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ages of Chriftianity; and I very much fufpect the conduct, preachings and writings of St. Paul in the courfe of thirty years, contributed not a little in mifleading the compilers ancient and modern, The Ebionites tell us he was not originally a Jew, but a Gentile profelite, who being at Jerufalem wished to marry the daughter of a priest, and for that purpofe caufed himself to be circumcifed. Difappointed; he, in revenge oppofed circumcifion and the law. Leaving the difgraceful history given of him by thefe difciples of St. Peter; we will examine his own, The extraordinary story of his difafter near, and converfion at, Damafcus (about a year after the death of Jefus) may occafion us to fet out with an unfavourable opinion of the faint. In the firft account of it we are told -The men which journeyed with him, stood fpeechless, hearing a voice, but feeing no man.' Acts ch. ix, v. 7. But Acts ch. xxii, v. 9. Paul telling this story to the Roman Captain at Jerufa lem, fays-And that they were with me, faw indeed the light, and were afraid, but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me. This marvellous story, like all other marvellous ftories gains in repetition. Vide Acts ch. xxvi, v. 13 to v. 18, in which Paul tells it to Agrippa. Damafcus, moft likely was the place of his inftruction as well as converfion by Ananias, Barnabas, and other difciples who were there, it being faid Acts ch. ix, V. 19 and 20 Then was Saul certain days with

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the difciples which were at Damafcus, and ftraitway he preached Chrift in the fynagogues, that he is the Son of God.' This inftruction he however denied twenty years after, in 5,7, writing to the Galatians whom he had inftructed in 51 and 54 but who were afterward taught by others that Paul was no apoftle, that he had never feen Jefus, and that the other apoftles preached a different doctrine. In answer to this, he tells them that he was not inftructed by man, but by Christ himself; and if any man, he himself, or even an angel from Heaven, Heaven, was to preach a gofpel differing from that which he had taught, let him be accurfed. Notwithftanding all this it will appear, that he, a few years after, preached and wrote a different Gofpel. In Acts ch. xvii, he tells the Athenians (about the year 50) that God the Father made the world in the year 57 writing to the Corinthians, he clearly and positively afferts the fuperiority of God, and the inferiority of Chrift, vide 1Ep. Ephefians ch. xv: but in the year 62 he tells the Colloffians that all things were made by Chrift*. Probably his teaching Chrift as God, occafioned the defertion of many followers, and of which he complains in the laft of his Epiftles written a fhort time before his death, to his friend Timothy, viz.-This thou knoweft, that all they which are in Afia be turned away from me, of

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whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes, ch. i. v. 15. Demas hath forfaken me, having loved this prefent world, and is departed into Theffalonica: Crefcens to Galatia: Titus into Dalma

tia, ch. iv. v. 10. Alexander the copper-finith

did me much evil: the Lord reward him according to his works, verfe 14. What mafter taught him this unchriftian prayer? But (if he did not speak infincerely) he made a better after the next complaint.-At my first answer, no man ftood with me; but all men forfook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge, verfe 16. Paul, after his converfion, went up to Jerufalem where the apoftles were affembled, and endeavoured to join himself to them, but was refufed. Nor could he gain admiffion among them but by the friendly offices of Jofeph furnamed by the apoftles Barnabas; he was a Levite of the Ifle of Cyprus, of whom we are told, Acts, ch. iv. he fold his land, and laid the price of it at the apostles' feet. A strong proof, if not of his wisdom, at least of his fincerity. It is allowed that he laboured as much as any of his af fociates to establish the doctrines of Chrift, and that he was particularly fuccefsful at Antioch, where the appellation of Chriftians was firft given, about nine years after the death of Jefus. He obtained Saul's reception among the apoftles by reciting the miraculous converfion, and affuring them that he had, in confequence, preached

Jefus

Jefus Chrift, in the city of Damafcus, Acts, ch. iv. After this, Barnabas and Saul were chofen by the Holy Ghoft, to preach to and convert the Gentiles. Having executed this task together, and returned to Jerufalem: they foon after agreed to repeat their vifit, but unluckily fell out about a third companion. Barnabas infifted upon having Mark this Saul refused, because Mark, in the firft excurfion, had forfaken them at Pamphylia. The manner in which this is recorded, Acts, ch. xv. verses 39, 40, and 41, is worth obferv ing And the contention was fo fharp between them, that they departed afunder one from the other and fo Barnabas took Mark, and failed unto Cyprus. And Paul chofe Silas, and de

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parted, being recommended by the brethren, unto 6 the grace of God; and he went through Syria ⚫ and Cilicia confirming the churches.' The ingratitude of Paul, in this tranfaction, is appa rent, and the endeavour to cover it, by the fentence marked, makes it worfe; it being well known that the Acts were wrote immediately under his infpection. But we are not furprised at this act of ingratitude in the man who before this had exhibited an act of exceffive cruelty. In the Ifle of Paphos, he, being as it is faid, filled with the Holy Ghoft, abuses in harth terms, and then ftrikes with blindness Elymas, whofe only apparent crime was an endeavour to dif fuade his friend Paulus the Pro-Conful from hear

very

ing Saul. (Vide Acts, ch. xiii.) Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed being aftonished (no wonder) at the doctrine of the Lord. This cruel miracle, we find converted the deputy, whofe name Saul took by way of recording his triumph. How different was the conduct of St. Peter in the case of Simon, recorded Acts, ch. viii. This was an example of forbearance worthy imitation: Saul it feems thought not fo: and foon after this, when the people of Antioch in Pifidia put a stop to his preaching, and drove him out of their territories, (Acts, ch. xiii.) he did not forget the malediction ordered, Matthew, ch. x, v. 14. but fhook off the duft of his feet for a memorial against them, though there were many believers in that city, and departed into Iconium; to which is added this extraordinary verse—And the difciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghoft. He fucceeded much in the fame way at Iconium, from whence he fled for fear of being ftoned. In this vifit to Iconium, the fathers place the converfion of St. Thela, the firft female martyr. She was contracted to Thamirus, a man handsome, rich, noble, and of the first rank in the city; but St. Paul having converted her, the renounced her marriage to embrace virginity. Enraged at this feduction, Thamirus complained thereof to the Pro-Conful Sextilius, who caufed the faint to be fcourged and drove out of the city.

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