LIBRARY OF THK UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. OIKT OK j-i*-les are the more free from exr n< -' r Furthermore, he contends that these IU yphal gospels \vrre lar-ely in:: from 'India. The accounts of the star of Bethlehem are lounded on an prophecy of Zoroaster, while Krishna scribed in the JJhagavat Purana, was a j.roto- type of the wonder working Christ Waite profess great reverence fur I vine teachings of Christ.'' yet, singularly enough, endeavors to lower His character by ^^ 'lluis mucii lor Jns scheme ot uenial. Tn \ reply we have to say that much of it is not ! new, and what is new is absurdly untenable. In the iirst place, no skeptic of 'honesty and ability pretends to ascribe so late ad:': 17o. even for the composition of the Gospel of John. M"Si unbelieving (ierman scholars- it' we are not mistaken, Mr. Waite is unac- quainte'd with German refer it to a period earlier than 1 ;',<>, while they unhesitatingly admit that the three synoptical gospels, Mat- thew. Mark, and Luke, were productions of the first century, and some of them hold that they were written before the destruction of Jerusalem. Dr. Kzr.i Abbot, in his Kxternal Kvidences of the Apo-tolie Origin of the Fourth Gospel, has well nigh demonstrated its use by Justin Martyr as early as A. 1>. \-\~\ and the remaining links of evidence connect- ing it with the close of the iirst eentnr. i!y strong. Kven that obstinate !' orlorn hope, the author of Supernatural d to concede that" taken up the universal voice tiquity and the well nigh nniveixi i Inration of modern criticism. Why he did so in his seventh edition, alter affirming tie trary in the fir his work, the onsulting the . iday's masterly little volume, The ntury, a work to be ' iblic Library. " abunilant evidence that iiurch and all the le i ittle d from 1 the i.iL'in i ii.ity. ami that ied in our : enr time, had : >m the ap >d for tie C the well remembered events, our cut G,.spels were named with special a:, elusive reverence. The quotation.-, of their where the authors are not men- more merely substantial than from the Old Testament in the New, or ; than many similar in modern au- thors. Mr. W. (a by endeavor- ing to make it apt" ar that the fathers tn the iter he allows that ' they id the ephemeral and heretical ; yphal utterances just alike, lie is not j a! ways eareful to eonfe-s thai these quotations rally made in a different man- just as a modern Methodist would dider his citations from John Wesley, and one of Wesley's non-Method- ist contemporaries. Any one who will consult Lardper's great work on the. Credi- bility of the Gospel History, or even its mea- ger synopsis in Taley's JO vide nets, will sei fallacy of Mr. Waite's claims for equal honors. : lie only repeats the fallacies which Toland : broached nearly J< u years ago, and which were repeat, d in the Kxameii Critique des ,1 ^ i .. i > ,., i : ^ .. /!.,*: repeating by way of comparison, the fabie.- Apologistes de la Religion Chretienne, wl.ieh Vli, r'nrles; 'fnUl reso,.ptin.r .\i,,,llninim falsely attributed to the illustrious Freret. The evidence for the genuineness of the canonical Gospels is far greater than that of any of the Greek or Roman class'u s. Many more manuscripts are in existence, and the slight discrepancies in style ailed no im- . nt doctrine. According to the estimate rton, very high authority, the Christians of the latter part ul the second century mu.s: llurocles told respecting Apollo ot Tyana. a century and a qn ilie tatter's death, taking advant: Avhen the Christians were sutlering from per- ' )ii for the publican Our author al- lit parallel for the sutlering i : Abono- teichus, t!. an. have had as many as fi They existed in all parts of the then known world, and their material falsifi-r cation of any one cony would impossible, gince'bbth the orthodox and ' tic- appealed to them. It was not an uncritical for the Christian who wrote ti I'auland Theela. -as a pii.us fraud was.' i)lined for his mi.-eouduct. No one could now alter the text of a Look, copies of whir 1 isted in l>< '-ton, New York, Cincinnati, < and San Francisco, without a < of the fraud, and such an act would have been 'equally difficult in regard to manus; :cred, hut on certain statcine:- which religiousdifferenees held to be important ^ The Muratorian Fragmri.: unen/clating back to about 17u, ile<-: that ibi/canonical hooks differed from apocryphal forge ries as honey from gall, and it would" have been at no time possible for MCI-S to supersede the genuine books by if the latter . nient.s not in accordance with pre\ai tion. We iind. a-, we migh that apocryphal books enjoyed only a lip. and qualified iv.pect in the early Church, and as their real character became established were repudiated and i JUit even without the (io-pcls we have informa- tion in the New Testament books, conceded to .mine by -Mr. Waite. which ihows that , Christianity was what the four Gospels atlirm it to be. Any careful student of the Epistles to the Romans, Corinthians, (ialatians. Ephesians, will lind the resurrection, heavenly in, and divine power of Christ emphatic* ally asserted. These letters are addressed to believers, supposed to he already convinced ie facts of the uo>pcl histories; hence it is not to be expected thai these last would he n detail, as if heathens were being ,,-d into conviction of their truth. The S the less, and so d< of the voluntary humiliation of One who j came from heaven, who rose from the 1. and who Justified all believers through His blood, virtually include working of miracles. " At all - no evidence that anv of the early Christians thought differently, "and the heathen Pliny, A. 1). jpi. represents the be- lievers of I) is day as singing hymns to < 'hi : while CelsuSj .V. I). ITS, repeats ahout everything in the < mspeis, ascribing, however, Christ's miracles to magie. He was critical enough in various particulars to show that he no blind concedcr of his opponent's :id has furnished even the unbeliev- of our own day with many of their stock Vet he never pretended to deny; ;:ents of the (iospels. ] Ie only tried ' \plain them away. It will never do. as long as riiny and Celsus continue to speak, liline epistles to be read, to affirm that there was no belief in the .supernatural !-:i dialed by Mr. Waite. Further- to -ay that the resurrec- tion, to which minute testimony is borne the fifteenth chapter of First Corinthians, on ' the evidence of awstlrs. and of ;">00 brethren, '. many of whom were then alive leaving out ' Pauls own experience near Dan; not a matt-rial one, but a mere subjective phenomenon. Such refine- ment?! may be labor saving inventions, but Mr. Waite would have been more candid to admit with Hour the inexplicability of the resurrection history. Finally, in ascribing priority or authority to the three surviving apocryphal gosrj \Yaite is not only in conflict wi:ii ali Christian critics, orthodox and heu-rodox. but flies directly in the face of both Strauss and Jit-nan, each of whom regard thorn as prophecy of the star can mrt he shown to be pre-Christian, for it docs not occur in the Zend Avesta and even the Zend A we have it, is a compilation of the third Chris- tian century. Abulfaratrius, who tells the story, was ah' Armenian Bishop of the thir- h century. The Uhagavat Purana. which attributes to Krishna exploits very much like those of the apocryphal gospels, and also parallels a few of the miracles of the canoni- cal gospels, is not as old as the days of Mohammed, being perhaps three or four cen- turies later. This is no assertion of ours, but the carefully formed opinion of German and English scholars entirely free from theologi- cal bias. Such are the main points of a pretentious book issued with a great flourish of trnm] a> a work which Christians would not be al- lowed to dismiss with a sneer. We think we have said enough about it, though we might add that we have noticed some needless blunders which show that the author is not il versed in dealing with patristic litera- ture as with le/::'.' questions. For example. lie mentions in text and index Victor pnamis Catena as a church writer. There was a Victor Capua. us. or Victor of Capua, but Catena is the nairimpf a classified collection of extracts, amJP not of a man. he seems to believe. He has no doubt been industrious, but he quo'.es a strange medley of authorities, many of them obsolete, and so' largely on one side as to show that his opinion was made up before he began his work. Indeed, the book is ohvi< that of a special pleader. The pro- duction of a mere advocate, it u. to the dignity of candid argument. It i aims, as we have .seen, to diminish the repu- tation of Christ, by comparing Him with tin- savory personages; it browbeats Irenams and Fusebius, because they are important wit- ! on the other side. It permits its own witnesses to teil only so much as is good for the cause, and to crown all, were its hypothe- sis admitted to be the true one, Christianity would exiM as a causeless and inexplicable- ellect. Mr. \Vaite has not broken the array of Christian evidences, and he has made no ad- dition to the really sharp assaults which have been directed against them. rtvo. Chicago- C. V. A\ HISTORY OF THE CHRISTIAN RELIGION, TO THE YEAR TWO HUNDRED, rv rilAlM.KS K WAITE, A. M. *tfNn^siTY "Turni is THE DAUGHTER OF Tmri." Aulus Gelliw, in Noctes Attica. CHICAGO: C. V. WAITE & COMPANY. 1881. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year IfiSO, by CHARLES B. WAITE, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. Right of translation reserved 17,0 H PREFACE. This volume is the result of an investigation, ex- tending through several years, and instituted for the satisfaction of the author. Two years of the time were spent in the Library of Congress, which is peculiarly rich in the department of Biblical Literature. It contains the writings of all the earlier fathers, in the original, and an immense collec- tion of the works of later writers. The intent to publish was formed upon ascertaining facts and arriving at conclusions, which appeared of great importance, and which had never before been fully made known. To the accomplished librarian, who furnished the author with every facility for the prosecution of his work, and gave him much valuable information, he re- turns his sincere thanks. Also to the assistant librari- ans, for the promptness with which the treasures of the library were from time to time placed at his disposal It is believed that this will be found to be the most complete record of the events connected with the IV PREFACE. Christian religion during the first two centuries, which has ever been presented to the public. The time has been divided into six periods, and the different writers and events are carefully arranged in regular chronological order. In fixing the dates of the various writers, it was found that the subject was involved in much confusion. In each case, the different dates were carefully ex- amined, and the one selected which appeared the most consistent, and supported by the best authority. A comprehensive view is given of the gospels of the first two centuries, with a brief sketch of those of a later date. The comparisons which have been institut- ed between the canonical and certain apocryphal gos- pels, is a peculiar feature of this work, and one which is believed to be of great importance, in arriving at correct conclusions. The Gospel of Marcion has been reproduced from the writings of the fathers, principally from the Greek of Epiphanius. This is something which, so far as the author is aware, has never before been attempted in this country. The references to authorities will be found useful to those who may desire to pursue further the investiga- tion of the questions discussed. The reader will find considerable repetition in the following pages. The importance of the subject, and the necessity of examining many of the questions from different points of view, would seem to jus- PREFACE. V tify, if not absolutely to demand, a re-statement from time to time, of the same facts and propositions in different chapters. In the preparation and publication of this work, the author has proceeded upon the assumption that the ascertainment of the truth is all important, and that its promulgation cannot fail to result in the per- manent benefit of the human race. The author is under special obligations to the Hon. William Birney, of Washington, formerly Professor in the University of France, who took a deep interest in the prosecution of the work, and devoted many hours to its examination and criticism. The final result of the undertaking is submitted to the public, in the hope that it may add something to the pages of reliable history. TABLE OF CONTENTS. FIRST PERIOD. APOSTOLIC AGE. A. D. 30 to A. D. 80. CHAPTER I. THE TX>ST GOSPELS OP THE FIBST CENTUBT. CHAPTER II. JOHN THE BAPTIST JESUS CHRIST PAUL PETEB AOT> THE OTHER APOSTLES THE EPISTLES OP THE NEW TESTAMENT. SECOND PERIOD. APOSTOLIC FATHERS. A. D. 80 to 120. CHAPTER IIL CLEMENT OF ROME IGNATIUS POLTCABF. CHAPTER IV. LOST GOSPELS OP THE SECOND CENTUBY. GOSPEL OF THE HEBBEWB. CHAPTER V. LOST GOSPELS OP THE SECOND CENTUBT. Continued. GOSPEL OF THB EGYPTIANS. CHAPTER VI. LOST GOSPELS OP THE SECOND CENTUBT. Concluded. CHAPTER VII. THE AGE OF MIRACLES. APOLLONIUB OF TTAHA. CHAPTER VIII. AOE OF MIRACLES. Continued. SIMON MAGUS. Vlll CONTENTS. CHAPTER IX. OTHER MIRACLES AND MIRACLE- WORKERS JEWISH SUPERSTITIONS- MIRACLES OP THE FATHERS MIRACLES OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. THIRD PERIOD. THE THREE APOCRYPHAL GOSPELS. A. D. 120 to 130. CHAPTER X. EXTANT APOCRYPHAL GOSPELS. THE PROTEVANGELION, OR BOOK OF JAMES. CHAPTER XL THE PROTEVANGELION AND THE FIBST Two CHAPTERS OF LUKE AND MATTHEW COMPARED. CHAPTER XII. GOSPEL OF THE INFANCY. CHAPTER XIII. THE GOSPEL OF THE INFANCY COMPARED WITH THE FIRST Two CHAP- TERS OF LUKE AND MATTHEW. CHAPTER XIV. ORIGIN AND HISTORY OF THE GOSPELS OF THE INFANCY. CHAPTER XV. ACTS OF PILATE; OR THE GOSPEL OF NICODEMUS. CHAPTER XVI. ACTS OF PILATE AND THE CANONICAL GOSPELS COMPARED. CHAPTER XVIL OTHER EXTANT APOCRYPHAL GOSPELS. CHAPTER XVIII. WRITERS OF THE THIRD PERIOD MENANDER SATURNINUS BASTLI- DE& BARNABAS, AND OTHERS. FOURTH PERIOD. FORTY YEARS OF CHRISTIAN WRITERS. A. D. 130 to 170. CHAPTER XIX. WRITERS FROM A. D. 130 to A. D. 150. CARPOCRATES HERMAS CE- RINTHUS VALENTINUS PAPIAS, AND OTHERS. CONTENTS. ix CHAPTER XX. MARCION. A. D. 145. CHAPTER XXI. JUSTIN MARTYR. A. D. 150 to 160. CHAPTER XXII. WRITERS FROM A. D. 150 TO 170. CONTINUED. APELLES PEREGBINUS -MARCELLINA MONTANUS TATIAN, AND OTHERS. CHAPTER XXIII. VALUE OP THE TESTIMONY OF EUSEBIUS. CHAPTER XXIV. REVIEW OP THIRD AND FOURTH PERIODS. A. D. 120 to 170. FIFTH PERIOD. THE FOUR CANONICAL GOSPELS. A. D. 170 to A. D. 185. CHAPTER XXV. THE FOUR CANONICAL GOSPELS. CHAPTER XXVI. THE FOUR GOSPELS AS A GROUP. CHAPTER XXVII. HISTORY OP JESUS AS GIVEN IN THE GOSPELS. CHAPTER XXVIII. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE. CHAPTER XXIX. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK. CHAPTER XXX. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JOHN. CHAPTER XXXI. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MATTHEW. CHAPTER XXXII. THE ACTS OP THE APOSTLES. CHAPTER XXXIII. ORIGIN AND HISTORY OP CHRISTIAN DOCTRINES. THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION MIRACLES OP CHRIST His MATERIAL RESURRECTION His DIVINITY THE TRINITY ATONEMENT ORTCHNAL SIN, &c. X CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXXIV. WRITERS OF THE FIFTH PERIOD. ATHENAGORAS THEOPHILTJB OF AN- TIOCH PANT^SNUS HEGESIPPUS, AND OTHERS. CHAPTER XXXV. REVIEW OF FIFTH PERIOD. DESTRUCTION OF THE LITERATURE OF THE GOSPELS LIST OF GOSPEL WRITINGS OF THAT AGE LOST OR DESTROYED. SIXTH PERIOD. CLOSE OF THE SECOND CENTURY. A. D. 185 to A. D. 200. CHAPTER XXXVI. WRITERS OF THE SIXTH PERIOD. HERACLEON SERAPION PTOLKMJB- US, AND OTHERS. CHAPTER XXXVII. T OF ALEXANDRIA, AND TERTULLIAH. CHAPTER XXXVIII. FORMATION OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC HIERARCHY. CHAPTER XXXIX. REVIEW OF SIXTH PERIOD TESTIMONY OF HEATHEN WRITERS GENERAL REVIEW CONCLUSION. LIST OF CHRISTIAN WRITERS AND WRITINGS, OF THE FIRST TWO CENTURIES. CHRONOLOGICALLY ARRANGED. A.D. Grades of Christ, by Matthew, 50 Gospel of Paul, do. Gospel or Recollections of Peter, " PAUL'S EPISTLES. (See Note.) 1. '2d Epistlf to thf Thessalonians, 52 2. 1st do. 53 o. 1st " " Corinthians, 57 4. 2d " 5. lo to the Galatians, 58 6. " " Romans, 7. to Philemon, 62 8. to the Colossians, , " 9. Philippians, g3 10. " " Ephesians, The General Epistle of Peter, (1st Peter), 80 " James, Jude, First Epistle of Clement of Rome, to the Corinthians, 97 Epistle of Ignatius to the Romans, Ho " " " Ephesians, to Polycarp, Gospel according to the Egyptians, " Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians, 116 Provrrbs of Xyhtas, H<) Menander, Prodicus, 120 i LIST OF WRITERS. A.D. Preaching of Peter, Doctrine of Peter, 125 Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, Sibylline Oracles, later form, Preaching of Paul, Some Syriac Documents, Gospel according to the Hebrews, Gospel of Perfection, Gospel of Philip, " Gospel of Matthaias, Gospel of Judas Iscariot, " Gospel or Harmony of Basilides, Book of the Helkesaites, " Midwife of our Savior, Gospel of Thaddaeus, " And many other gospels now lost, written about this time. Acts of Peter, Acts of Paul, " Acts of Peter and Andrew, Acts of John, Acts of St. Mary, " And more than 30 other books of Acts, some of which are extant. Apocalypse of Peter, Apocalpse of Paul, of Bartholomew, " And many other books of Revelation, written about the same time. Saturninus, Basilides, The Protevangelion, or Book of James, " Aristides, Quadratus, 126 Gospel of the Infancy, attributed to Thomas, 130 Acts of Pilate, or gospel of Nicodemus, " Epistle of Barnabas, Epistle to Titus, attributed to Paul, " First and Second Epistles to Timothy, attributed to Paul, " General Epistle of John, (1st John), Second and Third Epistles of John, " Agrippa Castor, Aristion, John the Presbyter, " Revelation or Apocalypse of John, Carpocrates, 135 Epistles to the Magnesians, Trallians, Smyrnaeans and Philadel- phians, attributed to Ignatius, 140 Epiphanes, Cerdon, Epistle to Diognetus, " Epistle to the Laodiceans, attributed to Paul, " Hennas, Author of The Shepherd, 145 Cerinthus and his Gospel, " Marcion and his New Testament, " Isadoras, Valentinus, and The Gospel of Truth, 150 Justin Martyr, Papias, The Clementines, LIST Off WRITERS. Apelles and his Gospel, Peregrinus, Marcellina, 160 Epistle to the Hebrews, attributed to Paul, " Soter, 164 Tatian and his Harmony or Gospel, 170 Philip, Montanus, Second Epistle of Peter, " (iospel according to Luke, " Aristo of Pella, Dionysius of Corinth, Miltiades, 175 Maximus, Pinytus, Dialogue between Jason and Papiscus, " Gospel according to Mark, " Modestas, Musanus, 176 Florinus, Blastus, Epistle of Churches of Vienne and Lyons, 177 Melito of Sardis, Athenagoras, Claudius Apollmaris, " Gospel according to John, 178 Theophilus of Antioch, Bardesanes, Hennogenes, 180 Bacchylus of Corinth, Pantaenus, " Gospel according to Matthew, '* Acts of the Apostles, " Marcia, 183 Hegesippus, 185 Asterius Urbanus, 188 Irenaeus, Cassianus, Ptolomaeus, Horacleon, Victor, 190 Serapion, Bishop of Antioch, Maximilla. Muratorian Fragment, " Theododotus, of Byzantium, 192 Rhodon, Narcissus, Bishop of Jerusalem, 195 Palmas, Polycrates, Bishop of Ephesus, 196 Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian, Noetus, Hernias, 3d, 200 Praxeas, Symmachus, Maximus, Bishop of Jerusalem, " Seleucas, Artemon, Pistis Sophiae, " Julius Africanus, 2d Epistle of Clement of Rome. " [Note. THE EPISTLES OF PAUL. We hav<- takrii as genuine, the ten epistles which constituted the Apostolicon of Marcion. The same course has been adopted by Dr. Davidson, except that he rejects, upon what appears in- sufficient grounds, the Epistle to the Ephesians.] FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 to A. D. 80. THE APOSTOLIC AGE. CHAPTER I. LOST GOSPELS OF THE FIRST CENTURY. THE GOSPEL OP PAUL GOSPKL OB RECOLLECTIONS OP PETER REFEB- ENCES AND CITATIONS BY THE FATHERS OF THE CHURCH VlEWS OF MOD- EBN WRITERS ORACLES OR SAYINGS OF CHRIST, ATTRIBUTED TO MAT- THEWTHESE THE GERMS OF THE SYNOPTIC GOSPELS, LUKE, MARK AND MATTHEW. This is an attempt to write a history of the Chris- tian religion during the first two centuries. Not a his- tory of Christianity, which would require us to follow the principles of that religion, in their dissemination through various countries, and in their influence upon other institutions. Nor yet a history of the church; which would make it necessary to examine questions of ecclesiastical polity, to trace the rise and progress of different forms of church government, and to notice the manners and customs of the early Christians, and their treatment by the civil magistrates. These are touched upon only in their bearing upon the main object of the inquiry; which is, an examina- 2 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. tion into the principal doctrines distinctive of the Christian religion, so far as they were known and taught in the first two centuries; also the principal books through which those doctrines were dissemina- ted. The difficulty of the undertaking is great. The gos- pels of the first century are unfortunately lost. There are left, of that century, only the epistles of Paul, the one epistle of Clement of Rome, some slight notices by Jewish and heathen writers, and the few legends and traditions preserved in the writings of the fath- ers, and in the extant second century gospels. And when we enter upon the next century, though there is more remaining than of the first, still, the great body of the Christian literature of that age also, has been lost or destroyed. Availing ourselves of what remains, we shall, though 'conscious of the magnitude of the task, enter upon it, at least with fidelity to truth, and in the hope that something may be contributed to the pages of re- liable history. The time will be divided into six periods; to be des- ignated as follows: FIRST PERIOD, Apostolic Age. A.D. 30 to A. D. 80. SECOND PERIOD, Apostolic Fathers. . . 80 to . . 120. THIRD PERIOD, The three Apoc- ryphal Gospels. . . 120 to . . 130. FOURTH PERIOD, Forty Years of Christian Writers. . . 130 to . . 170. FIFTH PERIOD, The four Canon- ical Gospels. ' . . 170 to . . 185. SIXTH PERIOD, Close of the Sec- ond Century. . . 185 to . . 200. 3 FIKST PERIOD. LOST GOSPELS OF THE FIRST CENTURY. When Christianity had become partially established by the teaching of Christ and the preaching of his a- postles and disciples, there arose among the Christians of the various churches a necessity, and hence a de- mand, for some written testimonies or records of the life and doctrines of their great master. But this need was not so apparent, or pressing in the first century, and especially during the life-time of those who had been with Jesus, and had been his followers and companions. Of the numerous gospels which were in circulation in the second century, not more than three can, with any certainty, or with any high degree of probability, be traced back to the times of the apostles. These are the Gospel of Paul, the Gospel or Recollections of Peter, and the Oracles or Sayings of Christ, attributed to Matthew. THE GOSPEL OF PAUL. Ewald, one of the best of the German critics, con- cludes that there was a Gospel of Paul; thinks it was in the Greek language, and that it may have been written by the evangelist Philip. 1 It may be inferred that it afterward became incor- porated into the Gospel of Marcion, [A. D. 145], since Marcion was a follower of Paul, and for his own gos- pel claimed the sanction of that apostle. 2 Marcion was a native of Sinope, a town of Asia Minor, on the south shore of the Black Sea. It is sup- (1.) Yahrbucher, 1848, 1849. (2.) See Fabricius, Codex Apocryphus, Hamb. 1703, vol. 1 p. 372. Also His- tory of the Canon, by Westcott, 3d Ed. Lond. 1870, p. 282. 4 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. posed that the church at Sinope was furnished by Paul T at the time of its formation, with a collection such as he supplied to the other Asiatic Churches; containing records of the life and teachings of Christ. It was the opinion of Jerome, and of several other writers, that when Paul spoke of his gospel, [Bom. 2. 16; 16. 25; 2d Thess. 2. 14]; he referred to a written gospel then in circulation. Paul may have had such a gospel in mind; but his language is not sufficiently explicit to justify us in con- cluding with any certainty, that he meant any thing more than that gospel of good tidings, of which he was the great expounder. There is, however, a more distinct trace of the Gospel of Paul in his First Epistle to the Corinthians, ch. 11, v. 23 to 25. By comparing this passage with Luke 22. 19, 20, it will be seen that the language is almost iden- tical; while the parallel passages, Matt. 26. 26 to 28, and Mark 14. 22 to 24, have no such complete similarity, though the idea is the same. The Gospel of Luke, whether directly, or through Marcion's,' was founded partly upon the Gospel of Paul. That Paul had some- thing to do with a written gospel, which now appears, in whole or in part, in the compilation of Luke, is gen- erally acknowledged; and this passage in First Corin- thians, taken in connection with the corresponding passage in Luke, is strong evidence, that in Corinthians, Paul refers to a written gospel, which he had "deliver- ed" to the Church at Corinth, and a portion of which written gospel appears in Luke 22. 19, 20. Paul may have referred, also, to the same gospel, in Galatians 2. 2. This supposition receives countenance from a passage in Tertullian. In his work against Marcion, [A. D. 207 -210], after saying that Marcion did not ascribe his gospel to any author, and arguing thence that it was LOST GOSPELS OF THE FIRST CENTURY. 5 not authentic, he proceeds as follows: "Had Marcion even published his gospel in the name of Paul himself, the single authority of the document, destitute of all support from preceding au- thorities, would not be a sufficient basis for our faith. There would still be wanting that gospel which Paul found in existence, to which he yielded his be- lief, and with which he so earnestly wished his own to agree, that he actually on that account went up to Jerusalem, to know and consult the apostles, 'lest he should run or had been running in vain;' in other words, that the faith which he had learned, and the gospel which he was preaching, might be in ac- cordance with theirs. Then, at last, having conferred with the authors, and having agreed with them touching the rule of faith, they joined their hands in fellowship, and divided their labors thenceforth in the office of preaching the gospel, so that they were to go to the Jews, and Paul to the Jews and Gen- tiles. Inasmuch, therefore, as the enlightener of Luke himself, desired the authority of his predecessors, for both his own faith and preaching, how much iiion- may I not require from Luke's Gospel, that which was necessary for the ii<-|.i-l of his master." TertuUian adv. Marcion, bk. 4, ch. 2, Ante-Nicene Christian Library, wl. 7, p. 180. From this passage of TertuUian, it is manifest, first, that there was a Gospel of Paul, and the inference is very strong, that it was in writing; since Paul is repre- sented as going to Jerusalem to compare his gospel with another, and while there, conferring with the "authors" of the other gospel; secondly, that it was ne- ;iry, for the purpose of verification, that these two go-pels should be compared; and thirdly, that all this was anterior to the Gospel according to Luke. It might be inferred, from the closing portion of the paragraph, that TertuUian thought the Gospel of Luke itself stood in need of some verification. It does not follow, however, that the gospel with which Paul was so anxious to compare his own, was written before his. The word "primitive" inserted by the Ante-Nicene translator, in brackets, before the word "authors," we have therefore discarded, as unnecessary to the sense, and unauthorized. The language of TertuUian is, "Denique, ut cum auctoribus contulit, et convenit de regula fidei, dexteras miscuere," &c. Tertull. Op., torn. 1, p. 251. 6 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. The opinion of Ewald is, that the Greek Gospel of Paul was the first ever written. There was probably no great length of time intervening, between the origin of that and of the other two gospels of the first century. The testimony of Irenseus, [A. D. 190], concerning this gospel, is, that it was written by Luke. "Luke, also, the companion of Paul, recorded in a book, the Gospel preached by him." 1 Notwithstanding the positive language here used, the statement is to be taken with some allowance. Irense- us was fully committed to the four gospels, and was engaged in endeavoring to give them authority. He may be said, in fact, to have introduced them to the notice of the literary world; since he is the first author who mentions more than one of them. He speaks fre- quently of these gospels, and argues that they should be four in number, neither more nor less, because there are four universal winds, and four quarters of the world. Davidson calls him "credulous and blundering." 3 Those who are so quick to receive the statement of Irenaeus, that the Gospel of Paul was written by Luke, a statement manifestly made to give apostolic sanction to the Gospel of Luke, are not prepared to accept so readily his assertion, that the ministry of Jesus lasted twenty years, and that he was fifty years old at hi& crucifixion. 3 THE GOSPEL OR RECOLLECTIONS OF PETER. Tnis was a book more generally known than the Gospel of Paul, and of the existence of which there can be no doubt. In the year 190, a large number of (1.) Irenseus v. Hser. bk. 3, ch. 1, Ante-Nic. vol. 5, p. 259. (2.) Canon, p. 121. (3.) Iren. v. Hser. 2. 22, Ante-Nic. vol. 5, p. 196. LOST GOSPELS OF TEE FIRST CENTURY. 1 the Gospels of Peter were found in use by the Church of Khossus, in Cilicia; and so much were the Christians of that church attached to them, that it became neces- sary for Serapion, one of the bishops, to suppress them, and to substitute the canonical gospels in their stead. 1 Another case of the suppression of older gospels, in use in the churches, to make way for those which had been selected, will be noticed hereafter. [See Tatian.J Eusebius, [A. D. 325,] speaking of the Gospel accord- ing to Peter, with other books, says: "Neither among the ancient nor the ecclesiastical writers of our day, has there been one that has appealed to the testimony taken from them." in book 3, chapter 25, he speaks of the Gospel of Peter as among those that were "adduced by the heretics, under the name of the apostles," and "of which no one of those writers in the ecclesiastical succession, has condescended to make any mention in his works;" ami says, "they are to be ranked not on- ly among 1 the spurious writings, but are to be rejected as altogether absurd and impious." Ecdes. Hist. bk. 3, ch. 3. Eusebius had a peculiar faculty for diverging from the truth. Let us see how far from it he has gone in these assertions: 1. Justin Martyr, in the Dialogue, written about A. D. 160, says: "The mention of the fact, that Christ changed the name of Peter, one of the Hl-t-tW, and that the event has been recorded in his (Peter's) Memoirs, to- gether with his having changed the name of two other brethren, who were sons of Zebedee, to Boanerges, tended to signify that he was the same through whom the surname Israel was given to Jacob, and Joshua to Hosea." Dialogue with Trypho, ch. 106. The translation, as given in the Ante-Nicene Christian Library, vol. 2, p. -233, is as follows: "And when it is said that he changed the name of one of the apostles to Peter, and when it is written in the memoirs of Him that this so happened, as well as that he changed the names of other two brothers," &c. (1.) Dr. Lardner's Works, vol. 4, p. 636; Theodoret, Fab. Hser. 2. 2; Euseb. Ecc. Hist. 6. 12; Lost and Hostile Gospels by S. Baring-Gould, p. 245. Theodoret there says, the Nazarenes held that Christ was a just man, and they used the Gospel of Peter. He speaks as of his own day; A.D. 430. 8 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. The word "Him," commencing with a capital letter, of course refers to Christ; thus making it read, the memoirs of Christ; and ignoring Peter as the author. The Greek is, Kotl ro etTtelv ueroovofiaHevai avrov Ilf'rpor era roov Arco'-iTo'k- oor, nai ysypdgj^ai kv ToiS artojuvwoveviiacyir avrov, &c. Such a construction, beside referring the pronoun atrov, [of him], at the close of the sentence, to the more distant antecedent, contrary to the rule in such cases, attributes to Justin language which he is not in the habit of using. Elsewhere, when speaking of the gospels which he cites so frequently, he calls them, not Memoirs of Christ, but "Memoirs of the Apostles." He has ten times "Memoirs of the Apostles," and five times "Memoirs;" not once "Memoirs of Christ." For the rendering we have adopted, we have the au- thority of Dr. Westcott, 1 and other eminent scholars. Moreover, it is powerfully supported by the fact, that the only one of the canonical gospels which has this account of the change of the name of James and John to Boanerges, is Mark, which has such an intimate connection with the Gospel of Peter. [See Mark 3. 17.J We conclude, therefore, that Justin Martyr here re- fers to the Memoirs or Recollections of Peter; which can be nothing else than the Gospel of Peter. It was probably a consideration of this passage, which in- duced Credner to say that Justin made use of this gospel. 2 2. The next writer who refers to the Gospel of Peter, is Tertullian; [A. D. 207-210.] He was one of the three fathers who were engaged in establishing the canonical gospels. And as Irenseus had undertaken to confound (1.) Hist, of the Canon, p. 103. (2.) Geschict. N. T. Kan. p. 22. LOST GOSPELS OF THE FIRST CENTURY. 9 the Gospel of Paul with the Gospel of Luke, so Tertull- ian endeavors to identify the Gospel of Peter with the Gospel of Mark. He says: "The Gospel which Mark published, is affirmed to be Peter's, whose interpreter Mark was." Jones, who is unwilling to recognize the Gospel of Peter as authoritative, attempts to break the force of this testimony by interpolating, in the translation, the words "by some;" thus: "is affirmed by some to be Pe- ters." But this is entirely unauthorized. The original is, "Evangelium quod edidit Marcus, Pe- tri affirmatur, cujus interpres Marcus;" translated in the Ante-Nicene collection, "That [gospel] which Mark published, may be affirmed to be Peter's, whose inter- preter Mark was." Tertullian manifestly intended to assert, that in his day, the Gospel of Mark was understood to be Peter's; or to have the Gospel of Peter for its original. 3. The third father who referred to this Gospel, was Origen; A. D. 230. "There are some," says he, "who say the brethren of Christ [here mention- ed] were the children of Joseph, by a former wife, who lived with him before Mary: and they are induced to this opinion by some passages in that which is entitled The Gospel of Peter, or The Book of James." Com. on Matt. 13. 55. It must not be inferred that Origen here speaks of the books as the same; but that the opinion was held, in accordance with passages in the one book or the other. In the Protevangelion, or Book of James, as it was called, it is related, that when the high priest told Joseph that he was the person selected to take the virgin, he demurred, saying, "I am an old man and have children; but she is young, and I fear lest I should appear ridiculous in Israel." (1.) Tert. ad. Marcion, 4. 5. 10 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. Though Origen was not fully prepared to accept this statement, not seeing it in the canonical gospels, which had then, to use his own language, been "cho- sen," ' and were thenceforth to be authoritative, yet the fact had become so well understood, from the previous use of the other gospels, that it was, by most of the fathers, implicitly received as true, for a long time af- terward. Epiphanius, Chrysostom, Cyril, Theophilact, (Ecumenius, and all the Latin Fathers till Ambrose, and the Greek Fathers afterward, held to the opinion that Joseph was a widower, and had children by a for- mer wife; showing that the Gospel of Peter and the Protevangelion were regarded "as authority. Thus we find the Gospel of Peter expressly referred to by three of the fathers before Eusebius, though that historian asserts that no one of them had conde- scended to make any mention of it. Eusebius exhibited a still more reckless disregard for the truth, in regard to the Preaching of Peter. He made a similar sweeping assertion respecting that; while the fact was, it had been mentioned by Herac- lion and Lactantius, and six times by Clement of Al- exandria, and every time with indications of approval. It may be well to mention an error of some writers, in supposing the Preaching of Peter and the Preaching of Paul to be one book, or parts of the same book, merely from their being mentioned in the same con- nection by Lactantius. Such an inference is not au- thorized. (1.) "And that not four gospels but very many were written, out of which those we haw were chosen, and delivered to the churches, we may perceive," & c> Origen, in Proem, LUCCB, Horn. 1 T. 2, p. 210. Again: "Four gospels only have been approved, out of which the doctrines of our Lord and Saviour are to be learned.' 1 These gospels were selected, or "separated" from others. Westcott, p. 317. LOST GOSPELS OF THE FIRST CENTURY. II Other writers have mentioned this gospel. Theodo- ret, [A. D. 430,] says, "The Nazarenes are Jews who venerate Christ as a just man merely, and it is said they use the Gospel according to Peter." 1 Credner thinks the gospel was one of the oldest writ- ings of the church, and the source from which Justin drew many of his quotations; also that it was essential- ly identical with the Harmony of Tatian, and the Gos- pel according to the Hebrews. 9 Dr. Mill 3 says it was publicly read by the Christians; and Mr. Whiston 4 asserts that it was, probably, in some sense, a sacred book. Jones, who wishes to discredit it, says that it was in- terdicted by the decree of Pope Gelasius, [A. D. 494,] ac- cording to some copies; though he does not explain how the interdict crept into those copies, nor why it is not in the decree, as generally published, and as it appears in his own work, vol. 1 p. 154. The Gospel of Peter favored the opinions of the Doce- tae, who held that Christ and Jesus were different; that Jesus really suffered, but Christ, only in appearance. Norton, 6 whose opinion is entitled to great weight, thinks this gospel was not a history of Christ's ministry. Eev. S. Baring-Gould asks the question, "Was this gospel a corrupted edition of St. Mark?" and answers it thus: "Probably not. We have not much ground on which to base an opinion, but there is just sufficient to make it likely that such was not the case."* (1.) Haer. Fab. 2. 2. (2.) Gesch. d. N. T. Kanon, p. 22. (3.) Prolegom. in Nov. Test. sec. 336. (4.) Essay on the Constitutions of the Apostles, p. 24. (5.) Evidences of the Genuineness of the Gospels, by Andrews Norton, Bos- ton, 1837, vol. 1 p. 234. Notes. (6.) Lost and Hostile Gospels, p. 221. 12 FIRST PERIOD, A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. He considers the statement concerning the brothers and sisters of Christ, as most valuable, as the gospel is "wholly unprejudiced, and of great antiquity." ' THE ORACLES OR SAYINGS OF CHRIST. Our information concerning this collection, is ex- ceedingly meager; being based entirely upon a passage in Eusebius, in which Papias is represented as saying, "Matthew set forth the Oracles in the Hebrew dialect, which every one interpreted as he was able." 2 Eusebius says further, that Papias wrote five books of "Expositions of the Oracles of the Lord." These are a part of the multitude of lost writings of those times. Baring-Gould thinks the Oracles consisted of five parts, ending at the following passages: First, at Matthew ch. 7, v. 28; second, at Matt. 11. 1; third, at Matt. 13. 53; fourth, at Matt. 19. 1, and fifth, at Matt. 26. 1. Upon this theory, the Oracles were a compilation of different manuscripts. It is the gener- ally received opinion, that a number of older man- uscripts have entered into the construction of the Gos- pel according to Matthew, and that this gospel was to some extent, based upon the Oracles. RECAPITULATION. THE GOSPEL OF PAUL, though it does not stand out so clearly and indisputably as the Gospel of Peter, has yet sufficient evidence of having been one of the gos- pels of the first century. It is testified to by Marcion, and is apparently alluded to by Irenseus and Tertull- ian, and by Paul himself. It was in the Greek lan- guage. (1.) p. 222. (2.) Euseb. Ecc. Hist, bk. 3, ch. 39. LOST GOSPELS OF THE FIRST CENTURY. 18- THE GOSPEL OR EECOLLECTIONS OF PETER, was a book well known, and of high authority among the ancient Christians. Even after the introduction of the four gosp< Is afterward made canonical, the Gospel of Peter main fcained so firm a footing, that it became necessary to suppress it in some of the churches. It was retained and used by the Nazarenes, long afterward. It is cited by Justin Martyr, and referred to by Tertullian and Origen. The statement of Eusebius, that no one of the ecclesiastical writers had appealed to testimony taken from it, and that no one of them had condescended to make any mention of it, is un- true. The passage in Justin Martyr mistranslated in the Ante-Nicene collection, and the passage in Tertull- ian mistranslated by Jones. The statement contained in this gospel, that Joseph had children by a former wife, was generally received by the fathers, for several centuries. The Gospel of Pe- ter highly spoken of by Dr. Mill, Mr. Whiston, and other eminent modern writers. Credner, a German writer of high authority, thinks it was used by Jus- tin Martyr; A. D. 150-160. THE ORACLES, OR SAYINGS OF CHRIST, in the Arama- ic language, we know but little about. It has been generally conceded, on the authority of Eusebius, that Papias [A. D. 150,] had such a book, and that he wrote commentaries upon it. DOCTRINES. There is no evidence that either of these gospels taught the immaculate conception, or the ma- terial resurrection of Christ, or contained any account of his miracles, or any reference to any book contain- ing either of those doctrines. It will be seen, as we proceed, that the three gospels which have been considered, were the germs of the three synoptic gospels, respectively. That is, the Gos- 14 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. pel of Paul was the germ of the Gospel according to Luke; the Gospel of Peter, of the Gospel according to Mark; and the Oracles, of the Gospel according to Matthew. They cannot, however, in any sense, be considered the same. The synoptic gospels were undoubtedly written long afterward, and contained, in many re- spects, very different material. Moreover, the Gospel of Paul appears to have passed through the Gospel of Marcion, before reaching the author of Luke, and the Oracles through the Gospel of the Hebrews, before reaching the author of Matthew. APOSTOLIC AGE. JOHN THE BAPTIST. 15 CHAPTEE II. APOSTOLIC AGE.-A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. JOHN THE BAPTIST JESUS CHRIST PAUL PETER JOHN THE JAMESES THE JUDASES THE OTHER APOSTLES EPISTLES OF THE NEW TESTA- MENT THE APOCALYPSE. The first character in Christian history is John the Baptist. What was his connection with Jesus, and what were his relations to the origin of the Christian religion? Josephus, while he gives an account of John, and of his baptizing and making converts, says nothing of his announcing the approach of a coming Messiah. ' The author of Luke commences his account of John the Baptist, by saying that he appeared in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate, being governor of Judaea, and Herod being Te- trarch of Galilee, his brother Philip Tetrarch of Iturea, and of the region of Trachonitis, Lysanias Tetrarch of Abilene, Annas and Caiaphas being the high priests. [Luke 3. 1, 2.] In the 23d verse of the same chapter, after relating the baptism of Jesus, he states that he began to be a- bout thirty years of age. If by this language the author of Luke meant to say, that Jesus was not then past thirty, did he not make a (1.) Antiquities, bk. 18, ch. 5, 2. 16 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. mistake of at least three years? Tiberius commenced reigning A. D. 14, and the fifteenth year of his reign' would be A. D. 29, or when Jesus was thirty-three years of age, as he was four years old, at the commencement of the Christian era. We do not, however, look upon this as a very serious discrepancy, and think Dr. Lardner over-estimated the question, when he spoke of it as one of "very great difficulty." The word "a$rf*i," "about," used by the gos- pel historian, relieves him from any very exact crit- icism. So of another objection; the statement that Annas and Caiaphas were high priests; it being notorious that the Jews never had but one high priest at a time. This has been partially explained by showing that Josephus, in one place, spoke of one as a high priest^ who had held, but did not at the time referred to, hold that office. The language here is somewhat more defi- nite, and appears more plainly to intimate that two did actually hold the position the same year. This would indicate that this portion of the book was written long afterward, by one not acquainted with Jewish customs. Dr. Lardner says, "It would be extremely unreasonable to impute to St. Luke so great a mistake as the supposing there were properly two high priests among the Jews at the same time.' 7 The most effectual way to relieve him from the impu- tation is, not to charge upon him the authorship of a work which bears so many marks of having been writ- ten long after his day. If the passage in Josephus concerning Christ were genuine, then the failure to connect him with John the Baptist, would be utterly incomprehensible. But since it is the general verdict of scholars, that the paragraph in the 3d chapter of the 18th book of the Antiquities, APOSTOLIC AGE. JOHN THE BAPTIST. 17 wherein it is stated that Jesus was the Christ, &c., is an interpolated forgery, the matter appears very differ- ently. It is easy to see that Josephus, retaining all his Jewish prejudices and antipathies, might have inten- tionally passed over the proclamation of the coming Messiah. Pursuing the biography of John, as given in the gospel history, the next incident presents a difficulty of a more serious character. It is stated that Herod the Tetrarch shut up John in prison, being reproved by him for Herodias, his broth- er Philip's wife. [Luke, 3. 19, 20; Mark, 6. 17-20; Mat- thew, 14. 3-5.] This Philip could be no other than Phil- ip the Tetrarch of Trachonitis, mentioned in Luke 3. 1. He was the brother, or rather half-brother of Her- od the Tetrarch, and Herod had no other brother Phil- ip. They were both sons of Herod the Great. But according to Josephus, Philip could not have been the former husband of Herodias. It was another Herod, half-brother of Herod the Tetrarch, having the same father, but not the same mother. The father of this Herod was Herod the Great, while his mother was Mariamne, daughter of Simon the high priest. ' Josephus could not well be mistaken in this matter, being himself a Jew, and all the parties occupying a high position among his people. Not only were all these sons of Herod the Great, but Herodias was sister of Agrippa the Great. The attention of the historian was particularly called to the transaction, and he re- lates in full the visit of Herod the Tetrarch to Herod, his half-brother, his falling in love with Herodias, his brother's wife, and their subsequent arrangement to be married. Also the difference that arose on this very (1.) Antiq. bk. 18, ch. 5, sec. 1, and same, sec. 4. 18 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. account, between Herod the Tetrarch, and Aretas, King of Petraea, father of the wife whom Herod put aside, in favor of Herodias; a difficulty which resulted in a war. The gospel account of the death of John, is also very different from that of the historian. It does not appear in Luke, but in Mark and Matthew it is related that the daughter of Herodias danced before Herod, at a sup- per given by him on his birthday; [Mark, 6. 21, 22;] that Herod was pleased, and promised to give her whatever she should ask; and she, being instructed by her mother, asked the head of John the Baptist; that the king ordered it to be given her, and it was brought in a charger. [Mark, 6. 21-29; Matt. 14. 6-1 1J The account byJosephus, is, in substance: That John was a good man; that he commanded the Jews to exercise virtue, and exhorted them to come to his baptism; that crowds came about him, much pleased at his discourses; that Herod feared that his great influence over the people, might put it into his power and inclination to raise a rebellion; the peo- ple being ready to do anything he should advise; that to prevent any mischief he might do, and to put it out of his power to raise a rebellion, Herod had him thrown into prison at Macherus, and there put to death. Though it might be possible, by the exercise of skill and ingenuity, to show that the accounts of John the Baptist, as given by Josephus on the one hand and the gospel historians on the other, are not absolutely con- tradictory, except as to the former husband of Herodi- as; yet the general tenor of the two biographies is so different, and the narratives so divergent, as to render it problematical, whether John sustained any such re- lation to Jesus as is commonly supposed. APOSTOLIC AGE. JOHN THE BAPTIST JESUS. 19 The Gospel of Marcion, [A. D. 145], which, in other respects, was very similar to Luke, contained no such history of John. Marcion's Gospel was probably first written. The first two chapters of Luke were not in Marcion. In place of the 3d and 4th chapters, there was the first chapter in Marcion's Gospel, which com- menced as follows: "Now in the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate ruling in Judsea, Jesus came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and straightway on the sabbath days, going into the synagogue, he taught. '2. And they were astonished at his doctrine, for his word was with power." There was no statement in Marcion, as to the age of Christ, nor concerning the two high priests, nor were there any contradictions of Josephus. Before leaving the history of John the Baptist, we cannot refrain from referring to the grotesque inci- dent, of the daughter of Herodias dancing at a supper given by Herod, to his lords, high captains and chief estates. This portion of the narrative caused a sore trial to the faith of the great Dr. Lardner. "It may perhaps be expected," he says, "I should here produce an instance, about that time, of some lady of like station with Herodias' daughter, who danced at a public entertainment. But I must own, I am not furnished with any instance exactly parallel. " Although the Doctor did not hesitate to believe in miracles, yet, when any thing purported to be inside the bounds of nature, he desired to see it within the range of probability. JESUS CHRIST. The next character is Christ himself. He is said to have been begotten of a virgin, by the overshadowing of the Holy Ghost. This event does not appear to have been mentioned in heathen, Jewish or Christian history, until more than a hundred years after it is said to have taken place. The doctrine of the immaculate conception, 20 FIRST PERIOD. A. Z>. 30 TO A. D. 80. when it was promulgated to the Christians of the sec- ond century, was found to be so congenial to the pre- vailing disposition to deify Christ, that it was at once taken up by the bishops, and incorporated among the foundations of the grand religious structure then be- ing erected. Paul, who had already laid the foundations of the structure, seems to have known nothing of the doctrine. It was somewhat incongruous to deify a person born in the ordinary course of generation. The immaculate conception was needed, to give form and consistency to the doctrine of the divinity of Jesus. Many attempts have been made to write the life of Christ. But it is difficult to see where, outside the gospels, the material for such a work is to come from; while, if the gospels are to be taken as a basis, it is equally difficult to understand, what is to be gained by rewriting what is contained in them. Any such at- tempt only brings out, in a plainer light, the discrep- ancies in those accounts, and finally results in a mere display of ingenuity on the part of the biographer, in his efforts to reconcile them; or, as in the case of some writers, in a sublime unconsciousness of any discrep- ancies whatever. We know of Christ historically, that he was a great moral and religious teacher; that he had the most de- voted followers and disciples; that he was put to death in the reign of Tiberius Caesar; ' and that upon his doc- trines and precepts, and upon a belief in his spiritual resurrection, Paul, the chief of his disciples, founded a new religion. PAUL. That Paul was the one who did the work, is manifest, from recorded tradition, and from those (1.) See Appendix, APOSTOLIC AGE. PAUL. 21 wonderful epistles, written in the first century, which are still extant, and the most of which are considered by scholars to be genuine. Volumes have been written concerning Paul; works abounding mostly in unmixed eulogy. It is the duty of the impartial historian, while appreciating and ad- miring those grand qualities, which mark him as one of the greatest men of any age while conceding his intellectual and moral grandeur, his thorough convic- tion of the truth of the doctrines he was teaching, and the zeal and devotion which he manifested in their propagation, to point out, at the same time, some of the defects in his character. The chief of these, which was the result of his ex- cessive zeal, was an impatience, and even a vindictive- ness, toward those who differed with him in opinion. By an occasional outburst of that spirit of persecu- tion, under the influence of which he had so unrelent- ingly pursued the Christians, he demonstrates, that however thorough was his religious conversion, it had not eradicated or essentially changed those traits of character, and peculiarities of disposition, which dis- tinguished him from other men. Commentators would have us believe, that when, in his Epistle to the Gala- tians, he said, "I would they were even cut off, who trouble you," he meant nothing more, than that they should be cut off from the church. But this he had power to have done; and did direct it, in addressing other churches. An examination of the context, and of the whole epistle, in the commencement of which he had anathematized any one who should preach any other doctrine, ("let him be accursed,") together with the application of a careful and thorough philo- logical analysis of the words used by the apostle, all combine to give to his language a deeper meaning; 22 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. showing that in a moment of exasperation, he gave ut- terance to a sentiment, which, taken in connection with the teaching and practice of Peter, and the con- struction which was put upon some of the sayings of Christ, resulted in the most fearful and wide spread persecutions, through subsequent ages. It is not strange that the apostle should have such feelings toward those whom he saw endeavoring to re- move some of the beautiful pillars from the splendid edifice he was constructing; but it is to be regretted that he did not foresee the use which could be made of his language in after times. Again: notwithstanding the spirit of kindness, of brotherly love, and even of tenderness, pervading the letters of the apostle, there may be discovered occa- sionally, beneath it all, glimpses of an overbearing and tyrannical disposition. This is particularly noticeable in his injunctions to the female Christians, and in his determination to discountenance any ambition on their part to take an equal place with their brothers, in the management of church affairs. They were permitted to hold the position of deacon- ess, an office the functions of which consisted princi- pally in ministering to the necessities of the saints. An office of labor and subserviency, they could fill, but not one of honor; "I suffer not a woman to teach ;" said Paul; thus disclosing his domineering spirit, and his inability to rise above the prejudices of the age. This prohibition of the apostle was scrupulously car- ried out; and in the Council of Laodicea, A. D. 365, the llth Canon forbade the ordination of women for the ministry, while the 44th Canon prohibited them from entering into the altar. J (1.) Landon's Manual of Councils, pp. 284 to 287. APOSTOLIC AGE. PAUL. 23 But the point upon which the fathers were most sensitive, in reference to the position of women in the church, related to administering the rite of baptism. One of the earliest Christian writings, was the Acts of Paul and Thecla. It was a sort of romance. Thec- la, who was engaged to be married, had heard, from an upper window, Paul, preaching. She had fallen in love with him; had deserted her lover and relatives, and had followed Paul; had become a devoted Chris- tian; had baptized; first baptizing herself. Then she worked miracles, became a saint, and finally a martyr. She was held in the highest veneration by the fathers. But the book gave implied sanction to the right of wo- men to baptize. On that account it was declared he- retical, and search was made for the author; an unu- sual proceeding in those days. It was traced to a pres- byter of one of the eastern churches, who acknowledged he had written it "for the honor of Paul." He was tried for the offense, and being convicted, was deposed from the ministry. ' The women claimed the right to baptize their own sex. But the bishops and presbyters did not care to be relieved from the pleasant duty of baptizing the female converts. 2 Of the life of Paul, we know but little. The accounts in the Acts of the Apostles, cannot, for reasons which will hereafter be given, be considered historical. In the first Epistle of Clement of Rome, it is stated that Paul was seven times imprisoned. Dr. Dollinger (1.) Tertullian, cle Baptismo, eh. 17; Jercme. de Vir. 1. 7. Jerome states, erroneously, that Tertullian had said he was convicted before John. (2.) See Bunsen's Christianity and Mankind, vol.7, pp. 386 to 393, pub- lished in the 3d volume of the Analecta. The converts were first exorcised of the evil spirits that were supposed to inhabit them; then, after undressing, and heinj: baptizrd, they were anointed with oil. The custom may not have prevailed in the colder climates. OF THF. TT"KT TtriTTD CTT V 24 FIRST PERIOD, A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. says Paul was seven times imprisoned. * WAS PAUL MARRIED? Eusebius said, "Paul does not demur, in a certain epistle, to mention his own wife, whom he did not take about with him, in order to expedite his ministry the bet- ter." In saying this, Eusebius was quoting from the Stromata, of Clement of Alexandria. [A. D. 200.] The full passage in Clement is as follows: "Paul does not, indeed, in a certain epistle, fear to speak of his own wife, whom he did not take about with him, because it was not necessary for him, in the great work of the ministry. Therefore he says in a certain epistle, 'Have we not power to take about a sister wife, as also the other apostles ?, For they, as was proper, while engaged in the ministry, because they could not keep them apart, were accustomed, doubtless as a matter of commendation, to take about with them female attendants, not as wives, but as sisters, who, togeth- er with the female servants, might be among the women who had charge of the house, by whom without any reprehension or suspicion of evil, the doctrine of the Lord might be carried even to the secret apartments of the women." Strom, bk. 3, ch. 6, Latin Translation in Ante-Nicene' Collection, vol. 12, p. 109. Paul, according to the fathers, was martyred at Rome, A. D. 67 or 68. An interesting story is preserved, of Paul and Per- petua. It is related that Perpetua, seeing Paul dragged along the streets of Rome, in irons, had compassion upon him, and wept bitterly. She had but one eye. Paul asked her for her handkerchief. She gave it. It was tied around Paul's head, and afterward re- turned to her bloody. When she received it back, her other eye was restored. Perpetua was afterward thrown into prison, and tortured, and at last, with a great stone tied to her neck, was thrown over a preci- pice. There was, between Paul and his followers, on one side, and Peter and his followers on the other, a strong antagonism, not generally understood in our day, and (1.) First Age of the Church, p. 87. APOSTOLIC AGE. EPISTLES OF PAUL. 25 which, if properly taken into account, will explain sev- eral knotty points of scripture, and throw light upon many controverted questions in the early history of the church. Paul was rejected by large bodies of Jewish Christians; and in the entire volume of the Recogni- tions, a Petrine work of the early ages, abounding in scripture quotations, there is not a single citation from Paul's epistles. The controversy related, principally, in the "first in- stance, to the observance, by the Christians, of Jewish rites and ceremonies; but afterward it became heredi- tary and traditional. The Ebionites claimed that Paul was an impostor; that he only became a convert for the purpose of ob- taining a Jewish lady with whom he had fallen in love, and when he failed, he turned against the Jews, and opposed their observancies and customs. His EPISTLES. Ten of the Epistles of Paul are prob- ably genuine; though some of the German critics hold that we cannot be certain of more than four; Romans, 1st and 2d Corinthians, and Galatians. ' The 15th and 16th Chapters of Romans, also, are disputed, or at least not considered part of the Epistle to the Romans; not only by German critics, but by many others. David- son and some others confine the objections to the 16th chapter. 2 Though all the fourteen epistles ascribed to Paul, have maintained a place in the canon, many, even among evangelical writers, look with distrust upon the Epistle to the Hebrews, as having been admitted into the canon upon insufficient evidence. (l.J See an interesting and well written work, entitled 'What is the Bible?' by J. T. Sunderland, Chicago, 1878; where authorities are referred to. (2.) Davidson, Int. to N. T. 1. p. 137. Weiss, das Marc. 1872, p. 495. 26 FIRST PERIOD. . A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. Westcott states that at the close of the second cen- tury, it had not yet become established as authorita- tive in the churches. ' It was not in the Latin version made by Tertullian, A. D. 210; Jerome speaks of it du- biously, and Toland says it was doubted by "the sound- est part" of the ancients. 2 Dr. Dollinger says Paul did not write it. 3 The New Testament as compiled by Marcion, [A. D. 145], contained ten epistles of Paul. He knew of no epistles to Timothy, to Titus or to the Hebrews; or he did not consider them genuine. Probably they were later productions. The style of the Apostle Paul, though strong and concise, is sometimes elliptical and ambiguous. He in- dulges in mystical and allegorical expressions, and his applications are at times far-fetched and fanciful. "He often" says Dollinger, "gets more out of a passage, than the words or historical sense convey." This author shows, that in one place he applies to his argument, a meaning precisely opposite to that of the passage quo- ted. The passage is Psalms 68. 18; where, instead of "Thou receivedst gifts among men," or, "Thou hast re- ceived gifts for men," Paul reads, "He gave gifts unto men." [Ephes. 4. 8.] DOCTRINES. The epistles of Paul being the oldest Christian writings extant, 4 their importance in the his- tory of the Christian Eeligion, cannot be overestima- ted. Paul believed in the resurrection of Christ, with a spiritual body. His idea of the resurrection, like that (1.) History of the Canon, p. 306. (2.) Amyntor, p. 56. (3.) First Age of the Church, p. 83. (4.) Origin of the Four Gospels, by Tischendorff, 1867, p. 24; Credibility of the Gospel History, by Dr. Lardner, vol. 3, p. 148. APOSTOLIC AOE. EPISTLES OF PAUL. 27 of Clement of Rome, was, that the spiritual body arose from the decay of the natural body, as a plant from the decay of the seed sown to produce it. It is manifest that when Paul saw Jesus, he saw what appeared to be a spirit; since it was after the time when, as is al- leged, Christ had ascended in the body. There is no ev- idence that Paul knew any thing of the canonical gos- pels; nor is there any reason to believe he had ever seen a gospel in which Jesus denied being a spirit, after the resurrection. With Paul, the resurrection and as- cension were one and the same thing; and obviously meant, a manifestation from the spiritual world. Paul believed that Christ, after his resurrection, or ascension, communicated to the disciples, by the agen- cy of the Holy Spirit, through intercession with the Father, supernatural gifts; 'charismata;' and that these gifts were imparted by the laying on of hands. The precise nature of these 'charismata/ has been the sub- ject of much discussion. There is no doubt that in the view of Paul, they not only included some miraculous powers, but extended as well, to the natural operations and processes of the mind; those involved in preach- ing and exhorting, as well as in interpreting, prophe- cying, &c. The assistance of this extraordinary gift extended to all the qualities necessary for the gui- dance, as well as the edification of the church. Notwithstanding this advantage however, the church- es which he addressed, and especially that at Cor- inth, which appears to have possessed an extra share of these gifts, could not have been, as Paul him- self shows, much superior to the communities by which they were surrounded. Whether Paul claimed to have himself performed miracles, is also a mooted question. He apparently makes such a claim, in Rom. 15. 18, 19, and in 2d Co- 28 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. rinthians, 12. 12; but it has been contended that the original does not necessarily require that construc- tion. ' Whatever Paul may claim for himself and his fellow disciples, by virtue of the descent of the Holy Ghost, there is no reference in his epistles, to any miracles performed by Jesus, during his earthly ministry, nor any evidence that Paul believed in any such miracles, or had ever heard of them. It has often been asked, why did not any heathen or Jewish writer of the first century, speak of the mira- cles of Christ? But a question arises which is equally suggestive, why does neither Paul nor Clement of Rome, the only Christian writers of the first century, make the slightest allusion to them? The same is true of the immaculate conception. Justin Martyr is constantly referring to Christ as "born of a virgin." So with other writers of the second cen- tury. Bat in the epistles of Paul and Clement, though they abound continually in references to Christ, we look for that phrase in vain. PETER. If the fanatics of subsequent times could point to the sayings of Paul, as apparent authority for their excesses, they could, with still more confidence, turn to the teaching and example of Peter. "When," says Dr. Dollinger, "Ananias and Sapphira, through their hypocrisy and. avaricious attempt at de- ception, had made the first assault on the authority of the apostles and the Holy Ghost ruling in the Church, St. Peter inflicted a terrible punishment upon them." When we meet with such language in a Christian writer of the nineteenth century, what might not be (1.) Supernatural Religion, vol. 3, pt. 2, eh. 2. (2.) First Age of the Chnrch, by John Ignatius Dollinger, D. D., 2d London Edition, 1867, p. 44. APOSTOLIC AGE. PETER. 29 expected of the priests of the middle ages? In the Epistle of Clement to James, published in the Ante-Mcene colPn, Clement describes his ordination. He says, when Peter was about to die, the brethren being assembled, (at Rome), he laid his hands on Clem- ent as the bishop, and communicated to him the pow- er of binding and loosing, &c.; and as to him who should grieve the president of the truth, after declar- ing that such a one sins against Christ, and offends the Father of all, Peter proceeded as follows: "Wherefore, he shall not live; and therefore it becomes him who presides, to hold the place of a physician; and not to cherish the rage of an irrational beast." Ante-Nicene Christian Library, wl. 17, p. 7. It does not require a forced construction, to enable one to find the inquisition in this sentence. The gen- uineness of the epistle is not generally admitted by Protestants; but it appears among the ancient wri- tings of the church. If its authenticity cannot be pro- ven, the same may be said of other writings which are implicitly received as genuine. But little is known of the personal history of Peter. His name was Simon, but there has not been the same difficulty in distinguishing him from the Apostle Si- mon Zelotes, as in the case of the two apostles James, and the two apostles Judas. There results, however, considerable confusion, when an attempt is made to identify Peter with the Cephas so often alluded to by Paul, and we are tempted to seek refuge from the di- lemma, by supposing, with Eusebius, that Paul alludes to a person, supposed to be one of the seventy; not to Peter the Apostle. ' It is also remarkable, that in all the places in the gospels but one, (and the total number is nearly a (1.) Eccl. Hist. 1. 12, citing Clement of Alexandria. 30 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. hundred), where Peter is mentioned, the Greek name Tetros' is given, which is supposed to be used by Jews as well as others. This would indicate that all the ca- nonical gospels, Matthew included, are original Greek productions. So little is there authentic in the history of Peter, that to this day, the learned cannot agree, whether he ever went to Rome. Protestants generally, do not ad- mit that such a journey was made. ' Theodore of Mopsuestua, about A. D. 394, says, Peter went to Rome, the others elsewhere. But he probably took it from Eusebius. That writer does not hesitate to make the statement explicitly, and to give the most circumstantial evidence. But in this instance, as in so many others, his testimony is at second hand, from lost writings. He quotes from Caius, a writer whose works, if they ever existed, are now lost or destroyed, what he said, disputing with Proclus, and Caius quotes from another writer whose works are lost, Dionysius of Corinth. 2 Going back 135 years, we find the same thing in Ire- naeus. He says: "Matthew wrote his gospel for the Jews, and in the language of the Jews, at the same time when Peter and Paul founded the church at Rome." Iren. adv. Har. 3. 1. This complicates the question somewhat. Perhaps the easiest way to dispose of this testimony, would be to adopt the construction of Dupin, who, maintaining that Matthew wrote his gospel earlier, says the words of Irenaeus are not to be understood in the literal sense. 8 (1.) Rev. Dr. Sunderland, late Chaplain of the United States Senate, is said to have thanked the Lord, in a prayer, at a public meeting, that Paul had vis- ited Rome, though Peter had not. (2.) Euseb. Eccles. Hist. 2. 25. (3.) Du Pin, Ecc. Hist. vol. 1, p. 46. APOSTOLIC AGE. PETER. 31 The journey of Peter to Kome, and his residence there, cannot be denied by Protestant writers, without rejecting the testimony of witnesses who, in other matters, are, by the same writers, relied upon with im- plicit confidence. The received accounts of the miracles of Peter, are sufficient to excite our astonishment; but the most wonderful of all his miracles, is related in the Acts of Peter and Andrew, where he is represented as making a camel go through the eye of a needle. "Alter the needle had been brought, and all the multitude of the city were standing by to see, Peter looked up and saw a camel coming. And he ordered her to be brought. Then he fixed the needle in the ground, and cried out with aloud voice, saying: 'In tin- iiaiiu' of Jesus Christ, who was crucified under Pontius rilatf. I ordr thee, camel, to go through the eye of the needle. 1 Then the eye of the needle was opened like a gate, and the camel went through it, and all the multitude saw it." Ante-Nicene, vol. 16, p. 371. The miracle was repeated. Onisephorus, who would not believe, sent for another needle and another camel, with a woman sitting on the camel. "And they went through twice." His EPISTLES. The First Epistle of Peter is not free from doubt, and the Second has long been a subject of controversy. It was omitted in the Latin Version of Tertullian, of Africa, [A. D. 210], ' in the Muratorian Fragment, 2 in the Peshito Version, used in the east in ancient times; 3 and as Mr. Toland says, was doubted by the soundest part of the ancient writers. Westcott says, there was no trace of it before A. D. 170, 4 and that it was not authoritative at the close of the second century. 5 Davidson says, it was the last of (1.) Weetcott, Hist, of Canon, p. 234. (2.) McClintock and Strong. (3.) Westcott, p. 221. (4.) p. 234. (5.) p. 306. 32 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. the New Testament documents, ' and Norton declares that there is no historical evidence to justify us in be- lieving it to be the work of the Apostle Peter. 2 DOCTRINES. There is too little extant, which can be relied upon as the genuine writing of Peter, to throw much light upon the history of Christian doctrine. The two epistles ascribed to him are as silent as those of Paul, concerning the miracles of Christ, or the materi- al resurrection, or the immaculate conception. If we could rely upon the Clementine writings as authority for the views of Peter, we might infer that he did not look upon Jesus as equal to the Father. "Our Lord," he is represented as saying, "neither asserted that there were gods, except the Creator of all, nor did he proclaim himself to be God, but he pronounced him blessed, who called him the Son of that God who ordered the universe." Clementine Homilies, 16. 15. JOHN. John is the only one of the twelve apostles, whose life appears to extend into the region of authen- tic history. And of him, this can only be said of the latter portion of his life. He is supposed to have been driven to Patmos, by some persecution, but the learned cannot agree what emperor it was under; the range being from Claudius to Domitian. In the persecution under Domitian he was taken to Rome. There, it is said, the boiling oil, into which he was thrown, had no power to hurt him. ' The account of his living to an old age, at Ephesus, has been universally received, and may be considered historic. Irenseus says that at Ephesus, John leaped out of a public bath, with horror, when he saw Cerin- thus, the heretic, entering it. Cerinthus flourished about the middle of the second century. Some eccle- (1.) Canon, p. 85. (2.) Genuineness of the Gospels, vol. 2, p. 162. (3.).Tertullian, de Prses. c. 36. APOSTOLIC AGE. JOHN. 33 siastical historians, in aid of Irenaeus, have tried to bring Cerinthus within the first century. THE WRITINGS OF John. Of the writings attributed to the apostle, not more than his first general epistle can be considered genuine. His 2d and 3d epistles were omitted in the Peshi- to, l were not established as late as at the close of the second century, a and were doubted by Eusebius himself. Even as late as 1562, when Ignatius, Patriarch of Anti- och, hearing of the advantages of printing, sent a cer- tain priest of Mesopotamia into Europe, with a copy of the Syriac Testament to be printed, it lacked the 2d Epistle of Peter, 2d and 3d John, Jude and Revela- tion. 3 THE APOCALYPSE OR REVELATION, ascribed to John, seems to have been one of many productions of the kind which appeared early in the second century. It is similar to the Revelation of Cerinthus, and may have emanated from the same source. It was omitted from the Peshito Version; from the Catalogue of Cyril of Jerusalem; from that of Gregory Nazianzen; and Davidson thinks it was not in the col- lection of New Testament books made by Eusebius, for the use of the churches, by order of Constantine. 4 It was not established at the close of the second cen- tury, 5 and was not in the Syriac Testament, sent to be printed in 1562. But the most remarkable circumstance is the fact, that it was rejected by the very churches to whom it was addressed. (1.) Westcott, Hist. Canon, p. 221. (2.) Ib. p. 297. (3.) Jones, vol. 1, p. 87. (4.) Canon, p. 118. (5.) Westcott. 34 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. In the Council of Laodicea, A. D. 365, consisting of 32 bishops, from the different Asiatic churches, by the 60th canon, it was solemnly decreed what should be the canonical books of the New Testament. The Apoc- alypse was omitted. * Eusebius argues against it, and thinks it was written by John the Presbyter, or Elder, who lived in the sec- ond century. 2 After all this evidence, it would seem superfluous to add, that the church of Thyatira, one of those to whom it was addressed, had not then, A. D. 96, been founded. THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JOHN. The Rev. Dr. David- son, who is considered such high authority, that he was employed to write the article on the Canon for the new edition of the Encyclopedia Brittanica, says: "Its existence [the Gospel- of John], before 140 A. D., is incapable either of decisive or probable showing." And again: "The Johannine authorship has receded be- fore the tide of modern criticism; and though the tide is arbitrary at times, it is here irresistible." 3 THE JAMESES. Two apostles are mentioned by the name of James; one, the son of Zebedee, and brother of John, called also James the Elder, and the other, James the son of Alphaeus, who was called James the Less, and James the Just. But whether the latter James was the same with the brother of the Lord, commentators have not been able to decide. This, the great church historian, Neander, pronounces the most difficult ques- tion in apostolic history. James, the brother of Jesus, is a historic personage. An account of his death is given, with full particulars, (1.) Landon's Manual of Councils, pp. 284 to 287. (2.) Eoc. Hist. 3. 39. Also, 7. 25. The argument is credited to Dionysius. (3.) Canon of the Bible, by Samuel Davidson, D. D., L. L. D., London, 1877, p. 99. APOSTOLIC AGE. THE JAME8E&. 35 by Josephus. Some evangelical writers have been in- clined to let this passage go with the other, as a forgery. But there does not appear to be any good reason to deny its authenticity. The account is as follows; "Festus was now dead, and Albinus was but upon the road; [having been appointed procurator of Judaea] ; so he [Ananus, who had just been appointed high priest], assembled the Sanhedrim of judges and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some of his companions; and when he had formed an accusation against them, as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned." Antiq. bk. 20, ch. 9. The historian then proceeds to relate, that some of the citizens condemned the proceeding, and went to meet Albinus, who was returning from Alexandria; that they complained to him of Ananus, and claimed that he had no right to assemble the Sanhedrim with- out Albinus' consent; that Albinus, taking the same view of the matter, wrote a severe letter of reproof to Ananus, and soon after, had the high-priesthood taken from him. Now here is a network of historical facts and incidents, connected with the customs and ecclesi- astical polity of the Jews, which forbid the supposition of the whole account being a forgery. And if the words relating to Christ are to be stricken out, there must be some good reason given for it. We do not see any. There is nothing inconsistent in the language. Josephus is not here, as in the other passage, made to declare that Jesus is the Christ. He is spoken of, as "Jesus who was called Christ," to distinguish him from other Jews by the name of Jesus. EPISTLE OF JAMES. Commentators think this epistle was written by James the son of Zebedee, according to the subscription of the Syriac Version; or James the son of Alphaeus, ', or James the brother of the Lord, 2 or an (1.) Dr. Davidson, Introduction to N. T.I. 385, supports 2d or 3d hypothesis. (2.) Alford, Gr. Test. 4. 28, supported by Eusebius. 36 FIRST PERIOD. A. D. 30 TO A. D. 80. unknown James, which was Luther's opinion. As the Epistle maintains its place among the writings of the New Testament, we must conclude that upon the ques- tion of its inspiration, it is immaterial by whom it was written. THE JUDASES AND THE OTHER APOSTLES. There were two apostles by the name of Judas. The one, called Thaddaeus, the other, Judas Iscariot. Whether the one called Thaddseus, and at other times Lebbseus, was also the Lord's brother, here again the learned cannot agree; nor whether he was the author of the Epistle of Jude. This epistle was not in the Peshito, nor in the Syriac Version of 1562. It was rejected by Norton l and had been long before by Michaelis. a This was one of the seven books which were for a long time discredited by the fathers. The others were 2d Peter, 2d and 3d John, James, Hebrews and Eevelation. It is scarcely worth while to attempt to complete a history of the apostles. The whole subject is involved in obscurity. After, with much difficulty, we have settled upon eleven apostles, the twelfth, in the synop- tic gospels was Bartholomew, while in John it was Nathanael. (1.) Vol. 2, p. 162. (2.) Vol. 1, p. 291. APOSTOLIC FATHERS. CLEMENT OF ROME. 87 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 T A. D. 120. CHAPTER III. THE APOSTOLIC FATHERS. CLEMENT OF ROME, IGNATIUS, AND POLYCARP. CLEMENT. A. D. 97. No grander character appears in Christian history, than Clement of Rome. Whether we look at his First Epistle to the Corinthi- ans, generally considered to be genuine, or at the nu- merous other writings attributed to him, and the recorded traditions concerning his life and teachings, we find in either case, one of the highest and noblest types of Christian character. His first Epistle, written about A. D. 97, will compare favorably with the Epistles of Paul. The great and absorbing question connected with this, the first authentic Christian writing outside the gospels, and subsequent to the New Testament Epistles, is, whether any of the gospels are recognized in it, and which? There are some passages claimed as parallel, but there is no mention of any gospel by name. Of the supposed parallel passages, some have a similarity of language, while the idea is different; in others, the same or a similar meaning is conveyed in different language. 38 SECOND PERIOD. AD. 80 TO AD. 120. When these are eliminated, it will be found, that while there are, in Clement, twenty passages parallel to similar ones in the N". T. Epistles, there are but five parallel to any in the canonical gospels. But these do not by any means indicate that these gospels were then in existence. The passages all relate to the sayings of Christ, which were preserved by tradition, as well as in older gospels. Four of the parallelisms are in Matthew, and no doubt were in the Oracles, or other collections of sayings, to which Clement had access. The other is in Luke, 6th chapter, vv. 36 to 38. That also, is a saying of Christ, which in Clement differs considerably from Luke, although Clement professes to give the very "words of the Lord Jesus, which he spake." [Clem. Ep. ch. 13.] Tischendorff concludes that Clement's Epistle does not furnish proof of the existence of the four gospels at that time. 1 In connection with the Epistle of Clement, there is a circumstance worthy of notice. In the 17th chapter of Luke, between the 1st and 2d verses, the words elsewhere occurring in the gospels, "it had been good for that man if he had not been born," are wanting. Now these very words were in the Gospel of Marcion, in the same connection as they would be if between verses 1st and 2d, of 17th Luke. They were also used in a similar connection, by Clement, in the 46th chapter of his Epistle, long before the time of Marcion. If then, as is claimed, Marcion's Gospel is nothing but a corruption of Luke, how did it happen, that Marcion should interpolate a sentence precisely in the same connection, in which it had been used by Clement? Is it not more probable that Clement and (1.) Origin of the Four Gospels, p. 52. APOSTOLIC FATHERS. CLEMENT OF ROME. 39 Marcion were using in common an ancient gospel, in which that sentence occurred, and that the author of Luke either omitted the sentence, or made use of a dif- ferent version of the same ancient gospel? It is true, these or similar words occur in Mark and Matthew, but not in the same connection as in Marcion. In Clement they are in the same connection. The authorities are somewhat conflicting, as to the time when Clement was Bishop, but it is now pretty generally agreed that he wrote his Epistle, about A. D. 97. He is said to have lived to the year 100. ' Besides his First Epistle to the Corinthians, there are several volumes of writings attributed to Clement. There is a Second Epistle to the Corinthians; the Epis- tle to James, giving an account of his ordination by Peter; two Epistles in praise of Virginity; the Canons and Apostolic Constitutions, and the Clementines, so called, consisting of the Epitome, the Homilies and the Recognitions. The Recognitions is a religious romance of much in- terest, throwing light upon the manners and customs of the times, and upon the religious views and practices of the early Christians, and especially illustrating the pre- vailing rage for miracles. There is but little doubt that portions of it, at least, were written in the second century; the evidences which have been detected of a later date, being in the inter- polations. The Latin translator, Rufinus, [A. D. 410], is the same who is generally believed to have taken such unwarrantable liberties with the text of Origen. Origen referred to the Recognitions, A. D. 230. Clement commences, in the Recognitions, by stating that he was born in the City of Rome, and was, from (1.) Mosheim, vol. 1, p. 96; 2d ed. note. 40 SECOND PERIOD. A.D.SQ TO A. D. 120. his early youth, given to meditating upon serious sub- jects; upon the nature of life, whether there was pre-existence, and would be immortality, &c. While engaged in these reflections, a report reached him, which took its rise in the regions of the east, in the reign of Tiberius Caesar. He speaks of the miracles of Christ. These reports became confirmed. About this time, Barnabas came to Eome to preach, and being derided by the people, and a tumult having arisen, Clement, who was a person of distinction, interfered in behalf of Barnabas. He becomes interested, and resolves to re- turn with him to the east. Barnabas sails, and Clem- ent as soon afterward as he can arrange his affairs. Arriving at Csesarea, Barnabas presents Clement to Peter, who receives him joyfully, and running up to him, kisses him. Peter is preparing for a debate with Simon Magus. (For an account of this discussion, see chapter 8.) After a long stay, and meeting with many incidents, Clement recognizes in two of the disciples of Peter, Ni- ceta and Aquila, two brothers of Clement, who, with their mother, had gone to a distant country, in their boyhood, and whom he had never heard of since. He also recognizes, in an old woman, and an old man, who are unknown to each other, and whom Clement meets at different times, his mother and his father; neither of whom had he seen since his boyhood. These are the "Recognitions," which give title to the book. DOCTRINES. Turning again to the First Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians, which, out of deference to the learned, is the only one of tlie writings attributed to him which can be recognized as genuine, let us see what it contains. Though it is a long epistle, covering more than forty octavo pages, and is full of doctrinal allusions, we look APOSTOLIC FATHERS. CLEMENT OF ROME. 41 in vain for any trace of the immaculate conception of Jesus, or of his miracles, or of his material resur- rection. His views of the resurrection, are given in the 24th chapter, in beautiful language, similar to that used by Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians. He compares the burial of the body, to the sowing of fruit in the earth. "The sower goes forth and casts it into the ground; and the seed being thus scattered, though dry and naked when it fell upon the earth, is gradual- ly dissolved. Then, out of its dissolution, the mighty power of the providence of the Lord, raises it up again,' 1 &c. He then refers to the phenix; a bird which was re- ported to live to a great age; and says, when its days are fulfilled, it builds its nest, and lies down and dies, and when its flesh has decayed, a new bird arises in its place. It is difficult to believe, that Clement, when he wrote these words, or Paul, when he declared, "It is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption;" "it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body," had before him a gospel in which it was recorded, that Jesus ex- pressly denied being a spirit, after his resurrection, and called for meat, that he might demonstrate to his disciples, that he had a material body like theirs. The spiritualism of Paul and Clement was too re- fined for the gross conceptions of the second century, which would be satisfied with nothing less than the resurrection of the very crucified body of Jesus. Gos- pels were accordingly constructed, containing accounts of such a resurrection, related with great circumstan- tiality. In the 40th chapter, Clement recognizes the rites and ceremonies of the Jewish worship, as still subsisting in his day, apparently even in the Christian church. 42 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. A large part of his epistle relates to those stirring up sedition and schism in the church. By the acts of these, the large-hearted father was deeply grieved. After reminding them of the time when they were united and harmonious, in the following beautiful and affecting words, "Every kind of faction and schism was abominable in your sight; ye mourned over the transgressions of your neighbors; their deficiencies you deemed your own," he refers to those who, "through pride and sedi- tion, have become the leaders of a detestable emula- tion." But so far from, expressing feelings of hatred toward them, he says in the same paragraph, "Let us be kind to one another, after the pattern of the tender mercy and benignity of our Creator." After citing many examples of humility and long suffering from the Old Testament, he calls upon his brethren to reflect, how free from wrath God is, toward all his creation. [ch. 19.J Illustrating his subject by the peace and harmony of the universe, he says: i "The heavens, revolving under his government, are subject to him in peace. Day and night run the course appointed by him, in no wise hindering each other. The sun and moon, with the companies of the stars, roll in harmony, according to his command, within their prescribed limits, and without any de- viation. The fruitful earth, according to his will, brings forth food in abun- dance," &c. "The vast, immeasurable sea, gathered together by his working, into various basins, never passes beyond the bounds placed around it, but dees as he has commanded." , "Those" said he, "who have been the leaders of sedi- tion and disagreement, ought to have respect to the common hope." He closes with this sublime benediction: "May God, who seeth all things, and who is the ruler of all spirits, and the Lord of all flesh, who chose our Lord Jesus Christ, and us through him, to be a peculiar people, grant to every soul that calleth upon his glorious and APOSTOLIC FATHERS. IGNATIUS. 43 holy name, faith, fear, peace, patience, long-suffering, self-control, purity and sobriety; to the well pleasing of his name, through our High Priest and Pro- tector, Jesus Christ, by whom be to Him glory, and majesty, and power, and honor, both now and forevermore, Amen." IGNATIUS. A. D. 115. The personal history of Igna- tius is so complicated with that of his epistles, that they cannot be separated. Two hundred years ago, there were fifteen epistles in circulation, ascribed to Ignatius, who was Bishop of An- tioch, about the commencement of the second century. Scholars soon decided that eight of them were spuri- ous. The other seven, being those addressed to the Ephesians, Magnesians, Trallians, Romans, Philadelphi- ans and Smyrnaeans, and to Polycarp, appeared in two forms; one very much longer than the other, and in some places, containing whole pages not in the shorter form. "Internal and other evidence caused the rejection of the long form, or long recension, and the learned settled down upon the short recension, or the Vossian Epistles, as they were named, from Vossius, their pub- lisher, as the genuine writings of Ignatius; not, how- ever, without some doubt expressed, as to the genuine- ness even of these. Thus matters stood until 1845; when Dr. Cureton, who had charge of the Syriac department of the British Mu- seum, published three Syriac Epistles of Ignatius, which had been discovered three years previous, having been procured by Archdeacon Tattam, from the monastery of St. Mary Deipara, in the desert, of Mtria, in Egypt. Dr. Cureton, in an able treatise, maintained that these were the only genuine epistles of Ignatius. They were the Epistles to the Ephesians, to the Romans, and to Polycarp; all in a shorter form than in the Vbssian Letters. 44 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. For a number of years, the opinion of Dr. Cureton gained ground, and promised fair to become universal. But of late, the investigations of German scholars have resulted in raising grave doubts, as to the genuineness of any of the epistles. In England, the subject has undergone an animated discussion, and has been made the occasion of exhaustive research, resulting in very able treatises on both sides of the question. The subject was opened by the author of "Super- natural Religion/' who, after reviewing the arguments against the accepted statements of the fathers, that Ignatius was sent from Antioch to Eome to be mar- tyred, statements upon which the genuineness of the letters in any shape depends, since in every form they purport to be written on such a journey, the author says: "This conclusion, irresistible in itself, is, however, confirmed by facts ar- rived at from a totally different point of view. It has been demonstrated that Ignatius was not sent to.Rome at all, but suffered martyrdom in Antioch itself on the 20th of December, A. D. 115; when he was condemned to be cast to wild beasts -in the amphitheater, in consequence of the fanatical excitement produced by the earthquake which took place on the 13th of that month. "- Sup. Eel. vol. 1, p. 268. The writer refers to a number of authorities, all Ger- man, except Dr. Davidson. This statement was subjected to the most searching criticism, by Mr. Westcott, in the Preface to the 4th edition of his work on the Canon, and by Dr. Lightfoot, in an article on the Ignatian Epistles, published in the Contemporary Review, for February, 1875. Also in a milder and more liberal style, by Mr. Sanday, in "The Gospels of the Second Century." The criticisms of Lightfoot, Westcott and others, were replied to with great ability, in over fifty pages of the Preface to the sixth edition of Supernatural Religion. The -argument briefly stated, on both sides, is as follows: APOSTOLIC FATHERS. IGNATIUS. ' 45 AGAINST THE MARTYRDOM AT ROME, AND AGAINST THE GENUINENESS OF ANY OF THE EPISTLES. It is shown that during the winter of 115-116, 'the Emperor Trajan, be- ing engaged in a war with the Parthians, was in Antioch. If, therefore, he condemned Ignatius to martyrdom, he would be more likely to do it there, where they both were. Sending him to Rome would be an additional act of cruelty, not in accordance with the character of Trajan, who was a mild prince, under whose reign but one other instance of martyrdom is recorded, and that not well established. Ignatius, according to the ac- count, was sent by a long and difficult land route, in- stead of the shorter and easier route by sea; which is improbable. Deputations of Christians have access to him, and accompany him, though he represents him- self as guarded strictly by ten leopards. (Roman sol- diers.) He is represented as being permitted to write long letters, advocating the very doctrines for which he is condemned. The epistles do not contain the last ex- hortations and farewell words that might be expected; but "are filled with advanced views of church govern- ment, and the dignity of the episcopate." There is no instance recorded, even during the persecutions under Marcus Aurelius, in which any one was sent to Rome, to be cast to wild beasts; although such executions fre- quently took place in Syria. Again, an earthquake occurred in Antioch, on the 13th of December, A. D. 115, which caused great consternation. This was a week before the martyrdom. It is probable that Igna- tius fell a victim to the superstitious feeling which re- sulted from it. His remains were afterward known to be at Antioch, said to have been brought from Rome, but they were probably there all the time. These arguments are endorsed by Davidson in Eng- land, and in Germany, by Volkmar, Bauer, Scholten and 46 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. Hilgenfeld. Volkmar, also, adds the authority of an ancient writer, John Malalas, about A. D. 600, who lived at Antioch, and would therefore, be likely to know. FOR THE MARTYRDOM AT EOME, AND THE GENUINENESS OF THE CURETON (THE THREE SYRIAC) EPISTLES. The unbroken testimony of the fathers' for nearly five hun- dred years. If Malalas lived at Antioch, so did Chry- sostom and Evagrius, both earlier than Malalas, and both of whom state the martyrdom was at Eome. Be- sides, Malalas is shown to be entirely unreliable on several other subjects. Many reasons may have oper- ated on the mind of Trajan, to induce him to send Ig- natius to Rome, which cannot be judged of at this late day. Other instances are shown, where Christians, when in imprisonment, had been permitted to see their friends, and communicate with them. It is conceded that Ignatius suffered martyrdom, by order of Trajan. Arguments therefore go for naught, which are based upon the clemency of Trajan, or on the supposed fact that there were not other martyrdoms. The objection that he was permitted to write long letters, is removed, since it is generally conceded, that not more than the three short letters, according to the Syriac version, are' genuine. But little can be inferred from the contents of the letters. The martyr wished to improve that op- portunity, to give advice and instruction which would be of lasting benefit. The connection between his ex- ecution and the earthquake, is mere speculation. Fur- thermore, and these two considerations are probably the strongest of all, First, the epistles are referred to in such a way in the Epistle of Polycarp, as to require a complicated double forgery, if the Ignatian letters are not genuine; and secondly, the Epistles of Ignatius are quoted by Origen, A. D. 230, and still earlier, by Ir- APOSTOLIC FATHERS. EPISTLES OF IGNATIUS. 47 enaeus, A. D. 190; both quotations being found in the Cureton Epistles. Such arguments are urged by Drs. Westcott, Light- foot and others in England, and in Germany, by Bleek, Guericke and Mayerhoff. In our judgment, the scales turn on the side of the martyrdom at Rome, and of the authenticity of the Cureton Epistles. Dr. Lightfoot, while he accepts these epistles as gen- uine, states that the Vossian letters are a production of not later than the middle of the second century, and desires the question of their genuineness to remain an open one. But do not the Cureton letters^ if genuine, exclude any longer form of the same epistles? Besides, that question was supposed to have been settled by Lipsius, whose opinion Dr. Lightfoot himself had en- dorsed, before writing this article for the Contempora- ry Review. Lipsius had come to the conclusion that the Vossian letters were an interpolation; that is, a forgery as to four, and an interpolation as to the oth- er three; and that they were written about A. D. 140. THE CURETON EPISTLES. They are written in an af- fectionate and fatherly spirit, and the sentiments and views of the writer are expressed in language at once simple and dignified. When referring to those making trouble in the church, he does so in the following words: "Bear with all men, even as our Lord beareth with thee." (Addressed to Polycarp.) "If thou lovest the good disciples only, thou hast no grace; rath- er subdue those that are evil, by gentleness." "Let not those who seem to be somewhat, and teach strange doctrines, strike thee with apprehension." "More especially is it fitting, that we should bear every thing, for the sake of God, that he also may bear us." In the Epistle to the Romans, the condemned mar- tyr looks joyfully forward to the time when he shall be 48 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120 . offered up, as a testmony to the faith. He is even apprehensive, lest the brethren should interfere. "Ye cannot, " isaid he, "give me any thing more precious than this, that I should be sacrificed to God, while the altar is ready." Again: "I am the wheat of God, and by the teeth of the beasts I shall be ground, that I may be found the pure bread of God." (Quoted, with a slight variation, by Irenae- us, adv. Haer. 5. 28.) The zeal and enthusiasm of Ignatius, in contempla- tion of his martyrdom, rose to the height of fanaticism. His mind even dwelt with delight upon the details of his sufferings. "Fire and the cross, and the beasts that are prepared, cutting- off of the limbs, and scattering of the bones, and crushing of the whole body, harsh tor- ments of the devil, let them come upon me, but only let me be accounted wor- thy of Jesus Christ." He coveted and earnestly desired the glory of mar- tyrdom, and feared the brethren at Eome, whom he was addressing, might interfere in his behalf, before his arrival. THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION. DOCTRINE. In the Epistle of Ignatius to the Ephes- ians, there is, apparently, an obscure reference to the immaculate conception of Jesus; the first intimation of such a doctrine, which we have been able to find in history. It is in these words: "There was concealed from the ruler of this world, the virginity of Mary, and the birth of our Lord, and the three renowned mysteries, which were done in the tranquillity of God, from the Star." This, at first, even in connection with what follows, is not very clear. There appears to be a hidden mean- ing, not easily fathomed. But if it be remembered, that Ignatius was Bishop of Antioch, in Syria, a country imbued with the relig- ious and mythological ideas of Persia, that he must be APOSTOLIC FATHERS. IGNATIUS. 49 supposed to have been familiar with the two principles, one of good, and the other of evil, and of their conflict through the ages; also that Zoroaster had been immacu- lately conceived* by a ray from the divine reason; had been taken to heaven by lightning, and there enthron- ed as a living star; if we suppose these thoughts and im- ages to be blended with his Christian convictions, giv- ing his religious views a tinge of that Gnosticism then commencing to prevail so extensively in the church, the paragraph cited may be read with what follows more intelligibly. "There was concealed from the ruler of this world, the virginity of Mary, and the birth of our Lord, and the three renowned mysteries, which were done in the tranquillity of God, from the Star." Then the following: "And here, at the manifestation of the Son, magic began to be destroyed, and all bonds were loosed; and the ancient kingdom and the error of evil were destroyed." The ancient struggle is at an end; the priilciple of good has triumphed; and this has come from the influ- ence of the living Star. The Gospel of the Infancy, which appeared about this time, and which possibly Ig- natius may have seen, states that the magi came to Bethlehem, guided by a star, in accordance with the prophecy of Zoroaster. EVIDENCE AS TO THE FOUR GOSPELS. There is but one passage in the Cureton Epistles, which can be ci- ted, even as apparent evidence of the existence of eith- er of the four gospels. "Be thou wise as the serpent in every thing, and harmless as to those things which are requisite, as the dove." No source is indicated, whence this is taken. It is one of the sayings of Jesus, which were preserved in various forms, both by tradition, and in the older gospels. It is not much relied upon as evidence. Rev. Mr. Sanday, after citing the passage, from the Epistle of Ignatius to Polycarp, and thinking it ought to be 50 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. referred to the similar passage in Matthew 10. 16, adds: "It is however, possible, that Ignatius may be quoting, not directly from our gospel, but from one of the original documents, (such as Ewald's hypo- thetical Spruch-Samnilung), out of which our gospel was composed; though it is somewhat remarkable that this particular sentence is wanting in the par- allel passage in St. Luke. 1 ' Gospels in the Second Century, p. 78. Ignatius had been forty years bishop of Antioch, and was said to be 86 years old at the time of his death. "THE MARTYRDOM OF IGNATIUS." This purports to have been written soon after the martyrdom, by some persons who accompanied Ignatius to Rome. Many have expressed doubts as to its authenticity; others have rejected altogether. It is not necessary to decide. The document has but little historical value, since the martyrdom is generally admitted. POLYC'ARP. A. D. 116. It is difficult to understand how the Ante-Mcene editors and some other writers can concede the genuineness of the Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians, and still claim that it cannot be dated earlier than the middle of the second century. If there is any portion of it that belongs to that period, it must be an interpolation. The original epistle, if gen- uine, was written very soon after the martyrdom of Ignatius. This will become manifest, by comparing this letter with the one from Ignatius to Polycarp. In that letter, Ignatius says, "I salute him who is reckoned worthy to go to Antioch, in my stead, as I di- rected thee." This can only become intelligible by ref- erence to the 13th chapter of the Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians. It must be borne in mind that Smyrna, the residence of Polycarp, was south east of Philippi, in Macedonia, the place -to which his letter was directed; that Ignatius had passed through Mace- donia, on his way to Rome, and that Antioch, whence APOSTOLIC FATHERS. POLTCARP. 51 he started, was a long way south east of Smyrna. Polycarp, writing from Smyrna to the Philippians, says: "Both you and Ignatius wrote to me, that if any one went into Syria, he should carry your letter with him." He proceeds to say, in substance, that he will send the letter, if he has an opportunity. Again, same chapter, (13), he says: "Any more certain information you may have obtained, both respecting Ignatius himself, and those with him, have the goodness to make known to us." He refers to Ignatius in language implying that he had proceeded, with his friends, on his journey to Eome. Nothing can be plainer, than if the letter is genuine, it was written after Ignatius had gone to Rome to suffer martyrdom, but before information of the particulars had been sent to Smyrna. It has been objected, that in ch. 9, he spoke of Igna- tius as having already suffered martyrdom, while after- ward, he asked for information of Ignatius and 'those with him." The latter portion has been thought to be an interpolation. But we do not think the two passag- es irreconcilable. Ignatius had gone to Eome as a martyr, and Polycarp believed him to have suffered when he wrote; and enquired after his companions, and for the particulars of the martyrdom. Upon the question of the genuineness of this Epistle, also, there has been considerable discussion. But it was expressly referred to, about the year 190, by Ire- nseus, who in his youth, had known Polycarp personal- ly. Polycarp lived till 155. EVIDENCE AS TO THE FOUR GOSPELS. The passages claimed as parallel, are all sayings of Christ, somewhat similar to those in the canonical gospels, but not as- cribed to any definite source. No mention is made 52 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. of either of the Gospels, Luke, Mark, John or Matthew, by Clement, Ignatius or Polycarp. One of the sayings of Jesus quoted by Polycarp, is precisely like one quoted by Clement; but is not in any one of the four gospels. It is as follows: "Be pitiful, that ye may be pitied." In Clement, word for word the same. Again: Clement; "Forgive, that it may be forgiven you;" Polycarp; "Forgive, and it shall be for- given you;" The nearest to which in the canonical gospels, is, "For if ye forgive men their trespasses," &c. These circumstances and some others, struck the mind of the Rev. Mr. Sanday with so much force, that he admitted the passages might have been derived from other collections. * He concludes, that if the apostolic fathers did not make use of our gospels, they had writings closely re- sembling them. That is true, so far as the sayings of Christ are concerned. But in other respects, they were widely different. The sayings of Jesus had be- come so extensively known among his disciples, and had been preserved in so many different ways, that they maintained, for the most part, a substantial iden- tity, in whatever writing contained. Perhaps the most satisfactory solution of the ques- tion of the evidence of the apostolic fathers, was found by Dr. Less, a German evangelical scholar, who wrote about the year 1770. He was author of a celebrated work, written to establish the "authenticity, uncorrup- ted preservation, and credibility of the New Testa- ment." He was stimulated to investigate the question, by a remark of Lord Bolingbroke. In his Letters on the Study of History, Bolingbroke had exposed a want of judgment in "those who attempt to vindicate the (1.) Gospels in the Second Century, p. 87. APOSTOLIC FA THERS NOT WITNESSES TO THE O OSPELS. 53 antiquity of the sacred writings by examples drawn from the fathers of the first century, with a design to prove that these fathers had read the gospels; though the instances alleged amounted to no demonstration." Whereupon Dr. Less gave the subject a very careful and thorough examination. The result is given by Bishop Marsh, in a note to Michaelis; as follows: "From the EPISTLE OF BARNABAS, no inference can be adduced, that he had read any part of the New Testament. "From the GENERAL EPISTLE, as it is called, of CLEMENT OP ROME, it may be inferred, that Clement had read the First Epistle of the Corinthians. "From the SHEPHERD OF HERMAS, no inference whatever can be drawn. "From the EPISTLES OF IGNATIUS, it may be concluded that he had read St. Paul's Epistle to the Ephesians, and that there existed in his time, evan- gelical writings, though it cannot be shown that he has quoted from them. [This investigation was made long before the discovery of the Cureton Epis- tles, and the remark of Dr. Less was founded upon the Vossian Letters, which were more voluminous, and included four spurious letters, ascribed to Ignatius.] "FROM POLYCAKT'S KIMSTI.K TO THE PHILIPPIANS, it appears that he had heard of St. Paul's Epistle to that community, and that he quotes a passage, which is in the First Epistle to the Corinthians, and another which is in the Epistle to the Ephesians; but no positive conclusion can be drawn, with re- spect to any other Epistle, or any of the Four Gospels." MicJiadis by Marsh, wl .1, p. 354, citing Less, Gesch. der Religion, p. 503-537, ed'n 1786. As the result of this analysis, including, besides the apostolic fathers proper, Barnabas and Hernias, and ex- tending to about the middle of the second century, no evidence of the four gospels was seen, in the writings of the apostolic fathers, by this eminent German the- ologian. Subsequent English and American ecclesiasti- cal writers have discovered much, as they suppose, which escaped his careful scrutiny. All three of the apostolic fathers mentioned Paul ex- pressly, and referred to his writings. Clement, in writing to the Corinthians, referred to Paul's Letter to them, and Polycarp, in his Letter to the Philippians, spoke of Paul's Epistle to that Church. 54 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120: There has been an attempt made to make Polycarp a witness for the four gospels, in another manner. Feu- ardentius, in his note on Irenaeus, 3. 3, published, with some other fragments, what purported to be a fragment of Polycarp, out of a very ancient manuscript of Victor Capuanus Catena, upon the four evangelists, wherein Polycarp mentioned each by name; "which," says Feu- ardentius, "Catena he there promises to publish; but whether he did or no, I know not." Victor Capuanus lived, A. D. 480; according to this writer. Grynseus places him at A. D. 455: others a hundred years la- ter. This testimony may be stated thus: Feuardentius says, that Capuanus had, in 480, a manuscript, showing that Polycarp, more than 300 years previous, mention- ed the four gospels. Westcott prudently abandons this evidence, signifi- cantly asking, "Is anything known of the MS. Catena, from which it was taken?" Polycarp was, for many years, Bishop of Smyrna, and was martyred, A. D. 155. He was a devoted Christian, and an able expounder of the faith. In his treatment of heretics, he travelled in the footsteps of Clement and Ignatius. The spirit of persecution finds no sanction in the writings of the three apostolic fathers. Speaking of Valens, who had been a presbyter, but who had departed from the faith, he says: "I am deeply grieved, therefore, brethren, for him and for his wife; to whom may the Lord grant true repentance ! And be ye then, moderate in regard to this matter, and do not count such as enemies, but call them back as suffering and straying members, that ye may save your whole body." [Ch. 11.] (1.) Canon, p. 36. APOSTOLIC FATHERS; CLEMENT, IGNATIUS &POLYCARP. 55 BE CAPITULATION. The apostolic fathers make no mention of the mir- acles of Jesus, nor do they refer to any of the circum- stances connected with his alleged material resurrec- tion. Upon that subject, Clement holds the same views with Paul, and illustrates them in an impressive and beauti- ful manner. Ignatius, A. D. 115, appears to allude, in a mysterious way, to the immaculate conception; the first time we find it mentioned in history. No reference is made to either of the four gospels, nor to the Acts of the Apostles, nor are there any quo- tations except such as evangelical writers concede may have been taken from other sources. U THE MARTYRDOM OFPOLYCARP." This was doubtless, one of the earliest of the martyria. Its genuineness has been denied; but the question is of little impor- tance, as the document contains nothing of much historical value, in the way of fact or doctrine. 56 SECOND PERIOD. A.D.SQ TO A.D.12Q. CHAPTER IV. THE LOST GOSPELS OF THE SECOND CENTURY. GOSPEL ACCORDING TO THE HEBREWS. This is the most celebrated of all the ancient gos- pels. It made its first appearance early in the sec- ond century. Probably not later than 125, and possi- bly five or even ten years sooner. As this gospel, in various forms, and under different titles, was the one most in use among the Christians of the second century, we shall give all the citations of it by the fathers, and all the fragments of the gospel which they have preserved. 1. HEGESIPPUS; A. D. 185. According to Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, bk. 4, ch. 22. Eusebius here says of Hegesippus, "He has also written (laid down) some things concerning the Gospel accord- ing to the Hebrews and Syrians, as also concerning the Hebrew language, by which he evidences that he was converted from Judaism to Christianity." It may be mentioned in passing, that this is the principal testimony relied upon to show that there was a Syriac Version of the canonical gospels in the second century. But so far from its being any evidence of that fact, Eusebius was not referring at all to the ca- nonical gospels, or either of them, but to the Gospel LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF THE HEBREWS. 57 of the Hebrews. He calls it the Gospel according to the Hebrews and Syrians; by which he evidently means, that it was used by the Jews in Syria, as well as else- where. This view is confirmed by the statement of Jerome, which will appear presently, that the Gospel of the Hebrews was written "in the Chaldee and Syriac lan- guage." It appears it was used by the Nazarenes re- siding in Berea, Syria; hence it was translated into Syriac. 2. CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA; A.D. 200. Stromata, bk. 2, ch. 9: "And it is written in the Gospel according to the Hebrews, 'He who wonders shall ivi.irn, and he who reigns shall be at rest.' '' 3. ORIGEN; A.D. 230. Comm. in Joan.: "But if any one will receive the Gospel according to the Hebrews, in which our Savior says, 'The Holy Ghost, my mother, lately took me by one of my hairs, and bore me to the great mountain Tabor," ' &c. From the same. Fragment of the gospel, preserved in Horn. 8, in Matt. torn. 3, p. 21 : "But let us treat this place a little otherwise: It is written in a certain gos- pel, which is entitled, 'according to the Hebrews,' (if any one be pleased to receive it, not as of any authority, but only for illustration of the present question)," Then comes the following account of the colloquy between Jesus and the rich man, which the reader can compare with Matt, 19. 16-24. As he does so, he may wonder at its being pronounced by Origen, "not of any authority,"since it is in spirit, the same as the account in Matthew, and is somewhat more simple and na- tural. There is "reason to believe that the clause in brackets, is one of the many interpolations to which it is well known the writings of Origen have been subjected. In 58 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. the same sentence he himself speaks of it as a gospel; not as a book called "the Gospel according to the He- brews/' but as a gospel, "entitled according to the He- brews." The phrase "it is written," when used by the fathers, is generally understood to apply to writings considered scriptural. Origen says, "It is written in a certain gospel." It will be seen also directly, that Je- rome speaks of this gospel as "one which Origen often used." The following is the narrative: "Another rich man said unto him, 'Master, What good thing shall ] do that I may live?' He said unto him, '0 man, fulfil the law, and the prophets. 1 And he answered him, 'I have done so.' Then said he unto him, 'Go, sell all thou hast, and give to the poor; and come, follow me.' "Then the rich man began to smite his head, and it pleased him not. And the Lord said unto him, 'How sayest thou, I have fulfilled the law and the prophets, when it is written, in the law, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself? And lo, many of thy brethren, sons of Abraham, are covered with filth, and dying of hunger, and thy house is full of many good things, and nothing there- from goeth forth at any time unto them.' "And turning himself about, he said unto Simon, his disciple, sitting near him, 'Simon, son of Jonas, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven.' ' Eev. S. Baring-Gould, after comparing this with the corresponding passage in Matthew, says: "The comparison of these two accounts is not favorable to that in the canon- ical gospel. It is difficult to understand how a Jew could have asked, as did the rich oung man, (according to Matthew's Gospel), what commandments he ought to keep, in order to enter into life. The decalogue was known by heart to every Jew. Moreover, the narrative in the lost gospel is more con- nected than in the canonical gospel." To which maybe added, that the account is consider- ably shorter than in the Gospel of Matthew, or Mark; indicating, according to a principle which will be fre- quently adverted to as we proceed, that it was first written. The narrative in Luke is of about the same length with that in the Hebrews. LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF TEE HEBREWS. 59 4. EUSEBIUS; A. D. 325. Ecc. Hist. bk. 3, ch. 25. In enumerating the apocryphal books, he adds: "In this number, some have placed the Gospel according to the Hebrews; with which they of the Jews, who profess Christianity, are very much de- lighted." Again, when speaking of the Ebionites; Ib. ch. 27: "They made use only, of that which is called the Gospel according to the Hebrews; very little esteeming any other." Again, speaking of Papias; ch. 39: "He mentions another history, concerning a woman accused of many crimes before our Lord, which is contained in the Gospel according to the He- brews." 5. EPIPHANIUS; A. D. 385. Haeres. 29, sec. 9: "They (the Nazarenes) have the Gospel of Matthew most entire in the He- brew language, among them: for this truly is still preserved among them; as it was at first in Hebrew characters. But I know not whether they have taken away the genealogy from Abraham to Christ." Again, against Heresies, 30: (Ebionites.) "They (the Ebionites) also receive the Gospel according to Matthew. For this, both they and the Cerinthians make use of, and no other. They call it the Gospel according to the Hebrews; for the truth is, that Matthew is the only one of the New Testament writers, who published his Gospel and preaching in the Hebrew language, and Hebrew characters." Again; in Sec. 13: "In the gospel which they (the Ebionites) have called the Gospel according to Matthew, which is not entire and perfect, but corrupted and curtailed, and which they call the Hebrew Gospel, it is written : " "There was a certain man called Jesus; and he being about thirty years of age, made choice of us. (This was called also the Gospel of the Twelve Apostles.) And coming to Capernaum, he entered into the house of Simon, called Peter, and opening his mouth, said: When I passed by the Lake of Ti- berias, I chose John and James, the sons of Zebedee, and Simon and Andrew, andThaddeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas Iscariot; and thee, Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom, I called, and thou didst follow me. I will,, therefore, that ye be my twelve apostles, for a testimony to Israel. And John the Baptist was baptizing, and the Pharisees went out to him, and were bap- tized, and all Jerusalem. 60 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. " 'And John had his garment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins, and his meat (according to that gospel) was wild honey, the taste of which was like manna, or as cakes made with honey and oil.' Thus they change the true account into a falsehood, and for locusts, put cakes made with oil and honey. "The beginning of their gospel was this: 'It came to pass, in the days of Herod, King of Judaea, that John came baptizing with the baptism of re- pentance, in the River Jordan, who was reported to be of the family of Aaron, the high priest, the son of Zacharias and Elizabeth; and all people went out after him.' "And after several other things, it is said in this gospel: 'The people being baptized, Jesus also went, and was baptized by John; and as he ascended out of the water, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Holy Spirit of God in the form of a dove, descending and entering into him ; and a voice was made, (eyevETo), from heaven, saying: Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; and then another, I have this day begotten thee; and suddenly there shone around the place a great light; which when John saw, (says this gospel), he said to him, Who art thou Lord? and then another voice from heaven came to him, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.' Hereupon, (according to this gospel), John fell down before him, and said, '0 Lord, I pray thee, *baptize me;' but he hindered him saying, that it is so fit, that all things should be fulfilled. ' See how their false doctrine appears every where, how all things are imperfect, disordered and without truth or order. "So also Cerinthus and Carpocrates, using the same gospel of theirs, would prove from the beginning of that Gospel according to St. Matthew, viz. by the genealogy, that 'Christ proceeded from the seed of Joseph and Mary.' But they (the Ebionites) have quite other sentiments; for they have taken away the genealogy from Matthew, and accordingly begin their gospel, as I have above said, with these words: 'It came to pass, in the days of Herod, King of Ju- daea,' &c." Again, Epiphanius says, sec. 16: "They (the Ebionites) do not say that he, (Christ), was begotten of the Fath- er, but made as one of the angels; but being greater than they, he has domin- ion over them, and all the works of the Almighty; and that he came and taught that which is contained in their gospel, viz. 'I came to abolish sacrifices; and unless ye cease to offer sacrifices, the wrath (of God) shall not cease from you.' And such as these are their tenets." Epiphanius also tells us, ' that a certain Jew, called Joseph, found in a cell at Tiberias, in the time of Con- stantine, the Hebrew Gospel ascribed to Matthew. Not (l.)Hseres. 30, Ebion. sec. 6. LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF THE HEBREWS. 61 much confidence has been placed in this statement by subsequent writers. 6. JEROME; A. D. 400. Catal. Vir. Illust. in Matt. Matthew also called Levi, who became from a publican an apostle, was the first who composed a gospel of Christ; and, for the sake of those who believed in Christ from among the Jews, wrote it in the Hebrew language and letters; but it is uncertain who it was who translated it into Greek. Moreover the He- brew (copy) itself is to this time preserved in the library of Csesarea, which Pamphylus the martyr, with much diligence, collected. The Nazarenes who live in Berea, a city of Syria, and make use of this volume, granted me the favor of writing it out; in which (gospel), there is this observable, that wherever the evangelist either cites, himself, or introduces our Savior as ci- ting, any passage out of "the Old Testament, he does not follow the translation of the LXX, but the Hebrew copies; of which there are these two instances, to wit: 'out of Egypt have I called my Son;' and 'he shall be called a Naza- rene.' " [NOTE. If this statement of Jerome, who is not very reliable, could be de- pended upon, there was a version of the Old Testament then in circulation, containing the latter passage; a passage which, it has been often asserted, was not in the Old Testament; and which is not now to be found in that volume.] Again, same work, Life of James; after relating var- ious wonderful things concerning James, he says: "The gospel also, which is called, 'according to the Hebrews,' and which I translated into Greek and Latin, and which Origen often used, relates, that after our Savior's resurrection, when our Lord had given the linen cloth to the priest's servant, he went to James, and appeared to him; for James had sworn that he would not eat bread, from that hour in which he drank the cup of the Lord, till he should see the Lord risen from the dead. And a little after, the Lord said, 'Bring the^ table and the bread;' and then it is added, he took the bread and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to James the Just, and said to him, 'My brother eat thy bread; for the Son of man is risen from the dead.' " This appearance is not related in the canonical gos- pels; but an appearance to James is mentioned by Paul, 1 Cor. 15. 7; which would indicate that the Gospel of the Hebrews contained the oldest traditions. Again; JEEOME, adv. Pelag. 1. 3, in prin. "In the Gospel according to the Hebrews, which is written in the Chaldee and Syriac' languages, which the Nazarenes use, that according to the Twelve 62 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. Apostles; or as most think, according to Matthew; which is in the library of Caeserea, there is the following history: " 'Behold, the mother and brethren of Christ spake to him: John the Baptist baptizeth, for the remission of sins; let us go and be baptized of him. He said to them, In what have I sinned, that I have any need to go and be baptized by him '? unless my saying this proceeds, perhaps, from ignorance?' "And in the same volume it is said, 'If thy brother oifend thee by any word, and make thee satisfaction, though it be seven times in a day, thou must for- give him.' Simon, his disciple, said to him, 'What! Seven times in a day?' The Lord answered and said unto him, 'I tell thee also, even till seventy times seven.' " Again; Jerome, Lib. 4, Comm. in Jesai. c. 11, 2: "According to their gospel, which is written in the Hebrew language, and read by the Nazarenes, the whole fountain of the Holy Ghost descended upon him. Besides, in that gospel just mentioned, we find these things written: " *It came to pass, when the Lord ascended from the water, the whole fount- tain of the Holy Ghost descended, and rested upon him, and said to him, 'My Son, among all the prophets, I was waiting for thy coming, that I might rest upon thee; for thou art my rest; thou art my first begotten Son, who shall reign to everlasting ages.' ' And again, in Lib. 11, Comm. in Jesai. 40, 11: "But it is written in the Gospel according to the Hebrews, which the Naza- renes read, "The Lord said, The Holy Ghost, my mother just now laid hold on me.' " By the same, in Lib. 2, Comm. in Mic. 7. 6: "Whoever reads the book of Canticles, and will understand, by the spouse of the Soul, the word of God, and will believe the gospel which is entitled, "The Gospel according to the Hebrews, ' which I lately translated, in which our Sa- vior is introduced, saying, 'Just now my mother, the Holy Ghost, laid hold on me by one of my hairs,' will not scruple to say, the Word of God was born of the Spirit, and the soul, which is the spouse of the Word, has the Holy Ghost for its mother-in-law, who, in the Hebrew language, is expressed in the feminine gender." The same, in Lib. 6, Comm. Ezek. 18. 7: "In that which is entitled, "The Gospel according to the Hebrews,' it is reckoned among the chief of crimes, for a person to make sorrowful the heart of his brother." Again; Jerome, Lib. 1, Comm. in Matt. 6. 11: "In the gospel entitled, 'according to the Hebrews,' I find, instead of su- persubstantial bread,' "Machar;" which signifies the morrow; so, the sense LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF THE HEBREWS. 63 is, 'Give us this day, the bread necessary for the morrow;' i. e. for the future." Again, the same. Lib. 2, Comm. in Matt. 12. 13: 4 'In the gospel which the Nazarenes and Ebionites use, (which I lately translated out of Hebrew into Greek, and which is by most esteemed the au- thentic Gospel of Matthew), the man who had the withered hand, is said to be a mason, and prayed for relief in the following words: " 'I was a mason, who got my livelihood by my hands; 1 beseech thee, Je- sus, that thou wouldst restore to me my strength, tfcat I may no longer thus scandalously beg my bread." And again, in Lib. 4, Comm. in.Matt. 23: "In the gospel which the Nazarenes use, for the son of Barachiah, I find written, "The son of Joiada. 1 " The following extracts also are from Jerome: From Lib. 4, Comm. in Matt. 27. 16: "In the gospel entitled, 'according to the Hebrews,' he (Barabbas) is inter- preted, The son of their master, who was condemned for sedition and mur- der." Same book: "In the gospel which I have often mentioned, we read, that a lintel of the temple, of immense size, was broken and rent." (At the time of the crucifixion.) From Epistle ad. Hedib. 149: "In that Gospel which is written in Hebrew letters, we read, not that the vail of the temple was rent, but that a lintel (or beam) of a prodigious size fell down." From lib. 3, Comm. in Ep. ad. Eph. c. 5, v. 4: "In the Hebrew Gospel, we read, that our Lord said to his disciples, 'Be ye .never cheerful, unless when you can see your brother in love.' " From Praef. lib. 18, Comm. in Jesai.: "For when the apostles supposed him to be a spirit, or according to the Gos- pel which the Nazarenes received, an incorporeal demon, he said to them, 'Why are ye troubled,' &c." And in De vir. 111. n. 16, in Ig., he bears the following testimony to the source whence Ignatius was supposed to have taken the quotation, concerning the con versa- 64 SECOND PERIOD. A.D. 80 TO A.D.12Q. tion between Jesus and his disciples, after the resurrec- tion. "In the Epistle to the Smymseans, (which, in the time of Jerome, and until lately, was thought to have been written by Ignatius,) he (Ignatius) takes a tes- timony from the Gospel which I lately translated, as spoken by Christ; he says, 'I saw Christ in the flesh after the resurrection, and believe that it was he; and when he came to Peter, and to those who were with Peter, he said unto them, Behold, feel me, and see that I am not an incorporeal spirit; and presently they touched him and believed. ' ' ' Such are the testimonies of the fathers concerning this famous gospel, and the fragments of it which they have preserved for our inspection. It may be added, that it was not condemned in the decree of Gelasius, A. D. 494. There has been much diversity of opinion, and a good deal of learning brought to bear upon the question, whether the Gospel according to the Hebrews was written by Matthew; and if not, whether Matthew wrote a Gospel in Hebrew. It will be seen by the foregoing extracts, that Epi- phanius and Jerome are very explicit in asserting that this was the Gospel of Matthew. The readiness with which these statements are set a- side by able modern writers, may be regarded as an instructive commentary upon the degree of credit and authority to which the fathers are entitled, on ques- tions requiring for their decision, an educated and crit- ical judgment. It will be noticed hereafter, that Jerome asserts, with the same positiveness, that the Gospel of the In- fancy, which he translated from memory, and a portion of which translation has since been called the Gospel of the Birth of Mary, was written also by Matthew. In that case, he went so far as to say, it was in Mat- thew's own hand-writing. [See chapter 17.] LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF THE HEBREWS. 65 That the Gospel of the Hebrews was Matthew's He- brew Gospel, was the opinion of Du Pin, ' and Father Simon. 2 Beausobre considered it, whether written by Matthew or not, very ancient, and of very high au- thority. Dr. Niemeyer thought this gospel, "the fountain from which other writings of this sort, have derived their or- igin; as streams from a spring." Baronius said, "The present Greek text of St. Matthew, is of no value or authority, unless it were to be compared with the He- brew Gospel of the Nazarenes, which is the true or- iginal." 3 Michaelis [A. D. 1777], examined the question criti- cally. After citing Father Simon, Dr. Mill, and other writers, and admitting frankly that the Nazarenes knew nothing of the Greek gospels, he considers whether in the gospel of the Nazarenes, like that of the Ebionites, the first two chapters of Matthew were want- ing. He .examines Jerome's references to the gospel which he had translated, and comes to the conclusion, that while there is no trace of the first chapter of Mat- thew, it probably contained the second chapter. He does not speak with much confidence, however, and says, "at different times, I have entertained different opinions on this subject." The difficulty experienced by this eminent scholar, appears to have been easily surmounted by more mod- ern writers, some of whom do not hesitate to assert, in the most positive manner, that the references of Jerome prove that the gospel which he translated con- tained both chapters. (1.) History of the Canon, vol. 2, c. 2, 3. (2.) Crit. Hist. N. T., Pt. 1, ch. 7, 9. (3.) Annal. ad. Am. Ct. 34, num. 175. 66 BECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. Michaelis finally concludes, upon the main question, that if the Gospel of the Hebrews was originally the Hebrew Gospel of Matthew, it received various addi- tions among the Nazarenes, after it had been translat- ed into Greek. ' Bishop Marsh, assuming that the Gospel of Matthew was a translation from the Hebrew, thinks the first two chapters may not have been in the original, and that the Greek translator prefixed a translation of some oth- er Chaldee document, containing an account of the birth of Christ. 2 Stroth, [1780J, whose essay on the subject was printed in Eichhorn's Repertorium, contended that the Gospel of the Hebrews was used by Justin Martyr; an opinion which many others have since adopted. Bishop Marsh, referring to this theory of Stroth, and to the reasons given, which had been favorably referred to by Dr. Eosenmuller, [A. D. 1800], says, "It is true that if the force of these arguments be admitted, [and they seem really convincing], we cannot produce Justin as an evidence of the four gospels." : Norton thinks the Gospel of the Hebrews should not be considered apocryphal, and says, in its primitive form it was probably the Hebrew original of Matthew. 4 Toland, speaking of the Gospel of the Hebrews, says: "It was read in the Christian churches for three hundred years, not rejected by Origen and Eusebius, but alleged as a true gospel by Papias, Ignatius, Clemens Alexandrinus, Justin Martyr, Hegesippus and others." Naz. 20. 78. Tischendorff finds that the Gospel of the Hebrews was probably used by Justin; also by the author of the (1.) Vol. 3, p. 169. (2.) Notes to Michaelis, vol. 3, pt. 2, p. 139. (3.) Notes to Michaelis, vol. 1, p. 361. (4.) Genuineness of the Gospels, vol. 1, pp. 214, 225. LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF THE HEBREWS. 67 Clementines, and by Tatian and Hegesippus. l From the views of these writers, after comparing them carefully with the testimony of the fathers, in the foregoing pages, we may, perhaps, elicit the truth, and state it in a few simple propositions. 1. The Gospel of the Hebrews was an ancient gospel, and nearly the only one in use among the Jewish Chris- tians, in the first ages of the Church. It was also extensively used by others, and was of high authority with the fathers. 2. It was universally attributed to Matthew. 3. There was no other Gospel of Matthew at that time. (First half of second century.) The Hebrew Gos- pel of Matthew so much talked about, other than the Gospel of the Hebrews, is a myth, so far as there is any historical evidence. 4. The Greek Gospel of Matthew was a subsequent production, and either originally appeared in the Greek language, or was a translation of the Gospel of the He- brews, with extensive changes and additions. There is reason to believe it to have been an original compila- tion, based upon the Oracles of Christ, but containing, in whole, or in part, a number of other manuscripts. The arguments used to prove that Matthew's Gospel was originally in Hebrew, all run in a circle. They as- sume that the Greek gospel is in some way from Mat- thew, and is therefore authoritative. The reasoning then runs smoothly, and ends in proving a Hebrew Matthew, a document of the existence of which no mention is made in history; if we except a vague tradition never yet traced to its source. As a specimen of this reasoning, we may refer to the argument of Jones, contained in three propositions: (1.) Origin of the Four Gospels, p. 78. 68 SECOND PERIOD. A.D. 80 TO A. D. 120. 1. The Greek gospel contains all that Matthew ever wrote; else it would not be a complete revelation of the divine will, so far as Matthew is concerned. 2. It differed from the Gospel of the Hebrews. 3. Therefore the latter was not written by Matthew. The corollary would be, that there was a Gospel of Matthew in Hebrew, different from the Gospel of the Hebrews. BY WHOM AND WHEN WRITTEN. It will be safe to ac- cept the almost unanimous opinion of theological writers, that the Hebrew Gospel used by the Nazarenes and Ebionites, was not written by Matthew. The au- thor is unknown. It was a compilation, made for the use of the Jewish Christians, from the gospels and gospel documents then in circulation; the manuscripts principally used appear- ing to be, the Oracles or Sayings of Christ, and the Gospel, Preaching and Doctrine of Peter. The Oracles probably constituted the principal basis, and as they had been attributed to Matthew, that circumstance is sufficient to account for the association of the apostle's name with this gospel. The exact time when it was written can only be a matter of conjecture. It could not have been later than the first quarter of the second century. Jerome supposed it to have been written before the epistles of Ignatius. But this was because he thought Ignatius had referred to it in his epistle to the Smyr- nseans; a document of which Ignatius was not the author. DOCTRINES. There is no sufficient evidence that this gospel contained the doctrine of the immaculate con- ception. On the contrary, it is well understood that the earlier Jewish Christians did not believe in it. LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF THE HEBREWS. 69 The miracles of Christ now first begin to be heard of, and as might be expected, the first mentioned are those relating to the healing of the sick and deformed. The more wonderful and startling, such as turning water into wine, and raising to life a human body in a state of decomposition, are not met with until some time afterward. The doctrine of the resurrection of Christ in a material body, now for the first time appeared, and was stoutly maintained by the fathers afterward. 70 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. CHAPTER V. LOST GOSPELS OP THE SECOND CENTURY.-Continued. GOSPEL ACCORDING TO THE EGYPTIANS. This is universally conceded to have been a very an- cient gospel. The learned Dr. Lardner thinks it was not written until the second century. ' Clement of Alexandria [A D. 200J, mentions it in various places, and gives several fragments from it: 1. From Stromata, bk. 3, ch. 6. "When Salome asked our Lord, 'How long death should prevail,' (not as though life were an evil, or the creation an evil), he answered, 'As long as ye women do bring forth children.' " From what follows, it will be seen that this passage was in the Gospel of the Egyptians. The fact that the gospel is not cited by name in this place, becomes, after we know the quotation was taken from that book, a very strong endorsement of it; since it is asserted that Jesus said what he was reported to have said, in the Gospel of the Egyptians. 2. From the same, ch. 9. "But they who oppose the established order of God, by their spurious pre- tences to celibacy, cite those things which our Savior spake to Salome, which I (1.) Works, vol. 3, p. 204. LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF THE EGYPTIANS. 71 just before mentioned. They are, I think, in the Gospel according to the Egyp- tians; for they say that our Savior himself said, 'I am come to destroy the works of the woman; that is, the works of female concupiscence, generation and corruption.' "Afterward, Salome asked him how long it should be that death should pre- vail against men? And he answered, 'While ye women bring forth children.' "Hereupon she said, "Then I have done well in bearing no children, seeing there is no necessity of generation.' To which our Lord replied, 'Feed upon every herb, but that which is bitter, eat not.' " 3. From the same, ch. 13. "Wherefore Cassianus saith, that when Salome asked, when the things should be known concerning which she enquired, our Lord answered, "When you shall despise the covering of your nakedness, and when two shall become one, and the male with the female, neither male nor female. ' First, (I observe) we have not this saying in the four gospels given to us, but in that according to the Egyptians." This passage, quoted from the Gospel of the Egyptians, may be found in similar language in the second Epistle to the Corinthians, formerly attributed to Clement of Eome, but which is now thought to have been written, not earlier than A. D. 150. The next author who refers to this gospel, is Origen; [A. D. 230.] In his Homily on the Gospel of Luke, ch. 1. v. 1, he says: "The church has four gospels, the heretics many; among which is that ac- cording to the Egyptians, that according to the Twelve Apostles," &c. (This according to the Latin translator of Origen.) The next is Jerome; Prsef. in Com. in Matt.: "The evangelist Luke declares that there were many who wrote gospels, when he says, "Forasmuch as many," &c. &c. (ch, 1, v. 1,) which being pub- lished by various authors, gave birth to several heresies; such as that according to the Egyptians, and Thomas, and Matthias, and Bartholomew, that of the Twelve Apostles, and Basilides, and Apelles, and others, which it would be tedious to enumerate; in relation to these it will be enough at present to say, that there have been certain men, who endeavored, without the spirit and grace of God, rather to set forth some sort of account, than to publish a true history." It will be seen that Jerome admits that not only the Gospel of Basilides, composed about A. D. 125, and other 72 SECOND PERIOD. AD. 80 TO A. D. 120 gospels, admitted to have been first published in the sec- ond century, were written before that of Luke, but even the Gospel of Apelles also, which was written not earlier than A. D. 160. That the Gospel of the Egyptians was one of those referred to in Luke's preface, was the opinion of Origen, Theophylact and others of the" ancients, and among the moderns the same view has been expressed by Grotius, Dr. Grabe, Erasmus, and many others. Epiphanius speaks of this gospel, ' and thus refers to one of its doctrines: "They (the Sabellians), make use of all the Scriptures, both of the Old and New Testament, but principally of some certain passages, which they pick out according to their own corrupt and preposterous sentiments. But the whole of their errors, and the main strength of their heterodoxy they have from some apocryphal books, but principally from that which is called the "Gospel of the Egyptians; 11 which is a name some have given it: for in that, many things are proposed in a hidden, mysterious manner, as by our Savior, as though he had said to his disciples, that the Father was the same person, the Son the same person, and the Holy Ghost the same person." The learned Dr. Grabe, 2 has a long dissertation con- cerning this gospel, the substance of which is, that it was composed by some Christians in Egypt; that it was published before either of the canonical gospels, and that Clement of Alexandria did not reject it, but en- deavored rather to explain it; which he would not have done, had he considered it the work of a heretic. Dr. Mill 3 thinks this and the Gospel of the Hebrews were composed before either of our canonical gospels, and that the authors of it were probably Essenes, who received the Christian doctrine from the preaching of Mark at Alexandria. Mr. Whiston says: "The Therapeutae mentioned by Philo seem to have been those first Christian (1.) Hseres. 62. 2. (2.) Spiceleg. Patr. torn. 1, p. 31 to 34. (3.) Prolegom. in N. T. sec. 35 to 38, and sec. 50. LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF THE EGYPTIANS. 73 ascetics, who were converted from the Jews, chiefly in Egypt, soon after our Savior 'K passion, before the coming of Mark thither, and to have both imper- fectly understood and practiced the Christian religion. Eusebius, Epiphanius and Jerome plainly take them for Christians, and their sacred, ancient, mystic- al books are by Eusebius supposed to be the gospels and epistles of the New Testament. The modern critics are entirely puzzled about these Therapeutce, and yet are not willing commonly to believe them Christians. And indeed Eusebius' opinion, that their ancient allegorical books were our gospels and epistles, is liable to great exceptions, since they are not allegorical in their na- ture, nor were they published any considerable time before Philo's own writings; so that upon the whole, I believe, it is more reasonable to say, these Therapeu- tse were those first Christian ascetics, who had gotten very imperfect accounts of Christianity, and were guided by the Gospel according to the Egyptians, which we know by the fragments remaining, was a gospel sufficiently mystical and allegorical, according to the genius of that nation. 1 ' Essay on Const. 1. 37. The statement of Eusebius, ' that the Therapeutse of Egypt became Christians, (though not in the first cen- tury), may be accepted. It is supported by Epiphanius and Jerome, and by the historical fact, that the Chris- tian monkish system had its origin in Egypt. How far the Therapeutae of Egypt and the Essenes of Palestine may be identified, as one and the same class or sect, is a question which has been much dis- cussed. Their beliefs and practices were similar; they both had, anterior to the Christian system, many of its peculiar doctrines, and the members became easy converts to the new religion, and were among the first Christian disciples. A full account of the Essenes will be found in the writings of Josephus. Jerome says, in his life of Mark, "He went with his gospel into Egypt, and there constituted a church; that he was so' remarkable in the abstemiousness of his life, that he obliged all hii converts to follow his example; insomuch that Philo, the most eloquent of all the Jewish writers, when he saw the first church at Alexandria still observing the Jewish customs, thought it would be to the honor of his nation to write a book concerning their way of life; and as Luke says the Christians at Jeruaa- (1.) Ecc. Hist. 2. 16. 17. 74 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. lem had all tilings common, so he relates that it was at Alexandria, under Mark's instructions." Catal. Vir. lUust. in Marco. And again, in his life of Philo, he says, he places Philo among the church writers, because, "By writing a book concerning the first church of Mark at Alexandria, he has said much in commendation of the Christians. He not only mentions such as were there, but in many other provinces; and calls their places of abode monas- teries; from whence it appears, that the first Christians, who believed there on Christ, were such as the monks now pretend and desire to be; to wit, to have all things common, "&c. Catal. Vir. Illust. in Philone. This is a good illustration of the careless writing of the fathers, and of their readiness to supply, from their own imaginations, what is wanting in historical data. Philo, though he writes of the Therapeutae, and of their mode of life, says nothing of any church of Mark at Alexandria, or of any other church, nor does he once mention the Christians in that connection, if indeed in any other. There is, in fact, no historical evidence, at all relia- ble, that any Christian church was founded in Egypt in the first century. The first reliable information upon the subject, is in the letter of Hadrian to Servianus, husband of Paulina, the Emperor's sister. Servianus was consul, A. D. 134. The letter is preserved by Vo- piscus, who wrote about the year 300, and who took it from the books of Phlegon, the historian, who was a freedman of Hadrian. From this epistle it appears, that the religion of the Christians was so crude that Christ and Serapis were worshipped indiscriminately; from which we may reasonably infer that the Christian religion had not long been established in that country. The testimony of Epiphanius is as follows: "They who believed on Christ were called Jessaei, (or Essenes), before they were called Christians, either because Jesse was the father of David, or from Jesus, the name of our Lord, because they were his disciples, and derived their constitution from him, or from the signification of the name Jesus, which in LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF THE EGYPTIANS. 75- Hebrew signifies the same as Therapeutes, (the name by which Philo calls them), i. e. a Savior or physician." Hares. 29. 4. Who this Mark or Marcus was, who established the first Christian Church at Alexandria, is uncertain; pos- sibly it was the same who wrote the Gospel of Mark, in the second century. That it was not Mark, the associate of Peter, who wrote the Preaching, and perhaps the Gospel, of Peter, is manifest from the fact, that in this first church in Egypt, the ascetic system among the Christians, had its origin; and that system, as we learn from other sourc- es, originated not earlier than the second half of the second century. ' Jerome, also, witnesses that it was not earlier than that, in the following passage: "It has often been a question, from whom the desert way of life of the monks, derives its original. Some derive it as far as from Elijah and John. "Others, which is the prevailing opinion, from Antonius; which is in part tine; for he was not so much the first in this way of life, as the means of prop- agating it; for Amathas and Macarius, two disciples of Antonius, affirm, that one Paul of Thebais, (in Egypt), was the chief author of this matter; which I also assent to." In Vita Paul, Eremit. par.3,tr.8. De Vit. Con. Ep.37. Antonius and Paul of Thebais are thought to have lived in the third century. However that may be, it is manifest, from all the evidence, that the ascetic sys- tem of the Christian monks cannot be traced back further than the latter half of the second century. Baring-Gould thinks the Gospel of the Egyptians was related to that of Mark, and that it was composed at the beginning of the second century. He classes it among the Petrine Gospels. 2 It was no doubt, older than Mark, and this, as has been shown, is the opinion of eminent Christian writers. (1.) Consult Serarius, Sozornen and Spanheim. (2.) Lost and Hostile Gospels, pp. 117, 123. 76 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. SO TO A. D. 120. Davidson says, ' it was classed by Origen with the Gospel of the Hebrews, as inauthentic. Norton 2 thinks it was not a historical, but a doctrin- al book. This gospel was not condemned in the famous decree of Pope Gelasius. As has been already seen, the decree did not include either of the first century gospels; the Gospel of Paul, the Gospel of Peter, the Oracles of Matthew; neither did it touch the Gospel of the Hebrews. Jones objects to the Gospel according to the Egyp- tians, that it contradicts the canonical gospels, in re- presenting Salome to be a single woman. But it will be found, upon examination, that the objection is hastily made. Matt. 27. 56, and Mark 15. 40, are cited to show that Salome was the mother of Zebedee's children; as- suming that the third woman spoken of in each place, as present, at the crucifixion, was the same. But this may or may not have been the case. It is stated, both in Mark and Matthew, that many women were there. Because each historian mentions two of the number a- like, it by no means follows, that the third was also the same. If Salome had been the mother of the two apostles, James and John, she would doubtless have been so designated, wherever spoken of. Before leaving the Gospel of the Egyptians, it will be necessary to notice a mis-translation of Jones, made for the purpose of bringing this gospel into disrepute. He makes Clement of Alexandria say, Strom. 3, ch. 9, "The things which follow, spoken to Salome, they cite, who had rather fol- low any thing, than the true canon of the gospel," &c. Jonet, vol. 1, p. 208. (1.) Canon, p. 115. (2.) Vol. 3, p. 243. LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF THE EGYPTIANS. 77 The inference would be that Clement considered the Egyptian Gospel an uncanonical book. The Greek used by Clement is, "Eiticpepovtiiv 61 TtdvTa jLiahhov 7) rca ycard rr)v a^jjQeiav svay- HO.VOYI, (pajLtevrjS ydp avrrjS," &c. "They cite, who rather follow any thing, than what is according to the truth, in the gospel rule." The Greek word -KO.VGOV meant, literally, a rule of measurement; hence, secondarily, a moral rule. It was not used, as applied to a collection of New Testament books, until the fourth century; while Clement wrote at the close of the second. WHEN AND BY WHOM WRITTEN. The original of this gospel may have been in use among the Therapeutae of Egypt, a long time before the introduction of Christi- anity, the passages relating to Christ being afterward added. Or it may have been written in another coun- try, and brought into Egypt, with the Christian relig- ion. In either case it may be dated as early as A. D. 110 to 115. DOCTRINES. We find no evidence that this gospel con- tained the doctrine of the immaculate conception or of the material resurrection, or made any allusion to the miracles of Christ. RECAPITULATION. The Gospel of the Egyptians was very ancient; writ- ten early in the second century; is mentioned in several places, and fragments given by Clement of Alexandria, A. D. 200, who emphatically endorses it, although Jones disingenuously attempts to prove otherwise. The gos- pel taught abstemiousness and celibacy and gave coun- tenance to the Sabellian form of the doctrine of the uni- ty of the Godhead. According to Jerome, Origen and Theophylact of the ancients, and.Grotius, Erasmus, Dr. Grabe, Dr. Mill, and others of the moderns, it was writ- ten before the Gospel of Luke, and in the opinion of 78 SECOND PEBIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. Drs. Grabe and Mill, and other eminent theologians, be- fore either of the canonical gospels. Was not condemned in the decree of Gelasius. The objection as to Salome shown to be untenable. The gospel probably written more than fifty years before the introduction of Chris- tianity into Egypt; the Christian religion having probably been introduced at the same time with Mark's gospel, and with the establishment of the monkish system; toward the close of the second century. The story of Joseph and Mary appears not to have been known when this gospel was written. Neither is any thing said, so far as we have information of its contents, of the miracles of Christ, or of the material resurrection. LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF PERFECTION. 79 CHAPTER VI. LOST GOSPELS OF THE SECOND CENTURY.-Concluded- OTHER LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF PERFECTION GOSPEL OF ANDREW OF BARTHOLOMEW OF PHILIP THE SYRIAC GOSPEL GOSPEL OF EVE THE GOSPEL OF MAT- THIAS OF JUDAS OTHER GOSPELS AND UNCANONICAL WRITINGS. THE GOSPEL OF PERFECTION. Epiphanius alludes to this gospel in the following manner; "But others of them (the Gnostics), produce a certain spurious and supposi- titious work, to which work they have given the name of the Gospel of Per- fection; which really is no gospel, but the perfection of sorrow; for all the perfection of death is contained in that product of the devil." Adv. Ha- re*. 26. 2. Baring-Gould classes this as a Pauline gospel. It was regarded as sacred by the Ophites. Bauer thinks it the same as the Gospel of Eve. But they are distinguished by Epiphanius. Norton says, if it ever existed, it was not a historical work. ' The doubt expressed by Norton, as to the existence of this gospel, might well be indulged, if it depended only upon the assertions of Epiphanius. But it is ex- pressly mentioned in the Gospel of the Infancy, one of the oldest pre-canonical gospels which have been preserved. (1.) Genuineness of the gospels, vol. 8, p. 222. 80 SECOND PERIOD. A.D. 80 TO A. D. 120. In that gospel, after a lengthy account of the miracles performed by Christ while a child in Egypt, it is added: "And the Lord Jesus did many miracles in Egypt, which are neither to be found in the Gospel of 'the Infancy, nor in the Gospel of Perfection." [In- fancy, ch. 25.] Camerarius supposed that Basilides and other Gnos- tics used this gospel, and that it was the same with the Gospel of Philip. l But Epiphanius distinguishes between them. (See Gospel of Philip.) GOSPEL OF ANDREW. There are no fragments extant, of the Gospel of Andrew, and but little is known of it beyond the fact, that it was condemned as apocryphal in the decree of Pope Gelasius; A. D. 494. In some copies of the decree, however, it was not mentioned. The Gospel of Andrew is considered by Jones and others, to have been one of the "many" referred to in the preface to Luke. It is thought to have been alluded to by Augustine, (A. D. 420), in his Prol. in Matthaeum. GOSPEL OF BARTHOLOMEW. Strauss refers to the Gos- pel of Bartholomew as one of those "always current/' quoted by heretics and sometimes by orthodox. 2 No fragments are extant. It was pronounced apoc- ryphal by the decree of Gelasius. Was counted by Jerome, Venerable Bede and others, among those re- ferred to in Luke; Some have thought it the same as the Hebrew Gospel of the Nazarenes; but Jerome, who saw and read the Gospel of the Nazarenes, spoke of the Gospel of Bar- tholomew as distinct from it. It was reported that Pantsenus, when sent to India to preach the gospel, found that Bartholomew had preached there before 'him, and had left the Gospel of (1.) Fabricius, Codex. Apoc. vol. 1, p. 373. Note. (2.) New Life of Jesus, vol. 1, p. 56. LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF PHILIP. 81 Matthew in Hebrew; and Jerome says he brought it back with him to Alexandria. This has been thought to be the same as the Gospel of Bartholomew. The sub- ject is involved in much confusion and uncertainty. Nicephorus says, Bartholomew, while in India, dic- tated the Gospel of Matthew to them out of his mem- ory, and did not take it along with him. ' Monsieur Daille supposed the Gospel of Bartholomew was forged, a short time before Gelasius. a GOSPEL OF PHILIP. The following notice of this gos- pel, and fragment of its contents, is taken from Epi- phanius on Heresies, ch. 26, sec. 13. "They (the Gnostics) laugh at the conduct of the monks, and those who pro- fess chastity and virginity, as submitting to unnecessary hardships. They produce a forged gospel, under the name of the holy Apostle Philip; in which it is written : ** 'The Lord hath revealed to me what the soul must say when it ascends into heaven, and what answer it must make to each of the celestial powers : 'I knew myself and gathered ; recollected myself on all sides, and did not raise children for the devil, (Archon, prince of this world), but extirpated all his principles, and I have gathered myself together, the scattered members; and I know who thou art, for I am one of the celestial number. And thus,' says that book, 'she is set at liberty. ' But it adds, that if the soul be found to have propagated children, it is obliged to stay below, till she shall be able to receive and bring those children to herself." It is not safe to place reliance upon these accounts. Norton says, "Epiphanius is a writer as deficient in plausibility, as in decency and veracity." 3 He was fond of indulging in obscenity, when treating of the doctrines and practices of heretics. 4 Du Pin supposes the Gospel of Philip was made use of by Basilides and Apelles, and by the Ebionites. 6 (1.) Ecc. Hist. 1.4, c.3,2. (2.) De Pseud. Dion. Areop. c. 27. (3.) Genuineness of the Gospels, by Andrews Norton, 1837, vol. 2, p. 211, (4.) See his work, adv. Hser. 26. 5. (5.) Hist of the Can. vol.2. 82 SECOND PERIOD. A.D. 80 TO A. D. 120. , If Epiphanius is to be at all relied upon, there could have been but little affinity between the Gospel of Phil- ip and that of the Hebrews, or Nazarenes. The Gospel according to Philip is mentioned by Ti- motheus, l as one of the new books which the impious Manichaeus, inspired by the devil, had made. It is one of the Pauline gospels of Baring-Gould. Philip, like Paul, is said to have been an apostle of the Gentiles. "This Gospel," says Baring-Gould, "belongs to the same category as those of Perfection, and of Eve, and belonged, if not to the Ophites, to an analo- gous sect, perhaps that of the Prodicians." Lost and Hostile Gospels, p. 293. THE SYRIAC GOSPEL. This was probably nothing but the Gospel of the Hebrews in the Syriac language. It is said to have been used by Hegesippus, the first church historian, A. D. 185. GOSPEL OF EVE, Is another of the gospels of Epipha- nius. The following extract is from his famous work against heresies. "Some of these, (the Gnostics), do produce a certain spurious and forged writing, which they call the Gospel of Perfection; others have the impudence to produce one called the Gospel of Eve; for under her name, as reported to have received great discoveries, revealed to her in her discourse with the ser- pent, they propagate their principles. "But as the discourses of a person in drink, pretending to give advice, are according to his giddy fancy, not equal, but some of them merry, others mel- ancholy, so are the wicked principles of these impostors. For they are led away with certain ridiculous testimonies and visions, which are in that gospel which they make use of. They produce such as the following: " 'I stood upon a very high mountain, and saw one man very tall, and an- other short. And I heard a voice, as it were, of thunder; upon which I went nearer to hear; and he spake to me saying, I am thou, and thou art I; and again, I am thou and thou art 1; and where thou art, there am I; and I am in all places, and in everything; and wheresoever thou wilt, thou shaltfind me, and in finding me, thou findest thyself. ' Behold the doctrine of devils. ' '46. 47. Other pretended quotations are made from this gos- pel, which can scarcely be given in English. 2 (1.) InEpist. &c.p. 117. (2.) See the Greek text of Epiphanius, adv. Haer. ch. 26, sec. 2, 3, and 5. LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF JUDAS. 83 Baring-Gould dignifies this doubtful production, with a place among his Pauline gospels. ' He thinks it was used by Marcus the Valentinian, and says it contained the Alpha Beta story of the childhood of Christ, to be found in some of the extant gospels. GOSPEL OF MATTHIAS. There are no fragments of the Gospel of Matthias extant. It was well known by the ancients, having been referred to by Origen, Eusebius, Ambrose and Jerome, and in some copies of the decree of Gelasius. Origen calls it a gospel of the heretics. ' Jerome and Erasmus include it among those which they think were written before Luke. So also Origen. Venerable Bede was of the same opinion. Dr. Grabe and Dr. Mill think it the same as the Traditions of Matthias. GOSPEL OP JUDAS ISCARIOT. Judas also, had his gospel. It is mentioned by Ireneeus as follows: "But there are other heretics who say Cain [was delivered] by a heavenly power, and who acknowledge Esau, Corah and the Sodomites, as their pattern; who, though they were fought against by the Creator, yet received no damage thereby; for Wisdom took from them whatever belonged to it. These things, they say, Judas, who betrayed Christ, carefully obtained the knowledge of; and as he was the only one of the apostles who knew the truth, he accom- plished the mystery of betraying Christ. By him (Judas) they say, all things in heaven and earth were dissolved; and according to their views, they pro- duce a certain forgery, which they call The Gospel of Judas." Adv. Hwr. 1. 31.1. Epiphanius says, "They will have him to be their relation, and esteem him to have obtained extraordinary knowledge; inasmuch as they produce a certain book under his name, which they call the Gospel of Judas." Adv. Hcer. 38. 1. Mr. Toland having spoken of the gospel with some respect, Jones becomes indignant, and calls those who (1.) Lost and Hostile Gospels, p. 287. (2.) Homil. in Luc. 1. in init. 84 SECOND PERIOD. A.D.8Q TOA.D.m. use it, "a set of impious, beastly, profane wretches." He must have accepted the statements of Epiphanius concerning them, which, by more moderate writers, are rejected as malicious slanders. Dr. Lardner refers to some of his stories concerning the heretics, as "fictions of Epiphanius." * Theodoret speaks of this gospel. 2 Baring-Gould makes it a Pauline gospel. 3 He thinks it was compos- ed by the Cainites. Not a fragment has been preserved, outside of the writings of Irenaeus and Epiphanius. OTHER LOST GOSPELS. The following, mentioned by various writers, are not included in the foregoing list, for reasons which will be given. GOSPEL OF APELLES. This and some others will be treated of in connection with the persons to whom they are attributed. [See Apelles.] THE GOSPEL OF BARNABAS, does not appear to belong to the second century. It is first expressly mentioned, in the decree of Gela- sius, A. D. 494. It has been supposed, however, by some, that Clement of Alexandria alluded to it, when, com- menting on Psalms, 118. 19, 20, he says: "Barnabas, expounding this saying of the prophet, thus reasons: " 'Although there are many gates opened, righteousness is the gate, which is in Christ, at which all they that enter shall be blessed.' "Stromata, 6. 8. But as this passage is not in the Epistle of Barnabas, but is in the first Epistle of Clement of Rome to the Corinthians, it has been thought by Dr. Grabe and oth- ers, that Clement of Alexandria made a mistake in the (1.) Vol. 4, p. 397. (2.) Lib. 1, Ha*. F. c. 15. (3.) Page 305. LOST GOSPELS. GOSPEL OF BARNABAS. 85 citation. Either that, or both Clements took the passage from the Gospel of Barnabas. Dr. Grabe found also in an ancient manuscript, an oth- er citation, as follows: "Barnabas the apostle saith, 'He who prevails in unlawful contests, is so much the more unhappy, because he goes away, having more sin.' " Dr. Grabe was inclined to think this came from the Gospel of Barnabas. Others were of the opinion that it was in the lost portion of the Epistle of Barnabas. Since the discovery of the entire manuscript of the Epistle by Tischendorff, as it is found not to contain this passage, more weight is now to be given to the conjec- ture of Dr. Grabe. Mr. Toland, in the "Nazarenes," says that he saw this passage in substance, in an Italian manuscript, in Hol- land, entitled "The True Gospel of Jesus called Christ, a new Prophet sent by God to the world, according to the relation of Barnabas the Apostle. 7 ' This is supposed to have been a Mohammedan imposture, as Mohammed is, in several places, expressly named as the Paraclete, or promised Comforter. There is a hypothetical history of the Gospel of Bar- nabas, which may be worthy of attention. It is related by Theodorus Lector, Suidas, Nicephorus and others, that, in the reign of the Emperor Zeno, the remains of Barnabas, the apostle and companion of Paul, were found in Cyprus, under a tree, and upon the breast the Gospel of Matthew in Barnabas' own hand- writing. The book was carried to the emperor, and was very highly esteemed by him, and put under a crown in his palace. There is a historical incident con- nected with this story, which gives it an air of probability. It is stated that on account of the honor which attached to Cyprus, by virtue of this discovery, the inhabitants, by means of it, prevailed in their contest with the 86 SECOND PERIOD. A. D. 80 TO A. D. 120. Bishop of Antioch, so that their metropolis had an in- dependent bishop, not subject to the jurisdiction of Antioch. The hypothesis was, that this book, thus found on the breast of Barnabas, was an interpolated and corrupted Gospel of Matthew, and was henceforth called the Gospel of Barnabas. According to this, one of the gospels became so cor- rupted and interpolated by being copied by an" apostle, that it became necessary for the head of the church to pronounce it apocryphal. GOSPEL OR HARMONY OF BASILIDES. [See Basilides.J THE CLEMENTINE GOSPEL occupies a conspicuous place in the work of Baring-Gould. He appears to be the- only writer who has given this name to the gospel or gospels used in the Clementines. It is commonly sup- posed that the principal gospel made use of in these works, was that of the Hebrews. GOSPEL OF CERINTHUS. [See Cerinthus.] ACCOUNTS OR GENEALOGIES OF THE DESPOSYNI. The Desposyni is the term made use of by Eusebius, to des- ignate those relations of Christ, who were supposed to keep family records and genealogies. Fabricius has the above title in his list of gospels. DESCENT FROM THE CROSS, BY JOHN. One of the many apocryphal writings of uncertain origin, sometimes classed among the gospels. GOSPEL OF THE ENCRATITES. Fabricius and others have inferred that Epiphanius ascribed a gospel to the sect of the Encratites. It is more probable, however, that he referred to the Gospel of Tatian. ' THE ETERNAL GOSPEL. The idea of an Eternal Gos- pel, was taken from Revelation, 14. 6. It was thought (1.) See Epiph. Hseres. bk. 30, 13. also bks. 46 and 47. LOST GOSPELS. BOOK OF THE HELKESAITES. 87 John had promised an eternal gospel; and none having appeared, one was accordingly brought to light, as late as the 13th contury; attributed by some, to John of Parma. GOSPEL OF THE GNOSTICS, is a term sometimes used. The Gnostics had various gospels. Epiphanius speaks of their writing "The Revelations of Adam, and other false gospels." FALSE GOSPELS OF HESYCHIUS. This phrase is found in the decree of Pope Gelasius, wherein certain gospels are condemned by that title. What they were, is un- certain. Jerome speaks of "those books which go un- der the names of Lucian and Hesychius, and are es- teemed through the perverse humors of some." THE BOOK OF THE HELKESAITES, is spoken of, by Ep- iphanius and Eusebius. The Helkesaites affirmed, that the book had fallen down from heaven; and that they who believed and observed it, should obtain the par- don of their sins. Epiphanius says, it described Christ as a power, whose height was twenty-four schaenia, or Egyptian leagues, or about sixty-six miles; his breadth twenty- four miles, and his thickness in proportion. His limbs and feet were correspondingly large. Also, that ac- cording to this book, the Holy Ghost was of the female sex, and like Christ, reaching above the clouds, and standing between two mountains. GOSPEL OF JUSTIN. Renan employs this term in re- ferring to the gospel principally used by Justin Martyr. This is supposed to have been the Gospel of the He- brews, or the Gospel of Peter, which may have been nearly the same. GOSPEL OF JAMES THE LESS. This is spoken of by (1.) Praefat. in Ev. ad. Damas. 88 SECOND PERIOD. A.D. 80 TO A. D. 120. some writers, but appears to be none other than the Protevangelion, which will be fully considered in a subsequent chapter. GOSPEL OF JUDE. The same as the Gospel of Judas Iscariot. GOSPEL OF THE LORD. One of the Lost Gospels of Rev. S. Baring-Gould. He says the Gospel of the Lord was used by Marcion, and apparently before him by Cerdo. It may however, be affirmed with much confi- dence, that Marcion's Gospel was not used before his time; since Marcion is universally conceded to have been the author or compiler of it. But as this consisted of a collection of numerous manuscripts, it is possible that Cerdo may have used a collection, consisting of a portion of the same manuscripts. GOSPEL OF Lucius. Such a title is to be seen in the list of Fabricius, but it appears to be one of the books designated as the FALSE GOSPELS OF LUCIANUS. These were pronounced apocryphal in the decree of Gelasius; but as in the case of the False Gospels of Hesychius, they are not de- scribed with sufficient certainty, to enable us to identi- fy them. GOSPEL OF LIFE. This is mentioned by Fabricius, ci- ting Photius, Cod. 85; also Timotheus, Presb. C., Poli- tanus, in Epist. &c., p. 117, who says: "The impious Manichseans, following him, [Manes], and inspired by the devil, make new books, such as, (1.) Evangelium Vivum," &c. THE LEGAL PRIESTHOOD OF CHRIST, is an obscure book, sometimes spoken of as a gospel. But little is known of its contents. GOSPEL OF LONGINUS. Nothing definitely known con- cerning it. Probably not of the second century. GOSPEL OF MANES. [See Manes.] LOST GOSPELS, AND UNCANON1CAL WRITINGS. 89 GOSPEL OF MARCION. [See Marcion.] MEMORABILIA OF JUSTIN. No gospel, though some- times alluded to as such. Same as the "Memoirs," so often referred to by Justin. MIDWIFE OF OUR SAVIOR. Condemned by Gelasius, which appears to be all that is known of it. MANICHEE GOSPEL. [See Manes. J GOSPEL OF MERINTHUS. Merinthus was only another name for Cerinthus. PASSING OF ST. MARY, by St. John. In the list of Fa- bricius. But little is known of it. PERSIAN HISTORY OF CHRIST. Written bv Jerome Xaverius, from the Persian, A. D. 1600. GOSPEL OF SCYTHIANUS. Nothing known relating to it. GOSPEL OF SIMONIDES, or of the Simonians. [See Si- mon Magus.] SPEL OF THADD^JUS. Rejected by Gelasius. GOSPEL OF TATIAN. [See TATIAN.] GOSPEL OF TRUTH. [See Valentinus.] OTHER UNCANONICAL WRITINGS OF THE SECOND CENTURY. Besides the foregoing gospels, there appeared in the second century, a large number of other writings, relating to Christ and his apostles; Acts, Epistles, Reve- lations, &c. Fabricius gives a list, alphabetically arranged, of Apocryphal Acts of the Apostles, 36 in number; among which are the Acts of Peter, Acts of Peter and Andrew, Acts of John, Acts of St. Mary, &c. Then there was the Apocalypse of Peter, Apocalypse of John, (another), Apocalypse of Paul, Bartholomew &c. These were subsequently called apocryphal; a term, meaning, at first, only hidden; but which, afterward, when the books had been for some time laid aside and disused, came to be looked upon as a term of reproach. 90 SECOND PERIOD. A.D.8Q TO A. D. 120. CHAPTER VII. THE AGE OF MIRACLES. APOLLONIUS OF TYANA. Apollonius Tyaneus, one of the most remarkable characters of history, was born two years before the commencement of the Christian era. He lived a hun- dred years, witnessed the reign of a dozen Roman emperors, and during his long and brilliant career, sus- tained the role of a philosopher, teacher, traveler, religious reformer and worker of miracles. The most of our information concerning him, is de- rived from his biography, written in Greek, by Flavius Philostratus, in the year 210. It was composed at the request of the beautiful and gifted Julia Domna, wife of the Emperor Septimius Severus. As soon as Julia was made empress, she gathered a- round her the finest intellects and the greatest orators of the day. Among them were Dion Cassius, the his- torian, the eminent lawyers, Paulus, Papinian and Ulpian, and the learned sophist and scholar, Philostra- tus. It was under such auspices, that the life of Apollonius was written. The work has attracted much AGE OF MIRACLES. APOLLONIU8. 91 attention, and has been translated into various languages. In England, in 1680, Charles Blount, the deist, com- menced a translation, and had proceeded as far as the first two books, which he published with extensive notes, when he seems to have become alarmed at the opposition of the ecclesiastics of his day, and did not further prosecute the work. In his preface, Blount refers, in his quaint manner, to the supposed opposition of the book of Philostratus, to the Christian Scriptures. "Philostratus does not," says he, "any where so much as mention the name of Christ; and if one heathen writer, Hierocles, did make an ill use of this history, by comparing Apollonius to Christ, What is that to Philostratus? Now as to myself," he con- tinues, "I am so far from comparing him to our blessed Savior, or from giving credit to any new miracles, that my daily request of God is, to give me faith enough to believe the old." In the year 1809, the Eev. Edward Berwick, Vicar of Leixslip, in Ireland, translated the whole eight books of Philostratus; the celebrated Dr. Lardner having in the mean time given his opinion, that the work was not intended to antagonize the New Testament. Let us now open this celebrated book of Philostratus, and take a brief survey of its contents. He commences by giving an account of the materials from which the work was composed; stating that he ob- tained them from the different cities and temples, from tradition, and from the epistles of Apollonius^ "a