faithful even unto this day, yea and all the saints who are yet to be born, until Christ's coming again, both have been and shall be blessed." His Epistles are to his inward life, what the mountains and rivers of Asia and Greece and Italy are to his outward Life, the imperishable part which still remains to us, when all that time can ruin has passed away.

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It is in these letters then that we must study the true life of St. Paul, from its inmost depths and springs of action, which were "hidden with Christ in God," down to its most minute developements, and peculiar individual manifestations. In them we learn (to use the language of Gregory Nazianzene) "what is told of Paul by Paul himself." Their most sacred contents indeed rise above all that is peculiar to the individual writer; for they are the communications of God to man concerning the faith and life of Christians; which St. Paul declared (as he often asserts) by the immediate revelation of Christ himself. But his manner of teaching these eternal truths is coloured by his human character, and peculiar to himself. And such individual features are naturally impressed much more upon epistles than upon any other kind of composition. For here we have not treatises, or sermons, which may dwell in the general and abstract, but real letters, written to meet the actual wants of living men; giving immediate answers to real questions, and warnings against pressing dangers; full of the interests of the passing hour. And this, which must be more or less the case with all epistles addressed to particular Churches, is especially so with those of St. Paul. In his case it is not too much to say that his letters are himself—a portrait painted by his own hand, of which every feature may be "known and read of all men."

It is not merely that in them we see the proof of his powerful

1 De Sacerdotio, IV. 7. The whole passage is well worth quoting:

Πόθεν ανὰ τὴν οἰκουμένην ἅπασαν πολὺς ἐν τοῖς ἁπάντων ἐςὶ ςόμασιν ; Πόθεν οὐ παρ' ἡμῖν μόνον, ἀλλά καὶ παρὰ Ιουδαίοις, καὶ ̔Ελλησι μάλιςα πάντων θαυμάζεται; οὐκ ἀπὸ τῆς τῶν Ἐπιςολῶν ἀρετῆς; Δι' ἧς οὐ τοὺς τότε μόνον πιςοὺς, αλλά καὶ τοὺς ἐξ ἐκείνων μέχρι τῆς σήμερον γινομένους, καὶ τοὺς μέλλοντας δὲ ἔσεσθαι μέχρι τῆς εσχάτης τοῦ Χρίζου παρουσίας ὠφέλησέ τε καὶ ὠφελήσει· καὶ οὐ παύσεται τοῦτο ποιῶν, ἕως ἂν τὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων διαμένῃ γένος. "Ωσπερ γὰρ τεῖχος ἐξ ἀδάμαντος κατασκευασθὲν, οὕτω τὰς πανταχοῦ τῆς οἰκουμένης Εκκλησίας τὰ τούτου τειχίζει γράμματα. Καὶ καθάπερ τὶς ἀριςεὺς γενναιό τατος ἔφηκε καὶ νῦν μέσος, αἰχμαλωτίζων πᾶν νόημα εἰς τὴν ὑπακοὴν τοῦ Χριςου, καὶ καθαιρῶν λογισμοὺς καὶ πῶν ὕψωμα ἐπαιρόμενον κατὰ τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ταῦτα δὲ πάντα ἐργάζεται, δι ̓ ὧν ἡμῖν κατέλιπεν Επιςολῶν τῶν θαυμασίων ἐκείνων, καὶ τῆς θείας πεπληρωμένων σοφίας.

• Τί Παῦλος αὐτὸς περὶ Παύλου φησί. Greg. Νaz. Oratio Apologetica.

INTRODUCTION.

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XV

intellect, his insight into the foundations of natural theology,' and of moral philosophy;' for in such points, though the philosophical expression might belong to himself, the truths expressed were taught him of God. It is not only that we there find models of the sublimest eloquence, when he is kindled by the vision of the glories to come, the perfect triumph of good over evil, the manifestation of the sons of God, and their transformation into God's likeness, when they shall see Him no longer3 "in a glass darkly, but face to face,"for in such strains as these it was not so much he that spake, as the Spirit of God speaking in him; but in his letters, besides all this which is divine, we trace every shade, even to the faintest, of his human character also. Here we see that fearless independence with which he "withstood Peter to the face, because he was to be blamed ;❞—that impetuosity which breaks out in his apostrophe to the "foolish Galatians ;"-that earnest indignation which bids his converts "beware of dogs, beware of the concision," and pours itself forth in the emphatic "God forbid," which meets every Antinomian suggestion;-that fervid patriotism which makes him "wish that he were himself accursed from Christ for his brethren, his kinsmen according to the flesh, who are Israelites; "that generosity which looked for no other reward than "to preach the glad tidings of Christ without charge," 10 and made him feel that he would rather "die, than that any man should make this glorying void;"-that dread of officious interference which led him to shrink from "building on another man's foundation;""that delicacy which shows itself in his appeal to Philemon, whom he might have commanded, "yet for love's sake rather beseeching him, being such an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ," and which is even more striking in some of his farewell greetings, as (for instance) when he bids the Romans "salute Rufus, and her who is both his mother and mine; " 13-that scrupulous fear of evil appearance which "would not eat any man's bread for nought, but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that he might not be chargeable to any of

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them; that refined courtesy which cannot bring itself to blame till it has first praised,' and which makes him deem it needful almost to apologize for the freedom of giving advice to those who were not personally known to him;—that self-denying love which "will eat no flesh while the world standeth, lest he make his brother to offend;"-that impatience of exclusive formalism with which he overwhelms the Judaizers of Galatia, joined with a forbearance so gentle for the innocent weakness of scrupulous consciences; that grief for the sins of others, which moved him to tears when he spoke of the enemies of the cross of Christ, "of whom I tell you even weeping;"-that noble freedom fron Jealousy with which he speaks of those who out of rivalry to himself, preach Christ even of envy and strife, supposing to add affliction to his bonds, "What then? notwithstanding every way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea and will rejoice;"—that tender friendship which watches over the health of Timothy, even with a mother's care; —that intense sympathy in the joys and sorrows of his converts, which could say, even to the rebellious Corinthians, "ye are in our hearts, to die and live with you; "-that longing desire for the intercourse of affection, and that sense of loneliness when it was withheld, which perhaps is the most touching feature of all, because it approaches most nearly to a weakness, "When I came to Troas to preach Christ's gospel, and a door was opened to me of the Lord, I had no rest in my spirit, because I found not Titus my brother; but taking my leave of them, I went from thence into Macedonia." And "when I was come into Macedonia, my flesh had no rest, but I was troubled on every side; without were fightings, within were fears. Nevertheless God, who comforteth those that are cast down, comforted me by the coming of Titus." 10 "Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me; for Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed

11 Thess. ii. 9.

Compare the laudatory expressions in 1 Cor. i. 5-7, and 2 Cor. i. 6-7, with the heavy and unmingled censure conveyed in the whole subsequent part of these Epistles. 3 Rom. xv. 14, 15. "And I myself also am persuaded of you, my brethren, that ye also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another Nevertheless, brethren, I have written the more boldly unto you in some sort, as put ting you in mind.”

4 1 Cor. viii. 13.

7 Phil. i. 15.

1 Cor. viii. 12, and Rom. xiv. 21. 8 1 Tim. v. 23.

1 2 Cor. ii. 13, and vii. 5

6 Phil. iii. 18.

2 Cor. vii. 3.

unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia; only Luke is with me."

Nor is it only in the substance, but even in the style of these writings that we recognize the man Paul of Tarsus. In the parenthetical constructions and broken sentences, we see the rapidity with which the thoughts crowded upon him, almost too fast for utterance; we see him animated rather than weighed down by "that which cometh upon him daily, the care of all the churches," as he pours forth his warnings or his arguments in a stream of eager and impetuous dictation, with which the pen of the faithful Tertius can hardly keep pace. And above all, we trace his presence in the postscript to every letter, which he adds as an authentication in his own characteristic handwriting, "which is the token in every epistle; so I write." Sometimes

as he takes up the pen he is moved with indignation when he thinks of the false brethren among those whom he addresses; "the salutation of me Paul with my own hand, if any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be Anathema." Sometimes, as he raises his hand to write, he feels it cramped by the fetters which bind him to the soldier who guards him," "I Paul salute you with my own hand,-remember my chains." Yet he always ends with the same blessing, "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you," to which he sometimes adds still further a few last words of affectionate remembrance, "My love be with you all in Christ Jesus."8

But although the letters of St. Paul are so essential a part of his personal biography, it is a difficult question to decide upon the form in which they should be given in a work like this. The object to be sought is, that they may really represent in English what they were to their Greek readers when first written. Now this object would not be attained if the authorized version were adhered to, and yet a departure from that whereof so much is interwoven with the memory and deepest feelings of every religious mind should be grounded on strong and sufficient cause. t is hoped that the following reasons may be held such.

• Rom. xvi. 22. "I, Tertius, who wrote this Epistle, salute you in the Lord."

◄ Gal. vi. 11. “Ye see the size of the characters (7λikois ypáμμɑoiv) in which I write to you with my own hand."

⚫ 2 Thess. iii. 17.

1 Cor. xvi. 24.

6 1 Cor. xvi. 22.

7 Coloss. iv. 18.

1st. The authorized version was meant to be a standard of au thority and ultimate appeal in controversy; hence it could not venture to depart, as an ordinary translation would do, from the exact words of the original, even where some amplification was absolutely required to complete the sense. It was to be the version unanimously accepted by all parties, and therefore must simply represent the Greek text word for word. This it does most faithfully so far as the critical knowledge of the sixteenth ' century permitted. But the result of this method is sometimes to produce a translation unintelligible to the English reader." Also if the text admit of two interpretations, our version endeavours, if possible, to preserve the same ambiguity, and effects this often with admirable skill; but such indecision, although a merit in an authoritative version, would be a fault in a translation which had a different object.

2d. The imperfect knowledge existing at the time when our Bible was translated, made it inevitable that the translators should occasionally render the original incorrectly; and the same cause has made their version of many of the argumentative portions of the Epistles perplexed and obscure.

3d. Such passages as are affected by the above-mentioned objections might, it is true, have been recast, and the authorized translation retained in all cases where it is correct and clear; but if this had been done, a patchwork effect would have been produced like that of new cloth upon old garments; moreover the devotional associations of the reader would have been offended, and it would have been a rash experiment to provoke such a contrast between the matchless style of the authorized version and that of the modern translator, thus placed side by side.

4th. The style adopted for the present purpose should not be antiquated; for St. Paul was writing in the language used by his Hellenistic readers in every day life.

5th. In order to give the true meaning of the original, something of paraphrase is often absolutely required. St. Paul's style is extremely elliptical, and the gaps must be filled up. And moreover the great difficulty in understanding his argument is to trace clearly the transitions by which he passes from one step to an

! Being executed at the very beginning of the seventeenth.

'Yet had any other course been adopted, every sect would have had its own Bible, as it is, this one translation has been all but unanimously received for three centuries. 3 In the translation of the Epistles given in the present work it has been the especial