office was originally instituted for the relief of the Apostles, whose office was entirely distinct. Dr. Gill, therefore, praises the Apostle's condescension, in submitting to this inofficial ministration, "though this might seem "below his office as an apostle, and as what more became "an inferior officer, a deacon in the church." But if children may minister food to the saints, surely they may minister money also. Let the collectors of the sabbatical contributions in our churches say, whether children never throw in their mite. Many of us are acquainted with interesting anecdotes upon this subject; and they are becoming more common, as it is more common for parents to teach their children to give their pocket money to pious and benevolent objects, rather than for the mere gratification of their palate. Thus the first position of our opponents will not stand. And as for the second, that household always excludes infants, we hope to shew that this is equally untenable. To this we now more directly proceed. The word oikia, now under consideration, often designates places or property. Such is thought to be the case, when our Saviour, as reported by three of the Evangelists, (g) censures the hypocritical Scribes and Pharisees, for devouring widows' houses. Dr. Gill believes it to mean the goods deposited in their houses. My Opponent's New Testament, however, in all three of these places, renders it families; ye "devour the families of widows." Now if widows have infants, and these infants belong to their families, then infants are included in the word oikia, by the decision of my Opponent's own incomparable translation of the New Testament. Even where this word does signify property, it is apt to be that sort which has infant tenants. The Septuagint uses this word for those "tents" in which the "plain man" Jacob was said to dwell. (h) We all know what sort of a family Jacob had, to occupy these tents. This Matt. xxiii. 14. Mark xii. 40. Luke xx. 47. (8) Gen. XXV. 27. word is used in that text also, which says, "As for the stork, the fir-trees are her house." Now we know that the house or nest of birds is usually built for no other end than the accommodation of their young. Indeed Mr. Thomson, a favourite translator of my Opponent, considers these directly intended in the text. His translation of the Septuagint says "The family of the stork account them their own." Akin to these texts is that one which says, "But in a great house, there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth, and some to honour, and some to dishonour."(i) This great house is literally the place and the property of the owner: but Gill considers it a figure of the church. Whether this great house contains any small vessels or not, may be learned from the same Apostle, who spoke to the Corinthians, "even as unto babes in Christ;") and said to the Hebrews, "Every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe."(k) Passing over many instances in which this word directly denotes families with infants, we shall only specify two or three. Moses says to Israel, "Thou shalt rejoice in every good thing which the Lord thy God hath given unto thee, and unto thine house."(1) Dr. Gill explains it, "To them and their families, by which they were comfortably provided for." Here the word is applied to every family in that miraculously fruitful nation, and is used in connexion with that provision which God made for the youngest infants in those families; with which the parents are said to rejoice, as the jailer did with all his house. Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, "and thou shalt live, and thy house."(m) Dr. Gill says, "not only himself, but his wives and children and servants." It appears, then, that oikia is used in the Greek Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, to include children and servants. The same thing appears more glaring, if possible, in that passage in which Joseph says to his brethren, "Fear not; I will nourish you and your (i) 2 Tim. ii. 20. (j) 1 Cor. iii. 1. (k) Heb. v. 13. 66 OIKIAS, households."(n) The Hebrew word (o) which is here translated OIKIAS by the Septuagint, is a collective noun, signifying, as Parkhurst says, "young children." Calasio explains it by "CETUS SEU MULTITUDO PUERORUM ET INFANTIUM, a collection or multitude of children and infants." The latter, with the Vulgate and Tremellius, has rendered it in the text, by the word PARVULOS, little ones; exactly the rendering of our English Bible, "I will nourish you and your little ones." The manner in which the word is used throughout the Scriptures, proves this to be its real meaning. Robinson, after his fashion, would make them all young men and women, as he does the "little ones" of Tertullian : but Ezekiel expressly distinguishes these "little children" as our translation has it, from old men and women, from young men and maids.(p) And the history preceding our text, speaks of these little ones as nurslings which need to be carried in waggons, with their mothers and the aged Patriarch Jacob, Pharaoh says, "Take you waggons out of the land of Egypt, for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring your father, and come.” "And Jacob rose up from Beer-sheba; and the sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the waggons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him."(q) It is no wonder, therefore, that when Joseph promises to nourish them and their oikias, Dr. Gill should explain it, as he has done, in the following words, viz. "I will nourish you and your LITTLE "ONES; provide food for them and their families, not "only for themselves and their sons, now grown up, but "their grand children, and even the youngest and latest "of their families should share in his favours." In this instance the Septuagint uses OIKIA not as a general term including infants, but as a particular and distinct designation of infants. If, then, as Mr. Anderson and my Opponent alledge, OIKIA and OIKOS are synonimous, OIKOS also must designate infants; and the household baptism of the New Testament be infant baptism. (n) Gen. 1. 21. טף (o) (q) Gen. xlv. 19. xlvi. 5. II. PANOIKIA. Taylor quotes from Apocryphal Greek, that Haman washanged at the gates of Susa, SUN TE PANOIKIA, "with all his household;"(s) among whom were ten sons. This was in consequence of Esther's obtaining a decree, empowering "the Jews which were in every 66 city, to gather themselves together, and to stand for "their life, to destroy, to slay, and to cause to perish, "all the power of the people and province that would ❝ assault them, both little ones and women."(t) This decree was intended as an offset to a preceding one "to "destroy, to kill, and to cause to perish, all Jews, both young and old, little children and women."(u) It must be evident to every candid and intelligent person, that it was Haman's intention to destroy every Jewish subject with his whole household, "young and old, little children and women;" that it was the intention of Mordecai and Esther to destroy every assailant, with his 66 LITTLE ONES and women :" in consequence of which retaliation, thousands of infants actually perished, some of whom most probably belonged to the numerous panoikia of Haman. III. PAROIKIA. "Now these are the names of the children of Israel, which came into Egypt; every man and his household came with Jacob."(v) For household here the Septuaagint reads PAROIKIA. (w) Dr. Gill considers it as embracing" their families, wives, children, and servants." After the armed adventurers of the tribe of Dan had secured Micah's priest, it is said "They turned and de (8) Apocryphal Esther xvi. 18. (Gr. 12.) in Bap. Self-convict. p. 45. (t) Esther viii. 11. (u) Esth. iii. 13. (v) Ex. i. 1. (w) I observe that the Margin of Calasio reads panoiki. This is the reading of Grab: but the Septuagint of Wechelius, and the Venetian edition, both weighty, read paroikia. parted, and put the little ones and the cattle and the carriage before them."(x) Dr. Gill believes that these predatory emigrants carried their wives with them, though they are not mentioned. As for these "little ones," the Doctor considers them their "children." "Little ones" is a literal translation of the Hebrew,(y) and is an exact accordance with the parvulos of the Latin Vulgate, of Junius and Tremellius, of Trommius, and of Sebastian Castallio. The Vatican Septuagint has TA TEKNE, children, a good rendering, though a bad reading. Grab has a better reading, panoikia ; and best of all, the Aldine Septuagint reads paroikia. This reading is reported by Calasio, in the margin of his Hebrew Concordance, and found in the text of the Francfort Septuagint, used by Kircher and Trommius in their Concordances to the Septuagint. Here then, is an instance in which this ancient version uses paroikia, not as a general term including infants, but as a particular and distinct designation of infants. The conclusion to which analogy would lead us is obvious. 66 IV. PASA PAROIKIA OR PANOIKIA. The first is the reading of the Francfort edition, and the second of the Vatican and others, in Gen. 1. 22. "And Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he and his brethren, and all his father's numerous household." Dr. Gill says, "Not only he but his brethren and their families.” The preceding verse shews that these families were composed, in great part, of "little ones," there called oikia. These infants, then, must, of course, be included in pasa panoikia, which appears intended to magnify oikia doubly. V. OIKOS. Like oikia this sometimes signifies property, BONA, FACULTATES, as Hedericus explains it. The Lord said |