Numb. XXIII. to which, and what is there faid, there feems nothing neceffary here to be added, but fome fhort account of Lucianus, their author. He was undoubtedly that eminent critick, whofe labours in correcting the corrupt copies of the Septuagint Version have made him famous. He was a prefbyter of Antioch, and fuffered martyrdom under Dioclefian and Maximian, viz. about the year of Chrift 296. He was so remarkable in his study of the Scriptures, that the copies were called by his name; and his edition of the LXX. was the only one received in all the Eastern part of the world, except that which Hefychius published in Egypt, and Eufebius and Pamphilus published from Origen a. That this was the fame Lucianus with him who interpolated the Gospels, is evident from the express teftimony of Jerome, who says the fame Hefychius and Lucianus were employed in altering the LXX. Verfion, and the Copies of the New Teftament. Hence it is plain, that Dr. Mill is egregiously mistaken, in fuppofing this Lucianus to have been the fame perfon as Marcion's difciple and follower, mentioned by Tertullian, and called Lucanus: for as it is certain, that Marcion, and confequently Lucanus, lived early in the second century; fo from what has been faid, it is no lefs certain that Lucianus fuffered martyrdom in the very end of the third. It may not therefore be improper here to obferve, that the hereticks called by Epiphanius the Lucianifts, and placed between Marcion and Apelles, called fo from Lucian who was the difciple of Marcion, and fellow-pupil of Apelles, were either falfely so called by Epiphanius, or else our printed copies of that author are corrupt, and we ought to read Auxans instead of Aexiansol, i. e. Lucanifts instead of Lucianifts, as proceeding from Lucanus, as he is called by Tertullian in the place just now cited, and alfo by Origen in his book against Celfus f, though in the old Latin translation we meet with Lucianus, contrary to the Greek. I have no

Prolegom. in N. T. §. 333.
De Præfcript. adv. Hæretic.

Hæref. 43, 44. f Lib. 2. p. 77.

thing more to add here, but that by accident I obferved a paffage in the Commentary under the name of Origen, upon the book of Job, where mention is made of Lucianus, with a very glorious character; but inasmuch as it is most undeniable that Origen died long before the time of Lucianus, viz. in the year of Chrift 253, under the Emperors Gallus and Volufianus, there is no question to be made, but those books upon Job were wrote by fome perfon long after Origen's time.

CHA P. XXIII.

Books under the Name of Matthew. The Gospel of Matthias. The Traditions of Matthias. All its Fragments produced. There never was any Book under this Title. The Sentiments of late Writers concerning thefe Traditions. Some Books afcribed to Matthias. The Alts of the Manichees.

M.

Numb. XXXV. BOOKS under the Name of ST. MATTHEW.

E

PIPHANIUS, concerning the Ebionites, fays, they forged feveral books under the Apoftles' names, and particularly under St. Matthew's. The paffage is produced above, Chap. XX. Numb. XXV. There being nothing more faid by Epiphanius of thefe books, nor indeed by him or any other author, of any spurious books under this Apostle's name, befides the Gospel of the Nazarenes, I have no more to fay concerning these books, than that, as they are rejected by this Father as fpurious, fo for that reason they are Apocryphal, as alfo by Prop. IV, V, VI, and perhaps what he here means was no other than the Hebrew Gofpel of the Ebionites, or Naza-.

renes.

* Opp. Lat. T. 2. fol. 27.

> Catal. vir. illuftr. in Origen.

Numb.

Numb. XXXVI. The GOSPEL of MATTHIAS.

A1

LTHOUGH there be not any remains of this Gofpel now extant, yet it is taken notice of by several of the most celebrated writers among the antients, viz. Origen, Eufebius, Ambrofe and Jerome, as alfo in fome copies of Pope Gelafius's Decree.

Origen mentions it among many other spurious pieces thus ';

Ecclefia quatuor habet Evangelia, hærefes plurima. Scio Evangelium quod appellatur juxta Matthiam, &c.

The Church receives only four Gofpels, the hereticks many. I know one, which is called the Gospel according to Matthias. [See the paffage at large above, Chap. VII. Numb. V.]

Eufebius ranks it among the books published by the hereticks, not received nor cited by any Ecclefiaftical writer, but a mere forgery, to be rejected as impious and abfurd. [See the place produced at large above, Chap. XXI. Numb. XXXIII.]

Ambrofe in like manner places it among thofe fpurious books which the Church rejected as fuch. [See the paffage at large above, Chap. VII. Numb. V.]

Jerome places it among the books which gave birth to the herefies which troubled the Church, and which were wrote without the spirit and grace of God. [See the place above produced, Chap. VII. Numb. IV.]

Laftly, in fome copies of the Decree of Pope Gelafius, we read

Evangelium nomine Matthiæ
Apocryphum.

The Gofpel under the name of Matthias is Apocryphal.

a Homil. in Luc. i. in init.

From

From all this it is eafy to fee, what judgment we are to form of this book, and to conclude it Apocryphal by Prop. IV, V, and VI. The learned Dr. Grabe, and after him Dr. Mill, fuppofe this Gofpel to have been the fane with the traditions of Matthias, but with very little reason, as I shall shew presently in difcuffing that book.

Numb. XXXVII. The TRADITIONS of

MATTHIAS.

HESE are only mentioned by Clemens Alexandrinus,

THE

in whose Stromata there are fome fragments of them remaining, which the hereticks made ufe of. They are collefted by Dr. Grabe, and Ihall be here produced, with the addition of two or three more places, where these traditions are referred to.