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BS 2410 .P87 1900 c.l 
 Purves, George T. 1852-1901 
 Christianity in the 
 apostolic age 
 
CHRISTIANITY 
 
 IN 
 
 THE APOSTOLIC AGE 
 
 BY 
 
 GEORGE T. PURVES, D.D., LL.D. 
 
 RECENTLY PROFESSOR OF NEW TESTAMENT LITERATURE AND EXEGESIS 
 IN PRINCETON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 
 
 WITH MAPS 
 
 
 NEW YORK 
 CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 
 1900 
 
Copj/right, 1900, 
 By Charles Sceibner's Sons. 
 
 SEnibtrsitg Pw8S : 
 John Wilson and Son, Cambridge, U. S. A„ 
 
Co mg Colleagues 
 
 IN THE FACULTY OF 
 
 PRINCETON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 
 
 with whom i have spent eight happy years devoted to 
 
 the study of god's word 
 
 and whose friendship will not cease although 
 
 we may no longer toil together 
 
 This Volume 
 is affectionately dedicated 
 
PREFACE 
 
 A HISTORY of Christianity in the Apostolic Age should 
 begin with an account of the life and teachings of our 
 Lord. In the series, however, to which the present 
 work belongs a separate volume has been assigned to 
 " The Life of Jesus," and intrusted to the competent 
 hand of Professor Rhees. I have therefore only 
 touched upon the post-resurrection period, so far as 
 it was necessary to set forth the immediate origin 
 of apostolic Christianity. 
 
 The purpose of this volume, like the others in the 
 series, is strictly historical. At the same time brief 
 accounts of the New Testament books, with occa- 
 sionally a defence of their right to be classed with 
 apostolic literature, have been introduced, both be- 
 cause they constitute practically our only sources for 
 the history and because an examination of them is 
 the best means of illustrating the history itself. It is 
 hoped, also, that this feature will make the volume 
 serviceable to a larger number of readers. 
 
 I have not, except in a few instances, attempted to 
 mention the many works by which my own studies 
 have been guided and enlightened. To have done so 
 
Vni PREFACE. 
 
 would have compelled me to exceed by a copious use 
 of foot-notes the narrow limits within which I have 
 been confined. The bibliography at the end of the 
 volume will, however, indicate the principal books 
 bearing upon the subject. 
 
 In writing upon a theme so vital to the interests of 
 our religion, and upon which a vast amount of litera- 
 ture, representing all shades of opinion, has been pro- 
 duced during this century, I have, of course, often 
 taken positions which readers of different schools will 
 condemn. The positions, however, have been taken 
 only after careful and candid investigation ; and, if the 
 result is to uphold in all essential points the traditional 
 conception of apostolic Christianity, it has been be- 
 cause such appears to me to be the inevitable issue of 
 unprejudiced inquiry. An account of the course which 
 the criticism of the New Testament and the conse- 
 quent constructions of the history of the apostolic age 
 have taken in modern times would show that there 
 has been a steady return on the part of most investi- 
 gators towards the acceptance, in the main, of the dates 
 to which tradition has assigned the origin of the books 
 out of which apostolic history must be ascertained. 
 This, indeed, does not prevent the most widely differ- 
 ent theories both of the interpretation of the books 
 and of the forces which entered into the formation of 
 Christianity. But, in the opinion of the author, it 
 does not appear possible, if the dates of the origin of 
 
PREFACE. IX 
 
 the books be thus establislied, to account for the rise 
 and course of apostolic Christianity except by the 
 recognition of those supernatural facts and forces to 
 which the books themselves testify. The frank ac- 
 knowledgment of the supernatural, together with the 
 perception of the no less truly genetic way in which 
 the original faith in Jesus as Messiah was unfolded 
 and extended, would seem to be required of the 
 historian wlio wishes to be faithful to his sources of 
 information and to present apostolic Christianity as 
 it really was. 
 
 GEORGE T. PURVES. 
 
 New York. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PART I 
 
 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 I 
 
 HISTORICAL SOURCES 
 
 Sections 1-6. Pages 3-8 
 
 Section 1 . The New Testament practically the only source for 
 a knowledge of apostolic history. 2. The last chapters of the 
 gospels. 3. Authorship of Acts. 4. Character and composi- 
 tion of Acts. 5. Historical value of Acts. 6. Value of its 
 opening chapters. 
 
 II 
 
 THE ORIGIN OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 Sections 7-21. Pages 9-20 
 
 Section 7. Christianity organized shortly after the death of 
 Jesus. 8. Effect of the resurrection of Jesus. 9. Belief in 
 it did not arise gradually. 10. The witnesses to the resur- 
 rection. 11, 12. The reports in the gospels of the resurrec- 
 tion. 13. Belief in it not the result of deception. 14. Nor 
 of illusion. 15. Nor of a spiritual manifestation. 16. The 
 post-resurrection life and instructions of Jesus. 1 7. The faith 
 of the primitive community. 18. The accounts of the disciples' 
 movements after the resurrection. 19. The return to Galilee. 
 20. The return to Jerusalem and the ascension. 21. Histori- 
 cal significance of the ascension. 
 
XU CONTENTS 
 
 III 
 
 THE INAUGURATION OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 Sections 22-35. Pages 21-34 
 
 Section 22. The company of disciples. 23. The expectation of 
 the Spirit. 24. Tlie election of Matthias. 25. Conception 
 of the apostolic office. 26. Primitive and fundamental char- 
 acter of the apostolate. 27. The feast of Pentecost. 28. De- 
 termination of its date. 29. The outpouring of the Spirit. 
 30. Peter's address. 31. Criticism of Luke's account. 32. 
 The large number of converts. 33. The gift of "tongues." 
 34. The form of the gift at Pentecost. 35. The symbolism of 
 Pentecost. 
 
 IV 
 
 INTERNAL PROGRESS OF THE CHURCH IN JERUSALEM 
 AFTER PENTECOST 
 
 Sections 36-48. Pages 35-46 
 
 Section 3C. The unity and customs of the disciples. 37. Their 
 spiritual life. 38. The community of goods. 39. No rupture 
 with Judaism. 40. Ananias and Sapphira. 41. Complaints 
 of the Hellenists. 42. Election of "the seven." 43. Their 
 office. 44. The preaching of the apostles. 45. Its assump- 
 tions and methods. 46. Its leading ideas. 47. Its omissions 
 and implications. 48. Beginnings of theological statement. 
 
 EXTERNAL HISTORY OF THE CHURCH IN JERUSALEM 
 
 AFTER PENTECOST 
 
 Sections 49-61. Pages 47-55 
 
 Section 49. Rapid growth of the church. 50. First opposition 
 of the Sadducees. 51. First persecution. 52. Gamaliel's 
 address. 53. Effect of the address. 54. Activity and arrest 
 of Stephen. 55. Stephen's defence. 56. Its significance. 
 
CONTENTS Xlll 
 
 57. Origin of his views. 58. Beginning of separation from 
 Judaism. 50. Relation of Steplien's teaching to earlier views. 
 60. Stephen's martyrdom. 61. Persecution and dispersion of 
 the disciples. 
 
 PART II 
 
 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 I 
 
 HISTORICAL SOURCES 
 
 Sections 62, 63. Pages 59-60 
 
 Section 62. Sources for this period in Acts and Pauline epistles. 
 Value of Acts viii. 4 to xii. 25. 63. Extra-biblical information. 
 
 II 
 THE DISPERSION 
 
 Sections 64-70. Pages 61-67 
 
 Section 64. Progress through dispersion. 65. Philip in Samaria. 
 66. Simon Magus. 67. Mission of Peter and John to Samaria. 
 68. The Ethiopian steward. 69. Diffusion of the faith in 
 Syria. 70. Hebraic character of the earliest evangelism. 
 
 Ill 
 
 THE CONVERSION OF PAUL 
 Sections 71-97. Pages 68-90 
 
 Section 71. Paul's origin. 72. His education. 73. Moderate 
 acquaintance with Hellenism. 74. His remarkable personal- 
 ity. 75. His persecution of the discijjles. 76. His motives. 
 77. No predisi)Osition toward Christianity. 78. His religious 
 experience. 79. The accounts of his conversion. 80. The 
 conversion of Paul. 81. His own references to it. 82. Its 
 supernatural character. 83. Not a legend nor an illusion. 
 
XIV CONTENTS 
 
 84. Paul's new views of Christianity. 85. Relation of them 
 to his conversion. 86. His view of Jesus. 87. Of salvation 
 by grace. 88. Of Christ's work. 89. Of the nature of faith 
 and of life in Christ. 90. Consequent relation of Christianity 
 to Judaism. 91. Paul in Damascus. 92. His sojourn in 
 Arabia. 93. Visit to Jerusalem. 94. Relation of Acts ix. 
 26-30 and Gal. i. 18-24. 95. Paul's view of his vocation. 
 96. The question of circumcision not yet raised. 97. Paul's 
 life after leaving Jerusalem. 
 
 IV 
 
 PROGRESS OF THE MOTHER CHURCH 
 
 Sections 98-107. Pages 91-100 
 
 Section 98. Cessation of persecution. 99. Renewed activity 
 of the disciples. 100. Separation of the Ecclesia from the 
 synagogue. 101. Origin of the eldership. 102. Functions of 
 the eldership. 103. Modification of the work of the apostles. 
 104. Conversion of Cornelius. 105. Its significance. 106. 
 Its effect. 107. The persecution by Herod Agrippa I. 
 
 RISE OF GENTILE CHRISTIANITY IN ANTIOCH 
 
 Sections 108-116. Pages 101-110 
 
 Section 108. Interest of the mother church in the work at 
 Antioch. 109. Oi-igin of that work. 110. Importance of 
 Antioch. 111. Mission of Barnabas. 112. The arrival 
 of Paul at Antioch. 113. The name " Christian." 114. The 
 "prophets." 115. Prophecy of Agabus and the gifts of the 
 Antiochans for the Judean disciples. 116. The visit to 
 Jerusalem of Barnabas and Paul with the gifts. 
 
 VI 
 
 THE MISSIONARY JOURNEY OF PAUL AND BARNABAS 
 
 Sections 117-131. Pages 111-122 
 
 Section 117. Origin of the journey. 118. Its destination and 
 authority. 119. Its date and length. 120. The work in 
 Cyprus. 121. Perga and Pisidian Antioch. 122. Paul's ad- 
 
CONTENTS XV 
 
 dress in Pisidian Antioch. 123. The close of the address. 
 124. Significance of the address. 125. Results in Pisidian 
 Antioch. 126. Iconiuiu, Lystra, Derbe. 127. Paul's address 
 at Lystra. 128. Conversion of Timothy. 129. The return 
 from Derbe to Spian Antioch. 130. Methods of the mis- 
 sionaries. 131. Providential preparations for their work. 
 
 PART III 
 
 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 HISTORICAL SOURCES 
 
 Sections 132-136. Packs 125-12 
 
 Section 132. Portions of Acts and Pauline epistles bearing on 
 this period. 133. The Epistle of James ; date and authorship. 
 134. Recent critical theories of the epistle. 135. Allusions in 
 Epistle to Hebrews pertaining to this period. 136. Extra- 
 biblical sources. 
 
 II 
 
 THE CHARACTER OF JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 Sections 137-146. Pages 129-138 
 
 Section 137. Progress of Christianity in Judea. 138. Little in- 
 ternal development. 139. James, the Lord's brother. 140. 
 His influence and character. 141. His early life. 142. His 
 position in the church. 143. The Epistle of James ; its 
 readers. 144. Its contents. 145. Its theological position. 
 146. Historical inferences from it. 
 
 Ill 
 
 THE COUNCIL AT JERUSALEM 
 
 Sections 147-166. Pages 139-159 
 
 Section 147. Controversy concerning the obligations of Gentile 
 believers to observe the Mosaic law. 148. Outbreak of the 
 controversy at Antioch. 149. The deputation to Jerusalem. \/ 
 
XVI CONTENTS 
 
 150, 151, Relation of Acts xv. and Gal. i. 1-10. 152. Con- 
 ferences of Paul with James, Peter, and .John. 153. Why 
 was a council convoked ? 154. The proceedings ot the council. 
 155. James' address. 156. The letter drawn up by the 
 council. 157. The required acts of abstinence. 158. The 
 motive of the decision. 159. Acceptance of the decision by 
 Paul. 160. Why no reference to it in Paul's epistles. 161. 
 Value of the council's action. 162. Visit of Peter to Antioch. 
 163. Disturbance of the church through his action. 164. 
 Paul's rebuke of Peter. 165. Disclosure of Paul's theological 
 position. 166. Results of his action on this occasion. 
 
 IV 
 
 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY AFTER THE COUNCIL 
 
 Sections 167-173. Pages 160-166 
 
 Section 167. Political unrest in Judea. 168. Condition of the 
 Christians. 169. Their relation to the State. 170. Their 
 divided attitude toward Paul. 171. Death of James. Flight 
 of the chui'ch to Pella. 172. Historical inferences from the 
 Epistle to the Hebrews. 173. The permanent contribution of 
 Judaic Christianity. 
 
 PART IV 
 
 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 I 
 
 HISTORICAL SOURCES 
 
 Sections 174-180. Pages 169-176 
 
 Section 174. Acts and the Pauline epistles. 175. Objections 
 raised to the genuineness of the pastoral epistles. 176-180. 
 Reply to these objections. 
 
 II 
 
 ENTRANCE OF CHRISTIANITY INTO EUROPE 
 
 Sections 181-197. Pages 177-193 
 
 Section 181. An era of wide-spread evangelism. 182. Special 
 importance of Paul's work. 183. Origin of his second journey. 
 
CONTENTS XVll 
 
 184. The route followed. Timothy joins the party. 185. 
 Did Paul enter Galatia proper? 186. Probable origin of the 
 churches of Galatia. 187. To whom was the Epistle to the 
 Galatians written? 188. Paul's preaching in Galatia and sub- 
 sequent movements. 189. The vision of the man of Macedonia. 
 190. Paul at Philippi. 191. The Philippian church. 192. 
 Thessalonica. 193. Paul's work in Thessalonica. 194. 
 Berea and Athens. 195. Paul's work in Athens. 196. His 
 address at Athens. 197. Character and effects of the address. 
 
 Ill 
 
 PAUL IN CORINTH 
 
 Sections 198-208. Pages 194-203 
 
 Section 198. Paul in Corinth. Aquila and Priscilla. 199. 
 Founding of the Corinthian Church. 200. Accusation of Paul 
 before Gallio. 201. The_ epistles to the Thessalonians. 202. 
 Introduction to Pauline literature. 203 . Occasion of First 
 Thessalonians. 204. Its character. 205. Occasion of Second 
 Thessalonians. 206. Its contents. 207. View given of Thes- 
 salonian Christianity. The doctrine of the second advent. 
 208. Return of Paul from Corinth to Antioch. 
 
 IV 
 
 PAUL IN EPHESUS 
 
 Sections 209-227. Pages 204-223 
 
 Section 209. Second visit to Galatia. 210. Apollos. The 
 twelve disciples at Ephesus. 211. Paul's sojourn in Ephesus. 
 212. Character of his work there. 213. Epistle to the fii^lfu 
 tians; its date^ 214. Its occasion. The Judaizers. 216. 
 Paul's defence of his apostleship. 216. His defence of his 
 doctrine. 217. Further argument and application. 218. 
 Historical value of the epistle. 219. First Epistle to the 
 Corinthians ; date and occasion.^ 220. The factions in Corinth.^ 
 221. TEe true gospel. 222. Christianity and Hellenism. 223, 
 Practical difficulties in the church. 224. Abuses in worship. 
 225. Doctrine of the resurrection. 226. The collection for the 
 Judean disciples. 227. Difficulties at Corinth subsequent to 
 the sending of this epistle. 
 
 b 
 
XVlll CONTENTS 
 
 FROM EPHESUS TO ROME 
 
 Sections 228-245. Pages 224-237 
 
 Section 228. Report brought by Titus from Corinth. 229. 
 Second Epistle to the C orinthians ; occasion and general char- 
 acter. 230. Contents of Second Corinthians. 231. Journey 
 of Paul in Macedonia and to Corinth. 232. The Epistle to the 
 Romans. Origin of Roman Christianity. 233. Purpose of the 
 epistle. 234. Main argument of the epistle. 235. Motive of 
 chapters ix.-xi. 236. Historical importance of the epistle. 
 237, Journey of Paul from Corinth to Jerusalem. 238. Paul's 
 arrest. 239. Paul before the Sanhedrim. 240. Paul before 
 Felix. 241. The Csesarean imprisonment. 242. The appeal 
 to Caesar. 243. Defence before Festus and Agrippa. 244. 
 The voyage to Rome. 245. Paul's arrival at Rome* 
 
 YI 
 
 PAUL IN ROME 
 
 Sections 246-261. Pages 238-251 
 
 Section 246. Paul's interview with the Jews in Rome 247. 
 His work in the capital. 248. The Christians in Rome. 249. 
 The epistles written from Rome. 250. Epistle to the. Colos- 
 sians. 251. The Colossian errorists. 252. Teaching of this 
 epistle. 253. The doctrine of the person of Christ. 254. 
 Epistle to Philemon. Christianity as a social force. 255. 
 Epistle to the Ep^^sja^as*^ 256. Its relation to Colossians. 
 257. Completion of Paul's statement of Christianity. 258. 
 His conception of the church. 259. Epistle to the Philippians. 
 260. Use of the term Episcopos. 261. Teaching of the epistle. 
 Paul awaiting trial. 
 
 yn 
 
 THE LAST YEARS OP PAUL 
 
 Sections 262-271. Pages 252-261 
 
 Section 262. Spread of Christianity through Paul. 263. Paul's 
 martyrdom. 264. Reasons for believing in his release from the 
 imprisonment recorded in Acts. 265. The^astoral epistles 
 
CONTENTS XIX 
 
 cannotjbe inserted in Acts. 266. Movements of Paul after his 
 release. 26 7. Motive of the directions given to Timothy and 
 Titus. 268. The organization of the churches. 269. Perils 
 of Christianity. 270. Paul's situation according to Second 
 Timothy. 271. Paul's last words and the close of his life. 
 
 PART V 
 
 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY TO THE CLOSE OF 
 THE APOSTOLIC AGE 
 
 HISTOEICAL SOURCES 
 
 Sections 272-282. Pages 265-274 
 
 Section 272. Authorship of the Epistle to the Hebrews. 273. 
 Its readers and date. 274. The First Epistle of Peter. 275. 
 The Second Epistle of Peter. 276. The Epistle of Jude. 
 
 277. The synoptic gospels. Gospel according to Matthew. 
 
 278. Gospel according to Mark. 279. Gospel according to 
 Luke. 280. Date of the Acts. 281. Johanncan books; their 
 authenticity. 282. Unity and date of Revelation. 
 
 II 
 
 THE LAST YEARS OF THE APOSTLE PETER 
 
 Sections 283-295. Pages 27.5-285 
 
 Section 283. The progress of Christianity apart from its expan- 
 sion under Paul but partially known. 284. Life of Peter after 
 the council at Jerusalem. 285. Peter at Rome. 286. Time 
 of his death. 287. Inferences from First Peter as to the con- 
 dition of its readers. 288. The development of persecution 
 under Nero. 289. Effect of persecution on the church. 290. 
 Characteristics of Peter's teaching. 291. Perils within the 
 church. Jude and Second Peter. 292. Information about 
 Jude. 293. The false Christians denounced in his epistle. 
 294. The errorists denounced in Second Peter. 295. The 
 threatening perils of the church. 
 
XX CONTENTS 
 
 III 
 
 THE FINAL TRANSITION FROM JUDAISM TO 
 CHRISTIANITY 
 
 Sections 296-300 Pages 286-289 
 
 Section 296. Occasion of the Epistle to the Hebrews. 297. Im- 
 portance of the epistle in the statement of apostolic Christian- 
 ity. 298. Its leading ideas. 299. Argument of the epistle. 
 300 Historical value of its teaching. 
 
 IV 
 
 RISE OF HISTORICAL NARRATIVES 
 
 Sections 301-304. Pages 290-293 
 
 Section 301. The apostolic preaching about Jesus, 302. Ten- 
 dency of the recital to acquire fixity of form ; its general 
 contents. 303. Appearance of written gospels. 304. The 
 historical consciousness of the church. 
 
 THE JOHANNEAN PERIOD 
 
 Sections 305-321. Pages 294-312 
 
 Section 305. Transitional character of the last third of the 
 first century. 306. Continued spread of Christianity. 307. 
 Variety of classes in the chui'ch. 308. Christian worship. 
 309. Development of organization. 310. Spread of false 
 teaching. 311. Enmity of the world. Persecution. 312. 
 Influence of the age on the church. 313. The last years of 
 John. 314. John in Ephesus. 315. The gospel according 
 to John. Significance of its prologue. 316. Relation of 
 John's first epistle to his gospel 317. The Second and Third 
 Epistles of John. 318. The Kevelation. 319. Historical im- 
 plications of the Revelation. 320, The world-consciousness of 
 Christianity. 321. Conclusion; the unity of the apostolic age. 
 
 Appendix, Chronology of the Apostolic Age • 315-322 
 
 Selected Bibliography ,...,,... 323-328 
 
 Index of Names and Subjects 331-334 
 
 Index of Biblical References 335-343 
 
PART I 
 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
HISTtHlfAL Sf U:RCES 
 
 1. We are dependent practically for our knowledge 
 of Christianity in the apostolic age upon the books 
 which compose the New Testament. The Jewish his- 
 torian Josephus furnishes little, if any, information. 
 He gives, indeed, a brief account of John the Baptist 
 (Antiq. xviii. 5. 2), relates the death of "James the 
 brother of Jesus who is called Christ," (Antiq. xx. 
 9. 1), and, at the close of the famous paragraph in 
 which he speaks of Jesus, adds, " the tribe of Christians 
 so named from him are not extinct at this day " (Antiq. 
 xviii. 3. 3). The latter passage, however, has probably 
 been largely interpolated by a Christian hand (see 
 Gieseler, Eccles. Hist. I. 48; Schilrer, HJP. I., 11. 
 143), and even the two other passages, though with 
 much less reason, have been questioned. At the most, 
 Josephus furnishes nothing that is of special value. Of 
 Roman writers, likewise, only Ta.c[tus _( Annals, xv. 44) 
 and Suetoniu s (Nero, 16) mention the Christians, and 
 this in connection with Nero's persecution. The former 
 states that " Christ, the author of this name, when 
 Tiberius was emperor, was put to death by the procu- 
 rator Pontius Pilate. Though repressed for a while, 
 the deadly superstition again broke forth, not only 
 throughout Judea, the original home of this evil, but 
 
4 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 throughout the city [Rome] also, whither all atrocious 
 and shameful things flow and are practised." While 
 thus from pagan sources glimpses may be caught of the 
 new religion, no real account is obtained of its begin- 
 nings and development. Neither is there in the Chris- 
 tian writings of the second century anything which adds 
 substantially to the New Testament records. The his- 
 torian must depend, theref oref u^n the critical study 
 and careful interpretation of the apostolic literature 
 itself. 
 
 (_ 2. For the earliest period, covering the rise of Chris- 
 tianity in Jerusalem, the authorities are the closing 
 chapters of the four gospels and the opening chapters 
 of the Acts>) None of the so-called apocryphal gospels 
 are worthy of consideration, even the lately recovered 
 Gospel of Peter being built on the canonical ones and 
 adding nothing of historical value {Swete, Gosp. of P. p. 
 xv). Still more valueless are the apocryphal Acts of 
 Peter, of John, of Thomas, of Andrew, which circulated, 
 chiefly among heretical sects, in the second and third 
 centuries. The canonical gospels, however, came from 
 the apostolic age, and contain the testimony of original 
 witnesses to the life of Christ (sects. 277-281). We 
 are only concerned with their closing chapters. These 
 accounts of the Lord's resurrection and post-resurrection 
 life are obviously fragmentary. The last twelve verses 
 of Mark, moreover, are now generally recognized as 
 an addition to the gospel, having taken the place of the 
 original conclusion, and cannot be considered of equal 
 authority with the rest (see Westcott and Hort, N. T. 
 in Greek. Notes on select readings, p. 28). Luke's 
 last chapter is, from verse forty-four, a condensed sum- 
 mary of Christ's final instructions, and is transitional to 
 
VALUE OF THE BOOK OF ACTS 5 
 
 the account with which the Acts begins. Yet in spite 
 of their fragmentary character, and however difficult it 
 may be to construct a chronological narrative from the 
 material contained in them, these brief apostolic records . 
 are of the highest value, not only as testimony to the I 
 fact of Christ's resurrection, but also as disclosing the j 
 state of mind in which the disciples entered on their 
 independent career. 
 
 3. Still more important for our purposes is the book 
 commonly entitled the Acts of the Apostles. Its his- 
 torical value has been warmly disputed in modern times, 
 although upon it rests the whole traditional idea of the 
 greater part of apostolic history. Evidence of many\ 
 kinds, however, has accumulated to support its accu- 
 racy. That it was written in the first century must cer- 
 tainly be admitted (so Uarnack., Chronologic, I. p. 246 ; 
 Ramsay, St. Paul the Trav. p. 386). In fact, after the 
 middle of the second century it appears as a recognized 
 canonical book, and traces of its use in the churches 
 may be found still earlier. (Xhe author was a compan- 
 ion of Paul, for he significantly uses at times in his • 
 narrative of the apostle's travels the first person plural 
 (xvi. 10-16 ; XX. 5 to xxi. 18 ;' xxvii. 1 to xxviii. 16) ;j 
 and that this is not an instance of the use by a later 
 writer of an earlier source is demonstrable, first, by the 
 general similarity of the style of the " we sections " with 
 the rest of the book, and, secondly, by the fact that for 
 the author to have allowed the " we " of his source to 
 have remained unchanged in his narrative would have 
 been to pursue a method entirely different from that 
 which he follows elsewhere when using earlier sources. 
 Furthermore, the tradition, which appears the accepted 
 one in the second century, that the author was Luke, 
 
6 KISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 harmonizes with the notices in Paul's epistles of Luke's 
 movements, as the latter do with no other of the apos- 
 tle's prominent associates. The objection that a com- 
 panion of Paul ought to have given fuller information, 
 and that he even shows ignorance of much that such a 
 man would have known {McGriffert, Ap. Age, p. 237), 
 proceeds on an arbitrary assumption concerning what 
 Luke would be likely to record, and a failure to appre- 
 ciate the plan and purpose of his book. 
 
 4. What, then, is the value of Acts as an historical 
 source ? That Luke carefully gathered his material is 
 expressly stated by him in the beginning of his gospel 
 (Luke i. 1-4), — an earlier book to which he plainly 
 refers (Acts i. 1, 2). It is highly probable that he 
 collected his matter not only from oral but also from 
 written sources. He had his own notes on Paul's 
 travels. Then the speeches of Peter and others were 
 probably preserved among the Jewish Christians in 
 writing. Other historical records may have been used. 
 Yet Luke does not copy his material slavishly. He 
 weaves it- into his narrative, giving much of it in 
 language which is characteristically his own, while at 
 the same time he reproduces in great part the equally 
 characteristic phrases and follows the thought of the 
 original speakers in a way which gives remarkable 
 variety and verisimilitude to his reports. Certainly 
 his opportunities for gathering information were of the 
 best. A companion of Paul, he was acquainted also 
 with some of the leading actors in the earlier history 
 (Acts xxi. 8, 18 ; Col. iv. 14, compared with 10). / He 
 appears to have remained in Palestine during the two 
 years of Paul's imprisonment at Cassarea, at which time 
 his materials may have been, at least in part, collected. 
 
LUKE'S AUTHORITY AS AN HISTORIAN 7 
 
 5. His value as an historian, however, is to be esti- 
 mated in two _ wayB : first, hj comparison with other 
 sources ; secondly, by an examination of his method. 
 So far as concerns the first, he may be tested by the 
 epistles of Paul and by archajological evidence relating 
 to the condition of the places in which his narrative 
 moves. His harmony with the epistles, when both are 
 fairly interpreted, has become more and more manifest 
 with the progress of modern cxegetical study. Opinions 
 still differ on details, but in the main the trustworthiness 
 of Acts in these matters is certain. Numerous proofs 
 of this will appear in the following pages. ArchsKology, 
 likewise, has notably confirmed his record. Here the 
 student is specially indebted to the recent works of 
 Prof. W. H. Ramsay (Ch. in Rom. Emp. ; St. Paul the 
 Trav.). Luke moves through the varied and changing 
 political relations of the cities of Asia Minor and 
 Europe with perfect accuracy. He reproduces the 
 local coloring of events and repeats the common par- 
 lance of the people about whom he writes. It may be 
 safely said that his accuracy has stood the test of fair 
 investigation. 
 
 6. It is often said, however, that in the earlier parts 
 of Acts he is not as trustworthy as elsewhere. He 
 cannot be here tested directly by epistles or archae- 
 ology. But he can be tested as to his method. Does 
 it show an intelligent grasp of the situation and a per- 
 ception of real progress in the history ? The answer 
 to this is also favorable. His whole book is arranged 
 on an artistic, but not artificial, plan, to show the es- 
 tablishment by the Spirit through the apostles of 
 universal Christianity. In his account of the early 
 church in Jerusalem (i. 1 to viii. 3) he follows a 
 
8 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 method which shows intelligent comprehension of the 
 course of events and corresponds to what is in- 
 herently probable. After describing Christ's last 
 instructions and ascension, and the company which 
 formed the original nucleus of the church, he relates 
 six events (ii. 1-47 ; iii. 1 to iv. 37 ; v. 1-16 ; v. 17-42 ; 
 vi. 1-8 ; vi. 9 to viii. 3) which pertain alternately to 
 the internal and external life of the community, and 
 set forth in a representative way the development of 
 the church and its changing relation to Judaism. He 
 thus conceived the history in its logical relations and 
 understood the movement with manifest intelligence. 
 The book of Acts may therefore be used as an au- 
 thority of the first order. In Luke is to be found the 
 first Christian historian. It may be added that in 
 using Acts we follow the usually received critical Greek 
 text. The theory of Professor Blass of Halle that 
 Luke issued two editions of his books does not seem to 
 have been verified ; and the interesting facts occasion- 
 ally introduced into the narrative by the alleged first 
 edition of Acts, which Professor Blass obtains from 
 certain Greek and Latin manuscripts, are not suf- 
 ficiently attested. 
 
II 
 
 THE ORIGIN OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 7. Christianity originated in the appearance among 
 the Jews of Jesus Christ, and specifically from the 
 belief in his Messiahship created by the events of his 
 career, his teaching, and his unique personality. It 
 did not, however, become an independent movement 
 until shortly after its Founder's death. -^ The gospels 
 show that the immediate object of Jesus during his 
 life was twofold. On the one hand, he offered him- / 
 self to the Jews as one who had come from God to 
 establish the kingdom of heaven, inveighed against 
 cun-ent Judaism as a false interpretation of God's 
 commands, and summoned the people to accept him 
 as the revealer of the true religious life. On the other i. 
 hand, foreseeing from the stgirt their rejection of him 
 (see, John ii. 19; iii. 11, 14, 19; Luke iv. 24-27; 
 Matt. viii. 10-12 ; xii. 39, 41 ; Luke xi. 49-51 ; Matt. ix. 
 15 ; John vi. 51-56 ; Matt. xvi. 21-23, etc.), he addressed 
 himself to the task of attaching to himself and his 
 teaching a nucleus of believers who should carry on, 
 after his death, the establishment of the kingdom. 
 But he did not organize them into a separate society, 
 save by the appointment of the twelve apostles. These 
 he constituted his personal representatives and the 
 official heads of the new Israel (Matt. x. 44 ; Mark iii. 
 14, 15 ; Matt. xvii. 19 ; xviii. 18 ; xix. 28, cf. Mark x. 
 
10 KISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 37 ; Luke xxii. 29, 30) ; but he attempted no further 
 organization. Nor is it difficult to see the reason. 
 It would have interfered with his offer of himself as 
 the Messiah of the nation. It would also have been 
 premature ; for he clearly realized (see Matt. xvii. 9 ; 
 John xvii. 12, 13, etc.) that their activity could proceed 
 successfully only after his own career on earth had 
 been finished. While, therefore, Jesus was the founder 
 of Christianity, the history of the latter as an organized 
 movement may be said properly to have begun with 
 the little company of disciples who believed in him 
 after his rejection by the Jews and crucifixion by 
 Pilate. 
 
 8, It is the unanimous testimony of all our sources 
 of information that these disciples, dismayed by the 
 
 j, death of Jesus, were re-established in their faith by 
 I /his resurrection, his subsequent appearances to them, 
 ^■^ and the instructions which then he gave them. It 
 is beyond question that belief in his resurrection was 
 suddenly created among them shortly after his death. 
 Nothing will explain the confidence with which they 
 proclaimed him as Messiah, except the conviction in 
 all of them that he not only still lived, but had been 
 clothed by God with power ; and that this conviction 
 took the specific form of belief in the resurrection of 
 his dead body is equally certain from their express 
 testimonies (Acts ii. 24-32 ; iii. 15 ; iv. 10, etc. ; I. 
 Thess. iv. 14 ; I. Cor. xv. 4-8, etc.). 
 
 9. In considering the grounds upon which this 
 belief rested, the following facts should be borne in 
 mind, {a) The belief appears as strong and universal 
 at thfe beginning of the history of the church as 
 afterwards. This is attested in the Acts not only by 
 
TESTBIONY TO TUE RESURRECTION 11 
 
 Luke's own narrative, but by the speeches of Peter 
 which he reports. In the earliest epistle of Paul, 
 also, Christ's resurrection is mentioned as one of the 
 commonplaces of Christian faith (I. Thess. iv. 14), 
 while in I. Corinthians (xv. 1-8) it is presented as a 
 basal fact on which all Christianity reposes. There 
 is thus no indication that the belief formed gradually, 
 even during the earliest period of the apostolic age. 
 It is to be observed also that in the speeches of Peter 
 (Acts ii. 31 ; x. 41) as much stress is laid on the 
 corporeal reality of the resurrection as is done in 
 the later gospels ; nor did Paul conceive of the 
 future bodies of believers, which are to be like the 
 Lord's (I. Cor. xv. 49), as any the less material 
 because they will be also " spiritual " or perfect organs 
 of the Spirit. As, therefore, the belief in Christ's 
 resurrection did not form gradually, so neither is 
 there any trace of a modification of the belief in the 
 interest of a more literal representation. The apostolic 
 description of it is essentially the same throughout. 
 
 10. (b) The appeal in support of the fact was made 
 publicly and to well-known and accredited witnesses. 
 The apostles were the official witnesses (Acts i. 22 ; x. 
 41 ; I. Cor, ix. 1; xv. 5-8 ; John xxi. 14), though their 
 testimony was confirmed by that of James and many 
 others. A large number of persons, therefore, must have 
 received together or at different times evidence of its 
 reality. There is no indication that it was accepted by 
 a majority of these witnesses on the report of a few. 
 Peter, the most conspicuous witness in Acts, — the ap- 
 pearance of Jesus to whom is specifically mentioned by 
 Luke (Luke xxiv. 34) and Paul (1. Cor. xv. 7), — never 
 represents it as resting on his own testimony or on that 
 
12 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 of any other individual, but on that of all the apostles 
 (see e. g. Acts ii. 32 ; iii. 15 ; x. 41). A belief produced 
 
 j in so many minds of very different temperaments must 
 "^ have had a firm foundation. 
 
 V 11. (c) The accounts of the resurrection period 
 given in the gospels were evidently not framed for the 
 purpose of presenting the evidence on which the church 
 rested its belief. Such a view of them would be incon- 
 sistent with the method of proof illustrated by Paul 
 (I. Cor. XV. 3-8), which summarizes the evidence, from 
 the apologetic point of view, current in the churches. 
 The gospels were written for believers, and give inci- 
 dents to confirm faith or to serve other religious pur- 
 poses. This is in accordance with the general character 
 of those books. Comparison with the kind of evidence 
 to which appeal is made elsewhere clearly shows that 
 they give but fragments of the proof by which the belief 
 in the resurrection was created. It would be wrong, 
 therefore, to rest the case, affirmatively or negatively, 
 on them alone. 
 
 12. {(V) At the same time *the incidents related in 
 the gospels or referred to elsewhere (Acts i. 4, 6-8 ; x. 
 41 ; I. Cor. xv. 5-7), however difficult a precise har- 
 mony of them may be, exhibit a sobriety and variety of 
 testimony which lends a strong confirmation to the 
 formal apostolic witness. There is a notable absence 
 from them of extravagant elaboration of details, in 
 
 , regard to either the appearance, actions, or teaching of 
 the risen Lord, such as are found in later apocryphal 
 works (see e. g. Gospel of Peter, Gospel of Nicodcmus) . 
 
 /■ We learn from them that Jesus appeared both to indi- 
 vidual disciples and to companies of them, both by day 
 (Matt, xxviii. 9, 16-18 ; Luke xxiv. 29 ; John xx. 
 
REALITY OF THE RESURRECTION 13 
 
 16 ; xxi. 4 ; Acts i. 4) and by night (Luke xxiv. 36 ; 
 John XX. 19), that ho conversed and ate with them, and 
 that they handled (Matt, xxviii. 9 ; Luke xxiv. 39 ; John 
 XX. 27) and walked with him. The testimony is not 
 merely that his body disappeared from the tomb, or that 
 a few persons, who might have had inflamed imagina- 
 tions, professed to have seen him, but that a consider- 
 able company of people on many occasions and under a 
 variety of conditions received what they believed to be 
 sensible proofs of his appearance to them in the same 
 body which had expired upon the cross. Judging from 
 these fragments of the evidence, the apostolic testimony 
 as a whole must have been based on abundant proof. 
 
 13. Nor can the universality and persistence of the 
 disciples' belief be explained on any theory which denies 
 its objective reality . The Jews charged them with 
 having stolen the body and fabricated the story of the A' 
 resurrection (Matt, xxviii. 11-15). But the honesty of 
 their belief is attested irrefragably by the pure and 
 unselfish character of their lives and preaching, and of 
 the Christian movement as a whole. The Jewish charge 
 also implies a deliberate conspiracy, in which many 
 were induced to unite, and which was carried out so 
 successfully that not only were Pilate's guards circum- 
 vented, but no one of the conspirators ever betrayed the 
 plot ; and the mental condition of the disciples after the 
 crucifixion, as well as their moral character, absolutely 
 forbids such an hypothesis. No critic, however scep- 
 tical, is now disposed to question seriously the honesty 
 of the disciples' belief. 
 
 14, Neither can their belief be attributed to illusion. 
 Apart from the evidence already mentioned, and which 
 of itself makes illusion quite impossible, this hypoth- 
 
14 EISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 esis, which would account for the belief by visions 
 which the disciples supposed they had had of their 
 Lord, requires the assumption that an expectation of 
 the resurrection existed among them. Only thus 
 would there be a psychological basis for the false 
 belief. It is certain, however, that such an expecta- 
 tion did not exist. It is true that Jesus on at least 
 three occasions (Mark viii. 31 ; ix. 31 ; x. 34) had pre- 
 dicted his death and resurrection. But the testimony 
 is equally explicit that under the distress and dis- 
 appointment of his death the prediction as well as the 
 command to meet him in Galilee (Mark xiv. 28) was 
 either forgotten or entirely without influence on the 
 disciples. Even the women prepared spices for his 
 burial. The first reports of the resurrection were re- 
 ceived with incredulity. There is only one intimation 
 that any remembered the prediction (Luke xxiv. 21), 
 and that was after the report of the women had been 
 heard. All the information, therefore, which we can 
 gather concerning the mental condition of the dis- 
 ciples forbids the hypothesis of illusion by eliminat- 
 ing the element of expectation which is its necessary 
 psychological basis. Add to this the large number of 
 witnesses and the variety of occasions on which their 
 belief was created, and the hypothesis becomes doubly 
 incredible. 
 
 15. Finally, the evidence likewise forbids even the 
 mediating opinion that Jesus did show himself to his 
 disciples in some form, but not in the body which had 
 been laid in the grave. This theory is a purely specu- 
 lative one, and rests on no historical evidence whatever. 
 It is incontestable that the grave was empty, as the 
 charge of the Jews clearly proves. It is equally 
 
APPEARANCES OF THE RISEN CHRIST 15 
 
 certain that the disciples received evidence, and that, 
 too, in spite of a strong indisposition to believe it, that 
 the body in which their Lord appeared to them, though 
 changed in some respects, was identical with that which 
 had been crucified (Acts ii. 31 ; I. Cor. xv. 15, 20). 
 They particularly narrate the physical proofs given of 
 this identity (Luke xxiv. 40, 43 ; John xx. 27). The 
 recital of these physical proofs of identity cannot be 
 regarded as the result of a later and legendary ten- 
 dency, for, as we have already remarked, equal stress 
 is laid on the physical reality of Christ's resurrection 
 body by Peter in the Acts. All views, therefore, which 
 deny the objective reality of the event are beset by 
 insuperable difficulties. If we add to these considera- 
 tions the ethical and rational character of the Christian 
 life manifested by the apostles, the supposition of either 
 dishonesty or mistake in their belief must certainly be 
 rejected. Criticism itself, if not swayed by philosoph- | 
 ical prejudice, must accept the resurrection of Jesus i 
 as a supernatural fact lying at the foundation of 
 apostolic history. 
 
 16. While, however, the r esur rectigji of their Lord 
 reanimated the faith and hopes of the disciples, his 
 subsequent appearances to them and the instructions 
 which he gave them determined the particular form of 
 their renewed life. He did not live with them habitu- 
 ally as he had done before, but "manifested himself" 
 (John xxi. 1, 14) on repeated occasions and often under 
 altered conditions (Matt, xxviii. 17 ; Luke xxiv. 16, 
 31, 36 ; John xx. 9, 26 ; xxi. 4). They thus were led 
 to realize that a new order of things had begun. He 
 now plainly appeared a supernatural being, clothed 
 with heavenly power. This could not have appeared 
 
16 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 to them unnatural, since they had previously seen 
 abundant evidence of his celestial origin and power. 
 It was even more in accord with their Jewish ideas of 
 a Messiah than the lowly man of Nazareth had been.. 
 But the point to be observed is that the new order, 
 with its periods of withdrawal and reappearance, ac- 
 customed them to the thought of an invisible and yet 
 active Lord, and prepared them to believe in his con- 
 tinued power after his final departure. His instruc- 
 tions also gave definite direction to their faith. While 
 dealing in general, as before, with " the things pertain- 
 ing to the kingdom of God" (Acts i. 3), it consisted 
 largely in the explanation of the Hebrew Scriptures 
 with regard to himself (Luke xxiv. 27, 44-47), and 
 thus pointed to the instrument by which they were 
 to advance further in the understanding of his mission 
 and message. They were, moreover, formally directed 
 to proclaim him to the world, and baptism was ap- 
 pointed as the rite, significant of repentance and faith, 
 to be used for the admission of new members to the 
 community (Matt, xxviii. 18-23 ; Luke xxiv. 47). The 
 faith itself was defined as faith in the Father, Son, and 
 Holy Spirit (Matt, xxviii. 19), a statement which sum- 
 marized the teaching of Jesus. He had proclaimed the 
 fatherhood of God, had represented himself as the Son 
 of God, and had promised the Spirit of God to his dis- 
 ciples. While, therefore, this summary of his teaching 
 may not have been at once regarded as a liturgical 
 formula, there is no reason to doubt that it was used 
 by Jesus (sect. 36). Finally, on the apostles a special 
 gift of the Spirit was bestowed whereby they were 
 authorized to be the spiritual heads of the whole com- 
 munity of believers (John xx. 22, 23). . 
 
PRIMITIVE FAITH OF THE DISCIPLES 17 
 
 17. The disciples were thus prepared to begin their 
 independent career, not as a body of mere enthusiasts, 
 but as a society organized by 'certain definite beliefs./ 
 Certainly they had no thought of separating themselves 
 from the existing religious institutions of their nation. 
 They were all the more enthusiastic Hebrews for 
 believing that Israel's Messiah had come. Yet they 
 formed a distinct community. The bond which united 
 them was their faith in Jesus as the divinely sent and 
 now victorious Messiah, the Saviour of all believers, 
 the sure restorer of Israel's glory, the revealer of the 
 Father, the source of power, and the lawful Lord of 
 all mankind. Around this gathered an apprehension 
 of his teaching about God, himself, the kingdom, 
 and the future, which probably varied in degree and 
 extent with different individuals. This faith com- 
 pacted and energized them. It contained Christianity 
 in the germ. For it the teaching and career of Jesus 
 had prepared. He had always made himself, equally 
 with the Father, the object of their religious trust 
 (see e.g. John iii. 14-18; Matt. iv. 19; Mark i. 40; ii. 
 5 ; John v. 23 ; Luke vii. 9, 47 ; viii. 25 ; Matt. ix. 28 ; 
 xi. 28-30 ; xvi. 16-18 ; John vi. 47-57, 69 ; Mark ix. 
 23 ; Luke x. 22, etc.). Now, with his career before 
 them as a whole, the object was fully presented on 
 which their faith and love might be fixed so as to be 
 fruitful in a new religion. 
 
 18. It is affirmed by Luke that the disciples began / 
 their history, as an organized society, in Jerusalem, 
 and he relates only appearances of the risen Lord in or 
 near that city (xxiv. 1-43). The first gospel, on the 
 other hand, while narrating the Lord's appearance to 
 the women near the sepulchre, represents the apostles 
 
 2 
 
\r 
 
 18 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 as receiving the great commission in Galilee (xxviii. 
 16-20), and the fourth gospel records appearances of 
 Jesus to them in both Judea and Galilee (xx., xxi.). 
 The concluding verses added to Mark (xvi. 9-20) ap- 
 parently have in mind only appearances in and near 
 Jerusalem, but do not mention the locality. The 
 supposition of some critics that these differences dis- 
 close two originally divergent traditions is, however, 
 gratuitous. That Jerusalem was, in fact, the place 
 from which the new religion radiated is attested not 
 only by Luke, but by the speeches of others which he 
 incorporated in his narrative (Acts ii. 14 ; iii. 13-15 ; 
 iv. 10; xiii. 31; xxii. 5, 17-20; xxvi. 10), and by 
 the epistles of Paul (I. Thess. ii. 14 ; Gal. i. 17-19, 
 22 ; ii. 1-10 ; Rom. xv. 19, 26, 27) ; and the third 
 evangelist was content to confine himself to appear- 
 ances of Jesus at that place because of his interest 
 in the history of the formation of the church as 
 such. He does not, however, deny appearances else- 
 where. 
 
 19. It is to be inferred, therefore, that the disciples, 
 incredulous of the first reports of their Master's res- 
 urrection, and not yet recovered from the shock caused 
 by his death, lingered in Jerusalem, and there his first 
 appearances were made to them. Then, however, the 
 original command (Matt. xxvi. 32 ; Mark xiv. 28) to 
 meet him in Galilee was obeyed. There he frequently 
 appeared to them and gave them most of his instruc- 
 tions. In Galilee they were in safety. Being without 
 fear of interruption, and even resuming on occasion 
 their former occupations (John xxi. 3), calmness and 
 courage were restored. The associations of Galilee 
 with the earlier ministry of Jesus doubtless served 
 
ASCENSION OF CHRIST 19 
 
 also to preserve the continuity of their faith with 
 his former teaching. 
 
 20. When the time drew near for their mission to . , 
 begin, Jesus sent them back to Jerusalem. Their , 
 message must not appear as a Galilean faith. It 
 must link itself with the centre of Judaism. They 
 must proclaim the Messiah in the sacred city. He 
 himself, though most of his ministry had been in 
 Galilee, had always regarded Jerusalem as the place 
 where alone a national acceptance or rejection of 
 him was possible. It was, therefore, in full accord 
 with his previous declarations that he sent his dis- 
 ciples forth in his name from the capital itself. There 
 he again appeared to them. He directed them to 
 wait for the enduement of spiritual power which he 
 had promised, and which, he said, would not be long 
 delayed (Acts i. 4-8). For he was no more to appear 
 to them as he had been doing. He finally led the 
 eleven out over the Mount of Olives until Bethany was 
 in sight (Luke xxiv. 50). They were expectant of 
 some, perhaps miraculous, manifestation of his power 
 in the near future by which he would overwhelm his 
 enemies and establish his kingdom (Acts i. 6). In- 
 stead of this, he repeated their commission and then 
 visibly ascended into the skies. While they gazed 
 upon his vanishing form, two angels appeared by their 
 side who declared that he would return in like manner 
 as he had gone (Acts i. 8-11). 
 
 21. The ascension of their Lord thus completed the 
 preparation of the disciples. While Luke alone relates ^ 
 the event, belief in it is implied in the words of Peter, 
 "For David is not ascended into the heavens" (Acts 
 ii. 34), and again, " Whom the heavens must receive" 
 
20 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 (Acts iii. 21), ill the vision of Stephen (Acts vii. 56), 
 and in the doctrine of the exaltation of Christ and 
 his enthronement at the right hand of God, which is 
 repeatedly adjoined to that of his resurrection (e. g. 
 I. Thess. i. 10 ; iv. 16; 11. Thess. i. 7 ; Eph. i. 20, 21 ; 
 Phil. i. 9 ; Col. iii. 1). We are here concerned, how- 
 ever, to note its significance for the first disciples at 
 the time of its occurrence. It completed their prepara- 
 tion for service by making definite their idea of the 
 relation which the Lord was to occupy to them. They 
 were not to look for any more visible appearances until 
 he should come, after their mission was concluded, to 
 establish finally his kingdom. But they henceforth 
 thought of him as not only risen, but as enthroned in 
 heaven and possessed of all power. Trusting in his 
 invisible aid, they were to proclaim him to the world. 
 He was henceforth to them the exalted and reigning 
 Lord and King of the universe. The ascension, added 
 to the resurrection, explains the form which, as we 
 shall see, the first preaching of the apostles took. 
 Luke rightly placed it at the beginning of the Acts. 
 It completed the origin of Christianity and the intro- 
 duction of apostolic history. 
 
Ill 
 
 TUE INAUGURATION OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 22. The apostles returned to Jerusalem from their 
 Lord's ascension to wait for the promised Spirit, by 
 whose power they were to be enabled to do their ap- 
 pointed work (Acts i. 12-14). They met constantly 
 in a private house, the upper room of which was at 
 their disposal. It belonged, doubtless, to some fellow- 
 disciple, and may have been the same in which Jesus 
 had observed with them the last passover. The com- 
 pany, however, comprised more than the eleven apostles. 
 Mention is made of certain women, who were perhaps 
 wives of disciples or others mentioned as witnesses of 
 the resurrection, with perhaps still others who, like 
 Mary and Martha of Bethany, had been followers of 
 Jesus. Their presence was a significant fact. It was 
 quite in accord with the example set by Jesus in his 
 ministry (e. g. Luke viii. 2, 3), and indicated the free 
 individualism of the new movement and the equal par- 
 ticipation in its benefits on the part of every believer. 
 The mother of Jesus also belonged to the company, 
 and with her were his brethren. The latter had not 
 believed in his Messiahship even toward the close of 
 his life (John vii. 5). But to one of them, James, he 
 had appeared after his resurrection (I. Cor. xv. 7) ; and 
 doubtless this, with the other evidence, had secured 
 their faith. The total number assembled in the upper 
 room was about one hundred and twenty (Acts i. 15). 
 
22 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 By far the majority were Galileans (Acts ii. 7). Two 
 of them, Joseph Barsabbas and Matthias, had been, like 
 the apostles, disciples of Jesus from the beginning of 
 his Galilean ministry. It is clear that his command to 
 assemble in Jerusalem had caused a considerable ex- 
 odus of his followers from Galilee. The approach of 
 Pentecost also made such a pilgrimage the more natural, 
 and new-comers joined the first band. Amid the gen- 
 eral preparation for the festival, their coming attracted 
 no attention. 
 
 23, The disciples, thus assembled, were in a state of 
 intense expectation. Jesus had promised them " the 
 baptism of the Holy Spirit," and for it they were to wait. 
 By it they were to be enabled to proclaim him as 
 the triumphant Messiah. Belief in the Holy Spirit, or 
 the Spirit of Jehovah, was thoroughly Jewish, and had 
 required no special revelation by Jesus. The doctrine 
 was furnished by the Old Testament, where the Spirit's 
 work in the divine kingdom is that of endowing God's 
 agents with the gifts required for their calling ( OeJder, 
 0. T. Theol. §65). By the Spirit of Jehovah the 
 heroes of Israel had been qualified for service (e. </. 
 Judg. iii. 10; vi. 34; I. Sam. xi. 6, etc.) and .the proph- 
 ets inspired (Hos. ix. 7 ; Is. xlviii. 16 ; Mic. iii. 8 ; 
 Zech. vii. 12). Isaiah, Ezekiel, Joel, and Zechariah had 
 described the age of the Messiah as one in which the 
 Spirit of the Lord would be poured out abundantly upon 
 his people. This Spirit, they had said, would impart 
 wisdom, knowledge, power, and devotion (Is. xi. 2 ; 
 Joel ii. 28, 29), give fruitfulness to Israel (Is. xxxii. 
 15), prompt the offer of salvation to all nations (Is. 
 xlii. l),and bring the comfort of sah^ation to all saints 
 (Is. Ixi. 1-3). It would be the pre-eminent possession 
 
WAITING FOR THE SPIRIT 23 
 
 of the true Israel (Is. lix. 21), the fulness of the divine 
 blessing (Is. xliv, 3 ; Ezek. xxxix. 29), the source of a 
 holy (Ezek. xxxvi. 37) and renewed (Ezek. xxxvii. 14) 
 life, and the power by which alone the kingdom would 
 bo erected (Zech. iv. 6). John the Baptist, assuming 
 that he would be understood, had likewise declared 
 that Messiah would come with the power of the Spirit 
 (Matt. iii. 11; Mark i. 8; Luke iii. 16; John i. 33). 
 Jesus had added nothing to this expectation beyond 
 assuring his disciples that the Spirit would descend 
 upon them after his departure, would reveal him fully 
 to their minds, guide them into the truth, and enable 
 them to testify of him ; in short, would give them sev- 
 erally the power needed for their appointed tasks. It 
 is not to be supposed that all these elements of the 
 Spirit's work were as yet present to the disciples' minds. 
 But, relying on the promises, they expected such a 
 bestowment of the Spirit of God as would qualify them 
 for whatever service they might be called upon to per- 
 form. They were thus sensible of their dependence 
 upon a power from on high which they did not yet 
 possess. Their ardent desire for this found expression 
 in " the prayer " in which with one accord they were 
 constant (Acts i. 14). 
 
 24. In only one respect did they further prepare for 
 their expected mission. The treachery of Judas had 
 left a vacancy in the original number of the apostles. 
 Peter proposed that one of those who had been disci- 
 ples of Jesus from the beginning of his Galilean minis- 
 try and who had seen him after his resurrection should 
 fill the vacant place. Two satisfied the conditions ; 
 and, after prayer to Christ to indicate his choice, the 
 lot was cast, and Matthias, on whom it fell, was num- 
 
24 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 bered with the apostles (Acts i. 15-26). This incident 
 reveals and implies much. Peter justified his pro- 
 posal by appealing to the language of the Old Testa- 
 ment. This implies that the Old Testament was not 
 only recognized as authoritative, just as it was by all 
 Jews, but was already interpreted in the light of the 
 new faith, for which it was believed to be a preparation. 
 At the same time the proposal originated in Peter's 
 own reflection. His conduct, therefore, shows that it 
 was recognized by all that the new community had 
 been organized by Christ under the direction of a body 
 of apostles. Peter's prominence indicates neither that 
 he occupied a position of primacy, nor that the authority 
 of the apostolic body as a whole did not yet exist. His 
 words imply quite the contrary. He was simply the 
 most active leader of the governing body. The power 
 of further organization had also, it is clear, been left 
 by Christ with his disciples. This alone explains why 
 the action was taken when the Lord himself had not 
 filled the vacant place. As yet, however, no need was 
 felt of more organization than the restoration of the 
 original number of apostles, whose special duty of wit- 
 nessing officially to the resurrection was, as all believed, 
 soon to be called into exercise. 
 
 25. This incident throws light on the primitive con- 
 ception of the apostolic office itself. Peter describes 
 the function of an apostle as that of witnessing to the 
 Lord's resurrection. Since any one who had seen the 
 risen Christ could do this, it is clear that a distinction 
 was intended between official and private testimony, 
 and that on the former, as has already been shown, the 
 faith of the world was expected to rest. But the quali- 
 fications for the office mentioned by Peter imply still 
 
ORIGINAL CONCEPTION OF THE APOSTOLATE 25 
 
 more. An apostle must have beeu a disciple of Jesus 
 throughout his ministry from the close of that of the 
 Baptist. Tliis evidently assumes that he was to teach 
 Christ's whole message, life, and work, which alone, 
 indeed, made the resurrection of unique importance. 
 With this accords Peter's subsequent speeches (Acts ii. 
 22 ; X. 39-42), and the actual position of the apostles as 
 teachers in the early church (Acts ii. 42 ; vi. 4 ; Matt, 
 xxviii. 20 ; I. Cor. ix. 1 ; II. Cor. x. 5) as well as their 
 testimony about Christ found in the gospels (see Luke 
 i. 2). Moreover, the language of the psalm, quoted by 
 Peter (Acts i. 20), " his overseership let another take," 
 implies that the office was regarded as charged with 
 the management of the church. It is thus evident 
 not only from Luke's narrative, but from the language 
 of others quoted by him, that the body of apostles were 
 recognized from the beginning as the authoritative 
 heads of the Christian community. /To the world they 
 were the official witnesses of the resurrection ; to the 
 church, its official instructors and overseers. ., This 
 agrees with their original appointment by Jesus (sect. 
 7), nor can the special promise of the Spirit (John xiv. 
 26 ; XV. 26, 27 ; xvi. 13) to qualify them for their office 
 have been forgotten. The actual selection of Matthias 
 was, moreover, accomplished, as in no other case, by the 
 use of the lot, since an apostle had to be chosen by the 
 Lord himself (comp. Acts i. 2 ; x. 41 ; I. Cor. ix. 1 ; 
 Gal. i. 12, etc.) ; and Luke evidently intends us to 
 understand that Matthias became a recognized member 
 of the apostolic body. 
 
 26. We conclude, therefore, that the apostolate, thus 
 defined, was an original institution. The subsequent 
 addition of Paul, since he was qualified in an excep- 
 
26 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 tional manner, did not alter the primitive conception 
 (I. Cor. ix. 1 ; xv. 8-10; Gal. i. 1, 11-15). Still less 
 does the occasional use of the term in a broader sense 
 (Acts xiv. 4, 14 ; II. Cor. viii. 23 ; Phil. ii. 25 ; and ac- 
 cording to some Acts ix. 27 ; Gal. i. 19 ; I. Cor. xv. 7; 
 Rom. xvi. 7), or the special prominence of some of the 
 twelve, or the use of the term in the " Teaching of 
 the Apostles" (about a. d. 100) to denote travelling 
 missionaries, conflict with the representation here 
 given. 
 
 27. The feast of Pentecost was the second of the 
 three chief Mosaic festivals. It fell on the fiftieth day 
 after the second day (Nisan 16th) of the passover. It 
 celebrated the completion of the grain harvest. In the 
 Old Testament it is called the feast of harvest (Ex. 
 xxiii. 16) or of weeks (Ex. xxxiv. 22) and the day of the 
 first fruits (Nam. xxviii. 26). Special offerings were 
 made, and two leavened loaves of wheat breads signifi- 
 cant of the finished harvest, together with two lambs 
 as peace-offerings, were waved before the Lord. It was 
 a popular and joyful festival. Multitudes of Jews, not 
 only from Palestine but from abroad, attended the 
 celebration. : If passover reminded them of their re- 
 demption from the land of bondage, Pentecost cele- 
 brated their possession of the land of promise. Among 
 the later Jews it also celebrated the giving of the law 
 at Sinai ; but that idea apparently did not attach to it 
 at the time of which we are writing. Gladness and 
 gratitude were the keynotes of the festival. 
 
 28. According to Acts, it was on the day of Pente- 
 cost that the promised Spirit descended on the dis- 
 ciples and the career of the Christian community 
 was inaugurated. The expression " when the day of 
 
THE DAY OF PENTECOST 27 
 
 Pentecost was being fnlfilled" (Acts ii. 1, R. V. 
 marg.) is to be nnderstood as distinctly affirming that 
 the event occurred during that day. We learn from 
 Peter's words (Acts ii. 15) that it was early in the 
 morning, soon after the temple ritual had been con- 
 cluded. The determination of the day of the week 
 depends on the date assigned to the crucifixion of 
 Jesus. If he died on Nisan 14th, the resurrection was 
 on the 16th, and Pentecost likewise fell on Sunday. 
 If, however, he died on Nisan 15th, Pentecost fell on 
 Saturday. It is sometimes said that the Jews would 
 not observe Pentecost on the third, fifth, or seventh 
 days of the week, but there is no evidence of this rule 
 at the time of which we are treating (comp. Ideler, 
 Handb. der Chronol. I. p. 637). We think it most 
 probable that this Pentecost was on Saturday, and that 
 the later custom of commemorating it on Sunday arose 
 from considerations of ecclesiastical convenience, espe- 
 cially from the wish to observe it fifty days after 
 Easter (comp. Wieseler, Chron. d. Apost. Zeitalters, 
 pp. 19-21). Nine days, therefore, after the Lord's as- 
 cension his promise was fulfilled. 
 
 29. On that day the disciples, having doubtless 
 returned from the temple services, were assembled in j..^^ 
 the upper room. Suddenly they heard a roaring - 
 sound, like that of a rushing wind, coming from above. 
 It filled the whole house where they were gathered. , v ^ 
 Immediately also a small tongue, having the semblance ! '^ 
 of fire, appeared resting upon the head of each disciple. 
 At the same time tlieir minds were filled with joyous 
 exultation and spiritual enlightenment ; and, realizing 
 that the promise had begun to be fulfilled, they broke 
 forth with one impulse into ecstatic praise of God. 
 
28 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY EN JERUSALEM 
 
 But the noise from heaven had been heard by others 
 in the crowded streets, and a number soon gathered 
 before the house. We may suppose, also, that the dis- 
 ciples, confident that the time to proclaim the Messiah 
 had arrived, willingly went out from the upper room 
 into the street, and finally, perhaps, into one of the 
 outer courts or porches of the temple. Their praises 
 continued and the audience increased. The latter was 
 composed of such varied elements as might be found 
 always in Jerusalem and especially at a festival (see 
 Josephus, Antiq. xvii. 10. 2; B. J. 11. 3. 1). That 
 many foreign-born Jews had taken up permanent resi- 
 dence in the holy city is attested by the synagogues 
 which they had established there (Acts vi. 9 ; tSehurer, 
 HJP. II. 1. p. 49). A graphic portrayal of the va- 
 riety of countries represented is given by Luke in 
 the summary of expressions of astonishment which he 
 puts into the lips of the assembled crowd (Acts ii. 
 7-11). This astonishment was caused by the fact 
 yT that the Galileans uttered their praises of God in the 
 languages of the various countries from which the 
 listeners came. Such is clearly Luke's statement 
 (Acts ii. 8, 11). We are doubtless to understand 
 tbat some spoke in one language and others in others, 
 so that each foreigner found himself in the presence 
 of one or more using his native tongue. This miracle 
 served to increase the number and wonder of the 
 audience. Some, indeed, mocked at the confusion of 
 sounds and said, " These men are full of new wine." 
 But the majority took the matter more seriously. 
 The praises of the disciples do not appear to have 
 ceased until Peter, standing forth with the other 
 apostles, addressed the assemblage. 
 
PETER'S ADDRESS AT PENTECOST 29 
 
 oO. The apostle's address consisted first of an ^ 
 ioxi)lanation of the phenomenon. It was, he said, the 
 fulfihnent of Joel's prediction of the outpouring of 
 the Spirit upon Israel before the Messianic judgment 
 sliould take place. It denoted the renewal of Israel, 
 the arrival of the day of salvation, and the impending 
 retribution which Messiah would visit on unbelievers 
 (Acts ii. 15-21). Thereupon Peter proclaimed Jesus 
 to be Messiah. He rehearsed God's attestation of him 
 l)y miracles, and described his crucifixion as a crime 
 which, nevertheless, God had intended to come to pass. 
 Tlien he declared his resurrection (22-24). He next 
 entered on an argument to prove that a dying and 
 risen Messiah had been foretold in Scripture. David 
 had foreseen such (Ps. xvi. 8-11), and his words of 
 hope after death had referred to his promised Seed 
 (25-31). Hence the apostle concluded by a renewed 
 declaration of the resurrection of Jesus and of his 
 exaltation to the right hand of God. He, being now 
 enthroned, as had also been predicted of him (Ps. ex.), 
 had given the promised Spirit to his disciples. All 
 Israel should therefore know that the one whom they 
 had crucified was their Messiah and Lord (32-36). 
 This noble address, which was followed by other 
 exhortations, made a profound impression. The con- 
 ditions of salvation which the apostle announced — 
 repentance for sin and baptism in the name of Jesus 
 as the Christ — were simple and natural, and involved 
 no rupture with the existing state or church. So faith 
 was awakened in many minds, and the close of the day 
 of Pentecost saw the little band of one hundred and 
 twenty expanded into a company of about three 
 thousand (Acts ii. 41). 
 
30 KISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 V 31. This account of the formal inauguration of 
 Christianity in Jerusalem has, of course, been the sub- 
 ject of criticism. It is evident, however, that some 
 great spiritual quickening must have occurred, if we 
 are to account for the subsequent activity of the dis- 
 ciples and for the large number of Jews who, by all 
 reports, speedily accepted the new faith (see e. g. Acts 
 V. 28 ; viii. 1-3 ; Gal. i. 22, etc.). Furthermore, while 
 the speeches of Peter do not describe the external 
 events of Pentecost, they do refer to the outpouring 
 of the Spirit as a fact which was manifest to the eyes 
 and ears of spectators (Acts ii. 17, 33 ; iii. 19 ; x. 46, 
 47). That the presence of the Spirit was usually 
 evidenced in the apostolic churches not only by the 
 quickening of faith and by boldness and devotion in 
 service, but also by miraculous powers and by inspired 
 utterances of various kinds, is amply attested by the 
 epistles of Paul (e. g. I. Cor. xii., xiv. ; Gal. iii. 5), and 
 this makes it probable that the beginnings of Christi- 
 anity in Jerusalem were attended by similar phenom- 
 ena ; while the established observance of Pentecost in 
 the second century (comp. also Acts xx. 16) as a 
 Christian festival must have been based on some mo- 
 mentous fact which occurred on that day. 
 
 32. Nor need the large number of converts cause 
 surprise, if the whole situation be realized. The 
 death of Jesus was recent, and the consciousness that 
 a national crime had been committed in his crucifix- 
 ion was easily aroused (Acts ii. 23 ; iii. 13 ; iv. 9 ; v. 
 30). The remembrance of his teaching and miracles 
 was still fresh, and to it appeal was constantly made by 
 the apostles (Acts ii. 22; iii. 14; x. 38). The nation 
 had lono- been in a fever of excitement and was re- 
 
CRITICISMS OF LUKE'S NARKxiTIVE 31 
 
 sponsive, especially at tlie feasts, to every appeal made 
 on patriotic or religious grounds (comp. Acts v. 34-39). 
 The confident testimony of the disciples to the resur- 
 rection of Jesus would be the more readily believed 
 because of the remembrance of his former miracles. 
 Their exultant praises, with the strange phenomena 
 which attended them, deepened the impression. Their 
 appeal to prophecy made their faith seem genuinely 
 Hebrew. Possibly also the new converts numbered 
 not a few from both Galilee and Judea who had previ- 
 ously been followers or admirers of Jesus. If we add 
 the quickening of conscience under the power of the 
 Spirit, it is not difficult to comprehend the motives 
 which led so many to yield obedience to the apostle's 
 summons. 
 
 33. Finally, the miraculous incidents of this event 
 will not appear incredible to one who accepts the mira- 
 cles and resurrection of Jesus. The account of " the 
 tongues " at Pentecost has indeed been thought by 
 some, who are not otherwise opposed to the miraculous, 
 to betray legendary embellishment. There should be 
 no doubt that Luke affirms that the utterances were 
 in foreign languages. The view that the miracle lay 
 in the minds of the hearers (see Wendt, Kommentar) 
 is opposed by his express statements (Acts ii. 4, 8, 11). 
 But of such speaking in foreign languages there is no 
 description elsewhere in the New Testament. Paul, 
 on the other hand, speaks of the " gift of tongues " as 
 a frequent possession of believers when under the 
 power of the Spirit. He gives (I. Cor. x. 12; xiv.) 
 directions for its regulation in public assemblies, and 
 it would appear from his language that the gift mani- 
 fested itself iu unintelligible ejaculations of praise or 
 
32 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 prayer. He distinguishes it from prophecy, which 
 was the inspired utterance of truth in the language 
 of the hearers. The gift of " tongues " needed the 
 correlative gift of " interpretation," if it was to be 
 profitable to any but the speaker himself. It does not 
 seem possible, however, to believe that the unintelli- 
 gibility of the "tongue" was due to its utterances 
 being in a foreign language. Paul uses languages as 
 an illustration of the gift (I. Cor. xiv. 10, 11), which 
 must, therefore, have been different from the thing used 
 to illustrate it ; and he regards it by no means as a 
 possible instrument of missionary work, but as a spirit- 
 ual exercise profitable only to the speaker (I. Cor. xiv. 
 14, 28). It is possible that in his quotation (I. Cor. 
 xiv. 21) from Isaiah, " By men of strange tongues and 
 by the lips of strangers will I speak unto this people," 
 he betrays a reminiscence of Pentecost; but his de- 
 scription of the " tongues " in Corinth is hardly con- 
 sistent with the idea that they were utterances in 
 foreign languages. 
 
 34. Now the Pentecostal " tongues" present in many 
 respects similar characteristics to those described by 
 Paul. Their utterances were not preaching but praise. 
 They were the expression of a highly exalted state of 
 mind. Neither is it likely that two gifts so nearly 
 alike should have existed and yet have been funda- 
 mentally different. Both Peter at Pentecost and Paul 
 to the Corinthians explain the utterances as warnings 
 to unbelievers. Moreover, Luke liimself elsewhere re- 
 fers to " speaking with tongues " in a way which shows 
 that he was acquainted with the gift which Paul 
 describes ; yet in one place he seems clearly to iden- 
 tify it with the tongues of Pentecost (Acts x. 46 ; xix. 
 
THE TENTECOSTAL TONGUES 33 
 
 6). The very term " tongue " to describe the gift 
 would seem also to point to some such event as tliat 
 of Fentecost. It is altogether probable, therefore, that 
 the Pentecostal tongues were the introduction of this 
 '' gift." But, if so, then the utterances at Pentecost 
 diifered in form from the gift as we find it at Corinth. 
 This, liowcver, should by no means be regarded as im- 
 probable or as impeaching Luice's accuracy. It is 
 quite possible that on other occasions the gift took 
 a different form from that in Corinth, and there were 
 certainly special reasons why it should at Pentecost 
 take the form which Luke reports. It had been the 
 express command of Jesus that his disciples should 
 carry his message to all nations, and the expectation 
 of doing this lay already in their minds. What more 
 natural than that the Spirit, in inaugurating the 
 church, should indicate the universality of the Mes- 
 sianic reign, wliich was to find ultimate expression in 
 the praises to God of all mankind ? Moreover, Peter 
 himself (Acts ii. 18) regarded the utterances as a form 
 of prophecy, so that they must on that occasion have 
 been intelligible ; and this inference is rendered the 
 more cogent by the fact that the words, " they shall 
 prophesy," are not found in Joel, but are an addition 
 by the apostle himself. 
 
 35. The statements, therefore, of so careful an his- 
 torian as Luke should not be doubted. The praises of 
 the disciples not only uttered their own lofty joy at 
 the coming of the promise, but expressed in the very 
 forms of their utterances the universal reign of the 
 true Messiah. The symbolism of the sound-like wind 
 from heaven was manifestly appropriate to denote the 
 coming of the Spirit. It indicated his source, his 
 
 3 
 
^ i 
 
 34 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 power, his mysterious, invisible operation. The fire- 
 like appearance of the tongues emblemized the puri- 
 fying character of his inlluence (conip. Matt. iii. 11). 
 The tongues themselves, distributed on the heads of 
 the disciples, indicated the universal possession of the 
 Hpirit by all believers, and that boldness of access to 
 God was now their privilege. So, as we have seen, the 
 form of the inspired utterances expressed the truth that 
 not a Jewish but a universal kingdom of God had been 
 established. All this had been done by the power of 
 the risen and exalted Christ. Christianity, therefore, 
 was not a natural evolution out of the teachings and 
 career of Jesus. The human agents acted in full ac- 
 cordance with their natural dispositions and under the 
 immediate influence of the historical situation in which 
 they were placed. But in its deepest essence, Chris- 
 tianity was inaugurated by the supernatural operation 
 of the Spirit of Christ. This is the testimony of the 
 documents; and of such an operation the miraculous 
 incidents of Pentecost were appropriate emblems. 
 
IV 
 
 INTERNAL PROGRESS OF THE CHFRCH IN JERUSALEM 
 AFTER PENTECOST 
 
 36. The enlarged and increasing (Acts ii. 47) body 
 of believers continued to form a closely united com- 
 pany. They were not only bound together by their 
 common faith in Jesus, but they constituted an ac- 
 tual society under the direction and instruction of 
 the apostles (Acts ii. 42). They met daily for " the 
 prayers " (ibid.') which as Jews they had been accus- 
 tomed to offer but which had now obtained new 
 import and value. They also liad together, probably 
 in the evening (Acts xx. 7), daily meals at their homes 
 (Acts ii. 42, 46), — the "love feasts" of a later time 
 (Jude 12), — which were concluded by the observance 
 of the memorial rite which. Jesus had instituted on the 
 night of his betrayal (I. Cor. xi. 18-29). In their as- 
 semblies they constantly received instruction from the 
 apostles (Acts ii. 42 ; vi. 2), who were recognized as 
 the Spirit-taught guides of the rest. The instruction 
 consisted, doubtless, of the recital of Jesus' life and 
 teaching and the exposition of the Old Testament. 
 New members were received, after repentance and the 
 confession of faith in Jesus, by the rite of ba])tism. 
 This was in accordance with the express command of 
 Christ (Matt, xxviii. 19). The administration of it was 
 
36 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 not always performed by the apostles (Acts viii. 16, 38). 
 Probably any disciple felt himself at liberty thus to 
 welcome a new believer. Nor is it clear what formula, 
 or whether any unvarying one, was used. In Acts and 
 the epistles, baptism is said to have been in or on the 
 name of Christ, or as into Christ (Acts ii. 38 ; viii. 16 ; 
 X. 48 ; xix. 6 ; Rom. vi. 3 ; Gal. iii. 27). Possibly, how- 
 ever, these phrases do not describe a formula, but the 
 truth which the baptized professed and the relationship 
 into which he entered. On the other hand, it is possi- 
 ble that the words of Christ (Matt, xxviii. 19) were not 
 at first regarded as a liturgical formula. They are 
 primarily a statement of the threefold faith which 
 summarizes the teaching of Jesus (sect. 16). The 
 first record of their use in baptism is in the " Teaching 
 of the Apostles" (ab. a. d. 100). But, whatever the 
 formula employed, the recipients of baptism penitently 
 accepted Jesus as their Messiah, and expected to obtain 
 from the Father and his Son remission of sins and the 
 gift of the Holy Spirit. 
 
 37. Meanwhile the Spirit continued to manifest 
 his power among them. The apostles wrought many 
 miracles, chiefly of healing, in the name of Jesus 
 (Acts ii. 43 ; iii. 6, 7 ; v. 12-16), which were re- 
 garded as God's attestation of their teaching and 
 office (iv. 29, 30) ; and "with great power they gave 
 witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus " (iv. 
 33). Others of the disciples also, as Joseph Barnabas 
 (iv. 36) and Stephen (vi. 8, 9), were conspicuous in 
 word or miracle or both. No doubt, too, though Luke 
 does not mention it, the company as a whole en- 
 joyed such " spiritual gifts " as we read of later in 
 the church of Corinth (comp. Heb. ii. 4). But still 
 
LIFE OF THE PRIMITIVE DISCIPLES 37 
 
 more impressive was the spectacle of their intense 
 religious joy. This also was the Spirit's work. The 
 sense of salvation already attained broke the hard 
 shell of formal Judaism and revived the genuine life 
 of Israel, as psalmists and prophets had described it. 
 The faith in a living and reigning Messiah ended the 
 doubt and feebleness which had long fallen on the 
 nation's hope. Joy and love were the most marked 
 features of the disciples' life (Acts ii. 46), and only 
 increased with the rise of peril from the (fivil author- 
 ities (Acts iv. 23-37). What the future might be, 
 and how long Jesus would remain in heaven, they 
 did not know. But they knew that their present 
 task was to convince the nation of his Messiahship. 
 They believed that the great crisis, for weal or woe, 
 had come to Israel ; that salvation for nation and 
 individual lay in repentance and faith toward Jesus; 
 and for some time they evidently hoped that the nation 
 would be converted to their belief. 
 
 38. One feature of the movement calls for special 
 notice. The disciples considered all their worldly 
 property to be at the service of the community and 
 freely parted with it to supply the needs of the breth- 
 ren. At first this seems to have been done only when 
 special cases of need arose (Acts ii. 45). But there 
 must have been many such occasions. The majority 
 were probably from the poorer classes. Others, like 
 the Galileans, had left their homes and occupations. 
 The service of the cause, no doubt, often entailed 
 pecuniary loss. At any rate the occasions for such 
 beneficence seem for a while to have increased, so 
 that the sale of property became general. The pro- 
 ceeds were given to the apostles and distribution made 
 
38 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 to those in need (Acts iv. 34, 85). We read also of 
 a " daily ministration " of supplies to the widows of 
 the community. These were probably not the only 
 ones thus cared for. They are, mentioned because in 
 their case a difficulty arose (vi. 1). At the same time 
 there is no indication in the descriptions given of this 
 liberality that it was imposed as a law, or that tlie 
 possession of private property was considered improper. 
 On the contrary, Ananias was reminded that his 
 property was wholly in his own power. Neither can 
 the liberality be traced to any other motive than love. 
 It is possible that belief in the near approach of the 
 second advent may have operated with some. It is 
 possible that others may have been moved by the 
 remembrance of certain teachings of Jesus (e. g. Matt, 
 xix. 21 ; Luke xi. 38), or by the common purse which 
 the Master and his disciples had. But the dominant 
 motive was clearly love, born of the joy of their great 
 salvation. It is quite gratuitous also to see in this 
 practical communism a sign of Essenic influence, since 
 the most characteristic features of the Essene mode 
 of life do not appear among the disciples (comp. 
 Schurer, HJP. II. 2. p. 188), and since the causes 
 lying within the Christian life itself are abundantly 
 sufficient to account for the result. Indeed we can- 
 not suppose that the sale of property was absolutely 
 universal, nor that it continued to the extent to which 
 it was at first practised ; for we afterwards read that 
 Mary, the mother of Mark, owned a house in Jerusalem 
 (Acts xii. 12), and distinctions between rich and poor 
 are known to liave continued among Jewish Christians 
 generally (Jas. ii. 2, 8 ; Gal. ii. 10). We may believe 
 rather that the enthusiasm was checked, or at least 
 
NO RUPTURE WITH JUDAISM 39 
 
 regulated, when experience proved the injurious con- 
 sequences to which its abuse might lead. Nevertheless 
 this feature of early Jerusalem Christianity power- 
 fully exhibited the entire devotion and the unbounded 
 brotherly love which the Spirit of Jesus produced in 
 the disciples. 
 
 39. /In spite, however, of the strong bonds by which 
 they we're united, there was as yet no rupture Avith the 
 national worship. On the contrary, the temple services, 
 which they frequented (Luke xxiv. 53 ; Acts ii. 46 ; 
 iii. 1), must have been filled with fresh meaning to the 
 disciples, and the outer courts and porches of the temple 
 were the places where the apostles commonly preached ") 
 (Acts iii. 11 ; v. 12, 20). The new movement, in fact, 
 seemed a genuine revival of Hebrew faith, and none as 
 yet imagined, however much it involved a condemnation 
 of the rulers for the crucifixion of Jesus, that it involved 
 
 a breach with Judaism itself. It appeared rather a 
 spiritual interpretation of Judaism. This gave it the 
 more favor with the people. The apostles stood forth 
 as the leaders of a movement which honored above all 
 the God of Israel (Acts v. 12-14). Hence even the 
 Pharisees do not seem to have actively opposed them ; 
 and in course of time many priests, the number of which 
 in Jerusalem was very large, accepted the new faith 
 (Acts vi. 7). Thus, in spite of the opposition of the 
 Sadducees, to be mentioned presently, the outlook was 
 favorable, and the impression was strengthened among 
 the disciples that Israel's golden age had at last dawned. 
 
 40. Yet all was not ideal even within the Christian 
 community itself. Two incidents broke the harmony. 
 One was the attempt of Ananias and Sapphira to pose 
 before the brethren as having- devoted their entire 
 
40 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 property to the cause, when in reality they gave only a 
 portion (Acts v. 1-11). It was an offence against the 
 very spirit by which the community was organized ; for 
 it exhibited falsehood, worldhness, and essential unbe- 
 lief. Hence their sin, detected by Peter, was visited 
 by God with awful punishment. This was intended to 
 be a solemn warning to others of the sincerity which 
 the Lord demanded. It enhanced also the authority 
 of the apostles. The incident further shows that the 
 spiritual life of the disciples, even in the freshness of 
 its first days, was not exempt from commonplace 
 temptation and was liable to fall before it. Neither 
 was it a life of fanatical enthusiasm. It was as sensible 
 of ethical duty as it was exuberant with spiritual hope. 
 
 41. Later on, complaints arose on the part of the 
 Greek-speaking Jews that the widows belonging to their 
 part of the community were being neglected in the 
 daily ministration of supplies (Acts vi. 1). Thus, as in 
 the case of Ananias, the attempt to put in operation a 
 practically common life proved liable to produce spir- 
 itual dangers. (^The complaint of the Hellenists, more- 
 over, touched a phase of the situation which was likely 
 to become serious, and led to the first step in the fur- 
 ther organization of the new community. 
 
 42. Thus far the apostles had been the only officials 
 of the infant church. They had, doubtless, with the 
 increase of converts and duties, used subordinates in 
 the administration of affairs, and " the young men " 
 who carried away the bodies of Ananias and Sapphira 
 (Acts V. 6, 10) may indicate the class oftenest employed. 
 The terms used of them, however, show that they did 
 not constitute an office ; and as the disciples still re- 
 tained their connection with the synagogues (vi. 9), no 
 
APPOINTMENT OF "THE SEVEN" 41 
 
 need of special organization of their own was felt. In 
 fact it would have implied a breach with Judaism which 
 as jet was foreign to their thoughts. The complaint of 
 the Hellenists, however, suggested to the apostles the 
 necessity of some arrangement to meet the difficulty ; 
 and this was accomplished in a way which satisfied all 
 parties and liarmonized with both the supremacy of the 
 apostles and the rights of the community. (^ Seven men 
 were chosen by the brethren and were set apart to the 
 work by the imposition of the hands of tlie apostles.; 
 Thus the apostles again appear as the authoritative 
 founders of the church, whose special function, however, 
 Avas teaching. The advance in organization, it should be 
 noted, was brought about by the pressure of practical 
 needs and without reference to any previous program. 
 The whole congregation were recognized as having the 
 right to choose their officials. But the step was a most 
 important one, for it was the first in the solidification 
 of the disciples into a society separate from the syna- 
 gogue. 
 
 43. All the seven men chosen for the new office 
 had, singularly enough, Greek names. It would be too 
 much to infer that all were Hellenists. But some of 
 them were, and one was even a proselyte. The choice 
 of them manifests, therefore, the spirit of love and 
 unity which prevailed. JThey had for their work specifi- 
 cally the distribution of the common funds. No title 
 is given to their office by Luke, nor can it be shown 
 that it was modelled after any in the synagogue.-'* 
 Since, however, we afterwards find in the Pauline 
 churches the office of deacon (Phil. i. 1 ; I. Tim. iii. 8), 
 the function of which was the care of the poor, and 
 since the Pauline churches were modelled naturally 
 
42 KISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 after the Jewish-Christian, it is not improbable that 
 among the latter the office of "the seven" developed 
 into one which had the care of the poor generally, and 
 obtained by pre-eminence the title of deacon or minister. 
 This supposition may seem to be opposed by the silence 
 of Acts on the subject of " deacons " and by the fact 
 that the gifts from Antioch for the poor in Judea are 
 said to have been sent to the elders (Acts xi. 30) ; but 
 it may be said in reply that the author of Acts has little 
 interest in organization for its own sake, and that the 
 gifts from Antioch would naturally be sent to the elders, 
 even though there were deacons to distribute them. 
 Neither can the silence of the Epistle of James on the 
 subject of deacons be pressed as an argument either way. 
 At the same time the appointment of " the seven " was 
 an arrangement to meet a specific need arising from a 
 particular situation. There is nothing to show that 
 the apostles were at the time conscious that they were 
 establishing a permanent office. It remained for the 
 progress of events to perpetuate or modify the new ar- 
 rangement. None the less does the event exhibit the 
 principle of self-organization, under the direction of the 
 apostles, inherent in the community, and containing 
 the power by which the disciples were destined event- 
 ually to separate themselves from the Jewish church. 
 
 44. Meanwhile the apostles had been constantly 
 occupied in giving instruction to the disciples (Acts 
 ii. 42; vi. 2, 4) and in preaching to the populace (iii.. 
 12-26 ; iv. 2, 20 ; v. 28, 42). We can hardly be wrong 
 in supposing that the former consisted mainly in the 
 recital of the deeds and teaching of Jesus as well as in 
 pointing out the fulfilment of prophecy in him. Thus 
 the beginninffs were made of that stream of evangelic 
 
EARLY APOSTOLIC TEACPIING 43 
 
 narrative which ultimately was embodied in our synop- 
 tic gospels. The story would naturally be repeated 
 again and again. Perhaps portions of it were already 
 reduced to writing. We may infer from the contents 
 of the synoptics that the apostles recited especially the 
 events of the Lord's ministry in Galilee, in which he 
 had trained them in his doctrines, and the thrilling 
 story of the last week of his life. This, however, was 
 not done in the interest of biography, but to guide the 
 converts into those religious ideas in which the apostles 
 had themselves been instructed by the Master, and to 
 fix their faith and love on his person and on his work 
 in their behalf. 
 
 45. To obtain an idea of the forms in which the 
 truth as yet lay in the apostles' minds, we are dependent 
 on the speeches of Peter recorded in the Acts. These 
 indeed must be used for this purpose with caution. It 
 would be unfair to suppose that they express all that 
 the apostles believed or taught. Being public addresses 
 to unbelievers, they only contain such truths as might 
 induce belief. Yet the very simplicity of their state- 
 ments assures us of their genuineness, and enables us 
 partly to understand the progress of theological thought. 
 They certainly show that from the beginning Chris- 
 tianity embodied thought as well as zeal. It gave a 
 rational account of itself. It based itself on the known 
 facts of Jesus' life and teaching, and began to interpret 
 these by the aid of the Old Testament and the spiritual 
 illumination which since Pentecost had been granted 
 to the apostles and in some measure to all. It 
 assumed, of course, Hebrew monotheism and the au- 
 thority of the Old Testament. The new faith arose 
 out of the soil of the Hebrew religion. All its presup- 
 
44 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 positions were those of Moses and the prophets. To 
 them the apostles constantly appealed and to no others. 
 But the facts of Jesus' life and teaching threw a new 
 light on the older revelation, even as the latter did on 
 the former ; and out of the adjustment of the two, 
 under the Spirit's guidance, Christian theology began. 
 
 46. Yet the statement of the new faith advanced 
 slowly from the nature of the situation. The funda- 
 mental truth was that Jesus was the Messiah. His 
 crucifixion is not further explained by Peter than that 
 it had been in accordance with God's purpose (ii. 23) 
 and had been predicted by the prophets (iii. 18). His 
 resurrection and exaltation to the right hand of God 
 proved that by his work on earth he had secured the 
 right to grant to all believers remission of sins (ii. 38 ; 
 iii. 19) and the gift of the Spirit, which was the seal of 
 their acceptance and the promised sign of the Messianic 
 salvation (ii. 16-18, 33 ; iii. 19 ; v. 32). Jesus him- 
 self was called the " Servant " of God (iii. 13 ; iv. 27 ; 
 comp. Is. Iii. 13, etc.), the Holy One and the Just 
 (iii. 14). By his exaltation he had become Lord of 
 all (iii. 36), and the giver, as he was the possessor, of 
 spiritual life (iii. 15 ; v. 31). In short, he was the 
 Saviour (iv, 12 ; v. 31). He would remain in heaven, 
 clothed with authority, until the spiritual restoration 
 of Israel be accomplished (iii. 21), when he will return 
 in glory (iii. 20) and usher in the judgment (ii. 19, 
 20 ; iii. 23 ; x. 42). Meanwhile the call to salvation 
 was addressed first to Israel (iii. 25, 26), though who- 
 soever (ii. 21), even of those afar off (ii. 39), should 
 call upon his name would be saved. 
 
 47. The apostle's teaching, meagre as this rcjjort of 
 it is, is notable both for its omissions and its contents. 
 
THE FAITH IN JESUS 45 
 
 It evinces no effort to define the nature of Christ nor 
 to adjust his dignity to that of Jehovah; nor is there 
 any reference to his pre-existence. No explanation of 
 his death is given beyond the declaration that God had 
 appointed and predicted it. The work of the Spirit 
 likewise is not presented in its regenerating aspect, but 
 as it appears in the subsequent experience of the be- 
 liever. Moreover, faith in Jesus and enjoyment of life 
 from him lay side by side with the observance of the 
 Mosaic ritual, without the latter, so far as appears, 
 being used to interpret the work of the Christ. Yet, 
 as has been said, much more must have been believed 
 than these discourses disclose ; for, on the other 
 hand, Jesus is represented as possessing in his exalta- 
 tion divine prerogatives. He can grant remission of 
 sin and the gift of the Spirit. To him prayer was 
 made (i. 24), and he will be the Judge of all. His 
 work on earth was one of obedience (iii. 14 ; iv. 27) 
 and revelation (iii. 23), and his exaltation was the 
 reward which he merited (ii. 33 ; iii.' 13). The Chris- 
 tian life is represented as a purely religious one, and 
 Christ is the object on which saving faith rests in the 
 same way as upon God (comp. ii. 21 and iv. 12). 
 Belief in the pre-existence of Jesus is probably to be 
 assumed both because Jesus had so habitually repre- 
 sented himself as having come from heaven, that the 
 disciples, especially with their now exalted view of 
 him, could hardly have forgotten his words, and be- 
 cause belief in Messiah's pre-existence was by no 
 means unfamiliar to the Jews (see The Book of Enochs 
 xlvi. 1, 2; xlviii. 3, 6; Ixii. 6, 7, etc. Fourth Esdras^ 
 xii. 32. So John the Baptist, John i. 30). 
 
 48. In Peter's speeches we may thus see Christian 
 
46 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 thought beginning to express itself along those lines 
 which the situation made necessary. The issues and 
 the motives were very practical. The popular ideas 
 of Messiah were so various and some of them so ex- 
 alted that no need was felt of adjusting in popular dis- 
 course the glory of Jesus with belief in monotheism. 
 The fulfilment of prophecy was the most natural and 
 forcible argument to employ, and seemed to many to 
 provide of itself a sufficient explanation of what had 
 happened to him. The new movement was not pri- 
 marily theological. Yet neither was it without definite 
 beliefs. These, however, attained expression in ac- 
 cordance with the progress of the history. The truths 
 proclaimed by Peter were, as far as they went, an 
 interpretation of Jesus' life and personality. They 
 were sufficient for the time, and evidence the power of 
 apostolic Christianity to give a rational statement of 
 its faith. 
 
EXTERNAL HISTOKY OF THE CHUECH AFTER 
 PENTECOST 
 
 49. The external growth of the new community was 
 certainly rapid. The believers, including doubtless 
 those converted at Pentecost, soon numbered about 
 five thousand (Acts iv. 4). It is safe to say, from 
 various expressions used in Acts (v. 14 ; vi. 7), that in 
 the three or four years followhig Pentecost the number 
 converted on that day was trebled. Perhaps even a 
 larger estimate may be allowed. On the other hand, 
 in a large city like Jerusalem the disciples formed a 
 small fraction of the population. Their activity, how- 
 ever, made their progress very impressive. Nor need 
 we suppose that believers were confined to Jerusalem. 
 The movement naturally spread into Judea and Galilee, 
 and it is probable that it penetrated farther. A little 
 latter we hear of disciples in Damascus (Acts ix. 2, 
 10) and other foreign cities (xxvi. 11), and this diffu- 
 sion of the faith must have begun early. It would 
 appear that at least the Jews in Syria were affected, 
 and it is not impossible that the new gospel was car- 
 ried still more widely throughout "the dispersion" by 
 visitors to the feasts and by other Jewish travellers. 
 
 50. But, as already explained, the loyalty of the 
 disciples to the national worship prevented inter- 
 ference by the Jewish authorities, while, of course, 
 there was nothing in their practices to call for inter- 
 
48 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 ference by the Romans. It was too common for sects 
 and parties to rise among the excited population of 
 Palestine for this peaceful one to attract the attention 
 of the government (comp. Acts v. 36, 37 ; Jos. Antiq. 
 xvii. 10). The first opposition emanated from the 
 Sadducees. To that party most of the nobility be- 
 longed, and especially the branches of the high-priestly 
 family (Acts iv. 6 ; Schilrer, HJP. II. 2. p. 29, etc.). 
 The new sect offended them for several reasons. 
 The chief priests had been active in securing the 
 crucifixion of Jesus. They also opposed belief in a 
 future life, and especially ridiculed belief in a resur- 
 rection (Mark xii. 18-27, etc.). Still further, they were 
 engrossed in the maintenance of their political power, 
 so that such religious enthusiasm as that of the dis- 
 ciples was specially obnoxious to them. Yet even 
 the opposition of the Sadducees arose quite incident- 
 ally. The healing of the lame man by Peter at the 
 gate of the temple called " Beautiful " (Acts iii. 1, 2 ; 
 Jos, Antiq. xv. 11. 5 ; B. J. v. 5. 3) led to a great 
 concourse of people in Solomon's porch, — a portico 
 on the east side of the temple area (Jos. Antiq. xx. 
 9. 7), — where Peter addressed them. The temple 
 guard, at the command of the Sadducees, arrested 
 Peter and John, probably on the charge of fomenting 
 tumult. The next day the Sanhedrim was convoked. 
 Peter made a brave address, proclaiming to them Jesus 
 as the Christ and only Saviour, and reproaching them 
 for his crucifixion (Acts iv. 8-12). The presence of the 
 man who had been healed, the boldness of the apostles, 
 whom the rulers recognized as former companions of 
 Jesus, and the well-known sympathy of the people, 
 prevented any further consequence than a command 
 
ARREST OF THE APOSTLES 49 
 
 to discontinue their teaching. But while the arrest 
 was unpremeditated and the issue favorable, the 
 event boded ill for the future. The disciples realized 
 this (Acts iv. 23-30), and prepared for the conflict 
 which their Lord had faced and which evidently lay 
 before them. 
 
 51. So, in time, more active measures were taken 
 by the high-priestly party to put down the growing 
 sect. By their orders all the apostles were arrested 
 and imprisoned (Acts v. 17, 18). But when, on the 
 next day, the Sanhedrim assembled, the prisoners were 
 not to be found. During the night an angel had 
 liberated them, and by his instructions they had boldly 
 resumed in the morning their preaching in the temple. 
 This was plainly inviting conflict. When news of it 
 was taken to the council, officers were sent to bring 
 the apostles without violence ; for the rulers, doubtless 
 attributing the escape of the prisoners to treachery, 
 were awed by the popularity and fearlessness of the 
 Galileans. Their plans were thus unsettled. They 
 upbraided tlie apostles for disobedience and sedition 
 (v. 28). (When the latter again proclaimed their faith, 
 the rage of the rulers was -unbounded, and they con- 
 sulted how they might put the men to death.) 
 
 52. -.A fatal issue was, however, prevented by the 
 speech of Gamaliel. He was the leading Pharisee and 
 Raltbi of his day, and is said by some to have been the 
 grandson of the still more famous Hillel (but com p. 
 ScUlrer, HJP. II. 2. p. 363). He exerted iniiuence 
 also, not only because of his personal reputation, 
 but because he represented the numerous and pop- 
 ular Pharisaic party. As such, he was disposed to 
 look with indulgence on men who were, strict ob- 
 
 4 
 
50 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 servers of the law, preached the resurrection of the 
 dead, and represented a religious, rather than a politi- 
 cal, movement. He had, of course, no real sympathy 
 with the apostles' views, and probably did not even 
 understand them. But he was opposed to religious 
 persecution. He seems to have felt also that they were 
 living in unusual times, and that an outburst of relig- 
 ious zeal, with whatever errors it might be combined, 
 ought not to be summarily condemned. God might be 
 back of it. He pointed out two former movements, 
 those of Theudas ^ and Judas the Galilean, which had 
 been suppressed by Roman arms. So would this one 
 be, if it became dangerous. If, on the other hand, it 
 was purely religious, why should the Sanhedrim perse- 
 cute it ? It should be allowed to run its course, and 
 reveal in due time its worth or weakness. 
 
 53. The speech of Gamaliel was a shrewd and timely 
 argument. It was the speech of a politician and a phi- 
 losopher. It held the Sadducees in check ; it pleased 
 the people ; it showed some breadth of view ; while it 
 committed the speaker to nothing, and indicates no 
 real interest on his part in the merits of the contro- 
 versy. It is not strange that it determined the action 
 of the Sanhedrim. To placate the Sadducees, the 
 apostles were beaten and commanded not to teach. 
 
 1 It is unDecessary to identify the Theudas mentioned by Gamaliel, 
 in Luke's report of his speech, with the one mentioned by Josephus 
 (Antiq. xx. 5. 1), who appeared some years later. The descriptions of 
 the number of adherents of the two men, as given by Gamaliel and 
 Josephus, do not agree ; it is unlikely that the writer of Luke iii. 1, 2, 
 who also relates with accuracy the complicated political arrangements 
 of the cities which Paul visited, would have made such a bluuder as this 
 identification supposes ; and the accouut of .Josephus (Antiq. xviii. 10) 
 shows that there were mauy seditious pri(n' to tliat of Judas the 
 Galilean. 
 
ARREST OF STEPHEN 51 
 
 But they were set at liberty, and the spread of the 
 movement proceeded with unabated vigor. 
 
 54. The whole situation, however, was suddenly 
 changed by an event which roused the auger of the 
 Pharisees even more than of the Sadducees, and thus 
 brought upon the disciples the hostility of the whole 
 Sanhedrim. Stephen, one of " the seven," rivalled the 
 apostles in both deed and word (Acts vi. 8). Himself 
 evidently a Hellenist, he labored among the Greek- 
 speaking Jews in Jerusalem. These were often, just 
 because they had returned to the sacred city, especially 
 zealous for the honor of the Mosaic law ; and they, for 
 the first time, brought against Stephen the charge of 
 disloyalty to Judaism. Those most active against him 
 belonged to the synagogue of " the Libertines [Frccd- 
 men] and the Cyrenians and the Alexandrians," with 
 whom others from Cilicia and Asia joined (Acts vi. 9). 
 They produced witnesses who accused him of blas- 
 phemy against Moses and God. This was a wholly 
 new charge against a disciple. It moved the Phari- 
 sees and affected the disposition of the people. Stephen 
 was arraigned before the council, and his defence was 
 so unconciliatory that he was immediately stoned to 
 death. 
 
 55. We are not told what Stephen had said in the 
 synagogue, but his defence before the council (Acts vii.) 
 furnishes some explanation of the charge made against 
 him. It consisted of a recital of Hebrew history, from 
 the call of Abraham to Solomon's dedication of the 
 temple. It emphasized God's special guidance of Abra- 
 ham and his descendants with a view to the fulfilment 
 of the original promise ; then, the repeated resistance 
 of the Hebrews to their divinely sent leaders, and 
 
52 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 especially to Moses ; finally, the typical character, ac- 
 cording to the Old Testament itself, of both tabernacle 
 and temple. Then the speaker closed with a terrible 
 denunciation of the rulers before him, as the children 
 of those who had slain the prophets, as murderers of 
 Messiah, and as violators of the law of God. As his 
 doom was certain, he broke out into an ecstatic descrip- 
 tion of " the Son of man standing at the right hand of 
 God." Christianity had found its first martyr. 
 
 66. The significance of Stephen's address is very 
 great. His ideas went much beyond those expressed 
 by Peter, His point of view was historical rather than 
 prophetic. It presented Christianity as the intended 
 goal of the whole history of the Hebrews. Just be- 
 cause Stephen contemplated the history rather than the 
 prophecies of Israel, he inferred that in the present, as 
 had been the case in the past, God's purpose would be 
 opposed by the existing church and state. So had it 
 ever been, and so would it continue to be. Judaism, in 
 fact, had ever belittled its own system and lost the sub- 
 stance in attachment to the form. It hated the ideal 
 of whose image it was proud. It substituted the mate- 
 rial for the spiritual, and regarded as its own peculiar 
 possession what had been given as a trust for the world 
 (vii. 44-50). 
 
 57. It is interesting to inquire how Stephen was led 
 to these views. N"o doubt further study of the Old 
 Testament had much to do with them. Stephen be- 
 trays acquaintance with Jewish traditions (Acts vii, 14, 
 16, 22, 23, 30) as well as with the Scriptures ; but the 
 biblical history had evidently been illuminated by the 
 Messianic idea, as the prophecies had been to Petez) 
 It would seem, also, that certain of the teachings of 
 
STEPHEN'S AD1)RESS 53 
 
 Jesus had made a deep impression on his mind. Not 
 only did he describe Jesus by the term " Son of man," 
 which was the Lord's favorite description of himself, 
 but Jesus had denounced the rulers and current Ju- 
 daism in quite the same way that Stephen did {e.g. 
 Matt. xxi. 33-41 ; xxiii. 34-36). Thus Christ's teaching- 
 was w^orking among the disciples toward a rupture with 
 Judaism as well as toward a spiritual interpretation of 
 the Mosaic law ; and this was doubtless accentuated, as 
 had been the case also with Jesus, by the rise of oppo- 
 sition from the authorities. 
 
 58. Stephen's address thus indicates a growing dis- 
 content of the new faith with its primitive environment. 
 It was realizing its self-sufficiency. (It was beginning 
 to feel that it must absorb Judaism or break with it; 
 that it was the true goal of Hebrew history. Yet this 
 took place by its own development, through the appro- 
 priation of the teaching of Jesus and the more pro- 
 found interpretation of the older revelation. The 
 expansion was that of its own original idea. Faith in 
 Jesus had been proclaimed from the commencement as 
 the only condition of salvation. Stephen was the first 
 to intimate that this involved more than a revived Jew- 
 ish religion. It might involve the condemnation of 
 Judaism and the substitution of forms of service that 
 would be commensurate wath the universal worship of 
 Christ. It is not impossible that he took ground where 
 many of the disciples could not as yet follow him. But 
 he embodied the irresistible logic of the truth, and led 
 the church into the attainment of her real destiny. 
 
 59. At the same time Stephen did not break with 
 the established worship. He was charged, indeed, with 
 saying, " Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place and 
 
54 RISE OF CHRISTIANITY IN JERUSALEM 
 
 shall change the customs which Moses delivered us.v 
 (vi. 14). This was false testimony (vi. 13) ; but it 
 must have had some basis, and it may be plausibly 
 conjectured that he had been repeating the predictions 
 of Jesus concerning the destruction of impenitent Je- 
 rusalem, or had been interpreting, like Jesus, the spirit- 
 ual content of the law. There is nothing, however, to 
 show that he declared, as Paul afterward did, that the 
 work of Christ had relieved the believer from obligation 
 to Mosaism ; and, though he taught (vii. 44-50) that 
 tabernacle and temple were representative of a higher 
 sanctuary, he did not disparage the national worship 
 itself. He only marks the first appearance of ideas 
 which contained the principle of the future expansion 
 of Christianity, These limitations of his teaching are 
 a remarkable testimony to the accuracy of the report 
 of his address. 
 
 60. The death of Stephen was apparently an act of 
 violence. Some forms of law were observed in its ex- 
 ecution (vii. 58), but there is nothing said of a formal 
 decision. At any rate the decision was made quickly 
 and tumultuously and executed instantly. This ex- 
 plains its occurrence, in spite of the fact that the 
 Romans had taken from the Jews the right of capital 
 punishment (John xviii. 31). Some have inferred that 
 at this time there was an interruption of Roman rule, 
 and would date the event after the recall of Pilate 
 (a. d. 36). But there is no reason to think that the 
 strictness of Roman rule ceased when Vitellius, the 
 Governor of Syria, sent Pilate to Rome to answer 
 the complaints of the Samaritans against him. The 
 government of Judea was given temporarily into the 
 charge of a certain Marcellus (^los. Antiq. xviii. 4. 2). 
 
PERSECUTION OF THE DISCIPLES 55 
 
 The martyrdom of Stephen was rather an outburst 
 of passion which was liable to happen in spite of any 
 law. 
 
 61. At the same time the Sanhedrim, now thoroughly 
 aroused against the disciples, determined to suppress 
 peremptorily the new sect. Roman rule permitted the 
 chief court to exercise extensive civil functions, and 
 especially to regulate and, within limits, enforce the 
 religious law of the nation (comp. Schilrer, HJP. 
 II. 1. p. 184). Accordingly a general proscription of 
 the offensive sect was issued. Men and women were 
 imprisoned (Acts viii. 3 ; xxii. 4 ; xxvi. 10, 11). The 
 most active persecutor was the young Saul of Tarsus, at 
 whose feet the witnesses against Stephen at his martyr- 
 dom had laid their clothes. In consequence, the great 
 body of disciples fled from the city. Most of them 
 scattered through Judea and Samaria ; but others, as 
 we shall see, went much farther. The apostles, how- 
 ever, remained in Jerusalem. They doubtless hid until 
 the storm was over ; and their remaining indicates that 
 Jerusalem was still regarded as the seat and head of 
 the church. But the first period of apostolic Chris- 
 tianity had closed. The hope of the speedy conversion 
 of the nation was extinguished. The consciousness of 
 independence had been awakened in the disciples. It 
 was evident that the faith would conquer only through 
 conflict. These events, however, turned out to be the 
 means by which Christianity discovered its intended 
 destiny and attained its universal and complete message 
 to mankind. 
 
PART II 
 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
HISTORICAL SOUECES 
 
 62. For the history of the earliest expansion of 
 Christianity we are again mainly dependent on Acts. 
 The principal narrative is found in chapter viii. 4 to 
 xiv._28. In xxii. 1-21 and xxvi. 1-^23 we have reports 
 of Paul's addresses in which he recounted his early life 
 and conversion. Further light on the same events is 
 furnished by the apostle in Galatiaiis i. 13 -24^ a nd al- 
 lusions to his conversion occur in First Corinthians, ix. 
 1 and XV. 8. Second Corinthians (xi. 24 to xii. 9) also 
 contains references to incidents some of which belong 
 in this period ; and in Second Timothy iii. 11 he alludes 
 to occurrences during the journey through Phrygia and 
 Lycaonia. In Acts, viii. 4 to xii. 25 appear to have 
 formed the second great division of the book. It de- 
 scribes the transition from Jewish to Gentile Christian- 
 ity. Here again Luke shows his intelligent grasp on 
 the significance of the movement of events. We have 
 five sections, exhibiting (1) the earliest expansion 
 under Philip (viii. 4-40) ; (2) the conversion and early 
 work of Paul, whereby the man was provided for the 
 future diffusion of the faith (ix. 1-30) ; (3) the work 
 of Peter in Syria which ended in the conversion of 
 Cornelius and the demonstration to the church that 
 God would accept uncircumcised believers (ix. 31 to 
 
60 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 xi. 18) ; (4) the rise of Gentile Christianity in Antioch, 
 whereby the new centre for the expanding religion was 
 provided (xi. 19-30) ; (5) the Herodian persecution, 
 whereby the Jewish state registered its repudiation of 
 the gospel (xii.). 
 
 63. Extra biblical literature furnishes no information 
 concerning Christianity during this time. Josephus, 
 however (Antiq. xix. 4 to 8), gives an account of the 
 life and death of Herod Agrippa I. which should be com- 
 pared with Acts xii. For the history and condition of 
 the Syrian towns the reader should consult Schlirer's 
 " History of the Jewish People in the Time of Jesus 
 Christ" (Part II. Vol. I. ch. ii. and iii.), as well as 
 with regard to the Nabatteans who ruled Damascus at 
 the time of Paul's early ministry in tliat city (Part I. 
 Vol. II. Append. II.). For the best information con- 
 cerning the route of Paul's first missionary journey 
 and the location of the places visited, see Ramsay's 
 " Church in the Roman Empire " (ch. ii. and iii.) and 
 "St. Paul the Traveller" (ch. iv. and v.). 
 
II 
 
 THE DISPERSION 
 
 64. The persecution which followed Stephen's death 
 was the means of spreading the new faith, for " they 
 that were scattered abroad went everywhere preach- 
 ing the word " (Acts viii. 4). There were already, no 
 doubt, disciples outside of Jerusalem (sect. 49), but the 
 diffusion now became aggressive and widespread. It 
 permeated especially Judea and Samaria (Acts viii. 1), 
 but did not stop there. Both those of the disciples 
 who settled in new homes and those who continued 
 their wanderings regarded themselves as missionaries 
 of the Messiah. 
 
 Go. Thus Philip, one of " the seven," acting in the 
 spirit of Stephen, repaired to the city of Samaria (Acts 
 viii. 5, R. v.), or, as Herod the Great had called it, 
 Sebaste, which contained a numerous pagan as well as 
 Samaritan population. This of itself indicated libera- 
 tion from Jewish prejudice (John iv. 9). Yet the 
 Samaritans observed the law, practised circumcision, 
 and expected the Messiah. They offered, therefore, the 
 most natural field outside of Judea and Galilee. We 
 may also see in Philip's conduct another effect of the 
 example and teaching of Jesus (Jjuke ix. 52-56 ; x. 33 ; 
 xvii. 11-19 ; John iv. ; Acts i. 8). The belief of many 
 of the Samaritans in Philip's message raised no ques- 
 
62 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 tion concerning the observance of the law, while his 
 mission to them indicated the broadening spirit of love 
 and the clearer comprehension of Christ's purposes 
 which were making themselves felt. Wonder and 
 joy were awakened in Jerusalem by the report that 
 " Samaria had received the word of God," and from 
 the capital the faith spread ultimately into many 
 adjacent villages, j 
 
 Q^. In Samaria, however, it was for the first time 
 confronted with a form of the superstition and religious 
 imposture of which the ancient world, especially the 
 Orient, was full, and against which the new religion 
 was destined often to contend. The story of Simon 
 the Mage, whose reputation as a magician and teacher 
 was great in Samaria, and who, astonished at Philip's 
 miracles, professed to believe, shows that Christianity 
 had .indeed emerged from its original home and was 
 beginning to compete with the forces which dominated 
 the complex and corrupt pagan world. In that eclectic 
 age religious impostors abounded, and often strangely 
 united blatant trickery with the language of philosophy. 
 Of this class none became more famous than Simon. 
 Justin Martyr, himself a Samaritan, relates that he 
 was a native of Gitton, and reports, though with some 
 confusion of statement, that he visited Rome under 
 Claudius and was honored as a god. One of the earliest 
 Gnostic sects was called after him, and in later legends 
 he figures as the arch enemy of Peter. There is no 
 reason to doubt his historical character, nor is it im- 
 probable that he appropriated some Christian ideas to 
 augment his influence, and thus became, as tradition 
 states, the prototype of heresy. We learn from Acts 
 that he was regarded by the Samaritans as an incarna- 
 
PETER AND JOHN IN SAMARIA 63 
 
 tion of the divine power. But tlie new faith was not 
 to be defiled by such an unworthy alliance. When 
 Peter and John arrived and the Holy Spirit, with his 
 gifts and powers, came on the converts at the imposi- 
 tion of the apostles' hands, Simon revealed his true 
 character by offering money, if like power to impart 
 the Spirit were given to Iiim. The offer was indig- 
 nantly refused ; and the incident merely illustrates the 
 triumph of the new faith over the subtlety of supersti- 
 tion, and its clear ethical consciousness amid the 
 temptations of the larger world into which it was 
 entering. 
 
 67. It is more important to observe that when the 
 news from Samaria reached Jerusalem, Peter and John 
 were sent to complete the work which Philip had begun. 
 This evidently implies the wish to preserve the unity 
 of all believers under apostolic direction. Moreover, 
 the Lord had indicated his will that the new converts 
 should be led to realize the authority of the original 
 apostles by withholding the outward manifestations 
 of the Spirit ; for only when the hands of Peter and 
 John were laid on them did they "receive the Holy 
 Spirit " (Acts viii. 15). This' was not always a condi- 
 tion of the manifestation of the Spirit's power. Not 
 only did he at Pentecost come directly upon all the 
 disciples, but he was given to Saul of Tarsus through 
 the instrumentality of Ananias (Acts ix. 17), and to 
 Cornelius without any instrumentality at all (Acts x. 
 44); nor is it probable that in Galatia (Gal. iii. 5) and 
 Corinth (T. Cor. xii. 28) his gifts were dependent on 
 apostolic touch. At other times, however, the imposi- 
 tion of apostolic hands preceded the gift of the Spirit 
 (Acts xix. 6 ; II. Tim. i. 6) ; and in the case before us 
 
64 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 the importance of uniting in one body Samaritan and 
 Jewish believers amply explains to those who believe 
 in the Spirit's guidance of the history the event as it is 
 reported. The expansion of Christianity was thus not 
 merely the diffusion of the faith, but also the extension 
 of the community which had been organized in Jerusa- 
 lem under the apostles. 
 
 68. Philip's work, however, was not confined to 
 Samaria. Luke appends the account of the conversion 
 of the Ethiopian steward (Acts viii. 26-39). This took 
 place in southern Judea, on the road to the old and 
 deserted city of Gaza. The narrative is intended to 
 illustrate the varied progress of the faith. The steward 
 was apparently a proselyte, although according to the 
 law (Deut. xxiii. 1) he could not, if we understand the 
 term " eunuch " in its strict sense, have been a recog- 
 nized member of the congregation of Israel. He was, 
 at any rate, a devout worshipper of Jehovah. He was 
 deeply interested also in the Scriptures, and especially 
 in the prophecies. He is a fine example of the way in 
 wliich the religion of Israel had touched the souls of 
 many in the pagan world and prepared them for a 
 further message from God. His conversion was to 
 Luke very properly representative of the widening 
 destiny of the gospel ; and, though we know nothing 
 of an Ethiopian church in the first century, the incident 
 was suggestive of the geographical as well as ethnic 
 expansion which was beginning. Luke particularly 
 emphasizes the fact that Philip acted under the direc- 
 tion of the Spirit. It was in truth the Spirit who, in 
 co-operation with providence, was impelling the disciples 
 to spread their faith. The progress was not accidental, 
 but divinely intended and guided. The use also of the 
 
DIFFUSION OF THE FAITH IN SYRIA 05 
 
 fifty -tin I'd chapter of Isaiah to introduce the steward to 
 a knowledge of Jesus illustrates the means by which 
 the unlikely story of a crucified Messiah was made 
 credible and intelligible to these early converts. After 
 this incident Philif) seems to have settled in Cassarea 
 (Acts viii. 40). There, much later, Luke himself 
 found him (xxi. 8), and may have received from the 
 evangelist's own lii)s these facts which he embodied 
 in his history. 
 
 69. But while Luke's narrative follows the move- 
 ments of Philip, it seems clear that Syria was the prin- 
 cipal region in which the faith was diffused. Into it 
 many of the refugees must have fled. Jews resided in 
 large numbers in the towns of both the coast and the 
 interior, some of which were doubtless the " foreign 
 cities " (Acts xxvi. 11, R. V.) into which even the per- 
 secution reached. Certainly Damascus had received the 
 gospel, for thither the arch persecutor turned his steps. 
 In most of these cities the Jewish colony had its local 
 council, by which Jewish criminals could be delivered 
 to the Jerusalem Sanhedrim. , But in them also the 
 refugees for the most part would be safe and could 
 extend the influence of their faith. Here, therefore, the 
 largest advance was made. Not long after, we find 
 Peter visiting the disciples in Syria (Acts x. 32) ; and 
 the accounts of Eneas at Lydda and of Dorcas at Joppa 
 indicate that the faith had been well established in 
 those regions. Finally the great Syrian metro])olis of 
 Antioch was occupied by a party of Hellenistic mis- 
 sionaries who had previously been to Phoenicia and even 
 to Cyprus (Acts xi. 19). These events extended over 
 a number of years ; but they were all a part of the 
 expansion which followed the death of Stephen, and 
 
 5 
 
66 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 indicate Syria as the region mainly occupied. At tlie 
 same time it is very probable that the movement 
 reached more distant territory. It is difficult to believe 
 that Egypt, Arabia, and Babylonia, where the Jews were 
 in close touch with those of Judea, did not hear of the 
 new faith. We have, however, no information on that 
 point. . 
 
 70. It should be remembered that this early expan- 
 sion was at first and for some years almost wholly 
 among the Jews.j It was simply the spread of Jeru- 
 salem-Christianity ; and Peter's visit to the disciples of 
 Syria (Acts ix. 32) shows tliat the latter kept in touch 
 with the mother church and acknowledged the author- 
 ity of the apostles. The diffusion was effected mainly 
 by personal intercourse, or else by preaching in the 
 synagogues, which were always open to visiting 
 Hebrews. The faith itself was the same which had 
 been preached in Jerusalem. The new believers 
 trusted in Jesus, as the risen and glorified Messiah, for 
 the forgiveness of sins ; received baptism in his name ; 
 learned his spiritual interpretation of the law ; studied 
 afresh his fullilment of prophecy ; waited for his return 
 in glory ; while the apostolic reports of his life and 
 teachings were circulated from lip to lip. In most 
 instances the disciples continued to worship in the 
 synagogues as well as to have their own meetings. 
 They were bound to one another, however, by the 
 bonds of a common faith and peril ; and gradually they 
 formed separate synagogues of their own (Jas. ii. 2 ; 
 V. 14). ' But the expansion of the new faith did not as 
 yet result in any violent rupture with the older Jewish 
 organizations. It united at first, and in most localities 
 for many years, faith in Jesus with loyalty to the 
 
HEBRAIC CHARACTER OF THE EXPANSION 67 
 
 Mosaic ritual and law. The conversion of the Sama- 
 ritans and of the Ethiopian steward did not form any 
 real exception to this. The movement as yet was 
 strictly a Hebrew one. It was, so far as the evidence 
 goes, simply the extension among the Jews of the dis- 
 persion of the new faith and brotherhood which had 
 been formed in Jerusalem. 
 
Ill 
 
 THE CONVERSION OF PAUL 
 
 71. An event soon occurred which was destined 
 to be of supreme importance to the growing faith. 
 This was the conversion of Saul of Tarsus. At 
 the time of Stephen's death Saul was still a young 
 man (Acts vii. 58). His native city, Tarsus in 
 Cilicia, was a place of both political and intellectual 
 renown. It was a free city, with large commercial 
 interests, and a noted educational centre. Saul's 
 father was of the tribe of Benjamin (Phil. iii. 5) and in 
 religion a Pharisee (Acts xxiii. 6). It is not known 
 how the family became residents of Tarsus. An old 
 tradition makes them to have removed thither from 
 Gischala of Galilee when the latter place was captured 
 by the Romans. Others suppose that they were set- 
 tled in Tarsus by one of the Syrian kings who colo- 
 nized many Jews in Asia Minor. There is reason to 
 believe that the family connection was a large one 
 (comp. Acts xxiii. 16 ; Rom. xvi. 7, 11, 21). It must 
 have been also influential, for Saul was both a citizen 
 of Tarsus (Acts xxi. 39) and a free-born Roman (xxii. 
 28) ; while his active relations to the Sanhedrim, of 
 which he seems, though a young man, to have been a 
 member (xxvi. 10), his prominence in Jerusalem 
 (xxii. 5), and the description which he gives of his high 
 
PAUL'S EARLY HISTORY 69 
 
 ambitions as a Jew (Phil. iii. 4-7), indicate that he 
 sprang from no obscure origin. Nothing is known of 
 the way in which his ancestor obtained the Roman 
 citizenship which Saul inherited. Equally uncertain is 
 the origin of the second name, Paul, by which he calls 
 himself, and by which Luke describes him after his 
 missionary work among the Gentiles had begun (Acts 
 xiii. 9). Some have supposed that he assumed it after 
 he became a Christian, and various explanations of its 
 meaning have been given. But it is more probable 
 that, like many other Jews (Acts i. 23 ; xv. 37), he had 
 from the beginning both names. If so, " Paulus" may 
 point to some connection of his ancestors with the 
 Roman family of the Pauli (^Conyh. and Hoivson, Life 
 and Ep. of St. P. p. 153) ; or it may have been 
 adopted for other, and perhaps purely personal, reasons 
 {Beissmann, Bibel-Studien, I. p. 181). As a Gentile 
 name it was naturally employed by him in his work 
 among the Gentiles. 
 
 72. Although foreign born, Saul had been reared 
 on strictly Jewish principles (Phil. iii. 4-7). There is 
 little reason to suppose that he was influenced in his 
 boyhood by the intellectual • atmosphere of Tarsus. 
 His earliest education more probably was in the nar- 
 rower sphere of Jewish studies. Like other Jewish 
 boys he was taught a trade, which in his case was the 
 manufacture of the goat-hair tents used by travellers ; 
 and, when yet a lad, he was sent to Jerusalem to com- 
 plete his education under one of the great Rabbis (Acts 
 xxi. 3). His teacher was Gamaliel the elder, whose 
 timely address prevented on one occasion the death 
 of the apostles (sect. 52). At Gamaliel's feet Saul 
 learned the traditions of the scribes, took part in their 
 
70 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 exegetical and casuistic discussions, and imbibed a 
 profound devotion to Judaism and the law. Here also 
 he must have acquired that thorough knowledge of the 
 Old Testament which his epistles reveal. He developed 
 into the intensest of Pharisees (Acts xxii. 3 ; xxiii. 6 ; 
 xxvi. 5 ; Gal. i. 14 ; Phil. iii. 5) ; and while his style 
 of argumentation, after he became a Christian, is 
 wholly devoid of the merely verbal subtleties and 
 trivial discussions which characterized Rabbinism, yet 
 all the presuppositions of his thought remained Hebrew 
 to the end, and proves that his mind, in its formative 
 period, had been saturated with Jewish belief. , 
 
 73, It is true that the speeches and letters of Paul 
 indicate some acquaintance with Hellenic, and espe- 
 cially Stoic, thought. He can hardly be said indeed to 
 show acquaintance with Greek literature, for his few 
 quotations (Acts xvii. 28 ; Tit. i. 12) are not sufficient 
 to prove this. Nor does his style of composition show 
 the rhetorical training of the schools. On the other 
 hand his use of some philosophical and ethical terms 
 indicates familiarity with {)agan culture ; and his pas- 
 sion for dialectical argument and for a systematic con- 
 struction of his teaching appear rather Hellenic than 
 Hebrew. Occasionally, too, he implies acquaintance 
 with the course which pagan history and thought had 
 run (Acts xvii. 27 ; I. Cor. i. 21 ; ii. 6). This should 
 warn us against an unduly narrow idea of his educa- 
 tion. In those days of wide Greek influence, even a 
 pupil in the school of a Jerusalem Rabbi might learn 
 something of the thought of the outside world; and 
 Gamaliel was reputed to be fond of Greek learning. 
 It is more likely, however, that these foreign influences 
 came to Saul after he left his teacher. It is not im- 
 
PAUL'S FEHSONALITY 71 
 
 probable that he returned, for a while, to Tarsus, sinee 
 he does not appear to have been in Jerusalem at the 
 time of Christ's crucifixion. If so, he may then have 
 pursued other studies in his native city. Still later 
 his eager mind, when freed from Jewish shackles and 
 penetrating into the implications of his new faith, 
 may be supposed to have increased its acquaintance 
 with the world's thought which he found himself 
 obliged to confront. But Hellenic culture never 
 formed a constituent element of his teaching; and in 
 his youth his whole mind was devoted to the study 
 and observance of the Hebrew law. 
 
 74. Apart, moreover, from the religious and intel- 
 lectual influences which acted upon him, Saul of Tar- 
 sus possessed a remarkable personality. He was one 
 of those intense natures to whom truth and duty are 
 so commanding as to be at once transmuted into life. 
 His mental aptitudes also were singularly varied, and 
 in every direction almost equally vigorous. He was 
 a keen thinker. To him a principle became at once 
 fruitful of a system, so that he followed an idea to 
 its logical implications. Yet he had a strongly emo- 
 tional temperament. He was capable of tremendous 
 passion, and he always felt the full reality of what he 
 enjoyed or suffered. At the same time he was a prac- 
 tical man of affairs, fond of public action, and born 
 to be a leader of others. It is rare to find these 
 qualities combined, but unquestionably they were com- 
 bined in Saul. They sprang from the wonderful in- 
 tensity and completeness of his nature. It would 
 seem as if no phase of life or experience were un- 
 known to, or at least unappreciated by, him. There 
 also appears in his conduct a singular union of strength 
 
72 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 and tenderness, of strenuous energy with pathetic desire 
 for sympathy, of heroic courage with passionate love 
 of friends. Most characteristic of hiin was the in- 
 tensity of his religious disposition. To his soul, even 
 as a Jew, the religious view of life was the only real 
 one, and to it he dedicated his powers from his youth. 
 He could truly say late in hfe, " I thank God, whom I 
 serve from my forefathers with a pure conscience" 
 (II. Tim. i. 3). He was a Pharisee because Phari- 
 saism, with all its faults, was to him the effort to em- 
 body perfectly in life the will of God. 
 
 75. Such was the man who first appeared upon the 
 scene at Stephen's martyrdom. He had, we may believe, 
 recently returned to Jerusalem, and had doubtless been 
 one of those (Acts vi. 9) who, after disputing with the 
 Christian in the synagogue, had prosecuted him before 
 the Sanhedrim. At his feet the witnesses, who cast 
 the first stones at the condemned man, laid their 
 clothes. Forthwith he became the leader of the subse- 
 quent persecution. He sought the position (Acts viii. 
 3) ; and when the disciples fled, he pursued them, with 
 authority from the high-priest, into other cities (Acts 
 ix. 1, 2; xxii. 5; xxvii. 11). It is probable that this 
 continued for a year or more. The whole intensity of 
 Saul's nature found a vent in this fierce religious 
 crusade. 
 
 76. We have some glimpses also into the motives by 
 which he was actuated. He himself refers to Jiis per- 
 secution of the disciples as evidence of the sin from 
 which the grace of God had rescued him (^e.g. Gal. i. 
 13 ; I. Tim. i. 13). He makes it clear that he was ani- 
 mated by zeal for the maintenance of Judaism, against 
 which, since Stephen's address, the disciples appeared 
 
PAUL'S HOSPITALITY TO THE NEW SECT 73 
 
 to liim to be unholy renegades ; and that the more he 
 persecuted, the fiercer his zeal became (Gal.i. 14). As 
 he afterwards saw, he was ignorant of the real char- 
 acter of the gospel, and acted in utter unbelief of its 
 truth and value (I. Tim. i. 13). Yet at the time he 
 thought that he was doing God service (Acts xxii. 3 ; 
 xxvi. 9). He was a conscientious inquisitor, moved re- 
 lentlessly to the work by his sense of duty ; and he was 
 so entirely blind to any good in the new sect, that its ex- 
 tinction seemed to him the best tribute he could offer 
 to Jehovah. 
 
 77. It is thus impossible to believe that any predis- 
 position toward Christianity existed in Saul's mind 
 before his conversion. His contact with Stephen had 
 only aroused his anger. It is wholly gratuitous to as- 
 sume that in his heart he admired what he so violently 
 persecuted. Neither is it possible that his further ac- 
 quaintance w^ith the Christians made him feel the 
 wrongfulness of his conduct or doubt the truth as he 
 then held it. Such a supposition is directly opposed to 
 his own testimony (Gal. i. 13, 14). He acted in un- 
 doubting unbelief (I. Tim. i. 13). To him Jesus was 
 an impostor, whose Messianic claims were blasplie- 
 mous, and against whom duty compelled him to wage 
 relentless war (Acts xxvi. 9). It has indeed been 
 alleged that the words which he reports Jesus to have 
 used at his conversion, " It is hard for thee to kick 
 against the goad " (Acts xxvi. 14, R. V.), indicate that 
 he had been forcing himself to persecute against his 
 conscience and better convictions. But this interpre- 
 tation agrees neither, as we have seen, with Paul's own 
 statements nor with the natural meaning of the meta- 
 phor. The " goad " rather represents the purpose of 
 
74 EAKLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 God, external to Paul, which was really leading to a 
 service the very opposite of what he wished. There is 
 no reason to doubt that, so far as his conscious inten- 
 tions went, the persecutor did not question the rightful- 
 ness of his course nor lessen his zeal in it. 
 
 78. At the same time there is reason to believe that 
 the young Pharisee, with his deeply religious nature, 
 had not found peace in Judaism. This seems to be 
 implied in the reminiscence which he has given of the 
 disastrous effect upon an awakened conscience of the 
 realization of the full demands of God's law (Rom. vii. 
 9-11). In the following verses (13-25) he gives a 
 further analysis of the nature and hopelessness of this 
 bondage to sin in which the awakened conscience finds 
 itself ; but that analysis is evidently presented in the 
 light in which the experience afterward appeared to 
 him as he looked back upon it, and he cannot be sup- 
 posed to have realized at the time the full truth as he 
 came to see it. But the previous verses do describe an 
 experience when he was under the law, in which he was 
 led to perceive its deep import, and that it bore upon 
 the very least of his moral desires ; so that before its 
 august and penetrating judgment he felt himself a dead 
 man. If we accept this key to his spiritual history, 
 we can hardly doubt that Saul had felt already that 
 the paramount necessity for him was to secure for 
 himself the perfect satisfaction of the law. He saw 
 already that peace could only come through the posses- 
 sion of a righteousness which would meet the claims 
 of a law whose universal scope he painfully perceived. 
 Such a man could not have been satisfied with the per- 
 formance of a ritual. We may believe that he had 
 known profound unrest as he faced the I'cal verdict of 
 
PAUL'S CONVERSION 75 
 
 the law against himself. But this only drove him, as 
 it has many others, to greater efforts to obey, and his 
 persecution of the Nazarenes may be partly explained 
 as due to his intense desire to establish the law and 
 fulfil his own part toward it. So far, however, as his 
 conscious purposes were concerned, there was only 
 antagonism towards Jesus and his disciples. 
 
 79. Yet this man, while on his persecuting mission, 
 was suddenly converted. Three accounts of the event 
 are given in the Acts ; one by Luke (ix. 3-18) and 
 two by Paul himself (xxii. 6-16 ; xxvi. 12-18). Each 
 account is controlled by the immediate purpose of the 
 narrator. Luke, with a purely historical motive, 
 briefly relates the event itself. Paul's first account, 
 because defending himself before the Jews, empha- 
 sizes the part which the devout Jew Ananias had in 
 the transaction. When addressing Agrippa, on the 
 other hand, he does not mention Ananias, and con- 
 denses the Lord's subsequent commands into one 
 statement. Such variations are natural, and even 
 assure us of the veracity of the reports. Other minor 
 variations in the accounts (comp. ix. 7 with xxvi. 14 
 and xxii. 9) are explainableby the supposition that at 
 first all the company fell upon tlie ground, but that 
 Saul alone remained prostrate, and that while his 
 companions heard the voice, he alone understood the 
 words which were spoken to him. 
 
 80. We learn, then, that when near Damascus, 
 whither he was going to arrest, by the high-priest's 
 authority, the followers of Jesus, suddenly and at 
 noon a bright light from heaven flashed around him 
 and his companions. So overwhelming was its bril- 
 liance that they all fell upon the ground, and the man 
 
76 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 of Tarsus heard, in Hebrew, the words, " Saul, Saul, 
 why persecutest thou me ? It is hard for thee to kick 
 against the goad." To his question, " Who art thou, 
 Lord ? " the reply was, " I am Jesus, the Nazarene, 
 whom thou persecutest." Utterly crushed by this 
 revelation of the heavenly nature of the one he had 
 despised, Saul asked, " What shall I do, Lord ? " The 
 answer was, " Arise, and go into Damascus, and it 
 shall be told thee what thou must do," Meanwhile 
 his companions had risen and were standing in amaze- 
 ment. When Saul arose, he was found to be blind, 
 and was led by the hand into the city. There he con- 
 tinued three days in fasting and prayer in the house of 
 a certain Judas. On the third day a Jewish disciple, 
 Ananias, who had received directions from the Lord, 
 went to him and in Christ's name declared the for- 
 giveness of his sins (xxii. 16), that he had been 
 chosen as a messenger of Messiah, and that he might 
 receive with baptism the gift of the Spirit. Thereupon 
 his sight was restored and he was baptized. 
 
 81. These brief reports evidently imply more than 
 they actually record. None of them affirm that Saul 
 saw Jesus. But they clearly mean that he did ; for 
 not only did Ananias speak of Jesus as having " ap- 
 peared " to him (ix. 17) in order that he should see 
 that Just One (xxii. 14), but afterwards Barnabas 
 affirmed " how he had seen the Lord in the way " 
 (ix. 27), and Paul himself declared that he was a 
 witness of what he had scc7i (xxvi. 16). We are not 
 dependent, however, on the Acts. Paul refers to the 
 event in his epistles. He describes his conversion as 
 a work solely of divine power and favor, whereby he 
 was transformed into the opposite of what he had 
 
PAUL'S ACCOUNT OF HIS CONVERSION 77 
 
 been before (I. Cor. ix. 17; xv. 10; Gal. i. 15; Eph. 
 iii. 7 ; 1. Tim. i. 12, 13, 16 ; II. Tim. i. 11). He de- 
 clares that he had seen the risen Jesus, and had thus 
 been qualified for apostleship (I. Cor. ix. 1 ; xv. 8). 
 He further relates that this objective revelation of the 
 Christ had been accompanied by a spiritual illumination 
 of his mind, so that he was enabled to grasp the truth 
 about Jesus in order to proclaim it to the world (Gal. 
 i. 16). According to his own accounts, therefore, God 
 revealed his Son to and in him. The transaction had 
 both its objective and subjective sides. The former, 
 however, is represented as the basis of the latter. He 
 describes it as a visible appearance of Jesus and a 
 verbal declaration of his will. On the basis of this he 
 also describes himself as subjectively enlightened and 
 quickened by the power of God, so that he received the 
 new truth and willingly devoted himself to it. The 
 accounts do not represent the transaction, on its sub- 
 jective side, as entirely instantaneous. It was not 
 magical. Three days of prayer were required to com- 
 plete liis conversion. But the objective revelation is 
 represented by the apostle himself as unheralded and 
 peremptory, and he always ascribes the change wrought 
 in him to the sovereign and gracious exercise of divine 
 power. 
 
 82. Saul's conversion, then, must be regarded as 
 occasioned by a supernatural revelation of Jesus to 
 him. The transaction partook partly of the character 
 of a spiritual vision. The figure of Jesus was not seen 
 by Paul's companions, nor were the words understood ; 
 and we cannot say in such an event how much his 
 physical organs were re-enforced by the awakened per- 
 ceptions of the soul. Yet the light was seen and the 
 
78 EAELY EXPANSION OF CHKISTIANITY 
 
 sound was heard by all, while the effects of the mani- 
 festation on Saul himself were physical as well as 
 spiritual. The manifestation of Jesus was thus objec- 
 tively real. That we are not dealing with a legend is 
 proved by Paul's own testimony to it. It is equally 
 impossible to explain it as an illusion of his mind. 
 There was in him, as we have seen, no predisposition 
 toward Christianity, but resolute and reasoned antag- 
 onism up to the very moment of the experience. 
 Hence no psychological basis existed for the creation 
 of an illusion. Yet the experience suddenly and en- 
 tirely changed his belief and life ; and his whole sub- 
 sequent career attests the absolute certitude which it 
 produced in him. A fair interpretation of the whole 
 evidence com{)els us to accept the explanation of the 
 event which Paul himself has given. 
 
 83. It is sometimes said, indeed, that Paul was a 
 mystic, and predisposed to ecstatic experiences. It is 
 pointed out that he claims to have had frequently 
 visions and revelations (e. g. I. Thess. iv. 15 ; Gal. ii. 
 2 ; II. Cor. xii. 1, 7) ; and it is suggested that the 
 very frequency of them throws doubt on their reality. 
 The possibility of such heavenly communications should, 
 however, not be denied by those who accept the super- 
 naturalness of Christianity. The only question is, 
 whether these visions and revelations commend them- 
 selves by their intrinsic character and the rationality 
 of the one who claims to have received them. With 
 respect to this it should be noted that they are treated 
 with marked reserve by Paul. Allusion is made to 
 them only when on special occasions it was necessary 
 for the sake of others. Further, so far as we learn any- 
 thing about them, they were adapted to the specific 
 
PAUL AS A CHRISTIAN 79 
 
 in eds of the apostle at the time. They were not un- 
 1. filiated ecstasies, but were limited to such commu- 
 nications as his historical situation required. And, 
 fmally, they appear in Paul's life in entire subordination 
 to the rational attainment and presentation of truth. 
 While lie occasionally appealed to them, they did not 
 supplant his intellectual life nor the vigor of his argu- 
 mentation. To this it may be added that Luke makes 
 Paul describe the appearance of Christ to him by a 
 term (Acts xxvi, 19, " spectacle ") which the historian 
 elsewhere applies to supernatural manifestations seen 
 by persons in their ordinary state of mind (Luke i. 22 ; 
 XX iv. 23), whereas he commonly uses another phrase 
 for visions seen either in sleep or ecstasy (Acts ix. 10, 
 12 ; X. 3 ; xi. 5 ; xii. 9, etc.). Whether, therefore, we 
 consider the apostle's own descriptions of his religious 
 experiences, or his historian's report of the conversion, 
 the manifestation of Jesus to Paul must still be ac- 
 cepted as an objective and supernatural fact. 
 
 84. But how much of Christianity did Paul possess 
 as the immediate result of his conversion ? How are 
 we to conceive his state of mind when he was thus 
 transformed ? He himself describes his knowledge of 
 the gospel as due to revelation by Jesus (Gal. i. 12, 15, 
 16). He represents himself as an independent witness 
 and apostle. This implies that through the experience 
 of conversion, as well as through subsequent revelations, 
 he came into the possession of Christian truth. It is 
 true that the co-operation of other agencies was not 
 excluded. He brought to his new life a rich acquaint- 
 ance with the Old Testament, wliich, as with the older 
 disciples, was forthwith illumined by his new faith in 
 Jesus. He brought also certain theological ideas, in- 
 
80 EAELY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 eluding not only monotheism, but belief in salvation as 
 consisting in the possession of righteousness before 
 God, as well as the doctrines of propitiation by sacri- 
 fice, of a future judgment, a resurrection of the body, 
 and a Messianic kingdom of glory. These ideas con- 
 stituted the moulds in which his new faith would still 
 run and to which it would naturally adjust itself. Nor 
 are we to suppose that he sought from older Christians 
 no information about Jesus and his teaching. Cer- 
 tainly he was afterwards well acquainted with the 
 current evangelical narrative {e. g. I. Thess. v. 1 ; I. 
 Cor. vii. 10 ; ix. 14 ; xi. 23-25 ; xv. 3, etc. ; II. Cor. v. 
 21 ; viii. 9 ; x. 1 ; Rom. xii. 17, 20 ; xv. 3 ; Phil. ii. 7, 
 8 ; I. Tim. vi. 13). At the same time it is clear from 
 his own expressions that his equipment as a teacher 
 of Christianity was gained mainly from his wondrous 
 experience and spiritual illumination. These were of 
 such a marked character, and Paul himself was such 
 an intense and independent man, that his ai)prehension 
 of the faith was from the beginning controlled by the 
 way in which he had been led to it. 
 
 85. Did he then at once realize all that afterwards 
 he taught ? Extreme views have been held on both 
 sides of this question, and probably the truth lies be- 
 tween them. On the one hand his epistles reveal a 
 mind which steadily advanced in the statement of doc- 
 trine in accordance with the needs of his readers, and 
 apparently with the impulse of his own mind toward 
 com})leteness of teaching. This makes it natural to 
 suppose that in the earlier period, from which we have 
 no products of his pen, a similar progress took place. 
 On the other hand the fundamental points of his belief 
 appear fully established in his earliest epistles, and 
 
PAUL'S FUNDAMENTAL BELIEFS 81 
 
 never changed. In Galatians (i. 16 ; ii. 2, 14-21) he 
 speaks of his gospel as that which he had proclaimed 
 from the beginning. It is probable, therefore, that 
 immediatel}'^ upon his conversion he became possessed 
 of the essential points of his distinctive apostolic 
 teaching, while their implications and full expression 
 were gradually wrought out. 
 
 S6. What, then, were these fundamental beliefs of 
 the converted persecutor ? His knowledge of Jesus 
 and the glory in which he had beheld him constituted 
 the primary fact on which his new faith rested. He 
 now knew that the Nazarene was the Messiah; The 
 Crucified was alive and clothed with divine power ; and 
 Paul always considered this to be proof of the resur- 
 rection to which the older apostles testified (I. Cor. xv. 
 3-8). He also now knew Jesus to be a superhuman 
 and heavenly being, God's messenger and representa- 
 tive. This is expressed by the title " Son of God " 
 which he at once applied to liim (Acts ix. 20 ; Gal. i, 
 16). Jesus was " the Lord from heaven " (I. Cor. xv. 
 47). There is nothing, indeed, to show as yet how far 
 Paul penetrated into the mystery of Christ's person ; 
 but the sight of Jesus, possessed of divine glory and 
 power, revolutionized his religious thought and gave 
 the fixed point about which faith and duty necessarily 
 turned. 
 
 87. With this was joined the fact that he had been 
 called into his new life by the pure favor of God in the 
 very midst of his enmity against the Lord. His 
 former life now appeared stained by the worst folly 
 and sin. His obedience to the law had not saved him. 
 In fact, his effort to obey it had led him into the greatest 
 sin. His call by Christ had therefore been an act of 
 
 6 
 
82 EAELY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 mere grace. His hope could only rest on the favor and 
 power of Jesus, which had been mercifully shown to 
 him. By this the whole of his former conception of 
 the way in which he was to obtain salvation was swept 
 away. If he had long ago realized that he had not 
 really kept the law, he now realized that salvation was 
 not to be had by him through keeping it. His salva- 
 tion was of Christ by grace, and only his faith in the 
 Lord, who had revealed himself, could reassure him as 
 he now contemplated both the unbelief of the past, 
 with its hostility to the truth, and the sinfulness of his 
 heart as even the law had shown it to him. Thus the 
 keynotes of Paul's teaching were sounded in the ex- 
 perience through which he was led. Faith in Jesus as 
 the exalted Messiah who was able to save, and entire 
 dependence on God's grace in Christ, formed from the 
 beginning the two foci of his Christian consciousness. 
 
 88. Yet Paul's mind could not have stopped here. 
 Two questions imperatively demanded an answer. 
 How could this salvation by unmerited favor be recon- 
 ciled with the claims of the law on every man ? Why 
 had Messiah died a death of shame ? We must ascer- 
 tain the answer which Paul gave from his own writings. 
 According to Galatians (ii. 14-21) he reminded Peter 
 that they had believed in Jesus in order that they 
 might be justified, that is, declared righteous before God, 
 since they had discovered that by the works of the law 
 none could be justified. Speaking of himself he adds, 
 " I, through the law [operating upon Christ], died to 
 the law [as the object of my endeavor in order to be 
 saved], that I might live unto God. I have been cruci- 
 fied with Christ." Still again (iii. 13), " Christ hath 
 redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a 
 
KIGHTEOUSNESS THROUGH FAITH 83 
 
 curse for us" (comp. , too, Rom. iii. 21-26). Tlicse 
 statements show that the death of Jesus was regarded 
 as the satisfaction of the claims of the law upon the 
 sinner. He had paid the penalty which the violated law 
 demanded ; had thus procured for the" sinner reconcilia- 
 tion with God, the lawgiver ; and the faith in Jesus, 
 which Paul had found in his conversion to be tlie sole 
 condition of his enjoyment of salvation, had its suffi- 
 ciency explained by the completeness of the work which 
 the suffering Messiah had accomplished in his behalf. 
 This truth must have been realized by Paul very early. 
 It fitted precisely into his Hebrew idea of salvation as 
 the possession of righteousness. The only difference 
 was that this was a righteousness provided by God, not 
 achieved by himself. The idea appears in his earliest 
 recorded address (Acts xiii. 39). He was doubtless 
 helped to it also by the teaching of the Old Testament, 
 in which he found two passages in particular, which 
 are quoted by him at crucial jjoints in his arguments. 
 The one was the promise to Abraham (Gen. xii. 3 ; 
 xxii. 18) that in him and in his seed should all nations be 
 blessed (Gal. iii. 8, 16, 29), and the other was the words 
 of Habakkuk (ii. 4), which he translates, " The just 
 shall Hve by faith" (Rom. i. 17; Gal. iii. 11). In the 
 one case he found the idea of salvation through a rep- 
 resentative ; in the other, salvation through faith. 
 Both passages illuminated the doctrine of righteous- 
 ness procured by the death of Christ for those who 
 believe in him. 
 
 89. To Paul, moreover, laying hold of Christ as his 
 Redeemer and Lord, faith meant trust to the i^oint of 
 absolute self-surrender, and the conviction that his life 
 had been taken under the control of Christ, and was 
 
84 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 revitalized by Christ's indwelling spirit. This was 
 based on the thought that by the favor of God he was 
 included in all the work of Christ and in all of its results. 
 In the most emphatic and intimate sense he was " in 
 Christ." The conception was primarily legal, but also 
 vital. He could not conceive of the one aspect of this 
 union without the other. Christ's satisfaction of the law 
 for him involved necessarily the believer's experience of 
 a spiritual transformation corresponding to the work of 
 Christ. In Christ he had died to the law and to sin, 
 and risen unto newness of life toward God. In Christ 
 he had both obtained reconciliation with God, and 
 experimental enjoyment of it through the bestowment 
 upon him of Christ's quickening and transforming 
 Spirit. Thus he had received the spiritual power by 
 which his sinful nature, or the flesh, was ccntrolled 
 and would finally be destroyed. This was Christ in 
 him as, on the other hand, Christ had stood for him. 
 In short, as Christ had identified himself with Paul 
 before the law, so by faith Paul identified himself with 
 Christ in his own experience. Faith thus meant for 
 him entire self-surrender to Christ, that both Christ's 
 satisfaction of the law might be his, and the power of 
 the victorious Christ might operate within him. As he 
 wrote, " I have been crucified with Christ," so he added, 
 "yet I live; and yet no longer I, but Christ liveth in 
 me; and that life which I now live in the flesh, I live 
 in faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, who loved 
 me and gave himself up for me" (Gal. ii. 20, R. V.). 
 
 90. Thus by this mental and moral revolution 
 Paul not only became a Christian, but was led to 
 apprehend Christianity in a way destined to be of 
 the greatest significance for the history of the faith. 
 
PAUL'S LIFE AFTER HIS CONVERSION 85 
 
 The true relation of the believer to tlie law was dis- 
 covered. The latter was a preparation for faith. It 
 was intended to disclose the sinner's need of Christ. 
 Therewith the death of Christ took on its full signifi- 
 cance as the satisfaction of the law for the believer, 
 and the idea that the Jewish law was permanently 
 binding on believers received its death-blow. All this 
 was but the logical unfolding of the doctrine of salva- 
 tion by faith in Jesus which Peter and others had 
 preached. It was also the logical result of that faith 
 in himself which Jesus had required of his disciples 
 (see sect. 14). But through the conversion of Paul 
 tlie truth was brought to full expression, and the man 
 and the doctrine were prepared which were destined 
 to release the new faith from Judaism and to interpret 
 it to the Gentile world. 
 
 91. Paul's life immediately after his conversion is 
 traced briefly in Acts ix. 19-30 and Galatians i. 16- 
 24 (comp. also 11. Cor. xi. 32, 33). He soon began, on 
 the authority of his new commission, to preach in the 
 synagogues of Damascus that Jesus was the Son of 
 God, and to prove him to be Messiah. Filled with 
 the joy of personal salvation," convinced that the risen 
 Christ had appeared to him and made him his am- 
 bassador, illuminated in his understanding of the 
 Scriptures by his new faith, he bore his testimony to 
 the heavenly dignity of Jesus and the truth of his 
 Messianic claims. Such a man as he needed only 
 the experience through whicli he had passed to be at 
 once qualified for service. But, while he made dis- 
 ciples, his course roused, as was natural, the hatred of 
 the Jews. The latter were favored in a plot to kill 
 him bv the fact that Damascus was then under the 
 
86 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 control of the Nabatseans, a nation inhabiting ancient 
 Edom. The daughter of the reigning king, Aretas 
 IV., had been the first wife of Herod Antipas. In b. c. 
 88, the Nabatteans had conquered Damascus, and even 
 after the Roman conquest of Syria their hold on the 
 ancient city continued more or less constant. It 
 has been noted that from 35 to 61 a. d. there are 
 no Damascene coins bearing the Emperor's image. 
 While the precise and probably fluctuating political 
 relations of Damascus during the first century are 
 often obscure, there is no reason to question Paul's 
 statement that it was at this time governed by the eth- 
 narch of Aretas (II. Cor. xi. 32). The relations of the 
 Nabatseans with the Jews had generally been friendly. 
 It is not surprising, therefore, that the ethnarch lent 
 his aid to the Jews and sought to prevent Paul's escape. 
 The latter, however, was let down in a basket from a 
 window in the wall and so secured his liberty. 
 
 92. In this period, liowever, occurred Paid's sojourn 
 in Arabia, to which he alludes in Galatians i. 17. It 
 is not mentioned in Acts, doubtless because it was of 
 no public importance. Paul mentions it simply to 
 show that after his conversion he had not sought in- 
 struction from the older apostles. The journey seems 
 to have taken place either during his work in Damas- 
 cus related by Luke, or else after his escape from the 
 city. In either case he returned to Damascus from 
 Arabia. The length of his stay in Arabia and what 
 he did there are equally unknown. Some have sup- 
 posed that he sought a field of work. Others, with 
 more probability, su])pose that he sought retirement 
 and opportunity for reflection. Neither do we know 
 the place in Arabia to which he retired. But wher- 
 
PAUL'S RETURN TO JERUSALEM 87 
 
 ever in the three years following his conversion we 
 place the journey to Arabia, the principal fact is that 
 he first made Damascus, whither he had gone as a 
 persecutor, the scene of his confession of Jesus and 
 of his earliest service to the cause he had so suddenly 
 been led to espouse. 
 
 93. It was not till the third year after his conversion 
 that Paul returned to Jerusalem (Gal. i. 18-23; Acts 
 ix. 26-30). He tells us that he went to visit Peter, 
 wishing, doubtless, to connect his own work with that 
 of the original apostles. He mentions, also, that of the 
 loaders of the Jerusalem church he saw, besides Peter, 
 only James the Lord's brother ; that his stay was 
 limited to fifteen days; and that then, being still 
 unknown by face to the churches of Judea, lie departed 
 to Syria and Cilicia to preach the faith which formerly 
 he had destroyed. The account in Acts gives other 
 particulars. We there learn that the brethren in Jeru- 
 salem wore afraid of him, but that Barnabas took 
 him to " the apostles " and related the appearance of 
 Jesus to liim and his zeal as a preacher in Damascus. 
 Tt is added that in Jerusalem he preached to his old 
 friends, the Hellenistic Jews ; but that, wlion they 
 sought to slay him, the brethren brought him to 
 Caisarea and thence sent him to Tarsus. 
 
 94. These accounts by Paul and Luke have been 
 thought inharmonious ; but they are capable of a natural 
 adjustment when the points of view of the two writers 
 are considered. Tlie visit was brief, but not too brief 
 to preclude an attempt to bear his witness before those 
 with whom he had formerly blasphemed his master's 
 name. PTis main purpose was to visit Peter, but that 
 did not exclude his reception by other disciples in 
 
88 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 Jerusalem. Luke states that Barnabas took him to 
 " the apostles ; " but while this expression would in 
 the absence of other information naturally suggest the 
 whole body of apostles or a considerable number of 
 them, it is not incorrectly used if he was introduced to 
 whatever representatives of that body happened to be 
 in the city. Luke commonly restricts the term 
 " apostle " to its narrower sense, but he applies it twice 
 so as to include Barnabas (xiv. 4, 14). It may be, 
 therefore, that in this instance he had in mind Peter 
 and James, the Lord's brother, whom we know that 
 Paul met. Or he may have intended merely to record 
 the fact that Paul was introduced to the apostolic body 
 without regarding it as important whether one or 
 several representatives of it were present. In like 
 manner, Paul's statement that he was unknown by face 
 to the churches of Judea is not inconsistent with Luke's 
 statement that he preached to the Hellenists, nor need 
 the language mean that no disciples in Jerusalem 
 except Peter and James knew him personally. Both 
 accounts agree finally that from Jerusalem he went to 
 Syria (Caesarea) and Cilicia (Tarsus). 
 
 95. We infer, therefore, that the knowledge of his 
 vocation had wakened in Paul's mind the desire for co- 
 operation with the older leaders of the church. He 
 makes it plain indeed in Galatians that he maintained 
 his independent authority as an apostle of Christ, but 
 this does not exclude the wish to work in harmony with 
 others. The latter indeed is proved by Galatians ii. 
 1-10, to have been his desire throughout his ministry. 
 Nor need we suppose that his future mission was as yet 
 entirely clear to Paul himself. During this visit to 
 Jerusalem must be placed the vision which ho had in 
 
GRADUAL UNFOLDING OF FAUL'S VOCATION 89 
 
 the temple (Acts xxii. 17-21) in which he was directed, 
 in spite of his wish to tiie contrary, to leave Jerusalem 
 and go to the Gentiles. In coming to Jerusalem, there- 
 fore, he seems to have wished to take part with the 
 older apostles in their work. The full significance of 
 his commission as stated in general terms by Ananias 
 had not become clear ; still less did he for a moment 
 think of establishing a separate movement. The vision 
 in the temple, however, made his commission clearer, 
 and with the cordial recognition of his vocation by at 
 least the leaders of the church in Jerusalem, did he seek 
 other fields of labor. 
 
 96. Still further, there is no evidence that the ques- 
 tion of the observance of the law by Gentile converts 
 had yet been raised. We cannot say whether the con- 
 version of Cornelius had occurred. If it had, the 
 brethren in Jerusalem, not foreseeing the storm which 
 was to arise afterwards on this subject, would the more 
 readily assume that Paul might evangelize Gentiles 
 without disturbing the existing status. But more 
 probably the question had not yet been raised at all. 
 Zeal for the extension of the faith absorbed attention, 
 and the Jews themselves had- so long engaged in prose- 
 lyting that similar work by the Christians must have 
 seemed not unnatural. Moreover, Paul, then as after- 
 wards, was bent on first offering the gospel to the Jews 
 in foreign lands and from the synagogue reaching the 
 Gentiles. We may therefore believe that his peculiar 
 vocation opened before him gradually. The situation, 
 both as regards his attitude and that of the mother 
 church, was not such as to call forth any friction ; and 
 this was true, although, as we have seen, both his reli- 
 gious experience and the commission he had received 
 
90 EAELY EXPANSION OF CHKISTIANITY 
 
 pointed, as subsequent events proved, to a gospel for 
 Gentiles independent of any relation to the Jewish law. 
 The expanding Christianity was, however, being pro- 
 vided with its future leader. 
 
 97. Paul's life for the next eight or nine years is for 
 us wholly in the dark. He implies (Gal. i. 23) that he 
 was actively engaged in preaching Jesus. The churches 
 of Cilicia (Acts xv. 41), with others in Syria, may have 
 owed their origin to liis labors during this period. How 
 far they contained Gentiles we do not know ; yet the 
 fact that afterwards Barnabas brought Paul from Tar- 
 sus to Antioch, when the distinctively Gentile work in 
 the latter city began, seems to imply that already his 
 labors had been among Gentiles, and that Christ's com- 
 mission of him to such work was known. But this 
 obscure period must have been a fruitful one in Paul's 
 own life. The significance and implications of his faith 
 must have become clearer to him. His understanding 
 of the mission and teaching of his Lord must have ad- 
 vanced. The widening work must have increasingly 
 attracted him. The claims of Judaism must have daily 
 hung more loosely upon him ; for when he next appears 
 in the history we find him fully committed to the free- 
 dom of Gentiles from the law. During this period he 
 had also many experiences in the service and fellowship 
 of Jesus which, though unknown to us, entered pro- 
 foundly into his religious life ; for here we must place 
 some of the perils which he endured (II. Cor. xi. 23-27) 
 and the visions and revelations which he received (II. 
 Cor. xii. 1-9) to which he afterwards alluded. Wo 
 may, in short, believe that during this period Paul 
 was finally prepared, mentally and spiritually, for the 
 still greater service which lay before him. 
 
IV 
 
 PROGRESS OF THE MOTHER CHURCH 
 
 98. While Christianity was expanding in the re- 
 gions beyond Judea, the church in Jerusalem gradually 
 recovered from the blow of persecution. We cannot 
 say how long the persecution lasted. The first notice 
 of its cessation is in Acts ix. 31, but it is impossible to 
 date that statement with precision. We may believe 
 that the fury of the persecution lasted but a year or 
 two, and that with the conversion of Paul it lost its 
 chief instigator. 
 
 99. Its cessation was followed by a renewed growth 
 of the Christian community. The disciples again ap- 
 pear carrying on their work in public. Peter is repre- 
 sented as preaching in towns of Syria (ix. 32-42) and, 
 on his return, meeting the assembled church in Jeru- 
 salem (xi. 2). Some years later the disciples formed a 
 sufficiently large and well-known element of the popu- 
 lation to cause Herod Agrippa I. to seek to please the 
 Jews by renewing persecution. 
 
 100. The hostility of the authorities and the spread 
 of the faith had, however, the effect of separating the 
 disciples from the synagogues and leading them to 
 form a complete organization of their own. They 
 were indeed still loyal to the temple and the law. The 
 charge which had been brought against Stephen (Acts 
 vi. 13) did not represent a change in the attitude of 
 
92 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 the disciples as a body to the national worship. But 
 separation from the synagogues had in many cases 
 been forced upon them ; and even though this may 
 not have been always the case, the necessity for the 
 further organization of their own community had be- 
 come apparent. We have already noted this separa- 
 tion among the disciples in the dispersion (sect. 70). 
 We now find it in Judea. Mention is made of " the 
 elders" (Acts xi. 30) of Jerusalem, — a phrase which 
 implies that the disciples of the capital were organized 
 into a religious society, perhaps into several, modelled 
 after the synagogue. The same was true of those in 
 other towns of Judea (Gal. i. 20). The name " syna- 
 gogue" was retained for the Christian assembly (Jas. 
 ii. 2), but at the same time the term cedes ia was also 
 used to denote the society itself (Jas. v. 14 ; Schilrer, 
 HJP. II. ii. 58, note 48). The latter term was already 
 familiar, as a designation of the congregation of Israel, 
 through its use in the Septuagint (comp. Acts vii. 38). 
 It or its Aramaic equivalent had been used by Jesus 
 himself to denote the company of his disciples (Matt. xvi. 
 18; xviii. 17). Its meaning, too, — a body called out, 
 — doubtless contributed to its use by suggesting the 
 divine call to which believers had responded ; while 
 the advantage of having a distinct name for the new 
 society was obvious. Eeclesia became eventually the 
 regular term used among the Christians, except by a 
 few ultra Jewish-Christian sects, and is employed by 
 Luke to denote the body of disciples from the begin- 
 ning (Acts V. 11, etc.). Yet the new organization was 
 simply the transfer of Jewish forms to the new society. 
 As we have seen that before the persecution practical 
 necessity led to the erection of the eleemosynary office 
 
THE OFFICE OF ELDER 93 
 
 of " the seven," and as thus the inherent power of 
 the community to organize itself was exhibited, so 
 now the time had come when complete organiza- 
 tion was required for the independent welfare of the 
 church. 
 
 101. Thus must be explained the origin of the Chris- 
 tian office of elder. No specific account of its institu- 
 tion is given. We simply find it existing ; but there 
 can be no question that it was copied from the office of 
 the same name among the Jews. In each Jewish com- 
 munity the elders were the governing body. The time 
 had doubtless passed when only old men filled the 
 office, and the elders were chosen from the most in- 
 fluential. Originally they possessed both civil and reli- 
 gious authority ; but oftener, in the time of which we 
 are treating, their authority pertained chiefly to reli- 
 gious matters, except in those foreign cities where 
 civil jurisdiction was granted by the government to the 
 rulers of the Jewish colonies. The Jewish elders were 
 thus the representatives and rulers of the congregation 
 which assembled in the synagogue. They exercised 
 discipline, even to excommunication, and managed in 
 general the affairs of the synagogue. There were also 
 other officers particularly charged with the house of 
 meeting ; such as " the ruler (or rulers) of the syna- 
 gogue" who provided for the actual conduct of wor- 
 ship by securing readers and speakers ; " the minister " 
 (Chazzan), who cared for the sacred writings and per- 
 formed other duties under the direction of his superiors; 
 and the receivers of alms, who, however, were not 
 strictly officers of the synagogue (Schiirer, HJP. II. ii. 
 sect. 27). But the eldership constituted the chief syna- 
 gogal authority. Where more than one synagogue ex- 
 
94 p:arly ExrANSiON of Christianity 
 
 isted in a place, all the elders seemed to have formed 
 one body governing the entire community. Finally, 
 the great Sanhedrim in Jerusalem, consisting of 
 seventy-one members, besides being the governing body 
 of Judea, was the supreme court of the Jewish church 
 and world. 
 
 102. When, then, we find the disciples organized 
 under elders, the origin and character of the arrange- 
 ment is evident. The eldership was not primarily a 
 teaching office. Its functions were chiefly disciplinary 
 and executive. As in the synagogue any one was at 
 liberty to read or speak, so in the early churches there 
 was freedom of utterance, and the gifts of the Spirit 
 supplied the needs of the worshippers (comp. I. Cor. 
 xiv, 26), The elders, however, presided. They could 
 teach if they wished, and the superintendence of the 
 instructions, as well as of the order, of the congrega- 
 tion was in their hands. Of course they possessed no 
 priestly functions. As the synagogue was distinct 
 from the temple, so the object of its service was in- 
 struction, not sacrifice ; and those who ruled in either 
 synagogue or church had none of the functions of those 
 who officiated at the altar. In conformity with the 
 synagogal origin of the oflice, we find Christian elders 
 first mentioned as receiving the gifts from Antioch for 
 distribution among the poor (Acts xi. 30) ; as ap- 
 pointed by Paul and Barnabas over the new churches 
 in Asia Minor (xiv. 23) ; and as uniting with the 
 apostles in the council at Jerusalem (xv. 6, 22, 23). 
 It is probable tliat in Judea, as elsewhere (Acts xiv. 
 23 ; XX. 17), in each locality where a sufficient num- 
 ber of disciples existed, elders were chosen who gov- 
 erned the entire body of believers in that place. 
 
DELOCALIZATION OF THE APOSTOLATE 95 
 
 Certainly in Jerusalem, where there were many dis- 
 ciples and doubtless many places of meeting, there 
 was one body of elders ruling over all (xi. 30; xv. 6). 
 Whether any other features of the synagogue were 
 taken over, wc do not know ; but by the establishment 
 of the Christian eldership, two facts are made clear ; 
 namely, that the separation from Judaism had become 
 decided, and tliat the primitive conception of the church 
 was not based on the temple, but on the synagogue, 
 where the congregation met for instruction, praise, and 
 prayer. 
 
 103. The rise of organized churches seems also to 
 have modified gradually tlie work performed by the 
 apostles. At first they had been the sole officials. 
 With the appointment of " the seven," they were re- 
 lieved of the care of the poor, that they might attend 
 undividedly to teaching. With the establishment of 
 the eldersliip, their work was further modified. No 
 doubt it was they who directed the organization into 
 churches on the same practical principles which appear 
 in the institution of " the seven." They still contin- 
 ued to be the recognized authorities in matters of belief 
 (e. (/. I. Cor. ix. 1 ; xii. 23 ; 11. Cor. xii. 13 ; Eph. ii. 20 ; 
 iv. 11 ; Jude 17) ; but they now appear more and more 
 to have directed their efforts to the superintendence 
 and advancement of the cause at large. So Peter's 
 activity, quite early in this period, is expressly de- 
 scribed (Acts ix. 32). So too had Paul, as we have 
 seen, been sent forth to Cilicia. From this time Ave 
 hear no more of most of the original apostles. We 
 cannot doubt that they went abroad, as tradition 
 affirms (Eus. HE. III. 1), as missionaries and founders 
 of new churches, and that to them, as well as to other 
 
96 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 laborers, the spread of Christianity was due. Jerusa- 
 lem indeed continued for many years to be the head- 
 quarters of the faith, and to it they may have returned 
 like Paul himself from time to time. But the progress 
 and organization of the Judean churches appears to 
 have delocalized the apostolate and made it a travelling 
 and scattered body, delivering in wider circles the 
 gospel of the risen Lord (comp. I. Cor, ix. 5). 
 
 104. One event during this period illustrates partic- 
 ularly how the mother church was prepared to appre- 
 ciate the expansion of the faith that was beginning 
 (Acts X.). Cornelius, a Roman centurion of the Italian 
 cohort, located at Caesarea, belonged to the numerous 
 class of devout foreigners who had come under the 
 influence of Judaism. He worshipped Jehovah and 
 was constant in alms and prayers. This man was 
 directed in a vision to send for Peter, who was so- 
 journing in Joppa, that he might learn the will of the 
 Lord more perfectly. The apostle was also given a 
 significant vision. While waiting at noon on the house- 
 top for food to be prepared, he beheld in an ecstasy a 
 sheet let down from heaven, filled with beasts, creeping 
 things, and fowls, and he heard a voice saying, " Rise, 
 Peter, kill and eat." When he protested that he had 
 never eaten unclean food, the voice replied, " What 
 God hath cleansed, make not thou common " (Acts x. 
 15, R. v.). A second and a third time the vision was 
 repeated, and while Peter pondered on its meaning the 
 messengers from Cornelius arrived. The Spirit bade 
 him go with them, and Peter realized that the vision 
 and the summons were divinely connected. Probably 
 ho had never before doubted the binding force of 
 Jewish ordinances ; but he knew now that he must 
 
CONVERSION OF CORNELIUS 97 
 
 not limit his mission by them. Wlien, then,he reached 
 the house of Cornelius and heard the cause of the 
 summons, he did not hesitate to preach Jesus to the 
 Gentiles who were present and to offer them salvation 
 on condition of faith alone (x. 43). At once the Spirit 
 fell upon the company, to the astonishment of the 
 Jewish Christians who accompanied the apostle. That 
 signified God's acceptance of uncircumcised believers. 
 Peter recognized the divine will and without more 
 delay baptized the new disciples. He even continued 
 to live with them, in disregard of Jewish regulations, 
 for certain days. 
 
 105. This incident was felt to be revolutionary. The 
 news spread to Jerusalem, and while the conversion of 
 Gentiles could not but cause joy, the conduct of Peter 
 in living and eating with them offended the brethren. 
 When he returned, they took him to task for it. He 
 replied by rehearsing the facts, closing with the un- 
 answerable question, " What was I that I could with- 
 stand God?" (Acts xi. 1-17). He evidently felt that 
 since God had accepted Gentile believers without cir- 
 cumcision, he dared not refuse to recognize them as 
 brethren in the Lord even at the cost of the violation 
 of ceremonial customs ; and if he reflected on the 
 words, " What God hath cleansed, make not thou 
 common," he could hardly have failed to perceive that 
 he was meant to understand that the work of Jesus 
 consisted in the cleansing from all sin ; and that on 
 this basis the whole Mosaic ritual, its purpose having 
 been accomplished, was no longer necessary. Whether 
 he perceived this at the time or not, it was made clear 
 to him that God did not intend the ritual law to be 
 imposed on Gentiles. 
 
98 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 106. This incident shows that the rehition of Gen- 
 tile believers, and ultimately of all believers, to Juda- 
 ism was a subject on which, as Christianity expanded, 
 there was certain to be difference of opinion. Hitherto 
 it had been generally assumed that Gentile converts 
 would observe the law ; while as to the duty of Jews 
 there was no doubt. Peter himself ventured to trans- 
 gress the ordinances only after explicit direction from 
 the Lord ; and all that we know of the early Jewish 
 believers makes it certain that nothing but belief in a 
 revelation to that effect could have led the apostle so 
 to act. Hence the incident was remembered in after 
 times as a demonstration of what the will of the Lord 
 was. Its effect on Peter can be seen in his whole sub- 
 sequent career. He ever afterwards maintained the 
 freedom of Gentiles from the law (Acts xv. 7-11 ; 
 Gal. ii. 7, 8), and, though he was the apostle of the 
 circumcision, we find liim in Antioch living freely with 
 them (Gal. ii. 12). The church in Jerusalem also re- 
 cognized that at least God had granted to the Gentiles 
 repentance unto life (Acts xi. 18), though their dis- 
 approval of Peter's conduct may not have wholly 
 ceased, and though all may not have been ready to 
 apply the principle involved. This is not inconsistent 
 with the rise afterward, when the number of uncircum- 
 cised believers had increased, of a party who insisted 
 on the necessity of circumcision. The manifest work 
 of God silenced the voice of prejudice ; and, as the in- 
 cident became more significant in the light of later 
 controversy, so at the time it indicated the larger field 
 on which the faith was entering. 
 
 107. Thus Christianity advanced in Judea after the 
 cessation of the first persecution. It was recruited 
 
PERSECUTION BY HEROD AGKIPPA I. 99 
 
 chiefly, as the poverty of the disciples seems to prove 
 (Gal. ii. 10), from the humbler classes. Not a few, 
 however, of the Pharisees joined them (Acts xv. 5) ; 
 for the loyalty of the disciples to the law was un- 
 questionable. In many respects the movement still 
 appeared a spiritual revival of Judaism and appealed 
 powerfully to the religious aspirations of the best of 
 the people. And this condition of affairs was hardly 
 interrupted by the brief revival of persecution by Herod 
 Agrippa I. (Acts xii.). That prince, the grandson of 
 Herod the Great and brother of Plerodias who married 
 Herod Antipas, after a checkered career in Rome and 
 the East, had been given by his friend Gains Caligula, 
 on the latter's accession to the empire in a. d. 37, the 
 tetrarchies of Iturea, Trachonitis, and Abilene with the 
 title of king ; and to these were added, in a. d. 40, Gal- 
 ilee and Perea, which had formerly been governed by 
 Herod Antipas. Claudius, in a. d. 41, confirmed this 
 grant and added to it Judea and Samaria, which since 
 the death of Archelaus had been ruled by procurators. 
 Herod Agrippa was thus king of the Jews and governed 
 the same territory as his famous grandfather. His 
 reign lasted but three years.(e>7bs. Antiq. xix. 8. 2). He 
 was popular with the Jews and, when in Judea, obser- 
 vant of their customs. It was quite in accord with 
 what we know of his character that to please the Jews 
 he instituted persecution against the new sect. This 
 was in a. d. 44, the year of Herod's death. James, the 
 son of Zebedee, was slain with the sword. Only a 
 divine interposition saved Peter, wlio, after sending 
 word of his escape to James, the Lord's brother, and 
 to the other leaders, fled from the city. No mention, 
 however, is made of other seizures by Herod. Peter's 
 
100 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 language (xii. 17) has been thought to imply that the 
 other apostles had also left the city ; and, even apart 
 from the danger which threatened them, this may have 
 been the case. But the trouble appears to have soon 
 blown over. Herod died in the summer of that year 
 in Caesarea under strangely dramatic circumstances, 
 which are described independently, but with agreement 
 as to the main facts, by Josephus (Antiq. xix. 8. 2) and 
 Luke (xii. 20-23). The only significance of the perse- 
 cution was its indication of the determined rejection of 
 Christianity by the Jewish state as well as by the Jew- 
 ish church. However loyal to Judaism the disciples 
 might be, they could not but realize that the separa- 
 tion between them and the existing authorities was 
 complete. 
 
RISE OF GENTILE CHRISTIANITY IN ANTIOCH 
 
 108. It was probably a year or two before the Hero- 
 diaii persecution that the attention of the church in 
 Jerusalem was called to the progress of the faith in 
 Syrian Antioch. The events which had occurred there 
 were, in fact, the opening of a new chapter in the his- 
 tory of the religion of Jesus. In narrating them we 
 must go back to the dispersion which followed the 
 death of Stephen. 
 
 109. Some of the refugees fled northward to Phoe- 
 nicia and the island of Cyprus, which lay about fifty 
 miles off the Phojnician coast, and came finally to the 
 great metropolis of Syria, Antioch on the Orontes. Like 
 the other refugees, they preached as they journeyed, 
 but to Jews only. Some of them, Jews from Cyprus 
 and Cyrcnc, and therefore perhaps less narrowed than 
 others by Jewish prejudices, began preaching in Anti- 
 och to Gentiles.^ This met with much success. A 
 community of believers arose in the Syrian metropolis 
 composed mainly of uncircumcised foreigners with 
 whom the Jewish disciples lived on terms of equality. 
 The incident shows that, quite independently of the 
 
 1 Wliethcr''EA\7)»'as or 'EWrjviffTcis he the right reading in Acts xi. 
 20, there can be no doubt that the work was among the non-Jewish 
 population. 
 
102 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 divine preparation of Paul, and of the mother church 
 for work among the Gentiles, there was in some quar- 
 ters a tendency in the same direction traceable to the 
 spirit of the faith itself. It was, in fact, the inev- 
 itable issue of the offer of salvation by faith which had 
 been proclaimed from the beginning, and of the widen- 
 ing sympathies engendered by the expansion. 
 
 110. The rise of Gentile Christianity in Antioch was, 
 however, specially momentous because of the character 
 and position of that city. The Antiochan church was 
 fitted to be a new centre for the diffusion of the faith. 
 From it the message about Jesus, separated from Jewish 
 complications, could best issue into the empire. The 
 third city of the empire, outranked in size only by 
 Rome and Alexandria, crowded with a mixed popula- 
 tion and connected commercially with both East and 
 West, Antioch was the most important place for the 
 faith, advancing from Jerusalem, to occupy. Fi'om it 
 the new religion would be carried by report in every 
 direction. It lay just beyond the confines of Palestine, 
 and thus was not so far from the original centre as to 
 lose touch with the mother church. At the same time 
 it was the door from Palestine to the Grseco-Roman 
 world. No place was so well suited to be a base of 
 operations for the progress of Christianity into the 
 empire. It was surely not accidental that these un- 
 known refugees were led to begin their quiet but 
 portentous mission in Antioch. 
 
 111. We cannot say how soon after Stephen's death 
 this work began, nor how long it continued before at- 
 tracting the attention of the church in Jerusalem. 
 The report, however, evidently reached the latter shortly 
 before the Herodian persecution. Forthwith Barnabas 
 
MISSION OF BARNABAS TO ANTIOCII 103 
 
 was sent to examine into it. The Jerusalem church 
 thus assumed authority over the churches founded by 
 the refugees. The desire for examination into the re- 
 port implies likewise a sense of its novelty and of its 
 doubtful character from the strict Jewish point of view. 
 Yet the selection of Barnabas indicates the absence of 
 hostility to the new movement. Being himself a 
 Cypriote, he was naturally chosen to investigate a work 
 which had in part originated with his fellow-country- 
 men. He was also a man of liberal mind and hospi- 
 table to new developments of the cause, as had been 
 shown by his reception of the converted Paul. At the 
 same time he was of high repute among the brethren in 
 Jerusalem. He was thus fitted to appreciate the new 
 movement, if it was a genuine work of the Spirit of 
 Jesus, and to mediate, if necessary, between it and 
 the older church. His mission illustrates, therefore, 
 the joy of the mother church over the expansion of the 
 faith, her willingness to recognize it if genuine, and 
 yet no doubt the reluctance of most of the brethren 
 in Jerusalem to go themselves directly to the Gentiles. 
 That none of the apostles was sent may have been due 
 to their absence ; or to the feeling that, for the reasons 
 stated, Barnabas was best qualified to appreciate the 
 situation ; or possibly because, this being the action, 
 not of the apostles, but of the church (Acts xi. 22) one 
 of the local officials, such as Barnabas doubtless was, 
 was deemed the appropriate representative. 
 
 112. The choice certainly proved a wise one. Bar- 
 nabas recognized the genuinely Christian character of 
 the Gentile converts. With much largemindedness he 
 made no attempt to exact conformity to the Jewish 
 law. Nay, more. He departed at once to Tarsus and 
 
104 EAKLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 brought Paul from thence to Antioch, and the two 
 men labored together for a year in the new sphere 
 with greater results than before (Acts xi. 25-26}. 
 All this is very signihcant. It seems probable that 
 Barnabas was acquainted with Paul's commission to 
 the Gentiles ; that he sympathized with it ; and that 
 he saw in Antioch the divinely prepared opportunity 
 for it. It is clear too that neither of them thought for 
 a moment that Gentile believers would be bound by 
 the Jewish laws. That demand had not yet been raised 
 within the church. Thus the first Gentile church 
 known to history was established in harmonious rela- 
 tions with the mother church ; and in this new field 
 Barnabas and Paul began the work of expansion out- 
 side of the limits of Judaism, which they were to carry 
 on, together or separately, for many years. 
 
 118. Two other interesting facts are noted by Luke 
 in connection with the young churcli at Antioch (Acts 
 xi. 26-30). One is that here the name "Christian" 
 was first applied to the followers of Jesus. It must 
 have originated with the Gentiles, for obviously the 
 Jews would not have given it to them. It implies also 
 that they were no longer considered a Jewish sect, for 
 the term distinguishes them from the Jews. The 
 disciples had called themselves " believers " (Acts xi. 
 24; comp. I. Thess. i. 7 ; II. Thess. i. 10), or "breth- 
 ren" (Acts i. 15; ix. 30; x. 23), or "those of the 
 Way" (Acts ix. 2; comp. xix. 9; xxii. 4), or simply 
 " disciples " (Acts vi. 1, 2, 7 ; ix. 10, 19, 26, etc.). 
 Yet the title " Christian," while given them by others, 
 would naturally be a welcome one, and this the more 
 as their own consciousness of separation from Judaism 
 advanced. There was nothing necessarily derisive in 
 
ClllUSTlAN riioniETS 105 
 
 it. It speedily became their common title among the 
 Gentiles. The Jews indeed still called them Naza- 
 renes (Acts xxiv. 5). Yet even Agrippa (Acts xxvi. 
 28) used the term "Christian," doubtless because of 
 his acquaintance with its use elsewhere. Tacitus tes- 
 tilies that before Nero's persecution this was their 
 common name in Rome (Annales xv. 44) ; Peter (I. 
 Pet. iv. 16) intimates that the appellation was current 
 in Asia Minor. The term moreover is not of Latin 
 but of Greek origin. Denominatives of this form were 
 frequent among the Greeks, especially among the 
 Greek-speaking population of the East QLij)sius, Uber 
 den Ursprung und friiheren Gebrauch des Christenna- 
 mens). The title thus naturally originated in Antioch 
 under the circumstances which Luke describes, and 
 marks the first appearance of the faith among the 
 Gentiles as a non-Judaic religion. 
 
 114. The other fact noted by Luke is that 
 " prophets " from Jerusalem came to Antioch. This 
 remark introduces us to a class of persons of whom 
 frequent mention is made in apostolic literature (Acts 
 xiii. 1; XV. 32; xxi. 10; L Cor. xii. 28, 29 ; xiv. 29, 
 32, 37 ; Eph. ii. 20 ; iii. 5 ; iv. 11 ; Rev. x. 7 ; xi. 18 ; 
 xvi. 6 ; xviii. 20, 24 ; xxii. 6, 9). The prophet Avas 
 not an ordinary church official. Any one, from an 
 apostle (I. Cor. xiii, 2 ; xiv. 6 ; Rev. i. 3) to a private 
 member (Acts xxi. 9 ; L Cor. xii. 10 ; Rom. xii. 6 ; 
 L Cor. xiv. 29), might possess the gift. Prophecy 
 was the chief of those endowments which the Spirit 
 after Pentecost bestowed upon the church as the seal 
 of the Lord's triumph and the earnest of his people's 
 salvation. The New Testament conception of a 
 l)rophct is precisely that of the Old Testament. lie 
 
106 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 was one whom God made the organ for the com- 
 munication of truth to the church, — one who spoke 
 directly from God and whose words were the words of 
 God. The gift might be temporary or permanent. 
 It might operate with or without the use of rational 
 means for the acquisition of truth by the prophet. 
 The truth communicated might be didactic or predic- 
 tive or even historical (comp. I. Cor. xi. 23). The 
 existence therefore of prophets in the apostolic church 
 testifies to the belief that it was an age of revelation. 
 Besides having tlie historic teaching of Jesus, the dis- 
 ciples believed that God was continually communicat- 
 ing truth to them. This prophetic ministry belonged 
 to the apostles, but, as has been said, was not confined 
 to them, so that " on the foundation of the apostles 
 and prophets " was the church held to be established 
 (Eph. ii. 20). With other gifts of the Spirit, it made 
 the worship of the disciples partake largely of the 
 character of a Spirit-led and voluntary service. It 
 thus checked for a time the development of official 
 teachers in the congregation. We shall find later the 
 value of regular, official teachers emphasized (I. Cor. 
 X. 28 ; Eph. iv. 11 ; I. Tim. v. 17 ; II. Tim. ii. 2), and 
 from the beginning the instruction of converts was 
 never wanting (Acts ii. 42; I. Thess. v. 12; Gal. vi. 
 6 ; I. Cor, xii. 28 ; Rom. xii. 7). The utterances of 
 prophecy were moreover to be tested by the teaching 
 already given by the apostles (II. Thess. iii. 6, 14 ; I, 
 Cor. xiv. 37 ; I. Johniv. 2, 6). But the prophets were 
 the living evidence of the continuance of the prophetic 
 office of Messiah by whose Spirit they spake. The 
 beliefs of the disciples, resting on this basis, were 
 therefore to them authoritative revelations. This 
 
THE PREDICTION OF THE FAMINE 107 
 
 belief in living prophecy, united with belief in apostolic 
 authority, crcuted among the Christians the convic- 
 tion that a now revelation was being made to them 
 in addition to, thougli including, the teaching and 
 work of Jesus, and linally laid the ground for a belief 
 in an inspired Christian literature, corresponding to 
 the Old Testament, which we find expressed in the 
 apostolic age itself (e. g. 11. Thess. ii, 2 ; iii. 14 ; 
 I. Cor. xiv. 27 ; II. Pet. iii. 1, 2, 16; I. John i. 3, 4; 
 Rev. i. 3, 11 ; xxii. 18, 19). In the " Teaching of the 
 Apostles" (ab. a. d. 100) we still read of prophets as 
 itinerant preachers ; and we shall not appreciate prop- 
 erly the consciousness of the apostolic Christians, if 
 we omit their faith in a present revelation which was 
 being communicated to them by inspired men. 
 
 115. Luke's reference to the prophets who came 
 from Jerusalem to Antioch indicates the cordial re- 
 lations which existed between the old and the new 
 communities. This soon found further expression. 
 One of the prophets, Agabus by name, doubtless in 
 one of the public services of the church, predicted that 
 a great famine was about to come on the whole empire 
 (Acts xi. 28). Probably this prediction formed part of 
 an inspired descri])tion of the woes which would fall 
 on the world and especially on the Jews before Mes- 
 siah's return (comp. Matt. xxiv. 7 ; Rev. vi. 5, 6). At 
 any rate, the prediction of a famine was specific. 
 Luke notes that this happened during the reign of 
 Claudius. That this was so in Judea is confirmed by 
 Josephus (Antiq. xx. 2. 5 and 5. 2) who calls it the " great 
 famine." He locates it during the procuratorships of 
 Fadus (a. d. 44-46) and Tiberius Alexander (a. d. 46- 
 48 ?). We know also of other famines under Claudius 
 
108 EARLY EXPANSION OE CHKISTIANITY 
 
 (^Dio Cass. Ix. 11; Tac. Ann. xii. 43; Suet. Claud. 18). 
 Two of these were felt at Rome, which implies that 
 they raged in the provinces whence the food-supply 
 of the capital was drawn. Eusebius (Chron. i. 79) 
 also refers to one in Greece. Luke's remark therefore 
 is quite justified ; but the important fact is the action 
 taken by the Antiochan Christians. They expected, as 
 probably Agabus had declared, that the famine would 
 come soon ; so they began at once to raise a fund for 
 the relief of the brethren in Judea (Acts xi. 29). This 
 implies that most of the Judean disciples were known 
 to be poor (comp. Gal. ii. 10) and also that the An- 
 tiochans recognized their special obligation to the 
 mother church. The two churches were thus united 
 in love and mutual helpfulness; and the two men to 
 whose labors the church at Antioch owed the most, 
 were chosen as the bearers of their gift. The aid was 
 carried to the elders of Jerusalem by Barnabas and 
 Paul (Acts xi. 30). 
 
 >r 116. This mission of Barnabas and Paul has, how- 
 ever, occasioned difficulty because of the fact that Paul 
 does not mention it in the first chapter of Galatians. 
 It is thought by many that his argument required him 
 to mention every visit he had made to Jerusalem since 
 his conversion. Hence Luke's account in this place 
 has been deemed unhistorical. Others have sought to 
 identify this visit with that described in Gal. ii. 1-10, 
 when also Barnabas accompanied Paul (^Ramsay, St. 
 Paul the Trav. p. 55). But to the latter view there 
 are insuperable objections. The visit of Galatians ii. 
 had for its chief object the declaration of the gospel 
 which Paul preached among the Gentiles and the 
 determination of the attitude of the mother church 
 
THE VISIT WITH THE GIFTS 109 
 
 toward Gentile converts. Paul's language implies that 
 the recognition of uncircumcised believers was then a 
 burning question. He had also private interviews with 
 James, Peter, and John on the subject of work among 
 the Gentiles. The apostle's object is to point out that 
 harmony with his views and the cordial recognition of 
 his mission prevailed. Only incidentally does he men- 
 tion the desire of the leaders of the Jerusalem church 
 that he should remember the poor (Gal. ii. 10). This 
 account does not correspond at all with the cordial 
 relations which we have found existing between the 
 churches of Jerusalem and Antioch when the visit 
 with the gifts was made, nor with the entire absence 
 of the question of circumcision at that time. The re- 
 quest that he should remember the poor is also much 
 more natural if on a previous occasion he had done so, 
 than on the assumption that it was made without justi- 
 fication in his former life. Still further, this identifica- 
 tion supposes that the important visit recorded in Acts 
 XV. is not mentioned at all in the epistle, although 
 it had, on any reasonable view of the date of the 
 writing, certainly occurred. We must conclude there- 
 fore that Paul does not mention the visit with the 
 gifts. This, however, need not throw doubt on its 
 occurrence. His argument in reality required him 
 only to mention those occasions on which he had met 
 the older apostles (comp. Gal. i. 16, 17). It is worthy 
 of note that in Acts he is said merely to have been 
 sent to the elders of the Jerusalem church. The visit 
 was doubtless brief, for the gifts, being probably in the 
 form of money, were soon turned over to the elders. 
 There is no sufficient reason to assume that Paul and 
 Barnabas remained to distribute them. If also Acts 
 
110 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 xi. 30 and xii. 24, when their place in Luke's narra- 
 tive is observed, imply, as some believe, that the visit 
 occurred in the very year of the Herodian perse- 
 cution (a. D. 44), another reason is suggested for its 
 brevity and for the improbability that the visitors met 
 any of the apostles. So Paul and Barnabas hastened 
 back to their field of labor. Luke only adds, in an- 
 ticipation of his further narrative, that they took with 
 them to Antioch the cousin (Col. iv. 10, R. V.) of Bar- 
 nabas, John whose surname was Mark (Acts xii. 25). 
 
VI 
 
 THE jnSSIONAEY JOUENEY OF PAUL AND BARNABAS 
 
 117. Antioch soon became the point of departure 
 for a greater expansion of the faith than any yet known. 
 This originated in a revelation of the Spirit made to 
 five prophets and teachers of that church (Acts xiii. 1, 
 2). Four of them, Barnabas, Simeon Niger, Lucius of 
 Cyrenc, and Paul, were Hellenistic Jews. The fifth 
 had once been the foster-brother or comrade {JDeiss- 
 mann, Bibelstudien, p. 178) of Herod Antipas, and may 
 have been a Jo,'^ likewise. The point to be noted is 
 that they belonged to the circle which had already 
 taken the deepest interest in the expansion of the 
 faith. To them, as they worshipped, the Spirit gave 
 the command, " Separate me Barnabas and Saul to 
 the work whereunto I have called them ; " and forth- 
 with the two missionaries were set apart by the laying 
 on of hands to their new mission. 
 
 118. The work itself was undesignated, but there 
 could be no doubt that it was to be among the Gentiles. 
 This, of course, did not exclude work among the Jews. 
 The synagogues were the first places in which the mis- 
 sionaries began to preach, and through them, indeed, 
 they could best reach the Gentiles. But the work was 
 not to be limited to Jews, and it was to be carried on 
 in Gentile lands. No explicit program, however, was 
 furnished. The messengers of Messiah were to be 
 
112 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 guided by the Spirit and by Providence. Nor may 
 they at first have appreciated the magnitude of their 
 enterprise, but went forth in obedience to the divine 
 command. They were sent also by the church, acting 
 in the persons of the three remaining prophets and 
 teachers who laid their hands upon the brethren. 
 This did not make Barnabas and Paul apostles of 
 Christ in the technical sense (Gal. i. 1), but it made 
 them apostles of the church (Acts xiv. 4, 14). Their 
 mission was thus both a divine vocation and an enter- 
 prise of the Antiochan church. We may believe also 
 that it accorded with an already formed wish of Barna- 
 bas and Paul. It was very opportune. The men had 
 been prepared for the work. The work was waiting 
 for the men. The church had been formed which was 
 ready to support the missionaries, and it lay at the 
 gateway of the Roman world. All conspired to make 
 the mission the climax of the progress hitherto attained 
 and to open the way for further expansion. 
 
 119. The date of the journey can only be approxi- 
 mately assigned to the period between a. d. 44 and 50. 
 Nor are there any clear indications of the time con- 
 sumed by it. Ramsay estimates its length at two 
 years and four months (Church in the Empire, pp. 61, 
 67,72), but his reasoning is not demonstrative. Others 
 think it consumed but a single summer. We shall 
 perhaps be safe in locating it in 47 and 48. 
 
 120. The route first taken seems to have been de- 
 termined by practical considerations. Accompanied 
 by John Mark as a helper (xiii. 5), the missionaries 
 went from Antioch to its seaport, Seleucia, and thence 
 sailed to Cyprus. This was doubtless because Barna- 
 bas was from that island. Work, too, had been already 
 
FROM CYPRUS TO PERGA 113 
 
 begun there (xi. 19), and the large number of Jews 
 provided the means by which those Gentiles who were 
 influenced by the synagogue might be reached. Land- 
 ing at Salamis, they preached in the synagogues, and 
 gradually traversed the whole length of the island. 
 No note of their success is given until they reached 
 Paphos, at the western extremity of Cyprus. There the 
 proconsul himself, Sergius Paulus, embraced the faith. 
 He had been influenced by Judaism and was interested 
 in religion ; but he had fallen under the sway of a 
 Jewish sorcerer, Barjesus, who called himself Elymas, 
 or " the wise man," and had a place apparently in the 
 proconsul's retinue. When Elymas opposed the mis- 
 sionaries, Paul openly denounced the wickedness of 
 the renegade Jew and smote him with blindness (xiii. 
 8-11) ; and this sign secured the adhesion of the Roman 
 to the new teaching (xiii. 12). Luke narrates the in- 
 cident because, as in the case of Simon Magus, it illus- 
 trated the triumph of the faith over those religious 
 impostors who were so prominent a feature of the 
 Roman world in the apostolic age. 
 
 121. From this time Paul — as he is thenceforth 
 called in Acts (xiii. 9) — .appears as the leader of 
 the campaign (xiii. 13; xiv. 12); and it was perhaps 
 at his suggestion that they sailed northward to Perga 
 in Pamphylia. There Mark left them and returned to 
 Jerusalem. His conduct displeased Paul (xv. 38). We 
 may conjecture that Mark was unwilling to enter on 
 so bold and large an enterprise as that which the 
 apostle was undertaking in Asia Minor (see Ramsay^ 
 St. Paul, etc., p. 90; Mcaiffert, Ap. Age, p. 176). 
 Whether the unwillingness arose from personal or 
 theoretical motives does not appear. It again evi- 
 
114 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 dences the devotion of Barnabas that, in spite of his 
 kinsman's return, he was ready to go forward. The 
 stay at Perga, however, was for some unknown reason 
 brief; and we find the party immediately advancing 
 northward, probably along the Oestrus and by way of 
 Adaba (^Ramsay, Ch. in Emp. p. 19), to Pisidian An- 
 tioch (xiii. 14), a city of Phrygia, lying toward the 
 Pisidian border, which was then the military centre 
 of the southern part of the province of Galatia, The 
 journey was a rough and perilous one. In it may per- 
 haps be located some of the dangers mentioned in II. 
 Cor. xi. 26, 27. But in Pisidian Antioch the mission- 
 aries reached a place of large importance. Paul had 
 probably long had it in mind as the centre of the 
 province lying north of his own Cilicia. In it also 
 was a mimerous colony of Jews. By visiting it, Paul 
 followed his well-known policy of seizing the chief 
 centres of population and influence. 
 
 122. The work in Pisidian Antioch began as usual 
 in the synagogue, and Paul's address (Acts xiii. 16-41) 
 aroused at once the interest of both the Jews and the 
 devout Gentiles who were present. It is worthy of 
 special notice as being the earliest recorded teaching 
 of the apostle. (1) In it he first reviewed briefly the 
 history of Israel (16-25), to show that God's purpose 
 culminated in the sending of a Saviour, even Jesus, 
 whom John the Baptist had specifically declared to be 
 Messiah. This part of the address is like' Stephen's 
 in its historical point of' view; but it follows quite a 
 different line of thought, bringing out the sovereign 
 power and plan of God in Hebrew history and setting 
 Jesus forth as the Christ of promise. Its closing 
 words show that the mission of the Baptist was well 
 
PAUL'S ADDRESS AT PISIDIAN ANTIOCH 115 
 
 known among the Jews of the dispersion (comp. also 
 xviii. 25 ; xix. 3), and illustrate Paul's familiarity 
 with the teaching of John as it is given in the gospels 
 (comp. verses 24, 25 with, e.g., Luke iii. 15, 16 ; John 
 i. 20-27). (2) The address next recounted (26-37) 
 the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Both his 
 death and resurrection were in precise accord with 
 prophecy, and demonstrated him to be the one through 
 whom the promises to Israel will be fulfilled. In this 
 section we are reminded of Peter's speeches at and 
 after Pentecost (comp, verse 27 with iii. 17 ; ii. 23 ; iii. 
 18 ; verse 28 with iii. 13 ; verses 33-35 with ii. 27 ; verse 
 
 37 with ii. 31) ; but the material is such as would have 
 been naturally common to both preachers. There are 
 also characteristic Pauline ideas. The ignorance of 
 the Jews displayed in the rejection of Jesus (comp. 
 I. Cor. ii. 8 ; I. Tim. 1. 13), the Lord's burial (comp. 
 I. Cor. XV. 4), his repeated appearances to the original 
 disciples (I. Cor. xv. 5-7), are elsewhere emphasized 
 by Paul. That he does not here appeal to Christ's 
 appearance to himself is natural, since he was ad- 
 dressing strangers, and the primary point was to 
 appeal to the original witnesses in Jerusalem. This, 
 too, is in accord with his method as described by him 
 in 1. Cor. xv. 5-7. I 
 
 123. (3) The close of the address (38-41) strikes a I 
 still more decidedly Pauline note. Like Peter (Acts ii. / 
 
 38 ; V. 31 ; x. 43), but also using a form of expression 
 found in his own epistles (Epli. i. 7 ; Col. i. 14 ; comp. 
 Rom. iv. 7 and Acts xxvi. 18), he declared that through 
 Jesus " forgiveness of sins " was offered to them. But 
 he went further. As every Jew would agree, salvation 
 consists in the declaration by God that before him a 
 
116 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 man is righteous. This, Paul said, is now possible. 
 In Jesus every believer is justified, and, as he puts it 
 with great emphasis on the word " all," is justified 
 from all things from which he could not be justified 
 by the law of Moses. This may be regarded as an 
 appeal to his hearers' consciousness that the law did 
 not secure to them real reconciliation with God, but 
 only an apparent and unsatisfying merit (comp. Rom. 
 X. 3 ; Phil. iii. 6, 9) ; or it may be understood as a 
 declaration that they could not by the law, while they 
 could by faith, be completely justified. In either case 
 the idea is entirely Pauline (comp. Wendt, Apostel- 
 geschichte). The warning also against their probable 
 unbelief is again after Paul's manner (II. Thess. ii. 14, 
 16 ; Rom. ix.-xi.). While offering Jesus to the Jews, 
 he realized fully that the nation as such, like the 
 rulers in Jerusalem, would reject him. 
 
 124. This address then furnishes the first glimpse 
 into the apostle's thought and method as a preacher. 
 Luke's report is, of course, an abstract, and contains 
 traces of his own style and vocabulary. Yet as in other 
 cases he preserves the thought, and in great measure 
 the diction, of the speaker. The address was certainly 
 adapted to the mixed audience that heard it. We 
 should not regard Paul's epistles as representative of 
 his ordinary method of preaching. His speeches in 
 Acts exhibit a versatility and adaptation which testify 
 to both the authenticity of the reports and the power 
 of the apostle. We may infer also, from allusions in 
 the epistles, that his preaching was varied and practi- 
 cal as well as argumentative (e.^. I. Thess. i. 9, 10; 
 ii. 11, 12 ; iii. 4 ; Gal. iii. 1 ; 1. Cor. ii. 1-5). Here, 
 the historical introduction was calculated to awaken 
 
TURNING TO THE GENTILES 117 
 
 the confidence of his hearers in him as a loyal Hebrew. 
 His presentation of Jesus, by emphasizing the fulfil- 
 ment of prophecy and the power of God in the resur- 
 rection, was suited to make the deepest impression. 
 His conclusion appealed to the longing of the human 
 heart, whether Jew or Gentile, for real salvation. At 
 the same time the thought moves entirely in the circle 
 of Pauline teaching as we know it from the epistles. 
 Salvation lies in justification before God. Faith alone 
 is its condition. The death and resurrection of 
 Christ are the means whereby salvation has been 
 accomplished and certified. These were the leading 
 truths which Paul taught in his epistles. We find 
 him already teaching them in Antioch ; while his in- 
 timation (verse 39) that the law cannot save shows 
 that he stood on the ground on which he was destined 
 soon to fight the battle of Christian liberty and de- 
 fend the sufficiency of Jesus' work. 
 
 125. The favorable impression produced by the ad- 
 dress brought a larger concourse, specially of Gentiles, 
 to the synagogue on the next Sabbath. This, however, 
 awakened the anger of the Jews, who feared the loss of 
 their own influence. Hence Paul and Barnabas were 
 led to declare that their responsibility to the Jews was 
 at an end and that they would turn to the Gentiles. 
 It is the first known time that this course was taken 
 by them, but it is a typical example of their method. 
 Unlike the gradual way in which the Palestinian dis- 
 ciples separated from the synagogue, in these foreign 
 regions the separation was usually rapid. A Christian 
 community arose in Pisidian Antioch which was mainly 
 Gentile, and between which and the synagogue antago- 
 nism at once began. The synagogue possessed, of 
 
118 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 course, the greater influence in the city. It was espe- 
 cially influential among the women (comp. Jos. BJ. 
 II. 20. 2), and women occupied a prominent position in 
 the society and even in the political and official life of 
 the cities of Asia Minor (^Ramsay., Ch. in Emp. p. 67). 
 Through these agencies the civil authorities were 
 arrayed against the missionaries, and the latter were 
 expelled. They went to Iconium, leaving behind them 
 a considerable body of believers. 
 
 126. Iconium was another Phrygian city, and lay 
 about eighty miles southeast of Antioch, near the bor- 
 der of Lycaonia. Ramsay has made it probable that 
 in this journey Paul and Barnabas followed one of the 
 great Roman roads which traversed the provinces and 
 united them for military and commercial purposes 
 (Ch. in Emp. p. 27). The work in Iconium was like 
 that in Antioch, and was attended with equal success. 
 The Jews, however, again made trouble, and when the 
 work had progressed for some time (xiv. 3), so that the 
 city was divided between the two parties, threatened 
 another persecution from the authorities. Thereupon 
 the missionaries passed over into Lycaonia and visited 
 the two cities of Lystra and Derbe. This was not, how- 
 ever, a mere flight for safety into an unimportant 
 region. Lystra, which lay eighteen miles southwest 
 from Iconium, was a Roman colony and a military cen- 
 tre (Ch. in Emp. p. 47) ; and, though the site of Derbe 
 is still unidentified, it was probably an important place 
 on the southeastern frontier of the province of Galatia 
 {ibid. p. 54). The missionaries, therefore, still sought 
 centres of influence and, though everywhere facing 
 persecution, steadily pursued their plan. 
 
 127. Their stay in Lystra was made notable by Paul's 
 
PAUL AT LYSTRA 119 
 
 healing a lame man (Acts xiv. 8, etc.). The miracle 
 had the effect of persuading the populace that the 
 foreign, Greek-spealving visitors were none other than 
 the gods Zeus and Hermes ; and the priest of the tem- 
 ple of Zeus before the city was about to offer to them 
 sacrilices. This was truly a new and unexpected form 
 of misunderstanding, and gave occasion for a new style 
 of address from Paul's lips (xiv. 15-18). He bravely 
 proclaimed, in the face of idolatry, the one living and 
 true God, the Creator and governor of all, the benefi- 
 cent author of that Nature which heathenism blindly 
 worshipped. Again the report is a mere abstract, but 
 it bears its substantial authenticity on its face. Though 
 there is not a word in it of the way of salvation, it is 
 strikingly accordant with Paul's expressions elsewhere 
 (comp. verse 15 with I. Cor. viii. 4 ; Rom. i. 20-23 ; 
 I. Thess. i. 9 ; verse 16 with Acts xvii. 26 ; Rom. i. 24 ; 
 iii. 25 ; verse 17 with Rom. i. 20), and reveals the 
 broad basis of natural religion on which his specifically 
 Christian teaching rested. It illustrates also his power 
 of adaptation to his audience. 
 
 128. It is probable that during the visit to L}' 
 Timothy was converted. On Paul's next visit (xv 
 he found this young disciple well reported of by the 
 brethren, and took him for a companion. He always 
 speaks of Timothy as one of his own converts (I. Tim. 
 i. 2, 18; II. Tim. i. 2 ; ii. 1), and reminds him in later 
 life of the perils he had undergone at this time (II. 
 Tim. iii. 10, 11). It is natural to infer, therefore, that 
 Timothy was converted during this visit. He must 
 have been very young. Ilis Jewish mother, Eunice , 
 had married a Gentile, but had trained her son in the 
 Scriptures of her race (Acts xvi. 3 ; II. Tim. i. 5 ; iii. 15). 
 
 rstra \ 
 
120 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 He had, however, not been circumcised. Perhaps his 
 mixed blood made him specially sympathize with the 
 Hebrew preacher to the Gentiles. Paul's affectionate 
 references to Timothy's mother and grandmother (II. 
 Tim. i. 5) suggest also that the persecuted missionary 
 found in them receptive listeners and warm friends, and 
 perhaps in their house a home. 
 
 129. The work in Lystra was, however, interrupted 
 by Jews from Antioch and Iconium, who followed the 
 missionaries and persuaded the populace against them. 
 Where Paul had been offered worship, he was now 
 dragged out of the city and stoned (Acts xiv. 19). 
 Happily he was not killed, and on the next day left 
 with Barnabas for Derbe. Nothing is said of the 
 work in Derbe except that disciples were made. 
 The missionaries had now reached the limit of south 
 Galatia, and determined to return to Syrian Antioch 
 with a report of their mission. They might have 
 crossed the mountains southwards into Cilicia and 
 gone by way of Tarsus to Syria, but they did not 
 wish to leave the new converts without further in- 
 struction and organization. Hence, in spite of the 
 danger, they resolved to return by the way they had 
 come. It may have been that the danger had decreased, 
 perhaps by the election of new magistrates in the 
 cities of the province {Ramsay^ Ch. in Emp. p. 69). 
 But their motive was to revisit the disciples, and this 
 they would have done in the face of danger. So from 
 Derbe they returned to Lystra, and from Lystra to 
 Iconiura, and from Iconium to Pisidian Antioch. They 
 not only encouraged, instructed, and warned the con- 
 verts, but organized them into churches by the selec- 
 tion and ordination of elders (xiv. 22) in every place. 
 
METHODS OF THE MISSIONARIES 121 
 
 From Pisidian Antioch they returned to Perga. There 
 they stopped to preach, as they had not done on the 
 former visit. Thence they went to the seaport, Attalia, 
 and sailed to Syrian Antioch, where they related to 
 the church " all things that God had done with them, 
 and how that he had opened a door of faith unto the 
 Gentiles" (Acts xiv. 27, R. V.). 
 
 130. As we review this first missionary tour, we 
 may observe the principles on which Paul and Barna- 
 bas acted, (rt) Their plan was, in general, to move 
 westward into the regions next beyond those already 
 occupied. It would be too much to say that Paul as 
 yet contemplated the winning of the empire to the 
 faith. They doubtless went to Cyprus, because it was 
 the home of Barnabas, and then to Phrygia and 
 Lycaonia, because they lay just beyond Cilicia, where 
 Paul had lived and worked. But their purpose pointed 
 westward, and thus may indicate that they sought 
 instinctively to carry the new religion into the civil- 
 ized, Roman world. (&) Their policy was to begin 
 in the chief cities of each district, since these were 
 the centres of influence, (c) They established in each 
 city an organized church, by the constitution of which 
 the life of the disciples would be fostered. (r7) They 
 always offered the gospel first to Jews, thus never 
 forgetting the claims of Israel ; but their churches 
 were mixed, in most of them Gentiles predominated, 
 and in them all Jew and Gentile stood on an equal foot- 
 ing. In none was observance of the Mosaic law re- 
 garded as necessary, {e) We should assume also that 
 everywhere they carried the story of Jesus' life, death, 
 and resurrection ; instructed the converts in the beliefs 
 and duties of the new religion ; and laid a broad 
 
122 EARLY EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 foundation for subsequent Christian life. These 
 details are barely hinted at in our meagre reports, 
 but Paul's conduct in his other journeys leaves no 
 doubt as to his method. 
 
 131. Finally, it should be noted that in the univer- 
 sal spread of the Greek language and in the Roman 
 government of the provinces there was an evident 
 providential preparation for their mission. Nor had 
 Judaism itself failed to prepare the way. Synagogues 
 were found in all the cities, and in connection with 
 them a large number of Gentiles who had been pro- 
 foundly impressed by the religion of Jehovah and 
 from whom most of the converts came. The exist- 
 ence of such devout Gentiles is amply attested both 
 by the Acts (xiii. 16, 43, 50), secular history, and 
 recently deciphered inscriptions. Thus the men and 
 the means, the faith and the world, were brought 
 together. The expansion, begun with the death of 
 Stephen, had steadily continued, finding new fields to 
 enter and new men to enter them. With this the 
 church's realization of its mission had expanded like- 
 wise. In Paul finally had appeared the man who by 
 training, experience, and revelation was prepared to 
 maintain the principles on which the expansion could 
 logically proceed and to carry it onward. 
 
PART III 
 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
HISTORICAL SOURCES 
 
 132. To the phase of apostolic history included in 
 the following part the book of Acts contributes the 
 account of the council at Jerusalem (xv. 1-35), and 
 that of Paul's reception by James and the elders at the 
 close of his third missionary journey (xxi. 18-21). 
 With the former is to be compared Galatians ii. Their 
 harmony will be discussed in the course of the following 
 narrative. 
 
 133. For the general character of Judaic Christi- 
 anity the leading authority is the epistle of James. 
 While Origen is the first known writer to cite this 
 book by name, the evidence of its use goes back to the 
 apostolic age itself. It was used by Clement of Rome 
 (a. d. 96) and Hermas (a. d. 140 ?), and acquaintance 
 with it is clearly disclosed in the first epistle of Peter 
 (comp. I. Pet. i. 6, 7 and Jas. i. 2 ; I. Pet. i. 24 and 
 Jas. i. 10, 11 ; I. Pet. i. 25 and Jas. i. 18 ; I. Pet. ii. 1 
 and Jas. i. 21 ; I. Pet. v. 5, 6, 8 and Jas. iv. 6, 7 ; 
 I. Pet. iv. 8 and Jas. v. 20). It belongs, therefore, to 
 the earlier part of the apostolic age, and its contents 
 point to a date before the controversy about circum- 
 cision had begun. There is no allusion to the relation 
 of Gentiles and Jews in the church. The difficulties 
 and faults contemplated in it lie wholly in the sphere 
 of Jewish life. In the communities addressed believ- 
 
126 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 ing and unbelieving Hebrews mingle (ii. 1-13) ; and the 
 writer's teaching about justification (ii. 14-26) is not 
 directed against Paul's doctrine, for the two in reality 
 coincide (comp. Gal. v. 6, 14, 22, 23 ; vi. 9, 10 ; Rom. 
 vi. 12, 13), nor against a current misrepresentation of 
 Paul, for then he would have stated his view more 
 fully, but is best explained as directed against a formal, 
 intellectual faith which was, as Pharisaism shows, 
 a besetting sin of Judaism. These features comport 
 best with a date before the council at Jerusalem, say 
 A. D. 45-50. The author describes himself simply as 
 " James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus 
 Christ ; " and this title, as well as the whole character 
 of the epistle, supports the view that he was the well- 
 known brother of the Lord. 
 
 134. So strongly Judaic is the tone of this epistle, 
 that a few recent critics have maintained it to be the 
 work of a non-Christian Jew, interpolated here and 
 there by a Christian hand. The conclusive reply to 
 this is that the work is saturated with allusions to the 
 teachings of Jesus (e. g. i. 2, 4, 5, 9, 12, 20 ; ii. 13 ; 
 iii. 1; iv. 10; v. 2, 8, 10, 12), and other Christian 
 ideas {e.g. i. 6, 8, 21; ii. 5, 12, 13; iv. 5 ; v. 8, 9), 
 while it contains references to the early history of 
 Christianity (ii. 5, 6; v. 14) and probably to baptism 
 (ii. 7). Moreover, an interpolator would certainly have 
 introduced more frequent mention of Jesus than the 
 two cases which alone occur (i. 1 ; ii. 1). Hence a larger 
 number of scholars date the epistle much later, and 
 deny that it was written by " the Lord's brother." It 
 is said that it lays no stress on the ceremonial law, 
 such as James would have done ; that the worldliness 
 which it reproves is inconceivable at a very early date, 
 
THE EPISTLE OF JAMES 127 
 
 as is also the absence of allusions to Christ, and to his 
 teaching about the fatherhood of God and the kingdom 
 of heaven. The epistle is held, therefore, by this class 
 of critics to be the work of an unknown author, who 
 lived late in the first century. He was not addressing 
 Jewish Christians in particular, but expresses a legal- 
 istic type of Christianity which, it is said, widely pre- 
 vailed outside of Pauline circles after the work of Paul 
 had been concluded. These criticisms in turn are not 
 well founded. The first forgets the Christianity of 
 James, which is as well attested as his attachment to 
 the law. It is most probable that, like Jesus, he would 
 lay stress on the spiritual content of the law; and if 
 the conflict concerning the relation of the believer to 
 the law had not yet risen, there was no reason for him 
 to exhort Jewish readers to observe its forms, even if 
 he had been inclined to do so. As to the worldliness 
 of the readers, it is sufficient to recall the examples of 
 Ananias and Sapphira after Pentecost, and the condition 
 of the young Corinthian church five years after it was 
 founded, to show that even in the earliest part of the 
 apostolic age the church was exposed to temptations 
 of the most carnal kind. Its alleged legalism, more- 
 over, disappears when its teaching is carefully examined. 
 The argument drawn from the paucity of references to 
 Jesus is more plausible ; but these features are equally 
 difficult of explanation at a later period. In either 
 case, the Christian element in the epistle is unquestion- 
 able ; and its peculiarities are most naturally explained 
 b}^ assigning to it an early date, and supposing that it 
 was addressed especially to the Jewish Christians of 
 Syria ('/. B. Mayor, Th. ZaJm, Bcyschlag). 
 
 135. In addition to these authorities for Judaic 
 
128 JUDAIC CHKISTIANITY 
 
 Christianity should be named the epistle to the He- 
 brews, That work, however, does not represent the 
 opinions of Judaic Christianity as current in the 
 churches of Palestine. While, therefore, allusions in 
 it are valuable for our present purpose, its teaching 
 belongs to another phase of the history. 
 
 136. Of extra-biblical authorities are to be mentioned 
 the accounts in Josephus (Antiq. xx. 9. 1) and Eusebius 
 (HE. II. 23) of the death of James, as well as the 
 latter's report of the church's flight to Pella at the 
 opening of war with Rome (HE. III. 5) and of the ap- 
 pointment of Symeon to succeed James (III. 11). 
 
II 
 
 THE CHARACTER OF JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 137. In describing the early expansion of Christian- 
 ity, we have noted something of its progress among the 
 Jews. We have seen that the dispersion of the disci- 
 ples carried the faith among the scattered Hebrew 
 communities, especially those in Syria ; and that in 
 Judea, after the cessation of the first persecution, the 
 number of believers steadily increased. We have noted 
 also their gradual separation from the synagogue and 
 the establishment of churches modelled substantially 
 after the synagogal system. We have further observed 
 the sympathy of the mother church with the work 
 among the Gentiles. The latter fact is attested not 
 only in the Acts, but by Paul himself. He distinctly 
 states that while he was laboring in Cilicia the churches 
 of Judea heard of his activity and " glorified God in " 
 him (Gal. i. 24). 
 
 138. Yet it would appear that the progress of Judaic 
 Christianity was rather external than internal. Its 
 loyalty to the Mosaic system and its natural satisfaction 
 with the forms in which religious truth had been pre- 
 sented by Mosaism kept it theologically stagnant. It 
 is probable that most of the Jewish Christians recon- 
 ciled themselves at this period to the fellowship of un- 
 circumcised Gentiles by regarding them as the Gentile 
 adherents of Judaism itself were regarded ; and the 
 
 9 
 
130 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 spread of Judaism among the Gentiles was so marked 
 a feature of the age that the adhesion of the latter to 
 the new faith, without receiving circumcision, seemed 
 less perilous to Jewish institutions than it appeared 
 later. Certainly no conflict on the subject had yet 
 arisen. Judaic Christianity at this period may be 
 likened to the course of a stream which has spread out 
 upon a meadow, destined indeed to be carried into the 
 rushing torrent farther on, but as yet only slightly 
 moved by the current. It presents, therefore, a pecu- 
 liarly interesting study. 
 
 139. After the Herodian persecution (a. d. 44) the 
 most conspicuous individual among the Palestinian 
 Christians was James "the Lord's brother" (Gal. i. 
 19 ; comp. Gal. ii. 9 ; Acts xii. 17 ; xv. 13 ; xxi. 18 ; 
 Matt. xiii. 55 ; Mark vi. 3 ; Jos. Antiq. xx. 9. 1 ; 
 Eus. HPl II. 23). He is not to be identified with the 
 apostle James, the son of Alpheeus, for " the brethren 
 of the Lord " are distinguished by the evangelists from 
 the apostles (Matt. xii. 46 ; John vii. 3, 5 ; Acts i. 14). 
 Paul's language (Gal. i. 19 ; I. Cor, xv. 7) has indeed 
 been thought to imply that James was an apostle, and 
 the hypothesis has been advanced that after the death 
 of James the son of Zebedee (Acts xii. 2), the brother 
 of the Lord was chosen to fill his place. Others think 
 that in these passages Paul, contrary to his usual cus- 
 tom, uses the term " apostle " in a loose sense. But 
 his language does not compel either of these interpre- 
 tations. That in Galatians i. 19 James is not neces- 
 sarily to be included among the apostles is shown by 
 the example of other sentences similarly constructed 
 {e. g. Rom. xiv. 14 ; Luke iv. 26) ; while in I. Corinthi- 
 ans XV. 7 the order of words in the original would seem 
 
JAMES, THE LORD'S BROTHER 131 
 
 to imply that James is rather distinguished from than 
 included among tliem. As already observed also, it 
 is questionable whether he was meant to be included 
 among the apostles by Luke in Acts ix. 27 (sect. 94). 
 Certainly, apart from these very doubtful instances, he 
 is not called an apostle ; and, what is most significant, 
 he does not so call himself in his epistle. It is more 
 likely that after the apostolate had become delocalized 
 by the progress of the organization of the Judean 
 churches (sect. 103), James, who remained in Jeru- 
 salem, became the practical leader of the Jewish 
 Christians , and this leadership, on account of his per- 
 sonal character and high spiritual gifts, rather than 
 because of any office held by him, became so marked 
 that he exerted an influence equal to that of the apostles 
 themselves (Gal. ii. 9), and was remembered in after 
 times as the head of the mother church {Eus. HE. 
 II. 1). 
 
 140. At any rate the prominence and influence of 
 James is beyond dispute. Peter, when fleeing from 
 imprisonment, sent word of his escape to " James and 
 the brethren" (Acts xii. 17). At the council of Jeru- 
 salem James' opinion had decisive weight (xv. 12-21). 
 It was " certain from James," whose presence at Anti- 
 och led Peter to withdraw from fellowship with Gentiles 
 (Gal. ii. 12). On Paul's final return to Jerusalem it 
 was "James and the elders" who received him (Acts xxi. 
 18). The epistle of James witnesses to the authority 
 and wide influence of its writer; and the author of 
 " Jude " introduced himself to his readers as the 
 " brother of James " (Jude 1). To this may be added 
 the testimony of secular history and tradition. Josephus 
 (Antiq. xx. 9, 1) relates that after the recall of Festus 
 
132 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 (a. d. 62 ?) the high-priest Ananus secured the stoning 
 of James, the brother of Jesus, and of some others, on 
 the ground that they had broken the law ; but that the 
 better citizens complained of the act, so that in conse- 
 quence Ananus was removed from office by Agrippa II. 
 The respect in which James was held by the whole city 
 is also attested by tradition. Hegesippus relates {Bus. 
 HE. II. 23) that he was known as " the Just " and as 
 " the bulwark of the people ; " that he lived the life of 
 a Nazarite ; that he had a high reputation for piety of 
 a rather ascetic type. Hegesippus' account contains 
 some fanciful features, and his narrative of James' 
 death, in which the Lord's brother is said to have been 
 cast by the Jews from the roof of the temple, then 
 stoned and finally beaten on the head, bears traces of 
 considerable legendary embellishment and is a less 
 probable account than that given by Josephus. But 
 the evidence, wherever we find it, discloses a man of 
 large influence, impressive character, and intense piety 
 according to the finest Hebrew ideals, — one, therefore, 
 most likely to attain leadership among the Jewish 
 disciples. 
 
 141. In order to form a still clearer image of James 
 we must go back to the Nazarene home in which Jesus 
 was reared. The " brethren of the Lord " were either 
 the children of Joseph by a former marriage, or the 
 children of Joseph and Mary born after Jesus. The 
 latter view seems best to accord with the intimations 
 of the gospels. The view advanced by Jerome and 
 elaborated by others that they were the cousins of 
 Jesus on his mother's side is beset with difficulties, of 
 which it is sufficient to mention the fact that it identi- 
 fies James with the son of Alphseus, and so makes him 
 
THE POSITION OF JAMES 133 
 
 one of the original apostles. There is still less foun- 
 dation for the view that they were the cousins of Jesus 
 on Joseph's side. In any event James had been the 
 daily associate of Jesus in the Nazarene home. We 
 infer that from early life he had been an earnest, reli- 
 gious character, steeped in the teaching of the Old 
 Testament and in later Hebrew literature. The tra- 
 dition of his devoted piety can hardly have been with- 
 out some foundation. His knowledge of Greek, on the 
 other hand, is explained by the bilingual character of 
 Jewish society, especially in the region of the Sea of 
 Galilee. Yet with all his piety James did not accept 
 Jesus as Messiah. This does not exclude, however, 
 sympathy with much of Jesus' teaching nor warm 
 affection for his person. His unbelief may have been 
 due to Jesus' rupture with many Jewish convention- 
 alities ; also to James' exalted view of the glory of 
 Messiah, and the impression of Jesus' lowliness pro- 
 duced on one who had himself shared it. The fact 
 that Jesus, after his resurrection, appeared to James 
 (I. Cor. XV. 7) is a testimony to the latter's high char- 
 acter as well as to his Brother's love for him and fore- 
 sight of his future usefulness. 
 
 142. We cannot wonder, then, that, when convinced 
 of the Messiahship of his former brother but now risen 
 Lord, James soon ranked high in the new community. 
 It is not clear what office he occupied in the Jerusalem 
 church. Later tradition made him its first bishop, 
 chosen to that office by the apostles {I^us. HE. II. 23) ; 
 and among extreme Jewish Christians of the second 
 century he was represented as the bishop of the entire 
 church (Clem. Homilies). But these traditions read 
 back later ideas into the apostolic age. He was doubt- 
 
134 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 less one of the elders of the church ; and, if the 
 eldership of Jerusalem had a permanent president, — 
 of which there is no proof, — James presumably held 
 that office. It is more probable, however, that his influ- 
 ence was personal rather than official. His relation to 
 Jesus naturally enhanced it. He was clearly the man 
 to lead the Jewish believers. Devoted to the ritual 
 law, he interpreted it in the spirit of Jesus. A 
 thorough Jew, he was not a formalist. Amid the 
 general hostility to the church, he gave the cause repu- 
 tation even with unbelievers. In the political and civil 
 excitements of the time he kept the disciples' thoughts 
 fixed on the true service and on the duty of patiently 
 waiting for Messiah's return. He was thus quite as 
 truly fitted to his situation as Paul was to the work of 
 preaching to the Gentiles. 
 
 143. These remarks are justified by the epistle of 
 James, which is the historic monument of early Judaic 
 Christianity. It is addressed to " the twelve tribes of 
 the dispersion." This phrase might have been used of 
 Christians generally (comp. I. Pet. i. 1), but, in the 
 absence of other indications, naturally describes Jews 
 (comp. Acts xxvi. 7) who in their Christian wander- 
 ings realized afresh the dispersion of Israel. Tlie 
 phrase is thus well satisfied, if we suppose that the 
 Jewish believers scattered throughout Syria, and per- 
 haps not excluding Palestine, since the church as a 
 whole was in a state of dispersion, were especially in 
 mind ; for certainly the readers were Christians 
 (ii. 1). Yet into their synagogue an unbelieving Jew 
 might come (ii. 2-6) ; and in v. 1-6 the writer 
 utters an invective against the rich, which is plainly 
 directed against Jewish oppressors of the poor. In 
 
THE EPISTLE OF JAMES 135 
 
 iii. 9-12 and iv. 1-10, also, while believers are in- 
 cluded in the reproofs, they are represented as liable 
 to sins which were peculiarly characteristic of their 
 compatriots. The external situation of the readers 
 thus corresponds with that mixed condition of believ- 
 in<^ and unbelieving Jews which we have found existing 
 during the early spread of the faith among the Jews of 
 Syria. 
 
 144. The epistle itself is an earnest homily. It 
 begins with an exhortation to joy amid trial because of 
 its spiritual discipline (i. 2-4). Wisdom to live aright 
 can be surely obtained from God (5). But steadfast 
 faith is the keynote of the true religious life (6-8). 
 Outward circumstances are nothing in comparison with 
 spiritual realities (9-11). God is the giver of all good ; 
 and in the joy of his spiritual quickening through the 
 word of truth, and in the sense of deliverance from 
 indwelling sin, which is the cause of spiritual death, 
 his children are hopefully to trust him (12-18). 
 Obedience also is the true worship. Hence they must 
 seek to work out in life God's own righteousness 
 (19-20). This can only be done by the real reception 
 of his revealed word into the heart (21). Christian 
 life is not one of slavery to precepts, but, looking 
 into the perfect law of liberty, believers are to bring 
 forth the true religious service of benevolence and 
 holiness (22-27). The author then rebukes in turn 
 certain faults to which his readers were liable, and 
 which, it should be noted, were just those into which 
 Jewish Christians were likely to fall. These are (1) 
 the overvaluation of riches and rich men (ii. 1-13) ; 
 (2) reliance on a merely formal, intellectual faith 
 (ii. 14-26) ; (3) pride in knowledge and in the position 
 
136 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 of being teachers of others (iii.) ; (4) absorption in civil 
 and political strife to the injury of religious interests 
 (iv. 1-12) ; (5) undue devotion to worldly business, 
 an evil which is signally illustrated by the frequent 
 oppression of the poor by the rich {iv. 13 to v. 8). 
 Exhortations to patience, against swearing, to prayer 
 and the conversion of sinners, bring the epistle to its 
 close (v. 9-20). The work is saturated with Old Testa- 
 ment language and allusions, though it contains but 
 four formal quotations (ii. 4, 23; iv. 5, 6). It also 
 betrays familiarity with the wisdom-literature of the 
 post-canonical period (e. g. i. 5, 19; iii. 2 with Ecclus. 
 xH. 22 ; V. 11 ; xix. 6 ; xxviii. 13-26 ; and iv. 14 ; v. 6 
 with Wisd. of Sol. ii. 4, 12-20). 
 
 145, This conception of Christianity is what we 
 would expect from the brother of Jesus. His ideal of 
 life is the real working out of God's righteousness, the 
 true performance of the divine will (i. 20 ; comp. Matt, 
 vi. 33). He regards the law not as a collection of dis- 
 jointed precepts, but as the revelation of a principle 
 whereby we live in harmony with God (ii. 10). It is 
 to be interpreted, therefore, with a view to its deep, 
 spiritual content (i. 22 ; ii. 8). By the law, however, 
 he means not only the Old Testament, but this as com- 
 pleted by a new revelation which the Christian has 
 received (i. 18, 21, 22). Obedience also consists in 
 the free service of love (i. 25). James' position, there- 
 fore, corresponds closely with that of our Lord in the 
 sermon on the mount. In neither case was it the 
 object to exhibit the way of salvation, but to show how 
 a saved man should live. Hence a reason why James 
 says so little of Clirist and nothing of the stirring 
 events of his career, which all his readers knew ; though 
 
THE BELIEFS OF JEWISH CHRISTIANS 137 
 
 the titles " Lord " and " Lord of glory " arc enough 
 to indicate his belief in Jesus as one sent from heaven, 
 the exalted Messiah and th<3 revealcr of the Father. 
 To him, we may believe, the method of salvation lay 
 sufficiently disclosed in the temple ritual, to which he 
 and his readers were loyal. Their faith in Jesus as 
 their Saviour and Lord lay side by side with their use 
 of the appointed sacrifices, without their realizing as 
 yet the full relation of the two. What most impressed 
 them was the fact that God had quickened them by 
 the crowning revelation of his will. Their former 
 Judaism had blossomed into a spiritual life of love and 
 holiness through the teaching of Jesus and their faith 
 in him as Messiah. Into the full joy of this rich 
 experience James would lead them ; and in so doing 
 he reflects that side of the teaching of Jesus which 
 would naturally impress an earnest Jew. Meanwhile 
 he realized that the existing state of things was tempo- 
 rary. Not yet had the promises of glory been fulfilled. 
 The return of Christ is therefore emphasized for the 
 encouragement of his suffering disciples (v. 7, 8, 9) 
 and for a warning to sinners (ii. 12 ; iv. 12). James 
 thus sounds the notes of faith, spiritual service, and 
 patient endurance which were most needful to the 
 scattered Hebrew disciples, and his emphasis on these, 
 in the circumstances, evinces a profound appreciation 
 of the teaching of the Master. 
 
 146. This epistle, therefore, illuminates the early 
 period of Judaic Christianity. The impulse to dogmatic 
 development did not as yet exist. It needed the outbreak 
 of controversy. There must have been much that these 
 Jewish believers could not understand. What was to 
 be the ultimate relation of their faith to Judaism ? 
 
138 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 What should be their attitude to national politics ? In 
 what way would their Messiah vindicate his claims ? 
 The answers to these problems must have been quite 
 obscure. Their religion comprised faith in Jesus as 
 Messiah, the spiritual interpretation of the divine law 
 as he had elucidated it, the cultivation of the love and 
 holiness which he had exhibited and commanded, the 
 actual enjoyment of reconciliation with God through 
 faith in Christ, the consciousness of a new life bestowed 
 by God, the confident expectation of Christ's return in 
 glory to make all things right. These are the main 
 features of Christian life revealed to us by James. His 
 epistle reflects a period of transition. It shows also 
 that Christian life was not being fed by current Jewish 
 thought, for there is not a trace in it of national hopes 
 or of apocalyptic fancies, but by the Old Testament, 
 the teaching of Jesus, and the leading of the Spirit 
 (iv. 5). Thus, side by side with Judaism, reverencing 
 the law and worshipping in the temple, forming its own 
 synagogues but not breaking with the national life, 
 Judaic Christianity strove to appropriate the message 
 of Jesus and to await his return. It was a condition of 
 things which could not long remain. The expansion 
 of Christianity and the fall of Jerusalem were destined 
 soon to disturb it ; yet quite as certainly was it a con- 
 dition which must have existed among the Jewish 
 believers at this period of the history. 
 
Ill 
 
 THE COUNCIL AT JERUSALEM 
 
 147. The composure of the church was at last dis- 
 turbed by the inevitable controversy concerning the 
 obligation of Gentile believers to observe the Mosaic law. 
 The controversy was inevitable, because the principle of 
 salvation by faith alone, which had been proclaimed from 
 the beginning and on which the expansion among the 
 Gentiles had proceeded, was really inconsistent with 
 the binding obligation on Gentiles of the law. In spite 
 of the harmony which had existed, the question was 
 certain to be raised. On its solution, in fact, the 
 continued unity and progress of the cause depended. 
 Three positions were possible. It might be held that 
 all believers were freed from the law. This could be 
 maintained only so far as it was realized that the work 
 of Messiah had satisfied the requirements of the law 
 and thus relieved his people from them. Or it might 
 be held that Jews alone were bound to observe the law. 
 This could be maintained on the ground that Mosaism 
 was a national religion, and therefore binding on Chris- 
 tian Hebrews as Hebrews, though not as Christians. Or, 
 finally, it might be held that the law was still binding 
 upon all, and that Gentiles must accept it in order to 
 be Christians. This view would make Christianity 
 merely a purified Judaism, and would be really incon- 
 sistent with the doctrine of salvation by faith in Jesus, 
 
140 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 which had been taught from the beginning. It is clear 
 that these opinions were certain to appear among the 
 Christian Jews. It is equally clear that the question at 
 issue would prove a burning one, for all the prejudices 
 and traditions of Judaism were involved in it. But the 
 third view meant a death-blow to the expanding faith 
 and to its integrity and sufficiency. The decision, there- 
 fore, was as necessary as the controversy was inevitable. 
 148. The controversy actually broke out in Antioch 
 after the return of Barnabas and Paul from their success- 
 ful missionary journey. The rapid spread of Gentile 
 Christianity aroused the anxiety and displeasure of some 
 of the stricter Jewish party in Jerusalem. It seemed to 
 them to threaten seriously the reverence for the Mosaic 
 law which they held to be due from all followers of 
 Messiah. It even appeared possible that Christianity 
 might be wholly separated from Judaism and the pre- 
 eminence of Israel be lost. The anomalous condition 
 which had heretofore existed could therefore no longer 
 be allowed. Steps must be taken to prevent the de- 
 struction of Jewish prerogative and custom ; and since 
 adherents to a considerable extent had been made by 
 the church from the Pharisees, we can well believe that 
 the influence of this strict Jewish party had become 
 greater in the Jerusalem congregation than it had been 
 at an earlier period. Hence certain of them went to 
 Antioch, and boldly taught that unless believers were 
 circumcised, they could not be saved (Acts xv. 1). Later 
 events prove that these emissaries did not represent the 
 majority of the mother church, still less her leaders. 
 They represented only the Pharisaic party (Acts xv. 6). 
 There is evidence also that the visit was prompted by 
 a factious spirit. The disclaimer afterwards made by 
 
DEPUTATION FROM ANTIOCH TO JERUSALEM 141 
 
 " the apostles and elders " (xv. 24) seems to imply that 
 these missionaries of Judaism had falsely declared to 
 the Antiochans that the leaders in Jerusalem shared 
 their views or had even sent them on their mission. 
 Their teaching was in fact revolutionary, and they must 
 have known it to be so. Paul, speaking of the same 
 class of teachers, if not of these very men, calls them 
 " false brethren privily brought in, who came in privily 
 to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, 
 that they might bring us into bondage" (Gal. ii. 4, R. V.). 
 The Judaizers might seem merely to be anxious to pre- 
 serve the loyalty to the law which Jewish Christians 
 had always professed ; but in reality they were disloyal 
 to the principle of faith which was distinctive of the 
 gospel, and to the fraternal liberality toward Gentile 
 brethren which the church had long displayed. They 
 were the means, however, of bringing this fundamental 
 question to a definite issue. 
 
 149. In consequence of the Judaistic agitation, the 
 church of Antioch sent a deputation, at the head of 
 which were Paul and Barnabas, to lay the matter be- 
 fore the apostles and elders in Jerusalem (Acts xv. 2). 
 This is the visit described by Paul in Galatians ii. 1-10. 
 In both accounts the acting parties and the purpose of 
 the visit are the same. We have already seen (sect. 
 116) that Galatians ii. does not refer to the visit with 
 the gifts from Antioch ; and it cannot refer to a visit 
 later than this one, because Paul's argument absolutely 
 requires that he should not pass this visit over in 
 silence.^ At the same time the two accounts of the 
 
 1 The recent conjecture of J. V. Bartlet (Apost. Age, p. 57) that 
 Galatians ii. 1-10 describes an unrecorded visit of Paul to Jerusalem 
 earlier than that of Acts xi. 30, does not seem to have any tangible 
 
142 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 visit by Luke and Paul are written from different 
 points of view. Luke traces historically the external 
 events to their issue. Paul wrote for the specific pur- 
 pose of showing that his own apostolic authority and 
 teaching had been recognized by the mother church 
 and her leaders. He therefore only alludes to such 
 facts as were of importance for his argument. The 
 two accounts are thus supplementary. Their harmony 
 has frequently been denied, but is now generally ad- 
 mitted in all essential points ; and a close examination 
 fails to show any points in which they are discordant. 
 
 150. Thus, according to Acts the visit was that of 
 a deputation sent by the Antiochan church. Paul, on 
 the other hand, relates that he went up "by revelation " 
 (Gal. ii. 2) ; yet it is easy to understand that, in so 
 grave a crisis, and especially when by going he seemed 
 to submit his preaching to the judgment of others, he 
 needed a revelation to make his duty clear. Again, 
 he mentions, while Acts does not, the presence of 
 Titus, and makes much of the fact that the latter was 
 not compelled to be circumcised. He does this be- 
 cause Titus, who was doubtless one of the Antiochan 
 delegation, was a test case for his argument, since the 
 reception of Titus as a Christian brother proved in 
 the most practical way the church's recognition of 
 Paul's ministry and teaching. So, too, the spirit in 
 which Paul and Barnabas made the visit corresponds 
 in both accounts. According to Acts (xv, 3) they 
 proclaimed, as they went, the conversion of the Gen- 
 evidence to support it. It assumes also a doubtful interpretation of II. 
 Corinthians xii. 2-5. Moreover, the visit of Galatians was certainly 
 a public and representative one, so that its omission by Luke is 
 inexplicable. 
 
HARMONY OF ACTS AND GALATIANS 143 
 
 tiles. Ill Galatians, Paul relates " I laid before them 
 [i. e. the Christians in Jerusalem] the gospel which I 
 preach among the Gentiles, but privately before them 
 who were of repute [an additional fact], lest by any 
 means I should be running, or had run, in vain " (Gal. 
 ii. 2, R. Y.). The last clause does not mean that ho sub- 
 mitted his teaching to the judgment of others, being 
 willing to retract it if they disapproved ; for he im- 
 mediately adds that when " false brethren " demanded 
 the circumcision of Titus, he would not yield even for 
 an hour. The clause in question describes rather a 
 confident appeal to the brethren to say if it were true, 
 as some alleged, that he was running in vain (comp. 
 Meyer- Sieffert, Kommentar). In both accounts, there- 
 fore, the deputation went to Jerusalem, recognizing 
 indeed the ecclesiastical authority of the mother 
 church, but confident of her support and prepared to 
 maintain their views to the end. 
 
 151. According to both accounts, also, the general 
 sentiment of the church was disturbed in Jerusalem, 
 as it had been in Antioch, by the Judaizers, who vio- 
 lently maintained that Gentile converts should be 
 required to observe the Mosaic law (Acts xv. 3-5 ; 
 Gal. ii. 3, 4). In Acts it is related that this led to 
 the convening of a council, composed of the apostles 
 and elders, at which the subject was discussed, ad- 
 dresses made by Peter, Paul, Barnabas and James, and 
 the decision reached that Gentiles should not be re- 
 quired to observe the law, but only to abstain from 
 certain acts peculiarly offensive to Jews (xv. 6-29). 
 Paul does not mention the council ; yet his declaration 
 that Titus was not compelled to be circumcised, and 
 that this was a refusal by the Jerusalem church to 
 
144 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 accede to the demands of the "false brethren" (Gal. 
 ii. 3, 4), implies that formal action of some kind was 
 taken. He pithily states, by presenting the concrete 
 case of Titus, the main result of the council which 
 Luke describes. Again, in Acts (xv. 6, 22) the coun- 
 cil is said to have been composed of " the apostles and 
 elders," while Peter and James delivered the chief 
 addresses. Paul speaks of having seen of the apostles 
 only Peter and John, but the presence of these two is 
 sufficient to justify Luke's expressions, even if no other 
 apostles were there ; while according to both sources 
 James appears as the most influential personage (Acts 
 XV. 13-21; Gal. ii. 7). It might seem from Acts xv. 
 22 that the whole church was present at the delibera- 
 tion ; but the language probably means merely that 
 the decision met with its approval. It is, however, 
 worthy of note that Paul also (Gal. ii. 2-5) represents 
 the church as a whole as supporting his position. 
 
 152. Paul, however, adds one fact of which Acts says 
 nothing ; namely, that he had also private conferences 
 with James, Peter, and John. He calls them by the 
 indefinite but honorable title " those of repute" (Gal. 
 ii. 2,6), the "pillars" of the church (ii. 9), using 
 terms which applied to them all, whatever their office ; 
 and while he stoutly asserts, as his argument made 
 needful, that they added nothing to his apostolic 
 authority or teaching, records that they gave to him 
 and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, and agreed 
 that, in accordance with God's manifest will, he and 
 Barnabas should go to the Gentiles while they labored 
 among the Jews. His was the " gospel of the uncir- 
 cumcision," while Peter's was that " of the circumci- 
 sion" (ii. 7). These phrases do not describe different 
 
COUNCIL AT JERUSALEM 145 
 
 gospels, but the two spheres in which the same gospel 
 was to be carried. Paul's description of the confer- 
 ences is a notable addition to Luke's narrativ'e. Yet 
 it was most natural that they should have been held. 
 We can hardly conceive of their not being held between 
 such men. The failure of Luke to mention them was 
 obviously due to the fact that they were not part of 
 the public history of the transaction which he was nar- 
 rating. Paul mentions them only because it was after- 
 wards charged in Galatia that the leaders of the 
 mother church were opposed to him. In like manner 
 the request of James, Peter, and John tliat he should 
 remember the poor (Gal. ii. 10) was evidently occa- 
 sioned by his previous visit with the gifts from 
 Antioch, and by their fear lest with a division of 
 fields of labor the needy Judeans might suffer. It is 
 not mentioned by Luke, because it was purely a per- 
 sonal request. 
 ^^153. Moreover, the fact that for the decision of this 
 question a council was held throws incidental light 
 on the organization of the church. As already stated 
 (sect. 103), the apostles had before this time de- 
 volved the ordinary government of the churches on 
 the local eldership. Those of the apostles who were 
 present sat indeed in the council in virtue of their 
 apostolic office, and are mentioned as a first and sep- 
 arate class in the letter which the council prepared 
 (xv. 23) ; but they did not decide the matter at issue 
 on apostolic authority, for, while doctrine was in- 
 volved, the question was in form ecclesiastical. Should 
 the Gentile converts be required to observe the law 
 (xv. 5) as the condition of fellowship ? 'Men might 
 agree on the same answer for different reasons, or 
 
 /^ 
 
 
146 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 might differ in the answer though agreeing on the 
 main point. Moreover, even in the earliest period the 
 apostles had called out the action of the brethren in 
 determining the organization of the church (Acts i. 16, 
 23 ; vi. 3-6) ; much more, now that the organization 
 was complete, would the authority of the elders be 
 recognized. The mode of procedure followed is there- 
 fore not inconsistent with the authority of the apostles 
 which we have found existing from the beginning. It 
 is to be observed also that the Jerusalem church, acting- 
 through the council, appears to have been regarded as 
 the supreme court of the Christians in Palestine and 
 Syria. Hence the appeal to it by the brethren in 
 Antioch and by the Judaizers. Hence, too, the authori- 
 tative language of the letter which the council wrote 
 (xv. 28). The most natural explanation of this is 
 that the eldership of Jerusalem was considered, by the 
 Judaic Christians and by the mixed churches of Syria 
 which had originated from Jewish missions, in much 
 the same light in which the Sanhedrim of Jerusalem 
 was by the Jews. This was only the further carrying 
 over into the Christian churches of the synagogal 
 system of which the Sanhedrim was the head. We 
 shall find hereafter that in the purely Gentile churches 
 afterwards founded by Paul the ecclesiastical authority 
 of the Jerusalem eldership was not recognized. Wholly 
 independent churches, bound only by the common faith, 
 sprang up. But for the time of which we are treating, 
 and for the parties engaged in the discussion, the elder- 
 ship of Jerusalem constituted the recognized head of 
 the Christian synagogues. 
 
 154. The addresses made in the council are also 
 worthy of special notice. Peter (xv. 7-11) strongly 
 
PROCEEDINGS OF THE COUNCIL 147 
 
 maintained the liberty of the Gentiles, appealing to 
 the testimony of God in the case of Cornelius. Faith, 
 he said, was the only condition of being purified 
 (comp. X. 15). He went so far as to speak of the law 
 as an unbearable yoke on the Jews themselves, since 
 they could not really keep it ; and reminded the as- 
 sembly that they too depended for salvation solely on 
 the grace of Christ. This address puts Peter thor- 
 oughly on Pauline ground. The truthfulness of the 
 report is amply confirmed by Paul's subsequent rebuke 
 of Peter in Antioch when he faltered in the application 
 of his acknowledged principles (Gal. ii. 15, 16), as 
 well as by Peter's later writings. Paul and Barnabas 
 took part in the proceedings merely by relating what 
 God had done in attestation of the work among the 
 Gentiles (Acts xv. 12; comp. Gal. ii. 2,7). It was 
 James, the Lord's brother, who made the decisive ad- 
 dress (xv. 13-21). He was cautious, and anxious to 
 secure harmony. Yet he admitted that the Lord's 
 revelation to Peter practically settled the matter. He 
 spoke, however, of the Gentile converts as an addition 
 to Israel, such as Amos (ix. 11, 12) had predicted. 
 He thus recognized the special privileges of the Jews. 
 Yet to them Gentiles were to be added, and they should 
 accept it as God's will. Hence he judged that no 
 further burden should be laid on the Gentiles than that 
 they should abstain from certain pollutions ; namely, 
 the food offered to idols, fornication, things strangled, 
 and blood. These conditions of fellowship he insisted 
 on, because they would do much to prevent offence being 
 given to the Jews by the uncircumcised converts. 
 
 155. James' address, therefore, unlike Peter's, was 
 conservative and prudential. Both singularly corre- 
 
148 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 spond with the characters of the two men. They show 
 differences of temperament and of points of view, while 
 agreeing on the main issue. James' address and the 
 letter drawn up at his suggestion have also some strik- 
 ing verbal resemblances to the language of his epistle 
 (comp. XV. 23 with Jas. i. 1 ; xv. 17 with Jas. ii. 7 ; 
 XV. 13 with Jas. ii. 5; xv. 14 with Jas. i. 27; xv. 19 
 with Jas. V. 19, 20 ; xv. 29 with Jas. i. 27). Both ad- 
 dress and epistle show his thoroughly Jewish as well 
 as Christian character ; and the writer of the epistle, 
 who makes faith the essence of true religion, urges on 
 Jewish disciples a spiritual interpretation of the law, 
 warns them against faults peculiar to them as Jews, 
 and writes not a word concerning their national hopes, 
 was quite the man to take the position which is nar- 
 rated of him in the council. He cannot tlierefore, any 
 more than Peter, be classed with the Judaizers. 
 
 156. The result of the deliberations was that a let- 
 ter, addressed in the name of the apostles and elders 
 to the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia, 
 was sent by the hands of Silas and Judas Barsabbas, 
 two of the leading men of the Jerusalem church (xv. 
 22-29). In it the council repudiated the Judaizers, 
 spoke in cordial terms of Barnabas and Paul, and 
 briefly declared that it was the mind of the Spirit 
 and of themselves to lay nothing further on the Gen- 
 tiles than the four acts of abstinence which James 
 had suggested and which they considered necessary. 
 This was certainly not a compromise with the Juda- 
 izers. The freedom of Gentiles from the law was fully 
 conceded. At the same time the council protected the 
 feelings of the Jews against what the latter regarded 
 as abominations of the Gentiles. The decree laid down 
 
THE FOUR ACTS OF ABSTINENCE 149 
 
 no doctrine. It confined itself to terms of fellowship. 
 It established a modus vivendi. In granting freedom 
 from the law, the council felt that it acted in accord- 
 ance with the evident will of the Spirit ; but it seemed 
 to it absolutely necessary that this freedom should in 
 no way appear to Jewish eyes to sully the Christian 
 name by the introduction of offensive pagan customs. 
 
 157. The requirement of these four special forms of 
 abstinence raises, however, several difficulties. For 
 instance, it appears strange that fornication should be 
 classed with things ethically indifferent. Just this 
 strangeness, however, is an assurance that the re- 
 port is authentic ; and the difficulty is removed when 
 it is observed that the acts of abstinence were de- 
 manded solely in order not to offend Jews. The in- 
 trinsic quality of the acts themselves did not come 
 into consideration. Now, fornication was regarded by 
 the Jews, as well it might be (comp. Lecky^ Hist, of 
 Eur. Morals, ch. v.), as a typical pagan custom. It was 
 often sanctified by pagan religions, and nowhere more 
 so than in western Asia. It was too often regarded 
 with indifference in Groeco-Roman society. It there- 
 fore would naturally be mentioned by a Jew as a 
 threatened Gentile abomination. Another difficulty is 
 raised by the apparent identity of abstinence from 
 things strangled and from blood. Efforts to remove 
 this obscurity by altering the text of the Acts may be 
 traced as far back as the second century. Perhaps 
 the best explanation is that the second of these two 
 prohibitions was intended to state the general principle 
 of which eating things strangled was the commonest 
 example, and so both to cover other instances and to 
 state fully the principle itself. 
 
150 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 158. But it is more important to notice the motive 
 of the decree as a whole. It has often been main- 
 tained that it exacted of Gentile converts the same 
 requirements made by Jews on " strangers," or, as 
 they were afterwards called, " proselytes of the gate," 
 who observed the so-called " precepts of Noah," but 
 were not recognized as belonging to Israel. It is quite 
 doubtful, however, if, at the time of the council, there 
 was any code of requirements for such adherents of 
 Judaism, or if there was any such class of proselytes 
 recognized at all {Schurer, HJP. 11. 2. 317). Outside 
 of proselytes proper, the Gentile followers of Judaism 
 varied greatly in the degree in which they adopted 
 Jewish customs. Moreover, the so-called " Noachic 
 precepts," mentioned by later writers, were seven in 
 number (comp. Hort, Jud. Christianity, p. 69). It is 
 a more plausible supposition that the acts of abstinence 
 were suggested by the prohibitions for " the stranger," 
 which are found in Leviticus xvii., xviii. Yet even 
 these do not coincide precisely with those of the decree, 
 though they may well have been at the basis of the 
 Jewish abhorrence of the acts which the decree 
 forbade. Any view which assumes that the Gentile 
 converts were not recognized by the council as full 
 members of the church is inconsistent with the whole 
 tenor of the decree and with Paul's acceptance of its 
 provisions. Its motive was to prevent offence to the 
 Jews who dwelt in every city, and the simplest ex- 
 planation is that these four things were prohibited 
 because they were the Gentile customs which were 
 most abhorrent in Jewish eyes. 
 
 159. Yet, even so, can we believe that the decree 
 with these prohibitions was accepted by Paul, and that, 
 
PAUL AND THE COUNCIL 151 
 
 as Acts xvi. 4 records, he delivered it to the churches 
 previously founded by him and Barnabas ? As already 
 observed, he does not mention it in his Galatian epistle. 
 Moreover, in Romans xiv. 13-23 and I. Corinthians viii. 
 and X. 23-33, where he discusses the use of food offered 
 to idols, he does not refer to the decision of the council, 
 but argues the subject independently, and boldly asserts 
 that the use of such food is in itself a matter of indif- 
 ference. Fornication likewise he treats as inherently 
 and always wrong {e.g. I. Cor. vi. 18). These facts 
 have seemed to some to prove that he could not have 
 accepted or even known of the decree. The inference 
 has also been drawn that the decree was either never 
 issued or was issued at a later time and erroneously 
 attributed by Luke to the council. But this is to do 
 injustice to so accurate an historian as Luke, and the 
 apparent difficulties are capable of satisfactory expla- 
 nation. For, in regard to Paul's acceptance of the 
 decree, it should be remembered that he had gained 
 his main point and would not be likely to refuse to do 
 his part toward securing . harmony. That would be 
 quite contrary to all that we know of his disposition 
 (I. Cor. ix. 19-23). It should further be noted that 
 the churches to which he delivered the decree (Acts 
 xvi. 4) were founded by him and Barnabas on their 
 mission from Antioch. They were doubtless regarded 
 as an extension of the work in Antioch, and so shared 
 in the recognition of the «uthority of tlie mother 
 church. Within the sphere therefore which the church 
 then covered, the authority of the council would be 
 admitted, and, since the freedom of Gentile converts 
 had been acknowledged, there was nothing in Paul's 
 character or doctrine which makes it improbable that 
 
152 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 he accepted for those whom he represented the condi- 
 tions imposed. 
 N/ 160. Tlie churches, however, founded by Paul after 
 the council in his missionary work stood in a different 
 relation to the church of Jerusalem. It is possible that 
 the activity of the Judaizers in Antioch convinced him 
 that it was better to have his churches independent. 
 It is possible that the agreement with James, Peter, 
 and John at the time of the council that he and Barna- 
 bas should go to the Gentiles, was understood to place 
 his new churches on an independent basis. At any 
 rate, their independence is evident. He treats them 
 in his epistles, not only as his own spiritual offspring, 
 but as separate societies who owned the superiority of 
 no other church. All were indeed united in one great 
 spiritual body in Christ, and he stimulated one by the 
 example of others. He especially kept them mindful 
 of their confraternity with (I. Thess. ii. 14 ; Eph. ii. 
 11-22) and their indebtedness to (Rom. xv. 26, 27) 
 the churches of Judea ; but there is not a hint that 
 the authority of the Jerusalem eldership was recog- 
 nized by them. In fact, as we shall find, this was a 
 point on which he resisted the intrusions of the Juda- 
 izers into his territory (Gal, ii. 6 ; II. Cor. iii. 1). 
 Hence it is not surprising that he does not refer to the 
 decree, but instructs his converts independently. The 
 Epistle to the Galatians is the one in which such a 
 reference would be mosf expected, since he there de- 
 scribes his visit to Jerusalem at the time of the coun- 
 cil ; but since he alludes to the council only indirectly, 
 and confines himself to the single point of the recog- 
 nition by the church of his authority and teaching, it 
 is hardly surprising that he omits also all reference to 
 
INDEPENDENCE OF PAULINE CHURCHES 153 
 
 the decree. The Judaizers themselves had violated the 
 compact by denying the freedom from the law which 
 the council had granted, and the whole discussion had 
 reverted to the original question of circumcision. It 
 is, however, still more important to observe that in his 
 instructions about food offered to idols, Paul acted pre- 
 cisely on the principle on which the prohibitions of the 
 decree were based, namely, that offence should not be 
 given. The situation in Corinth was very different 
 from that in Antioch. There the ditRculty in the use 
 of food offered to idols lay in the danger of participat- 
 ing in heathen festivals and of wounding the conscience 
 of the newly converted Gentile brother. Paul main- 
 tains the entire moral indifference of the act of eating 
 such food (I. Cor. viii. 4-6), but he warmly urges the 
 principle that abstinence for the sake of others is often 
 the dictate of Christian love (I. Cor. viii. 7-13 ; Rom. 
 xiv. 21). He seems even to broaden intentionally the 
 principle of the council when he wrote, " Give no occa- 
 sion of stumbling, either to Jews, or to Greeks, or to the 
 church of God" (I. Cor. x. 32). It is thus clear that 
 on his declared principles we should expect to find him 
 accepting the decree for those under the authority of 
 the council ; while the instructions to his own separate 
 churches show how sincere was his harmony of spirit 
 with the apostles and elders at Jerusalem. 
 
 161. Thus Judaic Christianity performed its greatest 
 service by acknowledging at tliis critical juncture the 
 freedom of Gentile converts from the Mosaic law. It 
 was the triumph of loyalty to tlie manifest will of God 
 achieved in the face of enormous prejudice. The 
 Judaizing minority had in their favor all the instincts 
 and traditions of their race. It would seem that the 
 
154 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 action of the council can only be explained by the pre- 
 vious occurrence of such facts indicative of the will of 
 God as the Acts relates. Even the teaching of Jesus, 
 though it plainly foretold the conversion of the Gen- 
 tiles and even the rejection of the Jews (e. g. Matt. viii. 
 10, 11), and though its spirit was wholly opposed to 
 Jewish exclusiveness, required further revelations of 
 the will of God to cause it to be interpreted as reliev- 
 ing believers from the observance of the law. The 
 mother church recognized the manifest will of God, 
 and by following it made room, at the cost of its own 
 pre-eminence, for the full development of the faith. 
 Foi her decision involved the fundamental principle 
 that faith alone was the condition of salvation. The 
 law might still be obligatory on Jews, but it could not 
 be the means of salvation. This was fully realized by 
 Paul, and explains why he would not yield a moment 
 to the Judaizers. Yet how intense the feeling of the 
 Jewish Christians was, through what a conflict the 
 result was reached, and what variety of opinion still 
 existed concerning the authority of the law, appears 
 from an incident which occurred at Antioch not long 
 after the adjournment of the council. 
 
 162. For when the deputation returned , to Antioch 
 with the commissioners and the letter of the council, 
 they were received with joy. Silas and Judas heartily 
 explained the council's action, and after a brief sojourn 
 returned to Jerusalem. For a while peace seemed to 
 be assured ; and this appeared the more probable when 
 Peter himself visited Antioch and freely ate with the 
 Gentile brethren, doubtless at their love feasts, on 
 terms of perfect equality (Gal. ii. 12). We must cer- 
 tainly place this incident here, because Paul plainly 
 
PETER AT ANTIOCn 155 
 
 assigns it to the period following the council and yet 
 mentions Barnabas as present, though the latter left 
 Antioch shortly before Paul's second journey (Acts xv. 
 39). We may well believe that Peter's generous nature 
 rejoiced in the conversion of the Gentiles and was 
 anxious to prove by acts the sincerity of the position 
 he had taken at the council. The disregard of Jewish 
 scruples had long prevailed in Antioch, and Paul and 
 Barnabas had not only defended the liberty of the 
 Gentiles, but considered themselves free to observe 
 the ritual law or not as they might deem best (comp. 
 I. Cor. ix. 20, 21). This attitude Peter also was now 
 willing to take. 
 
 163. The peace of the church in Antioch was, how- 
 ever, again disturbed. Certain men came there who 
 had been sent from Jerusalem by James (Gal. ii. 12). 
 There is no hint that they had been sent to play the 
 spy on the Jews in Antioch, still less that they were 
 Judaizers, nor that they bore any missive from James. 
 It is probable that they had been sent by him on an 
 evangelizing mission among the Jews of Syria ; hut 
 their presence led Peter and even Barnabas as well as 
 the other Jewish Christians to withdraw from fellow- 
 ship with the Gentiles. This shows the intense feeling 
 on the part of the main body of the Jewish Church 
 against the violation by any Jew of the ceremonial law. 
 The council had accepted the Gentile converts as 
 brethren, but had never intimated that the law was 
 not binding on Jews ; and though a minority might 
 feel relieved from it, the convictions of the vast major- 
 ity were the other way. Possibly, too, the action of 
 the council made the Jewish Christians more earnest 
 in their own loyalty to the law ; and it would seem a 
 
156 .JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 fair inference that James, though fully In sympathy 
 with Gentile freedom, supported the popular sentiment 
 that Jews ought to be faithful to their national cus- 
 toms. It is not hard to understand this. The Jewish 
 Christians were anxious not to appear to their fellow- 
 countrymen disloyal to Moses. They themselves shared 
 the national and traditional spirit. The new faith must 
 be shown to be harmonious with the older revelation, 
 and few could believe this if the sacred laws were cast 
 aside by Jews themselves. So the sentiment was over- 
 powering that Jewish Christians should be faithful to 
 the Mosaic law. Peter and even Barnabas may easily 
 have thought, in view of this state of feeling, that they 
 would destroy their influence among their countrymen, 
 if their free intercourse with Gentiles were known. It 
 was at least quite in accord with Peter's impulsive 
 character that, as he had broken the bonds of Judaism 
 through his sympathy with the Gentiles, he should has- 
 ten to fasten them again upon himself through fear of 
 offending his Jewish brethren. 
 
 164. But he found in Paul a remorseless logician and 
 a fearless champion of faith. Peter's conduct had been 
 generally condemned in Antioch (Gal. ii. 11, R. V.) 
 and a scandal was threatened by it. If he had never 
 consorted with Gentiles, no fault would have been found 
 with him. But by doing so he had publicly declared 
 that faith alone was the condition of salvation; and 
 now by withdrawing he virtually declared that he had 
 been wrong. He seemed to imply practically that all. 
 Gentiles as well as Jews, ought to observe the law. 
 For this Paul took him publicly to task. He gives a 
 summary of his rebuke in Galatians ii. 14-21. " Why," 
 he asked, " do you thus compel Gentiles to Judaize ? " 
 
THE THEOLOGY OF FREEDOM 157 
 
 He reminded Peter that they both, though Jews, had 
 sought justification through faith alone in Christ and 
 on the ground explicitly that by the works of the law 
 none could be justified. Could they have been wrong 
 in this ? Did Christ lead them into sin ? Nay ; a man 
 who builds what he has destroyed shows himself to be 
 the transgressor. Then Paul stated the doctrine of 
 salvation as he knew it and as Peter must confess it. 
 The law had made Christ's death necessary, but by 
 that death it had been wholly satisfied. In that death 
 Paul himself had died, so that the demands of the law 
 had been met by him in Christ. He now lived as 
 reconciled to God, the power of Christ working in him 
 to do God's will, and he living by faith in the Son 
 of God who had died for him. Hence to regard observ- 
 ance of law as necessary for the salvation of any 
 believer, whether Jew or Gentile, was to imply that 
 Christ had died in vain. 
 
 165. This address not only discloses Paul's theologi- 
 cal position (comp. sects. 84-89), but throws light from 
 the inside on the whole controversy about circumcision. 
 The doctrinal principle, involved in the ecclesiastical 
 question before the council, is now made plain. The 
 significance of the death of Christ lay in its satisfaction 
 of the divine law for the sinner ; and just so far as this 
 was realized, was the law seen to have fulfilled its 
 purpose as a religious system. Its moral principles 
 were to be now embodied in life by the believer, not in 
 order to be saved by obedience to them, but out of love 
 for God, to whom he had already been reconciled by 
 Christ's obedience to and satisfaction of the law. Its 
 ceremonial acts need not be performed at all, or only as 
 other considerations might make advisable; for they 
 
158 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 were but the shadow of the reality, namely, Christ. In 
 proportion as this was realized, the death-blow was 
 given to Judaism. Christianity could not be perma- 
 nently Judaic. It could never be Judaistic. Jewish 
 Christians might still observe their law, but only as 
 Jews, not as Christians. The principle of faith thus 
 wrought out its logical consequences in the history; 
 while through the realization of the nature of Messiah's 
 death the sufficiency of faith was rationally grounded. 
 A crucified Messiah and salvation by faith were found 
 to be necessarily conjoined. The outward movement 
 of events, whereby faith had been proved to be the only 
 condition of salvation which God required, united, with 
 the growing perception of the meaning of the Cross, to 
 create universal Christianity. The issue was thus the 
 result of the working out of the fundamental truths of 
 the gospel by the combined operation of both history 
 and logic. Though further conflict was to follow, the 
 result could no longer be doubtful. 
 
 166. We know nothing of the immediate effect of 
 Paul's rebuke of his fellow-apostle. The most natural 
 inference is that Peter acknowledged his error. It was 
 not an error of teaching but of conduct, and he was quite 
 the man to confess his faults. This inference is con- 
 firmed by the thoroughly Pauline character of his teacli- 
 ing in his epistles. Certainly there is no reason to 
 suppose that the rebuke caused dissension between the 
 apostles, or that it was the cause of the suspicion with 
 which Paul was regarded for a long time by many Jewish 
 Christians (Acts xxi. 21). Neither is it surprising that 
 Luke does not mention the incident, as there is no reason 
 to regard it as in itself more than a local and unimportant 
 event. Apart from the light thrown by it on the theo- 
 
JUDAIC ADMISSION OF GENTILE LIBERTY 159 
 
 logical position of the two apostles, its chief interest lies 
 in the fact that it completes - our view of the condition 
 of Judaic Christianity at the time of the council. 
 The great principle of Gentile freedom was conceded, 
 though by the concession Judaic Christianity, as both 
 Paul and the Judaizcrs perceived, was doomed to be 
 only one phase of the new religion and ultimately to 
 perish in giving birth to a universal faith. 
 
JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY AFTER THE COUNCIL 
 
 167. Before tracing the further expansion of Gentile 
 Christianity under the leadership of Paul, it is desirable 
 to sketch briefly the condition of Judaic Christianity in 
 the years following the council (a. d. 60 or 51), until 
 the destruction of Jerusalem (a. d. 70). The period 
 was one of intense political excitement in Judea. Gov- 
 ernmental misrule aroused repeated seditions, and a 
 succession of rapacious procurators inflamed the anger 
 and the patriotism of the people, until the fires of open 
 war broke out (see Riggs, Hist, of the Jew. People, 
 sects. 276-290). It is natural to suppose that such a 
 period of violent civil agitation was not without its 
 effect upon the disciples individually and upon the 
 progress of the Church. 
 
 168. Amid this political ferment, however, little in- 
 formation can be gained of the condition of the Judaic 
 Christians. Josephus is silent concerning them, and 
 the only relevant statement in Acts is the language of 
 James to Paul at the latter's last visit to Jerusalem 
 (Acts xxi. 20-25). This, however, is quite significant. 
 We learn that the Christians numbered thousands of 
 the population of the city. They seem to have been 
 recruited mainly from the humbler classes of society, 
 for Paul's zeal in securing contributions for them from 
 his Gentile churches implies that most of them were 
 
ZEALOUS FOR THE LAW 161 
 
 poor 1 II. Cor. ix. 12). Yet doubtless not a few of the 
 Pharisees, as at an earlier period (Acts xv. 5), united 
 with them. The Sadducees were in power in the state, 
 and concerned chiefly with political intrigues. The 
 fanatical patriots, such as the Zealots, could have had 
 little patience with the Christian faith. It was natur- 
 ally the more religious and peaceful class to whom the 
 message of Jesus continued to appeal, and who, amid 
 the agitations of society, felt the worth of his spiritual 
 teaching and waited for his return. 
 
 169. The disciples in general appear to have kept 
 aloof from the political strife of their fellow-country- 
 men. Such would be the effect of James' influence 
 (Jas. iv. 1-10), and the same attitude would seem to 
 be implied in the tradition that at the outbreak of the 
 war the church fled from Jerusalem to Pella. The 
 teaching of Jesus also would operate in the same direc- 
 tion (Matt. xxiv. 16-21). At the same time the disci- 
 ples could not have failed to feel the momentous crisis 
 through which the nation was passing, and thereby 
 devotion to the law was rather intensified than dimin- 
 ished. James explicitly says of them, "they are all 
 zealous for the law " (Acts xxi. 20). Perhaps this was 
 increased by the suspicion with which they were re- 
 garded, as well as by their own patriotism. Their sit- 
 uation must have been a difficult one. While the perils 
 which beset the state may have aided, as times of dis- 
 tress often have, the progress of the faith, the disciples 
 must have been sorely distraught by the contending 
 claims of the old patriotism and the new belief. Most 
 of them showed, by intense devotion to the law, that at 
 least they were not faithless to the traditions of the 
 fathers. 
 
 11 
 
162 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 170. Moreover, James' words show that the Judaic 
 disciples were not all of one mind with respect to the 
 Christianity which was spreading among the Gentiles. 
 Especially had misrepresentations about Paul circu- 
 lated among them (Acts xxi. 21). The misunder- 
 standing was not shared by James and the leaders 
 (xxi. 24). They abode by the decision of the council 
 (xxi. 25), recognized the liberty of Gentiles, and as- 
 sumed that Jews would observe the law ; but many 
 believed that Paul was teaching Jews that they ought 
 not to follow the national customs (xxi. 21), and the 
 prejudice against him was shared by the non-Christian 
 Jews. The opposition of the latter to his work among 
 the Gentiles (comp. I. Thess. ii. 14-16) increased, we 
 may believe, their hostility to the Judaic Christians, 
 and made the latter in turn more sensitive about the 
 reports which were circulated of him. Hence it is not 
 difficult to believe that, as his epistles testify, the Ju- 
 daizing party did not cease after the Council to propa- 
 gate their views. He was the special object of their 
 aversion, and against him and his work they instituted 
 a widespread campaign at home and abroad. We shall 
 meet with them again and again in following his labors. 
 They misrepresented him to his Gentile converts as 
 they did to the Jerusalem church. We are here con- 
 cerned with them, however, only in their relation to 
 Judaic Christianity. The situation of the latter dis- 
 closes the conditions out of which the activity of the 
 Judaizers arose and by which it was fostered. It is 
 plain that diverse opinions and tendencies existed 
 among the disciples in Judea, ranging from James with 
 his spiritual interpretation of the law and his cordial 
 appreciation of the work among the Gentiles, through 
 
DEATH OF JAMES AND FLIGHT TO PELLA 163 
 
 many grades of more or less adequate comprehension 
 of the relation of the old to the new, down to nominally 
 Christian Jews who saw in Christianity only a new 
 method of extending Judaism; and it is plain also 
 that these varieties of opinion insured the ultimate 
 division of Judaic Christianity according as it fol- 
 lowed the logic of the faith or the prejudice of national 
 tradition. 
 
 171. Apart from the narrative of the Acts, only two 
 events have been preserved from this period of Judaic 
 Christianity. One is the death of James, of which an 
 account has already been given (sect. 130). It oc- 
 curred probably in a. d. 62, and indicates the increasing 
 hostility of the Jewish authorities against the Chris- 
 tians. When this devout son of the law, who 
 although a Christian was honored for piety alike by 
 believer and unbeliever, fell before the hatred of the 
 Sadducaic high-priest, it was made evident that even a 
 purely Jewish Christianity could not continue long to 
 exist within the limits of Judaism, and that the sepa- 
 ration of the disciples from their Hebrew countrymen 
 was steadily advancing in spite of their zeal for the 
 law. The other event is the flight of the church from 
 Jerusalem to Pella, a town in the northern part of 
 Perea, shortly before or after the outbreak of the war 
 {Ens. HE. IH. 5 ; Fpiphanius, De pond, et mens. 15). 
 Eusebius states that this was in accordance with a 
 revelation vouchsafed to approved men before the war. 
 Possibly the fact was that Christ's prediction and in- 
 struction (Matt, xxiv., especially verses 16-21) was the 
 cause of the flight. But the latter is mainly signifi- 
 cant because it was practically the final separation of 
 the church from the fortunes of Judaism. It confirms 
 
164 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 the impression that many of the Christians held aloof 
 from the political agitations of the Jewish state. They 
 believed that the judgment of God was impending over 
 their nation for its rejection of the Christ. We do 
 not know how much of the church thus separated from 
 the fortunes of the nation ; but the part that did acted 
 in accordance with the teaching and spirit of Jesus, 
 while the remainder, choosing Judaism rather than 
 Christianity, perished as a body from Christian his- 
 tory, as doubtless most of them perished literally amid 
 the ruins of their sacred city. 
 
 172. It is not surprising that, under these circum- 
 stances, Judaic Christianity remained theologically un- 
 progressive, and that there was even a danger of the 
 disciples' lapsing from the faith as the refusal of Juda- 
 ism to accept their Messiah became more and more 
 evident. This is illustrated by the Epistle to the 
 Hebrews. The writer furnishes a profound exposi- 
 tion of Christianity from the Jewish point of view. 
 He gave the true consolation for the Hebrew believer 
 as he saw himself excluded from the revered ritual 
 and the latter plainly doomed to utter overthrow. 
 But it is also clear that the views of the author were 
 not current among the Christians of Judea ; so that 
 while the epistle registers an immense advance in its 
 conception of the relation of Christianity to Judaism, 
 it does not indicate that this advance was shared by 
 those to whom it was addressed. On the contrary, 
 while confident of their faith (vi. 9, 10 ; x. 35-39), the 
 author reproves them for their immaturity and for not 
 realizing the truth which he set forth (ii. 1-4 ; iv. 1 ; 
 V. 12-14 ; vi. 8). The positive teaching of this epistle 
 can be properly appreciated only after the work of 
 
TRIALS OF THE JEWISH CHRISTIANS 165 
 
 Paul has been described. For the present we merely 
 note its disclosures of the temptations and difficulties 
 of its readers. It implies that a terrible crisis was im- 
 pending (x. 5 ; xiii. 14) and that they were being 
 tempted from the new faith through discouragement 
 due to their surroundings (iv. 14 : vi. 4-6 ; vii. 11 ; x. 
 23-25, 35; xiii. 13), With fainting hearts and many 
 forebodings they clung to their unseen Messiah, while 
 from all that their fathers had loved as the ordinance 
 of God they were being separated. All this prevented 
 the development of their new faith. They were in 
 danger of a subtle drift (ii. 1, R.Y.) through unbelief 
 (iii. 12). They were still content to debate the first 
 principles which distinguished a Jewish believer from 
 his countrymen (v. 12 to vi. 2). Instead of being the 
 teachers of Christianity, they had need to be taught 
 the meaning of their own Scriptures (v. 12). 
 
 173, Thus Judaic Christianity fulfilled its real mis- 
 sion by transmitting to the Gentiles the faith of the 
 apostles. It affords an example of arrested develop- 
 ment. It was not within the sphere of Judaism that 
 the religion of Jesus, though it sprang out of Jewish 
 soil, could expand and mature. With the fall of Jeru- 
 salem the history of Judaic Christianity, properly 
 speaking, closed. The church did indeed eventually 
 return from Pella, and continued to the close of the 
 century as a Jewish-Christian body in Jerusalem. We 
 are informed (^Uus. HE. III. 11) that Symeon, a cousin 
 of Jesus, was elected its chief official. But the church 
 of Jerusalem was now shorn of all importance. Chris- 
 tianity had found new centres elsewhere. Many of the 
 Jewish Christians united with Gentile churches ; others 
 dwindled into narrow, dissenting sects. Judaic Chris- 
 
166 JUDAIC CHRISTIANITY 
 
 tianity, as a separate unity and power, had run its 
 course. The further history of the relation of Juda- 
 ism to Christianity is a part of the developing and ex- 
 panding faith which we shall review after we have 
 followed the creative ministry of Paul. 
 
PART IV 
 
 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER 
 PAUL 
 
I 
 
 HISTOEICAL SOURCES 
 
 174, The authorities for the history of Paul's dis- 
 tinctive work are Acts (xv. 36 to the close) and the 
 Pauline epistles. In the former are included the " we 
 sections " (sect. 3), where the narrative is especially 
 minute and full. As to the epistles of Paul, the prog- 
 ress of criticism during the last fifty years has cer- 
 tainly resulted in their vindication, exclusive of the 
 Epistle to the Hebrews, as genuine products of the 
 apostle. The only ones of the thirteen claiming to be 
 Pauline about which serious question exists in the 
 
 minds of any but the most extreme critics, are those '^ 
 
 to Timothy and Titus. The eccentricities of individual 
 critics may be disregarded and the conclusion of more 
 sober scholars safely followed. The general results 
 obtained by B. Weiss ("A Manual of Introduction to , 
 the New Testament"), Salmon (" Introduction to the 1 - 
 New Testament "), Th. Zahn (" Einlcitung in das Ncuc 
 Testament "), and Godet (" Introduction to the New 
 Testament. I. The Epistles of Paul"), who defend all 
 the thirteen, should be considered established. Jiili- 
 jjher (" Einleitung in das N. T.") and Harnack (" Die 
 Chronologic der altchristlichen Literatur bis Euse- 
 bins," Vorrede) in like manner receive all except the 1 
 Pastorals. Tlie doubt thrown on many of these books 
 by the Tubingen school has thus been dissipated. 
 
170 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 175. The genuineness of the epistles to Timothy 
 and Titus is therefore the only matter to which we 
 need pay special attention in establishing our sources 
 for the history and teaching of Paul. Not a few 
 scholars refuse to receive them as Pauline, at least 
 in their present form, and insist that they were com- 
 posed wholly, or for the most part, by a later writer, 
 who is dated variously from the close of the first to 
 the middle of the second century, who wrote for the 
 purpose of correcting evils in the church, and who 
 either attributed his whole work to Paul to give it 
 authority, or else possessed some brief notes written 
 by the apostle, which he enlarged by extensive inter- 
 polations. This criticism is based on a variety of 
 grounds by different writers. Some allege that the 
 epistles are plainly directed against second-century 
 heresies, mainly Gnostic (I. Tim. i. 4, 7, 19 ; iv. 1-3 ; 
 vi. 4, 20; Tit. i. 10; iii. 9; II. Tim. ii. 14, 16, 18, 23; 
 iii. 1-7, 13 ; iv. 3) ; others, that the directions about 
 church government and officials show the stress on 
 organization, if not the development of episcopacy, 
 which existed in the early post-apostolic age (I. Tim. 
 iii. 1-10, 15 ; V. 1-22 ; Tit. i. 5-9 ; iii. 10 ; II. Tim. ii. 
 2) ; others again, that the tone of address is not such 
 as we would expect from Paul to Timothy and Titus, 
 since on the one hand he vehemently defends his 
 apostleship to them (I. Tim. i. 11-16 ; ii. 7 ; II. Tim. 
 ii. 12 ; iv. 7), and on the other hand instructs them in 
 the most elementary duties (I. Tim. i. 19 ; iv. 12 ; vi. 
 11 ; Tit. ii. 7; II. Tim. i. 6 ; ii. 1, 4, 22 ; iii. 14), and 
 when dealing with error merely denounces, instead of 
 disproving, it (I. Tim. i. 4, 7, 20 ; iv. 6, 7 ; vi. 3-5 ; Tit. 
 i. 10-16; iii. 9-11 : II. Tim. ii. 14, 18; iii. 1-9; iv. 
 
GENUINENESS OF PASTORAL EPISTLES 171 
 
 3, 4). The main objections, however, brought against 
 the epistles are based on their teaching and style, both 
 of which are 'alleged to be unpauline. On the other 
 hand, the historical references in the epistles, which arc 
 very natural and incidental and wholly unlike the work 
 of a forger, have led recent scholars to the view that the 
 author based his work on genuine notes of Paul (comp. 
 I. Tim. i. 3, 20 ; Tit. i. 5 ; iii. 12, 13 ; II. Tim. i. 15-18 ; 
 iv. 10-21). Even these critics, however, vary greatly 
 in the determination of the Pauline portions. 
 
 176. But this criticism may be met by a greater 
 array of opposing considerations. The negative hy- 
 pothesis does violence to the explicit claims of the 
 epistles themselves, and should not be accepted with- 
 out ample proof. It also reflects severely on the 
 perspicacity of the church of the second century which 
 received the epistles as apostolic. It is certain that in 
 determining the New Testament canon the church 
 acted slowly, intelligently, and upon evidence. She 
 is known to have rejected . other works falsely claiming 
 apostolic autliorship. Her acceptance of these epistles 
 should be presumed to have had sufficient reason, 
 unless convincing proof to the contrary can be pro- 
 duced. Nor is the external evidence for the acceptance 
 of these epistles inadequate. It is found possibly in 
 ',Clement of Rome (a. d. 96) and certainly in the writ- 
 ings of Ignatius (about a. d. 110) and Polycarp (about 
 A. D. 110). The letters were thus undoubtedly pro- 
 duced in the first century ; and the earliest post-apos- 
 tolic literature shows them in circulation and used as 
 other apostolic writings were. Their absence from 
 Marcion's canon is no evidence against them, since he 
 only accepted a portion of the books received as 
 
172 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 authoritative by the church, and these epistles would, 
 from his theological views, naturally be distasteful to 
 him. Still further, the historical allusions contained 
 in them, which have been already noticed, are strong 
 testimony to their authenticity. The admission by 
 I recent negative critics of a genuine Pauline element is 
 an acknowledgment that the historical situation evi- 
 denced by the epistles belongs to the life of Paul. 
 
 177. Moreover, the objections to their contents 
 either disappear on examination or are insufficient to 
 weigh against the other testimony in their favor. 
 Thus the false teachers cannot be identified with any 
 known heretical sect of the second century. So true 
 is this that recent opposing critics consider the refer- 
 ences to them to be a somewhat crude and mixed 
 allusion to heresy in general. But they can be con- 
 sistently explained, if we suppose the false teachers 
 to have been Jews who used fanciful explanations of 
 the Old Testament and Jewish legends to inculcate 
 superstitious speculations and ascetic practices, com- 
 bined with pretences to a higher spiritual knowledge 
 (I. Tim. i. 4, 7 ; iv. 7 ; vi. 20 ; Tit. i. 10, 14 ; iii. 9 ; 
 IT. Tim. ii. 18) ; and the existence of similar destruc- 
 tive tendencies in Asia Minor appears in the Epistle 
 to the Colossians. The errorists of these epistles 
 even appear less Gnostic than those of Colosse, for 
 the " myths and endless genealogies " to which allusion 
 is made (I. Tim. i. 4; Tit. i. 14; iii. 9; II. Tim. iv. 4) 
 were probably Jewish fables rather than speculations 
 about the Godhead. The references therefore better 
 suit the first century than the second. The apostle 
 foresaw, however, that the evil would increase (I. Tim. 
 iv. 1 ; II. Tim. iii. 1, 13). 
 
TEACHING OF THE PASTORAL EPISTLES 173 
 
 178. In like manner the directions about church 
 officials point to the apostolic age, since the bishop is 
 still identified with the elder (I. Tim. iii. 1 ; v. 17 ; 
 Tit. i. 5, 7), and the directions are given not in the 
 least for the purpose of advancing the power of any 
 office, nor to develop the machinery of church govern- 
 ment, but to secure high character and faithful teach- 
 ing in the officials already established. Neither is the 
 author's tone of address to Timothy and Titus, nor his 
 severe denunciation of the errorists as schismatical and 
 opposed to established doctrine, inconsistent with Paul's 
 position or habit. Christianity was in fact already es- 
 tablished ; and, as all his epistles show, it was his 
 custom to emphasize the fact that an unchangeable 
 revelation had been made in Christ, and that the 
 Christian life was one of holiness. Writing to men 
 to whom he had delegated for a time important fields, 
 knowing that truth and duty had already been taught 
 to the churches, and seeing that false and foolish teach- 
 ings, often combined with failure to strive after the 
 high moral ideal of the gospel, were being introduced, 
 he naturally urged his helpers, and through them the 
 churches, to be true to what they had been taught. 
 There was no need to go over the whole argument for 
 Christianity, but only to enforce its application. The 
 epistles therefore fit into just the situation which the 
 development of the churches must inevitably have 
 created. 
 
 179. Nor can the doctrinal teaching of these epistles 
 he shown to be unpauline. If it be said that " faith " 
 is here used to denote the content of that which is 
 believed (I. Tim. i. 19 ; ii. 9 ; iv. 1, 6 ; vi. 10, 21 ; Tit. 
 i. 1, 13), and is classed as merely one of the Christian 
 
174 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 virtues (I. Tim. vi. 11 ; II. Tim. ii. 22), it may be re- 
 plied that these aspects of faith always formed part of 
 Paul's representation of it (II. Thess. i. 10 ; ii. 12 ; iii. 
 2 ; Rom. x. 9 ; Gal. v. 22, 23), that the increase of 
 false teaching naturally led to further stress on the 
 former of these aspects, and that the common Pauline 
 use of " faith " to denote the saving trust of the 
 Christian in his Lord and the sphere in which all his 
 spiritual activities move, appears as plainly in these 
 epistles as elsewhere (I. Tim. i. 2, 4, 5, 14, 16 ; ii. 15 ; 
 iii. 15 ; iv. 3, 10 ; vi. 11, 12 ; Tit. i. 4; ii. 2 ; iii. 15; 
 II. Tim. i. 5, 13 ; ii. 18, 22; iii. 8, 15 ; iv. 7). If it 
 be said that here stress is laid on " sound teaching " 
 (I. Tim. i. 10 ; iv. 6 ; Tit. i. 9 ; ii. 1 ; II. Tim. i. 3 ; 
 ii. 2; iv. 3), and "good works" (I. Tim. iv. 12; vi. 
 11,18,19; Tit. i. 16; ii. 12, 14; iii. 8), the reply is 
 obvious that in other epistles Paul emphasized the duty 
 of adherence to his teaching (I. Thess. ii. 13 ; iv. 1 ; 
 II. Thess. ii. 15; iii. 6, 14; I. Cor. xi. 2; Col. ii. 6), 
 and never failed to insist on the moral fruits of faith 
 (e. g. I. Thess. iv. 1-12 ; Gal. v. 19 to vi. 10 ; I. Cor. 
 vi. 9-11). In like manner he had ever been accus- 
 tomed, as in these epistles, to hold himself before his 
 converts for their imitation (I. Thess. ii. 1 ; II. Thess. 
 iii. 7 ; Gal. iv. 12 ; Phil. iii. 17), and to make God's 
 gracious dealing with him an illustration of his Gospel 
 (Gal. i. 11-17 ; I. Cor. ix. 1, 2 ; xv. 8-11 ; II. Cor. ii. 
 14-17) ; nor does this seem inappropriate in these 
 letters to Timothy and Titus, because the epistles were 
 addressed to them in their official capacities and the 
 false use of the law by the errorists suggested the re- 
 emphasizing of the fundamental principle of grace 
 which his own experience had illustrated. In fact, 
 
STYLE OF THE PASTORAL EPISTLES 175 
 
 Paul's distinctive doctrines of grace appear in these 
 epistles. The law, though honorable (I. Tim. i. 8j 
 comp. Rom. vii. 12}, is said to be designed to bring 
 the sinful to repentance (I. Tim. i. 9, 10; comp. Gal. 
 iii. 19, 22) ; while we read of the sovereignty of divine 
 grace in salvation (I. Tim. i. 14 ; vi. 12 ; Tit. ii. 11 , 
 iii. 4-7 ; II. Tim. i. 9; ii. 10, 19), of salvation itself as 
 justification (Tit. iii. 7) obtained through redemption 
 by the work of Christ (I. Tim. i. 15 ; ii. 5, 6 ; Tit. ii. 
 14 ; II. Tim. ii. 11), and witnessed by the renewal of life 
 by the Spirit (Tit. iii. 5, 6, 9 ; II. Tim. i. 14j, and of the 
 second advent as the object of the believer's hope 
 (I. Tim. vi. 14 ; Tit. ii. 13 ; II. Tim. iv. 8, 18). The 
 familiar Pauline phrase " in Christ " occurs (I. Tim. i. 
 14 ; iii. 13 ; II. Tim. i. 1, 9, 13 ; ii. 1 ; iii. 12, 15), as well 
 as other characteristic expressions and sentiments (e. g. 
 I. Tim. i. 11, 12; ii. 7, 12 ; iv. 3, 4; vi. 1, 2, 14; Tit. 
 ii. 9, 10; iii. 1, 2; II. Tim. ii. 8, 26). The way of - 
 salvation, in short, is the same in these epistles as in 
 the earlier ones. The most that can be fairly said is i/ 
 that there is a strong emphasis on certain duties of 
 Christian life, a tendency to use brief formulas of doc- 
 trine without elaborating them, and the employment 
 of some new terms, — such as " godliness," " mediator" i 
 as a title of Christ, and the expression " God our •; 
 Savio ur/' — which strike the reader as unusual. But ' 
 the placing of emphasis on different aspects of truth 
 or duty is a marked characteristic of Paul as a writer. 
 So also is his use of new words and phrases in accord- 
 ance with the changing needs of the situation and the 
 arguments of his opponents. 
 
 180. It must be acknowledged, indeed, that the style 
 and diction of these epistles differ considerably from 
 
176 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 Paul's earlier letters. They contain many words not 
 
 i ^previously used by him. Many scholars miss from 
 them his dialectical method of argumentation and the 
 absence of his usual particles of connection. But 
 other facts advise us that this argument cannot be 
 pressed. The vast bulk of the language is Pauline. 
 The comparative absence of the particles proper to 
 argument is explained by the absence of doctrinal dis- 
 cussions. As already remarked, the versatility of his 
 mind led Paul to adjust his instruction to new situa- 
 tions; and this caused a steady enlargement of the 
 vocabulary of his epistles, which is in fact one of their 
 most striking features. The argument, therefore, from 
 style and diction should not cast doubt on these epis- 
 tles. If so, the other objections are certainly inade- 
 quate. We do not hesitate, therefore, to accept them 
 as Pauline and to use them for the construction of 
 the history. 
 
n 
 
 >/^NTRANCE OF CHRISTIANITY INTO EUROPE 
 
 181. Returning to Antioch at the period subsequent 
 to the council and Peter's visit, our narrative must 
 follow the expansion of Christianity among the Gen- 
 tiles, for which the earlier labors of Paul and Barna- 
 bas and the decision of the council had prepared the 
 way. The part of Acts fxv. 36 to xxviii. 31) which, 
 with the epistles of Paul, is the source of information, 
 describes only the missionary activity of that apostle, 
 so that our view of the expansion must be limited to 
 his work. Hence it is important to remember that 
 many others were more or less closely associated with 
 him. He was not a solitary evangelist, but rather 
 the commanding officer of a large circle of mission- 
 aries ; and the number of his co-laborers increased with 
 the progress of the work. It is also still more im- 
 portant to remember that outside of this Pauline circle 
 many other missionaries went forth, and doubtless in 
 every direction. Paul himself alludes to Peter, Bar- 
 nabas, and the brethren of the Lord as well-known 
 evangelists (I. Cor. ix. 5, 6). The tradition {Eus. HE. 
 in. 1) that the apostles scattered to various parts of 
 the world plainly rests on a basis of fact (com p. sect. 
 103) ; and the diffusion of Christianity which existed 
 at the close of the century can hardly be explained 
 except by the labors of many agents. The period 
 
 12 
 
178 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 was thus one of widespread evangelism. Neither was 
 the latter all of the same type. The Judaizing op- 
 ponents of Paul actively pushed their views within 
 his own churches. Other Jewish missionaries carried 
 the message of Jesus among their countrymen in an 
 independent way, without opposing Paul, but doubtless 
 without emphasizing the phases of the gospel on whicli 
 he laid sti-ess. We read in Acts (xviii. 26 ; xix. 1-3) 
 of imperfectly instructed disciples, one of whom had 
 heard of Jesus in Alexandria ; while in Paul's epistles 
 false teachers of various kinds are continually opposed. 
 It is clear, therefore, that quite different types of 
 Christianity were being disseminated. 
 
 182. Yet the expansion under Paul was the fact 
 of chief importance. Luke followed it, not because 
 he was ignorant of others, nor merely because he had 
 been associated with the apostle. It was through 
 Paul's work that Christianity was established in the 
 chief cities of the empire, and thus obtained the 
 significance which it had when Luke wrote. This 
 line of progress was historically the most portentous. 
 In Paul's Epistles, moreover, which arc the index of 
 his teaching, the Christian system of belief was com- 
 pletely unfolded, so that under him Christianity 
 evolved its content as well as extended its area. 
 Later epistles from other hands prove that the Pauline 
 teaching was recognized by the other leaders of the 
 church as the correct expression of the faith. It is 
 true that he met with constant opposition, and that 
 his own churches required from him continual in- 
 struction and rebuke. But apostolic Christianity ever 
 presents two phases, — one the Christianity which was 
 taught by its founders ; the other that of the churches, 
 
PAUL'S SECOND JOURNEY 179 
 
 which was often, quite an incomplete appropriation 
 of the former. Paiiliiiism was unquestionably the 
 genuine development of the apostolic faith. Hence 
 in following Paul, while we are not to forget other 
 agents, we follow the expansion which was histori- 
 cally the most monentous and which gave its full 
 significance to the apostolic age. 
 
 183. Paul's second missionary journey, as it is 
 commonly called, originated from a proposal to Barna- 
 bas to revisit the churches which they had previously 
 planted (Acts xv. 36). A sharp difference of opinion 
 on the subject of taking Mark with them led, however, 
 to their separation (xv. 37-39). Barnabas, with Mark, 
 sailed to Cyprus, and thenceforth disappears from 
 authentic history, save for the allusion to him in 
 I. Corinthians ix. 6. The traditions about him are late 
 and various. It may well be that he continued to 
 perform a large part in the spread of Christianity, and 
 to mediate, as he had done before, between Jewish 
 and Gentile believers. Paul took for his companion 
 Silas, who had returned to Antioch. Possessed of 
 prophetic gifts (Acts xv. 32), a leader and probably 
 a presbyter of the Jerusalem Church, and seemingly, 
 like Paul, a Roman citizen (Acts xvi. 37), Silas was in 
 complete accord with the views of the apostle and was 
 destined to be one of his most devoted co-laborers. 
 
 184. The two men left Antioch probably in the 
 spring of a. d. 51 (see Appendix), and the prayers of 
 the church followed them (Acts xv. 40). Their object 
 still appears to have been to visit the churches already 
 founded, though this of course did not exclude further 
 evangelization. Hence they passed first through Syria 
 and Cilicia, and then crossed into Lycaonia (xvi. 1) 
 
180 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 and Phrjgia (xvi. 6), the scene of the former labors of 
 Paul and Barnabas. At Lystra, Timothy, who had 
 won the favor of the disciples there and in Iconium, 
 and to whom the Spirit pointed as destined for im- 
 portant work (I. Tim. i. 18 ; iv. 14), was taken into 
 the party (sect. 128). Paul caused him, as the son 
 of a Jewess, to be circumcised in order not to give 
 offence to the Jews (Acts xvi. 3), thus showing his 
 entire willingness to act on the principle laid down 
 by the council. His refusal to allow Gentiles to be 
 circumcised was quite consistent with the observance 
 of that rite by Jews, especially if the cause could be 
 advanced thereby. Doubtless also at this time Timothy 
 was formally set apart by the church as an evangelist 
 (T. Tim. iv. 14), a ceremony in which the apostle 
 joined (II. Tim. i. 6). Luke further notes that, as he 
 went, Paul delivered to the churches the decree of 
 the council. How consistently he could do this has 
 been already discussed (sects. 159, 160). 
 
 185. The apostle had now revisited the churches 
 previously planted, but he was not disposed to halt. 
 Perhaps, with the replacement of Barnabas by Silas, 
 his plans had enlarged. Perhaps, as they advanced 
 through the older territory, the accessibility of the 
 Gentiles impressed them anew. At any rate, it was 
 now his purpose to enter the Roman province of Asia ; 
 but the Divine Spirit forbade it. God had chosen 
 another field for him, and the apostle was made to 
 realize that another mind than his own was planning 
 for the future. The precise direction of his journey at 
 this point is, however, much disputed. The common 
 opinion has been that he went northeast through 
 Phrygia, in which Pisidian Antioch lay, into the 
 
THE GALATIANS 181 
 
 region of Galatia (Acts xvi. 6 )^. The latter was a large 
 area in the centre of Asia Minor. It received its name 
 from certain Gallic tribes who in the third century B.C., 
 after invading Macedonia and Thrace, had crossed over 
 into Asia on the invitation of the king of Bithynia to 
 assist him in war. Though subdued by the Romans 
 (189 B. c), they had been permitted to retain self-gov- 
 ernment, and under Pompey Galatia had been made a 
 kingdom. Under the last king, Amyntas IV., their 
 territory was much extended to the south, so as to in- 
 clude part of Phrygia, Pisidia, Lycaonia, and Isauria, 
 and after the death of Amyntas (b. c. 25), this ex- 
 tended territory became the Roman province of Galatia, 
 to which (b. c. 7) further additions were made on the 
 north {Ramsay, Hist. Geog- of As. M., pp. 252-254). 
 The term " Galatia " might therefore describe the ter- 
 ritory inhabited by the descendants of the Gauls and 
 popularly known by this term, or the more extended 
 Roman province to which the name was affixed by the 
 imperial government. In the latter case it would in- 
 clude the region already evangelized. Hence many 
 have maintained that Paul's Galatians were the 
 churches which he and Barnabas founded in Phrygia 
 and Lycaonia; while Professor Ramsay (St. Paul the 
 Trav. chh. viii., ix., Studia Bib. et Eccles., 1896) main- 
 tains also that in Acts xvi. 6 we should translate " they 
 passed through the Plirygio — Galatic region " and 
 understand by that phrase the part of Phrygia which 
 belonged to the province of Galatia. In that case Paul 
 did not enter Galatia proper at all. 
 ■" 186. To whomever the epistle to the Galatians was 
 written, it is difficult to interpret Luke's language as 
 Professor Ramsay does, because in xviii. 23 he re- 
 
182 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 verses the clauses and speaks of " the Galatian region 
 and Pbrygia," thus indicating that he used the phrase 
 " Galatian region " as descriptive of a territory differ- 
 ent from Phrygia (see Zahn, Einleit. I. 133). We must 
 believe, therefore, that, when Paul was forbidden to 
 enter Asia, he did turn into the region of Galatia 
 proper. Did he found churches there ? Luke does not 
 record it. Yet he implies it in the use of the verb 
 which he commonly uses elsewhere to describe an 
 evangelizing tour, and his failure specifically to men- 
 tion it may have been due to the purpose of his nar- 
 rative. His account here (xvi. 6-10) is very condensed. 
 He was bent on describing the divine guidance which 
 led the apostle to Troas and so to Europe. Events 
 in Galatia which did not result in the occupation of 
 territory of special interest to one who had in mind 
 the evangelization of the empire, are passed over, and 
 the founding of churches there may have been passed 
 over too. It is in itself improbable that Paul lost any 
 opportunity of extending the work. 
 
 187. The question must, therefore, be raised here 
 whether the Galatians to whom Paul addressed his 
 epistle were inhabitants of Galatia proper or of Phrygia 
 and Lycaonia. Much may be said in favor of both 
 views. No doubt Paul could have addressed the people 
 of Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Derbe, and Lystra as 
 Galatians, if he chose to use official Roman nomencla- 
 ture ; and his frequent use of the names of provinces 
 (Rom. xvi. 5 ; I. Cor. xvi. 15 ; II. Cor. i. 8, 16 ; ii. 12 ; 
 1. Tim. i. 3 ; II. Tim. i. 1.5), and especially his apparent 
 classification of his churches by provinces in the matter 
 of the collection for the Judean Christians (Rom. xv. 
 26 ; II. Cor. viii. 1 ; ix. 2 ; perh. I. Cor. xvi. 1), gives 
 
THE EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS 183 
 
 plausibility to the view that he did so. On the other 
 hand, we have no instance of- his addressing a letter to 
 the churches of a province under that name alone ; and 
 this is specially notable in the case of the epistle to the 
 Ephesians, which was probably a circular letter to the 
 churches of Asia. The Galatian epistle contains, in 
 spite of Professor Ramsay's acute arguments to the 
 contrary, no allusion which is not susceptible of expla- 
 nation on the other view, while the description of his 
 reception " as an angel of God " (Gal. iv. 14) hardly 
 comports with anything we know of on the first mission- 
 ary journey. If it be said that the Judaizers would 
 most naturally operate in the nearer towns of South 
 Galatia, where there were large Jewish colonies, it may 
 be said, on the other hand, that Judaism had also en- 
 tered Galatia proper (Jos. Antiq. xvi. 6. 2), and that 
 the Judaizers would be more likely to attack Paul's 
 own new churches which had not been so long and well 
 established as those of Phrygia and Lycaonia. It is a 
 serious difficulty with the " South-Galatian " view that 
 the apostle appeals to his readers as if he alone had 
 been their spiritual father (iv. 13-20 ; v. 1), whereas 
 on the first journey Barnabas was associated with him 
 on equal terms. The force of this fact is not lessened 
 by the incidental allusions to Barnabas as known by 
 the Galatians (ii. 1, 9, 13), any more than is Paul's 
 special relation to the Corinthian church made doubt- 
 ful by his reference to Barnabas and Peter in First 
 Corinthians (ix. 6). An equally serious difficulty lies 
 in the date which must be given to the epistle on the 
 theory in question. It appears from iv. 13, that Paul 
 had twice \3s|tcdjhe Galatians. Hence on the "South- 
 GalatiarT" view the epistle must have been written 
 
184 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 during his second missionary journey, since the third 
 
 journey began with a third visit to Phrygia (Acts xviii. 
 
 23). Yet, if the epistle be dated before or during his 
 
 visit to Corinth, we are confronted with the fact that 
 
 the epistles to the Thessalonians, written from Corinth, 
 
 contain no allusions to the Judaistic attacks, and no 
 
 emphasis on those specific doctrines upon which these 
 
 attacks ever afterwards caused him to lay stress ; while 
 
 if we date it at the close of the second journey, we are 
 
 confronted with the fact that in the epistle he says 
 
 nothing of his intention of again visiting the Galatians, 
 
 — indeed in iv. 20 writes as if he could not do so, — 
 
 although Acts xviii. 19-23 makes it clear that such 
 
 was his purpose, and that he at once actually did so. It 
 
 thus seems quite improbable that the epistle was written 
 
 » during or at the close of the second journey ; and this 
 
 ;j of itself leads to the conclusion, in view of iv. 13, that 
 
 i| the Galatians were not the Christians of Phrygia and 
 
 I Lycaonia. 
 
 188. We infer, therefore, that Paul not only passed 
 through Galatia proper, but that he tarried there and 
 evangelized. Yet the delay appears not to have been 
 his original intention. He was afflicted on the way by 
 a grievous, and seemingly loathsome, disease (Gal. iv. 
 13, 14), doubtless an attack of the mysterious " thorn 
 [or stake] in the flesh " of which he writes elsewhere 
 (II. Cor. xii. 7). Though suffering, he began to 
 preach ; and his words were attended with such spir- 
 itual power that many received the gospel of the 
 Crucified (Gal. iii. 1). No doubt this led him to linger 
 in Galatia ; but whether he preached in its chief cities, 
 Pessinus, Ancyra, and Tavium, or only in some of the 
 smaller villages, is not known. Then, advancing 
 
FROM ASIA TO EUROPE 185 
 
 northward, he attempted to enter Bithynia ; but again 
 the Sph'it strangely forbade him. He was now oppo- 
 site Mysia, a part of the forbidden province of Asia. 
 Whither did God intend him to go ? Doubtful of the 
 future, and perhaps still suffering from sickness, the 
 apostle turned westward and, without preaching in 
 Mysia, hastened through it or along its border to Troas, 
 a seaport near the mouth of the Hellespont. 
 
 189. At Troas the vision of the man of Macedonia 
 (Acts xvi. 8-10) indicated to him at last the divine 
 will. Europe was his destined field of labor. We may 
 believe that with this vision the sense of his divine 
 call to evangelize the empire and to carry the gospel 
 steadily to the west began to break upon his mind. At 
 Troas also Luke joined him (Acts xvi. 10). He is said 
 by tradition to have been a native of Antioch, and 
 probably he was already acquainted with Paul. It 
 has been also inferred that he had been living in 
 Philippi, since he only accompanied the apostle on this 
 journey to that city (xvi. 40). But we must not read 
 too much between the lines. It is enough to know 
 that, in obedience to what they judged to be the divine 
 meaning of the vision, the party sailed at once for 
 Macedonia. Favoring winds seconded the call from 
 heaven (xvi. 11). On the second day they reached 
 Neapolis, and pushed on to Philippi, the nearest 
 Macedonian city. It was a place of importance and a 
 Roman colony. The Roman spirit is manifest in the 
 names of the officials, " prgetors " (xvi. 20) and " lie- 
 tors " (xvi. 35, 38) ; in the charges afterward brought 
 against Paul and Silas of teaching customs not lawful 
 for Romans (xvi. 20, 21) ; and in the effective use 
 finally made by the missionaries of their own Roman 
 
186 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 citizenship (xvi. 37, 39), The apostle thus found him- 
 self in the Romanized world. In a sense never before 
 true had he entered on the conquest of the empire in 
 the name of Jesus. 
 
 190. Only a few incidents of the work at Philippi 
 are recorded in Acts (xvi. 12-40). Jews were not 
 numerous, and, in the absence of a synagogue, there 
 was only a " place of prayer " by the river to which 
 chiefly women resorted. Thither the missionaries 
 went on the Sabbath. The first convert was Lydia 
 from Thyatira, a Gentile already attached to Judaism, 
 who with her household was baptized and welcomed 
 the missionaries to her dwelling. From this small 
 beginning the work advanced. Even Luke's brief 
 account implies that a deep impression was made on 
 the population (xvi. 16, 20, 30), and that a body of dis- 
 ciples was gathered (xvi. 40). Luke, however, was 
 mainly interested to relate Paul's treatment by the 
 authorities. A girl, possessed of an evil spirit of 
 divination, bore testimony to Paul and Silas as servants 
 of the Most High God (xvi. 16, 18), as the demoniacs 
 of Galilee had done to Jesus. But, like his Master, 
 Paul would not receive aid from such a source, and in 
 the name of Jesus expelled the demon. Hence the 
 girl's owners accused Paul and Silas before the magis- 
 trates and the populace of being troublesome Jews, and 
 of teaching customs unlawful for Romans. The charge 
 was devised so as to appeal both to the popular dislike 
 of the Jews and to the colonial pride of the Philippians. 
 It was temporarily successful ; for the populace became 
 excited, and the magistrates hastily had the accused 
 beaten and thrown into prison. During the night an 
 earthquake opened tlic prison doors and shook off the 
 
THE CHURCH AT PHILIPPI 187 
 
 prisoner's chains ; but Paul and Silas made no effort to 
 escape. Their conduct, with the impression produced 
 by the earthquake and the knowledge that they were 
 religious teachers, was the means of awakening the 
 conscience of the jailer and led to his conversion; so 
 that the hour of peril became one of spiritual triumph. 
 Moreover, in the morning the magistrates, having 
 doubtless realized .the hastiness of their previous 
 action, sent w^ord by the lictors to let the prisoners go. 
 But Paul revealed the fact that they were Romans, and 
 demanded an apology for the illegal treatment to 
 which they had been subjected. Hence the magistrates 
 themselves went to release them, and respectfully 
 requested them to leave the city. 
 
 191. While Luke's narrative exhibits the new 
 atmosphere into which the gospel was being carried, 
 much more was accomplished at Philippi than he 
 records. The church in that city steadily grew in 
 numbers and power. Tlie zeal, consecration, and liber- 
 ality amid poverty of the churches of Macedonia, of 
 Avhich that of Philippi was a leader, are attested grate- 
 fully by the apostle in II. Corinthians (viii.), while his 
 epistle to the Philippians testifies to their affectionate 
 relations to himself (i. 7, 25 ; ii. 9 ; iv. 1) and their 
 steadfastness in the faith (i. 5, 27 ; ii. 12). Twice 
 after his departure they sent him financial aid (Phil, 
 iv. 14), as later they again did to him at Rome (iv. 10). 
 They were organized into a church, with bishops, or 
 presbyters, and deacons, after the model of those in 
 Syria (Phil. i. 1). Luke remained among them and , 
 was doubtless one of their leaders ; while in the epistle 
 to the Philippians we read of Epaphroditus (ii. 25) and 
 Clement (iv. 3), with other workers, men and women 
 
188 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 (iv. 2, 3), active and honored in the cause. The Phil- 
 ippian church, dim though the outline of its history- 
 is, presents a beautiful picture of successful and unin- 
 terrupted progress. The opposition of paganism, of 
 which Paul had had a foretaste, did not cease (Phil. i. 
 28-30) ; but it only evoked the zeal of the disciples. 
 The apostle left Philippi with the seal of success 
 plainly placed on the entrance of the gospel into 
 Europe. 
 
 192. In company with Silas and Timothy he next 
 went westward, about a hundred miles, to Thessalonica 
 (Acts xvii. 1). The object seems to have been to 
 occupy the most influential centres. Such a centre was 
 Thessalonica. Situated on the Thermaic gulf, which 
 empties into the ^gean Sea, it commanded the whole 
 region lying to the north. Soon Paul could write to 
 the Thessalonians : " From you sounded out the word of 
 the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in 
 every place your faith to Godward is spread abroad " 
 (I. Thess. i. 8). It was in fact the metropolis of 
 Macedonia. It was a free city, having municipal self- 
 government, as the peculiar titles of its magistrates, 
 " politarchs " (xvii. 6), indicate. In it Paul's work 
 was again very successful. For three Sabbaths he 
 preached in the synagogue (xvii. 2), for there was a 
 large colony of Jews in the city. He proved to them 
 from Scripture that Jesus is the Christ, and that his 
 death and resurrection were necessary (xvii. 3). The 
 result was the formation of a church composed of a 
 few Jews and many devout Gentiles, with some women 
 
 ' of high social standing (xvii. 4). 
 
 193. More information is given by Paul himself 
 in his letters to the Thessalonians. The predomi- 
 
PAUL IN THESSALONICA 189 
 
 nantly Gentile character of the church is there confirmed 
 (I. Thess. i. 9). He refers. also to the spiritual power 
 wliich had attended his ministry (I. Thess. i. 3, 5) and 
 the many practical as well as doctrinal instructions 
 which he had given them (I. Thess. ii. 3-8, 11, 12; iv. 
 1-7, 11 ; II. Thess. ii. 5, 15). He set them an example 
 of industry and sobriety by supporting himself among 
 them by manual toil (I. Thess. ii. 9, 10 ; iv. 11 ; II. 
 Thess. iii. 8). It is evident that he remained longer 
 than the three weeks mentioned by Luke. They were 
 but the commencement of his mission. It is also evi- 
 dent that, while in the synagogue he argued from the 
 Old Testament, he also fully instructed the disciples 
 in the duties as well as the doctrines of Christian life. 
 The epistles show that his instructions took a wide 
 range, but that he especially dwelt on the gospel as a 
 call to repentance and holiness (I. Thess. ii. 12 ; iv. 7 ; 
 V. 23) as well as to salvation, and on the return of 
 Messiah to judgment and to his kingdom (I. Thess. i. 
 10 ; ii. 19 ; iv. 15 ; II. Thess. ii. 5). It should not be 
 imagined that Paul's ordinary instructions consisted 
 solely in those doctrinal discussions which form the 
 core of his theological system. He dealt with the 
 needs of men as he found them. He was as precise 
 and definite in his practical teaching as he was logical 
 and elaborate in his doctrinal. His ministry was also 
 attended with mighty operations of the Spirit ; so that 
 the new religion appeared both as an intellectual sys- 
 tem of truth and as a revelation of supernatural power. 
 He proclaimed himself to be an ambassador from God, 
 clothed with authority to direct the belief and lives of 
 the disciples (I. Thess. ii. 6, 13 ; iii. 2, 15 ; v. 27 ; 
 II. Thess. iii. 6, 9, 14). It is not difficult to imagine 
 
190 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 the spiritual freshness and the directly supernatural 
 character of the faith as he proclaimed it. At the 
 same time the converts were but children, and required 
 constantly additional encouragement and instruction, 
 a fact which none realized more clearly than Paul 
 himself (I. Thess. iii. 1-6). 
 
 194. The anger of the Jews in Thessalonica led 
 finally to the apostle's departure from that city. The 
 charge made by them against the Christians of disloy- 
 alty to Caesar, on the ground that they preached another 
 king (Acts xvii. 7), strikingly agrees with the promi- 
 nence in the apostle's preaching of the doctrine of the 
 Lord's second advent. It was of course a charge man- 
 ipulated for a purpose, and came with bad grace from 
 the Jews. His accusers, however, did not succeed in 
 arresting the apostle (xvii. 6) ; yet the brethren, appre- 
 hending further danger (comp. I. Thess. ii, 14), sent 
 him and Silas by night to Berea, an inland town on 
 the eastern slope of the Olympus range. Timothy 
 appears also to have accompanied them. There Paul 
 was well received even by the Jews. They were im- 
 pressed by his expositions of Scripture, and many 
 converts, both Jew and Gentile, were made (Acts 
 xvii. 11, 12). The Thessalonian Jews, however, fol- 
 lowed him to Berea and roused popular feeling against 
 him. Hence the brethren again sent him away, this 
 time to the coast and so by sea to Athens (xvii. 13, 14). 
 Silas and Timothy remained behind, and Paul sent back 
 word for them to join him at Athens (xvii. 15). We 
 infer from I. Thcssalonians iii. 1, 2, that Timothy did 
 so, but was again sent back to Thessalonica on account 
 of the apostle's anxiety about that church. Acts itself 
 indicates that the order for Silas and Timothy to join 
 
PAUL IN ATHENS 191 
 
 Paul at Athens was not fully carried out, for it relates 
 that they rejoined him at Corinth (xviii. 6). Silas may 
 have found it necessary to remain at Berea, and may 
 have joined Timothy ou the way to Corinth. The 
 apostle, however, seems to have waited some days at 
 Athens before Timothy arrived. 
 
 195. Though alone in Athens, and in a sense a fugi- 
 tive, he could not be idle. His soul burned as he 
 observed the popular idolatry of the famous city, and 
 he discussed with those he met, both in synagogue and 
 agora ; but he seems to have had little success. Per- 
 haps, as often, a philosophic atmosphere was peculiarly 
 inhospitable to the gospel. He found, however, a group 
 of philosophers, Epicureans and Stoics, who became 
 superficially interested in the travelling teacher, though 
 they regarded him rather with amused contempt than 
 with serious desire to learn what he had to say (Acts 
 xvii. 18). They gave him a chance to expound his 
 doctrines. It has been the common opinion that his 
 famous address before them was delivered on that 
 part of Mars' Hill, called the Areopagus, where the 
 celebrated Athenian court bearing the same name was 
 accustomed to hold its sessions. If so, however, wc 
 must not imagine a formal sitting of the court, but a 
 group of listeners using this retired place as a conven- 
 ient auditorium. Others (Ciirtius, Stadtgesch. von 
 Athene, p. 262 ; Ramsay, St. Paul the Trav. p. 243) 
 think that by Areopagus Luke meant the court itself, 
 and that the address was delivered near the agora. In 
 this case it has been supposed that there was either a 
 trial on the charge of introducing new divinities or an 
 informal assemblage of the court to decide whether 
 the stranger should be allowed to teach or not. The 
 
192 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 notion of a formal trial is certainly to be rejected, 
 since the Areopagus did not have jurisdiction in such 
 cases (see J. J. Manatt, Andover Rev., Nov. 1892), 
 and Luke's narrative seems to imply a gathering too 
 occasional even for an informal meeting of the court. 
 There is thus no sufficient reason to abandon the usual 
 conception of the scene. 
 
 196. Wherever the address was delivered, the apos- 
 tle strove for the only recorded time to present Chris- 
 tianity so as to appeal to philosophers. He cleverly 
 took for his starting-point an inscription which he had 
 chanced to see on an altar, " to an unknown god " 
 (xvii. 23, R. v.). With all their reverence for deities, 
 there was then one whom the Athenians knew not. 
 This deity he would proclaim to them. Then he set 
 forth God as the Creator and Lord of the universe, 
 and drew the inference that paganism with its temples 
 and material offerings was unworthy of his majesty 
 (xvii. 24, 25). Next he set forth God's government of 
 the world, bringing out the unity of the race, its uni- 
 versal subjection to God, and his purpose that men 
 should seek and find him (26, 27). God, being ever 
 near us and the universal Father, desires not the coarse 
 and absurd worship of idols, as though he were like 
 them, but man's spiritual fellowship with himself (28, 
 29). The times of ignorance, which he permitted, are 
 now past. A revelation has been made. God's com- 
 mand is that men repent. The time of judgment is 
 approaching ; and Jesus, whom he raised from the 
 dead in token of the authority conferred on him, is 
 to 1)0 the universal judge. 
 
 197. Such was the substance of the address, accord- 
 ing to Luke's meagre but evidently faithful outline. 
 
PAUL'S SPEECH AT ATHENS 193 
 
 There was much in what was said about the absurd- 
 ity of idolatry, and the spirituality of God, with which 
 the auditors, especially the Stoics, must have agreed. 
 So far the argument was fitted to win them, and the 
 quotation from the Stoics Aratus and Kleanthes 
 (xvii. 28) were in the same line of appeal. On the 
 other hand, Paul's pure theism, his doctrine of 
 the unity of the race and of the religious aim of the 
 world-wide purpose of God, still more his doctrine 
 of the resurrection, were equally offensive. The men- 
 tion of the resurrection evoked actual derision. There 
 is also a notable absence from the address of the doc- 
 trine of redemption, and the appeal was to the reason ( 
 rather than to the conscience. Of course on other 
 occasions in Athens the apostle may have spoken quite 
 differently ; but this address, like the one at Lystra 
 (Acts xiv. 15-17), moved outside of his usual themes 
 as we elsewhere know them. Yet it was of the high- 
 est value, because it presented aspects of truth which 
 were to be of fundamental importance in the coming 
 conflict between Christianity and paganism. It illus- 
 trates also the breadth of Paul's thought, and his ac- 
 quaintance with current culture ; and every element 
 of it may be found expressed elsewhere in his writings. 
 While, moreover, apparently designed to appeal to his 
 philosophic audience, it was in no sense a compromise 
 with error, for it emphasized ideas which he must have 
 known would offend. The result, however, was disap- 
 pointing: one Areopagite was converted, also a woman 
 and a few others (34), and Paul finally moved on to 
 Corinth resolved to know nothing but Jesus Christ 
 and him crucified (I. Cor. ii. 1, 2). 
 
 13 
 
HI 
 
 PAUL IN CORINTH 
 
 198. Paul's ministry at Corinth, which lasted eigh- 
 teen months (Acts xviii. 11), was one of the most mo- 
 mentous in his whole career. New Corinth, rebuilt by 
 Julius Csesar on the ruins of the old city, was a place of 
 large commercial importance, a colonia, and the resi- 
 dence of the procurator of Achaia. Its population in- 
 cluded representatives of all races and classes. It was 
 a pleasure-loving city and Corinthian morals were a by- 
 word. To leave Athens for Corinth was to exchange 
 an intellectual for a sensuous, atmosphere. Yet in 
 Corinth the apostle attained 'a success which he had 
 not found in Athens. At first he still cherished the 
 wish to return to Thessalonica, but though anxious 
 and waiting for Silas and Timothy to rejoin him, he 
 could not be idle (I Thess. iii. 4-7). On his arrival he 
 obtained lodging and work with the Pontic Jew Aquila, 
 (Acts xviii. 2, 3) who with his wife Priscilla after- 
 wards became his co-laborers in the nobler work ol 
 IIk^ gospel (Acts xviii. 18, 26 ; Rom. xvi. 3 ; I. Cor. xvi. 
 19; 11. Tim. iv. 9). They had moved recently to 
 Corinth from Rome because of the edict of Claudius ex- 
 pelling Jews from the capital (Acts xviii. 2). Tlris 
 edict is mentioned by Suetonius (Claud. 25), who re- 
 lates that it was caused by the tumults of the Jews 
 " impulsore Chresto.^' The date of it has been assigned 
 
PAUL IN CORINTH 195 
 
 by different scholars to the years a. d. 49, 50, and 52 ; 
 but even if the earliest of these dates, which is the 
 least probable, be accepted, it does not follow that 
 Paul reached Corinth in that year, for some margin 
 must be allowed for the journey of Aquila to Corinth 
 and, in spite of the words "lately come," for the period 
 between his arrival and Paul's. The language of Sue- 
 tonius has also led many to suppose that " Chrestus" 
 was equivalent to " Christus," and that the Jewish 
 tumults in the capital were between Christian and non- 
 Christian Jews. But Suetonius makes " Chrestus " the 
 instigator of the tumults ; and from what we elsewhere 
 learn of the beginnings of Christianity in Rome, there 
 is little reason to think that it had at this time attained 
 sufficient strength to cause open conflicts in the Jewish 
 colony (Acts xxviii, 21, 22). At any rate Luke does 
 not intimate that Aquila and Priscilla were Christians 
 when Paul met them. Doubtless they were led to the 
 faith by their lodger. From their home, the apostle 
 went forth to preach to the Corinthians. He visited the 
 synagogue every Sabbath. During the week he sup- 
 ported himself by his trade. Silas and Timothy had 
 not yet come ; and in spite of many discouragements 
 and of conscious weakness (I. Cor. ii. 3), the solitary 
 ambassador of the Cross disputed with the Jews and 
 their Gentile adherents and told the story of Jesus 
 (I. Cor. ii. 2). 
 
 199. At last Silas and Timothy joined him, with a 
 good report on the whole from Thessalonica (I. Thess. 
 iii. 6) ; and forthwith his energy became more intense 
 (Acts xviii. 5). This led finally to an open rupture 
 with the Jews, so tliat he established himself with his 
 disciples in the house of a devout Gentile, Titus Justus, 
 
196 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 next door to the synagogue. The contiguity of the 
 two societies was of course fruitful in disputes. The 
 apostle's company, however, grew rapidly. Even 
 the ruler of the synagogue, Crispus, believed (xviii. 8 ; 
 
 I. Cor. i. 14) ; but most of the converts were from the 
 lower classes of the populace, and most of them were 
 Gentiles (I. Cor. i. 26). The work continued for many 
 months and not only spread through Corinth, but 
 churches were formed in adjacent towns (II. Thess. i. 
 4 ; II. Cor. i. 1 : Rom. xvi. 1). It was, however, an 
 agonizing ministry for the apostle, and was performed 
 with an intensity of spiritual ardor scarcely equalled 
 in his career. There is reason to believe that he 
 passed through a period of severe mental struggle, 
 out of which he came with the resolve to preach more 
 simply and plainly than ever. We read of a vision 
 vouchsafed for his encouragement (Acts xviii. 9, 10). 
 In I. Corinthians he speaks in strong terms of his 
 fears and weakness while first laboring among them 
 (I. Cor. ii. 3). The vow which he took (Acts xviii. 13) 
 may have been connected with the same experience. 
 He felt, no doubt, a temptation to make his message 
 more ornate in style and philosophical in substance ; 
 but was enabled to remain true to the proclamation of 
 a crucified Redeemer (I. Cor. ii, 1-5), in spite of its 
 offensiveness to Jew and Greek (I. Cor. i. 23), and to 
 rely on the Spirit's demonstration of the truth to the 
 consciences of men. 
 
 200. Tluis the great church which Paul founded in 
 Corinth was begotten with much travail (I. Cor. iv. 15 ; 
 
 II. Cor. vi. 13), and he ever looked on it as peculiarly 
 his own. Its subsequent condition caused him great 
 anxiety. Around his relation to it some of the most 
 
PAUL'S EPISTLES 197 
 
 perplexing problems of his life cluster, and out of it 
 grew some of his most important teaching. Many of 
 his converts were with difficulty separated from their 
 pagan usages. They were but babes in Christ (I. Cor. 
 iii. 1, 2). Diverse elements also existed in the church, 
 to unite and mould which required all the authority 
 and patience of the apostle. Nevertheless the progress 
 was rapid. This led finally to an attempt of the Jews 
 to arrest it by force (Acts xviii. 12-17 ; I. Thess. ii. 15, 
 16). On the arrival of Gallio, the brother of the phi- 
 losopher Seneca, as procurator of Achaia, they accused 
 Paul of persuading men to worship God contrary to 
 the law ; but Gallio with justice refused to take cog- 
 nizance of the case, declaring that the religious quar- 
 rels of the Jews were no concern of his. His action 
 illustrates the attitude of the Roman government at 
 this time to Christianity. It was regarded as a Jew- 
 ish sect and therefore protected ; and under the shield 
 of Judaism itself, which was a reUgio licita, it made 
 its early progress throughout the empire. The pagan 
 populace, moreover, seeing the Jews repulsed by the 
 procurator, let loose their enmity against them and 
 beat Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, before the 
 very judgment-seat itself. Thus the effort of the Jews 
 to arrest Paul resulted in their complete discomfiture. 
 
 201. The apostle's sojourn in Corinth was also made 
 notable for all time by the composition of his first two 
 extant epistles, those to the Thessalonians. Few now 
 doubt that both were written from Corinth. In them 
 he associates with himself Silas and Timothy (I. Thess. 
 i. 1 ; II. Thess. i. 1), the latter of whom had recently 
 come from Thessalonica with a report of the condition 
 of the church (I. Thess. iii. 6). The condition of the 
 
198 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDEE PAUL 
 
 Thessalonians, as reflected in the epistles, was clearly 
 that of a newly formed community. They required 
 the most elementary moral instruction (I. Thess. iv. 
 1-8) ; were disturbed by the death of some of their 
 members (I. Thess. iv. 9-12) ; and were bitterly op- 
 posed by the Jews (I. Thess. ii. 13-16). The apostle 
 refers also to his sojourn among them as if it were 
 recent (I. Thess. ii. 1-12), and in the first epistle there 
 is an absence of allusion to doctrinal controversy which 
 further implies an early date. If I. Thessalonians was 
 thus written from Corinth shortly after Timothy's 
 arrival, the second epistle was evidently penned from 
 the same place some months later. The situation of 
 the readers is the same, though certain difficulties had 
 become more acute. The second advent is, as in the 
 first epistle, the leading doctrinal topic ; but its dis- 
 cussion has advanced to a new stage. In fact the first 
 epistle is referred to (ii. 15) and its language is echoed 
 in numerous phrases (comp. II. Thess. i. 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 
 11 ; ii. 13 ; iii. 6, 12, 7-10 ; ii. 1 ; with I. Thess. i. 1, 
 2,3, 12; iv. 5; i. 3, 4; v. 9; iv. 11, 12; ii. 1-13; 
 iv, 17 respectively). 
 
 202. By these two letters, therefore, we are intro- 
 duced to Pauline literature. It is noteworthy that 
 the apostle writes as an authority whom the Thessa- 
 lonian Christians were bound to obey (I. Thess. iv. 2 ; 
 ii. Thess. ii. 15 ; iii. 6, 14) ; that his epistles were 
 public documents to be read in the assembly of the 
 church (I. Thess. v. 27) ; and that he assumed that 
 |. the same authority would be attached to them as to 
 ! his oral teaching or to a revelation of the Spirit, or to 
 t the word of God (II. Thess. ii. 2). The authoritative 
 character of apostolic literature thus appears from its 
 
FIRST THESSALONIANS 199 
 
 beginning to have been acknowledged by writer and 
 readers. At the same time these productions arc real 
 letters, as of a pastor to his people. They were written 
 in the conventional epistolary form of the day. In 
 them we still feel the beating heart of the writer, and 
 they deal with the specific needs of his first readers. 
 This combination of the personal and occasional with 
 the authoritative and universal is one of their peculiar 
 characteristics. 
 
 203. The First Epistle to the Thessalonians was 
 written partly out of joy over their steadfastness, and 
 partly because of several perils which threatened them. 
 Of the latter there were three in particular, the exist- 
 ence of which gives a suggestive picture of this early 
 Christian community. There was a disposition on the 
 part of some to neglect their daily work and to fail 
 to exercise moral restraint (I. Thess. ii. 9, 10 ; iv. 1-8, 
 11, 12). There had developed, moreover, dismay at 
 death, for they feared that the dead saints would lose 
 their part in the coming kingdom (iv. 13-18). There 
 were also indications of friction between the regular 
 officers and teachers of the church and those who pro- 
 fessed to have inspired spiritual gifts (v. 12, 13). 
 These difficulties were chiefly those of a young com- 
 munity just emerging from paganism. They arose 
 also out of the excitement caused by the new spiritual 
 experiences through which the disciples had passed, 
 and out of their vivid, and often crude, expectation 
 of the Lord's return. But there does not appear to 
 have been any difficulty as to the way of salvation, a 
 sure sign that the Judaistic controversy had not arisen 
 among them. Indeed the absence of any warning 
 about such errors proves that the controversy had not 
 
200 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 yet entered at all into the apostle's field of work (sect. 
 186). 
 
 204. This epistle, written under such circumstances, 
 is a warm, pastoral exhortation. It urges to industry 
 and purity of life, and tells of his anxieties about them. 
 Only one important doctrinal passage occurs, that, 
 namely, in which he assured them, on the authority 
 of a special revelation which he had received, that dead 
 believers will not fail of participation in the glory of 
 the returning Lord (iv. 13-18). It provides, however, 
 a graphic picture of the moral perils to which these 
 early Christians were exposed ; and, on the other hand, 
 of the large view which the apostle took of the new 
 life to which they had been called. 
 
 205. The Second Epistle to the Thessalonians was 
 occasioned by further reports of more specific trouble 
 which had arisen concerning the Lord's advent. Some 
 erroneously believed that " the day of the Lord " (^. e. 
 the time of final judgment ; comp. Acts ii. 20 ; I. Cor. 
 i. 8 ; iii. 13 ; v. 5 ; IL Cor. i. 14 ; I. Thess. v. 2) liad 
 already come, and that, therefore, the return of Clirist 
 might be expected at any moment (ii. 2, R. V.). By 
 this they were further tempted to idleness and disorder 
 (iii. 6-12), as well as to doubt whether their persecutions 
 were reconcilable with God's just judgment (i. 4, 5). 
 The agitation was apparently increased by alleged rev- 
 elations of the Spirit and interpretations of Scripture, 
 and also by the report of a letter from Paul containing 
 such teaching (ii. 2). This made the situation acute, 
 and the apostle hastened to correct the error. 
 
 206. He began by acknowledging the gratitude 
 which he should still feel for their faith and love 
 amid persecution, and pointedly reminded them that 
 
SECOND THESSALONIANS 201 
 
 their endurance was itself a proof of God's just 
 judgment, since it showed that he had accepted them, 
 and would surely vindicate them in that day when 
 Christ will return and pass final sentence upon all 
 mankind (i.). But he begged them not to be disturbed 
 by the idea that the day of the Lord was present (ii. 1, 
 2). He reminded (comp. ii. 5) them that before that 
 day there would be an apostasy (doubtless within the 
 cliurch) culminating in the appearance of " the man of 
 lawlessness " (or Antichrist) who would impiously claim 
 the homage due to God alone (ii. 3, 4), For the pres- 
 ent, as they knew, the development of this apostasy 
 was being checked (perhaps, by the Spirit) ; but " the 
 restrainer," would be taken away, and then would the 
 lawless One be revealed in Satanic power, only, however, 
 to be destroyed by the returning Christ (ii. 6-12). 
 Grateful was he, in view of this fierce conflict, that 
 they had been chosen to salvation (ii. 13, 14). Let 
 them, therefore, stand fast in his teaching (ii. 15-17). 
 He added a request for .their prayers (iii. 1-3), an as- 
 surance of his confidence in them (iii. 4, 5), and a 
 repeated command, sharper than before, to imitate him 
 in a sober and industrious life and to separate them- 
 selves from all who would not obey his word (iii. 6-lG). 
 In view of the fact that a letter, falsely ascribed to him, 
 was said to be in circulation, he called attention to his 
 signature which was appended by his own hand to 
 every epistle ; and closed with his blessing (iii. 17, 18). 
 207. These two epistles furnish a partial, but clear 
 glimpse into the condition of Thcssalonian Christianity. 
 It is not an ideal picture. It is, however, one which 
 might be expected in a church emerging out of pagan- 
 ism. These early believers needed instruction about 
 
202 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 the most elementary duties and doctrines. It required 
 the firm hand of the apostle to prevent fanaticism and 
 childish error. Yet at the same time the genuine fruits 
 of the Spirit were manifest among them, and the central 
 truths of Christianity were firmly held and loyally con- 
 fessed. The doctrine chiefly explained is that of the 
 second advent and the judgment. In I. Thessalonians 
 the advent is presented as the time of reward to believers 
 (i. 10; ii. 12, 19; iii. 13; iv. 15-18; v. 4, 9, 10). In 
 II. Thessalonians it is presented as the time of judg- 
 ment to the ungodly (i. 7, 9 ; ii. 8). The apostle taught 
 a personal, physical, public return of Christ to gather 
 his people into the everlasting kingdom, and to execute 
 judgment upon all the wicked. He looked forward to 
 it eagerly, speaking as if he might live to see it {I. 
 Thess. iv. 17) though not saying that he would. He 
 also taught that certain events must happen first, and 
 that the period before the advent, whether long or 
 short, would be one of conflict within, as well as 
 without, the church. His teaching about the coming 
 " apostasy " and " the man of lawlessness " was evi- 
 dently based on the language of Jesus (comp. Matt, 
 xxiv., especially verses 4, 5, 6, 10, 11, 12, 23, 24). We 
 may also see in his words the influence of the Book 
 of Daniel (comp. Dan. vii. 23-25 ; xi. 36). The term 
 " man of lawlessness " seems, however, to be of his own 
 coining ; but the expectation of apostasy within the 
 church and its final embodiment in some mighty Anti- 
 christ is found in the New Testament (e. g. Matt. xiii. 
 25 ; Luke viii. 13 ; xviii. 8 ; I. Tim. i. 6-10 ; iv. 1-3 ; 
 vi. 3-5 ; II. Tim. i. 15 ; iii. 1-8 ; I. John ii. 18-27 ; II. 
 Peter iii. 3 ; Rev. ii. iii. xiii. xvii. xviii.). Having this 
 expectation, Paul did not look for a peaceful develop- 
 
THE RETURN TO ANTIOCH 203 
 
 ment of the faith. The early Christians were trained 
 by him for conflict with foes without and within ; nor 
 is it strange that they were deeply concerned in these 
 questions which were made so practical by their perse- 
 cutions. The situation illustrates the stir of thought 
 and hope, the possibilities of error of every kind, 
 together with the power of prevailing faith, with which 
 Christianity arose among the Gentiles. 
 
 208. After eighteen months in Corinth, Paul turned 
 his face again lo the east. Aquila and Priscilla sailed 
 with him as far as Ephesus (Acts xviii. 18, 19), whence ; 
 he, after promising to return (xviii. 20, 21), took ship i 
 again to Caesarea, Apparently he visited Jerusalem 
 (xviii. 21, R.V.) and then returned to Syrian Antioch. , 
 He had probably been absent about two years and a i 
 half. But the apostle now realized that he had been 
 called to a larger mission than he had imagined when 
 he and Silas had set forth from the Syrian city, and he 
 only waited a few months before entering upon another 
 campaign. 
 
IV 
 
 PAUL IN EPHESUS 
 
 209. It was probably in the spring of a. d. 54 that 
 Paul left Antioch on what is usually called his third 
 missionary journey. He had already promised to visit 
 Ephesus, and the Asian metropolis was now his object. 
 The former prohibition of the Spirit (Acts xvi. 6) had 
 evidently been removed. He first visited in order the 
 churches of the Galatian region and Phrygia (xviii. 23). 
 The order of words, contrasted with the similar phrase 
 in Acts xvi. 6, indicates that he first went to Galatia 
 proper. It is possible that this was due to information 
 received in Antioch that the Judaistic party was carry- 
 ing on, despite the decision of the council, the propa- 
 gation of their views, and were threatening especially 
 the Gentile churches which he had founded ; for Gala- 
 tians i. 9 seems to state that when last in Galatia he 
 had warned his converts against such perversions of 
 the gospel. Doubtless, also, the success of his work 
 in Europe had increased the alarm and enmity of the 
 Judaizers. It was clear that under him Christianity 
 would become independent of Judaism and of the 
 mother church. Hence these over-zealous and, as 
 Paul plainly called them (Gal. iv. 17 ; v. 10), unscru- 
 pulous sectarians determined to undo his work, to 
 wean his converts away from him, and to perpetuate 
 the Mosaic law among the Gentiles. It does not ap- 
 
APOLLOS 205 
 
 pear that as yet they had actually entered Galatia ; but 
 it was soon proved that Paul was right in fearing that 
 they might. That his special anxiety was already 
 about the Galatians seems also to follow from the fact 
 that Luke does not report him to have visited Lycaonia. 
 He passed through Phrygia, simply because it lay on 
 the way from Galatia to Ephesus. 
 
 210. Before he reached Ephesus, there occurred the 
 interesting fact of the arrival of Apollos, the eloquent 
 Alexandrian Jew^ who preached Jesus though knowing 
 only the baptism of John, and who, after having re- 
 ceived further instruction from Aquila and Priscilla, 
 passed on to Corinth and continued the apostle's work 
 in that city (Acts xviii. 24-28 ; 1. Cor. i. 12 ; iii. 
 4-6). The incident illustrates the influence of John 
 the Baptist even outside of Palestine, and the spread 
 of faith in Jesus as the Messiah among some who had 
 never come in contact with the apostles. If Apollos 
 had learned of Jesus in Alexandria, he provides the 
 first known evidence of the extension of the gospel into 
 Egypt, a land where the beginnings of Christianity are 
 quite obscure, yet where it was certainly flourishing 
 early in the second century. The twelve disciples also, 
 whom Paul met shortly after reaching Ephesus (Acts 
 xix. 1-7), present a similar instance of what we may 
 call non-apostolic Christianity. As Judaism had pre- 
 pared the way for Christianity among the Gentiles, so 
 in some measure had the mission of John and the re- 
 ports about Jesus prepared the way among the Jews of 
 the dispersion. It was not of an unknown personage 
 that the apostles spake when they testified in the syna- 
 gogues that Jesus was the Christ. Here and there actual 
 believers in him were waiting for the full report. 
 
206 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 211. When Paul at last reached the Asian capital, 
 which he had long desired to occupy, he entered on an 
 extended and vigorous campaign. The importance of 
 Ephesus as a centre of the faith is attested not only by 
 his long residence, but afterwards by the mission of 
 Timothy to it, and still later by the residence in it of 
 the apostle John. Already Aquila and Priscilla were 
 there, and perhaps still earlier the message of Pente- 
 cost had been brought (comp. Acts ii. 9). But with 
 Paul's settlement in the city the real history of Ephe- 
 sian Christianity began. For three months he taught 
 in the Jewish synagogue (Acts xix. 8) ; then, since the 
 Jews disbelieved, he organized his disciples into a 
 church, and daily taught for two years in the school of 
 Tyrannus, doubtless a Greek lecture-hall (xix. 9, 10). 
 Besides this, he visited from house to house among his 
 disciples (xx. 20). If we assume that he arrived in 
 
 j the autumn of A. d. 54, the two years and three months 
 would reach to the beginning of 57. At that time he 
 proposed to leave for Macedonia, and sent Timothy and 
 Erastus ahead of him (Acts xix. 21 ; comp. I. Cor. iv. 
 17 ; xvi. 10) ; but he himself tarried longer (Acts xix. 
 22) because of the great work in hand (I. Cor. xvi. 8), 
 and other events occurred, pertaining to the church at 
 Corinth, which detained him till the summer or early 
 autumn of A. D. 57. His whole stay in Ephesus, there- 
 fore, amounted to three years (Acts xx. 31). 
 
 212. His Ephesian ministry was marked (a) by spe- 
 cial thorougliness of teaching (Acts xx. 18-21, 26, 27, 
 31), due probably to his experience of errors among 
 his earlier converts and to the now known plans of the 
 Judaistic party ; (b) by extraordinary miraculous at- 
 testations (Acts xix. 11, 12; comp. II. Cor. xii. 12), 
 
PAUL'S WORK IN EPHESUS 207 
 
 which seem to have been intended specially to offset 
 and overcome the power of magic and sorcery in Ephesus 
 (Acts xix. 13-19) ; (c) by varied and widespread suc- 
 cess, for not only were representatives of the most 
 diverse classes, from the common people (xix. 26, 27) 
 to the wealthy men who had filled the position of 
 Asiarch (xix. 31 ; comp. Lightfoot, Ignatius and Poly- 
 carp, Vol. II. p. 987; Hicks, Expositor, 1890, p. 401), 
 won by him personally, but throughout the entire 
 province his influence extended (Acts xix. 10), while 
 his co-laborers carried his message to and founded 
 churches in neighboring cities (comp. not only Acts 
 xix. 22 ; XX. 4 ; Col. iv. 7, but also I. Cor. xvi. 19 ; 
 Col. i. 7 ; ii. 1 ; iv. 13) ; (d) by fierce opposition 
 (comp. I. Cor. iv. 9-13 ; xv. 32 ; xvi. 9 ; II. Cor. iv. 
 7-10 ; vi. 4, 5), of which the exciting demonstration 
 caused by Demetrius, whose trade in the shrines of 
 the temple of Artemis {Ramsay, St. Paul the Trav. 
 p. 277, etc.) was endangered by the progress of Paul's 
 work (Acts xix. 23-41), was only one, and prob- 
 ably not the most serious, illustration (comp. I. Cor. 
 XV. 32 ; xvi. 9) ; and (e) finally by constant attention 
 to the difficulties existing in distant churches, the care 
 of which pressed upon him daily (II. Cor. xi. 28). 
 The details of Paul's life in Ephesus would furnish a 
 story of physical, intellectual, and spiritual activit}^ 
 marvellous for its intensity and versatility. The inci- 
 dents recorded in Acts are, however, less important 
 for our purpose than the light cast on apostolic history V 
 during Paul's Ephesian ministry by the epistles to the \ 
 Galatians and the Corinthians. 
 
 213. The Epistle to the Galatians was written prob- 
 ably soon after Paul's arrival in Ephesus. It may be 
 
/ 
 
 208 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 assigned to the spring of a. d. 55. This is on the 
 hypothesis, for which reasons have been given (sect. 
 186), that it was addressed to churches in Galatia 
 proper, founded on the second missionaiy journey. It 
 cannot indeed be proved that the epistle was written 
 soon after his arrival in Ephesus, for the phrase (Gal. i. 
 6), " I marvel that ye are so quickly removing from him 
 that called you," may refer to hasty action rather than 
 to shortness of time since he had been with them, and 
 on any interpretation the phrase is quite vague. Still 
 the impression made by his passing allusions to his 
 second visit to Galatia (i. 9 ; iv. 13) is that it had been 
 recent ; he implies elsewhere (II. Cor. xi. 28) that while 
 in Ephesus he had been pressed by anxiety about many 
 churches ; and the reason usually assigned for dating 
 the epistle later — namely, the close connection of its 
 thought with the Epistle to the Romans — is insuffi- 
 cient, since Galatians presents the doctrine of salvation 
 in a much less complete form than is done in Romans, 
 and therefore probably preceded the latter by some 
 time. Hence the probability that this epistle was 
 written early in the Ephesian ministry. 
 
 214. It was occasioned by a report from Galatia 
 which fired the apostle's indignation and filled him 
 with grievous apprehensions. The Judaizing mission- 
 aries had invaded his churches and had actually 
 succeeded in perverting their immature faith. They 
 had assailed the apostle, too, as well as his teaching. 
 They declared that he was no apostle, but at best a 
 mere scholar of the true apostles ; that he vacillated in 
 his teaching to please men, now opposing circumcision 
 and now teaching it ; that the Galatians should look for 
 instruction to the leaders of the mother church, and 
 
EPISTLE TO THE GALATIANS 209 
 
 that these were not in sympathy with Paul. Then, too, i 
 they taught the continued obligation of the Mosaic law | 
 as a condition of salvation for all Christians. Their 
 mission thus struck at the very heart of the gospel as 
 well as at the authority of Paul, That they came from 
 Judea is rendered practically certain by the appearance 
 of such teachers at the time of the council (Acts xv. 1), 
 and by the appeal which these in Galatia evidently 
 made to the names of the authorities in Jerusalem. 
 That they misrepresented the church in Jerusalem and 
 her leaders is proved by Paul himself (ii. 1-10). He 
 charges them with acting from selfish motives (iv. 17) 
 and stigmatizes their party as false brethren (ii. 4). 
 Their mission was thus a revival of the old conflict 
 which the council had sought to settle. They were 
 themselves faithless to the decision of the mother 
 church. In the name of Christ they preached Judaism. 
 They had not yet indeed induced the Galatians to be 
 circumcised, but they had caused a dangerous reaction. 
 Like Jewish proselyters generally, they had begun by 
 recommending some of the easier and more attractive 
 features of the ritual. The Galatians were now observ- 
 ing " days and months and seasons and years " (iv. 10). 
 This involved the recognition of the law as binding, and | 
 the demand for circumcision would follow, if it had not 
 been made. Paul saw that the gospel of faith was 
 imperilled. We can see that the whole question of a 
 universal and non-Judaic religion was at stake, flence 
 this epistle, written in the white-heat of inspired indig- 
 nation, became the magna charta of Christian universal- 
 ism and liberty, 
 
 215. He first proceeds, after a brief introduction, to 
 the vindication of his independent apostolic authority 
 
 14 
 
210 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 (i. 11 to II. 21). He had received his gospel by immedi- 
 ate revelation from Christ (i. 11-12). Formerly he 
 too had been a " Judaizer " (i. 13, 14), but God had 
 sovereignly called him and revealed his Son in him, that 
 he might preach him among the Gentiles (i. 15, 16). 
 In the fulfilment of this commission he had not been 
 dependent for anything on the older apostles, and for 
 years had only on one brief occasion seen Peter and 
 James (i. 17-24). "When he and Barnabas went up to 
 Jerusalem at the time of the council, he had declared 
 boldly the gospel which he preached (ii. 1, 2), and the 
 mother church had approved his teaching against the 
 Judaizers (ii. 3-5), while the leaders had given him 
 the right hand of fellowship (ii. 6-10). He added 
 the account of his discussion with Peter at Antioch 
 (sects. 163-165) to illustrate further his independence, 
 and perhaps also to prevent any misuse of Peter's con- 
 duct which the Judaizers might make (ii. 11-21). 
 
 216. Turning next to the doctrine at stake (iii., iv.), 
 he exclaimed at the folly of the Galatians in forgetting 
 the crucified Saviour who had been portrayed to them, 
 i in whose crucifixion their whole salvation was assured 
 I (iii. 1). Had not their experience been conditioned 
 upon faith alone ? (iii. 2-5). And was not this, accord- 
 ing to Scripture, the original Abrahamic way of salva- 
 tion ? (iii. 6). Abraham's children, therefore, to whom 
 the promise was made, are not those who keep the law, 
 but those who believe (iii. 7-9). The law, since it 
 requires perfect obedience as the condition of salvation, 
 brings only a curse upon those under it, and hence can- 
 not be the instrument for the fulfilment of the promised 
 blessing (iii. 10). It was the work of Christ, as the law 
 itself foretold, to redeem us from it, and for this very 
 
FUNCTION OF THE LAW 211 
 
 purpose he accepted its curse by dying in our place 
 that we through him might receive the promise and the 
 Spirit (iii. 11-14). To make this truth, which was the 
 heart of the whole controversy, more clear, the apostle 
 further pointed out that since God solemnly ratified his 
 covenant of salvation by faith with Abraham and his 
 seed, the law, which came later, could not disannul the 
 original arrangement (iii. 15-18), but was intended as 
 a temporary discipline to make sinful men realize that 
 sin is transgression of God's commandment (iii. 19, 
 20). It was, therefore, a tutor to bring men to Christ 
 (iii. 21-24) : so that by believing in him who alone has 
 fulfilled the law for us, and who is, with his people, the 
 true seed of Abraham, we may inherit the promise in 
 him (iii. 25-29). 
 
 217. The apostle then added three more reasons 
 for their fidelity to his gospel (iv.). The first was an 
 appeal, based on the analogy of Grseco-Roman customs, 
 not to go back to a state of infancy when the time for 
 their entrance on the inheritance had come (iv. 1-11). 
 The second was an appeal to their former affection for 
 himself (iv. 12-20). The third was an illustration of the 
 freedom of the true son of Abraham, drawn from 
 the narrative in Genesis of the relation to Abraham of 
 the sons of Sarah and Hagar (iv. 21 to v. 1). The rest 
 of the epistle is a masterly application of the principles 
 of the preceding chapters. Its substance is : (1) main- 
 tain your liberty (v. 2-12), yet (2) do not abuse it, but 
 walk by the Spirit and bring forth his fruits (v. 13-25) ; 
 (3) use your liberty for the spiritual good of others 
 (v. 26 to vi. 5), and (4) remember your responsibility in 
 its exercise (vi. 6-10). The letter ends with a post- 
 script (vi. 11-18), in the apostle's own handwriting, in 
 
212 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 which he summarizes the contents of the letter and 
 dismisses all further attacks upon him as useless, since, 
 as he said, " I bear in my body the brands [slave- 
 marks] of Jesus." 
 
 218. It is impossible to overestimate the value of 
 this epistle. The relation of its historical statements 
 to the narrative of Acts has been already discussed 
 (sects. 91-94, 116, 149-152). Its chief importance 
 lies in its exhibition of the theological grounds on 
 which rested the emancipation of Christianity from 
 Judaism and its establishment as a universal religion. 
 Chapter ii. 11-21 shows that the doctrine of tlie epistle 
 was not a new one, but was the recognized basis on 
 which Gentile Christianity stood. The centre of that 
 doctrine was the death of Christ, the significance of 
 which it was especially Paul's privilege to make clear. 
 Knowing that the divine law requires of every man 
 righteousness through perfect obedience, that no man 
 can obtain such righteousness through his own works, 
 and that the penalty of sin is death ; considering the 
 perfect life of Jesus, and assured at Damascus of his 
 Messiahship, — Paul was led to realize that the death of 
 Messiah was the divinely provided satisfaction of the 
 law for his people. At once its mysteriousness and 
 offensiveness was removed. It became God's crown- 
 ing act of grace. It explained why faith, whereby 
 the work of Christ was appropriated, had been made 
 from the beginning the only condition of salvation. 
 With this, of course, the obligation to observe the law 
 in order to salvation passed away. Evidently, too, 
 since the Scriptures had ever promised salvation 
 through Christ and by faith, the law had never been 
 intended to be the way of salvation at all. The Jews 
 
TROUBLES IN CORINTH 213 
 
 had misunderstood its object. It had only been in- 
 tended to prepare for Christ by awakening the sense 
 of guilt. Its great moral principles, indeed, would 
 ever remain as a guide to the interpretation of God's 
 character and will ; but its ceremonial ordinances had 
 no further function. To regard them as necessary 
 was in fact to fall away from the gospel. To bind 
 them on the believer was to imply that Christ had died 
 in vain. Thus Christianity was at once delegalized 
 and denationalized. The blessing of Abraham, through 
 the work of Christ in dying for sinners, had come to 
 the Gentiles, and faith alone was the condition of sal- 
 vation for all alike. Of this transition the Epistle to the 
 Galatians is the abiding monument. We may believe 
 that it had its intended effect on the Galatians them- 
 selves. The apostle anticipated that it would (v. 10), 
 and later allusions to the " churches of Galatia " (I. Cor. 
 xvi. 1 ; I. Pet. i. 1, and perhaps II. Tim. iv. 10), even if 
 those addressed in the epistle may not be exclusively 
 intended, seem to imply that the threatened defection 
 was averted. 
 
 219. If the earlier part of Paul's residence ni Ephe- 
 sus was made anxious by the Galatian churches the 
 latter part was disturbed by affairs in Corinth. The 
 First Epistle to the Corinthians was written probably 
 in the spring of a. d. 57. Ciiapter xvi. 8, and possibly 
 v. 7, 8, imply that the spring was approaching, and 
 xvi. 5 apparently refers to Paul's purpose to pass 
 through Macedonia to Achaia mentioned in Acts xix. 
 21, 22, which was toward the close of his sojourn in 
 Ephesus, and therefore in a.d. 57. He had, however, 
 previously written a letter (v. 9), which has not been 
 preserved, in which he gave instructions concerning 
 
214 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 the attitude of the disciples to those about them who 
 led impure lives. This was a practical matter in Cor- 
 inth, where the Christians were surrounded by a society 
 in which the principles of morality were constantly 
 violated. His direction " not to keep company with 
 fornicators " required subsequent explanation (v. 9-11) ; 
 but it illustrates the sort of difiliculties by which the 
 Corinthians were confronted. We learn further that 
 Timothy had been sent to Corinth (iv. 17 ; xvi. 10). 
 If this was the mission mentioned in Acts xix. 21, he 
 was to go by way of Macedonia, and the hesitating 
 language of I. Cor. xvi. 10, — "7/" Timothy come," — 
 implies that Corinth was not the sole object of his 
 journey, and that he possibly might not reach it. 
 Hence we may suppose that he was sent early in 57 to 
 Macedonia, ahead of the apostle, with directions to go 
 on to Corinth, if he deemed it best to do so. Paul 
 expected him to reach Corinth, and directed the 
 church to follow his instructions (iv, 17). After 
 Timothy had gone, messengers arrived from Corinth 
 with alarming reports (i. 11). There was worse trouble 
 than association with impure pagans. Factions had 
 arisen in the church which threatened discord, if not 
 division. Then, too, we learn that a delegation from 
 Corinth had visited the apostle (xvi. 17). It seems to 
 have brought a letter inquiring how the church should 
 act in view of certain perplexing social difficulties 
 (vii. 1). Besides all this, other perils, practical and 
 doctrinal, were reported. There were abuses in public 
 worship, extravagant pride in the more emotional and 
 less useful gifts of the Spirit, errors about the resurrec- 
 tion, and, worst of all, actual immorality in the church. 
 The nascent Cbristianity of Corinth was evidently in a 
 
FIRST CORINTHIANS 215 
 
 critical condition, and to meet the emergency this epis- 
 tle was written. It was doubtless carried to Corinth 
 by the returning delegation. 
 
 220. In it he takes up in order the subjects on which 
 the Corinthians needed instruction ; and the epistle is 
 not only a masterly example of the apostle's firmness 
 and tact, but an instructive description of the actual 
 situation of these early Christians. He first reproved 
 them for the factious spirit of which he had heard 
 (i. 10 to iv. 21). Paul himself, Apollos, Peter, and even 
 Christ had become party names. Actual division of 
 the church had not resulted, but it easily might ; and 
 the situation implied a total misunderstanding of the 
 relation of their teachers to Christ. The Peter-faction 
 naturally implies the presence of a Jewish Christian 
 element, though not necessarily of Judaizers. It does 
 not imply that Peter had been at Corinth. Acquaint- 
 ance with the part he had played in the founding of 
 the church is sufficient to explain the partisanship of 
 those who called themselves after him. The Christ- 
 faction is more of an enigma. Many, on the ground of 
 II. Corinthians x. 7 and xi. 22, suppose that it was the 
 party of the Judaizers ; but a more careful examination 
 of II. Corinthians fails to show that an allusion is there 
 intended to any of these factions. Perhaps the best 
 explanation of the Christ-faction is that some were 
 disposed to reject all apostolic authority and, in opposi- 
 tion to the other factions, to profess allegiance to 
 Christ alone. 
 
 221, The apostle, however, merely mentions these 
 two, and deals at length with the Paul and Apollos 
 factions. Apollos had probably preached more elo- 
 quently and philosophically than Paul ; and, though 
 
216 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 faithful to the gospel (iii. 8), had aroused the specula- 
 tive spirit of the Greeks as well as admiration for him- 
 self. There was danger of their forgetting the simple 
 message of the Cross. We thus for the first time see 
 Christianity facing Hellenism and tempted by the pride 
 of philosophical achievement. This gives peculiar 
 interest to the apostle's treatment. He reminded them 
 that the Cross was and ever would be foolishness to 
 the Greek, as it was an offence to the Jew ; and that it 
 assumed the total failure of human wisdom to solve 
 the problem of man's salvation (i. 18-31). Hence he 
 had preached to them Christ crucified, without rhetori- 
 cal ornament, relying only on the demonstration of 
 the Spirit (ii. 1-5). This, indeed, was not because the 
 gospel is itself foolishness. On tlie contrary, it is the 
 profoundest wisdom ; but a wisdom divinely revealed 
 to chosen men (ii. 6-16). He and Apollos were, there- 
 fore, co-laborers under God, He had laid the only 
 possible foundation, and Apollos had builded on it ; but 
 the work was God's (iii.). Let not their ministers be 
 made the heads of factions (iv. 1-5). Neither let any 
 despise bim and his scriptural teaching (iv. 6) ; for, 
 though persecuted and hated, he was an apostle of God 
 (iv. 7-13). He was also their spiritual father, whose 
 warnings they should lieed, lest he be forced to chastise 
 tliem (iv. 14-21). 
 
 222. This important passage shows that to Paul the 
 gospel was as distinct from Hellenism as it was from 
 Judaism. It was a direct revelation of salvation by 
 grace through a Redeemer. Yet both Judaism and 
 philosophy had negatively prepared for it : the former, 
 by producing througli the law the sense of guilt and of 
 the need of righteousness ; the latter, by demonstrat- 
 
CHRISTIANITY AND HELLENISM 217 
 
 ing the inability of man to solve the problem of salva- 
 tion for himself. Christianity, moreover, provided the 
 blessings which Judaism and philosophy had respect- 
 tively sought, namely, righteousness before God and the 
 knowledge of God. It was, according to Paul, the 
 goal of both, though both rejected it. It is thus evident 
 that he realized the relation of his message to its entire 
 environment. He was neither dependent on the influ- 
 ences about him nor blind to their existence and 
 significance. To the Jew he offered in the gospel 
 righteousness, and to the Greek the true wisdom. He 
 did the latter, however, not like Philo, by interpreting 
 revelation in the interest of philosophy, but by stoutly 
 maintaining the failure of philosophy to solve the prob- 
 lem of salvation, and by presenting revelation in and by 
 Christ as the gate of knowledge. 
 
 223. Tbe rest of this epistle is mainly occupied with 
 the practical difficulties in which the Corinthians were 
 vitally concerned. With great indignation the apostle 
 rebuked them for failure to discipline a man who had 
 been actually guilty of an incestuous marriage (v.). 
 There was, in fact, too little regard for church discipline 
 among them (vi. 1-8) ; and sins of impurity in particu- 
 lar sliould never be regarded with indifference (vi. 9-20). 
 He then discussed two subjects about which they had 
 asked instruction (vii. 1 to xi. 1). The first was marriage 
 and divorce (vii.). In this it is most important to note 
 that he commands fidelity to marital obligations (3-5) ; 
 forbids, on the ground of Christ's command, any seeking 
 after divorce (10, 11) ; directs that a marriage already 
 formed between a believer and an unbeliever should 
 not be broken, but admits that, if the unbeliever break 
 it by desertion, the believer is released from the bond 
 
218 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 (12-16). While frankly avowing his preference for 
 the unmarried state " by reason of the present distress " 
 (26), he upholds the sanctity of marriage and its place 
 in Christian life. The other question concerned eating 
 food which had been offered to idols (viii. 1 to xi, 1). It 
 was a difficult question ; for the food bought in the 
 markets was consecrated to idols, and in any social 
 gathering the guests w^ere liable to be called on to eat 
 or drink in honor of a god. The apostle's directions 
 are bold and tactful. He lays down the principle that, 
 since the idol is nothing, the food was as good as any, 
 and might be eaten freely; but, if the use of it at 
 certain times and places would be understood to be a 
 recognition of the idol, it should then be avoided, out of 
 love to brethren who might be made to stumble and 
 from a desire to honor Christ (viii.). This, he says, 
 was the principle on which in all things he had acted 
 (ix.). They should be careful also not to be, like 
 Israel of old, led away by their pagan surroundings ; 
 and, with specific reference to the matter in hand, they 
 should remember that they belonged to Christ alone, 
 that all lawful things are not always expedient, and 
 that they should seek the good of others. Hence, 
 ordinarily they might eat without question ; but if, in a 
 mixed assembly, the food was eaten in honor of an 
 idol, they should abstain, that none might be made to 
 stumble (x. 15 to xi. 1). 
 
 224. He next corrected abuses which existed in 
 public worship (xi. 2 to xiv. 40). These reveal most 
 instructively the immaturity of Christian life among 
 the Corinthians and their tendency to sensuous excite- 
 ment. Women sometimes were inspired to prophesy 
 in public. Paul directs that they should do so with 
 
SPIRITUAL GIFTS 219 
 
 covered heads (xi. 2-16). Ordinarily no woman should 
 teach in public (xiv. 34; f. Tim. ii. 12); but if the 
 Spirit made an exception, modesty and feminine sub- 
 jection must not be laid aside. Again, the love feasts, 
 closing with the Lord's Supper, had become occasions 
 for actual revelry. Paul insists that they must be 
 observed reverently, as a religious act, in obedience 
 to the purpose of Christ in the institution of the Supper 
 (xi. 17-34). Then, at great length, he deals with the 
 exercise of "spiritual gifts" (xii. to xiv.). These 
 existed in abundance. The Spirit of Jesus had wrought 
 mightily among them. But grave abuses had arisen. 
 Spiritual pride was being manifested. Emotional and 
 showy gifts were valued more highly than instructive 
 and helpful ones. We should remember that an age 
 of miracles is not necessarily an ethically ideal age, 
 but that the same temptations operate in it as at other 
 times. Paul's instructions show his clear insight into 
 the relation between the miraculous and the ethical. 
 He first acknowledges the necessity of the operation of 
 the Spirit for Christian life. He then enlarges upon 
 the variety of the Spirit's operations which secures the 
 full development and real unity of the body of Christ. 
 Of all the gifts of the Spirit he gives the pre-eminence 
 to love, thus placing the ethical work of the Spirit far 
 above his miraculous effects. In regard to the latter, 
 moreover, those gifts should be valued most which, 
 like prophecy, edify the church. The gift of " tongues" 
 in particular should be exercised with restraint. It 
 was the emotional utterance, in unintelligible sounds, 
 of the soaring thoughts of the soul ; the outcries of 
 a mind rapt in praise or prayer (corap. sects. 33, 34). 
 It was adapted to private devotion, and sliould not be 
 
220 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 indulged in public unless one having the gift of " in- 
 terpretation " were present. It is evident that the 
 ordinary worship of these early Christians did not 
 follow a prescribed order, but that the Spirit moved 
 different persons to take part according to his gifts. 
 But Paul points out that the purpose of the Spirit 
 should be kept rigidly in view ; for his manifestations 
 did not carry the assembly away, but were subject to 
 the control of the recipients. Didactic and moral 
 results were the Spirit's object. Edification of the 
 church should therefore be the guiding motive in their 
 public exercises. There can be no better proof than 
 these instructions that, although early Christian life 
 with its supernatural features was liable to the excesses 
 by which belief in miraculous powers is always tempted, 
 the apostle himself accurately distinguished the ethical 
 and didactic from its miraculous accompaniments, and 
 thus brought out those elements of Christian life which 
 were to be permanent and universal. 
 
 225. Finally, the one doctrinal subject by which 
 some in Corinth were disturbed is taken up, namely, 
 J the resurrection (xv.). Doubts on this point probably 
 arose from philosophical influences. They do not 
 appear to have been widespread (xv. 12) ; so their 
 refutation is reserved for the end of the letter. Yet 
 they touched a fundamental truth, and were likely to 
 arise again as Christianity made its way in the face of 
 Hellenism. So Paul reminds his readers that the 
 resurrection of Christ was a fundamental fact of the 
 gospel, rehearses the apostolic evidence for it (1-11), 
 and argues that, as without Christ's resurrection their 
 whole faith was vain, so did it involve the future 
 resurrection of believers (12-19). The latter will take 
 
RESURRECTION OF TIIE DEAD 221 
 
 place at the second advent, an^ will be part of Christ's 
 completed victory over death (20-28). He begs them 
 to remember the fundamental character of this belief 
 (29-34) ; and, in reply to the speculative inquiry, " how 
 are the dead raised," illustrates its possibility by the 
 way in which God gives a new body to the seed cast 
 into the soil ; explains that objections based on our 
 knowledge of the present natural body do not hold 
 good of the future spiritual body ; affirms the identity 
 of the two, yet the vast differences between them, 
 since, though both are material, the one is the organ 
 of the present natural life and the other will be the 
 perfect organ of the glorified spirit; and closes with 
 a magnificent exposition of the resurrection as the , 
 completion of redemption (35-58). It is to be observed 
 that this teaching is a further and consistent explica- 
 tion of the subject of the second advent previously 
 taught to the Thessalonians. 
 
 226. The epistle closes with directions about certain 
 gifts from his Gentile churches which he was collecting 
 for the brethren in Judea and with items of personal 
 news (xvi.). These gifts were a matter about which 
 he was much concerned. They were his practical 
 answer to the charges of disloyalty to his nation and 
 of hostility to the mother church. Hence he directs 
 the Corinthians to prepare their contribution. 
 
 227. The despatch of this long and careful epistle 
 did not end the apostle's anxiety about the church at 
 Corinth. In fact the closing months of his stay in 
 Ephesus were full of distress on their account. The 
 facts can only be gleaned from II. Corinthians, written . 
 after he had left Ephesus. From this it appears that 
 he made a brief visit to Corinth in much distress, to 
 
222 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 which he afterwards looked back with deep sorrow 
 (11. Cor. ii. 1 ; xii. 14 ; xiii. 1, 2). This must have 
 been after sending our I. Corinthians, since it contains 
 no reference to the visit. It is a probable supposition 
 that he had heard, perhaps through Timothy, that the 
 church refused to exercise discipline upon the incestu- 
 ous person, and that therefore he himself hastened to 
 Corinth, and with much sorrow, and apparently in the 
 face of opposition (II. Cor. xii. 21), pronounced the 
 sentence. It would seem that he then returned to 
 Ephesus, but only to be further distressed, by the re- 
 port that his discipline had not secured the peace of 
 the church. In fact, the condition of affairs grew 
 worse. Judaistic emissaries, bitterly hostile to Paul, 
 had gone to Corinth (II. Cor. iii. 1 ; xi. ; xiii.) ; and 
 there was one member of the church who openly de- 
 fied his authority (II. Cor. ii. 5, 10 ; vii. 11, 12). It 
 is most probable that this offender was the same in- 
 cestuous person, and that he had rebelled, after Paul's 
 judgment upon him, against the apostle himself. We 
 infer also that the Judaistic emissaries had supported 
 his rebellion. Thus there was now a distinct anti- 
 paulino party in Corinth. It is easy to imagine the 
 apostle's distress. We judge it to be this to which he 
 refers (II. Cor. i. 8-14) as so intense that he almost 
 despaired of life. This language will not appear too 
 strong if we remember that his character was assailed 
 (II. Cor. i. 17 ; x. 2, 10), that his converts were being 
 turned against him (II. Cor. vii. 2, 7), and that his 
 work might be undone (xi. 3, 13, 14). Under these 
 circumstances he sent his trusted friend Titus, with 
 an unnamed brother, to Corinth with sharp directions 
 to act at once in the further discipline of the offender 
 
PAUL'S ANXIETY 223 
 
 and in securing the peace and loyalty of the church 
 (II. Cor. ii. 13; vii. 6, 7, 13-15; xi. 18). It is also 
 probable that Titus carried a brief, stern letter from 
 the apostle, written with many tears, commanding 
 obedience to his behests. The existence of this second 
 lost jettci^ is to be inferred from II. Corinthians ii. 3, 4, 
 9 ; vii. 8, which can hardly refer to our I. Corinthians. 
 Tii this letter Paul explained that he did not go himself 
 to Corinth, because he did not wish to visit them again 
 in grief. He seems also to have stated that it had 
 been his purpose to go directly to them and thence to 
 Macedonia (II. Cor. i. 16), instead of the opposite as 
 originally intended (I. Cor. xvi. 5), but that he could 
 not bear to see them under the circumstances. So 
 Titus departed on this difficult mission. He was to 
 meet Paul, with his report, at Troas ; for the apostle 
 intended soon to leave Ephesus. But when, in the 
 early fall of a. d. 57, Paul reached Troas, Titus was 
 not there, and the apostle's distress was intensified 
 (II. Cor. ii. 12, 13). It is a very pathetic picture of 
 the great missionary which these facts furnish. His 
 Ephesian ministry, successful though it was, closed 
 under this heavy cloud. The cloud, however, was 
 destined soon to lift and his bitter experience to be a 
 cause of thanksgiving, because of the spiritual good 
 which finally came to him and to all out of the trial 
 (II. Cor. i. 1-7; ii. 14-17; vii. 9-16). 
 
V 
 
 FROM EPHESUS TO ROME 
 
 228. Not having found Titus at Troas, Paul passed 
 over to Macedonia, doubtless to Philippi (Acts xx. 1 ; 
 II. Cor. ii. 13). Yet his distress of mind did not 
 cease. As he himself puts it, " Without were fightings, 
 within were fears " (II. Cor. vii. 5). At last comfort 
 was restored by the arrival of Titus and the report 
 which he brought. The Corinthians had obeyed their 
 apostle and disciplined the offender ; and the man him- 
 self was now filled with sorrow for his sin (II. Cor. ii. 
 5-11). The majority, too, had with deep repentance 
 vindicated themselves from apparent complicity in his 
 sin and assured the apostle of their loyalty (II. Cor. 
 vii. 9-12). Thus the main cause of Paul's distress was 
 removed. Yet there was still a disaffected minority, 
 and the work of the Judaizers had not ceased. 
 
 229. In these circumstances our II. Corinthians was 
 written in the early autumn of A. D. 57. It, too, was 
 intrusted to Titus, who was sent back to Corinth with 
 two others, one of whom had l^een appointed by the 
 Macedonian churches to be their representative in 
 bearing their gifts to Jerusalem (II. Cor. viii. 18-22). 
 The main duty of Titus was now to complete the gifts 
 of the Corinthians which Paul proposed, after visiting 
 Corinth, to carry to Judea. He took the opportunity 
 in this letter of pouring out the feelings of his lately 
 
SECOND CORINTHIANS 225 
 
 distraught but now comforted mind to his dear dis- | 
 ciples. It was written with unusual emotion. It re- | 
 fleets the agony through which he had been passing. 
 It is an unequalled revelation of the personality of the 
 apostle. In it he relates his religious experience, de- 
 scribes his actions and his motives, justifies his author- 
 ity, pours out his love, reviews his life, rebukes and 
 pleads, chastises his traducers and cheers his friends ; 
 and all with a rush of language and sudden transitions 
 of thought which betray the highly wrought condition 
 of his mind. No otlier of his letters is so autobio- 
 graphical. In none are we permitted to approach so 
 near to the personal life of the apostle. 
 
 230. The epistle is divided into three well-marked 
 sections. The first (i. to vii.) deals with the distress 
 through which he had been passing on their account, 
 and then gives a glowing, yet pathetic, description of 
 the character of his ministry. It is an outpouring of 
 his soul, a laying bare of his very heart to his beloved 
 children, in which it is easy to see his sensitiveness to 
 the attacks which had been made upon him and his joy 
 in the restored fidelity of his converts. The second 
 section (viii., ix.) urges to liberality in their gifts for the 
 Judean saints, and directs them to receive Titus and 
 other brethren who were about to visit them in this 
 interest. The third section (x. to xiii.) is an indignant 
 defence of his apostleship, evidently directed against 
 the Judaizers, to whom a passing allusion had already 
 been made (iii.) and to a minority in Corinth who sided 
 with them. It is w^^n in the apostle's most vehe- 
 ment style, and contSw not a few. references to events 
 in his history otherwise unknown (xi. 23 to xiii. 2). 
 
 231. After Titus, with the other brethren, had re- 
 
 15 
 
226 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 turned to Corinth, Paul appears to have further visited, 
 ' during the autumn of a. d. 57, the churches of Mace- 
 ] donia (Acts xx. 2). He went as far as the boundary 
 i of Illyricum (Rom. xv. 19). Finally he reached 
 Corinth, where he abode three months (Acts xx. 3). 
 No incidents of this winter in Corinth have been pre- 
 served. We may believe, however, that he finally 
 adjusted the remaining difficulties in that church, and 
 we know that he received its contributions for the 
 Judean saints (Rom. xv. 25-28). With him was a con- 
 siderable company of friends (Acts xx. 4 ; Rom. xvi. 
 21-23). Some of them were to accompany him to 
 Jerusalem as representatives of the contributing 
 churches, for he was unwilling to have the money in 
 , his sole charge (II. Cor. viii. 20). 
 fi' 232. It was, however, during this winter at Corinth 
 ( that Paul wrote the Epistle to the Romans, and this 
 important letter throws additional light on the entire 
 situation. We suddenly find from it that Christianity 
 was being preached vigorously in the world's capital. 
 Its beginnings there are shrouded in obscurity. It is 
 possible that some of the " sojourners from Rome " 
 (Acts ii. 10, R. V.) carried it back after Pentecost. It 
 is possible that some of those who fled from Jerusalem 
 after the death of Stephen travelled as far as Italy 
 (Acts viii. 4). We have already alluded to the inter- 
 pretation put by some on the decree of Claudius as im- 
 plying that Christianity had caused contentions in the 
 Jewish colony by the Tiber (see sect. 197). But this 
 epistle throws the first clear ^^^t upon the subject. 
 From it we learn that the progUis of the new religion 
 in Rome was already widely known among the churches 
 (i. 8, 13 ; xvi. 19). It must then have existed for several 
 
CHRISTIANITY AT ROME 227 
 
 years. The Roman Christians, moreover, possessed the 
 gifts of the Spirit and some organization (xii. 7, 8). 
 Yet the epistle is not addressed to " the church at 
 Rome," but " to all who are in Rome, beloved of God," 
 a phraseology which suggests that their organization 
 was not compact or unified. This inference is, perhaps, 
 confirmed by the allusion to several groups of believers 
 in the capital (xvi. 3-5, 14, 15 ; yet comp. I. Cor. xvi. 
 19). The impression given, however, is that of a large 
 but imperfectly organized community. They are ad- 
 dressed as Gentiles (i. 6, 13 ; xi. 13, 30 ; xv. 8-13, 15, 
 16), and as trained in Pauline teaching (ii. 16 ; vi. 17 ; 
 xiv. 1-14) ; yet evidently they included also not a few 
 Jews (ii. 17 to iii. 20 ; xiv. 1 ; xv. 10 , xvi. 3, 7, 11). 
 The closing salutations are especially instructive 
 (comp. Lightfoot, Philippians, p. 171), and show that 
 Paul had many friends in Rome. Some of them had 
 worked with him elsewhere (xvi. 3, 5-7, 13). They 
 had evidently gone to the capital from Pauline churches. 
 We are not to suppose, indeed, that his friends were the 
 only missionaries on the ground ; but the epistle shows 
 that his mission to Europe had already embraced in- 
 directly the metropolis of the world. So far as our 
 information goes, these friends of Paul were the 
 founders of Roman Christianity. With this accords 
 the contemptuous and evasive allusion to the Christians 
 by the elders of the Jewish colony, when Paul after- 
 wards addressed them (Acts xxviii, 22). 
 
 233. It is not surprising, therefore, that Paul wrote 
 to the Christians of Rome. But his doing so when and 
 as he did is highly significant. He had long wished to 
 preach in Rome (Acts xix. 21 ; II. Cor. xi. 16 ; Rom. 
 i. 9, 10, 13 ; XV. 23, 24, 28), and to go from thence to 
 
228 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 Spain (Rom. xv. 28), but had been prevented. Now he 
 was about to return to Jerusalem, and knew not what 
 might befall him (Rom. xv. 30, 31 ; Acts xx. 22, 23). 
 He naturally wished to send a message to his friends 
 in the capital, and to explain that in returning eastward 
 he was not relinquishing his purpose to visit them. 
 But why did he write so elaborate a letter ? It is not, 
 except incidentally (e.g. i. 5 ; xv. 17-21), a defence of 
 himself and his apostleship. Neither is it, except again 
 incidentally {e. g. ii. 17, etc.), or from the very nature 
 of the argument, a polemic against either Jews or 
 Judaizers, or followers of his own school who had fallen 
 into error. Still less is its motive the conciliation of 
 different parties. Its purpose is chiefly didactic. It 
 is an elaborate presentation of the way of salvation, 
 argued with superb dialectical completeness. Why, 
 then, did he send this statement to Rome ? The prob- 
 able answer is very instructive. He evidently realized 
 the future importance of the church at Rome. He had 
 long believed that Christianity would become the reli- 
 gion of the empire ; and he knew that, as his plan of 
 evangelizing the great cities must culminate in the 
 evangelization of the capital, so the Christianity of the 
 capital would be likely to determine that of the world. 
 In this he reveals the statesman as well as the mis- 
 sionary. He knew further that his gospel would con- 
 tinue to be attacked and that his Judaizing antagonists 
 were following westward in his tracks. Already they 
 had invaded Corinth. The controversy with them 
 also had brought to full expression the true gospel ; 
 and Paul's own mind, which ever sought completeness 
 of truth, impelled him to a formal statement of it 
 The Epistle to the Romans therefore illuminates the 
 
EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS 229 
 
 whole situation, and illustrates the broad intelligence 
 with which Paul laid the foundations of Christianity 
 in the empire. 
 
 234. Hence in this epistle the conception of Chris- 
 tianity as a scheme of salvation is elaborately wrought 
 out. The apostle characteristically presents it as the 
 revelation of a righteousness provided by God for the 
 believer (i. 16, 17). He proves at length the univer- 
 sal want of such a righteousness, by the Jew as well 
 as by the Gentile (i. 18 to iii. 20). He then describes 
 the righteousness revealed in the gospel as provided 
 by Christ's redeeming death, through which God has 
 made it possible for him, the righteous one, to declare 
 the believer free from guilt (iii. 21-26). This way of 
 salvation is then shown to have been that whereby 
 Abraham, the father of Israel, was saved (iii. 27 to iv. 
 21) ; to be implied in the Christian's experience of 
 salvation by the mere grace of God (v. 1-11) ; and to 
 proceed on the same principle of moral government on 
 which God had dealt with the race in the person of 
 its first representative, Adam (v. 12-21). The objec- 
 tions to this doctrine which would be inevitably raised 
 are next acutely discussed (vi., vii.), and the scheme is 
 shown to make provision for the sanctification of the 
 believer as well as for his justification, and for the 
 glorification of both his body and his soul (viii.). 
 
 235. Yet the apostle was not content to present a 
 mere scheme of doctrine. He fully realized the diffi- 
 culty offered by the fact that Israel denied and 
 rejected what he declared to be the teaching of her 
 own Scriptures. It was necessary for personal, his- 
 torical, and dogmatic reasons that he should reconcile 
 this fact with his argument. He did this in chapters 
 
230 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 ix. to xi. He maintained that God's purpose had 
 always referred to a sovereignly chosen portion of the 
 Hebrew nation, which election He had the right to 
 make (ix.) ; that the rejection of Israel as a nation and 
 salvation by faith has been explicitly announced by the 
 prophets (x.) ; yet that the rejection was not final, but 
 that eventually the Hebrews would obtain the fulfil- 
 ment of all the promises (xi.). Thus the scheme of 
 salvation, revealed in Christianity, was adjusted to the 
 historical situation. 
 
 236. This epistle, then, is the monument of Pauline 
 teaching concerning the way of salvation. All its doc- 
 trinal presuppositions are Hebrew. Its conception of 
 God as the sovereign, holy, and omnipotent governor 
 of the universe ; of righteousness as his attribute and 
 his requirement ; of salvation through an imputed 
 righteousness based on redemption ; and of the relation 
 of the race to Adam, are of Hebrew origin. The 
 absence of Hellenic influence is sufficiently proved by 
 its teaching the participation of the body in the bene- 
 fits of redemption. The only indication of non- 
 Hebraic ideas may be found in the doctrine of adojjtioii 
 (viii. 15 ; Gal. iv. 5), which may have been suggested 
 by Roman customs. The teaching of this epistle is 
 therefore the direct unfolding of the ideas with which 
 Paul began his Christian life. Yet it is not the prod- 
 uct of a doctrinaire. It keeps close to life. It does 
 not forget that truth is in order to holiness. To it, 
 imputed righteousness is the basis for personal growth 
 in sanctification. Legal union with Christ involves a 
 vital union and the devotion of the heart and will to 
 God. If the Epistle to the Galatians is the magna 
 charta of universal Christianity, the Epistle to the 
 
JOURNEY TO JERUSALEM 231 
 
 Romans is its £onstitution. Here the missionary and 
 theologian gives his completest interpretation of the 
 work of Jesus for the salvation of all who will believe. 
 
 237. From Corinth Paul and his companions set 
 forth for Jerusalem in the spring of a. d . 58. It was 
 at first his plan to go directly by sea to Syria, but a plot 
 of the Jews led to a change of route (Acts xx. 3). 
 AtJPhilippi Luke joined the party (xx. 4-6), and he 
 describes the journey with great minuteness (xx. 7 to 
 xxi. 16). It followed the coast of Asia, thence crossed 
 to Tyre, thence to Ptolemais, and so to Caasarea. 
 Paul was anxious to reach Jerusalem by Pentecost 
 (xx. 16), doubtless because that was the feast at which 
 freewill offerings were made by the Jews. Hence he 
 did not visit Ephesus, but met the elders of that church 
 at Miletus, where he took an affectionate farewell of 
 them (xx. 17-38). At Tyre the disciples besought 
 him not to endanger his life at Jerusalem, for the 
 Spirit warned them of the peril he was facing (xxi. 4) ; 
 but he resolutely went- forward. Again at Coesarca, 
 where they lodged in the house of Philip, the prophet 
 Agabus predicted that bonds awaited him ; but, when 
 he resisted all efforts to dissuade him, some of the 
 disciples accompanied him to Jerusalem and took him 
 to the house of Mnason, a Cypriote, with whom he 
 could lodge in safety (xxi. 9-16). Thus, fully aware 
 of the dangers which confronted him, the apostle 
 bore to the mother church the gifts of the Gentile 
 Christians. 
 
 238. He was received cordially by James and the 
 elders ; but they were anxious about his reception by 
 the church, because of the reports that in his foreign 
 work he had taught Jews to forsake Moses. They 
 
232 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 proposed that he show publicly his respect for the law 
 by joining in the rites of purification about to be under- 
 gone by four brethren who had taken a vow, and by de- 
 fraying their expenses. To this he consented ; but the 
 act of conciliation resulted in the very trouble it was 
 intended to prevent. Certain Jews from Asia saw him 
 in the temple, and circulated a false story that he had 
 brought Gentiles into the sacred place. A fierce riot 
 followed, which would have resulted in Paul's death 
 had not the captain of the Roman guard in the adja- 
 cent castle of Antonia intervened. He supposed Paul 
 to be an Egyptian Jew who had previously made a 
 sedition and escaped (Jos., Antiq. xx. 8. 6). Dis- 
 covering his mistake, he allowed the apostle to address 
 the people from the castle steps. They listened to him 
 till he uttered the word " Gentiles," when the riot 
 broke out afresh, and Lycias, the captain, hurried him 
 into the castle. He was only prevented from examin- 
 ing his prisoner by scourging through the latter's re- 
 vealing his Roman citizenship (Acts xxi. 17 to xxii. 29). 
 239. On the next day Lycias took him befoi-e the 
 Sanhedrim, that the Jewish court might adjudicate 
 his case (xxii. 30). It was a perilous position for the 
 apostle, and we can hardly blame him for resorting to 
 a strategy. He declared himself a Pharisee and that 
 he was accused for teaching the resurrection (xxiii. 
 1-6), This was certainly only a half-truth. Probably 
 in less excited times it would not have helped him. 
 But in this case it served his purpose, for the council 
 divided and broke up in confusion (xxiii. 7-10). We 
 should remember too, in further explanation of the 
 result, that many of the Pharisees were not unfriendly 
 to the Christians. The course of events was thus to 
 
THE CESAREAN IMPRISONMENT 233 
 
 Paul's advantage ; and that night he was further en- 
 couraged by a vision in which the Lord assured him 
 that he should see Rome (xxiii. 11). 
 
 240. The discovery of a plot of certain Jews to slay 
 the prisoner, led Lycias at once to transfer him to 
 Felix, the procurator, at Caesarea (xxiii. 12-30). Tlie 
 apostle was now safe from violence in the hands of tlie 
 Roman authorities (xxiii. 31-85) ; but his first trial 
 before the procurator was uusatisfactory. To the 
 accusation of the Jews that he was guilty of sedition 
 and of defiling the temple (xxiv. 1-9), he replied with 
 a demand for witnesses to prove the charge (10-21). 
 Felix, who knew something of the Christians (22), put 
 his decision off, and for two years the apostle remained 
 a prisoner in Caesarea. The procurator, in fact, was hop- 
 ing for a bribe (26) ; so he delayed the case until his 
 recall to Rome left it for the disposition of his suc- 
 cessor (27). 
 
 241. It would be interesting to know how the 
 apostle was occupied during his Caesarean imprison- 
 ment. His friends were allowed to see him, and Felix, 
 with his wife Drusilla, listened occasionally to his mes- 
 sage (xxiv. 23-25). In fact the apostle seems to have 
 been treated with marked consideration. He was evi- 
 dently regarded as a person of importance. Professor 
 Ramsay, in view of Paul's whole conduct at this pei'iod, 
 in view also of Felix's hope of a bribe and the expense 
 involved in the subsequent appeal to Caesar, as well as 
 in view of the fact that Paul lived in Rome in his own 
 hired house, draws the inference that in some way the 
 apostle had come into the possession of considerable 
 property (St. Paul the Trav. p. 310). This is not incon- 
 sistent with his earlier support of himself by manual 
 
234 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 labor (I. Thess. ii. 9 ; Acts xviii. 3 ; xx. 34), nor with his 
 acceptance, both at former and later times, of gifts 
 from friends (Phil. iv. 15, 18). The treatment he re- 
 ceived, however, may have been due to the high stand- 
 ing of his family (sect. 66), But these two years could 
 hardly have been spent in idleness, though the confine- 
 ment must have been an irksome restraint on the tire- 
 less energy of the prisoner. We cannot, indeed, accept 
 1 the view that any of his extant epistles were written in 
 ' Csesarea (sect. 250). Yet he may have kept in communi- 
 cation with his churches, and he may have prepared him- 
 self by reflection and study for the work of the future, 
 to which he still eagerly looked forward. None can tell 
 how much the world owes to the enforced solitudes of 
 its great leaders. It may be that his Caesarean con- 
 finement gave opportunity to the apostle of working 
 Vi'out the ideas concerning the person of Christ and the 
 eternal and world-wide purpose of God which his later 
 epistles contain. 
 
 242. The new procurator, Porcius Festus, was 
 at once besought by the Jews to order Paul 
 to Jerusalem for trial (Acts xxv, 1-3). Festus, 
 however, bade them send their representatives to 
 Caesarea (4, 5), and when tliey came they were unable 
 to substantiate their charges (6-8). Nevertheless 
 Festus asked Paul if he was willing to go to Jerusalem, 
 Thereupon the apostle, realizing the hopelessness of 
 justice in Palestine, made a formal appeal as a Roman 
 citizen to Cgesar (9-12), He was accordingly re- 
 manded to prison till there should be an opportunity 
 of sending him to Italy. 
 
 243, Shortly after this, Agrippa II, and his sister 
 ) Bernice came to congratulate Festus on his entrance 
 
VOYAGE TO JERUSALEM 235 
 
 into office (xxv. 13). Partly out of compliment to 
 Agrippa, as the titular king of the Jews, and partly to 
 learn what account of Paul he should forward to Rome, 
 Festus proposed that together they should hear the 
 prisoner's defence (14-22). Hence on the next day 
 the apostle delivered before this distinguished audience 
 his most famous apology (xxv. 23 to xxvi. 32). He 
 declared his loyalty to Israel's historic hope ; related 
 the story of his conversion and mission to the Gentiles ; 
 and finally appealed to Agrippa to hear Him of whom 
 the prophets had spoken. When the assembly broke 
 up, Agrippa expressed the opinion that the prisoner 
 might be released, if he had not appealed to Caesar. 
 Such an appeal, w^hen once made, had to be carried 
 out. But evidently Festus had no charges of impor- 
 tance to send to the emperor, and Paul's ultimate lib- 
 eration, after reaching Italy, became practically assured. 
 244. In the early autumn (a. d. 60) the apostle was 
 sent to Rome with other prisoners, under the escort of 
 Julius, a centurion of the Augustan cohort (comp. 
 Schurer, HJP. I. ii. p. 53 ; Bamsay^ St. Paul the Trav. 
 p. 314, etc.). Luke and Aristarchus of Thessalonica 
 accompanied him. Professor Ramsay (St. Paul the 
 Trav. p. 316) proposes the interesting conjecture that 
 they secured passage as his slaves. Be that as it may, 
 Luke has narrated the journey (Acts xxvii. 1 to xxviii. 
 16) with a minuteness and picturesqueness which could 
 only have come from an eye-witness (see James Smith, 
 Voyage and Shipwreck of St. Paul ; Ramsay, St. Paul 
 the Trav.). It is sufficient to say that the party sailed 
 from Cgesarea to Myra in Lycia. There they boarded 
 an Alexandrine merchantman, perhaps a corn ship, 
 bound for Italy. The voyage ended, after a fearful 
 
236 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 storm, in utter shipwreck on the island of Melita 
 (Malta), which lies about sixty miles south of Sicily. 
 During the voyage Paul was kindly treated, and even 
 exerted marked influence on both the centurion and the 
 crew. At Melita, too, he won by act and word the re- 
 gard of the islanders. In the spring (a. d. 61) the 
 party was placed on another Alexandrian ship, which 
 had wintered at the island, and finally landed at Pii- 
 teoli, a seaport of southwestern Italy. There Paul 
 found Christian brethren, a fact which reveals the 
 spread of the faith throughout Italy even at this early 
 period. A delay of seven days made it possible for 
 news of his arrival to reach Rome ; so that at " the 
 market of Appius" (forty-three miles from the cap- 
 ital), and again at "the Three Taverns" (ten miles 
 farther on), delegations from the Roman Christians 
 met him. 
 
 245. On arriving at the capital the prisoner was 
 granted the privilege of lodging by himself with the 
 soldier who guarded him (Acts xxviii. 16). After- 
 wards he was allowed to hire a dwelling, in which, 
 though still in chains (Eph. vi. 20; Phil. i. 13), he 
 lived during the following two years in which his trial 
 was pending (Acts xxviii. 80, 31), A tradition, pre- 
 served in the authorized version of the English Bible 
 (Acts xxviii. 16), states that the centurion delivered 
 the prisoners to the captain of the guard. This has 
 been generally supposed to refer to the prefect of the 
 pretorian guard, who may have been the celebrated 
 Burrus {Lightfoot^ Philippians, p. 7). The revised ver- 
 sion, however, with the best manuscripts, omits this 
 statement. Yet the tradition may be itself correct. 
 Professor Ramsay (St. Paul the Trav. p. 348) believes 
 
ARRIVAL AT ROME 237 
 
 that Paul was turned over to the chief of a corps called 
 legiones frumentarii, whose task was mainly the super- 
 intendence of the grain supply, but who also performed 
 police duty. To this corps Julius is supposed to have 
 belonged. But it is not at all clear that such a corps 
 existed so early (corap. Hastings, Diet, of Bible, art. 
 Prcetorium), and the best interpretation of Philippians 
 i. 13 is that Paul was under the charge of the pretori- 
 ans. Thus the apostle found himself at last in the 
 great city on which his thoughts had long been fixed, 
 " an ambassador in bonds." 
 
VI 
 
 PAUL IN ROME 
 
 246. The mildness of his imprisonment enabled Paul 
 to pursue in Rome his work as an apostle ; and the two 
 years of his life in the capital were, in fact, a period of 
 constant and far-reaching activity. 
 
 He first summoned the chiefs of the Jewish colony 
 to explain to them how he came to be there on an ap- 
 peal to Ca3sar against his own nation (^Acts xxviii. 17- 
 20). They replied that they had received no letters 
 about him, though they added that the sect of Chris- 
 tians was everywhere spoken against. It is not sur- 
 prising that the Jews of Jerusalem had sent no advices 
 to those in Rome, since Paul's appeal had only been 
 made the previous summer, and also because the favor- 
 able attitude to him of the Roman officials probably 
 made his enemies despair of securing his conviction. 
 The way in which the Jews referred to the Christians is 
 surprising. They certainly knew more than their lan- 
 guage implied. Their words, indeed, are hardly consist- 
 ent with the view that a Jewish Christian church had 
 been long formed in Rome, and that conflict between it 
 and the synagogue had led Claudius to expel the Jews 
 (sect. 198). They accord better with the view that the 
 Roman church was from the beginning mainly Gentile 
 (sect. 231). At the same time the language was eva- 
 sive. They were unwilling to say all that they knew. 
 
PAUL'S WORK IN ROME 239 
 
 Nevertheless, they and others accepted Paul's invitation 
 to hear his message (xxviii. 23). He wished, as on other 
 occasions, to offer the gospel first to the chosen race. 
 But the result was again disappointing. Most of them 
 disbelieved ; and forthwith the apostle bent his efforts 
 upon preaching to all, Gentile or Jew, who could be 
 brought to his dwelling or under his influence. 
 
 247. For the remaining facts of the Roman ministry 
 of the apostle, we are dependent on the few items fur- 
 nished by his epistles. Acts relates only his continued 
 and unhindered activity during two years (xxviii. 30, 
 31). The purpose of that book was attained jvhen it 
 had described the rise of Gentile Christianity and 
 brought its leader to the capital of the world. We 
 must therefore turn to the epistles. From them we 
 learn of the zeal and success of the " ambassador in 
 bonds " (Col. iv. 3, 4 ; Eph. vi. 19, 20 ; Philem. 10). 
 His success increased with time. He succeeded in 
 winning to the faith many of his military guards 
 (Phil. i. 12-14, R.V.). His influence also permeated the 
 large imperial household itself (Phil. iv. 22), even as the 
 retinue of other noble households had previously been 
 reached (Rom. xvi. 10, 11). Onesimus, the runaway 
 slave, illustrates another class of people of which doubt- 
 less he reached not a few. Yet there is reason to 
 believe that the faith penetrated at this period in Rome 
 not only among the lower classes, but also here and 
 there into the upper strata of society, while still larger 
 numbers of the middle class were affected by it (comp. 
 Jas. Orr, Neglected Factors in the Study of the Early 
 Progress of Christianity, ch. ii.) ; and Paul certainly 
 had his share in this diffusion. Ho was surrounded 
 also by many friends and co-workers. Luke and Aris- 
 
240 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 tarchus had accompanied him, and the latter seems to 
 have shared his imprisonment (Col. iv. 10). Others, 
 like Timothy, followed him ; while others came on 
 errands from different churches. We read of Epaphro- 
 ditus going with aid and comfort from Philippi (Phil, 
 iv. 18), and of Epaphras from Colosse, who also seems 
 to have for a while shared the apostle's imprisonment 
 that he might report and consult about the work abroad 
 (comp. Col. i. 7, 8 ; iv. 7, 9-14 ; Philem. 1, 10, 24 ; 
 Eph. vi. 21 ; Phil. i. 1 ; ii. 19). The apostle was con- 
 fident too of his release (Philem. 22 ; Phil. i. 25 ; ii. 
 24), so that he did not lessen his energy. At the same 
 time there were opponents even in the Christian com- 
 munity. These appear especially in the latter part of 
 his residence (Phil. i. 15-18). They were doubtless 
 Jewish-Christian teachers, who had moved westward as 
 he had done. So decided was his own success, that he 
 was able to speak of them with unusual equanimity and 
 even to rejoice in what good they did. His house in 
 Rome was thus the centre of a vigorous and far-reach- 
 ing propagandism. 
 
 248. In this way was fulfilled the apostle's long 
 cherished desire of preaching at Rome. It is interest- 
 ing to remember the condition of the great city at the 
 time, its luxury and idleness, its military splendor, its 
 love of pleasure, Nero's increasing tyranny and de- 
 bauchery. Amid the vast population the Christians 
 were a feeble company. Yet they were becoming 
 known and hated even by the Roman populace {Taci- 
 tus, Ann. XV. 44). Strange tales were being circulated 
 about them ; and that popular hostility to them as 
 " enemies of the human race " was already rising, which 
 the Emperor used afterwards as an excuse for his per- 
 
EPISTLE TO THE COLOSSIANS 241 
 
 secution. As yet, however, no notes of danger were 
 heard. While the world ga2ed in wonder at the 
 splendid horrors of Nero's rule, the obscure prisoner, 
 waiting at his bar, with equally obscure co-laborers, 
 was spreading quietly through the capital and even 
 into the imperial guards and household the peaceful 
 and pure religion of a divine Redeemer. 
 
 249. The e]3istles written by Paul from Rome are I 
 documents of high value for the history of Christianity ■ 
 not merely in the capital but throughout the empire, 
 and the study of them again best reveals the history. 
 They fall into two groups. One, comprising those to 
 the Colossians, to Philemon, and to the Ephesians, was 
 sent by Tychicus, who was accompanied by Onesimus 
 (Col. iv. tV Pliilem. 10, 12; Eph. vi. 21, 22). The 
 other, comprising the epistle to the Philippians, was 
 sent by Epaphroditus (Phil. ii. 25), who had come to 
 the apostle with a gift from the Philippian church. 
 The first group is to be dated probably in a. d. 61 or ? 
 62, and Philippians in a. d. 62 or 63. 
 
 250. The Epistle to the Colossians introduces us 
 suddenly to a new phase of apostolic history. No men- 
 tion has been hitherto made of this Phrygian city on 
 the Lycus. The epistle implies (ii. 1) that Paul him- 
 self had not been there, but that the otherwise unknown 
 Epaphras had been the minister and apparently the 
 founder of the church (i. 6,7; iv. 12,13; Philem. 23). 
 Probably the gospel had been carried to Colosse during 
 Paul's residence in Ephesus (Acts xix. 10, 26). Phi- 
 lemon also, a Colossian, had been one of Paul's con- 
 verts (Philem. 19), and he too may have heard the 
 apostle in Ephesus and carried the faith to his home. 
 It was, at any rate, a Pauline church. Epaphras had 
 
 16 
 
242 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 recently come to Rome and reported its condition ; 
 and there were some features of the situation which 
 so seriously threatened its welfare that the apostle 
 despatched this epistle. 
 y 251. The danger at Colosse arose from the appear- 
 ance of a new and insidious form of false teaching. It 
 was an eclectic movement, combining Jewish rites with 
 I a mystic theosophy, and threatened to undermine the 
 I believer's confidence in the all-sufficiency of Christ. 
 It was not the old Judaistic error against which 
 Galatians had been written ; for the apostle does not 
 meet it by the same arguments. In fact the unity of 
 Jew and Gentile in Christ is spoken of as acknowledged 
 (i. 6, 12, 21-29 ; ii. 7, 11, 19). Yet the influence of 
 Judaism is plain from the warnings against Jewish 
 observances (ii. 11, 14, 16, 20-22). On the other hand, 
 the error included a mystical, speculative element. It 
 claimed to be philosophical (ii. 8), and in particular in- 
 j eluded a worshipping of supernatural beings besides 
 i Christ, while into the mysteries of the celestial hier- 
 ' archy the initiated alone could peer (ii. 18). There 
 was also an ascetic tendency (ii. 18, 23), perhaps 
 because considered conducive to spiritual illumination 
 and because the errorists were touched by the widely 
 prevalent notion that matter is inherently evil. In 
 this teaching lay evidently the germs of an entire sub- 
 version of the original gospel. It is difficult to account 
 in detail for the origin of each element of the error and 
 for the special form of their combination. But the 
 movement as a whole was clearly a phase of the reli- 
 1 gious syncretism then prevalent in the East and into 
 I which Jews of the dispersion, like the Essenes in 
 Palestine, sometimes fell. At Colosse the same type 
 
THE DIVINITY OF CHRIST 243 
 
 of eclecticism had entered the church. It found in the 
 quickened Christian consciousness of supernatural reve- 
 lation and of spiritual manifestations a new opportunity 
 of development, and not all of the Christians were able 
 to discriminate the true revelation from the false. 
 We can hardly be wrong in recognizing in it the crude 
 beginnings of what afterwards became gnosticism ; 1 
 and, as in the case of gnosticism, it indicates the peril | 
 to which early Christianity was exposed of losing its I 
 purity and independence by being grafted on to exist- / 
 ing systems of philosophy and religion. In meeting it 1 
 Paul defended from a new point of view the integrity ■ 
 and sufficiency of the gospel. His epistle to the 
 Colossians conclusively proves that in him Christianity 
 did not draw its ideas from the intellectual or religious . 
 atmosphere of the age, but, even when its environment \ 
 enlarged, consciously opposed it in the interest of an 
 independent system of belief. 
 
 252. This new opponent was therefore the means of 
 eliciting a fresh phase of apostolic teaching. Here 
 Paul presents the all-sufficiency of Christ because of "j 
 the divine dignity of his person and the completeness 1 
 of his redeeming work. He did this by presenting the 
 truth corresponding to the error, even to the extent of 
 appropriating the terminology of his opponents and 
 giving it his own meaning. Stress is laid on the true 
 knowledge (i. 6, 9, 10 ; ii. 2, 3, 8) obtained by faith ( 
 (i. 4, 23 ; ii. 5, 7) in opposition to vain speculation (ii. \ 
 8) ; on redemption through the death of Christ alone 
 (i. 13, 14, 20, 22; ii. 10, 12-14); on the supreme f 
 dignity of Christ in relation to God, the universe and 
 the church (i. 15-19,20,26; ii. 3, 9-11, 19) in oppo- 
 sition to homage rendered to other superhuman beings 
 
244 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 (i. 13, 16, 18 ; ii. 10, 15) ; and on Christ as the in- 
 carnate "fulness" (2)leroma}oi.J^J^}iy (i- 19; "• 9) 
 in opposition to all other possible agents of divine 
 revelation. 
 
 / 253. This epistle is thus eminently christological. 
 (its teaching was not new. Every element of it, some- 
 I times in the same phraseology (comp. II. Cor. iv. 4), 
 i may be found in earlier epistles ; but these elements 
 I are here brought together to form an orderly exposi- 
 tion of the apostolic doctrine concerning the person of 
 • Christ. This gives it peculiar importance. It now 
 appears explicitly that apostolic teaching had risen to 
 the full apprehension of the divinity of Jesus. He was 
 not merely a prophet or even the exalted Messiah 
 raised to the right hand of God ; but he was a divine 
 person, the Creator of the universe, the One through 
 whom deity had ever been manifested ; and his historic 
 life, death, and resurrection were a divine incarnation 
 and triumph over all evil. It is not impossible that 
 the apostle's language was partly drawn from current 
 religious and philosophical phraseology. Indeed his 
 repeated use of the word " fulness " (i. 19 ; ii. 9) 
 seems to point to the use of the term by the errorists. 
 But the doctrine was purely Christian. It was the 
 result, under the Spirit's leading, of reflection upon the 
 nature of Jesus as disclosed by his exaltation, of 
 reflection also upon his own self-testimony as well as 
 upon Old Testament prophecy and upon the nature of 
 his redeeming work. The historic life of Jesus had 
 not grown dim, as the composition of the gospels 
 proves. But an eternal background had become visible 
 behind the historic life. Jesus had become plainly the 
 centre of a theodicy which embraced heaven and earth 
 
EPISTLE TO PHILEMON 245 
 
 in its purpose. The perfection of his work as a 
 Saviour of men was seen to rest on the fulness of his 
 divine dignity. His life and work on earth appeared 
 as the climax not only of Hebrew history but of the 
 whole cosmic process of the self-revelation of God. In 
 the light of this vast vision of revealed deity and of its 
 relation to the entire universe, faith in Christ appeared 
 more than ever the condition of salvation, and Chris- 
 tianity itself the only true religion. 
 
 254. Onesimus, who accompanied Tychicus to Co- 
 losse, carried also the epistle to Philemon. This 
 beautiful little letter illustrates the personal relations 
 of the apostle with his friends and the fine ethical 
 spirit which animated him. Onesimus had once been 
 a slave of Philemon, who was now a leading member 
 of the Colossian church ; and, after robbing his master, 
 had run away. He had drifted to Rome and had there 
 been converted by the apostle. The latter acquired 
 the warmest affection for the converted slave. He 
 would like to have kept him by his side ; but he felt 
 it to be only right for Onesimus to return to Philemon 
 and make amends for his fault. The letter was writ- 
 ten to ask Philemon to receive and forgive the run- 
 away. It is couched in the most delicate language. 
 It is an appeal to Philemon's Christian priuciples 
 rather than a command such as the apostle might have 
 issued. Paul even offered to repay any money that 
 Onesimus might owe. The whole letter is suffused 
 with the most delicate suggestions of love and duty 
 on the part of all concerned. It is therefore of far 
 more importance than the incident which occasioned 
 it. It reveals the social ethics of apostolic Christianity. 
 The new religion, though teaching the equality in 
 
246 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 Christ of servants and masters, did not free the former 
 from their obligations to the latter. Neither did it 
 undertake the reconstruction of the social order. It 
 left that to the gradual operation of the principles 
 involved in the relation of all believers in Christ to 
 God. It rather directed every one to discharge exist- 
 ing relations in the spirit of Christ (comp. I. Cor. vii. 
 17-24). The slave should serve his master with fidel- 
 ity. The master should treat his slave as a Christian 
 brother (comp. Col. ii. 22 to iv. 1 ; Eph. vi. 5-9 ; I. 
 Pet. ii. 13-25). The new community was thus a 
 spiritual fraternity. It controlled, without destroying, 
 tlie existing relations of life. It infused into society 
 the sense of spiritual oneness, the passion of mutual 
 love, and a keen regard for the rights of others. This 
 was the seed out of which alone in time social recon- 
 struction and civil progress could emerge in stable 
 and harmonious forms. 
 
 255. Tychicus carried a third letter which is of 
 pre-eminent importance to the student both of Pauline 
 teaching and of apostolic Christianity. This was the 
 so-called Epistle to the Ephesians. It was really ad- 
 dressed, however, noFloTIie Ephesians alone. Had it 
 been, it would almost certainly have contained salu- 
 tations to Paul's many friends in the Asian metropo- 
 lis. Indeed certain expressions (i. 15 ; iii. 2, 4) seem 
 to imply that some of its readers were not personally 
 acquainted with him at all. Though clearly addressed 
 to a specific circle of readers, the epistle has also the 
 character of a general discussion. Moreover, in the 
 two best manuscripts of the New Testament the words 
 " in Ephesus " (i. 1) are not found. Origcn did not 
 have them in his text, and Basil, in the foin-th" century, 
 
^; 
 
 EPISTLE TO THE EPUESIANS 247 
 
 states that in his day also they were not in the ancient 
 copies. It is known too that Marcion, in the second 
 century, called this the Epistle to the Laodiceans. On 
 the other hand, it was generally known in the church, 
 as far back as the second century, as " to the Ephe- 
 sians." These facts are best explained by tlie sup- 
 position that it was a circular letter addressed to the 
 churches of Asia. It is no doubt the one referred to 
 in Colossiaus iv. 16 as " the epistle from Laodicea," 
 one copy having been left there; and from Laodicea 
 Marcion may have derived his. Yet, as Ephesus was 
 the metropolis of Asia and a church of large import- 
 ance in early Christian history, and as it was included 
 in the churches addressed, the letter became commonly 
 known as the Epistle to the Ephesians. It was the 
 mission of Tychicus to distribute copies of this circu- 
 lar to the churches of the province. 
 
 256. This epistle is closely related in language and 
 thought to Colossians. . Frequent echoes occur of 
 phrases used in the companion document (comp. e.g. 
 Eph. i. 1 and Col. i. 1 ; Eph. i. 3, 20 ; ii. 6 ; iii. 10 ; vi. 
 12 and Col. i. 5 ; Eph. i. 6 and Col. i. 14 ; Eph. i. 7 and 
 Col. i. 14 ; Eph. i. 10 and Col. i. 20 ; Eph. i. 11 and Col. 
 i. 12 ; Eph. i. 19, 20 and Col. ii. 12, 21 ; Eph. i. 21 and 
 Col. i. 16 ; E])h. i. 22 and Col. i. 18 ; Eph. i. 23 and 
 Col. ii. 9, etc.). Evidently the two were written under i 
 the influence of the same impressions. Yet Ephesians 
 is by no means a mere repetition of Colossians. Even 
 when the phraseology is nearly the same, it is modi- 
 fied ; and the themes of the two are not identical. In 
 Ephesians the thought is widened so as to include the 
 whole doctrine of the origin, salvation, and destiny of 
 the Christian community. In Colossians emphasis is 
 
248 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 ll on the person of Christ and the sufficiencj of hi s w ork ; 
 
 \\ in Ephesiaus itis on the church, the body of JJhrist. 
 In Colossians Christ is the " fulness " of God ; in 
 Ephesians the church is the " fulness " of Christ. 
 
 •^ In Ephesians the apostle's thought goes beyond the 
 divine dignity and all-sufficiency of Christ to the 
 eternal purpose of God in Christ, of which the church, 
 the whole body of the redeemed, is the result. Hence 
 this epistle is the climax of Paul's teaching about sal- 
 vation. True, it does not treat of eschatology ; but in 
 other respects it sums up his teaching. It lays down the 
 fundamental principle of his system of thought, namely, 
 God's sovereign purpose of grace, to illustrate which in 
 the redemption of his elect he has ordered the course 
 of history and revealed his will and power in his Son. 
 
 257. In this epistle, then, Paul's teaching about the 
 /essence of Christianity is presented in the most com- 
 j plete form. The way of salvation taught in Galatians 
 / and Romans is assumed, but the whole plan of God 
 I embodied in the mission of Jesus is unfolded. The 
 experience of salvation in Christ is traced back to its 
 origin, and carried forward to its goal. It is the mani- 
 festation in time of the eternal purpose of God with 
 man. Stress also is laid on the creation, by means of 
 the election and redemption of individuals, of a new 
 and spiritually organized community. The result is 
 the presentation of a complete theodicy. Christianity 
 appears as the goal, not only ofliuman" history, but of 
 (the eternal divine thought. We are given a world- 
 ' view of its significance. It is not merely a system of 
 belief, but the divine creation of a renewed humanity, 
 to which the title " the church " emphatically belongs, 
 and which, as it originated in the purpose of God and 
 
THE UNIVERSAL CHURCH 249 
 
 has been effectuated by the work of Christ, is organized 
 by the divine, indwelling Spirit. 
 
 258. It is clear that, while the apostle was moved to 
 write by the needs of his Asian churches, yet the 
 epistle embodied his mature thought and makes a dis- 
 tinct progress in the delivery of his doctrine. It is the 
 culmination of his teaching at the culmination of his 
 life work. We may conjecture that three factors in 
 particular entered into the historical formation of his 
 thought. One was the success of his missionary work 
 throughout the empire, by which a new spiritual com- 
 munity of all races had been actually formed. Secondly, 
 his Judaistic controversy had made perfectly clear that 
 such a community was the goal of history and of God's 
 purpose. ThirdLyv his own reflection, ever reaching 
 after ultimate truth, could not rest until these historic 
 facts were contemplated as parts of the ordered unfold- 
 ing of the divine scheme concerning the universe as a 
 whole. The result was this sublime production. Here 
 the church appears as the universal company of the 
 redeemed and spiritually united people of God. It is 
 not identified with an external organization. It is a 
 spiritual community, and knit together by spiritual 
 bonds. In this great temple " each several building " 
 (ii. 21, R.V.) has its place, and the unity of the whole is 
 "the unity of the Spirit" (iv. 3). Yet the spiritual 
 reality is conceived of as manifested in all the activities 
 of the church and in all the relations of life. This was 
 the new Israel, the new temple, the new humanity, 
 which Paul describes as the goal of God's purpose with 
 mankind, and as realized alone through Christ in the 
 Christian community. 
 
 259. The Epistle to the Philippians, written later 
 
250 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 than the three which Tychicus and Onesimus bore to 
 , Asia, is a warm greeting from the imprisoned apostle, 
 j partly to thank his beloved Pliilippians for a gift which 
 i they had sent him by Epaphroditus (ii. 25 ; iv. 14-18), 
 but abounding in personal news, in the frank confi- 
 dences of a friend, and in such instructions as sug- 
 , gested themselves to his mind. It was not elicited by 
 any special crisis at Philippi, nor by the wish to set 
 ; forth any special truth. It is a typical specimen of a 
 I pastoral letter to a devoted congregation. It is of 
 ^ chief interest for the information it contains, and for 
 its tender expressions of lofty Christian experience. 
 
 260. It throws, in the first place, some light on the 
 condition of the Philippian church. Thus we find it 
 organized under " overseers (bishops) and deacons " 
 (i. 1). They were specially mentioned in the saluta- 
 tion, probably because they were the official agents 
 through whom the gift had been sent to the apostle ; 
 but the language advises us that these were the two 
 classes of regular officers in the churches. The title 
 " overseer " was replacing " elder," although the latter 
 was still used and the two denoted the same office 
 (Tit. i. 5, 7; I. Tim. iii. 12; iv. 17 ; Acts xx. 17, 28). 
 j The term " overseer " seems to have arisen among the 
 1 Gentile churches, and it may be that its adoption was 
 occasioned by its employment to denote the presiding 
 offices of civic or social societies (JlatcJi^ Organization 
 of the Christ. Chh. sects, ii., iii. ; LigJitfoot., The Chris- 
 tian Ministry). It would thus be the Hellenic equiva- 
 lent for the Hebraic " elder," On the other hand, the 
 use of the term in the Greek Old Testament (comp. 
 II. Kings xi. 18 ; II. Chron. xxxiv. 12, 17 ; Neb. xi. 9, 14, 
 22 ; Is. Ix. 17) may have prepared the Christians to 
 
EPISTLE TO THE PIIILlPriANS 251 
 
 employ it much in the same wuy in which ecdesia was 
 substituted for si/nago(jue (sect, 100). Whatever its , 
 origin, the office of " overseer " was the same as that j 
 of " elder," but the term described the office from the ' 
 practical point of view of its duties. Apart, however, 
 from these officers, there were many in the church, both 
 men and women (iv. 2, 3), who were active in the cause. 
 
 261. As to the apostle himself, this epistle illustrates, \ 
 as already observed (sect. 247), his successful zeal, I 
 his trials and his courage, and his strong expectation 
 of release. In point of doctrine it does not add essen- J 
 tially to what we have already learned of Paul's teach-' 
 ing. The great passage on the self-humiliation of the 
 divine Son (ii. 5-11) makes perfectly clear his belief in / 
 Hie eternal and essential divinity of Christ, and beau-/ 
 tifully describes the ethical spirit illustrated by the' 
 incarnation ; but it does not advance save in detail 
 beyond earlier utterances (Gal, iv. 4 ; II. Cor, viii. 9 ; 
 Kom. i. 3, 4 ; viii, 3 ; ix.. 5 ; Col. i. 15-17 ; ii, 9). The 
 same may be said of chapter iii. It should be noted,] 
 however, that here reappears the expectation of a physi- 1 
 cal transformation of believers at Christ's advent 
 (iii. 21), which shows that the absence from Colossians ^ ^n:?: 
 and Ephesians of his earlier eschatology was not due to I 
 any change of views. With the few items of informa- 
 tion furnished by this epistle, our knowledge of Paul's 
 first Roman imprisonment ends. The little that we do 
 learn suggests, of course, that much more must have 
 been done by way of influence on the capital and abroad. 
 We leave him still awaiting his trial, but none the less 
 leavening the world by his teaching. It is easy to 
 understand why the Roman church of the next age 
 looked back to Paul as one of its founders. 
 
vn 
 
 THE LAST YEARS OF PAUL 
 
 262. Had Paul's life ended with the Roman im- 
 prisonment recorded in Acts, he would still have per- 
 formed the work which has made his name historic. 
 Not only had he personally established Christianity 
 in most of the chief centres of the empire, but from 
 them the faith had rapidly spread into the contiguous 
 regions. There is evidence, shortly after, that it had 
 permeated the whole of Asia Minor (I. Pet. i. 1), had 
 entered Illyricum, or, as it was later called, Dalmatia 
 (II. Tim. iv. 11), and had possibly found its way into 
 Gaul (II. Tim. iv. 11, R.Y., marg.). Converts had been 
 made in various ranks of society. The majority were 
 probably of the middle class; and it should be re- 
 membered that even the slaves, to whom frequent 
 reference is made (Eph. vi. 5 ; Col. iii. 22 ; I. Pet. ii. 
 18), often included intelligent and educated men. 
 Even in Corinth, where most of the early disciples 
 were from the lower orders (I. Cor. i. 26 ; vii. 11), we 
 read of Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue (Acts 
 xviii. 8), and Erastus, the treasurer of the city (Rom. 
 xvi. 23, R.V.) ; while in Ephesus some of the wealthy 
 " Asiarchs" (see sect. 197) were the apostle's friends. 
 Gentile and Jew, masters and slaves, educated and 
 ignorant, rich and poor, had been united in a few 
 years into a new confraternity. Moreover, the apostle 
 
PAUL'S RELEASE FROM LMPRISONMENT 253 
 
 had by his epistles put in permanent form his whole 
 system of instruction. He had fully interpreted to 
 the Gentiles Jesus, the Messiah. Through his min- 
 istry, whatever others may have done, Christianity 
 had unfolded its message to the world and attained 
 complete consciousness of its independent mission. 
 
 263. There is reason, however, to believe that Paul's 
 life did not end with his appeal to Caesar, awaiting 
 the issue of which Luke's narrative closes. That the 
 apostle was martyred at Rome under Nero is the 
 constant testimony of tradition from the earliest times, 
 and may be accepted without doubt. The year of his 
 death is more open to question. Tradition, first men- 
 tioned by Eusebius (Chronicon), placed it in a.d. 67 
 OX- 68. (See Appendix.) Even if this be too late, a 
 period of time certainly elapsed between the close of 
 the two years mentioned in Acts (xxviii. 31) and his 
 martyrdom ; for it is utterly incredible that he died 
 before the outbreak of Nero's persecution in the 
 summer of a. p. 64. Did he then continue a prisoner, 
 or was he released on his appeal to C«sar and allowed 
 to resume his work ? The reasons for the latter sup- 
 position, quite apart from the question of the genuine- 
 ness of the Pastoral Epistles, are very strong. 
 
 264. In the first place, he confidently expected to 
 be released (Phil. i. 25 ; ii. 24), and his expectation 
 must have been based on his knowledge of the situa- 
 tion. In the second place, his previous treatment 
 by Roman officials makes his release probable. He 
 was regarded as a Jew who had a controversy with 
 his fellow-religionists ; and as Judaism was a legalized 
 religion, its internal dissensions were no aifair of the 
 state. Not until the outbreak of the Neronian perse- 
 
254 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 cution were Christians punished by the Romans for 
 being such ; and although the Jews accused Paul 
 of offences of which the officials could take cognizance 
 (Acts xviii. 13; xxiv. 5), yet in every case when he 
 made his defence and the real nature of the dispute 
 appeared, he was either discharged or acknowledged 
 to be guiltless. It is altogether probable, therefore, 
 that when his case came before Caesar, he was ac- 
 quitted. In the third place, tradition asserts his 
 release. Clement of Rome (a. r>.^^„) wrote of him that 
 " he taught the whole world righteousness and reached 
 the furthest bound of the west ; " which in one writing 
 from Rome can hardly mean less than that the apostle 
 had visited Spain, and this implies his release. In 
 like manner the Muratori Fragment (a.d. 170-200) 
 mentions the journey to Spain as if it were generally 
 believed, and the same tradition appears in early 
 apocryphal " Acts " (comp. Zahn^ Einleit. I. sect. 36, 
 note 7 ; Steinmetz, Die 2te Gefangenschaft d. Paul, 
 p. 90). Finally Eusebius (HE. 11. 22) gives it as the 
 [ current report that the apostle was released, resumed 
 his ministry, and was again arrested and suffered 
 martyrdom at Rome. It is true that the witnesses to 
 the tradition are not many, but there is no opposing 
 tradition. It is true also that no trustworthy histor- 
 ical remains exist of Paul's work in Spain. There is, 
 however, some evidence that Christianity existed in 
 Spain as early as the reign of Nero (Steinmetz, ibid. p. 
 86). The absence of historical remains of Paul's visit is 
 no disproof of the visit itself, nor is the tradition suffi- 
 ciently explained as arising out of the apostle's known 
 wish to visit Spain (Rom. xv. 24). Taking the evidence 
 as a whole, when combined with the probabilities of the 
 
THE PASTORAL EPISTLES 255 
 
 situation as exhibited above, there is reason to believe ( 
 that the appeal to Caesar resulted in Paul's liberation I 
 and the resumption of his missionary activity. 
 
 265. This conclusion is further assured by the , 
 epistles to Timothy and Titus (sects. 175-180). They I 
 are certainly to be assigned to this period of the apos- I 
 tie's life. It is quite impossible to place First Timothy } 
 and Titus in the narrative of Acts. It has been 
 sought to do this by assuming extended, unrecorded 
 journeys during the Ephesian ministry of Paul, on ; 
 one of which, having left Timothy in charge of the / 
 church at Ephesus (I. Tim. i. 3), he went to Crete and ' 
 placed Titus in charge (Tit. i. 5) ; but this is hardly 
 compatible with his description of his stay in Ephesus 
 as having lasted three years (Acts xx. 31). Again, it 
 has been suggested that Timothy was left at Ephesus 
 after the apostle had taken leave of the elders at 
 Miletus on his last journey to Jerusalem (Acts xx. 38), 
 and that Titus was left -at Crete when the ship, bearing 
 Paul to Rome, touched at " Fair Havens," near to the 
 city Lasca (Acts xxvii. 8). First Timothy is then 
 supposed to have been written shortly after Paul left 
 Miletus, and Titus shortly after his arrival at Rome 
 (see Bartlet, The Apost. Age, pp. 178-184). But in 
 this case it is strange that he should have written to 
 Timothy that he hoped to rejoin him shortly (I. Tim. 
 iii. 14) or that he should have written to Titus to meet 
 him in Nicopolis because he had determined there to 
 winter (Tit. iii. 12). Moreover, on any view which ; 
 accepts the integrity of these epistles, the prevalence \ 
 and character of the errors against which the letters 
 warn make it impossible to assign them to the period 
 covered by Acts, especially since in his address to the 
 
256 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 Ephesian elders Paul represents the false teachers as 
 
 certain to arise but as still in the future (Acts xx. 29, 
 
 30). Second Timothy also cannot be assigned sat- 
 
 ; isfactorily to the imprisonment of Acts. The statement 
 
 '; that he had left Trophimus at Miletus sick (iv. 20), 
 
 1 was not true of his visit to that place on the way to 
 
 ' Jerusalem (Acts xx. 15), for Trophimus was with him 
 
 in Jerusalem (Acts xxi. 29). These views would also 
 
 separate the epistle from the other Pastorals by several 
 
 years, whereas the striking community of thought and 
 
 language certainly locates them in one period of the 
 
 apostle's life. The effort, therefore, to insert them in 
 
 the Acts, and at the same time to accept their integrity 
 
 and Pauline authorship, must be abandoned. 
 
 266. These epistles then must be placed in the pe- 
 / riod subsequent to Paul's release and throw light on 
 the last years of his ministry. It is not possible in- 
 deed to determine from them his movements in detail. 
 It is natural, however, to suppose, from Philippians 
 ii. 19, that he went immediately after his release to 
 Philippi. From there he may have gone to Colosse 
 (Philem. 22), and thence to Crete (Tit. i. 5), on his 
 way to Spain. Or he may have abandoned his earlier 
 purpose to visit Asia and have gone at once to Spain. 
 On his return he may have visited Crete on the way to 
 Asia, and from the latter have gone into Macedonia 
 (I. Tim. i. 3). It is also impossible to determine 
 whether T. Timothy or Titus was written first. They 
 cannot, however, have been written later than a. d. 
 66. The Nicopolis (Tit. iii. 12), where he proposed to 
 winter, is usually identified with the city of that name 
 in Epirus ; but whatever the direction of his move- 
 ments, it is clear that he was actively engaged both in 
 
ORGANIZATION OF THE CHURCHES 257 
 
 founding new churches, as in Crete, and in revisiting 
 the older ones. With him others co-operated, some 
 of them men formerly associated with him, and others, 
 like Artemas and Zenas (Tit. iii. 12, 13), of whom we 
 have not heard before. Meanwhile, in all probability, 
 the Neronian persecution had broken out in Rome, and 
 it could not but have made the apostle more anxious 
 to complete his work. In I. Timothy and Titus, how- 
 ever, there is no allusion to it. We only learn from 
 them of the restless activity of the apostle, and his 
 intense desire that his churches should be true to the 
 faith and should honor by their lives the Christian 
 name. 
 
 267. The First Epistle to Timothy and that to Titus 
 illustrate the growing need which the apostle felt of 
 care in the regulation of the organized life of his 
 churches. His purpose was not in the least to advance 
 organization. He does not direct any addition to ex- 
 isting offices nor exalt one above another. The only 
 factor, not hitherto mentioned, is the list of widows 
 supported by the church, and this too was evidently an 
 established custom. His aim was rather to prevent 
 abuses in the selection of officials and of subjects of 
 aid. His language shows his sense of the importance 
 of the church as an organized society (I. Tim. iii. 14-lG) 
 and the need of maintaining a holy and commendable 
 life. This was only the practical application of the 
 idea of the church universal which he had given in the 
 epistle to the Ephesians. 
 
 268. Yet these epistles do disclose something of the 
 organization of the churches. Timothy and Titus had 
 clearly been left in charge temporarily, not as perma- 
 nent officers, but as apostolic delegates. The perma- 
 
 17 
 
258 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 nent officials consisted of overseers, or elders, — the 
 two terms being convertible, — and deacons (see sect. 
 260). The former were rulers, the latter ministers to 
 the poor. On the elders had devolved more and more 
 the work of teaching (I. Tim. iii. 2 ; v. 17 ; Tit. i. 9 ; 
 II. Tim. ii. 2). That this was not confined to them 
 appears from the very injunctions against false teach- 
 ers. Neither did all the elders devote themselves to 
 teaching (I. Tim. v. 17), but those that did were to 
 have double honor. In short, we notice that while the 
 freedom of public teaching had not ceased, the burden 
 of regular instruction was devolving more on the over- 
 seers of the church ; and it was plainly the view of the 
 apostle that this was a needed safeguard of the truth. 
 This indeed was but a further application both of the 
 original duty of the elder and of what Paul had al- 
 ready taught in Ephesians iv. 11-16. Yet a new em- 
 phasis is evident. Out of the eldership the idea of an 
 established teaching, as well as ruling, body had begun 
 to emerge. 
 
 269. The epistles further show the perils to which 
 
 / the churches were exposed from false teaching and 
 unholy living. This is a strange but instructive fact. 
 The apostle predicted that it would become more and 
 
 I more the case. His view of the future was not that of 
 an idealist. Error and sin were manifesting themselves 
 within the body. The congregations contained many 
 elements. Some were attracted who did not fully 
 apprehend the gospel. Half-converted Jews brought 
 in religious fables and fanciful speculations about Scrip- 
 ture and the spirit-world. Religious excitement some- 
 times engendei-ed fanaticism. Philosophic theories 
 were substituted for the apostolic faith. Christianity 
 
PAUL AGAIN A PRISONER 259 
 
 had to defend its purity and its lofty moral ideal 
 as well as prove its right to exist at all. Hence the 
 apostle's stress on holy character. Christianity, he 
 repeats, must be kept honorable. Zeal for righteous- 
 ness and all the kindred virtues is urged no less than 
 fidelity to truth. Perhaps he was partly influenced 
 by the growing hatred of the church by paganism, and 
 by the vile misrepresentations of the new sect which 
 were beginning to be circulated. There were also real 
 perils within the churches themselves. These epistles 
 testify to the strenuousness with which the apostle of 
 faith wrought out, as the fruit of faith, a holy life, and 
 insisted upon it to his converts. He knew that only a 
 holy life could successfully meet the world's attack 
 upon the faith itself. 
 
 270. Second Timothy discloses an entire change in 
 Paul's situation. He is again a prisoner at Rome (i. 8, 
 12, 17 ; ii. 9 ; iv. 6), charged with being a malefactor 
 (ii. 9, R. v.). He has had one trial at which, though 
 deserted even by his friends, the Lord delivered him, 
 as he puts it, " out of the mouth of the lion " (iv. 16, 
 17); but he fully expects death (iv. 6). He is sorely 
 troubled also by the defection and absence of some of 
 his friends (iv. 10) and by the positive enmity of others 
 who bore the Christian name and who hailed from 
 Asia (i. 15). Alexander, the coppersmith, had done 
 him much evil (iv. 11) ; many suppose that he had 
 testified before the tribunal against Paul. Yet other 
 friends, some of them new to the history (iv. 21), were 
 with him. These scanty allusions evidently imply that 
 he had been again arrested — where or why we know 
 not — and had been again sent to Rome. He was now 
 charged with crime by the Roman authorities them- 
 
260 EXPANSION OF CHRISTIANITY UNDER PAUL 
 
 selves. It may be that he was charged with complicity 
 in the burning of Rome (C. and H., Life and Ep. of 
 St. Paul, ii. 472). It may be that the charge was 
 " hostility to established customs and weakening im- 
 perial authority " {Ramsay, St. Paul the Trav., p. 
 361). There were evidently several charges, for, 
 though at first not condemned, he was still held a 
 prisoner. He does not say that he was charged with 
 being a Christian. Yet that was evidently the animus 
 of the charge. The Roman authorities were also ad- 
 verse to him. He had no hope of final acquittal. 
 Clearly their attitude had much changed since Philip- 
 pians was written. This makes it probable that the 
 Neronian persecution had meanwhile occurred. How- 
 ever inadequate the proof of guilt might be, the Chris- 
 tian apostle was certain that he would be condemned. 
 
 271. Under these circumstances his second letter to 
 Timothy was written. He wished Timothy to come to 
 him (iv. 9, 21). While calling him to his side, he takes 
 the opportunity of pouring out his heart to his beloved 
 friend in exhortation and encouragement. There is 
 certainly no reason to suppose, as some have done, 
 that we have here two letters combined, — one urging 
 Timothy to come to Paul ; the other directing him 
 how to carry on his work ; for the charge to Timothy 
 in this letter is not, like those in I. Timothy, to carry 
 on a specific work in a specific place, but is a general 
 exhortation for Timothy's subsequent life, and Paul's 
 impending death made him feel that he must not lose 
 an opportunity of giving his farewell testament to his 
 " son." Hence he exhorts Timothy to be true to him 
 and to his teaching amid increasing perils (i.), to be 
 faithful to duty, giving heed to his own life and faith, 
 
DEATH OP PAUL 261 
 
 diligently upholding truth and resisting temptation 
 (ii.). He warns him that error will increase, and en- 
 courages him to resist it by recalling how he himself 
 had suffered in the service, and by pointing him to the 
 Scriptures as the sure rule of faith and life (iii.)- With 
 a repeated charge to fidelity (iv. 1-5), he tells of his 
 own expectation of death and joy in it, of his desire 
 to see Timothy again (iv. 6-9), and closes with items 
 of news and greetings (iv. 10-22). With this letter 
 our knowledge of Paul's life ends. Tradition affirms 
 that he was beheaded on the Ostian Way. 
 
PART V 
 
 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY TO THE 
 CLOSE OF THE APOSTOLIC AGE 
 
I 
 
 HISTOEICAL SOURCES 
 
 272. The anonymous Epistle to the Hebrews is valu- 
 able both for its incidental references to the condition 
 of Judaic Christianity (sect. 172) and for its own teach- 
 ing. In the latter aspect it is a source for the period 
 now before us. Its authorship has ever been a subject 
 of dispute ; for even in ancient times, while the eastern 
 churches received it as Pauline, there was dissent in 
 the west, and Tertullian states that it was ascribed to 
 Barnabas. There is, however, no book more certainly 
 written in the apostolic age, since it was used freely 
 by Clement of Rome (a". d. 96). Its internal features 
 make strongly against the tradition that it was written 
 by Paul. Its anonymity is unlike Paul. The writer 
 appeals to the confirmation of the Lord's message 
 which he and his readers had received from those 
 who had heard him (ii. 3; iv. 2). He had apparently 
 been associated with his readers in the earlier days of 
 their Christian life (ii. 4 ; x. 32 ; xiii. 7, R.V.). His 
 smooth style and his greater fondness for the Septua- 
 gint point also to another hand than the apostle's. 
 The " Alexandrianism " of the epistle has indeed been 
 exaggerated. Its interpretations of scripture assume, 
 like Paul's and unlike Philo's, the historical reality 
 of the inspired narrative, and his conceptions show no 
 dependence on the philosopher (comp. G. Milligan, 
 
266 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 The Theol. of the Ep. to the Heb., eh. ix.). Yet there 
 remain a number of phrases and observations which in- 
 dicate the writer's familiarity with Alexandrian termi- 
 nology. Most decisive, however, is the difference of the 
 form of theological conception from Paul's. Both en- 
 tirely harmonize. But the Pauline expression of salva- 
 tion " in Christ " is replaced by that of the believer as 
 " sanctified " by the work of his priestly representa- 
 tive (ii. 11; X. 10, 14, 29; xiii. 12). Salvation is not 
 described as " justification," but as the " perfecting " 
 of man's relation to God (vi. 1 ; vii. 11, 19 ; ix. 9 ; x. 
 1, 14, 40). The law is presented from the ritual, not 
 from the moral, point of view. Salvation by works is 
 not rejected because of man's inability to keep the law 
 (Rom. vii. 9-24), but because material offerings cannot 
 remove guilt (ix. 9, 10). To Paul, man is carnal 
 (Rom. vii. 14); to this writer, the law is (ix. 10 ; x. 4 ; 
 xiii. 9). Paul's versatility was great ; but his theologi- 
 cal conceptions did not thus change their moulds. At 
 the same time this epistle notably coincides with Paul's 
 both in substantial doctrine (comp. i. 2-4 and Col. i. 15, 
 16, Eph. i. 20 ; ii. 10 and Rom. xi. 36 ; vii. 25 and Rom. 
 viii. 34 ; vii. 27 and Rom. vi. 9, 10 ; ii. 9 and Phil. ii. 8, 9 ; 
 ii. 3 and I. Cor. xv. 27 ; ii. 4 and I. Cor. xii. 11; ix. 27, 
 28 and Tit. ii. 13) and in a peculiar form of quotation 
 (x. 30 and Rom. xii. 19). Hence it probably emanated 
 from one of his friends. It is impossible to afiirm 
 positively who wrote it; but of all the guesses that 
 have been made, the most plausible is that which 
 attributes it to Barnabas. 
 
 273. The epistle was certainly addressed to Hebrews 
 (see especially i. 1; iii. 1-6; xii. 18-24; xiii. 13). 
 They were a definite community (v. 12 ; vi. 10 ; x. 32- 
 
EPISTLES OF PETER 267 
 
 34 ; xiii. 7, R Y.) which had long existed (v. 12), had suf- 
 fered imprisonment and loss of goods (x. 32-34), but 
 had not as a community endured bloody persecution 
 (xii. 4). A great crisis was impending which threat- 
 ened painful separation from their former associations 
 (x. 25 ; xii. 27 ; xiii. 13, 14), These allusions point to 
 Christians of Palestine. To no other was the reproach 
 so applicable that " by reason of time ye ought to be 
 teachers " (v. 12). It cannot be ascertained, however, 
 whether it was sent to tlie church of Jerusalem, or to 
 some neighboring community, or to a portion of the 
 Jerusalem church which had on the approach of the 
 war left the city. It is to be dated shortly before 
 the fall of Jerusalem, since the temple service was still 
 in operation (viii. 4, 5; x. 25; xiii. 10-14). We may 
 assign it to 67 or 68 a. d. Its place of composition is 
 unknown. The phrase " they of Italy salute you " (xiii. 
 24) may indicate that the writer was in Italy or merely 
 that certain Italians were with him. 
 
 274. The First Epistle of Peter was addressed to the 
 Christians in the provinces of Asia Minor. Its allusions 
 to persecution (i. 7 ; iii. 15; iv. 12, 16) point clearly 
 to the period following the outbreak of Nero's cruelty 
 (A.D. 64). The apostle was in " Babylon " (v. 13). 
 This term has often been regarded as a pseudonym for 
 Rome, and the supposition would seem to be supported 
 by the allusions to persecution ; yet the simple episto- 
 lary character of the document makes the literal sense 
 more probable. The letter was known to and freely 
 used by the earliest ])Ost-apostolic writers, nor is there 
 reason to doubt its claim to be the work of the apostle. 
 
 275. The genuineness of the Second Epistle of Peter 
 has been more doubted than that of any New Testa- 
 
268 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 ment book, but substantial reasons may be given for 
 accepting its explicit claims. Traces of its use in the 
 second century, though few, are not wanting and have 
 been re-enforced by the lately recovered apocryphal 
 Apocalypse of Peter, dating from about A. d. 150, which 
 draws largely from it. It explicitly claims to be by 
 Peter, and we should be slow to believe that the churches, 
 which rejected other works pretending to be his, were 
 imposed on by so daring a forgery. The writer alludes 
 to his previous epistle (iii. 1) and shows the same fond- 
 ness for reminiscences of his life with Jesus (i. 14, 16- 
 18) which is found in First Peter (i. 3, 8, 21 ; ii. 21, 2-3 ; 
 V. 1, 5). In it, as in the other, stress is laid on prophecy 
 (i. 19-21 ; iii. 2, 13) and the mind is fixed on the glory 
 to come (i. 4, 11, 19 ; iii. 4, 10, 12-14). It is true that 
 he emphasizes more than in the first epistle (iv. 5, 17) 
 the advent as the time of punishment (ii. 1, 3, 9, 13 ; 
 iii. 7), but this was because he was rebuking false 
 teachers and evil men. The doctrinal point of view of 
 both epistles is the same (comp. e. g. II. Pet. i. 3 and 
 
 I. Pet. i. 3, 4 ; II. Pet. i. 4 ; iii. 9 and I. Pet. i. 9, 13 ; 
 
 II. Pet. i. 10 and I. Pet. i. 2 ; v. 10 ; II. Pet. ii. 1 and 
 I. Pet. i. 18); and while some new phrases occur in the 
 second epistle, they belonged to the common Christian 
 vocabulary. In both epistles there is the same stress 
 on practical faith and godliness, the same absence of 
 doctrinal discussion, the same use of Old Testament 
 illustrations (II. Pet. ii. and I. Pet. ii. 6, 20). In both 
 epistles also is to be noted the disposition to use the 
 writings of Christian contemporaries. First Peter con- 
 tains many echoes of the epistles of James and Paul, 
 while in Second Peter there is not only a specific refer- 
 ence to Paul's epistles (iii. 15, 16), but an extensive use 
 
EPISTLE OF JUDE 269 
 
 of the Epistle of Jude (comp. ii. 1 and Jude 4 ; ii. 4 and 
 Jude 6 ; ii. 10 and Jude 8 ; ii. 11 and Jude 9 ; ii. 12 and 
 Jude 10 ; ii. 13 and Jude 12). A certain roughness of 
 style, when compared with First Peter, is to be 
 acknowledged, but is quite an insufficient ground on 
 which to deny a common authorship. The epistle was 
 probably written from Eome shortly before the apostle's 
 death. It was addressed to part at least of the same 
 circle of churches to whom the first epistle had been 
 sent. 
 
 276. The Epistle of Jude seems to have been written 
 about A. D. 65-67. The author calls himself " a ser- 
 vant of Jesus Christ and brother of James " (1). He 
 was therefore not an apostle, but one of the brethren 
 of Jesus, and, like James (Jas. i. 1), felt himself worthy 
 to be called only a servant of his Messiah-brother. His 
 language implies that James was better known than 
 himself, and probably that he wrote after James' death. 
 It might seem also to indicate that he addressed Jewish 
 Christians ; but First Corinthians (ix. 6) shows that 
 the brethren of the Lord were, like Peter, evangelists 
 well known to the Gentile churches, and since Peter 
 in his later years addressed Gentiles, Jude may have 
 done the same. It is, moreover, difficult to suppose 
 that the persons whom Jude denounced had appeared 
 in Jewish-Christian churches (4-8). Their errors look 
 rather like the abuse of Pauline teaching (comp. Rom. 
 vi. 1-11). We may conjecture that the readers lived 
 in some part of Asia Minor. The same facts point 
 also to a date contemporaneous with the Pastoral 
 Epistles. The false Christians of Jude cannot indeed 
 be identified with the false teachers of First Timothy 
 and Titns. They agree more nearly with those de- 
 
270 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 scribed in Second Timothy (iii. 1-9). Jude and the 
 Pastorals, however, belong to the same general situ- 
 ation, 
 
 277. During the seventh decade appeared also the 
 synoptic gospels. The first, from the earliest times 
 attributed to Matthew, was written from the point of 
 view of a Jewish Christian emancipated from Judaism. 
 As early as about a. d. 140 (Papias) we find the 
 statement that Matthew wrote originally in Hebrew. 
 If so, the relation of our Greek gospel to the original 
 is a difficult problem about which the last word has 
 not yet been written. Many modern scholars believe 
 that the original consisted only or mainly of a col- 
 lection of Christ's discourses, and that our gospel was 
 called Matthew's because it embodies these discourses 
 with historical matter derived from anothe;^ source. 
 But from what we know of the apostolic preaching, 
 it is improbable that an early gospel did not contain 
 the acts as well as the words of Jesus, and especially 
 that it did not contain a history of the passion. This 
 theory, moreover, rests upon an interpretation of the 
 word " logia," used by Papias to describe Matthew's 
 work, in the sense of " discourses," whereas the term is 
 employed in the New Testament, by Philo and by the 
 early fathers, in the sense of " oracles," or divine com- 
 munications, and is constantly applied to inspired books, 
 either in whole or in their parts. We are not war- 
 ranted, therefore, in departing from the belief, which 
 the same line of tradition affirmed, that our first 
 gospel was the work of Matthew. Possibly he issued 
 botli a Hebrew and a Greek edition. The efforts of 
 recent scholars to recover the original Hebrew by 
 retranslation either of this gospel alone, or of it in 
 
THE SYNOPTIC GOSPELS 271 
 
 combination with Mark and Luke, cannot be regarded 
 as successful. 
 
 278. Our second gospel was universally considered 
 in the second century to have been written by Mark 
 at Rome and to have embodied largely the preaching 
 of Peter, whose " interpreter " Mark was said to 
 have become. Its connection with Peter is somewhat 
 confirmed by the fact that it lays stress on the miracu- 
 lous events of Jesus' life as Peter always did (Acts ii. 
 22 ; s. 38 ; I. Pet. i. 3 ; II. Pet. i. 16, 17), and con- 
 tains a number of vivid details which indicate the 
 recollection of an observant eye-witness {e.g. iii. 5; v. 
 39, 40 ; viii. 12, 34). It was plainly written for Gcn-\ 
 tiles (comp. i. 9 ; v. 41 ; vii. 3, 4 ; xii. 42 ; xiv. 13 ; ' 
 XV. 42), and is a graphic, pictorial narrative descrip- 
 tive especially of the power of Jesus, the Son of God. 
 There is no reason to doubt that we possess it in its 
 original form, save that the last twelve verses are 
 wanting. The original conclusion seems to have been 
 lost, and was replaced, not later than the beginning of 
 the second century, by our present text, compiled from 
 the other gospels and other sources. 
 
 279. Our third gospel was written by the author of 
 Acts (Acts i. 1, 2), who has already been identified as 
 Luke (sect. 3). This gospel shows more of the spirit 
 and method of an historian than do the other synop- 
 tics. He expressly states the care with which he 
 collected his material (i. 1-4), deriving it doubtless 
 both from earlier documents and personal communi- 
 cation with the original actors in the primitive his- 
 tory. He seems to have contemplated from the start 
 the composition of both his works and to have aimed 
 at a systematic presentation of the rise and establish- 
 
272 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 meiit of Gentile Christianity, His gospel should prob- 
 ably be assigned also to the years a. d. 60-70. At 
 any rate his report of Christ's prediction of the fall 
 of Jerusalem is not, as some maintain, sufficient 
 ground for dating the book after that event ; since his 
 language (xxi. 20) is only an interpretation of Christ's 
 words (comp. Matt. xxiv. 15 ; Mark xiii. 14) designed 
 to make their meaning clear to Gentile readers, and 
 that the Christians, on the basis of Christ's teaching, 
 expected the destruction of the city is proved by 
 Mark's report as well as by much other evidence. It 
 is not improbable that Luke gathered his materials 
 while Paul was in prison at Csesarea, and that he 
 wrote his gospel in Rome. The influence upon him of 
 Paul appears from the stress he lays on the universal 
 mission of Christ (e. g. ii. 32 ; iv. 16-30 ; xiii. 28-30 ; 
 xiv. 16-24 ; xix. 10 ; xxiv. 47), and from the connec- 
 tion between certain passages in his narrative and 
 Paul's statements (comp. Luke x. 7 and I. Tim. v. 18 ; 
 Luke X. 8 and I. Cor. x. 27 ; Luke xxii. 19-21 and I. 
 Cor. xi. 23-25 ; Luke xxiv. 34 and I. Cor. xv. 5). 
 
 280. At some time subsequent to the composition 
 of the third gospel Luke issued the Acts, a discussion 
 of which has already been given (sects. 3-6). Its exact 
 date is still a matter of dispute. Its closing words 
 cannot be held to prove that it was written, as many 
 have thought, immediately after the two years of 
 Paul's first Roman imprisonment. It can only be 
 dated roughly in the period following Paul's release 
 up to the probable term of Luke's life, say, a. d. 63-75. 
 Its high value as a source for apostolic history has 
 been repeatedly shown in our narrative. 
 
 281. Finally, we have from the closing years of the 
 
THE WRITINGS OF JOHN 273 
 
 first century the Johannean literature. It is true that 
 the apostle's authorship of all or some of the five 
 books which go by his name has been hotly debated. 
 But tliat they existed and were used like other apos- 
 tolic books at the beginning of the second century is 
 certain (comp. e. g. Resell, Aussercanon. Paralleltexte 
 zu d. Evang. 4tes Heft. 1896). That the author of the 
 fourth gospel wrote also the epistles is indisputable 
 from the identity of vocabulary and style. Examina- 
 tion also confirms the traditional belief that he was 
 the writer of " Revelation " (comp. Harnack, Chronolo- 
 gie, p. 675). It is true that the latter book has many 
 grammatical constructions peculiar to it ; but these 
 were due to its apocalyptic style and the influence on 
 it of the language of older prophecies. The gospel 
 and " Revelation " are both in thoroughly Hebraistic 
 style, have a large body of peculiar words and phrases 
 in common, while their leading doctrinal ideas are 
 identical and some of them unique among the books 
 of the New Testament {e.g. comp. John i. 1 and Rev. 
 xix, 13 ; John i. 28 ; xix. 36 and Rev. v. 6 ; xiii. 8 ; 
 John iii. 29 and Rev. xxi. 2, 9 ; John xix. 34 and Rev. 
 i. 7; John viii. 44 and Rev. ii. 9; John vii. 37 and 
 Rev. xxii. 17). Still less is there ground for suppos- 
 ing that any other John than the apostle was the 
 author. Besides being evidently a Jqv^^ and showing 
 himself intimately familiar with the geography and 
 customs of Palestine during Christ's time, he closes 
 his gospel with the explicit statement that he was the 
 disciple whom Jesus loved (xxi. 20, 24), and none will 
 doubt that by that phrase we are to understand the 
 son of Zebedee. It is to be noted that the statement 
 is not only that " this is the disciple which testifieth 
 
 18 
 
274 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 of these things," as if the author obtained his informa- 
 tion from John ; but it is added that he " wrote these 
 things." We learn also from the first epistle that he 
 was an eye-witness of Jesus' life (i. 1), and wrote in 
 the name of the apostolic body (i. 3-5). The gospel 
 and first epistle are to be dated a. d. 80-90. 
 
 282. With regard to the " Revelation " it may be 
 further remarked that its style and vocabulary proves 
 it to be the work of one hand throughout. The opinion 
 has recently found favor that the author incorporated 
 into his book earlier apocalypses. Such a procedure 
 is not in itself inconceivable ; but the arguments ad- 
 vanced for it assume interpretations of some passages 
 and views of the relation of thought between visions 
 and parts of visions which are not demonstrable, and 
 which, in view of the literary unity of the book, go 
 beyond the limits of safe criticism. On the other 
 hand, critical opinion appears to be steadily returning 
 to the traditional view that the Revelation Avas com- 
 posed in the latter part of the reign of Domitian, 
 between a. d. 90 and 96. We are not concerned with 
 the value of the Johannean writings for the life of 
 Christ. They throw, however, much light on the ex- 
 ternal situation of the churches of Asia during the 
 last quarter of the first century, and still more on 
 the currents of thought which were then felt among 
 the Christians. 
 
II 
 
 THE LAST YEAES OF THE APOSTLE PETER 
 
 288. It remains to sketch briefly the progress of 
 Christianity outside of and subsequent to its expan- 
 sion under Paul. His influence indeed extended and 
 may be traced in the literary remains of his contem- 
 poraries and immediate followers. Information con- 
 cerning his fellow-workers is, moreover, scanty and 
 sporadic ; but enough exists to afford glimpses into 
 the course which the new religion took, its successes 
 and its perils, its progress and its unity, until its 
 creative period drew to a close. We naturally inquire 
 first concerning the work of Paul's chief fellow-apostle, 
 Simon Peter. 
 
 284. The life of Peter after the council at Jerusalem 
 is wrapped in obscurity. The tradition, first mentioned 
 by Eusebius (HE. II, 14-17), that he went to Rome 
 during the reign of Claudius (a. d. 41-54), and died 
 under Nero in the same year with Paul ; still more, 
 that, as reported by Jerome (De vir. illustr. 1), he was 
 the head of the Roman church for twenty-five years, — 
 is inconsistent, save as regards the time of his death, 
 with the data furnished by the New Testament books. 
 Shortly after the council we find him at Antioch 
 (Gal. ii. 11 ; see sect. 162). This was probably in a. d. 
 51 ; and Paul's Epistle to the Romans (a. d. 57 or 58 ; 
 sect. 232) forbids the supposition that Peter had then 
 
276 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 been laboring in the capital, not only by its silence 
 about him, but still more by Paul's declared principle 
 not to enter on another's territory (II. Cor. x. IG ; Rom. 
 XV. 20-24). Paul, however, alludes to Peter as a mis- 
 sionary well known to the Corinthians (I. Cor. ix. 6). 
 It is not probable, indeed, that Peter had then visited 
 Corinth. True, Dionysius of Corinth (a. d. 160) men- 
 tions him, as well as Paul, as one who had planted 
 Christianity in that city. But if his statement rested 
 on fact, it is more probable that Peter did not visit 
 Corinth until after Paul's epistles to that church had 
 been written. The agreement between Paul and the 
 leaders of the Jerusalem church (Gal. ii. 9) makes it 
 certain that in the years immediately following the 
 council Peter's work lay among the Jews, and, since 
 James was at the head of affairs in Judea, among the 
 Jews of the dispersion. If " Babylon," from which 
 First Peter was written (v. 13), is to be understood 
 literally, we infer that the apostle went to the far 
 east ; and in any event that was a natural direction 
 for him to take. The absence of his name also from 
 the epistles written by Paul during his first Roman 
 imprisonment makes it still further improbable that 
 he had visited the capital as late as a.d. 63. 
 
 285. Yet the tradition that Peter finally suffered 
 martyrdom at Rome is too early and constant to be 
 rejected. His martydom itself is obviously attested 
 by John xxi. 18, 19. His death is associated with 
 Paul's by Clement of Rome (a. d. 96). Ignatius (a. d. 
 110) wrote to the Romans, " I do not command you 
 as Peter and Paul." Dionysius of Corinth (a. d. 160) 
 mentions the two apostles as having taught together in 
 Italy and suffered martyrdom at (or about) the same 
 
DEATH OF PETER 277 
 
 time ; and thereafter the tradition appears universally 
 accepted. Tradition, moreover, associated Mark's gos- 
 pel with Peter's preaching, and assigned to that gospel 
 a Roman origin. We must believe, therefore, that, after 
 Paul's release, and hence after his establishment of 
 Gentile Christianity, Peter turned to the west and 
 finally went to the capital. This implies that the 
 division of fields of labor ceased when the unity of 
 Jew and Gentile in the church became an accom- 
 plished and recognized fact ; and such is the intima- 
 tion of Paul himself in the epistle to the Ephesians 
 (ii. 14-22; iii. 5; iv. 1-16). 
 
 286. The exact date, however, of Peter's death is a 
 matter of doubt. The prevalent belief of the early 
 church was that he died under Nero in a. d. 67 or 68. 
 The death under Nero is implied in the statement of 
 Dionysius of Corinth, that he died at (or about) the 
 same time as Paul ; and this tradition became so 
 fixed that in the fourth century the two apostles were 
 said to have suffered on the same day. The later 
 form of the report is, however, quite untrustworthy 
 (Harnack, Chronologic, p. 201), and even the general 
 fact, though well attested, has been disputed. Thus 
 Professor Ramsay thinks (Ch. in Rom. Emp. p. 283) 
 that, since one Roman tradition, preserved in Tertul- 
 lian, declared that Peter ordained Clement as head of 
 the Roman church, the earliest belief must have been 
 that the apostle survived the i^eign of Nero. But this 
 inference is precarious, since we do not know to what 
 date that tradition assigned the ordination of Clement, 
 and since the other tradition, assigning Peter's death 
 to Nero's reign, was more prevalent. On the other 
 hand, Harnack would date the death of both Peter and 
 
278 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 Paul as early as a. d. 64, the year of the outbreak of 
 Nero's persecution (Chronologic, p. 243, note 1) ; but 
 the reasons for this date, so far as concerns Peter, are 
 not convincing, and are acknowledged to be inconsist- 
 ent with the claims of First Peter to be the work of 
 the apostle (see Appendix). It is most probable, 
 therefore, that the common tradition is approximately 
 correct, and that Peter suffered in Rome toward the 
 close of Nero's reign. That he was crucified seems to 
 be implied, though not certainly, in John xxi. 18, 19. 
 This is all that history knows. Further particulars 
 about his death belong to the realm of legend. 
 
 287. His first epistle discloses in a lively way both 
 the teaching of the apostle and the condition of Chris- 
 tianity among the provinces of Asia Minor, to the 
 disciples in which it was addressed (i, 1). The apostle 
 implies that he himself had not evangelized his readers 
 (i. 12). They were for the most part of Gentile origin 
 (i. 14, 18, 21; ii. 10; iv. 3), and the description of 
 them as " the elect who are sojourners of the disper- 
 sion" (i. 1, R. V.) is due to the complete transfer of the 
 idea of Israel to the Christian community (see i. 17 ; 
 ii. 5, 9-11). Their situation was one of increasing 
 temptation and peril. Their faith in the risen Lord 
 was exposed to sore trial (i. 7). They needed to real- 
 ize the duty of sober and steadfast hope of the glory to 
 come (i. 13). In particular did they need to refute by 
 their lives the charge of being evil-doers (ii. 12 ; iii. 
 16), to prove their loyalty to civil authority (ii. 18-15), 
 and to act well as members of society (ii. 16-18 ; iii. 
 7). They were evidently suspected by their pagan 
 neighbors, and were liable to suffer through gross mis- 
 representations (iii. 15). The writer warns them to 
 
BEGINNINGS OF PERSECUTION 279 
 
 be willing to suffer, but that they must not give just 
 occasion for it (iii. 17). In fact, they must prepare 
 for a more fiery trial than any they had known (iv. 
 12). They might well rejoice, if called to suffer for 
 being Christians (iv. 16), remembering the like suffer- 
 ings of their brethren elsewhere (v. 9). But they 
 must be careful not to be guilty of any real offence, 
 lest they dishonor the cause for which they stand. 
 
 288. These exhortations point to a time when the 
 prosecution of Christians by the civil authorities was 
 a real possibility. Yet it is clear that other charges 
 than their Christianity were likely to be made against 
 them as the ground of the prosecution. This situation 
 corresponds to what we know of the period which 
 followed the outbreak of Nero's attack upon the Chris- 
 tians of Rome. At first they were punished osten- 
 sibly for alleged crimes against society. Soon, however, 
 Christianity itself became a crime. The combination 
 of the earlier and the later phase of the government's 
 hostility is plainly the situation presented by the 
 epistle {Ramsay, Ch. in the Emp. p. 282). We see 
 no reason, however, to believe with Professor Ramsay 
 that the proscription of " the Name " did not become 
 the established policy of the Roman government till 
 after the reign of Nero. Suetonius (Nero, 16) testi- 
 fies that in Nero's police regulations Christians as 
 such were classed with common criminals, and that 
 implies that Christianity was already regarded as prac- 
 tically the proof of crime. Our epistle may, therefore, 
 be placed shortly after the outbreak of Nero's persecu- 
 tion, in A. D. 65 or QQ. We do not know, indeed, from 
 other sources that the persecution extended to the 
 provinces, neither do we know that it did not. Natu- 
 
280 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 rally it would at least influence the attitude of pro- 
 vincial officers toward the sect which the emperor 
 himself had denounced. The epistle, moreover, speaks 
 of persecution rather as impending than as present. 
 There can be little doubt that the hatred of the Roman 
 populace against the Christians was echoed in the 
 provinces ; and that when once the imperial govern- 
 ment had set the example, lower officials would be 
 ready to listen to similar charges, and in some in- 
 stances to initiate action. 
 
 289. Christianity, therefore, was, for the first time so 
 far as our records show, called on to face the hostility 
 of the empire and of Roman society. It was the 
 beginning of the conflict which was to last for two 
 and a half centuries. The first fierce outbreak, which 
 the Roman historian (see sect. 1) records in con- 
 densed but clear language, had already occurred. Its 
 echoes were being heard througliout the world. Chris- 
 tianity could only try to meet the emergency by follow- 
 ing the exhortation of Peter to lives of such purity as 
 would disarm enmity and prove the value to the state 
 and to humanity of the new religion. With the rising 
 danger, moreover, the Christian brotherhood in all 
 lands was drawn more closely together and the com- 
 mon faith received fresh emphasis. Accordingly in 
 Peter's epistle the influence of earlier Christian writ- 
 ings is plainly manifest. He betrays the influence 
 upon him of both James (comp. e. g. i. 6 and Jas, i, 2, 
 3 ; i. 7 and Jas. i. 3 ; v. 5 and Jas. iv. 6 ; iv. 8 and 
 Jas. v. 20) and Paul. Acquaintance with the epistle 
 to the Ephcsians is specially evident (comp. i. 3, 4 and 
 Eph. i. 3; i. 5 and Eph. i. 19; i. 20 and Eph. i. 4; ii. 
 5, 6 and Eph. ii. 20-22 ; iii. 22 and Eph. i. 21 ; also v. 
 
THE TEACHING OF PETER 281 
 
 4 and Col. iii. 4 ; i. 1 and Rom. viii. 29 ; i. 14 and 
 Rom. xii. 2; ii. 10 and Rom. ix. 25, etc.). With appar- 
 ent reference to the fact that his readers were mainly 
 Pauline Christians, he closes with the injunction, " this 
 is the true grace of God : stand ye fast therein " (v. 
 12, R. V.) The earlier division of labor had ceased. 
 The consciousness of a common faith in the face of 
 common perils liad obliterated it. Tlie apostle of the 
 circumcision united with the apostle of the Gentiles in 
 strengthening the disciples on the basis of their com- 
 mon relationship to the one Lord and one church. 
 
 290. On the other hand Peter's teaching has an 
 individuality of its own. This epistle contains numer- 
 ous reminiscences of his life with Jesus, and especially 
 of the Lord's sufferings (i. 3, 8, 21 ; ii. 21, 23 ; v. 1, 
 5). In it also, as in Peter's speeches in Acts, Chris- 
 tianity is notably the fulfilment of prophecy (i. 10-12, 
 25 ; ii. 6, 24 ; iii. 21) ; and what had been fulfilled 
 gave new eagerness to the writer's expectation of the 
 further glory to come (i. 3-9, 13 ; iv. 7, 13 ; v. 1, 4, 
 10), so that he has been well called " the apostle of 
 hope." For him also faith is the only condition of 
 salvation (i. 5, 8, 9, 21 ; ii. 4, 7 ; v. 9) ; but he lays 
 stress on the historic agencies by which Christian faith 
 had been created (i. 3, 21, 23). He represents it also, 
 like James, as faith in God revealed in Jesus Christ 
 (i. 21) and as manifested in obedience (i. 1, 14 ; ii. 1, 7, 
 15 ; iii. 12, 16 ; iv. 1, 2). He does not unfold, as Paul 
 had done, the nature of Christ ; yet not only is God 
 " the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ " (i. 3), 
 but Christ is made the supreme object of love (i. 8, 9) 
 as well as of faith (i. 8, 9 ; ii. 7), the means of access 
 to God (ii. 5 ; iv. 11 ; v. 10), the corner-stone of the 
 
282 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 spiritual temple (ii. 4), the sinless example (ii. 21, 22; 
 iv. 1, 13), the head of the church (ii. 25; iv. 4), and 
 the Lord of the universe (iii. 22), while reference is 
 made to his activity through the Spirit before his in- 
 carnation (i. 11 ; iii. 19, 20). The work of Christ is 
 represented as consisting fundamentally in his sacri- 
 ficial death (i. 1, 11, 18, 19 ; ii. 24 ; iii. 18 ; iv. 1) and 
 in his resurrection, whereby he has entered on the 
 exercise of his saving power (i. 3, 11, 21 ; iii. 21). 
 To Peter as to Paul all Christians are the true Israel, 
 but Peter is specially fond of the thought (i. 1 ; ii. 5, 
 9, 10). The epistle, therefore, has a strong individu- 
 ality of its own. Its leading motive, however, is hor- 
 tatory rather than didactic. It is not concerned to 
 preserve the faith from false teaching, but from the 
 influences of trial and temptation. This corresponds 
 with Peter's disposition; and just because of his solici- 
 tude that the Christians might honor by their lives the 
 name of Christ, and might not flinch before the fierce 
 trials which threatened them, does his epistle cast a 
 peculiarly interesting light on the situation in which, 
 after the outbreak of persecution by the Roman author- 
 ities, the new religion found itself. 
 
 291. There were, however, perils from within as well 
 as from without, and these both practical and theo- 
 retical. Some idea of them may be gleaned from the 
 Second Epistle of Peter and from the closely allied 
 Epistle of Jude. Since the latter appears to have been 
 written before the former, and presents much the same 
 danger in a less developed form, it may be noticed first. 
 
 292. Of Jude himself we know nothing beyond what 
 is implied in his being one of the Lord's brethren 
 (sect. 276) and an evangelist (I. Cor. ix. 5). A story 
 
THE TEACHING OF JUDE 283 
 
 was related by Hegesippus {Eus. HE. III. 20) that 
 Judc's grandchildren were summoned for examination 
 before the suspicious Domitian because they were de- 
 scendants of David. They proved themselves, however, 
 to be hard-working farmers, and declared that their 
 faith taught them to expect only a heavenly kingdom 
 at the end of the world. Thereupon the emperor dis- 
 missed them with contempt. If the story be true, it 
 implies that in the reign of Domitian (a. d. 81-96) 
 Jude himself was dead. 
 
 293. His epistle is an indignant invective against 
 certain false disciples, and the churches into which they 
 had intruded appear most probably to have been located 
 in Asia (sect. 276). He describes them as immoral 
 men, veritable antinomians, who turned grace into 
 lasciviousness, and virtually denied " the only Master 
 and Lord, Jesus Christ" (4, R. V.). Lewdness was 
 their passion (5-8), and was defended under the plea 
 of higher knowledge (8-10). They are reproved not for 
 teaching error but for practising it. They mingled in 
 the Christian feasts, and even dared to take conspicuous 
 parts (12-16). They formed also exclusive coteries, 
 claiming to possess the Spirit (19). With great variety 
 of rhetorical figure Jude depicts the shameful folly of 
 these sinful men (10, 12, 13, 16-23). He too, like 
 Peter, wrote in the name of the common faith (3, 20). 
 His Jewish training appears in his illustrations not 
 only from Hebrew history (5, 7, 11), but also from tra- 
 dition and extracanonical literature (6, 9, 14, 15). But 
 he appealed especially to tlie teachings of the apostles as 
 the recognized authority (17, 18). His brief letter thus 
 discloses a new and unexpected danger to which Chris- 
 tianity was exposed. The doctrines of grace and liberty 
 
284 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 were liable to be grossly abused. Against such carnal 
 influences, as well as against Judaism and speculative 
 philosophy, did the leaders have to strive. That they 
 did so is another evidence of the clearness and com- 
 pleteness with which they apprehended the faith itself. 
 On the other hand, these alien influences reveal the 
 agitation of society produced by Christianity, and fore- 
 shadow the corruption to which in the following age 
 some of the churches yielded. 
 
 294. In the Second Epistle of Peter the same class of 
 perils against which Jude had warned reappear along 
 with others. The errors, however, are now positively 
 advanced by false teachers. The epistle was doubtless 
 written from Rome not long before the apostle's death 
 (i. 14), and was addressed to the same circle, or at 
 least to a part of it, to which the first epistle had been 
 sent (iii. 1). He had evidently read and used the 
 Epistle of Jude (comp. ii. 1 and Jude 4 ; ii. 4 and Jude 
 6 ; ii. 10 and Jude 8 ; ii. 11 and Jude 9 ; ii. 12 and 
 Jude 10 ; ii. 13 and Jude 12) and wrote to those fam- 
 iliar with the epistles of Paul (iii. 15, 16). He tells 
 us also, besides his references to antinomians (ii. 1 to 
 iii. 3), of some who had begun to question whether the 
 Lord would indeed return (ii. 4). The apostle exhorts 
 his readers to hold to the faith which they had been 
 taught, denounces the wickedness and predicts the 
 punishment of the false teachers, and solemnly affirms 
 that the Lord will come, judgment will be issued, and 
 the present world be destroyed by fire. 
 
 295. We thus see that Gentile Christianity had no 
 sooner been established than it was threatened with 
 internal and external perils of the most serious kinds. 
 Alien teaching and practical immorality appeared 
 
PERILS OF THE CHURCH 285 
 
 within; while the enmity of the empire and the sus- 
 picions of the populace loomed darkly without. There 
 is, indeed, no reason to doubt that the majority of the 
 disciples were everywhere witnessing to the holiness 
 and spiritual power of the new life which had been 
 begotten within them; yet the need shown by these 
 epistles of their being warned against the intrusions of 
 error proves that their condition was by no means an 
 ideal one, and forewarns us that the full establishment 
 of the Christianity taught by the apostles was destined 
 to be a slow and arduous process. It was in part the 
 perception of this fact that led the latter to realize the 
 importance for the future of their written instructions 
 (11. Pet. ii. 15 ; iii. 1, 2) and to bequeath an authori- 
 tative literature to the church. 
 
Ill 
 
 THE FINAL TRANSITION FKOM JUDAISM TO 
 CHKISTIANITY 
 
 296. The Epistle to the Hebrews turns our attention 
 once more to Christianity in Palestine ; not, however, 
 merely to the condition of the Jewish disciples (sect. 
 172), but to the larger fact of the real transition which 
 apostolic teaching effected from the religion of Moses 
 to Christ. There can be little doubt that it was written 
 shortly before the fall of Jerusalem (sect. 273), and 
 that the increasing troubles of the Jewish nation, the 
 evident approach of the crisis in her history (see Heb. 
 X. 25), the widening separation of even the Jewish 
 Christians from their former associations, together with 
 the rapid growth of Gentile Christianity, suggested to 
 the author his exposition. 
 
 297. The epistle presents Christianity as the legiti- 
 mate and divinely intended result of the religion of 
 Moses. It supplies a place in apostolic teaching the 
 loss of which would have been irreparable. Judaic 
 Christianity had hitherto presented the gospel as 
 the true interpretation of the law, and remained de- 
 voted to the observance of the ritual. The apostle of 
 the Gentiles had wrought out, by deed and word, the 
 independence of the gospel both from Jewish cere- 
 monialism and from the attendant disposition to rely 
 for salvation upon works of all kinds. Yet it was 
 assumed by all that the religion of Moses had been 
 
THE EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS 287 
 
 divinely revealed. There was need, from the view- 
 point both of the intellect and of practical necessity, 
 that the independence of the new should be set forth 
 on the basis of the old, that the former should be 
 shown to be the goal for which the latter had been 
 intended positively to prepare. Only thus could Juda- 
 ism fully merge into Christianity. It was given to 
 the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews to do this, 
 and thus at once complete the transition for the Jew 
 and preserve for the Gentile the permanent truths of 
 Mosaism. 
 
 298. The bearing of this epistle on the actual con- 
 dition of the Jewish Christians has already been 
 pointed out (sect. 172). We are now concerned with 
 it as a monument of apostolic thought, disclosing one 
 phase of the truth which was destined to permeate the 
 world. It is a brilliant exposition of Christianity 
 as the intended result of Hebrew revelation and reli- 
 gion. It presents it as the completion of the revela- 
 tions which God had spoken " by divers portions and 
 in divers manners unto the fathers in the prophets" 
 (i. 1, R. v.), and, therefore, as the perfect and perma- 
 nent religion of mankind (vi, 1 ; xii. 28). The Chris- 
 tian's life of faith in invisible realities is also shown to 
 be the perfect form of the true religious life (xi.). 
 Christianity is thus the historical unfolding of Mosaism. 
 The latter is contemplated as a revealed system of 
 worship designed to disclose the way of entering into 
 covenant relation with God. The point of departure 
 for the argument, tlierefore, is the ritual, which was, 
 according to our author, a direct embodiment of Chris- 
 tian truth in symbolic form. The new is simply the 
 unveiling of the old. It is the reality implicated and 
 
288 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 emblemized in the old. In it the Hebrew may see the 
 spiritual truth of which the ritual was a picture, the 
 real pattern of which Mosaism was a copy (viii. 5). 
 Christianity is, therefore, the perfect and final religion 
 of mankind. This presentation of the matter was evi- 
 dently the needed complement of Paul's teaching, 
 which represented the contrast between salvation by 
 faith and by works, and the function of the law in 
 creating the sense of guilt. Both representations were 
 true, and necessary in order to complete the transition 
 from the old to the new dispensation. 
 
 299. The argument of the epistle covers the whole 
 ground. It begins by setting forth the divine dignity 
 of Christ (i. to ii. 4), and meets the doubt of the Jew 
 caused by the spectacle of the Crucified by showing 
 that just in this way alone could Messiah fulfil the 
 office of a saviour by being the true high-priest of his 
 people (ii. 5-18). Jesus, therefore, occupies a far 
 higher position than Moses, and faith in him is not 
 only the supreme duty, but the only means of entering 
 into the enjoyment of the promises of God (iii. 1 to iv. 
 13) . This high-priestly work of Christ is then presented 
 in detail (iv. 14 to vii. 28). It is shown that the Scrip- 
 ture foretold that such would be his office, then that 
 by his experience on earth the Lord was fitted for it, 
 and finally that his ideal priesthood surpasses and does 
 away with the Levitical. The latter appears as merely 
 the lingering shadow of a departed order, the type fall- 
 ing before the reality. The author, however, did not stop 
 here. He went on to prove (viii. to x.) that the sacri- 
 fice which, Christ offers in heaven before God is the 
 only perfect one, and alone provides the basis for the 
 new covenant which Jeremiah had predicted and under 
 
MOSAISM COMPLETED IN CHRISTIANITY 289 
 
 which man attains actual fellowship with God. The 
 ritual did but emblemizc his work. His offering is per- 
 fect and its effect is permanent. Christianity is the 
 final and perfect religion because of the divinity of him 
 who has revealed it, because of his ideal priestly office, 
 and because of the perfection of his priestly offering. 
 The condition, therefore, of enjoying the benefit of sal- 
 vation is alone faith in him, and this the author pre- 
 sents in the light of all Hebrew history as the substance 
 and power of the true religious life (xi., xii.). 
 
 300. To the historian the value of this immortal 
 treatise lies in its disclosure of the completeness with 
 which the founders of Christianity apprehended the 
 relation of the new faith to its antecedents and so met 
 the problems which the transition from Judaism pro- 
 duced. Here the permanent religious truths of the 
 ritual — the necessity of sacrifice and of a priestly 
 mediation — were transferred to Christianity, while 
 showing that the forms of the ritual were not meant to 
 continue. We here see the new religion disentangling 
 itself from Judaism without losing the truth which the 
 latter contained. The epistle was written when the 
 ritual was about to be rendered forever impossible by 
 the destruction of the temple. It pointed out that in 
 its destruction the religion of revelation suffered no 
 loss. It thus completed the interpretation of past 
 revelation in the light of present history. In this 
 " word of exhortation " (xiii. 22) the religion of Closes 
 bloomed into the universal religion of mankind, of 
 which it had always contained the seed. 
 
 19 
 
IV 
 
 EISE OF HISTORICAL NARRATIVES 
 
 301. During the whole period of the rise and prog- 
 ress of Christianity the apostolic reports of the career 
 and teaching of Jesus had been in constant circulation 
 among the churches. Apostolic teaching had never 
 been disassociated from the story of Christ's life, but 
 was regarded as only the inspired amplification of his 
 instruction and explanation of his mission. Hence by 
 " the gospel " was meant the glad tidings which God 
 liad sent through Jesus and his apostles. Jesus had 
 himself begun by proclaiming " the gospel of the king- 
 dom " (e. g. Matt. iv. 23 ; Mark i. 14, 15). Later he had 
 spoken of his entire message, including the report of 
 his life and acts, as "the gospel" (Mark viii. 35; x. 
 29 ; xiii. 10 ; xiv. 9 ; xiv. 15), and to Mark (i. 1) this was 
 '^ the gospel of Jesus Christ " which the Baptist's 
 ministry introduced. After Pentecost this was natu- 
 rally the term used to describe the revelation contained 
 in the history and teaching of Jesus (Acts xv. 7 ; I. 
 Thess. i. 5 ; ii. 2, 4, 8, 9 ; iii. 2 ; II. Thess. i. 8 ; I. Cor. 
 iv. 15 ; ix. 12, 14, 18, 23, etc.) which the apostles pro- 
 claimed. It was mainly the recital of his works and 
 sayings, his death and resurrection (Acts i. 21, 22 ; 
 ii. 22-24 ; x. 37-43 ; I. Cor. xv. 1 ; Rom. i. 1-4). The 
 term, however, also came to include the apostolic ex- 
 planations of Christ's mission ; and this usage appears 
 
THE ORAL GOSPEL 291 
 
 frequently in Paul (Gal. i. 7, 11 ; ii. 2, 5, 7, 14 ; II. 
 Cor. xi. 4 ; Rom, i. 16, 17 ; ii. 16 ; Acts xxvi. 24 ; Eph. 
 i. 13 ; iii. 6 ; vi. 15, 19 ; Phil. i. 6, 7 ; Col. i. 5, 23 ; I. 
 Tim. i. 11 ; II. Tim. i. 10). Yet even with Paul the 
 doctrinal aspect was not confused with the historical 
 (Rom. xvi. 25 ; I. Cor. xi. 23 ; xv. 1 ; I. Tim. vi. 3 ; 
 II. Tim. i. 8 ; ii. 8} ; and when historical narratives of 
 the Lord's life were composed, they were, at least in 
 the age immediately succeeding the apostolic, called 
 " gospels." 
 
 302. At first the circulation of the reports was oral. 
 It is evident, however, from our synoptics that the re- 
 ports tended to assume more and more fixity of form. 
 This was the natural result of the desire to impress 
 them on the disciples by repetition. There was not, 
 indeed, at first any apparent intention to preserve them 
 in documents. But the incidents were repeated and 
 the words of Jesus were reported again and again, 
 until a body of oral narrative existed which in much 
 the same language was diffused throughout the 
 churches ; while at tlie same time some incidents did 
 not attain the same wide circulation as others, and 
 different apostles added special contributions to the 
 common stock. This current narrative dealt mainly 
 with Christ's public ministry, and particularly with 
 that in Galilee, where Jesus had gathered most of his 
 disciples and had founded his church, and with the 
 last week of his life. It related both his works and 
 words, selecting such incidents as were felt to be of 
 special religious importance. There is no evidence 
 that it dealt solely or mainly with his teaching. On 
 the contrary, while his words were remembered, equal 
 stress was laid on his miracles and his sufferings. 
 
292 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 303. In time the need became apparent of putting 
 the narrative into permanent, written form. The first 
 reference to this is found in the opening verses of 
 Luke's gospel, where we read that many had " taken 
 in hand to draw up a narrative concerning those mat- 
 ters wliich have been fulfilled among us, even as they 
 delivered them unto us which from the beginning were 
 eye witnesses and ministers of the word" (I. 1, .2^ 
 R.V.). The earliest written accounts were thus the 
 reproduction of the apostolic testimony. They appear 
 from Luke's language to have been incomplete, since 
 he emphasizes the relative completeness of his own 
 work. Out of the same motives, however, considering 
 them from the historical point of view, arose our first 
 three gospels. They appear to have been accepted in 
 the churches almost at once as possessing apostolic 
 authority. We find them with John's, in the first 
 half of the second century, the recognized gospels of 
 the church. Oral tradition of course lingered by their 
 side. Other gospels, usually affected by some peculiar 
 motive, arose and were accepted for a while in limited 
 localities (e. g. Gospel according to the Hebrews, accord- 
 ing to the Egyptians, according to Peter, etc.)- But 
 these three, to which John's was afterwards joined, 
 attained authority so rapidly in the churches that it 
 is plain that they were regarded at once as the genuine 
 embodiment of the apostolic reports. About the same 
 time also Luke completed his gospel by the Acts (sect. 
 280). 
 
 304. The rise of this historical literature discloses 
 another phase of apostolic history. It shows that 
 primitive Christianity was not a mere ethical or theo- 
 logical movement, but was created by the career and 
 
THE GOSPELS APOSTOLIC 293 
 
 teaching of Jesus, and never lost its consciousness 
 of its historical origin. The large amount of matter 
 that the synoptic gospels have in common illustrates 
 the universal diffusion throughout the churches of 
 substantially the same narrative. Yet the story was 
 repeated with various, though harmonious, modifi- 
 cations. In Matthew's gospel Jesus is presented as 
 the royal Messiah who fulfilled the law and the 
 prophets, and established by his teaching and his 
 redeeming work the true kingdom of God, which em- 
 braces men of all nations. This is the gospel of the 
 Christianized Jew. In Mark's, Jesus appears rather 
 as the mighty conqueror, the Son of God, revealing 
 his power, and yet willingly submitting to death that he 
 might rise again. In Luke's, we have the Saviour of 
 the world, the gracious Son of man, wonderful in his 
 peerless chariictei7'^^iTns5"'message of redemption was 
 glad tidings to the nations ; while in the Acts the 
 evangelist carried on the unfolding of Christianity to 
 its establishment as a non-Judaic, universal faith. The 
 point to be observed is that apostolic Christianity was 
 historically rooted in the life and work of Jesus, and 
 that his significance continued to be a subject of in- 
 creasing interest and reflection. It was the message of 
 and about him that the apostles carried throughout the 
 world, on which the faith and hope of the primitive 
 disciples rested, and which appealed with triumphant 
 power to sinful, waiting humanity. It was further an 
 opportune fact that these historical books were pro- 
 duced at a time when most of the original witnesses 
 were still living and yet when their departure was near. 
 The future was thus provided with those facts, well 
 attested, on which it would ever need to rest its faith. 
 
THE JOHANNEAN PERIOD 
 
 305. The last third of the first century was in some 
 respects a transitional period in the history of Chris- 
 tianity. The new religion had become firmly estab- 
 lished. It was everywhere addressing itself to the task 
 of maintaining the integrity of its belief and life against 
 the hatred or seductions of the world, and of winning 
 the world to its teachings. It had thus begun the 
 struggle which was to last through the succeeding cen- 
 turies. Within this period also appeared the begin- 
 nings of those sects which dissented from the established 
 faith or sought to combine with it alien elements de- 
 rived from Judaism or paganism ; while, on the other 
 hand, the organization of the churches, at least in some 
 quarters, advanced toward greater centralization of 
 authority and compactness of form. These features of 
 the church's life continued to unfold in the post-apos- 
 tolic age. Christianity, therefore, was already entering 
 on the development and conflict to which as a world 
 religion she was destined. At the same time the apos- 
 tolic age had not closed. All the elements which 
 historically lay at the foundation of subsequent Chris- 
 tianity had not yet been given. This is shown by the 
 fact that during this period are to be located the last 
 ministry of the apostle John and the writings which he 
 issued. The latter entered so immediately into the 
 
CONTINUED SPREAD OF CHRISTIANITY 295 
 
 life and faith of the church that they plainly consti- 
 tuted part of its foundation, and, together with the 
 apostolic office of their author, require us to extend the 
 apostolic age practically to the close of the century. 
 
 306. During this period Christianity continued to 
 spread rapidly. Our information is scanty, but there 
 can be no doubt about the fact. We have already noted 
 its wide diffusion in the last years of Paul (sect. 262). 
 That it entered Egypt with much power is proved by the 
 remains of early Christian literature in that land from 
 early in the second century. There is also reason to 
 believe that it entered Arabia and Parthia, and possibly 
 India as well as, in the west, Germany and Gaul. It 
 touched Spain and perhaps Britain ; while throughout 
 the central parts of the empire it had its adherents in 
 every country. The language of the Revelation (e. g. 
 vii. 9) implies that the new faith included representa- 
 tives from all nations. Clement of Rome (a. d. 96) re- 
 fers to the apostles as " preaching everywhere in city 
 and country." Ignatius (a. d. 110) writes of " bishops 
 settled in the farthest parts [of the earth]." Pliny, 
 governor of Bithynia and Pontus in a. d. 112, found the 
 Christians so numerous that the worship of the temples 
 had severely suffered. It is probable that by the close 
 of the century companies of believers existed in all the 
 larger cities and many of the smaller towns of the em- 
 pire, and that the new religion was represented from 
 the Atlantic to the Indus, and from Germany to Egypt 
 and Arabia. Its strength lay in the cities. Early 
 Christianity is known to us mainly by the names of 
 city churches. The early post-apostolic letters, like 
 most of those of the New Testament, were addressed to 
 urban communities. In the Roman world the city was 
 
296 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 the mistress of its sui-rounding district ; and as Paul 
 wisely chose cities for the sphere of his labors, so do 
 they seem to have been generally the centres of the 
 Christian evangelism. These facts enable us to imagine 
 the activity of the disciples either in formal missionary 
 work or in incidental labors. It is a reasonable esti- 
 mate that by the close of the century they numbered a 
 hundred thousand. 
 
 307. The Christians continued to attract also per- 
 sons of very various positions in life. Undoubtedly most 
 of them still belonged to the humbler classes ; but there 
 are indications that people of wealth and occasionally 
 some of high social standing had enrolled themselves 
 among the followers of Jesus. Already Paul had 
 found it necessary to warn tlie rich against the love of 
 money (I. Tim. vi. 9, 10, 17-19) ; and, much later, the 
 church at Laodicea was reproved for trust in riches 
 (Rev. iii. 17). Toward the close of Domitian's reign, 
 his own cousin. Flavins Clemens, was executed, and 
 the latter's wife, Domitilla, banished, for " sacrilege ; " 
 and the evidence is conclusive that they were really 
 Christians (Lightfoot, Introd. to Clem, of R. ; Ramsay, 
 Ch. in the Emp. p. 259, etc.). The Ccemeterium Domi- 
 tillce was one of the earliest Roman catacombs, and by 
 its name confirms the inference, which may be drawn 
 from the vague statements of secular historians, that 
 Christianity had penetrated into the imperial family 
 itself. Such instances, no doubt, were rare ; but they 
 warn us against supposing that all of the believers 
 were of the lower orders. The fact, also, that philo- 
 sophic influences tended, as we shall see, to corrupt the 
 faith indicates that many belonged to the educated 
 class. 
 
WORSHIP AND ORGANIZATION 297 
 
 308. The worship of the Christians was still of the 
 simplest kind. The first day of the week, already 
 called " the Lord's day " (Rev. i. lU), was the one for 
 formal gatherings. Early in the second century we 
 find its observance, rather than the Jewish Sabbath, 
 noted as the distinguishing mark of the Christian 
 {Ignatius, ad Magn. 9). Justin Martyr's description 
 of the simple service — the reading of" the memoirs of 
 the apostles and the writings of the prophets," an ex- 
 hortation by the presiding officer and the celebration 
 of the Eucharist — will doubtless apply to the close 
 of the first century as well as to fifty years later. 
 Traces of the beginnings of liturgies and of Chris- 
 tian hymns may indeed be found in Clement of Rome 
 (a, d. 96) and the Teaching of the Apostles (a. d. 100) ; 
 the latter also in the Pauline epistles themselves 
 (Eph. v. 19 ; Col. iv. 16 ; I. Tim. iii. 16) ; and we proba- 
 bly should conceive of the public worship of this period 
 as in a state of transition from the spontaneous exer- 
 cise of spiritual gifts, such as is described in Paul's 
 epistle to the Corinthians, to the more formal service 
 of later times. But it was still a simple service. The 
 two rites of baptism and the Lord's supper were the 
 only obligatory ceremonies. The latter was still con- 
 nected with the agape, or love feast, and was usually 
 celebrated in the evening. The meeting places must 
 still have been commonly private houses. 
 
 309. There appears also to have been advancing, at 
 least in some quarters, a decided modification of the 
 organization of the churches. The Christian commu- 
 nity in each locality had been governed originally by 
 a body of equal presbyter-bishops after the model 
 of the synagogue. But at the end of the century a 
 
298 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 single ruler appears in the churches of Asia called by 
 pre-eminence " the bishop." Assisted by his corps 
 of presbyters, he was in charge of the administrative 
 and executive work of the church (comp. Ejip. of Ig- 
 natius, and perhaps Rev. ii. 1, 8, etc.). Since in the 
 earlier period "bishop" and "presbyter" denoted 
 the same office, the later form of arrangement must 
 have developed out of the former by the elevation of 
 one to the position of permanent president. This 
 centralizing process advanced, however, unequally in 
 different places. It was more advanced in the east 
 than in the west. At the close of the century it can 
 be affirmed positively only of the churches of Asia. 
 Yet the drift toward it must have been general. It 
 was, in fact, a natural movement in the interest of effi- 
 ciency of organization and unity of life. The church 
 in each locality constituted one body, whether it had 
 one meeting place or several. Over the whole the 
 body of presbyters had presided ; and when out of 
 their number a permanent " bishop " was chosen, he 
 still officiated as the head of the same local community. 
 There is no evidence that these communities were 
 united in an external organization, but only by their 
 common faith and mutual love and the common recog- 
 nition of apostolic authority (comp. III. John 10 ; 
 Rev. i. 11). Neither had the priestly conception been 
 attached to the governing officials ; and while the local 
 ministry of rulers and teachers and deacons existed 
 everywhere, there were also travelling missionaries 
 and evangelists, who went from place to place bearing 
 the word of the Lord (III. John 6, 7 ; comp., too, The 
 Teach, of the App. xi. - xiii.). The condition of 
 affairs was thus transitional and varied ; but a tendency 
 
SPREAD OF HERESY 299 
 
 toward increasing compactness of organization and 
 toward the visible expression of the unity of the several 
 churches in the person of a single chief ruler can be 
 plainly discerned. 
 
 310. Of the causes which led to this, one of the most 
 potent was the spread of false teaching among the 
 churches. This was certainly the motive which led 
 Ignatius (a. d. 110) to emphasize the duty of loyalty to 
 the established officers and services of the churches 
 which he addressed. The existence of this peril, 
 which had already appeared in the time of Paul and 
 Peter, is evidenced by the writings of John. The 
 fourth gospel was written confessedly with an apolo- 
 getic purpose (xx. 30, 31) ; and its prologue as well as 
 its general contents indicate that the apostles felt 
 forced to proclaim the true doctrine of the divine- 
 human personality of Jesus. His epistles contain ref- 
 erences to the same class of errorists (I. John ii. 18, 
 19, 22 ; iv. 1, 3 ; v. 6 ; II. John 7, 9-11 ; III. John 4). 
 The " Revelation " denounces other false teachers 
 (ii. 2, 6, 14, 15, 20-24), some of whom, as the Nico- 
 laitans, appear to have combined gross immorality with 
 their erroneous teaching. We know also from later 
 writers tliat toward the close of the century a certain 
 Cerinthus came from Alexandria to Asia. He com- 
 bined a type of speculative Judaism with Christianity. 
 To him Jesus was a man on whom the Spirit of the 
 Christ descended at his baptism and left him l)cfore 
 his death. His theology was controlled by the notion 
 that God himself cannot come into immediate contact 
 with matter. Hence intermediate beings were necessary 
 to account for the origin and government of the world ; 
 and the idea of a real incarnation and of redemption 
 
300 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 by sacrifice vanished in the speculations of philosophy. 
 This was one of the earliest forms of gnosticism ; 
 and it is not improbable that some of John's expres- 
 sions were directed specifically against this teaching 
 (e.g. I. John ii. 22; iv. 2 ; v. 6). On the other hand 
 sections of the Jewish Christians who survived the fall 
 of Jerusalem drifted into settled antagonism to the 
 established Gentile Christianity. In some cases their 
 Judaism was more potent than their Christianity, so 
 that the latter became little more than nominal. 
 They considered Jesus as only a man, and continued to 
 regard the Mosaic law as necessary. They were after- 
 wards known as Ebionites. Others of the Jewish 
 Christians did not relapse so far, but still kept aloof 
 from the established Gentile churches ; while still 
 others strove to introduce eclectic combinations of 
 Jewish or Christian ideas, or both of these, with 
 philosophic elements. Thus Christianity was being 
 seriously threatened in her beliefs, and the fact natu- 
 rally led her leaders to emphasize the duty of fidelity 
 to the existing organizations and to their authorized 
 teachers. 
 
 311. On the other hand they fejt with increasing 
 force the universal enmity of the outside world. In 
 fact the new religion now stood face to face with a 
 hostile society and a frowning empire. Two great 
 events had helped to produce this situation. The fall 
 of Jerusalem (a. d. 70) had finally destroyed the cradle 
 of the faith. There could no longer be a double 
 Christianity, a Judaic and a Gentile. It was Gentile 
 alone. Most of the Jewish Christians merged into the 
 Gentile churches, while those who remained outside 
 dwindled, as observed above, into dissenting and 
 
HOSTILITY OF THE EMriRE 301 
 
 heretical sects. Christianity thus became completely 
 separated from Judaism, and, as a religion without a 
 country, was forced to her world-mission. Then, fur- 
 ther, Nero's persecution had placed the ban of the 
 empire on the Christians in distinction from the Jews. 
 His policy was continued by the Flavian emperors ; 
 and, though we have no record of further persecution 
 until the reign of Domitian, there is little ground for 
 doubt that Christianity was officially regarded as 
 illegal {Ramsay^ Ch. in the Emp. ch. xii.). In the 
 later years of Domitian actual and violent persecution 
 was waged. The emperor suspected that Christianity 
 was a treasonable movement, and in both Rome and 
 the provinces many were imprisoned or slain. The 
 attitude of the government could indeed hardly have 
 been different, so soon as Christianity was distin- 
 guished from Judaism. No religion was tolerated by 
 Roman law which was not that of a subject nation ; 
 and, under the empire, societies of all kinds were 
 regarded as dangerous to the state and allowed only 
 under special licenses. Meanwhile popular hatred was 
 increasing on account of the refusal of the Christians 
 to recognize the pagan gods and to worship the 
 emperor, a refusal which seemed sure proof of atheism 
 and disloyalty. This gave plausibility also to the 
 vulgar rumors that they were immoral and inhuman. 
 Popular hatred thus supported governmental oppres- 
 sion. It was evident that Christianity had truly 
 entered on a world-conflict. The fact at once intensi- 
 fied its consciousness of its mission and the need of 
 unity for the struggle. This is illustrated by the an- 
 tithesis between Christianity and the world which 
 appears constantly in the writings of John. 
 
302 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 312. Finally, with this widened environment, Chris- 
 tianity naturally felt as never before the influence of 
 the intellectual, social, and political ideas which were 
 current in the empire. As already remarked, heresies 
 of an eclectic character began to appear. These, how- 
 ever, were but special manifestations of the larger fact 
 that the new religion was exposed to the subtle 
 operation of the forces dominant about her, and which 
 threatened to impair her independence and integrity. 
 It was pre-eminently an eclectic age ; and Christianity 
 was possessed of so much moral and intellectual vigor 
 that she easily formed a new centre about which ideas 
 gathered which were alien to her nature and detri- 
 mental to her proper progress. In the next century 
 we find her heavily weighted by notions derived from 
 pagan or Alexandrian systems, and affected by the 
 institutions of Greek or Roman society. These influ- 
 ences doubtless began to operate before the apostolic 
 age had closed. Many of the Gentile converts must 
 have failed to understand the Hebrew presuppositions 
 upon which the new religion rested. A new class of 
 problems were necessarily suggested by contact and 
 conflict with universal paganism. Current philosoph- 
 ical and social ideas had to be met and mastered. 
 Christianity was now grappling with the whole world- 
 problem, and needed to understand herself and her 
 mission in the light of the enlarged sphere in which 
 her subsequent history was to be enacted. It is this 
 situation which gives historical interest to the writings 
 of the apostle John. 
 
 313. Nothing is related in the New Testament of the 
 life of John, after the council at Jerusalem (Gal. ii. 9), 
 until we find him on the island of Patmos, an exile for 
 
JOHN AT EPHESUS 303 
 
 his faith (Rev. i. 9), and addressing the " Revelation " 
 to the seven churches of Asia. So far as it goes, how- 
 ever, this evidence agrees with the tradition that he 
 passed the last years of his life in Ephesus, was thence 
 banished to Patmos by Domitian, returned to Ephesus 
 after the emperor's death, and survived till the time of 
 Trajan (a. d. 98). The tradition was early and wide- 
 spread. It was also direct, for it is most explicitly 
 stated by Ireneeus, whose teacher, Polycarp of Smyrna, 
 was a disciple of John. The banishment to Patmos 
 was assigned by most other authorities also to the time 
 of Domitian ; and it is quite impossible to conceive of 
 the advanced condition of the Asian churches, described 
 in Revelation, as existing under an earlier emperor. 
 We cannot say definitely when John left Jerusalem. 
 It is perhaps the most probable view that he remained 
 in Palestine until the approach of the war with Rome. 
 It may be, however, that he had gone elsewhere before 
 that time. Certainly he is not mentioned in connection 
 with Paul's last visit to Jerusalem (Acts xxi. 18). 
 Since, also, no reference to him occurs in the pastoral 
 epistles nor in those of Peter, we may believe that he 
 did not settle in Asia until after a. d. 70. 
 
 314. It is not surprising that John selected Ephesus 
 for his last residence, in view of the importance of that 
 city and the influence which the Ephcsian church had 
 exercised from the beginning of its history (sect. 211). 
 There he was in the very centre of eastern Christianity. 
 That he wielded great influence is attested not only by 
 tradition, but by the authoritative tone of his writings 
 (c. g. John xxi. 24 ; I. John i. 1-3 ; ii. 24 ; iv. 26 ; v. 13 ; 
 Rev. i. 1-3) and their immediate circulation in the 
 churches. He was not, indeed, the only one in that 
 
304 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 region who had been a personal disciple of Jesus. 
 Early tradition relates that at one time Andrew was 
 there with him ; and not far off, in Phrygian Hiera- 
 polis, lived Philip, though the notices of the latter seem 
 to confuse the apostle and the evangelist of that name. 
 There was also at Ephesus a certain Aristion, who ap- 
 pears to have been an aged and venerated disciple ; 
 and around the apostle there seems to have gathered a 
 circle of prominent Christians, some of whom probably 
 had long been believers. But it was John who left the 
 chief mark on the place and time. Interesting stories 
 concerning his life and personality floated down the 
 stream of tradition. We are on sure ground, however, 
 only when we interpret his own writings. 
 
 315. The fourth gospel had for its avowed purpose 
 to prove " that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God ; and 
 that believing ye may have life in his name '■ (xx. 31, 
 R. v.). It does this by giving certain discourses of Jesus 
 not found in the synoptics, in which the Lord bore wit- 
 ness to his unique relation to God, the world, and his 
 disciples. The apostle also gives a number of historical 
 incidents, bearing on the same theme, at most of which 
 he had himself been present. We are concerned, how- 
 ever, only to note the light thrown by this work on 
 the last years of the apostolic age. Its prologue gives 
 the key to the situation. Here Jesus is presented as 
 the incarnation of the divine Logos (Word) of God. 
 This indicates that the author was confronted by spec- 
 ulative theories concerning the person of Christ which 
 he felt it necessary to refute. The term " Logos " 
 had both a Hebrew and a Greek pedigree, and would be 
 recognized both by Jew and Gentile, and especially by 
 those touched by the eclecticism of Alexandria, as a 
 
THE FOURTH GOSPEL 305 
 
 fit phrase by which to describe the founder of Chris- 
 tianity as the personal and perfect revelation of God 
 (comp. art. Logos, Hastings' Diet, of B.). The apostle, 
 however, did not subordinate his teaching to current 
 philosophic notions. In his description of the Logos 
 he only repeated ideas which had been taught in other 
 terms by earlier Christian teachers (see e. g. Col. i. 13- 
 20 ; ii. 9 ; Phil. ii. 5-11 ; Heb. i. 2-4). He united this 
 teaching into one great representation, in which, start- 
 ing with the eternal personality and divinity of the 
 Logos, he traced his revelation of God in nature, in 
 humanity, and finally in the incarnation. Of this 
 theme the gospel which followed was intended to be 
 the proof. Thus John showed that because of his real 
 divinity Jesus was the perfect revelation of God ; and 
 further, that his incarnation was the crown of that 
 manifestation of God which from the beginning of time 
 he had been making throughout the universe. It was 
 through him alone that men had ever known God 
 at all ; and in his coming in the flesh and in the re- 
 ligion which he had thus established, the final and com- 
 plete disclosure of God, truth and duty had been 
 effected. It must be evident that the publication of 
 this conception of Christ and of Christianity marks the 
 highest point possible in the claim which the new reli- 
 gion could make for itself ; that thus it was prepared, 
 as the only true religion, to demand acceptance by all 
 mankind. Whatever of truth or duty might exist else- 
 where found its synthesis in the personal revelation of 
 the divine Word himself. 
 
 316. The First Epistle of John stands in close con- 
 nection with his gospel. It is in fact intelligible only 
 to readers of the gospel, and was probably issued with 
 
 20 
 
306 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 or shortly after it. It is the application to Christian 
 life of the conception of Christianity as the perfect 
 revelation of God. It was written, the apostle says, on 
 the basis of that manifestation of Life, contained in 
 the incarnation of the Logos, which the apostles by 
 their association with Jesus were qualified to declare 
 (i. 1-4). In the revelation of God as light, i. e. as the 
 embodiment of rational and moral truth, is to be found 
 the determining factor of Christian knowledge and 
 life (i. 6 to ii. 6), whereby the believer is necessarily sep- 
 arated from the world and error (ii. 7-27). Since, also, 
 the fulness of this truth and life will be manifested at 
 the second coming of Christ, it is necessary that the 
 sons of God should show righteousness, which is the 
 evidence of sonship, by obedience and love (ii. 28 to 
 iii. 24) ; and the proof that they possess the divine 
 Spirit is their true confession of Christ, adherence to 
 revealed teaching, and the love which is the soul's re- 
 sponse to Him who is in his own nature Love (iv.). We 
 are next reminded that faith in the revealed Christ is the 
 condition of the whole spiritual life wherein the world 
 is overcome (v. 1-12) ; and the epistle closes with a 
 statement of its purpose — " that ye may know that ye 
 have eternal life, ye that believe in the name of the 
 Son of God " (v. 13, R. V. ; comp. John xx. 31) — and 
 with a summary of the certitudes, given in Christian 
 experience, whereby we may rest confidently in the 
 faith which led to them. Even this general outline of 
 the epistle shows that to John Christianity was the abso- 
 lute revelation of God and the establishment in the 
 soul of the genuine life in and with God. Thus its 
 universality appeared in its absoluteness. With Paul 
 its universality had appeared in its unlimited scope 
 
EPISTLES OF JOHN 307 
 
 and applicability ; in the Epistle to the Hebrews, in its 
 being the final goal of Hebrew revelation ; with Peter, 
 in its fulfilment of the prophetic hope of Israel ; but to 
 John, in its being the perfect revelation of the reli- 
 gious realities, of the idea of religion itself. The apostle 
 by no means resolved it into a speculative system. He 
 remained true to the historial facts. But the profound 
 significance of the facts had unfolded in accordance with 
 the historical situation ; and when Christianity found 
 itself confronted by the world, it asserted itself in the 
 writings of John to be, from its very nature and be- 
 cause of the person of its Founder, the world's only 
 real religion. 
 
 317. The Second and Third Epistles of John throw 
 interesting light on the apostle's care of the churches. 
 They are unmistakably Johannean, though the writer, 
 quite in accord with his reserve in the gospel and first 
 epistle, calls himself simply " the elder." The second 
 epistle was addressed "to the elect lady and her chil- 
 dren," by which we probably should understand a 
 church rather than an individual, because of the fol- 
 lowing reference to " certain " of her children (4, R. V.) 
 and to the directions against false doctrine (7-11). It 
 is a brief note, perhaps carried back by some of the 
 members of the church who had been at Ephesus (4), 
 urging to a life of love and warning against the same 
 class of false teachers mentioned in the first epistle 
 (comp. II. John 7 and I. John ii. 18, 22 ; iv. 2). The 
 true Christian, he says, will abide in the teaching of 
 Christ (9), and the errorist should by no means be 
 received to the church's hospitality (10). The third 
 epistle is still more illustrative of the times. It was 
 addressed to Gains, a prominent member of some 
 
308 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 church, commending certain missionaries on their way 
 to another place, of whom Demetrius, who is specially 
 commended (12), was probably one. We also learn 
 that in the church to which Gains belonged a certain 
 Diotrephes had refused to receive missionaries sent by 
 John with a previous letter, and had expelled those who 
 did receive them. Diotrephes was doubtless a presby- 
 ter, possibly a presiding bishop ; but his power was 
 apparently more personal than official (9). In both 
 letters John expressed the hope of visiting his corre- 
 spondents shortly ; and against Diotrephes he threatened 
 the summary exercise of apostolic authority. We thus 
 see the apostle's vigorous oversight of the churches, as 
 well as the factious and false teaching against which 
 he had to contend. The allusion to travelling mission, 
 aries shows also the efforts made to propagate the 
 faith. In the Teaching of the Apostles (a. d. 100) we 
 read of similar evangelists, there called apostles and 
 prophets. The enthusiasm of missions was in fact so 
 great that it was necessary to test the teaching and 
 character of these itinerants, since false emissaries 
 caught the zeal and divided the work. We can thus 
 realize the practical difficulties of the times, even as 
 John's larger works illustrate the greater problems of 
 thought and life with which he dealt. 
 
 318. Finally, in the Revelation we are introduced to 
 an entirely different kind of literature from any yet 
 brought before us. Apocalyptic books were not strange 
 in those days. Later Judaism, moved by the still 
 earlier Book of Daniel, produced a number of such 
 works. Their authors, however, generally imputed 
 them, as in the case of the Book of Enoch and the 
 Assumption of Moses, to some one of the older patri- 
 
THE APOCALYPSE 309 
 
 archs. These books excited a powerful influence on 
 the thought and hopes of the Jewish people (see Schiirer^ 
 HJP. II., III. ; Biggs, Hist, of Jew. People, sects. 6, 
 157). Their characteristic was the representation of 
 ideas or of future events by symbolic figures or actions. 
 It was a favorite form of literature and adapted to 
 times of storm and stress. The wonder is that Chris- 
 tianity did not produce more such works ; and it is a 
 testimony to the truly prophetic character of John that 
 he did not, like the Jewish writers, attach his apocalypse 
 to the name of an older prophet, but issued it in his 
 own name. 
 
 319. This book describes itself as Christ's revela- 
 tion of the future communicated symbolically to John 
 (i. 1-3). It is addressed to seven churches of Asia 
 (i. 4-6), and its general subject is the coming of 
 Christ to judgment on the enemies of God and for the 
 salvation of his people. It consists of seven visions or 
 series of visions, which ' represent as many aspects of 
 the triumph of the enthroned Lord. We are again 
 concerned only to note its bearing on the mind and 
 situation of the church. The opening messages to the 
 churches furnish some interesting facts. Five of these 
 churches are here mentioned for the first time ; yet 
 evidently they had all been long established. That of 
 Ephesus still appears as the foremost in the whole 
 province ; and the references to various types of heresy 
 (ii. 6, 14, 15, 20-24), to persecution (ii. 10, 13 ; iii. 10), 
 to the enmity of the Jews (ii. 9 ; iii. 9), together with 
 the careful discrimination of the spiritual conditions 
 of the several communities, give a graphic picture of 
 the situation which existed in Asia. Taking the book 
 as a whole, it is evident that the return of Christ was 
 
310 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 still the church's hope. It was not conceived, however, 
 as an isolated event. It was, in fact, inclusive of a 
 large and varied series of events which would lead up 
 to it. All these were regarded as the appointed un- 
 folding of God's decree, and over the whole process the 
 enthroned Redeemer-King is himself presiding. That 
 process would consist in Christ's progressive triumph, 
 partly by proclamation of the gospel and partly by 
 judgment on a wicked world. The latter aspect is 
 very prominent, as was natural in a time of the church's 
 feebleness and distress. The future was expected also 
 to be a period of conflict. The power of evil would be 
 arrayed against the church, and deadly apostasy would 
 arise within her. Yet the redeemed people of God 
 would be safe ; their prayers for succor would be an- 
 swered ; their final salvation was secure. And this 
 not only for them as individuals. The book contem- 
 plates the conflicts, perils, and final establishment of 
 the church as a body. The seven churches of Asia 
 were representative of the church universal, and the 
 new Jerusalem was the visible embodiment of her 
 ideal state. All this is depicted by means of sym- 
 bols which denote principles and ideas rather than 
 special individuals. 
 
 320. Thus in Revelation, as in John's gospel and 
 first epistle, the consciousness of a world-conflict, a 
 world-process, and a world-triumph is manifest. The 
 return of Jesus is contemplated in relation to the 
 enlarged environment in which Christianity stood. 
 Revelation testifies to the persistence of the hope with 
 which Christianity had begun, but also to the fact 
 that into that hope had entered the fuller conception 
 of Clirist and his salvation which the apostles had 
 
CLOSE OF THE APOSTOLIC AGE 311 
 
 taught, and the broadened vision of the purpose of God 
 which the history had made clear. Yet it was still 
 the same hope, " Behold, he cometh " (Rev. i. 7) ; and 
 the prayer was still the same, " Come, Lord Jesus " 
 (Rev. xxii. 20). 
 
 321. With the Johannean literature the apostolic 
 age closed. It is true, as already observed, that the 
 last part of the century was transitional ; and we have 
 at least one production, nearly contemporaneous with 
 Revelation, which really belongs to the post-apostolic 
 period. This is the epistle of Clement, written in 
 the name of the church at Rome to that at Corinth 
 (a. d. 96). The pseudo-epistle of Barnabas and the 
 Teaching of the Apostles have also been dated by some 
 scholars, but with less probability, in the first century. 
 But the student of early Christian literature must 
 recognize that these works are on a lower level, that 
 their authors were sensible of dependence on those of 
 the apostolic age, and that with them we pass out of the 
 originative period of Christianity. In the writings of 
 John the foundation of the new religion was completed. 
 It would be erroneous, indeed, to imagine that all or 
 even most of the converts fully appropriated the teach- 
 ings of the founders of the church. The literary 
 remains of the next generation show that the church 
 failed to grasp many of the doctrines taught in the 
 former age ; and the progress of subsequent Christi- 
 anity, viewed internally, often reveals a slow and 
 inadequate apprehension of the apostolic faith. This, 
 however, only illustrates the unique and fundamental 
 character of the apostolic instruction itself. On the other 
 hand, the historian must perceive that the literature of 
 
312 PROGRESS OF CHRISTIANITY 
 
 the apostolic period combines with the historical move- 
 ment, in which the original faith in Jesus as Messiah 
 unfolded its content and expanded the area of its influ- 
 ence, to present an intellectual and moral unity which 
 was plainly the work of one Spirit, completing har- 
 moniously the presentation to men of the mission and 
 message of Jesus, and thus providing a foundation on 
 which subsequent Christianity was intended to build. 
 It is the fact of this unity which gives its supreme 
 importance to the history of the apostolic age, for it 
 certifies that apostolic Christianity was the normal and 
 authoritative exposition of the religion of Jesus. 
 
APPENDIX 
 
APPENDIX 
 
 CHRONOLOGY OF THE APOSTOLIC AGE 
 
 322. The chronology of the apostolic age must be ob- 
 tained chiefly from the book of Acts. While, however, that 
 book makes clear the relative chronology of most of its 
 events, there are but few of them whose absolute dates can 
 be determined. We must obtain the fixed points which 
 are ascertainable, compute other events from them, and 
 always remember that the results in most cases are only 
 approximate or probable. 
 
 323. The most certain date is that of the death of 
 Herod Agrippa I. (Acts xii). Josephus {B. J., II. xi. 6; 
 Antiq., xviii. iv. 6, vi. 10, vii. 2 ; xix. vi. 1, viii. 2) shows 
 that Agrippa Avas appointed king of all Palestine on the 
 accession of Claudius to the empire (Jan. a.d. 41), and 
 that he reigned over this territory three years. The 
 alleged existence of coins of his ninth year may be ex- 
 plained by the fact that he was given, with the title of 
 king, the tetrarchy of Herod Philip by Caligula soon 
 after the death of Tiberius (Mar. a.d. 37), and doubtless 
 began to reckon the second year of his reign with Nisan 
 of that year (Comp. Turner, Hast. D. of B. vol. I. p. 410). 
 His death therefore may be assigned confidently to a.d. 
 44 and (Acts xii. 3) subsequent to the passover. 
 
 324. Again, the death of Christ, and hence the day of 
 Pentecost on which Christianity was inaugurated, occurred 
 in A.D. 29 or 30. The choice certainly lies between these 
 two years (Rhees, L. J., sect. 50). For reasons which can- 
 not be given here we accept a.d. 30; but, since Christ's 
 
316 APPENDIX 
 
 ministry may have been two and a quarter years in length, 
 or may have begun in a.d. 26, the year 29 for his death 
 cannot be positively excluded. 
 
 325. The date of the accession of Festus as procurator 
 of Judea (Acts xxv. 1) is less certain. This event has 
 commonly been assigned to a.d. 60 (see Scfmrer, HJP. 
 Div. I., II. p. 182 note). Felix had been appointed pro- 
 curator by Claudius on the deposition of Cumanus in a.d. 
 52 or 53 and was reappointed by Nero (Jos. B. J. II. xiii. 
 2). Josephus (B. J. II. xii. 8-xiv. 1) relates nearly all 
 the events in which Felix was concerned as if they 
 occurred under ISTero, whose reign began Oct. 13, a.d. 54. 
 Hence Felix must have been in office some years after 
 A.D. 54. Since, moreover, Paul (Acts xxiv. 10, 27) refers 
 to Felix as having been many years in office, the apostle's 
 arrest can hardly have been before a.d. 58, which puts 
 the accession of Festus, two years after, in a.d. 60. It 
 cannot well be placed later, since Albinus, the successor 
 of Festus, was already procurator in a.d. 62 {Jos. B. J. 
 VI. V. 3), and the events recorded under Festus require 
 more than a year. The probabilities therefore point to 
 A.D. 60 as that of Festus' accession to office. 
 
 326. Every point of this calculation is indeed open to 
 dispute, and the tendency of many recent scholars has 
 been wholly to deny its result. Thus it is observed that 
 Tacitus (Ann. xii. 54) states that Felix had previously 
 ruled in Samaria while Cumanus ruled in Galilee, and 
 though he does not say which of the two at that time 
 ruled in Judea, his statement has been thought to prove 
 that the residence of Felix in Palestine began so much 
 earlier than has been commonly assumed that Paul's 
 language might have been spoken several years before 
 A.D. 58. But against this must be placed the narrative of 
 Josephus, which, though consistent with the supposition 
 that Felix had held a subordinate position in Samaria, 
 knows nothing of a contemporaneous procuratorship of 
 the two men, and assigns, as already noted, most of the 
 
APPENDIX 317 
 
 events under Felix to the reign of iSTero. The Jewish 
 historian on this point would seem more trustworthy 
 than the Koman. 
 
 327. Again, the Chronicon of Eusebius dates the ap- 
 pointment of Felix in the 10th or 11th year of Claudius 
 (= A.D. 50-51, or 51-52) and the accession of Festus in the 
 second year of Nero (= a.d. 55-56). Harnack (Chrotiol. 
 p. 235) and others think that the Chronicon was based 
 on earlier chronologists and is fairly trustworthy. But 
 these dates compel the assignment of events related in the 
 former part of Acts to years which are certainly too early 
 (see sects. 328, 334 ; also Turner, Hastings' D. of B. pp. 
 418, 419). The Eusebian date has indeed been supported 
 by the statement of Josephus (Antiq., xx. viii. 9) that 
 when Felix, after his recall to Rome, was accused by 
 the Jews, he was acquitted through the influence of his 
 brother Pallas, " who was at that time had in the greatest 
 honor by (ISTero)." Now Pallas was dismissed from office 
 in Feb. a.d. 55. Hence it has been inferred that Felix was 
 recalled soon after Nero's accession in a.d. 54. Yet this 
 argument is vitiated by the difficulty of believing that, 
 if Felix was recalled after Nero's accession in Oct. a.d. 
 54, he could have reached Rome and been acquitted before 
 Feb. A.D. 55, and also by the fact that, while Pallas was 
 dismissed from office in a.d. 55, he lived and retained 
 great influence till a.d. 62. The language of Josephus, 
 therefore, strong as it is, cannot be used to uphold the 
 Eusebian date; nor would the recall of Felix in 54 be 
 consistent with the assignment of the accession of Festus 
 to 55-56. Josephus, moreover, explicitly states (B. J. 
 ii. xiii. 2), that Nero reappointed Felix. Ramsay, on 
 the other hand (St. Paul the Trav. p. 259), fixes the 
 year of Paul's arrest as a.d. 57, and that of the acces- 
 sion of Festus as a.d. 59, by computing that the pass- 
 over preceding the arrest (Acts xx. 6) fell on a Thursday, 
 which it is said to have done in a.d. 57. This latter 
 fact, however, is itself open to question, and Ramsay's 
 
318 APPENDIX 
 
 view further supposes that Luke's statement " we sailed 
 away from Philippi after the days of unleavened bread " 
 must be understood to mean on the very next day after. 
 Finally, C. H. Turner (Hast. D. of B. Chronology of the 
 N. T.) with much plausibility assigns the arrest of 
 Paul to A.D. 56, and tlie accession of Festus to 58. The 
 main difficulty with this scheme is that, while following 
 Josephus rather than Eusebius, it fails to assign as much 
 time as the Jewish historian would seem to require us to 
 do to the administration of Felix under Nero. While, 
 therefore, certainty is not possible, the year 60 still 
 remains the most probable one for the accession of 
 Festus. 
 
 328. Besides these principal dates, others have been 
 sought with more or less success. The dominion of Are- 
 tas, king of the Nabataeans, over Damascus at the time 
 of Paul's escape (II. Cor. xi. 32) cannot, from what we 
 know of Damascus coins, and of the relation of Aretas to 
 the Komans, have begun before a. d. 34, and probably 
 not before a. d. 37 (see Turner, Hast. D. of B. Chron- 
 ology). Again, the edict of Claudius on account of which 
 Aquila and Priscilla had " lately " come from Rome to 
 Corinth when Paul reached the latter city (Acts xviii. 2) 
 is assigned by Orosius, a Christian historian of the fifth 
 century, to the ninth year of Claudius (= a. d. 49). Oro- 
 sius indeed was mistaken in citing Josephus for this date, 
 and Earn say (St. Paul the Trav. pp. 69, 254) may be right 
 in the conjecture that the dates in Orosius are one year 
 too early ; but his testimony accords better with the com- 
 mon than with the Eusebian chronology. Moreover we 
 should not press Luke's expression '^ lately come from 
 Italy " too far. In like manner the procuratorship of 
 Gallio in Achaia could hardly have been earlier than 
 A. D. 49, the year when his brother Seneca was recalled 
 from exile, and may have been several years later. 
 
 329. The chronology of Acts is, then, to be constructed 
 on the basis of these data. If the accession of Festus 
 
APPENDIX 319 
 
 was in a. d. 60, it was in the autumn of that year that 
 Paul sailed from Caesarea to Rome (Acts xxv. 1, 13; 
 xxvii. 12). He arrived in the capital in the spring of 
 61 (Acts xxviii. 11, 12). The two years of his residence 
 in Eome (Acts xxviii. 30) make the narrative of Acts 
 close in a. d. 63. On the other hand, counting back 
 from the accession of Festus, Paul's arrest, two years be- 
 fore (Acts xxiv. 27), was in 58. The preceding winter 
 (a. d. 57, 58) he liad spent in Greece (Acts xx. 3), after 
 having, during the autumn of 57, travelled through Mace- 
 donia (Acts XX. 2). Before that he had spent three 
 years in Ephesus (Acts xx. 31). This brings us to the 
 summer or spring of A. d. 51 as the time of his depart- 
 ure from Syrian Antioch on what is usually called his 
 third journey (Acts xviii. 23). That journey began after 
 he had spent "some time" in Antioch, probably the 
 winter, at the close of his second journey. On the latter 
 he had passed eighteen months in Corinth (Acts xviii. 11), 
 after having travelled through and labored in Galatia, 
 Macedonia, Berea, and Athens. It is safe to assign 
 therefore to the second journey two years and a half, 
 which, counting back from the autumn of A. d. 53, must 
 have begun in the spring of 51. The second journey be- 
 gan not long after the council at Jerusalem, which thus 
 must be dated in a. d. 50, or possibly 51. The first jour- 
 ney of Barnabas and Paul (Acts xiii., xiv.) can only be 
 assigned roughly to the period between a. d. 44 and 50. 
 Neither can we say how long a time was consumed by it. 
 We may assume for it the years 47, 48. 
 
 330. The date of Paul's conversion must be obtained 
 from his statement in Gal. ii. 1: "Then fourteen years 
 after I went xip again to Jerusalem with Barnabas." 
 Assuming this to have been the visit to the Council, the 
 question arises, from what are the " fourteen years " to be 
 counted ? The most natural interpretation is to count 
 them from the visit to Jerusalem mentioned in i. 18, 
 which is there said to have been three years after his 
 
320 APPENDIX 
 
 conversion. Counting back from A. d. 50, and reckoning 
 the two periods of fourteen and three years inclusively as 
 was the common Jewish method, we have a. d. 37 for the 
 first visit to Jerusalem, and a. d. 35 for the conversion. 
 If the apostle reckoned exclusively, the dates would be 
 36 and 33 respectively. 
 
 331. For the events subsequent to the close of Acts we 
 are dependent on tradition and the dates assigned to the 
 later books of the New Testament. Paul's death under 
 Nero is placed by Eusebius in his Chroniconin a.d. 67, or, 
 according to Jerome (De vir. ill. 5), in 68. If the Euse- 
 bian dating of the accession of Festus be correct, Paul 
 reached Rome in 56 or 57, Acts closed with 58 or 59, and a 
 period of eight or nine years elapsed between the apostle's 
 release from the first imprisonment and his death. If the 
 common chronology be followed, he was released in 63, 
 and the remaining period was but four or five years. 
 Many insist, however (see Marnack, Chronol. p. 240, 
 Turner, Hast. D. of B. Chronology'), that the apostle must 
 leave perished in the first outbreak, or at least in the first 
 year, of Nero's persecution, which took place according to 
 Tacitus in 64. It is noted that Eusebius places the perse- 
 cution as well as the deaths of Peter and Paul in the same 
 year, thus assigning the latter to the year of the persecu- 
 tion though giving the wrong date. It is further argued 
 that the year 67 was fixed upon by the tradition which 
 Eusebius followed because of the legend that Peter was 
 twenty-five years in Rome, which years were calculated 
 in accordance with another tradition that the apostles 
 remained in Jerusalem for twelve years after Christ's 
 death. There is certainly force in these considerations. 
 But it may also be said that Eusebius, who knew nothing 
 of Tacitus, may have dated the persecution wrongly, 
 because, knowing on other grounds that the apostles lived 
 till near the close of Nero's reign, he fixed it to suit the 
 time of their death, having in mind, perhaps, not its first 
 outbreak, but its chief victims. Eusebius, though bringing 
 
APPENDIX 321 
 
 Peter to Rome during the time of Claudius, indicates no 
 acquaintance with the legend of the apostle's twenty-five- 
 year residence there ; and in his history (II. 22, 25) repre- 
 sents the martyrdom of the apostles as the climax of 
 Nero's increasing wickedness. The statement of the 
 Chronicon, therefore, does not compel the belief that the 
 apostles died in the first year of the persecution ; and as 
 reasons exist for believing that Peter lived till later, it 
 may well be that Paul did also, in accordance with the 
 tradition that the two apostles perished about the same 
 time. While certainty is again unattainable, we may accept 
 the year 67 as the approximate date of Paul's death. 
 
 332. Peter's death should be assigned to about the same 
 time as Paul's, though probably a little later. Harnack 
 (Chron. p. 243, note 1) dates it, like Paul's, in 64 on the 
 ground (1) that Caius (a. d. 180-235) states that Peter 
 died on the Vatican Hill, the locality which, according to 
 Tacitus, witnessed the sufferings of the first martyrs in 
 Nero's gardens ; (2) that Nero's persecution did not last 
 long ; and (3) that the Jloman lists of bishops, counting 
 back from the death of Anicetus (a. d. 166) carries us 
 back to 64 as the first year of Linus, Peter's successor. 
 These arguments, however, are not convincing. The first 
 is obviously insufficient. It is probable that persecution 
 did continue more or less throughout Nero's reign (see sect. 
 288). The Roman lists of bishops are untrustworthy. 
 In fact, Ramsay (Ch. in Emp. p. 283) finds a Roman 
 tradition which, he thinks, justifies the supposition that 
 Peter may have lived till even after Nero's death. Finally, 
 the first epistle of Peter implies the existence of such a 
 condition of things in the relation of the Christians to the 
 government as can only be assigned to the years follow- 
 ing the outbreak of Nero's persecution. 
 
 333. It was the steadfast tradition of the early Church, 
 represented by Irenseus {adv. hcer. II. 22, 5), that the 
 apostle John lived till the times of Trajan. His death 
 should be assigned, therefore, to a. d. 98 -[-. 
 
322 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 334. These results may be tabulated as follows, 
 schemes are presented for comparison. 
 
 Other 
 
 Crucifixion 
 
 Paul's couversion 
 
 Paul's first visit to Jerusalem 
 Death of Herod Agrippa . . 
 Paul's second visit to Jerusalem 
 First miss, journey .... 
 Jerusalem Council .... 
 Second miss, journey . . . 
 Third miss, journey .... 
 
 Paul's arrest 
 
 Accession of Festus .... 
 Paul's arrival in Rome . . . 
 
 Close of Acts 
 
 Paul's death 
 
 Peter's death 
 
 John's death 
 
 
 Lightfoot 
 
 Harnack 
 
 Turner 
 
 Ramsay 
 
 30 
 
 [30] 
 
 29 or 30 
 
 29 
 
 30 
 
 35 
 
 34 
 
 30 
 
 35,36 
 
 33 
 
 37 
 
 37 
 
 33 
 
 38 
 
 35,36 
 
 44 
 
 44 
 
 44 
 
 44 
 
 44 
 
 44 or 45 
 
 45 
 
 [44] 
 
 46 
 
 46 
 
 47, 48 ? 
 
 48 
 
 45 
 
 47 
 
 47-19 
 
 50 
 
 51 
 
 47 
 
 49 
 
 50 
 
 51-53 
 
 51-54 
 
 47-50 
 
 49-52 
 
 50-53 
 
 54-58 
 
 54-58 
 
 50-54 
 
 52-56 
 
 53-57 
 
 58 
 
 58 
 
 54 
 
 56 
 
 57 
 
 GO 
 
 CO 
 
 56 
 
 58 
 
 59 
 
 CI 
 
 61 
 
 57 
 
 59 
 
 60 
 
 63 
 
 C3 
 
 59 
 
 61 
 
 62 
 
 67 (GS) 
 
 68? 
 
 (4 
 
 64-65 
 
 65 
 
 67 (68) 
 
 
 64 
 
 64-65 
 
 80? 
 
 98 + 
 
 
 
 
 
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 Thk student is referred to the admirable " List of 
 Books " appended by Prof. J. H, Thayer to his little volume 
 entitled Books and their Use (Houghton, Mifflin and Co., 
 1893) ; also to Prof. M. E. Vincent's Students N. T. 
 Handbook (Chas. Scribner's Sons, 1893). The following 
 bibliography is intended to include only works specially 
 representative of various schools of investigation. 
 
 GENERAL WORKS ON THE APOSTOLIC AGE 
 
 A. Neander's History of the Planting and Training of the Chris- 
 tian Church (4th ed. 1847) really begau the modern hterature on 
 tills subject, and is still of the highest value. F. C. Baur's 
 Church History of the First Three Centuries (Eng. trans- 1878, 9) 
 represents in most complete form the reconstruction of the his- 
 tory of Primitive Christianity by the Tubingen School. A rep- 
 resentative reply to the latter, and still perhaps the best hook in 
 this department, is G. V. Lechler's The apostolic and post apostolic 
 Times (Eng. trans. 1886). A. Ritschl's Die Entstehung der altka- 
 tholischen Kirche ('2d ed. 1857) broke with the Tubingen scheme, 
 represented the Christianity of the second century as the result 
 of the union of degenerate Paulinism with Hellenism, and 
 started anew and fruitful line of investigation. Philip SchafE's 
 History of the Apostolic Church (1853) is readable, popular, and 
 still valuable; while O. Pfleiderer's Das Urchristenthum (1887) 
 repi'esents a later modification of the Tubingen views, especially 
 emphasizing the influence of Alexandrian philosophy on early 
 Christianity. C. Von "Weizacker's The Apostolic Age of the 
 Christian Church (Eng. trans. 1894, 5) is an able work, written in 
 the spirit of free, independent criticism ; while J. I. Ddllinger's 
 The First Age of the Church (1807) is from the Roman Catholic 
 point of view. W. M. Ramsay's The Church in the Roman Em- 
 
324 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 pire hefore A.D. 170 (1893) is a work of high value, which none 
 should fail to study. O. J. Thatcher's Sketch of the History of 
 the Apostolic Age (1893) is a brief outline, somewhat influenced 
 by the Ritschlian conception of the history. Most recent of all 
 are A. C. McGiffert's The Apostolic Age (1898) and Jas. Vernon 
 Bartlet's work with the same title (1899). 
 
 LIVES OF THE APOSTLES 
 
 (1) Paul. Conybeare and Howson's The Life and Epistles 
 ■ of St. Paul (revised ed. 1875) ; Thos. Lewin's work with the 
 
 same title (4th ed. 1878) ; F. W. Farrar's The Life and Work 
 of St. Paul (1879) ; and W. M. Ramsay's St. Paul the Traveller 
 and the Roman Citizen (1896) are the most important British 
 productions on this subject. F. C. Baur's Paul the Apostle of 
 Jesus Christ (Eng. trans. 1873-5) represents the Tubingen school. 
 A. Sabatier's The Apostle Paul (Eng. trans. 1891) is an interest- 
 ing and able work, freely critical but very suggestive. G. A. 
 Gilbert's Hie Student's Life of Paid (1899) is brief, but to be 
 commended to younger students. Three works, connected with 
 phases of the apostle's life, should be particularly mentioned; 
 namely, James Smith's Voyage and Shipwreck of St. Paul (4th 
 ed. 1880), George Matheson's Spiritual Development of St. Paul 
 (1891), and R. Steinmetz's Die Zweite romische Gefangenshaft 
 des Apostels Paulus (1897). 
 
 (2) Peter. S. G. Green's The Apostle Peter, his Life and 
 Letters (1873); Henriot's Saijit Pierre (1891); to which maybe 
 added E. Scharfe's Die Petrinische Stromung der Neutestamentlichen 
 Literatur (1893). 
 
 (3) John. J. M. Macdonald's Life and Writings of St. John 
 (1877). 
 
 Ill 
 
 WORKS BEARING ON THE RELATION OF CHRISTIANITY TO 
 JUDAISM AND PAGANISM 
 
 E. Schiirer's History of the Jewish People in the Time of Jesus 
 Christ (Eng. trans. 5 vols. 1896) is invaluable. Briefer is O. 
 Holtzmann's Neutestamentliche Zeitgeschichte (1895). A. Haus- 
 
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 325 
 
 rath's A History of the New Testament Times (Eng. trans. 4 vols. 
 1895) is less to be commended. J. S. Riggs' A History of the 
 Jewish People during the Maccahcean and Roman Periods is the 
 best succinct account of the external environment of Jewish 
 Christianity. F. Weber's System der altsynayogulen Paldsli- 
 nisohen Theologie (1880); J. Drummond's The Jewish Messiah 
 (1877); V. H. Stanton's The Jewish and Christian Messiah (1886); 
 and J. B. Lightfoot's Dissertations on the Apostolic Age (1892) 
 illustrate the subject from important points of view. A popular 
 work is C. Geike's New Testament Hours; The Apostles, their Lices 
 and Letters (1895). 
 
 For the pagan environment of apostolic Christianity reference 
 should be made to Th. Keini's Rom und das Christenthum (1881); 
 Th. Mommsen's The Provinces of the Roman Empire (Eng. trans. 
 1887) ; L. Friedliiuder's DarsteUungen aus der Sittengeschichte 
 Roms in der Zeit von August bis zum Ausgang der Antonine (6th 
 ed. 1888-90) ; J. Marquart's Romische Staatsverivaltung ; Zte 
 Band, Das Sacralwesen (1885) ; C. F. Arnold's Die Neronische 
 Christenveifolgung (1888); P. AUard's Histoire des Persecutions 
 pendant les deux premiers siecles (1885) ; A. Aube's Histoire 
 des Persecutions de VEglise jusqu'a la fin des Antonins (1875) ; 
 Ramsay's Church in the Empire, already mentioned ; E. Hicks' 
 Traces of Greek Philosophy and Roman Law in the N. T. (1896) ; 
 S. R. Forbes' The Footsteps of St. Paid in Rome (1889) ; H. 
 Cox's The First Century of Christianity (1886) ; Northcote and 
 Brownlow's Roma Sotterranea, Y^Tp. 1-110 (1879); W. M. Ram- 
 say's Historical Geography of Asia Minor (1890). 
 
 IV 
 
 CHRISTIAN INSTITUTIONS 
 
 W. Cave's Primitive Christianity (1840) ; E. Hatch's Tlie Or- 
 ganization of the Early Christia7i Churches (Bampton Lectt. for 
 1880); J. B. Lightfoot's Essay on the Christian Ministry (Com. 
 on Philippians) ; J. Reville's Les Origines de Vepiscopat (1894) ; 
 Jas. Cunningham's The Growth of the Church in its Organization 
 and Institutions (Croal Lectt. for 1886) ; F. J. A. Hort's The 
 Christian Ecclesia (1897) ; A. V. G. Allen's Christian Institutions, 
 chaps, ii. and iii. (1897). 
 
526 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 CHRONOLOGY OF THE APOSTOLIC AGE 
 
 Wieseler's Chronologie der Apostolischen Zeitalters (1848) ; J. B. 
 Lightfoot's Chronology of St. PauVs Life and Epistles (Biblical 
 Essays) ; Schiirer's Hist, of Jew People, etc. I. ii. pp. 163, 182 ; 
 A. Harnack's Die Chronologie der Altchristlichen Literatur his 
 Eusehius ; Erster Band (1897), especially the sections on Chro- 
 nologie des Paulus (p. 233) and Das Todesjahr des Petrus und 
 Paulus (p. 240); C. H. Turner's article on The Chronology of the 
 N. T. in Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible; W. M. Ramsay's 
 St. Paid the Trav. pp. 45, 49, 51, 58, 128, 174, 189, 226, 234, 254, 
 258, 264, 265, 275, 286, 289, 313, 351, 363 ; Th. Zahn's Einlei- 
 tung in das N. T., vol. ii. p. 626 (1899); Blass' Acta Apostolorum, 
 pp. 21-24 (1895); B. W. Bacon in The Expositor, 1898 p. 123, 
 1899, p. 351 ; G. H. Gilbert's StudenVs Life of Paul, Append, ii. 
 (1899). 
 
 VI 
 
 INTRODUCTIONS TO THE NEW TESTAMENT 
 
 Those of G. Salmon (1889), B. Weiss (Eng. trans. 1888), A. 
 JUlicher (1894), H. J. Holtzmaun (1885), Th. Zahu (1897-9), 
 and F. Godet (Eng. trans. 1894, 1899) are the representative 
 ones. To them may be added P. Gloag's Introductions to the 
 Pauline Epp. (1874), to the Catholic Epp. (1887), and to the 
 Johannine Writings (1891); also J. R. Lumby's Popular Intro- 
 duction to the N. T. (1883). 
 
 vn 
 
 THE THEOLOGY OP THE APOSTLES 
 
 A. Neander's Planting and Training, etc. (see above) ; A. 
 Immer's Theologie des Af, T. (1877) ; O. Pfleiderer's Paulinisrn 
 (Eng. trans. 1877) ; C. F. Schmid's Biblical Theology of the 
 N. T. (Eng. trans. 1870) ; B. Weiss' Biblical Theology of the 
 N. T. (Eng. trans. 1882) ; W. Beyschlag's N. T. Theology (Eng. 
 
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 327 
 
 trans. 1895); W. Alexander's System of Bib. Theology (1888); 
 G. B. Stevens' Pauline (1894), Johannine (1895), and N. T. The- 
 ology (1899); W. Milligan's Lectures on the Apocalypse (1892); 
 G. Milligan's Theology of the Ep. to the Hebrews (1899) ; J. J. 
 Lias' Doctrinal System of St. John (1875) ; C. A. Briggs' Messiah 
 of the Apostles (1895). 
 
 vin 
 
 SPECIAL TREATISES 
 
 The following are mentioned, out of the vast mass of similar 
 literature, because bearing on a few points of special interest. 
 
 F. C. Baur's Die Christuspartei in der Korinthischen Gemeinde 
 (Tub. Zeitschr. f. Theol. 1831. Heft iv.), with which compare 
 K. Wieseler's Zur Geschichte der Neiitestament lichen Schrift und 
 der Urchristenthum (1880); B. B. Warfield's articles on the Caii- 
 onicity and Genuineness of Second Peter (Presbyterian Review, 
 Jan. 1882 and Apr. 18S:3) ; W. K. Ilobart's The Medical Language 
 of St. Luke (1882); J. B. Lightfoot's Dissertations on the Ap. Age 
 (1892); F. J. A. Hort's Judaistic Christianity (1894); W. R. 
 Sorley's Jewish Christians and Judaism (1881); G. P. Fisher's 
 Supernatural Origin of Christianity (.3d ed. 1870) ; R. J. Knowl- 
 ing's The Witness of the Epistles (1892). 
 
 The following works, pertaining to particular books of the 
 New Testament, are also worthy of special notice. The com- 
 mentaries on The Epistle of .Tames by J. B. Mayor and W. 
 Beysclilag; on Romans by Sanday and Headlam, to wliich should 
 be added the Analysis of the Ep. to the Rom. by the late Canon 
 Liddon ; ou the Pastoral Epistles by B. Weiss, to which add the 
 Appendix on the Epp. to Tim. and Titus, by Geo. G. Findlay, in 
 the Eng. trans, of Sabatier's St. Paul. Recent attempts to an- 
 alyze into its sources the Book of Acts have been made by F. 
 Spitta (Die Apostelgeschichte, 1891), C. Clemen (Chronologie der 
 paid. Briefe, 1893), .Toh. Jungst {Die Qnelen der Apostelg. 1895), 
 but they do not commend themselves either by their processes or 
 their results. Hackett's Commentary on Acts (revised by A. Hovey, 
 1882) is still standard, though it does not include the most 
 recnnt archaeological inv(!stigations. These latter are included 
 in the small but excellent People's Com. on A cts, by E. W. Rice 
 (1896). Blass' Acta Apostolorum (1895) is very interesting from 
 
328 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 the critical and philological points of view. The " Revelation " 
 has also of lale years received much attention. The history of 
 attempts to analyze it into sources may be read in an article by 
 Geo. A. Barton in the Amer. Journ. of Theology (Oct. 1S9S) 
 entitled The Apoc. and recent criticism. See also on the same 
 subject Briggs' Messiah of the Apostles, chh. ix-xv. But for the 
 best treatment of the Apocalypse, we refer to W. Milligan's 
 Revelation of St. John (Baird Lectt. for 1885), and the same 
 author's Discussions on the Apocalypse (1893). 
 
INDEXES 
 
INDEX OF NAMES AND SUBJECTS 
 
 [References are to pages. Names of modern authors are in italics.] 
 
 Acts, Book of, authorship, 5; " we " 
 sections, 5; historical value, 6, 7; 
 date, 5, 272; method of composi- 
 tion, 7, 59, 382, 186; text, 8; har- 
 mony with epistles, 24, 25, 41,63, 88, 
 308; emphasis on Paul's work, 178. 
 
 Agabus, 107, 231. 
 
 Agrippa II., 214. 
 
 Ananias (and Sapphira) 38, 40. 
 
 Ananias of Damascus, 76. 
 
 Antioch, Pisidian, 114, 120. 
 
 Antioch, Syrian, 102. 
 
 Antioch, Christianity in Syrian, 65, 
 101, 111, 121, 140,"l54, 155, 203.' 
 
 Appearances of Christ after resurrec- 
 tion, 12, 15. 
 
 Apocryphal Acts, 4. 
 
 Apocryphal Gospels, 4, 12, 292. 
 
 Apollo's, 205, 215. 
 
 Apostles: original appointment, 9; 
 witnesses to resurrection, 11, 36; 
 rulers of the Church, 24, 25, 41, 63, 
 88, 308; qualifications and func- 
 tions, 24, 35; early teaching, 42- 
 46; delocalization of the apostolate, 
 90, 172; apostolic teaching the test 
 of prophecy, 106; authority, 285, 
 292, 312. 
 
 Aquila (and Priscilla), 194, 195, 203, 
 205. 
 
 Aristarchus, 235, 239. 
 
 Aristion, 304. 
 
 Ascension, The, 19. 
 
 Asiarchs, 207, 252. 
 
 Assumption of Moses, 308. 
 
 Athens, Paul at, 191. 
 
 Baptism, instituted by Christ, 16; 
 formula used, 16, 36; administra- 
 tion of, 35. 
 
 Barnabas, 87, 102, 104, 108, 111-122, 
 141, 155, 177, 179, 266, 311. 
 
 Bartlet, 141, 255. 
 
 Berea, Christianity in, 190. 
 
 Beyschlag, 121 . 
 
 " Bishops," 250, 258, 298. 
 
 Bithynia, Christianity in, 185. 
 
 Brethren of the Lord, 21, 130, 132, 177. 
 
 Cerinthus, 299. 
 
 "Christians," origin of the term, 104. 
 
 Chronology of apostolic age, 315-322. 
 
 "Church;" see Ecclesia. 
 
 Cilicia, Christianity in, 90, 179. 
 
 Circumcision, question of, 89, 97, 98, 
 
 104, 109, 130, 139. 
 Claudius, decree of, 194, 195, 226, 318. 
 Clemens, Flavius, 296. 
 Clement of Philippi, 187. 
 Clement of Rome, Epistle of, 171, 254, 
 
 265, 276, 297, 311. 
 (ylementine Homilies, 133. 
 Colosse, 241. 
 Colossians, Epistle to the, 172, 241- 
 
 245. 
 Colossian errorists, 242. 
 Community of goods, 37. 
 Conybeare and IJowson, 69, 260. 
 Corinth, 194; Christianity in, 194- 
 
 197. 
 Corinthians, First Epistle to the; date 
 
 and occasion, 213; contents, 215- 
 
 221. 
 
332 
 
 INDEX OF NAMES AND SUBJECTS 
 
 Corinthians, Second Epistle to the, 
 
 224, 225. 
 Cornelius, 96. 
 Council at Jerusalem, 143, 145, 146- 
 
 149,319. 
 Crete, Christianity in, 256. 
 Curtius, 191. 
 Cyprus, Christianity in, 101, 112, 179. 
 
 Dalmatia, 252. 
 
 Damascus, Christianity in, 47, 85. 
 
 Deacons, 41, 250, 258. 
 
 Deissmann, 69, 111. 
 
 Derbe, 118, 120. 
 
 Dio Cassius, 108. 
 
 Dionysius of Corinth, 276. 
 
 Doniitian, Persecution by, 301. 
 
 Domitilla, 296. 
 
 ECCLESIA, 92. 
 
 Egypt, Christianity in, 205, 295. 
 Elders, Christian, 92, 94, 109, 134, 
 
 250, 258, 298; Jewish, 93. 
 Eh'mas, 113. 
 Enoch, Book of, 45, 308. 
 Epaphroditus, 187, 240, 250. 
 Epaphras, 240, 241. 
 Ephesians, Epistle to the, 246-249. 
 Ephesus, 206; Christianity in, 206, 
 
 207, 303. 
 Epiphanius, 163. 
 Essenes, Alleged influence on Chris- 
 
 tianit}', 38. 
 Ethiopian steward, 64. 
 Esdras, Fourth book of, 45. 
 Eusebius, 95, 108, 128, 130, 131, 132, 
 
 133, 163, 165, 177, 253, 254, 275, 
 
 317, 320. 
 
 Famine under Claudius, 107. 
 Felix, 233, 316. 
 Festus, 234, 316. 
 
 Galatia, 181; evangelization of, 184; 
 
 second visit of Paul to, 204. 
 Galatians, Epistle to the; to whom 
 
 written, 182-184; date, 183, 207; 
 
 occasion, 208; contents, 209-212; 
 
 importance, 212. 
 Gamaliel, 49, 50, 69, 70. 
 
 Gieseler, 3. 
 
 Gnosticism, Beginnings of, 243, 299. 
 
 Godet, 169. 
 
 Gospel, The oral, 290, 291. 
 
 Gospels, The : value, 4, 292 ; accounts 
 of resurrection, 4, 12; accounts of 
 movements of the disciples after the 
 resurrection, 17, 18; origin of their 
 narratives, 42, 43, 290, 292; see also 
 "Synoptic gospels," and "John, 
 writings of." 
 
 Harnack, 5, 169, 277, 317, 320, 321. 
 
 Hatch, 250. 
 
 Hebrews, Epistle to the^ 128, 164,165; 
 
 authorship and destination, 265- 
 
 267 ; contents, 286-289. 
 Hegesippus, 132. 
 Hellenism, Relation of Christianity 
 
 to, 216, 302. 
 Hellenists, 40, 41. 
 Herod Agrippa I., 99, 100, 315. 
 Hicks, 207. 
 Hort, 150. 
 
 IcoNiuM, Christianity in, 118, 120. 
 Ignatius, Epistles of, 171, 276, 295. 
 Illyricum, 252. 
 Irenseus, 321. 
 
 James, Epistle of, 42, 1 25-127, 134-136. 
 
 James, the Lord's brother, 21, 87, 130- 
 134, 144, 147, 155, 160, 161, 162, 
 163, 231. 
 
 James, the son of Alphaeus, 130, 132. 
 
 James, the son of Zebedee, 99, 130. 
 
 Jerome, 275, 320. 
 
 Jesus Christ: founder of Christianity, 
 9; resurrection, 10-15; last instruc- 
 tions, 16, 19; ascension; 19; ex- 
 altation, 20, 30, 44; divinity, 45, 
 243, 282, 288, 304. 
 
 Johannean period of apostolic history, 
 294-311. 
 
 John: writings of, 272-274, 304-311; 
 mission to Samaria, 63 ; at Ephesus, 
 302,303; teaching, 304-311; death, 
 321. 
 
 Josephus : death of John the Baptist, 
 3; death of James, 3, 128, 130, 131; 
 
INDEX OF NAMES AND SUBJECTS 
 
 333 
 
 reference to Christians, 3; variety 
 of Jews in Jerusalem, 28; Jewish 
 sects, 48; the "Gate beautiful," 48; 
 Solomon's porch, 48; Theudas, 50; 
 rule of Marcellus, 54; death of 
 Herod Agrippa I., 60, 99, 100; the 
 famine, 107; women in Asia Minor, 
 118; silence about Christians in 
 Judea, 160; Jews in Galatia, 183; 
 "the Egyptian," 232; chronological 
 data, 315-317. 
 
 Judaic Christianity, 125-166, 286, 300. 
 
 Judaism, Relation of Christianity to, 
 17, 19, 37, 39, 41, 47, 53, 66, 84, 89, 
 91, 97-100, 129, 136-138, 140, 155, 
 157, 161, 163, 164, 300. 
 
 Judaizers, 140, 143, 148, 162, 178, 204, 
 208, 222. 
 
 Judas Barsabbas, 148, 154. 
 
 Judas the Galilean, 50. 
 
 Jude, 282. 
 
 Jude, Epistle of, 269, 283. 
 
 Julirher, 169. 
 
 Justin Martyr, 297. 
 
 Leckt, 149. 
 
 Liffktfoot, J. B.,207, 227, 236, 250, 296. 
 
 Lipsius, 105. 
 
 Logos, Doctrine of the, 304. 
 
 Love-feasts, 35. 
 
 Luke, 5, 185, 187, 231, 235, 239. 
 
 Luke's gospel, 17, 271, 293. 
 
 Lydia of Thyatira, 186. 
 
 Lystra, 118, 119, 120, 180. 
 
 Marcion's Canon, 171. 
 Mark, 110, 112, 113, 179. 
 Mark's gospel, 4, 18, 271, 293. 
 Matthew's gospel, 17, 270, 293. 
 Matthias, 23, 25. 
 McGifert, 6, 113. 
 Methods of Missionary work, 121. 
 JUilligan, G., 265. 
 
 Nabat.«:ans, 86, 318. 
 Nero, Persecution by, 253, 257, 260, 
 279, 280,301. 
 
 Old Testament, Use of by Chris- 
 tians, 24, 43, 52. 
 Onesimus, 239, 241, 245. 
 
 Organization of the churches ; apostles 
 appointed by Jesus, 9; election of 
 Matthias, 23-26; "the Seven," 40- 
 42; separate synagogues, 66, 91, 
 92; " Synagogue" and " ecclesia," 
 92; the eldership, 93, 94; authority 
 of the mother church, 103, 145, 151 ; 
 independence of Pauline churches, 
 146, 152,183; apostolic authority, 24, 
 25, 35, 41, 63, 88, 285, 292, 308," 312. 
 
 Orr, Jas., 239. 
 
 Paul : persecutor of the disciples, 55, 
 72 ; his origin, 68 ; his name, 69, 
 education, 69, 70; personality, 71; 
 motives of his persecution, 72; no 
 predisposition toward Christianity, 
 73 ; his earlier religious experience, 
 74; his conversion, 75-79, 319; his 
 Christian beliefs, 79-85, 158, 230, 
 243, 244, 248, 251; his life imme- 
 diately after conversion, 85-90; in 
 Antioch, 104; visit to Jerusalem 
 with gifts from Antioch, 108 ; mis- 
 sionary journey with Barnabas, 111- 
 122; address at Pisidian Antioch, 
 114-117; visit to the council, 141- 
 144, 147; acceptance of the council's 
 decree, 150-153, 180; rebuke of 
 Peter, 156-158; misrepresented in 
 Judea, 162; importance of Paul's 
 missionary work, 178, 252; his 
 second missionary journey, 178- 
 203; his work in Ephesus, 204-223; 
 from Ephesus to Corinth, 224-231; 
 from Corinth to Jerusalem, 231- 
 233 ; imprisonment at Caesarea, 23-3- 
 235; voyage to Rome, 235-237; life 
 in Rome, 238-251; his last years, 
 252-261 ; chronology of his life, 319 ; 
 date of death, 320. 
 
 Pauline epistles, genuineness of, 169- 
 176. 
 
 Paulus, Sergius, 113. 
 
 Papias, 270. 
 
 Pella, Flight to, 161, 163. 
 
 Pentecost, 26-34. 
 
 Perga, 113, 121. 
 
 Persecutions, 55, 91, 99, 253, 257, 260, 
 279, 280, 301. 
 
334 
 
 INDEX OF NAMES AND SUBJECTS 
 
 Peter: witness to resurrection, 11, 29; 
 early prominence, 24 ; at Pentecost, 
 29 ; speeches in Acts, 43 ; mission 
 to Samaria, 63; visited by Paul, 
 87; work in Syria, 91; baptism of 
 Cornelius, 96; imprisonment and 
 escape, 99; action at the council, 
 144, 146 ; conduct at Antioch, 154- 
 156; work as an evangelist, 177; 
 last years, 275-285 ; date of death, 
 276, 277, 321; teaching, 281. 
 
 Peter, Apocalypse of, 268. 
 
 Peter, First epistle of, 267, 278. 
 
 Peter, Gospel of, 4, 12, 292. 
 
 Peter, Second epistle of, 267-269, 284. 
 
 Pharisees, Relation to Christianity of, 
 39, 140, 161. 
 
 Philemon, 241, 245. 
 
 Philemon, Epistle to, 245. 
 
 Philip, the evangelist, 61, 64, 65, 231, 
 304. 
 
 Philippi, Christianity in, 185-188. 
 
 Philippians, Epistle to the, 249-251. 
 
 Polycarp, Epistle of, 171. 
 
 Pretorian guard, 236. 
 
 Prophets, 105. 
 
 Providential preparations for expan- 
 sion of Christianity, 122. 
 
 Ramsay, W. M., 5,7, 60, 108, 112, 113, 
 118, 120, 181, 183, 191, 207, 233, 235, 
 2.36, 260, 277, 279, 296, 301, 317, 321. 
 
 Resurrection of Christ, 10-15, 220. 
 
 "Revelation;" see "John, writings 
 of." 
 
 Rhees, 315. 
 
 Riffgs, 160, 309. 
 
 Romans, Epistle to the, 226-230. 
 
 Rome, Christianity in, 226, 227, 239- 
 241. 
 
 Sadducees, Relation to Christianity 
 
 of, 39, 48, 161, 163. 
 Salmon, 169. 
 
 Samaria, Christianity in, 61-64. 
 Schurer, 3, 28, 38, 48, 49, 55, 60, 92, 
 
 93, 235, 309. 
 Sieffert, 143. 
 Silas, 148, 154, 179, 195. 
 Simon Magus, 62. 
 
 S7iiitk, Jas., 235. 
 
 Social relationsofChristianity,245, 296. 
 
 Spain, Christianity in, 254, 256. 
 
 Spirit, The Holy; bestowed on apos- 
 tles, 16 ; promised in greater meas- 
 ure, 19; predicted in O. T., 22; 
 predicted by John and Jesus, 23; 
 given at Pentecost, 27; his opera- 
 tions in the apostolic churches, 36, 
 219; bestowed through apostles, 63; 
 cause of expansion of the Church, 
 64, 111, 180, 185; unifier of apos- 
 tolic Christianit}', 312. 
 
 Steinmetz, R., 254. 
 
 Stephen, 51-54. 
 
 Suetonius, 3, 108, 194, 195, 279. 
 
 Stoete, 4. 
 
 Symeon, 165. 
 
 Synoptic gospels, 270-272. 
 
 Syria, Christianity in, 47, 65, 91, 179. 
 
 Tacitus, 3, 105, 108, 240, 316. 
 
 Tarsus, 68. 
 
 "Teaching of the Apostles," 26, 36, 
 107, 297, 298, 308. 
 
 Thessalonians, Epistles to the, 197-203. 
 
 Thessalonica, Christianity in, 188-190. 
 
 Theudas, 50. 
 
 Timothy, 119, 180, 195, 214, 240, 255. 
 
 Timothy and Titus, Epistles to ; gen- 
 uineness, 170-176; cannot be in- 
 serted in Acts, 255; date, 256, 259; 
 unity, 171, 172, 260. 
 
 Titus, 142, 222-224, 255. 
 
 Tongues, Gift of, 31-33. 
 
 Troas, Christianity in, 185. 
 
 Turner, 315, 317, 318, 320. 
 
 Tychicus, 241, 247. 
 
 Wmss, B., 169. 
 Wendt, 31, 116. 
 Westcott and Hort, 4. 
 Widows, Care for, 38, 40, 257. 
 Women in apostolic churches, 21, 186, 
 
 187, 218. 
 Worship, 106, 297. 
 
 Zahn, Tb., 169, 182. 
 Zealots, relation to Christianity of the, 
 161. 
 
INDEX OF BIBLICAL REFERENCES 
 
 Gkn. Page 
 
 xii. 3 83 
 
 xxu. 18 83 
 
 Ex. 
 
 ixiii. 16 26 
 
 xxxiv. 22 26 
 
 Lev. 
 xviu., xix 150 
 
 Numb. 
 xxviii. 26 26 
 
 Deut. 
 xiiii. 1 64 
 
 JUDOBS. 
 
 iii. 10 22 
 
 vi. 34 22 
 
 I. Sam. 
 xi. 6 22 
 
 n. KiNOS. 
 xi. 18 250 
 
 II. Chbon. 
 xxxiv. 12,17 250 
 
 Nkb. 
 xi. 9, 14,22 250 
 
 Ps. 
 
 xvi. 8-11; CI 29 
 
 Is. 
 xi. 2; xxxii. 15 ; xlii. 1 ; 
 
 xlviii. 16; Ixi. 1-3 22 
 
 xliv. 3; lix. 21 23 
 
 Iii. 13 44 
 
 liii 65 
 
 Ix. 17.. 250 
 
 Ez. 
 xxxvi. 37 ; xxxvii. 14 ; 
 xxxix.29 23 
 
 Dan. 
 
 vu. 23-25; xi 36 202 
 
 Hos. Page 
 ii. 7 22 
 
 JOEIi. 
 
 ii. 28, 29 22 
 
 Ahos. 
 ii. 11, 12 147 
 
 MiCAH. 
 
 iii.8 22 
 
 Hab. 
 
 ii. 4 83 
 
 Zkch. 
 
 iv. 6 23 
 
 vii. 12 22 
 
 ECCLUS. 
 
 V. 11 ; xix. 6 ; xxviii. 13- 
 26 ; xli. 22 136 
 
 WisD. OF Sol. 
 ii. 4; 12-20 136 
 
 Matt. 
 
 ui. 11 23,24 
 
 iv. 19 17 
 
 iv. 23 290 
 
 vi. 33 136 
 
 viii. 10-12 9 
 
 viu. 10,11 154 
 
 ix. 15 9 
 
 ix. 28 17 
 
 X. 40 9 
 
 xi. 28-30 17 
 
 xii. 39, 41 9 
 
 xii. 4G 130 
 
 xiii. 25 202 
 
 xiii. 55 130 
 
 xvi. 16-18 17 
 
 xvi. 18 92 
 
 xvi. 21-23 9 
 
 xvii. 9 10 
 
 xvii. 19 9 
 
 xviii. 17 92 
 
 xviii. 18 9 
 
 xix. 21 38 
 
 xix. 28 9 
 
 xii. 33-41 53 
 
 Page 
 
 xxiii. 34-36 53 
 
 xxiv. 4,5, 6 202 
 
 xxiv. 7 107 
 
 xxiv. 10, 11, 12 202 
 
 xxiv. 15 272 
 
 iiiv. 16-21 161, 163 
 
 xxiv. 23, 24 202 
 
 iiviii. 9 12, 13 
 
 xxviii. 11-15 13 
 
 xiviii. 16-18 12 
 
 xxviii. 16-20 18 
 
 ixviii. 17 15 
 
 xxviu. 18-23 16 
 
 iiviii. 19 16,35,36 
 
 xxviii. 20 25 
 
 ixviii. 32 18 
 
 Mk. 
 
 .1 290 
 
 .8 23 
 
 .9 271 
 
 . 14,15 290 
 
 .40 17 
 
 i. 5 17 
 
 iii. 14, 15 9 
 
 V. 39, 40, 41 271 
 
 vi. 3 130 
 
 vii 3,4 271 
 
 viii. 12 271 
 
 viii. 31 14 
 
 viii. 34 271 
 
 viii. 35 290 
 
 ix. 23 17 
 
 ix. .31 14 
 
 1.29 290 
 
 X. 34 14 
 
 X. 37 9 
 
 xii. 18-27 48 
 
 xii. 42 271 
 
 xiii. 10 290 
 
 xui. 14 272 
 
 liv. 9 290 
 
 xiv. 13 271 
 
 xiv. 28 14,18 
 
 XV. 42 271 
 
 xvi. 9-20 4,18 
 
 xvi. 15 290 
 
 Lx. 
 
 i. 1^ 6,271 
 
 i. 1,2 292 
 
 i. 2 25 
 
 i. 22 79 
 
336 
 
 INDEX OF BIBLICAL REFERENCES 
 
 ii. 32 272 
 
 iii. 1 50 
 
 iii 2 50 
 
 iii. 15 115 
 
 iii. 16 23,115 
 
 iv. 16-30 272 
 
 iv. 24-27 9 
 
 iv. 26 130 
 
 vii. 9 17 
 
 vii. 47 17 
 
 vui. 2, 3 21 
 
 viii. 13 202 
 
 viii. 26 17 
 
 ix. 52^56 61 
 
 X. 7,8 272 
 
 X. 22 17 
 
 X. 33 61 
 
 xi. 33 38 
 
 xi. 49^1 9 
 
 xiii. 28-30 272 
 
 xiv. 16-24 272 
 
 xvii. 11-19 61 
 
 xviii. 8 202 
 
 xix. 10 272 
 
 ixi. 20 272 
 
 xxii. 29, 30 10 
 
 xxii. 19-21 272 
 
 xxiv. 1-43 17 
 
 xxiv. 16 15 
 
 xxiv. 21 14 
 
 xxiv. 23 79 
 
 xxiv. 27 16 
 
 xxiv. 29 12 
 
 xxiv. 31 15 
 
 xxiv. 34 .... 11,272 
 
 xxiv. 36 13, 15 
 
 xxiv. 39 13 
 
 xxiv. 40 15 
 
 xxiv. 43 15 
 
 xxiv. 44-47 16 
 
 xxiv. 44-53 4 
 
 xxiv. 47 16,272 
 
 xxiv. 50 19 
 
 xxiv. 53 39 
 
 JOH. 
 
 i. 1 273 
 
 i. 20-27 115 
 
 i. 28 273 
 
 i. 30 46 
 
 i. 33 23 
 
 ii. 19 9 
 
 iii. 11 9 
 
 iii. 14-18 17 
 
 iii. 14, 19 9 
 
 iii. 29 273 
 
 iv 61 
 
 iv. 9 61 
 
 V. 23 17 
 
 vi. 47-57 17 
 
 vi. 51-56 9 
 
 vi. 69 17 
 
 vii. 3 130 
 
 vii. 5 21, 1.30 
 
 vii. 37 273 
 
 viii. 44 273 
 
 xiv. 26 25 
 
 XV. 26,27 25 
 
 xvi. 13 25 
 
 xvii. 12, 13 10 
 
 xviii. 31 54 
 
 xix. 34, 36 273 
 
 XX., xxi 18 
 
 XX. 9 15 
 
 XX. 16 12 
 
 XI.19 13 
 
 XX. 22, 23 16 
 
 XX. 26 15 
 
 XX. 27 13, 15 
 
 XX. 30,31 299 
 
 XX. 31 304, 306 
 
 xxi. 1 15 
 
 xxi. 3 18 
 
 xxi. 4 13, 15 
 
 xxi. 14 11, 15 
 
 xxi. 18, 19 276,278 
 
 xxi. 20 273 
 
 xxi. 24 273,303 
 
 Acts. 
 
 i. Itoviii. 3 7 
 
 i. 1,2 6,271 
 
 i. 2 26 
 
 i. 3-6 146 
 
 i. 3 16 
 
 i. 4^ 19 
 
 i. 4 12, 13 
 
 i. 6-8 12 
 
 i. 6, 8-11 19 
 
 i. 8.. 61 
 
 i. 12-14 21 
 
 i. 14 23, 130 
 
 i. 15-26 24 
 
 i. 15 21, 104 
 
 i. 16 146 
 
 i. 20 25 
 
 i. 21 290 
 
 i. 22 11,290 
 
 i. 23 69, 146 
 
 i. 24 44 
 
 ii. 1^7 8 
 
 ii. 1 27 
 
 ii. 4 31 
 
 ii. 7-11 28 
 
 ii. 7 22 
 
 ii. 8 28,31 
 
 ii. 9 206 
 
 ii. 10 226 
 
 ii. 11 28,31 
 
 u. 14 18 
 
 ii. 15-21 29 
 
 ii. 16-18 44 
 
 ii. 17 30 
 
 ii. 18 33 
 
 ii. 19 44 
 
 ii. 20 44,200 
 
 ii. 21 44,45 
 
 ii. 22-24 29,290 
 
 ii. 22 25, 30,271 
 
 ii. 23 30,44,115 
 
 ii.24-32 10 
 
 u. 25-31 29 
 
 iu27 115 
 
 ii. 31 11,15, 115 
 
 ii. 32-36 29 
 
 ii. 32 12 
 
 ii. 33 30,44,45 
 
 ii. 34 19 
 
 ii. 38 36,44,115 
 
 ii. 39-42 25 
 
 ii. 39 44 
 
 ii. 41 29 
 
 u. 42 25,35,42,106 
 
 ii. 43 36 
 
 ii. 45 37 
 
 ii. 46 35,37,39 
 
 ii. 47 35 
 
 iii. 1 to iv. 37 8 
 
 iii. 1 39,48 
 
 iii. 2 48 
 
 iii. 6,7, 36 
 
 iii. 11 39 
 
 iii. 12-26 42 
 
 iii. 13-15 18 
 
 iii. 13 30,44,45,115 
 
 iii. 14 30,44,45 
 
 iii. 15 10, 12,44 
 
 iii. 17 115 
 
 iii. 18 44,115 
 
 iii. 19 30,44 
 
 iii. 20 44 
 
 iii. 21 20,44 
 
 iii. 23 44, 45 
 
 iii. 36 44 
 
 iv. 2 42 
 
 iv. 4 47 
 
 iv. 6,8-12 48 
 
 iv. 9 36 
 
 iv. 10 10, 18 
 
 iv. 12 44,45 
 
 iv. 20 42 
 
 iv. 23-30 49 
 
 iv. 23-37 37 
 
 iv. 27 44,45 
 
 iv. 29, 30, 33 36 
 
 iv. 34, 35 38 
 
 iv. 36 36 
 
 V. 1-16 8 
 
 V. 1-11 40 
 
 V. 6, 10 40 
 
 V. 11 92 
 
 V. 12-16 36 
 
 V. 12-14,12 39 
 
 V. 14 47 
 
 V. 17^2 8 
 
 V. 17, 18 49 
 
 V. 20 39 
 
 V. 28 30,42, 49 
 
 V. 30 30 
 
 V. 31 44,115 
 
 V. 32 44 
 
 V. 34-39 31 
 
 V. 36,37 48 
 
 V. 42 42 
 
 vi. 1-8 8 
 
 vi. 1 38,39, 104 
 
 vi. 2 35, 42, 104 
 
 vi. 4 25,42 
 
 vi. 7 39,47,104 
 
INDEX OF BIBLICAL REFERENCES 
 
 337 
 
 Page 
 
 vi. 8 3G, 51 
 
 vi. 9to viii. 3 8 
 
 vi. 9 28,36,40,51,72 
 
 vi. 13 M, 91 
 
 vi. 14 54 
 
 vii 51 
 
 vii. 14,22,23,30 52 
 
 vii. 38 92 
 
 vii. 44-50 54 
 
 vii. 44-52 50 
 
 vii. 56 20 
 
 vii. 58 54,68 
 
 viii. 1-3 30 
 
 viii. 1 61 
 
 viu. 3 55, 72 
 
 vui. 4^0 59 
 
 viii. 4 to xii. 25 59 
 
 viii. 4 to xiv. 28 59 
 
 viii. 4 61, 226 
 
 viii. 5 61 
 
 viii. 15 63 
 
 viii. 16 36 
 
 viu. 26-39 64 
 
 viii. 38 36 
 
 viii. 40 65 
 
 ix. 1-30 59 
 
 ix. 1 72 
 
 ix. 2 47,72,104 
 
 ii. 3-18 75 
 
 ix. 7 75 
 
 ix. 10 47,79, 104 
 
 ix. 17 63,76 
 
 ix. 19-30 85 
 
 ix. 19 104 
 
 ix. 20 81 
 
 ix. 26-30 87 
 
 ix. 26 104 
 
 ix. 27 26, 76,131 
 
 ix. 30.. 104 
 
 ix. 31toxi. 18 59 
 
 ix. 31,32-42 91 
 
 ix. 32 66, 95 
 
 X 96 
 
 X. 3 79 
 
 X. 15 96 
 
 X. 23 104 
 
 X. 28 30 
 
 X. 32 65 
 
 X. 37-43 290 
 
 X. 38 271 
 
 X. 41 11,12,25 
 
 X. 42 44 
 
 X. 43 97,115 
 
 X. 44 63 
 
 X. 46 30, 32 
 
 X. 47 30 
 
 X. 48 36 
 
 xi. 1-17 97 
 
 xi. 2 91 
 
 xi. 5 79 
 
 xi. 18 9.8 
 
 xi. 19-30 60 
 
 xi. 19 65, 113 
 
 xi. 20 101 
 
 xi. 22 103 
 
 xi. 24,25,26,26-30 104 
 
 xi. 28 107 
 
 xi. 29 108 
 
 xi. 30 42,92,94, 95, 141, 
 
 108, 110 
 
 xii 60,99,315 
 
 xii. 2 130 
 
 xii. 3 315 
 
 xii. 9 79 
 
 xii. 12 38 
 
 xii. 17 100, 130, 131 
 
 xii. 20-23 100 
 
 lu. 24 110 
 
 xii. 25 110 
 
 liii., xiv 319 
 
 xiii. 1 105, 111 
 
 xiU. 2 Ill 
 
 xiii. 5 112 
 
 xiii. 8-11, 9, 12, 13 113 
 
 xiU. 14, 16-25, 16-41 114 
 
 xiii. 16 122 
 
 xiii. 24, 25, 26-37, 27, 28 . 115 
 
 xiii. 31 18 
 
 xiii. 33-35, 37, 38-41 115 
 
 xiii. 39 83, 117 
 
 liu. 43, 50 122 
 
 xiv. 3 118 
 
 xiv. 4 26,88, 112 
 
 xiv. 8 119 
 
 xiv. 12 113 
 
 xiv. 14 26,88, 112 
 
 xiv. 15-17 193 
 
 xiv. 15-18, 15,16, 17 119 
 
 xiv. 19,22 120 
 
 xiv. 23 94 
 
 xiv. 27 121 
 
 XV. 1-35 125 
 
 XV. 1 140,209 
 
 IV. 2 ., 141 
 
 XV. 3-5 143 
 
 XV. 3 142 
 
 XV. 5 99,140,145,161 
 
 IV. 6-10 182 
 
 XV. 6-29 143 
 
 XV. 6 94,95, 144 
 
 XV. 7-11 98,146 
 
 XV. 7 290 
 
 XV. 12-21 131 
 
 XV. 12^0 186 
 
 IV. 12 147 
 
 XV. 13-21 144, 147 
 
 XV. 13 130, 148 
 
 14. 
 XV. 15 . 
 XV. 16 . 
 XV. 17 . 
 
 XV. 18 . 
 
 148 
 146 
 ,186 
 148 
 186 
 
 XV. 19, 22-29 148 
 
 XV. 22 94, 144 
 
 XV. 23 94,146,148 
 
 XV. 24 141 
 
 XV. 28 146 
 
 XV. 29 148 
 
 XV. 30 186 
 
 XV. 32 105,179 
 
 XV. 36 toxxviii. 31... 169, 177 
 
 XV. 36,37-39 179 
 
 IV. 37 69 
 
 XV. 38 U3 
 
 22 
 
 Page 
 
 IV. 39 155 
 
 XV. 40 179 
 
 XV. 41 90 
 
 xvi. 1 119, 179 
 
 xvi. 3 119, 180 
 
 ivi. 4 151 
 
 xvi. 6 180,181,204 
 
 xvi. 8-10 185 
 
 xvi. 10-16 5 
 
 ivi. 10, 11 185 
 
 xvi. 20 185, 186 
 
 xvi. 21, 35 185 
 
 xvi. 37 179, 186 
 
 xvi. 38 185 
 
 xvi. 39 186 
 
 xvi. 40 185,186 
 
 xvii. 1, 2, 3, 4 188 
 
 ivii. 6 188,190 
 
 xvii. 7 190 
 
 ivU. 11 190,319 
 
 xvii. 12, 13, 14, 15 190 
 
 xvii. 18 191 
 
 ivii. 23-29 192 
 
 ivii. 26 119 
 
 ivii. 27 70 
 
 xvii. 28 70, 193 
 
 xvii. 34 193 
 
 iviii. 2 194, 318 
 
 iviii. 3 194, 234, 254 
 
 xviii. 5 191, 195 
 
 ivui. 8 196,252 
 
 xviii. 9, 10 196 
 
 xviii. 11 194 
 
 xviii. 12-17 197 
 
 xviii. 13 196 
 
 iviii. 18 194,203 
 
 xviu. 19 203 
 
 xviii. 19-23 184 
 
 iviii. 20,21 203 
 
 xviii. 23 . 181, 184, 204, 319 
 
 iviii. 24-28 205 
 
 xviii. 25 115 
 
 iviii. 26 178, 194 
 
 lix. 10 207, 241 
 
 lii. 13-19,23^1 207 
 
 lix. 26 207,241 
 
 xix. 27, 31 207 
 
 XI. 1 224 
 
 XX. 2 226, 319 
 
 XX. 3 226,231,319 
 
 XX. 4-6 231 
 
 IX. 4 207,226 
 
 XX. 5 to iii. 18 5 
 
 XX. 6 317 
 
 IX. 7 toixi. 16 231 
 
 XX. 7 35 
 
 XI. 15 256 
 
 II. 16 30,231 
 
 XX. 17-38 231 
 
 XX. 17 94,250 
 
 XX. 18-21 206 
 
 XI. 20 206 
 
 II. 22, 23 228 
 
 XX. 26,27 206 
 
 II. 28. 250 
 
 IX. 29,30 256 
 
 IX. 31 206,255,319 
 
338 
 
 INDEX OF BIBLICAL REFERENCES 
 
 Page 
 
 XX. 34 234 
 
 XX. 38. 255 
 
 xii. 3 69 
 
 ixi. 4 231 
 
 ixi. 8 6, 65 
 
 xxi. 9-16 231 
 
 xxi.9, 10 105 
 
 xxi. 17 toxxii. 29 232 
 
 xxi. 18-21 125 
 
 xxi. 18 6,130,303 
 
 xxi. 20-25 160 
 
 xxi. 20 161 
 
 xxi. 21 158,162 
 
 xxi. 24, 25 162 
 
 xxi. 29 256 
 
 xxi. 38 68 
 
 xxii. 1-21 59 
 
 xxii. 3 70, 73 
 
 xxii. 4 55, 104 
 
 xxii. 5 18,68, 72 
 
 xxii. 6-16, 9 75 
 
 xxii. 14, 16 76 
 
 xxii. 17-20 18 
 
 xxii. 17-21 89 
 
 xxii. 28 68 
 
 xxii. 30 232 
 
 xxiii. 1-6 232 
 
 xxiii. 6 68, 70 
 
 xxiii. 7-10 232 
 
 xxiii. 11, 12-30, 233 
 
 xxiii. 16 68 
 
 xxiii. 31-35 233 
 
 xxiv. 1-9 233 
 
 xxiv. 5 105, 254 
 
 xxiv. 10-21 233 
 
 xxiv. 10 310 
 
 xxiv. 22, 23-25, 26 233 
 
 xxiv. 27 233, 319 
 
 xxv.1-3 234 
 
 XXV. 1 316, 319 
 
 XXV. 4, 5, 6-8,9-12. 234 
 
 XXV. 13 235, 319 
 
 XXV. 14-22 235 
 
 XXV. 23toxxvi. 32 235 
 
 xxvi. 1-23 59 
 
 xxvi. 5 70 
 
 xxvi. 7 134 
 
 xxvi. 9 73 
 
 xxvi. 10 18,55, 08 
 
 xxvi. 11 47,55,65,72 
 
 xxvi. 12-18 75 
 
 xxvi. 14 73, 75 
 
 xxvi. 16 76 
 
 xxvi. 18 115 
 
 xxvi. 19 79 
 
 xxvi. 24 291 
 
 xxvi. 28 105 
 
 xxvii. 1 to xxviii. 16 ... 5, 235 
 
 xxvii. 8 255 
 
 xxvii. 12. 319 
 
 xxviii. 11, 12 319 
 
 xxviii. 16 236 
 
 xxviii. 17-20 238 
 
 xxviii. 20 238 
 
 xxviii. 21 195 
 
 xxviii. 22 195, 227 
 
 xxviii. 23 239 
 
 Page 
 
 xxviii. 30 236, 239, 319 
 
 xxviii. 31 236, 239, 253 
 
 Rom. 
 
 i. 1^ 290 
 
 i. 3,4 251 
 
 i. 5 228 
 
 i. 6 227 
 
 i. 8 226 
 
 i. 9, 10 227 
 
 i. 13 226,227 
 
 i. 16 229, 291 
 
 i. 17 83,229,291 
 
 i. 18 to iii. 20 229 
 
 i. 20-23, 20,24 119 
 
 ii. 16 227,291 
 
 ii. 17 toiu. 20 227 
 
 ii. 17 228 
 
 iii. 21-26 83, 229 
 
 iii. 25 119 
 
 iii. 27 toiv. 24 229 
 
 iv. 7 115 
 
 V. 1-11, 12-21 229 
 
 vi 229 
 
 vi. 1-11 
 
 269 
 
 vi. 3 
 
 30 
 
 vi. 9, 10 . 
 
 . 266 
 
 vi. 12, 13 
 
 vi. 17 
 
 126 
 
 227 
 
 
 229 
 
 vii. 9-11, 13-25... 
 vii. 12 
 
 74 
 
 175 
 
 
 229 
 
 viii. 3 .. 
 
 . . 281 
 
 
 230 
 
 viii. 29 
 
 281 
 
 viii. 34 
 
 266 
 
 ix.-xi 
 
 ... 116, 230 
 230 
 
 ix. 5 
 
 251 
 
 ix. 25 .. 
 
 2S1 
 
 X - 230 
 
 X. 3 
 
 116 
 
 X. 9 
 
 174 
 
 xi 230 
 
 xi. 13, 30 227 
 
 xi. 36 266 
 
 xii. 2 281 
 
 xii. 6 105 
 
 xii. 7 106, 227 
 
 xii. 8 227 
 
 xii. 17 . 
 
 
 80 
 
 xii. 19 
 
 
 ''66 
 
 xii. 20 
 
 
 SO 
 
 xiv. 1-14 
 
 
 fn 
 
 
 
 007 
 
 xiv. 14 
 
 
 130 
 
 xiv. 13-23.. 
 
 
 151 
 
 xiv. 21 
 
 
 153 
 
 XV. 3 
 
 
 80 
 
 XV. 8-13, 10, 15, 16 
 XV. 17-21 
 
 
 227 
 2?,8 
 
 XV. 19 
 
 XV. 20-24 
 
 ..18 
 
 226 
 ?76 
 
 XV. 23 . 
 
 
 997 
 
 XV. 24 
 
 227 
 
 264 
 
 Page 
 
 25-28 226 
 
 26 18, 152, 182 
 
 27 18, 152 
 
 28 227,228 
 
 30, 31 228 
 
 1 196 
 
 3-5 227 
 
 3 194,227 
 
 5 182 
 
 5-7... 227 
 
 7 26, 68,227 
 
 10, 11 239 
 
 13, 14, 15 227 
 
 21 68 
 
 21-23 226 
 
 23 252 
 
 25 291 
 
 I. COE. 
 
 i. 10 toiv. 21 
 
 i. 11 
 
 i. 12 
 
 i. 14 
 
 i. 18-31 
 
 i. 21 
 
 i. 23 
 
 i. 26 196, 
 
 ii. 1^ 116, 196, 
 
 ii. 1 
 
 ii. 2 193, 
 
 ii. 3 195, 
 
 ii. 6-16 
 
 ii. 6 
 
 ii. 8 
 
 iii. 1,2 
 
 iii. 4-6 
 
 iii. 8 
 
 iii. 13 
 
 iv. 1-5, 6, 7-13, 14-21 .... 
 
 iv. 9-13 
 
 iv. 15 196, 
 
 iv. 17 206, 
 
 v 
 
 V. 5 
 
 V. 9 
 
 V. 9-11 
 
 vi. 1-8,9-20 
 
 vi. 9-11 
 
 vi. 18 
 
 vii. 1 to xi. 1 
 
 vii 
 
 vii. 1 
 
 vii. 3-5 
 
 vii. 10 80, 
 
 vii. 11 217, 
 
 vii. 12-16 
 
 vii. 17-24 
 
 vii. 26 
 
 viii 151, 
 
 viii. 1 to xi. 1 
 
 viii. 4-6 
 
 viii. 4 
 
 viii. 7-13 
 
 .215 
 .215 
 .214 
 .205 
 .196 
 ,216 
 , 70 
 196 
 ,252 
 216 
 193 
 195 
 196 
 216 
 70 
 115 
 216 
 197 
 205 
 216 
 200 
 216 
 207 
 290 
 214 
 217 
 200 
 213 
 214 
 217 
 174 
 151 
 217 
 217 
 214 
 217 
 217 
 252 
 218 
 244 
 218 
 218 
 218 
 153 
 119 
 153 
 218 
 
INDEX OF BIBLICAL REFEKENCES 
 
 339 
 
 Page 
 
 ix. 1 11,25,20,59,77, 
 
 95, 174 
 
 ix. 2 174 
 
 ix. 5 96,177,269,282 
 
 ix. 6 177, 179, 183 
 
 U. 12 290 
 
 ix. 14 80,290 
 
 ix. 17 77 
 
 ix. 18 290 
 
 ix. 19-23 151 
 
 ix. 20, 21 155 
 
 ix. 23 290 
 
 X. 12 31 
 
 X. IStoxi. 1 218 
 
 X. 23-33 151 
 
 X. 27 272 
 
 X. 28 106 
 
 X. 32 153 
 
 xi. 2 174 
 
 xi. 2toxiv. 40 218 
 
 xi. 18-29 35 
 
 xi. 23 106,291 
 
 xi. 23-25 80,272 
 
 xii 30 
 
 xii. 10 105 
 
 xii. 11 266 
 
 xii. 23 95 
 
 xii. 28 63, 105, 106 
 
 xii. 29. 105 
 
 xii. to xiv 219 
 
 xiii. 2 105 
 
 xiv 30,31 
 
 xiv. 6 105 
 
 xiv. 10,11,14,21,28.... 32 
 
 xiv. 26 94 
 
 xiv. 27 107 
 
 xiv. 29, 32 105 
 
 xiv. 34 219 
 
 xiv. 37 105, 106 
 
 XV 220 
 
 XV. 1-8 11 
 
 XV. 1-11 220 
 
 XV. 1 290, 291 
 
 XV. 3-8 12, 80, 81 
 
 XV. 4 115 
 
 XV. 5-7 12, 115 
 
 XV.5 272 
 
 XV. 7 11,21,26,130. 131 
 
 XV. 4-8 10, 11 
 
 XV. 8-10 26 
 
 IV. 8-11 174 
 
 XV. 8 59,77 
 
 XV. 10 77 
 
 XV. 12, 12-19 220 
 
 XV. 15,20 15 
 
 XV. 20-28 221 
 
 XV. 27 266 
 
 XV. 29-34 221 
 
 XV. 32 207 
 
 XV. 35-58 221 
 
 XV. 47 81 
 
 XV. 49 11 
 
 xvi 221 
 
 ivi. 1 182, 213 
 
 xvi. 5 223 
 
 xvi. 8 206 
 
 ivL 9 207 
 
 Page 
 
 xvi. 10 206,214 
 
 xvi. 15 182 
 
 xvi. 17 214 
 
 xvi. 19 194,207,227 
 
 II. COE. 
 
 i. 1-7 223 
 
 i. 1 196 
 
 i. 8 182 
 
 i. 8-14 222 
 
 i. 13 223 
 
 i. 14 200 
 
 i. 16 182, 223 
 
 i. 17 222 
 
 i. to vii 225 
 
 ii. 3,4 223 
 
 ii. 5 222 
 
 ii. 5-11 224 
 
 ii. 9 223 
 
 ii. 10 222 
 
 ii. 12 182,223 
 
 ii. 13 223, 224 
 
 ii. 14-17 174, 223 
 
 iii 225 
 
 iii. 1 152,222 
 
 iv. 4 244 
 
 iv. 7-10 207 
 
 V. 21 80 
 
 vi. 4,5 207 
 
 vi. 13 196 
 
 vii. 5 224 
 
 vii. 6,7, 8 223 
 
 vii. 9-12 224 
 
 vu. 9-16. 223 
 
 vii. 11, 12 222 
 
 vii. 13-15 223 
 
 viii., ix 225 
 
 viii ; 187 
 
 viii. 1 182 
 
 viii. 9 80, 251 
 
 viii. 18-22 224 
 
 viii. 20 266 
 
 viii. 23 26 
 
 ix. 2 182 
 
 ix. 12 161 
 
 X. to xiii 225 
 
 X. 1 80 
 
 X. 2 222 
 
 X. 5 25 
 
 X. 7 215, 222 
 
 X. 16 276 
 
 xi 222 
 
 xi. 3 222 
 
 xi. 4 291 
 
 xi. 13, 14 222 
 
 xi. 16 227 
 
 xi. 18 223 
 
 xi. 22 215 
 
 xi. 23-27 90 
 
 xi. 23toxiii. 2 225 
 
 xi. 24toxu. 9 59 
 
 xi. 26,27 114 
 
 xi. 28 207,208 
 
 xi. 32 85,86, 318 
 
 xi. 33 85 
 
 xii. 1 78 
 
 xii. 1-9 90 
 
 Page 
 
 xii. 2-5 142 
 
 xii. 7 78, 124 
 
 xii. 12 206 
 
 xii. 14,21 222 
 
 xiii 222 
 
 xiu. 1,2 222 
 
 Oal. 
 
 i. 1 26, 112 
 
 i. 6 208 
 
 i. 7 291 
 
 i. 9 204, 208 
 
 i. 11 291 
 
 i. 11-15 20 
 
 i. 11-17 174 
 
 i. 11-21 212 
 
 i. 12 25,79 
 
 i. 11 toii. 21 210 
 
 i. 11, 12 210 
 
 i. 13 72,73,210 
 
 i. 13-24 59 
 
 i. 14 70,73,210 
 
 i. 15 77,79,210 
 
 i. 16 77,79,81, 109,210 
 
 i. 10-24 85 
 
 i. 17 86,109 
 
 i. 17-19 18 
 
 i. 17-24 210 
 
 i. 18-23 87 
 
 i. 18 319 
 
 i. 19 26, 130 
 
 i. 20 92 
 
 i. 22 18, 30 
 
 i. 23 90 
 
 i. 24 129 
 
 ii. 1-10... 18, 88, 108, 141, 209 
 
 ii. 1 183,210,319 
 
 ii. 2....78, 81, 143, 144,147, 
 
 210, 291 
 
 ii. 2-5 144 
 
 Ii. 3 143, 144 
 
 ii. 3-5 210 
 
 ii. 4 141,143,144,209 
 
 ii. 6 144,152 
 
 ii. 6-10 210 
 
 ii. 7 98, 144, 147, 291 
 
 ii. 8 98 
 
 ii. 9 130,131, 144, 183, 
 
 276 302 
 ii. 10 38, 99, ]08,'l09, 
 
 142, 145 
 
 ii. 11-21 210 
 
 ii. 11 156,275 
 
 ii. 12 98, 131,154,15.-. 
 
 ii. 13 li^3 
 
 ii. 14-21 81, 82, 156 
 
 ii. 15 147 
 
 ii. 16 147 
 
 ii. 20 84 
 
 iii 210 
 
 iii. 1 116,184,210 
 
 iii. 2-5,6,7-9,10 210 
 
 iii. 8,11,16,29 83 
 
 iii. 11-14, 15-18, 19, 20, 
 
 21-24, 25-29 211 
 
 iii. 13 82 
 
 iii. 19, 22 175 
 
340 
 
 INDEX OF BIBLICAL REFERENCES 
 
 iii. 27 36 
 
 iv 210,211 
 
 iv. 1-11 211 
 
 iv. 4 251 
 
 iv. 5 230 
 
 iv. 10 209 
 
 iv. 12-20 211 
 
 iv. 12 174 
 
 iv. 13 183, 184,208 
 
 iv. 13-20 183 
 
 iv. 14 183, 184 
 
 iv. 17 204, 209 
 
 iv. 20 184 
 
 iv. 12 to v. 1 211 
 
 V. 1 183 
 
 v. 2-12 211 
 
 V. 6 106 
 
 V. 10 204,213 
 
 V. 13-25 211 
 
 V. 14 126 
 
 V. 22,23 126, 174 
 
 V. 19to vi. 10 174 
 
 V. 26to vi. 5 211 
 
 vi. 6-10, 11-18 211 
 
 vi. 9, 10 126 
 
 Epb. 
 
 i. 1 246,247 
 
 i. 3 247,280 
 
 i. 4 280 
 
 i. 6 247 
 
 i. 7 115,247 
 
 i. 10,11 247 
 
 i. 13 291 
 
 i. 15 246 
 
 i. 19 247, 280 
 
 i. 20 20,247,266 
 
 i. 21 20,247,280 
 
 i. 22, 23 247 
 
 ii. 6 247 
 
 ii. 11-22 152 
 
 ii. 14-22 277 
 
 ii. 20 95,105,106 
 
 ii. 20-22 280 
 
 ii. 21 249 
 
 iii. 2,4 246 
 
 iii. 5 105,277 
 
 iii. 6 291 
 
 iii. 7 77 
 
 ill. 10 247 
 
 iv. 1-16 276 
 
 iv. 3 249 
 
 iv. 11 95,105, 106 
 
 iv. 11-16 258 
 
 vi. 5 252 
 
 vi. 5-9 246 
 
 vi. 12 247 
 
 vi. 15 291 
 
 vi. 19 239,291,297 
 
 vi. 20 236, 239 
 
 vi. 21 240,241 
 
 vi. 22 241 
 
 Cot. 
 
 i 247 
 
 i.4 243 
 
 i. 5 247,291 
 
 i. 6 241, 242,243 
 
 i. 7 207,240,241 
 
 i. 8 240 
 
 i. 9, 10 243 
 
 i. 12 242,247 
 
 i. 13 243,244 
 
 i. 13-20 305 
 
 i. 14 115,243, 247 
 
 i. 15 266 
 
 i. 15-17 251 
 
 i. 15-19 242 
 
 i. 16 244,247,266 
 
 i. 18 244,247 
 
 i. 19 244 
 
 i. 20 . 243, 247 
 
 i. 21-29 242 
 
 i. 22 243 
 
 i. 23 243,291 
 
 i. 26 243 
 
 ii. 1 207,241 
 
 ii. 2,3,5 243 
 
 ii. 6. 174 
 
 u. 7,8 242,243 
 
 U. 9 244,247,251,305 
 
 U. 9-11 243 
 
 ii. 10 243, 244 
 
 ii. 11 242 
 
 ii. 12 247 
 
 ii. 12-14 243 
 
 ii. 14 242 
 
 ii. 15 244 
 
 ii. 16, 18 242 
 
 ii. 19 242, 243 
 
 ii. 20-22 242 
 
 ii. 21 247 
 
 ii. 22 toiv. 1 246 
 
 ii. 23 242 
 
 iii. 1 20 
 
 iii. 4 281 
 
 iii. 22 252 
 
 iv. 3, 4 239 
 
 iv. 7 202,240,241 
 
 iv. 9-14 240 
 
 iv. 10 6,110, 240 
 
 iv. 12 241 
 
 iv. 13 207, 241 
 
 iv. 14 6 
 
 iv. 16 247,297 
 
 Phil. 
 
 i. 1 41,187,240,250 
 
 i. 5,7 187, 291 
 
 i. 9 20 
 
 i. 12-14 239 
 
 i. 13 236,237 
 
 i. 15-18 240 
 
 i. 25 187,240,250,253 
 
 i 27 187 
 
 i. 28-30 188 
 
 ii. 5-11 251,305 
 
 ii. 7 80 
 
 ii. 8 80, 266 
 
 ii. 9 187,266 
 
 ii. 12 187 
 
 ii. 14-16 162 
 
 Page 
 
 ii. 19 240, 256 
 
 ii. 24 240, 253 
 
 ii. 25 26, 187, 241 
 
 iii. 4-7 69 
 
 iii. 5 68,70 
 
 iu. 6, 9 116 
 
 iii. 17 174 
 
 iii. 21 261 
 
 iv. 1 187 
 
 iv. 2 188, 251 
 
 iv. 3 187, 188,251 
 
 iv. 10, 14 187 
 
 iv. 14-18 250 
 
 iv. 15 234 
 
 iv. 18 234,240 
 
 iv. 22 239 
 
 I. Thxss. 
 
 i. 1 197,198 
 
 i. 2 198 
 
 i. 3 189, 198 
 
 i. 4 198 
 
 i. 5 189,290 
 
 i. 7 104 
 
 i. 8 188 
 
 i. 9 116, 119,189,234 
 
 i. 10 20, 116, 189,202 
 
 i. 12. 198 
 
 ii. 1-12, 1-13 198 
 
 ii. 1 174 
 
 u. 2 290 
 
 ii. 3-8 189 
 
 ii. 4 290 
 
 u. 6 189 
 
 ii. 8 290 
 
 ii. 9 189,199,280 
 
 ii. 10 189, 199 
 
 ii. 11 116, 189 
 
 ii. 12 116, 189, 202 
 
 ii. 13 174, 189 
 
 ii. 13-16 198 
 
 ii. 14 18, 152, 190 
 
 ii. 15, 16 197 
 
 ii. 19 189,202 
 
 iii. 1,1-6 190 
 
 iii. 2 189, 190,290 
 
 iii. 4 116 
 
 iii. 4-7 194 
 
 iii. 6 195,197 
 
 iii. 13 202 
 
 iii. 15 189 
 
 iv. 1 174 
 
 iv. 1-7 189 
 
 iv. 1-8 198, 199 
 
 iv. 1-12 174 
 
 iv. 2, 5 198 
 
 iv. 7 189 
 
 iv. 9-12 198 
 
 iv. 11 189,198, 199 
 
 iv. 12 198, 199 
 
 iv. 13-18 199,200 
 
 iv. 14 10, 11 
 
 iv. 15 78,189 
 
 iv. 15-18 202 
 
 iv. 16 20 
 
 iv. 17 198,202 
 
 V. 1 80 
 
INDEX OF BIBLICAL REFERENCES 
 
 341 
 
 V. 2 200 
 
 V. 4 202 
 
 V. 9 198,202 
 
 V. 10 20*2 
 
 V. 12 106, 199 
 
 V. 13 199 
 
 V. 23 189 
 
 V. 27 189, 198 
 
 n. Thbss. 
 
 i 201 
 
 i. 1 197 
 
 i. 2, 3 198 
 
 i. 4 196, 198,200 
 
 i. 5 198, 200 
 
 i. 7 20,202 
 
 i. 8 198,290 
 
 i. 9 202 
 
 i. 10 104, 174 
 
 i. 11 198 
 
 ii. 1 198,201 
 
 ii. 2 107,198,200,201 
 
 ii. 3,4 201 
 
 ii. 5 189,201 
 
 ii. 6-12 201 
 
 ii. 8 202 
 
 ii. 12 174 
 
 ii. 13 198,201 
 
 ii. 14 116, 201 
 
 ii. 15 174,189,198 
 
 ii. 15-17 201 
 
 u. 16 116 
 
 ui. 1-3 201 
 
 iii. 2 174 
 
 iii. 4,5,6-16. 201 
 
 ui. 6 106,174,189,198 
 
 iii. 6-12 200 
 
 iii. 7 174 
 
 iii. 7-10 198 
 
 iU. 8, 9 189 
 
 iii. 12 198 
 
 iii. 14..106, 107,174,189, 198 
 iii. 17, 18 201 
 
 I. Tm. 
 
 i. 2 119, 
 
 i. 3 171, 182,255, 
 
 i. 4 170, 172, 
 
 i.5 
 
 i. 6.. 
 
 i. G-10 
 
 i. 7 
 
 1.8,9 
 
 i.lO 
 
 i. 11 
 
 i. 11-16 
 
 i. 12 77, 
 
 i. 13 72,73,77, 
 
 i. 14 174, 
 
 i. 15 
 
 i. 16 77, 
 
 i. 18 119, 
 
 i. 19 170: 
 
 i. 20 170 
 
 ii. 7 
 
 U. 9 
 
 ,170, 
 
 174, 
 . 175, 
 
 174 
 256 
 174 
 174 
 63 
 202 
 172 
 175 
 175 
 291 
 170 
 175 
 115 
 175 
 175 
 174 
 180 
 173 
 171 
 170 
 173 
 
 Page 
 
 ii. 12 : 219 
 
 ii. 15 174 
 
 iii. 1 173 
 
 iii. 1-10 170 
 
 iii. 2 258 
 
 iii. 5,6,7 175 
 
 iii. 8 41 
 
 iii. 12 175,250 
 
 iii. 13 175 
 
 iii. 14 255 
 
 iii. 14-16 257 
 
 iii. 15 170, 174 
 
 iu. 16 297 
 
 iv. 1 172,173 
 
 iv. 1-3 170,202 
 
 iv. 3 174,175 
 
 iv. 4 175 
 
 iv. 6 170,173,174 
 
 iv. 7 170,172 
 
 iv. 10 174 
 
 iv. 12 170,174 
 
 iv. 14 180 
 
 iv. 17 250 
 
 V. 1-22 170 
 
 V. 17 106,173,258 
 
 V. 18 272 
 
 vi. 1,2 175 
 
 vi. 3 291 
 
 vi. 3-5 170,202 
 
 vi. 4 170 
 
 vi. 9 296 
 
 vi. 10 173,296 
 
 vi. 11 170, 174 
 
 vi. 12 174,175 
 
 vi. 13 80 
 
 vi. 14.. 175 
 
 vi. 17-19 296 
 
 vi. 18, 19 174 
 
 vi. 20.. 170, 172 
 
 vi. 21 173 
 
 n. Tm. 
 
 i 260 
 
 i. 1 175 
 
 i. 2 119 
 
 i. 3 72, 174 
 
 i.5 119, 120, 174 
 
 i. 6 170, 180 
 
 i. 8 259,291 
 
 i. 9 175 
 
 i. 10 291 
 
 i. 11 77 
 
 i. 12 259 
 
 i. 13 174,175 
 
 i. 14 175 
 
 i. 15 182,202,2.59 
 
 i. 15-18 171 
 
 i. 17 259 
 
 ii 261 
 
 ii. 1 119, 170, 175 
 
 ii. 2 106,170,174,258 
 
 ii. 4 170 
 
 ii. 8 175,291 
 
 ii. 9 2.59 
 
 U. 10, 11 175 
 
 ii. 12,14,16 170 
 
 Page 
 
 ii. 18 170,172, 174 
 
 ii. 19 175 
 
 u. 22 170, 174 
 
 ii. 23 170 
 
 ii. 26 175 
 
 iii 261 
 
 iii. 1-7 170 
 
 iii. 1-8 202 
 
 iii. 1-9 170,270 
 
 iii. 1 172 
 
 iii. 8 174 
 
 iii. 10 119 
 
 iu. 11 59, 119 
 
 iii. 12 175 
 
 ui. 13 170,172 
 
 iii. 14 170 
 
 iii. 15 119,174,175 
 
 iv. 1-5 261 
 
 iv. 3 170,171, 174 
 
 iv. 4 171,172 
 
 iv. 6-9 261 
 
 iv. 6 259 
 
 iv. 7 170,174 
 
 iv. 8 175 
 
 iv. 9 194,260 
 
 iv. 10 213, 259 
 
 iv. 10-21 171 
 
 iv. 10-22 261 
 
 iv. 11 252,259 
 
 iv. 16,17 259 
 
 iv. 18 175 
 
 iv. 20 256 
 
 iv. 21 259,260 
 
 Titus. 
 
 i. 1 
 
 i.4 
 
 i.5 .171,173,250,255, 
 
 i. 5-9 
 
 i. 7 173, 
 
 i. 9 174, 
 
 i. 10-16 
 
 i. 10 170, 
 
 i. 12 
 
 i. 13 
 
 i. 14 
 
 i.lO 
 
 ii. 1, 2 
 
 ii. 7 
 
 ii. 9, 10, 11 
 
 u. 12 
 
 ii. 13 175, 
 
 ii. 14 174, 
 
 iii. 1,2,4-7,5,6,7,9... 
 
 iii. 8 
 
 iii. 9 170,172, 
 
 iii. 9-11,10 
 
 iu. 12 171,255,256, 
 
 iii. 13 171. 
 
 iii. 15 
 
 173 
 174 
 256 
 170 
 250 
 258 
 170 
 172 
 70 
 173 
 172 
 174 
 174 
 170 
 175 
 174 
 2C6 
 175 
 175 
 174 
 175 
 170 
 257 
 257 
 174 
 
 Prilkm. 
 
 1 240 
 
 10 239,240,241 
 
 12,19 241 
 
 22 240,266 
 
342 
 
 INDEX or BIBLICAL REFERENCES 
 
 23 241 
 
 24 240 
 
 HSB. 
 
 i. 1 toii. 4 288 
 
 i. 1 266,287 
 
 i. 2-4 266,305 
 
 ii. 1-4 164 
 
 ii. 1 165 
 
 ii. 3 265, 266 
 
 ii. 4 36,265,266 
 
 ii. 5-18 288 
 
 ii. 9, 10, 11 266 
 
 iii. 1 toiv. 13 288 
 
 Ui. 1-6 266 
 
 iii. 12 165 
 
 iv. 1 164 
 
 iv. 2 265 
 
 iv. 14 165 
 
 iv. 14to vii. 28 288 
 
 V. 12 to vi. 2 165 
 
 v. 12-14 164 
 
 v. 12 165, 266, 267 
 
 vi. 1 266,287 
 
 vi. 4-6 165 
 
 vi. 8,9 164 
 
 vi. 10 164, 266 
 
 vii. 11 165, 266 
 
 vii. 19,25,26 266 
 
 viii. 4-1 267 
 
 viii. 5 267,288 
 
 viii. tox 288 
 
 ix. 10,27,28 266 
 
 X. 4 266 
 
 X. 5.. 165 
 
 X. 10, 14 266 
 
 X. 23-25 165 
 
 1.25 267,286 
 
 X. 29, 30 266 
 
 X. 32 265 
 
 1.32-34 266,267 
 
 X. 35-39 164 
 
 X. 35 165 
 
 xi 287,289 
 
 xii 289 
 
 xii. 4, 27 2G7 
 
 xii. 18-24 266 
 
 xii. 28. 287 
 
 xiii. 7 265, 267 
 
 xiii. 9 266 
 
 xiii. 10-14 267 
 
 xiii. 13 165,266,267 
 
 xiii. 14 165,267 
 
 xiii. 22 288 
 
 xiii. 24 267 
 
 Jas. 
 i. 1 ... 126, 148,269,281,282 
 
 i. 2 125, 126, 280 
 
 i. 2-4 135 
 
 i. 3. 280,281, 282 
 
 i. 3 9 281 
 
 i. 4 126 
 
 i. 5 126, 135, 136,281 
 
 i. 6 126 
 
 i. G-8, 9-11 135 
 
 i. 8,9 126,281 
 
 Page 
 
 10 125 
 
 . 10-12 281 
 
 11 125,282 
 
 . 12 126 
 
 . 18 125,136,282 
 
 20 126, 136 
 
 21 125,126,135,136, 
 
 281, 282 
 
 i. 23 281 
 
 ii. 1-13 126. 135 
 
 ii. 1 126, 134, 281 
 
 ii. 2 38, 66, 92 
 
 ii. 2-6 134 
 
 ii. 3 38 
 
 ii. 4 136, 281, 282 
 
 ii. 5 126, 148,281, 282 
 
 ii. 6 126,281 
 
 ii. 7 126, 148,261 
 
 ii. 8 136 
 
 ii. 9 282 
 
 ii. 10 136, 282 
 
 ii. 12 126, 137 
 
 ii. 13 126 
 
 ii. 14-26 126, 135 
 
 ii. 15 281 
 
 ii. 21,22,25 282 
 
 ii. 23 136 
 
 ii. 24 281 
 
 iii 136 
 
 iii. 1 126 
 
 iii. 2 136 
 
 iii. 9-12 134 
 
 iu. 12, 16, 21 281 
 
 iii. 21,22, 24 282 
 
 iv. 1-10 134, 161 
 
 iv. 1-12 136 
 
 iv. 1 281,282 
 
 iv. 2 281 
 
 iv. 4 282 
 
 iv. 5 126, 136, 138 
 
 iv. 6 125, 136, 280 
 
 iv. 7 125,281 
 
 iv. 10 126 
 
 iv. 11 281 
 
 iv. 12 137 
 
 iv. 13 281, 282 
 
 iv. 13 to V. 8 136 
 
 iv. 14 136 
 
 iv. 18, 19, 20 282 
 
 v. 1-6 134 
 
 V. 1 281,282 
 
 V. 2 126 
 
 V. 4 281 
 
 V. 6 136 
 
 V. 7 137 
 
 V. 8 126,137 
 
 V. 9 126, 137, 281 
 
 V. 9-20 136 
 
 V. 10 126,281 
 
 V. 12 126 
 
 V. 14 66, 92, 126 
 
 V. 19 148 
 
 V. 20 125,148, 280 
 
 I. Pet. 
 134, 213, 252, 278, 281 
 268 
 
 i. 1 
 
 Ii. 2 
 
 i. 3 
 
 i. 4.. . . 
 
 .268,271, 
 
 280, 281 
 268, 280 
 
 i. 5 .. 
 
 
 280 
 
 i. 6.. 
 
 
 125, 280 
 
 i. 7 
 
 i. 8 .. 
 
 . 125, 267, 
 
 278, 281 
 268, 281 
 
 i. 9 .. . . 
 
 
 268 
 
 i. 12 
 
 
 ... 278 
 
 i. 13 
 
 i. 14 
 
 
 268, 278 
 278, 281 
 
 i. 17. 
 
 
 278 
 
 i. 18 
 
 
 268, 278 
 
 i. 20 . 
 
 
 280 
 
 i. 21 
 
 i. 24, 25.. 
 
 268 
 
 278, 281 
 125 
 
 ii. 1 
 
 
 125 
 
 ii. 5. 
 
 
 278, 280 
 
 ii. 6. 
 
 
 268, 280 
 
 ii. 9-11 ... 
 
 
 278 
 
 ii. 10 
 
 ii. 12, 13-15, 16-18 . 
 ii. 13-25 
 
 278, 281 
 
 278 
 
 246 
 
 ii. 18 
 
 
 252 
 
 ii. 20 
 
 
 268 
 
 ii. 21, 23 
 iii. 7 
 
 
 268, 281 
 .. . 278 
 
 iii. 8 
 
 
 280 
 
 iii. 15.... 
 iii. 16 .. 
 
 
 267, 278 
 278 
 
 iii. 17 
 
 
 279 
 
 iii. 22 
 
 
 280 
 
 iv. 3. 
 
 
 278 
 
 iv. 5 
 
 
 268 
 
 iv. 8 
 
 
 125 
 
 iv. 12 
 
 iv. 16 .... 
 iv. 17 .. 
 
 ■■.■.■.V.V.ios 
 
 . 267, 279 
 
 267, 279 
 
 268 
 
 V. 1. 
 
 
 268, 281 
 
 V. 4 . 
 
 
 280 
 
 V. 5 
 
 v. 6, 8... 
 
 . 125, 268 
 
 , 280, 281 
 ... 125 
 
 V. 9 . 
 
 
 279 
 
 V. 10 
 
 
 268 
 
 V. 12 
 
 
 281 
 
 V. 13 
 
 
 . 267, 276 
 
 II. Pet. 
 
 i. 3, 4, 10, 11 268 
 
 i. 14 268,284 
 
 i. 16,17 271 
 
 i. 16-18,19-21, 19 268 
 
 ii 268 
 
 ii. 1 to iii. 3 284 
 
 ii. 1 268, 269,284 
 
 ii. 3 268 
 
 ii. 4 269,284 
 
 ii. 9 268 
 
 ii. 10, 11, 12 269,284 
 
 ii. 13 268,269,284 
 
 ii. 15 285 
 
 iii. 1 107,268,284,285 
 
 iii. 2 107,268,285 
 
 iii. 3 202 
 
 iii. 4, 7, 10, 12-14, 13 . 268 
 
 iii. 15 268,284 
 
 iii. 16 107,268,284 
 
INDEX OF BIBLICAL REFERENCES 
 
 343 
 
 i. 1-3 .. 
 
 T. 
 
 JOH. 
 
 Page 
 
 303 
 
 i. 1-4 .. 
 
 
 
 306 
 
 i. 1 .. 
 
 
 
 274 
 
 i. 3, 4 
 
 
 
 107 
 
 i. 3-5 .. 
 
 
 
 274 
 
 i. 5 to ii. 
 ii. 7 27 
 
 6.. 
 
 
 306 
 
 306 
 
 ii. 18 
 
 
 
 . .. 299 
 
 ii. 18-27 
 ii. 19 . 
 
 
 
 202, 307 
 299 
 
 ii. 22.... 
 ii. 24 .. 
 ii. 28 to 
 
 299 
 
 ii. 24 
 
 300,307 
 
 303 
 
 306 
 
 306 
 
 iv. 1 .. 
 
 
 
 299 
 
 iv. 2.... 
 iv. 3. 
 
 
 ..106 
 
 300,307 
 299 
 
 iv. 6 
 
 
 
 100 
 
 iv. 26 .. 
 
 
 
 303 
 
 V. 1-12 . 
 
 
 
 306 
 
 V. 6. 
 
 
 
 299, 300 
 
 V. 13.... 
 4 
 
 II. 
 
 JOH. 
 
 303, 306 
 .. 307 
 
 7.. 
 
 
 
 . ...299 
 
 7-11 .... 
 
 
 
 307 
 
 9-11 .... 
 
 
 
 299 
 
 9, 10 ... 
 
 
 
 307 
 
 III. JoH. Page 
 
 4 ' 299 
 
 6. ..■.'.'.■.■ 298 
 
 7. 298,307 
 
 9. .■■.."" 308 
 
 10 298 
 
 12 308 
 
 JUDK. 
 
 1.. 131,269 
 
 3..'.'. 283 
 
 4 269,283,284 
 
 4-8 269 
 
 5,5-8 283 
 
 6 269,283,284 
 
 7,8-10 283 
 
 8 269,284 
 
 9, 10 269,283,284 
 
 11 283 
 
 12 35,269,283 
 
 12-16 283, 284 
 
 13, 14,15,16-23 283 
 
 17 95,283 
 
 18, 19,20 283 
 
 Rev. 
 
 1. 1-3 303,309 
 
 i. 3 105, 107 
 
 i. 4-6 309 
 
 i. 7 273,311 
 
 Page 
 
 . 9 303 
 
 . 10 297 
 
 .11 107,298 
 
 i 202 
 
 i. 1 298 
 
 u. 2 299 
 
 i. 6 299,309 
 
 i. 8 298 
 
 i. 9 273,309 
 
 i. 10, 13 309 
 
 i. 14, 15,20-24 299,309 
 
 ii 202 
 
 iii. 9, 10 309 
 
 iu. 17 296 
 
 V. 6 273 
 
 vi. 5, 6 107 
 
 vii. 9 295 
 
 X. 7 105 
 
 xi. 18 105 
 
 xiii 202 
 
 xui. 8 273 
 
 xvi. 6 105 
 
 ivii., xviii 202 
 
 xviii. 20,24 105 
 
 xix. 13 273 
 
 ixi. 2,9 273 
 
 xxii. 6, 9 105 
 
 xxii. 17 273 
 
 xxii. 18, 19 107 ^ 
 
 xxii. 20 sup 
 
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 1 1012 00016 0103 
 
 
 
 
 
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