blish any truth; to whose examples I add Appian Ω, 804, 43. ἐς τε πίστιν τῆς ὑποκρίσεως τοὺς θεράποντας ἐσταύρου. Wetstein also cites examples from Thucyd. 3, 112. τοῖς προφύλαξι πίστιν παρεχομένους, & 6, 17. ὀργῇ πίστιν παρασχομένῃ ἔπεισε. Strabo 42 Α. Theophr. C. P. 5, 7. Dionys. Hal. de Dict. Thucyd. 1. πίστεις παρέχομαι, besides a considerable number of other passages. 32-34. ἀκούσαντες δὲ ἀνάστασιν νεκρῶν, οἱ μὲν έχε λeúagov. It is plain that the Apostle was here interrupted in his discourse by the derision and mockery of at least one class of his hearers; * and by the indifference of others. For I cannot accede to the opinion of Beza and others, that the words άkovσóμεθα σου πάλιν περὶ τούτου indicate a mind undecided, and a wish to hear more. Had that been the case, they would have chosen the time present. But as Paul's discourse was interrupted by the sneers and laughter of one part of his audience, so was it equally by the exclamation of others, ἀκουσόμεθά σου πάλιν TEP TOUTOU, which was, I imagine, a civil way of saying, "we will hear no more of this at present." And probably some suited the action to the word, and turned upon their heel while he was speaking. "And thus (says Doddridge) the indifference of some, and the petulance of others, cut short the Apostle's discourse: so that they went down to righteous condemnation, under the guilt of having rejected a Gospel, the proof of which they might * These are generally supposed to have been the Epicureans, and the others the Stoics: an opinion which seems too formal and systematical to be much relied upon. We are not to imagine the disgust to have arisen solely from the mention of a resurrection of the dead. The declaration that repentance was necessary to all of them, and that a judgment would be held over their nation, must have been unaccountable to all parties, especially to those who held the doctrine of perfectibility. And the scoffers (particularly in so jocular a people as the Athenian) would, I imagine, be found among all classes. Indeed the extreme levity of that nation, and their proneness to ridicule, is remarked by many antient writers, from whom citations may be found in Wetstein. have learnt in one single day, but would not give themselves the trouble of examining; and this is the condemnation among us." 33. ἐξῆλθεν ἐκ μέσου αὐτῶν. This simply signifies "departed from them." See 2 Cor. 6, 15. 34. τινὲς δὲ ἄνδρες κολληθέντες αὐτῷ ἐ. On κολλάσ Oas see the note on 5, 13.; and on 'Apeorαyírns the note on ver. 19. By yon cannot be meant, as many suppose, the wife of Dionysius; for that would have required yuv auToû. It signifies a wife, or matron; and the Cod. Cant. adds evoxwv, which is, however, a gloss; though not undeserving of attention. The author of it was thinking of the expression yuvaîkas Tàs evo xúμovas, respectable matrons, at 13, 50. The word ria, added in Cod. E., is also a gloss. As to the name Aáuagis, since it no where else occurs, Grotius, Hemsterhusius, and others, would read for it Aάuaλis, a name by no means uncomBut Olearius, Wolf, and others, rightly reject this, very truly observing that the p and λ are perpetually interchanged. Possibly, too, the name was a Doric one. mon. 34. καὶ ἕτεροι σὺν αὐτοῖς. For ἕτεροι Markland conjectures repai: which is, however, unnecessary, not to say solocistic; since as the aurois indicates that persons of both sexes are meant, so propriety of language requires that the pronoun following should be in the masculine, as being (so the Grammarians tell us) the worthier gender. CHAP. XVIII. Paul, after having departed from Athens, repairs to Corinth, and there meets with Aquila, who, on being expelled from Rome, had, with his wife Priscilla, retired to this city. To Aquila, who was a tent maker, Paul, being of the same trade, joins himself, works in his shop, and lodges in his house (ver. 1-5). Silas and Timotheus come to him from Macedonia (ver. 5). After having staid a year and a half at Corinth (ver. 11.), and (though amidst the pertinacious opposition of the Jews) preached to the Gentiles with success the doctrine of Christ, Paul takes a journey through Syria; repairs to Cæsarea and Jerusalem (21 & 22.); afterwards traverses Galatia and Phrygia (ver. 23.); and, at length, returns to Ephesus, where he had left Aquila and Priscilla (ver. 23.), who had accompanied him into Syria (ver. 18.). Meanwhile, at Ephesus, Apollos, being accurately taught the Christian doctrine by Aquila and Priscilla, had there preached it (25 seqq.) (Kuin.) 1. Κόρινθον. Α celebrated city with two ports ; whence it was called bimaris, the metropolis of Achaia, called by Cicero totius Græciæ lumen, and by Florus Græciæ decus; and of which Strabo says (L. 8. p. 263.) ή μὲν οὖν πόλις τῶν Κορινθίων μεγάλη τε καὶ πλουσία διαπαντὸς ὑπῆρξεν, ἀνδρῶν τε ἠυπόρηκεν ἀγαθῶν εἰς τε τὰ πολιτικὰ καὶ εἰς τὰς τέχνας τὰς δημι ουργικὰς. See also Arist. Orat. in Nept. Opp. Τ. 1. p. 23. (Kuin.) The Commentators have, however, omitted the most important passage respecting this city to be found in any antient author: namely, Thucyd. L. 1, 13. οἴκουντες γὰρ τὴν πόλιν οἱ Κορίνθιοι ἐπὶ τοῦ ἰσθμοῦ αεὶ δὴ πότε ἐμπόριον εἶχον, τῶν Ελλήνων τὸ πάλαι κατὰ γῆν τὰ πλείω ἢ κατὰ θάλασσαν, τῶν τε ἐντὸς Πελοπονήσου, καὶ τῶν ἔξω, διὰ τῆς ἐκείνων παρ' ἀλλήλους ἐπιμισγόντων, χρήμασί τε δυνατοὶ ἦσαν, ὡς καὶ τοῖς παλαιοῖς ποιηταῖς δεδήλωται· ἀφνειὸν γὰρ ἐπωνόμα σαν τὸ χωρίον· ἐπειδὴ τε οἱ Ἕλληνες μᾶλλον ἐπλωΐζον, τὰς ναῦς κτησάμενοι, τὸ λῃστικὸν καθήρουν, καὶ ἐμπόριον παρέχοντες ἀμφότερα, δυνατὴν ἔσχον χρημάτων προσόδω τὴν πόλιν. 2. Ἰουδαῖον ὀνόματι Ακύλαν. This is the Latin name Aquila, with a Greek termination. For the Jews of those times resident among the Gentiles used to assume Gentile names, or assimilate their Jewish ones thereto. See Grot. on Acts 13, 9. Barth. Adv. 7, 4. That this Aquila is not (as some say) the same with the Greek Translator of the Old Testament (though he was his fellow-countryman), still less the Chaldee Paraphrast Onkelos, has been shown by Koppe on Rom. 16, 3. Michaelis conjectures that he had been resident at Rome on commercial business: and that he was rich, may, he thinks, be collected from the circumstance that the Christians of Rome and Ephesus used to meet at his house. See Rom. 16, 5. 1 Cor. 16 & 19. (Kuin.) These seem, however, somewhat precarious conclusions. Whether he was yet a Christian when Paul met with him, or not, St. Luke does not say; and it has been thought uncertain. But St. Luke often omits minute circumstances, which may very well be supplied: and this probably is one of them; especially since the expression προσῆλθον αὐτοῖς im. plies a sort of connection, which was probably that of identity of religion. Now there had been a congregation of Christians at Rome, from the earliest period of the Gospel, which originated (as some think) with certain of those who had been present at the feast of Pentecost, when the Holy Ghost was imparted; and was doubtless fostered and promoted by those Jewish Christians who had occasion to repair to that city on commercial or other business. 2. Ποντικὸν τῷ γένει, i. e. “ by country one of Pontus;" in which province there were many Jews settled. (Kuin.) Probably on account of the considerable commerce which was carried on from thence with most parts of the civilized world. Пgoopáτws, recently. This would properly signify recently slain, from the old word paw, cognate with σφάζω. Thus a corpse is called πρόσφατος VEKpos by Phrynichus 164. See also Hom. Il. w. 757. Hence goodaros was applied generally to what is recent, new, &c. See Suid. and Hesych. So Pind. Pyth. 4. ult. роσPαTоν OŃẞn evabels: where the Scholiast explains apríws. And in Sirach 9, 10. it is opposed to apxaîos. Other Classical examples may be seen in Alberti and Kypke. Пpokiaλa. A diminutive from Prisca, as she is Πρισκίλλα. called in 2 Tim. 4, 19. and which some think ought to be read here: but without reason; for, in antient times, names of persons, especially of females, were sometimes pronounced in the simple, and sometimes in the diminutive form; as, for instance, Terentilla, Catullus, &c. See Casaub. on Sueton. Aug. C. 69. 2. διὰ τὸ διατεταχέναι Κλαύδιον, " had issued a Sárayua, or order." This is noticed by Sueton. Claud. C. 23. in these words: "Judæos, impulsore Chresto, assiduè tumultuantes Româ expulit." By the Chrestus, mentioned by Suetonius, some recent interpreters, as also Archbishop Usher and Van Dalen, understand a certain Hellenistic Jew, or freedman, who had excited the Jews to rebellion. But the earlier Commentators, more rightly, maintain that by Chresto we are to understand Christo: and in this opinion Kuinoel acquiesces. "The words of that writer (says he) are to be understood of dissensions between the Jews and Christians, and other disturbances, to which Christianity had given rise." "From the Acts of the Apostles (continues he) it sufficiently appears that the Jews frequently excited tumults in the cities of Greece, for the purpose of throwing impediments in the way of those who were promulgating Christianity. And this they seem to have done at Rome; which accounts for those turbæ assiduæ, or frequent tumults, to which that suspicious tyrant Claudius chose to put an end by this edict of expulsion, which, no doubt, extended to Christians also; for they were, as yet, confounded with Jews. To call Christus Chrestus was, indeed, a mistake likely to occur, especially as the name Chrestus was very common; whereas that of Christus was by no means so. And that, in point of fact, the mistake was often made, we learn from Tertullian, Apol. ad Gentes, C. 3. and Lactant. Institut. 4, 7, 5. (Kuin.) There is no reason to wonder that Suetonius, a Gentile, should confound Christus and Chrestus, or account Christ as the author of these disturbances [which in a certain sense he was: nay |