An Examination of the Testimony of the Four Evangelists, by the Rules of Evidence Administered in Courts of Justice
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Title: An Examination of the Testimony of the Four Evangelists, by the Rules of Evidence Administered in Courts of Justice
Author: Simon Greenleaf
Release date: January 17, 2011 [eBook #34989]
Most recently updated: June 16, 2020
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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AN EXAMINATION OF THE TESTIMONY OF THE FOUR EVANGELISTS, BY THE RULES OF EVIDENCE ADMINISTERED IN COURTS OF JUSTICE ***
An
Examination of the Testimony
of the
Four Evangelists,
by the Rules of Evidence Administered
in
Courts of Justice.
With an Account of the Trial of Jesus.
By Simon Greenleaf, LL.D.
Dane Professor of Law in Harvard University
Second Edition
Revised and Corrected by the Author.
London:
A. Maxwell & Son, 32, Bell Yard, Lincoln’s Inn;
W. Smith, 113, Fleet Street;
Hodges & Smith, Dublin; T. & J. Clark, Edinburgh.
1847
CONTENTS
Contents And Synopsis Of The Harmony.
Advertisement To This Edition.
An Examination, Etc.
Harmony Of The Gospels.
Part I. Events Connected With The Birth And Childhood Of Jesus.
Part II. Announcement And Introduction Of Our Lord’s Public Ministry.
Part III. Our Lord’s First Passover, And The Subsequent Transactions
Until The Second.
Part IV. Our Lord’s Second Passover, And The Subsequent Transactions
Until The Third.
Part V. From Our Lord’s Third Passover, Until His Final Departure From
Galilee, At The Festival Of Tabernacles.
Part VI. The Festival Of Tabernacles And The Subsequent Transactions,
Until Our Lord’s Arrival At Bethany, Six Days Before The Fourth
Passover.
Part VII. Our Lord’s Public Entry Into Jerusalem, And The Subsequent
Transactions Before The Fourth Passover.
Part VIII. The Fourth Passover; Our Lord’s Passion; And The
Accompanying Events Until The End Of The Jewish Sabbath.
Part IX. Our Lord’s Resurrection, His Subsequent Appearances, And His
Ascension.
Note On The Resurrection.
An Account Of The Trial Of Jesus.
The Jewish Account Of The Trial Of Jesus. By Mr. Salvador.
The Trial Of Jesus Before Caiaphas And Pilate.
Preface.
Analysis Of The Chapter Of Mr. Salvador, Entitled “The Administration
Of Justice” Among The Jews.
Trial Of Jesus.
Footnotes
ADVERTISEMENT.
In introducing to the notice of the British Public, Mr. Professor
GREENLEAF’S Harmony of the Four Gospels, the publishers have much
satisfaction in announcing, that it has become a Standard Work in the
United States of America: and its intrinsic value has induced them to make
it known, in the hope of promoting its circulation, in this country.
The spirit of infidelity is far more restless and active on the other side
of the Atlantic, than, happily, it has been in our highly-favoured land:
and, in consequence, it has called forth some of the most able and
powerful minds to correct and subdue it. Among these advocates of Divine
Revelation, the profound lawyer, Professor Greenleaf, holds a most
honourable and distinguished place; and his work may justly be regarded as
combining sound and practical knowledge with well-directed zeal and piety.
Its character has been very fairly appreciated in two leading North
American journals, from which the following extracts are made, as
indicative of its contents, and also of the high estimation in which its
learned author is deservedly held in his own country.
EXTRACT OF A NOTICE OF PROFESSOR GREENLEAF ON THE FOUR GOSPELS,
OCTOBER 24, 1846, IN “THE NEW YORK OBSERVER.”
The Author is a lawyer, very learned in his profession, acute,
critical and used to raising and meeting practical doubts. Author
of a treatise on the law of evidence, which has already become a
classic in the hands of the profession which he adorns, and
teaches in one of the Law Seminaries which do honour to our
country in the eyes of Europe, he brings rare qualifications for
the task he assumes. That he should, with the understanding and
from the heart, accept the Gospel as the truth, avow it as his
Hope, and seek to discharge a duty to his fellow-men by laying
before them the grounds on which he founds this acceptance and
this hope, are cheering circumstances to the Christian, and
present strong appeals to the indifferent.
To his profession, to the lawyers of the country, however, this
work makes a strong appeal. They are a very secular profession.
Their business is almost wholly conversant with material
interests. Their time is absorbed in controversies, of passion, or
of interest. Acute, critical, and disputatious, they apparently
present a field unpropitious for the acceptance of a religion,
spiritual, disinterested, and insisting on perfect holiness.
Still, they necessarily need to know and must enforce the rules of
finding truth and justice; the principles for ascertaining truth
and dispensing justice are the great subjects of all their
discussions, so far as they are discussions of any general
principle. From this cause it is, that this profession has
numbered among its members, in every age, Christians of great
eminence, and in our own day and country, we cannot turn to the
eminent men of this profession in any large community, without the
satisfaction of finding our Faith embraced by those whose habits
of practical as well as speculative investigation render them
evidently the best able to appreciate its claims and to detect any
imperfections in its proof.
So we trust it always may be; and we are assured that the best
models of the mode of investigating matters of legal controversy
as the proof of facts, are writings on the evidences. Paley’s
treatise and that of Chalmers, on the oral testimony in favour of
Christ’s mission, Paley’s examination of the writings of the
apostle Paul, are, we are assured, the best models extant for
forming the habit of examining oral and documentary evidence.
These are subjects on which it is of vital importance, in a
secular view, that a lawyer’s habits should be right: in a
spiritual view the importance is unspeakable. Mr. Greenleaf has
doubtless felt this truth, and has also felt that his position
would give to his labours some authority with his brethren and
with the public. He has given himself honourably to the labour,
and spread its results before the world.
It is long since Infidelity has found its advocates among the
truly learned. Among the guesses and speculations of a small
portion of unsanctified medical men, she still finds now and then
a champion. Historians and philosophers have long since discussed
her pretensions. And now from the Jurists and Lawyers, the
practical masters of this kind of investigation, works are
appearing, whereby not only an earnest reception of the Gospel is
manifested, but the mode and means of action and of credit by
which all human affairs are governed.
We lose in respect to our own investigations on this subject by
its very sacredness. We have an idle dread, that it is not open to
free investigation: to severe practical tests. We need to be
invited, to be pressed to examine this subject freely. Dr.
Chalmers in one department of this inquiry has led the way. Mr.
Greenleaf in another has also presented an example. And it will
not be competent, after these men have thus investigated and
taught the rules and laws of investigation, for any man who is not
willing to arrogate superior claims to learning and ability, to
turn aside superciliously from an examination of the Gospels.
Such are our views of this work, which we commend to all: to the
legal profession, from the character of its topics and the rank of
its author: to men desirous of knowledge, in every rank in life,
because of its presenting this subject under such a treatment as
every-day practical questions are treated with. It does not touch
the intrinsic evidences of the Gospel: those which to the believer
are, after all, the highest proofs. But it is to be remembered,
that these are proofs which are not satisfactory until an
examination of the outward evidences has led men to the
conviction, that the Gospels cannot be false.
FROM THE “NORTH AMERICAN REVIEW.”
_Professor Greenleaf on the Gospels, and Strauss’ __“__Life of
Jesus.__”_—Of course we place the titles of these two books
together only by way of contrast. They relate, it is true, to the
same general subject; but it is hard to conceive of two works more
unlike in their scope, character, and purpose. The object of the
one is to prove, and of the other to disprove, the Christian
religion. The one is the production of an able and profound
lawyer, a man who has grown grey in the halls of justice and the
schools of jurisprudence,—a writer of the highest authority on
legal subjects, whose life has been spent in weighing testimony
and sifting evidence, and whose published opinions on the rules of
evidence are received as authoritative in all the English and
American tribunals,—for fourteen years the highly respected
colleague of the late Mr. Justice Story, and now the honoured head
of the most distinguished and prosperous school of English law in
the world. The other is the work of a German professor and
speculatist, also profoundly learned in his way,—an ingenious and
erring framer of theories of the most striking character, almost
unheard of till his brain either conceived them or gave them
currency, though relating to topics with which men have been
familiar for eighteen centuries,—a subtle controversialist, whose
work, as he himself avows, is deeply tinged with the most strongly
marked peculiarities of the philosophy and theology of his
countrymen. We presume the most ardent admirer of Dr. Strauss will
not object to our characterising the two works as excellent
specimens, the one of clear and shrewd English common sense, the
other of German erudition, laborious diligence, and fertility in
original speculation. And if the subject of inquiry were one that
involved his own temporal and immediate interests, and it were
necessary to determine which of these two writers would give the
wiser and safer counsel, or the more trustworthy opinion, we
suppose the same person would agree with us in making the choice.
On the publishers announcing to Professor Greenleaf their wish to
introduce his Harmony to the notice of the British Public, he with equal
promptitude and kindness communicated to them some important additions to
his Introduction, and also numerous valuable notes, more particularly
adapted to the use of Theological Students. These are now printed for the
first time: and at the suggestion of a very eminent and learned clergyman
of the Established Church, the publishers have added in an Appendix an
accurate and elegant translation of the late learned French Advocate, A.
M. J. J. Dupin’s Refutation of the eminent Jewish writer, Joseph
Salvador’s “Trial and Condemnation of Jesus,” executed by the late
distinguished American Lawyer and Statesman, JOHN PICKERING, LL.D.,
Counsellor at Law, and President of the American Academy of Arts and
Sciences (sometime Secretary to the American Embassy in this country); who
has most truly characterised M. Dupin’s examination of Salvador, as being
“conducted with an ability, learning, animation, and interest, that leave
nothing to be desired.”
TO THE MEMBERS OF THE LEGAL PROFESSION.
GENTLEMEN,
The subject of the following work I hope will not be deemed so foreign to
our professional pursuits, as to render it improper for me to dedicate it,
as I now respectfully do, to you. If a close examination of the evidences
of Christianity may be expected of one class of men more than another, it
would seem incumbent on us, who make the law of evidence one of our
peculiar studies. Our profession leads us to explore the mazes of
falsehood, to detect its artifices, to pierce its thickest veils, to
follow and expose its sophistries, to compare the statements of different
witnesses with severity, to discover truth and separate it from error. Our
fellow-men are well aware of this; and probably they act upon this
knowledge more generally, and with a more profound repose, than we are in
the habit of considering. The influence, too, of the legal profession upon
the community is unquestionably great; conversant, as it daily is, with
all classes and grades of men, in their domestic and social relations, and
in all the affairs of life, from the cradle to the grave. This influence
we are constantly exerting for good or ill; and hence, to refuse to
acquaint ourselves with the evidences of the Christian religion, or to act
as though, having fully examined, we lightly esteemed them, is to assume
an appalling amount of responsibility.
The things related by the Evangelists are certainly of the most momentous
character, affecting the principles of our conduct here, and our happiness
for ever. The religion of Jesus Christ aims at nothing less than the utter
overthrow of all other systems of religion in the world; denouncing them
as inadequate to the wants of man, false in their foundations, and
dangerous in their tendency. It not only solicits the grave attention of
all, to whom its doctrines are presented, but it demands their cordial
belief, as a matter of vital concernment. These are no ordinary claims;
and it seems hardly possible for a rational being to regard them with even
a subdued interest; much less to treat them with mere indifference and
contempt. If not true, they are little else than the pretensions of a bold
imposture, which, not satisfied with having already enslaved millions of
the human race, seeks to continue its encroachments upon human liberty,
until all nations shall be subjugated under its iron rule. But if they are
well founded and just, they can be no less than the high requirements of
Heaven, addressed by the voice of God to the reason and understanding of
man, concerning things deeply affecting his relations to his sovereign,
and essential to the formation of his character and of course to his
destiny, both for this life and for the life to come. Such was the
estimate taken of religion, even the religion of pagan Rome, by one of the
greatest lawyers of antiquity, when he argued that it was either nothing
at all, or was everything. _Aut undique religionem tolle, aut usquequaque
conserva._(1)
With this view of the importance of the subject, and in the hope that the
present work may in some degree aid or at least incite others to a more
successful pursuit of this interesting study, it is submitted to your kind
regard, by
Your obedient servant,
SIMON GREENLEAF.
HARVARD UNIVERSITY,
DANE HALL, _May 1, 1846_.
CONTENTS AND SYNOPSIS OF THE HARMONY.
_The figures in the first column refer to the corresponding Sections in_
NEWCOME’S HARMONY. _Those in the second column to the Sections in this
Work._
Sect. Sect. Contents. Matt. Mark Luke John
Part I.
EVENTS CONNECTED
WITH THE BIRTH
AND CHILDHOOD OF
OUR LORD.
TIME: _About
thirteen and a
half years._
1 1 Preface to Luke’s 1, 1-4
Gospel.
3 2 An Angel appears 1, 5-25
to Zacharias.
_Jerusalem._
4 3 An Angel appears 1,
to Mary. 26-38
_Nazareth._
5 4 Mary visits 1,
Elizabeth. 39-56
_Juttah._
6 5 Birth of John the 1,
Baptist. 57-80
_Juttah._
7, 8 6 An Angel appears 1,
to Joseph. 18-25
_Nazareth._
8 7 The Birth of 2, 1-7
Jesus.
_Bethlehem._
10 8 An Angel appears 2, 8-20
to the Shepherds.
_Near Bethlehem._
11, 9 The circumcision 2,
12 of Jesus, and his 21-38
presentation in
the Temple.
_Bethlehem._
_Jerusalem._
13 10 The Magi. 2, 1-12
_Jerusalem._
_Bethlehem._
13 11 The flight into 2, 2,
Egypt. Herod’s 13-23 39-40
cruelty. The
return.
_Bethlehem._
_Nazareth._
14 12 At twelve years 2,
of age Jesus goes 41-52
to the Passover.
_Jerusalem._
9 13 The Genealogies. 1, 1-17 3,
28-38
Part II.
ANNOUNCEMENT AND
INTRODUCTION OF
OUR LORD’S PUBLIC
MINISTRY.
TIME: _About one
year._
15 14 The Ministry of 3, 1-12 1, 1-8 3, 1-18
John the Baptist.
The Desert. _The
Jordan._
16 15 The Baptism of 3, 1, 9-11 3,
Jesus. _The 13-17 21-23
Jordan._
17 16 The Temptation. 4, 1-11 1, 12, 4, 1-13
_Desert of 13
Judea._
2 17 Preface to John’s 1, 1-18
Gospel.
18 18 Testimony of John 1,
the Baptist to 19-34
Jesus. _Bethany
beyond Jordan._
18 19 Jesus gains 1,
Disciples. _The 35-52
Jordan._
_Galilee?_
19 20 The Marriage at 2, 1-12
Cana of Galilee.
Part III.
OUR LORD’S FIRST
PASSOVER, AND THE
SUBSEQUENT
TRANSACTIONS
UNTIL THE SECOND.
TIME: _One year._
20 21 At the Passover 2,
Jesus drives the 13-25
Traders out of
the Temple.
_Jerusalem._
21 22 Our Lord’s 3, 1-21
discourse with
Nicodemus.
_Jerusalem._
22 23 Jesus remains in 3,
Judea and 22-36
baptizes. Further
testimony of John
the Baptist.
23 24 Jesus departs 4, 12. 1, 14. 4, 14. 4, 1-3
into Galilee 14, 3-5 6, 3, 19,
after John’s 17-20 20.
imprisonment
23 25 Our Lord’s 4, 4-42
discourse with
the Samaritan
woman. Many of
the Samaritans
believe on him.
_Shechem_ or
_Neapolis_.
24 26 Jesus teaches 4, 17 1, 14. 4, 14, 4,
publicly in 15 15 43-45
Galilee.
24 27 Jesus again at 4,
Cana, where he 46-54
heals the son of
a nobleman lying
ill at Capernaum.
_Cana of
Galilee._
25 28 Jesus at 4, 4,
Nazareth; he is 13-16 16-31
there rejected,
and fixes his
abode at
Capernaum.
26 29 The call of Simon 4, 1, 5, 1-11
Peter and Andrew, 18-22 16-20
and of James and
John, with the
miraculous
draught of
fishes. _Near
Capernaum._
27 30 The healing of a 1, 4,
Demoniac in the 21-28 31-37
Synagogue.
_Capernaum_
28 31 The healing of 8, 1, 4,
Peter’s wife’s 14-17 29-34 38-41
mother, and many
others.
_Capernaum._
28 32 Jesus with his 4, 1, 4,
Disciples goes 23-25 35-39 42-44
from Capernaum
throughout
Galilee.
29 33 The healing of a 8, 2-4 1, 5,
Leper. _Galilee._ 40-45 12-16
30 34 The healing of a 9, 2-8 2, 1-12 5,
Paralytic. 17-26
_Capernaum._
31 35 The call of 9, 9 2, 13, 5, 27,
Matthew. 14
_Capernaum._
Part IV.
OUR LORD’S SECOND
PASSOVER, AND THE
SUBSEQUENT
TRANSACTIONS
UNTIL THE THIRD.
TIME: _One year._
32 36 The Pool of 5, 1-47
Bethesda; the
healing of the
infirm man; and
our Lord’s
subsequent
discourse.
_Jerusalem._
33 37 The Disciples 12, 1-8 2, 6, 1-5
pluck ears of 23-28
grain on the
Sabbath. _On the
way to Galilee?_
34 38 The healing of 12, 3, 1-6 6, 6-11
the withered hand 9-14
on the Sabbath.
_Galilee._
34 39 Jesus arrives at 12, 3, 7-12
the Sea of 15-21
Tiberias, and is
followed by
multitudes. _Lake
of Galilee._
35 40 Jesus withdraws 10, 3, 6,
to the Mountain, 2-4, 13-19 12-19
and chooses the
Twelve; the
multitudes follow
him. _Near
Capernaum._
36 41 The Sermon on the 5,1,-8,1 6,
Mount. _Near 20-49
Capernaum._
37 42 The healing of 8, 5-13 7, 1-10
the Centurion’s
servant.
_Capernaum._
38 43 The raising of 7,
the Widow’s son. 11-17
_Nain._
39 44 John the Baptist 11, 2-19 7,
in prison sends 18-35
Disciples to
Jesus. _Galilee._
_Capernaum?_
40 45 Reflections of 11,
Jesus on 20-30
appealing to his
mighty Works.
_Capernaum._
41 46 While sitting at 7,
meat with a 36-50
Pharisee, Jesus
is anointed by a
woman who had
been a sinner.
_Capernaum?_
42 47 Jesus, with the 8, 1-3
Twelve, makes a
second circuit in
Galilee.
42 48 The healing of a 12, 3, 11, 14,
Demoniac. The 22-37 19-30 15,
Scribes and 17-23
Pharisee
blaspheme.
_Galilee._
43, 49 The Scribes and 12, 11, 16,
44 Pharisees seek a 38-45 24-36
sign. Our Lord’s
reflections.
_Galilee._
45 50 The true 12, 3, 8,
Disciples of 46-50 31-35 19-21
Christ his
nearest
relatives.
_Galilee._
46 51 At a Pharisee’s 11,
table, Jesus 37-54
denounces woes
against the
Pharisees and
others.
_Galilee._
47 52 Jesus discourses 12,
to his Disciples 1-59
and the
multitude.
_Galilee._
48 53 The slaughter of 13, 1-9
certain
Galileans.
Parable of the
barren Fig-tree.
_Galilee._
49 54 Parable of the 13, 1-23 4, 1-25 8, 4-18
Sower. _Lake of
Galilee._ _Near
Capernaum?_
49 55 Parable of the 13, 4,
Tares. Other 24-53 26-34
Parables. _Near
Capernaum?_
50 56 Jesus directs to 8, 18-27 4, 8,
cross the Lake. 35-41 22-25,
Incidents. The 9,
tempest stilled. 57-62
_Lake of
Galilee._
51 57 The two Demoniacs 8, 5, 1-21 8,
of Gadara. _S. E. 28-34, 26-40
coast of the Lake 9, 1
of Galilee._
52 58 Levi’s Feast. 9, 10-17 2, 5,
_Capernaum._ 15-22 29-39
52 59 The raising of 9, 18-26 5, 8,
Jairus’s 22-43 41-56
daughter. The
woman with a
bloody flux.
_Capernaum._
53, 60 Two blind men 9, 27-34
54 healed, and a
dumb spirit cast
out. _Capernaum?_
55 61 Jesus again at 13, 6, 1-6
Nazareth, and 54-58
again rejected.
56, 62 A third circuit 9, 6, 6-13 9, 1-6
57, in Galilee. The 35-38,
58, Twelve instructed 10, 1,
59 and sent forth. 5-42,
_Galilee._ 11, 1
60, 63 Herod holds Jesus 14, 1, 6, 9, 7-9
61 to be John the 2, 6-12 14-16,
Baptist, whom he 21-29
had just before
beheaded.
_Galilee?_
_Perea._
62, 64 The Twelve 14, 6, 9, 6, 1-14
63 return, and Jesus 13-21 30-44 10-17
retires with them
across the Lake.
Five thousand are
fed. _Capernaum._
_N. E. coast of
the Lake of
Galilee._
64 65 Jesus walks upon 14, 6, 6,
the water. _Lake 22-36 45-56 15-21
of Galilee._
_Gennesareth._
65, 66 Our Lord’s 6,
83 discourse to the 22-71,
multitude in the 7, 1
Synagogue at
Capernaum. Many
Disciples turn
back. Peter’s
profession of
faith.
_Capernaum._
Part V.
FROM OUR LORD’S
THIRD PASSOVER
UNTIL HIS FINAL
DEPARTURE FROM
GALILEE AT THE
FESTIVAL OF
TABERNACLES.
TIME: _Six
months._
66 67 Our Lord 15, 1-20 7, 1-23
justifies his
disciples for
eating with
unwashen hands.
Pharisaic
Traditions.
_Capernaum._
67 68 The daughter of a 15, 7,
Syrophenician 21-28 24-30
woman is healed.
_Region of Tyre
and Sidon._
68, 69 A deaf and dumb 15, 7,
69 man healed; also 29-38 31-37,
many others. Four 8, 1-9
thousand are fed.
_The Decapolis._
69, 70 The Pharisees and 15, 39, 8,
70 Sadducees again 16, 1-4 10-12
require a sign.
(See § 49.) _Near
Magdala._
71 71 The Disciples 16, 4-12 8,
cautioned against 13-21
the leaven of the
Pharisees, etc.
_N. E. coast of
the Lake of
Galilee._
72 72 A blind man 8,
healed. 22-26
_Bethsaida._
(_Julias_).
73 73 Peter and the 16, 8, 9,
rest again 13-20 27-30 18-21
profess their
faith in Christ.
(See § 66.)
_Region of
Cesarea
Philippi._
74 74 Our Lord 16, 8, 9,
foretells his own 21-28 31-38, 22-27
death and 9, 1
resurrection, and
the trials of his
followers.
_Region of
Cesarea
Philippi._
75 76 The 17, 9, 2-13 9,
Transfiguration. 1-13, 28-36
Our Lord’s
subsequent
discourse with
the three
Disciples.
_Region of
Cesarea
Philippi._
76 76 The healing of a 17, 9, 9,
Demoniac, whom 14-21 14-29 37-43
the Disciples
could not heal.
_Region of
Cesarea
Philippi._
77 77 Jesus again 17, 22, 9, 9,
foretells his own 2 30-32 43-45
death and
resurrection (See
§ 74.) _Galilee._
78 78 The tribute-money 17, 9, 33
miraculously 24-27
provided.
_Capernaum._
79 79 The Disciples 18, 1-35 9, 9,
contend who 33-50 46-50
should be
greatest. Jesus
exhorts to
humility,
forbearance, and
brotherly love.
_Capernaum._
80 80 The Seventy 10,
instructed and 1-16
sent out.
_Capernaum._
81, 81 Jesus goes up the 9, 7, 2-10
95 Festival of 51-56
Tabernacles. His
final departure
from Galilee.
Incidents in
Samaria.
95, 82 Ten Lepers 17,
96 cleansed. 11-19
_Samaria._
Part VI.
THE FESTIVAL OF
THE TABERNACLES
AND THE
SUBSEQUENT
TRANSACTIONS
UNTIL OUR LORD’S
ARRIVAL AT
BETHANY, SIX DAYS
BEFORE THE FOURTH
PASSOVER.
TIME: _Six months
less one week._
81 83 Jesus at the 7,
Festival of 11-53,
Tabernacles. His 8, 1
public teaching.
_Jerusalem._
82 84 The woman taken 8, 2-11
in Adultery.
_Jerusalem._
83 85 Further public 8,
teaching of our 12-59
Lord. He reproves
the unbelieving
Jews, and escapes
from their hands.
_Jerusalem._
86 86 A lawyer 10,
instructed. Love 25-37
to our neighbour
defined. Parable
of the Good
Samaritan. _Near
Jerusalem._
99 87 Jesus in the 10,
house of Martha 38-42
and Mary.
_Bethany._
87 88 The Disciples 11,
again taught how 1-13
to pray. _Near
Jerusalem._
85 89 The Seventy 10,
return. 17-24
_Jerusalem?_
84 90 A man born blind 9,
is healed on the 1-41,
Sabbath. Our 10,
Lord’s subsequent 1-21
discourses.
_Jerusalem._
100, 91 Jesus in 10,
101 Jerusalem at the 22-42
Festival of
Dedication. He
retires beyond
Jordan.
_Jerusalem._
_Bethany beyond
Jordan._
102 92 The raising of 11,
Lazarus. 1-46
_Bethany._
102 93 The counsel of 11,
Caiaphas against 47-54
Jesus. He retires
from Jerusalem.
_Jerusalem._
_Ephraim._
103, 94 Jesus beyond 19, 1. 2 10, 1 13,
88 Jordan is 10-21
followed by
multitudes. The
healing of the
infirm woman on
the Sabbath.
_Valley of
Jordan._ _Perea._
89 95 Our Lord goes 13,
teaching and 22-35
journeying
towards
Jerusalem. He is
warned against
Herod. _Perea._
90 96 Our Lord dines 14,
with a chief 1-24
Pharisee on the
Sabbath.
Incidents.
_Perea._
91 97 What is required 14,
of true 25-35
Disciples.
_Perea._
92 98 Parables of the 15,
Lost Sheep, etc. 1-32
Parable of the
Prodigal Son.
_Perea._
93 99 Parable of the 16,
Unjust Steward. 1-13
_Perea._
93 100 The Pharisees 16,
reproved. Parable 14-31
of the Rich Man
and Lazarus.
_Perea._
94 101 Jesus inculcates 17,
forbearance, 1-10
faith, humility.
_Perea._
97 102 Christ’s coming 17,
will be sudden. 20-37
_Perea._
98 103 Parables. The 18,
importunate 1-14
Widow. The
Pharisee and
Publican.
_Perea._
103 104 Precepts 19, 3-12 10,
respecting 2-12
divorce. _Perea._
104 105 Jesus receives 19, 10, 18,
and blesses 13-15 13-16 15-17
little Children.
_Perea._
105 106 The rich Young 19, 10, 18,
Man. Parable of 16-30, 17-31 18-30
the Labourers in 20, 1-16
the Vineyard.
_Perea._
106 107 Jesus a third 20, 10, 18,
time foretells 17-19 32-34 31-34
his Death and
Resurrection.
(See § 74, § 77.)
_Perea._
107 108 James and John 20, 10,
prefer their 20-28 35-45
ambitious
request. _Perea._
108 109 The healing of 20, 10, 18,
two blind men 29-34 46-52 35-43,
near Jericho. 19, 1
109 110 The visit to 19,
Zaccheus. Parable 2-28
of the ten Minae.
_Jericho._
110 111 Jesus arrives at 11,
Bethany six days 55-57,
before the 12,
Passover. 1.9-11
Part VII.
OUR LORD’S PUBLIC
ENTRY INTO
JERUSALEM, AND
THE SUBSEQUENT
TRANSACTIONS
BEFORE THE FOURTH
PASSOVER.
TIME: _Five
days._
111 112 Our Lord’s public 21, 11, 19, 12,
Entry into 1-11, 1-11 29-44 12-19
Jerusalem. 14-17
_Bethany._
112 113 The barren 21, 12. 11, 19,
Fig-tree. The 13, 18. 12-19 45-48,
cleansing of the 19 21,
Temple. _Bethany, 37.38
Jerusalem._
113 114 The barren 21, 11, 20.
Fig-tree withers 20-22 2
away. _Between
Bethany and
Jerusalem._
114 115 Christ’s 21, 11, 20, 1-8
authority 23-32 27-33
questioned.
Parable of the
Two Sons.
_Jerusalem._
114 116 Parable of the 21, 12, 20,
wicked 33-46 1-12 9-19
husbandmen.
_Jerusalem._
114 117 Parable of the 22, 1-14
Marriage of the
King’s Son.
_Jerusalem._
115 118 Insidious 22, 12, 20,
question of the 15-22 13-17 20-26
Pharisees:
Tribute to Cæsar.
_Jerusalem._
115 119 Insidious 22, 12, 20,
question of the 23-33 18-27 27-40
Sadducees: The
Resurrection.
_Jerusalem._
115 120 A lawyer 22, 12,
questions Jesus. 34-40 28-34
The two great
Commandments.
_Jerusalem._
115 121 How is Christ the 22, 12, 20,
son of David? 41-46 35-37 41-44
_Jerusalem._
116 122 Warnings against 23, 1-12 12, 20,
the evil example 38.39 45.46
of the Scribes
and Pharisees.
_Jerusalem._
116 123 Woes against the 23, 12, 40 20, 47
Scribes and 13-39
Pharisees.
Lamentation over
Jerusalem.
_Jerusalem._
117 124 The Widow’s mite. 12, 21, 1-4
_Jerusalem._ 41-44
111 125 Certain Greeks 12,
desire to see 20-36
Jesus.
_Jerusalem._
111 126 Reflections upon 12,
the unbelief of 37-50
the Jews.
_Jerusalem._
118 127 Jesus, on taking 24, 1-14 13, 21,
leave of the 1-13 5-19
Temple, foretells
its destruction
and the
persecution of
his Disciples.
_Jerusalem. Mount
of Olives._
118 128 The signs of 24, 13, 21,
Christ’s coming 15-42 14-37 20-36
to destroy
Jerusalem, and
put an end to the
Jewish State and
Dispensation.
_Mount of
Olives._
118 129 Transition to 24,
Christ’s final 43-51,
coming at the Day 25, 1-30
of Judgment.
Exhortation to
watchfulness.
Parables: The ten
Virgins. The five
Talents. _Mount
of Olives._
119 130 Scenes of the 25,
Judgment Day. 31-46
_Mount of
Olives._
120 131 The Rulers 26, 1-16 14, 22, 1-6 12, 2-8
conspire. The 1-11
supper at
Bethany.
Treachery of
Judas.
_Jerusalem._
_Bethany._
121 132 Preparation for 26, 14, 22,
the Passover. 17-19 12-16 7-13
_Bethany._
_Jerusalem._
Part VIII.
THE FOURTH
PASSOVER; OUR
LORD’S PASSION;
AND THE
ACCOMPANYING
EVENTS UNTIL THE
END OF THE JEWISH
SABBATH.
TIME: _Two days._
122 133 The Passover 26, 20 14, 17 22,
Meal. Contention 14-18,
among the Twelve. 24-30
_Jerusalem._
123 134 Jesus washes the 13,
feet of his 1-20
disciples.
_Jerusalem,_
124 136 Jesus point out 26, 14, 22, 13,
the Traitor. 21-25 18-21 21-23 21-35
Judas withdraws.
_Jerusalem._
125 136 Jesus foretells 26, 14, 22, 13,
the fall of 31-35 27-31 31-38 36-38
Peter, and the
dispersion of the
Twelve.
_Jerusalem._
126, 137 The Lord’s 26, 14, 22,
128 Supper. 26-29 22-25 19.20
_Jerusalem._
127, 138 Jesus comforts 14,
129 his Disciples. 1-31
The Holy Spirit
promised.
_Jerusalem._
129 139 Christ the true 15,
Vine. His 1-27
Disciples hated
by the world.
_Jerusalem._
129 140 Persecution 16,
foretold. Further 1-33
promise of the
Holy Spirit.
Prayer in the
name of Christ.
_Jerusalem._
130 141 Christ’s last 17,
prayer with his 1-26
disciples.
_Jerusalem._
131 142 The agony in 26, 30, 14, 26, 22, 18, 1
Gethsemane. 36-46 32-42 39-46
_Mount of
Olives._
132 143 Jesus betrayed, 26, 14, 22, 18,
and made 47-56 43-52 47-53 2-12
prisoner. _Mount
of Olives._
133, 144 Jesus before 26, 14, 22, 18,
134 Caiaphas. Peter 47-56 53.54, 54-62 13-18,
thrice denies 66-72 25-27
him. _Jerusalem._
134 145 Jesus before 26, 14, 22, 18,
Caiaphas and the 59-68 55-65 63-71 19-24
Sanhedrim. He
declares himself
to be the Christ;
is condemned and
mocked.
_Jerusalem._
135 146 The Sanhedrim 27, 1. 15, 1-5 23, 18,
lead Jesus away 2, 11-14 1-5, 28-38
to Pilate. 23,
_Jerusalem._ 6-12
136 147 Jesus before 23,
Herod. 6-12
_Jerusalem._
138 148 Pilate seeks to 27, 15, 23, 18, 39.
release Jesus. 15-26 6-15 13-25 40
The Jews demand
Barabbas.
_Jerusalem._
138 149 Pilate delivers 27, 15, 19, 1-3
up Jesus to 26-30 15-19
death. He is
scourged and
mocked.
_Jerusalem._
138 150 Pilate again 19,
seeks to release 4-16
Jesus.
_Jerusalem._
139 151 Judas repents and 27, 3-10
hangs himself.
_Jerusalem._
138, 152 Jesus is led away 27, 15, 23, 19,
140 to be crucified. 31-34 20-23 26-33 16.17
_Jerusalem._
141 153 The Crucifixion. 27, 15, 23, 19,
_Jerusalem._ 35-38 24-28 33.34 18-24
141 154 The Jews mock at 27, 15, 23, 19,
Jesus on the 39-44 29-32, 35-37, 25-27
Cross. He 15, 39-43
commends his 33-37
mother to John.
_Jerusalem._
141 155 Darkness 27, 23, 19,
prevails. Christ 45-50 44-46 28-30
expires on the
cross.
_Jerusalem._
142, 156 The vail of the 27, 15, 23, 45,
144 Temple rent, and 51-56 38-41 47-49
graves opened.
Judgment of the
Centurion. The
Women at the
Cross.
_Jerusalem._
142 157 The taking down 27, 15, 23, 19,
from the Cross. 57-61 42-47 50-56 31-42
The burial.
_Jerusalem._
143 158 The Watch at the 27,
Sepulchre. 62-66
_Jerusalem._
Part IX.
OUR LORD’S
RESURRECTION, HIS
SUBSEQUENT
APPEARANCES, AND
HIS ASCENSION.
TIME: _Forty
days._
144 159 The Morning of 28, 2-4 16, 1
the Resurrection.
_Jerusalem._
145 160 Visit of the 28, 1 16, 2-4 24, 1-3 20, 1.
Women to the 2
Sepulchre. Mary
Magdalene
returns.
_Jerusalem._
145 161 Vision of Angels 28, 5-7 16, 5-7 24, 4-8
in the Sepulchre.
_Jerusalem._
145 162 The Women return 28, 8-10 16, 8 24,
to the City. 9-11
Jesus meets them.
_Jerusalem._
146 163 Peter and John 24, 12 20,
run to the 3-10
Sepulchre.
_Jerusalem._
147, 164 Our Lord is seen 16, 20,
148 by Mary Magdalene 9-11 11-18
at the Sepulchre.
_Jerusalem._
149 165 Report of the 28,
Watch. 11-15
_Jerusalem._
150 166 Our Lord is seen 16, 24,
of Peter. Then by 12.13 13-35
two Disciples on
the way to
Emmaus.
_Jerusalem._
_Emmaus._
151 167 Jesus appears in 16, 24, 20,
the midst of the 14-18 36-49 19-23
Apostles, Thomas
being absent.
_Jerusalem._
152 168 Jesus appears in 20,
the midst of the 24-29
Apostles, Thomas
being present.
_Jerusalem._
153 169 The Apostles go 28, 16 21,
away into 1-24
Galilee. Jesus
shows himself to
seven of them at
the Sea of
Tiberias.
_Galilee._
154 170 Jesus meets the 28,
Apostles and 16-20
above five
hundred Brethren
on a Mountain in
Galilee.
_Galilee._
155 171 Our Lord is seen 16, 24,
of James; then of 19.20 50-53
all the Apostles.
_Jerusalem._
156 172 The Ascension. 20,
_Bethany._ 30.31
157 173 Conclusion of 21, 25
John’s Gospel.
Table for Finding Any Passage in the Harmony.
Matthew.
Chap. Verse. Sect.
i. 1-17 13
18-25 6
ii. 1-12 10
13-23 11
iii. 1-12 14
13-17 15
iv. 1-11 16
12 24
13-16 28
17 26
18-22 29
23-25 32
v. 1-48 41
vi. 1-34 41
vii. 1-29 41
viii. 1 41
2-4 33
5-13 42
14-17 31
18-27 56
28-34 57
ix. 1 57
2-8 34
9 35
10-17 58
18-26 59
27-34 60
35-38 62
x. 1 62
2-4 40
5-42 62
xi. 1 62
2-19 44
20-30 45
xii. 1-8 37
9-14 38
15-21 39
22-37 48
38-45 49
46-50 50
xiii. 1-23 54
24-53 55
54-58 61
xiv. 1, 2 63
3-5 24
6-12 63
13-21 64
22-36 65
xv. 1-20 67
21-28 68
29-38 69
39 70
xvi. 1-4 70
4-12 71
13-20 73
21-28 74
xvii. 1-13 75
14-21 76
22, 23 77
24-27 78
xviii. 1-35 79
xix. 1, 2 94
3-12 104
13-15 105
16-30 106
xx. 1-16 106
17-19 107
20-28 108
29-34 109
xxi. 1-11 112
12-13 113
14-17 112
18-19 113
20-22 114
28-32 115
33-46 116
xxii. 1-14 117
15-22 118
23-33 119
34-40 120
41-46 121
xxiii. 1-12 122
13-39 123
xxiv. 1-14 127
15-42 128
43-51 129
xxv. 1-30 129
31-46 130
xxvi. 1-16 131
17-19 132
20 133
21-25 135
26-29 137
30 142
31-35 136
36-46 142
47-56 143
57, 58 144
59-68 145
69-75 144
xxvii 1, 2 146
3-10 151
11-14 146
15-26 148
26-30 149
31-34 152
35-38 153
39-44 154
45-50 155
51-56 156
57-61 157
62-66 158
xxviii. 1 160
2-4 159
5-7 161
8-10 162
11-15 165
16 169
16-20 170
Mark.
Chap. Verse. Sect.
i. 1-8 14
9-11 15
12, 13 16
14 24
14, 15 26
16-20 29
21-28 30
29-34 31
35-39 32
40-45 33
ii. 1-12 34
13, 14 35
15-22 58
23-28 37
iii. 1-6 38
7-12 39
13-19 40
19-30 48
31-35 50
iv. 1-25 54
26-34 55
35-41 56
v. 1-21 57
22-43 59
vi. 1-6 61
6-13 62
14-16 63
17-20 24
21-29 63
30-44 64
45-56 65
vii. 1-23 67
24-30 68
31-37 69
viii 1-9 69
10-12 70
13-21 71
22-26 72
27-30 73
31-38 74
ix. 1 74
2-13 75
14-29 76
30-32 77
33 78
33-50 79
x. 1 94
2-12 104
13-16 105
17-31 106
32-34 107
35-45 108
46-52 109
xi. 1-11 112
12-19 113
20-26 114
27-33 115
xii. 1-12 116
13-17 118
18-27 119
28-34 120
35-37 121
38, 39 122
40 123
41-44 124
xiii. 1-13 127
14-37 128
xiv. 1-11 131
12-16 132
17 133
18-21 135
22-25 137
26 142
27-31 136
32-42 142
43-52 143
53, 54 144
55-65 145
66-72 144
xv. 1-5 146
6-15 148
15-19 149
20-23 152
24-28 153
29-32 154
33-37 155
38-41 156
42-47 157
xvi. 1 159
2-4 160
5-7 161
8 162
9-11 164
12, 13 166
14-18 167
19, 20 172
Luke.
Chap. Verse. Sect.
i. 1-4 1
5-25 2
26-38 3
39-56 4
57-80 5
ii. 1-7 7
8-20 8
21-38 9
39, 40 11
41-52 12
iii. 1-18 14
19-20 24
21-23 15
23-38 13
iv. 1-13 16
14 24
14, 15 26
16-31 28
31-37 30
38-41 31
42-44 32
v. 1-11 29
12-16 33
17-26 34
27, 28 35
29-39 58
vi. 1-5 37
6-11 38
12-19 40
20-26 41
27-30 41
31 41
32-36 41
37-49 41
vii. 1-10 42
11-17 43
18-35 44
36-50 46
viii. 1-3 47
4-18 54
19-21 50
22-25 56
26-40 57
41-56 59
ix. 1-6 62
7-9 63
10-17 64
18-21 73
22-27 74
28-36 75
37-43 76
43-45 77
46-50 79
51-56 81
57-62 56
x. 1-16 80
17-24 89
25-37 86
38-42 87
xi. 1-13 88
14, 15 48
16 49
17-23 48
24-28 49
29-36 49
37-54 51
xii. 1-59 52
xiii. 1-9 53
10-21 94
22-35 95
xiv. 1-24 96
25-35 97
xv. 1-32 98
xvi. 1-13 99
14-31 100
xvii. 1-10 101
11-19 82
20-37 102
xviii. 1-14 103
15-17 105
18-30 106
31-34 107
35-43 109
xix. 1 109
2-28 110
29-44 112
45-18 113
xx. 1-8 115
9-19 116
20-26 118
27-40 119
41-44 121
45-46 122
47 123
xxi. 1-4 124
5-19 127
20-36 128
37, 38 118
xxii. 1-6 131
7-13 132
14-18 133
19, 20 137
21-23 135
24-30 133
31-38 136
39-46 142
47-53 143
54-62 144
63-71 145
xxiii. 1-5 146
6-12 147
13-25 148
26-33 152
33-34 153
35-37 154
38 153
39-43 154
44-46 155
45 156
47-49 156
50-56 157
xxiv. 1-3 160
4-8 161
9-11 162
12 163
13-35 166
36-49 167
50-53 172
John.
Chap. Verse. Sect.
i. 1-18 17
19-34 18
35-52 19
ii. 1-12 20
13-25 21
iii. 1-21 22
22-36 23
iv. 1-3 24
4-42 25
43-45 26
46-54 27
v. 1-47 36
vi. 1-14 64
15-21 65
22-71 66
vii. 1 66
2-10 81
11-53 83
viii. 1 83
2-11 84
12-59 85
ix. 1-41 90
1-21 90
22-42 91
xi. 1-46 92
47-54 93
55-57 111
xii. 1 111
2-8 131
9-11 111
12-19 112
20-36 125
37-50 126
xiii. 1-20 134
21-35 135
36-38 136
xiv. 1-31 138
xv. 1-27 139
xvi. 1-33 140
xvii. 1-26 141
xviii. 1 142
2-12 143
13-18 144
19-24 145
25-27 144
28-38 146
39-40 148
xix. 1-3 149
4-16 150
16, 17 152
18-24 153
25-27 154
28-30 155
31-42 157
xx. 1, 2 160
3-10 163
11-18 164
19-23 167
24-29 168
30, 31 173
xxi. 1-24 169
25 173
ADVERTISEMENT TO THIS EDITION.
The arrangement of the Gospels by Dr. Robinson was adopted in this work,
it being the latest published in the United States, and by a scholar of
the highest reputation. But by comparing his order with that of Archbishop
Newcome, as shown in contiguous columns in the Table of Contents and
Synopsis of the Harmony, it will be found that they differ only in a very
few unimportant particulars, not at all affecting the general scheme or
structure of the Harmony, or the purposes of this examination. I have,
however, in several places omitted their transposition of the verses of
the text, occurring within the limits of a section; it being more
convenient to insert them in the order in which they were written by the
Evangelists.
The preliminary Dissertation has been revised and enlarged, and some
further notes added to the text, which is printed conformably to the
common octavo edition of the American Bible Society, except in a few
places, where the article a was accidentally printed instead of _an_, in
the words _an house_, &c.
Cambridge, Massachusetts,
_March_ 1, 1847.
AN EXAMINATION, ETC.
§ 1. In examining the evidences of the Christian religion, it is essential
to the discovery of truth that we bring to the investigation a mind freed,
as far as possible, from existing prejudice and open to conviction. There
should be a readiness, on our part, to investigate with candour, to follow
the truth wherever it may lead us, and to submit, without reserve or
objection, to all the teachings of this religion, if it be found to be of
divine origin. “There is no other entrance,” says Lord Bacon, “to the
kingdom of man, which is founded in the sciences, than to the kingdom of
heaven, into which no one can enter but in the character of a little
child.”(2) The docility which true philosophy requires of her disciples is
not a spirit of servility, or the surrender of the reason and judgment to
whatsoever the teacher may inculcate; but it is a mind free from all pride
of opinion, not hostile to the truth sought for, willing to pursue the
inquiry and impartially to weigh the arguments and evidence, and to
acquiesce in the judgment of right reason. The investigation, moreover,
should be pursued with the serious earnestness which becomes the greatness
of the subject—a subject fraught with such momentous consequences to man.
It should be pursued as in the presence of God, and under the solemn
sanctions created by a lively sense of his omniscience, and of our
accountability to him for the right use of the faculties which he has
bestowed.
§ 2. In requiring this candour and simplicity of mind in those who would
investigate the truth of our religion, Christianity demands nothing more
than is readily conceded to every branch of human science. All these have
their data, and their axioms; and Christianity, too, has her first
principles, the admission of which is essential to any real progress in
knowledge. “Christianity,” says Bishop Wilson, “inscribes on the portal of
her dominions, ‘Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little
child, shall in nowise enter therein.’ Christianity does not profess to
convince the perverse and headstrong, to bring irresistible evidence to
the daring and profane, to vanquish the proud scorner, and afford
evidences from which the careless and perverse cannot possibly escape.
This might go to destroy man’s responsibility. All that Christianity
professes, is to propose such evidences as may satisfy the meek, the
tractable, the candid, the serious inquirer.”(3)
§ 3. The present design, however, is not to enter upon any general
examination of the evidences of Christianity, but to confine the inquiry
to the testimony of the Four Evangelists, bringing their narratives to the
tests to which other evidence is subjected in human tribunals. The
foundation of our religion is a basis of fact—the fact of the birth,
ministry, miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ.
These are related by the Evangelists as having actually occurred, within
their own personal knowledge. Our religion, then, rests on the credit due
to these witnesses. Are they worthy of implicit belief, in the matters
which they relate? This is the question, in all human tribunals, in regard
to persons testifying before them; and we propose to test the veracity of
these witnesses, by the same rules and means which are there employed. The
importance of the facts testified, and their relations to the affairs of
the soul, and the life to come, can make no difference in the principles
or the mode of weighing the evidence. It is still the evidence of matters
of fact, capable of being seen and known and related, as well by one man
as by another. And if the testimony of the Evangelist, supposing it to be
relevant and material to the issue in a question of property or of
personal right, between man and man, in a court of justice, ought to be
believed and have weight; then, upon the like principles, it ought to
receive our entire credit here. But if, on the other hand, we should be
justified in rejecting it, if there testified on oath, then, supposing our
rules of evidence to be sound, we may be excused if we hesitate elsewhere
to give it credence.
§ 4. The proof that God has revealed himself to man by special and express
communications, and that Christianity constitutes that revelation, is no
part of these inquiries. This has already been shown, in the most
satisfactory manner, by others, who have written expressly upon this
subject.(4) Referring therefore to their writings for the arguments and
proofs, the fact will here be assumed as true. That man is a religious
being, is universally conceded, for it has been seen to be universally
true. He is everywhere a worshipper. In every age and country, and in
every stage, from the highest intellectual culture to the darkest
stupidity, he bows with homage to a superior Being. Be it the rude-carved
idol of his own fabrication, or the unseen divinity that stirs within him,
it is still the object of his adoration. This trait in the character of
man is so uniform, that it may safely be assumed, either as one of the
original attributes of his nature, or as necessarily resulting from the
action of one or more of those attributes.
§ 5. The object of man’s worship, whatever it be, will naturally be his
standard of perfection. He clothes it with every attribute, belonging, in
his view, to a perfect character; and this character he himself endeavours
to attain. He may not, directly and consciously, aim to acquire every
virtue of his deity, and to avoid the opposite vices; but still this will
be the inevitable consequence of sincere and constant worship. As in human
society men become assimilated, both in manners and in moral principles,
to their chosen associates, so in the worship of whatever deity men adore,
they “form to his the relish of their souls.” To suppose, then, that God
made man capable of religion, and requiring it in order to the development
of the highest part of his nature, without communicating with him, as a
father, in those revelations which alone could perfect that nature, would
be a reproach upon God, and a contradiction.(5)
§ 6. How it came to pass that man, originally taught, as we doubt not he
was, to know and to worship the true Jehovah, is found, at so early a
period of his history, a worshipper of baser objects, it is foreign to our
present purpose to inquire. But the fact is lamentably true, that he soon
became an idolater, a worshipper of moral abominations. The Scythians and
Northmen adored the impersonations of heroic valour and of bloodthirsty
and cruel revenge. The mythology of Greece and of Rome, though it
exhibited a few examples of virtue and goodness, abounded in others of
gross licentiousness and vice. The gods of Egypt were reptiles, and beasts
and birds. The religion of Central and Eastern Asia was polluted with lust
and cruelty, and smeared with blood, rioting, in deadly triumph, over all
the tender affections of the human heart and all the convictions of the
human understanding. Western and Southern Africa and Polynesia are, to
this day, the abodes of frightful idolatry, cannibalism, and cruelty; and
the aborigines of both the Americas are examples of the depths of
superstition to which the human mind may be debased. In every quarter of
the world, however, there is a striking uniformity seen, in all the
features of paganism. The ruling principle of her religion is terror, and
her deity is lewd and cruel. Whatever of purity the earlier forms of
paganism may have possessed, it is evident from history that it was of
brief duration. Every form, which history has preserved, grew rapidly and
steadily worse and more corrupt, until the entire heathen world, before
the coming of Christ, was infected with that loathsome leprosy of
pollution, described with revolting vividness by St. Paul, in the
beginning of his Epistle to the Romans.
§ 7. So general and decided was this proclivity to the worship of strange
gods, that, at the time of the deluge, only one family remained faithful
to Jehovah; and this was a family which had been favoured with his special
revelation. Indeed it is evident that nothing but a revelation from God
could raise men from the degradation of pagan idolatry, because nothing
else has ever had that effect. If man could achieve his own freedom from
this bondage, he would long since have been free. But instead of this, the
increase of light and civilization and refinement in the pagan world has
but multiplied the objects of his worship, added voluptuous refinements to
its ritual, and thus increased the number and weight of his chains. In
this respect there is no difference in their moral condition, between the
barbarous Scythian and the learned Egyptian or Roman of ancient times, nor
between the ignorant African and the polished Hindu of our own day. The
only method, which has been successfully employed to deliver man from
idolatry, is that of presenting to the eye of his soul an object of
worship perfectly holy and pure, directly opposite, in moral character, to
the gods he had formerly adored. He could not transfer to his deities a
better character than he himself possessed. He must for ever remain
enslaved to his idols, unless a new and pure object of worship were
revealed to him, with a display of superior power sufficient to overcome
his former faith and his present fears, to detach his affections from
grosser objects, and to fix them upon that which alone is worthy.(6) This
is precisely what God, as stated in the Holy Scriptures, has done. He
rescued one family from idolatry in the Old World, by the revelation of
himself to Noah; he called a distinct branch of this family to the
knowledge of himself, in the person of Abraham and his sons; He extended
this favour to a whole nation, through the ministry of Moses; but it was
through that of Jesus Christ alone that it was communicated to the whole
world. In Egypt, by the destruction of all the objects of the popular
worship, God taught the Israelites that he alone was the self-existent
Almighty. At the Red Sea, he emphatically showed them that He was the
Protector and Saviour of his people. At Sinai, he revealed himself as the
righteous Governor who required implicit obedience for men, and taught
them, by the strongly marked distinctions of the ceremonial law, that he
was a holy Being, of purer eyes than to behold evil, and that could not
look upon iniquity. The demerit of sin was inculcated by the solemn
infliction of death upon every animal, offered as a propitiatory
sacrifice. And when, by this system of instruction, he had prepared a
people to receive the perfect revelation of the character of God, of the
nature of his worship, and of the way of restoration to his image and
favour, this also was expressly revealed by the mission of his Son.(7)
§ 8. That the books of the Old Testament, as we now have them, are
genuine; that they existed in the time of our Saviour, and were commonly
received and referred to among the Jews, as the sacred books of their
religion;(8) and that the text of the Four Evangelists has been handed
down to us in the state in which it was originally written, that is,
without having been materially corrupted or falsified, either by heretics
or Christians; are facts which we are entitled to assume as true, until
the contrary is shown.
The genuineness of these writings really admits of as little doubt, and is
susceptible of as ready proof, as that of any ancient writings whatever.
The rule of municipal law on this subject is familiar, and applies with
equal force to all ancient writing, whether documentary or otherwise; and
as it comes first in order, in the prosecution of these inquiries, it may,
for the sake of mere convenience, be designated as our first rule.
_Every document, apparently ancient, coming from the proper
repository or custody, and bearing on its face no evident marks of
forgery, the law presumes to be genuine, and devolves on the
opposing party the burden of proving it to be otherwise._
§ 9. An ancient document, offered in evidence in our courts, is said to
come from the proper repository, when it is found in the place where, and
under the care of persons with whom, such writings might naturally and
reasonably be expected to be found; for it is this custody which gives
authenticity to documents found within it.(9) If they come from such a
place, and bear no evident marks of forgery, the law presumes that they
are genuine, and they are permitted to be read in evidence, unless the
opposing party is able successfully to impeach them.(10) The burden of
showing them to be false and unworthy of credit, is devolved on the party
who makes that objection. The presumption of law is the judgment of
charity. It presumes that every man is innocent until he is proven guilty;
that everything has been done fairly and legally, until it is proved to
have been otherwise; and that every document, found in its proper
repository, and not bearing marks of forgery, is genuine. Now this is
precisely the case with the Sacred Writings. They have been used in the
church from time immemorial, and thus are found in the place where alone
they ought to be looked for. They come to us, and challenge our reception
of them as genuine writings, precisely as Domesday Book, the Ancient
Statutes of Wales, or any other of the ancient documents which have
recently been published under the British Record Commission, are received.
They are found in familiar use in all the churches of Christendom, as the
sacred books to which all denominations of Christians refer, as the
standard of their faith. There is no pretence that they were engraven on
plates of gold and discovered in a cave, nor that they were brought from
heaven by angels; but they are received as the plain narratives and
writings of the men whose names they respectively bear, made public at the
time they were written; and though there are some slight discrepancies
among the copies subsequently made, there is no pretence that the
originals were anywhere corrupted. If it be objected that the originals
are lost, and that copies alone are now produced, the principles of the
municipal law here also afford a satisfactory answer. For the
multiplication of copies was a public fact, in the faithfulness of which
all the Christian community had an interest, and it is a rule of law,
that, _in matters of public and general interest, all persons must be
presumed to be conversant, on the principle that individuals are presumed
to be conversant with their own affairs_. Therefore it is that, in such
matters, the prevailing current of assertion is resorted to as evidence,
for it is to this that every member of the community is supposed to be
privy.(11) The persons, moreover, who multiplied these copies, may be
regarded, in some manner, as the agents of the Christian public, for whose
use and benefit the copies were made; and on the ground of the credit due
to such agents, and of the public nature of the facts themselves, the
copies thus made are entitled to an extraordinary degree of confidence,
and, as in the case of official registers and other public books, it is
not necessary that they should be confirmed and sanctioned by the ordinary
tests of truth.(12) If any ancient document concerning our public rights
were lost, copies which had been as universally received and acted upon as
the Four Gospels have been, would have been received in evidence in any of
our courts of justice, without the slightest hesitation. The entire text
of the Corpus Juris Civilis is received as authority in all the courts of
continental Europe, upon much weaker evidence of its genuineness; for the
integrity of the Sacred Text has been preserved by the jealousy of
opposing sects, beyond any moral possibility of corruption; while that of
the Roman Civil Law has been preserved only by tacit consent, without the
interest of any opposing school, to watch over and preserve it from
alteration.
§ 10. These copies of the Holy Scriptures having thus been in familiar use
in the churches, from the time when the text was committed to writing;
having been watched with vigilance by so many sects, opposed to each other
in doctrine, yet all appealing to these Scriptures for the correctness of
their faith; and having in all ages, down to this day, been respected as
the authoritative source of all ecclesiastical power and government, and
submitted to, and acted under in regard to so many claims of right, on the
one hand, and so many obligations of duty, on the other; it is quite
erroneous to suppose that the Christian is bound to offer any further
proof of their genuineness or authenticity. It is for the objector to show
them spurious; for on him, by the plainest rules of law, lies the burden
of proof.(13) If it were the case of a claim to a franchise, and a copy of
an ancient deed or charter were produced in support of the title, under
parallel circumstances on which to presume its genuineness, no lawyer, it
is believed, would venture to deny either its admissibility in evidence,
or the satisfactory character of the proof. In a recent case in the House
of Lords, precisely such a document, being an old manuscript copy,
purporting to have been extracted from ancient Journals of the House,
which were lost, and to have been made by an officer whose duty it was to
prepare lists of the Peers, was held admissible in a claim of peerage.(14)
§ 11. Supposing, therefore, that it is not irrational, nor inconsistent
with sound philosophy, to believe that God has made a special and express
revelation of his character and will to man, and that the sacred books of
our religion are genuine, as we now have them; we proceed to examine and
compare the testimony of the Four Evangelists, as witnesses to the life
and doctrines of Jesus Christ; in order to determine the degree of credit,
to which, by the rules of evidence applied in human tribunals, they are
justly entitled. Our attention will naturally be first directed to the
witnesses themselves, to see who and what manner of men they were, and we
shall take them in the order of their writings; stating the prominent
traits only in their lives and characters, as they are handed down to us
by credible historians.
§ 12. MATTHEW, called also LEVI, was a Jew of Galilee, but of what city is
uncertain. He held the place of publican, or tax-gatherer, under the Roman
government, and his office seems to have consisted in collecting the taxes
within his district, as well as the duties and customs levied on goods and
persons, passing in and out of his district or province, across the lake
of Genesareth. While engaged in this business, at the office or usual
place of collection, he was required by Jesus to follow him, as one of his
disciples; a command which he immediately obeyed. Soon afterwards, he
appears to have given a great entertainment to his fellow-publicans and
friends, at which Jesus was present; intending probably both to celebrate
his own change of profession, and to give them an opportunity to profit by
the teaching of his new Master.(15) He was constituted one of the twelve
apostles, and constantly attended the person of Jesus as a faithful
follower, until the crucifixion; and after the ascension of his Master he
preached the gospel for some time, with the other apostles, in Judea, and
afterwards in Ethiopia, where he died.
He is generally allowed to have written first, of all the evangelists; but
whether in the Hebrew or the Greek language, or in both, the learned are
not agreed, nor is it material to our purpose to inquire; the genuineness
of our present Greek gospel being sustained by satisfactory evidence.(16)
The precise time when he wrote is also uncertain, the several dates given
to it among learned men, varying from A.D. 37 to A.D. 64. The earlier
date, however, is argued with greater force, from the improbability that
the Christians would be left for several years without a general and
authentic history of our Saviour’s ministry; from the evident allusions
which it contains to a state of persecution in the church at the time it
was written; from the titles of sanctity ascribed to Jerusalem, and a
higher veneration testified for the temple than is found in the other and
later evangelists; from the comparative gentleness with which Herod’s
character and conduct are dealt with, that bad prince probably being still
in power; and from the frequent mention of Pilate, as still governor of
Judea.(17)
§ 13. That Matthew was himself a native Jew, familiar with the opinions,
ceremonies, and customs of his countrymen; that he was conversant with the
Sacred Writings, and habituated to their idiom; a man of plain sense, but
of little learning, except what he derived from the Scriptures of the Old
Testament; that he wrote seriously and from conviction, and had, on most
occasions, been present, and attended closely, to the transactions which
he relates, and relates, too, without any view of applause to himself; are
facts which we may consider established by internal evidence, as strong as
the nature of the case will admit. It is deemed equally well proved, both
by internal evidence and the aid of history, that he wrote for the use of
his countrymen the Jews. Every circumstance is noticed which might
conciliate their belief, and every unnecessary expression is avoided which
might obstruct it. They looked for the Messiah, of the lineage of David,
and born in Bethlehem, in the circumstances of whose life the prophecies
should find fulfilment, a matter, in their estimation, of peculiar value;
and to all these this evangelist has directed their especial
attention.(18)
§ 14. Allusion has been already made to his employment as a collector of
taxes and customs; but the subject is too important to be passed over
without further notice. The tribute imposed by the Romans upon countries
conquered by their arms was enormous. In the time of Pompey, the sums
annually exacted from their Asiatic provinces, of which Judea was one,
amounted to about four millions and a half sterling, or about twenty-two
millions of dollars. These exactions were made in the usual forms of
direct and indirect taxation; the rate of the customs on merchandise
varying from an eighth to a fortieth part of the value of the commodity;
and the tariff including all the principal articles of the commerce of the
East, much of which, as is well known, still found its way to Italy
through Palestine, as well as by the way of Damascus and of Egypt. The
direct taxes consisted of a capitation-tax and a land-tax, assessed upon a
valuation or census, periodically taken, under the oath of the individual,
with heavy penal sanctions.(19) It is natural to suppose that these taxes
were not voluntarily paid, especially since they were imposed by the
conqueror upon a conquered people, and by a heathen, too, upon the people
of the house of Israel. The increase of taxes has generally been found to
multiply discontents, evasions and frauds on the one hand, and, on the
other, to increase vigilance, suspicion, close scrutiny, and severity of
exaction. The penal code, as revised by Theodosius, will give us some
notion of the difficulties in the way of the revenue officers, in the
earlier times of which we are speaking. These difficulties must have been
increased by the fact that, at this period, a considerable portion of the
commerce of that part of the world was carried on by the Greeks, whose
ingenuity and want of faith were proverbial. It was to such an employment
and under such circumstances, that Matthew was educated; an employment
which must have made him acquainted with the Greek language, and
extensively conversant with the public affairs and the men of business of
his time; thus entitling him to our confidence, as an experienced and
intelligent observer of events passing before him. And if the men of that
day were, as in truth they appear to have been, as much disposed as those
of the present time, to evade the payment of public taxes and duties, and
to elude, by all possible means, the vigilance of the revenue officers,
Matthew must have been familiar with a great variety of the forms of
fraud, imposture, cunning, and deception, and must have become habitually
distrustful, scrutinizing, and cautious; and, of course, much less likely
to have been deceived in regard to many of the facts in our Lord’s
ministry, extraordinary as they were, which fell under his observation.
This circumstance shows both the sincerity and the wisdom of Jesus, in
selecting him for an eye-witness of his conduct, and adds great weight to
the value of the testimony of this evangelist.
§ 15. MARK was the son of a pious sister of Barnabas, named Mary, who
dwelt at Jerusalem, and at whose home the early Christians often
assembled. His Hebrew name was John; the surname of Mark having been
adopted, as is supposed, when he left Judea to preach the gospel in
foreign countries; a practice not unusual among the Jews of that age, who
frequently, upon such occasions, assumed a name more familiar than their
own to the people whom they visited. He is supposed to have been converted
to the Christian faith by the ministry of Peter. He travelled from
Jerusalem to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas, and afterwards accompanied
them elsewhere. When they landed at Perga in Pamphylia, he left them and
returned to Jerusalem; for which reason, when he afterwards would have
gone with them, Paul refused to take him. Upon this, a difference of
opinion arose between the two apostles, and they separated, Barnabas
taking Mark with him to Cyprus. Subsequently he accompanied Timothy to
Rome, at the express desire of Paul. From this city he probably went into
Asia, where he found Peter, with whom he returned to Rome, in which city
he is supposed to have written and published his Gospel. Such is the
outline of his history, as it is furnished by the New Testament.(20) The
early historians add, that after this he went into Egypt and planted a
church in Alexandria, where he died.(21)
§ 16. It is agreed that Mark wrote his Gospel for the use of Gentile
converts; an opinion deriving great force from the explanations introduced
into it, which would have been useless to a Jew;(22) and that it was
composed for those at Rome, is believed, not only from the numerous
Latinisms it contains, but from the unanimous testimony of ancient
writers, and from the internal evidence afforded by the Gospel itself.
§ 17. Some have entertained the opinion that Mark compiled his account
from that of Matthew, of which they supposed it an abridgment. But this
notion has been refuted by Koppe, and others,(23) and is now generally
regarded as untenable. For Mark frequently deviates from Matthew in the
order of time, in his arrangement of facts; and he adds many things not
related by the other evangelists; neither of which a mere epitomizer would
probably have done. He also omits several things related by Matthew, and
imperfectly describes others, especially the transactions of Christ with
the apostles after the resurrection; giving no account whatever of his
appearance in Galilee; omissions irreconcilable with any previous
knowledge of the Gospel according to Matthew. To these proofs we may add,
that in several places there are discrepancies between the accounts of
Matthew and Mark, not, indeed, irreconcilable, but sufficient to destroy
the probability that the latter copied from the former.(24) The striking
coincidences between them, in style, words, and things, in other places,
may be accounted for by considering that Peter, who is supposed to have
dictated this Gospel to Mark, was quite as intimately acquainted as
Matthew with the miracles and discourses of our Lord; which, therefore, he
would naturally recite in his preaching; and that the same things might
very naturally be related in the same manner, by men who sought not after
excellency of speech. Peter’s agency in the narrative of Mark is asserted
by all ancient writers, and is confirmed by the fact, that his humility is
conspicuous in every part of it, where anything is or might be related of
him; his weaknesses and fall being fully exposed, while things which might
redound to his honour, are either omitted or but slightly mentioned; that
scarcely any transaction of Jesus is related, at which Peter was not
present, and that all are related with that circumstantial minuteness
which belongs to the testimony of an eye-witness.(25) We may, therefore,
regard the Gospel of Mark as an original composition, written at the
dictation of Peter, and consequently as another original narrative of the
life, miracles, and doctrines of our Lord.
§ 18. LUKE, according to Eusebius, was a native of Antioch, by profession
a physician, and for a considerable period a companion of the apostle
Paul. From the casual notices of him in the Scriptures, and from the early
Christian writers, it has been collected, that his parents were Gentiles,
but that he in his youth embraced Judaism, from which he was converted to
Christianity. The first mention of him is that he was with Paul at
Troas;(26) whence he appears to have attended him to Jerusalem; continued
with him in all his troubles in Judea; and sailed with him when he was
sent a prisoner from Cæsarea to Rome, where he remained with him during
his two years’ confinement. As none of the ancient fathers have mentioned
his having suffered martyrdom, it is generally supposed that he died a
natural death.
§ 19. That he wrote his Gospel for the benefit of Gentile converts is
affirmed by the unanimous voice of Christian antiquity; and it may also be
inferred from its dedication to a Gentile. He is particularly careful to
specify various circumstances conducive to the information of strangers,
but not so to the Jews; he gives the lineage of Jesus upwards, after the
manner of the Gentiles, instead of downwards, as Matthew had done; tracing
it up to Adam, and thus showing that Jesus was the promised seed of the
woman; and he marks the eras of his birth, and of the ministry of John, by
the reigns of the Roman emperors. He also has introduced several things,
not mentioned by the other evangelists, but highly encouraging to the
Gentiles to turn to God in the hope of pardon and acceptance; of which
description are the parables of the publican and pharisee, in the temple;
the lost piece of silver; and the prodigal son; and the fact of Christ’s
visit to Zaccheus the publican, and the pardon of the penitent thief.
§ 20. That Luke was a physician, appears not only from the testimony of
Paul,(27) but from the internal marks in his Gospel, showing that he was
both an acute observer, and had given particular and even professional
attention to all our Saviour’s miracles of healing. Thus, the man whom
Matthew and Mark describe simply as a leper, Luke describes as _full_ of
leprosy;(28) he, whom they mention as having a withered hand, Luke says
had his _right_ hand withered;(29) and of the maid, of whom the others say
that Jesus took her by the hand and she arose, he adds, that _her spirit
came to her again_.(30) He alone, with professional accuracy of
observation, says that _virtue went out_ of Jesus, and healed the
sick;(31) he alone states the fact that the sleep of the disciples in
Gethsemane was _induced by extreme sorrow_; and mentions the blood-like
sweat of Jesus, as occasioned by the _intensity of his agony_; and he
alone relates the miraculous healing of Malchus’s ear.(32) That he was
also a man of a liberal education, the comparative elegance of his
writings sufficiently show.(33)
§ 21. The design of Luke’s Gospel was to supersede the defective and
inaccurate narratives then in circulation, and to deliver to Theophilus,
to whom it is addressed, a full and authentic account of the life,
doctrines, miracles, death and resurrection of our Saviour. Who Theophilus
was, the learned are not perfectly agreed; but the most probable opinion
is that of Dr. Lardner, now generally adopted, that, as Luke wrote his
Gospel in Greece, Theophilus was a man of rank in that country.(34) Either
the relations subsisting between him and Luke, or the dignity and power of
his rank, or both, induced the evangelist, who himself also “had perfect
understanding of all things from the first,” to devote the utmost care to
the drawing up of a complete and authentic narrative of these great
events. He does not affirm himself to have been an eye-witness; though his
personal knowledge of some of the transactions may well be inferred from
the “perfect understanding” which he says he possessed. Some of the
learned seem to have drawn this inference as to them all, and to have
placed him in the class of original witnesses; but this opinion, though
maintained on strong and plausible grounds, is not generally adopted. If,
then, he did not write from his own personal knowledge, the question is,
what is the legal character of his testimony?
§ 22. If it were “the result of inquiries, made under competent public
authority, concerning matters in which the public are concerned”(35) it
would possess every legal attribute of an inquisition, and, as such, would
be legally admissible in evidence, in a court of justice. To entitle such
results, however, to our full confidence, it is not necessary that they
should be obtained under a legal commission; it is sufficient if the
inquiry is gravely undertaken and pursued, by a person of competent
intelligence, sagacity and integrity. The request of a person in
authority, or a desire to serve the public, are, to all moral intents, as
sufficient a motive as a legal commission.(36) Thus, we know that when
complaint is made to the head of a department, of official misconduct or
abuse, existing in some remote quarter, nothing is more common than to
send some confidential person to the spot, to ascertain the facts and
report them to the department; and this report is confidently adopted as
the basis of its discretionary action, in the correction of the abuse, or
the removal of the offender. Indeed, the result of any grave inquiry is
equally certain to receive our confidence, though it may have been
voluntarily undertaken, if the party making it had access to the means of
complete and satisfactory information upon the subject.(37) If, therefore,
Luke’s Gospel were to be regarded only as the work of a contemporary
historian, it would be entitled to our confidence. But it is more than
this. It is the result of careful inquiry and examination, made by a
person of science, intelligence and education, concerning subjects which
he was perfectly competent to investigate, and as to many of which he was
peculiarly skilled, they being cases of the cure of maladies; subjects,
too, of which he already had the perfect knowledge of a contemporary, and
perhaps an eye-witness, but beyond doubt, familiar with the parties
concerned in the transactions, and belonging to the community in which the
events transpired, which were in the mouths of all; and the narrative,
moreover, drawn up for the especial use, and probably at the request, of a
man of distinction, whom it would not be for the interest nor safety of
the writer to deceive or mislead. Such a document certainly possesses all
the moral attributes of an inquest of office, or of any other official
investigation of facts; and as such is entitled, _in foro conscientiæ_, to
be adduced as original, competent and satisfactory evidence of the matters
it contains.
§ 23. JOHN, the last of the evangelists, was the son of Zebedee, a
fisherman of the town of Bethsaida, on the sea of Galilee. His father
appears to have been a respectable man in his calling, owning his vessel
and having hired servants.(38) His mother, too, was among those who
followed Jesus and “ministered unto him(39);” and to John himself, Jesus,
when on the cross, confided the care and support of his own mother.(40)
This disciple also seems to have been favourably known to the high priest,
and to have influence in his family; by means of which he had the
privilege of being present in his palace at the examination of his Master,
and of introducing also Peter, his friend.(41) He was the youngest of the
apostles, was eminently the object of our Lord’s regard and confidence;
was on various occasions admitted to free and intimate intercourse with
him; and is described as “the disciple whom Jesus loved.”(42) Hence he was
present at several scenes, to which most of the others were not admitted.
He alone, in company with Peter and James, was present at the resurrection
of Jairus’s daughter, at the transfiguration on the mount, and at the
agony of our Saviour in the garden of Gethsemane.(43) He was the only
apostle who followed Jesus to the cross, he was the first of them at the
sepulchre, and he was present at the several appearances of our Lord after
his resurrection. These circumstances, together with his intimate
friendship with the mother of Jesus, especially qualify him to give a
circumstantial and authentic account of the life of his Master. After the
ascension of Christ, and the effusion of the Holy Spirit on the day of
Pentecost, John became one of the chief apostles of the circumcision,
exercising his ministry in and near Jerusalem. From ecclesiastical history
we learn that, after the death of Mary the mother of Jesus, he proceeded
to Asia Minor, where he founded and presided over seven churches, in as
many cities, but resided chiefly at Ephesus. Thence he was banished, in
Domitian’s reign, to the isle of Patmos, where he wrote his Revelation. On
the accession of Nerva he was freed from exile, and returned to Ephesus,
where he wrote his Gospel and Epistles, and died at the age of one hundred
years, about A.D. 100, in the third year of the emperor Trajan.(44)
§ 24. The learned are not agreed as to the time when the Gospel of John
was written, some dating it as early as the year 68, others as late as the
year 98; but it is generally conceded to have been written after all the
others. That it could not have been the work of some Platonic Christian of
a subsequent age, as some have without evidence asserted, is manifest from
references to it by some of the early fathers, and from the concurring
testimony of many other writers of the ancient Christian church.(45)
§ 25. That it was written either with especial reference to the Gentiles,
or at a period when very many of them had become converts to Christianity,
is inferred from the various explanations it contains, beyond the other
Gospels, which could have been necessary only to persons unacquainted with
Jewish names and customs.(46) And that it was written after all the
others, and to supply their omissions, is concluded, not only from the
uniform tradition and belief in the church, but from his studied omission
of most of the transactions noticed by the others, and from his care to
mention several incidents which they have not recorded. That their
narratives were known to him, is too evident to admit of doubt; while his
omission to repeat what they had already stated, or, where he does mention
the same things, his relating them in a brief and cursory manner, affords
incidental but strong testimony that he regarded their accounts as
faithful and true.(47)
§ 26. Such are the brief histories of the men, whose narratives we are to
examine and compare; conducting the examination and weighing the testimony
by the same rules and principles which govern our tribunals of justice in
similar cases. These tribunals are in such cases governed by the following
fundamental rule:—
_In trials of fact, by oral testimony, the proper inquiry is not
whether it is possible that the testimony may be false, but
whether there is sufficient probability that it is true._
It should be observed that the subject of inquiry is matter of fact, and
not of abstract mathematical truth. The latter alone is susceptible of
that high degree of proof, usually termed demonstration, which excludes
the possibility of error, and which therefore may reasonably be required
in support of every mathematical deduction. But the proof of matters of
fact rests upon moral evidence alone; by which is meant not merely that
species of evidence which is employed in cases respecting moral conduct,
but all the evidence which we do not obtain either from our own senses,
from intuition, or from demonstration. In the ordinary affairs of life we
do not require nor expect demonstrative evidence, because it is
inconsistent with the nature of matters of fact, and to insist on its
production would be unreasonable and absurd. And it makes no difference,
whether the facts to be proved relate to this life or to the next, the
nature of the evidence required being in both cases the same. The error of
the sceptic consists in pretending or supposing that there is a difference
in the nature of the evidence, where there is no difference in the nature
of the things to be proved; and in demanding demonstrative evidence
concerning things which are not susceptible of any other than moral
evidence alone, and of which the utmost that can be said is that there is
no reasonable doubt of their truth.(48)
§ 27. In proceeding to weigh the evidence of any proposition of fact, the
previous question to be determined is, _when_ may it be said to be proved?
The answer to this question is furnished by another rule of municipal law,
which may be thus stated:—
_A proposition of fact is proved, when its truth is established by
competent and satisfactory evidence._
By competent evidence, is meant such as the nature of the thing to be
proved requires; and by satisfactory evidence, is meant that amount of
proof, which ordinarily satisfies an unprejudiced mind, beyond any
reasonable doubt. The circumstances which will amount to this degree of
proof can never be previously defined; the only legal test to which they
can be subjected is, their sufficiency to satisfy the mind and conscience
of a man of common prudence and discretion, and so to convince him, that
he would venture to act upon that conviction in matters of the highest
concern and importance to his own interest.(49) If, therefore, the subject
is a problem in mathematics, its truth is to be shown by the certainty of
demonstrative evidence. But if it is a question of fact in human affairs,
nothing more than moral evidence can be required, for this is the best
evidence which, from the nature of the case, is attainable. Now as the
facts, stated in Scripture History, are not of the former kind, but are
cognizable by the senses, they may be said to be proved when they are
established by that kind and degree of evidence which, as we have just
observed, would, in the affairs of human life, satisfy the mind and
conscience of a common man. When we have this degree of evidence, it is
unreasonable to require more. A juror would violate his oath, if he should
refuse to acquit or condemn a person charged with an offence, where this
measure of proof was adduced.
§ 28. Proceeding further, to inquire whether the facts related by the Four
Evangelists are proved by competent and satisfactory evidence, we are led,
first, to consider on which side lies the burden of establishing the
credibility of the witnesses. On this point the municipal law furnishes a
rule, which is of constant application in all trials by jury, and is
indeed the dictate of that charity which thinketh no evil.
_In the absence of circumstances which generate suspicion, every
witness is to be presumed credible, until the contrary is shown;
the burden of impeaching his credibility lying on the
objector._(_50_)
This rule serves to show the injustice with which the writers of the
Gospels have ever been treated by infidels; an injustice silently
acquiesced in even by Christians; in requiring the Christian
affirmatively, and by positive evidence, _aliunde_, to establish the
credibility of his witnesses above all others, before their testimony is
entitled to be considered, and in permitting the testimony of a single
profane writer, alone and uncorroborated, to outweigh that of any single
Christian. This is not the course in courts of chancery, where the
testimony of a single witness is never permitted to outweigh the oath even
of the defendant himself, interested as he is in the cause; but, on the
contrary, if the plaintiff, after having required the oath of his
adversary, cannot overthrow it by something more than the oath of one
witness, however credible, it must stand as evidence against him. But the
Christian writer seems, by the usual course of the argument, to have been
deprived of the common presumption of charity in his favour; and reversing
the ordinary rule of administering justice in human tribunals, his
testimony is unjustly presumed to be false, until it is proved to be true.
This treatment moreover, has been applied to them all in a body; and,
without due regard to the fact, that, being independent historians,
writing at different periods, they are entitled to the support of each
other: they have been treated, in the argument, almost as if the New
Testament were the entire production, at once, of a body of men,
conspiring by a joint fabrication, to impose a false religion upon the
world. It is time that this injustice should cease, that the testimony of
the evangelists should be admitted to be true, until it can be disproved
by those who would impugn it; that the silence of one sacred writer on any
point, should no more detract from his own veracity or that of the other
historians, than the like circumstance is permitted to do among profane
writers; and that the Four Evangelists should be admitted in corroboration
of each other, as readily as Josephus and Tacitus, or Polybius and
Livy.(51)
§ 29. But if the burden of establishing the credibility of the evangelists
were devolved on those who affirm the truth of their narratives, it is
still capable of a ready moral demonstration, when we consider the nature
and character of the testimony, and the essential marks of difference
between true narratives of facts and the creations of falsehood. It is
universally admitted that the credit to be given to witnesses depends
chiefly on their ability to discern and comprehend what was before them,
their opportunities for observation, the degree of accuracy with which
they are accustomed to mark passing events, and their integrity in
relating them. The rule of municipal law on this subject embraces all
these particulars, and is thus stated by a legal text-writer of the
highest repute.
_The credit due to the testimony of witnesses depends upon,
firstly, their honesty; secondly, their ability; thirdly, their
number and the consistency of their testimony; fourthly, the
conformity of their testimony with experience; and fifthly, the
coincidence of their testimony with collateral circumstances._(52)
Let the evangelists be tried by these tests.
§ 30. And _first_, as to their _honesty_. Here they are entitled to the
benefit of the general course of human experience, that men ordinarily
speak the truth, when they have no prevailing motive or inducement to the
contrary. This presumption, to which we have before alluded, is applied in
courts of justice, even to witnesses whose integrity is not wholly free
from suspicion; much more is it applicable to the evangelists, whose
testimony went against all their worldly interests. The great truths which
the apostles declared, were, that Christ had risen from the dead, and that
only through repentance from sin, and faith in him, could men hope for
salvation. This doctrine they asserted with one voice, everywhere, not
only under the greatest discouragements, but in the face of the most
appalling terrors that can be presented to the mind of man. Their master
had recently perished as a malefactor, by the sentence of a public
tribunal. His religion sought to overthrow the religions of the whole
world. The laws of every country were against the teachings of his
disciples. The interests and passions of all the rulers and great men in
the world were against them. The fashion of the world was against them.
Propagating this new faith, even in the most inoffensive and peaceful
manner, they could expect nothing but contempt, opposition, revilings,
bitter persecutions, stripes, imprisonments, torments and cruel deaths.
Yet this faith they zealously did propagate; and all these miseries they
endured undismayed, nay, rejoicing. As one after another was put to a
miserable death, the survivors only prosecuted their work with increased
vigour and resolution. The annals of military warfare afford scarcely an
example of the like heroic constancy, patience and unblenching courage.
They had every possible motive to review carefully the grounds of their
faith, and the evidences of the great facts and truths which they
asserted; and these motives were pressed upon their attention with the
most melancholy and terrific frequency. It was therefore impossible that
they could have persisted in affirming the truths they have narrated, had
not Jesus actually risen from the dead, and had they not known this fact
as certainly as they knew any other fact.(53) If it were morally possible
for them to have been deceived in this matter, every human motive operated
to lead them to discover and avow their error. To have persisted in so
gross a falsehood, after it was known to them, was not only to encounter,
for life, all the evils which man could inflict, from without, but to
endure also the pangs of inward and conscious guilt, with no hope of
future peace, no testimony of a good conscience, no expectation of honour
or esteem among men, no hope of happiness in this life, or in the world to
come.
§ 31. Such conduct in the apostles would moreover have been utterly
irreconcilable with the fact, that they possessed the ordinary
constitution of our common nature. Yet their lives do show them to have
been men like all others of our race; swayed by the same motives, animated
by the same hopes, affected by the same joys, subdued by the same sorrows,
agitated by the same fears, and subject to the same passions, temptations
and infirmities, as ourselves. And their writings show them to have been
men of vigorous understandings. If then their testimony was not true,
there was no possible motive for its fabrication.
§ 32. It would also have been irreconcilable with the fact that they were
good men. But it is impossible to read their writings, and not feel that
we are conversing with men eminently holy, and of tender consciences, with
men acting under an abiding sense of the presence and omniscience of God,
and of their accountability to him, living in his fear, and walking in his
ways. Now, though, in a single instance, a good man may fall, when under
strong temptations, yet he is not found persisting, for years, in
deliberate falsehood, asserted with the most solemn appeals to God,
without the slightest temptation or motive, and against all the opposing
interests which reign in the human breast. If, on the contrary, they are
supposed to have been bad men, it is incredible that such men should have
chosen this form of imposture; enjoining, as it does, unfeigned
repentance, the utter forsaking and abhorrence of all falsehood and of
every other sin, the practice of daily self-denial, self-abasement and
self-sacrifice, the crucifixion of the flesh with all its earthly
appetites and desires, indifference to the honours, and hearty contempt of
the vanities of the world; and inculcating perfect purity of heart and
life, and intercourse of the soul with heaven. It is incredible, that bad
men should invent falsehoods, to promote the religion of the God of truth.
The supposition is suicidal. If they did believe in a future state of
retribution, a heaven and a hell hereafter, they took the most certain
course, if false witnesses, to secure the latter for their portion. And
if, still being bad men, they did not believe in future punishment, how
came they to invent falsehoods, the direct and certain tendency of which
was to destroy all their prospects of worldly honour and happiness, and to
ensure their misery in this life? From these absurdities there is no
escape, but in the perfect conviction and admission that they were good
men, testifying to that which they had carefully observed and considered,
and well knew to be true.(54)
§ 33. In the _second_ place, as to their _ability_. The text writer before
cited observes, that the ability of a witness to speak the truth, depends
on the opportunities which he has had for observing the fact, the accuracy
of his powers of discerning, and the faithfulness of his memory in
retaining the facts, once observed and known.(55) Of the latter trait, in
these witnesses, we of course know nothing; nor have we any traditionary
information in regard to the accuracy of their powers of discerning. But
we may well suppose that in these respects they were like the generality
of their countrymen, until the contrary is shown by an objector. It is
always to be presumed that men are honest, and of sound mind, and of the
average and ordinary degree of intelligence. This is not the judgment of
mere charity; it is also the uniform presumption of the law of the land; a
presumption which is always allowed freely and fully to operate, until the
fact is shown to be otherwise, by the party who denies the applicability
of this presumption to the particular case in question. Whenever an
objection is raised in opposition to the ordinary presumptions of law, or
to the ordinary experience of mankind, the burden of proof is devolved on
the objector, by the common and ordinary rules of evidence, and of
practice in courts. No lawyer is permitted to argue in disparagement of
the intelligence or integrity of a witness, against whom the case itself
afforded no particle of testimony. This is sufficient for our purpose, in
regard to these witnesses. But more than this is evident, from the
minuteness of their narratives, and from their history. Matthew was
trained, by his calling, to habits of severe investigation and suspicious
scrutiny; and Luke’s profession demanded an exactness of observation
equally close and searching. The other two evangelists, it has been well
remarked, were as much too unlearned to forge the story of their Master’s
life, as these were too learned and acute to be deceived by imposture.
§ 34. In the _third_ place, as to their _number_ and the _consistency_ of
their testimony. The character of their narratives is like that of all
other true witnesses, containing, as Dr. Paley observes, substantial
truth, under circumstantial variety. There is enough of discrepancy to
show that there could have been no previous concert among them; and at the
same time such substantial agreement as to show that they all were
independent narrators of the same great transaction, as the events
actually occurred. That they conspired to impose falsehood upon the world
is, moreover, utterly inconsistent with the supposition that they were
honest men; a fact, to the proofs of which we have already adverted. But
if they were bad men, still the idea of any conspiracy among them is
negatived, not only by the discrepancies alluded to, but by many other
circumstances which will be mentioned hereafter; from all which, it is
manifest that if they concerted a false story, they sought its
accomplishment by a mode quite the opposite to that which all others are
found to pursue, to attain the same end. On this point the profound remark
of an eminent writer is to our purpose; that “in a number of concurrent
testimonies, where there has been no previous concert, there is a
probability distinct from that which may be termed the sum of the
probabilities resulting from the testimonies of the witnesses, a
probability which would remain, even though the witnesses were of such a
character as to merit no faith at all. This probability arises from the
concurrence itself. That such a concurrence should spring from chance, is
as one to infinite; that is, in other words, morally impossible. If
therefore concert be excluded, there remains no cause but the reality of
the fact.”(56)
§ 35. The discrepancies between the narratives of the several evangelists,
when carefully examined, will not be found sufficient to invalidate their
testimony. Many seeming contradictions will prove, upon closer scrutiny,
to be in substantial agreement; and it may be confidently asserted that
there are none that will not yield, under fair and just criticism. If
these different accounts of the same transactions were in strict verbal
conformity with each other, the argument against their credibility would
be much stronger. All that is asked for these witnesses is, that their
testimony may be regarded as we regard the testimony of men in the
ordinary affairs of life. This they are justly entitled to; and this no
honourable adversary can refuse. We might, indeed, take higher ground than
this, and confidently claim for them the severest scrutiny; but our
present purpose is merely to try their veracity by the ordinary tests of
truth, admitted in human tribunals.
§ 36. If the evidence of the evangelists is to be rejected because of a
few discrepancies among them, we shall be obliged to discard that of many
of the contemporaneous histories on which we are accustomed to rely. Dr.
Paley has noticed the contradiction between Lord Clarendon and Burnett and
others in regard to Lord Strafford’s execution; the former stating that he
was condemned to be hanged, which was done on the same day; and the latter
all relating that on a Saturday he was sentenced to the block, and was
beheaded on the following Monday. Another striking instance of discrepancy
has since occurred, in the narratives of the different members of the
royal family of France, of their flight from Paris to Varennes, in 1792.
These narratives, ten in number, and by eye-witnesses and personal actors
in the transactions they relate, contradict each other, some on trivial
and some on more essential points, but in every case in a wonderful and
inexplicable manner.(57) Yet these contradictions do not, in the general
public estimation, detract from the integrity of the narrators, nor from
the credibility of their relations. In the points in which they agree, and
which constitute the great body of their narratives, their testimony is of
course not doubted; where they differ, we reconcile them as well as we
may; and where this cannot be done at all, we follow that light which
seems to us the clearest. Upon the principles of the sceptic, we should be
bound utterly to disbelieve them all. On the contrary, we apply to such
cases the rules which, in daily experience, our judges instruct juries to
apply, in weighing and reconciling the testimony of different witnesses;
and which the courts themselves observe, in comparing and reconciling
different and sometimes discordant reports of the same decisions. This
remark applies especially to some alleged discrepancies in the reports
which the several evangelists have given of the same discourses of our
Lord.(58)
§ 37. In the _fourth_ place, as to the _conformity of their testimony with
experience_. The title of the evangelists to full credit for veracity
would be readily conceded by the objector, if the facts they relate were
such as ordinarily occur in human experience. But they also relate events
which were miraculous, or out of the ordinary course of human experience,
and on this circumstance an argument is founded against their credibility.
Miracles, say the objectors, are impossible; and therefore the evangelists
were either deceivers or deceived; and in either case their narratives are
unworthy of belief. Spinosa’s argument against the possibility of
miracles, was founded on the broad and bold assumption that all things are
governed by immutable laws, or fixed modes of motion and relation, termed
the laws of nature, by which God himself is of necessity bound. This
erroneous assumption is the tortoise, on which stands the elephant that
upholds his system of atheism. He does not inform us who made these
immutable laws, nor whence they derive their binding force and
irresistible operation. The argument supposes that the creator of all
things first made a code of laws, and then put it out of his own power to
change them. The scheme of Mr. Hume is but another form of the same error.
He deduces the existence of such immutable laws from the uniform course of
human experience. This, he affirms, is our only guide in reasoning
concerning matters of fact; and whatever is contrary to human experience,
he pronounces incredible.(59) Without stopping to examine the correctness
of this doctrine, as a fundamental principle in the law of evidence, it is
sufficient in this place to remark, that is contains this fallacy; it
excludes all knowledge derived by inference or deduction from facts,
confining us to what we derive from experience alone, and thus depriving
us of any knowledge, or even rational belief, of the existence or
character of God. Nay more, it goes to prove that successive generations
of men can make no advancement in knowledge, but each must begin _de
novo_, and be limited to the results of its own experience. But if we may
infer, from what we see and know, that there is a Supreme Being, by whom
this world was created, we may certainly, and with equal reason, believe
him capable of works which _we_ have never yet known him to perform. We
may fairly conclude that the power which was originally put forth to
create the world is still constantly and without ceasing exerted to
sustain it; and that the experienced connexion between cause and effect is
but the uniform and constantly active operation of the finger of God.
Whether this uniformity of operation extends to things beyond the limits
of our observation, is a point we cannot certainly know. Its existence in
all things that ordinarily concern us may be supposed to be ordained as
conducive to our happiness; and if the belief in a revelation of peace and
mercy from God is conducive to the happiness of man, it is not irrational
to suppose that he would depart from his ordinary course of action, in
order to give it such attestations as should tend to secure that belief.
“A miracle is improbable, when we can perceive no sufficient cause, in
reference to his creatures, why the Deity should vary his modes of
operation; it ceases to be so, when such cause is assigned.”(60)
§ 38. But the full discussion of the subject of miracles forms no part of
the present design. Their credibility has been fully established, and the
objections of sceptics most satisfactorily met and overthrown, by the
ablest writers of our own day, whose works are easily accessible.(61) Thus
much, however, may here be remarked; that in almost every miracle related
by the evangelists, the facts, separately taken, were plain, intelligible,
transpiring in public, and about which no person of ordinary observation
would be likely to mistake. Persons blind or crippled, who applied to
Jesus for relief, were known to have been crippled or blind for many
years; they came to be cured; he spake to them; they went away whole.
Lazarus had been dead and buried four days; Jesus called him to come forth
from the grave; he immediately came forth, and was seen alive for a long
time afterwards. In every case of healing, the previous condition of the
sufferer was known to all; all saw his instantaneous restoration, and all
witnessed the act of Jesus in touching him, and heard his words.(62) All
these, separately considered, were facts, plain and simple in their
nature, easily seen and fully comprehended by persons of common capacity
and observation. If they were separately testified to, by different
witnesses of ordinary intelligence and integrity, in any court of justice,
the jury would be bound to believe them; and a verdict, rendered contrary
to the uncontradicted testimony of credible witnesses to any one of these
plain facts, separately taken, would be liable to be set aside, as a
verdict against evidence. If one credible witness testified to the fact,
that Bartimeus was blind, according to the uniform course of administering
justice, this fact would be taken as satisfactorily proved. So also, if
his subsequent restoration to sight were the sole fact in question, this
also would be deemed established, by the like evidence. Nor would the rule
of evidence be at all different, if the fact to be proved were the
declaration of Jesus, immediately preceding his restoration to sight, that
his faith had made him whole. In each of these cases, each isolated fact
was capable of being accurately observed, and certainly known; and the
evidence demands our assent, precisely as the like evidence upon any other
indifferent subject. The connexion of the word or the act of Jesus with
the restoration of the blind, lame and dead, to sight, and health, and
life, as cause and effect, is a conclusion which our reason is compelled
to admit, from the uniformity of their concurrence, in such a multitude of
instances, as well as from the universal conviction of all, whether
friends or foes, who beheld the miracles which he wrought. Indeed, if the
truth of one of the miracles is satisfactorily established, our belief
cannot reasonably be withheld from them all. This is the issue proposed by
Dr. Paley, in regard to the evidence of the death of Jesus upon the cross,
and his subsequent resurrection, the truth of which he has established in
an argument, incapable of refutation.
§ 39. In the _fifth_ place, as to _the coincidence of their testimony with
collateral and contemporaneous facts and circumstances_. After a witness
is dead, and his moral character is forgotten, we can ascertain it only by
a close inspection of his narrative, comparing its details with each
other, and with contemporary accounts and collateral facts. This test is
much more accurate than may at first be supposed. Every event which
actually transpires, has its appropriate relation and place in the vast
complication of circumstances, of which the affairs of men consist; it
owes its origin to the events which have preceded it, is intimately
connected with all others which occur at the same time and place, and
often with those of remote regions, and in its turn gives birth to
numberless others which succeed. In all this almost inconceivable
contexture, and seeming discord, there is perfect harmony; and while the
fact, which really happened, tallies exactly with every other
contemporaneous incident, related to it in the remotest degree, it is not
possible for the wit of man to invent a story, which, if closely compared
with the actual occurrences of the same time and place, may not be shown
to be false.(63) Hence it is, that a false witness will not willingly
detail any circumstances, in which his testimony will be open to
contradiction, nor multiply them where there is danger of his being
detected by a comparison of them with other accounts, equally
circumstantial. He will rather deal in general statements and broad
assertions, and if he finds it necessary for his purpose to employ names
and particular circumstances in his story, he will endeavor to invent such
as shall be out of the reach of all opposing proof; and will be the most
forward and minute in details, where he knows that any danger of
contradiction is least to be apprehended.(64) Therefore it is, that
variety and minuteness of detail are usually regarded as certain tests of
sincerity, if the story, in the circumstances related, is of a nature
capable of easy refutation if it were false.
§ 40. The difference, in the detail of circumstances, between artful or
false witnesses and those who testify the truth, is worthy of especial
observation. The former are often copious and even profuse in their
statements, as far as these may have been previously fabricated, and in
relation to the principal matter; but beyond this, all will be reserved
and meagre, from the fear of detection. Every lawyer knows how lightly the
evidence of a _non-mi-recordo_ witness is esteemed. The testimony of false
witnesses will not be uniform in its texture, but will be unequal,
unnatural, and inconsistent. On the contrary, in the testimony of true
witnesses there is a visible and striking naturalness of manner, and an
unaffected readiness and copiousness in the detail of circumstances, as
well in one part of the narrative as another, and evidently without the
least regard either to the facility or difficulty of verification or
detection.(65) It is easier, therefore, to make out the proof of any fact,
if proof it may be called, by suborning one or more false witnesses, to
testify directly to the matter in question, than to procure an equal
number to testify falsely to such collateral and separate circumstances as
will, without greater danger of detection, lead to the same false result.
The increased number of witnesses to circumstances, and the increased
number of the circumstances themselves, all tend to increase the
probability of detection if the witnesses are false, because thereby the
points are multiplied in which their statements may be compared with each
other, as well as with the truth itself, and in the same proportion is
increased the danger of variance and inconsistency.(66) Thus the force of
circumstantial evidence is found to depend on the number of particulars
involved in the narrative; the difficulty of fabricating them all, if
false, and the great facility of detection; the nature of the
circumstances to be compared, and from which the dates and other facts are
to be collected; the intricacy of the comparison; the number of the
intermediate steps in the process of deduction; and the circuity of the
investigation. The more largely the narrative partakes of these
characters, the further it will be found removed from all suspicion of
contrivance or design, and the more profoundly the mind will repose on the
conviction of its truth.
§ 41. The narratives of the sacred writers, both Jewish and Christian,
abound in examples of this kind of evidence, the value of which is hardly
capable of being properly estimated. It does not, as has been already
remarked, amount to mathematical demonstration; nor is this degree of
proof justly demandable in any question of moral conduct. In all human
transactions, the highest degree of assurance to which we can arrive,
short of the evidence of our own senses, is that of probability. The most
that can be asserted is, that the narrative is more likely to be true than
false; and it may be in the highest degree more likely, but still be short
of absolute mathematical certainty. Yet this very probability may be so
great as to satisfy the mind of the most cautious, and enforce the assent
of the most reluctant and unbelieving. If it is such as usually satisfies
reasonable men, in matters of ordinary transaction, it is all which the
greatest sceptic has a right to require; for it is by such evidence alone
that our rights are determined, in the civil tribunals; and on no other
evidence do they proceed, even in capital cases. Thus, where a house had
been feloniously broken open with a knife, the blade of which was broken
and left in the window, and the mutilated knife itself, the parts
perfectly agreeing, was found in the pocket of the accused, who gave no
satisfactory explanation of the fact, no reasonable doubt remained of his
participation in the crime. And where a murder had been committed by
shooting with a pistol, and the prisoner was connected with the
transaction by proof that the wadding of the pistol was part of a letter
addressed to him, the remainder of which was found upon his person, no
juror’s conscience could have reproached him for assenting to the verdict
of condemnation.(67) Yet the evidence, in both cases, is but the evidence
of circumstances; amounting, it is true, to the highest degree of
probability, but yet not utterly inconsistent with the innocence of the
accused. The evidence which we have of the great facts of the Bible
history belongs to this class, that is, it is moral evidence; sufficient
to satisfy any rational mind, by carrying it to the highest degree of
moral certainty. If such evidence will justify the taking away of human
life or liberty, in the one case, surely it ought to be deemed sufficient
to determine our faith in the other.
§ 42. All that Christianity asks of men on this subject, is, that they
would be consistent with themselves; that they would treat its evidences
as they treat the evidence of other things; and that they would try and
judge its actors and witnesses, as they deal with their fellow-men, when
testifying to human affairs and actions, in human tribunals. Let the
witnesses be compared with themselves, with each other, and with
surrounding facts and circumstances; and let their testimony be sifted, as
if it were given in a court of justice, on the side of the adverse party,
the witnesses being subjected to a rigorous cross-examination. The result,
it is confidently believed, will be an undoubting conviction of their
integrity, ability, and truth. In the course of such an examination, the
undesigned coincidences will multiply upon us at every step in our
progress; the probability of the veracity of the witnesses and of the
reality of the occurrences which they relate will increase, until it
acquires, for all practical purposes, the value and force of
demonstration.
§ 43. It should be remembered, that very little of the literature of their
times and country has come down to us; and that the collateral sources and
means of corroborating and explaining their writings are proportionally
limited. The contemporary writings and works of art which have reached us,
have invariably been found to confirm their accounts, to reconcile what
was apparently contradictory, and supply what seemed defective or
imperfect. We ought therefore to conclude, that if we had more of the same
light, all other similar difficulties and imperfections would vanish.
Indeed they have been gradually vanishing, and rapidly too, before the
light of modern research, conducted by men of science in our own times.
And it is worthy of remark, that of all the investigations and discoveries
of travellers and men of letters, since the overthrow of the Roman empire,
not a vestige of antiquity has been found, impeaching, in the slightest
degree, the credibility of the sacred writers; but, on the contrary, every
result has tended to confirm it.
§ 44. The essential marks of difference between true narratives of facts
and the creations of fiction, have already been adverted to. It may here
be added that these attributes of truth are strikingly apparent throughout
the gospel histories, and that the absence of all the others is equally
remarkable. The writers allude, for example, to the existing manners and
customs, and to the circumstances of the times and of their country, with
the utmost minuteness of reference. And these references are never
formally made, nor with preface and explanation, never multiplied and
heaped on each other, nor brought together, as though introduced by
design; but they are scattered broad-cast and singly over every part of
the story, and so connect themselves with every incident related, as to
render the detection of falsehood inevitable. This minuteness, too, is not
peculiar to any one of the historians, but is common to them all. Though
they wrote at different periods, and without mutual concert, they all
alike refer incidentally to the same state of affairs, and to the same
contemporary and collateral circumstances. Their testimony, in this view,
stands on the same ground with that of four witnesses, separately examined
before different commissioners, upon the same interrogatories, and all
adverting incidentally to the same circumstances as surrounding and
accompanying the principal transaction, to which alone their attention is
directed. And it is worthy of observation that these circumstances were at
that time of a peculiar character. Hardly a state or kingdom in the world
ever experienced so many vicissitudes in its government and political
relations, as did Judea, during the period of the gospel history. It was
successively under the government of Herod the Great, of Archelaus, and of
a Roman magistrate; it was a kingdom, a tetrarchate, and a province; and
its affairs, its laws, and the administration of justice, were all
involved in the confusion and uncertainty naturally to be expected from
recent conquest. It would be difficult to select any place or period in
the history of nations, for the time and scene of a fictitious history or
an imposture, which would combine so many difficulties for the fabricator
to surmount, so many contemporary writers to confront him with, and so
many facilities for the detection of falsehood.(68)
§ 45. “Had the evangelists been false historians,” says Dr. Chalmers,
“they would not have committed themselves upon so many particulars. They
would not have furnished the vigilant inquirers of that period with such
an effectual instrument for bringing them into discredit with the people;
nor foolishly supplied, in every page of their narrative, so many
materials for a cross-examination, which would infallibly have disgraced
them. Now, we of this age can institute the same cross-examination. We can
compare the evangelical writers with contemporary authors, and verify a
number of circumstances in the history, and government, and peculiar
economy of the Jewish people. We therefore have it in our power to
institute a cross-examination upon the writers of the New Testament; and
the freedom and frequency of their allusions to these circumstances supply
us with ample materials for it. The fact, that they are borne out in their
minute and incidental allusions by the testimony of other historians,
gives a strong weight of what has been called circumstantial evidence in
their favour. As a specimen of the argument, let us confine our
observations to the history of our Saviour’s trial, and execution, and
burial. They brought him to Pontius Pilate. We know both from Tacitus and
Josephus, that he was at that time governor of Judea. A sentence from him
was necessary before they could proceed to the execution of Jesus; and we
know that the power of life and death was usually vested in the Roman
governor. Our Saviour was treated with derision; and this we know to have
been a customary practice at that time, previous to the execution of
criminals, and during the time of it. Pilate scourged Jesus before he gave
him up to be crucified. We know from ancient authors, that this was a very
usual practice among the Romans. The accounts of an execution generally
run in this form: he was stripped, whipped, and beheaded or executed.
According to the evangelists, his accusation was written on the top of the
cross; and we learn from Suetonius and others, that the crime of the
person to be executed was affixed to the instrument of his punishment.
According to the evangelists, this accusation was written in three
different languages; and we know from Josephus that it was quite common in
Jerusalem to have all public advertisements written in this manner.
According to the evangelists, Jesus had to bear his cross; and we know
from other sources of information, that this was the constant practice of
these times. According to the evangelists, the body of Jesus was given up
to be buried at the request of friends. We know that, unless the criminal
was infamous, this was the law or the custom with all Roman
governors.”(69)
§ 46. There is also a striking naturalness in the characters exhibited in
the sacred historians, rarely if ever found in works of fiction, and
probably nowhere else to be collected in a similar manner from fragmentary
and incidental allusions and expressions, in the writings of different
persons. Take, for example, that of Peter, as it may be gathered from the
evangelists, and it will be hardly possible to conceive that four persons,
writing at different times, could have concurred in the delineation of
such a character, if it were not real; a character too, we must observe,
which is nowhere expressly drawn, but is shown only here and there,
casually, in the subordinate parts of the main narrative. Thus disclosed,
it is that of a confident, sanguine, and zealous man; sudden and
impulsive, yet humble and ready to retract; honest and direct in his
purposes; ardently loving his master, yet deficient in fortitude and
firmness in his cause.(70) When Jesus put any question to the apostles, it
was Peter who was foremost to reply;(71) and if they would inquire of
Jesus, it was Peter who was readiest to speak.(72) He had the impetuous
courage to cut off the ear of the High Priest’s servant, who came to
arrest his master; and the weakness to dissemble before the Jews, in the
matter of eating with Gentile converts.(73) It was he who ran with John to
the sepulchre, on the first intelligence of the resurrection of Jesus, and
with characteristic zeal rushed in, while John paused without the
door.(74) He had the ardour to desire and the faith to attempt to walk on
the water, at the command of his Lord, but as soon as he saw the wind
boisterous, he was afraid.(75) He was the first to propose the election of
another apostle in the place of Judas;(76) and he it was who courageously
defended them all, on the day of Pentecost, when the multitude charged
them with being filled with new wine.(77) He was forward to acknowledge
Jesus to be the Messiah;(78) yet having afterwards endangered his own life
by wounding the servant of the High Priest, he suddenly consulted his own
safety by denying the same Master, for whom, but a few hours before, he
had declared himself ready to die.(79) We may safely affirm that the
annals of fiction afford no example of a similar but not uncommon
character, thus incidentally delineated.
§ 47. There are other internal marks of truth in the narratives of the
evangelists, which, however, need here be only alluded to, as they have
been treated with great fulness and force by able writers, whose works are
familiar to all.(80) Among these may be mentioned the nakedness of the
narratives; the absence of all parade by the writers about their own
integrity, of all anxiety to be believed, or to impress others with a good
opinion of themselves or their cause, of all marks of wonder, or of desire
to excite astonishment at the greatness of the events they record, and of
all appearance of design to exalt their Master. On the contrary, there is
apparently the most perfect indifference on their part, whether they are
believed or not; or rather, the evident consciousness that they were
recording events well known to all, in their own country and times, and
undoubtedly to be believed, like any other matter of public history, by
readers in all other countries and ages. It is worthy, too, of especial
observation, that though the evangelists record the unparalleled
sufferings and cruel death of their beloved Lord, and this too, by the
hands and with the consenting voices of those on whom he had conferred the
greatest benefits, and their own persecutions and dangers, yet they have
bestowed no epithets of harshness or even of just censure on the authors
of all this wickedness, but have everywhere left the plain and
unincumbered narrative to speak for itself, and the reader to pronounce
his own sentence of condemnation; like true witnesses, who have nothing to
gain or to lose by the event of the cause, they state the facts, and leave
them to their fate. Their simplicity and artlessness, also, should not
pass unnoticed, in readily stating even those things most disparaging to
themselves. Their want of faith in their Master, their dulness of
apprehension of his teachings, their strifes for preëminence, their
inclination to call fire from heaven upon their enemies, their desertion
of their Lord in his hour of extreme peril; these, and many other
incidents tending directly to their own dishonour, are nevertheless set
down with all the directness and sincerity of truth, as by men writing
under the deepest sense of responsibility to God. Some of the more
prominent instances of this class of proofs will be noticed hereafter, in
their proper places, in the narratives themselves.
§ 48. Lastly, the great character they have portrayed is perfect. It is
the character of a sinless Being; of one supremely wise and supremely
good. It exhibits no error, no sinister intention, no imprudence, no
ignorance, no evil passion, no impatience; in a word, no fault; but all is
perfect uprightness, innocence, wisdom, goodness and truth. The mind of
man has never conceived the idea of such a character, even for his gods;
nor has history nor poetry shadowed it forth. The doctrines and precepts
of Jesus are in strict accordance with the attributes of God, agreeably to
the most exalted idea which we can form of them, either from reason or
from revelation. They are strikingly adapted to the capacity of mankind,
and yet are delivered with a simplicity and majesty wholly divine. He
spake as never man spake. He spake with authority; yet addressed himself
to the reason and the understanding of men; and he spake with wisdom,
which men could neither gainsay nor resist. In his private life, he
exhibits a character not merely of strict justice, but of overflowing
benignity. He is temperate, without austerity; his meekness and humility
are signal; his patience is invincible; truth and sincerity illustrate his
whole conduct; every one of his virtues is regulated by consummate
prudence; and he both wins the love of his friends, and extorts the wonder
and admiration of his enemies(81). He is represented in every variety of
situation in life, from the height of worldly grandeur, amid the
acclamations of an admiring multitude, to the deepest abyss of human
degradation and woe, apparently deserted of God and man. Yet everywhere he
is the same; displaying a character of unearthly perfection, symmetrical
in all its proportions, and encircled with splendour more than human.
Either the men of Galilee were men of superlative wisdom, of extensive
knowledge and experience, and of deeper skill in the arts of deception,
than any and all others, before or after them, or they have truly stated
the astonishing things which they saw and heard.
The narratives of the evangelists are now submitted to the reader’s
perusal and examination, upon the principles and by the rules already
stated. For this purpose, and for the sake of more ready and close
comparison, they are arranged in juxtaposition, after the general order of
the latest and most approved harmonies. The question is not upon the
strict propriety of the arrangement, but upon the veracity of the
witnesses and the credibility of their narratives. With the relative
merits of modern harmonists, and with points of controversy among
theologians, the writer has no concern. His business is that of a lawyer,
examining the testimony of witnesses by the rules of his own profession,
in order to ascertain whether, if they had thus testified on oath, in a
court of justice, they would be entitled to credit; and whether their
narratives, as we now have them, would be received as ancient documents,
coming from the proper custody. If so, then it is believed that every
honest and impartial man will act consistently with that result, by
receiving their testimony in all the extent of its import. To write out a
full commentary or argument upon the text, would be a useless addition to
the bulk of the volume; but a few notes have been added for illustration
of the narratives, and for the clearing up of apparent discrepancies, as
being all that members of the legal profession would desire.
HARMONY OF THE GOSPELS.
Part I. Events Connected With The Birth And Childhood Of Jesus.
TIME. _About thirteen and a half years._
§ 1. Preface to Luke’s Gospel.
Luke.
CH. I. 1-4.
Forasmuch as many have taken
in hand to set forth in order
a declaration of those things
which are most surely believed
among us,
2 Even as they delivered them
unto us, which from the
beginning were eye-witnesses,
and ministers of the word;
3 It seemed good to me also,
having had perfect
understanding of all things
from the very first, to write
unto thee in order, most
excellent Theophilus,
4 That thou mightest know the
certainty of those things
wherein thou hast been
instructed.
§ 2. An Angel appears to Zacharias. _Jerusalem_.
Luke.
CH. I. 5-25.
5 There was in the days of
Herod the king of Judea, a
certain priest named
Zacharias, of the course of
Abia: and his wife _was_ of
the daughters of Aaron, and
her name _was_ Elisabeth.
6 And they were both righteous
before God, walking in all the
commandments and ordinances of
the Lord blameless.
7 and they had no child,
because that Elisabeth was
barren; and they both were
_now_ well stricken in years.
8 And it came to pass, that,
while he executed the priest’s
office before God in the order
of his course,
9 According to the custom of
the priest’s office, his lot
was to burn incense when he
went into the temple of the
Lord.
10 And the whole multitude of
the people were praying
without, at the time of
incense.
11 And there appeared unto him
an angel of the Lord, standing
on the right side of the altar
of incense.
12 And when Zacharias saw
_him_, he was troubled, and
fear fell upon him.
13 But the angel said unto
him, Fear not, Zacharias: for
thy prayer is heard; and thy
wife Elisabeth shall bear thee
a son, and thou shalt call his
name John.
14 And thou shalt have joy and
gladness, and many shall
rejoice at his birth.
15 For he shall be great in
the sight of the Lord, and
shall drink neither wine nor
strong drink; and he shall be
filled with the Holy Ghost,
even from his mother’s womb.
16 And many of the children of
Israel shall he turn to the
Lord their God.
17 And he shall go before him
in the spirit and power of
Elias,(82) to turn the hearts
of the fathers to the
children, and the disobedient
to the wisdom of the just; to
make ready a people prepared
for the Lord.
18 And Zacharias said unto the
angel, Whereby shall I know
this? for I am an old man, and
my wife well stricken in
years.
19 And the angel, answering,
said unto him, I am Gabriel,
that stand in the presence of
God, and am sent to speak unto
thee, and to shew thee these
glad tidings.
20 And behold, thou shalt be
dumb, and not able to speak,
until the day that these
things shall be performed,
because thou believest not my
words, which shall be
fulfilled in their season.
21 And the people waited for
Zacharias, and marvelled that
he tarried so long in the
temple.
22 And when he came out, he
could not speak unto them: and
they perceived that he had
seen a vision in the temple;
for he beckoned unto them, and
remained speechless.
23 And it came to pass, that
as soon as the days of his
ministration were
accomplished, he departed to
his own house.
24 And after those days his
wife Elisabeth conceived, and
hid herself five months,
saying,
25 Thus hath the Lord dealt
with me in the days wherein he
looked on _me_, to take away
my reproach among men.
§ 3. An Angel appears to Mary. _Nazareth_.
Luke.
CH. I. 26-38.
26 And in the sixth month the
angel Gabriel was sent from
God unto a city of Galilee,
named Nazareth,
27 To a virgin espoused to a
man whose name was Joseph, of
the house of David; and the
virgin’s name _was_ Mary.
28 And the angel came in unto
her, and said, Hail, _thou
that art_ highly favoured, the
Lord is with thee: blessed art
thou among women.
29 And when she saw _him_, she
was troubled at his saying,
and cast in her mind what
manner of salutation this
should be.
30 And the angel said unto
her, Fear not, Mary: for thou
hast found favour with God.
31 And behold, thou shalt
conceive in thy womb, and
bring forth a son, and shalt
call his name JESUS.
32 He shall be great, and
shall be called the son of the
Highest; and the Lord God
shall give unto him the throne
of his father David.
33 And(83) he shall reign over
the house of Jacob for ever;
and of his kingdom there shall
be no end.
34 Then said Mary unto the
angel, How shall this be,
seeing I know not a man?
35 And the angel answered and
said unto her, The Holy Ghost
shall come upon thee, and the
power of the Highest shall
overshadow thee: therefore
also that holy thing which
shall be born of thee, shall
be called the Son of God.
36 And behold, thy cousin
Elisabeth, she hath also
conceived a son in her old
age; and this is the sixth
month with her who was called
barren:
37 For with God nothing shall
be impossible.
38 And Mary said, Behold the
handmaid of the Lord, be it
unto me according to thy word.
And the angel departed from
her.
§ 4. Mary visits Elisabeth. _Juttah_.
Luke.
CH. I. 39-56.
39 And Mary arose in those
days, and went into the
hill-country with haste, into
a city of Juda,
40 And entered into the house
of Zacharias, and saluted
Elisabeth.
41 And it came to pass, that
when Elisabeth heard the
salutation of Mary, the babe
leaped in her womb: and
Elisabeth was filled with the
Holy Ghost.
42 And she spake out with a
loud voice and said, Blessed
_art_ thou among women, and
blessed _is_ the fruit of thy
womb.
43 And whence _is_ this to me,
that the mother of my lord
should come to me?
44 For lo, as soon as the
voice of thy salutation
sounded in mine ears, the babe
leaped in my womb for joy.
45 And blessed _is_ she that
believed: for there shall be a
performance of those things
which were told her from the
Lord.
46 And Mary said, My soul doth
magnify the Lord,
47 And my spirit hath rejoiced
in God my Saviour.
48 For he hath regarded the
low estate of his handmaiden:
for behold, from henceforth
all generations shall call me
blessed.
49 For he that is mighty hath
done to me great things; and
holy _is_ his name.
50 And his mercy _is_ on them
that fear him, from generation
to generation.
51 He hath shewed strength
with his arm; he hath
scattered the proud in the
imagination of their hearts.
52 He hath put down the mighty
from _their_ seats, and
exalted them of low degree.
53 He hath filled the hungry
with good things, and the rich
he hath sent empty away.
54 He hath holpen his servant
Israel, in remembrance of
_his_ mercy;
55 As(84) he spake to our
fathers, to Abraham, and to
his seed, for ever.
56 And Mary abode with her
about three months, and
returned to her own house.
§ 5. The birth of John the Baptist. _Juttah_.
Luke.
CH. I. 57-80.
57 Now Elisabeth’s full time
came that she should be
delivered; and she brought
forth a son.
58 And her neighbours and her
cousins heard how the Lord had
shewed great mercy upon her;
and they rejoiced with her.
59 And it came to pass, that
on the eighth day they came to
circumcise the child; and they
called him Zacharias, after
the name of his father.
60 And his mother answered and
said, not _so_; but he shall
be called John.
61 And they said unto her,
There is none of thy kindred
that is called by this name.
62 And they made signs to his
father, how he would have him
called.
63 And he asked for a
writing-table, and wrote,
saying, His name is John. And
they marvelled all.
64 And his mouth was opened
immediately, and his tongue
loosed, and he spake, and
praised God.
65 And fear came on all that
dwelt round about them: and
all these sayings were noised
abroad throughout all the
hill-country of Judea.
66 And all they that heard
_them_, laid _them_ up in
their hearts, saying, What
manner of child shall this be!
And the hand of the Lord was
with him.
67 And his father Zacharias
was filled with the Holy
Ghost, and prophesied, saying,
68 Blessed _be_ the Lord God
of Israel; for he hath visited
and redeemed his people,
69 And hath raised up a horn
of salvation for us, in the
house of his servant David:
70 As he spake by the mouth of
his holy prophets, which have
been since the world began:
71 That we should be saved
from our enemies, and from the
hand of all that hate us;
72 To perform the mercy
_promised_ to our fathers, and
to remember his holy covenant;
73 The oath which he sware to
our Father Abraham,(85)
74 That he would grant unto
us, that we, being delivered
out of the hand of our
enemies, might serve him
without fear,
75 In holiness and
righteousness before him, all
the days of our life.
76 And thou, child, shalt be
called the Prophet of the
Highest, for thou shalt go
before the face of the Lord to
prepare his ways;
77 To give knowledge of
salvation unto his people, by
the remission of their sins,
78 Through the tender mercy of
our God; whereby the
day-spring from on high hath
visited us,
79 To give light to them that
sit in darkness and _in_ the
shadow of death, to guide our
feet into the way of peace.
80 And the child grew, and
waxed strong in spirit, and
was in the deserts till the
day of his shewing unto
Israel.
§ 6. An Angel appears to Joseph. _Nazareth._
Matthew.
CH. I. 18-25.
18 Now the birth of Jesus
Christ was on this wise: When
as his mother Mary was
espoused to Joseph, before
they came together, she was
found with child of the holy
Ghost.
19 Then Joseph her husband,
being a just _man_, and not
willing to make her a public
example, was minded to put her
away privily.(86)
20 But while he thought on
these things, Behold, the
angel of the Lord appeared
unto him in a dream, saying,
Joseph, thou son of David,
fear not to take unto thee
Mary thy wife; for that which
is conceived in her is of the
Holy Ghost.
21 And she shall bring forth a
son, and thou shalt call his
name JESUS: for he shall save
his people from their sins.
22 Now all this was done, that
it might be fulfilled which
was spoken of the Lord by the
prophet, saying,
23 Behold,(87) a virgin shall
be with child, and shall bring
forth a son, and they shall
call his name Emmanuel, which
being interpreted is, God with
us.
24 Then Joseph, being raised
from sleep, did as the angel
of the Lord had bidden him,
and took unto him his wife:
25 And knew her not till she
had brought forth her
first-born son: and he called
his name JESUS.
§ 7. The birth of Jesus. _Bethlehem_.
Luke.
CH. II. 1-7.
And it came to pass in those
days, that there went out a
decree(88) from Cesar
Augustus, that all the world
should be taxed.
2 (And this taxing was first
made when Cyrenius was
governor of Syria.)
3 And all went to be taxed,
every one into his own city.
4 And Joseph also went up from
Galilee, out of the city of
Nazareth, into Judea, unto the
city of David, which is called
Bethlehem, (because he was of
the house and lineage of
David,)
5 To be taxed with Mary his
espoused wife, being great
with child.
6 And so it was, that while
they were there, the days were
accomplished that she should
be delivered.
7 And she brought forth her
first-born son, and wrapped
him in swaddling-clothes, and
laid him in a manger; because
there was no room for them in
the inn.
§ 8. An Angel appears to the Shepherds. _Near Bethlehem_.
Luke.
CH. II. 8-20.
8 And there were in the same
country shepherds abiding in
the field, keeping watch over
their flock by night.
9 And lo, the angel of the
Lord came upon them, and the
glory of the Lord shone round
about them; and they were sore
afraid.
10 And the angel said unto
them, Fear not: for behold, I
bring you good tidings of
great joy, which shall be to
all people.
11 For unto you is born this
day, in the city of David, a
Saviour, which is Christ the
Lord.
12 And this _shall be_ a sign
unto you; Ye shall find the
babe wrapped in
swaddling-clothes, lying in a
manger.
13 And suddenly there was with
the angel a multitude of the
heavenly host praising God,
and saying,
14 Glory to God in the
highest, and on earth peace,
good will toward men.
15 And it came to pass, as the
angels were gone away from
them into heaven, the
shepherds said one to another,
Let us now go even unto
Bethlehem, and see this thing
which is come to pass, which
the Lord hath made known unto
us.
16 And they came with haste,
and found Mary and Joseph, and
the babe lying in a manger.
17 And when they had seen
_it_, they made known abroad
the saying which was told them
concerning this child.
18 And all they that heard it,
wondered at those things which
were told them by the
shepherds.
19 But Mary kept all these
things, and pondered _them_ in
her heart.
20 And the shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God
for all the things that they
had heard and seen, as it was
told unto them.
§ 9. The circumcision of Jesus and his presentation in the temple.
_Bethlehem_. _Jerusalem_.
Luke.
CH. II. 21-38.
21 And when eight days were
accomplished for the
circumcising of the child,(89)
his name was called JESUS,
which was so named of the
angel before he was conceived
in the womb.
22 And when the days of her
purification according to the
law of Moses were
accomplished, they brought him
to Jerusalem, to present _him_
to the Lord;
23 (As it is written in the
law of the Lord,(90) Every
male that openeth the womb
shall be called holy to the
Lord;)
24 And to offer a sacrifice
according to that which is
said in the law of the
Lord,(91) A pair of
turtle-doves, or two young
pigeons.
25 And behold, there was a man
in Jerusalem, whose name _was_
Simeon; and the same man _was_
just and devout, waiting for
the consolation of Israel: and
the Holy Ghost was upon him.
26 And it was revealed unto
him by the Holy Ghost, that he
should not see death, before
he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
27 And he came by the Spirit
into the temple; and when the
parents brought in the child
Jesus, to do for him after the
custom of the law,
28 Then took he him up in his
arms, and blessed God, and
said,
29 Lord, now lettest thou thy
servant depart in peace,
according to thy word:
30 For mine eyes have seen thy
salvation,
31 Which thou hast prepared
before the face of all people;
32 A light to lighten the
Gentiles, and the glory of thy
people Israel.
33 And Joseph and his mother
marvelled at those things
which were spoken of him.
34 And Simeon blessed them,
and said unto Mary his mother,
Behold, this child is(92) set
for the fall and rising again
of many in Israel; and for a
sign which shall be spoken
against,
35 (Yea, a sword shall pierce
through thy own soul also;)
that the thoughts of many
hearts may be revealed.
36 And there was one Anna, a
prophetess, the daughter of
Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser:
she was of a great age, and
had lived with a husband seven
years from her virginity.
37 And she _was_ a widow of
about fourscore and four
years, which departed not from
the temple, but served _God_
with fastings and prayers
night and day.
38 And she coming in that
instant, gave thanks likewise
unto the Lord, and spake of
him to all them that looked
for redemption in Jerusalem.
§ 10. The Magi. _Jerusalem._ _Bethlehem._
Matthew.
CH. II. 1-12.
Now when Jesus was born in
Bethlehem of Judea in the days
of Herod the king, behold,
there came wise men from the
East to Jerusalem,
2 Saying, Where is he that is
born king of the Jews? for we
have seen his star in the
east, and are come to worship
him.
3 When Herod the king had
heard _these things_, he was
troubled,(93) and all
Jerusalem with him.
4 And when he had gathered all
the chief priests and scribes
of the people together, he
demanded of them where Christ
should be born.
5 And they said unto him, in
Bethlehem of Judea: for thus
it is written by the prophet,
6 And(94) thou Bethlehem, in
the land of Juda, art not the
least among the princes of
Juda: for out of thee shall
come a Governor, that shall
rule my people Israel.
7 Then Herod, when he had
privily called the wise men,
inquired of them diligently
what time the star appeared.
8 And he sent them to
Bethlehem, and said Go, and
search diligently for the
young child; and when ye have
found _him_, bring me word
again, that I may come and
worship him also.
9 When they had heard the
king, they departed; and lo,
the star, which they saw in
the east, went before them,
till it came and stood over
where the young child was.
10 When they saw the star,
they rejoiced with exceeding
great joy.
11 And when they were come
into the house, they saw the
young child with Mary his
mother, and fell down, and
worshipped him: and when they
had opened their treasures,
they presented unto him gifts;
gold, and frankincense, and
myrrh.
12 And being warned of God in
a dream that they should not
return to Herod, they departed
into their own country another
way.
§ 11. The flight into Egypt. Herod’s cruelty. The return. _Bethlehem.
Nazareth_.
Matthew.
CH. II. 13-23.
13 And when they were
departed, behold, the angel of
the Lord appeareth to Joseph
in a dream, saying, Arise, and
take the young child and his
mother, and flee into Egypt,
and be thou there until I
bring thee word: for Herod
will seek the young child to
destroy him.
14 When he arose, he took the
young child and his mother by
night, and departed into
Egypt:
15 And was there until the
death of Herod: that it might
be fulfilled which was spoken
of the Lord by the prophet,
saying,(95) Out of Egypt have
I called my Son.
16 Then Herod, when he saw
that he was mocked of the wise
men, was exceeding wroth, and
sent forth, and slew all the
children that were in
Bethlehem, and in all the
coasts thereof, from two years
old and under, according to
the time which he had
diligently inquired of the
wise men.
17 Then was fulfilled that
which was spoken by Jeremy the
prophet, saying,
18 In(96) Rama was there a
voice heard, lamentation, and
weeping, and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her
children, and would not be
comforted, because they are
not.
19 But, when Herod was dead,
behold, an angel of the Lord
appeareth in a dream to Joseph
in Egypt,
20 Saying, Arise, and take the
young child and his mother,
and go into the land of
Israel: for they are dead
which sought the young child’s
life.
21 And he arose, and took the
young child and his mother,
and came into the land of
Israel.
22 But when he heard that
Archelaus did reign in Judea
in the room of his father
Herod, he was afraid to go
thither:(97) notwithstanding,
being warned of God in a
dream, he turned aside into
the parts of Galilee:
23 And he came and dwelt in a
city called Nazareth: that it
might be fulfilled which was
spoken by the prophets, He
shall be called a
Nazarene.(98)
§ 12. At twelve years of age, Jesus goes to the Passover. _Jerusalem_.
Luke.
CH. II. 41-52.
41 Now his parents went to
Jerusalem every year at the
feast of the passover.
42 And when he was twelve
years old(99), they went up to
Jerusalem after the custom of
the feast.
43 And when they had fulfilled
the days, as they returned,
the child Jesus tarried behind
in Jerusalem; and Joseph and
his mother knew not of it.
44 But they, supposing him to
have been in the company,(100)
went a day’s journey; and they
sought him among their
kinsfolk and acquaintance.
45 And when they found him
not, they turned back again to
Jerusalem, seeking him.
46 And it came to pass, that
after three days they found
him in the temple, sitting in
the midst of the doctors, both
hearing them, and asking them
questions.
47 And all that heard him were
astonished at his
understanding and answers.
48 And when they saw him, they
were amazed: and his mother
said unto him, Son, why hast
thou thus dealt with us?
Behold, thy father and I have
sought thee sorrowing.
49 And he said unto them, How
is it that ye sought me? wist
ye not that I must be about my
Father’s business?
50 And they understood not the
saying which he spake unto
them.
51 And he went down with them,
and came to Nazareth, and was
subject unto them: but his
mother kept all these sayings
in her heart.
52 And Jesus increased in
wisdom and stature, and in
favour with God and man.
§ 13. The Genealogies.
Matthew.
CH. I. 1-17.
The book of the generation of
Jesus Christ, the son of
David, the son of Abraham.
2 Abraham begat Isaac; and
Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob
begat Judas and his brethren;
3 And Judas begat Phares and
Zara of Thamar; and Phares
begat Esrom; and Esrom begat
Aram;
4 And Aram begat Aminadab; and
Aminadab begat Naasson; and
Naasson begat Salmon;
5 And Salmon begat Booz of
Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of
Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse;
6 And Jesse begat David the
king; and David the king begat
Solomon of her _that had been
the wife_ of Urias;
7 And Solomon begat Roboam;
and Roboam begat Abia; and
Abia begat Asa;
8 And Asa begat Josaphat; and
Josaphat begat Joram; and
Joram begat Ozias;
9 And Ozias begat Joatham; and
Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz
begat Ezekias;
10 And Ezekias begat Manasses;
and Manasses begat Amon; and
Amon begat Josias;
11 And Josias begat Jechonias
and his brethren, about the
time they were carried away to
Babylon;
12 And after they were brought
to Babylon, Jechonias begat
Salathiel; and Salathiel begat
Zorobabel;
13 And Zorobabel begat Abiud;
and Abiud begat Eliakim; and
Eliakim begat Azor;
14 And Azor begat Sadoc; and
Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim
begat Eliud;
15 And Eliud begat Eleazar;
and Eleazar begat Matthan; and
Matthan begat Jacob;
16 And Jacob begat Joseph the
husband of Mary, of whom was
born Jesus, who is called
Christ.
17 So all the generations from
Abraham to David _are_
fourteen generations; and from
David until the carrying away
into Babylon _are_ fourteen
generations; and from the
carrying away into Babylon
unto Christ _are_ fourteen
generations.
Luke.
CH. III. 23-38, INVERTED.(101)
38 _The son_ of God, _the son_
of Adam, _the son_ of Seth,
_the son_ of Enos,
37 _The son_ of Cainan, _the
son_ of Maleleel, _the son_ of
Jared, _the son_ of Enoch,
_the son_ of Mathusala,
36 _The son_ of Lamech, _the
son_ of Noe, _the son_ of Sem,
_the son_ of Arphaxad, _the
son_ of Cainan,
35 _The son_ of Sala, _the
son_ of Heber, _the son_ of
Phalec, _the son_ of Ragau,
_the son_ of Saruch,
34 _The son_ of Nachor, _the
son_ of Thara, _the son_ of
Abraham, _the son_ of Isaac,
_the son_ of Jacob,
33 _The son_ of Juda, _the
son_ of Phares, _the son_ of
Esrom, _the son_ of Aram, _the
son_ of Aminadab,
32 _The son_ of Naasson, _the
son_ of Salmon, _the son_ of
Booz, _the son_ of Obed, _the
son_ of Jesse,
31 _The son_ of David, _the
son_ of Nathan, _the son_ of
Mattatha, _the son_ of Menan,
_the son_ of Melea,
30 _The son_ of Eliakim, _the
son_ of Jonan, _the son_ of
Joseph, _the son_ of Juda,
_the son_ of Simeon,
29 _The son_ of Levi, _the
son_ of Matthat, _the son_ of
Joram, _the son_ of Eliezer,
_the son_ of Jose,
28 _The son_ of Er, _the son_
of Elmodam, _the son_ of
Cosam, _the son_ of Addi, _the
son_ of Melchi,
27 _The son_ of Neri, _the
son_ of Salathiel, _the son_
of Zorobabel, _the son_ of
Rhesa, _the son_ of Joanna,
26 _The son_ of Juda, _the
son_ of Joseph, _the son_ of
Semei, _the son_ of
Mattathias, _the son_ of
Maath,
25 _The son_ of Nagge, _the
son_ of Esli, _the son_ of
Naum, _the son_ of Amos, _the
son_ of Mattathias,
24 _The son_ of Joseph, _the
son_ of Janna, _the son_ of
Melchi, _the son_ of Levi,
_the son_ of Matthat,
23 _The son_ of Heli, _the
son_ of Joseph,—And Jesus
himself ... being (as was
supposed)—
Part II. Announcement And Introduction Of Our Lord’s Public Ministry.
TIME. _About one year._
§ 14. The Ministry of John the Baptist. _The Desert._ _The Jordan._
Matthew. Mark.
CH. III. 1-12. CH. I. 1-8.
In those days came John the The beginning of the gospel of
Baptist, preaching in the Jesus Christ the Son of God:
wilderness of Judea,
2 And saying, Repent ye; for As it is written in the
the kingdom of heaven is at prophets,(102) Behold, I send
hand. my messenger before thy face,
which shall prepare thy way
before thee;
3 For this is he that was 3 The voice of one crying in
spoken of by the prophet the wilderness, Prepare ye the
Esaias, saying, The voice of way of the Lord, make his
one crying in the wilderness, paths straight.
Prepare ye the way of the
Lord, make his paths straight.
4 And the same John had his 4 John did baptize in the
raiment of camel’s hair, and a wilderness, and preach the
leathern girdle about his baptism of repentance, for the
loins; and his meat was remission of sins.
locusts and wild honey.
5 Then went out to him 5 And there went out unto him
Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the land of Judea, and
all the region round about they of Jerusalem, and were
Jordan. all baptized of him in the
river of Jordan, confessing
their sins.
6 And were baptized of him in 6 And John was clothed with
Jordan, confessing their sins. camel’s hair, and with a
girdle of a skin about his
loins; and he did eat locusts
and wild honey;
7 But when he saw many of the 7 And preached, saying, There
Pharisees and Sadducees come cometh one mightier than I
to his baptism, he said unto after me, the latchet of whose
them, O generation of vipers, shoes I am not worthy to stoop
who hath warned you to flee down and unloose.
from the wrath to come?
8 Bring forth therefore fruits 8 I indeed have baptized you
meet for repentance: with water: but he shall
baptize you with the Holy
Ghost.
9 And think not to say within
yourselves, We have Abraham to
our father: for I say unto
you, that God is able of these
stones to raise up children
unto Abraham.
10 And now also the axe is
laid unto the root of the
trees: therefore every tree
which bringeth not forth good
fruit is hewn down, and cast
into the fire.
11 I indeed baptize you with
water unto repentance: but he
that cometh after me is
mightier than I, whose shoes I
am not worthy to bear: he
shall baptize you with the
Holy Ghost, and _with_ fire:
12 Whose fan _is_ in his hand,
and he will thoroughly purge
his floor, and gather his
wheat into the garner; but he
will burn up the chaff with
unquenchable fire.
Luke.
CH. III. 1-18.
Now in the fifteenth year of
the reign of Tiberius Cesar,
Pontius Pilate being governor
of Judea, and Herod being
tetrarch of Galilee, and his
brother Philip tetrarch of
Iturea and of the region of
Trachonitis, and Lysanias the
tetrarch of Abilene.
2 Annas and Caiaphas being the
high priests,(103) the word of
God came unto John the son of
Zacharias in the wilderness.
3 And he came into all the
country about Jordan,
preaching the baptism of
repentance, for the remission
of sins;
4 As it is written in the book
of the words of Esaias the
prophet, saying,(104) The
voice of one crying in the
wilderness, Prepare ye the way
of the Lord, make his paths
straight.
5 Every valley shall be
filled, and every mountain and
hill shall be brought low; and
the crooked shall be made
straight, and the rough ways
shall be made smooth;
6 And all flesh shall see the
salvation of God.
7 Then said he to the
multitude that came forth to
be baptized of him, O
generation of vipers, who hath
warned you to flee from the
wrath to come?
8 Bring forth therefore fruits
worthy of repentance, and
begin not to say within
yourselves, We have Abraham to
_our_ father: for I say unto
you, That God is able of these
stones to raise up children
unto Abraham.
9 And now also the axe is laid
unto the root of the trees:
every tree therefore which
bringeth not forth good fruit,
is hewn down, and cast into
the fire.
10 And the people asked him,
saying, What shall we do then?
11 He answereth and saith unto
them, He that hath two coats,
let him impart to him that
hath none; and he that hath
meat, let him do likewise.
12 Then came also publicans to
be baptized, and said unto
him, Master, what shall we do?
13 And he said unto them,
Exact no more than that which
is appointed you.
14 And the soldiers likewise
demanded of him, saying, And
what shall we do? And he said
unto them, Do violence to no
man, neither accuse _any_
falsely; and be content with
your wages.
15 And as the people were in
expectation, and all men mused
in their hearts of John,
whether he were the Christ, or
not;
16 John answered, saying unto
_them_ all, I indeed baptize
you with water; but one
mightier than I cometh, the
latchet of whose shoes I am
not worthy to unloose: he
shall baptize you with the
Holy Ghost, and with fire:
17 Whose fan _is_ in his hand,
and he will thoroughly purge
his floor, and will gather the
wheat into his garner; but the
chaff he will burn with fire
unquenchable.
18 And many other things in
his exhortation preached he
unto the people.
§ 15. The Baptism of Jesus. _The Jordan._
Matthew. Mark.
CH. III. 13-17. CH. I. 9-11.
13 Then cometh Jesus from 9 And it came to pass in those
Galilee to Jordan unto John, days, that Jesus came from
to be baptized of him. Nazareth of Galilee, and was
baptized of John in Jordan.
14 But John forbade him, 10 And straightway coming up
saying, I have need to be out of the water, he saw the
baptized of thee, and comest heavens opened, and the Spirit
thou to me? like a dove descending upon
him.
15 And Jesus answering said 11 And there came a voice from
unto him, Suffer _it to be so_ heaven _saying_, Thou art my
now: for thus it becometh us beloved Son, in whom I am well
to fulfil all righteousness. pleased.
Then he suffered him.
16 And Jesus, when he was
baptized, when up straightway
out of the water: and lo, the
heavens were opened unto him,
and he saw the Spirit of God
descending like a dove, and
lighting upon him:
17 And lo, a voice from
heaven, saying, This is my
beloved Son, in whom I am well
pleased.
Luke.
CH. III. 21-23.
21 Now, when all the people
were baptized, it came to
pass, that Jesus also being
baptized, and praying, the
heaven was opened,
22 And the Holy Ghost
descended in a bodily shape
like a dove upon him, and a
voice came from heaven, which
said, Thou art my beloved Son;
in thee I am well pleased.
23 And Jesus himself began to
be about thirty years of age.
§ 16. The Temptation. _Desert of Judea_
Matthew. Mark.
CH. IV. 1-11. CH. I. 12-13.
Then was Jesus led up of the 12 And immediately the Spirit
Spirit into the wilderness to driveth him into the
be tempted of the devil. wilderness.
2 And when he had fasted forty 13 And he was there in the
days and forty nights, he was wilderness forty days tempted
afterward an hungered. of Satan; and was with the
wild beasts; and the angels
ministered unto him.
3 And when the tempter came to
him, he said, If thou be the
Son of God, command that these
stones be made bread.
4 But he answered and said, It
is written(105) Man shall not
live by bread alone, but by
every word that proceedeth out
of the mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up
into the holy city, and
setteth him on a pinnacle of
the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou
be the Son of God cast thyself
down, for it is written(106)
He shall give his angels
charge concerning thee: and in
_their_ hands they shall bear
thee up, lest at any time thou
dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is
written again,(107) Thou shalt
not tempt the Lord thy God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him
up into an exceeding high
mountain and sheweth him all
the kingdoms of the world, and
the glory of them:
9 And saith unto him, All
these things will I give thee,
if thou wilt fall down and
worship me.
10 Then saith Jesus unto him,
Get thee hence, Satan: for it
is written,(108) Thou shalt
worship the Lord thy God, and
him only shalt thou serve.
11 Then the devil leaveth him,
and behold, angels came and
ministered unto him.
Luke.
CH. IV. 1-13.(109)
And Jesus, being full of the
Holy Ghost, returned from
Jordan, and was led by the
Spirit into the wilderness,
2 Being forty days tempted of
the devil. And in those days
he did eat nothing: and when
they were ended, he afterward
hungered.
3 And the devil said unto him,
If thou be the Son of God,
command this stone that it be
made bread.
4 And Jesus answered him,
saying, It is written, That
man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word of
God.
9 And he brought him to
Jerusalem, and set him on a
pinnacle of the temple, and
said unto him, If thou be the
Son of God, cast thyself down
from hence:
10 For it is written, He shall
give his angels charge over
thee, to keep thee:
11 And in _their_ hands they
shall bear thee up, lest at
any time thou dash thy foot
against a stone.
12 And Jesus answering, said
unto him, It is said, Thou
shalt not tempt the Lord thy
God.
5 And the devil, taking him up
into a high mountain, shewed
unto him, all the kingdoms of
the world in a moment of time.
6 And the devil said unto him,
All this power will I give
thee, and the glory of them:
for that is delivered unto me,
and to whomsoever I will, I
give it.
7 If thou therefore wilt
worship me, all shall be
thine.
8 And Jesus answered and said
unto him, Get thee behind me,
Satan: for it is written, Thou
shalt worship the Lord thy
God, and him only shalt thou
serve.
13 And when the devil had
ended all the temptation, he
departed from him for a
season.
§ 17. Preface to John’s Gospel.
John.
CH. I. 1-18.
In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and
the Word was God.
2 The same was in the
beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him;
and without him was not
anything made that was made.
4 In him was life; and the
life was the light of men.
5 And the light shineth in
darkness; and the darkness
comprehended it not.
6 There was a man sent from
God, whose name _was_ John.
7 The same came for a witness,
to bear witness of the Light,
that all _men_ through him
might believe.
8 He was not that Light, but
_was sent_ to bear witness of
that light.
9 _That_ was the true Light,
which lighteth every man that
cometh into the world.
10 He was in the world, and
the world was made by him, and
the world knew him not.
11 He came unto his own, and
his own received him not.
12 But as many as received
him, to them gave he power to
become the sons of God, _even_
to them that believe on his
name:
13 Which were born, not of
blood, nor of the will of the
flesh, nor of the will of man,
but of God.
14 And the Word was made
flesh, and dwelt among us,
(and we beheld his glory, the
glory as of the only begotten
of the Father,) full of grace
and truth.
15 John bare witness of him,
and cried, saying, This was he
of whom I spake, He that
cometh after me, is preferred
before me; for he was before
me.
16 And of his fulness have all
we received, and grace for
grace.
17 For the law was given by
Moses, _but_ grace and truth
came by Jesus Christ.
18 No man hath seen God at any
time; the only begotten Son,
which is in the bosom of the
Father, he hath declared
_him_.
§ 18. Testimony of John the Baptist to Jesus. _Bethany beyond Jordan_.
John.
CH. I. 19-34.
19 And this is the record of
John, when the Jews sent
priests and Levites from
Jerusalem, to ask him, Who art
thou?
20 And he confessed, and
denied not; but confessed, I
am not the Christ.
21 And they asked him, What
then? Art thou Elias? And he
saith, I am not. Art thou that
prophet? And he answered,
No.(110)
22 Then said they unto him,
Who art thou? that we may give
an answer to them that sent
us. What sayest thou of
thyself?
23 He said,(111) I am the
voice of one crying in the
wilderness, Make straight the
way of the Lord, as said the
prophet Esaias.
24 And they which were sent
were of the Pharisees.
25 And they asked him, and
said unto him, Why baptizest
thou then, if thou be not that
Christ, nor Elias, neither
that prophet?
26 John answered them, saying,
I baptize with water: but
there standeth one among you,
whom ye know not.
27 He it is, who coming after
me, is preferred before me,
whose shoe’s latchet I am not
worthy to unloose.
28 These things were done in
Bethabara beyond Jordan, where
John was baptizing.
29 The next day John seeth
Jesus coming unto him, and
saith, Behold the Lamb of God,
which taketh away the sin of
the world!
30 This is he of whom I said,
After me cometh a man which is
preferred before me; for he
was before me.
31 And I knew him not: but
that he should be made
manifest to Israel, therefore
am I come baptizing with
water.
32 And John bare record,
saying, I saw the Spirit
descending from heaven like a
dove, and it abode upon him.
33 And I knew him not: but he
that sent me to baptize with
water, the same said unto me,
Upon whom thou shalt see the
Spirit descending and
remaining on him, the same is
he which baptizeth with the
Holy Ghost.
34 And I saw and bare record,
that this is the Son of God.
§ 19. Jesus gains disciples. _The Jordan. Galilee_.
John.
CH. I. 35-51.
35 Again the next day after,
John stood, and two of his
disciples;
36 And looking upon Jesus as
he walked, he saith, Behold
the Lamb of God!
37 And the two disciples heard
him speak, and they followed
Jesus.
38 Then Jesus turned, and saw
them following, and saith unto
them, What seek ye? They said
unto him, Rabbi, (which is to
say, being interpreted,
Master,) where dwellest thou?
39 He saith unto them, Come
and see. They came and saw
where he dwelt, and abode with
him that day: for it was about
the tenth hour.
40 One of the two which heard
John _speak_, and followed
him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s
brother.
41 He first findeth his own
brother Simon, and saith unto
him, We have found the
Messias; which is, being
interpreted, the Christ.
42 And he brought him to
Jesus. And when Jesus beheld
him, he said, Thou art Simon
the son of Jona: thou shalt be
called Cephas; which is, by
interpretation, a stone.(112)
43 The day following Jesus
would go forth into Galilee,
and findeth Philip, and saith
unto him, Follow me.
44 Now Philip was of
Bethsaida, the city of Andrew
and Peter.
45 Philip findeth
Nathanael,(113) and saith unto
him, We have found him of whom
Moses in the law, and the
prophets, did write, Jesus of
Nazareth the son of Joseph.
46 And Nathanael said unto
him, Can there any good thing
come out of Nazareth? Philip
saith unto him, Come and see.
47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming
to him, and saith of him,
Behold an Israelite indeed, in
whom is no guile!
48 Nathanael saith unto him,
Whence knowest thou me? Jesus
answered and said unto him,
Before that Philip called
thee, when thou wast under the
fig-tree, I saw th
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