Produced by David Widger
SUPERNATURAL RELIGION:
AN INQUIRY INTO THE REALITY OF DIVINE REVELATION.
IN THREE VOLUMES. VOL. III.
COMPLETE EDITION. CAREFULLY REVISED.
LONDON:
LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO.,
1879.
[The Right of Translation is Reserved.]
"Credulity is as real, if not so great, a sin as unbelief."
Archbishop Trench.
"The abnegation of reason is not the evidence of faith, but the
confession of despair."
Canon Lightfoot.
PG EDITOR'S NOTE: This file has been provided with an image of the
original scan for each page which is linked to the page number in the
html file. Nearly every page in the text has many Greek passages which
have been indicated where they occur by [------] as have many complex
tables; these passages may be viewed in the page images. Some of the
pages have only a few lines of text and then the rest of the page is
taken up with complex footnotes in English, Greek and Hebrew. The reader
may click on the page numbers in the html file to see the entire page
with the footnotes. --DW
SUPERNATURAL RELIGION: AN INQUIRY INTO THE REALITY OF DIVINE REVELATION
PART IV. THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES
CHAPTER I. THE EXTERNAL EVIDENCE
Before we proceed to examine the evidence for miracles and the reality
of Divine Revelation which is furnished by the last historical book of
the New Testament, entitled the "Acts of the Apostles," it is well that
we should briefly recall to mind some characteristics of the document,
which most materially affect the value of any testimony emanating from
it. Whilst generally asserting the resurrection of Jesus, and his bodily
ascension, regarding which indeed it adds fresh details, this work
presents to us a new cycle of miracles, and so profusely introduces
supernatural agency into the history of the early church that, in
comparison with it, the Gospels seem almost sober narratives. The
Apostles are instructed and comforted by visions and revelations, and
they, and all who believe, are filled with the Holy Spirit and speak
with other tongues. The Apostles are delivered from
{2}
prison and from bonds by angels or by an earthquake. Men fall dead or
are smitten with blindness at their rebuke. They heal the sick, raise
the dead, and handkerchiefs brought from their bodies cure diseases and
expel evil spirits.
As a general rule, any document so full of miraculous episodes and
supernatural occurrences would, without hesitation, be characterized as
fabulous and incredible, and would not, by any sober-minded reader, be
for a moment accepted as historical. There is no other testimony for
these miracles. Let the reader endeavour to form some conception of
the nature and amount of evidence necessary to establish the truth of
statements antecedently so incredible, and compare it with the testimony
of this solitary and anonymous document, the character and value of
which we shall now proceed more closely to examine.
It is generally admitted, and indeed it is undeniable, that no distinct
and unequivocal reference to the Acts of the Apostles, and to Luke as
their author, occurs in the writings of Fathers before one by Irenaeus(1)
about the end of the second century. Passages are, however, pointed out
in earlier writings as indicating the use and consequent existence of
our document, all of which we shall now examine.
{3}
Several of these occur in the "Epistle to the Corinthian s," ascribed
to Clement of Rome. The first, immediately compared with the passage to
which it is supposed to be a reference,(1) is as follows:--
[------]
The words of the Epistle are not a quotation, but merely occur in the
course of an address. They do not take the form of an axiom, but are a
comment on the conduct of the Corinthians, which may have been suggested
either by written or oral tradition, or by moral maxims long before
current in heathen philosophy.2 It is unnecessary to enter minutely into
this, however, or to indicate the linguistic differences between the
two passages, for one point alone settles the question. In the Acts:
the saying, "It is more blessed to give than to receive," is distinctly
introduced as a quotation of
{4}
"words of the Lord Jesus," and the exhortation "to remember" them,
conveys the inference that they were well known. They must either have
formed part of Gospels now no longer extant, as they are not found in
ours, or have been familiar as the unwritten tradition of sayings of the
Master. In either case, if the passage in the Epistle be a reference
to these words at all, it cannot reasonably be maintained that it must
necessarily have been derived from a work which itself distinctly quotes
the words from another source. It would be against every principle
of evidence, under such circumstances, to affirm the passage to be an
allusion to this special work, of whose previous existence we have
no independent evidence.(1) The slight coincidence in the expression,
without indication that any particular passage is in the mind of the
author, and without any mention of the Acts, therefore, is no evidence
of the existence of that work.
A few critics point to some parts of the following passage as showing
acquaintance with Acts:--"Through jealousy Paul also pointed out the way
to the prize of patience, having borne chains seven times, having been
put to flight, having been stoned; having become a preacher both in
the East and in the West, he gained the noble renown due to his faith;
having taught the whole world righteousness, and come to the extremity
of the West, and having suffered martyrdom by command of the rulers,
he was thus removed from the world and went to the holy place, having
become a most eminent
{5}
example of patience."(1) The slightest impartial consideration, however,
must convince any one that this passage does not indicate the use of the
"Acts of the Apostles." The Epistle speaks of seven imprisonments, of
some of which the Acts make no mention, and this must, therefore, have
been derived from another source.(2) The reference to his "coming to the
extremity of the West" [------], whatever interpretation be put upon it,
and to his death, obviously carries the history further than the Acts,
and cannot have been derived from that document.
The last passage, which, it is affirmed,(3) shows acquaintance with the
Acts of the Apostles is the following: "But what shall we say regarding
David who hath obtained a good report [------]? unto whom [------] God
said: 'I found a man after mine own heart, David, the son of Jesse: in
everlasting mercy I anointed him.'"(4) This is said to be derived from
Acts xiii. 22: "And when he removed him he raised up to them David for
king; to whom also he
{6}
gave testimony [------]: I found David the son of Jesse, a man after
mine own heart, who will do all my will."(1) The passage, however, is
compounded of two quotations loosely made from the Septuagint version
of the Old Testament, from which all the quotations in the Epistle are
taken. Ps. lxxxviii. 20: "I found David my servant; in holy mercy I
anointed him."(2) And 1 Sam. xiii. 14: "A man after his own heart."(3)
Clement of Alexandria quotes this passage from the Epistle, and for "in
everlasting mercy" reads "with holy oil" [------]
as in the Psalm.(4) Although, therefore, our Alexandrian MS. of the
Epistle has the reading which we have given above, even if we suppose
that the Alexandrian Clement may have found a more correct version in
his MS., the argument would not be affected. The whole similarity lies
in the insertion of "the son of Jesse," but this was a most common
addition to any mention of David, and by the completion of the passage
from the Psalm, the omission of "who will do all my will," the
peculiar phrase of the Acts, as well as the difference of introductory
expressions, any connection between the two is severed, and it is
apparent that the quotation of the Epistle may legitimately be referred
to the Septuagint,(5) with which it agrees much more closely
{7}
than with the Acts. In no case could such slight coincidences prove
acquaintance with the Acts of the Apostles.(1)
Only one passage of the "Epistle of Barnabas" is referred to by any
one(2) as indicating acquaintance with the Acts. It is as follows, c. 7:
"If therefore the son of God, being Lord, and about to judge quick and
dead [------] suffered," &c. This is compared with Acts x. 42... "and to
testify that it is he who has been appointed by God judge of quick and
dead" [------]. Lardner, who compares the expression of the Epistle
with Acts, equally compares it with that in 2 Tim. iv. 1... "and Christ
Jesus who is about to judge the quick and dead" [------], to which it is
more commonly referred,(3) and 1 Pet. iv. 5... "to him who is ready to
judge quick and dead" [------]. He adds, however: "It is not possible to
say, what text he refers to, though that in Timothy has (he same words.
But perhaps there is no proof that he refers to any. This was an article
known to every common Christian; whereas this writer (whoever he be) was
able to teach the Christian religion, and that without respect to any
written gospels or epistles."(4) It is scarcely
{8}
necessary to add anything to this. There is of course no trace of the
use of Acts in the Epistle.(1)
It is asserted that there is a "clear allusion"(2) to Acts in the Pastor
of Hermas. The passages may be compared as follows:-- [------]
The slightest comparison of these passages suffices to show that the one
is not dependent on the other. The Old Testament is full of passages in
which the name of the Lord is magnified as the only source of safety and
salvation. In the Pauline Epistles likewise there are numerous passages
of a similar tenour. For instance, the passage from Joel ii. 32, is
quoted Rom. x. 13: "For whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord
shall be saved" [------](3) There was in fact no formula more current
either amongst the Jews or in the early Church; and there is no
legitimate ground for tracing such an expression to the Acts of the
Apostles.(4)
{9}
The only other passage which is quoted(1) as indicating acquaintance
with Acts is the following, which we at once contrast with the supposed
parallel:-- [------]
Here again a formula is employed which is common throughout the
New Testament, and which, applied as it is here to those who were
persecuted, we have reason to believe was in general use in the early
Church. It is almost unnecessary to point out any examples. Everywhere
"the name" of God or of Jesus is the symbol used to represent the
concrete idea, and in the heavenly Jerusalem of the Apocalypse the
servants of God and of the Lamb are to have "his name" on their
foreheads. The one expression, however, which is peculiar in the
passage: "counted worthy,"--in the Acts [------], and in the Pastor
[------],--is a perfectly natural and simple one, the use of which
cannot be exclusively conceded to the Acts of the Apostles. It is found
frequently in the Pauline Epistles, as for instance in 2 Thes. i. 5,
where, after saying that they give thanks to God for them and glory
in the churches of God for the patience and faith with which the
Thessalonians endure
{10}
persecutions, the writer continues: "which is a token of the righteous
judgment of God, that ye may he counted worthy [------] of the kingdom
of God, for which ye also suffer [------];" and again, in the same
chapter, v. 11, 12, "Wherefore we also pray always for you that our
God may count you worthy [------] of the calling, and fulfil all good
pleasure of goodness and work of faith with power; _that the name of
our Lord Jesus may he glorified in you_ [------]" &c. The passage we are
examining cannot be traced to the "Acts of the Apostles."(1) It must be
obvious to all that the Pastor of Hennas does not present any evidence
even of the existence of the Acts at the time it was written.(2)
Only two passages in the Epistles of pseudo-Ignatius are pointed out as
indicating acquaintance with the Acts, and even these are not advanced
by many critics. We have already so fully discussed these Epistles that
no more need now be said. We must pronounce them spurious in all their
recensions and incapable of affording evidence upon any point earlier
than towards the end of the second century. Those, however, who would
still receive as genuine the testimony of the three Syriac Epistles must
declare that they do not present any trace of the existence of the Acts,
inasmuch as the two passages adduced to show the use of that work do not
occur in those letters. They are found in the shorter recension of
the Epistles to the Smyrnaeans and Philadelphians. We might, therefore,
altogether refuse to examine the
{11}
passages, but in order to show the exact nature of the case made out by
apologists, we shall briefly refer to them. We at once compare the first
with its supposed parallel.(1)
[------]
There is nothing in this passage which bears any peculiar analogy to the
Acts, for the statement is a simple reference to a tradition which is
also embodied both in the third Synoptic(2) and in the fourth Gospel;(3)
and the mere use of the common words [------] and [------] could not
prove anything. The passage occurs in the Epistle immediately after a
quotation, said by Jerome to be taken from the Gospel according to the
Hebrews, relating an appearance of Jesus to "those who were with Peter,"
in which Jesus is represented as making them handle him in order to
convince them that he is not an incorporeal spirit.(4) The quotation
bears considerable affinity to the narrative in the third Synoptic
(xxiv. 39), at the close of which Jesus is represented as eating with
the disciples. It is highly probable that the Gospel from which the
writer of the Epistle quoted contained the same detail, to which this
would naturally be a direct
{12}
descriptive reference. In any case it affords no evidence of the
existence of the Acts of the Apostles.(1)
The second passage, which is still more rarely advanced,(2) is as
follows:-- [------]
The only point of coincidence between these two passages is the use of
the word "wolves." In the Epistle the expression is [------], whilst in
Acts it is [------]. Now the image is substantially found in the Sermon
on the Mount, one form of which is given in the first Synoptic, vii.
15,16, and which undeniably must have formed part of many of the Gospels
which are mentioned by the writer of the third Synoptic. We find Justin
Martyr twice quoting another form of the saying: "For many [------]
shall arrive in my name, outwardly indeed clothed in sheep's skins,
but inwardly being ravening wolves [------]."(3) The use of the term
as applied to men was certainly common in the early Church. The idea
expressed in the Epistle is more closely found in 2 Timothy iii. 1 ff.,
in the description of those who are to come in the last days, and who
will (v. 6) "creep into the houses and make captive [------] silly women
laden with sins, led away with divers lusts."
{13}
The passage cannot be traced to the Acts,(1) and the Ignatian Epistles,
spurious though they be, do not present any evidence of the existence of
that work.(2)
Only two sentences are pointed out in the "Epistle of Polycarp" as
denoting acquaintance with the Acts. The first and only one of these on
which much stress is laid is the following:(3) [------]
It will be obvious to all that, along with much similarity, there is
likewise divergence between these sentences. In the first phrase the use
of [------] in the Epistle separates it from the supposed parallel,
in which the word is [------]. The number of passages in the Pauline
Epistles corresponding with it are legion (e.g. 2 Cor. iv. 14, Ephes.
i. 20). The second member of the sentence, which is of course the more
important, is in reality, we contend, a reference to the very Psalm
quoted in Acts immediately after the verse before us, couched in not
unusual phraseology. Psalm xvi. 10 (Sept. xv.), reads:
{14}
"For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell" [------].(1) In Ps. xviii.
5 (Sept. xvii. 5) we have, "The pains of hell [------] compassed me
about."(2) The difference between the [------] of the Epistle and the
[------] of the Acts is so distinct that, finding a closer parallel in
the Psalms to which reference is obviously made in both works, it is
quite impossible to trace the phrase necessarily to the Acts. Such a
passage cannot prove the use of that work,(3) but, if it could, we might
inquire what evidence for the authorship and trustworthiness of the Acts
could be deduced from the circumstance?(4)
The second passage, referred to by a few writers,(5) is as follows:--
[------]
It is not necessary to do more than contrast these passages to show
how little the "Epistle of Polycarp" can witness for the "Acts of the
Apostles." We have already examined another supposed reference to
this very passage, and the expressions in the Epistle, whilst scarcely
presenting a single point of linguistic analogy to
{15}
the sentence in the Acts, only tend to show how common and natural such
language was in the early Church in connection with persecution. Whilst
we constantly meet with the thought expressed by the writer of the
Epistle throughout the writings of the New Testament, we may more
particularly point to the first Petrine epistle for further instances of
this tone of exhortation to those suffering persecution for the cause.
For instance, 1 Pet. ii. 19 ff, and again iii. 14,(1) "But if ye even
suffer [------] for righteousness' sake, blessed are ye." In the
next chapter the tone is still more closely analogous. Speaking of
persecutions, the writer says, iv. 13, ".... but according as ye are
partakers of Christ's sufferings rejoice," &c. &c. 14. "If ye are
reproached in Christ's name [------] blessed are ye, for the spirit
of glory and of God resteth upon you." 15. "For let none of you suffer
[------] as a murderer," &c. &c. 16. "But if as a Christian, let him
not be ashamed, but let him praise God in this name [------]" &c. &c.
Nothing but evidential destitution could rely upon the expression in the
"Epistle of Polycarp" to show acquaintance with Acts.
Few apologists point out with confidence any passages from the
voluminous writings of Justin Martyr, as indicating the use of the Acts
of the Apostles. We may, however, quote such expressions as the more
undaunted amongst them venture to advance. The first of these is the
following:(2) "For the Jews having the prophecies and ever expecting
the Christ to come knew him not [------], and not only so, but they also
maltreated him. But
{16}
the Gentiles, who had never heard any thing regarding the Christ until
his Apostles, having gone forth from Jerusalem, declared the things
concerning him, and delivered the prophecies, having been filled with
joy and faith, renounced their idols and dedicated themselves to the
unbegotten God through the Christ"(1) This is compared with Acts xiii.
27, "For they that dwell at Jerusalem and their rulers not knowing this
(man) [------] nor
yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day,
fulfilled them by their judgment of him," &c. 48. "But the Gentiles,
hearing, rejoiced and glorified the word of the Lord," &c.(2) We may
at once proceed to give the next passage. In the Dialogue with Trypho,
Justin has by quotations from the prophets endeavoured to show that the
sufferings of Christ, and also the glory of his second advent had been
foretold, and Trypho replies: "Supposing these things to be even as thou
sayest, and that it was foretold that Christ was to suffer [------],
and has been called a Stone, and after his first coming, in which it had
been announced that he was to suffer, should come in glory, and become
judge of all, and eternal king and priest;" &c.,(3) and in another
place, "For
{17}
if it had been obscurely declared by the prophets that the Christ should
suffer [------] and after these things be lord of all," &c.(1) This is
compared with Acts xxvi. 22, ".... saying nothing except those things
which the prophets and Moses said were to come to pass, (23) whether
the Christ should suffer [------], whether, the first out of the
resurrection from the dead, he is about to proclaim light unto the
people and to the Gentiles."(2) It is only necessary to quote these
passages to show how unreasonable it is to maintain that they show
the use of the Acts by Justin. He simply sets forth from the prophets,
direct, the doctrines which formed the great text of the early Church.
Some of the warmest supporters of the canon admit the "uncertainty"
of such coincidences, and do not think it worth while to advance them.
There are one or two still more distant analogies sometimes pointed out
which do not require more particular notice.(3) There is no evidence
whatever that Justin was acquainted with the Acts of the Apostles.(4)
{18}
Some apologists(1) claim Hegesippus as evidence for the existence of the
Acts, on the strength of the following passages in the fragment of his
book preserved by Eusebius. He puts into the mouth of James the Just,
whilst being martyred, the expression: "I beseech (thee) Lord God,
Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." This is compared
with the words said to have been uttered by the martyr Stephen, Acts
vii. 60, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge.,, The passage is more
commonly advanced as showing acquaintance with Luke xxiii. 34, and we
have already discussed it.(2) Lardner apparently desires it to do double
duty, but it is scarcely worth while seriously to refer to the claim
here. The passage more generally relied upon, though that also is only
advanced by a few,(3) is the following, "This man was a faithful witness
both to Jews and Greeks that Jesus is the Christ,"(4) [------]. This
is compared with Acts xx. 21, where Paul is represented as saying of
himself, ".... testifying fully both to Jews and Greeks repentance
toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ" [------]. The two
passages are totally different both in sense and language, and that the
use of Acts is deduced from so distant an analogy only serves to show
the slightness of the evidence with which apologists have to be content.
{19}
Papias need not long detain us, for it is freely admitted by most
divines that he does not afford evidence of any value that he was
acquainted with the Acts. For the sake of completeness we may however
refer to the points which are sometimes mentioned. A fragment of the
work of Papias is preserved giving an account of the death of Judas,
which differs materially both from the account in the first Synoptic and
in Acts i. 18 f.(1) Judas is represented as having gone about the world
a great example of impiety, for his body having swollen so much that
he could not pass where a waggon easily passed, he was crushed by
the waggon so that his entrails emptied out [------]. Apollinaris of
Laodicaea quotes this passage to show that Judas did not die when he hung
himself, but subsequently met with another fate, in this way reconciling
the statements in the Gospel and Acts.(2) He does not say that Papias
used the story for this purpose, and it is fundamentally contradictory
to the account in Acts i. 18, 19. "Now this man purchased a field with
the reward of the unrighteousness, and falling headlong burst asunder
in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out" [------]. It is scarcely
necessary to argue that the passage does not indicate any acquaintance
with Acts(3) as some few critics are inclined to assert.(4) The
{20}
next analogy pointed out is derived from the statement of Eusebius that
Papias mentions a wonderful story which he had heard from the daughters
of Philip (whom Eusebius calls "the Apostle,") regarding a dead man
raised to life.(1) In Acts xxi. 8, 9, it is stated that Philip the
evangelist had four daughters. It is hardly conceivable that this should
be advanced as an indication that Papias knew the Acts. The last point
is that Eusebius says: "And again (he narrates) another marvel regarding
Justus who was surnamed Barsabas; how he drank a baneful poison and by
the grace of the Lord sustained no harm. But that this Justus, after the
Ascension of the Saviour, the holy apostles appointed with Matthias, and
that they prayed (on the occasion) of the filling up of their number
by lot instead of the traitor Judas, the scripture of the Acts thus
relates: 'And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was
surnamed Justus, and Matthias. And they prayed and said,' &c."(2)
Whatever argument can be deduced from this, obviously rests entirely
upon the fact that Papias is said to have referred to Justus who was
named Barsabas, for of course the last sentence is added by Eusebius
himself, and has nothing to do with Papias. This is fairly admitted by
Lardner and others. Lardner says: "Papias does undoubtedly give some
confirmation to the history of the Acts of the Apostles, in what he says
of Philip; and especially in what he says of Justus, called
{21}
Barsabas. But I think it cannot be affirmed, that he did particularly
mention, or refer to, the book of the Acts. For I reckon, it is Eusebius
himself who adds that quotation out of the Acts, upon occasion of what
Papias had written of the before-mentioned Barsabas."(1) There is
no evidence worthy of attention that Papias was acquainted with the
Acts.(3)
No one seriously pretends that the Clementine Homilies afford any
evidence of the use or existence of the Acts; and few, if any, claim the
Epistle to Diognetus as testimony for it.(3) We may, however, quote the
only passage which is pointed out. ".... these who hold the view that
they present them (offerings) to God as needing them might more rightly
esteem it foolishness and not worship of God. For he who made the
heaven and the earth, and all things in them, and who supplies to us all
whatever we need, can himself be in need of none of those things which
he himself presents to those who imagine that they give (to him)."(4)
This is
{22}
compared with Acts xvii. 24: "The God that made the world and all things
in it, he being Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made
with hands; (25) neither is served by men's hand as though he needed
anything, seeing he himself giveth to all life and breath and all
things."(1) There is nothing here but a coincidence of sense, though
with much variation between the two passages, but the Epistle argues
from a different context, and this illustration is obvious enough to be
common to any moralist. There is not a single reason which points to the
Acts as the source of the writer's argument.
Basilides and Valentinus are not claimed at all by apologists as
witnesses for the existence of the Acts of the Apostles, nor is Marcion,
whose Canon, however, of which it formed no part, is rather adverse to
the work than merely negative. Tertullian taunts Marcion for receiving
Paul as an apostle, although his name is not mentioned in the Gospel,
and yet not receiving the Acts of the Apostles in which alone his
history is narrated;(2) but it does not in the least degree follow from
this that Marcion knew the work and deliberately rejected it.
A passage of Tatian's oration to the Greeks is pointed out by some(3)
as showing his acquaintance with the Acts. It is as follows: "I am not
willing to worship the creation
{23}
made by him for us. Sun and moon are made for us: how, therefore, shall
I worship my own servants? How can I declare stocks and stones to be
gods?... But neither should the unnameable [------] God be presented
with bribes; for he who is without need of anything [------] must not
be calumniated by us as needy [------]."(l) This is compared with Acts
xvii. 24, 25, quoted above, and it only serves to show how common such
language was. Lardner himself says of the passage: "This is much the
same thought, and applied to the same purpose, with Paul's, Acts xvii.
25, _as though he needeth anything_. But it is a character of the Deity
so obvious, that I think it cannot determine us to suppose he had an
eye to those words of the Apostle."(2) The language, indeed, is quite
different and shows no acquaintance with the Acts.(3) Eusebius states
that the Severians who more fully established Tatian's heresy rejected
both the Epistles of Paul and the Acts of the Apostles.(4)
Dionysius of Corinth is rarely adduced by any one as testimony for the
Acts. The only ground upon which he is at all referred to is a statement
of Eusebius in mentioning his Epistles. Speaking of his Epistle to the
Athenians, Eusebius says: "He relates, moreover, that Dionysius the
Areopagite who was converted to the faith by Paul the Apostle, according
to the account given in the
{24}
Acts, was appointed the first bishop of the church of the Athenians."(1)
Even apologists admit that it is doubtful how far Dionysius referred to
the Acts,(2) the mention of the book here being most obviously made by
Eusebius himself.
Melito of Sardis is not appealed to by any writer in connection with
our work, nor can Claudius Apollinaris be pressed into this service.
Athenagoras is supposed by some to refer to the very same passage in
Acts xvii. 24, 25, which we have discussed when dealing with the work of
Tatian. Athenagoras says: "The Creator and Father of the universe is
not in need of blood, nor of the steam of burnt sacrifices, nor of
the fragrance of flowers and of incense, he himself being the perfect
fragrance, inwardly and outwardly without need."(3) And further on: "And
you kings indeed build palaces for yourselves; but the world is not
made as being needed by God."(4) These passages occur in the course of a
defence of Christians for not offering sacrifices, and both in language
and context they are quite independent of the Acts of the Apostles.
In the Epistle of the Churches of Vienne and Lyons, giving an account of
the persecution against them, it is said that the victims were praying
for those from whom they suffered cruelties: "like Stephen the perfect
martyr:
{25}
'Lord, lay not this sin to their charge.' But if he was supplicating
for those who stoned him, how much more for the brethren?"(l) The prayer
here quoted agrees with that ascribed to Stephen in Acts vii. 60. There
is no mention of the Acts of the Apostles in the Epistle, and the source
from which the writers obtained their information about Stephen is of
course not stated. If there really was a martyr of the name of Stephen,
and if these words were actually spoken by him, the tradition of the
fact, and the memory of his noble saying, may well have remained in
the Church, or have been recorded in writings then current, from one
of which, indeed, eminent critics conjecture that the author of Acts
derived his materials,2 and in this case the passage obviously does not
prove the use of the Acts. If, on the other hand, there never was such
a martyr by whom these words were spoken, and the whole story must be
considered an original invention by the author of Acts, then, in that
case, and in that case only, the passage does show the use of the
Acts.(3) Supposing that the use of Acts be held to be thus indicated,
what does this prove? Merely that the Acts of the Apostles were in
existence in the year 177-178, when the Epistle of
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Vienne and Lyons was written. No light whatever would thus be thrown
upon the question of its authorship; and neither its credibility nor its
sufficiency to prove the reality of a cycle of miracles would be in the
slightest degree established.
Ptolemaeus and Heracleon ueed not detain us, as it is not alleged that
they show acquaintance with the Acts, nor is Celsus claimed as testimony
for the book.
The Canon of Muratori contains a very corrupt paragraph regarding the
Acts of the Apostles. We have already discussed the date and character
of this fragment,(1) and need not further speak of it here. The sentence
in which we are now interested reads in the original as follows:
"Acta autem omnium apostolorum sub uno libro scribta sunt lucas obtime
theofile conprindit quia sub praesentia eius singula gerebantur sicute et
semote pas-sionem petri euidenter declarat sed et profectionem pauli ab
urbes ad spania proficescentis."
It is probable that in addition to its corruption some words may have
been lost from the concluding phrase of this passage, but the following
may perhaps sufficiently represent its general sense: "But the Acts of
all the Apostles were written in one book. Luke included (in his work)
to the excellent Theophilus only the things which occurred in his own
presence, as he evidently shows by omitting the martyrdom of Peter and
also the setting forth of Paul from the city to Spain."
Whilst this passage may prove the existence of the Acts about the end of
the second century, and that the authorship of the work was ascribed
to Luke, it has no further value. No weight can be attached to the
statement of
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the unknown writer beyond that of merely testifying to the currency of
such a tradition, and even the few words quoted show how uncritical he
was. Nothing could be less appropriate to the work before us than the
assertion that it contains the Acts of _all_ the Apostles, for it must
be apparent to all, and we shall hereafter have to refer to the point,
that it very singularly omits all record of the acts of most of the
apostles, occupies itself chiefly with those of Peter and Paul, and
devotes considerable attention to Stephen and to others who were not
apostles at all. We shall further have occasion to show that the writer
does anything but confine himself to the events of which he was an
eye-witness, and we may merely remark, in passing, as a matter. which
scarcely concerns us here, that the instances given by the unknown
writer of the fragment to support his assertion are not only irrelevant,
but singularly devoid themselves of historical attestation.
Irenaeus(1) assigns the Acts of the Apostles to Luke, as do Clement
of Alexandria,(2) Tertullian,(3) and Origen,(4) although without any
statements giving special weight to their mention of him as the author
in any way counterbalancing the late date of their testimony. Beyond
showing that tradition, at the end of the second century and beginning
of the third, associated the name of Luke with this writing and the
third Gospel, the evidence of these Fathers is of no value to us. We
have already incidentally mentioned that some heretics either ignored or
rejected the book, and to the Marcionites and Severians
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we may now add the Ebionites(1) and Manichaeans.(2) Chrysostom complains
that in his day the Acts of the Apostles were so neglected that many
were ignorant of the existence of the book and of its authors.(3) Doubts
as to its authorship were expressed in the ninth century, for Photius
states that some ascribed the work to Clement of Rome, others to
Barnabas, and others to Luke the evangelist.(4)
If we turn to the document itself, we find that it professes to be
the second portion of a work written for the information of an unknown
person named Theophilus, the first part being the Gospel, which, in our
canonical New Testament, bears the name of "Gospel according to Luke."
The narrative is a continuation of the third Synoptic, but the actual
title of "Acts of the Apostles," or "Acts of Apostles" [------],(5)
attached to this [------] is a later addition, and formed no part of the
original document. The author's name is not given in any of the earlier
MSS., and the work is entirely anonymous. That in the prologue to the
Acts the writer clearly assumes to be the author of the Gospel does
not in any way identify him, inasmuch as the third Synoptic itself
is equally anonymous. The tradition assigning both works to Luke the
follower of Paul, as we have seen, is first met with
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towards the end of the second century, and very little weight can be
attached to it. There are too many instances of early writings,
several of which indeed have secured a place in our canon, to which
distinguished names have been erroneously ascribed. Such tradition is
notoriously liable to error.
We shall presently return to the question of the authorship of the
third Synoptic and Acts of the Apostles, but at present we may so far
anticipate as to say that there are good reasons for affirming that they
could not have been written by Luke.(1)
Confining ourselves here to the actual evidence before us, we arrive at
a clear and unavoidable conclusion regarding the Acts of the Apostles.
After examining all the early Christian literature, and taking every
passage which is referred to as indicating the use of the book, we see
that there is no certain trace even of its existence till towards the
end of the second century; and, whilst the writing itself is anonymous,
we find no authority but late tradition assigning it to Luke or to any
other author. We are absolutely without evidence of any value as to
its accuracy or trustworthiness, and, as we shall presently see, the
epistles of Paul, so far from accrediting it, tend to cast the most
serious doubt upon its whole character. This evidence we have yet to
examine, when considering the contents of the Acts, and we base our
present remarks solely on the external testimony for the date and
authorship of the book. The position, therefore, is simply this: We
are asked to believe in the reality of a great number of miraculous and
supernatural
1 The reader is referred to an article by the author in the
Fortnightly Rev., 1877, p. 496 ff., in which some
indications of date, and particularly those connected with
the use of writings of Josephus, are discussed.
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occurrences which, obviously, are antecedently incredible, upon the
assurance of an anonymous work of whose existence there is no distinct
evidence till more than a century after the events narrated, and to
which an author's name--against which there are strong objections--is
first ascribed by tradition towards the end of the second century. Of
the writer to whom the work is thus attributed we know nothing beyond
the casual mention of his name in some Pauline Epistles. If it were
admitted that this Luke did actually write the book, we should not be
justified in believing the reality of such stupendous miracles upon his
bare statement As the case stands, however, even taking it in its most
favourable aspect, the question scarcely demands serious attention, and
our discussion might at once be ended by the unhesitating rejection of
the Acts of the Apostles as sufficient, or even plausible, evidence for
the miracles which it narrates.