doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is? 20. For thou bringest certain strange things to our ears: we would know, therefore, what these things mean. This course the Athenians took with Paul, not from the love of truth, but as the historian observes, ver. 21. from mere curiosity; as the event afterwards proved.-The apostle being thus called to declare the new doctrine whereof he spake, to an assembly consisting of senators, philosophers, rhetoricians, and statesmen, willingly embraced the opportunity; and in a most eloquent discourse, prepared his illustrious auditors for receiving that doctrine, which appeared to them so strange, by shewing them the absurdity of the commonly received idolatry, and by speaking on that delicate subject, with an address and temper, and strength of reasoning, which would have done honour to the greatest orators of Greece or Rome.

His discourse to the Areopagites, Paul introduced with a handsome compliment to the Athenians in general. He told them, that he perceived they were extremely religious; for lest any God should be neglected by them, he found they had erected an altar to the unknown God, and from this he inferred, that it would not be unacceptable, if he should declare to them that God whom they ignorantly worshipped: Acts xvii. 22. Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are (decidasMovese go) very religious. 23. For as I passed by and beheld (rebacμaTa) the objects of your worship, I found an altar with this inscription: To the unknown God. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I to you. (No. XXI.)-The true God, whom the apostle affirms the Athenians ignorantly worshipped, and the worship that is acceptable to him, he declared in the following manner. 24. God who made the world, and all things therein, seeing he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth_not_in temples made with hands. God hath no need of temples to dwell in, seeing he hath made the world, and is the Lord or possessor of the universe. Ye therefore greatly err, in thinking that by erecting magnificent temples and images, and by consecrating them, ye draw God down into them, and prevail with him to reside among you in such a manner as to be present no where else. That vulgar notion is unworthy of men whose minds are improved by science, and who from God's having made the world, ought to know that his presence is not confined to temples made by men. 25. Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing. Neither is the true God worshipped with sacrifices, and meats prepared by men's hands, if

these things are offered to him as though he needed to be fed with the fruits of the earth, and with the flesh of beasts: and refreshed with the steams of sacrifices and incense. The truth is, seeing he giveth to all, whether men or beasts, life and breath and all things, it is evident that men can contribute nothing to his life or happiness.-26. And hath made of one blood, all nations of men to dwell on the face of the whole earth. By the liberal provision which he hath made, every where, of the necessaries of life, he hath from one man and woman, multiplied the human race, so as to form those different nations which cover the face of the whole earth. How then can ye fancy that he himself needs to be lodged, and clothed, and fed by men? And hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; also he hath assigned to each of these nations, their times of existence, and the particular countries they were to inhabit, according as he had before appointed these things. By all which he shews, that he governs the world by a most wise providence, contrary to what you Epicureans teach; and also that his government is most free, contrary to the doctrine of the Stoics. This most wise and free government of the nations of men, God carries on through all ages, for this purpose, 27. That they should be led to seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after and find him; (xxı tol ye) and truly indeed, he is not far from any one of us. Though he be not the object of men's senses, it is no difficult matter to find God; because he is not far from any one of us. 28. For the structure of our body, and the union of our soul to that exquisite piece of material mechanism, together with the noble faculties of our soul wherein we resemble God, and the admirable end for which this wonderful composition of soul and body is formed, affords to every man, not only an idea, but a proof of the divinity residing within him, supporting and animating him: So that it may truly be said, in him we live, and move, and have our being, as one of your own poets (Aratus) hath said.-Who also hath added another sentiment, equally just and striking: That we are his offspring in respect of the reason, and intelligence, and other mental powers similar to his, which we possess.-29. Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto, that is can be represented by, an image of gold, or silver, or stone, however curiously graven by art and man's device; because such things conveying no idea of mind, if they are likenesses of God, they represent him to be mere matter void of intelligence, than which nothing can be more impious.

The apostle having, in this manner, shewn the philosophers of Athens, the gross absurdity of their idolatrous worship, concluded his oration with telling them, Acts xvii. 30. That the times of this ignorance God winked at. He allowed mankind to go on in their ignorance, without instructing them by messengers divinely commissioned; because he meant to shew them experimentally, the insufficiency of their own reason in matters of religion. But now, by messengers divinely authorized, he commandeth all men every where to repent of their ignorance, idolatry, and wickedness. And to persuade them effectually to do so, he hath set before them the greatest of all motives, that of a future judgment. 31. Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness, by the man whom he hath ordained, whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead, hath put the resurrection and judgment of all men, repeatedly declared by Jesus, beyond a doubt -32. But when they heard of the resurrection, some, namely the Epicureans, mocked, and others more candid said, We will hear thee again of this matter. And having said this, they put an end to the apostle's discourse and to the assembly, without allowing him an opportunity of shewing how the resurrection of Jesus renders the resurrection and judgment of mankind probable, or of explaining the other fundamental doctrines of the gospel.—33. And so Paul departed from among them, astonished, no doubt, that men who professed wisdom, were so little able to discern truth. 34. Howbeit some clave unto him and believed, among the which was Dionysius the Areopagite, one of his judges, and a woman of some note named Damaris, and others with them; who it seems were the only persons Paul met with in this famous mart of learning, capable of seeing, and acknowledging the absurdity of the prevailing idolatry.

It is not said that Paul wrought any miracles at Athens and the little success with which he preached, gives reason to suspect that he wrought no miracles there. Perhaps, in this he acted by divine direction, to try what reception the gospel would meet with, from learned and inquisitive men, when offered to them merely upon the footing of its own reasonableness. The truth is, if such an experiment was any where to be made, in order to confute those in after times, who should affirm that the general reception of the gospel in the first age, was owing not to miracles, but to the absurdities of heathenism, and to the rea

sonableness of the gospel-doctrine, Athens surely was the place where the trial could be made with most advantage, and Paul's oration in the Areopagus, was the discourse which should have convinced reasonable men. Nevertheless at Athens, where the human faculties were carried to the greatest perfection, the apostle was not able to convince his hearers of the folly of idolatry, nor of the reasonableness of worshipping the only living and true God, by purity of mind and goodness of life. And therefore the gospel, which taught these sublime truths, was rejected by the philosophers as unfit for the common people, and they remained as much attached to their errors as before.

After having so unsuccessfully preached to the philosophers and others in Athens, the apostle judged it needless any longer to attempt, by natural means, the conversion of such a vain, unprincipled, frivolous people. And being allowed to use no other means, he left them as incorrigible, and went forward to Corinth, now become more considerable for the number, the learning, and the wealth of its inhabitants, than even Athens itself.

At Corinth Paul preaches in the Synagogue. Timothy and Silas come to him from Thessalonica. He testifies to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ. He teaches in the house of Justus. Christ appears to him in a Vision. He writes his first Epistle to the Thessalonians. Then goes into Peloponnesus. At his return to Corinth, he writes his second to the Thessa lonians. The Jews bring him before Gallio, who drives them from the judgment seat with disgrace. He goes, with Aquila and Priscilla by sea, to Ephesus. Then sails to Syria.

Corinth was situated on an isthmus, or narrow neck of land which joined Peloponnesus to Greece. On the east side of the isthmus were the ports of Cenchrea and Schoenus, which received the merchandise of Asia by the Saronic Gulph; and on the west side, the port of Lechæum received the merchandise of Italy, Gaul, and Spain by the Crissæan Gulph. Corinth being thus conveniently situated for commerce soon became extremely rich and populous, and being seated on the isthmus which joined Peloponnesus to Greece, it commanded both countries. In the course of the Achæan war the Roman consul Mummius burnt it to the ground; but Julius Cæsar rebuilt it after it had long lain in ashes. See Pref. to 1 Cor. Sect. 2.-When Achaia was made a Roman province, Corinth becoming the seat of government, soon regained its ancient celebrity in respect of commerce and riches, but especially in respect of the number and quality of its inhabitants. For, at the time the apostle ar

rived, Corinth was full of learned men, some of whom taught philosophy, rhetoric, poetry, and painting, others studied these sciences and arts, in so much that there was no city in Greece, where philosophy and the fine arts, and learning, were carried to greater perfection than at Corinth; no city in which there were more men of a cultivated understanding. These circumstances rendered Corinth a fit scene on which to display the light of the gospel; because if it proved successful among a people so enlightened as the Corinthians, it would be a proof to after ages of the reality of the miracles by which, as the Christian records affirm, the gospel was established in every country. It is true, but a few of the philosophers and men of learning at Corinth embraced the gospel. Nevertheless, if the apostle's miracles had been impostures, the philosophers and other learned men being well qualified to judge of such matters, would have detected them, and by so doing have stopped the progress of the gospel in their city. These were the reasons which induced Paul to spend more than eighteen months in preaching at Corinth, from the time of his first arrival to his departure.

The character of the Corinthians being such as I have described, it is natural to suppose that they would expect both learning and eloquence, in any person who pretended to instruct them. -The apostle, well apprized of this, addressed them at the first with great fear and trembling, as he tells us himself, (1 Cor. ii. 3.) in so much that Christ found it necessary to encourage him by vision, in which he commanded him not to be afraid, but to speak boldly, promising that many of the Corinthians should believe the gospel.

Paul, at his first coming to Corinth, Acts xviii. 2. Found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, lately come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because that Claudius had commanded all Jews to depart from Rome. (No. XXII.) 3. And because he was of the same craft, he abode with them and wrought; for by their occupation they were tent-makers. In his youth, Paul as was observed above, had been bred to that business. And it was of great use to him on many occasions, particularly at this time for by the profits of his labour, he maintained himself all the while he abode in Corinth, without burdening the Corinthians in the least. The same course he had followed some time before this, while he preached in Thessalonica. 1 Thess. ii. 9. Ye remem

ber, brethren, our labour and toil. For night and day we wrought for our own maintenance, in order not to overload any of you,