out, and escape. 43. But the centurion, willing to save Paul, kept them from it; and commanded that they who could swim should cast themselves first into the sea, and get to land;

44. And the rest, some on boards, and some on broken pieces of the ship; and so they escaped all safe to land.

CHAP. XXVIII.

THE BARBARIANS ENTERTAIN PAUL.

AND being escaped, then they knew the island was called Melita, (now Malta.) 2. Where the barbarians shewed us great kindness: for they kindled a fire, and received us all, because of the present rain and cold.

3. ¶ And Paul having gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, a viper came out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. 4. And the barbarians seeing the venomous beast hang on his hand, said among themselves, Doubtless this man is a murderer, whom tho' he escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth not to live. 5. But he shook it off into the fire, and felt no harm. 6. However they expected he would swell, or fall down dead suddenly; but having looked long and seen no hurt done to him, they changed their minds, and said he was a god.

7. In the same parts were possessions of the chief man of the island, named Publius, who received us, and entertained, and lodged us three days kindly. 8. His father being seized with a fever and a bloody flux: Paul prayed with him, and laid his hands on him, and healed him. 9. Then others, who had diseases in the island, came and were healed; 10. Who also bestowed on us many honours: and, when departing, loaded us with neces sary things.

11. And after three months we departed in

a ship of Alexandria, which wintered in the isle, whose sign was Castor and Pollux, (tutelar gods; when one electric meteor rested on the ship, they took it for a bad sign; when two appeared they called them thus, and taking them for good signs, prayed to them, as guardians, for a good voyage.) 12. And landing at Syracuse, we abode there three days. 13. From whence we going about came to Rhegium: and after one day the south wind blew, so we came the next to Puteoli; 14. Where we found brethren, and were desired to remain with them seven days; and then we went to Rome. 15. And from thence, the brethren hearing of us, came to meet us as far as Appii Forum and The Three Taverns; whom Paul seeing, he thanked God, and took courage. 16. And being come to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard; but Paul was suffered to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him.

17. And, after three days, Paul called the chief of the Jews together; and, being met, he said to them, Brethren, tho' I committed nothing against my people, or the customs of our fathers, yet I was delivered prisoner from Jerusalem to the Romans; 18. Who having examined me, would have let me go, there being no cause of death in me. 19. But the Jews speaking against it, I was constrained to appeal to Cesar; not that I had any thing to accuse my nation of. 20. Therefore, I called you, to see, and speak with you; because for (the gospel) the hope of Israel, I am bound with

this chain.

21. Then they said to him, We neither received letters from Judea concerning thee, neither any of the brethren that came, shewed or spake any evil 22. But we desire to hear what thou thinkest; for we know this sect is every where spoken against.

of thee.

23. And having appointed a day, many came

to his lodging; to whom he expounded and testifi ed the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and the prophets, from morning till evening.

24. And some believed what was spoken, and some not. 25. So disagreeing among themselves, they departed, after Paul said one word, Well spake the Holy Spirit, by Isaiah the prophet, to our fathers, 26. Saying, Go to this people, and say, tho' ye hear, ye will not understand; and tho' ye see, ye will not perceive. 27. For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull, and with their eyes they wink; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, that I should heal them. 28. Be it known therefore to you, that the salvation of God is sent to the Gentiles, and they will hear it.

29. And having said so, the Jews departed, and had great reasoning among themselves.

30. And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in to him. 31. Preaching the kingdom of God, even teaching the things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man hindering him.

APPENDIX

TO THE HISTORY OF THE

ACTS OF THE APOSTLES.

THEOPHILUS, to whom it is addressed, had that title as Proconsul or Governor. That history contains about thirty-three years and a half, or as much time as the life of Christ, and till near the destruction of Jerusalem. According to Isaiah ii. 2, 3. Micah iv. 1, 2. the gospel was to proceed from Jerusalem, and to be propagated over all the world. It seemed fit to give an account of its progress only in Judea and the neighbouring

countries, and the principal parts of the Roman empire; and of some of the principal persons' labours and sufferings, as a specimen of the rest, to shew the accomplishment of Christ's prophecies and promises.

The first part of this book treats chiefly of Peter and John preaching the gospel to the Jews, as the rest did, about nine or ten years; and the latter of Paul and Barnabas preaching to the Gentiles, and chiefly of Paul after his separation from Barnabas, the author being Paul's companion in his travels, as Mark was Peter's; and it ends with Paul's first voyage to Rome, where he left Luke as his depute. His name was Lucius or Lucanus, a Syrian proselyte of Antioch, where he studied medicine, Col. iv. 14. and also in Greece and Egypt; he was converted by Paul likely in Dalmatia, Gallia or Macedonia; he suffered mar tyrdom at Rome, which prevented him from completing his history. After this, Paul returned to Rome; when he was first there he was allowed to live in his own house, Acts xxviii. 31, having Mark and Timothy with him, and Demas had not then apostatized, Philip. i. 1-14. Col. iv. 10. The second time he was close confined in prison, 2 Tim. i. 17. iv. 6—11, 16. It is not certain that Peter was ever at Rome, tho' it is reported that he was imprisoned, and suffered the same day with Paul, who was beheaded there, after he had propagated the gospel thro' many countries, as Arabia, Damascus, Syria, and from Jerusalem, round about, through the Lesser Asia and Greece, to Illyricum, Italy, Spain, France, and Britain, as Clement and Theodoret relate. We have little of Paul's exploits during twelve years, till he came to Iconium, and none after his imprisonment, though he lived ten years after in Spain, Gaul, and Britain. Peter's exploits are related in the Acts till the 44th year of Christ, ch. xii. but he lived 24 years after; he was crucified, A. D. 69, with his head down, as he desired, thinking himself unworthy to suffer as his Lord and Master did. He had resided six or seven years at Antioch, and also propagated the gospel in Palestine or Judea, Samaria and Galilee, the Lower Asia, Africa, Cilicia, &c. and wrote his first epistle either from Babylon in Egypt, now Cairo, or from one of those in Upper Asia, viz. in Assyria. He defeated Simon the sorcerer, who pretended to be the son of God, or a god, having his statue inscribed, "Simoni deo Sancto," to Simon the holy God. He would mount up to heaven, but Peter's prayers made him fall, and be mortally dashed or bruis

ed.

The prophets and apostles generally suffered martyrdom, or the most barbarous savage cruel murder. Thus, the world did them all the evil it could, in return for doing all the good they could, by labouring to recover the wicked world from sin and misery, to holiness and happiness; and we still find that they who labour most for the public good, get the least or the worst

rewards. Isaiah was sawn asunder from the head down, with a wooden saw, for lingering torture, by his cousin King Manasseh. Jeremiah was stoned, Heb. xi. 37. James the great, John's brother was the first apostle who suffered, he was killed with the sword, Acts xii. A. D. 44. by Herod Agrippa, grandson of Herod the great or first, and nephew of Herod Antipas, who be headed the Baptist, and father of Agrippa who heard Paul. James the Just, called the bishop of Jerusalem, the author of the epistle, Jude's and Simon the zealot's brother, and the cousin of Christ by their mothers. A. D. cir. 62, being ordered by the Sanedrim, under Ananus the Roman governor, to renounce Christianity, and being carried up to a battlement of the temple to do it in the most public manner, they having threatened to cast him down if he did it not, he declared Christ was the Messiah, and was cast down, and stoned, and beaten to death; for his extraordinary piety and goodness he was called the Just, the highest title; he had procured rain by his prayers in a drought. Josephus mentions that the sober, conscientious part, reckoned their calamities and destruction the punishment of that wickedness; Agrippa afterwards deposed the high priest for it. Ecclesiastical historians relate that Andrew, Peter's younger brother, after propagating the gospel along the south coast of the Euxine or Black sea, and in wild northern countries, as Scythia and Sogdiana, and in the Lesser Asia, and in Greece, Macedonia, Thessaly and Epirus, he was cruelly torn by scourging under Egeas, the proconsul of Achaia, in the first persecution which was raised by Nero in his twelfth or thirteenth year, A. D. 63. November 30. He hung three days tied to a cross like the letter X, teaching the people. Jude called Thaddeus and Lebbeus, after preaching in Judea, Samaria, Galilee, Idumea, Syria, and Mesopotamia or Armenia, went east to Edessa and Persia, where, opposing their worshipping the sun, he was crucified. Simon the zealot, going from Egypt, Cyrene, Lybia, and Mauritania, in Africa, met Jude in Mesopotamia, and some allege that they were both crucified in Persia, the same day. Thomas, after preaching in Media, Persia, Parthia, Carmania, Hyrcania, Bactria and India, where he converted Prince Segana, and many about Coromandel and Bengal, was stoned and stabbed; the Portugueze, at their first settlement, met with Christians there, called St. Thomas's disciples, who held him in great veneration; but perhaps a later Thomas did these things. Philip, after preaching in Upper Asia, Colchis, Phrygia and Scythia, was suspended or crucified at Hierapolis of Phrygia, for opposing worshipping a dragon. Nathanael, son of Tolmai, after preaching in the higher India in Asia, whether he took Matthew's gospel, and in Lycaonia and the greater Armenia, and having converted king Polymius and his wife, the king's brother got him flayed alive, and then crucified. Matthias preached in