all Jews from Italy; and that, attaching himself to them, they, as in other instances, frequented the Jewish synagogue every Sabbath, reasoning with them as at Thessalonica, and persuading both the Jews and the Greeks concerning Jesus of Nazareth, whom he testified to be the Christ or true Messiah. Concise as the Evangelist Luke's narrative is, we may without difficulty collect from it a tolerable picture of the rancorous hostility which was produced, on the part of the Jews, to the apostle's doctrine. They are described as "opposing themselves" to it with vehemence, contradicting and blaspheming," insomuch that the apostle "shook his raiment," and said "Your blood be upon your own heads. I am clean-from henceforth I go unto the Gentiles." But though the great bulk of the Jews resisted the apostle's testimony, the chief ruler of the synagogue believed, as did all his household likewise, and Justus, whose house adjoined the synagogue-and, in short, "many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed, and were baptized," ver. 8.

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This laid the foundation of the church of the Corinthians, to which the apostle afterwards wrote the two epistles that are still on record-a church that was second to none in the number of its spiritual gifts, though unhappily not the most united or exemplary in its order and obedience, and greatly deficient in the grace of charity. That however was the effect, not of the truth which they had received, but of evil influence, or the emissaries of the wicked one getting access among them and propagating corrupt doctrine, the fruitful source of all discord. Having gathered the disciples together into a church state, and given them the ordinances of the house of God to observe, it would appear that the apostle was about to take his departure from Corinth, when the Lord Jesus appeared to him in a vision by night, and encouraged him to continue his labours, adding, “I have much people in this city,"-assuring him of safety and protection-the consequence of which was that Paul continued at Corinth a year and a half, teaching the word of God among them. But I must not dismiss the narrative of the success of the Gospel at Corinth, without adding that this city, like Athens and Ephesus, was the sink of vice and idolatry when the apostle first came to preach the Gospel there. For dissoluteness of manners indeed it was proverbial-so muchso that we are told

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a Corinthian female was, in those days, nearly equivalent to a courtezan among us-and this may account to you for the apostle dwelling so much as he does in his epistles to that church on the evil of fornication, and the opposite virtues of continence and chastity. But, in addition to this, the city abounded with idolatrous temples, in which sacrifices were continually offered to the heathen deities, attended with the most impure and disgusting rites, to all which there are numerous allusions and pointed references in Paul's epistles to them. I may quote one single passage as a specimen of the whole, "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolators, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God." What a catalogue of vicious characters is here enumerated by the apostle! but why has he done it? Observe his own words-" and such were some of you --but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God," 1 Cor. vi. 9-11. And what was the doctrine which the apostle preached among them and which was so wonderfully efficacious in reclaiming such abandoned characters as those he has enumerated? and with what powers of persuasion and eloquence was it enforced? We have the apostle's own account of the matter, eh. ii. 1, &c. :-" And I, brethren, when I came unto you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God; for I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified; and I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling; and my speech and my preaching was not with the persuasible words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men but in the power of God." These were the weapons of the apostolic warfare: and they were mighty through divine influence; the apostle could say to the Corinthians "I have begotten you by means of the Gospel"-"the seal of mine apostleship are ye in the Lord." And so we find him exulting in the success of his ministry among them in the following strains: "Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and

maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place. For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved and in them that perish: to the one we are the savour of life unto life, and to the other of death unto death-and who is sufficient for these things?" 2 Cor. ii. 14—16.

Arriving at EPHESUS, the apostle was joined by Apollos, a Jew by nation, and born at Alexandria in Egypt. He appears to have been a disciple of John the Baptist, and, though an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, he was but imperfectly instructed in the way of the Lord. Priscilla and Aquila, however, perceiving the imperfection of his knowledge, "took him and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly," by informing him that Jesus of Nazareth was the true Messiah, the Son of God, whose coming John had announced-that he had died and risen again, and ascended into heaven, and sent down the Holy Spirit upon his disciples, and set up his kingdom in the world; facts which must have added greatly to the stock of knowledge which Apollos previously possessed. Thus qualified, and having obtained letters of recommendation to the church of Corinth, Apollos proceeded thither to water the seed which Paul had planted; and we are told that " he helped them much which through grace had believed;" and not only so, but he was eminently instrumental in making fresh converts; " for he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly, showing by the Scriptures that Jesus was the Messiah." Acts xviii. 24-28.

Ephesus was at this time the metropolis of the province of Asia, and an exceedingly populous city. But its.state in regard to religion and morals was deplorable in the extreme-it was the very throne of idolatry, superstition, and magic. The apostle had gotten a glance of its actual state while on his former journey, but, having made up his mind to attend the feast of the passover at Jerusalem, he could not be prevailed upon then to tarry at Ephesus, but, bidding his friends there farewell, he promised to return again, if the Lord permitted, and accordingly sailed from Ephesus.

The principal object of worship among the Ephesians was the heathen goddess Diana, to whose honour they had erected one of the most magnificent temples in the eastern world. It contained an image, or statue, of the goddess, which the people of

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Ephesus pretended came down from heaven. This imposture drew from all parts many superstitious persons, who, at their departure, purchased silver medals of the temple and image, to the great profit of Demetrius and his workmen, by whom they were manufactured. These persons, finding that by the spread of Christianity their craft was in danger, met in solemn council to consult what was best to be done for the common good:"Sirs," said they, "ye know that by this craft we gain our wealth; and now ye see and hear that not only at Ephesus, but in almost every other part of Asia, this Paul has had such influence, that he has persuaded the people they are no gods which are made with hands; so that not only is our lucrative traffic in danger of being ruined, but even the temple of the great goddess herself is in danger of being despised, and her magnificence destroyed! yes, that very deity whom all Asia and the world at large worshipped." To arguments so cogent as these, who could be insensible? The craftsmen were one and all filled with indignation, and, rushing out, exclaimed as with one voice, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians." The populace joined in the clamour, and the whole city was filled with confusion. Read the narrative at large, as you have it in the nineteenth chapter of the Acts, and there you will find the uproar, vociferation, and noise, described in a much better manner than I am able to describe it, and find cause to bless God for the ordinance of magistracy, to which the servants of Christ were indebted for their preservation from the fury of the mob, who, had they not been restrained, would have torn them to atoms. The success of the apostle's ministry in this far-famed city was most astonishing. Soothsayers and magicians brought out their books of magical incantation, voluntarily confessed their deeds of witchcraft, committing their books to the flames, the value of which was computed at fifty thousand pieces of silver, or £7,500 sterling, an enormous sum in those days; so mightily grew the word of God and prevailed.

We find the apostle, on one occasion, speaking of his having fought with beasts at Ephesus;" but whether this is to be understood literally, or taken in a figurative sense, may be questioned. Many learned men understand it in the former acceptation, and believe that he was condemned literally to

combat with wild beasts in the theatre "after the manner of men," that is, according to the barbarous custom of the men of that age. Such persons were allowed to defend themselves; if the lion or bear destroyed them, there was an end of them: if they conquered the beast, the judge of the games commonly granted their pardon. This mode of punishing offenders was a sport in the theatre to the public company. If this apostle was thus set forth last, appointed to death, a spectacle to the world, to angels, and men, he might well say as he does, in an epistle sent by him from Ephesus to the church at Corinth, soon after,—“ In the trouble which befel us in Asia, we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life; but we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God who raiseth the dead, who delivered us from so great a death, and doth still deliver,” 2 Cor. i. 8-10. The apostle remained at Ephesus some time after this; but after the riot occasioned by Demetrius and the company of silversmiths, in which the Jews, with Alexander (the coppersmith), joined the idolatrous mob, he judged it prudent to retire into Macedonia, Acts xix.

Paul left Timothy, the evangelist, now about twenty-seven years of age, at Ephesus, for the purpose of organizing the church; and, in an epistle written nominally to Timothy, he instructed him how he should behave himself in the house of God, what sort of men he should appoint to the offices of Elders and Deacons, and how all the church should regulate their faith, manners, and deportment. Most commentators think that Paul never returned to Ephesus; but all allow that he went to Miletus, a few miles from Ephesus, where the Elders of the church met him, and where he took that affectionate leave of them which is recorded in Acts xx. This was in the year 58, soon after the apostle had written the first epistle to Timothy, and probably immediately after the church had been set in order with its Elders and Deacons. On that occasion he foretold them that, after his departure, grievous wolves would enter in among them, not sparing the flock, and that even of themselves men would arise, speaking perverse things to draw away disciples after them, which came to pass about the time that he wrote the second epistle to Timothy. The apostle's warning