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king, as one that was born King of the Jews, and born in Bethlehem, according to the prophets. How the Sermon on the Mount is presented in one connected whole, as if it were a republication of the ancient law of Sinai in a new and better form. How the series of miracles in the eighth and ninth chapters follows as if designed to evidence the divine power and authority of this new Lawgiver and King. The calling, ordaining, and sending out the twelve disciples (chap. x) was like the election of a new Israel to reclaim the twelve tribes scattered abroad. The seven parables of chap. xiii are a revelation of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, the kingdom which he, as the Christ of God, was about to establish. Then follows ample record of the conflict between this King of the Jews and the scribes and Pharisees, who looked for another kind of Messianic kingdom (xiv-xxiii). The great apocalyptic discourse of chaps. xxiv and xxv discloses the end of that age as in the near future, and is in striking analogy with the spirit and forms of Old Testament prophecy. The record of the last supper, the betrayal, the crucifixion, and the resurrection, completes the picture of the great Prophet, Priest, and King. The entire book has thus a unity of purpose and of detail admirably adapted to be the gospel to the Hebrews, and to show to all the thoughtful in Israel that Jesus was indeed the Messiah of whom the prophets had spoken. Moreover, while thus breathing the Hebrew spirit, it has fewer explanations of Jewish customs than the other gospels.

the earlier Gos

Many have deemed it strange that Matthew says nothing about Omissions of the first miracle of Jesus, at Cana, or of the healing at pels not with- Capernaum of the nobleman's son, or of the resurrecout a purpose. tion of Lazarus, facts of such great interest. These notable miracles are omitted in all the synoptic gospels, and some have rushed to the conclusion that they were unknown to Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Much more reasonable is the suggestion of Upham, that in the earlier oral gospel, preached everywhere by the apostles, and represented in substance in the synoptic gospels, it was agreed, as a matter of prudence, to abstain from any mention of living persons who would be exposed to peril by such a publication of their connexion with Jesus. The persecution that arose upon the death of Stephen would naturally seek out the relatives of the hated Nazarene, and any other parties whose testimony mightily confirmed the divine power of Jesus. The evangelists and apostles would not needlessly expose the nobleman or his son, who were probably still living at Capernaum. They would not publish the home of the relatives of the mother of Jesus, where he wrought his first miracle, nor jeopardize the lives of Mary and Martha and

their friends at Bethany by sending forth a publication likely to intensify the feeling that was already so violent against them.'

The above considerations are sufficient to set aside all arguments against the genuineness and credibility of the gospels, which are based upon omissions which modern critics may deem strange. To the beloved disciple, John, who was expected to outlive the others, it was appropriately left to record the fuller account of Jesus' Judean ministry, and to make mention of persons and events of whom it was inexpedient to write so fully at an earlier time. And a minute study of the peculiar characteristics of Mark, Luke, and John, will show that, both in what they record and in what they omit, each consistently carries out his own individual plan and purpose.❜

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The inner and essential harmony of the gospels is accordingly enhanced by their diversity. These narratives consti- The harmony tute a fourfold witness of the Christ of God. As broad- of the Gospels minded philosophers have discerned in the national their diversity. characteristics and history of the Jews, the Greeks, and the Romans a providential preparation of the world for the Gospel, so in the gospels themselves may be seen, in turn, a providential record of the world's Redeemer, wonderfully adapted by manifold forms of statement to impress and convince the various minds of men. We

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"Bethany," observes Upham, I was one of the suburbs of Jerusalem.

The miracle there wrought was the immediate occasion of the arrest and trial of Jesus, though the hatred of the Jews had kindled to the heat of murder before the raising of Lazarus, and even the neighbourhood of the unholy city had become so unsafe that Jesus stayed on the eastern bank of the Jordan. While there Mary and her sister Martha sent this message, 'Lord, he whom thou lovest is sick.' And, when he would go to Bethany, the thoughtful Thomas said, 'Let us go and die with him.' These words disprove the notion that most of the disciples were then away from their Master; his time was too near for that; but they do prove not only the chivalry of St. Thomas, but his sagacity. He judged rightly of the peril of the place and time; for, as soon as the chief priests knew that Jesus was again so near, and heard of what he did at Bethany, they took counsel how they might kill him.

"At that time it was their plan to kill Lazarus also. Only St. John records this, and he does not say how Lazarus escaped. But such was the wealth and rank of the family of Bethany that its love for Jesus greatly enraged the rulers of the Jews; and, as Mary foresaw the Lord's death, she may have seen the danger of Lazarus, and the family have had the power to guard against it. Perhaps they did so because of some intimation from their Lord; all we know is, that the Jews then failed to kill Lazarus. But such was their purpose then; and this purpose would naturally revive in the midst of the provocations that led them to murder St. Stephen."-Thoughts on the Holy Gospels, pp. 170, 171.

* See these characteristics elaborated in detail by Da Costa and Gregory in their works named above. Comp. also Westcott's chapter on The Characteristics of the Gospels, in his Introduction to the Study of the Gospels, pp. 217–253.

should not say that Matthew wrote for the Jews only, Mark for the Romans, and Luke for the Greeks. That would imply that when these several nations ceased these gospels would have no further special adaptation. We should rather bear in mind that, so far as the several gospels have the special adaptations named, they have a divinely-ordained fitness to make the person and character of Jesus the more powerfully impressive upon all classes of men. The types of mind and character represented by those great historic races are ever appearing, and require perpetually the manifold testimony of Jesus furnished by the four evangelists. The four are better than one. We need the living picture of the Prince of the house of David as given by Matthew, for it reveals him as the perfecter of the old economy, the fulfiller of the law and the prophets. We need the briefer gospel of the mighty Son of God as given by Mark. Its rapid style and movement affect multitudes more deeply than a gospel so fully imbued with the Old Testament spirit as that of Matthew. "If in the first gospel," observes Ellicott, "we recognise transitions from theocratic glories to meek submissions, in the second we see our Redeemer in one light only, of majesty and power. If in St. Matthew's record we behold now the glorified and now the suffering Messiah, in St. Mark's vivid pages we see only the all-powerful Son of God; the voice we hear is that of the Lion of the tribe of Judah." Luke's gospel, on the other hand, opens before us the broader vision of the Son of man, born, to be sure, under the law, but born of a woman, "a light for revelation of the Gentiles," as well as for the glory of Israel (Luke ii, 32). He appropriately traces the Redeemer's lineage away back beyond David, and beyond Abraham, to Adam, the son of God (Luke iii, 38). This Pauline gospel gives us the living embodiment of the perfect Man, the Friend and Saviour of helpless humanity. Not only does it offer the noblest ideal to the mind of the Greek; it must always have a charm for every Theophilus who has a disposition and desire to know the immovable certainty (rǹv dopáλɛrav, Luke i, 4) of the things of the Gospel. And John's record notably supplements the others. It is pre-eminently the gospel for the Church of God. It is the gospel of the heart of Jesus, and the disciple who leaned upon the Lord's bosom, and imbibed so fully the inspirations of that sacred heart, was the only one of the twelve who could write this inimitable gospel of the Word, the Light, the Way, the Truth, the Resurrection, and the Life.

In view of the marvellous harmonies and the all-embracing scope and purposes of the written gospels of our Lord, how unworthy the

1 Historical Lectures on the Life of our Lord Jesus Christ, pp. 39, 40, Boston, 1863.

ness of magni

fying the al

leged Gospel

discrepancies into contradic

scepticism that fastens upon their little differences of statement (which may be explained by divers reasonable supposi- Unreasonabletions), and magnifies these differences into contradictions with design to disparage the credibility of the evangelists. Why puzzle over the fact that Matthew and Mark relate that the two thieves who were cruci- tions. fied with Jesus reviled him, while Luke says that one reviled him, and was rebuked by the other, who prayed to the Lord, and received the promise of paradise? Is it not supposable that during the three hours of mortal agony on the cross all these things might have occurred? Great variety is noticeable in the different accounts of the appearances of Jesus after the resurrection, but no man has ever been able to show a real discrepancy or contradiction.' In the absence of particulars we may not be able to detail the exact order of events, but when it is shown, on a number of hypotheses, that it was possible for all the events to take place, the diversity of statements becomes an undeniable evidence that they all are true.

'The following order of events following the resurrection is given by Gardiner : "The resurrection itself occurred at or before the earliest dawn of the first day of the week (Matt. xxviii, 1; Mark xvi, 2; Luke xxiv, 1; John xxi, 1). The women coming to the sepulchre find the stone rolled away and the body gone. They are amazed and perplexed. Mary Magdalene alone runs to tell Peter and John (John xx, 2). The other women remain, enter the tomb, see the angels, are charged by them to announce the resurrection to the disciples, and depart on their errand. Meantime Peter and John run very rapidly (verse 4) to the sepulchre. (A glance at the plan of Jerusalem shows that there were so many different gates by which persons might pass between the city and the sepulchre that they might easily have failed to meet the women on their way). They enter the tomb and are astonished at the orderly arrangement of the grave-clothes, and then return to the city. Mary follows to the tomb, unable quite to keep pace with them, and so falling behind. She remains standing at the entrance after they had gone, and, looking in, sees the angels. Then turning about she sees Jesus himself, and receives his charge for the disciples. This was our Lord's first appearance after his resurrection (Mark xvi, 9). To return to the women who were on their way from the sepulchre to the disciples: They went in haste, yet more slowly than Peter and John. There were many of them, and being in a state of great agitation and alarm (Mark xvi, 8) they appear to have become separated, and to have entered the city by different gates. One party of them, in their astonishment and fear, say nothing to any one (Matt. xxviii, 8); the others run to the disciples and announce all that they had seen, namely, the vision of the angels (Mark xvi, 8; Luke xxiv, 9-11). At this time, before any report had come in of the appearance of our Lord himself, the two disciples set out for Emmaus (Luke xxiv, 13). Soon after Mary Magdalene comes in announcing that she had actually seen the risen Lord (Mark xvi, 10, 11; John xx, 18). While these things are happening the firstmentioned party of the women are stopped on the way by the appearance of the Lord himself, and they also receive a charge to his disciples (Matt. xxviii, 9, 10). Beyond this point there is no difficulty in the narrative.-Harmony of the Gospels in Greek, pp. 253, 254.

CHAPTER XXIII.

PROGRESS OF DOCTRINE AND ANALOGY OF FAITH.

Possibly the

THE interpreter of the Holy Scriptures must never forget that the The Holy Scrip- Bible in its entirety, as now possessed by the Church, tures a growth. was no sudden gift from heaven, but the slow and gradual accretion of many centuries. It is made up of many parts, which were produced at many different times. For the first twentyfive centuries of human history, according to the common chronology, the world was without any part of our Bible.' Then, in the course of forty years, the Books of Moses appeared. Book of Job belongs to that early period. Subsequently such historical collections as the Books of Joshua and Judges were compiled, and in due time other histories, with psalms, proverbs, and the oracles of prophets, were gathered into many separate rolls or volumes, and at length, after the Babylonian captivity, this whole body of sacred literature was combined together, and came to be recognized as a book of divine authority. The different writings of the New Testament all appeared within a period of about half a century, but they also furnish the means of tracing the development of life and thought in the early apostolic Church. Our present canonical Scriptures, therefore, are to be recognised as the records of a progressive divine revelation. We recognise the Spirit of God as the presiding and controlling wisdom which shaped these lively oracles. He not only employed holy men in the accomplishment of his purpose (2 Sam. xxiii, 2; Luke i, 70; Acts i, 16; iii, 18; 2 Peter i, 21), but also the ministry of angels (Acts vii, 53; Gal. iii, 19; Heb. ii, 2). A minute divine providence secured the embodiment of the entire revelation in the written forms in which we now possess it. The same God who spoke in the last days in the person of his Son spoke also in the older revelations (Heb. i, 1), and we may search his word in confidence that divine order and wisdom will be found from the beginning to the end.

The Book of Genesis exhibits, as we have seen (pp. 109, 110), a

1 That is, in its present form. No doubt the narratives of the creation, of the fall, and the flood, were handed down by oral tradition. They may, indeed, long before Moses' time, have existed in written form, and, with the genealogical tables and other fragmentary portions of patriarchal history, have constituted a sort of sacred literature among the descendants of Shem.

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