FROM THE BURIAL OF OUR LORD TO HIS ASCENSION. [PART X. girded on his upper garment, (for he was naked),* and cast himself into the sea. 8 And the other πλοιαριῳ disciples came in the vessel, (for they were not far from land, but about two hundred cubits), dragging the net full of fishes. When therefore they had come out upon the land, they see a fire of coals lying, and a fish lying on it, and bread. 10 Jesus οψαριων saith unto them," Bring of the fishes which ye have now canght." "Simon Peter went aboard, and drew the net to the land full of great fishes, a hundred and fifty three and though there were so many, the net was not broken. them, "Come and breakfast."+ But none of the disciples durst ask him, "Who art thou?" knowing that it was the Lord. 13 Jesus cometh, and | taketh the bread, and giveth them; and in like manner the fish. 14 (This is now the third time that Jesus showed himself to his disciples, after having been raised from the dead). εγερθεις 12 Jesus saith unto 18 When therefore they had breakfasted, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of Jonah, lovest thou me more than these do?" He saith unto him, "Yea, Lord! thou knowest that I love thee." He saith unto him, "Feed my lambs." 16 He saith to him again a second time, "Simon, son of Jonah, lovest thou me?" He saith unto him, "Yea, Lord! thou knowest that I love thee " He saith unto him, "Tend my sheep." 17 He saith unto him the third time, "Simon, son of Jonah, lovest thou me?" Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, 'Lovest thon me?' and said unto him, "Lord! thou knowest all things; thou knowest that thee" Jesus saith unto him, "Feed my sheep. 16 I love Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not." 19 Now he said this, signifying by what death he shall glorify God. And having said this, he saith unto him, "Follow me." 20 Now Peter turning about, saw the disciple following whom Jesus loved, who also leaned on his breast at the last • The meaning of the parenthesis would probably be expressed thus,-'for he had on his vest only.' + Or, take food, αριστησατε. to the dinner; and in the Alexandrian dialect it was used for supper, or any other meal. Αριστον first denoted the earliest meal; it was afterwards extended 1 Or, thought of asking him, ετολμα. Sce Schleusner. JOHN XXI. supper, and said, "Lord! who is he that delivereth thee up?" 21 Seeing him, Peter saith unto Jesus, "Lord! but he what will befall him?" 22 Jesus saith unto him, "If I will that he remain until I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me." This report therefore went forth among the brethren, That disciple dieth not. Yet Jesus said not unto him, 'He dieth not:' but, 'If I will that he remain until I come, what is that to thee?" 24 This is the disciple who testifieth concerning these things, and who wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true. 25 Now there are also many other things which Jesus did; and if they should be written one by one, I think that not even the world itself would contain the books thus written.* SECT. VII. Christ meets the Apostles at the appointed Mountain in Galilee.t • The authenticity of this twenty-first chapter has been warmly questioned; but there is abundant reason to attribute it to the Apostle John. (See the argument well stated by Kuinoel). The 24th verse, however, if not the last two verses, must be regarded as the addition of some one of known authority in the Ephesian church-perhaps the person who copied the Gospel for its first publication, who may also have arranged the separate portions of it. See Diss. I. Sect. v. § 2. + It is not improbable, that this was the time when, as St. Paul states, 1 Cor. xv. 6, our Lord 'was seen by above five hundred Brethren at once.' Since Matthew obviously had in view merely to record the fulfilment of the promise of Christ, (ver. 7, 10), with his declaration concerning the power now given to him, and his authoritative commission to the Apostles, this Evangelist's usual succinct mode of narration renders his silence as to the presence of others no obstacle to the supposition; and, indeed, unless the Apostles had been commanded to assemble by themselves, it is scarcely conceivable that any of the Brethren who knew the appointed time and place, would lose the opportunity which this meeting afforded them of seeing their risen Lord. Upon this supposition, the οἱ δε εδίστασαν, but some doubted, in the 17th verse, naturally refers to some of those who had not heretofore seen him. After the proofs which, as we know from St. John's Gospel, the Apostles had enjoyed of the resurrection of Christ, doubt could not exist in their minds. FROM THE BURIAL OF OUR LORD TO HIS ASCENSION. MATT. XXVIII. on earth. 19 Go ye and teach* all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit: 20 teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, unto the end of the world.t MARK XVI. 15 AND he said unto them, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature: 16 he that believeth and is baptized, will be saved; but he that believeth not, will be condemned. 17 And these signs shall accompany them that believe: In my name, they shall cast out demons, they shall speak with new tongues, 18 they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any thing deadly, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover." SECT. VIII. [PART X. Discourses of Christ to his Apostles, followed by his Ascension into Heaven. MATT. MARK XVI. LUKE XXIV. 44 Now he said unto them, JOHN νουν συνιέναι εστε Or, disciple, μαθητευσατε. Το disciple is of good authority. + Or, unto the end of the age, έως συντελειας του αιώνος. 'After that, he was seen by James, then by all the Apostles, 1 Cor, xv. 7. See Sect. vii. Note t. 20 LUKE XXIV. I send upon you the promise of 50 And he led them out as but they went forth, and they did him reverential ho- JOHN The more detailed Account of the Ascension of Christ, given by Luke in Acts i. 1-14. THE former narration I made, O Theophilus, concerning all things which Jesus began both to do and to teach,§ 2 until the day when, after having, through the holy spirit, given charge to the Apostles whom he had chosen, he was taken up into heaven: 3 to whom also, after he suffered, he showed himself alive, by many infallible proofs; presenting himself to be seen by them during forty days, and declaring things concerning the kingdom of God. * And having assembled them together, he charged them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to await the promise of the Father, "which," he said, "ye have heard from me: $ for John indeed baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the • Bethany lay on the eastern side of the Mount of Olives, about two miles from the city: but tradition fixes upon a spot on the western side, near one of the summits, as the place of our Lord's ascension. We know nothing more, however, than what Luke has said; and this is decided as to its being in the immediate neighbourhood of Bethany. What he says in Acts i. 12, merely respects the site of the Mount of Olives, not of the spot where Christ ascended. The Sabbath-day's journey is said to have been 2000 cubits; Josephus somewhere speaks of the hill as six furlongs from the city, and elsewhere as five. + The last portion of Mark's Gospel, ver. 9-20, is regarded by some as of doubtful authority: Griesbach expresses himself very strongly to this effect; but Kuinoel ably defends it. The external evidence against it is very slight: the supposed inconsistencies between it and the other Gospels are the chief ground of argument. Considering the nature of the circumstances to be recorded, and the number of persons whose opinions, and of others whose information, would altogether form the basis of the narratives, there is less appearance of discrepancy than might reasonably have been expected. On cautiously examining the whole, as we might examine the testimony of any other faithful and well-informed witnesses, even the appearance almost entirely vanishes; and we readily discern how the whole would arise from the reality, viewed under different aspects. Or, both did and taught, if ηρξατο is used idiomatically. THE ASCENSION OF CHRIST. 6 holy spirit, not many days hence." They therefore, having come together, asked him, saying, "Lord! art thou at this time restoring the kingdom to Israel?" 7 But he said unto them, "It is not yours to know times or seasons, which the Father hath placed in his own disposal: * 8 but ye shall receive power when the holy spirit cometh upon you; and ye shall be witnesses to me, both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the extremity of the earth."+ 9 And having said these things, while they were beholding him, he was taken up from the earth; and a cloud beneath removed him from their eyes. 10 And as they were steadfastly looking towards heaven, while he was departing, lo! two men stood near them in white raiment, who also said, 11 "Men of Galilee! why stand ye looking up towards heaven? This same Jesus, who is taken up from you to heaven, will come again in the same manner as ye have seen him going to heaven." 12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called the Mount of Olives, which is near Jerusalem, at the distance of a sabbath-day's journey. 13 And when they had entered the city, they went up into the upper chamber; § and there abode Peter and James, and John and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphæus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James. 14 These all with one consent continued in prayer, together with certain women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren. * εξουσια. + νεφελη ὑπελαβεν αυτον. + Or, of the land, εως έσχατου της γης. So Wakefield. § το ύπερῳον. It is reasonable to conjecture, that this was the chamber where our Lord ate the Passover; where also the Apostles appear to have assembled on the evening of the resurrection. If so, it was in the house of a disciple. See Matt. xxvi. 18, &c. p. 235. |