were Jews by birth, but their proselytes as well. Among those who were affected by this unjust order was a devout pair of Jewish proselytes, Aquila and Prisca, or Priscilla. We judge from what little is known of them that while they lived at Rome they were possessed of considerable wealth, all of which they were forced to give up when the order of banishment was made against them. Fortunately, Aquila had learned the trade of tent-making; and when he and his wife fled from Rome and took up their residence in Corinth, he was able to earn a livelihood by this occupation.

At that time Corinth, which had been one of the most magnificent cities of ancient Greece, was in a state of physical, religious and moral decay; for Rome had stripped the city of its splendor and wealth, while immorality and idolatry were sapping the foundations of the people's spiritual life. in the midst of this decadence Aquila and Priscilla kept themselves from moral and religious contamination, remaining true to their Jewish worship and rules of life.

But

Paul had left Philippi, and had performed his ministrations in a few of the Greek cities, among them Athens, when his labors took him to Corinth. Here be seized the opportunity of bearing his testimony to the work of his Master, and his words were heard by Aquila and Priscilla. It happened that Panl was also a tent-maker, and he therefore found it convenient to make his home with this worthy couple, laboring with Aquila for his own

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support. He remained here a year and a half, and during that time his hosts became not only zealous but well-informed converts to Christianity.

As usual, Paul suffered considerable persecution in Corinth; but we have every reason to suppose that through it all he enjoyed the fullest possible friendship and protection at the hands of his converts. During the period of his stay there, however, he made it a careful rule to speak in the synagogue every Sabbath, proclaiming Christ and But for private assemblies, and him crucified. sacrament and prayer meetings, the house of Priscilla was invariably used; and there is no doubt that a high degree of spiritual development was attained in these gatherings.

Either in Corinth or in Cenchrea, Paul converted another woman whose name is held in loving veneration by the Christians.

This was

Phoebe, an unmarried woman, who,thereafter gave her time and substance to the service of the church.

When Paul left Corinth and went to Ephesus, Aquila and Priscilla went with him; and although the Apostle remained in that city only a short time, these two made their home there. Here they were brought into activity of another kind, in which Priscilla seems to have been the leader: they were called to be teachers of the Gospel. The occasion was the arrival in Ephesus of a young Jew named Apollos, who had recently been converted, but was not very thoroughly instructed in

the Gospel. He was taken to the hospitable home of these devout Christians, and there they taught him the way of the Lord more perfectly. Thus he was prepared for the great missionary labor he afterward performed, which has rendered him famous in Apostolic history.

Very little is known of the subsequent history of Priscilla and Phoebe. Both are mentioned by Paul in some of his later epistles, and he pays a tribute of praise to them which any person might well envy. Of the first he says, "Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my helpers in Christ Jesus, who have for my life laid down their own necks." And of Phoebe, "I commend unto you Phoebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea; that ye receive her in the Lord;

* * *

for she hath been a succorer of many, and of myself also."

Phoebe was to the church at Cenchrea what Priscilla was to the branches at Corinth and Ephesus, and both deserve credit for doing eminent service in aiding in the advancement of the work which the Apostles were performing.

5. THE DAUGHTERS OF PHILIP.

The last journey of Paul to Jerusalem, previous to his going to Rome for final trial, is marked by a small incident which is only mentioned, no comment being made. He had landed at Tyre,

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and was making the journey southward, coming at
Here he and his companions
length to Caesarea.
were entertained in the house of Philip, one of the
seven discreet men chosen by the Apostles years
before to take charge of the ministrations to the
poor. The journey had been a sad one to Paul, for
it was manifested to him that bonds and imprison-
ment awaited him.

But not only was the hospitality of the noble source of satisfaction to him,-there Philip a were his four daughters, whose faithfulness and spiritual-mindedness were a source of the greatest consolation. These maidens fully partook of the zeal which all the early Christians manifested; and on the occasion of Paul's visit, they showed prophetic power. To the weary, saddened servant of God. this supernatural manifestation must have been most gratifying; for it not only proved an additional and comforting testimony of the work to which he had devoted himself, but it showed, also, the universal nature of that work-the fact that its spirit and its privileges could be enjoyed by all its votaries. This is the fitting conclusion of the record of the women of the Bible.

We do not

know, and it is of little interest to us, what was the substance of their prophesying: the fact It remains that women, equally with men, may enjoy to the full the privileges of the work of God. remained for Judaism and Christianity, as recorded in the Bible, to give this recognition to woman,

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