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fuppofes, were of late ufe in the Church; and if the Syriack translation was made after thefe, I am ready to grant, what thefe gentlemen contend for, that it was not made near the Apoftles' time. But let the ufe of Liturgies be as late as they please, and the interpolation of the Doxology even after them; yet, I fay, it does not follow, that the Syriack Verfion was made after, because we may as well fuppofe an interpolation of the Syriack, as the Greek text. I have the pleasure in this thought to join with Father Simon P, who well argues thus: No argument, says he, can be weaker than this is against the antiquity of the Syriack Verfion. If this addition was inferted into the Greek copies, why may not the fame thing be affirmed of the Syriack Verfion, which might be revifed or altered in that place conformable to the Greek copies; efpecially fince the Syrian Churches had their Liturgies from the Greeks?

Thus does not this objection any way detract from the antiquity of the Syriack Verfion, nor contradict the truth of my hypothefis, that it was made in or near the Apostles' time; of which I shall fay now no more, but leave the subject with one or two, which seem to me important, Corollaries.

Coroll. 1. The antiquity of the Syriack Verfion wonderfully confirms the purity and incorruption of the printed copies of the New Teftament. The connection of this is the agreement there is between them both; and this is not only very great, but even furprising to one who confiders, that our present Greek was compiled according to the judgment and difcretion of one fingle perfon, out of a great number of differing manuscripts. That there is fuch an agreement, I aver upon a long and close obfervation. Now that this agreement should be, and the places in which they agree be corrupted, is the most abfurd fuppofition imaginable. Each must prove the other to be genuine; unless we can fuppofe a combination in the Churches of the Eaft and Weft to corrupt their copies. in the fame places, without any reason in the world.

P Critic. Hift. N. Teft. Par. I. c. 13.

I 3

Coroll.

>

Coroll. II. The Syriack Version is of very great fervice in explaining many paffages in the New Teftament. He who will confider, that this was the language, which our Saviour and his Apostles fpake to each other, the idiom of which is preferved in the Lacred writings; he who believes this interpreter to have lived among those who spake this language, and to have known himself the customs referred to in our Saviour's and his Apostles' difcourfes, muft needs conclude him a very good guide in the explication of them. I will not produce any instances here, it being not directly to my purpose; but do venture to fay, that very many of the most obscure places in the New Teftament are in this Verfion, by the skill of the tranflator, and the idiom of the language, happily explained; and fo explained, as perhaps there was no other way of coming at the true meaning of the text. This is commonly obferved, and many inftances of it are produced by Martini and others; and many more may be found in the writings of Cafaubon, Fuller, Spanheim the elder, De Dieu, and others. I wish this may be thought by any one an argument to incite him to the study of this language, and the New Teftament

in it.

CHAP.

CHAP. XX.

An Alphabetical Table of all the Apocryphal Pieces not extant.

HAVING above produced the names of all the books,

that may feem to lay any claim to Canonical authority, and which are now not extant, I shall finish this part with an alphabetical table of the fame, with the feveral places where they are mentioned, that fo the reader may at one view, and with more ease, see how great their number is, and how frequently they are mentioned by the antient writers of Chriftianity.

A.

1. The Acts of Andrew. Eufeb. Hift. Eccl. l. 3. c. 25. Philaftr. Hæref. 87. Epiphan. Hæref. 47. §. 1. Hæref. 61. §. 1. & Hæref. 63. §. 2. Gelaf. in Decret. *

2. Books under the name of Andrew. Auguft. contr. Adverfar. Leg, & Prophet, l. 1. c. 20. et Innocent. I. Epist. 3. ad Exuper. Tholof. Epifc. §.7.

3. The Gospel of Andrew. Gelaf. in Decret.

A Gospel under the name of Apelles. Hieron. Præfat. in Comment. in Matth.

The Gospel according to the Twelve Apoftles. Origen. Homil. in Luc. i. 1. Ambrof. Comment. in Luc, i. 1. et Hieron. Præfat. in Comment. in Matth.

B.

The Gospel of Barnabas. Gelaf. in Decret.

1. The Writings of Bartholomew the Apostle. Dionyf. Areopagit. de Theol. Myft. c. 1.

2. The Gospel of Bartholomew.

Hieron. Catal. Script.

Ecclef. in Pantan. & Præfat. in Comm. in Matth. Gelaf in Decret.

The Gospel of Bafilides. Orig. in Luc. i. 1. Ambrof. in Luc. i. 1. Hieron. Præfat. in Comm. in Matth.

* Apud Concil. Sanct. Tom. 4. p. 1260.

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C.

1. The Gospel of Cerinthus. Epiphan. Hæref. 51. §. 7. 2. The Revelation of Cerinthus. Caius Prefb. Rom. lib. Difput. apud Eufeb. Hift. Eccl. l. 3. c. 28.

1. An Epiftle of Chrift to Peter and Paul. Auguft. de Confenf. Evang. l. 1. c. 9, 10.

2. Some other Books under the name of Chrift. Ibid. c. 3. 3. An Epiftle of Chrift, produced by the Manichees. Auguft. contr. Faust. 1. 28. c. 4.

4. A Hymn, which Chrift taught his Difciples. Epift. ad Ceret. Epifc.

E.

The Gospel according to the Egyptians. Clem. Alex. Strom. 1. 3. p. 452, 465. Origen. in Luc. i. 1. Hieron. Præf. in Comm. in Matth. Epiphan. Hæref. 62. §. 2. : The Acts of the Apostles, made use of by the Ebionites. Epiphan. Hæref. 30. §. 16. The Gofpel of the Ebionites. The Gospel of the Encratites. The Gospel of Eve.

Epiphan. Hæref. 30. §. 13. Epiphan. Hæref. 46. §. I. Epiphan. Hæref. 26. §. 2.

H.

The Gospel according to the Hebrews. Hegefipp. lib. Comment. apud Eufeb. Hift. Eccl. l. 4. c. 22. Clem. Alex. Strom. 1. 2. p. 380. Origen. Tract. 8. in Matth. xix. 19. & lib. 2. in Joan. p. 58. Eufeb. Hift. Eccl. l. 3. c. 25, 27, et 39. Jerome in many places, as above.

The Book of the Helkefaites. Eufeb. Hift. Eccl. l. 6. c. 38.

The falfe Gospels of Hefychius. Hieron. Præfat. in Evang. ad Damaf. Gelaf. in Decret.

J.

1. The Book of James. Origen. Comm. in Matth. xiii. 55, 56.

2. Books forged and published under the name of James. Epiphan. Hæref. 30. §. 23. Innocent. I. Epift. 3. ad Exuper. Tholof: Epifc. §. 7.

1. The Acts of John. Eufeb. Hift. Eccl. 1. 3. c. 25. Athanaf. in Synopf. §. 76. Philaftr. Hæref. 87. Epiphan. Hæref. 47. §. 1. Auguft. contr. Adverf. Leg. l. 1. c. 20.

2. Books under the name of John. Epiphan. Hæref. 30. S. 23. et Innocent. I. ibid.

A Gospel under the name of Jude. Epiphan. Hæref. 38. §. I.

A Gospel under the name of Judas Iscariot. Iren. adverf. Haref. l. 1. c. 35.

L.

The Acts of the Apoftles by Leucius. Auguft. lib. de Fide contr. Manich. c. 38.

The Acts of the Apostles by Lentitius. Auguft. de Act. cum Fælic. Manich. 1. 2. c. 6.

The Acts under the Apostles' name by Leontius. Auguft. de Fide contr. Manich. c. 5.

The Acts of the Apostles by Leuthon. Hieron. Epift. ad Chromat. & Heliodor.

The Books of Lentitius. Gelaf. in Decret.

The falfe Gospels, published by Lucianus. Præfat. in Evang. ad Damaf.

M

Hieron.

Books under the name of Matthew. Epiphan. Hæref. 30.

§. 23.

1. The Gospel of Matthias.

Orig. Comm. in Luc. i. 1. Eufeb. Hift. Eccl. l. 3. c. 25. Ambrof. in Luc. i. 1. Hieron. Præfat. in Comment. in Matth.

2. The Traditions of Matthias. Clem. Alex. Strom. 1. 2. p. 380. l. 3. p. 436. & l. 7. p. 748.

3. A Book under the name of Matthias. Innocent I. ibid. The Acts of the Apostles used by the Manichees. Auguft. lib. cont. Adimant. Manich. c. 17.

The Gospel of Marcion. Tertull. adv. Marcion. lib. 4. .2.& 4. Epiphan. Hæref. 42. Procem.

The Gospel of Merinthus. Epiphan. Hæref. 51. §. 7.

The

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