poses of worshipping God, and diffusing the knowledge of religion among the people, it was natural, in forming them, to imitate the model, and follow the rules of the synagogue. And therefore, seeing the reading of the Jewish Scriptures always made a part of the synagogue service, it cannot be doubted that the same was practised in the church from the very beginning, especially as the disciples of Christ, equally with the disciples of Moses, acknowledged the divine inspiration of these Scriptures, and had been ordered, by their master, to search them as testifying of him. Besides, till the apostles and evange lists published their writings, the Jewish Scriptures were the only guide to which the disciples of Christ could have recourse for their instruction. But, after the Spirit of God had inspired the evangelists to write their histories of Christ's ministry, and the apostles to commit their doctrines and precepts to writing, their gospels and epistles became a more direct rule of faith and practice to the brethren, than even the Jewish Scriptures themselves; for which reason it was fit that they should be statedly read in the public assemblies, to teach the brethren more perfectly the things wherein they had been instructed. And, to introduce that practice, St. Paul, in the conclusion of his first epistle to the Thessalonians (which is .generally supposed to have been the first of his inspired writings), laid the presidents and pastors of that church under "an oath to cause it to be read to all the holy brethren," ch. v. 27.; that is to say, being conscious of his own inspiration, he required the Thessalonians to put his writings on a level with the writings of the Jewish prophets, by reading them in their public assemblies for worship, and by regarding them as the infallible rule of their faith and practice. For the same purpose, John (Rev. i. 3.) declared him blessed who readeth, and them who hear the words of his prophecy.

The Thessalonian presidents and pastors being adjured by the apostle Paul to cause his epistle to be read "to all the brethren," it was to be read, not only to them in Thessalonica, but to the brethren of all the towns and cities of the province of Macedonia; and particularly to the brethren of Beroa and Philippi, and of every place in their neighbourhood where churches were planted. For that St. Paul did not intend his epistles merely for the churches to which they were first sent, but for general use, appears from the inscriptions of several of them. Thus the epistle to the Galatians is directed "To the churches of Galatia ;" and the second epistle to the Corinthians, "To the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints which are in all Achaia." Nay, the first epistle to the same church hath even a more general inscription, being directed, not only "To the church at Corinth," but "To all them who in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ."

But while the churches, to which the apostle sent his letters, were directed by the inscriptions to circulate them as widely as possible, he did not mean, by these inscriptions, nor by his adjuration of the Thessalonian pastors, that the autographs of his letters were to be sent to all who had an interest in them. These divinely inspired compositions, authenticated by the salutation in the apostle's own handwriting, were too valuable to be used in that manner. But his meaning was that correct copies of his letters should be sent to the neighbouring churches, to remain with them for their own use, and to be transscribed by them, and circulated as widely as possible. The direction to the Colossians, iv. 16, "When this epistle hath been read by you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans," is certainly to be understood in the manner I have explained. The apostle adds, "and that ye likewise read the epistle from Laodicea." The Laodiceans, it seems, had been directed to send to the Colossians a copy of some letter written by

the apostle, which they had received; probably the letter which he had lately sent to the Ephesians; for that epistle is inscribed, not only "To the saints which are at Ephesus," but also "To the faithful in Christ Jesus." This inscription, therefore, like that of the epistle to the Corinthians, implied that the Ephesian brethren were to send copies of their letter to the neighbouring churches, and, among the rest, to the church of the Laodiceans, with a particular order to them to send a copy of it to the Colossians.

In the same manner, also, we may suppose the epistle to the Galatians was circulated. For the inscription, "To the churches of Galatia" implies, that the church in Galatia which received this letter from the apostle's messenger, was to send a copy of it to the church that was nearest to them; which church was to circulate it in like manner; so that, being sent from one church to another it was no doubt communicated, in a short time, to all the churches of Galatia. In like manner, the apostle Peter's first epistle being inscribed "To the strangers of the dispersion of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia," the person or church to which that letter was delivered by Silvanus (1 Pet. v. 12.), was to communicate it to the brethren nearest at hand, to be copied and dispersed till it was fully circulated among the faithful in the several countries mentioned in the inscription, unless that service was performed by Silvanus himself. For it cannot be supposed that Peter would write and send copies of such a long letter to all the churches in the widely extended countries of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bythynia. The like method, no doubt, was used for circulating all the other catholic epistles.

The apostles, by the inscription of their letters, having signified their desire that they should be read publicly, not only in the churches to which they were first sent, but in all the neighbouring churches; and St. Paul, in particular, having given express orders to that purpose in his epistles to the Thessalonians and Colossians, we have good reason to believe that their epistles were read publicly and frequently in the churches to which they were inscribed, along with the Scriptures of the Old Testament, that copies of them were sent to every church which had an immediate interest in them; and that, when the gospels were published, they, in like manner, were read daily in the churches: and that copies of them also were quickly multiplied. To this respect the gospels were certainly entitled, not only on account of their authors being apostles or evangelists, but because the matters contained in them were of the greatest utility, both for the instruction and for the consolation of the brethren.

The epistles and gospels, being the authentic record in which the whole doctrines, precepts, and promises of the gospel are contained, we may believe that, although no injunction had been given by the apostles respecting the communication of their writings, the members of the churches to which their epistles and gospels were sent, moved by their own piety and good sense, would be anxious to communicate them; and would not grudge either the expense of transcribing them, or the trouble of sending them to all the churches with which they had any connexion. The persons likewise who were employed, whether in transcribing, or in carrying these excellent writings to the neighbouring churches, would take great delight in the work; thinking themselves both usefully and honourably employed. Nay, I am persuaded that such of the brethren as could afford the expense, and were capable of reading these divinely inspired writings, would get them transcribed for their own use: so that copies of these books would be multiplied and dispersed in a very short time. This accounts for St. Paul's epistles, in particular, being so generally known, read, and acknowledged by all Christians, in the very first age; as

we learn from Peter, who speaks of the epistles which his beloved brother Paul had written to the persons to whom he himself wrote his second epistle, chap. iii. 16. It seems, before Peter wrote that letter, that he had seen and read Paul's epistles to the Galatians, the Ephesians, and the Collossians. He speaks also of all Paul's other epistles; from which some learned men have inferred, that Paul by that time was dead, and that all his writings had come to Peter's hands. Nay, Peter insinuates that they were then universally read and acknowledged as inspired writings; for he tells us, the ignorant and unstable wrested them, as they did the other Scriptures also, to

their own destruction."

The writings of the apostles and evangelists being thus early and widely dispersed among the disciples of Christ, I think it cannot be doubted that the persons who obtained copies of them, regarding them as precious treasures of divine truth, preserved them with the utmost care. We are morally certain, therefore, that none of the inspired writings, either of the evangelists or of the apostles, have been lost; and, in particular, that the suspicion which some have entertained of the loss of certain epistles of Paul, is destitute of probability. His inspired writings were all sent to persons greatly interested in them, who, while they preserved their own copies with the utmost care, were, no doubt, very diligent in circulating transcripts from them among the other churches; so that, being widely dispersed, highly respected, and much read, none of them, I think, could perish. What puts this matter beyond doubt is, that while all the sacred books which now remain are often quoted by the most ancient Christian writers, whose works have come down to us, in none of them, nor in any other author whatever, is there so much as a single quotation from any apostolical writing that is not at present in our canon; nor the least hint from which it can be gathered, that any apostolical writing ever existed, which we do not at present possess.

Farther, as none of the apostolical writings have been lost, so no material alteration hath taken place in any of those which remain. For the autographs having, in all probability, been long preserved with care, by the rulers of the churches to which these writings were sent, if any material alteration, in particular copies, had ever been attempted, for the purpose of supporting heresy, the fraud must instantly have been detected by comparing. the vitiated copies with the autographs. And even after the autographs, by length of time, or by accident, were lost, the consent of such a number of copies as might easily be procured and compared in every country, was at all times sufficient for establishing the genuine text, and for correcting whatever alteration might be made, whether through accident or design. Nor is this all the many disputes about articles of faith which took place in the Christian church, almost from the beginning, though productive of much mischief in other respects, secured the Scriptures from all vitiation. For the different sects of Christians, constantly appealing to the sacred oracles in support of their particular opinions, each would take care that their opponents quoted the Scriptures fairly, and transcribed them faithfully. And thus the different parties of Christians being checks on each other, every possibility of vitiating the Scriptures was absolutely precluded.

With respect to the various readings of the books of the New Testament, about which deists have made such a noise, and well disposed persons have expressed such fears as if the sacred text were thereby rendered uncertain, I may take upon me to affirm, that the clamour of the former, and the fears of the latter, are without foundation. Before the invention of printing there was no method of multiplying the copies of books, but by trans

cribing them; and the persons who followed that business being liable, through carelessness, to transpose, omit, and alter, not only letters, but words, and even whole sentences, it is plain that the more frequently any book was transcribed, the more numerous would the variations from the original text be in the one that was last transcribed; because, in the new copy, besides the errors peculiar to the one from which it was taken, there would be all those also which the transcriber himself might fall into through carelessness. If, therefore, the MSS. which remain of any ancient book are of a late date, and few in number, the defects and errors of such a book will be many, and the various readings few; and as it is by the various readings alone that the defects and errors of particular copies can be redressed, the imperfections of that book will be without remedy. Of this, Hesychius among the Greeks, and Velleius Paterculus among the Latins, are striking examples; for as there is but one MS. copy of each of these authors remaining, the numerous errors and defects found in them are past all redress. Happily, this is not the case with the books of the New Testament, of which there are more MSS. of different ages than of any other ancient writing. Wherefore, although by collating these MSS., different readings, to the amount of many thousands, have appeared, the text, instead of being rendered uncertain thereby, hath been fixed with greater precision: Because, with the help of sound criticism, learned men, from the vast variety of readings, obtained by comparing different copies, have been able to select, almost with certainty, those readings which originally composed the sacred text. See Gen. Pref. p. 12. note.

This, however, though great, is not the only advantage the Scriptures have derived from the various readings found in the different MSS. of the New Testament which have been collated. For as these MSS. were found, some of them in Egypt, others of them in Europe, the distance of the places from whence they have been brought give us, as Bently hath well remarked, the fullest assurance that there never could be any collusion in altering or interpolating one copy by another, nor all by any one of them; and that, however numerous these readings may be, they have proceeded merely from the carelessness of transcribers, and by no means from bad design in any persons whatever. This important fact is set in the clearest light by the pains which learned men have taken in collating all the ancient translations of the Scriptures now remaining, and all the quotations from the Scriptures found in the writings of the fathers, even those which they made by memory, in order to mark the minutest variations from the originals. For although, by this means, the various readings have been increased to a prodigious number, we find but a very few of them that make any material alteration in the sense of the passages where they are found; and of those which give a different sense, it is easy for persons skilled in criticism to determine which is the genuine reading. These facts, which are all well known, prove, in the strongest manner, that the books of the New Testament have, from the beginning, remained unadulterated, and that in the various readings we have the genuine text of these books entire, or almost entire; which is more than can be said o any other writing of equal antiquity, of which the MSS. are not so numerous, nor the various readings in such abundance. See the note, Pref. p. 14, last paragraph.

ESSAY III.

Of the Apostle Paul's Style and Manner of Writing

ALTHOUGH the sermons and epistles of the apostle Paul be much superior in sentiment to the finest orations and treatises of the Greeks, many who are judges of elegant writing, I doubt not, will pronounce them inferior

lar churches or persons; some of them written in answer to letters which he had received. Now, how essential soever a declared method and order in the disposition of the arguments, and a visible connexion of the parts of the discourse, may be in a regular treatise, these, in the opinion of the best judges, are by no means necessary in epistolary compositions. Rather, in that kind of writing, if there is order and connexion, to conceal it is esteemed a perfection. Besides, letters differ from every other species of writing in this respect, that the persons to whom they are addressed being well acquainted with the particulars alluded to in them, the writer never thinks of entering into a minute detail of the characters, the circumstances, and the opinions of the persons concerning whom, or to whom, he writes. Yet the knowledge of these things is absolutely necessary to render letters intelligible to strangers. Hence, as Lord Shaftesbury, speaking of letter-writing, justly observes, Miscell. i. c. 3. "They who read an epistle or satire of Horace, in somewhat better than a mere scholastic relish, will comprehend, that the concealment of order and method in this manner of writing makes the chief beauty of the work. They will own, that unless a reader be in some measure apprized of the characters of an Augustus, a Mecenas, a Florus, and a Trebatius, there will be little relish in those satires, addressed, in particular, to the courtiers, ministers, and great men of the times." If these observations are just, it is no blemish, but rather a beauty, in the apostle's letters, that his method is concealed. Neither ought they to be found fault with for their obscurity; seeing, in many instances, it is owing to our ignorance of the characters of the persons he mentions, and of the facts and circumstances to which he alludes. At the same time, his epistles are not more irregular, or more obscure, at least in their matter, than many of the epistles and satires of Horace. So that the assistance of commentators is not more needed for interpreting the writings of the inspired apostle, than for understanding the compositions of the elegant Latin poet.

Having made these remarks on the method and connexion of the apostle Paul's epistles, it remains, in the second place, that I speak concerning his style. And here I observe, in general, that it is concise and unadorned; yet, if I judge rightly, its conciseness adds to its energy, and even to its beauty. For, instead of multiplying synonymous terms, unmeaning epithets, and jarring metaphors, whereby style becomes turgid and empty, the apostle scarcely ever admits any thing superfluous. His words, for the most part, are well chosen; many of them are emphatical, and properly placed in the sentence, as by a master's hand; some of them are new, and others of them are admirably compounded; so that they add oth to the sound and to the sense of the sentence. His epithets commonly mark the principal quality or circumstance of the idea to which they are adjected; and his expressions, in some instances, are so delicately turned, as to suggest sentiments which are not directly marked by the words; whereby an opportunity is afforded to the reader to exercise his own ingenuity, in discovering that more is meant than meets his ear. In short, there are, in the apostle's concise language, virtues which make amends for the want of the vivid colouring, the flowing copiousness, and the varied cadences of the Grecian eloquence. Even those oriental forms of speech used by the apostle, which have been blamed by one or two of the fathers who were not skilled in the Hebrew, though accompanied with some obscurity at first view, when understood, add to the pleasure of the reader by their energy, and by the variety which they occasion in the style. The change, too, of the person, and the sudden transition from the one number to the other, often found in Paul's writings, though violations of the rules of grammar loudly D

condemned by the lesser critics, are real beauties, as they render discourse more lively; on which account these irregularities have been admitted, even by the best authors. And, with respect to the few uncommon words and phrases, to which the appellations of barbarisms and solecisms have been given, the reader ought to know, that the best Greek authors have used the very same words and phrases, which, if they are not commended as diversifications of the style, must, at least, be excused as inaccuracies, flowing from the vivacity of these justly admired writers, or from their attention to matters of greater moment. However, as Longinus hath long ago acknowledged, (c. 30.) one of the beautiful passages and sublime thoughts found in the works of these great masters, is sufficient to atone for all their faults.

But if the ablest critics judge in this favourable manner of the celebrated writers of antiquity, on account of their many excellencies, surely the same indulgence cannot be denied to the apostle Paul, whose merit as a writer, in many respects, is not inferior to theirs. For I will venture to affirm, that in elegance, variety, and strength of expression, and even in sublimity of thought, many of his passages will bear to be set in competition with the most admired of theirs, and will suffer nothing by the comparison. The truth is, where the apostle's subject leads him to it, he not only expresses himself with delicacy and energy, but often rises to the true sublime, through the grandeur of his sentiments, the strength of his language, and the harmoniousness of his periods, not industriously sought after, but naturally flowing from the fervour and wisdom of that divine spirit by which he was inspired.

In support of what I have advanced in praise of St. Paul as an author, I mention the following passages, as unquestionable examples of beautiful and sublime writing.-The greatest part of his epistle to the Ephesians, concerning which Grotius has said, that "it expresses the grand matters of which it treats in words more sublime than are to be found in any human tongue :"-His speech to the inhabitants of Lystra, Acts xiv., in which the justest sentiments concerning the Deity are expressed in such a beautiful simplicity of language, as must strike every reader of taste:-His oration to the Athenian magistrates and philosophers assembled in the Areopagus, wherein he describes the character and state of the true God, and the worship that is due to him, in the most elegant language, and with the most exquisite address, Acts xvii.:-His charge to the elders of Ephesus, (Acts xx.), which is tender and pathetic in the highest degree:-His different defences before the Roman governors, Felix and Festus, king Agrippa and Bernice, the tribunes and great ladies of Cesarea, who were all struck with admiration at the apostle's eloquence :-His description of the engagement between the flesh and the spirit, with the issue of that conflict, Rom. vii.:-The whole of the eighth chapter of his epistle to the Romans, in which both the sentiments and the language, especially towards the close, are transcendently sublime :-The fifteenth chapter of his first epistle to the Corinthians, where he treats of the resurrection of the dead, in a discourse of considerable length, adorned with the greatest variety of rheto rical figures, expressed in words aptly chosen, and beautifully placed; so that in no language is there to be found a passage of equal length, more lively, more harmonious, or more sublime :-The last four chapters of his second epistle to the Corinthians, which are full of the most delicate ironies on the false teacher who had set himself up at Corinth as the apostle's rival, and on the faction who doated on that impostor:-1 Tim. vi. 6—12.; a passage admirable, both for the grandeur of the sentiment and for the elegance of the language :-The whole eleventh chapter of his epistle to the Hebrews, and the first six verses

of the twelfth chapter of the same epistle; with many other passages which might be mentioned, in which we find an eloquence superior to any thing exhibited in profane authors.

There are other passages, likewise, in Paul's epistles, of a narrower compass, concerning which I hazard it as my opinion, that in none of the celebrated writers of Grecce or of Rome, are there periods in which we find greater sublimity of thought, or more propriety, beauty, and even melody of language. This every reader of taste will acknowledge, who takes the pains to consult the following passages in the original.-Romans xi. 33. O the depth both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!' &c. which doxology to the true God is superior, both in sentiment and language, to the most celebrated hymns of the greatest of the heathen poets in praise of their divinities. -2 Cor. iv. 17, 18. For the present light thing of our affliction, which is but for a moment,' &c.-Ch. v. 14. For the love of Christ constraineth us,' &c.-vi. 4-11. In all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God,' &c.-Philip. iii. 18. For many walk,' &c.Ephes. i. 19. What is the exceeding greatness of his power,' &c. In which last period there is such an accumulation of strong expression as is scarcely to be found in any profane author.-1 Tim. vi. 15. where there is a description of God, which, in sublimity of sentiment and beauty of language, exceeds all the descriptions given of the Supreme Being by the most famed of the heathen philosophers or poets. Other periods also might be produced, in which, as in those just now mentioned, there are no unnatural rants, nor great swelling words of vanity; but a real grandeur of sentiment, and an energy of diction, which directly strike the heart.

Upon the whole, I heartily agree with Beza in the account which he hath given of the apostle Paul as a writer, 2 Cor. x. 6. note, where he says, "When I more narrowly consider the whole genius and character of Paul's style, I must confess that I have found no such sublimity of speaking in Plato himself, as often as the apostle is pleased to thunder out the mysteries of God; no exquisiteness of vehemence in Demosthenes equal to his, as often as he had a mind either to terrify men with a dread of the divine judgments, or to admonish them concerning their conduct, or to allure them to the contemplation of the divine benignity, or to excite them to the duties of piety and morality. In a word, not even in Aristotle himself, nor in Galen, though most excellent artists, do I find a more exact method of teaching."

But though with Beza I acknowledge that Paul was capable of all the different kinds of fine writing; of the simple, the pathetic, the ironical, the vehement, and the sublime; and that he hath given admirable specimens of these several kinds of eloquence in his sermons and epistles, I would not be understood to mean that he ought, upon the whole, to be considered either as an elegant or as an eloquent writer. The method and connexion of his writings are too much concealed to entitle him to these appellations; and his style in general is neither copious nor smooth. It is rather harsh and difficult, through the vehemence of his genius, which led him frequently to use that dark form of expression called, by rhetoricians, elliptical; to leave some of his sentences, and even of his arguments, incomplete; and to mention the first words only of the passages which he hath quoted from the Old Testament, though his argument requires that the whole be taken into view. These peculiarities, it is true, are found in the most finished compositions of the Greeks; and though they appear harsh, are real excellencies; as they diversify the style, render it vigorous, and draw the reader's attention. But they occur much more seldom in their writings than in Paul's. And although the words that are wanting to complete the apostle's sentences

are commonly expressed, either in the clause which goes before, or in that which follows, and the scope of his reasonings leads to the propositions omitted; yet these, for the most part, escape ordinary readers, so that his style, upon the whole, is diflicult and obscure."

There are other peculiarities also, which render the apostle's style dark; such as, that on some occasions he hath inverted the order of his sentences, and used the same words in the same sentence, in different senses. Nay, he has affixed to many of his terms, significations quite different from what they have in profane authors; because, as Locke justly observes, the subjects of which he treats were absolutely new, and the doctrines which he teaches were perfectly remote from all the notions which mankind then entertained. In short, these peculiarities of style have thrown such an obscurity upon many passages of Paul's writings, that persons tolerably skilled in the Greek language will understand the compositions of Demosthenes, Isocrates, or any other standard prose writer among the Greeks, more readily than the epistles of the apostle Paul.

Let it be acknowledged then, that, in general, Paul's ordinary style is not polished and perspicuous, but rather harsh and obscure; nevertheless, in avoiding the studied perspicuity and prolixity of the Grecian eloquence, and in adopting a concise and unadorned style in his epistles, he is, I think, fully justified by the following considerations.

In the first place, a concise unadorned style in preaching and writing, though accompanied with some obscu rity, was, in the apostle's situation, preferable to the clear and elegant manner of writing practised by the Grecian orators. For, as he himself tells us, it was intended by Christ to make the world sensible that the conversion of mankind was accomplished, neither by the charms of speech, nor by the power of sounds, nor by such arguments as a vain philosophy was able to furnish, but by those great and evident miracles which accompanied the first preaching of the gospel, and by the suitableness of its doctrines to the necessities of mankind;-facts, which it is of the greatest importance for us, in these latter ages, to be well assured of. 1 Cor. i. 17. Christ sent me to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of speech, that the cross of Christ might not be made ineffectual.'-1 Cor. ii. 4. My discourse and my preaching was not with the persuasive words of human wisdom, but with the demonstration of the Spirit, and of power. 5. That your faith might not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.'

In the second place, the obscure manner of writing used by the apostle Paul, though the natural effect of his own comprehensive genius, may have been designed for the very purpose of rendering some of his passages difficult, that, by the pains necessary to the right understanding of them, their meaning, when found, might enter the deeper into his reader's mind. This use of obscurity was thought of such importance anciently, that the most celebrated teachers of religion concealed their doctrines under fables, and allegories, and enigmas, in order to render them the more venerable, and to excite more strongly the curiosity of their disciples. Of this the Egyptian priests were famous examples. So also was Plato; for his theological, and even some of his moral writings, are often more obscure than Paul's, or than the writings of any of the sacred authors whatever. The obscurity of the Scriptures may likewise have been intended to make the exercise of honesty, impartiality, and care, necessary in studying the revelations of God. For though it hath been alleged, that the professed design of a revelation from God being to instruct all mankind in matters of religion, the terms in which it is conveyed ought to be perspicuous and level to the capacity of all;