time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. 17 He saith unto 17. Jesus, to exemplify to him how he was to use him the third time, the power of the keys promised to him, Matt. xvi., Simon, son of Jonas, calls him here three times (proportionably to his lovest thou me? Pe ter was grieved be- threefold denial) to confess Christ, and his love to cause he said unto him, and so to clear himself, 2 Cor. i. 11. him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep. 18 Verily, verily, I and walkedst whi say unto thee, When In the former part of thine age, thou hast been thou wast young, free to do what even now thou didst, ver. 7, to live at thou girdedst thyself, thine own pleasure; but age shall bring pressures and ther thou wouldest : afflictions on thee: within forty years thou shalt be but when thou shalt taken, and do as captives do when they yield to the be old, thou shalt greater force, and be bound (see note [6] Luke xii.), stretch forth thy and carried to the cross, the place of execution. hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. 19 This spake he, 19. This speech of Christ's was a figurative exsignifying by what pression that crucifixion was the kind of death by death he should glo- which he should confess Christ. And to this he added rify God. And when these words, Follow me; that is, Thou shalt follow me he saith unto him, in sufferings, as before thou didst in discipleship. Follow me. he had spoken this, 20 Then Peter, turn ing about, seeth 'the f John, Christ's beloved disciple, who at his last disciple whom Je- supper was next unto him, ch. xiii. 13, and asked him sus loved following; that question, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee? which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee? 21 Peter seeing him 8 but what shall this man's fate be? saith to Jesus, Lord, man do? h I told you of some that should escape the fury of sand what shall this the evil times approaching, and continue to the time 22 Jesus saith unto that I shall come in judgment against Jerusalem, and him, "If I will that destroy it by the Romans; and what harm is it to he tarry [c] till I thee? and how art thou concerned to know if John 4 but what shall this man? OUTOS dè Tí; come, what is that be one of these? Thou art likely to follow me to the to thee? follow thou cross, and the cheerful doing of that becomes thee 23 5Then went this better than this curiosity. me. saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die: but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? 24. This is he that is the author of this Gospel, which he preached in Asia, and about two and thirty 24 This is the dis- years after Christ's ascension, by the entreaty of the ciple which testifieth Asian bishops, wrote and published it; and the of these things, and Christians of Asia, especially of the church of Ephewrote these things: and we know that sus, know so much of his good life, miracles and verahis testimony is true. city, and withal of the agreeableness of his time of 25 And there are death with what is here affirmed to be foretold by also many other Christ, that we cannot but approve his testimony, and things which Jesus affix our seal to all that is in this Gospel affirmed by they should be writ did, the which, if him. ten every one, [d] I 25. Thus much was written by St. John, but much suppose that even more was done by Jesus, many miracles &c. all the world itself could which, if they were distinctly set down in writing, that should be writ- they would even fill the world, the volumes would be so many. Amen. not contain the books ten. Amen. THE ACTS OF THE HOLY APOSTLES. HE former trea CHAP. I. Ttise have made, me to E which I wrote christians (see 1. THE Gospel which I wrote was designed by O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both note [c] Luke i.) note [c] Luke i.) a relation of all things which Jesus to do and teach, both did and taught: see note [a] Mark ii. up, after that he 2 Until the day in 2. From the time of his birth to his assumption to which he was taken heaven, before which, on that very day that he rose through the Holy from the dead, John xx. 19, he breathed on his chosen Ghost had given apostles, and said, Receive the Holy Ghost, ver. 22, 5 Hereupon, or Therefore, obv. 6 dieth not, οὐκ ἀποθνήσκει. commandments un- and so by virtue of the power committed to him by to the apostles whom his Father, who formerly had sent him, ver. 21, he he had chosen : gave them commission inlike manner, and delegated 3 To whom also the government of his church to them, and commandhe shewed himself ed them to preach, and by testifying his resurrection alive after his pas- from the dead to confirm his doctrine to all the world. sion by many infal- 3. To which end he appeared to them after his relible proofs, being surrection, and gave them many sure evidences that seen of them forty days, and speaking it was truly he, and talked with them of the church of the things per- which should be planted and ruled by them, and of taining to the king- many other things concerning the gospel, (and his dom of God: dealing with the enemies thereof. See ver. 7, and sembled together note [g] Matt. iii.) 4 And, being as with them, command- 4, 5. And as he eat and drank, and was familiarly ed them that they conversant with them, thereby to give them all posshould not depart sible assurance of the truth of his resurrection, and so from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of his power and Godhead, and that he was indeed of the Father, which, the undoubted Messias, (see note [f] Matt. xxvi.) he saith he, ye have gave them order after this manner: Go not from Jeheard of me. rusalem suddenly, but there expect a while the com5 For John truly pletion of that promise which I gave you from the baptized with water; but ye shall be Father, in these words, when I told you, that as John [a] baptized with the baptized his disciples with water, so you should have Holy Ghost not to that an addition of the Holy Ghost's coming down many days hence. 6 When they there- upon you within a while, till which time you were to fore were come to stay here at Jerusalem, and not go gether, they asked ness of preaching in other places. of him, saying, Lord, 6. And as the disciples met Jesus after his resurwilt thou at this time rection, they asked him, saying, Do you mean now restore again the kingdom to Israel? presently to repair and settle that kingdom on your 7 And he said un- followers which hath been prophesied of, Dan. vii. to them, It is not for 18, and so do what is expected from the Messias? you to know the 7. To whom Christ replied, It is not for you to times or [b]the sea- know the secrets which God will keep to himself; and sons, which the Father hath put in his such is the time and moment of Christ's entering on his kingdom: see Matt. xxiv. 36. own power. 8 But ye shall receive power, after 6 about your busi 8. Only this I shall tell you, that the Holy Ghost that the Holy Ghost shall shortly descend on you, and give you a formal is come upon you: and ye shall be wit- commission for the execution of your office, and then nesses unto me both you shall testify the truth of what I have done and in Jerusalem, and in said, proclaim and divulge it first in Jerusalem, then all Judæa, and in in all Judæa and Samaria; and, after the Jews shall the uttermost part have rejected the gospel, depart to the heathen world, to the uttermost parts of the earth. Samaria, and unto of the earth. 3 That, "OTI. 1 telling them the things, Aéywv tá. 2 eating, or familiarly conversing, ovvaλiČóμeros. They therefore, when they met him, asked him, Oi μèv ovv ovvEλOOPTES moments. 6 power of the Holy Ghost coming upon you, dúvaμv domeλΠνεύματος ἐφ' ὑμᾶς. ἐπηρώτων αὐτόν. θόντος τοῦ Αγίου 5 9 And when he had 9. And after he had said thus much in their prespoken these things, sence and sight, he was taken up by angels from the while they beheld, he was taken up; and earth in a bright shining cloud, which inclosed him, [c] a cloud received so that they could see him no more. him out of their sight. IO And while they 10. And as they looked earnestly after him, lo, two looked stedfastly to- angels appeared to them as in a shining glorious manner of ward heaven as he went up, behold, two a array. a shall come one day to judge the world in as gloso come in like man- rious a manner as now he is gone up to heaven; his ner as ye have seen him go into heaven. going thither is not an absolute departing from you, 12 Then returned but a seizing or taking.possession of that his kingdom, they unto Jerusalem which he shall exercise till the end of the world. from the mount call12. This was done on the mount Olivet, which is 7 from Jerusalem a ed Olivet, which is seven furlongs (saith the Syriac interpreter) distant sabbath day's jour- from Jerusalem; thither therefore they immediately ney. upper room, where a returned from thence. 13 And when they 13, 14. And when they were come to Jerusalem were come in, they they resorted to the temple, and in one of the upper went up into [d] an rooms of that structure the eleven apostles constantly bode both Peter, and performed their devotions, together with the women James, and John, that were wont to attend Christ, and Mary the mother and Andrew, Philip, of Christ, and James and the rest of his kindred. and Thomas, Bar 14 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren. 15 And in those 15. Now at a time, when there was a good comdays Peter stood up pany of them (to the number of sixscore) gathered in the midst of the together to the public service of God, Peter being a disciples, and said, person of special account among the apostles, briefly 7 near Jerusalem, a sabbath day's journey from it, ¿yyùs 'Iepovoaλǹu, &c. 8 the Zelot : see note [c] Matt. x. (the number of the addressed his speech unto the rest of the eleven, and [e] names [f] to- said, gether were about twenty,) 16. Sirs, ye know what the psalmist prophesied, an hundred and Psalm xli. 9, which being from the Spirit of God, it 16 10 Men and bre- was of necessity to have a completion, and accordthren, this scripture ingly it is now punctually accomplished in Judas, of must needs have been whom the Holy Ghost then foresaw and foretold it, Holy Ghost by the viz., fulfilled, which the mouth of David 17. That he was of our society, a fellow disciple, spake before con- one of the twelve sent out and empowered by Christ, cerning Judas, which Matt. x. 1. 5, and being one of those to whom the was guide to them keys, Matt. xvi., and the power of binding, Matt. 171 For he was xviii., and of judicature, Matt. xix. 28, were pronumbered with us, mised by Christ, he was in designation an apostle of and had obtained Christ as truly as any of us. that took Jesus. 12 part of this ministry. 18. But for a sum of money he delivered up his 18 Now this man Master to his enemies, those of the sanhedrim, and purchased a field with the reward of having done so, was troubled at that which he had iniquity; and [9]fall- done, and threw back the money in the temple into ing headlong, he the chief priests' hands, (who durst not keep it them[h] burst asunder in the midst, and all his selves, or put it into the corban, but were willing to bowels gushed out. employ it on some charitable use, and so bought with 19 And it was known it a field to bury strangers,) and the sense of this unto all the dwellers black fact casting him into a deep melancholy, he fell at Jerusalem; inso- forward on his face upon the ground, in a fit of suffocation, and his belly burst, and all his entrails came per tongue, Acelda- out: (see note [a] Matt. xxvii.) much as that field is called in their pro 20 For it is writ ma, that is to say, 19. And this act, and this fate of Judas, was notoThe field of blood. riously known to all that dwelt at Jerusalem, and ten in the book of thereupon the field, which was bought with that Psalms, Let his ha- money, was vulgarly known by the name of the Field bitation be desolate, of blood. other take. and let no man dwell 20. To him therefore belongeth that which Psalm therein and his lxix. 25. and Psalm cix. 8. was said, not by way of [i] bishoprick let anexecration, but by way of prediction, that as he shall 21 Wherefore of come to a desperate miserable end, so that office of these men which have power and authority, which Christ hath designed to companied with us all be given him with the rest of the twelve, (which was, the time that the Lord first to plant, and then to oversee and govern the out among us, church, as a bishop of it,) shall be bestowed on an22 Beginning from other man. Jesus went in and the baptism of John, 21, 22. It is therefore our duty, according to this unto that same day prophecy, to make choice of some one of these perfrom us, must one sons that are now here with us, ver. 15, and who be ordained to be a have continued with us ever since Jesus undertook to that he was taken up &c. 9 (and there was a multitude of names together, about, ἦν τε ὄχλος ὀνομάτων ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ ὡς 10 Men, brethren, "Avdpes ådeλpoí. 11 That, 8TI. 12 on his face. |