where he had hitherto taught, and entered into a certain man's house, named Justus, one that worshipped God (a Gentile convert), whose house joined hard to the synagogue.

ACTS xviii. 8. And Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his household; and many of the other Corinthians hearing believed, and were baptized.

Here it may deserve remark, that Paul afterwards, on referring to the unhappy contentions at Corinth subsequent to this his sojourn there, rejoices to think, that while now among them he had generally abstained from baptizing with his own hands.

1 COR. i. 12. Every one of you saith, I am of Paul, and I of Apollos, and I of Cephas, and I of Christ. 13. Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?

14. I thank God that I baptized none of you but Crispus (the ruler recently mentioned, A. xviii. 8.) and Gaius (who appears to have followed him from Derbe);

15. Lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name.

17. For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel.

If Paul

Another remark here naturally occurs. himself in writing to the Corinthians afterwards speaks thus of his feelings at this critical time,

"I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling," 1 COR. ii. 3.

we may well suppose miraculous encouragement to have

E

been the more necessary, for him to encounter so arduous a trial: the assurance of strength from above was graciously given to him. (On the subject of this vision and of the thorn in the flesh, as connected with it, vide Appendix C.)

ACTs xviii. 9. Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision, Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace:

10. For I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city. 11. And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God, now without fear, among them.

During this stay of Paul at Corinth,

the two EPISTLES to the THESSALONIANS

were written, at the interval of some months at least betwixt the one and the other. It is shown, in H. P. 152, 3. that between the First Epistle and the history of the Acts the accordance in many points is circumstantial and complete: and we have already from that Epistle, ii. 18., iii. 1, 2., derived clear information as to some important facts in regard to Silas and Timothy, necessary to supply at the close of AcTs xvii. what otherwise must have been conjectured in vain.

The Second Epistle seems to have been occasioned by some misapprehension of a passage in the First, which had come to the apostle's knowledge in the mean while and the best illustration perhaps which the acknowledged obscurity of that subject admits, will be found in H. P. 160, 1. 163, 4, 5.

Both the Epistles, by the names of Silas and Timothy in the superscription, show, that those faithful

companions were present with Paul at the time. And the First especially, it is remarked H. P. 153., speaks of their ministry at Thessalonica as a recent transaction. 1 THESS. ii. 17. "We, brethren, being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in heart, endeavoured the more abundantly to see your face with great desire."

ACTS xviii. 12. And when Gallio was the deputy of Achaia, and therefore residing in Corinth, the Jews made insurrection with one accord against Paul, and brought him to the judgment-seat,

13. Saying, This fellow persuadeth men to worship God contrary to the law.

14. And when Paul was now about to open his mouth, Gallio said unto the Jews, If it were a matter of wrong or wicked mischief, O ye Jews, reason would that I should bear with you:

15. But if it be a question of words and names, and of your law, look ye to it; for I will be no judge of such matters.

16. And he drave them, the Jews, from the judg

ment-seat.

17. Then all the Greeks took Sosthenes, the chief ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment-seat. And Gallio cared for none of these things.

At this time Sosthenes, as the new ruler of the synagogue (and therefore clearly not now a Christian), taking the lead in the prosecution of Paul, might for that very cause, especially when the proconsul with indignation drave the Jewish accusers away, excite momentary anger in the Corinthian populace, and thus be

subjected to that expression of their violence which Gallio did not think it worth his while to condemn.

Supposing these to have been the first circumstances (certainly inauspicious enough) which are known about Sosthenes, still, during the "yet a good while," v. 18. that Paul after this tarried at Corinth, what should hinder this Sosthenes also (like Crispus before him, v. 8.) from becoming a convert to the gospel? Or why might he not be one of those Jews converted by the sacred eloquence of Apollos, xviii. 28., after Paul's departure from that city? And if this might easily be so, then only let the frequent intercourse between Corinth and Ephesus be considered, and the appearance of his name at a later period in the superscription from Ephesus to the Corinthians, 1 Cor. i. 1., will be thought any thing but extraordinary; nor would Paul himself with the less tender and earnest sympathy call Sosthenes "brother," because he also had been (in spirit) a persecutor first.

ACTS xviii. 18. And Paul after this (so completely did the sentence of Gallio protect him) tarried there without annoyance yet a good while, having been indebted during part of that time to the brethren which came from Macedonia (i. e. from Philippi) for liberal contributions to his support. 2 Cor. xi. 8, 9. H. P. 136, 7.

He then on departing from Corinth took his leave there of the brethren in the Christian faith; and was attended not only by Silas and Timothy, but also by Erastus, a Corinthian, as appears from xix. 22., and by "Gaius and Aristarchus, men of Macedonia, Paul's companions in travel," mentioned like Erastus during

his stay in Ephesus, xix. 29., in the course of his third progress.

On his main voyage to the coast of Syria, that after going up to Jerusalem he might return to Antioch, he now set sail, in the usual course of navigation bound for Ephesus, which he was then to visit hastily for the first time.

It was from Cenchreæ, the eastern port of Corinth, that he sailed, accompanied by Aquila and Priscilla, after having shorn his head there, in pursuance of a vow which he had to fulfil.

At EPHESUS, the first time, but only on his passage.

ACTS xviii. 19. So when he came to Ephesus, where he was prepared to leave his two friends behind, he himself, limited in the time of his stay, took the first opportunity to enter into the synagogue, and to reason with the Jews, whom he found there.

20. When those Jews, with a welcome which he did not always receive, desired him to tarry longer, he could not consent to do so;

21. But bade them farewell, saying, I must by all means keep this feast (probably, the passover) that cometh, in Jerusalem: but I will return (as indeed he did, xix. 1.) again unto you, if God will. And so he sailed from Ephesus.

22. And when after a good voyage he had landed at Cesarea, and gone up, that is, to Jerusalem, and saluted the church of believers there; after no longer a stay than the feast required, he went (by sea, as usual, and from Cesarea,) down to Antioch, and thus concluded his second great apostolic progress.