The First Controversy.—?Views of the Two Parties.—?Council at Jerusalem.—?Results of Council.—?The Letter.—?Vacillation of Peter.—?Rebuked by Paul.—?The Missionary Excursion of Paul and Barnabas.—?They traverse the Island of Cyprus.—?Land on the Coast of Asia Minor.—?Mark returns to Syria.—?Results of this Tour.—?Paul and Silas set out on a Second Tour through Asia Minor.—?Cross the Hellespont.—?Introduction of Christianity to Europe.—?Heroism of Paul at Philippi.—?Tour through Macedonia and Greece.—?Character of Paul’s Preaching.—?Peter’s Description of the Final Conflagration.—?False Charges.—?Paul in Athens; in Corinth.—?Return to Jerusalem.

HE Jews had supposed that the Messiah was to come to the Jews alone, and that no one could become a member of his kingdom unless he first became a Jew. But Paul and Barnabas were preaching to the Gentiles, and establishing churches among them. Thus quite a serious dissension sprang up among the Christians, who had previously been Jews, upon this question. While some of the brethren ardently advocated the doctrine, “Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved,” Paul opposed this sentiment with all his energies. Several of these “Judaizing Christians,” as they were termed, came down to Antioch from JudÆa, and so troubled the Christians there with disputations which seemed to threaten the very foundations of Christianity, that it was determined to summon a council of the most eminent Christians at Jerusalem, the seat of the mother church, to settle the agitating question.

Paul and Barnabas, with several other members of the Church at Antioch, were commissioned as delegates to attend this council. On their journey, as they passed through the cities of Samaria, preaching by the way, they announced the glad tidings that God was receiving the Gentiles, and conferring upon them the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the same as upon the Jews. It is estimated that fifteen years had now passed since Paul traversed that same road, from Jerusalem to Damascus, to persecute the Christians. Since that time, Paul had twice visited the Holy City, and Christianity had made extraordinary progress throughout Syria and Asia Minor. Upon arriving at Jerusalem, the council was convened, over which James, pastor of the church there, presided. As soon as the council was opened, several of the Judaizing Christians arose, and argued that all Gentile converts should be circumcised, and that they should punctiliously observe all the rites of the ceremonial law. Peter was the first one to reply on the other side. We have an abstract of his speech:—

“Men and brethren,” said he, “ye know how that a good while ago120 God made choice among us, that the Gentiles, by my mouth, should hear the word of the gospel, and believe. And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; and put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. Now, therefore, why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.”121

Then Barnabas and Paul gave an account of their missionary tour through Asia Minor, and of the wonderful success with which God had blessed the preaching of the gospel among the Gentiles. James then rose, whose opinion as presiding officer, and pastor of the metropolitan church, would have great weight with the council, and very earnestly and convincingly sustained the views advocated by Peter, Paul, and Barnabas. The result recorded by Luke was as follows:—

“Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren: and they wrote letters by them after this manner:—

“The apostles and elders and brethren send greeting unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia: Forasmuch as we have heard that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law (to whom we gave no such commandment), it seemed good unto us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men unto you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,—men that have hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have sent, therefore, Judas and Silas, who shall also tell you the same things by mouth: for it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things,—that ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication; from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.”122

The brethren returned to Antioch, and communicated to the assembled church there the result of the council. It gave great satisfaction; and though, for a time, the all-important question continued here and there to trouble the churches, eventually there was universal acquiescence in the decision of the brethren at Jerusalem. After this, Paul and Barnabas continued some time in Antioch, “teaching and preaching the word of the Lord.”

In the mean time, Peter came to Antioch to assist the brethren in their labors there. Impetuous and versatile, and far from infallible, he at first lived in free intercourse with the Gentile converts, eating with them, and meeting them in social friendship on terms of entire equality; but suddenly, “through fear of those who were of the circumcision,” we find him withdrawing from those whom he had just been treating as equals, and giving his example in favor of those who demanded that the Gentiles should become Jews.

This vacillation and inconsistency on the part of Peter excited the indignation of Paul. The account which Paul gives of this transaction is as follows:—

“But, when Peter was come to Antioch, Iwithstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed. For, before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles; but, when they were come, he withdrew, and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision. And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him, insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with their dissimulation. But, when Isaw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, Isaid unto Peter before them all,—

“If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews? We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles, knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ,—even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.”123

There is no evidence that this event caused any permanent alienation between the two apostles. It is more probable that Peter, whose mind was susceptible of such rapid changes, immediately relented, and, with all the gushings of his generous and loving nature, returned to duty. It is pleasant to read in one of the subsequent epistles of Peter the words, “Even as our beloved brother Paul hath written unto you.”124

Soon after this, the enterprising spirit of Paul induced him to leave the comparative tranquillity of his home and labors in Antioch, and to revisit all the cities and villages in Asia Minor, where he, with Barnabas, had established churches. He said to Barnabas, “Let us go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they do.”125

Barnabas wished to take Mark with them again as an attendant. This John Mark, the same one who wrote the Gospel under his name, was the nephew of Barnabas, being his sister’s son. Paul was unwilling to take him, being displeased with his conduct on their previous tour, when he “departed from them from Pamphylia, and went not with them to their work.” Barnabas was probably not a man of very much force of character, as is indicated by his being carried away with the dissimulation of Peter to which we have alluded. He had certainly occupied a secondary position on the previous missionary tour, and Paul was perhaps not unwilling to exchange him for some other brother.

There is no evidence that there was any angry controversy here,—any thing inconsistent with the Christian integrity and brotherly kindness of the two men. Barnabas took Mark with him, and, embarking at Seleucia, sailed for the Island of Cyprus. Paul chose Silas as his companion, one of the delegates who had been sent from the council at Jerusalem to Antioch. Journeying by land, and probably on foot through Syria and Cilicia, they visited the churches in Asia Minor, in a route from east to west, instead of, as before, from west to east.

Proceeding through Derbe, he came to Lystra, where, on the previous tour, he had been cruelly stoned. Here he found a young convert by the name of Timothy, for whom he formed the strongest of earthly attachments. Timothy’s mother was a Jewess; but his father was a Gentile, a Greek. His lineage was good, as Paul speaks of “the unfeigned faith which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois and thy mother Eunice.”126 Timothy attached himself to Paul, and ever after they were associated as father and son. Paul repeatedly calls him “my son,” “my own son in the faith,” and writes, “Ye know, that, as a son with the father, he hath served with me in the gospel.”127

Timothy was the son of a Jewess; and his father, though a Greek, was unquestionably not an idolater, but a proselyte. While Paul was carrying “to all the churches” the decision of the council in Jerusalem,—that Gentiles were not to be forced into Judaism upon becoming Christians,—still, out of regard to the strong prejudices of the Jews among whom he was going, he caused Timothy to be circumcised. Some have regarded this as inconsistent conduct on the part of Paul; others have considered it but an indication of his far-sighted wisdom and caution. But for this, the hostile Jews would have had a new and formidable weapon of opposition to wield against him. As Timothy could not be regarded as a Gentile, the action of Paul could not be deemed inconsistent with the decision of the council at Jerusalem.

Paul, Silas, and Timothy passed through the whole central region of Asia Minor, preaching the gospel in all its cities and villages; but we have no record of the incidents which attended their labors, or of the adventures which they encountered. It was undoubtedly a successful excursion; for the sacred historian writes, “And so were the churches established in the faith, and increased in numbers daily.”128

Passing through the provinces of Phrygia and Mysia, they came to Troas, on the eastern coast of the Ægean Sea, not far from the mouth of the Hellespont. Here the vision of a man appeared to Paul in the night, saying, “Come over into Macedonia and help us.” They therefore took a vessel at Troas, and sailed in a north-westerly direction, among the islands of the Ægean Sea, till they came to the important Island of Samothracia. Passing around this island on the north, they directed their course to Philippi, on the Macedonian coast. This was the chief city of that part of Macedonia. There was an important Roman colony established here, and a synagogue of the Jews outside of the walls. Here they remained several days, probably, as was ever their custom, on the week-days preaching the gospel in the streets of the city, and from house to house. On the sabbath, they went to the Jewish synagogue by a river-side. The following incident is recorded as occurring at this time and place:—

“A certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us; whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul. And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.”129

Thus peacefully the gospel was first transplanted into Europe. But in this life, “after the calm, the storm” seems to be the rule. Some persons of influence owned a slave-girl, who was believed to be possessed “with a spirit of divination.” How much of this was imposture cannot now be known. But the owners of this damsel derived much profit from the many credulous people who flocked to her to have their fortunes told. Impelled by some unexplained influence, as she met Paul and Silas day after day, she exclaimed, in the hearing of all the people,—

“These men are the servants of the most high God, which show unto us the way of salvation.”

At length, Paul, “being grieved, turned and said, Icommand thee, in the name of Jesus Christ, to come out of her.”

Her powers of divination, whatever they were, immediately left her. Her masters were enraged. All hope of future gain was at an end. They seized Paul and Silas, and dragged them before the city authorities. It was not easy to bring any accusation against them; for the law allowed no remedy for property depreciated by exorcism. They therefore framed a charge in which truth and falsehood were singularly blended.

“These men,” said they, “being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city, and teach customs which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans.”

The Jews had recently, in consequence of some disturbance, been all driven out of Rome.130 They were generally hated and despised. It was also a principle in Roman law, that any religious innovations which threatened to unsettle the minds of the people, or to create tumult, were to be rigorously suppressed. Under these circumstances, it was not difficult to rouse the violence of the mob.

The magistrates, apparently without listening to any defence, ordered them to be led to the whipping-post and scourged. The scourging upon the bare back by the brawny arms of a Roman lictor was indeed a terrible ordeal for any one to pass through. Bruised with the lash, and fainting from pain and the loss of blood, they were thrust into a dark, pestilential dungeon in the inner prison; and their feet were made fast in the stocks. The jailer had special charge to keep them safely. The scene which ensued cannot be better narrated than in the language of Luke:—

“And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God; and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed. And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison-doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm; for we are all here. Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, and brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must Ido to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway.”

The morning dawned. The magistrates, probably somewhat alarmed in view of the violent measures which they had pursued, sent officers to the jailer with the order, that he should “let those men go.” Paul and Silas were both Roman citizens, and Paul was a lawyer. The Roman law did not allow any one entitled to the dignity of Roman citizenship to be exposed to the ignominy of scourging.131

These Roman citizens, without any form of trial, without any legal condemnation, had been openly scourged in the market-place. Paul therefore replied to the message from the magistrates ordering them to be liberated,—

“They have beaten us openly uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison; and now do they thrust us out privily? Nay, verily; but let them come themselves and fetch us out.”

The magistrates were greatly alarmed when they learned that their victims were Roman citizens. The report of the outrage at Rome would cost them their offices, if not their lives. They therefore hastened to the prisoners, and became suppliants before those whom they had so inhumanly persecuted, entreating them to depart out of their city. Paul made no appeal to the authorities at Rome; he was too busy preaching the gospel to devote any time to personal redress: but the course he pursued throughout that scene of suffering placed Christianity on high vantage-ground in Philippi, and secured for its advocates the protection of law.

These heroic men made no haste to leave the city. Returning to the house of Lydia, they met all the brethren who by their instrumentality had been led to embrace the religion of Jesus, and addressed them in farewell words of solace and counsel. Thus far it appears, from the form of the narrative, that Luke, the historian of the Acts of the Apostles, had accompanied the brethren on this missionary excursion. It is inferred that Luke and Timothy remained a little longer in Philippi, and that Luke did not rejoin Paul for some time.

Paul and Silas set out to cross the mountains to Amphipolis, a city about thirty miles south-west from Philippi: thence they pressed on twenty-five miles, to Apollonia; and thence thirty-two miles farther, to Thessalonica. We have no record how long they stopped at the two first places, or what success attended their preaching there. In this important seaport, the most populous city in Macedonia, Paul and Silas remained for some time. The following is the inspired record of the commencement of Paul’s labors there:—

“They came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: and Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, opening and alleging that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom Ipreach unto you, is Christ.”

The preaching of Paul and Silas in Thessalonica resulted in the conversion of many, both of the Jews and the Gentiles. It is recorded that among the converts there were numbered “of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.” In Paul’s two Epistles to the Thessalonians, we find quite a minute account of the sentiments which he advanced in this city. The spiritual reign of Christ, his second coming in clouds of glory with his holy angels, and the endless happiness which his disciples would then inherit, were the themes of infinite moment which inspired his fervid eloquence. The following extract from one of his letters, which he subsequently wrote to the Thessalonians from Corinth, will show the manner in which he treated such themes. Speaking of the second coming of Jesus in the day of his exaltation, he wrote,—

“But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”132

This graphic account of the sublime scenes to be witnessed at the second coming of our Lord Jesus agitated the church in Thessalonica, as the Christians there supposed that the coming of Jesus was to be hourly expected. This led Paul to write another letter, in which he corrected that error. In this he wrote,—

“Now, we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering-together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means; for that day shall not come except there come a falling-away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”133

Who the “man of sin” is remains an undecided question. The Protestants have generally applied the words to the Pope of Rome. It will be remembered, that when Jesus took his final departure from his disciples, ascending into the skies in bodily presence before them from Mount Olivet, two angels appeared to them, and said,—

“Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.”134

The second coming of Christ, to reap the fruits of his humiliation and his atoning sacrifice in the establishment of his spiritual kingdom, was a prominent theme in the teaching both of Christ and his apostles. The language of Peter upon this subject unfolds, indeed, a scene of wonderful sublimity:—

“This second epistle, beloved, Inow write unto you, in both which Istir up your pure minds by way of remembrance; that ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour: knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for, since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

“For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water; whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished; but the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

“But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise as some men count slackness, but is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat; the earth also, and the works that are therein, shall be burned up.

“Seeing, then, that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens, being on fire, shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless, we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.”135

These emphatic announcements, that the Lord Jesus, who had risen from the grave and ascended to heaven, would come again in glory with an angelic retinue to establish an everlasting kingdom, were interpreted by hostile or careless hearers to intimate that the Christians had designs against the Roman government, which they intended by revolution to overthrow; that they intended to establish the throne of Jesus upon the ruins of the throne of CÆsar. This charge was brought against Jesus, notwithstanding his reiterated declaration, “My kingdom is not of this world.”

The enemies of Paul and Silas took advantage of this misrepresentation to accuse them of treason against the Roman government. The record is as follows:—

“But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people. And, when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also; whom Jason hath received: and these all do contrary to the decrees of CÆsar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus.”136

The commotion in the city was so great, and the peril of mob violence so imminent, that the brethren sent Paul and Silas by night to Berea, an interior town, about sixty miles south-west of Thessalonica. In this small rural city, situated on the eastern slope of the Olympian mountains, Paul found an intelligent, unprejudiced people, who listened gladly to the tidings of salvation which he brought them.

“They were more noble,” writes Luke, “than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily whether those things were so. Therefore many of them believed; also of honorable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few.”137

The malignant Jews in Thessalonica, hearing of Paul’s success in Berea, sent some of their number to rouse the mob there against him. Paul, aware that he could hope to accomplish but little amidst scenes of popular clamor and violence, quietly withdrew. He, however, left Silas and Timothy behind: they, being less prominent, would not so much attract the attention of the populace.

Aided by the brethren of Berea, Paul repaired to the sea-coast, where he embarked for the city of Athens. Coasting along the western shore of the Island of Euboea, a distance of ninety miles, they came to Cape Colonna, the southern extremity of Attica. Here, on Sunium’s high promontory, stood the temple of Minerva, a landmark to the Greek sailors. The eminence is still crowned with the ruins of its white columns.

Rounding this cape, the navigator soon came in sight of the splendid city of Athens, “built nobly on the Ægean shore, the eye of Greece, the mother of arts and eloquence.”138 Idolatrous shrines crowned every height, and gorgeous temples for the worship of false gods were found in all the streets. Athens was probably by far the most renowned city Paul had yet entered; and it embraced a large class of poets, philosophers, and men of literary leisure. “All the Athenians, and strangers which were there, spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new thing.”

The statues to the gods were so numerous, that Petronius, a Roman satirist, declared that it was easier to find a god than a man in Athens. The spirit of Paul was roused as never before in seeing this great city so entirely surrendered to idolatry. In the synagogue of the Jews, and daily in the market-place, and from house to house, as he could find persons to listen to him, he proclaimed the religion of Jesus. His earnestness, and the power of his eloquent words, soon arrested general attention. Some of the proud philosophers turned contemptuously from him, calling him a “babbler:” others had their curiosity excited, and wished to hear more, saying, “He seemeth to be a setter-forth of strange gods, because,” adds Luke, “he preached unto them Jesus and the resurrection.”139

There was at Athens a renowned eminence, called Mars’ Hill, upon whose summit was reared one of the most majestic buildings of ancient or modern days, called the Acropolis. Here the court of the Areopagus, the most solemn of the Grecian courts, held its sessions. Here Paul was taken by the Athenians to expound to them his doctrine. Never had he addressed such an audience before. Apparently never before, since he became a disciple of Jesus, had he encountered an hour to be fraught with more momentous consequences. The sacred historian has given us his address, or an abstract of it, upon this occasion. In its appropriateness to the circumstances of the case, it is universally regarded as unsurpassed in the records of human eloquence:—

“Ye men of Athens, Iperceive that in all things ye are too superstitious;140 for as Ipassed by, and beheld your devotions, Ifound an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom, therefore, ye ignorantly worship, him declare Iunto you. God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life and breath and all things; and hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; that they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him and find him, though he be not far from every one of us.

“For in him we live and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. Forasmuch, then, as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold or silver or stone, graven by art and man’s device. And the times of this ignorance God winked at, but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent; because he hath appointed a day in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.”141

The results of this address upon the minds of those who listened were various. Some of the philosophers, when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, “mocked.” Many of the Jews were probably irritated at the suggestion that Jews and Gentiles were to be placed on an equality. Others, more respectful, withdrew, simply saying, “We will hear thee again of this matter.” This was probably merely a polite expression of indifference. Paul did not feel sufficiently encouraged to prolong his labors among auditors so unpromising. In the synagogue, and in the streets, Paul had been preaching to the Athenians “Jesus and the resurrection.” It was to this same theme, the burden of all his teachings, that upon Mars’ Hill he so skilfully drew the attention of his hearers.

Paul did not encounter any tumult or violence in Athens. How long he remained there cannot now be known. As to the results of his labors, we are informed that Dionysius, a member of the court of Areopagus, and a woman by the name of Damaris, with some others, became converts to Christianity.

From Athens Paul proceeded to Corinth, the commercial metropolis of Greece, and a city renowned for its wealth, its luxury, and its wickedness. Corinth was about sixty miles from Athens, in a direction very nearly west. Two of the exiled Jews, Aquila and his wife Priscilla, whom a decree of the Emperor Claudius had expelled from Rome, had taken refuge in Corinth. They cordially received Paul, and he abode with them. They were tent-makers by occupation; making tents, then in great demand, of cloth woven from goat’s-hair. Paul, who was unwilling to be burdensome to any one, met his expenses by his daily or rather nightly toil at this trade, which he had learned in his early youth. After preaching the gospel all day, we can see him in the evening diligently aiding Aquila and Priscilla in their manual labor.

Soon Silas and Timothy, coming from Thessalonica, joined Paul in Corinth. As he witnessed the great wickedness of the city, his spirit was stirred within him to an unusual degree. Earnestly he testified to the degenerate Jews that Jesus is the Christ. But the Jews would not receive Jesus of Nazareth as their Messiah. They reviled the preacher and his gospel. Luke writes,—

“And when they opposed themselves, and blasphemed, he shook his raiment, and said unto them, Your blood be upon your own heads: Iam clean: from henceforth Iwill go unto the Gentiles.”

He thus abandoned the synagogue; and it seems that it was necessary for him to leave the residence of his Jewish hosts, and to take up his abode with a Gentile by the name of Justus. This man lived near the synagogue, and, though a Greek, had renounced idolatry, and was a worshipper of the true God. Paul’s labors among the Jews had not been entirely in vain: for “Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord, with all his house;” and Paul in person baptized him.142

Among the Gentiles Paul’s success was very great, and converts were rapidly multiplied. The rage of the Jews was such, that it was feared that Paul would encounter personal violence; but the Lord appeared to Paul in the night in a vision, and said to him,—

“Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace; for Iam with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee; for Ihave much people in this city.”

For a year and six months Paul continued in Corinth, preaching the gospel. It was from that city that he wrote his two impressive and affectionate letters to the converts in Thessalonica. An easy, good-natured man, by the name of Gallio, was at that time governor of the province of Achaia, which included the whole of Southern Greece. Probably the conversion and baptism of Crispus exasperated the Jews to the highest degree. They stirred up an insurrection in the streets; seized Paul, and with clamor and tumult dragged him before the judgment-seat of Gallio. But the charges which they brought against Paul were so frivolous, that Gallio drove them from his presence, declaring that he would be no judge of such matters.

The Greeks hated the Jews. And here, for the first time, we have the remarkable exhibition of the populace proceeding to acts of violence against the enemies of Paul. According to the narrative in the Acts of the Apostles, the Greek populace rushed upon Sosthenes, the ruler of the Jewish synagogue, and severely beat him. It was far more important to Gallio that he should be popular among the Greeks than among the Jews: he therefore, with characteristic indifference, left Sosthenes to his fate. After this, the Jews no longer attempted to molest Paul.

He remained in Corinth “yet a good while;” but we have no record of the amount or success of his labors. He then bade farewell to the numerous converts whom he had gathered in Corinth, and, accompanied by Aquila and Priscilla, embarked at Cenchrea, and, leaving the shores of Greece behind him, crossed the Ægean Sea, a distance of about two hundred miles, and landed at the renowned city of Ephesus, in Asia Minor. In the record of this event it is written,—

“He then took leave of the brethren, and sailed thence into Syria, and with him Priscilla and Aquila; having shorn his head in Cenchrea: for he had a vow.”143

The structure of the sentence does not determine whether it was Paul or Aquila who had a vow; neither are we informed why the vow was taken. Paul apparently entered the synagogue at Ephesus but once, when he reasoned with the Jews, endeavoring to convince them that Jesus was the Messiah; and, though entreated to tarry longer with them, he declined, saying, “Imust by all means keep this feast144 that cometh in Jerusalem; but Iwill return again unto you.”

Sailing from Ephesus, leaving Aquila and Priscilla behind him, he landed at CÆsarea in Syria, and immediately hastened up to Jerusalem to report to the church there his adventures in the long and momentous excursion he had made,—an excursion which occupied a little over two years. He then returned to Antioch.