"ministered unto him, Timotheus and Eraf"tus; but he himself stayed in Afia for a "season." A short time after this, and evidently in pursuance of the fame intention, we find (chap. xx. ver. 1, 2) that " Paul "departed from Ephesus for to go into "Macedonia; and that, when he had gone " over those parts, he came into Greece." The resolution therefore of paffing first through Macedonia, and from thence into Greece, was formed by St. Paul previoufly to the sending away of Timothy. The order in which the two countries are mentioned, shews the direction of his intended route, "when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia." Timothy and Eraftus, who were to precede him in his progress, were sent by him from Ephefus into Macedonia. He himself a short time afterwards, and, as hath been observed, evidently in continuation and pursuance of the same defign, "departed for to go into Macedonia." If he had ever therefore entertained a different plan of his journey, which is not hinted in the history, he must have changed that plan before this time. But, from the seventeenth

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teenth verse of the fourth chapter of the first Epistle to the Corinthians, we discover, that Timothy had been fent away from Ephefus before that epistle was written: "For this " cause have I fent unto you Timotheus, "who is my beloved fon." The change therefore of St. Paul's refolution, which was prior to the sending away of Timothy, was neceffarily prior to the writing of the first Epistle to the Corinthians.

Thus stands the order of dates, as collected from the history, compared with the first epistle. Now let us enquire, secondly, how this matter is represented in the epistle before us. In the fixteenth verse of the first chapter of this epistle, St. Paul speaks of the intention which he had once entertained of visiting Achaia, in his way to Macedonia : "In this confidence I was minded to come " unto you before, that ye might have a se"cond benefit; and to pass by you into "Macedonia." After protesting, in the feventeenth verse, against any evil conftruction that might be put upon his laying afide of this intention, in the twenty-third verse he disclofes the cause of it: "Moreover I " call

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" call God for a record upon my foul, that, " to spare you, I came not as yet unto Co"rinth." And then he proceeds as follows: " But I determined this with myself, that " I would not come again to you in heavi"ness; for if I make you forry, who is he " then that maketh me glad, but the fame " which is made forry by me? And I wrote “ this fame unto you, lest when I came I "should have forrow from them of whom " I ought to rejoice; having confidence in " you all, that my joy is the joy of you all: " for, out of much affliction and anguish of "heart, I wrote unto you with many tears; "not that ye should be grieved, but that ye " might know the love which I have more " abundantly unto you; but if any have " caused grief, he hath not grieved me but " in part, that I may not overcharge you "all. Sufficient to such a man is this pu"nishment, which was inflicted of many." In this quotation, let the reader first direct his attention to the clause marked by Italics, " and I wrote this fame unto you;" and let him consider, whether from the context, and from the structure of the whole passage, it

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be not evident that this writing was after St. Paul had "determined with himself, that " he would not come again to them in hea"viness?" whether, indeed, it was not in confequence of this determination, or at least with this determination upon his mind? And, in the next place, let him confider, whether the fentence, " I determined this " with myself, that I would not come again " to you in heaviness," do not plainly refer to that poftponing of his vifit, to which he had alluded in the verse but one before, when he faid, "I call God for a record upon my "foul, that, to spare you, I came not as yet "unto Corinth;" and whether this be not the vifit of which he speaks in the fixteenth verse, wherein he informs the Corinthians, "that he had been minded to pass by them "into Macedonia;" but that, for reasons which argued no levity or fickleness in his difpofition, he had been compelled to change his purpose. If this be so, then it follows that the writing here mentioned was pofterior to the change of his intention. The only question, therefore, that remains will be, whether this writing relate to the letter which which we now have under the title of the first Epistle to the Corinthians, or to some other letter not extant? And upon this queftion I think Mr. Locke's observation decifive; namely, that the fecond clause marked in the quotation by Italics, "I wrote unto " you with many tears," and the first clause so marked, "I wrote this fame unto you," belong to one writing, whatever that was; and that the fecond claufe goes on to advert to a circumstance which is found in our prefent first Epistle to the Corinthians; namely, the cafe and punishment of the incestuous person. Upon the whole then we fee, that it is capable of being inferred from St. Paul's own words, in the long extract which we have quoted, that the first Epistle to the Corinthians was written after St. Paul had determined to poftpone his journey to Corinth; in other words, that the change of his purpose, with respect to the course of his journey, though expressly mentioned only in the second epistle, had taken place before the writing of the first; the point which we made out to be implied in the history, by the order of the events there recorded, and

the