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fecution, death and refurrection, where all four coincide in many particulars: though even here alfo St. John has divers things peculiar to himself. In St. John's gospel is no account of our Saviour's nativity, nor of his baptifm by John; though, undoubtedly, it is there fuppofed, and referred to. He takes no notice of our Saviour's temptation in the wilderness, nor of the call, or names of the twelve apoftles, nor of their mission in our Saviour's life time, nor of our Lord's parables, or other difcourfes of his, recorded by them, nor of our Saviour's journies, of which they give an account, nor any of those predictions relating to the defolations of Jerufalem, which are in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Nor has he any miracles recorded by them, excepting only, that one of the multiplication of fmall provifion for feeding five thoufand, with the extraordinary circumftances of the return to Capernaum from the country, where that miracle had been wrought, ch. vi. 4-21. And it is likely, that this miracle was recorded by him, for the fake of the difcourfes, to which it gave occafion, and which follow there, ver. 22-71.

However, it should be obferved, that he has one thing recorded by all the evangelifts, Peter's ftriking a fervant of the high priest, and cutting off his ear. Ch. xviii. 10. Then Simon Peter having a fword, drew it, and fmote the high priest's fervant, and cut off his right ear. The fervant's name was Malchus. Which, as St. Luke informs us, Jesus touched, and healed. ch. xxii. 51. Peter's action is mentioned by all the three evangelifts, Matt. xxvi. 51. Mark xiv. 47. Luke xxii. 50. But St. John alone mentions Peter by name, and the name of the fervant. I thought proper to take notice of this, though St. John does not particularly mention the miracle of healing.

St. John likewife, ch. ii. 14—22. gives an account of our Lord's cleansing the temple at his firft paffover, when he went to Jerufalem. All the other evangelifts have a like account of our Lord's cleanfing the temple at his laft paffover, Matt. xxi. 12, 13. Mark xi. 15, 16. Luke xix. 45, 46. But I fuppofe them to be quite different actions, and that our bleffed Lord twice cleanfed the temple, as already fhown.

4. Though the first three evangelifts have not particularly recorded our Saviour's feveral journies to Jerufalem, as St. John has done, but have only given a particular account of his preaching there at his laft paffover, they were not unacquainted with them.

This may be concluded from divers things in their hiftories. To thofe, who came to apprehend him, our Lord faid: Ifat daily with you teaching in the temple, and ye laid no bold on me. Matt. xxvi. 55. And compare Mark xiv. 49. Luke xxii. 53. And among the accufations brought against him by the Jewish Rulers before Pilate, they fay: He firreth up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee to this place, Luke xxiii. 5. Peter preaching at Jerufalem, foon after our Lord's afcenfion, fays: Jejus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles, and wonders, and figns: which God did by him in the midst of you, as yourselves also know, Acts ii. 22. And at the house of Cornelius, in Cæfarea: That word, you know, which was published throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee, Acts x. 37.And we are witneffes of all things, which he did, both in the land of the Jews, and at Jerufalem, ver. 39. And it appears from their hiftories, that our Lord's fame had early reached Jerufalem. Many attended him in Galilee from thence, and from other parts. Says St. Matthew: And there followed him great multitudes of people from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Judea, and from beyond Jordan, ch. iv. 25. Comp. Mark iii. 7,8. Again: And the fcribes, which came from Jerufalem, said: He has Belzebub. -Mark iii. 22-30. Compare Matt. ix. 34. Luke xi. 14-26. Then came to Jefus fcribes and pharifees, which were of Jerufalem, Matt. xv. 1. Compare Mark vii. 1. And fays St. Luke, ch. v. 17. And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were pharifees, and doctors of the law fitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judea, and Jerufalem; and the power of the Lord was prefent to heal them. And in every one of the evangelifts we may meet with fcribes and pharifees, oppofing our Lord, watching his words and actions, cavilling with him, and reflecting upon him, and his difciples.

Moreover in St. Luke, ch. ix. 51-56. is an account of a remarkable incident, when our Lord was going from Galilee through Samaria to Jerufalem, at one of their feafts: fuppofed by fome to be the feaft of tabernacles, by others a the feaft of dedication, preceding his last paffover. See likewife Luke xiii. 22. and xvii. 11.

However, after all, I do not think it was needful, that our Lord fhould go often to Jerufalem, or that all his journies

z Vid. Cleric. Harmon. p. 234. mily Expofitor. Se&t. 127. Vol. II. 235. See Dr. Doddridge's Fa- p. 183.

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thither, and difcourfes there, fhould be recorded. It was indeed highly expedient, that his miniftry fhould be public: fo it might be, without going often to Jerufalem. John the Baptift was a man of great reputation, though he never went up to Jerufalem during the time of his fhowing himself unto Ifrael, that we know of, Luke i. 80. And it is manifeft from the first three Evangelifts, as well as from St. John, that our Lord's miniftry was very public, and well known in all parts of Judea, and the regions round about, and to men of all ranks therein. In them we find our Lord to have been notified before-hand by John the Baptift. He fent out once his twelve apoftles, and then feventy other difciples, two by two, to go before him, and prepare men for him, in every city and place where be fhould come. In them we find him teaching in fynagogues, in cities, and villages, and defert places, crowded by throngs, attended by multitudes of people, and miraculously feeding at one time five thousand, at another four thousand men, befide women and children.

It was fit, that our Lord's miniftry fhould be very public; it is manifeft, from all the four evangelifts, that it was fo; which cannot but be the ground of great fatisfaction to us.

5. The genuinenefs of the twenty-firft or laft chapter of St. John's gofpel ought not to be contested.

Grotius indeed was of opinion, that St. John concluded his gospel with the words, which are at the end of the twentieth chapter: and that what is in the twenty-first chapter was added after St. John's death by the church of Ephefus.

Against that opinion the general, or even univerfal confent of manufcripts and verfions is a great objection. For it is very probable, that this gofpel was published before St. John's death. And if there had been an edition without this chapter,

b Omnino arbitror, quæ hic fequuntur conclufionem effetotius operis, et ibi finiiffe Joannem libram, quem edidit. At ficut caput ultimum Pentateuchi, et caput ultimum Jofuæ poft Mofis et Jofuæ mortem additum eft a Synedrio Hebræorum: ita et caput quod fequitur poft mortem Joannis additum ab Ecclefia Ephefina, hoc maxime fine, ut oftenderetur impletum quod de longævitate ac non violenta morte Joannis Dominus prædixerat, &c. Grot. ad Joh. xx. 30.

• Cæterum in tanto codicum et verfionum confenfu, eoque prorfus univerfali, cogitari non debebat, caput hoc ab Ecclefia demum Ephefina acceffiffe.

Quis enim negare tuto poteft, Evangelium Joan. nis ante ipfius obitum, adeoque ante additum hoc, quod creditur, fupplementum acceffiffe? Et quis crediderit, vel fic omnes codices in exhibendo ifto capite tam conftanter confentire potuiffe? Wolf. in Joh. cap. xxi. in.

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it is very likely, that it would have been wanting in fome copies. To which may be added, that we do not find, that any of the ancient chriftian writers ever made a question, whether this chapter was composed by St. John, or by another. Finally, the ftyle is St. John's. In chapter xix. 35. And be that faw it bare record; and his record is true: and be knoweth, that he fays true. Here xxi. 24. This is the difciple, which teftifieth of these things, and wrote these things; and we know, that his teftimony is true. Compare likewife ver. 7. and 20. The laft words of the chapter, at ver. 25. are thefe: And there are alfo many other things, which Jefus did: the which if they Should be written every one, I fuppofe, that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Which claufe evidently is from the fame perfon, who wrote ver. 30, and 31, of ch. xx. Here the evangelist seems to check himself, and to determine not to proceed any farther. For if he fhould attempt to commit to writing every thing which Jefus had faid and done, he fhould never come to an end.

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Says Dr. Whitby upon ch. xx. 31. Some think, that St. John here ended his gofpel, and that the following chapter was written by fome other hands. But these words give no ground for that imagination: fince other apoftles, after they feem to have concluded their epiftles, add fome new matter: as may be seen in the conclufions of the epiftles to the Romans, and to the Hebrews.' See Rom. ch. xv. and xvi. Heb. xiii. 21-25. I would likewife refer to Mr. Lenfant's note upon ch. xxi. 24. who alfo afferts the genuineness of this laft chapter.

Rejicimus hic fententiam eorum, qui ab alia manu, quam ipfius Joannis Evangelifta hoc caput effe adjectum putant. Nam ita clare itilum redolet Apoftoli, ut fi aliquis alius id adjeciffet, non fine impoftura iftud facere potuiffet. Neque enim fe Joannem vocat, fed more fuo difcipulum, quem Jefus amabat. ver. 7. 20. Tum hæc addit: Hic eft difcipulus ille, qui de

his teftatur, et hæc fcripfit. ver. 24. Quæ defendi non poffunt a mendacio, fi quifquam alius præter Apoftolum hoc caput adjeciffet. Adde, quod diligentiffimi circa tales circumftantias Patres, Eufebius, Hieronymus, atque alii, non ita plene filentio id involviffent, &c. Fr. Lamp. in Jo. Evang. cap. xxi. tom. III. p. 720, 721. Vid. et Mill. Proleg. num. 249, 250.

CHAP.

CHA P. X.

The Question confidered, whether any of the first three Evangelists had seen the Gofpels of the others, before he wrote.

HERE I shall in the first place mention the different fentiments of learned moderns concerning this point. And then I intend to confider the merits of the question.

Calvin in the preface to his Harmony of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, declares it to be his opinion, that St. Mark was fo far from having abridged St. Matthew's gofpel, that he thinks he had never feen it: which he also fuppofes to have been St. Luke's cafe.

This likewise must have been the opinion of Bafnage. For he fuppofeth St Luke's to have been the firft written of all the gofpels. Confequently this evangelift could not borrow either from St. Matthew, or St. Mark.

Mr. Whiston in his Harmony of the four Evangelifts called St. Mark the epitomizer of St. Matthew. Mr. Jones, in his Vindication of St. Matthew's gofpel, well, and largely argued against that opinion.

Mr. Dodwell declared his opinion upon this fubject after this manner: That none of the first three evangelifts had feen 'the others' gospels. Otherwife there could not have been in

Mihi certe magis probabile eft, et ex re ipfa conjicere licet, numquam librum Matthæi fuiffe ab eo inspectum, cum ipfe fuum fcriberet: tantum abeft, ut in compendium ex profeffo redigere voluerit. Idem et de Luca judicium facio. Calvin. argum. in Evangel. &c.

Bafn Ann. 60. num. xxxi. c P. 102.

d Sic latuerant in illis terrarum angulis, in quibus fcripta fuerant. Evangelia, ut ne quidem refciverint recentiores Evangelifta, quid fcripfiffent de iifdem rebus antiquiores. Aliter foret ne tot effent εναντιοφανη, quæ fere a prima ufque canonis conftitutione eruditorum hominum ingenia exercuerint. Certe S. Lucas fi genealogiam illam Domini in Matthæo vidiffet, non aliam ipfe, nihilque fere habentem com.

mune, produxiffet, ne quidem minima confilii tam diverfi edita ratione. S. Matthæus, qui folus e noftris Luca erat antiquior ipfe erat auтоTING S. Joannis Luca longo erat intervallo in fcriptione junior. Junior etiam S. Marcus, fi quidem S. Lucas eo fcripferit anno Evangelium, quo Acta terminavit Apoftolorum. Quod ego fane puto verifimillimum. Sunt enim Acta DEUTEpos ejufdem operis 20yos, cujus pwтov λoyov ipfe fuum agnofcit Evangelium. A&t. i. 1. — Ita quo anno fcriptum eft a S. Luca Evangelium fecundus fluxerit Apoftolo Paulo annus captivitatis Romanæ. Eo enim ufque Actorum hiftoria perducta eft. S. autem Marcus, feu poft obitum Petri, feu non multo ante, fcripfiffe videtur. Dodw. Diff. Iren. i. num. xxxix.

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