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ingly place here the allusions to the Acts, the epistle to the Romans, the first to the Corinthians, the epistle to the Ephesians, and the epistle of James. And all the rest deserve consideration; except that I think those to the Galatians, Philippians, first to the Thessalonians, second to Timothy, and the epistle to the Hebrews, some of the least material.

Here are certainly many allusions to our genuine books of the New Testament, which show the great respect these writings were in, though they are not expressly cited. But the reason is, that it was not suitable to the nature of the work to quote books. The only quotation in Hermas is in this manner: The Lord is nigh to them that turn to him, as it is written in Heldam and Modal, who prophesied to the people in the wilderness.' Compare Numb. xii. 26, 27. But it is reasonable to suppose, this is not a christian, but a Jewish writing. Eldad and Modad are mentioned among the apocryphal books of the Old Testament in the Synopsis Scripturæ, ascribed to Athanasius, but not his. It was no unusual thing for the ancient christians to quote Jewish as well as heathen books, without intending to give them any authority. Finally, I do not perceive in this work of Hermas any allusions to any apocryphal gospels, or other apocryphal books of the New Testament. It is certain, no such books are here quoted.

CHAP. V.

ST. IGNATIUS. HIS HISTORY.

IGNATIUS was bishop of Antioch in Syria, the latter part of the first, and the beginning of the second century. He is said by some to have been the child whom our Lord took in his arms and set in the midst of his disciples, as an emblem of humility. But for this story there is no foundation in the earliest antiquity.

Eusebius in his Ecclesiastical History says, • That Euodius having been the first bishop of Antioch, Ignatius 'succeeded him.' With whom St. Jeromb agrees. In his Chronicle, Eusebius places the ordination of Ignatius in the year 69, after the death of Peter and Paul at Rome. Nevertheless some think, that Ignatius was ordained by Peter; and suppose, that Euodius and Ignatius were both bishops of Antioch at one and the same time; the one of the Jewish, b Vis. iii. sect. 3. Lib. 3. cap. 22. b De Vir. lll. n. 16.

and the other of the Gentile christians: but that after the death of Euodius they all came to be under Ignatius,, as their bishop. If Ignatius only succeeded Euodius about the year of our Lord 70, it may be reasonably concluded, he was acquainted with several of the apostles. And St. Chrysostom says, he conversed familiarly with them, and was perfectly acquainted with their doctrine;' and had the hands of apostles laid upon him.

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Beside the bishoprick, the martyrdom of this good man is another of those few things concerning him which are not contradicted. But the time of it, as well as some other things, is disputed. Du Pin places it in the tenth of Trajan, A. D. 107, as do Tillemont and Cave. Buts Pearson, Loyd, Pagi, Le Clerc, Fabricius, in 116.

Having given this general account of the age of Ignatius, I shall next transcribe the most ancient testimonies concerning him and his epistles. And then I shall make a few remarks.

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We have this passage in Irenæus; As one of our people, for his testimony of God condemned to wild beasts, said: I am the wheat of God, and ground by the teeth of wild 'beasts, that I may be found to be pure bread.' Which words are in sect. 4. of Ignatius's epistle to the Romans. And this passage is also cited from Irenæus bym Eusebius; who in another" place likewise says: Irenæus mentions 'Justin Martyr, and Ignatius, making use of testimonies out of their writings.'

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We meet with Ignatius twice mentioned by Origen. Finally,' says he, I remember, that one of the saints, Ignatius by name, has said of Christ: My love is cruci'fied,' which words are in the same epistle to the Romans, sect. vii. Again: I have observed it elegantly written in an epistle of a martyr, I mean Ignatius, second bishop ⚫ of Antioch after Peter, that the virginity of Mary was unknown to the prince of this world.' See the epistle to Ephesians, sect. xix.

Eusebius, beside what has been already taken from him, says in another place, after the mention of Polycarp and Papias, as contemporaries: At the same time also flourish

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c T. i. Hom. 42. in Ignat. p. 562. c.

d Ib. p. 563. B.
Hist. Lit.

• Mem. Eccl. Tom. 2. p. 2. Ignace, Art. ix. 8 Dissertat. de Anno quo S. Ignatius condemnatus. Baron, 107. n. 3, &c. i Hist. E. 116. n. 7. v. p. 39. Advers. Hær. 1. v. cap. 28.

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h Critic. in * Bibl. Gr. T.

m H. E. l. 3. c. 36. Prolog. in Cant. Cantic. p. 496. T. i. Basil. P Hom. vi. in Luc. Tom. 2. p. 214. 4 H. E. 1. 3

L. v. c. 8. p. 173.

1571. cap. 36.

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'ed Ignatius, who is still highly honoured, being the second in the succession of the church of Antioch after Peter. It 'is said, that he was sent from Syria to Rome to be devoured by wild beasts, for the testimony of Christ. And making 'his journey through Asia under a strong guard, he con'firmed the churches in every city by his discourses, and especially cautioned them against the heresies then spring'ing up, and gaining ground; and exhorted them to adhere to the tradition of the apostles. And for the greater se'curity, he also put down his instructions in writing. Therefore when he came to Smyrna, where Polycarp was, 'he wrote an epistle to the church at Ephesus, another to 'the church in Magnesia upon the [river] Meander—and ' another to the church at Trallium--and beside these, he 'wrote also to the church at Rome; [from which Eusebius quotes a long passage.] These things he wrote from the 'forementioned city to those churches. Afterwards re'moving from Smyrna he wrote to the Philadelphians from Troas, and to the church of Smyrna, and in particular to 'their president Polycarp.' Eusebius proceeds there not only to refer to a passage of this epistle to Polycarp, but quotes also distinctly a passage from the epistle to the church of Smyrna; and then puts down a passage of the epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians, in the latter part of which he says to them: The epistles of Ignatius sent by him to us, together with what other have come to our hands, we have sent to you, which are subjoined to this 'epistle; by which you may be greatly profited. For they 'treat of faith and patience, and of all things pertaining to 'edification in our Lord.' And thus we have seen also Polycarp's testimony in general to these epistles, who collected them.

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To the same purpose St. Jerom in his book of Illustrious Men: Ignatius, the third bishop of the church of Antioch ' after the apostle Peter, in the persecution under Trajan ' was condemned to wild beasts. And when he came to 'Smyrna, where Polycarp the disciple of John was bishop, 'he wrote an epistle to the Ephesians, another to the Mag'nesians, a third to the Trallians, a fourth to the Romans: and when he was gone thence he wrote to the Philadel'phians, the Smyrneans, and in particular to Polycarp.'

I shall transcribe no more testimonies of the ancients, but refer the reader for the rest to the Patres Apostolici of Le Clerc.

Beside those seven epistles mentioned by Eusebius and Cap. 16.

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Jerom, there are several other epistles which have been ascribed to Ignatius. But they are now almost universally supposed by learned men to be spurious, and I think are plainly so.

Of these seven, mentioned by Eusebius and Jerom, there are two editions; one called the larger, and oftentimes the interpolated; and another, called the smaller. And, except Mr. Whiston, and perhaps some few others, who may follow him, it is the general opinion of learned men, that the larger are interpolated, and that the smaller have by far the best title to the name of Ignatius.

I have carefully compared the two editions, and am very well satisfied, upon that comparison, that the larger are an interpolation of the smaller, and not the smaller an epitome or abridgment of the larger. I desire no better evidence in a thing of this nature.

And the quotations of Ignatius in the most ancient christian writers do also better agree with the smaller than the larger epistles, as may be seen in archbishop Usher'ss Dis

sertations.

But whether the smaller themselves are the genuine writings of Ignatius, bishop of Antioch, is a question that has been much disputed, and has employed the pens of the ablest critics. And whatever positiveness some may have shown on either side, I must own, I have found it a very difficult question. I shall however deliver my opinion, formed upon the inquiry I have made into this controversy. And every one will be able to judge of it by the testimonies here alleged.

I make little doubt, but the smaller epistles, which we now have, are, for the main, the same epistles of Ignatius which were read by Eusebius, and which, it seems pretty plain from Origen, were extant in his time. As for the quotation from Irenæus, it is disputable, whether he there cites a passage of a writing, or only mentions some words or expressions of Ignatius, which might be spoken by him upon the near view of his martyrdom. But though that may bear some dispute, the testimony of Irenæus is not altogether without its weight in favour of the epistles.

Considering then these testimonies, which I have alleged from Irenæus, Origen, and Eusebius, and also the internal characters of great simplicity and piety, which are in these epistles, (I mean the smaller,) it appears to me probable, that they are for the main the genuine epistles of Ignatius. If there be only some few sentiments and expressions ⚫ Cap. 3, 4.

Beausobre, though he favours the genuineness of

which seem inconsistent with the true age of Ignatius, it is more reasonable to suppose them to be additions, than to reject the epistles themselves entirely; especially in this scarcity of copies which we now labour under. As the interpolations of the larger epistles are plainly the work of some" Arian, so even the smaller epistles may have been tampered with by the Arians, or the orthodox, or both: though I do not affirm there are in them any considerable corruptions or alterations.

The time of these epistles of Ignatius is determined by that of his martyrdom. For they were written after he was condemned to the wild beasts, and while he was going a prisoner from Antioch to Rome. Concerning this I have already mentioned two different opinions. Pearson, Loyd, and Pagi, are positive for the year 115 or 116. Basnage however puts the year of Ignatius's death among the obscurities of chronology. Indeed those learned men have for their opinion no other grounds but the testimony of Malala, an author of the sixth century, of no great account in other matters; and the Acts, or Martyrdom of Ignatius, which say, that he was condemned by Trajan in person at Antioch. But it being certain, as these learned men have shown, that Trajan was not at Antioch before the year 112; therefore they conclude, that Ignatius was not condemned, at the soonest, before that year. But the genuineness of those Acts may be well disputed for divers reasons. And these Acts themselves say, that Ignatius was martyred at Rome when Senecio and Sura were consuls, who were so in the year 107, the tenth of Trajan. Since therefore Eusebius says nothing of Ignatius being condemned by Trajan himself at Antioch, and his death is placed by him in the tenth of Trajan, I the rather incline to that opinion; which indeed appears to me much the more probable.

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These epistles are now extant in Greek, and in an ancient Latin version. The latter was published by A. B. Usher in 16 4. In 1646, Isaac Vossius published six of the seven epistles in Greek from a manuscript at Florence. The epistle to the Romans, which was wanting there, has been since published in Greek by Ruinart from a manuscript at Paris.

the smaller epistles, suspects that even they have been interpolated. See Hist. de Manich. T. i. p. 378. Note (3) and p. 380. Note (2). u Vid. Usser. Dissert. cap. 12. 15. Grabe Spicileg. Patrum, sect. ii. p. 225, 226. et Clerici Dissertat. alteram, sect. xi. apud Patres Apost. edit. 1724.

▾ Annal. 107. sect. vi.

See his Chronicle.

Vid. Basnage Ann. Pol. E. 107. sect. viii.
Ap. Acta Martyr. Sincera, p. 13. et seq.

Extat etiam apud Grabe Spicileg. Patr. T. ii. Patres Apost. Cleric. edit. 1724.

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