1225. State, generally, the contents of the two Epistles to the Thessalonians.

1226. Trace the course of St. Paul's voyage from Cenchrea to Cæsarea. 1227. Whom did St. Paul take with him, and leave at Ephesus, on his voyage from Cenchres (Corinth) to Jerusalem?

CHAPTER LII.

ST. PAUL'S THIRD APOSTOLIC JOURNEY.

(Acts xviii. 23.-xxi. 16.)

HAVING remained some time at Antioch, St. Paul at length finally quitted that church on undertaking his third apostolic tour, for a visitation of the churches which he had been instrumental in planting; and this he did with the double view of confirming those churches in the faith (especially against false teachers, who had now sprung up), and of making a collection for the poor brethren at Jerusalem. It is probable that Timothy was his companion on this journey, and perhaps also Titus, who had already been associated with him; but there is no reason to believe that he was still associated with Silas, who, it is not unlikely, remained at Jerusalem. Again, as on the last occasion, St. Paul took the overland route from Antioch to ASIA MINOR; travelling, probably, first through CILICIA and LYCAONIA, and then visiting the churches of GALATIA and PHRYGIA. (Acts xviii. 23.)

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About this time, an Alexandrian Jew, named Apollos, an eloquent man, and mighty in the Scriptures," who had been acquainted only with the baptism of John and with his announcements of the coming Messiah, arrived at Ephesus, and began zealously to propagate the doctrines of the Baptist. Here he found Aquila and Priscilla, who led him to the knowledge of Christ, as already come. Having by this means embraced the Christian faith, Apollos went, as an accredited missionary, from Ephesus to Corinth, where he "helped them much which had believed through grace: for he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly, shewing by the Scriptures that Jesus was [the] Christ." (Acts xviii. 24-28.) It is sad to know that some of the Corinthian Christians, in the

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worst spirit of party, attached themselves to Apollos in preference to St. Paul, regarding the new comer in a light in which he by no means appears to have exhibited himself, as a rival or competitor of the great Apostle.

After the departure of Apollos for Corinth, St. Paul, pursuing the apostolic tour, arrived at Ephesus, a large and splendid city, at this time the Roman metropolis of the province of Asia (Proper) — paying that visit which he had promised when on his return from his last journey. At Ephesus, the Apostle soon encountered about twelve of John's disciples, who (like Apollos before them) had not advanced beyond his baptism and teaching: these men received the Gospel at the mouth of the Apostle, and were baptized into the Christian faith; "and when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues and prophesied," as was usual with those primitive believers upon whom the Apostles laid their hands. (Acts xix. 1-7.) After this, St. Paul preached Christ in the synagogue at Ephesus for the space of three months, under circumstances similar to those which had already occurred at Corinth; some of the Jews believed, while others were at length excited to that active opposition which ended in St. Paul's forming the disciples into a separate assembly "in the school of one Tyrannus," as he had formerly done in the house of the Corinthian Justus. "And this continued by the space of two years; so that all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks. And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul: so that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them." (Acts xix. 10-12.)

During this time St. Paul appears to have been brought into special conflict with the heathen superstitions connected with magical incantations, and the like; over which he gained a signal victory on occasion of the disgraceful failure of a profane attempt, by the seven sons of one Sceva a Jew, to exorcise persons by calling over them the name of the Lord Jesus; an event which issued in the voluntary destruction of a large collection of magical books (valued at about 2000 pounds) by those who through the faith of Christ had become aware of their impious character. "So mightily grew the word of God, and prevailed." (Acts xix. 13—20.)

About this time the Apostle is thought by some* to have

But others think it more likely that the Apostle's residence at Ephesus was uninterrupted.

sailed over to Corinth, and to have paid a very brief visit to the church at that place. (2 Cor. ii. 1.; xii. 14-21.; xiii. 1, 2.) It also seems likely that Apollos had now returned from Corinth and settled at Ephesus; and it has been thought that the report brought by Apollos concerning immoral practices among the Corinthian Christians was the occasion of St. Paul's temporary presence amongst that community. These events, however, are not recorded in the Acts of the Apostles, and can only be regarded as the subject of probable conjecture.* On his return to Ephesus, the Apostle (as some think, from 1 Cor. v. 9-11.†) addressed a short epistle to the Corinthians, commanding them to expel from their communion any brethren who should be convicted of the practice of impurity.

About this time, Timothy, leaving St. Paul at Ephesus, proceeded to Macedonia, accompanied by Erastus.

Fresh intelligence was now brought from Corinth by members of the family of Chloe; by which it appeared that Judaising teachers, professing to be followers of Cephas (Peter), had attacked the authority and apostleship of St. Paul; while others vaunted themselves as peculiarly belonging to Christ; and others, again, made a boast of their special attachment to Apollos, and probably to some tenets of Alexandrian philosophy and learning. Glaring crimes were still tolerated in certain members of the church; and, in particular, one instance of flagrant immorality had been committed with impunity. "Nor were these the only evils: some Christians were showing their total want of brotherly love by bringing vexatious actions against their brethren in the heathen courts of law; others were turning even the spiritual gifts which they had received from the Holy Ghost into occasions of vanity and display, not unac companied by fanatical delusion; the decent order of Christian worship was disturbed by the disorderly claims of rival ministrations; women had forgotten the modesty of their sex, and came forward, unveiled (contrary to the habit of their country), to address the public assembly; and even the sanctity of the holy communion itself was profaned by scenes of revelling and debauch. About the same time that all this disastrous intelligence was brought to St. Paul by the household of Chloe, other messengers arrived from Corinth, referring to his decision several questions which had caused dispute and difficulty. These questions related, 1, To the controversies respecting meat

* Conybeare and Howson, chap. xv.

+ Others think that the Apostle does not here refer to any previous epistle.

which had been offered to idols: 2, To the disputes regarding celibacy and matrimony; the right of divorce; and the perplexities which arose in the case of mixed marriages, where one of the parties was an unbeliever: 3, To the exercise of the spiritual gifts by the public speakers of the church.

Such was the occasion of St. Paul's writing the epistle which stands in the sacred canon as The First Epistle to the Corinthians ; which he wrote "during the days of unleavened bread" (i. e. at Easter), in the third year of his residence at Ephesus. In this epistle many of the great truths of revelation are stated, with more or less direct reference to the questions which had been submitted to the Apostle's decision.

When he wrote this epistle, St. Paul intended to remain at Ephesus until after the following Pentecost. His departure was probably hastened by a tumultuous assemblage in the theatre, occasioned by the speech of one Demetrius, a manufacturer of silver models of the celebrated Temple (or of the shrine) of Diana at Ephesus, in which the speaker endeavoured to excite the feelings of the people against Paul, as being instrumental in bringing the worship of Diana into discredit. (See Acts xix. 21—41.)

Having sent forward Timothy and Erastus into Macedonia, St. Paul now took leave of the Ephesian Christians, and proceeded to (Alexandria) Troas; where, having waited some time in vain for Titus, whom he had sent on a mission to Corinth, he embarked for MACEDONIA. The Apostle (as before) landed at Neupolis, and then proceeded to Philippi, where he appears to have found Timothy. He must have been well received by the faithful and zealous church at Philippi; but we find from his own account that he was greatly depressed in spirit,probably by anxiety on account of the state of the Corinthian church, or by a sense of the dangers arising to many churches from the intrusion of false teachers; until, at length, he was cheered by the arrival of Titus, bearing a good report of the reception of his recent epistle at Corinth. On receipt of this welcome intelligence, the Apostle immediately sent back his faithful minister to Corinth, accompanied by certain other delegates, with a view to procure from that church the contributions for the poor brethren at Jerusalem, in imitation of the churches of Macedonia, which had already begun to make a cheerful and liberal response to the Apostle's appeal. At the same time, Titus was the bearer of another apostolic letter, addressed at once to the Corinthian Christians and to the other

* Conybeare and Howson, chap. xv.

churches of Achaia.* This is the sacred writing now known as The Second Epistle to the Corinthians.

Having quitted Philippi, St. Paul "fully preached the Gospel of Christ round about unto ILLYRICUM." (Rom. xv. 19.) And then he determined on revisiting Corinth. On his arrival at that place he received a painful account of the state of the churches in Galatia, among which the arts of Judaising teachers had succeeded in turning aside many from the simplicity of Gospel truth; and it is highly probable that the Apostle immediately wrote his Epistle to the Galatians, and despatched it, as an antidote to the evil, by the hands of trustworthy messengers from Corinth.

St. Paul remained in Greece three months; employed, no doubt, in finally correcting the disorders of the Corinthian church, and in raising contributions for Jerusalem, as well as in his ordinary vocation of preaching the Gospel. During this time also he wrote the Epistle to the Romans, which he sent by Phoebe, a deaconess of the church at Cenchreæ, who was about to visit the great capital, where a church had already been formed, probably by means of some Jewish converts, natives of Rome, who had visited Palestine.

St. Paul now left Corinth, on his way to Jerusalem, bearing the proceeds of the collection which had been made for the poor Christians at that place. "And," says the sacred historian, "when the Jews laid wait for him, as he was about to sail into Syria, he purposed to return through MACEDONIA. And there accompanied him into Asia Sopater of Berea: and of the Thessalonians, Aristarchus and Secundus: and Gaius of Derbe, and Timotheus: and of Asia, Tychicus and Trophimus. These going before tarried for us at Troas. And we sailed away from Philippi after the days of unleavened bread, and came unto them to Troas in five days: where we abode seven days." (Acts xx. 3—6.) Here (at Alexandria Troas) St. Paul appears to have been rejoined by his companion St. Luke; and at this place he miraculously restored to life a young man named Eutychus, who had fallen asleep during the Apostle's preaching in an upper room, and, having dropped from the balcony, was taken up dead. (Acts xx. 7-12.)

The Apostle's companions embarked at Troas, while St. Paul himself went by land to Assos, and there embarked on board a vessel by which, having passed Mitylene (the capital of Lesbos), Chios (Ścio), and Samos (anchoring at Trogyllium), he was conveyed to Miletus; where he obtained that solemn and affecting

* The Roman province of Achaia, which included Athens.