II. CORINTHIANS.

[A.D. 60.

4. "Paradise." Commentators are rather divided here. They cannot agree whether "Paradise" is here the same as the "third heaven," or another place; and they who agree that another place is to be understood, doubt whether it denotes the Garden of Eden or the place of departed souls. The most ancient interpretation, in which the most considerable modern commentators have been disposed to concur, is, that the unutterable things of the third heaven and of the place of departed souls, were successively manifested to the apostle.

7. "A thorn in the flesh." -There is no bodily complaint which man can suffer, no disease of mind which can befal him, nor any temptation to which he is subject, in which St. Paul's "thorn in the flesh" has not been sought. From all this, as well as from the nature of the thing, it is so evident that whatever may be offered on the subject must be the merest conjecture, that we do not feel it necessary to enter into the question. The pain inflicted by a sharp thom or splinter, which has entered the flesh, is so acute, that it is almost everywhere found to supply a metaphor for expressing any severe anguish, whether of body or mind.

CHAPTER XIII.

1 He threateneth severity, and the power of his apostleship against obstinate sinners. 5 And advising them to a trial of their faith, 7 and to a reformation of their sins before his coming, 11 he concludeth his epistle with a general exhortation and a prayer.

THIS is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.

2 I told you before, and foretell you, as if I were present, the second time; and being absent now I write to them which heretofore have sinned, and to all other, that, if I come again I will not spare:

3 Since ye seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, which to you-ward is not weak, but is mighty in you.

4 For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God toward you.

5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

twice at Corinth. Yet we have no of time except this, which can

1 Deut. 19. 15.

6 But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.

7 Now I pray to God that ye do no evil; not that we should appear approved, but that ye should do that which is honest, though we be as reprobates.

8 For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.

9 For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, eren your perfection.

10 Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the power which the Lord hath given me to edification, and not

to destruction.

fect, be of
11 Finally, brethren, farewell. Be per
good comfort, be of one mind, live
shall be with you.
in peace; and the God of love and peace

12 Greet one another with an holy kiss.
13 All the saints salute you.

14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.

2 Or, with him.

The second epistle to the Corinthians was written from Philippi, a city of Macedonia, by Titus and Lucas.

3 Rom. 16. 16.

Verse 1. "This is the third time I am coming to you." -These words seem to imply that the writer had already been historical knowledge that St. Paul visited that city more than twice, and every note be collected, plainly intimates that this, as well tween his first and second visit. Moreover, from his first visit to Greece down to his first imprisonment at Rome, the as the former Epistle, was written beapostle's time is fully accounted for, precluding the idea that any third journey If, therefore, the epistle was written after the second journey to Corinth, and in view and expectation of a third, it journey to Corinth could be made or intended. must have been written after his first imprisonment at Rome; that is, after the time to which the history extends, "When I first read over this Epistle, with the particular view of comparing it with the history," says Dr. Paley, " own that I felt myself confounded by this text. It appeared to contradict the opinion which I had been led, from a great variety of circumstances, to form, concerning the date and occasion of this Epistle. At length, however, it occurred to my thoughts to inquire whether the passage did necessarily imply that St. Paul had visited Corinth twice; or whether, when he says, 'This is the third time I am coming unto you,' time he was ready, that he was prepared, that he intended to set out upon his journey to Corinth. I recollected that might mean only that this was the third he had once before this proposed to visit Corinth, and had been disappointed in his purpose, which disappointment forms the subject of much apology and protestation in the first and second chapters of the Epistle. Now if the journey in which he had been disappointed was reckoned by him one of the times in present would be the third time, i. e., of his being ready and prepared to come; although he had been actually at which he was coming to them, then the Corinth only once before. This conjecture being taken up, a further examination of the passage and the Epistle produced proofs which placed it beyond doubt." For these proofs, which seem to tent to refer to Horæ Paulinæ, ch. iv. No. xi. It is right to explain, however, that although we have taken Paley's quite satisfactory, we must be clear exposition of the difficulty and its solution, the latter was by no means first discovered by him, the same having been given by some of the ancient and many of the modern commentators.

he

us

con

THE EPISTLE OF PAUL THE APOSTLE

TO THE

GALATIANS.

6 He wondereth that they have so soon left him and the Gospel, 8 and accurseth those that preach any other Gospel than he did. 11 He learned the Gospel not of men, but of God: 14 and sheweth what he was before his calling, 17 and what he did presently after it.

P

AUL, an apo-
stle, (not of
men, neither by
man, but by Je-
sus Christ, and
God the Fa-

ther, who raised
him from the
dead ;)

2 And all the brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia:

GALATIANS. Of the Galatians, and the country which they occupied, some notice has been taken under Acts xvi. 6. The Gospel of Christ was first preached to the Galatians by St. Paul himself (Acts xvi. 6), who afterwards visited again the churches which he had planted among them (Acts xviii. 33). The first visit appears to have been about the year 49 or 50, and the second in 54 or 55. As the Epistle does not intimate that the apostle had been twice with them, it was probably written between the first and second visits. Indeed, it was the ancient opinion that this was the first in date of all the Epistles of St. Paul; and this opinion has been adopted and advocated, with his usual ability, by Michaelis. Even those who are not prepared to affirm that this was the most early of the Epistles, do yet generally allow that it was one of the earliest, and assign it dates ranging, for the most part, between the years we have just mentioned. That St. Paul complains how speedily the Galatians had been seduced from the simple doctrines which he taught, as well as the very character of the question which forms its principal subject, clearly demonstrate that the Epistle to the Galatians must take its place among the earliest of St. Paul's writings. The statement in the subscription, that it was written from Rome-that is, while Paul was a prisoner there is utterly unfounded, and does not claim

the least attention.

Like many other of St. Paul's Epistles, the one now before us is chiefly occupied in opposing the disposition shown by the Christian converts to unite Judaism with Christianity; and since so much of the present Epistle is employed on the subject of circumcision, which point was sooner settled than many others, it is evident that it was written at an earlier stage of this great controversy than when the Epistles to the Corinthians and the Romans were composed. It appears, indeed, that one or more influential Christian Jews, probably from Jerusalem, had intruded into the Galatian church-which had been founded on the ideas of Christian liberty from the yoke of the Law, which St. Paul enter tained and taught the necessity of circumcision, and of obedience to the whole Law. They seem to have considered, with many others who stirred up the churches against St. Paul, that Christianity was merely a sect or modification of Judaism, which did not by any means dispense with the obligations of the Law, which they believed to be perpetual. This notion it was natural enough for Jews to entertain; and even some of the apostles appear to have relinquished it with difficulty. Indeed, it seems, in this age, to have been the hardest of all things for the Jewish Christians to understand that the new religion was an original, independent, and superseding revelation. St. Paul was constantly brought into contact with the class of feelings arising from such views, since, as the apostle of the Gentiles, it became neces sary to him to state the separate claims of Christianity broadly and distinctly. tly. He had to tell the Gentile converts whether they were to obey the Law of Moses or not: whereas the apostles who laboured among the Jews, had not the subject equally pressed upon their attention, and did not feel it urgently necessary to teach their converts to disconcinne that obedience to the Law which they had been accustomed to render. If the apostles of the circumcision permitted these things, as matters indifferent to those who were Jews. Paul felt that it behoved him not to allow that, which

might thus be permitted to them

For Judaism was not adapted

the Gentiles. To

great

as an indifferent thing, to be set up as a matter of necessity to require the Gentiles to conform to the Law of Moses, and above all to be circumcised, was to lay upon their shoulders a yoke very different from the easy one of Christ; and was calculated to hinder the progress of the Gospel among them. to general acceptance; and it must not be concealed that circumcision alone was a bar to its adoption. For it is certain that the Gentiles had an invincible repugnance to the rite; in which we may perhaps discover the reason for the remarkable fact, that while the female converts to Judaism were very numerous, the males were comparatively few.

Some of the other points which the Epistle offers to consideration may remind one of the misrepresentations concer ing Paul which were circulated at Corinth. "The Epistle supposes," says Paley, "that certain designing adherents of the Jewish Law had crept into the churches of Galatia; and they had been endeavouring, and but too successfully, to persuade the Galatic converts that they had been taught the religion imperfectly, and at

no

new

second-hand; that the

founder of their church himself possessed but an inferior and deputed commission, the seat of truth and authority being in the apostles and elders at Jerusalem; moreover, that whatever he might profess among them, he had himsel at other times and at other places, given way to the doctrine of circumcision." (Horæ Paulinæ, ch. v. No. 1.) Verse 17. "I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus." From this we learn an important circumstances to which the Acts of the Apostles contain from the time conversion until he went to Jerusalem, Paul had allusioned But for this, we might suppose that, from that in this time he had performed a journey into Arabia; we are not, however, informed remained, or what work he accomplished. to what part of Arabia he went, how long he It seem probable that he went into Arabia Petræa, which adjoined that Part of Syria in which Damascus is situated; and it may be well to remember that Damascus was at this time subject chure Arabian king. Doubtless, he preached the Gospel and planted churches in Arabia. That there were Christian by some, that St. Paul paid cetuto Arabia for the sake of his health, is preposteriais. The idea entertained by ought of going into Arabia on

churches in that country, in the ages following,

account health?

18.

a

phal departure from Damascus, is described acts ixy, the time which classed to question whether this popula After three years." - In the history (Acts ix.), the time which elapsed between Paul's conversion and his properly be so extended as to mean l away at Jerusalem many days, and it came passthree years," he may turn to Kings the servants of Shinmei ra

CHAPTER II.

xi. 38, 39,-" And Shimet

2 revelation, and com

1 He sheweth when he went up again to Jerusalem, muniand I went up by that Gospel which I
preach among the Gentiles, but 'privately
to them which were of reputation, lest by
any means I should run, or had run, in vain.
3 But neither Titus, who was with me,
cised:
being a Greek, was compelled to be circum-

and for what purpose: 3 and that Titus was not
circumcised: 11 and that he resisted Peter, and
told him the reason, 14 why he and other, being
Jews, do believe in Christ to be justified
and not by works: 20 and that they live not in
sin, who are so justified.

by faith,
faith

THEN fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me also.

4 And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy

out our liberty which we have in Christ | mitted unto me, as the Gospel of the circumJesus, that they might bring us into bond

16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

17 But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid.

18 For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor. 19 For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.

20 I am crucified with Christ: neverthe

less I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me, and gave himself for me. 21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness tome by the law, then

me: and the life which I now live in the

Christ is dead in vain:

3 Rom. 3. 20.

Under this hypothesis as it was the result ol

Verse 1. " Fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem." - Most commentators understand this to apply to the journey from Antioch to Jerusalem, which was made by Paul and Barnabas, upon the business of the Gentile converts and which journey produced the famous apostolical council and decree recorded in Acts xv. has been thought remarkable that Paul should here omit all mention of that decree, not only the journey, but because it was intimately connected with the question which he is now discussing. But any wonde at this may subside, when we reflect that his views on the subject of the non-observance of the law of Moses, we much further than that decree; and that he did not wish to encourage the Galatians to lean on the authority of other apostle than himself. There still however remain storage the which the reader may see the Horæ Pauline' of Dr. Paley, who himself is led by them to conclude that the present passage refers to some journey to Jerusalem, previously undertaken, the mention of which is omitted in the Acts.

9. "Pillars." This title is often given by the Jewish writers to their eminent teachers. eldes Peter." - There can be no reasofiable doubt but that this was the apostle of that name. Yet, to saveso emiter: the church from St. Paul's rebuke, it was very this the best that are here mentioned was the apostle, but another man of the same name, who had been one of the seventy disciples. Clemens (apud husel makes this statement; and Jerome mentiofis it as an opinion which some entertaified:

1