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where came in a woman that was a sinner, ch. vii. 36-50; his entertainment at the house of Martha, ch. x. 38-42 the history of Zaccheus, ch. xix. 1-10; our Lord's agony in the garden, ch. xxii. 43, 44; the penitent thief on the cross, ch. xxiii. 39-43; and a particular account of the two disciples going to Emmaus, ch. xxiv. 13-35.

All these, and many other things, which I omit, are peculiar to St. Luke. And did he transcribe many things from St. Matthew, and yet more from St. Mark?

Mill's argument, taken from the similitude of style and composition, to prove, that these evangelists had seen each others' writings, appears to be insufficient. And himself allows, that two authors writing upon the same subject in the Greek language may easily agree very much in expression.

I have insisted the more upon this point, because I think, that to say the evangelists abridged and transcribed each other, without giving any hint of their so doing, is a great disparagement to them and it likewise diminisheth the value and importance of their testimony. Said Mr. Le Clerc, before quoted, They seem to think more justly, who say, that the first three evangelists were unacquainted with ' each other's design. In that way greater weight accrues 'to their testimony. When witnesses agree, who have first laid their heads together, they are suspected. But wit'nesses, who testify the same thing separately, without 'knowing what others have said, are justly credited.'

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This is not a new opinion, lately thought of: nor has it been taken up by me, out of opposition to any. I have all my days read, and admired the first three evangelists, as independent, and harmonious witnesses. And I know not how to forbear ranking the other opinion among those bold, as well as groundless assertions, in which critics too often indulge themselves, without considering the consequences.

Verum quidem est, eum esse linguæ hujus, quæ evangelistis in usu erat, Hellenisticæ genium, eam indolem, ut in unum ferme eundemque dicendi characterem, quoties de unâ eâdemque materiâ agitur, sese efformet; ita ut diversi in hoc genere scriptores, unum idemque aliquod argumentum particulare tractantes, stylo ac sermonis tenore haud absimili usuri essent, &c. Prol. num. 108. See Vol. iii. p. 504.

CHAP. XI.

ST. PAUL.

1. His history before his conversion, and his general character. II. The time of his conversion. III. Observations upon his conversion, and the circumstances of things at that time in Judea. IV. His age at the time of his conversion. V. When he was made an apostle. VI. The history of his travels, and preaching: particularly, from the time of his conversion and apostleship, to his coming from Damascus to Jerusalem, the first time after his conversion. VII. From his coming first to Jerusalem to his being brought to Antioch by Barnabas. VIII. To his coming up to Jerusalem with the contributions of the christians at Antioch. IX. To his coming to the council at Jerusalem about the year 49. X. To his coming to Jerusalem with contributions of divers gentile churches, in the year 58, when he was apprehended, and imprisoned. XI. To the end of his imprisonment at Rome. XII. To the time of his death.

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I. SAUL, called also PAUL, by which name he was generally called, after his preaching in gentile countries, and, particularly, among Greeks and Romans, a descendant of the patriarch Abraham, one of God's ancient chosen people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, was a native of Tarsus, then the chief city of Cilicia. He was also by birth a citizen of Rome. How he became entitled to that privilege,

a Acts xiii. 9. "Then Saul, who also is called Paul," Σavλoç de, ó кai Пavλog. Id est, qui ex quo cum Romanis conversari cœpit, hoc nomine, a suo non abludente, cœpit a Romanis appellari. Sic qui Jesus Judæis, Græcis Jason; Hillel, Pollio:- -apud Romanos Silas, Silvanus, ut notavit Hieronymus. Grot. in Act. xiii. 9.

Hoc primum loco cœpit apostolus a Lucâ Paulus dici, quem ubique antea Saulum vocavit. Nec deinceps alio quam Pauli nomine usquam vocabit.—-— Alii igitur apostolum jam inde ab initio binominem fuisse putant, ut ex altero homine Judæus, ex altero Romanus civis esse intelligeretur. Alii cum religione nomen eum mutâsse putant, cum ex pharisæo fieret christianus.--Sunt demum qui a Sergio Paulo proconsule ad Christum converso hoc cognomen adeptum esse putent.--Ac facile mihi quidem persuadeo, primum a proconsulis Romani familiâ ita vocari cœpisse. Bez. Annot. in Act. xiii. 9. See likewise Dr. Doddridge's Family Expositor, Vol. iii. p. 198. note, or upon Acts b Acts xxi. 39. xxii. 3.

xiii. 9.

Acts xvi. 37, 38. xxii. 25-29. xxiii. 27.

has been distinctly shown in another place. His father e was a pharisee, and himself was of the same sect. He had a sister, whose son was a christian, and a discreet person, who was of great service to his uncle Paul, when a prisoner at Jerusalem. His conduct cannot be thought of without admiration and gratitude. Some others of his relations are mentioned by him in his epistle to the Romans, who also were believers in Jesus, and several of them had been so before himself: which may be reckoned a proof of the virtue and piety of this family. Their names are Andronicus, and Junia, whom he calls" his kinsmen," ovyyees we. Rom. xvi. 7. By which he must mean something more than their being his countrymen. He speaks in the like manner of Herodian, ver. 11, and also of Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater, ver. 21. It may be reckoned very probable, that he was educated in Greek literature in his early life at Tarsus. It is certain, that he was for a while under the instructions of Gamaliel, at Jerusalem, a celebrated Jewish Rabbi, and that he made great proficiency in the study of the law, and the traditions, much esteemed by that people. He seems to have been a person of great natural abilities, of quick apprehension, strong passions, and firm resolution, and thereby qualified for signal service, as a teacher of such principles as he should embrace, whatever they were. appears likewise to have been always unblamable in his life, and strictly faithful to the dictates of his conscience, according to the knowledge which he had. Of this all must d See Vol. i. p. 240, 241. e Acts xxiii. 6; xxvi. 5; Philip. iii. 5. f Acts xxiii. 16-22. Cognatos suos,' id est ejusdem secum generis, vocat, ut multi exponunt, quia Judæi erant, quemadmodum supra ix. 3, de Judæis in universum dixit, qui sunt cognati mei secundum carnem ; et sic eum loqui, ut Judæorum qui Romæ erant gratiam sibi conciliet. Verum, quia multi Romæ erant Judæi christiani, et proinde hac generali ratione Paulo cognati; idcirco putant alii, cognatos hic dici magis proprie, ut qui fuerint Paulo contribules, id est, de tribu Benjamin, aut forte etiam propriore sanguinis vinculo conjuncti. Est. in Rom. xvi. 7.

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This may be argued from the place of his nativity, Tarsus, which was celebrated for polite literature, and from St. Paul's quotations of several Greek poets, Acts xvii. 28; 1 Cor. xv. 33; Tit. i. 12. Dr. Bentley begins his third Sermon at Boyle's Lecture, which is the second upon Acts xvii. 27, 28, in this manner, I have said enough in my last, to show the fitness and pertinence of 'the apostle's discourse -and that he did not talk at random, but was thoroughly acquainted with the several humours and opinions of his auditors. Aud, as "Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians," so it is manifest from this chapter alone, if nothing else had been now extant, that 'St. Paul was a great master in all the learning of the Greeks.'

i Acts xxii. 3.

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* Acts xxii. 3; xxvi. 5; Gal. i. 14. sectâ pharisæum, excellenti magnoque ingenio præditum, literarum judaicarum imprimis peritum, nec Græcarum expertem. J. L. Moshem. de Reb. Christian. ante Constantin. sect. 1. n. xv. p. 80.

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be persuaded, who observe his appeals to the Jews, upon this head, when they were greatly offended with him; and from the undissembled satisfaction which he expresseth upon a serious recollection of his former and later conduct. For some while, after the first appearance of christianity in the world, he was a bitter enemy and furious opposer of all who made profession of it. Nevertheless he persisted not long in that course: but was in a very extraordinary manner converted to that faith himself, and ever after he was a steady friend, and zealous advocate for it, and very successful in defending and propagating it, diligently improving the gifts and qualifications extraordinarily vouchsafed him for that purpose. These things are recorded in those writings, which are in the highest esteem, and reckoned sacred among christians, and indeed are well known to all the world.

II. I am desirous to do my best to settle the time of St. Paul's conversion. If we can do that with some good degree of probability, we shall attain to a near knowledge of the time of St. Stephen's martyrdom: concerning both which events there have been very different opinions in former and later ages. Valesius, in his Annotations upon Eusebius's Ecclesiastical History, mentions divers opinions of ancient writers about the time of St. Stephen's death. As the passage may be acceptable to some, I have placed it below.

Among moderns, Cave thought that? Stephen was stoned, and Paul converted in the year of our Lord's ascension, the year 33, or the beginning of the year following. Pearson supposeth that Stephen was stoned in 34, and Paul converted in 35, near the end of the year. Having been three years in Arabia, and at Damascus, he came to Jerusalem, near the end of 38; in which year, or the beginning of the following, he went to Tarsus; where, and in Syria, he was

m Acts xxiii. 1; xxvi. 4, 5. 2 Tim. i. 3.

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Philip. iii. 6; 1 Tim. i. 13; • Quo anno Stephanus martyrii coronam adeptus sit, non convenit inter omnes. Alii eodem anno, quo passus est Christus, lapidatum illum volunt. Ita diserte scribitur in Excerptis Chronologicis, quæ cum Eusebii Chronico edidit Scaliger, pag. 68. Et hæc videtur fuisse Eusebii sententia, ut ex hoc loco apparet.- Alii vero triennio post

Christi mortem martyrium Stephani retulerunt.-Ita scribit in Chronico Georgius Syncellus. Multi etiam ulterius processerunt, et Stephanum anno ab ordinatione suâ septimo passum esse scripserunt. Inter quos est Evodius apud Nicephorum, et Hippolytus Thebanus, et auctor Chronici Alexandrini, qui anno Claudii primo martyrium Stephani adsignat. Vales. Annot. in Euseb. 1. 2. cap. i. ad fidem Christi conversus, discipulus fit et apostolus, A. C. 33 exeunte, vel saltem ineunte proximo. Hist. Lit. T. I. in S. Paulo. Annal. Paulin. p. 1-4.

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four years, that is, 39, 40, 41, 42. Which appears to me a long space of time. In 43 he came to Antioch. And having spent a year there, he came to Jerusalem in 44. So Pearson.

Frederic Spanheim, who also has bestowed great pains in examining this point, placeth' the conversion of Paul in the year 40, the last of Caius Caligula: and was inclined to defer it to the first of Claudius, the year 41. Him Witsius follows. And J. A. Fabriciust declares his assent to the same opinion.

L'Enfant and Beausobre, in their general preface to St. Paul's epistles, place his conversion in the year 36, and his first coming to Jerusalem after it in 39; which opinion I believe to be nearer the truth than any of the foregoing.

There is an event mentioned in the Acts, about which we may receive light from external history. I mean," the rest of the churches throughout all Judea, and Galilee, and Samaria," Acts ix. 31.

In the former part of this work" it was shown to be very probable, that this rest of the churches of Christ was owing to the state of things in Judea, when Petronius, president of Syria, published the orders which he had received from Caius, to erect his statue in the temple of Jerusalem, in the year of Christ 39, or 40. Which account was afterwards followed by Dr. Benson in his History of the first Planting the Christian Religion. Dr. Doddridge" likewise declared his approbation of it.

When I formerly argued, that this rest of the churches was occasioned by the above-mentioned order of the emperor Caius, I did not know that any one had assigned that as the occasion of it. But since, I have perceived, that S. Basin anno conversionis Pauli, quam non anteriorem esse Caii ultimo, audacter pronuntiamus. De Conversion. Paulin. Epochâ. num. xix. Opp. T. II. p. 321. • De Vitâ Pauli, Sect. ii. n. 22. ap. Miletem. Leyd. p. 34. Tantum noto in præsenti, me sequi eorum rationes, qui Paulum conversum esse existimant anno quarto sive ultimo Caii, an. 40, et capite truncatum A. C. 68, Neronis xiv. Fabr. Bib. Gr. T. III. p. 151. (f). "See Vol. i. sect. xii. p. 90-104. es▾ See of that work B. I. ch. 9. sect. iii. at the end. Family Expositor, Vol. III. P. 147. * Mira hæc, et præter omnium expectationem. exorta rerum vicissitudo fuit. Cui non minimum contulit infelix Judæorum status, quibus a Caligulâ vexatis, timentibusque templi violationem Petronio mandatam, Christi discipulorum persecutioni vacare non licuit. Cum enim constituendæ ecclesiarum paci sæpe numero Dei sapientia occasionibus utatur, atque humanis auxiliis; probabilis utique affertur conjectura, eo sopitum fuisse Judæorum furorem, quia propriis pressi miseriis ab inferendâ ecclesiæ calamitate prohibebantur.— -Nec inopinatæ tranquillitatis aptior ulla ratio reddi potest. Ann. 40. num. xvi.

pecially near the end of that section.

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