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Καὶ ἐπιφέροντος, ὅπως ἂν ἀκριβώσασθαι τὸ φίλημα, μᾶλ λον δὲ τὸ προσκύνημα δεῖ, ὡς εἴ σε μικρὺν τῇ διανοίᾳ παβαθολωθείη, ἔξω ἡμᾶς αἰωνία τιθέντος ζωῆς.

τῆς

And intimates, that we ought to be fo difcreet in kifing, that it may rather be a civil falutation, because if we defile our minds with an unchafte thought, we hall not attain eternal life.

It is evident thefe laft words cannot be the words of our Saviour, because they are delivered in the plural number, we fhall not attain eternal life, which is unlike enough to any thing that ever Chrift faid. Befides, if the words be closely confidered, it will appear that the latter part is an explication of, or inference from, the former, the one being delivered in the third perfon, the other in the first; if therefore either part be to be esteemed as the words of Chrift, it can only be the former; although indeed it may be justly questioned, whether Athenagoras intended any fuch citation, because when he cites any thing of Chrift, he prefixes noì to it, i. e. (The Lord) faith, as he does twice in this fame paragraph. Conradus Gefnerus, the tranflator of Athenagoras, feems to have thought the fame when he tranflates the words, Πάλιν ἡμῖν λέyortos të hóye, &c. Rurfus quum religio nostra nos doceat, adding Sicut vir quidam fanétus fcripfit, fi quis, &c. Again our religion teacheth us, as a certain holy man hath wrote, that if any one, &c. But perhaps Athenagoras might have some fuch words in his copy of St. Matthew, which were at first indeed a marginal glofs upon these words, ch. v. 28. If any man looketh upon a woman fo as to luft after her, &c. but afterwards, as was very ufual, crept into the text and this may seem the more probable, he having juft before cited these words of Matthew.

XVIII. A Saying afcribed to Chrift in Clemens Alexandrinus, Strom. 1. i. p. 346.

Αἰτεῖσθε γὰρ, φησί, τα μετ γάλα, καὶ τὰ μικρὰ ὑμῖν προστεθήσεται.

Seek thofe things which are great, and thole things which are fmall fhall be added to you. Ff3

Dr.

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Dr. Grabe and Dr. Mill imagined this passage to be taken out of the Gospel of the Nazarenes; which indeed, if it fhould be true, would be no credit to this Gofpel, because (as I have above proved, Chap. XXVIII.) Clemens abfolutely rejects the authority of all Gospels, befides those four now received; but the truth is, he could not take it thence, because he did not understand the Hebrew language, in which that Gospel was written, and (as I have fhewn) no tranflation of it was made till Jerome made his. Mr. Fabritius conjectures more probably, that these were the words of fome copies at that time interpolated into Matt. vi. 33. Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all other things shall be added unto you: but neither is this fo, because the fame Clemens in another place cites these words of Matthew, as they are in our present copies, and not as they are here. Nothing therefore is more evident than that Clemens, in the paffage under confideration, refpected the fenfe of Chrift's words, without precisely tranfcribing them, i. e. rather chose to expound the words, than literally to cite them; and this is most undeniably proved by another place which I find in the fame Clemens, where he both produces the text, and these words as an expofition, Ζητεῖτε δὲ πρῶτον τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν ἐρανῶν καὶ τὴν δικαιοσύνην· ταῦτα γὰρ μεγάλα· τὰ δὲ μικρὰ καὶ περὶ τὸν βίον, ταῦτα @gooтednoetai iμiv i. e. Seek first the kingdom of heaven, and (its) righteousness, Thefe are the great things, and these things fhall be added unto you, Thefe are the small things, and such as concern this life. Hence alfo Origen, who was one of the scholars of Clemens, does more than once in his works paraphrase these words of Chrift in the same manner ®.

XIX. 4 Saying afcribed to Chrift, and cited by most of the antient Fathers.

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It is surprising to obferve how many of the primitive writers of Christianity have cited this paffage in their works; Clemens Alexandrinus, Apelles, Origen, Dionyfius Alexandrinus, Cyril of Jerufalem, Pamphilus, Athanafius, Jerome, Cyril of Alexandria', befides feveral more, have cited it; Cotelerius, Ufher, Valefius, Dr. Grabe, Mr. Fabritius, Mr. Whifton, Dr. Mill, and others among the moderns, have obferved it; though I know not any fufficient remarks that have been yet made concerning its true original; for which reason I defign more particularly to discuss it. It is fuppofed by most to have been taken out of the Hebrew Gospel of the Nazarenes; fo Cotelerius, Ufher', Valefius : but this muft needs be a mistake, because very few of the Fathers understood the language of that Gofpel, and a verfion was not made of it till Jerome had made his, as is above proved, Chap. XXVII. That which appears to me most probable upon examining the places of the Fathers, where this passage is cited, I fhall reduce into the following distinct obfervations. viz.

1. None of all the writers, who have mentioned it, do cite it as the faying or words of Chrift within the first four centuries, except Origen, Jerome, and the Heretick Apelles.

2. The meaning of the paffage, Tívede Sónimos τpaπelita, Be skilful money-changers, is the very fame with that exhortation of the Apostle, I Theff. v. 21. Prove all things, viz. that as money changers they should be careful to distinguish between that which is good and bad, and like them try and prove all. This is evident from the defign of every citation, but more clearly from the explications which the Fathers themselves

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have given of thefe words. Thus Clemens Alexandrinus compares a perfon ignorant in logick, and not knowing how to diftinguish between things, to an ignorant money-changer, who cannot diftinguish good money from bad, and elsewhere b exprefsly calls them the doxies Teatras, i. e. the skilful moneychangers, τὸ κίβδηλον νόμισμα το Κυρίῳ ἀπὸ τὸ παραχαράγματος δια xgivouras, who can distinguish the bad money (pretending to be the Lord's) by its flamp and character, i.e. herefy from truth; and Jerome, after having cited the paffage, Be skilful moneychangers, adds for illuftration, like those who reject that for counterfeit coin, which has not the image of Cæfar so stamped upon it as it ought to have. Once more, in the Apoftolical Conftitutions, after the paffage produced, in the next paragraph we read, Be as fkilful dealers in money, who reject that which is bad, and keep that which is good. It is plain therefore, to mention no more inftances, the scope of the exhortation is, that we be careful in proving, trying, or examining things (as the money-changers do their money), and this is the very fame as St. Paul fays, Prove all things. Which being fo, I observe,

3. The Fathers cite this paffage as the faying of the Apostle, and do all of them (except Origen and Jerome) cite it instead of this very paffage of St. Paul, (1 Theff. v. 21.) Prove all things. This is as evident as any thing can be, by a view of the places: Dionyfius Alexandrinus calls it arosan Qwvn, i. e. the Apoftle's faying. Cyril of Alexandria in feveral places calls it the words of Paul. Cyril of Jerufalem, Pamphilus, and others, add the following words of Paul in the end of this verse and ver. 22. Hold fast that which is good, and abstain from the appearance of evil.

4. It is evident therefore, this was not any faying of Chrift, but of Paul; and fo not taken out of any Apocryphal Gofpel.

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There are indeed two difficulties attending this hypothefis, viz. How fo many Fathers could agree to cite St. Paul's words thus different from what they are in our prefent copies, and how Origen, Jerome, and Apelles, were fo mistaken in citing it as a faying of Chrift.

As to the firft, I frankly own I believe it proceeded from an early interpolation in the text; fome one, opposite to St. Paul's words, writing for explication as déxiμoi TeuteĈitai, in the margin, he who tranfcribed that copy inferted it in the text with the addition of the verb y9, which he apprehended needful to complete the fenfe.

As to the latter; viz. Origen, Jerome, and Apelles citing it as a faying of Christ, I answer,

First, That it is not ftrange Jerome should do fo, when Origen had done it before him, because he fo much followed him, and depended upon him.

Secondly, Either Origen failed in memory, and wrote down that as a faying of Chrift, which, if he had examined, he would have found to be St. Paul's; which is very common: or elfe,

Thirdly, Some fcribe made the addition ¿vrov Kugle, i. e. the command of God, as an introduction to the paffage, which they often did; and in doing so were often mistaken.

Fourthly, Whereas the Heretick Apelles quotes the paffage, as being i Ebayle, in the Gofpel; we may suppose him either mistaken, or else that he uses the word G:fpel in a large fenfe, to denote St. Paul's Epiftle; and this cannot seem ftrange to those who confider, that the word Gospel is frequently used not only in the New Teftament for the Doctrine of the Gospel, but is alfo by the primitive writers frequently put for any book of the New Teftament. Thus Clemens Romanus calls the Epiftle of St. Paul to the Corinthians the Gofpel of Paul: or perhaps, Apelles might read these words in the falfe Gofpel which he made ufe of, and which after

Epift. ad Corinth. I. c. 47. See above, Part II. Chap. III. and

Junius and Cotelerius on that place of Clemens.

wards

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