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Appeals of this nature were common amongst the Romans, and introduced to defend and secure the lives and fortunes of the people from the unjust encroachments, and over-rigorous severities of the magistrates, whereby it was lawful in cases of oppression to appeal to the emperor for redress; a thing more than once settled by the sanction of the Valerian law, and now fully established.

King Agrippa, who succeeded Herod in the tetrarchate of Galilee, and his sister Bernice, came to Cesarea, some time after, St. Paul had appealed to Cæsar, to visit the new governor. Festus embraced this opportu nity of mentioning the case of our apostle to king Agrippa, together with the remarkable tumult this affair had occasioned amongst the Jews, and the appeal he had made to Cæsar. This account excited the curiosity of king Agrippa, and he was desirous of hearing himself what St. Paul had to say in his own vindication. Accorndingly, the next day the king and his sister, accompanied with Festus the governor, and several other persons of distinction, came into the court with a pompous and splendid retinue, where the prisoner was brought before them. On his appearing, Festus informed thecourt how greatly he had been importuned by the Jews, both at Cesarea and Jerusalem, to put the prisoner to death as a malefactor; but having, on examination, found him guilty of no capital crime, and the prisoner himself having appealed unto Cæsar, he was determined to send him to Rome; but was willing to have his cause debated before Agrippa, that he might be furnished with some material particulars to send with him; it being highly absurd to send thither a prisoner without signifying the crimes laid to his charge.

After Festus had finished his speech, Agrippa told Paul, he was now at liberty to make his own defence: and silence being made, he addressed his speech particularly to Agrippa, in the following manner.

1 esteem it a particular happiness, king Agrippa, that I am to make my defence against the accusations of the Jews, before thee; because thou art well acquainted with all their customs, and the questions commonly debated amongst them: I therefore beseech thee to hear me patiently and impartially.

The Jews in general are well acquainted with my manner of life from my youth, the greatest part of it having been spent with mice own countrymen at Jerusalem. They also know that I was educated under the institutions of the Pharisees, the strictest sect of our religion, and am now arrainged for a tenet believed by all their fathers, a tenet sufficiently credible in itself, and plainly revealed in the Scriptures, I mean, the resurrection of the dead. Why should any mortal think it either incredible or impossible, that God should raise the dead to life?

"I once thought myself indispensably obliged to oppose the religion of JESUS of Nazareth: nor was I satisfied with imprisoning, and punishing with death itself, the saints I found at Jerusalem; 1 even persecuted them in strange cities, whether my implacable zeal pursued them having pro"cured authority from the chief priests and elders for that purpose.

"I departed accordingly for Damascus with a commission from the Sanhedrim; but as I was travelling towards that city, I saw at mid-day, O king, a light from heaven, far exceeding the brightness of the sun, en"compassing me and my companions. On seeing this awful appearance, we all fell to the earth; and I heard a voice, which said to me in the Hebrew language, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? It is hard for "thee to kick against the pricks ?” To which 1 answered, "Who art thou, Lord ?" And he replied, "I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest :" but be not terrified, arise from the earth; for I have appeared unto thee, that thou mightest be both a witness of the things thou hast seen, and also of others which I will hereafter reveal unto thee: my power shall deliver thee from the Jews and Gentiles, to whom now I send thee to preach the

gospel; to withdraw the veil of darkness and ignorance, to turn them from falsehood unto truth," and from the power of Satan unto God.”

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Hereupon, king Agrippa, I readily obeyed the heavenly vision; I preached the gopel first to the inhabitants of Damascus, then to those of Jerusalem and Judea, and afterwards to the Gentiles; persuading them to forsake their iniquities. and turn to the living God, by sincere repentance.

"The Jews, being exasperated at these endeavours to save the souls of sinful mortals, caught me in the temple, and entered into a conspiracy to destroy me; but, by the help of Omnipotence, I still remain a witness to all the human race, preaching nothing but what Moses and all the prophets foretold, namely, that the Messiah should suffer, be the first that should rise from the chambers of the grave, and publish, both to the Jews and Gentiles, the glad tidings of salvation."

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After the apostle had thus pleaded for himself, Festus cried out," Paul, thou art mad; two much study hath deprived thee of reason." But Paul answered," I am far, most noble Festus, from being,transported with idio and distracted ideas; the words that I speak are dictated by truth and sobriety and I am persuaded that king Agrippa himself is not ignorant of these things for they were transacted openly before the world. I am confident, king Agrippa, that thou believest the prophets; and, therefore,, must know that all their predictions were fulfilled in CHRIST." To which Agrippa answered, "Thou hast almost persuaded me to embrace the Christian faith." And Paul replied, "I sincerely wish, that not only thou, but also all that hear me, were not almost, but altogether the same as I myself, except being prisoners."

After Paul had thus spoken, the king and the governor, with the rest of the council, withdrew to confer privately together; and finding by the accusations brought against him, that he was not guilty by the Roman law of any capital offence, nor even of such as deserved imprisonment, Agrippa old Festus, that he might have been set at liberty if he had not appealed unto Cæsar; but an appeal being once made, the Judge had no longer any power either to absolve or condemy, the cause being entirely reserved to the cognizance of that superior, to whom the prisoner had appealed, for his own justification,

As it was now finally determined that Paul should be sent to Rome, he, with several other prisoners of consequence, were committed to the care of Julius, commander of a company belonging to the legion of Augustus ; and was accompanied in this voyage by St. Luke, Aristarchus, Trophimus, and some others not mentioned by the sacred penman.

In the month of September 56, or according to others, 57,they embark. ed on board a ship of Adramyttium, and sailed to Sidon, where the cen turion courteously gave the apostle leave to go on shore to visit his friends, and refresh himself. After a sbort stay they sailed for Cyprus, and arrived opposite the Fair Havens, a place near Myra, a city of Lycia. Here the season being far advanced, and Paul foreseeing it would be a dangerous voyage, persuaded them to put in and winter there: but the Roman centurion preferring the opinion of the master of the ship, & the harbour being at the same time incommodious, resolved, if possible, to reach Phœnice, a port of Crete, & winter there. But they soon found themselves disappointed; for the fine southerly gale, which had favoured them for some time, suddenly changed into a stormy and tempestuous wind at north-east, which biew with such violence that the ship was obliged to sail before it ; and to prevent her foundering, they threw overboard the principal part of her lading, to lighten the vessel.

They continued fourteen days in this desperate and uncomfortable condition, neither sun nor star appearing for great part of the time. During This confusion, the apostlé put them in mind bow preposterously they had

acted in not listening to his advice; but, at the same time told them, that the God whom he served and worshipped, had the last night sent an angel to him, with the assurance that, notwithstanding the present danger, not one of their lives should be lost, though the ship should be wrecked.

When the fourteenth night arrived, the sailors, upon sounding found they were near some coast; and, therefore, to avoid the rocks, thought proper to come to an anchor, till the morning might give them better information. In the mean time, the seamen, who best understood the danger, were preparing to get into the boat to save themselves; which Paul perceiving, told the captain, that unless they all stayed in the ship, not one of them could be saved: whereupon the soldiers cut the ropes, and let the boat fall into the sea, from the ship.

While they continued at anchor, waiting for the light of the morning. St. Paul prevailed upon them to eat, and refresh themselves, having fasted a long time, assuring them they should all escape. When they had finished their repast, they lightened the ship of those goods which still remained con board, and endeavoured to put into a small creek they had discovered at a little distance; but falling into a place where two seas met, the ship ran aground, the forepart remaining immoveable, but the after part was demolished by the waves: awakened with the danger they were in, the soldiers were desirous of killing the prisoners, lest any of them should escape: but the centurion, willing to save Paul, refused his consent, commanding that every one should shift for himself in the best method he could. Accordingly, some by swiming, and others by broken pieces of the ship, they all, to the number of two hundred threescore and sixteen, got to shore in safety.

Agreeable to St. Paul's prediction, the country on which they were cast, was an island called Melita, now Malta, situated in the Libyan sea, between Syracuse and Africa. Here they met with great civility from a barbarous people, and the plain acknowledgments of a divine justice written on the naked and uninstructed minds of men; they treated them with great humanity, entertaining them with all the necessary accommodations: but while St. Paul was laying a few sticks on the fire, a viper enlivened by the heat, came from amongst the wood and fastened on his hand. On seeing this, the inhabitants of the island concluded, that he was certainly some notorious murderer, whom the divine vengeance, though it suffered him to escape the sea, had reserved for a more public and solemn execution: but when they saw him shake off the venomous creature into the fire, and no manner of harm ensue, they changed their sentiments, and cried out, "that he was a God:" so easily are light and credulous minds transported from one extreme to another, according to the difference of

occurrences.

The residence of Publius, the governor of the Island, was not far from the place where they were shipwrecked: he entertained this unfortunate company with great hospitality for three days; in acknowledgment of which St. Paul by his prayers, and the imposition of his hands, recovered his father from a fever and a bloody flux; and restored several others of the inhabitants, afflicted with different diseases, to their former health and strength; in consequence of which, they not only shewed him the greatest marks of their esteem, but furnished both him and his company with all the necessaries proper for the rest of their voyage.

After three months stay in this island, the centurion with his charge went on board the Castor and Pollux, a ship of Alexandria, bound to Italy. They put into Syracuse, where they tarried three days; sailed thence to Regium, and so to Puteoli, where they landed; and finding some Christians there, staid at their request a week with them, and then set forward on their journey to Rome. The Christians of this city, hearing of the apostle's coming, went to meet him as far as the Three Taverns, about thir

ty miles from Rome, and others as far as the Apii Forum, fifty one miles distant from the capital: they kindly embraced each other, and the liberty he saw the Christians enjoyed at Rome, greatly tended to enliven the spirits of the apostle. By these Christians he was conducted in a kind of triumph into the city, where, at their arrival, the rest of the prisoners were delivered to the captain of the guard, and by him disposed of in the common prison; but St. Paul, probably by the intercession of Julius, was per mitted to reside in a private house, with only a soldier to guard him.

St. Paul arriving at Rome, he sent, after he had been there three days for the heads of the Jewish consistory in that city, and related to them the cause of his coming in the following manner: "Though I have been guilty of no violence of the laws of our religion, yet I was delivered by the Jews at Jerusalem to the Roman governors, who more than once would have acquitted me as innocent of any capital offence; but by the perverseness of my persecutors, I was obliged to appeal unto Cæsar; not that I had any thing to accuse my nation of: I had therefore recourse to this method, merely to prove mine own innocence, and confute the allegations of mine enemies.'

A popular prejndice being thus removed, he added, "That the true cause of his sufferings was what their own religion had taught him, the belief and expectations of a future resurrection." This speech gained greatly on their affections, and they answered, That they had received no advice concerning him, nor had any of the Jews that came from Judea brought any charge against him; but, at the same time, they desired to know, what he had to say in support of the religion he had embraced, it being every where decried both by Jews and Gentiles. Accordingly, upon a day appointed, he discoursed with them from morning to night concerning the religion and doctrine of the holy JESUS; proving, from the promises and predictions of the Old Testament, that he was the true Messiah; but his discourse had different effects on different hearers, some being convinced, and others persisting in their infidelity and as they were departing in some discontent at each other, the apostle told them, it was too plain that God had accomplished upon them the prophetical curse, of being left to their own wilful hardiness and impenitency to be blind at noon day, and to run themselves headlong into irrecoverable ruin. That since this was the case, they must expect, that he would henceforth preach to the Gantiles, who would very readily embrace the glad tidings of the gospel, which they so scornfully rejected.

During two whole years, Paul dwelt at Rome, in a house he had hired for his own use; wherein he constantly employed himself in preaching and writing for the good of the church. He preached daily without interruption, and with remarkable success; so that his imprisonment contributed greatly to the propagation of the gospel, and rendered him famous even in the emperor's court, where he converted several to the faith of CHRIST.

Besides others of the apostle's converts at Rome, their was one Onesimus who had formerly been a servant to Philemon, a person of distinction in Colosse, but had run away from his master, and taken with hin some things of value. Having rambled as far as Rome, he was now converted by St. Paul, and by him returned to his master, with a short recommendatory letter, earnestly desiring him to pardon him; and, notwithstanding his former faults, to treat him kindly, and use him as a brother, promising withal, that if he had wronged or owed him any thing, he himself would repay it for him.

St. Paul's Epistle on this subject may be considered as a master-piece of eloquence, in the persuasive way; for the apostle has herein had recourse to all the considerations, which friendship, religion, piety and tenderness, can inspire, to reconcile a master to his servant; and yet some

of the ancients were of opinion, that it did not deserve a place in the canon of Scripture, because it was written on a particular occasion, and with a design not so much to instruct Christians in general, as to recommend a poor fugitive servant: but though the subject of this Epistle be a private affair, yet it contains, amongst others, the following general instructions: First, That no Christian, though of the meanest condition, is to be contemned. Secondly, That Christianity does not impair the power of masters over their servant. Thirdly, That servants ought to make satisfaction, for any wrong or injury done to their masters. Fourthly, That masters ought to be reconciled to their servants, upon their repentance and acknowledgment of their faults. And, Fifthly, That there is at alt times, a love aud affection due from a master to a servant. Who therefore, would refuse to number an Epistle so profitable, and so instructive, with the rest of the works of this learned apostle ?

The Philippians hearing of St. Paul's imprisonment at Rome, and not knowing what straits he might be reduced to, raised a contribution for him, and sent it by Epaphroditus their bishop, by whom he returned an Epistle to them, wherein he gives some account of the state of his affairs at Rome," gratefully acknowledges their kindness to him; warns them against the dangerous opinions which the Judaizing teachers began to vent amongst them; and advises them to live in continual obedience to CHRIST; to' avoid disputations, delight in prayer, be courageous under afflictions, united in love, and clothed with humility, in imitation of the blessed JE-, sus, who so far humbled himself, as to "become obedient unto death, even the death of the cross," for the sons of men.

The apostle had lived three years at Ephesus, preaching the gospel to the numerous inhabitants of that city, and was therefore well acquainted with the state and condition of the place; so taking the opportunity of Tychicus's going thither he wrote his Epistle to the Ephesians, wherein he endeavours to countermine the principles and practices both of the Jews and Gentiles; to confirm them in the belief and practice of the Christian doctrine; and to instruct them fully in the great mysteries of the gospel ; that redemption and justification by the death of CiRIST; their gratuitous election; their union with the Jews in the body, of which CHRIST is the head, and the glorious exaltation of that head above all creatures boli spiritual and temporal; together with many excellent moral precepts, both as to the general duties of religion, and the duties of their particular relations in life.

Though St. Paul, himself had never been at Colosse, yet Epaphras, who' was then at Rome a prisoner with him, had preached the gospel there with good success; and from him he might learn, that certain false teachers had endeavoured to persuade the people, that they ought not to apply to God by JESUS CHRIST, who, since his ascension, was so far exalted above them, that angels were now become the proper mediators between God and man; and, therefore, in opposition to this, as well as other seductions of the same nature, he wrote his Epistle to the Colossians; wherein he magnificently displays the Messiah, and all the benefits flowing from him, as being the image of his Father, the Redeemer of all mankind, the reconciler of all things to God, and the head of the church, which gives life and vigour to all it's members: he commends the doctrine preached to them by Epaphras, and exhorts them not to be led away by the reasonings of human philosophy, by the superstitious practices of mak ing differences of meats and drinks, or by a pretended humility in worshipping angels; and gives them an abstract of many principal duties of the Christian life, especially such as respect the relations between husbands and wives, parents and children, masters and servants, and other social and relative duties.

We have no account in history, by what means St. Paul was delivered from his imprisonment, and discharged from the accusation the Je

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