Paul's Conception of Christ, p. 356. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 205 
 
 of sonship is described.-^ In Eomans xii. 2 the exhorta- 
 tion occurs, " Be ye not conformed to the world, but be ye 
 transformed in the renewal of the mind, to the effect of 
 your proving what is the will of God." This transforma- 
 tion of character, and this proving of the divine will, 
 imply a progressive achievement in which the life is 
 brought more and more into conformity with the know- 
 ledge of God's will. A process of growth is also implied 
 in chapter v. 3, " We glory in tribulations, knowing that 
 tribulation worketh patience, and patience probation, and 
 probation hope." These experiences are successive stages 
 of the spiritual life. It requires not only time and thought, 
 but also the discipline of suffering to develop the graces 
 of patience, self-reliance, and calm assurance, which are 
 only the possession of the man who has been matured 
 through trial.^ 
 
 In harmony with the other writers of the New Testa- 
 ment, it may thus be seen that St. Paul represents 
 sanctification as the carrying on of the divine life toward 
 perfection. It does not mean perfection reached, but 
 the progress of the Christian man to ever higher stages 
 of holiness. It is, in a word, the gradual Christianising 
 of the Christian. 
 
 3. This work of sanctification is presented by the 
 apostle both on its divine and human side. The inner 
 life is not merely human, it is divine, both as to the origin 
 from which it is derived and the source from which it 
 is perpetually maintained. The distinctiveness of the 
 Christian life consists in the indwelling of the living God 
 
 * See also 2 Cor. vii. 1, Gal. v. 4, 1 Cor. x. 12, where a similar triumph 
 is expressed. 
 
 ^ *' Life is probation, and earth no goal 
 
 But starting point of man, compel him strive, 
 Which means in man as good as reach the goal." 
 
 Browning. 
 
206 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 within the heart as a guiding and purifying spirit. Hence 
 sanctification, or advance in holiness, is frequently spoken 
 of by the apostle as a divine act. God, who hath begun 
 a good work in us in Christ through the Spirit must also 
 finish it. In Col. i. 12 he gives "thanks unto God, who 
 hath made us meet to be partakers of the saints in light " ; 
 and in 2 Thess. ii. 13 he writes, " God hath from the 
 beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification 
 of the spirit " ; and in Col. i. 9 ff. he prays that the 
 Colossians " may be filled with the knowledge of His will 
 in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, that they may 
 walk worthily of the Lord, bearing fruit in every good work, 
 increasing in the knowledge of God, and strengthened 
 with all power according to the light of His glory." 
 
 But the work of God requires also the activity and 
 co-operation of man, and therefore this progressive sanc- 
 tification is frequently presented by the apostle as a 
 human act. It is God indeed " who worketh in us both 
 to will and to do," but we must " work out our own 
 salvation with fear and trembling." ^ From this point of 
 view the ayiaa-fxo^ is regarded as a striving on man's 
 part, partly to maintain and partly to advance the new- 
 given life. 
 
 (1) The effort to maintain or guard the life is charac- 
 terized as " a standing fast in Christ " ; ^ as " a continuing 
 in faith, and love, and holiness";^ as a constant "exercise 
 to maintain a conscience void of offence " ; ^ as a vigilance 
 lest we fall,^ *' so that we walk circumspectly." ^ 
 
 (2) The effort to advance the new life is generally 
 described as an act of self-purification by means of 
 constant self-denying surrender to the will of God.'^ 
 
 iPhil. ii. 12. 2 Phil, iv. 1. n Tim. ii. 18. 
 
 ^Acta xxiv. 16. ^l Cor. x. 12. ^ Eph . v. 15. 
 
 7 2 Cor. vii. 1. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 207 
 
 "Cleansing ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and 
 spirit, and perfecting holiness in the fear of God/* and 
 still more positively as a pressing towards the goal.^ 
 
 In particular this effort is presented by the apostle 
 as a striving for maturity both in knowledge and conduct. 
 {a) As a striving after maturity in knowledge — Paul 
 writes to the Corinthians ^ " Be not children in mind : 
 howbeit in malice be ye babes, but in mind be ye men " ; 
 to the Colossians ^ he writes, " Being fruitful in every 
 good work and increasing in the knowledge of God " ; and 
 to the Ephesians he gives the exhortation, "Walk as 
 children of light, proving what is acceptable unto God . . . 
 be not unwise, but understanding what the will of the 
 Lord is.^ He desires that the Colossians may advance 
 unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, that 
 they may know the mystery of God, even Christ in whom 
 all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden." ^ 
 "Let no man deceive himself," he writes to the 
 Corinthians- " If any man thinketh that he is wise among 
 you in this world, let him become a fool, that he may 
 he unse."^ "Beware," he says to the Colossians "lest 
 any spoil you through his philosophy and vain deceit^ 
 after the traditions of men and not after Christ," ^ and 
 in general he exhorts the Galatians not be entangled 
 again in the yoke of bondage, but to stand fast in the 
 liberty wherewith Christ has made them free.^ 
 
 (&) Striving for maturity of action consists in making 
 the Christ who is the power of God the dominating force 
 of our lives, so that we may walk worthy of the Lord 
 in all well-pleasing. It means striving for " self-mastery," 
 in virtue of which the body is to be made our servant 
 
 iPMl. iii. 14. ^l Cor. xiv. 20. =*CoI. i. 10. 
 
 ^Eph. V. 8, 10, 17. ^Col. ii. 2-3. n Cor. iii. 18. 
 
 'Col. ii. S. 8 (5a]. v. 1. 
 
208 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 (2 Tim. i. 7) ; for " sobriety " in all things (2 Tim. iv. 5); 
 for " chastity," so that a man may not commit fornication, 
 sinning against his own body (1 Cor. vi. 18) ; for self- 
 restraint (Phil. iv. 12); and for courage, humility and 
 perseverance (1 Cor. ix. 16-27; 2 Cor. iv. 7, 18; 
 xl 21-30). 
 
 The maintenance and furtherance of the new life viewed 
 on its human side are more particularly portrayed by 
 the apostle under various well-known figures drawn from 
 the everyday life around him, which doubtless appealed 
 vividly to the imagination of his Gentile converts. He 
 compares the life of the Christian now to a warfare 
 (2 Tim. iv. 7), now to a race (1 Cor. ix. 24), now to a 
 boxing-contest (1 Cor. ix. 26). 
 
 (1) That Paul regarded the Christian life as "a battle 
 and not a hymn" is abundantly clear. The Church 
 claims the baptized as soldiers pledged manfully to wage 
 under Christ's banner a continuous warfare against sin 
 in all its forms, against " the world, the flesh and the 
 devil." Man must not refuse to grapple " the dangers 
 whereby souls grow strong," nor shirk the difficulties 
 by which alone he can learn 
 
 " the use of soldiership. 
 Self-abnegation, freedom from all fear, 
 Loyalty to the life's end." ^ 
 
 The soldier of the Caesars was always on active service, 
 and Paul found readily to his hand in the sleepless 
 activities of a militant empire the fit analogue of Christ's 
 militant church. For the Roman armies were constantly 
 on the march, a fact which involved long endurance of 
 hardship, short rations, and rough quarters. It also 
 included abstention from the affairs of ordinary life, the 
 
 ^ Browning. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 209 
 
 interests of which were incompatible with a soldier's 
 duties. Moreover, the soldier's main pui'pose would be 
 to please his commander by prompt obedience and ready- 
 devotion. These three aspects of the life of a soldier 
 in campaign are reproduced in the Christian warrior. 
 " Suffer hardship " he says to Timothy, " with me as a good 
 soldier of Jesus Christ. Ko soldier on service suffereth 
 himself to be entangled in the affairs of this life : that 
 he may please him who enrolled him as a soldier." ^ 
 
 The soldier's foes are partly "the flesh" (Gal. v. 17); 
 partly " the rulers of darkness," the spiritual hosts of 
 wickedness (Ephes. vi. 12); and partly "the wiles and 
 snares of the devil" (Ephes. vi. 11, 2 Tim. ii. 26). And 
 for this end the Christian must be thoroughly equipped 
 for the battle, "putting on the whole armour of God," 
 which the apostle minutely describes in the sixth chapter 
 of Ephesians. This panoply of God is also called " the 
 armour of light" (Eom. xiii. 12-13), "the armour of 
 righteousness on the right hand and on the left/' this 
 being probably a reference to the Koman practice of 
 carrying a sword in one hand and a shield in the other 
 (2 Corinthians vi. 7). The apostle also speaks of the 
 soldier's reward and victory, for although the sense of 
 duty might be regarded as sufficient to inspire devotion, 
 yet the thought of triumph is an additional stimulus. 
 The Captain of our salvation has conquered His foes and 
 has promised victory to His faithful soldiers. '' In all 
 these things we are more than conquerors through Him 
 that loved us." ^ " Thanks be to God which giveth us the 
 victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." ^ 
 
 (2) Life, again, for St. Paul was a race. It is un- 
 fortunate, as Dean Howson points out, that the word 
 "fight" in our English Bible should suggest rather the 
 
 ^2 Tim. ii. 3-4. ^Ro^, ^^ 37, sj Cor. xv. 57. 
 
 
 
210 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 idea of warfare. But the term used in the original 
 has nothing to do with war. " It denotes an athletic 
 contest, and the particular kind of athletic contest is 
 the foot-race."^ The word employed is used by our 
 Lord — " Strive to enter in by the narrow door " (St. 
 Luke xiii. 24). When Paul says, therefore, to Timothy, 
 " Eight the good fight of faith," what he really means is, 
 "Strive earnestly in the race." Allusion is also made 
 to the activity and progress which are marked features 
 of pedestrian competition. " Ye were running well," he 
 writes to the Galatians, "who did hinder you." And 
 he bids the Philippians so act that his labours on their 
 behalf may not be thrown away ; that he may not run 
 in vain. The definiteness of aim and ardour of purpose 
 which characterized the Greek athlete he holds up for 
 the imitation of his readers. And though the competitive 
 element is absent in the Christian race, there must be 
 equal earnestness of effort. "Know ye not that they 
 that run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize ! 
 even so run that ye may attain." ^ He also sets before 
 the Philippians his own example, — " This one thing I 
 do, forgetting the things which are behind and stretching 
 forward to the things which are before, I press towards 
 the goal for the prize." 
 
 (3) Life once more is likened to a -pugilistic encounter. 
 " So fight I (box, marginal reading), as not beating the 
 air, . . . but I buffet my body and bring it into 
 subjection."^ The fear of failure must have been for 
 the pugilist, and especially for those engaged in the 
 arena in a combat with wild beasts, a constant source 
 of anxiety. Paul sees in this a solemn warning in 
 regard to the Christian life, and especially for those who 
 
 '^ Metaphors of St. Fault p. 140. 
 
 2 1 Cor. ix. 24-26. ^ i Cor. ix. 26-27. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 211 
 
 are actively engaged in spiritual work for others. " The 
 apostle, therefore, resists his carnal nature, systematically 
 attacks it, and perseveres till he has subdued it; and 
 this he does under the salutary fear that while he has 
 been made a blessing to others, he himself should fail 
 to obtain the reward." ^ 
 
 The teaching of Paul thus corresponds to the analogy 
 suggested by the process of evolution in nature. The 
 goal of character is perfection, but it is a perfection 
 which is only gradually realized and is dependent not 
 only upon the influence of the Holy Spirit, but also 
 upon the constant endeavours of man. This gradual 
 assimilation to God, this continual reaching forward 
 to new stages and higher levels of life ; this perpetual 
 advance from glory to glory under the ceaseless operation 
 of the spirit of holiness, is, as has been remarked, the 
 true law of human development, the most vital and 
 characteristic doctrine of Christian ethics ^ — the truth, 
 
 . . . That man was made to grow, not stop : 
 That help he needed once and needs no more, 
 Having grown but an inch by, is withdrawn : 
 For he hath new needs and new helps to these. 
 This imports solely, men should mount on each 
 New height on view : the help whereby he mounts, 
 The ladder-rung his foot hath left, may fall 
 Since all things suffer change but God the Truth.^ 
 
 II. 
 
 Aids to the culture of the moral life. The part of our 
 subject which we have just considered, would be incom- 
 plete without some reference to the helps or means by 
 which the new life is to be nourished and advanced. 
 
 ^Howson, Metaphors of St. Paul, p. 164. 
 
 ^Ottley, Christian Ideas and Ideals, p. 233. ^Browning. 
 
212 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 These, according to Paul, are of two kinds — divine 
 and human; — the disciplinary and providential acts of 
 God which rightly interpreted and used by man conduce 
 to moral growth, and the more personal helps, some- 
 times called " means of grace," which the Christian may 
 employ for the culture and nourishment of the spiritual 
 life. 
 
 1. Of the first — the disciplinary and providential 
 experience — much is made in all systems of practical 
 ethics, and it would not be difficult to deduce a doctrine 
 of divine providence from the epistles of Paul. At 
 the same time it must be acknowledged that the apostle 
 has nowhere elaborated a special theory of disciplinary 
 influence, and it is only from casual references that 
 the details as to the salutary effects of life's experiences 
 can be gathered. The apostle gives no countenance to 
 that withdrawal from the world which came into vogue 
 with a later age. The general trend of his teaching is 
 in harmony with Christ's prayer for His disciples that 
 they should not be taken out of the world but kept 
 from its evil.^ " The grace of God hath appeared," he 
 writes to Titus, " disciplining us to live soberly, 
 righteously, and godly in the present world." Two false 
 attitudes may be taken to the world ; that of worldliness, 
 in which the individual yields to its solicitation's; and 
 that of asceticism, in which the individual flees from 
 its snares. The attitude which the apostle enjoins is 
 that of sobriety in regard to oneself, righteousness in 
 relation to others, and godliness in relation to God. 
 His maxim is that the Christian is to " use the world," 
 but not to abuse it, employing its conditions, relationships 
 and trials as the materials out of which he may build 
 up a sober, righteous, and godly character. The life of 
 
 'John xviii. 15. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 213 
 
 trial is part of the divine discipline. Only in the hard 
 ways of experience can holiness be won. Under the 
 means of sanctification are included all the various life 
 of man — the relations which bind human beings into 
 families and other social groups; the joys and sorrows, 
 the temptations and victories, the successes and failures, 
 and all the successive changes that mould the destinies 
 of man on his journey through the world. The entire 
 scope of human experience is a school for the training 
 of character. Life is the field of battle that it may 
 become the field of victory. 
 
 There are passages in the epistles, as, for example, 
 2 Cor. iv. 8-18, in which the apostle seems to regard 
 the disciplinary experiences of life as a kind of necessary 
 evil to be endured or submitted to, and which if borne 
 in the right spirit will bring their appropriate compensa- 
 tions in the way of future consolation or blessing. " Our 
 light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us 
 a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." But 
 it would be a mistake to assume that such a negative 
 attitude to trial was the only one commended by the 
 apostle. He lays emphasis rather upon the positive 
 character of all the events of life. Everything that 
 befalls, be it joy or sorrow, is to be welcomed as a direct 
 gift of God, and is to be recognized by the Christian as 
 an actual factor in his spiritual development, 
 
 " Machinery just meant 
 To give thy soul its bent. 
 Try thee and turn thee forth, sufl&ciently impressed." 
 
 We are too apt to assume that only a portion of our life 
 comes from God with a direct commission to bless. 
 What is obviously pleasant and profitable we recognize 
 as the gift of God; but the rest, however God may 
 
214 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 subsequently avert its injury or turn it to our good, we 
 do not accept as a minister of grace.^ We are slow to 
 
 recognize that 
 
 " In the eye of God 
 Pain may have purpose and be justified : 
 Man's sense avails to only see, in pain, 
 A hateful chance no man but would avert 
 Or, failing, needs must pity."^ 
 
 The attitude which Paul bids his brethren take to the 
 so-called ills of life is a much more positive one. Chris- 
 tians are not merely to stand on the defensive towards 
 life's afflictions, to pray that they may be saved from 
 them, or even trust they may be enabled to endure them 
 without repining. Rather are they to welcome and 
 embrace them as offering a good which they could ill 
 afford to lose, 'No element of life need be wasted or 
 regarded as barren of inspiration and enrichment. " "We 
 know/' says the apostle, in words of ringing triumph, 
 *' that all things work together for good to them that love 
 God." ^ " In everything give thanks," for every experience 
 is a token and also a means of blessing. All things are 
 working, not perhaps for immediate happiness, but for 
 the highest profit. Love to God transmutes everything 
 into gold, and there is nothing in a good man's life which 
 does not enrich his inmost nature and conduce to the 
 growth of his character. 
 
 The means of discipline are as manifold as the in- 
 dividuals who are exercised by them, and to enumerate 
 the various influences which God uses in any particular 
 case for the furtherance of the spiritual life would be an 
 impossible task. It will suffice to mention three types of 
 
 ^ See some valuable remarks in The Christian Method of Ethics^ by H, 
 AV. Clark, p. 205 ff. 
 
 '^Browning. ^Rom, viii. 28. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 215 
 
 experience which, when rightly accepted and used, tend 
 to the development of human character. 
 
 ( 1 ) Temptation. While temptation, as the apostle 
 James says, may not come from God,^ it is nevertheless 
 an instrimient in God's hands and wholly under His 
 control for the discipline of life. It is not permitted to 
 exceed in severity what God in His perfect wisdom sees 
 to he necessary. It never makes sin inevitable. There 
 will always be a way of escape.^ As long as we continue 
 in life we shall be subjected to the pressure of evil. 
 But, says the apostle, we are not under its dominion, nor 
 is it ever necessary to yield to temptation. So far from 
 it being true that a Christian ought not to feel the 
 pressure of evil, the fact is that only a Christian can feel 
 it in its intensity. It is not the guilty but the pure who 
 are most haunted with a sense of sin, and none is so 
 ready to burst into confession as he who has apparently 
 least to confess.^ The seventh chapter of Eomans lays 
 stress upon this phase of experience. To test and 
 confirm the Christian's standing in Christ, temptation is 
 ordained, used and measured by God. Progress in the 
 moral Hfe consists in combatting and overcoming sin. 
 Without such conflict character would be ineffective and 
 nerveless. The men who most escape it, " who most 
 completely realize the false elysium of an easy life ; " 
 whose lot is undisturbed by danger and unvisited by 
 temptation ; are rarely those who penetrate most deeply 
 to the moral significance of Life and are alive to its noblest 
 affections. Not only does the "new creature" first 
 emerge from the throes of his birth-struggle with evil, 
 but the immortal ego grows by continual striving with 
 those darker tendencies of his nature, which are the test 
 
 1 St. James, i. 13. = 1 Cor. x. 13. 
 
 ^Martineau, Hours of Thought^ vol. i. p. 198. 
 
216 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 and measure of his manhood. Warfare is the perpetual 
 as it is the earliest necessity of the higher nature. The 
 Spirit depends for manifestation upon the interaction 
 of opposites. The " new man " cannot develop his 
 inherent greatness without the resisting agency of the 
 carnal mind. "The flesh lusteth against the spirit/' 
 The believer never gets entirely rid of his foe. As long 
 as life lasts the essence of the carnal mind persists, if a 
 man is to work out his destiny amid terrestrial conditions. 
 It is through the conflict of contending forces that the 
 Christian manhood is evolved.^ 
 
 " "Why comes temptation but for man to meet 
 And master and make crouch beneath his feet 
 And so be pedestalled in triumph ? " ^ 
 
 (2) Suffering, The New Testament view of suffering 
 is that it is a divine appointment, an instrument of God 
 for the chastening and developing of man. Both in the 
 G-ospels and in the apostolic writings this idea is pro- 
 minent. It is not, of course, original to Christianity. 
 It occurs in most religions in which the personality of 
 the deity is acknowledged. It is a favourite thought in 
 the Old Testament. It is prevalent in later Stoicism; 
 and among New Testament writers, St. Peter and the 
 unknown author of the epistle to the Hebrews dwell most 
 frequently upon it. Not only does suffering test and 
 purify character (1 Peter i. 6-7), it also fits for service, 
 making even the Captain of our Salvation perfect (Heb. 
 ii. 10, V, 8). The whole doctrine of suffering for the 
 Christian is condensed in our Lord's saying, " The Son of 
 Man must suffer many things." ..." If any man would 
 
 ^See C. E. Woods, The, Gospel of Bightness, p. 27, a work rich in 
 suggestion. 
 
 2 Browning, Ming and Booh 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 217 
 
 come after me let him deny himself and take up his 
 cross daily and follow me. Tor whosoever would save 
 his life shall lose it ; but whosoever shall lose his life for 
 my sake shall save it." ^ The apostle Paul recognizes 
 the value of suffering in his own experience. He came 
 to see that 
 
 " This is His will who hath endured, and only 
 Sendeth the promise where He sends the pain." ^ 
 
 The thorn in the flesh, whatever it was, was not merely 
 a corrective of spiritual pride,^ but a means of contribut- 
 ing to the strength and efficiency of his Christian life 
 and ministry. "Most gladly, therefore, will I rather 
 glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may 
 rest upon me. Wherefore I take pleasure in weaknesses, 
 in injuries, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for 
 Christ's sake : for when I am weak then am I strong." 
 Keadiness to suffer pain or loss may become the measure 
 of devotion to Christ and the condition of growth in the 
 understanding and appreciation of His work. " I count 
 all things to be loss for the excellency of the knowledge 
 of Jesus Christ my Lord ; for whom I have suffered the 
 loss of all things, and do count them but dung that I 
 may win Christ." ^ It is, further, the condition of closer 
 union with Christ and larger possession of spiritual 
 power. " Heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ ; if 
 so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also 
 glorified with Him." ^ The epistle to the Colossians is 
 generally lacking in the personal references which we 
 find in another of the Pauline epistles of the captivity, 
 that to the Philippians ; but we find in that letter one 
 wonderful passage which sets the apostle's own sufferings 
 
 ^Luke ix. 22 £f. 2]v[yers, St. Paul. ^2 Cor. xii. 7-10, 
 
 *Phil. iii. 7-8. ^Rom. viii. 17 ; 2 Cor. i. 7 ; 2 Tim. ii. 12. 
 
218 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 for the Colossian Church in a peculiarly significant 
 aspect. He says, " Now I rejoice in my sufferings for 
 your sakes, and fill up on my part that which is lacking 
 of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for His body's 
 sake, which is the Church."^ Without entering upon 
 the various explanations which have been offered of this 
 obscure passage, it is obvious that two ideas at least 
 seem to be implied. The first is that Christ truly par- 
 ticipates in the sufferings His people bear for Him. The 
 Head feels the pangs of all its members, so that it may 
 be said that the pains and sorrows of the Redeemer's 
 followers to the end of time are one great whole. Never 
 are the disciples so near their Master in character and 
 sympathy as when they are actually bearing His burden. 
 From this follows the second thought, that the influence 
 of sorrow is not confined to the personality of the sufferer. 
 The sufferings borne in the flesh are for the " body's 
 sake," the Church, so that every trial rightly borne is 
 fruitful in blessing not only to him who endures it, but 
 to the whole community of believers who are knit 
 together in Christ. Paul thus recognizes the unifying 
 character and vicarious aspect of Christian suffering, and 
 for this reason he rejoices in his trials, that they are not 
 only a means of enriching his own life, but a channel of 
 blessing to others. 
 
 (3) Work. Labour in the heathen world was regarded 
 as a base thing, fit only for slaves. The Jews alone 
 among ancient peoples attached no stigma to labour, but 
 on the contrary recognized it as an honourable thing. 
 According to Hebrew law every Jewish child must learn 
 a trade, and we know that Jesus followed His father's 
 craft and was known as the carpenter's son.^ St. Paul 
 
 iCol. i. 24-27. 
 
 '^ See Ps. civ. 23 ; also Education of Christy by Sir William Ramsay, p. 66. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 219 
 
 did not think it derogatory to imitate his Master in this 
 respect and to work with his hands for his own support. 
 He did not wish to be a burden on the Christian 
 community, and though he might have claimed its aid, 
 he took care to make himself independent.^ He mentions 
 with approbation several of his co-labourers in the Gospel 
 who were engaged in manual occupation. He expressly 
 denounces idleness and sloth. There was an unmistakable 
 disposition on the part of the converts to the new faith 
 to break with the existing rules of life. A spirit of 
 unrest and impatience had arisen in some quarters in view 
 of the near approach of the end of the world and the 
 coming of Christ. Thus in Thessalonica there appeared 
 among the brethren a tendency to indolence and apathy. 
 Men, impelled by unrest, abandoned work and ceased to 
 attend to their domestic and civic duties, thus bringing 
 the faith into disrepute among their fellow-citizens. 
 Paul found it necessary to enjoin them to make it a 
 point of honour to live quietly, to attend to their own 
 business and to do their daily work, so that they might 
 lead an honourable and independent life in their dealings 
 with their neighbours.^ " Even as we charged you that 
 ye may walk honestly towards them that are without, 
 and that ye may have need of nothing."' In the 
 second epistle he alludes to the same matter, laying 
 down the rule "that if any will not work neither let 
 him eat."^ 
 
 So far from regarding work as a hindrance to the 
 life of faith the apostle obviously sees in it not only 
 a means of promoting the common virtues of honesty, 
 fidelity, perseverance and honourable independence, but 
 
 1 2 Thess. iii. 8. 
 
 ^Weizsacker, The Apostolic Age, vol. ii. p. 366. 
 
 M These, iv. 11-12. ^ 2 Thess. iii. 10. 
 
220 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 also an instrument by which God fits his children for 
 higher service.^ 
 
 2. But besides these disciplinary influences, there are 
 others of a more 'personal kind, more within the control 
 of the individual, which the apostle commends for the 
 nourishment and advancement of the spiritual life. As 
 these, however, have more to do with the strictly reHgious 
 than the moral character, and may be regarded as aids 
 to piety rather than to ethical progress, we shall do little 
 more than state them. 
 
 Of this class of helps there are two sub-divisions, 
 which may be styled objective and subjective aids.^ The 
 objective include the Word of God, the Church, and the 
 Sacraments : the subjective, self-examination, watchfulness 
 and prayer. 
 
 First, of the objective, we may note (1) The Word of 
 God — as the revealed truth of God contained in the 
 Scriptures of the Old Testament,^ ra ikpa ypaij.fj.ara ; 
 and in Christ's own word,^ o \6y09 tov y^pca-Tov — was 
 highly valued by the apostle as a means of instruction 
 and sanctification. The Word of God, not the mere letter 
 but the spirit (2 Cor. iii. 6) as the revealer of the law, 
 not only convicts of sin and leads to Christ, but also 
 powerfully promotes the growth and fruitfulness of the 
 spiritual life.^ The apostle emphatically commends the 
 use of the Scriptures, which he says to Timothy are able 
 to make wise unto salvation^ through faith which is 
 in Christ Jesus. " For every Scripture inspired of God 
 is also profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, 
 for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God 
 
 i2TiTn. ii. 15-21. 
 
 ^ See Ernesti, Die Ethik des Apostel Pavlus, p. 56. 
 
 »2 Tim. iii. 15. -^Col. iii. 16. ^Col. i. 3-6. 
 
 6 2 Tim. iii. 15. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 221 
 
 may be completely furnished unto every good work." 
 Faith is awakened when the "Word is preached,^ and it is 
 owing to the high estimate he put upon the " Word " that 
 Paul regards himself and his brother apostles as 
 ambassadors of reconciliation. Believers are commended 
 not only to let the word of Christ dwell in them in all 
 wisdom,^ but to publish it abroad as glad tidings of good 
 things.^ 
 
 (2) The Church, as the Christian organism in which 
 the individual believer finds his place of blessing and 
 service, is according to Paul another effective instrument 
 for stimulating the Christian life. The Church is the 
 body of Christ, therefore Christ is the spirit of the 
 Church. As yet no need had arisen to distinguish between 
 the visible and invisible Church. Paul looked upon the 
 bright side of congregational life and trusted that the 
 evils which appear from time to time would disappear 
 through the healthy piety of the better element. The 
 Christian community in each place awakened his 
 tenderest affection and most anxious solicitude. He 
 knew the history of every congregation, and he was 
 acquainted with the leading spirits in each locality. 
 The Church was the home of piety, the nursery of the 
 Christian graces and the centre of fellowship and service. 
 He found among the individual members his most 
 trusty allies, and in writing to them it was his habit to 
 introduce what he had to say to them by words of 
 praise and recognition. The rivalry of love, the readi- 
 ness for sacrifice, the spirit of fellowship and co-operation, 
 the glowing hope for the future and the enthusiastic 
 eagerness to suffer for Jesus' sake, were features which, 
 in spite of some things which were disappointing, he de- 
 lighted to acknowledge and commend as elements which 
 
 iRom. X. 8-15. 2 Col. iii. 16. sroi^i, ^^ X5. 
 
222 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 contributed to the growth and efficiency of individual 
 believers as well as to the progress of Christianity in 
 the world. 
 
 (3) The Sacraments. Of these laptism more par- 
 ticularly marks the entrance upon the new life. Valued 
 at first simply as a sign of membership, the rite seems 
 ultimately to have come to be regarded in the Christian 
 Church as a condition of salvation as well. Paul regarded 
 it as a symbol of purifying grace, but in the record of his 
 missionary labours it is not prominent. 
 
 In the epistle to the Galatians, where Paul elaborates 
 the idea of the Christian life as a dying and rising again 
 with Christ, he makes no mention of baptism, though 
 we might naturally have expected him to have seen in 
 the rite a symbolic representation of Christ's cleansing 
 and transforming power. It is only in the epistle to 
 Eomans that the apostle employs sacramental language 
 in this connection.^ Baptism symbolizes the great 
 mystery of regeneration. The baptized convert is to 
 feel that he steps forth from the water a different 
 person to what he was when he entered it. In writing 
 to Titus he distinctly connects the washing of re- 
 generation with the renewing of the Holy Ghost, and in 
 1 Cor. xii. 12 he seems to indicate that the remembrance 
 of the baptismal rite acts as a constant incentive and 
 encouragement to the Christian to be faithful to the vows 
 he has made. 
 
 The Lord's Supper is distinctly set forth by the 
 apostle as a help to the spiritual life. The classical 
 passage is that contained in the eleventh chap, of 1 Cor., 
 where the partaking of the bread and wine is not merely 
 set forth as an act of remembrance of Christ's death, 
 but as a means of communion with the Kisen Lord 
 
 ^ See Wernle, Beginnings of Christianity ^ vol. i. p. 274. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 223 
 
 and actual participation in His divine life. There can 
 be no doubt that Paul attached a very sacred significance 
 to the Lord's Supper and saw in it an emblem of the 
 mystery of Christ's relation to man. Both elements had 
 for him a beautiful appropriateness. The bread he 
 seemed to regard more especially as the symbol of 
 Christ's presence in the Church, while the wine was the 
 emblem of His death by which He had become the new 
 Paschal Sacrifice. Thus the whole mystery was for 
 Paul and the early Church a solemn ordinance and 
 holy channel of grace. In it Christ came visibly near, 
 and His incarnation, death and present life in a very real 
 sense were brought into closest touch with the believers. 
 But Paul was no sacramentarian as we now understand 
 the term. He could not indeed feel the acuteness of the 
 problem as it has been presented though the collision 
 of the Catholic and Protestant theories of later times. 
 Helpful, nay indispensable to the full realization of the 
 Christian's privileges as Paul believes the sacraments, 
 especially the Lord's Supper, to be, they are but subor- 
 dinate means of grace. When the Corinthian Church 
 threatened to lapse into superstitious regard for ex- 
 ternals he warns them very earnestly. Sacraments, he 
 says, do not save a man from the judgment of wrath 
 which God has appointed to the sinner. Wherefore 
 let him that thinketh he standeth — that is, whosoever 
 thinks that through the sacraments he possesses eternal 
 life — take heed lest he fall. "Ye cannot," he says, 
 "drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of devils."^ 
 And he very clearly intimates to the Galatians that 
 no mere rite or sacrament can save of itself; neither 
 circumcision nor uncircumcision availeth anything, but 
 faith working by love.^ 
 
 UCor. X. 1-21. 2 Gal. v. 
 
224 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Secondly, of the subjective aids we may mention (1) 
 Self-examination. Writing to the Corinthians Paul says, 
 " Try your own selves whether ye be in the faith. 
 Prove your own selves " ; and to the Galatians, " Let each 
 prove his own work," so that each may not only know 
 how he stands, but be able to correct his faults and take 
 means of improving his position. (2) Watchfulness {ypyiyo- 
 pouvreg, Col. iv. 2) is connected with prayer and thanks- 
 giving. Everything that befalls the believer exerts some 
 kind of influence upon him. He must therefore carefully 
 guard all the avenues of the soul, so that he may not 
 merely repel evil, but actually transmute it into means of 
 strength and victory.^ 
 
 (3) Prayer, whether consisting of words or "groanings 
 that cannot be uttered," maintains the heart in the filial 
 attitude, delivers it from fear and fills it with the spirit 
 of God.2 By lifting up the soul to God, the child grows 
 into divine fellowship and becomes receptive of his 
 heavenly Father's inward working. Praying is thus 
 represented as one of the most direct of all aids to the 
 spiritual life, both because it is the spontaneous outgoing 
 of the heart to God, and because it prepares the way for 
 the Holy Spirit to communicate His gifts to the believer. 
 For Paul there is no more characteristic feature of the 
 Christian life. It is the joyous atmosphere in which the 
 apostle himself lives. Nowhere does this strong and 
 loving personality stand forth more clearly revealed than 
 in his prayers. He begins and ends nearly every letter 
 with a petition, and everywhere his requests are united 
 with joy and thanksgiving. " Eejoice always, pray with- 
 out ceasing, in everything give thanks," — this, he says, 
 is God's will as made known in Jesus Christ. Prayerful 
 trust and joy are the notes of the Christian life as 
 n Thess. v. 8. =Gal. iv. 6. 
 
PROGRESSIVENESS OF THE NEW LIFE 225 
 
 Paul understood it. Praise is the complement of prayer. 
 The grateful heart finds life transfigured. It discerns 
 everywhere tokens of a gracious providence, 
 
 "Making the springs of time and sense 
 Sweet with eternal good." 
 
 The spirit of thanksgiving checks impatience and 
 despondency : it is, as St. Bernard says, " the return of 
 the heart to God in perpetual benediction." ^ Sometimes, 
 indeed, Paul prays for temporal blessings,^ but his chief 
 care is for the growth of his people in Christian faith 
 and love, and he has given expression to this desire 
 in an utterance of comprehensive scope and tender 
 regard — " This I pray, that your love may abound yet 
 more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that 
 ye may approve things that are excellent : that ye may 
 be sincere and void of offence unto the day of Christ : 
 being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are 
 through Jesus Christ unto the glory and praise of God." 
 
 From all this we may see that St. Paul was no 
 perfectionist. 
 
 " Let no man think that sudden in a minute 
 All is accomplished and the work is done : — 
 
 Though with thiue earliest dawn thou shouldst begin it 
 Scarce were it ended on thy setting sun." ^ 
 
 In the life we live here in the flesh goodness must 
 perforce be a gradual attainment. The balance and 
 rightness of life are the final result of a long conflict of 
 opposites. Flesh and spirit, sin and grace, law and love, 
 the " old man " ** and the new " are in continual strife, 
 
 ^ Quoted by Ottley, Christian Ideas and Ideals, p. 107. 
 
 2 1 Thess. iii. 9 ; 2 Cor. i. 10 ; 1 Thess. i. 2. 
 
 3 Myers, Saint Paul. 
 
 P 
 
226 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 and the higher order of life is gained not by a sup- 
 pression of the lower, but by a gradual transformation. 
 The natural is the basis of the spiritual, and the 
 material out of which the new life is being slowly built 
 up. Temptations within and without do not cease to 
 vex the Christian. " Es irrt der Mensch so lang er 
 strebt.*' 
 
 The apostle Paul is no theorist clinging to a purely 
 ideal doctrine of redemption, l^or is he a fanatic ready 
 to shut his eyes to the uncomfortable facts of this 
 strenuous and difficult life. The churches in Corinth, 
 Galatia and Eome were far from perfect. Paul sought 
 to believe the best concerning his converts, viewing them 
 sub specie aeternitatis, and in the light of all the 
 glorious possibilities of a redeemed soul; yet he had 
 no illusions as to the present imperfect conditions of men 
 and churches. When he hears of sin he calls it by its 
 plain name. And he attempts neither to hush up un- 
 savoury happenings nor minimize their serious signi- 
 ficance. His motto for himself and others is, " speaking 
 the truth in love." Occasionally, indeed, the failure of 
 the few seems to darken unduly his picture of the 
 Christian society. Yet so great was his sense of the 
 nearness and reality of the unseen forces which shape 
 men's lives, that the effect is never really depressing. 
 He never loses courage nor abates by one iota his 
 splendid faith in the power of Christ. 
 
PART III 
 DUTIES AND SPHERES 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 
 DUTIES IN KELATION TO SELF 
 
 So far we have been dealing with the more general 
 ethical ideal of St. Paul, and have been concerned chiefly 
 with the indwelling motive-power, the inner impulse and 
 movement from which Christian morality springs. We 
 have now to consider how the virtues of the Pauline 
 ideal issue in their corresponding duties and cover the 
 whole field of man's life. 
 
 The whole subject of the relation of virtues and duties 
 is one of the vexed questions of ethics. Neither term 
 is, strictly speaking, a New Testament term at all. The 
 word " virtue," as we have seen, is seldom used by Paul, 
 and the word " duty," which is borrowed from philosophy 
 and was prominent in Stoicism, inadequately describes 
 both on the side of its obligation and its joy, the service 
 which the Christian is pledged to offer to Christ. Three 
 stages may be discerned in the ethical development of 
 the world — that of " pleasure for pleasure's sake," that of 
 " duty for duty's sake,'' and that of " love for love's sake." 
 The Christian belongs, at least ideally, to the last stage, 
 in which the two moments of pleasure and duty are 
 united in a higher synthesis of love. The Christian, for 
 love's sake, will do more than is in duty's bonds. And 
 his joy in the doing of it will be his assurance that he is 
 
230 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 in the way of right. Love fulfils the finer spirit and 
 essence of the law and finds the " commandments " not 
 grievous. It is this ultimate unity of duty and inclina- 
 tion achieved by love of which Wordsworth sings so 
 beautifully : 
 
 " Serene will be our days and bright, 
 And happy will our nature be, 
 When love is an unerring light, 
 And joy its own security." ^ 
 
 Virtues and duties are not to be strictly distinguished. 
 " The doctrine of duties and the doctrine of virtues," says 
 Paulsen, "are different modes of presenting the same 
 subject-matter." ^ Virtue is the quality of character 
 which fits for the discharge of duty, and is therefore not 
 opposed to duty, save as good character is in general 
 opposed to good conduct in general.^ The performance 
 of a duty has moral quality only in so far as it is the 
 expression of a virtue ; and, on the other hand, virtue 
 only lives in the performance of duty. Virtues are 
 graces, ideal goods ; duties are acts or efforts which seek 
 to realize virtues. Duties are based on the nature of the 
 self. What I can do is at once the measure and obliga- 
 tion of what I ought to do. Perhaps the simplest way 
 of looking at the whole matter is to regard the relation 
 between virtue and duty as that of universal to particular. 
 Duty, though a particular act in so far as it is a 
 relation to station and circumstances, has a universal 
 element. Each particular duty contains in itself the 
 principle of all duty, and must flow directly from one 
 supreme motive. It follows that since morality is never 
 mechanical obedience to a fixed code of rules, particular 
 duties can neither be exactly measured nor exhaustively 
 
 ^ Ode to Duty. 2 Ethics, bk. iii, chap. i. 
 
 ^Muirhead, Elements of Ethics , p. 177. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 231 
 
 detailed. Distinctions between " determinate and in- 
 determinate duties," or " duties of perfect and imperfect 
 obligation," are, as Kant suggests, a contradiction in 
 terms. All duty which is duty at all is a bounden 
 duty. It is as much a duty to be charitable and for- 
 giving as to pay one's debts. Thus all questions which 
 have so largely engaged moralists as to the sphere of 
 the permissible, the distinction between the works of 
 supererogation and the minimum of duty, and even those 
 which relate to the conflict of duties, seem idle and 
 delusive. There is no part of life which is colourless. 
 A Christian can really do no more than his duty. The 
 law of Christ is sovereign over every department of life ; 
 and that which we cannot justify to our consciences, that 
 which does not contribute to the development of our 
 highest personality, is morally indefensible. Of course 
 this does not mean that no difficulties will arise in the 
 path of duty, and that the Christian possesses a clean-cut, 
 ready-made rule which he can apply in every case. It 
 is often a difficult task to determine what we ought to 
 do. But " difficulties rightly encoxmtered educate the 
 mind," and he who is resolved always to be true to the 
 highest he sees, despite consequences, may make mistakes, 
 but he is not unvirtuous ; he may be on the wrong side, 
 but he is never on the side of wrong. St. Paul has 
 expressly recognized and adopted as the motto of the 
 man who is free from the law, "all things are lawful,"^ 
 and has given the principle the most extensive applica- 
 tion when he says " all things are yours." ^ This he 
 could do, because he wholly and completely set aside the 
 notion of the indifference of action. The Christian is at 
 every moment completely free from every external 
 commandment, but only for the reason that at every 
 
 1 1 Cor. vi. 12. 2 1 Cor. Hi. 22. 
 
232 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 moment he is determined by and bound to duty by his 
 devotion to the perfect will of God, which has become a 
 part of his nature. He does all, without exception, in 
 the name of the Lord Jesus, to the glory of God the 
 Father.^ 
 
 Though, for the reason already stated, most divisions 
 of duties that have been suggested are open to some 
 objection, probably the scheme most serviceable to us in 
 analyzing the various precepts of the apostle will be that 
 which divides duties into personal, social and religious, 
 duties in relation to self, duties in relation to others, and 
 duties in relation to God, as the supreme end of being. 
 It must be remembered, however, that this is scarcely a 
 logical division. Moral obligations are intricately inter- 
 woven in the web of life. As all virtues are really 
 manifestations of one, the sovereign virtue of love, so all 
 duties are but particular aspects of the one supreme 
 obligation of devotion to God. Since all duties are, in 
 the last analysis, religious, Kant and other moralists 
 have objected to the admission into ethics of a special 
 class of duties towards God. Others have objected to 
 the distinction of duties in relation to self because we 
 cannot isolate moral qualities from moral conditions, nor 
 can we conceive of the realization of any individual 
 character apart from the conception of the society in 
 which it has its place and exercise. As Green pro- 
 foundly remarks, " no individual can make a conscience 
 for himself. He always needs a society to make it for 
 him." ^ " Duty is nothing else than the harmony in the 
 recognition of God's will — a harmony of our own true 
 good with the true good of others." ^ 
 
 iCol. iii. 17. 
 
 ^Prolegomena to Ethics^ p. 351. 
 ^Mackintosh, Christian Ethics, p. 119. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 233 
 
 Still, with these deductions, it may be permissible to 
 frame a scheme of obligations according as one or other 
 element is prominent in each case. We begin, then, 
 with personal duties, and shall deal in what remains of 
 this chapter with duties toward Self. This subject, 
 however, we shall subdivide : first, the Apostle's view of 
 the individual in himself; second, in relation to his 
 physical organism; and third, in relation to worldly 
 affairs. 
 
 Of the duty of the individual to himself. Love, in 
 Christian ethics, is, as we have seen, motive and impulse 
 of all duty. But if that be so, it seems an abuse of 
 terms to speak of a duty to oneself. If duty has love 
 for its constraining motive, to say one must be dutiful to 
 oneself seems to be only another way of saying one must 
 love oneself. And in a sense it is true that self-love has 
 its place as an element in that larger love to God and 
 humanity, since such love would be meaningless unless 
 my personality were involved in it. It is obvious that 
 without the realization of self there can be no realization 
 of others. One can neither injure one's own personality 
 from love to another without injury to that other, nor 
 can one neglect social considerations through self-love 
 without injury to oneself. I cannot make myself of no 
 account even in my love for another. So inextricably 
 are the individual and society bound together in the 
 kiogdom of love that neither can reach its goal without 
 the other. While we cannot agree with Kierkegaard^ 
 that the individual is the only subject of ethics, we 
 may at least acknowledge that the individual is the 
 
 ^For an interesting account of the Danish thinker's philosophy of 
 Individualism, see Martensen's Christian Ethics, vol. i. 217 ff. 
 
234 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 starting-point, and that genuine self-love is just the will 
 of each to become a real member of the kingdom of 
 God, a moral personality in fellowship with God and his 
 neighbours. It is in this sense, and this sense only, 
 that the well-known lines may be said to comprise the 
 whole duty of man : 
 
 " To thine own self be true ! 
 And it must follow, as the night the day, 
 Thou canst not then be false to any man." 
 
 Duties towards self are plainly recognized in the New 
 Testament. The second great commandment enunciated 
 by our Lord, and endorsed by St. Paul, " Thou shalt love 
 thy neighbour as thyself,"^ makes a rightly conceived self- 
 love the measure of love to one's neighbour. And in the 
 epistles of Paul there are precepts which imply the 
 existence of the self as a moral end. The apostle 
 exhorts the Christian to "prove" himself, to "examine" 
 himself, to have his " glorying " in regard of himself 
 alone, to " keep himself " from evil. Husbands are " to 
 love their wives as their own bodies," since, in conformity 
 with the second commandment of Jesus, " he that loveth 
 his own wife loveth himself." ^ In these, and similar 
 injunctions, Paul clearly implies that there is a natural 
 and praiseworthy self-love which is not to be confounded 
 with selfishness, and that each soul is an end in itself 
 before God. Personality is a sacred trust which we 
 hold from and for our Creator. We are to make the 
 best of ourselves for God and to use all our gifts for 
 the highest realization of our being. So much may be 
 legitimately inferred from the writings of the apostle, 
 not indeed from any particular passage, but from the 
 general spirit and trend of his teaching. 
 
 iMatt. xxii. 39 ; Mar. xii. 31. ^^ph. v. 28. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 235 
 
 At the same time it cannot be denied that the Pauline 
 utterances with regard to personal duty are not very 
 numerous or very explicit. The teaching which forms 
 so large a part of text-books with regard to the duty 
 of self-preservation, the maintenance of all bodily and 
 spiritual functions, as well as their mutual harmony and 
 helpfulness ; the duty of self-protection in the use of the 
 means for the sustenance of life ; the avoidance of 
 things hurtful and the cultivation of things beneficial ; 
 the duty of self-development and the proper appreciation 
 of the natural life as a supreme good — all these personal 
 obligations which, in modern times, are regarded as 
 primary objects in the moral use of life, can scarcely be 
 said to be touched upon by the apostle at all. 
 
 Two reasons may be assigned for this absence of self- 
 regarding precepts. Pirst of all, it may be that Paul of 
 design dwells only lightly upon the duties of self- 
 realization. Writing as he did to Greek communities 
 and others acquainted with Hellenic thought, among 
 whom self-development, self-culture, seK-realization — the 
 ideal of a harmonious symmetrical nature — was the chief 
 art of life, he may have felt that not so much the virtue 
 of self-regard as that of self-forgetfulness was what 
 called for special emphasis. While Paul does not conceal 
 the truth that the soul has an inherent and inalienable 
 worth, it may be that he regarded it as a symptom of 
 morbid egoism, and not a sign of a healthy personality to 
 be constantly occupied with the thought of oneself. The 
 problem of self-scrutiny, the reiterated question — am I 
 getting the most out of my life, am I taking the full 
 benefit of all the means of education and culture avail- 
 able ? — is apt to become, even in the case of a Goethe, a 
 form of refined selfishness, and to engender a narrow, 
 computing, prudential spirit which is fatal to the moral 
 
236 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 life. Human nature is such that it requires little 
 encouragement to self-centring affection. The difficulty 
 rather is to incite men to disinterestedness and self- 
 sacrifice. But perhaps the chief reason why Paul does 
 not enlarge upon the duty of self-culture is that, like his 
 Master, he regarded the true realization of self as 
 identical with self-sacrifice. There is no antithesis 
 between self-cultivation and self-abnegation, and it is 
 only as a man loses his life that he finds it. We live by 
 dying* We get as we give. "Except a corn of wheat 
 fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone; but if 
 it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." ^ The paradox 
 of the spiritual life is the paradox observable in all 
 life, " in biological organisms, physiological tissues, 
 intellectual achievements, even in economic progress." ^ 
 " There is that scattereth, yet inoreaseth." " Cast thy 
 bread upon the waters, and thou shalt find it after 
 many days," Store away thy seed in the granary of 
 thine own heart, and it will rot; sow it broadcast on 
 the waters of life, and it will return to thee as the bread 
 and nutriment of thy soul. To bury one's talent is 
 to destroy it; to horde one's possessions is to waste 
 them; to save one's life is to lose it. Growth is the 
 condition of life, and in growth there is a reciprocity of 
 expenditure and assimilation, of giving and receiving. 
 Not by anxiously standing guard over one's soul, but by 
 dedicating it freely to the good of others, does one 
 realize one's true self. The nature which withholds 
 itself is dwarfed and stunted ; that which is joyously 
 
 ^ May it not be possible that Paul was acquainted with that saying of 
 our Lord ? Almost in the same words, though in a different con- 
 nection, he says "that which thou sowest is not quickened except it 
 die." 1 Cor. xv. 36. 
 
 2 Peabody, Jesus Christ and the Ghristian Character y p. 203. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 237 
 
 yielded up for others' good is enriched and enlarged. 
 Self-realization is only reached through self-surrender. 
 We live to our full capacity only as we live in others. 
 Hence, though for Paul personality is a sacred trust, he 
 more often sounds the note of self-sacrifice as the secret 
 of self-development, and lays stress upon the effacement 
 rather than the magnifying of self. " In lowliness of 
 mind," he says, "let each esteem other better than 
 themselves. Look not every man on his own things, 
 but every man also on the things of others."^ 
 
 There is, however, one self-respecting virtue Paul does 
 repeatedly emphasize — the virtue of stability, firmness of 
 character, steadfastness of purpose, singleness of aim. 
 He returns again and again to exhortations like these : 
 " Stand," " Hold fast," " Quit you like men, be strong," 
 "Watch and be sober." ^ The Christian is to be no 
 weak, fi abby creature, without backbone or suiew, who 
 simply accommodates himself to his environment, and 
 yields easily to the corruptions and usages amid which 
 he lives. He is to be a man, to know his own mind, to 
 have a purpose and to keep it — to gather all his energies, 
 and make a stand for faith, for liberty, for Christ. He 
 is to be a soldier enduring hardness and putting on the 
 whole armour of God, withstanding to the utmost every 
 assault of the enemy. 
 
 This firmness of character is to take the form of 
 independence of judgment in relation to the opinions of 
 others. There is a sense in which the Christian is to 
 become a law unto himself. " Let every man be fully 
 persuaded in his own mind." ^ " Hast thou faith ? have 
 
 iPhil. ii. 3, 4. Cp. also Kom. xv. 1-7. 
 
 2Eph. vi. 10-17 ; 1 Cor. xvi, 13 ; Gal. v. 1 ; Phil. i. 27 ; iv. 1 ; 1 Cor. 
 X. 12 ; 1 Thess. v. 5 ; Col. iv. 2. 
 ^Rom. xiv. 5. 
 
238 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 it for thyself before G-od." Believe in thyself. Thou 
 mayst not relegate thy trust to another. Each is 
 accountable only to his Lord, not to another. Every 
 man is a " steward of the mysteries of God/' and " it is 
 required of a steward that he be faithful."^ St. Paul 
 asserts in no equivocal terms his own independence. 
 " With me it is a very small thing that I should be 
 judged of you or of man's judgment." ^ He is not afraid 
 to vindicate his conduct. He proudly repels all 
 reproaches. No man, he tells the Corinthians, is to be 
 the slave of another man's conscience.^ The Christian 
 ought to shake himself free from partisanship and sub- 
 serviency. Let him take the truth from none but 
 Christ. Let no man glory in men. With Paul the 
 individual conscience is sacred and supreme. Each must 
 give an account of himself, — but only to God. Whatever 
 the conscience does not forbid is good ; but, on the other 
 hand, whatever does not proceed from faith is sin. A 
 man must be able to justify his conduct, all the more 
 because he is not answerable to others. At the same 
 time it cannot be denied that the conscience of the 
 majority of the Gentile converts was degraded and 
 darkened. How indistinct were the boundaries in many 
 cases between right and inclination, obligation and 
 habit ! Even with many to-day the conscience is 
 exceedingly elastic and variable, " letting * I dare not ' 
 wait upon ' I would.' " The aim must, therefore, be 
 to educate the conscience till it attain to Christian 
 clearness. The " mind " must be changed step by step 
 and brought into harmony with " the mind of Christ." 
 It must be weaned from worldly standards, so that it 
 may become capable of understanding the will of God, 
 which is perfect and good. " The natural man," says 
 ^ 1 Cor. iv. 1-3. 2 1 Cor. iv. 3. ^ 1 Cor. x. 28. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 239 
 
 Paul, " receiveth not the things of the spirit of God ; for 
 
 they are foolishness unto him : neither can he know 
 
 them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he 
 
 that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is 
 
 judged of no man." ^ 
 
 / 
 
 II. 
 
 St. Paul treats with greater fulness the relations of 
 the individual with the outer world, to which he is 
 linked by his own bodily organism. The Christian is a 
 man who holds lightly to the things of this life. 
 Through Christ he is emancipated from the bondage of 
 his old surroundings. Old things are passed away. His 
 life is now hid with God in Christ. He is therefore in 
 an entirely new relationship with earthly things. The 
 world is crucified unto him, and he unto the world.^ In 
 virtue of this new standing, the whole world of sense, his 
 own body and all the affairs of this temporal life, are of 
 comparatively little account to him. They are nothing 
 in themselves. He is superior to them all. He belongs 
 to a kingdom in which these things have no real signifi- 
 cance, " Meat commendeth us not to God ; for neither if 
 we eat are we better, neither if we eat not are we the 
 worse." ^ " For no man liveth to himself, and no man 
 dieth to himself." In Eomans xiv. he seeks to show how 
 devotion to the outward is often merely a kind of 
 religious worldliness, that the observance of times and 
 seasons, the partaking of or abstention from meats and 
 drinks is absolutely without value for the Christian life. 
 The Christian stands wholly free from things like these. 
 Nothing is unclean of itself. All things are pure. One 
 man believes that he may eat all things ; another that he 
 may only eat herbs. One man esteemeth one day above 
 
 ^ 1 Cor. ii. 14, 15. ^ Qal. vi. 14. ^ 1 Cor. viii. 8. 
 
240 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 another, another esteemeth every day alike. It is not 
 things that make men moral, it is men that make things 
 moral or immoral. It is the mind that is the measure 
 and criterion of the outward, not the outward that is the 
 test of the inward. " To him that esteemeth anything to 
 be unclean, to him it is unclean." Happy is he that con- 
 demneth not himself in that thing which he alloweth. 
 " The earth is the Lord's and all that is therein." ^ All 
 things are therefore lawful for me, but I will not be 
 brought under the power of any.^ Asceticism, for its 
 own sake, has no moral worth. It may even become the 
 occasion of false pride. Such things have indeed a 
 show of wisdom in will-worship and humility and neglect 
 of the body ; but are not of any value against the 
 indulgence of the flesh.^ 
 
 *' What imports 
 Fasting or feasting ? Do thy day's work, dare 
 Refuse no help thereto, since help refused 
 Is hindrance sought and found." * 
 
 " The one valid principle, therefore, is whether ye eat or 
 whether ye drink, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, 
 and thank God the Pather through Him." ^ 
 
 The human hody is held in high regard by the apostle. 
 It is the temple of God,^ the organ of the Holy Spirit,^ 
 the basis of the future resurrection-body which is to be 
 fashioned in the likeness of Christ's glorious body.^ It 
 must not therefore be abused. On the contrary, its 
 members are to become instruments in the service of 
 righteousness.^ Only in the case in which it threatens 
 to become master must the individual strive to keep his 
 
 1 1 Cor. X. 26. 2 1 Cor. vi. 12 ; x. 23. '^Col. iii. 23. 
 
 4 Browning. "^ 1 Cor. x. 31 ; Rom. xiv. 6. ^1 Cor. vi. 19. 
 
 7 Rom. vi. 13, 19. sphil. iii. 21. ^Rom. vi. 13, 19. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 241 
 
 body under and bring it into subjection.^ Here the law 
 of self-control is to be brought into play. " Every man 
 that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things." 
 All sinful lusts and inordinate desires are to be put off 
 with the old man, to be crushed down; and even our 
 members which have become the instruments of unclean- 
 ness are to be mortified.^ Here St. Paul endorses the 
 spirit of his Master's teaching. " It is better for thee to 
 enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands or 
 two feet to be cast into the eternal fire." ^ But so far 
 from these utterances disclosing a disparagement of the 
 body, they are a witness to the high honour and sacred- 
 ness with which he regarded it. St. Paul dissociates 
 himself entirely from that contempt of the flesli, the 
 material part of man, as inherently evil, which was 
 prevalent in Greek philosophy, and especially in Stoicism, 
 at his time. The body is holy, and it too, as an integral 
 part of man, has been redeemed and renewed by Christ. 
 " Ye are bought with a price ; therefore, glorify God in 
 your body and in your spirit, which are God's." * 
 
 The apostle's views regarding the physical nature are 
 perhaps most clearly indicated in his references to the 
 relation of the sexes. "While he strongly condemns all 
 sins of the flesh, and all irregular and unlawful inter- 
 course, he will have no part with those who denounce 
 marriage and make light of wedded love.^ Marriage is 
 not only not forbidden by him, but it is in some circum- 
 stances and for some individuals commended as the 
 better estate. There are, however, cases in which it is 
 desirable to refrain from marriage, not on ascetic grounds, 
 but because a man is less hampered by earthly affairs 
 and better able without distraction to serve God.^ Paul 
 
 3 Matt, xviii. 8 ; Mar. ix. 43. 
 ^Ibid, 8, 32, 33, 35. 
 
 1 1 Cor. ix. 27. 
 
 2 Col. iii. 5ff. 
 
 nCor. vi. 20. 
 
 5 1 Cor. vii. 1 ff. 
 
 
 Q 
 
242 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 distinctly says that this is only a personal and private 
 opinion, which finds its illustration in his own life. He 
 himself was a voluntary abstainer from marriage relations 
 that he might the better perform the duties of his 
 apostolic calling. It is not in his view a sin to marry ; 
 nor is it a merit to refrain from marriage. Each must 
 here judge for himself in what state he can best serve 
 God. Let a man not marry merely for the sake of 
 marriage. If he can stand steadfast in his heart, and 
 hath power over his own will, feeling no necessity, then 
 he does well to remain as he is. Here, as elsewhere, the 
 law of freedom must prevail; but at the same time it 
 will be well if men sit lightly towards all the joys and 
 engagements of this life. For, after all, the time is 
 short ; we are hastening to a day when all such concerns 
 will have no meaning. "We belong already to a spiritual 
 kingdom. " It remaineth, therefore, that both they 
 that have wives be as though they had none." 
 
 It must be acknowledged that St. Paul in this passage 
 at least, does not present us with a very high regard 
 for marriage. He fails to shake himself free from the 
 ascetic tendencies of his day to which marriage was 
 a state, if not to be rejected, at least to be accounted 
 of secondary importance. It was not only the expecta- 
 tion which he shared with his Christian contemporaries 
 of the approaching end of the age, and his belief that 
 those who married would have trouble in the flesh in 
 the time of suffering close at hand ^ that impelled him to 
 this opinion. But in general he looks upon wedded 
 life from the sexual point of view, and regards it as 
 essentially a concession to weakness. The conception of 
 marriage as a spiritual union, a fellowship of heart and 
 mind, in which the man and woman mutually contribute 
 1 1 Cor. vii. 26-28. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 243 
 
 to the enrichment and realization of the higher life is a 
 view which can scarcely be deduced from this passage at 
 least. Marriage is at the best only a second best — a 
 permission to obviate greater evils. It must not indeed 
 be forgotten that in two other passages at least, Ephesians 
 V. 32 and 1 Cor. ii. 3, Paul places marriage so high as 
 to make it the type of the close spiritual union which 
 subsists between Christ and His Church.^ 
 
 In his use of the word " Sanctification " and kindred 
 words derived from the language of ritual to describe 
 the duties man owes to himself, Paul may, as Wernle 
 suggests, show traces of his early training in the school 
 of the Scribes.^ In Paul's use of it, the word is fre- 
 quently limited, as it is also in later literature, to the 
 consecratipn of the bodily members.^ There were possibly 
 two reasons why the apostle laid emphasis upon this 
 narrower aspect of sanctification. (1) One was the cir- 
 cumstances amid which the early converts were placed. 
 Men in such cities as Corinth, Ephesus and Kome were 
 exposed to the grosser temptations of the flesh. Sanctifi- 
 cation in the physical sense was bound, therefore, to 
 constitute the first task of the Christian life, A higher 
 morality only becomes possible when the animal passions 
 have been brought under control. So the apostle begins 
 his exhortations to the Thessalonians with these words : 
 "This is the will of God, even your sanctification, that 
 ye should abstain from fornication " ; and in the fore- 
 front of his great exhortation to the Eomans stands the 
 immortal words, " Present your bodies a living sacrifice, 
 holy, acceptable unto God." 
 
 (2) Can we venture to suggest, as some have done, 
 
 ^ See chap. xi. for a further discussion of this subject from the point 
 of view of the family. 
 ^ Beginnings of Christianity ^ vol. i. p. 199. ^ See ibid. vol. ii. p. 334, 
 
244 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 that the other reason for the stress laid upon this aspect 
 of sanctification may have been a personal one ? Did 
 Paul know from his own experience the awful power 
 and subtle dangers of the lusts of the flesh ? " It may- 
 surprise some," says Prof. Bruce, " that so good and 
 kindly a man as the apostle Paul should have found in 
 the body or the flesh so much of a hindrance to the 
 spiritual life, . . . but we may take it as certain that 
 such was the fact. In spite of his passion for holiness 
 the flesh was constantly and obstinately obstructive. . . . 
 Who can tell what painful inner experiences this 
 saintly man passed through in this direction ? " ^ That 
 the flesh meant for him very specially, though not 
 exclusively, sexual impulse it is possible to infer from 
 the prominent place given to sins of impurity in his 
 catalogue of the works of the flesh. On the other hand, 
 it is to be remembered that Paul always claimed to have 
 lived, even in his pre-Christian days, by the holy light 
 of conscience. And it is the purest who feel most 
 keenly the stain of sins like these. In any case Paul 
 knew human nature well. He was a man of like 
 passions with ourselves. Temptation is the common 
 lot, and if Paul felt its power and had to fight the 
 " brute within " he was well aware that those to whom 
 he wrote would be in a like case. In the seventh 
 chapter of Komans mention is made of this tragic fight 
 with the flesh, and in that extremely significant auto- 
 biographical hint in 1 Corinthians, " I buffet my body 
 and bring it into bondage," we gather that Paul found it 
 necessary to be in effect an ascetic in the practical sense 
 of taking special means to prevent the body with its 
 passions from getting the upper hand. Knowing human 
 nature to be what it was, and well acquainted with the 
 
 ^ St. Paul's Conception of Ghristianity, p. 264 ff. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 245 
 
 foulness of the heathen world, it is not wonderful that 
 his first object should be to remind his converts that 
 self-discipline, and even self-denial, especially in the 
 matter of chastity, was a part of religion itself, and that 
 without the fulfilment of this preliminary condition they 
 could have no share in redemption or attain to the 
 holiness of God. 
 
 But while the apostle thus emphasizes the necessity 
 of self -discipline and the mastery of the physical impulses, 
 we should obtain an altogether erroneous idea of his 
 teaching if we limited his notion of sanctification to the 
 body alone. The soul and spirit are also to be conse- 
 crated. The Christian is not to give a fragmentary or 
 mutilated sacrifice to God, but is to dedicate to Him 
 the whole man. The apostle is strongly opposed to all 
 asceticism for its own sake, and particularly to the 
 immorality which under the name of self-denial had 
 already begun to be practised in the Christian com- 
 munities. He says we are to use the world as not 
 abusing it. We may fairly gather from his words that 
 after all life was given not for suppression but for expres- 
 sion — the world for use and not for abuse. Affection, 
 sorrow, gladness, work have all their legitimate place in 
 the Christian life. Let no one think he is a better man 
 because he cuts himself off from the common joys and 
 the common sorrows of the great human world. The 
 moment, indeed, these threaten the higher life, the 
 moment we have become the slave of our interests, 
 enjoyments or possessions, that moment we are not using 
 but abusing the world. Kenuneiation for its own sake 
 is no virtue. But he who denies himself for a higher 
 good, for the sake of his own or another's spiritual well- 
 being, has risen superior to the world and become the 
 master of his impulses and affections. There is no merit 
 
246 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 in celibacy or despising earthly joy of any kind in itself ; 
 but all honour to those who, recognizing that they are 
 called to a service they could not otherwise adequately 
 fulfil, refrain from wedded life or other joys. And so 
 we do not think we are forcing the apostle's meaning if 
 we interpret his teaching thus — use the world for the 
 highest and noblest ends of life. Let its relationships, 
 pleasures and pursuits be merely the vehicles of spiritual 
 service, the instruments which make you a fit subject of 
 the kingdom of God to which you belong. The time is 
 short, the fashion of the world passeth away. For the 
 Christian it is a small matter whether the transitory 
 things around him yield immediate gratification or not, 
 but it is of infinite importance whether he is so using 
 the world, so extracting the good from this present life as 
 to prepare his soul for its ultimate and abiding home. 
 
 m. 
 
 The Christian's attitude to worldly affairs also naturally 
 falls within this chapter. The apostle, as we might 
 expect, sets a lower value upon earthly goods than 
 on spiritual gifts. " If we have sown unto you spiritual 
 things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal 
 things ? " ^ If the Gentiles have been made partakers of 
 the Hebrews' spiritual things, their duty plainly is to 
 minister unto them in material things.^ They are getting 
 far more than they give. Paul rests his claim and that 
 of all preachers of the Gospel to be supported by the 
 people, not upon the grounds of ordinary gratitude merely, 
 but upon the principle of remuneration everywhere 
 observed in human affairs. The labourer is worthy of 
 his hire. Every man ought to have a reasonable return 
 1 1 Cor. ix. 11. 2 Rom. xv. 27. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 247 
 
 for his toil, whether he works with his hands or his 
 mind. This is a law universally recognized. The soldier 
 does not go to war at his own cost, but expects to be 
 maintained by those for whom he fights. The vine- 
 dresser, the shepherd, the labourer expects that his toil 
 will secure for him the comforts and necessaries of life. 
 If this is the case with regard to the various kinds of 
 physical labour in which men are engaged, much more 
 should it be true of spiritual service. If any one should 
 object that these secular principles have no application 
 to spiritual matters, Paul has his answer ready. " Say 
 I these things as a man ? or saith not the law the same 
 also ? * Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out 
 the corn.' " This, says the apostle, is the law of work — 
 both secular and sacred. While Paul urged the claims 
 of support and remuneration, he did not himself take 
 advantage of them. " I have used none of these things 
 that it should be so done unto me; for it were better 
 for me to die than that any man should make my glory- 
 ing void." But he does not regard his self-denial as 
 meritorious. He has no desire to appear more dis- 
 interested than other men. His fear is that if he took 
 remuneration he should "hinder the Gospel of Christ." 
 Large incomes were made in Paul's day by Stoic teachers 
 and professors of philosophy, who attracted disciples and 
 initiated them into their doctrines. Paul was determined 
 that he should not be mistaken for one of these.^ Hence 
 he laboured at his craft of tent-making that he might 
 not be a burden upon any. At the same time he main- 
 taiDs the principle of support, not as a charity, but as a 
 right, and while he will not accept payment for himself 
 he valiantly pleads the cause of others. 
 
 But while Paul recognizes and justifies the possession 
 
 ^Dods, Expos. Bible, "Corinthians," p. 204. 
 
248 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 of worldly goods (2 Cor. ix. 8-9) he reminds Christians 
 that such things are only secondary. They are not to 
 set their affections upon the things of this earth,^ as do 
 the enemies of the Cross.^ They are to possess as 
 though they possessed not.^ They are to be outwardly 
 free from earthly possessions, to know both how to be 
 abased and how to abound, how to have abundance and 
 how to suffer need.^ To have sufficiency so that he may 
 abound in every good work is the only consideration that 
 ought to weigh with a Christian.^ To hoard is not to 
 have, and the world is possessed by those who are not 
 possessed by it. To have in order to give is the real 
 significance of wealth. Life is true riches, and money is 
 only a good in so far as it is a vehicle of service. The 
 apostle takes high ground, and lays down the principle 
 of possession for all time. Of the community of goods 
 there is no suggestion in Paul's epistles. He knows 
 nothing of Communistic regulations. " Let each man," 
 he says, " do according as he hath purposed in his heart, 
 not grudgingly or of necessity."® " Upon the first day of 
 the week let each one of you lay by him in store, as he 
 may prosper." ^ " We commend and exhort in the Lord 
 Jesus that with quietness they work, and eat their own 
 bread." ® The Communism of the day of Pentecost, like 
 the gift of tongues, " was a spontaneous, unique, and 
 unrepeated manifestation of the elevation and unity of 
 spirit which possessed the little company in the first 
 glow of their new faith " ; ^ and the sharing of each 
 other's possessions was no formal or compulsory system. 
 While Paul preached the essential equality of all men in 
 
 iCol. iii. 2. 2 Phil. iii. 18. H Cor. vii. 29. 
 
 ■iPhil. iv. 12. »2 Cor. ix. 8. «2 Cor. ix. 7. 
 
 n Cor. xvi. 2. 8 2 Thesa. iii. 12. 
 
 ^ Peabody, Jesus Christ and the Social Question^ p. 24. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 249 
 
 Christ, he did not seek to abolish distinctions of rich 
 and poor ; still less in any way to interfere with the 
 existing forms of productive industry. 
 
 N"o adjustment was to be effected except such as was 
 based upon love. The apostle proposes no demonstration 
 of fraternity, except beneficence practised by each in 
 proportion to his means.^ Wealth is a trust committed 
 by God to men, like other gifts, to be used for the highest 
 ends and in accordance with the highest motives. Here, 
 as everywhere, Christ is at once the supreme motive and 
 example. Jesus did not give money, but He gave 
 Himself. Though He was rich, yet for our sakes He 
 became poor, that we through His poverty might be 
 made rich.^ In the spirit of Christ the Corinthians are 
 urged to give. Love is the essence of sacrifice. The 
 form is a secondary thing. It was life itself in Christ's 
 case. It was money in theirs : the one thing needful 
 was a love like His, which was the desire to give and to 
 bless.^ Though the poor were at first in the vast 
 majority among the Gentile Christians, yet rich and even 
 well-to-do people were not wanting in such a Church as 
 Corinth, as we may gather from the Apostle's references 
 to the differences in means and in the corresponding style 
 of living, which threatened to become destructive of 
 brotherly feeling and even of fellowship at the Lord's 
 table.^ While there is generally an absence in the 
 epistles of warning against the dangers of wealth, the 
 apostle does denounce active self-seeking, stigmatizing 
 covetousness {ifKeove^la) as idolatry, and placing it 
 among the sins of the flesh,^ He also associates extor- 
 tion, the unjust overreaching of one's neighbour, with 
 
 ^See Weizsiicker, Apostolic Age, vol. ii. 381. ^2 Cor. viii. 9. 
 
 ^ F. W. Robertson, Expository Lectures on Corinthians, p. 394. 
 ^Weizsacker, vol. ii. p. 381. ^Col. iii. 5. 
 
250 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 theft.^ But it is no part of his purpose to denounce 
 wealth in itself, or to extol the want of it ; and it is 
 contrary to his robust and independent spirit to regard 
 poverty as a test of holiness, or to decry prosperity as a 
 barrier to the kingdom of God. He himself will be a 
 charge upon no man. He welcomes the gifts that were 
 sent to him by the Philippian Church " as a sacrifice 
 acceptable, well-pleasing to God."^ He bids Timothy 
 charge the rich " that they do good, that they be rich in 
 good works." ^ Finally, in his fullest summary of 
 Christian character, he explicitly states that the renun- 
 ciation of wealth does not necessarily imply goodness or 
 generosity of life. " Though I bestow all my goods to 
 feed the poor . . . and have not charity, it profiteth me 
 nothing." * ^ 
 
 Paul recognizes the legitimacy of trade as an indis- 
 pensable means of support, and, by implication, all secular 
 work finds a place in the moral ideal of life. On account 
 of special dangers in the Church of Thessalonica, Paul 
 found it needful to deduce from the Gospel the true 
 attitude of the Christian to work generally. In the first 
 epistle, the whole exposition bearing on this subject® is 
 governed by the idea of brotherly love, just as the 
 injunction in Ephesians " to give to him that needeth " is 
 dominated by the same motive. In the second epistle, 
 the exhortation, " that with quietness they work and eat 
 their own bread " is based rather upon the laudable 
 desire which every right-minded man ought to have, to 
 be independent, " not chargeable to any." ^ These two 
 motives — self-help and the help of others — are united in 
 the later epistle to the Ephesians : " Let him that stole 
 
 11 Cor. vi. 10. ^VhW. iv. 18. ^1 Tim. vi. 18. n Cor. xiii. 3. 
 ^Cp. Peabody, Jesus Christ and the Social Qii^stion, p. 196, 
 M These, iv. 11 ff. ^2 Thess. iii. 8, 10, 12. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 251 
 
 steal no more ; but rather let him labour, working with 
 his own hands the thing which is good, that he may have 
 to give to him that needeth."^ The principles laid down 
 in these passages are the more impressive, because they 
 were written as a corrective of a pietistic contempt of 
 work which was springing up in various Christian 
 communities. Paul insists on labour as the condition, 
 not of helpfulness only, but even of all self-respect. The 
 Christian is " to do his own business and to work with 
 his hands, that he may walk honestly towards them that 
 are without, and may have need of nothing " (1 Thess. 
 iv. 11, 12). He has a duty to perform "in the affairs 
 of this life " (2 Tim. ii. 3), but in doing it he is not to 
 be entangled in them. They are means, not ends ; to be 
 used as helps and not as hindrances. The Christian is 
 to remember that before all else he is a " soldier of 
 Jesus Christ," and if the affairs of life become entangle- 
 ments instead of opportunities, he will lose that state of 
 constant preparedness and alertness which is the indis- 
 pensable condition of success in the service to which he 
 has been called.^ Further than this the apostle does not 
 go. There is in the epistles no apotheosis of work. 
 That daily toil, irrespective of its consequences, is a 
 sacred calling in itself Paul does not expressly state, and 
 there is no elaboration of the modern idea that all labour 
 has a moral worth in the civilization of the world and 
 the development of its resources. The fact is that, 
 according to the apostle, the one supreme task of man 
 was the bringing of his fellows to Christ. Everything 
 was to be subservient to that purpose and all secular 
 work had its justification for the Christian only in so 
 far as it afforded him the means of furthering that 
 object. 
 
 1 Eph. iv. 28. 2 See Plummer, Pastoral Epistles^ p. 348. 
 
252 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 There is one aspect of the personal life or form of 
 behaviour with regard to which Paul does not directly 
 proffer counsel or warning, viz. the attitude of the 
 Christian to recreation, This is the more remarkable as 
 amusement in the form of spectacular shows formed a 
 most engrossing occupation in the Greek and Eoman 
 communities with which the apostle was acquainted. 
 Eecreation enters so largely into modern life, and its 
 legitimacy, and even moral advantage, are now so 
 unquestioningly assumed, that it is difificult for us to 
 realize that there ever was a time when, if not actually 
 condemned, it was regarded as a symptom of worldliness. 
 Yet in the early days of Christianity most forms of 
 pastime, and particularly all theatrical performances, 
 were frowned upon as unworthy of a Christian's regard. 
 Tertullian speaks of the theatre of the Eoman city as 
 " the consistory of all uncleanness," and he asks why 
 should it be lawful " to see what it is a sin to do " ? ^ 
 Paul is wholly silent on the general subject of recreation, 
 and when he does allude to the games in vogue in his 
 day it is for the sake of illustrating some moral truth or 
 drawing some spiritual analogy. But it is noteworthy 
 that in making these comparisons he does not, as we 
 might expect, utter a word of caution or protest. For it 
 must be remembered that the games and exercises of 
 skill as practised in his day were associated with a class 
 of heathen society with which Paul as a Christian could 
 have no sympathy, and from which it was his earnest 
 desire that his converts should withdraw. At the same 
 time, amusement, if not actually commended, is not 
 condemned by the apostle, and his allusions to the various 
 sports of Greek and Eoman cities imply even a certain 
 degree of sympathy, if not approval, as if it did not 
 
 ^Tertullian, de Spectacitlis, 17. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 253 
 
 occur to him that innocent recreation in itself was in any 
 way inconsistent with Christian profession. In his Life 
 of Paxil Mr. Baring-Gould says that "as Jews the tent- 
 maker and his son abstained from theatrical and gladia- 
 torial shows." ^ But this author makes an exception as 
 regards the circus, and adds that probably Paul " took 
 advantage of having a seat ^ in the circus, and followed 
 the contest with zest." But it may be argued that if 
 Paul felt free to go to the circus, why should he feel 
 debarred from the other amusements of the amphitheatre. 
 We know that he often takes his illustrations from the 
 foot race and the athletic sports of the stadium. " Is it 
 not obvious," says Sir Wm. Eamsay, " that if we once 
 admit the principle that Paul's illustrations and com- 
 parisons give a clue to his own early experiences, it 
 becomes difficult to draw any such hard line of demarca- 
 tion between the Jewish boy Paul's surroundings in 
 Tarsus and those of the young Greeks." ^ Kecreation in 
 some form is a legitimate need of human nature, all the 
 more necessary in these days of intense and strenuous 
 life. There is nothing in the Pauline epistles inconsistent 
 with the modern view that a proper balance between 
 labour and recreation is desirable, not only for physical 
 health, but for efficiency of work, and that indeed the 
 mind as well as the body requires restoration, rest, and 
 change of occupation. And it is inconceivable that a 
 man of the broad human sympathies of the apostle would 
 find anything derogatory to Christian behaviour in 
 
 ^ofSt. Paul,y^, 51-53. 
 
 ^'*The idea," says Sir W. Ramsay, " that Paul had a seat in the 
 circus by right seems to spring from the mistaken idea that the Roman 
 citizenship and even equestrian rank were gained by Paul's father from 
 his having held office in the city." Pauline and Other Studies. 
 
 ^ Pauline and Other Studies, p. 332. 
 
254 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 healthy pastime or physical sport. But the present-day 
 craze for amusement, that devotion to sport — too often, as 
 it has been named, '* vicarious sport " — which has become 
 the " be all " of existence for a large class of the com- 
 munity would, we cannot but believe, have incurred his 
 strong disapproval, not because pleasure is wrong in 
 itself, but because when made the whole end and purpose 
 of life it destroys its perspective and proportion. Life 
 for the apostle was not a holiday, but a high and holy 
 possession entrusted to man by God, for the use and 
 abuse of which he must give an account. The due care 
 for bodily health and vigour, commendable as it is, must 
 be subordinate to the care of the soul. " Bodily exercise 
 profiteth a little, but godliness is profitable unto all 
 things, having the promise of the life that now is and 
 that which is to come." ^ Christianity is a life ; and 
 what the Christian is to aim at is a life at once rich 
 and enriching, full of intelligent interests and serviceable 
 pursuits. Speaking generally, it is the duty of the 
 Christian to avoid any habit, mental or bodily, which 
 disturbs the healthful balance of his faculties and does 
 not contribute to the enrichment of his life ; and to cul- 
 tivate sobriety and moderation — sobriety which guards a 
 man from drinking too deeply of the intoxicating draught 
 of pleasure, from yielding to the pressure of worldly ease 
 and amusement, from inordinate use of the gifts and 
 enjoyments of life; and moderation, which enjoins not 
 only self-restraint in work and recreation, but care in 
 regard to the minutiae of external apparel, personal 
 display, and the luxuries of life ^ (Phil, iv, 5 ). 
 
 In this connection we may notice, in conclusion, the 
 
 1 1 Tim. iv. 8. 
 
 '^Cp. Ottley, Cliristimi Ideas and Ideals^ p. 280; also, William Lave, 
 A Serious Call, chap. 18 ; also Polonius's advice to Laertes in Hamlet. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 255 
 
 apostle's advice with regard to contentment with ones 
 station in life. Three times within the compass of a few 
 verses the injunction is repeated ; " Let everyone wherein 
 he is called therein abide with God." ^ In our day it is 
 regarded as a praiseworthy aim that each should try to 
 better himself, as the phrase goes ; and in any case each 
 is recommended to seek to attain that position in life for 
 which he feels he is qualified by natural gift or education. 
 It is questionable, however, if the apostle here actually 
 desired to set up a general ethical standard with refer- 
 ence to the various vocations of life. Proper ambition, 
 the endeavour to make the most of oneself, in the appro- 
 priation of the materials of our earthly existence, is not 
 within the apostle's purview. The aspiration of the 
 spirit, the desire to grow upwards, to reach the best life 
 available, is a legitimate ambition which Paul would 
 have been the last to condemn. In accordance with the 
 general tone of the ISTew Testament, the vocation of the 
 brave, large-minded apostle is to pass on towards the goal 
 for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ, and he 
 bids others so run that they may obtain. The object of 
 the injunction before us is to dissuade men and women 
 who have entered upon the Christian life from wishing 
 to change their sphere. The reason of this is not difficult 
 to see. When a man became a Christian it was not 
 unnatural that he should desire to alter his outward 
 circumstances, so that he might make a complete break 
 with his former life. This was specially the case with 
 regard to the slave. He was apt to imagine that in 
 bondage he might be called upon to do many things 
 inconsistent with his faith. But that was not the only 
 condition which a Christian might desire to change. A 
 believer might be disposed to think that it was his or her 
 
 1 1 Cor. vii. 17-24. 
 
256 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 duty to separate from an unbelieving wife or husband. 
 Or a Jew might wish to attain to the status of a Gentile, 
 or a Gentile to that of a Jew. Paul indeed mentions 
 these three eases, and to each he says : " Be content to 
 be as you are. In whatsoever condition you were before 
 God first called you to Himself, therein remain/' This 
 advice of the apostle was discreet and salutary. He had 
 no desire to play the part of a revolutionary, stirring 
 men up to discontent and lawlessness. He did not 
 conceive it to be his mission to denounce slavery, or in 
 any way to meddle with the existing order of society. 
 Nowhere does he, by word or deed, in the slightest 
 degree, interfere with the externals of social life. He 
 lets slavery, war, the tyranny of the Eoman Empire, 
 alone, not surely because he regarded them as satisfactory, 
 but because he believed in first making the tree good 
 and then the fruit would follow. ISTot by violent opposi- 
 tion, but by gradual diffusion, would the spirit of liberty 
 and enlightenment ultimately leaven the world. To the 
 individual, therefore, he says : " Do not trouble yourself 
 about your external circumstances. Keep your Christian 
 profession where you are." If a man is a Christian, it 
 matters very little what his outward life is. In every 
 sphere there is ample scope for Christlike service. The 
 man of Christ is raised above all external conditions and 
 relationships. For he that is called in the Lord, being a 
 slave, is the Lord's freeman; likewise also he that is 
 called, being free, is Christ's slave.^ 
 
 The particulars which we have considered in this 
 chapter have all to do with the individual as such, but as 
 a matterof fact the individual for Paul was only a part 
 of a larger whole, and the real significance of all these 
 ethical duties rests in this, that the individual thereby 
 
 ^ 1 Cor. vii. 22. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO SELF 257 
 
 becomes capable of fulfilling his ideal in relation to 
 others. While the expression ayta(Tix6q, which betokens 
 the sum of the moral life, is invariably employed by the 
 apostle in reference to the individual/ there is Uttle 
 doubt that the real emphasis of the ideal life is placed 
 by him upon the life of the community, and that only as 
 the individual fulfils his trust as a member of the family, 
 as a part of the body of Christ, and as a servant of God's 
 kingdom does he realize his true vocation. 
 
 ^ 1 ThesB. iv. 3, 7 ; 2 Cor. vii. 1. 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
 DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 
 
 It is his place in society that makes the individual what 
 he is. He realizes himself by enabling society through 
 him to perform the particular function which is repre- 
 sented by his station and duties.^ In virtue of his very 
 being man is related to others, and can only live and 
 fulfil his personal ends as he recognizes and respects the 
 rights and needs of his fellow-men. It is scarcely possible 
 to distinguish between what are called egoistic and altru- 
 istic motives. In striving after our own good we may 
 effect the good of others, and in seeking others' good we 
 benefit ourselves. Physicists tell us that there is no 
 isolated point in the universe, that every element in the 
 corporeal world stands in reciprocal relation with every 
 other. And in like manner there is no isolated point in 
 the moral world. Every act of every man influences the 
 entire moral universe, and every act in the moral universe 
 reacts upon every individual. This principle was early 
 perceived by Greek philosophy and is clearly recognized 
 both by Plato and Aristotle. It is true a man may seek 
 to maintain himself in isolated independence, he may 
 refuse to be compromised by social relations and seek to 
 live for himself alone. But in doing so he takes the 
 ^ Bradley, Ethical Studies. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 259 
 
 surest way to defeat his own end and to miss the very 
 good he seeks. To seek life in this sense is to lose it. 
 On the other hand, a man can only find personal salva- 
 tion as he humbly fulfils the duties which his calling, 
 family, and country impose upon him. 
 
 This truth is clearly recognized by St. Paul. "No man, 
 he says, liveth to himself alone. We belong to others : 
 others belong to us. They and we alike are parts of a 
 larger whole. Members of a social organism, we only 
 find our true life and purpose as we draw our strength 
 from and contribute our strength to the corporate body 
 to which we belong. But while the apostle recognizes 
 this natural principle, and more than once alludes to its 
 working, it is significant that here, as always, he incul- 
 cates the duty of the recognition and service of others, 
 not upon naturalistic grounds, but upon Christian. The 
 natural is spiritualized, and all the human desires and 
 appetencies which link us to our fellow-men are elevated 
 and transmuted through our relation to Christ into 
 vehicles of a higher life and fellowship. If St. Paul 
 makes little of self-love as a distinct duty of the Christian, 
 it is not because he disparages personality, but because 
 he believes that in the love of others the individual truly 
 finds himself. In relation to others love, which is of the 
 very essence of the Christian life, has at once its scope 
 and exercise. Love is a mutual appropriation. In it 
 my neighbour becomes mine and I his. By its exercise 
 I enlarge both my own life-sphere and that of my neigh- 
 bour. In the reciprocity and service of love the social 
 organism as a whole, as well as each individual member 
 of it, finds its realization. 
 
 In this chapter we shall endeavour to present the 
 apostle's teaching with regard to the Christian's duties to 
 others ; and first we shall discuss briefly the nature and 
 
260 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 ground of brotherly love generally, and, second, consider 
 some of its more important manifestations. 
 
 The Nature and Ground of Brotherly Love. The law 
 of love is presented by Christ as the highest of all 
 commands, and the love of one's neighbour is the sub- 
 stance of all moral duties towards one*s fellow-men. 
 In the Gospel the social command follows immediately 
 from the first commandment of love to God. It is the 
 application towards men of the same principle of love 
 which underlies the obligation of man to God. In the 
 ethics of the New Testament, in Christ's teaching and in 
 that of the apostle's, both obligations of love towards 
 God and man are derived directly from the fundamental 
 principle of God's love towards men. Men are to act as 
 brethren because One is their Father in heaven.^ The 
 Christian principle of the moral law, both in its range 
 and sanction, is summed up in the profound word of St. 
 John, " We love Him because He first loved us." ^ It is 
 on the fact that God is love,^ and that the Christian is 
 to reproduce in himself the feelings and activities of God 
 that the obligation to brotherly love is based. It is not 
 that we are to love God and also to love our fellow- 
 men, but we are to love our fellow-men in God. The 
 love of our neighbour is not a secondary something super- 
 added to our love to God. The latter completes itself in 
 the former, and is not existent where the former is not.* 
 
 It was thus that Christ Himself grounded His attitude 
 of service. His relations with men were what they were 
 because of His relations with God. We cannot read the 
 
 iMatt xxiii. 8-9. 21 j^hn iv. 19 (R.V.). MJohn iv, 16. 
 
 ^Haering, The Ethics of the Christian Life, p. 139. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 261 
 
 Gospels without feeling that what Jesus did for men, all 
 His acts of kindness and mercy, flowed directly from His 
 perfect surrender to the divine life, came spontaneously 
 from His union with the Father. The moving impulse 
 in His self-sacrifice lay primarily in His relation of utter 
 obedience to His Father's will, and His love to man was 
 at once the consequence and expression of His intimate 
 union with God.^ 
 
 In a similar manner St. Paul grounds brotherly love 
 upon the new relationship which the Christian bears to 
 God through Christ. "We ought to love one another, he 
 says, as Christ has loved us and given His life for us. 
 As in the love of Christ everything individual and 
 particular, every privilege and advantage resting upon 
 diversity among men is set aside, and the universal 
 element only is recognized, so love to Christ in us 
 becomes the one bond of fellowship among men, for whom 
 without distinction Christ died.^ From the moment we 
 begin to live in Christ, who died and rose again for us, 
 we know no man after the flesh.^ Having put on the 
 new man, there is for us no longer " Greek or Jew, cir- 
 cumcision or uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond 
 or free, but Christ is all and in all." * In the new life 
 in Christ our love to others finds its impulse and mani- 
 festation. It is this union with Him which transforms 
 what would otherwise be but a natural instinct of 
 sympathy into a service of love, and extracts from 
 altruistic activity all self-seeking and striving after 
 personal reward, advantage, or honour.^ We are mem- 
 bers one of another, says the apostle, and love is the 
 bond of perfectness. " We are to owe no man anything 
 
 ^Cf. H. W. Clarke, The Christian Method of Ethics, p. 160 ff. 
 2Rom. xiv. 15; 1 Cor. viii. 11. ^2 Cor. v. 16. "^Col. iii. 10, 11. 
 ^ 1 Cor. ix. 1-18 ; 2 Cor. xi. 7-10 ; 1 Thess. ii. 5, 6. 
 
262 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 but love; for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the 
 law." ^ " Let all your thmgs be done with charity/' he 
 writes to the Corinthians ; while his prayer for the 
 Church of Thessalonica is that the Lord may make them 
 increase and abound in love one towards another, and 
 towards all men. 
 
 The primary trait of love towards others is unselfish- 
 ness. The individual must not think of himself merely, 
 he is not to seek his own ; ^ not to look every man on his 
 own things, but every man also on the things of others.^ 
 He is to have regard to his desires;* his rights;^ his 
 liberty,® if thereby he may be able to serve the highest 
 interests of his brethren. He is to be prepared, in short, 
 to sacrifice himself, as the apostle himself was ready to 
 do, for the good of others, for Christ's sake.^ 
 
 This relation of the individual to Christ, which is the 
 true ground of love to others, defines at once its extent 
 and limits. In Christ all distinctions which in other 
 respects separate men are dissolved. Love to others is a 
 universal love. As no man is excluded from Christ, so 
 no man must be beyond our regard. As we have oppor- 
 tunity, Paul writes to the Galatians, let us do good unto 
 all men. At the same time, in so far as Christians are 
 more immediately associated with those of their own 
 community, those who share their faith, their love is to 
 be specially directed to them. They are to do good, 
 especially to those who are of the household of faith.^ 
 It is therefore pre-eminently Brotherly love, (piXaScXcpla,^ 
 which the apostle, in the first instance, commends. The 
 a-ctivity of Christians is not, indeed, to be confined to 
 
 iRom. xiii. 8. ^l Cor. x. 24-33 ; 1 Cor. xiii. 5. 
 
 3 Phil. ii. 4. ^Phil. i. 21-26. n Cor. ix. 12. 
 
 «1 Cor. X. 23. M Cor. iv. 10, 13. ^Ga\. vi. 10, 
 
 »Rom. xii. 10; 1 These, iv. 9. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 263 
 
 those of their own persuasion, but they deserve their first 
 affection, and though sympathy is to be withheld from 
 none, and efforts are to be made to bring all to a 
 knowledge of the truth, still, in the nature of things, it 
 would be unreasonable to expect that their intercourse 
 with the enemies of Christ can be so intimate and 
 affectionate as with His friends. Indeed, there are those, 
 Paul suggests, whom it is desirable to avoid, those with 
 whom it would serve no good purpose to hold communi- 
 cation.^ He even goes the length of commanding the 
 Thessalonians, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, " to 
 withdraw themselves from every brother that walketh 
 disorderly." ^ For, as he says to the Corinthians, what 
 communication hath light with darkness, and what 
 concord hath Christ with Belial? ^ " Have no fellowship," 
 he writes to the Ephesians, " with the unfruitful works of 
 darkness, but rather reprove them." * 
 
 n. 
 
 So far we have been discussing the nature and ground 
 of brotherly love according to the apostle. We now 
 proceed to examine in more detail its chief forms or 
 manifestations in human society. 
 
 1. JiLstice obviously is the first and most fundamental 
 form of Christian love in its social manifestation. In 
 any code of ethics worthy of the name, whether definitely 
 Christian or not, this is recognized as the supreme virtue 
 man owes to his fellows, although the content of the 
 term varies. The higher the plane of such a system of 
 ethics, the larger and more adequate is the conception of 
 what justice implies. Especially noteworthy is Plato's 
 
 ^Rom. xvi. 17. ^2 Thess. iii. 6. 
 
 32 Cor. vi. 14-18. "^Eph. v. 7, 11. 
 
264 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 delineation of the just man compelled to die on account 
 of his firmness in cleaving to justice, a martyr for 
 righteousness' sake. In the Old Testament, and pre- 
 eminently in the writings of the prophets, an essential 
 element of true religion is to do justly.^ The Priestly 
 Code provided carefully for the observance of justice 
 between man and man. This ancient love of justice in 
 the Hebrew race is in deep and essential harmony with 
 the spirit of the Sermon on the Mount. The tendency of 
 modern ethical systems is to regard justice as devotion 
 to the great ends and aims of humanity, the reaUzation 
 of the perfect social state. In this comprehensive sense 
 it goes beyond the narrower meaning which in Christian 
 ethics it more generally receives. In the Christian love 
 of our neighbour the virtue of justice consists, first of all, 
 in respect for others. This implies proper regard for all 
 that our neighbour possesses of natural gifts and for the 
 moral position to which he has attained in life, whether 
 as the result of Christian influence or otherwise. Por it 
 is God who has given to each his natural capacity as 
 means for the highest good. This Christian consideration 
 for others finds expression in St. Peter's injunction to 
 " honour all men," and in the closely allied precept of 
 St. Paul, " in honour preferring one another." ^ It is the 
 humanity in all men that the Christian is to respect. 
 As Kant would have said, it is reverence for the worth 
 of man as man which is the first real principle of 
 morality — respect for the law which is within each man.^ 
 This virtue of respect regarded on its other side is- 
 modesty, thinking soberly of oneself.* All true self-love, 
 as we have already seen, involves an affirmation of one'a 
 
 ^ Micah vi. 8. ^ j^qjh^ ^ii. 10. 
 
 ^'Kant, Metaphpsic of Morals (Abbott's Trang.), p. 313. 
 
 *Roin. xii. 3. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 265 
 
 own worth. In respecting others, we really respect 
 ourselves. We are to see in others the possibility of the 
 manhood which we would realize in our own lives. 
 Looking at another's character helps us rightly to 
 estimate our own, and conversely. "Be of the same 
 mind one towards another; mind not high things, but 
 condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your 
 own esteem." ^ For love vaunteth not itself, is not 
 puffed up.^ 
 
 Negatively, this duty of justice towards men takes the 
 form of refraining from everything in thought, word, or 
 act that may injure our neighbour. After enumerating 
 the commandments, " thou shalt not," the apostle adds, 
 " love worketh no ill to his neighbour." ^ Covetousness, 
 stealing, lying, as well as all bitterness, wrath, anger, 
 clamour, and evil-speaking, with all malice,* are to be put 
 far from us. Positively, justice freely yields everything 
 which our neighbour has a right to claim, especially that 
 deference and honour which men in their various ranks 
 and positions in life owe to one another. Writing to the 
 Romans, who might naturally feel the irksomeness of 
 observing those ranks and distinctions which formed a 
 marked feature of Roman ofi&cialism, Paul says : " Render 
 to all their dues ; tribute to whom tribute is due ; custom 
 to whom custom ; fear to whom fear ; honour to whom 
 honour." ^ Religion does not absolve you from the 
 common duties which are demanded of you in your 
 several stations. Let it never be said that Christians are 
 less dutiful than others or are lacking in those obser- 
 vances which are imposed by the social and political 
 constitution to which they belong. In regard to the- 
 legal relationships in which Christians stand to others^ 
 
 iRom. xii. 16. ^1 Cor. xiii. 4. ^'Rom. xiii. 10. 
 
 *Eph. iv. 25-31. ^'Rom. xiii. 7. 
 
266 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 they are not only to act with honesty, but with a proper 
 sense of loyalty and uprightness.^ Let there be integrity 
 in the minutest details. Let no man go beyond or 
 defraud his brother in any matter.^ While the master is 
 to have regard to justice and fairness, not showing 
 favouritism or partiality, the servant is to render obedi- 
 ence, not with eye-service, as a man-pleaser, but in 
 singleness of heart, fearing God.^ 
 
 Here perhaps we can best consider the apostolic 
 injunction to Christian men not to go to law with one 
 another before heathen judges. Let them settle their 
 own disputes among themselves, he says to the Corin- 
 thians.* The Greeks were naturally a litigious people. 
 " They were not only quarrelsome, but they seemed to 
 derive an excitement pleasant to their frivolous nature in 
 the suspense and uncertainty of cases before the courts."^ 
 The Corinthian converts, it would seem, had not discarded 
 this taste, and were in danger, through the exercise of 
 this habit, not only of marring the feeling of brotherhood 
 which ought to exist among Christians, but by their 
 unseemly wrangling of bringing disrepute upon their 
 religion. There was, to his mind, something incongruous 
 in a brother going to law with a brother. What was 
 their profession of brotherhood worth if Christians could 
 not suffer a little wrong and exercise some degree of 
 mutual forbearance ? Besides, what would the heathen 
 think of them if they must call in the unbeliever to 
 settle their disputes? As the real cause of all such 
 litigiousness is the spirit of enmity, so he sees that the 
 real cure of wrangling lies not in any outward restraint 
 that can be laid on the wrongdoer, but in meekness, 
 
 ^Col. iv. 1. MThesa. iv. 6, 
 
 3Col. iii. 22; iv. 1. M Cor. vi. 1-11. 
 
 ^Dods, 1 Ep. to Cor. Expositor's Bible, p. 131. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 267 
 
 gentleness, and unworldliness on the part of those who 
 suffer wrong. 
 
 This apostolic injunction, while it was obviously 
 appropriate on account of both the novel social condition 
 of the early Christians and the character of the heathen 
 law courts, can scarcely be regarded as a precept of 
 universal validity. In all civilized communities there 
 now exists an established order of justice, and in the 
 complex condition of social and commercial life of the 
 present day there are cases which can be dealt with and 
 decided only before proper legal tribunals instituted for 
 the purpose. The spirit of the precept, however, remains 
 good for all time ; and if there was more Christian 
 forbearance and less desire to insist upon one's rights and 
 proceed to extremities, much injustice and wrong would 
 be prevented or removed. It may be needful at times 
 for the Christian to contend for justice, and even to 
 maintain his private rights; but, as Hoffding has ob- 
 served, " it marked a great ethical advance when for the 
 first time the position was taken, it is better to suffer 
 wrong than to do wrong." ^ 
 
 But justice, in the apostle's view, is not confined to 
 acts. Speech and thought must be just also. Brotherly 
 love is manifested in truthfulness and in right perceptions 
 and judgments.^ We owe to others veracity. Speak 
 every man truth with his neighbour, for we are members 
 one of another.^ Even when the motive is good there 
 can be no greater social disservice than to fail in truth- 
 fulness. "The well-meant lie builds up a sham world, 
 whose ruins may bury the fool that planned it as well as 
 the weakling for whom it was planned." * Lying is not 
 only unjust to others — a social disservice — it is rmjust 
 
 '^EtUh, p. 412. 2piiii. i, 9^ 10. 3Eph. iv. 25. 
 
 * Mackintosh, Christian Ethics, p. 133. 
 
268 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 to ourselves — a wrong to the deeper self, the new man 
 in Christ. " Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have 
 put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the 
 new man." ^ As has been often pointed out, it is possible 
 to lie without words, by acts, gestures, or even by silence. 
 Equivocation, dissimulation, exaggeration or suppression 
 of facts, are all covered by the apostolic command ; and 
 perhaps even, as has been suggested, unsound workman- 
 ship, shoddy, veneer of every description, as well as 
 hypocrisy, unreality, and counterfeiting. The practice 
 of deceit was not uncommon among the Greeks, though 
 fidelity to oaths was regarded by them as the most 
 elementary part of justice and perjury as the most 
 heinous of crimes.^ Veracity could scarcely be said to 
 be a prominent Hebrew virtue. There was therefore 
 abundant need for Paul's insistence upon this primary 
 duty among the semi-barbarian inhabitants of Ephesus 
 and Colosse, who had but recently been converted to the 
 new faith. Kant reckons veracity among the duties to 
 self, and regards falsehood as the abandonment of one's 
 dignity as a man. But while it is undoubtedly true^ 
 truthfulness is also an essential element of justice to 
 others. All human intercourse is based upon veracity, 
 and falsehood not only poisons at their source all moral 
 and spiritual relationships, but also undermines the 
 foundations of the social world. 
 
 We have already by implication answered a question 
 which has been discussed by nearly all moralists and 
 elaborately treated in most works on general ethics, viz. 
 whether a falsehood is ever permissible. Is deception 
 under all circumstances morally wrong ? or can conditions 
 arise under which it is allowable or even necessary ? 
 Many distressing cases of conscience have been cited in 
 ^ Col. iii. 9, 10. 2 See Schmidt, Ethik der Oriechen^ vol. ii. pp. 3-5. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 269 
 
 which the duties of love and truth conflict. Ethical 
 writers have taken opposite sides upon this perplexing 
 question. Augustine and Calvin, Kant and Fichte are 
 uncompromising in their attitude against the " lie of 
 necessity." Chrysostom, Jerome, Luther, Martensen, 
 Paulsen and Newman Smyth, among many others, admit 
 its adoption in extreme and exceptional cases ; although 
 Martensen rather illogically remarks that, though per- 
 missible on account of the weakness of human nature, 
 *' there is some sin in every such falsehood." ^ The instance 
 of war is frequently referred to, in which strategy and 
 deception are among its essential arts. Cases in which 
 some one dear to us is exposed to the consequences of 
 wrongdoing from which a lie would rescue him or her 
 sometimes arise. Two examples taken from literature 
 are frequently quoted as illustrations of the opposite 
 modes of dealing with this problem. On the one side 
 there is the case of Jeanie Deans in Sir Walter Scott's 
 Heart of Midlothian, who will not tell a lie to save her 
 sister's life, and on the other that of Desdemona in 
 Shakespeare's Othello, who to save her husband's honour 
 dies with a lie upon her lips. Rousseau says somewhere 
 that the strictest morality costs nothing upon paper. 
 There will be no one who will not honour Jeanie Deans ; 
 but dare we condemn others who have felt themselves 
 forced to act differently ? Perhaps no command can be 
 carried out literally to its utmost limit. Situations arise 
 in practical life where commands equally imperative 
 seem to come into conflict with one another, and the 
 individual conscience must decide each case as it occurs. 
 Truth is not always expressed by verbal accuracy or 
 categorical statement. Fiction and poetry are often truer 
 than fact, and there are obviously cases {e.g, those of 
 
 ^ Christian Ethics, vol. ii. p. 264. 
 
270 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 children, weak-minded and aged) in which accommodation 
 may not only be morally defensible, but give evidence of 
 a truer attitude of heart and mind than mere literal 
 pronouncement. Still, when all is said, it is difficult to 
 avoid the conclusion that in the last analysis lack of 
 truth in any circumstances argues a deficient trust in the 
 ultimate veracities and goodness of the universe, rests, 
 indeed, upon a practical unbelief in Divine Providence, 
 which can make " all things " work together for good to 
 those who love God. We need not always speak. But 
 when moral interests demand we must speak truth, 
 although always wisely and under the motive of love. 
 The apostle does not discuss the question. It is enough 
 for him to lay down the general maxim — speak the truth 
 in love^ where the emphasis is on both the nouns. 
 Courage is to exist side by side with kindliness. Love 
 is to be the element in which truth is to be spoken, and 
 speaking truth is to be a manifestation of love. Tact, 
 courtesy, graciousness, consideration, simple fairness, com- 
 bined with loyalty to all high interests, the avoidance of 
 flattery on the one hand and harshness on the other, are 
 all embraced and harmonized in this beautiful apostolic 
 maxim. 
 
 Closely connected with truthfulness is the duty of 
 forming just judgments of our fellow-men. It is no easy 
 matter fairly and correctly to estimate human character. 
 Life is so complex, the motives which actuate men are so 
 diverse and mixed, intention and performance so different, 
 that it is as difficult to know others as it is to know 
 ourselves. Yet as social beings knit together by mani- 
 fold ties it is impossible to avoid the task of judging, nor 
 is it desirable that we should shirk it. "We, who are 
 many, are one body in Christ and severally members one 
 ^Eph. iv. 15. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 271 
 
 of another.^ Self -judging is an ethical necessity for our 
 own good, judging of others indispensable for others' 
 good, and the good of the whole. Only thus can a high 
 and vigorous tone be maintained and apathy avoided; 
 for, as the apostle told the lethargic Corinthians, if we 
 judged ourselves we should not be judged.^ When Paul 
 writes to the Romans, "But why dost thou judge thy 
 brother ? or why dost thou set at naught thy brother ? 
 for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ," ^ 
 it is censoriousness, flippant criticism, contemptuousness, 
 which he condemns, and not enlightened moral judgment. 
 There were two sets of Christians in Rome. One party 
 were scrupulous about the observance of days and things. 
 The other claimed to be liberal and broad-minded, esteem- 
 ing all days alike, and believing they might eat all 
 things. The narrow Christians condemned their freer 
 brethren for doing those things from which they refrained. 
 On the other hand, the enlightened Christians despised 
 the bigotry and narrowness of the more scrupulous, and 
 even went the length of insulting their feelings by a 
 wanton indulgence in those things which they condemned. 
 Paul reproves both parties, and lays down the broad 
 principle which forbids all uncharitable judgment and 
 contemptuousness. " Let every man be fully persuaded 
 in his own mind," "We shall all stand before the judg- 
 ment seat of Christ. He asserts the supremacy of the 
 individual conscience, and bids both parties " no more 
 judge one another, but judge this rather, that no man put 
 a stumbling-block or an occasion of fall in his brother's 
 way.'' The sin of judging is the sin of the narrow- 
 minded. But the sin of the liberal-minded, which is 
 equally reprehensible, is the sin of contempt. Though 
 in this passage the apostle seems to deal only with the 
 iRom. xii. 5. ^ i Q^r. xi. 31. ^Roni. xiv. 10. 
 
272 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 negative side of judging, he does not mean that at no 
 time or in no circiimstances are we to condemn a brother's 
 conduct when it is wrong or commend it when it is right. 
 Elsewhere, in writing to the Corinthians, he says that it 
 is the spiritual man who is the true judge ; and the one 
 condition of forming a proper estimate of our brother is 
 to have the mind of Christ.^ We must endeavour to 
 dismiss all prejudice, partiality and passion — ^judging a 
 man not by earthly standards or private feelings. We 
 are to judge, not according to appearance merely, but 
 according to motive, intention and aspiration, taking a 
 man at his best and not at his worst. Above all, we are 
 to be sympathetic, putting ourselves in the position of 
 our brother, and seeking to realize the full force of the 
 temptations to which he is exposed. Erom want of 
 sympathy we are apt to pass severer judgments upon 
 an offender than are really deserved. His sins are not 
 ours, and therefore we deal unsparingly with them, and 
 thereby transgress the apostolic injunction, " Even if a 
 man be overtaken in any trespass, ye which are spiritual, 
 restore such an one in a spirit of meekness : looking to 
 thyself, lest thou also be tempted."^ Erom want of 
 sympathy also we grow intolerant and impatient, ready to 
 condemn an opponent because he is our opponent, and to 
 accuse him of misdeeds because he does not see things 
 from our point of view. In our estimate of others, love, 
 which is the soul of justice, is the condition and safe- 
 guard of proper judgment — " for love beareth all things, 
 believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all 
 things." ^ 
 
 2. Goodness, Love towards others evinces itself also 
 in goodness or kindness. y^pno-roTyi's is used of the 
 goodness of God in Eom. xii. 22, while it is used of man 
 11 Cor. ii. iii. ^Oal. vi. 1. n Cor. xiii. 7. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 273 
 
 in 2 Cor. vi. 6, and translated kindness. Be ye kind to 
 one another, tender-hearted (ylveaOe Se ek aXX^/Xoup 
 jQoi/o-To/, €u<T'7rXay)(}/oi), writes the apostle to the Ephe- 
 sians.^ Kindness may be distinguished from goodness, 
 as a potency is from an active principle, yet the dis- 
 tinction is not carefully observed by the apostle. In 
 general it is a kindly disposition of heart towards men, 
 and a sympathetic endeavour, according to one's ability, to 
 promote their good. It is an essential element of love. 
 This was a characteristic trait of Christ, and, both in 
 speech and action, is a mark of the Christian, It takes 
 the twofold form of Sympathy and Service. 
 
 (1) In the form of Syrrvpathy it is a readiness to enter 
 into the experiences of others. " Charity suffereth long 
 and is kind ; it rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in 
 the truth," " weeping with those that weep, and rejoicing 
 with those that rejoice." It is, however, no mere natural 
 instinct, but grows out of the Christian consciousness of 
 organic union in the body of Christ. " "When one 
 member suffers, all the members suffer with it." ^ A 
 thrill of joy or sorrow runs through the whole spiritual 
 community, and we are participators in each other's 
 gladness and grief. Paul himself presents a fine instance 
 of this delicate sympathy. His is the care of all the 
 churches, and his sensitive heart responds to every 
 experience of his brethren. Nothing that concerns them 
 is a matter of indifference to him. If he hears of their 
 advancement in grace, he is lifted up ; if he learns of 
 their declension, he is cast down.^ Their gain is his, 
 their loss is his also. The varying spiritual fortunes of 
 the whole Christian society are mirrored in his soul, and 
 constitute a real and vital part of his own personal life. 
 
 lEph. iv. 32. nCor. xii. 26. 
 
 3 1 Cor. i. 4 ; Rom. x. 2 ; 2 Cor. ii. 1-5 ; Phil. iii. 14. 
 
 S 
 
274 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 ( 2 ) Service or practical beneficence is the natural 
 outcome of sympathy. Those who are redeemed by the 
 love of Christ become agents of love, ministers who 
 gladly dispense the riches of His grace to others. In 
 this gracious ministry the Christian is to be ready, as 
 Paul tells the Corinthians he himself was, "to spend and 
 be spent," dedicating to it all his endowments and 
 possessions.^ We are to serve one another in love, using 
 the liberty into which we have been called not for self- 
 gratification, but for others* good.^ Ever follow that 
 which is good, the Apostle writes to the Thessalonians, both 
 among yourselves and to all men.^ It is not enough to 
 refrain from seeking his own, every man must also seek 
 another's wealth.^ A tender consideration will charac- 
 terize the Christian. Privileges which a man has a right 
 to enjoy, he will gladly forego, even as Paul himself 
 did, if thereby he can advance the spiritual weal of his 
 brethren.^ This ministering love is to be exercised even 
 in those circumstances in which one is tempted to return 
 evil for evil, or exact vengeance.® The Christian is to 
 minister even to the needs of his enemy, giving him 
 meat and drink. In short, the Christian, like his Master, 
 is not to be overcome of evil, but is to overcome evil 
 with good.^ In this all-embracing principle the whole 
 duty of the man of Christ in his relations with others is 
 summed up. 
 
 The ministry of love extends over the whole realm of 
 life, and varies with every phase of need. Physical 
 necessities are to be met in the spirit of love. Paul 
 pleads repeatedly the cause of the poor and distressed, 
 and commends eloquently the grace of liberality. Giving 
 
 11 Cor. xii. 7. ^GaL v. 13. ^l Thess. v. 15. 
 
 * 1 Cor. X. 24. «1 Cor. ix. 4-12. sRom. xii. 17, 19. 
 
 7 Rom. xii. 20. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 275 
 
 is to be marked by simplicity and cheerfulness. There is 
 to be no stinting or grudging. " See that ye abound," he 
 says, " in this grace also." ^ 
 
 " Give all thou canst, high heaven rejects the lore 
 Of nicely calculated leas or more." ^ 
 
 But there are needs which material aid cannot meet — 
 disappointment, desolation, anxiety, grief — to which only 
 love can minister. The apostle, therefore, tells the 
 Corinthians that the true way to administer comfort is to 
 employ their own experience of comfort, and to seek to 
 heal their brothers' sorrow with that same consolation 
 with which they themselves were comforted of G-od.^ 
 
 But beyond all physical and moral need is the need of 
 the soul, and it is characteristic of Paul's whole view of 
 man's destiny that he lays the emphasis in the matter 
 of service upon the spiritual life. It is the duty of those 
 who have experienced the grace of Christ to administer it 
 to others, to seek the conversion (2 Cor. viii. 9), the 
 edification (Rom. xi. 19), and the spiritual enrichment of 
 their brethren. Love edifieth (1 Cor. viii. 1), and the 
 task, to fulfil which must be the endeavour of each, is 
 to edify or build up the Church (1 Cor. xiv. 12). Paul 
 exhorts the Romans to follow after the things which 
 make for peace and things wherewith one may edify 
 another.* We are to do good to all, but specially " let 
 every one of us please his neighbour for his good to 
 edification, remembering here as always the example of 
 Christ who pleased not Himself." ^ 
 
 This duty of edification is to take various forms of 
 comfort to the distressed and feeble-minded, of warning 
 
 ^2 Cor. viii. 7 ; ix. 7 ; Col. ill. 12. ^ -Wordsworth. 
 
 8 1 Cor. i. 4. * Rom. xiv. 19. 
 
 5 Rom. XV. 2, 3; 1 Thess. v. 11. 
 
276 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 especially towards the unruly,^ of support, of patience 
 and meekness, towards the fallen,^ and, above all, of 
 instruction, teaching and admonishing.^ 
 
 In all these matters the rule which the apostle lays 
 down is, that the Christian is to cultivate the spirit of 
 unselfishness, and instead of regulating his conduct 
 according to his own freedom only, or confining himself 
 to his own view of things, he is to have regard for the 
 feelings and convictions of others. All things are lawful 
 for me, but all things are not expedient : all things are 
 lawful, but all things edify not.* The great thing to 
 remember is, that we are to seek the good of others, even 
 becoming all things to all men, considering others' 
 weaknesses and prejudices, and taking care to hurt the 
 conscience of no one or in any way to create doubt.^ In 
 the matter of instructing others, we are to adapt our 
 teaching to their capacity, as Paul shows by his own 
 example when he tells the Corinthians that he fed them 
 with milk, and not with meat, because they were but 
 babes in Christ, and were not able to bear the stronger 
 nourishment.® 
 
 Both directly and indirectly we may seek to minister 
 to the good of others. 
 
 (1) Indirectly we can further the weal of our brethren 
 by example — by so living that others shall see our good 
 works, and be imitative of us. It is indeed true that in 
 an absolute sense no one, in so far as each comes short of 
 the perfect life, can present to his neighbour a complete 
 pattern of life. And if Paul bids others be followers of 
 himself, it is only in so far as he was striving for the 
 prize of the high calling of God in Christ. And in the 
 same sense he acknowledges that the Thessalonians, in so 
 
 1 1 These, v. 12, 14. ^Gal. vl 1. ^Col. iii. 16. 
 
 4 1 Cor. X. 23 ; vi. 12. '>Rom. xiv. Iff. ^1 Cor. iii. 1, 2. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 277 
 
 far as they had received the mind of God, with J07, were 
 ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia.^ 
 It is true that example alone must not be the motive of 
 the Christian life. At the same time each must carefully 
 guard his conduct, so that he may not give an occasion of 
 stumbling to others, or in any way weaken his influence 
 for good. "Let no man," writes Paul to Timothy, 
 " despise thy youth, but be thou an example of believers 
 in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in 
 purity."^ Schleiermacher ^ raises the question whether 
 we can properly speak of a special duty to give a good 
 example. " Materially," he says, " example is nothing. 
 One should not do for the sake of example what one 
 would not otherwise do ; but in everything that one does 
 one cannot but be aware of one's influence.'' Rothe also 
 says: "With regard to the contents of our action, the 
 thought of our influence upon others ought not to weigh 
 with us, but the form of our action must be governed by 
 the effects it may have."* This seems to us to be a 
 distinction without a difference. The Christian life must 
 never be merely a means to an end. Much less may it 
 be 'a theatrical display or ostentatious performance, as 
 with the Pharisees who prayed and gave alms in order to 
 exhibit to others an example of holiness. We are to live 
 a holy life, because it is good in itself and apart from all 
 benefit which may accrue to ourselves or others thereby. 
 Every kind of life tells indeed upon the world, for good 
 or for evil. We cannot withhold our influence. While, 
 therefore, the supreme motive of well-doing must be to 
 please God, to be that which God has called us to be in 
 
 1 1 Thesa. i. 7. 2 j xim. iv. 12. 
 
 ^ Schieiermacher, CkristL Sitfe; Beitr. a. 142. 
 
 *Kothe, Theol. Ethik. Bd. iii. s. 459. Rothe follows Fichte in this 
 distiQction. 
 
278 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 our particular place and calling, it will be both an 
 encouragement to good and a deterrent to evil to know 
 that our conduct is affecting our fellow-men. Often the 
 most effective example is given unconsciously, just as the 
 rose exhales its finest perfume without effort, as the light 
 gives forth its radiance simply by being what it is. 
 
 (2) Directly J each is to strive according to his ability 
 and opportunity to promote the improvement of his 
 neighbour's spiritual condition by means of instruction, 
 exhortation, warning. The exhortation to Timothy, to be 
 instant in season and out of season, refers more especially 
 to him whose office is the care of souls. But the 
 requirement — that we should redeem the time, make use 
 of every opportunity, neglecting no occasion to impress 
 the truth of Christ upon our fellow-men, making ourselves, 
 as Paul did, a servant of all, that we may gain the more 
 — is of universal application.^ Though Paul in his 
 pastoral epistles gives special advice to those who are 
 more particularly engaged in what we would now call the 
 work of the ministry, he assumes everywhere that the 
 first and most important duty of every man is to bring 
 his brethren to Christ, and that his whole life must be 
 dominated by this aim. In this business we are not to 
 be slothful, but fervent in spirit, serving the Lord.^ 
 
 3. Love to others is manifested, lastly, in the form of 
 Patience, ixaKpoQvfxlay which signifies the long-suffering 
 toleration not only of our neighbour's intellectual and 
 moral shortcomings, but of his actual hostility towards 
 our personal views and mode of life. " Charity suffereth 
 long and is kind." ^ The duty of the Christian, as Paul 
 reminds Titus, " is to speak evil of no man, but to be 
 gentle, showing all meekness unto all men." * 
 
 UCor. ix. 19. 8 Rom. xii. 11. 
 
 M Cor. xiii. 4. *TituB iii. 2. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 279 
 
 Patience may be regarded in its twofold aspect of 
 forbearance and peacedbleness, both of which are com- 
 mended by the apostle. 
 
 (1) Forbearance was a marked feature of Paul himself. 
 It is noteworthy that he who was distinguished by a 
 wonderful concentration of zeal and intensity of ardour 
 should insist upon toleration. And it is a further 
 evidence of the wealth and manysidedness of his character 
 that he thus combined in his own person strong 
 vehemence and gentle forbearance. Notwithstanding his 
 uncompromising determination, as exhibited in his with- 
 standing Peter, and his disagreement with Barnabas in 
 reference to Mark,^ he had a most tender regard for the 
 feelings and prejudices of others. Two modern English 
 writers have dwelt specially upon this feature of the 
 apostle's character. Newman ^ says "Paul was one of 
 those saints . . . who, while they themselves stand secure 
 in the blessedness of purity and peace, can follow in 
 imagination the ten thousand aberrations of pride, passion, 
 and remorse. , . . The common nature of the whole 
 race of Adam spoke in him with an energetical presence, 
 with a sort of bodily fulness, always under the sovereign 
 command of divine grace, but losing none of its real 
 freedom and power because of its subordination. And 
 the consequence is that, having the same nature so 
 strong within him, he is able to enter into human nature 
 and to sympathize with it, with a gift peculiarly his 
 own." And in similar terms Dean Stanley speaks of the 
 remarkable union of qualities in the character of Paul. 
 "He had that capacity for throwing himself into the 
 position and feelings of others — that intense sympathy in 
 the strength of which, as has been truly said, he had a 
 thousand friends, and loved each as his own soul, and 
 ^ Acts IV. 36. ^SermOTis on Various Occcwton*, p. 106. 
 
280 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 seemed to live a thousand lives in them, and died a 
 thousand deaths when he must quit them." ^ Notwith- 
 standing the manifold plots and misrepresentations of his 
 enemies, Paul preserves a disposition of confident trust. 
 Cognisant of the party strife that is rife at Corinth, he is 
 not suspicious. He readily forgives what was unfair to 
 himself. He writes to the Galatians, " Ye have not 
 injured me at all,"^ though at this very time he was 
 apprehensive that through the mischief-making of the 
 Judaizers his labour might be in vain. He is sensitively 
 afraid of causing pain. He called God to record that it 
 was " to spare " his erring converts that he had not 
 visited them when he intended.^ No greater instance of 
 forbearance can be adduced than when he says to 
 Philemon,^ *' I might have such confidence in Christ as to 
 command, but for love's sake I rather 'beseech" Infiuence 
 takes the place of rule, and charity rather than authority 
 holds the sceptre. Perhaps, as Dean Howson says,^ *' the 
 most remarkable of all the instances of the apostle's 
 forbearance is the passage in which he speaks of those at 
 Kome who 'preached the Christ of contention,' and 
 ' sought to add affiiction to his bonds/ ' Notwithstand- 
 ing,' he says, 'everyway, Christ is preached'; and he 
 * therein rejoices,' yea, and * will rejoice.' " ® We have 
 already noted how he bore with the weakness and 
 ignorance of the Corinthians, adapting his instruction to 
 their capacity, feeding them with the milk of babes 
 instead of strong meat.^ To the weak he became as 
 weak that he might gain the weak, and indeed he was 
 
 ^ Dean Stanley, Sermons and Essays on the Apostolic Age, pp. 167-9. 
 2 Gal. iv. 12. 3 2 Cor. i. 23. ■* Philemon 8, 9. 
 
 * Howson, The Character of St. Paid, to whom we are indebted for 
 some of the remarks in this section. 
 «Phil. i. 16, 18. nCor. iii. 2. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 281 
 
 made all things to all men that he might by all means 
 save some.^ This spirit of tolerance is further illustrated 
 in the recommendation to the stronger party in Rome 
 that, while maintaining their own Christian liberty, they 
 should bear with the scruples of the weak ; ^ and also in 
 his injunction to deal mercifully with the erring. " Be 
 considerate and forgiving/' he writes to the Galatians, "if 
 any man be overtaken in a fault, ye who are spiritual 
 restore such an one in the spirit of meekness." ^ 
 
 (2) Peacedbleness is the other aspect of patience which 
 the apostle commends. "If it be possible as much as 
 lieth in you live peaceably with all men." This temper 
 discloses itself not only in striving for unity and the 
 avoidance of everything that creates difference and dis- 
 sension — endeavouring to keep the unity of the spirit 
 in the bond of peace,^ but also in the spirit of reconcilia- 
 tion and readiness to forgive,. " forbearing one another 
 and forgiving one another, if any have a quarrel against 
 any; even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye." The 
 Christian is to go even further. " Bless them which 
 persecute you, bless and curse not, avenge not yourselves, 
 but rather give place unto wrath." ^ In regulating the 
 intercourse of Christians with unbelievers Paul sets up 
 the simple principle of friendliness, peaceableness and 
 love, even towards slanderers and persecutors, and is 
 thus true to the example of Christ. "As we have 
 opportunity let us do good ,to all men." He bids his 
 converts think what their heathen neighbours will be 
 likely to say. Consideration for them is to be a spur 
 to every individual to press towards perfection. " The 
 only passage in which he issues a curt command to be 
 entirely separate from the servants of Belial (quoting 
 
 1 1 Cor. ix. 22. ^Rom, xiv. 1 ff. ^QdX, vL 1. 
 
 4 Phil. ii. 23; Eph. iv. 2. ^Bom. xii. 14, 19. 
 
282 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Old Testament texts in support of what he says) is so 
 entirely without connection with the context that its 
 genuineness has been called in question." ^ The sagacity 
 of the apostle's advice to his brethren in various localities 
 cannot but impress us when we remember their close 
 relationship with and dependence upon their unbelieving 
 neighbours in the complex social conditions of the Eoman 
 empire. The Christian may associate fearlessly with 
 sinners as long as his conscience does not suffer hurt. 
 Paul would not have a Christian husband or wife separate 
 from an unbelieving partner in life. " For what knowest 
 thou, wife, whether thou shalt save thy husband ? or 
 how knowest thou, man, whether thou shalt save thy 
 wife ? " ^ They may quietly take part in the activity 
 and intercourse, and even share the hospitality of their 
 heathen neighbours.^ But amid all their earthly associa- 
 tions, at once unavoidable and salutary, they must never 
 forget their high calling, living blameless and harmless, 
 the sons of God, without rebuke in the midst of a crooked 
 and perverse nation, among whom they are to shine like 
 the stars, holding forth the word of life.* 
 
 What, it may be asked in conclusion, is the real /o?is 
 et origo of this command of love as the sum of the ethical 
 ideal in relation to others ? Here we are thrown back 
 upon the norm or standard of moral conduct to which we 
 have already referred. In Galatians v. 6 the apostle lays 
 the foundation of all such behaviour in the unity and 
 equality of all men in Christ. " In Jesus Christ neither 
 circumcision availeth anything nor uncircumcision, but 
 faith which worketh by love " ; or, as he puts it in the 
 following chapter, " in Christ Jesus neither circumcision 
 availeth anything nor uncircumcision, but a new creature." 
 
 ^ Wernle, Beginnings of Chriatianity^ vol. i. p. 208. 
 
 2 1 Cor. vii. 15, 16. M Cor. x. 27. ''PhiL ii. 16. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO OTHERS 283 
 
 The old relationships have passed away. The world is 
 crucified. The former differences are annulled. All are 
 one in Christ. The many are members of His body.^ 
 All stand towards Him in the same relationship. The 
 slave is Christ's freeman : the freeman is His slave. All 
 are redeemed by Christ, who died for all. All are incor- 
 porated in the Church of God,^ and are therefore brothers ^ 
 of one another. That is the source from which love to 
 our neighbour springs. It is therefore unnatural for a 
 brother to strive with a brother, or to do injury to one 
 for whom Christ died. To sin against our brethren or to 
 wound the conscience of any is to sin against Christ 
 Himself.^ 
 
 Those who are in Christ are called by the apostle 
 saints, dyioif' and the sacred character they bear in virtue 
 of their common fellowship in Christ is the motive to 
 loving care and affectionate service. All men belong to 
 Christ, the believing actually, and others potentially, and 
 because the Christian seeks only the things of Christ, 
 love must prevail. 
 
 iRom. xii. 5 ; 1 Cor. xii. 12. n Cor. x. 32; Col. 1. 24. 
 
 31 Cor. viii. 10, 11. *Rom. lu. 13; Rom. xv. 25. 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 
 DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 
 
 The virtues of the new life bear fruit in action, and 
 manifest themselves in every sphere of human activity. 
 Since Christ is Lord of all, no class of men, no depart- 
 ment of life is beyond His jurisdiction. Every possible 
 line of duty for the Christian radiates from one living 
 centre, and falls entirely within the circle of his religious 
 obligations. The department of Christian activity which 
 bulks most largely in Paul's teaching is the life of the 
 Christian community. Yet the apostle does not confine 
 himself to general maxims regarding social service. He 
 defines with considerable minuteness the duties of 
 Christians as members of the particular institutions of 
 the family or household, oiKoii^ of the state, TrdkiTevfxa^ 
 and of the church, eKKkrja-la. 
 
 The natural relationship of the family is the unit 
 of society and the basis of all the wider associations 
 of humanity. The social constitution of Israel was dis- 
 tinguished by the emphasis laid upon the family. The 
 moral education of the Hebrews began with the organic 
 and social group, and only in later ages were the ideas of 
 individual rights developed.^ Even among more primitive 
 people, as has been shown by Prof. Robertson Smith in 
 
 ^See W. S. Bruce, Social Aspects of Christian Morality^ p. 49. 
 
DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 285 
 
 his book on Marriage and Kinship in Arabia, notwith- 
 standing the lax laws of marriage which existed among 
 early nations, the family relation was regarded as the 
 first source from which all the larger social groups sprung. 
 Whether society actually had its origin after the type of 
 the ancient Eoman family, as is suggested by Sir Henry 
 Maine in his Ancient Law^ or in some more primitive 
 forms, as recent research seems now to have established, 
 there seems little doubt that, whether marriage originally 
 took place by seizure or purchase, the relation of husband 
 and wife, of parents and children, which constitutes the 
 idea of the family, is the basis and starting point of the 
 moral world. Everyone begins his existence in a home. 
 He enters the world, not as an isolated individual, but 
 by descent and generation. In the family each one is 
 cradled and nourished, and through the conditions and 
 influences of the home individual character is shaped and 
 developed. That the family has a profound value for 
 the nation has been universally recognized. History 
 shows that the health or decline of a people is directly 
 traceable to the home life in which its individual men 
 and women have been trained. When the fire on the 
 hearth-stone is quenched the nation's vigour dies. The 
 strength of a state lies in the manhood of its citizens, 
 and manhood rests on the sanctity of the home. 
 
 But if, even in early times, and especially among the 
 Hebrews, and in some degree also among the Greeks and 
 Eomans, the family was an important factor in national 
 development, it has been infinitely more so since the 
 advent of Christianity. Christ has purified all our 
 natural relationships, and both by example and precept 
 has sanctified family life, so that among Christian nations 
 to-day there is no word fraught with such blessed associa- 
 tions as the word " home." If some ancient Utopias and 
 
286 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 certain of the earlier and cruder of modern socialists 
 show a tendency to regard the family as the foe of the 
 wider brotherhood of man, the latest and most enlightened 
 workers for a nobler order of society have returned to a 
 saner and wiser view. Modern sociology is at one with 
 Christianity in recognizing in the family the best pre- 
 paration for the service of the state, and the most 
 important condition of the future progress of the race. 
 Next to the teaching of the Founder of Christianity it is 
 to the precepts of St. Paul that this true appreciation 
 of family life is due. The apostle does not indeed dwell 
 at great length upon the subject. But he lays down, in 
 the two passages in which he refers to it, the obligations 
 resting upon its various members with so much wisdom 
 and clearness, and withal with so much tenderness and 
 sympathy, that his words stand for all time as a picture 
 of the ideal home, and his counsel to the several inmates 
 of the household may be elaborated and expanded, but 
 cannot well be improved upon. 
 
 The family relationship is the natural sequence of 
 marriage, which, as the apostle indicates, is the divinely 
 ordained life-union of a man and woman. "For this 
 cause shall a man leave his father and mother and shall 
 be joined unto his wife, and they two shall become one 
 flesh." ^ We have already referred, in another connec- 
 tion, to Paul's views upon marriage.^ It will not be 
 necessary, therefore, to enlarge upon the subject here. 
 It may be said Paul does not glorify marriage, but, on 
 the other hand, he does not depreciate it. He speaks of 
 it as he finds it, and among the mixed heathen population 
 of a Greek city marriage was a loveless, if not a sordid 
 relationship. In writing to the Corinthians it must be 
 remembered that Paul was not discussing the question 
 
 lEph. V. 31. «See chap. ix. p. 241 flF. 
 
DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 287 
 
 in all its bearings, but was dealing only with certain 
 questions which had apparently been addressed to him. 
 There had sprung up in the Church at Corinth certain 
 difficulties regarding marriage. One party, in accordance 
 with the Jewish notion considered marriage to be a 
 bounden duty, to neglect which was a sin. Another 
 party, composed of the Greek element, exhibited a strong 
 tendency to ascetic views on the subject, and there were 
 those who believed that the unmarried state was superior. 
 Two questions, therefore, were referred to Paul : first, 
 whether it was right to marry at all, and, second, whether 
 those who were already married, especially when one of 
 the partners was an unbeliever, ought to continue to hve 
 together. With regard to the first question Paul dis- 
 tinctly says, marriage is not on the one hand compulsory, 
 Dor on the other is it a sin. It is always permissible, 
 and, indeed, under certain conditions it is advisable. If 
 a man's nature is such that he cannot live honourably 
 and happily in the single state, then let him marry. 
 But if, on the other hand, a man has strength of will 
 and can control his physical desires he does well to 
 remain as he is. " I say, therefore, to the unmarried 
 and widows it is good for them to abide even as I." 
 " So far from believing that every man ought to marry, 
 or that married people have the advantage over the 
 unmarried, I think the opposite, and would that all men 
 were even as I myself am." He adduces two reasons for 
 this view of the matter. The first is that the unmarried 
 are freer from worldly distraction and are more likely to 
 be available for the work of Christ. "He that is un- 
 married careth for the things that belongeth to the Lord, 
 how he may please the Lord; but he that is married 
 careth for the things that are of the world, how he may 
 please his wife." The second reason is that, in view of 
 
288 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 the near approach of the end of the world and the dis- 
 tress which must inevitably come, it is better not to 
 contract fresh connections. 
 
 With regard to the second question, as to whether 
 those who had become Christians should abandon their 
 old relations and separate themselves from unbelieving 
 partners, Paul lays down the decisive principle, that the 
 Christian is not to seek divorce merely on account of a 
 difference of faith. " Let every man abide in the same 
 calling wherein he was called." It may be that the 
 believer, through his very union, may be able to win his 
 partner to his own faith. 
 
 Paul's view generally seems to be the practical 
 common-sense one that marriage is good for some and 
 celibacy for others. He is far from favouring the ascetic 
 tendencies which were beginning already to appear in his 
 day. He has no idea that marriage was a morally 
 inferior state, and in his letter to Timothy he denounces 
 as a suggestion of the devil the teaching that prevailed 
 among the Essenes and early Gnostic sects that marriage 
 and the procreation of children were unworthy of those 
 who desired to pursue a holy life.^ It has been some- 
 times alleged that Paul, being unmarried himself, takes a 
 biassed view of the subject, but the whole point of the 
 passage in Corinthians is that he positively declines to 
 judge others by himself. He expressly says, what is 
 good for one man may not be good for another. God 
 has not made us all alike. Each must judge what is 
 best for him. " Every man hath his proper gift of God, 
 one after this manner, another after that." 
 
 The discussion of the subject in Corinthians must be 
 taken in connection with his utterances in Ephesians, 
 where he offers a worthier and more exalted view of the 
 M Tim. iv. 1-3. 
 
DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 289 
 
 wedded life. Here he is dealing with marriage as a 
 divine mystery in its ideal form, and not with it merely 
 as a matter of expediency. He regards it as a sacred 
 relationship of mutual respect and affection, and sees in 
 it the most perfect symbol of the union between Christ 
 and His Church.^ In the light of this passage we are pre- 
 cluded from assuming that the apostle regarded marriage 
 merely as an institution for the avoidance of sin ; nor 
 can we conclude that he held that the single life was a 
 holier state than the wedded life.^ If it was his idea 
 that he himself could serve Christ better single, and that 
 on the whole the unmarried were in a more favourable 
 position to devote themselves to the affairs of God, we 
 must remember that in writing to Timothy he takes for 
 granted that a bishop will be a married man, the father 
 of a family, the head of a household;^ and, assuming 
 this as the natural order, he offers counsel to bishops, 
 deacons, and their wives, as to their deportment. In his 
 Life of St. Paul, Kenan goes out of his way to express 
 his distaste for what he calls the apostle's ostentatious 
 indifference to women and his disparagement of marriage; 
 at the same time he hints that Paul himself was possibly 
 married to Lydia of Philippi, on the strength of the 
 expression, " our true yoke fellow." * A more gratuitous 
 assumption, insinuating duplicity, if not immorality on 
 the part of the apostle, has rarely been made by a 
 respectable scholar. If the brilliant French critic's 
 
 ^Eph. V. 22-33. 
 
 *Cp. Reinhard, System der Ckristl. Moral, iii. p. 330 ; Schmid, Christl. 
 Sittenhkre, p. 780 ff. ; Wuttke, Handbiich der Ghristl. Sittenlehre, ii. 461. 
 
 3 1 Tim. iii. 2-5. 
 
 * Saint Paid, chap. iv. p. 76. Lydia's name is not mentioned in Phil. 
 iv. 2, and even although the word ^^^vye does refer to her, it does not 
 necessarily mean " wife." 
 
290 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 conclusions with regard to other Biblical matters rest on 
 no better foundation, they may be appraised at their true 
 worth. More than once Paul distinctly leads us to infer 
 that he was unmarried. In a well-known passage, he 
 claims the right which the other apostles exercised of 
 taking a wife or sister with him on his missionary 
 journeys.^ But this privilege, as well as the right of 
 support, he would not use, " lest," as he said, " we should 
 hinder the gospel of Christ." So far from speaking 
 slightingly of woman, the tender and touching salutations 
 at the close of several of his epistles, in which many 
 women are affectionately named, refute such a suggestion. 
 We have only to compare the place which women held 
 in the Pagan world with the position she obtained in the 
 Christian Church of PauFs day to realize the mighty 
 revolution effected by the teaching of the apostles, and by 
 none more than that of Paul. " N^o longer was woman 
 man's toy or slave — a mere luxury or appendage to his 
 establishment " — she had a soul, a responsibility equal to 
 man's, and therefore a life to work out for herself. Each 
 man and each woman must stand alone before God, and, 
 himself and herself, give account of the life received 
 from God. The common salvation was accessible to all 
 alike, and was offered to all on equal terms, and partaking 
 of which all become brethren, one with Christ and one 
 with each other. There was neither Greek nor Barbarian, 
 male nor female, bond nor free. All stood on a level of 
 privilege and duty. " It is impossible for us now to 
 realize the astonishment with which these ideas, sub- 
 versive of all previous notions which obtained in heathen 
 society, must have been received.*'^ And it is not 
 wonderful that in Corinth, as elsewhere, women who had 
 
 1 1 Cor. ix. 5. 
 
 ^Dods, Expositor's Bihle^ 1 Epistle to Corinthians, p, 246. 
 
DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 291 
 
 been awakened to their own personal responsibility and 
 equal right to the highest privileges of men should be in 
 danger of misusing their new-found liberty, and forgetting 
 wherein lay the secret of their power. To this subject 
 Paul refers in that much-disputed chapter in Corinthians^ 
 where he speaks of the practice which had come into 
 vogue of Christian women laying aside the veil — the 
 symbol in eastern countries of female delicacy and 
 reserve — and coming boldly forward in the public 
 assembly. The movement is unbecoming and indelicate 
 Paul in effect says. Wature itself has taught that there 
 is a difference between men and women. Her physical 
 constitution, her slighter and more graceful form, her 
 quicker intuitions and warmer sympathies, all indicate 
 that woman has her distinct place and work in the world, 
 just as man has his, and she will exert her truest influence 
 for good not by usurping man's place, but by filling her 
 own and using the gifts which are peculiarly hers. In 
 one sense indeed woman is equal with man. In relation 
 to Christ there is no distinction. Unitedly the husband 
 and wife are parts of one another. "Neither is the 
 man without the woman, nor the woman without the 
 man in the Lord." Both represent Christ, but in their 
 own way. The head of every man is Christ, and the head 
 of the woman is the man. She is God's glory by being 
 man's glory. She serves God by serving man, and help- 
 ing him to realize his true self ; and she never fulfils her 
 destiny so faithfully as when she employs her womanly 
 gifts according to the sphere and position allotted to her 
 for the enrichment and elevation of manhood. Let her 
 not, therefore, be anxious to remove the veil. It is the 
 symbol, not of her degradation, but of her honour. It is 
 the badge, not of weakness, but of power. It betokens 
 11 Cor. xi. 1-16. 
 
292 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 that delicacy and sympathy of nature, that modesty and 
 
 grace of spirit, in virtue of which she is fitted for the 
 
 gentler ministries of life rather than the rougher work of 
 
 the world. In her own sphere she reigns supreme. She 
 
 rules hy that which is peculiarly her own — by the power 
 
 of sacrifice and love. Her part is not inferior to that of 
 
 V man. It is different, and when she is faithful to her own 
 
 ^nature and gifts she will not only obtain from man that 
 
 . ^ reverence and esteem which are her due, but will exercise 
 
 ^* those gracious influences upon life which -the world could 
 
 ill afford to lose. 
 
 It is the same jealous regard for woman's honour that 
 inspires the apostle's counsels with respect to female 
 attire and adornment contained in his first epistle to 
 Timothy. " Let women adorn themselves in modest 
 apparel with shamefacedness and sobriety, not with 
 braided hair and gold or pearls or costly raiment."^ 
 Every thing that might avert attention from the worship 
 of God was to be avoided. Here the apostle puts his 
 finger upon an evil which was apparently growing with 
 the spread of the faith. The simplicity of the early 
 Church was passing away, and the spirit of the world 
 was creeping in. Clement of Alexandria abounds in 
 protests against the extravagance in dress common in his 
 day ; and Chrysostom, commenting on this very passage, 
 inveighs against the luxury and display manifested in 
 the congregations of his time. " What ! " he exclaims, 
 " do you approach God to pray with broidered hair and 
 ornaments of gold ? Are you come to a ball ? to a 
 marriage-feast ? to a carnival ? There such costly things 
 might have been seasonable; here not one of them is 
 wanted. You are come to pray, to ask pardon for your 
 sins. Away with such hypocrisy ! This is the attire of 
 1 1 Tim. ii. 8-12. 
 
DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 293 
 
 those who act upon the stage. Nothing of this kind 
 becomes a modest woman, who should be adorned with 
 sobriety." ^ " You are Christian women," says Paul, 
 "and the profession you have adopted is reverence 
 towards God" {Oeoa-e^ecav). This profession you have 
 made known to the world. It is necessary, therefore, 
 that those externals of which the world takes cognisance 
 should not give the lie to your profession. Eeverence 
 God by coming before Him clothed both in body and soul 
 in fitting attire. Let your bodies be freed from vulgar 
 display. Let your souls be adorned with good worksl 
 
 In two passages — the one in Ephesians and the other 
 in Colossians — Paul deals more particularly with the 
 reciprocal obligations of the members of the family. We 
 do not know what special circumstances may have led 
 him to dwell upon the domestic duties in these almost 
 contemporaneous epistles. The section in Ephesians is 
 somewhat fuller than the corresponding passage in Colos- 
 sians, and was probably written before it. The verbal co- 
 incidences and variations in the two epistles are instructive. 
 The precepts given are simple and natural, showing that 
 domestic happiness is made up of very homely elements^ — 
 Love, obedience, respect : these are the conditions which 
 constitute the ideal home. Paul recognizes three ordinary 
 relationships as making up the family — Husband and 
 wife, Parents and children, servant and master. 
 
 1. Husband avd wife. The duty of the wife is 
 subjection, and it is enforced on the ground that it is 
 " fitting in the Lord." That Paul does not mean by this 
 abject subordination, such as was exacted among the 
 Greeks and Komans, we may gather, if we turn to the 
 fuller section on the subject in Ephesians. There, as 
 
 ^ Quoted by Plummer in Pastoral Epistles, Expositor' 8 Bibhf p. 101. 
 ''Maclaren, Coloasiana, Expositor's BiUe, p. 336. 
 
294 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 we have already seen, marriage is regarded from a high 
 and holy point of view as being an earthly shadow of 
 the union between Christ and the Church. To Paul all 
 human relationships were formed after the pattern of 
 things in heaven, and that holy and mysterious union of 
 man and woman is fashioned in the likeness of the most 
 close and perfect union revealed to us. In the subjection 
 of the Church to Christ, love is the soul and animating 
 principle of it; and in a true marriage, love glorifies 
 obedience, every suggestion of compulsion is obliterated» 
 and reverence and joy take the place of subservience. 
 
 It is the duty of the husband to love his wife, " even 
 as Christ also loved the Church, and gave himself for it/* 
 The example of Christ, which lifts the whole relationship 
 above mere caprice or passion, is to rule, and the spirit 
 of self-sacrificing love will efface all notions of command 
 or insistence upon rights, " husbands and wives submit- 
 ting themselves one to another in the fear of God." 
 
 Marriage between Christians is regarded by Paul, as 
 Christ himself pronounced it, as indissoluble. " Unto the 
 married, I command, yet not I, but the Lord, let not the 
 wife depart from the husband. But if she depart let her 
 remain unmarried, or be reconciled to her husband ; and 
 let not the husband put away his wife." Even Christians 
 who have Jewish or heathen partners must not seek to be 
 separated from them. Let them rather carefully guard 
 their union, for, as both are one, the one is sanctified by 
 the other.^ 
 
 The exception in the case of adultery made by our 
 Lord ^ is not mentioned by the apostle, either because it 
 was self-evident or because he had no occasion to refer to 
 it. The only exception which Paul does make is that 
 in which the unbeliever of himself or herself departs. 
 n Cor. vii. 10-16. 2 Matt. v. 32. 
 
DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 295 
 
 Then nothing can be done. "A brother or sister is not 
 under bondage in such cases." ^ Whether a husband or 
 wife, thus deserted, was free to marry again, Paul does 
 not say. He does not forbid the contracting of a second 
 marriage after the loss of a first partner.^ On the 
 contrary, he distinctly says that in certain circumstances 
 it is to be recommended.^ On the whole, however, as 
 Eothe says, the apostle does not look with favour upon 
 second marriages, but seems to regard self-denial in the 
 matter of a new union as a higher state.* In the case of 
 an Episcopus or presbyter (the two words refer to the 
 same office) Paul certainly declares that the candidate for 
 such an office must be the husband of one wife (fxiag 
 yvvaiKos avYip), Without entering upon the discussion of 
 the disputed question as to the precise meaning of this 
 phrase, or examining the various interpretations that 
 have been proposed, it seems to us that the balance of 
 probability is in favour of the view that the expression is 
 meant to declare ineligible such as have contracted a 
 second marriage after the first marriage has been dis- 
 solved by death. This interpretation is reasonable in 
 itself, is in harmony with the context and in consonance 
 with what Paul says elsewhere about marriage. But 
 while this was evidently the opinion of Paul, there is 
 nothing to show that he was laying down a rule which 
 was to bind the Church for all time ; and the Protestant 
 Churches generally have considered themselves justified 
 in disregarding a direction which may have been given 
 by reason of what the apostle calls the "present distress."^ 
 
 ^ 1 Cor. vii. 15. 2 Rom. vii. 2-3. 'H Cor. vii. 9 ; 1 Tim. v. 14. 
 
 * 1 Tim. iii. 2, 12 ; v. 9 ; Titus i. 6. See Rothe, Theol. EtkiJc. iii. p. 639. 
 
 ^ Those who are interested in a fuUer discussion of this question are 
 referred to Dollinger's Hyppolitus and CallistuSy Eng. trans, pp. 129- 
 147, and to Plummer's Pastoral Epistles, Expositor's Bible, pp. 118-129. 
 
296 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 2, Parents and children. In the offspring of marriage 
 the unity of the family, which in husband and wife is a 
 unity of inner sentiment, obtains outward expression. 
 The new object of the parents' affection is the embodi- 
 ment of their own mutual love. In the child their 
 reciprocal love is realized and spiritualized. The very 
 diversity of the family enriches and deepens its unity.* 
 In the family two generations meet, and love, which is 
 the bond of union, finds its expression in the authority 
 and impartation of the elder and in the obedience and 
 receptivity of the younger. Children are the gift of God. 
 In one sense they belong to the parents, but in a higher 
 sense they are a trust from heaven committed to them 
 for the education of their immortal souls. The family 
 foreshadows the kingdom of God, and its educative pur- 
 pose belongs to its very nature. It is not an end in 
 itself, but a means to a higher end — the discipline and 
 perfecting of the spiritual life. It is therefore frequently 
 employed in Scripture as a type of the Church — the 
 germ of that kingdom which will be consummated when 
 the perfected community of the redeemed has been finally 
 realized.^ 
 
 The apostle Paul, though a childless man himself, was 
 a sympathetic student of human nature, and he recognized 
 the deep spiritual value for both parents and children 
 of their natural association. In strong language he 
 denounces those who neglect their home duties or regard 
 their households as only of secondary importance. 
 Such, he says, have denied the faith, and are worse than 
 infidels.^ It is true that the apostle has few references 
 
 ^See Hegel, Philosophy of Rights where some suggestive thoughts 
 occur as to ethical value of the family. 
 2 See W. S. Bruce, Social Aspects of Christian Morality^ p. 100. 
 8 1 Tim. V. 8. 
 
DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 297 
 
 to children,^ We miss in the account of his life and in 
 his epistles those touches of tenderness and affection 
 which are a noteworthy feature in our Lord*s ministry. 
 Beyond the injunctions in Ephesians and Colossians Paul 
 has little to say of child-life, and his allusions are chiefly 
 by way of illustration. Thus, the simple foods peculiar to 
 the period of infancy find their analogy in the elementary 
 truths — " food for babes " — which are the fit, though 
 temporary, nourishment of beginners in the faith. Also 
 childhood as a stage of human development receives 
 sympathetic treatment : " When I was a child I spake as 
 a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child, but 
 when I became a man I put away childish things." ^ In 
 one striking and long-sustained figure the entire history 
 of the Hebrew race prior to Christianity is regarded as 
 the age of childhood. The Jew was after all, he says, 
 only a child, and " the law " the attendant slave to lead 
 him to the school of Christ. Eeferring to the spiritual 
 value of an early religious environment, he reminds 
 Timothy of his godly home and early privileges, recalling 
 how from a child he had known the Scriptures,^ since he 
 had been trained under the pious influences of his grand- 
 mother Lois and his mother Eunice.^ Yet in all his 
 letters to congregations and individuals, in all the records 
 of his travels in various lands, of his intercourse with 
 friends, and of his visits to the homes of believers, there 
 is not the faintest allusion to the children, or any par- 
 ticular recognition, beyond the precepts we have men- 
 tioned, of the young life which must have been growing 
 up in Christian communities. There is one thought 
 which we owe to Paul, says a recent writer, and it is an 
 
 ^ Cp. Glover, The Gonfiict of Religions in the Early Roman Empire^ 
 p. 122. 
 2 1 Cor. xiii. 11. ^g Tim. iii. 15. *2 Tim. i. 5. 
 
298 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 important one : " If any man be in Christ, he is a new 
 creature, all things are made new." " We have to recover 
 what we lost when we outgrew the child. We must 
 regain the simplicity and frankness of children, their 
 instinctive way of believing all things and hoping all 
 things. Probably the child's habit of taking nothing for 
 granted — except the love that is all about it — is what 
 Jesus missed most in grown men," and to which He 
 refers when He speaks of the necessity of being born 
 again. Is it too much to say that Paul had that saying 
 of his Master's in his mind where he too affirms that all 
 things are new to the child ? " Every idealist and every 
 poet is a child from the beginning to the end — and some- 
 thing of this sort is the mark of the school of Jesus." ^ 
 
 The single injunction to children, though brief, is 
 decisive : " Children obey your parents." It is also 
 universal — " in all things." The apostle makes no excep- 
 tion, though here, of course, the higher law of Christ 
 must rule. The one consideration which he adduces is, 
 " for this is well-pleasing in the Lord," as the Eevised 
 Version in Colossians correctly puts it. The parallel 
 passage in Ephesians substitutes " for this is right " 
 appealing to the natural conscience. The apostle recog- 
 nizes that it is not needful, nor is it "v^ise to give reasons 
 to children. " It is right," that is enough. If we give 
 reasons we leave it open to children whether to act upon 
 them or not. In this way everything is left to their 
 pleasure. When no care is taken to cherish in children 
 the feeling of subordination they are apt to become for- 
 ward and self-opinionative.^ Obedience must not, how- 
 ever, be the result of slavish fear, but of respect and 
 reverence. The apostle quotes the fifth commandment 
 as indicating the child's proper attitude, "Honour thy 
 
 1 Glover, p. 122. ^B.e.gQl, Phil, of Eight, p. 177. 
 
DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 299 
 
 father and thy mother." The law for parents is addressed 
 to fathers, partly because a mother*s gentle sway has 
 lees need of the warning, " Provoke not your children," 
 and partly because the father in Roman law which pre- 
 vailed in Paul's time was the head of the household^ 
 and exercised absolute authority. The Eoman " Patria 
 Potestas/' a fearful instrument in the hands of a despotic 
 and masterful parent, may be said to have wounded the 
 ethical life of Eoman society at its very heart. The 
 apostolic precept uttered in the family circle with a voice 
 that bore the authority of heaven in its tones must have 
 done not a little to save the heathen home from dissolu- 
 tion, to reknit its bonds of relationship, and to purify and 
 vitalize its love. The injunction has a negative and a 
 positive side. Negatively, " Provoke not your children 
 to wrath," forbidding all unreasonable commands, capri- 
 cious restrictions, all irritable and unjust treatment, 
 which naturally produce in the young mind a sense of 
 injury and consequent rebellion. The parent's command 
 must be based upon justice and guided by affection. Its 
 object ought to be, not to rouse resentment, but to create 
 trustful and gladsome obedience. Positively, fathers are 
 to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition 
 of the Lord. iraiSela has a somewhat stern signification, 
 and refers to the discipline which comes through correc- 
 tion ; while vovQeala suggests advice, reproof, exhortation, 
 and all the intellectual and moral influences whereby a 
 young soul may be trained for life. The basis and end 
 of all culture is " in the Lord." Children, in Paul's view, 
 were to be educated for Christ. Physical training and 
 mental instruction were valuable only as a means of 
 spiritual nurture. For Paul to bring children up in the 
 chastening and admonition of the Lord meant nothing 
 
 1 Children of Roman fathers were slaves under Roman law. 
 
300 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 less than to teach them to comprehend the meaning and 
 bearing of the great spiritual truths which the Gospel 
 had brought into the world. We have but to contrast 
 Christian and heathen beliefs and aims, the hope of the 
 one and the despair of the other, to realize all Paul must 
 have meant when he enjoined Christian parents to nurture 
 their children in the Lord. To-day such religious training 
 is a commonplace, and, though often neglected, it involves 
 no great sacrifice either on the part of parents or children. 
 But in the days of Paul it must have meant for many of 
 those young lives a preparation for martyrdom, for the 
 life-long endurance of the keenest agony which cruelty 
 could inflict rather than deny the Christ who had died 
 for them. 
 
 3. Masters and servants. In considering Paul's treat- 
 ment of this relationship it must, of course, be remem- 
 bered that in his time servants were slaves, not persons 
 who had voluntarily given their work for wages. As we 
 have already remarked, Christianity did not at once break 
 the chains of bondage or fell the Upas tree of slavery. 
 But by quickening the general conscience and inspiring 
 both masters and slaves with the Christian spirit it 
 gradually created a sentiment which mitigated its horrors 
 and ultimately abolished it. This is beautifully shown 
 in Paul's letter to Philemon, whose slave, Onesimus, was 
 sent back to him by the apostle, " no longer a slave but 
 a brother beloved." Paul laid down the great principle 
 that in Christ there is neither bond nor free, and without 
 making any direct attack upon this or any other recog- 
 nized social institution allowed the truth to do its own 
 work. The apostle must have been keenly sensible of 
 the evils of slavery. It has been estimated that in the 
 Koman world of Paul's day the proportion of slaves to 
 freemen was as two to one. They often worked and 
 
DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 301 
 
 sometimes slept in chains. If a master was murdered 
 by a slave, all the slaves of the household were put to 
 death.^ It would be an endless task to recite the horrors 
 to which slaves were subject through the cruelty and lust 
 of their wealthy Eoman masters. The bloody sports of 
 the gladiatorial shows and the indecent products of the 
 Eoman stage were partly the effects and partly the cause 
 of the worst features of Eoman slavery. Eoman nobles 
 and Eoman ladies were brutalized by witnessing these 
 exhibitions, and too often went home to give vent among 
 the slaves of their own household to the passions which 
 had been aroused.^ That Paul never in so many words 
 expresses any authoritative condemnation of this system, 
 though the more remarkable when we remember his 
 ardent and sympathetic temperament, discloses at once 
 his far-seeing sagacity and his calm confidence in the 
 sufficiency of the Gospel. He was a Christian apostle, 
 not a political agitator. He believed in the ultimate 
 power of the Evangel to redeem the world from every 
 evil. His work was to bring men under the constraint 
 of love to Christ; not here and there to denounce par- 
 ticular abuses, but to infuse into men's hearts that which 
 in time would remove all abuses, because it dealt with 
 their common cause, the unfilial and unbrotherly spirit. 
 As a wise physician he directs his attention, not to 
 symptoms, but to the disease itself. As a far-seeing 
 Christian statesman he is content to work and wait. It 
 may be that in all this he was rather led by a deep- 
 seated instinct than by conscious policy. In these 
 matters there is a " power behind " which shapes the 
 whisper of the throne. And it is not in a day that the 
 
 ' As in case of Peclaniua Secundus in 61 a.d., when Paul was probably 
 in Rome, see Tacitus, AnncUSj xiv. 42-45, and elsewhere. 
 2 See Plummer, Pastoral Epistles. 
 
302 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Christian understanding is quickened to the intellectual 
 perception of the real root of evil in established institu- 
 tions. In any case we can see now that Paul was rightly 
 guided in neither preaching discontent to the slave nor, 
 in the first place, emancipation to the master, but in seek- 
 ing to win the better self in both, and thus gain a real 
 place in the world's life for that which had the promise 
 and potency of redemption for all men and institutions 
 alike. The evils which clustered around slavery — idle- 
 ness, deceit, cruelty, lust — ^he denounced unsparingly, but 
 because they were vices in themselves, not because of 
 their connection with any social institution. 
 
 The passages in Paul's letters which bear directly 
 upon the relation of masters and slaves are, of course, 
 addressed to Christians, and their scope and character 
 are determined by that fact. The counsel is seldom such, 
 as would be welcomed by the natural man. Writing to 
 servants, his first word is : " Be obedient to them that 
 are your masters, according to the flesh." It is a stern 
 command, which perhaps may have struck a chill into 
 many a slave who had embraced the Gospel in the hope 
 that he might escape from an intolerable position.^ But 
 Paul goes on to insist, it might seem to the slave still 
 more sternly, on the inward completeness of the 
 obedience, " not with eye service, as men-pleasers." Here 
 with keen insight the apostle lays his finger on the 
 natural temptations of the life of slavery — the scamping 
 of work, the outward display of diligence, the tendency to 
 superficiality and pretence, the want of fidelity and 
 thoroughness in work not immediately under the eye of 
 the master — vices not unknown even in our own day in 
 the world of toil and trade. 
 
 Over against this negative injunction the apostle 
 
 ^ See Maclaren, Colossians, p. 345. 
 
DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 303 
 
 places a positive, " but in singleness of heart " — that is, 
 with individual motive — "and fearing God," which is 
 opposed to fearing men, " with goodwill doing service to 
 the Lord and not to man," Or, as it is in Colossians: 
 "Whatever ye do, do it from the heart" — a precept which 
 covers the whole activity of man, and lifts all work up 
 from the compulsory obedience to an earthly master into 
 the sacred region of religious duty. For after all, says 
 Paul, your true master is not man, but Christ ; and all 
 you do, irksome and hard though it sometimes may seem 
 to be, is work for Christ, and in serving your earthly 
 master you are really serving Him, whom to serve is 
 freedom and blessing and ensured reward. 
 
 In writing to Timothy, somewhat later, Paul takes 
 even higher ground. He still enjoins obedience and 
 wUhng service, but adds that slaves who are Christians 
 are to count their masters worthy of all honour that the 
 name of God and the doctrine be not blasphemed,^ and 
 that even in the cases in which the masters may be 
 heathen. But when their masters are believers, they are 
 to regard them as brethren, not despising them because 
 they are their masters, but serving them, because they are 
 sharers of equal spiritual blessings. There was a danger, 
 Paul foresaw, that when a slave became a Christian, and 
 was treated by a Christian master with brotherliness, the 
 rebound from grovelling fear to terms of equality and 
 affection would prove too much for him, and contempt 
 might take the place of respectful loyalty. 
 
 But Paul does not confine the obligation of slaves to 
 the negative attitude of obedience to their masters and 
 fidelity in their work. In somewhat remarkable words 
 he commits to them a high and splendid task. It may 
 be theirs in a very special way to commend the Christian 
 n Tim. vi. 1, 2. 
 
304 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 faith, and that without relaxing their obedience or seeking 
 emancipation from their present condition. Even as they 
 are and where they are, they may actually " adorn the 
 doctrine of God their saviour in all things." ^ The fact 
 that Christianity was a religion which had been embraced 
 by the most degraded elements of society — slaves and 
 their associates — had prejudiced it in the eyes of the 
 cultured and high-born.^ " But/' says Paul, " your very 
 weakness may be your strength, and you may turn your 
 very disadvantage into an advantage, letting the power of 
 the Gospel be manifest through the very humbleness of 
 your position." It may not be much that you can 
 actively accomplish for your faith ; but you can convince 
 the world that there must be some mighty energy in a 
 religion which can make out of such unpromising material 
 upright, honest, pure, and gentle men and women. Nay, 
 that which may seem in the eyes of the world base and 
 despicable it is within your power to render fair and 
 attractive. What finer testimony could be given to the 
 beauty of the Gospel ; and just such a testimony it lay 
 within their ability to afford. Through the influence of 
 Christian slaves, in the family, in the workshop, in the 
 army, and even within the precincts of Caesar's household, 
 by the beauty of their lives and the witness of their 
 lips, not a few among the nobler classes in the early days 
 of Christianity were won to Christ.^ The care and 
 education of children were frequently left in Roman 
 households to slaves ; and if in some cases evil resulted, 
 in others blessing ensued. Nor were these the only ways 
 in which slaves were enabled to adorn the doctrine of 
 God. Not a few bondsmen and bondswomen in the first 
 
 1 Titus ii. 9, 10. ^ q^^ the weH-known taunt of Celsus. 
 
 3 See Origen, Migne. Series Graeca, xi. 476-483, quoted by Plummer, 
 Pastoral Epistles, p. 256. 
 
DUTIES IN THE SPHERE OF THE FAMILY 305 
 
 age won the martyr's crown ; thus by their deaths, even 
 more than by their lives, giving lustre to the teaching of 
 their Saviour, sealing their faith with sacrifice and 
 making it a thing of fadeless beauty.^ 
 
 It but remains to add that the apostle does not 
 confine his precepts to slaves. To masters as well he 
 gives brief but pregnant counsel. Not only are they to 
 forbear threatening,^ but they are to give to their 
 servants that which is just and equal,^ a piece of advice 
 which must have sounded strange in the ears of those 
 who were wont to look upon their slaves, not as persons 
 at all, but simply as their goods and chattels, without any 
 rights whatcA^er, to be treated according to their pleasure. 
 How far-reaching is this counsel ! It touches the whole 
 modern relationship of masters and employes to-day. If 
 in theory at least this principle is beginning to be 
 acknowledged, we owe it to those bold words of the 
 apostle ; and if much yet remains to be done to heal the 
 misunderstandings which so often arise between employers 
 and workmen, it is because as Christians we have not 
 grasped the full significance of that Pauline precept : 
 "Give that which is just and equal." Paul pleads for 
 justice, not for charity ; for equality of rights and oppor- 
 tunities as between man and man ; and on that basis 
 alone must the fabric of our social and industrial life be 
 reared. This duty of masters is enforced by the same 
 consideration as was applied to urge servants to fulfil 
 their obligations, " Ye also have a master in heaven." 
 Thus for all, in every sphere of life, for masters and 
 servants alike, Christ is set forth by the apostle as at 
 once the pattern- and plea of service. Paul does not 
 specify what is right and equitable — it is no thing of 
 
 ^ E.g. Blandina and her mistress in 177 a.d. 
 2Eph. vi. 9. 2 Col. iv. 1. 
 
 U 
 
306 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 rote, but will vary with varying circumstances ; he leaves 
 that and all details of conduct to consciences that have 
 been purified and enlightened by the Spirit of Him who, 
 though He was Lord of all, was among men as one that 
 serveth. 
 
CHAPTER XII 
 
 DUTIES IN RELATION TO THE STATE 
 
 The family may be regarded as a stage in the evolution 
 of Society, although of course it is never superseded, but 
 remains a staple element of social life. One has aptly 
 named it "the structural cell of the social organism." It 
 is the foundation of all moral relationships, and an 
 important part of its function is to educate its members 
 for their wider duties as citizens of the commonwealth. 
 
 As to the origin of the state, there has been much 
 variety of opinion. Some have held the view that it was- 
 originally an artificial relationship into which men 
 voluntarily entered, in order, on the one hand, to limit 
 their selfish instincts, and, on the other, to promote their 
 mutual advantage. This theory of " Social Contract," 
 as it has been called, which was first proclaimed by 
 Eousseau and afterwards maintained by Hobbes and 
 others, has been discarded in modern times as a 
 fiction of the imagination. The social unit is rather 
 the family than the individual. It is not of his own 
 choice that the individual becomes a member of society. 
 He is born into it. His duties arise from it. In his- 
 relations with it his life gains moral content. Only in 
 its service can he find happiness, and realize his being's 
 end and aim. 
 
308 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Since the time of Darwin, under the influence of the 
 evolutionary theory of the origin of species and the bio- 
 logical studies based upon it, it has become the vogue to 
 regard the state after the analogy of the ]iving organism. 
 In the advance from lower to higher forms of physical 
 life, the simple homogeneous unity passes into a complex 
 being, with a variety of functions and interaction of parts. 
 In the passages from the lower to the higher orders of 
 social life there appears a corresponding diversity of 
 relationship and service. Society in its earlier stages, 
 like the primitive protoplasm, is virtually structureless. 
 There is practically no variety of parts and no division 
 of labour. Every individual is engaged in the same 
 work. Each is his own provider of food, clothing, and 
 shelter. But gradually specialization begins. There 
 arises an interchange of gifts, a reciprocity of servica 
 One man cultivates the soil and produces food ; another 
 weaves and provides clothing; a third hews the timber 
 and builds dwellings. Man ceases to be a whole in 
 himself. He is only complete in his fellows^ and as he 
 serves others he serves himself.^ 
 
 But while this theory accounts for the division of 
 labour and the interdependence of the parts, it does not 
 make allowance for the idea of personality and self- 
 conscious determination which pervades the higher forms 
 of society, and is the true ethical bond of unity in the 
 state. Men are not merely automata, functions of an 
 organism. They are free living personalities united by a 
 sense of human obligation and kindredship. The state is 
 more than a physical organism. The bonds by which its 
 members are knit together are not simply composed of 
 flesh and blood. It is a community of moral aims and 
 ideals. It is dominated by a spiritual purpose. It is 
 
 ^ W. S. Bruce, Social Aspects of Christian Morality, p. 123. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO THE STATE 309 
 
 governed by ethical principles. It stands for a great 
 moral idea to the fulfilment of which all its citizens must 
 contribute.^ What Prof. Gidding calls " the social mind" 
 lies at the basis of the true state. We must not, how- 
 ever, attach any mysterious or mystic meaning to this 
 phrase. " There is no reason to suppose/' says this 
 writer, " that society is a great being which is conscious 
 of itself through some mysterious process of thinking 
 separate and distinct from the thinking that goes on in 
 the brains of indi\ddual men. ... It means that 
 individual minds act simultaneously in like ways and 
 continually influence one another, and that certain 
 mental products result from such combined mental 
 action."^ This conception, on the one hand, guards 
 personality from absorption in the community, and, on 
 the other, avoids the fallacy that the state is nothing but 
 an aggregate of units bound together by physical necessity 
 and for material benefit alone. It saves us alike from 
 the individualistic view of Eousseau and Hobbes, and the 
 communistic idea of Plato's republic. It declares the 
 great ethical truth that the good of the state and 
 the good of the individual are not different, but one ; 
 that no man realizes his highest self unless he devotes 
 his gifts to the common good ; and that the state misses 
 its truest purpose if it fails to afford its citizens the 
 opportunity of complete self-realization. 
 
 How does the teaching of Paul stand related to this 
 modern view of the state ? It would be indeed strange 
 if it had no relation, if the ideas of sociology, which are 
 professedly the outcome and development of Christianity, 
 found no support in the ethics of the earliest as well as 
 the foremost exponent of the mind of Christ. When we 
 
 ^ Bruce, ifeid., p. 127. 
 
 ^Gidding, Elements of Sociology, pp. 119-120, quoted by Bruce. 
 
310 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 approach the study of the Pauline literature from this 
 point of view, the first feeling is apt to be one of dis- 
 appointment. The student of political science will search 
 the epistles in vain for any full and elaborate discussions 
 of the manifold problems and practical difficulties which 
 confront the social reformers of our times. But no one 
 can read these letters without at least forming the im- 
 pression that the state had for Paul a very high and 
 sacred significance, that government as such was viewed 
 by him as a divine institution, and that what we call 
 civic duty was in his eyes a thing not merely of legal 
 but of moral obligation. 
 
 It cannot, indeed, be a matter of surprise in view of 
 the humble status of most of his converts, and the 
 attitude of suspicion, or even of hostility, assumed by 
 the civil authorities to the Christian communities, that 
 Paul should adopt a more or less negative position 
 towards the political fabric which he found in the world 
 of his day. No explicit statement with regard to the 
 duty of the citizen to contribute his practical service to 
 the commonwealth according to his ability and oppor- 
 tunity can be found in the writings of the apostle. 
 Beyond enjoining the necessity of work as a means of 
 livelihood, and recommending that each should remain in 
 the sphere in which he has been placed and should per- 
 form diligently and conscientiously the duties of his 
 calling, we find little direct reference to the matter of 
 citizenship. This is partly to be explained by the actual 
 character of the existing political system. The Eoman 
 government seemed to exist solely for earthly and 
 material ends, and to deny the very possibility of any 
 other. It gave true expression to its aims when it 
 finally established Caesar-worship as the official religion, 
 declaring thereby the absolute supremacy of human 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO THE STATE 311 
 
 power.^ To the secularism of the age Paul's ethical 
 ideals were entirely opposed. For him worldly affairs 
 were as nothing compared with spiritual ends. " The 
 things which are seen are temporal." They have little 
 value in themselves. A little more earthly comfort, a 
 little higher social position, the enriching of life with those 
 advantages and luxuries which we now regard as evidences 
 of advancing civilization, had comparatively slight interest 
 for the apostle, and he would never have thought it worth 
 while to hid men work for the realization of such merely 
 creaturely comforts and earthly ends as the Eoman power 
 in his day stood for. But in so far as these things are 
 not ends in themselves, but means of the inner liberation 
 and enlargement of the spiritual life, vehicles for the 
 advancement of man's higher purposes, we may con- 
 fidently affirm that they would have had the apostle's 
 support. We have already seen that he neither takes 
 the ascetic view of life nor desires to withdraw men from 
 human interests. " However much a Christian may dwell 
 in an ideal world, yet it is ordained by nature herself 
 that he must touch the earth." ^ Paul with all his 
 idealism was a man of too much practical insight not to 
 appreciate that truth. May it not be said, indeed, that 
 it was just his appreciation of it which lay at the basis 
 of his express recommendations that none should be a 
 burden upon others ; that each minding his own affairs 
 should at the same time have regard to the interests of 
 his fellows; that while every man must bear his own 
 burden and honourably fill his own sphere, it is incum- 
 bent upon him in fulfilment of the great Christian law 
 to ease if he may the load that rests on his neighbour ; 
 that each, striving to live at peace with all men, should 
 
 'See E. Scott, The Apologetic of the New Test. p. 141. 
 2 Stalker, The Ethic of Jesus, p. 351. 
 
312 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 engage also in active ministries of helpfulness. In a 
 society in which each individual faithfully fulfils his own 
 duties and conscientiously bears his own burdens, he is 
 already helping others to fulfil their duties and to bear their 
 burdens. Paul's insistence upon the personal fidelity of 
 every man in his station goes far. " The citizen has but 
 to stand in his station and perform its duties in order to 
 fulfil the demands of citizenship. He is like an organ 
 to the organism, best where he is — at his own work. 
 Doing that none would deserve better of the state, for 
 there is a valid sense, none more ultimate, in which ' all 
 service ranks the same.' The man who stands firm 
 within his duty stands not merely for himself but for 
 his family, and not merely for his family but for his 
 neighbour, and not merely for his neighbour but for his 
 state. . . . He serves the universal order, and the 
 universal order stands behind him to protect and sustain 
 him in his rights." ^ 
 
 But while these implications might, we think, be 
 legitimately drawn from the more general teaching of 
 Paul, there is not wanting, it seems to us, a more positive 
 and particular reference to the reciprocal obligations 
 belonging to members of the community. It is true, 
 indeed, that the splendid conception of the interde- 
 pendence of the various parts of the bodily organism is 
 primarily employed by Paul as an illustration of the 
 community of believers, as an analogy of the spiritual 
 body of Christ.^ But the services which the whole 
 renders to the parts and the parts to the whole in Paul's 
 elaborate exposition are not confined to purely spiritual 
 matters. They embrace also the manifold activities of a 
 man in relation to his fellows, and in relation to the 
 
 ^ Prof. Jones, Idealism as a Practical Greedy p. 123. 
 2 1 Cor. xii. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO THE STATE 31S 
 
 whole community of which he is a part. We cannot 
 but believe that Paul had a wider life in view when he 
 so admirably works out the idea of solidarity and differen- 
 tiation, showing that hand and foot, eye and ear, have 
 their use and function only as they serve the larger life 
 of which they are the constituents, l^o man liveth to 
 himself alone. The hand cannot say to the foot, I have 
 no need of thee, nor the foot to the hand, I have no 
 need of thee. Each belongs to all and all belong to 
 each. Every individual member draws strength and 
 nourishment from the body, and contributes in its turn 
 supply and support to the body. I acquire from others 
 the means of satisfaction, and at the same time I am 
 bound to produce for others the means of satisfaction. 
 Nor is this an obligation placed upon me from without. 
 It belongs to me in virtue of my inmost nature, and it 
 belongs to the very order of human society. There is no 
 community without individuals, nor in the deepest and 
 truest sense is there any individual without the com- 
 munity. Everything individual becomes in this way 
 social, and everything social becomes again individual.^ 
 This is true of the Christian community. It is equally 
 true of society in general. The ethical teachers of to-day 
 who claim Paul's authority in their advocacy of civic 
 duty can hardly be accused of unduly straining the 
 Pauline figure when they adapt it to the circumstancea 
 of our present political and social life, and such an inter- 
 pretation of the analogy is all the more defensible since 
 the moral structure of society as it exists to-day among 
 Christian peoples has been built up of these qualities of 
 justice, sympathy, and service, which, as we have seen, 
 are among the most important elements of Pauline ethics. 
 
 ^See Hegel's Philosopkie des Rechtes^ p. 195, where the idea is finely- 
 worked out in connection with the civic life. 
 
314 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Paul's direct references to the state and the relation 
 of the Christian to it, if few, are emphatic. He does not, 
 indeed, enter upon the details of the state's functions, nor 
 attempt to enumerate the duties of its citizens. He 
 neither essays a philosophy of state-craft nor discusses the 
 merits and defects of the government of his day. He 
 simply lays down in a few memorable sentences principles 
 of far-reaching application, which contain in germ the 
 essence of the ruler's authority and the spirit of the 
 subject's obedience. " Let every soul/' he writes to 
 the Eoman Church, " be subject to the higher powers." ^ 
 TTacra "v/^^fx^/ is emphatic, as if he would say that the 
 obligation to loyalty was not less binding upon Christians 
 than others. It has been supposed by some that he was 
 induced to write in these terms because there was in the 
 Church of Eome an Ebionite party, who held that the 
 worldly power was an institution of the Evil One and 
 deserved no deference. Whether or no this was the 
 actual reason of Paul's introduction of the subject, he 
 was evidently aware of a tendency among Christian 
 converts to assume that, because they had attained to 
 the liberty of Christ, they were subject to no other law 
 than the law of grace, and to no other lord than the 
 Lord of Heaven, and were therefore absolved from all 
 earthly sovereignty.^ In any case he promptly scatters 
 such presumptions. There is no duality or opposition of 
 powers. You cannot divide life into two kingdoms, a 
 secular and a sacred. " There is no power but of God : 
 the powers that be are ordained of Him." 
 
 " It is surprising," says Wernle, " to find in what 
 favourable terms the apostle speaks of the state, and 
 
 ^Rom. xiii. 1. 
 
 2 See Hofmann, Schriftheweiss, ii. 2, p. 442 ; also Ernesti, Mhik des 
 Ap. PavluSi p. 125. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO THE STATE 315 
 
 that, too, at a time when Nero sat on the throne." But 
 it must be remembered, as has been pointed out by 
 Eausohenbusch,^ that Paul wrote his commendation of 
 Koman justice during the early and happy years of 
 Nero's reign, when that gifted prince was still under the 
 influence of Seneca, and when as yet the Christian Church 
 was immune from Eoman persecution. " For Paul, the 
 Roman citizen, Eome is the great empire of peace, which 
 enables him to exercise his calling as a missionary without 
 let or hindrance, and more than once protects him and 
 his congregations from the Jews and the rabble." ^ For 
 Paul the state is a divine institution. It is ordained 
 by the deity for the reproof and punishment of wrong — 
 " a terror to evil-doers and a praise to them that do well." 
 If it is to fulfil its divinely appointed functions, whether 
 these be conceived (as they have sometimes been in 
 history) as the merely negative duties of protecting well- 
 doers and punishing offenders, or as the mere positive 
 prerogatives of ministering to the highest good of its 
 subjects, it is obvious that it must be supported by the 
 loyalty and even by the services of its members. Paul 
 therefore affirms that it is entitled not only to the 
 homage but to the tribute of all ; and he enjoins all 
 men, Christians not less than heathens, to pay their taxes 
 willingly, and to render honour to those in authority. 
 Not to do so is to dishonour God. " Whosoever resisteth 
 the power resisteth the ordinance of God." Not only 
 does Paul himself on every occasion on which he 
 comes into contact with the civil magistrate speak and 
 act with the greatest courtesy and deference, but he 
 actually enjoins ail Christians *'to pray for kings and 
 for all that are in authority,'' in order that under their 
 
 ^ Christianity and the Social Crisis, p. HO. 
 ^Beginnings of Christianity, vol. i. p. 201. 
 
316 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 protection " they may live quiet and peaceable lives in all 
 godliness and honesty/' Eor this is good and acceptable 
 in the sight of God our Saviour.^ 
 
 Of the two extreme views as to the meaning of the 
 state, between which the verdict of history has wavered 
 — that of Augustine who regarded the state as the result 
 of our sinful condition, and as the direct antithesis of 
 the kingdom of God : and that of Hegel, who saw in it 
 the highest ethical form of society, the realization of the 
 moral ideal — the view of Paul may be said to have 
 approximated more nearly to the latter.^ Writing to 
 the Church at Eome, a city which might have appeared 
 to the first Christians, and which indeed was styled by 
 their successors the " Great Babylon," Paul does not for 
 a moment suggest that it was merely for prudence' sake 
 that they should give to the imperial power unquestion- 
 ing obedience. He appeals to the loftiest motives. He 
 takes the highest ground. All authority is of God in 
 its origin and ultimate purpose. What does it matter 
 to him whether Nero be a devil or a saint ? He is the 
 prince upon the throne. He is the symbol of divine 
 authority. He is, he actually says, " the minister of God 
 to thee for good."^ And it is significant that he uses in 
 this connection the same expression, etV to ayaSoV, which 
 he employs in an earlier part of this epistle to denote 
 that highest good which is the portion of God's loved 
 ones for whom all things are working together, e^V ayadov.^ 
 We give homage to those in authority, he says, not from 
 fear, not for wrath's sake, but for conscience' sake. We 
 pay them their dues, not from compulsion, but from 
 love. Here as everywhere the great principle holds 
 
 1 1 Tim. ii. 2. 
 
 2 Cp. Haering, Mhics of the Christian Life (Trans. ), p, 406, 
 
 3 Rom. xiii. 4. ** Rom. viii. 28. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO THE STATE 317 
 
 good — love is the fulfilling of the law. Given faith in 
 God, then everything naturally follows : obedience to 
 whom obedience is due, tribute to whom tribute, honour 
 to whom honour. Every duty falls into its rightful 
 place, every man stands in his true relation, and the 
 whole commonwealth of humanity, from the sovereign 
 down to the meanest subject, is embraced in one all- 
 compassing command — thou shalt love thy neighbour as 
 thyself.^ As a Christian Paul looks beyond the temporal 
 world-power as actually existing. Whatever the par- 
 ticular form it may assume, he sees in the state and its 
 rulers only the expression of God's will, of His creative 
 power and holy design. Eome is His agent, imperfect, 
 faulty, often oppressive and unjust — but still the channel 
 through which for the moment the Almighty works for 
 the furtherance of His purposes. 
 
 We must be careful, however, not to confuse this 
 optimistic view of the state in general with anything like 
 moral approval or patriotic feeling on the part of the 
 apostle for the particular hierarchy under which he 
 happened to live. Government was a divine institution. 
 But the actual embodiment of that institution in the 
 Eoman state came far short of Paul's conception of the 
 ideal. It was too evidently the visible counterpart of 
 the false ideals of heathen worship, and stood almost 
 solely for material ends, was indeed little more than the 
 earthly representative of the kingdom of darkness out of 
 which his Christian converts had been delivered. While 
 therefore they were passively to accept its conditions and 
 faithfully to render it obedience, they were driven to 
 regard themselves as a community apart, an alien race 
 whose home and fatherland was heaven. Their true 
 king was not Caesar, but Christ, whose speedy return 
 
 iRom. xiii. 1-9. 
 
318 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 would, as Paul evidently believed, put an end to all 
 earthly power, even to the Empire of Eome.^ 
 
 It was, however, in no spirit of tame subserviency 
 that Paul bade Christians act towards the state. As 
 far as it was possible they were to live at peace with all 
 men. But they were not for a moment to forget even 
 in their citizenship the eternal distinctions of right and 
 wrong. They were not to call evil good or good evil. 
 There was for the Christian a higher law than submission 
 to outward authority. " We must obey God rather than 
 man." And Paul would have endorsed the noble protest 
 of Peter and John, '* Whether it be right in the sight of 
 God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye/'^ 
 The apostle, it is true, undertook no social propaganda. 
 He did not directly attack any of the evils of his day 
 of which he could not but be cognizant. He made no 
 protest against the organized grafting in the Eoman 
 system of tax-farming, nor did he make any direct 
 attempt to abolish slavery or even to mitigate its horrors. 
 Nor is this to be wondered at. " The most ardent 
 socialist of our day would have stepped softly if he had 
 been in the apostle's place. The right of public agitation 
 was very limited in the Eoman empire, and any attempt 
 to rouse the people against the oppression of the govern- 
 ment would not only have been relentlessly crushed, but 
 would have sown widespread discontent and created 
 useless revolution among a vast population."^ But Paul 
 was not the man simply to leave things as he found 
 them. He had his own way of rectifying abuses. He 
 had a profound faith in the transforming power of 
 Christian love. In his treatment of the duties of domestic 
 life, to which we have already referred, and especially in 
 
 1 See Wernle, vol. i. p. 202. == Acts iv. 19. 
 
 * Eauschenbusch, Christianity and the Social GrisiSj p. 152. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO THE STATE 319 
 
 his appeal to Philemon on behalf of his slave, we see by 
 what means he sought to Christianize society. It was 
 his aim to implant the divine life in the souls of men, 
 believing that from regenerated individuals forces of 
 righteousness would silently radiate, and that evil customs 
 and corrupt institutions would gradually be dissolved 
 like the mists upon the hills before the rising sun. Make 
 the tree good and the fruit will follow. Insert the little 
 leaven and the entire mass will be pervaded by it, and 
 ultimately rendered wholesome. This was Christ's own 
 principle, and it is the mightiest influence in leavening 
 the world. But there are times when the Christian 
 must employ more direct and active measures for righting 
 wrong and achieving good. There is an ethic of revolt. 
 There is a realm into which human law dare not intrude 
 — the domain of conscience. When " unrighteousness 
 masquerades in the garb of legality/' then the Christian 
 man must take his stand and utter his protest. When 
 the occasion required it Paul could speak out. Neither 
 fear nor favour could silence his testimony. He was 
 God's ambassador, even in bonds. No perils could daunt 
 him, no threateniiigs turn him from his course. With 
 all his high regard for authority he came into conflict 
 with the imperial power. No man suffered more at the 
 hands of Eoman officials, and in all probability he fell a 
 victim at the last because he refused to be disobedient to 
 the heavenly vision. 
 
 It must be admitted that there are many burning 
 questions in modern life with which Paul does not deal. 
 The relation of Christianity to art, science, and com- 
 merce, the attitude of the Christian to the economic and 
 industrial problems of society, the relation of capital and 
 labour, the question of poverty, the ethics of war, the 
 propriety of self-defence against foreign invasion, the 
 
320 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 raising of armies and the building of fleets, the obligation 
 of citizens to give their means and their services and 
 even their lives for their country — these and a host of 
 similar questions which have emerged in our complex 
 and intricate civilization have no explicit place in Paul's 
 ethical teaching. 
 
 With reference to the subject of art, Eenan has com- 
 plained in his life of Paul that the apostle was unable 
 to see any distinction between the enthusiasm for the 
 beautiful as it existed at Athens and gross idolatry, mis- 
 taking the exquisite art of the Grecian capital for the 
 superstitious worship so abhorrent to his Hebrew fore- 
 fathers. But after all, must not the modern traveller, 
 as he beholds those temples reared to Zeus and Athene 
 which crown the Acropolis, however much he may admire 
 their grace and symmetry of form, agree with the apostle 
 that, despite their architectural beauty, they were nothing 
 more or less than the outward expressions of idolatrous 
 worship ? There is no more gracious handmaid of religion 
 than art ; and when consecrated to the highest ends, as 
 she was in more than one period of Christian history, 
 she has a noble ministry to render in revealing to the 
 soul something of the mystery and majesty of the divine 
 life. But a sensuous aestheticism, if it was sometimes 
 the pride, was also the peril of Greece. Paul's protest, 
 therefore, has a permanent value. His penetrating glance 
 enabled him to pierce through the disguises of idolatry 
 to the core, and unmask for all time those forms of refine- 
 ment and culture which are so apt to usurp the place in 
 men's hearts which God alone shoidd fill. It may be 
 that the aesthetic sense was somewhat deficient in Paul. 
 Though he must have beheld in his travels some of the 
 fairest as well as the sublimest scenes which Eastern 
 Europe has to show, we do not find in his epistles any 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO THE STATE 321 
 
 indication of that tender appreciation of natural beauty 
 60 evident in the words of our Lord. But though that 
 is so, and may be variously accounted for, he who bade 
 the Philippians think upon whatsoever things are pure, 
 and lovely, and of fair report, and who reminded the 
 Corinthians that all things were theirs, would not have 
 frowned upon the contributions of science and art to 
 religion, but would have welcomed as a sacred offering 
 every gift that helps us to interpret the mind of God. 
 
 With regard to the other aspects of modern social life 
 to which we have referred, particularly those economic 
 and industrial questions which press for a solution in our 
 present complex society, it has been affirmed by a recent 
 writer that " we involve ourseh'^es in all manner of con- 
 tradictions when we seek to interpret Paul's principles 
 as valid for our civic life to-day." ^ It seems to us that 
 this is only partly true. Precepts and commands are 
 particular, limited often to special circumstances, but 
 principles, if they are true at all, are just those elements 
 in the writings or utterances of a great teacher which 
 are valid and applicable far beyond the occasions on 
 which they were first expressed. It is true our social 
 circumstances and surroundings are very different from 
 those of Paul. The state with which he had to do was 
 the embodiment of material aims and earthly ambitions, 
 which are now, in theory at least, discredited. The 
 Koman power as actually embodied was for him a power 
 of this present evil world, and while believers were 
 enjoined to submit to its enactments, they were taught 
 to regard themselves as a separate brotherhood, in the 
 world but not of it. This view of the existing govern- 
 ment naturally limited Paul's sympathies, and gave to 
 many of his counsels a restricted application. He did 
 
 ^ E. Scott, The Apologetic of the yew Testament^ p. 143. 
 X 
 
322 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 not regard the actual Roman Empire as capable of being 
 spiritualized. His hope for mankind rather lay in the 
 contemplation of its overthrow as a secular power alto- 
 gether. But as we have seen Paul believed that earthly 
 government was ordained of Heaven, and he had his own 
 conception of an ideal state. There arose before his 
 imagination a great heavenly city in which citizens were 
 enrolled from every nation and tongue, a commonwealth 
 of God, of which every man who had been received into 
 unity with Christ was a member. For Paul and his 
 immediate successors this seemed to be but a vision of 
 future glory, to be realized when temporal things had 
 passed away. But as time went on, and Christianity 
 became more and more a permanent factor in shaping 
 the world's history and in moulding national Hfe, the 
 realization of a Christian commonwealth amid the actual 
 conditions of this earth was felt to be not impossible.^ 
 
 Though the *' Holy Eoman Empire " of mediaeval 
 ecelesiasticism was a dream, it was a dream of a reality, 
 and with the progress of the centuries the Christian state 
 has been brought slowly but surely within the range of 
 practical aspiration and endeavour. In our day Christianity 
 and the state are no longer antagonistic. Public life is 
 impregnated with ethical aims. The avowed secularism 
 and debasing tyranny of heathen rule against which Paul 
 contended, have been, at least in large measure, superseded 
 by ideals of humanity and freedoxn which, to say the 
 least, are not at variance with the Gospel of Christ. 
 Men may not agree as to the true solution of the social 
 problems that are confronting them, but they are mostly 
 at one in the conviction that they must be determined 
 on moral principles and in terms of the highest good. It 
 is no arii^imient for indifference to the questions of our 
 
 ^ See Strong, Christian Ethic^j p. 128. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO THE STATE 323 
 
 day that Paul did not actually discuss them. We too 
 have the mind of Christ, and we are never so true to the 
 spirit of Paul as when we apply the great principles of 
 his Master and ours to the needs of our age. 
 
 To Paul in this regard we owe no small debt. Two 
 great truths, taught indeed by Christ, but specially 
 elaborated by the apostle, have inspired and shaped the 
 conceptions of modern times with regard to social and 
 civic duty. These are the idea of Personality and the 
 consequent idea of Human EqiuiUty, In these two 
 notions lie the seeds of that spirit of democracy and that 
 sense of individual responsibility which are the features 
 of the nobler social order of our times. 
 
 It is hardly too much to say that the new importance 
 assigned to personality may be regarded as the unique 
 gift of Christianity to modern thought.^ According to 
 the teaching of the New Testament an absolute value 
 attaches to every human being. Christ, Paul declares, 
 died for all. Not only has human nature in a unique 
 instance been personally united to God^ but the whole 
 human race without distinction has been declared capable 
 of participation in that imion. This fact at once reveals 
 a depth of latent possibility, not in the favoured few, but 
 in man as man.^ Man has a worth, apart altogether 
 from birth, endowment, or circumstance, in virtue of his 
 humanity alone. Each individual has his own capacity 
 for happiness, his own destiny to work out, his own self 
 to realize, his own responsibility to meet. 
 
 Connected with this idea of personality, and indeed 
 the complement of it, is the notion of equality. Not 
 only has each man an individual worth, but all have an 
 
 ^ See strong, Christian Ethics, p. 129 ; also, lUingworth, Personality^ 
 Human and Divine, p. 14, 
 ^Illingworth, ibid. 
 
324 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 equal worth before God. It was the emphatic assertion 
 of the equal manhood of all men that saved Christianity 
 from the charge of narrow individualism. Had Paul 
 dwelt only upon the private and exclusive relation of 
 each individual to God, omitting all reference to his 
 interest in his brother men, had he taught man to look 
 upwards only and not outwards as well, the Christian 
 faith would have found its appropriate home in the 
 oratory of the monk, but not amid the cares and toils 
 of common humanity. But the message which the 
 apostle emphatically declared was that with God there 
 is no respect of persons, and that all are equal in His 
 sight. The middle wall of partition between Jew and 
 Gentile has been broken down. In Christ all differences 
 have been annulled. Greek and Eoman, bond and free, 
 are one. Hence a new tie of fraternity was created, a 
 new sense of mutual love and helpfulness instilled into 
 men's hearts. 
 
 These two notes of individuality and community struck 
 by Paul have become the dominant and distinctive factors 
 in the making of modern society. Many minds and many 
 influences contributed to their gradual elucidation and 
 development in European history. Augustine, Luther, 
 and Kant may be selected as names representative of the 
 great creative epochs through which the conception of 
 personality and its concomitant idea of equality have 
 passed.^ In his ConfessioTis, and still more in his Be 
 Givitate Dei, Augustine gives expression to the thought 
 of the intrinsic worth of the individual man, dweUing 
 perhaps more upon his accountability to God than upon 
 his relations to his brethren. While Luther re-emphasized 
 this idea with a vehemence that shook the whole of 
 Europe, making the independence of man and the liberty 
 
 1 See lUingworth, pp. 161 ff. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO THE STATE 325 
 
 of the individual conscience the watchword of the Refor- 
 mation, Kant at a later age gave, in the realm of pure 
 thought, a new depth and significance to the conceptions 
 of personality and freedom, making them a fresh point 
 of departure, not only for the theoretic study of human 
 reason, but also for the practical enforcement of these 
 great ideas in the life of human duty. It was the merit 
 of the great German thinker to show that a person was a 
 self-conscious, self-determining indi\-idual, and that as such 
 he was " an end in himself." Every human being, simply 
 because he is such, possesses freedom of will, the right 
 to be himself, and ultimate object of personal endeavour 
 and development, and however he may, and to realize 
 himself must, voluntarily sacrifice himself for others, he 
 may not be degraded into the passive instrument of 
 another's power or pleasure. 
 
 These great ideas of the value of the human soul and 
 the equal worth of every man, which have their roots in 
 the teaching of the apostle Paul, have given an impulse 
 to the most fruitful European thought, and have become 
 the most potent influences in shaping modem political 
 life. 
 
 As it is admittedly the prerogative and duty of each 
 man to realize his highest self, to be the complete man 
 God intended him to be, so it is the growing conviction 
 of the best minds that it is the function of the state — 
 that society in which men are knit together in indis- 
 soluble bonds of interdependence and service — to provide 
 those conditions which are most favourable to real equality 
 of opportunity. It is the task of the state, not merely, 
 as was formerly believed, to administer retributive justice, 
 but to create and foster those agencies and institutions 
 which work for the amelioration of the lot and the 
 development of the weal of its citizens, securing for each. 
 
326 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 bhe humblest and most unfortunate as well as for the 
 highest and most favoured, the full liberty and encourage- 
 ment to make the best of his life. On the one hand, the 
 state must strive to secure the richest variety of service 
 among its citizens for the good of the commonwealth, 
 and, on the other, it must aim at making the conditions 
 of labour for the humblest worker such that he may find 
 in it the opportunity of a true human life.^ 
 
 But if this is the duty of the state to the individual, 
 it is clear that it cannot fulfil this ideal except in so far 
 as individuals realize their civic obligations as members 
 of the social organism. The citizen who gives most to 
 the state gets most from the state. It is the men who 
 play their part, the active citizens who widen and enrich 
 their lives through interest in and work for public causes, 
 who reap the real harvest from civic life. We speak of 
 rights, but there can be no rights without corresponding 
 duties. For rights are not gifts nor merely native posses- 
 sions ; they are simply opportunities, positions for the 
 exercise of powers and the performance of duties.^ Our 
 freedom does not consist in the possession of rights, but 
 in the exercise of duties. Emancipation is not liberty. 
 Emancipation may come with a stroke, but freedom must 
 be earned by personal service and worked out by in- 
 dividual effort. And only those obtain it who prove that 
 they deserve it. Not by escape from irksome thraldom 
 or withdrawal from social obligation, but by gladsome 
 self- surrender and the positive participation in work for 
 their brethren's weal shall men reap the fruits of liberty. 
 For the state is not a separate and independent body, but 
 
 ^ Cp. Westcott, Christian Aspects of Life, p. 232. 
 
 2 Cp. Green, Political Obligations, section 154 ff. ; also, Prolegomena 
 to Ethics, section 184. See also Maccunn, Six Radical Thinkers, 
 p. 257. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO THE STATE 327 
 
 exists only in and through the men and women who 
 compose it ; and the actual achievements of any par- 
 ticular government for moral good will depend upon the 
 enlightened sense of moral obligation which prevails in 
 the community at large. The state makes its will 
 dominant through the voice of the people. As the 
 individuals are, so the commonwealth will be. The 
 Greek Empire perished, as has been pointed out, because 
 the faith of the people found no exercise in the service 
 of the state'.'^ Therefore, such individual interest and 
 action is necessary alike for the well-being of the com- 
 munity and of the citizen. So that here again that 
 splendid Pauline figure of the reciprocal influence of the 
 body and its members stands for all time as the ideal of 
 the body politic — an organic life in which the unit finds 
 its place of security and service in the whole, and the 
 whole lives in and acts through the parts. 
 
 A new sense of individual obligation, a new species of 
 national brotherhood, a new feeling of manhood, a new 
 pride in the community of life — these are what are 
 wanted if we are to awake to the possibilities and grandeur 
 of our membership with one another in Christ. "We 
 need/' says an eloquent modern writer, " a more personal 
 feeling for the state, a kindlier feeling for the responsi- 
 bilities it imposes, and a more exalted sense of its spiritual 
 meaning. We want the power to pay rates and taxes 
 with a cheerful sense of citizenship ... we want to 
 see the administrative capacity and enterprise of the best 
 citizens freely placed at the public service, . . and with 
 all we need a baptism of religious feeling in our corporate 
 consciousness, a new sense that we are serving God in 
 serving our fellows, that will hallow and hearten the 
 crusade for health and social happiness, and give to 
 
 1 Westeott, ibid. 232. 
 
328 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 every servant of the oommunity a sense of spiritual 
 service/*^ 
 
 These aspirations and ideals which have already begun 
 to take shape in the most progressive minds of to-day, 
 have, as Christians claim, their basis in the teachings of 
 Christ and His apostles. Paul may not have seen all 
 that was involved in his principles. What great thinker, 
 and especially what great thinker who has the stufP of 
 the prophet or poet in him ever does ? The truth remains 
 that the apostle was the champion of personal freedom 
 and universal brotherhood, and his message has a per- 
 manent value for all men and every age. For him Christ's 
 truth was inexhaustible, and it is inconceivable that he 
 could have believed that there was any realm of life or 
 activity which was alien to the rule of his Master. Art 
 and science, industry and enterprise, the family, the com- 
 munity, the state, questions of war and defence, and of 
 international relations — the problems of home conditions, 
 the circumstances of social life, pauperism, unemployment, 
 intemperance, impurity, the regulation of labour, the pro- 
 tection of the hapless, and the provision for the aged and 
 infirm — all come within the range of a Christian ethic, 
 and are to be viewed and interpreted in the light of 
 divine revelation. "We are surely true to the spirit and 
 teaching of Paul when we affirm with a modern writer 
 that " the future of the state lies with that creed which 
 teaches that all men are equal before their Father in 
 heaven, and that highest and lowest alike, sinners yet 
 heirs of everlasting life, are united as brothers by a, 
 common hope in a common salvation."^ 
 
 ^Malcolm Spencer, Social Degradation, p. 166. 
 
 2 F. W, Bussell, Christian Theology and Social Progress, Bampton 
 Lectures for 1905. 
 
CHAPTER XIII 
 
 EELATION TO GOD, THE CHUECH AND THE 
 FUTURE 
 
 At the beginning of the section upon Duties and Spheres 
 we made a threefold division of duty — individual, social 
 and religious, or duty to self, duty to others, and duty to 
 God. The division, as we remarked, if convenient, is not 
 quite logical. All duties are really religious duties, and 
 in being true to ourselves, and just and merciful towards 
 others, we are really fulfilling the requirements of God. 
 According to Christ true life is doing the will of our 
 Father. According to Paul it is walking worthy of God, 
 who hath called us into His kingdom and glory.^ All 
 morality is ultimately religious obligation, religion being, 
 as one has said, the Godward side of morality, and 
 morality the manward side of religion. But this view of 
 life as always and everywhere grounded in divine obliga- 
 tion need not prevent us, as it certainly did not prevent 
 Paul, from viewing certain acts both of an individual and 
 social nature as in a peculiar sense, duties towards God. 
 We have already alluded to some of these duties in treat- 
 ing of the ideal of the new life and in dealing with the 
 aids to the culture of character. In this chapter, there- 
 fore, we need only refer to some further aspects of the 
 11 Thess. ii. 12. 
 
330 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 moral life which in the view of the apostle are regarded 
 as standing in special and peculiar relation to the divine 
 Being, and are manifested in our love and service of 
 Him. For when we speak of duty to God we must 
 remember that the word " duty " most inadequately 
 describes our relation to Him. There is no* such thing as 
 mere duty to God. We never indeed do our duty to God 
 until we cease to do it — as duty. He who only does 
 what is right from a sense of obligation does not do what 
 is right at all. Goodness which is only the dictate of 
 necessity is not really goodness. In relation to God, as 
 indeed in all our other relationships, Paul's own great 
 saying is true, " love is the fulfilling of the law." And as 
 it is in Christ God reveals His love to us, so Christ 
 becomes the medium through which our love returns 
 to Him. 
 
 Only in two passages does Paul speak directly of 
 our love to Christ.^ The love which faith appropriates 
 is in fact the love with which Christ has loved us, and 
 the resulting new life is a life of faith in Christ, who 
 for love's sake has laid down His life for us.^ He who 
 died, the just for the unjust, that grace might reign 
 through righteousness unto eternal life,^ awakens in us 
 a reciprocal love, so that we no longer live to ourselves, 
 but to Him who died and rose again.* The grateful love 
 thus roused iu us becomes a joyful memory,^ and causes 
 us to dedicate our life to Him, and indeed to be willing 
 for His sake to part with all things.^ This love takes 
 form in us as reverent devotion and thankful praise, 
 " speaking to ourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual 
 
 lEph. vi. 24. ; 1 Cor. xvi. 22. ^Qal. ii. 20. ^Kq^ ^ gl. 
 
 ^2 Cor. V. 14. s*2 Tim. ii. 8. «Phil. iii. 7. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO GOD 331 
 
 songe, singing and making melody in our hearts to the 
 Lord."^ For He to whom we yield ourselves in love is 
 indeed God, God's only begotten Son, the image of the 
 Father, the Prince of the redeemed,- in whom are hidden 
 all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.^ He is at 
 the right hand of God making intercession for us, and by 
 His power we are able to do all things.'* But He is also 
 our brother man, our humanity exalted to the highest, 
 the norm and ideal of what man has it in him to be. So 
 love to Him takes the further form of striving to be like 
 Him, of seeking to follow in His steps. "We seek to have 
 the mind in us which was also in Christ Jesus, to attain 
 unto the perfect man, that is unto the measure of the 
 stature of the fulness of Christ.^ 
 
 It is because of this unique relation of Christ to the 
 divine nature and to our humanity that He comes to fill 
 for the apostle the whole horizon, becomes his " universe 
 which sees and knows." " For me to live is Christ." 
 Nothing indeed can exceed the exalted position which 
 Paul claims for Christ in our regard. The statement of 
 Weinel — " on the whole Jesus stands for Paul below 
 God "^ — is not, we think, borne out by the scripture he 
 quotes in its support — the passage in 1 Corinthians and 
 that in Philippians ii. In the former passage it is true 
 the apostle says that when all things have been subjected 
 unto Christ, then shall even the Son be subjected unto 
 Him that God may be all in all. Eut these words, so far 
 from implying, as Weinel says, that there are two separate 
 beings, one in a position of final subjection to the other, 
 emphasize rather the truth of final unity. The day of 
 the self-emptying of the humiliation is over. Its fruits 
 
 ^Eph. V. 19. ^Eph. i. 20-23. ^Col. ii. 3. 
 
 ^Rom. viii. 34. ^Eph. iv. 13. 
 
 ^ St. Pant : The Man and His Work, p. 322. 
 
332 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 are gathered in, and now at last the Godhead has come to 
 its own again. The grand consummation is at length 
 accomplished. God once more is all in all. As little 
 does the title " Son of God " so frequently used by Paul, 
 imply inferiority. The name usually implies a special 
 and unique relation to the Father, is indeed often used 
 simply as a designation of the divine nature of the 
 Messiah. Of course the Christ of Paul's faith has an 
 earthly history, and, from the very fact that He sub- 
 mitted to human experiences, there must be in the 
 apostle's mind some kind of distinction between the idea 
 of God in His absolute nature and the Son in His human 
 relationship. But it is difficult to see how a careful 
 student of Paul's writings can affirm that " he never 
 forgot the barrier between the Christ and God Himself."^ 
 Eather we should say that Paul never forgets the great 
 and solemn fact that Christ has all the value of God. 
 Jesus is everywhere by him endowed with divinity. He 
 is always represented not only as the head and crown of 
 the human race, but as Creator and Redeemer alike. To 
 Him belong all the power and wisdom and glory of the 
 Godhead. In Him the trusting soul is in touch with the 
 last and highest reality in the universe. He meets us 
 everywhere. We never turn in faith to God but straight- 
 way we are met by Christ. The rediscovery of Christ is 
 the note of modern theology. But we must not forget 
 that Paul was the first explorer in the realm of Christology, 
 the first real revealer of the Christ. And if in our 
 attempt to make Christ real to the present age, we divest 
 Him of those divine attributes in which Paul reveals 
 Him, we are grasping a phantom only, portraying a 
 mutilated and emasculated Christ.^ " Christ," says one 
 
 1 Weinel, p. 325. 
 
 ^Cp. the whole argument of Prof. Denney in his Jesus and the Gospel. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO GOD 833 
 
 of our latest and most eloquent theologians, " is more 
 precious to us by what distinguishes Him from us than 
 by what identifies Him with us/'^ Long ago Athanasius 
 said : " The Saviour and the Creator must be one : no 
 half God can redeem those whom very God has made. 
 The absolute revealer must be that which He reveals." 
 On ethical grounds, therefore, not less than theological 
 and religious, we need to work out afresh the doctrine of 
 the Person of our Lord. The real task which lies before 
 the Christian thinker of to-day is the construction of a 
 new Christology, to translate into the idiom which 
 appeals to the modern mind, the truth which in Paul's 
 hands proved its power to unbuild the old world and 
 build a new, viz. that the man Christ Jesus is Sovereign 
 of the universe, King in every realm of life, Lord of 
 Earth and Heaven, of this life and that which is to come. 
 He was not content to be a God " safe beyond the stars." 
 The eternal God became one of us, God coming into 
 humanity that humanity might be taken up into God. 
 For this He sits enthroned and invested with praise. 
 " Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given 
 Him a name which is above every name : that at the 
 name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, 
 and things in earth, and things under the earth ; and that 
 every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to 
 the glory of God the Pather."^ This was Paul's Gospel. 
 This, and nothing less than this, can be ours and authori- 
 tatively meet the moral and intellectual needs of man. 
 
 Such then being the position Paul assigns to Christ, 
 we can understand how Christ comes in practice to have 
 for the apostle all the value of God and can see how the 
 Christian's obligations to his Father are conditioned and 
 
 ^P. T. Forsyth, The Person and Place ofJesiLS Christ. 
 2 Phil. ii. 9-11. 
 
334 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 governed by his connection with His divine Son. In 
 exercising his love to Christ the Christian is but loving 
 Grod, revealed to him through Christ, as his Father. As 
 Eothe truly says, " love to God in order to be virtuous 
 goodness {tugendhafte FrommigJceit) must be determined 
 by our love to the Redeemer. God is reflected for us in 
 Christ, in His full truth and purity, so that we simply 
 copy the outlines of our image of God from the personal 
 appearance of our Eedeemer." ^ Or as the apostle him-, 
 self says, the love with which we yield ourselves to God 
 is a living unto God through Jesus Christ.^ When we 
 give thanks to God our Father it is always through Him 
 who is the Mediator and channel of all Godward affections 
 and activities. In doing all in the name of the Lord Jesus 
 we are really giving thanks to God by Him.^ 
 
 According to Paul love to God is an emotion of the 
 heart which rests on knowledge and results in surrender 
 to His will. This emphasis on knowledge — true knowledge 
 not divorced from its intuitional constituents and checked 
 at every point by its ethical results — is a distinctive 
 feature of Paul's teaching. For him all right relations 
 and duties on the part of man to God are based on 
 intelligent understanding of the Divine Being and 
 character. Man must serve God as well as praise Him 
 " with the understanding also," Man must cling to God 
 not with his weakness only but also with his strength, 
 must love Him with heart and soul and mind. Mere 
 blind superstitious dread of the unknown, such as the 
 heathen have, is no worthy or proper feeling for those 
 who walk in the light of Christ. A rational devotion, a 
 reasonable service is the Christian demand. Nor can 
 man really reverence the unknown or yield himself in 
 
 iRothe, Theol, Ethilc 3, p. 359. ^'Rom. vi. 11. 
 
 * Col. iii. 17 ; Rom, i. 8 ; cp. Hofmann, Schriftbeweiss, ii. 2, p. 360. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO GOD 335 
 
 the utter loyalty which religion requires to a great 
 " Perhaps." It must be remembered, however, that Paul 
 will not for a moment admit that God can ever be wholly 
 unknown. Even the heathen, he says, are not without 
 some sense of the divine, a vague consciousness of power 
 in creation and life, as may be seen in their readiness to 
 offer their worship to visible objects, to images of men 
 and birds and beasts. Apart from direct revelation there 
 was enough in the very make and constitution of the 
 world to lead men to know and worship the Divine 
 Being. God has never left Himself without a witness. 
 There is in every man a principle akin to the divine 
 nature, an affinity for God. The altar to the unknown 
 God which Paul found in Athens was a testimony to the 
 universality and power of this instinct in the natural 
 heart of man. If therefore in their pride and self- 
 sufficiency the heathen refused to recognize God and 
 perverted such knowledge as they had into idolatry, then 
 they were not inexcusable. Spiritual beings they had 
 denied their higher affinities and had offered their worship 
 to the merely natural, to the creature instead of the 
 Creator; and so the light that was in them was changed 
 into darkness. " Since they cared not to retain God in 
 their knowledge, He gave them over to a reprobate mind." 
 For like " the sorrowful great gift " of will, knowledge lays 
 on its subjects the dread burden of responsibility and 
 places in the hands of its possessors the keys alike of 
 darknpss and of light. We taste of the fruits of the tree, 
 
 " And withal we are conscious of evil 
 And good — of the spirit and the clod, 
 Of the power in our hearts of a devil, 
 Of the power in our souls of a God." 
 
 For Paul even the logic of the understanding, the bare intel- 
 lectual power, has its value as well as its responsibility. 
 
336 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 He regards it as a possible stage in the way to higher 
 and spiritual knowledge. Upon it the apostle frequently 
 bases his appeal to heathen inquirers. He points to 
 the witness afforded by nature to the one living 
 God. At Lystra he contrasts the dumb idols with the 
 power which manifests itself everywhere in the works of 
 creation and providence.^ At Athens he dwells also on 
 the testimony to God which nature affords and advances 
 to the idea of a supreme invisible Lord who is the 
 source of all life. In the first chapter of Eomans this 
 line of argument is carried further, and the visible 
 world is shown to be an actual revelation of the Divine 
 Being. 
 
 " But the apostle chiefly rests on the inward witness, 
 the deep-seated moral and religious instincts which are 
 present in all men alike. Even with the worthless Fehx 
 he could reason of temperance, righteousness, and judg- 
 ment, knowing that he would awaken a response. The 
 heathen had received no supernatural revelation, but they 
 had a law written in their hearts — a moral sense whereby 
 they were able to discern what was true and honourable 
 and lovely and of good report. Amidst their worst vices 
 the conscience within them bore witness to God's will — 
 " their thoughts all the while accusing or else excusing 
 one another." It was this natural religious instinct 
 which Paul took as his starting-point in his missionary 
 preaching. What the Law had done for the Jews, con- 
 science had done for the Gentiles. It had brought home 
 to them the sense of guilt, and kept before them an ideal 
 of righteousness to which they could not attain by their 
 own endeavours. The possession of it made them 
 amenable to God's judgment no less than the Jews ; and 
 to them therefore the gospel of Christ offered itself 
 ^ Acts xiv. 17. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO GOD 337 
 
 with a direct significance, as the power of Grod unto 
 salvation." ^ 
 
 But this " natural religious instinct " is only a stage 
 on the way to intelligent spiritual worship. The intel- 
 lectual recognition of God as the living and true God, 
 from whom everything comes, by whom everything is 
 sustained, and in whom everything has its being and end,^ 
 is mediated in believers through the experience of God's 
 love towards them in Christ in whom He is reconciled 
 with the world. This experience not only reveals to men 
 the absolute majesty of God, but enables them to acknow- 
 ledge with wonder and admiration especially three great 
 attributes of the divine character which the Son of God 
 has manifested through His life and work; His Power, 
 in that He has brought light out of darkness and called 
 things that are not into being ; ^ His Wisdom, in that He 
 has, in ways past comprehension, achieved His wonderful 
 plan of redemption ; and His Justice and Mercy, in that 
 He has made salvation available for all men. Knowledge 
 therefore passes into faith, and that again into adoring 
 wonder and praise as the intelligent believer contemplates 
 the mystery and greatness of God. With a heart charged 
 with emotion he exclaims, " the depth of the riches 
 both of the wisdom and knowledge of God ! how un- 
 searchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding 
 out ! For of Him, and through Him, and to Him, are all 
 things. To Him be the glory for ever." * 
 
 1. The love of God which is thus begotten of know- 
 ledge and admiration manifests itself generally according 
 to the apostle in various forms. 
 
 (1) Thankfulness. " Let the peace of God rule in 
 
 'E. F. Scott, The Apologetic of the New Testament^ p. 118. 
 
 2 Rom. xi. 36. ^Rom. iv. 17 ; 2 Cor. iv. 6. 
 
 *Rom. xi. 33-36. 
 
 Y 
 
338 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 your hearts . . . and be ye thankful," ^ Paul writes to 
 the Colossians. Thankfulness is not in the first instance 
 an act so much as an emotion of the heart. God is 
 recognized to be the great benefactor, and gratitude is 
 the responsive feeling which wells up in the hearts of 
 those who have experienced His goodness. Paul would 
 have the Colossians not only "walk worthy of God and 
 bear fruit in every good work," but above all "give thanks 
 unto the Father, who hath made us meet to be partakers 
 of the inheritance of the saints, who hath delivered us 
 from the power of darkness, and translated us into the 
 kingdom of His Son." ^ " They are to abound in thanks- 
 giving," ^ " to give thanks always for all things." ^ In 
 fact, there is not an epistle in which this spirit of grati- 
 tude is not enjoined. It is to be the habitual temper of 
 the Christian. We live in a world, Paul seems to say, 
 where everything speaks to us of divine love and care. 
 All things work together for good, and if we have only 
 the mind to interpret and the heart to respond to God's 
 gracious purposes, there is nothing in all this varying 
 drama of existence for which we may not thank our 
 Heavenly Father. We may thank Him for the changing 
 seasons, for food and raiment, and all temporal good ; we 
 may rejoice even in our tribulations, knowing that they 
 work patience and probation and hope.^ In short, "what- 
 soever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the 
 Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through 
 Him."« 
 
 (2) With thankfulness towards God the deepest 
 Humility is closely united. Paul does not actually use 
 the word of the Christian attitude to God. Eather 
 ra'TreivQC^poavvrj is always employed by him in relation 
 
 iCol. iii. 15. 
 
 2 Col. i. 12. 
 
 »Col. vi. 6. 
 
 *Eph. V. 20. 
 
 ''Rom. V. 3. 
 
 «Col. iii. 17. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO GOD 339 
 
 to our fellow-men, as in Eph. iv. 1-2, Phil, ii 3, 
 Col. iii. 12. But in the feeling of dependence upon 
 God, in the habitual consciousness of sin, in the sense of 
 demerit and undeservedness accompanying the believer's 
 acceptance of salvation, in the attitude of trust and 
 reverence, there is implied that spirit, not indeed of dread 
 or cringing awe experienced by the guilty, but of lowli- 
 ness and humility and godly fear, which every true child 
 of God must possess as he meditates upon the majesty 
 and grace of his Eather in heaven. 
 
 (3) To gratitude and humility there is allied a spirit 
 of Trustfulness, The prevailing feeling of the believer is 
 one of confidence in the good faith of God. The more 
 his knowledge of the nature of the Almighty and His 
 relation to the world increases, the more his experience 
 of God's love in Christ grows, so much the stronger will 
 his assurance become that God is true and will fulfil all 
 that He has promised. " Eaithful is He that called, who 
 will also do it." ^ He will perfect all things. " He that 
 spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us 
 all, how shall He not freely give us all things ? " ^ The 
 apostle repeatedly tells his readers that they may rely 
 without hesitation upon God. He will give them every- 
 thing they need — the spirit of wisdom and revelation, 
 strength and support in the way of salvation, guidance 
 and help in the work of the Lord, protection and 
 deliverance in temptation and peril, and at last eternal 
 life and an abundant entrance into the kingdom.^ This 
 spirit of trustfulness evinces itself, therefore, in Patience 
 in suffering (Rom. v. 3-5), in surrender to God (Phil. ii. 
 17), in Contentment with what God gives (1 Tim. vi. 6), 
 
 1 1 Thess. V. 24. "^ Rom. viii. 32. 
 
 3 Eph. i. 17-19 ; Col. i. 9 ; Eph. iii. 16 ; 1 Cor. x. 13 ; 1 Cor. iii. 6 flf. ; 
 2 Cor. i. 9 ; Phil. i. 19 ; 2 Tim. iv. 7-8 ; Tit. i. 2. 
 
340 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 and in Hope both in this life and that which is to come 
 (1 Cor. xiii. 13, Eom. v. 4, 1 Thess. v. 8-9). 
 
 Trustfulness will induce in general a two-fold frame of 
 mind towards God. 
 
 (1) On the one hand, it will save us from immature 
 judgment "Judge nothing before the time," says the 
 apostle. It will restrain men from attributing to God 
 purposes or acts which appear contrary to their moral 
 ideas. As one has well said, " God's universe is still 
 like unfinished architecture before our eyes ; and one 
 must be possessed of the whole conception of the architect 
 to be able to judge correctly the uncompleted work with 
 its broken lines and apparently unrelated parts. Lines 
 of the incomplete creation which now are separate may 
 meet in some perfect arch beyond our sight." ^ We must 
 remember that love is always love, that 
 
 Every cloud that spreads above 
 And veileth love itself is love,^ 
 
 and that, therefore, we should wait the eternal issues, 
 assured that while we may not understand the mysteries 
 that surround us, there can be nothing in the character 
 or ways of God that will ultimately contradict those 
 primal ethical conceptions which He has implanted in us. 
 We have a right to assume that moral truth is one and 
 the same in man and in God ; and though there is much 
 that must perplex us because of our limited knowledge, 
 we may trust God with our whole heart and interpret 
 His ways and purposes in the light of Jesus Christ. 
 
 (2) And, on the other hand, this trustfulness obliges 
 us to refer all our conduct and endeavour to God as to one 
 who is supremely interested in our lives, and to whom 
 successful achievement is well-pleasing. It will make 
 
 ^ Newman Smyth, Christian Ethics, p. 475. ^ Tennyson. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO GOD 341 
 
 us view our whole life as a probation involving our 
 responsibility, and as a divine education which is fitting 
 us for that type of goodness and happiness both here and 
 hereafter allotted to each of us by God. It will impress 
 us above all with the idea that life is not merely a 
 passive surrender but an active service, a doing of the 
 will of God to which we have been called by His grace.^ 
 All these aspects of life in relation to God find expression 
 in the epistles of Paul. Life is a discipline, a chastening 
 under the hand of God. But it is in keeping with the 
 practical mind of the apostle that he continually repre- 
 sents it also as a personal endeavour, a work in which 
 each must engage. It is God, indeed, who fashions every 
 man, working in him both to will and to do, but he him- 
 self must be a co-worker with God, working out his own 
 salvation with fear and trembling. Paul exhorts his 
 readers to place their entire trust in God, to accept 
 everything, even affliction, as from His hand, to fear 
 Him, to wait upon Him, to yield themselves to Him ; but 
 the true sacrifice that is well-pleasing to God is not any 
 passive acquiescence or ceremonial offering, but the hearty 
 and active dedication of body, soul, and mind to His 
 service. 
 
 2. 1^0 account of the relation of the new life to God 
 would be complete which omitted the special duties of 
 worship centring in prayer and the observance of the 
 sacraments, and witness-hearing. But as the former of 
 these belongs more to the religious than to the ethical 
 teaching of Paul, it may be passed over here with the 
 remark that to the apostle as well as to his Master it 
 was not only the high privilege and holy means of 
 spiritual culture, but above all else the distinguishing 
 mark of a genuine Christian. Worship is the conscious 
 
 ^Rom. xU. 1. 
 
342 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 outgoing of the whole man to his Maker, and it attains 
 its highest exercise in prayer. Prayer does not bring 
 God down to man, but it lifts man up to God. " It is 
 the sublime significancy of prayer/' says Wuttke, " that it 
 brings into prominence man's great and high destiny, 
 that it heightens his consciousness of his true moral 
 nature in relation to God : and as all morality depends 
 on our relation to God, prayer is, in fact, the very life- 
 blood of morality." ^ Paul, like all the other writers of 
 Scripture, represents prayer as the most essential of moral 
 requirements. We are to pray without ceasing — not, 
 indeed, that we are to be continually uttering in articu- 
 late language the desires of our heart. But there is to 
 be a constant aspiring of the soul to God as to one whose 
 will alone is our law, and whose blessing is granted to 
 whatsoever is done in His name. The true prayer, both 
 in its spirit and content, is that which the believer offers 
 as a child of God in the name of Christ. " Because ye 
 are sons, God hath sent forth the spirit of His Son into 
 your hearts, crying Abba, Father." ^ 
 
 Besides the requirement of worship there rests upon 
 the Christian also the duty of WitTiess-hearing — repre- 
 senting the grace and glory of God to man in his Ufa 
 and action. Christians are to be epistles of Christ, His 
 transcripts, known and read of all men.^ They are to 
 manifest God's love to the world, and by their confession 
 and avowal, as well as by their whole life and conversa- 
 tion, to commend the Gospel,^ showing themselves a 
 pattern of good work,^ and adorning the doctrine of God 
 their Saviour in all things.^ 
 
 ^ Christian EthicSy vol. ii. p. 2'21. 
 
 2 Gal. iv. 6; Rom. viii. 15. ^2 Cor. iii. 3. 
 
 ^ 1 Tim. iv. 12. ^ Titus ii. 7. ^ Titus ii. 10. 
 
DUTffiS IN RELATION TO GOD 343 
 
 II. 
 
 The duties of worship and witness-bearing find their 
 highest expression in the Church — the religious life of 
 the community. These are the ends for which the 
 Church exists. In worship it looks Godward on behalf 
 of man ; in witness-bearing it looks manward on behalf 
 of God. Though the apostle uses the expression " king- 
 dom of God " — the leading idea of our Lord's teaching — 
 it is the term " church " which he more frequently 
 employs. These terms may be regarded as practically 
 equivalent, although the " kingdom " possesses a more 
 ideal and transcendental character than the Church. In 
 general we may say that the Christian Church as con- 
 ceived by Paul was " a society of men united by a 
 common faith in Jesus Christ as the Saviour and a 
 common devotion to Him as their Lord, gathered together 
 from all classes, conditions, and races of men." ^ Without 
 entering upon a consideration of the doctrine of the 
 Church — its constitution, government, and order — which 
 belongs to the pastoral rather than the ethical teaching 
 of Paul, and is treated with great fulness in the epistles 
 to Timothy and Titus, it will be sufficient for us to note 
 the impressive figures by which the apostle portrays the 
 Christian community, and draw some inferences from 
 them. 
 
 He likens the Church to a gloriotts temple, of which 
 Christ is at once the foundation and the chief corner- 
 stone, and of which the living stones are those who bear 
 Christ's name and have consecrated their lives to His 
 service. Paul must often have beheld the splendid 
 examples of Grecian architecture in the various cities he 
 visited, but it is significant that it is in writing to the 
 
 ^ Cp. Bruce, St. Paid^s Conception of Christianity, p. 368. 
 
344 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Ephesians that he employs the simile of a building, 
 for in Ephesus there stood before the daily gaze of its 
 citizens the great temple of Diana, at once the most 
 stately and most famous in the world of that day ; and 
 what more natural than that he should remind his 
 Ephesian brethren that, humble and insignificant as they 
 might feel themselves and their religion to be in contrast 
 to all that that imposing heathen structure stood for, 
 they too had a temple built upon a sure foundation, of 
 which each faithful life was a living and abiding stone.^ 
 
 He compares the Church again to the hride of Christ 
 Knit to Him by His love and sacrifice, sanctified by His 
 word and made by union with Him, whose glory and 
 likeness the Church reflects, holy and without blemish,^ 
 Paul would have his brethren realize the tender and close 
 relationship in which they stand to Christ. As husband 
 and wife are one, so Christ and His Church are one. He 
 gives of His best to them ; let them give of their best to 
 Him. One in heart and purpose, let them dwell with 
 Him in holy union, fulfilling their Lord's ideal and 
 enabling Him " to present it to Himself a glorious 
 Church, not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing." ^ 
 
 Finally, Paul designates the Church the body of Christ, 
 of which the Redeemer Himself is the head, and believing 
 men and women are the articulated members vitally 
 related to the head and to one another in fellowship and 
 service.^ 
 
 These of course are ideal pictures. There is a constant 
 efibrt on the part of Paul to contemplate the Church " in 
 the bright light of the ideal, and not in the dim dis- 
 enchanting light of vulgar reality." He was well aware 
 that the actual congregations as they existed in the 
 
 lEph. ii. 19-21. 2Eph. V. 22. 
 
 = Eph. V. 27. *1 Cor. xii. 27; Eph. iv. 6, 13. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO GOD 345 
 
 different localities of the world exposed to the temptations 
 of their environment, fell very far short of these emblems. 
 But, notwithstanding, he delighted to invest the Church 
 with the attributes of the divine kingdom, and he never 
 ceased to hold up before his fellow-Christians the high 
 ideal of what they ought to be and might yet become. 
 
 There were, in particular, two main ideas which he 
 sought by means of these figures to impress upon the 
 scattered congregations of believers : the one was their 
 difference from the world ; the other was their unity in 
 Christ. 
 
 ( 1 ) They were to preserve their separateness from 
 heathenism. It is true that Paul acknowledged himself 
 to be the apostle of the Gentiles, and he desired to claim 
 the whole of mankind for Christ. But as a matter of 
 fact he, first of all, instituted a clearly defined boundary- 
 line between the world and the Christian community. 
 The Gospel was preached in a world that was wholly 
 hostile to it, and those whom Christ had emancipated 
 from the thraldom of sin had entered upon a new life 
 and henceforth belonged to a different kingdom from the 
 surrounding mass of heathenism. They had identified 
 themselves with a heavenly order, and they formed a 
 society different from all others, entirely separate from 
 the world and standing for aims and ideals of a spiritual 
 nature which the heathen could not appreciate. Paul, as 
 we have seen, enjoined a respectful and conciliatory 
 attitude on the part of Christians towards pagan society, 
 but, underlying this formal complacence, it was never to 
 be forgotten that the Church was a separate community, 
 a kingdom by itself. It asked only to be left alone, to 
 be allowed to follow its own aims unmolested. It had 
 nothing in common with heathen practices, and by its 
 aloofness and general lack of sympathy with the social 
 
346 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 customs and worldly pursuits and recreations of the 
 people, it incurred the suspicion of being a secret and 
 revolutionary organization, and, at a later period, even 
 provoked the persecution of the state. Hence the more 
 loyal to their faith Christians were, the more did they 
 feel that they were aliens in a strange land, citizens of 
 another kingdom and subjects of another king. 
 
 (2) But while guarding their separateness from the 
 world believers were to cherish, all the more on that very 
 account, the sense of unity with one another and with 
 Christ. Each single congregation was encouraged to 
 look upon itself not as a self-existent body, but as a part 
 of a larger whole. Jerusalem was to be regarded as the 
 mother-church, of which the separate congregations were 
 daughters. This family relation is illustrated by the 
 collection which Paul started on behalf of the necessitous 
 brethren of Palestine. Thus by practical expressions of 
 sympathy and liberality, by the visits of Paul and his 
 co-workers to the isolated local churches, and by the 
 circulation of pastoral letters, the sense of the fraternity 
 of all the congregations throughout the world was main- 
 tained. Each community, however weak and unimportant 
 it might be in itself, was sustained and encouraged in its 
 church life by the thought that it was a member of a 
 great and widespread organization. 
 
 It was, however, within the individual congregations 
 that this feeling of brotherhood and union was chiefly to 
 be cultivated. In their everyday life, in their common 
 relationships, and above all in their meetings for com- 
 munion, prayer, and thanksgiving, this consciousness of 
 kinship and fraternity would find expression. They 
 could not but feel that they stood nearer to one another 
 than to their worldly neighbours. They were bound in 
 a relation of mutual love and helpfulness. The fruit of 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO GOD 347 
 
 the Spirit was love, and the Church proved itself to be a 
 spiritual community by resting its whole organization on 
 the law of brotherly love. And as they were united as 
 brethren, it naturally followed that all feelings of in- 
 equality, all distinctions of race and class were to be 
 abolished. There is, however, no evidence that the com- 
 munal life, in which the brethren had all things in 
 common, which prevailed for a short period in the first 
 Pentecostal days, existed in Paul's time. On the contrary, 
 there is every reason to infer that brotherly equality 
 among Christians was not understood as involving the 
 removal of civil and social distinctions. " Even in the life 
 peculiar to the community, in the religious domain itself 
 — the interchange of gifts with which each served the 
 other and the whole — that equality by no means signified 
 identity in position. . . . Variety of honour and even of 
 value was not thereby removed. ... It was the variety 
 of the members that secured the co-operation of forces, 
 and the unified composition of one body." ^ The strong 
 were taught to help the weak, and the weak were 
 encouraged to believe that their service was indispensable 
 for the whole. Eich and poor, high and low, alike were 
 incited to mutual sympathy and support, and called upon 
 to realize that, whatever their outward differences might 
 be, as spiritual beings they were equal before God. 
 
 The bond of union was their common relationship with 
 God in Christ. They were animated by one spirit and 
 sustained by one purpose. They had one Lord, one faith, 
 one baptism, one God and Father of alL^ The Christian 
 life was a life in the Spirit. Those who shared it 
 belonged to a higher world than the natural and material. 
 While actually existing upon the earth, they were to be 
 men whose home was in heaven, and whose real interests 
 
 ^ Weizsacher, Apostolic Age, vol. ii. p. 383. ^ ^p^^ iy^ 5^ g 
 
348 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 lay in an unseen world. The kingdom of God is not 
 meat and drink, but righteousness and peace and grace in 
 the Holy Ghost. A supernatural element was to colour 
 even their ordinary life. They were to live under the 
 power of the world to come. Eisen with Christ, they 
 were to set their affections on things which were above. 
 Heavenly-mindedness was to be the habitual frame of 
 those who had consecrated their hearts to Christ. 
 
 m. 
 
 Even in this life the Christian could experience some- 
 thing of this exaltation, but it was in the next that it would 
 be completely realized. Hence along with faith and love 
 Paul repeatedly lays stress upon hope as a distinguishing 
 feature of the Christian. It lies beyond the scope of our 
 subject to consider the eschatology of the apostle, save in 
 so far as his view of the last things reacted upon his 
 ethical teaching. Paul himself believed, and he con- 
 stantly taught his friends to believe, that the Lord was at 
 hand, and that the end of all earthly things was speedily 
 to come. The hope which he inculcated was nothing 
 less than the completion of communion with God, and 
 participation in the full bliss and glory of His kingdom 
 which Christ had begun in the hearts of believers. But 
 this hope, so far from creating in Christians apathy or 
 recklessness, was to make them more faithful in duty, 
 more patient in trial, and, above all, more watchful and 
 expectant. It was to be an active hope, which was to be 
 combined with the work of faith and labour of love.^ 
 Paul indeed says that life is short and that the fashion 
 of this world is passing away, but he does not draw the 
 conclusion which many, believers and unbelievers alike, 
 
 1 1 Thess. i. 3. 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO GOD 349 
 
 have drawn — that, because life is short, it is worthless 
 too. His teaching lends no support to that sentimental 
 longing for the time when earthly things shall trouble no 
 more. The inference which he would have his readers 
 draw is not that life, being a thing so soon to be done 
 with, is of no value and may be despised. On the con- 
 trary, his idea seems to be that, because life is short, it 
 has all the greater worth. The sense of how swiftly our 
 days are passing is not to quench life's interests, but to 
 impart to them a significance all the higher and keener 
 because they will soon be beyond our power. Every 
 experience of life may have some moral bearing on 
 character, and the very brevity of life ought to make us 
 the more earnest lest any of its spiritual possibilities be 
 missed. 
 
 Of the future life Paul has little to say. The tradi- 
 tional apocalyptic imagery seems not to have had much 
 charm for him. He offers no detailed picture of the 
 world to come. Unlike Peter and the author of the 
 Eevelation he depicts neither the terrors of hell nor 
 the joys of heaven. A fine reserve marks every allusion 
 to the life that is to be. He does not shirk the thought 
 of death, but neither does he fondle it. He turns his 
 gaze calmly from the end of things to the tasks of the 
 present. As he himself met death, he would have others 
 face it. Until almost the last it was his firm conviction 
 that he would not undergo that experience, but with his 
 contemporaries " be changed," caught up in the clouds to 
 meet the Lord. But as time wore on, and as peril after 
 peril confronted him, he came to contemplate the possi- 
 bility of his dying. If he had any physical shrinking 
 from that experience, it was but a momentary feehng, 
 quickly thrust aside, and he triumphantly writes to the 
 Corinthians, "We know that when this earthly tabernacle 
 
350 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 is dissolved we have a building of God, a house not made 
 with hands, eternal in the heavens." 
 
 A calm confidence characterizes the outlook of the 
 apostle. Beyond the temporal and the seen there lurks 
 for him no unknown terror, there yawns no dark abyss. 
 Behind the veil God is, and he who lives with Him now 
 will dwell with Him hereafter. His earthly experience 
 stands in vital relation to his eternal hope. If we are 
 Christ's the future is ours as well as the present. 
 Nothing can separate us from His love. 
 
 The stars come nightly to the sky 
 
 The tidal wave into the sea, 
 Nor time, nor space, nor deep, nor high 
 
 Can keep my owq away from me. 
 
 Paul had no fear, and he seeks to impart to his friends 
 his own splendid courage. Even when he is in imprison- 
 ment at Eome and is looking forward to the lictor's axe, 
 we are impressed with the note of triumphant joy which 
 thrills through the epistles of that time, and particularly 
 in the letter to the Philippians. He is willing to serve 
 his Master both in life and in death. For him " to live 
 is Christ and to die is gain." It is indeed remarkable, 
 as has been pointed out, that in spite of his excessive 
 hardships and unremitting labours, amid which it were 
 only human if he should at times become a prey to 
 loneliness and depression, there is no evidence of that 
 morbid yearning for death, which became a feature of 
 not a few of the martyrs of the early church. His whole 
 desire is to serve his brethren, and he is ready to go or 
 stay as the Lord may will. He knows that when his 
 course is finished and the battle of life is over, there is 
 laid up for him a crown of righteousness. But in the 
 meantime, with the heroism of a true soldier of Christ, he 
 
DUTIES IN RELATION TO GOD 351 
 
 will not desert his post or abate his efforts till God's call 
 comes. 
 
 Paul himself is, indeed, the grandest exemplar of his 
 own ethic. His teaching is the outcome of his life. It 
 is his attitude to God that determines his relation to 
 man. Fidelity to the least inspired by love to the 
 highest — that was the burden of his ethical message as it 
 was the note of his moral life. 
 
CHAPTER XIV 
 
 THE ETHICAL ULTIMATE OF ST. PAUL 
 
 In these studies which we now bring to a close, we have 
 aimed at presenting the apostle not so much as the great 
 theologian who leads our minds into the profound mys- 
 teries of God's revelation, but rather as the practical 
 teacher of morals, to whom no incident of experience is 
 secular and no duty insignificant, because all things 
 belong to God and all life is dominated by the spirit of 
 Christ. For Paul the final test of Christianity is its 
 applicability to life. A mere doctrine of atonement or a 
 theory of justification, beautiful, logical and symmetrical 
 as it might be in verbal statement, is but a beating of the 
 air if it cannot be translated into conduct. Lite is 
 everywhere the measure of doctrine and love the index 
 of belief; and to this ultimate touchstone Paul did not 
 hesitate to bring every truth he declared. 
 
 But the originality and the uniqueness of Paul's ethical 
 teaching are to be sought not so much in the range of its 
 practical application, as in its unfolding of an ideal which 
 is at once the Power and the Pattern of the new life. 
 That ideal is Christ in Whom the perfect life is seen and 
 through Whom the power for its realization is com- 
 municated. This latter feature is central to Paul, and is, 
 indeed, the supreme purpose and aim in his interpretation 
 
THE ETHICAL ULTIMATE OF ST. PAUL 353 
 
 of Christianity. " The Gospel is not merely a revelation 
 of the divine nature, rich, satisfying, many-sided, and 
 corresponding profoundly to the complex needs of 
 humanity. It is a principle of life, of energy, of move^ 
 ment; it heightens vitality; it makes for efficiency in 
 work and for greatness of character." ^ " The Gospel," 
 says Paul to the Eomans, " is the power of God unto 
 salvation";'^ and again to the Corinthians, "the kingdom 
 of God is not in word but in power." ^ The most dis- 
 tinctive and pregnant idea underlying Paul's teaching is 
 the idea of a self -communication of God to man ; and 
 for him Christianity culminates in the doctrine of the 
 indwelling of God in humanity, the might of the spirit 
 working in human hearts, and strengthening them to 
 receive, to act, and to endure. Paul tells the Ephesians 
 that " they need something more effectual than knowledge, 
 more sustaining than the temper of tranquil dependence 
 on God, more stimulating even than fellowship in a holy 
 community. They need, and the Gospel of Christ offers 
 them, the gift of the indwelling Presence of the Deity. 
 What, therefore, the apostle seeks for them in his prayer 
 is a capacity riot so much to act as to receive, strength to 
 open the door without reserve to One who comes not 
 primarily to instruct or to console, but to make for 
 Himself a habitation in the inmost recesses of man's 
 personality; to dwell there in the fulness of divine force, 
 as a transforming and enabling principle of life." * 
 
 It is noteworthy that the word " power " continually 
 recurs in the apostle's writings as a keynote of his 
 teaching. The gift of power is represented as the end of 
 all God's dealings with man and as the highest mani- 
 festation of human personality. Paul felt himself to be 
 
 ^Ottley, Christian Ideas and Ideals, p. 381. 
 
 2 Rom. i. 16. ^1 Cor. iv. 20. * Ottley, p. 382. 
 
354 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 a living monument of redemptive might, and his most 
 characteristic message both to churches and individuals 
 was, " quit you like men, be strong," ^ " Be strong in the 
 Lord and in the power of His might," ^ "Be strong in the 
 grace that is in Jesus Christ." ^ 
 
 Now in the new life as Paul experienced and ex- 
 plained it, this element of power is at once source and 
 stream. Power is present where the water first takes 
 its lonely rise from the living rock to far down where 
 the river flows in volume by the busy haunts of man. 
 Power is the spring of character, and in character power 
 is manifested. The hidden life of God passes into the 
 Christian's personality, becomes indeed so thoroughly an 
 integral part of the man that his moral character, instead 
 of being merely an adjunct of faith or an external acquire- 
 ment (as it is in so many systems of morals) becomes the 
 spontaneous outflow, the automatic expression of the new 
 germ of life within the soul. Once Christ is in the 
 heart of a man, strong decisive moral action proceeds 
 by the working of a natural principle and is the direct 
 and irresistible expression of the inner spirit of life. 
 It is through the dynamic of the living Christ that the 
 divine life in the Christian first b^ins ; and it is by 
 the same di^dne energy interfused through the whole 
 personality and dominating at every moment the entire 
 man that the Christian is made forceful and vigorous, 
 and is enabled to meet and deal effectively with the 
 ever new conditions of life which confront him in the 
 world. 
 
 But this quality of power is not only the root but also 
 
 the fruit of the new life. Power is the distinguishing 
 
 feature of the Christian personality. The prevailing 
 
 impression which the character of Jesus made upon His 
 
 H Cor. xvi. 13. ^Eph. vl 10. ^2 Tim. ii. 1. 
 
THE ETHICAL ULTIMATE OF ST. PAUL 355 
 
 contemporaries was that of power. "What manner of 
 man is this ? " so they spoke wondering. " His word is 
 with power ; He teaches with authority." Behind all the 
 tenderness, patience, and compassion of Jesus, men were 
 conscious of this quality of energy and self-mastery — the 
 reserve force of a commanding personality. And what 
 Jesus Himself was He promised to make His disciples. 
 " To them He gave power to become the Sons of God." 
 Paul sees clearly the necessity of this quality, and dis- 
 covers in it the prime secret of his own life and ministry 
 — " according to the power which the Lord hath given 
 me to edification." ^ He will even glory in his infirmities 
 if by means of them he may become a stronger man, that 
 the power of Christ may rest upon him.^ Character for 
 the apostle means effectiveness, force, capacity for service, 
 and Christian manhood is not only life, but life at the 
 full. Christ is for Paul the only begotten of such life. 
 His is the grace that is sufficient for a man, His the 
 strength that is perfected in weakness. He it is that 
 transmutes our very frailties and disabilities into invin- 
 cible instruments of power, so that each may say as Paul 
 said, " when I am weak then am I strong." This is the 
 strange paradox of the new life which the apostle never 
 wearies reiterating — that there is imparted to the feeble, 
 the humble-minded, the distrustful, to ordinary people, 
 common men and women, a new gift — the gift of power ; 
 a new force — the force of life, of character, of service. 
 And this is St. Paul's distinctive message to our age. 
 " What the world is waiting for," says Prof. Peabody, " is 
 an accession of spiritual power." It is efficiency, moral 
 force, strength of character, "the motive power of idealism," 
 that is demanded by the perplexing circumstances of 
 modern social and industrial life, and it is this only 
 1 2 Cor. xiii. 10. ^2 Cor. xii. 9. 
 
356 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 which will achieve the ends which institutions, govern- 
 ments, industrial machinery, and political schemes are 
 elaborately striving after.^ It is idealists, men of 
 spiritual vision, men with the power of God working in 
 and through them, men dedicated to the fearless service 
 of righteousness and love, that are needed to grapple 
 with the problems of our social life and lift the world to 
 a higher level. " How to take command of circum- 
 stances instead of being their slave ; how to own one*8 
 wealth and not be owned by it ; how to rule one's spirit 
 as well as to take a city ! . . . how to labour together 
 with God instead of becoming a cog in some great 
 machine ! how to maintain peace of mind amid the 
 disasters, illusions, and tragedies of experience — this is 
 the cry for power which goes up from many a life, 
 ensnared — as whose is not ? in the mechanism and 
 materialism of the world." ^ 
 
 It is this union of vision and power, this fusion of 
 idealism and dynamic force in Pauline ethics, which 
 differentiates it from all other systems in ancient or 
 modern times. Paul did not merely propose to mankind 
 a new ideal, he disclosed a new power as part of that 
 ideal, in virtue of which the ideal realizes itself. The 
 old static view of the moral life has no place in Paul's 
 conception. Given the germ in the soul the new life 
 must follow. Begin with Christ, and you must grow up 
 unto Him in all things. Life is a force. Character is 
 a growth, a flower which unfolds and expands from a 
 hidden seed. Hence in Paul's teaching all apathy, 
 passivity, inaction, negation, which occupy such an 
 important place in the moral conceptions of Buddhism, 
 
 ^See also, Jones* IdecUiBm as u Prcictical Greed, chap. vi. and pp. 
 296 ff. 
 ^Peabody, Jesus Christ and the Christian CJiaracter, p. 162. 
 
THE ETHICAL ULTIMATE OF ST. PAUL 357 
 
 Neo-Platonism, Stoicism, and even of mediaeval Catho- 
 licism, play no part. On the contrary, all is life, energy, 
 untiring activity, and unceasing endeavour. " This one 
 thing I do, I press towards the mark for the prize of 
 the high calling of God in Christ" — that is the motto 
 of Paul's own life, as it is the watchword and challenge of 
 his whole ethical appeal. And yet it is characteristic of 
 him that he represents this endeavour as no merely human 
 effort. It is a divine power working in and through the 
 human. It is a co-operation, and yet it is something 
 deeper, something more integral and organic. Man is 
 animated by a new principle of life. It is God that 
 worketh in him both to will and to do. The Christ 
 within pervades and dominates all the faculties and 
 inspires all the activities of the man. He is no longer 
 himself. He is possessed by a higher power. And yet, 
 in another sense, he is never so much himself ; " I live, 
 yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." The " Christ in 
 me '* is at once the ideal and the spring of the new life. 
 
 " Yea thro' life, death, sorrow, and thro* sinning 
 He shall suffice me, for He hath sufficed : 
 Christ is the end, for Christ was the beginning, 
 Christ the beginning, for the end is Christ."^ 
 
 With such an ideal inspiring and ordering the moral 
 life, it is no longer a matter of importance that there are 
 some subjects concerning which the apostle has nothing 
 to say, questions belonging peculiarly to modem con- 
 ditions of life which do not come within the range of his 
 consciousness. " It does not follow," however, as Prof. 
 Harnack has well said, "from the lack of economic 
 precepts in the gospel that the matter is one which does 
 not concern a Christian." There are many details of 
 
 1 Myers, Saint Paul. 
 
358 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 modern social life which Paul, like his Lord, does not 
 deal with, many problems of present-day ethics which 
 cannot be decided by a direct reference to chapter and 
 verse either in the gospels or in the epistles. But St. 
 Paul's great principles of human solidarity, of human 
 equality in Christ, of freedom, service, and love; his 
 teaching concerning the Church, the kingdom of God, the 
 family, the state, his precepts with regard to personal 
 purity, the use of wealth and the duty of work, contained 
 the germs of the subsequent renewal of Europe, and still 
 contain the potency of social and political transforma- 
 tion,^ 
 
 The importance of Paul's ethical teaching is not that 
 he legislates for every possible situation, but that for him 
 all ethical questions are really religious questions, and 
 that all, even the most material and concrete, are treated 
 svh specie aeternitatis. The real danger of our times is 
 the occupation of the people with the merely material 
 work of social reform — a necessary work indeed, but one 
 which threatens to substitute the promise of this life for 
 that which is to come. Those social reformers who dis- 
 coimt the importance of individual character and of 
 spiritual ideals, who ignore or despise the social dynamic 
 of spiritual life and love, are doomed to ineffectiveness 
 and disappointment.^ In the Pauline ethics, with a 
 courage and thoroughness unparalleled in history, all 
 practical questions are regarded from the divine stand- 
 point, and viewed in the light of Christ's life and 
 teaching. 
 
 "We claim no finality for Paul. He himself would 
 have claimed none. It was no mechanical and completed 
 moral code he issued. He disclosed a life, and declared 
 
 ^ See The Social Teaching of the Bibhy various authors, p. 22. 
 ^Ibid. p. 23. 
 
THE ETHICAL ULTIMATE OF ST. PAUL 359 
 
 not obscurely or falteringly Him who was the inspiration 
 of that life. Christ for Paul was the first of Kealities, 
 a personal Force unconfined to race or epoch, a Presence 
 living down the centuries and acting in and through the 
 souls of men of every age and clime. The Christianity 
 which Paul taught, just because it has its springs in the 
 living Christ, is an inexhaustible fountain of life, a stream 
 of refreshing and renewal which must expand and grow 
 deeper and broader with the growth of man. The gospel 
 is not only a principle adequate to all conceivable con- 
 ditions of thought and life, but it itself creates the new 
 experiences and propounds the new questions for which 
 its guidance is sought. The very consciousness of the 
 complexity of life and the manifold difficulties acknow- 
 ledged in all attempts to combat evil and further good, 
 which is a feature of our age, is itself an evidence of a 
 deeper appreciation of the value of Christianity, and of a 
 more sincere endeavour to make it not merely a nominal 
 counsel of perfection, but an actual working creed. The 
 increased uneasiness of our day in regard to existing 
 conditions of life ; the discussions and agitations ; the 
 social schemes and projects put forward and debated ; the 
 awakening of the public conscience and ^he deepening 
 sense of responsibility manifest among all classes, in respect 
 of the vice and misery of our large cities, are unmistakable 
 signs that the leaven of practical Christianity is working, 
 it may be not always consciously, in the souls of men. 
 People are beginning to feel that if the gospel is true at 
 all, then nothing is beyond its province, and no problem 
 of life, individual or social, economic, industrial or inter- 
 national, is outside its jurisdiction. " All things are 
 yours," says the apostle, reiterating the comprehensiveness 
 of Jesus the Christ, whose mind it was his mission to 
 interpret : " Whether it be the divisions within the 
 
360 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Church ; the questions without the Church, of philan- 
 thropy, industry, politics; life with its problems, death 
 with its mysteries, the present with its cares, the future 
 with its hopes — all is yours, for ye are Christ's, and 
 Christ is God's." 
 
 But while Paul exhibits unshaken confidence in the 
 invincible might and efficacy of the Grospel of Christ to 
 achieve all individual and social good,^ his is not the easy 
 assurance of the shallow optimist who is blind to the 
 anomalies of the world. He does not for a moment 
 disguise from himself or others the puzzling perplexity 
 of human nature and the arduousness of life's tasks. He 
 is everywhere haunted with the mystery^ of existence — 
 the marvel and strangeness of life and -death and the 
 great hereafter. Life is not a simple matter for him. 
 It is no monotone, but a thing of manifold moods and 
 expressions. It is full of contradictions and contrasted 
 experiences, and cannot be explained by a single formula. 
 Light and shadow, joy and sorrow, gloom and glory — all 
 enter into its composition. It is a robe of many colours, 
 a fabric woven of diverse threads. The most opposite 
 qualities are often blended in a single individual, and 
 the most contradictory elements meet even in a single 
 experience. To this ever present sense of mystery and 
 perplexity in life is due the apostle's frequent resort to 
 paradox and antithesis. He almost exhausts the resources 
 of the Greek language, rich as it is in variety of expres- 
 sion, in endeavouring to do justice to his own complex 
 emotions and conflicting states. Paul knew well that 
 
 ^ "I can do all things through Christ who strengtheneth me" (Phil. 
 iv. 13) ; and again, " We are more than conquerors through Him that 
 loved us" (Rom. ix. 37). 
 
 '^The term mystery is used no less than eighteen times by the apostle, 
 and by no other New Testament writer. 
 
THE ETHICAL ULTIMATE OF ST. PAUL 361 
 
 there are heights and depths in the human soul which 
 are hidden even from itself and much more from others ; 
 
 " Not e'en the tenderest heart, and next our own, 
 Knows half the reason why we smile or sigh."* 
 
 This consciousness of mystery and contrast in the 
 philosophy of Paul contributes to the grandeur and 
 nobility of his view of life. To the apostle life is a 
 conflict. Flesh and spirit, body and soul, natural impulse 
 and divine principle, the law of our members and the law 
 of our mind, are ever at war, so that when we would 
 do good evil is present with us. The man who does not 
 feel this burden, who is not conscious of this inward 
 anomaly, has not begun to live. It is the opposing 
 moments of life's antithesis which invest its aims and 
 endeavours with moral worth ; and it is this same conflict 
 which, as we watch it unfolding, gives to the drama of 
 human life its irresistible interest. It may deepen to a 
 tragedy or rise to a triumph. For we carry eternity in 
 our hearts; and it is the infinite of which we are con- 
 scious at every moment that imbues our existence at 
 once with its ineffable sadness and its unutterable hope. 
 A man made for God, and with a yearning in him for 
 the divine, can never but be haunted with a sense of 
 dissatisfaction and unrest, and can find no more appro- 
 priate terms in which to utter his experience than those 
 of Paul : " As dying, and, behold, we live ; as chastened, 
 and not killed ; as sorrowing, yet alway rejoicing ; as 
 poor, yet making many rich ; as having nothing, and yet 
 possessing all things." ^ " The good that I would I do 
 not : but the evil which I would not, that I do," ^ " O 
 wretched man that I am ! who shall deliver me from the 
 
 iKeble, The Christian Year, 2 2 Cor. vi. 9, 10. 
 
 8 Rom. vii. 20. 
 
362 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 body of this death ?" ^ " With the mind I myself serve 
 the law of God ; but with the fiesh the law of sin." - 
 
 But though the apostle Paul strikes every note of the 
 diversified experience of man and sweeps with his fingers 
 the whole scale of human emotion, he does not leave us 
 with the impression that life is only a clashing of dis- 
 cords. The music he offers us is fuller and grander, 
 because in it so many and so diverse notes meet and 
 mingle. He plays upon an instrument of many strings, 
 but out of the dissonances come higher harmonies. 
 Undaunted by mystery, challenging evil to do its worst, 
 outbraving anomaly and contradiction, fearing not to 
 sound the minor chords of pain and sorrow, he reaches 
 
 unity at last, 
 
 "The C major of this life." 3 
 
 The opposites are not suppressed but reconciled. The 
 contrasts are fused into a larger, all-compassing union. 
 Christ, the Son of Man, is for him the light of life, and 
 in the sacrifice of the cross, flesh and spirit, grief and joy, 
 life and death, are brought into unity, 
 
 " Dim fragments meant 
 To be united in some wondrous whole, 
 Imperfect qualities throughout creation, 
 Suggesting some one creature yet to make, 
 Some point where all the scattered rays should meet,"^ 
 
 are taken up and harmonized. Nor does the man in 
 Christ part with a single element of his full humanity. 
 The natural is transmuted into the spiritual, the earthly 
 into the heavenly. The " old man " remains, but with a 
 changed character, his former affections and luets crucified. 
 The "old self" is preserved, but, purged of selfishness, 
 
 ^Rom. vii. 24. ^'Rom. vii. 25. 
 
 ^Browning, Abt Vogler. * Browning. 
 
THE ETHICAL ULTIMATE OF ST. PAUL 363 
 
 which is the root of sin, it is transfigured into a higher, 
 larger selfhood. The old " body " abides, but it is conse- 
 crated to nobler uses, and its powers and passions become 
 the instruments of holiness. The old pain persists, nay, 
 often becomes intenser, but it is pain shot through with 
 joy, and, sanctified and sweetened by fellowship with 
 Christ, it is working for us " a far more exceeding weight 
 of glory." Law remains, but robbed of its legalism and 
 fulfilled in love, it is lifted up into the realm of liberty. 
 That mystic word of the apostle, which was the secret of 
 his own complex life, is the solution of all life's mysteries. 
 " I live, and yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." 
 
 This unity in diversity, this fearless recognition of the 
 antinomies of life and thought, and the attempt, not to 
 suppress but combine them in a higher synthesis, is 
 acknowledged by every student of St. Paul's philosophy 
 of life, and has made the apostle of the Gentiles a 
 favourite of some of the world's greatest thinkers. 
 Theologians like Origen and Augustine, Anselm and 
 Thomas Aquinas, Calvin and Luther ; philosophers like 
 Plotinus, Boehme, Schelling, and Hegel ; mystics like St. 
 Bernard, St. Theresa, Tauler, and Thomas d Kempis: 
 poets like Dante, Goethe, and Browning — have found in 
 his utterances the support of their doctrines, the expres- 
 sion of their speculative theories, and the vehicle of their 
 poetic thoughts and feelings. 
 
 Profoundest of thinkers and greatest of mystics, the 
 apostle sounds depths the subtlest mind can hardly 
 fathom and scales altitudes at which the ordinary man 
 cannot breathe. He has uttered, as St. Peter says, many 
 things hard to be understood. But this is the very 
 quality in his teaching which constitutes its charm for 
 the thoughtful and aspiring. 
 
 The Incarnation with all that it implies for us men is 
 
364 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 the great fact to which Paul's whole life and writings 
 bear witness. According to him, Christ is not only the 
 manifestation, but the communication of God's own 
 righteousness and love and eternal life. We may not 
 be able to construe the incarnation in all its necessary 
 co-existences and seeming contradictions to ourselves or 
 others in any final or satisfying theory. But neither can 
 we reject it without denying the eternal truth of the 
 universe and all the higher meanings and purposes of our 
 being. For us, as for Paul, the fact of Christ is central, 
 and it alone binds into one and holds in coherence the 
 conflicting elements of life and destiny. As one has 
 said, " the mystery of the incarnation may be permanently 
 a mystery, in the extremest sense of the term, a fact or 
 actuality which reason cannot construe nor language 
 express ; but it is the mystery which solves and illumines 
 all others." 
 
 When all is said, between Paul's dogmatics and his 
 ethics there is really no opposition, and religion and 
 morals in regard both to their beginning and end per- 
 fectly coincide. The supreme object of faith and know- 
 ledge is also the ultimate goal and incentive of all desire 
 and action. " What we mean by God," says Goethe, " is 
 just the best we know " ; and " a man's real religion," as 
 has been beautifully said, " whatever his verbal creed, is 
 his attitude of mind and will to that which he thinks 
 highest and most real in life. And Christians are those 
 who believe that this highest and most real good of life 
 has been set before them in the image of Christ. They 
 are those who think that it is the meaning and purpose 
 of our existence to bring about a state of society in which 
 all the members shall be working in the Spirit of Christ, 
 in which no one is deprived of his share in the great 
 heritage of man, no one is crushed under the wheels of a 
 
THE ETHICAL ULTIMATE OF ST. PAUL 365 
 
 civilization in which he does not partake, and everyone 
 finds his appropriate place and work in the service of the 
 common good. If we are Christians in more than name, 
 we must believe that such a society is possible, nay, that 
 it is what man was made for, and what certainly will yet 
 be realized in the world. And the service of truth for 
 us Christians must be to do our part in bringing about 
 this ideal by making ourselves and others, as far as we 
 can, fit to be citizens in such a kingdom of G-od upon 
 earth ; a kingdom which, far off as it seems, is the desire 
 of all nations, the earnest expectation and object for 
 which all good men now strive, and in the past have been 
 striving, and which perhaps is nearer to us than we 
 think." ^ Faith is this ideal which may be said to be the 
 very core of the apostle Paul's ethical teaching, is the 
 incentive and motive-power for the making of individuals 
 and for the transformation of all forms of social life. It 
 begins in time, but it will have its consummation in 
 eternity, of which every stage in the progressive evolution 
 of man is a prophecy and promise. All things are tending 
 towards this goal, and 
 
 " Step by step since time began 
 "We see the steady gain of man." 
 
 The manifold resources and labours of the world, the 
 various gifts of civilization, the arts and sciences, thought 
 and enterprise, industry and education, all the efforts for 
 the social and spiritual salvation of mankind — are working 
 together for this great end, the building up of the body of 
 Christ. " The one increasing purpose " of the ages will 
 be consummated when " we all come in the unity of the 
 faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God unto a 
 full-grown man, unto the measure of the stature of the 
 
 1 Edw. Caird, Lay Sermons, p. 42. 
 
366 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 fulness of Christ." In the furtherance of this end each 
 individual must take his part according to his station and 
 gifts ; and across the centuries there comes to all of us 
 the echo of the apostle*s final message to the Church of 
 Corinth as the sum of all his ethical counsel : " Finally, 
 brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of 
 one mind, live in peace ; and the God of love and peace 
 shall be with you." ^ 
 
 12 Cor. xiii. 11. 
 
INDEX 
 
 Absoluteness of ideal, 114. 
 
 Abstinence, see Temperance, 121. 
 
 Accountability of man, 60, 80, 82. 
 
 Actions indifferent, determinate, 
 and permissible, 231. 
 
 Adam, disobedience of, 82, 90. 
 
 Adaptability of Paul, 39. 
 
 Adultery and divorce, 294. 
 
 Aestheticism and art, 320. 
 
 Affirmation and renunciation, 121, 
 235 f. 
 
 Alexander, 46 ; Conquest of, 124. 
 
 Alexandrian theology, 36 ff. 
 
 Almsgiving, 249,274; Wordsworth 
 on, 275. 
 
 Altruism, 121, 258 ff. 
 
 Ambition, proper, 255. 
 
 Amiable virtues, 186 ff. ; Leeky 
 on, 119. 
 
 Amusement, 255. See Recreation. 
 
 Ancestral influences on Paul, 29 ff. 
 
 Apologetic element in Epistles, 7- 
 
 Aratus, 41. 
 
 Aristotle, Definition of ethics, 17, 
 96; 'Expert' of, 105; The 
 * mean' of, 118; Limited view of, 
 124; Highest good, 155; Life, as 
 growth, 198 ; life, social, 258. 
 
 Art, Paul's relation to, 320 ; 
 Benan's criticism, 320; Greek 
 view of life, 235 ; Goethe, 235. 
 
 Asceticism, 21, 85; of Rome, 115, 
 239 ; Browning quoted, 240 ; 
 Paul opposed to, 121, 245-6, 311. 
 Athens, 47, 320. i 
 Atonement, doctrine of, 136. 
 
 Aubertin, 48, note. 
 
 Augustine, 80, 86, 269 ; View of 
 state, 316 ; On worth of indi- 
 vidual, 324. 
 
 B 
 
 Baptism, aid to life, 222, 341. 
 
 See Sacraments. 
 Barnabas, 279, 184, where for 
 
 * Silas ' read * Barnabas.' 
 Baring-Gould, *Life of Paul,' 253. 
 Eaur, 39, 58. 
 Beneficence, 248-9, 274-5. 
 Benevolence and goodness, 273. 
 Bernard. St., 225, 363. 
 Beyschlag, 58. 
 Bible, see Scripture. 
 Blessedness, 103, 159, 160, 161. 
 Body, 64, 75; Hellenistic theory 
 
 of, 74 ff.; No disparagement of, 
 
 85 ; Bodily organism, 239, 240 ; 
 
 Bodily exercise, 254, 363. 
 Bousset, 119. 
 Bradley, 258. 
 Bravery, see Courage. 
 Brotherhood, 54, 110, 324 f., 346. 
 Brotherly love, nature and ground 
 
 of, 260 ff. ; Its limits, 262 ; 
 
 Manifestations, 263 ff. 
 Bruce, A. B., quoted, 58, 74, 76, 
 
 77, 145, 147, 200, 343. 
 Bruce, W. S., 284, 296, 308-9. 
 Browning quoted, 150, 161, 168^ 
 
 194. 201, 208, 211, 213, 214, 216, 
 
 240, 362. 
 Buddha, -ism — Withdrawal of self,. 
 
 122 ; Motives, 155, 356. 
 Bussell, F. W., quoted, 328. 
 
368 
 
 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Caird, E., 8,42,365. 
 
 Calling, life a, 165 ff., 255, 341. 
 
 Calvin, 2, 86, 269, 363. 
 
 Cardinal virtues, 179 ff. 
 
 Categorical imperative, 114. 
 
 CeUbacy, 242, 246, 287. 
 
 Celsus, 304. 
 
 Character, constituents of, 175, 
 354, 358. 
 
 Characteristics of ideal, 113, 352, 
 357. 
 
 Charity, see Love. 
 
 Chastity, 208, 243, 245. 
 
 Child, Children— Duties of, 296 ff. ; 
 Meagre reference to, 297. 
 
 Christ, and Paul, 5, 8 ff. ; and 
 Adam, 82 ; A possible, in man, 
 90; as ideal, 104; Pattern, 105; 
 Power, 107 ; Principle, 109 ; as 
 Creator, 129, 135, 141 ; as 
 Sacrifice, 137 ; and Spirit, 139 ; 
 Head of body, 141 ; Sanctions 
 of, 159 ; Earthly life of, 176 ; 
 Equality in, 283, 347; Imitation 
 of, 108, 171 ; Sufferings of, 216; 
 Supremacy of, 330; The ulti- 
 mate, 353, 357, 364 ; Value of 
 God, 333. 
 
 ChrysoBtom, 269, 292. 
 
 Church, 111, 112, 221, 343. 
 
 Clark, W. N., 144. 
 
 Clarke, W. H., 261. 
 
 Clean thes, 41. 
 
 Comfort, 275. 
 
 Communism, 248, 347. 
 
 Comprehensiveness of Paul's ideal, 
 128. 
 
 Comte, 105. 
 
 Congregation, 111, 346. 
 
 Conscience, 66, 70 ff. ; Education 
 of, 70 ; Supremacy of, 238, 271 ; 
 Cases of, 269, 319. 
 
 Contentment with station, 255. 
 
 Conversion, of Paul, 55 ff. ; Per- 
 fectionist view, 199; Rationalist 
 view, 199 ; Repentance and 
 faith, in, 144 ; and progress, 198. 
 
 Cosmopolitanism of Stoics, 54.- 
 
 Courage, 120, 183, 208 ; of Paul, 
 184, 319, 350. 
 
 Covetousness, 249. 
 
 Cowardice, 184. 
 
 Culpability, 83. 
 
 Culture, of self, 235 ; of Goethe, 
 235 ; Aids to moral, 211 ff. 
 
 Custom — Ethics, science of, 17; 
 Element in development of con- 
 science, 71 ; Influence on char- 
 acter, 127. 
 
 D 
 
 Darwin, 71 ; Influence of, on 
 theory of State, 308. 
 
 Death, as result of sin of Adam, 
 83; Paul's attitude to, 349; 
 Life by, 236 ; of Christ, 136-7. 
 
 Democracy, 323. 
 
 Denney, Professor, 332. 
 
 Determinism of Stoicism, 42; Paul 
 no determinist, 144. 
 
 Development, in Pauline writings, 
 20 ; of conscience, 71 ; of faith, 
 152; of history, 324, 365; of 
 newUfe, 198 ff. 
 
 Devotion to God, 232. See Love 
 and Service. 
 
 Dickson, * Flesh and Spirit,' 66, 
 74, 79. 
 
 Diderot, on passion, 119. 
 
 Discipline, of life, 212 ; Me^ns of, 
 214 ; of Paul, 217 ; of children, 
 299,341. 
 
 Divine, in Stoicism, 42; imma- 
 nence, 49 ; in man's conscience, 
 70, 72 ; in man, 89. Divine will, 
 99 ; — power, 130 ; — element 
 in faith, 153; — love, 157; 
 
 — calling, 165 ; — Sonship, 168. 
 Sanctification, — in origin, 205 ; 
 
 — aids to spiritual culture, 
 212 ; — Word, 220 ; Marriage, 
 divine institution, 286 ; State, 
 310, 314; Christ, 331-333. 8ee 
 God. 
 
 Divorce, 294. 
 
 Dods, Marcus, 247, 267, 290. 
 
 Dogmatics and ethics, 2 ; of Paul, 
 
 6, 18. 
 Dollinger, *Hyppolitus and Cal- 
 
 listus,' 295. 
 Dubose, 82, 89, 110. 
 
INDEX 
 
 369 
 
 Ihity, Duties, 229 ff.; Relation to 
 virtues, 229; for duty's sake, 
 229 ; Distinctions of, 231 ; Per- 
 sonal, 233 ; Love motive of all, 
 233; Kant on, 232; of work, 
 360 ; of contentment, 255 ; of 
 veracity, 267 ; Conflict of, 269 ; 
 Wordsworth's ode to, 230 ; to 
 others, 258 ff. ; of family, 284 ff. ; 
 of woman as to adornment, 292 ; 
 of Reverence, 293 ; of husband 
 and wife, 293 ; of parents and 
 children, 296 ; of masters and 
 servants, 300 ; to State, 307 ; to 
 Church, 343 ff. 
 
 Dynamic of new life, 126 ff. ; on 
 divine side, 130 ; on human side, 
 142 ff.; Power, 353, 356. 
 
 E 
 
 Economic questions, 319, 321 ; 
 Hamaek on, 357, 359. 
 
 Edification, 275. 
 
 Education of Paul, 27 ff. ; Pales- 
 tinian, 36 ; GreGo-Roman en- 
 vironment, 38 ff.; of children, 
 297, 299; Entrusted to slaves, 
 304. 
 
 Epictetus, 42, 125. 
 
 Episcopus, Marriage of, 295. 
 
 Epistles of Paul, Authority of, 19; 
 Chronology of , 20; Development 
 of, 21. 
 
 Equality, in regard to slaves, 305 ; 
 of men and women in Christ, 
 290 ; Idea of, root of modern 
 democracy, 323. 
 
 Emesti, 314. 
 
 Ethics, of Synoptics, 4 ; of Christ 
 and Paul, 8 ff. ; Definition of, 17 ; 
 of Old Testament, 32 ff.; of 
 Stoics, 42; Ideal, 96 ff.; Motives, 
 154; Virtues, 174; Duties, 229; 
 of Body, 239 ; of Marriage, 242, 
 286; of Work, 218,250; Veracity, 
 268 ; of War, 269 ; of Slavery, 
 21, 300; of Recreation, 252; of 
 Revolt, 319 ; Ultimate of, 352 ff. ; 
 Idealism and Dynamic in, 356 ; 
 and Dogmatics, 364. 
 
 Evil, Antithesis of good and, 32 ; 
 
 Stoic view of, 45 ; Greek view 
 of flesh, 74 ; Paul's view, 78. 
 
 Example, of Christ, 105 ff. ; Limits 
 of, 107 ; 'Imitatio Christi,' 108; 
 Kant's view, 108 ; as motive, 
 171 ; Paul's, 132, 172 ; Influence 
 of, 276 ; Schleiermacher and 
 Rothe on, 277- 
 
 'Expositor' papers on ethical 
 teaching cited, 62. 
 
 Fairbaim, A. M., 1, 2. 
 
 Faith, 11; as dynamic, 146; Mean- 
 ing of, 147 ; Intellectual assent, 
 147; Moral trust, 148; Justifica- 
 tion of, 149 ; Moral energy, 150 ; 
 as virtue, 193 ; Connected with 
 love and hope, 195 ; Browning 
 quoted, 194 ; Free active prin- 
 ciple, 151 ; of whole man, 152 ; 
 Growing power, 152; and works, 
 152 ; and Holy Spirit, 153 ; and 
 Repentance, 144; in God, 339- 
 40, 350. 
 
 Family, life and duties, 284 ff. 
 
 Farrar, 39, 48. 
 
 Fellowship with God, 136 ; with 
 Christ, 153 ; Emblem of mar- 
 riage, 294, 344, 347, 353. 
 
 Fichte, 71, 193, 269, 277. 
 
 Flesh, 64, 73 ff., 81 ; Sanctification 
 of, 85, 243. AS^ee Body. 
 
 Fleury, 48. 
 
 Folly, foolishness, 181, 182. 
 
 Forbearance, 279. 
 
 Force, 1 29. See Dynamic and 
 Power. 
 
 Fordyce, 111. 
 
 Forgiveness, 190-1-3, 281. 
 
 Fornication, 243, 289, 294. 
 
 Forsyth, P. T., 'The Person and 
 Place of Jesus Christ,' 333. 
 
 Fortitude or courage, 183. 
 
 Freedom, 52, 53 ; and Sin, 80, 82 ; 
 and Destiny, 84 ; and Determin- 
 ism, 144 ; and Grace, 142, 143, 
 326. 
 
 Free-will, Problem of, 131, 142. 
 
 Fruit, suggestive of growth, 202; 
 of spirit, 119, 178. 
 
370 
 
 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 G 
 
 Gass on Conscience, 71, note. 
 
 Gentle or amiable virtues, 186 ; 
 Balance between masculine and, 
 119, 187. 
 
 Gidding, 309. 
 
 Gifts, see Graces or Virtues. 
 
 Glover, 42, 43 ; on child life, 297, 
 298. 
 
 Gnosticism, 180 ff. ; False gnosis, 
 181 ; True, 182 ; in Corinthians, 
 180 ; in Colossians, 181 ; in 
 Timothy, 181-2; on Marriage, 
 288. 
 
 God — Old Testament view of, 32 ; 
 Stoic view of, 42 ; Immanence 
 of, 49 ; Communion with, 69, 
 136 ; in Conscience, 72 ; Man, 
 image of, 88 ; Holiness of, 99 ff. ; 
 Will of, 99 ; End of life, 103 ; 
 Christ, value of, 104 ; Com- 
 mandments of, 114; Power of, 
 130; Holy Spirit and, 136; 
 Fear of, 159; Call of, 165; 
 Duties in relation to, 329 ff. 
 
 Godet, 78. 
 
 Goethe, 91, 235, 363. 
 
 Goodness or kindness, 272 ; not 
 dictate of necessity, 330. 
 
 Graces, 119, 132, 178, 191; not 
 mere adornments, 195 ; Perma- 
 nent, 196. jS^ee Virtues. 
 
 Gratitude, 225, 338; to Christ, 330, 
 
 Green, 232, 326. 
 
 Greco-Roman world, 2, 16, 38 ff, 
 
 Greek view of family, 285 ; of 
 marriage, 286, 293 ; of life, 235 ; 
 of sanctions, 155 ; of ideal good, 
 124; of virtues, 119; Language, 
 Paul's knowledge of, 40 ; ideas, 
 47 ; words, 63 ; view of body 
 and flesh, 73. 
 
 Growth, Idea of, 197 ff. ; Scriptural 
 proofs of, 201 ff. ; of Faith, 152; 
 of Character, 225, 
 
 Guilt, 73; Origin of evil, 77; 
 Responsibilicy, 80; Adam's, 82, 
 83; Sense of, 189, 339. 
 
 H 
 
 Haering, 158, 199, 260, 316. 
 
 Harnack, 3, 39, 113, 146, 193, 
 357. 
 
 Happiness, 157-9 ff. See Blessed- 
 ness, also Hedonism. 
 
 Hastings, Dictionary of Bible, 32, 
 34, 39. 
 
 Hausrath, 3, 39. 
 
 Heart, 69. 
 
 Hedonism, Charge of, 157 ; of 
 Jesus, 159 ; of Paul, 160; Greek, 
 155 ; of Old Testament, 156. 
 
 Hegel, 86, 296, 298 ; View of State, 
 313, 316. 
 
 Hellenist, 37, 38 ff, *^ee Greek. 
 
 Heredity, 82, 84. 
 
 Hermann, 3, 
 
 Hicks, 39, 
 
 Hoffding, 71. 267. 
 
 Hofmann, ' Schrif tbeweis, ' 314, 
 334. 
 
 Holiness as ideal, 99 ; of God, 34, 
 99, 100, 103. 
 
 Holy Spirit, 136, 138; Creative 
 power of, 139 ff., 348. 
 
 Holsten, 74. 
 
 Holtzmann, 76. 
 
 Home, 285. See Family. 
 
 Hope, 194 ff., 348. 
 
 Hospitality, 282. 
 
 Howson, Dean, ' Metaphors of St. 
 Paul,' 40; ' The character of St. 
 Paul'— Courage, 120, 210; For- 
 bearance, 280, 
 
 Humanity, 13 ; Paul's view as 
 contrasted with Greek philo- 
 sophy, 123-4; Kant on, 264; 
 Christ, ideal of, 331 ; Stoics' 
 view of, 42. 
 
 Hume, 71, note. 
 
 Humility, 189; towards God, 338 ; 
 of Christ, 175, 188. 
 
 Husband and wife. Duties of, 
 293 ff. 
 
 Hypocrisy, 268. 
 
 Ideal, ethical, 95 ff. ; Nature and 
 contents of, 97 ; Holiness as, 99 ; 
 Walking worthy of God, 99 ; 
 Christ as, 104, 331 ; Character- 
 istics of, 113; Absoluteness of. 
 
INDEX 
 
 371 
 
 114; Inwardness of, 115; Sym- 
 metry of, 118; ComprehenBive- 
 ness and universality of, 123, 
 352, 357. 
 
 Illingworth, 50, 163, 167, 323-4. 
 
 Image of God, in man, 203. 
 
 Imitation, of Christ, 105, 107, 171 ; 
 of others, 172; of Paul, 172; 
 Setting example, 276 ; Schleier- 
 macher on, 277 ; Rothe on, 277. 
 
 Immanence of God, 49 ff. 
 
 Incarnation, 129, 363. 
 
 Independence, of Judgment, 237 ; 
 of CJonscience, 71, 237 ; of others, 
 270; of Paul, 114. 
 
 Indifferent Actions, 231. 
 
 Individual, -ism — Duties in rela- 
 tion to, 230 ff. Kierkegaard ; 
 Philosophy of, 233 ; in relation 
 to bodily organism, 239; Purity 
 of, 241 ; Self -discipline, 245 ; re- 
 lation of, to worldly affairs, 246 ; 
 Possessions, 248 ; to Trade, 250 ; 
 to Recreation, 252 ; Society and, 
 258; Member of social organism, 
 259. i5eePersonality,324; Kant, 
 on, 325 ; Duty to State, 326 ; of 
 State to, 325 ; Worth of, 325. 
 
 Industrial life, 250, 321-8, 359, 
 365. 
 
 Inge, W. R. , ' Faith and its 
 Psychology,' 151. 
 
 Intellect, Intellectual powers, 63, 
 65, 69, 85. 
 
 Intuitional Theory of Conscience, 
 71, also note, for representatives 
 of. 
 
 Inwardness of ideal, 11, 115, 354, 
 359. 
 
 Isaiah, 34. 
 
 Jackson, Geo., 'Papers in Ex- 
 positor, vol. xi., on Ethical 
 Teaching of Paul,' 62, 85, 118, 
 184. 
 
 Jacoby, *Ethik,'168. 
 
 James, St., practical teaching of, 5. 
 
 Janet, 71. 
 
 Jerome, 45, 269. 
 
 Jesus. See Christ. 
 
 Jewish ethics, 32 ; Influence on 
 
 Paul, 29 ff. ; Scriptures, 30. 
 Jones, Professor, 'Idealism as a 
 
 Practical Creed,' on Station in 
 
 Ufe, 312, 356. 
 Joy, 190, 331, 338. 
 Jowett, 36, 39. 
 Judgment, 237; of Others, 270; 
 
 Immature, of God's ways, 340. 
 Justice, virtue, according to Plato 
 
 and Paul, 179, 186 ; Supreme 
 
 duty to others, 263. 
 Justification of Faith, 149, 170. 
 Justin Martyr, 89. 
 Jiilicher, ' Paul und Jesus,' 9, 
 
 note. 
 
 K 
 
 Kaftan, ' Jesus und Paul,' 9, note. 
 Kant, 71, 108, 114, 231-2; on 
 
 Worth of man, 264 ; on Veracity, 
 
 268-9 ; Individual an end in 
 
 himself, 325. 
 Keim, 3. 
 Kierkegaard on Individualism, 
 
 233. 
 Kindness, 273, or goodness. 
 Kingdom of God, of Heaven, 13, 
 
 159, 160, 312, 317, 322, 343, 345. 
 
 See Church. 
 Knowledge, Paul's, of Scripture, 
 
 30 ; Paul's estimate of, 86, 181 f . ; 
 
 of Christ, 176 ; of God, 334. 
 Kolbing, * Spiritual Influence of 
 
 Man Jesus upon Paul,' 9, note. 
 
 Labour, 218 f., 250 f., 253, 302; 
 
 Remuneration of, 246-7 ; and 
 
 Recreation, 253 ; Division of, 
 
 308. See Work, Trade. 
 Laidlaw, ' Biblical Psychology,' 
 
 66. 
 Language of Paul, 39 ; Zahn on, 
 
 39 
 Law and works, 7, 37, 266, 336, 
 
 363. 
 Law, Wm., 'Serious Call,' 254, 
 
 note. 
 
 iwsuil 
 
 judges, 266. 
 
372 
 
 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Leokie, J. H., 'Authority in 
 Religion,' 149. 
 
 Lecky, ' History of European 
 Morals,' 44, 85, 110, 119. 
 
 Legality — Legalism, 116, 164, 168, 
 363. 
 
 Liberality, 275. 
 
 Lidgett, J. S., 'The Christian 
 Religion,' 88. 
 
 Lies, 267 f.; 'Lie of Necessity,' 
 269 ; Cases of, 269. 
 
 Life, saeredness of, 103 ; a Calling, 
 165 ; its Dignity, 167 ; Brevity 
 of, 169 ; a Battle, 184, 208 ; a 
 Race, 209 ; Boxing contest, 210 ; 
 Discipline of, 212, 341 ; Gradual 
 attainment, 225 ; Example of, 
 276 ; a Witness to Christ, 342 ; 
 Future, 349 ; a Power, 354 : 
 Complexity of, 360 ; Unity of, 
 363. 
 
 Lightfoot, 39, 48, 66, 124. 
 
 Logos, 37. See Gnosticism. 
 
 Longsuffering, 190. 
 
 Lord's Supper, 222. See Sacra- 
 ment. 
 
 Love, 12, 115, lft2ff. ; of Others, 
 259 ff. ; Brotherly, 262 ; of Hus- 
 band and wife, 294; to Christ, 
 320; to God, 157,324; Manifes- 
 tations of , 337 ff. 
 
 Lowell quoted, 150. 
 
 Lucan, 42. 
 
 Liidemann, 74. 
 
 Luther, 2, 269, 324, 363. 
 
 M 
 
 Maccunn, 'Making of Character,' 
 107 ; ' Six Radical Thinkers,* 
 326. 
 
 Mackintosh, R., 232, 267. 
 
 Maclareii, Alex., 293, 302. 
 
 Maine, Sir H. S., 'Ancient Law,' 
 285. 
 
 Mark, St., 184, 279. 
 
 Marriage, 241 ff., 286 ff. ; Separa- 
 tion, 294 ; Remarriage, 295 ; 
 Christian conception of, 289, 
 294 ; Duties in, 294 ; of Prea- 
 bj'^ter, 295 ; Emblem of Christ, 
 294, 344; Indissolubility of. 
 
 294; Renan on Paul's relation 
 to, 289; Gnostic view, 288; 
 Contrast between Corinthians 
 and Ephesians in, 21, 242, 288. 
 
 Martineau, Jas., 105, 233, 269. 
 
 Masculine virtues, 119. 
 
 Masters and servants, 300 ff. ; 
 Reciprocal duties, 301 f. 
 
 Matheson, Geo., on Transforming 
 power of Christianity, 133. 
 
 Meats and drinks, 112; Duty in 
 regard to, 239-40. See Ascetic- 
 ism. 
 
 Meekness, 190 : of Christ, 175-7. 
 
 Merit and reward, faith not meri- 
 torious, 152. See Motives. 
 
 Micah quoted, 35, 264. 
 
 Militant virtues not emphasised, 
 but not neglected, 120. 
 
 Mill, J. S., 105. 
 
 Mind, or nous, 65f., 86, 121, 
 231, 334; 'Social Mind,' 309. 
 See Intellect. 
 
 Ministry, call to, 251 ; Paul's call 
 to, 56 ; Support of, 247, 278 ; 
 Paul's, 301. 
 
 Missionary, Paul a, 15, 144, 345 ; 
 Westermarck on, 163. 
 
 Moderation, 190, 254. 
 
 Modesty of women, 291-2. 
 
 Mohammedanism, motives in, 155, 
 158, 162. 
 
 Monasticism, 85, 122, 241, 245. 
 
 Money, possession and use of, 248 ; 
 a Trust, 249-250 ; Collection of, 
 346. >S:ee Wealth. 
 
 Morality not mechanical or out- 
 ward, 12, 116 ; According to 
 Socrates, 126 ; Plato and Aris- 
 totle, 127; Christian view, 129 ; 
 Dynamic of, 130 ff. ; Religion 
 and, 364 ; Sanctions of, 158 ; 
 Without religion, 163. See 
 Ethics. 
 
 Mosaic Law, 32-3. 
 
 Motives and sanctions of new life, 
 155 ff. ; in Natural Religions, 
 155; in Old Testament, 156 ; in 
 Gospels, 157 ; According to 
 Christ, 157; Paul's, 159 ff.; 
 Love of God, 157 ; of Rewards 
 and penalties, 158 ; Happiness, 
 
INDEX 
 
 373 
 
 158-9; Call of God, 165; Grace 
 of God and sacrifice of Christ, 
 164; SoDship, 168; Brevity of 
 life, 169 ; Imitation of Christ, 
 171 ; Paul's example, 172. 
 
 Muirhead, J. H., 178, 230. 
 
 Munaterberg on Conscience, 71, 
 note. 
 
 Myers, 'Saint Paul' quoted, 6, 
 217, 225, 357. 
 
 Mysticism of Paul, 363. 
 
 N 
 
 Neander, on Zeno's ideal of 
 humanity, 124 ; on Christian 
 graces, 191. 
 
 Necessity, 142-3. See Freedom. 
 
 Neighbour, relation to, 258 ; 
 Second commandment, 260 ; 
 Extent and limits of love to, 
 262 ; Justice to, 263 ; Respect 
 for, 264 ; Veracity towards, 
 267 ; Judgment of, 271 ; Kind- 
 ness towards, 273 ; Sympathy, 
 278 ; Service of, 274 ; Example, 
 276 ; Instruction and warning, 
 278 ; Patience towards, 278 ; 
 Forbearance towards, 279 ; 
 Peaceableness, 281 ; Attitude to 
 tmbelieving, 282 ; Source of love 
 to, 282 ; Universal love of man- 
 kind, 110-113. 
 
 Neo-Platonists, 37, 180, 357. 
 
 New birth, 136. 
 
 New life, ideal of, 95 ff. ; Nature 
 and characteristics, 97 ff ; Pat- 
 tern, power and principle of, 
 105 ff.; Dynamic of, 126 ff. ; 
 Holy Spirit in, 135 ; Place of 
 faith in, 146 ff. ; Motives of, 
 154 ff. ; Virtues of, 174 ff. ; Pro- 
 gressiveness of, 197 ff- ; Disci- 
 pline of, 214 ; Influence of Word, 
 Church and Sacraments upon, 
 220; Duties of, 229 ff. ; Sin and, 
 80, 81 ; ' Old Adam ' and ' New,' 
 83 ; Substratum of, 60, 362 ; of 
 Paul, 55, 98. 
 
 New Testament, 3, 5; Pauline 
 Epistles, 19, 60 ; Ideal in, 157 ; 
 Moral progress in, 198 f. ; View 
 
 of suffering in, 216 ; Personality 
 
 in, 323. 
 Newman on sympathy of Paul, 
 
 279. 
 Nietzsche quoted, 90, 155. 
 Novalis quoted, 98. 
 
 Obedience, Paul's, to heavenly 
 
 vision, 56 ; Wife's to husband, 
 
 293 ; Children's to parents, 298 ; 
 
 Servants' to masters, 302 ; to 
 
 State, 314, 317, 321. 
 Old Testament, influence upon 
 
 Paul, 30; Ethics of, 32-35; 
 
 Paul's use of, 35 ; Sanctions in, 
 
 156 ; Aid to new life, 220. 
 Onesymus, 22, 300. 
 Optimism of Paul, 91, 125, 348. 
 Origen, 304, note. 
 Originality of Paul, 58, 352. 
 Others, relation to, 258 ff. See 
 
 Neighbour. 
 Other-worldliness, 162. 
 Ottley, R. L., * Christian Ideas 
 
 and Ideals,' 105, 107, 211, 22-5, 
 
 254, 353. 
 
 Paley, 162. 
 
 Parents, duties of, 296 ff. 
 
 Pastimes, sports and plays, 252, 
 253, 301. See Recreation. 
 
 Pastoral care. See Ministry. 
 
 Patience, 190, 276, 278 ; Content- 
 ment, 255. 
 
 Patriotism, 317. 
 
 Pattern of Christ, 105. See 
 Example and Imitation. 
 
 Paul, as ethical teacher, 1 ff. , 141 ; 
 as Theologian, 5 ; Example of, 
 172 ; Shaping influences of, 27 ff. ; 
 Conversion of, 55 ; Self-mastery 
 of, 186; Tolerance of, 279; Sym- 
 pathy of, 280 ; Optimism of, 125, 
 348; Humility of, 173; Philo- 
 sophy of life, 361 ; Mysticism of, 
 363 ; Courage of, 319, 350. 
 
 Paulsen quoted, 71, 230, 269. 
 
 Peabody, F. G., 4, 236, 248, 356. 
 
374 
 
 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 Peaeeableness, 281. 
 
 Penitence, 145, 339. 
 
 Pentecost, outpouring of Spirit 
 at, 135. 
 
 Perfection, 131, 149, 197 ; View of 
 Stoics, 198 ; Perfectionists, 199 ; 
 Paul no, 225 ; Vision of supreme 
 good, 96-7; Plato's and Aris- 
 totle's conception of, 126-7- 
 
 Personality, 234 ; a Sacred trust, 
 237; Stability, 237 ; Relative to 
 society, 307 ff. ; Idea of, 323; 
 View of Augustine, Luther and 
 Kant, 324; Rights of, 326; 
 Power, feature of new, 354. 
 
 Pessimism attributed to Paul by 
 Wernle, 91, 226. 
 
 Peter, St., 5, 184, 279, 318, 349. 
 
 Pfleiderer, 27, 36, 58, 74, 149. 
 
 Philemon, 22, 280. 
 
 Philo, 36 ff. 
 
 Plato, 75, 86, 105 ; Limitation of, 
 124 ; Conception of good, 126 ; 
 Republic, the earthly State, 
 155 ; Transmigration of souls, 
 155; Virtues, 179; Figure of 
 charioteer, 198. 
 
 Plummer, A., 293, 295, 301, 304. 
 
 Plutarch on universality of Stoic- 
 ism, 120. 
 
 Polonius' advice to Laertes, 254, 
 note. 
 
 Power, Christ as, 107 ; Dynamic 
 of new life, 126 ff. ; Faith as, 
 147 ; Keynote of Paul, 353. 
 
 Praise, 225, 342. 
 
 Prayer, 224, 225, 342; for Tem- 
 poral blessings, 225. 
 
 Priestly code, 33. 
 
 Progressiveness of new life, 197 ff. ; 
 Idea of, 198 ; Passages bearing 
 on, 201 ; in Knowledge, 207 ; in 
 Practice, 207 ; Aids to, 21 1. 
 
 Prophets, ethics of, 33 ; Sanctions 
 and motives of, 156. 
 
 Proportion of ideal, 118 ; of 
 Jesus, 118; Between renuncia- 
 tion and affirmation, 121 ; 
 Between gentle and masculine 
 virtues, 119 ; Between indi- 
 vidual and social virtues, 122. 
 
 Psychology of Paul, 60 ff. 
 
 R 
 
 Rabbinical learning, 35. 
 
 Ramsay, Sir Wm., 19, 39, 53, 
 253. 
 
 Rauschenbusch, 'Christianity and 
 the Social Crisis,' 315, 318. 
 
 Recreation, 252-4 ; Tertullian on, 
 252 ; Ramsay and Baring-Gould 
 on Paul's relation to, 253 ; Lab- 
 our and, 253 ; Roman stage and 
 slavery, 301. 
 
 Redemption, 137, 139, 167, 148-9; 
 Doctrine of, 170. 
 
 Ree cited on Conscience, 71, note. 
 
 Reformation, 2. 
 
 Regeneration, 136. 
 
 Reinhard, 289, note. 
 
 Religion, and morality, 16, 364 ; 
 Union of, in Old Testament, 34- 
 Sanctions of, 155; Buddhism and 
 Mohammedanism, 155 ; of Bible, 
 156; Morality without, 163-4; 
 Duties, 232, 328; Natural re- 
 ligious instinct, 336-7 ; Duties, 
 of worship, 341 ; Aids to religi- 
 ous culture, Word of God, 
 Church, Sacraments, 220ff; Sub- 
 jective aids to, self-examina- 
 tion, watchfulness, prayer, 224 ; 
 Ethical questions really, 358 1 
 Religion and art, 320. 
 
 Remarriage, 295 ; of Presbyter, 
 295. 
 
 Renaissance, 2. 
 
 Renan, 39, 118, 289. 
 
 Renunciation, 121 , 311. See 
 Marriage and Asceticism. 
 
 Repentance, 144-5 ; Paul's 56. 
 
 Respect for others, 264. 
 
 Responsibility, 60, 80, 82 (see 
 Freedom) ; for worldly goods, 
 248 ; for others, 259. 
 
 Reuss, 79, note. 
 
 Ritschl, 79. 
 
 Rousseau, 71, 269, 307, 309. 
 
 Sabatier, 31, 86. 
 Sacraments, 222 ff., 341. 
 Sacrifice of Christ, 137; Self-, 236. 
 
INDEX 
 
 375 
 
 Saints, 283. 
 
 Salvation. See Redemption. 
 
 Sanctification, gradual, 201 ; in 
 Ephesians and Romans, 204; 
 Divine, 205 ; Human, 206 ; Pro- 
 gress towards maturity, in 
 knowledge, 207 ; in Practice, 
 207 J of Body, 243; of Soul, 
 245. 
 
 Sanctions, 155 ff. See Motives and 
 Rewards. 
 
 Schiller quoted, 95, 119, 
 
 Schleiermacher, 3, 86, 91, 276. 
 
 Sehmid, 289. 
 
 Schmidt, 'Ethik d. Grieehen,' 
 208. 
 
 Science, 321, 365 ; Religion as, 2 ; 
 Knowledge, 48, 86; Stoicwisdom, 
 51 ; Gnostic, 180 ; False, 181 ; 
 Progress of, 207. 
 
 Scott, E. F., * Apologetic of New 
 Testament,' 311, 321, 327. 
 
 Soott, Sir W,, case of ' Jeanie 
 Deans,' 269. 
 
 Scriptures, influence of, on Paul, 
 30 ; Aid to new life, 220. 
 
 Self, love of, 233-4; Duties to, 
 229 ff., 259 ; -renunciation, 122 ; 
 -examination, 224 ; -protection, 
 235 ; -preservation, 235 ; -reali- 
 zation, 235 ; -culture, 235 ; 
 stability of purpose, 237; -sac- 
 rifice, 236; -control, 184; In- 
 dependence of others, 237 ; 
 Conscience, 238 ; Relation of, 
 to body, 239 ; -restraint, 254. 
 
 Seneca, 44, 45, 125. 
 
 Separation of husband and wife. 
 See Divorce. 
 
 Sermon on mount, 5, 158, 177, 
 264. 
 
 Servants and masters, 300 ff. 
 
 Service, Fidelity in, 168 ; Duty to 
 others, 273; Beneficence, 274; 
 in Family relations, 303 ; to 
 State, 308 ; Professor Jones on, 
 312,326; of God, 341 ; Mutual, of 
 church members, 347 ; Peabody 
 on social service, 356 ; Caird on, 
 365. 
 
 Sexes, relation of, 241. 
 
 Shaftesbury, 70. 
 
 Sin — Evil and good in Old Testa- 
 ment, 32 ; Relation to flesh, 73 ff. , 
 76, 77, 81 ; Universality of, 80 ; 
 Adam's, 82 ; Heredity and, 82 ; 
 Responsibility for, 84 ; Foe, 209 ; 
 'Worksof flesh,' 185, 198; 'Lusts 
 of deceit,' 203; Sanctification 
 and, 204 ff. , Temptation and, 215. 
 
 Slaves— Slavery. 22, 256, 301 ff., 
 318. 
 
 Smith, Adam, 71. 
 
 Smith, Robertson, 285. 
 
 Smyth, Newman, * Christian 
 Ethics,' 23, 71, 96, 121, 194, 
 269, 340. 
 
 Sobriety 254. ^S^ee Temperance. 
 
 'Social Contract' and theories of 
 State, 307. 
 
 Social democracy and Paul, 323. 
 
 'Social Mind,' 309. 
 
 Social Ethics, Relation of Paul to, 
 1 12 ; Brotherhood of man as goal 
 of, 113 ; Emphasis on community, 
 257 ; Duties to others, 258 ff. ; 
 Family, 284 ff. ; State, 305 ff.; 
 No philosophy in Epistles of 
 Statecraft, 314 ; Economic and 
 industrial questions, 321, 328 ; 
 Human equality, 323 ; Commu- 
 nity of Ufe, 327 ; Church life, 
 343 ; Not communistic, 347 ; 
 Rights and duties, 326 ; Reci- 
 procity in body politic, 327. 
 
 Social progress. 111, 113. 
 
 ' Social Teaching of Bible, ' by 
 various authors quoted, 358. 
 
 Sociology, 12, 309. 
 
 Socrates, 70, 126. 
 
 Soul, 65, 68 ; Unity of, 68, 72. 
 
 Spencer, Herbert, 71, note. 
 
 Spencer, Malcolm, 'Social Degra- 
 dation' quoted, 328. 
 
 Spinoza, 86. 
 
 Spirit, 64 ; of God, 139 ; of Christ, 
 140. See Holy Spirit. 
 
 Spirituality, 88 ff. ; Spiritual gifts, 
 246. 
 
 Stalker, Professor James, * The 
 Ethic of Jesus,' 145-6, 158, 
 311. 
 
 Stanley, Dean, on sympathy of 
 Paul, 279. 
 
376 
 
 THE ETHICS OF ST. PAUL 
 
 State— Duties towards, 307 ff. ; 
 Theories of, 307 ; Paul's attitude 
 to, 309 ; Prof essor Jones on, 312 ; 
 Augustine's and Hegel's views 
 of, 316 ; a Divine institution, 
 317; Submission to, 318; Revolt, 
 318 ; Social and industrial ques- 
 tions, 321 ff. See Social Ethics. 
 
 Stephen, Sir Leslie, 71, note on 
 Conscience. 
 
 Stevens, Professor G. B., * The 
 Pauline Theology,' 3, 9, 149. 
 
 Stoicism,Stoies — Influenceof,42 ff ; 
 Pantheism of, 49 ; Apathy of, 49; 
 Divine immanence, 49; Wisdom, 
 51 ; Freedom, 52 ; Cosmopoli- 
 tanism, 54, 105 ; Suppression of 
 feeling, 122 ; Narrowness, 124 ; 
 Conception of, 128 ; Idea of per- 
 fection, 198. 
 
 Strauss, *Da8 Leben Jesu,' 3. 
 
 Strong, 'Christian Ethics,' 128, 
 136, 138, 188, 322, 323. 
 
 Suffering, 216. 
 
 ' Summum Bonum,' 37. See Ideal 
 and Perfection. 
 
 Symmetry of ideal, 118 ff. 
 
 Sympathy, 273, 279. 
 
 Synagogue, 30. 
 
 Synoptics, 5. See New Testament. 
 
 Tacitus, 301. 
 Tarsus, 29, 30, 40, 47. 
 Tears of Paul, Monod, 119. 
 Temperance or self-control, 184 ; 
 
 Paul's self-mastery, 186, 240-1, 
 
 244. 
 Temptation, 215, 244. 
 Tennyson, 340. 
 TertulUan, 45, 252. 
 Thanksgiving, 225, 337-8. 
 Theatre, 252 ; Paul's relation to, 
 
 253. 
 Theology, 2 ; of Paul, 5, 6 ; Alex- 
 andrian, 36 ; and Ethics, 18, 364 ; 
 
 'Theological virtues,' 191, 352; 
 
 Christian problem of modem, 
 
 333. 
 'Thora,'37. 
 Thoroughness of work, 168, 
 
 Timothy, 30, 277, 278, 289, 297, 
 
 303. 
 Tolerance, 279, 281. 
 Trade, of Christ, 218 ; of Paul, 
 
 219 ; Ramsay on, 218, 250, 257. 
 
 See Labour, Work. 
 Trust, an element in faith, 148. 
 Trustfulness towards God, 339; 
 
 Evinced in patience, surrender, 
 
 contentment and hope, 339 ; 
 
 Saves from prejudging, 340 : 
 
 Refers all to God, 341. 
 Truth, 87 ; Truthfubiess, 267 ; 
 
 Cases of, 269. 
 
 U 
 
 Unity of man, 110; in Christ, 
 283, 324, 345, 346. 
 
 Universality of ideal, 123. 
 
 Unselfishness, 230, 262. 
 
 Untruthfulness, 268 ; in War, 269 ; 
 Permissible, 269 ; ' Lie of neces- 
 sity,' 269 ; Kant on, 268. 
 
 Utilitarianism, Mill and Comte, 
 105 ; charge of Hedonism, 
 157 ; Eudaemonism of Moham- 
 medanism, 155. 
 
 Vanity of woman's attire, 292. 
 
 Vaughan quoted, 96. 
 
 Veracity, 267. 
 
 Vices. See Sin. 
 
 Virtue — Virtues of new life, I74ff. ; 
 Classical, 179; Amiable, 186; 
 Theological, 191 ; Fruits of 
 Spirit, 177 ; Relation of, to 
 duty, 230 ; Plato's list of, 178 ; 
 Aristotle's, 178. 
 
 Vocation, 165 ff. 
 
 W 
 
 Wages, or remuneration, 247. 
 
 War, 209, 328. 
 
 Warfare, Life a, 208. 
 
 Watchfulness, 224^, 
 
 Wealth, 248. 
 
 Weinel, 112, 118, 167, 175-6, 332. 
 
 Weiss, Ber., 3. 
 
INDEX 
 
 377 
 
 Weiss, Joh., 11, 12, 14, 39, 48, 144, 
 
 148, 175. 
 Weizaacker, 249, 347. 
 Wendt, 3, 145. 
 Wernle, 69, 61, 75, 111, 118, 222, 
 
 282, 314, 318. 
 Westcott, 326-7. 
 Westerraarck, 162. 
 Will, 70, 73. 
 Wisdom, Book of, 36 ; Stoic, 51 ; 
 
 Virtue of, 180. 
 Witness -bearing, 342 ; of Slaves, 
 
 304. 
 Woman, Position of, 290 ; Veil, 
 
 291 ; Adornment, 292. See 
 
 Woods, d E., 'Gospel of Right- 
 ness,' 216. 
 
 Word of God, 220. See Scripture. 
 Wordsworth, 164, 230, 275. 
 Work, 168, 218, 250. 251. See 
 
 Trade and Labour. 
 Works, 7. 
 World, worldly affairs, attitude 
 
 to, 245-6 ; Goods, 248. 
 Worship, 221, 341. 
 Wrede, 9, 10, 31, 119. 
 Wuttke, 289, 342. 
 
 Zahn, 19 ; on Language of Paul, 
 
 40. 
 Zeller, 42. 
 Zeno, 43, 124. 
 Zeus, 27, 320. 
 
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