a further corroboration of our reasonings upon this topic, in a former Chapter.* iii. "Having prayed with fastings, they commended them to the Lord upon whom they had believed." In this construction, very common in the New Testament, the finite verb expresses the action which was the design and end of the aoristic participle. The passage declares that the sequel of the prayers of Paul and Barnabas was this "commending to the Lord," the new converts to Christianity. The word denotes the committing of a person or object to another for care and guardianship. The purpose of such committing was plainly the preservation of these Christians from all the temptations and evils to which they were exposed, and their being enabled to maintain unshaken fidelity in their profession of religion. This purpose was stated by the apostle in a following part of this book: "I commend you to God and to his gracious word :”‡ where the Almighty Agent, and the instrument of agency, are distinctly marked. But, in the passage before us the person to whose power and grace the apostle and his associate commended the converts and their newly established churches, was clearly the Lord Jesus, " on whom they had believed," and on whom the inspired teachers directed all persons to believe in order to salvation. It was an act of adoration; and it *Page 307-314, of this Volume. † Chap. xiv. 23. Chap. xx. 32. manifestly recognized in Him who was its object, that invincible power which in the most hazardous circumstances could keep his followers from falling, and guarantee that "they should never perish, nor should any snatch them out of his hand." It is also plain, that the just construction leads us to refer the action of praying, and that of commending, to the same Object. Thus we have endeavoured to collect the declarations contained in the Acts of the Apostles, on the subject of our inquiry. The sum of the testimonies appears to be this: that the Christ is really and truly a man; that he is the Author and Cause of spiritual and immortal blessings to the human race; that the miracles, which attested the mission of the apostles, were performed by his efficient power; that the peculiar operations of the Holy Spirit had the same origination; that he will be the final and universal Judge of mankind; that, in all these respects, Jesus Christ acts in subordination to the primary grace and authority of the Father; that the characteristic institutions of Christianity have an especial respect to him as their Author, and the Object to whom equally with God the Father their homage is directed; that he is often styled THE LORD, in the absolute form; that the phrase of performing religious acts in his Name, is used, in a manner analogous to the peculiar applica tion of that expression in the scriptures to the Deity; that religious worship was paid to him, and that such worship was a designating mark of the primitive Christians. On this review, we find several points demanding observation. 1. All these assertions and expositions of the doctrine concerning Jesus, refer to his official capacity as the Messiah, and to the characters of Redeemer, Saviour, Sovereign, Teacher, Protector, Judge, and Rewarder of his faithful people. Now it is evident, that, in any wellconducted attempt to initiate persons in the knowledge of Christianity, these are the topics which would occupy the first place; especially when the persons to be instructed, being Jews, or proselytes to Judaism, were worshippers of the True God, expectants of the Messiah, and holding the authority of the Old Testament scriptures. 2. Upon this ground, it is obvious that it would be proper to refer the auditors, inquirers, or converts, to the diligent study of the Jewish scriptures, for progress and establishment in the correct knowledge of the Messiah, as to both his person and his offices. This, accordingly, was done by the apostolic teachers, as their instructions are described in this book;* and distinguished commendation is given to those who were diligent in " searching the scriptures."+ * See the references in p. 492, of this Volume. 3. The attentive reader cannot but perceive that mixture of characters of inferiority and characters of supremacy, which we have before observed in the discourses of our Lord himself.* This constant and intimate combination shews that neither of the two classes is to be taken alone, that they are respectively consistent, that the one is to be modified by the other, and that no interpretation is entitled to credit which does not admit the fair meaning of both. 4. It appears highly probable that the discourses preserved in the Book of Acts, are only fragments and outlines; and that they were, in most cases, introductory to more ample instructions on the doctrines and duties of Christianity : for the book contains still less of information on the morality of the gospel than it does on its doctrinal truths. But the remarks which were made, at the beginning of this Chapter, on the scope and design of the book, sufficiently, I trust, shew that this circumstance is not to be esteemed a defect; and that the ulterior teaching which was thus assumed as a necessary sequel, is to be sought in the epistolary writings of the apostles. 5. On the admission of this hypothesis, a rational account may be given of the fact, that the denial of the proper Deity of the Messiah, shewed itself very early in the Christian profession. The number of Jews who nominally at least embraced Christianity, during the earlier * Page 67, of this Volume. part of the apostolic ministry, was very considerable. They are stated as having been " many myriads," at the time when the violent Jewish tumult was raised against the apostle Paul. They were all "zealots for the law," and in general exceedingly disaffected to that apostle's person and authority. They had also shewn themselves refractory to the moderate and cautious measures which Peter had endeavoured to pursue, a few years before, with respect to the converts from heathenism. Many of them seem to have been under the influence of an exasperation, against Paul and his proceedings in favour of converted gentiles, which the evidence of his divine commission could not subdue, and which did not at all yield to the mollifying influence of time. They rejected his authority, denied his apostleship, and maligned his character. The cause of this inveterate enmity was their aversion from his doctrine of salvation by grace through the Redeemer and their opposition to it impelled them to the most violent extreme. They disliked the diligent and faithful labour of going on to search the scriptures, and attend to the progressive disclosures of inspired doctrine. Conceiving themselves already perfect, they had no desire to " grow in the in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." To support the dignity * Chap. xxi. 20, μupiades. The term is used in Greek as in English, to signify a countless multitude. "It is put for any indefinite and undetermined number, very great, and unlimited." Schleusner. |