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wines; and the day following we touched at the island of Samos; and, steering from thence towards the Asian shore, having stayed awhile at Trogyllium, we put into the mouth of the river Mæander, and came the day after to Miletus. For Paul, under whose direction the vessel was, had determined to sail by Ephesus, which lay on the other side of the bay, without calling there; and much less would be go up the river to Colosse or Laodicea, that he might not be obliged to spend any considerable time in Asia; for he earnestly endeavoured, if it were possible for him to do it, to be at Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost. Nevertheless, he sent for the ministers of Ephesus, and made a very remarkable discourse to them, of which we shall give a particular

account.

From Miletus the apostle sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church, purposing to deliver to them a very solemn charge, previous to his appearing among his bitter enemies at Jerusalem. When they were assembled, he addressed thein in words to the following purport: You well know, my brethren, how I have behaved myself among you all the time which has elapsed from the first day in which I entered into Asia to the present moment, serving the Lord Jesus Christ with deep humility and tears of affection; and, in the midst of many trials, of which the most remarkable arose from the malice of my countrymen. You also know that I have suppressed nothing which might tend to your advantage, nor neglected any opportunity of communicating to you either public or private instruction. My testimony, both to the Jews and the Greeks, has been constantly the same, inculcating upon them repentance towards God, and true and living faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. And now, behold, I go bound under the strong impulse of the Spirit of God to Jerusalem, not particularly knowing what things shall there befal me, excepting that the Holy Spirit testifies in almost every city through which I pass; assuring me, by the mouth of inspired prophets, whom I find in many Christian churches, that heavy bonds, and all the distresses of captivity, are the portion which I must there expect to receive. But none of these things greatly distresses me, nor do I esteem my life precious to myself, so that I may but faithfully and joyfully finish my course as a Christian and an apostle, and fulfil my ministry which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the truth and importance of the gospel of the grace of God. Our intercourse in this world must now come to an end; for I know assuredly, that all of you among whom I have so abundantly and successfully laboured shall see my face no more; for if I should ever return to these parts of the world again, it is particularly intimated to me that I shall no more come to Ephesus. I therefore call upon you to receive and bear witness to my solemn declaration, that if any of you, or of the people under your care, perish, I am clear from the blood of all men. For this is well known to every one present, that I have never, in compliance to any one's prejudices, shunned to declare the whole counsel of God. Therefore, my brethren, pay the most diligent regard hoth toyourselves and to all the flock over which the Holy Spirit hath ordained you bishops, to feed the church of God which he has redeemed with his own blood, even the blood of that exalted person who was the true Immanuel, God with us. For the spirit of prophecy hath informed me, that soon after my thus taking leave of the Asiatic churches, grievous wolves will enter among you, not sparing the flock, but perverting the people from the purity and liberty of the gospel, that they may accomplish their own unhallowed projects of worldly aggrandizement. What is most distressing of all to consider, some among your owoselves will be found to act this wretched part, and thus bring upon their heads eternal destruction. Watch, therefore, with all diligence and care, remembering that I for three years resided among you, and that therefore the account you have to give, if the intent of my labours be frustrated, will be

Inconceivably awful. And now, brethren, I commend you to God, as your everlasting keeper, and to his precious word, as your infallible guide; well knowing that he i able to build you up in your most holy faith, and to give you an inheritance among the saints and angels above. I have coveted no man's silver or gold, or costly apparel; but, on the contrary, have laboured at the occupation of a tent-maker, that I might thus supply my own necessities, and assist towards the support of them that are with I have set you an example, that, labouring as I have done, you ought to assist the needy and infirm, and carefully remember the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, who observed, in conversation with his disciples, that it is happier to give than to receive. Having thus spoken, he kneeled down and prayed most fervently with them, while they wept upon him and kissed him, being especially sorry that they should see

his face no more.

The voyage of Paul from Miletus to Jerusalem was not destitute of interesting events. At Tyre, which was formerly the most mercantile city in the world, but now much declined, they met with certain disciples, who informed Paul, by the inspiration of the Spirit, that if he tendered his own liberty and safety, he should not go up to Jerusalem. These brethren, with their wives and children, accompanied the apostle to the shore, where they kneeled down and prayed, and thus took a pious and affectionate farewel. Philip, the evangelist, whom they visited at Cæsarea, and whom we have already mentioned as the instrument of God in converting the Ethiopian eunuch, had four virgin daughters, who were all of them prophetesses. While the apostle and his company staid with him, the prophet Agabus, who had predicted the famine which happened in the time of Claudius Cæsar, came down from Judea to Cæsarea. This man, in the presence of many disciples, took up Paul's girdle; and, binding his own hands and feet, said, Thus saith the Holy Spirit, so shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and deliver him a prisoner into the hands of the Gentiles. The brethren, hearing these things, besought him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered with the greatest tenderness and firmness of spirit, What mean ye to weep and to break my heart? for I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and from the regard which I feel for his ever-blessed gospel. When they found that his mind was thus determined, they ceased to intreat him any further, but resigned him into the hands of a wise and gracious providence, saying, the will of the Lord be done. From Cæsarea they proceeded to Jerusalem, attended by several Cæsarean brethren, and took up their lodging at the house of one Mnason, an old disciple.

So blind are we to the contingencies of human life, that the very means from which we expect peace and safety, not unfrequently produce the most dangerous or even fatal results. The brethren at Jerusalem, anxious for the preservation of Paul, and for the removal of those prejudices which many of the Jewish believers had entertained against him as an enemy of the law, advised him to unite with four men of their ac quaintance in the performance of a vow, observing, at the same time, that they had already issued such orders as must effectually secure the liberty of the Gentiles. He acquiesced in this proposal; and the next day, after being legally purified, presented himself in the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of purification, until an offering should be sacrificed for every one of them, according to the institutions of Moses The Jews of Asia, who had witnessed the success of Paul's ministry, were exceedingly incensed against him, especially because he had turned to the Gentiles. When, therefore, they saw the apostle in the temple, they raised a violent commotion among the people, and would have put him to immediate death, if Claudius Lysias,

the tribune, who commanded in the Fort Antonia, had not collected a band of soldiers, rescued him from their violence, and safely conveyed him to that castle.

When Paul had arrived at the stair-case of the castle, he requested of the tribune that he might be permitted to speak to him; who, finding that he spoke to him in Greek, inquired of him if he were not that Egyptian who, some little time before, had made an uproar, and led into the wilderness four thousand men that were murderers. Josephus relates the history of this impostor, but increases the numbers of his followers to thirty thousand men. He informs us, that an Egyptian magician, who pretended to be a prophet, had collected a body of thirty thousand men, whom he conducted, by way of the wilderness, to mount Olivet; whence he proposed to proceed to Jerusalem, drive out the Roman garrison, take possession of the city, and make use of his followers for guards to secure himself against opposition. Felix, knowing that delay would be attended with danger, assembled his legions, and a body of Jews; and, advancing against him, totally defeated him, slew great numbers of his people, took many prisoners, and dispersed the rest. The Egyptian and some of his friends sought their safety in flight.

When the apostle had satisfied Claudius Lysias, that so far from being that Egyptian, he was a native of Tarsus in Cilicia, he freely permitted him to speak to the people. He then addressed them in a speech of some length, to which they gave the greater attention, because he used that dialect of the Syriac which was spoken in Judea, and therefore called Hebrew. He began with recounting some of the transactions of his life before he was acquainted with the gospel of Christ, related the history of his conversion, and was proceeding to speak of his being sent among the Gentiles, when their fury burst through all restraint, and they drowned his voice with their clamorous demands of vengeance. The tribune, who, probably, did not well understand what was the purport of Paul's defence, supposed, from the outeries of the Jews, that he must have been some atrocious malefactor, and therefore commanded that his confession should be extorted by scourging. Paul, however, claiming the privileges of a Roman citizen, escaped this cruel and ignominious treatment; and, by passing the night in the fortress, found there an asylum from the rage of his countrymen.

As the tribune was desirous of knowing the true ground on which Paul was thus violently accused by the Jews, he requested them the next day to call the sanhedrim together, and to examine him before that learned body. In the course of this examination, two circumstances occurred, which have been interpreted unfavourably to the integrity of the holy apostle. The first was, that when the high-priest had commanded Paul to be smitten upon the mouth, he exclaimed, God shall smite thee, thou whited wall; for sittest thou to judge me after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the law? and that when he was charged with hereby reviling God's highpriest, he denied knowing that the person whom he thus severely reproved sustained any such a character. But here let it be remarked, 1. That as the council were called together on a very short notice, it is by no means certain that the high-priest was invested with the ensigns of his office, he might appear only as a common member of the sanhedrim; and Paul, who had not been much at Jerusalem for many years, might not know him sufficiently to recollect his features. 2. The exclamation of the high-priest was not a legal sentence, but a tumultuous outcry; so that the apostle, who, in consequence of addressing his speech to the whole body, might have turned his face in another direction, would be really uncertain from whom it proceeded. His styling him a judge by no means contradicts this, since all the sanhedrim set as judges, though only the high-priest could lay claim to any high power of divine original,

3. Paul seems to have spoken by the prophetic Spirit of God; for, about five years after, Ananias miserably perished, being slain in a tumult, after in vain endeavouring to conceal himself in an old aqueduct. The apostle has also been charged with duplicity, in laying claim to the title of a Pharisee after having so long embraced the Christian religion. But here let it be observed, that the contest between the Pharisees and the Sadducees having been now for many years conducted with great raucour, all such as held the doctrine of the resurrection were considered, in a looser sense, as taking the side of the Pharisees; and that the Christians, who were yet considered as a Jewish sect, might be, with great propriety, referred to that division of the nation, as being the firmest believers in a resurrection to come. Paul might, therefore, very truly say, that as he had been educated a Pharisee, so he had never forsaken the most essential and characteristic principle of that sect. Let it also be remembered, that the apostles had a positive promise, that whenever they were examined before kings and rulers, the Holy Spirit of God would instruct them how to speak; it is therefore irreverent to imagine that Paul was permitted to lie and dissemble upon this solemn

occasion.

The council having fallen into a violent confusion, Claudius Lysias forcibly took away Paul to the castle, being apprehensive lest he should have been murdered in the tumult. In the following night, the Lord Jesus appeared to him in a vision, and exhorted him not to give way to fear, since he should be safely conveyed to Rome, and there deliver an important testimony to the truth of the gospel. In the mean time, about forty of the Jews formed a plot for his destruction, engaging under a solemn oath neither to eat nor drink till they had accomplished their purpose. Their rulers concurred with them in their project; and, in order to afford them a favourable opportunity, promised that they would request the favour of a further examination. The conspiracy was, however, discovered by means of Paul's nephew; and he was sent by the tribune to Cæsarea under a sufficient guard, with a very candid letter from the tribune to the governor Felix.

After five days' confinement in Herod's judgment hall, Ananias, the high-priest, came down from Jerusalem, together with the elders, and a certain orator named Tertullus, who was employed to conduct the prosecution, This orator began with flattering Felix on the ground of his excellent government, though his conduct, as a magistrate, was detested by the whole Jewish nation. He then charged the apostle with being a mover of sedition, and insinuated that Claudius Lysias had acted very tyrannically in sending an armed force to rescue him from their hands. Paul, when permitted to speak, asserted the purity of his intentions, and the integrity of his conduct; and challenged the most bitter of his enemies to come forward and substantiate the charges which they had brought against him. Felix, having heard both sides, deferred the conclusion of the trial till Claudius Lysias should come down and give him further information; and in the mean time, commanded that Paul's confinement should be made as easy as possible.

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Truth and innocence communicate a greatness to the mind which the pomp of power and the pride of riches can but awkwardly imitate. Paul, the prisoner, was happy in his chains, knowing that the God in whose cause he suffered was able to succour and deliver him. Felix, on the contrary, having, from motives of curiosity, admitted the apostle to a free conversation with him, was so struck by his reasoning concerning righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, that he trembled, and requested to defer the further consideration of these subjects. When we shall hereafter have occasion to describe the character of Felix, the suitableness of these reproofs, and the considerations which added to their force, will be more clearly seen. Even in the

instance of his conduct towards Paul, he practised mean and detestable arts, hoping that money would be given him in order to procure his discharge. At length, after a suspense of two years, at the expiration of his government he left the apostle in bonds, in order to confer some obligation upon the Jews.

When Festus, the successor of Felix, was come into the province of Judea, in the sixtieth year of the Christian era, he went up, three days after taking possession of his government, from Cæsarea to Jerusalem. Then the high-priest, and several other persons of the chief rank among the Jews, appeared before him with an accusation against Paul; and earnestly entreated that he would not, as they pretended Lysias and Felix had done, obstruct the course of public justice against one whom they knew to be so notorious an offender. Begging it as the only favour they desired against him, that he would send for him to Jerusalem to be judged there, forming a scheme, at the same time, in their own secret purposes, of laying an ambush of desperate wretches for him, who they knew would readily undertake to intercept his journey, and to kill him by the way. But Festus prudently answered, as God inclined his heart, that as he had business of another kind to employ him while he continued at Jerusalem, he thought it best Paul should be kept awhile longer at Cæsarea, and that he himself would shortly set out for that place. Therefore, said he, let those of you who are best able to manage the prosecution, and who can most conveniently undertake the journey, go down along with me; and if there be any thing criminal in this man, for which he should be punished by the Roman laws, let them accuse him in my hearing. And thus, having continued among them more than ten days, he went down to Cæsarea; and several of the Jews attended him, as being determined to lose no time, but to prosecute the affair in the most strenuous manner. The next day, sitting down on the tribunal, he commanded Paul to be brought before him. When he appeared, the Jews who came down from Jerusalem presented themselves in a numerous company, and stood round about him, bringing many heavy accusations against Paul, like those which Tertullus had formerly advanced before Felix, which, nevertheless, it was evident that they were not by any means able to prove by proper witnesses. Paul, therefore, while he answered for himself, insisted on his innocence, and said, Whatever my accusers take upon them to alledge against me, I aver, that neither against the law of the Jews, to which I was expressing my regard at the very time I was seized; nor against the temple, to which I came with a design to worship there; nor against Cæsar, to whom I always have behaved as a peaceable subject; have I committed any offence at all. I openly deny their charge in every branch of it, and challenge them to make it out by proper evidence in any instance or in any degree. But Festus, willing to ingratiate himself with the Jews by so popular an action at the beginning of his government, answered Paul and said, I am a stranger, in a great measure, to the questions in debate among you, which the Jewish council must, no doubt, understand much better; wilt thou, therefore, go up to Jerusalem when I return thither, and there be judged before me in their presence concerning these things? that so the persons who were eye-witnesses may be more easily produced, that I may have the sanction of the sanhedrim's advice in the sentence I pass in a cause which has given so great an alarm, and which is apprehended to be of such public importance. But Paul, apprehensive of the attempt which might be made upon his life in his journey or in the city itself, said, I am standing at Cæsar's tribunal, where, as a Roman citizen, I ought to be judged; and I insist upon the privilege of having my cause decided there. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as thou, O Festus, very well knowest, and must have perceived clearly by what has this day been examined before thee. For if, indeed, I have done wrong to any, or have committed any thing worthy of death, I pretend not that there

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