tures of the Christians. few passages incidentally quoted from him by Jerome, he was acquainted at least with the gospels of Matthew, Mark and John. For Jerome mentions an error of which Porphyry accuses the evangelists in their account of Jesus' walking on the sea, an incident recorded in Matt. 14: 25, &c. Mark 6: 48, &c. and John 6:19. He also states that Porphyry assails the account of Matthew's vocation, which is found only in the gospel of this evangelist; that he objects to Mark 1: 2; and takes occasion from John 7: 8, 10, to accuse Jesus of instability of character.3 Perhaps he was also acquainted with the Acts of the apostles,* or at least with the epistle to the Galatians; for Jerome mentions an unfair use which he made of the dispute between Paul and Peter. And even Chrysostom appeals to Celsus and Porphyry for the antiquity of the New Testament Scriptures. He remarks: ἱκανοι δε και καθ ̓ ἡμων ειρηκοτες, την αρχαιοτητα μαρτυρήσαι των βιβλίων, οἱ περι Κέλσον και τον Βατανεωτην τον μετ' εκεινον. Ου γαρ δη τοις μετ' αυτές συντεθεισιν αντέλεγον, i. e. those who were our enemies, Celsus and after him Bataneotes," are suitable witnesses to testify the antiquity of our books :-for they did not surely endeavour to refute books which were composed after the time in which they lived.

And as far as can be inferred from the

To the testimony of Porphyry and Celsus may be added that of Amelius, who, as we learn from Eusebius, was acquainted with the gospel of John.8

1 Quæst. in Genes. cap. 1. v. 10.

3 Hieron. contra Pelag. Lib. II. § 17.

2 Hieron. in Matt. 9: 9. 3:3. 4 Id. Com. in Joel 2: 28, &c.

5 Comment. in Es. 53: 12. Proem. in Ep. ad Gal.

6 Homil. VI. in Ep. 1 ad Corinth.

[7 Bataneotes was a name given to Porphyry by both Jerome and Chrysostom; but the reason of this apellation seems to be but imperfectly known. Heumann supposed it to be a fictitious name affixed by Porphyry himself to his work against the Christians; and Fabricius thinks it derived from Batanéa, a town in Syria, in which he supposes Porphyry may have been born. S.]

8 Præp. Evang. L. XI. c. 18, 19.

ILLUSTRATION 4.

There is nothing strange in the preceding heathen testimony in favour of the Christian Scriptures.

Nor is it by any means surprising that pagan writers should be acquainted with the facts, established by their testimony in the preceding illustrations, when we recollect what Tertullian says to them in his defence of the Christians against the heathen, c. 31:"Read" says he "the words of God, our Scriptures,” from which he soon after quotes some words of Christ, and c. 32, of Paul, "which we ourselves have no disposition to conceal from your view, and which have, in various ways, fallen into the hands of those who are not Christians."

$2. The genuineness of the homologoumena or universally received books of the New Testament.

If we listen to the testimony of the Christians themselves, we find that not only the age of Eusebius (the commencement of the fourth century), and the earlier age in which Origen lived (the third century) (1), but also the tradition of still more ancient times(2), that is, the concurrent opinion of all those writers whose productions had fallen into the hands of these Christian Fathers(3), unanimously declare the four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, thirteen epistles of Paul, and the first epistle of John and first of Peter, to be the genuine productions(4) of those disciples of Jesus to whom they are ascribed. Nor have we any reason to doubt their genuineness. For in the few fragments of those earlier writers which have reached us, we find that they did actually view these books in that light, in which, Origen and Eu

sebius, report these earlier writers to have viewed them(5). Moreover there is nothing found in these writings incongruous either with the age in which they are said to have been written, or the authors to whom they are attributed(6). And even those (heretics) to whose interest the authority of these sacred writings was extremely prejudicial, did not at first presume to dispute their genuineness; but endeavoured to extricate themselves from their difficulties by arbitrary interpretations(7) of the odious paragraphs, or by the alteration, or erasure of them; thereby pronouncing these writings not spurious but only adulterated (8); or finally, they sought refuge by denying the authority of the writers(9), while they confessed the genuineness of the books. And when, in the course of time, they began to dispute even the genuineness of the writings, they did not urge the want of ancient testimony in their favour, or attempt to impugn their genuineness with any historical objections; but they were contented to adduce some trifling pretended doctrinal objections, extorted from the writings which were the object of their hatred.

ILLUSTRATION 1.

The testimony of the ages of Eusebius and Origen.1

The principal passages of Eusebius and Origen, containing their testimony on this subject, and which will frequently be referred to in the sequel, are the following.

[1 Eusebius, surnamed Pamphilus from his friend the martyr of that name, was born at Cesarea in Palestine about A. n. 270, or perhaps earlier. He flourished principally during the reigns of Constantius and Constantine; and as Jerome states "was a man most studious in the divine Scriptures, was very diligent in making a large collection of the writings of Christian authors, and published innumerable volumes." He was made bishop of Cæsarea about 315, and died in 339 or 340.

Origen, the son of Leonidas the martyr, was born in Egypt A. D. 184 or

Eusebius says;1"It seems therefore proper here to give

185, and early made great proficiency in knowledge. He taught at Alexandria and Cæsarea. His writings were so extremely numerous that Jerome says, "He wrote more than any other man could read." After having spent a life of astonishing activity in the cause of Christianity, and suffered much in the Decian persecution (A. D. 250) he died in the 70th year of his age. S.]

των

Εύλογον δ' ενταυθα γενομένους, ανακεφαλαιώσασθαι τας δηλωθείσας* της καινης διαθήκης γραφης και δη τακτέον εν πρωτοις, την άγιαν των ευαγγελιων τετρακτην· οἷς έπεται ἡ των πράξεων των Αποστολων γραφη μετα δε ταυτην, τας Παυλου καταλεκτεον επιστολας αἷς έξης την φερόμενην Ιωαννου προτε ραν, και όμοιως την Πετρου κυρωσεων επιστολην. Επι τούτοις τακτέον, είγε φανείη, την αποκαλυψιν ιωαννου (περι ἧς τα δοξαντα κατα καιρον εκθησομεθα). Και ταύτα μεν εν ὁμολογουμενοις. Των δ' αντιλεγόμενων, γνώριμων δ' ουν όμως τοις πολλοις, ἡ λεγομενη Ιακώβου φέρεται και η Ιουδα" ήτε Πε τρου δευτερα επιστολή, και η ονομαζόμενη δευτερα και τρίτη των αννου ειτέ του ευαγγελιστου τυγχανουσαι, είτε και ἑτερου όμως νύμου εκείνῳ. Εν τοις νόθοις κατατεταχθώ και Παυλς πραξεων ή γραφη, ότε λεγόμενος ποιμήν, και η αποκαλυ ψις Πετρου και προς τούτοις, ή φερόμενη Βαρναβα επιστολή, και των Αποστολων αἱ λεγομεναι διδαχαι ετι τε ως εφην, ἡ τωαννου αποκαλυψις, ει φανείη, ἣν τινες, ὡς εφην, αθετούσιν, έτεροι δε εγκρινουσι τοῖς ὁμολογουμένοις. Ηδη δ' εν τούτοις τινες και το καθ' ̔Εβραίους ευαγγελιον κατέλεξαν, ο μαλιστα ̔Εβραίων οἱ τον Χριστον παραδεξάμενοι χαίρουσι. Ταυτα μεν παντα των αντιλεγομενων αν ειη αναγκαιως δε και τούτων όμως τον κατάλογον πεποιημεθα, διακρίναντες τας τε κατα την εκκλησιαστικήν παραδοσιν αληθεις και απλαστους και ανωμολογημε νας γραφας, και τας άλλας παρα ταυτας, ουκ ενδιαθηκους μεν, αλλά και αντιλεγομενας, όμως δε παρα πλείστοις των εκκλησιασ τικων γιγνωσκομενας· ἱν ειδεναι εχοιμεν αυτας τε ταύτας, τας ονόματι των Αποστολων προς των αἱρετικων προφερομένας ητοι ὡς Πετρου και Θωμα και Ματθια, η και τινων παρα τουτους αλλων ευαγγελια περιέχουσας η ὡς Ανδρεου και Ιωαννου και των άλλων Αποστολων πραξεις ὧν ουδεν ουδαμως εν συγ γραμματι των κατα διαδοχας εκκλησιαστικων τις ανηρ εις μνη

και

* Vogel, who, in his Program. p. 3-8, has illustrated this passage with distinguished perspicuity, explains, p. 4, the word δηλωθεισας thus: libros quos in ενδιαθηκους referendos esse, manifestum est et extra controversiam positum, i. e. books which were beyond all doubt received into the canon of the New Testament. He therefore makes it refer solely to the homologoumena,

first.

a catalogue of the writings of the New Covenant to which we have alluded. The four holy evangelists must be placed After these must follow the book of the Acts of the apostles; after that are to be placed the epistles of Paul. The first epistle of John and also that of Peter are then to succeed. After these, if it is thought proper, may be placed the Apocalypse of John, the opinions relative to which we will mention in due time. And these belong to the homologoumena. But to the antilegomena, which yet are well known to many, belong those which are called the epistle of James and of Jude: also the second epistle of Peter, and those which are considered the second and third of John, whether written by the evangelist or some other person of the same name. With the spurious are to be reckoned the Acts of Paul, and what is called the Shepherd, and the Revelation of Peter. And to these are to be added the reputed epistle of Barnabas, and the so called Instructions of the Apostles; and if thought proper, the Revelation of St. John may be added, which, as has been stated, some reject, and others class among the homologoumena. There have likewise been some who placed among these the Hebrew gospel, which is prized more especially by the Hebrews who have embraced Christianity. Now all these may be classed with the antilegomena. Nor is it indeed without necessity, that we have made a catalogue of these books also, in order that we may distinguish those writings, which, according to the traditionary

μην αγαγειν ηξιώσεν" πορῥω δε που και ο της φράσεως παρα το ηθος το αποστολικον εναλλαττει χαρακτηρ· ἡ τε γνωμη και ἡ των εν αυτοις φερομένων προαίρεσις, πλειστον όσον της αληθους ορθοδοξίας απηδουσα, ότι δη αἱρετικων ανδρων αναπλασματα τυγχάνει, σαφως παρίστησιν· όθεν ουδ' εν νόθοις αυτα κατατακτεον, αλλ' ως ατοπα παντη και δυσσεβη παραιτητέον. Eccl. Hist. III. 25. In order to render this and the subsequent Illustrations more intelligible, the translator has transferred this quotation from a note on the fourth illustration to this place, and inserted in the text a literal version.

Euseb.