B REESE LIBRA! UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. R 23 1895 Jtf^b Class No. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER BY THE SAME AUTHOR. SUPERNATURAL RELIGION : an Inquiry into the Reality of Divine Eevelation. 3 vols. 8vo. 86*. A REPLY TO DR. LIGHTFOOT'S ESSAYS ON ' SUPERNATURAL RELIGION.' 8vo. Gs. London: LONGMANS, GKEEN, & CO. New York : 15 East 16 th Street. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER A STUDY BY THE AUTHOR OF 'SUPERNATURAL RELIGION' (D^dx-fr V ^ OP THE UNIVERSITY^ LONDON LONGMANS, GEE EN, AND CO. AND NEW YORK : 15 EAST 16 th STREET 1894 All rights reterted > 7ro\\ol rwv TTSTrripotyopviiJLsvQv sy ^iijv Trpay/jiTWv ^ '' ' * Forasmuch as many took in hand to draw up a narrative con- cerning the matters which have been fully believed among us LUKE i. 1 6IVERSITY) OF S CONTENTS PAGK I. THE FRAGMENT OF AKHMIM 1 II. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER 7 III. THE LETTER OF SERAPION 12 IV. JUSTIN MARTYR AND THE MEMOIRS OF PETER . . .20 V. THE EPISTLE OF BARNABAS 32 VI. THE DIATESSARON OF TATIAN 35 VII. INTERNAL INDICATIONS OF DATE . . . .... 42 VIII. THE FRAGMENT AND THE CANONICAL GOSPELS . . .47 IX. RELATIVE ANTIQUITY OF THE FRAGMENT . . . . 107 X. THE FRAGMENT AND PROPHETIC GNOSIS .... 110 XI. THE GOSPELS AND PROPHETIC GNOSIS 127 XII. CONCLUSION 132 THE TEXT OF THE FRAGMENT . 135 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER EGYPT, in our days, ceasing to be any more the land of bondage, has, in more senses than one, become a veritable Land of Promise. It is a rich mine of historical and literary wealth, alas ! most inadequately worked, and in that fine climate, with its clear dry air, the footprints of Time, leaving scarcely a trace, the treasures of an ancient civilisation, even of the most delicate texture, have been preserved to us with wonder- ful perfection. The habits of the peoples that have occupied the land have happily combined with the natural advantages of the climate, in transmitting to the modern world an inheritance of which we are now beginning to take possession. The dead have long been giving up their secrets, but it is only in recent times that we have been able to realise the fact that the tombs of Egypt may contain many a precious work, now known to us but in name, and many a writing which may change the current of controversy, and strangely modify many a cherished opinion. With- out referring here to earlier discoveries in support of these remarks, we may at once pass to the more recent, with which we have particularly to do. B 2 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER In the course of explorations carried on during the winter of 1886-87 by the order of M. Grebaut, then Director of the Museums of Egypt, two Greek manu- scripts were discovered in the necropolis of Aklnnini, the ancient Panopolis, in Upper Egypt. The first of these was a papyrus, which was really found by some Fellahs who quarrelled regarding the partition of their precious booty and thus allowed the secret to leak out. It came to the knowledge of the Moudir, or Governor of the Province, who promptly settled the dispute by confiscating the papyrus, which he forwarded to the Museum of Gizeh at Boulaq. This MS. is a collection of problems in arithmetic and geometry, carefully written out, probably by a student, and buried with him as his highest and most valued achievement. The second manuscript was of much higher interest. It was discovered in the tomb of a c monk.' It consists of thirty-three pages in parchment, measuring 6 inches in height by 4^ inches in breadth, without numbering, bound together in pasteboard covered with leather, which has become black with time. There is no date, nor any other indication of the approximate age of the MS. than that which is furnished by the characteristics of the writing and the part of the cemetery in which it was discovered. These lead to the almost certain con- clusion, according to M. Bouriant, who first transcribed the text, that the MS. cannot be anterior to the eighth century or posterior to the twelfth. The ancient cemetery of Akhmim stretches along to the north and west of the hill on which have been discovered tombs of the eighteenth to the twentieth dynasties, and it has served as a burial-place for the Christian inhabitants of the neighbourhood from the fifth to the fifteenth centuries, the more ancient part lying at the foot of the hill and extending gradually upward for about THE MANUSCRIPT 3 700 metres. The tomb in which the MS. was found is in a position which approximately tallies, as regards age, with the date indicated by the MS. itself. 1 Of course, these indications refer solely to the date of the MS. itself, and not to the age of the actual works transcribed in its pages. The thirty-three sheets of parchment, forming sixty- six pages, commence with an otherwise blank page, bearing a rough drawing of a Coptic cross, upon the arms of which rise smaller crosses of the same de- scription, and the letters /^ and ^ stand the one on the left, the other on the right of the lower stem of the large cross. Over the page commences a fragment of the 'Gospel of Peter,' which continues to the end of page 10, where it abruptly terminates in the middle of a sentence. Pages 11 and 12 have been left blank. Pages 13 to 19 contain a fragment of the 'Apocalypse of Peter,' beginning and ending abruptly, and these have, either by accident or design, been bound in the volume upside down and in reverse order, so that, as they actually stand, the text commences at page 19 and ends at page 13. Page 20 is again blank, and the rest of the volume is made up of two fragments of the ' Book of Enoch,' the first extending from the 21st to the 50th page, and the second, written by a different hand, from the 51st to the 66th page. Finally, on the inside of the binding, and attached to it, is a sheet of parchment on which is written in uncials a fragment of the Greek ' Acts of St. Julian,' though which St. Julian amongst those in the Calendar does not appear. The French Archeological Mission published in 1892 2 the mathematical papyrus, edited by M. Baillet, but the much more interesting and important volume 1 Fragments grecs du Livre d' Enoch, &c., publics par les membres de la Mission archeol. fran^aise a Caire, Fasc. 3, 1893. 2 1 Fasc. B 2 4 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER of fragments did not appear until 1893, 1 when they were edited by M. Bouriant. These precious works- remained, therefore, practically hidden from the world for five or six years after their discovery, in conse- quence of what is vaguely, but truly, described as ' vexatious delays,' whilst the comparatively uninterest- ing arithmetical work preceded them by more than a year. The fragments of the ' Gospel ' and ' Apocalypse ' of Peter, long known by references or quotations by the Fathers, make us acquainted, for the first time, with the writings themselves, and the fragments of the ' Book of Enoch ' give us the Greek text of part of an early work quoted by the writer of the Epistle of Jude, hitherto only extant in an Ethiopian version. Of almost greater interest than the actual discovery of these and other precious MSS. from time to time, in a similar way, is the possibility and probability opened out to us that we may yet recover from the dead still more precious works than these. The cemetery of Akhmim stands near the ancient and very important city of Panopolis, and from a very early period it was the centre of a considerable Christian population. The custom of burying with the dead books which were a valued possession during life was probably a survival of the same primitive custom in accordance with which also a warrior's horse and dog and his weapons were in- terred with him to serve him again in the world of spirits. That books, at a time when their multiplication was so slow, should have been interred with their dead possessor is not only curious but very fortunate for us, and we may yet thank the cemetery of Akhmim for preserving safely for us manuscripts which in no other way could have escaped the effects of time and the ravages of bar- barism. 1 3 Fasc. QUESTIONS SUGGESTED BY THE FRAGMENTS 5 The fragments with which we are dealing present some peculiarities which deserve a moment's notice. The Gospel according to Peter commences in the middle of a sentence, but being at the top of a page it is probably only part of a manuscript of which the -earlier portion was either lost or belonged to some one else. The fragment, however, ends abruptly in the middle of a phrase and, being followed by blank pages, the reasonable presumption is that the scribe intended to complete the transcription, but for some reason did not do so. It is curious that in a similar way the 'Apocalypse of Peter' is only a fragment, beginning and ending abruptly, with a page left blank for continua- tion. Did the scribe hastily copy stray leaves of each work, which had fortuitously come in his way, leaving room for more should he be able to secure the rest ? or did he break off his copy of the one to take up the other, and with equal restlessness leave it also un- finished? We shall never know exactly, but considering the value of books at that epoch, the probability seems to be that he hastily copied such portions of writings as had come into his possession, time or accident prevent- ing the completion of his task. The fragment of the ' Gospel ' of course does not bear any name or superscription nor, indeed, does the 4 Apocalypse' but the title is clearly deduced from the work itself, the writer saying directly 'but I, Simon Peter,' and thus proving that the narrative takes the form of a composition by that Apostle. It may be remarked, merely in passing, that it is a curious if not in any way a significant fact that the two Christian fragments in this little volume should both profess to have been written by the Apostle Peter. Are the peculiarities of the fragments which we have described due to the passage of some one having in his possession or THE UNIVERSITY 6 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER two works selected as being believed to emanate from the chief of the Apostles, from which there was only time to make these extracts ? There is some reason for thinking that the parchment may have previously been used for some other writing, obliterated to make way for these fragments. The little volume has not alto- gether escaped injury in its long rest by the side of the dead, and parts of the text have had to be supplied by conjecture ; but, on the whole, the writing is fairly legible and, by the invaluable aid of photography, it has been copied and published with complete fidelity. Before this was done, that the first transcription by M. Bouriant should have contained errors and omissions- which led scholars into mistaken conclusions is very intelligible, but the text may now be considered fairly settled, and the following is a rather close and unpolished translation of the ' Gospel according to Peter.' n THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETEE 1 1 ... but of the Jews no man washed his hands, neither Herod nor any one of his judges ; and as they 2 were not minded to wash, Pilate rose. And then Herod the King commandeth the Lord to be taken, saying unto them : ' Whatsoever I commanded that ye should 3 do, that do unto him.' But there was there Joseph, the friend of Pilate and of the Lord, and knowing that they are about to crucify him, he came to Pilate and asked 4 the body of the Lord for burial. And Pilate sent to 5 Herod and asked for his body. And Herod said: 6 Brother Pilate, even if no one had begged for him, we should have buried him ; because the Sabbath is at hand ; for it is written in the Law : ' The sun must not go down upon one put to death.' 6 And he delivered him to the people before the first day of the Unleavened bread of their feast. And taking the Lord they pushed him hurrying along, and said : ' Let us drag along the Son of God as 7 we have power over him. And they clad him with purple and set him on a seat of judgment, saying : 8 'Judge justly, King of Israel.' And one of them brought a crown of thorns and set it upon the head of 9 the Lord. And others standing by spat upon his eyes, and others smote him on the cheeks ; others pierced him with a reed, and some scourged him, saying : c With this honour honour we the Son of God.' 1 The Greek Text will be found in the Appendix. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER 10 And they brought two malefactors and crucified between them the Lord ; but he kept silence as feeling 11 no pain. And as they set up the cross they wrote 12 thereon : ' This is the King of Israel.' And they laid the clothes before him and distributed them and cast 13 lots for them. But one of these malefactors reproved them, saying : ' We have suffered this for the evil which we wrought, but this man who has become the Saviour 14 of men, what wrong hath he done you ? ' And they were angry with him, and they commanded that his legs should not be broken, in order that he might die in torment. 15 Now it was mid-day, and a darkness covered all Judaea, and they were troubled and anxious lest the sun should have set whilst he still lived, for it is written for them : ' The sun must not go down upon one put to 16 death.' And one of them said : ' Give him to drink gall with vinegar ; ' and having mixed, they gave him to 17 drink. And they fulfilled all things and completed 18 their sins upon their own head. Now many went about with lights, thinking that it was night, and some fell. 19 And the Lord cried aloud, saying ; ' Power, my Power, thou hast forsaken me ! ' and having spoken, he was 20 taken up. And the same hour the veil of the temple of Jerusalem was torn in twain. 21 And then they took out the nails from the hands ot the Lord, and laid him upon the earth ; and the whole 22 earth quaked, and great fear came [upon them]. Then did the sun shine out, and it was found to be the ninth 23 hour. Now the Jews were glad and gave his body to Joseph, that he might bury it, for he had beheld the 24 good works that he did. And he took the Lord and washed him, and wrapped him in linen, and brought him into his own grave, called ' Joseph's Garden.' 25 Then the Jews and the elders and the priests, seeing the evil they had done to themselves, began to beat their THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER 9 breasts and to say : ' Woe for our sins : judgment 26 draweth nigh and the end of Jerusalem.' And I, with my companions, was mourning, and being pierced in spirit we hid ourselves ; for we were sought for by them as malefactors, and as desiring to burn the temple. 27 Over all these things, however, we were fasting, and sat mourning and weeping night and day until the Sabbath. 28 But the scribes and Pharisees and elders assembled themselves together, hearing that all the people mur- mured and beat their breasts, saying : ' If at his death these great signs have happened, behold how just a one 29 he is.' The elders were afraid and came to Pilate be- so seeching him and saying : 6 Give us soldiers that we may watch his grave for three days, lest his disciples come and steal him, and the people believe that he rose si from the dead and do us evil. Pilate, therefore, gave them Petronius the centurion with soldiers to watch the tomb, and with them came the elders and scribes to 32 the grave. And they rolled a great stone against the centurion and the soldiers and set it, all who were S3 there together, at the door of the grave. And they put seven seals; and setting up a tent there they kept 34 guard. And in the morning, at the dawn of the Sab- bath, came a multitude from Jerusalem and the neigh- bourhood in order that they might see the sealed-up grave. 35 Now, in the night before the dawn of the Lord's day, whilst the soldiers were keeping guard over the place, two and two in a watch, there was a great voice 36 in the heaven. And they saw the heavens opened and two men come down from thence with great light and 37 approach the tomb. And the stone which had been laid at the door rolled of itself away by the side, and the tomb was opened and both the OF THE UNIVERSITY 10 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER 38 Then those soldiers, seeing this, awakened the centurion 39 and the elders, for they also were keeping watch. And whilst they were narrating to them what they had seen, they beheld again three men coming out of the tomb and the two were supporting the one, and a cross 40 following them. And the heads of the two indeed reached up to the heaven, but that of him that was led by 41 their hands rose above the heavens. And they heard a voice from the heavens, saying : ' Hast thou preached 42 to them that are sleeping ? ' And an answer was heard 43 from the cross : ' Yea.' These, therefore, took counsel together whether they should go and declare these 44 things to Pilate. And whilst they were still considering, the heavens again appeared opened, and a certain man descending and going into the grave. 45 Seeing these things, the centurion and his men hastened to Pilate by night, leaving the tomb they were watching, and narrated all things they had seen, fearing 46 greatly and saying : ' Truly he was a Son of God.' Pilate answered and said, 'I am pure of the blood of the Son of God, but thus it seemed good unto you/ 47 Then they all came to him beseeching and entreating him that he should command the centurion and the 48 soldiers to say nothing of what they had seen. ' For it is better,' they said, c to lay upon us the greatest sins before God, and not to fall into the hands of the people of 49 the Jews and be stoned.' Pilate, therefore, commanded the centurion and the soldiers to say nothing. 50 In the morning of the Lord's day, Mary Magdalene, a disciple of the Lord (through fear of the Jews, for they burnt with anger, she had not done at the grave of the Lord that which women are accustomed to do 61 for those that die and are loved by them), took her women friends with her and came to the grave where 62 he was laid. And they feared lest the Jews should see THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER 11 them, and said : ' If we could not on that day in which he was crucified weep and lament, let us do these things 53 even now at his grave. But who will roll us away the stone that is laid at the door of the grave, in order that we may enter and set ourselves by him and do the 54 things that are due ? For great was the stone, and. we fear lest some one should see us. And if we should not be able to do it, let us at least lay down before the door that which we bring in his memory, and let us 55 weep and lament till we come to our house.' And they went and found the tomb opened and, coming near,, they stooped down and see there a certain young man sitting in the midst of the tomb, beautiful and clad in 56 a shining garment, who said to them : ' Why are ye- come? Whom seek ye? Him who was crucified?' He is risen and gone away. But if ye do not believe, stoop down and see the place where he lay, that he is not there ; for he is risen and gone away 57 thither whence he was sent.' Then the women, fright- ened, fled. 58 And it was the last day of the Unleavened bread, and many went forth, returning to their homes, the 59 feast being ended. But we, the twelve disciples of the Lord, wept and mourned, and each went to his- 60 home sorrowing for that which had happened. But I, Simon Peter, and Andrew, my brother, took our nets and went to the sea, and there was with us Levi, the son of Alphaeus, whom the Lord . . . 12 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER in No ONE can have studied this fragment of the Gospel according to Peter, with its analogy to, and still more striking divergence from, the canonical Gospels, with- out perceiving that we have here a most interesting- work, well worth serious examination. The first question which naturally arises is connected with the date to be assigned to the fragment : Is this a part of the work used by many of the Fathers and well known amongst them as the Gospel according to Peter ? We must first endeavour to form a correct judgment on this point. Eusebius has preserved to us the earliest detailed notice of the Gospel according to Peter extant, in a quotation from Serapion, who became Bishop of Antioch about A.D. 190. Eusebius says : There is likewise another work written by him upon the so- called Gospel according to Peter, which he composed to refute the untruths contained in it, on account of certain in the community of Rhossus who were led away by this writing to heretical doctrines. It may be well to set forth some passages of this in which he expresses his opinion of the book : * For we, brethren, receive both Peter and the other Apostles even as Christ. But the false writings passing under their names we from experience reject, knowing that such things we have not received. When I was with you, I was under the impression that all held to the right faith and, without going through the Gospel put forward by them in the name of Peter, I said : " If this is the only cause of difference amongst you, let it be read." But now, having ascertained from information given to me that their minds THE LETTER OF SERAPION 13 were in some mist of heresy, I will hasten to come to you again ; so, brethren, expect me shortly. We, therefore, brethren, knowing of what heresy was Marcianus, recognise how much he was in contra- diction with himself, 1 not comprehending that which he was saying, as you may perceive from what has been written unto you. For we borrowed this gospel from others who used it : that is to say, from the followers of those who introduced it before him, whom we call Docetae for most of its thoughts are of this sect having procured it from them, I was able to go through it, and to find, indeed, that most was according to the right teaching of the Saviour, but certain things were superadded, which we subjoin for you/ 2 There is little or no doubt that the writing before us is a fragment of this ' Gospel according to Peter ' of which Serapion writes. 3 It must always be remembered, as we examine the evidence for the work, that we have here only a short fragment, and that it wou]d not be reasonable to expect to find in it materials for a perfect identification of the work with references to it in 1 The text of this sentence is faulty. 2 yap, ddeXy Xptordi/ TO. Se oVd/xart avTu>v \^euSe7n'ypas e/zTretpot 7rapatroi^te$a, yivaarKovTfs on TO. TOUWTO. ov TrapeXa/So/zei'. eyca yap yevdpevos Trap 1 vp.lv VTTfVOOVV TOVS TTaVTUS OpOfj TTlOTft 7TpOO-(pp0~uai ' KO.I [JLT) dl\Sa)V TO w' aVT&V 7rpo\fvev fK TWV \\6evTO)p /not, (TTroi/Sacreo Trd\iv yeveo~dat rrpbs upas (Sore, aSe\ atpeVea)? 6 Mapniavos, a>s Kal eaurw rjvavriovTO fir) voa>v a f \d\ft, a p.aBr];ray KaXovp-ev (TO. yap (ppoi/^/zara ra TtKeiova fKfivw eWt TTJS ^tSao'/caXia?), ^p^cra/xei/ot Trap' avTa>v 8i\delv Kal fvpelv ra p.ev TtXeiova TOV 6p6ov Xoyoti TOV o~o)Tr)pos, rti/a de npoo~8ifo~Ta\p,va, a. /cat VTrera^a/iey vp.lv. Euseb. H. E. vi. 12. 3 Lods, De Evang. secundum Petrum, 1892, pp. 8 ff. ; Harnack, Bruclistiicke d. Evang. u.s.w. des Petwis, zweite Aufl. 1893, p. 41 ; Zahn, Das Ev. des Petrus, 1893, pp. 5 f., 70 ff. ; Kunze, Das neu aufgef. Brucli- stuck des sogen. Petrusev. 1893, pp. 10 f. ; Swete, The Aklimlm Frag- ment of the Apocr. Gospel of St. Peter, 1893, pp. xii f., xliv f. ; Hilgenfeld, Zeitschr. iviss. TJieol. 1893, ii. Heft, pp. 221 f., 239 ff. ; J. Armitage Robinson, B.D., The Gospel according to Peter, dc., 1892, pp. 15 ff. ; Martineau, The Nineteenth Century, 1893, pp. 906 ff. ; J. R. Harris, Contemp. Rev. August 1893, p. 236 ; van Manen, Theol. Tijdschr. Juli 1893, p. 385. 14 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER writings of the Fathers. Within the few pages which we possess, however, there is sufficient justification for -concluding that they formed part of the Gospel current in Ehossus. Only one ' Gospel according to Peter ' is mentioned by early writers. This fragment distinctly pretends to be a narrative of Simon Peter ; and its matter is generally such as must have satisfied Serapion's ideas of orthodox doctrine, if suspicion of Docetic tendencies had not made him believe that it contained a superadded leaven of heresy. This may not appear very clearly in the fragment, but we know from other sources, as we shall presently see, that they existed in the Gospel, and even here the representation that Jesus suffered no pain ; that he is always called * the Lord,' or the c Son of God ; ' that his one cry on the cross was susceptible of peculiar explanation, and that he was immediately ' taken up,' whilst his body subsequently presents aspects not common to the canonical Gospels, may have seemed to the careful bishop sufficiently Docetic to warrant at least his not very severe condemnation. It is unnecessary to discuss minutely the details of Serapion's letter, which, if vague in parts and open to considerable doubt in some important respects, is at least sufficiently clear for our purpose in its general meaning. Nothing is known of the Marcianus to whom it refers. The bishop had evidently previously written of him, but the context has not been preserved. The Armenian version, made from a Syriac text, reads * Marcion ' for ' Marcianus,' but it would be premature on this authority to associate the episode with that arch- heretic of the second century. It is clear from the bishop's words that on his previous visit to Ehossus, at the desire of part of the community, he sanctioned the public reading of the Gospel of Peter but, after THE LETTER OF SERAPION 15 personal acquaintance with its contents, lie withdrew that permission. Zahn 1 maintains that the private read- ing by members of the Christian community, and not public reading at the services of the Church, is dealt with in this letter, but in this he stands alone. The Index expurgatorius had not been commenced in the second century, and it is impossible to think that the sanction of a bishop was either sought or required for the private reading of individuals. We have here only an instance of the diversity of custom, as regards the public reading of early writings, to which reference is made in the writings of the Fathers and in the Mura- torian and other Canons. In this way the Epistle of the Eoman Clement, as Eusebius 2 mentions, was publicly read in the churches ; as were the Epistle of Soter to the Corinthians, the ' Pastor ' of Hernias, 3 the * Apocalypse of Peter,' 4 and various Gospels which did not permanently secure a place in the Canon. Eusebius, for instance, states that the Ebionites made use only of the ' Gospel according to the Hebrews,' 5 Eusebius 6 mentions a certain number of works at- tributed to the Apostle Peter : the first Epistle, gene- rally acknowledged as genuine, ' but that which is called the second,' he says, ' we have not understood to be incorporated with the testament ' (eVSta#??Kw). The other works are, the ' Acts of Peter,' the ' Gospel according to Peter,' the c Preaching of Peter,' and the 4 Apocalypse of Peter,' the last being doubtless the work of which a fragment has now been discovered in the little volume which contains the fragment of the Gospel which we are considering. Of these Eusebius says that he does not know of their being handed 1 L.c. p. 4 f. 3 H. E. iii. 16. 3 H. E. iii. 3. 4 Sozom. H. E. vii. 19 ; Canon Murat. Tregelles, p. 65. * H. E. iii. 27. 6 H. E. iii. 3. 16 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER down as Catholic, or universally received by the Church. The ' Gospel according to Peter ' is directly referred to by Origen in his Commentary on Matthew. He says : ' Some say, with regard to the brethren of Jesus, from a tradition in the Gospel entitled according to Peter, or of the Book of James, that they were sons of Joseph by a former wife.' 1 Although this statement does not in itself necessarily favour Docetic views, it is quite intelligible that it might be used in support of them and, therefore, might have been one of the passages which excited the suspicion of Serapion, more especially as a clear statement of this family relationship is not to be found in the canonical Gospels. The part of the Gospel referred to by Origen is not, unfortunately, contained in the fragment, and consequently cannot be verified, but it is quite in accordance with its general spirit, and at least we have here a distinct mention of the Gospel without any expression of unfavourable opinion. What is more important still is the fact that Origen certainly made use of the Gospel, amongst others, himself. 2 Jerome 3 likewise refers to it, after repeating the tra- dition that the Gospel was said to be Peter's, which Mark composed, who was his hearer and interpreter ; and to the works ascribed to Peter, which Eusebius enumerates, he adds another the ' Judgment of Peter,' of which little or nothing is known. Theodoret says that the Nazarenes made use of the Gospel according to Peter. 4 Zahn and some 1 Comm. in Matt. T. x. 17 : TOVS be dSfX^ov? 'irja-ov (paa-i Ttvfs K irapadoo'CGos 6pfj.wp.cvoi TOV f-myrypap.fjLevov Kara Utrpov evayyeXi'ou, 77 rrjs /3t'/3Aou 'Ia/cd)/3ov, viovs 'laxr?^ e/c irporepas yvvaiKos arvvwKrjKvias avrai npo rfjs Mapias. 2 Cf. Murray, Expositor, January, 1893, pp. 55 if. 3 De Vir. illustr. i. 4 01 6e Nao>paloi 'lovfialoi eltriv TOV Xpiaroi> rt/itoi/rf? eby avOpanov KOI TU> KoXovp.cv(p Kara Herpov euayyeXuo KexpT^ieVoi. Hacr. Fab. ii. 2. PATRISTIC REFERENCES TO THE GOSPEL 17 others 1 argue against the correctness of this statement ; but reasoning of this kind, based upon supposed differ- ences of views, is not very convincing, when we con- sider that inferences to be drawn from peculiarities in the narrative in this Gospel are neither so distinct, nor so inevitable, as to be forced upon a simple and uncritical community, and probably that the anti-Judaistic ten- dency of the whole, the strongest characteristic of the composition, secured its acceptance, and diverted at- tention from any less marked tendencies. A number of passages have been pointed out in the Didascalia and Apostolical Constitutions, Origen, Cyril of Jerusalem, Dionysius of Alexandria, and other ancient writers, showing the use of this Gospel accord- ing to Peter ; 2 but into these later testimonies it is not necessary for us at present to go. That the work long continued to exercise considerable influence can scarcely be doubted. It is to the earlier history of the Gospel and its use in the second century that we must rather turn our attention. A probable reference to the Gospel of Peter in Polycarp's ' Epistle to the Corinthians ' has been pointed out by Mr. F. C. Conybeare. 3 The writer speaks of * the testimony of the cross ' (TO paprvpiov rov o-ravpov), an expression which has puzzled critics a good deal. No passage in our Gospels has hitherto explained it, but if it be referred to the answer made by the cross, in our fragment, to the question from Heaven : c Hast thou preached to them that are sleeping ? And an 1 Zahn, Gesch. des N. T. Kanons, ii. 742 f . ; Lods, I.e. pp. 14 ff. Zahn, however, admits that Theodoret's statement may at least be taken as testimony that the Gospel was in use amongst a sectarian community in Syria. Das Ev. d. Petrus, pp. 70 f. 2 Harnack, I.e. pp. 40 ff. ; Zahn, I.e. pp. 57 ff.; J. 0. F. Murray, The Expositor, January 1893, pp. 55 ff. ; Kunze, I.e. pp. 35 ff. ; Hilgenfeld, I.e. pp. 242 ff. ; Bernard, Academy, December 1892, September 30, 1893 ; Swete, I.e. p. xxxi. 3 Academy, October 21, December 23, 1893. 18 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER answer came from the cross, " Yea," ' it becomes at once intelligible. Mr. Taylor 1 suggests the question whether * the word of the cross ' (6 Xoyo? TOV crTavpov) in 1 Cor. i. 18 is not also connected with the same tradition of the speaking cross and, as Mr. Conybeare points out, the context favours the idea, although he himself is not inclined to admit the interpretation. The words of Paul are worth quoting : For the word of the cross is to them that are perishing foolish- ness ; but unto us which are being saved it is the power of God. 19. For it is written : 'I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the prudence of the prudent will I reject ; ' and so on. But although he cannot agree in the sugges- tion that Paul refers to this tradition, because, he says, c Such a view seems to me to be too bold and innovating in its character,' Mr. Conybeare goes on to suggest that the incident in Peter, with this reply to the voice from heaven, may be one of the * three mysteries of crying ' referred to by Ignatius, ad Eph. xix. ' Ritschl and Lipsius,' says Lightfoot, ad locum, ' agree that two of the three were, (1) the voice at the baptism, (2) the voice at the transfiguration. For the third . . . Ritschl supposes that Ignatius used some other Gospel containing a third proclamation similar to the two others.' The Peter Gospel seems here to supply just what is wanted. 3 These suggestions are quoted here, in dealing with Polycarp, to show that the supposition that he refers to the answer of the cross in the Gospel of Peter is not without support in other early writings. When it is remembered that the doctrine of a descent into Hell has a place in the Creed of Christendom, it is not sur- prising that it should be dwelt on in early writings, and that a Gospel which proclaims it by a voice from 1 Guardian, November 29, 1893. 2 Academy, December 23, 1893, p. 568. THE EPISTLE OF POLYCARP 19 Heaven, coupled with a miraculous testimony from the cross, should be referred to. Of course it is impossible, in the absence of any explicit declaration, to establish TDJ the passage we are discussing that the Gospel according to Peter was used by Polycarp, but there is some probability of it at least, since no other Gospel contains the episode to which the writer seems to refer. OP THE UNIVERSITY 20 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER IV WE may now consider whether Justin Martyr was ac- quainted with it, and here again it may be well to remind the reader that we have only a small fragment of the Gospel according to Peter to compare with the allusions to be found in writings of the Fathers. In these early works, few quotations are made with any direct mention of the source from which they were taken, and as only those parts of Patristic writings which deal with the trial, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus can be expected to present analogies with our fragment, it will readily be seen how limited the range of testi- mony must naturally be. Justin Martyr is usually supposed to have died about A.D. 163-1 65, 1 and his first ' Apology ' may be dated A.D. 147, and the ' Dialogue with Trypho ' somewhat later. In these writings, Justin very frequently refers to facts, and to sayings of Jesus, making, indeed, some hundred and fifty quotations of this kind from certain ' Memoirs of the Apostles ' (aTro- p.vrjjjioi'evfjLo.Ta TO>V a7rocrToXa)i>), all of which differ more or less from our present canonical Gospels. He never mentions the name of any author of these Memoirs, if indeed he was acquainted with one, unless it be upon one occasion, which is of peculiar interest in connection with our fragment. The instance to which we refer is the following. Justin says : ' The statement also that 1 The detailed statement of the case may be found in Supernatural Beligion, complete ed. 1879, i. 283 ff. Hort (Journal of Philology, iii. 155 ff.) places it as early as A.D. 148. JUSTIN MARTYR 21 lie [Jesus] changed the name of Peter, one of the Apostles, and that this is written in his [Peter's] Memoirs as having been done, together with the fact that he also changed the name of other two brothers, who were sons of Zebedee, to Boanerges that is, sons of thunder,' &C. 1 It was, of course, argued that the avTov here does not refer to Peter but to Jesus ; or that the word should be amended to avrajv and applied to the Apostles ; but the majority .of critics naturally decided against such royal ways of removing difficulties, and were forced to admit a reference to ' Memoirs of Peter.' Hitherto, the apologetic explanation has been that the allusion of Justin must have been to the second Synoptic, generally referred to Mark, who was held by many of the Fathers to be the mere mouthpiece and ' interpreter of Peter,' and that this reference is sup- ported by the fact that the Gospel according to Mark is the only one of the four canonical works which narrates these changes of name. This argument, however, is disposed of by the fact that our second Synoptic cannot possibly be considered the work re- ferred to in the tradition of Papias. 2 Ee turning to Justin, we find that he designates the source of his quo- tations ten times as ' Memoirs of the Apostles ; ' five times he calls it simply ' Memoirs,' and upon one occasion only explains that they were written ' by his Apostles and their followers.' He never speaks in- definitely of ' Memoirs of Apostles,' but always of the collective Apostles, except in the one instance which has been quoted above. In a single passage there occurs an expression which must be quoted. 1 Kai TO clnciv /nerwyopiKeWi avrbv Herpov eva rS)V a7roorroAa>i>, KOI y- ypa(p6ai tv roty aTrofj.VTiij.ovVpa, to drag along, but Justin's word is merely the same verb with the addition of ota, diaavpat, to worry, or harass with abuse. Although the English equivalent is thus changed, and conceals the analogy of the two passages, the addition of 8ia, strictly considered, cannot so change the meaning of o-upoj, but rather should imply a continuance of the same action. This is also Dr. Martineau's view. 3 Kal yp, &>$ fiTTfv 6 7rpo(f)r)Tr)s, 8iao~vpovTfs avrov fKaOicrav eVi f3r)iJ.aTOS jcal dnov ' Kplvov rjplv. Apol. i. 35. OF THE UNIVERSITY 26 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER according to Peter we have : ' They said, " Let us drag along (o-vpujjiev) the Son of God "... and they set Him (e/ca#icraz> avrov) upon a seat of judgment (/ca#e'Spaz> /cpurews), saying, " Judge justly ( Ji/ccu'ajs Kpwe), King of Israel." ' l This representation is different from any in our Gospels, and it has some singular points of agree- ment with our fragment. It has frequently been suggested that Justin, in this passage, makes use of our canonical Gospels with a combination of the Septuagint version of Isaiah Iviii. 2, 3, and that this is supported by the expression ' as said the prophet.' This does not sufficiently explain the passage, however. The Septua- gint version of the part of Isaiah Iviii. 2 referred to reads : alrovdiv JJL vvv Kpicrw 8iKaCav ' They ask me now for just judgment.' Justin drops the 'just,' which stands both in Isaiah and in the fragment, and therefore the omission may be considered equally unfavourable to both writings as the source. In other respects Justin is nearer the Gospel than the prophet. On the other hand, the proposed use of K.a.6l{fiv as a transitive verb would make the fourth Gospel, xix. 13, read: 'Pilate . . . brought Jesus out, and set him (iKdOi&tv) upon a judgment seat (CTTI /SrJ/xaros),' &c. ; and it is pretended that Justin may have taken it in this sense, and that by the use of the word ftrjua he betrays his indebtedness to the fourth Gospel. This use of the verb, however, can scarcely be maintained. It is impossible to suppose that Pilate himself set Jesus on a judgment seat, as this transitive use of lKd0i(re would require us to receive ; and we must, more especially in the absence of a distinct 2upo>/iet> TOV viov TOV fcov, . . . *ai cKtiOio-av avTov tVt KaOf- 8pav icpio~((*f, \fyovrcs AucatW AcpTvf, #ao-iXfi) TOV 'lo-pa^X. Evang. Petri, 6. Hilgenfeld says regarding this, 'Was fehlt noch zu dem Beweise, dass Justinus, wie ich schon 1850 ausgefiihrt habe, das Petms-Evg. benutzt hat ? ' Zeitschr. 1893, ii. 251. JUSTIN MARTYR 27 object, receive it as the Revisers of the New Testament have rightly done intransitively : 'He brought Jesus out and sat down.' 1 In Justin it is not Pilate but the Jews who drag Jesus along, and put him on a judgment seat, and the use of the ordinary ftfjua for the expres- sion of the fragment, ' a seat of judgment ' (/ca#eSpa K-ptVews), is not surprising in a writer like Justin, who is not directly quoting, but merely giving the sense of a passage. However this may be, the whole represen- tation is peculiar, and the conclusion of many critics is that it proves Justin's dependence on the Gospel according to Peter. 2 Justin, speaking of an incident of the crucifixion, says : c And those who were crucifying him parted his- garments (l^epicrav ra i^dna CLVTOV) amongst themselves, casting lots (Xax^ov /^aXXo^re?), each taking what pleased him, according to the cast of the lot (TOV K\rfpov).' 3 In the Gospel according to Peter it is said : 6 And they laid the clothes (rot I^Sv/xara) before him, and distributed them (Sie/xepto-a^ro), and cast lots (Xax/Aoz' e/3aXoz>) for them.' The use of the peculiar expression Xa^bv /SaXXew both by the Gospel and Justin is undoubtedly striking, especially, as Dr. Swete properly points out, as its use in this connection is limited, so far as we know, to the Gospel of Peter, Justin, and Cyril. 4 It is rendered more important by 1 This passage has been discussed at some length by Dr. Martineau (Nineteenth Century, October 1893, pp. 647 if.), in controversy with Mr. T. Rendel Harris (Contemp. Eev. August 1893, pp. 234 ff.), as it has frequently before been. Dr. Martineau seems to be in the right upon all points in connection with it. 2 Hilgenfeld, Zeitschr. wiss. Tlieol. 1893, pp. 249 if.; cf. Lods, De Evang. sec. Petrum, pp. 12 f. ; Harnack, I.e. pp. 38 f., 63 f. ; Martineau, Nineteenth Century, October 1893, pp. 650 f. ; cf. Swete, I.e. p. xxxiv. 3 Dial, xcvii. 4 Swete, I.e. p. xxxiv. Mr. Rendel Harris says : ' I regard it as certain that the reading Aa^/wo? implies connection between Justin and Peter, either directly or through a third source accessible to both.' Contemp. Rev. August 1893, p. 231. 28 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER the fact that, both in the Gospel and Justin, the casting of lots is applied to all the clothes, in contradistinction to the fourth Gospel, in which it is connected with the coat alone, and that neither has any mention of the Johannine peculiarity that the coat was without seam. Justin says that after he was crucified all the * acquaintances of Jesus forsook him ' (ot yvtopipoi avrov Trdvres direo-Trjcrav) ; 1 and in another place that after his crucifixion 6 the disciples who were with him dispersed (SLeo-KeSdo-Orjcrav) until he rose from the dead.' ' This representation is found in the first Synoptic only, but agrees still better with vv. 26, 27, and 59 of our fragment. Elsewhere, Justin, in agreement with the fragment, speaks of Herod, c King of the Jews.' 3 Fur- ther, he says, more than once, that the Jews sent persons throughout the world to spread calumnies against Christians, amongst which was the story that ' his dis- ciples stole him by night from the grave (icXe'i/Jcwres OLVTOV (XTTO TOV /x^/xaTos z'u/cTo?) where he had been laid when he was unloosed from the cross (d^Xwflels OLTTO TOV (TTOLvpov).' 4 The first Synoptic alone has the expression regarding the disciples stealing the body, using the same verb, but our fragment alone uses fjLvrjfjLa for the tomb and offers a parallel for the unloosing from the cross in v. 21. We must, however, point out that the statement regarding these emissaries from the Jews is not found at all in our canonical Gospels. 5 It will be remembered that, in the fragment, the only cry from the cross is : ' " Power, my Power, thou hast forsaken me," and having spoken, he was taken up/ This is one of the most striking variations from the 1 Apol. i. 50. 2 Mera yap TO OTavpa^fji/ai avrov ol 5 ^078^ irovov e^z/). It is evident that these words may either be taken as simply representing the fortitude with which suffer- ing was endured, or understood to support the view 1 Cf. Irenaeus, Adv. Haer. iii. 12. 2 Dial. Ixxxviii. ; cf. Supernatural Beligion, i. 316 ff. OP THE UNIVERSITY 30 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER that no pain was really suffered, though this is by no means actually said. Now, Justin, in another chapter of his ' Dialogue with Trypho,' in which he again refers to the baptism and quotes the words of the voice as above, cites the agony in the garden to prove that ' the Father wished his Son really to suffer (TrdOtcriv aXrjOws) for our sakes, and that we may not say that he, being the Son of God, did not feel what was happening and being inflicted upon him.' l He goes on to say that the silence of Jesus, who returned no answer to any one in the presence of Pilate, was foretold in a passage which he quotes. All this, in connection with representations not found in our canonical Gospels, may form another link with the Gospel according to Peter, as one of his Memoirs. Justin evidently made use of passages like the words at the baptism, to which he did not attach any Docetic interpretation, and it is quite natural that he should argue against the view that Jesus did not really suffer pain, and yet read quite naturally the words we are dis- cussing, without directly referring to them. It was the practice of these early sects to twist passages, not originally intend.ed to favour them, into evidence for their views, and an ordinary Christian might possess a Gospel containing them, in complete unconsciousness that it tended in the slightest degree to encourage heresy. 2 It is evident from several quotations which we have made, and from others which might be adduced, that Justin was an example of this very thing. A number of small points might be added to these, but we do not go into them here. A majority of the 1 Dial. ciii. There is another passage in Dial, cxxv., which may be compared : 'AXX' eVet KOI vapicav e/^ieXXe, Tovrea-riv eV TTOIXM /cat fv dvmXtyei rov Trutfouf, ore trravpowr&lf e/AfXXei/, 6 Xpiarros 6 j^ierrpor, K.r.X. 2 Mr. Murray, for instance, quotes a passage from Origen, using a similar expression to that in our fragment, that Jesus was silent as suffering no pain, with a comment which shows that he did not suspect a Docetic interpretation. Expositor, January 1893, pp. 55 f. JUSTIN MARTYR 31 critics who have discussed the question are of opinion that Justin made use of the Gospel according to Peter, 1 and even apologists, (who as a body seem agreed to de- preciate the fragment), whilst refusing to admit its use by Justin, are not generally very decided in their denial nor, as we shall presently see, inclined to assign it a date which excludes the possibility. The case may be summed up in a few words. Justin undeniably quotes from his ' Memoirs of the Apostles ' facts and passages which are not found in our Gospels ; he distinctly refers to statements as contained in certain 'Memoirs of Peter ;' 2 some of these variations from the canonical Gospels have linguistic and other parallels in our fragment, short as it is, and there is reason to suppose that others would have been found in it had the entire Gospel been extant for comparison ; the style of the fragment precisely tallies with the peculiar name of 'Memoirs,' being a personal narrative in the first person singular ; and finally, there is nothing in its composition or character which necessitates the assignment of such a date to the fragment as would exclude the possibility, or probability, of its use by Justin. 1 Harnack, I.e. pp. 38 ff. ; Lods, I.e. pp. 12 f. ; Hilgenfeld, Zeitschr. wiss. Theol 1893, pp. 221, 241, 267 ; van Manen, Theol. Tijdschrift, 1893, pp. 385 f., 551 ff . ; Martineau, Nineteenth Century, June 1893, p. 910, October, pp. 643 f. ; cf. J. Eendel Harris, Gontemp. Rev. August 1893, pp. 227 ff., 231. 2 Cf. Swete, I.e. pp. xxxiii. ff. 32 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PETER WE may now consider whether there is any indication of the use of this Gospel according to Peter by the author of the ' Epistle of Barnabas/ The Epistle is variously dated between A.D. 70-132, apologists leaning towards the earlier date. The shortness of the frag- ment recovered, of course, diminishes greatly the probability of finding any trace of its use in so com- paratively brief a work as this Epistle, but some indica- tions may be pointed out. The fragment states that, being anxious lest the sun should set whilst he was still living and the law regarding one put to death be trans- gressed, ' one of them said : " Give him to drink gall with vinegar," and having mixed they gave him to drink (IIoTLO-aTe OLVTOV ^oX^T /zero, ofovs * /cat Kepacrcu/Te? cVdria-ai/). 1 . . . Over all these things, however, we were fasting (errl Se rovrot? iracriv e^crrevo^e^) 2 . . . the whole people . . . beat their breasts (6 Xaos aVa? . . . KOTTTCTCU TO. cm?07?).' 3 This representation not only differs from the canonical Gospels in ' gall with vinegar ' being given to drink, but in the view that it was not given to relieve thirst, but as a potion to hasten death, 4 and there follow various statements regarding fasting 1 Verse 16. 2 Verse 27. 3 Verse 28. 4 Mr. Murray points out that Origen likewise regards the * gall ' as baleful, as he likewise represents with our fragment the breaking of the limbs as an act of mercy (Expositor, January 1892, pp. 56 f.). Hilgenfeld is quite convinced that the Epistle derives the passage from Peter (Zeitschr. 1893, ii. 255 f.). THE EPISTLE OF BARNABAS 33 and mourning. Now in Barnabas precisely the same representation is made. The Epistle says : But also when crucified, he had vinegar and gall given him to drink (aAXa KCII oravpwQtig i-jroTL^ro ofci KO.I -^oXy). Hear how, on this matter, the priests of the temple have revealed. Seeing that there is a commandment in Scripture : * Whosoever shall not observe the fast shall surely die,' the Lord commanded, because he was in his own person about to offer the vessel of his spirit for our sins . . . ' Since ye are to give me, who am to offer my flesh for the sins of my new people, gall with vinegar to drink, eat ye alone, while the people fasts and wails. . . . (fieXXere TTOTI^EIV \o\ijv peru . . . TOV Xaov tijtrrevovrof KCU There are three suppositions as the possible ex- planation of this similarity : (1) that the author of the Epistle derived his statement from the Gospel; (2) that the author of the Gospel derived it from the Epistle, or (3) that both drew it from a third and earlier source. Assigning as we do the later date to the Epistle of Barnabas, the first of these hypotheses seems to us the most natural and the correct one, although, of course, it is impossible to prove that both did not derive it from another source. The second explanation we must definitely reject, both because we consider that priority of date lies with the fragment, and because it does not seem probable that the representation originated in the Epistle. To admit this would be to suppose that the author first fabricated the statement that Jesus was 1 The whole passage may be given here, as arguments are founded upon it : 'AXXa 6cls eVV T]fjLTepos eVi 'I7 " TO 6vcriaa'Tr]ptov TeXfo~6f). T'L ovv Xe'yei ev T<3 7rpo(j)r)Tr) ; Kai (payfTcocrctv C'K TOV Tpdyov TOV 7rpo(T(J)epoiJ.Vov TTJ vT)o~Tft.q VTrep Tracr&v T&V ap.apTi5)v. Trpoae^Te a.Kpi^S)S KOI (payeTG)o~a.v ol if pels fj.ovoi Travres TO evTepov aTrXvTov p,fTci oovs. rrpos Ti ; eVeifij) e/ze, vnep dp,apTiwv /mcXXoi/ra TOV Xaov fjLov TOV tcaivnv irpoa-