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8th of the 16th chapter, he says, 'Some expositors affirm this to be the conclusion of Mark's gospel, and that what follows has been added since: nevertheless it ought to be explained by us, as it contains nothing contrary to truth.'

6. Luke, he says, was a native of Antioch, and a physician. He was a hearer of Christ, and, as some say, one of his seventy disciples, as well as Mark; he was afterwards very intimate with Paul. He wrote his gospel, with Paul's permission, fifteen years after our Lord's ascension.

7. He says, thats St. John's gospel was not written until many years after the destruction of Jerusalem.

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8. Of the noted various reading in St. John's gospel he expresseth himself after this manner. Having explained ch. vii. 52, he adds, Ith ought to be observed, that what follows here to those words, " then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world," are either wanting in the more exact copies, or marked with a dagger in the margin, denoting them to be spurious and interpolated: of which it is some argument, that this place is not explained by former interpreters; nevertheless, as it may be useful, we shall explain it.'

* Quidam autem interpretum asserunt, hoc in loco completum esse Marci evangelium, quæ vero sequuntur recentiorem esse additionem. Oportet tamen et hanc explanare, quum veritati nihil repugnet. p. 614. B.

f Beatus Lucas Antiochensis fuit genere. Omnem autem sermonis disciplinam adeptus, medicinam etiam corporum didicit, ac postmodum animarum quoque medicinam assequutus est. Primum, quidem, Christo adhæsit, et ab eo pietatis semina suscepit. Postea vero Paulo duci conjunctus, maximeque familiaris effectus est, ac discipulus ejus, comesque itineris. Dicunt autem quidam, et maxime Origenes, quod Marcus et Lucas ante dominicam passionem inter septuaginta discipulos connumerati sunt. Post quindecim vero annos a Salvatoris assumtione, permissu Pauli, conscripsit evangelium ad Theophilum, fidelissimum, Deique amantissimum. Ibid. p. 615. B.

Præsens autem evangelium multis annis post capta Jerosolyma conscripsit. Ib. p. 663. E.

Scire autem oportet, quod ea quæ ab hoc loco habentur usque ad eum quo dicitur: Iterum ergo loquutus est illis Jesus dicens: Ego lux mundi:' in exactioribus exemplaribus aut non inveniuntur, aut obelo confossa sunt, eo quod illegitima videantur et addita. Et hujus argumentum est, quod nullus ea sit interpretatus, &c. Ibid. 690. G.

CHAP. CLXV.

NICEPHORUS CALLISTI.

1. NICEPHORUS, son of Callistus Xanthopulus," a learned monk of Constantinople, is placed by H. Wharton, in his Appendix to Cave, at the year 1333; but as the emperor, to whom his work is dedicated, is computed to have died in 1327, I shall place him a few years sooner, in 1325.

d

He wrote in the Greek language an Ecclesiastical History in eighteen books, from the nativity of Christ to the year 610, collected, as he says, out of Eusebius of Cæsarea, Socrates, Sozomen, Philostorgius, Theodoret, Euagrius, and others.

2. From him I shall transcribe an article concerning the books of the New Testament, omitting some particulars, which render his narration prolix, and which are not now needful to be taken by us at large, after having seen what is said by Eusebius, and other ecclesiastical writers of former times,

3. In the 45th chapter of the second book of his History he says, Thus we have spoken of the twelve apostles, and their names it is now proper to show, who of them have left writings which are in the Testament; such as the four sacred gospels, the divine Acts of the Apostles, and the catholic epistles, and the rest, and their order; and also such as are spurious, and are rejected by the church. And in the first place, of the divine gospels: two only of the twelve, Matthew and John, have left memoirs of our Lord's life on earth; and two of the Seventy, Mark and Luke; and it is said that they were all compelled to write, as it

a Vid Pagi ann. 610. n. vii. Fabric. Bib. Gr. 1. v. cap. 4. T. vi. p. 130. &c. Du Pin, Bib. des Aut. Ec. T. xi. p. 98.

b Cav. H. L. in App. p. 33.

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Nicephorus Callistus Xanthopulus, Callistides, sive Callisti Xanthopuli filius, historiam suam obtulit Andronico Palæologo Imperatori jam seni, qui A. C. 1327, septuagenario major obiit. Fabr. ubi supr. p. 130.

d Vid. H. E. L. i. cap. 1. p. 35, 36. Paris. 1630.

• Όσοι γε μην συγγράμματα καταλελοιπότες εἰσιν, ἁ και ὡς ενδιαθηκα κατελεγησαν· ετι δε και περί των ἱερων τεσσάρων ευαγγελιων, των τε θειων πράξεων αποτολικών, και των επιςόλων των τε καθολικών, και της τάξεως αυτών, έξης μεν ειη δηλων, όσα τε νόθα, και τη εκκλησία αποβλητα. Ὑπομνηματα μεν εν των το Κυριο διατριβων, δυο μονες των δώδεκα ισμεν συγγραψάμενος. L. ii. c. 45. p. 213.

were out of necessity. Matthew first, who had been a publican, and had preached the saving word to the Jews, when he was about to go abroad among Gentiles, thought it best to write in his native language an account of his preaching, to supply the want of his presence: which he did at about fifteen years after our Saviour's ascension. Long after this, Mark and Luke published their gospels, at the command [or by the direction] of Peter and Paul. John, who had hitherto preached by word of mouth only, wrote the last of all, about six and thirty years after the Lord's ascension to heaven.' [Then he gives an account of the other three gospels having been brought to John, and the reasons which induced John to write another gospel after them.] Theses are the genuine gospels of the apostles, delivered to us from the beginning, and acknowledged by the whole church to be of unquestioned authority. The same Luke also composed the book of the Acts of the Apostles, and, as is said, at the command of Paul.—The divine James, the Lord's brother, composed one of the catholic epistles, which is sent to the twelve tribes. Peter published two epistles, and the excellent John three: Jude, brother of James, and perhaps of the Lord likewise, one. These h seven epistles the church has long received as genuine, and readily placeth them among the rightful books of the New Testament. To these are to be added the fourteen epistles of the divine Paul. Lastly, we know the Revelation of John also to have been delivered to the church. All other are spurious and falsely inscribed;' that is, all other, which bear the names of apostles, and thereby make a claim to be a part of sacred scripture.

4. In the next chapter, which is the concluding chapter of that book, he observes, and chiefly as from Eusebius of Cæsarea, that some of the ancients had rejected or doubted of divers of the fore-mentioned books. The four gospels were received by all, as also the book of the Acts. Thek writings, about which there were doubts, are these: the epistle of James the Lord's brother, which is the first of

f Χρονῳ δε πολλῳ υπερον. Ib. p. 213. C.

8 Ταύτα γνησια των αποτόλων ευαγγέλια, και ανεκωθεν παραδεδομένα, και αναμφήρισα παρα πασης εκκλησίας γινώσκεται. Ο δ' αυτος Λέκας και το των αποτολικων Πράξεων βιβλιον συνταττει, ώς φασι, Παυλο κελευσαντος. Ibid. p. 215. C. b Ας δε έπτα εσας, ὡς γνησίας ἡ εκκλησία προσίεται ανωθεν, και εν τοις οικείοις των της νεας διαθηκης βιβλίων εγκρίνει ὡς μαλιτα. p. 215. D.

Ύσατον δε και την τε Ιωαννα Αποκαλυψιν επιτάμεθα παραδεδομένην τη εκκλησια. Τα δε παρα ταύτα νόθα τε και παρεγγραπτα. Ib. p. 216. Α. * Εν αμφιβόλοις δ' ησαν, κ. λ. L. ii. c. 46. p. 216. Β.

the catholic epistles; and the seventh, which is the epistle of Jude his brother; and the second epistle of Peter. About receiving these, some of the ancients hesitated. Of the three epistles of John one only was received without contradiction; the other two were ascribed by some to another John, an elder, who lived at Ephesus after John. And some have supposed, that the Revelation also was written by the same John. All the epistles of Paul have been unquestioned, except that to the Hebrews. But1 though there were for a while doubts about these, we know that at length they have been received by all the churches under heaven with a firm assent; and they are esteemed as the inviolable principles and elements of our religion. It is fit also that we should know what are the other writings, which are spurious and falsely inscribed: which he mentions so agreeably to Eusebius in his Ecclesiastical History, already transcribed into this work, that there is no necessity to take at length what follows.

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5. What we learn from this writer of the fourteenth century is, that all the books of the New Testament, which are now received by us, were generally received then. We have also the satisfaction to find, that there were then no other books whatever, of authority, beside these; which were esteemed the inviolable principles and elements of our religion; or the rule of christian belief and practice; or, as he called them before, and again likewise, the books in the Testament,' a word equivalent to canonical, as was formerly observed by us. Moreover, it affords reason to believe, that there never were any other writings received or quoted by christians, as of authority, beside these; which he also calls genuine scriptures of the church for this studious monk represents here the sentiments of former times, as well as of his own. The genuineness of some of these had been doubted of; but there never were any others of authority beside them.

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6. This article of Nicephorus, at the beginning of the fourteenth century, subjoined to all the rest, may serve for a conclusion of this book, as containing a summary account

1 Ταυτα μεν ει και αμφιβολα τοις προτερον εδόξαν, αλλ' εν άπασαις ες ὑπερον ταις υπ' ερανον εκκλησίαις το αντιῤῥητον εσχηκοτα εγνωκαμεν και ως αρχαι και τοιχεια της καθ' ἡμας ευσέβειας αιωνια διαμενεσι, κ. λ. Ib. p. 217. Β. Ο. - και τας άλλας αντιλεχθείσας μεν, χρόνῳ δε πλειτῳ βεβαιωθείσας, και παρα πασι ταις ενδιαθήκαις καταλεγεισας. Ibid. p. 218. Α. n Vol. iv. p. 141.

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ειδεναι ἔχομεν, όσαι γνησιαι της εκκλησίας γραφαι. Ibid.

ώς αν ταυτας τε

of what has been said, and representing what was to be proved; which, I hope, we have proved, and may reasonably put down here, Q. E. D.

APPENDIX.

Containing an account of the Ecclesiastical Histories of Socrates, Sozomen, and Theodoret.

1. OBSERVING, upon a review, that I have hitherto given no distinct account of the ecclesiastical historians, Socrates and Sozomen, though they have been quoted several times, I shall do it now briefly; referring also to some learned moderns, who may be consulted by those who have leisure.

Both those writers and Theodoret are continuators of Eusebius of Cæsarea: all three flourished in the time of Theodosius the younger, whose reign commenced in 408, and ended in 450; and their histories were all published near the end of that reign. They are very valuable monuments of antiquity; but there are in them many stories of miracles, not well attested, and improbable in their circum

stances.

Valesius and many other learned men have supposed that these three historians wrote one after another, first Socrates, then Sozomen, and lastly Theodoret, and that the latter borrowed from the other, and aimed to supply what had been omitted but to me the opinion of Pagi appears more probable; which is, that they all set about their works

Cav. Hist. Lit. Fabr. Bib. Gr. 1. v. cap. 4. T. vi. p. 117-129. H. Vales. de Vit. et Scriptis Socrat. Sozom. et Theodoret. Pagi ann. 427. n. xv. xvi. 429. n. ix. x. xi. Basnag. ann. 439. n. v. 440. n. vii. 430. n. vi. Du Pin, Bib. T. iii. P. ii. Tillem. M. E. T. 15. Theodoret. J. Le Clerc, Bib. A. et. M. T. xvi. p. 103-156.

b Socrates, Sozomenus, et Theodoretus, uno eodemque tempore rerum ecclesiasticarum historiam scribere aggressi sunt; idem omnes scribendi principium sumsere, eundemque fere finem historiæ suæ imposuere, ab iis temporibus exorsi, quibus Eusebius historiam suam terminaverat. Pagi Critic. in Baron. ann. 427. n. xv.

-Verum Theodoretus de Socratis et Sozomeni historiâ supplendâ non cogitavit. Sed, cum utroque longe doctior esset, et in Oriente versaretur, in quæ uterque incidit, vitavit: et quia res in Oriente, quam quæ in urbe regiâ gestæ, melius callebat, ideo in illis quam istis fusior et diligentior est. Contra vero Socrates et Sozomenus easdem leviter attigêre. Quare non dubito, quin

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