"And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and," alluding to the affair of Cornelius, "said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe." He then reminded them, that the Holy Ghost had been visibly poured out upon those Gentile converts, showing that in the eyes of Him Who seeth the heart, they were as acceptable as the Jewish converts; and that therefore it could not be necessary for them to observe the ceremonial part of the Law, which Jesus came to do away with. The Jews themselves had never kept the Law so perfectly as to deserve the favour of God; and now that Jesus had delivered them from the observance of that Law, why should the Gentiles be required to observe it. "Now therefore," Peter asks, "why tempt ye God," why provoke ye Him to anger in opposing His Will, "to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they."
Such words from St. Peter, who was well known to have been formerly of a different opinion, could not fail to produce an effect upon his hearers, who now listened quietly and patiently to what was told them by St. Paul and St. Barnabas. "Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by them."
When these two Apostles had ended their history, and "held their peace," James, the ruler and director of the Church, declared it to be his opinion, that it was most certainly the Will of God, that the Gentiles should be received into the Christian Church without being required to keep the Law, as the Jewish teachers had insisted; and that this had been the intention of the Lord from the beginning, and had been accordingly foretold by the prophets. "Wherefore," said he, "my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God: but that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood. For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day."
This speech of St. James requires a little explanation. The Law of Moses required that animals used for food should be killed in a particular way; and a Jew was to be considered as unclean, if he ate any meat not prepared in this manner. Much of the meat eaten by the Gentiles, was the flesh of animals offered in sacrifice to their false gods, or idols: to eat of such food polluted a Jew,—that is, made him unclean. Now, an idol was in reality nothing, nor did it signify how food was prepared, if it was eaten with thankfulness. But at that time there were very many Jewish converts who had long kept the Law of Moses, and held that to eat of meat offered to idols, or of the flesh of animals "strangled," instead of being killed as the Law required, did pollute a man, and render him unclean. St. James therefore considered, that for the present, it would be better for the Gentile converts to abstain from animal food, prepared in a different way from what the Jews thought lawful, that they might not offend them; and that they might, moreover, show that they had given up offering any sacrifices to idols. St. James therefore thought it well, in excusing them from most of the observances of the Law, to caution the Gentile converts not only to keep themselves free from all manner of sin, but also to avoid every appearance of idolatry. The reason which St. James gives for this decision is, that as the Law of Moses was read every Sabbath day, and reverenced by all the Jewish converts, it was better not to disregard such ordinances, though in themselves they were matters of indifference. What St. James said was approved of by the other members of the Church.
"Then pleased it the Apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren: and they wrote letters by them," bidding the Gentile converts at Antioch not to be troubled by the teaching of the Jewish teachers, saying, "For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things; that ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well."
In this letter, St. Paul and St. Barnabas are spoken of as "beloved," "men that have hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ": and the Christians of Antioch are told, that Judas and Silas have been sent, in order that they might explain more fully what had been written on the subject, about which St. James and the Church at Jerusalem had been consulted. Sending these two brethren was a very wise measure. Had St. Paul and St. Barnabas returned alone, the Jewish teachers might have raised a question, as to how far they, being interested in the matter, could be trusted to deliver any messages correctly; but Judas and Silas, having nothing to do with the affair, must be regarded as unprejudiced witnesses as to what they had heard in Jerusalem.
Judas and Silas are both called Prophets. "The Prophets" appear to have been a class of teachers who were inspired to foretell future events, as well as to preach the Gospel; but they had not so much power and authority as the Apostles. Then, again, there were other teachers, who were not Prophets. God gave different gifts and powers to different men, according to the work He appointed for them to do. It is the same now: we have not all the same power, but each one of us should try to do all we can to serve God, and do good to our fellow creatures.
The letters being written, and delivered to Judas and Silas, the Apostles were dismissed, and "came to Antioch: and when they had gathered the multitude together, they delivered the epistle: which when" the Christian brethren "had read, they rejoiced for the consolation" it had given them, in the assurance that they were by no means called upon to keep the whole Law of Moses.
Judas and Silas made themselves very useful at Antioch; for they "exhorted the brethren with many words, and confirmed them" in the faith. "And after they had tarried there a space, they were let go in peace from the brethren unto the Apostles" in Jerusalem. But one only availed himself of this permission: for "it pleased Silas to abide there still," and therefore he remained in Antioch with St. Paul and St. Barnabas, "teaching and preaching the word of the Lord." Many other teachers also helped them; and thus another year passed away.
We next read that, "some days after, Paul said unto Barnabas, Let us go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they do." This was a very good thought: another visit from the Apostles would be a great comfort to the Christians of Iconium, Lystra, Derbe, and other places; and especially to the elders of those Churches, who would be glad to have their advice on many subjects. St. Barnabas was very willing to go; but now a dispute arose, which caused the separation of these two Apostles; for "Barnabas determined to take with them Mark," his nephew; "but Paul thought not good to take with them" one who had left them on their first journey as soon as they landed in Pamphylia; "and went not with them to the work," of preaching to the Gentiles in Asia Minor.
Differences of opinion will arise amongst the best of men, and so far there was nothing wrong in the conduct of the Apostles: but, alas! instead of seeking counsel from God, and settling the matter peaceably, Scripture tells us that "the contention was so sharp between them, that they departed asunder one from the other." It is sad to hear of these two holy men parting from each other in anger; but it is a warning to us to keep a strict watch over all our words, that we may not fall into that strife, which is so displeasing in the eyes of God. Let us always remember that no dispute or quarrel, can be carried on unless both parties give way to sinful feelings. Differences must arise; and even if we feel it our duty not to give up our own design, we can, by gentleness, forbearance, and self-denial, prevent any "sharp contention," even though we may thus be obliged to offend our adversary. Where no principle of right is concerned, we should give up our own wishes for the sake of "living peaceably with all men," as the Gospel enjoins us to do.
St. Paul was afraid to trust St. Mark: he had failed once; and perhaps the Apostle was too stern in his condemnation of his fault, and too unwilling to believe in his repentance. St. Barnabas, on the other hand, from his nearer connexion with St. Mark, felt that he might now be trusted; and he was probably angry with St. Paul for not also believing this. A little calm and quiet talk might perhaps have settled the matter; or, at any rate, might have led to an amicable separation, instead of "a sharp contention," which parted them asunder.
However it was, this unhappy dispute was overruled for the good of the Church; because by going separately, these two zealous Apostles could visit many more places than they could have done, had they continued to journey together. We must remember also, that though these Apostles were for the moment angry with each other, these feelings did not last; and, some years afterwards, we find St. Mark the companion of St. Paul.
At the time of which we are now speaking, however, "Barnabas took Mark, and sailed unto Cyprus." How long he stayed there, or where he went afterwards, we are not told; but we may be sure that, wherever he went, his words strengthened the faith of believers, whilst he laboured to bring fresh converts into the Church.
"And Paul chose Silas" to accompany him on his Second Apostolic Journey, "and departed, being recommended by the brethren unto the grace of God. And he went through Syria and" the neighbouring province of "Cilicia, confirming the churches." He then went northward into Lycaonia; and at either Derbe or Lystra he found a young man, called Timotheus, or Timothy, one of the believers, who was well spoken of by other Christians in those parts, because they saw that in all things he tried to obey Jesus, and follow His example. The mother of Timothy was called Eunice, and his grandmother Lois. Both these women were Jewesses, but had become Christians many years before. Eunice then married the father of Timothy, by birth a Greek, but then a proselyte of the gate, worshipping the God of Israel, but not observing the Law of Moses. As soon as the little Timothy was old enough to learn, his mother Eunice had carefully taught him the things of God, and instructed him in the faith of Jesus Christ: so that now, by the blessing of God, he was a true Christian.
Many children are taught nothing while they are young, and know no more of God and Jesus Christ than if they were heathens. We must pity and pray for them; and children who have the blessing of being early taught these things, should show their thankfulness, by trying to learn and do all that the Gospel teaches. No teaching can make a child love and serve God; but no one can love or serve Him unless they learn how to do so. Therefore children should pay the greatest attention to all that is taught from the Bible and Prayer Book, praying to God that the Holy Spirit may help them to do whatever they see to be right.
Timothy had paid attention to the teaching of his mother, praying for grace to perceive and know what things he ought to do; and striving earnestly to fulfil the same: and now, St. Paul, seeing that such a young man would be most useful in preaching both to Jews and Gentiles, "would have him to go forth with him" on his journey: and he "took and circumcised him because of the Jews which were in those quarters: for they knew all that his father was a Greek."
As the son of a Jewess, Timothy would be supposed to have been circumcised; and the Jews, finding that this was not the case, and knowing that his father had been a heathen, would probably have been unwilling to listen to him; and thus his usefulness would have been sadly interfered with. Circumcision, in Timothy's case, was unnecessary, but there was nothing wrong in it; and therefore, to avoid giving offence to the Jews, St. Paul acted as we have heard. Taking Timothy with him, St. Paul now continued his journey. "And as they went through the cities, they delivered them the decrees for to keep, that were ordained of the Apostles and elders which were at Jerusalem," that is, the decrees concerning the observance of the Law of Moses by the Gentiles. And so were the Churches established in the faith, and increased in number daily.
After preaching the Gospel in Phrygia and Galatia, St. Paul and his companions would have gone into other parts of Asia Minor, but the Spirit of God made it known to them, that they were not to do so: they went therefore to Troas, a sea-port quite in the northern part of the Archipelago. Here St. Paul's little band of followers was increased, for St. Luke joined them; and from this time, in relating what happened, St. Luke writes "we" and "us," showing that he was one of those concerned in the events he describes. Besides writing the Book of Acts, St. Luke wrote the Gospel which bears his name. We know nothing of St. Luke, except that he was a Jew and a physician: he was probably a native of Antioch, in Syria. St. Luke tells us that, at Troas, St. Paul saw in a vision a man of Macedonia, who stood and prayed him, saying, "Come over into Macedonia, and help us." St. Paul, rightly looking upon this as a call from God, immediately embarked on board a ship, and sailing by the island of Samothracia, landed at Neapolis, a sea-port of Thracia. Macedonia had once been a separate kingdom, but the Romans, who had in the Apostles' time got possession of all that country called Greece, had divided the whole into two great parts: one of these contained Macedonia, Thessaly, and Epirus, but went by the name of Macedonia: the other division, called Achaia, contained the rest of Greece, including the Peloponnesus.
From Neapolis St. Paul proceeded to Philippi, which was "the chief city of that part of Macedonia," and a Roman colony: that is, it was peopled or inhabited by the descendants of Romans, who had been placed there by Julius Cæesar and by the Emperor Augustus. The place had got the name of Philippi long before, from Philip then king of Macedonia, who repaired the buildings of the city, and added many handsome new ones. Philip was the father of Alexander the Great, a famous king, of whom we read much in ancient history. Both Philip and Alexander lived and died more than 300 years before Jesus Christ was born.
St. Paul and his companions remained some time at Philippi; and St. Luke says, "on the sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither."
Besides the synagogues, or buildings for public worship, the Jews had also, in every place where they took up their residence, smaller buildings or oratories, to which people might constantly resort for the purposes of prayer. These oratories were generally built in the fields, or by the side of a stream. To one of these oratories, close to the city of Philippi, St. Paul and his companions went, that they might speak of the Lord Jesus Christ, to those who went there to worship the Lord God of Israel. Amongst their first converts was "a certain woman named Lydia," a native of the city of Thyatira, in Asia Minor, but resident in Philippi for the purposes of trade. Scripture says, she was a "seller of purple": what this may mean, we do not exactly know; but it probably means, that she sold some fine materials for female dress. At any rate, she had become a "proselyte of the gate," and worshipped God: and the Lord "opened her heart," so "that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul," with a sincere desire to learn; and in consequence became a real convert to Christianity, inducing all the members of her family to follow her example. "And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there." Eager to show her sincerity by doing something for the service of God, she now anxiously sought to be of use to the messengers of Jesus for their Lord's sake; and entreated them to take up their abode in her house.
St. Luke adds, "And she constrained us"—that is, so urged and entreated, as to force them to do as she wished. We now read, "And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying."
This damsel seems to have been a slave, who, being possessed by an evil spirit, spake in a mysterious way, foretelling future events: and as the heathens were great believers in such things, many of them consulted this unfortunate girl, and gave her money for exercising her powers. This money went to her masters, to whom she thus brought much gain. The Lord now chose this damsel, to give a proof that He can constrain even evil spirits to bear testimony to the truth of Christ's religion; for St. Luke says, "The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation."
The damsel at Philippi, though under the influence of the evil spirit, was constrained by a higher power to bear evidence to the truth of doctrines, calculated to overthrow the empire of Satan. "And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved" to see her under the dominion of an evil spirit, "turned, and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour": thus putting an end to all future soothsaying. "And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone," they were greatly enraged, and "caught Paul and Silas and drew them into the market-place unto the rulers, and brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city, and teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans." Such an accusation was sure to gain immediate attention from the magistrates, or governors of the city, as the Roman Emperors were very severe in any cases of rebellion or opposition, in their distant provinces: and though there was at that time no express law against Christianity, there was a law requiring all persons to worship the gods of the country; and Christianity was, of course, opposed to all idolatrous practices. Covetousness, or a sinful love of money, is, we are told, the root of much evil: the masters of the damsel cared not how much St. Paul preached the Gospel, as long as it did not interfere with their gains; but as soon as it did, they raised an outcry against the Apostles. Now let us remember that covetousness, or an eager desire for our own gain, whether of riches, honours, or pleasures, is just as great a sin now, as it was when the Scriptures were first written; and let us try never to let any thoughts of our own advantage or gain, lead us to do or allow what we know to be wrong; or prevent our doing what we feel is right. These men succeeded in their persecution of Paul and Silas, for "the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates," without further consideration, "rent off their clothes," preparatory to their being scourged, "and commanded to beat them. And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely." The jailor, having received so special a charge, determined to keep it: and therefore "thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks"—a machine fixed to the floor, having round holes just to go round the ancles, so that when it was shut upon them, it was quite impossible for the poor prisoners to move. Now imagine the sufferings of St. Paul and his companion: bleeding and smarting from the severe wounds made by the scourge, and their feet so confined, that they could get no ease by any change of posture! We might expect to find them lamenting over their terrible sufferings, or, at least, praying to God to deliver them. But the Scripture tells us, "And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God": their faith was great; they rejoiced to suffer for the sake of Jesus, and they praised God for all His wondrous works: they sang from their hearts with loud voice, and the other "prisoners heard them." No doubt such joyful songs, from the lips of those whom they knew to be in pain, surprised their fellow prisoners, who had soon a greater cause for astonishment. The prayers and praises of Paul and Silas went up to God: "And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed. And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled." The jailor knew full well, that if the prisoners under his charge had escaped from prison, he would surely be put to death by the Roman magistrates; and, to avoid the disgrace of such a death, he was about to kill himself. Being a heathen, he did not know, as Christians do, that it is a fearful sin to put an end to our own lives: and therefore, rather than be punished for a fault of which he was not guilty, he prepared to kill himself. "But Paul," knowing his intention, "cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling." Having thus convinced himself that his prisoners were indeed still in the prison, the jailor felt at once that the Apostles were certainly holy men, the messengers of God. No doubt he knew that for preaching the Gospel they had been cast into prison, and the wonderful things which he had now seen, convinced him that all they had said was true: therefore he "fell down" on his knees "before Paul and Silas, and brought them out" of prison, "and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house." What blessed words! and then they doubtless explained to him that the faith here spoken of, meant such a belief in Jesus, as would lead to repentance for all sin so displeasing to Him, and make men strive to do all in their power to please Him: for to believe the Gospel, means to do all that the Gospel teaches. Such, no doubt, was the Apostles' teaching, as "they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house." The jailor showed his gratitude to the Apostles by doing all he could for their relief and comfort: for "he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes." "And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house." Convinced and truly converted from the errors of idolatry to a belief of the truth as it is in Jesus, the jailor of Philippi with his family were at once admitted as members of the Christian Church; he "was baptized, he and all his, straightway."
It would seem that the magistrates of Philippi, upon thinking calmly over the matter, felt that they had acted hastily and unjustly, in commanding two men to be scourged and put into prison, without a trial; for we read, "And when it was day, the magistrates sent the serjeants," officers under their command, to the jailor, "saying, Let those men go." The keeper of the prison, well pleased to receive such an order, told this to Paul, saying, "The magistrates have sent to let you go: now therefore depart, and go in peace. But Paul said unto" the serjeants who stood by, "They have beaten us openly uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison; and now do they thrust us out privily? nay verily; but let them come themselves and fetch us out."
Now in order to understand all this, we must remember that the Romans, who thought themselves greatly superior to any other people in the world, were very jealous of their power and privileges as citizens of Rome. Thus, if a Roman citizen was ill treated, the Roman Government would severely punish any one who had dared to ill treat him. All persons whose parents were natives and citizens of Rome, were looked upon as free-born citizens; and enjoyed from their birth, all the rights and privileges given by the Roman Government to her subjects.
Persons not born of Roman citizens, if they had done good service, either by fighting for Rome, or in any other way, were often rewarded by receiving the Freedom of the City; that is, by being looked upon and treated as Roman citizens, and having an equal share in all the privileges and benefits, granted to such Romans as were free-born.
St. Paul was not a native of Rome, nor were his parents; for they were Jews, settled at Tarsus, in Cilicia: probably some of his ancestors, his grandfather or great-grandfather, had served in the Roman armies, and been rewarded for some great service, by receiving the freedom of the city: after which, all his descendants would be looked upon as free-born citizens of Rome.
The Roman Emperors sometimes allowed strangers to buy the privileges: the Emperor Claudius did so: and for a large sum of money allowed people to have for themselves the privileges of a Roman citizen—a great advantage in those days, as the rulers of every Roman province were bound to protect every Roman citizen in it, and not suffer any one to be ill treated. To scourge and imprison a Roman citizen, without having first proved him to have been guilty of some great crime, was an offence which the Roman Government punished most severely; and therefore, we find that when the serjeants went back, and "told these words unto the magistrates, they feared, when they heard that they were Romans. And they came and besought them" not to report the treatment they had received, "and brought them out" of prison, "and desired (or entreated) them to depart out of the city."
We may be quite sure that St. Paul neither valued nor used the privileges of a Roman, further than they could serve to the glory of God. In this case, many of the people who had seen him and Silas beaten and cast into prison, would naturally think that they must have done something wrong: this would prevent the people from listening to what they taught. It was necessary, therefore, that St. Paul should show clearly that he had not deserved any punishment; and that the magistrates themselves acknowledged, that they had sinned in treating him in such a manner. St. Paul, by his conduct, plainly proved his innocence of all offence. "And they went out of the prison, and entered into the house of Lydia: and when they had seen the brethren, they comforted them, and departed."
Of course the brethren were very sorry to lose St. Paul; but now that he had established a Church at Philippi, they could go on without him, whilst his teaching was much wanted in other places: and consequently, he and Silas journeyed on to the south-west. "Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia," preaching the Gospel no doubt, though we hear nothing as to their success, they went to Thessalonica, an important city of Macedonia, and one in which many Jews resided; for there was a synagogue there. "And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them" in their synagogue, "and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures": showing that those holy writings, prophesied both the sufferings and the rising again of Christ the Messiah; and then plainly telling them, "this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ," the promised Messiah, of whom your Scriptures speak.
"And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few." As usual, the Jews were more bitter against the Gospel than the Gentiles; and we read that "the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort,"—men of no principle, ready at any time to do any mischief which came in their way: by the help of these men, the Jews "gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted (or attacked) the house of Jason," where they supposed the Apostles to be, "and sought to bring them out to the people," who, in their excited state, would probably have put them to death without further inquiry.
Jason was one of those who had become a Christian, and he appears to have shown hospitality to the Apostles, and lodged them in his house; though the mob did not find them there, when they assaulted the house. "And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These (men) that have turned the world upside down are come hither also; whom Jason hath received: and these all do contrary to the decrees of Cæsar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus. And they troubled the people and the rulers of the city, when they heard these things." But the rulers could find no cause to punish Jason or the other brethren that were dragged with him before the judgment seat, so "they let them go," "when they had taken security of them." What this "security" was, we do not know; probably some promise not to entertain the Apostles, nor to rebel against the Roman Emperor.
By "turning the world upside down," the accusers of Jason meant, that what the Apostles taught was so different to anything ever heard of before, that it would quite alter everything, and make the world no longer like the same place. This, let us remember, is exactly what the Gospel was meant to do.
It was not considered advisable for the Apostles to remain longer at Thessalonica, where the people were too much enraged to listen to them; and therefore, "the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea."
There was a synagogue of the Jews also at Berea, whither, when it was neither useful nor safe for them to remain at Thessalonica, Paul and Silas were sent; "who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more noble (more liberal-minded and unprejudiced) than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, (listened willingly to the teaching of the Apostles,) and searched the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so": they compared the teaching of St. Paul with the written word of the Old Testament, in order to see whether they were justified in believing all he taught them. The consequence of this was, that many of the Jews believed; "also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few." But when the unbelieving Jews of Thessalonica, heard that the people of Berea were listening to St. Paul and becoming Christians, some of them came down on purpose to try and put an end to his preaching. They easily found plenty of unbelieving Jews and Gentiles ready for mischief, and stirred them up to make a riot: the brethren now acted as those at Thessalonica had done, and fearing for the Apostle's safety, immediately "sent away Paul to go as it were to the sea: but Silas and Timotheus abode," still in Berea.
Two or three of the brethren went with St. Paul to guard him from danger. We read, "And they that conducted Paul brought him unto Athens," either by sea or by land; "and receiving a commandment," that is, a message, from him "unto Silas and Timotheus," bidding them "for to come to him with all speed, they departed" to return unto Berea; leaving St. Paul alone at Athens.
Athens was the chief city of Achaia, the other province which, with Macedonia, formed what the Romans then called "Greece." Athens long before this had been a powerful and famous city: it was founded, or begun to be built, by a king called Cecrops, who came over from Asia during the time that the Israelites were in bondage in Egypt, before Moses was born. In the course of time Athens became, as we have said, a great and powerful city; full of beautiful temples and other buildings: some of these are even standing now; and a great many ruins are to be seen, all showing how magnificent the city must once have been.
In St. Paul's time, Athens, like most other cities and countries in the known world, was under the dominion of the Romans; and the Athenians, or inhabitants of the city, were quite devoted to the worship of false gods: we are told that there were more idols to be seen at Athens, than could be found in any other place.
Now while St. Paul waited at Athens, for Silas and Timotheus to join him, "his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry." Grieved at the state of the Athenians, the Apostle felt eager to try and teach them better things: "his spirit was stirred in him; therefore disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews, and with the devout persons," proselytes of the gate, "and in the market daily with them that met with him"; who must have been for the most part Gentiles, or heathen idolaters. The market, as has been explained, was a public place, where people met for business of all kinds; and to talk to each other upon any subjects of importance.
There were at this time in Athens, a great many wise and clever men, fond of learning: such men were called "Philosophers." These philosophers held different opinions; some believing one thing, some another; and as they each wished to bring people over to join them, they constantly spake in the market-place, explaining their doctrines, and persuading men to believe in them.
Two chief sects (or parties) of these philosophers, were the Epicureans and the Stoics. The Epicureans thought that the gods were only so in name, and that there was no Divine Power whatever to rule over the world; therefore they held, that the wisest thing was, for every man to do exactly what he liked best, and only to think of his own pleasure, as long as he lived.
The Stoics believed, that there were gods who ruled all things in the world so completely, that man became a mere machine, not answerable for his own conduct; so that he could never be said to do right or wrong: thus they taught, that the only real wisdom was to learn to bear with indifference whatever the gods caused to happen to them, whether it was what men call good or evil, happiness or misery.
Both these "systems of philosophy" (or sets of opinions), were equally contrary to all that St. Paul was appointed to teach. We read, "Then certain of the Epicureans, and of the Stoics, encountered him." But when they had heard, his teaching, "some said, What will this babbler say?"—mocking the Apostle as if he had been talking nonsense, without any meaning, just from a love of "babbling," or talking foolishly. Others said, "He seemeth to be a setter-forth of strange gods: because he preached unto them Jesus, and the resurrection." So little did all their wisdom help them to understand spiritual things, that they fancied the resurrection of which St. Paul spake, was some female deity called by that name, instead of understanding it to be an action done by Jesus, whom St. Paul preached. The God of whom St. Paul spake, was indeed a strange God unto the Athenian philosophers! but instead of ill using the preacher, they, like sensible men, determined to hear more on the subject.
We have said that the Philosophers of Athens were desirous to hear more of St. Paul's doctrines. "And they took him, and brought him unto Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is? For thou bringest certain strange things to our ears: we would know therefore what these things mean."
The Areopagus was a Court of Justice, the chief court in Athens; and one of its duties was, to pay particular attention to all matters relating to religion, or the worship of the gods. The members of this Court met in a building erected upon a certain hill dedicated to Mars, the God of War; and thence called Mars' Hill. St. Paul was now brought before this Court, that he might give an account of the new doctrines which he had begun to teach in Athens. The Athenians were so fond of learning, that whenever they heard anything which they did not understand, they were anxious to inquire into it, and see what it did mean. To a certain degree this was right, for we should all try to get as much knowledge as we can, as to good and useful things. But the Athenians were too curious; for St. Luke tells us, that "all the Athenians and strangers which were" in the city, "spent their time in nothing else, but either to tell, or to hear some new thing": and from other writers we learn, that the Athenians went from place to place in order to meet others, and hear if there was anything new.
Now this love of change and novelty, or "new things," is a great fault, and one which often leads us into sin.
If we are always wishing for some new occupation or business, we shall never do anything well: if we are longing and seeking for new amusements, we shall not enjoy what we have: if children are always wishing for new toys, they will cease to care about the old ones. Therefore all this desire for novelty and change will lead to indolence, discontent, covetousness, and many other evil passions. Let us remember that people who cultivate a contented spirit, are always happy with whatever they have: discontented people are never happy; whatever they have, they will still be wishing for something else: for it is quite impossible for anybody to have everything he wishes for.
But we must go back to St. Paul, standing before the Court of Areopagus, and desired there to give an account of his doctrines. The Apostle, glad to have such an opportunity of preaching the Gospel before the chief men in Athens, now stood up, and spake gently and kindly. He began by telling them, that as he had gone about their city looking at the different images to which they bowed down, and at the different altars set up for the worship of those whom they called gods, he had found one, bearing an inscription "TO THE UNKNOWN GOD." This showed that they were "too superstitious," for to worship a God of whom they knew nothing, was superstition rather than religion. This ignorance, therefore, St. Paul now proposed to remove, so that the Unknown God might no longer be so to them: "Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you."
Before we proceed with what St. Paul said to the Athenians on this subject, we will see how they came to dedicate an altar to "the Unknown God."
Some time before this, there had been a plague or pestilence in Athens; that is, a bad illness, which spread from one person to another, until thousands of people died of it. In vain did the Athenians pray to all their false gods to stop it: such prayers of course could have no effect, and the pestilence went on killing the people. At last a number of sheep were taken to Mars' Hill, and there set at liberty, to go wherever they pleased, followed by men, appointed to watch them. Whenever one of these sheep laid down, it was immediately sacrificed to "the propitious god." "Propitious" means favourable, kind, willing to grant a request, or supply a want. The sheep were thus sacrificed to that one amongst the gods, who would be kind enough to put an end to the pestilence. Soon afterwards it did please the Almighty to remove this terrible plague: the Athenians of course attributed their deliverance to one of their gods; but as they could not tell which one of them had been "the propitious god," they set up this altar to "the Unknown God," who had come to their help in the time of trouble.
We know very well that the Lord God Almighty can alone take away disease and sickness, or any other trouble; and therefore, though the Athenians did not mean it so, they had really dedicated this altar to the One True God, of Whom St. Paul spake. Well therefore did St. Paul, when speaking to them of the Unknown God, say, "Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you."
St. Paul then told the Athenians, that He whom they worshipped as the Unknown God, was the Lord Who had made the world and all things in it: that He gave life and breath and all things to His creatures, and did not require to be worshipped with sacrifices and gifts, as though He needed anything at the hands of man. St. Paul said, also, that God had made men, in order that they might love and serve Him as their Father: and he reminded them, that one of their own poets had said, "For we are also his offspring." The poet here meant, was one called Aratus: he was born in Cilicia, but had probably lived and studied in Athens, so that the Athenians considered him as one of their own poets, and were well acquainted with his poem 'On the Heavenly Bodies'; from which St. Paul quoted a line.
St. Paul proceeded to explain, that the Lord God Almighty, their "Unknown God," was a very different Being to idols of gold, or silver, or stone, made or "graven by art and man's device." And he told the Athenians, that although the Lord God had hitherto forborne to punish those, who in ignorance worshipped idols, that time was now past; for now, said the Apostle, He "commandeth all men everywhere to repent: because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained"; meaning the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall come to judge the quick and dead: and as a proof that God would do this, St. Paul mentioned that Jesus Christ Himself had already risen from the grave, saying, "whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead."
When the Athenians heard St. Paul speaking "of the resurrection of the dead," it seemed to them so impossible that a dead man should ever come back to life, that they quite laughed at his words: "some mocked; and others said, We will hear thee again of this matter. So Paul departed from among them"; apparently without having made any impression upon his hearers: but it was not so, for in spite of the unbelief and ridicule of many, we read, "Howbeit certain men clave unto him, and believed: among the which was Dionysius the Areopagite," that is, a member of the court of Areopagus, "and a woman named Damaris, and others with them." "After these things, Paul departed from Athens, and came to Corinth"; another city of Achaia, in that part of Greece which used to be called the Peloponnesus, or rather on the isthmus which joined the Peloponnesus to the rest of Greece, and took its name from this town. The situation of Corinth, with sea on both sides, made it an important place for trade; because ships could easily come there from different countries, to sell the merchandise they brought with them, and buy such things as they wanted to take home. By means of their trade, the inhabitants of Corinth had become very rich; their city was flourishing; and many learned men resided in it, when St. Paul now came there about a.d. 51. A little before this time, the Roman Emperor Claudius, had for some reason or other, banished the Jews from Rome. We do not know the reason, but it seems likely that it was because there had been a famine in Rome, which the people foolishly thought was the fault of the Jews, whom they hated; and so to satisfy the people, and prevent any disturbance, Claudius commanded all Jews to leave the city.
Among the Jews thus obliged to leave Rome, was a man named Aquila, born in Pontus, a country to the N.E. of Galatia, on the Black Sea: he was therefore one of the Jews called "Grecians," because, though his parents were Jews, he was not born in the land of Judæa. When he was obliged to leave Rome, Aquila and his wife Priscilla settled in Corinth, where they greatly helped St. Paul. Whether they had become believers before they left Rome or afterwards, we do not know; but they were Christians when St. Paul came to Corinth, and were probably known in some way to the Apostle, for he "came unto them. And because he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought: for by their occupation they were tent-makers."
The Jews had a saying, that "Every man who does not teach his son some trade, teaches him to be a thief"—in which there is a great deal of truth; for if a man has learnt no trade by which he can support himself honestly, there is great danger of his being tempted to obtain a living by dishonest means. It was therefore the custom amongst the Jews, even of the higher classes, who like St. Paul had been well educated as to letters, to teach their sons some "craft" or occupation, whereby they could, if ever it became necessary, earn money to provide themselves with food and clothes, and such things as are needful.
St. Paul had learnt the trade of tent-making; and he now abode with Aquila and Priscilla, working with them for his daily bread, whilst every sabbath he "reasoned in the synagogue, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks": trying, that is, to bring them to believe in Jesus Christ.
At Corinth, St. Paul was joined by Silas and Timotheus, who had remained at Berea when he was so suddenly sent to Athens: they had afterwards returned to Thessalonica, from whence they now came to Corinth, and gave St. Paul an account of what they had been doing since he left them. In consequence of what he now heard from Silas and Timotheus, St. Paul wrote an Epistle or letter to the Thessalonians, who had become Christians.
In this letter, St. Paul tells the Thessalonians, how thankful he is to hear that those who had become Christians, were trying to do all that the Gospel taught them they ought to do: and then he assures them, that he prays to God to give them more and more faith, and to make them love Jesus better and better. Then the Apostle warned them not to listen to any teachers, who might try to teach them anything different to what he, and Silas, and Timothy, had already taught them. St. Paul also told the Thessalonian Christians, that they must endeavour to be good and holy; and he gave them many particular directions for their conduct, one of which is, "Pray without ceasing." The Apostle ends his letter with a prayer, that God will keep them free from all sin both in body and soul. This letter of St. Paul's is to be found in the Bible, where it is called, "The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Thessalonians."
After Timothy and Silas had joined St. Paul, he spake still more plainly and decidedly to the Jews at Corinth, wishing to make them follow the example of their brethren at Thessalonica: but when he tried to convince them that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, they would not listen to him, but "opposed themselves, and blasphemed." Then "he shook his raiment, and said unto them, Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean: from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles." St. Paul meant by this, that if by their own obstinacy they would provoke the Lord to punish them, he was not to blame, for he had tried to teach them what was right: and that from henceforth he would preach only to the Gentiles in Corinth, and have nothing more to say to the Jews; and he shook his raiment, as a sign that he would have nothing more to do with them. When St. Paul had thus spoken to the Jews in their synagogue, "he departed thence," ceasing to preach in the synagogue, "and entered into a certain man's house, named Justus, one that worshipped God" as a proselyte of the gate, "whose house joined hard to the synagogue." Most probably he had in his house some large room, in which it was convenient for St. Paul to preach: and here he converted many. "And Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his house; and many of the Corinthians hearing, believed, and were baptized."
St. Paul was at this time greatly encouraged by a vision. We read, "Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision, Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: for I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city,"—many, that is, who, from hearing St. Paul, would become true Christians. Thus encouraged, he continued in Corinth "a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them."
During the eighteen months which St. Paul spent in Corinth, he appears to have written "The Epistle to the Galatians," which was probably written before that to the Thessalonians. St. Paul had, as we have heard, preached in Galatia before he went into Macedonia. It seems, however, that the Galatians had not continued steadfast in the faith; and the Apostle now writes kindly, to express his surprise at their having fallen away from the Gospel they had once received; warning them seriously not to believe any doctrines contrary to those which he had taught them: for that he had been chosen by the Lord in a miraculous manner to be an Apostle, and the doctrines which he taught to others he had received from God Himself. He also reminds the Galatians, that no man could obtain salvation by the works of the Law, since none could do them perfectly, and that it is through faith in Jesus only, that all men, whether Jews or Gentiles, can be saved. Before closing his Epistle, St. Paul gives a list of the works of the flesh, or sinful nature of man, and of the works of the Spirit. This list we shall do well to study, and also to take as addressed to ourselves the Apostle's exhortation, "Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh": remembering always, that "they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts."
From Corinth, at this time, St. Paul also wrote his Second Epistle to the Thessalonians; expressing his thankfulness that in the midst of persecutions they were increasing in faith; and he encourages them to persevere, by reminding them of that day when Christ shall come to judge the world, and reward the faithful with everlasting life. He then begged those to whom he wrote, to pray that the Gospel preached by him might be received by others as it had been by them; and he prays for them, that the Lord will "direct their hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ."
St. Paul was not allowed to rest undisturbed at Corinth, for when Gallio was deputy-governor, or pro-consul, of Achaia, "the Jews made insurrection with one accord against Paul; and brought him to the judgment seat, saying, This fellow persuadeth men to worship God contrary to the law,"—meaning their own law, the Law of Moses. St. Paul was going to speak in answer to this charge, but Gallio interrupted him, and told the Jews that if they had any wickedness, or crime, to accuse St. Paul of, he must of course listen to the charge; and adding, "but if it be a question of words and names, and of your law, look ye to it; for I will be no judge of such matters." Gallio, a heathen, despised both Jews and Christians, and cared nothing about the Law of Moses, whether it were observed or not; therefore he would not listen to the Jews: "and he drave them from the judgment seat."
"Then all the Greeks took Sosthenes, the chief ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat." Why the Greeks beat this Jew, we are not told. Some think that Sosthenes was favourable to St. Paul, and that on this account the Jews stirred up the heathens to treat him in this way. But it seems more likely that Sosthenes was one of the most bitter enemies of the Apostle, and had been particularly anxious to get him punished; and that the Greeks thought that beating him severely, would be the most likely way of putting a stop to any future disturbance from the Jews.
However that might be, "Gallio cared for none of those things": though, as governor and judge of a province, he was neglecting his duty by allowing any man to be treated in such a way. Soon after this, St. Paul left Corinth for a time.
When St. Paul left Corinth, soon after the affair with Gallio, it would seem that he went to the island of Crete, or Candia, and there left one of his companions, called Titus, to direct the affairs of the Christian Church in that country. We know nothing of Titus, except that his parents were Gentiles, and that he was converted to Christianity by St. Paul, who would not allow him to be circumcised, lest it should be thought a proof of the necessity of circumcision, which the Church had declared to be unnecessary for those heathens who embraced the Gospel. Titus was highly esteemed by St. Paul, who speaks of him as his "partner" and "fellow helper"; showing that he greatly helped him in his work.
We do not exactly know where St. Paul went to from Crete: there is reason to believe that in trying to return to Corinth he encountered a storm, and was driven by the wind to the western coast of Greece, and there shipwrecked, and forced to take refuge in the city of Nicopolis. Here the Apostle determined to spend the winter, that he might preach the Gospel to the inhabitants of Illyricum—a country to the north, forming the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. From Nicopolis he appears to have written the Epistle to Titus, giving him directions as to his own conduct, and telling him what sort of men he must choose to help him in teaching the people of Crete. St. Paul also told Titus to be very careful to teach all who became Christians, that they must try to be good, and lead holy lives, following in all things the example of the Lord Jesus Christ.
From Nicopolis, in due time, St. Paul went back to Corinth. In the Book of Acts we read nothing of this little journey of St. Paul's. St. Luke does not of course tell us everything that the Apostle did, and he speaks as if he had remained at Corinth all the time. Speaking of St. Paul's final departure from Corinth, St. Luke says, "And Paul after this tarried there yet a good while, and then took his leave of the brethren, and sailed thence into Syria, and with him Priscilla and Aquila; having shorn his head in Cenchrea: for he had a vow." This vow must either have been a vow of Nazaritism, already mentioned (vol. ii. p. 108), which St. Paul had on some occasion taken in order to please the Jews; or some other vow, which he had made in acknowledgment of the goodness and mercy of God. Cenchrea was a small sea-port, not far from Corinth; and from thence St. Paul and his company, with Aquila and Priscilla, sailed to Syria; and then proceeded to Ephesus, a large town in Lydia. Ephesus was particularly celebrated for its beautiful and magnificent temple, erected in honour of the heathen goddess Diana, and set apart for her worship. This Diana, one of the pretended deities of the heathen, was supposed to rule all things belonging to the chase—to be the goddess of hunting. The moon was looked upon as a sign, or symbol, of Diana; and under this form she was also worshipped.
St. Paul, as usual, preached in the synagogue at Ephesus, and "reasoned with the Jews," who seem to have listened willingly, and even wished him to stay on. But "when they desired him to tarry longer time with them, he consented not; but bade them farewell, saying, I must by all means keep this feast" (of the Passover) "that cometh, in Jerusalem: but I will return again unto you, if God will. And he sailed from Ephesus. And when he had landed at Cæsarea, and gone up, and saluted the church" at Jerusalem, and kept the Passover, "he went down to Antioch," a.d. 54; thus ending his Second Apostolic Journey, which had occupied about four years.
St. Luke has mentioned the places at which St. Paul made any long stay during this time; but as we have already seen, he does not notice all his short visits to other places. In the same way, St. Luke tells us all the most remarkable events that took place during these four years; but of course he cannot tell us everything that the Apostle did or said: just as the Gospels, though they tell us all things needful for us to know, do not relate every word that Jesus said, or every miracle that He worked; because, as St. John remarks, "if they should be written every one of them, the world itself could not contain the books that should be written."
After St. Paul had spent some time at Antioch, he began his Third Apostolic Journey: "he departed, and went over all the country of Galatia and Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples,"—that is, he went again to all those places where he had before established Churches, or companies of believers, to see how they were going on, and to encourage them to persevere in their endeavours to serve the Lord faithfully. But in the mean time the Church at Ephesus was not left without a teacher; for Aquila and Priscilla remained there, and were no doubt of great use in reminding others of all that St. Paul had taught them: and of one good work done by them St. Luke gives us an account; for we read, "And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man, and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John."
Alexandria was a famous city, built by Alexander the Great, in the north of Egypt, and celebrated for the many learned men who lived in it. Apollos had there studied the Scriptures of the Old Testament, and being "eloquent," able to speak well, he taught them diligently in Ephesus. But he seems to have heard only of the Baptism of John, and to have known only that men were to receive the baptism of repentance, of which John spake, to prepare them for believing in the Messiah, of Whom John was the messenger, or forerunner. But Apollos does not seem to have understood that the Messiah had come, or to have known of His promise, to give the Holy Spirit to those who would believe in Him and be baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Apollos was fervent in spirit, full of zeal; and so, as far as he knew, he taught diligently. "And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue." When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, "they took him unto them," probably to reside in their house, "and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly,"—that is, they explained all that he was ignorant of; they spake to him of Jesus and of His Baptism, and showed him that the sins of all who believed, and were baptized, would be forgiven. Apollos listened gladly to the words of Aquila and Priscilla, and then wished to go into Greece, to teach others the things he had learnt. And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the members of the Church at Ephesus wrote to those of Corinth, to receive him into their company.
At Corinth, Apollos, by his earnestness and faith, "helped them much which had believed through grace": nor was this all, "for he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly, shewing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ."
We have said that St. Paul began his Third Apostolic Journey by going again through Galatia and Phrygia: then, having passed through the "upper coasts" of Asia Minor, he came again to Ephesus, after Apollos had gone to Corinth. At Ephesus St. Paul now found certain disciples, about twelve men, who had been taught by Apollos, before Aquila and Priscilla had expounded to him the way of God more perfectly: to these men St. Paul said, "Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism." Then St. Paul explained to them that John the Baptist came to call all men to repentance, and that his baptism was only meant to prepare the way for that of Jesus, and to lead all men to believe in Him, and be baptized in the way which He should appoint. "When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied." St. Paul, anxious to convert the Jews, spake boldly in the synagogue for three months, "disputing and persuading the things concerning the kingdom of God." But, as usual, many of the Jews were determined not to believe; and not only rejected the truth themselves, but spake evil of it, and abused it to the multitude, so as to try and prevent their believing it either. St. Paul, seeing this, would teach no longer in the synagogue; and "departed from them, and separated the disciples, disputing daily in the school of one Tyrannus"; that is, he assembled all who were willing to listen to him, in a large room or "school"—a name given to those buildings or rooms used for instruction in any kind of knowledge. In the school of Tyrannus, who was a teacher of some science, and probably a convert, St. Paul now preached to all who would come and listen. "And this continued by the space of two years; so that all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks. And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul: so that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them." They were healed by merely touching those articles which the Apostle had touched. Such a wonderful exercise of miraculous power must have drawn many to listen to the teaching of one, who did such things; and no doubt many, who so listened, became true Christians.
We must now say something of the unhappy state of the province of Judæa at this time, of which the Bible gives no account. A Roman named Felix had been made governor of Judæa a.d. 51, whilst St. Paul was at Corinth: Felix treated the Jews cruelly, and ill-used them to such a degree, as to drive them into open rebellion; and this, of course, led to severe punishments and fresh cruelties. The whole country was in a sadly disturbed state: robbers infested every part of it; men came forward pretending to be the Messiah, for the Jews, who disbelieved in Jesus Christ, still expected the coming of the promised Messiah; murders and executions took place constantly: the High Priest was murdered at the very altar, and many persons were killed in the temple. In short, as Josephus writes, "God seemed to have abandoned Jerusalem as a detested city, and to have sent the Romans, to punish the Jews for their sin in rejecting and crucifying the Lord Jesus Christ."
During this dreadful time of trouble, a Jew from Egypt came to Jerusalem, and having persuaded many of the unhappy inhabitants of Judæa to believe the lies he told them, he led an immense number of them to the top of the Mount of Olives, promising that the Lord would there work a great miracle, and deliver them and their country from the hands of the Romans. Of course nothing of the kind took place. Many of these wretched dupes were slain by the Roman soldiers, and the rest fled away, in order to save their lives.
The land of Judæa was indeed in a sad state; the sufferings of the Jews were terrible; but they had deserved them. Often and often had they been entreated to repent and believe in Jesus, but they would not; and now the mercy of God was forced to give place to His just anger.
Let this be a warning to us Christians, never to force the Lord to take away His mercy from us. If, by our obstinate impenitence and continuance in sin, we force Him to punish us as we deserve, we must perish miserably for ever. But God sees our hearts, and if we are really sorry for our sins, and are earnestly trying to conquer ourselves and resist our evil passions and desires, He will have mercy upon us, and not be extreme to mark what is done amiss.
We have seen that St. Paul remained for two years in Ephesus, converting many by his preaching and his miracles. His success as usual raised the envy and anger of the unbelieving Jews, who were anxious to draw the people away from the Apostle, by making them believe that they could work miracles as well as St. Paul. The means they took we shall shortly hear.
The Gentile inhabitants of Ephesus were much given to the study of all the arts of magic, and were considered to be very clever in the practice of them. We have already spoken of sorcery, witchcraft, and magic: how far the professors of them were allowed to appear to do wonderful things by these means, we do not know; but we do know, that any attempt to have such communications with evil spirits was sinful in the sight of God, and that the Jews were especially forbidden to practice any such arts, or to hold communication with those who did so. In spite of this, many of the Jews did follow these sinful studies.
St. Luke says, "Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus," using that Sacred Name as they would have used any of their magical spells or words. "Vagabond" means wandering; and we generally use the word to describe idle, worthless people, who go about begging or stealing, instead of working honestly to gain their own living. "Exorcists" was only a name given to those who professed to cast out evil spirits by the arts of sorcery.
"And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so." The spiritual state of the Jews must indeed have been sad, when the sons of a priest could be found thus wilfully practising arts, upon which the sentence of death was pronounced by the Law! These men, seeing that when St. Paul spake to the evil spirits in the name of Jesus, they immediately left the bodies of those whom they had possessed, wickedly determined to use that Holy Name, in order to heal a man in whom was an evil spirit. And they said, "We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth" to come out of this man. "And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye?" The devils were forced to acknowledge the power of Jesus, and that for His sake they must obey His servant Paul; but they plainly told these Jews that they were in no way subject to them: and they gave a strong proof of this, for "the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded." Such an event as this showed clearly that all power belonged to God alone, and that all magical arts were useless, as well as sinful. "And this was known to all the Jews and Greeks also dwelling at Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified,"—more thought of, and treated with greater respect.
And many that believed, who had, before they became Christians, practised magical arts, now convinced of their extreme sinfulness and folly, "came and confessed, and shewed their deeds,"—expressing their repentance for these former sins.
Nor was this all: "many of them also which (still) used curious arts" saw the wickedness of such practices; and warned by what had happened, showed their repentance by their acts; for they "brought their books together, and burned them before all men." This was a great proof of their earnestness to put an end to the use of magical arts in others, as well as in themselves; for they did not attempt to sell these books to others, but destroyed them. The books were very valuable, for "they counted the price of them, and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver"—all this money these men were willing to sacrifice, in order to please God. This is a warning as well as an example to us, who are too often unwilling to deny ourselves in anything, or make the least sacrifice in order to please or obey our Lord.
"So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed,"—that is, the blessed truths of the Gospel spread on every side, so that the numbers of Christians increased daily.
St. Paul, who had now been nearly three years in Ephesus, began to think of continuing his journey; and "purposed in the spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, After I have been there, I must also see Rome." Just at this time, St. Paul heard an unsatisfactory account of what was going on at Corinth. We have seen that the Apostle had passed eighteen months in Corinth, forming a Church there; and that Apollos had afterwards preached the Gospel in that city with great success: but very soon afterwards, false teachers rose up—that is, persons, who were not sufficiently instructed themselves, fancied that they were able to teach others. But, as they did not themselves understand the whole truth, they could not teach it to others; and therefore their imperfect teaching created great confusion, and unsettled the minds of many believers. Some of these "false teachers" were converts from the Gentiles, who, having been converted by Apollos, now called themselves his disciples; though they mixed up with the truths he had taught them, many of the doctrines and opinions of their philosophers. Some of these teachers on the other hand, were converts from amongst the Jews, who would not give up the idea that it was necessary to keep the whole Law of Moses, observing all the forms and ceremonies ordained by it. These Jewish Christians called themselves followers of Cephas, the Greek word for Peter. These two sets of teachers, both teaching doctrines contrary to the truths of the Gospel as delivered to the Corinthians by St. Paul, made two parties in the Church, so that there were constant disputes and great confusion. Mean time also, many of the native Corinthians, who had joined the Church, began to return to the sinful ways and practices they had followed when they were heathens.
This was the account that now reached St. Paul at Ephesus; and greatly did it grieve him.
So he at once sent into Macedonia two of his company, Timotheus and Erastus, that they might pass on to Corinth, and try to put an end to all these evil doings: he himself remained at Ephesus a little longer.